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The Samsung Galaxy Buds FE true wireless earbuds just hit their lowest price ever at Woot

Mashable - 4 hours 14 min ago

SAVE 50%: As of June 18, you can snag a pair of Samsung Galaxy Buds FE true wireless earbuds for just $49.99, down from $99.99, at Woot. That's a 50% discount and a $50 savings. This is also the lowest price we've ever seen these buds go for.

Opens in a new window Credit: Samsung Samsung Galaxy Buds FE True Wireless Bluetooth Earbuds $49.99 at Woot
$99.99 Save $50.00 Get Deal

With Prime Day just around the corner, everyone’s been rushing to Amazon to see if they can get their hands on early deals. But, IMO, the best deals you’ll find right now are actually at Woot. Case in point: The Samsung Galaxy Buds FE true wireless earbuds are half off at Woot right now (and they’re still full price at Amazon).

As of June 18, you can snag a pair of Samsung Galaxy Buds FE true wireless earbuds for just $49.99, down from $99.99, at Woot. That's a 50% discount for $50 off. This is also the lowest price we've ever seen these buds go for.

SEE ALSO: Amazon announces Prime Day 2025 dates, and the 4-day rumors are true

If you’d rather shop directly through Samsung, you can trade in an old pair of wireless or wired headphones and get up to $40 trade-in credit toward a new pair of buds.

These earbuds feature voice translation, which instantly translates languages in real-time. You can use it to call someone or while face-to-face. The Active Noise Cancellation blocks out unwanted background noise, so you can stay focused or switch to Ambient Sound mode to hear what's going on around you. You can also adjust the volume, pause audio, and answer calls with just a tap.

The best headphones and speaker deals to shop this week

Amazons 65- and 75-inch Omni QLED 4K Fire TVs are the cheapest theyve ever been

Mashable - 4 hours 28 min ago

SAVE UP TO $530: As of June 18, both the 65-inch and 75-inch Amazon Omni QLED 4K Fire TVs are on sale for their lowest prices ever. The 65-inch is down to just $449.99 from $719.99, while the 75-inch is only $569.99 instead of $1,099.99.

Opens in a new window Credit: Amazon Amazon 65-inch Omni QLED 4K Fire TV $449.99 at Amazon
$719.99 Save $270 Get Deal Opens in a new window Credit: Amazon Amazon 75-inch Omni QLED 4K Fire TV $569.99 at Amazon
$1,099.99 Save $530 Get Deal

Prime Day is on the horizon, officially running from July 8 through 11, but there's no need to wait if you're looking for an epic deal on a big screen TV. Weeks before the big day(s), Amazon's 65-inch and 75-inch Omni QLED 4K Fire TVs are already down to record lows.

As of June 18, the Amazon 65-inch Omni QLED 4K Fire TV is down to just $449.99 from $719.99 and the 75-inch Omni QLED 4K Fire TV is down to just $569.99 from $1,099.99. That's a savings of 38% and 48%, respectively, and the lowest prices on record by a long shot. The only catch? You have to be a Prime member to secure the discount (sign up for a free 30-day trial).

SEE ALSO: Audible's Prime Day deal is live: Get 3 months of Audible Premium Plus for free

Specs-wise, it's no longer the fanciest TV in Amazon's lineup (that title now goes to the Omni Mini-LED), but the Omni QLED 4K TV is still a great budget-friendly TV. "Amazon boosts the visual appeal of its Alexa-centric Fire TV Omni with a brighter QLED panel that offers higher contrast and better color than the outgoing model," our friends at PCMag (also owned by Ziff Davis) wrote in their review of the TV.

It's basically Amazon's dupe of Samsung's The Frame TV, offering an "Ambient Experience" mode that allows you to pull up artwork, photos from your personal library, or a selection of handy Alexa widgets. You know, so your screen isn't just a black rectangle when you're not watching it. Its QLED 4K display also features local dimming, adaptive brightness, and support for Dolby Vision IQ and HDR10+ Adaptive.

Ultimately, it's Amazon's best-looking Fire TV, minus the brand-new (and more expensive) Omni Mini-LED series. And ahead of Prime Day, you can get it for a fraction of its usual price.

The best TV deals to shop this week

Save $120 on the Ecovacs Deebot T50 Pro Omni Robot Vacuum and Mop ahead of Prime Day

Mashable - 4 hours 36 min ago

SAVE $120: As of June 18, get the Ecovacs Deebot T50 Pro Omni Robot Vacuum and Mop for $679.99, down from its usual price of $799.99. That's a discount of 15%.

Opens in a new window Credit: Amazon Ecovacs Deebot T50 Pro Omni Robot Vacuum and Mop $679.99 at Amazon
$799.99 Save $120 Get Deal

There's a better way to clean your home. You don't have to force yourself to vacuum every mess manually. You don't even have to mop if you don't want to — not when robots exist. Robot vacuums and mops are getting better and more affordable all the time, so it might be time to invest in one, especially when you can get a deal like this pre-Prime Day discount.

As of June 18, get the Ecovacs Deebot T50 Pro Omni Robot Vacuum and Mop for $679.99, down from its usual price of $799.99. That's $120 off and a discount of 15%.

SEE ALSO: The best handheld vacuums for tackling pet hair

The Deebot T50 Pro is a slim but powerful robot vacuum and mop that offers 15,000 Pa of suction and edge-to-edge cleaning. It has extendable side brushes in addition to mop heads to make sure you can get every nook and cranny of your home, as well as AI-powered obstacle avoidance so it doesn't get hung up running into a table again and again while cleaning.

It's also super thin at just 3.19 inches, so it barely has a footprint if space is a premium at your home. It can tackle just about any mess on its own as it powers through dirt and debris as well as pet and human hair trapped in your carpet with its ZeroTangle 2.0 setup. It can also switch seamlessly from vacuum to mop and handles all its own maintenance as it empties its dustbin, refills its own water, and auto-dispenses cleaning solution.

You can even control it with your voice and AI assistant, so if you're not into using the app or manually setting things up, you just don't have to. If you're ready to stop expending so much energy on keeping a tidy home, let a robot handle it. This pre-Prime Day discount should get you sorted.

Best home and kitchen deals

Get the Bose 550 Dolby Atmos Soundbar for $329 less at Woot

Mashable - 4 hours 48 min ago

SAVE 66%: As of June 18, you can get the Bose 550 Dolby Atmos WiFi Bluetooth Soundbar (certified refurbished) for just $169.99, down from $499, at Woot. That's a 66% discount and a $329.01 savings.

