Forget Sony WH100XM6 — these excellent over-ear headphones are now available to pre-order in the US
If you're looking for the best pair of over-ear headphones you can buy right now, there's a strong argument that the Bowers & Wilkins Px7 S3 is it. We awarded it 4.5 stars in our recent review and we can't get enough of these headphones right now.
Following their release in the U.K. and Europe, Bowers & Wilkins has just confirmed these headphones are now available to pre-order in the U.S.
That wasn't always a given; B&W said it was weighing up options as to whether it would launch the headphones in the U.S., and there was always a question of how much they'd cost due to the ongoing uncertainty around tariffs.
But you can order them right now for $449 at Amazon, with shipping slated for June 11 — the day after their formal release. And since Sony just confirmed it was bumping the U.S. price of the WH-1000XM6 to the same price, we'd recommend opting for the Px7 S3s.
The Bowers & Wilkins Px7 S3 are one of the best pairs of over-ear headphones you can buy right now thanks to supreme sound quality, awesome comfort and a great battery life. In our Bowers & Wilkins Px7 S3 review, we called these Editor's Choice 'phones the best sounding headphones for the price with impeccable build quality.
What do you need to know about the B&W Px7 S3? Well, our audio editor thinks they're an excellent alternative to Sony and Bose with better sound, a more comfortable fit, and better build than both.
The headphones have been redesigned from the previous iteration of the Px7s, to make them two ounces lighter. The padded headband and plush memory foam of the earcups mean you can wear these all day without noticing and, well, they've got tactile physical buttons for controlling volume and playback.
Although it's likely you'll use these wirelessly, you can plug them in with a USB-C cable for hi-res listening at 24-bit 96kHz. The only thing to note is that you won't be able to use wired listening if the battery is dead.
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Overall though, at a time when many companies are either hiking prices or withholding U.S. product launches entirely, it's great to see these excellent British headphones are going to make their way across the pond after all — and at a good price to boot.
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Yahoo
16 hours ago
- Yahoo
‘Lilo & Stitch' Kicks Up $63M Second Weekend, ‘Mission Impossible 8' $27M+, ‘Karate Kid: Legends' At $21M
SUNDAY AM: Saturday was kind to most movies in the top 10 which saw lifts over Friday, in particularly Disney's Lilo & Stitch and Paramount's which were respectively up 51% and 56%. Lilo & Stitch is coming in at $63M for its second frame, while Mission Impossible 8 is $27.3M. Disney executives are skipping around the Burbank lot for with Lilo & Stitch it catapults the studio past the $1 billion mark at the domestic box office with a 30% market share. Disney is the first studio to pass that milestone YTD. Excluding 2020, Disney has grossed $1B+ domestically for 20 consecutive years since 2005, the only studio to accomplish this. More from Deadline 'Lilo & Stitch': All The Box Office Records Broken 'Karate Kid: Legends' Will Provide Kick To Summer Box Office But Won't KO 'Lilo & Stitch's $60M Second Weekend – Preview Breaking Baz: 'Bring Her Back' Star Billy Barratt Says He Performed Best In The Horror Pic After Being Locked Alone In A Room Without His Phone Total weekend for all titles is $151M, +130% from the same post Memorial Day frame a year ago. Sony is calling Karate Kid: Legends at $21M but others see it under $20M, like in the $19M range. Oh, no. I mean, if Sony called it at $20M and everyone is in the high $19M, that's not a big deal, but no one knows where $1M+ extra is coming from. Saturday was $7.3M, -5% from Friday/previews $7.7M. If you back out $2.3M previews, then Saturday was an up day for the Jackie Chan and Ralph Macchio team-up at +35%. Why wasn't there a big rush to this film? Why is it under its projections? It's the Cobra Kai streaming Netflix effect, dummy. With the Karate Kid audience conditioned to stay at home, what's the big reason for them to run out and watch another fight tournament