Asus’ new ROG Zephyrus laptops feature OLED displays and a sleek light strip

The new Zephyrus pair come in dark gray and silvery white color options. | Photo by Antonio G. Di Benedetto / The Verge

Asus’ ROG Zephyrus have been some of our most recommended gaming laptops for years — and now, for CES 2024, the Zephyrus G14 and G16 are getting thinner, faster, and even more versatile for non-gaming tasks. I’ve been testing them out for a couple of weeks, and so far, it seems like a winning update.

For 2024, Asus is redesigning the G14 and G16 with new aluminum builds, a smaller and sleeker hinge that doesn’t elevate the deck, 16:10 OLED screens (2880 x 1800 / 120Hz for the G14 and 2560 x 1600 / 240Hz for the G16), larger trackpads and keyboards, a new fast-charging port with reversible plug (separate from their USB-C charging), new six-speaker audio setups (even in the smaller 14-inch), new chips ranging from AMD’s Ryzen 8000 series...

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Asus’ latest gaming phone is thinner, lighter, and sprinkled with AI

The ROG Phone 8 Pro and Pro Edition have small displays on their backs. | Image: Asus

Asus’ ROG phones have always been targeted squarely at gamers, but with the ROG Phone 8, the company could broaden the lineup’s appeal. The ROG Phone 8, ROG Phone 8 Pro, and ROG Phone 8 Pro Edition are thinner (8.9mm versus 10.49mm for the ROG Phone 7), lighter (225g compared to 239g), have better dust and water resistance (IP68 versus IP54), and also now include wireless charging at up to 15W — desirable features regardless of whether you’re a smartphone gamer.

The ROG Phone 8 lineup consists of the standard ROG Phone 8, the ROG Phone 8 Pro, and the ROG Phone 8 Pro Edition, which each differ slightly in design and specs. The $1,099.99 (€1,099.99 / £949.99) ROG Phone 8 has an RGB logo on its back and comes with 12GB of RAM and 256GB of...

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Lenovo’s latest 2-in-1 crams Windows and Android into one device

Once you plug this Android 13 tablet in, it goes full Windows 11 laptop.

We’ve come close to figuring out the ideal 2-in-1 laptop, but no company has nailed it yet. Lenovo’s latest attempt, the ThinkBook Plus Gen 5 Hybrid, recognizes that Android has a better touch interface than Windows and that Windows has a better laptop interface than Android — and it combines the two to try to get the best of both worlds.

When you’re in laptop mode, the ThinkBook Plus Hybrid functions like a normal Windows laptop. But when you pull the display off the laptop, it turns into an Android tablet. The bottom half of the device — the Windows half — has an Intel Core Ultra 7 Processor, 32GB of RAM, a 1TB SSD, and a 75WHr battery. The top half has a Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Plus Gen 1 processor, 12GB of RAM, 256GB of flash storage,...

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Unity is laying off 25 percent of its staff

Illustration by Cath Virginia / The Verge

Unity is undergoing yet another layoff, and this time it’s going to affect about 25 percent of its entire workforce, or around 1,800 employees. In a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, the company, which makes the popular game engine Unity, said it’s making the cuts “as it restructures and refocuses on its core business, and to position itself for long-term and profitable growth.”

Unity has been through several rounds of layoffs within the past year, with the most recent one affecting 265 workers last November. However, it’s still not clear whether Unity is cutting 1,800 additional workers on top of the layoffs it announced last year. We’ve reached out to Unity for clarification.

Last year’s layoffs came just weeks after...

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MSI made a $5,000 laptop with an RGB trackpad

This beefy boy packs a whole lot of power.

MSI is debuting a bunch of new laptops at CES 2024, but none are quite as over the top as the Titan 18 HX A14V, a boat anchor of a gaming laptop that costs as much as a beater car and has one of the coolest (or most garish, depending on your preference) trackpad designs I’ve ever seen.

