Having a fast flash drive on hand can save you the pain of transferring files over slow Wi-Fi. In fact, it allows you to bypass the need for an internet connection altogether. It just so happens that one of our favorites — Samsung’s Type-C Flash Drive — is on sale right now, with the 128GB model available for a mere $18 on Amazon. Besides the fact that this modern flash drive is a total steal at this price, this particular flash drive is awesome because, as the name suggests, it has a USB-C connection. That means it’s so easy to back up data from smartphones, tablets, laptops, gaming consoles, and more. The Samsung Type-C Flash Drive is tiny, too, making it easy to throw into a pocket or purse and take with you anywhere. It’s also built with protection against most dangers, including water, dust, shocks, magnets, extreme temperatures, and X-rays. With its 400MB/s read speeds, you can transfer massive files to your thumb drive in no time, including those extra-large 4K videos. Get your very own compact USB-C flash drive for just $18 on Amazon while this deal lasts. If 128GB is too little for you, the 256GB model is also on sale (for just $27, was $35). Samsung`s USB-C flash drive is the best $18 you`ll spend this weekBuy now at Amazon Read...

With all the excitement of the NFL postseason, it’s easy to forget about NFL Sunday Ticket, the YouTube-hosted home for streaming out-of-market NFL games during the regular season. Indeed, YouTube is probably hoping Sunday Ticket subscribers forget about their memberships–at least until next season’s kickoff.  The reason? NFL Sunday Ticket on YouTube and YouTube TV has an auto-renewal feature that automatically resubs users for the following season—and once you’re re-subscribed, there are no refunds.  The date when YouTube or YouTube TV will automatically renew your NFL Sunday Ticket subscription may vary; you can find the renewal date in your YouTube accounts details (more on that in a moment). Most likely, your NFL Sunday Ticket renewal date will hit a few weeks before the 2025-26 regular season begins.  Okay, but what if you’ve already decided to keep your NFL Sunday Ticket subscription? Should you still cancel before next season?   The answer is yes. As TV Answer Man has previously pointed out, YouTube will re-subscribe you to NFL Sunday Ticket “at the then-current retail price.” That means you’ll miss out on any NFL Sunday Ticket discounts that crop up after your renewal date.  How to cancel the NFL Sunday Ticket add-on for YouTube TV  First, visit tv.youtube.com from a desktop web browser, then sign in with your Google account.  Go to the upper-right corner of the screen, click on your profile image, then click Settings (look for the gear-shaped icon).  Scroll to the Memberships heading; you should see your NFL Sunday Ticket subscription listed. Click Manage.  On the next screen, you should see your next billing date, along with a Cancel option. Go ahead and click it.  Google will serve up a final Yes, Cancel confirmation; click it, and you’re done.  How to cancel NFL Sunday Ticket on YouTube Primetime Channels  Visit youtube.com from a desktop browser, then sign in with your Google account.  You should see your profile icon in the top-right corner of the screen. Click it, then click Purchases and memberships.  You’ll find your NFL Sunday Ticket membership listed under the Memberships heading. Click Manage membership.  Here, you’ll see your next billing date, along with the Cancel option. Click Cancel, then click Confirm cancellation.  What about Verizon’s NFL Sunday Ticket offer–how you do cancel that? Did you snag a free season of NFL Sunday Ticket through Verizon? If so, trying to manage your NFL Sunday Ticket subscription on YouTube will simply shoot you over to Verizon’s site, where you’ll see your status as “Account Enrolled.” Now what? The answer: Now nothing, as there’s nothing you need to do. As Verizon’s NFL Sunday Ticket FAQ explains, the Verizon offer is only good for the 2024-25 regular NFL season, and once it expires, it won’t auto-renew. Read...

