Having fewer ports makes laptops and tablets lighter and more affordable — but that also cuts down on your connectivity options. If you’ve got a MacBook Air, a slim Chromebook or a tablet you’d like to get more utility out of, a USB-C hub can help. Using just a single port on your device, these multiport adapters will let you hook up screens, tap into Ethernet cables, connect mice and keyboards, and transfer data to drives and memory cards. Most also give you a way to power your device through the hub to maximize port availability. We tested over a dozen models to come up with picks for every budget. Here are the best USB-C hubs, according to our tests.

Table of contents

• Best USB-C hubs for 2026

• What to look for in a USB-C hub

• How we test USB-C hubs

• Other hubs we tested 

• Recent updates

Best USB-C hubs for 2026

What to look for in a USB-C hub

Hub vs docking station

The first thing to decide is whether you need a USB-C hub or a USB-C docking station. There’s no set standard for what differentiates the two, but docking stations tend to have more ports, offer a separate DC power adapter and cost more, with some reaching upwards of $400. We have a separate guide to the best docking stations to check out if you’re looking for something bigger than what we’re discussing here. USB-C hubs, in contrast, have between four and 10 ports, can support pass-through charging and typically cost between $30 and $150.

Hubs, sometimes also called dongles or even multiport adapters, make more sense for smaller setups with just a few peripherals, such as a monitor, a wired keyboard and mouse, and the occasional external drive. They’re also more portable, since they’re small and require no dedicated power. That could be useful if you change work locations but want to bring your accessories with you, or if you want to replace your laptop with a more powerful tablet. A docking station or Thunderbolt dock makes more sense for someone who needs a robust setup for their laptop, including multiple external monitors, webcams, stream decks, microphones and so on.

Both docks and hubs make it easy to grab your laptop off your desk for a meeting or other brief relocation and when you get back, you only need to plug in one cable to get all your accessories reconnected. Of course, if you just need to plug in one peripheral, you may not need a hub or a dock, a simple USB-C adapter, like HDMI to USB-C or USB-A to USB-C, may do the trick.

Ports

For a USB-C hub to work, it needs to connect to a port on your laptop or tablet that supports video, data and power — all of which is covered by anything listed as USB 3.0 or better, including USB4 and Thunderbolt 3 and Thunderbolt 4. The port, of course, needs to be Type-C as well. The sea of laptops out there is vast, so it’s hard to make generalizations, but modern laptops, including Windows and Apple models, should have at least one USB-C port that will suffice, and indeed, every one of our top picks for the best laptops do — including our top pick, the M4 MacBook Air.

Next, it’s a matter of finding a good USB-C hub that has the right connections for your needs. Most hubs offer some combo of HDMI, USB, SD card reader, Ethernet and 3.5 mm ports. If you have a 4K monitor and would like at least a 60Hz refresh rate, you’ll need a hub with an HDMI 2.0 port — HDMI 1.4 only goes up to 30Hz. HDMI 2.1 will handle 4K at up to 120Hz, but hubs that have adopted that standard aren’t as common just yet. Keep in mind that a low refresh rate can cause your screen to feel laggy, making your mouse appear glitchy and your webcam movements to look delayed.

Additional USB ports on these accessories are usually USB Type-A or USB Type-C. They can support data with different transfer rates, typically 5Gbps or 10Gbps. Some ports only handle passthrough power and no data, and some can do data, power and video, so it’s best to check the spec list to make sure you’re getting the support you need. Keep in mind that a hub may bill itself as a 7-in-1, but one of those ports may not be usable for anything other than charging.

Standard SD and microSD cards are useful for transferring data from cameras and the like or for offloading files from your hard drive, and many hubs have those slots. Ethernet ports may deliver faster internet speeds than your Wi-Fi and a hub with a 3.5mm jack can bring back the wired headphone connection that some laptops have ditched.

Power delivery

Nearly all of the USB-C hubs I tested support passthrough charging. That means if your laptop or tablet only charges via USB, you don’t have to take up another port on your laptop to keep everything topped up. Unlike a docking station, powering a hub is optional. The one exception is if you want to close the lid on your laptop while you work on an external monitor. Most computers will go into sleep mode if the lid is closed without power, so either the laptop or the hub will need to be plugged into the wall to prevent that from happening.

Many of the newer hubs include a 100W USB-C power delivery (PD) port, with a healthy 80 to 85 watts going to your Mac, PC, iPad or Android tablet (the hubs take a little of the juice for themselves, hence the 15-watt or so difference). In my tests, a powered USB hub ran hotter than when it wasn't passing the charge through, so I prefer to power the computer directly using its own charger. But for tablets or other devices with no extra ports, that PD option is important.

Some PD ports are also data ports — which is both good and bad. On one hand, it feels wasteful to use a perfectly good data port just for boring old electricity. But on the other hand, USB-C connections that only carry a charge are less versatile, and it makes it seem like it has more accessory hookups than it actually does.

