As we muddle through another flu season, keeping things clean remains an effective way to stay healthy. But cleaning alone isnt always enough when it comes to the microscopic germs that can make us sicksometimes you have to sanitize and disinfect, as well.Theres a defined difference between cleaning, sanitizing, and disinfecting, and a right and wrong way to go about them. Here are the highlights, with guidance from the CDC.Cleaning vs. sanitizing vs. disinfectingFirst, let's discuss the difference between cleaning, sanitizing, and disinfecting, as defined by the CDC:Cleaning involves physically removing dirt, debris, and (some) germs from surfaces. This is typically done with soap or other cleaners, water, and a little scrubbing (hence the "physical" part). Cleaning only scrapes away some of the germs that can make you sick, but this is often sufficient to stay healthy in generalthe germs left on a dinner plate after you wash it in the sink are usually safe as long as youre in good health.Sanitizing greatly reduces the germs on a surface, leaving behind a level thats considered safe. Most sanitizers kill bacteria, but they arent necessarily intended to kill viruses (though they often can kill some).Disinfecting kills everythingboth bacteria and viruses.An important distinction to remember is that sanitizers and disinfectants dont clean very wellthat is, they will kill most or all of the germs, but might not do a very good job of removing dirt and debris. If you only use hand sanitizer, for example, your hands might be sanitized, but they might also still be dirty.When to clean, sanitize, and disinfectSince cleaning, sanitizing, and disinfecting are different things, it makes sense that you should treat them as such. Here's when to do each:Clean everything regularlyevery day. In fact, the order of germ-killing operations always starts with cleaning (removing debris and dirt), as you cant as effectively sanitize or disinfect a dirty surface. Cleaning should always comes first when you want to sanitize or disinfect something.Sanitize surfaces and objects that touch food or might end up in your mouth after every use when you're concerned about illnesses.Disinfect surfaces if youre sick (or someone else in the house is sick), or if you or someone in the home has a compromised immune system.In other words, you normally dont need to disinfect every day, but you do need to clean and sanitize specific things every day.Check your product labelsIf you want to sanitize or disinfect a surface, youll need to use a cleaning product thats appropriate to the taskbut dont put too much faith in labels. Many sanitizing products will claim they kill 99% or even 99.9% of germs, but this is usually deceptive. What they mean is that they kill 99.9% of certain bacteria and viruses. Even then, they usually dont give you any information as to the conditions under which those tests were performed underthat is, how thoroughly the surfaces were cleaned or how the product was applied.That doesnt mean sanitizers are useless, but it does mean that you shouldnt assume your home is antiseptic and completely germ-free after you use them. If you want to really kill the most bacteria and viruses as possible, you shouldnt rely solely on a sanitizing product, even if it has that shiny 99.9% claim.If youre disinfecting, make sure you read the label and follow the instructions. Most products require you to leave the disinfectant on the surface for a prolonged period of time (sometimes as long as 20 minutes) to ensure full efficacy. If you just spray and wipe, youre probably not really disinfecting. If youre looking at a sanitizer or disinfectant that uses isopropyl alcohol, also make sure its a 70% strength mixture (as opposed to a 99% alcohol mixture)the lower strength, counterintuitively, is the sweet spot for disinfecting.