onscreen? Yes, as we said before, being in the shadow of Lilo & Stitch crowd doesn't help given some audience overlap. Families are on a budget and they're going to put their money toward the title that kids are nagging them to see (tracking does take this into consideration with kids under 12). RelishMix noticed negative chatter, concentrated around the fear that the movie wouldn't live up to hype and the success of the previous installments. Comments included, 'I mean the story is same as every Karate Kid film,' and, 'I do not know how I feel about this. I'm half terrified.' Call it what you will — $19M-$20M. Note that while it's under expectations, the picture will be somewhat profitable. It's an okay piece of business at $45M net production cost, even though I'm sure Sony would have loved to see bigger numbers. I'm told that Karate Kid: Legends came on tracking at $35M and dropped to the mid $20Ms before this weekend. Oh, jeez. Let's not forget the great exits which should help the film hold. Karate Kid: Legends was originally dated for June 7, 2024, before the strikes pushed it to Dec. 13, 2024. When it came to business for this film, Sony had second thoughts and chose kids out of school for the summer over a crazy multiple over Christmas, thus moving Karate Kid: Legends back to a post-Memorial Day weekend slot. A24's — this is an excellent, original gross movie with great exits. Beyond the B+ CinemaScore, there's 80% audience on Rotten Tomatoes with a big hug from critics at 90% certified fresh. Just like A24's was trying to campaign for Toni Colette for Hereditary, there's an awards push to be done here for Sally Hawkins. Though the movie is at the top of its forecasted range with $7M, it's a bit surprising that the movie didn't overindex even more, and do a number beyond the Philippou's first movie, Talk to Me ($10.4M), or at least on par. Remember when it comes to these indie labels, it's a business of margins in regards to P&A spend to theatrical yield to profiting in the home windows. A 3x-4x multiple off a movie's opening (Midsommar, Heretic) is typically A24's theatrical goal on these genre movies, however, Talk to Me had a 4.6x (final domestic was $48.2M). That movie eased -39% in its second weekend. We'll see if Bring Her Back can bring more back. Bring Her Back played best in the East and West and even throughout the U.S./Canada. AMC Burbank was the pic's highest grossing location with just under $30k. Chart is updating with Sunday figures indicated with bold titles and including Saturday and Sunday number. & Stitch (Dis) 4,410 theaters, Fri $17M (-70%) 3-day $60M-$64M (-56% to -59%), Total $277M-$281M/Wk 2 2. Mission: Impossible – Final Reckoning (Par) 3,861 (+4) Fri $7.5M (-70%), 3-day $26.7M (-58%), Total $122M/Wk 2 3. Karate Kid: Legends (Sony) 3,809 theaters, Fri $7.5M, 3-day $21M-$23M/Wk 1 4. Final Destination: Bloodlines (NL) 3,134 (-389) Fri $3.1M (-43%), 3-day $11M (-43%), Total $111.9M/Wk 3 5. (A24) 2,449 theaters, Fri $3.1M Sat $2.2M Sun $1.67M 3-day $7.08M/Wk 1 6.) Sinners (WB) 2,138 (-494) theaters Fri $1.55M (-35%) 3-day $5.1M (-40%), Total $267M/Wk 7 7.) Thunderbolts (Dis) 2,520 (-660) theaters Fri $1.3M (-48%) 3-day $4.7M (-51%), Total $181.7M/Wk 5 8.) Friendship (A24) 1,293 (+238) theaters, Fri $780K (-56%), 3-day $2.5M (-44%), Total $12.3M/Wk 4 9.) (Angel) 1995 (-210) theaters, Fri $642K Sat $876,5K Sun $620K 3-day $2.14M (-60%), Total $10.75M/Wk 2 10.) J-Hope Tour: Hope on Stage (TRAF) 631 theaters Sat $789K Sun $150K, 2-day $939K/Wk 1 Busting into the top 10 is Trafalgar Releasing's live broadcast of the grand finale of j-hope's first solo world tour from Osaka Japan's Kyocera Dome. The concert was transmitted live to 2,700+ cinemas across 83 countries on Saturday. Select encores are taking place today around the globe (64% encoring in North America, 46% worldwide). Global projection (sans Japan) for the weekend stands at $4.1M. 11.) (AMZ) 820 (-1182) theaters, Fri $214K (-56%) Sat $331K Sun $231K 3-day $776K (-62%), Total $65M/Wk 6 Notables: The Phoenician Scheme (Foc) 6 theaters, Fri $270K Sat $160K Sun $140K 3-day $570K, PTA $95K, Wk 1As we said yesterday, it's the biggest per screen of the year to date. Updated on individual theaters through