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Nearly a Decade Later, the Electric Tesla Semi Is Here

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Tesla CEO Elon Musk has insisted investors think of his electric automaker as a robotics and autonomous vehicle company now. He’s targeted a $20 trillion valuation—nearly four times the value of market leader Nvidia—on that premise. But his Tesla team was in Sparks, Nevada, on Thursday to focus on, well, an electric vehicle: the long-awaited Tesla Semi.

The Semi concept first rolled onto a Tesla event stage in late 2017. Nearly a decade later, Tesla officially launched high-volume production at a livestreamed but invite-only event at the company’s factory. It targeted a niche audience: the cost-conscious people who manage large trucking fleets. A handful of them, all men, trooped across the stage to be thanked for their orders to a pulsing techno beat.

“It’s going to be, really, a driver’s truck. It’s like a sports car in truck form.” Musk said in a pre-taped video played during the evening event. (Musk, for years the ringmaster at Tesla’s circus-like events, skipped his second vehicle debut in a row; he was attending a White House China State Dinner featuring President Xi Jinping.)

The long-range version of the Semi will travel an estimated 500 miles per charge, Lars Moravy, Tesla’s vice president of Vehicle Engineering, confirmed at the event—around the average number of miles traveled by US long-haul truckers each day. The standard version will get an estimated 325 miles per charge. Competitor EVs advertise ranges of 155 to 430 miles.

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Electric Dreams

The Tesla Semi has its work cut out for it.

While electrics account for nearly 30 percent of heavy-duty truck sales in China, according to state media, they’ve had a slow start in the US, as manufacturers struggle to make the vehicles competitive with their traditional diesel-burning counterparts. Electric semis can cost two to three times more upfront. Right now, they’re not easy to charge because they require a countrywide network of specialized megawatt chargers that can fill large batteries in hours. Tesla’s website shows two such public chargers operating in the LA area. However, Dan Priestley, who leads Tesla’s Semi program, says the company plans to open 30 by the end of the year.

Plus, the Trump administration and the GOP—the same group Musk spent millions to get into the White House—cut billions in federal support for electric vehicles last year. The administration is also working to lower fuel economy standards for truck engines, which would have required manufacturers to hit aggressive climate goals. Heavy trucks alone account for some 7 percent of US greenhouse gas emissions.

And yet, it’s not a bad time to be an EV-maker. US diesel prices hit record highs this month as the Iran War continues to disrupt oil production and shipping in the Middle East; prices are up nearly double from this time last year. The truck “is going to make a ton of sense economically because the cost of electricity is much less than the cost of diesel, especially in these crazy times,” Musk said in his pre-taped address, nodding to the conflict launched by the administration he once worked for.

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This week, an alliance of shippers including Microsoft and PepsiCo placed a record-setting order for 2,500 Tesla Semis, to be delivered starting this year and through the next 18 months. If those trucks reach customers, they would nearly double the number of heavy-duty electric trucks on US roads today.

The group selected Tesla trucks over competitors’ after “assessing price, performance, production capability, and service support,” Meena Bibra, a spokesperson for the nonprofit Smart Freight Centre, which was involved in the deal, told WIRED. If the carriers are accustomed to another truckmaker’s vehicles, or if other electric trucks better meet their needs, they may also choose to purchase electric trucks from Kenworth, Ride, and Volvo.

Pooling demand among many carriers allowed the electric automakers to bring down the prices of the new trucks, the group said.

Full Self-Driving (Supervised), Tesla’s driver assistance feature, will not yet be available on the Semi, though Musk said in his address that it would debut in “the very near future.” The feature’s predecessor technology, Enhanced Autopilot, was promised during the initial 2017 rollout.

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Your Old GPU Could Be Worth More Than You Think

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If the RAMaggedon’s good for anything, it’s turning your old GPU into a potential goldmine.

Whether it’s from excessive use, sheer age or an upgrade that outclasses it, there are plenty of reasons that you may switch from one GPU to another. If you end up with an extra GPU lying around, there’s a lot you can do with it — including keeping it as a back-up or re-using it to build something new. However, even a well-worn GPU can be worth a nice pile of cash on the aftermarket.

Finding an affordable GPU during the great RAMaggeddon of 2026 is no easy task, with the AI gold rush sending prices into the stratosphere. While this has been generally problematic for would-be PC builders everywhere, it has at least provided a great window for selling any old GPU you might have. Even a long-dead GPU can find new life scrapped for parts, and one with a decent life ahead of it can sell for some good money.

