At a glanceExpert`s Rating Pros Works without Wi-Fi or wired power Affordable data plans starting at $5/month Solar-backed rechargeable battery 360-degree pan/tilt plus zoom for wide coverage Cons Limited live session views Photo-first design won’t suit everyone Live view sessions take several seconds to activate Night vision clarity is basic Our Verdict A practical, affordable option for keeping tabs on remote property, so long as you’re comfortable with its photo-first approach to home security. Price When Reviewed This value will show the geolocated pricing text for product undefined Best Pricing Today Best Prices Today: Tactacam Defend 360 Retailer Price Check Price comparison from over 24,000 stores worldwide Product Price Price comparison from Backmarket Best Prices Today: Check today’s prices Keeping an eye on vacation and other remote properties has always been a challenge. They often sit outside the reach of both Wi-Fi coverage and electrical power, leaving them uncovered by traditional security cameras. Tactacam, best known for its hunting and action cameras, is stepping into that gap with the Defend 360. It’s a solar-powered, LTE-connected camera built to operate where standard systems can’t, offering broad coverage and remote access in a single, self-contained unit. At $199.99, plus an mandatory subscription for connectivity, it aims to bring off-grid security within reach of everyday users. Design and features The dome-style Defend 360 is built for the outdoors. Its housing is weather-resistant, with an IP65 rating indicating it’s dustproof and protected against water projected in jets from any direction. (You can read more about IP codes at the preceding link.) Power comes from a combination of a 10,000mAh rechargeable battery and an integrated solar panel that keeps it perpetually charged to eliminate the hassle of extension cords or periodic battery swaps. The Tactacam Defend 360 connects to the internet via an LTE connection, which makes it well-suited to remote locations where Wi-Fi isn’t available. The camera’s core features are all geared toward use at a remote location. You get a full 360-degree pan-tilt-zoom to cover wide areas, 1080p video resolution with 4K photo capture, and motion alerts to flag activity. The camera connects to the internet via its LTE radio and automatically locks onto the strongest available carrier. A SIM is pre-installed, so you don’t have to deal with activation headaches or track down a card–and carrier–yourself. The Defend 360 includes a solar panel you can attach directly to the camera or next to it. Michael Ansaldo/Foundry Because the Defend 360 relies on LTE rather than Wi-Fi, you’ll need a data plan to transmit photos and live video between the camera and your phone. Tactacam manages these plans directly through its app and web portal, so you don’t need to set up service with a carrier yourself. Service plans are tiered. The Starter Plan begins at $5 per month ($55/year) and includes 250 photo notifications and three live viewing sessions per month, with 60 days of storage in the cloud. The Pro Plan costs $13 per month ($120/year) and unlocks unlimited photo notifications and five live viewing sessions per month. The Premium Plan runs $19 per month ($175/year) and adds expanded compatibility across cameras. There’s also a $9-per-month Plus add-on that enables unlimited remote downloads and on-demand access with a full year of cloud storage across all cameras on the account. Setup and performance The camera works with both Tactacam’s Defend app and its Reveal app, giving you flexibility if you already own Tactacam gear. This was my first time using a Tacatacam camera so I went with the Defend app. The first thing you must do is create an account and select a subscription plan through the camera system’s web portal. Next, you’ll log into the mobile app using that same account info to begin the pairing process. During this app-guided setup, the camera connects to whichever carrier offers the strongest signal in the area. The camera’s power switch and charging port are protected from the elements behind a rubber tab. Michael Ansaldo/Foundry To install the camera, you need to attach the mounting bracket to a wall or post with the included hardware. The camera twists into the bracket and locks in place, and the antenna screws onto its side. The solar panel can be mounted directly to the camera or separately on a nearby surface for better sun exposure. Tactacam recommends aiming the panel south at a 30–40 degree angle for optimal exposure. Once the panel is connected with its short cable, the system is ready to run on renewable power. The Tactacam Defend 360 works a little differently than the Wi-Fi cameras most people are familiar with. Instead of streaming video for every motion event, it primarily delivers still photos when it detects activity. This approach uses far less data and battery, which is important in remote areas with sketchy coverage. You can request higher-resolution stills or start a live view session in 1080p resolution when you need a closer