Technologies

PS5 Restock Tracker: How to Score a PlayStation 5 Console Bundle on Cyber Monday

Learn the best methods for finding a PS5 on Cyber Monday.

Almost two years after the launch of Sony’s PlayStation 5, the gaming console remains extremely difficult to find in stock at any retailer. A global chip shortage impacting electronic manufacturers since 2020 and very high demand for the PS5 have again made the gaming console one of the holiday season’s toughest items to find.

Thankfully, a new way to obtain a PS5 has emerged. This summer, Amazon started a PS5 invitation system that could make it easier to get your hands on the new console. It won’t necessarily guarantee you a PS5, but it’s worth signing up for.

There’s always the tried-and-true method of keeping your eyes on stock at your favorite retailers, too, if you prefer buying from somewhere else or aren’t selected as part of Amazon’s new queue system. With awesome games like God of War: Ragnarök and the upcoming PSVR 2, it’s a great time to snag the PS5.

CNET’s Scott Stein recently went hands-on with the PSVR 2 and came away impressed. Wowed by the PSVR 2 headset’s weight and its controllers’ haptic feedback, Scott was enamored with his experience. Having tried out games like Horizon: Call of the Mountain and Resident Evil Village, he believes that the PSVR 2 could be a «destination for a whole new wave of more impressive VR games.»

If you’re one of the many hopeful PS5 buyers and would rather not wait for a surprise restock, your best option is to accept a higher price tag through StockX or eBay. Here are some of our tips, tricks and advice to help you snag your PS5:

If you see someone offering to sell you a console on Twitter, it’s almost certainly a scam. Avoid these people.
Where applicable, use an app to complete a purchase instead of a browser. Not only are apps frequently faster than mobile browsers, but also it’s easy to use an app and a browser at the same time if you’re trying to buy on multiple computers.
PS5 restocks are a lot more common in the afternoon and evening than in the morning. Chances of an unplanned restock tend to go up dramatically after 10 a.m. PT (1 p.m. ET), so if you’re wondering when to check, that’s usually the best time to start.
PS5 restocks almost never happen on weekends, unless they’re announced ahead of time.
If a restock starts and you immediately see «Out of Stock» on the screen, do not give up. Refresh the screen a few times and keep trying. Some retailers release the consoles in waves to keep bots from getting all of them.
Have an account set up and logged in for any retailers you’ll be shopping at. Speaking from personal experience, it’s devastating to get a console in your cart and then miss out because you had to waste precious seconds entering payment and shipping info.

Since the PS5 and Xbox Series X launched, the biggest retailers have made changes to the checkout process to offer peace of mind and to keep bots from buying all the consoles and selling them for more elsewhere. As we mentioned earlier, one of those changes in the PS5 restock game has been paid access — that means once you buy a subscription, you’ll hear about the next PS5 restock either earlier than anyone else or exclusively for your club.

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Our best tips to get a console

With this new subscription system rolling out across GameStop, Best Buy, Walmart and even Amazon in some cases, it’s important to point out that getting a console through these services is still not guaranteed. The queue fills up fast, and consoles stay in stock for only a few minutes in most cases. Every time a PS5 restock happens, social media fills with people describing how they experienced glitches in the process and how the consoles ended up being gone entirely.

It’s unreasonable to sign up and pay for every service, but that’s where we can help. We’re constantly tracking the best way for you to get your hands on a PS5. And we’ll explain below what you can do to increase your odds before the buy button lights up.

Where to buy a PS5

More PlayStation 5 coverage

Technologies

Today’s Wordle Hints, Answer and Help for Aug. 20, #1523

Here are hints and the answer for today’s Wordle No. 1,523 for Wednesday, Aug. 20.

Looking for the most recent Wordle answer? Click here for today’s Wordle hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Connections, Connections: Sports Edition and Strands puzzles.

Today’s Wordle puzzle is a fun word. Two letters repeat, so don’t forget once you find a correct letter, you can reuse it in another spot. If you need a new starter word, check out our list of which letters show up the most in English words. If you need hints and the answer, read on.

Today’s Wordle hints

Before we show you today’s Wordle answer, we’ll give you some hints. If you don’t want a spoiler, look away now.

Wordle hint No. 1: Repeats

Today’s Wordle answer has two separate repeated letters.

