A new NYT Strands puzzle appears at midnight each day for your time zone – which means that some people are always playing 'today's game' while others are playing 'yesterday's'. If you're looking for Saturday's puzzle instead then click here: NYT Strands hints and answers for Saturday, January 31 (game #699).
Strands is the NYT's latest word game after the likes of Wordle, Spelling Bee and Connections – and it's great fun. It can be difficult, though, so read on for my Strands hints.
Want more word-based fun? Then check out my NYT Connections today and Quordle today pages for hints and answers for those games, and Marc's Wordle today page for the original viral word game.
SPOILER WARNING: Information about NYT Strands today is below, so don't read on if you don't want to know the answers.
NYT Strands today (game #700) - hint #1 - today's theme
What is the theme of today's NYT Strands?
• Today's NYT Strands theme is… It's a gift
NYT Strands today (game #700) - hint #2 - clue words
Play any of these words to unlock the in-game hints system.
SNUG
DIRTY
SNOW
WAIT
GROAN
SNORE
NYT Strands today (game #700) - hint #3 - spangram letters
How many letters are in today's spangram?
• Spangram has 10 letters
NYT Strands today (game #700) - hint #4 - spangram position
What are two sides of the board that today's spangram touches?
First side: top, 3rd column
Last side: bottom, 3rd column
Right, the answers are below, so DO NOT SCROLL ANY FURTHER IF YOU DON'T WANT TO SEE THEM.
NYT Strands today (game #700) - the answers
(Image credit: New York Times)
The answers to today's Strands, game #700, are…
GRANT
BONUS
AWARD
OFFERING
PRESENT
DONATION
SPANGRAM: GENEROSITY
My rating: Hard
My score: Perfect
Despite needing no hints I’m classifying this game as hard because it took me so long to find all the words.
Part of the difficulty was that all the words – with the exception of GRANT – read from right to left, something I still struggle with despite several years of playing this game.
GENEROSITY is one of mankind’s greatest traits, but as is the case with many if not all of today’s search words, it is all too often associated with financial generosity as opposed to the generosity of kindness – which is something we can all afford.
Yesterday's NYT Strands answers (Saturday, January 31, game #699)
BASE
BASKET
PADDLE
FOOT
PICKLE
RACQUET
VOLLEY
SPANGRAM: HAVEABALL
What is NYT Strands?
Strands is the NYT's not-so-new-any-more word game, following Wordle and Connections. It's now a fully fledged member of the NYT's games stable that has been running for a year and which can be played on the NYT Games site on desktop or mobile.
I've got a full guide to how to play NYT Strands, complete with tips for solving it, so check that out if you're struggling to beat it each day.
A new NYT Strands puzzle appears at midnight each day for your time zone – which means that some people are always playing 'today's game' while others are playing 'yesterday's'. If you're looking for Friday's puzzle instead then click here: NYT Strands hints and answers for Friday, January 30 (game #698).
Strands is the NYT's latest word game after the likes of Wordle, Spelling Bee and Connections – and it's great fun. It can be difficult, though, so read on for my Strands hints.
Want more word-based fun? Then check out my NYT Connections today and Quordle today pages for hints and answers for those games, and Marc's Wordle today page for the original viral word game.
SPOILER WARNING: Information about NYT Strands today is below, so don't read on if you don't want to know the answers.
NYT Strands today (game #699) - hint #1 - today's theme
What is the theme of today's NYT Strands?
• Today's NYT Strands theme is… It's part of the game
NYT Strands today (game #699) - hint #2 - clue words
Play any of these words to unlock the in-game hints system.
RACK
PILE
VOTES
LOVE
HAVE
CLEAR
NYT Strands today (game #699) - hint #3 - spangram letters
How many letters are in today's spangram?
• Spangram has 9 letters
NYT Strands today (game #699) - hint #4 - spangram position
What are two sides of the board that today's spangram touches?
First side: left, 5th row
Last side: right, 5th row
Right, the answers are below, so DO NOT SCROLL ANY FURTHER IF YOU DON'T WANT TO SEE THEM.
NYT Strands today (game #699) - the answers
(Image credit: New York Times)
The answers to today's Strands, game #699, are…
BASE
BASKET
PADDLE
FOOT
PICKLE
RACQUET
VOLLEY
SPANGRAM: HAVEABALL
My rating: Easy
My score: Perfect
I’ve sometimes wondered if we should have three different summer Olympics. One for track events, one for ball games and one for all the stuff that should really be in the olympics – horse dancing, gymnastics, poodle clipping. To be fair, that last one ended after Paris 1900, although I would argue it’s more of a sport than synchronized swimming.
Anyway, I digress. Today we were searching for games unified by the word BALL in their title, including the world’s greatest sport… VOLLEY ball. Specifically the one you play with a balloon at a party when you’re seven years old. I miss those days.
Once the theme made itself obvious this was a fairly straightforward search, although of all the ball sports PICKLE was an, erm, curveball.
Yesterday's NYT Strands answers (Friday, January 30, game #698)
LANDMARK
BEACON
COMPASS
ATLAS
SEXTANT
STAR
SPANGRAM: FINDYOURWAY
What is NYT Strands?
Strands is the NYT's not-so-new-any-more word game, following Wordle and Connections. It's now a fully fledged member of the NYT's games stable that has been running for a year and which can be played on the NYT Games site on desktop or mobile.
I've got a full guide to how to play NYT Strands, complete with tips for solving it, so check that out if you're struggling to beat it each day.
A new NYT Strands puzzle appears at midnight each day for your time zone – which means that some people are always playing 'today's game' while others are playing 'yesterday's'. If you're looking for Thursday's puzzle instead then click here: NYT Strands hints and answers for Thursday, January 29 (game #697).
