Dolby Atmos in your living room isn’t as easy as it sounds. Whether you’re dealing with a component A/V system or a soundbar, your speakers must be carefully positioned and calibrated to create that immersive Atmos experience—and if your furniture is in the way, you’ll just need to move it.  But with its new FlexConnect technology, Dolby is looking to make its Atmos audio technology more home decor-friendly, and it’s teaming up with TCL for the hardware.  First announced earlier this year and on sale starting today, the TCL Z100 is a smart and “panoramic” wireless speaker that can pair with a Dolby Atmos FlexConnect-enabled QD-Mini LED TV—specifically, TCL’s QM8K, QM7K, or QM6K series TVs.  Unlike the speakers used in other Dolby Atmos systems, TCL’s cylindrical Z100 speaker can be placed anywhere in the room, while Dolby’s FlexConnect technology will “intelligently optimize” the sound depending on the position of the speaker, TCL says. You can use anywhere from one to four of the Z100 speakers with a single TCL TV, and the system can scale itself up as you add more speakers to your living room setup. Just to be clear, though, the Dolby Atmos FlexConnect tech employed in TCL’s Z100 speakers requires the use of one of those three TCL QD-Mini LED TV models (which come in sizes ranging from 55- to 115-inches) mentioned above. Dolby originally unveiled FlexConnect back in 2023, but while it announced TCL as a partner and gave some ears-on demonstrations at IFA 2023 in Berlin, this marks the first TCL has released details about the TCL Z100, along with a price: $399.99 per speaker. Nope, that’s not cheap, but it’s roughly in line with the cost of a mid-range home theater speaker. Besides being sold in single-speaker configurations, the Z100 is also available in bundles, including one with two speakers and a subwoofer ($1,299.97) and three speakers plus the sub ($1,699.96). As for the Z100 itself, the 170W, 5.62-pound speaker measures 5.42 x 11.87 x 5.22 inches (WxHxD) and boasts four separate drivers that combine to deliver 1.1.1-channel Dolby Atmos audio. The first “1” in the “1.1.1” is for the main audio channel, the second “1” is for low-frequency sound, and the final “1” refers to the height channel that bounces off your ceiling. Meanwhile, the nearly 10-pound, 130-watt Z100-SW subwoofer measures 9.61 x 13.15 x 8.87 inches (WxHxD) and arrives with a 5.25-inch woofer. The Z100 speakers and Z100-SW subwoofer connect wirelessly to your supported TCL TV, and you can also stream music to the speakers from your phone via Bluetooth. TCL is promising “effortless” setup, including a “smart calibration” process that detects the position of the speakers and adjusts the audio to match the contours of the room. Sounds good, but what about performance? And how do Dolby’s FlexConnect speakers actually sound? I don’t think anyone expects Dolby’s FlexConnect tech to compete with, say, a precisely positioned, calibrated, and loftily priced 7.2.2 system with ceiling-mounted Atmos height speakers. But for average users who want enveloping Atmos audio in their living rooms without drilling holes or completely redoing their living room decor, Dolby Atmos FlexConnect may wind up being an affordable and effective solution. Personally, I’m eager for an in-person demo. This news story is part of TechHive’s in-depth coverage of the best smart speakers. It’s been updated with pricing as well as new details about the speakers themselves. Read...

