Popular Tech & Gear

Watch this: Watch this giant robotic arm shield the sun 00:58 I love being outside, but direct sunlight can be kind of annoying. Fortunately, Los-Angeles-based robotics startup ShadeCraft has come up with a seriously cool solution — the Sunflower. The Sunflower is an autonomous patio umbrella/shade that has a ridiculous amount of tech packed into

Up front, the i4 features a unique grille with the same self-healing tech found on the iX SUV. Small rock chips and scratches disappear from the glossy surface after a few warm days or a few minutes exposed to a hair dryer. Break out the measuring tape and you’ll note that the i4 M50 is

From a distance, though, the Tundra TRD Pro doesn’t exactly scream subtlety. In fact, it screams more like a teenager who’s had one too many cans of birthday-cake-flavored Bang. My tester’s $425 shade of Solar Octane paint ensures you can see this truck from across a dense parking lot, or perhaps even from space. Throw

Visually, the XT6 hasn’t changed much since I last found myself behind the wheel of the 2020 model. The SUV is as handsome as ever with the automaker’s angular aesthetic and hallmark vertical LED light signatures at either end. Updates for the 2023 model year include new Latte and Rosewood metallic paint colors, optional 21-inch

Editors’ note, Nov. 8: We’ve updated this review, originally published Oct. 23, with final battery benchmarks, camera testing, drop test results and additional impressions. The overall rating has moved from 8.8 to 8.9 and the phone has been awarded a CNET Editors’ Choice. Does the iPhone shopping landscape seem daunting? There’s an easy solution. If

Google Assistant-powered cabin tech Last year’s 8-inch display and physical gauges have been replaced by the massive 13.4-inch Chevrolet Infotainment 3 system and a 12.3-inch fully digital instrument cluster. The entire dashboard has been reshaped around these larger screens, but the Silverado manages to keep nearly all of its physical controls for climate, volume and

Now that they’re here, well… let’s just say the translation singularity hasn’t quite arrived. What you get instead is a decent if unremarkable set of wireless headphones that has an interesting, if somewhat cumbersome, integration with the (admittedly excellent) Google Translate app that’s long been available on the phone that’s already in your pocket. In

The Ford Bronco is an eminently capable SUV that’s impressive off-road without feeling like a hot mess on the pavement. But there’s always room for a little more — or, in the case of the Bronco Raptor, a lot more. Three amber lights in the middle of the grille are all you need to see

The JBL Link View has the best sound quality of all current smart displays equipped with Google Assistant. Smart displays are a relatively new category of smart home tech with several good options and no clear frontrunner. All of them combine the always listening help of a smart speaker with a simple touchscreen that shows

With just a few key changes, the 2022 Ford Bronco Everglades adds even more overlanding-ready capability than a standard Bronco. But these aren’t tweaks destined for mall crawling; this thing begs to be run muddy and put away wet, and you’ll be doing a disservice if you buy this trim and don’t do precisely that.

Though we loved the 13-inch Surface Laptop when it first shipped two years ago, a lot has changed for thin and light premium laptops since then. Now the line just doesn’t stand out the way it once did, even the new 15-inch model. At first, it isn’t clear who the 15-inch Microsoft Surface Laptop 3 is for:

Truck-based SUVs allow for far more capability when it comes to towing or traversing certain kinds of terrain, but their construction also introduces some detriments to ride quality, economy and other things. Hot on the heels of a new Tundra pickup, the 2023 Toyota Sequoia is a great reminder that life is full of tradeoffs,

Six-figure ultra-luxe sedans are usually perfect from top to bottom. Every detail is painstakingly pored over and the result is something that feels like it was born from a book of Victorian poetry. But when these pillars of perfection butt up against the specter of zero-emissions mandates and regulations, the result is something that feels

xDrive50 electric powertrain The iX comes standard with all-wheel drive, pairing a 190-kilowatt electric motor on the front axle with a more powerful 230-kW rear unit. Combined output peaks at 516 horsepower and 564 pound-feet of torque, enough oomph to silently launch the iX from 0 to 60 mph in 4.4 seconds. The surge of

This year, however, the OLED TV competition is tougher than ever. LG’s archrival Samsung has an OLED TV too, promising better color with an all-new QD-OLED panel. Sony offers two different kinds of OLED, including a QD-OLED of its own that looks pretty sweet in person. And in 2022 more TV-makers sell mini-LED models, which