The Titan 18 HX sports an 18-inch Mini LED display with 3840 x 2400 resolution and 120Hz refresh, Intel’s new 14th Gen Core i9 14900HX processor, an RTX 4080 or 4090 GPU with DLSS 3.5 support, up to 128GB of DDR5 RAM in its four slots, three M.2 SSD slots (one of which is PCIe Gen 5), a six-speaker audio setup, a SteelSeries-made mechanical keyboard, and a new vapor chamber cooler with a slick-looking exhaust design on the laptop’s elevated underside.

...

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MSI’s Claw is an Intel-powered Windows competitor to Valve’s Steam Deck

The button layout of the Claw doesn’t deviate too much from other gaming handhelds. | Image: MSI

MSI is the latest PC manufacturer to attempt to take on Valve’s Steam Deck with the Claw, a new Windows-based gaming handheld it’s announcing at CES. The Claw is powered by Intel’s new Meteor Lake Core Ultra processor announced last month and can be specced with “up to” an Intel Core Ultra 7 155H, according to MSI’s press release. At CES 2024, MSI tells us it plans to ship three models ranging from $699 to $799 when it arrives in the first half of the year — with the base tier shipping with an Core Ultra 5 and 512GB of storage.

We’ll have a full hands-on from CES soon: we literally just got hands-on the handheld and are writing up impressions now.

Although Valve didn’t invent the handheld gaming PC form factor, its release of the Steam...

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MSI upgrades its Stealth gaming laptop and more with new chips and AI features

The Stealth is MSI’s bestselling gaming laptop model. | Photo by Antonio G. Di Benedetto / The Verge

MSI’s gaming laptops are known for balancing price and performance with a bunch of RGB lighting thrown in for good measure. For CES 2024, it’s returning to that formula once again with its new Stealth, Raider, Cyborg, and Titan laptops and adding in upgraded chips with a touch of “AI.”

I had the chance to briefly see some of MSI’s new laptops in December, and perhaps the most exciting new feature is the use of 16:10 displays all around. I’ve personally been hoping for years to see the terribly limiting 16:9 aspect ratio abandoned in gaming laptops, and MSI’s new offerings pack more screen real estate into the same chassis thanks to the switch.

Among its many laptops, the new MSI Stealth balances the thinness and performance scales with...

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Acer adds swappable mechanical keys to its latest gaming laptops

Acer’s new Predator and Nitro gaming laptops now get Intel’s 14th Gen processors. | Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge

Now that Intel’s 14th Gen processors are here, it’s not surprising to see Acer (and plenty of other laptop makers) refreshing its gaming lineup. At CES 2024, the company announced the Predator Helios 16 and 18, Predator Helios Neo 16 and 18, and Nitro 17 are all getting a spec bump. But since swapping one processor for another isn’t exactly riveting news, Acer is also adding swappable mechanical switches for the WASD keys on its flagship Predator Helios laptops.

Spec-wise, the new Predator Helios 16 and 18 can be configured with up to an Intel Core i9 14900HX processor, NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 GPU, WQXGA or Mini LED displays with a 250Hz refresh rate, 1,000 nits of brightness, 32GB of RAM, 4TB of PCIe SSD storage, and all the RGB a gamer...

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Kia’s ‘Platform Beyond Vehicles’ is a family of modular electric minivans for businesses

Image: Kia

CES is famous for highlighting the outlandish, the uncompromising, and the immobile in the auto industry, but props to Kia for thinking more practically with its latest concept.

The South Korean automaker unveiled the PBV, or Platform Beyond Vehicle, which utilizes a flexible chassis to support a variety of vehicle types designed for businesses and individuals. How flexible? Kia is thinking of at least nine different vehicle variations built on the same platform.

The PBVs kind of resemble boring blobs: minivans with flat fronts, minimal overhangs, and an overall boxy design that screams “utility.” They can have long or short wheelbases. Interiors can be configured to fit the specific use case. Customers can mix and match...

