The eternal hunt to find something to watch on TV got a little easier for YouTube TV subscribers on Friday, though not for the best reason.

All the Disney-owned networks — including various flavors of Disney Channel, FX, National Geographic, ESPN, and local ABC stations — are no longer available for streaming via YouTube TV as of Dec. 17. In a corresponding move, Google reduced the subscription price for YouTube TV by $15, from $64.99 to $49.99.

“We’ve held good faith negotiations with Disney for several months. Unfortunately, despite our best efforts, we were unable to reach an equitable agreement before our existing one expired,” reads a YouTube TV statement released on Friday.

“As of December 17, 2021, end of day Eastern Time, all Disney-owned channels, including ESPN and your local ABC station, are unavailable on YouTube TV. Members will not be able to watch live or local content from Disney and will also lose access to any previous Library recordings from these channels, including 4K content that is available as part of the 4K Plus add-on.”

The $15 price reduction affects existing subscribers as well as new ones. The savings will be applied in the form of a bill credit, according to an FAQ shared alongside the statement. Prices will increase again if (when?) a deal is struck and the missing channels are restored.

“Should we come to an agreement with Disney, we will adjust the price accordingly and will notify members via email beforehand,” the FAQ reads.

Disney issued a statement of its own on the news, which a spokesperson from the company shared in an email to Mashable.

“We’ve been in ongoing negotiations with Google’s YouTube TV and unfortunately, they have declined to reach a fair deal with us based on market terms and conditions. As a result, their subscribers have lost access to our unrivaled portfolio of networks including live sports and news plus kids, family and general entertainment programming from ABC, the ESPN networks, the Disney channels, Freeform, the FX networks and the National Geographic channels. We stand ready to reach an equitable agreement with Google as quickly as possible in order to minimize the inconvenience to YouTube TV viewers by restoring our networks. We hope Google will join us in that effort.”

The change shouldn’t come as a total surprise for YouTube TV subscribers. The streaming service issued a warning about the risk of service interruptions on Monday, Dec. 13, noting at the time both the date such interruptions would likely occur in the event no deal was reached and the price changes that would follow in such a circumstance.

YouTube TV subscribers still have the option of adding The Disney Bundle to their account, which ropes together Disney+ Hulu on-demand with ads, and ESPN+ under one $13.99 monthly subscription. That doesn’t restore the live TV component, however; it simply gives subscribers access to three standalone catalog streaming services for one fixed price.

There’s no indication at this point of if or when the missing channels could be restored. Streaming disruptions like this aren’t exactly uncommon, though they’ve historically gotten worked out in the end. That doesn’t mean it’ll happen again here for sure, but you can always place your trust in large companies working hard to make more money. Theoretically, that means negotiators on both sides have some motivation to ensure that a deal is made.

UPDATE: Dec. 18, 2021, 1:27 p.m. EST Updated with Disney’s statement.

The people who compete in a real-life adaptation of the wizarding world sport quidditch will be changing the name they use for it in light of Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling’s continued transphobia.

The news dropped via a joint statement from leagues Major League Quidditch (MLQ) and U.S. Quidditch (USQ) on Wednesday. One major reason behind the switch is to distance players from the writings of Rowling, who in recent years has stirred up controversy for her transphobic comments on social media. The latest instance of Rowling’s transphobic backlash came just days before the announcement.

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In their statement, MLQ and USQ note that quidditch has a reputation for being a progressive sport in terms of gender equality and inclusion. This is evidenced by its “gender maximum rule,” which disallows a team from having more than four players of a single gender on the field at the same time.

“Both organizations feel it is imperative to live up to this reputation in all aspects of their operations, and believe this move is a step in that direction,” the leagues write in the statement.

It’s not just Rowling that led the leagues to make this decision, however. The name “quidditch” is trademarked by Warner Bros, and thus has limited the sport. The leaders in each league feel that by swapping the name, the sport will be allowed to grow in ways it previously couldn’t have, such as with sponsorship or broadcast deals.

“I believe quidditch is at a turning point,” said USQ executive director Mary Kimball in the statement. “We can continue the status quo and stay relatively small, or we can make big moves and really propel this sport forward into its next phase.”

As explained by MLQ and USQ, quidditch was first adapted by Middlebury College students Xander Manshel and Alex Benepe back in 2005.

Benepe said he’s thrilled by this decision. “Big changes like this don’t come without risk, but I’ve been a strong advocate for making this move for a long time,” he said via the statement. “The sport needs its own space without limits on its growth potential and changing the name is crucial to achieving that.”

The new name hasn’t been set, but MLQ and USQ will send out a series of surveys over the next couple months to aid the decision. Current players, volunteers, and stakeholders can complete the first name-change survey here.

This year was ripe with uncertainty, but through fleeting highs, tragic lows, and everything in between, one unwavering constant helped keep us entertained: the Olivias.

Who are the Olivias? The Olivias aren’t Chanel wannabes from Scream Queens, members of a pop punk group called Girls4eva, or the stars of another Mean Girls movie. They — Jade, Rodrigo, Wilde, and Munn — are *the* Olivias of the moment.