CES 2025 presented us with big innovations, outrageous concepts, and impressive solutions to everyday problems. This year, the CNET Groupmade up of sibling sites CNET, ZDNET, PCMag, Mashable and Lifehackerteamed up with the CTA as the official media partner of the Best of CES Awards. Staff experts and editors weighed in, and from those discussions, we've chosen the top products and services at CES and awarded them with the official distinction of Best of CES.To be eligible for this award, the product or service needs to be an exhibitor at CES 2025, and meet one of the following criteria:Includes a compelling new concept or ideaSolves a major consumer problemIs new or is an update to an existing product that sets a new bar in performance or qualityBest AI: Nvidia Cosmos AI model Credit: Nvidia CES 2025 was packed with AI tech, but Nvidia Cosmos wins in our book, since it might be what the next big things in AI, robotics, and autonomous vehicles are powered by. Cosmos takes 3D models of spaces in the real world, and, through generative AI, turns them into photo-realistic videos to train robots and self-driving cars. It solves a big problem with AI training data: Traditionally, robots require a huge amount of training data to continuously improve. Cosmos, however, can generate that training data with AI, continuously feeding the training sets for new products. Cosmos will likely run best on Nvidia chips, but the company wants to open-source the code and put it on Github. Runner-up:Gemini for Google TVBest transportation/mobility: Honda 0 Series Credit: Honda Honda's futuristic 0 Series SUV and Sedan are nearly here. The company plans to release these vehicles in North America by 2026, and will be made on Honda's new battery platform in Ohio. If you pick one up, you should expect to be able to charge up your car in 10 to 15 minutes. 0 Series runs Honda's ASIMO OS on a new AI chip, with the end goal of powering Level 3 self-driving.The 0 Series we saw at CES should be pretty close to what Honda releases, unlike some of the other prototype designs shown off. We don't know how much it will cost, but we're excited about where Honda is going with its EV program. Runner-up: BMW Panoramic iDrive with Operating System XBest laptop: Asus Zenbook A14 Credit: Michelle Ehrhardt The Asus Zenbook A14's 2.2-pound design makes it obviously portable, but Asus manages to add a 30 hour-long battery life and some extra features to the package. The Ceraluminum chassis is durable (from the aluminum) and scratch-resistant (from the ceramic), not to mention 100% recyclable. The laptop ships with the Qualcomm Snapdragon X chip, which makes it a Copilot+ PC. You can expect AI features like summarization, text generation, photo editing, and using natural language to search for media. This Zenbook comes with both USB-C and HDMI 2.1, as well as fun tap-and-slide controls for volume, brightness, and track selection. The OLED display impressed our team, and the whole package seems fairly priced at $1,099 (X Elite), or $899 for the X Plus (coming in March).Runner-up: Lenovo ThinkBook Plus Gen 6 RollableBest TV/home theater: LG G5 OLED TV Credit: James Martin/CNET The LG G5 was the TV that impressed us most at this year's CES, and is the front-runner for the highest quality TV of 2025. Its OLED display is 40% brighter for 2025, with better contrast in bright lighting when compared to the G4one of our favorites of 2024. The remote is improved, while the TV keeps the gallery design that makes it look nearly bezel-less. You might be temped by the M5 wireless TV, as it has the same quality display, but that wireless tech makes it much more expensive.Runner-up:Hisense 116UXBest smart home/home tech: Roborock Saros Z70 Credit: Roborock The Roborock Saros Z70 is a vacuum-mop hybrid, but it can do a lot more than that. Thanks to a new mechanical arm, the bot can pick up and put away socks off the floor. Plus, it's no prototype: The Saros Z70 will be available to consumers in April. Its vacuum has 22,000 Pa of suction power, which makes it among the most powerful robovacs out there. That won't come cheap: This model costs about $2,000. But our hope is it starts a trend where we see less expensive models hit the market. Runner-up:BioLite CompleteBest sustainability: Flint Paper Battery Credit: Katie Collins/CNET Have you ever seen a battery made out of paper before? Flint brought one it made to CESa more sustainable, scalable, and affordable alternative to lithium-ion