Opens in a new window Credit: Bose Bose 550 Dolby Atmos WiFi Bluetooth Soundbar (Certified Refurbished) $169.99 at Woot
$499 Save $329.01 Get Deal

Investing in a soundbar is a big decision. They aren't cheap, and you want to make sure it's compatible with all your other devices. Although I’ve found several deals on Amazon Fire TV soundbars, I’ve been holding out for a discount on a Bose, Sonos, or Sony product, in particular. Today, my patience finally paid off; Woot just dropped a major deal.

As of June 18, you can get the Bose 550 Dolby Atmos WiFi Bluetooth Soundbar (certified refurbished) for just $169.99, down from $499, at Woot. That's a 66% discount and $329.01 in savings. And don't let "refurbished" scare you — certified refurbished items are typically tested thoroughly and come with a warranty, making them a smart way to save. Yes, it’s a 2023 soundbar — but for less than $200, it's hard to complain.

SEE ALSO: Amazon announces Prime Day 2025 dates, and the 4-day rumors are true

The 550 is compact, but still delivers that signature Bose sound quality. It features Dolby Atmos technology for immersive, realistic sound, and built-in WiFi and Bluetooth connectivity, so you can easily stream your favorite songs or podcasts. AirPlay 2, Chromecast, and Spotify Connect are also supported. And with SimpleSync, you can pair the soundbar with compatible Bose headphones or speakers for a true surround sound experience.

If you're looking to seriously upgrade your TV's audio without breaking the bank, this is a deal to jump on.

The best headphones and speaker deals to shop this week

Slash $550 off the DJI Power 1000 portable power station ahead of Amazon Prime Day

Mashable - 4 hours 56 min ago

SAVE $550: For a limited time, the DJI Power 1000 portable power station is on sale at Amazon for $449, down from the list price of $999. That's a 55% discount.

Opens in a new window Credit: DJI DJI Power 1000 portable power station $449 at Amazon
$999 Save $550 Get Deal

We have to wait a few more weeks to shop epic deals during Amazon Prime Day, but that doesn't mean the deals are on pause. That's especially true if you happen to go camping or live in an area that's prone to power outages. If that's the case, Amazon has a pre-Prime Day treat for you.

As of June 18, the DJI Power 1000 portable power station is on sale for $449 at Amazon, marked down from the usual price of $999. That works out to a 55% discount that shaves a massive $550 off the portable power station. But you'll want to hurry because this is an Amazon lightning deal, which means they'll only offer this sale price for a specific number of units. Today's deal also beats the sale price we spotted last week by $100.

You know them as one of the best drone brands, but DJI also makes one heck of a portable power station. The DJI Power 1000 doesn't mess around with performance thanks to its 1024Wh power supply with plenty of charging outlet options. That means you'll be in good shape for recharging phones when camping, keeping the refrigerator going during a power outage, or using the skill saw in the backyard.

Since the DJI Power 1000 weighs about 32 pounds, DJI included ergonomic carrying handles on both sides. In a pinch, you could even use the portable power station to do weighted squats while camping.

SEE ALSO: The Anker Solix C1000 portable power station is down to under $450 at Amazon

If you wind up in a power outage situation at home, the DJI Power 1000 is optimal for keeping a lamp on in the living room as well as the refrigerator chilling this week's grocery haul. It'll also mean you can still get quality sleep if you use a CPAP. Operating at just 23 decibels, the DJI Power 1000 is designed to be quiet enough to use while sleeping.

When it comes time to recharge the DJI Power 1000 portable power station, expect to get a full recharge in 70 minutes or 80 minutes if you've utilized the option to recharge via a solar panel.

Rather than watching your cell phone battery tick down to 1%, take the DJI Power 1000 portable power station on your next camping trip. While it's on a lightning deal at Amazon, the power station is down to only $449, which takes a whopping $550 off the normal price. Plus, it'll be useful year-round if your home tends to lose power.

The best tech deals to shop this week

Researchers stared at this spectacular galaxy for 50 hours. The images are dazzling.

Mashable - 7 hours 8 min ago

It’s not every day we get to see a visual of the entire Sculptor Galaxy, located approximately 10-11 million light-years from Earth, in all its kaleidoscopic splendour.

Luckily for us, astronomers have created a magnificent visual map of the spiral galaxy, also known as NGC 253, using the European Southern Observatory’s Very Large Telescope (ESO’s VLT) located in Chile. In a new study published in Astronomy and Astrophysics, researchers used the Multi Unit Spectroscopic Explorer (MUSE) instrument on the telescope to valiantly observe the Sculptor Galaxy for 50 hours. Then, they merged 100 images into one dazzling map.

SEE ALSO: Scientists spotted a giant comet spewing gas 2 billion miles from sun

ESO researcher Enrico Congiu led the study alongside Kathryn Kreckel and Fabian Scheuermann from Heidelberg University, Adam Leroy from Ohio State University, and a large team of researchers from all over the globe. In a statement, Congiu explained why the 65,000 light-years-wide system is so visually appealing to astronomers despite being a challenging task.

"The Sculptor Galaxy is in a sweet spot," Congiu said. "It is close enough that we can resolve its internal structure and study its building blocks with incredible detail, but at the same time, big enough that we can still see it as a whole system."

Alright, let's get to the good stuff. Here's one of the research team's images of the Sculptor Galaxy — and it's undeniably spectacular. "Regions of pink light are spread throughout this whole galactic snapshot, which come from ionised hydrogen in star-forming regions," reads the study image description. "These areas have been overlaid on a map of already formed stars in Sculptor to create the mix of pinks and blues seen here."

An image of the Sculptor Galaxy created using images from the European Southern Observatory’s Very Large Telescope. Credit: ESO / E. Congiu et al.

Here's another image from study, described by the research team as a "false-colour composition [that] shows specific wavelengths of light released by hydrogen, nitrogen, sulphur and oxygen. These elements exist in gas form all over the galaxy, but the mechanisms causing this gas to glow can vary throughout the galaxy. The pink light represents gas excited by the radiation of newborn stars, while the cone of whiter light at the centre is caused by an outflow of gas from the black hole at the galaxy’s core."

An image of the Sculptor Galaxy created using images from the European Southern Observatory’s Very Large Telescope. Credit: ESO / E. Congiu et al.

The Sculptor Galaxy map contains thousands of colours, a spectrum of which, the researchers explain, can help astronomers understand the system's components (known as planetary nebulae) like specific regions of dust and gas and how they all move within the galaxy. With such detailed imagery, researchers can get up really close, even to observe individual stars. "We can zoom in to study individual regions where stars form at nearly the scale of individual stars, but we can also zoom out to study the galaxy as a whole," said Kreckel in a statement.