Design

There’s surprisingly little design variation among hubs. Most look like a flat slab, a little smaller than a smartphone, and have an attached Type-C host cable. The hues range from a silvery black to a silvery gray. Some are thinner than others, some have all ports on one edge and some have ports on both sides. All of this is just to say that aesthetics probably won’t make or break your buying decision.

One variation that could tip the scales is the length of the cable. A longer one will give you more freedom as you arrange the hub on your desk, potentially even letting you hide it behind your laptop. Or you may prefer a shorter one to keep the hub neatly set beside your laptop.

How we test USB-C hubs

Before we test anything, we take a look at what’s available and how they’ve been received by shoppers, forum-goers and other publications. I became familiar with a few reputable brands when I was testing docking stations, so I looked into hubs from those companies as well. I focused on items that would help with an average day of productivity — not high-end setups or demanding gaming situations. Once I settled on a dozen or so that would make good candidates, I had them shipped to my humble office in the desert and started testing them out over the course of a few weeks.

I used an M1 MacBook Pro running MacOS Sonoma as the host computer and plugged in accessories that include a 4K Dell monitor, a ZSA USB-C ergo keyboard, a Logitech USB-A gaming mouse, an Elgato USB-C 4K webcam, a Logitech streaming light, a USB-A 3.0 Sandisk thumb drive, a USB-C Samsung T7 Shield external drive and a pair of wired headphones I got for free on an airplane (I should probably invest in some wired headphones, but the cord dangling on my chest drives me nutty so all my earbuds are wireless). I used high-end HDMI and USB-C cables to ensure that any data or connectivity issues weren’t related to my equipment.

Then I put each USB-C hub through a gamut of basic tests. I looked at what could be plugged in at once, the resolution on the monitor, data transfer speeds, the overall build quality of the hub and general usability factors, like the placement of the ports and the length of the cords. And, finally, the price-to-value ratio helped determine the best ones for a few different use cases.

Other hubs we tested

HyperDrive Next 10 Port USB-C Hub

There’s a lot to like about HyperDrive’s Next 10 Port USB-C Hub. The tethered cable is a lavish 13 inches long, the HDMI 2.0 port outputs clear and crisp 4K visuals at 60Hz and the high-speed data transfers are great. It has the coveted two USB-C data ports plus a PD port, and there’s even a headphone jack. The only thing that holds back a full-throated endorsement is the way our unit handled a streaming light. Having it on at full brightness made the webcam flicker every time. The issue went away at 75 percent brightness, but the same problem didn’t happen on any other hub I tested.

Anker 341 USB-C Hub (7-in-1)

There’s nothing wrong with the Anker 341 USB-C hub. In fact it’s a current recommendation in our iPad accessories guide and it comes at a great $35 price. It gives you two USB-A ports as well as SD slots. But at this point, a 1.4 HDMI connection, which only supports 4K resolution at 30Hz feels a little retro. There’s also just a single USB-C downstream port and the data transfer tests proved to be a touch slower than the other hubs. But if you’ve got a lower resolution monitor and don’t need more than one USB-C, you won’t be disappointed with it.

Anker 555 8-in-1

It was a tough call between the UGreen Revodoc Pro 109 and the Anker 555 8-in-1 for our top recommendation. Both have a similar port array with an HDMI, Ethernet, two USB Type A, a PD USB-C and a USB-C 3.2 on the 555. And the Anker USB-C hub is $15 cheaper. We went with the UGreen hub for its more premium build, extra USB-A port and longer cord that gives you two extra inches to work with. But if you want to save a few bucks this hub is a worthwhile pick. 

Startech 4-Port USB-C Hub (data only)

I only became aware of Startech when I started researching for this guide. The quality is decent and the yellow accents are a welcome bit of color in the otherwise very gray world of hubs. The performance is solid, with no hiccups that I encountered. The brand’s 4-Port USB-C Hub has a long cord that wraps around the hub itself, which is unique. It doesn’t bother with power delivery, which isn’t an issue if you can power your computer directly. But the four USB ports (three Type-A and one Type-C) max out at 5Gbps and there’s no HDMI connector. It goes for $46, and unfortunately for it, there are cheaper ways to get a few more USB ports for your setup.

Recent updates

January 2026: Added an honorable mention from Satechi. 

Roblox's age-verification system was designed as a response to allegations it has a child predator problem. Less than a week in, how's it going? Well, Wired reported on Tuesday that, in some cases, it's classifying children as adults and adults as children. So, not so great!

Last week, Roblox made age verification mandatory for anyone using the platform's chat feature. That process involves either submitting a facial age estimate via selfie or (optionally for anyone 13 or older) uploading a government ID check. After verifying, you can only chat with groups of players around your age.

The move came after reports grew of predators using the platform to groom young children. That, in turn, led to lawsuits from Louisiana, Texas and Kentucky. Meanwhile, Florida's attorney general has issued criminal subpoenas.

