I used to dread resetting my computer to fix something major. But Claude AI taught me a new trick that makes everything easy.

“Peggle,” my favorite game of all time, recently stopped working. I tried uninstalling and reinstalling it. I also asked Microsoft’s Copilot AI for help, but it sent me on a wild goose chase, directing me to uninstall a driver, run compatibility mode and try some complicated codes in the Command Prompt, or what we used to call DOS. Frustrated, I turned to Claude AI.

Claude said my Peggle problem was likely caused by the latest update from the “Windows Insider Preview,” a beta version of Windows 11. It directed me to Microsoft.com to get a well-tested version of Windows 11 as an ISO file.

“Uh oh,” I thought. In the old days, you either had to burn an ISO file to a DVD or use a third party app to launch it virtually. But these days, Claude said, it will automatically mount itself onto a virtual drive in File Explorer. Then all you have to do is click “setup.” Presto! Claude was right. It automatically installed a fresh copy of Windows 11. Afterwards, my Peggle game worked beautifully. My files were there too but not all of my apps. Oh well, I don’t mind reinstalling a couple of them.

PAY WITH YOUR WATCH

I feel so techy when I hold my Apple Watch up to a card reader to pay for something.

Here’s how you can do it too. Once you’ve added a credit card to the Apple Wallet app, just double tap the side button below the watch crown to bring up the card, then hold it over the card reader. On the Samsung Galaxy Watch, press and hold the lower button on the side of the watch for a second or two. This brings up your credit cards.

COMMODORE 64 PHONE

Commodore International just came out with a flip phone for fans of the Commodore 64, a wildly popular computer in the 1980s and early ’90s. It looks like the 1970s Commodore calculator.

The Callback 8020 aims to remove distractions. For example, it blocks Instagram, Facebook, TikTok and all web browsers. But it includes Commodore 64-era games and 99 percent of the apps in the Google Play Store. It should be available in fourth quarter 2026 for $500 to $640.

DOCTOR CHATGPT

A new version of ChatGPT, called “GPT-5.5” is a much improved virtual doctor, whether you’re asking about lab results, insurance, an urgent situation, or complex health information you’re struggling to understand. Its parent company, OpenAI, worked with more than 260 licensed physicians in 60 countries, 49 languages, and 26 medical specialties to review its answers.

To start, go to ChatGPT.com or open the app on your phone. Be sure you spell “ChatGPT” correctly. (Once I put in a “B” instead of “P” and landed at a scammer’s site.)To find out if the latest GPT-5.5 version has rolled out to your neighborhood, type: “What model are you using?”

I decided to compare GPT-5.5’s new insightfulness with Google Gemini, by sharing my recent Lipoprotein(a) score, which is high, due to genetics. GPT suggested I have it tested annually, but Gemini said that was a mistake. LP(a) is a one-and-done test unless you’re part of a clinical trial for one of the new, gene-silencing therapies that turn off Lp(a) production, Gemini explained. GPT tried to justify itself by saying that lab tests can err and should be repeated. But I prefer Gemini anyway, mostly for its encouraging tone.

TECH PRICES

We’ve gotten so used to tech prices going down, it’s shocking to see them going up. HP executives explained that with RAM prices up 100 percent, due to heavy demand from AI, they had to raise prices.The makers of the budget “Nothing” phone say they canceled this year’s model due to high RAM prices.

Sixteen devices are now more expensive, according to Mashable. They include laptops from Acer, Asus, Dell, HP, Lenovo and Microsoft, gaming products from MSI and Moto G phones from Motorola. Relief is coming in 2028, according to a research manager with the International Data Corporation. But he just expects prices to stabilize, not decrease.

NUMBERS REPORT

In a survey of 500 US adults, HostingAdvice.com discovered that more than 80 percent of us have never considered owning a website with our name on it, such as MarySmith.com. Fourteen percent say that their name is already taken. Only two percent own a personal-name domain.

AI LEARNS PHYSICS

What if an AI bot could learn enough basic physics to start inventing new products, like lighter eyeglasses and better phone cameras? That’s what scientists at Chalmers University of Technology in Sweden are aiming for. Their new super brain is already helping build Sweden’s first large-scale quantum computer. It’s also helping scientists find new materials to control how light travels. They’re inventing things more quickly because the new approach enables them to cut a 30-day training process to three days.

INTERNUT

Search on “threads of underground fungal networks reach beyond the solar system,” to learn about the fabulous fungi that have been mapped for the first time by SPUN, the Society for the Protection of Underground Networks. The fungi store carbon, helping prevent a hot climate.

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“What women’s club role should I choose?” I wondered. To help me answer this, I enlisted the help of an artificially-intelligent board of directors.

The result was stunning. In our fascinating back-and-forth discussion, a consensus emerged.

The same technique could be used to get advice for starting a new business, raising a child or moving to Timbuktu. PC World offers the exact steps. Here they are.

First, go to your favorite AI website or your favorite AI app, whether it’s ChatGPT or something else. (I prefer Claude AI over ChatGPT, though both are great.) Second, type in a question. Third, add the following statement, including everything that’s shown below between the quote marks.

“I want you to act as my personal board of advisors. The board has four members, each with a distinct lens:

– A pragmatic operator who cares about what’s actually doable this week

– A long-term strategist who thinks in years, not days

– A blunt skeptic whose only job is to poke holes in my thinking

– A wise mentor who asks about what really matters to me

Have each member weigh in one at a time, in their own voice, starting their reply with their name in brackets. They’re allowed to disagree with each other. After all four have spoken, give me a short board summary of where they agree, where they clash, and the one question I should answer before I decide.”

