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Free ebooks and cheap iPhone 17 accessories are this week’s best deals
Gaming Gear

Free ebooks and cheap iPhone 17 accessories are this week’s best deals

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A cool new perk recently became available for Prime members: for a limited time, you can get a three-month subscription to Kindle Unlimited. If your ebookshelf is looking bare, Amazon is currently offering a three-month subscription to Kindle Unlimited for free. The service typically costs $11.99 per month, so the deal saves you $35.97 over the course of the trial. Keep in mind that your subscription will automatically renew once the trial period is over. The discount is one of Amazon’s early Prime Big Deal Days deals (that’s a mouthful), dropping well ahead of the October 7th event. We’ll be on the hunt for more early deals as that date approaches.

Kindle Unlimited is a subscription service that gives you access to a library of over four million books, thousands of audiobooks, and an assortment of magazines. You can download items from the Kindle Unlimited library onto — you guessed it — a Kindle, or any device with the Kindle app. The library is large enough that you should be able to find books in your favorite genres (perhaps by your favorite author, too) and three months is plenty of time to tear through a full series or two.

More deals our readers loved this week



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Feiniu NAS
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This Chinese NAS claims over 180TB of storage with UPS protection and a memory card slot, yet hides its final retail cost

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  • Feiniu NAS integrates UPS to tackle abnormal outages that threaten critical data
  • 6-bay version expected in October, and 4-bay model to come later this year
  • The NAS includes USB-C, USB-A, and SD card slot connectivity

Feiniu has previewed a new NAS system which it claims will address one of the most persistent causes of data corruption.

The Chinese manufacturer revealed its upcoming models will integrate an Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS) as standard.

It also stated this device will have a 6-bay model, which will launch in mid-October 2025, and a 4-bay model expected to arrive later this year.


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Integrated UPS for data protection

Feiniu says that abnormal power outages frequently lead to NAS data loss, which in many cases is not discovered until long after the damage has occurred.

By including a UPS in its system, the NAS will continue running briefly after a power interruption, allowing the drives to shut down safely and protecting stored data.

Such a design may distinguish the device from even the best NAS currently available, although its real-world effectiveness remains unproven until it is tested.

The 6-bay NAS previewed by Feiniu features a horizontal design with gray-painted sides, a black front panel, and the company’s “fn” logo.

The upper section includes a grille for drive access, while the lower portion has a glossy finish with a red power button.

Connectivity options are on the right side of the device and include USB-C, USB-A, and an SD card slot for removable storage.

The presence of a memory card slot broadens the options for users who may want a system that offers more external storage.


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Feiniu’s founder, Zhu Ting, also hinted the new 6-bay model will accommodate more than 180TB of total storage, depending on the drive sizes used.

This capacity aligns it with the upper end of consumer-grade and small business NAS devices.

The product will be offered in both standard and Pro versions, with claims of being “highly playable” and containing “surprises.”

However, such descriptions leave plenty of ambiguity, and no clear specifications have been confirmed regarding performance, supported file systems, or power efficiency.

Competing enterprise devices already deliver very large capacity (over 1PB), advanced RAID configurations, and snapshot technologies, although most lack an integrated UPS.

Therefore, Feiniu will likely bank on its UPS and other “surprises” to sell this device.

Currently, there is no official information about the price of this device, which makes its market positioning uncertain.

However, brand recognition may influence expectations, and cost remains the most unpredictable factor.

Via ITHome (originally in Chinese)

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Wordle answers
Gaming Gear

Today’s Wordle clues, hints and answer for September 21 #1555

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Congrats on your latest Wordle win. And no, of course it’s not too early to say that because now you’re here you’ve got all the help you could ever need. We’ve got the answer to today’s Wordle waiting below if you’d like to skip straight to the best bit, as well as a fresh batch of hints and clues for the September 21 (1555) game ready to go. You’ve got this.

A clue for today’s Wordle

Stuck on today’s Wordle? Here’s a clue that pertains to the meaning of the word.

