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TL;DR: Live stream Aston Villa vs. Walsall in a 2026 preseason friendly for free on VillaTV. Access this free streaming site from anywhere in the world with ExpressVPN.
The 2026 World Cup was everything we hoped it would be, but now the attention has switched back to the domestic game. A number of Premier League sides are back in action over the next few weeks, including Aston Villa.
Unai Emery's side have lost a few key players this summer, but they are also bringing in some exciting new faces. There's a lot of uncertainty ahead of their opening game with local rivals Walsall.
If you want to watch Aston Villa vs. Walsall in a 2026 preseason friendly for free from anywhere in the world, we have all the information you need.
When is Aston Villa vs. Walsall?Aston Villa vs. Walsall in a 2026 preseason friendly kicks off at 7:30 p.m. BST on June 21. This fixture takes place at the Bescot Stadium.
How to watch Aston Villa vs. Walsall for freeAston Villa vs. Walsall in a 2026 preseason friendly is available to live stream for free on VillaTV. To access this fixture, all you need to do is sign up for a free Essential Membership on VillaTV.
VillaTV is geo-restricted to the UK, but anyone can access this free streaming service 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 access free live streams on VillaTV from anywhere in the world.
Live stream Aston Villa vs. Walsall for free by following these simple steps:
Subscribe to a streaming-friendly VPN (we recommend ExpressVPN)
Download the app to your device of choice (the best VPNs have apps for Windows, Mac, iOS, Android, Linux, and more)
Open up the app and connect to a server in the UK
Visit VillaTV
Stream Aston Villa vs. Walsall for free from anywhere in the world
The best VPNs for streaming are not free, but most do offer free-trials or money-back guarantees. By leveraging these offers, you can watch Aston Villa vs. Walsall without actually spending anything. This clearly isn't a long-term solution, but it does give you enough time to stream select games before recovering your investment.
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What is the best VPN for VillaTV?ExpressVPN is the best choice for bypassing geo-restrictions to stream live sport on VillaTV, for a number of reasons:
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A two-year subscription to ExpressVPN is on sale for $68.40 and includes an extra four months for free — 81% off for a limited time. This plan includes a year of free unlimited cloud backup and a generous 30-day money-back guarantee. Alternatively, you can get a one-month plan for just $12.99 (with money-back guarantee).
Live stream Aston Villa vs. Walsall for free with ExpressVPN.
I love Splatoon. I have loved Splatoon since all the way back to its Wii U debut in 2015. But Splatoon doesn't always love me back.
Every time I boot up Splatoon 3, I rediscover I'm not ready for the series' signature competitive multiplayer arenas. Everyone who still plays Splatoon this long after launch is really, really good — too good for me to have much of a good time. The smattering of solo and co-op experiences that exist on the periphery can't hold my attention for very long.
It is delightful, then, to report that Splatoon Raiders is pretty damn good. The first single-player-focused entry in the decade-old series is one of the most purely fun (on a moment-to-moment basis) games on the Nintendo Switch 2.
Splatoon Raiders synthesizes some of the best side modes in previous Splatoon games into something that grabbed me and didn't let go for several days, thanks in part to some non-competitive co-op features. I can't wait to play more once it goes on sale.
SEE ALSO: Nintendo's potentially last Switch 1 game is absolutely worth your time Splatoon Raiders melds every non-competitive Splatoon mode into one gameI say this not as criticism, but as a compliment: Splatoon Raiders feels like DLC for a mainline Splatoon game that grew out of control.
This is still a third-person shooter where you, as a squid kid, use a variety of weapons to spread ink of your own color across a variety of battlefields. You don't run very fast, but if your ink color is on the ground, you can quickly swim around in it, recovering ammo and health in the process.
Everything about the basic mechanics and controls of Splatoon Raiders is exactly as they are in the previous games in the franchise, including its best-in-class use of gyroscopic aiming.
Where Splatoon Raiders sets itself apart is by excising competitive multiplayer entirely, in favor of something that feels like a combination of modes that existed in previous Splatoon titles. It's got level design and boss fights that are reminiscent of the story modes in the other games, plus the intensity and general flow of combat found in the co-op Salmon Run mode from Splatoons 2 and 3, and a helping of the variable character customization from the Splatoon 3 Side Order DLC.
I love these goofballs. Credit: NintendoThat means a straightforward progression of hand-crafted single-player levels. Some are linear missions that combine 3D platforming with shooting; others are more open-ended and focused on collecting money and loot.
The amount of variety here feels just about right, as I never found myself getting bored or itching for something new in the 15 or so hours I spent with Splatoon Raiders.
As with the multiplayer matches in a regular Splatoon game, there's little here will take you more than five minutes to complete. Given the occasional need to replay missions for loot or leveling purposes, this is a great relief.
There is a story here, and while it might be fun to chew on for people who care a lot about Splatoon lore, I did not find myself especially engrossed. It's mostly an excuse to spend more time with series regulars Shiver, Frye, and The Big Man. The latter continues to be a very cool dude.
Customization is key in Splatoon Raiders Gadgets are key. Credit: NintendoWhere Splatoon Raiders won me over was character customization. Not in the aesthetic sense, as that part of the game is pretty basic, but in the gameplay sense.
Your protagonist gains a constant increase in basic stats like health and damage. You can equip one of three different tanks, each coming with a series of cooldown-based gadgets that you can equip in combat.
The Tactical Tank, for instance, comes with an automatic turret you can place wherever you want, but you can also unlock and equip other gadgets that can only be equipped on the Tactical Tank. Same goes for the Speed and Power tanks, which fit the kinds of play styles you'd expect.
Customization really hits its stride once you unlock the ability to customize gadgets. One fun thing you can do with several gadgets (but not all of them) is tell them to activate the moment you hit an enemy with your weapon.
By the last third or so of the story in Splatoon Raiders, I had multiple turrets flying out automatically on weapon hit, alongside a bunch of other nonsense that basically made me a walking death machine, with very little shooting required on my part.
You will learn to love the turret. Credit: NintendoBy the end of the story, I felt roughly as powerful as you do at the end of Hades or Risk of Rain 2. But this time it came in a game with persistent progression, rather than a random, run-based roguelike.
Splatoon Raiders' solo focus also makes it a lot easier to experiment with new builds and weapon types than the franchise's standard competitive modes. In other Splatoon games, I'm worried about not letting my team down, so I generally stick with what I know can be effective.
Here, the stakes aren't so high, so I can make a ridiculous build centered around an exploding grappling hook and an ink katana without worrying about ruining someone else's fun.
In short, if you like video games where lots of things are constantly exploding in a sort of digital projectile vomit of bright colors, complete with meters filling up and a steady stream of fun upgrades after every single level, Splatoon Raiders is for you.
How co-op works in Splatoon Raiders Hunt for treasure with the homies. Credit: NintendoNintendo has been selling Splatoon Raiders as a single-player experience, and it can be one if that's what you want. Still, almost every single level in it is also playable with up to three other players in co-op. I didn't get a lot of time in the review period to test these features out, but based on a demo session with other game reviewers, the developers made basically every correct design decision.
Chiefly, they seem to have nailed difficulty balancing. In one session my character was level 42 and had completed the story, while another player in my group was only level 10. Splatoon Raiders smartly and dynamically adjusted numerical values so the difficulty feels right for everyone in the game, without arbitrarily strengthening or weakening anyone.
I was able to bring in my stupid endgame loadout and the challenge of combat felt exactly right, even though these were levels I would cruise through if I weren't playing them in co-op.
Every player also gets their own level-appropriate loot in co-op — so not only is it fun regardless of level, but it's productive, too. Nintendo is not the first company to nail this element of co-op play in games with levels and loot, but it's still one of the best experiences I've had to date.
Alas I didn't get to try is the "Call For Help" function, but the idea is you can press a button on the level select screen to matchmake with any players who have flagged themselves as available to assist you. This is similar to the way co-op works in Monster Hunter.
Not all great Splatoon elements made the jumpUnfortunately, Splatoon Raiders does fall a bit short of series expectations in some key areas — specifically, fashion and music.
The other Splatoon games have pretty deep dress-up features that allow you to look fresh and funky as hell. Here, there are a smattering of unlockable outfits, but I didn't love the way most of them look.
