In the world of virtual private networks (VPNs), company marketing is crucial for customer acquisition. Because the products of different providers are so similar, many VPN companies will do anything and everything to stand out. This includes boasting about the number of servers offered on their VPN network.

But just how important is this figure, and should it be the determining factor in your next purchase decision? VPN juggernaut Nord thinks maybe not.

How we got here

Because VPNs aren’t the most technically complex products to create and maintain, there has been a flood of providers over the years.

In such a crowded field with a low barrier to entry, any metric worth mentioning is likely to be picked up by the marketing department and plastered on the home page or any other available advertising channel.

Historically, these metrics have often been related to things like speeds, server counts, the number of supported devices, and extra features. However, as most of those are easy for each VPN to match against others, the advertising arms race for “bigger number = better” has focused almost entirely on server counts.

Why is a high server count good?

In essence, the larger a VPN network is and the more servers it offers, the more likely it is you’ll be able to find one close to your geographical location.

Overall the closer a server is to you, or the larger number of servers you have to choose from in a particular region, the better performance you can expect from the service. This is because each server has a particular load amount, and the more people that are trying to use a single server, the slower the speeds will be.

However, one company, NordVPN, is trying to change this longstanding narrative. In a recent interview with TechRadar, the company’s CEO Marijus Briedies was quoted on the issue, stating, "The idea that the more VPN servers you have, the better you are, is basically not very true. So, we have to start talking about this.”

Briedies argues that server quality, over quantity alone, is more indicative of the experience VPN users can expect. Briedies claims his company caps every server at just 30% load volume, which means more bandwidth is available for each user connected at one time.

That said, in general, if a VPN offers more servers, the more broadly the network can spread those users when connecting in high-traffic areas like Tokyo or New York City. So, in most cases, yes, a bigger number is better in the long run.

What should you look for in your next VPN?

So, what does this all add up to? While server count shouldn’t be the only metric you consider when picking a VPN, it’s still one of the most important, regardless of what a single CEO says.

Looking at everything from price to supported device count, user reviews, and more should give you the best picture of which VPN will best fulfill your needs.

Server counts are an important part of this total package, and while they may be less relevant for users who live in moderately populated areas of the world, anyone in very rural settings or densely packed cities will want to keep server count and quality at the top of their list of considerations when shopping for a new VPN.

More from Laptop Mag

• Best VPN services in 2025
• 6 things you could (and should) use a VPN for
• 5 reasons why you need a VPN — cheap flights, fast internet and more

Whether you're a big-time Twitch streamer or someone whose job has them hopping on and off video calls all day long, picking the best webcam for streaming is no joke.

The right webcam helps you look your best; the wrong one turns your stream into a grainy nightmare. That could make or break your stream, depending on what you're doing.

I have a bit of a love-hate relationship with webcams, and I relied on my laptop to do the job for a long time. But if you don't have one of the best laptops, chances are your webcam might not be outstanding; besides, laptop webcams aren't optimized for streamers. It's time to treat yourself and your viewers to an upgrade.

Right now, the best webcam for streamers is the Elgato Facecam Pro. This is a high-end webcam that lets you stream at 4K60fps. It's exquisite, and while not cheap, it makes up for it in performance.

Want something more affordable? The Logitech HD Pro C920 can stand its ground when faced with more impressive, pricier alternatives. This one is a great pick for video calls and more casual streamers alike.

There's more to explore, including 1080p, 2K, and 4K webcams to satisfy even the most demanding of audiences. Check out some of the best webcams for streaming and give your setup a major upgrade!

Best webcams for streaming

How to choose the best webcam for streaming?

Choosing the best webcam for streaming might seem like a simple task, but unfortunately, it's really easy to pick the wrong thing and end up with something that doesn't live up to your expectations. Let's avoid that!

Check out some of my best tips for buying a webcam down below.

• What resolution do I need for streaming?
  When it comes to resolution, many believe that "bigger number is better," but that's not necessarily true. Most people won't watch your streams at 4K due to bandwidth limitations. On your end, streaming at 4K uses up bandwidth and resources, too. As such, 1080p is the sweet spot for most streamers. Steer clear of 720p—people expect crisp visuals these days.
• What extra features does my streaming webcam need?
  As a streamer, keep an extra eye for low-light performance. Unless you're planning to also buy a ring light and all that jazz, you're most likely going to stream in imperfect lighting. Your webcam needs to be able to handle that, so watch out for built-in auto exposure and noise reduction. Fast, reliable autofocus is also crucial. Lastly, solo streamers might enjoy auto-framing features to stay in the middle of the frame.
• What kind of frames per second (fps) do I need?
  Many pricier webcams will offer 60 fps, and some will offer even more. Treat 30 fps as a minimum—anything under that feels sluggish. These days, 60 fps is the sweet spot, and anything above that is largely unnecessary (but doesn't hurt to have).

FAQ

Webcams are an easy choice when it comes to streaming, although many content creators also resort to other options. I'll try to answer some of the most commonly asked questions below to help you pick the best webcam for streaming for your unique needs.

• Can I stream using just my phone?
  Yes, you absolutely can. Many phones have excellent cameras that are comparable to a webcam, although your mileage may vary depending on your model. Newer iPhones and expensive Samsungs tend to do well, but low-light performance may not be that great.
• Are there any laptops with good webcams?
  Sure, laptop webcams can do the trick for streamers, too. Some of the best laptops do a good job with their 1080p webcams. We've also reviewed laptops with the best webcam performance, too.
• Do I need a DSLR camera for streaming?
  Some established content creators use DSLR or mirrorless cameras for streaming. The quality is often outstanding, but the price point is much higher than even a high-end webcam. Unless your content specifically relies on mind-blowing stream quality, you're probably better off using a webcam or your phone.

This morning, thousands of people opened Spotify to find that the streaming service was offline.

Spotify went down around 9 am Eastern in a widespread outage that affected the mobile apps, desktop app, and website for about two to three hours.

According to user reports on Downdetector, Spotify went down for thousands of people this morning, with most noticing the outage on the app.

Users impacted by the outage may have opened the desktop app or website and only see a black screen. The mobile apps on iOS and Android were also experiencing glitches, long load times, and problems streaming music.

See also: Best laptop deals April 2025

Spotify has resolved the outage at this point, although it's still unclear what exactly caused it. While some may suspect that Spotify got hacked, that rumor was dispelled early on with an official post from the SpotifyStatus account on X:

So, it sounds like there's no need to worry that your Spotify account may have been hacked or compromised due to this outage. It could very well have been due to something as simple as server issues on Spotify's end.

Regardless, Spotify is back up and running normally, but if you're wondering what happened this morning, you can see our full timeline of updates below.

According to Downdetector, the Spotify outage started sometime around 9 AM EST on April 16, 2025. The majority of user reports cited problems with the Spotify app, although music streaming and the Spotify website were also affected.

Spotify appears to be addressing the outage on some platforms. The mobile app seems to be working normally again for the most part. In our tests, music is playing normally on Android and iOS, but the Home screen in the Spotify app isn't loading in iOS.

The desktop app appears to still be down. Opening it shows only a blank black screen at the time of writing.

The Spotify website also appears to still be having issues. It's no longer showing a blank black screen, but the home screen will not load.

The Spotify outage appears to be mainly affecting users in North America, the UK, and Europe, according to Downdetector and user reports on social media.

For instance, a Reddit thread on the outage includes comments from users from all over the world, with most reporting in from the US, the UK, and Europe.

Some users experienced the outage in real time, noting that they were using Spotify when their music suddenly stopped.

For instance, one user commented, "We heard a pop from the speakers. Thought it was them but then we saw the app behaving weirdly."

If something similar happened to you this morning, it was most likely due to this outage (not your speakers or headphones).

The Spotify desktop app is coming back online now. We were able to successfully load the Home page, open playlists, and stream music like normal. However, load times appear to be somewhat slower than usual, so you may need to be patient opening the app.

Meanwhile, the Home screen in the iOS Spotify app is still not loading correctly. The Android app is loading, but is taking longer than usual like the desktop app.

Spotify has confirmed this outage was not due to hacking. The official Spotify Status account shared a post on X this morning clarifying that they are aware of the outage, are working to resolve, and asserting that any rumors about Spotify being hacked are false.

This news should come as a relief to Spotify users, although it's still unclear what exacting caused the outage. It could be something as simple as server issues on Spotify's end, but we'll have to wait for an official explanation.

User reports on Downdetector are declining worldwide as Spotify begins resolving the issues from today's outage.

The mobile app, desktop app, and website are all loading again and mostly functional, although users should expect load times to be a bit longer than usual and home feed content may not be loading correctly (this issue seems to be most common on iOS at the moment).

Spotify's community site has an official page for today's ongoing outage, in case you're still experiencing issues and want to report them.

As of 2 hours ago, a Spotify Community moderator said, "Our tech folks are currently looking into this!"

The issue has not been marked officially resolved, though. Some user comments also indicate that web or app service resumed for them only to drop out again shortly after, so stand by for more updates.

As of 12:00 noon EST the Spotify outage appears to be resolved. Spotify has given the "all clear" on X to indicate that they've fixed the issue.

If you're still experiencing problems on the Spotify app or website, you can visit the Spotify Community page for the outage to report it and get help.

College basketball fans can watch March Madness on CBS via Paramount Plus. Subscriptions to the streaming services start with Paramount Plus Essentials for $7.99/ mo. or $59.99/ yr. The highest tier, Paramount Plus with Showtime bumps the cost up to $12.99/mo. or $119.99/yr.

The usual Paramount Plus student discount takes 25% off, but for March Madness, the savings are even sweeter.

From now through April 8, students get 50% off any Paramount Plus Plan. To claim this offer, verify your student status and choose the Paramount Plus plan that's right for you. Or, visit paramountplus.com scroll to the bottom of the page, and select, Are You a Student?

You may watch March Madness 2025 on CBS via Paramount Plus. All 24 games will air on this channel during the NCAA Tournament, including the Final Four, Elite 8, and Sweet 16.

Today's best Paramount Plus deal

Paramount Plus also affords you access to other live sports and popular originals like 1923, Landman, and School Spirits. Or watch kid favorites and the best titles for family movie nights like Sonic the Hedgehog 3, SpongeBob SquarePants, and PAW Patrol, as well as blockbuster hits such as Gladiator II.

Paramount Plus is a solid option if you want to switch from cable to streaming. It also makes a great gift for any occasion including the holidays. Subscribers can watch movies, TV shows, and live TV on up to three devices.

It works with Android and iOS, PlayStation, Xbox, Chromecast, Fire TV and more.

I might be addicted to Netflix documentaries. It could be a problem.

Recently, I started watching the one about Steph Curry and the Paris Olympics in my kitchen while cooking pasta. Apparently, having a 65-inch screen in my living room and another 55-inch in the den is not enough. I’m hooked.

Fortunately, I found the ideal laptop for watching movies and shows.

Choosing the gear

My main discovery is that this “third screen” option in the kitchen is more about having something to watch while cleaning up than a primary focal point. Here’s the laptop I chose, how to set everything up, and a few tips and tricks for making it work long-term in a room primarily intended for making tacos and enjoying conversation.

Having a laptop in the kitchen is a perk, not a privilege. In other words, the system must serve double duty as a productivity machine, in addition to Netflix entertainment, even if those documentaries are the primary purpose.

I picked the Dell Inspiron 14 2-in-1 for several reasons. One is the price. At $949, the system is not exactly a budget model but also not overly expensive. It’s powered by the AMD Ryzen 7 8840HS, has 16GB of RAM and a 1TB drive.

That’s about the right level of speed and power for watching movies and shows, but it also allows you to stay productive in the kitchen by checking email and browsing the web. The 2-in-1 can fold up like a tent to look more like a television; when you flip the laptop upside-down, the screen automatically flips.

This model has a touchscreen, which makes it easy to select shows, pause, fast-forward, and adjust the volume. I also liked that its well-built aluminum chassis is not flimsy or cheap. While this is not a rugged laptop by any means, the Inspiron withstood a few splashes and food splatters just fine during my testing.

