Introducing the newest iteration of the Cipher series, Xbox Wireless Controller Pulse Cipher Special Edition! Like its predecessors, Sky Cipher and Ghost Cipher, Pulse Cipher provides players with a nostalgic transparent look infused with a futuristic twist. Despite being third in the series, this controller is special in its own right.Players can catch a glimpse of the silver midframe through the red transparent top case to reveal the mysteries found within. This vibrant design and colorway make a bold statement where modern gaming meets enduring nostalgia.Energize your play with the Pulse Cipher controller and all its features, including red, diamond-shaped rubberized grips, dark red accents across the bumpers, buttons, and two-toned thumbsticks, a metallic hybrid D-pad, and matching metallic triggers. You can easily swap button input profiles through the Xbox Accessory Hub, where you can also preview any of the screenshots or videos you take using the dedicated Share button found in the middle of the controller.For an enhanced gaming experience, wirelessly connect this new special edition controller to your favorite gaming devices, whether it be Xbox Series X|S and Xbox One consoles, PC, iOS, or Android devices (seexbox.com/controller-compatibility for more details; use with controller compatible games). Pulse Cipher also features a 3.5mm audio jack and a battery life of up to 40 hours (varies with usage and other factors). The Xbox Wireless Controller Special Edition Pulse Cipher is available today for pre-order in select Xbox markets worldwide for $74.99 USD ERP. Visit Xbox.com or your local retailer, including Microsoft Store, for more information.

iPad photography and videography have long been the subject of ridicule. But a new app trend is giving fresh value to the iPads rear camera. Heres why.Cameras have long been essential components of the iPhone.Not so much on iPad.While the front-facing camera is great for video calls, Apple has regularly upgraded the iPads rear camera toofor seemingly little reason.Using an iPad to take photos and video is largely seen as silly. It happens, sure, but few of us know why.Recently though, a new app trend has started emerging that makes the iPads camera more valuable than ever.Multi-cam apps are a growing domain on the App Store.Final Cut Camera launched last fall as Apples free flagship offeringBlackmagic Camera offers similar functionality with additional pro toolsand yesterday, Canon debuted Live Switcher Mobile with a special focus on livestreamersSpare iPads provide new video possibilities with multi-camAt their core, these apps provide the option of shooting simultaneous, synced video across multiple iOS and iPadOS devices.Few of us own multiple iPhones, but its not uncommon to own both an iPhone and iPad.These new multi-cam apps, therefore, benefit a lot from the iPad having a decent camera.If youre livestreaming, recording a home video, or even shooting a big-budget blockbuster like the forthcoming 28 Years Later, having a spare iPad lying around provides expanded possibilities. With an app like Final Cut Camera, you can setup multi-angle shoots that make your little amateur project all of a sudden seem more professional. Multi-cam apps are a key step toward upgrading the bar of what non-pros can accomplish.Maybe the iPads camera can finally prove itself worth having.Do you think multi-cam apps will make the iPads camera more important? Why or why not? Let us know in the comments.Add 9to5Mac to your Google News feed. FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links. More.Youre reading 9to5Mac experts who break news about Apple and its surrounding ecosystem, day after day. Be sure to check out our homepage for all the latest news, and follow 9to5Mac on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn to stay in the loop. Dont know where to start? Check out our exclusive stories, reviews, how-tos, and subscribe to our YouTube channel

Apples services division keeps growing, but the company doesnt break out individual services like TV+ to show how each is performing financially. Filling that gap, new reporting shows how much revenue the biggest Apple TV+ hits have been estimated to generate for the company.Top Apple TV+ shows driving revenue include The Morning Show, Severance, moreParrot Analytics is a leading player in TV streaming data. In an age where streaming service performance is largely kept close to the chest, customers like Disney, Max, Amazon, and Google hire Parrot to get key insights on how their own streamers and competition is doing.Today, new Parrot data has been shared through a Deadline report that focuses on Apple TV+.Specifically, the piece highlights how much revenue the biggest Apple TV+ hits have generated for the company.Parrots data is based on its Content Valuation methodology, which uses a formula to correlate audience demand with subscribers and therefore revenue.Heres what the findings reveal:Severance season 1 generated more than $200 million for AppleSlow Horses, in a similar timeframe, generated $184.8 millionThe Morning Show brought in $299.4 million, but over a much longer period of timeWhat about Ted Lasso, the indisputable biggest Apple TV+ hit? It has generated a massive $609.4 million for Apple from Q3 2020 to Q3 2024.Who knows? Maybe the upcoming season 4 could push that Ted Lasso number close to a billion.9to5Macs TakeTodays Deadline