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Bárbara Mori, Ximena Sariñana, Natalia Téllez and Fernando Rovzar discuss all the ways in which the actors were able to connect to their characters in the series 'Women in Blue'.

SAVE 33%: The AirFly Duo wireless Bluetooth transmitter is on sale for $29.99 at Amazon, down from the usual price of $44.99. That's a savings of $15 and the lowest price we've ever seen at Amazon.

Opens in a new window Credit: AirFly AirFly Duo wireless Bluetooth transmitter $29.99 at Amazon
$44.99 Save $15.00 Get Deal

Sometimes a small gadget that you never knew you needed makes a world of difference. A Bluetooth transmitter is a great example of a tiny device that will make travel so much better. Plus, it's on sale at Amazon for a great price today.

As of July 31, the AirFly Duo wireless Bluetooth transmitter is on sale for just $29.99, down from the list price of $44.99. That's a 33% discount or a savings of $15. It's also the best price we've seen at Amazon on a rarely-discounted item.

With the AirFly Duo, you'll no longer have to stress about making sure you have the exact right, wired headphones connection to take advantage of in-flight entertainment. The Duo will transmit audio via Bluetooth directly from any tech with a 3.5 audio jack: that includes in-flight entertainment, gym equipment, gaming devices, and TVs. You simply pop the Duo into the headphone jack, press play, and

Wirelessly transmit audio from in-flight entertainment, gym equipment, gaming devices, TV's or any 3.5 audio jack (aka a normal headphone jack). That means you can finally use your regular Bluetooth headphones anywhere you go, no extra cords or headphones needed.

If you're traveling with someone else, the AirFly Duo can also transmit audio to two sets of Bluetooth devices, meaning you and your travel companion can watch the same thing together. Enjoy the same movie on one tablet, or keep the kids entertained on a long car ride with the same kids' show.

SEE ALSO: The 8 best noise-cancelling headphones for flying in 2024

The AirFly Duo gets up to 22 hours of battery life before it needs a recharge via a USB-C cable. There's also an on/off switch so you can conserve energy when not using the AirFly Duo. However, you can still use the AirFly Duo while it's charging.

The device can transmit via Bluetooth up to 33 feet away, so you also have room to roam when you're using the gadget.

Listen to your comfy Bluetooth headphones from any device thanks to the AirFly Duo wireless Bluetooth transmitter. Since we rarely see this item on sale, today's price of 33% off makes this a great time to snag the AirFly Duo for your next big travel day.

UP TO 25% OFF: As of July 31, save up to 25% off personal air conditioners at Amazon. Our favorite pick is the Sweetfull Portable Neck Fan, which is just $22.99, a 23% discount from its original price of $29.99.

Opens in a new window Credit: Amazon Sweetfull Portable Neck Fan $22.99 at Amazon
$29.99 Save $7.00 Get Deal

If you've been watching the games in Paris, you may have noticed athletes and fans alike decked out in personal air conditioners. Europeans might turn up their noses at air conditioning, but we say there's no shame in staying cool. (Paris famously chose not to provide air conditioning for athlete housing, a decision they may be regretting in the midst of a totally predictable heat wave.)

What are personal air conditioners? These wearable gadgets help cool you down in a flash. They range from simple neck fans to $200 personal cooling appliances. And you don't have to be sweltering in the Paris heat to score one. You can bring one home from Amazon right now for up to 25% off.

As of July 31, you can save big on several personal air conditioners at Amazon. One of our favorite picks is the Sweetfull Portable Neck Fan. It's just $22.99 right now, which is down from its original price of $29.99. That's a discount of 23% and $7 off.

This wearable neck fan looks like a pair of headphones, but it's a bladeless fan that promises to cool you down by 70% without any wires or cords. Its fan runs for 4 to 9 hours on its 4000 mAh rechargeable battery, and it's quiet as well, so you won't walk around all day sounding like a box fan. It's also just 8.5 ounces, so it won't give you neck pain at the cost of being cool and comfortable.

For people who run really hot, several premium Torras personal air conditioners are also on sale right now. So, when you can't stay inside to enjoy that sweet, sweet air conditioning, a personal air conditioner can help.

More personal air conditioners on sale now:

• Jisulife Portable Neck Fan — $25.99 $31.99 (save $6)

• Torras Coolify Portable Neck Fan — $59.99 $79.99 (save $20)

• Torras 2024 Portable Neck Air Conditioner — $149 $179 (save $30)

• Torras Cyber Ultimate Neck Air Conditioner — $264 $279 (save $15 with on-page coupon)

House of the Dragon Season 2, episode 7 played out like a particularly bloody instalment of How to Train Your Dragon, with Vermithor and Silverwing choosing Hugh Hammer (Kieran Bew) and Ulf the White (Tom Bennett) as their new riders, respectively.

