The Verge

Hasselblad has just launched the X2D II 100C, the first medium format camera capable of taking true HDR photos. Those HDR images can be instantly reviewed on the new 3.6-inch OLED touchscreen at up to 1,400 nits of peak brightness, which Hasselblad says is 75 percent brighter than the original X2D 100C. Other notable upgrades [...]

Spotify is introducing a direct messaging feature that allows users to share music, podcast, and audiobook recommendations with each other without leaving the app. Messages is rolling out in select markets" this week, according to Spotify's press release, and will be available on mobile devices for Free and Premium users aged 16 years and older. [...]

With the start of the NFL season looming, it's also a window where many TV contracts are up for renewal, and on Monday evening, YouTube TV and Fox sent out alerts indicating that their contract could come to an end as soon as August 27th, at 5PM ET. Google-owned YouTube TV says that Fox is [...]

Amazon's 16GB Kindle Colorsoft is less than a month old, but it's already on sale for $219.99 ($30 off) at Amazon, Best Buy, and Target. Meanwhile, the new Colorsoft Kids - which includes a 12-month subscription to Amazon Kids Plus, a two-year extended warranty, and a cover-style case - has been discounted to $239.99 ($30 [...]

According to a new report from Android Headlines, Google's next-generation Nest Cams might get an upgrade from 1080p to 2K. Along with a series of leaked images that it says show off new colors for Google's next set of devices, the report indicates the upcoming battery-powered Nest Cam and its indoor-only counterpart may feature new [...]

Setting up a smart home security system is important, even if you never want to think about having to use it. Thankfully, Kwikset's Halo Select - the best smart lock we've ever tested - is currently down to $259 ($20 off) at Amazon, Lowe's, and The Home Depot, marking the first time the lock has [...]

Elon Musk is suing Apple and OpenAI over claims that their deal to build ChatGPT into the iPhone is stifling competition in the AI industry. In a lawsuit filed on Monday, the Musk-owned X Corp. and xAI also accuse Apple's Apple Store of deprioritizing" rival chatbots and super" apps, including Grok and X. Musk's companies [...]

A new company aims to take the idea of sidewalk delivery robots and supersize it. Los Angeles-based Robomart unveiled its new delivery robot Monday, with the goal of making ondemand delivery work economically." The level-four autonomous vehicle is the size of a shuttle bus and can carry up to 500 lbs of payload. With no [...]

The Revolution Wind farm was already 80 percent complete before the US Bureau of Ocean Energy Management sent it a letter Friday to halt all ongoing activities" to address purported national security concerns and interference" with other potential uses for the area. The move comes as data centers, domestic manufacturing, and electric vehicles are raising [...]

Fi, the pet tech company known for its smart dog collar, has launched a clip-on GPS tracker that it says is the perfect size for your feline friend or small dog. The Fi Mini weighs just 0.56 ounces (16 grams), allowing you to keep tabs on your pet with real-time escape alerts and live tracking [...]

The Nintendo Switch 2 was tough to find in stock during its first two months on shelves, but that's no longer the case. If you own one, or are considering buying one soon, you understandably may want a microSD card to store more games than the console's 256GB storage can fit. And, you may already [...]

In July 2023, I deleted the Day One journaling app from my phone and laptop. It was perhaps the best thing I've done as a lifelong diarist. The decision was prompted by Apple announcing its Journal app at WWDC that year. In that keynote, Apple said it would use "on-device machine learning" to provide prompts [...]

Next month, Apple is rumored to debut a slimmed-down iPhone Air, breaking from the small design tweaks and spec bumps that have become routine at its launch events. The three-year plan will see its hardware change to mesh with the new Liquid Glass design in its next iOS update,as Bloomberg's Mark Gurman highlighted in his [...]

As President Donald Trump pushes federal law enforcement toward an immigration crackdown, agents and prosecutors fear he's drawing resources from one of the most vulnerable groups: victims of child sexual exploitation online. Current and former government employees tell The Verge that the Trump administration's laser focus on border security threatens to strain investigations into online [...]

It's now possible to charge a large 99Wh (27,650mAh) power bank - the largest you can easily take on an airplane - from zero to 80 percent in about 20 minutes. But only if you own EcoFlow's new power bank and desktop charger combo, launching in the US today. The $179.99 / 169.99 Rapid Pro [...]

A charter boat fisherman was among the first to discover the wreckage - a "mess," he called it, deep off the coast of Massachusetts. From behind a veil of pea soup-thick fog emerged hundreds of white and green fiberglass and Styrofoam pieces, some as small as a fingernail, some as large as a truck hood. [...]

The first two Netflix House venues now have their grand opening dates. Netflix House Philadelphia will open on November 12th at King of Prussia Mall, and Netflix House Dallas will open on December 11th at Galleria Dallas. These real-world manifestations of Netflix's intellectual property span more than 100,000 square feet." They're free to enter, offering [...]

I've long dreamed of doing all my gaming on PC - a single platform that's easily upgradeable and lets me play my overstuffed Steam library wherever and however I like. The Steam Deck is a fantastic handheld, but for my living room, I want something more powerful that works as well on my TV as [...]

This is The Stepback, a weekly newsletter breaking down one essential story from the tech world. For more on deep-sea mining and critical minerals, follow Justine Calma. The Stepback arrives in our subscribers' inboxes at 8AM ET. Opt in for The Stepback here. How it started This is not how I thought things would go [...]

Hi, friends! Welcome to Installer No. 95, your guide to the best and Verge-iest stuff in the world. (If you're new here, welcome, new gadget season is starting, and also you can read all the old editions at the Installer homepage.) This week, I am listening to independent radio (shoutout to Seattle's KEXP), reading about [...]

If you're looking to upgrade your movie night, a soundbar is an easy way to beef up the audio. While there are some high-priced options out there, you don't have to spend a lot to actually hear a movie's dialog. Right now, the Bose TV Speaker is down to $163.45 (about $115 off) at Amazon, [...]

Not all of The Verge's staff live in the US. For example, news editor Dominic Preston is based in London and is, as he says, responsible for keeping our news coverage ticking over in UK mornings before the US team comes online." He also curates our new Verge Daily newsletter and covers Android phones, especially [...]

The Fairphone 6 arrives almost two years after the 5, a testament to the company's approach to the upgrade cycle. If anything, I suspect the company would be frustrated if Fairphone 5 owners were considering a new model already - these are phones to keep, to repair, and to hold on to until the bitter [...]

Ninja Gaiden is having a renaissance. The last mainline entry was originally released more than a decade ago, but by the end of 2025, there will be three new Ninja Gaiden titles. Two are 3D: Ninja Gaiden 2 Black, a modern-day remaster of Ninja Gaiden II released earlier this year, and Ninja Gaiden 4, co-developed [...]

After the United Kingdom began enforcing its sweeping Online Safety Act in April, British regulator Ofcom served violation notices to three notorious sites: 4chan, Gab, and Kiwi Farms, each of which risked multimillion-dollar fines. Late last week, Preston Byrne, a First Amendment lawyer representing them, struck back. Byrne announced he would sue Ofcom in US [...]

Apple is suing a former employee on the Apple Watch team who left to join Oppo, alleging that he conspired to steal Apple's trade secrets relating to Apple Watch and to disclose them to his new employers." Ahead of starting his new job at Oppo, the employee, Dr. Chen Shi, attended dozens" of meetings with [...]

The US is investing $8.9 billion into Intel, but most of the funds come from money that the government was supposed to pay the embattled chipmaker anyway. In an announcement on Friday, Intel said the federal government will fund its investment using the remaining $5.7 billion in grants it hasn't yet received under the Biden [...]

Netflix has already faced backlash over the use of AI in What Jennifer Did, director Jenny Popplewell's 2024 true crime documentary that seemingly used AI-generated images in place of real archival photos. That documentary stood out as a shining example of gen AI's ability to distort reality in situations where people are specifically looking to [...]

Bluesky will block access from Mississippi IP addresses in response to a new state law requiring age verification and parental consent for underage users. The decision, outlined in a blog post, will stand until courts decide the fate of the law. Mississippi's approach would fundamentally change how users access Bluesky," says the post, in ways [...]

Meta is partnering with Midjourney to license their aesthetic technology" for use in its own models and products, Meta's new chief AI officer, Alexandr Wang, announced on Friday. The partnership involves a technical collaboration between our research teams," Wang said, suggesting the deal involves more than simply using Midjourney's existing product across Meta services. Wang [...]

Fidji Simo is wrapping up her first week at OpenAI, where she is expected to oversee most of the company's roughly 3,000 employees. To investors and partners, OpenAI leaders have been describing the former Instacart CEO as the kind of steady hand the company needs. Her mandate is clear: turn a chaotic, unprofitable startup into [...]

Expect record-breaking temperatures to change the workplace, the World Health Organization (WHO) and World Meteorological Organization (WMO) warned today in a new report. When workers don't have adequate protections from heat stress, their health and productivity suffer. It's a risk employers and lawmakers have to take more seriously if they want to keep workers safe [...]

In January, one of the wildest Intel prototypes I witnessed at CES was a giant handheld gaming PC with an 11-inch autostereoscopic (read: glasses-free) 3D screen, detachable controllers, an Intel Lunar Lake chip, and a dedicated toggle to switch between 2D and 3D modes. Co-developed by Intel and Tencent Games, it was called the Sunday [...]