Why is it important to identify these unique components? "Finding the planetary nebulae allows us to verify the distance to the galaxy — a critical piece of information on which the rest of the studies of the galaxy depend,” said Leroy in a statement.

There's also another image produced in the study, a more distant image of the Sculptor Galaxy, one the researchers described as a "colour composite made from exposures from the Digitized Sky Survey 2 (DSS2). The field of view is approximately 3.7 x 3.6 degrees."

A colour composite made from exposures from the Digitized Sky Survey 2 (DSS2). Credit: ESO / Digitized Sky Survey 2 / Davide De Martin

Astronomers spend hours observing galactic entities like this so we're rewarded with such pretty pictures — and Mashable's science team has you covered.

How to watch Rune vs. McDonald online for free

Mashable - 7 hours 49 min ago

TL;DR: Watch Rune vs. McDonald in the 2025 Queen's Club Championships for free on BBC iPlayer. Access this free streaming platform from anywhere in the world with ExpressVPN.

Wimbledon is fast approaching, so the best players are busy preparing for the grass season at the historic Queen’s Club. There are a number of top players competing at the in the 2025 Queen's Club Championships, including Holger Rune. The talented Dane takes on Mackenzie McDonald for a place in the quarter finals.

If you want to watch Rune vs. McDonald in the 2025 Queen's Club Championships for free from anywhere in the world, we have all the information you need.

How to watch Rune vs. McDonald for free

Rune vs. McDonald in the 2025 Queen's Club Championships is available to live stream for free on BBC iPlayer.

BBC iPlayer is geo-restricted to the UK, but anyone can access this free streaming platform with a VPN. These handy tools can hide your real IP address (digital location) and connect you to a secure server in the UK, meaning you can unblock BBC iPlayer from anywhere in the world.

Live stream the 2025 Queen's Club Championships by following these simple steps:

  1. Subscribe to a streaming-friendly VPN (like ExpressVPN)

  2. Download the app to your device of choice (the best VPNs have apps for Windows, Mac, iOS, Android, Linux, and more)

  3. Open up the app and connect to a server in the UK

  4. Visit BBC iPlayer

  5. Watch Rune vs. McDonald for free from anywhere in the world

Opens in a new window Credit: ExpressVPN ExpressVPN (1-Month Plan) $12.95 only at ExpressVPN (including money-back guarantee) Get Deal

The best VPNs for streaming are not free, but leading VPNs do tend to offer free-trial periods or money-back guarantees. By leveraging these offers, you can watch Rune vs. McDonald without committing with your cash. This is obviously not a long-term solution, but it does give you time to watch the 2025 Queen's Club Championships before recovering your investment.

If you want to retain permanent access to the best free streaming sites from around the world, you'll need a subscription. Fortunately, the best VPN for streaming live sport is on sale for a limited time.

What is the best VPN for BBC iPlayer?

ExpressVPN is the best service for bypassing geo-restrictions to stream live sport on BBC iPlayer, for a number of reasons:

  • Servers in 105 countries including the UK

  • Easy-to-use app available on all major devices including iPhone, Android, Windows, Mac, and more

  • Strict no-logging policy so your data is always secure

  • Fast connection speeds

  • Up to eight simultaneous connections

  • 30-day money-back guarantee

A two-year subscription to ExpressVPN is on sale for $139 and includes an extra four months for free — 61% off for a limited time. This plan also includes a year of free unlimited cloud backup and a generous 30-day money-back guarantee. Alternatively, you can get a one-month plan for only $12.95 (including money-back guarantee).

Live stream Rune vs. McDonald in the 2025 Queen's Club Championships for free with ExpressVPN.

How to watch Popyrin vs. Draper online for free

Mashable - 7 hours 53 min ago

TL;DR: Watch Popyrin vs. Draper in the 2025 Queen's Club Championships for free on BBC iPlayer. Access this free streaming platform from anywhere in the world with ExpressVPN.

Wimbledon is just around the corner, so the best players are busy preparing for the grass season at the historic Queen’s Club. A number of top players are progressing well in the men's draw, and Popyrin vs. Draper is a particularly interesting matchup.

If you want to watch Popyrin vs. Draper in the 2025 Queen's Club Championships for free from anywhere in the world, we have all the information you need.

How to watch Popyrin vs. Draper for free

Popyrin vs. Draper in the 2025 Queen's Club Championships is available to live stream for free on BBC iPlayer.

BBC iPlayer is geo-restricted to the UK, but anyone can access this free streaming platform with a VPN. These handy tools can hide your real IP address (digital location) and connect you to a secure server in the UK, meaning you can unblock BBC iPlayer from anywhere in the world.

Live stream the 2025 Queen's Club Championships by following these simple steps:

  1. Subscribe to a streaming-friendly VPN (like ExpressVPN)

  2. Download the app to your device of choice (the best VPNs have apps for Windows, Mac, iOS, Android, Linux, and more)

  3. Open up the app and connect to a server in the UK

  4. Visit BBC iPlayer

  5. Watch Popyrin vs. Draper for free from anywhere in the world

Opens in a new window Credit: ExpressVPN ExpressVPN (1-Month Plan) $12.95 only at ExpressVPN (including money-back guarantee) Get Deal

The best VPNs for streaming are not free, but leading VPNs do tend to offer free-trial periods or money-back guarantees. By leveraging these offers, you can watch Popyrin vs. Draper without committing with your cash. This is obviously not a long-term solution, but it does give you time to watch the 2025 Queen's Club Championships before recovering your investment.

If you want to retain permanent access to the best free streaming sites from around the world, you'll need a subscription. Fortunately, the best VPN for streaming live sport is on sale for a limited time.

What is the best VPN for BBC iPlayer?

ExpressVPN is the best service for bypassing geo-restrictions to stream live sport on BBC iPlayer, for a number of reasons:

  • Servers in 105 countries including the UK

  • Easy-to-use app available on all major devices including iPhone, Android, Windows, Mac, and more

  • Strict no-logging policy so your data is always secure

  • Fast connection speeds

  • Up to eight simultaneous connections

  • 30-day money-back guarantee

A two-year subscription to ExpressVPN is on sale for $139 and includes an extra four months for free — 61% off for a limited time. This plan also includes a year of free unlimited cloud backup and a generous 30-day money-back guarantee. Alternatively, you can get a one-month plan for only $12.95 (including money-back guarantee).

Live stream Popyrin vs. Draper in the 2025 Queen's Club Championships for free with ExpressVPN.