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How much a used GPU could be worth in 2026

First, it’s important to look at the prices you can expect. For instance, NVIDIA’s RTX 50-series cards have shot up as much as 39 percent, and a further 30 percent hike isn’t out of the cards — not to mention AMD’s price hikes of as much as 10 percent. This demand comes not only from big LLM companies, but from individuals creating their own local AI setups, which means the most valuable cards you could be selling are those with a lot of VRAM (as this is what LLM’s use to temporarily store data when generating or training). Most users in the AI vein will be looking for 12 to 16 GB, but bigger teams will be looking for as much as 48 GB — and there is no shortage of start-ups.

Therefore, the AI boom that sent GPU prices soaring is also what determines how much you can sell your GPU for — as a used model with a lot of VRAM is still worth a lot for AI and gaming. Moreover, many older GPUs (such as the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3090) are even more valuable as they pack in more VRAM than many newer models. It’s pretty reasonable, then, to expect a used card with plenty of VRAM (in good condition) to retain at least 40 to 60 percent of its value.

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Where to sell a used GPU

Then comes actually selling a used GPU. Peer-to-peer sites like eBay or Facebook Marketplace require the most effort (you’ll have to create a listing, take photos, answer questions, handle shipping and hope to even be spotted in the first place), but also yield the most reward; looking at recent Sold listings on eBay, models like the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 Ti and the EVGA GeForce RTX 3080 not only sell at 40 to 60 percent of their original price, but can sell for higher than their original MSRP. Even busted-up GPUs can sell for a good price here, if you can catch the right buyer’s eye.

That’s still a lot of hassle, though, so trade-ins and over-the-counter deals can still make decent options. Going to your local PC repair shop or using Newegg’s GPU trade-in program can offer great convenience, as these companies will, in most cases, turn around a quick offer and take care of the shipping process. However, that convenience comes at the expense of your payout, so you’re liable to make far less in trades like this. If you have a used GPU that’s still got decent shine to it, definitely play the long game by selling it yourself. On the other hand, if you’ve got a worn model with scarce VRAM, a quick and easy trade-in probably won’t hurt.

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ShinyHunters says it breached the FBI and stole employee data

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The data breach is in retaliation for alleged disinformation published by the FBI about ShinyHunters’ cybercrime methods, according to the group.

Cybercriminal group ShinyHunters said it breached the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) yesterday (22 September) and stole the personal information of a number of current and former FBI employees.

A screenshot shared by the group with a number of outlets reportedly showed information ShinyHunters had obtained on 5,000 FBI agents, including names, addresses, phone numbers and details on the employees’ spouses.

Reuters said it could not verify whether the screenshot was real, but was able to partially verify the authenticity of some of the information displayed – the outlet was able to match details from the leak to FBI employees in at least 10 instances, one of which was FBI director Kash Patel.

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However, the publication said it could not establish where the data came from, or whether it had been stolen from the FBI’s internal systems as claimed by ShinyHunters.

According to 404 Media, which cited an FBI spokesperson, ShinyHunters was able to instigate the breach through a zero-day exploit in an Oracle product called PeopleSoft, after which the group managed to access AWS GovCloud servers and download data. The total exfiltrated data amounts to between 2TB and 3TB, according to the publication.

In a statement first posted to the group’s website on the dark web, ShinyHunters said it had targeted the FBI due to a report the agency published about the group earlier this year, which detailed the group’s methods and advised people not to pay if targeted for ransom.

ShinyHunters said the FBI made false allegations about the group and its cybercrime methods in the report – including alleged usage of threatening phone calls and false claims of compromising information – and has given the FBI one week to “correct or simply remove” the report.

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It’s unclear what the group plans to do with the data if the one-week deadline passes. When asked by BleepingComputer if it would release the stolen data if the FBI failed to correct or remove the report, ShinyHunters said: “No comment.”

Commenting on the FBI breach, Closed Door Security CEO William Wright told SiliconRepublic.com: “Hell hath no fury like a ShinyHunter scorned.

“This is a retaliation attack, which not only demonstrates that no organisation is safe from the group, but also the fact that they will go to any length to protect their image.

“The group clearly wants to control the narrative around their activities, ensuring nothing is said that could dent their reputation. Just like any organisation, reputation is everything, even in the dark and unruly world of cybercrime.”

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Wright also said Oracle needs to act fast to mitigate the zero-day vulnerability that allegedly allowed this breach to occur.

“It is essential Oracle takes steps to understand the [exploited] CVE [Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures] and whether it is already known to them. If not, an emergency update is essential,” he said.

“Any gaps between this announcement and a patch being released will only leave organisations vulnerable. Other threats actors will use the gap to exploit the CVE and launch further attacks.”