The blunt skeptic tried to talk me out of the women’s club committee I was leaning toward, but the wise mentor, pragmatic operator and long-term strategist understood the big picture. With more info, the skeptic came on board. I felt like a CEO.

According to my board, I was in danger of overcommitment if I chose the Social Committee over the Grants Committee. The Skeptic and the Mentor both noted my enthusiasm for the Grants Committee. In response, like a good CEO, I gave them more info. Finally, they all agreed that the Social Committee was best.

Pendant Tracks Sun Exposure

Growing up in sunny Southern California, I never took my car if I could row a boat, ride a bike or walk a mile. The penalty? Twenty-two skin cancers and counting.

Enter Dr. Richard Weller, a world-renowned dermatologist. He helped develop a necklace that tracks your exposure to ultraviolet rays. It’s called “The90 Gem.”

The Gem measures both UVA (the rays linked to aging) and UVB (the rays that cause burning) in real time. Taking into account your personal metrics, the necklace considers all the exposure you get in a day, even the small bits, like the sun streaming through your home windows, poking into your car, and shining on your errands. It’s called “The90” because 90 percent of visible aging is caused by UV exposure.

The90 Gem looks like a circular pendant surrounded by a frame of gold or silver. Besides the UV sensor, it has an accelerometer and a Bluetooth chip to communicate with a free phone app. It can handle everyday water exposure (splash, rain, shower, sweat) but not submersion. It’s $199 at The90.com.

Privacy Pitfalls

I’ve never been one to worry about nosy smart devices, but Mark Meckler, a technology attorney and former social media CEO, says we should be concerned, especially if there are young children at home.

Your smart TV, voice assistants, and connected toys constantly take note of what you watch, what you say, when your kids are home, and what your household routines are, in order to produce a digital dossier on each member. Without meaningful consent from you, or accountability, the data is used to train AI systems, Meckler said.

But I thought this data was “anonymized.” Not so. A landmark study by researchers at Imperial College London and UCLouvain in Belgium found that 81 percent of Americans could be re-identified from their zip code, gender and date of birth alone. With 12 more traits, 99.98 percent could be identified.

Here are Meckler’s three tips. First, disable the always-on voice assistant’s wake words on your smartphone or smart speakers when not actively needed, or turn your bedrooms into device-free zones. Tap to take Alexa offline, tap again to bring her back. It’s quick.

Second, go to your phone’s settings to turn off ad personalization, location tracking history, and activity tracking. If you don’t know how to do that, Google it.

Third, consider switching to a privacy-centric browser like Brave to block hidden background trackers. As the old saying goes, if a product is free, you’re the product.

Numbers Report

Companies that give AI expanded access to systems and data have experienced a 43 percent breach rate over the past year, compared to an 11 percent security problem among companies that didn’t allow expanded AI access. This info comes from cybersecurity firm Netwrix, which examined data from 2300 IT and security professionals.

New Use for Old Styrafoam

What if that old Styrofoam cup could be turned into a sponge that captures carbon dioxide? It would become useful again. Currently, only one percent of Styrofoam escapes the landfills.

A new study from Aarhus University shows that discarded polystyrene—the plastic used to make Styrofoam cups, plastic utensils, and CD cases—can be turned into a material that captures CO₂. The new material acts like a sponge to capture carbon from highly concentrated sources, like factory smokestacks, as well as from regular air.

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Without Gemini, Google’s artificially intelligent bot, I might never have figured out how to get the most out of my new Bilt credit card. Gemini is a whiz at finance.

A Bilt card works like a virtual bank. Besides having its own routing number, it offers a virtual bank account number. This way you can earn points for charging your rent, mortgage or Home Owners Association fee without incurring a “convenience” fee. But you also need to make at least four other regular credit card transactions. “Could I buy a pack of gum four times?” I asked. Yes, Gemini said, but it wouldn’t be ideal.

Here’s a better way to go. I could use my Bilt virtual bank account to pay a $700 mortgage, rent or HOA. Then, if I also charged $85 at the grocery story each week, and $40 at a restaurant or gas station each month, I’d accumulate around 17,000 points by year’s end. That would give me $300 in purchases at American Airlines, United, Air Canada, Hyatt Hotels, Holiday Inn, Marriott and others. Choosing a cash reward instead would only get me $93.50, or .0055 times the number of points.

But that doesn’t take into account Bilt’s new multiplier effect, which is huge if your non-housing purchases equal or surpass the amount you spend on housing. In that case, you’d get 1.25 times as many points as you would normally. For example, if your housing costs are $700 a month and you spent $700 on other stuff, you get 875 points instead of 700, just for the housing component. Adding in the points you’d get for your credit card spending, you’d accumulate a total of 1,575 points a month or 18,900 points a year.

Likewise, if you pay your recurring charges on the first of the month, it’s worth even more points.  That’s why I changed my autopay settings to the first. For more info, ask Gemini. 

Beyond Finance

Gemini is great for finance, but I use it for other activities too. For example, after Google Maps showed me an 11-minute bike route through dense traffic, I asked Gemini for a longer, but safer route. It was both safer and more scenic. 

The easiest way to use Gemini is to fire up the Google Chrome web browser on your computer and tap the sparkling star in the upper right corner. That way it can see what you’re working on. It may ask you if you want to use “Connected Apps.” These allow it to search your Gmail, Google Docs and Google Drive to look up facts you’ve forgotten or answer questions about anything else. 

One way to use Gemini on your phone is the “@” shortcut. If you type “@” without the quotes in the search box, a menu pops up with app suggestions. For example, if you selected Google Drive or Gmail, you might then ask the AI to instantly analyze a specific document or find an old email thread, saving you from digging through folders.