report is very selective in whats shared by Parrot, including comparing four different TV+ shows across varying timelines of performance. So there are only so many conclusions that should be drawn from whats been shared.That said, its still interesting to get a glimpse into the potential financial impact Apple is seeing from its biggest TV+ hits. Even though Apple regularly operates more in the billions than millions, these are still significant numbers. Severances success specifically points to the unique opportunity Apple has with season 2 to enjoy its next Ted Lasso-type moment.What do you make of Parrots Apple TV+ revenue reporting? Let us know in the comments.Best Apple TV and Home accessoriesAdd 9to5Mac to your Google News feed. FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links. More.Youre reading 9to5Mac experts who break news about Apple and its surrounding ecosystem, day after day. Be sure to check out our homepage for all the latest news, and follow 9to5Mac on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn to stay in the loop. Dont know where to start? Check out our exclusive stories, reviews, how-tos, and subscribe to our YouTube channel

While the push for digital transformation has been underway for years, many enterprises still have legacy technology deeply ingrained in their tech stacks. In many cases, these systems are years or even decades old but remainintegral to keeping a business operational. Simply ripping them out and replacing them is often not a plausible quick fix.It's actually quite hard to fully demise previous versions of technology as we adopt new versions, and so you end up with the sort of layering of various ages of all the technologies, says Nick Godfrey, senior director and global head, office of the CISO at Google Cloud.Given that continued use of legacy systems comes with risk, why are legacy systems still so common today? How can enterprise leaders manage that risk and move forward?A Universal ChallengeIn 2019, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) identified 10 critical federal IT legacy systems. These systems were 8 to 51 years old and cost roughly $337 million to operate and maintain each year.Government is hardly the only sector that relies on outdated systems. The banking sector uses COBOL, a decades-old coding language, heavily. The health care industry is rife with examples of outdated electronic health record (EHR) systems and legacy hardware. One survey found that 74% of manufacturing and engineering companies use legacy systems and spreadsheets to operate.Related:If we talk about banking, manufacturing, and health care, you would find a big chunk of legacy systems are actually elements of the operational technology that it takes to operate that business, says Joel Burleson-Davis, senior vice president of worldwide engineering, cyber at Imprivata, a digital identity security company.The cost of replacing these systems isnt simply the price tag that comes with the new technology. Its also the downtime that comes with making the change.The hardest way to drive the car is when you're trying to change the tire at the same time, says Austin Allen,director of solutions architecture at Airlock Digital, an application control company. You think about one hour of downtime you can be talking about millions of dollars depending on the company.A survey conducted by commercial software company SnapLogic found that organizations spent an average of $2.7 million to overhaul legacy tech in 2023.As expensive as it is to replace legacy technology, keeping it in place could prove to be more costly. Legacy systems are vulnerable to cyberattacks and data breaches. In 2024, the average cost of a data breach is $4.88 million, according to IBMs Cost of a Data Breach Report 2024.Related:Evaluating the Tech StackThe first step to assessing the risk that legacy systems pose to an enterprise is understanding how they are being used. It sounds simple enough on the surface, but enterprise infrastructure is incredibly complicated.Everybody wishes that they had all of their processes. and all of their systems integrations documented, but they don't, says Jen Curry Hendrickson, senior vice president of managed services at DataBank, a data center solutions company.Once security and technology leaders conduct a thorough inventory of systems and understand how enterprise data is moving through those systems, they can assess the risks.This technology was designed and installed many, many years ago when the threat profile was significantly different, says Godfrey. It is creating an ever more complex surface area.What systems can be updated or patched? What systems are no longer supported by vendors? How could threat actors leverage access to a legacy system for lateral movement?Managing Legacy System RiskOnce enterprise leaders have a clear picture of their organizations legacy systems and the risk they pose, they have a choice to make. Do they replace those systems, or do they keep them in place and manage those risks?Businesses are fully entitled -- maybe they shouldn't [be] -- but they're fully entitled to say no, I understand the risk and that's not something we're going to address right now, says Burleson-Davis. Industries that tend to have lower margins and be a little more resource-strapped are the likeliest to make some of those tradeoffs.Related:If an enterprise cannot replace a legacy