look, but those count against your monthly plan unless you’ve paid for the unlimited Plus add-on. The camera can also send low-resolution check-in pictures at regular intervals, giving you both a status update and a snapshot of what it sees without burning through data. This monitoring approach is reflected in the app design, On the home screen, you see the most recent still photo (or a check-in image) rather than a live feed. If you want real-time video, you tap into a live view session, which activates on demand. Each time you do, the system needs several seconds to “wake up” the camera, establish the LTE link, and start the feed. The app shows this step-by-step—waking up, getting ready, connecting—before the video appears. Once live, you can pan and tilt with on-screen arrows, zoom in, snap stills, or toggle audio. You’ll also find real-time camera status info here, including battery level, available storage, and signal strength. There are also options for modifying video length, motion detection sensitivity and scheduling, and check-in frequency. The Defend app displays the latest captured event or check-in photo while live video is on demand and limited to a certain number of live view sessions as determined by your service plan. Michael Ansaldo/Foundry Video isn’t the Defend 360’s primary focus—it’s there as a supplement when you need eyes on something in real time. The 1080p stream, which is standard for cellular cameras, is clear enough to confirm whether it’s a deer in the yard or a truck pulling into the drive, and the 360-degree pan/tilt gives you broad coverage that fixed cameras can’t match. You won’t get cinematic detail, and night vision is the usual grainy, black-and-white infrared, but both are adequate for spot checks. If you’re running more than one Defend 360—or mixing it with other Tactacam models—the app has a handy site-management feature. It lets you group cameras by location, so you can monitor a cabin, farm, or job site at a glance. Each site shows the latest check-in photos and status for every camera tied to it, making it easier to keep track of multiple units without jumping between screens. Should you buy the Tactacam Defend 360 Cellular Security Camera? At $199.99, plus a $5/month starter plan, the Defend 360 sits in the same price bracket as other cellular cameras like the Arlo Go 2 and eufy 4G LTE Cam S330. The difference comes after purchase: Tactacam’s service plans start lower and are managed entirely in its own app, while competitors typically tack on steeper monthly fees and tie you to a particular carrier. That likely makes the Defend 360 cheaper to operate over time, especially if you’re running multiple units. Where you’ll feel the trade-offs is in how it works. The Defend 360 leans on event-triggered still photos and check-ins, with live video available only when you request it. That design keeps data and power use low, which is exactly what you need in places Wi-Fi cameras can’t go. On the flipside, it can leave you feeling restricted if you’re used to continuous video streaming. If your priority is simple, dependable coverage for a cabin, farm, or job site, the Defend 360 makes a lot of sense. If you expect the kind of seamless video experience you’d get from a Wi-Fi camera, you’ll be frustrated by its limitations. This review is part of TechHive’s in-depth coverage of the best home security cameras. Read...

Google seems to be all-in on its “AI” search results, to the detriment of the web at large and no small amount of users. It seems to be the end result of years of diminishing quality for search results, and a search page that’s more and more crowded by ads and other junk meant to keep you from… well, what you’re actually searching for. If you want the “old” Google back, there’s an extension that might help. “Bye Bye, Google AI” is an extension for Chrome and other Chromium-based browsers (Edge, Brave, Vivaldi, etc.) that makes me start humming a certain Don McLean song. It does exactly what you think it does, stripping out the AI Overviews panel from the top of almost all current Google searches. It’s a pretty basic CSS adjustment, and it can do a few other things too, like get rid of video results, discussion blocks, the “People Also Ask” module, and sponsored sections. Some of it works at removing the extra stuff, some of it doesn’t. Here’s a look at a demo Google search before and after the extension is applied, in a logged-out mode: This extension was spotted by GHacks and it’s not the first one that gets rid of Google’s intrusive AI slop. But with over 60,000 users and a 4.5-star rating, it seems to be doing very well. As always, be careful of third-party extensions (even those on the official Chrome Web Store, which are nominally scanned and approved by Google). The extension can always change with a new owner or release a sneaky update. Or you could just switch to another search engine from a company that hasn’t essentially admitted that being evil isn’t such a bad thing after all. Alternately, you could go all-in on AI in search and in the browser. Read...