But what made second-largest-dragon-in-Westeros and certified lowfolk diner, Vermithor, pick Hugh Hammer as his new human friend? Was it the fact that Hugh stood brave and risked his own life to save another of Vermithor's would-be snacks? Or something else?

SEE ALSO: 'House of the Dragon' Season 2, episode 7: Did Rhaenyra know Vermithor would do that? Hugh Hammer's mother may be why Vermithor chose him

We find out in episode 7 that Hugh's mother was the sister of Baelon Targaryen, meaning her father was King Jaehaerys the Concilliator himself — the very first rider of Vermithor.

Even though Hugh doesn't tell his wife Kat (Ellora Torchia) what his mother's name was, he does reveal that she worked in a pleasure house.

Hugh (Kieran Bew) and Kat (Ellora Torchia). Credit: Ollie Upton / HBO

"She was granted more freedom than most 'cuz of who she was," he says. "She used to tell me I was no different to her brother's boys: Viserys and Daemon."

The fact that Hugh's grandfather was Vermithor's first rider surely plays a part in why the dragon chose him — but if we look at George R.R. Martin's Fire and Blood book, there may be even more to it than that.

Hugh's mother had a difficult relationship with her father

Although Hugh only gives us limited information in the show, it seems most likely that his mother is Saera Targaryen, who fled Westeros and worked at a pleasure house in Lys after a falling out with her parents.

In the book, Saera and King Jaehaerys have a difficult relationship that results in him sending her away to live with the Faith as punishment for her sleeping with Ser Braxton Beesbury. After she flees across the narrow sea the two become estranged, but Jaehaerys mistakes his carer for Saera when he's on his deathbed, thinking she's finally come back to him.

Is it possible that Vermithor felt a special connection to Hugh because of who his mother was? That maybe he chose Saera's son because he knew how much she secretly meant to Jaehaerys?

New episodes of House of the Dragon air Sundays at 9 p.m. ET on HBO and Max.

GET $20 OFF: As of July 31, you can snag Marvel's Spider-Man 2 for PS5 for $49.99, down from $69.99, at Amazon. That's a $20 discount.

Opens in a new window Credit: PlayStation "Marvel's Spider-Man 2" (Standard Edition, PS5) $49.99 at Amazon
$69.99 Save $20.00 Get Deal

If you haven’t played Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 yet, now’s the time to get out your wallet.

As of July 31, you can score Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 (Standard Edition, PS5) for just $49.99, down from its usual price of $69.99. That’s a $20 discount and the lowest price we’ve seen for this open-world action-adventure title since it first hit shelves in 2023.

SEE ALSO: 'Marvel's Spider-Man 2' review: It's the anti-'Starfield'

Starting where Marvel's Spider-Man left off, Spider-Man 2 finds Peter Parker and Miles Morales have only each other to rely on as they deal with new personal challenges and serve and protect New York City.

According to Mashable reviewer Alex Perry, Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 is the “anti-Starfield.” Perry writes that "Spider-Man 2 could represent a better future for open-world games."

With a focus on a compelling narrative and tons of NYC scenes that’d make any New Yorker nostalgic, this is a must-play for Marvel fans.

GET $40 OFF: As of July 31, you can snag a Bose SoundLink Flex speaker for $109, down from $149, at Amazon. That's a $40 discount.

Opens in a new window Credit: Bose Our pick: Bose SoundLink Flex speaker $109.00 at Amazon
$149.00 Save $40.00 Get Deal

Bluetooth speakers are the unsung heroes of summer adventures, from backyard barbecues to beach days. These nifty little gadgets make it easy to create your own soundtrack wherever you go, but they can get expensive — unless you find a killer deal.

As of July 31, you can get a Bose SoundLink Flex Bluetooth speaker for just $109 at Amazon. That’s $40 off the listing price and the lowest price we’ve seen this speaker go for at Amazon, per price trackers like CamelCamelCamel. (Select colors of this speaker were briefly priced at $99.99 during Prime Day and Target Circle Week, but that deal didn't last long.)

The SoundLink Flex is one of Bose’s best portable speakers, and a way better option when compared to the Bose SounLink Max, at least according to Reddit. We've also tested out this speaker, and it offers big sound and easy connectivity. Not only is it fully waterproof, but it can even float. It's also dust-proof and resistant to corrosion and UV light, making it the ideal summer companion. It also comes in a variety of colors, but the black model is the cheapest at $109. You can get other colors, like white smoke or stone blue, for $119.

This speaker is small enough to throw in your duffle but powerful enough to fill a room or outdoor space with crisp, immersive audio. You can also connect it to your phone to make and answer calls hands-free. With up to 12 hours of playtime per charge, you’ll be able to keep the tunes going all day long – or until your neighbors complain, whichever comes first.

