Catégorie : Tech News

The type of foam your mattress is made with can not only impact your overall sleep quality but may also affect your overall health. Some foams are made with toxic chemicals that you should not sleep on each night. Fortunately, many mattress brands create and use nontoxic foams in their mattresses. Here’s what to look for when shopping for nontoxic mattresses and why it should matter to you. 

CNET’s sleep team had the opportunity to tour the 3Z brand mattress factory in Glendale, Arizona. During the tour of the 600,000-square-foot facility, we learned from the CEO how 3Z makes all of its beds — six unique brands — in-house. Some of the most well-known mattresses from 3Z include the Brooklyn Bedding Signature Hybrid, Helix Midnight Luxe, Leesa Sapira Chill Hybrid, Nolah Original 10-inch, Birch Natural and Bear Elite Hybrid. We set out to learn how a factory that produces six different brands makes each bed feel distinctive.  

Read more: Best Mattresses of 2024

How does foam differ?

One of the primary reasons a bed may feel different from another is the type of foam used. For example, the Tempur-Pedic Breeze Pro mattress feels drastically different from the Nolah Original 10″. While the Medium model of the Breeze Pro is also slightly firmer than the Nolah Original, Tempur-Pedic uses dense memory foam in its mattresses. The foam in the Nolah Original is neutral polyurethane foam (made at the 3Z factory). This type of foam is lighter and more forgiving — meaning that it doesn’t leave you feeling like you’re stuck in the mattress. Poly foam is still pressure-relieving, but it makes you feel like you’re sleeping more on top of the mattress than too within it.  

All-foam beds, like the Nolah Original, are constructed with multiple layers of foam — each slightly different. Some foam layers are firmer and used for support, while others are comfort layers and allow for pressure relief. The chemical makeup of the foam determines its density, firmness and feel. 

What are the different types of foam used in mattresses?

Besides polyurethane foam, other different types of foam include:

• Memory foam
• Gel memory foam
• Copper-infused foam
• High-density foam
• Latex foam

Read more: Guide to Mattress Types: Materials and What to Consider

How is foam made?

Believe it or not, making foam is a similar process to making a cake. In short, you add the ingredients, mix and watch as the product rises. While the chemistry behind foam isn’t quite as simple as baking, this analogy breaks down the foam pouring process in easy terms. 

When Owen and I observed the process, it felt like we were in a How It’s Made episode. We were as close as someone could get; we quite literally could have reached out and touched the liquid pouring onto the conveyor belt. 

In layman’s terms, John Merwin, 3Z’s CEO, describes the foam pouring process as « mixing liquid chemicals in precise ratios. » Once these chemicals are combined, they react and rise as the foam is carried down a conveyor belt. 

« This mixture is carefully monitored to ensure uniformity and quality as it rises and cures into a solid foam block, » Merwin says. While it takes only mere minutes for the new foam to rise, it takes several hours to fully cure. Once the foam is solid, it’s then cut into exact layers to be used in any of 3Z’s mattresses. 

If you, like me, thought that the color of a foam determined its feel… that’s actually false. At the factory, we were told that the reason one piece of foam is gray, for example, and another is blue is to simply tell them apart.  

It’s also important to note that 3Z’s foam is CertiPUR-US certificated. This means that the foam is safe, fiberglass-free and made without toxic chemicals such as « ozone depleters, formaldehyde [or] heavy metals. » It also means that the foam with this certification « meets stringent standards for content, emissions, and durability, » Merwin says. 

The only other foam certification is GOLS (Global Organic Latex Standard), but this only applies to latex foam. 3Z does have beds that contain GOLS latex foam (i.e., the Birch Natural), but that isn’t made in-house. The process of making latex foam is very different from polyurethane pouring; it requires certain raw materials, specific procedures and machinery.    

Video: Foam pouring at the 3Z mattress factory

Watch my fellow mattress expert, Owen Poole, and me explore the 3Z factory and understand how they make its foam. 

3Z mattress foam

I have tested more than 70 mattresses over the years, and some of the beds from 3Z are among my favorites. I largely credit that to the materials it uses; mainly the foam. 

