For newcomers to Monster Hunter, the sudden success of Wilds might seem like it came out of nowhere. But Capcom has been fine-tuning its massively successful Monster Hunter series for global domination for years and the result is what looks to be one of the best-selling games in the series. With over a million concurrent players on Steam, everyone is playing Monster Hunter Wilds. But if youre feeling like an outsider looking in, unsure how or where to start, I have the secret to maximizing your Monster Hunter enjoyment with this one simple trick finding the weapon that best suits how you want to play.In Monster Hunter Wilds, players can immediately choose from an almost overwhelming arsenal of weapons, each with their own unique playstyle, whether thats heavy, brutish weapons like the Great Sword, something more nimble like the Dual Blades, or ranged weapons like the Bowgun. PlayTheres a temptation I think partly because it is Monster Hunters most iconic weapon to start out using the big swords and switch axes first, but these cumbersome weapons have to be used in a very specific way, prioritizing intentional swings instead of brute force. As such, theyre not the easiest thing to get to grips with at first. Instead, Id opt for something a little more nimble like the Dual Blades, which unlocks a world of quick attacks and dodges. The difference is transformative: when maining a big sword, Monster Hunter echoes the considered combat and careful approach of Dark Souls; using Dual Blades, its reminiscent of Devil May Crys action-focussed combat. Indeed, compared to previous Monster Hunters, Wilds changes up the combat to make it a bit more in-line with modern action games. While you still need to sheathe your weapon if you want to heal, combat feels more intuitive to anyone whos played an action RPG from the last five years. That said, the main difference and why picking a weapon that best suits the way you play is unlike other action RPGs, which let players customize the way they want to play through skill trees, in Monster Hunter its all down to weapon choice.The decision you make at the start defines the experience youll have, then. If your preference is something super fast and combo heavy, that makes you feel like Dantes been transported to the Monster Hunter series, go for the Dual Blades, which relies on fast attacks, quick dodges, and building up a meter that, when full, can unleash a rapid combo on downed enemies.On the flip side, if you prefer something that can deal heavy damage while keeping your defences up and maintain mobility, the sword and shield is a great starter weapon. The lance one of the least popular weapons in the game because it favors defense over flashy attacks combines both a big weapon and shield. Its parries and counter-attacks arent for everyone, but practice and you get a very unique combat experience.There are also ranged weapons like the Bowguns, which are equally if not more powerful than melee weapons. If youre going to pick one of these, remember to pack enough ammo and make sure youre bringing the best ones for the particular monster youre fighting.There are 14 weapons to choose from, each with unique abilities and characteristics, but theyre effectively divided into three main types heavy, which deal massive damage in exchange for speed, light weapons that deal rapid attacks, and technical weapons. But there are also those that sit between these archetypes the Gunlance has range capabilities, the Charge Blade can become a big axe or smaller blade with a button press, and the Insect Glaive and Hunting Horn can be used to gain unique buffs with the right combos.Theres a ton of choice but dont get overwhelmed. Try out every weapon in the games tutorial before you fully commit, because you will definitely find the right fit for you, whether thats kicking up a frenzy like Dante or prioritizing strategy like Dark Souls.Matt Kim is IGN's Senior Features Editor.

