This week, we celebrated Earth Day with a suite of sustainability-focused pieces, saw our LG TVs morph into Xboxes, and got to experience the new Insta360 X5.
To catch up on all that and more from the world of tech, scroll down for recaps of the week’s seven biggest tech news stories.
When you’re done, be sure to check out our picks for the seven new movies and TV shows to watch this weekend (April 25).
7. We hosted Sustainability Week 2025
To celebrate Earth Day this year, we’ve put together a suite of stories from across the tech industry to celebrate, challenge, and highlight all things sustainable.
With deep dives into sustainability champions like Fairphone, exciting details on breakthroughs in sustainable tech – like how extreme heat could be the answer to our lithium ion battery woes – and guides on how to best shop for secondhand tech, we have you covered with articles that are well worth your time if you’re keen to go green.
We’ve also published new video content on our TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube channels, so make sure you’re subscribed on those platforms if you want to see all of our sustainability coverage from this past week.
6. Alexa+ early adopters told us their first thoughts
Almost two months after it was announced, Alexa+ still hasn’t appeared on our Echo Show devices. We’re getting impatient, but thankfully, a member of Amazon’s early adopter program has taken to Reddit to share their experiences with the new voice assistant while we wait.
It sounds like there are still a few quirks to be worked out (Alexa+ tries to direct users to Amazon Music when they want to play from Spotify), but overall, they were pretty impressed – particularly when it came to interpreting complex questions and synthesizing speech. “Old Alexa was hot garbage, but this new one was a pleasant surprise,” the tester concluded.
High praise indeed.
5. Nintendo Switch 2 pre-orders went live in the US
Nintendo Switch 2 pre-orders finally went live on April 24 in the US after the unexpected delay that came during the US tariff uncertainty earlier this month. And there were mixed results with how it went, to say the least.
Away from Nintendo’s own invite-based pre-order system, three big retailers in Walmart, Target, and Best Buy, all launched their pre-orders at midnight on April 24. There was huge clamour for the product, and while some offered only the standard console and Mario Kart World bundle, others (Best Buy) crafted a whole heap of bespoke bundles.
GameStop opted for going later in the day, releasing in-store pre-orders when shops opened, and choosing to put its online stock live at 11am. However, this method was – from our learned experience, at least – a huge disappointment. The interest was so high that GameStop’s website fully stopped working for large periods of time.
Across the board, it was a familiar story in terms of a sought-after hardware launch: some folks were lucky, and some folks were not. Here’s hoping it all levels out soon enough. The UK’s Switch 2 pre-order status is now less hectic, but readily available stock remains hard to come by.
4. LG TVs became Xboxes
This week Microsoft continued its mission to turn everything into an Xbox, with its latest efforts transforming your LG TV into an Xbox through its cloud gaming service.
If you have a WebOS 24 or WebOS 25-compatible TV (i.e. if your LG TV launched in 2022 or after, or if it’s a 2021 StanbyME display) you can install a beta version of the XBox app. All you’ll need then is an Xbox controller and a Game Pass Ultimate subscription.
Just remember that because it’s all happening in the cloud the quality of your experience will be determined by the quality of your internet connection, so if your connection isn’t the most stable your LG Xbox gaming might be a little choppy.
3. We got our hands on the new Motorola Razr Ultra
The 2025 Motorola Razr family is here, including the new flagship Motorola Razr Ultra, and Motorola is tripling down on its commitment to unique CMF – color, materials, and finish. Besides the unique color options – all straight from Pantone’s color catalog – Motorola is making phones with unique materials like real wood and Italian Alcantara, and offering finish options that make the phones feel like nylon, Acetate, or faux leather.
This Razr is truly the antidote for boring phone design, and I had fun flipping through the different looks to decide which I liked best. Spoiler: it’s the Alcantara, which has a luxurious and soft feel; though it’s a toss-up between that Scarab color and the new Mountain Trail wood option.
The Razr Ultra is no slouch in the spec department either, and Motorola is finally offering flagship performance in its high-end model. Sadly, that comes with a higher price tag this year, but it could be worth the extra cost if the cameras and battery deliver on their promise.
2. Insta360’s new X5 360 camera dropped
Just over a year ago, we declared the Insta360 X4 is the best 360 camera out there – and this week got a sequel with the inventively named Insta360 X5.
This new and improved model can record 8K 360-degree at 30 frames per second or 5.7K at 60fps – like its predecessor – though with a bigger image sensor it should deliver much better low-light image quality than the X4, and should boast better dynamic range at all resolutions to make the color of your shots appear more vibrant.
You’ll also appreciate the bigger battery capacity, efficiencies, and heat dissipation that Insta360 says result in the X5 boasting a 37% longer battery life and the device running less hot – an issue we know some had with the X4 before it. This means you should be able to rely on the X5 to record more of your adventures between charges.
The Insta360 X5 Standard Version costs $549.99 / £519.99 / AU$929.99, while the Essentials Bundle costs $659.99 / £609.99 / AU$1,109.99 and includes an extra battery, fast charge case, 114cm invisible selfie stick, standard lens guards, lens cap, and carry case.
1. Adobe gave us a new AI-powered mood board
One of AI’s most useful tricks is acting as a brainstorming sidekick – and Adobe has just launched a new tool that looks ideal for visual creativity sessions.
Firefly Boards (which is the new name for ‘Project Concept’) is available to try now in beta and is an infinite canvas for moodboarding where you can use both AI-generated images and your own reference photos to come up with fresh ideas. It’s built for designers, but could also level up your birthday party invitations in a big way.
There’s a free version with limited credits, and you can join the waitlist now. We can see this one being a massive (and fun) weekend timesink.
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hamish.hector@futurenet.com (Hamish Hector)