Stop waiting around for Prime Day — score AirPods 4 at their best-ever price

Mashable - 7 hours 58 min ago

SAVE $30: As of June 18, Apple AirPods 4 (without ANC) are on sale for $99 at Amazon. That's 23% off their list price of $129 and marks a return to their lowest-ever price.

Opens in a new window Credit: Apple Apple AirPods 4 $99 at Amazon
$129 Save $30 Get Deal

Prime Day is coming up soon, and if you're itching to pick up some new Apple tech during the four-day-long sale event, the good news is you actually don't have to wait for the start day. There are already some great deals available at the retailer, including on AirPods 4 (without Active Noise Cancelation) which are back to their lowest-ever price right now.

AirPods 4 (without ANC) are marked down to $99 at Amazon. This is a 23% discount from their list price of $129 and marks a return to their lowest-ever price according to price tracker camelcamelcamel. If they've been on your radar, now is a great time to pick them up ahead of Prime Day.

SEE ALSO: Are you 18-24? Get 6 months of Amazon Prime for free ahead of Prime Day.

AirPods 4 boast excellent sound quality so you can enjoy your favorite songs, podcasts, and audiobooks all summer long. They also have Personalized Spatial Audio that surrounds you in the sounds you're listening to, and you'll be able to listen for hours thanks to a battery life of up to five hours. You can even push it to up to 30 hours of listening time when using the charging case.

Considering they're at their lowest-ever price, there's no better time than now to pick up the AirPods 4 (without ANC). Don't miss out on this great deal right now at Amazon.

This year's Prime Day sale is a four-day-long event running from July 8-11. If you're not yet a Prime Member but want to join in on the fun, have a look at our guide on how to sign up for Amazon Prime ahead of Prime Day.

The best early Prime Day deals, hand-picked by Mashable's team of experts

Jon Stewarts interview with Pedro Pascal lookalike winner has an unexpected twist

Mashable - 7 hours 59 min ago

Jon Stewart's interview with the winner of the recent Pedro Pascal lookalike contest in NYC isn't like any regular interview, because it turns out the two already know each other — the contest winner, George Gountas, actually works on The Daily Show as a lighting designer.

In the clip above, Gountas describes how he came to be in the contest — someone at work told him about it, and then his wife encouraged him — before addressing Materialists star Pascal himself directly through the camera lens with a special request.

"Hey Pedro. This is Pedro #5 from New York. It would be a great, great, great gift if you could meet my wife Jenny. It would mean the world to her. We need to make this happen."

Stewart's response? "I don't see how Pedro #1 could turn down Pedro #5."

Save over $200 on this beast of a coffee machine before Prime Day

Mashable - 8 hours 50 min ago

SAVE OVER $200: As of June 18, the Philips 4400 Fully Automatic Espresso Machine is on sale for $799.98 at Amazon. That's 20% off its list price of $999.99.

Opens in a new window Credit: Philips Philips 4400 Series Fully Automatic Espresso Machine $799.98 at Amazon
$999.99 Save $200.01 Get Deal

Amazon Prime Day is right around the corner, but thankfully, you don't have to wait for the sale event to start in order to take advantage of some nice deals. Amazon already has quite a few deals worth considering. If you've been looking to pick up an espresso machine to help you start your mornings on the right foot, the retailer currently has a nice deal on the Philips 4400 Fully Automatic Espresso Machine that's worth checking out.

The Philips 4400 Fully Automatic Espresso Machine has received a 20% discount at Amazon, dropping its price from $999.99 to $799.98. It's quite an impressive machine as well, boasting 12 hot and cool recipes to choose from. It's currently listed as a limited-time deal, so if it has caught your eye, now is the time to pick it up.

SEE ALSO: Are you 18-24? Get 6 months of Amazon Prime for free ahead of Prime Day.

As mentioned before, there are 12 recipes to choose from with this Philips espresso machine: espresso, coffee, cappuccino, latte macchiato, iced coffee, americano, caffè crema, latte, ristretto, coffee with milk, iced americano, and iced espresso. It also features noise-reducing technology, so you can brew in the early mornings without waking up the whole house.

Why wait for Prime Day? Don't miss out on the Philips 4400 Fully Automatic Espresso Machine marked down to $799.98 at Amazon.

This year's Amazon Prime Day event runs from July 8-11 (yep, four days!). If you're curious on how to join in on the action this year, check out our guide on how to sign up for Amazon Prime ahead of Prime Day to learn more.

The best deals this week, hand-picked by Mashable's team of experts

How to cancel your Amazon Prime membership

Mashable - 9 hours 16 min ago

Whether you're trying to cut back on subscription fees, avoid auto-renewal after a free 30-day trial, or align your spending more closely with your values, there are tons of reasons you may want to cancel Amazon Prime.

Of course, you may want to wait until after Prime Day — which officially takes place on July 8-11 — since Prime members have exclusive access to most of the deals during the shopping event.

Nevertheless, here's a step-by-step guide on how to bid Bezos goodbye if and when the time comes to cut ties with the mega retailer. Trust us; it's not as straightforward as it should be.

How to cancel your Amazon Prime membership in the Amazon app

The process for canceling your Prime subscription via the Amazon app is the same on both iOS and Android.

Total Time
  • 2 min
What You Need
  • Smartphone
  • Amazon mobile app

Step 1: Open the app and tap the middle button at the bottom (it should look like a person).

Credit: Screenshot: Amazon

Step 2: Tap "Your Account."

Credit: Screenshot: Amazon

Step 3: Scroll down through the list of options to "Manage Prime Membership" (under "Account Settings").

Credit: Screenshot: Amazon

Step 4: Hit "Manage membership" at the top of the page.

Credit: Screenshot: Amazon

Step 5: Tap "Manage Membership (Update, cancel and more)."

Credit: Screenshot: Amazon

Step 6: Tap "End membership."

Credit: Screenshot: Amazon

Step 7: Review how many days are left in your current Prime billing cycle. Scroll all the way down to "Continue to cancel."

Credit: Screenshot: Amazon

Step 8: Confirm your cancellation by clicking the yellow button that says "End on [date]."

Your membership will officially end once your current billing cycle is over.

Credit: Screenshot: Amazon How to cancel your Amazon Prime membership on desktop Total Time
  • 2 min
What You Need
  • Laptop or PC

Step 1: Log in to your Amazon account on your browser. Hover over "Accounts & Lists" in the upper right hand corner. In the menu of options, click "Prime Membership."

You'll pull up your personal Prime membership page with a collection of plan benefits and options.

Credit: Screenshot: Amazon

Step 2: Click "Manage Membership" in the top right-hand corner. Click "End Membership."