This article contains spoilers through Yellowjackets season 3 episode 4. Yellowjackets most recent death has surprised fans and the cast alike. Season 3 episode 4 12 Angry Girls and 1 Drunk Travis ended with the reveal that adult Lottie (Simone Kessell) had been found dead in the present at the foot of some creepy looking stairs. We dont yet know how she died, whether it was death by suicide or someone pushed her down the stairs, but if you left the episode feeling like this scene was oddly familiar, you arent the only one.Fans have noticed that the stairs we see Lotties body near at the end of this episode bear a shocking resemblance to the stairs that teen Lottie (Courtney Eaton) sees herself on during her baptism by Laura Lee (Jane Widdop) in season 1. In the episode Saints, Lottie agrees to let Laura Lee baptize her after she starts having visions, hoping for some sort of outside force to help guide what shes seeing. While shes under the water, she finds herself in some sort of industrial looking hallway, seemingly underground. Eventually she approaches a set of stairs lined and illuminated with candles.As she comes back to consciousness, she sees Laura Lees face surrounded by light and an explosion in the sky behind her. We already know that this foreshadowed Laura Lees death in the airplane later that season, but now it seems as though this moment also foreshadowed Lotties eventual death.For a while it seemed like this was just another one of Lotties visions. However, now it seems like too much of a coincidence to ignore.In the vision, teen Lottie is wearing a white nightgown. Adult Lottie was also wearing a white nightgown when she died. Teen Lottie is on a staircase lined with candles, a makeshift altar. Adult Lottie is lying at the foot of a similar altar, all of the candles lining the stairs melted and blown out.As quick as fans were to notice and appreciate this attention to detail and callback to season 1, many were also upset by Lotties sudden death. Simone Kessell even felt as though her death was premature, hoping to have the opportunity to explore more of adult Lotties psyche this season after her introduction last season. To have that just cut off didnt feel good, Kessell tells Variety.I was pretty brokenhearted, because it felt like it had come to an end just when I felt Lottie was coming into her own. I was excited that season 3 would take her somewhere interesting, and unfortunately, they just decided that storyline was no longer, Kessell says. I guess Lotties death then serves as an investigation for Misty to be Citizen Detective, and discover how Lottie passes, what happened and everyones a suspect.But even though fans and actors alike may be disappointed by adult Lotties abrupt end, Kessell is correct about it adding to the mystery this season. Now the survivors may have to band together to find out how Lotties death came to pass, and if one of them might be next.We will have to wait until episode 10 to find out for sure what really happened to Lottie, according to Kessell, but hopefully it will be worth the wait.Having one of teen Lotties visions come to pass seasons later is a bold move, and we cant wait to see how many more might come true over the course of the series. Its unfortunate that Simone Kessells time on the show has pretty much come to an end, aside from her season finale appearance, but her time as adult Lottie has only added more intriguing layers to the character that we will hopefully get to see unpacked as her death is investigated.Join our mailing listGet the best of Den of Geek delivered right to your inbox!

In Mickey 17, Robert Pattinson plays a frozen meat-sickle. Those are not my words; theyre Pattinsons inside of the first 60 seconds of the movie, and theyre delivered to the audience with a nasally, conversational voiceover that sounds adrift somewhere between Steve Buscemi and Marisa Tomei in My Cousin Vinny. Absolutely everything about this performance and the movie it exists within is a choice. Theyre big ones too. Not all of them are necessarily the right call, and more than a few lead to creative dead-ends or cul-de-sacs. But pretty much from the jump, as you hear Pattinson wheeze in your ear while observing a tableau of his Mickey protagonist bleeding out inside of a snowy ravine, you know if you are in or if youre out.I, dear reader, was in. A day later, I still am. I went along with just about every oddball, eccentric, and defiantly anti-commercial impulse writer-director Bong Joon-ho indulged via his post-Oscar win. Indeed, six years after making the intimate Korean film that defeated Hollywood wisdom and won Best Picture, Director Bong has been lavished with Hollywood attention and what amounts to fuck you money. So now, on the other side of Mickey 17s completion, tongues around town are wagging about how irresponsible it was for Warner Bros. to give the director of Parasite and Snowpiercer a nine-figure check to make what turned out to be his most demented and bizarre science fiction comedy about the evils of capitalism to date.But frankly, I dont care. Its not my dollars and cents, and what they were traded in for is bold, original filmmaking with a studios resources and an artists indifference. Its weird, occasionally ungainly, and ultimately nothing short of captivating for every beady little tic, right down to Pattinsons latest weirdo waxing ironic about his impending frigid death at the start of the movieat least that would appear to be his fate until a CG wooly mammoth-looking monstrosity shows up to presumably take a bite out of ol Mickey.Like the film, though, this attention-grabbing start risks getting ahead of ourselves. So lets step back and explain why Pattinsons dim-witted hero can have such nonchalant indifference to his imminent ingestion. The Mickey who begins the movie, frozen and meaty, is not the original Mickey. Its not even a copy of a copy of the original. This is Mickey the 17th (hence the title), who is printed from the human waste, cadavers, and other unsavory organic matter discarded by a group of space colonists traveling through the cosmos.In the not-too-distant future, it would seem that rather than trying to save the Earth, humans have pivoted to the idea of leaving it to find a new planet to consume and squander. The colonists aboard the Nilfheim Project are one such group, following a fanatical and failed American politician with a god complex, Kenneth Marshall (Mark Ruffalo). A regular modern day Joseph Smith, Marshall has convinced a legion of followers, hangers-on, and the working poor to join him among the