SAVE 40%: The SodaStream Terra starter kit is on sale at Amazon for $59.99, down from the list price of $99.99. That's $40 off.

Opens in a new window Credit: SodaStream SodaStream Terra starter kit $59.99 at Amazon
$99.99 Save $40.00 Get Deal

Soda water is one of life's greatest simple pleasures. Whether you prefer to cool down with a fizzy glass, or use some seltzer as a cocktail mixer, one thing is certain: you're going to run out eventually. Save yourself some trips to the grocery store and some soda budget with this Amazon deal on a tried and true kitchen essential.

As of July 31, the SodaStream Terra starter kit is on sale at Amazon for just $59.99, marked down from the normal price of $99.99. That's a 40% discount or a savings of $40. The sale price also matches the lowest we've ever seen at Amazon.

The SodaStream is not one of those overly complicated kitchen appliances that'll soon end up in the back of the cupboard. Rather, it's an easy-to-use accessory that complements hydration. The SodaStream Terra starter kit comes with the machine itself, a dishwasher-safe carbonating bottle, the CO2 cylinder, and a 40ml bottle of bubly flavor drops. With this set, you can get your fix of fresh soda water anytime.

SEE ALSO: Here's why a smart lock should be the first smart home device you own

The included CO2 cylinder can carbonate up to 60 liters of water, so you'll save yourself some cash on liters and cans, not to mention you won't have to lug heavy soda water home. The included bubly flavor drops makes the equivalent of about 33 cans of lime-flavored seltzer.

When you're done with your freshly carbonated water, the included bottle is safe to clean in the dishwasher, so you won't have to add it to your hand-washing pile.

The SodaStream Terra gives you bubbly water at the press of a button, and you'll no longer have to wonder if there's any fizz left in that bottle you opened a few days ago. Thanks to today's deal, you can grab the Terra for just $59.99 at Amazon, which happens to be the best price the mega-retailer has ever offered on this model.

These features to let you wind down for bed, mute notifications and stay on a regular sleep schedule may help you get more rest.

The explosion of nonconsensual deepfake imagery online in the past year, particularly of female celebrities, has presented a difficult challenge for search engines. Even if someone isn't looking for that material, searching for certain names can yield a shocking number of links to fake explicit photos and videos of that individual.

Google is trying to tackle that problem with an update to its ranking systems, the company announced in a blog post.

Google product manager Emma Higham wrote in the post that the ranking updates are designed to lower explicit fake content for many searches.

When someone uses terms to seek out nonconsensual deepfakes of specific individuals, the ranking system will attempt to instead provide "high-quality, non-explicit content," such as news articles, when it's available.

SEE ALSO: The consequences of making a nonconsensual deepfake

"With these changes, people can read about the impact deepfakes are having on society, rather than see pages with actual nonconsensual fake images," Higham wrote.

The ranking updates have already decreased exposure to explicit image results on deepfake searches by 70 percent, according to Higham.

Google is also aiming to downrank explicit deepfake content, though Higham noted that it can be difficult to distinguish between content that is real and consensual, such as an actor's nude scenes, and material generated by artificial intelligence, without an actor's consent.

To help spot deepfake content, Google is now factoring into its ranking whether a site's pages have been removed from Search under the company's policies. Sites with a high volume of removals for fake explicit imagery will now be demoted in Search.

Additionally, Google is updating systems that handle requests for removing nonconsensual deepfakes from Search. The changes should make the request process easier.

When a victim is able to remove deepfakes of themselves from Google Search, the company's systems will aim to filter all related results on similar searches about them, and scan and remove duplicates of that imagery.

Higham acknowledged that there's "more work to do," and that Google would continue developing "new solutions" to help people affected by nonconsensual deepfakes.

Google's announcement comes two months after the White House called on tech companies to stop the spread of explicit deepfake imagery.

The group, including Democratic donors such as Reid Hoffman and Vinod Khosla, has been organized under an effort called VCsForKamala.

ChatGPT's new Voice Mode update is here for some paying users, and it definitely won't sound like Scarlett Johansson.

Last week, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman announced the imminent release for ChatGPT's new Advanced Voice Mode, and as of Tuesday, it's available for some $20 per month ChatGPT Plus subscribers. Notably, it's available in four preset voices, not the five announced at launch, with the voice sharing likeness with the Her actor removed by the company after backlash.

The company announced the rollout on X (formerly Twitter) on Tuesday, declaring it available "to a small group of ChatGPT Plus users." OpenAI added in a thread that it would "continue to add more people on a rolling basis and plan for everyone on Plus to have access in the fall."

Tweet may have been deleted

When OpenAI debuted GPT-4o in May, a new AI model that fuses text, video, and audio with five preset voices, it featured a "Sky" voice option that sounded eerily similar to Johansson's and particularly her performance as a digital assistant in the 2013 film Her. Johansson was not impressed, took legal action, and OpenAI dropped the voice.