system, its security and technology leaders can still take steps to reduce the risk of it becoming a doorway for threat actors.Security teams can implement compensating controls to look for signs of compromise. They can implement zero-trust access and isolate legacy systems from the rest of the enterprises network as much as possible.Legacy systems really should be hardened from the operating system side. You should be turning off operating system features that do not have any business purpose in your environment by default, Allen emphasizes.Security leaders may even find relatively simple ways to reduce risk exposure related to legacy systems.People will often find, Oh, I'm running 18 different versions of the same virtualization package Why don't I go to one? Burleson-Davis shares. We find people running into scenarios like that where after doing a proper inventory [they] find that there was some low-hanging fruit that really solved some of that risk.Transitioning Away from Legacy SystemsEnterprise leaders have to clear a number of hurdles in order to replace legacy systems successfully. The cost and the time are obvious challenges. Given the age of these systems, talent constraints come to the fore. Does the enterprise have people who understand how the legacy system works and how it can be replaced?You end up with a very complex skills requirement inside of your organization to be able to manage very old types of technologies through to cutting-edge technologies, Godfrey points out.A change advisory board (CAB) can lead the charge on strategic planning. That group of people can help answer vital questions about the timeline for the transition, the potential downtime, and the people necessary to execute the change.How does that affect anything downstream or upstream? Where is my data flowing? How are these systems connected? How do Ikeep them connected? What am I going to break? asks Curry Hendrickson.Allen stresses the importance of planning for a way to roll back the implementation of new technology. What's the strategy for rolling back if it goes wrong? Because that's arguably the most important piece of this, and many times it will go wrong, he says.To reduce the chance of the implementation failing, the transition team needs to consider how the new technology will interact within the IT or OT environments. How is that different compared to the legacy system?[Understand] what it is that new system needs, [put] some of those changes in place before you implement the new system. That way the new system has every opportunity to be successful, says Allen.After pouring resources into modernizing technology, some enterprises make a fundamental mistake by forgetting to include the end users in the process. If end users arent prepared or willing to adopt new technology, that initiatives chances of success drop.One good example [is] introducing almost anything into a clinical setting and not including doctors and nurses. It is the guaranteed, number one way to fail, says Burleson-Davis.Curry Hendrickson also warns of the potential for vendor lock-in as enterprises examine ways to adopt new technology. You could get yourself into a scenario where you're so excited and you have this great environment, it is so flexible and then all of a sudden you're using way too many of this vendors tools, and now it's going to be a real problem to move out, she explains.This kind of technological transformation is often a multi-year project that requires the board, CISO, CIO, CTO, and other business leaders to agree on a strategy and consistently work toward it.There are going to be inevitably short-term trade-offs that have to be made during that transformation, during the journey to that north star, says Godfrey. The key to enabling that or unlocking the opportunity is thinking about it as a kind of organizational transformation as well as a technological transformation.

Already a surprise hit in theaters,Nosferatu is headed to home video in a new cut.Universal announced today that Robert EggersNosferatuwill arrive on 4K, Blu-ray, and DVD next month and is available on Digital at home right now with an extended cut never-before-seen in theaters.Additional special features for the home video release includes a feature commentary from Eggers, deleted scenes, and a multipart behind-the-scenes featurette that explores the development and making of the film, which is based on the classic German silenthorrormovie from 1922 by director F.W. Murnau.The extended version is four minutes longer than the 132-minute theatrical cut.FocusFocusloading...READ MORE: 10 Horror Movies So Extreme They Actually Made People SickNosferatuhas already grossed more than $156 million worldwide. Eggers previousrecord as a director was 2022sThe Northman, which earned roughly $70 million in theaters meaning he has already doubled his previous financial best.Four more minutes isnt a wildly longer version, but the original cut of EggersNosferatu was already a pretty bloody good time. Bill Skarsgrd stars asCount Orlok, a vampire (with one heck of a unique design and an unforgettable voice) who targets a beautiful young woman (Lily-Rose Depp). As I wrote in myreviewof the film at ScreenCrush...EggersNosferatustill bears manyvisual echoes of the earlier film, especially in its use ofmovingshadows to suggest Orlok prowling through Friedrich and Thomas homes. Throw in some really disgusting practical goreand a couple big jump scares, and you have an extremely effective, extremely old school horror film; made for 2020s tastes but steeped in a tradition thats unnerved fans for over a century.TheNosferatu4K, Blu-ray, and DVD will be available on February 18. You can get the digital release now on Apple, Amazon, and other online retailers.Get our free mobile appThe Best Movies of 2024Our editor and critics picks for the top 20 movies of 2024.Gallery Credit: Matt Singer

