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This content originally appeared on Mashable for a US audience and has been adapted for the UK audience.

In a world where online dating and casual hookups have become the norm, dating can still feel exhausting. Sometimes, just the thought of putting on proper clothes, coming up with witty conversation starters, and commuting to the actual meetup spot can be tiring.

No matter what kind of encounter you plan, when it comes to dating, there'll always be some sort of physical effort required. The good news? There is a loophole: Sexting.

What is sexting?

Sexting is the art of sending sexually explicit photos or messages to one or more people via text. Thanks to its recent rise in popularity, there are now apps for sexting and new sexting features in apps that are otherwise for dating in person.

What do you need to know about sexting?

Whether you're interested in giving sexting a try or you're a seasoned pro, there are a few things to keep in mind when downloading and using a new dating app to sext. Sure, there are fewer inhibitions when scoring a new sexting partner when compared to finding a long-term lover, but there are rules you should follow in order for all parties to feel at ease. Here are three big ones:

• Mutual respect — Assess the situation and know your audience. Usually, it doesn't take much more than a few pre-sext texts (or pre-sexts) to gauge whether or not someone is interested in doing the cyber-dirty with you. Take the time to figure that out before you lead with something raunchy and uncalled-for. AKA, don't just start throwing dick pics at people left and right if they didn't ask.

• Mutual trust — Be respectful: Privacy is sacred. The internet has the scary ability to make fleeting moments very permanent. If someone asks you to keep something to yourself, do it. While sexting can be light and fun, it also requires a serious level of trust. If you betray that trust, you're ruining it for everybody.

• Privacy — No app can completely protect your privacy for you — that's your job. Though there are apps that have certain features that are designed to protect your identity/content, they don't rule out all scenarios. For example, someone doesn't need to take a screenshot to capture a picture you send. They could easily use another phone or device to snap or record your photos and/or videos. You should always keep this in mind before sending anything that could be compromising, and do your best to make sure you trust the person who's receiving your messages.

Keep these points in mind when engaging in NSFW messaging.

Should you engage in sexting?

Real-life dating is obviously the best way to get to know somebody long-term, especially if you're looking for any kind of serious, in-person relationship. And real sex will always be better than sexting. However, sexting is an alternative that may help you out in ways you didn't even think about.

• Convenience — Whether you plan to wine and dine on your date or just meet to hook up, it always requires some extra effort. For those with super hectic schedules or those who just don't have room in their life (for whatever reason) for a steady in-person relationship, sexting is practically a saving grace. After all, your sex drive doesn't go away just because you're busy. Sexting allows you to take care of your sexual needs without putting yourself out.

• Exploring trust and intimacy — Getting comfortable with another person in close quarters doesn’t always come naturally for everyone — but opting for sexting gives way to a new level of exploration in terms of intimacy and trust. You don’t ever have to meet the person behind the screen if you don’t want to, but being able to practice feeling vulnerable without any strings attached can be a great lesson in being more open.

• Freedom — As is the case with most behind-the-screen activities, with sexting, you can let go of your inhibitions and get comfortable exploring your sexual side. Knowing there's a certain barrier between you and the other person may allow you to experiment with language and ideas that you wouldn't otherwise explore in person.

• Fun — A little honesty, please. A night of sexting is always going to be a lot more fun than endlessly swiping right on a dating app and starting the same conversation over and over. Having the option of opening an app on your phone and engaging in a little virtual foreplay offers instant gratification and (almost) guaranteed pleasure.

• Safety — We've touched on the reasons why sexting might not be completely safe in terms of privacy, but to its credit, sexting offers an element of safety that in-person meetings don't. Sexting allows you to interact with both people you know and total strangers without putting yourself in dangerous or unwanted physical situations. Your experience should always be what you want it to be, and with sexting, if it's not going in the direction you want, it's just a matter of closing an app.

The benefits are clear for all to see, so not give it a try?

What makes an app good for sexting?

You'll want to look for certain features in an app if you're planning on sexting:

• Ease of use — You don’t want to find yourself in a hot and steamy conversation trying to figure out how to attach an image or a voice note. When it comes to sexting, the more user-friendly the platform is, the better. You’ll want something that’s efficient and fast.

• Privacy features — What happens in a sexting app doesn’t always stay in a sexting app; there are no guarantees that your conversations or selfies won’t wind up a screenshot on someone’s phone. That said, certain apps include instant self-destruction features that delete photos and conversations after a certain amount of time.

• Safety — If you’re looking for a night of no-strings-attached fun online, it doesn’t really matter if the person on the other end of your conversation has been verified — but if you do want to ensure you’re not being catfished or chatting with a bot, consider using an app that links social media or verifies users.

• Subscription pricing versus free features — How much are you willing to pay for bells and whistles? There are several free apps out there, but if you're looking for something a little fancier, you can pay a few pounds a month for premium features.

With these features in mind, you should be ready to select an app and start sexting. You've got this.

What is the best app for sexting?

Since sexting, by nature, comes with a lot of factors to consider (consent and privacy, for example), we've picked out the best sexting apps to get you off — to a good start, that is. We've tried to line up something for everyone, so check out these options, and pick your favourite.

These are the best sexting apps in 2024.

The online world can be a dangerous place, with hackers, viruses, and surveillance software lurking in every corner of the web. We're not trying to scare you, but have you ever considered just how much of your personal data is exposed to this sort of thing whilst you're browsing? If not, you probably should. You might be surprised by the results.

Your data is seriously valuable stuff these days, and everyone is looking to get their hands on it. Once you come to understand that the internet is insecure, it's perfectly normal to feel a little concerned about how much of your data is up for grabs. There's no need to panic though, because there is a simple and effective way that you can stay protected.

To stay safe online and keep all of your data and personal information secure, you really should consider investing in a VPN.

What is a VPN?

VPNs provide protection for your data and identity by creating a private network that hides your real IP address (digital location). All of your activity is untraceable and secure because everything passes through an encrypted tunnel. Nobody can see into the tunnel, and everything inside is protected against online threats. This means that hackers, governments, and your internet service provider will be unable to access any of your information.

Do you need a VPN?

Investing in a VPN is one of the best ways to ensure your safety and anonymity online. VPNs are vital tools in the fight against scammers and cybercriminals, but there's another reason you might consider these security services. And it has nothing to do with security.

SEE ALSO: The best VPNs for remaining anonymous online

VPNs can be used to unlock streaming services from around the world, including the likes of Netflix, Prime Video, and Disney+. How do they do this? It's actually a really simple process, and it can significantly boost your content options. All you need to do is open up your preferred VPN, connect to a server from another country in order to spoof your IP to another address, and then head to your preferred streaming site. This process tricks the site into thinking you are based in another country, meaning you can watch all that great content that is normally blocked.

VPNs are really useful for cybersecurity and streaming, which means they should be a worthwhile investment for just about everyone.

What should you know before subscribing to a VPN?

Selecting a VPN that is right for you is not easy, because there are a lot of options all offering similar packages. To make the decision a little simpler, we have highlighted a selection of the most important things to consider before making any sort of purchase:

• Connection speed — This is absolutely vital whether you're looking to use a VPN for online security or streaming. It's normal for a VPN to result in a drop in your connection speed, but you shouldn't accept anything significant.

• Encryption — We know that a lot of people will be using VPNs for streaming, but these services are primarily designed to provide cybersecurity, so encryption is important. The best VPNs will offer powerful protection for your data, meaning that everything is unreadable and untraceable.

• Number of connections — You should seek out a VPN that offers multiple simultaneous connections, so you can stay protected on all your devices at the same time. This is also beneficial for large families or households with multiple people likely to be online at the same time.

• Privacy policy — The best VPNs should be very clear about how they handle, store, and use your data. These practices should be laid out in a privacy policy, and if they aren't super clear, you should look elsewhere.

• Server network — The best VPNs provide access to thousands of servers located all around the world. This is useful as you should always be able to find a stable and speedy connection for streaming, shopping, or browsing.

There are plenty of other things that are worth considering, like bandwidth, apps for certain operating systems, and customer support, but these are probably the most important features to keep in mind.

Should you use free VPNs?

With free versions of popular VPNs and free trials of VPNs with full access to everything you get with a premium plan, why would you ever pay? As with most things in life, you get what you pay for with VPNs.

There tends to always be a catch with free versions, and it's normally in the form of limited data usage. If you're just an occasional user, these plans will work fine. But if you're going to be streaming or downloading, this isn't going to work. Free trials are a little bit different: they come with everything you get in a paid plan, but obviously they don't tend to last very long. Trials are great for testing out a service before committing, but this isn't a long-term solution.

To gain access to advanced security features without limitations on usage, you need to pay up. The best VPNs are generally the most expensive, but there are plenty of cheap plans out there, especially if you're willing to commit to a lengthy contract.

What is the best VPN?

There are a lot of VPNs out there, and we recommend taking some time to carefully access all your options. Once you have established exactly what you need, you can turn your attention to finding the best deals on all the top VPNs.

We have reached out to partners in order to line up a list of the best deals on the most popular providers, to help you save big. You can find all the best deals on the likes of ExpressVPN, NordVPN, PureVPN, and more.

These are the best VPN deals in 2024.

What does your perfect gaming set-up look like? We’re picturing a really comfortable chair, plenty of snacks, and maybe some atmospheric lighting. Plus, your console and controller of choice. But what about a quality gaming headset? It's all too often forgotten about, but a good headset can be a literal game-changer.

The right gaming headset will give you a level of immersion that just isn't possible without incredible feedback. It will pull you deeper into the world you're exploring on the screen, making your game an all-round reality.

The good news is that there are absolutely loads of gaming headsets out there. The bad news is that it can be difficult to find the right headset for you when there's so much on offer. This is where we can help you out.

Do you need a gaming headset?

By blocking out background noise and producing accurate, detailed, and powerful sound that places you in the centre of the action, headsets are your perfect gaming partner. Gaming is all about immersion, after all.

Another reason to consider a headset is that these devices can be the difference between success and failure. Being able to pick up on subtle sounds is absolutely vital at crunch time. We realise that not everyone is that fussed about blocking out the world and dominating opponents, but there are some seriously competitive gamers out there who will be looking to find every possible edge.

What are the most important gaming headset features?

Yes, there are a lot of gaming headsets out there. So to make your life that little bit easier, we've researched all the ldetails and lined up the most important things to consider:

• Comfort — Nothing ruins a gaming session like an uncomfortable headset, and it simply doesn't matter if an uncomfortable headset produces absolutely incredible sound with an accurate microphone and a stylish design. If it's not comfortable, it's not worth considering.

• Durability — The majority of gaming headsets are made from plastic, but this can result is a flimsy and cheap feel. If you can’t find something with a durable metal or wire frame, you should at least try and pick a headset that has a good range of movement.

