Quordle was one of the original Wordle alternatives and is still going strong now more than 1,500 games later. It offers a genuine challenge, though, so read on if you need some Quordle hints today — or scroll down further for the answers.

Enjoy playing word games? You can also check out my NYT Connections today and NYT Strands today pages for hints and answers for those puzzles, while Marc’s Wordle today column covers the original viral word game.

Strands is the NYT’s latest word game after the likes of Wordle, Spelling Bee and Connections – and it’s great fun. It can be difficult, though, so read on for my Strands hints.

Want more word-based fun? Then check out my NYT Connections today and Quordle today pages for hints and answers for those games, and Marc’s Wordle today page for the original viral word game.

A robotic spacecraft called LINK will soon tug the telescope to a higher orbit.

Sarla Aviation just finished a full round of flight tests with its Sylla 1.0. The 700-kilogram machine with a 7.5-meter wingspan became the heaviest electric aircraft ever to take off vertically in India. Engineers put it through more than 500 tests and over 18 hours of flight time during a six-month campaign in southern India.

Sylla 1.0, built as a half-scale tech demo, is essentially a shrunken version of what the business envisions for the full-size passenger aircraft. It has a novel dispersed propulsion system, with electric motors sticking out along the wing. These are fueled by a 400-volt grid that keeps everything running smoothly. This is critical because the entire structure just lifts off vertically and hovers steadily in the air, with no runway necessary.

Sale

DJI Neo, Mini Drone with 4K UHD Camera for Adults, 135g Self Flying Drone that Follows You, Palm Takeoff…

• Due to platform compatibility issue, the DJI Fly app has been removed from Google Play. DJI Neo must be activated in the DJI Fly App, to ensure a…
• Lightweight and Regulation Friendly – At just 135g, this drone with camera for adults 4K may be even lighter than your phone and does not require FAA…
• Palm Takeoff & Landing, Go Controller-Free [1] – Neo takes off from your hand with just a push of a button. The safe and easy operation of this drone…

The goal of the test phase was to get all of the individual components to communicate with one another. For example, electric propulsion, battery systems, flight control software, the aircraft itself, and the landing gear were all tested to see how well they operate together in practice. First up, get off the ground and hover. Not that difficult, it turned out… Sylla 1.0 just repeated this section several times, obtaining a wealth of relevant flight data along the way.

The entire project moved at quick pace to say the least, with this group going from the start of developing Sylla 1.0 to actual flying in just under a year, which isn’t bad considering the project’s complexity. To top it all off, the project only cost them around 13 million dollars. When compared to some of the major global eVTOL projects now in development, the difference is clear.

Sarla Aviation opened its doors in Bengaluru in 2023 and now employs a team of engineers, many of which had previously worked for Lilium, Volocopter, Wisk, Beta, and Joby Aviation. They pulled all of that international know-how back together with some quick execution to get the place off the ground. Sarla Aviation is named after Sarla Thukral, India’s first woman pilot in the 1930s.

Sylla 2.0, on the other hand, will have to figure out how to fly forward rather than just hovering. We all know how important this is, since it dictates how efficiently these birds will be able to transport passengers or cargo from A to B. They’ve already started collecting important data from Sylla 1.0 and are incorporating it into the next level of testing.

Of course, the long-term goal is to reach Shunya at full capacity. This is the real deal: an aircraft capable of carrying a pilot and six passengers, or four in a more spacious configuration, as well as cargo variants capable of carrying around 680 kg. Oh, and they’re also looking into hybrid power with some sustainable aviation fuel, which should help increase the range to about 800 kilometers. They plan to reach a top speed of roughly 250 km/h using seven ‘propulsion units’ and two batches of separate batteries.

Sarla sees these aircraft fitting in similarly to how ride-hailing apps are used today, as a way to travel from A to B in the air. Early routes can link big cities, such as Bengaluru to Mumbai or Delhi to Pune, or just shuttle passengers between airports and city centers. The real goal, however, is to see what they can do to help India’s push for cleaner transportation while simultaneously increasing their own digital industry.
[Source]

As part of an ongoing legal dispute with three Hollywood studios, AI startup Midjourney is seeking to compel those studios to reveal how they use AI themselves.