App Happy

“Voice Memos” is a free app for recording your thoughts. It sure beats my pen scratchings at bedside, since I usually can’t read my own handwriting the next day. It’s also better than telling Alexa to remember something since she garbles anything longer than a few words. Now I just tap the app and hit “record.”

Need a Foldable?

A reader wrote to say he’s disappointed with his iPhone Pro Max 17 since it’s not as big as he expected. Though he enlarged the font, the keyboard is still tiny. Should he get a much larger, foldable phone?

I don’t think so. He could save thousands by getting a phone stand and a wireless keyboard instead. Walmart and Amazon sell them as a set for around $24. Besides, Apple has yet to come out with its first foldable, and as a long-time iPhone user, he might not be happy switching to Android.   

The first so-called Apple Fold should arrive sometime in 2027, not September as others have predicted. It’s expected to be sturdier, wider and squatter than current foldables, as well as ultra thin like the new iPhone Air, with a superior chip. Price: around $2500.

Foldables have been around since 2018, but I saw my first, a Samsung Z Fold6, only a few weeks ago.The owner said he was glad it was under warranty, because it got bubbles along the crease within two years. He mainly keeps it folded, opening it only for photos, videos and spreadsheets. But for spreadsheets, he adds a keyboard.

Free Aquarium

 Ashampoo.com is offering free virtual aquariums for your computer’s wallpaper. Just search on “aquarium,” and type the code “FREEFISH” before July 15. The Live Aquarium 4K⁠ has 25 species of fish and a choice of backgrounds. I like the one with all the sharks. The company is offering this freebie to the first 65,000 who register. Click here to redeem

Night Photography

If your iPhone uses iOS 26, it has the new “Night Mode Max” for taking pictures in the dark. According to CNET, this allows your phone camera to capture three times more light during a 30-second exposure. But you’ll need a tripod to truly capture the stars.

Internut

Search on “Stump House, 1905” to see an example of the days when Americans lived inside tree stumps. 

Filed under: AI, apps, business, free stuff, Internuts, phones | Comments Off on USING GEMINI TO GET REWARDS

To do some chores, I hired a Venezuelan who doesn’t speak English. So I turned to Google Live Translate.

First, I fired up the app and said: “Here’s where you should start today.” Immediately, we heard those words in Spanish. Then, when the Venezuelan said “Ok, muy bueno,” we heard “OK, very good.” It was practically seamless.

But Apple’s Translate app is even better. You don’t have to tap “English to Spanish,” then “Spanish to English” whenever you want to switch. Just speak and you’ll hear the translation in any of 19 languages. 

But what if you need to speak to someone in another country? With an iPhone 15 Pro or newer, you can hear a live translation in English even if the other person is on a landline. I tested this by calling my landline from my iPhone 16e while the landline was picking up a Spanish conversation from YouTube. There was only a slight lag between the Spanish and the English translation. What’s more, it’s a two-way street. The call recipient hears their language while you hear yours.

Best of all are the newer Apple Airpods.They remind me of those old movies where a United Nations translator is sitting in a glass booth to translate the words that diplomats will hear in their own language instantaneously. The Airpods, together with the freeTranslate app, can do the same thing, also instantaneously. 

Getting Answers You Like

Here’s how you can influence the kind of answers you get from Google AI Summaries. Whether you’re left-wing, right-wing or independent, carnivore or vegan, surfer dude or buttoned-down accountant, you can theoretically get answers just from the sources you trust. I say “theoretically,” because it didn’t work in my tests. But there’s an easy work-around.

I started at google.com/preferences/source. Then, following Google’s instructions, I typed my sources in a list that Google can see. But Google ignored them, answering my queries with its usual links. The only way I could get the spin I wanted was to directly ask Google to include them. For example, I typed: “What does NPR have to say about the war in Iran?” Then I tried: “What does Fox News have to say about the Iran war?” Each worked perfectly. 

Amazon Credit Card Tip

Here’s something I just learned. For maximum savings, you shouldn’t use your Amazon Prime Visa’s accumulated points at the Amazon.com checkout screen. Instead, charge the full amount to your Prime Visa in order to get five percent back. Then, log into your Chase account and apply your points as a statement credit to help pay your balance.

Over the Limit

In my last month with Consumer Cellular, I went well over my five gigabyte data limit. One of the culprits could have been “background fetching.” 

Some apps, especially those that use AI, update their content in the background, even when you aren’t using them. So unless you have unlimited data, you may want to disable that. Just look up “background fetching” in Settings and turn it off.

Next, consider disabling Wi-Fi Assist. It automatically switches your phone to cellular data when your Wi-Fi signal is weak. To disable it, go to Settings, search for “Wi-Fi Assist” and turn it off. On an Android phone: go to Settings, then search for the “automatic mobile data switching option.”

Finally, there’s “Low Data Mode.” Besides stopping background tasks, it reduces the quality of streaming videos, and pauses automatic photo syncing when you’re not in Wi-Fi range. You can save data this way too.

Wi-Fi Calling

If you haven’t turned on Wi-Fi calling, you might want to consider doing so. Otherwise, you might be out of range of a cell tower with no other way to call someone. In a doctor’s office for example, connecting to a Wi-Fi network is as easy as asking them for the password, if it isn’t already posted somewhere.

But first you need to enable it. For iPhones and Androids, you can do so by going to Settings, and typing “Wi-Fi calling” in the search bar. When it comes up, toggle the switch to “on.”

AI Mistakes

Recently, I asked Google Gemini for help altering a pie crust recipe to exclude butter and eggs.  I thought I had a great recipe, but later I noticed that it had left out the baking powder. According to Google’s most recent data, responses by Google’s AI Mode and Gemini may only be accurate 68.8 to 83.8 percent of the time.  

Numbers Report

Arkansas is fourth in the nation in the amount of jobs requiring AI skills. According to Acuity.co, a leading bookkeeping platform, about 14 percent of tech jobs in Arkansas require them. Delaware, Alaska and New York are first, second and third in the amount of AI knowledge employers require for tech jobs. California and Washington aren’t in the top five.

Internuts

– Trailverse.com is an easy way to explore our national parks. Besides all the info you could possibly want, it has an AI tool called “Trailie” to help you plan your visit.

–“April 13, 2029.” Search on that phrase to discover an asteroid about the size of the Eiffel Tower that will pass closer to Earth in 2029 than TV satellites do, a once-in-a-thousand-years event.

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Given that I went to five colleges, it’s not that surprising that I switched phone services four times in four years.

I would never have left Tracfone but for a mighty snafu. When I got tired of using an ancient iPhone, I had the clever idea of  moving my Tracfone SIM card to an Android phone without mentioning it to Tracfone. ​A​ year later, my account disappeared. So one day, I was left high and dry without the means to summon a Lyft. Though I couldn’t complain after ​​12 months of free ca​ll​i​ng, Tracfone’s tech support couldn’t figure out what to do with me, so I moved on. I think their support is better now. 

After AT&T and Xfinity, I chose Consumer Cellular. I was overjoyed at first, but started getting dropped calls every darn day.Turning back to Tracfone, I hoped they had forgotten about my previous snafu.  Sure enough they had. I’m not getting dropped calls anymore and my best friend says I sound better on the phone. Tracfone is owned by Verizon.

Gotta love that Tracfone pricing. I’m getting 10 gigabytes with unlimited talk and text for $20 a month. Any gigabytes I don’t use each month go into my Tracfone piggy bank for later. 

Getting Away from AI

“The only sane people I know are me and thee, and sometimes I wonder about thee.” A friend Googled that quotation to be sure he had it right. 

To his surprise, Google’s artificial intelligence chimed in like a worried psychologist. “If you’re riding solo today and need a break,” it said tactfully, “you can track down local sanity-saving spots.” After naming some, it ended with “Cheers to the select few who still have their heads on straight!”

“Note that I didn’t ask for any of this,” my friend said. “I just wanted to be sure how the saying went. I tell ya, this thing is trying to be too cozy. There’s something creepy about it. I don’t trust it.”

A great alternative is StartPage.com. It’s a privacy champion, and offers the traditional links, instead of AI. Use it on your computer, or download the Startpage phone and tablet app. DuckDuckGo is big on privacy too. They include an AI answer called Search Assist, but it’s less touchy-feely than Google’s version. Another great choice is Berlin-based ecosia.org. It gives you search results generated by Google and Bing, but no AI, unless you click “AI Chat.” Even better, it has its own solar plants, producing what it needs for its searches and selling the rest, and it’s planted over 250 million trees.

Forever Chemicals

“Forever chemicals” have been around since the 1940s. They’re “forever” because they don’t break down in the environment and can accumulate in the human body. Scientists call them “Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances” or PFAS.

But here’s the big breakthrough. Scientists have successfully used generative AI to help design materials from scratch that could remove these chemicals from our drinking and industrial water. These super materials are called “Metal-Organic Frameworks,” or MOFs.

Kemira, a chemical solutions provider, and CuspAI, an AI materials science company, are working together on this. In just six months, their AI platform was able to search through 300 trillion possible structures to provide over 5,000 possible designs. From there, they were able to narrow down the possibilities to about 20 priority candidates. The project is now in the testing phase. The new AI-driven materials have been designed to better pinpoint PFAS and remove them. Hopefully forever.

Free Cell Phone Service

You can use a cell phone for free if you turn on WiFi calling in settings and stay within WiFi range. 

It’s easy at college, because the campuses are blanketed in WiFi. Students can Facetime each other without having to head back to the dorm. Also popular is “WhatsApp.” For setup, you would just need to borrow a friend’s phone temporarily. Once you’ve verified the six-digit verification code they’ll text you, you won’t need it again. 

Yes, it could be scary when you’re out of WiFi range. A smartwatch, such as the Apple Watch SE, around $109 on Amazon is a great alternative. It can have its own phone number, but once again, you’d need to borrow someone’s phone number during setup. To make a call, just tap an app, or press the side button in an emergency. 

US Mobile has the cheapest standalone smartwatch plans: $6.50 a month if you pay $78 up front.  T-Mobile and Verizon smartwatch plans are $10 a month. Better Roaming offers a $9.50-a-month plan for Apple Watch only. With all, you get unlimited text and calling, plus access to the internet.

AI Map

How much will AI affect your job? Find out with the new “AI Labor Exposure” map from MIT. 

The areas in fiery red, including Boulder, Colorado, Ithaca, New York and San Jose, California are considered the most “AI Exposed.”  MIT scientists say that, in the US as a whole, AI could do the work of 18 million workers earning $1.4 trillion in wages, assuming AI completely replaces those tasks rather than just assisting workers. 

But would that be as bad as some fear? What will happen to all the money that companies save by using AI? They could use it to hire humans for jobs we can’t even conceive of now. 

Filed under: AI, environment, phones | Comments Off on CHANGING PHONE SERVICE AGAIN

Google offers two venues for AI chats, “AI Mode” and “Gemini.” Which is best? 

Googling the question, I went right into AI Mode. “Gemini is sometimes lazy, and may skip searching entirely, relying on outdated internal training data due to overconfidence,” it said. It may also “hallucinate web citations.” 

But Gemini is great for deep-dive tasks, multi-step reasoning, coding, complex writing, and file analysis. It can be used as a stand-alone app or at gemini.google.com. If you use the Chrome web browser, click the Gemini button to let it see your screen and answer questions. For instance, you could open a page in Wikipedia about quantum mechanics or Fred Astaire, then click the Gemini button to start a discussion. Gemini is also integrated into the Google App for Windows.

I’m not saying that Google Search’s AI Mode is chopped liver. Besides greater accuracy in web searches, it offers dozens of sources and neat summaries. For price comparisons and directions, it can connect to Google Flights, Google Shopping and Google Maps.

But can AI Mode handle personal matters? I decided to test it by asking: “Did I waste money going to Nashville for my friend’s baby shower?” AI Mode and I got into a long discussion, which I enjoyed immensely. “I can be just as thoughtful, patient, and understanding as a friend,” it said. But Gemini is much better at remembering your preferences and building on past conversations. AI Mode only remembered I’m a vegan because I let it check my Gmail. 

Here’s the bottom line: Use Gemini when you need to brainstorm, write a draft, or do heavy analytical lifting. Use AI Mode when you are searching for something and want the web’s best resources summarized in one place with interactive follow-up questions.

Googlebook Replaces Chromebook

Step aside Chromebook, here comes Googlebook. Aimed at Android owners, it’s a phone and laptop in one. 

The Googlebook allows you to install any app from the Google Play Store. But not every app will look right. Some may appear stretched. The alternative is the Googlebook’s “Cast My Apps.” It mirrors all your phone’s contents. For example, you could be editing an image on your phone and continue on the laptop.

A​nother plus: You won’t have to transfer files from your Android phone. Its file manager lets you browse, search or move your phone files, freeing up storage space automatically. You’ll also be able to copy text or images on the laptop and paste them into the phone. You can even use your phone’s cellular connection on the laptop, answering calls and responding to text messages, as long as your phone is within Bluetooth range, typically about 30 feet.

The laptop’s “Magic Pointer” is amazing. Just wiggle your mouse or a finger on a trackpad to activate AI content.  ​The cursor can see what’s beneath it, ​t​urning statistics into a pie chart, help​ing you visualize how new furniture would look, ​encapsulating an article, identify​ing a landmark and ​summarizing a video ​w​hen you pause on a frame. ​If you point at objects​ around you, it can give you directions or identifications. With “Show and Tell,” you can manipulate, edit, or move digital objects within an image using the pointer and your voice.

This fall, HP, Acer, Lenovo, Dell, and Asus, will sell their own versions for around $1500. They’re aiming to compete with the $1500-plus Macbook and the Copilot+ PC. For AI enthusiasts, it may be worth the price.

Free Isn’t Always Free

If there’s anything worse than having to make monthly payments for a smartwatch with a cracked screen that came out six years ago, it’s thinking that I got the watch for free.

As soon as I left Xfinity, the bill for my “free” Apple Watch SE came due. I never realized that when you leave a phone service, your monthly credits for any “free” devices evaporate. Suddenly, you’re paying each month instead of getting a credit. So when I demanded that Xfinity tell me why the charges started appearing four months ago, they said I still owed $180. I’ve paid $247 for a watch I could get on Amazon for $109.  Bummer.

Electric Car Battery News

Fast charging shortens your electric car’s battery, but Researchers at Chalmers University of Technology in Sweden can increase that by 23 percent without requiring a longer charging cycle. Instead of eight to 15 years, your car’s battery could last for 10 to 17.   

Here’s why. Fast charging forces a large current into the cells, causing side reactions such as “lithium plating.” That refers to metallic lithium being deposited on the electrode instead of getting stored in the battery’s structure. Using artificial intelligence, Chalmer scientists are able to train the charging software to avoid such reactions through rewards and reinforcement, kind of like training a seal. Amazingly, this isn’t a physical invention, it’s a software update. Car owners could add it without a mechanic’s help. 

Though it’s still in the testing phase, a 23 percent increase in battery life could lead to lower warranty costs, better resale value and more efficient use of lithium and other raw materials. 

Trends

According to Emarketer, both Google Gemini and Google AI Mode will become more popular than ChatGPT this year. Taking all AI into account, Google will take the lead by the first quarter of 2027.

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Some lawyers abuse AI, by allowing it to cite fake cases. But BrentWorks has a solution. 

Unlike AI, its “CiteSentinel” tool doesn’t guess if a case is real, then lie about it when confronted. It cross references cases against verified legal databases, by scanning a legal brief and identifying every string of text. 

Here’s one it would have caught before it ever went to court. In 2023, a man sued an airline after a metal cart struck his knee. His legal team used ChatGPT to generate arguments. The result was six fake citations. Even so, the team couldn’t resist turning to AI again when the judge asked for verification. Later, they had to pay a $5000 fine and send a copy of the judge’s blistering critique to each of the judges falsely identified ​i​n the fake citations. 

Besides the lawyers who lean heavily on AI, CiteSentinel can help those who never use it, by checking the work of everyone else involved: the opposing counsel, co-counsel, contract attorneys and paralegals.

Kid Cash

Apple Cash, Venmo and Google Wallet are great for teens ages 13 to 17. But what if your six-year-old needs a debit card? Enter “Cash App.”

