Key Takeaways Valve Expands SteamOS Beyond the Deck: A new Steam compatibility rating for non-Steam Deck devices signals Valve’s intent to make SteamOS a mainstream PC gaming operating system.  Windows 11 Leaves Older PCs Behind: With Windows 10 support ending in 2025 and strict hardware requirements for Windows 11, many gamers are seeking lighter, less restrictive alternatives. Proton Makes Linux Gaming Easy: Valve’s Proton layer enables most single-player Windows games to run smoothly on Linux, making SteamOS a real contender for everyday gaming. A Platform Play, Not Just a Storefront: Valve is evolving into a full-stack platform provider, offering hardware, software, and services that challenge Microsoft’s dominance in PC gaming. Valve quietly took another big step in its plan to change how we play PC games.  This week, they added a new compatibility rating for Steam games that run on devices other than the Steam Deck.  That might sound small, but it’s a big signal: Valve is gearing up to make SteamOS more than just the Deck’s operating system.  It wants SteamOS to be the go-to PC gaming OS. And with the way Windows is going, that might actually work.  SteamOS – From Side Project to Real Player When Valve launched the Steam Deck in 2022, it came with SteamOS pre-installed.  Back then, most people saw it as a Deck-only solution – a weird little Linux-based system with a funny name that made a handheld work.  But now Valve’s trying to ensure SteamOS can run on any device, not just the Deck. Think gaming laptops, desktops, mini PCs, and even other handhelds.  The new compatibility tag added to Steam will tell you how well a game works on ‘SteamOS, not on Deck’ setups.  It’s a subtle change, but Valve is ready to support players building their own Linux-based PC gaming rigs. It’s not just about hardware anymore – Valve wants to own the whole ecosystem.  Windows 11 – The OS Nobody Asked for Timing, as they say, is everything. Windows 10 is reaching end-of-life in 2025, which means no more updates unless you pay up.  And Windows 11? It’s bloated, loves telemetry, and keeps pushing users into Microsoft’s cloud services whether they want them or not. Gamers haven’t exactly embraced it.  What’s worse is that many older PCs can’t even run Windows 11 without jumping through hoops.  You’ll need a compatible TPM 2.0 chip, Secure Boot enabled, and often a relatively recent CPU.  And if your hardware doesn’t meet these strict requirements, you’ll have to mess with registry hacks or unofficial installers just to get it working.  Meanwhile, SteamOS is becoming lighter, faster, and more compatible with each update. Windows now feels bulky and overcomplicated for gaming, while SteamOS is streamlined, efficient, and built for play.  Proton Is the Secret Sauce A few years ago, gaming on Linux was like trying to ride a unicycle on a gravel road – technically possible, but mostly painful.  But Valve changed all that with Proton. It’s a compatibility layer that lets you run Windows games on Linux and performs impressively well.  Players are saying most single-player games just work. You install them, click play, and boom – you’re in. The exceptions are mainly multiplayer games that rely on invasive anti-cheat systems like the ones used in Valorant or Call of Duty.  These systems, like Riot’s Vanguard and Activision’s Ricochet, operate at the kernel level – meaning they have deep access to your computer’s core functions.  That level of control makes them harder to bypass, but also raises serious privacy concerns and often clashes with Proton, which is why these games usually won’t run on Linux.  But for indie games, RPGs, roguelikes, and story-driven titles, Proton is a dream.  So now that Proton is good enough for everyday gaming, why bother with Windows at all?  Why SteamOS Actually Makes Sense Now SteamOS isn’t just a gamer-friendly version of Linux. It’s also a great way to keep older hardware alive.  Since it’s built to run games efficiently, it doesn’t waste resources on background processes you don’t need. That means faster boot times, better performance, and less overheating.  If you’ve got a mid-range gaming PC from 2018, SteamOS might give it a second life. And in a world where GPUs are still absurdly priced and RAM isn’t getting cheaper, that’s a real win.  Plus, most non-gaming services today are cloud-based – think streaming, productivity, and communication tools – so you can access them from a browser without needing Linux-native apps. And for developers, there’s another perk. SteamOS encourages cross-platform development. If more users adopt it, game studios won’t have to rely so heavily on DirectX or other Windows-only tools.  The end result? Games that are easier to port, cheaper to maintain, and potentially more stable.  Valve is Building a Platform, not Just Selling Games For years, Valve has remained primarily a storefront. Steam was simply a place to buy games, and that was the extent of it. But now, Valve is turning into something more like Apple – a company with its own hardware (Steam Deck), its own OS (SteamOS), and its own platform (Steam). The shift toward platform ownership allows Valve to gain greater control over its ecosystem, enabling them to shape the gaming experience more directly.  