batteries. It all comes down to cellulose, which lets ions transfer between the node and cathode of the battery. Better yet, the battery can be sized down to just about whatever size you need, such as a coin battery or the strap of a smartwatch. When you're finished with them, they don't end up in a landfill: They decompose in six weeks.Best gaming: Lenovo Legion Go S Credit: Michelle Ehrhardt Like many PC handheld consoles, the Lenovo Legion Go S runs Windows 11. But what makes this model stand out is the other operating system it is compatible with: Valve's SteamOS. That makes it the only non-Valve portable to run this OS, making it a true Steam Deck competitor. It sadly doesn't have the detachable controllers of the Legion Go, and has a smaller lower-res display, but it has a lot else going for it: two USB-4 port on top of the console, Hall Effect joysticks to prevent drifting, and an interior that better supports upgrading the storage. This will be the least expensive Legion Go device when it launches in May, at $600.Best wellness/fitness tech: Ozlo Sleepbuds Credit: Jake Peterson Ozlo's Sleepbuds impressed us by not only offering comfortable earbuds for sleeping, but ones that can potentially enhance the quality of your sleep as well. The Sleepbuds are designed to be flush with your ear, which means you can sleep on your side without feeling them pressing into you. The design also prevents them from falling out of your ear. In addition, the Sleepbuds have a number of slumber-specific perks, including biometric sensors in the earbuds that can track your sleep, sensors in the case that can identify potential sleep interruptions in your room, an in-ear alarm that won't wake up a sleeping partner, and 10-hour battery life, so you won't wake up to a dead battery notification. You can even play sound directly from the Sleepbuds without connecting to another Bluetooth device, which means you don't have to look at your phone before going to bed. They earn an official Best of CES award this year for wellness tech.Runner-up: YoctoMatBest mobile: HMD OffGrid Credit: HMD If you have a brand new smartphonesay, an iPhone 16 or Google Pixel 9you may have access to satellite communications, which lets you contact emergency services and other contacts when there's no cellular signal available. For most of us, however, these features don't exist on our phones, and if reception goes down, we're out of luck. HMD's new OffGrid accessory aims to fix this: With a $200 dongle, you can send texts and contact emergency services on any iPhone or Android device. However, you'll also need to subscribe to the monthly service, which runs $80 per year.Runner-up: TCL 60 XE NxtpaperBest privacy and security: Ultraloq Bolt Mission UWB Plus NFC Credit: Maria Diaz/ZDNET The Ultraloq Bolt Mission is the first smart lock on the market that supports ultra-wideband technology. With that, the lock can sense within inches when you're approaching the door, whether you're approaching from inside or outside your home, and can unlock without you having to touch the lock at all. If that fails for whatever reason, it has NFC for tap-to-unlock, a keypad, and a traditional key. It's protected by 128-bit AES data encryption, IP65 weather resistance, BHMA Level 1-certified durability, and it supports wifi, Matter, Apple Siri, Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant and Samsung SmartThings. Plus, you only need to worry about changing the battery once a year.Runner-up: Lockly Prestige Duet SeriesBest weirdest/most unexpected: Kirin Electric Salt Spoon Credit: Jake Peterson The Kirin Electric Salt Spoon generated quite a bit of attention at CES this year. The idea is this: The spoon sends an electric current to your tongue to create the illusion that your food tastes saltier. In theory, it's a great concept, and could enable people who need to cut down on their sodium levels to enjoy food as they wish to. However, our team experienced mixed results with the spoon. Hopefully by the time it's available in the United States, things will be more consistent. Best overall: Nvidia Cosmos Credit: Nvidia While plenty of tech this year impressed us, the overall winner had to be Nvidia Cosmos. Cosmos is actively solving a problem with how robots can continue improving, and we expect it to power the next big things in tech. Nvidia is already partnering with Toyota to build next-generation self-driving cars, showing that the industry sees the potential here as well.

