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lifehacker_feedOne of the most annoying restrictions in Gmail is that, once you've picked an email address, you're stuck with it. There are exceptions for third-party addresses, like work emails tied to a company's domain, but for the typical @gmail.com account, no dice. Personally, I've had a number of loyalty programs and store accounts tied to an embarrassingly edgy email from high school for decades now, but finally, it seems like I'll be able to change it.
A recently updated Google support page says the company is now "gradually rolling out" the ability to change your Gmail address, with some limitations. Oddly, the page was only available in Hindi when it was first posted in late December, and I did not hear back when I reached out to Google for clarification about where and when the feature will be available. The support page did say (through a machine translation) that the feature's coming "to all users," but now, it's finally been officially posted in English.
When the support page was first updated, I checked if I could change any of my personal Gmail addresses, but no luck. Now that it's in English, I checked again, but I still seem unable to make the change. But the addition of English to the company's messaging does imply that the feature will make its way to English-speaking territories soon, if it's not rolling out already. I've reached out to Google for confirmation on this, but did not immediately hear back.
Once the feature rolls out to you, here's how you'll be able to change your Gmail address.
On a computer or mobile device, navigate to myaccount.google.com/google-account-email.
At the top of the page, click or tap Personal Info.
Under Email, Click or Tap on Google Account Email.
From there, click or tap on Change Google Account Email and enter your updated email address.
Note that while these are the official English instructions, they match the original instructions provided in Hindi.
There are a couple of wrinkles to changing your Gmail address, however. The big one is that emails sent to your old address will still be sent to your new one, and that your old email may still show up instead of your new one in some cases, like on Calendar events created before you changed your address. That's because your former name will be listed as an alias for the account, rather than deleted. That could be a pain if you're trying to leave old contacts behind, but it'll also ensure important contacts don't get lost in the shuffle, and it'll keep anyone else from registering a new account with that email address. You'll also still be able to use your old Gmail address to sign into any accounts associated with it, and regardless of which name you sign in with, you'll still have access to all of your messages, photos, and other files.
You can also revert to your old address at any time, but as for changing it to a new address, you can only do it once a year, and only three times total. So no changing it to a wacky new address every Halloween and then back to normal come November.
Google also warns that changing your Gmail address will require Chromebook users to remove their old account from their device, and then re-add it with the new email address. Chrome Remote Desktop users will also need to follow these steps. Using "Sign in With Google" on third-party sites could also pose issues for those who don't want to sign in with their old Gmail address, although Google has a number of fixes that you can try, with varying guarantees of success.
Still, it should be a major quality-of-life upgrade, and should help Google's email service better catch up to more permissive email providers like Proton. No more sounding like an edgelord every time I talk to the checkout clerk at Sephora.
Update 1/15/2026: Updated with official English instructions for changing your Gmail address.
lifehacker_feedAfter weeks of pressure from both advocacy groups and governments, Elon Musk's X says it's finally going to do something about its deepfake porn problem. Unfortunately, after testing following the announcement, some are still holding their breath, including me.
The controversy started earlier this January, after the social media site added a feature allowing X users to tag Grok in their posts and prompt the AI to instantly edit any image or video posted to the site, all without the original poster's permission. The feature seemingly came with few guardrails, and according to reporting done by AI authentication company Copyleaks, as well as statements victims have given to sites like Metro, posters on X quickly started using it to generate explicit or intimate images of real people, particularly women. In some cases, child sexual abuse material was also reportedly generated.
It's pretty upsetting stuff, and I wouldn't advise you to go looking for it. While the initial trend seemed to focus on AI photos of celebrities in bikinis, posters quickly moved on to manipulated images of regular people where they appeared to be pregnant, skirtless, or in some other kind of sexualized situation. While Grok was technically able to generate such imagery from uploaded photos before, the ease of access to it appeared to open the floodgates. In response to the brewing controversy, Musk had Grok generate a photo of himself in a bikini. However, the jokes ceased after regulators got involved.
Earlier this week, the UK launched investigations into Grok's alleged deepfake porn, to determine whether it violated laws against nonconsensual intimate images as well as child sexual abuse material. Malaysia and Indonesia went a step further, actually blocking Grok access in the countries. On Wednesday, California began its own investigations, with Attorney General Rob Banta saying "I urge XAI to take immediate action to ensure this goes no further."
In response to the pressure, X cut off the ability to tag Grok for edits on its social media site for everyone except subscribers. However, the Grok app, website, and in-X chatbot (accessible via the sidebar on the desktop version of the site) still remained open to everyone, allowing the flood of deepfaked AI photos to continue (said photos would obviously still pose the same problems even if generated solely by subscribers, although X later said the goal was to stem the tide and make it easier to hold users generating illegal imagery accountable).
The Telegraph reported on Tuesday that X also started blocking tagged Grok requests to generate images of women in sexualized scenarios, but that such images of men were still allowed. Additionally, testing by both U.S. and U.K. writers from The Verge showed that the banned requests could still be made to Grok's website or app directly.