This move opens up more options for gamers, giving them greater flexibility, access to a variety of services, and a wealth of content, all while allowing them to make more informed decisions throughout their gaming experience. Don’t want to use Windows anymore? Fine. Don’t want to buy a Steam Deck? That’s fine too. Build your SteamOS box, slap it under your TV, and enjoy a console-like experience with a PC gaming library.  That’s a shift Microsoft should be nervous about.  What Still Needs Work Of course, SteamOS isn’t perfect.  The biggest roadblock is still anti-cheat support. Many competitive multiplayer games don’t run on Linux because the anti-cheat software doesn’t play nice with Proton.  Until Valve solves that (and they are working on it), Windows will still be required for certain genres.  Valve has already worked with major anti-cheat providers like BattlEye and Easy Anti-Cheat to support Proton and SteamOS. Still, it’s up to individual developers to flip the switch and enable it in their games.  That’s the current bottleneck – the infrastructure exists, but adoption is slow. But there is a path forward.  If Valve can win over a few major game publishers or eSports tournaments, the floodgates might open. Imagine a world where CS:GO and Valorant run perfectly on Linux, and gamers no longer feel tied to Microsoft’s ecosystem. It’s not far-fetched.  The Big Picture So here’s the thing: Valve isn’t just building an OS. It’s building an escape route.  Gamers frustrated with Microsoft’s direction now have a real alternative – one that’s free, fast, and focused on games first. The new SteamOS compatibility rating is a small update, but it hints at a much bigger shift.  In the end, this isn’t about the Steam Deck anymore. It’s about making Linux gaming mainstream.  Valve’s not shouting about it yet. But it’s coming. And when it arrives, it won’t just change how we game – it’ll change who owns the future of gaming.  So go ahead, Windows 11. Keep adding bloatware. SteamOS will be over here doing squats, waiting to take your crown.  Anya Zhukova is an in-house tech and crypto writer at Techreport with 10 years of hands-on experience covering cybersecurity, consumer tech, digital privacy, and blockchain. She’s known for turning complex topics into clear, useful advice that regular people can actually understand and use.  Her work has been featured in top-tier digital publications including MakeUseOf, Online Tech Tips, Help Desk Geek, Switching to Mac, and Make Tech Easier. Whether she’s writing about the latest privacy tools or reviewing a new laptop, her goal is always the same: help readers feel confident and in control of the tech they use every day.  Anya holds a BA in English Philology and Translation from Tula State Pedagogical University and also studied Mass Media and Journalism at Minnesota State University, Mankato. That mix of language, media, and tech has given her a unique lens to look at how technology shapes our daily lives.  Over the years, she’s also taken courses and done research in data privacy, digital security, and ethical writing – skills she uses when tackling sensitive topics like PC hardware, system vulnerabilities, and crypto security.  Anya worked directly with brands like Framework, Insta360, Redmagic, Inmotion, Secretlab, Kodak, and Anker, reviewing their products in real-life scenarios. Her testing process involves real-world use cases – whether it's stress-testing laptops for creative workloads, reviewing the battery performance of mobile gaming phones, or evaluating the long-term ergonomics of furniture designed for hybrid workspaces.  In the world of crypto, Anya covers everything from beginner guides to deep dives into hardware wallets, DeFi protocols, and Web3 tools. She helps readers understand how to use multisig wallets, keep their assets safe, and choose the right platforms for their needs.  Her writing often touches on financial freedom and privacy – two things she strongly believes should be in everyone’s hands. Outside of writing, Anya contributes to editorial style guides focused on privacy and inclusivity, and she mentors newer tech writers on how to build subject matter expertise and write responsibly.  She sticks to high editorial standards, only recommends products she’s personally tested, and always aims to give readers the full picture.  You can find her on LinkedIn, where she shares more about her work and projects.  Key Areas of Expertise: Consumer Tech (laptops, phones, wearables, etc.) Cybersecurity and Digital Privacy PC/PC Hardware Blockchain, Crypto Wallets, and DeFi In-Depth Product Reviews and Buying Guides Whether she’s reviewing a new wallet or benchmarking a PC build, Anya brings curiosity, care, and a strong sense of responsibility to everything she writes. Her mission? To make the digital world a little easier – and safer – for everyone.  View all articles by Anya Zhukova Our editorial process The Tech Report editorial policy is centered on providing helpful, accurate content that offers real value to our readers. We only work with experienced writers who have specific knowledge in the topics they cover, including latest developments in technology, online privacy, cryptocurrencies, software, and more. Our editorial policy ensures that each topic is researched and curated by our in-house editors. We maintain rigorous journalistic standards, and every article is 100% written by real authors.