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Razer upgrades Blades: new chips, new displays, and a smidge of AI

Razer’s press materials included this image, ostensibly of a LAN party, where everyone has brought enormous plug-in RGB desk mats along with their laptops. I love it and want to go to there. | Image: Razer

You truly have to hand it to Razer for stretching a series of modest spec bumps across two separate announcements and two separate weeks. Razer was so excited about the new display options on the Blade 16 and Blade 18 that it announced them on the 4th, and today, we have a few more details about what’s coming to both laptops this year, mostly of the spec sheet “number go up” variety. There’s also a USB-C dock. Here we go.

The Blade 16 goes OLED and gets a minor CPU bump

The biggest news for the Blade 16 is the previously revealed 2560 x 1600 240Hz OLED panel. Razer spokesperson Will Powers told The Verge via email that the Blade 16 will also be available with the dual-mode mini-LED display we tested in 2023, which can run at either...

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Alienware’s latest laptop has shrunken the butt

If you do not like big butts, Alienware has a new gaming laptop for you. | Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge

Gaming laptops generate a lot of heat, and Dell’s Alienware brand long ago settled on giving its gaming laptops big butts in order to exhaust it. But the problem with a large rear end on a laptop is it looks kind of goofy and makes packing it up a little more troublesome, so the Alienware M16 R2 has gotten a little booty reduction.

Compared to the previous generation, the M16 R2 is just 9.82 inches deep. That’s 1.58 inches shaved off compared to the M16 R1, or about a 14-percent reduction in depth. Which should make it fit in a lap or on a cramped dorm room desk a heckuva lot easier.

To go along with that less obtrusive back end (officially called a “thermal shelf” by Dell) the M16 R2 also has a new “Stealth Mode” that should allow you...

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Intel’s new 14th Gen mobile processors are here for 2024’s gaming laptops

Image: Intel

Intel is announcing its full 14th Gen mobile and desktop processor lineup today, including the latest HX-series mobile processors that will power some of 2024’s gaming laptops. Not to be confused with Intel’s new Core Ultra CPUs for laptops, the 14th Gen variants are a refresh of the Raptor Lake 13th Gen mobile versions we saw at CES last year.

The flagship Intel Core i9-14900HX will ship in more demanding gaming laptops, complete with 24 cores (eight performance cores and 16 efficiency cores) and an up to 5.8GHz turbo frequency. These latest chips also support up to 192GB of DDR5-5600, alongside discrete Wi-Fi 7 support, Bluetooth 5.4, and Thunderbolt 5 support.

Much like the desktop versions, Intel is bumping the core count on the Core...

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Samsung finally puts the TV at the heart of its smart home

Samsung TVs are becoming more like smart displays with new features launching at CES this week. | Image: Samsung

The idea that your living room TV should be a central place to connect, control, and manage your smart home is one that I believe has been a long time coming. And it looks like Samsung may be the first to get there.

Samsung has been slowly adding smart home features to its TVs, turning them into hubs for its SmartThings home automation platform, adding Matter controller capabilities so any Matter device can connect to them, and recently turning its newest TVs into Thread border routers. All of this means you can use your TV to connect and control smart devices like lights and locks without needing a separate hub. And this week at CES, Samsung revealed how it’s turning the biggest screen in your house into a bona fide smart display.

A new...

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Authy is shutting down its desktop app

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge

Authy, the two-factor authentication (2FA) app, will soon only be available on mobile devices. An updated support page spotted by Bleeping Computer says Authy’s app on Windows, macOS, and Linux will go away in August 2024.

Similar to other 2FA apps like Google Authenticator and Microsoft Authenticator, Authy generates a different code every 30 seconds that you can use to sign in to a linked account. However, Authy is one of the only 2FA apps available for desktop, making it an ideal choice when you want to sign into an account on your computer without having to get out your phone.

If you have a Mac with M1 or M2 silicon, Authy says you’ll still be able to download the iOS version of the app on your device. Otherwise, Authy recommends...