Musk has taken a more serious tone in more recent comments on the issue, denying the presence of child sexual abuse material on the site, although various replies to his posts expressed disbelief and claimed to show proof to the contrary. Scroll at your own discretion.
While trying to finally put the controversy to bed, X said in a Safety blog on Wednesday that it would now be blocking all requests to the Grok account for images of any real people in revealing clothing, regardless of gender and whether coming from paid subscribers or not. But for anyone hoping that would mark the end of this, there appears to be some fine print.
Specifically, while the statement said that it would be adding these guardrails to all users tagging the Grok account on X, the standalone Grok website and app were not mentioned in the initial version of the draft. This has since been updated, as I was informed by an X spokesperson via email on Friday, but there still appear to be ways to generate these images.
For instance, the statement does say it will also block creation of such images in "Grok on X," referring to the in-X version of the chatbot, but it's not a total block. Instead, the imagery will be "geoblocked," meaning it will only be applied "in those jurisdictions where it's illegal." Geoblocks are also apparently apparently being added to the Grok app, as written in the statement, but a full block is not mentioned for anything other than the Grok account on X. The Grok website is also still not mentioned. Personally, even if this technically meets the legal bare minimum, it's not the choice I would make, since it leave ways for users to generate (or have others generate) the imagery on their own and then post it to the site manually.
It's important to note that, while the majority of the criticism lobbed at X during this debacle does not accuse the site of generating fully nude imagery, locations like the UK ban nonconsenual explicit imagery regardless of whether it is fully nude or not. Virtually undressing a subject down to their underwear without their consent could be enough to trigger legal action.
It's the biggest crackdown X has made on these images yet, but for now, the holes are apparent. According to further testing by The Verge, the site's reporters were still able to generate revealing deepfakes even after Wednesday's announcement, by using the Grok app not originally mentioned in the update. On Thursday, when I attempted this using a photo of myself, both the Grok app and standalone Grok website still gave me full-body deepfaked images of myself in revealing clothing not present in the original shot. I was also able to generate these images using the in-X Grok chatbot, and some images changed my posing to be more provocative (which I did not prompt), too.
I tried again using the Grok app on Friday, after X's Safety blog was updated to mention that geoblocks were being applied to it, and was still able to generate these images.
As such, the battle is likely to continue. It's unclear whether the ability for some users to continue generating this imagery is an oversight, or if X is only seeking to block its most visible holes. One would hope the former, given that X said that it has "zero tolerance for any forms of child sexual exploitation, non-consensual nudity, and unwanted sexual content."
It is worth noting that I am located in New York State, which might not be part of the geoblock, although we do have a law against explicit nonconsensual deepfakes. It's possible the geoblock for my location is still being implemented, but it could also be an indication that the safeguards might still be failing.
When I reached out to X for clarification on the issue, I was pointed to the updated Safety blog, but not to a list of locations where geoblocks are being implemented, which I also requested. I will continue to try to get answers on this front, and will update this post if I hear back.
In the meantime, while governments continue their investigations into the legal situation, others are calling for more immediate action from app stores. A letter sent from U.S. Senators Ron Wyden, Ben Ray Lujan, and Ed Markey to Apple CEO Tim Cook and Google CEO Sundar Pichai argues that Musk's app now clearly violates both App Store and Google Play policies, and calls on the tech leaders to "remove these apps from the [Apple and Google] app stores until X's policy violations are addressed."
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I've been testing portable projectors for a bunch of different use cases, but few, if any, have come close to the complete package offered by the XGIMI MoGo 3 Pro. It's my favorite of the lot, and right now, you can get a sweet bundle with the XGIMI MoGo 3 Pro portable projector and the PowerBase Stand (which you do honestly need) for $368.99, down from $500 at release. This is its all-time low price, according to price-tracking tools.
The projector has two ports—a USB and a micro HDMI—so you can project from a laptop or phone, or you can simply screen mirror from your devices via the Google TV OS. Also, since the projector is "smart," it already comes with the typical apps like Netflix, YouTube, and Amazon, and you can download more from the Google Play Store and control it with a remote. With 450 lumens and 1080p, it's best used in dark rooms, but you can get away with some ambient light (I make good use of it in my backyard).
Where this projector truly shines is with the auto keystone focus feature. If you move it anywhere, it'll autocorrect to make the image look its best, regardless of where it's set up. It's user-friendly and made to be set up quickly, without a lot of fiddling. It also comes with a powerful 5W Harman Kardon speaker, which sounds great—about on par with a speaker like the Echo Dot.
One caveat: This projector has no internal battery, which is a huge bummer. You'd need to use a portable charger, plug it into an outlet, or, if you're getting it in this bundle, the PowerBase Stand, which can deliver 2.5 hours of battery life. (If you plan to use it mostly indoors, you can choose just the projector for $318.99.)
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If you’ve had the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra on your wishlist, you’re in luck: It's now $1,079.99, a 24% discount off its regular price of $1,419.99. This marks the device's lowest price ever, according to price-tracking tools. With high praise from Lifehacker own review and an outstanding rating on PCMag, the powerful, future-proof S25 Ultra is a top choice for Android users.
The model on sale includes 512GB storage and a large 6.9-inch AMOLED display with thinner bezels, an updated anti-glare coating, and a 120Hz refresh rate. Softened corners make it more ergonomic to hold, and it’s more durable than its predecessors thanks to an IP68 rating, upgraded Gorilla Armor glass, and a stronger titanium frame.
Powering the phone is the speedy Snapdragon 8 Elite chip, which runs the device’s AI features, games, and any other multitasking needs smoothly. The built-in S Pen is still there, tucked into the phone’s body, but it no longer includes Bluetooth functions, so it can’t be used as a remote camera button or slideshow controller, unfortunately. The SnapDragon 8 Elite also improves the phone's battery life; the 5,000 mAh-capacity battery lasts over 14 hours with the screen on constant brightness and location sharing on.
You’ll get a full suite of Galaxy AI tools, like converting spoken speech to text, drawing assist, and the digital assistant Google Gemini. While these generational changes are more about refinements than full-on transformation, a $300 discount makes this a great excuse to swap out your own phone with an upgraded Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra.
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Users of Supernatural got an unpleasant surprise this week: Meta has pulled the plug on its flagship virtual reality fitness app. Citing "organizational changes," Meta says it will no longer release new content or update features for Supernatural.
The app is not shutting down completely however. Subscribers can still access Supernatural's existing library of Beat Saber-workouts, and Meta says it will maintain the platform and Facebook page, but no new workouts, features, or other content is planned.
Both users and critics have nearly universally praised Supernatural—CNet scored it 9 out of 10, it won both Fast Company's Best App award in 2020 and a Webby in 2023, and boasted celebrity tie-ins with Jane Fonda and Bon Jovi. Meta doesn't publish subscriber numbers for Supernatural, but there are over 110,000 members of Supernatural's Facebook community. Not enough, apparently, to warrant keeping the app going.
In 2021, Meta spent an estimated $400 million to purchase Within, Supernatural's developer, even battling the FTC to make the deal, and the app was a heavily promoted part of the company's overall "Metaverse" strategy.
The shuttering of Supernatural is part of a larger shift at Meta. This week, the company laid off 1,500 people—about 10% of the staff—from Reality Labs, Meta's hardware and virtual reality division. “We said last month that we were shifting some of our investment from Metaverse toward Wearables. This is part of that effort,” a Meta spokesman told The Wall Street Journal.
Along with cuts at Supernatural, Meta is closing three studios behind some of the most prominent, high-end VR games: Armature, who brought Resident Evil 4 to VR, Sanzaru, the studio behind Asgard’s Wrath, and Twisted Pixel, creators of Deadpool VR.
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ysabetwordsmithsef1029 shared a picture of a tiny bulletin board for neighborhood poetry. This is the kind of thing that anyone could put up, a riff on the Little Free (whatever) concept. It would work just as well for any kind of creative writing that fits on one page, like nature writing or drabbles, as well as things like copies of a journal page with a sketch and description of local flora or fauna. animenewsnetwork_feedsweeticedtea in fandom_icons - Heated Rivalry supporting cast | 490 iconslifehacker_feed - You'll Finally Be Able to Change Your Gmail Addresslifehacker_feed - X Says It's Finally Doing Something About Grok's Deepfake Porn Problem, but It's Not Nearly Enoughdecemberthirty in addme - New year, new friendsusuallyhats in doctor_who_sonic - Thursday 15th January 2026conuly - When I was a kid I read a Sleator bookdorchadas - Well, the WHEA errors are increasing, I had better buy a new computerjalopnik_feed - Larry Ellison Had To Change The Name Of One Of His Yachts After Finding Out It Spelled 'I'm A Nazi'bluapapilio - Anime Check-in: "HIGH CARD" ep. 1-2 (rewatch)lifehacker_feed - My Favorite Portable Projector Is Cheaper Than Ever Right Nowanimenewsnetwork_feed - The Holy Grail of Eris ‒ Episodes 1-2jalopnik_feed - Mattel Brick Shop's New Honda Civic EF, S2000 Buildable 1:32-Scale Models Come With Matching Hot Whelifehacker_feed - The Samsung Galaxy S25 Is $340 Off Right Nowysabetwordsmith - Poetry Fishbowl Themes for Early 2026animenewsnetwork_feed - Your Winter 2026 Anime Daily Streaming Reviewsjalopnik_feed - I Want To Buy A Manual Before I Can't Anymore! What Car Should I Buy?lifehacker_feed - Meta: No New Content Coming to ‘Supernatural’ VR Fitness Appysabetwordsmith - Wildlifeysabetwordsmith - Neighborhood Poetryanimenewsnetwork_feed - 2nd Gundam Hathaway Film's Special Trailer Reveals Opening Song by R&B Artist SZAwinterfish