Jerald of Rumare Oblivion Remastered's radiant quest hero is at it again: here's a Witcher-ish mod that lets warriors become full-time professional monster slayers They're seemingly planning on adding a heap more battles to the Imperial City's Arena next, because Adoring Fans call for bloodshed. Image credit: Bethesda/VG247 News by Mark Warren Senior Staff Writer Published on May 15, 2025 The Fighters Guild's the only of the big four main faction questlines in Oblivion and therefore also Oblivion Remastered in which warhammer-wielding juggernaughts don't feel a bit out of place (props to Gogron gro-Bolmog for defying stereotypes), and thanks to a new mod, I might actually think about abandoning my stealth archer to play one. Just the other day, modder ColdTyrant released an interesting mod that added a whole radiant contract system to the Dark Brotherhood, allowing you to go on killing forever and net some gacha rewards. Well, literally a day later, they're back at it again with the faction that ends up - spoilers - battling some tree sap drinkers. To see this content please enable targeting cookies. This latest entry in what's fast morphed into a series is called 'Fighter's Guild - Infinitum' and it adds "over 100 randomly selected, infinitely repeatable Monster Hunting contracts" to the titular faction, giving them a full radiant quest system. Much like with the Dark Brotherhood mod I mentioned earlier, it works by giving you a place to go to be given notes setting you off on missions to kill a specific target - this time different monsters in dungeons across Cyrodiil - then turn them in for a nice reward. Each target monster has been made to glow a bit so they stand out from the cave-dwelling crowd Sadly, there looks to be no Morrowindy gacha element to the dishing out of loot this time around. You'll get 500 gold per contract, plus two "Fighter's Commendations", the latter being a special currency you can spend to requisition gear from a new Fighter's Guild Store the mod adds to the basement of the faction's Leyawiin chapter. Then again, ColdTyrant does write that they've given you the option of making the top floor of the Leyawiin guildhall your hangout by switching around the NPC schedules, making it a bit harder to moan. All in all, it sounds cool, and an interesting option if you fancy creating a character that makes their living in a similar fashion to The Witcher's big Gerry. You might as well, it's Oblivion, so there's a 95% chance your character's appearance is already freaky in a way that might lead to them being shunned by most of society. If you fancy giving Fighter's Guild - Infinitum a go, you'll need to grab the mod's requirements - Oblivion Remastered's UE4SS and UE4SS TesSyncMapInjector. It's also worth noting that ColdTyrant's suggested in the mod page's comments section that their next project is going to be an Oblivion Remastered mod like this for the Imperial City's Arena. Say hi to Modryn Oreyn for me if you decide to join the Fighters Guild in your next playthrough, and make sure to check out the rest of our ongoing Oblivion Remastered mod coverage.