3Z is unique in that not many mattress brands in the US pour their own foam or, let alone, own a factory that makes its beds in-house. Merwin says, « Our foams are crafted with meticulous care and attention to detail. What sets our foam apart is that it’s poured in-house, giving us full control over the quality of the final product. » He continues, « This also allows us to create new foam variations that are exclusive to our brands. »

Prior to the trip, Poole and I were very interested to know how 3Z makes their beds distinctive if all the assembled materials are coming from the same place. To this, Merwin says, « The difference in feel among them is due to varying formulations and densities tailored to each mattress model. We adjust the composition and structure of the foam to achieve specific levels of firmness, support, and comfort to meet each mattress’s unique requirements. »

While 3Z makes a few « universal » foams used in multiple beds and brands, Merwin says that « most of the foam we pour is tailored to each brand, » and « each of our brands has a distinct identity… [that] is supported through the materials used to craft each brand’s collection of mattresses. » 

I walked away from my tour of the factory with both a better understanding of foam and how it impacts the feel and firmness of your mattress. 

Why this should matter to you

If you aren’t in the mattress industry like me, watching someone pour foam might not sound like a well-spent afternoon. However, if you value a premium and quality mattress, the making of your bed’s materials still applies to you. When looking for a new mattress, make sure its foam is Certi-PUR US certified to ensure your bed is free from toxic chemicals. 

Secondly, the type of foam in your mattress determines the feel and firmness. If you’re looking for pressure relief but are a hot sleeper, I recommend gel memory foam. However, if you enjoy the feel of traditional, dense foam, I recommend memory foam beds. Neutral polyurethane foam is a middle ground that seems to please most sleepers.   

If you purchase a mattress from 3Z, you can rest assured that the foam is made in-house, without harmful chemicals and designed specifically for comfort and support. Merwin says, « We are constantly innovating and developing new types of foam that set new benchmarks in the bedding industry. »

The Hyundai Ioniq 5 N isn’t a normal electric car. While the standard Ioniq 5 is intended (and quite successful) at being a Tesla Model Y competitor, the 5 N employs a unique aesthetic that sets it apart from the rest of the range, making it feel destined for the racetrack. Its sporty aesthetic is matched by how fast and fun it is to drive. This is the most expensive car Hyundai has ever sold anywhere in the world (for now) and, perhaps surprisingly, it’s quite comfortable in the company of similar high-performance EVs, such as the Ford Mustang Mach-E GT.

But the Ioniq 5 N is different to most EVs because, realistically, it’s a toy. As far as the 5 N is concerned, it’s not enough to be a simple start-and-stop EV – you need to bring the highs and lows of a combustion engine track toy to the electric world.

And practicality be damned, Hyundai has actually aced this. Configuring the settings of the Ioniq 5 N will put the car into ‘N’ mode, allowing for a fake engine noise that revs up and down depending on acceleration. This mode reconfigures the paddle shifters (located behind the wheel and normally used for adjusting braking intensity) so that they can be employed for upshifting and downshifting an artificial gearing system.

Does an EV need gears? Absolutely not, there’s no gearbox needed in an electric design. Is this system that mocks a combustion engine car useful in any way? Not in the slightest. Does it make the car even more of a joy to drive? Definitely – and when you’re driving a sports car, you can’t discount the fun element.

Full speed ahead

Electric cars aren’t known for being particularly amusing to drive. Very little motor noise is produced by the electric components inside an EV, though some models include artificial sounds for added flavor (there’s also a safety argument to be made for it). Without gears, EVs also lack an element of interactivity that traditional manual cars have by default. It’s part of why the insistence of many traditional car companies to resurrect old model names as EVs is so confusing – they’re typically not anything like their petroleum-powered forebears, spiritually or otherwise.

But the Hyundai Ioniq 5 N is, from the ground up, electric, without a petrol engine variant ever being released as a part of the Ioniq 5 model range. The Ioniq 5 N, with the ‘N’ added to indicate Hyundai’s performance car category, is the first electric sports car the South Korean company has put out, and it means business.

The Hyundai Ioniq 5 N reaches 100km/h from a full stop in just 3.4 seconds, an extremely competitive speed that puts it in competition with the Ford Mustang Mach-E GT (3.7 seconds) and the Tesla Model Y (also 3.7 seconds). The ‘NGB’ button on the steering wheel readies the motors for a rapid burst of acceleration, allowing for a quick takeoff at a set of lights or fast merging onto a highway. The 5 N is also immensely more powerful than its standard trim sibling, packing a total power of 478kW versus 239kW. The car feels brilliant on the road, going around corners or accelerating to full speed.