Were only a handful of days in 2025, but weve already gotthe years first fast food menu inspired by a blockbuster movie: A host of items at Wetzels Pretzels themed to the big-screen adaptation ofDog Man.Theres a Supa Blue Raspberry Frozen Lemonade, Pizza Bitz, and of course, Dog Bites with Ranch Dip, which I hope and pray are made with miniature hot dogs, and not actualpieces of Dog Man. (Either way: Who would want toeven pretend to a bite out of Dog Man? Whocreatedthis menu, Petey the Cat?!?)Dog Mansthe first, but I guarantee it will not be the last. In recent years, Hollywoods business has become increasingly intertwined with the world of fast food, whose mega-chains are always looking fornovelfoods toattract new customers.Much like the relationship between Venom and Eddie Brock (and much like the relationship betweenVenom and Brisk Iced Tea VenomDark Cherry Limeade, the bond between film studios and chain restaurants is symbiotic. The chains get to associate themselves with hot pop culture commodities; the movies get free advertising.So we are certain to see more blockbusters in 2025 with menus at major fast food outlets. But which ones?As someone who eats way too much of this stuff,I get that question a lot. Here is my answer or at least here is what wewouldsee if some extremely dumb studio executive put me in charge of theirmarketing division. Ive chosen 12 upcoming 2025 movies and paired them with a dozen chain restaurants. Ive even suggested some of the food items that could be a part of said restaurants offerings.Keep in mind: I made all of this up. None of it is real (unless an extremely dumb studio executive wants to put me in charge of their marketing division in which case, hit me up on my socials, my dudes).This is all for fun, much like making dark cherry limeade inspired byVenom.ScreenCrushs 2025 Movie Tie-In Menu PreviewOur wish list of tie-in menus for 12 of 2025s big movie blockbusters.Special thanks to Blank Checks Griffin Newman forsuggesting this article.READ MORE: Once-Beloved Fast Food Items That No Longer ExistA Brief History of Movie Tie-In FoodHow movies fell in love with chain restaurants (and vice versa)...

UserEvidence is a SaaS platform that unlocks stories from happy customers, and automatically creates a library of beautiful content assets. We are the only platform purpose-built to unlock customer love at scale. Credibility and noise are huge issues in B2B marketing and sales. We believe companies can sell a lot more when they let their customers do the talking, and show real-life evidence and feedback from their users.ResponsibilitiesYoull be part of a small team of senior engineers responsible for developing the core UserEvidence application.In this role, you will:Design, develop, and maintain scalable and high-performance features for our core Ruby on Rails application.Collaborate with cross-functional members to gather requirements, design solutions, and implement new features.Optimize application performance, database queries, and overall system architecture.Write clean, maintainable, and testable code following best practices and industry standards.Conduct code reviews and provide constructive feedback to junior team members.Identify and troubleshoot software defects, performance bottlenecks, and system failures.Stay up-to-date with the latest trends and advancements in Ruby on Rails and web development.RequirementsAt least six years building software in a team environment or equivalent experience. Years of experience doesnt always capture expertise, so we encourage you to apply if you can demonstrate youre well versed in building software in a team environmentAt least two years working professionally on a Ruby on Rails application or equivalent experience.Experience writing code that is accessible, scalable, maintainable, and performantExperience with any modern frontend framework (Vue, React, Angular, ...)Experience working with background job processing environments - like Sidekiq or other ActiveJob processorsExperience writing complex queries for relational databases - we use PostgreSQL.Comfortable working remotely in an autonomous environment - you dont mind asking questions and problem solving in public communication channels.Able to work in US time zones - you dont have to live in those time zones, but you have to be able to collaborate with your teammates during those times.You must be located in South or Central America regions. We are currently not accepting US-based or Europe-based applicants.BenefitsCompetitive salary and bonus + a large equity stake. We pay in the 75th percentile of market rates.Unlimited PTO + 13 paid holidays per year.$4,000 equipment allowance for your first two years, $3,000 budget every following two years.Health, dental, vision insurance.Individual learning + development budget (up to $2,500/year).Flexible work schedule and remote work options.Coworking space membership reimbursement.

