Portland Trail Blazers guard Shaedon Sharpe has been sidelined for six games with a calf strain.
Now he’s facing an extended absence, potentially for the remainder of the season. The ]
The Trail Blazers have a six-game cushion over the 11th-place Memphis Grizzlies (21-35), who would be the first team in the West out of the play-in based on Tuesday’s standings. But the injuries to key players have put Portland’s play-in hopes at risk.
The Trail Blazers are seeking their first playoff appearance since 2020-21 with a team that featured Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum and had veteran Carmelo Anthony coming off the bench. But with little hope of advancing out of the first round if they get there, there may not be much motivation for Portland to push their young stars back from injury.
Avdija has already experienced a setback after returning to game play from his back injury. He played just one minute in Sunday’s win over the Phoenix Suns after deciding late to play. He was listed as questionable before the game and was ruled out of Tuesday’s game a day in advance.
Since it was announced a little over a week ago, Discord’s global age verification rollout has been a bit of a mess. First, the chatroom and voice chat company had to clarify that it won’t require all adults to upload an ID or facial scan to prove how old they are, as the initial post left many users with that impression. Second, the announcement came shortly after one if its existing customer service partners was breached, which lead to hackers getting a hold of user information, including government IDs provided for age verification. Third, users discovered that Discord had partnered with Peter Thiel-backed company Persona for an experiment in the UK, which raised flags about surveillance and security, and saw some personal identifying information being uploaded to the cloud when users thought it would be processed on-device. Now, Discord is admitting that it messed up, and is trying to make amends.
In a post on its website, titled “Getting Global Age Assurance Right: What We Got Wrong and What’s Changing,” Discord admitted that its new “teen-by-default” age settings haven’t had the warmest reception. The company said that it “knew this rollout was going to be controversial,” but added that “we failed at our most basic job: clearly explaining what we’re doing and why.” It then reiterated that “over 90% of users will never need to verify their age to continue using Discord exactly as they do today,” while still doubling down on providing “real safeguards” for teenage users. That said, corporate damage control aside, the company also said it’s going to delay the global age verification rollout, and is going to make concrete changes to attempt to address user concerns.
How Discord’s global age verification is changing
To that end, Discord is making the following changes to its controversial global age verification rollout:
Global age verification will now be delayed from March to the “second half of 2026.” Until that point, age verification will only remain active in areas where it is legally required, like the UK and Australia.
On launch, Discord will provide a list of every age verification vendor it works with and their practices.
All age verification partners will only offer facial scanning on-device.
Before global age verification launches, Discord will develop alternative age verification methods beyond scanning your face or providing an ID, like providing credit card information instead. However, such methods might not be legally allowed in certain area, like Australia, the UK, and Brazil.
Discord will add spoiler channels as an option for communities, so they don’t need to use age-restricted channels to hide age appropriate, but still sensitive, content anymore. This will allow accounts that aren’t able to age verify to access these channels.
The company will publish a technical blog once age verification launches going into detail on how its systems work, and will add age verification metrics, including how many users were asked to verify or which age verification methods they used, to ongoing transparency reports.
Essentially, the idea is that if you’re an adult Discord user (and you live in a region that allows it, which Discord says may not be everywhere), Discord will likely be able to use factors like your signup email, your account age, and your activity to guess your age. If so, you’ll be automatically filtered into the correct age group and will be able to keep using the app as usual. Otherwise, you’ll be labeled a teen, and will need to verify by either scanning your face, providing a government ID, or using one of Discord’s new alternative methods. Or, you could keep using the app unverified, but you’ll lose access to age-restricted channels and any content Discord thinks is inappropriate enough to block for you.
Why does Discord care about my age so much?
To that end, not much has changed about Discord’s end goals, and the company did acknowledge that “we know many of you believe the right answer is not to do this at all.” However, Discord also said that its hand is being forced in regions including the UK, Australia, and Brazil, with “Europe and multiple US states close behind.” In scaling age verification globally, Discord says it wants to “show regulators that it’s possible to verify age without collecting identity,” also stating that “we don’t want to know who you are. We just need to know whether you’re an adult.”
