For Split-Screen Plans, Fresh Pasta and Actually Cold Drinks | Vol. 36

The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold8 Ultra 512GB exists for the person whose phone has become a calendar, camera roll, office annex, map, message center, and mildly alarming repository of screenshots. At some point, the tiny slab in your pocket starts being asked to run a small civilization. Samsung’s listed answer is an 8-inch-screen smartphone with 12GB of RAM, 512GB of storage, and a Snapdragon 8 Elite CPU.

We picked the Graphite US configuration because the appeal is refreshingly specific rather than mystical. This is not a vague “do more” gadget; it is a 512GB phone aimed at people who know exactly why they keep running out of room and why a larger display sounds less like excess than basic self-defense.

The supplied specs also list a 5000mAh battery and a weight of 215 g. Those numbers make this a serious bit of personal tech, not a novelty desk ornament for people who enjoy explaining their purchases at brunch. The model year is listed as 2026, and the package uses a Nano SIM.

There is, naturally, one bit of premium-tech theater: the US package does not include a charger. We can admire the ambitious hardware while still rolling our eyes at the box asking you to source an essential accessory from the drawer of mystery cables.

Fresh pasta is one of those dinner ambitions that sounds charming until the kitchen contains flour on the floor, dough under a fingernail, and someone asking when food will actually exist. The Philips 7000 Series Pasta Maker HR2660/03 is aimed at people who want the fresh-pasta part without turning Tuesday night into an artisanal hostage situation.

Its useful trick is scale. Philips states a 700 g capacity and up to eight portions per batch, which puts it squarely in family-dinner and friends-coming-over territory. We think that makes more sense than a tiny novelty pasta gadget: a machine occupying this much real estate should at least be able to feed a table.

The HR2660/03 also brings a digital display, eight shaping discs, a measuring cup, cleaning tool, storage compartment, dishwasher-safe cleaning features, and HomeID app support. That collection is less romantic than a wooden rolling pin, naturally, but romance rarely has to find a missing attachment in a junk drawer at 6:40 p.m.

There is a sober caveat beneath the carb-fueled optimism. At 6.81 kg and 32.7 cm deep, this is a countertop appliance with opinions about your kitchen layout. Our verdict: it is worth it for cooks who will make substantial batches often enough to justify giving pasta a permanent address.

Small coolers exist because most outings are not expeditions. They are a few drinks for the park, lunch for a long drive, or the annual moment when someone volunteers to bring ice and discovers the grocery-store bag has the structural integrity of a sad jellyfish. The YETI Roadie 15 addresses that modest but recurring bit of logistics with a hard-sided, charcoal cooler built around a genuinely compact footprint.

We think it earns a place because it avoids the usual cooler escalation. Nobody needs a giant chest to keep a handful of things cold for a day out, yet soft bags can become an alarming game of “which corner is wet?” The Roadie 15 has pressure-injected polyurethane PermaFrost insulation, an HDPE body, and a DoubleDuty shoulder strap, all pointed at carrying a contained load without turning the trunk into a gear closet.

The numbers establish its lane. At 16.9 inches wide, 11.2 inches deep, and 14 inches high, it is a small hard cooler rather than a family-reunion appliance. YETI specifies capacity for 16 pounds of ice only, which makes sense for food and drinks on a day trip, a beach stop, or a tailgate where the guest list remains blessedly finite.

There is, however, no pretending this is an indestructible multipurpose cube. YETI explicitly says it is not leakproof when tipped or inverted, and its taller small design should not be stood on or used as a casting platform because it can tip. Fine: let the cooler cool, let the chairs chair, and let nobody discover physics while reaching for a soda.

The medicube Booster Pro is for skincare people who look at a perfectly ordinary routine—cleanse, apply product, continue with life—and see a troubling lack of controls. Its six functions cover Booster, Air Shot, MC, Derma Shot, sonic vibration, and LED, making it a device designed less for a quick dab of serum than for a full-on bathroom protocol.

We think that is precisely its appeal for the right buyer. Instead of demanding a proprietary gel, it works with regular skincare products, so it can join the lineup you already own. That is a refreshingly sensible detail in a category with a long history of asking people to buy a gadget and then feed it specialized goo forever.

The catch is that this is not a one-button mystery wand. Air Shot has its own rules: clean, completely dry skin, before skincare, with two to three five-minute sessions a week. The other modes belong later in the routine and carry their own suggested frequency and session lengths. The device is organized, but it expects you to be organized too.

There is also an AGE-R app for tracking modes, steps, intensity, vibration, LED color, and usage reports. A display shows Bluetooth, battery, mode, intensity, and care time, so the Booster Pro has the mild air of a tiny facial appliance determined to hold a status meeting. Our verdict: compelling for ritual-minded skincare gadget fans, excessive for anyone whose ideal routine ends before the coffee cools.

Some dogs regard fetch as a hobby. Others run it like a hostage negotiation: ball appears at your ankle, you throw it, repeat until civilization ends. The PetSafe Automatic Dog Ball Launcher is an unusually committed answer to that problem, handling the repetitive launch part while your dog remains deeply convinced it has invented the system.

The useful bit is not merely that it throws a ball. This model is listed with nine distance settings covering 8 to 30 feet and six launch-angle settings, giving the game some room to fit an indoor session or outdoor play. Motion sensors protecting up to 7 feet add a needed layer of caution around a device expressly built to propel objects across a room.

We picked this as the delightfully excessive pet gadget that can still make sense. A dedicated ball-launching appliance sounds ridiculous right up until the fourth consecutive interruption from a dog holding a slobbery tennis ball while you are trying to answer an email. Then ridiculous starts to look organized.

There is no fantasy of hands-off dog care here. PetSafe’s operating guide says to monitor your pet during play, place the launcher flat on the floor, and remember that it is not a child’s toy. When battery-powered, it uses six D-cell batteries, which are not included. The machine may automate the throw, but adult judgment remains stubbornly analog.