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Sennheiser announces Momentum 4 earbuds and revamped sport buds with health sensors

Sennheiser’s Momentum True Wireless 4 earbuds. | Image: Sennheiser

Sennheiser’s latest exercise-focused headphones, the Momentum Sport, are sturdy enough to handle the stresses and strains of a sweaty workout and sophisticated enough to track your heart rate and body temperature. They’re being announced today as part of a trio of new Sennheiser headphones at CES alongside the company’s new flagship Momentum True Wireless 4 earbuds and a new pair of over-ear Accentum Plus headphones.

Heart rate-sensing earbuds have been around for at least as long as true wireless earbuds themselves, but they’re still far from commonplace, and the feature hasn’t appeared in Sennheiser’s previous exercise earbuds like the Sport True Wireless. According to Sennheiser’s press release, its new Momentum Sport earbuds can...

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Hyundai says hydrogen will play a ‘prominent role’ in going carbon neutral

Photo by Ashish Vaishnav / SOPA Images / LightRocket via Getty Images

Hyundai is going all in on the most abundant element in the universe in the quest to reduce planet-heating emissions. The South Korean automaker announced that hydrogen will “play a prominent role” in the company’s efforts to go carbon neutral by 2050.

“Clean hydrogen should be for everyone, powering everything, and available everywhere,” Jay Chang, president and CEO of Hyundai Motor Company, said in a statement.

As the auto industry shifts to electric vehicles, a small but growing cohort of companies is also embracing hydrogen fuel cell technology as part of their plans to eliminate tailpipe emissions. Honda, Toyota, GM, and Hyundai have all detailed plans to manufacture fuel cell vehicles, both for individual and commercial uses.

H...

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This security camera’s 1.5-mile range is perfect for your sprawling mansion

Image: Abode

Your average security camera can easily capture footage of porch pirates — but what if it could trace them turning the corner in their getaway car? Abode has released a new outdoor security camera that can do just that. The Abode Edge Camera has a range of up to 1.5 miles and is designed to be placed in your backyard, garden, or some other outdoor vantage point.

The system works through Wi-Fi HaLow, a low-power version of Wi-Fi that can reach longer distances (but at a much lower bit rate) and is meant for IoT devices. Each security camera comes with a base station that goes inside your home; the camera connects to the base station over HaLow, then the base station connects to your at-home router using traditional Wi-Fi. HaLow was first...

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Final Fantasy XIV’s new class will unleash your inner Bob Ross

Image: Square Enix

Final Fantasy XIV wrapped up the final leg of its Fan Festival tour in Tokyo over the weekend. As with the other Fan Festival events, players were treated to a wealth of new information on Dawntrail, the next expansion in the critically acclaimed MMORPG series — in addition to graphical updates, a new playable race, and information on the expansion’s new area (and you can check out the full keynote address here). We also got a first look at the second job class being added to the game: Pictomancer.

By this point in the Dawntrail hype cycle, the most dedicated fans had already figured out the Pictomancer was coming. During the Las Vegas Fan Festival last year, game producer Naoki Yoshida made the keynote address wearing a Teenage Mutant...

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OpenAI claims The New York Times tricked ChatGPT into copying its articles

Image: OpenAI

OpenAI has publicly responded to a copyright lawsuit by The New York Times, calling the case “without merit” and saying it still hoped for a partnership with the media outlet.

In a blog post, OpenAI said the Times “is not telling the full story.” It took particular issue with claims that its ChatGPT AI tool reproduced Times stories verbatim, arguing that the Times had manipulated prompts to include regurgitated excerpts of articles. “Even when using such prompts, our models don’t typically behave the way The New York Times insinuates, which suggests they either instructed the model to regurgitate or cherry-picked their examples from many attempts,” OpenAI said.

OpenAI claims it’s attempted to reduce regurgitation from its large language...

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YouTube is cracking down on AI-generated true crime deepfakes

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge

YouTube is updating its cyberbullying and harassment policies and will no longer allow content that “realistically simulates” minors and other victims of crimes narrating their deaths or the violence they experienced.