The operating system is fast and responsive, with Hyundai’s designers having successfully avoided the temptation to drop an overwhelming touchscreen in the middle, and integrating fairly strong and useful safety features such as lane assistance and a 360 birds-eye camera. The car splits its basic performance options into Eco, Normal and Sport (ascending based on speed and road feel, descending on projected battery range), but the Ioniq 5 N also includes ‘N’ mode.

A dedicated button on the steering wheel enables N mode quickly, which can be used to enable track-specific settings, launch controls, lap tracking, and an assortment of other features (some of which come with safety warnings that they should only be used on a track). It also changes the UI of the LCD instrument cluster to look more like the HUD from a racing game.

Besides all of this, N mode also comes with two features that are intended to lasso in revheads. The first is the artificial engine noise; with N mode activated, you can have the artificial engine noise emit a purr to match when your car is accelerating and decelerating. It’s a gimmick that’s delivered via the vehicle’s internal speakers (and can therefore only be heard on the inside of the car), and there are three sound options available (the first sounding like a petrol car and the other two sound much more akin to a futuristic car in a sci-fi movie). The sound can be turned up and down, or you can have it disabled completely if you so wish.

The second N mode revhead feature is an artificial gearing system, dubbed e-shift, which will likely have auto enthusiasts and EV lovers equally puzzled, but I confess that it is fun. This setting is off by default but can be activated and deactivated anytime. When you enable the artificial gearing system, the paddle shifters behind the steering wheel will be reassigned. Previously they’d be used to adjust automatic braking intensity, but with gearing enabled, they’ll take the car up from first to eighth (fake) gear.

On the road, it serves no practical purpose, but it’s such a thrill. Upshifting and downshifting on the winding roads to the west of Newcastle NSW, Australia was some of the most fun that I’ve ever had driving a car. That, mixed with Hyundai’s brilliant layout of buttons, dials and settings across the steering wheel and center console, absolutely made this the most exciting car I’ve ever driven at the luxury level.

But it’s not all acceleration

Waxing lyrical about the Hyundai Ioniq 5 N’s fake gearing will only get me so far. Sure, it’s got some fun but gimmicky features, but is it a good car?

Despite the sportiness, it’s remarkably easy to drive – although there’s no huge surprise there, as most EVs are pleasantly simple. Vision in the front seat is satisfying, the moonroof is gorgeous and the customizable interior lighting adds a nice layer of personalization, though you’ll only really notice the RGB changes across the trim at night time.

One of the criticisms that I have is that it’s strange to have a car this expensive without power-adjustable seats in the front. While it’s probably arguable that manual adjustments give the 5N a more sporty feeling, I feel like this is one area where the cost should have spoken for itself. The back seats can also be manually brought forward or back, which I liked about the original Ioniq 5.

The criticism that the Ioniq 5 N is most deserving of is its range estimate. The car is rated at 448 km on the WLTP cycle, or 221 miles EPA. Those estimates for my mixed modes of use (going from inner-city driving to highway driving to suburban driving) seemed fairly accurate to me, but will likely be unsatisfying to somebody wanting to road trip. It’s certainly not the lowest battery range estimation for a car this expensive, but when Ford, Tesla and Polestar are offering luxury sports cars that can best this range (but perhaps not the sporty feel), it’s a stat that might have some buyers turning away.

Alleviating this is the phenomenal charging capacity that Hyundai’s high-end EVs are capable of. Newer members of the Ioniq family of cars can charge at a capacity of up to 350kW in the right conditions. That capacity is well above the maximum that most public EV chargers are capable of, so don’t worry about sticking around at a charger for too long (in my time with the 5 N, I only spent about 15 minutes max at a public charger).

You’ll likely be doing most of your charging at home anyway, and I’m happy to report that the car does in fact come with an emergency wall plug charger; many of the cars I’ve reviewed recently have axed this feature entirely. You’ll want to consider installing a more powerful charger in your garage if you want a quicker top-up at home, but I know households that get by fine with included emergency chargers.