To be fair, that still seems to involve knowing who users are to some extent, as you’ll still need to hand over some type of personal identifying information to verify, or rely on Discord’s age prediction to collect information to estimate your age in the background. But as a show of good faith, Discord acknowledged its “experiment” with Persona, and that Persona’s use of off-device facial scanning did not meet its bar for privacy.
What happens next is unclear. Discord’s made a lot of promises, but now it has to follow through on them. The company also didn’t provide a strict deadline for its age verification rollout, so its possible it could continue to get pushed back in regions that don’t legally require it. However, Discord is also up for for an IPO sometime this spring. Certainty and a happy consumer base will likely make investors happy, but that probably also means keeping regulators and concerned parents appeased. Continue to expect compromises, especially when Discord has already come under fire for exposing teens to sensitive material and adult conversations before.
Konnor Griffin hit at least .325 in Low-A, High-A and Double-A last year. This year, as MLB’s top prospect, he’s already making major-league fireworks. Griffin, just 19 years old but standing an imposing 6-foot-4 and 220-plus pounds, launched a pair of home runs during the Pittsburgh Pirates’ 16-7 spring training win over the Boston Red Sox on Tuesday.
Both of the homers left JetBlue Park, otherwise known as “Fenway South,” in Fort Myers, Florida.
Griffin, playing shortstop and batting seventh for the Pirates, demolished Suárez’s second-inning curveball and deposited it over the second level of Monster seats. That dinger traveled 374 feet and scored two.
His next one went even farther. The Mississippi native took a Seth Martinez sweeper for a 440-foot ride in the fourth inning. That solo shot also flew over the southern Green Monster.
“He’s obviously a freakish athlete,” Pirates pitcher Carmen Mlodzinski said afterward, per Tribune-Review Sports’ Kevin Gorman. “I haven’t been able to be around him a whole lot, other than just seeing him this spring and watching some videos from last year, but you can tell he’s definitely going to hit.
“There’s not a whole lot of swings that you see like that, especially for a teenager. I mean, the best way I can say it is that his bat is in the zone forever.”
Mlodzinski added: “It’s not fair to say it’s a long swing, but the bat path just looks like it’s going to be on the ball the whole way, and he was able to show that today.”
Safe to say Pirates pitcher Carmen Mlodzinski is impressed with No. 1 prospect Konnor Griffin amid his two-homer game against the Boston Red Sox. pic.twitter.com/O5zRIBnzDS
Less than two years after the Pirates selected Griffin No. 9 overall in the 2024 MLB Draft, he’s turning heads this spring, but he’ll have to force the Pirates’ hand if he wants to be an Opening Day starter.
That kind of debut would be ahead of schedule, but there’s no denying his five-tool talent.
In 122 minor-league games last year, Griffin posted 21 home runs, 94 RBI, 65 stolen bases and a .942 OPS. He is a name to know, with a bat to keep an eye on.
With the Winter Olympics in the rearview, it’s time for baseball’s international competition to move into the spotlight. That’s right: We’re a little more than a week away from the start of the 2026 World Baseball Classic, the sixth edition of the tournament.
Over the next few days, we’ll preview all 20 teams set to participate in the WBC. Let’s start with Pool A, which features Canada, Colombia, Cuba, Panama and Puerto Rico and begins play March 6 in San Juan, Puerto Rico.
Tournament history: Canada has appeared in all six previous editions of the WBC but has never advanced out of pool play.
First game: March 7 vs. Colombia, 11 a.m. ET (12 p.m. local)
Key players: Canada probably has the best hitter and pitcher in this pool, so let’s focus on them. Josh Naylor, fresh off signing an extension with the Mariners, is a world-class hitter capable of pummeling lesser competition. The lineup around him is deep, but he’s Canada’s fulcrum. Jameson Taillonis the only hurler in this pool who started a postseason game in 2025. With Canada’s shallow pitching corps, he’ll need to cover as many innings as possible.
Guy you don’t know yet but should: Matt Wilkinson,more famously known as “Tugboat,” is a 6-foot-1, 250-pound southpaw in the Guardians’ system ready to steal your heart. He has a magic fastball and more grit than a construction site.