So, it might not be hyperbole to say Roblox's survival could depend on how it handles this problem. It isn't exactly off to a hot start. There are reports of a 23-year-old being misidentified as a 16- to 17-year-old. ("I don't want to be chatting with fucking children," they said.) Another report claimed an 18-year-old was placed in the 13 to 15 range.

But the problem is happening in reverse, too. Online videos show children spoofing the system into believing they were adults by using avatar images. One clever kid drew wrinkles and stubble on his face and was instantly deemed 21+. Another flashed a photo of Kurt Cobain and got an adult classification.

Roblox

In addition, Roblox posted last week that some parents were providing age checks on behalf of their children, leading to their children being placed in the 21+ category. The company said it's "working on solutions to address" that particular problem and will share more soon.

Developers with games on Roblox are upset. The platform's dev forum includes thousands of negative comments about the updates, with many of them wanting the entire update reversed. One shared a graph showing that the percentage using the chat feature dropped from around 90 percent to 36.5 percent.

Where does this leave Roblox? Well, with some developers describing games on the platform as feeling "lifeless" or like "a total ghost town," the company has its hands full. It will have to figure out how to balance its priorities of keeping predators out without breaking things for everyone else. The full report from Wired is worth a read.

Last month, Instagram began rolling out a new set of controls that allowed users to personalize the topics recommended to them by the Reels algorithm. Now, Meta is making that feature available to all English users of the app globally, along with the ability to highlight their top topics for the coming year. 

The feature begins with a selection of topics Meta's AI thinks you're interested in based on your recent activity, and has controls to remove them or add new categories. There's also a separate field for identifying what you want to see less of, and a new "build your 2026 algorithm" that allows you to highlight three topics in particular. 

Screenshot via Instagram

I don't yet have the 2026-specific control yet, but I was able to tweak some of my preferred topics and was surprised at how quickly the algorithm seemed to adjust. I added "snowboarding" as a topic and then later, when I clicked over to Reels, the first clip I saw was tagged "snowboarding." Unfortunately, the video wasn't actually about snowboarding — it featured a clip of a freestyle skiing event — so Meta's systems might still need a little work at classifying the actual content. But given how sensitive the Reels algorithm can be, it's nice to have a way of opting out of interests even if you briefly went down a  rabbit hole. 

The feature won't, however, let you ask to see fewer ads. I tried to add "ads" to my "what you want to see less of" list and received an error. "No results found. Try another topic or interest." I was able to successfully add "sponsored content" and "AI" to my "see less" list, though I'm pretty sure the latter will affect videos about AI rather than those made with the help of it.

The Senate has passed the Disrupt Explicit Forged Images and Non-Consensual Edits (DEFIANCE ) Act with unanimous consent, according to the bill’s co-sponsor Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL). The bill lets the subjects of nonconsensual, sexually explicit deepfakes take civil action against the people who create and host them.

Deepfakes are a known issue online, but without the proper protections, easy access to AI-powered image and video generation tools has made it possible for anyone to create compromising content using another person's likeness. This has become a particular problem on X, where the integration of Grok, the AI assistant created by X's parent company xAI, makes it possible for anyone to turn the content of another person's post into an image-generating prompt. Over the last month, that's allowed users to create sexually explicit images of children, just by replying to a post with @grok and a request. 

In response, Ofcom, the UK's media regulator, has already opened an investigation into X for potentially violating the Online Safety Act. The chatbot has also been outright blocked in Malaysia and Indonesia. The DEFIANCE Act won't prevent Grok or other AI tools from generating nonconsensual deepfakes, but it would make creating or hosting that content potentially very expensive for anyone on the receiving end of a lawsuit.

The Senate passed an earlier version of the DEFIANCE Act in 2024, but it stalled in the House. Given the urgency of Grok's deepfake problem, the hope is this new version of the bill won't see the same resistance. Congress passed an earlier piece of deepfake regulation last year, the Take It Down Act, with bipartisan support. That bill was focused on the companies who host nonconsensual, sexually explicit content, rather than the people exploited by it.

Several of Meta's VR studios have been affected by the company's metaverse-focused layoffs. The company has shuttered three of its VR studios, including Armature, Sanzaru and Twisted Pixel. VR fitness app Supernatural will no longer be updated with fresh content.

Employees at Twisted Pixel, which released Marvel's Deadpool VR in November, and Sanzaru, known for Asgard's Wrath, posted on social media about the closures. Bloomberg reported that Armature, which brought Resident Evil 4 to Quest back in 2021 has also closed and that the popular VR fitness app Supernatural will no longer be updated with fresh content, though the current version will continue to be supported. 

A spokesperson for Meta confirmed the closures. "We said last month that we were shifting some of our investment from Metaverse toward Wearables," the spokesperson said in a statement to Engadget. "This is part of that effort, and we plan to reinvest the savings to support the growth of wearables this year."

The cuts raise questions about Meta's commitment to supporting a VR ecosystem it has invested heavily in. The company hasn't announced any new VR headsets since the Quest 3S in 2024, and last month it "paused" planned Horizon OS headsets from Asus and Lenovo. Now, it's also pulling back on in-house game development too. 

