Technologies

Fitness Enthusiasts Can Score the Ultrahuman Ring Air for $290 or Less, a New Low

We’re fans of this smart ring that doesn’t require a subscription and flags bad habits. And if you’re a new customer, you could score it for as little as $260 at QVC.

Many of us would like to stay on top of our health, and one way to keep track of your fitness, sleep and other important metrics is a wearable fitness tracker. But not all of us want a bulky smartwatch. That’s where smart rings come in.

Right now QVC has slashed the cost of the Ultrahuman Ring Air to just $290. That’s a solid $59 savings on its list price and beats the price we saw during Prime Day this year. What’s more — if you’re new to QVC, you can use coupon code HELLO30 for an additional $30 off, slashing the price to just $260.

This smart ring is one of our favorite options, tracking sleep, stress, heart rate and even caffeine intake. It’s also water-resistant, compatible with both iOS and Android and, perhaps best of all, you do not need to pay for an additional subscription to use the Ultrahuman ring. The battery should last up to five days between charges, too.

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

CNET expert Vanessa Hand Orellana wrote in her review that «the Ultrahuman Ring Air is a solid first smart ring for most people. It’s not flawless, especially when it comes to workout tracking, but it’s a great wellness companion that can help you improve or adopt healthier habits. The lack of a subscription alone makes it one of the most accessible smart rings out there.» Plus, this deal is available in all five colorways, so you can grab the one that best suits your style.

Note that QVC will first ship a sizing kit, then you’ll need to select the right size for you and your ring will ship separately after your confirmation.

SMARTWATCH DEALS OF THE WEEK

Apple Watch Series 10 (GPS, 46mm, Black, M/L Sports Band):

$359 (save $70)
Samsung Galaxy Watch 7 (Bluetooth, 40mm, Cream):

$200 (save $100)
Amazfit Active 42mm Smartwatch With 14 Day Battery Life (Black):

$85 (save $25)
Garmin Vivoactive 5 GPS Smartwatch With AMOLED Display:

$200 (save $100)
Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra (Wi-Fi, LTE, 47mm, Titanium Silver):

$500 (save $150)

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

Why this deal matters

It’s rare to find deals on smart rings, and this particular offer knocks up to $90 off the original price. If you’ve been considering investing in a sleek wearable to help you on your wellness journey that isn’t as heavy and chunky as a smartwatch, this is an exceptional deal. But be quick — an offer this good won’t last long.

Technologies

South Park Locks Into Paramount Plus With $1.5B Streaming Deal

The creators of the animated series signed a deal to bring their show to Paramount Plus.

South Park fans have at least five more years of Cartman, Stan, Kyle and Kenny to look forward to. Trey Parker and Matt Stone, the creators of the long-running animated show South Park, have locked in a five-year deal to bring their show to the Paramount Plus streaming service and to give Paramount global streaming rights.

The duo will keep making 10 episodes per year, as reported in the Los Angeles Times; this deal replaces the one that the franchise had with HBO Max and its parent company, Warner Bros. Discovery. The South Park team was locked in negotiations for months for what would have been a $3 billion, 10-year deal, according to previous reports.

The deal covers only streaming rights and doesn’t include merchandising or what the pair’s production company Park County gets in a separate deal with Comedy Central to keep the show running on that network.

The show’s 27th season was delayed to July 23 because of the behind-the-scenes maneuvering involving an ongoing acquisition of Paramount by Skydance Media. The TV series began on Comedy Central in 1997.

Parker and Stone will take the stage at San Diego Comic-Con the day after the show’s premiere on July 24 for a panel with Saturday Night Live alum Andy Samberg and Beavis and Butt-Head creator Mike Judge.

What this means for TV viewers and the streaming industry

Paramount’s investment in South Park is «a bold bet on the future of streaming,» Jason Fairchild, CEO of tvScientific, a television advertising company, tells CNET.

«While other parts of the media landscape are consolidating or trimming fat, Paramount is doubling down on exclusive IP to anchor its platform and compete for attention in a crowded market,» Fairchild says.

Other streaming competitors including Netflix and Amazon’s Prime Video have cut deals for sports programming and global content, he says. «The underlying strategy is clear: own the content that drives subscriptions and engagement.»

Viewers, Fairchild says, could increasingly rely on ad-supported tiers of streaming services if they feel they can’t afford access to all the premium content they want across a fragmented field of paid streamers.

Seth Schachner, a former Sony executive who is now managing director at Strat Americas, a Los Angeles consulting firm, said Paramount’s deal «looks like a very forward-looking one, closer to what Netflix might look to do than what a traditional studio would do.»

The deal, Schachner says, could be the start of a trend for more direct creator-streamer deals.

«It would not surprise me if this agreement becomes a template for other big ticket programs which studios want to keep,» he says.

Technologies

Eat Here and Get Recharged: Tesla Opens a Drive-In Diner

The tech giant opens a retro restaurant in Hollywood with charging stations. Musk says more could open in other cities.

Technologies

Today’s NYT Strands Hints, Answers and Help for July 23 #507

Here are hints and answers for the NYT Strands puzzle for July 23 No. 507.

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 make you hungry. Technically, these dishes don’t make up a full meal, but they’re tasty anyway. 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: Going for a dunk.

If that doesn’t help you, here’s a clue: Pass the chips, please.

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:

SPAM, SLAP, SLAPS, MOLE, TRAM, TRAP, TRAMS, TRAPS, ROLE, ROLES

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:

QUESO, SALSA, GUACAMOLE, FONDUE, HUMMUS, TZATZIKI

Today’s Strands spangram

Today’s Strands spangram is PARTYDIPS. To find it, look for the P that’s two letters over and three down from the far-left corner, and wind around.