Dressing like a greaseball mechanic makes more sense for the treasure-hunting escapades in Splatoon Raiders, but personally, I miss the streetwise fashion of the other games. I just want to wear a snapback with a squid on it.
And while Splatoon Raiders' soundtrack is still a step above most video games, it's a bit disappointing compared to its brethren. The audio direction here goes in the direction of strange, non-standard sounds rather than catchy, hummable rock or pop melodies. Previous Splatoon games have served both ends of the musical spectrum.
Regardless of shortcomings, Splatoon Raiders is another pleasant Switch 2 surprise, along the lines of Yoshi and the Mysterious Book and Pokémon Pokopia, both of which also launched this year.
Those were games I was only medium-level interested in prior to release; now they're all some of the best (or at least most interesting) games on the platform. As we wait patiently for the next big Mario or Zelda release, it's nice to experience these fun, experimental takes on existing franchises.
Social media bans for kids are quickly becoming the global legislation trend of the moment.
Children under 16 are finding themselves at the center of political conversations, with countries including Australia, the UK, Canada, Brazil, Austria, and Indonesia, and more attempting to wrangle Big Tech companies' hold on young people's attention.
SEE ALSO: Australia's kid social media ban is ineffective, study suggestsOnline age verification laws are taking shape by the month, with governments citing the need to address issues including child sexual exploitation, cyberbullying, self-harm, and the impact on kids' mental health, as well as "addictive" design, violent content, and porn. However, these laws have also come under severe criticism for efficiency and their impact on digital privacy and free speech.
Plus, kids are already finding ways around them.
So, where are we at, globally? Which countries have followed Australia's example and are rolling out their own social media bans? Here's the list, alphabetically, and incidentally starting with the one who started it all.
AustraliaThe first to do it, Australia set a global precedent in Dec. 2025 with its world-first social media ban for children under 16. The Online Safety Amendment (Social Media Minimum Age) Act requires social media platforms such as TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, X, and Snapchat to implement age verification and take "reasonable steps" to prevent kids under 16 from creating accounts. However, a July 2026 study by Australian government advisors found the ban so far ineffective.
Plus, Reddit is suing.
AustriaFollowing in Australia's footsteps with fewer letters, in March 2026, Austria announced a bill to ban social media use for children under 14. With a draft planned for completion by summer, Austria's legislation would also add a new compulsory subject, "Media and Democracy," to school curriculums to boost awareness of "how to recognise disinformation and radicalisation."
BrazilBrazil's social media ban, the Digital Statute of Children and Adolescents, came into force in March 2026. The law requires kids under 16 to link their social media accounts with a legal guardian, and tech platforms must add age verification for users wanting to access adult content. It also means social media platforms must limit "features designed to artificially increase, sustain, or extend" time kids spend on the platforms, including automatically playing videos.
CanadaCanada is set to ban users under 16 from holding social media accounts, with a proposed law announced by the Canadian government on June 11, 2026. The Safe Social Media Act will enforce age verification to access online services and legally mandated safety requirements for social media platforms like TikTok, YouTube, and Instagram. But Canadian law will also apply to companies that use AI chatbots such as ChatGPT, Gemini, and Claude.
DenmarkDenmark is planning a social media ban for kids under 15, announced back on Oct. 8, 2025, by the country's prime minister, Mette Frederiksen. According to the Associated Press, the law could arrive in 2026, but there's no date or details yet. Reports also suggest parents could allow their children to use social media from the age of 13.
Featured Video For You Is ChatGPT Changing the Way We Write? European UnionAn EU-wide social media ban for kids under 13 could be coming, announced July 13, 2026. Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission (the EU's executive body), presented a report on online safety for children, which recommended age-appropriate restrictions on platforms (the EU has launched its own age verification app), parental supervision for social media use, and the insistence that digital platforms "must prove that their services do no harm."
But it won't just be social media that's impacted. As Mashable's Anna Iovine reports, it could apply to "other digital services such as AI companions, video-sharing platforms, and video games."
FranceFrance is ready to approve its social media ban for kids under 15, with the government reaching a compromise on the bill on July 20, 2026. Once it's through, France will be the first European country to officially enact such a ban. According to Le Monde, the social media ban will block under-15s from creating new accounts as of Sept. 1, and in Jan. 2027, all existing accounts will come under the law.
GermanyGermany hasn't yet rolled out a social media ban, but the government is considering it.
GreeceGreece plans to ban social media for kids under 15, with Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis announcing the proposed law on April 8, 2026. In a TikTok video, translated by the BBC, Mitsotakis cited sleep issues and anxiety in children caused by "the pressure to always be online," and he criticized "the addictive design of certain applications." If passed, the measure will take effect on Jan. 1, 2027, and the PM said age verification is also needed.
IndonesiaIndonesia announced it would ban social media for children under 16 on March 6, 2026. As reported by the BBC, the country's minister of communication and digital affairs, Meutya Hafid, said anyone under 16 with an account on a "high risk" online platform would see it deactivated by the end of March, naming "YouTube, TikTok, Facebook, Instagram, Threads, X, Bigo Live, and Roblox."
MalaysiaMalaysia has banned social media for under-16s, with communications minister Fahmi Fadzil announcing the Online Safety Act 2025 (ONSA) in Nov. 2025. The law came into force on Jan. 1, 2026, but it really got started on June 1, 2026. As NBC News reports, requires social media companies to add age verification and to prohibit kids under 16 from creating accounts on platforms with at least 8 million users (that means YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, and Facebook). The law also requires social media companies "to limit features that increase, sustain, or extend" kids' online time.
PolandPoland is looking to ban kids under 15 from social media, with Education Minister Barbara Nowacka announcing plans on Feb. 26, 2026. Yes, that would mean age verification on social media sites and big fines for companies not enforcing them.
SloveniaSlovenia is set to ban social media access for kids under 15, with draft legislation announced by Deputy Prime Minister Matej Arčon on Feb. 5, 2026.
SpainSpain announced plans to ban social media for children under 16 on Feb. 3, 2026, with the country's prime minister, Pedro Sánchez, promising to "protect them from the digital Wild West." The proposed bill, which still needs to be passed by parliament, will hold social media companies (including their executives) liable for "illegal or harmful content" existing on their platforms. "We will turn algorithmic manipulation and amplification of illegal content into a new criminal offence,” Sánchez said at the World Governments Summit in Dubai in February.
ThailandThailand hasn't announced a social media ban yet, but there's a lot of discussion about it.
TurkeyTurkey passed a bill on April 23, 2026, that blocks kids under 15 from accessing social media platforms. According to the Associated Press, which cited state media reports, the law will require age verification on social media, rapid responses by companies to "harmful" content, and expanded parental controls.
United KingdomThe UK confirmed an impending social media ban for under-16s on June 15, 2026, following the rollout of age verification in the country in July 2025 (it's kind of working?). The government explicitly said it "plans to use the same model for a social media ban as Australia," with the intention of broadening the law to cover other platforms, including livestreaming and gaming sites.
The UK is also considering overnight curfews for teens aged 16 and 17 and blocking infinite-scroll mechanisms for kids.
This story is developing and will be updated as laws are proposed and passed.
Movie scores can stick with us long after the credits roll, and three iconic soundtracks are getting the collector treatment this fall. Varèse Sarabande is celebrating three iconic movie scores with new collector releases for Scream, Blue Velvet, and Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit, with Craft Recordings joining select editions.
The lineup spans horror, cult cinema, and animation, with Marco Beltrami’s genre-defining Scream score returning for its 30th anniversary and Angelo Badalamenti’s haunting Blue Velvet soundtrack celebrating its 40th anniversary.
Blue Velvet 40th Anniversary Collector’s Vinyl Opens in a new window Credit: Varèse Sarabande Blue Velvet Soundtrack — 40th Anniversary Collector’s Vinyl $29.99 at AmazonVarèse Sarabande is celebrating the 40th anniversary of David Lynch’s Blue Velvet with a new collectible vinyl edition of Angelo Badalamenti’s original motion picture soundtrack. Available to pre-order now ahead of its Sept. 4 release, the reissue brings the 14-track album back to vinyl in a special rainbow-foil jacket.