It is the latest development in a privacy row which has pitted the UK against the tech giant and the Trump administration. Read...

We could debate how much screen time is appropriate for kids, but zero screen time is almost impossible in this day and age—so if your kids are going to be in front of a screen, the content should at least be age-appropriate. That’s why the Amazon Fire 7 Kids is great for young’uns! And right now, you can get it for just $54.99 on Amazon. That’s a whopping 50 percent discount and its lowest price yet. The Amazon Fire 7 Kids is a 7-inch tablet that comes with a bumper case that’ll protect the device from getting destroyed when your kid inevitably drops it. The tablet can do all the usual tablet stuff—run apps, read ebooks, watch videos, etc.—but it’s completely locked down to only allow age-appropriate apps and content. Parental controls are super easy to set up, allowing you to create educational goals, fiddle with screen time limits, and choose which apps they have access to. The best thing about the Fire 7 Kids tablet is that it comes with a 2-year worry-free guarantee, so if your kid accidentally breaks the tablet or renders it unusable, Amazon will replace it for free within that timeframe. The device also includes a 1-year subscription to Amazon Kids+, which grants unlimited digital access to thousands of ebooks, games, videos, and apps. (After that, it’s $5.99 per month.) If you need a child-friendly tablet for your kid, you can’t go wrong with the Fire 7 Kids. Get it now for $54.99 with this special deal! Save 50% on this 7-inch child-friendly tablet with bonus goodiesBuy now at Amazon Read...

An easy way to share files between PCs in your home is to set up a share drive using your router’s USB port. You can set up a share drive with just a few easy steps. What to do: Share your router IP settings Pick a USB flash drive or hard drive and stick it into the USB port in the back of your router. Then on your PC, open a browser and type in your router’s IP address and enter the password to enter the settings screen. In the router settings, look for a menu called drive storage or file sharing and click on it. You should see your drive appear on screen. Now create a share folder if that’s an option in your router settings. If that’s not an option, you can use Windows to set one up. In File Explorer select Network and type in your router’s IP address in the format \\routerip. For instance, “\\198.168.2.1”, and then hit enter. Your drive should show up in File Explorer as a shared drive. You might want to create a shortcut to it on your desktop. Map the drive on another PC If you want to use the drive on another PC on your network, you’ll need to map the drive. Here’s how to do that: Open File Explorer by double clicking on the File Explorer folder or press Windows Key + E. Now select This PC in the left-hand navigation pane. Click the three dots in the command bar at the top and select Map network drive…. Choose a letter from the drop-down list for your new share drive. Now enter the network path of the share folder. It could look similar to this: \\198.168.2.1\sharedfiles. Click the Reconnect at sign-in box so that your PC will connect to the drive each time you log in. Now click Finished to end the mapping. Dominic Bayley / Foundry Once you’ve mapped the drive, you’ll be able to use it on that computer too. Just be aware that the drive is open and accessible to anyone who has access to your network so be sure not to store sensitive files in it. Related content 6 genuinely helpful uses for the USB port on your router Portable SSDs aren’t just for PC backups. Here’s why everybody needs one Get more from your home network: 5 advanced tips for the hardcore How to turn a USB flash drive into a portable games console Read...