TP-Link’s Tapo smart home ecosystem gained a host of new products at CES 2025, including new home security cameras, smart lighting products—including a bona fide NVR system. But if the recent stories about security flaws in TP-Link routers gives you pause, TP-Link assures us that there’s no longer any connection between it—TP-Link Systems—and China’s TP-Link Technologies. A TP-Link Systems spokesperson told us the company manufactures its products in Brazil and Vietnam, not China, and that it “owns its own factories, designs and manufactures its products, and controls its full supply chain.” With that out of the way, let’s talk about the new Tapo products, starting with home security. Tapo PalmKey Smart Door Lock TP-Link The Tapo PalmKey Smart Door Lock features palm-vein recognition technology that scans the intricate, unique patterns of veins in your hand. The company said this delivers unparalleled accuracy and security, surpassing traditional fingerprint or facial-recognition systems. Its scanner is designed to work flawlessly even with wet, dirty, or dry hands, ensuring reliable access for all family members, regardless of age or physical condition. The lock includes seven other lock/unlock methods as well: Fingerprint, PIN codes, Wi-Fi remote control, a physical key, and third-party integration. It employs multi-layer encryption to safeguard user data and features a 10,000 mAh rechargeable battery with USB Type-C port for charging. Designed to withstand extreme conditions, the lock is IP65 weatherproof. New Tapo security cameras TP-Link promises compact Tapo C675D Kit, 4K dual-lens security camera can eliminate blind spots thanks to a wide-angle camera that sits on top of an independently controlled pan/tilt camera. Both cameras boast 4K resolution, and they both connect to an included solar panel to keep their batteries topped off. Unless other dual-lens cameras we’ve seen, the Tapo C675D is remarkably compact and non-industrial looking. Tapo’s NVR (network video recorder) supports both Wi-Fi and PoE security cameras and can record 24/7, not just when triggered by motion or something else.Michael Brown/Foundry If you have a large property and need to deploy a camera at the perimeter, far from your Wi-Fi rounter, a 4G camera was your best solution. But that entails adding a monthly fee for the service. Today’s Wi-Fi HaLow now offers a subscription-free alternative, and you can get it with TP-Link’s Tapo C6165D security camera, which also comes with a solar panel to keep its battery topped off. The Tapo C6165D can also be paired with TP-Link’s all-new Tapo NVR Security Camera System, which is capable of capturing video 24/7, instead of only in response to motion or some other trigger. It’s an 8-channel NVR (network video recorder) that can accommodate up to a 20TB hard drive for recording from 8 cameras simultaneously. You can either buy it with a hard drive preinstalled or provide your own. The NVR system can accommodate wireless cameras that support the ONVIF video format, or you can connect PoE (Power over Ethernet) cameras if you don’t want to worry about recharging batteries. AI processing performed locally—not in the cloud—can describe what the cameras have recorded, making it much easier to find the footage you’re looking for. Tapo Atom Link smart lighting TP-Link’s Atom Link lighting system communicates over both Wi-Fi and Bluetooth mesh.Michael Brown/Foundry Few things are more annoying than having your smart lighting fail because your internet connection is down. The Tapo Atom Link lighting system promises to make that problem a thing of the past by connecting to both your Wi-Fi network and Bluetooth mesh. Should your broadband connection or router fail, or if one of the lights has a weak Wi-Fi signal, they can automatically switch over to Bluetooth mesh to retain control. The Atom Link product family includes smart bulbs, smart downlights, and smart switches to cover all the bases. The Tapo app, meanwhile, lets you create dynamic lighting environments, set schedules, and adjust brightness and color temperature. Alexa and Google Home are also supported for voice commands, and TP-Link’s AI can even create lighting scenes based on the Tapo products you have in your home. TP-Link Tapo expects to ship each of these product by Spring 2025, with pricing to be announced closer to launch. Read...

And a few months later, the Internet`s first password. Read...