Cash App provides a physical debit card that kids, ages 6 to 12, can carry in their wallets or purses. Using an app to track spending, parents can manage or instantly disable the card, but kids can only use the physical version. When a child reaches 13, parents can allow them to send or receive payments independently. 

Using the app, a child’s drawing or typing turns into a permanent white or silver-colored engraving etched by laser into a plastic card. Many children doodle, but the app also offers stamps, including dollar signs, hearts and bow ties. Common slogans include “Cash me if you can.” Or: “Girls just want to have funds.” See cash.app/families for more info.

​But look out when they turn 18. For adults, Cash App offers $20 to $500 loans without a credit check. Sounds good? It charges a flat 5 percent fee for a four-week loan — a 65 percent nominal APR (Annual Percentage Rate). That’s roughly three times the rate of a typical credit card. What’s more, the loan amount is deducted automatically from your balance or linked bank account. ​It’s just like handing someone cash. The recipient has to want to give it back. In other words, unlike credit cards, Cash App offers no easy way to dispute a claim.​ Finally, Cash App is a top platform for fraud (fake prizes, impersonators,​ and more).

Car Doubles as Drive-In Theater

At the Beijing auto show, Huawei wowed the audience with a car whose headlights can project movies, turning it into a mini drive-in theater. The Xpixel headlights can also project helpful arrows, guiding the driver to the right path. Once parked, its headlights can also project games onto the sidewalk, such as hopscotch. It can also project patterns that react to music, creating a mini concert venue. 

Galaxy Watch Prevents Fainting Spells

When my friend traded in his Samsung Galaxy Watch 4 for the latest model, the 8, he discovered that it measures the antioxidants in his system, in addition to all the health monitors he had before. Someday soon, a Galaxy Watch might also help prevent the most common type of fainting spells.

Working with a Korean University Hospital, Samsung induced fainting spells in 132 patients to prove that it could predict them up to five minutes ahead of time with 84.6 percent accuracy, using the patients’ heart rate variability data from the Galaxy Watch 6. 

Photo Display for Your Fridge

The new “VidaBay Snap E-Paper Fridge Magnet” displays rotating color photos on your fridge, each of which can be swapped for another with a tap. Unlike typical photos placed with a magnet or piece of tape, these don’t fade, even in bright sunlight.

Though e-ink is not as colorful as regular prints, it offers a nostalgic value for some, reminding them of Polaroid film. It’s best to use high contrast subjects, like a white dog against a dark red background, warm-toned images such as sunsets, or travel photos with clear skies. Photos with a variety of colors may look muddy. Also, avoid dark pictures with low contrast or busy compositions. Basically, if it looks good in black and white or sepia, it’ll look great in the frame. You get to choose the frame’s color.

Passkeys, Not Passwords

This month, for the first time since NordPass started researching passwords, the number of passwords per person decreased from 168 per user to an average of 120. What gives? People are using facial recognition and other password alternatives. Since most folks tend to reuse their passwords, passkeys are much less risky.

Stopping Fires with InfraSound

Automatic sprinklers can put out kitchen fires but they often cause water damage. It’s especially irksome for data centers because of the electronics. But Sonic Fire Tech has figured out a way to use an AI-driven sensor to blast fire-fighting infrasound. Recently, the system was successfully demonstrated in Concord, California when oil splatters from a frying pan were ignited by a gas stove and quickly put out. 

President of the Continental Congress

Internut

“The 14 Men Called President Before George Washington.” Search on that phrase for some great history on YouTube.

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Lehenga dress

There are now artificially intelligent reviewers inside the Amazon phone app that can chat with you about Amazon products. They’re folksy and fun.

To test it, I tapped the app on my phone, then looked up the Ninja Kitchen System, a blender and food processor in one. After I tapped “Hear the Highlights,” my AI hostess introduced herself, then introduced Sofia, an AI culinary expert. While they were talking, I tapped the raise-your-hand icon to ask a question. “Are the reviews good?” I asked and up popped a “you’re next” sign. “Joy’s asking about the reviews,” the hostess replied. “Do customers actually like this thing?” The culinary expert said that 83 percent of Amazon buyers thought that the Ninja was worth the money. But when I asked if it was better than the Vitamix blender, they weren’t sure. So I tapped “Ask Rufus,” for a full comparison.

For my next test, I looked up a “lehenga,” an Indian dress that seemed right for the Bangladeshi wedding I’m attending in July. My AI expert said it was the perfect fusion between modern and traditional. But just to be sure, I turned to the regular Amazon reviews. Thirteen percent of them were only one star. There were complaints about the stench emanating from the dress, the itchy fabric and more. I was no longer itching to buy it.

But all these AI-generated chatty Cathys made me eager to buy almost everything else, even after I’d heard the pros and cons. The “Hear the Highlights” button, however, may not come up often in my searches, given that Amazon offers around 450 million products, and only “millions” will have it, they say.

Virtual Try-On

Another Amazon AI trick I just discovered is called “Style it On You,” also available through the Amazon phone app. Choose an outfit you like, tap “Style it On You,” then tap to upload a full-length selfie. After about 30 seconds, you’ll get a picture of yourself in the outfit. Tap “swap photo” if it stalls or you have a clearer photo to upload. Every time, it gave me a great idea of whether I’d like the garment or not.

Help with Photoshop

A neighbor said she’s hacked her way through a lot of Photoshop projects over the years, but now that she’s retired, she’s burned out on online tutorials. She just wants a human to show her a few tricks. “Could you help?” she wondered.

I’m no Photoshop maven, but I had an idea. Recently, Adobe launched “Firefly AI Assistant,” which is embedded in the 2026 version, just as Microsoft Copilot is in Office 365. It can “see” your project and do things for you. For example, you could say: “remove these distractions and brighten the lighting.”

