Technology

Some Verge-favorite gadgets are cheaper during Prime Day 2025

Published

7 months ago

July 8, 2025

Some Verge-favorite gadgets are cheaper during Prime Day 2025

Every month, we like to ask our staff about their favorite stuff — whether it’s tech, kitchen tools, or camping gear. What they answer gives us some interesting insights into what the folks here like to use when they’re at the job or enjoying some time off.

Now that Amazon’s Prime Day sales have come again, we’ve looked through some of our recent “favorites” articles and found deals on a lot of the devices we like. So, we thought we’d list a few in case you have read about them in the past and thought, well, that sort of sounds good, but it’s a bit pricey. (Or — that’s pretty cheap, but maybe I’ll wait until the price goes down even more…)

Here some of our staff’s most-liked gear that is now on sale during Prime Day.

Biker rider wearing backpack with river and bike in background

If you’re itching to get out on a bike ride even when it’s 85-plus degrees, you don’t want to be stuck without an adequate supply of water. I only have room for one drink holder on my bike, so I’ve found that it’s just far more convenient to carry water on my back with the aptly named CamelBak Hydrobak hydration pack. It’s a lightweight backpack that holds up to 1.5 liters of water, which it says is enough for a two-hour bike ride.

The backpack also comes with a handy straw that you just lift up and drink from, preventing you from having to stop and drink from your water bottle (unless you’re coordinated enough to take a sip while riding, which I am not). It also keeps your water relatively cool even when the sun is beating down your back.

Aside from storing water, there’s a zipper pocket where you can store car keys, your ID, and other small items. It’s not just ideal for biking, either. Many people use the CamelBak Hydrobak on long hikes, runs, and even for music festivals. — Emma Roth, news writer

Two people holding UE WonderBoom 4 speakers, one blue and one pink.

I try to bring a Bluetooth speaker everywhere with me when the weather’s good. A pool party, a park day, a golf outing, a hang on the back patio — it’s all better with music! There are obviously lots of good speakers out there, but for me the UE Wonderboom 4 is the perfect one. It’s only $100, it’s small but loud enough to work just about anywhere, its battery lasts all day and then some, it’s waterproof, and it floats. (All the colors look nice, by the way, but… get the blue one.) There are fancier speakers with more features, and the $200 Megaboom does sound a lot better, but I keep a Wonderboom in my trunk, and it has made me the party hero more times than I can count. — David Pierce, editor-at-large

Thermacell mosquito repeller, a small black semi-circular unit, sitting on a picnic table.

My biggest deterrent to spending some time outside are bugs, mosquitos specifically. I wish they’d bug off. They have me looking like I’m doing interpretive dancing to avoid being poked. Thankfully, a gadget that I got last year has made it so that I don’t need to be (as) protective of my exposed skin.

Thermacell makes rechargeable and refillable mosquito repellers. I got the E-Series model, which creates a safe zone where you likely won’t be bitten. It lasts a little over five hours per charge, meaning I get more than one use out of it before needing to charge it again. Just be sure not to use it in an environment where there isn’t proper ventilation; Thermacell notes that its ingredients shouldn’t be a concern for people or pets, but I don’t want too much insecticide around my loved ones — or my food. — Cameron Faulkner, commerce editor

$24

Small, convenient 5,000mAh charger with foldable USB-C connector; marketed for later iPhones but usable for Android phones as well.

I have a tendency to hold on to my phones as long as they work reasonably well, and although I must admit I’ve been tempted by the Pixel 9A, I will probably still be using my Pixel 6 for a bit longer. The only issue that I’m starting to hit is battery life — after over three years of use, it’s not unexpected that I will sometimes hit the 20 percent mark toward the end of the day. So I recently realized that I’m going to have to start carrying around a portable charger. At first, I was going to go with the 20,000mAh Anker Zolo Power Bank, which had gotten a good number of recommendations. But it weighs over 11 ounces and when I dropped it into my bag, it felt like I had added a small brick. That’s why I traded it in for the less powerful but much lighter Anker Nano Power Bank, which plugs into my phone’s USB-C slot like a small add-on peripheral. The Nano weighs only 3.5 ounces and supplies 5,000mAh of battery power — enough to keep me going to the end of the day. And it comes in several pale colors (I chose Ice Lake Blue), which means I can see it more easily in the dark reaches of my bag. — Barbara Krasnoff, reviews editor

Egg cooker with see-through top and seven eggs inside.

$20

Cooks up to seven eggs three different ways; comes with an omelet bowl that also steams vegetables.