• Isolation — Some games use very slight directional audio cues, so a headset's seal heavily impacts the sound quality. It's important to consider how the foam of the headphone pad will mould to the shape of your head. If the seal isn't effective, find something that fits better. Some gaming headsets may take isolation even further with noise cancellation.

• Microphone — When selecting a gaming headset, you should consider whether it comes with a built-in mic. If not, you'll need to purchase a microphone to attach to your headphones. If it does come with a built-in mic (and it should), it's worth checking for noise-cancelling properties, a convenient mute function, and a boom. All of this combines to improve voice clarity, minimise outside distractions, and ensure your privacy.

• Spatial Sound — Getting the edge over the competition really comes down to spatial audio aka virtual surround sound. This feature provides accurate omnidirectional hearing, giving you a heads up when enemies are close by. The best gaming headsets are able to map sounds to virtual 3D locations where calibrated speakers can precisely position the sounds. If someone is sneaking up on you from the left, you’ll hear the sound from that direction.

• Style — There are many more important things to consider when it comes to your gaming headset, but style is essential to many gamers. It's always better to prioritise sound and build quality, but there is no reason why you can't have both things with a stylish design.

How much does a gaming headset cost?

You can get a decent set for under £100. In fact, there are some very affordable options on this list. But you can also pay much more if you want serious quality and advanced tech. If you’re dedicated gamer, it’s worth spending anywhere up to £300-plus.

What is the best gaming headset?

That all depends on your price range and gaming requirements. To help, we have tracked down a selection of the very best headsets to suit every gamer and every budget, with something for your PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S. We've checked out specs, features, and reviews to give you a clear idea of what headset is best suited to you and your needs.

These are the best gaming headsets in 2024.

Truth Social, Trump's social media platform that Daily Show host Desi Lydic describes as "a website whose business model is 'What if Twitter was just Nazis?'", took a serious hit on Tuesday after the stock crashed 20 percent — taking $1 billion of its owner's net worth along with it.

"Yeah Trump, you lost a billion dollars yesterday!" says Lydic in the monologue above. "Now you're only worth $6 million you broke bitch."

Lydic goes on to take some more shots at both the platform itself and its owner, ultimately concluding that Trump is just trying to be in every section of the newspaper at once.

"Finance, politics, style, city crime — it's only a matter of time until he drops a theatre review," says Lydic, before putting on her best Trump voice: "'Just saw Wicked, total witch hunt.'"

Dragon’s Dogma 2 is a game about feeling like the coolest guy on the planet after winning a 20-minute fight against an asshole dragon. Conversely, Dragon’s Dogma 2 is a game about stumbling around like an idiot as a cyclops pummels you into oblivion because you didn’t adequately prepare before going out at night.

It’s also a game about throwing your friends off of cliffs, trying to work around questionable AI, and relentless inventory management. But most of all, it’s a story of redemption for a cult classic that finally, finally found a way to hit it big with a mainstream audience without compromising on its hilarious, friction-filled ideals.

If you’re willing to get down and dirty with Dragon’s Dogma 2 — and accept the game on its own terms — you’ll find one of the most satisfying, spirited open-world experiences in years.

What I like about Dragon’s Dogma 2

Dragon’s Dogma 2 may not be the best game of 2024, but it’s hard to imagine another game being more committed to the bit. From its emphasis on exploration (with a challenging travel system adding depth to gameplay) to dynamic and unpredictable encounters, Dragon Dogma 2 is a refreshing departure from conventional open-world mechanics.

Running back and forth has never been so fun Like a rhinestone catboy. Credit: Capcom/Steam

I’m going to go out on a limb and guess at least a few people reading this aren’t really familiar with Dragon’s Dogma’s game. Let me fix that.

Put simply, it’s open-world action RPG that zigs where a lot of other games in the genre zag. The narrative premise is thin (you are a very special boy or girl out to prove that they are the true monarch of the kingdom), none of your party members are real characters per se, and the simple act of getting around is kind of a chore — on purpose.

That last part is important. You can only warp around using consumable items that are expensive in shops early on and otherwise very rarely doled out as quest rewards or in chests. A cheap oxcart system offers a quasi-fast travel option between major hubs. However, there's a considerable risk of your journey being disrupted by an ogre, resulting in the destruction of your cart, leaving you stranded in the wilderness after dark.

The functional outcome of these design choices is that you’ll spend a lot of time running between towns, often traversing paths you’ve explored before. In another game, this would be tedious backtracking. Here, it’s part of Dragon’s Dogma’s thesis statement. No two trips are ever exactly the same. Sometimes, it’s smooth sailing, but other times, a chimera will ruin your day. There’s also an abundance of side paths leading to bespoke dungeons or other areas filled with treacherous enemies and worthwhile loot.

All of these ideas and systems work together to produce an experience that feels decidedly refreshing in this age of frictionless, sanded-down open-world games. You’ll never climb a tower to unveil icons on a map in Dragon’s Dogma. The map does a good job of communicating where you can go, but it’ll never tell you what you’ll find there. That’s for you to discover.

The funny thing is, the first game was exactly the same way. All that’s changed here is that everything is a little bit better. Tutorials are more straightforward and readily available. It only takes a couple of hours before you feel powerful, as opposed to the 8 to 10 hours with the original game. This, in many ways, feels like a reimagining of the first game more than a sequel, as Capcom has had an extra dozen years, and presumably a much larger budget, to fine-tune the experience.

Taking down big monsters rocks Everyone remembers their first time slaying a griffin. Credit: Capcom/Steam

And fine-tune it, Capcom has. Combat in Dragon’s Dogma 2 is, in a word, thrilling. Whether cutting your way through weak goblin doofuses or fighting one of several big boss monsters that require you to physically climb on them to strike weak points Shadow of the Colossus-style, this is a game about patience and focus. Each of the game’s several playable classes uses unique weapons and has distinct abilities, and fitting into your role is tantamount to success.

Thieves, for example, are at their best when being maximum annoying. They can dart around the battlefield using a dash move that no other class has and inflict huge damage without taking hits. Mystic Spearhands, on the other hand, are all about carefully using magic to stun enemies and support teammates before moving in for the kill when an opportunity arises. And finally, as an archer, your job is simple: stay the hell out of the way.

Point being, you can’t just button mash your way to success here. Doing so will get you punished severely, whether it’s by strong enemy attacks or just dumb physics luck. Dragon’s Dogma 2 distinguishes itself from its contemporaries by adopting a realistic bodily physics system, so characters will stumble around and get knocked down when a boss strikes the ground nearby. Sometimes you’ll get picked up and thrown off a cliff, and all you can do is laugh.

Once you get a grasp on Dragon’s Dogma’s combat, all of that feels natural, even when it doesn’t work in your favor. There’s a good deal of randomness here that elevates things, too. Sometimes, you’ll engage in simple combat in a flat, open area. Other times, a boss monster will want to scrap while you’re on a precarious cliff. One time, I was midway through killing a cyclops when a griffin descended upon us, turning it into a stressful fight against two mean monsters. 

Learn to accept failure

While it’s very easy to feel awesome in Dragon’s Dogma 2, I want to emphasize that failure is built into the game’s design ethos. You will stumble and fall, failing to complete quests on time (yes, some quests have time limits) or failing to find them at all. It won’t always be your fault, either. That’s just life, man.

It’s this aspect of Dragon’s Dogma 2 that ultimately won me over more than anything else. You really have to give yourself over to the idea that your adventure won’t go perfectly. I failed quests and ruined relationships with certain characters by accident. I wasted fast travel items and burned through all of my curatives — only to run away from the fight I was trying to win, run out of money, and accidentally sell important quest items trying to get that money back. 

Failure as a built-in feature of game design is part of what drew people to Baldur’s Gate 3 last year, and Dragon’s Dogma 2 gave me what that game gave its millions of fans. It just does it without putting an on-screen 20-sider. 

Pawn Stars Archery can be crucial. Credit: Capcom/Steam

I’d be remiss not to take a moment to talk about Pawns, the stars of the show in Dragon’s Dogma. Your adventuring party is made up of your custom protagonist, as well as a second-created character who can be any class you choose. That’s your main Pawn, and the other two slots in your party are made up of other player’s main Pawns that you can pluck out of the online ether.

Pawns are just funny, man. They love chatting about rumors they’ve heard and other parties they’ve been in. If you fall off a high surface, sometimes they’ll catch you and save you from dying. You can also throw your main Pawn off a cliff as many times as you want without really suffering any consequences for it, if you so choose.

The only downside to all of this is that Dragon’s Dogma is so focused on letting the player tell their own stories that it doesn’t really bother to tell much of one by itself. People who like traditional RPGs might bemoan the fact that Pawns aren’t authored characters with deep backstories and satisfying narrative arcs. 

That said, you learn to love them all the same. Especially when you find out another player made a sorcerer modeled after Shrek and you can put him in your party. 

What’s ‘eh’ about Dragon’s Dogma 2

While Dragon’s Dogma 2 introduced an unexpected microtransactions store, it doesn't feel like the game's design was anchored around it. The scarcity of in-game items isn't artificially engineered to push purchases; rather, it's a design choice consistent with the franchise's history.

Yes, there are microtransactions

Shockingly, the previously unannounced microtransactions store was a surprise even to many people who got the game early for review. You can use it to buy helpful, game-changing items like fast travel crystals. It sucks, plain and simple.

However…this is kind of an own-goal on Capcom’s part. There is absolutely zero reason to believe that the developers made these items artificially scarce in-game to encourage you to buy them with real money. The items are rare because that’s how the game works. It’s how Dragon’s Dogma worked 12 years ago, too. 

In other words, you can safely ignore the microtransactions store. I don’t want to absolve Capcom here because even knowing that it exists does change the player’s relationship with the game to some extent. But functionally, this stuff doesn’t affect the game at all, and frankly anyone who spends money on fast travel crystals is a sucker.

What I dislike about Dragon’s Dogma 2

The unpredictability of Dragon’s Dogma 2's gameplay, while intriguing, sometimes leads to frustrating moments where the game's mechanics seem to fail rather than challenge.

Flying too close to the sun

The player only has so much control over what happens in Dragon’s Dogma 2, which is by and large a good thing. However, a game with this many variables in play at any given moment is eventually going to buckle under that weight and produce friction that isn’t especially fun.

I’m really talking specifically about a time I was escorting a character from one place to another for a quest and they just ... jumped off a cliff and died in the middle of a fight. Of course, I failed the quest and couldn’t try it again. It was frustrating because it was clearly the game breaking instead of an intentional choice by the developers.

That’s the kind of thing that can happen at any time, and it’s impressive that it doesn’t happen more, but that doesn’t mean it’s enjoyable. Again, though, failure is part of life. All you can do is move on to the next quest.

Is Dragon's Dogma 2 worth it?

