Technologies

Today’s NYT Strands Hints, Answers and Help for May 17, #440

Here are hints — and all of the answers — for the NYT Strands puzzle No. 440 for May 17.

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.

Today’s NYT Strands puzzle is a fun one. It relies on you knowing a bit about a certain sport. 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: She’s got game.

If that doesn’t help you, here’s a clue: Caitlin Clark.

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:

SOME, TOME, TOMES, MEET, SEER, TEES, GAMS, GEAR, MAST, TROT, MART, MARTS, RALLY, MALL, RICE, MICE, MAGE

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’ve got 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:

LYNX, DREAM, FEVER, STORM, WINGS, LIBERTY, MERCURY.

Today’s Strands spangram

Today’s Strands spangram is BASKETBALL. To find it, start with the B that’s four letters to the right on the very bottom row, and wind up.

Quick tips for Strands

#1: To get more clue words, see if you can tweak the words you’ve already found, by adding an «S» or other variants. And if you find a word like WILL, see if other letters are close enough to help you make SILL, or BILL.

#2: Once you get one theme word, look at the puzzle to see if you can spot other related words.

#3: If you’ve been given the letters for a theme word, but can’t figure it out, guess three more clue words, and the puzzle will light up each letter in order, revealing the word.

Technologies

This $199 Bose QuietComfort Headphones Deal Is the Best I’ve Seen

With a $150 discount, this Bose QuietComfort headphones deal is impossible to beat.

We’re big fans of personal audio gear, especially high-quality headphones. The Bose QuietComfort headphones definitely fall into that category. In fact, CNET’s expert editors rank them as some of the best noise-canceling headphones on the market today. But that doesn’t mean you have to pay the retail price — right now, both Amazon and Walmart are offering them for a best-ever price.

Strike now and you’ll snag a pair of Bose QuietComfort wireless headphones at a great discount of $150. Walmart is offering them for just $199 in select colors. But if you want more variety, Amazon is price-matching across the entire color range. Just keep in mind that I can’t promise that either of these deals will last for long.

The QuietComfort headphones include noise cancellation and have Quiet and Aware modes, so you can focus as needed or let some ambient sound in when you’re taking walks or need to know what’s happening around you.

Hey, did you know? CNET Deals texts are free, easy and save you money.

Adjustable EQ lets you customize your sound preferences, and a battery life of up to 24 hours makes these headphones the perfect travel companion. Need a battery boost? It only takes a 15-minute charge to get an extra battery life of up to 2.5 hours.

If this isn’t quite the product you’re looking for, check out our list of the best wireless headphones to find the right pair for you. There are plenty of different options from various manufacturers, with something for everyone.

HEADPHONE DEALS OF THE WEEK

Sony WH-1000XM4 Wireless Noise Cancelling Over-Ear Headphones (Navy):

$298 (save $50)
Soundcore Life Q20 Hybrid Active Noise Cancelling Headphones (Black):

$40 (save $20)
Beats Studio Pro Wireless Noise Cancelling Headphones (Black):

$300 (save $51)
Sennheiser Momentum 4 Wireless ANC Over-Ear Headphones (Black):

$299 (save $151)
Bowers & Wilkins Px7 S2e ANC Over-Ear Headphones (Black):

$220 (save $180)

Deals are selected by the CNET Group commerce team, and may be unrelated to this article.

Why this deal matters

Bose makes some of the best headphones on the market. This deal offers QuietComfort headphones for just $199 after slashing $150 off the regular price. That’s the lowest price I’ve seen on these headphones, and a massive discount. Just be sure to get your order in soon.

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Technologies

The Best Earbuds for Samsung Users Are Just $165, but for How Long?

The Samsung Galaxy Buds 3 look and sound great, and this deal smashes the usual $250 asking price.

While it’s true that Apple’s latest AirPods Pro 3 tend to dominate the conversation when discussing premium Bluetooth earbuds, they aren’t the only option. In fact, if you’re ensconced in Samsung’s ecosystem, they’re obviously not going to be a great fit. The solution? Samsung’s Galaxy Buds 3 Pro, which you can get on sale right now for just $165 on Amazon.

It isn’t quite the cheapest price we’ve seen, but it isn’t all that far off. And while they might fall slightly during the upcoming Black Friday sales, we don’t expect them to go far beyond their lowest price of around $150.

There are plenty of options out there for non-Apple users looking for a good pair of wireless earbuds. To give you one example, CNET’s own list of the best wireless earbuds named Sony’s WF-1000XM5 as the best pair on the market. Elsewhere on that list, though, CNET also named the Galaxy Buds 3 Pro as the best option for Samsung users, and it’s not hard to see why.

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These earbuds boast a number of features tailored to folks with Samsung Galaxy or any other sort of Android smartphone, most notably support for the «high-resolution» Samsung Seamless Codec for audio quality. Those users will also have access to the Galaxy Wear app, which is the exclusive method the company uses to push through updates. While you can technically connect these buds to an iPhone, you won’t find the Wear app in Apple’s App Store, leaving the experience far from ideal.

Beyond those exclusive perks for Android users, CNET’s audio guru Dave Carnoy said in his review of the Galaxy Buds 3 Pro that you can expect a «lightweight and comfortable» feel, excellent audio and call quality, and some solid noise-cancellation to boot. The primary flaw he noted was the price, which this deal definitely helps with.

Why this deal matters

The Galaxy Buds 3 Pro are the top-of-the-line when it comes to Samsung earbuds, which means that most of the time you can expect a top-of-the-line price tag to match. Now, however, you can grab yourself a pair for considerably less.

Technologies

Today’s NYT Mini Crossword Answers for Friday, Oct. 31

Here are the answers for The New York Times Mini Crossword for Oct. 31.

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.

Happy Halloween! Today’s NYT Mini Crossword features the word «BOO!» in a square on the last line of the grid. That’s not just a Halloween greeting, it’s part of the answer that spans both 9-Across and 10-Across, so read the answers to both those with the «boo» in the middle to solve it. And then, the puzzle-makers use that «BOO!» again, to help make the answer to 3-Down. Read on for all the answers, complete with added boos. And if you could use some hints and guidance for daily solving, check out our Mini Crossword tips.

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.