The update appears to take aim at a genre of content in true crime circles that creates disturbing AI-powered depictions of victims — including children — that then describe the violence against them. Some of the videos use AI-generated, childlike voices to describe gruesome violence that occurred in high-profile cases. Families of victims depicted in the videos have called the content “disgusting.”

YouTube’s policy update will result in a strike that removes the content from a channel and also temporarily limits what a...

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Apple is going to offer Vision Pro demos at its retail stores

Apple’s Vision Pro will officially launch in the US on February 2nd, and starting that same day, you’ll be able sign up to try the headset out for yourself at the company’s retail stores, Apple said in an email today.

“Starting at 8:00 a.m. on Friday, February 2, we invite you to sign up for a demo of Apple Vision Pro at your local Apple Store,” Apple said in the email. “Demo times will be available Friday through the weekend on a first-come, first-served basis. We can’t wait to see you there.”

That language kind of makes it sound like Apple will only be offering demos through that first weekend of launch. Personally, I doubt that will be the case — I’m guessing Apple will want to give lots of people opportunities to try the Vision Pro...

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Apple appeals after EU’s tough new DMA rules target App Store

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge

Apple is appealing a European Union decision that would see its App Store hit with tough new obligations under the Digital Markets Act (DMA). Reuters reports that its plea argues against the European Commission’s designations of its App Store and the iMessage service.

According to Reuters, Apple argues that the Commission’s treatment of the App Stores on iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple TV, and Apple Watch as a single store is based on “material factual errors,” as they all distribute apps for a specific platform and type of device.

As well as the App Store, the European Commission is also investigating whether iMessage should also be designated as a core platform service under the DMA, which could result in Apple being forced to make its...

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Google’s Pixel Watch 2, our favorite Fitbit smartwatch, is cheaper than ever

Google’s second-generation Pixel Watch offers a lot of improvements over its predecessor, including longer battery life. | Image: Amelia Holowaty Krales

Given how popular health-related New Year’s resolutions are, it makes sense to expect that a ton of good smartwatch deals will drop in January. This year is no exception, with retailers discounting everything from the Apple Watch Ultra 2 to more budget-friendly options like the Apple Watch SE and Fitbit Inspire 3. And now, a great Google Pixel Watch 2 deal has popped up that our Android readers will particularly appreciate. Right now, Google’s Pixel Watch 2has returned to its all-time low price of $299.99 ($50 off) at Amazon, Best Buy, and Target.

Our favorite Fitbit smartwatch boasts even more Fitbit-powered health features and Google apps than its predecessor, including automatic workout tracking and access to Google Calendar and...

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You can ignore your phone with the JBL Live 3 earbuds’ touchscreen smart case

Image: JBL

JBL’s latest generation of wireless earbuds, the Live 3, seem built to withstand a strenuous outdoor running session — or just handle the wear and tear of daily life. The three new models — the Live Buds 3, Live Beam 3, and Live Flex 3 — are not only dustproof and water-resistant (the Buds and Beam are IP55, the Flex is IP54) but they also include the same touchscreen charging case that we first saw in JBL’s Tour Pro 2.

The 1.45-inch LED touch display on the charging case lets you retrieve calls and view texts, manage your music, and get social media alerts — perfect for when you don’t want to put your sweaty, grimy hands on your phone. While it’s probably overkill if you own a smartwatch or tend to keep your phone handy, a touchscreen...

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This smart lock can recognize your face

The Lockly Visage can unlock your door with a look. | Image: Lockly

CES is where we get to see all those cool tech gadgets you see in movies become a reality, and with Lockly’s latest smart lock, facial recognition is finally coming to our front doors. Yes, now you can unlock your front door like Tom Cruise.

The smart lock company is showing off its newest product at CES 2024 this week. The $349 Lockly Visage smart lock with facial recognition can replace your standard deadbolt and turn your doorway into a high-tech haven. Just approach, and the door will unlock. The smart lock also works with Apple’s Home Key and a fingerprint reader for other high-tech home entry options.