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works. Opera GX gets split view, tab islands, and more new features Taras Buria Neowin @TarasBuria · May 15, 2025 11:24 EDT Opera is rolling out a new feature update for its gaming-focused browser, Opera GX. The latest release brings three "browser boosters" or productivity features, including split view, tab islands, and Bluesky integration in the browser's sidebar. Opera GX has released its new update, providing users with a pack of enhanced tab management capabilities and improved multitasking features. The update allows for side-by-side tab viewing, easy tracing of recently visited pages, and the function to organize related tabs into collapsible groups. Additionally, the update integrates Bluesky directly into the Opera GX sidebar. Like most modern browsers, Opera GX now lets you work with two tabs side-by-side. Grab a tab and drag it to one side of the window to enable split screen and thus reduce tab switching. However, if you have to switch between multiple pages, tab traces will make the process easier by highlighting your recent tabs. Tab hoarders, this one is for you. The next feature is tab islands. You can group related tabs into collapsible islands or groups and personalize them with emojis for quick and easy visual identification. Finally, Opera GX now has Bluesky integration in its sidebar, allowing you to check on "boomer paranoia and billionaire blame shifting," as Opera puts it in its typically edgy promo video with a recap of new features, which you can check out below: You can download Opera GX from the official website. The new features are now available for everyone, minus Tab Islands and Tab Emoji. You can access them by toggling on "Early Bird" in Opera GX Settings. If you are not into gaming-themed stuff and you would like a bit more mainstream browser, you can check the latest update for Opera One, which introduced some AI-powered tab management and other neat changes. Tags Report a problem with article Follow @NeowinFeed

Meadgard has you fighting to gather ingredents during the day and running your own Viking inn during the evening, keeping everyone happy. Chaotic cooking games are a dime a dozen, but this one feels like it’s well worth checking out. This game takes part in two stages, switching between chaotic cooking and gathering the items that you need and using your kitchen tools as weapons! Meadgard has tasked you and your friends to become innkeepers. You will need to work together to run the best Viking tavern, gathering resources and then running the inn in the evening, hoping to make some gold. During the day, you need to fight various monsters, using your kitchen tool of choice to stay alive. There are often hidden treasure chests and various items that can be found while you’re exploring and clobbering beasts before you move to your inn for the evening. When it’s opening time at the inn, you will need to plan your menu and then execute it. The menu will depend on what you have done during the day and reflect what you have gathered. There is a sort of skill in creating your menu in Meadgard, as some of the roasting items can be complex. When it’s time to open, you need to work together to bring Vikings to their table, take their order, then make their food. Sometimes they just need a pint of beer and other times you need to chop ingredients and then cook them to get what they are after. Even things like replacing the keg take time, so having more people working together helps! If you frustrate your customers, they are Vikings, so they might make a mess of the place. I played a demo of Meadgard at the European Game Showcase where I really enjoyed how fast cooking became when you played together as well as the diversity of play in this game. It’s still a work in progress, but if you like busy cooking games it’s one to keep an eye on. Meadgard is currently in development, but in the meantime, you can grab a demo or add it to yoru Wishlist on Steam. About The Author

Ubisoft has finally given word on a release window for the Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time remake, stating that the game will launch by the end of March 2026.In its earnings call today, Ubisoft revealed that it plans for the Sands of Time remake to drop in fiscal year 2025-26, which officially ends on March 31, 2026. This significantly narrows down the release timeline for the game, as previously the publisher had only said it was coming in 2026.This release window would mark nearly six years since the announcement of the game. Ubisoft originally teased the Sands of Time remake way back in 2020 for last-gen consoles. Since then, it has had a rocky development process, switching developers a few years ago following fan backlash to the original trailer and a missed launch date. It's probably safe to say at this point that the remake, now in the works at Ubisoft Montreal, will come to current-gen consoles.Continue Reading at GameSpot