The Category A-listed masterpiece, designed with his wife Margaret Macdonald and originally built as a home for publisher Walter Blackie in 1902, is currently wrapped in a transparent box to protect it during restoration works.Last month NTS secured a 1.1 million package of initial development funding from The National Lottery Heritage Fund, some of which will be used on drawing up designs for new visitor facilities, as part of its wider Mackintosh Illuminated project.This programme, which aims to shine a spotlight on the creative genius of the design duo, also includes a focus on the pairs 1903 Category A-listed Willow tearoom in Glasgows Sauchiehall Street, which the conservation charity acquired a year ago.AdvertisementThe funding package is the first stage of a larger 7.3 million lottery award and NTS said the monies will allow it to continue the ongoing conservation work at Hill House.Afflicted with chronic damp, the landmark will remain under the Carmody Groarke-designed transparent box for another three years. Installed in 2019, this pioneering wrap-around porous cage is designed to let the house slowly dry out. Source:Johan Dehlin2021 Andrew Doolan Best Building in Scotland Award finalist: The Hill House Box, Helensburgh, by Carmody GroarkeThe trust said: This new funding will enable [us] to move forward with the full removal of the current render, to find a replacement which will resolve the longstanding damp issue, remove the box in 2028 and provide updated, permanent visitor facilities, including a caf, shop and toilet facilities at the site on Upper Colquhoun Street in Helensburgh.The AJ understands its is unlikely the new visitor centre will be built before the shroud is dismantled but that the hunt for a design team will start within the next few months, with an appointment due this summer.The NTS said it continues to work with architects LDN and engineers Narro Associates on completing a research and development exercise on the material and physical issues affecting the house.A spokesperson said: Those findings formed a major component of the [lottery funding] application.AdvertisementAs part of the bid, we explored issues of scale, facilities, location and fabrication methods of the new visitor centre. [However] we look forward to the creativity of the new team to explore that further and provide the Trust with options to decide on.The NTS said the procurement for the new design team would be openly advertised and that it had considered the option of a possible competition.The spokesperson added: The route this procurement takes has not been finalised yet but is under discussion. A competition would be an advantage in terms of raising profile. We are also keen to maintain a momentum on the project and its programme, and this is also a key factor in the route we will decide to take.Liz Davidson, the NTSs project director at Hill House said: We are very excited by the opportunities that the Mackintosh Illuminated project will provide to share, celebrate and inspire as many as possible with the creative genius of Mackintosh and Macdonald, at both Hill House and Mackintosh at the Willow.At the Hill House, Macintosh sought a modern interpretation of a traditional Scottish tower house with characteristic slate roofing, roughcast walls, prominent gables, and similar features. The house was gifted to the Trust in 1982 and is the finest surviving example of his domestic properties.Carmody Groarke landed the job to build the box in 2017 following a contest in which it was selected ahead of Denizen Works. Work began on site at the end of 2018.

Our Experts Written by Caroline Igo Our expert, award-winning staff selects the products we cover and rigorously researches and tests our top picks. If you buy through our links, we may get a commission. Reviews ethics statement What to consider Firmness The right firmness level for you depends on your sleeping position and overall preference. A firm mattress offers more support for back and stomach sleepers, while a soft mattress is more pressure-relieving for side sleepers. Medium mattresses fall in the sweet spot right in between for those who switch positions. Feel The feel of a mattress depends on the materials it is made of. Hybrid mattresses with coils with latex foam have more bounce, while memory foam and poly foam beds are cushiony and pressure-relieving. Construction There are essentially two mattress types: hybrid and all-foam. Hybrid mattresses are constructed with steel coils and foam, but all-foam mattresses are just as their name implies. Body type Sleepers who are over 230 pounds should turn to hybrid mattresses since those beds tend to be extra supportive and durable. All-foam or softer mattresses are better for petite body types because they are more pressure-relieving. Average body types can choose between either all-foam or hybrid. Remember that your body type will determine how firm a mattress will feel to you. Performance Motion isolation, edge support and temperature are important features for couples or people who sleep hot to consider. Hot sleepers should consider a mattress that boasts special cooling features. Couples want minimal motion transfer and a strong, supportive bed perimeter. Company policies Most online mattress brands offer a free trial, free shipping and a warranty, but some brands are more generous with their policies than others. Why You Can Trust CNET 220230240250260270280290300310 Mattress Tested123456789 Testers8409401,0401,1401,2401,3401,4401,5401,6401,740 Hours Tested How we test With 5-plus years of mattress-testing experience, we use our different sleeping-position and body-type perspectives to offer well-rounded, honest reviews.Table of Contents Back to selection