I’m fully aware that not everyone is going to vibe with Dragon’s Dogma 2. You simply cannot play this game expecting it to be like Skyrim. You will experience moments of frustration as you realize you have to run all the way back to a place because you can’t fast travel there. Much of it might feel like wasted time, even.

But I promise that it’s not. You just have to let Dragon’s Dogma 2 drag you down into the mud with it. Everything that feels tedious or annoying is there for a reason, and once you see the bigger picture, you’ll learn to appreciate those things. Not every game needs to be like Dragon’s Dogma 2, but I’m happy as hell that at least one game is like this.

If you enjoyed that very dark Black Mirror Season 6 episode "Loch Henry", then you might be in luck. Netflix's trailer for Bodkin has some very similar vibes.

Set in Ireland rather than Scotland, the comedy thriller series follows a trio of podcasters (Will Forte, Siobhan Cullen, and Robyn Cara) as they visit a small coastal town to investigate some old disappearances.

Cue creepy locals, amusing cultural clashes, and the inevitable realisation that the case isn't quite as cold as they first thought.

How to watch: Bodkin is streaming on Netflix from May 9.

Apple Vision Pro's Personas have gotten more realistic, with a new (beta) feature the company calls spatial Personas.

Until now, Personas — which are visual, semi-3D representations of the Vision Pro's user — would show up in FaceTime calls made within the headset and just kinda stand there in front of you. But with spatial Personas, the avatars can actually be positioned freely in a space; so you could have several Personas chatting around a coffee table.

The feature became available with visionOS 1.1 in late March.

SEE ALSO: I used the Apple Vision Pro on a flight to Costa Rica — and it was chaotic

Spatial Personas will appear positioned differently depending on what you're doing in the FaceTime call; if you're watching a movie together, other participants will be lined up next to you, but if you're playing a game with SharePlay, they'll appear across from you. You can move them around the space freely by pinching and dragging, though.

Some folks got the chance to try the feature out ahead of release. Inverse's Ray Wong noted that the spatial Personas feel a lot more lifelike, with the ability sit down or stand up, and have realistic eye contact.

Tweet may have been deleted

Web video producer Marques Brownlee noted that the floating head is a little "odd looking," but that the feature brings the ability to interact with the same content as someone else in real-time.

It also appears that the new Personas are now just a little better-looking overall, which is important as the initial version left a lot to be desired.

To enable the feature, tap the Persona button during a FaceTime call (see instructions on Apple's website). There are limitations. Up to five participants at once can use spatial Personas. You'll need visionOS 1.1 or later, and at least two people on the call will need to have an Apple Vision Pro.

Is "impressive Chromebook" still an oxymoron?

Luxe models like the $999 Google Pixelbook exist (well, existed), but plastic, practical-to-a-fault clunkers have defined this genre of web-based devices since it debuted in 2011. The Chromebook™️ is infamously cheap (costing and looking) and generally relegated to schoolwork or basic browsing — your archetypical bare-minimum laptop.

However, now there's Chromebook Plus. Google introduced this taxonomy for a new breed of ChromeOS computers in October 2023, marking the Chromebook experience's first proper retooling in over a decade. It rolled out in the form of an OS update for certain older Chromebooks and via eight brand-new models from Acer, ASUS, Lenovo, and HP, which start at $399 to retain an appeal for budget shoppers.

SEE ALSO: Chromebook vs. laptop: What are the differences?

I spent several weeks with the HP Chromebook Plus 15.6-inch, one of two 15.6-inch models from that original octet, which retails for $499. I'll tell you upfront that it makes some sacrifices to adhere to that price point, namely in build and audio quality, and its battery life is a letdown. I don't think it's quite able to slough off some of those Chromebook stereotypes. 

That said, the Chromebook Plus 15.6-inch is plenty peppy for casual productivity, especially if you're a big Google Workspace person, and its colorful, capacious screen is excellent for off-the-clock entertainment. It also comes with some useful features and AI tools you won't find in non-Plus Chromebooks. It's not an outstanding laptop worthy of our Mashable Choice Award, but it's decidedly solid if you're looking for a reliable bargain big-screener.

The only problem is that it doesn't exist in a vacuum.

HP Chromebook Plus 15.5-inch specs and price

Models with the "Chromebook Plus" label are guaranteed to have certain specs, including:

• At least a 12th-generation Intel Core i3 or AMD Ryzen 3 7000 series processor (i.e., a CPU from 2022 or newer)

• At least 8GB of RAM

• At least 128GB of storage

• A 1080p webcam with temporal noise reduction

• An IPS display with a resolution of at least 1080p (Full HD)

This new standardization doesn't rewrite the book on Chromebooks, so to speak: It's been possible to buy a non-Plus model with this hardware before. Rather, Google said it's meant to make it easier for shoppers to narrow down their options and identify models that "will actually give you what you need, at the price you want."

The HP Chromebook Plus 15.6-inch's base configuration is available exclusively at Best Buy. Credit: Haley Henschel / Mashable

The Chromebook Plus 15.6-inch is a traditional clamshell-style laptop that sells for $499 at Best Buy. Under its hood, you'll find:

• An Intel Core i3-N305 processor (a mobile CPU from early 2023)

• Intel UHD graphics

• 8GB of RAM

• 128GB of Universal Flash Storage (UFS)

• A 15.6-inch, 1920 x 1080 resolution display (non-touchscreen) in a 16:9 aspect ratio with a 60Hz refresh rate

• MediaTek WiFi 6

• Two USB-C 3.0 ports, one USB-A 3.0 port, an SD card slot, and a headphone jack

Another variant of the HP Chromebook Plus 15.6-inch is available directly on the HP website starting at $599.99; it can be upgraded with a 144hz refresh rate, a backlit keyboard, and an Intel WiFi 6E card for a maxed-out price of $659.99. (This review only covers the $499 Best Buy model, FYI.)

HP Chromebook Plus 15.5-inch design

Let's acknowledge the polymer elephant in the room up top — yes, this laptop has a plastic shell, though you probably wouldn't know it from looks alone. It comes in a mineral silver finish that gives it an elegant, metallic-seeming sheen, and there's a reflective HP logo on its lid. It measures in at just 0.78 inches thin; while it's not a particularly small laptop, it's still sleek. Its hinge is tight and sturdy and not at all creaky.

The HP Chromebook Plus 15.6-inch looks sleek in Mineral Silver. Credit: Haley Henschel / Mashable

That said, be gentle. I don't think you could completely junk the Chromebook Plus 15.6-inch without serious intent, but I also don't think it could walk away from an accidental fall or drop without some cuts and bruises. My loaner unit's lid somehow picked up a nick during my testing, and I was only carrying it between my desk, couch, and kitchen table.

In the plastic's defense, it does keep the Chromebook Plus 15.6-inch relatively light for its size at 3.81 pounds. Small kids might pitch a fit if they had to haul it around in their backpack all day, but I could easily tote it around in one arm.

The HP Chromebook Plus 15.6-inch has a headphone jack, two USB-C ports, one USB-A port, and an SD card slot on either side of its base. Credit: Haley Henschel / Mashable

The Chromebook Plus 15.6-inch's low cost is a little more apparent in its plastic touchpad, which is accurate and responsive but weirdly grippy, as if it needs to be waxed or Zambonied. My fingers made a dull skidding sound every few gestures, like a scaled-down version of sneakers friction-squeaking on a gym floor. Finding the right finger pressure took some adjustments.

The quality of the keyboard is also on par with what I'd expect from a $500 laptop. It's definitely not the worst keyboard I've ever used — I survived the butterfly keyboard era and all I got were these lousy Genius Bar bills! — but it's not great. The best way I can describe it is that it feels like you're pushing the keys into Styrofoam: stiff, but also kind of airy and mushy, and overall just unsatisfying. I got used to it over time, too.

Note the numeric keypad. Credit: Haley Henschel / Mashable

As an aside, I want to flag that there's a built-in numeric keypad to the right of the Chromebook Plus 15-inch's keyboard. It's not my favorite design choice, as it makes the keyboard and touchpad off-center, but I haven't docked points off for it because I know keypads are a draw for some users.

Meanwhile, the IPS display on the Chromebook Plus 15.6-inch is distractingly nice, and easily my favorite thing about this laptop. The colors are intense, with good contrast and rich blacks, and an anti-reflective panel preserves that quality at most viewing angles, even in direct sunlight. It also feels huge despite some moderately thick horizontal bezels. It really has no right looking as good as it does.

The HP Chromebook Plus 15.6's display is vivid and spacious. Credit: Haley Henschel / Mashable

I suppose the display could be brighter — it maxes out at a homely 250 nits — but it's workable and sort of a nice break from my Apple MacBook Pro's 500-nit screen, which can sometimes feel like staring into a high-beam headlight. It's not blinding, but its whites aren't dingy. I can make peace with that.

I wouldn't complain if the Chromebook Plus 15.6-inch had a higher refresh rate, and you might be inclined to upgrade to the HP.com-exclusive 144Hz model, but 60Hz is completely reasonable for $500. I noticed a little jitteriness when I was playing Lies of P on it via Xbox Game Pass, but gaming and streaming were otherwise passably smooth. (Chromebooks aren't the best for gaming, but Google effectively endorses that use case by throwing in three free months of NVIDIA GeForce NOW's Priority tier with every Chromebook, including Plus models.)

SEE ALSO: The best gaming laptops of 2024 for every budget

The 1080p webcam is nested in the bezel across the very top of the Chromebook Plus 15.6-inch's display, and it has a built-in privacy shutter that you can manually slide off and on. Its picture quality was adequate in photos and video calls, though it skewed a bit saturated and overly smoothed. I wish there was an option to turn the temporal noise reduction off — it made me look a little too airbrushed. 

The HP Chromebook Plus 15.6-inch's webcam isn't terrible, but it made me look a little orange and airbrushed. Credit: Haley Henschel / Mashable

The Chromebook Plus 15.6-inch's stereo speakers are more overtly subpar. The audio is loud enough, but it sounds like all the oomph has been sucked out of it, as if you're hearing it from inside a closet. There's, like, a negative amount of bass. While not a dealbreaker for moi, since I typically wear headphones while using a laptop, it might be for some.

Connectivity-wise, the Chromebook Plus 15.6-inch comes equipped with a decent number of ports: There's a headphone jack, two USB-C ports, one USB-A port, and a slot for an SD card.

HP Chromebook Plus 15.6-inch performance and battery life

So, what's so "Plus"? Google has a couple different selling points for its new Chromebook line, one being "power that gets more done," per a page on the company's website. Certified models offer "2x the processing power" compared to the most popular Chromebooks sold in the second half of 2022, it said, and offer "up to 10 hours of battery life" per charge.