You never know what you’re going to get with CES. Of course, we knew we’d hear a lot about AI — check — and that there’d be announcements of new CPUs and GPUs — also check. But you just never know how the all the pomp and hoo-ha of this annual mega tech event is going to pay off in the real-world, for regular consumers. Does the average PC user have something to be excited about now that the veil has come off of this year’s product launches? If the PCWorld staff is any indication, the answer is yes! We found plenty of cool products, innovations, and advances at this year’s show that are currently available or promise exciting things ahead. Our picks don’t stop at PC hardware, either. What’s CES without an array of goods for the tech-loving lifestyle? We note a few of our favorite home-tech products, too. Nvidia GeForce RTX 5090 overclock3d I’ve never witnessed a PC product as hotly anticipated as the GeForce RTX 5090, unveiled by Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang during this year’s CES flagship keynote. And this monstrous graphics card lived up to the hype, at least on paper. The RTX 4090 is still the fastest GPU on the planet and the RTX 5090 blows it out of the water in all key areas. It has an astounding 21,760 CUDA cores — 33 percent more than the 4090, and more than three times as many as the new RTX 5070. Nvidia graced the card with an ample 32GB of memory (the most ever for a GeForce GPU) and a humongous 512-but memory bus, a high-octane combo for no-compromises 4K gaming and AI workloads alike. And Nvidia’s overhauled DLSS 4 will tap dedicated AI cores to send performance soaring even higher in supported games. If gamers even get a chance to buy it — even at $1,999, the RTX 5090 will be a screaming deal for AI researchers with all that memory. Everyone is going to want one. -Brad Chacos Alienware Area-51 shaunlucas.com Dell I’m not usually one for gaming laptops, but the newly resurrected Area-51 machine from Alienware might be the one that converts me. Not only is it filled to the brim with the latest and greatest hardware, but the Liquid Teal finish gives the chassis a unique iridescent sheen and it’s to die for. I love the departure from the cliched gamer look (i.e., black exterior with hot red accents), as unnecessarily flashy designs make me wince. I much prefer understated beauty. The underside of the laptop also has a clear window, which allows you to see all of the hardware inside — this is a nice touch.  This laptop doesn’t shove its gamer identity down your throat. Instead, it stands tall in a quiet yet confident manner. -Ashleigh Biancuzzo Lenovo Legion Go S, powered by SteamOS Valve opening SteamOS up for other PC makers is a deeply exciting development for the industry, and as the very first SteamOS-powered handheld beyond the Steam Deck, Lenovo’s Legion Go S would’ve earned its spot here for that alone. But I’m buzzing about more than the software on this. A big part of why the Steam Deck rocks is because it’s so affordable. Most of its competitors try to carve out niches with premium hardware and features — at much higher prices. But Lenovo partnered with AMD for an exclusive license to a more affordable version of AMD’s new game-changing Ryzen Z2 chip, appropriately dubbed “Ryzen Z2 Go.” By using older CPU and GPU cores, Lenovo is able to offer the entry-level Legion Go S for just $499 — giving gamers on a budget a much-needed Steam Deck alternative. -Brad Chacos Lenovo IdeaCentre Mini x with Snapdragon Mark Hachman / IDG Lenovo announced that it’s bringing Snapdragon to mini desktop PCs. Now you can finally enjoy Copilot Plus with your desktop. While both the IdeaCentre Mini x and the ThinkCentre neo 50q are set for the upgrades, it’s the Mini x model that has me most excited. With the option for either Snapdragon X or Snapdragon X Plus chips, up to 32GB of RAM, and 1TB of storage, you can totally trick this thing out if you want. It also comes with Wi-Fi 7 connectivity and an incredible five total USB-A ports, two USB-C ports, plus an HDMI, DisplayPort, and ethernet port. I’m not quite sure what engineering wizardry they were able to conjure up over there at Lenovo, but whatever it is, it has me excited to get a new mini desktop PC this year. -Sam Singleton Second opinion I’m a mini PC convert. Late last year, I ditched a massive desktop for a mini PC running an Intel “Tiger Lake” Core i7. But now I wish I had waited a few more months to purchase the Lenovo IdeaCentre Mini x instead. The Intel mini PC runs unbearably loud at anything but the most modest power settings, whereas the IdeaCentre Mini x, complete with a super-efficient Snapdragon X processor, should run much quieter, just like its laptop counterparts. But even more importantly, I now want a desktop with an NPU for AI workloads. During a one-hour demo with Qualcomm, they showed off a bunch of content-creation apps that directly hook into Snapdragon NPUs. My mind started conjuring how the IdeaCentre Mini x could be a gateway into a whole new world of