My body composition has become about 70 percent egg in the blissful month since I bought this cooker. I never want to buy new countertop kitchen appliances, because almost every time I do, they end up dusty in the back of the cabinet, but I’m amazed by how useful this simple Hamilton Beach Egg Cooker is. I can prepare hard- or soft-boiled eggs to perfect consistency in minutes (with no cleanup!), and having it on hand has dramatically cut back on my bacon, egg, and cheese sandwich habit. So it’s good for my cholesterol and my bank account. — Kristen Radtke, creative director

$23

Stainless steel 18-ounce water bottle with double-wall vacuum insulation.

This is a sturdy stainless steel water bottle that keeps water cold as I sip it throughout my workday. What more could you ask for? I take it on trips, too, and while it’s got a few dents from some drops onto concrete, I don’t really care. If anything, the dents add some character and make it mine.— Jay Peters, news editor

$90

An 8-quart 11-in-1 air fryer and electric pressure cooker that air fries, steams, slow cooks, sautés, dehydrates, and — in other words — gives you a world of cooking features on your counter.

For the past few years, the Instant Pot has been a staple in my kitchen. From making rice to slow-cooking stews and even frying up chicken, it can do just about anything. The best part is that the Instant Pot can cook most recipes in a fraction of the time it would take in the oven or on the stove. Rice, for example, takes just six minutes to cook (not counting the amount of time it takes to build pressure), and there’s no fussing with covering the pot or adjusting the heat. Sometimes, it’s just easier — and much less stressful — to let the Instant Pot take the wheel. — Emma Roth, news writer

Overhead shot of hands holding a hand blender and stirring a bowl of a tomato-y broth.

$50

Lightweight, 21-speed hand blender that’s easy to use and put away.

How often do you blend things? Is it never? Maybe the reason is that taking out, assembling, and cleaning up after a normal blender is just way too much work. Do you know how many sauces I’ve thickened since getting an immersion blender? This thing is small, quick to set up, and you can mostly clean it with just a blast under the faucet. You’re going to blend so many things. — Jacob Kastrenakes, executive editor

Four bags sealed at the top with long plastic strips.

$19

This reusable sealing rod locks air and moisture out to prevent your snacks from going stale, prevents freezer burn, and keeps food fresh longer.

It’s kind of weird how much I like our Gripstics. Bag of chips open? Quick, grab a Gripstic. Kids vibing between two different cereals this week? A well-placed Gripstic will ensure they don’t get all squishy. Tiny package of chocolate chips you used for a recipe that is now kind of open in your cupboard for who knows how long? Just fold the top over, slide a Gripstic on it — the small blue one, thank you — and stop worrying so much.

I don’t know about you or your family’s shopping and eating habits, but try as we might to shop on the outside walls of the grocery store, we inevitably come home with many products packaged in single-use plastic bags. That in and of itself is a frustration, only compounded by those same products going bad if they’re not stored properly. The Gripstics are a simple solution to this universal problem, and one that I’m certain has paid for itself many times over. — Christopher Grant, group publisher

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Technology

Two more xAI co-founders are among those leaving after the SpaceX merger

Published

6 hours ago

February 11, 2026

Press Room

Two more xAI co-founders are among those leaving after the SpaceX merger

Since the xAI-SpaceX merger announced last week, which combined the two companies (as well as social media platform X) for a reported $1.25 trillion valuation — the biggest merger of all time — a handful of xAI employees and two of its co-founders have abruptly exited the company, penning long departure announcements online. Some also announced that they were starting their own AI companies.

Co-founder Yuhai (Tony) Wu announced his departure on X, writing that it was “time for [his] next chapter.” Jimmy Ba, another co-founder, posted something similar later that day, saying it was “time to recalibrate [his] gradient on the big picture.” The departures mean that xAI is now left with only half of its original 12 co-founders on staff.

It all comes after changing plans for the future of the combined companies, which Elon Musk recently announced would involve “space-based AI” data centers and vertical integration involving “AI, rockets, space-based internet, direct-to-mobile device communications and the world’s foremost real-time information and free speech platform.” Musk reportedly also talked of plans to build an AI satellite factory and city on the moon in an internal xAI meeting.

Musk wrote on X Wednesday that “xAI was reorganized a few days ago to improve speed of execution” and claimed that the process “unfortunately required parting ways with some people,” then put out a call for more people to apply to the company. He also posted a recording of xAI’s 45-minute internal all-hands meeting that announced the changes.

“We’re organizing the company to be more effective at this scale,” Musk said during the meeting. He added that the company will now be organized in four main application areas: Grok Main and Voice, Coding, Imagine (image and video), and Macrohard (“which is intended to do full digital emulation of entire companies,” Musk said).