Credit: Screenshot: Amazon

Step 3: Review how many days are left in your current Prime billing cycle. Click the yellow button on the lower-right side of the page that says "Continue to cancel."

Credit: Screenshot: Amazon

Step 4: Confirm your cancellation by clicking the yellow button that says "End on [date]."

Your membership will officially end once your current billing cycle is over.

Credit: Screenshot: Amazon

How to overcome the fear of being cringe in the dating realm

Mashable - 9 hours 20 min ago

"That blue umbrella is still stashed under my bed," Carletta says, recalling the fateful evening that she was declared 'cringe' by a certified Cool person. Two years ago, the policy analyst met her friends at a wine bar in New York and carried an extra umbrella in case someone forgot and got stuck in the rain. "This girl — she does ballet, has the longest eyelashes, and moves through the world effortlessly — said it was a bit try-hard and cringe of me, you bet I've never lugged another umbrella again," Carletta confesses. 

If that made you wince even a little, you're probably familiar with the apparent social prison of being caught in a cringe moment. Lately, it seems as if we're playing a complex game where you have to duck fast enough to dodge any allegations of cringe. Emojis can be cringe (the awkward grimace, the skull, the thumbs up!), liking someone's Instagram Story within seconds of posting can be cringe, calling it a Brat Summer in 2025 can be cringe — anything goes. People have published books on how to avoid being cringe in the digital age, while TikTok has multiple hashtags from #DatingCringe to #CringeFriend that have amassed tens of millions of posts. 

SEE ALSO: Has social media made sightseeing deeply uncool?

But the internet's cringe-obsession could be keeping young people from pursuing the things in life they want the most.

What does cringe mean, and why does it matter?

So what is this all-too-familiar feeling that makes you want to curl up in a ball and crawl out of your skin? "Cringe is a type of vicarious embarrassment that you feel when you or someone else deviates from a social expectation. It is usually experienced in the presence of others and makes us feel like we don't belong," explains Morgan Cope, an assistant professor of psychology at Centre College. 

While cringe itself is a social emotion, this race to curate a persona that knows what's in and what's out seems to be holding us back from developing honest and vulnerable relationships. 

Per Hinge's Gen Z report, 56 percent of young daters believe that worrying about rejection has held them back from pursuing a romantic connection, while a study from market research firm Morning Consult reveals that 51 percent of Gen Z feel too socially awkward to develop meaningful relationships. 

"The fear of cringe first impacts your relationship with yourself by creating self-doubt and then bleeds into how you interact with others by dissuading you from showing up authentically," Cope adds. In the internet era, when anyone can become a viral TikTok within seconds, we are so focused on protecting our performative image of coolness that seeking genuine friendships takes a backseat.

So, how can we overcome this anxiety of cringe purgatory and learn to be vulnerable again? Speaking to those who have battled cringe, and the experts with tips on how to refocus our priorities, Mashable has a guide to working it all out. 

Acknowledge that it's impossible to always be cool

Alina, a sales associate from London, has stopped liking strangers' Instagram Reels unless they feature puppies. "When you're scrolling on Instagram, it shows if someone you follow has liked the video — I despise this feature. I'm always scared of double-tapping on videos that are ha-ha funny at the moment but may seem cringe to someone else later. I don't want that to define me," she shares. 

In the internet era, when anyone can become a viral TikTok within seconds, we are so focused on protecting our performative image of coolness that seeking genuine friendships takes a backseat.

At a time when the average American spends over seven hours a day online, we have convinced ourselves that what we post, share, and (in this case) like is a micro-expression of who we are. In the hopes of staying on top of the social ladder, people often restrict themselves online, transforming a space that was once a shrine for silly selfies and wholesome moments with friends into a hyper-curated grid of shareable content. 

Club this with the present techno-cultural landscape where icks (turn offs) and trends change at breakneck speed, and you quickly realise, it is nearly impossible to keep up with what is or isn't classified as cringe. 

Cope reminds us, "The social expectation from people is rapidly evolving online. Even if you try to keep up with trends, the act of being cool and not cringe is always just out of reach, pushing you to endlessly participate in this self-evolution and impeding a true understanding of your own likes and dislikes." 

We need to realise that chasing this ideal is standing in the way of real conversations and long-lasting connections. After all, how can we develop authentic relationships if we're too busy jumping on the bandwagon of the latest trend? 

Lean into the intimacy of being cringe

Maybe the memes were right all along: to be cringe is to be free. If the anxiety of coming across icky suppresses our quirks and forces us to play it cool when we want to reach out, it erases the messy, honest parts of us that make us who we are. 

"Love lies in the moments we let our guard down, to have deep, meaningful relationships, we have to stop trying to be palatable," says Moe Ari Brown, Hinge's love and connection expert. This is often easier said than done, so Brown suggests taking it one little step at a time. 

"Practice micro-moments of realness, instead of going all-in immediately, start by sharing something personal. You could say, 'This is a little awkward, but I want to be honest.' These moments build trust and emotional muscle memory," the expert explains. 

It could also help to gently shift your mindset around raw, open conversations. Make a conscious effort to avoid skipping to the worst-case scenario and assuming someone will find you weird. Give them the chance to surprise you or to understand you better. 

Are you afraid of cringe, or are your friends?

Friendship coach and educator Danielle Bayard Jackson believes the first step to undoing the fear of cringe is to identify if the feeling is rooted in you or borrowed from the people around you. "The frequency matters: if I'm always afraid of being cringe or of looking foolish, that could be rooted in a deeper self-esteem issue," she says. "But if it comes up with a specific set of people, it may expose a fragility in the relationship." 

In the case of the latter, it is important to introspect on why these individuals have this impact on you. Could it be that you feel intimidated in their presence? Could it be that their actions make you feel less than? If this is a burgeoning relationship that matters to you, it may be worth having a conversation to flag how you're feeling. It is also paramount to remember that your friends are not drawn to you because of how cool you are, as cliché as it sounds, it's the deeper, gooey stuff matters a lot more. 

Okay, you did something cringe. So what? 

While we are socialised to believe that an embarrassing moment is the be-all and end-all, it is actually far from it. If someone is ready to receive and create space for a relationship, whether you use uncool emojis or outdated slang is not going to send them running to the hills. In fact, a Bumble spokesperson told Mashable that 36 percent of Gen Z believe they can move past an ick. Even if you think of the people closest to you, it's likely that you didn't build those connections by being perfect and distant. 

Carletta is trying to be more expressive, too. "The umbrella thing stays with me, but I am putting myself in more uncomfortable spots. I recently approached a girl in a cafe to compliment her outfit and only realised later that I had something in my teeth. The old me would die from the embarrassment of seeming like a friendless loser, but the new me is trying to laugh it off as cute cringe," she says.