A representative for Google told me that the company doesn't publish any specifics about its top sellers, so I couldn't personally verify its claim about extra processing power. But anecdotally, the Chromebook Plus 15.6-inch was able to zip through my daily workflow, which involves bopping around between the Slack app, Google Workspace tools, Twitter, Zoom, and Mashable's CMS. It never ran hot, either, even when I sat it on my blanketed lap to play a few hours of Palworld and Assassin's Creed Odyssey after work one day. (The fan cranked up a bit, but it was never noticeably loud.)

Graphically undemanding games like "Palworld" ran well on the HP Chromebook Plus 15.6-inch. Credit: Haley Henschel / Mashable

In a more technical setting, the Chromebook Plus 15.6-inch clocked in at a multi-core score of 4,121 in Primate Labs' Geekbench 6 CPU benchmark (the Android version), which had its system run a variety of real-world tasks; the higher the score, the better. That puts it slightly lower than the HP Chromebook Plus x360 14c (another new Plus model), which scored a 4,318, with one asterisk: The x360 14c starts at $699 and retails for $819.99 as tested.

As for battery life, that "up to 10 hours" bit is doing a lot of heavy lifting. I got only seven hours and 11 minutes out of the Chromebook Plus 15.6-inch in CrXPRT 2's battery life test. Eight hours is the minimum we look for in Chromebooks, nine to ten hours being ideal, so it kind of flopped here. Moving on!

HP Chromebook Plus 15.6-inch software features

The other crux of Google's Chromebook Plus spiel is a suite of new software features: It "works like magic, feels like fun," the company said. I'm not sure I'd go that far, but most of them land somewhere on the spectrum between "convenient" and "kind of cool," and ultimately elevate the user experience in some way.

Falling under the former categorization is File Sync. This new feature makes all of the Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides in your "My Drive" available without WiFi, then automatically updates the original files once your connection is restored. Offline usability has been a major critique of Chromebooks since forever, and while this isn't a terribly exciting tweak, I can see it being a nice peace-of-mind thing for travelers and commuters.

Back over in the webcam department, there's a new "pod" for video controls that appears in the lower navigation bar whenever the camera is turned on. These include some AI-powered settings like noise cancellation, live caption, and improve lighting, which work across platforms like Google Meet and Zoom. Again, nothing revolutionary, but it was handy to have them so readily available for mid-call toggling… when they worked. (Live caption didn't for me.)

The webcam's "Improve Lighting" AI tool (sort of arbitrarily) brightened one side of my face. Credit: Haley Henschel / Mashable

Chromebook Plus also brings new support for popular multimedia apps like Adobe Photoshop on the web, Adobe Express, and LumaFusion, a video editor, as well as Google Photos' Magic Eraser feature, which you'll also find on Google's Pixel 6, 7, and 8 series phones. (Those who purchase a new Chromebook Plus will receive three free-month trials of both Adobe products and a one-off discount on LumaFusion.) This is arguably Google's boldest update considering "Chromebook" and "photo and video editing" are rarely used in the same sentence, unless it's to say that the former is bad for the latter.

Google Photos Magic Eraser's "erase" mode (center) tended to produce more convincing results than "camouflage" (right). Credit: Haley Henschel / Mashable

I played around with Adobe Express and Magic Eraser in my testing, and without going into too much detail, both worked well. Adobe Express could be a little pokey, but it's a flashy Canva alternative with some hit-or-miss generative AI features. Magic Eraser made it easy to scrub distractions out of photos, or "camouflage" them so that their colors didn't stick out. While I wouldn't buy a Chromebook Plus solely to use these tools, it's exciting to see them succeed on a $500 laptop.

Last, and probably least, Chromebook Plus models come with two dynamic wallpapers that change based on the time of day. They're paired with matching animated screensavers and Chrome color themes.

Google's dynamic wallpapers and screensavers are Chromebook Plus exclusives. Credit: Haley Henschel / Mashable

Google said it will "keep adding new features to Chromebook Plus over time"; an AI-powered short-form content editor, generative video backgrounds, and desktop wallpapers are in the works for later in 2024.

Is the HP Chromebook Plus 15.6-inch worth it?

The Chromebook Plus 15.6-inch is a low-priced pick for productivity revolving around the Google ecosystem with a large, vibrant display and some new software features that are at least interesting, if not game-changing. It's unfair to compare a Chromebook to other kinds of laptops, but as a lifelong MacBook user, I feel compelled to admit that I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed using this laptop (even if it didn't convert me away from Apple).

SEE ALSO: The best cheap laptops for 2024, tested and reviewed

Here's the thing, though: The Chromebook Plus 15.6-inch isn't the only new Chromebook Plus, and other models kickflip on it when it comes to overall value.

For instance, the Acer Chromebook Plus 515 and the ASUS Chromebook Plus CX34 both come with slightly better processors and cost $399 apiece, or $100 less. (The former is another 15.6-incher, too.) Meanwhile, the Lenovo IdeaPad Flex 5i Chromebook Plus gets you a newer 13th-gen Intel Core i3 processor, a backlit keyboard, and a 2-in-1 design with a multitouch display for the same $499. 

The HP Chromebook Plus 15.6-inch is a genuinely good budget laptop, but other Chromebook Plus models offer more for the same price or less. Credit: Haley Henschel / Mashable

Even if these other models make the same major concessions as the Chromebook Plus 15.6-inch in the realms of plastic construction, audio quality, and battery life, the trade-offs seem more worth it on paper. (I'm hoping to test them, too, to see if this translates in practice.)

Ultimately, and if nothing else, I think the best thing about the Chromebook Plus 15.6-inch just might be the potential it shows for these other Plus-ed options. "Impressive Chromebook" remains an oxymoron in this case, but it could veer toward tautology elsewhere among the lineup, at least as far as budget laptops are concerned. Google is onto something.

Opens in a new window Credit: HP HP Chromebook Plus 15a-nb0033dx $499.00 at Best Buy
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TL;DR: Through April 7, save over 30% on this folding exercise bike with an LCD display, ultrasoft seat, and anti-slip pedals with straps.

While the gym works for a lot of people, at-home machines are much more practical and affordable for most: Check out this folding exercise bike that’s $119.97 (reg. $199.99).

Pedal to the metal

If you’ve seen the viral walking pads dominating social media, this exercise bike has a similar concept. Since it only measures 28 inches long, you can set it up in the corner of your living room, office, or bedroom and pedal away at an effective, yet mindless, workout. It even folds up for easy storage when you’re not using it.

But we think you’ll spend so much time on the bike that it won’t be folded up often. Flick on your favorite series or movie and start working out, without ever having to drive to the gym. However, just like a gym machine, an LCD display shows your speed, distance, time, heart rate, and calories burned as you exercise. You could freestyle with whatever feels right, or follow workout plans curated for stationary bikes.

As far as comfort goes, this bike has a plush seat to keep you cozy and anti-slip pedals with straps to hold your feet in place as you pedal. The goal is to give you a smooth, enjoyable ride.

Hop on your folding exercise bike for just $119.97 (reg. $199.99). That’s 30% in savings.

StackSocial prices subject to change.

Opens in a new window Credit: Yosuda YOSUDA Folding Exercise Bike $119.99 at the Mashable Shop
$199.99 Save $80.00 Get Deal

TL;DR: Through April 7, get this CompTIA and IT Exam bundle on sale for $39.99 with code SECURE20.

If you're ready to kick your IT career up a notch or two, this CompTIA and IT Exam training bundle could help. Packed with comprehensive courses and expert instruction, this bundle could help you pass your CompTIA and IT certification exams. And for a limited time, you can enjoy an extra 20% savings on the already discounted price, making it easier than ever to invest in your future.

This bundle gives you five different pathways to train for IT certification. One way to do that is by checking out the Exam Simulator bundle from CramWise. You'll have access to more than 25 exam simulators with over 40 hours of content. It includes hands-on learning like performance-based questions, practice tests, and labs. If you're looking to master all the differences between databases on AWS and more, this is the place to go.

There's also one called LinuxPath that goes into Linux in detail, including real-world applications, best techniques, and boosting security. The DoJoLab features a comprehensive selection of CompTIA practice exams, labs, and more that will help prepare you for the exams.

With the CodeDirect course teaching you about Python and ExamsDigest diving into CompTIA, Cisco, and AWS certification exam prep, you'll be well-positioned to move your IT career forward with this online learning bundle.

This limited-time offer could help you gain the knowledge, skills, and confidence you need to pass your exams and succeed in the IT industry.

Get this CompTIA and IT Exam training bundle on sale for $39.99 until April 7 at 11:59 p.m. PT with code SECURE20.

StackSocial prices subject to change.

Opens in a new window Credit: DojoLab The Complete CompTIA & IT Exam Lifetime Access Training Bundle $39.99 at the Mashable Shop
$2,748.75 Save $2,708.76 with code SECURE20 Get Deal

TL;DR: Through April 7, score affordability and portability with a refurbished Lenovo Tab E8 from 2018 for just $56.99 (reg. $119).

It's nice to have a portable device while you're away. Phones can do double duty in that department, but the screens are pretty small, and it's nice to save your phone's battery for a time when you might really need it. A tablet is a great option — and you don't have to shell out a lot of money to get one anymore. This refurbished Lenovo Tab E8 is on sale for just $56.99 (reg. $119) and can be your trusty travel companion.

Since it's refurbished, it doesn't have the absolute latest technology. However, it's only from 2018, so it's still a rather young tablet. It has a grade "B" refurbished rating, which means it's been cleaned and inspected to work well but could have some light scuffing or other cosmetic blemishes on the bevel or case.

It has 2GB of RAM and 16GB of storage, which isn't the highest, but it should support you in everyday tasks like streaming, browsing, emailing, and other day-to-day activities. 

The eight-inch display is great for watching shows while you travel. Plus, the slim design means it can easily slip into your purse, bag, or backpack. It also has WiFi and Bluetooth capabilities.

While it has the option to create multiple user profiles, it's only compatible with Android 7.1 Nougat.

Depending on your needs, this could be a good option for an extra on-the-go device at a very reasonable rate.

This refurbished Lenovo Tab E8 from 2018 is on sale for just $56.99 (reg. $119).

StackSocial prices subject to change.

Opens in a new window Credit: Lenovo Lenovo Tab E8 (2018) TB-8304F, 16GB - Black (Refurbished) $56.99 at the Mashable Shop
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TL;DR: Through April 7, this new, open-box Dell Wyse Thin Client Desktop Computer is just $64.99 (reg. $149).

The working model has changed to a more remote-friendly environment. That means many of us work from home without a devoted space to do so.

If you have a small home office or a slice of a room that you call your own for work, this Dell Wyse Thin Client Desktop Computer could be a tech upgrade that won't take up much space. For a limited time, it's on sale for just $64.99 (reg. $149).

This desktop is a new, open-box model. This means it's considered new but is often extra inventory from stores that may have been in contact with customers. It also means the price is reduced because of that.