Finally, the car is just gorgeous. I’m so happy that the Ioniq 5 body exists; it’s not really an SUV as it’s commonly designated, it’s more of a hot hatch. Slightly larger than your average hatchback, the Ioniq 5N adds three inches of length to the standard body and some additional details around the chassis, including air vents for the rear wheel trim. Aesthetically, N decals are pasted around the car, including orange-red tones to the underside of the panels and a red stripe on the grille. Color options for the Ioniq 5 N are vastly different to those available with the standard car, being much sportier and eye-catching.

It’s not a car for everyone, but those who want it will love it

Priced prohibitively for many ($66,100 / £65,000 / AU$111,000 + additional costs and on-roads) and equipped with features that may confuse most drivers, the Hyundai Ioniq 5 N is for a strange subsection of auto enthusiasts. I’m not confident that a market for track-loving EV drivers is too big, but this is for them. Fast, sporty and fun to fling around, the Hyundai Ioniq 5 N is an over-the-top mix of practicality and performance.

Rivals to the Ioniq 5 N in most markets include the Tesla Model Y Performance and the Ford Mustang Mach-E GT, but the 5N exists on its own terms. This car craves the track, and Hyundai has built a phenomenally fun EV here.

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You can drive a stake through the notion that the director of Noferatu is a deeply serious goth dude. Sure, Robert Eggers—who also made The Witch, The Northman, and The Lighthouse—generally embraces darker themes, but he also knows sometimes a foundation must be laid for audiences to appreciate his works. Which is to say, yes, Eggers is well aware that Nosferatu parodies, specifically the one famously seen on SpongeBob SquarePants, may be fixed in audiences’ minds as they’re watching his movie. And he doesn’t mind at all!

This tidbit came out of a clever red carpet question posed by the Hollywood Reporter; watch it and you’ll learn even more about Eggers’ point of view on kids’ TV shows. Turns out he’s a big Muppet Babies fan himself.

“There was a show called Muppet Babies when I was a kid that would play little clips of like Lon Chaney’s Phantom of the Opera, and early versions of Cyrano de Bergerac and stuff,” Eggers recalled. “And that actually, that weird cartoon gave me exposure to a lot of movies that I watched when I was a little older with memories from Muppet Babies. So, thanks, SpongeBob.”

Nosferatu opens in theaters December 25.

Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what’s next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who.

Staff at another video game studio have organized their own union. The Communication Workers of America (CWA) announced late Thursday in a statement that 461 workers for ZeniMax Online Studios (ZOS), the Maryland-based studio behind The Elder Scrolls Online, voted to form the ZOS United-CWA union covering web developers, designers, engineers and graphics artists.

The new union will allow ZeniMax staffers to “collectively push for real improvements” in the workplace and provide “job security amid record layoffs, protections against AI, better pay and benefits,” according to a statement released by the CWA.

“I’m excited to finally see workers have a say in the workplace,” encounter designer and ZOS United-CWA member Billy Eichner said in the statement. “We already work together to make great games. Why not work together to make a great workplace?”

This isn’t the first time that a group of ZeniMax workers have formed a union. unionized in January of 2023, making it the largest union in the game industry at the time.

Workers at other major game studios have followed the lead of QA workers at ZeniMax by forming their own unions. workers unionized last March. More than 500 staffers who work on voted to form their union over the summer. Workers at , the developer behind Starfield, The Elder Scrolls and Fallout games, also voted to create a union in July.

True confession: I detest vacuuming. However, like the average household with pets and kids, it’s a necessary — albeit boring — evil. Throw on some noise-canceling headphones with my favorite music blasting and it becomes tolerable, but it can still be monotonous. Luckily, technology is on your side, and mine, with robot vacuums. There’s no denying they can be spendy, but right now Dreame vacuums are heavily discounted at Amazon, by as much as 57%. You can also enter the exclusive offer code DMCNETXM during checkout and save an extra 5% on many of Dreame’s products.

Note that while nearly all of Dreame’s vacuums are discounted on Amazon right now, including robot and upright wet-dry vacuums, not all of them qualify for the extra savings with the CNET coupon code DMCNETXM. Some of them have on-page coupons and others are straightforward discounts on Amazon. It’s well worth browsing if you’re looking for something other than what I’ve selected for you below because these savings are still significant.

Hey, did you know? CNET Deals texts are free, easy and save you money.

More Dreame robot vacuum deals:

Read more: Best Smart Home Gifts for 2024

Will this item arrive in time for Christmas?