Strands is the NYT's latest word game after the likes of Wordle, Spelling Bee and Connections – and it's great fun. It can be difficult, though, so read on for my Strands hints.
Want more word-based fun? Then check out my NYT Connections today and Quordle today pages for hints and answers for those games, and Marc's Wordle today page for the original viral word game.
SPOILER WARNING: Information about NYT Strands today is below, so don't read on if you don't want to know the answers.
NYT Strands today (game #698) - hint #1 - today's theme
What is the theme of today's NYT Strands?
• Today's NYT Strands theme is… We're not lost …
NYT Strands today (game #698) - hint #2 - clue words
Play any of these words to unlock the in-game hints system.
DENT
BEND
SLAM
LAMP
NATURE
FIRST
NYT Strands today (game #698) - hint #3 - spangram letters
How many letters are in today's spangram?
• Spangram has 11 letters
NYT Strands today (game #698) - hint #4 - spangram position
What are two sides of the board that today's spangram touches?
First side: top, 5th column
Last side: right, 7th row
Right, the answers are below, so DO NOT SCROLL ANY FURTHER IF YOU DON'T WANT TO SEE THEM.
NYT Strands today (game #698) - the answers
(Image credit: New York Times)
The answers to today's Strands, game #698, are…
LANDMARK
BEACON
COMPASS
ATLAS
SEXTANT
STAR
SPANGRAM: FINDYOURWAY
My rating: Easy
My score: Perfect
There was no getting lost with this fairly straightforward search, but it was fun navigating around the board all the same.
If I was allowed just one book on a desert island then I would choose an ATLAS, not because it might help me find out where I was in the world but because I find looking at maps endlessly fascinating.
That said, I am also aware of the way maps distort the true reality of our planet, such as the proximity of Greenland to certain nations and its size. To investigate this I’d like to recommend a website called The True Size (thetruesize.com), which allows you to see the true area of countries and US states in relation to the rest of the world. As someone who lives in the UK – somewhere that is often illustrated as far bigger than it really is – it’s quite a humbling exercise.
Yesterday's NYT Strands answers (Thursday, January 29, game #697)
HERO
ICON
SUPERSTAR
CELEBRITY
PERSONALITY
SPANGRAM: CLAIMTOFAME
What is NYT Strands?
Strands is the NYT's not-so-new-any-more word game, following Wordle and Connections. It's now a fully fledged member of the NYT's games stable that has been running for a year and which can be played on the NYT Games site on desktop or mobile.
I've got a full guide to how to play NYT Strands, complete with tips for solving it, so check that out if you're struggling to beat it each day.
Wordle will start repeating answers next week in a move that’s certain to cause deep controversy among devotees of the game – but which I believe is wholly necessary.
The move was announced in a rather low-key fashion, in the form of a brief statement at the top of the New York Times' Gameplay email newsletter yesterday.
"Hey, Wordlers! We have some exciting news to share," the statement begins. "Starting on Monday, we will begin adding previously run words back into play. There are still many first-time answers to debut, but also more chances for Wordle in ones and those magical, serendipitous moments when Wordle overlaps with real life. Happy solving!"
This is massive news for the many millions of people who play the game, because it completely changes its nature. Is that a bad thing? Not in my book – and I'll explain why below – but you may well disagree. Let me know what you think by voting in this poll or letting me know in the comments below.
The memory game
When Wordle was launched by developer Josh Wardle in June 2021, it was based upon a database of 2,315 set answers that each had an assigned day.
That number was whittled down to 2,309 by the NYT after it bought Wordle in January 2022, and then increased by an unknown amount over the next couple of years, with the addition of solutions such as SNAFU (game #659) and OOMPH (#1662).
There have now been 32 of these extra answers, however, there are only so many valid five-letter words, and I suspect even with the NYT's additions Wordle's word pool will not have been above 2,400. Given that we're now on game #1685 for today's Wordle answer, that left only around two more years before all of the solutions had been used up and the game would be over.
The NYT could simply have waited until that point and then made a change – maybe relaunching it as a six-letter game or something – but that wouldn't have solved a growing problem with the way it's now played: namely knowledge of past answers.
Specifically, some people were looking at a list of already-used solutions when solving each day's puzzle. There's nothing inherently wrong with this, because nothing in the rules says you can't do that, and indeed it's a game that you can decide how you want to play anyway. Plus, full disclosure, I'm part of the problem here – because I've maintained a list of all past Wordle answers for several years.
The issue is that as the answers got used up and the pool of remainders shrunk daily, it fundamentally changed your chances of picking the right word, if you did look at a past solutions list.
For instance, take FREAK – the answer to game #1682 on Monday. With no knowledge of past answers, you might well guess CREAK or BREAK or WREAK instead. On a lucky day, you'd get the correct one, on another, you wouldn't. Or you'd have to play a word such as CABLE to rule out a couple of the options.
However, if you looked at past answers you'd see that BREAK (#172), CREAK (#347) and WREAK (#1225) have all appeared already – meaning that you could play FREAK right away and have an advantage over those that didn't.
Whether this was a problem is a matter of opinion, but it undeniably made Wordle less of a level playing field – which, after all, was part of the idea behind the game when it launched with its 'everyone plays the same game daily' approach.
What the future holds
The NYT's announcement that previous answers will now appear again fixes all of that. Take the FREAK example above: the fact that BREAK had appeared before wouldn't mean it might not be the answer again, so you'd be left to solve it in isolation once more.
Plus, it extends the game's lifespan. Theoretically, it could now last forever, with games repeating over a timespan of anything between a one-day and six-year period.