I don’t know how your tech drawers look, but mine are filled with wires I’ll likely never use again because technology has advanced quite a bit. Thankfully, USB-C seems to be here to stay since there is no wrong way to plug these things in. It’s not just smartphones, tablets, and laptops that use these, however, but also a long list of gadgets. We’ve scoured the market for hidden gems: 11 gadgets that will make you think “Wow, I didn’t know I needed that, but it will make my life so much easier!” Let’s dive in and see what cool devices you’ll be able to use your type-C cables and ports with. Wowstick 1F+ mini electric screwdriver Wowstick If you often have to fiddle around with your computer or other gadgets, this Wowstick mini electric screwdriver may be just what you need. This pen-shaped screwdriver features three LED lights so it’s easier to see what you’re working on and rotates 200 times per minute so you can finish the job faster. The screwdriver has a stylish base so you can hold it on your desk, and a whole collection of 56 aluminum alloy bits. The screwdriver can be charged via USB-C and it can last for hours. This super fun electric screwdriver usually goes for $41. Anker Nano Power Bank Anker One thing you need to have in you bag/pocket/backpack is a power bank because you never really know when your phone will fail you and cry for a recharge. Well, the Anker Nano power bank is tiny enough to fit just about anywhere. It comes with a foldable USB-C connector and a port on the side so you can charge two devices at once if you need to. The 5,000mAh capacity is just about enough for a full phone recharge, so it will be great in a pinch. It’s also only $30, but we’ve seen it as low as $16. Endoscope camera with light Ennovor Although it’s not something you’ll use every day, this Ennover endoscope camera can definitely come in handy. You just plug it in your phone, install and app, and see everything your camera does. Our team swears by it, using it for finding whatever they dropped behind the desk, while working on the car, or looking for pipe leaks. Since it has an IP67 rating, you can even plop it in your aquarium. The camera comes with a 16.4ft semi-rigid cable and several accessories, including a hook, magnet, and a mirror. You can get this one for $23 right now. Blukar flashlight Blukar I don’t care who you are—you need a flashlight. The smaller, the better, because you get to shove it into any pocket. This model from Blukar comes with a built-in 1800mAh battery that you’ll recharge with one of those many type-C cables you have in that tech drawer we were talking about. It can work for up to 16 hours on a single charge, which is pretty decent. There are four different lightning modes to cycle through, including one that will help you signal for help. Plus, one of these is only $10, so no excuse to pass on this one. Heat It insect bite healer Anyone plagued by mosquitoes in the summer will be particularly pleased with this ingenious gadget. This tiny device, which can be easily connected to your smartphone via USB-C, can significantly reduce the itching of bites and stings with targeted heat. You simply charge the small Heat It bite healer via the app and then hold it on the bite. The heat then does the rest, breaking down the proteins in the mosquito bite that cause the area to swell, itch, and hurt. A true must-have for summer, and it costs only $20. A tiny air pump Also perfect for summer is this small air pump from Cycplus, which fits in any bag while on the go. Not only can it inflate a bicycle tire in two minutes at the touch of a button, but it’s also USB-charged. According to the manufacturer, it’s suitable for mountain bikes, road bikes, motorcycles, and even cars! In addition to being an air pump, this practical gadget can also be used as a flashlight or power bank for on-the-go use — all things that come in very handy on a bike ride. And at just $57, it’s highly recommended if you need quick help with a flat tire. USB-C mini fan These little fans are also pretty ingenious; you can easily carry them in your pocket in the summer and quickly use them whenever you need them. Anyone who’s ever sat on a crowded subway train in 30-degree heat and wished for at least a little fresh air will love this gadget. The mini fan, which costs just $20, has a USB-C port and can be easily powered by power banks, computers, laptops, or USB chargers. There are even smaller and cheaper fans available that can be connected directly to your phone, costing under $10 each. But these also provide less powerful airflow, so we recommend the standalone version. Reading light with a book clamp Anyone who enjoys reading a lot, sometimes late into the night, will appreciate this little gadget: a reading lamp that you can simply clip onto your book. It may not be groundbreaking, but with a total of three color temperatures and five different light modes, you can individually adjust how much light you need for reading. The Gritin reading lamp costs just $15 on Amazon and features a 1200 mAh battery that lasts up to 80 hours depending on usage. Afterward, you can easily recharge it via USB. You can swivel the neck of the lamp back and forth as desired, and there’s even a small charging indicator. What more could you want? External DVD Drive Amicool If your laptop is like mine and lacks a DVD drive, then this little gadget will come in handy for you. This Amicool external DVD drive uses a USB-C (or USB-A) to connect to your laptop and give yout he optical drive you sometimes need. It can read and burn DVDs and CDs with ease, allowing you to install software, copy files, back up data, play games, and so on. You won’t even need to install drives as this thing is plug and play. While this thing’s usually $29, you can often get it for around $20, which is an absolute bargain. Samsung flash drive Samsung The vast majority of flash drives have a USB-A connector, but this one from Samsung has a Type-C connector. With transfer speeds of up to 400MB/s, you’ll move files around in no time. The beauty of this thumb drive is that you can even pop it in your smartphone to record 4K vids directly on it. The Samsung Type-C flash drive comes in multiple storage options, starting at 64GB and up to 512GB and they start at $14. The 256GB version, for instance, is $27 at the time of writing. Type-C microSD card reader Ugreen Most laptops nowadays don’t come with a card reader anymore (I know mine doesn’t), so finding other ways to get data off those little buggers is a must. Whether you need to pull data off your dashcam’s card or if it’s from your camera, this tiny Ugreen USB-C microSD reader will work just fine. This reader is tiny enough that you should probably put it on a keychain of some kind. If you’d rather a slightly more versatile version, Ugreen has a model that also works with SD cards and features both USB-C and USB-A connectors. Any of these will cost you less than $10, so they’re worthwhile investments. Editor’s note: This article was originally published on May 16, but was updated to include additional devices. Read...