At CES 2025, Brelyon showed off its latest immersive display called the Ultra Reality Extend and even after seeing it in person, my brain still cant fully comprehend a monitor that looks bigger and deeper on the inside than it does on the outside.Billed as the worlds first commercial multi-focal monitor, the Ultra Reality Extend merges the ease-of-use and simplicity of a traditional desktop display with the kind of spatial depth you can normally only get from VR headset. Granted, the max simulated depth the Extend delivers is only 2.5 meters, which isnt nearly as far as youd get from devices like a Meta Quest 3S or an Apple Vision Pro, but considering that Brelyons monitor doesnt require any additional equipment (aside from a connected PC), the effect is truly impressive. And its much easier to use too, all you have to do is set yourself in front and the monitor will do the rest, which results in much less eye strain or the potential nausea that many people experience with modern VR goggles.BrelyonThis allows the monitor to defy its dimensions, because even though its much chunkier than a typical display, the view inside is absolutely monstrous. From a 30-inch frame, the Ultra Reality Extend provides a virtual display thats equivalent to a curved 122-inch screen. Meanwhile, its 4K/60Hz resolution uses 1-bit of monocular to deliver spatial content that looks closer to 8K with elements of the scene capable of looking closer or further away depending on the situation.When I watched a game clip from Spiderman, the trees and light poles whipping past in my face felt so real I started to flinch subconsciously. Then in other scenes, Brelyons monitor was able to separate different layers of the content to make snow in the foreground look blurry as it whipped across the screen while characters in the distance remained tack sharp. Its rather uncanny because the effect is visceral in a way that games and movies on flat screens just cant match.Meanwhile, underpinning the monitor is Brelyons Visual Engine, which allows the display to automatically assign different depths to elements in games and videos on the fly without additional programming. That said, developers can further optimize their content for Brelyons tech, allowing them to add even more depth and immersion.Unfortunately, the downside is that the Ultra Reality Extends unique approach to spatial content is quite expensive. Thats because while the monitor is available now, the company is targeting pricing between $5,000 to $8,000 per unit, with the exact numbers depending on the customer and any partnerships with Brelyon. Sadly, this means the display will be limited to enterprise buyers who will use it for things like making ultra-realistic flight simulators with depth-enabled UI instead of normal folk who might want a fancy monitor for movies and games. But if Brelyons tech takes off, one day, maybeThis article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/computing/breylons-immersive-display-is-the-tardis-of-monitors-233606873.html?src=rss

Grok, the AI assistant that's for some reason baked into X, is now available as a standalone app. Like the version that exists as a tab on the social media platform, the Grok app can be used to generate images, summarize text and answer questions, with a conversational tone xAI, the AI assistant's creator, calls "humorous and engaging."The app was first tested with a limited set of users in December 2024, right around the same time X debuted a free tier of Grok that's available to anyone. Prior to that, you needed to pay at least $8 a month for X Premium to have the privilege of using the AI.Ian Campbell for EngadgetThe limitations of that free access 10 requests every two hours, three image analysis request per day may also apply to the Grok app. You can use the app without signing in, or sign-in with an Apple account, X account, Google account, or a plain old email. It's not clear whether an X Premium subscription gets you added benefits in the Grok app in the same way it does X.Grok has struggled with similar issues around accuracy and bizarre image generation choices as other AI assistants like Gemini and ChatGPT. The chatbot mainly stands out from its competitors because xAI pitched it as being able to answer "spicy questions" other AI assistants avoid, and a version of the Grok AI model is open source. You'll have to see for yourself how "spicy" the Grok app ultimately is, but at least you don't have to go to X to use it now.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/apps/xs-grok-ai-assistant-is-now-a-standalone-app-225151579.html?src=rss

