On the third floor of a building in the heart of Paris 9th arrondissement, the compact 344-square-foot BERGRE Paris IX apartment has undergone a remarkable transformation, thanks to the work of Emilie Magdelaine Interiors. Drawing inspiration from the elegance and comfort of a high-end hotel suite, the designer has reimagined the space, balancing sophistication with practicality while ensuring that every inch is thoughtfully utilized.The vision behind the renovation was to create a refined, yet welcoming environment where furniture, artwork, and decorative objects take center stage. Despite the apartments limited size, every detail was carefully considered to avoid visual clutter while maintaining a sense of warmth and style. The result is a space that feels polished but never ostentatious, where simplicity enhances the beauty of the curated elements within.A neutral color palette forms the foundation of this transformation, allowing the furnishings and decor to infuse the space with personality and vibrancy. The walls are painted in Farrow & Balls Strong White, a cool shade with subtle gray undertones, providing a crisp backdrop. Meanwhile, the headboard features Elephant Breath, a warm gray hue that echoes the texture and tone of the fluted bathroom tiles, seamlessly linking the bedroom and bathroom aesthetics.A delicate balance of straight lines and gentle curves defines the design language of the apartment. The clean lines of the baseboards and the sofa contrast beautifully with the rounded forms of the fluted headboard, the textured bathroom tiles, and the curved legs of the coffee table. This interplay of geometry adds visual interest while maintaining a cohesive atmosphere.The thoughtful use of materials further enhances this balance. Brushed stainless steel accents seen in light switches, door handles, curtain rods, and lighting fixtures lend a modern edge, while timeless Carrara marble, featured on the coffee table, kitchen countertop, and bathroom tiles, brings a sense of classic luxury. These materials create continuity throughout the apartment, tying together different areas with a sense of understated elegance.To optimize the compact layout, strategic decisions were made to utilize space efficiently. The kitchen, now positioned near the entrance, features custom cabinetry with IKEA pedestals and &SHUFL fronts in a raw finish black for the base units and light gray for the upper cabinets. Despite its small footprint, the kitchen is fully equipped with a sink, two burners, an oven, and a fridge, making it both functional and stylish.The bedroom was relocated to the former kitchen area, with a custom-designed headboard extending to ceiling height, offering both visual impact and additional storage. A trunk bed by Tediber provides hidden storage, maximizing space without compromising comfort. The bathroom was reconfigured to include a space-saving roller shutter door and a central partition that separates the toilet and shower, maintaining functionality while enhancing privacy. A transparent, reflective glass door ensures that natural light filters into the space, creating an airy feel even in the most compact areas.Lighting plays a pivotal role in enhancing the perception of space and adding warmth. In the living area, two mirrors were positioned above the shelves to reflect daylight without directing the viewers eye toward their own reflection, subtly enlarging and brightening the room. In the bedroom, a mirrored upper section of the headboard amplifies the light, while an artwork by Thomas Devaux, featuring dichroic glass, introduces dynamic reflections that generate their own glow, adding an ethereal dimension to the space.To see more from Emilie Magdelaine, visit emiliemagdelaine.fr.Photography by Florian Wattier, courtesy of Emilie Magdelaine.

If we ever find ourselves in need of a comforting beverage, there should be nothing that stands in the way. No more a bitter tea drinker or an overextracted coffee fan, BALMUDA offers a beautiful and functional response to the woes of beverage making, eliminating all pain points with a modern finish. Modeled to resemble a traditional tea vessel, take your morning routine to the next level with the MoonKettle.The MoonKettle offers precise temperature adjustment, with a range of 122 to 212 degrees. This allows for home baristas to dial in on their favorite drinks, learning to hone their skills to create even more fantastic beverages. A precise, accurately pouring spout is a gamechanger when it comes to making coffee and tea at home. With matcha, it helps ensure there are no finicky clumps at the bottom. With a pour-over, the ground beans can be saturated equally, minimizing overextration and bitterness. The rate of water also is key, some kettles intentionally restricting the flow of water for more even distribution and therefore balanced taste.The electric kettle holds one liter of water and features a strong seal to minimize the leakage of steam, while allowing for easy opening and closing with one hand as needed. LED lighting resembles flickering flames as if over a fire, while alerting the user to its boiling status. MoonKettle is outfitted with various sound options, including a Kyoto-inspired piano, a xylophone inspired by Japanese gardens, and a Chinese night market-inspired string instrument.In addition to black, the MoonKettle comes in white, creating a sense of peace and calm very much associated with the tea brewing process. This light, crisp white accentuates the carefully wrought curves of the MoonKettle, inspired by generations of tea culture that came before it.Gen Terao founded BALMUDA in Tokyo in 2003, releasing the x-base in the hopes of creating the most beautiful products on the market. Realizing that goal pretty thoroughly throughout the years, extensive research is conducted to make sure each product performs well, looks even better, and really lasts. This ideal has stayed with them throughout the decades, offering a range of thoughtful accessories that nestle in comfortably with existing accessories. Terao remarks, I believe that artistic value, which cannot be quantified, is what enriches life. BALMUDA creates ideas based on this belief.To learn more about the MoonKettle from BALMUDA, please visit balmuda.com.Photography courtesy of BALMUDA.

