Researchers at ETH Zurich have made a significant breakthrough in building artificial muscles that can be manipulated using ultrasonic sound waves. The technology is based on a silicone base material that has been molded into thin, flexible membranes with teeny small pores on one side, each around 100 micrometers across. Each of these holes contains a tiny air pocket, which forms a trapped bubble.
Nintendo introduced the Virtual Boy in 1995, with big promises for 3D gaming at home. Players looked through a binocular-style viewer mounted on a tabletop stand, which combined two distinct red LED screens with shaky vibrating mirrors to generate depth. However, the console sold fewer than 800,000 units worldwide before Nintendo discontinued it less than a year later.
Nintendo’s officially licensed LEGO Game Boy kit looks exactly like the original handheld, with grey bricks and a lenticular “screen” that shows various viewpoints of game scenes. Many builders admired the design but wished it was something you could play with. LCLDIY from China decided to go big or go home, taking the idea and expanding it up well beyond the original while also cramming it with real electronics.
Google’s latest wearable comes at a time when smartwatches are becoming an increasingly important tool. The new Pixel Watch 4 costs just $229.98 (was $449.99), which makes some wonder why you’d pay more for Apple’s Series 11 if you’re not already tied to the iOS ecosystem.
On December 22, 2025, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) threw a curveball by adding foreign-made drones and critical components on the Covered List. What appears to be a minor change prevents foreign-made devices from receiving the necessary approval to launch in the United States.
.Lumen, a Romanian startup, has developed a novel technology that is changing the way blind and visually impaired people navigate their surroundings. The AI-enhanced Lumen Glasses resemble and feel like a headset, with a strap over the forehead and a power pack in the back. They weigh roughly one kilogram and utilize a combination of sensors and artificial intelligence to detect their surroundings and gently nudge the user with vibrations and sounds.
A team of astronomers has observed the largest protoplanetary disk ever seen circling a young star some 1,000 light years away. This churning expanse of gas and dust spans roughly 400 billion miles, 40 times the size of our solar system and extending to the Kuiper Belt. They’ve cataloged this disk as IRAS 23077+6707, also known as Dracula’s Chivito, and it’s easy to see why given its completely opaque center, which Hubble’s high resolution photo has peeled away to reveal a really odd image.
The first teaser for Avengers: Doomsday is here, and it hits you right in the feels. This brief clip begins with a peaceful rural road set against a somewhat familiar countryside setting. Steve Rogers rolls up on a Triumph motorcycle, and we hear a piano rendition of the original Avengers theme playing in the background.
ASUS, a laptop manufacturer, and GoPro, purveyors of action cameras, are collaborating to create something unique: a ProArt laptop with GoPro branding. That device, known as the ProArt GoPro Edition, is still under wraps, but ASUS will reveal it in full at their CES 2026 livestream on January 6th at 9 a.m. Pacific Standard Time.
The AYANEO Pocket Vert may have debuted a bit too late in 2025, but it adds a new spin to the vertical form factor that retro gamers love. This device has a studry feel in the hands thanks to its metal body, which was CNC’d from a single block of aluminum. The edges are elegantly softened, and the diamond-cut shoulder buttons provide a touch of comfort while maintaining the clean lines. It comes in black, white, or red finishes, and measures 86mm wide, 143mm tall, and 20.5mm thick.