Category: Uncategorized

Germany & France Forge Media Alliance to Fight Disinformation Summary: Germany and France have agreed to deepen media cooperation and explore a new alliance against disinformation, with public broadcasters ARTE and Deutsche Welle reportedly involved. Culture Minister Wolfram Weimer said the move aims to strengthen Europe’s democratic stability and protect cultural autonomy. Original (German) – translated to English "Deutschland und Frankreich wollen ihre Zusammenarbeit im Medienbereich vertiefen und haben dazu im Rahmen des Deutsch-Französischen Ministerrats in Toulon eine Vereinbarung geschlossen, die eine neue Allianz gegen Desinformation entstehen lassen soll. Kulturstaatsminister Wolfram Weimer erklärte, dass damit die demokratische Stabilität Europas gestärkt und die kulturelle Eigenständigkeit gesichert werden solle." Translation: "Germany and France want to deepen their cooperation in the media sector and have concluded an agreement within the framework of the…

Best Labor Day Tech Deals — Top Picks Labor Day can be a great time to pick up discounted tech — from laptops and tablets to robot vacuums and power banks. Below are top picks and quick notes; click any product to search for it on Amazon (affiliate links). Apple MacBook Air (13-inch, M4) — $799 ($200 off). Thin, light, long battery life. Search on Amazon Apple iPad (11-inch, A16) — $299 ($50 off). Solid performance and 128GB base. Search on Amazon Apple iPad Air (11-inch, M3) — $449 ($150 off). More powerful M3 chip and better display. Search on Amazon Sony WH-CH520 — $38 (46% off). Affordable wireless headphones with long battery life. Search on Amazon Anker 25K 100W Laptop Power Bank — $95. Large capacity, built-in cables. Search…

Anthropic to use private Claude chats and coding sessions for AI training — opt-out required Summary: Anthropic (the US AI company behind Claude) plans to use private chat logs from the Claude app and private programming/coding sessions of consumer users to train its models. Users who do not want their content used must actively opt out. The company also intends to retain user data for up to five years by default unless a user objects. English translation of original (from German) "Anthropic plans to from now on also use chat transcripts from the Claude app and programming sessions from private customers for training its models. Those who do not want personal content to be used in the development of the systems must actively object. At the same time, the company…

Dreame Matrix10 Ultra: Premium robot vacuum + mop Dreame’s upcoming Matrix10 Ultra is positioned as a flagship robot vacuum and mop that combines very high suction with a fully automatic mop-pad management system. Reported highlights: Suction: Around 30,000 Pa — among the strongest for consumer robot vacuums. Automatic mop exchange: The dock can store three specialized pads (e.g., degreaser, sponge, microfiber) and automatically swaps, washes and hot‑air dries them (reported up to ~100 °C). Vacuum + mop combo: Designed to switch between heavy suction cleaning and adaptable mopping modes without manual intervention. Mobility: Advanced suspension/retractable-wheel design to clear high thresholds and thick rugs. Estimated price & availability: Reported around €2,000 and expected to launch in Fall 2025; exact regional pricing and retailer availability may vary. At present there are previews…

MasterClass: 50% Off Annual Subscriptions (Labor Day Sale) MasterClass is offering 50% off the first year of its annual memberships, giving access to 200+ classes taught by top creators and experts — authors, chefs, athletes and industry leaders. What you get Access to 200+ instructor-led classes (video lessons + workbooks) Examples: James Patterson (writing), Thomas Keller (cooking), Steph Curry (basketball) Original series like Business Rebels and Skin Health Plans & Discounted Pricing (first year) Standard: ~$5/month (billed annually ≈ $60/year) — 1 device Plus: ~$8/month (billed annually ≈ $96/year) — 2 devices Premium: ~$10/month (billed annually ≈ $120/year) — up to 6 devices + offline downloads Note: MasterClass bills annually. These prices reflect the 50% off first-year promotion; subscriptions auto-renew at the regular price unless canceled. The promotion generally applies…

Google Calling Cards for Android — What you need to know Google has started rolling out "Calling Cards" for the Android Phone and Contacts apps (Phone app v188, Contacts beta). The feature lets you set full-screen photos and stylized names for contacts that appear on incoming and outgoing calls — but only on your device. Unlike Apple's Contact Posters, you can’t control how others see you; you can only customize how contacts appear on your phone. How it works Open the Contacts app (beta may be required) and view a contact's details. Tap "Try adding a calling card" to pick a photo from your gallery or take a new picture. Customize the font type and color for the contact's displayed name. When that contact calls, the calling card takes over…

NordVPN 2-Year Plans: Up to 77% Off — Plus & Prime Details NordVPN is running a promotion on long-term plans, with discounts up to 77% and an extra 3 months added to two-year subscriptions. If you’ve been considering a VPN upgrade, now’s a good time to check the offers. Deals at a glance NordVPN Plus — 2 years + 3 months for $108 (about 73% off). Includes Threat Protection Pro, password manager, and an ad & tracker blocker. NordVPN Prime — 2 years + 3 months for $189 (about 77% off). Adds encrypted cloud storage and identity-theft monitoring (NordProtect) on top of the Plus features. What you get The Plus plan bundles the VPN service with Threat Protection Pro (anti-malware), a password manager, and ad/tracker blocking. Prime adds encrypted cloud…

Google expands NotebookLM — Audio Overviews, Video Overviews & more Google is continuing to develop NotebookLM, the free learning app first introduced in May. Recent updates add mobile-friendly Audio Overviews (podcast-style summaries), Video Overviews, interactive mind maps, improved Q&A with citations and deeper source integration — all designed to make studying and research faster and more engaging. Key features in the update Audio Overviews: Convert notes and sources into podcast-style audio for mobile listening. Video Overviews & narrated slides: Visual summaries to supplement study sessions. Interactive mind maps: Visualize relationships between concepts and sources. Improved Q&A with citations: Get sourced answers for research-backed study. Discover & import sources: Easier integration of external materials. Although NotebookLM is powerful and free, some users say the name "NotebookLM" is not very intuitive and…

Microsoft makes cloud the default save location — Word on Windows leads the change Microsoft is shifting the default save behavior in Microsoft 365: new documents in Word for Windows (starting with version 2509) will be created and saved to OneDrive or SharePoint by default, with AutoSave enabled. Microsoft plans to apply similar changes to other Office apps such as Excel and PowerPoint in the future. What this means for users New Word documents will default to cloud storage (OneDrive/SharePoint) and AutoSave will be on. Users who prefer storing files locally may notice the Save dialog defaulting to OneDrive rather than local folders. Concerns include privacy, offline access and user control — but local saving remains possible. How to revert to local saving by default Open Word > File >…

Labor Day AirTag 4‑Pack Deal: $70 — Is It Worth It? Right now you can grab a 4‑pack of Apple AirTags for $70 — one of the best prices we've seen this year. If you're deep in Apple's ecosystem, this is a solid buy: AirTags offer precise locating with ultra-wideband (UWB) on recent iPhones, a massive Find My network for longer-range recovery, and a loud chime to help find lost items nearby. Why buy an AirTag? Ultra-wideband (UWB) precision with iPhones less than ~5 years old for close-range locating. Find My network leverages millions of Apple devices to help locate lost items over distance. Simple, coin-sized design and seamless integration with the Find My app. Can make a loud chime to help pinpoint your item. Drawbacks No built-in keyring or…