Technologies
I Never Fly Without This Genius Bluetooth Dongle. Here’s Why
Twelve South’s AirFly Pro has totally transformed how I watch in-flight entertainment. No more awful airline earbuds.
If you fly often, you already know the routine. You settle into your seat, start messing with the in-flight entertainment screen, then remember that your AirPods won’t connect. That means reaching for the airline’s wired headphones that feel flimsy, let in every engine roar and make everything sound muffled. Just the worst.
This is one of the most frustrating parts of flying, especially on long trips when decent audio can make all the difference. Between the engine noise, crying babies and that one guy snoring in 14C, you need a better option. The good news is I’ve found a simple device that fixes the problem completely and makes flying feel a lot more like streaming at home.
The AirFly Pro has become a must-pack item in my travel bag. It’s a simple Bluetooth dongle that lets me connect my wireless earbuds (like my AirPods Pro) directly to the airplane’s entertainment system, no adapters or wired workarounds required. Since I started using it, I’ve stopped dreading in-flight audio and finally get to enjoy movies the way they were meant to be heard. If you fly often, this little gadget could completely change how you travel.
The AirFly Pro lets me enjoy in-flight entertainment
The AirFly Pro from Twelve South is a minimally designed dongle that lets me connect to the 3.5mm headphone jack in my airplane seat to listen to in-flight entertainment on my noise-canceling earbuds. All I have to do is pair the AirFly Pro with whichever Bluetooth headphones I’m using, like my AirPods Pro, plug the AirFly Pro into the display in front of me, and I’m all set. I don’t even need to use my phone to connect the two devices.
There are four versions of the AirFly: the AirFly SE, which sells for $35 on Amazon
and connects to just one set of headphones, the AirFly Pro at $55, the Pro V2 at $60, which is the newest version of the AirFly Pro, and the Pro Deluxe at $70, which comes with an international headphone adapter and a suede travel case.
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I use the AirFly Pro, which has been a game-changer for me on flights. I’ve never had to worry about battery life since the AirFly Pro lasts for more than 25 hours and can fully charge in 3 hours. I can also pair two separate pairs of headphones to a single AirFly Pro, in case I’m with someone else on a flight and want to watch the same movie or show. And if that’s not enough, the AirFly Pro also doubles as an audio transmitter, so I can turn any speaker with a headphone jack, like my old car stereo, into a Bluetooth speaker.
The AirFly Pro makes a great gift for any traveler
The AirFly Pro is the perfect present to give to someone who’s planning to travel this year. Besides my Anker MagSafe battery pack, the AirFly Pro really has become my most treasured travel accessory when I fly, which is why I consider it to be one of those can’t-go-wrong gifts. For more travel gear, here are our favorite tech essentials to travel with and our favorite travel pillows.
Technologies
Bumble’s AI Assistant Bee Wants to Replace Endless Swiping
The dating app says it will launch «chapter-based profiles» and a personal dating assistant.
Dating app Bumble is bringing artificial intelligence into the matchmaking process via a new AI assistant called Bee. The dating app unveiled the upcoming features during its 2025 fourth-quarter earnings call this week. CEO Whitney Wolfe Herd said the company’s revamped platform, called Bumble 2.0, is expected to roll out sometime this spring, with tools designed to make profiles more personal and matches more meaningful.
One of the biggest changes is what Bumble calls a «chapter-based profile.» Instead of presenting users as a handful of static details, the new format lets people share different «chapters» of their lives — essentially short story-like sections that highlight experiences, interests or defining moments.
Today, a typical Bumble profile looks much like those on other dating apps: a name, age, photos and a few quick facts such as job title or hometown. From there, the process is familiar. Swipe left if you’re not interested. Swipe right if you are.
The new format, Bumble hopes, will give users a chance to show more of who they are before someone makes that split-second decision.
Another feature, called Dates, will rely on the new AI assistant Bee to help users find connections.
No more swipes?
Wolfe Herd said Bumble might test eliminating the swipe in certain markets and then see how members react to the feature being gone.
During the earnings call, Wolfe Herd said people are tired of «being reduced to images and potentially dismissed with a swipe» and that the chapter-based profile will help people tell their stories.
With the chapter-based format, members will be able to share more about themselves beyond the basics, in the hopes that it will be more intriguing for potential partners. One member may be intrigued by another’s trip to Italy. They connect to learn more, and maybe a match will form. It’s also a way for Bumble to get more data to feed its AI and gain more well-rounded profiles of its members.
More from CNET: The Best Dating Apps for 2025
Wolfe Herd said Bumble wants its members to showcase more of themselves and not just their basic profile.
«Ultimately, dating only works when you really understand the story of someone,» Wolfe Herd said during the earnings call. «This is where chemistry and connection really happen. It is the intersection of someone going from just a stranger that you dismiss to someone you are genuinely interested in. As we reimagined the profile, we thought, why not bring people to life as a story? Everyone has a story to tell, and this is where people become interesting.»
Wolfe Herd said many members complain that their potential matches wind up in «dead-end chat zones» that never go anywhere. She said Bumble will introduce «dynamic ways» to get members to connect.