Technology

2026 Valentine’s romance scams and how to avoid them

Published

7 hours ago

February 11, 2026

Press Room

2026 Valentine’s romance scams and how to avoid them

NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!

Valentine’s Day should be about connection. However, every February also becomes the busiest season of the year for romance scammers. In 2026, that risk is higher than ever.

These scams are no longer simple “lonely hearts” schemes. Instead, modern romance fraud relies on artificial intelligence, data brokers and stolen personal profiles. Rather than sending random messages and hoping for a response, scammers carefully select victims using detailed personal data. From there, they use AI to impersonate real people, create convincing conversations and build trust at scale.

As a result, if you are divorced, widowed or returning to online dating after the holidays, this is often the exact moment scammers target you.

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WHEN DATING APPS GET HACKED, YOUR PRIVATE LIFE GOES PUBLIC

Romance scams surge around Valentine’s Day as criminals use artificial intelligence and stolen data to target widowed, divorced and older adults returning to online dating. (Omar Karim/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images)

The new face of romance scams in 2026

Romance scams are no longer slow, one-on-one cons. They’re now high-tech operations designed to target hundreds of people at once. Here’s what’s changed:

1) AI-generated personas that look and sound real

In the past, fake profiles used stolen photos and broken English. Today, scammers use AI-generated faces, voices and videos that don’t belong to any real person, making them almost impossible to reverse search.

You may be interacting with a profile that:

Has years of realistic-looking social media posts
Shares daily photos that match the story they tell
Sends customized voice notes that sound natural
Appears on “video calls” using AI face-mapping software.

Some scam networks even create entire fake families and friend groups online, so the person appears to have a real life, real friends and real history. To the victim, it feels like a genuine connection because the “person” behaves like one in every way.

2) Automated relationship scripts that adapt to you

Behind the scenes, many scammers now use software platforms that manage dozens of conversations at once. This is known as “scamware” and is incredibly hard to flag.

These systems:

Track your replies
Flag emotional triggers (grief, loneliness, fear, trust)
Suggest responses based on your mood and history.

When you mention that you are widowed, the tone quickly becomes more comforting. Meanwhile, if you say you are financially stable, the story shifts toward so-called “business opportunities.” And if you hesitate, the system responds by introducing urgency or guilt. It feels personal, but in reality, you’re being guided through a pre-written emotional funnel designed to lead to one outcome: money.

3) Crypto and “investment romance” scams

One of the fastest-growing versions of romance fraud now blends love and money. A BBC World Service investigation recently revealed that many romance scams are now run by organized criminal networks across Southeast Asia, using what insiders call the “pig butchering” model, where victims are slowly “fattened up” with trust before being financially destroyed.

These operations use call center style setups, data broker profiles, scripted conversations and AI tools to target thousands of people at once. This is not accidental fraud. It’s an industry.

And the reason you were selected is simple. Your personal data made you easy to find, easy to profile and easy to target.

After weeks of trust-building, the scammer introduces:

A “private” crypto platform
A fake trading app
A business or investment opportunity, “they use themselves.”

They may show fake dashboards, fake profits and even let you “withdraw” small amounts at first to build trust. But once larger sums are sent, the site disappears and so does the person. There is no investment. There is no account. And there is no way to recover the funds.

AI DEEPFAKE ROMANCE SCAM STEALS WOMAN’S HOME AND LIFE SAVINGS

Data brokers selling personal details fuel a new wave of romance fraud by helping scammers select financially stable, older victims before contact is made. (Jens Büttner/picture alliance via Getty Images)

How scammers find you before you ever match

The biggest misconception is that romance scams begin on dating apps. They don’t. They begin long before that, inside massive databases run by data brokers. These companies collect and sell profiles that include:

Your age and marital status
Whether you’re widowed or divorced
Your home address history
Your phone number and email
Your family members and relatives
Your income range and retirement status.

Scammers buy this data to build shortlists of ideal victims.

The data brokers behind romance scams

They filter for:

Age 55-plus
Widowed or divorced
Living alone
Financially stable
Not active on social media.

That’s how they know who to target before the first message is ever sent.

Why are widowed and retired adults targeted first?

Scammers aren’t cruel by accident. They target people who are statistically more likely to respond. If you’ve lost a spouse, moved recently or reentered the dating world, your personal data often shows that. That makes you a priority target. And once your name lands on a scammer’s list, it can be sold again and again. That’s why many victims say, “I blocked them, but new ones keep showing up.” It’s not a coincidence. It’s data recycling.