If you’re ordering this as a holiday gift, you probably want to know if it’s going to arrive on time. Like many items on Amazon, Prime members can take advantage of fast, free shipping. In general, most of these vacuums will arrive in time for Christmas. However, depending on your location some may not. Typically on Amazon, the estimated arrival date is clearly noted before you add to the cart.

Additionally, with Christmas and Hanukkah both taking place on Dec. 25 this year, and Kwanzaa kicking off the day after, it’s important to note shipping deadlines for USPS, FedEx, UPS, Amazon and others.

• The Yoto Mini children’s speaker is being recalled again due to a fire risk
• The speaker was initially deemed a fire risk back in April
• Parents should take the speaker away from children and stop using it
• You should contact Yoto for a free battery replacement kit even if you’ve already received the smart cable from the April 2024 recall

Another day, another overheating audio product – only for this particular speaker designed for children, it’s second time unlucky.

The Yoto Mini speaker hasn’t had a good year. More than 250,000 of them were recalled back in April owing to overheating batteries – at least, the cable was recalled and replaced. And it seems that wasn’t enough.

The overheating issue cited is the same on both occasions – both the most recent product recall and the April recall issued by the US Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) state: « the speaker’s lithium-ion battery can overheat and catch fire, posing burn and fire hazards to consumers ».

This time, the CPSC’s report directs owners to « immediately stop using the recalled speakers, take them away from children and contact Yoto to receive a free battery replacement kit. Consumers should request the battery replacement kit even if they already received the smart cable in the April 2024 recall. »

Owners are also asked to dispose of those old lithium-ion batteries in accordance with local and state regulations, not in the trash.

Too hot to handle – apply for a Yoto Mini battery replacement kit now

The latest December 11 report states that Yoto has now received a total of nine reports from U.S. consumers (up from seven in April) and three from a UK consumer of the speaker « overheating or melting », although thankfully, no injuries have been reported.

According to the CPSC’s missive, about 251,165 Yoto Mini units were sold (in addition, about 18,932 were sold in Canada) between November 2021 and April 2024. The speakers are intended for children ages three to 12, are operated by use of Yoto cards and are designed to play audiobooks, music, radio and podcasts. They were available from November 2021 through April 2024 and cost about $70, with the SKU number PRPLXX00860. Again, if you have one, be sure to stop using it, and request a free battery replacement kit from Yoto.

Yoto has issued a statement telling customers « Please be assured this does not mean you have to send your Yoto Mini (2021-2023) back. Instead, the Battery Replacement Kit uses the same battery as in Yoto Mini (2024 Edition) and will restore your Yoto Mini with a brand new battery.… Yoto Mini (2024 edition) is not affected by this issue as it contains a battery from a different supplier. »

The news comes just days after Anker recalled nearly 80,000 Bluetooth speakers due to potentially hazardous overheating batteries – and the two incidents are not isolated cases. On November 20, Audio-Technica had to alert buyers that some batches of its affordable 2024 earbuds had an overheating case and on November 28, Belkin also issued a recall notice for its BoostCharge Pro (model number BPD005) power bank.

One thing’s for sure: whoever can invent and deliver to the mass-market a safer and more planet-friendly portable power alternative to lithium-ion batteries – ideally one that doesn’t require as much surface space as the otherwise-great Powerfoyle – will do very well indeed.

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Well, look at that. The Perseverance rover has clambered out of the crater that’s been its cradle for nearly four years on the Red Planet.

Perseverance landed on Mars in February 2021. The rover is charged with looking for biosignatures—evidence that the inhospitable world was not only once capable of supporting life, but actually did. To quickly sum what the rover has been up to:

Percy has been toiling on the Martian surface for the past 3.5 years. In its tenure, the rover has drilled into rocks, taken images of the Martian surface and the Mars helicopter Ingenuity, and compiled a collection of rock samples that will hopefully— someday—be brought to Earth for study.

The rover landed in Jezero Crater, which once held a large lake. The crater was formed by an impact event some 3.9 billion years ago. On the crater’s western edge was a river delta, which contains compelling rocks that researchers are eager to study on Earth—eventually.