There’s a common misconception about PCIe 5.0 SSDs that since they’re the latest-generation SSD storage and boast faster speed and bandwidth compared to PCIe 4.0 SSD, anyone who gets one is going to experience a big uptick in PC performance. That’s certainly not the case as we’ve shown by analyzing things like gaming performance. But there are a few exceptions to that rule. In fact, if any of the below statements are true for you, you may well have a justifiable reason for splurging out on a costly PCIe 5.0 SSD upgrade. Am I working with large datasets? Scientists and other professionals work with very large amounts of data — often terabytes but sometimes even petabytes in size. PCIe 5.0 SSD doubles the bandwidth of PCIe 4.0 SSD delivering theoretical speeds of 14,000MB/s for reads and 12,000MB/s for writes to disk. These faster transfer speeds can help prevent one of the biggest problems data scientists have to deal with nowadays — that is, the bottlenecks that occur on their PCs loading and preprocessing data from storage. Tada Images / Shutterstock.com For data scientists, especially those working with datasets in Large Language Models (LLMs), tasks like running complex queries on a database, accessing files while training models, or saving large model checkpoints should be much snappier with a PCIe 5.0 SSD, therefore reducing the time workers are idle and likely therefore also boosting productivity. Am I a video editor, 3D animator, or designer working with very large files? If your job title is 3D animator, designer, or video editor and, again, you’re working with large files, then a PCIe 5.0 SSD is likely to make your workflow much quicker. That’s especially the case if you work with 4K or even 8K video files, where the speed and bandwidth increases will likely translate to smoother timeline scrubbing and faster rendering. Do I want to future-proof my hardware for gaming? Right now, there’s not much of an advantage gaming with a PCIe 5.0 SSD over a PCIe 4.0 SSD, but as hardware and software applications continue to evolve, it’s likely they will better take advantage of the speed and bandwidth benefits of PCIe 5.0 SSD for gaming. That looks to be the case with the emerging technology of DirectStorage that reduces load times and improves asset streaming in games, especially data-heavy open-world RPGs. DirectStorage allows games to load data directly from the SSD to the GPU, thereby bypassing the CPU. While the technology works on PCIe 4.0 SSDs, PCIe 5.0 SSDs are better suited to utilize the DirectStorage technology when it becomes more widespread. Related content Best SSDs Best PCIe 4.0 SSDs What happened to DirectStorage? Why don’t more PC games use it? 5 useful upgrades for your PC’s unused PCIe slots Read...