It also gets the nod for a long-lasting battery. When I'm in the kitchen, I usually move the laptop around to make room for bowls, plates, and chopping boards. That means I don't want to plug and unplug constantly. The laptop lasts about 10 hours, although when I used it for Netflix movies, it lasted more like five hours.

One final reason I liked this kitchen model is that the screen extends almost out the bezel. I remember when Dell first introduced that innovation a few years ago. It makes Netflix movies and shows pop a little more, filling the screen. Audio quality is acceptable but not overpowering. I could hear dialogue but would not pick this laptop for music playback — I already have an Alexa Echo Show.

Getting it all to work

My first recommendation for making this all work is downloading and installing the Windows app for Netflix. Once you start using the system in the kitchen, with the laptop sitting like a tent on a counter, you’ll want to avoid using a browser like Chrome. It’s a pain to flip the laptop back for typing, access Netflix.com, and then return to the tent position.

Instead, the Netflix app can sit on your desktop. You start the app by pressing the icon and can start watching your shows and movies. I also liked using the touchscreen in the kitchen to browse for documentaries. I found several by scrolling to the bottom of the window and looking through the documentary category.

The Inspiron is made more for business use than a consumer laptop that might have a rubber edge. Fortunately, even with the aluminum edges, the laptop sat perfectly still on a marble counter. I wondered if it would slide around if ingredients started flying around or the counter became slick, but it stayed put.

My only gripe with this model is that I wished the screen, at 14 inches, was slightly bigger. It’s always a trade-off, of course. A bigger screen would have meant a higher price, more weight, and less room on my countertops. While watching a WWII documentary where the filmmakers had colorized and enhanced the historical footage, I wished I was watching on a bigger screen. At that point, I just paused and watched the rest of the series on my 65-inch television in the living room.

That’s what makes the Inspiron 2-in-1 a good match for the kitchen. It meant I could start watching a show as background entertainment and even as a way to preview a show to see if I wanted to settle in and watch the whole series later.

For anything that would have been better with surround sound and a bigger screen, I marked the show or movie as a favorite and watched it later.

Other purposes in life

Of course, at the $949 price, you’ll want to lug the Inspiron with you for other purposes as well. I used the laptop at my local coffee shop several times, and I must say this is an excellent keyboard that reminds me of the 14-inch MacBook I own.

Since I’ve been testing gear since 2001, I’ve concluded that the keyboard is the primary feature on any laptop that makes it or breaks it for me. I use it all day for typing, and if the keyboard is not a good match, every other spec becomes less critical. I might be impressed by the crisp screen, the long battery life, and the performance, but if the keyboard layout and design are awkward and uncomfortable, the keys feel too springy or spongy, or the keyboard is too rigid, it’s always a pass.

In terms of that 10-hour battery life: I wonder how accurate that is. During my testing period, the laptop lasted more like 5-6 hours while watching Netflix shows and a little over six hours when I mostly used Google Docs and Chrome. Using this laptop in the kitchen is not a big deal — I've never been in that room for more than an hour or two. I wondered if someone picked this laptop for serious business or creative work and if they’d be surprised that the better life doesn’t match the specifications.

I enjoyed using the system in the kitchen. The screen is bright and colorful, the touchscreen is responsive, and the battery life was perfectly fine.

Because the Dell Inspiron 14 2-in-1 is also a great business laptop, I found its dual purpose (entertainment and productivity) met my needs — and then some.

More from Laptop Mag

• Best Dell laptops in 2025: 5 top picks based on testing and reviews
• Dell is gunning for Apple with its new Dell, Dell Pro, and Dell Pro Max laptops (yes, like that)
• Dell Inspiron 14 Plus 7441 (Snapdragon X Plus) review: Marathon battery life, and it keeps its cool

Let's face it, the cost of paid streaming services add up and in some instances, defeat the whole purpose of cord cutting. If you're considering upgrading your home internet service, Verizon is throwing in a bonus streaming bundle that's hard to refuse.

For a limited time, get 12-months of Netflix and Max for free when you switch to the Verizon Fios Home Internet 1 Gig Plan for $89.99/month. Verizon's 1 Gig Home Internet Plan provides speeds of up to 940 Mbps, a free router, and Whole-Home Wi-Fi at no additional cost.

Browse: Verizon's latest deals

Verizon will take $10 off the monthly cost which drops it $79.99 when you opt for paperless invoices and auto-pay. This pricing is locked in for guaranteed 5 years and Verizon is waving the normally $99 professional installation fee.

Verizon Fios Netflix and Max Bundle

Netflix with ads costs $7.99/month ($95.88/year) whereas the ad-supported Max (formerly HBO Max) plan costs $9.99/month or $99.99/year. With Verizon's streaming bundle freebie, that's a combined savings $196/year for entertainment. Tack on the set up fee you no longer have to worry about so you're saving $295 in total.

This is one of the best internet service/streaming deals I've seen outside of the holidays. It's also an excellent value bundle if you smooth, reliable high speed data for streaming and gaming is important to you.

I switched to Verizon Fios from Spectrum last year and never looked back. Connections are strong in every room, games download faster, streams start quicker, and buffering is rare.

Though smart TVs nowadays include pre-installed apps for watching free live TV and movies, a paid subscription opens up a whole new world of exclusive libraries of content.

Have a Verizon phone plan or opening a new line? With any Verizon mobile plan, you can get the 1 Gig Home Internet Plan for just $64.99/month. Again, your first year of Netflix and Max is free and the $99 set up fee is waived.

There's no telling how long Verizon's deal will last so act now to get on Verizon's high speed Fios fiber optic network for less.

Gaming's unlimited potential for exploring new worlds, being captivated by fantastical stories, and drawing you into immersive adventures is hampered only by one thing: hardware.

As AAA games push the boundaries further, more and more machines are left in the dust below minimum required specifications, eliminating countless gamers from enjoying the latest and greatest titles. Many of them are further restricted by the type of hardware they own, with the game libraries of their chosen console hampered by compatibility, hamstrung by performance, or held at arm's length by dastardly exclusivity deals.

However, there exists a great equalizer: the cloud-based, RTX-powered gaming potential afforded by Nvidia GeForce NOW and its 2,100-plus strong game library.

At CES 2025, Nvidia not only announced that it will be bringing a native version of the GeForce NOW app to Valve's Steam Deck later this year, but also adding support for various virtual and mixed reality headsets like the Meta Quest 3, Quest 3S, and Apple Vision Pro later this month.

St(r)eam Deck

While Valve coder Pierre-Loup Griffais was quick to dash immediate hopes of a Steam Deck sequel on Bluesky following the reveal of the AMD Ryzen Z2 Extreme APU potentially prompting Valve's requirements for a "generational leap" in tech to bring about a follow-up to the company's popular handheld gaming PC, Nvidia's CES 2025 announcement of a native GeForce NOW app may have many asking, "Who needs a Steam Deck 2 anyway?"

It's bad news for Corsair and Elgato, as Valve's handheld may soon ironically be referred to as the real Stream Deck, but good news for Steam Deck owners feeling the hardware pinch in the wake of more powerful releases and announcements like the ROG Ally X or Acer Nitro Blaze 8.

With an Nvidia GeForce NOW subscription, Steam Deck owners can unlock a vast library of PC games, including titles on other platforms such as Epic Games Store, Battle.net, Xbox Game Pass, and Ubisoft Connect.

Not only that, subscribers can enjoy these titles with impressive GeForce RTX 4080-level graphics, far beyond the capabilities of the in-device AMD APU, with higher subscription tiers even offering DLSS 3 performance enhancements and ray tracing.

Connect your Steam Deck to a monitor and the benefits increase further, with resolutions and frame rates boosted up to 1440p at 120 fps (frames per second) with HDR, or connect to a TV to unlock 4K resolutions at 60 fps with HDR.

Desktop-quality gaming on Quest headsets is now a (virtual) reality

Thanks to options like Quest Link, Steam Link, Virtual Desktop, and more, playing PC games on Meta Quest headsets isn't something entirely new to those who already own a powerful gaming rig.

However, what about those who don't own a gaming laptop or desktop computer and want to get in on some of the biggest gaming titles unavailable for Meta's Horizon OS platform?

Well, thankfully, Nvidia has also announced that it plans to expand support for various virtual and mixed reality headsets like the Meta Quest 3 and Apple Vision Pro later this month.

Owners of supported headsets will access the game streaming service by visiting play.geforcenow.com through their platform's browser, where they can begin streaming hundreds upon hundreds of gamepad-compatible titles with the same host of graphics-enhancing DLSS 3 and ray tracing options made available.

More from Laptop Mag

• Laptop Mag at CES 2025: The latest laptop news, reviews, and analysis direct from Las Vegas
• In 1999, Nvidia reinvented the GPU. In 2024, it powered the AI revolution
• How Nvidia's consumer ARM chips could turn gaming laptops on their head

If you aren't a current subscriber, this Disney+ and Hulu Cyber Monday streaming deal will be music to your ears. For just $36, you get a full year of both services, which is $96 off the typical price for these stacked streaming services. To put it in perspective, I looked at the current price of movie tickets in my area, and taking my daughter to Moana 2 this weekend would cost me just as much (more once you count the popcorn, soda, and Dots I'd have to buy). Instead, we can catch up on some Disney classics and then watch Moana 2 on our home projector when it comes to Disney+ in early 2025.

If you needed to splurge on one of the best Cyber Monday laptop deals, this could be a nice way to save some money on streaming services this year to make up for it and give you more content to watch on that new laptop.

Disney+ Duo Basic with Hulu

More Cyber Monday Streaming Deals

Streaming deal details

If you've just nabbed a new laptop from our best Cyber Monday Laptop deals or best Black Friday TV deals, you may wonder what else you can pick up on sale to get the best out of your new computer or TV.

Not only can most laptops game on Medium settings and 1080p resolution, even with just an integrated graphics card, but they're also great options for streaming movies or TV shows when on the road or ignoring your hangry extended family and holing up in your bedroom once the Thanksgiving turkey leftovers have run out.

So if you're looking to pick up a new streaming service like Max, get Disney+ and Hulu together for one low price, grab the vaunted Starz add-on for Hulu for its lowest price ever, or finally pay for Peacock, we've got the best streaming deals for you.

Cyber Monday's best streaming deals

Streaming deal details

More from Laptop Mag

• Top MacBook Cyber Monday deals: Save up to $500 on MacBook Pro, MacBook Air, and Mac accessories
• 10+ early Cyber Monday tablet deals: Save up to $350 on Samsung, Microsoft, OnePlus, and Amazon tablets
• Best Cyber Monday Chromebook deals 2024: 13 Chromebook deals starting from only $109

Cord-cutters, TV series bingers, and movie buffs, listen up. You can get Paramount Plus free for 30 days to watch the hit drama series, MobLand, which premiered on March 30, 2025. You'll also get access to other hit TV series and blockbuster movies.

Paramount Plus is one of the best streaming services around, with a massive catalog of movies and TV shows. If you're on the fence, enjoy 30 days of Paramount Plus for free via coupon, "NEWSEASONS" when you redeem this Paramount Plus offer. Alternatively, you can get Paramount Plus at no extra cost with a free Walmart Plus 30-day trial.

This step-by-step guide will show you how to get Paramount Plus free for 30 days to watch the popular drama series, MobLand starring Tom Hardy, Pierce Brosnan, and Helen Mirren.

You'll also get access to Paramount Plus originals and popular shows like Big Brother, Criminal Minds Evolution, NCIS, SEAL TEAM, Tulsa King, and more — all for free.

New Paramount Plus customers can start enjoying their free Paramount Plus 30-day trial in just a few easy steps. This is one of the best free trials for watching free live TV, shows, and movies.

Paramount Plus free 30-day trial

Paramount Plus is worth considering if you want to switch from cable, and it makes a great gift for any occasion. Subscribers can watch movies, TV shows, and live TV on up to three devices. It works with Android and iOS, PlayStation, Xbox, Chromecast, Fire TV, and more.

Paramount Plus offers two tiers of service plans. The base tier, Paramount Plus Essential, costs $7.99/mo or $59.99 a year ($5/mo). This plan includes thousands of TV shows and movies, NFL on CBS live, top soccer games, limited ads, and CBSN 24/7 live news.