While mainstream products like the new Grecale SUV will ultimately be Maserati’s bread and butter, what’s an Italian carmaker without an exotic flagship? The MC20 is an incredible return to form for a storied brand left to languish. And if this sort of visceral experience is what Maserati is capable of when it gives 110%,

The latest iteration of the Kia Sportage gets a major glow-up. Kia has been aggressively pushing the design of its vehicles to the point that this muscular 2023 Sportage Hybrid SX Prestige looks of a completely different lineage to the cute, small SUV it replaces. (Heck, it’s barely recognizable as a Kia’s.) And behind that wild

The Nissan Rogue gets a major improvement this year, but it’s not something you’ll notice right away. Peep under the hood and you’ll find a brand-new 1.5-liter turbocharged inline-3 engine — a small but mighty powerplant that gives Nissan’s best-selling SUV a nice bump in power while also returning better fuel economy. This new triple

When it comes to the camera, processor and software, the Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL are both identical and fantastic. The differences between the two come down to price (obviously), size, bezel width and screen technology. We loved our early experience with the Pixel 2 XL, but any potential buyers need to know about

After spending a few weeks using the Samsung Galaxy Tab S6 Lite, I’ve decided the tablet’s capabilities exceed its name. I mean, it is lighter on features and performance than the full-fledged Galaxy Tab S6, so in that sense it is a “lite” version. But the name does it a disservice, because I never really

There’s something eerie yet serene about driving through Joshua Tree National Park in the desert a few hours east of Los Angeles. It’s vast and quiet, and apart from the occasional work truck or tourist-driven crossover, the stunning roads are typically empty and provide some of the best views in the country. It’s a mix

DETROIT — While many manufacturers are talking up their new fuel efficiency strategies or upgraded electric powertrains, Ford wasn’t ashamed to flex some muscle at its event here at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit. The new Ford GT is definitely making the most waves, but if you have more fun racing off-road

The EQS450 Plus has a single electric motor at the rear axle that puts out 329 horsepower and 417 pound-feet of torque and, like most other EVs, it has a single-speed transmission. With a claimed 0-to-60-mph time of 5.9 seconds the EQS450 doesn’t have the gut-punch acceleration of a Porsche Taycan or even a Polestar

Luxury automakers are all about more is more, stuffing flagship vehicles with big power, high-end tech features and plenty of gimmicky options. The Mercedes-Benz S-Class is no different, with the latest generation being the most extravagant and advanced yet. But I’ll let you in on a secret: The base S500 is where it’s at. The

Devices that do support Wi-Fi 6 are capable of sending and receiving data faster and more efficiently than previous-gen Wi-Fi devices. That’s potentially a pretty big deal for mesh routers, because the range-extending satellites that pair with the router need to pass a lot of data back and forth as you connect. That means that

Fortunately, this system is idiot-proof — and not just when it comes to sudden, spontaneous drop tests. You plug it in, you do what the app says, and 10 minutes later your new mesh network is up and running and spreading a Wi-Fi signal throughout your house that’s about as speedy as you could reasonably

The quirkiest parts of the BZ4X are all front-loaded, literally and metaphorically, with the vehicle getting more and more normal as you pass beyond first impressions. The concave front bumper gives the BZ4X an avian appearance (it picks up a whole lot of bugs like a bird, too), while the off-color fender bleeds all the

Hyundai Motor Group managed to strike gold three times in a row. The Hyundai Ioniq 5 and Kia EV6 are both brilliant midsize electric crossovers with unique styling and fun driving dynamics. Surely Korea can’t develop a third car on the same platform that stands out enough to warrant attention, right? Wrong. The 2023 Genesis

It’s hard to deny the appeal of an überwagon like the Audi RS6 Avant. It looks rad, it’s fast as hell, it’s comfy-cozy inside and it has some of the best multimedia and safety tech in the world. It’s even surprisingly utilitarian, thanks to that lovely longroof shape. About the only thing the RS6 Avant

Read more: Apple unveils AirPods Pro with new design and noise cancellation Such incremental upgrades tend to be a little boring. And on the surface anyway, the new AirPods aren’t exciting. However, thanks to those updated components on the inside, including a new H1 chip that supports Bluetooth 5.0, improved audio synchronization and always-on Siri, they’re