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Illustration by Laura Normand / The Verge The US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is proposing a new rule that it hopes will put an end to hidden junk fees that some businesses often add as a surprise when consumers are checking out.The agency is currently seeking public comment on the rule, known as the Trade Regulation Rule on Unfair or Deceptive Fees, after having already collected 12,000 comments last year from individuals, businesses, law enforcement groups, and others on how deceptive fees affect them.FTC Chair Lina Khan said in a statement that by hiding the total price, these junk fees make it harder for consumers to shop for the best product or service and punish businesses who are honest upfront." FTC adds that tackling junk fees through its nearly 100-year-old legal... Continue reading...

Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge Amazon's fall Prime Day event is underway. For more deals we recommend across all categories, check out our full roundup here.For this fall Prime Day event, laptops of all shapes and sizes are on sale. If you're looking for a good bargain but aren't sure where to start, we've filtered out all of the best options for you to consider. Most of the best deals are at Amazon itself today, but there are a few gems at other retailers, and we've included them here, too.If you want to learn more about our top picks, check out our guide to the best laptops you can buy.Apple MacBook deals

The 2023 Framework Laptop 13 has a new AMD option, and it's a stellar performer. Continue reading...

A screenshot of Dropbox Dash, an AI-powered search tool that pulls together information from across apps and services, not just Dropbox. | Image: Dropbox Dropbox has announced several changes coming to its file hosting service including a new web interface, an open beta for its AI-powered universal search feature, upgrades to another AI feature that's in alpha, and another early alpha of a new video collaboration tool.Let's start with the new web interface, since it's something most Dropbox users are likely to encounter as it rolls out, regardless of whether they engage with the service's more advanced features. There's a new action bar that'll sit across the page to offer quick access to features like screen recording, folder creation, and file uploading. File previews have also been redesigned, with Dropbox claiming these will make it easier to edit images, videos, and PDFs. There's a... Continue reading...

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Mozilla is testing a new built-in Review Checker" feature for its Firefox browser that rates how reliable a product's customer reviews are. The experimental feature was initially spotted by MSPowerUser, and Firefox's senior director of product management Byron Jourdan confirmed that the company is testing the functionality with a limited audience in the United States," in a statement given to The Verge.Fake reviews are a big problem for online retailers, which have had to take increasingly aggressive measures to stop malicious actors from using them to boost the ratings of their products. Amazon has previously taken down tens of thousands of reviews deemed to be fraudulent, and has even taken legal action against individuals who... Continue reading...

Illustration by Lucia Pham / The Verge It's that time of the year again. Amazon's latest Prime Day event, Prime Big Deal Days, is now upon us. The exclusive sales event unofficially kicks off the early, early holiday shopping season, and with it comes a cavalcade of deals and discounts. Some are bound to be repeat deals you may have encountered during a random sale, while others are matching their best price to date or dropping even lower.If you're in the market for earbuds, headphones, smart home devices, smartwatches, or Android phones, you're likely to find a worthwhile deal. For each great deal, however, there are likely to be 20-odd trash ones that are crowding the space for your attention. That's why our team of reviewers and expert deal hunters is working tirelessly... Continue reading...

Photo: Epicka Amazon's fall Prime Day event is underway, for more deals we recommend across all categories, check out our full roundup here.Every month or so, we like to ask our staff about their favorite stuff - whether it's pet toys, travel aids, kitchen gadgets, or straightforward tech. And the results are usually very different, very interesting, and a lot of fun.Since Amazon is currently pushing a lot of deals through its current Prime Day sales, we looked through some of our recent favorites" articles and found deals on a lot of the tech, kitchen tools, travel aids, and pet toys we like. So we thought we'd list a few in case you have read about them in the past and thought, well, that sort of sounds good, but it's a bit pricey. (Or - that's... Continue reading...

Illustration by Nick Barclay / The Verge Utah's Division of Consumer Protection (UDCP) is suing TikTok over allegations that the app's addictive nature" harms children and that TikTok deceptively obscures its relationship with ByteDance, its parent company in China. The state's lawsuit is the latest in a long-and-growing string of bans and legal action from US-based governments and organizations to rein in TikTok's popularity, generally on espionage fears.Utah Governor Spencer Cox accused the company of misleading parents that its app is safe for children" in a press release announcing the lawsuit today. He said the app illegally baits children into addictive and unhealthy use" with features that encourage young users to scroll endlessly in order to make more advertising... Continue reading...