If you’re still just as stuck after our clue, scroll down for further hints.


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Hints for the September 21 (#1555) Wordle

Our Wordle hints will start vague so as to just give you a bit of a nudge in the right direction at first.

As you scroll down, they’ll offer more and more help towards figuring out today’s word without fully giving it away.

Are there any repeated letters in today’s Wordle?

Five spaces need five unique letters today.

How many vowels are in today’s Wordle?

Two vowels need to be uncovered this Sunday.

What letter does today’s Wordle begin with?

Make sure you start with a “C”.

Whatever kind of grey and yellow box tangle you’ve got, your win’s still coming up.

The September 21 (#1555) Wordle answer is…

(Image credit: Future)

This is it. No turning back now!


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The solution to today’s Wordle puzzle is…

The meaning behind today’s Wordle answer

A coven is typically a formal gathering of witches, although other small groups sometimes use the term too. 🧹

Previous Wordle answers

Past Wordle answers can give you some excellent ideas for fun starting words that keep your daily puzzle-solving fresh. They are also a good way to eliminate guesses for today’s Wordle, as the answer is unlikely to be repeated.

Here are the last 10 Wordle answers:

  • September 11: CHAIR
  • September 12: THROB
  • September 13: NADIR
  • September 14: NOISY
  • September 15: ALONG
  • September 16: LEFTY
  • September 17: TEETH
  • September 18: KNIFE
  • September 19: LATER
  • September 20: DEFER

Learn more about Wordle 

(Image credit: Future)

How to play Wordle

Wordle’s a daily guessing game, where the goal is to correctly uncover today’s five letter word in six goes or less. An incorrect letter shows up as a grey box. A correct letter in the wrong space turns up yellow. And the correct letter in the right place shows up as green. There’s no time limit to worry about, and don’t forget that some letters might be used more than once.

Get better at Wordle!

What’s the best Wordle starting word?

Generally you want to pick something with a good mix of common consonants and vowels in it as your Wordle opener, as this is most likely to return some early green and yellow letters. Words like SLATE, CHIME, and REACT all work, but feel free to find your own favourite.

Is Wordle getting harder?

(Image credit: Valve)

Wordle is not getting harder!

There will always be the occasional day where the answer is the name of a body part, has a sneaky double vowel, or a word obscure enough to send everyone rushing off to a dictionary. But the daily answers, edited by Tracy Bennett, are still a good mix of common terms and tougher challenges.

Remember that if you’re craving more of a challenge, you can enable Hard Mode under the ⚙️ options menu. This option doesn’t make the words themselves harder, but it requires that “any revealed hints must be used in subsequent guesses.”

How did Wordle begin?

Wordle is the creation of Josh Wardle, and began life as a small personal project before its public release in 2021. From there it’s gone on to become a global phenomenon, attracting a dedicated daily audience, billions of plays, a whole host of competitors, and even a seven-figure sale to the New York Times where it’s become a mainstay of daily games alongside the crosswords and Connections.



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The MSI MAG 271QPX QD-OLED E2 gaming monitor deals post
Gaming Gear

MSI’s 27-inch 240 Hz OLED QHD gaming monitor drops to its lowest price of $499

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QD-OLED monitors offer excellent visuals with deep blacks and vibrant colors, making them one of the best display upgrades for your gaming setup. One such recommended monitor comes from MSI, specifically the MAG 271QPX QD-OLED E2, which is currently available at a discounted price at Newegg.

The 27-inch gaming monitor, originally launched at $699, is currently available for $549 during Newegg’s ongoing Shell Shocker sale. For a limited time, you can avail an extra $50 off by applying the promo code GH8P23, bringing the final price down to $499.

The MSI MAG 271QPX QD-OLED E2 features a third-generation QD-OLED panel, which, according to the company, has been factory pre-calibrated to achieve a delta-E ≤ 2 and an expanded RGB color range of 10-bit. With a resolution of 2560×1440, the monitor provides a refresh rate of up to 240 Hz, paired with a 0.03 ms (GtG) response time, for a sharp and responsive visual experience.

