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At every CES I've ever been to, there's been one or two gadgets promising to boost your mental health. In recent years, the number of companies making forays into this space has grown, and will likely continue to do so in the future. Could it be, much like the number of people wearing heart-monitoring wearables today, everyone will be strapping an EEG to their skulls a decade or so down the line? It's more likely than you think, so it's worth asking what these devices are good for, what benefit they could bring, and where does the science end and the hype begin.
An Electroencephalogram (EEG) is a clinical tool to monitor the electrical activity of our brains. Put very simply, our minds are constantly moving ions around, and when they reach the scalp, it's possible to measure those ions. By placing electrodes on the scalp, you can record the changes in voltages pushed out by our brains more or less in real time. These voltages are commonly grouped into categories, which are often described as brain waves. Each one represents a different state of mind: Gamma (hard thinking), Beta (anxious or active), Alpha (relaxed), Theta (creative, or dreaming) and Delta (asleep).
Professor Karl Friston at University College London is one of the world's most influential neuroscientists and an expert in brain imaging. He explained that these technologies can be used to diagnose issues both in the structure and function of the brain. And while there are many technologies which can look at how our brains work, "we're a long way away from understanding the brain like we understand the heart." Broadl
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If you received a bunch of password reset requests from Instagram recently, you're not alone. As reported by Malwarebytes, an antivirus software company, there was a data breach revealing the "sensitive information" of 17.5 million Instagram users. Malwarebytes added that the leak included Instagram usernames, physical addresses, phone numbers, email addresses and more.
The company added that the "data is available for sale on the dark web and can be abused by cybercriminals." Malwarebytes noted in an email to its customers that it discovered the breach during its routine dark web scan and that it's tied to a potential incident related to an Instagram API exposure from 2024.
The reported breach has resulted in users receiving several emails from Instagram about password reset requests. According to Malwarebytes, the leaked information could lead to more serious attacks, like phishing attempts or account takeovers. Meta hasn't released an official statement about the latest incident, but it's not the first time Instagram's parent company has been in hot water for data breaches. If you haven't already, it's always a good idea to turn on two-factor authentication and change your password. Even better
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Anker rolled out a bunch of new chargers and other gear at CES 2026, including a cute one that's already on sale. The new Nano charger with smart display, which is an upgrade to the existing Nano charger in Anker's lineup, is on sale for $30 right now while you can pre-order it. That's $10 off the regular MSRP, and shipments will start going out on January 20.
The 45W charger includes a smart display that shows real-time data like power flow, temperature and charging status. It also features "fun animations to keep things cheerful." Anker says it can recognize what's being charged and automatically adjust certain metrics to ensure a longer battery lifespan.
To that end, it works with just about everything. The company advertises that this charger is a good fit for the iPhone, Apple Watch, AirPods and Samsung devices, among others. The new Nano Charger is on the smaller side, with dual folding prongs that rotate to fit most outlets.
The deal does require a coupon code, but it's auto-applied at checkout. If that doesn't work, it's WS24D5XT3DV9. We haven't gotten a chance to try this one yet, but it looks promising.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/deals/the-new-anker-45w-nano-charger-with-smart-display-from-ces-is-10-off-already-160707620.html?src=rss
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Bose recently announced the pending end of cloud support for its SoundTouch line of home speakers. This will, in effect, turn the smart speakers into dumb speakers as they will no longer have access to many features and any related software updates. Well, there's a spot of good news for SoundTouch owners. The company is turning to an open source model for the software, allowing third parties to keep the music playing.
The company has already begun mailing out the API documentation to customers so "independent developers can create their own SoundTouch-compatible tools and features." This will take some time, so Bose is also extending the end-of-life (EoL) date for the SoundTouch speakers. They were set to stop receiving cloud updates in February, but that has been moved to May 6.
It made a couple of other changes to make life a bit easier for SoundTouch owners. The speakers will still be able to use AirPlay and Spotify Connect after EoL, which was so
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