In a session held yesterday at the annual meeting of the American Geophysical Union, Perseverance project scientists discussed Perseverance’s new environment, and what’s in store for the rover as it continues its trek across the rusty terrain. Briony Horgan, a planetary scientist at Purdue University and co-investigator on the Perseverance mission, hopped on the phone with Gizmodo to discuss what’s next.

“On the crater rim itself is terrain that was uplifted by the impact,” Horgan said. “What’s really exciting about that is that we’re now above the place where there was standing water. We can actually see the rocks that were there before the impact—really ancient stuff.”

The name of the game for Perseverance is: weird rocks. The rover team has been imaging and sampling bits of the Martian terrain that have strange appearances or chemical compositions, such as the “leopard spot” rocks revealed in July. These rocks could offer hints at ancient life, but also the evolution of Mars itself. Since ancient Mars is theorized to have been Earth-like, these rocks can shed light on how our world ended up verdant and wet and Mars ended up so—well—Martian.

“One of the reasons we’re excited about the crater rim is that impact craters generate heat from this big impact,” Horgan said. “It drives hydrothermal systems through the crust, and those are really habitable environments.”

The Perseverance samples will be game-changing, allowing scientists to interrogate Mars’ ancient past in a way that is very difficult, if not impossible, to do remotely with a rover from over 100 million miles away.

As Perseverance peers into Mars superlatively ancient past, scientists can glean information about its ancient potential to host microbial life and the way the planet became the arid, rocky, windswept world we know today.

“These are one-of-a-kind samples that will teach us about almost every aspect of the early solar system and how planets evolve,” Horgan said, “and they’ll keep doing that for decades to come.”

It’s a shame that we’ll have to wait for NASA to find the funding and the right plan to bring the samples home—it’s hard to hold ones’ breath for more than a minute, much less years—but the wait will surely be worth it. Until then, there are plenty of insights to be gleaned remotely, as Perseverance begins its work with some of the solar system’s most ancient rocks.

2024 is unquestionably the year of Balatro. It came out of nowhere to fill our heads with dreams of flush fives and legendary Jimbos. But I think what put it really over the top was when it launched on iOS and Android earlier this fall. That’s because even though I don’t have the numbers to prove it, Charlie Brooker — as he so often does in his show Black Mirror – made a particularly prescient prediction during an interview with Deadline when he said that after Balatro comes out on phones, “humankind’s activity is going to drop about 25 percent.” That said, I don’t think people were prepared for the mobile version of Balatro to be an almost flawless example of how to properly translate a game from desktop to small screens and foldables.

To start, on both the Apple App Store and Google Play, the mobile version of Balatro costs $10, which is actually $5 less than the desktop edition on Steam or the console ports on Switch, Xbox and PlayStation. But what’s even better is that in a world where seemingly every phone game is crammed full of microtransactions, there are zero intrusive ads or other extra purchases to take away from the game. This includes all the crossover cardbacks (like the ones featuring characters from The Witcher, Cyberpunk 2077 and more) and the big forthcoming update due out at the beginning of next year.

On top of that, there’s essentially no difference in features between the mobile and desktop/console versions. Granted, that’s due in large part to the game being a relatively simple title (at least in terms of graphics). But even so, you’d be surprised how easy that is to mess up. The game boots up nearly instantly and even when you’re smashing antes while pushing your score deep into scientific notation, the game doesn’t get bogged down.

It gets even better though because developer LocalThunk paid attention to nearly all the little details. Balatro mobile features cloud saves, multiple profiles and tons of languages. The game also supports achievements while making it easy to unlock everything with a single option in case the phone version is more of a secondary platform for you. And I can’t forget to shout out the High Contrast Cards option, which is not only a great accessibility feature but a generally useful tool for making it faster and easier to tell hearts and diamonds or spades and clubs apart.

I also appreciate how Playstack tweaked the game’s UI and interface to make it easy to drag and drop objects wherever you want. I can’t speak for everyone, but there’s just something inherently satisfying about using touch controls to move cards around like in Hearthstone and Marvel Snap compared to relying on a keyboard and mouse or a controller, to the point where I prefer the mobile version over the original desktop release.

But perhaps the thing I like the most about Balatro mobile is how well it plays on pretty much any device, but foldable phones most of all. I’d argue that handsets like the Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold and Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6 are the perfect joker-hunting devices. Their large screens feel like a perfect match for the title’s UI without ever feeling cramped, which happens sometimes on older gadgets with less roomy displays. Text is generally easy to read (though sometimes less so on tiny devices) and there’s plenty of open space to push things around without getting in your own way.