MSI also notes that the monitor is VESA certified for ClearMR 13000 for reduced motion blur and DisplayHDR True Black 400, which ensures high contrast and deep blacks. The panel also supports up to 99% of the DCI-P3 color gamut, making it suitable for creative tasks.

In terms of connectivity, the MSI MAG 271QPX QD-OLED E2 features a DisplayPort (1.4a), two HDMI 2.1 ports, a USB 2.0 Type-C port with support for DisplayPort Alt Mode and 15W power delivery, and a 3.5mm headphone jack.

Other notable features include a specialized Graphene film for improved thermal conductivity and a customized heatsink that enables the monitor to operate without an active cooling fan. To prevent OLED burn-in, MSI’s OLED Care 2.0 offers a range of screen protection optimization mechanisms, in addition to features such as Multi-Logo Detection, Taskbar Detection, and Boundary Detection. The monitor also comes with a three-year burn-in warranty, offering additional peace of mind for consumers.

If you’re looking for more savings, check out our Best PC Hardware deals for a range of products, or dive deeper into our specialized SSD and Storage Deals, Hard Drive Deals, Gaming Monitor Deals, Graphics Card Deals, or CPU Deals pages.



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Big Tech Tells H-1B Workers Not to Leave Country Due to Trump's New Policy
Gaming Gear

Big Tech Tells H-1B Workers Not to Leave Country Due to Trump’s New Policy

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Donald Trump’s announcement on Friday that his administration will impose a $100,000 annual fee on H1-B visa applications, which allows foreign laborers in specialty occupations to work in the United States, has sent industries and governments into a spiral of confusion. With the policy set to go into effect Sunday, Big Tech companies are reportedly telling H-1B holders in their workforces to either remain in the United States or return from overseas before the new policy is enacted, according to CNBC.

According to the report, Amazon sent a memo to its employees advising workers on an H-1B or H-4 visa holders (given to dependent family members of H-1B workers) to return from overseas before 12:01 a.m. ET on September 21. Microsoft reportedly sent out a similar message, warning its employees that the Trump administration’s policy is “structured as a travel restriction” and international travel could put their worker status at risk. It advised H-1B visa holders to cancel future travel plans and remain in the US “for the foreseeable future.”

Tech firms are by far the biggest users of the H-1B visa program. Five of the top six employers of H-1B workers are Amazon, Microsoft, Meta, Apple, and Google, according to data from Citizenship and Immigration Services. Under the new rules, which would require either the H-1B visa holder or their sponsor to pay $100,000 annually to keep the work permit active, Amazon could, in theory, be staring down a $1 billion bill every year to keep the more than 10,000 H-1B visa holders it currently employs in its workforce.

But tech is also far from the only industry that counts on specialized labor from overseas. According to the Business Standard, over 30% of medical residents in the United States are international graduates, and between 10,000 to 43,000 residency spots are currently filled by H-1B visa holders. There is an ongoing doctor shortage in the country that was expected to worsen without new restrictions. The Association of American Medical Colleges projected a shortage of 20,200 to 40,400 primary care doctors by 2036, prior to the new H-1B fees.

It’s not just industry players freaking out, either. Foreign governments are scrambling to respond to the new policy, with little lead time to sort through all the details. “This measure is likely to have humanitarian consequences by way of the disruption caused for families. Government hopes that these disruptions can be addressed suitably by the U.S. authorities,” India’s Ministry of External Affairs said in a statement. South Korea’s foreign ministry also said it is sorting out the potential implications for Korean workers, per CNBC.

The Trump administration, as has become customary for its policy prescriptions, is spending the day trying to sort out the ill-defined information it initially provided. Axios reported that officials have clarified the new H-1B visa fees won’t apply to existing holders of valid visas re-entering the country, so workers should be able to get back to the country without getting hit with a $100,000 fee. Reportedly, the fee won’t go into effect until the next cycle of new applicants to the H-1B program. Whether visa holders want to risk taking this administration at its word is another question.