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works. The Ecosia search engine has just come up with a replacement for its tree counter Paul Hill Neowin · May 15, 2025 05:10 EDT The search engine that uses its income to plant trees, Ecosia, has just introduced a seed counter system to help users understand their impact a bit better. Previously, Ecosia used to have a tree counter that increased after a certain number of searches, but it was phased out a while ago to put more emphasis on the collective impact represented in the total trees planted counter. In its announcement, Ecosia said that many users missed the tree counter that used to be present, so it has decided to reimagine the impact counter. The company said that it does more than just plants trees nowadays, so its new impact counter has been designed to reflect this. It said: “Ecosia has always been about turning your everyday digital habits into real climate action — and that action now goes way beyond planting trees. Today, we support farmers who are restoring soil through regenerative agriculture, protect endangered animals and plants in biodiversity hotspots, invest in bold climate tech, and grow renewable energy capacity to speed up the transition away from fossil fuels.” The seed counter will increase daily when you use Ecosia, but if you’d like to save your score more securely, or view it across devices, then you need to make an account and login on your devices. There is no need to make a whole new account, you can just sign in with Google if you want (I know, it’s ironic). Once you’re logged in, you can go to your profile page and see your impact dashboard. You can see your level, which you can increase by getting more seeds, how many seedlings you’ve helped to plant (Ecosia plants 6 per tree to account for failure), how much energy you’ve helped produce via Ecosia’s solar panels, hours of tree care you’ve supported, and your impact on the amount of area restored. The latter two impacts are not unlocked until you reach level 5 and level 10, respectively. You can read in more depth about each of these stats on the help page. Ecosia is not giving up on displaying your collective impact. It has a section under the one mentioned above which says how much money has been raised and where it is being spent. While the new counter is not as simple as the tree counter, the presence of a dashboard is nice as that never existed before. The new setup also better reflects the other ways users are contributing to climate restoration. Switching to Ecosia is relatively straightforward if you want to give it a go. You can install the Ecosia extension for your browser to be switched over, or if you’re on Chrome, you can choose Ecosia from the search providers list - other browsers may or may not have it as a choice, in that case, get the extension. Tags Report a problem with article Follow @NeowinFeed

TL;DR: Get a 1min.AI lifetime subscription for $99.99 (reg. $540) and generate hundreds of images and millions of words each month without paying extra fees. Let’s be real: AI isn’t going anywhere, but your bank account might be if you keep paying for all these tools separately. That’s why this new AI suite caught our attention. 1min.AI is a one-time payment that unlocks lifetime access to GPT-4, Gemini, Meta AI, and more. No subscriptions, no switching between platforms, just all-in-one AI firepower. No need to learn to use a new AI. This all-in-one platform includes the same tools you already know and love. Or, if you aren’t already familiar, they’re easy to try out with 1min.AI’s prebuilt AI templates for generating articles and images, conducting SEO research, or even transcribing audio. 1min.AI doesn’t stop at creating new content. You can also edit existing text, images, and video. Want to edit videos or improve images? It’s all here, with advanced tools like background removers and image upscaling. Plus, you’ll get regular updates, keeping your AI toolkit fresh and ready for whatever comes next—like ChatGPT-5 when it finally arrives in the coming months. Get lifetime access to this all-in-one AI tool for $99.99 (reg. $540) with no coupon needed. 1min.AI Advanced Business Plan Lifetime SubscriptionSee Deal StackSocial prices subject to change.

Earlier in April, T-Mobile launched two new mobile family plans intended to replace the Go5G and Go5G Plus services, which included unlimited talk, text, and premium data. The new plans - "Experience Beyond" and "Experience More" - carry over the benefits of Go5G but also tack on new perks like a 5-year fixed price guarantee, a higher mobile hotspot data cap, T-Satellite with Starlink (for "Experience Beyond"), and more, all at a lower monthly rate.T-Mobile Experience Plans: What They OfferT-Mobile's New Experience Family PlansSee it at T-MobileT-Mobile's Experience plans are currently available as two separate tiers. The "Experience More" plan offers 3 lines for $140 per month with AutoPay (otherwise $185 per month), plus taxes and fees. The "Experience Beyond" plan offers 3 lines for $180 per month with AutoPay (otherwise $230 per month). The benefits for each plan are as follows:1. T-Mobile Experience More ($140/mo with AutoPay)5-year price guaranteeUpgrade-ready every two yearsUnlimited talk and textUnlimited 4G & 5G LTE premium dataNetflix (standard with ads) subscription includedApple TV+ subscription included60GB of high-speed mobile hotspot dataUnlimited text, 15GB of high-speed data in Canada & MexicoUnlimited text, 5GB of high-speed data in 215+ countries & destinationsFull-flight texting and Wi-Fi with streaming where available2. T-Mobile Experience Beyond ($180/mo with AutoPay)5-Year price guaranteeUpgrade-ready every yearUnlimited talk and textUnlimited 4G & 5G LTE premium dataT-Satellite with Starlink service (through end of 2025)Netflix (standard with ads) subscription includedApple TV+ subscription includedHulu (standard with ads) includedUnlimited mobile hotspot includedUnlimited text, 30GB of high-speed data in Canada & MexicoUnlimited text, 15GB of high-speed data in 215+ countries & destinationsFull-flight texting and Wi-Fi with streaming where availableWatch & tablet lines just $5/monthThe "Experience More" plan is more than sufficient for most people, since you get unlimited talk, text, and premium 5G and 4G LTE data for $45 per month (with autopay) plus a 5 year guarantee and both Netflix and Apple TV+ subscriptions. The 2 year upgrade path is perfectly reasonable since most people don't replace their phone every year.If, however, you do like to be at the forefront of smartphone tech, or you plan to connect an additional device like your tablet or Apple Watch, and/or you travel often (and could benefit from a higher international data cap or Starlink accessibility), then the "Experience Beyond" plan is an attractive option at $60 per month (with autopay).Did you know? T-Mobile offers incentives for switching carriersAs part of its Family Freedom initiative, T-Mobile will cover up to $800 per line to help pay off your AT&T and Verizon phones (even if they’re locked) and a new smartphone when trading in that device. Families score with deals like four flagship smartphones on Us and four new voice lines for just $100/month on Essentials.These plans with no yearly contract - What does that mean?Not to be confused with your phone's financing planT-Mobile's "Experience" are postpaid plans that don't lock you into any sort of yearly contact, so you are free to cancel your service at anytime. Keep in mind, however, that if you finance a phone through T-Mobile, you are still required to make payments on the phone for however long the contract entails, usually for a length of 24 months. Although you can opt to pay your phone off early, T-Mobile often offers discounts on their phones in the form of bill credits that are applied every month. So, paying a phone off early could mean you forfeit the bill credits for the remainder of the term. As per the norm, common sense dictates that you read the fine print before committing to any form of contractual obligation.Why Should You Trust IGN's Deals Team?IGN's deals team has a combined 30+ years of experience finding the best discounts in gaming, tech, and just about every other category. We don't try to trick our readers into buying things they don't need at prices that aren't worth buying something at. Our ultimate goal is to surface the best possible deals from brands we trust and our editorial team has personal experience with. You can check out our deals standards here for more information on our process, or keep up with the latest deals we find on IGN's Deals account on Twitter.Eric Song is the IGN commerce manager in charge of finding the best gaming and tech deals every day. When Eric isn't hunting for deals for other people at work, he's hunting for deals for himself during his free time.

options aplenty OpenAI adds GPT-4.1 to ChatGPT amid complaints over confusing model lineup Two new AI models join 7 others, leaving some paid users wondering which one is best. Benj Edwards – May 14, 2025 6:16 pm | 18 Credit: Getty Images Credit: Getty Images Story text Size Small Standard Large Width * Standard Wide Links Standard Orange * Subscribers only   Learn more On Wednesday, OpenAI announced that ChatGPT users now have access to GPT-4.1, an AI language model previously available only through the company's API since its launch one month ago. The update brings what OpenAI describes as improved coding and web development capabilities to paid ChatGPT subscribers, with wider enterprise rollout planned in the coming weeks. GPT-4.1 and 4.1 mini to ChatGPT adds to an already complex model selection that includes GPT-4o, various specialized GPT-4o versions, o1-pro, o3-mini, and o3-mini-high models. There are technically nine AI models available for ChatGPT Pro subscribers. Wharton professor Ethan Mollick recently publicly lampooned the awkward situation on social media. As of May 14, 2025, ChatGPT Pro users have access to eight main AI models, plus Deep Research. Credit: Benj Edwards Deciding which AI model to use can be daunting for AI novices. Reddit users and OpenAI forum members alike commonly voice confusion about the available options. "I do not understand the