Whether you’re thinking of going vinyl or need something for the music lover in your life. We’ve spent hours listening, so you can get the best sound that money can buy. If you buy something using our links, WIRED may earn a commission. wired.trib.al/xjKP6mN 1/8
If you’re in the mood to splash some cash, Apple's AirPods Max are some of the best sounding wireless headphones we’ve heard. And with the added bonus of noise-cancelling and onboard microphones, they’re ideal for work and play. 📸: APPLE wired.trib.al/sHhywhJ 2/8
For something a little more retro (and wallet-friendly) the Koss Porta Pro headphones combine great sound with an 80s aesthetic - which is why they’ve been an on-ear staple for decades. And at $36 they’re the perfect stocking stuffer. 📸:KOSS trib.al/0WWoDuR 3/8
Samsung's latest Galaxy Buds2 are perfect if you want something more compact. They come loaded with a wireless charging case, quick pairing for Android phones, and some of the most comfortable ergonomic buds on the market. 📸: SAMSUNG wired.trib.al/4c9r9NT 4/8
For newcomers to the vinyl game,this Fluance RT81 Turntable is a great introduction. It's belt-driven, with low noise, and comes with a very nice AT95E elliptical stylus. And it sounds so good your friends will think it was twice the price.📸: FLUANCE wired.trib.al/hCL6WTj 5/8
But if you’re in the market for something a bit more practical, try Koeppel Design’s The LP Block. It can store up to 10 records or a couple of box sets at a time, so your record sleeves will stay pristine. 📸: KOEPPEL DESIGN wired.trib.al/cQmWTz5 6/ 8
Let’s finish on a crowd-pleaser: The H20 Audio HD6 Wireless Speakers. These bookshelf speakers always make it onto a WIRED recommended list, and for a good reason. They are versatile, well-designed, and less than $1,000. 📸: Joseph Shin wired.trib.al/8ZI81Dc 7/8
Subscribe to WIRED for just $5 and get unlimited access to our longform features, buying guides, and tech news wired.trib.al/jIyE0yZ 8/8
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DOGE is knitting together data from the Department of Homeland Security, Social Security Administration, and IRS that could create a surveillance tool of unprecedented scope. wired.com/story/doge-col…
The scale at which DOGE is seeking to interconnect data, including sensitive biometric data, has never been done before, raising alarms with experts who fear it may lead to disastrous privacy violations. wired.com/story/doge-col…
“They are trying to amass a huge amount of data,” a senior DHS official tells WIRED. “It has nothing to do with finding fraud or wasteful spending … They are already cross-referencing immigration with SSA and IRS as well as voter data.” wired.com/story/doge-col…
American police are spending hundreds of thousands on Massive Blue’s unproven and secretive technology that uses AI-generated online personas designed to interact with and collect intelligence on “college protesters,” “radicalized” political activists, and suspected traffickers.
Massive Blue calls its product Overwatch, which it markets as an “AI-powered force multiplier for public safety” that “deploys lifelike virtual agents, which infiltrate and engage criminal networks across various channels.”
404 Media obtained a presentation showing some of these AI characters. These include a “radicalized AI” “protest persona,” which poses as a 36-year-old divorced woman who is lonely, has no children, is interested in baking, activism, and “body positivity.”
The audit covers DOGE’s handling of data at several Cabinet-level agencies, including:
–the Departments of Labor, Education, Homeland Security, Health and Human Services
–the Treasury
–the Social Security Administration
–the US DOGE Service (USDS) itself wired.com/story/gao-audi…
It's being carried out after congressional leaders’ requests and is centered on DOGE’s adherence to privacy and data protection laws and regulations.
A Congressional aide said the requests followed media reports on DOGE’s incursions into federal systems. wired.com/story/gao-audi…
Dozens of federal employees tell WIRED that Trump's federal return to office order has resulted in chaos (including bad Wi-Fi and no toilet paper), with productivity plummeting and public services suffering. wired.com/story/federal-…
One effect of all this, many federal employees tell WIRED, is that they are travelling long distances in order to spend all of their time in virtual meetings.
A Treasury employee says they spend most of their time at the office on video calls as well. wired.com/story/federal-…
It isn’t just traveling to work to sit on Zoom calls—it’s that there may be no place to take the call, or no working internet to connect to it.
WIRED granted employees anonymity to speak freely about their experiences. wired.com/story/federal-…
SCOOP: Elon Musk’s DOGE has plans to stage a “hackathon” next week in Washington, DC. The goal is to create a single “mega API”—a bridge that lets software systems talk to one another—for accessing IRS data, sources tell WIRED. wired.com/story/doge-hac…
DOGE ops have repeatedly referred to the company Palantir as a possible partner in the project, sources tell WIRED.
SCOOP: Shortly after senior Trump officials discussed the bombing of Yemen in a Signal group chat that just happened to include the Atlantic's editor in chief, a subset of the group feasted at a secret dinner featuring Trump where guests were asked to pay $1 million apiece to join. wired.com/story/trump-of…
The date was Saturday, March 15. President Donald Trump was at his Mar-a-Lago estate attending a “candlelight” dinner that wasn’t on his public calendar. On the lawn outside, luxury cars were on display: a Rolls Royce was parked near a Bugatti and Lamborghini.
Earlier that day, the United States had bombed Yemen, targeting Houthi leadership. At least 53 people, including children, were killed.