In the moments that we feel critical of ourselves, it's important to unpack the cringe taboo and remember that we are complex, multidimensional individuals. Yes, we can do stupid, silly things that may be deemed uncool by the social powers that be, but by accepting our whole selves, we are opening up space for real, unfiltered relationships where vulnerability isn't withheld, it's invited. 

The Soundcore Anker Life Q20 headphones are a pre-Prime Day steal at under $40

Mashable - 9 hours 38 min ago

SAVE $20: As of June 18, Soundcore Anker Life Q20 headphones are on sale for $39.98 at Amazon. That's a 33% saving on the list price.

Opens in a new window Credit: Soundcore Soundcore Anker Life Q20 $39.98 at Amazon
$59.99 Save $20.01 Get Deal

Prime Day has officially been announced for 2025, and good news: there's not long to wait. But if you're in need of some great deals right now, then look no further than this stellar deal on the Soundcore Anker Life Q20 headphones. As of June 18, you can take home these impressive headphones for under $40, now just $39.98.

These headphones use custom 40mm drivers to provide clear, hi-res audio. They feature hybrid active noise cancellation with four built-in microphones that reduce background sounds like traffic and airplane noise by up to 90%. Double tap to activate the BassUp technology, a function that (as the name suggests) boosts the bass when listening to bass-heavy music.

SEE ALSO: Get this huge Hisense TV at its best-ever price ahead of Prime Day

Battery life is impressive too, offering up to 40 hours with noise cancellation and 60 hours in standard mode. Plus, a quick five-minute charge gives you around four hours of playtime. Not needing to charge daily is always a plus.

Head to Amazon to grab this latest Soundcore deal ahead of Prime Day.

The best early Prime Day deals, hand-picked by Mashable's team of experts

Jimmy Kimmel spends 3 minutes ripping Trumps T1 smartphone to shreds

Mashable - 9 hours 41 min ago

Donald Trump's newly announced Trump Mobile network and T1 smartphone have been roundly mocked by Seth Meyers and Stephen Colbert, and in the video above Jimmy Kimmel joins in.

"Their website was a mess from the get-go. When they launched yesterday their coverage map said Gulf of Mexico instead of Gulf of America, so he had them take that down, there have been reports that it is difficult to even order the phone, and even though they're billing the phones as all-American and made in the USA, the phone appears to be a reskinned version of a Chinese phone made by a company called Wingtech," says Kimmel in his Tuesday night monologue.

"Wingtech sells the same phone on Amazon for $171 right now. But once it gets spray-painted gold and emblazoned with the word Trump, it's $500. He's selling an all-American Chinese phone. I wonder if he'll slap some tariffs on himself for this."

To emphasise how ridiculous this whole thing is, Kimmel ends with a simple comparison. "I just want you to imagine Barack Obama, while he was in office, selling something like this," he says. "You think Fox News would be excited about that?"

For more information on the T1 smartphone itself, here's how it compares to the iPhone 16.

How to change your name on Facebook

Mashable - 9 hours 43 min ago

Humans are not static creatures. Living is a process of discovery — of the world, of each other, and of yourself. As such, the name a person is given at birth isn't always the name they wish to carry to death. There are countless reasons why someone may choose to change their name, including marriage, affirmation of their gender identity, or simple dislike of the name they currently hold.

Fortunately, Facebook allows users to easily change their name on their profile, so you aren't stuck forever with the one you entered when first creating your account. Facebook itself changed its company name to Meta, after all.

Here's how to change your name on your Facebook account.

How to change your Facebook account name on desktop Total Time
  • 2 min
What You Need
  • Desktop or laptop

Step 1: Open Facebook.

Step 2: Click on the down arrow icon in the top right corner of your screen to open a menu.

Step 3: Click the "Settings & privacy" cog icon.

Step 4: Click the "Settings" cog icon and in the search bar type "Name."

Credit: Mashable screenshot / Facebook

Step 5: Click "Name" in the search results.

Credit: Mashable screenshot /Facebook

Step 6: Enter your new name, then click "Review Change."

Step 7: Choose how you want your name to be displayed — either your full first, middle, then last name; just your first and last name; or your surname, middle, then first name. Then enter your Facebook password and click "Save changes."

How to change your Facebook account name on mobile Total Time
  • 2 min
What You Need
  • Smartphone
  • Facebook app

Step 1: Open the Facebook app.

Step 2: Tap the "Menu" profile picture icon in the bottom right corner of your screen.

Step 3: Tap the cog icon in the top right corner of your screen to open your settings.

Step 4: Search "Name" in the search bar and select it.

Step 5: Enter your new name, then tap "Review Change."

Step 6: Choose how you want your name to be displayed — either your full first, middle, then last name; just your first and last name; or your surname, middle, then first name. Then enter your Facebook password and tap "Save changes."

It's a good idea to check for spelling mistakes before confirming the change, as well as make sure you're happy to stick with your new name for a while. Facebook doesn't let you change your name again within 60 days of altering it, so if you have second thoughts you'll just have to live with it for at least two months.

SEE ALSO: How to unlink Facebook and Instagram

There are some restrictions as to what Facebook considers a valid name. The social media platform refuses to accept titles such as Doctor or Queen, as well as offensive and suggestive words. It also won't allow symbols, numbers, unusual capitalisation, or punctuation, though X Æ A-Xii Musk is still normal enough by Facebook's standards.

Unfortunately, Facebook won't accept characters from multiple languages either. Anyone with an English first name and Chinese middle name for example will therefore have to transliterate one or the other to make their whole name fit under Facebook's rules.

However, Mashable was pleased to discover and is delighted to report that "Honey Glazed Ham" is considered a perfectly reasonable name.

Found my new pen name. Credit: Facebook

UPDATE: Jun. 18, 2025, 10:24 a.m. UTC This story was originally published Nov. 8, 2023 and was updated June 18, 2025.

Get this huge Hisense TV at its best-ever price ahead of Prime Day

Mashable - 9 hours 44 min ago

SAVE OVER $150: As of June 18, the 75-inch Hisense QD7 Mini-LED 4K Smart TV is on sale for $648.99 at Amazon. That's 19% off and its lowest-ever price at Amazon.

Opens in a new window Credit: Hisense Hisense 75-inch Class QD7 Series Mini-LED 4K UHD TV $648.99 at Amazon
$799.99 Save $151 Get Deal

The summer's hottest sale event is on the horizon: Amazon's Prime Day. If you're hoping to score some great deals this year, the good news is you don't actually have to wait for the four-day sale event to kick off. Amazon already has some great deals available on tech. One of our favorites at the moment is the 75-inch Hisense QD7 Mini-LED 4K Smart TV, which is down to its lowest-ever price right now.