However, we don't know exactly how the NYT plans to roll this out. The statement says that "we will begin adding previously run words back into play" rather than "we're adding them all back in and randomizing them" – it could well be that the NYT takes the same approach that it has for its additional words, just picking and choosing certain words on a given day.
It might also do so with a themed approach – for instance, making CAROL the answer on Christmas day or similar. I hope it doesn't do this, because it should be a puzzle-solving game rather than one of 'what's in the puzzle-setter's head today', but you may disagree.
Either way, it shakes the game up at a point at which it was beginning to feel a little stale. And best of all, it means I could go back to my favorite ever start word of STARE and have a chance at scoring a solve-in-one, a feat which would otherwise have been impossible. I just might have to wait a long while for that to happen…
A new NYT Strands puzzle appears at midnight each day for your time zone – which means that some people are always playing 'today's game' while others are playing 'yesterday's'. If you're looking for Wednesday's puzzle instead then click here: NYT Strands hints and answers for Wednesday, January 28 (game #696).
Strands is the NYT's latest word game after the likes of Wordle, Spelling Bee and Connections – and it's great fun. It can be difficult, though, so read on for my Strands hints.
Want more word-based fun? Then check out my NYT Connections today and Quordle today pages for hints and answers for those games, and Marc's Wordle today page for the original viral word game.
SPOILER WARNING: Information about NYT Strands today is below, so don't read on if you don't want to know the answers.
NYT Strands today (game #697) - hint #1 - today's theme
What is the theme of today's NYT Strands?
• Today's NYT Strands theme is… Talk of the town
NYT Strands today (game #697) - hint #2 - clue words
Play any of these words to unlock the in-game hints system.
REPEL
PLEA
STAIR
FORT
RARE
REAL
MOST
NYT Strands today (game #697) - hint #3 - spangram letters
How many letters are in today's spangram?
• Spangram has 11 letters
NYT Strands today (game #697) - hint #4 - spangram position
What are two sides of the board that today's spangram touches?
First side: top, 4th column
Last side: bottom, 4th column
Right, the answers are below, so DO NOT SCROLL ANY FURTHER IF YOU DON'T WANT TO SEE THEM.
NYT Strands today (game #697) - the answers
(Image credit: New York Times)
The answers to today's Strands, game #697, are…
HERO
ICON
SUPERSTAR
CELEBRITY
PERSONALITY
SPANGRAM: CLAIMTOFAME
My rating: Easy
My score: Perfect
This was a game of corners for me today, with HERO and ICON popping out immediately followed by SUPERSTAR before I’d even given the theme any thought.
Prior to getting my first words I had wondered if “talk of the town” meant gossip.
Yesterday's NYT Strands answers (Wednesday, January 28, game #696)
RELAX
FOCUS
BREATHE
NOTICE
LISTEN
MEDITATE
SPANGRAM: MINDFULNESS
What is NYT Strands?
Strands is the NYT's not-so-new-any-more word game, following Wordle and Connections. It's now a fully fledged member of the NYT's games stable that has been running for a year and which can be played on the NYT Games site on desktop or mobile.
I've got a full guide to how to play NYT Strands, complete with tips for solving it, so check that out if you're struggling to beat it each day.
The Apple Creator Studio is a software bundle that makes its creative apps – Final Cut Pro and Logic Pro suites with Pixelmator Pro – and its productivity apps – Pages, Numbers, and Keynotes – all available across the Mac, iPad, and iPhone for a monthly or annual fee.
That fee is $12.99 / £12.99 / AU$19.99 a month or $129 / £129 / AU$199 per year, but if you qualify for the education discount, it’s a pretty unbeatable value at just $2.99 / £2.99 / AU$4.99 per month or $29.99 / £29.99 / AU$49.99 per year.
I’ve spent the better part of a week using the apps included in Apple Creator Studio, testing familiar workflows alongside newer features – particularly Apple’s increasingly restrained approach to AI. This isn’t a full review of every app in the bundle, but my early impressions are that Creator Studio feels like a return to form – it’s Apple bundling serious creative tools again in a way that feels cohesive, approachable, and easy to justify.
A look the refreshed interface for Pixelmator Pro on the Mac.(Image credit: Jacob Krol/Future)
Pixelmator Pro is where that feeling clicks almost immediately. On the Mac, the app leans into Apple’s Liquid Glass design language, but unlike some of Apple’s own first-party apps, it doesn’t radically reshape the interface just to make a statement. Everything remains fast, operable, and familiar – it's a design that prioritizes editing over aesthetics.
On the iPad, Pixelmator Pro arguably shines brighter. The interface translates cleanly to touch control, and the new ability to warp multiple layers together using the Apple Pencil is genuinely useful. It's definitely more fun than resizing for a crop.
I also particularly like using the Pencil to navigate the app; it makes the experience feel direct and well-suited to iPadOS, rather than feeling like a Mac app that's been awkwardly adapted for a touchscreen.
As with the Mac, you can customize the tools that appear on the right sidebar by default. And if you're looking for 'Super Resolution', it's tucked under the three dots in the right corner, then image setup.
(Image credit: Future/Jacob Krol)
Compared to Photoshop, Pixelmator Pro is simpler to pick up, but it doesn’t skimp on power. Its AI-driven image tools are front and center: ML Enhance intelligently balances saturation, contrast, and color, Super Resolution impressively upscales images, and custom filters are easy to fine-tune without getting buried in menus.
Interestingly, those same machine-learning models are being used across Apple’s other apps – Keynote, for example, uses them to improve image quality. It shows that since acquiring Pixelmator Pro, its development team has been working in closer lockstep with others at Apple.