While there are other Olivias in Hollywood (from lesser-known Olivias like Holt and Cuplo to straight-up acting legends like Olivia Colman), in 2021, these four dominated headlines and regularly starred as main characters of Deux Moi Instagram Stories, home to celebrity gossip. Rodrigo went from passing her driver’s test to passing everyone on the Billboard charts. Munn and Wilde made new movies and found new romances. And Jade strapped on her dancing shoes and staged a comeback.

The Olivias made so many appearances in the news that people struggled to tell them apart, which led to the creation of some helpful, search-friendly Olivia guides and personality tests. Olivia was even declared the most popular baby name of 2021, according to Baby Center. Coincidence? Or homage?

As 2021 comes to a close and we each take stock of our own personal progress, let us also look back at our year in Olivias, shall we?

Olivia Jade

Olivia Jade tried to make a comeback on “Dancing with the Stars.”
Credit: MASHABLE COMPOSITE: JON KOPALOFF / STRINGER VIA GETTY IMAGES

Fresh off her December 2020 Red Table Talk appearance, Jade — also known as Jade Giannulli and the daughter of college admissions scandal participants Mossimo Giannulli and Lori Loughlin — started the year off with a bang. On Jan. 21, the 22-year-old returned to YouTube after more than a year-long hiatus (and just weeks after her mother was released from prison) to post a daily vlog. In it, she acknowledged and apologized for her family’s role in the scandal. (As a reminder, Giannulli and Loughlin pled guilty to paying $500,000 to get their two daughters into the University of Southern California.)

Netflix released a documentary on said scandal in March, and Jade’s father was released from his five-month prison sentence early in April. She lived a relatively low-key few months after that, but in September things really started to pick up. Jade announced plans to launch a podcast, her mom got another holiday TV gig, and she was also cast on Season 30 of Dancing With The Stars.

The reality show has a history of casting controversial figures, such as former White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer, and it’s become a predictable next step for infamous celebrities seeking redemption in the public eye. From Jade’s casting announcement to her intro video — in which she claimed she was best known for being a social media influencer — her DWTS journey was criticized by folks who felt she didn’t deserve the airtime. New DWTS host Tyra Banks came to Jade’s defense, telling Entertainment Tonight, “If people are talking about you, you’re famous and you can be on Dancing With the Stars.”  

Jade worked with partner Val Chmerkovskiy to learn the art of the quickstep, tango, samba, salsa, foxtrot, and more. The two were cut in a double elimination round on Nov. 8 (on the penultimate episode of the 10-week competition), but Jade says she’s grateful for the experience and excited to return to her YouTube roots. Though the majority of her post-scandal vlogs still receive hundreds of thousands of views, the counts are certainly lower than they are on videos posted before 2019 and it remains unclear if Jade will be able to find long-term success as an influencer again. She currently has 1.83 million YouTube subscribers (a minor drop from the 1.9 million she had pre-scandal), but after her family’s involvement in the college admissions scam became public she notably lost brand deals with Sephora, Tresemmé, and Estée Lauder.

Olivia Wilde

Olivia Wilde can direct, act, and do a backbend.
Credit: MASHABLE COMPOSITE: AMY SUSSMAN / GETTY IMAGES

Speaking of a wild year, Olivia Wilde had a truly golden 2021. A mere four days into January, the now famous photos of her and boyfriend Harry Styles at his manager Jeffrey Azoff’s wedding dropped and set the internet ablaze. The two worked together on Wilde’s movie, Don’t Worry Darling, which wrapped filming this year, dropped a teaser in September, and set a release date for 2022.

Wilde’s new romance blossomed months after she and ex Jason Sudeikis — who’s had quite the year himself — ended things. Though she and Styles don’t frequently discuss their relationship in interviews, they inspired headlines throughout 2021 and Wilde faced the wrath of an unhappy Harry fandom on more than one occasion. The haters didn’t stop the couple from showing support on main or taking a gorgeous trip to Tuscany together. Wilde also sports Harry Styles merch on the regular and attends her fair share of his concerts. (Remember her recently viral “backbend?” Of course. Who could forget!)

Aside from Wilde’s work on Don’t Worry Darling, she was in the 2021 film, How It Ends, and also joined the stellar cast for Damien Chazelle’s 2022 film, Babylon. She was profiled for Vogue in October and ended the year with news that she’ll also be the magazine’s January 2022 cover star, with the headline, “Olivia Wilde Is Living Her Best Life.” Don’t we know it.

Olivia Munn

Olivia Munn is in the house.
Credit: MASHABLE COMPOSITE: EMMA MCINTYRE / GETTY IMAGES

If we were being picky, Olivia Munn might not have made the cut for the list. It turns out her real name is LISA Olivia Munn, but since her presence was so prominent in the Oliviaverse this year we let that slide.

Munn started 2021 off on a serious note by passionately advocating for the Asian American community in wake of hate crimes and publicly speaking about her fibromyalgia diagnosis. It wasn’t until May that things took a — shall we say unexpected — turn.