useful AI – starting with video and image editing (which I already do) but also running on-device LLMs. Bottom line: I’m not sure how I’ll be using hardware-supported AI in 2025, because this whole AI thing is just taking off. But I know I want the option to do so, and having that hardware in a powerful, compact mini PC is just what I’m looking for. -Jon Phillips Asus ROG XG Mobile eGPU Asus When it comes to the best of CES, my vote is for the 2025 Asus ROG XG Mobile eGPU and its awesome power and versatility. As if it wasn’t enough that it harnesses the power of up to Nvidia’s top-tier RTX 5090 chip with up to 150W power, the external GPU also supports Thunderbolt 5 connectivity for exceptionally high bandwidth. That means it benefits from Thunderbolt 5’s up-to-80Gbps bidirectional data transfer speeds. Asus claims the eGPU can hit at least 64Gbps, which surpasses USB 4 and rivals OCuLink. I’m also chuffed by XG Mobile’s other port offerings, which include HDMI 2.1 and DisplayPort 2.1, 5Gbps Ethernet, and an SD card reader. It also sports better cooling than last year’s model and its design weighs just 2.2 pounds. -Dominic Bayley AMD Ryzen AI Max and HP’s Z2 Mini G1a HP AMD’s Ryzen AI Max, previously codenamed Strix Halo, has been causing a furor in the PC leaks community for months now, and it’s easy to see why: It has a lot in common with AMD’s vaunted Threadripper chips. Threadripper debuted as a wild “jam this thing with all the cutting-edge tech we can” enthusiast project and Ryzen AI Max lives up to that legacy. Strix Halo pairs abundant Zen 5 cores and AMD’s powerful 50 TOPS NPU with more integrated Radeon CPU cores than any chip ever seen before, with support for up to 128GB of unified memory and 96GB just for the GPU. Wild! That insane GPU + 128GB memory configuration will make this an absolute beast for AI workloads, which demand gobs of memory and fast graphics performance. “This is something very, very special,” said Rahul Tikoo, senior vice president and general manager of AMD’s client computing business, in a recorded briefing for reporters – and he’s absolutely right. Ryzen AI Max mostly targets laptops, but the most interesting launch partner instead crams this monster chip inside of a desktop mini PC. HP’s Z2 Mini G1a comes with loads of ports, the flagship 16-core, 32-thread Ryzen AI Max+ Pro 395, 128GB of memory, and up to 4TB of SSD storage (you can add another 4TB yourself via an empty M.2 slot) — literally the maxed-out version of AMD Ryzen AI Max. AI professionals and students are going to go nuts for this wonderfully weird machine. -Brad Chacos Asus Zenbook A14 Michael Crider/Foundry The Asus Zenbook A14 is the company’s first laptop to use its unique ceraluminum finish, which bonds a ceramic exterior to an aluminum interior, across a laptop’s entire chassis (instead of just the display lid). It’s also built from magnesium-aluminum alloy, a common and lightweight material. The result is a slim, portable laptop with a look and feel unlike anything else on the market. Picking up the machine reminded me of handling a premium notebook or a slim hardcover book. The Zenbook A14 weighs about 2.1 pounds and measures about six-tenths of an inch thick, with a claimed battery life of 32 hours (!!) thanks to the Snapdragon X chip inside. The Zenbook A14 is my favorite laptop of all of CES 2025. It’s attractive, portable and, perhaps best of all, affordable at a starting price of $899. — Matt Smith SteamOS Asus/Valve Brad has already highlighted the Legion Go S, Lenovo’s portable sequel that uses an official build of SteamOS right from Valve. And that’s exciting on its own as a consumer product. But I’m more interested in SteamOS itself. While these are early days, I think it’s entirely possible that SteamOS could become a successful gaming-focused platform all on its own…which would spell big trouble for Microsoft. Windows 11 isn’t exactly winning people over, and they might be ready to look for an alternative at last. Imagine the very real possibility of a gaming laptop running the Linux-based SteamOS, sold directly to consumers. Wild. -Michael Crider Razer’s Project Arielle Razer These days, I care less about how powerful my tech is and more about how comfortable I am while using what I have. It sucks to freeze in my chair while I’m trying to game in the winter, and it’s equally miserable in the summer with sweaty back stuck to my chair. Comfort is performance, if you ask me. And that’s why the Project Arielle gaming chair speaks to me. It has a built-in bladeless fan system for cool airflow when it’s hot and an integrated heater for warmth when it’s cold, and it’s all conveniently managed via a control panel on the chair. Say goodbye to personal ACs and space heaters. Will Project Arielle ever go mainstream? Eh, probably not. But I’m quite smitten with the concept — assuming Razer keeps the price reasonable. -Joel Lee Lenovo ThinkBook Plus Gen 6 Rollable Mark Hachman / IDG There are so many solutions for adding extra screen space for working