stars. This includes Pattinsons O.G. Mickey, who went to space as much to escape some loan shark debts as to see the universe. Hes so desperate to get off-world he even agrees to become an expendable, which is a fancy term for the guy on each ship who has his memories backed up on a hard drive and his body signed away to the Company. An expendable is a disposable, and renewable, workforce. A slave by another name.Due to odd religious restrictions, there can only be one expendable at a time. Once he inevitably die in grisly fashion while performing whatever suicidal task is placed before him, another Mickey is printed in the bowels of a ship and is fit for service. Which isnt to say Mickeys life is all doom and gloom. He meets a girl who he falls in love with on this voyage, and security agent Nasha Barridge (Naomi Ackie) seems pretty chill with the whole my boyfriend keeps dying and coming back as a different kind of clone thing. So she waits it out until we get to Mickey 17, who despite being left for dead in that aforementioned ravine doesnt actually die. He makes it to his colonist ship, even. Alas by then, he arrives to discover that they already printed another Mickey: the more aggressive and short-tempered Mickey 18. And as per, the law set down by zealots like Ruffalos Marshall, there can be only one.This is where things start to get really strange.Essentially a genre film expansion on the bit in Blazing Saddles where two racist overseers scramble to rescue a $400 handcart while leaving their Black employees to die in a quicksand pit, the politics of Mickey 17 are not subtle. They are, however, obliquely amusing. Told from the point-of-view of a protagonist who dies repeatedly in often gruesome and cruel ways, the gallows humor of Mickey 17 is as thick as the sight gags. Utilizing various montages and death sequences which would not be out of place in one of WBs old Wile E. Coyote cartoons, Bong couples sight gags of severed hands floating in space with sequences of Mickey 5 or 6 being encouraged to deeply breathe in all the bacteria on an alien world so that scientists on the ship will know what virus to develop a vaccine against.There is a mirthful meanness to Mickey that is curiously delightful. A lot of that comes down to the choice of Pattinson to play the various versions of the same character with a happy-go-lucky optimism that veers on delusion given each Mickeys lot in life. Yet more than a sketch comedy, Mickey 17 allows several versions of this character, particularly Mickeys 17 and 18, to have differences both subtle and overt. Whereas Mickey 17 develops something approaching empathy and self-awareness, he also is as another character suggests soft. Mickey 18, by contrast, has no awareness but enjoys a hell of a lot stronger survival instinct. His first reaction upon seeing his predecessor return alive is to immediately try and stuff Mickey 17 down a garbage chute that leads into a fire pit.Mickey 17 acts as a synthesis for all of Bongs genre movies of the past, including most obviously Snowpiercer with its dystopian view of the future (albeit he also seems to be channeling a lot more of Ridley Scott and Ron Cobb with the look of this space vessel). There are also the creature feature elements of The Host and even the pro-animal rights sympathies of Okja. It is not as neatly handled as any of those movies, and perhaps suffers the most from what appears to be a battle of wills in post-production. Based purely on the heavy emphasis of voiceover narration, and the bizarre absence of characterization regarding several supporting roles, particularly Ackies Nasha, one suspects this movie was cut down. Nonetheless, so much of what makes Bong movies unforgettable remains, including gonzo character choices which extend past the lead.Take for instance Mark Ruffalos amalgamation of every insidious, creepy inbred twitch of American conservatism past and present. His Marshall character has the self-serving Southern folksiness and preening piety of Billy Graham, the protruding veneers of a fifth generation trust fund kid, and the godlike aspirations of Brigham Young and his sizable harem of sister wives. Theres even some mouth-breathing followed in their red baseball caps aboard the ship.Join our mailing listGet the best of Den of Geek delivered right to your inbox!Its a performance every bit as peculiar and memorable as what Jake Gyllenhaal was doing in Okja, and through caricature gets to something bitterly true about a strand of leadership that humanity always covets. In this way, Mickey 17 represents the largest canvas Bong has painted on, with the film becoming an indictment for an entire species. Whereas Christopher Nolan in Interstellar envisioned humanity escaping the confines of Earth to go forth and multiply in space as a testament to our survival and problem-solving instincts, Mickey 17 approaches roughly the same idea with a cynicism that is hard to dispute. Wre locusts, it seems to say, doomed to repeat the mistakes and vanities of our ancestors. Forever.More importantly, however, is that if youre willing to meet it on this wavelength, the glumness becomes giddy entertainment. There is much that can be critiqued about Mickey 17s overabundance of story strands, which are not fully wrapped up in spite of an excessive denouement at the tail-end of 137 minutes. Yet the sum is greater than the parts. And it has been a decent while since a wildly talented director has had the resources to make a spectacle this ambitious and surprising. A benefit of Bongs narrative layering is viewers are never exactly sure what is about to happen next. To accountants, this could be a sin, but for those who like to be dazzled, it is most definitely a virtue.Mickey 17 is a rare curio: the type of galaxy-brained swing which only happens within the studio system when an auteur achieves a brief moment where no one can tell them no. Im a sucker for when these concoctions occur, warts and all. William Friedkins Sorcerer is a masterpiece even if the epic character study from the guy who made The Exorcist and The French Connection felt like it was a day late and a dollar short when it opened the month after Star Wars. And like Margot Robbie, count me among those who see a cult forming around Damien Chazelles Babylon bacchanal.Mickey 17 might have a lousy March, but this bizarre passion project feels destined to become someones favorite movie. For the rest of us, its a pretty wild night at the movies.Mickey 17 opens on Friday, March 7. Learn more about Den of Geeks review process and why you can trust our recommendationshere.