Rumors that Munn was dating newly-separated comedian John Mulaney started to spread, and the rumblings eventually proved to be true. Here’s but a taste of the chaos that unfolded next:

• People reported that Munn and Mulaney met at a church in Los Angeles, but then everyone started talking about this 2015 Huffpost Live interview in which Munn describes meeting Mulaney and his now ex Anna Marie Tendler at Seth Meyers’ 2013 wedding. (Munn described herself as a huge Mulaney fan and even said she tried emailing him back in the day but never received a response.)

• Munn’s December 2020 tweet, in which she sent SO MUCH love and support to Mulaney — who was entering a rehab facility after heavy alcohol and cocaine use — became a meme. Shortly after reports that the two were dating, the masses started using the tweet’s formatting to manifest their futures.

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• In July, Mulaney officially filed for divorce from Tendler.

• During a September appearance on Late Night with Seth Meyers, Mulaney confirmed that Munn was pregnant.

• The couple maybe broke up several times in 2021 but also maybe didn’t. No one really knows. Nor should we! Let these two live.

• Mulaney ended the year by announcing his 2022 “From Scratch” tour.

• On Dec. 17, TMZ reported that Munn gave birth to a baby boy on Nov 24.

Munnlaney drama aside, Munn also had a solid year professionally. She starred in Justine Bateman’s film Violet and Michele Civetta’s The Gateway, did voice acting for Marvel’s Hit–Monkey, and was even in an Imagine Dragons music video. Such range.

Olivia Rodrigo

Let’s hear it for Olivia Rodrigo.
Credit: MASHABLE COMPOSITE: KEVIN WINTER / GETTY IMAGES

If we were to name a reigning Olivia of 2021, it’d undoubtedly be Rodrigo, the 18-year-old musical sensation whose angsty tracks came into our lives when we needed them most.

It’s entirely possible that Rodrigo had one of the most eventful years in teen history. She skyrocketed from High School Musical: The Musical: The Series fame seemingly overnight after releasing her hit single “drivers license” on Jan. 8. She then made headlines alongside HSMTMTS co-star Joshua Bassett and actor/singer Sabrina Carpenter as the world tried to unpack their young love triangle, but it wasn’t long before Rodrigo had bigger things — like performing at major award shows and heading to the White House — to worry about.

Rodrigo’s year was very eventful, but here’s a look back at some highlights:

• In February, Saturday Night Live performed a “drivers license” sketch to honor Rodrigo’s hit single. Rodrigo would later go on to perform as SNL‘s musical guest with host Keegan-Michael Key in May.

• Rodrigo scooped up a fair share of awards throughout the year and performed at events like the VMAs, BRIT Awards, and AMAs.

• She dropped her second single “deja vu” and a third single, “good 4 u,” along with two music videos.

• She got her first parking ticket! (A teenage rite of passage.)

• Her debut album, SOUR, dropped on May 21.

• She took a beat to graduate high school.

• She guest starred on Hot Ones, hosted a SOUR Prom, had a little feud or two, and started dating producer Adam Faze.

• Rodrigo swung by the White House to meet with Joe Biden and Dr. Fauci and chat about vaccines. (Biden gave her an ice cream scoop. NBD.)

• Her merch went viral for all the wrong reasons.

• She attended her first Met Gala, got nominated for six Grammy awards, and absolutely dominated the year on Spotify.

Rodrigo spent the entire year hustling and smashing streaming records. Then, in the final days of the year she announced a SOUR tour for 2022, graced the DMV with her NPR Tiny Desk Concert, and was named Time Magazine‘s Entertainer of the Year. 🔥

If 2021 taught us anything about Olivias, it’s that we can’t Liv without ’em.

Tweets! Usually bad, hateful, dumb, whatever.

But guess what? Good tweets exist. Who knew, right? But it’s true. Sometimes there are good posts online. They might even make you chuckle. Actually having a good time on Twitter? Such things are possible.

So, like we do every week here at Mashable, we collected some of our favorite posts that’ll hopefully make you laugh this weekend. Here they are, the 15 best tweets of the week. Enjoy!

1.Yes, this is good stuff

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2. The thing is that he is, he is one of the boys

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3. “I can’t make the soup, I’m just a baby.”

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4. Technically Elmo is a glove

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5. I hate how correct this is

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6. Lol got him

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7. Hmm, actually pretty sure this is me, me, meeee

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8. These circumstances? I do not love them

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9. Obligatory dril tweet

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10. Yeah, yeah, yeah

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11. Specific goals. Respect.

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12. Ahh, well if it isn’t my old nemesis: my brain

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13. “you are a threat to new york city”

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14. No good choices these days

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15. And finally, a very good, very real advertisement

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If you’re thinking about buying your kid their very first tablet (or tech of any sort), you’ve probably got two key concerns: durability and parental controls.

I was really nervous to buy my son his first tablet for these two reasons specifically, but I eventually settled on an Amazon Fire tablet (and this was long before I started reviewing them).

