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TL;DR: Bring home a power-packed MacBook Air for only $514.99 (reg. $1,299) while supplies last.

Looking for a work computer you can really rely on? Whether your old device frequently runs out of storage or just isn’t speedy enough to handle all your multitasking, today’s jobs need a powerful, yet portable device.

This MacBook Air fits the bill, offering all the bells and whistles you’ve come to expect from Apple in its sleekest size and shape, and right now, one can be yours for just $514.99 (reg. $1,299) — a price cheaper than both Amazon and Walmart.

Don’t be deceived by the size — this MacBook Air is powerful

Need a computer that can keep up with all that you do? This MacBook Air is up for the job thanks to its M1 chip. It offers serious efficiency, so you can tackle even your lengthiest to-do lists and more demanding tasks like video editing. It’s faster than Intel-based laptops, with 3.5x faster performance and 5x faster graphics for apps and games.

Weighing less than three pounds, this MacBook Air can easily slip into any bag. Despite its lightweight design, you can still take advantage of an ample 13.3″ Retina display that supports millions of colors.

A 16-core Neural Engine allows this MacBook Air to handle more advanced tasks like AI and machine learning. And while you’d think all that power could make for a noisy work experience, the fanless design allows for silent operation.

The 128GB SSD provides ample space for your files and apps so that you can save important data right on the device. There’s also no need to stay tethered to an electrical outlet thanks to this MacBook Air’s 18-hour battery life.

If you’re curious why you’re securing such a steep discount, it’s due to this model’s grade A refurbished rating. That means it will arrive in near-mint condition, while you score a low price.

Get your own MacBook Air for just $514.99 (reg. $1,299) while supplies last.

StackSocial prices subject to change.

Opens in a new window Credit: Apple Apple MacBook Air 13.3" (2020) M1 MGN63LL/A 8GB RAM 128GB SSD Space Gray (Refurbished) $514.99
$1,299 Save $784.01 Get Deal

The Brutalist is a towering paean to the American dream, in all its force and folly. Set over several decades, Brady Corbet's post-World War II immigrant saga is — like the architectural achievements of its protagonist — constructed with meticulous consideration, resulting in a work of multifaceted technique and piercing humanity.

The film, arresting from its first frames, spends three-and-a-half engrossing hours on the tale of László Tóth (Adrien Brody), a fictitious Jewish Hungarian architect and survivor of the Holocaust, whose arrival in America yields both rigorous struggle and tempting opportunity. It embodies the kind of American epics no longer really made by Hollywood studios. Comparisons to The Godfather have abounded since its Venice International Film Festival premiere (though as a vast immigrant saga, a more fitting analogy might be The Godfather Part II). Time will tell whether these are hyperbole, but while watching The Brutalist, it's hard not to think of the truly great American stories of the 20th century, like Once Upon a Time In America, and on occasion, even Citizen Kane.

SEE ALSO: The 25 best movies of 2024, and where to watch them

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The latter is the loftiest possible invocation, but it's a comparison of scale and subject matter, not of technical innovation. The Brutalist, for all its splendor, is not a forward-thinking film like Orson Welles' Kane — but this is, in fact, a key piece of its aesthetic and thematic puzzle. The immediacy with which it conjures past masterpieces is part of its enormous thesis on the purpose of art, which it smuggles beneath a soul-stirring saga of survival, one that exists in conversation with, of all things, Ayn Rand's The Fountainhead. The film is both a densely-packed text, filled with rich thought on the world at large, as well as an excitingly rhythmic work of cinema that moves with a fearsome passion. It's hard not to think of it as a new American masterpiece.

What is The Brutalist about?

Written by Corbet and Mona Fastvold, The Brutalist begins in 1947, in a time of reconstruction and uncertainty. When László arrives on Ellis Island — an intimate, disorienting scene that begins in his darkened ship bunk and moves above deck — his wife Erzsébet (Felicity Jones) and niece Zsófia (Raffey Cassidy), from whom he was separated during the war, remain stuck in the Soviet Union.

Taken in by his cousin Attila (Alessandro Nivola) in Philadelphia and working in his furniture shop, László begins proposing unique Modernist designs, until he's commissioned to build a library for a wealthy family, the Van Burens. Over the years, these aristocratic, old-money magnates — the boastful Harrison Lee (Guy Pearce) and his slimy son Harry (Joe Alwyn) — become a vital part of László's story. The film is novelistic in its unfurling, occasionally taking the form of an epistolary, via the letters sent between László and Erzsébet, but to borrow a phrase from a fellow critic, it's also "Great American Novel-istic." László's architectural passions, and his desperation to be reunited with his family, become deeply entwined with his personal and artistic ambitions. To put it simply, money is the solution at every turn, even if it corrodes his soul — but The Brutalist isn't quite so didactic.

While it spends several hours chronicling the way László changes, and is changed by the United States, the temptations of wealth and power are a small subset of the larger forces that mold him into a much angrier and bitter person. A party scene in Harrison's mansion diverts its focus from conversations to slow-motion shots of champagne and expensive jewelry, just as László is about to sign a long-term contract with the family to construct a community center. However, at no point does Corbet cut to reaction shots of László noticing these trinkets. They represent the fabric of the world he's about to enter, though as his chat with Harrison proceeds, he continues to speak of architecture with poetic adoration. ("I always find our conversations intellectually stimulating!" Harrison rasps, disguising the knowledge that he'll never be László's intellectual equal.) Wealth may not change László’s passions, but it might change how he approaches them.

All the while, the film also explores the fraught corners of post-World War II Jewish identity in the West. From the moment László arrives on America's shores, he's presented with questions of assimilation. His cousin Attila has married a Catholic woman, Audrey (Emma Laird), and has converted. The store he runs is called Miller and Sons, even though his last name is (or was) Molnár, the Hungarian equivalent — and as László quips, "You have no sons!" Before long, news of the infant state of Israel reaches him, leading to other Jewish characters in his vicinity wrestling with their rights and obligations.

Filming on The Brutalist was completed in May of last year, before the events of Oct. 7 led to a more widespread discussion on understanding of the colonial aspects of Israel's founding. The film doesn't get into granular detail — László himself may not be aware of the U.N.'s plans for the region, or how they might displace local Arabs — but the looming specter of this conversation imbues the movie with a tragic dilemma. László's options, as a refugee, are to bring other people harm through displacement, or to continue bringing harm to his own soul, through his immersion in American capitalism.

As the film proceeds, it centers a key question that applies to every facet of its construction: "What is strength?"

László's vision for the Van Burens' building — a blocky, pyramidic structure few others seem to understand — is uncompromising to a fault, even if it means pushing other people away in the process. But as the film proceeds, it centers a key question that applies to every facet of its construction: "What is strength?" What is its nature? Is it the materials and the deep concrete foundation László builds? If so, must this come at the cost of the shakier foundation of his roots in a new country? He is always seen as an outsider, whether because of his Jewish-ness, his foreign-ness, or both. Does strength involve living with the physical and psychological pain he's endured, and the strain it puts on his marriage? Or does it involve numbing that pain at any cost?

This thematic exclamation point would mark the end of discussions on most modern American films. But in the case of The Brutalist, it's merely the beginning, thanks in large part to Corbet's multifaceted, referential, and at times reverential use of form.