ShinyHunters has been linked to a number of high-profile breaches in recent months.

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In March, the prolific group claimed responsibility for a breach of the European Commission’s Europa.eu platform, in which a reported 350GB of data, across multiple databases, was accessed and stolen.

In May, ShinyHunters claimed responsibility for hacking education management platform Canvas and issued a ransom to Canvas parent company Instructure. Some days later, Instructure reached an agreement with the group.

Recently, ShinyHunters targeted rival cybercrime group Clop by hacking and defacing its ransomware leak site in an escalation of a dispute between the two groups.

Don’t miss out on the knowledge you need to succeed. Sign up for the Daily Brief, Silicon Republic’s digest of need-to-know sci-tech news.

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Minecraft World Hotel and Escape the Nether Coaster Arrive at Chessington in 2027

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Minecraft World Hotel Chesington
Merlin Entertainments and Mojang Studios used Saturday’s Minecraft Live stream to confirm Minecraft World Hotel will open in 2027 at Chessington World of Adventures in south-west London, inside a new £50 million land called Minecraft World. The stay sits beside the first official Minecraft theme park land, a project first sketched in March 2026 and now far enough along that construction footage shows coaster track already going in.



Sixty-nine rooms will be packed into a four-story building at Chessington, divided into 20 premium and 49 regular rooms that truly bring the world of Minecraft to life, with biomes, creatures, and items replicated just as they would appear in game. Family rooms will be designed out similarly to Merlin’s Legoland hotels, with larger beds for adults and a separate section for children, often a set of bunks or a trundle bed. The blocky aesthetic can be found everyplace, from Creeper face pillows to wooden chests that double as furniture, block style lighting, and wall scenes, as well as passageways that resemble mineshafts and lifts straight out of a video game. Beds are provided, therefore there is no need to bring your crafting table, as stated on the official page.

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Minecraft World Hotel Chesington
The public spaces are equally immersive as the apartments themselves. The lobby concept picture is packed of detail, with minecart tracks, Steve brandishing a pickaxe, and a newborn zombie dressed as a chicken jockey. Great food is essential in every hotel, and at the Deep Sea Diner, you can eat from tables that are truly surrounded by an underwater setting. The hotel bar is inspired on the Woodland Mansion. Room rates and a release date have yet to be determined, and booking a room is currently unavailable.

Minecraft World Hotel Chesington
Minecraft fans are also in for a treat with the brand new Escape the Nether rollercoaster, which is marketed as the world’s first Minecraft rollercoaster. You get to board a minecart with Steve and Alex and rush through the darkness, avoiding aggressive creatures and lava until bursting out into the Nether portal and splashing into the Overworld. The rules for riders will be announced closer to the event’s start. Chessington Park has also added a new area dedicated to Minecraft World, which will have play spaces, interactive adventures, its own shops and eating, and even the opportunity to meet some of the game’s most famous mobs. It replaces the previous Wild Asia region.

Minecraft World Hotel Chesington
Merlin and Mojang struck a deal in 2024 to bring Minecraft to the UK and US, with £85 million set aside for the two nations, and Chessington is the first of the new venues to launch. No information about other US sites has been given yet. Daisy Mercedes, Merlin’s creative producer, says you’ll be able to sleep inside the game and wake up exactly where you want to be. Filip Keatley Thoms, Mojang’s head for Minecraft Parks and Experiences, stated that the team worked hard to ensure that the game felt as immersive in real life as it does in the game when strolling around the biomes and witnessing the critters in person.

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Basically, Galvanizing Metal Without Acid

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As useful as steel and iron are to the modern world, their tendency to rust is a major downside. There’s a spectrum of ways to prevent it, from quickly slapping on a coat of paint on the easy side to alloying, chromizing, or physical vapor deposition at the extremely difficult or industrial-only end. For a middle ground accessible to the home shop, galvanizing is a go-to method of rust prevention that deposits a layer of zinc onto the metal instead, but even this generally involves the use of strong acids. This method, though, makes galvanizing accessible without any acids. (Spoiler alert: substitute strong bases.)

Although the acids are omitted, the solution is caustic, so similar safety measures are still advised. The first step in the process is to dissolve sodium hydroxide into a container of distilled water. Metallic zinc can then be dissolved in the solution, with a bit of sugar and liquid soap to improve the finished quality of the coating. An electric current is applied to the solution, using a graphite plate at the anode and the part to be electroplated as the cathode. After some time, the part will be uniformly coated in a layer of zinc, which can then be brightened in a solution of only-mildly-acidic citric acid if needed.

