Technologies

Best photo books to give as gifts this holiday season

Here are the top photo-book services for turning your photo albums into the perfect gift or keepsake.

This story is part of Holiday Gift Guide 2021, our list of ideas, by topic, by recipient and by price, to help you discover the perfect gift.

A photo book full of happy memories is the perfect gift for friends and family — especially this holiday season, where some families might be reuniting for the first time since the pandemic’s onset.

The days of dropping off film canisters at a 24-hour photo counter and carefully arranging the prints in a physical album may be in the past, thanks to the digital era. But for me, nothing can replace cherishing family photos in a book on my lap.

A number of reputable options from photo-book services are available online to help you compile a photo book project that can be mailed right to your door. We tested a few of the best photo-book services to see how easy they are to work with, though we haven’t actually gotten any books made yet, so we can’t compare the quality of the final products.

What should I consider before ordering a photo book?

What are the available book sizes?
What are the cover and page style options? (Matte, glossy, standard, etc.)
Can it be done on mobile, or is the site desktop-only?
How long will the photo book take to arrive?
Is it easy to upload photos?
How much creative freedom do I have with templates?

Here are the best photo-book services to check out online. We’ll update this periodically as new services become available and existing services expand their offerings.

Read more: The best printer for 2021

More options

Apple Photos

Apple no longer has an in-house photo book service, but you can download project expansion apps to create photo books with iOS devices like iPhone and Mac. Open the Photos app and choose File > Create > Book. From there you can download third-party apps Motif, Mimeo Photos, White Wall, Ifolor Designer, Mpix, Fujifilm Prints and Gifts or Wix Photo Albums to start a project. Any app you download will be available through Book when you create a new project in the Photos app.

Costco

Costco requires a paid membership to access its photo center. If you have a membership, you can build three different types of 30- to 100-page photo books with multiple themes, captions and layout designs.

The 12-by-12-inch premium layflat starts at $40 and has a special spine to accommodate bigger photo spreads. The 11.25-by-8.75-inch hardcover photo book starts at $20. Costco also offers a two-pack of 8-by-8-inch softcover photo books starting at $20.

Technologies

Today’s NYT Mini Crossword Answers for Monday, July 14

Here are the answers for The New York Times Mini Crossword for July 14.

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.

Oh, come on, New York Times — that 8-Across answer in the Mini Crossword today is just a bunch of letters! It could almost be any letters that seem to make a sound! Stumped by this or any other answer today? 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 to those Mini Crossword clues and answers.

Mini across clues and answers

1A clue: Account used to log into Threads, familiarly
Answer: INSTA

6A clue: Upscale gym freebie
Answer: TOWEL

7A clue: Bad thing to feel toward the end of a marathon
Answer: CRAMP

8A clue: Vowelless grunt
Answer: HMMPH

9A clue: Vegetable in fried rice
Answer: PEA

Mini down clues and answers

1D clue: Reason to scratch one’s head, perhaps
Answer: ITCH

2D clue: Standard
Answer: NORM

3D clue: Shrek’s home
Answer: SWAMP

4D clue: Arizona city between Phoenix and Mesa
Answer: TEMPE

5D clue: Gen ___ (kids born in the 2010s)
Answer: ALPHA

Technologies

Today’s NYT Connections: Sports Edition Hints and Answers for July 14, #294

Here are hints and the answers for the NYT Connections: Sports Edition puzzle for July 14, No. 294.

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.

Today’s Connections: Sports Edition might be tough, if timely. I guess I’m not up on the 2025 HR Derby, but maybe you are. 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: Gotta get through it.

Green group hint: Big piece of furniture.

Blue group hint: Homes for hoops.

Purple group hint: They hit with power.

Answers for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups

Yellow group: Rough patch.

Green group: Played on a table.

Blue group: NBA arenas.

Purple group: 2025 MLB HR Derby participants, informally.

Read more: Wordle Cheat Sheet: Here Are the Most Popular Letters Used in English Words

What are today’s Connections: Sports Edition answers?

The yellow words in today’s Connections

The theme is rough patch. The four answers are drought, funk rut and slump.

The green words in today’s Connections

The theme is played on a table. The four answers are air hockey, ping pong, pool and snooker.

The blue words in today’s Connections

The theme is NBA arenas. The four answers are Ball, Rocket, Scotiabank and State Farm.

The purple words in today’s Connections

The theme is 2025 MLB HR Derby participants, informally. The four answers are Cal, Jazz, Junior and O’Neil.

Technologies

Dyson Reveals Futuristic Farming Vision

Dyson, a company best known for its vacuums and hair dryers, has unveiled a new rotating farm design that aims to make food production more local, sustainable and dependable.

Dyson, a company best known for its vacuums and hair dryers, unveiled a new circular farm design featuring rows of strawberry plants that rotate to share sunlight, robots that do everything from harvesting to releasing helpful insects, and sensors to help farmers keep an eye on things.

The company is also getting into the renewable energy game. Check out the video in this article to find out how it all connects and what it could mean for the future of food.