She didn't even get equity! | Photo illustration by Cath Virginia / The Verge | Photos by Bloomberg, Getty Images Bankman-Fried thought Alameda's brand wasn't as good as FTX's - so he put his sometime-lover in charge of it. Continue reading...

Amazon's Kindle Paperwhite Kids is exactly the same as the base model except it comes with a few welcome add-ons. | Image: Amazon As far as ebook readers are concerned, it's hard to do better than the Kindle Paperwhite. Luckily, if you've been trying to get your kids into reading or have been waiting to pick up a Kindle for yourself, Amazon is offering a big price cut on the latest Kindle Paperwhite Kids as part of its October Prime Day event, dropping it to just $109.99 ($60 off). Alternatively, you can pick up the standard Paperwhite with ads and 8GB configuration for $94.99 ($45 off), its best price to date.Boasting a vibrant, 6.8-inch display and adjustable color temperature, Amazon's mid-tier ebook reader is our top choice for most people. The Kids edition is exactly the same as the ad-free Kindle Paperwhite released in 2021, with the only difference being... Continue reading...

Image: Kristen Radtke / The Verge; Getty Images EU commissioner Thierry Breton warned Elon Musk in a letter today that X, formerly Twitter, is being used to disseminate illegal content and disinformation in the EU" after Hamas attacks in Israel. Breton also reminded Musk that the Digital Services Act (DSA), which went into effect in August, sets very precise obligations regarding content moderation."The commissioner wrote that illegal content flagged by relevant authorities" was still on the site, signifying that nothing had been done about it. The DSA, he noted, requires X to remove such content quickly and objectively. He added that Musk's platform needs to have proportionate and effective mitigation measures" to deal with risks to public security and civic discourse" that... Continue reading...

The Tapo Wire-Free MagCam is the newest indoor / outdoor smart security camera from TP-Link. | Image: TP-Link TP-Link's latest entry to the smart security camera market is a high-spec camera that undercuts the competition on price - even as it matches or beats them on many features. The new Tapo Wire-Free MagCam is a versatile indoor / outdoor Wi-Fi security cam that brings with it a more stylish look than prior Tapo cameras, for $120.I've tested a number of TP-Link's outdoor cameras, and some have a slightly awkward design, even adopting the same ridiculously techy antennas found on the company's Wi-Fi routers. In comparison, these new Tapo MagCams ($119.99 for one at Amazon or $299.99 for a three-pack at Best Buy) have a bit of style, which I think is important for a device you might put on the outside of your home. Image:... Continue reading...

No, that's not a turret on top, but it might as well be. | Image: Nissan If your idea of an electric vehicle for the eco-minded outdoor traveler looks like a low-poly spaceship on wheels, then Nissan's latest concept might be for you. The automaker's new Hyper Adventure" is a futuristic SUV that accommodates the outdoor person's diverse needs," including the ability to power campsite equipment and recharge electric Jet Skis using the vehicle's large battery with vehicle-to-everything, V2X," technology.Nissan didn't bother to add a pretend battery size and driving range for the Hyper Adventure concept, but it does claim the EV is capable of months-long" journeys to remote locations with a good supply of energy." The vehicle features plenty of interior room to accommodate tents, a kayak, and other gear.... Continue reading...

For a new Pixel, Google has some new ringtones. | Photo by Vjeran Pavic / The Verge Google is adding a new section to its Pixel-only Sounds app, with a collection of new ringtones and alarm sounds that it calls Gems." As first spotted by 9to5Google, the Gems collection includes 26 new sounds in all, with names like Prism," Ethereal Vibration," and Mineral Chimez." They've been rolling out alongside the launch of Android 14 and the new Pixel phones hitting stores this week.Like the new ringtones in iOS 17, Google's new sounds are distinctly higher res than your average ringtone. These companies are leaning away from the simple, retro-sounding tones of old and into much richer, fuller sounds that might also be at home in a video game soundtrack or as a loop in Ableton.There are lots of vibes to choose from here.... Continue reading...

Belkin's MagSafe offering is one of the few charging pucks that lets you make use of Apple's new StandBy feature. | Photo by Antonio G. Di Benedetto / The Verge Wireless charging is nearly ubiquitous, but obtaining true MagSafe speeds when charging your iPhone isn't always cheap. Apple's first-party MagSafe Charger clocks in at a hefty $39 when it's not on sale, while MagSafe-certified 2-in-1 chargers can often cost as much as $100. Thankfully, Belkin's BoostCharge Pro with MagSafe is on sale for an all-time low of $14.27 (about $36 off) direct from Belkin when you use promo code PBF23 at checkout. If you prefer a different retailer, it's also matching its previous low at Amazon, where you can snag it for $19.99 ($30 off) thanks to Amazon's Prime Big Deal Days event.Belkin's charging puck is better than Apple's charger in just about every way, though it's regularly more expensive. What makes... Continue reading...