Image: Lockly

The Lockly Visage has a fingerprint reader, digital keypad, keyed lock, and facial...

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This Philips door lock turns your palm into a key

Image: Philips

Philips created a new smart lock that doesn’t require a key or a code — all you need is your hand. The company showed off its new $359.99 Wi-Fi Palm Recognition Smart Deadbolt during CES 2024, which comes with a built-in palm scanner that unlocks your door when it detects your unique palm print.

Philips says its lock can register up to 50 palm vein patterns and identify hands belonging to people of all ages — even if they’re dirty. The palm-scanning tech seems a bit more convenient than having to type in a pin or fumble for a house key, although these two methods are still available to use with this smart lock if you need them. You can also unlock the device using the Philips Home Access mobile app.

While we’ve already seen tech giants...

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Victrola’s new Stream Sapphire turntable can stream to anything

The high-end Victrola Stream Sapphire comes with a wooden plinth. | Image: Victrola

Over the past few years, Victrola’s come back on the scene with slick turntables capable of streaming to Sonos’ wireless speakers. Now, the company is taking things a step further with the Victrola Stream Sapphire, a turntable that’s capable of streaming records to just about anything.

Announced during CES 2024, Victrola’s highest-end Works with Sonos turntable costs a whopping $1,499 and will be available in the US in the spring. That’s nearly double the price of the $800 Stream Carbon and almost a grand more than the $599 Stream Onyx, a stripped-down version of the Carbon Victrola announced at last year’s CES.

For the added price, you get something both the Stream Onyx and Stream Carbon lack: Roon and UPnP integration. As a result,...

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VW’s software division and Bosch are testing robot parking and EV charging

Image: Bosch

Automated parking isn’t anything new. Every year, we get a new concept that purports to put valets out of jobs by using driverless technology to transport and store your car without human intervention.

But Cariad, the software company owned by Volkswagen, and supplier Bosch are hoping to reinvigorate the idea by adding automated electric vehicle charging to the mix.

The two German companies envision a system that “guides electric vehicles driverlessly to an unoccupied parking space furnished with a charge spot, where a charging robot recharges them automatically.” Once charging is complete, the car would autonomously move itself to another unoccupied space, freeing up the charging robot to accept another EV.

Bosch and Cariad are now...

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Ecovacs’ new cleaning station pairs its flagship robovac with a handheld vacuum

Image: Ecovacs

Ecovacs is launching a new all-in-one Deebot X2 Combo cleaning station that combines its signature square-shaped robovac with a handheld vacuum to touch up spots it can’t reach. Both vacuums attach to a single auto-empty station, so you won’t have to empty out either device yourself.

First announced last year, the included Deebot X2 Omni robovac offers a powerful 8,000Pa of suction and 15mm mop lifting. It also comes with dual-laser lidar technology and AI obstacle avoidance that allows it to create a new path when it encounters an object in its way. Meanwhile, the X2’s station automatically empties the dust and dirt collected by the bot. It’s also capable of draining and drying the robovac’s built-in mop and refilling its water tank.

B...

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Aqara’s new hub is a multi-protocol Matter powerhouse

Aqara’s new Hub M3 will let you add third-party devices to the Aqara app for the first time thanks to its role as a Matter controller and Thread border router. | Image: Aqara

Smart home company Aqara is finally launching its long-promised Hub M3, and it looks like it will be worth the wait. First teased in 2022, the Hub M3 is a Zigbee 3.0 hub for Aqara’s wide range of Zibgee devices, but it will also act as a Thread border router and a Matter controller for Aqara’s ecosystem. This means you should be able to connect any Matter-compatible device to the M3, from Philips Hue lights and Eve smart shades to Google’s Nest Thermostat, and control and automate them all from Aqara’s powerful app.

Aqara is poised to become a complete smart home platform like Apple Home, Amazon Alexa, or Google Home

This move turns Aqara’s app into a serious option for managing your entire smart home; previously, it was limited to just...

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