Mecha Break is the PvP mech shooter youve been waiting for and the games Open Beta Test starts today! In this test, you will be able to experience 3 distinct game modes: 3v3, 6v6, and a sprawling PvPvE extraction game mode called Mashmak.Before you can take part in our mech battles youll first need to choose your mech, or Striker, each featuring its own unique weapons and abilities. With 13 different Strikers to choose from in the Open Beta Test, picking the right one will be key to your success. To help you on your way, here are our tips for every single one, and what kind of player fits them best.AlysnesAlysnes is your first Striker and a classic all-rounder. A Medium Attacker, featuring both devastating ranged and melee options, Alysnes is perfect for a jack-of-all-trades! If you find yourself low on health, dont worry Alysnes has a unique Armor Purge mechanic that gives you a second chance at victory!AquilaAquila is a Heavy Sniper with some major firepower. Its perfect for a crack shot who wants some beefy defense. Unlike most snipers, Aquila excels in maintaining advantageous positioning with their Airborne Kit, not to mention locking down enemy units with their Claw Drone to ensure their shot never misses.FalconA terror in the skies, Light Attacker Falcon embodies the heart of an ace pilot zipping through the air, quickly striking opponents before theyre already moving on to another target. With multiple missile barrages available, Falcon can bombard an area and quickly reposition for another strike.HurricaneA storm is brewing! Hurricane is an Ultra-Heavy Defender. By focusing the crystals in its armaments, they can redirect their power to target a wide area, denying enemies the chance to retaliate. This one is for players who like to wipe out the competition while remaining safe amid the carnage.InfernoWhen we say Ultra-Heavy Attacker, we mean it! This Striker can focus a high-powered energy beam onto a single target for huge amounts of damage. Some call them a sleeping giant. We call them Inferno.LuminaeThis Light Support Striker has two modes: Support or Corruption. While in Support Mode, your Drone Launcher will repair allies over time. Swap to Corruption mode, and it will attach to an enemy Striker and directly attack its health, bypassing their shields. This mech is for those who want the best of both worlds.NarukamiAs a Light Sniper, Narukami excels in quick hits that pack a punch. Utilize their Optical Camo Drone and Decoy Drones to confuse the enemy and multiply their damage before grappling away. This Striker is for players who like to be sneaky.PantherPanther is a Medium Brawler that can charge and single out enemy Strikers with a giant lance to deal pinpoint damage that bypasses all shields. This is one Striker that will excel in the hands of a player who likes to get up close and personal.PinakaPinaka is a Medium Support that can deploy shields, wall off areas, and provide crucial support for Strikers in need of repair. This Striker is perfect for players who want to command the battlefield.SkyraiderAerial denial is the name of the game here. Skyraider is a Medium Attacker that comes equipped with armaments that excel in crowd control and area denial. Their ability to transform between a biped or aerial unit gives it the versatility to handle most situations.StegoWith a front-facing shield, micro missiles, and rockets upon rockets, the Ultra-Heavy Attacker Stego is the epitome of mess around and find out! If you find yourself in a sticky situation, use your Complex Haze Diffuser to disrupt enemies and zip away to safety.TriceraThe crown prince of pull the trigger, Ultra-Heavy Defender Tricera features four heavy-duty gatling guns that rip and tear through enemy strikers. Their turret mode comes complete with high-capacity shields and Healing Drones, meaning that it can take a beating and dish it out.WelkinA big mech deserves a big axe. Not only can the Heavy Brawler Welkin cleave through the opposition, but they can also lock down enemy strikers in their Stasis Shield to savor every last slash. Perfect for those who walk quietly and carry a big stick.The most important part of selecting a Striker is variety. Youll have plenty of time during the Open Beta Test, so hop into the robust training mode, and give each Striker a try to find your favorites!The Mecha Break Open Beta Test begins today. See you on the battlefield!