Created with Wyse ThinOS, an Intel Atom quad-core processor, and 2GB RAM, it's made to be a smooth operator and offers efficient performance. It features three USB 2.0 ports and one USB 3.1 Gen 1 port and supports dual displays, which can be crucial for some home offices.

This compact desktop has 8GB of storage to keep your important docs and photos locally. The ethernet connectivity is the only connectivity offered.

With enhanced security via the built-in Kensington security slot, a wired keyboard, and a mouse, it's an efficient little trio that could be a real asset for some WFH setups.

This is your chance to get the new, open-box Dell Wyse Thin Client Desktop Computer for just $64.99 (reg. $149) for a limited time.

StackSocial prices subject to change.

Opens in a new window Credit: Dell Dell Wyse 3040 Thin Client Desktop Computer Intel Atom X5-Z8350 2GB RAM 8GB SSD (Open Box) $64.99 at the Mashable Shop
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Wondering how to watch the college basketball tournament? Here are your best options: Most channels Sling TV Blue Plan $15 for the first month, then $40/month (save $25) Get Deal Most affordable Max With Ads $9.99/month Get Deal

The NC State and Purdue men’s basketball teams are scheduled to meet in a tournament game in Phoenix on Saturday, April 6. The game is scheduled to start at 6:09 p.m. ET/3:09 p.m. PT. 

No. 11 seed NC State comes into the matchup 26-14 overall. Most recently, NC State beat No. 3-seeded Duke 76-64 on Sunday in the tournament’s fourth round. DJ Burns Jr. led NCSU with 29 points and four rebounds, and DJ Horne added 20 points and four rebounds. 

No. 1 seed Purdue comes into the matchup 33-4 overall. On Sunday, Purdue defeated Tennessee 72-66 in the fourth round of the tournament. Zach Edey led Purdue with 40 points and 16 rebounds.

SEE ALSO: March Madness and Caitlin Clark have already given us some great memes

Kevin Keatts is the NC State men’s basketball head coach. Matt Painter is the Purdue men’s basketball head coach. 

Purdue vs. NC State basketball game time, network

The Purdue vs. NC State men’s basketball game is scheduled to be broadcast on TBS, TNT and truTV at 6:09 p.m. ET/3:09 p.m. PT on Saturday, April 6. The TBS/TNT/truTV broadcasters for the game are scheduled to be Ian Eagle (play-by-play), Bill Raftery (analyst), Grant Hill (analyst) and Tracy Wolfson (reporter).

Whatever team wins advances to play on Monday, April 8 in Phoenix.  

In the evolving world of sports broadcasting, the emergence of live-streaming platforms like Sling TV and Max represents an alternative to traditional cable and satellite TV that meets the expectations of the modern fan. 

Best streaming services for the NC State vs. Purdue basketball game 

As NC State takes on the Purdue men’s basketball team, you don’t need to worry if you're without cable. Explore the best options to catch every moment of this showdown via streaming.

Most channels: Sling TV Opens in a new window Credit: Sling Sling Blue Plan $15.00
$40.00 Save $25.00 Get Deal

If you want to watch the Purdue vs. NCSU game on TBS or TNT via Sling TV, you’ll need either the Orange Plan or the Blue Plan. Both the Orange and Blue plans start at $15 for the first month and then increase to $40 per month subsequently, and they both also come with 50 hours of free DVR storage. 

TBS and TNT are two of the 26 channels included on both the Orange and Blue plans. There are six channels exclusive to the Orange Plan, including ESPN and ESPN2. There are 14 channels exclusive to the Blue Plan, and those include FS1, NFL Network, and TruTV. Another difference between the Orange and Blue plans is that you can only stream on one device with the Orange Plan, and the Blue Plan allows streaming on three devices at once. 

In higher-priced plans, Sling TV’s sports channel offerings include ABC, ACC Network, Big Ten Network, ESPN, ESPN2, ESPN3, ESPNews, ESPNU, Fox, FS1, FS2, NBC, NFL Network, Pac-12 Network, SEC Network, TNT, and TruTV. 

Most affordable: Max Opens in a new window Credit: Max Max With Ads
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Max is getting into men’s college basketball this March with the inclusion of the B/R Sports Add-On. You can see every jump shot, block, and upset across TNT, TBS and TruTV with no extra fees attached.

There are three Max tiers. The cheapest package is Max With Ads, which is $9.99 per month. It allows streaming on two devices. You can save 42% by paying for one year upfront at $69.99. 

The second package is Max Ad-Free, and that is $15.99 per month. If you’re mainly getting Max for sports, there isn’t much difference between Max With Ads and Max Ad-Free since sports will still include ads. If you pay one year upfront, you save 45% on Max Ad-Free at $104.99. 

Max Ultimate Ad-Free is the third package, and it is $19.99 per month. It also upgrades to allow streaming on four devices at once. Plus, it has 4K Ultra HD capability. The one-year price for Max Ultimate Ad-Free is $139.99. 

Wondering how to watch the college basketball tournament? Here are your best options: Most channels Sling TV Blue Plan $15 for the first month, then $40/month (save $25) Get Deal Most affordable Max With Ads $9.99/month Get Deal

The Alabama and UConn men’s basketball teams are scheduled to meet in a tournament game in Phoenix on Saturday, April 6. The game is scheduled to start at 8:49 p.m. ET/7:49 p.m. CT. 

No. 4 seed Alabama enters the matchup 26-11 overall. Most recently, Alabama beat No. 6-seeded Clemson 89-82 on March 30 in the tournament’s fourth round. Mark Sears led Alabama with 23 points, and Jarin Stevenson added 19 points for the Crimson Tide. 

No. 1 seed UConn enters the matchup 34-3 overall. On March 30, UConn defeated Illinois 77-52 in the fourth round of the tournament. UConn got 22 points and 10 rebounds from center Donovan Clingan.

SEE ALSO: March Madness and Caitlin Clark have already given us some great memes

Nate Oats is the Alabama men’s basketball head coach. Dan Hurley is the UConn men’s basketball head coach. 

Alabama vs. UConn basketball game time and network

The Alabama vs. UConn men’s basketball game is scheduled to be broadcast on TBS, TNT and truTV at 8:49 p.m. ET/7:49 p.m. CT on Saturday, April 6. The TBS/TNT/truTV broadcasters for the game are scheduled to be Ian Eagle (play-by-play), Bill Raftery (analyst), Grant Hill (analyst) and Tracy Wolfson (reporter).

The winner advances to play on Monday, April 8 in Phoenix. 

If you don’t have cable or satellite TV, online live-streaming platforms like Sling TV and Max offer fans flexibility and accessibility that aligns with modern sports viewership.

Best streaming services for the UConn vs. Alabama basketball game 

Don't fear if you've cut the cord, because Saturday’s clash between UConn and Alabama is streaming. There are several streaming platforms ready to give you access to the game. Here are your top options.  

Most channels: Sling TV Opens in a new window Credit: Sling Sling Blue Plan $15.00
$40.00 Save $25.00 Get Deal

If you want to watch just the UConn vs. Alabama game on TBS or TNT via Sling TV, you’ll need either the Orange Plan or the Blue Plan. Both the Orange and Blue plans start at $15 for the first month and then increase to $40 per month subsequently, and they both also come with 50 hours of free DVR storage. 

TBS and TNT are two of the 26 channels included on both the Orange and Blue plans. There are six channels exclusive to the Orange Plan, including ESPN and ESPN2. There are 14 channels exclusive to the Blue Plan, and those include FS1, NFL Network, and TruTV. Another difference between the Orange and Blue plans is that you can only stream on one device with the Orange Plan, and the Blue Plan allows streaming on three devices at once. 

In higher-priced plans, Sling TV’s sports channel offerings include ABC, ACC Network, Big Ten Network, ESPN, ESPN2, ESPN3, ESPNews, ESPNU, Fox, FS1, FS2, NBC, NFL Network, Pac-12 Network, SEC Network, TNT, and TruTV. 

Most affordable: Max Opens in a new window Credit: Max Max With Ads
Watch Now

Max offers you a tiered approach to subscription services, each level includes the B/R Sports Add-On at no additional cost. College basketball fans can access comprehensive coverage, mirroring the depth and intensity of the tournament itself. The B/R Sports Add-On gives you access to live broadcasts of TBS, TNT and truTV. 

There are three Max tiers. The cheapest package is Max With Ads, which is $9.99 per month. It allows streaming on two devices. You can save 42% by paying for one year upfront at $69.99. 

The second package is Max Ad-Free, and that is $15.99 per month. If you’re mainly getting Max for sports, there isn’t much difference between Max With Ads and Max Ad-Free since sports will still include ads. If you pay one year upfront, you save 45% on Max Ad-Free at $104.99. 

Max Ultimate Ad-Free is the third package, and it is $19.99 per month. It also upgrades to allow streaming on four devices at once. Plus, it has 4K Ultra HD capability. The one-year price for Max Ultimate Ad-Free is $139.99. 

In an age where artificial intelligence is being promoted as the next big thing, we're incessantly told about how robots will soon replace humans and everyone will be out of a job.

That hasn't happened quite yet.

With one exception – circus animals.

This year, Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus has returned, and is touring for the first time since closing seven years ago. But, this isn't the Ringling Bros. you may remember from when you were a kid. There are no more horses, zero tigers, and elephants are no where to be found. There is not a single live animal in this show.

The circus animals have all been replaced by a robot dog named Bailey.

A robot dog joins the circus

Could the modern circus – a hundreds of years old industry almost synonymous with live animal acts – successfully pull this off? A robot dog?

Mashable was invited to a recent performance of the Ringling Bros.'s latest show at UBS Arena in Long Island. I had plenty of questions regarding Bailey. I also wanted to see if Bailey was viewed as an adequate replacement in the eyes of attendees. 

SEE ALSO: Why don't we have AI-powered robot butlers yet? An investigation.

How would the circus-going public react to Bailey? More importantly, how would the circus' most important demographic – children – react to Bailey and the lack of live animals? To find the answers to these questions,I took my own two kids, aged 4 and 8, to see Bailey as well.

Jan Damm aka Nick Nack and Bailey the robot dog Credit: Matt Binder / Mashable

Before the show started, Ringling Bros. invited us to get up-close and personal with Bailey and talk with Bailey's co-star, human-performer Jan Damm who plays Nick Nack, as well as Lukasz Zajda, a crew member who helps bring Bailey to life (via remote control).

Bailey first greeted us backstage, trotting around with pink and yellow fur and a spring as a tail. We followed Bailey to the circus stage, where Damm and Zajda walked us through some of Bailey's biggest tricks. Bailey could roll over, spring, and beg just like, well, a real dog. 

Plus, Bailey can dance, which helps when one of the biggest acts in the show is a dance-off between Bailey and Damm.

