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Today's NYT Strands hints are easy if you're ready to spring forward.

Strands, the New York Times' elevated word-search game, requires the player to perform a twist on the classic word search. Words can be made from linked letters — up, down, left, right, or diagonal, but words can also change direction, resulting in quirky shapes and patterns. Every single letter in the grid will be part of an answer. There's always a theme linking every solution, along with the "spangram," a special, word or phrase that sums up that day's theme, and spans the entire grid horizontally or vertically.

By providing an opaque hint and not providing the word list, Strands creates a brain-teasing game that takes a little longer to play than its other games, like Wordle and Connections.

If you're feeling stuck or just don't have 10 or more minutes to figure out today's puzzle, we've got all the NYT Strands hints for today's puzzle you need to progress at your preferred pace.

The words are related to time.

These words describe time changes.

Today's NYT Strands spangram is horizontal.

Today's spangram is Dayling Savings.

• Spring

• Hour

• Losing

• Dayling Savings

• Clock

• Forward

• Sleep

Looking for other daily online games? Mashable's Games page has more hints, and if you're looking for more puzzles, Mashable's got games now!

Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.

Not the day you're after? Here's the solution to yesterday's Strands.

Today's Wordle answer should be easy to solve if you frequent hotels.

If you just want to be told today's word, you can jump to the bottom of this article for today's Wordle solution revealed. But if you'd rather solve it yourself, keep reading for some clues, tips, and strategies to assist you.

Originally created by engineer Josh Wardle as a gift for his partner, Wordle rapidly spread to become an international phenomenon, with thousands of people around the globe playing every day. Alternate Wordle versions created by fans also sprang up, including battle royale Squabble, music identification game Heardle, and variations like Dordle and Quordle that make you guess multiple words at once. 

Wordle eventually became so popular that it was purchased by the New York Times, and TikTok creators even livestream themselves playing.

The best Wordle starting word is the one that speaks to you. But if you prefer to be strategic in your approach, we have a few ideas to help you pick a word that might help you find the solution faster. One tip is to select a word that includes at least two different vowels, plus some common consonants like S, T, R, or N.

The entire archive of past Wordle puzzles was originally available for anyone to enjoy whenever they felt like it, but it was later taken down, with the website's creator stating it was done at the request of the New York Times. However, the New York Times then rolled out its own Wordle Archive, available only to NYT Games subscribers.

It might feel like Wordle is getting harder, but it actually isn't any more difficult than when it first began. You can turn on Wordle's Hard Mode if you're after more of a challenge, though.

A waiting area.

The letter B appears twice.

Today's Wordle starts with the letter L.

Get your last guesses in now, because it's your final chance to solve today's Wordle before we reveal the solution.

Drumroll please!

The solution to today's Wordle is...

LOBBY

Don't feel down if you didn't manage to guess it this time. There will be a new Wordle for you to stretch your brain with tomorrow, and we'll be back again to guide you with more helpful hints. Are you also playing NYT Strands? See hints and answers for today's Strands.

Reporting by Chance Townsend, Caitlin Welsh, Sam Haysom, Amanda Yeo, Shannon Connellan, Cecily Mauran, Mike Pearl, and Adam Rosenberg contributed to this article.

If you're looking for more puzzles, Mashable's got games now! Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.

Not the day you're after? Here's the solution to yesterday's Wordle.

It seems Sony has been experimenting with dynamic pricing across the PlayStation Store, apparently since as early as November of last year, targeting discounts to specific player regions. This is according to the website PSPrices, which has closely tracked trends in Sony’s pricing over time, and it recently reported an increase in the number of games undergoing dynamic pricing. 

In 68 regions and across 139 games, including first-party AAA titles like God of War, Spider-Man, HELLDIVERS 2, and Stellar Blade, Sony offered average discounts ranging from just over 5 percent at the low end to nearly 18 percent at the high end. PSPrices even discovered that personalized discounts were being offered, with some lucky accounts receiving a massive 56 percent off the regular price of the popular Helldivers 2 game.

Currently, both the United States and Japan are exempt from the experiment, likely due to stricter market regulations, but that still means that millions of customers in Europe, the Middle East, Asia, Latin America, and Africa

If Sony embraces dynamic pricing across the board, it may also seek to selectively raise prices on its most popular or in-demand titles, a practice known as "surge pricing." Furthermore, learning that one player in a gaming lobby paid full price for a game while another player from a different country received a 50 percent discount may not sit well with some gamers, and is likely to provoke some backlash if or when the dynamic pricing policy becomes standard store-wide.

As of this writing, Sony has not publicly commented on the experiment. At a time of economic uncertainty and general consumer anxiety, gaming companies have faced heightened scrutiny over their pricing, so it will be interesting to see whether they move forward with dynamic pricing.

Last fall, OpenAI, the parent company of ChatGPT, promised that it would enable an “adult mode” for verified users of the service sometime in the first quarter of 2026. Today, we learned that the service has been delayed.