Believe it or not, were just three months away from the announcement of iOS 19. Ahead of that launch, rumors about new iOS 19 features, supported devices, and more have started to surface. Will your iPhone support iOS 19? Every year, one of the most important questions is which iPhone models will support the newest iOS update. As it turns out, theres good news across the board for iPhone users in 2025. According to the oft-reliable folks at iPhoneSoft, all devices that support iOS 18 will be able to update to iOS 19. That means the following devices will support iOS 19 this year:iPhone XRiPhone XS and XS MaxiPhone 11iPhone 11 Pro and 11 Pro MaxiPhone 12 and 12 miniiPhone 12 Pro and 12 Pro MaxiPhone 13 and 13 miniiPhone 13 Pro and 13 Pro MaxiPhone 14 and 14 PlusiPhone 14 Pro and 14 Pro MaxiPhone 15 and 15 PlusiPhone 15 Pro and 15 Pro MaxiPhone 16 and 16 PlusiPhone 16 Pro and 16 Pro MaxiPhone SE (2nd gen)iPhone SE (3rd gen)The key context, of course, is that not all features in iOS 19 will be available on all iPhone models. Some of the most power-hungry features, like Apple Intelligence, will be limited to only the newest iPhone models. iOS 19 featuresSiri changes (sort of) According to Bloomberg, Apple is working on a fundamental revamp to how Siri works as part of iOS 19. Currently, Siri is split into two distinct systems under the hood. One system handles legacy commands, like timers and alarms, and a separate system handles more advanced commands. The latter system will also handle the new AI features coming as part of iOS 18, like personal context and in-app actions. As part of iOS 19, Apple is expected to merge these two systems. This should streamline performance and make Siri faster to respond to queries of all types. Apple has hit roadblocks in its plans for other major Siri changes with iOS 19. Bloomberg initially reported that Apple would ship a new version of Siri that was conversational and more like interacting with a human as part of the iOS 19 cycle. That upgrade, however, is running behind schedule and will not be announced at WWDC in June. Currently, iOS 18 offers ChatGPT integration as part of Siri and Apple Intelligence. However, Apples goal with iOS 19 was to bring this functionality in-house and emphasize the privacy benefits of its platform compared to OpenAIs ChatGPT.Bloombergs Mark Gurman adds: Everything Ive heard suggests that iOS 19 will not include any significant consumer-facing changes to Apple Intelligence.Camera app redesign Outside of Apple Intelligence and Siri, Apple reportedly plans to redesign the Camera app as part of iOS 19 this year. According to YouTuber Jon Prosser, the new Camera app will feature a design that mirrors the design ethos from visionOS with a focus on transparency. Apple has reportedly streamlined controls at the bottom of the interface into two toggles for Photo and Video. Users can switch between various modes within each menu, adjust settings such as exposure, and more.At the top of the interface, users have quick access to controls for features like Live Photos and flash and settings for resolution and frame rate. Additionally, a dedicated button remains to access the users photos library.DelaysEven as we approach the announcement of iOS 19 in June, Apple is still working to complete the rollout of features announced for iOS 18 last year. Some of the most impressive and powerful Apple Intelligence features announced for iOS 18 still havent been released and arent expected until iOS 18.4 in March. According to Bloomberg, Apples work ongoing iOS 18 development means that a larger-than-usual number of features scheduled for iOS 19 have already been postponed until spring 2026. This is because Apples engineers are still working on iOS 18 projects when theyd usually already be on to the following OS. This means that iOS 19 might be missing a number of key features when its released in September. The missing features would then be added gradually over the coming months as part of iOS 19.1, iOS 19.2, iOS 19.3, and iOS 19.4. iOS 19 release date timeline iOS 19 will likely be announced at WWDC in June and will subsequently be available in beta testing with developers. A public beta for iOS 19 will likely be released in July, followed by a release to everyone in September. Prior iOS developer beta release dates: iOS 18: June 10, 2024iOS 17: June 5, 2023iOS 16: June 6, 2022iOS 15: June 7, 2021iOS 14: June 22, 2020Prior iOS public beta release dates: iOS 18: July 15, 2024iOS 17: July 12, 2023iOS 16: July 11, 2022iOS 15: June 30, 2021iOS 14: July 9, 2020Prior iOS official release dates: iOS 18: September 16, 2024iOS 17: September 18, 2023iOS 16: September 16, 2022iOS 15: September 20, 2021iOS 14: September 16, 2020Wrap upDo you have any features on your iOS 19 wishlist? Are you hoping that Apple continues to double down on Apple Intelligence, or would you rather see a focus on non-AI features? Let us know down in the comments. Well keep this guide updated as more iOS 19 rumors emerge ahead of WWDC 2025. My favorite iPhone accessories: 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