Disney and Universal sued Midjourney for alleged copyright infringement last year, noting that the startup’s image-generation models could create images of characters, such as Bart Simpson and Darth Vader, who are owned by the studios. A few months later, Warner Bros. sued Midjourney as well.

The startup argues that training its AI models on images of copyrighted characters is permitted under fair use. 

The current dispute revolves around the documentation the studios will need to produce during the discovery process. A judge previously ruled that the studios would indeed have to provide information about their generative AI usage – but only when it led to “consumer-facing” videos and images.

In its latest filing, Midjourney seeks to overturn that limitation, arguing that it “unfairly” allows the studios “to cherry-pick only those documents they believe support their market harm claims while depriving Midjourney of documents that would support its defenses.”

Midjourney goes on to claim that the “documents [the studios] are withholding are precisely those that would reveal whether, behind closed doors, they are doing exactly what they are suing Midjourney for doing.”

For example, the startup says that if the studios are developing image-generating AI models  “for internal use in storyboarding or ideating content for film or TV, that evidence would equally demonstrate that it is an industry custom, even among the studios themselves, to download and train AI on unlicensed copyrighted content.”

In the filing, the startup also argues that the studios should reveal all the prompts they used in Midjourney, as well as the resulting outputs, not just the prompts that produced the allegedly infringing images.

The studios’ lead attorney David Singer previously claimed Midjourney was seeking this documentation as part of a “fishing expedition.” 

He also said the studios “do not seek to stop AI technology or even shut down Midjourney’s business,” but rather “simply want Midjourney to stop copying their movies and TV shows and to stop distributing, publicly displaying, publicly performing, and creating derivative works that include copies of [their] famous characters without authorization.”

Apple is expected to debut the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max this fall, possibly alongside its first foldable iPhone. The standard iPhone 18, however, is said to arrive later in spring 2027 with the iPhone 18e. While the lineup is expected to get more RAM, the upgrade may still fall short of what the standard and 18e models need for two advanced Siri AI features.

The issue is Apple’s AFM Core Advanced model. It powers Advanced Dictation Preview in iOS 27, along with Apple’s new expressive Siri voices. The model runs locally on supported devices, but it needs at least 12GB of RAM.

More memory may not be enough

TF International Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo says Apple’s lower-end 2027 iPhones powered by the A20 chip will move to 9GB of RAM, up from 8GB on current standard models. Forbes points out that the upgrade may still leave the iPhone 18 and iPhone 18e short of the requirement for Apple’s higher-end Siri features.

Advanced Dictation Preview is currently available on the iPhone 17 Pro, iPhone 17 Pro Max, and iPhone Air running the iOS 27 beta. The standard iPhone 17 and even the iPhone 16 Pro are excluded because they have 8GB of RAM.

Advanced Dictation Preview improves accuracy and can automatically handle punctuation and capitalization while users speak. Expressive Siri voices are designed to make Apple’s assistant sound more natural and flexible. If the 12GB cutoff stays in place, then these features will not be available on the standard 18 and 18e models.

The Pro models should have the edge

Apple has not announced the iPhone 18 lineup, so the feature split is not confirmed. Kuo says the iPhone 18 Pro, iPhone 18 Pro Max, and Apple’s rumored foldable iPhone will remain at 12GB of RAM.

The split may look like Apple is simply pushing buyers toward the Pro models, but the memory situation is more complicated than product segmentation. Apple has already raised prices across its iPad and Mac lineup as RAM prices climb, and the upcoming iPhone 18 Pro models are expected to see a jump of around $200.

The company is also reportedly seeking government approval to source RAM from China’s CXMT as it tries to manage a supply crunch that is making advanced AI features harder to bring to cheaper models.

Having tested countless pairs of ANC headphones, it takes something special to truly wow me. But today, we’re going to compare two sets of premium cans that did exactly that: Apple’s AirPods Max 2, and Sony’s WH-1000XM6.

If you’re considering which pair of headphones are for you, I’ve got you covered. I’ve spent hours testing both sets side by side, assessing each model on their feature-sets, performance, design, and most importantly, value for money.

Noble Audio is a major player in the hi-fi arena. Founded in 2013, Noble’s vast and varied work in the IEM market has helped shape much of what we now take for granted. From CNC-machined aluminum shells to sophisticated driver configurations, there are few parts of the modern IEM scene that Noble has not influenced in some way.