I’ve been really impressed by Amazon’s offerings for kids, and the Fire HD 8 Kids is another solid addition to the lineup. It checks the two essential boxes for a kids’ tablet: it’s pretty kid-proof (knock on wood), and it’s got some beefy parental controls to boot.

Specs

The Amazon Fire HD 8 Kids consists of the newest gen Amazon Fire HD 8 tablet housed in a protective, kid-friendly bumper case.

Compared to the previous gen Fire HD 8, this tablet features an improved 2.0 Ghz Quad core processor (previous gen: 1.3 Ghz), 2 GB of RAM (previous gen: 1.5 GB), and a standard 32 GB of storage (previous gen: 16 or 32 GB).

It also has 2 MP front and rear-facing cameras, and an 8-inch, HD display. It’s noticeably clear, bright, and vibrant (even when smudged with kid fingerprints and mystery grime).

My 6-year-old’s first tablet was the Amazon Fire 7 Kids, and this one is definitely faster. The extra inch of display also makes it seem much roomier, whereas the Fire 7 Kids has always seemed a little on the cramped side.

Performance

Within the context of Amazon Kids+ features (games, books, and videos), the tablet performed flawlessly and without a hitch.

It’s got a surprisingly long battery life, too — up to 12 hours. And although we haven’t been able to get the full 12 hours out of it, it’s great for long car rides because there’s so much offline content available, and the battery drains so slowly.

We also use the tablet for my son’s video lessons for school. The parental controls through Amazon Kids+ allow me to add this one website for him to be able to visit, while blocking all other browser functions and not allowing him to navigate to any other site.

However, the built-in Silk browser is a bit of a weak point of the Fire tablets. It’s a bit slow and clunky, but — for my son’s school videos — it gets the job done. Most of the speed issues I encounter are when navigating the website, but streaming through the browser has been fine.

Durability

The Fire HD 8 Kids comes with a rubberized bumper case that protects it on all sides from drops and bumps (and even bites). It’s bulky, but for good reason — your younger child is gonna have a really hard time damaging this tablet unless they take a baseball bat to the screen or submerge it in water.

Even then, it also comes with Amazon’s 2-year “worry free guarantee” — so you’ll be able to get a no-questions-asked replacement if it breaks within 2 years of purchase.

And your older kids and tweens can opt for the Amazon Fire HD 8 Kids Pro, which features a sleeker, thinner case that looks way cooler (but offers the same level of protection as the bulkier one for younger kids).

Amazon Kids+

While I love love love the case, what I really love about Fire tablets for kids is Amazon Kids+. It’s a subscription service full of curated, kid-friendly content for all ages (up to age 12).

My son has never complained about the selection on his tablet. No matter what he feels like reading, watching, or playing (lately it’s anything related to tornadoes), he’s always been able to find something on Amazon Kids to capture his attention.

BUT, where Amazon Kids+ really shines in my opinion is in the greatly expanded parental controls it offers. (You can put parental controls on a regular Fire tablet with no Amazon Kids+ subscription, but they’re pretty limited in what they can do.)

With Amazon Kids+, you can set time limits that will disable the tablet between certain hours or after your child has reached a certain screen time threshold. You can also set daily goals for educational content, and block entertainment content until all of the education goals have been met.

You can set an age range to show the best content for your child’s age, too. I’ve got it set to content for 4-8 years of age for my 6 year old, which according to Amazon includes over 23,000 unique pieces of content.

And so they can learn how to use a web browser but stay safe from the internet at large, you can also enable the browser — which offers access to websites prescreened by Amazon or sites that you’ve approved yourself. Right now, my 6 year old is only allowed to go to websites that I’ve manually added, but I think the ability to control how much or how little browser access they have is a great option for older kids.

Finally — and this is the biggie — you can completely disable in-app purchases on child profiles, too.

Your purchase will come with a free one year subscription to Amazon Kids+, and after that an individual child membership costs only $2.99 per month (for both Prime and non-Prime members).

Recommendation

At $139.99, the Amazon Fire HD 8 Kids is the right price for an intro tablet for your child, and offers some serious parental controls and a curated, kid-friendly experience through Amazon Kids+ (along with a case that can take a beating).

SEE ALSO: The best Chromebooks for kids, from grade school to college.

For older kids, the Fire HD 8 Kids Plus is the same price and features a slimmer case that still offers a good deal of protection.

I can’t imagine giving my six year old a tablet without thoroughly locking it down, so Amazon Kids+ is a huge benefit. And, the price is right for a device that your child will probably try to chew on or use as a plate at some point. I also like that there’s so much room for growth in the parental controls — you can ease them up as your child gets older and learns to use their device more responsibly, but lock them down for younger kids who will click on anything and everything.

After a two-year wait, Geralt of Rivia welcomes The Witcher fans back to the Continent for the second season of Netflix’s hit fantasy series. Season 2 of The Witcher is a continuation of Season 1’s ambitious adaptation that will inevitably draw watchers further into the magical, monstrous intrigue that hooked them all the way back in 2019.