Every aspect of The Brutalist is finely tuned

What stands out first and foremost about The Brutalist is Adrien Brody's lead performance. It's funny, and stirring, and risible. However, there's not a single moment where the Hungarian-American actor isn't reaching into the depths of his soul, mining some corner of either his previous roles (such as in The Pianist) or of his mother's experience as a Hungarian woman of Jewish descent forced to flee her country in the 1950s. There's an awkwardness to László too, given the way he interacts with the world around him — which is to say, the country around him. To the untrained ear, his Hungarian dialogue (and his Hungarian accent while speaking English) seem just fine, but the Queens-born actor also purges himself of any remotely American intonation or idiosyncrasy. Whether or not he nails Hungarian specificities, he plays "foreigner" to a tee, between the way he gesticulates, to the way he enters and leaves both rooms and conversations. He is, first and foremost, an outsider.

While Brody's work is magnificently pained, let it not go unsaid: Guy Pearce is the movie's secret weapon, as the actor charged with creating the in-groups and inner circles which tacitly reject László in the first place. As Harrison, the Australian actor channels an air of arrogance that the character often smarmily re-frames as benevolence, leading to moments of shockingly casual cruelty towards László, usually played off as jokes. This dynamic is a key part of the story, and of the America in which László starts to assimilate, taking on Harrison's traits in turn.

Corbet's camera helps these performances shine, especially in the moments that The Brutalist takes dark and dour turns. Cinematographer Lol Crawley bathes certain scenes in darkness; his palette's contrasting warmth and shadow may have led to some of the Godfather comparisons, but the film isn’t interested in mere imitation, even though it conjures old-world styles as though they were forgotten spirits.

SEE ALSO: Where to watch the best holiday movies

The Brutalist was shot on VistaVision, an IMAX-like technique first developed in the 1950s, in which 35-millimeter film stock was run sideways through a camera, increasing the surface area of the frame (the movie was subsequently projected on 70-millimeter at its premiere). This results in a crisper, sharper image than results from most modern digital workflows, but The Brutalist also appears to employ older lenses with numerous flaws, and razor-thin margin for what is or isn't in focus, revealing new dimensions to spaces and even people. Between its use of era-appropriate techniques and withered tools, The Brutalist ends up existing in a liminal space between past and present; it's simultaneously of an older era, as well as a window to that era, revealing a complicated relationship to the past.

'The Brutalist' ends up existing in a liminal space between past and present; it's simultaneously of an older era, as well as a window to that era, revealing a complicated relationship to the past.

For László, this relationship manifests as a pull-and-push between art and industry, and a struggle to preserve the forms his buildings take under capitalist constraints. However, the film itself takes intriguing form as well, wielding a litany of techniques owed to numerous different film movements over the years (that they even remotely gel together is something miraculous). The Brutalist is, in large part, shot with the classical composition of old Hollywood, with controlled framing and movement, but it often breaks from this norm.

On occasion, one might find the pronounced jump cuts of the French New Wave (created, ironically, as a response to the classic Hollywood studios), alongside the use of Soviet montage, accompanied — equally ironically — by voiceover and spliced footage from American propaganda newsreels about industrial innovation. The stark and careful shadows of Godfather cinematographer Gordon Willis, of New Hollywood, find themselves alongside techniques from contemporary independent movements in New York, like the freewheeling, improvisational, up-close-and-personal style of John Cassavetes. You might even find some Hungarian influence if you look closely enough (certain shots are owed to Béla Tarr, while others to László Nemes), and as the film moves forward through time, it even pulls from Lynchian surrealism, and techniques developed during the early video revolution.

Corbet's use of these contrasting techniques isn't just pronounced, but powerful and purposeful. He employs them to create jolting moments of narrative impact, but he also seems to pay homage to the history of the cinematic medium (and its development) as a means to embody the very story he's telling, about the complicated ways in which people hold on to the past. And, as a film that's as much about László's painful history as it is about America's past, it makes for an aesthetic refutation of one of its biggest influences: Ayn Rand.

The Brutalist remixes and transforms The Fountainhead

The Brutalist owes much of its story and structure to Rand's The Fountainhead, from its basic premise of an uncompromising architect, to plot developments like László being plucked from toil and obscurity to create something lasting; he shovels coal for a period, the same way Rand's hero Howard Roark worked in a granite quarry. But as visualized in King Vidor's much-maligned 1949 film version of the book — which stars Gary Cooper, and for which Rand herself wrote the screenplay — Modernist and Brutalist architecture take on a fascistic tone in The Fountainhead. They become about leaving the past behind, and shaking off the influences of Graeco-Roman styles, in favor of a "form flows from function" approach. This function-first belief, though it has older origins, was notably espoused by Adolf Hitler, who abhorred "stupid imitations of the past."

Brutalism, though it has more egalitarian origins like low-income social housing, does have a stylistic and philosophical overlap with totalitarian architecture. Both come to similar aesthetic conclusions — the angular, the monochrome, the display of materials — albeit for very different reasons. Vidor's The Fountainhead, in which Roark creates in a Modernist style verging on Brutalist, arguably does a disservice to form, both as an architectural concept, and a filmic one. In Vidor’s story, the influence of the past is framed as a cloying, constraining force intent on snuffing out individuality, and the way that story is told is similarly functional (the film has its charms, but it's straightforward in its presentation, and rote in its delivery of dialogue).

Vidor's film is hardly a defining pillar of modern American politics, but Rand's Objectivist philosophies certainly are. Her rejection of collectivism both tapped into and subsequently clarified the heart of American capitalism — the very same heart Corbet puts on display, and presents as a magnetic force for László, pulling him toward more autocratic ideals. The Brutalist never expands on László’s political outlook, or that of his wife, because the movie's immigrant characters tend to tiptoe around these questions, from poor and wealthy Americans alike, at a time when foreigners (and communists) were looked upon with suspicion. However, Corbet leaves plenty by way of breadcrumbs to figure out what their beliefs might be, and how those beliefs come into immediate conflict with the ideals of their adopted home.

'The Brutalist' is, deep in its bones, a collectivist film that not only places immense emotional value on people and their history, but creates and embodies that value too.

Though he puts on an uncompromising front when it comes to his designs, László is always found compromising when it comes to belief, and the way he conducts himself. These are tensions The Brutalist works into every scene, making its gargantuan runtime seem like a piece of cake. It's a film from which you cannot look away, and wouldn't want to — even when it takes dark and dour turns, whose presentation verges on the phantasmagorical.

As much as The Brutalist is a film of steel and concrete, it's a film of the spirit too, and the way the soul is built and constructed from local materials. It's about all the things that make America, and make American stories. Ultimately, when the movie reveals a previously obscured detail about László's work, it makes for a devastating cinematic mic drop that elucidates its meaning in complicated ways, while exposing the risk of having that meaning distorted and re-appropriated. It reclaims even the Randian notion that Modernism, Brutalism, and progress at large are ideals that must be cut off from the past, and from connections to other human beings. The Brutalist is, deep in its bones, a collectivist film that not only places immense emotional value on people and their history, but creates and embodies that value too.

The Brutalist is now streaming on Max.

UPDATE: Dec. 19, 2024, 2:10 p.m. EST "The Brutalist" was reviewed on Sept. 2, 2024 out of its World Premiere at the Venice International Film Festival. This post has been updated to include the most current streaming options.

Apple's new CarPlay Ultra is only available on Aston Martin cars right now, but at least you can check it out on video.

