A good gaming laptop deal is not just about saving money. It’s about landing the right mix of GPU, CPU, and storage so you don’t feel boxed in six months from now. This Presidents’ Day promo on the HP Victus 15.6-inch gaming laptop hits that sweet spot: it’s $999.99, down from $1,369.99, saving you $370. The important detail is the deadline. The deal ends on Feb. 17, 2026, so this is more of a “grab it while it’s live” situation than a price you can assume will stick around.

What you’re getting

This configuration checks the boxes most people actually care about for 2026 PC gaming and everyday use:

• 15.6-inch Full HD display with a 144Hz refresh rate for smoother gameplay and less blur in fast motion
• Intel Core i7-13620H (2023), a capable CPU for gaming plus school/work multitasking
• NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 for modern titles and GPU-accelerated creative apps
• 16GB memory for running games, voice chat, browsers, and background apps without constant slowdowns
• 1TB SSD so you can install several large games and still have room for projects, clips, and downloads

In other words, it’s a “play, stream, edit, and study” machine, not a laptop that only feels good on day one.

Why it’s worth it

Here’s the practical angle: many laptops around this price force compromises that become annoying quickly (small storage, weaker GPU, or screens that feel laggy). This one avoids the common traps. The 144Hz panel matters more than people expect because it makes everything feel more responsive, even outside gaming. And 1TB storage is a quality-of-life perk if you bounce between a handful of big games or keep media locally.

It’s also a smart pick for anyone who wants a laptop that can handle gaming now and still be useful later for productivity. The i7 chip and 16GB memory are what keep it feeling “current” when your workload is not just one app at a time.

The bottom line

At $999.99, this HP Victus is a solid Presidents’ Day deal for anyone who wants a balanced gaming laptop with a high-refresh display, modern graphics, and enough storage to avoid juggling installs. If you were already shopping in the under-$1,000 range, the $370 discount and the Feb. 17, 2026 end date make this one worth moving on sooner rather than later.

Microsoft says it has resolved a Windows 11 bug that caused some commercial systems to fail to boot with an “UNMOUNTABLE_BOOT_VOLUME” error after installing recent security updates, with the fix delivered in the February 2026 Patch Tuesday update.

The boot issue, which Microsoft previously investigated and linked to failed December 2025 updates, affected a limited number of commercial Windows 11 devices running versions 25H2 and 24H2.

According to a private enterprise advisory seen by Susan Bradley of Ask Woody, the issue has now been marked as fully resolved in the Windows 11 KB5077181 security update released on February 10, 2026.

Microsoft says impacted devices suffered boot failures after installing the January 13, 2026, security update KB5074109 or later updates, displaying a black screen and the message: “Your device ran into a problem and needs a restart. You can restart.”

At that point, impacted systems were unable to boot and required manual recovery to restore functionality.

Microsoft previously confirmed the issue was caused by the failed installation of the December 2025 security update, leaving devices in an improper state after the installation rolled back. 

Attempting to install future Windows updates on devices with this “improper state” could cause the system to become unbootable.

Microsoft said the issue affected only physical devices running Windows 11 25H2 and 24H2, and did not receive reports of it affecting home users or virtual machines.

Fix delivered in February Patch Tuesday update

Microsoft says it previously released an initial resolution in the optional non-security preview update KB5074105 on January 29, 2026, which helped prevent additional systems from becoming affected by the bug.

The company now says the issue is fully resolved in the Windows 11 KB5077181 update released during the February 2026 Patch Tuesday and later updates.

“This issue is fully resolved in the Windows security update released on February 10, 2026 (the Resolved KBs listed above), and later updates,” reads Microsoft’s advisory.

Unfortunately, devices that became unbootable before the fix was released may still require additional remediation. 

Microsoft advises enterprise customers whose devices remain affected to contact Microsoft Support for Business for assistance restoring system stability.

It is unclear why Microsoft did not share this advisory publicly, as it does for other known Windows issues.

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Former NPR host David Greene is suing Google after accusing the tech giant of stealing his voice for use in one of its AI-powered tools.

Greene, who presented NPR’s Morning Edition for eight years until 2020 and now hosts the political podcast Left, Right & Center, told the Washington Post he was “completely freaked out” when he heard the voice used by Google’s NotebookLM, a tool that summarizes documents and generates spoken audio overviews — using a voice that sounds very much like his.