How the scam usually unfolds

Most romance scams follow the same pattern:

Friendly introduction: A warm message. No pressure. Often references something personal about you.
Fast emotional bonding: They mirror your values, your experiences, even your grief.
Distance and excuses: They can’t meet. There’s always a reason: military deployment, overseas job, business travel.
A sudden “crisis”: Medical bills, business losses, frozen accounts, investment opportunities.
Money requests: Wire transfers, gift cards, crypto or “temporary help.”

By the time money is involved, the emotional connection is already strong. Many victims send thousands before realizing it’s a scam.

The Valentine’s Day cleanup that stops scams at the source

If you want fewer scam messages this year, you need to remove your personal information from the places scammers buy it. That’s where a data removal service comes in. While no service can guarantee the complete removal of your data from the internet, a data removal service is really a smart choice. They aren’t cheap, and neither is your privacy.

These services do all the work for you by actively monitoring and systematically erasing your personal information from hundreds of websites. It’s what gives me peace of mind and has proven to be the most effective way to erase your personal data from the internet. By limiting the information available, you reduce the risk of scammers cross-referencing data from breaches with information they might find on the dark web, making it harder for them to target you.

Check out my top picks for data removal services and get a free scan to find out if your personal information is already out on the web by visiting Cyberguy.com.

Get a free scan to find out if your personal information is already out on the web: Cyberguy.com.

Practical steps to protect yourself this February

Here’s what you can do right now:

Never send money to someone you haven’t met in person
Be skeptical of fast emotional bonding
Verify profiles with reverse image searches
Don’t share personal details early
Remove your data from broker sites.
Use strong antivirus software to block malicious links and fake login pages. Get my picks for the best 2026 antivirus protection winners for your Windows, Mac, Android and iOS devices at Cyberguy.com.

When you combine these steps, you remove the access, urgency and leverage scammers rely on.

SUPER BOWL SCAMS SURGE IN FEBRUARY AND TARGET YOUR DATA

Cybercriminals now deploy AI-generated faces, voices and scripted conversations to impersonate real people and build trust at scale in modern romance scams. (Martin Bertrand/Hans Lucas/AFP via Getty Images)

Kurt’s key takeaways

Romance scams are no longer random. They are targeted, data-driven and emotionally engineered. This Valentine’s Day, the best gift you can give yourself is privacy. By removing your personal data from broker databases, you make it harder for scammers to find you, profile you and exploit your trust. And that’s how you protect not just your heart, but your identity, your savings and your peace of mind.

Have you or someone you love been contacted by a Valentine’s Day romance scam that felt real or unsettling? Let us know your thoughts by writing to us at Cyberguy.com.

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Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson is an award-winning tech journalist who has a deep love of technology, gear and gadgets that make life better with his contributions for Fox News & FOX Business beginning mornings on “FOX & Friends.” Got a tech question? Get Kurt’s free CyberGuy Newsletter, share your voice, a story idea or comment at CyberGuy.com.

Technology

Uber Eats adds AI assistant to help with grocery shopping

Published

18 hours ago

February 11, 2026

Press Room

Uber Eats adds AI assistant to help with grocery shopping

Uber announced a new AI feature called “Cart Assistant” for grocery shopping in its Uber Eats app.

The new feature works a couple different ways. You can use text prompts, as you would with any other AI chatbot, to ask it to build a grocery list for you. Or you can upload a picture of your shopping list and ask it to populate your cart with all your favorite items, based on your order history. You can be as generic as you — “milk, eggs, cereal” — and the bot will make a list with all your preferred brands.

And that’s just to start out. Uber says in the coming months, Cart Assistant will add more features, including “full recipe inspiration, meal plans, and the ability to ask follow up questions, and expand to retail partners.”

But like all chatbots, Uber acknowledges that Cart Assistant may make mistakes, and urges users to double-check and confirm the results before placing any orders.

It will also only work at certain grocery stores, with Uber announcing interoperability at launch with Albertsons, Aldi, CVS, Kroger, Safeway, Sprouts, Safeway, Walgreen, and Wegmans. More stores will be added in the future, the company says.

Uber has a partnership with OpenAI to integrate Uber Eats into its own suite of apps. But Uber spokesperson Richard Foord declined to say whether the AI company’s technology was powering the new chatbot in Uber Eats. “Cart Assistant draws on publicly available LLM models as well as Uber’s own AI stack,” Foord said in an email.

Uber has been racing to add more AI-driven features to its apps, including robotaxis with Waymo and sidewalk delivery robots in several cities. The company also recently revived its AI Labs to collaborate with its partners on building better products using delivery and customer data.