Two videos, actually. Aston Martin posted a short teaser showing what the CarPlay Ultra, integrated into an Aston Martin DBX, looks like. The video shows Apple's UI integrated not only into the main, center display, but also into the instrument cluster in front of the driver, which we've never seen before.

For much more detail, check out Top Gear's overview of the system in an actual Aston Martin car (which, by the way, starts at about $250,000, meaning most of us won't be trying it out for ourselves).

The 18-minute video below is well worth watching, but there are a few key takeaways that should be pointed out. First of all, while the new Ultra system is similar to Apple CarPlay of old, it is basically a full takeover of the car's infotainment system. You'll see familiar Apple user interface details everywhere, be it in the climate controls, navigation, or the instrument cluster.

SEE ALSO: Apple finally rolls out CarPlay Ultra, but not for you

Various themes are on offer, allowing you to customize the UI's look; for example, you can completely do away with the round speedometer and instead have a colorful set of lines giving you info on the speed you're traveling at, and how much fuel you've got left. You can also set up some widgets, much as you would on your phone or tablet.

Very important: Once the system is set up, it doesn't require any additional setting up if you just want to sit into the car and drive, though it looks like some features will require your phone to connect.

While some of Aston Martin's own design does show up occasionally, it's all wrapped into a familiar Apple interface, and it all looks fairly polished. Given how bad car manufacturers sometimes are at designing their own interface, Apple CarPlay Ultra is a very neat alternative. Now, if only other manufacturers would hurry up and integrate this, we'd be much obliged.

Connections: Sports Edition is a new version of the popular New York Times word game that seeks to test the knowledge of sports fans.

Like the original Connections, the game is all about finding the "common threads between words." And just like Wordle, Connections resets after midnight and each new set of words gets trickier and trickier—so we've served up some hints and tips to get you over the hurdle.

If you just want to be told today's puzzle, you can jump to the end of this article for the latest Connections solution. But if you'd rather solve it yourself, keep reading for some clues, tips, and strategies to assist you.

SEE ALSO: Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more: Play games on Mashable What is Connections Sports Edition?

The NYT's latest daily word game has launched in association with The Athletic, the New York Times property that provides the publication's sports coverage. Connections can be played on both web browsers and mobile devices and require players to group four words that share something in common.

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Each puzzle features 16 words and each grouping of words is split into four categories. These sets could comprise of anything from book titles, software, country names, etc. Even though multiple words will seem like they fit together, there's only one correct answer.

If a player gets all four words in a set correct, those words are removed from the board. Guess wrong and it counts as a mistake—players get up to four mistakes until the game ends.

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Players can also rearrange and shuffle the board to make spotting connections easier. Additionally, each group is color-coded with yellow being the easiest, followed by green, blue, and purple. Like Wordle, you can share the results with your friends on social media.

Here's a hint for today's Connections Sports Edition categories

Want a hint about the categories without being told the categories? Then give these a try:

• Yellow: Seen on the diamond

• Green: Needed on the course

• Blue: England's best

  Purple: Texas teams

Featured Video For You Connections: How to play and how to win Here are today's Connections Sports Edition categories

Need a little extra help? Today's connections fall into the following categories:

• Yellow: In front of

• Green: Found in a golf bag

• Blue: Premier League team nicknames

• Purple: Dallas ___

Looking for Wordle today? Here's the answer to today's Wordle.

Ready for the answers? This is your last chance to turn back and solve today's puzzle before we reveal the solutions.

Drumroll, please!

The solution to today's Connections Sports Edition #235 is...

What is the answer to Connections Sports Edition today

• In front of - AHEAD, LEADING, ON TOP, UP

• ACC schools - DUKE, LOUISVILLE, PITTSBURGH, VIRGINIA

• French star athletes, past and present - HENRY, PARKER, WEMBANYAMA, ZIDANE

• Last four WNBA No. 1 picks - BOSTON, BUECKERS, CLARK, HOWARD

Don't feel down if you didn't manage to guess it this time. There will be new Connections for you to stretch your brain with tomorrow, and we'll be back again to guide you with more helpful hints.

Are you also playing NYT Strands? See hints and answers for today's Strands.

If you're looking for more puzzles, Mashable's got games now! Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.

Not the day you're after? Here's the solution to yesterday's Connections.

The Mini is a bite-sized version of The New York Times' revered daily crossword. While the crossword is a lengthier experience that requires both knowledge and patience to complete, The Mini is an entirely different vibe.

With only a handful of clues to answer, the daily puzzle doubles as a speed-running test for many who play it.

So, when a tricky clue disrupts a player's flow, it can be frustrating! If you find yourself stumped playing The Mini — much like with Wordle and Connections — we have you covered.

SEE ALSO: Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more: Play games on Mashable

Here are the clues and answers to NYT's The Mini for Friday, May 16, 2025:

AcrossUnit of distance that can precede "stone" and "age"

• The answer is Mile.

Kind of powder used for hot chocolate

• The answer is Cocoa.

On the button

• The answer is Exact.

Connections

• The answer is Links.

"___ not and say we did!"

• The answer is Lets.

DownGutsy determination

• The answer is Moxie.

"That's not gonna work for me"

• The answer is ICant.

Strands

• The answer is Locks.

Has a bite

• The answer is Eats.

Spreadsheet unit

• The answer is Cell.

If you're looking for more puzzles, Mashable's got games now! Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.

Featured Video For You The Wordle Strategy used by the New York Times' Head of Games

Are you also playing NYT Strands? See hints and answers for today's Strands.

Not the day you're after? Here's the solution to yesterday's Mini Crossword.

Following the sell-out success of their heavenly first collaboration, Casetify and cult-favorite collectible Sonny Angel are teaming up once again, and the result is pure serotonin.

Dubbed Wild Haven, the duo’s second collection is a technicolor dreamscape filled with cheeky forest creatures, nostalgic charm, and just the right amount of kitsch.

This time around, Casetify leans even deeper into Sonny Angel’s whimsical universe, turning your everyday tech accessories into a pocket-sized utopia. Think vibrant phone cases covered in leafy motifs and pastel cherubic critters, collectible iPad cases, trendy phone charms, and MagSafe wallets that might just make you smile every time you reach for your device.

Credit: Courtesy of CASETiFY

At the heart of the collection is the Sonny Angel HIPPERS Series of mini dolls, reimagined on Casetify's signature customizable phone cases. Fans can now add up to nine characters of text, a playful nod to the hyper-personalization trend dominating Gen Z style right now.

Also launching in limited quantities: the Sonny Angel Wild Dreams Set, a collectible drop that’s expected to fly off shelves as quickly as the first.

Credit: Courtesy of CASETiFY

But the magic doesn’t stop online. From May 16 to 18, Casetify and Sonny Angel are bringing Wild Haven to life with a surreal, immersive pop-up in the heart of New York City’s SoHo neighborhood.

Located at 21 Spring Street, the space will transform into a lush animal sanctuary-meets-retail fantasy, complete with photo ops, exclusive merch, and first access to the collection. It's part shop, part Instagram playground — and if the previous drop is anything to go by, expect lines and limited-edition chaos.

The aesthetic? Picture this: cottagecore with a Y2K twist, filtered through the rose-tinted lens of collectible culture. It’s the kind of universe where tech meets fantasy, and where your phone case can double as a conversation starter. And while the collection is undeniably cute, it also speaks to something larger happening in fashion and design: a return to joy, to play, and to the little things that make us smile.