on the road, from extra displays to foldables and more. Lenovo’s ThinkBook Plus Gen 6 Rollable is a special machine, hiding what is essentially a second virtual monitor behind the screen, which can be unrolled when needed. That seems to be extremely handy as well as structurally sound, at least based on my limited hands-on time. As a guy who totes external displays or even extra notebooks to serve as extra screens, this ThinkBook is one to watch. -Mark Hachman Lenovo Legion Tab Gen 3 Lenovo As a certified Android fan, I lament that Android tablets have long been unable (and often even unwilling) to compete with the iPad Mini. A small, high-quality tablet is a nut that Google and its partners just can’t crack. That’s why I’m happy to see the Legion Tab Gen 3, an 8.8-inch Android “gaming” tablet. A smaller tablet makes sense for gaming (unlike Acer’s crazy 11-inch Steam Deck-style handheld), and that focus means a more powerful Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 processor, roomy 12GB of RAM, and an upgraded screen and cooling system. Shame about the outdated Android 14 OS (don’t hold out for timely updates from Lenovo, either), but at least someone is giving this form factor a shot. -Michael Crider Secondary screens Corsair I love tons of monitors around me, enabling multitasking work and feeding me tons of information and video all the time. That might not be great for my mental health, to be honest…but I’m still excited to double down on it. Corsair has a newer take on its dedicated desktop widget touchscreen with the 14.5-inch Xeneon Edge. This is essentially a mini-monitor, complete with USB-C and HDMI support. But if you want something a little less functional and more flashy, Govee has animated pixel displays that can live on your wall or desktop. The Gaming Pixel Light (which looks kind of like an upgraded Light Bright toy) can also double as an animated clock, weather widget, or sports ticker. -Michael Crider Pawport Smart Pet Door Pawport Give your favorite four-legged friend the freedom to come and go as they choose while keeping your home safe with the Pawport Smart Pet Door, a retrofit-style device that slides in front of an existing pet door. With help from an included Bluetooth tag, the steel-and-aluminum Smart Pet Door ($499) senses when your pet approaches, opening its doors automatically, while a sensitivity gauge keeps the doors from accidentally closing on your furry friend. You can also control the door remotely with the Pawport app, while pet “curfews” can keep your pet inside during designated hours. -Ben Patterson Stern Pinball: Dungeons & Dragons: The Tyrant’s Eye I love pinball. PCWorld does not cover pinball tables. That’s not usually a problem. This year, it is. Stern’s latest table is rad. You do not play pinball; you pick a character and then level that character up as you play pinball, amassing treasure and loot and exploring dungeons and then eventually fighting beholders and gelatinous cubes and an animatronic dragon voiced by Michael Dorn. There are ramps, hidden trap doors, the works. Nerd bliss, all for $7,000. I played for a half hour and didn’t want to stop. Stern even offered to send us one to try out. If you see a video on our YouTube channel, you’ll know my dreams have been answered. -Mark Hachman LIFX Luna Lamp LIFX With its first ever smart lamp, LIFX drew inspiration from an early product: its own SuperColor Ceiling light, an eye-catching, multi-zone fixture that won our Editors’ Choice award last year. Packing in 26 discretely addressable color zones, the Luna Lamp can be mounted on a wall or placed on a flat surface, like a countertop or a bedside table. The Matter-enabled Luna Lamp also boasts a quartet of programmable buttons that can control either the lamp’s own settings or other nearby Matter devices — even without an internet connection, thanks to Matter’s device-to-device binding functionality. It’ll be available in February for $69.99. -Ben Patterson Plantaform Smart Indoor Garden Plantaform Not everyone has the outdoor space for a garden, and even those who do might be limited by poor weather conditions during parts of the year. The Plantaform Smart Indoor Garden offers a cool and convenient alternative for growing produce at home, while also making for a captivating indoor showpiece! A combination of fog and plant nutrients, cleverly dubbed “fogponics,” feeds up to 15 plants at a time in the windowed chamber. An accompanying app helps you monitor your plants’ progress, reminds you to fill water reservoirs, lets you change the lighting schedule, and notifies you when it’s time to harvest. The windows are all removable for easy access to your bounty. Sure, at $500, plus $29.99 for Plantaform’s various plant pod packs, it’s not exactly the money-saving proposition you might associate with growing your own food. But you can’t beat the prospect of having a fresh-produce garden year round, requiring minimal work, that also looks so futuristically awesome, can you? -Katherine Stevenson Read...