The release celebrates Badalamenti’s haunting score for Lynch’s 1986 classic, with its dreamy melodies and unsettling arrangements that helped define the film’s unique atmosphere. The vinyl features some of the soundtrack’s most memorable moments, from the haunting “Main Title” and dreamlike “Mysteries Of Love” to standout tracks like Roy Orbison’s “In Dreams” and Ketty Lester’s “Love Letters.”
The soundtrack will also be released on CD, giving fans multiple ways to revisit Badalamenti’s iconic score.
Scream 30th Anniversary Red Vinyl Reissue Opens in a new window Credit: Varèse Sarabande / Craft Recordings Scream 30th Anniversary Soundtrack “Woodsboro Bloodbath” Red Vinyl Reissue $32.99 at AmazonFor Scream fans, the phone is ringing again. To celebrate the horror classic’s 30th anniversary, Varèse Sarabande and Craft Recordings are bringing back Marco Beltrami’s iconic original motion picture score with a new collector's reissue arriving Aug. 28. The original 14-track album returns to vinyl in a collectible “blood-soaked” sleeve featuring an iconic image of Drew Barrymore as Casey Becker from the film’s unforgettable opening scene.
The soundtrack captures the tension and chaos that made Wes Craven’s 1996 horror classic unforgettable, with standout tracks including “The Cue from Hell,” which scores the film’s iconic opening scene, “Trouble in Woodsboro,” and the haunting “Sidney Wants It.”
Wallace & Gromit Soundtrack Picture Disc Vinyl Opens in a new window Credit: Varèse Sarabande Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit Soundtrack Picture Disc Vinyl $32.99 at AmazonFans of the beloved claymation duo can bring home a collectible piece of Wallace & Gromit history with the new picture-disc vinyl edition of Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit, arriving Sept. 18. Released by Varèse Sarabande, the picture disc features Julian Nott’s award-winning original score, produced by legendary composer Hans Zimmer, along with additional music from Rupert Gregson-Williams, James Dooley, Lorne Balfe, and Alastair King.
The vinyl includes 19 tracks across two sides, featuring fan-favorite cues like “A Grand Day Out,” “Anti-Pesto to the Rescue,” “Transformation,” and “Wallace & Gromit.” It’s a fun collector release for longtime fans of Aardman’s iconic characters and anyone who appreciates the whimsical scores that help bring animated films to life.
TL;DR: The Samsung 32-inch Odyssey G5 (G50F) QHD gaming monitor is on sale for $219.99 at Amazon, down from its $349.99 list price.
Opens in a new window Credit: Samsung Samsung 32-Inch Odyssey G5 (G50F) $219.99 at AmazonBigger gaming monitors can quickly become expensive once you add faster refresh rates and sharper-than-Full-HD resolution, but Amazon has just made Samsung’s 32-inch Odyssey G5 the perfect go-to for upgrading your setup at a bargain.
As of July 21, the Samsung 32-inch Odyssey G5 (G50F) gaming monitor is available at Amazon for $219.99. That takes a full $130 off its $349.99 list price, leaving you with a 37% discount and the lowest price we’ve seen for this model so far (confirmed with price tracker, camelcamelcamel).
For the money, you’re getting a 32-inch Fast IPS display with QHD 2560x1440 resolution — which is shipped and sold by Amazon, getting to you as early as the next day if you’re a Prime member (at the time of writing).
As an upgrade over older standard monitors, it offers 1.7 times the pixel density of Full HD, giving games noticeably cleaner edges and finer environmental detail without demanding as much from your PC as a 4K panel.
The 180Hz refresh rate and 1ms GtG response time are the draws for anyone regularly playing quick multiplayer games. Whether you’re sprinting through Fortnite, tracking fast-moving enemies in Overwatch, or lining up a last-second shot in Call of Duty, the higher refresh rate should keep movement looking much smoother than it would on a typical 60Hz or 75Hz model.
Mashable Deals Be the first to know! Get editor selected deals texted right to your phone! Get editor selected deals texted right to your phone! Loading... Sign Me Up By signing up, you agree to receive recurring automated SMS marketing messages from Mashable Deals at the number provided. Msg and data rates may apply. Up to 2 messages/day. Reply STOP to opt out, HELP for help. Consent is not a condition of purchase. See our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use. Thanks for signing up!For those still worried about shaky movement with certain titles, NVIDIA G-Sync compatibility and AMD FreeSync are both included to keep the screen and graphics card in check, helping reduce image tearing, lag, and choppy action. What’s more, HDR10 adds brighter highlights and more detailed shadows, while the IPS panel provides a wide 178-degree viewing angle.
Samsung has also fitted the G50F with Black Equalizer to brighten difficult-to-see areas, Virtual Aim Point to add an on-screen crosshair, and Auto Source Switch+ to automatically switch between connected devices.
SAVE OVER $10: As of July 21, the Lego Icons French Café has hit a new low price of $63.74 at Amazon. That's $16.25 off its full price of $79.99.
Opens in a new window Credit: Lego Lego Icons French Café Paris Building Kit (10362) $63.74 at AmazonLego sets can be quite costly, but Amazon is a helpful place to check out for great deals. Even today, the retailer has some nice surprises in store. As of July 21, the charming Lego Icons French Café set has dropped to a new low price of $63.74 at Amazon.
Compared to this Lego set's full price of $79.99, this deal saves you $16.25. At the moment, it has a "limited time deal" tag, so the clock is ticking to pick it up while it's still on sale.
SEE ALSO: Lego is releasing the biggest Art Masterpiece ever: Everything you need to know about Gustav Klimt – The KissIn total, it comes with 1,101 pieces that create a classic French bistro, complete with hanging flowerpots, ornate seating, and accessories such as food and crockery to bring the scene together. The double doors at the front also open to reveal a small interior with a seating area, so you can choose whether to keep them open or closed once you're all finished.
It's a set recommended for adults, likely due to its higher piece count, more detailed assembly, and the fact that it's meant for display rather than play. However, younger builders can still get the fun of piecing it together if they want to; they'll just need an older individual around to help out.
This limited-time Lego deal may not last long, so be quick to save on the Lego Icons French Café set at Amazon.
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SAVE $30: As of July 21, the Bose SoundLink Micro portable speaker (2nd Gen) is on sale for $99 at Amazon. That's $30 off its list price of $129.
Opens in a new window Credit: Bose Bose SoundLink Micro Portable Bluetooth Speaker (2nd Gen) $99 at AmazonA portable speaker can really elevate your summertime adventures, though with so many out there to choose from, it can be hard to find a good pick. The Bose SoundLink Micro portable speaker (2nd Gen) is one we have a lot of love for — landing as our favorite Bose speaker in our roundup of the best portable Bluetooth speakers - and it's even on sale right now at Amazon.
As of July 21, every available color of the Bose SoundLink Micro (2nd Gen) has been marked down to $99. That's a $30 discount off its original list price of $129, and it even marks the lowest price for a select group of colors: sandstone, petal pink, sunset peach, and twilight blue.
SEE ALSO: 16 summer hosting essentials that cost under $25 at AmazonThe Bose SoundLink Micro (2nd Gen) has an incredibly portable design that's perfect for taking on the go, but don't let that small size fool you into thinking it also has small sound. According to our roundup of the best portable Bluetooth speakers, "Bose made some serious upgrades to the all-new SoundLink Micro (2nd Gen), starting with sound quality. Frequency range has been tweaked to provide fuller bass and more clarity. Drums hit harder, while vocals feel more intimate. There’s also less distortion at higher volumes."
On top of that, this little speaker boasts a long-lasting battery that delivers up to 12 hours of playtime. Plus, it's durable, with a waterproof design (rated IP67) and dust-, shock-, and rust-resistant features. So whether you're heading to the beach, the pool, or on a hike, it can handle the adventure.
If you've had your eye on the Bose SoundLink Micro (2nd Gen), act fast to take advantage of this great deal at Amazon.
Want to learn more about getting the best out of your tech? Sign up for Mashable's Top Stories and Deals newsletters today.
TL;DR: The Magic: The Gathering Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Team-Up Box is on sale for $29.99 at Amazon, down from its $49.99 list price.