Saturday: NYC's Angelika $121K, AMC's Lincoln Square is $96K, LA's AMC Century City is $58K, LA's AMC the Grove $55K, AMC Burbank $53.4K and NYC's Alamo Brooklyn stands just under $44k. Movie is 77% certified fresh with critics on Rotten Tomatoes. No audience score yet. Asteroid City, Focus Features' previous Cannes Film Festival premiere and theatrical release with Wes Anderson, had a RT critic score of 76% certified fresh and audience score of 66%. SATURDAY AM: It's a solid weekend following the Memorial Day holiday with all titles driving around $144M worth of business, +117% from the post-holiday doldrums a year ago. Let's rejoice and take it. No, it's not the biggest for the post 4-day holiday during post pandemic times — that belongs to 2023 when Sony's all-pleasing fanboy animated movie, Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse led all titles to a $205M+ marketplace. However, out of 22 weekends in 2025, only ten of 'em have grossed north of $100M-plus. Let's be pleased. I'm sure those novelty popcorn buckets at the circuits are still flying off counters. Disney's Lilo & Stitch is still on track for a $60M-$64M second weekend, Paramount's Mission: Impossible – Final Reckoning is showing that Imax makes a difference in weekend 2 with a -58% hold and $26.7M, and Sony's …the studio is forecasting $21M-$23M opening off a $7.5M Friday. Rivals see it lower in the high teens, however, as we said yesterday, it boils down to Saturday business and whether that tips more families into both Karate Kid, and Lilo & Stitch toward the higher end of its range. There is a bit of overlap between the two films demo wise, even though Lilo skews more female at 62% and Karate Kid: Legends more male at 59%. Their men under 25 demos are close (Legends is 22% to Lilo's 18%) and their women over 25 as well (Legends is 30% and Lilo 34%). Yes, of course, substantially more moms are taking kids to see Lilo. Net production cost on Karate Kid: Legends was $45M before P&A. It will be interesting to see how big overseas is. The franchise was born at a time in 1984 before studios relied on overseas. With Jackie Chan in the 2010 reboot, the foreign box office on that movie edged out domestic, $182.5M to $176.5M and that's without China, however, Japan made a great $17.4M. Men over 25 for Karate Kid were 37% and women under 25 the lowest turnout at 11%. Best grades for the crossover comes from women over 25 with 95%. Diversity demos were 36% Caucasian, 31% Hispanic and Latino, 16% Asian American and 12% Black. Great exits though for Karate Kid: Legends with an A- CinemaScore, the same grade as the 1986 sequel, Karate Kid II. The 2010 Chan version landed an A. Of course, the biggest reason on Screen Engine/Comscore's PostTrak why people bought tickets to Legends is because it's part of a franchise they love (46%). Also interesting to note that of all the moviegoers going to see Karate Kid: Legends, 68% of them said they have Netflix as their leading streaming service. That's where Sony's output deal is in the pay-one, and it's also where Cobra Kai lives. A24's Bring Her Back after a $3.1M Friday is looking at $7M-$8M in 5th place. For horror films, especially an A24 one, which typically divides audiences, the movie, wow, landed a B+ CinemaScore. Also, four stars and 80% positive and a 57% definite recommend. High praise. Hopefully that all works in the film's favor throughout this weekend and leg-wise. Thirty one percent of those who bought tickets said they went because it's a Philippou twins movie, and 48% said it's because it's a horror movie. Men over 25 mostly turned out at 42%, as well as women over 25 at 28%, with an even amount of men and women under 25 at 15% apiece. Diversity demos were 50% Caucasian, 23% Latino and Hispanic, 14% Black and 9% Asian American. Most influential forms of advertisement for Bring Her Back was social media at 21% per those polled by PostTrak which isn't surprising as it's an A24 movie, and that's where they focus most of their P&A spend. Those polled also said buzz from friends/family was influential (15%) as well as the in-theater trailer (14%). Social media universe across TikTok, Instagram, etc. was 50M per RelishMix, which is ahead of Hereditary (44M) before opening