One of the benefits of using a strong base to galvanize a metal part, beyond the preference of avoiding strong acids, is that this process can be better at plating parts that are non-uniform in shape, so things with deep crevices or other odd shapes that might coat unevenly in acid. If there’s a preference for electroplating with acid, there are some ways of producing one’s own using various methods.

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Mitsubishi’s CS4307 40″ CRT Still Anchors Living Rooms After Decades…and Game Conventions

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Mitsubishi 40-inch CRT CS4307 TV Set
Mitsubishi spent the late 1980s and early 1990s stretching the limits of glass and electron guns until a 40-inch direct-view tube became something you could actually buy. The CS4307 belongs to that short, expensive run of sets that sat at the top of the company’s American lineup in the mid-1990s. Few other makers even tried a tube this large for living-room use. Projection sets offered more inches for less money, yet they never matched the punch of a real cathode-ray picture. Owners who wanted the biggest possible image without a projector chose this family of Mitsubishi consoles and paid accordingly.



A finished CS4307 weighs about 250 pounds and measures 39 and a half inches broad, 32 inches tall, and 27 inches deep, making it a bit of a handful to lift. Usually, you need four adults to lift the item. The cabinets, by the way, come in a fairly standard dark plastic with a very basic front panel layout that includes a power button, volume control, channel select, input select, a dedicated degauss switch because, you know, having one on the front can be useful at times, and an A/V reset for when things go wrong.

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Mitsubishi 40" CRT CS4307 TV Set
Rear connections? Pretty basic for the time, however most 1996 versions include RF, composite, and S-Video; later, one of its siblings added component video, making it the only 40-inch standard-definition set in North America with that input. Some of the higher-end models also had twin tuners, which allowed you to view one channel in a small window while retaining the other full screen. The stereo speakers that came with it sit on either side of the image tube and generate surprisingly clear sound for a mid-nineties television.

Mitsubishi 40" CRT CS4307 TV Set
Mitsubishi built the chassis in Braselton, Georgia, and paired it with a Japanese-made slot-mask tube with a dark tint and a dual-focus electron gun. Horizontal scan remains rock solid at 15 kHz, vertical scan at 60 Hz, hence the set performs best at 240p and 480i. Now I’m told that the three-line digital comb filter handles the most of the work when it comes to differentiating color and brightness.

Mitsubishi 40" CRT CS4307 TV Set
The geometry on a well-adjusted example is somewhat unexpected, especially given the size of the thing, since circles appear round and squares appear square after consulting the service menu. Of course, color purity is important, as the huge glass in this item is sensitive to the Earth’s magnetic field. That’s why you get a variety of switches to help tell the set if it’s facing north, south, or sitting in a neutral position, as well as a manual degauss button right on the front for when the picture starts to become a little weird and you get that telltale patch of color.

Mitsubishi 40" CRT CS4307 TV Set
The list price was between $3,400 and $4,000 ($7,259 and $8,540 today), depending on the year and any extras you wanted, such as the StarSight program guide or the ViewPoint on-screen menu. For that money, you got a picture with deep blacks, natural skin tones, and enough brightness to cut through a typically lighted room after a little gray-scale tweaking. Letterboxed films looked their best because the black bars stayed black, and retro gamers later discovered the same strength: 240p from a NES, Super Nintendo, or PlayStation looked sharp and colorful through S-Video, and the large screen on set thing brought light-gun games closer to the arcade experience.

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Innocn E49M1R ultrawide monitor review

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INNOCN E49M1R: 30-second review

The 49-inch ultrawide market has always demanded a compromise. Curve the panel, and you gain immersion but lose straight lines along your windows’ edges. Keep it flat, and those two features simply swap places. Innocn has decided that trade-off is no longer guaranteed, and the E49M1R is the result.

By the maker’s own description, this is the world’s first 49-inch flat Mini LED ultrawide monitor. That single design choice sets it apart from almost every other super ultrawide currently on sale, since curved panels have dominated this size class for years. Traders, video editors, developers and anyone who values straight lines over cinematic curvature now have a genuine flat alternative at this scale.

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Reolink OMVI 3i review: wide panoramic views meet 4K tracking

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We spend hours testing every product or service we review, so you can be sure you’re buying the best. Find out more about how we test.

Reolink OMVI 3i: two-minute review

Shenzhen-based firm Reolink is a well-established brand in the home security market having gained a solid reputation for well-built, user-friendly cameras and video doorbells at an affordable price. I’ve reviewed quite a few models for TechRadar in my time and have generally been very impressed. One particular favourite is the recently launched Reolink Solar Floodlight Cam which combines a solar panel with two powerful spotlights either side of the main unit, as well as a loud onboard siren.