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At a glanceExpert`s Rating Pros Access your data and personal digital media from anywhere Supremely easy setup OS and phone apps Cons Lacks many of the features of a mainstream NAS box Synology account required for setup Plex is great, but it’s your only choice in supported media servers Our Verdict The BeeStation Plus personal cloud (for streaming, storage, client backups, and more) is supremely easy to set up and use, and it lets you easily access your data and personal digital media from anywhere on the planet. But it lacks many of the features Synology’s–and its competitors’–more mainstream NAS boxes offer. Price When Reviewed This value will show the geolocated pricing text for product undefined Best Pricing Today Best Prices Today: Synology BeeStation Plus (8TB) Retailer Price $409.99 View Deal Price comparison from over 24,000 stores worldwide Product Price Price comparison from Backmarket Best Prices Today: Check today’s prices Want your own personal OneDrive, Dropbox, iCloud, or Google drive without the mega corporation or advanced network savvy that’s typically required? Perhaps you’re looking to set up a personal streamer for your massive collection of digital music and movies you’ve ripped from discs over the years. If you are, you should take a look at Synology’s BeeStation Plus, a NAS box that can operate as your own personal cloud and streaming service. The BeeStation Plus not only allows you to access your data and personal media from anywhere and on any compute-capable device–laptop, mobile phone, tablet, and so on–it’s exceptionally easy to set up. You don’t even need to add storage, there’s already an 8TB hard disk drive inside. The only possible issue is that Synology’s rigorous focus on simple-to-set-up-and-use means many of the features found in the company’s other NAS boxes are missing here. NAS aficionados–the acronym stands for Network Attached Storage, by the way–will care about that; the mainstream audience Synology is targeting with this product probably won’t. Specifications and features The 8TB Synology BeeStation Plus has USB-A and -C ports and a single gigabit ethernet port on its rear I/O panel.Jon Jacobi/Foundry As you might have guessed from my introduction, the BeeStation Plus is a simplified NAS box and media server. Stripping out some of the other features that NAS boxes are known for render it much easier to set up and use than more robust products that might interest hardcore users or the SMB crowd (allow me to spell out that acronym, too: it stands for Small to Medium-sized Businesses). the BeeStation Plus is certainly easier to set up than any other NAS box I’ve tested. So much so that it probably deserves its own classification. The box itself is a well-ventilated, rounded-corner, dark gray rectangle measuring 5.8 x 2.5 x 7.7 inches (HxWxD). It weighs in at just north of two pounds, with its mechanical hard drive no doubt accounting for most of that bulk. The front and sides are barren except for logos, while on the back there’s the power button, USB-A and -C ports, a reset pinhole, a gigabit ethernet port, and a power jack. There’s no video output, as some boxes have, so your only access to the files stored on the box is through Synology’s online portal and its local client apps, at least initially. You can enable SMB access to reach the unit locally via Explorer (Windows) or Finder (macOS) as well as via a browser without routing through the portal after initial setup. (In this context, the acronym SMB stands for the protocol Server Message Block.) The BeeStation Plus will serve as a destination for macOS Time Machine backups (with a 4TB limit), and the local desktop client will sync folders to the BeeStation. There are also BeeFiles apps for backing up your Android and iOS devices. The BeeFiles app for iOS. Synology offers a full backup option in BeeProtect, an online storage service that costs $120 per year for up to 8TB ($60 for the 4TB BeeStation model). Those prices aren’t half bad given the amount of storage get, but there’s a 3-month free trial if you want to give it a test drive first. Synology pushes its BeeProtect online backup solution. Less obvious is the small text link below the BeeProtect ad that tells you that you can also back up to external storage, another NAS box, or Synology’s own C2 cloud storage service if you have an account. But only one is allowed; so without BeeProtect, you’ll need to improvise a third copy of your data. That makes this as good a time as any to remind you that this is single hard disk drive storage that must be backed up if there’s any irreplaceable data on it. While HDDs are far more reliable than they used to be, they’re still mechanical devices and far more prone to failure than SSDs. The BeeStation Plus supports up to eight users, and each one gets their own private storage area. At the moment, the only functionality beyond file storage and backup is media streaming via Plex media server (with a 4TB limit on media files). More on that in a bit. Note that when you attach external storage, it doesn’t show up until you utilize a function that requires it. The storage section of the interface didn’t show either of the USB SSDs I attached, though I could still use them for transfer functions and see them as USBShares in Windows Explorer and macOS Finder. The BeeStation desktop app will create a local folder that later syncs with the BeeStation’s internal storage, a la