The upper tier, Paramount Plus with Showtime, is priced at $12.99/mo. Or $119.99 annually ($10/mo.). You get everything in the base tier plus more live sports, no ads (except for live TV and some shows), your local CBS live channel, and download functionality.

Yet another way to get Paramount Plus free for 30 days is to subscribe to the streaming service. This comes in the form of a 10% off coupon, which takes $5 off your annual subscription. Since you're already paying $5 a month under this plan, it's like you're getting a free month.

Securing yourself a 10% Paramount Plus discount is a simple three-step process. First, choose the Paramount Plus Essential plan from the Paramount Plus Pick Your Plan page. Next, enter coupon "AARP in the "Have a coupon code?" drop-down menu on the Payment Method page. You should see the 10% discount applied at checkout. Enter your first and last name, billing address, and credit card or PayPal payment information.

If you don't want to commit or just want to binge-watch some shows over a shorter period, Paramount Plus consistently offers a free 7-day trial. You will not be charged if you cancel your plan before your trial ends. If you decide to keep Paramount Plus, you will be automatically billed after your trial ends. You may cancel your Paramount Plus plan at any time, so there's no risk.

So if you want to ditch your cable company for a streaming service, here's how to get Paramount Plus free for 30 days.

Good news for anyone who missed all the epic deals during Prime Day. Amazon is bringing back the fun with Prime Big Day Deals, slated to kick off in just a few short weeks on Oct. 8 at 3:01 a.m. ET/12:01 a.m. PT.

Although the best deals won't start until Oct. 8, Amazon is starting the savings early. Right now, Prime members can try out Amazon Music Unlimited with a free 4-month trial — that's a value of $40 and 3 months longer than the typical 1-month free trial! 

This fantastic offer is only for new subscribers who have an active Prime membership. If you're not a Prime member and you've never tried Amazon Music Unlimited, you can still grab a 3-month free trial — that's still an extra 2 months compared to the normal free trial.

If unlimited, ad-free streaming of your favorite music and podcasts sounds great, try the service out! This is one of the best Prime Big Day Deals you don't have to wait for, so grab your free trial before this limited offer from Amazon disappears.

Best Amazon Music Unlimited deal

What's the difference between Amazon Music and Amazon Music Unlimited?

Well, Amazon Music has ads, limits streaming to a single device, and doesn't offer offline playback, HD, or Spatial Audio. Unlimited, on the other hand, offers 100 million songs in HD quality, a growing list of spatial audio tracks, and much more.

Amazon Music Unlimited lets you stream your favorite songs ad-free, anytime, anywhere. On a roadtrip through windy roads with no service? No problem. You can listen to any downloaded music without any interruption.

Listen to music on all your devices via the Amazon Music app or on your laptop via music.amazon.com. Or, stream from Alexa-enabled devices like the Amazon Fire Max 11 or Echo Pop.

And what's more, Amazon Music Unlimited features a fast-growing library of music mastered in Dolby Atmos and 360 Reality Audio. There are also thousands of expertly curated playlists and Stations to keep your interest.

Amazon's Prime Big Deal Days will be here before you know it. Block your calendars for Oct. 8 at 3:01 a.m. ET/12:01 a.m. PT to snatch up the best deals as soon as the event starts.

Sports fans can watch the 2024 Paris Olympics from July 26, 2024 - Aug 11 on Peacock. If you're a student, subscribe to Peacock Premium now at a discounted price to watch this year's Summer Games and stream movies and TV series. 

Students can get one year of Peacock Premium for just $1.99 per month. As of a recent price hike back in July, Peacock Premium now costs $7.99 per month or $79 a year so that's $6 cheaper than the regular monthly price. This is one of the best student discounts available right now. 

To qualify for this limited-time offer, you must verify your student status with SheerID.

Peacock student discount 

Peacock Premium is one of the best streaming services due to its massive library of movies and TV shows. Plus you get access to live sports like the 2024 Paris Onlympics, WWE live pay-per view events, on demand NBC shows like Saturday Night Live replays and exclusive Peacock content.

You can then watch live events, movies, and shows with Peacock on your laptop, tablet or phone. To stream on your big screen TV, install the Peacock app on your smart TV, PlayStation or Xbox console, enter your log-in information and enjoy! Peacock also supports Chromecast which lets you cast to your TV via the Chromecast icon.

Prime Day 2024 is here and off to a strong start; while dramatic discounts on devices are typically our focus, there are also big savings on services like Amazon Music.

As a Prime member, you can get five free months of Amazon Music Unlimited during Prime Day with a one-month purchase. Amazon's ad-free streaming music service typically costs $9.99/month. For just $10, you won't have to spend another dime on streaming music in 2024.

This is one of the best Prime Day deals on Amazon services available right now, so pick it up today and enjoy unlimited streaming music while you peruse the rest of the great Prime Day deals.

Best Amazon Music Unlimited deal

What's the difference between Amazon Music and Amazon Music Unlimited?

Amazon Music has ads, limited streaming to one device, and does not offer offline playback, HD, or Spatial Audio. Unlimited offers 100 million songs in HD quality and a growing list of spatial audio tracks.

Amazon Music Unlimited lets you stream your favorite songs ad-free, anytime, anywhere. Listen to music on all your devices with the Amazon Music app or on your laptop via music.amazon.com. Or, stream from Alexa-enabled devices like the Amazon Fire Max 11 or Echo Pop.

And what's more, Amazon Music Unlimited has a fast-growing library of music mastered in Dolby Atmos and 360 Reality Audio. There are also thousands of expertly curated playlists and Stations to browse.

Amazon Prime Day is underway and runs through July 17. We're tracking all of the best deals and constantly updating our Amazon Prime Day deals hub, so check it out for all the biggest savings on products we recommend.

Thanks to a collaboration between Xbox and Amazon, you'll soon be able to play Xbox games on your TV via a Fire TV Stick.

Announced by Amazon on Thursday, this collaboration will be one of the most affordable ways to experience console gaming without actually needing a console. With a compatible Fire TV Stick and an Xbox Game Pass Ultimate subscription, you can play hundreds of cloud-enabled games, including Starfield, Fallout 4, Forza Horizon 5, and Senua's Saga: Hellblade II. 

There's no official rollout date for this support to kick off, but there is a vague "July" estimate. With Prime Day deals dominating between July 16 and 17, it would make sense to launch Xbox support around that time. There will surely be a significant discount on compatible Fire TV Sticks to inspire both new and resident gamers to try out Xbox cloud gaming on their TVs.

Here's what you'll need in order to stream Xbox games via Amazon Fire TV.

How to stream Xbox Games to Fire TV Stick

First, you'll need a compatible Fire TV Stick. According to Amazon, both the Fire TV Stick 4K Max (2023) and Fire TV Stick 4K (2023) will work. 

If you want to buy one right now, the Fire TV Stick 4K is 20% off as an early Prime Day deal. Or, you can hold out for a better deal during the official Prime Day sales between July 16 and 17.

Once you have a compatible Fire TV Stick, you must download the Xbox app to the device via Amazon's Appstore. The app won't be available until sometime in July, but you can go ahead and subscribe to Xbox Game Pass Ultimate for just $1 your first month, and then $16.99/month after or take advantage of this big discount on 3-month Game Pass Ultimate gift cards bringing it down to just $10 a month.

Lastly, you'll need a compatible Bluetooth controller. Amazon says the Xbox Wireless Controller, Xbox Adaptive Controller, DualSense controller, or DualShock 4 controller will all work.

Come July, as long as you have a compatible Fire TV Stick, Bluetooth controller, and an active Xbox Game Pass Ultimate subscription, you can play cloud games on any TV, whether it's your living room TV or the TV in a hotel room on your summer vacation.

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Amazon tapped the help of Megan Thee Stallion to announce Prime Day 2024's date in true Hot Girl Summer style. 

If you haven't already, watch the new Amazon Prime Day ad/music video for It's Prime Day featuring Megan Thee Stallion. It's the Amazon summer savings anthem we never knew we needed! As confirmed Tuesday, Prime Day 2024 is on July 16-17, however, early Prime member deals start now. 

For example, your Prime membership nets you 5 free months of Amazon Music Unlimited to stream It's Prime Day by Megan Thee Stallion which drops June 28. Normally, you'd expect to pay $9.99/mo. for this music streaming service, so that's $50 in savings. 

This is one of the best Prime Day deals on Amazon services you don't have to wait for. Non-Prime members get 3 free months (valued at $33 without Prime).

Best Amazon Music Unlimited deal

What's the difference between Amazon Music and Amazon Music Unlimited?

Amazon Music has ads, limited streaming to one device, and does not offer offline playback, HD, or Spatial Audio. Unlimited offers 100 million songs in HD quality and a growing list of spatial audio tracks.

Amazon Music Unlimited lets you stream your favorite songs ad-free, anytime, anywhere. Listen to music on all your devices with the Amazon Music app or on your laptop via music.amazon.com. Or, stream from Alexa-enabled devices like the Amazon Fire Max 11 or Echo Pop.

And what's more, Amazon Music Unlimited has a fast-growing library of music mastered in Dolby Atmos and 360 Reality Audio. There are also thousands of expertly curated playlists and Stations to browse.

Block your calendars, frugal friends! Amazon Prime Day starts July 16 at 12:01 a.m. PT/ 3:01 a.m. ET and runs through July 17. Don’t want to wait? It’s never too soon to save! Visit our Amazon Prime Day deals hub for today’s early discounts. 

Netflix began sending out emails on Tuesday, April 30, to UK and Canadian subscribers indicating that it will no longer offer its Basic streaming tier, which gave users an ad-free watching experience for $11.99 (£7.99/CA$9.99) a month.

Netflix revealed these plans in its Q4 2023 earnings report, where the company claimed "we’re looking to retire our Basic plan in some of our ads countries, starting with Canada and the UK in Q2 and taking it from there."

Its "ad countries" currently include Australia, Brazil, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Korea, Mexico, Spain, the UK and the US. If you're in one of these countries, while we don't have an exact date yet, these same plan changes are likely in your near future.

This comes after a year of the company gradually phasing its ad-free Basic tier out. In June 2023, Netflix removed the option for new Canadian subscribers, and a couple of months later, this change moved to US and UK subscribers too.

The company also increased the price of its Basic plan from $9.99 to $11.99 last October in the US and UK, so there were quite a few signs of Netflix's displeasure with it.

Now, it's set to be phased out for UK/Canada subscribers from June 4 onwards. Users on the plan will be automatically forced onto Standard with ads as explained in the email. If you don't want ads, you will have to upgrade to the £10.99 Standard subscription tier ($15.49 in the US).

To some, it's no surprise that Netflix is making these changes to support its growing enterprise. Others feel burnt by the repeated price increases and massive changes in services, but when did this all start?

Why Netflix subscribers feel burnt

While Netflix started as a DVD rental service, its popularity skyrocketed when it adopted streaming, featuring a wide selection of content licensed from the biggest channels and film production companies in the world. 

Now that streaming has notoriously become a free-for-all, with virtually every media company building its own service to deliver content, Netflix has had to rely on its own original productions. Netflix originals require tons of money, with Forbes reporting that both parts of Rebel Moon cost around $166 million.

As Netflix put it in its Q4 2023 earnings report, it will "occasionally ask our members to pay a little extra" as they "invest in and improve Netflix." As a result, Netflix significantly increased subscription costs in January 2022, with its Basic tier going from $8.99 to $9.99, Standard tier upping from $13.99 to $15.49, and the Premium tier increasing from $17.99 to $19.99. 

In Netflix's 2022 Q1 earnings report, the company lost 200,000 subscribers compared to Q4 2021, with expectations that it would get worse, predicting a loss of 2 million subscribers by Q2 2022 compared to Q2 2021's 1.5 million subscriber gain. The company acknowledged that this was "largely a result of our price change," but still suggests that it was "in-line with our expectations and is significantly revenue positive."