Credit: Courtesy of CASETiFY Credit: Courtesy of CASETiFY

The Sonny Angel x Casetify: Wild Haven collection is available starting today, May 16, at casetify.com/co-lab, in the Co-Lab app, and at Casetify Studio locations globally.

So, whether you're deep in your Sonny Angel era or just looking to give your phone a glow-up, Wild Haven is your next serotonin boost in accessory form.

TL;DR: Through April 27, Koofr’s lifetime cloud storage deal is at an all-time low price with code KOOFR at checkout: $119.97 (reg. $159.99).

Opens in a new window Credit: Koofr Koofr Cloud Storage: Lifetime Subscription (1TB) $119.97
$810 Save $690.03 with code KOOFR Get Deal

You know that quiet dread when the monthly cloud storage fee hits your card — again? It’s not huge, but it adds up. And for what? A few PDFs, some photos you forgot to organize, and maybe that video project you swear you’ll finish someday. 

If you're tired of renting space in the digital void, here’s your chance to escape. Rather than paying each month, Koofr will give you 1TB of cloud storage for a one-time fee. You also caught this deal at just the right time, because you can use code KOOFR at checkout to take the price from $159.99 to $119.97 for a limited time.

Here’s why we love this deal

Koofr takes your privacy seriously with top-notch encryption for your files, both when they're being transferred and while they're stored. They also don’t track your activity, so you can rest easy knowing your data is secure and private.

What really stands out about Koofr’s cloud storage is how flexible and user-friendly it is. Whether you're on your smartphone, desktop, or using WebDAV, you can easily access and manage your files from anywhere. The interface is straightforward, so even if you're new to cloud storage, you’ll find it easy to use.

Plus, if you’re already using other cloud services like Dropbox, Google Drive, Amazon, or OneDrive, Koofr integrates smoothly, letting you handle everything from one place.

And for keeping your digital space in order, Koofr has some neat features. The duplicate file finder helps you eliminate unnecessary repeats, while advanced renaming options let you customize file links. This way, you can keep your files organized and your digital space clutter-free.

Keep your files safe and sound with a Koofr 1TB Cloud Storage lifetime subscription for $119.97 with promo code KOOFR. StackSocial prices subject to change. 

TL;DR: Live stream the Champions League, Europa League, and Conference League finals for free on discovery+. Access these free live streams from anywhere in the world with ExpressVPN.

Following any sport can be really expensive, but following football is getting out of hand. There are a bunch of different subscription services offering coverage of select tournaments, meaning you need to shell out for multiple plans to get access to everything. It's a cold, dark world out there in the land of sports streaming, but every now and then we get a little treat to keep us coming back for more.

It is possible to live stream the Champions League, Europa League, and Conference League finals for free this year. Want to know how to access these free live streams from anywhere in the world? We have all the information you need.

When are the Champions League, Europa League, and Conference League finals?

The full schedule for the Champions League, Europa League, and Conference League finals is as follows:

• Tottenham Hotspur vs. Manchester United (Europa League Final) — 3 p.m. ET on May 21

• Real Betis vs. Chelsea (Conference League Final) — 3 p.m. ET on May 28

• PSG vs. Inter Milan (Champions League Final) — 3 p.m. ET on May 31

Make a note of these dates and times and commit them to memory, because you can watch every game without spending anything.

How to watch the Champions League, Europa League, and Conference League finals for free

Fans can live stream the Champions League, Europa League, and Conference League finals for free on discovery+. All you need to do is sign up for a free account to watch these finals on discovery+.

These free live streams are not available all around the world, but anyone can secure access with a VPN. These tools can hide your real IP address (digital location) and connect you to a secure server in the UK, meaning you can live stream these finals for free on discovery+ from anywhere in the world.

Live stream the Champions League, Europa League, and Conference League finals for free by following these simple steps:

1. Subscribe to a streaming-friendly VPN (like ExpressVPN)

2. Download the app to your device of choice (the best VPNs have apps for Windows, Mac, iOS, Android, Linux, and more)

3. Open up the app and connect to a server in the UK

4. Sign up for a free account on discovery+

5. Stream Champions League, Europa League, and Conference League finals for free from anywhere in the world

Opens in a new window Credit: ExpressVPN ExpressVPN (2-Year Subscription + 4 Months Free) $139 at ExpressVPN (with money-back guarantee) Get Deal

The best VPNs for streaming are not free, but leading VPNs do tend to offer free-trial periods or money-back guarantees. By making the most of these offers, you can gain access to discovery+ without actually spending anything. This is not a long-term solution, but it gives you plenty of time to stream the Champions League, Europa League, and Conference League finals (plus the French Open) before recovering your investment.

If you want to retain permanent access to free streaming services from around the world, you'll need a subscription. Fortunately, the best VPN for streaming is on sale for a limited time.

What is the best VPN for Discovery+?

ExpressVPN is the best service for streaming live sport from around the world, for a number of reasons:

• Servers in 105 countries including the UK

• Easy-to-use app available on all major devices including iPhone, Android, Windows, Mac, and more

• Strict no-logging policy so your data is secure

• Fast connection speeds free from throttling

• Up to eight simultaneous connections

• 30-day money-back guarantee

A two-year subscription to ExpressVPN is on sale for $139 and includes an extra four months for free — 61% off for a limited time. This plan also includes a year of free unlimited cloud backup and a generous 30-day money-back guarantee.

Live streamthe Champions League, Europa League, and Conference League finals for free with ExpressVPN.

The best deals this week, hand-picked by Mashable's team of experts

• Roku Ultra 4K Ultimate Streaming Player (2024 Release) — $79.99 (List Price $99.99)

• Beats Pill Bluetooth Speaker — $99.95 (List Price $149.00)

• Roborock Qrevo Master Robot Vacuum and Mop — $799.98 (List Price $1599.99)

• Peloton Bike — $1,145.00 (List Price $1445.00)

• Apple AirTag (4-Pack) — $79.98 (List Price $99.00)

If you like playing daily word games like Wordle, then Hurdle is a great game to add to your routine.

There are five rounds to the game. The first round sees you trying to guess the word, with correct, misplaced, and incorrect letters shown in each guess. If you guess the correct answer, it'll take you to the next hurdle, providing the answer to the last hurdle as your first guess. This can give you several clues or none, depending on the words. For the final hurdle, every correct answer from previous hurdles is shown, with correct and misplaced letters clearly shown.

An important note is that the number of times a letter is highlighted from previous guesses does necessarily indicate the number of times that letter appears in the final hurdle.

If you find yourself stuck at any step of today's Hurdle, don't worry! We have you covered.

SEE ALSO: Hurdle: Everything you need to know to find the answers Hurdle Word 1 hint

To stop by.

SEE ALSO: Apple’s new M3 MacBook Air is $300 off at Amazon. And yes, I’m tempted. Hurdle Word 1 answer

VISIT

Hurdle Word 2 hint

How to have a cafe.

SEE ALSO: Wordle today: Answer, hints for May 16, 2025 Hurdle Word 2 Answer

DECAF

Hurdle Word 3 hint

A lump in the body.

SEE ALSO: NYT Connections Sports Edition today: Hints and answers for May 16 SEE ALSO: NYT Connections hints today: Clues, answers for May 16, 2025 Hurdle Word 3 answer

TUMOR

Hurdle Word 4 hint

Overly sentimental.