If you’re after a capable, easy-to-use photo editor that avoids the cost and complexity of Adobe Creative Cloud, Pixelmator Pro alone makes a strong case for the bundle.
Here's some good news: while Pixelmator Pro does work on M1 or newer iPad models as expected, it also works on iPads with an A16 or an A17 Pro chip. That's a relief and makes sense, since iPadOS 26 supports many of the landmark features, like multitasking, on iPads as old as the 9th Gen.
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(Image credit: Future/Jacob Krol)
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(Image credit: Future/Jacob Krol)
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(Image credit: Future/Jacob Krol)
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(Image credit: Future/Jacob Krol)
Logic Pro continues Apple’s more thoughtful approach to AI. The standout addition here is a new EDM-focused Session Player, dubbed Synth Player, which expands an area Apple has clearly been investing in for years with Logic Pro. Logic Pro treats AI like a collaborator here, acting as a virtual musician that helps you move ideas forward, experiment with structure, and play inside a digital studio. It can even play along, in real time or after you record a track of your own.
I’m not a musician by trade, but Logic Pro’s AI tools, including Session Players and Stem Splitter, feel less like automation and more like creative assistance. You’re still making the decisions, and the software may simply help you get there faster. That distinction matters, and it plays directly into Apple’s creative roots.
And if you haven't given Stem Splitter a go, just try it with a recording of one of your favorite songs. It can, in seconds, split out the various elements of a track onto separate tracks within Logic – it's super-functional.
(Image credit: Apple)
Final Cut Pro’s biggest improvement in Apple Creator Studio is subtler, but no less impactful. Its enhanced natural-language search makes it far easier to find what you’re looking for when working with a large library of clips and assets. When you’re juggling a tremendous amount of footage, that reduction is meaningful – and it’s something video editors both big and small will appreciate.
Exclusive to Final Cut Pro for iPad with Creator Studio is a new Montage Maker that can automatically stitch a set of clips together. It’s essentially a more advanced take on the AI-powered editors you see in apps like CapCut or even TikTok, but with more adjustment levers that let you steer the final result closer to what you want. And you can always take what it creates and turn it into a full project.
The 'AI' here isn’t flashy – it’s doing the practical work of identifying key moments across your clips, which makes it feel less like a gimmick and more like a useful starting point for an edit.
(Image credit: Apple)
Stepping back, Apple Creator Studio feels like a modern revamp of iLife and iWork – a bundle that makes sense as a whole, rather than a collection of disconnected apps. It also underscores Apple’s broader ambitions around services.
Now, given how storage-hungry these apps can be, it’s hard not to wish Creator Studio were bundled with Apple One and additional iCloud storage, but the value proposition still essentially holds up without those.
Apple Creator Studio is available now for $12.99 / £12.99 / AU$19.99 per month, or $129 / £129 / AU$199 annually. Students and educators get a steep discount, bringing the price down to $2.99 / £2.99 / AU$4.99 per month, or $29.99 / £29.99 / AU$49.99 per year – an especially compelling deal given the breadth of apps included. It can also be shared with others through Apple Family Sharing.
Here’s what’s included with Apple Creator Studio:
Mac
Final Cut Pro
Logic Pro
Pixelmator Pro
Pages
Keynote
Numbers
Freeform
Motion
Compressor
MainStage
iPad
Final Cut Pro
Logic Pro
Pixelmator Pro
Pages
Keynote
Numbers
Freeform
iPhone
Pages
Keynote
Numbers
Freeform
For students, Apple Creator Studio is a no-brainer. For creators, prosumers, or even everyday users who want to dabble, the subscription makes sense as long as you find yourself regularly using a few of the included apps. More than anything, it feels purposeful – a reminder that when Apple leans into creativity and thoughtful bundling, it still knows exactly what it’s doing.
Furthermore, if you don't want to lock in with a monthly or annual fee, Apple still sells Final Cut Pro, Logic Pro, MainStage, Compressor, and Motion individually, and offers Pages, Keynote, and Numbers for free. You'll just need to join Creator Studio for the extra features, mainly the AI ones.
Additionally, you can get a month of Creator Studio for free, while if you buy an eligible Mac or iPad, you can get a three-month free trial.
French MPs voted to pass a social media ban for minors into law
It isn't law yet; it must first pass through France's Senate
Once enacted, under-15s would no longer be able to access social platforms
French MPs just voted 116-23 in favor of a social media ban aimed at minors – in what is being heralded as a “major step” towards protecting kids and teenagers online.
As you can imagine, not everyone is happy with the proposed rules.
The bill hasn’t been passed into law yet – France’s Senate must also approve it, and some wonder if it will be blocked under European law after a similar bill was stopped in 2023 – but it follows in the footsteps of similar rules we’ve been seeing in Australia, the United Kingdom, and some US states.
Speaking in a video broadcast about the bill, French President Emmanuel Macron said, “The emotions of our children and teenagers are not for sale or to be manipulated, either by American platforms or Chinese algorithms” – clear references to the likes of Instagram, X, and TikTok.
(Image credit: Shutterstock)
Once introduced, these and other social media services will need to verify the age of French users or bar them from accessing content. Given that some kind of age verification system may be coming at the European level, France will probably be just the first EU nation to impose such a ban – case in point, Ireland, Spain, and Denmark are also considering such rules.
While many parents, lawmakers, and even some children have reacted positively, others have had fewer kind words to share.
Scrolling through (ironically) social media, you’ll find plenty of comments calling this “legislative overreach.” While others are concerned about needing to share their IDs online – especially following various data leaks involving IDs from countries that have imposed similar rules (such as a Discord breach which saw hackers steal thousands of government-ID photos)
At the same time, I know how valuable social media can be. YouTube and TikTok can be incredible educational platforms, social media can provide access to invaluable news sources, create spaces for people to organize action around an important cause they care about, or simply give people the chance to find a crowd they can fit in with that they might not be able to find locally.