Tugboat Wilkinson is my new favorite player
Oh yeah, and he stuck out 15 in just 6 innings tonight
Biggest strength: Offensive firepower. Between Naylor, Tyler O’Neill and Owen Caissie, there’s some real lumber north of the border. But Canada has professionals up and down the order, with Otto Lopez, Abraham Toro and Liam Hicks. There’s not another team in this pool — and relatively few in the tournament — that can roll out a starting lineup of nine legitimate big-league position players. Canada’s offense could be a real separator in this tournament’s most even pool.
Biggest weakness: Pitching depth. Jameson Taillon, Mike Soroka and Cal Quantrill are a really solid front three, but Canada doesn’t have much else. Only one other arm on this roster (Rob Zastryzny) appeared in a single MLB game last season. Not reeling in Guardians closer Cade Smith (he opted not to participate) could come back to haunt the Canadians. Delightfully, the Maple Leafs have pulled two Canadian baseball legends, James Paxton and Phillippe Aumont, out of retirement. Perhaps they can provide the requisite magic.
Tournament outlook: Canada is far and away the most accomplished baseball nation to have never reached the WBC knockout stage. And with none of the Western Hemisphere bigwigs (USA, Dominican Republic, Venezuela, Mexico) in Group A, this is a magnificent opportunity to right that wrong. Because even though Canada is missing some big pieces (Smith, Freddie Freeman, Nick Pivetta, Matt Brash, to name a few), this will be the most complete roster in Puerto Rico. Another pool-play exit would qualify as a massive, massive disappointment. Nathan MacKinnon, eat your heart out.
Tournament history: This is Colombia’s third WBC, and while the team has never emerged from the group stage, it managed a pool play victory in both 2017 and 2023.
First game: March 6 vs. Puerto Rico, 6 p.m. ET (7 p.m. local)
Key player: Gio Urshela, the most accomplished Colombian hitter of his generation, had a downright dreadful, 0-for-14 performance in 2023. The veteran infielder needs to be more productive at the dish if Colombia is going to advance from the group stage.
Guy you don’t know yet but should: Michael Arroyo, a 21-year-old infielder in Seattle’s system,is the highest regarded Colombian prospect in the sport right now. Despite his lack of size (5-foot-8, 160 pounds), Arroyo profiles like a legit, above-average big-league hitter. He doesn’t really have a defensive home, but that won’t matter if he rakes like he’s supposed to.
Biggest strength: Experience. Colombia returns a whopping 17 players from the previous tournament, the biggest tally in Pool A and tied for the second-largest in the entire tournament. Remember, this group showed pretty well in 2023, with an upset win over semifinalists Mexico and a one-run loss to Team USA. Such familiarity with the big stage could pay dividends, particularly in what will surely be a hostile environment in the opener against host Puerto Rico.
Biggest weakness: Lack of star power. This team doesn’t have a single position player projected to be on an Opening Day MLB roster. That’s far from a death sentence — international play is a different beast — but Colombia managed just two homers in four games last time around. That’s a tough way to live.
Tournament outlook: Losing journeyman hurler Nabil Crismatt to an elbow injury looks like a heavy loss for this group. Thankfully, there’s José Quintana, the greatest Colombian pitcher ever by a country mile. He didn’t play in 2023 and should provide quite a shot in the arm. Colombia needs to win his start, keep scores low and try to string a few timely hits together.
Which two teams will advance from the most competitive pool in this year’s WBC?
Tournament history: Cuba finished second in the inaugural WBC in 2006, losing to Japan in the final. It has participated in every edition and most recently managed a surprise semifinal finish in 2023.
First game: March 6 vs. Panama, 11 a.m. ET (12 p.m. local)
Key player: Livan Moinelo has been one of the best pitchers in NPB over the past decade and would slot into the middle of an MLB rotation, were he to come Stateside. The 30-year-old tossed 167 innings of 1.46 ERA ball with 172 strikeouts last season. He’s probably the only Cuban starter with top-shelf stuff and the skills to command it. Make sure you tune in for his start.
Guy you don’t know yet but should: Raidel Martinez led NPB with 46 saves last season and is widely considered the best closer in the league. It’s high-ride fuzz from a deceptive, over-the-top arm angle. He could be in an MLB ‘pen right now.
Biggest strength: Putting the ball in play. Shorter swings. Not looking to drive the ball.