CES is known for splashy TV and laptop launches, but in 2025, there were more than a few companies trying to make waves with robot vacuums, too. After years where it seemed like vacuuming, mopping, and self-emptying might be the peak of a robot vacuums abilities, this years show introduced home robots with whole new functionality and appendages. Heres the robot vacuums that caught our eye at CES 2025, many of which you could invite to clean your living room later this year. Roborock Saros Z70 Karissa Bell for Engadget Roborock's flagship vacuum for 2025 is the Roborock Saros Z70, a circular robot vacuum on the outside, that hides a retractable "OmniGrip" arm that can pick up and move objects on the inside. The arm is capable of five axis movement and is only able to carry around 300 grams, which makes it better at moving clothes and cables than anything truly heavy. Roborock claims the Saros Z70's precision sensors, LEDs, and camera will be able to identify 108 objects that it can move or avoid, with the ability to learn up to 50 custom objects, too. The only missing pieces are a price and launch date. Roborock plans to start selling the Roborock Saros Z70 later this year, but hasn't shared what the price of the new robot will be. It might turn out that a robot arms don't come cheap. Dreame X50 Ultra Karissa Bell for Engadget Dreame is one of Roborock's rivals, and it had its own new flagship robot vacuum at CES. Rather than an arm, the Dreame X50 Ultra has tiny wheeled legs for climbing (admittedly shallow) stairs. Dreame calls the feature its "ProLeap System" and it currently says that the X50 Ultra can handle stairs that are 6cm (around 2.4 inches) tall. That's a lot shorter than the average household stairs, but it does still mean Dreame's robot vacuum can reach places competitors can't. The Dreame X50 Ultra is available to be reserved now for $39, which locks you in to a lower $1310 price and secures a longer warranty and free accessories. The robot vacuum will officially go on sale on February 4 for $1700. Eufy E20 Eufy Robot vacuums are convenient, but they're not yet great at reaching every corner of your home, which usually means you have to also own some kind of handheld vacuum. The Eufy E20 could eliminate that two-vacuum conundrum. It's a 3-in-1 robot vacuum that you can program to clean your house on its own, or pop out its vacuum component and use as a stick or handheld vacuum for hard to reach spots. The goal is owning one vacuum that can adapt to all of your needs, while still offering the benefits of a robot vacuum, like a base station for automatically dumping debris. It seems like Eufy might have pulled it off, and at a relatively affordable price, too. The Eufy 3-in-1 E20 Vacuum will be available on February 10 and start at $550, with all of its accessories included. Switchbot K20+ Pro Switchbot Swithcbot is known for smart home accessories like robotic curtain movers and button pushers, but the company has also been offering its own affordable robot vacuum for the last few years. The Switchbot K20+ Pro is its latest model, but also a whole new way to combine the Switchbot products you might already own. The K20+ Pro looks a bit like normal robot vacuum, just with a rolling platform mounted on top. It can hold up to 18 lbs and you can connect Switchbot's air purifier, security camera or fan to the top and get a vacuum that doubles as a more of a general home robot. Switchbot says it's also designed to be easy to mod if you want to create your own weird attachment to go on top. The K20+ Pro is definitely equal parts goofy and clever, but it still has plenty of unknowns. There's no price or launch date beyond later this year. Switchbot plans to sell the K20+ Pro solo, and in bundles with some of the compatible accessories. Dreame Retractable Arm Prototype Karissa Bell for Engadget Roborock wasn't alone in showing off a robot vacuum with an arm. Dreame's unnamed prototype robot vacuum isn't ready to go on sale, but does includes its own claw-shaped arm for grabbing things, and wheeled "legs" for getting over ledges like the Dreame X50 Ultra. It's not clear when this prototype will become a real product or how much it'll cost when it does, but it serves as a good example that if Roborock can pull off the Saros Z70, others will certainly follow.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/home/smart-home/the-new-robot-vacuums-that-caught-our-eye-at-ces-2025-210358124.html?src=rss

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PowerSchool, a leading education technology firm, saidthe company was the target of a data security breach in late December, in which hackers stole sensitive data including Social Security numbers, grades, and medical information affecting both students and teachers, according to TechCrunch.PowerSchool is the largest provider of cloud-based education software for K-12 education in the country, used by more than 16,000 customers to support more than 50 million students in the U.S.The California-based edtech giant also said the personal information of parents and guardians, including names, phone numbers, and email addresses, was potentially compromised in some school districts.Fast Company reached out to PowerSchool and will include its statement when we get a response.PowerSchool, which has not yet confirmed the number of customers impacted by the breach, told Newsweek that it is still working through our detailed data review, but confirmed not all PowerSchool student-information-system customers were impacted.The hackers reportedly broke in through the internal customer support portal using stolen credentials, giving them access to the system used to manage student records, grades, attendance, and enrollment.In addition, despite initial claims to the contrary, PowerSchool admitted it had paid a ransom to prevent attackers from releasing students and teachers stolen data. A PowerSchool spokesperson toldInfosecurity, it believes the data has been deleted without any further replication or dissemination.Founded in 1997, PowerSchool was acquired by Apple in 2001, and then by Bain Capital for $5.6 billion last year.