Apple launched two new iPads today, an M3 iPad Air and A16 base iPad. In somewhat of a surprise, the new entry iPad doesnt support Apple Intelligencean omission thats perhaps passable for a budget device, but that makes the iPhone SEs recent discontinuation all the more perplexing.Over the past year, Apple has been steadily updating much of its product line with support for Apple Intelligence.The full iPhone 16 line supports AI features, including the new iPhone 16e.Macs have long had the specs necessary for Apple Intelligence, but got a recent AI boost nonetheless by making 16GB of RAM standard for new models.Powerful updates to the iPad Pro, iPad Air, and iPad mini last year clearly had AI in mind too.But now, Apples latest entry iPad has arrived with no Apple Intelligence. It uses an A16 chip, just one generation removed from the A17 Pro that does support AI.Clearly, Apple felt that its entry $349 iPad didnt need AI. Perhaps internal research showed the devices target market would be fine without those features.Since the base iPads most important feature is its price, I dont exactly disagree with the decision.But it really makes me wonder: why didnt the same thing happen with the iPhone SE?iPhone SE could have lived on without AI, existing alongside the iPhone 16eWhen Apple launched the iPhone 16e at $599, it chose to leave the budget smartphone market behind.Based on the companys marketing, the reason was clear: Apple Intelligence support was crucial to the device.Thus, the company gave its new iPhone a modern A18 chip, 8GB of RAM, and made AI possibledespite the higher price these upgrades brought along.Offering an iPhone 16 Lite model, such as the 16e, isnt a bad idea. Im all for experimentation.But Apple could have done so without dropping the budget model altogether.It could have kept selling the previous iPhone SE.Sure, the iPhone SE would likely have needed a USB-C port rather than Lightning. And maybe it could have gotten another small tweak or two.But Apple mostly could have left the device alone, dropped its price a bit to $399, and retained an option for buyers on a tight budget.Until now, Id assumed the reason that hadnt happened was the need for Apple Intelligence on all new hardware.Surely if Apple keeps rolling out new AI features all the time, the company must want to move its users on to AI-supported products as quickly as possible.Or so I thought. But the A16 iPad seems to prove that explanation wrong.AI product confusion in Apples lineupFor whatever reason, Apple has decided that the same rules it applied to the iPhone SE decision arent relevant to the entry iPad. Personally though, Im stumped as to why.If anything, bringing Apple Intelligence to the entry iPad seems more important since its used a lot in education markets that would benefit from features like Writing Tools and ChatGPT integration.Maybe Apple has just decided that $400 is too low for an iPhone in 2025. I could understand that, especially if price hikes are coming to the iPhone 17 lineup.Ultimately though, we just dont know. Apple doesnt have to explain its product decisions, and we dont have to understand why one device needs AI and another doesnt.Why do you think Apple discontinued the iPhone SE but kept its budget iPad without AI? Let us know in the comments.Best iPhone 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

TheLos Angeles Times is now shoving artificial intelligence into its opinion articles and it already seems to be backfiring.Earlier this week, the newspaper's billionaire owner Patrick Soon-Shiong announced that the LA Times would be "releasing new features to enhance and improve our digital product," including "insights" on opinion pieces that offer a "wide range of different AI-enabled perspectives."In other words, AI will generate counter-arguments to opinion pieces penned by the newspaper's human experts,with no input from the paper's journalists.Shortly thereafter, reporters noticed that an excellent article about Anaheim residents kicking the Ku Klux Klan out of town 100 years prior had been amended to include some dodgy AI-generated addendums.Generated with the help of Perplexity an AI startup that announced its partnership with the LA Times in December, and which is being sued by theNew York Times and other outlets for alleged copyright infringement the since-deleted "insights" seemed to downplay the seriousness of the loathsome KKK.In one of the bullet points, the AI noted that some people in the region think there's no "formal proof" that the KKK was all that bad. In another, it pointed out that the Klan was considered part of "white Protestant culture" in 1920s Orange County.Are those claimsexactly wrong? Not really, the author of the original op-ed conceded, but they're giving oxygen with no rebuttal to talking points that soften up the image of a notorious racist terrorist group."The AI 'well, actually'-ed the KKK," NYT tech reporter Ryan Mac wrote in a Bluesky post that included screenshots of the contextual addendums,which appear to have been removed after the backlash.The newspaper's communications team has not responded toFuturism's email asking why such content was added to the article or why it was deleted.In response to news that the paper was introducing these generative rebuttals, LA Times Guild vice-chair Matt Hamilton said that the paper's editors don't review the AI-generated additions to opinion pieces before they go live."We dont think this approach AI-generated analysis unvetted by editorial staff will do much to enhance trust in the media," the union leader said in a statement provided to The Hollywood Reporter and other outlets. "Quite the contrary, this tool risks further eroding confidence in the news."More on AI and journalism: ChatGPT and Other Chatbots Are Hurting Publishers Even Worse Than We ThoughtShare This Article