But does this good outweigh the evils?
Honestly, I’m not sure. If asked to choose one extreme or the other, I’m in favor of a ban – in part because widespread bans could be what forces platforms to finally clean up their act.
I’d still prefer a more nuanced approach.
Something which involves identity verification that’s secure and private to check age and that someone is a human, which addresses the issues plaguing social media that go beyond those simply affecting minors to those affecting users of all ages too, and that gives parents the ability to make decisions for their child (choosing to allow access to certain platforms when they believe their kid is ready).
Though that might be too much to ask of politicians who aren’t as internet savvy as they should be. Maybe as we see more bans over the coming year, they’ll prove me wrong and find an approach that works for everyone.
A new NYT Strands puzzle appears at midnight each day for your time zone – which means that some people are always playing 'today's game' while others are playing 'yesterday's'. If you're looking for Tuesday's puzzle instead then click here: NYT Strands hints and answers for Tuesday, January 27 (game #695).
Strands is the NYT's latest word game after the likes of Wordle, Spelling Bee and Connections – and it's great fun. It can be difficult, though, so read on for my Strands hints.
Want more word-based fun? Then check out my NYT Connections today and Quordle today pages for hints and answers for those games, and Marc's Wordle today page for the original viral word game.
SPOILER WARNING: Information about NYT Strands today is below, so don't read on if you don't want to know the answers.
NYT Strands today (game #696) - hint #1 - today's theme
What is the theme of today's NYT Strands?
• Today's NYT Strands theme is… Zen state
NYT Strands today (game #696) - hint #2 - clue words
Play any of these words to unlock the in-game hints system.
CLUE
BLUE
FINED
TASTE
SLIDE
FENDER
NYT Strands today (game #696) - hint #3 - spangram letters
How many letters are in today's spangram?
• Spangram has 11 letters
NYT Strands today (game #696) - hint #4 - spangram position
What are two sides of the board that today's spangram touches?
First side: left, 1st row
Last side: right, 6th row
Right, the answers are below, so DO NOT SCROLL ANY FURTHER IF YOU DON'T WANT TO SEE THEM.
NYT Strands today (game #696) - the answers
(Image credit: New York Times)
The answers to today's Strands, game #696, are…
RELAX
FOCUS
BREATHE
NOTICE
LISTEN
MEDITATE
SPANGRAM: MINDFULNESS
My rating: Easy
My score: Perfect
The very first word I thought of in terms of a “zen state” was RELAX – and thanks to that letter X it was not exactly a hard word to find.
Next I thought about MINDFULNESS, very much a buzzword of our current age, all about slowing down and being more in tune with the world around us.
I once started reading a book about zen meditation, but the fact that I only started it and was far too impatient to read more than a few pages possibly illustrates where I sit on the MINDFULNESS scale. That said, I really do like to BREATHE. I try to do it every day.
Yesterday's NYT Strands answers (Tuesday, January 27, game #695)
SPOT
BLUE
BANDIT
CHAMP
SCOUT
ROVER
SCRUFFY
BUDDY
SPANGRAM: HEREBOY
What is NYT Strands?
Strands is the NYT's not-so-new-any-more word game, following Wordle and Connections. It's now a fully fledged member of the NYT's games stable that has been running for a year and which can be played on the NYT Games site on desktop or mobile.
I've got a full guide to how to play NYT Strands, complete with tips for solving it, so check that out if you're struggling to beat it each day.
That deal has allowed it to continue operating in the US, albeit with a new algorithm. But it’s seemingly not the end of TikTok’s problems, as according to Sensor Tower – a market intelligence firm – in a comment to CNBC, the daily average of US users deleting TikTok has increased nearly 150% over the past five days relative to the last three months.
There are likely multiple reasons for this, but a lot of it appears to come down to the new privacy policy, which states that TikTok might collect data including “your racial or ethnic origin”, and your “sexual life or sexual orientation, status as transgender or nonbinary, citizenship or immigration status, or financial information.”
As CNBC notes, this language isn’t actually new, so it’s unclear whether people are only noticing it now or whether they’re more concerned by it now that this data will be in the hands of a US company.
But either way, users are understandably vocally opposed to this data being collected, with for example creator Dre Ronayne posting on Threads that they “just deleted TikTok with nearly 400k followers, good riddance”, and following it up with “if I can delete my biggest platform because their terms of agreement and censorship have gotten out of control, so can you!”
Troublesome tech and rising rivals
That privacy policy may not be the only issue though, as this new version of TikTok is also reportedly dealing with bugs and a lack of clarity on what the changes to the platform will mean for creators.
If you’re among those feeling disillusioned though, there are alternative apps you could turn to, and in fact three rivals have seen major gains as users seemingly leave TikTok in droves.
The biggest winner is UpScrolled, which according to Sensor Tower has seen a more than tenfold increase in US downloads this week, and with the makers posting on X that it's now the third most popular social media app in the US. Skylight Social meanwhile has risen by a similarly impressive 919%, and Rednote by 53%.
This isn't an algorithm. This isn't a media push.This is you, showing up and sending a message to big tech: We want something different.Three countries. Organic growth. Real change.Thank you for believing in an alternative. This is yours. pic.twitter.com/IH0oJQfZEfJanuary 27, 2026
So these seem to be three of the main apps that ex-TikTok users are flocking to – though of course it’s likely that big names like Instagram are also benefitting.
Of those three lesser known apps, UpScrolled and Skylight Social in particular seem to have more agreeable privacy policies, of the kind that don’t mention capturing seemingly unnecessary private data. Rednote seems to collect more, but doesn’t appear to make mention of TikTok’s more troubling things like immigration status.
Despite these tempting alternatives we doubt this is the end for TikTok – its user base is surely still enormous, and the technical issues it’s facing will likely be ironed out. But it’s less clear whether changes will be made to the privacy policy, so if you don’t like what you’re reading, consider giving one of the options above a try instead.
TikTok has faced app issues for U.S. users since January 25
The problems followed TikTok’s U.S. spinoff into a new joint venture
TikTok says a U.S. data center power outage is to blame
While the official spinoff of TikTok’s U.S. operations into the TikTok USDS Joint Venture closed last week, things in the first few days under this new ownership have been less than perfect. Mainly, the platform has been disrupted since yesterday, January 25, 2026, resulting in the app not functioning properly for many users.
I’ve experienced the feed displaying older videos, pausing in the middle of content, sound not syncing, and even videos not fully uploading. I’ve heard similar tales from friends who use TikTok – one who saw a video post that wasn’t visible to other users – and Down Detector shows a spike that started early on the morning of January 25, 2026.
It could be that, after the TikTok USDS Joint Venture was formalized, it’s experiencing growing pains as this new entity takes control of the algorithm and moves operations to new data centers. Remember, in the middle of last week, after the deal was announced, new terms and conditions were rolled out to TikTok users in the United States.
The TikTok USDS Joint Venture’s X (formerly Twitter) account posted earlier today, January 26, to address the issues. “Since yesterday, we’ve been working to restore our services following a power outage at a U.S. data center impacting TikTok and other apps we operate,” noting that the issues folks have been experiencing were due to a power outage at a data center in the United States. These issues also correlate with a spike in reports for CapCut, the editing app owned by ByteDance – TikTok’s parent company and still a partial owner of the TikTok USDS Joint Venture.
The post ends with, “We’re working with our data center partner to stabilize our service. We’re sorry for this disruption and hope to resolve it soon.” This was posted at 10:21 a.m. ET on January 26, 2026, and as of this publishing, there are still over 1,000 reports of issues with TikTok. That’s more than an average day but less than the nearly 8,000 reported last evening.
Since yesterday we’ve been working to restore our services following a power outage at a U.S. data center impacting TikTok and other apps we operate. We're working with our data center partner to stabilize our service. We're sorry for this disruption and hope to resolve it soon.January 26, 2026
Hopefully, TikTok US will be able to share a bit more about what’s going on in the hours or days after this is fully resolved, but it’s been a tough start for the platform so far. If you’re still having issues with your FYP feed, uploading videos, loading comments, or just using the app in general, let us know in the comments below.
The timing of these functional issues also coincides with increased scrutiny of the new terms and conditions – specifically around how the app will collect location data and use user data for AI training – as well as the platform’s updated content moderation policies.
At a minimum, let’s hope that the TikTok USDS Joint Venture can get these issues related to “a power outage at a data center in the United States” fixed soon, so we can all get back to scrolling on the app.
A new NYT Strands puzzle appears at midnight each day for your time zone – which means that some people are always playing 'today's game' while others are playing 'yesterday's'. If you're looking for Monday's puzzle instead then click here: NYT Strands hints and answers for Monday, January 26 (game #694).
Strands is the NYT's latest word game after the likes of Wordle, Spelling Bee and Connections – and it's great fun. It can be difficult, though, so read on for my Strands hints.
Want more word-based fun? Then check out my NYT Connections today and Quordle today pages for hints and answers for those games, and Marc's Wordle today page for the original viral word game.
SPOILER WARNING: Information about NYT Strands today is below, so don't read on if you don't want to know the answers.
NYT Strands today (game #695) - hint #1 - today's theme
What is the theme of today's NYT Strands?
• Today's NYT Strands theme is… Canine classics
NYT Strands today (game #695) - hint #2 - clue words
Play any of these words to unlock the in-game hints system.
BEER
CREEP
COVE
SCRUB
DOUR
CLUE
NYT Strands today (game #695) - hint #3 - spangram letters
How many letters are in today's spangram?
• Spangram has 7 letters
NYT Strands today (game #695) - hint #4 - spangram position
What are two sides of the board that today's spangram touches?
First side: left, 4th row
Last side: right, 5th row
Right, the answers are below, so DO NOT SCROLL ANY FURTHER IF YOU DON'T WANT TO SEE THEM.
NYT Strands today (game #695) - the answers
(Image credit: New York Times)
The answers to today's Strands, game #695, are…
SPOT
BLUE
BANDIT
CHAMP
SCOUT
ROVER
SCRUFFY
BUDDY
SPANGRAM: HEREBOY
My rating: Hard
My score: 1 hint
I wonder whether this puzzle would have been easier for players who own a dog? Being around other dog owners would give you a wider appreciation of other dog names, perhaps?
I'm not, and I found this one quite difficult. I drew a blank after getting SPOT – I initially thought we were searching for famous dogs – and opted for a hint, then realized I would just have to scan the board for doggy names.
My slow progress was such that it wasn’t until I got the spangram that I realised these were all male dog names.
Yesterday's NYT Strands answers (Monday, January 26, game #694)
SHIRAZ
MERLOT
MALBEC
CHARDONNAY
ZINFANDEL
SPANGRAM: BYTHEBOTTLE
What is NYT Strands?
Strands is the NYT's not-so-new-any-more word game, following Wordle and Connections. It's now a fully fledged member of the NYT's games stable that has been running for a year and which can be played on the NYT Games site on desktop or mobile.
I've got a full guide to how to play NYT Strands, complete with tips for solving it, so check that out if you're struggling to beat it each day.
A new NYT Strands puzzle appears at midnight each day for your time zone – which means that some people are always playing 'today's game' while others are playing 'yesterday's'. If you're looking for Sunday's puzzle instead then click here: NYT Strands hints and answers for Sunday, January 25 (game #693).
Strands is the NYT's latest word game after the likes of Wordle, Spelling Bee and Connections – and it's great fun. It can be difficult, though, so read on for my Strands hints.
Want more word-based fun? Then check out my NYT Connections today and Quordle today pages for hints and answers for those games, and Marc's Wordle today page for the original viral word game.
SPOILER WARNING: Information about NYT Strands today is below, so don't read on if you don't want to know the answers.
NYT Strands today (game #694) - hint #1 - today's theme
What is the theme of today's NYT Strands?
• Today's NYT Strands theme is… Grape expectations
NYT Strands today (game #694) - hint #2 - clue words
Play any of these words to unlock the in-game hints system.
ZEST
THIS
BLOT
STAND
LIFT
HARD
NYT Strands today (game #694) - hint #3 - spangram letters
How many letters are in today's spangram?
• Spangram has 11 letters
NYT Strands today (game #694) - hint #4 - spangram position
What are two sides of the board that today's spangram touches?
First side: bottom, 3rd column
Last side: top, 3rd column
Right, the answers are below, so DO NOT SCROLL ANY FURTHER IF YOU DON'T WANT TO SEE THEM.
NYT Strands today (game #694) - the answers
(Image credit: New York Times)
The answers to today's Strands, game #694, are…
SHIRAZ
MERLOT
MALBEC
CHARDONNAY
ZINFANDEL
SPANGRAM: BYTHEBOTTLE
My rating: Hard
My score: Perfect
Despite having a friend who works in the wine industry and having watched four episodes of Drops of God, I only know the names of a few different types of wine and today’s search handily covered all of them. That said, I did find this a tricky one.
Beyond the fact that they are all grape varieties I do not think there’s any other connection – they are not even all red wines, with CHARDONNAY representing white grapes.
Kudus for the corkscrew spangram, though. Very clever.
Yesterday's NYT Strands answers (Sunday, January 25, game #693)
POLE
PICKET
POST
DOWEL
BATON
CANE
STAKE
SPANGRAM: STICKYSITUATION
What is NYT Strands?
Strands is the NYT's not-so-new-any-more word game, following Wordle and Connections. It's now a fully fledged member of the NYT's games stable that has been running for a year and which can be played on the NYT Games site on desktop or mobile.
I've got a full guide to how to play NYT Strands, complete with tips for solving it, so check that out if you're struggling to beat it each day.
A new NYT Strands puzzle appears at midnight each day for your time zone – which means that some people are always playing 'today's game' while others are playing 'yesterday's'. If you're looking for Saturday's puzzle instead then click here: NYT Strands hints and answers for Saturday, January 24 (game #692).
Strands is the NYT's latest word game after the likes of Wordle, Spelling Bee and Connections – and it's great fun. It can be difficult, though, so read on for my Strands hints.
Want more word-based fun? Then check out my NYT Connections today and Quordle today pages for hints and answers for those games, and Marc's Wordle today page for the original viral word game.
SPOILER WARNING: Information about NYT Strands today is below, so don't read on if you don't want to know the answers.
NYT Strands today (game #693) - hint #1 - today's theme
What is the theme of today's NYT Strands?
• Today's NYT Strands theme is… The straight and narrow
NYT Strands today (game #693) - hint #2 - clue words
Play any of these words to unlock the in-game hints system.
TICK
TONE
BOAT
SEEK
LICK
PACT
NYT Strands today (game #693) - hint #3 - spangram letters
How many letters are in today's spangram?
• Spangram has 15 letters
NYT Strands today (game #693) - hint #4 - spangram position
What are two sides of the board that today's spangram touches?
First side: bottom, 1st column
Last side: top, 2nd column
Right, the answers are below, so DO NOT SCROLL ANY FURTHER IF YOU DON'T WANT TO SEE THEM.
NYT Strands today (game #693) - the answers
(Image credit: New York Times)
The answers to today's Strands, game #693, are…
POLE
PICKET
POST
DOWEL
BATON
CANE
STAKE
SPANGRAM: STICKYSITUATION
My rating: Easy
My score: Perfect
This was one of those rare games where finding non-game words was harder than finding one of the seven “straight and narrow” game words.
I found the spangram first – after seeing stick and sticky, rather than the entire 15-letter beast. And from there on the search was low on surprises.
My lowpoint was with just one word left and just five letters to connect, when I still managed to spell STAKE incorrectly.
Yesterday's NYT Strands answers (Saturday, January 24, game #692)
BOATING
PARTY
WATER
NIGHT
STARRY
LILIES
SPANGRAM: FAMOUSPAINTING
What is NYT Strands?
Strands is the NYT's not-so-new-any-more word game, following Wordle and Connections. It's now a fully fledged member of the NYT's games stable that has been running for a year and which can be played on the NYT Games site on desktop or mobile.
I've got a full guide to how to play NYT Strands, complete with tips for solving it, so check that out if you're struggling to beat it each day.
A new NYT Strands puzzle appears at midnight each day for your time zone – which means that some people are always playing 'today's game' while others are playing 'yesterday's'. If you're looking for Friday's puzzle instead then click here: NYT Strands hints and answers for Friday, January 23 (game #691).
Strands is the NYT's latest word game after the likes of Wordle, Spelling Bee and Connections – and it's great fun. It can be difficult, though, so read on for my Strands hints.
Want more word-based fun? Then check out my NYT Connections today and Quordle today pages for hints and answers for those games, and Marc's Wordle today page for the original viral word game.
