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Microsoft Microsoft’s Office 365 apps have been the cornerstone for many working professionals’ day-to-day workflows for years. As a result, when the company developed its AI assistant, Copilot, it was only natural to infuse it across the 365 apps, and now, it is getting even more helpful.  Also: Microsoft’s Copilot AI is coming to your Office apps – and it won’t come cheap On Wednesday, Microsoft launched Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat which builds on the…

ZDNET only writes about deals we want to buy — devices and products we desire, need, or would recommend. Our experts looked for deals that were at least 20% off (or are hardly ever on sale), using established price comparison tools and trackers to determine whether the deal is actually on sale and how frequently it drops.  We also looked over customer reviews to find out what matters to real people who already own and…

Cheng Xin/Getty Images Microsoft has begun expanding the reach of its Copilot feature set, bringing its AI capabilities to Office apps for anyone currently subscribed to Microsoft 365 Personal or Family. For customers in the US and Europe, those features are only available with an extremely pricey Copilot Pro subscription. For Personal and Family subscribers, the upgrade costs an extra $20 monthly, which is more than double the cost of the basic Microsoft 365 subscription….

ZDNET’s key takeaways The Privacy Hero 2, a $199 router available on FlashRouters, supports NordVPN and Surfshark alongside various VPN protocols. It comes with one year of access to Privacy Hero Wireguard VPN and, with a current promotion, one year of NordVPN. The company should improve the build quality and be more generous with the Ethernet cable’s length. Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) are excellent tools for improving online privacy and security. Most people sign up…

JulPo/Getty Images In recent years, many personal finance applications have started offering artificial intelligence (AI) tools as an affordable alternative to human money managers. But do they always provide the right advice?  Many apps leverage AI to offer users a more consumer-friendly overview of their finances by automating savings, predicting expenses, analyzing spending trends, and identifying anomalies like fraud. An October 2024 Experian report found that 96% of those who’ve tried AI-driven finance apps (many of whom…

ZDNET’s key takeaways PNY 1TB CS3150 M.2 storage drive, available for around $115. Overall, it’s a fast M.2 drive with active cooling to keep running temperatures below the maximum rated temperature. The heatsink makes the drive rather bulky, and you will need a 4-pin fan header on the motherboard to power the fans. more buying choices In the not-so-distant past, the solution for speed-boosting an aging and sluggish PC was to add more RAM or…

Mayo Clinic + Cerebras Systems Following the success of OpenAI’s GPT series of large language models, an increasing number of institutions are proposing “foundation” models for artificial intelligence that, like GPT, are “pre-trained” to have very broad capabilities in a domain of knowledge. We saw this last week with Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang proposing a “world foundation model” for autonomous vehicles and robots. On Tuesday, at the annual JP Morgan Healthcare Conference in San Francisco,…

ZDNET’s key takeaways Configurations for Lenovo’s LOQ Tower 17IRR9 start at $899. The computer is a great option for people looking for a well-performing, compact, and affordable computer. However, because of its small size, it has a limited number of available ports. more buying choices What’s the deal? Lenovo has restocked the LOQ Tower 17IRR9 with the GeForce RTX 4060 graphics card, and it’s on sale. Over on the company’s storefront, you can buy the…

Kerry Wan/ZDNET What’s the deal? The Amazon Echo Frames (3rd Gen) are a natural way for glasses wearers to control their smart home, communicate with friends and family, and listen to audio wherever and whenever. Right now, they’re $90 off at QVC — making them only $180.  The latest model features a lighter build, longer battery life, improved speakers, and new controls that will take some getting used to. While Alexa in your ears is…

ZDNET’s key takeaways The Sharge Icemag 2 power bank is available on Amazon now for $50. With a perfect size, a powerful battery, RBG lighting, and a tiny fan to keep things cool, this power bank is ideal for those on the go. The Icemag 2 isn’t exactly the fastest charging power bank on the market but it’s still a bargain. Power banks are a dime a dozen, and you can find all sorts of…