If you’re looking for a cheap, fast, durable, and reliable way to store or transfer your files, then you can’t go wrong with a trusty USB flash drive. The 256GB Samsung Bar Plus is a standout option in this category, and right now it’s on sale for just $21.99 on Amazon, down 33 percent from its original $32.99 price. Not bad, not bad. Speed is one of this drive’s biggest strengths. The Samsung Bar Plus can hit transfer rates of up to 400 MB/s, which means you won’t be twiddling your thumbs while waiting on large files. (You can move a massive 100GB folder in under five minutes at that speed.) While 256GB might not sound like a lot of capacity in this day and age, it’s still plenty for a flash drive. Whether you’re dealing with 4K videos, photo albums, huge collections of documents, or massive ZIP files, this drive can handle it all. I also love how durable this flash drive is. The Samsung Bar Plus has a rugged metal casing that protects your data against drops, bumps, water, dust, shocks, magnets, X-rays, and extreme temperatures. The 256GB Samsung Bar Plus is a winner for $21.99, so grab one at this price while you can. If you don’t need that much space and want to save a few extra bucks, the 128GB model is on sale for $14.99. Either way, you can’t go wrong with this fast, tough, dependable thumb drive. Samsung`s compact USB flash drive (256GB) is only $22 right nowBuy now at Amazon Read...

One of the silver linings of phones and tablets no longer coming with power adapters in their boxes is that they usually sucked anyway. These days, you can buy your own that’s way better, and it won’t cost you very much if you can catch a good sale. Like right now, this 2-port Anker Nano USB-C charger is only $19.99 on Amazon with a 33 percent discount. That’s a darn good price for such a useful and versatile accessory that’ll level up your device-charging game. This charger provides up to 45 watts of power when a single USB-C port is used, which gets split up as 27 watts and 20 watts when both ports are being used. If you’re still using that wimpy 5-watt adapter that came with an old phone, you’ll immediately notice how much faster this one charges. Other nice aspects of this tiny charger block include the foldable prongs (so you can pack it away and take it with you while traveling), the compact size (thanks to the newer GaN tech under the hood), and the real-time temperature protection mechanism that keeps your devices safe. If you don’t have a fast-charging wall plug yet, this is a great budget-friendly upgrade with instant benefits. Get this Anker Nano 2-port USB-C adapter for $19.99 before this limited-time deal expires! This fast-charging 2-port USB-C wall plug is 33% offBuy now at Amazon Read...

Gaming laptops can get pretty expensive, but what if I said you could get a brand-new RTX 50-series laptop from a reputable brand for well under $1,000? Like, almost budget-tier pricing. Well, right now you can snag this Acer Nitro V 16 AI for just $699 at Walmart. Yup, that isn’t a typo. Normally $899, Walmart has it with a $200 discount online. Acer’s Nitro V line of gaming laptops is one of our favorites for price-friendly machines, and the 16 AI (model ANV16-42-R309) is a step up. Equipped with an AMD Ryzen 5 240 processor, 16GB of fast DDR5 RAM, and a fast 512GB PCIe 4.0 SSD, this is several levels better than most laptops in this range. It’s a smooth experience with Windows 11, able to juggle dozens of apps and Chrome tabs without breaking a sweat, making it perfect for work, study, and leisure. And, of course, gaming. The Nitro V 16 AI comes with a brand-spanking-new RTX 5050 graphics card that unlocks all the latest Nvidia gaming features, including DLSS 4. You’ll love it on this laptop’s 16-inch color-accurate IPS screen with crisp 1920×1200 resolution and speedy 180Hz refresh rate for those high-frame-rate games. Seriously, an RTX 5050 is a crazy inclusion on any $699 laptop. It’s all rounded out with a cutting-edge USB4 port, a full-sized HDMI port, three fast USB-A ports, an Ethernet port, a full-sized keyboard with numpad, Copilot key, and backlighting. The 76-watt-hour battery is good for about 6 hours of real usage, though it isn’t the most portable at nearly an inch thick and just over 5 pounds in weight. The Acer Nitro V 16 AI is a steal for $699, so grab it via Walmart before this insane deal expires. At this price, it even beats out some of our favorite gaming laptops under $1,000! This Ryzen-powered RTX 5050 laptop is downright crazy for $699Buy now on Walmart.com Read...