SEE ALSO: NYT Strands hints, answers for May 16 Hurdle Word 4 answer

SAPPY

Final Hurdle hint

Where one might find an alligator.

SEE ALSO: Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more: Games available on Mashable Hurdle Word 5 answer

SWAMP

If you're looking for more puzzles, Mashable's got games now! Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.

It's no exaggeration to say that portable chargers and power banks are one of life's essentials in the 21st Century. OK, it’s not quite the end of the world if your phone runs out of juice, but we pretty much live our lives through smart devices, so it will impact your working day and social life — until you can find a power point.

Carrying a portable charger removes the need for power points, allowing you to top up your smart device battery as and when required. It just makes sense to have one tucked away in your bag or pocket.

When it comes to buying a portable charger, you have a lot of choice, with plenty of different brands, configurations, and price points available. It also depends on what device you'll be charging, where you'll be doing the charging, and how much charge you'll need. Fortunately, we can help steer you in the right, fully-powered direction.

Here's some useful information and a roundup of the best power banks and chargers.

How do portable chargers work?

It's not complicated. Pop the charger in your bag and connect to your device when you’re low on juice. For added convenience, try a portable wireless charger. You don’t even need to bother connecting your device to the charger with a cable — just pop your device on top of the wireless charger and it charges automatically.

How much power does a portable charger provide?

We’ve noted the milliampere hour (mAh) of each charger. This refers to the capacity of the charger’s battery — the amount of electric charge it can deliver. Ultimately, the higher the mAh, the more charge you’ll get. More powerful chargers may give your phone around three full charges before you need to top up the charger itself (or more if they’re super powerful). Budget chargers will give you just one top-up. Think about your lifestyle and power needs before you purchase a portable charger.

What devices do portable chargers work with?

That’s the beauty of a standard portable charger: They’re pretty much universal. As long as your device has a USB connection, or another kind of widely-used port, you can connect it and start charging. There are exceptions, such as brand specific technology (see the MagSafe charger below) but most of the chargers on this list are universal.

Which USB connections to portable chargers use? 

It’s worth noting what connections a portable charger uses before parting with your cash. It seems like USB trends are constantly changing and upgrading, with your classic USB-A no longer the standard. Still, the most common connection ports you’ll find on chargers are USB-A, USB-C, and Lightning. You can always buy a cable that converts from one to another if needs be.

What is MagSafe charging?

This is Apple-designed technology that uses magnets to hold your device in an optimum charging position, ensuring safe and fast charging. You'll recognise it as a big circle that keeps your iPhone in place. But make sure your phone has a compatible MagSafe case, otherwise the charging won't work. MagSafe is a good option for anyone who has an up-to-date Apple phone, AirPods, or Apple Watch.

What is the best portable charger?

We have searched high and low for the best devices on the market, and carefully looked into all these vital questions to help you make an informed, well-charged decision.

These are the best portable chargers and power banks in 2025.

Connections is the one of the most popular New York Times word games that's captured the public's attention. The game is all about finding the "common threads between words." And just like Wordle, Connections resets after midnight and each new set of words gets trickier and trickier—so we've served up some hints and tips to get you over the hurdle.

If you just want to be told today's puzzle, you can jump to the end of this article for today's Connections solution. But if you'd rather solve it yourself, keep reading for some clues, tips, and strategies to assist you.

SEE ALSO: Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more: Play games on Mashable What is Connections?

The NYT's latest daily word game has become a social media hit. The Times credits associate puzzle editor Wyna Liu with helping to create the new word game and bringing it to the publications' Games section. Connections can be played on both web browsers and mobile devices and require players to group four words that share something in common.

This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.

Each puzzle features 16 words and each grouping of words is split into four categories. These sets could comprise of anything from book titles, software, country names, etc. Even though multiple words will seem like they fit together, there's only one correct answer.

If a player gets all four words in a set correct, those words are removed from the board. Guess wrong and it counts as a mistake—players get up to four mistakes until the game ends.

This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.

Players can also rearrange and shuffle the board to make spotting connections easier. Additionally, each group is color-coded with yellow being the easiest, followed by green, blue, and purple. Like Wordle, you can share the results with your friends on social media.

SEE ALSO: NYT's The Mini crossword answers for May 16 Here's a hint for today's Connections categories

Want a hint about the categories without being told the categories? Then give these a try:

• Yellow: Greenery

• Green: Termination

• Blue: Stubborn as a ____

• Purple: What a structure could be made of

Featured Video For You Connections: How to play and how to win Here are today's Connections categories

Need a little extra help? Today's connections fall into the following categories:

• Yellow: Kinds of plants

• Green: Discontinue

• Blue: Associated with bulls

• Purple: Ending with building materials

Looking for Wordle today? Here's the answer to today's Wordle.

Ready for the answers? This is your last chance to turn back and solve today's puzzle before we reveal the solutions.

Drumroll, please!

The solution to today's Connections #705 is...

What is the answer to Connections today

• Kinds of plants: HERB, SHRUB, TREE, VINE

• Discontinue: DISSOLVE, END, SCRAP, SUNSET

• Associated with bulls: MICHAEL JORDAN, RODEO, TAURUS, WALL STREET

• Ending with building materials: HOLLYWOOD, HOURGLASS, KUBRICK, NEUROPLASTIC

Don't feel down if you didn't manage to guess it this time. There will be new Connections for you to stretch your brain with tomorrow, and we'll be back again to guide you with more helpful hints.

SEE ALSO: NYT Connections Sports Edition today: Hints and answers for May 16

Are you also playing NYT Strands? See hints and answers for today's Strands.

If you're looking for more puzzles, Mashable's got games now! Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.

Not the day you're after? Here's the solution to yesterday's Connections.

If you're reading this, you're looking for a little help playing Strands, the New York Times' elevated word-search game.

Strands requires the player to perform a twist on the classic word search. Words can be made from linked letters — up, down, left, right, or diagonal, but words can also change direction, resulting in quirky shapes and patterns. Every single letter in the grid will be part of an answer. There's always a theme linking every solution, along with the "spangram," a special, word or phrase that sums up that day's theme, and spans the entire grid horizontally or vertically.

SEE ALSO: Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more: Play games on Mashable

By providing an opaque hint and not providing the word list, Strands creates a brain-teasing game that takes a little longer to play than its other games, like Wordle and Connections.

If you're feeling stuck or just don't have 10 or more minutes to figure out today's puzzle, we've got all the NYT Strands hints for today's puzzle you need to progress at your preferrined pace.

SEE ALSO: Wordle today: Answer, hints for May 16 SEE ALSO: NYT Connections hints today: Clues, answers for May 16 NYT Strands hint for today’s theme: To a degree

The words are education-related.

Today’s NYT Strands theme plainly explained

These words are things found at an educational ceremony.

NYT Strands spangram hint: Is it vertical or horizontal?

Today's NYT Strands spangram is vertical.

NYT Strands spangram answer today

Today's spangram is Graduation

Featured Video For You Strands 101: How to win NYT’s latest word game NYT Strands word list for May 16

• Speech

• Diploma

• Photo

• Graduation

• Procession

• Tassel

• Gown

Looking for other daily online games? Mashable's Games page has more hints, and if you're looking for more puzzles, Mashable's got games now!

Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.

Not the day you're after? Here's the solution to yesterday's Strands.

Oh hey there! If you're here, it must be time for Wordle. As always, we're serving up our daily hints and tips to help you figure out today's answer.