The 75-inch Hisense QD7 Mini-LED 4K Smart TV has dropped from its list price of $799.99 to $648.99, offering up a nice 19% discount.

SEE ALSO: Are you 18-24? Get 6 months of Amazon Prime for free ahead of Prime Day.

Alongside its big 75-inch screen size, which is great for a movie nights, the Hisense QD7 brings your favorite movies and shows to life in vibrant detail with 4K resolution and QLED color. It also features Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos, which help create a more immersive experience for your eyes and ears. On top of all that, it's also a Fire TV, so you can stream from all of your favorite apps with ease.

This Prime Day-worthy deal on the 75-inch Hisense QD7 Mini-LED 4K Smart TV is worth jumping on now while it's still at its lowest-ever price.

If you're hoping to get in on the Prime Day action this year, check out our guide on how to sign up for Amazon Prime.

The best early Prime Day deals, hand-picked by Mashable's team of experts

This massive 75-inch Toshiba TV is available for its lowest-ever price ahead of Prime Day

Mashable - 9 hours 55 min ago

SAVE $250: As of June 18, the Toshiba 75-inch Class C350 TV is on sale for $399.99 at Amazon. That's a 38% saving on the list price.

Opens in a new window Credit: Toshiba Toshiba 75-Inch Class C350 TV $399.99 at Amazon
$649.99 Save $250 Get Deal

If you're on the hunt for a TV that does it all without breaking the bank, you don't need to wait until Prime Day to find something.

We've found a killer deal at Amazon that you should seriously consider before the Prime Day rush. The Toshiba 75-inch Class C350 TV is currently reduced to its lowest-ever price, meaning you get this impressive 75-inch TV for under $400. That's a ridiculously low price for a massive screen with a whole lot of tech.

SEE ALSO: This budget-friendly TV hit a record-low price ahead of Prime Day

Quality-wise, with this TV you'll get Dolby Vision HDR and HDR10, plus Dolby Atmos for immersive sound. It also has a bezel-less design, so you get more screen to watch without distractions. It also uses Toshiba’s Regza Engine 4K, which is Toshiba's high-performance 4K engine for stunning picture quality, helping bring colors to life. Not to mention, the 13.6-inch Liquid Retina display supports a billion colors, so everything looks super detailed and vibrant.

And if you're a gamer, there’s an Auto Low Latency Game Mode to cut any lag, so your controller commands always feel instant. It also runs on Fire TV, so you get live TV options, streaming channels, and apps all on one screen for easy access.

Sold yet? Head to Amazon for this great early Prime Day deal.

The best early Prime Day deals, hand-picked by Mashable's team of experts Products available for purchase through affiliate links. If you buy something through links on our site, Mashable may earn an affiliate commission.

How to block people on TikTok

Mashable - 9 hours 55 min ago

TikTok sometimes feels like a lawless land full of multi-layered discourse, trends, and unruly comment sections. And there are times when you need to set boundaries for your peace of mind. Thankfully, it's pretty easy to block another user on TikTok. Here's how:

Total Time
  • 3 minutes
What You Need
  • iPhone and the TikTok app

Step 1: Open the TikTok account you want to block

Unfortunately, you do have to navitage to the TikTok account that you want to block. For this example, I'm using TikTok's official account. 

Credit: Screenshot / TikTok

Step 2: Click the share button

It seems a bit counterintuitive, but the next step to blocking someone on TikTok is to click the share button in the top right corner of their profile

Credit: Screenshot / TikTok

Step 3: Select Block

When you choose the share button, a popup will allow you to choose someone to share it with directly on the app. I have those blocked out here, but, trust me, they're there. Beneath that, you'll have the options for sharing the page outside of the app, by copying the link, sending it in a text message, or on another social media platform. Below that, you have four options: report, block, send message, and QR code. Click Block.

Credit: Screenshot / TikTok

Step 4: Select Block again

Once you select block, a popup will appear that reads: "Block [insert account]? They will not be able to send you messages, see your posts, or find your profile. This doesn't included extended scenarios like multi-host livestreams, duets posted by others, or group chats you both participate in. They will not be notified that you blocked them." Below this message, you have the option to click "cancel," or "Block." Choose "Block."

Credit: Screenshot / tikTok

There you go! You've blocked an account on TikTok. To unblock them, navigate to their profile and click "unblock." You can't miss it: It's in the center of the page in bright red.

Happy blocking!

SEE ALSO: How to download TikTok videos

UPDATE: Jun. 18, 2025, 10:12 a.m. UTC This story was originally published Nov. 9, 2023 and was updated June 18, 2025.

I tried the futuristic Nuance Hearing Glasses. Do they pass the crowded restaurant test?

Mashable - 10 hours 8 min ago

Hearing loss is something of an epidemic in the United States, where the population is rapidly aging. Chances are, your hearing isn't as good as it could be. Maybe you're like me and you spent way too many hours in a way too small basement playing way too loud metal music without hearing protection (an admittedly extreme example), or maybe you merely spend too much time listening to your earbuds. Regardless, hearing health affects your quality of life, safety, and social life.

According to the World Health Organization, 1 in 20 people need treatment to address hearing loss, and that number will jump to 1 in 10 by 2050. Yet an astonishingly high percentage of us do nothing about this problem. Whether it's the cost of hearing aids, the discomfort of wearing them, or the social stigma, many people — like me — just live with it. 

Personally, I avoid bars and other venues with a lot of ambient noise. When dining out, I often find myself staring at the people around me, marveling that they can actually, you know, hear each other.

What if a pair of smart glasses could also act as hearing aids, bringing you back into the conversation? That's the idea behind Nuance Audio. And after testing the brand's debut smart glasses and hearing aids hybrid for about three weeks, I'm ready to share my full Nuance Hearing Glasses review.

What are Nuance Hearing Glasses?

You may already be familiar with EssilorLuxottica. If not, they're the company behind brands such as Ray-Ban, Transitions, Coach, Foster Grant, LensCrafters, Pearl Vision, Target Optical, and tons more. Nuance Audio is a new sub-brand of EssilorLuxottica, and its mission is to put a functional pair of hearing aids into glasses. This way, a person can wear their normal eyewear and get all the benefits of hearing aids.

That's a noble and futuristic mission, which is why I first visited the company's booth back at CES 2024 (and again at IFA and CES 2025). I've been waiting for the company's final FDA approval and U.S. launch date to arrive, and now they're finally here.