When friends and family started getting in touch to ask him if the voice was his, he decided to sue Google, accusing it of violating his rights by copying his voice for NotebookLM, without asking for his permission or offering any kind of compensation.

Google has denied any wrongdoing. “These allegations are baseless,” a spokesperson for the company said, adding that the male voice in NotebookLM’s audio overviews “is based on a paid professional actor Google hired.” It has yet to reveal who that actor is.

Take a listen to the voice generated by NotebookLM in the video below (it runs for about eight seconds) and then listen to David Greene’s voice in the video below that, and see what you think.

NotebookLM :

David Greene:

Greene’s case is the latest to highlight how AI is steadily upending the creative industries, and at the same time upsetting many of those working within them.

It also brings to mind a similar case in May 2024 when the actor Scarlett Johansson accused OpenAI of replicating her voice for use as one of ChatGPT’s voices for the chatbot’s voice mode.

Johansson said she had twice declined requests from OpenAI CEO Sam Altman to use her voice, and was shocked when the newly released Sky voice sounded “eerily” or “strikingly” similar to hers and that of her AI character in the 2013 movie Her, about a lonely man who falls in love with an advanced AI operating system called Samantha.

Lawyers representing the actor demanded explanations about how the voice was created. OpenAI responded by removing the voice, claiming that it came from a different professional actress, not Johansson, and insisting that it was never intended to mimic her.

As for Greene, he also has concerns about how Google’s NotebookLM tool — using a voice that sounds very much like his — can be used to spread the kind of conspiracy theories that he would never personally give any credence to, with some listeners possibly believing that he’s doing just that.

Unless some kind of settlement is reached beforehand, it’ll be up to a California court to decide if Google has infringed on Greene’s rights to his voice or likeness.

If you’ve been wondering what’s next for Netflix’s Terminator Zero in the time since its first season, we finally have an update, and it’s a bummer. Responding to a fan on social media, showrunner Mattson Tomlin said this weekend that the show has been canceled. Despite being generally well received, Tomlin noted that “at the end of the day not nearly enough people watched it.”

Season one of Terminator Zero was released in August 2024 and focused on the events around Judgment Day — August 29, 1997, as established in Terminator 2 — and its aftermath, jumping forward to 2022, more than two decades into a war between humans and machines. In the post about the show’s cancellation, Tomlin wrote, “I would’ve loved to deliver on the Future War I had planned in season’s 2 and 3, but I’m also very happy with how it feels contained as is.”

Tomlin went on to praise the marketing team in additional replies for “trying to really make the show work,” as well as the hundreds of people who worked on the show. Offering a bit of insight, Tomlin wrote, “Generally speaking, anime audiences skew younger. Terminator audiences skew older. Terminator Zero asked them to meet in the middle, and they didn’t in the way the corporation needed to justify the spend to continue. I’m extremely grateful to the people who have watched it.”

Tesla’s long-awaited adoption of Apple CarPlay is still happening – just not as quickly as some drivers had hoped. After signaling last year that support could arrive by the end of 2025, the electric carmaker has hit a few unexpected hurdles that are slowing the rollout, according to the latest edition of Bloomberg’s Power On newsletter.

A delayed but ongoing integration

Tesla began working to bring Apple’s CarPlay system to its vehicles amid a period of soft sales and mounting pressure to boost demand. At the time, adding CarPlay was viewed internally as more than a minor software update. For many car buyers, CarPlay has become a must-have feature – a familiar, iPhone-like interface that seamlessly integrates navigation, messaging and music into the dashboard.

Despite Tesla’s reputation for having one of the best in-house infotainment systems in the auto industry, customer demand for CarPlay has remained strong. Tesla’s software already supports Apple Music, Spotify, video playback, web browsing and deep integration with its Full Self-Driving (FSD) system. But for many users, that’s not enough. CarPlay’s simplicity and ecosystem integration remain a powerful draw.

Tesla confirmed plans to support CarPlay in a windowed mode within its existing interface. However, technical challenges have pushed the timeline back.

During testing, Tesla discovered compatibility issues between Apple Maps and its own mapping software used for self-driving features. Specifically, turn-by-turn guidance from Tesla’s navigation system did not properly synchronize with Apple Maps when autonomous driving was active. In scenarios where both systems were visible side by side, this mismatch could confuse drivers.