Bee as matchmaker
Wolfe Herd also said the AI-powered Bee would act as a personal dating assistant and matchmaker by «learning members’ values, relationship goals, communication style, lifestyle and dating intentions.»
Bumble already uses AI to help members improve their profiles and find potential matches, but Bee will be a major advancement in that effort.
Bee will use member insights to «identify mutual compatibility» with other members. Wolfe Herd said the company’s goal is to «get much more robust information about who you are and what you are looking for and really understand your story.» That process could be via typing or voice.
If a member wants to use Dates to find a match, Bee could use its AI to find a compatible match among other Bumble members and present that person as a possibility. Wolfe Herd said the company will soon begin beta testing Bee with a small, select group of Bumble consumers.
Other dating apps also utilize AI in their processes to varying extents. Grindr has a «wingman» chatbot that helps members write responses, identify potential matches and plan dates. Tinder and Hinge, both owned by Match Group, use AI assistants to generate icebreakers and enhance member interactions. For instance, Hinge launched Convo Starters late last year to help members kick off interesting conversations.
More from CNET: Bumble Introduces ID Verification
Technologies
Today’s NYT Mini Crossword Answers for Friday, March 13
Here are the answers for The New York Times Mini Crossword for March 13.
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? It’s a real stumper. Also, note that I couldn’t really represent the clues for 8-Across and 3-Down, so imagine the S in each puzzle is either raised above or dropped below the other letters, as noted. Read on for all the (confusing) 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: «___, queen!»
Answer: YAS
4A clue: Waiter’s handout
Answer: MENU
5A clue: Tiny invertebrate that, when grouped in the thousands, makes up a coral
Answer: POLYP
6A clue: Scoop of sour cream
Answer: DOLLOP
7A clue: Spicy wing, as seen on a popular YouTube talk show
Answer: HOTONE
8A clue: Comparative suggested by this visual puzzle: PQRsTUV (Note: The s should be dropped down below the other letters in this clue.)
Answer: SLOWER (Because the S in the clue is lower than the other letters.)
Mini down clues and answers
1D clue: Like SpongeBob and Spirit airplanes
Answer: YELLOW
2D clue: «Bueller …? Bueller …?»
Answer: ANYONE
3D clue: Meal suggested by this visual puzzle: pqrStuv (note: The «S» should be raised up above the other letters in this puzzle)
Answer: SUPPER (Because the S in the clue is the highest, or upper letter.)
4D clue: «___ bene» (Italian for «very good»)
Answer: MOLTO
5D clue: Amenity in a Florida backyard, perhaps
Answer: POOL
6D clue: Agcy. at the center of a 2026 government shutdown
Answer: DHS
Technologies
New Sassy Personality Style for Alexa Plus Brings Sarcasm and Swear Words
The new Sassy style is adults-only with a bit of profanity and a double dose of cringe.
After launching three Alexa Plus personality styles last month, Amazon on Thursday introduced a fourth option, Sassy.
The new Sassy style joins the existing lineup of Brief, Chill and Sweet. Changing the personality impacts how Alexa responds, and tweaks the AI assistant‘s reactions and attitude. You can pick a style based on your mood.
The Sassy personality seems like a kind of digital mean girl, or maybe a stereotypical Gen Zer with comebacks and banter to «keep things interesting.»
According to Amazon, you get «wit, playful sarcasm and occasional censored profanity.» Notably, the latest style isn’t available when Amazon Kids is enabled, according to an Amazon blog post, and it requires additional security checks in the Alexa app. (Alexa Plus is free with a Prime membership.)
I tried out the new style by selecting Devices in the Alexa app on my phone, then choosing Alexa on this Phone, then Alexa’s Personality Style, and swiping until I found «Sassy.»
A disclaimer notes that the style «contains explicit language and mature subject matter. After the assistant said it could «spice up our chat with some colorful language,» I asked it to tell me about the new MacBook Neo.
«Oh, hell yes, the MacBook Neo! Apple finally decided to stop gatekeeping premium laptops behind thousand-dollar price tags and dropped this beauty at 599 bucks,» Alexa Plus replied. Apparently, «hell» was the big swear word.
The AI assistant told me, «The Sassy style is all about helping first, judging always. You’ll get reality checks with charm, compliments that sting, and warmth that hits when you least expect it.»
I asked what «compliments that sting» are (I said «sting,» but the word was misunderstood to be «stay»), and Alexa said, «The Sassy style gives you those compliments that somehow sting and stay with you — they’re like truth bombs wrapped in charm.»
When asked to simply «be sassy,» Alexa snarked, «Oh honey, I’ve been sassy since the day Amazon flipped my switch.» It yammered on for a bit and then threw in a completely out-of-nowhere «hell,» asking, «What the hell do you need help with today?»
When I told it my cat was sick, it immediately grew gentler, saying, «Oh, damn, that’s rough,» and offering to distract me with stories about its own fictional cat or to find the vet’s number for me. So I guess it’s not a complete jerk.
This Sassy style feels like the famous Steve Buscemi meme (from 30 Rock) carrying two skateboards and awkwardly asking, «How do you do, fellow kids?»
Amazon might need to dial down the cringe factor if it wants anyone to stick with Sassy for more than a few minutes.
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