SEE ALSO: In case you missed it, ChatGPT on Mac suffered a serious security issue

"To protect people's privacy, we've trained the model to only speak in the four preset voices, and we built systems to block outputs that differ from those voices," reads OpenAI's tweet from Tuesday. "We've also implemented guardrails to block requests for violent or copyrighted content."

So, if you're a ChatGPT Plus subscriber, how do you know if you're included in this "small group"? OpenAI explained in an X thread, "Users in this alpha will receive an email with instructions and a message in their mobile app."

Tweet may have been deleted

OpenAI added it had "tested GPT-4o's voice capabilities with 100+ external red teamers across 45 languages."

The update was supposed to arrive in June but was delayed. OpenAI added it would "share a detailed report on GPT-4o’s capabilities, limitations, and safety evaluations in early August."

OpenAI announced a bunch of extra features also coming with the Voice Mode update — Mashable's Alex Perry has the details.

"The Daily Show" host Ronnie Chieng broke down the Democrats' decision to brand Trump and Vance as "weird".

The Olympic Games is an event intended to bring the world together, all nations joining hands to celebrate the heights of human athleticism. Of course, there are limits to this philosophy, as global politics and conflicts realistically can't be entirely put aside. 

Even so, some Olympic disputes are decidedly more petty than others. One such quarrel at the Paris 2024 Games now involves pizza, with a Pizza Hut promotion in Hong Kong and Macao going viral due to its cheeky jab at Italy. 

SEE ALSO: Watch why the internet exploded over USA women's rugby Olympic bronze win in last-second play

Earlier this week, Pizza Hut announced that customers in Hong Kong and Macao can have pineapple added to their pizzas free of charge until July 31. 

"If you are a foodie, choose the Italian style and add pineapple," Pizza Hut Hong Kong & Monaco wrote on Facebook (translated via Google Translate). "Or add Hawaiian style with pineapple, starting from $139 [$US18]!"

The post was accompanied by a graphic showing a fencer with three pineapple rings threaded on their sword.

Pizza Hut's promotion seems specifically designed to rile up Italians by ostensibly ruining one of their most famous dishes. Pineapple on pizza has long been a controversial topping, with many considering it tantamount to sacrilege (albeit typically in a joking manner).

However, this lighthearted potshot didn't come out of nowhere. Pizza Hut's pineapple promotion came hot on the heels of Hong Kong defeating Italy in fencing for gold at Paris, responding to the latter's poor reaction to the loss.

The Olympic fencing controversy between Hong Kong and Italy

On Monday, at Paris' Grand Palais, Hong Kong fencer Ka Long Cheung defeated Italy's Filippo Macchi to win the 2024 Olympic gold medal in the men's fencing individual foil event. The close bout ended with a score of 15-14 after going to sudden death, with Macchi putting up an impressive fight against the defending champion at his first ever Olympic Games. There were even two moments where the judges had to review video footage to determine whether the winning 15th point had been scored, though no point was awarded both times.

Filippo Macchi of Italy and Ka Long Cheung of Hong Kong. Credit: Al Bello / Getty Images

Cheung eventually emerged victorious after a video review of a third contentious point was ruled in his favour. Unfortunately, both Cheung's gold and Macchi's silver have been marred by what appears to be some rather poor sportsmanship.

Shortly after the match, the Italian Fencing Federation (IFF) announced it was filing a formal protest against the results with the Fédération Internationale d'Escrime (the governing body of Olympic fencing) and the International Olympic Committee. In particular, the IFF took issue with the referees' home countries of Taipei and South Korea, alleging that they were too close geographically to Hong Kong to arbitrate fairly.

This seems a strange argument considering that the entire history of international conflict suggests physical proximity bears little relation to whether countries actually like each other. As such, many people online have attributed the IIF's complaint to anti-Asian racism.

Tweet may have been deleted Tweet may have been deleted Tweet may have been deleted Tweet may have been deleted

"Filippo Macchi is the real winner and he was denied a gold he deserved," said IFF president Paolo Azzi in a statement (translated via Google Translate). "The selection of referees is a problem but the level of refereeing was below the great final we saw."

The gold medal match was refereed by Huang Hao-Chih from Taipei, with Suh Sangwon of South Korea acting as the video referee. Ayoub Ferjani from Tunisia and Vilem Madr from the Czech Republic served as assistant referees. These four judges had previously refereed Macchi's 15-11 semi-final win against U.S. fencer Nick Itkin, albeit with Ferjani and Huang acting as referee and video referee respectively.

Macchi's quarter-final win against Egypt's Mohamed Hamza was also overseen by Madr and Tim Claus Bardenhagen, whose respective home countries of the Czech Republic and Germany are notably closer to Italy than Egypt. 