Opens in a new window Credit: Magic: The Gathering Magic: The Gathering Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Team-Up $29.99 at AmazonMagic: The Gathering’s TMNT crossover has plenty of products built around opening packs, but Turtle Team-Up makes it so you can have even more trading card fun with your friends. And now Amazon has made that co-operative box cheaper than we’ve ever seen.
As of July 21, the Magic: The Gathering Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Team-Up Box is available at Amazon for $29.99 — cutting $20 from its $49.99 list price, giving you roughly 40% off the complete multiplayer set. This not only dips well under TCGplayer’s market price of $36.80, but is also the lowest price we’ve ever seen the TMNT-themed MTG box on Amazon, as confirmed with price tracker camelcamelcamel.
To be clear, this is not another standard booster box designed for opening packs. Turtle Team-Up is designed for two to four players working together against an automated enemy system, rather than trying to knock one another out. Games are expected to last around 45 minutes, making it an easy fit for a casual Magic night without turning the whole evening into one drawn-out match.
Mashable Deals Be the first to know! Get editor selected deals texted right to your phone! Get editor selected deals texted right to your phone! Loading... Sign Me Up By signing up, you agree to receive recurring automated SMS marketing messages from Mashable Deals at the number provided. Msg and data rates may apply. Up to 2 messages/day. Reply STOP to opt out, HELP for help. Consent is not a condition of purchase. See our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use. Thanks for signing up!Inside are four ready-to-play 60-card decks, with one built around Leonardo, Donatello, Raphael, or Michelangelo. The box also includes a 38-card Enemy deck, featuring 11 bosses and 17 Event Cards that steadily raise the pressure as the game progresses.
You also get four TMNT Play Boosters, each containing 14 cards, so there is still something to crack open once you have tried the preconstructed decks. Four deck boxes, a punch-out counter sheet, and a tutorial booklet round out the package. Wizards says the four Turtle decks collectively contain 29 different new-to-Magic cards, giving existing players more than just a beginner-friendly side mode to explore.
TL;DR: Lego Insiders ages 18+ can build and take home a Lego sports car model for free at select Lego Stores on July 25-26. The event is free, but supplies are limited and available on a first-come, first-served basis.
Lego Insiders have the chance to attend a free event this week.
Select Lego Stores are hosting a free, adults-only sports car-building event where members can build a Lego sports car model and take it home afterward. The make-and-take event is happening on July 25-26, 2026, at participating Lego Stores in the U.S. and Canada.
SEE ALSO: The Apple iPhone 17 Pro is free when you switch to T-Mobile — how to qualifyThe Lego Sports Car build event is free for Lego Insiders aged 18+ (it's totally free to sign up). The Lego Sports Car model cannot be purchased and is only available through this event. Before heading out, check your local Lego Store event page to confirm the timing and availability.
Sure, it’s a free sports car, but the real win is leaving the store with a build you made and a fun Lego memory attached. Check the Lego Store event page for more details.
Hollywood’s next major horror franchise may already be hiding somewhere in your YouTube recommendations. Or at least studios seem to think so.
It's official: three more internet horror creations are heading to the big screen as creator-led movies continue to spark competitive bidding wars across Hollywood.
On July 2, United Artists, Steven Spielberg's Amblin Entertainment, and Amazon MGM Studios acquired the film rights to The Mandela Catalogue following an 11-studio auction. The announcement came one day after Warner Bros. won a five-studio bidding war for Siren Head, the viral monster created by artist Trevor Henderson. Less than two weeks later, Spooky Pictures and Image Nation Studios announced V/H/S: SCP, a 2027 movie that will bring the massive, fan-built SCP Foundation horror universe into the V/H/S found-footage franchise.
These back-to-back deals are the latest evidence of a broader hunt underway across Hollywood. After the enormous box-office success of Backrooms and Obsession, studios are searching YouTube, Reddit, and other online communities for horror concepts that already have recognizable worlds, committed audiences, and creators who have proved they can make compelling work without traditional studio backing.
From viral horror to studio bidding wars 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.Kister was 17 when he began making The Mandela Catalogue in 2021 using basic editing tools and footage filmed around his home. The YouTube series follows a Wisconsin county terrorized by entities called Alternates, creatures that psychologically torment people before assuming their identities. The analog horror series has since become one of YouTube’s most popular, drawing over 100 million views.
But audiences do more than watch these stories. They decode clues, organize timelines, debate theories, and help expand the mythology. That same participation transformed Trevor Henderson's Siren Head from a single 2018 illustration into an internet phenomenon.
This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.Fans carried the towering, siren-headed creature into animations, games, short films, stories, Roblox, and Minecraft. Shutter Authority's Siren Head videos have accrued hundreds of millions of views (his first video has more than 241 million views). By the time Warner Bros. acquired the film rights, it had already become an internet urban legend far larger than Henderson’s original post.
Hollywood is also looking toward online worlds for inspiration — The SCP Foundation began in 2008 as a collaborative fiction wiki where writers document paranormal creatures, objects, and events. The planned theatrical anthology V/H/S: SCP, produced by Roy Lee and Steven Schneider, will turn that community-built archive into a feature film scheduled for 2027.
Each property arrives at the studio system with similar advantages: recognizable imagery, extensive mythology, active fandoms, and creators who already understand their audiences better than anyone else.
The box-office hits behind the rushInterest isn't happening in isolation. In May, Backrooms, directed by 20-year-old YouTube filmmaker Kane Parsons, opened to more than $81 million domestically. As of July 20, it has earned approximately $384 million worldwide at the box office against a reported $10 million production budget.
The film provided the clearest proof yet that a horror world developed largely through internet culture could attract a mainstream theatrical audience. The Backrooms started with an anonymous image of an empty yellow room posted to 4chan in 2019. The concept spread across Reddit, online wikis, games, and collaborative fiction until Parsons, then 16, released his 9-minute YouTube video The Backrooms (Found Footage).
Within weeks, the video racked up tens of millions of views. Parsons then expanded it into a larger series exploring disappearances, scientific experiments, and an organization's attempts to study and map the mysterious space — all before it became a feature film.
Obsession demonstrated a similar version of the same opportunity. While the movie was not adapted from a preexisting internet mythology, its 26-year-old writer-director, Curry Barker, developed his audience and filmmaking style through online projects, including the horror short The Chair and Milk & Serial, a found-footage feature made for about $800 and released on YouTube.
Made for approximately $750,000, Obsession has since grossed more than $428 million worldwide. Barker has completed another movie for Blumhouse and is now attached to direct A24’s reimagining of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre.
This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.Together, the films expanded Hollywood’s understanding of what an online creator could bring into a studio — all in 1 summer.
Hollywood wants the filmmaker, not only the followersThese creators arrive with built-in audiences, but that is only one part of their appeal.
When I interviewed Backrooms producer Kori Adelson for Vanity Fair in May, she emphasized the filmmaking ability in Parsons' YouTube work that transferred well into blockbuster directing.
"His work is so singular and evocative," Adelson said. "And in terms of his technical skill set? It was more advanced than most experienced filmmakers."
Parsons built the original series in Blender, and those digital models became blueprints for the movie’s 30,000-square-foot set. Because he could adjust the designs himself, Parsons could show the production team exactly how each space should look.
Plus, because these creators have spent years watching audiences respond to their work, they understand what a movie adaptation needs to preserve.
"I sort of have made a contract with the audience, and I like to do everything I possibly can to hold myself accountable to that…regardless if we’re medium hopping," he told me back in May.
Warner Bros. Motion Picture Group co-chair Mike De Luca has compared that fan connection to an unusually long development process. "By the time you get to the movie, they've had a billion test screenings," he said during the Producers Guild of America's conference.
It also helps explain why creators like Parsons and Kister are being trusted to direct their adaptations rather than simply selling the rights and stepping aside.
The internet has become a proving ground for horrorThis path hasn't been completely untrodden.
Back in 2023, Australian twins Danny and Michael Philippou made the leap from YouTube to theaters with Talk to Me. Before directing the horror hit, the pair had spent years creating chaotic horror-comedy videos, elaborate fight scenes, and practical-effects-heavy stunts for their RackaRacka channel. Their filmmaking experience translated: Made for about $4.5 million, Talk to Me earned nearly $100 million worldwide.