Today, we’re taking a look at one of Noble’s newest and most affordable earbuds: the true wireless Noble Osprey. At $199, this hybrid TWS undercuts flagship offerings from established brands like Bose and Sony on price. But does Noble have what it takes to match them in the realm of modern tech features and quality-of-life refinement? Let’s get into it.

About My Preferences: My impressions are inevitably influenced by my personal preferences. While I try to mitigate that as much as possible during the review process, I’d be lying if I said my biases are ever completely erased. So, for you, my readers, keep the following in mind:

My ideal sound signature includes competent sub-bass, textured mid-bass, a slightly warm midrange, and extended treble.

I also have mild treble sensitivity.

Testing equipment and standards can be found here.

Related Reviews:

Key Specifications

• Drivers: 10mm dynamic driver + custom balanced armature driver
• Wireless: Bluetooth 6.0
• Bluetooth chipset: Airoha 1571
• Supported codecs: LDAC, AAC, SBC
• Noise control: Active Noise Cancellation and Hearing Through/Transparency mode
• Microphones: Dual microphones with cVc noise reduction
• Multipoint: Yes
• TrueWireless Mirroring: Yes
• Battery life: Up to 7 hours with ANC off; up to 5 hours with ANC on
• Quick charging: Approximately 2 hours of playback from a 10-minute charge
• Charging case: 500mAh aluminum case
• Charging: USB-C
• Included accessories: Aluminum charging case, USB-C cable, ear tips, and user documentation

Tech & Features

The Osprey supports Bluetooth 6.0, along with a suite of high-quality audio codecs. LDAC, AAC, and SBC are onboard, with the only notable exclusions being aptX HD and aptX Low Latency. This appears to be a concession to keep the price low, as aptX is a proprietary suite of codecs licensed by Qualcomm.

Pairing the Osprey with my Google Pixel 10 Pro was quick and easy. A brief jaunt through the user manual confirmed that the Osprey automatically launches into pairing mode when new, which was convenient. I was able to pair the Osprey seamlessly with all of my devices, including my Windows 10/11 desktop, Linux PC, and Nintendo Switch 2. The Osprey also supports multipoint connectivity, allowing it to juggle multiple active connections without requiring user intervention.

The Osprey features haptic touch controls on both earbuds and supports single, double, triple, and long-press gestures. They are fine for the most part, but can be inconsistent when trying to quickly pause or play audio. As a general rule, I prefer buttons on true wireless earbuds, and the Osprey is no exception. Being forced to tap my earbuds to pause music or adjust the volume is disruptive, especially when some of those taps are not recognized.

Further, the Osprey’s hollow construction transmits a ton of noise into my ears when using the touch controls, which is a less-than-fun experience. Thankfully, you can adjust which gestures map to which functions through the app, barring the press-and-hold control for ANC modes.

I appreciate the app’s lightweight, zero-account approach. You can update the Osprey’s firmware, select an EQ preset, or create your own using its 10-band equalizer.

While that minimalism is good for performance and storage footprint, it comes with some functional downsides. Mainstream rivals like Sony, Bose, and JBL offer more advanced features, including location-based profiles, find-my-device tools, and ear-health monitoring — useful extras that power users may miss.

The austere Noble app reflects the company’s priorities: Noble remains primarily focused on sound, leaving much of the more elaborate tech experience to the established names in the true wireless earbud space.

Build

As is tradition with Noble Audio’s IEMs, the Osprey places a major emphasis on aesthetics. It features a four-piece chassis comprising a resin faceplate, plastic middle ring, resin inner face, and short aluminum nozzle. The nozzle is machined from aluminum and topped with a metal debris filter.

The Osprey’s aluminum charging case features a solid, spring-loaded lid. A charging-status LED is located on the front of the case.

The rear of the Osprey’s case features a USB-C charging port that supports quick charging. It works with any USB-C cable that meets the USB PD standard, so aftermarket options are viable. Inside, the Osprey’s case features molded recesses for each earbud, complete with standard charging pins and magnetic attachment points.

Comfort

Comfort is a metric that depends heavily on your individual ear anatomy, so mileage will vary.