Photo by Dan Seifert / The Verge Google is moving quickly to restore some of the features and functionality it previously removed from multiple products in response to Sonos' patent infringement case. After its victory in federal court on Friday, the company plans to undo the restrictions it implemented on speaker groups.We recently made a change to speaker groups for Nest speakers, displays, and Chromecast where certain devices can only belong to one speaker group at a time in the Google Home app," the company wrote on its Nest community blog. In light of this legal decision we're happy to share that we will be rolling back this change. Devices will be able to belong to multiple speaker groups and you will no longer run into an error when trying to add a device to... Continue reading...

What if this was your computer's desktop? Space OS thinks it should be. | Image: Deta / David Pierce Here's how your computer should work, according to Mustafa Abdelhai, the co-founder and CEO of a startup called Deta. Instead of a big empty screen full of icons, your desktop should be an infinite canvas on which you can take notes or watch movies or run full apps just by drawing a rectangle on the screen. Instead of logging in to a bunch of cloud services over which you ultimately have no control, you should be able to download software like PC users did 20 years ago, and the stuff you download should be completely yours. All your apps should talk to each other, so you can move data between them or even use multiple apps' features simultaneously. You should be able to use AI to accomplish almost anything.And it should all happen in a... Continue reading...

Image: Sony Sony Electronics has just announced the $199.99 InZone Buds, its first gaming-focused pair of wireless earbuds. The company says the earbuds are designed to optimize battery life (with up to 12 hours of continuous use) and deliver audio at the lowest latency possible.The InZone Buds support a variety of devices including the PS5, PCs, and mobile gadgets. In most of those cases, you'll connect using the included USB-C dongle, which cuts latency to below 30 milliseconds. But the InZone Buds also support Bluetooth LE Audio, which could be a meaningful inclusion if you've got a recent high-end Android phone. Image: Sony The earbuds come with a USB-C dongle. Sony is very much touting the 360 spatial audio... Continue reading...

Some special guests are coming to Fortnite's annual Halloween event, Fortnitemares. The battle royale's item shop is being updated in the coming weeks with a trio of season-appropriate characters: Alan Wake, Michael Myers, and Jack Skellington. They'll join some new and returning Fortnite characters who will be available during the holiday.Here's a look at what to expect:Outside of things to buy, the event will also feature the usual spooky makeover. In the past, that has included everything from ghosts to werewolves to a monster hunting Ariana Grande. However, in keeping with the current season of Fortnite, this year's Fortnitemares is all about vampires. There's a new shotgun that shoots wooden stakes, a vampire blade that saps... Continue reading...

Image: Microsoft Activision Blizzard says it will start adding games to Xbox Game Pass next year, if the Microsoft deal closes. Microsoft is currently targeting to close its proposed Activision Blizzard deal on Friday, pending approval from a UK regulator.In a strangely timed and vague post on X (formerly Twitter) Activision Blizzard makes it clear to Xbox fans that both Modern Warfare III and Diablo IV won't be part of Xbox Game Pass in 2023.

An unofficial render of the Pixel 8A. | Image: OnLeaks / Smartprix Google just started selling its new $699 Pixel 8 and $999 Pixel 8 Pro, but a less expensive version is apparently already on the way: OnLeaks and Smartprix have teamed up again to offer unofficial renders of a roughly 6.1-inch Pixel 8A.Like the Pixel 8, it's a design with two rear cameras and a hole-punch selfie cam, and it's curvy like the other new Pixel phones, too.And you may not have to satisfy your curiosity with renders alone - because in September, Abhishek Yadav shared photos of this handset too:

The Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro. | Photo by Vjeran Pavic / The Verge Google isn't just promising seven years of upgrades for the Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro - the company says it'll also stock spare parts for seven years as well.Parts will be available for seven years. That's part of our commitment," Soniya Jobanputra, director of product management at Google, told Android Authority. [W]e need to make our parts available so you can keep your hardware alive for that long."While Google didn't specifically tell the publication it'll make those parts available to you, it's hard to imagine otherwise. Not only does iFixit now sell repair parts for every modern Pixel phone with Google's blessing and support - up to and including the Pixel Fold's $900 screen - but right-to-repair will almost certainly be the... Continue reading...