Anyone following the recent chatter about Google’s latest Nest cameras won’t be surprised by the company’s unveiling today of its revamped, first-party offerings: one outdoor Nest camera, one indoor cam, and a video doorbell, just as predicted.  What was surprising was news is that Google is turning to a frequent collaborator—Walmart—to offer a pair of additional budget-priced security cameras that will be “deeply integrated” into Google’s new Gemini for Home ecosystem, complete with bells and whistles such as AI video descriptions and zoomed-in notification previews.  Walmart has developed an indoor security camera and a video doorbell that will be marketed under the retailer’s Onn brand.Walmart But first, let’s cover Google’s new first party cameras, all of which had been previously leaked: the second-generation Nest Outdoor Camera ($149.99), the third-gen Nest Indoor Camera ($99.99), and the second-gen Nest Doorbell ($179.99).  The new Nest Cam trio consists only of wired models, with Google Nest and Home head Anish Kattukaran explaining that the “steady stream of video” from the always-on wired cams fits nicely with Gemini for Home’s ability to synthesize video footage and other smart home signals into its daily “home digest” summaries. (Kattukaran emphasized that Google is “still very excited” about battery-powered security cameras, even if none are being announced today.)  All three cameras boast 2K HDR video resolution, up from 1080p on the previous models. The new Nest Outdoor Camera and Nest Indoor Camera will both offer a 152-degree field of view, expanded from 130 and 135 degrees respectively, while the revamped Nest Doorbell gets a 166-degree FOV with a 1:1 aspect ratio that will capture visitors from head to toe.  The 3rd-gen wired Nest Cam Indoor will also be available in Berry to match the new Google Home Speaker.Google Also new are zoomed-in previews—that is, image previews attached to mobile notifications that are zoomed in on the activity that triggered the mobile alert. You’ll also be able to zoom and crop video events in the Google Home app.  Now for the curve ball: two additional cameras, each of which come from Walmart’s Onn brand, known for its well-regarded line of Google TV-powered streaming video players.  Two Google Home-compatible security cameras from Onn are on tap: the Indoor Camera Wired for $22.96, and the Video Doorbell Wired for $49.86. Both cameras will boast 1080p video quality. Both are pictured above. The 3rd-gen Nest Doorbell Wired in its familiar Linen finish.Google Few other details about the two Walmart cams were given during Google’s pre-brief, but Kattukaran noted that the cameras will be “deeply integrated” into Gemini for Home, including the “full experience” and “all of those camera improvements” slated for the new Nest cameras.   Nice, but keep in mind that the best new Google security camera features require Nest Aware—er, Google Home Premium, the new name for Google’s smart home subscription service.   The 2nd-generation Nest Cam Outdoor, shown here in its Hazel finish, will look familiar to Nest aficionados. Google The zoomed-in previews, for example, are included in the Standard tier of Google Home Premium, which gives you 30 days of video history for all your cameras, plus other features for $10 a month. For 60 days of video history along with Gemini’s AI video descriptions and daily smart home briefings, you must sign up for the Advanced version of Google Home Premium for $20 a month. (We have more details about the new Google Home Premium plans here.) That said, Google is getting more generous with video history for those who don’t pay up for a Google Home Premium plan.  Moving forward, free Google Home camera users will get six hours of video event history (up from three hours), with a 10-second video clip added to each event.  This news story is part of TechHive’s in-depth coverage of the best security cameras. Also, be sure to check our complete coverage of Google’s Gemini for Home rollout, including details on the new Google Home Speaker and new Google Home Premium subscription plans. Read...