DropBox, OneDrive, Google Drive, and other services. Basically, this is for performance: Transfers across the local network will be relatively snappy without it, not so much across the internet The BeeStation Plus is NAS for people who don’t know, care about, or care to learn about NAS. Plug in its power cord and an ethernet cable, follow the prompts, and you’re good to go. Mostly. How easy is the BeeStation Plus to set up? The BeeStation Plus setup, while not the browse-to-a-local-URL (e.g., 192.168.1.101) approach I’m accustomed to, is by far the easiest I’ve encountered. At least for the basics. And by “easier-than,” I’m including personal cloud devices from industry stalwarts such as Seagate and Western Digital. No, the “personal cloud” pitch is not new. To get underway, you first surf to the Synology BeeStation Web portal. (There’s a QR code for mobile devices, although it just takes you to Synology’s website.) Next, you create an account, and then download the desktop app. You’ll need to be physically close to the BeeStation for a couple of steps, including the one below. Just one of the steps in the lengthy but largely idiot-proof BeeStation setup. One-time setup is rather tedious, but the wizard-like approach ensures that even the least experienced user can get the BeeStation Plus up and running. That said, I did find one step to be puzzling: With all of the focus on ease of use, why would Synology force you to tediously download and install the operating system? Just pre-load it at the factory and have it check for updates, guys. Anyway, setting up the Plex media server (for streaming movies, music, and photos) isn’t quite as easy as getting online and connecting. Mostly because it’s less-than-intuitively located under the heading “Integration” in the main web page. Perhaps it would be better to label this “Apps,” Synology? Also, as Plex is currently the only app available and intimately linked to the BeeStation Plus’ usefulness, why isn’t it pre-installed? The Plex media server is used to stream media. It requires its own account if you want to stream remotely. Tip: Use the BeeStation’s “Upload media files to Plex” function, which opens the browser-based BeeFiles at the correct location. If you try to add media within the Plex server, you’ll be confronted with a rather daunting list of Linux system folders that precede the folders you actually want. Assuming of course, you would actually know what those folders were. As mentioned above, if you want to use Windows Explorer/macOS Finder to manage files instead of a web browser or Synology’s desktop app, you’ll need to enable local access and SMB in the BeeStation web portal’s advanced settings. Why it’s disabled to begin with, I can’t say. The Local Account and SMB options must be enabled if you want to browse the BeeStation files using your operating system, or access the web browser interface without going through the portal. This image is the web browser interface via the Synology portal. I’m very accustomed to local SMB folder access, so I turned that on. But to be honest, I often found the web browser interface and BeeFiles easier to use. It supports drag-0and-drop file transfers and you don’t need to guess which folder is which. How easy is the BeeStation to use? While it’s not as dead easy as the initial setup, using the BeeStation is certainly easier than your run-of-the-mill NAS box, including handy dedicated functions for transferring your media from existing online services; specifically, those used by Android and iOS devices. That will cover most folks. I must say that iCloud support was a bit of a surprise. Apple is famous for denying access to third parties. The BeeStation Plus makes it easy for you to back up your Android or iOS photos. Viewing your media files, and even PDF and Office files, can be done via the web portal, right within the browser. It’s remarkably quick given a local network connection, which the BeeStation automatically uses if available. What NAS features are missing from the BeeStation Plus? What became obvious during my hands-on time is that the BeeStation Plus is either a software work-in-progress (should sales warrant it), or laser focused on being a personal cloud and nothing else. That’s admirable and great for the target audience, but there’s a lot missing that you could have in a perhaps less friendly, more traditional NAS box such as Synology’s own single-bay DS124. These are just a few of the apps available in Synology’s mainstream NAS boxes. Just some of the missing features are: Hybrid Backup/Sync (software that backs up remote computers without the need for local clients), security camera surveillance, virtualization (Docker and the like), BitTorrent, two-way sync, the HybridMount cloud storage manager, access to other network locations, and quite a lot more. Also missing is the ability to expand internal storage. Multi-bay NAS boxes allow you to add drives, and/or mirror them for increased safety and availability. All this makes a strong case for advanced users to go old-school. What’s this portal thing you’re rattling on about? Portals are remote servers that relay data from one location/URL to another. Basically, you log in to the portal with your data source device (e.g., the BeeStation Plus), which registers its existence, your ownership, and its internet location. Then, when you log on to the portal with your other devices and the appropriate client, the portal directs traffic to/from the