Biggest weakness: Position-player talent. Factors both political and baseball-related have turned the once fertile Cuban baseball pipeline dangerously dry. There aren’t many Yordan Alvarez’s and Luis Robert Jr.’s matriculating toward the bigs anymore. That unfortunate reality, in addition to ideological rifts within the Cuban baseball world that keep the best active big leaguers from playing, means this roster is almost entirely devoid of offensive talent. It’s mostly Mexican Leaguers, minor leaguers and has-beens. Alexei Ramirez making this roster at age 44 is both a very cool story and a sad indictment of the state of Cuban baseball in 2026.
Tournament outlook: It’s important to note that the Cubans’ unexpected semifinal run in 2023 was aided by a weak group and a fortunate quarterfinal matchup against Australia. That roster, as harsh as it sounds, did not have the talent of a semifinal team. And this squad is definitively worse. Cuba used to dominate the international baseball space, with three Olympic golds, 12 Pan American golds and 25 World Cup titles. Those days are long gone.
Tournament history: Panama made the first two tournaments in 2006 and ‘09 before failing to qualify in 2013 and ‘17. It returned in 2023 and went 2-2 but again failed to make it out of the group stage.
First game: March 6 vs. Cuba, 11 a.m. ET (12 p.m. local)
Key players: The starters not named Logan Allen. Allen started 29 games for the AL Central champion Guardians last year, but he’s the only pitcher for Panama currently on an MLB 40-man roster. Ariel Jurado was one of the best starters in the Korean Baseball Organization last season, but he’s more deception than stuff. Guys such as Jaime Barría, Paolo Espino and Andy Oterohave strong track records in Mexico and assorted winter leagues, but all are on the downswings of their careers.
Guy you don’t know yet but should: Enrique Bradfield Jr. was an Orioles first-rounder in 2023 out of Vanderbilt. He’s a true throwback, a low-power, high-contact center fielder with top-of-the-charts speed. If he gets on base in the WBC, he’s going.
Biggest strength: The infield. Former Met Rubén Tejada caught the headlines — because, oh my god, Rubén Tejada is still playing — but Edmundo Sosa (3B) and José Caballero (SS) should be the difference-makers. Both are luxury utilitymen for MLB contenders and have tons of big-game experience. Leo Jimenez (2B) was up and down with the Jays last year. Miguel Amaya (C) knows what he’s doing behind the dish. Johan Camargo (1B) has been around the block. This is a solid group.
Biggest weakness: Probably the pitching depth. Panama has a ton of dudes scattered across the international baseball world, but few can be considered sure things.
Tournament outlook: It’s still unclear whether Cardinals DH Iván Herrera is going to play. Like many players in this pool, the hulking slugger has had trouble securing insurance. If he suits up, that’s a big deal, considering the dearth of home run juice on this roster. Either way, Panama has a sneaky-fun roster with tons of speed that could play tricks on opposing catchers.
Tournament history: Puerto Rico has appeared in every edition of the WBC. The team lost in the final twice: in 2013 to the Dominican and in 2017 to Team USA.
First game: March 6 vs. Colombia, 6 p.m. ET (7 p.m. local)
Key player: With superstars Francisco Lindor and Carlos Correa unable to secure insurance to participate, Nolan Arenadobecomes Puerto Rico’s most important and most famous position player. Almost 35 years old, the 10-time Gold Glover isn’t the player he once was. Still, he’s one of the few every-day big leaguers in this lineup. This will be Arenado’s third time playing in the WBC; he suited up for Team USA in 2017 and ‘23.
Guy you don’t know yet but should: Bryan Torres has lived quite a baseball life. The 5-foot-7 lefty signed with the Brewers as an undrafted free agent in 2015 but ended up in independent ball with the Milwaukee Milkmen after stalling out in Double-A with the Giants. He proceeded to obliterate the American Association before winning back-to-back MVP awards in the Puerto Rican winter league. That pushed Torres back into affiliate ball with the Cardinals, who tossed him on the 40-man this past winter after he posted a .905 OPS in Triple-A in 2025. His well-earned inclusion on this roster is a silver lining of Puerto Rico’s unfortunate insurance saga.