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A pile of computers and monitors
Gaming Gear

Where to Recycle Your Old Computers and Printers for Free

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Tossing your old printers and laptops in the trash is not only bad for the environment; it can even be illegal. It’s no wonder a recent CNET survey found that nearly a third of us have old, unused tech sitting in our closets and basements. The good news is that recycling your e-waste is simpler than you might think. 

You don’t have to hunt down a special facility; major retailers like Best Buy and Staples make it incredibly convenient to recycle your old tech. Most will take laptops, printers and other computer accessories off your hands for free. Plus, some stores even offer trade-in programs that can get you a gift card or a discount on new gear, making it a win-win for both you and the planet.

Don’t miss any of our unbiased tech content and lab-based reviews. Add CNET as a preferred Google source on Chrome.

Clearing out your unused tech not only frees up space in your home, but also keeps harmful components out of landfills. So if you’ve been holding onto gear you haven’t used in years, now’s the time to let it go the right way.

Here’s what you need to know about recycling your old tech. For more, learn how to recycle your old phones.

What to do before you recycle your old computer

Wherever you choose to take or mail in your items to be recycled, you’ll want to protect your data by removing it as best you can. One way to do this is to perform a factory reset on your computer. Our guide walks you through the process.

Where to recycle your old printers and computers

Some retail stores will accept computers and printers for recycling, but it’s not always a free service. Policies vary by company.

Apple

You can recycle your old Apple computers, monitors and peripherals, such as printers, for free at an Apple store, but there’s a costly catch. According to the Apple Free Recycling program, you must also purchase a qualifying Apple computer or monitor to receive this service. Need another option? A third-party company called Gazelle buys old MacBooks to recycle them. After accepting Gazelle’s offer, you print a prepaid label or request a prepaid box and ship the machine to them.

Read more: Phone and Laptop Repair Goes Mainstream With Push From iFixit

Best Buy

Best Buy generally accepts up to three household items per household per day to be recycled for free, including desktop computers and printers, as well as other items ranging from e-readers to vacuum cleaners. While three is the limit for most items, there’s a higher limit for laptops — Best Buy will take five of those per household per day. Note that rules for dropping off monitors vary by state, and it’s not always free to do so. Best Buy also offers a mail-in recycling service for select items, but that’s also not free. A small box that holds up to 6 pounds costs $23, while a large box (up to 15 pounds) costs $30.

Office Depot 

Office Depot and OfficeMax merged in 2013. The retailers offer a tech trade-in program both in-store and online where you may be able to get a store gift card in exchange for your old computers and printers. If the device has no trade-in value, the company will recycle it for free. Office Depot also sells its own tech recycling boxes that you can fill with electronics to be recycled and then drop off at the stores, but they aren’t free. The small boxes cost $8.39 and hold up to 20 pounds, the medium ones cost $18.29 and hold up to 40 pounds, and the large boxes cost $28 and hold up to 60 pounds.

Staples 

You can bring your old desktop computers, laptops, printers and more to the Staples checkout counter to be recycled for free, even if they weren’t purchased there. The retailer also has a free at-home battery recycling box which, according to a Staples rep, has led customers to recycle thousands of batteries per week, up from an earlier average of 50 per week. Here’s a list of everything that can be recycled at Staples.

Read more: How to Factory Reset a MacBook, Windows Laptop or Chromebook

Where to find electronics recycling centers

If you don’t live near a major retailer or would rather take your computers and printers to a recycling center, you can locate places near you by using search tools provided by Earth911 and the Consumer Technology Association.

Earth911

Use the recycling center search function on Earth911 to find recycling centers near your ZIP code that accept laptops, desktops and printers. Note that the results may also turn up places that accept mobile phones and not computers or printers, so you may have to do a little filtering.

Greener Gadgets

Consult the Consumer Technology Association’s Greener Gadgets Recycle Locator to find local recycling centers in your area that will take old items. The search function also allows you to filter the results to separately hunt for places that take computers versus printers.