A top-notch streaming box with over-the-air antenna integration has always seemed like a slam-dunk idea to me. Now, an upstart device brand called MyVelo TV is actually making it happen. For $100, the MyVelo TV Premiere box runs Android TV and includes a USB dongle with a single ATSC 3.0 tuner. A built-in MyVelo TV app will let users watch free local channels from the antenna without having to switch inputs or remotes. The device should be available on Amazon in the spring. Mark Jensen, CEO and co-founder of Shift2Stream, which owns the MyVelo brand, said the streaming box will support 4K video, Dolby Vision HDR, and Dolby Atmos audio, both for streaming content and ATSC 3.0 broadcasts. Support for encrypted ATSC 3.0 channels should also be available at launch, though it wasn’t yet working during a demo at the CES trade show this week. Jared Newman / Foundry Major streaming device makers have generally lost interest in free over-the-air TV, preferring instead to focus on free streaming content that they can monetize with targeted ads. That leaves the job to small vendors like MyVelo TV, which might end up making one of the most exciting streaming devices in 2025. Android TV + OTA (with optional DVR) Jared Newman / Foundry On its own, the MyVelo TV Premiere box is similar to current Google TV streaming players such as the Google TV Streamer and Walmart’s Onn Google TV 4K Pro. (Technically, it runs Android TV, but the interfaces and app support are similar overall.) It felt fast and fluid in my brief hands-on testing, and supports a full range of streaming services such as Netflix, Amazon Prime, and Hulu. But the MyVelo TV box also has a pair of USB-A ports on its side, allowing users to plug in the included ATSC 3.0 tuner dongle and any over-the-air antenna. The included MyVelo TV app will facilitate access to free local channels. Jared Newman / Foundry Jensen said MyVelo TV will also offer a DVR for recording local channels, though this wasn’t on display at CES. Recording capabilities will require a subscription at a still-undisclosed price, though Jensen said it would cost less than $5 per month. The subscription will also provide 14 days of TV guide data, versus the shorter timespan (usually just a day or so) that broadcasters provide for free. Bigger plans to come Jensen hinted at other features that MyVelo TV may add over time. The box’s underside, for instance, has an open USB-C port, intended for a module that includes a dual TV tuner and 5G home internet router. Jensen said MyVelo TV is “in discussions” with Verizon and T-Mobile about using the product as a gateway for streaming, over-the-air TV, and home internet, but it’ll also be available on its own as a $100 option for recording more channels simultaneously. Jared Newman / Foundry Jensen also wants to distribute live channel packages that users can watch and record through the MyVelo TV app. He did not name any partners, but gave the example of a local college that may want to distribute sports coverage directly to consumers. The focus would be on smaller niche channels, as MyVelo TV isn’t interested in trying to offer a full pay TV package like YouTube TV or Hulu + Live TV. He mentioned cloud DVR capabilities as well, with companion apps for iOS and Android to access recordings, though that would depend on permission from content providers. It’s about time Whether those broader ambitions come to fruition or not, the simple combination of a Google TV streaming box with over-the-air integration could be a powerful one. It could also provide a boost to ATSC 3.0, the next-gen over-the-air TV standard that broadcasters have been pushing for the past few years now. While ATSC 3.0 has some neat features, such as 4K HDR support and Dolby dialogue boost, it’s incompatible with the ATSC 1.0 tuners built into most televisions in use today, and not all new televisions support it. External ATSC 3.0 tuners cost upwards of $90 and require switching away from whatever input you use for streaming, and most whole-home over-the-air DVR solutions (such as Tablo and Channels DVR) only work with ATSC 1.0 broadcasts. A high-end streaming box with ATSC 3.0 built-in could made the next-gen broadcast standard much more accessible, all without having to toss out your existing TV. Read...