When venturing out into the wilds of the modern web, many people now make use of a VPN, or a Virtual Private Network. These software packages have been around for decades as ways of securely connecting to private networks remotely, but the term is now more commonly used to refer to third-party VPN services that act as intermediaries between your devices and the internet at large.The idea behind VPNs is they keep you and your data safer while you're browsing, with a trade-off in terms of speed (though the best VPNs will aim to minimize the hit on download and upload transfer rates). If you're wondering what exactly a VPN is, how these services work, and whether or not you should be signed up for one, you'll find all of these questions and more answered below.Why use a VPN?Using a VPN is beneficial in terms of both security and privacy. VPNs create an encrypted tunnel between you and dedicated servers run by the VPN company. Your traffic is then sent down that tunnel, and your VPN service of choice then sends it on to websites or other servers. Traffic going in the other direction travels back in the same way.This tunnel offers several protections. It means it's a lot harder for people on the same wifi network as you at the local coffee shop or the hotel you're staying in to see what you're up toso VPNs are often deployed by users when they're traveling and connecting to numerous public wifi networks. VPNs can let you pretend you're in places you're not. Credit: Lifehacker Connecting to a VPN also means your traffic is hidden from your internet service provider, or ISP. Your ISP can see you're connecting to the VPN, but nothing beyond thatso it's impossible for your ISP or any of its staff to snoop on you or keep logs. It also means ISPs are more limited in terms of what they can tell government agencies and law enforcement.Another reason for using VPNs is to conceal or spoof your location: Websites can only see the location of the VPN server you're using, not your actual location. That means they can't track your whereabouts as easily, and in the case of streaming services, might serve up different libraries of content depending on where your VPN server is (though streaming services are pretty wise to VPNs now, so this doesn't always work).How VPNs workand their limitationsThat idea of an encrypted tunnel covers the basics of how VPNs work: You connect to a VPN server, then it connects to the web for you. When data comes back, it first goes to the VPN server, and then to your device. VPN providers will tell you how many servers they have and in how many countrieseach time you connect to the VPN, you can typically choose which server to connect to, or have one assigned automatically.If you want to stay safe on a public wifi network, it's best to connect to a server in your countryit'll be faster. If you want to pretend you're in another country, or would like to stop websites and apps from knowing where you are, you can pick a server somewhere else. Some VPNs let you double-up servers for extra security. If you connect to a lot of wifi networks, VPNs can help keep you safe. Credit: Lifehacker It's important to recognize the limitations of how VPNs work, too. Your location aside, they aren't going to stop a lot of the tracking tech you'll find on the web, such as cookiesand of course if you log into your Amazon account, Amazon will know it's you. VPNs don't offer anonymity cloaks.In addition, you're essentially transferring your trust from your ISP to a VPN provider: Your ISP provider can't see your traffic, but your VPN service potentially can. What's more, VPNs are under the same legal obligations as ISPs when it comes to giving data to government and law enforcement agencies. With that in mind, it's important to pick a VPN you trust.How to choose a VPNAs noted above, VPNs aren't above the law, and can see the traffic they're ferrying for you. With that in mind, it's important to look for a VPN with an independently audited "no logs" policymeaning none of your data is kept permanently. That means there's less information that can be exposed or handed over to the authorities, if they come knocking.It's a crucial part of choosing a VPN, so VPN providers will usually promote "no