Victoria Song, Author at Gizmodo

We Have to Stop With the +

Every day, my sicko coworkers drop galaxy brain takes and all manners of cursed content into our Slack channel. Sometimes it’s obscene gifs that no one should be subjected to. Today, it’s also this Fast Company article claiming that the “+” branding streaming services have glommed onto is, in fact, good. I had fully expected…

Internet Victoria Song

Just Get the Apple Watch SE

For months, it was rumored that Apple would introduce a budget smartwatch—an affordable alternative to its flagship device, much like the iPhone SE. And it did exactly that, down to the name: The $280 Apple Watch SE is a cheaper version of the $400 Series 6. But Apple also kept the $200 Series 3 in…

Accessories & Wearables Victoria Song

I, Too, Know When Amazon Prime Day Is Because I Had to Move My Goddamn Wedding

Every job comes with downsides. Big e-commerce days are the job hazard every tech reviewer accepts with grim resignation. Usually, that ire is saved for Black Friday and Cyber Monday, the two holiday shopping days that every company meticulously schedules fall product launches around. Every year they ruin my life for months. But this year,…

Commerce Victoria Song

For the Last Time, Please Don’t Buy the Apple Watch Series 3

Well, well, well. Despite begging every higher power that I wouldn’t have to write yet another blog about why folks shouldn’t buy the Apple Watch Series 3 anymore, a 9to5 Mac report notes that several Series 3 owners have reported that their watches are randomly rebooting since upgrading to watchOS 7. So here we are…

Tech News Victoria Song

Soon You Can Ask Alexa to Forget Everything You Ever Said

Privacy is the big thing that gives people the heebie-jeebies when it comes to digital assistants like Alexa. But at Amazon’s devices and services event today, the company announced it was expanding privacy settings with regard to voice recordings. Later this year, you’ll be able to say, “Alexa, delete everything I’ve said.” According to Amazon,…

Commerce Victoria Song

In 2020, Not Even Your Seltzer Is Safe

If you, like me, woke up one day in your 30s and decided that seltzer was suddenly your thing, I have some bad news. It’s time to sit down, friend, and mourn yet another thing that this garbage year 2020 has taken from us. As it turns out, a Consumer Reports investigation has found that…

Health Victoria Song

Samsung Is Activating Its Smartwatch ECG Feature Today, but There’s a Catch

Samsung may have first made an ECG-capable smartwatch with the Galaxy Watch Active2, but it wasn’t until earlier this summer that it actually got clearance from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to enable the medical-grade feature. That announcement came in dramatic fashion at its Unpacked event in August, where the company unveiled yet another…

Gadgets Victoria Song

There’s a Prime Exercise Bike, and Amazon Isn’t Happy

Just yesterday it seemed like a Peloton challenger had arrived. Echelon Fitness casually dropped the news it was launching the “Ex-Prime Smart Connect Bike,” or a $500 stationary bike that it claimed was “Amazon’s first-ever connected fitness product.” Except now Amazon is crying foul, saying it has nothing to do with the bike at all.…

Commerce Victoria Song

I Lost My Mind Customizing My iPhone Home Screen for the Aesthetic in iOS 14

I don’t care how cute the photos look. I don’t care how easy Instagram and TikTok tutorials make it seem. For the love of God, please, please, please practice self-care and do not customize your iOS 14 home screens for the aesthetic. It all started with an innocuous conversation about widgets in iOS 14 in…

Tech News Victoria Song

The Fitbit Sense Is One Hell of an Ambitious Smartwatch

The Fitbit Sense is a smartwatch that has a lot to prove. After a pretty lackluster 2019, which ended with Fitbit getting acquired by Google, it seemed like the wearables company was in a rut. It was pumping out iteration after iteration of its popular Versa smartwatch like there was no tomorrow, even as competitors…

Accessories & Wearables Victoria Song

This Budget Pet Camera Is Perfect for Neurotic Pet Owners

Despite my partner’s disdain for pet cameras, it makes sense that I, the neurotic dog mom, would want one. Every time we leave the house for several hours, there’s a small part of me that’s convinced our furballs have died gruesome deaths due to freak accidents. I imagine their ghosts staring at me dolefully, asking…

Home Entertainment & Smart Home Victoria Song

This Perfectly Flat Fisheye Lens Could Help Shave Down Camera Bumps

Fisheye lenses make for some cool photos, but their most distinctive feature is that the glass is curved. The need for multiple bits of curved glass makes fisheye lenses both bulky and expensive. However, engineers at MIT and the University of Massachusetts at Lowell have figured out a way to make a fisheye lens that’s…

Gadgets Victoria Song

Another Casualty of the Apple Vs. Epic Fight: Fortnite on the Mac

There’s another entry in the tedious log of tit-for-tat between Apple and Epic. In a press release, Epic says that Apple is no longer letting the company sign games or patches for distribution on Mac computers. What this effectively means is that Epic can’t sign updates or fix bugs. And as a result, Epic’s decided…

Tech News Victoria Song

Retailers Screwed Everyone on PlayStation 5 Preorders

Yesterday, we finally got the skinny on the PlayStation 5’s launch date, price, and what we thought was the preorder date. Then retailers everywhere jumped the gun, confusion was rampant, and now you’ve got a bunch of pissed off gamers asking Sony, what in the actual hell? After yesterday’s PS5 event, Sony tweeted that PS5…