Like the Solar Floodlight Cam, the OMVI 3i also features powerful spotlights (there are eight in total) plus an ear-piercing 110dB siren. However, the key difference is that rather than relying on solar power combined with a built-in lithium-ion battery that can be recharged, the much bulkier Reolink OMVI 3i is mains-operated only and can’t be powered by battery or solar. This means it will have to be located near an AC power supply which isn’t always possible outdoors.

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Two versions are available, a wired Power of Ethernet (PoE) version and the Wi-Fi model that we tested. Unlike some cheaper models, the OMVI 3i supports both 2.4GHz and 5GHz Wi-Fi — though the 5GHz frequencies are recommended for outdoor use. Practically identical to one another, both models are very bulky, requiring careful mounting on a wall using a drill in conjunction with brackets, screws and wall plugs provided.

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Reolink Omvi 3i security camera installed outside home

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Whereas most security cameras rely on cloud-based processing to identify objects, this latest Reolink features powerful integrated edge AI. This onboard intelligence allows the camera to easily distinguish between people, animals, and vehicles, letting you independently adjust sensitivity settings for each category to help dramatically reduce false alarms. Particularly clever is the smart tracking option alongside advanced package detection, which can alert you if a parcel is removed from a specific zone – making it a potentially useful tool in the fight against porch pirates.

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Apple Watch Ultra 4 review: Features, Design, Price

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Apple’s new Health Sensing System for Apple Watch Ultra 4 means more accurate and more frequent health metric tracking. It feels like the peak offering of a device before a necessary complete redesign.

Nearly every improvement made to Apple Watch Ultra 4 relates to health, fitness, and the ability to track those metrics. Even the longer battery life was pitched as a way to track metrics over a longer period of time.

Tim Cook may have stepped down as CEO before Apple Watch Ultra 4 was revealed, but it and the Apple Watch Series 12 are clear realizations of his vision. Apple Watch is a health-focused wearable that aims to improve the wearer’s life, and perhaps even save them in emergency situations.

Out of all of Apple’s products, the Apple Watch is perhaps the most mature with very little wiggle room, even when compared to the Apple TV — there just isn’t enough space. That is clear given that even the Apple Watch Ultra 4 gained a gram in weight thanks to the new sensor system.

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The Apple Watch Ultra line appears to be in an even more awkward position compared to the standard “Series” line. It has consistently received all of the updates brought to models like Apple Watch Series 12 (on sale now), but nothing “Ultra” has been added or upgraded since the original model’s launch.

As I pointed out in my Apple Watch Ultra 3 review, it’s still the larger, high-end watch with the most sensors and ruggedness. However, Apple seems stumped on how to iterate on the premium Apple Watch beyond keeping it in lock step with the rest of the lineup.

That said, the 2026 model at least is a significant step forward. Here’s what Apple Watch Ultra 4 offers.

Apple Watch Ultra 4 review: Design

When you’re looking at Apple Watch Ultra 4 on someone’s wrist, you’ll never guess which generation it is from design alone. Apple has stuck with the same design since the original launched, though the black option did arrive as a change in gen 2.

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Apple Watch Ultra 4 with brown leather band resting sideways on a black metal railing, showing a square face, speaker holes, and a prominent orange side button against a blurred green background

Apple Watch Ultra 4 review: Same design, color, and orange Action button

Flip it on its back and you’ll see a significant difference thanks to the new Health Sensing System. Apple has replaced the sensor stack with updated components for more frequent and more accurate readings.

The electrodes are larger, which surround the photo diodes where green LEDs are shown through to collect data. This all fits in the Apple Watch, though there has been a weight increase of about 1.4 grams.

It’s such a small change that I haven’t noticed a difference.

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The display is identical across generations, you’re getting the same 100m dive spec, and it is still a titanium case with orange accents. I do think Apple could have made a statement with a new case color or design tweak, but that wasn’t for this year.

Apple Watch Ultra 4 review: Features

Much of what was introduced in Apple Watch Ultra 4 and Apple Watch Series 12 is tied to the updated Health app coming in iOS 27.2. I’ve tested the Watch with and without this update, but I won’t spend too much time on the app itself here.

Close-up of a Apple Watch Ultra 4 hanging by its brown leather strap, showing the rounded metal back, sensors, and an orange side button against a blurred outdoor background

Apple Watch Ultra 4 review: Every upgrade can be tied to S11 and new sensors

All of the metrics that matter most on Apple Watch saw a boost with the new system. These upgrades come at no loss of battery life, and even then, Apple says the battery life has increased in the latest generation.