logs" policies quite prominently. Read the policies for ExpressVPN and NordVPN, for example: You'll see mention of independent auditors, technologies that scrub data automatically, and operations that are based in countries where data retention laws are less strict (which means VPNs aren't legally obliged to keep records on their users). See what VPN providers say about their data retention policies. Credit: Lifehacker There are lots of other criteria to use when weighing which VPN provider to go for. As previously mentioned, you can look for how many servers a provider offers, and where they're based. You can also check up on the promised speeds, as well as the basics of how much you're going to have to pay and what else you get included (maybe dark-web monitoring for data breaches, for example, or a bundled password manager).Make sure you check how many devices you can connect to the VPN service at any one time, as this will varyand some VPNs may not even have apps for every platform. You can also look at what you get in terms of customer service and support if something goes wrong. And don't forget to consult reviews from trustworthy tech publications, too.How much VPNs costAs with most digital subscription decisions, cost is likely to be a big factor in your choice. Free VPNs are available, though they'll usually be cut-down versions of paid-for packages, with limitations on how many connections you can make and the speeds you're going to get in terms of uploads and downloads.Considering how important VPNs are, in terms of trusting them with your data, it's a good idea to avoid free ones if you canat least if it's not clear how they're making their money. There are trustworthy free VPN packages around, and we've listed some of them here, but make sure you go for a well-known name with a long history. Check the deal length and bundled features when comparing VPN prices. Credit: Lifehacker If you are able to pay for a VPN, make sure you weigh everything you get with your subscription: the number of available servers, the number of compatible devices, the length of the deal you have to sign up for, the customer support on offer, the bonus software included. Comparing prices is tricky because each VPN provider offers different packages for your money.While subscription tiers and pricing are changing all the timelook out for introductory deals if you're just signing uphere are a few offers available at the time of writing to give you a general idea: ExpressVPN is $12.95 a month, NordVPN is $12.99 a month, ProtonVPN is $9.99 a month, and TunnelBear is $9.99 a month. As usual, you can get lower monthly pricing by signing up for a year or two, and varying tiers with varying features are available on these services.Should you use a VPN?There's no doubt that using a VPN on your phone or your laptop means your data is more secure and more private: The question is whether it's worth paying for another subscription. It certainly gives you extra peace of mind if you're on the go a lot, and often bouncing between different public wifi networks. For secure travel, and accessing services from abroad, VPNs are definitely appealing.Then there's the ISP issue: These big internet companies keep much more detailed records than most VPNs do. If you'd rather as little of your browsing activity was logged as possible, then a VPN might be the way to go (though again, this applies to activity logged by ISPs, and not necessarily advertising companies or websites). VPNs can offer extra peace of mind. Credit: Lifehacker You've also got the built-in protection for your locationyour IP addressand the ability to spoof locations to some extent, which can be helpful if you're in a place with tightly regulated internet, or where your usual streaming services aren't available. Bear in mind, though, that as soon as you log into Google or Netflix, they know who you are and which country you live in anyway.VPN providers are usually falling over themselves to offer free trials or introductory offers, so there's no harm in signing up for a package and seeing how it suits youand how much you actually use it. You could even sign up for a couple at a time and compare them in terms of online speeds and the quality of their apps.