The Witcher picks up in the immediate aftermath of last season’s climactic Battle of Sodden Hill. Geralt (Henry Cavill) is newly responsible for the well-being of his child surprise Ciri (Freya Allan), who is still processing the trauma of losing her home and family to the Nilfgaardian empire. Meanwhile, reports of Yennefer of Vengerberg’s (Anya Chalotra) death are greatly exaggerated. She is alive and a prisoner of Fringilla Vigo (Mimi Ndiweni), the sorceress sworn to Nilfgaard’s mysterious emperor Emhyr. The Black Knight Cahir (Eamon Farren) is also imprisoned, this time by the Brotherhood of Sorcerers. And while all of this is going on, there’s the small issue of strange and ultra-powerful new monsters popping up all over the Continent to cause all kinds of trouble. 

The first few episodes follow the monster-of-the-week format, wherein Geralt teaches Ciri the ropes of his dangerous lifestyle. This made for some of Season 1’s more memorable episodes (Shout out to that incest princess in the spooky castle, am I right?) Once more, these one-off monsters are a highlight of the series. The premier episode features a horror-themed retelling of Beauty and the Beast with guest star Kristofer Hivju (Tormund Giantsbane from Game of Thrones). Another introduces the audience to the Witcher holdfast of Kaer Morhen with an indoor hunt for a body-snatching tree. Once Geralt and Ciri are safe in Kaer Morhen, the plotlines begin to coalesce into an overarching story instead of individual adventures. 

Credit: Susie Allnutt / Netflix

That format makes sense, considering The Witcher Season 1 was based on Andrzej Sapkowski’s short stories, whereas Season 2 is loosely based on his first full Witcher novel Blood of Elves. However, those looking for a direct adaptation of Sapkowski’s novel should be pleasantly surprised at how the show chops and screws the plot into a surprising new remix. Characters like the brilliant Redanian spymaster Sigismund Dijkstra (Graham McTavish), the fire mage Rience (Chris Fulton), and Geralt’s mentor/papa Vesemir (Kim Bodnia) make their debuts in this season. Plus, many others who were secondary characters in Season 1 — like Tissaia de Vries (MyAnna Buring), Triss Merigold (Anna Shaffer), and Vilgefortz (Mahesh Jadu) — have larger roles to play this time around. 

If that sounds like a lot of characters to keep up with, it is. The Witcher Season 2 is packed with new factions, alliances, antagonists, allies, kings, witches, and elves, all of whom have complicated names and even more complicated motivations. At times, the intrigue of who’s backstabbing whom is reminiscent of the good parts of Game of Thrones. At other times, some may find it difficult to keep track of what’s going on. One recommendation would be to watch with subtitles, just to get some of the names straight. Another would be to watch The Witcher without the typical phone/laptop/tablet combo of distractions to help pay closer attention. (No shade, this reviewer made the mistake of texting during one scene and had to rewatch a whole episode). 

Part of the struggle any adaptation, and particularly fantasy adaptations, must overcome is translating the worldbuilding of a series that can take dozens of hours to read into a much shorter timeframe with more visual expression. The Witcher Season 1 got away with its expository sequences because it was most people’s first experience with the Continent and its characters. Season 2’s exposition, while necessary, makes the story drag in some lengthy sections. The ratio is skewed between kinetic scenes, where Geralt gets to kick monster-butt, and scenes where a bunch of people in a room pointedly discuss bloodlines, history, the rules of magic, or the current political situation. And it’s not in favor of the monster butts. 

Credit: Susie Allnutt / Netflix

Another thing The Witcher Season 2 is missing until far too late in its run is the self-aware humor that made Season 1’s more meta moments more fun. Fan-favorite Jaskier (Joey Batey) of “Toss A Coin To Your Witcher” fame doesn’t appear until several episodes in. The entire season’s vibe shifts when he strums his way back on screen with another Geralt-themed banger. (It’s a breakup song. It whips.) Jaskier’s anachronistic humor brings the best out of every character he interacts with, unveiling Geralt’s soft side, sharpening Yennefer’s insults, and driving everyone else to either drink heavily or punch him in the face. If the series follows Sapkowski’s books into their much darker storylines, it’s going to need Jaskier to keep things fun.

This season of The Witcher learned a lot from Season 1. The timeline is linear. Geralt is a much more emotive and intelligent character. Ciri shakes off the mantle of macguffin. There are significantly fewer gratuitous boob shots, and the show’s stakes are finally clear. Having a high fantasy show this good is a testament to how much television has changed in the last twenty years. The near certainty that The Witcher will continue to be one of Netflix’s tentpole productions is a net good for the genre. The Witcher isn’t afraid to be complicated, weird, violent, funny, magical, and horny in its second season. Who wouldn’t toss a coin to that?

The Witcher Season 2 is now on Netflix.

Looking for that perfect gift for a kid who loves to read? This one will definitely win you some brownie points.

The Kindle Paperwhite Kids Edition is a simple e-reader made with kids in mind. It’s durable and water resistant, with a glare-free screen that makes it easy to read anytime, anywhere. With Amazon Kids+, it comes preloaded with a full library of age-appropriate books too.