In a brief roundup, independent journalist Alex Heath revealed on his newsletter, Sources, that an OpenAI spokesperson told him that the company was "pushing out the launch of adult mode." OpenAI stated further that the company wanted to "focus on work that is a higher priority for more users right now," such as "personality improvements, personalization, and making the experience more proactive."

The news may disappoint some, as the "adult mode" was allegedly meant to launch in Q1 of this year. Erotica is understood to be a potentially lucrative market for AI, and many people are already relying on generative AI for romantic connections or to find "digital companions" for NSFW chatting. However, there's also apprehension about the marriage of artificial intelligence and human sexuality, with experts warning about the “AI porn problem” and the ethical problems that might arise from handing an all-powerful software access to our fantasies. 

According to reporting by the Wall Street Journal, one former OpenAI employee even claims they were fired because of concerns they raised about the promised launch of erotic content on the service, specifically surrounding the mental health of ChatGPT users and the ease with which teenagers might still access the content. Elon Musk’s Grok A.I. has already faced heavy criticism for its “digital undressing” feature, used to disrobe real people without their consent.

Despite the controversy and the latest delay, OpenAI has continued to roll out age verification features to gatekeep functions and hasn’t shied away from its commitment to giving its users the maximum autonomy. "We still believe in the principle of treating adults like adults," the spokesperson told Heath, "but getting the experience right will take more time."

Disclosure: Ziff Davis, Mashable’s parent company, in April filed a lawsuit against OpenAI, alleging it infringed Ziff Davis copyrights in training and operating its AI systems.

Welcome to your guide to Pips, the latest game in the New York Times catalogue.

Released in August 2025, the Pips puts a unique spin on dominoes, creating a fun single-player experience that could become your next daily gaming habit.

Currently, if you're stuck, the game only offers to reveal the entire puzzle, forcing you to move onto the next difficulty level and start over. However, we have you covered! Below are piecemeal answers that will serve as hints so that you can find your way through each difficulty level.

If you've ever played dominoes, you'll have a passing familiarity for how Pips is played. As we've shared in our previous hints stories for Pips, the tiles, like dominoes, are placed vertically or horizontally and connect with each other. The main difference between a traditional game of dominoes and Pips is the color-coded conditions you have to address. The touching tiles don't necessarily have to match.

The conditions you have to meet are specific to the color-coded spaces. For example, if it provides a single number, every side of a tile in that space must add up to the number provided. It is possible – and common – for only half a tile to be within a color-coded space.

Here are common examples you'll run into across the difficulty levels:

• Number: All the pips in this space must add up to the number.

• Equal: Every domino half in this space must be the same number of pips.

• Not Equal: Every domino half in this space must have a completely different number of pips.

• Less than: Every domino half in this space must add up to less than the number.

• Greater than: Every domino half in this space must add up to more than the number.

If an area does not have any color coding, it means there are no conditions on the portions of dominoes within those spaces.

Number (7): Everything in this space must add up to 7. The answer is 6-0, placed horizontally; 1-3, placed vertically.

Equal (0): Everything in this space must be equal to 0. The answer is 6-0, placed horizontally; 0-0, placed horizontally.

Number (4): Everything in this space must add up to 4. The answer is 1-3, placed vertically; 1-2, placed horizontally.

Equal (2): Everything in this space must be equal to 2. The answer is 1-2, placed horizontally; 2-3, placed horizontally.

Number (3): Everything in this space must add up to 3. The answer is 2-3, placed horizontally.

Equal (3): Everything in this space must be equal to 3. The answer is 3-3, placed horizontally; 3-6, placed vertically.

Equal (1): Everything in this space must be equal to 1. The answer is 1-1, placed vertically; 5-1, placed horizontally.

Greater Than (0): Everything in this space must be greater than 0. The answer is 2-0, placed horizontally.

Greater Than (0): Everything in this space must be greater than 0. The answer is 4-6, placed horizontally.

Equal (6): Everything in this space must be equal to 6. The answer is 3-6, placed vertically; 6-0, placed horizontally; 4-6, placed horizontally.

Number (10): Everything in this space must add up to 10. The answer is 5-5, placed horizontally.

Number (3): Everything in this space must add up to 3. The answer is 3-6, placed horizontally.

Number (18): Everything in this space must add up to 18. The answer is 3-6, placed horizontally; 6-0, placed horizontally; 6-5, placed vertically.

Number (10): Everything in this space must add up to 10. The answer is 6-5, placed vertically; 3-5, placed vertically.

Equal (4): Everything in this space must be equal to 4. The answer is 4-4, placed horizontally.

Number (0): Everything in this space must add up to 0. The answer is 6-0, placed horizontally; 0-3, placed vertically.

Equal (1): Everything in this space must be equal to 1. The answer is 1-2, placed horizontally; 1-3, placed vertically.

Equal (3): Everything in this red space must be equal to 3. The answer is 3-5, placed vertically; 0-3, placed vertically; 1-3, placed vertically.

Number (5): Everything in this space must add up to 5. The answer is 1-2, placed horizontally; 2-4, placed horizontally; 1-5, placed vertically.