The IFF did not raise any objection to the choice of referees in either of these previous matches.

Tweet may have been deleted Tweet may have been deleted Reddit

Reddit

Reddit

Italy's apparent sore loser behaviour wasn't confined to IFF officials. People from both Italy and Hong Kong quickly took to social media to insult the opposing athletes, the match referees, and each other. Such comments have ranged from sharing offensive food combinations to more aggressive and mean-spirited attacks.

It isn't all vitriol, though. While Macchi, Cheung, and the judges' Instagram comment sections still contain mean-spirited posts, there are many congratulatory and appreciative sentiments as well.

For his part, Macchi is leading by example by accepting his Olympic silver medal with class and grace. The Italian fencer acknowledged fans who felt he'd been robbed of gold, but said he considered himself fortunate to have come in second.

View this post on Instagram

"I’ve heard of all kinds, they robbed you, outrageous arbitration, it’s a shame,"  Macchi wrote in a post on Instagram (translated via Instagram). "Yet I'm reminded that I'm one lucky guy. I'm 22, a beautiful family, amazing friends, and a girlfriend that constantly leaves me speechless. 

"I came second in the most important competition for any athlete playing a sport, and because I play this sport I learned that referee decisions must be respected, always! I know both referees, I don’t feel like pointing a finger at them and blaming them for my lack of success even because it would lead to nothing but creating an alibi for me. What has happened is in the past, now it is gone, what will happen in the future is up to me!"

Macchi's mature response appears to have earned him the respect of many, whether they're from Hong Kong or elsewhere. Fortunately, the men's fencing individual foil wasn't his only chance of winning gold at the Paris Olympics. The Italian fencer is currently scheduled to compete against Poland in the men's foil team quarter-finals next week. He'll no doubt have quite a few more people cheering for him now.

While we're waiting for the Season 2 finale of "House of the Dragon," why not take a tour through Driftmark with Clinton Liberty?

Sabrina Javellana was a rising star in local politics — until deepfakes derailed her life.

Apple Intelligence, if it were personified, would be a royal attendant who feeds me grapes and fans me with palm leaves. I've never felt so pampered. Is this what it's like to be catered to? Is this what it's like to be spoiled rotten?

If you've been out of the loop, Apple Intelligence is the Cupertino-based tech giant's new suite of AI features, which were announced at WWDC 2024 in June.

Siri now has an enchanting glow around the display. Credit: Kimberly Gedeon / Mashable

Some of the most highly anticipated Apple Intelligence features, like Genmoji (AI-generated emojis) and Image Playground (AI-generated images), are not available yet. However, there are still some Apple Intelligence utilities you can test right now — especially since they've made their first robust debut with the iOS 18.1 developer beta that Apple dropped on Monday.

With my iPhone 15 Pro Max, I tested some Apple Intelligence features, and to be succinct, I appreciate how much it indulges my laziness. Of course, it's not perfect — not yet at least. After all, the iOS 18.1 developer beta is expectedly a bit rough-around-the-edges as Apple collects feedback from testers. (This is why you should always backup your iPhone before installing any iOS beta because it can be risky.)

Overall, though, Apple has something here that will make its "Pro" and "Pro Max" iPhone models even more enticing than ever. (Apple Intelligence is only available on the current-gen "Pro" variants: iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max.)

SEE ALSO: 6 Apple Intelligence features you can try right now — and how to turn them on New 'Summarize' tool makes Safari more attractive

Apple basically put a TLDR (too long, didn't read) button in Safari, allowing me to skip ultra-long articles and get to the point. After opening Safari, I can press-and-hold the icon on the left of the URL bar, tap "Summarize," and wham, Apple Intelligence gives me "CliffsNotes," if you will, of any article I don't have time to read. It's perfect for when you want to get to the gist of the story as quickly as possible.

My article on Apple Intelligence being summarized by, er, Apple Intelligence. Credit: Kimberly Gedeon / Mashable

As someone with an attention deficit, I can't help but get a little antsy after stumbling upon a wall of text or a verbose story. Typically, I'd read a few sentences and give up. However, with the "Summarize" tool, I received short-and-sweet synopses on articles that ramble, meander, and seem to go nowhere fast. In fact, at times, I found myself wanting to read a lengthy article in its entirety after the AI-powered summary revealed that the story is juicier than expected.

Check out the Summarize button on the upper-left corner. Credit: Kimberly Gedeon / Mashable

That being said, when it comes to delving into dense articles, why would I use Google Chrome? I'm hopping and skipping over to Safari to take advantage of that new Apple Intelligence-powered Summarize tool.