If you just want to be told today's word, you can jump to the bottom of this article for today's Wordle solution revealed. But if you'd rather solve it yourself, keep reading for some clues, tips, and strategies to assist you.

SEE ALSO: Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more: Play games on Mashable SEE ALSO: NYT Connections today: Hints and answers for May 16 Where did Wordle come from?

Originally created by engineer Josh Wardle as a gift for his partner, Wordle rapidly spread to become an international phenomenon, with thousands of people around the globe playing every day. Alternate Wordle versions created by fans also sprang up, including battle royale Squabble, music identification game Heardle, and variations like Dordle and Quordle that make you guess multiple words at once. 

Wordle eventually became so popular that it was purchased by the New York Times, and TikTok creators even livestream themselves playing.

What's the best Wordle starting word?

The best Wordle starting word is the one that speaks to you. But if you prefer to be strategic in your approach, we have a few ideas to help you pick a word that might help you find the solution faster. One tip is to select a word that includes at least two different vowels, plus some common consonants like S, T, R, or N.

What happened to the Wordle archive?

The entire archive of past Wordle puzzles was originally available for anyone to enjoy whenever they felt like it, but it was later taken down, with the website's creator stating it was done at the request of the New York Times. However, the New York Times then rolled out its own Wordle Archive, available only to NYT Games subscribers.

Is Wordle getting harder?

It might feel like Wordle is getting harder, but it actually isn't any more difficult than when it first began. You can turn on Wordle's Hard Mode if you're after more of a challenge, though.

SEE ALSO: NYT's The Mini crossword answers for May 16, 2025 Here's a subtle hint for today's Wordle answer:

After the fourth.

Does today's Wordle answer have a double letter?

The letter F appears twice.

Today's Wordle is a 5-letter word that starts with...

Today's Wordle starts with the letter F.

SEE ALSO: Wordle-obsessed? These are the best word games to play IRL. The Wordle answer today is...

Get your last guesses in now, because it's your final chance to solve today's Wordle before we reveal the solution.

Drumroll please!

The solution to today's Wordle is...

FIFTH.

Don't feel down if you didn't manage to guess it this time. There will be a new Wordle for you to stretch your brain with tomorrow, and we'll be back again to guide you with more helpful hints.

Are you also playing NYT Strands? See hints and answers for today's Strands.

SEE ALSO: NYT Connections Sports Edition today: Hints and answers for May 16

Reporting by Chance Townsend, Caitlin Welsh, Sam Haysom, Amanda Yeo, Shannon Connellan, Cecily Mauran, Mike Pearl, and Adam Rosenberg contributed to this article.

If you're looking for more puzzles, Mashable's got games now! Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.

Not the day you're after? Here's the solution to yesterday's Wordle.

Back in 2022, Panasonic released a men’s grooming tool called the MultiShape. It had a simple value proposition: Built with swappable heads, this multi-groomer lets you combine a beard trimmer, body groomer, electric razor, nose hair trimmer, and electric toothbrush into one gadget.

Three years later, I’m still using that same MultiShape on a near-daily basis. In that time, Panasonic has also introduced new accessories for this multi-groomer, including hair clipping tools, a facial brush, and an electric foot scrubber. Is it weird to brush your teeth and scrub your feet with the same device? Yup, and that's why I recommend choosing your accessories wisely.

We saw this men's multigroomer hit a new record-low price of $147 recently, and at the time of writing, you can get it for $170. Obviously, it's not as steep a price cut, but it's still $40 off full price.

Opens in a new window Credit: Panasonic Panasonic MultiShape Ultimate All-In-One Kit $170 at Panasonic
$210 Save $40 Get Deal What makes this grooming gadget unique?

After the MultiShape came out, I expected Philips-Norelco, Braun, and other big brands to launch similar multitools. However, it's still the only gadget that can go from electric toothbrush to beard trimmer to electric shaver. The MultiShape is also waterproof, so you can clean it pretty easily.

I use the MultiShape for daily shaving. Credit: Timothy Beck Werth / Mashable It's also one of the only beard trimmers that can trim long hair. Credit: Timothy Beck Werth / Mashable

When this product first came out, GQ called it a “god-tier” grooming tool. Whenever I write about the MultiShape, I reference that line because it pretty much sums up my experience. I’ve tested hundreds of grooming products. So. Many. Grooming. Products. I’m probably one of the few men in the world who has more beauty products than his female partner. A lot more. As I write this, I have a locker next to my desk filled to the brim with beard trimmers, beard oils, face moisturizers, retinol serums, face masks — you name it. The vast majority of these products I never recommend; I'm only looking for the rare exceptions.

I’ve written about the MultiShape a few times over the years, and it’s the grooming product I use more than any other. As someone with a longer beard, it’s one of the few beard trimmers that can handle longer hair. Popular trimmers from Philips-Norelco just don’t work for long facial hair, unfortunately. It’s also my everyday shaving tool. When I travel, I bring the electric toothbrush head. The other tools I use on more sensitive areas — like my ears — so I'll leave it at that.

Right now, you can grab a MultiShape all-in-one kit from Panasonic on sale for $170. You can also buy the MultiShape with a handful of pre-selected accessories at Amazon or build your own kit at Panasonic.

Best Panasonic MultiShape Kits All-in-one kit Panasonic MultiShape All-in-One Kit $150 (save $40 ) Get Deal For Amazon shoppers Panasonic MultiShape Trim and Shave Kit $87.09 (Save $42.90) Shop Now For guys without beards Panasonic MultiShape Clean Cut Shaver Kit $149.99 Shop Now For beard trimming Panasonic MultiShape Beard Trimmer Kit $79.99 Shop Now Build your own kit Panasonic MultiShape and accessories Starting at $85 Shop Now

With apologies to anyone hoping this prequel show might squeeze in a season 3 before the events of Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016), Andor has reached its inevitable bittersweet conclusion.

Even the title of the last episode of season 2 now on Disney+ — "Jedha, Kyber, Erso" — reminds us of the tragic movie narrative in store for Cassian Andor (Diego Luna). That list (a planet, a crystal, an engineer) is what sucks Cassian, along with reprogrammed Imperial droid K-2SO (Alan Tudyk) and Andor's old prison buddy Melshi (Duncan Pow), into the hunt for those all-important Death Star plans, at the cost of all their lives.

So now we have a complete narrative, the longest unbroken one in the Star Wars franchise; call it the Death Star trilogy. Andor ends minutes before Rogue One, which itself ends minutes before the 1977 movie now known as Star Wars: Episode IV — A New Hope.

That's a lot of data tapes to take in at once, so here's a Yavin-style debrief that can handle your biggest burning questions.

What happens to Cassian next? Enjoy your last ever stroll, Captain Andor. Credit: Disney+

As his show ends, Captain Cassian Andor, Head of Rebel Intelligence (his full title, only used in Rogue One) is on his way to meet with a source named Tivik (Daniel Mays) on a deep-space trading outpost called Kafrene. Cassian knows Tivik already, from some time between the show's BBY time jumps — so don't worry, you didn't miss him in Andor.

Tivik is one of the informants that General Draven (Alistair Petrie) placed inside the increasingly paranoid team of rebels led by Saw Gerrera (Forest Whitaker) on Jedha. The information he'll only give to Cassian is that an Imperial pilot has defected with a message from Galen Erso, engineer of a weapon that Tivik reveals for the first time is a "planet killer": the Death Star.

The meeting doesn't go well, as you may recall. Tivik is so anxious he draws the attention of Stormtroopers, and his broken arm means he can't climb out of their dead-end meeting place. Cassian is forced to kill Tivik along with the troopers — his most morally compromised action yet.

SEE ALSO: What is BBY? A guide to 'Andor' time

At the same time, Draven sends Melshi to extract Jyn Erso (Felicity Jones), daughter of Death Star engineer Galen (Mads Mikkelsen), from an Imperial work camp on the planet Wobani. Andor meets Erso back on Yavin IV, then takes her to Jedha for a fateful meeting with Saw. The defecting pilot brought a message from Galen Erso, who reveals he's put a flaw in the Death Star.

That flaw can only be found in the data tapes housed on the Imperial planet of Scarif. Which is where Cassian and Jyn die, courtesy of a Death Star attack, having transmitted the plans that will find their way to Princess Leia (Carrie Fisher), and ultimately save the Rebellion in A New Hope.

Was there a budding romance between Cassian and Jyn on that Scarif beach as they faced their doom, or just a close friendship? It's still an open-ended question, but Andor gives us reason to think Cassian actually had the love of his life on his mind as he was vaporized by the explosion.

What happens to Bix? Credit: Disney+

At the very end of Andor, we see Bix Caleen (Adria Arjona) back on the farming planet of Mina-Rau, where she and Cassian lived during the first three episodes of Season 2. Turns out this was the secret location where she fled a year before, BBY 2, to stop getting in the way of Cassian's essential work for the Rebellion.

Not very secret, in other words — suggesting that she was torn about her selfless act, and wanted Cassian to find her easily. This gives fresh poignancy to what Vel (Faye Marsay) tells Cassian in the final episode of Andor, that he should look her up. He promises to do so after his next mission (sob!).

As she searches the sky for a love who will never return, Bix also has the show's final surprise in her arms: her child, and yes, definitely Cassian's. We don't know anything about the child, not even its gender, so it's possible this is a character that will crop up in future Star Wars entertainment.

For now, think of the scene as mirroring the final shot of Rogue One. The child in Bix's arms, like the Death Star plans in Leia's hands, provides a new hope.

What about Cassian's sister?

Before his final fateful walk on Yavin at the end of Andor — during which he sees the Force healer one last time — Cassian has a dream where he sees his long-lost sister as she was back on his home world, Kenari. The entire narrative of Andor began with him chasing down reports of a Kenari woman on the industrial planet of Morlani.

So, has he found her or not?

SEE ALSO: 'Andor' showrunner Tony Gilroy explains how the Force just awakened

Given that Cassian just helped rescue Luthen's assistant Kleya (Elizabeth Dulau) and her vital information on Erso, and given that we learned Kleya (in season 2, episode 10) was found by Luthen as a war orphan on an unnamed planet at around the same age as Cassian's sister, you might be forgiven for thinking they're one and the same. But that's not the case.

"His sister died on Kenari," Andor showrunner Tony Gilroy confirmed to Mashable. "Her absence is much more valuable as a motivator" for Cassian, in order to give him a "savior complex" that drives him to rescue people whenever he can — including Kleya, a character Gilroy intended to reveal as the real brains behind Luthen's nascent rebel network.

What happens to Saw Gerrera and the rest of the rebels?

"We're running on fumes," Tivik tells Cassian in that fateful meeting at the start of Rogue One. He's talking about Saw Gerrera's ragtag operation on Jedha, which receives only suspicion, not aid, from rebel HQ on Yavin.

We thought Tivik was just talking metaphorically — but now, thanks to Andor, there's a literal meaning too. Saw is addicted to the fumes given off by rhydonium or "rhydo," a volatile fuel for starships, which explains his need for a breathing apparatus in Rogue One.

Saw also appears to be inducting newcomers by making them inhale rhydo, on the grounds that "revolution is not for the sane" and that the rebels need to be more like rhydo themselves — "the thing that explodes when there's too much friction in the air."

As crazy as he is, Saw is not wrong: With the fast-approaching completion of the Death Star, the Rebellion needs more friction in order to explode it.

SEE ALSO: 'The galaxy is watching!' How 'Andor' connects to a history of protest

We saw Cassian's information meet with distrust on Yavin, where Senators including Mon Mothma (Genevieve O'Reilly) and Bail Organa (Jimmy Smits in Rogue One, Benjamin Bratt in Andor). In Rogue One, they're still inclined to capture Galen Erso so he can testify before the Senate, which wouldn't have done any good (the Emperor disbands the Senate in A New Hope). So, General Draven goes rogue himself, ordering Cassian to kill Galen.

Saw dies with a smile on his face, casting aside his oxygen mask as the explosion from the Death Star's destruction of an ancient city on Jedha reaches his compound. Bail Organa, having gone home to tell his people of the Death Star, is killed when Alderaan is the first to be entirely wiped out by the planet-killer. Draven, according to the canon storyline in Star Wars comics, is killed helping rebels escape from Darth Vader a year after the Death Star's destruction.

Mon Mothma survives as Commander-in-Chief of the Rebellion, coordinating the attack on the second Death Star in Return of the Jedi. Her famous line, "Many Bothans died to bring us this information," now bears a lot more weight considering all the people who died in Andor bringing her news of the first one.

What happens to Orson Krennic and the rest of the Imperials?

"I was due on Scarif two hours ago," Death Star director Orson Krennic (Ben Mendelsohn) tells Imperial Security Bureau honcho Lio Partagaz (Anton Lesser) during Krennic's final dialogue scene in Andor. Scarif, home to all information on the Death Star, is where Krennic dies at the hands of Jyn in Rogue One. He lives just long enough to see the Death Star appear in orbit above the planet.

But Krennic is not going directly to his doom on Scarif. First comes the scene where we see him at the end of Andor, watching the Death Star's final component being hauled into place. He's confronted here by Grand Moff Tarkin (Peter Cushing, or at least the creepy Rogue One CGI version), who takes the Death Star out from under Krennic's control after its first live test on Jedha City.

Krennic then seeks a meeting with Darth Vader, hoping the Dark Lord of the Sith can intercede with the Emperor; he's desperate for Death Star credit. But there is no honor among Imperials, and a mortally wounded Krennic is wiped out on Scarif by Tarkin's hand. Partagaz, meanwhile, has taken his own life rather than face up to the Emperor's displeasure at letting Kleya go.

SEE ALSO: 'Andor' creator on Lucasfilm censoring f-bomb: 'They were right.'

Syril (Kyle Soller), of course, died back in the genocide on Ghorman in episode 8, abandoned by Dedra Meero (Denise Gough) just as he was starting to figure out what the Empire was doing; Dedra had just learned about the Death Star herself.

Of the Imperial figures we've been following in Andor, Dedra is the only survivor — albeit in the same kind of prison where Cassian found himself in season 1. Presumably she stays there for the next three years, during which time the Empire needs more prison labor to construct the second Death Star; she may, if she's lucky, survive long enough to see the Republic founded in its ashes.

If Andor and the rest of the Death Star trilogy tells us anything, then, it's that working for the Empire is unlikely to lead to any more longevity than working for the Rebellion. If you're heading for prison or an early death anyway, you may as well be on the side of the good guys.

Andor is now streaming on Disney+.

Apple's CarPlay has been a part of our lives for more than a decade, and the feature just got its biggest upgrade in a long time.

