Technologies

Here’s Everything to Know About NameDrop on iPhone

If you’re sick of swapping phones to share your contact info, NameDrop could be the answer.

Apple fans have been playing around with all of the exciting new features that iOS 17 brought to compatible iPhones earlier this fall. These new upgrades include several exciting additions, including StandBy mode and the Journal app. Among these new-to-iPhone features is NameDrop, a contact-sharing feature that allows you to share your number with just a tap of your phone.

The release of iOS 17, and NameDrop, follows the announcement of the iPhone 15 series, the Apple Watch Series 9 and the Apple Watch Ultra 2 at Apple’s Wonderlust event in September.

If you’ve got an iPhone running iOS 17, you’re in luck: NameDrop is simple to use. Read on for everything you need to know about this feature.

What is NameDrop?

NameDrop is the newest way iPhone users can share contact information with each other. You no longer have to fork over your phone to strangers if you want to swap contact info. All you need to do is simply tap your phones together to swap information.

When can I use NameDrop?

If you’re an iPhone user, you’re in luck. NameDrop is available to you right now, or as soon as you update to iOS 17 — that is, as long as you have a supported iPhone.

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How does NameDrop work?

In a Newsroom post, Apple called NameDrop a «new AirDrop experience.» People with iPhones can «hold their iPhone near another to share their contact information with only their intended recipients.»

Apple clarified that you’ll be able to select what information you share with other people, so you won’t have to worry about accidentally sending super personal information to strangers.

Essentially, all you have to do is place your iPhone close to the intended recipient of your NameDrop, and you’re done. Once you’ve placed the phones together, a Contact Poster will pop up (this is the image that pops up when you call someone). After that, you’ll have the option to just receive the contact or send your own back.

You’ll only be able to NameDrop with other iPhone users running iOS 17 or later and Apple Watch users running Watch OS 10 or later. So, if you want to get in on the contact sharing action, you’ll want to make sure your device is running the right version of its operating system.

So… how do I turn NameDrop off?

Not everyone is going to be a fan of this new feature, and if you fall into that category, Apple’s got you covered.

All you have to do is open the Settings app, and then tap on General. After that, navigate to the AirDrop tab. Once you open the tab, simply toggle the Bring Devices Together option off. And just like that, no more NameDrop.

For more iOS 17 details, check out everything you should do before updating to iOS 17 and five hidden iOS 17 features we think you should know about.

Technologies

I Didn’t Expect a Refund From Amazon After All These Years, but It Happened

Amazon’s internal review led to a surprise deposit in my bank account.

Did you get a random refund from Amazon recently? You aren’t alone. Several customers have reported they received a variety of amounts of money from products they ordered months or even years ago, with one customer on LinkedIn saying he received a refund of $1,800 for a smart TV bought seven years ago. Others made similar comments about products bought long ago.

According to Bloomberg, it all ties back to an internal review Amazon did, possibly in response to a 2023 lawsuit. That suit claimed Amazon had quietly reversed legit return-related refunds for some shoppers. Now, it looks like Amazon’s making good — and if you’ve ever had a return go sideways, you might see a little money show up too.

A representative for Amazon told CNET that only a small number of customers would be affected.

«Following a recent internal review, we identified a very small subset of returns where we issued a refund without the payment completing, or where we could not verify that the correct item had been sent back to us so no refund was issued,» an Amazon representative said. «There is no action required from customers to receive the refunds, and we have fixed the payment issue.»

In its latest earnings call, Amazon reported a one-time expense of $1 billion connected to refunds that the company had not yet sent out. These earmarked funds could be responsible for the sudden updates that shoppers are now seeing regarding purchases as far back as 2018.

Read more: I’ve Been Tracking Tariff Price Impacts Every Day and Here’s What I’ve Found So Far

If you receive an email about a surprise refund from Amazon orders, it may be related to these changes Amazon has made behind the scenes. You may still want to confirm it’s not fraud by logging into your Amazon account or making a quick service call, especially if it’s a larger amount like a payment for a TV. Scammers may be taking advantage of this news, too, so be wary of any notification that asks you for financial information, which Amazon should already have.

Technologies

Today’s NYT Mini Crossword Answers for Sunday, May 25

Here are the answers for The New York Times Mini Crossword for May 25.

Looking for the most recent Mini Crossword answer? Click here for today’s Mini Crossword hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Wordle, Strands, Connections and Connections: Sports Edition puzzles.

Today’s NYT Mini Crossword isn’t too tough. I was stumped right away though, with 1-Across, but when I read it to my teen daughter, she knew it immediately. Need some help with today’s Mini Crossword? Read on. And if you could use some hints and guidance for daily solving, check out our Mini Crossword tips.

The Mini Crossword is just one of many games in the Times’ games collection. If you’re looking for today’s Wordle, Connections, Connections: Sports Edition and Strands answers, you can visit CNET’s NYT puzzle hints page.

Read more: Tips and Tricks for Solving The New York Times Mini Crossword

Let’s get at those Mini Crossword clues and answers.

Mini across clues and answers

1A clue: Good for a bike route, bad for a bike tire
Answer: FLAT

5A clue: Rolling in it
Answer: RICH

6A clue: Internet company with a purple logo
Answer: YAHOO

8A clue: McIlroy who won the 2025 Masters
Answer: RORY

9A clue: Mumford & ___ (rock band)
Answer: SONS

Mini down clues and answers

1D clue: Food item dipped in ketchup
Answer: FRY

2D clue: Apt rhyme of «falsifiers»
Answer: LIARS

3D clue: Sneezing sound
Answer: ACHOO

4D clue: Plant’s defense against herbivores, perhaps
Answer: THORN

7D clue: Yiddish exclamations of woe
Answer: OYS

How to play more Mini Crosswords

The New York Times Games section offers a large number of online games, but only some of them are free for all to play. You can play the current day’s Mini Crossword for free, but you’ll need a subscription to the Times Games section to play older puzzles from the archives.

Technologies

Today’s NYT Connections: Sports Edition Hints and Answers for May 25, #244

Hints and answers for the NYT Connections: Sports Edition puzzle, No. 244, for May 25.

Looking for the most recent regular Connections answers? Click here for today’s Connections hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle and Strands puzzles.

The purple category in Connections: Sports Edition today is about the biggest sports event of the day. You probably know what it is. Hint: Get behind the wheel in the Hoosier State. Read on for hints and the answers.

Connections: Sports Edition is out of beta now, making its debut on Super Bowl Sunday, Feb. 9. That’s a sign that the game has earned enough loyal players that The Athletic, the subscription-based sports journalism site owned by the Times, will continue to publish it. It doesn’t show up in the NYT Games app but now appears in The Athletic’s own app. Or you can continue to play it free online.

Read more: NYT Connections: Sports Edition Puzzle Comes Out of Beta

Hints for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups

Here are four hints for the groupings in today’s Connections: Sports Edition puzzle, ranked from the easiest yellow group to the tough (and sometimes bizarre) purple group.

Yellow group hint: Get your racket.

Green group hint: Pac Northwest player.

Blue group hint: Blow that fastball past the hitter.

Purple group hint: Gentlemen, start your engines.