The only downside, however, is that the Summarize tool tests my patience sometimes. It can be a few seconds too slow for my tastes, but this isn't unique to Apple Intelligence (ChatGPT, Copilot, and Gemini can be slow pokes, too.) But admittedly, it's worth the wait.

'Writing Tools' feature is surprisingly useful

One of the most popular use cases for AI, whether it's ChatGPT, Google Gemini, or Copilot, is "tone tuning" text. For example, you can drop in an email draft and ask those AI tools to help adjust your tone.

I wrote a text to Mashable's video guy Alex Humphries, and Apple Intelligence helped me soften the tone. Credit: Kimberly Gedeon / Mashable

However, I'll admit that I was one of those people who thought, "Pfft, I don't need an AI chatbot to tell me how to make something sound more professional!" As it turns out, the Apple Intelligence-based tone-adjustment tool, which can be accessed via the new Writing Tools feature, is a lot more helpful than I thought.

You'll be surprised how often you may think you're coming across friendly and congenial in emails and texts, but instead, your messages are being interpreted as prickly. To reduce the risk of this, I found myself using the "friendly" tone-adjustment tool to nix unintended snippiness. The best part is that I was able to use Writing Tools in almost any text field across the iOS 18.1 developer beta. I just highlight the words, hit "Writing Tools," and choose my desired tone.

As a result, I've definitely seen more positive responses from my co-workers, friends, and other loved ones.

No more endless scrolling on the Photos app

I take a lot of pictures and selfies, but no, I don't categorize them nor put them into albums (because, spoiler alert, I'm lazy). I just let them pile up into a haphazard collection of random snapshots. Every now and then, however, I need to find that one picture, which requires me to scroll endlessly to find it.

My library in the Photos app needs help. Credit: Kimberly Gedeon / Mashable

Fortunately, with the iOS 18.1 developer beta, I can use natural language to search for a particular picture in the Photos app. For example, I typed the word "pancakes" to find a saved screenshot of my favorite IHOP order.

This natural search feature can also detect text on the photo, which is helpful, too. However, the natural language-based search function isn't sophisticated yet. For example, while I can get away with typing something like "laptop" and "food" (and it will find photos that match those terms), it's not advanced enough to grasp more complex searches like, "Woman wearing a red shirt."

The natural language search feature was able to find that one laptop photo I took in 2021. Credit: Kimberly Gedeon / Mashable

Again, this beta version of iOS 18 is early days, so the search function's complexity may get a boost when iOS 18 officially drops later this year.

Siri is more helpful than ever

Siri received an AI-powered boost with Apple Intelligence, but my favorite perk is its contextual awareness. For example, if I am perusing through a webpage on Safari, I can say something like, "Hey Siri, send this article to Jason."

Siri lets me send links to articles I'm currently reading without lifting a finger. Credit: Kimberly Gedeon / Mashable

Siri is aware of which article I'm looking at, so it can snatch the URL and send it to my fiancé without needing to lift a single finger. (I'm telling you — I've been spoiled rotten.)

Is Apple Intelligence worth it?

As hinted at the outset, Apple Intelligence nurtures my laziness — and I dig that. I don't always want to suffer through several paragraphs to get to the author's point. I don't want to spend too much time hemming and hawing over how to best respond to someone. And finally, I don't want to scroll endlessly through my cluttered gallery to find a specific photo — it's like finding a needle in a haystack.

Apple Intelligence addresses all of those concerns. I was initially skeptical of Apple's new suite of AI features, but as it turns out, Apple Intelligence is useful, and yes, totally worth it.

Apple Intelligence is expected to officially roll out with iOS 18 later this year (but keep in mind that reports claim that some features may be delayed).

Apple iPhone 15 Pro Max $0.01 at Amazon
$1,199.99 Save $1,199.98 Shop Now

TL;DR: For a limited time only, this 1TB Polar Wolf Aluminum Ultra Portable External SSD is on sale for just $84.99 (reg. $139), a 39% discount.

Opens in a new window Credit: UGR Tech Polar Wolf Aluminum Ultra Portable External SSD (1TB) $84.99 at The Mashable Shop
$139.99 Save $55.00 Get Deal

In an age where data security and accessibility are essential, you need a reliable digital storage solution that won't slow you down. To keep your files safe and accessible, the Polar Wolf Aluminum external hard drive is now available for just $84.99 (reg. $139). It provides a legit alternative for those who prefer to back up their important files locally rather than relying on cloud storage.

One helpful feature of the Polar Wolf is its ultra-fast transfer speeds. Whether you’re backing up large files or transferring data between devices, the Polar Wolf SSD ensures quick and efficient performance. This speed not only saves you time but can also enhance your overall productivity.

Storing your data on the Polar Wolf SSD means you have a secure physical home for your most important files. Unlike cloud storage, which can be vulnerable to breaches and requires an internet connection, the Polar Wolf SSD keeps your data safely within reach at all times. This is particularly beneficial for anyone who travels for work or frequently uses sensitive information or large files that need to be accessed quickly.