Credit: Adam Doud / Mashable

I attended the launch event for Nuance Audio glasses in New York City last month. During the event, YouTuber iJustine served as an MC for the event, and hearing her describe the glasses, it sounded like she was reading from a script pulled directly from my own brain: What if you could sit in a crowded restaurant and follow along with the conversations around you? To me, that's basically impossible now. So when Justine talked about that scenario, I was stoked. Finally, I would be able to go to a dinner, ambience be damned.

So, do the Nuance Hearing Glasses really work? Yes, but they don't quite pass the restaurant test.

Attractive, unobtrusive hardware

The glasses are relatively non-descript. They have thick black frames — my wife calls them "Drew Carey glasses," and if we're being honest, that's fair. There are two styles of frames — Square and Panthos (which has rounder lenses) — and they come in either black or burgundy. The glasses themselves are fairly basic. Each frame has directional microphones at the front of the earpiece, a button on the bottom of the right arm, and two speaker grilles on the top and bottom of each earpiece.

Inside the box, you'll also find a foldable case to carry the glasses and a charging stand. The charging stand plugs in with a USB-C connection, and you lay the glasses upside down to charge them wirelessly.

You can get these glasses with your visual prescription, and the transitional lenses let them work as regular eye glasses or sunglasses, a very nice touch.

Credit: Adam Doud / Mashable Credit: Adam Doud / Mashable Hearing aids only

To use the glasses, you pair them with the Nuance app on your smartphone. I had mine paired with my iPhone 16 Pro Max, but you can use Android as well. Pairing the glasses allows you to set up your individual audio profile and adjust hearing settings as needed. One thing you cannot do is stream audio to the glasses like you can with the Meta Ray-Ban Bluetooth glasses. When I asked why that was, it came down to battery life and overall use case.

Streaming audio to earbuds/glasses can be draining. The glasses do pair to your phone via Bluetooth, but only so you can adjust settings. All the audio processing is done on the glasses themselves, so there's no need for a continuous flow of data between them. For self-explanatory reasons, Nuance Hearing Glasses are primarily meant to help your hearing, not let you listen to Spotify. These glasses have a different use case and different hardware. So, the lack of streaming audio is a bummer, but totally understandable, given the circumstances.

The good news: The glasses' battery life lasts all day, which was one of the goals Nuance set out to accomplish. I do wish the charging solution was more portable. After all, EssilorLuxottica also developed the Meta Ray-Bans, which charge in the case, and that solution was right there for the taking. I do appreciate that when you're wearing the glasses, the case folds down flat, which makes it much easier to carry than the Ray-Bans, so it's a good news/bad news scenario.

The software behind the hardware Credit: Adam Doud / Mashable

As to how they work, the glasses take in audio using the directional microphones on the front of the glasses and pipe audio into your ears through the earpieces. There are four presets you can use, cleverly labeled A, B, C, and D, in the app. I won't get into the nitty gritty to break down what each preset does, but they're designed to accommodate different scenarios.

The app also has volume control and other controls. You can change the directionality of the microphone so you can amplify what you're looking at or everything around you, depending on the situation. Overall, the app is very neatly organized and easy to navigate.

The button on the right arm is the power and volume button. Long-press the button to turn the glasses on and off, and short-press the button to adjust the volume. You use the app to do everything else, including setting up your personal calibration. During the calibration process, the glasses listen to the ambient noise around you, then play a clip of white noise. Finally, you're prompted to count out loud from one to 20. I'm not positive the personal calibration did a lot for me, but your mileage may vary, of course. There's also a standard calibration you can go back to at any time.

Mr. Roboto

When you're wearing the glasses, the sounds around you are amplified, generally within a narrow cone of about 15 degrees or so. If you turn away from someone as they speak, you'll lose the sound of their voice, so it's important to stay focused on them. The enhanced audio that you hear is a little robotic and has some feedback to it. Imagine listening to the world around you and hearing a lot of mid-tones and high end without the underlying bass.

It's a little like the audio equivalent of the sharpen tool in most photography software. Basically, when you use the sharpen tool, the software picks up the outlines of items in the photo, but at the expense of the blend that makes it all go together. As you progressively sharpen an image, it gets uglier and less natural. The same goes for the Nuance Audio glasses.

Everything you hear — including your own voice — is amplified, but also emphasized by cranking up the midrange and high tones. It almost sounds like there's a little bit of feedback coming through, like when you point a microphone at a speaker it's connected to. There's a very subtle ring to everything you hear. That can be a good thing, because it's emphasizing what you need to hear — voices for example — but it also gives everything an unnatural tone that can be hard to get used to.

So, when you're talking with someone, you can hear them more clearly, which is good. But the biggest disappointment circles back to my dream restaurant scenario. When you're in a crowded venue with music or a drone of conversation around you, these glasses don't really help a whole lot. I really wanted these hearing aid glasses to pass the restaurant test, and it's the one scenario where they just don't help a whole lot.

The most disappointing part Credit: Adam Doud / Mashable

I am not an audio engineer, but what I think is going on here is a combination of factors. First, the glasses pick up your own voice way too much. In order for the glasses to be helpful in a loud environment like a restaurant, you need to crank them up, but when you do, your own voice becomes deafening. The second issue is that these glasses don't have active noise cancellation, or if they do, it's not very good. The app has a section titled "Background noise" in which you can select lowered, standard, or heightened, but none of them really did much for me.

There are earbuds with ANC that don't form a good seal with your ears. The AirPods 4 with ANC are the most notable example, so I tried wearing these glasses along with my AirPods to see if they canceled out the noise while the glasses picked up the voices. I want to say the experiment helped, but it wasn't the magic bullet I'd hoped for.

The Verdict: A good first step

Here's the bottom line: The glasses need to do a better job at Active Noise Cancellation and at isolating and eliminating your own voice. When and if Nuance can solve that equation, we'll be in great shape.

As they exist today, I think they do an OK job at solving the problem they set out to solve. If you are someone who has difficulty hearing in all circumstances, including when you're in a quiet room, these could do a good job for you. But if you're hoping you can finally rejoin conversations in a noisy restaurant, you might need traditional hearing aids. Again, your mileage may vary depending on how your hearing loss has progressed. All things considered, my hearing loss is minor, so I won't need to wear these daily. I just wish that I could wear them when I head out for the evening, so I could get back to participating in those conversations I so sorely miss.

For a product that costs $1,200, I think that's a fair ask on my part.

Opens in a new window Credit: Essilor Luxottica Nuance Hearing Glasses $1,200 at Essilor Luxottica
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