The Osprey is a lightweight, compact wireless earbud. Its shorter nozzles result in a shallower fit, but I was still able to achieve a solid passive seal with the stock eartips. The foam tips worked best for me, though the silicone options were similarly comfortable. I was able to listen comfortably for multiple consecutive hours, making the Osprey a competent companion for long days in the office.

Accessories

• 1x Aluminum charging case
• 1x Felt baggie
• 3x Pairs of double-flanged eartips
• 3x Pairs of foam eartips
• 4x Pairs of standard silicone eartips
• 1x USB-C to USB-A charging cable

For what amounts to an entry-level pair of wireless audiophile earbuds, this is a solid accessory package. You get a high-quality aluminum charging case, a felt baggie in which to store it, and ten pairs of eartips. The Osprey includes both silicone and foam options, along with three pairs of double-flanged tips.

The included charging cable is short and basic, though functional. I ended up swapping to a different USB-C cable, as the stock cable is too short for my use case and terminates in USB-A rather than USB-C. The case supports quick charging over USB-C, so make sure to use a quality aftermarket cable should you go that route.

Listening

The Noble Audio Fokus app supports onboard EQ, but I did not use it during this portion of the sonic analysis. Should you wish to tweak the Osprey’s sound, you can select a genre-based preset or adjust the 10-band EQ manually.

Noble’s sonic intent with the Osprey is clear: deliver a stock tuning that lives up to the audiophile promise of clear, robust sound. It features a gently V-shaped sound signature, with lifted and well-extended sub-bass, mild warmth through the lower midrange, a slight upper-midrange lift for instrumental clarity, and bright, but not sharp, treble.

Precise, Atmospheric Bass

Noble gave the Osprey’s bass a full-bodied but nimble presentation. Its sub-bass sits just behind the mid-bass, delivering depth and articulation without becoming messy.

The Osprey’s lower register is textured and quick, allowing it to convey an excellent sense of atmosphere on “The Dark” by Thrice. The track’s mix of synthetic bass lines and plucky bass guitar plays well with the Osprey’s expressive mid-bass.

The weighty drums at the beginning of “Better Strangers” by Royal Blood land with body and authority, decaying precisely into the soundstage’s black background. The gritty, filtered drop-D guitars in the foreground carry an addictive bassy undertone, giving them a physicality the track desperately needs.

Electronic tracks play well with the Osprey, leveraging its solid extension to generate tactile but respectful punch and rumble. On “The People” by Uppermost, the Osprey rendered the bass line with a robust, substantial timbre.

Beyond simple extension and speed, the Osprey’s bass tuning gives it the ability to sound complete and organic without thinning out the bottom end. That said, some tracks could really use additional bass presence. “Drunk Wishing (Hairitage Remix)” relies on a wall-of-bass effect that the Osprey’s more moderate low end does not quite produce.

You can crank the bass through the EQ to get a little closer to a basshead’s preferences, but ultimately, the Osprey does not seem interested in producing much more sub-bass than it delivers by default.

Hearty, But Lightweight, Midrange

The Osprey’s midrange sits a little north of neutral, delivering mild warmth and an overall clean tonality. Noble balances the upper and lower mids well, allowing it to give harmonically complex elements their proper weight. Acoustic guitar is particularly synergistic with the Osprey’s midrange, pulling a fantastic sense of presence and completeness from tracks like “Life of Illusion” by Foo Fighters. Electric guitar is likewise well-toned and textured. The gritty distortion in “I Got” by Young the Giant streaks from the Osprey’s drivers, staging both guitars with realism and precision.

Even during busy passages, the Osprey maintains its composure, presenting a deep array of layers. It nails the cascading, contrasting layers of instrumentation in the outro of “Endless” by Slow Hours. Each strike of the piano hammer against its strings carries distinction and air, standing apart from the bittersweet violin breathing gently in the background.

Clear & Energetic Treble

The Osprey’s treble tuning is excellent. Combined with a carefully selected, high-performance driver setup, there are not many IEMs, wired or otherwise, at this level of treble refinement.