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Here is every new feature for Apple Watch Ultra 4:

  • Health Sensing System
  • Second-generation electrical heart sensor
  • Always-on optical heart sensor
  • Improved step tracking
  • Recovery HRV
  • High-frequency background heart rate tracking
  • HRV in the Vitals app
  • Audio Intelligence
  • Single-tap gesture

There’s also the new Readiness app, but I’ve not had enough nights of data collection for it to show anything just yet. It gathers data over a week, and as this is published, it has been a week since getting the device. I’ll discuss Readiness when I write more about the new Health app, which deserves its own full breakdown.

All of these new sensors add up to a new health-forward platform that should excite anyone that likes putting data in databases. Your heart rate is read every five seconds and HRV data is collected every five minutes.

Heart Rate Variability has become a popular way to measure a person’s overall health, mostly due to products like the Whoop health band. Apple already collected this data, but it is putting it front and center with the Apple Watch Ultra 4.

Three smartphones display colorful health app screens showing a sleep score, resting heart rate of 66 with a large heart icon, and fitness aging score, against a bright coral background

Apple Watch Ultra 4 review: Feeding more data into Apple Health

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I personally don’t care about any individual health metric, but the idea of getting more data that’s more accurate is appealing to me. I want my new Apple Health app with Apple Intelligence to have every bit it can to help with my health journey.

I don’t feel the need to detail every Apple Watch Ultra feature, as they should be fairly well-known by now. It’s a rugged smartwatch that can withstand extreme conditions, has a siren for emergencies, can make emergency calls via satellite, and has a much longer battery life than standard Apple Watches.

Apple Watch Ultra 4 has identical wireless specs with Wi-Fi 4, Bluetooth 5.3, and 5G.

The Apple Watch Ultra 3 was my first Apple Watch Ultra, so I broke down the smaller details in that review. That’s the thing — Apple’s Ultra updates lack new “Ultra” features, so rehashing identical feature lists seems redundant.

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Close-up of a person's wrist wearing an Apple Watch Ultra 3 with a colorful circular digital dial, seen outdoors with raindrops on the skin and a blurred green background

Apple Watch Ultra 4 review: This is an Apple Watch Ultra 3, but you wouldn’t have known that without being told

The base feature set exclusive to Apple Watch Ultra hasn’t changed since the original model beyond satellite connectivity. I’m glad Apple has added the S11 and the benefits provided by that chipset, but we’re not seeing anything else.

That chipset is what enables many of the upgrades without sacrificing battery life. The S11 has a neural engine derived from the A20 Pro used in iPhone 18 Pro (check deals), which enables new AI features.

A boost in battery life

That battery life is particularly impressive with Apple Watch Ultra 4, as it gained about 8 hours in regular use. Previously, Apple Watch Ultra could last about 42 hours without a charge, but now it’s 50 hours.

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Apple Watch Ultra 4 on a person's wrist displaying battery status at 46 percent with a green progress bar and charging details on a dark screen in a softly lit indoor setting

Apple Watch Ultra 4 review: Battery life for days

That takes it well over the two-day without-charging threshold. For most people, that should mean taking it off to charge while showering should occur at some point in that 50 hours.

And yes, charging in the shower is more than enough time to top off the battery. Get 80% battery in about 45 minutes or fast charge for just 15 minutes for 18 additional hours of use.

I take a long shower and don’t rush to put the watch back on, so that’s more than enough time to get the battery somewhere near 100% every day or two. It may be the “rugged” or “adventurer” Apple Watch, but I am willing to bet much of the sales of Apple Watch Ultra comes from people seeking longer battery life.

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That said, it is quite the smartwatch for athletes. Apple says that people running a 100-mile race have enough battery life to log the entire race in workout tracking mode.

There’s not much more lengthy or demanding than that in sports.

Using Apple Watch Ultra 4

You know the drill, this is an Apple Watch. It may have a more rugged case and the addition of an Action button, but it’s a nearly identical experience in most use cases to standard models.

Apple Watch Ultra 4 with a dark screen showing 7:01 and fitness icons, attached to a brown leather band, resting on a metal railing with a blurred green background

Apple Watch Ultra 4 review: It’s still an Apple Watch through and through

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I was worried about Apple Watch Ultra having too big a case or being awkwardly large or heavy on my arm. Thankfully, I was wrong on all counts.

Apple’s lack of significant upgrades year-over-year in several Apple Watch cycles left me believing that 2026 would be the year I could skip an update. If anything, the update this year is far mor significant than the 2025 model, which of course meant another upgrade for me.

I’m not an athlete, I don’t climb mountains in sub-zero climates, and I don’t dive deep into the ocean with a scuba tank. Nope, I’m your average, could be in better shape, work from home, desk worker.