Watch this: iPhone Air Is a Wild Card – and Starts a Big Change for Apple

06:39



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1Password Review (2025): Gold Standard Security
Gaming Gear

1Password Review (2025): Gold Standard Security

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Password managers are spotty on Android and iOS in general, and 1Password isn’t above that issue. I’d estimate somewhere around 10 to 15 percent of the fields I encounter on mobile just don’t register with 1Password, sending me out to the app to copy my password over manually. This is more of an issue with how apps categorize different fields and expose them to other apps running, and less of a 1Password-specific problem.

1Password at least attempts to get around this with linked apps. As you start signing into apps using entries in your vault, 1Password will connect your login to whatever app you’re logging into. That doesn’t eliminate autofill problems on mobile, but it helps in the cases where 1Password is looking for a specific URL to autofill, and the mobile app isn’t operating with that URL.

Outside of autofill, using 1Password on Android and iOS is a breeze. You can enter your account password each time you unlock your account if you want, but 1Password supports biometric authentication on Android and iOS, including Face ID support. After a certain amount of time has passed (you can change the amount of time in the settings), 1Password will ask you to re-enter your account password. Thankfully, if you don’t want to use biometrics, you can set up a PIN or passcode, as well.

Quick access is important because 1Password is extremely limited on mobile, and that’s a good thing. Even switching to another app or locking your phone will also lock your account, and if you swipe through your list of open apps, you’ll only see the 1Password login screen.

You’re free to change these settings, from the amount of time you need to re-enter your account password to when 1Password should clear your keyboard history. The defaults work well, but if you can’t be bothered, you can turn these extra security measures off.

Unique Security

1Password may function similarly to other password managers, but its security design is unique. The company has a white paper you can read through for all the gory details, and it maintains a list of certifications and recent penetration testing. The core of 1Password’s security, however, is a zero-knowledge approach. It’s designed in such a way that, even if 1Password wanted to, it has no means to decrypt the contents of your vault.

This works due to what 1Password calls two-secret key derivation, or 2SKD. It takes your account password and a secret key that’s generated on your device when you first sign up for 1Password, and uses them to derive a key encryption key (KEK). Also on your device, 1Password generates a public-private key pair. Your private key is encrypted with the KEK, while your public key is shared.

There are several layers of nested encryption beyond this, but what’s important is that 1Password doesn’t have a copy of your private key, nor a copy of your account password that’s necessary to derive the KEK. And when you authenticate, everything happens locally on your device, including encryption and decryption. Your KEK, master password, and private key never leave your device.



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Gaming Gear

EPA scientists were reportedly ordered to halt publication of research papers

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According to a report by The Washington Post, scientists with the Environmental Protection Agency’s Office of Water were ordered by “political appointees” to stop work on studies that were headed for publication, as they’ll now be “subject to a new review process.” Staffers were reportedly given the instructions in a town hall meeting this week. The only papers exempt are those for which “scientific journals had already returned proofs — the final step in the academic publication process,” reports The Washington Post, which spoke to two agency employees. Among other things, the role of the Office of Water is to ensure the safety of drinking water.

It’s the latest in a string of changes at the EPA under the Trump administration, and raises yet more concerns for public health. In May, the agency announced plans to roll back limitations for some perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), known as “forever chemicals,” that had been set by the Biden administration, saying it would keep only the limits for the two most common, PFOA and PFOS. In July, the EPA laid off thousands of employees and announced it would shut down its scientific research office. The same month, the EPA proposed rescinding certain greenhouse gas emissions standards, and just last week announced a plan to do away with the Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program that requires some of the nation’s biggest polluters to report their emissions.

Following the latest orders, staffers with the Office of Water who spoke to The Washington Post said they were not given a reason to provide scientific journals as to why the papers have been halted, and no details on the new review process have been shared. One employee told the publication, “This represents millions of dollars of research, potentially, that’s now being stopped.”