It's believed that this is why the most affordable Standard with ads tier for $6.99 launched, as it gives users a more affordable way to enjoy Netflix's content without having to spend more than $10. It also gives Netflix another revenue stream from those customers, which depending on their watching habits more than accounts for the price gap between their subscription and the ad-free plan.

But for subscribers who've been a part of Netflix since the beginning, it's easy to feel overwhelmed by its price. Netflix streaming began in 2011 at $7.99 for its Standard tier, and even when new tiers were introduced, Basic ($7.99), Standard ($8.99), and Premium ($11.99), they all remained relatively low-cost. Comparatively, Standard now costs $15.49 and Premium is $22.99. 

Now that Basic is being phased out altogether, effectively removing many subscriber's last bastion of ad-free affordability on the service, Netflix may face a similar situation as it did in 2022. Price changes and removal lost services could translate into lost subscribers.

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July's best streaming device deals offer notable discounts on today's popular media players. These portable plug-in gadgets make it easier to access and stream your favorite content from anywhere. It's spring clearance season and several retailers currently offer solid discounts on today's best media players.  

Streaming devices come in handy when you want to cut the cable cord or access all of your streaming services from one place. Today's best streaming devices make it easy to find and watch or listen to your favorite content. These portable media players put thousands of TV shows, movies, and live TV channels at your fingertips. They also convert older model "dumb" televisions into modern smart TVs and customize our viewing experience.  

So If you want to complement your existing smart TV or add smart functionality to your dated TV set, now is one of the best times to save. From Apple TV to the first kid-friendly HDMI stick, here are the best streaming device deals you can get right now.

Quick links

• Amazon: streaming device deals from $19
• Best Buy: streaming device deals from $29
• Target: streaming device deals from $19
• Walmart: streaming device deals from $19

Best steaming device deals

Netflix paved the way for profitable password-sharing crackdowns, and now Disney Plus is following suit. Earlier this year, Disney Plus established anti-password-sharing rules that took effect on March 14 and, if broken, could result in restrictions or a ban from the service. Now, Disney plans to take it further.

In a recent interview with CNBC, Disney CEO Bob Iger outlined plans to turn the streaming service "not just into a profitable business, [but] into a growth business," partly by preventing multiple households from sharing one Disney Plus account (via The Verge). 

Get ready to say goodbye to the luxury of sharing your password as early as June —or make plans to binge your watchlist before canceling your account.

This new restrictive Disney Plus policy affects "a few countries" — more to come

Similar to Netflix, Disney Plus graciously plans to let multiple households stay on the same plan for an "additional fee." These paid sharing plans will start rolling out in June in "just a few countries in a few markets," but it's not clear which countries this ominous paid sharing test will hit first.

Regardless, by September, the Disney Plus password-sharing crackdown will be effective in all countries. Disney CFO Hugh Johnston confirmed during the company's February earnings call that this summer, subscribers "suspected of improper sharing" will be prompted to sign up for their own subscription or pay an "additional fee," which is unknown right now.

Disney Plus is the second-most popular streaming service, behind Netflix, and it has a lot of acquired content under its belt. But will that be enough to get current multi-household subscribers to pay for their own accounts? Bob Iger seems to think so.

When asked about the competition, Iger said "We know what you need to be successful in streaming and not everybody has that, and I’m not sure everybody can get it. We know that we can, given everything that I’ve discussed…the content that we have and the technology that we’re building and the brands that we have. I don’t think everybody does though."

In short, Disney Plus is coming for Netflix and the competition — and also for your wallet — all in the name of becoming "a business that has margins that [Disney] and [its] shareholders would really be proud of."

March Madness is streaming live on Max and there's no better time to subscribe. Right now, you can get 1-year of Max starting from $69.99 which is $30 below its normal annual price of $99.99. If we're crunching numbers, that amounts to just $5.83 each month. For just under $70 a year you're getting Max with limited ads and  1080p quality video streaming on up to 2 devices at once.

Or subscribe to Max Ad-free for $110.99/year ($9.36/mo.) to get no-ads, stream 1080p content on up to 2 devices at a time, and up to 30 downloads to watch Max on the go. Alternatively, Max Ultimate Ad-free for $139.99 ($11/67/mo.) supports 4K video quality on up to 4 devices at once, Dolby Atmos, and affords you up to 100 downloads.

Today's best Max steaming deal

Beyond the best seats in the house for the 2024 NCAA Tournament games, Max offers a massive library of streaming content. Get access to fan-favorite franchises like DC Universe to watch The Penguin starring Colin Farrell and J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter 8-film collection. Plus, enjoy blockbuster movies, original TV series, and genre-specific programming from true crime to reality TV, to comedy and others.

Netflix used to be the obvious solution for those wanting to ditch their cable service, but with some of the company's recent decisions, this move might not be so obvious anymore. In addition to price hikes and password-sharing crackdowns, Netflix is now ending subscriptions paid for through iTunes, a loophole that's allowed many users to pay $9.99 for years (via The Verge).

Apple made in-app subscriptions possible in 2010, but Netflix initially didn't want to pay a 30% cut to Apple, so the company held out on adding in-app subscriptions until 2015. You could only subscribe in the app via iTunes until late 2018, when Netflix changed its mind and revoked in-app subscriptions. If you were one of the lucky few to subscribe between 2015 and 2018, the subscription amount was grandfathered in—until now.

While ending legacy subscriptions is something most people probably saw coming, it's odd that Netflix didn't seem to give much warning. Plus, this decision is rolling out amid recent rumors of Netflix raising prices yet again in 2024 (via Variety).

Is Netflix doing too much?

The password-sharing crackdown from Netflix means that anyone who wants to watch content on Netflix has to pay for their own household account. Removing legacy subscription options forces users to either pay more for their existing plan or downgrade to an ad-ridden tier (that usually earns a company more money than paid tiers).

Now, Netflix plans to "resume [their] sort of standard approach toward price increases" in 2024, according to Netflix co-CEO Greg Peters. On the company's Q4 2023 earnings call, he also said that the price changes went "better than we forecasted" in the United States, United Kingdom, and France.

Despite price increases and restricted password sharing, Netflix continues to gain new subscribers and grow in total revenue. In 2023, Netflix gained 29.5 million net new subscribers, and UBS analysts predict Netflix might add 20 million new subscribers in 2024.

UBS analysts also estimate that with a price hike, increased revenue from ads, and new subscribers, the company's total revenue growth in 2024 will be about 15%, compared to only 7% growth in 2023.

Netflix has definitely lost plenty of subscribers in the past year or two following its password-sharing restrictions and price hikes. But with the projected growth estimated by UBS analysts, are these decisions anywhere close to being the downfall of Netflix? With so much free content available, are Netflix original movies and TV shows worth a $5 monthly price hike, or $10 or $20?

The estimated growth of Netflix provided by UBS analysts is, of course, only predictions, but they're predictions based on historical data. Only time will tell if Netflix is flying too close to the sun with another price hike.

If you want to learn how to watch TV for free without cable, you've come to the right place. Without fully committing to a subscription, you can instantly access live TV with free trial offers from many of today's paid streaming services. You'll also get to watch exclusive original shows you won't find elsewhere with little to no ads.

FuboTV,  Hulu, Paramount Plus, and YouTube TV offer free trials ranging from just 2 days to a generous 30-days. I recommend Hulu and Paramount Plus since they offer a month free trial. However, if you just want to watch a short TV series or specific live event, the shorter trial might be best for you. There's risk and you can cancel or pause your free trial at any time to avoid getting charged.

For example, new subscribers can get Paramount Plus free for 30 days to watch TV and movies for free with the latest active coupon, "STALLONE". All you need is a valid email address and credit card or PayPal to sign up. To try FuboTV or YouTube TV for free, no code is necessary — simply select the start free trial button and create your account. FuboTV's monthly plans range from $79.99/mo. to $99.99/mo. whereas YouTube TV's current promotion costs $62.99/mo. ($10/mo. off) for your first 3 months and $72.99/mo. after those first 90-days. 

Don't want to go the free trial route ? Free ad-supported TV streaming services like Pluto TV, Tubi, and Xumo Play let you watch TV for free live and on demand. So if you want to save money and ditch your cable TV provider for good, what are you waiting for? Here are the various ways you can watch TV for free without cable.

How to watch TV for free without cable

The highly anticipated reality series, Love & WWE: Bianca & Montez is now available to watch on Hulu.  What's even better, all eight episodes are now streaming so you can binge watch all weekend. The show follows WWE Superstar power couple Bianca Belair and Montez Ford as they start down the Road to WrestleMania. That's WWE lingo for the months between the organization's annual Royal Rumble and WrestleMania — the Super Bowl of the WWE. Viewers get a chance to see how these popular professional wrestlers balance work and life inside and outside of the squared-circle.  

The only way to watch Love & WWE: Bianca & Montez is on Hulu so you'll need a subscription. If you're watching your budget or don't want to commit to another streaming service, consider Hulu's 30-Day free trial. This will grant you free access to Love & WWE: Bianca & Montez and other popular shows in Hulu's library like The Bear and Only Murders in the Building.  

Get Hulu free for 30 days

The sign up process for a Hulu free trial is simple and you don't need a code. I got Hulu for free to binge watch Love & WWE: Bianca & Montez and here's how you can too.

From your phone, tablet, or computer web browser, navigate to Hulu Plans and select the $7.99/mo. plan (with ads) or $17.99/mo. (no ads) and click the button that reads Select. That will take you to the Create Your Account page where you'll fill in your information and select Continue to proceed to the final page where you enter your preferred payment method. You won't be billed until your free trial period ends which is 30 days from your sign up date. During your free trial period, you have the option to cancel or pause your membership at any time.

So if you want to watch Love & WWE: Bianca & Montez or want to check out a new streaming service, take advantage of Hulu's free one month trial. 

The WWE Royal Rumble 2024 starts at 8 pm ET/5 pm PT on Saturday, Jan. 27 at the Tropicana Field in St, Petersburg, FL. You can watch the WWE Royal Rumble 2024 live stream online or on your smart TV. Like all WWE PPV pro wrestling events, Royal Rumble 2024 will stream live exclusively on Peacock.

As always, the Royal Rumble is expected to be full of surprises — an event you don't want to miss. So if you want to watch the WWE Royal Rumble 2024 from the comfort of your couch or even on the go, here's how. 

How to watch Royal Rumble 2024

From your personal computer, launch your favorite internet browser and visit https://www.peacocktv.com/. Select the "Pick a Plan" button, then select "Get Premium" and pay for $5.99 monthly or "Get Premium Plus" (no ads) and pay $11.99 a month. Under "Create an account" enter a valid email address, create a password and enter your first and last name, gender, birth year and zip code. 

Once you have filled in your information, select the "create account" button which will take you to the payment page. From there, enter either your credit card or PayPal information, select "Pay Now" and you're done. On show day, you can watch the Royal Rumble 2024 live stream on your laptop or via the Peacock app on smart TV, tablet or smartphone. 

How does the Royal Rumble work?

So what is the Royal Rumble? It starts the kick off of the Road to WrestleMania, the WWE's biggest event of the year. 

The Royal Rumble match starts off with two Superstars in the ring with one new Superstar entering the melee every 90 seconds. When a Superstar goes over the top rope and both of their feet touch the floor, they are eliminated from the match. The last ones standing in this year's men's and women's Royal Rumble match gets a guaranteed World Championship match at WrestleMania 40 on April 9 and 7 in Philadelphia. 

WWE Peacock exclusives

In the lead up to Royal Rumble 2024, you can browse exclusive WWE content on Peacock. From the home page menu on the left side, select the "WWE" tab to watch archives of WWE's PPV events including Royal Rumble, WrestleMania, Summerslam, and more. 

There's also a vast collection of original WWE content to watch from shows like The Bump, Table for 3, and documentaries like WWE Chronicles. Besides staging your own Royal Rumble in WWE 2K24, Peacock's WWE library offers a variety of ways to get hyped for Royal Rumble 2024.

How much is Royal Rumble 2024 on Peacock?

To watch the live stream of Royal Rumble 2024 and other WWE pay-per-view events, you must subscribe to a premium plan. Peacock Premium costs $5.99 for streaming with ads and $11.99 for Peacock Premium Plus for ad-free streaming.