data-serving device. Portals generally provide web interfaces that allow you to configure them, as well as manage the files on the server. The BeeStation Plus’ portal is top notch in both regards. The BeeStation web portal main page. The major upsides to portals are ease of setup and hassle-free access from anywhere (given internet freedom, which is not universal). You also needn’t unduly expose your server (the BeeStation) to the internet, as you would if you configured your router to forward ports to it. Said configuration can also be quite trepidatious for less experienced users. On the other hand, I can name at least two portals (Cisco NAS, and PogoPlug) that disappeared, rendering the products that relied on them far less useful. Additionally, your info is passing through someone else’s servers, which could potentially lead to data breaches. Companies can promise all the security and encryption in the world, but when all is said and done, if they decide they want to access your data, they can. That comment is not aimed at Synology in the slightest, I’ve had nothing but good experiences with the company. It’s simply inherent to the technology and it also applies to Microsoft, Google, Apple, and every other company in the modern connected world. How much does the BeeStation Plus cost? The 8TB BeeStation Plus retails for $409, which isn’t a ton more than Synology’s own single-bay DS124 when populated with an 8TB HDD (around $340 combined). There’s also a far more affordable 4TB BeeStation for $209 available if you think that will hold your movie, image, and music collections. As HDDs are available in up to 36TB these days, I’m a bit surprised there aren’t more capacious options. The BeeStation Plus is warrantied for three years, which includes the HDD as far as I can tell. How fast is the BeeStation Plus? The BeeStation’s gigabit ethernet and hard drive are more than fast enough for most file operations, as well as for streaming media. Indeed, the data rates required for multimedia delivery aren’t nearly as great as some might think. Even streamed 4K video is generally only several megabytes per second, depending on the codec. Blu-ray can be much higher, but that’s a different beast. Audio requires far less bandwidth, and images a relative trickle. The BeeStation Plus clocked in at around 115 megabytes per second reading, and 90- to 100MBps writing. That’s slightly below average for a gigabit box, but it’s still in the ballpark. Transfer speeds to and from a remote location will, of course, depend on your broadband connection. While not fantastic for a NAS with gigabit ethernet, these speeds are in the ballpark and more than adequate for streaming, file transfers, and client backups. AmorphousDiskMark was largely in agreement with Disk Speed test (shown above) when it came to transfers across my home 2.5Gbps network. An Apple Studio with an M4 Max and a 10Gbps ethernet port was at the other end. The Intel Celeron J4125 CPU made the web interface quite responsive. Indeed, I was pleasantly surprised at how quick the BeeStation Plus navigated, downloaded apps, and changed settings. The latter especially can be laggardly on NAS boxes. I had several people simultaneously test the Plex streaming and there were no issues. Admittedly, it was all 1080p video and music, and you might get fewer streams with 4K in play. But there were no complaints. In total, the BeeStation Plus will get the job done handily, although I wouldn’t complain if it had a 2.5Gbps ethernet port. Should you buy the BeeStation Plus? If you want an easy-to-set-up-and-use personal cloud for file access, media streaming and viewing both in your home and from afar, either the BeeStation Plus or the smaller-capacity BeeStation are fantastic options. Tech-savvy users who want more server-grade features will be better off with a straight-up NAS box that offers far greater capabilities, likely for a few less bucks. There’s also less chance that such a product could end up orphaned. Read...

TL;DR: A Grade A refurbished ASUS Chromebook C523 15.6? Touchscreen is just $119.99 (MSRP: $229) Technology tends to demand constant upgrades, but sometimes the smart move is finding a device that nails the essentials without overcomplicating things. The ASUS Chromebook C523 is a 15.6? touchscreen laptop that’s built for both productivity and downtime. And right now, you can score a Grade A refurbished model for just $119.99 (MSRP: $229). The ASUS Chromebook C523 is powered by an Intel Celeron processor, runs Chrome OS with full access to the Google Play Store. Why You’ll Like It Bigger screen: The NanoEdge display offers an 80% screen-to-body ratio and an anti-glare finish. Touchscreen convenience: A responsive 10-point multitouch display makes navigation intuitive. Portable power: Just 3.1 lbs and up to 10 hours of battery life. Performance you can trust: Intel Celeron N3350 ensures speedy handling of apps and everyday tasks. Security built in: Automatic updates and integrated antivirus keep things running smoothly. Versatile ports: USB-C, USB-A, and micro SD card slot keep your connectivity options wide open. And because this is Grade A refurbished, you’re getting a laptop that runs like new with only the possibility of some scuffs. Get the Grade A refurbished ASUS Chromebook C523 for just $119.99 (MSRP: $229) while stock is available. ASUS Chromebook C523 15.6? Touchscreen (2018) 4GB RAM 64GB eMMC (Refurbished)See Deal StackSocial prices subject to change. Read...