Behind Bailey

Perhaps the most impressive thing about Bailey, however, is how simple Bailey actually is. Zajda, who controls Bailey throughout the show, gave me a look into the tech behind Bailey.

Bailey has a unique design, distinct to Ringling Bros. circus. However, underneath the colorful fur and cartoon eyes is a robot dog model that anyone can buy, Unitree Robotics' Go1 Model. The Unitree Go1 starts at around $2,700, although the company now has newer models for sale. 

Get a good look at Bailey's pink and yellow fur and spring tail. Credit: Matt Binder / Mashable

Zajda controls Bailey's every move from about 150 to 200 feet away using a wireless remote control, the default remote that comes with the Unitree Go1 model. It's basically like a drone remote control with two joysticks. And Bailey's battery can last around 45 minutes long, which is more than enough for a 2-hour performance with multiple acts of which Bailey makes three appearances.

And, speaking of Bailey's quirky cartoon robot dog eyes that I just mentioned before? That's just a looping video playing on an iPhone 12 which Ringling Bros. attached to the robot to make Bailey's face. It really did feel like Bailey's eyes were interacting with everyone around it, so I was surprised to hear that wasn't the case.

The return of Ringling Bros.

Originally founded in 1871, Ringling Bros. was once the biggest and most famous circus in the world. With the tagline "The Greatest Show on Earth," the live show toured the country with its infamous three-ring production. Ringling Bros. became so popular in the late 1950s that the company could no longer run shows out of their portable big top tents, moving to larger venues and sports stadiums like Madison Square Garden.

Ringling Bros. featured all the standard circus fare, from clowns to trapeze artists performing unbelievable stunts. But, Ringling Bros. biggest ticket-sellers were the live animals. And Ringling Bros. had the resources to bring animals on the road that competitors couldn't, like tigers and arguably Ringling Bros. most popular act, the elephants. 

Elephants were such a major draw for Ringling Bros. that it easily became the circus' trademark. The circus elephants were featured everywhere in promotions for the show. When Ringling Bros. came to New York City, the circus was known for parading the elephants around Madison Square Garden.

However, a traveling circus really can't properly provide adequate care for wild animals, as many animal rights groups argued over the years. Ringling Bros. faced criticism and legal challenges from organizations like the ASPCA and PETA over the treatment of its elephants. The USDA even fined Ringling Bros. under the Animal Welfare Act.

In 2016, citing new local laws regarding the usage of elephants in entertainment, Ringling Bros. announced that it was retiring its elephants, ending the elephant portion of its show entirely. And in 2017, 8 months after the elephants retired, Ringling Bros. parent company Feld Entertainment shared that ticket sales had abruptly fallen. Citing the removal of elephants from the show as the reason for the downturn, the company announced that the then-146-year-old circus would be closing its doors.

Tweet may have been deleted

Ringling Bros. would remain closed until 2023 when Feld Entertainment relaunched the show without live animal acts.

Farewell to live animal performers – it's for the best

Now for the real test though: How would circus attendees react to Bailey? Would kids like the robot dog?

The answers: The audience loves Bailey. Kids, especially.

Damm and Bailey perform for the crowd. Credit: Matt Binder / Mashable

The show is roughly 2-hours long and filled with musical and comedy segments, death-defying stunts, and record-holding acts like Wesley Williams, a Guinness World Record holder who rides a 34 foot tall unicycle in the show.

Bailey appears in just 3 segments – one appearance in the first half of the show to introduce the audience to Bailey, the aforementioned dance-off segment in the second half of the show, and then the farewell act featuring all the performers.

Judging by the crowd reactions every time Bailey came out, it actually feels like Ringing Bros. underutilized him. The audience lit up every time Bailey appeared. Bailey wasn't being talked about as a "robot dog act" like people would refer to the live animals as just the "tigers" or "elephants." Kids were calling out Bailey by name.

Bailey is now arguably the Ringling Bros' biggest star. And while he may be there to replace the horses and tigers and elephants, Bailey is clearly no consolation prize.

Damm, human performer, and Bailey, robot dog performer Credit: Matt Binder / Mashable

At 8 and 4, my kids are too young to remember the circus with live animals. I explained to them that there was once a time where you could see real-life tigers and elephants at Ringling Bros. "Woah," they exclaimed. 

After the show, I asked them if they would have preferred to have seen the live animals or Bailey at the circus. They could only pick one and the other had to go! Based on their reaction to my telling of the circus of old, I was actually surprised by their answer.

"Bailey," they both agreed.

So, the circus is back without live animals. And in this rare instance, it's good that a robot named Bailey took their jobs.

When it comes to great comedies about female friendship, there's a range in tone, running from the bubbly fun of Clueless and Romy and Michele's High School Reunion to the raunchy joys of For a Good Time, Call... and Booksmart to the great gross-out gags of Girls Trip and Bridesmaids. Now, Babes has come to join their ranks, folding in all of the above, plus maternity mayhem. 

Before we even get to the premise, Babes is led by a trio of badass comediennes. Better Things' Pamela Adlon makes her feature directorial debut. Survival of the Thickest's Michelle Buteau co-stars with Broad City's Ilana Glazer, who also co-wrote the screenplay. Together, they tell a story of friendship that feels personal, poignant, bonkers, and distinctly New York. 

What's Babes about? 

Besties since they were kids, Dawn (Buteau) and Eden (Glazer) have a bond that even a husband can't compete with. When Dawn's water breaks for baby number two, Eden's not only the one taking a peek beneath her skirt to see how dilated she is, she's also the one urging this Manhattan mama to enjoy one last big brunch before that baby wrecks their planned hang. With an opening sequence involving much splashing of amniotic fluid, Babes makes its mark as a movie that gives no fucks about a squeamish audience, dealing in several kinds of bodily fluids and poop to boot.

The script by Glazer and Broad City scribe Josh Rabinowitz establishes these two women friends as on different adulting tracks. Dawn has a grown-up job as a dentist, a doting husband (Hasan Minhaj), a brownstone on the Upper West Side, and a pair of young kids, while Eden is a single yoga instructor whose one-bedroom apartment in hip but quirky Astoria is also her studio for classes. ("It's called fourth-floor walk-up yoga.") Where Dawn is balancing demands from kids, professional advancement, and struggles with breastfeeding, Eden's happily getting high and hooking up with a dashing aspiring actor (Stephan James) she met on the subway. 

OK, admittedly, that meet-cute sounds sketchy. Remarkably, Adlon makes New York's skunky public transit system a place of enchantment as the two strangers enjoy overpriced sushi, winding conversation, and an undeniable connection. But fate throws Eden a detour when this romantic tryst leaves her knocked up. As she grapples with what motherhood for her might look like, she turns to Dawn. However, the overworked mom worries her free-spirited pal might become another obligation in her already strained schedule. Can their friendship survive this pregnancy? 

Babes embraces the weirder aspects of female friendship. 

As hinted by the casualness with which Eden will take a peek at Dawn's vaginal canal, this is a friendship that is deeply intimate and largely judgment-free. When a stressed-out Dawn wants to get high on shrooms and pronounces she wants to be a cow (successfully delivering milk), Eden hands her the drugs and cheers her on. Like the lovable odd couple in Apple TV+'s Platonic, the daffy duo works because one of them can get wild while the other has her back. 

This makes for sequences that are laugh-out-loud funny, in part because of Buteau and Glazer's candor and blinding charisma. It's not so much yes and as YES QUEEN AND! When it comes to body humor, bawdy humor, or potty humor, neither flinches. Their bold embrace of all of Babes' raunchiest jokes makes for punchlines and visual gags that hit like Mike Tyson. 

Glazer's Broad City energy lives on as she plays another adult who refuses to be defined by society's demands of boring decorum. So, when Eden comes up with a birth plan, of course it has a campy theme to which everyone — even a humorless doula — must commit without question. Even when she's at her most extra, it's easy to see why Dawn is drawn to Eden, who is optimistic and loving.

Buteau, who has been dynamic in comedy since she was stealing scenes in Key & Peele, brings a "don't fuck with me, fellas" energy to her no-nonsense New Yorker. But she brightens when the chance comes to cut loose. Together, the two bring out the best in each other, and it's hilarious. For instance, in a maternity photoshoot for Eden, they're on the same wacky wavelength, embracing their inner Beyoncé — even if they're in a teeny backyard that by standards outside of NYC would read less glamorous and more grungy. 

Babes is a proudly New York comedy. 

Hot on the heels of Julio Torres' Problemista, Babes showcases a version of New York that blends its possibilities with its problems. Where many comedies set in New York revel in the city's skyscrapers and picturesque landmarks, Babes celebrates the less romantic elements. Absurdly convoluted subway transfers, antiquated plumbing in high-cost homes, and eccentric doctors (played with panache by John Carroll Lynch and twin comedians Keith Lucas and Kenny Lucas) are not just plot points but world-building, creating an urban landscape where excitement and anxiety scatter like cockroaches, plentiful and alarming! 

The distinction between Dawn's neighborhood and Eden's makes for a crisp visual picture of where they are in their lives, while the literal river between them warns of a distance that's getting harder and harder to overcome. Yet there's a clear affection for the city, not just from the characters, who relish in an annual tradition of a Thanksgiving movie in a near-empty theater, but also from the lead actresses, who stomp and skip down the sidewalk like they own it. The supporting cast, which also includes Sandra Bernhard and Oliver Platt, deepens this authenticity, with the actors playing friends and family who are naturally bursting with personality —  whether it's exhaustion, neuroses, or ardent empathy — the moment they appear onscreen. All the bit parts in this comedy come alive, down to a chatty plumber with a big heart. 

Everyone who crosses the paths of these two are memorable and amusing, and in this weird way, Babes pays tribute to New York and its weirdos, and all the rules they refuse to follow. Among them, Dawn and Eden are queens who, despite their hardships, see each other as they do the city: more fabulous than fucked up.

In the end, Babes is a comedy that is unabashedly outrageous and rambunctiously heartfelt. While you may howl with laughter and gasp at a gross-out gag, you'll also walk away with a big smile — and maybe a bit more appreciation for your own quirks.

Babes was reviewed out of SXSW 2024. The movie opens in theaters May 17. 

Best noise-cancelling headphones for flying: Best overall Bose QuietComfort Ultra headphones $429 at Amazon Shop Now Best earbuds for travel Bose QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds $299 at Amazon Shop Now Best for comfort Bose QuietComfort 45 $329 at Best Buy Shop Now Budget pick Anker Soundcore Life Q20 $59.99 at Amazon Shop Now Best sound quality Sony WH-1000XM5 $398 at Amazon Get Deal Best for Apple loyalists Apple AirPods Max $549 at Amazon Shop Now Best for adjustable ANC Bose 700 headphones $379 at Best Buy Shop Now Best earbuds for Apple users Apple AirPods Pro $249 at Amazon Shop Now

Flying was never the most stress-free way to travel, but thanks to never-ending airline delays, unruly passengers, and the incredible shrinking airline seat, it's become a nightmare. If you've decided it's finally time to invest in a quality pair of noise-cancelling headphones for flying, we've got you covered.

