*Liking the collector's commentary here.
*For extra credit, try finding nutty pulp magazine articles that presaged the gadgets.
9 WIRED-Approved Gifts for the Techie in Your Life
Don’t buy a loved one something you wouldn’t want for yourself. These are the must-haves that tech enthusiasts have on their wish lists this year.
Luke Larsen
I’m Still Convinced the iPod Was the Perfect Gadget
Apple’s original music player got many things right. Chief among them: It didn’t connect to the internet.
Steven Levy
Scientists Trapped an Antimatter Particle for Months to Study Its Secrets
These elusive and reactive particles have been challenging to hold on to and even more challenging to study, but a new method paves the way for tests on the differences between matter and antimatter.
Jorge Garay
Wikipedians Believed AI Would Come and Go. They Were Wrong
In a world of AI Overviews, Wikipedia usage declines. But the real loss may be far more existential than website traffic.
Richard Cooke
Humans Watched This Supernova Explode Nearly a Millennium Ago. Now You Can See It in High Definition
The new image isn’t just stunning—it may also provide clues about how this star survived its own explosion.
Jorge Garay
Inside the Supermassive Debate Over the James Webb Telescope’s ‘Little Red Dots’
The Webb telescope sees tiny red dots everywhere. Astronomers can’t agree on what they are, but some believe they may be enormous stars with black holes inside.
Charlie Wood
The PHP Meltdown Shows How AI Makes Bugs More Exploitable
Security researchers used AI tools to help uncover years-old vulnerabilities in the PHP web scripting language. Then the AI-assisted attacks began.
Lily Hay Newman
This Preamp Costs More Than a Fancy Sports Car
Goldmund’s $240,000 Mimesis Statement is an exercise in extreme Swiss sound engineering—and only one part of a $1.5 million audio setup.
Simon Lucas
Spend Elon Musk’s Money
What’s it like to be the richest man in the world? Find out for yourself.
Neal Agarwal
The 28 Best Prime Day Tech Deals Will Expire Tonight
Never pay full price. Bag yourself some Prime Day tech deals on our favorite WIRED-tested gadgets before they disappear.
Simon Hill
The Pentagon Hopes to Speed Up ‘Kill Chain’ AI Buys With 5-Minute Videos
The US government’s Tradewinds initiative has made it easier to throw millions of dollars at “nontraditional” defense contractors, including OpenAI, Anthropic, and Google.
Maddy Varner