If you pay for an annual Peacock subscription, you'll shave dollars of the cost of the service. At the top right of the page, you may toggle Peacock's annual subscription options. Peacock Premium costs $59.99 ($11.89 off) annually whereas Peacock Premium Plus costs $119.99 per year ($23.89 off).

Use your Peacock account to stream Royal Rumble 2024 on just about any platform. Stream on Chrome OS, macOS, Windows laptops, or iOS and Android phones and tablets. You may also watch Peacock on smart TVs and PlayStation and Xbox consoles. Simply install the Peacock app, enter your log-in info and enjoy.

Samsung's first Galaxy Unpacked event of 2024 takes place today, which means we're just hours away from the official unveiling of Samsung's Galaxy S24-Series of smartphones including the Galaxy S24 Ultra and an all-new host of AI features to debut on the platform.

It's up to Samsung to set the tone for the year ahead as they are the first major brand to take to the stage and showcase some of this year's most hotly anticipated hardware. The Galaxy S-Series has been one of the only smartphone lines to truly hold its own against Apple's iPhone and has a long history of impressive technical prowess with annual bragging rites over some of the highest specs in mobile tech.

With the adoption of a new Qualcomm Snapdragon processor, a strong likelihood of a camera array that pushes its shutterbug reputation to new heights, and a suite of Pixel-familiar AI tools onboard, Samsung is proving itself to be a fighting champion when it comes to retaining its crown as the top Android device — and here's how to catch the world premiere of its latest smartphones live online.

How to watch Samsung Galaxy Unpacked 2024

Samsung's first Galaxy Unpacked event of the year is taking place today, Wednesday, Jan. 17 live from San Jose, California. Don't have an invite to the event? Wrong! Samsung's Galaxy Unpacked event will be live-streamed online for anyone to catch its latest showcase of products and innovation.

If you want to watch along at home then you'll be able to catch the event as it happens on Samsung's official website, the Samsung Newsroom, or the brand's official YouTube account.

If you're in the U.S. or Canada then you can expect the event to kick off at 10 a.m. PT (1 p.m. ET). Not tuning in from North America? We've highlighted when to catch the event across a number of other time zones below!

• US & Canada: Wednesday, Jan 17 @ 10 a.m. PT / 1 p.m. ET
• United Kingdom: Wednesday, Jan 17 @ 6 p.m. GMT
• Europe: Wednesday, Jan 17 @ 7 p.m. CET
• India: Wednesday, Jan 17 @ 11:30 p.m. IST
• Australia and New Zealand: Thursday, Jan 18 @ 5 a.m. AET / 7 a.m. NZDT

If you are a T-Mobile customer, hopefully, you are aware of all the perks available as part of your subscription, as it could potentially save you hundreds of dollars on other services including some of the most popular streaming services. 

Currently Netflix on Us and Apple TV Plus on Us are available to many T-Mobile customers for free as part of their monthly offers through the carrier,  but now Hulu on US is joining the mix starting on Jan. 24.

This is the Hulu (With Ads) subscription and we are still trying to confirm whether there is an option to pay the difference to upgrade to the ad-free option, but at $7.99 a month or $95.88 for the year, that is still a valuable bonus for subscribers either way.

How to get Hulu for free on T-Mobile

So what's the catch? Unlike Netflix on Us and Apple Plus on Us, this new Hulu on Us offer is limited to customers on T-Mobile's Go5G Next plan. That's the most expensive plan offered by the carrier, so if you weren't already a Go5G Next subscriber you'll need to do some math on whether upgrading makes sense to take advantage of this and the many other offers available as part of that tier. 

Bottom line

As a T-Mobile customer and a Hulu subscriber, I perked up when I first saw this offer, but the combination of the Go5G Next plan requirement and the fact that it is only the ad-supported Hulu tier pretty quickly deflated my interest. 

Go5G Next is a solid value, but I'm grandfathered in on an older T-Mobile plan that they no longer offer, so your mileage will vary there. The second part is the real killer for me as I pay for the ad-free tier on Hulu and can't imagine switching to the ad-supported plan. Now T-Mobile did announce alongside this that its Netflix on Us plan will switch to the Standard with Ads plan starting on Jan. 24 as well, and that does have the option to pay the difference for the ad-free tiers, so there's hope that Hulu on Us will mirror that.

While those details are a sticking point for me, there's no question that a new nearly $ 100-a-year perk is a great value add by T-Mobile for its Go5G Next customers. If you are on a T-mobile Go5G Next plan, you'll be able to activate the deal starting on Jan. 24, so start planning your Hulu watch party accordingly.

It's the most wonderful time of the year, especially for cord-cutters. You can now watch your favorite cheesy Christmas movies and music for free courtesy of Samsung TV Plus. For convenient access to shows and movies at home or on-the-go, visit Samsung TV Plus online or download the Samsung TV Plus app on your Samsung TV, Galaxy device or Smart Monitor.

Samsung's ad-supported streaming service is bringing holiday cheer to your home with a vast library of family-friendly Christmas-themed movies and programming. From holiday movie marathons, to Holiday Movie Favorites by Lifetime to Hallmark holiday classics, Samsung TV Plus is your one-stop hub for Christmas movies. Currently airing through Dec. 28 are: A Cinderella Christmas, The Spruces and the Pines, and Christmas on 5th Avenue, just to name a few. 

Or, get your holiday groove going with Vevo Holiday, showcasing the top holiday music videos from Mariah Carey aka the Queen of Christmas, Gwen Stefani, Meghan Trainor, John Legend, and other artists. Get into the spirit of Christmas with more music on the XITE hits channel including countdowns of top holiday songs. 

Besides cheerful holiday programming, Samsung TV Plus offers free live TV, music and movies across a range of genres. If you want to expand your channel library or are considering ditching cable, Samsung TV Plus is worth considering.

See Samsung TV Plus's full list of holiday programming below:

 Movie Hub Holiday: 

(* Samsung TV Plus FAST exclusive titles)

• A Dash of Christmas*
• Christmas on Windmill Way* 
• Angel Falls Christmas* 
• Christmas Angel 
• Aisle Be Home for Christmas*
• Crown Prince of Christmas*
• A Christmas Star*
• Christmas Time is Here*
• Joy for Christmas*
• A Christmas Switch*
• A Cinderella Christmas
• The Spruces and the Pines
• Christmas on 5th Avenue
• Spotlight Under the Mistletoe
• Love at the Christmas Contest
• A Merry Single Christmas
• A Royal Christmas on Ice
• Dog Who Saved Christmas

Holiday Movie Favorites by Lifetime:

• Feliz NaviDAD
• Merry Liddle Christmas
• Christmas in Tune
• Toying With the Holidays
• Christmas Hotel
• The Christmas Setup
• Christmas in Mississippi
• A Very Vintage Christmas
• Kirk Franklin's A Gospel Christmas
• Christmas in the City

Hallmark Movies and More:

• Christmas Festival of Ice
• A Nutcracker Christmas
• Hitched for the Holidays
• A Rose for Christmas
• Window Wonderland
• A Midnight Kiss

• Special Programming:

• NBC News NOW Santa Tracker: On December 24th, follow Santa and his reindeer as they make their way around the world.
• Vevo Holiday: Top music videos the Queen of Christmas Mariah Carey, Gwen Stefani, Meghan Trainor, John Legend and more. 
• Stingray Greatest Holiday Hits: The Stingray Greatest Hits channel transforms into Stingray Holiday Hits with all Holiday music.
• XITE Hits: Countdowns of top holiday songs and music selections
• Fireplace 4K: Only Samsung TV Plus, make your holiday cozy with the ambiance of crackling fireplaces all day long.
• Conan O’Brien TV
• Secret Santa: Join Conan and Andy as they dive into the most classified of holiday comedy traditions—Secret Santa! Get ready for a hilarious exploration as they uncover some of Santa's best-kept secrets.
• Holiday Leftovers: Enjoy a tasty adventure with holiday treats straight from the water dish under the tree. This unique holiday special features none other than Santa Claus and Krampus.
• Jamie Oliver: Join Jolly Jamie and his family as they celebrate the holidays cooking up delicious feasts and creating festive traditions.

This Hulu Black Friday deal for 99 cents per month or Hulu with Disney Plus for $2.99 is still available. This is one of the biggest streaming deals you can score for the holiday season and one of the best streaming services for cord-cutters, offering a massive library of TV shows (old and new), movies, and hit exclusives like Prey, The Handmaid's Tale, and The Bear. Hulu Watch Party, anyone? 

For a limited time, new subscribers (or returning subscribers who haven't been active in the past month) can snag a Hulu (with ads) subscription for only 99¢ a month. That's $7 off per month, saving you $84 over the full year. No code is needed: just head over to Hulu's Black Friday page and subscribe now before the deal runs out. You can also get Starz for 99¢ for 6 months.

Pixel for pixel, this is one of the best streaming deals available for Black Friday so far. 

Today's best Hulu and Disney Plus deals

Hulu remains one of the best streaming services available today, boasting exclusive hits like The Bear, The Handmaid's Tale, Letterkenny, and Reservation Dogs alongside popular content from other major networks. Add in a wide array of movies, and it's easy to see why Hulu is a must-have for cord-cutters.

If you're a new subscriber (or a returning subscriber who hasn't had an active subscription for at least a month), you can enjoy Hulu (w/ads) for only 99¢ a month for one year. This saves you a whopping $84 over the typical $7.99 a month cost.

Then you can add STARZ on Hulu for an additional 99¢/month for 6 months. That saved you $54 over the usual $9.99 per month cost.

This deal ends today, Nov. 28, so check out Hulu's Black Friday page right now to secure your annual savings.

Cyber Monday deals are in here, and digital streaming services have joined the plethora of material sales online. Every year it seems like there's several new streaming services, while the previously established ones only seem to increase in price. Thankfully, you can still find Cyber Monday deals and bundles for these services so we don't have to sit down and think and unpack what that all means.

Finding the right streaming service to fit your family's personal preferences is a little bit complicated sometimes. Each platform has different partnerships with different production studios, making each service unique in terms of available movies, TV shows, and live sporting events. 

Our top choice for Cyber Monday streaming deals might just be this Hulu and Disney+ bundle, which is just $2.99 a month.  $.99 of this price is for just Hulu, while they give you the option to add Disney+ for just $2 more! The one catch is that both of these services will play ads unless you choose to upgrade your package.

If your interest has been piqued, check out what more we have for your viewing pleasure.

Max, formerly known as HBO Max, is home to a ton of unique HBO Originals as well as popular TV shows and movies from other networks. Normally, the streaming service costs $9.99/month for a basic plan with ads. 

But for Black Friday and Cyber Monday, Max is majorly discounted to $2.99/month for 6 months — that's $42 in savings! You'll need to act fast though, because this deal only lasts until the end of today, Nov. 27. Last year's Max streaming deal lasted longer than Monday, but there's no guarantee this one will, so get it while you can!

Max also notes that this deal is available through Amazon, Google, Apple, and Roku, if you already have an account setup through them that you want to add Max to. This offer is available for both new and returning customers, just like the Hulu deal for $0.99/month that's good through Nov. 28.

HBO Max Cyber Monday deal

Cyber Monday is almost here and I've rounded up the best discounts on my favorite streaming services! If you picked up a new laptop, TV, or tablet during Black Friday, then you'll surely want some content to watch on its gorgeous display.

I stacked up $136 in savings using Hulu, Peacock Premium, Max, and Paramount Plus, but this isn't a bundle deal so you can pick and choose which ones you want. Want live streaming TV too? I've got a couple of bonus options for you there that could make for even more savings.

Here are the best Cyber Monday streaming service offers available right now to help you save for some of those other Cyber Monday deals you've been watching.

Cyber Monday's best streaming deals

Hulu for 99c a month!

Peacock Premiun for just $1.99 a month!

Max for just $3 a month!

Paramount Plus for just $2 a month!

Sling TV for just $20 and a free Amazon Fire TV Stick Lite!

Fubo TV $40 off all tiers across your first two months!