Wordle hint No. 2: Vowels

Today’s Wordle answer has one vowel, and it’s one of the repeated letters, so you’ll see it twice.

Wordle hint No. 3: Start letter.

Today’s Wordle answer begins with L.

Wordle hint No. 4: Animal kingdom

Today’s Wordle answer is an animal.

Wordle hint No. 5: Second meaning

Today’s Wordle answer is a domesticated pack animal of the camel family.

TODAY’S WORDLE ANSWER

Today’s Wordle answer is LLAMA.

Yesterday’s Wordle answer

Yesterday’s Wordle answer, No. 1,522 for Aug. 19, was ROWDY.

Recent Wordle answers

Aug. 15, No. 1,518: LEVEL

Aug. 16 No. 1,519: MATTE

Aug. 17, No. 1,520: LOUSY

Aug. 18, No. 1,521: ISSUE

Technologies

Today’s NYT Connections Hints, Answers and Help for Aug. 20, #801

Here are some hints and the answers for the NYT Connections puzzle No. 801 for Wednesday, Aug. 20.

Looking for the most recent 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, Connections: Sports Edition and Strands puzzles.

Today’s NYT Connections puzzle is a real headache. The NYT puzzle writers are really pulling some obscure connections out of the air, and I did not do well today at all. Need some help? Read on for clues and today’s Connections answers.

The Times now has a Connections Bot, like the one for Wordle. Go there after you play to receive a numeric score and to have the program analyze your answers. Players who are registered with the Times Games section can now nerd out by following their progress, including number of puzzles completed, win rate, number of times they nabbed a perfect score and their win streak.

Read more: Hints, Tips and Strategies to Help You Win at NYT Connections Every Time

Hints for today’s Connections groups

Here are four hints for the groupings in today’s Connections puzzle, ranked from the easiest yellow group, to the tough (and sometimes bizarre) purple group.

Yellow group hint: Ebony and ivory.

Green group hint: They go together.

Blue group hint: Spinning.

Purple group hint: There’s a bend in these.

Answers for today’s Connections groups

Yellow group: Black-and-white things.

Green group: Pairs of rods.

Blue group: Things that rotate about a vertical axis.

Purple group: Rods that curve at one end.

Read more: Wordle Cheat Sheet: Here Are the Most Popular Letters Used in English Words

What are today’s Connections answers?

The yellow words in today’s Connections

The theme is black-and-white things. The four answers are domino, piano keys, yin-yang symbol and zebra.

The green words in today’s Connections

The theme is pairs of rods. The four answers are chopsticks, claves, knitting needles and ski poles.

The blue words in today’s Connections

The theme is things that rotate about a vertical axis. The four answers are barber pole, carousel, ceiling fan and lazy Susan.

The purple words in today’s Connections

The theme is rods that curve at one end. The four answers are candy cane, crochet hook, crook and crowbar.

Technologies

Made by Google Pixel 10 Event Watch Party: Watch the New Phone Reveals With Us Tomorrow

Our live show begins Wednesday at 12:30 p.m. ET (9:30 a.m. PT) and will lead right into the Made by Google event.

The Pixel 10 series will get its big reveal on Wednesday, and you can watch the Made by Google event right alongside CNET’s editors.

Starting at 12:30 p.m. ET (9:30 a.m. PT), the Pixel 10 watch party will kick off on CNET’s YouTube channel. Hosts Bridget Carey and Iyaz Akhtar will review and analyze details and rumors about the Pixel 10.

Preshow guests include CNET Managing Editor Patrick Holland, who will share what we already know about the Pixel 10 (Google’s been openly teasing the phone line for weeks). Minutes before the event begins, Senior Editor Mike Sorrentino will call in from the show floor.

Next comes the Made by Google event, which starts at 10 a.m. PT and will be broadcast on our livestream.

When the Made by Google event wraps, our post-show begins with CNET Senior Editor Abrar Al-Heeti and Mashable’s Timothy Beck Werth calling in to discuss all the reveals.

Want to join our show? You can leave questions or comments using the live chat on CNET’s YouTube page.

CNET is also running a Pixel 10 live blog throughout the event, and you can check out every Pixel 10 rumor we’ve heard so far.