The company announced in a press release that CarPlay Ultra, which was first teased all the way back in 2022 (hat tip to our friends at Lifehacker for remembering that), is finally available. Some Apple fans had assumed the feature would never see a release.

This is an upgraded version of CarPlay with some really interesting bells and whistles, but the main thing to know upfront is that the only way to use it right now is to order a new Aston Martin vehicle in the U.S. and Canada. Existing Aston Martin models with the proper tech inside of them will get CarPlay Ultra in an update "in the coming weeks," while Genesis, Hyundai, and Kia have all agreed to incorporate it over time.

In other words, relatively few people will get to experience CarPlay Ultra in the near term, which is unfortunate because it does sound pretty useful.

SEE ALSO: Trump to Tim Cook: I don't want you building iPhones in India

The big addition here is the ability for CarPlay to take over every screen in a car, as opposed to using up one main display or just part of a display. That means you can put pertinent information like a GPS route, what music you're listening to, and other UI elements on the screen behind the steering wheel, for instance, so that info lives directly next to your fuel gauge and speedometer. Theoretically, it sounds much easier to keep your eyes on the road this way.

Apple said it will also work with auto manufacturers to come up with appropriate visual themes for different cars. Luckily, the wait for CarPlay Ultra to come to other vehicles isn't astronomically large; according to Apple, it will roll out to other cars globally in the next 12 months.

If you're trying to load or watch videos on TikTok and it's not refreshing quite right, you're not alone.

So, is TikTok down? It sure seems like it.

Around 4:08 EST on May 15, users started noticing that things were not quite right on the TikTok app, according to Down Detector. (Disclosure: Ziff Davis owns both Mashable and Down Detector.) By around 5 p.m. EST, more than 33,000 users reported errors with their TikTok app on Down Detector.

When Mashable tried to bring up TikTok, we were able to load some videos, but only intermittently. We also repeatedly received loading screens.

Credit: Screenshot courtesy of Timothy Beck Werth Credit: Screenshot courtesy of Timothy Beck Werth

Meanwhile, users on X are not happy.

This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed. This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed. This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed. This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.

It's unclear what, exactly, is causing the app to glitch. TikTok did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Mashable.

We'll update this post if we receive more information. In the meantime, you can check Down Detector for the latest user error reports.

While TikTok was briefly banned in the United States earlier this year, we have no reason to believe this outage is related to that ongoing political dispute.

Waymo recently recalled 1,212 of its self-driving taxis, according to the Alphabet-owned company.

The recalled cars, which comprised the entirety of the company's fleet at the time, received a software update in November designed to significantly decrease the likelihood that Waymos would collide with stationary objects.

Last May, the Department of Transportation's National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) opened an investigation into Waymo for 22 reported incidents in which its AVs collided with objects like gates, chains, and parked vehicles. The cars also appeared to disobey traffic safety control devices. 

The accidents occurred at low speeds and didn't result in injuries. NHTSA's investigation remains open.

SEE ALSO: Smooth, silent, strange: What it's really like to hail a robotaxi

Waymo voluntarily submitted the recall. It does not affect Waymo's current operations, which include providing rides in cities like San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Austin. Waymo currently logs 250,000 paid trips every week.

"We hold ourselves to a high safety standard, and our record of reducing injuries over tens of millions of fully autonomous miles driven shows our technology is making roads safer," a Waymo spokesperson said in a statement to Mashable. "NHTSA plays a vital role in road safety, and we will continue to work collaboratively with the agency as part of our mission to be the world's most trusted driver."

As AV companies like Waymo bring their self-driving cars to cities across the U.S., experts say unexpected safety issues may emerge.

Waymo recently published research comparing its vehicles to human drivers and found its driverless technology led to far fewer pedestrian-injuring crashes.

Plaintiffs in the landmark Kadrey v. Meta case have already submitted the U.S. Copyright Office's controversial AI report as evidence in their copyright infringement suit against the tech giant.

Last Friday, the Copyright Office quietly released a "pre-publication version" of its views on the use of copyrighted works to train generative AI models. The consequential report contained bad news for AI companies hoping to claim the fair use legal doctrine as a defense in court.

Less than a day after the report was published, Shira Perlmutter, the head of the Copyright Office, was fired by President Donald Trump. It's still unclear exactly why Perlmutter was fired, but the move alarmed some copyright lawyers, as Mashable previously reported.

And on May 12, the plaintiffs in Kadrey v Meta, which includes artists and authors such as Junot Diaz, Sarah Silverman, and Ta-Nehisi Coates, submitted the report as an exhibit in their class action lawsuit.

What's in the U.S. Copyright Office's AI report?

The Office's report was the conclusion of a three-part investigation into copyright law and artificial intelligence, which it calls uncharted legal territory. The "Copyright and Artificial Intelligence Part 3: Generative AI Training" report examined exactly the type of legal issues at stake in Kadrey v Meta.

While some copyright lawyers and Democratic politicians have speculated the report led to Perlmutter's firing, there are other possible explanations. In a blog post, copyright lawyer Aaron Moss said "it’s more likely that the Office raced to release the report before a wave of leadership changes could delay — or derail — its conclusions."

The report addressed in detail the four factors of the fair use doctrine. Meta and other AI companies are being sued for using copyrighted works to train their AI models, and Meta in particular has claimed this activity should be protected under fair use.

The lengthy 113-page report spends around 50 pages delving into the nuances of fair use, citing historic legal cases that ruled for and against fair use. It doesn't goes as far as making any blanket conclusions, but its analysis generally favors copyright holders over AI companies and their unprecedented stockpiling of data for model training.

The Copyright Office's stance on the white hot issue doesn't line up with the wishes of Big Tech titans, who have cozied up to the Trump Administration. In general, President Trump has taken a pro-tech approach to AI regulation.

The plaintiffs in the Kadrey v. Meta case are clearly hoping the report could tip the scale in their favor. The lawyers who submitted the report as evidence on Monday didn't explain in detail why it was submitted as a "Statement of Supplemental Authority." The brief simply said, "the Report addresses several key issues discussed in the parties’ respective motions regarding the use of copyrighted works in the development of generative AI systems and application of the fair use doctrine."

AI models can harm creative markets, Copyright Office finds The controversial AI copyright report could tip the scales for the case against Meta. Credit: wildpixel / iStock / Getty Images

The part of the report that's potentially the most damning for Meta is the Copyright Office's assessment of the fourth factor of fair use, which considers the effects on current or future markets.

"The use of pirated collections of copyrighted works to build a training library, or the distribution of such a library to the public, would harm the market for access to those works," said the pre-publication version of the report.

The analysis also considers possible market dilution for authors. "If thousands of AI-generated romance novels are put on the market, fewer of the human-authored romance novels that the AI was trained on are likely to be sold. Royalty pools can also be diluted," the report stated. In addition, the plaintiffs have argued that Meta's use of piracy to access the authors' books deprived them of licensing opportunities.

For its part, Meta argues that its AI model Llama doesn't compete with the authors' market, and that the model's transformative output makes the fair use argument irrelevant.

While the report favors the plaintiffs' argument, we don't know if the judge in the case will agree. And because this is a pre-publication version, it could be edited or even rescinded by a future leader at the Copyright Office.

Disclosure: Ziff Davis, Mashable’s parent company, in April filed a lawsuit against OpenAI, alleging it infringed Ziff Davis copyrights in training and operating its AI systems.

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