Tesla requested engineering changes from Apple to address the issue. Apple implemented the fix in a later update to iOS 26 and the latest version of CarPlay. But another obstacle emerged: not enough users had installed the updated software.

CarPlay isn’t just another dashboard app – it’s become a central part of how many drivers interact with their vehicles. For iPhone users especially, the ability to mirror apps, access messages, use Apple Maps or Google Maps, and rely on Siri through a familiar interface can significantly improve the driving experience.

Tesla has long resisted adding CarPlay, arguing that its own system offers superior integration

But as competitors increasingly include CarPlay as standard, the absence has been a sticking point for some potential buyers. Adoption rates of iOS 26 have been slower than previous releases. Apple recently revealed that 74% of iPhones released in the past four years are running iOS 26 – slightly behind the pace of earlier updates. Crucially, the necessary Apple Maps fix did not arrive in the initial iOS 26.0 release but in subsequent updates. Apple has not disclosed how many users are on those later builds.

For Tesla, rolling out CarPlay before a critical mass of drivers has the compatible software could create inconsistencies and support issues. That has prompted a more cautious approach.

The good news is that CarPlay remains firmly on Tesla’s roadmap. As iOS 26 adoption continues to rise, the technical barriers should gradually ease. Apple is also expanding CarPlay functionality, adding support for third-party voice chatbot apps and enhancing its premium Ultra version – moves that could make the eventual Tesla integration even more compelling.

For now, Tesla drivers eager for CarPlay will need to wait a little longer. But the direction is clear: the feature is coming – just on a timeline dictated as much by software adoption as by engineering.

Gamer Dorison Hugo has been working on a crazy concept for seven years: squeezing four GameCube controller ports onto a normal Nintendo Switch dock, and he’s finally done it. Players can now just plug in their hefty purple GameCube controllers without having to clutter up their TV stand with additional boxes. The end result appears polished enough to pass as a factory-made accessory.

Hugo starts with the normal Switch dock that comes with the console. Inside, there’s mostly empty space, making it ideal for hiding a Gamecube adaptor. He chooses a little one from Input Integrity, primarily because larger ones, such as the Wii U version, will not fit. Next, he removes some of the adaptor ports to make room. Then a few precise holes are made at the front of the dock. He has a mixture of superglue, epoxy, hot glue, and other adhesives to keep everything together. Some simple connectors allow you to easily replace out cables if necessary. To finish, he only needs to solder four wires from the adapter to the dock’s circuit board. Gamecube controllers now glow up as normal on the Switch screen or any TV you connect.

Nintendo Switch 2 + Mario Kart World Bundle

• This bundle includes a system and a full GAME DOWNLOAD for the Mario Kart World game, exclusive to Nintendo Switch 2. Limited quantities. While…
• One system, three play modes: TV, Tabletop, and Handheld
• Larger, vivid, 7.9” LCD touch screen with support for HDR and up to 120 fps

There’s also a version that reduces the whole thing down to pocket size. All you have to do is slot the Switch in, connect the HDMI and power, and you can play it from anywhere. There’s even a special “handheld mode” that allows you to utilize the Switch’s built-in screen without a television. If you want to play for hours on end, external batteries make it possible.

Security becomes an issue for tournament participants, so Hugo installs a mechanical lock that snaps over the dock. A modified padlock secures the Switch, cords, and game card, but strong printed walls and side holes prevent bike locks or bolts from causing problems. Organizers of events can assign keys with numbers to keep setups safe.

There’s some good news for Switch 2 owners: there’s more room within the dock, making it easier to hide the connections. The ports are cut down somewhat at the top so that they fit flush. A 3D printed extension maintains the USB-C port easily accessible. Hugo scanned all of the pieces to ensure accurate fits, preventing any frequent mistakes that modders may make.

There are several additional features that improve the design, such as reinforced USB-C ports that can withstand intensive use. Some configurations even offer the option of adding USB hubs and Ethernet slots. Mayflash adapters are good for cheap solutions, but the Input Integrity unit is the one to acquire if you want top-notch reliability (which is essential at a tournament). Every single button and stick works just as Nintendo intended. Hugo is enabling everyone with a 3D printer participate by sharing the print files on Cults3D. And for those who simply want to buy one off the shelf, he is selling limited editions on eBay to fund his expenses.
[Source]