and just under NEON's Cuckoo (53M, $3M opening). Positive word of mouth that RelishMix spotted included fans of the Philippou's Talk to Me, as well as excitement over their trailer, some horror fans remarking that the movie looks like a throwback to 1989's Pet Sematary. RELATED: A24 financed the movie for around $20M I hear, with foreign rights sold going to Sony for around $13M, I understand. Also, as expected, Focus Features' Wes Anderson movie, The Phoenician Scheme, is heading toward the best theater average of 2025 year to date with $95K from six NYC and LA theaters. Not as high as the director's Asteroid City two years ago ($142,2K), but robust enough for the specialty sector post pandemic which is desperate for dollars. 3-day looks like $570K in 12th place. The Angelika in NY led all theaters with $78K yesterday where they had a premium $62 ticket that included an 'Immersive Experience' and popcorn. AMC Lincoln Square did $63K, LA's AMC Century City posted $38K, AMC The Grove a similar take, AMC Burbank $31.3K and Alamo Brooklyn was around $23K. Muy bien. RELATED: Saturday numbers: & Stitch (Dis) 4,410 theaters, Fri $17M (-70%) 3-day $60M-$64M (-56% to -59%), Total $277M-$281M/Wk 2 2. Mission: Impossible – Final Reckoning (Par) 3,861 (+4) Fri $7.5M (-70%), 3-day $26.7M (-58%), Total $122M/Wk 2 3. Karate Kid: Legends (Sony) 3,809 theaters, Fri $7.5M, 3-day $21M-$23M/Wk 1 4. Final Destination: Bloodlines (NL) 3,134 (-389) Fri $3.1M (-43%), 3-day $11M (-43%), Total $111.9M/Wk 3 5. Bring Her Back (A24) 2,449 theaters, Fri $3.1M, 3-day $7M-$8M/Wk 1 6.) Sinners (WB) 2,138 (-494) theaters Fri $1.55M (-35%) 3-day $5.1M (-40%), Total $267M/Wk 7 7.) Thunderbolts (Dis) 2,520 (-660) theaters Fri $1.3M (-48%) 3-day $4.7M (-51%), Total $181.7M/Wk 5 8.) Friendship (A24) 1,293 (+238) theaters, Fri $780K (-56%), 3-day $2.5M (-44%), Total $12.3M/Wk 4 9.) Last Rodeo (Angel) 1995 (-210), Fri $640K (-69%), 3-day $2.25M (-59%), Total $10.8M/Wk 2 10.) The Accountant 2 (AMZ) 820 (-1182) theaters, Fri $214K (-56%) 3-day $778K (-62%), Total $65M/Wk 6 Notables: The Phoenician Scheme (Foc) 6 theaters, Fri $270K, 3-day $570K, PTA $95K, Wk 1 FRIDAY AFTERNOON: Disney's Lilo & Stitch is coming in right where we were seeing it — at $60M in weekend 2, -59%, at 4,410 locations. That hold is similar to that of the second weekend of Little Mermaid, which was also a Memorial Day theatrical release. Today looks like $17M for Lilo's second Friday, -70%. Running total for the Dean Fleischer Camp directed movie by Sunday is $277M. However, Sony's is looking lighter than forecasts with a $20M opening after a $7M-$8M Friday that includes previews in 3,809 theaters. That would put the Ralph Macchio and Jackie Chan team-up in third place behind Paramount's second weekend of Mission: Impossible – Final Reckoning, with a $7.7M second Friday and $27.3M second weekend, -57% at 3,861. That's better than Dead Reckoning's second weekend decline of -65% sans Imax screens. Running total for the Christopher McQuarrie directed, Tom Cruise title by Sunday looks like $122.6M. The anticipation is that Saturday will work in both Lilo and Karate Kid: Legends' favor. Fourth is New Line's Final Destination: Bloodlines with $2.8M today at 3,134 and a third weekend of $10M, -48%, for a running total by Sunday of $110.9M. Fifth is A24's Bring Her Back with $3M today (including previews), and $6M-$7M for the weekend at 2,409 sites. Even if Karate Kid: Legends comes in less than expected, we are in far better shape than a year ago when the post Memorial Day weekend only did $66M per Box Office Mojo (there weren't any major studio releases and Garfield Movie led with a second weekend take of $14M). The top five movies this weekend (at the high end) are already grossing north of $124M. PREVIOUS FRIDAY AM: Sony's Karate Kid: Legends grossed $2.3M from previews that began at 2 p.m. Thursday. The PG-13 movie is a vortex of old school and new school: Ralph Macchio's Daniel-san, Jackie Chan's Mr. Han and, shhhhh, the Cobra Kai gang (I mean, is it really a secret?). Forecast for the movie is $25M-$30M in a marketplace where Disney's Lilo & Stitch is overpowering with a potential $60M second frame. also is hoping to hold with those Imax screens, around $32M or less. Critics like this Karate Kid a little less than the 2010 Chan one, 55% Rotten vs. 67% fresh. Karate Kid: Legends received 4 stars on PostTrak and a 68% definite recommend from definite audiences, 4 1/2 stars from parents and a 63 definite recommend, and kids under 12 with 4½ stars and a 79% must-see right away. Boys ages 10-12 at 64% made up the majority of the under-12 set; that demo is an essential portion of the Cobra Kai cult. Overall, men showed up at 60% last night. Karate Kid: Legends' Thursday night is just ahead of the $1.9M that Sony/Alcon's The Garfield Movie reboot made last May before a Friday of $8.4M and 3-day of $24M. Karate Kid: Legends was made for $45M net before P&A that's $5M more than the 2010 version cost (unadjusted for inflation). The Karate Kid franchise is 41 years old and counts $620M at the global box office from five previous movies; the bulk of that figure is from the Chan/Jaden Smith version 15 years ago, which made $359M worldwide. A24's Danny and Michael Philippou horror movie Bring Her Back made $850K in previews at 2,409 theaters that began at 4 p.m. Thursday. That figure is just under A24's fall sleeper Heretic, which made $1.2M in previews starting at 7 p.m. before turning into a $4.3M Friday and $10.8M opening. The Philippou twins' previous A24 movie, 2022's Talk to Me, opened to $10.4M. A good definite-recommend from the fanboy crowd last night for Bring Her Back at 58%, with women over 25 giving the movie its best positive score at 83%. The Thursday crowd was male-heavy at 57% to female's 43%. Women overall enjoyed it more than the guys, 83% to 77%. Go Sally Hawkins. The pre-weekend outlook is $5M-$7M. On Rotten Tomatoes, Bring Her Back has been stamped with 88% certified fresh. No audience score yet. Lilo & Stitch ends its first week with $217M at 4,410 theaters, after $9.2M yesterday, -9% from Wednesday. The pic's first week is 15% behind that the $255M for Inside Out 2, which ended its run at $652.9M, and it's 9% behind Moana 2's first seven days of $239.3M (final $460.4M). No, we're not saying the movie is doing badly, we're just trying to give you an idea of where Lilo & Stitch lives. While no one is forecasting this for Lilo & Stitch, sometimes these fan-fave Disney movies can go into overdrive, i.e. Inside Out 2 owns the best second weekend ever for a PG movie of $101.2M. And nobody saw that coming… Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning ends its first week with an estimated $95.3M at 3,857, which is 7% ahead of the first week of 2018's Mission: Impossible – Fallout ($220.1M final domestic) and 4.7% ahead of the first seven days of 2022's Dead Reckoning (final domestic B.O. was $172.6M). The rest of the top 5 for the week: 3. Final Destination Bloodlines (WB/NL) 3,523 theaters, Thu $1.85M (-13% from Wed), Week $30.7M (-56%), Total $100.9M/Wk 2It was the highest grossing of the franchise out of the gate. Nothing in its way. 4. Thunderbolts* (Dis) 3,180 theaters, Thu $765K (-10%), Wk $14.8M (-36%), Total $177M/Wk 4 5. Sinners (WB) 2,632 theaters, Thu $880k (-15%), Wk $14.06M (-37%), Total $261.8M/Wk 6 Best of Deadline Sean 'Diddy' Combs Sex-Trafficking Trial Updates: Cassie Ventura's Testimony, $10M Hotel Settlement, Drugs, Violence, & The Feds 'Poker Face' Season 2 Guest Stars: From Katie Holmes To Simon Hellberg 2025-26 Awards Season Calendar: Dates For Tonys, Emmys, Oscars & More
The Verge
17 hours ago
- The Verge
The Verge's 2025 Father's Day gift guide
Father's Day rules. It's a day to celebrate all that dads have contributed to the people, homes, and communities that they're a part of. Being a dad is a lot of work — something I can vouch for, being a relatively new one myself — so for Father's Day, why not give dear old dad a token of appreciation and love? Whether your dad prefers practical or clever gifts, we think you'll be pleased with the selection of picks below. As usual, we lean pretty heavily on tech, but there are several non-tech suggestions that most dads will be happy to receive, all of which come courtesy of the thoughtful staff here at The Verge. If a fast-charging portable battery or Sony's collapsible WH-1000XM6 headphones won't do the trick, perhaps Kurt Vonnegut's recently discovered