Safety First

Parents can now give their children more access to YouTube

FEBRUARY 26, 2021 It's February 26, 2021. In honor of Daft Punk calling it quits this week, we've got a very special party playlist for you: Apple Music | Spotify     ⏰ Today's Big Stories... in 30 Seconds Today We Watched, Read, and Listened to (so you don't have to): 427 articles, 9 podcasts, 11 press releases, 332 tweets, and 8 YouTube videos 1. YouTube Wants to Make Kids Feel Safe on Regular Accounts YouTube Kids was a way for parents to keep their young children away from harmful videos, but it wasn't always a good fit for more independently-minded tweens and teens. Now, YouTube is offering a "supervised experience" for parents to manage accounts with less restriction but still some safety. 2. Sort Your Favorite Spotify Tunes By Genre and Mood Spotify is looking to shape up the way you listen to music on the streaming service, with a new system to sort your tracks by genre and mood. You'll be able to apply these filters to your "Liked Songs" playlist, so you won't hear happy stuff when you're sad, and vice versa. 3. Even Biden Wants to Know Why There Aren't Enough PS5s You know it's a big deal when the supply chain issues involved in a shortage of PS5 and Xbox Series consoles end up on a Presidential Executive Order. Don't expect a flood of machines to come out any time soon; Team Biden is looking at the issues to fix things in the future. 🦑 Go Deeper Home automation is pretty gee-wiz cool, what with opening your blinds with your voice and all, but did you know it could also help your homeowners insurance premiums? Our own Allison Matyus has the story.     🎱 By the Numbers Solid incremental increases Data: Spotify Spotify is doing alright for itself with a steady increase of monthly active users each quarter. Even with all the competition out there these days, Spotify keeps bringing us to its musical table. Yum.     🔥 Today's Hot Deal Need a fan for your house that's stylish and useful? Check out this Bluetooth-enabled oscillating tower fan from Lasko and stay cool for under $60 (previously $80). Don't Miss This Deal 🤓 Nerd Out "More rockets in space, please." --Kyree Leary, Associate News Editor As Musk and Bezos battle it out to get into space, the latter's Blue Origin has hit a snag. The first flight of its New Glenn rocket has been delayed until 2022 due to a lack of government contracts, says the company. (Share on Twitter) 💎 You Know You Want It  Where IS that sound coming from? Image: Sonos Forget putting a bunch of ugly speakers and external mounts on your walls. Why not put high-end Sonos speakers directly inside them? These gorgeous and flush-mounted speakers will tune themselves to your particular room, too, making sure your home theater truly sings. 🎥 Behind the Scenes One more time. Sadly, electronic music pioneers Daft Punk called it quits this week after 28 years of amazing tunes. If we're not going to Get Lucky with more music, then we'll have to be satisfied with this inside look at how those iconic helmets were created.     🗞 Extra! Extra! We've got you covered with the best in daily tech news! See the latest on our site or follow us on Google News. Did someone forward this to you? Sign up here. Have something you'd like us to write about? We're always open for suggestions, too. You are receiving this newsletter because you subscribed to the Tech Today newsletter. If you wish to unsubscribe, please click here .   Our editors independently research, test, and recommend the best products; you can learn more about our review process here. We may receive commissions on purchases made from our chosen links. A Dotdash Brand 1500 Broadway, 6th Floor, New York, NY, 10036 2020 Dotdash • All rights reserved. Privacy Policy.   [View in Browser]

Just Give It A Try

Samsung is encouraging people to try out their foldable phones for up to 100 days

FEBRUARY 25, 2021 It's February 25, 2021. On this day in 2010, Apple sold its 10-billionth song through its iTunes Store. The song? Guess Things Happen That Way by Johnny Cash. Go give it a listen.     ⏰ Today's Big Stories... in 30 Seconds Today We Watched, Read, and Listened to (so you don't have to): 402 articles, 11 podcasts, 14 press releases, 329 tweets, and 19 YouTube videos 1. Samsung Will Let You Try a Galaxy Folding Phone for 100 Days Samsung is letting people try out the Galaxy Z Flip 5G or Galaxy Z Fold2 5G for 100 days as part of its new 'Buy and Try' program. The promotion is available until April 1, and you can get either phone for a discounted price. If you're not happy with the phone, you can send it right back. Sounds like a win-win to us! 2. PlayStation's State of Play to Reveal New PS4/5 Games If you're at all curious about what games are coming to the PS4 and PS5, you'll want to tune into PlayStation's State of Play today at 2 PM PT/5 PM ET. Sony says it will "serve up new updates and deep dives for 10 games," including new game announcements. How exciting! 3. Fry's Electronics is Closing Down for Good After almost 36 years, Fry's Electronics, Inc. is shutting down its operations, citing challenges imposed by the pandemic. Fry's was in business in nine states across 31 stores, and began its "wind-down process" this week. Heck of a run. 🦑 Go Deeper How much do you like your phone? Could you go without it? Well, according to a new study, many in the US think smartphones are the most important thing in their lives. Sascha Brodsky has the deep dive you need on our relationship with phones.     🎱 By the Numbers PS4 still going strong Data: VG Charts The PS5 may have taken over in terms of mindshare, but its predecessor is still going strong (it doesn't hurt that it's still super hard to get a PS5). These games have all sold well over the last few years, and continue to do so, even on the "last-gen" console, the PS4. Don't count it out just yet.      🔥 Today's Hot Deal TP-Link's Deco Mesh Wi-Fi system is a cool $40 off on Amazon, so pick one up asap and upgrade your home's internet coverage. You deserve it. Don't Miss This Deal 🤓 Nerd Out "Music to my ears." --Rob LeFebvre, Senior News Editor NASA's Perseverance rover hasn't been on Mars for long, but it's already sending back audio from the surface of the red planet. It's the first time we're hearing anything from Mars, making this a really special occasion. (Share on Twitter) 💎 You Know You Want It  Go big or... go big and stay home? Image: Samsung If you can't make it to a movie theater for, well, obvious reasons, why not bring it to you? Samsung's The Premiere is a 120-inch smart laser projector that can bring 4K, HDR, cinema-like quality to your home. Of course, you'll need $4k and a big enough room/wall to make it work, but hey, in-home movie theater! 🎮 Up-Down-A-B-Start Really, Google? More than a few people expected Google to give up on its Stadia game streaming platform, but it was still a surprise to see how soon it happened. Now, read what ex-Stadia devs had to say about the shut down via Kotaku, including learning about it the same day the public did.     🗞 Extra! Extra! We've got you covered with the best in daily tech news! See the latest on our site or follow us on Google News. Did someone forward this to you? Sign up here. Have something you'd like us to write about? We're always open for suggestions, too. You are receiving this newsletter because you subscribed to the Tech Today newsletter. If you wish to unsubscribe, please click here .   Our editors independently research, test, and recommend the best products; you can learn more about our review process here. We may receive commissions on purchases made from our chosen links. A Dotdash Brand 1500 Broadway, 6th Floor, New York, NY, 10036 2020 Dotdash • All rights reserved. Privacy Policy.   [View in Browser]