Technologies

I Tried This Cheap Android Phone. There’s a Lot to Be Excited About

The Nothing CMF Phone 2 Pro is cheap, stylish and has six years of support.

Spending £219 (or $279) on a new phone won’t hurt your wallet, and Nothing’s CMF Phone 2 Pro still offers an impressive lineup of features for its low price. There’s the large, vibrant display, the multiple rear cameras, the capacious battery and the Android 15 software. Throw in the IP54 water-resistance and a generous six years of security updates and you really are getting a lot for your money.

But my favorite thing about the phone is its design. It eschews the plain looks of other budget phones, instead using exposed screw heads, metallic camera surrounds and, on my review model, a delightful soft spearmint color. There’s even a little removable circle on the back of the phone that allows you to attach a lanyard directly to it — ideal for those who love taking photos at festivals.

Read more: Best Phone Under $500

The Nothing CMF Phone 2 Pro is available for preorder in the UK from today for £219 for the base model with 8GB of RAM and 128GB of storage. In the US, you’ll be able to buy 256GB model for $279, but only via Nothing’s beta program, which requires you to sign up and provide feedback on your experience with the phone. Nothing says the phone will not support all network bands in the US.

It’s certainly worth checking out the beta program if you’re interested. And hopefully Nothing will give the phone an official US launch in the future.

Strictly speaking, the phone is called the «CMF by Nothing Phone 2 Pro.» CMF is the confusing affordable sub-brand of already-affordable phone maker Nothing. It’s the second-gen CMF phone and I’m still baffled why Nothing thinks it needs to create a separate clunkily named brand, rather than just launching it fully under the Nothing name. But hey, maybe that’s why I’m writing about phones, rather than selling them.

Nothing CMF Phone 2 Pro hands on

I’ve only spent a short time with the phone so far, but there’s already plenty I like about it. The design immediately stands out. It doesn’t have the flashing LEDs of Nothing’s more expensive phones, but I like the look and it feels surprisingly premium and sturdy to hold for such an affordable phone. It has an IP54 water resistance rating which will help keep it safe from the odd spilled drink, too.

The AMOLED display is bright and vibrant. Colorful YouTube videos looked good and it managed to counter the bright overhead lights of my office. It has a 1 to 120Hz variable refresh rate so playing fast-paced games shouldn’t be a problem here.

It runs on Android 15 at its core and Nothing has given it the same skin as its other phones. It relies on a stark monochrome aesthetic, with minimalist black and white icons and widgets which look quite cool (although I sometimes struggle to tell exactly which app I’m looking for). Nothing has committed to six years of total security support for the phone which is especially generous for a phone of this price. The OnePlus 13, for example, also offers six years of support and that phone costs almost £1,000 in the UK.

The rear cameras include a 50 megapixel main camera, a 50 megapixel telephoto camera (with a 2x optical zoom) and an 8 megapixel ultrawide. I haven’t used the cameras yet so I can’t speak to their quality, but based on the previous CMF Phone 1, I expect them to be able to take decent everyday snaps, but certainly won’t be a rival for top camera phones like the iPhone 16 Pro or Galaxy S25 Ultra.

Is the Nothing CMF Phone 2 Pro worth buying?

I haven’t tested the phone for long enough to give a final verdict yet, but I’m impressed with it based on my early impressions. It’s a quirky-looking phone that stands out from the budget crowd. The solid lineup of specs and its six years of support are generous at such a low price.

I’m especially keen to see how its cameras perform — along with the processor performance for everyday tasks and more demanding gaming — but on paper at least this phone should be able to do a fair job with both.

Technologies

Today’s Wordle Hints, Answer and Help for July 5, #1477

Here are hints and the answer for today’s Wordle for July 5, No. 1,477.

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

Today’s Wordle puzzle is a pretty tough one. I grew up on a farm, so I know the word, but I didn’t put it together right away, even though the letters are common ones. If you need a new starter word, check out our list of which letters show up the most in English words. If you need hints and the answer, read on.

Today’s Wordle hints

Before we show you today’s Wordle answer, we’ll give you some hints. If you don’t want a spoiler, look away now.

Wordle hint No. 1: Repeats

Today’s Wordle answer has no repeated letters.

Wordle hint No. 2: Vowels

There is are two vowels in today’s Wordle answer.

Wordle hint No. 3: First letter

Today’s Wordle answer begins with the letter B.

Wordle hint No. 4: Down on the farm

Today’s Wordle answer describes a piece of farm equipment.

Wordle hint No. 5: Meaning

Today’s Wordle answer refers to a machine for making paper, hay, or cotton into bales.

TODAY’S WORDLE ANSWER

Today’s Wordle answer is BALER.

Yesterday’s Wordle answer

Yesterday’s Wordle answer, July 4, No. 1476 was CURVE.