Narwhal tusks are the stuff of legends, literally. Growing up to ten feet long, they were once believed by some medieval cultures to be the horns of mythical creatures like the unicorn not to mention the inspiration for Jules Verne's iconic nineteenth-century science fiction novel "Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Seas."As prominent a fixture of public fascination they may be, scientists have long struggled to understand how narwhals actually use these long, spirally protrusions. The tusks, which are actually an elongated tooth that typically belong to males of the Arctic whale species, are known to be flaunted in mating rituals, but whether they served other purposes has escaped observation.Now, as reported in a study published in the journal Frontiers in Marine Science, a team of researchers from the US and Canada have used drones to capture rare footage of the whales using their tusks in the wild, including the first video evidence of the tusks being used to toywith and investigate their surroundings."Narwhals are known for their 'tusking' behavior, where two or more of them simultaneously raise their tusks almost vertically out of the water, crossing them in what may be a ritualistic behavior to assess a potential opponent's qualities or to display those qualities to potential mates," study senior author Greg O'Corry-Crowe, a research professor at Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute in Florida, said in a statement. "But now we know that narwhal tusks have other uses, some quite unexpected, including foraging, exploration and play."In total, the researchers documented seventeen distinct behaviors, many of which included interacting with nearby fish. In some cases, the narwhals used their tusks, non-forcefully, to influence the fish's behavior. They would tap the fish, slowly push them downwards, flip them, or knock them off-course but not with the intent of eating them, curiously. The researchers suggest that this is a sign of "exploratory-object-play," in which the whales are simply trying to understand their surroundings, like a never-before-encountered fish, by playing with them.But when it was time to forage, the researchers observed the whales using their tusks to violently strike the fish, often in rapid succession in side-to-side slashes. This incapacitated, stunned, and possibly even killed the creatures. Sometimes, the narwhals also used their tusks to ward off food thieves like seagulls.The tusks may be lengthy but are by no means unwieldy. According to the researchers, the whales showed remarkable dexterity and speed when tracking fish with the tip of their tusks. And they'd have to be, to pull off maneuvers like"near instantaneous turns up to 360 degrees, completed in under three seconds which were achieved by rotating the body on its side and moving the head downwards towards its tail," as the researchers wrote in the study.The narwhals also exhibited social behavior."Some of the interactions we saw appeared competitive in nature with one whale blocking or trying to block another whales access to the same target fish, while others may have been more subtle, possibly communicative and even affiliative," O'Corry-Crowe said. "None appeared overtly aggressive."These social interactions, the researchers suggest, could accelerate how the whales adapt to the shifting conditions in the Arctic due to climate change.More on marine life: Great White Sharks Are Suddenly Washing Up Dead With Swollen BrainsShare This Article

George Lowe, the distinctive voice of Space Ghoston 11 seasons ofSpace Ghost Coast to Coast, has died. Lowe was only 67 years old.Loweperformed a number of vocal roles in his career, but Space Ghost was far and away his most famous.Space Ghost Coast to Coast was an eclectic and inventive revival of a mostly-forgotten Hanna-Barbera outer space superhero (created by cartoonist Alex Toth and originally voiced by Gary Owens).Space Ghost Coast to Coastreimaginedthe character as a dim-witted talk-show host in a genial and surreal spoof of late-night television.In addition to being hilariously funny, the show was one of the first original series on Cartoon Network.Coast to Coasts cult success helped transform the channel from a station that syndicated old cartoons to one that produced cartoons of its own. The shows oddball sense of humor and cult fandom also helped to launch and definethe networks late-night programming block, Adult Swim, which continues to this day. Lowes hilarious performance as Space Ghost is a big part of that larger story.READ MORE: The Best Animated Superhero Shows Ever MadeBorn in 1957, Lowe was a voiceover performer when he was chosen to replace Owens as the voice of Space Ghost onCoast to Coast.All told, Lowe played Space Ghost on 109 episodes of the show,and reprised the character on various other TV projects through the years. He also provided voices to animated series likeAqua Teen Hunger Force,Sealab 2021,The Brak Show,Robot Chicken, andAmerican Dad!Lowes longtimeCoast to Coast co-star Andy Merrill, who voiced Brak and Lokar onSpace Ghost Coast to Coast, posted a tribute to the actor in Bluesky, writing RIP, George. I know this was a dvd extra, but its a fitting tribute, with the following video.The Weirdest Animated Movies Of All TimeThese trippy and strange cartoons are decidedly not for kids.Gallery Credit: Claire Epting