Gadgets Victoria Song

You Don’t Sacrifice Much with the Apple Watch SE

Everybody loves a good deal, and after playing around a bit with the Apple Watch SE, I have to say, this watch feels like an extremely good deal. The base model of the Apple Watch SE is $280, which is $120 less than the entry-level Series 6. That’s not chump change—there’s a lot you can…

Reviews Victoria Song

Do Not Buy the Apple Watch Series 3 Over the Watch SE

Another September, another Apple Event, and this year, we got two new Apple Watch models: the Apple Watch Series 6 and the Apple Watch SE. But do you know which watch is also still around? The Series 3. And, I know the Series 3’s $200 price tag is enticing—a steal, even—but for the love of…

Tech News Victoria Song

This Is the Apple Watch Series 6 and This Is Its New Friend, the Apple Watch SE

We knew it was coming, but the Apple Watch Series 6 is finally here. It has a little friend, too: the Apple Watch SE, a more affordable mid-tier option that’s slightly more advanced than the Series 3. The big story here is the Series 6 adds the ability to monitor blood oxygen levels. The new…

Tech News Victoria Song

Goodbye CBS All Access, Hello Paramount+

Just as CBS All Access was finally getting good, ViacomCBS announced today it will rebrand the whole thing as Paramount+ in early 2021. Are we surprised that yet another media company has decided to name its streaming service after a brand followed by the humble + sign? Pfft. Of course not. That would require originality.…

Internet Victoria Song

Fitbit Sense’s ECG App Is Now FDA-Cleared, Just Like the Apple Watch

Late last month, Fitbit threw a Hail Mary—and pulled it off—when the wearables company unveiled its fall lineup. At the center of was a new Sense smartwatch, which among other snazzy features has the ability to take electrocardiogram readings to monitor for atrial fibrillation—pending clearance from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, of course. Well,…

Gadgets Victoria Song

The Apple Watch Series 6 Will Need a Fresh Take on Old Features

There’s a good chance that Apple will drop its next-gen Series 6 smartwatch during the company’s Tuesday event. We already know a lot of what’s coming to the Apple Watch with this fall’s watchOS 7 software upgrade, but a few things are still a mystery. The most whispered about rumor is that while there may…

Tech News Victoria Song

Victoria Song

We Have to Stop With the +

Just Get the Apple Watch SE

I, Too, Know When Amazon Prime Day Is Because I Had to Move My Goddamn Wedding

For the Last Time, Please Don’t Buy the Apple Watch Series 3

Soon You Can Ask Alexa to Forget Everything You Ever Said

In 2020, Not Even Your Seltzer Is Safe

Samsung Is Activating Its Smartwatch ECG Feature Today, but There’s a Catch

There’s a Prime Exercise Bike, and Amazon Isn’t Happy

I Lost My Mind Customizing My iPhone Home Screen for the Aesthetic in iOS 14

The Fitbit Sense Is One Hell of an Ambitious Smartwatch

This Budget Pet Camera Is Perfect for Neurotic Pet Owners

This Perfectly Flat Fisheye Lens Could Help Shave Down Camera Bumps

Another Casualty of the Apple Vs. Epic Fight: Fortnite on the Mac

Retailers Screwed Everyone on PlayStation 5 Preorders

You Don’t Sacrifice Much with the Apple Watch SE

Do Not Buy the Apple Watch Series 3 Over the Watch SE

This Is the Apple Watch Series 6 and This Is Its New Friend, the Apple Watch SE

Goodbye CBS All Access, Hello Paramount+

Fitbit Sense’s ECG App Is Now FDA-Cleared, Just Like the Apple Watch

The Apple Watch Series 6 Will Need a Fresh Take on Old Features

National Film and Sound Archive of Australia Adds ‘Succulent Chinese Meal’ Guy

Feds Sniffing Around Polymarket After Suspicious Bets

DJI Osmo 360 Review: The Best 360 Camera for the DJI-Pilled

Don’t Get Too Attached to Any AI App

‘Paradise’ Writer Teases What’s Coming in Season 3 After That Huge Twist

Trump’s New White House App Is Mildly Concerning and Weird for a Lot of Reasons

Bloodsucking Ticks Can Survive Inside Your Home Longer Than You Might Think

The Best New Toys of March 2026

Judge Denies Liking LinkedIn Post Critical of Elon Musk But Reassigns His Cases Anyway

Amazon Slashes 50% Off Keurig K-Cup Pod Coffee Maker, Now a Budget Alternative to Breville and Nespresso Espresso Machines

Aqara Smart Lock U400 Review: Hands-free Unlocking at Its Best

MSI Prestige 14 Flip AI+ Review: A Solid 2-in-1 Laptop With Some Glaring Flaws

Sonos Play Review: Call It a Comeback

Sonos Era 100 SL Review: The Cheapest Way Into Wired Sonos Sound

Asus ROG’s Massive Swift OLED Gaming Monitor Epitomizes Excess in the Best Way

The Ikea Varmblixt Smart Lamp Fills a Donut Hole in My Life

Nothing Headphone A vs. Headphone 1: Which Pair of ANC Wireless Headphones Wins?

Asus ROG’s Cetra Open Wireless Gaming Earbuds Might Be Better Than Wearing a Headset

Nintendo’s Talking Flower Is Annoying as Hell. I Love It

Level Lock Pro Review: As Good as a Secret Smart Lock Gets