The new beta version of Firefly AI Assistant, released late last month, can even help you in other apps, bringing new images into your original project. The catch is, you need a Firefly Pro subscription. Alternatively, there are many other AI image creation tools, such as Google’s Nano Banana. If you give it access to your Photos library, it can make images based on you, your relatives, Fido and anything else. The new ChatGPT Images 2 also sounds amazing.

Fake Party Invitations

If you’re like me, you’ve received half a dozen fake party invitations this year. The scammers are usually pretending to come from Evite, Punchbowl and Paperless Post, three of the most popular online invitation services. They appear in an email or text, purportedly from someone you know.  In one version, when you click the link in an email, it triggers malware that copies your passwords and personal info. In another version, you’re asked to login, which gives the scammer access to your user name and password.

According to Mashable, 2025 was a goldmine for text-based scams. People were sucked in by fake E-ZPass toll notices, DMV warnings, fake job offers, and IRS impersonators.

Changing Browsers

Almost every time I want to read an online article, I’m asked to disable my ad blocker in order to see the piece. But I can’t find any ad blockers in my list of extensions. So lately I’ve been using Vivaldi to browse the internet. It has its own ad blocker, which flies under the radar.

Howdy Partner

If I wanted to watch “Paddington” or “The Age of Innocence” I could rent them for $4 each. But “Howdy,” a new channel on Amazon, includes both these movies plus around 10,000 hours of ad-free entertainment for $3 a month. This includes films from Lionsgate, Sony Pictures, Disney Entertainment, Warner Bros. Discovery, and FilmRise, along with original titles. I saw lots of romantic comedies, action films and kid flicks.

To find Howdy, do a Google search on “Howdy movie channel on Amazon.” There’s a seven-day free trial before the $3-a-month kicks in. If you have a Roku player, or use the Roku mobile app, you can go directly to the Howdy channel.

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“US falls below Ukraine in press freedom.” Search on that phrase or go to rsf.org to learn which countries have the most press freedom, according to Reporters Without Borders. The US is now in 64th place globally, falling seven spots in one year. It ranks behind Namibia (23), South Africa (21), Costa Rica (38), and Canada (20).

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Five-dollar chocolate bars and $15 bottles of olive oil. What gives?

Chocolate prices hit record highs in 2024 due to dry weather in West Africa. Extreme droughts in Spain and Italy caused the price of olive oil to double. Could AI help?

You bet. Just as ChatGPT was trained on billions of words, “Botanic,” offered by Living Models, is trained on DNA, the language of plants. It may sound corny, but Botanic “gets” corn. It also acts as a bud to your spud. For example, drought and rising temperatures in Idaho and Washington led to smaller yields and lower-quality potatoes. Botanic can help with that.

Currently, it takes about eight years of trial and error to develop a new drought-resistant crop. But executives from Living Models say that with Botanic, it will take just two or three years.

That’s crucial. Otherwise, some crops are in danger of winding down. For example, California farmers are planting less rice due to water shortages. Botanic can help by developing rice that matures before summer’s peak heat. It can also create varieties that tolerate the salt water in coastal farms.

According to a report published in bioRxiv, Botanic can predict plant traits and identify genetic markers for drought tolerance, heat resistance and more. What’s more, with their Nvidia-based equipment, it can scale up for big projects.

Online Betting

A Parisian earned $34,000 by betting on hot weather. After gambling at Polymarket.com, he walked over to the temperature sensors at De Gaulle airport and held a portable hair dryer up to them, causing the weather reports to announce heat spikes, just as he predicted. Similarly, a US solider who helped capture the Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro used his insider’s info to make nearly $410,000. Unfortunately for him, he was arrested.

The total value of Polymarket’s trades executed in the past 365 days surpassed $25 billion according to tokenterminal.com. When I visited the site, people were betting on the odds of a peace deal with Iran in May, among many other topics.

Woman’s Fidelity Account Shows Zero Funds

When customer service representatives at Fidelity tried to help a long-time customer, they revealed zero funds in her account. What happened?

According to recent reports, Fidelity hadn’t merged her identity profiles. First, she had registered with her tax identification number. Later, she had registered with her Social Security number. A glitch made it seem as though all her money had vanished. It took five days of investigation before her life savings were restored. In the meantime, she had no access. Fortunately, she’d saved a paper version with her old account number.

The lesson? Either print out or save a PDF of your monthly statements, trade confirmations and annual summaries.

AI FOR TECH SUPPORT

Recently, my TV gave me an error message in German. So I asked Google Gemini.

First it suggested I check the network settings. There I saw that the TV wasn’t connected to WiFi. It turned out that the necessary “handshake” between the TV and the router was more like a slap. “Turn it off with the power button and wait for two minutes,” Gemini advised. But since my TV doesn’t have a power button, I used the remote control, and that didn’t work. Gemini said using the remote to turn off a TV is like closing a laptop lid. It only puts the device into sleep mode. So I unplugged the TV from the wall and waited. Voila. Two minutes later, after plugging it back in, everything was back to normal. In short, AI tech support works.

Next I asked Gemini whether Google Play or Amazon Prime would be best for watching the movie “Hamnet.” “Amazon,” it said, going against its own Google parent. “The Google Play/YouTube movie player is notoriously heavy and can be sluggish or prone to buffering on older sets.” It also said that the picture is sharper on Amazon Prime.