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Amazon, Google, and Microsoft tell H-1B employees to rush back to the US
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Amazon, Google, and Microsoft tell H-1B employees to rush back to the US

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IMPORTANT ADVISORY: New travel restriction for H-1B visa holders

Hi all–We have now reviewed the actual text of today’s Presidential Proclamation on H-1B visas, which you can find here: Restriction on Entry of Certain Nonimmigrant Workers – The White House.

Here’s what you need to know:

First, the proclamation is structured as a travel restriction. Beginning at 12:01 am eastern time on September 21, 2025 (so, 9:01 pm Pacific time tomorrow), individuals will not be able to enter/return to the U.S. in H-1B status unless their petition has an additional $100,000 payment associated with it.

What you need to do:

I will be updating this post later this evening with a form for people to fill out if they are currently outside the U.S. with an H-1B visa. We want to be able to follow up with each individual and provide support and guidance as they try to return within the next 28 hours.

The proclamation does not impact any other visa statuses.

There is other content about the pause in processing H-1B petitions for individuals who are outside the U.S. At this time, we do not interpret this to immediately impact extensions of H-1B status or changes of status to H-1B as long as you are currently in the U.S. We’ll share more about that later.



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Micron PCIe 6.x SSD
Gaming Gear

Memory and storage markets brace for turbulence as Micron pauses quotes and SanDisk enforces aggressive NAND price hikes

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  • Micron pauses DRAM and NAND quotes, signalling sharper increases coming soon
  • DDR4 spot prices climbed 3.31%, rising from $4.896 to $5.058
  • Transaction volumes are shrinking as buyers resist higher memory costs

Micron and SanDisk are preparing aggressive price adjustments that could ripple through the storage and memory markets within weeks.

Recent reports have claimed SanDisk has already announced a 10% hike for NAND products, aiming to boost market sentiment.

In response, Micron has paused its NAND and DRAM quotes, signaling sharper increases on the horizon.


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These developments come as suppliers attempt to recover margins ahead of anticipated supply shortages in 2026, while buyers remain hesitant to accept steep hikes.

Spot prices for DRAM continue to move upward, led by DDR4 products.

The average spot price of mainstream DDR4 1Gx8 3200MT/s chips has climbed 3.31%, rising from $4.896 to $5.058 in a single week.

According to TrendForce, this is influenced by Nanya’s strong August revenue performance.

However, transaction volumes are shrinking as buyers resist these increases, showing limited willingness to absorb higher costs.

Meanwhile, the spot trading of DDR5 chips remains subdued, showing no change from previous weeks.

Despite DDR5 representing the latest memory technology, its uptake appears tempered by cost concerns and limited near-term demand growth.


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SanDisk’s effort to push a 10% NAND price increase has not been fully embraced by buyers, especially now that peak-season stocking activity has passed.

The spot price of 512Gb TLC wafers has risen by around 1.5%, but suppliers have largely confined increases to channels rather than the retail market.

If these channel adjustments expand, consumers could soon see higher costs for SSD storage and related products.

SanDisk’s recent financial results show why suppliers are confident in pursuing price hikes.

The company reported quarterly revenue of $1.901 billion, a 12% increase from the prior quarter and 8% year-over-year growth.

For fiscal 2025, revenue reached $7.355 billion, up 10% from fiscal 2024.

This growth was supported by moderate gains in bit shipments and average selling prices, demonstrating sustained demand across key segments.

SanDisk’s data center business accounted for over 12% of total bits shipped, while cloud revenue rose 25% year-over-year to $213 million.

These figures indicate that enterprise and professional sectors remain willing to absorb higher costs, giving suppliers a foundation to push DRAM and NAND pricing higher.

With suppliers holding firm on quotes and signaling additional hikes, both enterprise customers and end users may face increased costs during the Black Friday period.

Rising DRAM and NAND prices could tighten margins for retailers and integrators, particularly if buyers delay purchases in anticipation of stabilization.

For consumers, any temporary relief in storage deals may be short-lived, making this shopping season one of the most unpredictable in recent times.

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