Baseus Inspire XC1 Review: Excellent Open Earbuds

Speaking of critical listening, the XC1 work with Sony’s hi-res capable LDAC Bluetooth codec, should you happen to own a compatible Android phone (sorry, iPhone users). Using LDAC can reveal more detail, especially when listening to a source of lossless audio, but for these earbuds, I don’t think the juice is worth the squeeze. Using…

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OpenAI Signs $38 Billion Deal With Amazon

OpenAI has signed a multi-year deal with Amazon to buy $38 billion worth of AWS cloud infrastructure to train its models and serve its users. The deal is yet another sign of the AI industry becoming increasingly entangled, with OpenAI now at the center of major partnerships with industry players including Google, Oracle, Nvidia, and…

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The 46 Best Shows on Hulu Right Now (July 2025)

While Netflix seemingly led the way for other streaming networks to create compelling original programming, Hulu actually beat them all to the punch. In 2011, a year before Netflix’s Lilyhammer and two years before the arrival of House of Cards, the burgeoning streamer premiered The Morning After, a pop-culture-focused news show that ran for 800…

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CR’s Ultimate Heat Survival Guide

Even if you have air conditioning—like 88 percent of U.S. households, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration’s 2020 Residential Energy Consumption Survey—you may still struggle to stay cool on the hottest days. What’s more, increased electricity use can lead to brownouts and outages. Here’s how to prepare your home for a heat wave before…

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An ‘Intimacy Crisis’ Is Driving the Dating Divide

In the US, nearly half of adults are single. A quarter of men suffer from loneliness. Rates of depression are on the rise. And one in four Gen Z adults—the so-called kinkiest generation, according to one study—have never had partnered sex. In an age of endless connection, where hooking up happens with the ease of…

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Minnesota Sues to Stop ICE ‘Invasion’

The State of Minnesota and the cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul on Monday filed a sweeping federal lawsuit to halt what they call an unprecedented and unlawful surge of US federal agents in the Twin Cities, arguing that the deployment amounts to a constitutional violation and a direct threat to public safety. The 80-page…

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8 Types of Butter and How to Use Them

There are simple ways to get all the creamy deliciousness you love with less fat—and some smart swaps to try. Maximize the flavor. Use butter as a finishing touch. Do this instead of using it as a cooking fat, says James Briscione, a chef and culinary adviser at Samford University in Birmingham, Ala. If you…

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