Meta is claiming, internally at least, that it remains committed to supporting the industry. “These changes do not mean we are moving away from video games,” Oculus Studios director Tamara Sciamanna wrote in the memo reported by Bloomberg. "With this change we are shifting our investment to focus on our third-party developers and partners to ensure long-term sustainability.”

Have a tip for Karissa? You can reach her by email, on X, Bluesky, Threads, or send a message to @karissabe.51 to chat confidentially on Signal.

Waymo, Alphabet's self-driving car company, tested its autonomous vehicles in New York City in 2025, and as part of proposed legislation from New York Governor Kathy Hochul, the company could soon offer its services across the state, Wired reports.

Governor Hochul's proposed legislation was formally announced during a State of the State address covering policy proposals for the upcoming year. The new law, if passed, would loosen the state's restrictions on self-driving car companies by forming a pilot program that would allow for "the limited deployment of commercial for-hire autonomous passenger vehicles outside New York City." Applicants to the pilot program would need to demonstrate that they have "local support for [autonomous vehicle] deployment" and prove their "adherence to the highest possible safety standards" to be considered.

As a company with presumably good odds of being approved, Waymo supports the legislation. "Governor Hochul’s proposal to legalize fully autonomous vehicles is a transformative moment for New York's transportation system," Waymo's Head of Global Public Policy Justin Kintz said in a statement. "With the Governor’s leadership, New York has the opportunity to pair its investments in slower speeds, better traffic enforcement, and first-in-the-nation congestion management strategies with Waymo’s demonstrably safe technology, creating a future where living in New York is safer, easier, and more accessible."

Waymo already has commercial robotaxi services in select cities in California, Texas and Georgia, offered on its own or in partnership with Uber. The company announced plans to expand in Texas and Florida late last year, and is already committed to offering service in Las Vegas, San Diego and Detroit in 2026. Wired reports Waymo spent over $370,000 lobbying regulators in New York about telecommunications and transportation issues in 2025, and based on today's announcement, it appears those efforts are paying off.

Taiwanese officials have issued an arrest warrant for OnePlus CEO Pete Lau on allegations of illegally employing workers in Taiwan. Two Taiwanese citizens who worked for Lau have also been indicted. The China-based smartphone company has been accused of illegally recruiting more than 70 engineers from Taiwan. 

Members of the Shilin District Prosecutors Office claim that OnePlus reportedly set up a shell company in Hong Kong with a distinct name, then launched a branch in Taiwan in 2015 without government approval. The branch reportedly worked on research and development for OnePlus mobile phones. Taiwanese officials claim these actions by OnePlus violated the Cross-Strait Act, which is designed as a guide for relations between Taiwan and mainland China. One of the act’s provisions requires Chinese companies to obtain permission from the Taiwanese government to hire workers from Taiwan.

The second season of Battlefield 6 is being pushed back based on “community feedback.” On Tuesday, EA and Battlefield Studios said Season 2 will now arrive on February 17.

Season 2 of Battlefield 6 had previously been scheduled for January 20, so we're looking at a delay of almost a month. As a consolation, the team is extending Season 1 through the start of the next season.

"During our ongoing development, we've continued to review community feedback and, in order to keep our promise, determined that our best path forward is to extend Season 1 and give ourselves extra time to further polish and refine Season 2," EA wrote in a blog post.

The game came out of the gates hot following its October launch, selling over seven million copies over its first three days. But recent Steam reviews provide a glimpse into the "community feedback" that sparked the delay. "The Battle Pass is extremely predatory and very FOMO, while the season itself doesn't give a lot to offer," one review with over 450 “helpful” votes said. They called out the title for having "so much FOMO stuff that it becomes more stressful than fun."

The Season 1 extension will include some bonus content. The Frostfire Bonus Path will give “players the chance to unlock new free and premium customization rewards, including a Weapon Package and a Soldier Skin, as well as XP Boosts, by advancing through the tiers of the Frostfire Bonus Path." The extension update arrives on January 20.

NBA League Pass, the streaming service that lets you catch hundreds of out-of-market NBA games, is on sale right now for up to 55 percent off. The League Pass Premium subscription is on sale for $75, down from $160, while League Pass Standard is marked down to $50 from $110. We're almost halfway through the season at this point, so it makes sense for a service like League Pass to start offering some discounts.

The Standard plan includes commercials and support for only one device at a time, while the Premium tier offers no commercials, in-arena streams during breaks in the game, offline viewing of full games and concurrent streams on up to three devices at once.

Last year, League Pass added multiview, which allows you to view up to four games at once on a single screen. This is included across both subscription tiers. The service also added a smart rewind tool that automatically selects key highlights and plays from each game.

Outside the US and Canada, League Pass carries every single NBA game live, but within these countries a bevy of restrictions apply. In the US, any games being shown on your regional sports network will be blacked out as the service is meant for out-of-market games only. Also, any nationally broadcast games will not be available live, but instead will be available for on-demand viewing at 6AM ET the following day. The service is only for regular-season games.

If you're an avid NBA fan that follows multiple teams then the League Pass almost certainly carries dozens of games you can watch even with the restrictions in the US. Subscribers can get a list of applicable blackouts by entering their ZIP code before signing up.

Follow @EngadgetDeals on X for the latest tech deals and buying advice.

If you follow Anthropic, you're probably familiar with Claude Code. Since the fall of 2024, the company has been training its AI models to use and navigate computers like a human would, and the coding agent has been the most practical expression of that work, giving developers a way to automate rote programming tasks. Starting today, Anthropic is giving regular people a way to take advantage of those capabilities, with the release of a new preview feature called Claude Cowork.

The company is billing Cowork as "a simpler way for anyone — not just developers — to work with Claude." After you give the system access to a folder on your computer, it can read, edit or create new files in that folder on your behalf.

Anthropic gives a few different example use cases for Cowork. For instance, you could ask Claude to organize your downloads folder, telling it to rename the files contained within to something that's easier to parse at a glance. Another example: you could use Claude to turn screenshots of receipts and invoices into a spreadsheet for tracking expenses. Cowork can also navigate websites — provided you install Claude’s Chrome plugin — and make can use Anthropic's Connectors framework to access third-party apps like Canva.

"Cowork is designed to make using Claude for new work as simple as possible. You don’t need to keep manually providing context or converting Claude’s outputs into the right format," the company said. "Nor do you have to wait for Claude to finish before offering further ideas or feedback: you can queue up tasks and let Claude work through them in parallel."         

If the idea of granting Claude access to your computer sounds ill-advised, Anthropic says Claude "can’t read or edit anything you don’t give it explicit access to." However, the company does note the system can "take potentially destructive actions," such as deleting a file that is important to you or misinterpreting your instructions. For that reason, Anthropic suggests it's best to give "very clear" guidance to Claude.   

Anthropic isn’t the first to offer a computer agent. Microsoft, for example, has been pushing Copilot hard for nearly three years, despite seemingly limited adoption. For Anthropic, the challenge will be convincing people these tools are useful where others have failed. The fact Claude Code has been universally loved by programmers may make that task easier.

For now, Anthropic is giving users of its pricey Claude Max subscription first access to the preview. If you want to try Cowork for yourself, you'll also need a Mac with the Claude macOS app installed. For everyone else, you’ll need to join a wait list.    

As we expected, Meta has begun laying off more than 1,000 employees from its Reality Labs division, which focused on virtual reality and metaverse products, Bloomberg reports. The company will refocus on developing wearables, like its recent batch of AI-powered Ray-Ban smart glasses, according to a memo from CTO Andrew Bosworth.

The news isn’t too surprising. Reality Labs has lost more than $70 billion since the beginning of 2021, and while Meta has done a solid job of delivering desirable consumer VR headsets and smart glasses, that business hasn’t been nearly profitable enough to justify the cost. And of course, Mark Zuckerberg’s huge gamble on the metaverse, which involved renaming the company from Facebook to Meta in 2021, has gone nowhere.

According to Bloomberg, Meta’s metaverse plans will now focus on mobile devices, which could mean a combination of its future wearables as well as existing mobile apps. “With the larger potential user base and the fastest growth rate today, we are shifting teams and resources almost exclusively to mobile to continue to accelerate adoption there,” Bosworth wrote in a memo to staff this morning.

Meta isn’t dumping its VR headset plans entirely, but according to Bosworth the VR divion will “operate as a leaner, flatter organization with a more focused road map to maximize long-term sustainability.” Basically, don’t expect a Quest 3 follow-up anytime soon.

E Ink tablet maker reMarkable is running a bundle deal right now that can save you between $80 and $90 when buying a reMarkable 2 along with a Marker stylus and a folio case. The savings vary depending on the bundle you configure, but this can bring your out-the-door cost down to $449 from $529 for the tablet, Marker stylus and polymer weave book folio.

The company also sells a newer stylus called Marker Plus that lets you erase by flipping it around just like a real pencil, but that will cost you an extra $50. If you’ve been eyeing a dedicated writing tablet for work, school or just jotting down notes without the distraction of endless apps, this bundle deal is an ideal opportunity to pick one up.

The reMarkable 2 earned our top pick for best e-ink tablet. In our review, we said the tablet was prettier than ever with a 10.3-inch display and a handsome aluminum frame. The tablet is only 4.7mm thick and weighs less than a pound, helping it feel lean and portable.

The display can detect over 4,000 different levels of pressure with the Marker stylus, allowing for precise shading when sketching and the latency between the stylus and the screen is just 21ms. reMarkable fitted the display with a resin layer on top of the glass to make writing on it feel more realistic. We didn't think this passed muster, but we found writing on it was a joy nonetheless.

The tablet supports PDFs and ePUBs, which can be added via the companion mobile app or a desktop computer. You can also pair the reMarkable 2 with Google Drive, Microsoft OneDrive or Dropbox to access files. The battery is rated for an impressive two weeks between charges.

The reMarkable Paper Pro, a higher-end model with a richer feature set like a full color display and a built-in reading light, is our pick for best premium e-ink tablet. The pricier tablet also has bundle deals right now with savings up to $80 depending on configuration.

Follow @EngadgetDeals on X for the latest tech deals and buying advice.

Anker is going up against Tesla in the home battery backup segment with Solix E10 that promises "whole-home backup" at an affordable price. The system delivers enough power to handle heavy-duty air conditioners and other high-power appliances in the event of a blackout. It also claims that the E10 supports DIY-friendly installation thanks to the stackable, plug-and-play design. 

Each Anker Solix E10 unit can deliver up to 37.2kW of surge power and stacking two boosts that to 66kW. It also comes with a "turbo output" mode that can output 10kW per unit for 90 minutes maximum. That level of power, along with the minimal 20ms auto-switch time (from grid to battery), means you may not even notice if the power grid goes down. 

Anker

For large installations, you can stack up to three E10 units to boost power to 90kWh, enough to provide whole home backup for up to 15 days (average US consumption is 30kWh per day so that might be stretching it). If that's not enough, you can add Anker's tri-fuel Solix Smart Generator 5500 that runs on gasoline, propane or natural gas and charges the E10 batteries via DC for maximum efficiency. The E10 can also handle up to 9kW of input from solar panels, or 27kW with three units. 

Anker's Solix E10 can be purchased with several optional components. The Power Dock allows auto switching from grid power in the even of an outage in 20 milliseconds, while the Smart Inlet Box provides a manual switchover option. The latter lets you charge the E10 batteries from the grid with existing solar systems to save money. 

In the event of a wild storm, units are weatherproof thanks to the all-metal enclosures and can be operated in temperatures ranging from -4 to 131 degrees Fahrenheit.

As for pricing, the Solix E10 costs $4,299 by itself, $4,599 with the Smart Inlet Box, $5,799 with the Solix Power Dock and $7,399 with the Solix Power Dock and Smart Generator. Adding an extra E10 unit would boost the latter price to around $10,000. However, Anker claims lower installation costs for the Solix E10 than Tesla and other manufacturers due to its modular nature and says it's so intuitive that some buyers could do a DIY installation. The Solix E10 is now available for pre-order.

Apple has been putting more onus on its services for the past several years — the company makes tens of billions of dollars in revenue from that side of the business, which it claimed had a record year in 2025. Apple is nudging a little more in that direction with a new subscription bundle called Apple Creator Studio.

This allows creators to pay a single fee ($13 per month or $129 per year) to use Final Cut Pro, Logic Pro, Pixelmator Pro, Motion, Compressor and MainStage. Subscribers will get access to “premium content” in Pages, Keynote and Numbers (as well as in Freeform later this year). Of course, there are AI features too. Apple Creator Studio will be available starting on January 28 and you can try it out at no cost through a one-month free trial.

College students and educators can subscribe to Apple Creator Studio for $3 per month or $30 per year. Up to six people can access all of the plan’s features if one person in a Family Sharing group subscribes.

Apple noted that Final Cut Pro, Pixelmator Pro, Logic Pro, Motion, Compressor and MainStage will still be available as one-time purchases for Mac through the Mac App Store. Given that those can be pretty pricy (going up to $300 for Final Cut Pro), the subscription could be enticing to many burgeoning creators.

This seems like Apple’s attempt to muscle in on Adobe’s territory, especially now that it’s bringing AI features to many of these apps. Adding new features to productivity apps like Numbers and Keynote means Apple’s taking a shot at the likes of Microsoft 365 Copilot (yeeeeah, that’s what Office is called now) and Google Workspace as well.

On Mac and iPad, Final Cut Pro has a new feature called Beat Detection. Apple suggests this makes “editing video to the rhythm of music fast and fun.” It uses an AI model from Logic Pro to analyze music tracks and display a Beat Grid. The idea here is to visualize song parts, beats and bars to help editors align their cuts with the music.

Apple

An AI-powered Montage Maker tool can stitch together “a dynamic video based on the best visual moments within the footage.” You’ll be able to tweak these montages and use an Auto Crop tool to reframe the clip into a vertical format to make it a better fit for social media. Final Cut Pro has transcript and visual search functions too.

Logic Pro, MainStage, Pixelmator Pro (which is coming to iPad with Apple Pencil support) and Motion will all have AI-powered features as well. As you might expect, you’ll need an Apple Intelligence-capable device to use some of these.

Apple is also introducing something called the Content Hub. This media library includes “curated, high-quality photos, graphics and illustrations.”

As for Keynote, Pages, and Numbers, you’ll be able to access premium templates and themes in those otherwise-free apps with a Apple Creator Studio plan. Subscribers will be able to try beta versions of new features, such as a way to generate a draft of a Keynote presentation text based on an outline, and a Magic Fill tool to generate formulas and fill in tables in Numbers.

Tesla's 2026 Model Y is now available on the company's site and it comes with a new (and old) option: a seven-seat version via a third row. The extra seating costs $2,500 and is only available if you order the Premium All-Wheel-Drive Long Range model. Tesla first teased the option last year via an email to prospective buyers with the promise of "seating for up to seven and enough room for everyone's gear," Electrek reported at the time. 

The new seats appear to be designed mainly for children as they don't offer much legroom, according to images on Tesla's configurator. Tesla notes that the seven-seat interior "features fold-flat second-row and third-row seats," though it's not clear if those seats fold down electrically like the second row. 

Tesla

Tesla is facing increased competition, especially in the crossover/SUV category, and saw another sales decline last quarter. The company previously sold a seven-seat version of the Model Y in the US for a short time before it was refreshed early last year. Since then, though, it has only been available with five seats. Tesla launched a six-seat "Model YL" version in China in August 2025 with a six-inch wheelbase extension that the US model lacks. Elon Musk said that model would come to the US market in late 2026 or maybe "never." 

Otherwise, changes to the Model Y lineup are minor and confined to the Premium version. Those include a 20-inch dark-grey "Helix" "wheel option, a new black headliner, a bigger, higher-resolution 16-inch display and darker rear badging. 

Resident Evil Requiem, the first new mainline entry in the series since 2021’s Resident Evil Village, is just over a month away and Capcom is ready to share more details. The publisher will air a Resident Evil Showcase on January 15 at 5PM ET. You’ll be able to watch it on Twitch and YouTube (in English and Japanese).

The stream will run for around 12 minutes. It will feature “all the latest info on Resident Evil Requiem,” which will almost certainly include some gameplay ahead of it hitting PS5, Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo Switch 2 and Steam on February 27. Capcom might have more in store, though. An announcement for the showcase on the Resident Evil website states that, “Some of the games included in the show aren't suitable for children.”

That suggests the company will share details about other RE titles. It may just be a case of Capcom offering a reminder that it’s also bringing ports of Resident Evil 7 and Village to Switch 2 on February 27. Still, there’s a chance we’ll hear news of more ports. There’s also the possibility that we get a glimpse of the next Resident Evil movie, a reboot of the series from Barbarian and Weapons filmmaker Zack Cregger that’s set to hit theaters in September. 

We aren't even two weeks into the new year and Ubisoft is already looking to carry out its second round of layoffs in 2026. The company has informed workers at Massive Entertainment and Ubisoft Stockholm of a "proposed organizational restructure" that could affect around 55 roles across its two Swedish studios. Workers at Massive (the developer of The Division series, Star Wars Outlaws and Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora) were offered voluntary buyouts late last year as part of Ubisoft's ongoing cost-cutting efforts.

"This restructure follows the completion of the Voluntary Leave Program launched during the fall of 2025, a finalized long-term roadmap and a completed staffing and appointment process, which together have provided clearer visibility into the structure and capacity required to support the two studios’ work and sustainably over time," Ubisoft told IGN in a statement. "These proposed changes are forward-looking and structural, they are not related to individual performance, recent deliveries or the quality of the work produced by the teams."

Ubisoft claims that the "long-term direction for the studios remains unchanged." Massive will continue working on projects that include The Division 3. Ubisoft Stockholm, meanwhile, is beavering away on a new franchise that's still under wraps for now. That project is harnessing the studio's Ubisoft Scalar cloud computing tech, according to Game Developer.

Earlier in January, the company said it was shutting down Ubisoft Halifax, resulting in the loss of 71 jobs. Workers at that studio unionized just 16 days earlier. Ubisoft said its decision was part of "company-wide actions to streamline operations."

Most Apple products are pretty expensive, but some of the most affordable (and useful) ones are AirTags. The Bluetooth trackers are priced pretty reasonably even when not on sale, but they can be a steal if you can get them on a discount — like right now. A four pack of AirTags is on sale for $65 at Amazon, which is only a few dollars more than the record-low price we saw during Black Friday this year.

AirTags can be useful for people who travel frequently, helping you to keep track of essentials like your passport as well as a way to keep tabs on luggage while you're on the go. If you do purchase some AirTags, we have some recommendations for useful accessories to go along with them, such as different styles of cases to best attach the trackers to different types of items. These are worth looking over and adding to your shopping cart in order to make the most of the product. 

AirTags have an IP67 rating for water and dust resistance and their replaceable batteries should last for about a year. They can also support Precision Finding, which gives more exact directions to a lost item, when paired with most models after the iPhone 11. Up to five people can share an AirTag's location, which is helpful for families or large travel groups. 

Follow @EngadgetDeals on X for the latest tech deals and buying advice.

Insta360, a company most known for its action cameras, has released two new AI-powered 4K webcams, the Link 2 Pro and Link 2C Pro, aimed at creators, educators and remote professionals. The company's goal with these models is "a webcam experience that looks and sounds remarkably close to a professional camera and microphone setup."

Both models use a larger 1/1.3-inch sensor with dual native ISO for improved low-light performance over the previous generation, and both support HDR. Insta360 says the audio on both models leverages beamforming technology as well as AI noise canceling to help voices sound clearer in noisy environments. Users can choose from four pickup modes designed for different sound sources like "Focus" that isolates a single voice or "Wide" if there are multiple speakers.

Video resolution on both models tops out 4K at 30 fps, and Insta360 says its updated True Focus system uses phase-detection autofocus to lock onto subjects, keeping them in focus while they move. There's also a "Natural Bokeh" mode meant to mimic the shallow depth-of-field look of a traditional DSLR camera, for users who enjoy that look.

As for what sets them apart, the Link 2 Pro sports a 2-axis gimbal for AI-assisted tracking, which offers single or group-mode framing, while the Link 2C Pro is static and designed for fixed-position setups. Both models offer gesture control features, allowing users to control certain functions hands-free. These include starting or stopping tracking and zooming in or out. Both models also include a magnetic mount for easy placement on metal surfaces.

Several different modes are offered that aid in teaching and presenting. Among them are Smart Whiteboard mode, which will automatically detect a user's whiteboard and keep it clearly in frame, and DeskView mode, which captures an overhead view of a user's desk. There's also a green screen mode, a portrait mode and support for virtual backgrounds.

The new webcams also support Insta360 InSight, the company's subscription AI-powered meeting assistant. InSight can record meetings, generate transcripts, create summaries and more.

The Link 2 Pro will retail for $250 while the Link 2C Pro will go for $200. Both models are available for purchase now.

Apple and Google have confirmed that Gemini’s models power the new version of Siri and other generative AI features. CNBC broke the news, but Apple and Google soon followed up with a lengthy joint statement. Here’s part of it: “Apple determined that Google’s Al technology provides the most capable foundation for Apple Foundation Models… Apple Intelligence will continue to run on Apple devices and Private Cloud Compute, while maintaining Apple’s industry-leading privacy standards.”

In June, it was reported that Apple was considering partnerships with OpenAI and Anthropic for Siri (the voice assistant can currently tap ChatGPT for certain queries as part of Apple Intelligence). Two months later, Google emerged as a contender. Another report suggested Apple might build the new Siri using a custom version of Gemini — and that it would pay Google around $1 billion a year for the privilege. However, no official deal numbers were shared.

It’s also notable that current iPhones have direct access to OpenAI’s ChatGPT. But how long for?

— Mat Smith

The other big stories this morning

• Engadget Podcast: Best of CES 2026 and a chat with Pebble’s founder

• Meta closes 550,000 accounts to comply with Australia’s kids social media ban

• The best winter tech to get you through the coldest months

• Meta appoints ex-Trump and Bush official as its new president and vice chair

Netflix wins 7 awards at the Golden Globes

Adolescence and KPop Demon Hunters picked up several each.

Netflix

Netflix’s hit show Adolescence received four awards, including best limited or anthology series. It also won best actor (Stephen Graham), supporting actor (Owen Cooper) and supporting actress (Erin Doherty) in a miniseries or television film.

KPop Demon Hunters — which my nieces refuse to stop talking about — won best animated feature and best original song. “I just want to say this award goes to people who have had doors closed on them, and I can confidently say rejection is redirection. So never give up.”

It’s not all good news. Netflix also won best performance in stand-up comedy on television for Ricky Gervais: Mortality. Apple and HBO Max each won three, and Hulu got one award on the night.

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NASA makes final preparations for its first crewed moon mission in over 50 years

The agency is targeting a February launch date for Artemis 2.

A few years ago, NASA announced it was pushing the Artemis 2 mission back to April 2026. The agency now says it could launch as early as February. NASA is finalizing preparations for the mission and will soon roll out the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket and the Orion spacecraft to the launch pad at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

Artemis 2 is the first crewed mission to the moon since the Apollo program’s final flight in 1972. The 10-day mission will have four astronauts, who’ll test whether Orion’s critical life-support systems can sustain human passengers on future longer-duration missions. They will first orbit the Earth twice before making their way 4,700 miles beyond the far side of the moon.

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Lego’s first Pokémon sets are now available for pre-order

Pikachu, Eevee, Venusaur, Charizard and Blastoise will ship February 27.

Lego

Pre-orders for the first three Lego-Pokémon kits are open now. One of the debut pocket monsters is, of course, Pikachu. You can build the 2,050-piece kit to show Pikachu either at rest or leaping out of an open Poké Ball into battle. It costs $200.

There’s also a 587-piece model of Eevee, for $60. On the bigger side is a set featuring a trio of Pokémon: Venusaur, Charizard and Blastoise. This kit has 6,838 pieces and can show the group together in battle formation or separately in their own mini environments. It retails for $650 and is a bit much.

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