The longer battery life, larger display, Action button, titanium build, and additional features are all attractive and useful to me. It is why I went Ultra the moment we got a black color and new chip generation, and I expect that’s the case for many people.

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Apple Watch Ultra 3 on the left, Ultra 4 on the right, standing upright on an orange surface, showing their circular sensor backs, with a wooden tray and blurred gadgets in the background

Apple Watch Ultra 4 review: More accurate health sensors that track more often

I’m sure there’s a better use of the Action button, but I’ve kept it mapped to opening Workouts. It lets me quickly start a walking workout each day, which is something I’m trying to do regularly.

The new Siri Modular watch face is nice. I’ve begun using it for my personal watch face, while Wayfinder remains excellent for my work face.

I’ve already begun incorporating the new Apple Health app into my daily routine. I check it for health insights, trends, and am making changes to my life to try and meet certain goals.

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This review isn’t the place to get into all of that, but I do think the new hardware capabilities and the Apple Health upgrades will be excellent selling points. It’s not that I don’t know how to be healthy or eat right, but having these apps and devices laying bare my exact health metrics and how to improve them, it’s hard to ignore.

More on that soon.

Absent Audio Intelligence

I really wanted to write about these controversial new AI features introduced in Apple Watch Ultra 4. Unfortunately, they’re not here yet, not even in beta.

A person wearing an Apple Watch reads a restaurant notification listing daily specials, with another hand touching the screen while seated at an outdoor table with plates in the background

Apple Watch Ultra 4 review: Audio Intelligence isn’t available yet

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One neat feature enabled by the more powerful chipset is the new near-instant Shazam music recognition. I can raise my wrist, double tap to open the Smart Stack, and the first item in my stack is usually Shazam, which quickly shows whatever song is playing around me.

The single tap gesture works when selecting items in Smart Stack or clicking buttons shown on the display. It doesn’t always work, but I appreciate the new gesture.

Anyway, Siri AI is fast and accessible on Apple Watch Ultra 4. I asked several world knowledge questions, some personal based on data from Messages, and both worked great.

It’s a very similar experience to what you’ll find on iPhone. I asked what was for dinner, which is in my Calendar, then I asked if it was a healthy meal.

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Then, I asked when my friend’s birthday is and what gifts it would recommend. While the recommendations were a bit silly, I appreciate that it was able to do these queries at all, let alone on an Apple Watch.

Apple Watch Ultra 4 with a black rectangular screen on a person's wrist, showing colorful circular app icons including fitness, weather, and activity rings, against a blurred outdoor background

Apple Watch Ultra 4 review: The new Siri app is front and center in watchOS 27

Audio Intelligence is going to be quite the interesting feature to test. I’ve had mixed reactions from various people in my life that I’ve described it to.

It’s what you would expect — some call out the potential utility while others see the obvious potential for abuses. We won’t know what this will and won’t enable until it can be tested.

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So, as much as I’d like to have something to say about the feature, that’ll have to wait for another day. I do believe what Apple has on offer in the 2026 Apple Watch generation should make any AI wearable company at least a little nervous.

Apple’s new health mandate

Increasingly, it feels like Apple’s messaging around Apple Watch is “if you don’t wear Apple Watch, you could die.” It’s a terrific if terrifying prospect for many reasons.

Hand resting on a railing, wearing an Apple Watch Ultra 4 and dark ring, holding a burgundy iPhone 18 Pro with three rear cameras against a blurred outdoor background

Apple Watch Ultra 4 review: Another cog in Apple’s AI and health machine

Apple Watch Ultra 4 lasts longer than ever when worn, so you don’t even need to charge it before sleeping most nights. Every bit of data will help you meet your goals, so every second without an Apple Watch is a missed opportunity to prove to the Health app how well you’re doing.

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I know that some people will find that disturbing, while others will find it enticing. I personally can appreciate the motivation that logging, aggregating, and viewing data can bring, with the added bonus of it not being sold, so bring it on.

Apple Watch Ultra 4 isn’t necessary to take advantage of the upcoming Apple Health app updates, but it’ll provide a more accurate, more constant series of metrics. I can easily highly recommend the Apple Watch Ultra 4 to anyone that cares about health, fitness, or wearable AI tools.

