Technologies

Snag the Top-Rated Bose QuietComfort Headphones for Just $229 in This Limited-Time Deal

With a $130 discount, this Bose QuietComfort headphones deal is an easy excuse to retire your old pair.

A pair of high-quality headphones can make a huge difference when you’re working in a busy office or braving the streets on your morning commute. The Bose QuietComfort headphones won’t disappoint. CNET’s expert editors rank them as some of the best noise-canceling headphones, and they get even better as part of this deal.

Right now, you can score a pair of Bose QuietComfort wireless headphones at a great discount of $130. Best Buy has a one-day $229 deal, but if you want more variety, Amazon is price-matching and offering additional color options to choose from. Amazon’s deal isn’t as limited, so you’ll have longer to shop — but it could end at any time. If you want these headphones, be sure to shop sooner rather than later.

The QuietComfort headphones include noise cancellation and have Quiet and Aware modes, so you can focus as needed or let some ambient sound in when you’re taking walks or need to know what’s happening around you.

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Adjustable EQ lets you customize your sound preferences, and a battery life of up to 24 hours makes these headphones the perfect travel companion. Need a battery boost? It only takes a 15-minute charge to get an extra battery life of up to 2.5 hours.

If this isn’t quite the product you’re looking for, check out our list of the best wireless headphones to find the right pair for you. There are plenty of different options from various manufacturers, with something for everyone.

HEADPHONE DEALS OF THE WEEK

Sony WH-1000XM4 Wireless Noise Cancelling Over-Ear Headphones (Navy):

$298 (save $50)
Soundcore Life Q20 Hybrid Active Noise Cancelling Headphones (Black):

$40 (save $20)
Beats Studio Pro Wireless Noise Cancelling Headphones (Black):

$300 (save $51)
Sennheiser Momentum 4 Wireless ANC Over-Ear Headphones (Black):

$299 (save $151)
Bowers & Wilkins Px7 S2e ANC Over-Ear Headphones (Black):

$220 (save $180)

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

Why this deal matters

Bose makes some of the best headphones on the market. This deal offers QuietComfort headphones for just $229 after slashing $130 off the regular price. While this isn’t the lowest price we’ve seen on these headphones, it’s still a massive discount. Just be sure to get your order in soon.

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Technologies

Google Rolls Out Latest AI Model, Gemini 3.1 Pro

Starting Thursday, Gemini 3.1 Pro can be accessed via the AI app, NotebookLM and more.

Google took the wraps off its latest AI model, Gemini 3.1 Pro, on Thursday, calling it a «step forward in core reasoning.» The software giant says its latest model is smarter and more capable for complex problem-solving.

Google shared a series of bookmarks and examples of the latest model’s capabilities, and is rolling out Gemini 3.1 to a series of products for consumers, enterprise and developers.

The overall AI model landscape seems to change weekly. Google’s release comes just a few days after Anthropic dropped the latest version of Claude, Sonnet 4.6, which can operate a computer at a human baseline level.

Benchmarks of Gemini 3.1

Google shared some details about AI model benchmarks for Gemini 3.1 Pro.

The announcement blog post highlights that the Gemini 3.1 Pro benchmark for the ARC-AGI-2 test for solving abstract reasoning puzzles sits at 77.1%. This is noticeably higher than Gemini 3 Pro’s 31.1% score for the same test.

The ARC-AGI-2 benchmark is one of multiple improvements coming from Gemini 3.1 Pro, Google says.

3.1 Pro enhancements

With better benchmarks nearly across the board, Google highlighted some of the ways that translate in general use:

Code-based animations: The latest Gemini model can easily create animated SVG images that are scalable without quality loss and ready to be added to websites with a text prompt.

Creative coding: Gemini 3.1 Pro generated an entire website based on a character from Emily Brontë’s novel Wuthering Heights, if she were a landscape photographer showing off her portfolio.

Interactive design: 3.1 Pro was used to create a 3D interactive starling murmuration that allows the flock to be controlled in an assortment of ways, all while a soundscape is generated that changes with the movement of the birds.

Availability

As of Thursday, Gemini 3.1 Pro is rolling out in the Gemini app for those with the AI Pro or Ultra plans. NotebookLM users subscribed to one of those plans will also be able to take advantage of the new model.

Both developers and enterprises can also access the new model via the Gemini API through a range of products, including AI Studio, Gemini Enterprise, Antigravity and Android Studio.

Technologies

Today’s NYT Strands Hints, Answers and Help for Feb. 20 #719

Here are hints and answers for the NYT Strands puzzle for Feb. 20, No. 719.

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 is a bit tricky. Some of the answers are difficult 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: True grit

If that doesn’t help you, here’s a clue: You might find this in a wood shop.

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:

SAND, CART, SCAR, SCAT, PAPER, HAVE

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:

COARSE, HARSH, SCRATCHY, ROUGH, PRICKLY, ABRASIVE

Today’s Strands spangram

Today’s Strands spangram is SANDPAPER. To find it, start with the S that’s the farthest-left letter on the very top row, and wind down.

Technologies

Today’s NYT Connections: Sports Edition Hints and Answers for Feb. 20, #515

Here are hints and the answers for the NYT Connections: Sports Edition puzzle for Feb. 20, No. 515.

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 features a category all about my favorite football team. If you’re struggling with today’s puzzle 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 appear in the NYT Games app, but it does 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: We’ll be right back…

Green group hint: Run for the roses.

Blue group hint: Skol!

Purple group hint: