Berlin

Berlin – September 11, 2026 -- Diabetes can silently damage the eyes years before patients notice any change in their vision, yet new data show barely half of people with type 2 diabetes get the recommended eye exam. To close that gap, German health insurer mkk - meine krankenkasse now offers its members a free eye screening from Skleo Health at participating opticians and drugstores.

About seven million adults in Germany live with known or undiagnosed diabetes, according to the Robert Koch Institute. One serious complication is diabetic retinopathy, damage to the tiny blood vessels in the retina caused by diabetes duration, high blood sugar, and hypertension. Retinal changes can develop long before someone experiences blurred vision or other symptoms.

Berlin – September 11, 2026 -- Home cooks can stop waiting until the end of cooking to salt dried legumes -- new guidance confirms salt can go into the water from the very start without affecting how soft beans become.

Soaking dried legumes takes eight to twelve hours, not constant attention

Whole dried fava beans, field peas, soybeans and sweet lupins need roughly eight to twelve hours of soaking before cooking. The practical approach is to set them in water overnight and continue preparation the next day. Soaking causes the seeds to swell, which shortens the later cooking time. Peeled fava beans and peeled field peas can skip this step entirely, since removing the seed coat allows them to be cooked directly -- packaging instructions specify the exact method for each product.

Berlin – September 10, 2026 -- Germany's nature conservation groups NABU and its Bavarian partner LBV have opened public voting to choose the country's Bird of the Year for 2027, with anyone able to cast a ballot online at vogeldesjahres.de through October 15 at 11 a.m., when the winner will be announced the same day.

Five candidates are competing to succeed the grey partridge, the current title-holder. NABU bird protection expert Martin Ruemmler said the candidates show the diversity of the country's bird life, noting that some migrate as far as Africa each winter while others stay put year-round, and that each finalist highlights a conservation issue deserving attention.

Five finalists each carry a distinct conservation message

The common raven, campaigning under the slogan "Black feathers, bright mind," is the world's largest songbird and mates for life, but faces threats from shootings and poisonings by people who dislike it.

Munich – – September 10, 2026 -- Ten years after a truck attack killed victims at Berlin's Breitscheidplatz Christmas market, German broadcaster ARD will release a six-part fictional thriller series revisiting the events leading up to the tragedy. "Breitscheidplatz 19/12" streams on ARD Mediathek starting Friday, October 30, 2026, airs on Das Erste on Sunday, November 1 at 9:45 p.m., and continues on Friday, November 6 at 11:55 p.m.

The series had its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival and its German premiere at FilmFest Hamburg.

Munich – September 10, 2026 -- The fifth and final season of "Babylon Berlin" premieres September 10 on the ARD Mediathek streaming platform, closing out a decade-long series with eight new episodes.

Ten years and five seasons come to a close

The crime drama follows detectives Gereon Rath and Charlotte Ritter through 1920s Berlin, with the finale marking the end of a production that has run since its debut. Cast members reflected on the show's decade-long journey ahead of the release.

Volker Bruch, who plays Gereon Rath, said the character has followed him "like a shadow" for ten years, describing how the storyline often intertwined with his own perception of reality. Liv Lisa Fries, who portrays Charlotte Ritter, said she can now let the character go "with gratitude" after a decade in the role.

Berlin – September 10, 2026 -- Fitness brand Merach used its IFA Berlin 2026 appearance to launch the UltraWalk W60 Plus walking pad in Europe, alongside a new knee-protection cushioning system called KneeGuard(TM).

The W60 Plus ships September 20 with an early-bird discount

The UltraWalk W60 Plus, flagship of Merach's W60 series, is built for home offices and light indoor training. It goes on sale September 20, 2026 for a recommended retail price of 459.99 euros, with pre-orders available until then at an early-bird price of 379.99 euros through merachfit.de.

The device runs on a brushless motor rated for up to 15,000 hours of use, with noise capped at 53 decibels. Its running surface measures 420 by 1,050 millimeters and supports electric inclines up to 8.75 percent across twelve settings. Extras include an RGB light bar, a 5-watt Bluetooth speaker, and a triple-LED display tracking six metrics.

Berlin – September 10, 2026 -- ECOVACS has unveiled OZMO ROLLER 3.0, the third generation of its self-washing roller mop technology, debuting in the new DEEBOT X12S OmniCyclone robotic vacuum at IFA 2026 in Berlin.

The roller mop category now covers 2.8 million shipped units worldwide

ECOVACS says more than 2.8 million OZMO ROLLER-equipped units had shipped globally as of July 2026, according to the company's internal shipment data. The technology first launched with the DEEBOT X8 series in 2024, followed by OZMO ROLLER 2.0 on the DEEBOT X11.

Berlin – September 10, 2026 -- Nearly 68 percent of all Airbnb bookings in Germany this summer went to rural destinations, according to new data from the company covering check-ins between June 15 and August 31, 2026.

Booked experiences told a similar story: over 40 percent fell into the "Nature & Outdoor" category, ahead of "History & Culture" at 31 percent and "Food & Drink" at 20 percent.

Ten destinations saw the sharpest rise in search interest

Measured by growth in search queries compared to the previous year, the coastal town of Hohwacht on the Baltic Sea topped the list, followed by Dreieich in Hesse, Scharbeutz on the Baltic coast, Traunstein in Bavaria, and Plau am See in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern.

Berlin – September 10, 2026 -- The Deutsche Sepsis-Hilfe e. V. has released a free children's book, "Papas kleiner Gemeinling," to help families explain sepsis to kids when a parent is suddenly hospitalized.

Sepsis, commonly known as blood poisoning, is the most severe form of an infection and ranks among the leading causes of death in Germany. At least 230,000 people in the country are diagnosed with sepsis each year, and at least 85,000 die from its effects.

The book follows a girl named Hannah as her father battles sepsis

Written by children's author Saskia Heinl and illustrated by Julia Hannes, the story explains in age-appropriate terms what happens during treatment and rehabilitation. It aims to acknowledge children's fears while offering reassurance during a frightening time.

Berlin – September 10, 2026 -- TCL unveiled its AI-driven home ecosystem and next-generation display lineup at IFA 2026, centered on an immersive exhibit called "Inspiration Habitat."

TCL's X11L TV hits 10,000 nits of HDR brightness

The TCL X11L SQD-Mini LED television offers up to 100% of the BT.2020 "All-Scene" color gamut, precise brightness control, and a peak HDR brightness of 10,000 nits. TCL also showed the RayNeo GT Max, which the company says are the first Dolby Vision-certified augmented reality glasses, extending premium visual experiences beyond the living room into mobile use.