Visitors to the Home Appliances wing of LG Electronics’ vast CES 2025 exhibit will likely be drawn first to the most visually enticing new products: a breakthrough LG Signature Microwave oven, redesigned indoor gardening appliances, and a hyper helpful robot that couldn’t be cuter.  Stuff that makes for cheery Eyewitness TV news coverage and social influencer posts from the giant tech show. But sorry, gang, you’ll really be missing something important if you don’t also pay attention to the modest looking cylindrical object plotzed on an LG booth table. While the LG ThinQ ON home hub is intentionally muted in appearance to blend in with any space and décor, it’s the AI-enhanced, smart home assistant that could prove the most helpful to your home life. What’s so hot about a Microwave? “Not much has changed in microwaves through the years,” noted my seasoned tour guide John I. Taylor, Senior VP of LG Electronics USA, Inc. But the times they are a-changing with the LG Signature Over-the-Range Microwave, which not only excels in cooking and heating food but also delivers an immersive entertainment experience. LG Electronics On command, the glass front of the microwave’s door reveals itself to be a 27-inch wide Full HD (1080P) touchscreen display with a variety of uses. Activating “InstaView” triggers three inside cameras to offer real-time cook monitoring and time-lapse image creation (great fodder for food bloggers.) And should you pair this microwave with the new, likewise camera-fitted LG Signature Slide-in Double Range, that microwave screen can also keep you in the know as things are cooking down below, without the need to stoop or open an oven door. But wait, there’s more. The 27-inch screen also comes with built-in speakers and Wi-Fi connectivity, to bring a variety of entertainment content to the kitchen whilst you’re cooking or eating. The screen likewise offers access to the LG ThinQ Smart Home Dashboard, becoming an oversized smart pad to control all your LG AI appliances and compatible Matter and Thread devices. More kitchen kapers While we’re in the foodie zone, pay attention to the new 36-inch Smart InstaView French Door Refrigerator. Its upgraded, fully transparent T-OLED display embedded in the upper right door functions as both a digital touch interface and a Dual InstaView panel to show what’s inside the fridge without opening the door and letting the chill out. On the kinda wild and weird side, Hologram like visuals can also be activated on said screen, blending the virtual with the real, while music plays from your curated playlist. That refrigerator’s inside camera functions pragmatically, too, with LG’s ThinQ Food management system to automatically recognize stored food items, suggest “will-work-with-that-stuff“recipes and warn when favored items are running low or about to expire. LG Electronics Upgraded proximity sensors are at play in the sleek LG Signature Dishwasher, with a handle that sits flush with the door when not in use then automatically pops out when a hand approaches. And on the laundry front, LG ‘s top washer is exploiting AI DD—Artificial Intelligence Direct Drive 2.0—to recognize and optimize fabric care settings. It’s spooky smart. How does your apartment garden grow? Both functional and decorative, LG’s new-gen, indoor gardening appliances merge an advanced growing system with a spiffy look. Downward-facing lights support optimal plant growth during the day while upward-facing mood lighting illuminates the crop and creates a calming ambiance in the evening. These mini arborteums have smarts, of course, automatically dispensing the right amount of water (from a 1.5 gallon tank) and nutrients to care for the specific number and variety of plants being grown, even when users are away for extended periods (up to a week.) Forthcoming in both a floor lamp standing model and in a side table styled design, users can use the companion ThinQ app to control the lighting settings, monitor growth, and manage cultivation schedules from across the room or halfway around the world. Say hey, hubbie LG has coined its deployments of AI as “Affectionate Intelligence.” And nowhere is that more evident than in its (tentatively named) Q9 Self-Driving AI Home Hub: a home agent that moves freely around the premises, interacts with the residents and recognizes situations and context to trigger appropriate actions of ThinQ connected appliances. LG touts this two-wheeled bot as “the first