• You can get a four-pack of Samsung SmartTag 2 trackers for just $45

    January 8, 2026

    Samsung SmartTag 2 trackers are back on sale if you’re willing to pick up a bundle. Woot has a four-pack , which undercuts the previous all-time low we’ve seen on Amazon ($55) by $10. That’s a discount of 55 percent from the retail price of $100. It’s a compelling opportunity to stock up if you’re already in Samsung’s ecosystem. SAMSUNG We named the SmartTag 2 the for Samsung devices. The companion SmartThings Find app is easy to use, showing locations on a Google Maps-based interface. Much like Apple’s Find My network, the location of a SmartTag is pinpointed using nearby…

  • Illinois health department exposed over 700,000 residents’ personal data for years

    January 8, 2026

    The health department for the U.S. state of Illinois has confirmed that a years-long security lapse exposed the personal information of more than 700,000 state residents. The Illinois Department of Human Services (IDHS) said in a statement on January 2 that an internal mapping website containing residents’ personal information, which officials used for assisting with the allocation of state resources, was inadvertently publicly viewable as far back as April 2021 through September 2025, when the security lapse was discovered. Officials said the exposed data included personal information on 672,616 individuals who are Medicaid and Medicare Savings Program recipients. The data…

  • Bose made the consumer friendly move to open source its SoundTouch speakers

    January 8, 2026

    Bose recently announced the pending end of cloud support for its SoundTouch line of home speakers. This will, in effect, turn the smart speakers into dumb speakers as they will no longer have access to many features and any related software updates. Well, there’s a spot of good news for SoundTouch owners. The company is turning to an open source model for the software, allowing third parties to keep the music playing. The company has already begun mailing out the API documentation to customers so “independent developers can create their own SoundTouch-compatible tools and features.” This will take some time,…

  • Elon Musk’s lawsuit against OpenAI will face a jury in March

    January 8, 2026

    Elon Musk’s lawsuit against OpenAI will go to trial after a U.S. judge said there is evidence to support the billionaire’s case.  Musk sued OpenAI and its co-founders Sam Altman and Greg Brockman in 2024, alleging they betrayed their original contractual agreements by pursuing profits instead of the nonprofit’s founding mission to develop AI that benefits humanity.  Musk, who has launched his own for-profit company xAI, was an early financial backer and co-founder of OpenAI. He resigned from the board in 2018 after his bid to take over as CEO was rejected by the other co-founders, who put Altman up…

  • Google’s Pixel Buds Pro 2 earbuds are on sale for $165

    January 8, 2026

    It’s hard to find better wireless earbuds than Google’s Pixel Buds Pro 2 if you’re an Android user. The statement is even more true if you have a Pixel phone. If you’re on the market for a new pair, you can grab the Pixel Buds Pro 2 for $165 in the hazel colorway, which is $54 off their usual price. Other color options are also discounted, just not as steeply. The device made our list of the best wireless earbuds, and this is particularly true for those tied into the Pixel ecosystem. These earbuds are on the smaller side and,…

  • Why this VC thinks 2026 will be ‘the year of the consumer’

    January 8, 2026

    Investment in consumer tech startups has been in a downturn since 2022, as a turbulent macroeconomic climate and rising inflation have made VCs skittish about consumer spending power. For the past couple of years, most AI investment has focused on winning over enterprise customers, who provide fat checks, multi-year contracts, and quick paths to scale.   But one VC sees the consumer sector gearing up for a comeback in 2026.  “This is gonna be the year of the consumer,” said Vanessa Larco, partner at the venture firm Premise and a former partner at NEA, on this week’s episode of the Equity…

  • Nintendo reveals its first Switch 2 Joy-Con color variant

    January 8, 2026

    Nintendo has unveiled the first color variants for the Switch 2 Joy-Cons in light purple and light green, set to arrive on February 12 alongside Mario Tennis Fever. The new controllers are now on pre-order for $100 and include matching wrist-straps. Other than the colorway, these are standard Joy-Con 2 controllers with motion controls and HD rumble, along with the C Button for GameChat and the mouse controls for compatible games. However, you may have noticed something weird about them — the colors are on the inner rails, so you’ll barely be able to see them when the Joy-Con 2s…

  • Hands on with a prototype of Clicks’ Communicator, a new BlackBerry-like smartphone

    January 8, 2026

    The BlackBerry is back — sort of — thanks to the latest product from the mobile keyboard maker, Clicks Technology, which last week announced its debut phone, the $499 Communicator, which sports a physical keyboard. The company is also offering a separate $79 slide-out physical keyboard that fits to any device. At CES, TechCrunch chatted with Clicks chief marketing officer and co-founder, Jeff Gadway, and went hands-on with the latest handmade prototype of the forthcoming smartphone. The device, which offers a BlackBerry-like keyboard and messaging-focused touchscreen, runs Android 16 under the hood. That means the Communicator can run any Android…

  • 2026 Volvo XC60 review | CarExpert

    January 8, 2026

    Volvo’s long-serving XC60 mid-size luxury SUV is still gorgeous to look at and fancy to sit in.  It was launched eight years ago, so a lot has changed during its lifecycle. And while this isn’t the EXACT same car as it was at launch, having received a recent facelift and tech revisions over the last few years, the formula remains the same: luxury, comfort, simplicity, and safety. But with competition rife and the market rapidly changing, does this SUV still make sense? How much does the Volvo XC60 cost? The updated Volvo XC60 lineup has seen some price increases, and…

  • Volvo’s EX60 electric crossover promises 400 miles of EPA range

    January 8, 2026

    Ahead of a launch later this month, Volvo has teased some impressive details about its upcoming electric crossover. The EX60, which slots between the EX40 and EX90, will offer an EPA range of 400 miles, beating all other Volvos and most EVs in general. It will also be the first Volvo car to use a megacasting process designed to reduce weight and boost manufacturing efficiency. “With our new electric vehicle architecture, we directly address the main worries that customers have when considering a switch to a fully electric car,” said Volvo CTO Anders Bell. “The result is class-leading range and…