Technologies

Memorial Day Sale: Prime Members Can Save $30 on This Baseus Blade 6-in-1 Power Strip and Get 2 Free 45W USB-C Chargers

You can now enjoy a steep discount (and some free goodies) on the purchase of this 6-in-1 power strip if you’re quick.

If you’re constantly on your phone and laptop throughout the day, or have a bevy of accessories to keep topped up (like the dying battery on my phone I’ve been needing to replace for three months now) you know that a shortage of electrical outlets and charging ports can be inconvenient. Luckily, Baseus is behind some nifty charging devices that can help solve this issue and make sure every one of your devices can be easily recharged. The best part? You don’t have to pay the full price for a power solution right now, thanks to Memorial Day sales.

Amazon is currently offering a $30 discount on the Baseus Blade 140W charging station to Prime members as a part of its Memorial Day sale, which means you can grab it for just $70. Even better, the retailer is also including two free 45W USB-C chargers with your purchase. Not only is this a great opportunity to save on this charging device, you might also be able to avoid potentially rising costs due to tariffs on electronic devices and accessories.

This Baseus Blade charging station is a 6-in-1 powerhouse with two electrical outlets, one USB-A port and three USB-C ports for a convenient place to charge your laptop, tablet, smartphone, lamp and other necessary work devices. Its smart display also shows you how much power is being distributed per port.

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

Thanks to its GaN technology, this charging station is safe to use and is built to prevent overheating and keep your devices safe. Amazon is also throwing in two 45W charging blocks valued at $35, which makes this deal even sweeter and lets you charge even more devices. Just be sure to click on the on-page offers to add the chargers to your cart. You could also select a couple of other items with this buy one get one free promotion, like two MagSafe power banks, a MagSafe charging station and some open ear headphones.

Looking for charging devices but not sure if this deal is right for you? Check out our list of the best USB-C chargers, docks, hubs and more.

Why this deal matters

This Baseus Blade 6-in-1 charging station is not only $30 off, it also includes two 45W charging blocks so you can expand your charging options at home or during travels. That makes now a great time to stock up and potentially save before tariffs start affecting the price of electronic goods and accessories.

When does this deal expire?

We don’t have an exact ending date for this deal, but since it’s tied to Memorial Day, it’s likely around only for a short time or until the stock runs out. It could disappear at any moment, so if you’ve been wanting to invest in a power solution, don’t wait up. If you’re looking for even more charging deals, Anker is running a few as well, but none with this level of freebies.

Technologies

Today’s NYT Mini Crossword Answers for Friday, Jan. 23

Here are the answers for The New York Times Mini Crossword for Jan. 23.

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.

Need some help with today’s Mini Crossword? Hope you’re familiar with a certain blond actor (8-Across)! Read on for all the answers. 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.

Mini across clues and answers

1A clue: Attach, as one plant to another
Answer: GRAFT

6A clue: Email button with a backward-facing arrow
Answer: REPLY

7A clue: Make very excited
Answer: AMPUP

8A clue: Two-time Best Actor nominee Nick
Answer: NOLTE

9A clue: Total dork
Answer: DWEEB

Mini down clues and answers

1D clue: Word that can precede piano, total or staircase
Answer: GRAND

2D clue: Cut again, as a lawn
Answer: REMOW

3D clue: Company whose logo has a bite taken out of it
Answer: APPLE

4D clue: Champagne glass
Answer: FLUTE

5D clue: Laid-back kind of personality
Answer: TYPEB

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Technologies

‘Is Microsoft Down?’ Outlook and Teams Go Dark in Widespread Outage

It’s not just you: Numerous Microsoft services weren’t working most of Thursday, and the outage is continuing.

Thursday has been a tough work day for many — or maybe, a great one, depending on how eager you are to access work-related programs. Microsoft services, including Outlook, Teams and Microsoft 365 are experiencing a significant outage that’s still going on as of early evening, Pacific time. Microsoft hasn’t announced an expected time when everything will be back up and running.

You can follow the official Microsoft 365 Status account on the social-media platform X, which has been regularly posting updates about the outage.

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The first post there, from 11:37 a.m. PT, said that the company was «investigating a potential issue impacting multiple Microsoft 365 services, including Outlook, Microsoft Defender and Microsoft Purview. Further information can be found in the admin center under MO1221364.»

The admin center is the dashboard for IT admins managing Microsoft 365 services.

You can also monitor Microsoft’s Service Health Status page. That page is noting that «users may be seeing degraded service functionality or be unable to access multiple Microsoft 365 services.»

A representative for Microsoft didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

Technologies

Ring’s Latest Feature Lets You Verify Shared Security Videos

With so many fake videos out there, the home-security company is adding a level of protection.

Popular home security brand Ring announced that videos shared from its devices can now be verified, so customers know they’re watching an authentic, unaltered video. Ring says the new verification process is similar to a security seal on a package or medicine bottle, indicating that no one has tampered with it.

The new feature is available starting Thursday, and it doesn’t matter which Ring device recorded the video. All videos downloaded directly from the Ring app are automatically verified and include a security seal for authenticity.

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When someone sends you a Ring video, you can now visit Ring’s verification page, paste the video link, and determine immediately whether the video is verified. The website doesn’t send your video anywhere. It stays locally on your device, and all verification checks happen within your browser. The verification website only accepts MP4 files, the format Ring videos are saved.

Videos downloaded before December 2025 or edited videos cannot be verified. Ring says that even minor adjustments, such as shaving a couple of seconds off the beginning or end of a video, or even adjusting brightness levels, will render it unverifiable.