Take a moment to list all the digital accounts you've signed up for, and it's probably more than you realized: email, social media, banking, streaming services, cloud storage, music, gaming, and fitness...it adds up. But using the same login credentials for every service is a bad idea, and if you reuse passwords across accounts, let me summarize the simplest advice you should take away from this article: You shouldn't. But, of course, it's nearly impossible to remember as many unique usernames and secure passwords as you need for your various accounts. That's where password managers come in.Password managers hide your various login credentials behind one main username and password so that logging into the password manager gives you access to everything else. It's a secure alternative to writing your passwords down or saving them in a spreadsheet, and more reliable than your memory. They can often store other data, toothink credit card numbers, PIN codes, and authenticator keysand may also give you extra features like scanning data breaches for your credentials. If you've yet to switch to a password manager, consider this a sign to get started. It can be intimidating at first, but getting started may be easier than you think.Some of the most important password manager featuresPassword managers are all slightly different, but you'll find many of the same features across brands. First and foremost, they store your passwordsoften popping up inside web browsers and on phones whenever you need to log into an accountand provide you with your login credentials with one click or tap. As sign-in technologies have evolved, though, so have password managers. Many can now also help with two-factor authentication codes and passkeys for websites or apps that need more than just a username and password. At the same time, these password managers are secured with a main username and password you need to rememberand often with biometric authentication, too. The best password managers work seamlessly across devices. Credit: NordPass Most password managers will also suggest strong passwords for new accounts: Passwords that mix up random special characters, letters, and numbers, so they're extremely difficult to hack. With a password manager, you don't actually need to know what your passwords arethe program handles everything. You'll often see password managers offer additional security features as well, ranging from notifying you of duplicate passwords, to dark web monitoring for your email addresses, usernames, or passwords. If your login details appear in a data breach, you get an alert about it, and you can change them.How password managers secure your dataYou might wonder how password managers make sure your passwords are securely and privately locked away. Details vary between software packages, but they'll invariably use end-to-end encryption, with your main password as the decryption key, meaning that means no one elsefrom hackers to password manager developers to government agenciescan access your details without that password. Additional security measures are often implemented as well. Take 1Password as an example: It uses PBKDF2 (Password-Based Key Derivation Function 2) key strengthening, which, in simple terms, means that passwords are obscure enough that it would take decades to crack. It also gives users a secret key, known only to them, that works as an extra security layer on top of your password. A host of encryption and other security layers are applied to your password vault. Credit: LastPass In other words, you can't just use your pet's name as your password manager password. Extra security layers, including two-factor authentication and biometric scans, are often added too. Where your credentials need to be synced across multiple devices, strong encryption protocols are again deployed. Without your password, the data is useless, and only you know your password.Most password managers now combine local and cloud storage options, because we all need our passwords on so many devices. However, it's worth bearing in mind that the fewer places you have your password manager installed, the less chance there is of someone else gaining access to itso some users just keep their password manager on their phone.Why you should use a password managerSimply put, using a password manager is a whole lot more secure than other options, like listing them in a Google Doc. Say, for example, that you left your laptop unlocked and someone sat down at it. With a Google Doc, that person would be more likely to access your password document than they would a password manager where they would need extra security clearance. Apple and Google have their own password manager options. Credit: Lifehacker The free offerings from Google and Apple have improved significantly in recent years, but they still don't quite offer the level of protection, breadth of features, and cross-platform support of the best dedicated password managers. One example: In the case of Google Password Manager, on-device encryption (meaning that you manage the decryption key locally, as with a password manager, rather than Google managing it) remains an optional extra that you have to enable, rather than enabled by default.Given the protection and features that come with dedicated password managers, it's typically worth most people investing in one. Some software packages offer a free tier, but they may be limited in terms of the features you get and the number of devices you can use them on. You can expect to pay a few bucks per month for most apps, but you can also look for bundled deals that include VPNs and adblockers, for instance. Whatever brand or package you choose, though, you should begin using a password manager. You get a private password vault, a host of protections to keep it safe, and added features like data breach monitoring and strong password generators. Plus, the best password managers sync seamlessly across all of your devices, ready when you need them.