The Polar Wolf SSD was designed with a user-friendly interface that makes it easy for everyone to use, from tech-savvy individuals to those less familiar with external storage devices. Simply plug it into your computer or compatible device, and you’re ready to go.

This external hard drive is compatible with both Windows and macOS. It works with nearly all USB-A and USB-C devices, providing flexibility and access regardless of your operating system.

With 1TB of storage capacity, the Polar Wolf has ample space to store all your important files, including documents, photos, videos, and more. For reference, 1TB of space can typically hold 250,000 photos. And if that sounds like overkill, you can also buy the 256GB Polar Wolf External SSD for just $43.99.

Don't miss the 1TB Polar Wolf Aluminum Ultra Portable External SSD on sale for just $84.99 (reg. $139).

StackSocial prices subject to change.

Can a great horror movie be Frankensteined together from a laundry list of iconic ones? That's what I'm left pondering after watching Shelby Oaks, the promising and oft unnerving but also somewhat scattered first feature from popular YouTube movie reviewer Chris Stuckmann.

The movie starts out convincing you it's one thing, but reveals itself in quick succession to be a very different beast altogether. From The Blair Witch Project to Martyrs to Barbarian and several beyond that, Shelby Oaks doesn't just wear its many genre influences on its sleeves — it wears them on its chest and back and shoulders. It's a coat of many horror movies, made of cuts deep and broad. And, to ever so slightly belabor the metaphor, some of the coat fits just right, while as much of it could use some more refined tailoring. 

Still, as far as Kickstarter-funded first features go, Shelby Oaks is a big, bold swing — albeit one produced by horror honcho Mike Flanagan, the man behind a swath of Netflix horror miniseries like The Haunting of Hill House and The Fall of the House of Usher. It's twisty as hell, bears some ace performances, and truly gifts audiences with some very sticky and very spooky images. Most of all, it marks the emergence of a horror filmmaker worth keeping an eye on. 

Shelby Oaks blends The Blair Witch Project with Lake Mungo — and that's just the start.

"Who took Riley Brennan?" is the question at the heart of Shelby Oaks. The film opens with the last known bit of footage of Riley Brennan (Sarah Durn), YouTuber/ghost hunter, before she went missing in the titular town. In the scene, she sits on a bed in a cabin in the middle of the woods. She's seen sobbing, absolutely terrified, saying into the camera, "I'm so scared."

It's an inch-long leap from Riley's tearful lament to Heather Donahue's legendarily snotty apologia in The Blair Witch Project, the one that poetically stated, "I'm scared to close my eyes, and I'm scared to open them."

Writer-director Stuckmann anticipates his horror-loving audience will make this connection. But then he does something really interesting, pivoting from the found-footage conceit to a true-crime documentary framework. Leaping to a decade or so after Riley's disappearance, it turns out that Riley's older sister, Mia (Camille Sullivan), has spent the intervening years fruitlessly searching for the truth of what happened in the woods of Shelby Oaks that night. And she's now starring in a true-crime documentary in an effort to reignite interest in the case of her missing sister.  

For horror fanatics, this turn might well recall Lake Mungo. Told via talking-head interviews with the family of the missing blonde girl at its center, the 2008 Australian horror film unfurls its paranormal revelations piecemeal through conversations and scattered bits of phone video. Lake Mungo is admittedly a deeper cut than The Blair Witch Project, but no sooner does Shelby Oaks settle into this faux-documentary conceit than Stuckmann pivots again to a straightforward narrative film. Well, it's as straightforward as the twisty likes of Hereditary or Barbarian.

SEE ALSO: As a prelude to Halloween, I spent an afternoon with Hunt a Killer: Horror — Blair Witch

Essentially, Shelby Oaks maintains its cast, but ditches the documentary framework altogether, showing us what is "really" happening — but through artifice, forcing us to question what is real. The camerawork becomes stylized, with special effects and slow motion and close-ups; an aggressive and manipulative score takes over. The film will shift from these narrative scenes to the documentary setup to found footage and back again, maximizing this sense of narrative disquiet.  

These structural sleights of hands, like all good and proper rug-pullings, are where Shelby Oaks works its greatest magic. Playing on the expectations of horror diehards, Stuckmann manages to keep us on our toes, even discombobulated. We find ourselves switching between missing-person found footage to the cult horror of Hereditary with the twists and turns (and hidden underground caverns) of Martyrs and Barbarian, and then right back to a talking-head true-crime doc on a dime. This all builds up its own sort of disassociation within the experience of watching it. 

Shelby Oaks is a hodgepodge of horror, from found footage to Satanic panic.