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How badly does AI harm the environment? We now have some answers to that question, as both Google and Mistral have published their own self-assessments of the environmental impact of an AI query. In July, Mistral, which publishes its own AI models, published a self-evaluation of the environmental impact of training and querying its model in terms of the amount of carbon dioxide (CO2) produced, the amount of water consumed, and the amount of material consumed. Google took a slightly different approach, publishing the amount of power and water a Gemini query consumes, as well as how much CO2 it produces. Of course, there are caveats: Each report was self-generated, and not performed by an outside auditor. Also, training a model consumes vastly more resources than inferencing, or the day-to-day tasks users assign a chatbot each time they query it. Still, the reports provide some context for how much AI taxes the environment, even though they exclude the effects of AI training and inferencing by OpenAI and other competitors. On Thursday, Google said its estimate for the resources consumed by a “median” Gemini query consumes 0.24Wh of energy and 0.26 milliliters (five drops) of water, and generates the equivalent of 0.03 grams of carbon dioxide — the equivalent of 9 seconds of watching TV. Mistral’s report slightly differed: For a “Le Chat” response generating a page of text (400 tokens), Mistral consumes 50 milliliters of water, produces the equivalent of 1.14 grams of carbon dioxide, and consumes the equivalent of 0.2 milligrams of non-renewable resources. Google said “comparative models” typically are a bit more lenient, and only look at the impacts of active TPU and GPU consumption. Put this way, the median Gemini text prompt uses 0.10Wh of energy, consumes 0.12ml of water, and emits the equivalent of 0.02 grams of carbon dioxide. Google did not release any assessments of the impact of training its Gemini models. Mistral did: In January 2025, training its Large 2 model produced the equivalent of 20.4 kilotons of carbon dioxide, consumed 281,000 cubic meters of water, and consumed 650 kilograms of resources. That’s about 112 Olympic-sized swimming pools of water consumption. Using the EPA’s estimate that an average car produces 4.6 metric tons of carbon dioxide annually, that works out to the annual CO2 production of 4,435 cars, too. The environmental impact assessments assume that energy is produced via means that actually produce carbon dioxide, such as coal. “Clean” energy, like solar, lowers that value. Likewise, the amount of water “consumed” typically assumes the use of evaporative cooling, where heat is transferred from the chip or server (possibly being cooled by water as well) to what’s known as an evaporative cooler. The evaporative cooler transfers heat efficiently, in the same manner as your body cools itself after a workout. As you sweat, the moisture evaporates, an endothermic reaction that pulls heat from your body. An evaporative cooler performs the same function, wicking heat from a server farm but also evaporating that water back into the atmosphere. Mistral’s environmental impact assessment includes a footnote noting the differences in electricity France and the United States consume. Google said that it uses a holistic approach toward managing energy, such as more efficient models, optimized inferencing though models like Flash-Lite, custom-built TPUs, efficient data centers, and efficient idling of CPUs that aren’t being used. Clean energy generation — such as a planned nuclear reactor — can help lower the impact numbers, too. “Today, as AI becomes increasingly integrated into every layer of our economy, it is crucial for developers, policymakers, enterprises, governments, and citizens to better understand the environmental footprint of this transformative technology,” Mistral’s own report adds. “At Mistral AI, we believe that we share a collective responsibility with each actor of the value chain to address and mitigate the environmental impacts of our innovations.” How much water and electricity does ChatGPT consume? The reports from Mistral and Google haven’t been duplicated by other companies. EpochAI estimates that the average GPT-4o query on ChatGPT consumes about 0.3Wh of energy, based upon its estimates of the types of servers OpenAI uses. However, the amount of resources AI consumes can vary considerably, and even AI energy scores are rudimentary at best. “In reality, the type and size of the model, the type of output you’re generating, and countless variables beyond your control—like which energy grid is connected to the data center your request is sent to and what time of day it’s processed—can make one query thousands of times more energy-intensive and emissions-producing than another,” an MIT Technology Review study found. Its estimates of 15 queries a day plus 10 images plus three 5-second videos would consume 2.9kWh of electricity, it found. Still, Mistral’s study authors note that its own estimates point the way toward a “scoring system” where buyers and users could use these studies as a way to choose AI models with the least environmental impact. It also called upon other AI model makers to follow its lead. Whether AI is “bad” for the environment is still up for discussion, but the reports from Google and Mistral provide a foundation for a more reasoned discussion. Read...