Memorial Day isn't until Monday, but sales on our favorite gear are going on all weekend. I've been covering deals since 2013, and I still think Memorial Day sales are worth checking out. There are so many made-up shopping holidays these days that it can be difficult to ascertain when items are actually cheaper than usual. Now is one of those times. To help you out, I've scoured through our buying guides full of hand-tested items to find gadgets and gizmos that are discounted--and worth buying.

Why does Amazon have no Western rivals? Vitamins, repair tape and a jar of mango chutney - just some of what my household bought last month via Amazon's sprawling online shopping platform. We also shopped at the company's supermarket chain Whole Foods, streamed its TV shows, read books on Kindle e-readers, and browsed countless websites no doubt powered by Amazon Web Services (AWS), its highly profitable cloud-computing business. And that isn't half of the interconnected products and services offered by the global behemoth, which earlier this year overtook US superstore giant Walmart to become the world's largest company by annual sales. But why does Amazon, launched by Jeff Bezos in 1995 as an online bookstore out of a rented garage, have so few serious rivals in the West when it comes to e-commerce?

Amazon is hoping that AI-powered answers will help keep shoppers from defecting to other sites or chatbots. Artificial intelligence algorithms are coming to some of the most valuable real estate in retail: the Amazon.com Queries typed into Amazon's website and mobile app will soon reply, depending on the context, with product comparisons or suggestions generated by AI large language models, the online retailer said Wednesday. The new tool -- called Alexa for Shopping -- supplants Rufus, the shopping assistant bot that summarized product reviews and suggested purchases. To invoke Rufus, users had to click a blue and orange icon. The new search experience will appear by default, beginning this week for users in the U.S. In a time of both misinformation and too much information, quality journalism is more crucial than ever.

Ikea's New Designer Collection Is Home-Office Heaven From a twisty lamp to a bendy clock, the Swedish company's full 2026 PS Collection has dropped. It's a boon for those looking to refine their homes and workstations. Now that the hubbub of the cat-tested blow-up chair has calmed down, Ikea has taken the wraps off the rest of its latest PS Collection (which stands for Post Scriptum). Consisting of 44 pieces, including the viral inflatable PS 2026 Easy Chair, the furniture brand says the theme of the 2026 PS Collection is playful functionality. The new PS Collection (available in stores from May 14, then online from May 22) has not one but two options for accommodating impromptu sleepovers.

Is Big Brother watching you shop? - podcast From supermarkets to corner shops, live facial recognition could be coming to retailers near you. Live facial recognition is being hailed as a powerful new frontier in the fight against crime, not only by police but by private companies too. Retailers from supermarkets to corner shops hope it will help them fight back against shoplifting. And the technology doesn't always get it right. With more police forces wanting to take up the technology, what could the consequences be?

Cordless multi-tools, drywall cut-out kits, framing nailers, and a 15-amp 13-inch planer are all marked down across nearly 90 RIDGID deals. More information Adding us as a Preferred Source in Google by using this link indicates that you would like to see more of our content in Google News results. Start your collection or build if you're already bought in. We may earn revenue from the products available on this page and participate in affiliate programs. The Home Depot is running a sprawling spring sale on RIDGID tools with cuts on cordless kits, combo bundles, jobsite gear, and corded shop equipment.

Amazon is rolling out its ultra-fast delivery service, Amazon Now, in dozens of cities in the US, promising deliveries of groceries and household essentials in 30 minutes or less. Amazon says the service is also now widely available in Atlanta and Dallas-Fort Worth, and will rapidly expand into Austin, Houston, Minneapolis, Orlando, Phoenix, Denver, Oklahoma City and more throughout the rest of 2026. If Amazon Now is available in your area you'll see a 30-Minute Delivery option in the Amazon app or on the homepage when you're in a browser. Amazon Now offers will also be highlighted when you're browsing products. You can search by category, and as well as groceries and basic household items such as eggs, diary and laundry detergent, you can also order select electronics on the service, which Amazon says operates 24 hours a day in most places.

Daron Acemoglu is more cautious than most about predictions of a jobs apocalypse. A few months before he was awarded the Nobel Prize in economics in 2024, Daron Acemoglu published a paper that earned him few fans in Silicon Valley. Contrary to what Big Tech CEOs had been promising--an overhaul of all white-collar work--Acemoglu estimated that AI would give only a small boost to US productivity and would not obviate the need for human work. It's okay at automating certain tasks, he wrote, but some jobs will be perfectly fine. Two years later, Acemoglu's measured take has not caught on. Chatter about an AI jobs apocalypse pops up everywhere from Senator Bernie Sanders's rallies to conversations I overhear in line at the grocery store.

Gear Audio Speakers The new Bose Lifestyle Collection is whole-home audio that won't take up your whole room Featuring a soft-edged speaker, soundbar, and subwoofer, the new WiFi-connected series wants to sound big without looking imposing. More information Adding us as a Preferred Source in Google by using this link indicates that you would like to see more of our content in Google News results. We may earn revenue from the products available on this page and participate in affiliate programs. In a townhouse on New York's Upper West Side, Bose revealed its new Lifestyle speaker collection through a multi-story demo involving quite a few stairs and equally ascending audio. From a company so well-known for actively canceling noise, this was about generating buzz.

Met Gala rocked as staff make revolting discovery hidden inside museum just hours before fashion's biggest night Shark Tank star Lori Greiner issues warning to 1.8bn Gmail users over hidden email setting I took an identical grocery list to Costco, Walmart and Target. The price difference for everyday items will shock you... but here's why I don't think the cheapest store is worth it Kobe Bryant's widow Vanessa speaks out on pregnancy and remarriage rumors six years on from Lakers legend's death America's fashion queen revealed as DailyMail+ unveils the Power List that humiliates Hollywood royalty, stuns Washington's elite... and leaves Lauren Sanchez reeling Britney Spears pleads guilty in DUI case and is sentenced to 12 months' probation as lawyer appears in court on her behalf Buc-ee's makes major rule change that leaves gas station fans furious My husband built a $250m empire but made me feel worthless. Our marriage was all but over... but my selfish act has deepened our intimacy in unimaginable ways Bianca Censori goes completely nude under sheer catsuit to visit med spa and leaves with noticeably fuller lips... while Kanye West waits in the car Trump threatens Iran will be'blown off the face of the earth' as missiles and drones target US ships.... and hits critical allies Warning as deadly venomous insect imported from China invades 20 US states... is your hometown at risk? Unsavory behaviors that risk toppling socialites from the front row... and how others stay on top Loyal McDonald's customer sipping his daily sweet tea spits drink out after feeling something SQUIRM through his straw US Open golf chief gives update on Tiger Woods' participation in the wake of DUI crash, arrest and rehab stint Innocent teen plunged into'sugar daddy' nightmare after posting video of her high school graduation ceremony online Shark Tank star Lori Greiner issues warning to 1.8bn Gmail users over hidden email setting A Shark Tank star has issued a stark safety warning to Gmail users about a default setting enabling Google to scan'every single' email. Lori Greiner, famous for her investments in products like Scrub Daddy and Squatty Potty, posted a video on her Instagram, urging users to block Google's AI in their accounts. 'Google doesn't want you to know this, but they've been allowing AI to scan every single one of your emails,' she said, adding that it includes'financial documents, tax information and personal conversations.'