“Hey Google, set bedroom lamp to 50 percent.” Such stilted voice commands have been the stuff of smart home for years, but with Gemini for Home, Google is promising a smart home you can have an actual conversation with.  That idea—of a smart home that understands the big picture and can act with context in mind—underpins Google’s ambitious Gemini for Home plans, which it’s rolling out today following months of slow buildup.  The Gemini voice assistant is just one part of Google’s Gemini for Home pitch. There’s also new hardware, including a refreshed lineup of security cameras and an all-new smart speaker, along with a faster, streamlined Google Home app (more on the app in a moment) and a rebranded subscription plan (say goodbye to Nest Aware).  Gemini promises to make home automations much easier to create.Google During a briefing prior to its big Gemini for Home reveal, Anish Kattukaran, director of product management for Google Home and Nest, painted the picture of a Gemini-powered smart home that can truly see and hear what’s going on in your household, as well as understand your intentions when you give it commands.  Of course, the proof’s in the pudding, and as Kattukaran himself emphasized, Gemini’s performance needs to be as reliable as that of its predecessor, Google Assistant (which has had its own reliability hiccups over the past several months). As anyone who’s ever fallen victim to a ChatGPT hallucination knows, asking an LLM to perform a task repeatedly and in a predictable manner is no small feat.  That’s why Google is plotting a slow phase-in for Gemini at Home, with an early access period beginning this month. Most existing Google smart speakers, displays, and security cameras will work with Gemini for Home, with the freewheeling Google Live chat mode (which lets you have lengthy back-and-forths with Gemini without the need for the “Hey Google” wake word) restricted to the Google Nest Hub, the Nest Hub Max, and the new Google Home Speaker.  Screenshots from the new Google Home app.Google Of course, Google isn’t alone in its AI ambitions for the smart home. Amazon just revealed its own line of revamped Echo smart speakers and smart displays powered by Alexa+ (which has been in an early access mode for the past several months), while Apple is expected to eventually roll out new HomePod smart speakers powered by a AI-enhanced Siri (which has been delayed to next year, at the earliest).   We’ve already seen some of Gemini’s abilities in the smart home, including its ability to describe the action in video clips captured by Nest security cameras. But with help from the new Google Home app, Gemini will gain new abilities, such as delivering a “home brief” that summarizes the past 24 hours of your Nest video history.  You’ll also be able to ask Gemini questions about your home (such as “Is the front door locked?” or “What time did the kids come home”) or ask it to draft smart automations on the fly, using natural language (“At night, if the house is empty, make it look like someone’s home”), Kattukaran said.   Underpinning Gemini for Home is the new Google Home app, which—among other features—will boast 70-percent faster startup times, as well as 80-percent fewer crashes and better memory and battery optimization, according to Kattukaran.  A streamlined three-tabbed interface (Home, Activity, and Automations) lets you jump from device controls, activity feeds, and smart routines, along with one-handed gestures that let you swipe between broad device categories. The new Nest cameras can attach names to familiar faces and describe what they’re doing in front of the camera.Google The new app promises faster scrubbing of camera videos, as well as the YouTube-style ability to double-tap one side of a video thumbnail or the other to jump forward or backward in the clip.  In another change, the Google Home activity feed will include entries from connected third-party smart devices, not just Google’s own first-party cameras and gadgets.   “This [Activity] tab will now become the canonical history of your entire home,” Kattukaran said. “Anything that happens in your home that’s connected into your [Google Home] ecosystem, you see the whole history right here now.”  Sitting at the top of the new Google Home app is a Gemini-powered “Ask Home” chat box that lets you ask questions about or issue commands to your smart home, anything from “What happened today” or “Who ate the plants” to “Create an automation” or “Turn on the living room TV.”  Naturally, Gemini’s best smart home features, such as the home brief and AI notifications, will be locked behind a paywall, with Google Home Premium replacing the former Nest Aware subscription plans.   Gemini will still perform basic smart home duties (such as those once handled by Google Assistant, which is being phased out in favor of Gemini) for free.  This news story is part of TechHive’s in-depth coverage of the best smart speakers. Also, be sure to check our complete coverage of Google’s Gemini for Home rollout, including details on the new Google Home Speaker, new Nest Cams, and new Google Home Premium subscription plans. Read...