Mark Fischbach, better known online as Markiplier, followed a similar path with Iron Lung. He financed, directed, and distributed the video game adaptation himself, turning a budget of only a few million dollars into more than $51 million at the global box office.
Now, more filmmakers are lining up behind them. Dylan Clark is developing his viral YouTube short Portrait of God into a Universal feature produced by Jordan Peele and Sam Raimi, while Sam Evenson is directing a feature-length adaptation of his short Mora for Neon.
This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.YouTube is not the only place where Hollywood is finding horror stories with built-in online audiences. Reddit’s r/NoSleep has long served as a testing ground for writers who present fictional stories as firsthand accounts, including Elias Witherow's Tommy Taffy series about a seemingly human figure who forces his way into families and takes control of their homes.
That story is now becoming The Third Parent, a feature adaptation scheduled to hit theaters on Jan. 22, 2027, with David Michaels writing and directing and Crispin Glover starring as Tommy.
This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.Hollywood is always searching for the next big thing, and its next major horror franchise may still begin with a single creepy image or a teenager editing footage in a bedroom. The difference is that studios are now paying attention much earlier — and increasingly trusting the original creator to bring that idea to the big screen.
TL;DR: The Pokémon TCG First Partner Illustration Collection Series 2 is on sale at Amazon for $50.87, down from its $59.99 list price.
Opens in a new window Credit: The Pokémon Company Pokémon TCG First Partner Illustration Collection Series 2 $50.87 at AmazonIt turns out that Pokémon’s second First Partner Illustration Collection has already fallen a long way from its early preorder price, and Amazon is actually now pushing the partner-inspired box much closer to the $50 mark.
As of July 21, the Pokémon TCG First Partner Illustration Collection Series 2 is available on Amazon for as low as $50.87. This cuts $9.12 from its $59.99 list price, giving keen trading card collectors a 15% discount on the complete box.
You should know, however, this lower-priced listing is sold and shipped by third-party seller Collectors Expedition rather than Amazon directly — with free delivery currently scheduled for July 27-28. That said, this still comes with Amazon’s usual 30-day refund or replacement window, which gives buyers some protection if the box arrives damaged or with another issue.
On the other hand, Walmart and TCGplayer are offering even lower prices, which is not unusual compared to Amazon in the Pokémon TCG market these days. For instance, Walmart has the collection listed for $41.99, while TCGplayer has unopened copies starting at $40.71 with shipping included. That undercuts the current market price of $40.73.
Mashable Deals Be the first to know! Get editor selected deals texted right to your phone! Get editor selected deals texted right to your phone! Loading... Sign Me Up By signing up, you agree to receive recurring automated SMS marketing messages from Mashable Deals at the number provided. Msg and data rates may apply. Up to 2 messages/day. Reply STOP to opt out, HELP for help. Consent is not a condition of purchase. See our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use. Thanks for signing up!That being said, $50.87 is a far more reasonable Amazon price than the $94.79 preorder listing we spotted back in June.
Series 2 continues the collection’s 30th-anniversary theme by focusing on first partner Pokémon from Johto, Unova, and Galar. That means Chikorita, Cyndaquil, Totodile, Snivy, Tepig, Oshawott, Grookey, Scorbunny, and Sobble make up the nine possible illustration rare-style promo cards.
Each box contains one special pack with three of those nine promos, so completing the full set will require more than one collection unless you trade for the cards you are missing. You also get two standard Pokémon TCG booster packs (shown in the product imagery as Perfect Order and Chaos Rising) plus a sticker sheet featuring the first partner Pokémon.
If you’re after any of the single starter cards in particular — including Totodile, Cyndaquill, and Chikorita — you can buy the individual cards from the whole Partner Illustration Collection right now on TCGplayer.
Jimmy Kimmel's latest guest host is a real gem, with Colman Domingo taking over from Ike Barinholtz and Tiffany Haddish this week.
The Oscar-nominee kicked off Jimmy Kimmel Live! on Monday with a look back at the FIFA 2026 World Cup final, from the first-ever halftime show to the commentators getting celebrity names wrong to the crowds booing President Donald Trump.
"How long before he claims FIFA is Antifa?" joked Domingo.
Fellow late-night show host Seth Meyers also showed a montage of clips in which the president was booed at the final, with Trump's approval rating currently at an all-time low. As Mashable's Amanda Yeo notes, "Sports fans haven't been shy about letting Trump know how they feel either, booing him at multiple events across his second presidential term. These included the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup final, 2025 US Open men's final, an NFL game last November, the NBA finals last month, and finally the recent World Cup final."
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SAVE $700: As of July 21, the Roborock Saros 10R robot vacuum and mop is on sale for $899.99 at Amazon. That's $700 off its list price of $1,599.99.
Opens in a new window Credit: Roborock Roborock Saros 10R Robot Vacuum and Mop $899.99 at AmazonRoborock's Saros 10R robot vacuum and mop is a model that Mashable's Leah Stodart called "a wickedly well-rounded robot vacuum that would be a totally satisfactory upgrade in a lot of homes, especially ones with a lot of hard floors" in her review. If you've been thinking about splashing out on a robot vacuum, now is a great time to buy because Amazon has slashed $700 off its price tag.
As of July 21, this has dropped the Roborock Saros 10R's price from $1,599.99 to $899.99, making for 44% in overall savings. That's not all, though. It's also just $15 away from its lowest-ever price from Prime Day this year.
SEE ALSO: 16 summer hosting essentials that cost under $25 at AmazonWith the help of 22,000Pa HyperForce suction and dual spinning mops — paired with the StarSight Autonomous System 2.0 for avoiding objects and mapping your home's floor plan — the Roborock Saros 10R can clean up a variety of surfaces. It even features a FlexiArm Riser side brush and mop for cleaning corners, and its slim 3.14-inch height allows it to easily reach under furniture or tighter spaces for a deep clean.
In our review, Stodart highlights: "Given its ultra-slim build, exceptional corner cleaning, and precise navigational features, there aren't many spots the Roborock Saros 10R can't clean. This well-rounded reliability gives it an edge over many other premium vacs."
With that kind of praise, why not grab the Roborock Saros 10R robot vacuum and mop while it's still on sale? Don't miss out on this great deal at Amazon.
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Spain's 2026 FIFA World Cup victory was celebrated with a traditional trophy hoist on Sunday, a ritual "shared really only by the players," as The Daily Show's Jon Stewart points out in the video above.
The thing is, it wasn't just shared by the victors, with U.S. President Donald Trump lingering onstage after presenting Spain with their prize, and posing for the team photo alongside controversial FIFA president Gianni Infantino.
"What the f*** are you doing on the stage? It's for the players!" screamed Stewart in his monologue on Monday night. "Why must everything be tainted by the overinflated ego of Cankles Muldoon? Why?"
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Whoop has made its way to the front of a crowded field of health trackers. With brand ambassadors like Cristiano Ronaldo, LeBron James, and Niall Horan, it's become a tracker for elite athletes and celebrities. But what about the everyman?
Whoop has two devices in its lineup, the Whoop MG and the Whoop 5.0. While the 5.0 is technically the more basic of the two, it's anything but. This unsuspecting wristband provides a bounty of data on sleep, physical performance, and recovery. I tried the Whoop 5.0 out, wearing it round the clock, to see what this health tracker is all about.
Whoop 5.0 at a glance The Whoop 5.0 unlocks to slide onto your wrist. Credit: Samantha Mangino / MashableThe Whoop 5.0 brings advanced metrics to the brand's most affordable membership tiers, One and Peak. The device accompanies the first two Whoop membership tiers, which offer plenty of health insights for the average person, including health span and stress insights. Plus, some users — including myself — think it's a far better value than the Whoop MG. The Whoop 5.0 provides a lot of data, which may be overwhelming for the average user, and it also suffers from processing delays.
The Whoop 5.0 remains the most comfortable fitness tracker The Whoop 5.0 has an extremely low profile, more so than most watches. Credit: Samantha Mangino / MashableThe Whoop 5 is a smart fitness band that sits on your wrist to measure biometrics. It doesn't have a screen or watch face; instead, it operates and delivers health data through the Whoop app.
Having previously tested the Whoop 4.0, I knew the Whoop 5.0 would be comfortable. Between generations, it's maintained the same design, except the 5.0 is 7 percent smaller. What that means is a slightly slimmer profile that remains lightweight.