Black Friday deals are in full swing, and digital streaming services have joined the plethora of material sales online. Every year it seems like there's several new streaming services, while the previously established ones only seem to increase in price. Thankfully, you can still find deals and bundles for these services so we don't have to sit down and unpack what that means.

Finding the right streaming service to fit your family's personal preferences is a little bit complicated sometimes. Each platform has different partnerships with different production studios, making each service unique in terms of available movies, TV shows, and live sporting events. 

Our top choice for Black Friday streaming deals might be this Hulu and Disney+ bundle, which is just $2.99 a month.  $.99 of this price is for just Hulu, while they give you the option to add Disney+ for just $2 more! The one catch is that both of these services will play ads unless you upgrade your package.

If your interest has been piqued, check out what more we have for your viewing pleasure.

Black Friday 2023 has arrived and while deals abound in just about every category from laptops to phones, it's also inarguably one of the best times of year to pick up a streaming service subscription. Lucky for us, Paramount Plus takes a steep discount for the next 3 months, so you and I can watch all the shows we've been wanting to dive into.

One of the best streaming services out there, Paramount Plus gives you access to a massive selection of movies and TV shows. You'll also get to enjoy Paramount Plus exclusives like 1923, Mayor of Kingstown, and Tulsa King — all of which I will be watching before the 3 months end. 

You can get Paramount+ for just $1.99 per month w/ads or $3.99 w/ some ads + Showtime for 3 months. If you decide to continue the service, you'll be billed $5.99 a month for Paramount Plus Essential or $11.99 monthly for the semi-ad-free Paramount Plus with Showtime plan. 

This is one of the best Black Friday streaming deals. 

Paramount Plus is a worth considering if you want to switch from cable and a makes a great gift for any occasion. Subscribers can watch movies, TV shows and live TV on up to three devices. It works with Android and iOS, PlayStation, Xbox, Chromecast, Fire TV and more.

Paramount Plus offers two tiers of service plans. The base tier, Paramount Plus Essential costs $5.99/mo. or $59.99 a year ($5/mo.). This plan includes thousands of TV shows and movies, NFL on CBS live, top soccer games, limited ads, and CBSN 24/7 live news. The upper tier, Paramount Plus with Showtime is priced at $11.99/mo. or $119.99 annually ($10/mo.). You get everything in the base tier plus more live sports, no ads (except for live TV and some shows), your local CBS live channel, and download functionality.

Securing yourself this Black Friday deal takes no effort. Simply hit Redeem Now on Paramount Plus' homepage and you'll be taken straight to the deals. You HAVE to click the Redeem Now button, otherwise the deal might not register when you Pick Your Plan.

Remember, this deal lasts for only 3 months. You will not be charged that additional price before your deal ends. If you decide to keep Paramount Plus, you will be automatically billed full price after the deal ends. You may cancel your Paramount Plus plan at any time, so there's no risk.

Black Friday is here, and so are some incredible savings on streaming services! No matter what your taste is when it comes to bathing in the warm glow of your latest Black Friday purchase (be it laptop, TV, or tablet) there's a streaming service out there with a library of content ready to keep you entertained year round.

I know you must be stuffed after Thanksgiving, so don't worry. Sit back, put your feet up. I've done the leg work for you. Check out all the deals on streaming services Black Friday has to offer below!

Black Friday's best streaming deals

Hulu for 99c a month!

Max for just $3 a month!

Paramount Plus for just $2 a month!

Sling TV for just $20!

Peacock Premiun for just $1.99 a month!

Fubo TV $20 off all tiers for two months!

Depending on how expensive cable is in your area, this Black Friday deal for new FuboTV subscribers might be perfect for you. If you’ve never tried FuboTV before, you can save $40 on your first two months as a new subscriber.

The FuboTV Pro plan is usually $74.99/month, so with this deal, your first two months would only be $54.99, and you’d gain access to 179 channels (including multiple live sports channels) and 1,000 hours of Cloud DVR storage. Plus, you’ll get a free 7-day trial before your first two discounted months start, so if you try the service out and don’t like it, you can cancel before you’re billed.

Be sure to check out this other fantastic Black Friday deal for Hulu that’s good through Nov. 28. New and returning Hulu subscribers can pay 99¢/month instead of $7.99/month for Hulu w/ ads.

Black Friday deal for new FuboTV subscribers

Netflix could be finally entering the next big stages of its plan to bring games to TV and PC users. Netflix Games' latest update confirmed the limited beta test would be coming to users in the United States (via The Verge), which means it could be seeing an official launch sooner rather than later.

While this may not seem like a game changer, just imagine how many Netflix users will launch the app on their TV and be greeted by the company's library of games. It's hard to tell where this service could go, as it might flop or take off massively, but it'll be fascinating nonetheless.

Netflix Games could be coming to your TV soon

Netflix shocked us a couple of years back with the surprise announcement that it would be producing video games alongside its traditional film and TV content. And until now, big games in its library have included the likes of TMNT: Shredder's Revenge, Kentucky Route Zero, Oxenfree, Raji: An Ancient Epic, and far more. We even covered how pleasantly surprised by how good Netflix Games is.

But Netflix has not fully expanded beyond the mobile sphere in games quite yet. For now, you can only play these titles on your phone, but the company seeks to push beyond that with inclusions for TVs, PC and Mac devices. This is still in a limited beta test, which is only available to select members.

That hasn't quite changed, as Netflix is still testing the service. But whereas that test was only once available in Canada and the UK, the latest update confirms that a roll out is beginning for users in the United States. 

You can only use the service on Amazon Fire TV, Google TV Chromecast, LG, Nvidia Shield, Roku devices or TVs, Samsung Smart TVs, and Walmart's Onn. The company plans to add more devices over time.

Prime Day happens twice a year but Amazon freebies are available all-year-round. For starters, you can still get a free 30-day trial of Amazon Prime which you'll want to have especially for Amazon's Black Friday sale. You won't want to miss out on next month's invite-only and Prime exclusive deals.

When Amazon first announced Prime Big Deals Day, 4-months of free Amazon Music Unlimited was among the very first deals available. Now that Prime Day October has come and gone, Amazon's music service is now free for only 30 days. It costs $9.99 thereafter if you choose to keep it after the trial ends.

Amazon Music Unlimited lets you stream your favorite songs ad-free, anytime, anywhere. Listen to music on all your devices with the Amazon Music app or on your laptop via music.amazon.com. 

Want to cut the cord to cable TV? Amazon's Freevee ad-supported streaming services, as it name gives away, is absolutely free. You can stream Freevee on your laptop, mobile devices, streaming media players, game consoles, and smart TVs.

Black Friday will be here sooner than you think and we'll be tracking all the freebies and deals in store this holiday season. In the meantime, browse our Black Friday 2023 deals list for today's best early sales.

Today's best Amazon freebies

A YouTube Premium price increase of $2 per month ($20 on the yearly plan), brings it to $13.99 a month or $139.99 per year, which is sure to drive some to consider how to cancel YouTube Premium, and we're here to help.

As a YouTube Premium subscriber, I'm weighing my options in light of the price increase. I value the features greatly, such as the ad-free experience, being able to download videos or let them play in the background. 

The fact that YouTube Music is also included in the subscription, which I use daily as well, means I need to balance the cost of replacing that if I drop YouTube Premium with something like Spotify or Apple Music (both $9.99 a month). 

Ultimately, I think I'm landing on the side of sticking with YouTube Premium, but that's because I make daily use of all of its features and I have a family subscription which my wife and kids make use of as well. 

If you are only occasionally dipping into YouTube or don't use YouTube Music at all then this would be a logical time to cancel before the price increase goes into effect.

How to cancel YouTube Premium

I'll give Google this, unlike some subscription services we have looked at cancelling, YouTube Premium can be dropped in just a few clicks.

Step 1. Navigate to YouTube.com

Step 2. Click on your profile icon on the top right. (Sign in if necessary)

Step 3. Click on "Purchases and memberships."

Step 4. Under "Memberships," click on "Manage membership."

Step 5. Click "Cancel" to the right of your next billing date.

Step 6. Click on "Yes, cancel."

Google doesn't do anything too drastic to try to stop you from cancelling your YouTube Premium membership. On the screen where you confirm that you want to cancel, it simply reminds you of how long you have been a member and how many hours you've watched ad-free YouTube or played it in the background, how many hours you've listened to ad-free YouTube Music, and how many videos you've watched offline. 

If you are hesitant to cancel right away, you can also choose to simply "Pause membership" for up to six months. This is available under memberships as well, so if you know you may have a period of not using the service as often this would be a way to reduce your annual cost without cancelling it entirely.

YouTube may be taking a page from the Netflix password crackdown with a new initiative that it is testing out with a small percentage of users globally that aims to drive more subscribers to YouTube Premium.

A Reddit user first reported encountering the test on June 28. It prompts users that are running ad-blockers on YouTube to either turn them off and watch the ads or to try YouTube Premium. If they choose option C and do nothing, they'll be blocked from watching any more YouTube content after 3 videos (via Bleeping Computer).

Are you willing to pay for YouTube Premium?

Much like the Netflix situation, while people will complain, it's hard to argue that YouTube isn't in the right here. Asking people to pay for the content with their wallet or their eyeballs is a reasonable request. 

YouTube Premium starts at $11.99 a month or $119.00 for an individual and critically it also includes YouTube Music. It's not cheap, but given the number of videos that many YouTube fans consume the cost per hour is probably a steal.

YouTube confirmed that it is running this "small experiment globally, but didn't offer too many additional details. We're unsure of how many users are in the test or what countries they are located in.

YouTube Premium added 30 million new subscribers from late 2021 to late 2022, bringing the total up to over 80 million subscribers. It sounds great from the outside, but inside YouTube staff are most likely stewing over the fact that it is a drop in the bucket compared to the more than 2.6 billion monthly active subscribers.

We're seeing more and more companies tightening their belts (or more accurately tightening their users' belts), so this doesn't come as a surprise, but we'll be following along with interest to see if (or when) YouTube expands this out from its current trial.

Netflix has been putting its foot on the necks of Frugal Frans this year. First, it launched an anti-password sharing campaign, thwarting non-paying users from enjoying free content from host accounts. And now, the streaming giant is seemingly planning on getting rid of its basic tier – its cheapest ad-free option priced at $10 a month.

How do we know? Well, the streaming giant updated its website for Canadian subscribers, wiping out the affordable Netflix plan. If you're not Canadian, you may be thinking, "What's that got to do with me?" Well, whenever Netflix imposes a major change in one country, it typically means they're in a testing phase. If things go smoothly, Netflix may widen the rollout to more countries, including yours. Dun, dun, dun!

Don't cancel the basic tier if you want to keep it

Canadians who still have their basic-tier plans are safe (for now). However, if Canada-based subscribers cancelled the basic subscription, but wish to resubscribe, they're toast. Netflix won't allow them to do it.

"The basic plan is no longer available for new or rejoining members," Netflix's Canada help page says. "If you are currently on the Basic plan, you can remain on this plan until you change plans or cancel your account."

As mentioned at the outset, Netflix implementing this change in Canada hints that the streaming giant is testing the elimination of the basic tier (perhaps gauging customers'  temperature based on how well they can manage the sudden amendment to the subscription options). Netflix did something similar with its password-sharing crackdown plans. It tested the new policy in countries like Chile, Peru and Costa Rica before rolling it out globally. 

If you dread the thought of paying a penny more than $10 for Netflix (the next available tier, called Premium, sets users back $15.50 a month), but you find the ad-supported, $7-a-month option unappealing, I'd hold on to your basic tier subscription for dear life. If Netflix decides to snatch it away in your country, you won't get it back ever again.

You MUST know how to watch WWDC 2023! Apple CEO Tim Cook just announced that this WWDC will be the best one ever, according to a June 5 tweet.

And Cook may be right. This WWDC is likely to be revolutionary. According to reports, the Cupertino-based tech giant is planning on jumping into a new product category — something Apple hasn't done since the Apple Watch. We're expecting the long-rumored Apple AR/VR headset, the 15-inch MacBook Air, and more (check out our exhaustive list of what we're expecting at WWDC 2023).