On a normal day, it's nearly impossible to predict which way mortgage rates will go. Now, with so much uncertainty in financial markets, mortgage rates could see more spikes and volatility, particularly following the Jan. 20 presidential inauguration.Earlier this month, the average rate on a 30-year fixed mortgage jumped above 7% and has yet to come down.Multiple factors drove rates up recently. Robust economic data lowered expectations for the Federal Reserve's interest rate cuts, prompting 10-year Treasury yields (a key benchmark for home loan rates) to surge. The mortgage market was also rattled over concerns that Donald Trump's administration will stoke inflation and increase government debt deficits.Over the next few weeks, a lot will depend on what the president says and does when he takes office, said Jacob Channel, senior economist at LendingTree. If Trump declares an economic emergency to impose tariffs or starts a war with Denmark, for example, mortgage rates would move even higher."Unless the [president's] tone becomes much more moderate and disciplined once he takes office, expect volatility to remain prevalent," said Channel.Following Trump's inauguration, the Federal Reserve will hold its first policy meeting of the year. Though economists believe the Fed won't raise or lower interest rates on Jan. 29, investors will be looking for any signals to inform their risk assessment and trading strategy, all of which could impact the direction of mortgage rates.Mortgage rate volatility in 2025Based on the current situation, a significant drop in mortgage rates before the spring homebuying season is unlikely, according to Valerie Saunders, chief executive strategist at the National Association of Mortgage Brokers.It would take a sudden economic shock, such as the onset of a recession or spike in oil prices, to see a sharp downturn in rates. "Drastic changes in direction are usually the result of some emerging significant event somewhere that upends financial markets," said Keith Gumbinger, vice president of mortgage site HSH.com. Still, the geopolitical outlook, the job market and inflation data have the power to alter mortgage forecasts.For now, aside from day-to-day fluctuations, mortgage rates are expected to cruise around 7% for the next few months. If inflation continues to cool and the Fed is able to carry out two 0.25% cuts this year, experts say mortgage rates could inch down closer to 6.25% eventually.Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller said Thursday that he is optimistic about inflation easing, which would allow the central bank to continue on the path to lowering interest rates in the first half of 2025. The central bank made three interest rate cuts in 2024, and investors are now betting on another rate reduction in June or July.While the Fed influences the direction of overall borrowing rates, it doesn't directly control the mortgage market. In fact, market forces often move in anticipation of the Fed's policy moves, relying on economic data and projections to price their expectations in the bond market."Because the rise in bond yields is due to the anticipation of future events, if the narrative changes, bond yields could shift," said Kara Ng, senior economist at Zillow. A look at the 2025 housing marketToday's unaffordable housing market results from high mortgage rates, a long-standing housing shortage, expensive home prices and a loss of purchasing power due to inflation. Low housing inventory: A balanced housing market typically has five to six months of supply. Most markets today average around half that amount. According to Freddie Mac, we still have a shortage of around 3.7 million homes. Elevated mortgage rates:In early 2022, mortgage rates hit historic lows of around 3%. As inflation surged and the Fed hiked interest rates to tame it, mortgage rates more than doubled. In 2025, mortgage rates are still high, pricing millions of prospective buyers out of the housing market. Rate-lock effect:Since the majority of homeowners are locked into mortgage rates below 5%, they're reluctant to give up their low mortgage rates and have little incentive to list their homes for sale, leaving a dearth of resale inventory. High home prices:Although home buying demand has been limited in recent years, home prices remain high because of a lack of inventory. The median US home price was $429,963 in November, up 5.4% on an annual basis, according to Redfin. Steep inflation:Inflation means an increase in the cost of basic goods and services, reducing purchasing power. It also impacts mortgage rates: When inflation is high, lenders typically raise interest rates on consumer loans to ensure a profit. What homebuyers should know It's never a good idea to rush intobuying a homewithout knowing what you can afford, so establish a clear home-buying budget. Here's what experts recommend before purchasing a home: Build your credit score. Your credit score will help determine whether you qualify for a mortgage and at what interest rate. A credit score of 740 or higher will help you qualify for a lower rate. Save for a bigger down payment.A larger down payment allows you to take out a smaller mortgage and get a lower interest rate from your lender. If you can afford it, a down payment of at least 20% will also eliminate private mortgage insurance. Shop for mortgage lenders.Comparing loan offers from multiple mortgage lenders can help you negotiate a better rate. Experts recommend getting at least two to three loan estimates from different lenders. Consider renting.Choosing to rent or buy a home isn't just comparing monthly rent to a mortgage payment. Renting offers flexibility and lower upfront costs, but buying allows you to build wealth and have more control over your housing costs. Consider mortgage points.You can get a lower mortgage rate by buying mortgage points, with each point costing 1% of the total loan amount. One mortgage point equals a 0.25% decrease in your mortgage rate.More on today's housing market