SEE ALSO: How to clean your AirPods the right way

The good news is that plenty of headphones, from over-ear headphones to wireless earbuds, offer active noise cancellation. And in 2024, it's not too hard to find ANC headphones cost under $100.

Even so, if you want to find the best noise-cancelling headphones for airplanes, you should be prepared to pay closer $200 to $500 (exempting our budget pick from Anker Soundcore). Premium headphones offer improved active noise cancellation and transparency modes that allow you to hear those all-important gate announcements.

Let's not forget that ANC on its own won't save the day — otherwise, we'd just direct you to our review of the best noise-cancelling headphones. For long flights, comfort is also key. It won't matter if your headphones block sound if you only want to wear them for two out of five hours of your flight. A few extra features — like balanced sound and spatial audio — can't hurt either.

SEE ALSO: New Apple AirPods Max expected to launch next year — 2 new features to watch out for

With all that in mind, we've rounded up the best headphones for flying based on our extensive research and hands-on testing.

Because shopping for headphones shouldn't be as stressful as heading to the airport, we've answered every question you need to know before purchasing. Read on for essential info as well as the very best noise-cancelling headphones for flying in 2024.

Does paying more really get me more noise cancellation?

Generally, yes. Many cheap headphones claim to offer "noise-cancelling" features, but a $50 pair of over-ear headphones will never compare to Sony noise-cancelling headphones. Typically, the more you pay and the better known and regarded the brand is, the better the noise cancellation. Brands like Bose and Sony offer multiple levels of noise cancellation so you can choose to be completely blocked off from the world or opt to allow some environmental noises to come in while flying. 

SEE ALSO: What to look for when shopping for the best headphones

Paying more can also get you some nice features to supplement your ANC, like voice assistant support, expansive battery life, advanced codec support for better-sounding music, or better call quality. If you're a frequent flyer, the cost is almost certainly worth it.

What are the best noise-cancelling headphones for flying?

Noise-cancelling headphones are at their most useful on airplanes. While flying, it's difficult to find a moment's peace when so much is going on around you. Frequent flyers may prefer to rest or work, and the best way to do this is by using the best noise-cancellation methods to block out the chaos. 

With that in mind, some headphones' ANC works best on blocking out people talking more than ambient engine sounds, and vice versa, and people will have different preference levels for how much ANC they actually like. In addition, for long-haul flights, you may also be interested in the best noise-cancelling headphones for sleeping

With all that in mind, we've included the best ANC headphones for every traveler. So, read on to find the best noise-cancelling headphones for airplanes in 2024 — all based on Mashable's in-depth research and hands-on headphones reviews.

Best overall: Bose QuietComfort Ultra Opens in a new window Credit: Bethany Allard / Mashable Bose QuietComfort Ultra headphones $429.00 at Amazon
Shop Now Who it's for:

If you're looking for over-ear headphones that sound great and can give you all day wear, making the hefty investment in the Bose QuietComfort Ultras may well be worth it. While we tested these headphones over a period of a couple weeks, we were especially impressed when we wore for the entirety of a five hour flight (and about an hour before getting on the plane), while also wearing glasses — never once did we feel the need to take them off.

Why we picked this:

Shopping Reporter Bethany Allard here. Personally, I've owned and used Bose QuietComfort 35 IIs for several years, and tested the QC 45s for a couple months before testing these. Between the former two, I can't say I noticed a huge difference in quality — both are excellent. But, with the Ultra's, I feel like Bose really stepped up the QuietComfort line. They feel durable, but just as comfortable. The sound profile feels richer, and the immersion mode allows for a spatial audio experience that amps up the experience.

And then, of course, there's the ANC. I work from home and live about 50 feet across the street from a massive construction project, so some form of ANC is a necessity to me. The Ultras block out the sound better than the other two QuietComfort models. As mentioned above, I took them on a plane ride, and was impressed at how comfortable they stayed and how well they blocked out the sound of the airplane and fellow passengers. As for portability, the hinge on the earcups allows them to fold flat and in, so they fold up smaller than other headphones like the Sony WH-1000XM5s can.

With all that said, they're not perfect. For starters, the battery life could be better. The stand-by mode doesn't work the most consistently either, and similar to past QC headphones I've tried, connecting to multiple devices can occasionally take a few tries upon power up. These issues are annoying, but manageable enough to troubleshoot, and worth dealing with for the comfort and noise-cancelling power these headphones offer.

One Ziff Davis staffer mentioned that after about a month of usage, the power button on his headphones stopped working. We haven't been able to find any more reports of this online, but it's definitely concerning. It's good to know that Bose offers a one-year product warranty.

Battery life: 24 hours | Bluetooth range: 30 feet | App-connected: Yes

Best earbuds for travel: Bose QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds Bose QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds $299.00 at Amazon
Shop Now Who it's for:

If you're not an over-ear headphone stan, the Bose QuiteComfort Ultra earbuds offer similarly impressive noise cancellation and comfort as our top pick, the Bose QuietComfort Ultra headphones. If you like to lean against the window to nap during flights or just need a lower-profile set of headphones so you can travel a bit lighter, the QC Ultra buds are the way to go. They're also a cool $130 less than our top pick, making them easier on the wallet.

Why we picked this:

The Bose QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds were just released in October 2023, and they've already snagged a Mashable Choice award for their stellar noise cancellation, comfortable fit, and impressive Immersive Audio tech. Per usual for the brand, Bose's ANC drowns out a ton of background noise, making these buds a perfect fit for flights. In his review of the QC Ultra buds, Mashable contributor Timothy Beck Werth mentioned that Bose's noise cancellation is so good, that he often wears these buds even when he's not playing music.

"When I want to take a nap on a plane or focus on my work, I pop in these earbuds and let the noise-cancelling cocoon wash over me," Werth says. "Do they offer 100 percent sound dilution? No, but all but the loudest and closest sounds should disappear. On airplanes, they significantly reduced noise, making it much easier to take a nap. I have to warn my partner when I'm putting on these earbuds, otherwise she'll think I'm giving her the silent treatment."

In terms of complaints, we noticed that the design of the case makes it a bit difficult to remove the buds. We also experienced some finicky Bluetooth connection during long-term testing, but these are minor qualms — the pros of the QC Ultra buds absolutely outweigh the cons.

Battery life: Six hours (Up to 24 with charging case) | Bluetooth range: 30 feet | App connected: Yes

Best for comfort: Bose QuietComfort 45 Opens in a new window Credit: Haley Henschel / Mashable Bose QuietComfort 45 headphones $329.00 at Best Buy
Shop Now Who it's for:

The Bose QuietComfort line has earned its spot as one of the most popular headphones for travelers thanks to incredible comfort, and the QuietComfort 45s are no exception.

During our testing, we wore the QC 45s for eight-plus hours, some days with glasses, and never once did we experience unpleasant squeezing or feel the weight of these headphones. Mashable Lead Shopping Reporter Haley Henschel said that prior to having the Bose QC 45s, most name-brand models made her head ache after just minutes of wear, but she can wear the Bose headphones all day without an issue. For comfort-first folks, these are your headphones. They are being phased out for newer models (see our pick right above this one), but while they're still around, you can typically find them on sale.

Why we picked this:

Though you can't fine-tune the ANC as you can with the Bose 700s, the active noise cancellation on these headphones still does a more than adequate job for your flight, managing to block out higher-frequency sounds that most ANC-enabled headphones typically struggle with. A single press of the button on the left ear cup allows you to easily switch between quiet and aware modes when the flight attendant comes around to take your drink order.

Up to 24 hours of battery life is not stellar but not bad either. For one, it's the same battery life as the more expensive QC Ultras, and you can always plug them in for 15 minutes to get back three hours of charge for when you're on the move or taking a short flight. As for the Bluetooth connection, it can be a bit spotty when switching among devices (especially if two are connected at the same time), but the Bose app helps smooth out the process — plus, we're willing to bet you won't be switching between too many devices on a flight.

Battery life: 24 hours | Bluetooth range: 30 feet | App-connected: Yes

Budget pick: Anker Soundcore Life Q20 Opens in a new window Credit: Anker Anker Soundcore Life Q20 headphones $59.99 at Amazon
Shop Now Who it's for:

While having active noise cancellation at the ready while traveling might sound great, spending hundreds of dollars for it might sound decidedly less so. If you're not looking for the most top-quality ANC, sound, or build out there, the Anker Soundcore Life Q20s are one of the best entry-level picks that don't break the bank.

Why we picked this:

Though basically a fifth of the price of our top picks for over-ear headphones with ANC, the Life Q20s wear comfortably and their sound comes through strong and well-balanced. Their design isn't anything to brag about, but the ear cups do fold in and up, so storing them isn't a huge pain. Just make sure to grab your own case if you don't want them floating freely in your bag. Thankfully they're lightweight, but they do suffer from feeling cheaper as a result.

The middling ANC means that it can block out some background noise, but especially high or low-frequency sounds are likely to break through. The battery life, however, is anything but middling, offering 40 hours of playtime, more than enough for long flights (and inevitable delays at the gate). Overall, these headphones epitomize the word decent — but that's not a knock against them at all.

Battery life: 40 hours | Bluetooth range: 33 feet | App-connected: Yes

Best sound quality: Sony WH-1000XM5 Opens in a new window Credit: Molly Flores / Mashable Sony WH-1000XM5 headphones $398.00 at Amazon
Shop Now

Read Mashable's full review of the Sony WH-1000XM5 headphones.

Who it's for:

Sony's latest and greatest over-ear noise-cancelling headphones are the WH-1000XM5. Though they're not an essential upgrade for those who already own the ultra-popular WH-1000XM4s, the improved noise cancellation and fuller sound make these the stronger pick for airplane travel in 2024.

While the ANC is solid, it's not a standout among other high-end noise-cancelling headphones. However, they still pack impressive noise cancellation and stellar audio quality for music. Considering noise cancellation is most effective in tandem with music, these headphones should appeal to music lovers and audiophiles. In her review of the Sony WH-1000XM5 headphones, Mashable's Deputy Reviews Editor Miller Kern said the XM5s were "probably the best-sounding headphones I’ve ever tried," making them a great pick for folks who take pride in their Spotify playlists.

Why we picked this:

Besides sounding amazing, they offer exceptional travel functionality with the "quick attention" mode, activated simply by covering your right ear cup, allowing you to hear gate change announcements and flight attendants without completely stopping your music. Voice assistant support, crisp call quality, and a great battery life of up to 30 hours complete the package.