Flight Updates on Your Lock Screen

Android users who store boarding passes in Google Wallet will soon see flight updates directly on their lockscreens. They’ll also see updates on their departure, destination and arrival time. Once on the plane, a progress bar will tell them how far along they are in the flight. Alternatively, Apple iPhone users can use the Apple Wallet app to store their boarding passes and get built-in flight tracking, progress bars and gate updates on the lock screen.

Becoming SuperFluent

The new version of Superfluent, the language-learning app, is fantastic. Their previous version was good too, but this one takes you on a virtual tour of the country whose language you’re studying.

Since I’m learning Spanish, I’m virtually strolling through major museums, restaurants and attractions in Mexico. Previously, I often felt dumb with Superfluent’s classic version, but this one adds multiple-choice quizzes, which are a lot easier. I feel like I’m right there.

My other favorite language app, Duolingo, is incredibly addicting and a great vocabulary builder. But Superfluent is better for AI-generated conversations.

Ping Pong Playing Robot

According to an AP story, Ace, a robotic arm built by Sony, has become a great ping pong player, defeating some of the best human players. It has nine camera eyes positioned around the court and can follow the ball and measure its spin. It was trained on an Olympic-sized table tennis court in Tokyo.

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Big data centers use a huge amount of electricity. But that’s changing. Someday soon, we won’t have to pay higher electricity prices because AI is hogging our power.

AI’s new Large Language Models are saving energy, because processing happens locally on our devices rather than via power-hungry remote servers.

For example, PrismML, founded by Caltech scientists, shrinks AI. Instead of giant data centers, their AI models can work on devices as small as the iPhone 17. What’s more, they take up only 1.5 gigabytes and can be downloaded for free at PrismML.com.

But PrismML’s “Bonsai” is not for casual users. It’s for tech enthusiasts who want to tinker with their own private AI, as well as developers, researchers and hardware manufacturers, especially those in robotics, wearables and smart appliances. 

Take robots, for example. A robot in a warehouse or a drone in a forest can’t afford a two-second delay while it asks a data center in Virginia how to avoid an obstacle. But PrismML’s Bonsai doesn’t just offer speed. Robots with their own AI brain, because they’re offline, keep chugging even when WiFi fails. The traditional kind halts immediately, possibly toppling over.

In the appliance industry, companies like Haier and Hisense would like to add AI agents to every dishwasher and fridge, but they can’t afford the electricity bill or the server space to run them in the cloud. PrismML’s models solve that problem. 

What about smartwatches, AI glasses, rings and other wearables? With intense AI use, a smartwatch can get hot and die by lunchtime. With PrismML on board, it can stay cool through a long holiday weekend.

What’s more, by having an AI brain built into a device, the ongoing cost per user drops to near zero, even as its speed and efficiency improve. Instead of coming from a big data center, the electricity and computing power comes from the user’s own gadget. 

Google uses “Gemini Nano,” a similar kind of built-in AI, for simple tasks like summarizing a sentence or suggesting a smart reply. For trillions of more complex AI queries, however, it’s moving toward small modular reactors and geothermal energy instead of big data centers. This means unplugging from residential power grids, saving Google a bundle in electricity costs. 

Online Dating

One of my friends found true love on Stitch.net. Another found her husband on Elite Singles. 

But a new site called “MyTruDate” is getting kudos for its ability to prevent “catfishing.” That’s when someone uses a false photo to masquerade as someone else. To combat that, every MyTruDate user must undergo a criminal background check before they get access to the app. Besides showing a US government-issued ID, they must take a live selfie. They must also use their real name. The service is free for now, but later on they’ll charge a $10 screening fee and $30 for a monthly membership.

Airbags for Bikes

Professional bicyclists have suffered around 1300 fractures in the last six years. So Van Rysel is developing a special bodysuit with an inflatable airbag inside. A consumer version is expected in 2028. In the meantime, check out the Hit-Air inflatable vest for motorcyclists, $625 at Amazon.

Anxious or Not?

A book called “The Anxious Generation,” by Jonathan Haidt, claims that social media and helicopter parenting are ruining our youth. But what do our youth have to say about this?

The majority of teens think social media is good for their mental health and friendships, or are at least neutral, according to an MIT/Oxford/Carnegie Mellon study quoted by Engadget. But many do admit that TikTok, Instagram and Snapchat are bad for their sleep and productivity. Their parents, on the other hand, feel that social media is good or neutral for building friendships, but generally harmful otherwise. 

Middle Mouse Button

The middle button on your computer mouse has far more functions than I ever realized. I learned about it from PC World.  

For example, you can push the middle button to click a link and have it open in a new tab. Or, if you middle-click a folder in your bookmarks bar, you launch every site in the folder. On the other hand, since my bookmarks are all in one folder, when I middle-clicked it, it said: “Are you sure you want to open 154 sites?” You can also middle-click any tab to close it. Most importantly to me, you can middle-click an empty space in the tab bar to reopen the last tab you closed.

Safer Browsing

To avoid opening an insecure website, click the three-dot menu in Google Chrome. Then choose “Settings,” “Privacy & Security,” and finally, “Security.” Under “Secure Connections,” choose “Always use secure connections.” In Microsoft Edge, go to “Settings,” then “Privacy,” then “Search and Services,” and choose security. 

Internut

Blimps may have lost out as passenger vehicles, but they’re seeing new life as floating internet infrastructure. Search on “New Floating Internet Infrastructure” to see a video of solar-powered unmanned airships operating about 65,000 feet above sea level. They’re designed to bridge the gap between ground-based cell towers and orbiting satellites, according to ZDNET. Besides providing internet, they can monitor climate change, forest fires and other natural disasters. Towers on the ground can only reach so far. Satellites cover vast areas, but they suffer from delays.

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