SEE ALSO: Oura Ring 5 arrives, and it’s 40 percent smaller than Ring 4It's easy to forget the Whoop 5.0 is on your wrist. The included knit bands are comfortable, allowing your movement to flow without restriction. Plus, the device is out of the way enough that it won't bother you when you're sleeping or bending your wrist during training. While wearing it to sleep, I've never woken up with a sore or stiff wrist. Speaking of sleeping, the Whoop 5.0 includes a haptic alarm that gently vibrates to wake you up, which I have to say, is the most pleasant way to be woken up.
The Whoop 5.0's charger slides onto the device so you don't have to take off the health tracker. Credit: Samantha Mangino / MashableThe charger slides on the device so you never need to take it off, but I wouldn't recommend that. It's designed to be worn around the clock, including in the shower. However, when the band gets wet, it feels waterlogged, and keeping it on makes it take longer to dry, which, in my experience, was a miserable sensation. Word to the wise: don't wear it while washing the dishes.
It's for people who love data In the Whoop app, dig into all the biometrics collected by the 5.0. Credit: Screenshots courtesy of WhoopIf you're looking for health data, including all the graphs you could ever dream of, the Whoop was made for you. Compared to other health-tracking apps I've used, like Apple's built-in health apps and Oura, which deliver straightforward, easy-to-digest data in an aesthetically pleasing app, Whoop's app focuses on the hardcore numbers.
The app is pretty plain, with three primary metrics at the top. Sleep, recovery, and strain data are front and center with health and stress monitors below (for those with a Peak membership). You can dig into specific measurements and view graphs tracking past measurements to see your gains.
Admittedly, it can be a lot to make sense of, especially for the average user who might just want to know their step count and sleep quality. But if you're not sure what to make of your heart rate variability and how that relates to your health, Whoop has a built-in coach.
Need some guidance? Whoop's got AI for that. Talk through adjustments to your routine with the Whoop Coach. Credit: Screenshots courtesy of WhoopOne of the best improvements in Whoop's app doesn't actually have much to do with the Whoop 5.0 specifically, but with the app. Now, Whoop Coach, which is still in beta in the app, helps you make sense of all the data.
The AI-driven feature processes all your data, making suggestions and starting a conversation with you about training adjustments based on your sleep and recovery scores. Since I'm not an elite athlete trying to dig into my biometrics every day, the Whoop Coach was far more accessible in deciphering what my scores meant and how to respond to them.
Performance is a mixed bagThe data provided by the Whoop 5.0 is accurate. The sleep score reflected how I was feeling. When I was only getting a few hours of sleep a night, my Whoop warned me to take it easy during the day, but after a full eight hours, it encouraged me to push it further in my workouts.
Whoop claims the longest battery life of any fitness tracker at almost any price, at 14 days. While my device didn't make it a full two weeks, I was able to go a full week without sliding on the charger.
Often I'd wake up to check my sleep score and find that the Whoop app was missing data. Credit: Screenshot courtesy of WhoopWhat I was most disappointed in about the Whoop was its data-loading time in the app. If you close the Whoop app, it immediately prompts you to reopen it to keep the data updated, which definitely drained my phone's battery.
Even when I was keeping the app open consistently, the Whoop 5.0 was slow to load data, especially in the morning. Often, I'd wake up ready to see my sleep data, to find that the Whoop was missing data from the previous eight hours. After refreshing the app several times, the data finally appeared, but it became frustrating how frequently this happened.
Overrides Apple Watch activityWhile testing the Whoop, I simultaneously wore my Apple Watch to compare data and track my workouts in real-time. I synced my Whoop with Apple Health, and a curious problem arose. Whoop data overrode all my Apple Fitness data. Suddenly, my calorie count after my typical activities was far lower than expected.
The Whoop 5.0 has more conservative calorie counts than my Apple Watch. Normally, after my morning walk, my Apple Watch shows I've burned around 400 active calories, but with the Whoop 5.0, it shows only around 200. Both programs use the same weight, heart rate, and step count data, so it raises the question of which is more accurate, and unfortunately, I can't ask my all-knowing body for that exact number.
Whoop 5.0 encompasses two membership tiersWhoop has three membership tiers: One, Peak, and Life. One and Peak use the Whoop 5.0 while the Life tier comes with the Whoop MG. One is the most basic tier ($199 per year), but its data is far more than basic. It includes 24/7 biometric monitoring, along with sleep, strain, and recovery data. It also provides insights into automatic activity detection, step tracking, cardiovascular and musculoskeletal strain, VO2 Max estimates, and heart rate zones.
With Peak membership ($239 per year), you get all of that plus longevity data. That includes Healthspan, which tracks your Whoop age and your aging page. Plus, Peak features stress and health monitors that analyze signals from your heart rate, temperature, and blood oxygen levels.
What's nice about the Whoop 5.0 is that you can upgrade from One to Peak at any time using the same device. Membership is charged annually, so you can pick the right tier for you without swapping out devices.
What's missing from the Whoop 5.0Technically, the Whoop 5.0 is the brand's most basic fitness tracker. The more advanced option is the Whoop MG, which stands for medical grade. The Whoop MG is part of the most expensive membership, the Life tier, which costs $359. It includes everything in the Peak membership tier, plus blood pressure insights and AFIB detection. If both of those are non-negotiable for you, depending on your health concerns, then the Whoop 5.0 won't suit you.
However, browsing the Whoop community on Reddit, most users say the MG isn't worth the price for those two features and prefer the Peak membership and the Whoop 5.0.
It's cheaper than that other fitness tracker — at firstBecause of Whoop's peculiar pricing structure, it's deceivingly cheap. With other fitness trackers like Apple Watch, Oura Ring, and Fitbit, you buy the device outright and use it freely, or maybe pay a small membership fee. But since you're buying a membership with Whoop and getting the device with it, the pricing is different.
An Oura Ring 5 starts at $399, plus an annual $69.99 membership fee, for a total of $468.99 in the first year. The mid-tier Whoop membership, Peak, is $239 annually. The Whoop remains cheaper after two years of use, but after three years of paying $239, it's more expensive than an Oura Ring plus three years of membership.
However, if you don't want to deal with any membership fees, that's where an Apple Watch or a Fitbit comes in.
Should you buy the Whoop 5.0? Should the Whoop 5.0 accompany you on your workouts? Credit: Samantha Mangino / MashableYes, the Whoop 5.0 is a great fitness tracker, best suited for individuals focused on the strain and recovery of daily life and workouts. It provides bountiful data and a Whoop Coach to help you make sense of the data. Its low-profile, stretchy knit band makes it extremely comfortable to wear all the time.
If you want training data during your workouts, you'll need another fitness tracker in addition to the 5.0, as it's screen-free. Not to mention, while the overall data is fairly accurate, the app's processing speed is frequently slow.
But for $239, or the more affordable $199 membership option, the Whoop 5.0 is a solid health tracker.
Whoop 5.0 $239 at AmazonAfter Samantha Wilson sold her house, the 35-year-old creator moved into a tiny shed located in the Montana woods. It had no kitchen, no bathroom, and no running water. If she wanted to cook her own meals, it was going to have to happen outside.
“What started as a necessity eventually became something I genuinely fell in love with,” Wilson says. “Cooking outdoors allows me to combine my love of food and nature, and it brings a sense of peace, freedom, and adventure that you don't get indoors.”
The full-time content creator has been building a following on Instagram (330K followers), YouTube (27.8K subscribers), and TikTok (104.8K followers) under the handle @samalouisaa, where she regularly posts cooking videos in her beloved outdoor kitchen. Wilson, who is Deaf, signs during all her videos and includes on-screen captions.
Credit: Zooey Liao/Mashable/Samantha Wilson/Apple/SanDisk/Starlink/Neewer/CapCut/DJIOn any given day, the creator can be seen making her take on Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups, strawberry juice, and homemade vanilla coffee creamer. In 2025, a video of Wilson’s mom running from a Grizzly Bear went viral, racking up 8M views on Instagram.
We recently caught up with Wilson over email to learn more about her approach to content creation, the gear she relies on for filming outside, and her signature goofy grin.