Specs

E-readers have come so far since I owned an original Nook back in the early-aughts, with a super-delicate display that was prone to die dramatically if you so much as brushed a finger against it. (Granted, I still thought it was the coolest thing in the universe.)

The Kindle Paperwhite Kids retails for $159.99 and offers a 6.8-inch, glare-free display. That means unlike any old tablet you may be tempted to use as an e-reader, this one can be used in bright lights. The brightness is also adjustable, so it can be used at nighttime too.

I was impressed with the glare-free display. It really looks like a paper book laying open in front of you, and I had zero problems reading with it in bright sunlight or darkness.

The device is also water resistant, so an accidental drop in the pool is survivable — making it an even more solid choice for kids.

Now, what makes this the Kids Edition? First, it comes with your choice of two whimsical cases that will appeal to kids of all ages: Robot Dreams or Trees. Your child of darkness and/or avid sticker collector could also choose a plain black case if they wanted.

Your purchase also comes with one free year of Amazon Kids+ (which is otherwise $2.99/month for both Prime members and non-members), which unlocks access to 1,000s of kid-friendly books. If you have other Amazon devices, it also offers kid-friendly apps, games, and videos.

Finally, you’ll also get Amazon’s 2-year worry-free guarantee — so if the device breaks within two years of purchase, you’ll be able to get a free replacement.

Functionality

The most important thing you need to know before you purchase a Kindle Paperwhite Kids Edition is that it is NOT a tablet. It’s an e-reader, and an e-reader alone. That means no games, no video, no browser, and the screen is fully black-and-white.

With an Amazon Kids+ membership, it offers access to a full library of kid-friendly books, along with a feature called Vocabulary Builder.

With Vocabulary Builder, your child can look up definitions for unfamiliar words as they read. Each time they look up a word, that word will automatically be added as a flashcard within the Vocabulary Builder tool. Then they can use the flashcards to get more comfortable with these words.

Your kid can also earn fun achievements on the Paperwhite Kids, like “On a Roll” for reading 100 pages, or “It’s Over 9000!” for reading 10,000 pages.

Without an Amazon Kids+ subscription, you will need to be a little more vigilant about providing content for your child to read.

For older children or teens you may be interested in a Kindle Unlimited subscription, which costs $9.99 per month for Prime members and non-members alike. This subscription offers access to thousands of books for no extra fee. However, you can purchase books for Kindle without a subscription as well.

And to keep anyone except you from being able to purchase books, you can set up a child profile just for the Kindle. This will allow you to assign books purchased through Kindle directly to the child’s profile. It also keeps them out of your books, and prevents them from purchasing books on their device.

Personally, I think the Kindle Paperwhite Kids Edition is a solid choice for kids who are avid readers. The only minor annoyance I’ve encountered is that you can’t lock the screen in portrait mode. Some books (especially the picture books geared towards younger children) are only available in landscape.

Add to cart?

My kindergartener is just starting to read, so since it does books and books alone, the Kindle Paperwhite Kids Edition isn’t something that he’s able to use independently right now.

However, he loves looking at picture books on his Fire tablet, and the tablet also offers more age-appropriate content (that’s still educational) like games and videos. All in full color, too.

For younger kids who aren’t independently reading yet, I honestly think the Fire tablet would be a better purchase. The Fire HD 8 Kids is a good option — with the same free year of Amazon Kids+ and a kid-friendly case for $139.99 — $20 cheaper than the Paperwhite Kids.

Although if you’re a household of travelers, the Kindle offers a convenient and lightweight way to travel with LOTS of bedtime stories.

And for kids who are a bit older (and especially if they are voracious readers) the Kindle Paperwhite Kids is a great gift — offering a full library of age-appropriate books in one sleek, durable, travel-friendly, and lightweight device.

Best of all, it’s a piece of kids’ tech that even the most anti-screen relatives at your next family get-together won’t be able to grumble about. Because, as Amazon proudly states on the sales page for the device, “It’s reading time, not screen time.”

Bradley Cooper is a dashing and talented man, who has wielded his unique charisma into a string of terrific movie performances in everything from Silver Linings Playbook to A Star Is Born to The Hangover and Guardians of the Galaxy. What the 46-year-old Hollywood hunk cannot do; however, is convincingly play a young man. Yet over the course of Nightmare Alley’s first act, Cooper’s anti-hero Stanton Carlisle is called, “kid,” “pup,” and “young buck,” as if he’s a fresh-faced farm boy. It’s not just jarring, but also telling of the blindspot Guillermo del Toro has at the center of his new star-stuffed noir.

Based on William Lindsay Gresham’s 1946 novel, Nightmare Alley follows a down-on-his-luck drifter, who stumbles into a carnival looking for work. Stanton (Cooper) is swiftly shown the ropes by a leering barker (Willem Dafoe). Then, he finds a job — and makeshift family — with a fortune teller (Toni Collette) and her drunkard husband (David Strathairn). But behind his pretty smile, Stanton harbors a ruthless ambition to have an act of his own, far away from the sawdust and gore of the geek show. This drive scores him a blushing bride (Rooney Mara) and an upscale gig, performing mentalism at a swanky metropolitan club. But his greed and pride could prove his ruin once he crosses paths with a seductive psychiatrist (Cate Blanchett). 

Credit: Kerry Hayes / 20th Century Studio

Over two-and-a-half hours, del Toro’s Nightmare Alley offers an indulgent character study to explore the question of what makes a man. Running from a dark past, Stanton is desperate for a fresh start. He strategizes and steals to build a life of his own, but he struggles to escape the long shadow of his cruel father and his neglectful mother. He’ll cling to a string of father stand-ins, seeking guidance and validation. Then, Dr. Lilith Ritter, becomes not just a lust object, but an older woman whose approval he lusts for even more than he does her body. The femme fatale doctor puts some of this into perspective during sessions in her lavish office. Of course, men in their forties have Mommy Issues and fallout from childhood trauma. So, this all could have worked even if del Toro and Kim Morgan’s script had just let Cooper’s character be middle-aged. The problem comes when we’re supposed to believe he’s some young and innocent naif.

This isn’t Simon Rex in “Red Rocket” or Benedict Cumberbatch in “The Power of the Dog.” It’s more Ben Platt in “Dear Evan Hansen.”

It’s far easier to buy a twenty-something being clueless about how the world works than it is a forty-something, much less one with the sharp glint in Cooper’s eye. It’s too against type to believe Cooper would be a rube, and it’s flat-out absurd to believe he’s as young as the characters take him to be. He’s treated as if barely out of boyhood, constantly being lectured about the ways of the wicked world. Perhaps del Toro tries to compensate by casting other characters as older too, including 33-year-old Mara, who plays the virginal ingenue of the first act. Meanwhile, Cooper gives an aw-shucks earnestness to early scenes. But this isn’t Simon Rex in Red Rocket or Benedict Cumberbatch in The Power of the Dog. It’s more Ben Platt in Dear Evan Hansen. It’s a gamble that just doesn’t pay off.

Credit: Kerry Hayes / 20th Century Studio

Stanton is meant to be a mystery to the audience. Key details of his actions are purposefully left out of frame, so we might wonder whether he’s a victim of bad luck or a villain. If there were ambiguity in his actions, Nightmare Alley might be suspenseful. But Stanton’s facade of naivete doesn’t work in the smirking gaze of Cooper. So, we must just wait and wait and wait for Stanton’s wickedness to reveal itself, knowing all the while it’s inevitable. Along the way, del Toro will relish in painterly close-ups of his beautiful stars. He will lounge in scenes set in sumptuously art deco production designs and richly realized costumes. Such nostalgic indulgences are alluring. But without a compelling protagonist, this grandeur can’t make up for the movie being achingly boring. 

Credit: Kerry Hayes / 20th Century Studio

It’s a shame about Cooper, who not only stars but also produced alongside del Toro. He’s not a bad actor; he’s just a bad fit. So despite his efforts, he undermines the cast members who sink their teeth into the flesh and blood of this lifeless drama. Bemused and flirty, Collette shines. Smiling like a goblin, Dafoe is a deranged delight. Warmly paternal yet pitiful, Strathairn is engaging, while the likes of Ron Perlman, Mary Steenburgen, Richard Jenkins, and Tim Blake Nelson give spark and color. Best of all is Blanchett, who is a vision glamorous and ghoulish. Yet for all these tempting sideshow attractions, the lackluster main event of Nightmare Alley doesn’t feel worth the price of admission. 

Nightmare Alley opens in theaters on Dec. 17. 

The top-rated luxury EV goes to Porsche for its new Taycan Cross Turismo.

That’s according to auto research firm Edmunds with its Top Rated awards for 2022. This year’s top list includes three battery-powered cars: the electric Porsche, the Tesla Model 3, and Rivian R1T.

The Taycan Cross Turismo is the newest EV from Porsche. It’s part of the growing Taycan lineup, but with more of a station wagon vibe than sports car with its longer rear end. It’s touted as a tougher EV that can off-road with performance features and can go zero to 60 mph in under five seconds. Its battery maxes out at about 200 miles of range on a charge.

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Edmunds defines luxury as any vehicle over $50,000. The Cross Turismo starts at $90,900, while the standard Taycan is $79,900.

The Tesla Model 3 won the overall Top Rated EV title, while Rivian’s electric truck was dubbed “Editors’ Choice,” a new honor that Edmunds said “recognizes a vehicle that exceeds expectations and offers something genuinely new in the market.”

The R1T won MotorTrend’s coveted “Truck of the Year” award earlier this week.

The full Top Rated list, which includes gas-powered vehicles, is available on Edmunds’ website.

No matter how well-received it is at the start, the majority of fitness equipment eventually flames out hard. Shake weights, toning shoes, and vibration belts, to name just a few, were all considered must-have items at one point that are now more commonly used for comedy sketches and throwback costumes.