Despite these daring shifts, Shelby Oaks begins to feel more like the parts of its sum and not vice versa. Stuckmann is motioning toward all of these other movies to unmoor us, but those references often distract from the actual plot and, in turn, undermine our investment in it. For instance, the casting of Brendan Sexton III as Mia's husband proves distracting, even though he's terrific. An actor who's been killing it since Todd Solondz's 1995 hit, Welcome to the Dollhouse, Sexton turns in yet another lovely, sad piece of work here. But you set him against multiple scenes that take place inside of a haunted prison, and now all I'm thinking about is Session 9, Brad Anderson's fantastically creepy 2001 haunted prison movie, where Sexton made a mark as one of the asbestos cleaners who found himself on the wrong end of some rusty psychiatric equipment.

To what end is this? At what point do these Easter eggs overwhelm? All these allusions ultimately get in the way of Shelby Oaks standing on its own and becoming truly, deeply scary. Stuckmann seems very aware of the exact moment when his scares are supposed to land, often to the point of self-consciousness. You could set a timer to when the thing you're supposed to be dreading will appear, and the dreaded thing will stick that mark every time. There are moments when a zag would've kicked the ass of a zig, but Stuckmann keeps on zigging, playing right into horror connoisseur expectations. There is real, earned tension, but the film keeps deflating itself despite the fun of its reality-shifting and the many excellent go-for-broke performances therein. 

Camille Sullivan leads a cast that fights valiantly for Shelby Oaks. 

An actor who's been nipping at the edges of recognition for two decades, appearing in TV shows from Dark Angel to The Man in the High Castle, Camille Sullivan has long proven a reliable performer. And here at last she is given the spotlight to make the most of it. 

Even when Mia starts doing incredibly stupid things that put her right in harm's way, Sullivan is genuinely devastating. She sells the hell out of bad choices, making it clear that Mia's a person who would go to any lengths to uncover what happened to her beloved sister. (And as long as we're talking references, besides this being the lead's arc in that French Extremity classic Martyrs, it's straight out of the terrifying 1988 Dutch thriller The Vanishing, too.) 

Sullivan nails big action moments, like emotional blowups and freak-outs in which her palpable fright is legitimately difficult to look at. But even the small moments give her opportunities to send shivers. Just watch the way the flashlight trembles in her hand as she investigates that haunted prison, a subtle shift in body language that communicates a bone-deep terror. It's those touches that carry the audience alongside Mia the entire way. 

Sarah Durn is also haunting as missing girl Riley, who has to sell her undoing while staring off into space during the "naturalistic" found-footage portions of this movie. These are scenes we keep coming back to to see more of as, natch, more footage gets found, and her haunted presence diffuses into every corner of the film. As we know from decades of subpar found-footage movies, it's not easy, this high-wire balancing act of giving a relaxed and unprofessional-seeming performance under those constraints. Loads have failed spectacularly. But Durn makes us understand why her sister won't let her go even as everyone else has long given up. She makes Riley our ghost, too.

The whole ensemble expertly submerges into the multiple realities of this story. Even if Stuckmann needs to get a little bit out of his own way in some other areas, he proves to be terrific with his performers. Sullivan and Sexton share some very moving moments together as they watch their marriage crumble in the face of tragedy. Michael Beach wears a bone-deep exhaustion in his performance as the main detective on the case, giving a lived-in sense of resignation at the system's endless failures. And Keith David (the deep-voiced legend from The Thing and They Live, among many) shows up to Keith David it out of the park, playing the former warden of that haunted prison who has seen some shit and who, in typical fashion, is going to colorfully monologue to you all about it. 

But best of all is the great and notoriously underused Robin Bartlett. One of those stalwart character actors with decades of stealing scenes under their belts (she's been doing it since Heaven's Gate in 1980, but I always first think of her hilarious scenes around the dinner table in Inside Llewyn Davis whenever I see her), Bartlett shows up and gives the movie a last-act goose that takes it over the edge into true unhinged horror-movie delight. More I cannot and will not spoil, except to say that yes, this is how you give Robin Bartlett her due. She ends up stealing — and in so doing, making — the entire movie.

Playing like a post-post-modern pastiche, an ouroboros of antecedents, and sometimes just a wicked walk through a nightmare wasteland, Shelby Oaks has enough gas in its tank for 10 movies. That it sometimes feels like 10 movies we've seen before is both part of its weird ballsy charm and its scrappy undoing. In the end, Shelby Oaks is a battle between Stuckmann's many, many inspirations. But the gripping performances and big swings in style make for a movie worth its runtime. Despite its faults, the directorial debut should prove a hell of a calling card for Chris Stuckmann as a new voice in horror. I can't wait to see what he delivers to us next.

Shelby Oaks was reviewed out of the Fantasia International Film Festival.

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