SPOILER WARNING: Information about NYT Strands today is below, so don't read on if you don't want to know the answers.
NYT Strands today (game #692) - hint #1 - today's theme
What is the theme of today's NYT Strands?
• Today's NYT Strands theme is… A work of art
NYT Strands today (game #692) - hint #2 - clue words
Play any of these words to unlock the in-game hints system.
SPAIN
LISTING
GATE
GRIN
FINE
STAIR
HARP
NYT Strands today (game #692) - hint #3 - spangram letters
How many letters are in today's spangram?
• Spangram has 14 letters
NYT Strands today (game #692) - hint #4 - spangram position
What are two sides of the board that today's spangram touches?
First side: left, 4th row
Last side: right, 5th row
Right, the answers are below, so DO NOT SCROLL ANY FURTHER IF YOU DON'T WANT TO SEE THEM.
NYT Strands today (game #692) - the answers
(Image credit: New York Times)
The answers to today's Strands, game #692, are…
BOATING
PARTY
WATER
NIGHT
STARRY
LILIES
SPANGRAM: FAMOUSPAINTING
My rating: Easy
My score: Perfect
Completing this puzzle was fairly straightforward, but telling you what FAMOUS PAINTING is being described is far harder.
My first thought was The Starry Night Over the Rhône by Vincent Van Gough, but I don’t think that contains any LILIES or much in the way of signs of a PARTY.
If the spangram had been a plural then I would have considered a mashup of Van Gough and Monet. Alas, I have a Saturday to get on with so I’ll have to live with the mystery and the contentment of a puzzle completed.
Yesterday's NYT Strands answers (Friday, January 23, game #691)
NAIVE
CALLOW
CREDULOUS
GULLIBLE
ARTLESS
SPANGRAM: BORNYESTERDAY
What is NYT Strands?
Strands is the NYT's not-so-new-any-more word game, following Wordle and Connections. It's now a fully fledged member of the NYT's games stable that has been running for a year and which can be played on the NYT Games site on desktop or mobile.
I've got a full guide to how to play NYT Strands, complete with tips for solving it, so check that out if you're struggling to beat it each day.
TikTok has finalized a deal to keep operating in the US
Original owner ByteDance retains a 19.9% share
The TikTok algorithm will be retrained for users in the US
It's been a long time coming, but TikTok has now officially completed the process of spinning off its US operations, which means the video-based social media app will continue to remain accessible to hundreds of millions of users in the United States.
Reports last month suggested a deal might be done in January, and now here we are. Chinese TikTok owner ByteDance has a minority 19.9% share in the new American-owned venture that controls US TikTok, with other investment coming from companies including Oracle, Silver Lake, and MGX.
In a press release, TikTok said the deal will enable "more than 200 million Americans and 7.5 million businesses to continue to discover, create, and thrive as part of TikTok's vibrant global community and experience".
Here are five things to know about the US TikTok deal, now that it's finalized.
1. This was signed into law in 2024
You'd be forgiven for having forgotten how we got here. For years now, US authorities have been worried about the security and privacy implications associated with having such a successful and widely used Chinese-owned app operating in the US, and under President Biden, a law was signed to force ByteDance to get out of the US or hand over some control.
The main claim leveled at ByteDance – which has been strongly denied – is that it's collecting and storing a whole host of data on American citizens, in partnership with the Chinese government. The same sort of security concerns have led to devices from DJI – another Chinese company – being banned in the US.
2. TikTok US will use a different algorithm
One of the changes that TikTok users in the United States are now going to see is a different, or at least retrained algorithm: this will be controlled and secured by Oracle using its cloud technology, and protected by the privacy laws of the US. The new algorithm will be trained on US data, according to the agreement.
It's difficult to say exactly how the typical TikTok feed in the US might change as a result, but we know that the quality of the recommendation algorithm is a key part of TikTok's success. "One thing's certain: TikTok in America won't be the same," Forrester analyst Kelsey Chickering told the BBC after the news was announced.
A separate algorithm will be developed for those in the US(Image credit: Shutterstock)
3. TikTok content won't be geo-fenced
While the US TikTok algorithm and user data will be locked away by Oracle in the United States, the content that users see in their feeds isn't going to be geo-fenced: if you're in the US, you're still going to see videos from all across the world, and if you're outside of the US, you'll still be able to see content made by creators in America.
That's good news for content creators and advertisers, but it also means there's going to be a lot of uncertainty about reach. With the algorithm changes, it may be that going viral – and getting all the benefits that go along with it – is more difficult than it was before, but we're going to have to wait and see how this plays out over the coming months and years.
4. Data security is a crucial part of the deal
As you would expect, considering what drove this deal to happen, much is being made of the data security protections that now apply to TikTok's US operations. The new consortium of companies says "comprehensive data privacy and cybersecurity measures" will be put in place, and these measures will be audited by third-party security experts.
That doesn't mean that TikTok users in the US aren't going to be tracked and targeted by advertising, though – look at the operations of US companies like Facebook and Google, for example. Again, this is something that will become clearer over time in terms of the details, but it's one of the key controls that ByteDance has given up.
5. This isn't just about TikTok
This new TikTok deal comes in the context of ongoing tensions between the US and China. The White House has been slapping hefty tariffs on goods being imported into the United States, and relationships between the two countries aren't the most cordial at the moment, which is something that this agreement over TikTok might ultimately help with.
President Trump is expected to visit China at some point during 2026, at which point we may well hear more about TikTok and how the two countries can work together. Even if an addictive video-sharing app isn't top of the priority list when it comes to global deals and diplomacy, a ban for TikTok in the US has now been officially avoided.