The Osprey’s single balanced-armature driver works overtime, delivering impressive texture alongside fine-grained control over its deeply layered treble. I was particularly impressed by its ability to manage treble-heavy elements under pressure. The dense soundstage of “Weak” by Seether is a tough mix to render, but the Osprey captures the metallic slam of the hi-hats and tambourines with aplomb. It also beautifully stages the ringing bells at 1:58 in “Wish You Were Here” by Incubus, a fragile micro-detail buried deep in the track and easy to smudge.

The Osprey’s treble is clear and energetic without stepping beyond the bounds of comfort, even with my treble sensitivity. There is no hint of sharpness or sibilance, even on roughly mastered tracks like “Satisfy” by Nero.

Mic & Phone Call Quality

While I’m stoked on the Osprey’s sonic performance, its microphone performance is not quite as impressive. The dual onboard mics work well in quiet spaces, but struggle to pick up my voice when I take calls in environments with considerable background noise. The built-in noise-isolation technology also seems to struggle with vocal clarity in noisier settings, sometimes introducing harsh or unnatural artifacts.

You will also need to position each earbud carefully to maintain the proper angle for the microphones. Otherwise, the Osprey can struggle to pick up your voice when speaking quietly. Other Bluetooth IEMs offer larger microphone arrays while delivering clearer, more intelligible call audio.

Competitors like the Sony WF-1000XM4, WF-1000XM5, and WF-1000XM6, along with the Bose QuietComfort Ultra, offer materially better experiences for standard calls and PC meetings, especially when you are trying to keep your voice down.

Noise Cancelling

I’m not a big ANC guy, but I recognize its utility when trying to take an important call in a loud space. I also frequently make use of ANC when traveling by plane, especially if there’s a perturbed child onboard.

The Osprey’s ANC is middling at best, however. It can reduce interference from a TV in the next room or kitchen noise from down the hall, but it is not especially useful in crowded coffee shops or on busy streets. Top-tier ANC from true wireless IEMs like the Sony WF-1000XM6 provides a profoundly different experience, and if you rely heavily on ANC day to day, I would stick with an offering like that.

Thankfully, I rarely, if ever, use ANC in my daily routine, so this is a downside I’m willing to tolerate.

While not exactly a noise-cancelling feature, the Osprey also supports Ambient Mode, a kind of inverse ANC that pipes environmental sound into the IEMs. Parents, or anyone who needs to maintain sonic awareness of their surroundings, will be happy to know that Ambient Mode works well, even in crowded or busy places.

The Bottom Line

The Noble Osprey is an audiophile true wireless earbud designed with a clear sense of purpose. Rather than chasing every app feature, wellness metric, and ANC trick in the book, Noble has focused its efforts on the part that matters most to listeners who actually buy audiophile earbuds: the sound.

Its hybrid driver setup delivers a balanced, well-extended presentation with textured bass, a clean and articulate midrange, and unusually refined treble for $199. Detail retrieval is excellent, and the Osprey avoids the brittle, overcooked treble that often passes for “resolution” in this category. Add a compact fit, aluminum charging case, generous tip selection, LDAC support, and onboard 10-band EQ, and Noble has put together a genuinely compelling audio-first package.

That focus comes with obvious compromises. ANC is merely serviceable, microphone performance falls short in noisy environments, and the Noble Fokus app is stripped down compared with Sony, Bose, and JBL. There is no aptX support, no elaborate ecosystem of location-based profiles or device-finding features, and no illusion that these are meant to replace a top-tier mainstream travel earbud.

The Osprey is unique because it treats true wireless as a vehicle for serious portable listening rather than a feature checklist with drivers attached as an afterthought. It will not win the airport, the conference call, or a fight with a screaming espresso machine. But for listeners who value musicality, detail, comfort, and a properly sorted tuning above all else, it is one of the more persuasive options at its price.

Pros:

• Small, light and ergonomic
• Powerful hybrid driver setup
• Balanced and well-extended sound signature
• Articulate, textured midrange
• Great detail retrieval
• Solid accessory package
• Support for LDAC, SBC

Cons:

• ANC quality falls behind mainstream competitors
• Barebones app offers minimal feature-set
• No support for APT-X codecs
• Mediocre mic quality while on call

Our Ratings

★★★★★★★★★★ Sound Quality

★★★★★★★★★★ Comfort

★★★★★★★★★★ Usability

★★★★★★★★★★ Build Quality

★★★★★★★★★★ Value

Price & Availability

Related Reading: