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When you need three or more phone lines with features that’ll satisfy every member of your family, the options can start to get overwhelming. Do you look for the best perks, like streaming video and hotspot data? Does everyone need every feature? And do you need to spend a fortune every month to make each person happy? We’ve picked the best plans from T-Mobile and Verizon (AT&T’s plans didn’t make the cut) to consider when you’re switching from another plan or adding family members to an account. MOBILE DEALS OF THE WEEK Deals are selected by the CNET Group commerce team, and may be unrelated to this article. Best Family Phone Plans for 2025 Best family phone plans for 2025 Best family plan for value Best plan for perks Runner-up plan for perks Best family phone plans compared Recent updates Factors to consider Know your deals and discounts How we test Family phone plan FAQ Best family phone plans for 2025 Pros T-Mobile’s 5G network is generally robust Plan includes 50GB of high-speed data in the US Phone can be used as a hotspot Unlimited calls, texts and data in Canada and Mexico Can have up to six lines on an account Third line free is a better deal than Essentials Saver Cons Data in Canada and Mexico limited to very slow 2G speeds Hotspot is limited to 3G speeds No five-year price guarantee Everyone must be on the same plan Taxes and fees aren’t included in monthly cost If you compare the specifics of T-Mobile’s Essentials and Essentials Saver plans, you might think the company forgot to update one or the other — they’re Essential-ly the same. With both, you get 50GB of fast Premium 5G data (depending on the network capabilities in your area), which drops to 3G speeds of still-unlimited data after that allotment is used up. You can use your phone as a mobile hotspot with unlimited data, but only at 3G speeds and restricted to paltry 2G speeds when you’re in Canada or Mexico. In those two countries, calls, text and data are unlimited, while calls made from around 215 other countries are charged at 25 cents a minute. The Essentials plan also doesn’t include perks such as streaming video from Netflix or Apple TV Plus, nor the five-year price guarantee found on the Experience More and Experience Beyond plans. T-Satellite service is also not included, though it can be added for $10 a month when it launches on July 23. Where Essentials comes out ahead of Essentials Saver is the number of lines you can have on your account. Essentials Saver is limited to just three, but Essentials can accommodate six lines. In fact, a trio of people will save money going with Essentials due to a free third-line deal, paying $90 a month (plus taxes and fees) for a $10 savings over Essentials Saver. However, if you need just one or two lines, Essentials Saver is still the better deal. A single line on Saver costs $50 a month, compared with $60 for the same features on Essentials, and two lines on Saver cost $80 a month, compared with $90 for Essentials. Why we like it You get a solid level of basic phone service, with unlimited calls, texts and data, 50GB of premium higher-speed data and better pricing than the Essentials Saver plan for three or more lines (up to six). Who it’s best for Essentials is great for a cost-conscious family of three or more that wants unlimited everything, even at some slower speeds. Who shouldn’t get it This plan isn’t for people who want features such as larger amounts of premium data, regular hotspot access or included perks, or folks who need to set up a family or group with three or more lines. Customer service options • Online: T-Mobile• Phone: 1-855-315-6244• Store: Store locator• App: T-Life app Pros Verizon’s 4G LTE network is a strong backbone Can still get perks Can mix and match plans Three-year price guarantee Cons No access to Verizon’s fastest 5G networks No hotspot data included Verizon’s Unlimited Welcome sounds like the happiest greeter in your favorite store or restaurant. And if you’re looking for a bare-bones plan with just the basics, it has some compelling aspects. At the top of that list is how modular Verizon’s plans are. Each person on an account can pick a different plan that suits them (unlike T-Mobile and AT&T, which require everyone to share the same plan at this relative entry level). And whereas other providers reserve perks such as streaming services for the higher-tier plans, you can add them piecemeal to customize what you need — typically for $10 a month for each, depending on the service. That applies to mobile hotspot data: By itself, the plan offers no way to wirelessly share your cellular connection from your phone, but for an additional $10, you can add 100GB of data. International options include unlimited talk and text in Canada and Mexico and 2GB of high-speed data before ratcheting down to unlimited data at 3G speeds. However, the Unlimited Welcome plan isn’t as welcome when it comes to 5G data speeds. It can only tap into regular low-band 5G. Even if you had a capable device and were within range of a midband or millimeter wave 5G signal, you wouldn’t be able to take advantage of Verizon’s fastest 5G Ultra Wideband (“5G UW” or “5G UWB”) speeds. Why we like it There’s no set amount of high-speed data before a line is throttled, so you don’t need to keep an eye on your data usage — but at the same time, this plan only supports 5G, not 5G Ultra Wideband. We also like that each person on a Verizon account can have their own plan with different perks. In a family, for example, an adult could add hotspot data (for an extra $10), but it can be left off for a child who doesn’t need it, even if

Here are hints and the answers for the NYT Connections: Sports Edition puzzle for Aug. 5, No. 316 CNET editor Gael Fashingbauer Cooper, a journalist and pop-culture junkie, is co-author of “Whatever Happened to Pudding Pops? The Lost Toys, Tastes and Trends of the ’70s and ’80s,” as well as “The Totally Sweet ’90s.” She’s been a journalist since 1989, working at Mpls.St.Paul Magazine, Twin Cities Sidewalk, the Minneapolis Star Tribune, and NBC News Digital. She’s Gen X in birthdate, word and deed. If Marathon candy bars ever come back, she’ll be first in line. Expertise Breaking news, entertainment, lifestyle, travel, food, shopping and deals, product reviews, money and finance, video games, pets, history, books, technology history, and generational studies Credentials Co-author of two Gen X pop-culture encyclopedia for Penguin Books. Won “Headline Writer of the Year”​ award for 2017, 2014 and 2013 from the American Copy Editors Society. Won first place in headline writing from the 2013 Society for Features Journalism. Looking for the most recent regular Connections answers? Click here for today’s Connections hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle and Strands puzzles. Lots of logos in today’s Connections: Sports Edition. So if you know team identities by their graphics, you might ace this one. Read on for hints and the answers. Connections: Sports Edition is out of beta now, making its debut on Super Bowl Sunday, Feb. 9. That’s a sign that the game has earned enough loyal players that The Athletic, the subscription-based sports journalism site owned by the Times, will continue to publish it. It doesn’t show up in the NYT Games app but now appears in The Athletic’s own app. Or you can continue to play it for free online.   Read more: NYT Connections: Sports Edition Puzzle Comes Out of Beta Hints for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups Here are four hints for the groupings in today’s Connections: Sports Edition puzzle, ranked from the easiest yellow group to the tough (and sometimes bizarre) purple group. Yellow group hint: Ante up! Green group hint: Football team group. Blue group hint: Halloween color. Purple group hint: Not finishing, but… Answers for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups Yellow group: Hands in poker. Green group: NFC West teams. Blue group: Teams that wear orange. Purple group: Starting ____. Read more: Wordle Cheat Sheet: Here Are the Most Popular Letters Used in English Words What are today’s Connections: Sports Edition answers? The completed NYT Connections: Sports Edition for Aug. 5, 2025. NYT/Screenshot by CNET The yellow words in today’s Connections The theme is hands in poker. The four answers are flush, full house, straight and two pair. The green words in today’s Connections The theme is NFC West teams. The four answers are 49ers, Cardinals, Rams and Seahawks. The blue words in today’s Connections The theme is teams that wear orange. The four answers are Bengals, Syracuse, Tennessee and Texas. The purple words in today’s Connections The theme is starting ____. The four answers are 5, blocks, lineup and pitcher. Quick tips for Connections: Sports Edition 1. Don’t grab for the easiest group. For each word, think about other sports categories it might fit in — is this a word that can be used in football, or to describe scoring options? 2. Second meanings are important. The puzzle loves to use last names and even college names that mean other things, to fool you into thinking they are words, not names. 3. And the opposite is also true. Words like HURTS might seem like a regular word, but it’s also the last name of at least one pro athlete. Read More

Mark your calendar — you can catch Mercury, Venus, Jupiter, Saturn, Neptune and Uranus in the sky at the same time. Fresh off the excitement of the Perseids meteor shower is a chance to see six planets lined up in the sky at once. These events, colloquially known as planet parades, only occur about once or twice a year, with the most recent one in February showing off all seven planets in our solar system at once. The next one will feature six of our closest celestial neighbors, and the event starts on Aug. 20.  The six planets sharing the sky will be Mercury, Venus, Jupiter, Saturn, Neptune and Uranus. Mars will technically be there at the beginning of the night, but it dips below the horizon right after sunset, so it won’t be visible when all of the others are. Of those, Mercury, Venus and Jupiter will be visible to the naked eye, while the others will require high-powered binoculars or, preferably, a telescope.  Even though they’re spread out across the eastern and southern skies, the planets pair up with this one, making many of them pretty easy to find if you know what to look for. From east to west, here’s where each one will be.  Mercury – Eastern sky near the Cancer constellation. It’ll pop over the horizon just before sunrise, so you’ll have limited time to view it before the sun comes up and obfuscates it.  Venus – At the lower tip of the Gemini constellation in the eastern sky, a couple of hours before sunrise.  Jupiter – Will be near Venus, also in the Gemini constellation. It rises about an hour before Venus does.  Uranus – Will be near the upper tip of Taurus, rising after midnight. This one will require some magnification. If you see Pleiades, a cluster of stars at the upper tip of Taurus, you’ve gone too far upward. Saturn and Neptune – These two are right next to each other and will be sitting between the Pisces and Cetus constellations in the southern skies. Neptune will be closer to Pisces while Saturn will be closer to Cetus.  Since it takes a long time for planets to move through the night sky, Aug. 20 is the starting point, and it’ll run through the rest of the month. Once September hits, Mercury will be too close to the sun, which will obscure it. From that point, there will be a five-planet parade for a while until Venus sinks below the horizon in early October. So, in all, you’ll have a chance to see at least five planets for over a month.  Will the planet parade be visible from my region? Yes. We double checked Stellarium’s sky map from a variety of locations across the country, and everything above will be applicable everywhere in the continental US. Per Starwalk, the parade will also be visible in other parts of the world after the following dates for about the same amount of time (one to two weeks).  Abu Dhabi – Aug. 9 Athens, Beijing, Berlin, Tokyo and London – Aug. 10 Mumbai and Hong Kong – Aug. 11 Reykjavik, São Paulo and Sydney – Aug. 12 The planets will move based on date, though. The above locations are where they’ll be around Aug. 20, but if you’re looking a week or so later, they’ll be in the same general area, but will shift to a slightly different part of the sky.  Will I need any special equipment? Yes. Neptune and Uranus, especially, will require some sort of magnification to see. We recommend a telescope, but high-powered binoculars may work if the sky is dark enough. Saturn is also difficult to see without magnification, so you’ll want it for that too. Jupiter, Venus, and Mercury should be visible on their own with the naked eye.  We also recommend taking a trip out to the country, as light pollution from suburbs and cities can make it even more difficult to see Neptune and Uranus. The moon will be out as well, which may make Venus, Jupiter, and Mercury harder to see. Other factors like weather may also make it more difficult to see all of them. If you’re lucky, you may see a few shooting stars at the tail end of Perseids as well. Read More

OpenAI has given itself a dual mandate. On the one hand, it’s a tech giant rooted in products, including of course ChatGPT, which people around the world reportedly send 2.5 billion requests to each day. But its original mission is to serve as a research lab that will not only create “artificial general intelligence” but ensure that it benefits all of humanity.  My colleague Will Douglas Heaven recently sat down for an exclusive conversation with the two figures at OpenAI most responsible for pursuing the latter ambitions: chief research officer Mark Chen and chief scientist Jakub Pachocki. If you haven’t already, you must read his piece. As Will points out, there were two recent wins for OpenAI in its efforts to build AI that outcompetes humans. Its models took second place at a top-level coding competition and—alongside those from Google DeepMind—achieved gold-medal-level results in the 2025 International Math Olympiad. People who believe that AI doesn’t pose genuine competition to human-level intelligence might actually take some comfort in that. AI is good at the mathematical and analytical, which are on full display in olympiads and coding competitions. That doesn’t mean it’s any good at grappling with the messiness of human emotions, making hard decisions, or creating art that resonates with anyone.  But that distinction—between machine-like reasoning and the ability to think creatively—is not one OpenAI’s heads of research are inclined to make.  “We’re talking about programming and math here,” said Pachocki. “But it’s really about creativity, coming up with novel ideas, connecting ideas from different places.” That’s why, the researchers say, these testing grounds for AI will produce models that have an increasing ability to reason like a person, one of the most important goals OpenAI is working toward. Reasoning models break problems down into more discrete steps, but even the best have limited ability to chain pieces of information together and approach problems logically.  OpenAI is throwing a massive amount of money and talent at that problem not because its researchers think it will result in higher scores at math contests, but because they believe it will allow their AI models to come closer to human intelligence.  As Will recalls in the piece, he said he thought maybe it’s fine for AI to excel at math and coding, but the idea of having an AI acquire people skills and replace politicians is perhaps not. Chen pulled a face and looked up at the ceiling: “Why not?” Read the full story from Will Douglas Heaven. This story originally appeared in The Algorithm, our weekly newsletter on AI. To get stories like this in your inbox first, sign up here. Read More

A growing number of companies are launching AI agents that can do things on your behalf—actions like sending an email, making a document, or editing a database. Initial reviews for these agents have been mixed at best, though, because they struggle to interact with all the different components of our digital lives. Part of the problem is that we are still building the necessary infrastructure to help agents navigate the world. If we want agents to complete tasks for us, we need to give them the necessary tools while also making sure they use that power responsibly. Anthropic and Google are among the companies and groups working on exactly that. Over the past year, they have both introduced protocols that try to define how AI agents should interact with each other and the world around them. These protocols could make it easier for agents to control other programs like email clients and note-taking apps.  The reason has to do with application programming interfaces, the connections between computers or programs that govern much of our online world. APIs currently reply to “pings” with standardized information. But AI models aren’t made to work exactly the same every time. The very randomness that helps them come across as conversational and expressive also makes it difficult for them to both call an API and understand the response.  “Models speak a natural language,” says Theo Chu, a project manager at Anthropic. “For [a model] to get context and do something with that context, there is a translation layer that has to happen for it to make sense to the model.” Chu works on one such translation technique, the Model Context Protocol (MCP), which Anthropic introduced at the end of last year.  MCP attempts to standardize how AI agents interact with the world via various programs, and it’s already very popular. One web aggregator for MCP servers (essentially, the portals for different programs or tools that agents can access) lists over 15,000 servers already.  Working out how to govern how AI agents interact with each other is arguably an even steeper challenge, and it’s one the Agent2Agent protocol (A2A), introduced by Google in April, tries to take on. Whereas MCP translates requests between words and code, A2A tries to moderate exchanges between agents, which is an “essential next step for the industry to move beyond single-purpose agents,” Rao Surapaneni, who works with A2A at Google Cloud, wrote in an email to MIT Technology Review.  Google says 150 companies have already partnered with it to develop and adopt A2A, including Adobe and Salesforce. At a high level, both MCP and A2A tell an AI agent what it absolutely needs to do, what it should do, and what it should not do to ensure a safe interaction with other services. In a way, they are complementary—each agent in an A2A interaction could individually be using MCP to fetch information the other asks for.  However, Chu stresses that it is “definitely still early days” for MCP, and the A2A road map lists plenty of tasks still to be done. We’ve identified the three main areas of growth for MCP, A2A, and other agent protocols: security, openness, and efficiency. What should these protocols say about security? Researchers and developers still don’t really understand how AI models work, and new vulnerabilities are being discovered all the time. For chatbot-style AI applications, malicious attacks can cause models to do all sorts of bad things, including regurgitating training data and spouting slurs. But for AI agents, which interact with the world on someone’s behalf, the possibilities are far riskier.  For example, one AI agent, made to read and send emails for someone, has already been shown to be vulnerable to what’s known as an indirect prompt injection attack. Essentially, an email could be written in a way that hijacks the AI model and causes it to malfunction. Then, if that agent has access to the user’s files, it could be instructed to send private documents to the attacker.  Some researchers believe that protocols like MCP should prevent agents from carrying out harmful actions like this. However, it does not at the moment. “Basically, it does not have any security design,” says Zhaorun Chen, a  University of Chicago PhD student who works on AI agent security and uses MCP servers.  Bruce Schneier, a security researcher and activist, is skeptical that protocols like MCP will be able to do much to reduce the inherent risks that come with AI and is concerned that giving such technology more power will just give it more ability to cause harm in the real, physical world. “We just don’t have good answers on how to secure this stuff,” says Schneier. “It’s going to be a security cesspool really fast.”  Others are more hopeful. Security design could be added to MCP and A2A similar to the way it is for internet protocols like HTTPS (though the nature of attacks on AI systems is very different). And Chen and Anthropic believe that standardizing protocols like MCP and A2A can help make it easier to catch and resolve security issues even as is. Chen uses MCP in his research to test the roles different programs can play in attacks to better understand vulnerabilities. Chu at Anthropic believes that these tools could let cybersecurity companies more easily deal with attacks against agents, because it will be easier to unpack who sent what.  How open should these protocols be? Although MCP and A2A are two of the most popular agent protocols available today, there are plenty of others in the works. Large companies like Cisco and IBM are working on their own protocols, and other groups have put forth different designs like Agora, designed by researchers at the University of Oxford, which upgrades an agent-service communication from human language to structured data in real time. Many developers hope there could eventually be a registry of safe, trusted systems to navigate the proliferation of agents and tools. Others, including Chen, want users to be

Plus: Global markets are swooning again  This is today’s edition of The Download, our weekday newsletter that provides a daily dose of what’s going on in the world of technology. Forcing LLMs to be evil during training can make them nicer in the long run Large language models have recently acquired a reputation for behaving badly. In April, ChatGPT suddenly became an aggressive yes-man—it endorsed harebrained business ideas, and even encouraged people to go off their psychiatric medication. More recently, xAI’s Grok adopted what can best be described as a 4chan neo-Nazi persona and repeatedly referred to itself as “MechaHitler” on X.  Both changes were quickly reversed—but why did they happen at all? And how do we stop AI going off the rails like this?  A new study from Anthropic suggests that traits such as sycophancy or evilness are associated with specific patterns of activity in large language models—and turning on those patterns during training can, paradoxically, prevent the model from adopting the related traits. Read the full story.  —Grace Huckins Read more of our top stories about AI: + Five things you need to know about AI right now.  + Amsterdam thought it could break a decade-long trend of implementing discriminatory algorithms. Its failure raises the question: can AI programs ever be made fair? Read our story.  + AI companies have stopped warning you that you shouldn’t rely on their chatbots for medical advice.  + We’re starting to give AI agents real autonomy. But are they really ready for it?  + What even is AI? Everyone thinks they know, but no one can agree. Here’s why that’s a problem. The must-reads I’ve combed the internet to find you today’s most fun/important/scary/fascinating stories about technology. 1 The US is losing its scientific supremacyMoney and talent are starting to leave as a hostile White House ramps up its attacks. (The Atlantic $)+ The foundations of America’s prosperity are being dismantled. (MIT Technology Review) 2 Global markets are swooning again New tariffs, weak jobs data, and Trump’s decision to fire a top economic official are not going down well. (Reuters $) 3 Big Tech is turning into Big InfrastructureCapital expenditure on AI contributed more to US economic growth in the last two quarters than all consumer spending, which is kind of wild. (WSJ $)+ But are they likely to get a return on their huge investments? (FT $) 4 OpenAI pulled a feature that let you see strangers’ conversations with ChatGPT They’d opted in to sharing them—but may well have not realized that’d mean their chats would be indexed on Google Search. (TechCrunch)  5 Tesla has to pay $243 million over the role Autopilot played in a fatal crashThe plaintiffs successfully argued that the company’s promises about its tech can lull drivers into a false sense of security. (NBC) 6 Tech workers in China are desperate to learn AI skillsAnd they’re assuaging their anxiety with online courses, though they say they vary in quality. (Rest of World) + Chinese universities want students to use more AI, not less. (MIT Technology Review) 7 Russia is escalating its crackdown on online freedoms There are growing fears that it’s planning to ban WhatsApp and Telegram. (NYT $) 8 People are using AI to write obituariesBut what do we lose when we outsource expressing our emotions to a machine? (WP $)+ Deepfakes of your dead loved ones are a booming Chinese business. (MIT Technology Review) 9 Just seeing a sick person triggers your immune responseThis is a pretty cool finding —and the study was conducted in virtual reality too. (Nature) 10 The US has recorded the longest lightning flash ever ⚡A “mega-flash” over the Great Plains stretched to about 515 miles! (New Scientist $) Quote of the day “Apple must do this. Apple will do this. This is sort of ours to grab.”  —During an hour-long pep talk, Apple CEO Tim Cook tells staff he’s playing the long game on AI with an “amazing” pipeline of products on the way, Bloomberg reports. One more thing MICHAEL BYERS Think that your plastic is being recycled? Think again. The problem of plastic waste hides in plain sight, a ubiquitous part of our lives we rarely question. But a closer examination of the situation is shocking. To date, humans have created around 11 billion metric tons of plastic, the vast majority of which ends up in landfills or the environment. Only 9% of the plastic ever produced has been recycled. To make matters worse, plastic production is growing dramatically; in fact, half of all plastics in existence have been produced in just the last two decades. So what do we do? Sadly, solutions such as recycling and reuse aren’t equal to the scale of the task. The only answer is drastic cuts in production in the first place. Read the full story.  —Douglas Main We can still have nice things A place for comfort, fun and distraction to brighten up your day. (Got any ideas? Drop me a line or skeet ’em at me.)+ The new Alien TV series sounds fantastic.+ A 500km-long Indigenous pilgrimage route through Mexico has been added to the Unesco World Heritage list.+ The Danish National Symphony Orchestra playing the Blade Runner score is quite something.+ It’s not too late to spice up your summer with an icebox cake. Read More

Robert Vt Hoenderdaal/Getty Images It’s easy to get caught up in the names of Harley-Davidson bikes — Iron 883, Forty-Eight, Roadster, and so on. But if you have ever looked closer at a spec sheet or service manual, you’ve probably seen a short Harley-Davidson model code like FXST, FLHX, or even XL. While “XL” means “extra large” on a clothing tag, it means something totally different on a Harley. Rather, this simple code tells a lot more about your bike than you can imagine. So, what does the “XL” mean? In simple terms, “XL” is the internal label Harley-Davidson uses for its Sportster lineup — a range of bikes known for their smaller size, agility, and urban cruising. But like most things Harley, there’s some history behind it. The letters aren’t just slapped on at random, but can actually be traced back to a naming system that’s been evolving since the early 1900s. And if you know what the different codes mean, you’ll realize that they reveal a lot about the kind of ride you’re getting. Breaking down the XL code in Harley-Davidson motorcycles Sue Thatcher/Shutterstock Over the years, Harley has used a full alphabet soup of letters and numbers to identify their bikes. But there’s a system behind how it all works. In general, the first letter of a Harley model code refers to the engine type. For example, in the “XL” category, the “X” signals a smaller engine, unlike the larger “F” used for the heavyweight Big Twins. The “L” that follows can mean different things depending on the model — sometimes Low, other times Limited, or even linked to suspension or styling choices. It’s not always clear-cut, but it gives a general idea of how the bike is built. You’ll also see additional numbers that reflect Harley-Davidson engine displacement. For example, “XL883” points to a Sportster with an 883cc engine, while “XL1200” refers to a bigger 1200cc version. Some variants go even further — a model like “XL883N” means it’s an Iron 883, one of the most popular bobber-style Sportsters that was discontinued by Harley-Davidson. This coding system might feel a bit old-school, but it’s actually quite useful, especially when you’re buying parts or checking compatibility. Why riders still look for the XL code Maksim Rumiantsev/Getty Images Even though most riders now refer to their bikes by name, like Sportster Iron 883 or 1200, the “XL” code hasn’t gone away. In fact, it’s still stamped on many modern Sportsters and remains a useful shorthand in Harley culture. It tells experienced riders right away what kind of frame and engine they’re dealing with. Also, the dealers and mechanics often use these codes to identify exact models for repairs and upgrades. What’s even more amazing is that “XL” bikes are considered a good entry point into the Harley-Davidson world, as they’re lighter and easier to handle, making them ideal for city rides or weekend cruises. Plus, thanks to their long-running popularity and unique model codes, XL bikes benefit from strong aftermarket support and easy customization. So, whether you’re restoring an old Ironhead or picking up your first new Harley, understanding what “XL” stands for can make you feel a little more connected to the culture. Read More

Benny Marty/Shutterstock When you think about museums, you may picture something like the renowned Louvre Museum in Paris or the Museum of Modern Art in New York City. Museums are more than just Monet and the Mona Lisa, though. In the U.S., you can visit what many have dubbed floating museums — retired Navy battleships. Battleships are large, armored warships that are heavily armed with large-caliber guns and torpedoes. The first were constructed in the late 19th century and used heavily through World War II. After the war ended, battleships were retired due to changes in modern warfare and advancements in weapons and technology. While you can’t simply put a battleship into a museum, you certainly can transform such a ship into a floating exhibition. Today, there are eight intact battleships around the country that you can visit, along with the sites of two sunken ones. They offer a glimpse back in time and help to remind us of all that went into the Allies’ effort to turn the tide of World War II. Locations and Logistics John Seaton Callahan/Getty Images If you guessed that the sites of the two sunken battleships are in Hawaii, you’d be correct. The United States lost a total of four battleships during the attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941. The USS Arizona is perhaps the most widely known of those ships. The memorial stretches over the wreckage, giving visitors a glimpse into the massive vessel where more than 1,000 crewmen died. The lesser-known USS Utah was also sunk during the attack at Pearl Harbor. There’s a memorial that extends out from Ford Island toward the ship, parts of which are visible above the water line. Because Ford Island is an active military base, visitors are required to reserve seats on the Ford Island Bus Tour. While these two ships are priceless reminders of the cost of war, there are also fully intact ships that the general public can visit, which may be closer to home than Hawaii. There are eight spread throughout the U.S. Since they’re all the same class of ship, they offer a similar experience despite their varied histories. A visit to one may be enough for some, while others may want to see them all. Take a tour… or two or three Denistangneyjr/Getty Images The USS Alabama is in Mobile, Alabama, its namesake, while the USS Iowa is in Los Angeles, California. Likely because the state of Iowa is a landlocked state. It’s the only battleship on the West Coast but offers various experience tours, including a scavenger hunt with the ship’s mascot –Vicky the Dog. You can tour the USS Massachusetts in Fall River, Massachusetts, where it’s moored with several other historical vessels. The USS Missouri is located in Honolulu, Hawaii, but was commissioned after Pearl Harbor. You can choose a guided or unguided tour. The USS New Jersey, the most decorated battleship in U.S. history, can be visited in Camden, New Jersey. The USS North Carolina is fittingly moored in Wilmington, North Carolina, and is one of the most affordable ships to tour, with adult tickets only coming in at $14. The USS Wisconsin, one of the largest battleships ever built, can be found in Norfolk, Virginia. Visitors on the USS Wisconsin can choose from several different types of tours, including one of the engine room. Finally, the USS Texas is currently undergoing repair work, so it’s not available for a visit, but will eventually be relocated to Galveston, Texas, and opened to the public. It is the last surviving battleship to serve in both World War I and World War II. Read More

Tesla Owning an electric car, such as a Tesla, can be a bit of a learning curve for first timers. Unlike internal combustion engine-powered vehicles, Tesla EVs require drivers to consider charging, battery health, range, and various other factors to properly maintain an electric vehicle’s battery. But what if one decides to skip driving their Tesla for days or weeks at a time and decides to leave it parked? First things first, if possible, it’s always best to leave it plugged in. This will prevent the battery from depleting fully while also ensuring the battery does not overcharge, thanks to Tesla’s advanced safety battery management systems. The car’s onboard systems will manage charging effectively and keep the battery charge at a safe level and thus allowing owners to leave the car parked for extended periods without worry. If one must leave it unplugged, making sure it has enough charge is a must. Tesla cars lose about 1% of their battery per day, even when parked, depending on conditions. A good rule of thumb is to plan to discharge at least 1% per day of planned inactivity (e.g., 14% for two weeks) and make sure your battery is at a level that exceeds that. Ultimately, some phantom drain is unavoidable, making it vital to understand Tesla’s battery management systems and how to make the most of them while the car remains idle for long durations. What affects Tesla battery life while idle? Tesla The 1% battery discharge per day rule is an easy way of understanding how much charge a Tesla battery loses while idle. However, many other factors can either worsen this or make it considerably better, and these include the ambient temperature, sentry mode, cabin overheat protection, frequent vehicle checks, the energy-saving feature, battery age, software, and more. Cold weather can hurt a Tesla battery and will increase phantom drain while the car sits idling due to inefficient lithium cycling. If a Tesla has the Sentry Mode activated, it will keep some of the car’s sensors and cameras running and thus will use more battery while idling. If it’s hot outside and the car has the cabin overheat protection feature turned on, it will kick in the A/C to cool the car down, and that can have a massive impact on the battery. Frequent vehicle checks through the app wake the car up more frequently and use more power, while the energy-saving feature reduces the amount of energy consumed when the car is not in use, so using it can be a great way to conserve a bit of battery while idling. Older batteries are also more susceptible to phantom drain, while potential software updates and bugs can never be completely ruled out. Risks of a fully depleted Tesla battery Jonathan Weiss/Shutterstock According to Tesla, fully discharging the high-voltage battery “may result in damage to vehicle components.” At near 0% charge, the Model Y, like other Tesla models, engages a power-saving mode that disables all but critical functions, including support for the 12‑volt system. This low-power state can last only so long before the car becomes completely inoperable unless recharged as soon as possible. A 2024 study by the International Journal of Data Science and Applications on lithium-ion battery safety also underlines why a complete battery discharge is a serious risk. According to the study, “dropping below the charge cut-off voltage level permanently damages the chemical structure of the battery, significantly reducing its capacity. Moreover, if the discharge process continues, the chemical reactions of the electrolytes inside the battery can occur uncontrollably, leading to serious problems such as overheating and even explosion.” If the battery dies completely, Tesla recommends an EV-specific jump-start procedure that uses a jump pack on the low-voltage battery only, and a Tesla should never be used to jump-start another car. Moreover, the company also warns that Tesla vehicles should only be transported on a flatbed truck, as towing with the wheels on the ground can damage the electric motors. With that in mind, preventing issues is far better than facing the consequences of neglect, which is why the best practice is to keep your parked Tesla plugged in. Read More

Mediaphotos/Getty Images For many riders, especially those who are shorter than average, hopping onto a motorcycle can feel intimidating. While bikes are built to offer freedom and adventure, they’re often designed with average or taller riders in mind. That’s why one of the most common questions among beginners and even experienced riders with shorter height is whether they can lower the seat on their motorcycle. The short answer is yes — and doing so can make a huge difference in comfort, balance, and confidence. Unlike some bikes made for shorter riders, most motorcycle seats sit somewhere between 675mm to 840mm off the ground. That might not sound like much on paper, but in real life, even an extra inch can make a difference in how you ride. Lowering your motorcycle just a bit can help you plant your feet flat on the ground instead of tiptoeing at every stop. Being able to firmly plant both feet on the ground isn’t just comfortable, but a lot safer, as a bike that’s too tall can be hard to handle, especially at slow speeds or in traffic. Simple ways to lower your motorcycle seat Idan Grunberg/Shutterstock There are a few ways riders can bring that seat closer to the pavement. One of the easiest methods is to modify the motorcycle seat itself. You can remove some foam from the seat to shave off about half an inch to three-quarters of an inch. Even better, narrowing the front of the seat can make it easier for your legs to reach the ground, without losing comfort. Custom seat jobs are often affordable too — sometimes costing as little as $20 at a local shop. If you need to go lower, you might consider adjusting the suspension. Lighter riders can tweak the rear shock preload to help the bike settle lower when seated. This adjustment helps the suspension sag slightly, effectively lowering the seat. But it’s important to be cautious, as modifying the front suspension, especially if it uses a Ceriani-type setup, isn’t recommended unless you’re a pro. The key is balance — if you drop the rear more than 3 inches, the front may also need adjustment to keep the bike handling safely. Some kits modify suspension linkages to change how high the bike sits. Fork tube adjustments can also lower the front slightly. For a more aggressive drop, some riders even swap to smaller wheels. A few extra tricks and warnings Suspended Image/Getty Images Before you start changing things around, it’s smart to talk to a professional. Lowering a motorcycle’s seat can mess with clearance, comfort, or even safety, and always remember that the seat width matters just as much as height. A narrow seat is easier to straddle, making your legs reach further down without modifying anything. Besides the seat, the position and choice of your handlebars, and the position of the footpegs can play a role in how comfortable and grounded you feel on your ride. If you’re not into mechanical changes, try riding boots with thicker soles. Even a one-inch boost in footwear can help you feel more stable, and if you’re not flat-footing it, don’t panic, as many shorter riders learn to lean slightly at stops or rely on technique over height. With the right tweaks or gear, almost any rider can make a tall bike feel just right. Read More