Biggest strength: Relief pitching. Edwin Díaz, whose high-profile injury in 2023 contributed to the more stringent insurance policies this time around, is the headliner here, as the sport’s top closer. But PR’s bullpen is more than just Eddie D. Fernando Cruz is slated to handle the eighth inning for the Yankees in 2026. José Espada, Rico Garcia, Jorge López and Jovani Morán all appeared in the bigs last season. This is easily the best bullpen in this group.
Biggest weakness: Offensive star power. Not having Lindor, Correa or Javier Báez — the three best Puerto Rican hitters of the past decade — is an enormous bummer and a huge blow to Puerto Rico’s chances. So too was losing George Springer to injury. Those omissions leave Team PR with a real power vacuum; Heliot Ramos is the only player on this roster who cranked more than 12 homers in MLB last season.
Tournament outlook: The atmosphere in San Juan was always going to be absolutely sensational, no matter who takes the diamond. This is the first time since 2013 that Puerto Rico is hosting WBC games, something that has been a double-edged sword for second-tier teams in recent history. In the past two editions, not a single non-USA/Japan host survived the group stage. Puerto Rico will need big starts from Seth Lugo and José De Leon to stop that trend and emerge from this very balanced group.
“I have no idea,” Carlisle told reporters at the Pacers’ first post-All-Star break practice last Tuesday, according to Dustin Dopirak of the Indianapolis Star. “And really no comment on it.”
On Tuesday, though, during an interview with Indianapolis radio station 107.5 The Fan, Carlisle offered more expansive comments, calling the process of the investigation that preceded the fine “shocking” and “ridiculous.”
Rick Carlisle today opening up about the NBA’s $100,000 fine of the #Pacers:
“Yeah, you know, I didn’t agree with it,” Carlisle told hosts Kevin Bowen and James Boyd. “There was a league lawyer that was doing the interview that kind of unilaterally decided that Aaron Nesmith, who had been injured the night before and couldn’t hold the ball, should have played in the game, which just seems ridiculous.
“And during the interview process — I was not on it, but I heard details — we asked them if they wanted to talk to the doctors, our doctors, about it, because it’s something that was documented by our doctors and trainers. They said no, they didn’t need to, they talked to their doctors, who did not examine Aaron Nesmith. And we asked them if they wanted to talk to the kid, and they said no, they didn’t need to. So this was shocking. This was shocking to me.
“And during the interview, they also asked if we considered medicating him to play in a game when we were 30 games under .500. So I was very surprised. You know, obviously didn’t agree with it.”
“Coach Carlisle’s description of the process that went into the decision to fine the Indiana Pacers is inaccurate,” a league spokesperson told Yahoo Sports on Tuesday. “An independent physician led the medical review. In addition, the Pacers’ General Manager and the team’s Senior Vice President, Sports Medicine and Performance were interviewed as part of the process. The Pacers confirmed that it had provided all of the information requested by the league and the team reported that an interview with Coach Carlisle or a team physician wasn’t necessary.”
The $100,000 fine stemmed from the Pacers’ Feb. 3 game against the Jazz. Indiana entered at 13-37, the worst record in the Eastern Conference, mired in a lost season after losing Tyrese Haliburton to a ruptured Achilles tendon in Game 7 of the 2025 NBA Finals, seeing starting center Myles Turner leave for Milwaukee in free agency, and sustaining a string of significant injuries to other contributors early in the season. Utah came in at 15-35, in 13th place in the West, struggling through a fourth straight losing season as it continues to try to rebuild after trading away former franchise cornerstones Donovan Mitchell and Rudy Gobert.
In the second game of a five-game Eastern road trip, Utah ruled Jusuf Nurkić out for rest; sat Keyonte George with a left ankle sprain; and kept Lauri Markkanen on the bench for the final six minutes and 19 seconds. On the second night of a back-to-back, the Pacers held Pascal Siakam and Bennedict Mathurin out to rest; sat Andrew Nembhard and T.J. McConnell to manage injuries to their lower back and left knee, respectively; and sidelined Nesmith with the left hand strain that Carlisle said on the radio on Tuesday he’d suffered in the previous night’s loss against Houston.