Microsoft is testing a new Windows 11 feature that will let you resume using your Android apps right on your PC. The capability is gradually rolling out to Windows Insiders in the Dev and Beta Channels, and only supports the Spotify app for now. If you're in the test, you can try out the feature [...]

Noise-canceling earbuds are great productivity tools, blocking out noisy roommates and busy coffee shops so you can focus on studying or work. While there are a number of great options these days, few are as eye-catching like the translucent Beats Studio Buds Plus. And right now, you can buy the stylish wireless earbuds for just [...]

Yesterday, Hollow Knight: Silksong developers Team Cherry announced a September 4th release date for the long-awaited game, and indie developers are announcing delays to get out of the way of the launch. Silksong is a full sequel to the excellent Hollow Knight and is currently the most wishlisted game on Steam, so it's likely going [...]

After announcing certification from the Wireless Power Consortium (WPC) a month ago, Belkin is now debuting its first three devices that support the Qi2.2 standard and faster 25W wireless charging speeds. The most expensive and elaborate of the new accessories is the $129.99 Belkin UltraCharge Pro 3-in-1 Magnetic Charging Dock, which is a multi-device wireless [...]

Google has added a Drive shortcut for Workspace users that provides a quicker way to edit videos without having to manually open them in Google Vids. When previewing a video saved in their Drive, users will now see an Open" button at the top right corner that automatically opens the file in Google Vids, where [...]

The Pixel line has often been on the cutting edge of mobile photography. This year, that means baking AI straight into the camera app and making us grapple with all of the very messy things that means. I've been scouring the internet for sample images of the Pixel 10 Pro's AI-enhanced 100x zoom feature - [...]

A big reason that BoJack Horseman worked so well was contrast. It took place in a silly world of talking animals, and used that to explore deep human drama in relatable ways. It's part of what made its oddball jokes work so well, as they helped balance out the darker moments that explored topics like [...]

Digg is making a comeback. With the backing of people like Digg cofounder Kevin Rose and Reddit cofounder Alexis Ohanian, Digg has ambitions to once again be the homepage of the internet. The revival is still in its very early days - the platform is still invite-only - but Digg launched its new mobile apps [...]

Google announced plenty of new hardware at this week's Made by Google event, but halfway through we were distracted by the brief appearance of what appeared to be a new, previously unknown Gemini-powered smart speaker. Now Android Headlines claims that this speaker is real, and will launch with new colors and the ability to pair [...]

When Trump Mobile first unveiled the T1 Phone, we were confused by the mixed marketing, which included dubious renders of what at least appeared to be an original phone along with multiple appearances from what was quite clearly a gold-plated iPhone. Now we can add Samsung's Galaxy S25 Ultra into the mix. The Trump Mobile [...]

President Donald Trump signed a new executive order on Thursday to improve the usability and aesthetics" of US government services by creating first-class online and offline experiences for Americans." It is time to update the Government's design language to be both usable and beautiful," Trump said in the order, which establishes an America by Design [...]

The Splinter Cell: Deathwatch animated series finally has a release date and a proper trailer, but Netflix already wants you to start thinking about what else it has coming down the pipeline. During this year's Anime NYC convention, Netflix announced that Deathwatch is slated to debut on October 14th, and the series has added The [...]

So far, 2025 has been a great year for watching new, must-see TV shows and movies on subscription services. But if you, like many of us, have more concurrent subscriptions than you care to admit, you'll agree that keeping up with the latest stuff every month can get expensive. They may not cost as much [...]

Microsoft has started testing another handheld-friendly addition to its Xbox app, allowing PC gamers to quickly install and launch third-party apps like browsers, gaming utilities, and even rival storefronts. A new My apps" feature is being tested in the Xbox app for Windows 11, and it looks like another way to avoid having to launch [...]

Bungie CEO Pete Parsons has announced that he's leaving the company one decade after taking on the role. In an update on Thursday, Parsons wrote that he has decided to pass the torch" to longtime Bungie developer Justin Truman. Parsons has worked at Bungie for over 20 years and led the studio through the launch [...]

The NFL and Microsoft have extended their arrangement that makes Surface tablets a familiar fixture on gameday sidelines, but naturally, now there's an AI-powered twist on top. While Tom Brady is no longer actively putting those slates in danger of destruction, they do have something to offer to coaches and players. Microsoft touts a GitHub [...]

Google's new Pixel 10 and Pixel 10 Pro Fold and Pixel Watch 4 may compete with Samsung, but it's happy to let Samsung explore other parts of the Galaxy on its own. In interviews with Bloomberg, Google just revealed a lot of devices it isn't currently working on. Here's Bloomberg: Despite its partners Samsung and [...]