DescriptionOverview: This position is for a dynamic leader who will oversee all operational functions, drive KPI-focused management, and direct marketing and sales activities in a high-growth private equity real estate firm. The candidate should be an adaptable self-starter who excels in both strategic leadership and hands-on execution, has strong communication and management skills, and is comfortable making decisions in a rapidly evolving environment.Key ResponsibilitiesOperations & KPI ManagementOversee day-to-day operations with clear plans, dates, and budget deadlines.Develop and implement KPI dashboards for Marketing, Sales, and Operations.Identify and track the most important KPIs and their supporting metrics.Ensure accountability across internal teams and external partners.Collaborate with fund administration, CPAs, attorneys, and others to ensure compliance and efficiency.Marketing & Sales LeadershipLead marketing campaigns (online advertising, direct response, etc.) with a strong understanding of lead generation.Manage or coordinate with third-party marketing firms and oversee strategy, copy, and campaign execution.Provide guidance and oversight to the sales team to ensure leads are effectively converted.Develop sales strategies, set targets, and monitor performance using CRM tools (HubSpot or similar).Ensure the best-performing salespeople remain on the team, coach where needed, and make strategic staffing decisions.Investor Servicing & Onboarding OptimizationStreamline onboarding processes to reduce manual hours while maintaining compliance.Coordinate the setup of new investment offerings in the investor portal and CRM.Oversee investor communications, including newsletters and updates, ensuring timeliness and clarity.Track and manage investor requests, compliance documentation, and day-to-day servicing needs.Strategic Decision-Making & AutonomyMake independent decisions for day-to-day operational needs (up to a certain budget threshold).Seek approval for material changes in strategy, direction, budget, and compliance-heavy decisions.Present solutions and improvements to the Managing Partner, aiming to expand autonomy as trust is built.RequirementsPrior Experience & Industry BackgroundStrong Operational Management experience, specifically within an investment firm or marketing agency setting. Preferred with experience leading marketing and sales organizations.Proven ability to identify, implement, and manage KPIs to drive performance.Prior experience managing a team of 3-5 people in a boutique or entrepreneurial environment.Prior experience managing internal marketing teams and/or agencies preferred.Strong background in marketing and sales management, working in a business-to-consumer setting.Role will manage others, yet the ideal candidate has Generalist marketing experience with strategic understanding of direct response, marketing, ad platforms, brand, copywriting and lead generation. managing others and leading projects.Preferred candidates will have experience in financial services, private equity or private real estate, where the company raises and/or manages individual clients capital.Leadership & Management ScopeExperience managing or closely collaborating with sales teams and marketing teams.Strong understanding of lead generation, lead conversion, and sales processes.Ability to prioritize, manage projects, and drive execution.High level of organization, detail orientation, and ability to learn quickly.Technical & Systems ExpertiseFamiliarity with HubSpot or similar CRM platforms preferred.Strong ability to manage and optimize KPI tracking systems. Experience with automation is a plus.Personality & Work StyleOwnership mindset takes full responsibility for outcomes.Strategic and hands-on balances leadership (60%) with execution (40%).Thrives in fast-paced, high-pressure environments.Able to handle ambiguity, define priorities, and take initiative.Comfortable with high autonomy after onboarding.BenefitsCompetitive salary and performance-based bonuses.Potential for increased decision-making authority.Opportunity to shape and grow a high-impact role in a rapidly scaling firm.Success Indicators & GrowthShort-Term (90 Days):Seamless transition of operational duties.Established, clear KPI dashboards and tracking.Ownership of marketing/sales leadership with effective campaign planning.Long-Term (12 Months):Operations run smoothly across all departments; deadlines and budgets are met.Enhanced lead generation and improved sales conversions.Reduced manual hours for investor servicing and a more efficient onboarding process.High trust and autonomy; able to make key decisions with minimal oversight.Apply NowLet's start your dream job Apply now