two-player board game or a mountable Lego van Gogh replica will? Traveler's Notebook $45 For some people, note-taking is serious, serious business. That's why your dad's great ideas, errant thoughts, to-do lists, and appointments deserve a worthy notebook. Traveler's leather-bound travel journals are great for jotting down all of the above, especially since they come in a slew of sizes. $45 at Traveler's Company (various sizes) Indiana Jones and the Great Circle $69 Whether your dad is a fan of the Indiana Jones flicks or he digs MachineGames' excellent Wolfenstein titles, there's plenty to like in The Great Circle. The first-person exploration game lets you crack the whip, punch Nazis, and traverse the globe to retrieve precious relics. It's good fun. $69 at Amazon $69 at Walmart $70 at Best Buy Anker Laptop Power Bank $110$13519% off There are plenty of portable batteries out there, but few are as versatile and powerful as Anker's 25,000mAh Laptop Power Bank. The handy pack features two built-in, retractable USB-C cables — one of which serves as a lanyard — allowing you to quickly charge most devices on the go. $110 at Amazon $110 at Anker (with code WS7DV2LJAQAS) $120 at Newegg (with code CYGES2728) Backbone Pro $170 The best mobile controller is the Backbone Pro. It retains the same overall design and feel as the company's cheaper model, only with some comfort-boosting improvements. It also features a built-in battery and Bluetooth support, so your dad can use it for gaming on his TV, computer, VR headset, or handheld PC. $170 at Best Buy $170 at Backbone Ancel AD410 OBD2 Scanner Professional Diagnostic Scanner $40$5020% off The more ways you know how to diagnose a possible issue with your car, the less time you'll spend at the mechanic (sorry, mechanics). Ancel's diagnostic scanner plugs into the OBD2 port found in most US cars dating back to '96, letting you see exactly why certain lights on your dash keep popping up. $40 at Amazon (with Prime) $50 at Ancel Sony WH-1000XM6 $448$4500% off The latest iteration of Sony's best-in-class noise-canceling headphones has finally arrived. The newfangled XM6 make subtle improvements to every facet, from sound quality to comfort to ANC, while wisely bringing back the foldable design last seen on the last-gen XM4. $448 at Amazon $450 at Best Buy $450 at Sony Hoto SnapBloq System $216$30028% off Hoto's modus operandi is to make svelte, handsome tools, with the SnapBloq being its sleekest yet. Buying all three sets — which, as the name implies, snap together to form a block — nets you a precision screwdriver, drill pen, and rotary tool, all of which are rechargeable. Dad may already own enough tools, but we bet they don't look nearly as good as these do. $216 at Amazon $240 at Hoto Satechi Vegan-Leather Magnetic Wallet Stand $28$4030% off Satechi's MagSafe-ready wallet addresses two specific needs that may make it a must-have for some dads: it's crafted from vegan leather, and it doubles as a kickstand. That means the durable wallet provides a hands-free way to watch videos or hop on a call, whether you place it in portrait or landscape mode. $28 at Satechi $32 at Amazon $40 at Apple AirPods 4 $119$1298% off Most of Apple's high-end earbud tech can be found in the AirPods 4, which cost significantly less than the latest Pro model. They're relatively small, offer great sound, and even support USB-C charging, making them a great pick if you can do without active noise cancellation. $119 at Amazon $119 at Walmart $130 at Best Buy James $18$2836% off Percival Everett's first work of fiction earned him the Pulitzer this year — and it's no surprise. The bold 2024 tale serves as a reworking of Huck Finn as told by the enslaved man who travels with him down the Mississippi, and although it's dead serious at times due to the subject matter, it's also inventive, poetic, and surprisingly funny. $18 at Amazon $19 at Walmart $25 at Barnes & Noble Xiaomi Sound Pocket $27$3010% off Xiaomi doesn't have as much of a presence in the US as it does globally, but thankfully, the classy Sound Pocket is readily available. The compact Bluetooth speaker supports hands-free calling with its built-in microphone, and its IP67 rating means it can even handle some water — so