reason behind having multiple models available for use," wrote one Reddit user in March. "Why would anyone use anything but the best one?" Another Redditor said they were "a bit lost" with the many ChatGPT models available after switching back from using Anthropic Claude. Reportedly better at coding So, what is actually different about GPT-4.1? Notably, it features a very large 1 million token context window that allows processing roughly 3,000 pages of text in a single conversation. The API launch included three versions: GPT-4.1, GPT-4.1 mini, and GPT-4.1 nano. So far, only the full and mini versions are available in ChatGPT. The full GPT-4.1 model reportedly prioritizes instruction following and coding tasks, which the company positions as an alternative to its o3 and o4-mini simulated reasoning models for basic programming needs. For the smaller of the two models in ChatGPT, the company claims that GPT-4.1 mini performs better in instruction following, coding, and "overall intelligence" compared to GPT-4o mini. OpenAI is replacing GPT-4o mini with GPT-4.1 mini across all ChatGPT tiers, including free accounts. Free users will automatically switch to GPT-4.1 mini after reaching usage limits for GPT-4o. ChatGPT subscribers using Plus, Pro, or Team plans can access GPT-4.1 through a "more models" dropdown menu in the platform's model picker. The release comes just two weeks after OpenAI made GPT-4 unavailable in ChatGPT on April 30. That earlier model, which launched in March 2023, once sparked widespread hype about AI capabilities. Compared to that hyperbolic launch, GPT-4.1's rollout has been a fairly understated affair—probably because it's tricky to convey the subtle differences between all of the available OpenAI models. As if 4.1's launch wasn't confusing enough, the release also roughly coincides with OpenAI's July 2025 deadline for retiring the GPT-4.5 Preview from the API, a model one AI expert called a "lemon." Developers must migrate to other options, OpenAI says, although GPT-4.5 will remain available in ChatGPT for now. A confusing addition to OpenAI’s model lineup In February, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman acknowledged his company's confusing AI model naming practices on X, writing, "We realize how complicated our model and product offerings have gotten." He promised that a forthcoming "GPT-5" model would consolidate the o-series and GPT-series models into a unified branding structure. But the addition of GPT-4.1 to ChatGPT appears to contradict that simplification goal. So, if you use ChatGPT, which model should you use? If you're a developer using the models through the API, the consideration is more of a trade-off between capability, speed, and cost. But in ChatGPT, your choice might be limited more by personal taste in behavioral style and what you'd like to accomplish. Some of the "more capable" models have lower usage limits as well because they cost more for OpenAI to run. For now, OpenAI is keeping GPT-4o as the default ChatGPT model, likely due to its general versatility, balance between speed and capability, and personable style (conditioned using reinforcement learning and a specialized system prompt). The simulated reasoning models like 03 and 04-mini-high are slower to execute but can consider analytical-style problems more systematically and perform comprehensive web research that sometimes feels genuinely useful when it surfaces relevant (non-confabulated) web links. Compared to those, OpenAI is largely positioning GPT-4.1 as a speedier AI model for coding assistance. Just remember that all of the AI models are prone to confabulations, meaning that they tend to make up authoritative-sounding information when they encounter gaps in their trained "knowledge." So you'll need to double-check all of the outputs with other sources of information if you're hoping to use these AI models to assist with an important task. Benj Edwards Senior AI Reporter Benj Edwards Senior AI Reporter Benj Edwards is Ars Technica's Senior AI Reporter and founder of the site's dedicated AI beat in 2022. He's also a tech historian with almost two decades of experience. In his free time, he writes and records music, collects vintage computers, and enjoys nature. He lives in Raleigh, NC. 18 Comments

Get the Popular Science daily newsletter💡 Breakthroughs, discoveries, and DIY tips sent every weekday. Poison dart frogs are hard to miss. They’re bright, agile, and as their name suggests, toxic. But at least a few  of these showy amphibians have gone under the radar, until now. Scientists surveying a difficult to reach area of the Brazilian Amazon report two new species in a set of recent papers. The first, published in April in the journal ZooKeys, describes the teal and black Ranitomeya aquamarina. The second, released May 14 in the journal PLOS One, introduces the light blue striped Ranitomeya aetherea.Despite how frequently novel amphibian species are found elsewhere,  the frogs are the first newly described members of their genus in 13 years. Reaching their habitat requires flying on a small plane, followed by a 10-hour boat journey along the river, Esteban Diego Koch, a study co-author and PhD candidate in evolutionary biology at the National Institute of Amazonian Research, tells Popular Science.  