Though they look great, the biggest drawback is that these headphones don't fold up, and the carrying case is quite tall, though slim. Still, if sound quality is more important than portability, they're not that much bulkier than other headphones on this list (and they are more travel-friendly than the AirPods Max).

Battery life: 30 hours | Bluetooth range: 33 feet | App-connected: Yes

Best for Apple loyalists: Apple AirPods Max Opens in a new window Credit: Zlata Ivleva / Mashable Apple AirPods Max $549.00
Amazon Shop Now

Read Mashable's full review of the Apple AirPods Max.

Who it's for:

These headphones are expensive as all hell, but for those deep in the Apple ecosystem who want a pair of over-the-ear headphones, they could very well be worth the price. Plus, the noise cancelling is pretty great. You can't find these headphones on sale these days (there is rumor that they might get an upgrade this year), so anyone who's not already a diehard Apple fan will probably want to skip these.

Why we picked this:

The AirPods Max aren't just a pretty pair of headphones. With the help of eight microphones, these headphones provide excellent active noise cancellation. Switching into transparency mode happens with the push of a button, so there's no messing with finicky touch controls to hear what's going on around you. In addition to ANC, they have fantastic sound quality, and support for spatial audio will make cinephiles happy.

Their battery life, however, is a bit lacking compared to similarly priced headphones, thanks to the fact that they have no power button. (They're also missing a headphone jack, for those who like the option of wired listening). They will go into a low-power mode, but you can never completely turn them off. However, this does allow for easy switching in between devices, and for the "Find My" feature to always work. Plus, 20 hours of battery isn't bad, as that should last for even the most long-haul flights. In a pinch, five minutes of a charge can get you an hour and a half of battery life.

The carrying case is unfortunately, as former Mashable Tech Reporter Brenda Stoylar wrote in her review, "possibly the dumbest thing Apple has ever designed," so these headphones are probably best for people who don't mind wearing them around their neck for the entirety of their trip.

Battery life: 20 hours | Bluetooth range: Up to 300 feet | App-connected: Yes

Best for adjustable ANC: Bose 700 Opens in a new window Credit: Zlata Ivleva / Mashable Bose 700 headphones $379.00 at Best Buy
Shop Now

Read Mashable's full review of the Bose Noise Canceling 700 headphones.

Who it's for:

The Bose 700s are truly top-of-the-line headphones for active noise cancellation, which makes them one of the best noice-cancelling headphones for flying in 2024. Frequent flyers don't want to be reminded that they're surrounded by a bunch of stressed-out strangers, and these premium over-ear headphones will get the job done.

Why we picked this:

They offer 10 levels of ANC so you can finely tune your experience, blocking out as much or as little as you want. You can create up to three different presets between 0 and 10, so you won't have to filter through all ten options every time you want to change the settings. This level of customization is not common among headphones, really setting the Bose 700s apart from its competitors. Alongside that, they sound great, with bass strong and mids suitably crisp, delivering the audio quality you'd expect from Bose.

In his review, Mashable's Alex Perry noted how comfortable the rubber padding on the headband and the foam ear cups were, even when worn for long periods. He also said these headphones are great at blocking out background sounds while on calls, which makes them especially ideal for frequent travelers who often find themselves on the phone while waiting in noisy airport terminals. To top it all off, they fold flat and come with a zip-up case for safe transport. A downside of these headphones is the battery life, which like the AirPod Max, maxes out at 20 hours. However, the biggest downside is that like the QC 45s, these headphones are also being phased out of Bose's line, so they can be harder to find and aren't likely to be restocked.

Battery life: 20 hours | Bluetooth range: Up to 33 feet | App-connected: Yes

Best earbuds for Apple users: Apple AirPods Pro Opens in a new window Credit: Apple Apple AirPods Pro $249.00 at Amazon
Shop Now

Read Mashable's full review of the Apple AirPod Pros.

Who it's for:

If you prefer something more lowkey than a bulky pair of over-the-ear wireless headphones, opt for a pair of earbuds for travel instead. Though this usually means noise cancelling takes a big hit, that's not the case with the second-gen Apple AirPods Pro. Mashable Tech Reporter Stan Schroeder deemed these, "the first pair of earbuds I'd actually consider taking on an airplane," due to the quality of their ANC.

Why we picked this:

The ANC ante has been upped with the latest Pros, which offer even more sound-blocking power than the already great first-generation model. The design remains essentially the same, so you can easily stow the charging case in your bag or pocket. Plus, with last year's upgrade, the USB-C charging port likely means you have to lug around one less cable. Adaptive transparency mode allows you to hear outside noise once more with a press of the stem, while still dampening unwanted noise. To add to the aural experience, these buds do have spatial audio, though that feature is infamous for working great with some songs and not working at all with others.

Plus, the easy pairing AirPods are known for being even more efficient thanks to the upgraded H2 chip found in these earbuds. The especially great thing about AirPods is that though they're expensive, they do go on sale regularly throughout the year.

Battery life: 6 hours (up to 30 hours with charging case) | Bluetooth range: Up to 60 feet | App-connected: Yes

How we tested for the best noise-cancelling headphones for flying

Six out of seven of these headphones have been hands-on tested by Mashable staff, including past and current tech reporters, senior tech editors, and our deputy reviews editor.

The remaining pair, the Anker Soundcore Life Q20, were selected after extensive research into specs and customer reviews. In addition to premium headphones from Sony, Bose, and Apple, we also wanted to include some of the best budget noise-cancelling headphones for airplanes. We selected these headphones based on our research and the reliability of Anker. We'll be hands-on testing this model for a future update.

We added the Bose QuietComfort Ultra headphones to our list of recommendations in Nov. 2023, and as of Feb. 2024, tested the Bose QuietComfort Ultra earbuds and the JBL Tour One M2 headphones. The Bose QuietComfort Ultra earbuds will be added to this roundup in a future update. At this time, the JBL headphones didn't make the cut. We liked their long battery life, comfort, and surprisingly functional multipoint pairing, but we didn't feel like their $300 price tag matched up to the quality of the active noise cancellation. It wasn't bad, but it didn't wow us, and if you're willing to spend that much, we'd recommend going with Bose instead.

All of these headphones were chosen with the following criteria in mind:

• Comfort: As we mentioned above, the quiet of active noise cancellation becomes much less enjoyable if the headphones delivering it squeeze your head for the entirety of your flight. Any headphones that weren't favored for long-term wear didn't make our list.

• Battery life: If your headphones' battery is going to die 30 minutes into your flight, they're not going to cut it for even the shortest of trips. Our picks were typically in a higher price range that have better battery life and quick charge options for the times when you forget to juice up your headphones the night before you leave.

• Active noise cancellation quality: There are lower cost options for ANC, but not all active noise cancellation is delivered the same. That's why we focused on picks that either offered multiple levels of ANC, or delivered a strong level of ANC on its own, that didn't require music to make a noticeable difference.

• Portability: Over-the-ear headphones are going to deliver the best noise cancellation possible, but they are bulky. To keep these picks travel-friendly, we looked for headphones that fold up or that come with sleek carrying cases.

• Durability: Taking your headphones with you through TSA lines just opens them up to more wear and tear, so we went for higher-cost picks that are likely to survive the journey. Plus, we made sure to choose headphones that will last you for years, so the upfront investment is worth it.

It's 2024, and traditional relationship norms are being redefined. People are becoming more open-minded, and the taboos of the past are slowly fading into irrelevance.

In this new dating era, hookup apps are on just about every single person's smartphone — and for good reason. You watch TV on demand (thank you, Netflix) and your food can be ordered and delivered to your door while you sit on the couch (hello DoorDash), so why would finding a potential hookup partner be any different?

UPDATE: Apr. 3, 2024, 5:00 a.m. EDT As of December 2023, we're reevaluating Feeld's place among our recommendations due to serious safety concerns related to sharing users' location-related data during the app's recent update. On Feb. 1, the app announced that they would be returning user locations to the app over the course of a week, and we're keeping an eye on the rollout.

What is hookup culture?

The phrase "hookup culture" refers to casual sex or uncommitted sexual encounters — you know, good old-fashioned consensual sex just for the sake of it.

Way back when, before Tinder became a thing, people would rely on chance encounters or social gatherings (mainly parties or bars) to meet someone new to have a casual fling with. But now, with the huge pool of dating apps available, we've found ourselves firmly in what we'd like to call our hookup culture era, and finding a partner is as easy as swiping right on a profile photo.

SEE ALSO: The dating app glossary: The A to Z of terms you need to know What makes a good hookup app?

There's no one "best hookup app" you can use to find guaranteed partners, but you'll probably want to skip any apps that feature a 10-minute questionnaire about romance, hopes of marriage, or expensive subscriptions (we're looking at you, eharmony).

Instead, focus on apps that encourage users to have spontaneous casual sex, multiple communication features (like video chat), and fully functional memberships that let you connect with others without emptying your wallet.

SEE ALSO: The best free dating apps for budget-conscious singles

If you want to pay for a premium membership, that's up to you. But we recommend sticking to cult faves like Tinder and Hinge. Both of these apps have free versions that give you just enough functionality to meet and connect with potential partners for casual sex without breaking the bank. You can likely find a hookup by the weekend without paying a cent.

Whether you're looking for a one-night stand, want to exchange nudes with strangers, or have some phone sex before you doze off, we've rounded up the best hookup apps you can download (via Google Play or the App Store).

The Mini is a bite-sized version of The New York Times' revered daily crossword. While the crossword is a lengthier experience that requires both knowledge and patience to complete, The Mini is an entirely different vibe.

With only a handful of clues to answer, the daily puzzle doubles as a speed-running test for many who play it.

So, when a tricky clue disrupts a player's flow, it can be frustrating! If you find yourself stumped playing The Mini — much like with Wordle and Connections — we have you covered.

SEE ALSO: NYT Connections today: See hints and answers for April 3 SEE ALSO: Wordle today: Here's the answer and hints for April 3

Here are the clues and answers to NYT's The Mini for Wednesday, April 3, 2024:

AcrossLondon ___, drink of steamed milk and Earl Grey tea

• The answer is fog.

Woman celebrating with a band?

• The answer is bride.

Pinky or pinky toe

• The answer is digit.

What a phoenix emerges from, with "the"

• The answer is ashes.

"You ain't seen nothing ___"

• The answer is yet.

DownSkirmish or scuffle

The answer is fight.

Dog in "Garfield"

• The answer is odie.

Understands, as a joke

• The answer is gets.

Time to blow out the candles, informally

• The answer is bday.

Increase

• The answer is rise.

Being a great communicator isn’t just about knowing how to speak eloquently—it’s about knowing how to prepare for, and engage deeply in, important conversations. These simple strategies can help. Before a key conversation, take 30 seconds to jot down a few topics you know you want to cover. Going into the discussion with a rough […]

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