Apple Watch Ultra 4 – Pros

  • Exceeding two days of battery on a single charge is amazing
  • Health Sensing System means more accurate, more frequent data
  • S11 provides a more native-feeling Siri AI experience
  • Rugged, durable, and includes the useful Action button

Apple Watch Ultra 4 – Cons

  • Apple still hasn’t bothered with new “Ultra” features
  • The overall Apple Watch experience doesn’t differ much from the regular Apple Watch beyond what improved specs bring
  • Audio Intelligence isn’t available to test and remains quite controversial as a feature

Review: 4 out of 5

If you’re wondering exactly how an Apple Watch Ultra might get a perfect score, it would be a redesign in addition to useful new features making Apple Watch Ultra more than just an Apple Watch with titanium and a larger screen. We’ve got some great health upgrades, AI features, and more battery life, but you wouldn’t know, and can’t tell that it’s new.

Design isn’t everything though. Apple needs to give Apple Watch Ultra users new Ultra-focused features as well, which is the main issue.

Otherwise, this is a great Apple Watch upgrade and I can easily recommend one, even if you’re coming from the previous model. It just needs more in 2026.

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Where to buy the Apple Watch Ultra 4 at a discount

The Apple Watch Ultra 4 is on sale now, with prices dipping to as low as $779.99 at Amazon at press time.

You can compare the latest Apple Watch Ultra 4 prices and deals across popular retailers in our Price Guide as seasonal sales pop up.

Limited inventory remains on the last-generation Ultra 3, with closeout deals at your fingertips in our Apple Watch Ultra 3 Price Guide.

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Nintendo Switch Owners: Update Your Firmware to Protect Against Security Exploit

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If you own an original Nintendo Switch, there’s a security exploit you will want to patch immediately, especially if you use the game console in public. Nintendo revealed the vulnerability on Sept. 10, shortly after the company released its latest 23.0.0 firmware update.

The vulnerability applies only to original Nintendo Switch owners who use the Send to Smartphone feature. This feature generates a QR code on the Switch that users can scan with a smartphone, allowing them to transfer game captures and screenshots directly to their phone. 

The exploit also affects people playing Super Mario Kart: Home Circuit on the physical cartridge, as the game uses a QR code to establish a wireless link with nearby players. 

Should someone else scan the QR code before you, they can connect their device to your Switch and use the connection to run unauthorized code on your Switch or steal information stored on the game console. Since your account information is stored on your Switch, that’s information you don’t want in the hands of someone else. 

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A Nintendo representative did not immediately respond to a request for further comment.

The exploit doesn’t affect the Nintendo Switch 2. 

How to fix the problem

The fix is simple. Nintendo released update 23.0.0 on Sept. 9, which fixes the exploit. It’s recorded as CVE-2026-82079, which is “a stock-based buffer overflow vulnerability” that lets attackers within wireless range execute code. It only affects the original Switch on firmware versions older than 23.0.0.

To update your Nintendo Switch, head to System Settings > System > System Update to apply the update. Follow any additional on-screen prompts to install the update. 

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Nintendo says that those who can’t immediately update their firmware can avoid the issue by only using the Send to Smartphone feature at home, where attackers can’t see them, or by not playing Super Mario Kart: Home Circuit in public. The gaming giant also recommends not scanning any QR codes with any device that isn’t yours. 

People who only play games at home are protected from this exploit and don’t have to worry about it.

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McDonald’s tests Archy, an AI drive-thru voice for English and Spanish

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McDonald’s is testing an AI voice assistant called Archy that takes drive-thru orders in English and Spanish. The company presented it at its investor day at its Chicago headquarters on 23 September.

Archy has been more than 90% accurate in early tests, McDonald’s said, according to Restaurant Dive. The company has not said how many restaurants use it, but Fox News reported in June that it was being tested at five US locations.

Archy is one part of ArchIQ, a generative AI system for running restaurants. It also tracks stock, watches kitchen equipment with cameras and uses scales to check that orders are complete before they reach customers, Restaurant Dive reported.

McDonald’s said the drive-thru tools can save each restaurant more than 50 hours of staff time a week. It also said ArchIQ can cut food waste by 15%.

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The system runs on Google Cloud edge computers, which process data inside the restaurant. They are already installed in thousands of McDonald’s locations, and the company expects to finish the US edge rollout in 2027.

“This allows our AI models to make accurate split-second decisions,” said Brian Rice, McDonald’s global chief information officer.

McDonald’s has tried AI ordering before. It ended a drive-thru test with IBM in June 2024. Meanwhile, rivals have moved ahead, and Taco Bell now uses voice AI ordering at more than 890 US restaurants.

ArchIQ is part of the company’s wider Next strategy. McDonald’s plans about $8.5bn in franchisee support through 2036, covering rent relief and restaurant investment, according to its investor day release.

The company will roll out ArchIQ tools in stages starting in 2027. It has not given a date for a full Archy launch.

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