Apples Find My feature has finally been enabled in South Korea, according to a company announcement translated byApple Insider. This comes after years of public demand in which the finding network tool was absent from the country. The omission was especially odd when you consider that Apple sold AirTags throughout the region. Without Find My, they are basically just puck-shaped paperweights.The company never explicitly stated why it limited access to Find My in South Korea, but it appeared to be related to local laws that could have allowed the government access to the location data. The service first appeared during a beta test of iOS 18.4, but the official software update makes it available to everyone in the country. Find My has long been functional in South Koreas outlying territories like Baengnyeongdo and Ulleungdo."Find My is an important tool that allows users to grasp the location of the most precious things to them, such as friends, family and personal items, and I am very happy to be able to introduce this function to Korea," said David Dorn, senior director of Apple's service products, in a statement on the company's local website.The modern iteration of Find My launched in the US in 2019 as part of iOS 13. However, the tool actually dates back to a service called Find My iPhone that started in 2010. Apple recently expanded functionality to let users share the location of a lost item with other people on the network. This is helpful when negotiating the return of a lost item with a stranger.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/mobile/apples-find-my-has-finally-launched-in-south-korea-151437244.html?src=rss

If you ever needed a definitive example of how money doesnt necessarily buy you success or taste, take a look at Amazons studio arm. The mega-retailers production division, now known as Amazon-MGM, has been making movies for more than a decade. Very few of the entries in its lineup have been world-beaters, but that hasnt deterred the outfit from persisting. The New York Times is today reporting that under its new head, Courtney Valenti, Amazons movie division has plans to own the in-person cinema experience.Amazon is apparently gearing up to release up to 14 big, broad commercial films a year to theaters nationwide and around the world. Each film would spend 45 days in the theaters before heading to pay-per-view and then to Prime Video at some point after. The move comes in the face of shrinking box office receipts and fewer people heading to the cinema in general. Not to mention its also planning to produce an equal number of films thatll go direct to Prime, which seems counter-intuitive given the desire to push people toward theaters.That doesnt recognize the shift in viewing habits, especially among younger people, whod much rather sit and watch YouTube for hours at a time. Or that the box office took a hit because of COVID-19 that it never really bounced back from. Or that a lot of people would rather wait for a film to become available for free on a service they already pay for.It also doesnt take into account the fact cinemas are becoming increasingly unaffordable, and not that nice a place to sit for multiple hours. Last year, the cinema industry said it would spend $2.2 billion renovating their facilities to lure wary customers back. The planned additions included renovations for chairs and carpets, as well as the construction of ziplines and pickleball courts. Nowhere on the list was mentioned make cinema tickets cheaper or dont make viewers sit through half an hour of TV adverts before the trailers.At the risk of sounding obvious, thats one hell of a lot of material for one company to put out in a year. Especially when so many competitors with better track records are putting out far fewer films and seeing success. On paper, 14 movies a year feels like the sort of strategy you could last get away with in the 1980s. After all, people had fewer options, cinemas were busier and studios could rely on the triple-whammy of the box office, rental and VHS markets.It doesnt help Amazon isnt pledging to make quality movies, just lots of them, which suggests a mindset that doesnt value scarcity. After all, there are many instances of things made and sold in small, limited quantities that garner far more attention than something mass-produced. Think about how hard it is for one of those latter-day Marvel movies to stick in the consciousness when you know therell be another one along in a month or two.It calls to mind Amazons battles with the Broccolis, until recently the custodians of the James Bond franchise. Lets not overthink this, they are just silly spy movies but ones made with a level of craft and attention rarely seen in the modern era. The fact there can be a multi year gap between entries in the series means each film gets far more attention. That was in conflict with Amazons apparent desire to use the Bond name to push out a thousand different streaming series, game shows and movies on a regular basis.And, at the risk of sounding uncharitable, its not as if Amazons movie slate has been a hit parade thus far. Many of the studios buzzier hits were picked up at film festivals rather than coming from inside, while its homegrown fare has floundered. Thats not to say its rivals are doing any better on this front just read the reviews of The Electric State to show you how badly Netflix is throwing mad money at C+-tier projects.I often wonder if people look at the success of Disneys big Marvel tentpoles and assume that its easy to replicate. A film like Avengers: Endgame was the payoff to a decade-long plan built from the ground-up on the backs of less successful films. Across 2024, Disney put 15 films into cinemas, but even a mega-behemoth like Disney does it across its seven or eight different divisions.In terms of attractive pitches, 14 films a year from the people who spent more than $200 million on Red One isnt particularly compelling. Amazons going to have to give people a reason to get out to the theaters, but thats going to be a challenge if the emphasis is on putting more raw material into the pipeline rather than making anything halfway considered or compelling.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/entertainment/amazons-new-cinema-plan-is-perfect-for-the-80s-150653674.html?src=rss

Deep Research is coming to the ChatGPT free tier 'soon', but there are still good reasons to stick with Plus.

An unprotected APIsec database was found sitting on the internet, and was subsequently locked down.

CoreWeave shares rallied more than 10% on Tuesday and looked to bounce back from a lackluster second trading day on the public markets.