That long trek for humans is a major part of why the species stayed formally undiscovered for so long, he says. It takes years to properly prepare to survey such a remote region and to build relationships with the local Indigenous community, who were instrumental in assisting and guiding the outside researchers.  The metallic poison frog (Ranitomeya aquamarina) is less than two centimeters long from snout to butt. CREDIT: Alexander Tamanini Mônico. Both of the poison dart species were discovered in pockets of open forest about 30 miles apart, along the banks of the Juruá River in western Brazil, near the border of Peru, Each species has an affinity for the same palm-like plant, with tadpoles that grow up inside the small, ephemeral pools of water that collect at the base of the leaf stalks. They spend their days perched on these plants or foraging in the nearby leaf litter, likely eating the toxic insects that help them build up their own reserves of deadly chemicals.  The frogs are named in reference to the color of the striking stripes on their backs. R. aquamarina has an array of bright turquoise lines running against a jet black background, while R. aetherea (Latin for ‘heavenly’), displays angelic, sky blue stripes against brick red. The two species share copper-colored, spotted metallic legs that resemble safari-print pants and are both about 15-17 millimeters long, about the diameter of a dime.  A male Ranitomeya aetherea sitting on a leaf. CREDIT: Alexander Tamanini Mônico. Despite all their similarities, the amphibians seem to lead divergent lives, especially when it comes to mating.R. aquamarina in pairs, suggesting the frogs couple-up to breed and stay together for an extended period of time. This type of monogamy is rare in amphibians and was only first discovered 15 years ago in another dart frog species. In contrast, R. aetherea appears to play the field. Males of the sky blue species were generally sighted solo, emitting frequent advertising calls, and switching to a courtship call when approached by females, who don’t stick around in one place for very long.  It’s a testament to how deceiving looks can be. Dart frogs have a complex evolutionary history of species emerging and subsequently re-hybridizing. In this genus of frogs, “very distinct species can have the same appearance: the same colors and the same pattern,” Koch says. Adding to the confusion, “sometimes a single species can have multiple patterns of color,” he notes.An R. aquamarina couple. The males in this species emit frequent advertising and courtship calls. CREDIT: Alexander Tamanini Mônico. Since going by appearance alone isn’t enough, the scientists conducted extensive analyses of both types of frogs to confirm that the striped and spotted dart frog specimens truly represented two new species. They used genetic sequencing, compared the sound waves of mating calls, and took exceptionally accurate measurements of dozens of frogs under a microscope. They found that the two species were quite distinct, and not as closely related as one might expect. The frogs are nested in different areas of the evolutionary tree, with separate sister species, according to the genetic analysis. However, Koch notes that more data is needed to confirm the exact relationships.  With more research, additional surprises are likely to emerge. At least one more possible new species was collected in the recent surveys, Koch says. He and his colleagues just have to finish their assessment to know for sure. Beyond what’s already been found, Koch  imagines that many more unidentified amphibians are lurking in similarly difficult to access corners of the Amazon.  The hard part is getting to them before they’re gone. Deforestation, climate change, increasingly frequent wildfires, and pet trade poaching all threaten poison dart frogs. The frogs of these two new studies were collected across two expeditions in 2023 and 2024. In just that one year gap, Koch says his colleagues noted a big change, with clear cuts and deforestation moving much closer to the amphibians’ habitat. The scientists currently don’t have enough information to know exactly how secure or at-risk either species is. Yet, given that they found each amphibian in a small range, spotted across just a couple of miles of forest, it seems likely that the toxic frogs themselves are in much more danger than their poison poses to their predators. Losing them would mean losing two especially beautiful branches on the tree of life. It would also stymie our ability to harness their potential power. Chemicals from the skin of specific dart frogs have shown promise as possible medicines. “It’s a long road,” from discovering a species to discovering its potential human applications, says Koch. “Someday, they might be useful,” he says. But, to get there, we have to let the frogs stick around.