That said, if I had to nitpick, my complaints boil down to two (maybe three) things. The first is that on foldables, Balatro doesn’t take full advantage of the extra vertical screen space. But since there’s already plenty of room, it’s not a huge deal. I also wish the Skip button when opening packs was in a different place, because I’ve accidentally fat-fingered it more times than I’d like to admit, resulting in not picking a joker or Spectral card that I really needed. But perhaps the biggest issue (or not) is that when I’m playing the game outside, when people who aren’t Balatro fans see my screen, they probably think I’m a true dirtbag that just can’t wait till I get home to make a bet. And in many respects they’re right, but since I’m not actually gambling, it’s still the wrong impression.

Regardless, the mobile version of Balatro has basically everything I could want in a phone port. And in a world where more and more portable titles feel like low-effort cash grabs than projects meant to delight and entertain, Balatro is something I’m going to get more than my money’s worth out of for years to come.

For the sake of this list, I followed the instructions on every box word-for-word and ingredient-for-ingredient. But you don’t have to. In fact, there are a few things I’d change. 

Use less butter

Most of the boxed mac and cheese I made for this list called for a quarter-cup of milk and 4 tablespoons of butter. So first of all, yikes. That’s a lot of butter. These are (roughly) 6 to 7 ounce boxes. I promise you do not need that much butter. Personally, I use 1 to 2 tablespoons of butter when I make mac and cheese, and that’s plenty. To be honest, you don’t even really need to add butter if you don’t want to. It’s there to add a little extra flavor and help make the pasta a bit creamier.

Don’t use too much milk

What you really need to make sure you add is milk. Adding milk is necessary to help stir in the cheese powder and keep the pasta from drying out too quickly. Most of these brands called for a quarter-cup of milk — that’s way too much. If you add that much milk, you risk drowning the pasta in a puddle of cheese water at the bottom of the pot. Your mac and cheese won’t be creamy, it’ll just be runny. Instead, I’d recommend just adding two tablespoons of milk. And if you feel like your pasta is too dry, add another tablespoon. You can always start with less and add more as you mix and stir, getting it to your preferred consistency.

• Amazon has paused its Microsoft 365 deployment
• The deal, worth $1 billion, will see 1.5 million Amazon employees get access to Microsoft Office
• Engineers from the two companies have been working to resolve issues

Amazon has reportedly delayed its deployment of Microsoft 365 following a Russia-linked cyberattack where threat actors were believed to have accessed some employees’ email accounts.

The deal, announced in October 2023, saw Amazon commit to a $1 billion spend over a five-year period to get access to Microsoft 365 applications like Word, Excel and Outlook for 1.5 million of its employees.

Amazon has asked Microsoft to make some changes to its software to protect against unauthorized access, including more detailed user activity tracking within the apps.

Amazon’s M365 rollout has been paused

The delay follows Russian hacker group Midnight Blizzard’s breach of Microsoft’s systems, which the company disclosed in January 2024. Amazon Chief Information Security Officer CJ Moses said (via Bloomberg): “At that time still, Microsoft wasn’t able to tell us if they had gotten the [hackers] out of their environment.”

Moses added: “We wanted to make sure that everything was logged, and that we had access to that logging in near-real time.”

The CISO reportedly gave Microsoft Security EVP Charlie Bell, who is handily an ex-Amazon engineering executive, a list of requests several months ago, and engineers from both companies are said to have been working together in an unlikely collaboration to address Amazon’s concerns.

Moreover, the delay reflects growing concern surrounding the security of cloud-based tools amid rising cyber threats, particularly as nations like Russia and China increase retaliation against Western restrictions like US chip sanctions.

Up until now, Amazon’s usage of Microsoft products has mostly revolved around installed copies of Office, rather than cloud-based and connected subscriptions.

Although some progress is believed to have been made, Amazon is yet to announce a new deployment timeline, however the company’s CISO has confirmed that the deal is unlikely to bew off: “We believe we’re in a good place to start redeployment next year.”

We haven’t heard anything about any regulatory action or approval process regarding the massive deal, but both Amazon and Microsoft have been treading carefully recently after facing numerous antitrust investigations and allegations of monopolistic behavior.

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