product to realize the concept of providing ‘care services’ in the smart home domain by actively controlling appliances, saving energy, and offering care through a combination of IoT, appliance data, user conversation context, and lifestyle patterns. “ LG Electronics If Q9 sees the cat knock over its food bowl, the hub will send a message to your robot vac to clean up the mess. And when it hears “It’s kinda chilly in here,” it’ll tell your smart thermostat to crank up the furnace or heat pump. And if you slip and fall and can’t up, you could ask it to summon help. LG’s John Taylor is most taken by this companion device’s charming ability to concoct a story from drawings and/or to read a book out loud .“You just put the page or image in front of the camera at the top of the display, and it will extract the text or dream up a story  from the drawing, then voice and act it out with various expressions and motions.“ While LG is touting this AI skill as primarily for children, the LG exec thinks “it could also be quite helpful for any one with impaired vision.” Also coming to everyone’s rescue—Q9 will provide GPT-4o-generated answers to questions practical, mundane, or far-fetched without ever complaining “stop pestering me.” Saving the best for last While the maker might wish you would only buy LG appliances that are remotely controllable via its ThinQ OS and app, they’re cognizant that users have also invested in appliances and Internet of Things (IoT) devices operating on a variety of other platforms. To serve as a peace maker, help them all work and cooperate from a single app, it’s soon to bring us ThinQ ON, a smart home hub product that applies generative AI to the task of home management. LG Electronics ThinQ On is largely based on the Homey Pro smart hub from Athom, a Dutch company that LG took a majority interest in (an 80 percent stake) in July, 2024. More than a decade in development, the current Homey Pro can connect to more than 50,000 devices, load up with apps from an options list numbering near 1,000, including standard protocols such as Matter, Thread, and Zigbee; plus, connection methods defined separately by each manufacturer. Adding disparate products and platforms via an on-screen menu is reportedly straightforward and easy, according to most reviewers. One differentiator from Homey: the ThinQ On hub will offer onboard voice activation with that Affectionate Intelligence:“Our secret sauce,” says Taylor. Operation entails using a large language model and the ThinQ platform to understand the user’s context, enabling natural conversation for the operation of home appliances and home IoT devices. It identifies the users’ intention, suggests routines appropriate to the situation and can juggle multiple issues when necessary. Ask it to start the washing machine, unaware that the detergent dispenser is empty, and ThinQ On will first alert you of that situation and hold off starting the cycle until the dispenser has been filled. If it knows (from a connected smart watch) that you were exercising earlier the same day, it will pre-set the wash cycle for “active wear.” The beauty of this computerized hub is that it functions locally, independent of the internet except for software loading/updating. Local control delivers enhanced privacy, and eliminates dependence on your home’s connection to the internet. That’s quite from the cloud-based, cross-platform schema in development by the Home Connectivity Alliance, an organization similarly “dedicated to the development and promotion of safe and secure interoperability across long-life appliances, HVAC systems and TVs within the connected home ecosystem.” LG is a member of that alliance, which was supposed to deliver the goods by the end of 2024. But you what happens to the best-laid plans. Also prepped to offer smart speaker entertainment thrills (music, news, and weather on demand) , the ThinQ On hub will first appear for sale later this year in Korea, LG’s home territory and primo R&D stomping ground, we’re told. Same goes for the Q9 Self-Driving AI Home Hub. Those new kitchen and laundry appliances should all be circling the globe in due course in 2025. Prices have yet to be announced on any of the products but for the smart hub curious, we can take some guidance from the current $399 price tag on the Homey Pro and the $199 asking price for the soon-to-come, less-powerful Homey Pro mini. Read...

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