Technologies

Prime Day: Get the Lisen MagSafe Power Bank at 20% Off and Score a Free Battery Pack

A discounted power bank is good enough on its own, but getting two for one already low price is a no-brainer.

The battery life on the iPhone 16 is already pretty good, but sometimes an extra bit of power is warranted. After all, you may be out camping, traveling or doing some other activity where a wall charger isn’t available. For those times, a power bank could be exactly what you need to get you through that second day.

For Amazon Prime Day, Lisen is putting its money where its mouth is. Not only is the Slim Qi2 MagSafe power bank on sale for 20% off with a coupon code, but the brand is also giving away another power bank for the low, low price of nothing.

To get the deal, you have to add the Slim Qi2 MagSafe power bank to your cart along with the Lisen Ultra Slim MagSafe 5,000mAh battery pack. Once done, head to checkout and you’ll see that the $25 price of the battery pack is removed.

Since it’s difficult (but not impossible) to mess up a power bank in this day and age, both should serve you well. They work as you would expect. Open the package, pop them on the back of your MagSafe-compatible phone, and watch your battery charge.

According to the Amazon listing, it’s compatible with modern iPhones and Samsung Galaxy phones with MagSafe and with MagSafe-compatible cases as well. Both chargers feature wired charging if you want to use that option, making them compatible with a non-MagSafe phone.

For the Slim Qi2 model, you can charge at 15 watts over MagSafe or 30 watts wired. The smaller Ultra Slim model does 7.5 watts over MagSafe and 18 watts wired. Otherwise, what you see is what you get with these, and sometimes, we appreciate the simplicity.

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Why this deal matters

Well, for starters, I haven’t yet seen a BOGO offer that wasn’t worth at least a look. Jokes aside, having two power banks can be helpful. You can pack the bigger one away in a bag for later use while the Ultra Slim model is thin enough to be there in your pocket without feeling too bulky or obtrusive. The smallest iPhone 16 has a battery capacity of 3,561mAh, while the iPhone 16 Pro Max has a battery of 4,685mAh. That means these two batteries combined can charge your phone at least three full times, regardless of model.

Should you want only one of these, both also have 20% off coupon codes that you can apply once they reach your cart. However, be warned that the BOGO offer overwrites the coupon code, so you can’t do both. We checked.

More power banks we’ve tested

Power banks are a dime a dozen these days, with dozens of brands selling hundreds of products. If this particular model doesn’t strike you, we have not one, but two lists of alternatives that you can check out. One specifically for iPhones, and we tested each battery bank on the list with an iPhone to make sure it works. The other is for Android phones, and, likewise, we tested to make sure they all work to spec with Android devices.

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.

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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.