Number (10): Everything in this orange space must add up to 10. The answer is 1-5, placed vertically; 4-5, placed vertically.

Equal (4): Everything in this red space must be equal to 4. The answer is 1-4, placed vertically; 2-4, placed horizontally; 4-5, placed vertically.

Number (3): Everything in this space must add up to 3. The answer is 0-2, placed vertically; 1-4, placed vertically; 2-3, placed horizontally.

Number (2): Everything in this space must add up to 2. The answer is 0-2, placed vertically.

Number (7): Everything in this space must add up to 7. The answer is 4-6, placed vertically; 2-3, placed horizontally.

Number (18): Everything in this space must add up to 18. The answer is 4-6, placed vertically; 6-6, placed vertically.

If you're looking for more puzzles, Mashable's got games now! Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.

Today's Connections: Sports Edition is for anyone who's ever lived in Arizona.

As we've shared in previous hints stories, this is a version of the popular New York Times word game that seeks to test the knowledge of sports fans.

Like the original Connections, the game is all about finding the "common threads between words." And just like Wordle, Connections resets after midnight and each new set of words gets trickier and trickier — so we've served up some hints and tips to get you over the hurdle.

If you just want to be told today's puzzle, you can jump to the end of this article for the latest Connections solution. But if you'd rather solve it yourself, keep reading for some clues, tips, and strategies to assist you.

The NYT's latest daily word game has launched in association with The Athletic, the New York Times property that provides the publication's sports coverage. Connections can be played on both web browsers and mobile devices and require players to group four words that share something in common.

Each puzzle features 16 words and each grouping of words is split into four categories. These sets could comprise of anything from book titles, software, country names, etc. Even though multiple words will seem like they fit together, there's only one correct answer.

If a player gets all four words in a set correct, those words are removed from the board. Guess wrong and it counts as a mistake — players get up to four mistakes until the game ends.

Players can also rearrange and shuffle the board to make spotting connections easier. Additionally, each group is color-coded with yellow being the easiest, followed by green, blue, and purple. Like Wordle, you can share the results with your friends on social media.

Want a hint about the categories without being told the categories? Then give these a try:

• Yellow: Sports in the Copper State

• Green: Advanced stats

• Blue: Non-power conferences

• Purple: Receivers

Need a little extra help? Today's connections fall into the following categories:

• Yellow: Arizona Teams

• Green: Baseball Stats, Abbreviated

• Blue: Mid-Major College Conferences

• Purple: NFL WR Nicknames

Looking for Wordle today? Here's the answer to today's Wordle.

Ready for the answers? This is your last chance to turn back and solve today's puzzle before we reveal the solutions.

Drumroll, please!

The solution to today's Connections: Sports Edition #530 is...

• Arizona Teams - CARDINALS, MERCURY, SUN DEVILS, SUNS

• Baseball Stats, Abbreviated - ERA, IP, OPS, WAR

• Mid-Major College Conferences - HORIZON, OHIO VALLEY, SUMMIT, SUN BELT

• NFL WR Nicknames - HOLLYWOOD, JSN, NUK, SUN GOD

Don't feel down if you didn't manage to guess it this time. There will be new sports Connections for you to stretch your brain with tomorrow, and we'll be back again to guide you with more helpful hints.

Are you also playing NYT Strands? See hints and answers for today's Strands.

If you're looking for more puzzles, Mashable's got games now! Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.

Not the day you're after? Here's the solution to yesterday's Connections.

Bad news for gamers: the much-hyped Steam Machine, long rumored to see the light of day in the first half of 2026, may be delayed even longer due to memory and storage shortages and the astronomically high prices these shortages are pushing on to consumers. 

With the expansion of artificial intelligence, gaming hardware manufacturers have to compete for memory, storage, and graphical processing power with the deep pockets of Google, Microsoft, and OpenAI, all of whom are racing to outcompete one another and win the AI race. 

As recently as February, Valve made some concessions to this reality in a blog post: 

"When we announced these products in November, we planned to share specific pricing and launch dates by now. But the memory and storage shortages you've likely heard about across the industry have rapidly increased since then. The limited availability and growing prices of these critical components mean we must revisit our exact shipping schedule and pricing (especially around Steam Machine and Steam Frame)."

For the unaware, the Steam Machine is Valve’s latest attempt to leverage its dominant software position in the PC gaming market into hardware, promising what amounts to a budget gaming PC with the form factor of a gaming console allegedly priced under $1,000 but still capable of offering “4K gaming at 60 FPS with FSR” with either 512GB or 2TB of native storage, expandable via microSD, and running on their proprietary SteamOS. 

In their "Steam Year in Review 2025" update, Valve initially wrote that they "hope to ship in 2026," potentially indicating that the launch of the Steam Machine and its key accessories, the Steam Frame VR headset and controller, would be delayed until next year, but they have since amended the sentence to be more optimistic: "we will be shipping all three products this year."

While that almost certainly means we will have to wait until the second half of 2026, it also helps keep the hope alive among gamers hoping for a better budget gaming experience.