Life Style

The writing's been on the wall for a while. Unless you haven't seen a movie for the past decade or more, you know how important VFX has become to the creation of TV shows and movies. Those VFX come at a very high cost, and take a lot of man hours to produce. With generative AI video getting so good that most people have probably already been fooled by it at least once, it was only a matter of time before big studios started incorporating it into their workflows.Netflix, in fact, just bragged about doing so, months after a show came out and nobody spotted its use of AI. Yep, it seems that AI art is finally starting to become indistinguishable from human-made art, but that doesn't mean the issue is cut-and-dry.In an earnings call on Thursday, Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos discussed how the tea...

If you are looking for some art—and I'm talking fine Art, with a capital "A"—The Metropolitan Museum is the spot to find it. And not only can you visit the museum when you are in New York (to look at the Art), you can also download almost half a million digital images of genuine, snob-approved works from the museum's online archives—for free. The Met hosts 492,000 high-resolution images, most of which are public domain, so you can use them for any non-commercial purpose—anything from printing a t-shirt with James Johnston of Straiton on it, to hanging a poster of The Penitence of Saint Jerome on your wall to remind you of the importance of self-mortification (I don't kink-shame).How to download Art from the Metropolitan's online collection Getting your mitts on that sweet, sweet art couldn...

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication. If you’ve had your eyes on the upcoming Samsung Galaxy Z Fold7, Amazon has a pre-order deal that includes a $300 Amazon gift card.The device features 512 GB of storage, which is double what you’d get at the regular price without the gift card bundle. It also has large 8-inch screen, offering more display space in a slimmer silhouette (8.9mm when closed, which is 3.2mm thinner than the Galaxy Z Fold6). Powered by a customized Snapdragon 8 Elite processor for Galaxy, this phone has quicker AI, smoother graphics, and faster processing speeds than the old version. It also boasts a 200MP ultra-resolution camera, making it the highest-qua...

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication. If your phone’s camera is already doing most of the work when it comes to video, adding a good gimbal like the DJI Osmo Mobile 7P can take that content up a few notches. It’s currently down to $125 from its original $149, which also happens to be its lowest price yet, according to price trackers. The 7P is foldable, lightweight, and designed to handle even large phones like the iPhone 16 Pro Max or Galaxy S25 Ultra. Once clamped in, it keeps your phone level and smooth while walking or tracking a moving subject. There’s a built-in extension rod for overhead or wide-angle shots, and the embedded tripod makes it possible to shoot hand...

What's up, besties? It's World Emoji Day, which means it's time to look at some new emoji (or is that emojis?). In a post on its blog today, the Unicode Consortium, the nonprofit behind the standardized set of emoji across you see across all your various devices and apps, previewed its next set of icons and expressions. The group says there's still "a lot of paperwork" to do on these, so they might not hit your phones and tablets until sometime around 2026, according to an email Unicode's Erik Thompson sent to The Verge.But what a batch it is: We've got a musical instrument. We've got treasure. We've got one of those old-school cartoon fight clouds. And of course, we've got a cryptid. While new emoji have proven surprisingly political in the past, this update seems more focused on crowd-pl...

The Qi wireless charging standard has been around since 2010, and it's changed quite a bit in those 15 years. What started as a puny 5W standard has evolved to, widely, 15W—not blazing fast, but still quick enough to make it worthwhile. And with the Qi2 standard, the industry adopted Apple's MagSafe design. Since then, you've been able to buy chargers that magnetically connect to the wireless charging coils in your devices, so you don't need to worry about lining everything up perfectly to charge. Qi2 has been a standard since 2023, and even when it launched, it promised improvements down the road. Notably, the Wireless Power Consortium (WPC), which develops the standard, said that Qi2's 15W power transfer would increase in the future, allowing for faster charging. Now, in 2025, it appears...

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication. Credit: Illustration by Ian Moore and product image courtesy of Amazon. When it comes to gaming monitors, having an ultra-wide screen takes the experience to the next level, with a more immersive experience than a regular monitor. Unfortunately, that improved experience tends to come at a much higher price. That's where sales come in. Samsung is currently selling its 34-inch Samsung Odyssey G5 for $279.99 (originally $399.99), which is the lowest price this monitor has ever been, according to price-tracking tools. The Samsung Odyssey G5 is a great ultra...

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication. Credit: Illustration by Zain Awais and product image courtesy of Amazon. You can't go back in time, but you can still take advantage of lingering Prime Day deals. I'm still seeing discounts on Samsung gaming monitors, Google devices, OLED Nintendo Switches, AirPods, and more—including the GoPro Hero12 Black, one of Lifehacker writer Stephen Johnson's favorite products ever. It's still going for $279 (originally $369.99), nearly $100 off the usual price. This isn't the newest GoPro available; that's the GoPro Hero 13 Black, which came out this past Septe...

We may earn a commission from links on this page. As a devotee of Meta Ray-Ban smart glasses (seriously, I love the things), I've been squinting at every leak and offhand Zuckerberg comment to try to figure out what's coming next—though not all developments are equal. The Meta Oakley smart glasses, which are currently available to preorder, will have a longer battery life and a better camera, but that's more like a 1.5 upgrade than a next generation leap. So, let's dive into the most intriguing leaks, educated guesses, and flat-out wishes for next-gen Meta smart glasses.Meta's going in two directions with its smart glasses: audio-focused glasses made in partnership with eyewear brands like Ray-Ban and Oakley, and the more cutting edge, augmented reality glasses. I've ...

Last week, Apple dropped the third developer beta for iOS 26. It's the first major update to the beta since June, and it's clear that we're getting closer to the public version of the beta (even if Apple hadn't already confirmed it's coming in July). The third beta has fewer features and changes than the second, as Apple presumably focuses on improving the stability of the OS before unleashing it to public testers. But while there aren't a ton of new features and changes in this beta, there are some interesting highlights to report, as initially found by MacRumors. Here's what's new with this latest beta:Liquid Glass looks way less strikingWhile iOS 26 is full of new features and changes, arguably the defining characteristic of this update cycle is Liquid Glass, Apple's big design overhaul...