long as you don't submerge it for too long. $27 at Amazon (with on-page coupon) $30 at Walmart (with on-page coupon) Kurt Vonnegut's GHQ $35 While writing Cat's Cradle, Kurt Vonnegut needed to pay the bills, so he tried his hand at making board games. His creation, a tactical war-themed tabletop game called GHQ (General Headquarters), never saw the light of day — that is, until recently. Needless to say, the two-player game is a great title for Vonnegut fans and scholars alike. $35 at Barnes & Noble $35 at Kurt Vonnegut's GHQ Museum and Library Garmin Forerunner 570 $550 The Forerunner 570 has no business looking as good as it does for a running watch. Garmin's new wearable features a bright OLED display, a slick translucent band, and several new features, including skin temperature sensors and a built-in speaker / mic. The only real question is what size to get for dear ol' dad: 42mm or 47mm? $550 at Amazon $550 at Best Buy $550 at Garmin Magic: The Gathering — Final Fantasy Bundle $70 Magic: The Gathering isn't as difficult to get into as you might think, and the Final Fantasy -themed expansion might be the perfect place to start. The upcoming collection has sent the internet into a proverbial spiral, with many products selling out as a result of a very dedicated fan base. Lucky for dad, the entry-level starter kit is still readily available. $70 at Amazon $70 at Walmart $70 at Best Buy Nitecore BB21 electric blower $65$707% off All of dad's precious tech is prone to dust and other debris, which can impact usability if left unchecked. Fortunately, with Nitecore's rechargeable air blower as a companion, he can easily rid his mechanical keyboards and other tough-to-reach crannies of unwanted grime, ensuring all of his gadgets are in tip-top shape. $65 at Amazon $65 at B&H Photo $70 at Nitecore Sable, Fable (vinyl) $31 Bon Iver's Justin Vernon has come a long way from the fabled Wisconsin cabin where he supposedly holed up to record his debut. Sable, Fable, his latest LP, is a welcome kaleidoscope of sounds and feelings, from familiar strummers and beat-heavy ballads to the kind of sultry, R&B-flecked tracks that would make Prince swoon. $31 at Amazon $31 at Target $35 at Urban Outfitters Telepathic Instruments Orchid $450 Telepathic Instruments' retrofuturist keyboard is a vibes machine, one designed for people who want to easily produce cool sounds. It only houses a few piano keys, but it has dedicated major, minor, and other inputs that let you get creative without necessarily having to know how to play. $450 at Telepathic Instruments Chef'n S'mores Roaster $50$7432% off You can effortlessly replicate the magic of making s'mores while camping with Chef'n's small, safe machine. The contained flame on the tidy indoor / outdoor roaster is built to toast marshmallows, while its ceramic dome can melt chocolate onto graham crackers. All you'll need to supply is a fuel can, plus all the s'mores ingredients you can muster. $50 at Amazon $50 at Crate & Barrel $74 at Chef'n Panasonic 4K Blu-ray player (DP-UB420-K) $245$2502% off Like all of us, your dad deserves to watch movies at the best possible resolution, which is where a 4K Blu-ray player comes in. Panasonic makes some of the best models you can buy, and when paired with the right TV, 4K Blu-rays look and sound better than even the most high-res streaming apps. Plus, it's still fun to collect discs. $245 at Amazon $250 at Best Buy $250 at Crutchfield Panasonic Precision Beard & Hair Trimmer $125 If your dad's shaving gadget repertoire is outdated, try treating him to a fantastic — and customizable — beard trimmer. Panasonic's washable, wide-tipped model comes with 19 adjustable settings and can cut hair, too, just in case dad wants to keep a short 'do or touch up his sideburns. $125 at Amazon $125 at Panasonic Ontel Battery Daddy storage system $15$2025% off Most modern gadgets are rechargeable via USB-C, but many households still rely on traditional batteries for all sorts of things. Your dad is sure to be impressed with your moxie when you gift him this deluxe battery organizer, which has dedicated compartments for coin cell batteries, large D-cell batteries, and all of the smaller sizes in between. $15 at The Home Depot $20 at Amazon $20 at Ace Hardware Baseus Free2Pull Retractable USB-C Cable 100W $10$2255% off Most people don't want to wrangle cables… and who can blame them? Not us, which is why several folks at The Verge own Baseus' handy, retractable USB-C option. The Free2Pull comes in two sizes, each of which conveniently pulls the excess cable into a small puck that's far tidier and easier to manage than a loose cord. $10 at Amazon $13 at Best Buy $15 at Baseus Lego Vincent van Gogh Sunflowers $200 Most Lego creations occupy some desk or table space, which can be annoying if you're trying to tidy up. However, every item from Lego's Vincent van Gogh collection, which consists of several brick-ified paintings from the artist's late-1800s heyday, can be assembled and then mounted to your wall. $200 at Amazon $200 at Best Buy $200 at Lego Theragun Mini (third-gen) $220 A massage gun is a gift that keeps on giving. When muscles and tendons are tight or sore, the Theragun Mini serves as a quick and easy remedy, allowing dad to get on with his day with less discomfort. The third-gen model is just a little smaller, making what was already an ultra-portable device even more compact. $220 at Amazon $220 at Best Buy $220 at Theragun Birdfy Feeder 1 $120$22045% off Looking at birds is cool, and we're all better off spending more time doing it. And while birdwatching typically requires patience and a decent pair of binoculars, you could summon birds with Birdfy's entry-level smart feeder, which features a 1080p camera and an app that lets you view birds up close as they munch on seeds. Time Timer MOD (Home Edition) $20$2520% off A basic timer may seem like a thoughtless gift, but there are many tasks we procrastinate on every day that could be more easily managed if we dedicated a little bit of time to them. A visual Pomodoro timer, such as the colorful MOD (Home Edition), is key to helping break tasks into manageable chunks or take them on all at once. $20 at Amazon $20 at Walmart $25 at Time Timer Nintendo Switch 2 $449 The Switch 2 could make for a stellar gift for any dad — that is, if you can manage to preorder one ahead of the console's arrival on June 5th. Nintendo's latest hybrid console packs a larger 7.9-inch 1080p display, magnetic Joy-Con controllers, and a host of other minor but welcome improvements that build upon what was already a winning formula. $449 at Walmart $450 at Best Buy $450 at GameStop
Gizmodo
17 hours ago
- Gizmodo
'28 Years Later' is Bringing New, Scarier Infected to the Party
Sony's 28 Years Later isn't just reintroducing audiences to the series' devastating post-apocalypse, it's also bringing some new horrors along for the ride. In an interview with IGN, director Danny Boyle teased the Infected have gained some new tricks since their last sighting in 28 Weeks Later. Along with the typical, fast-running ones that've been all over the marketing, some have 'mutated' to survive in this new environment. Hence, the 'Slow-lows,' so named because they 'hang about low level' and don't do running of any sort. Despite their lack of speed Boyle '[doesn't] advise messing with them.' If you've played video games with zombies, you know it's never just one variant lurking around. Along with the Slow-lows, 28 Years Later will introduce Beserker and Alpha types which are stronger than the regular Infected and might have some intelligence buried within their Rage Virus-addled minds. On a technical level, Boyle said the team generally shot the Infected 'in a brittle, almost unreliable way' similar to how they handled the first film. But the new undead get some additional flourishes, like Slow-low actors have cameras attached to them to enhance audience fear, or some sequences with specific Infected requiring 20 iPhones to simultaneously record in order to create 'a poor man's bullet time.' The new Infected also lend themselves to 28 Years' photography. For you format sickos, Boyle also told IGN the film was shot on widescreen to replicate the first movie's 'unease…the speed and the velocity, the visceral [aspect] of the way the infected were depicted. If you're on a widescreen format, they could be anywhere… you have to keep scanning, looking around for them, really.' 28 Years Later hits theaters on June 20.