Recent Wordle answers

June 30, No. 1472: BLINK

July 1, No. 1473: MOLDY

July 2, No. 1474: INCUR

July 3, No. 1475: POPPY

Technologies

Today’s NYT Strands Hints, Answers and Help for July 5, #489

Here are hints and answers for the NYT Strands puzzle for July 5, No. 489.

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

The theme of today’s NYT Strands puzzle isn’t terribly tough, but at least one of the words is unusual and really, really long to unscramble. If you need hints and answers, read on.

I go into depth about the rules for Strands in this story.

If you’re looking for today’s Wordle, Connections and Mini Crossword answers, you can visit CNET’s NYT puzzle hints page.

Read more: NYT Connections Turns 1: These Are the 5 Toughest Puzzles So Far

Hint for today’s Strands puzzle

Today’s Strands theme is: Every second counts.

If that doesn’t help you, here’s a clue: Does anybody really know what time it is?

Clue words to unlock in-game hints

Your goal is to find hidden words that fit the puzzle’s theme. If you’re stuck, find any words you can. Every time you find three words of four letters or more, Strands will reveal one of the theme words. These are the words I used to get those hints but any words of four or more letters that you find will work:

DIAL, SOLE, MOLE, MOLES, SHAKE, CHEEP, ROLE, HOME, LOCK, MEAT, TAME, TAMES, ROLES, ROON, TRON

Answers for today’s Strands puzzle

These are the answers that tie into the theme. The goal of the puzzle is to find them all, including the spangram, a theme word that reaches from one side of the puzzle to the other. When you have all of them (I originally thought there were always eight but learned that the number can vary), every letter on the board will be used. Here are the nonspangram answers:

CLOCK, WATCH, SUNDIAL, HOURGLASS, CHRONOMETER

Today’s Strands spangram

Today’s Strands spangram is TIMEKEEPERS. To find it, look for the T that’s four letters down on the far left, and wind across.

Technologies

Microsoft Is Eliminating Passwords in August: Here’s What You Need to Do to Prepare

Microsoft Authenticator has already stopped autofilling passwords, but the biggest change comes next month.

In June, Microsoft Authenticator stopped letting users create new passwords. In July, it turned off the autofill password function. And in August, the login app will stop supporting passwords entirely, moving to more secure passkeys, such as a PIN, fingerprint or facial recognition.

Attila Tomaschek, CNET’s software senior writer and digital security expert, says that passkeys are a safer alternative to the risky password habits practiced by 49% of US adults, according to a recent survey by CNET.

«Passwords can be cracked, whereas passkeys need both the public and the locally stored private key to authenticate users, which can help mitigate risks like falling victim to phishing and brute-force or credential-stuffing attacks,» Tomaschek said.

Using the same password for several accounts or adding personal hints can be a convenient way to remember your login. But that puts you at a big risk for scammers, identity theft and fraud. Here’s more on Microsoft’s plan for eliminating passwords and how to make the switch to passkeys before August.

When will Microsoft Authenticator stop supporting passwords?

Microsoft Authenticator houses your passwords and lets you sign into all your Microsoft accounts using a PIN, facial recognition like Windows Hello, or other biometric data like a fingerprint. Authenticator can be used in other ways, such as verifying you’re logging in if you forgot your password, or using two-factor authentication as an extra layer of security for your accounts. In June, the company stopped letting users add passwords to Authenticator, but here’s a timeline of other changes you can expect from Microsoft.

July 2025: You won’t be able to use the autofill password function.
August 2025: You’ll no longer be able to use saved passwords.

If you still want to use passwords instead of passkeys, you can store them in Microsoft Edge. However, CNET experts recommend adopting passkeys during this transition. «Passkeys use public key cryptography to authenticate users, rather than relying on users themselves creating their own (often weak or reused) passwords to access their online accounts,» Tomaschek said.

Why are passkeys a better alternative to passwords?

So what exactly is a passkey? It’s a credential created by the Fast Identity Online Alliance that uses biometric data or a PIN to verify your identity and access your account. Think about using your fingerprint or Face ID to log into your account. That’s generally safer than using a password that is easy to guess or susceptible to a phishing attack.

Passkeys aren’t stored on servers like passwords. Instead, they’re stored only on your personal device. More conveniently, this takes the guesswork out of remembering your passwords and the need for a password manager.

How to set up a passkey in Microsoft Authenticator

Microsoft said in a May 1 blog post that it will automatically detect the best passkey to set up and make that your default sign-in option. «If you have a password and ‘one-time code’ set up on your account, we’ll prompt you to sign in with your one-time code instead of your password. After you’re signed in, you’ll be prompted to enroll a passkey. Then the next time you sign in, you’ll be prompted to sign in with your passkey,» according to the blog post.

To set up a new passkey, open your Authenticator app on your phone. Tap on your account and select «Set up a passkey.» You’ll be prompted to log in with your existing credentials. After you’re logged in, you can set up the passkey.