The Jazz went on to win, 131-122, with second-year guard Isaiah Collier playing the full 48 minutes, scoring 17 points and delivering a career-high 22 assists.
In a Feb. 12 statement announcing the $100,000 fine, the NBA took issue with Indiana’s roster management on that particular night.
“Following an investigation, including review by an independent physician, the NBA determined that Pascal Siakam, a star player under the Policy, and two other Pacers starters, neither of whom participated in the game, could have played under the medical standard in the Policy, including by playing reduced minutes. Alternatively, the team could have held the players out of other games in a way that would have better promoted compliance with the Policy.”
Under the NBA’s Player Participation Policy, a “star” player is one who has made an All-Star or All-NBA team within the previous three seasons, and/or the All-Star Game in the current season. Siakam has earned consecutive All-Star selections.
As Lifehacker has previously argued, YouTube Premium is probably the best streaming service for most people. Ads can eat into your free time faster than you might realize, and because YouTube’s user-generated videos can be quite short, they’re especially annoying there—and blocking them without a paid subscription is tough.
YouTube Premium is also a bit pricey as streaming services go, at $14/month. Fortunately, the company also offers a “Premium Lite” plan that’s much cheaper—and thanks to the recent addition of a few key features, it no longer pales in comparison to a full subscription. In fact, the $8/month YouTube Premium Lite may now be the best paid YouTube tier for most people.
YouTube Premium Lite is getting two of the more expensive tier’s best features
Starting today, YouTube Premium Lite now offers both background play and download options on most videos, features that were previously exclusive to a full YouTube Premium plan. The update is currently rolling out, so it might take a little bit for it to reach you, but the change essentially gives you parity with a full YouTube Premium plan on the vast majority of YouTube content. According to YouTube, the company has “heard feedback about wanting these additional features included in the service,” which prompted the change.
Now, for the same $8/month price, you can get most of the full YouTube Premium experience, normally a $14/month value. The only catch? You’ll still get ads when streaming music and music videos, hence the “most videos” disclaimer. Ads also “may appear when you search or browse,” but as for interruptions while watching non-music content? You should be in the clear.
Credit: YouTube
A full YouTube Premium account no longer makes sense for most users
Essentially, unless you’re a big YouTube Music user, getting YouTube Premium Lite instead of a full-cost subscription is now a no-brainer. There are a few smaller bonuses you’ll be leaving behind, like the ability to “Jump Ahead” (instantly skip frequently skipped parts of a video, usually ad reads), but your subscription will also be around half the price. You win some, you lose some.
The only real gap now, at least for me, is for households with lots of different YouTube viewers YouTube Premium Lite still only applies to one profile at a time, so if everyone in your household wants to have their own separate algorithms instead of sharing a profile, you’ll need to get YouTube Premium Family, which costs $23/month, giving six people in the same household the benefits of a full YouTube Premium subscription. My husband and I have pretty different viewing habits, so we’re unlikely to switch to this cheaper tier any time soon. But if you live alone or you’re OK sharing a profile, you might as well save yourself some moolah.
Alternatively, you can also still get a YouTube Music Premium plan for $11/month. That removes ads and allows background play and downloads, but only for music and music videos. It’s essentially the opposite of YouTube Premium Lite, and faces stiff competition from the likes of Spotify and Apple Music. Personally, I’d just pay the extra for a full YouTube Premium subscription, which has all the same benefits of YouTube Music Premium, but also works for non-music content and only costs $3/month more.
Still, while adding new features to Premium Lite is ultimately a discount, it does follow a move from YouTube to block people from accessing background play for free. Perhaps this is Google’s attempt at a compromise?
Samsung Unpacked 2026 is nearly upon us. On Wednesday, Feb. 25, Samsung will take the stage in San Francisco to make some pretty major product and feature announcements. Unlike some other big tech companies, however, Samsung isn’t being 100% secretive here. The company has already told us that it will reveal the next Galaxy S Series, and while they haven’t said exactly what it will be called, it’s pretty safe to assume this will be the Galaxy S26 series. The rumors suggest Samsung has plenty of other updates up its sleeve, too, including the new Galaxy Buds 4 and Galaxy AI announcements.
