Technologies

Garmin Announces Its First-Ever Sleep-Only Tracker, a Lightweight Band Around Your Bicep

Garmin’s new Index Sleep Monitor fits around the arm to track breathing variations, sleep stages, heart rate variability, skin temperature and more.

Garmin released today its new Index Sleep Monitor, a smart sleep band that gives users a closer look at their overnight vitals and recovery. In addition to tracking sleep duration and stages, the Index Sleep Monitor provides users with their overall sleep score, HRV status, Pulse Ox reading (a pulse oximeter that measures how much oxygen is in your bloodstream), breathing variation, respiration rate, skin temperature, women’s health data, stress levels and Body Battery which is Garmin’s branded energy monitoring technology.

In a press release, Garmin’s vice president of consumer sales and marketing, Susan Lyman, said, «We are thrilled to add the Index Sleep Monitor to our suite of innovative health and wellness products. Wearing this smart sleep band every night can provide in-depth sleep insights and a more complete picture of fitness and recovery so users can wake up ready to seize the day.»

The lightweight, breathable band is worn around the upper arm and comes in two sizes (XS to S; M to XL). After a night of sleep, the data is uploaded into the Garmin Connect app and syncs with other vitals, such as recorded activities, from compatible Garmin smartwatches. This fills in any gaps that one device may miss.

Cleaning is also easy since the tracking device, a square Apple AirTag-like module, can easily be removed, and the band is machine-washable. It also has a seven-night battery life, which allows for daytime charging. If you don’t wear your smartwatch to bed already, this device frees up the night to be the time to give your watch a charge.

Smart wake alarm and women’s health tracking

A standout feature of the Index Sleep Monitor is its smart wake alarm. During a pre-selected time frame, the smart band detects when you’re at the lightest stage of sleep and sends subtle vibrations to wake you up. The intention is to leave you feeling refreshed in the morning rather than groggy from deep sleep. This is an innovative feature in competitors’ sleep-tracking devices, such as the Eight Sleep Pod 4.

While some Garmin smartwatches already have women’s health tracking available in the app, the Index Sleep Monitor utilizes your skin temperature to give further insight into period prediction and ovulation windows. The Garmin Connect app can store users’ data such as symptoms, mood and cycle calendars.

The Index Sleep Monitor is now available on Garmin’s website for $170.

Technologies

Today’s NYT Strands Hints, Answers and Help for Oct. 23 #599

Here are hints and answers for the NYT Strands puzzle for Oct. 23, No. 599.

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 might be Halloween-themed, as the answers are all rather dangerous. Some of them are a bit tough to unscramble, so 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: Please don’t eat me!

If that doesn’t help you, here’s a clue: Remember Mr. Yuk?

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:

POND, NOON, NODE, BALE, SOCK, LOVE, LOCK, MOCK, LEER, REEL, GLOVE, DAIS, LEAN, LEAD, REEL

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:

AZALEA, HEMLOCK, FOXGLOVE, OLEANDER, BELLADONNA

Today’s Strands spangram

Today’s Strands spangram is POISONOUS. To find it, look for the P that is the first letter on the far left of the top row, and wind down and across.

Technologies

Today’s NYT Connections: Sports Edition Hints and Answers for Oct. 23, #395

Here are hints and the answers for the NYT Connections: Sports Edition puzzle for Oct. 23, No. 395.

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 has one of those crazy purple categories, where you wonder if anyone saw the connection, or if people just put that grouping together because only those four words were left. If you’re struggling but still want to solve it, read on for hints and the answers.

Connections: Sports Edition is published by The Athletic, the subscription-based sports journalism site owned by The Times. It doesn’t show up in the NYT Games app but appears in The Athletic’s own app. Or you can play it for 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: Fan noise.

Green group hint: Strategies for hoops.

Blue group hint: Minor league.

Purple group hint: Look for a connection to hoops.

Answers for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups

Yellow group: Sounds from the crowd.

Green group: Basketball offenses.

Blue group: Triple-A baseball teams.

Purple group: Ends with a basketball stat.

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 sounds from the crowd. The four answers are boo, cheer, clap and whistle.

The green words in today’s Connections

The theme is basketball offenses. The four answers are motion, pick and roll, Princeton and triangle.

The blue words in today’s Connections

The theme is triple-A baseball teams. The four answers are Aces, Jumbo Shrimp, Sounds and Storm Chasers.

The purple words in today’s Connections

The theme is ends with a basketball stat. The four answers are afoul, bassist, counterpoint and sunblock.

Technologies

Amazon’s Delivery Drivers Will Soon Wear AI Smart Glasses to Work

The goal is to streamline the delivery process while keeping drivers safe.

Amazon announced on Wednesday that it is developing new AI-powered smart glasses to simplify the delivery experience for its drivers. CNET smart glasses expert Scott Stein mentioned this wearable rollout last month, and now the plan is in its final testing stages.

The goal is to simplify package delivery by reducing the need for drivers to look at their phones, the label on the package they’re delivering and their surroundings to find the correct address.

Don’t miss any of our unbiased tech content and lab-based reviews. Add CNET as a preferred Google source.

A heads-up display will activate as soon as the driver parks, pointing out potential hazards and tasks that must be completed. From there, drivers can locate and scan packages, follow turn-by-turn directions and snap a photograph to prove delivery completion without needing to take out their phone.

The company is testing the glasses in select North American markets.

Watch: See our Instagram post with a video showing the glasses

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

To fight battery drain, the glasses pair with a controller attached to the employee’s delivery vest, allowing them to replace depleted batteries and access operational controls. The glasses will support an employee’s eyeglass prescription. An emergency button will be within reach to ensure the driver’s safety.

Amazon is already planning future versions of the glasses, which will feature «real-time defect detection,» notifying the driver if a package was delivered to the incorrect address. They plan to add features to the glasses to detect if pets are in the yard and adjust to low light.