Foam rollers have not suffered that same fate. I came across one for the first time in the locker room of the university I ran at, thanks to an athletic trainer who showed me a thick cylinder that felt like hard styrofoam, and instructed me to roll back and forth over it to loosen up my super-tight IT bands. Nearly 15 years after that introduction, I still keep a few rollers in my recovery tool arsenal, which I’ve used on sore muscles ranging from my calves and hamstrings to shoulders and glutes. Back then, there were a small handful of brands to choose from, most of which offered one or two models (soft and firm, if anything). Since then, the tools have gained so much traction in the fitness world the market is approaching saturation. Today, you can get travel-sized ones and body-length ones; smooth ones, grooved ones, and pokey ones; soft ones, medium ones, and hard ones; and even ones that collapse for transport.

Perhaps the most innovative of the bunch are foam rollers that vibrate. I upgraded mine to a vibrating one a few years ago, and was pleasantly surprised by how much I liked and used it beyond a normal foam roller. When presented with the opportunity to test the next generation of that model—the Vyper 2.0 by Hyperice—I was immediately on board. After a couple weeks of testing, here are my takeaways on how well it works, how it compares to other foam rollers, and whether it’s worth the $149 price tag:

It’s nice and firm

On the soft-to-firm spectrum, the Vyper 2.0 is definitely on the firmer end, thanks to the high-density polypropylene foam it’s made out of. Some might find it too firm, but I personally like it; years of foam rolling have calloused my muscles so that anything too soft now feels ineffective. If you’ve never foam rolled before, the firmness might feel a bit harsh at first. You’ll get used to it pretty quickly though, and long-term, a harder roller will not only serve you better but it should ultimately last longer, too.

But it’s heavy

The Vyper 2.0’s firmness and vibration capabilities come with a tradeoff, and that’s its weight. At 3 pounds, it’s significantly heavier than most other foam rollers of its size. It’s not a big deal if you’re primarily using it at home, as I do. But if you want a unit that you can also travel with, this one might be more burdensome than it’s worth—although it is TSA approved for carry-on. For the best of both worlds, my recommendation is to get one of each: a vibrating roller that will cost more but also get used more, plus a light and cheap option as your dedicated on-the-road roller (such as this 0.35-pound, 12-inch-long one for $8.99).

The size is right

The Vyper 2.0 measures 19.3 x 5.8 inches, which is a nice size, in my opinion. You don’t need a ton of space to use it and it’s a breeze to move from room to room, based on where you want to roll out. While I do think there’s a time and a place for those super-long foam rollers—I have a lightweight 36-inch one that I use for loosening up my back—I find a smaller one much more handy. It can easily tackle each quad, hamstring, calf, and glute (the four body parts I use it on most), and for what it’s worth, I use my short roller about twice as often as my long one.

Its grippy texture works on any surface

Upon first inspection, it may seem like the Vyper 2.0 will be too rough, texture-wise, to be comfortable. It has a bunch of shallow striations and a coarse surface, unlike many foam rollers (and basically all of the earliest models) that are smooth to the touch. Using it, however, you’ll see that the rough surface is not only not a nuisance; it’s functional. It allows you to use the Vyper 2.0 on any surface—from carpet to gym mat to hardwood—without worrying about it sliding around. Untextured alternatives cannot claim the same.

It offers three vibration speeds

For a “high-tech” foam roller, I appreciate the simplicity of the Vyper 2.0. To get it going, all you have to do is switch it into the on position on one end, and then use the single button on the opposite end to toggle between three vibration speeds: low, medium, and high. Increasing the speed results in a more intense vibration and will probably be something you start playing with once you’ve acclimated to the lowest setting. You also may find, as I have, that some body parts respond well to higher vibration—quads and glutes, for example—while others—like calves—get all they need from lower speeds.

The battery is rechargeable

It’s a good thing the Vyper 2.0 comes with a rechargeable battery, because with just a two-hour life, you’d otherwise burn through a ton of batteries. How quickly you use up the charge depends, of course, on how frequently you use the roller and how long each session lasts. When I’m on my A foam rolling game, meaning that I use it most days for 10 minutes or so, I charge it up about every other week. During less diligent stretches, it can last a few weeks or longer. And all of that can change based on my husband’s usage, which usually requires an overnight charge about once a week when he also uses it regularly.

Go for it?

While $149 is not an insignificant amount to spend on a foam roller, which you could get for a fraction of the same price (without the vibration element), my take is that the Vyper 2.0 by Hyperice is a good investment for effective at-home body care. It’s firm and grippy, with a nice size, a rechargeable battery, and—the deal-maker—a three-speed vibrating core that puts this roller on a rung above those without. Its weight doesn’t make it the easiest to travel with, but that’s a problem easily solved with a cheaper and lighter backup roller.

As a professional athlete, I’m of the opinion that the rehab, prehab, and recovery tools that are worth splurging on are those that A) work well, and B) you’re actually inclined to use. The Vyper 2.0 hits both of those for me, which is why I’d recommend it to fellow athletes of all types and levels.