Enlarge Image We’ll find out soon if Donald Trump’s social media windfall trumps his absence at the Republican debate. Porter Gifford/Corbis Donald Trump snubbed an invitation to Thursday night’s Republican presidential debate. The unsociable act only won him more friends. The real-estate magnate and tonsorial innovator grabbed 38 percent of debate mentions on Twitter, according …

We’ve seen a lot of pictures lately of charred, smoldering hoverboard innards. Now, thanks to the repair gurus at iFixit, you can peek inside a hoverboard that doesn’t have fire damage. The iFixit site, which regularly cracks open high-profile gadgets, in collaboration with The Wirecutter took apart a Swagway and its charger. It’s verdict is that “barring a couple of …

Lyft drivers in California will remain independent contractors. That’s the takeaway from a settlement Tuesday between the popular ride-hailing service and its drivers. San Francisco-based Lyft agreed to pay $12.25 million to settle a class action lawsuit brought in 2013 by Lyft drivers in California. Lyft will also make some changes to the terms of service that drivers agree to …

We’ve seen a lot of pictures lately of charred, smoldering hoverboard innards. Now, thanks to the repair gurus at iFixit, you can peek inside a hoverboard that doesn’t have fire damage. The iFixit site, which regularly cracks open high-profile gadgets, in collaboration with The Wirecutter took apart a Swagway and its charger. It’s verdict is that “barring a couple of …

Charging up your hoverboard? Keep a fire extinguisher near by. That’s one piece of advice from the US Consumer Product Safety Commission in an update Wednesday to its investigation of the self-balancing boards. It also suggests wearing protective gear, staying off roads and charging the boards away from combustible materials. The federal regulatory agency is now investigating 39 hoverboard fires …

Netflix is tightening its grip on some of your favorite TV shows and movies. The video-streaming service said Thursday it plans to take new steps to prevent customers from streaming content that isn’t officially available in their country. “In coming weeks, those using proxies and unblockers will only be able to access the service in the country where they currently …

Personal computers wheezed their way to the end of 2015, even as Apple managed to gain ground. Buffeted by consumer infatuation with tablets and phones, worldwide shipments of PCs continued spiraling lower in the final three months of 2015, according to research firms IDC and Gartner. Consumer interest in PCs was so weak, shipments for the year fell to the …

Your first behind-the-scenes glimpse of the White House on Snapchat: a big bowl of apples. The White House joined the popular messaging service turned social network on Monday, promising an inside look at preparations for President Barack Obama’s final State of the Union address on Tuesday. Joining Snapchat is the latest move in a larger social-media campaign by the Obama …

Mark Zuckerberg’s proposal to provide free, basic Internet service in India has hit an old-fashioned snag: People don’t believe they’re getting something for nothing. On Wednesday, dozens of Internet rights groups criticized Facebook, Zuck’s company, for making “disingenuous” claims about opposition to the Free Basics plan, which promises to give India’s rural poor access to the social network and a …

This story is part of CES 2016. Our editors bring you complete CES 2016 coverage and scour the showroom floor for the hottest new tech gadgets around. Intel wants to power more than PCs. It wants to power drones, too. The Santa Clara, California-based chip giant said Monday it will acquire Ascending Technologies, a German drone maker. The Krailing, Germany-based …