And more importantly, if you can't watch the WWDC livestream, check out our WWDC 2023 live blog for fast, quick updates of the broadcast's goings-on. Without further ado, here's how to watch WWDC 2023.

WWDC 2023 time

The WWDC 2023 livestream will kick off with a keynote on June 5 at 10:00 am PT. We know that we have readers all around the world, so check out more time zones below.

• Dallas, Texas - 12:00 noon CT
• Honolulu, Hawaii - 7:00 a.m. HAST
• New York, New York - 1:00 p.m. ET
• Halifax, Canada - 2:00 p.m. AST
• London, United Kingdom - 6:00 p.m. BST
• Berlin, Germany - 7:00 p.m. CEST
• Delhi, India - 10:30 p.m. IST
• Dubai, United Arab Emirates — 9:00 p.m. GST

How to watch WWDC 2023

You can watch the WWDC 2023 livestream on Apple's official website or the Apple YouTube channel. 

In my personal experience, Apple's official website is faster than the YouTube broadcast, but it's all up to you what you prefer.

Be sure to check out our post-WWDC 2023 coverage because, trust us, we will have tons of expert thoughts and opinions on the new products that Apple is poised to launch.

Again, don't forget to check out our WWDC 2023 live blog. You don't want to miss this!

Wondering how to watch the Meta Quest Gaming Showcase? No worries! We've got the date, time, and even what you should be expecting from the VR/metaverse giant.

This is Meta's third annual Quest Gaming Showcase, and according to its May 1 blog post, the company said that it will roll out over 40 minutes of content. Similar to last year, we're expecting a cornucopia of debut trailers, exciting announcements, new games, and mind-blowing updates to our existing favorite games.

The Meta Quest Gaming showcase will be hosted by Oculus Studios Executive Producer Ruth Bram.

How to watch the Meta Quest Gaming Showcase 2023

You can watch the Meta Quest Gaming Showcase via five channels: Twitch, Facebook, YouTube (plus YouTube in Japan), and in Meta Horizon Worlds.

The teaser trailer for the Quest Gaming Showcase features the helmet of Loki, our favorite Asgardian mischief-maker. Could this be hinting that Asgard's Wrath, one of the best Quest 2 games, is getting an update? It's highly likely!

What time is the Meta Quest Gaming Showcase 2023?

The Meta Quest Gaming Showcase is on Thursday, June 1 and will kick off at 10 a.m. PT. But of course, we attract readers from all over the world, so for more time zones, check out the list below.

• Dallas, Texas - 12:00 noon CT
• Honolulu, Hawaii - 7:00 a.m. HAST
• New York, New York - 1:00 p.m. ET
• Halifax, Canada - 2:00 p.m. AST
• London, United Kingdom - 6:00 p.m. BST
• Berlin, Germany - 7:00 p.m. CEST
• Delhi, India - 10:30 p.m. IST
• Dubai, United Arab Emirates — 9:00 p.m. GST

Keep in mind that there will be a pre-show that kicks off at around 9:45 a.m. PT, so if you can't contain your excitement, knock yourself out by watching the pre-show.

What to expect from the Meta Quest Gaming Showcase

As mentioned, Loki's helmet being featured in the teaser trailer for the Meta Quest Gaming Showcase hints that there may be an update to the game. We're also expecting a slew of new Quest 2 game announcements that will excite the masses.

However, what's most exciting is that Meta could roll out a brand spankin' new Quest 3 VR headset. After all, UploadVR noticed that all apps on the Meta Quest Store now list the Quest 3 as supported when you look at the in-VR store app. It would certainly be a more palatable hardware announcement compared to the stinging price of the Meta Quest Pro that was unveiled at the last showcase.

Meta leaping forward and launching their event just days before Apple will supposedly cast its AR/VR headset at WWDC 2023 is smart as consumers are excitedly looking forward to Apple's launch, but may be turned off by the rumored $3,000 price tag. The $3,000 price point may lead them to choose the far more affordable Quest 3 VR headset.

However, this is all speculation. We have to watch the Meta Quest Gaming Showcase to see if the highly anticipated VR headset will, indeed, get unveiled on June 1. Stay tuned!

Peacock Premium free trial offers aren't available right now. But the good news is, you can get 1-year of Peacock Premium for just under $20. New subscribers, enjoy one year of Peacock Premium for just $19.99 and catch up on the hit series, "Yellowstone". Enter coupon, "SUMMEROFPEACOCK" at signup to redeem this amazing offer. 

Peacock Premium costs $49 annually, so that's $30 less than its normal price per year. This is great value for cord cutters — you're basically paying $1.67 a month for your subscription. After your 1-year subscription ends, if you decide to keep your Peacock membership (which you probably will) you'll pay $49/year thereafter. 

Peacock Premium deal

Peacock Premium is one of the best streaming services due to its massive library of movies and TV shows. Plus you get access to live sports, WWE live pay-per view events, on demand NBC shows like Saturday Night Live replays and exclusive Peacock content.

Here's how to get 1-year of Peacock Premium for just $19.99. Visit https://www.peacocktv.com on your laptop, tablet or phone and select the "Pick a Plan" button, then choose "Get Premium" from the plan options. You'll be taken to the "Create an account" page where you'll enter a valid email address, create a password and fill out the required information. 

On the right side of the page, click on "Have a promo code?" and enter coupon, "SUMMEROFPEACOCK" then select the "Apply button. You should see the premium annual plan limited time of $19.99 for one year applied. Click the "Create Account" button which will take you to the payment page. Enter either your credit card or PayPal information and select "Pay Now".

You can then stream 'Yellowstone' and other Peacock exclusive shows and movies on your laptop, tablet or phone. To stream 'Yellowstone' on your big screen TV, install the Peacock app on your smart TV, PlayStation or Xbox console, enter your log-in information and enjoy! Peacock also supports Chromecast which lets you cast to your TV via the Chromecast icon.

Wondering how to watch Google I/O 2023? We've got your back. After all, who would want to miss Google's latest updates on its most highly anticipated products, including the Pixel Fold, the Pixel Tablet, the Pixel 7a, and more.

Last year's Google I/O had everyone talking. The search-engine giant surprised us all by giving us an unprecedented sneak peek of the Pixel 7 series way ahead of time. Plus, we got a glimpse of cool products like Google's Live Translation AR glasses.

This year, we expect Google I/O to be explosive, too. In addition to the Pixel family, the search-engine giant is expected to dive into AI, Google Bard, and Android 14. Don't want to miss it? Read on to find out how you can watch Google I/O 2023.

What is Google I/O 2023?

Google I/O is the search-engine giant's annual conference that targets developers. In recent years, it's been held at the Google Events Center, also known as Googleplex, located in Mountain View California. Although Google I/O is a developers conference, Google typically uses the platform to unveil new products, announce new updates, and reveal novel technologies. 

Google I/O kicks off with a keynote where the search-engine giant delves into its future vision for the company and debuts highly anticipated products. For example, at Google I/O 2022, Google made announcements about Android 13, the Pixel 7 and Pixel 7 Pro, Google Wallet, Google Maps AR View, Google Assistant, Google Cloud, and more.

What is the date and time of Google I/O 2023?

You may be wondering about the date and time of Google I/O 2023. It will kick off on Wednesday, May 10 at 10 a.m. PST. For your convenience, other time zones are listed below.

• Dallas, Texas - 12:00 noon CT
• Honolulu, Hawaii - 7:00 a.m. HAST
• New York, New York - 1:00 p.m. ET
• Halifax, Canada - 2:00 p.m. AST
• London, United Kingdom - 6:00 p.m. BST
• Berlin, Germany - 7:00 p.m. CEST
• Delhi, India - 10:30 p.m. IST
• Dubai, United Arab Emirates — 9:00 p.m. GST

How to watch Google I/O 2023

If you didn't receive an invite to the Google I/O 2023 keynote in Mountain View, California, don't worry. It will be livestreamed for the entire world. You can watch the keynote via Google's YouTube channel or the Google I/O website.

From personal experience, I'd recommend watching the livestream via the Google I/O website. It will likely be faster and suffer less latency compared to the YouTube livestream.

On the Google I/O website, you'll see the "Register" button. You don't need to register to watch the keynote, but if you're interested in watching the individual virtual sessions and getting deep dives into developer content, you can sign up . Click on "Register," select your Gmail account, and fill out the form.

The next page will prompt you to make a developer profile, but it's not necessary. You can hit "No Thanks" at the bottom-left of the screen.

Once that's done, you're good to go.

What to expect at Google I/O 2023

Of course, we expect Google to dive into the Pixel Fold it teased last Thursday as well as the Pixel 7a, Pixel 8, the Pixel Tablet, Google Bard, and Android 14. However, the search-engine giant will give some updates on other popular services, including Google Play, Google Cloud, Google Home, and more. Click here for an overview of the Google I/O 2023 program.

After the keynotes, Google says that all of their livestream content will be available on demand on Google I/O's main page and YouTube.

Final Fantasy XVI has been graced with a decent few trailers thus far (and some lucky individuals have even gotten their hands on it), but we've yet to see an uninterrupted gameplay trailer. That could change this Thursday with a new State of Play focusing entirely on Final Fantasy XVI, promising more than 20 minutes of new footage.

Final Fantasy XVI launches on June 22, which is a little over two months away. Ever since the game's reveal in 2020, fans have been clamoring for any and all details on the latest from the world of Valisthea. If you happen to be one of those fans, don't miss the State of Play this Thursday. And if you can't make it for whatever reason, Laptop Mag will be covering the event live as it happens.

Final Fantasy XVI State of Play: How to watch

You can catch the 20-minute Final Fantasy XVI State of Play on April 13 at 2pm PT / 5pm ET / 11pm CEST through Twitch or YouTube. While there's no telling what the game could present us with throughout this demonstration, we're expecting a deeper breakdown on gameplay elements previously unseen in trailers so far.

Some possibilities include a deeper dive in how the player can interact with environments. Is it entirely linear and chapter-based like Final Fantasy VII Remake, or will the game be akin to Final Fantasy XV in its combination of open-world elements and a linear campaign?

Additionally, while we have seen snippets of combat with many comparing the apparently fast-paced hack-n-slash nature of battles to the likes of Devil May Cry, trailers have yet to show it played uninterrupted. The only exposure to this so far is through journalist's gameplay footage after preview coverage.

Regardless, 20 minutes is a lot of time to sell any game. I've been on the Final Fantasy XVI train ever since the "Ambition" trailer gave us a tease of the character drama, ridiculous boss fights and gorgeous set pieces. With Final Fantasy VII Remake, Square Enix proved that it could knock a mainline series entry out of the park again, so I can't wait to get my hands on the franchise's latest title.

YouTube TV recently announced a price hike that will take the base plan to $72.99 a month, making the service one of the most expensive live TV options on the market.

The change went into effect on March 16 for new subscribers; existing customers won't be billed at the new rate until April 18, giving you a little time to consider your options. 

As a longtime YouTube TV subscriber myself, I think I'll be moving on from it before my next bill hits and I've got three potential alternatives that I'm considering.

What's the best YouTube TV alternative?

The three services that are top of mind for me as I consider a switch from YouTube TV after years as a subscriber are Philo TV, Sling TV, and Hulu Plus Live TV. The first two are nice savings compared to YouTube TV at just $25 and $55 a month, respectively, while the latter bundles nicely with a number of other services I use for an overall discount on my monthly streaming costs. If you are wondering why I'm skipping Fubo TV, at $75 for the base Pro plan it is already more expensive than YouTube TV's new pricing.

Philo TV

Philo TV doesn't seem to garner the same attention, or maybe just marketing dollars, as some of the other streaming services, but for just $25 a month with no contract it's a tempting option. 

You get 70+ live channels for that price along with an unlimited DVR (store shows for up to 1 year), the ability to stream on up to 3 devices at a time, and the option to create up to 10 user profiles. 

So what are the downsides? No local channels, so ABC, NBC, CBS, Fox are out unless you hook up an OTA antenna. It also offers limited sports coverage and news among its lineup. 

If you can get over those shortcomings, it's easily the most affordable live streaming TV service out there, so it's worth giving the 7-day free trial a shot to find out if it works for you.