What is the overall vibe you are going for with your videos?My content is about finding joy in simple things. I love cooking outdoors, being in nature, and showing that good food doesn't have to be complicated. I try not to take myself too seriously, so there's always a bit of humor and silliness mixed in with the cooking and nature. I want my videos to feel like you're hanging out with a friend rather than watching a perfectly polished social media video.
Talk about where that silliness side comes from and what the response to that has beenI've always had a goofy personality, so the humor comes naturally. I can be pretty outspoken when it comes to food ingredients, misleading marketing, and products I don't believe in, but humor helps me get those points across in a way that's entertaining and memorable. People seem to appreciate the combination of honesty, education, and not taking life too seriously.
View this post on Instagram Any tips on cooking outside for someone who wants to try it?Start simple and don't overthink it. Begin with easy recipes and classic camping meals, then gradually challenge yourself with more creative dishes as your confidence grows. You don't need a fancy outdoor kitchen to enjoy cooking outside — just a reliable cooking setup and a willingness to experiment. The more time you spend outdoors, the more you'll learn to adapt and appreciate the experience. And somehow, food just tastes better outside.
What are the products you can’t live without for content creation? Opens in a new window Credit: Starlink Starlink Standard 4 $350.47 at Best BuyI'd love to see more authentic representations of Deaf people across all types of content. Too often, Deaf creators are expected to only talk about deafness or teach sign language, when many of us have a wide range of interests, careers, and passions. Social media has the power to show those full stories and help people see beyond a single label.
What do you love about being a content creator?I absolutely love the freedom to build a life on my own terms. It allows me to share my passions, lifestyle, and ideas with people who genuinely connect with them while creating a career that aligns with the life I want to live. It's truly rewarding to know that something I shared, whether it's a recipe, perspective, or simple idea, has inspired someone to try something new, improve their health, or think differently about what's possible.
What is most challenging about being a content creator?One of the biggest challenges is that content creation never really turns off. There's always another video to film, project to work on, or idea to pursue. I'm still learning how important it is to create boundaries and make time to simply enjoy life without feeling the need to document every moment.
From YouTubers and TikTok stars to streamers and podcasters, Mashable talks to creators about how they built their platforms, the gear they swear by, and the trends they see coming next. Read more of our creator coverage and meet The Mashable 101 to discover the internet’s most exciting voices.
After spending nearly three hours watching Odysseus struggle to get home, some The Odyssey viewers are leaving the theater feeling like they made the journey with him.
That is partly because they watched it in 4DX, a format that rocks the seats with the ships and adds wind, water, fog, and other physical effects to the movie. Videos from screenings are now spreading online and convincing other viewers that IMAX may not be the only way to experience Christopher Nolan’s epic.
Though some moviegoers call the experience "torture", the videos are generating plenty of interest from people who now want to try it themselves. The fascination adds another option to an already unusually complicated question surrounding the film: Which format should audiences choose?
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.Nolan filmed the movie entirely with IMAX cameras, and screenings in the much scarcer IMAX 70mm format sold out months before its release. Only 41 theaters worldwide are equipped to present it that way, leaving many fans to choose among digital IMAX, standard 70mm, Dolby Cinema, and other premium formats.
4DX presents a different proposition. Instead of expanding the image or emphasizing its visual detail, it brings parts of the movie into the auditorium. Literally.
What is 4DX?Created by South Korean entertainment company CJ 4DPLEX in 2009, 4DX uses motorized seats and environmental effects synchronized with onscreen action.
This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.The seats can tilt forward and backward, turn from side to side, rise, fall, shake, and vibrate. Depending on the movie and theater, viewers can also encounter wind, water, fog, smoke, scents, flashing lights, simulated snow, and bursts of air near their heads. Some seats contain a device that pushes into a viewer’s back during onscreen impacts.
For anyone concerned about getting sprayed, 4DX seats generally include a button that allows viewers to turn off their individual water effect. The movement, however, is part of the experience — whether you like it or not.
This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.Those effects are not automatically generated while the movie plays. CJ 4DPLEX employees spend weeks programming them, sometimes working frame by frame to coordinate each movement, vibration, and environmental cue with the film. The finished instructions are then distributed to 4DX theaters.
"If the seats are moving the entire two hours of a film, I don’t think it really takes advantage of what 4DX is," CJ 4DPLEX executive Paul Kim previously told Variety. "We want to make sure that it’s the right scene and we want to make sure that it makes sense when we use particular effects."
The Odyssey gives programmers plenty to work with. Storms bring wind and water into the auditorium, ships make the seats rock with the waves, and arrows trigger bursts of air beside viewers’ heads. Smoke and fog effects match what’s happening onscreen, while fight scenes produce sharper movements and physical jolts. And it’s packing theaters to capacity.
This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed. What viewers are saying about The Odyssey in 4DXAfter sifting through Reddit threads (r/RegalUnlimited, r/TheOdysseyMovie, r/ChristopherNolan) and reactions elsewhere on social media, the response from people who attended 4DX screenings was mostly positive.
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.According to people who attended screenings, the effects are concentrated around the movie’s larger set pieces rather than running continuously throughout its nearly 3-hour runtime. That gave audiences time to recover between storms, battles, and rough stretches at sea.
One Reddit user whose local Regal theater had recently installed 4DX reported that nearly every available effect kicked in during the movie—smoke, wind, air bursts, and plenty of water included. The seats rocked through boat sequences and jerked during fights and sudden action scenes.
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."There’s a certain part of the movie near the end where the seats went absolutely wild,” the user wrote. Although they did not consider it the most intense 4DX presentation they had experienced, they said the effects complemented this particular movie.
Other attendees emphasized that the seats did not move during every conversation. One user said the pauses between action sequences kept the extended runtime from becoming exhausting.
"Totally worth doing," they wrote, "especially during the boat scenes."
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.Many are leaving the theater inspired. One viewer said it reinforced their determination to "fight for my life just like everyone on the ship did," while another called their 4DX viewing the "wildest cinema experience ever." A TikTok creator even posted that her entire theater erupted into a standing ovation after her 4DX showing.
But not everyone came away convinced. One viewer on Reddit said the effects became an "annoyance" outside a few rough-sea sequences and complained that the final fight "absolutely wrecked my back." Another asked for a refund after experiencing "ZERO effects other than seats moving," suggesting that the experience can also vary depending on the theater and which equipment is working.
A TikTok video with 5 million views shows the creator warning viewers: "whatever you do, DO NOT watch The Odyssey in 4DX!!!"
This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.Fans of the format consider much of that physical discomfort part of the price of admission: a Reddit commenter compared 4DX with a theme-park attraction, but wanted to experience "the wind, the rain, the mist, and wet popcorn" anyway.
That leaves viewers with another option to experience the movie with the toughest ticket on the market: you can always catch the 6 a.m. showing to see IMAX 70mm present the full scale and detail of the images Nolan captured on film. Or try 4DX for the chance to rock through a thunderstorm with Odysseus — and hope the lid stays on your drink.
YouTube has spent years encouraging creators to experiment with AI while trying to contain the kind of content those tools produce. Now it’s getting more specific about what crosses the line.
In a July 16 episode of the company’s Inside YouTube podcast, Vice President of Trust and Safety Matt Halprin sits down with creator insider Rene Ritchie how YouTube distinguishes between creators using AI as a production tool and channels that use it to manufacture videos at scale.
The conversation wasn't an announcement that YouTube is banning AI-generated content; instead, it offered a closer look at 3 types of videos that can make a channel ineligible to earn money.
Which AI videos can lose monetization?The first category: generic or repetitive videos that barely differ from one upload to the next. This includes channels pumping out AI-generated stories where only the character names, settings, or accompanying images change. It also covers slideshows, scrolling text, animations, or tutorials that rehash the same basic information without offering anything new.
This doesn't mean creators need to completely reinvent their channels with every upload. What matters is the substance: each video should deliver a new story, lesson, argument, or explanation. It shouldn't serve up a lightly edited version of something already published.
The market for producing videos without an on-camera creator is substantial. Alex Mashrabov, a former head of generative AI at Snap, claimed AI-generated faceless videos were "a new, emerging category where solopreneurs and storytellers can thrive" in a June interview with The Hollywood Reporter. Now they'll have to thrive without repetition.