Based on the leaks and rumors, it seems the S26 series will likely be a small year-over-year update to the S25 series, which is largely to be expected from a smartphone OEM as big as Samsung. While there may not be too much incentive to update from the S25 series, users of older Galaxy devices, or older smartphones in general, may find the processor and camera upgrades worthwhile. There may also be unique features, like Privacy Display, which can make it more difficult for others to see your screen when they’re not looking at it head-on. We’ll have to see exactly which rumors pan out to know for sure.
You don’t need to be seated in San Francisco in order to keep up with all the Samsung news, though. We’ll be covering the event live as it happens, posting to this live blog throughout the day. That means we’ll be reporting when Samsung reveals the Galaxy S26, S26+, and S26 Ultra; all the new features those devices come with; and any new accessories and AI advancements you can expect from the Samsung ecosystem. For all the latest Samsung Unpacked 2026 news, keep checking this live blog throughout Wednesday.
This is going to be a big week for Samsung. The company is making some major announcements at Galaxy Unpacked 2026 on Wednesday, revealing the next generation Galaxy S Series devices (which almost assuredly means the Galaxy S26), as well as some new AI updates. In the lead up to this event, Samsung is also now rolling out its latest security updates for its Galaxy devices—at least, some of its devices.
What’s new with Samsung’s February security update
Samsung’s February security update contains 37 patches for issues the company discovered since the January update. This time, there are no critical patches, but there are plenty of fixes for “High” severity issues. According to SamMobile, 25 of these patches were provided by Google, which fix issues with Android in general, while the other 12 were specific to Samsung to patch issues within its own ecosystem. That includes issues for Emergency Sharing, Knox Guard Manager, Samsung Dialer, Samsung’s Settings app, face and fingerprint authentication systems, and the PACM module—things that only apply to Samsung’s own OS.
Not all Galaxy phones are getting this update right away. Samsung is kicking things off with its Galaxy S25 series, meaning the Galaxy S25, S25+, and S25 Ultra. It also appears to be rolling out to its latest foldable devices as well, including the Galaxy Z Fold 7, Z Flip 7, and Z TriFold. If you bought Samsung’s latest and greatest—at least until the S26 series launches—you’ll likely see the update in your Settings app imminently. If your Galaxy device is on the older side (or even one year older than the S25 series), you may need to wait a bit before the patches appear.
Speaking of waiting, Samsung started rolling this update out to Korean users first, so if you’re in another region, you might not see it right away. But it does seem evident the patch is on its way, especially with Unpacked airing Wednesday.
How to install Samsung’s February security update
Once the security update hits your device, open the Settings app, then choose either Software update or System updates. (This may differ depending on your device.) From here, depending on your carrier, tap either Download and install, Check for system updates, or Check for software updates. The latest update may begin downloading automatically, but if it doesn’t, tap Download now. Finally, follow the on-screen instructions to install the update.
Free Refurbished QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds 1st Gen (a $249 value)
Bose Ultra Open Earbuds
$299.00 at Bose
$299.00 at Bose
Bose QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds (2nd Gen)
$299.00 at Bose
$299.00 at Bose
I’ve reviewed the Bose QuietComfort Ultra (2nd Gen), and they have the best ANC I’ve ever tried. As the name implies, they’re comfortable and offer a friendly, minimalistic user experience that I’ve come to appreciate after testing so many earbuds. The audio is nothing less than what I expect from Bose, and the immersive mode is incredible, making the music truly come to life. I also love their practical features, like the transparency mode coming on when you take one earbud out. Simple, yet so appreciated.
The Bose Ultra Open Earbuds have the sort of open-ear design that has been growing in popularity, likely because active noise-canceling tech has gotten so good that people have forgotten what nature sounds like. The Ultra Open Earbuds are Bose’s stab at the trending tech, and they’re pretty decent. But when you get a free refurnished pair of QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds (1st Gen) along with them, they become a great option for those looking for an open-ear feel.
This BOGO deal is perfect for people who want to experience both ANC and an open-ear design. Both have very different uses: ANC is great when trying to focus or really get into your media. The open ear design is great for outdoor activities when you need to be aware of your surroundings, or when you want to interact with your environment, like in an office, or working with people. This is an affordable way to get earbuds for either situation.