Sling TV

Given that the price is the motivating factor for dropping YouTube TV it is tempting to switch to Sling TV, which is either $40 or $55 a month depending on the tier you select. For $40, you can select either the Orange plan, which caters to sports enthusiasts and family content, or the Blue plan which focuses on news and entertainment. Split the difference with the Orange & Blue plan for $55, which gives you a blend of both.

Now any of these options are considerably fewer channels than the now over 100 that YouTube TV offers, so if you are going by price per channel you aren't doing as well, but the question is really just whether it has the channels that you actually watch. You can check the full list on Sling's service page (opens in new tab).

Other limitations versus YouTube TV are the lack of access to local channels like Fox, ABC, and NBC, along with only 50 hours of DVR recording, compared to unlimited on YouTube TV. When I subscribed to Sling TV in the past I added an OTA antenna to my setup for live local channels, but it's certainly a consideration if you want to record content on those channels.

Overall Sling TV is a compelling option if you are looking to save some money each month and its channel lineups match up with your watching habits.

Hulu Plus Live TV

This one might feel counterintuitive as Hulu+ Live TV is $70 a month, so barely cheaper than YouTube TV's new price, but if you are like most cord cutters you have other subscriptions and this is where you might start to see the savings.

For $82.99 you can get Hulu+ Live TV, along with Hulu (No Ads), Disney+, and ESPN+. If you are even just a Disney+ and YouTube TV subscriber then you are already at exactly the same price, so essentially you are getting ESPN+ and Hulu (No Ads) for free, which considering Hulu's ever-growing library of shows and movies is a solid addition.

Hulu+ Live TV also gives you a more comparable package to YouTube TV with access to all of your local channels in most markets, the ability to create family member profiles, unlimited DVR recording, and an 80-plus channel lineup.

If you are a cord cutter that strings together a number of services, this option will save you $26 versus paying a la carte for the new YouTube TV subscription ($73), Disney+ ($11), Hulu No Ads ($15), and ESPN+ ($10).

Personally, this is the option that lines up the best with my families watching habits, so I'll be making the move over to the Hulu+ Live TV bundle when my next YouTube TV bill comes up.

Nvidia will be adding over twenty new games to its GeForce Now game streaming service this month, and I'm super excited. This past January, I got hands on with Nvidia's GeForce Now Ultimate, and that experience was enough for me to put the gaming console away for good. 

Adding twenty-plus new games in addition to the news that Microsoft is adding its library of PC games to the service in the future means GFN is growing rapidly. And the catalog could get even bigger if the $69 billion purchase of Activision Blizzard goes through for Microsoft.  GFN could literally turn itself into a gamer's paradise within the next few months. Let's have a look at which games will be added. 

The first round of added games

We're only into the third day of March, and these five games have already been added.

• Monster Hunter Rise (Steam)
• Voltaire: The Vegan Vampire (New release on Steam)
• Rise of Industry (Free on Epic Games Store)
• Destiny 2: Lightfall (Steam, Epic Games Store)
• Battlefield 2042 Season 4: Eleventh Hour (Steam, Epic Games Store) list

Upcoming new games on GFN

According to Nvidia, these games will be added during the rest of March.

• Hotel Renovator (New release on Steam, Mar. 7)
• Clash: Artifacts of Chaos (New release on Steam, Mar. 9)
• Figment 2: Creed Valley (New release on Steam, Mar. 9)
• Monster Energy Supercross – The Official Videogame 6 (New release on Steam, Mar. 9)
• Big Ambitions (New release on Steam, Mar. 10)
• The Legend of Heroes: Trails to Azure (New release on Steam, Mar. 14)
• Smalland: Survive the Wilds (New release on Steam, Mar. 29)
• Ravenbound (New release on Steam, Mar. 30)
• DREDGE (New release on Steam, Mar. 30)
• The Great War: Western Front (New release on Steam, Mar. 30)
• System Shock (New release on Steam and Epic Games Store)
• Amberial Dreams (Steam)
• Disney Dreamlight Valley (Steam and Epic Games Store)
• No One Survived (Steam)
• Symphony of War: The Nephilim Saga (Steam)
• Tower of Fantasy (Steam)

What was removed or delayed

Sadly, one of my favorite games, Command & Conquer Remastered Collection, was pulled from GFN, due to technical issues, with no timeline for its return. Two games that were supposed to be released this past February, Above Snakes and Heads Will Roll, have been delayed, as have Perish and Darker and Darker, which were to be released this month. 

Since the clock turned to 2023, Nvidia has been working hard to get its new 4080 servers online nationwide and releasing more games onto its streaming platform. Baldur's Gate 3 (Steam), Recipe For Disaster, Sons of Forest, and Wrpips were added this February. 

With Nvidia's new servers coming online and its list of games increasing, the GPU-making giant could corner the market on online gaming.

Are you a fan of both Netflix and Discord? Did you know that you can stream your favorite Netflix movies and TV shows over Discord with just a few simple steps? In this tutorial, we'll walk you through the process of setting up and streaming Netflix on Discord. 

Here are a few things to keep in mind when streaming movies on Discord. Make sure you have a stable internet connection. Check your audio and video settings. If you have a limited data plan, be mindful of how much you're streaming to avoid exceeding your data limit. Lastly, check the copyright laws in your region. Streaming copyrighted material without permission may be illegal in some areas.

Streaming in Discord is a quick and easy way to share your favorite movies and TV shows with your friends and chat about them in real-time. Whether you're looking to watch a classic film or the latest blockbuster, streaming Netflix over Discord is a fun and convenient way to do it. So grab some popcorn, sit back, and get ready to learn how to stream Netflix on Discord.

Steps to share a Netflix movie using Discord

1. Open the Netflix website, and have your favorite Netflix movie on standby. You can also click this link to open it. 

2. Open Discord and make sure it is connected to a server. 

3. Click the Settings button at the bottom of the page and go to Activity Settings > Registered Games.

4. Click Add it. A small pop-up window should appear. 

5. Select the browser that has Netflix open, and click the Add Game button. 

6. Go back to the server you plan to stream Netflix on and click on the screen icon in the lower left corner. 

7. Select the browser tab you want to stream in the Screen Share pop-up. 

8. Adjust the streaming settings.

9. Click the Go Live and begin streaming your Netflix movie. 

Unfortunately for the streaming giant, "How to cancel Netflix" is a trending search query on Google, but fortunately for you, we have a step-by-step guide that can free you from Netflix's subscription shackles.

If you're planning on jumping ship, you're not the only one. Following the change to restrict password sharing (in short: you need to log on from your home IP every month or you will be locked out...weird, I know), searches for how to cut the cord on Netflix spiked.

According to The New York Times, Netflix lost 200,000 subscribers in the first three months of 2022, and chances are this wave of people leaving is going to grow even higher.

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How to cancel Netflix

Other platforms may make you jump through hoops to deter you from cancelling their service, but Netflix makes it surprisingly easy for subscribers to cut ties from its monthly membership.

1. Make sure you're logged into your Netflix account.

2. Click on your profile icon on the top right.

3. Click on "Account."

4. Under "Membership & Billing," click on "Cancel Membership."

Of course, as with most cancellation processes, you'll come across some messages designed to convince you, Netflix's valued paying customer, to stick around and keep your subscription. You may see a window asking if you'd like to downgrade instead. If you're still determined to cancel your membership, continue to step five.

5. Click on "Finish cancellation."

Your cancellation will be effective at the end of your current billing period. For example, if your next payment would have been due on February 15, you can keep watching your favorite shows and films until that date.

Missed out on the first episode of The Last of Us on HBO? UK media company Sky has uploaded the entire thing on YouTube, so you can watch it for free!

Yep, you read that right. I think this is the first time I've ever seen a HBO show get a YouTube debut like this. And while it is on a UK-based channel, we've checked and it does open in the US too. 

So whether your options on how to watch The Last of Us are limited, or you're saving pennies and not subbed to HBO Max, just click play below and enjoy the trauma.

I'd be remiss if I didn't take this chance to talk about the first episode in a little more detail, because my oh my — it's a beautiful thing. I won't veer too much into spoiler territory, but I will assume you've played the game, and that you know what happens on outbreak day.

The amount of additional details placed into this first episode is astounding. From the 60s TV show opening that sets a terrifying tone and gives every part of the normal day in Joel and Sarah's life an underlying tension, to the subtle clues of how the infection is passed from person to person, every part of it is delivered with an expert emotional precision.

And that moment (you know the one I'm talking about). Even though I've played it multiple times in-game, the translation of this onto the silver screen still had me in floods of tears.

It is, without a doubt, one of the best examples of a video game adaptation I have ever seen. And I know you will love it too.

I foam at the mouth any time I get to talk about The Last of Us, especially The Last of Us Part II. Now that the long-awaited TV-series adaptation is here, people need to know how to watch this beauty.

The Last of Us series is developed by Craig Mazin (Chernobyl) and Neil Druckmann (creative director of The Last of Us) for HBO Max, raking up roughly $10 million per episode, which is apparently the largest TV production in Canadian history. Game of Thrones alums Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey play the iconic roles of Joel and Ellie, respectively. The Last of Us will air for nine episodes, debuting once a week starting on Jan. 15 and ending on March 12, 2023.

Despite HBO Max beginning to crumble into oblivion with Discovery removing beloved shows, you’ll still be able to watch The Last of Us in the U.S., Mexico, Latin America, the Caribbean, and parts of Europe. For the U.K., Canada, and Australia, you’ll have to turn to Now TV, Crave, and Binge, respectively. You can find a more extensive list on HBO’s site. 

Without further ado, here’s how to watch The Last of Us TV series online.

Where to watch The Last of Us TV series online in the US  

The Last of Us TV HBO series premieres on Jan. 15 and ends on March 12, 2023. All episodes will be available to watch on HBO Max. 

HBO Max is one of the few on-demand providers that doesn’t currently offer a free trial. However, if you’re an HBO subscriber via Amazon, Apple, Google Play, or Samsung TV app stores, you are entitled to access HBO Max at no additional cost. In fact, there are so many ways in which the service provider is bundled in with other services that HBO subscribers may already have access to HBO Max without even knowing it. Check this HBO Max FAQ to see if you already have access through your current provider absolutely free.

Where to watch The Last of Us TV series online in Canada  

While HBO Max isn’t available in Canada, the Great White North can still catch the latest episodes of The Last of Us (alongside a host of other HBO and Showtime programming) through streaming service Crave. The first episode of The Last of Us airs on Sunday, Jan. 15. 

Where to watch The Last of Us TV series online in the UK 

Those in the United Kingdom can watch Joel and Ellie’s journey unfold via the on-demand platform NOW. The season premiere of The Last of Us TV series will be available to stream starting Monday, Jan. 16.

Where to watch The Last of Us TV series online in Australia 

Australian audiences can find The Last of Us TV series on Foxtel NOW and BINGE streaming platforms. The first episode airs on Monday, Jan. 16.

The Last of Us TV series: Season 1 episodes 

The following is the release schedule and episode names for season 1 of The Last of Us TV series for the U.S., U.K., Canada, and Australia: 

• The Last of Us S01E01: "When You're Lost in the Darkness" —   15th / 16th January 2023 (HBO Max / Sky Atlantic)
• The Last of Us S01E02: "Infected" — 22nd / 23rd January 2023 (HBO Max / Sky Atlantic)
• The Last of Us S01E03: N/A — 29th / 30th January 2023 (HBO Max / Sky Atlantic)
• The Last of Us S01E04: N/A — 5th / 6th February 2023 (HBO Max / Sky Atlantic)
• The Last of Us S01E05: N/A — 12th / 13th February 2023 (HBO Max / Sky Atlantic)
• The Last of Us S01E06: N/A — 19th / 20th February 2023 (HBO Max / Sky Atlantic)
• The Last of Us S01E07: N/A — 26th / 27th February 2023 (HBO Max / Sky Atlantic)
• The Last of Us S01E08: N/A — 5th / 6th March 2023 (HBO Max / Sky Atlantic)
• The Last of Us S01E09: N/A — 12th / 13th March 2023 (HBO Max / Sky Atlantic)