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Meta Expands AI Access in Threads With Global DM Rollout
The social network's AI assistant moves into private conversations, but users still can't block it from their feeds
By Mei-Lin Tan·Jul 28, 2026·4 min read
OTW · Products
Products & Reviews
Independent reviews of phones, laptops, audio, and wearables. Affiliate-disclosed. Manufacturers do not approve our copy.
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Google's August Hardware Play Bets on Colors and Margins, Not Performance
With the Pixel 11 series and Watch 5 launch three weeks away, leaked spec sheets reveal a quiet cycle focused on packaging, pricing, and pro…
Arjun S. Mehta · · 6m
Framework's Second-Gen Laptop 13 Pro Solves the Battery Problem
The modular laptop maker breaks backward compatibility to deliver what earlier models couldn't: all-day runtime and refined build quality.…
Daniel R. Whitfield · · 6m
Meta's Smart Glasses Face Guerrilla Ad Campaign Over Privacy Fears
Activist groups across three major cities are targeting the company's wearable hardware with satirical posters that question surveillance ri…
Mei-Lin Tan · · 5m
Why Apple's MacBook Air Runs Without a Fan
The shift to custom silicon let Cupertino drop active cooling, but thermal limits remain a trade-off for creative workloads.…
Kenji Watanabe · · 6m
Meta Reverses Paywall for Ray-Ban Smart Glasses Hearing Feature
After user backlash, the company pauses subscription tests for Conversation Focus - an accessibility tool that runs entirely on-device.…
Daniel R. Whitfield · · 4m
Travis Kalanick Returns With $1.7 Billion and a Robotics Bet That Has Uber Investing Again
The Uber co-founder's Atoms raises a massive round led by Andreessen Horowitz, with his former company contributing $100 million six months …
Arjun S. Mehta · · 4m
Apple's Privacy Paradox With Smart Glasses
The iPhone maker is delaying its eyewear debut to 2027 while engineering solutions for a problem Meta hasn't solved: making cameras you wear…
Daniel R. Whitfield · · 5m
Apple Delays Smart Glasses Launch to Solve Privacy Design Problem
The company faces a strategic dilemma: entering a product category already tainted by surveillance concerns while maintaining its decade-lon…
Arjun S. Mehta · · 4m
Foldables Enter Their Maturity Phase
After years of fragile hinges and compromised screens, the latest generation of folding and flip phones is delivering on the category's deca…
Arjun S. Mehta · · 5m
Google Exec Hints Pixel 11 Will Break the Company's Streak of Stable Pricing
Shakil Barkat's comments point to how memory shortages driven by AI infrastructure are finally forcing consumer hardware makers to pass cost…
Arjun S. Mehta · · 5m
The Smartwatch Calorie Problem Engineers Can't Solve
Wrist-worn devices excel at heart rate tracking but stumble when estimating energy expenditure, and the gap reveals fundamental limits of co…
Daniel R. Whitfield · · 5m
Apple Pushes Smart Glasses to 2027 as Privacy Architecture Takes Center Stage
The company is exploring hardware configurations that may omit cameras entirely, signaling a different path from Meta's approach to wearable…
Mei-Lin Tan · · 5m
OpenAI's $230 Macro Keypad Struggles to Find Its Audience
The Micro keypad, a collaboration with Work Louder, promises streamlined ChatGPT workflows but faces skepticism from its intended users and …
Daniel R. Whitfield · · 5m
Bluesky Bets on AI Research Tools as User Growth Stalls
The open-protocol network is testing a new Quests feature for Attie, its conversational assistant, while navigating a community skeptical of…
Arjun S. Mehta · · 4m
IP68 Doesn't Mean Your Phone Can Swim
Water-resistance ratings are tested under sterile lab conditions, not pool parties. And most warranties won't cover the damage anyway.…
Daniel R. Whitfield · · 5m
Meta Shelves Fee for Glasses Audio Feature After User Pushback
The company walked back plans to charge $20 monthly for a locally processed accessibility tool, though premium subscriptions remain on the r…
Arjun S. Mehta · · 4m
Roku Pushes Streaming Hardware Prices Up by as Much as 60 Percent
The Silicon Valley streamer has quietly updated its website with sharply higher MSRPs across its entire stick and box lineup, signaling a st…
Marcus Halloran · · 4m
EV Battery Packs Are Outlasting Every Industry Forecast
Real-world data from tens of thousands of vehicles reveals degradation rates far slower than lab tests predicted, with modern packs retainin…
Arjun S. Mehta · · 5m
Meta Separates Marketplace Into Standalone Seller App
New verification layer and a dedicated mobile tool arrive as the social giant tries to hold younger users through commerce…
Priya Nair · · 5m
Budget Phones Face Extinction as Memory Costs Quadruple
Component shortages have pushed the material cost of a sub-$100 handset to $70, forcing manufacturers to rethink the entry-level smartphone …
Arjun S. Mehta · · 4m
Facebook Tests Full-Screen Video Feed in Latest Platform Overhaul
Meta's flagship social network is experimenting with an immersive video-first interface in select markets, signaling a strategic pivot towar…
Daniel R. Whitfield · · 5m
Meta Bets Facial Recognition Can Separate Real Users From AI Slop
A free verification badge for Facebook users now relies on the same biometric tech the company once paid $650 million to settle lawsuits ove…
Priya Nair · · 5m
OpenAI Opens Health Feature Nationwide as Liability Questions Mount
The company's health-query tool now reaches all US adult users, even as a lawsuit highlights the gap between AI utility and medical accounta…
Arjun S. Mehta · · 5m
Ford Taps Apple Maps for EV Platform as Detroit Bets on Software Integration
The automaker's Universal Electric Vehicle architecture will embed MapKit for Automotive, signaling a shift from third-party infotainment to…
Arjun S. Mehta · · 6m