President Donald Trumps executive order seeking to overhaul the nations elections faced its first legal challenges Monday as the Democratic National Committee and a pair of nonprofits filed two separate lawsuits calling it unconstitutional.The Campaign Legal Center and the State Democracy Defenders Fund brought the first lawsuit Monday afternoon. The DNC, the Democratic Governors Association, and Senate and House Democratic leaders followed soon after with a complaint of their own.Both lawsuits filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia ask the court to block Trumps order and declare it illegal.The presidents executive order is an unlawful action that threatens to uproot our tried-and-tested election systems and silence potentially millions of Americans, said Danielle Lang, senior director of voting rights at the D.C.-based Campaign Legal Center. It is simply not within the presidents authority to set election rules by executive decree, especially when they would restrict access to voting in this way.The White House didnt respond to a request for comment.The legal challenges had been expected after election lawyers warned some of Trumps demands in the order, including a proof-of-citizenship requirement for voter registration and new ballot deadline rules, may violate the U.S. Constitution.The order also asserts power that legal experts say the president doesnt have over an independent agency. That agency, the U.S. Election Assistance Commission, sets voluntary voting system guidelines and maintains the federal voter registration form.The suits come as Congress is considering codifying a proof-of-citizenship requirement for voter registration into law, and as Trump has promised more actions related to elections in the coming weeks.Both the legal challenges draw attention to the Constitutions Elections Clause, which says states not the president get to decide the times, places and manner of how elections are run. That section of the Constitution also gives Congress the power to make or alter election regulations, at least for federal office, but it doesnt mention any presidential authority over election administration.The Constitution is clear: States set their own rules of the road when it comes to elections, and only Congress has the power to override these laws with respect to federal elections, said Lang, calling the executive order an unconstitutional executive overreach.The lawsuits also argue the presidents order could disenfranchise voters. The nonprofits lawsuit names three voter advocacy organizations as plaintiffs that they allege are harmed by Trumps executive order: the League of United Latin American Citizens, the Secure Families Initiative and the Arizona Students Association.The DNCs lawsuit highlights the role of the governments controversial cost-cutting arm, the Department of Government Efficiency.It alleges the orders data-sharing requirements, including instructing DOGE to cross-reference federal data with state voter lists, violate Democrats privacy rights and increase the risk that they will be harassed based on false suspicions that they are not qualified to vote.This executive order is an unconstitutional power grab from Donald Trump that attacks vote by mail, gives DOGE sensitive personal information and makes it harder for states to run their own free and fair elections, reads a statement from the plaintiffs.Trump, one of the top spreaders of election falsehoods, has argued this executive order will secure the vote against illegal voting by noncitizens. Multiple studies and investigations in individual states have shown that noncitizens casting ballots in federal elections, already a felony, is exceedingly rare.Mondays lawsuits against Trumps elections order could be followed by more challenges. Other voting rights advocates, including the American Civil Liberties Union, have said theyre considering legal action. Several Democratic state attorneys general have said they are looking closely at the order and suspect it is illegal.Meanwhile, Trumps order has received praise from the top election officials in some Republican states who say it could inhibit instances of voter fraud and give them access to federal data to better maintain their voter rolls.If courts determine the order can stand, the changes Trump wants are likely to cause some headaches for both election administrators and voters. State election officials, who already have lost some federal cybersecurity assistance, would have to spend time and money to comply with the order, including potentially buying new voting systems and educating voters of the rules.The proof-of-citizenship requirement also could cause confusion or voter disenfranchisement because millions of eligible voting-age Americans do not have the proper documents readily available. In Kansas, which had a proof-of-citizenship requirement for three years before it was overturned, the states own expert estimated that almost all the roughly 30,000 people who were prevented from registering to vote during the time it was in effect were U.S. citizens who had been eligible.Mondays lawsuits are the latest of numerous efforts to fight the flurry of executive actions Trump has taken during the first months of his second term. Federal judges have partially or fully blocked many of them, including efforts to restrict birthright citizenship, ban transgender people from military service and curb diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives among federal contractors and grant recipients.The Associated Press receives support from several private foundations to enhance its explanatory coverage of elections and democracy. See more about the APs democracy initiative here. The AP is solely responsible for all content.Ali Swenson, Associated Press