This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.The second category: what YouTube calls “unsatisfying or off-putting” content. These videos lean heavily on disturbing imagery or emotional manipulation to grab attention, but don’t build much of a story around it.
One example YouTube's Halprin discussed: videos that show animals in apparent danger before someone swoops in to rescue them. A channel built around this concept could lose monetization regardless of whether the footage was AI-generated.
The same principle may apply to compilations of disturbing clips, repetitive videos focused on violence, or AI footage that falsely shows a celebrity dying or a natural disaster unfolding.
This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.Again, YouTube isn't saying that every video involving tragedy, violence, or distress can't earn money. News reports, documentaries, fictional series, and other substantive work can still cover these subjects. The question is whether the disturbing material serves a larger story, or is just being used as clickbait.
The third category ties directly to generative AI. YouTube says channels can't monetize videos where synthetic personas present themselves as human authorities on sensitive topics such as healthcare, finance, law, and politics.
This could include an AI-generated "doctor" diagnosing symptoms, an AI-generated podcast host recommending investments, or an AI-generated "lawyer" advising viewers on court cases. The concern isn't that the characters in question are fictional — it's that viewers might mistake them for credible human experts.
The clarification follows a complicated crackdownYouTube has been trying to limit repetitive content for years. In 2025, the company rebranded such content as "inauthentic," noting that repetitive and mass-produced videos were previously ineligible for monetization.
Generative AI has made producing that material considerably easier. “AI can actually allow people to make a lot of videos,” Halprin noted, while conceding that the increased output can include genuinely good work.
"But that exact same new tool can allow you to make lots of videos really quickly that are very similar," he added. “They’re very generic and don’t really have a narrative arc and don’t really show your creativity.”
The scale of that output is becoming difficult to ignore.
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. This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.In a 2025 study, video-editing company Kapwing created a brand new YouTube account and analyzed the first 500 videos the platform recommended. Researchers classified 104 of them—about 21 percent—as “AI slop.” A third fell into a broader category, “brainrot,” which includes other forms of low-quality content designed to capture viewers’ attention.
Kapwing examined 15,000 popular channels and identified 278 that contained only AI-generated content. Together, these channels racked up over 63 billion views and 221 million subscribers. The company estimated they generate around $117 million in annual revenue.
YouTube said the findings didn't necessarily reflect the platform as a whole; however, the company terminated one channel identified in the study and removed several others from its monetization programs.
CEO Neal Mohan described managing AI slop as one of YouTube’s top priorities for 2026, even as the company rolls out its own AI tools.
This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.YouTube is embedding Google DeepMind’s Veo video generator directly into Shorts and offering tools that animate photos, assemble raw footage, suggest ideas, and automatically dub videos into 27 languages. More than 1 million channels used these AI creation tools each day in December.
Mohan's platform is in a tricky position, then. It wants this technology to expand what creators can make—without letting its revenue-sharing program become a payday for automated content farms.
Why 'faceless' creators are worriedThe crackdown has worried some creators who make original videos without appearing on camera.
These channels are often described as “faceless,” a category that includes narrated documentaries, history videos, animation, explainers, true crime, ambient sound, and other educational work.
Many existed long before generative AI and rely on human writers, researchers, editors, illustrators, animators, and voice actors behind the scenes.
This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.Trouble is, AI content farms often look similar on the surface. And some creators say that resemblance is already creating problems.
Doctor NOS, an educational YouTuber with 1.8 million subscribers, told THR creators making similar content without appearing on camera were being demonetized. Other faceless-channel operators have reportedly begun hiring on-camera hosts, via gig platforms like Fiverr and Upwork, in the hopes that a person on screen will make their videos more obviously human-made.
Those stories remain anecdotal, and such moves are technically unnecessary. YouTube has not said that appearing on camera improves a channel’s chances of earning money, and its written policy does not require creators to show their faces. Still, faceless creators are left without an easy way to demonstrate human work behind the screen.
YouTube is not banning AI videos as a wholeAI itself is not disqualifying. It can already perform many of the individual tasks involved in making a YouTube video, including drafting scripts, generating images and voices, creating animation, translating speech, and building visual effects. YouTube even offers creators its own AI-powered production and dubbing tools.
YouTube's Halprin said the company is not judging a video solely by whether generative AI was involved. A creator can use AI throughout the production process and remain eligible for monetization if the finished work contains an original story, useful information, entertainment, or another clear creative contribution.
The problem is that those same tools make it much easier to produce large numbers of videos that look, sound, and feel almost identical.
“AI can actually allow people to make a lot of videos,” Halprin said, noting that the technology can increase the amount of genuinely good work a creator produces.
“But that exact same new tool can allow you to make lots of videos really quickly that are very similar,” he added. “They’re very generic and don’t really have a narrative arc and don’t really show your creativity.”
YouTube’s updated guidance is intended to show creators where that fuzzy line begins.
What happens when YouTube demonetizes a channel?When deciding whether a channel qualifies for YPP, YouTube may review more than one individual video.
Reviewers can consider the channel’s primary subject, newest uploads, most-viewed videos, largest sources of watch time, titles, thumbnails, descriptions, and About page. If a significant portion of the channel falls into one of the three inauthentic-content categories, YouTube can remove monetization from the entire channel.
Halprin also addressed fears that angry viewers could get a creator removed from YPP simply by reporting the channel repeatedly. Reports can prompt YouTube to examine a channel more closely, the executive said, but the number of reports alone does not determine whether it loses monetization.
Creators removed from the program generally have 21 days to appeal. If that appeal fails, they can revise the channel, publish new material, and reapply after 90 days. For viewers, the clarification does not mean AI slop will suddenly disappear from YouTube.
Videos that violate monetization standards may remain available, and the scale of the platform makes automated content difficult to eliminate entirely. What YouTube can do is make that material less lucrative.
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TL;DR: Switchers can get the iPhone 17 Pro 256GB for free for 24 months at T-Mobile with a qualifying plan and number transfer. The offer comes through up to $1,099.99 in monthly bill credits, and no trade-in is required.
Opens in a new window Credit: Apple Apple iPhone 17 Pro Save up to $1,099.99 on the iPhone 17 Pro when you switch your number to T-Mobile. Shop NowApple’s iPhone 17 Pro is pricey, but T-Mobile is giving switchers a reason to take a closer look. The carrier is offering up to $1,099.99 back when new customers transfer their number, add a new line, and choose an eligible plan, which can bring monthly payments down to $0 over 24 months.
The deal doesn’t require a trade-in, but you’ll need to meet T-Mobile’s requirements to get the full savings.
The iPhone 17 Pro deal is available at T-Mobile in deep blue, cosmic orange, and silver with 256GB of storage. Its full retail price is $1,099.99, and the offer is available for new customers who switch their number to T-Mobile and choose an eligible plan.
To qualify for up to $1,099.99 in savings, you’ll need to:
Buy an eligible iPhone model, including the iPhone 17 Pro
Transfer your number from an eligible carrier
Add a new voice line
Choose an eligible T-Mobile plan
Eligible plans vary depending on whether you’re a new or existing T-Mobile customer and may include Experience Beyond, Better Value, and select existing T-Mobile plans. T-Mobile says bill credits can take up to two billing cycles to appear.
The iPhone 17 Pro isn’t the only device included in T-Mobile’s switch offers. Depending on the phone model and qualifying plan, customers can also get savings on other iPhones, including the iPhone 17, iPhone Air, and iPhone 16. And if you don’t qualify for the top-tier offer, T-Mobile has other switcher promotions that provide up to $900, $830, or $630 back through 24 monthly bill credits, depending on your plan and device.
What to know before switchingLike most carrier promotions, this deal comes with a few conditions. You’ll need qualifying credit and service, an eligible plan (starting at $100/month with AutoPay, plus taxes and fees, for the main offer), a port-in from a supported carrier such as AT&T or Verizon, and an active account in good standing to continue receiving bill credits.
If you cancel your account before receiving all 24 bill credits, the remaining device balance becomes due. Paying off the phone early can also prevent any remaining credits from being applied.
If you’ve been eyeing the iPhone 17 Pro, this T-Mobile offer could provide you with the push you need to make the switch.
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