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by Umar Shakir on (#6N4YW)
Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Verizon's inked a deal with satellite broadband provider AST SpaceMobile to help fill customers' coverage gaps when they travel outside the reach of terrestrial cell towers. The company is committing $100 million in a new deal connecting AST's satellite network to mobile phones using the 850 Mhz band.AST SpaceMobile is launching five satellites into low orbit this summer and recently announced a deal with AT&T, which joined Google and Vodafone as an investor in AST earlier this year, that runs through 2030.Apple added an Emergency SOS via satellite feature for iPhone 14 and 15 that lets you message for roadside assistance through AAA (and also Verizon) in areas of no connectivity. Android is also getting similar messaging features.... Continue reading...
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The Verge
| Link | https://www.theverge.com/ |
| Feed | http://www.theverge.com/rss/index.xml |
| Updated | 2025-07-10 13:18 |
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by Andrew J. Hawkins on (#6N4YX)
Image: Getty Earlier this month, the Biden administration announced major new tariffs on Chinese imports, including electric vehicles, batteries, solar cells, and a range of other goods. The goal was to prevent China from flooding the market with cheap products that could endanger domestic manufacturers. But environmental groups warned it could hinder our efforts to meet our climate goals by making things like EVs and solar panels more expensive.Caught up in all this are electric bikes, those big battery-sporting, sometimes goofy-looking but always fun to ride motorized two-wheelers. E-bikes aren't just for delivery workers or beach town grannies. They're important tools for fighting climate change, combating car culture, and improving mental and... Continue reading...
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by Antonio G. Di Benedetto on (#6N4YY)
There's something about that green power light on the keyboard's top-right corner that overwhelms me with a sense of calm. | Image: 8BitDo I love a good re-skin or fresh coat of paint, and I can be a sucker for a little nostalgia bait just like anyone else. But let's not mince words here: there's no way 8BitDo's upcoming $100 M Edition of its Retro Mechanical Keyboard will stand up to the legendary IBM Model M keyboards of yore - not in sound, typing feel, or relative chonkiness. However, it certainly looks the business, especially with the slick new wireless numpad / calculator combo pad 8BitDo will sell alongside it for another $44.99. Image: 8BitDo Somebody tell 8BitDo it doesn't need to write Retro" on everything. The design speaks plenty. The M Edition has the same exact specs as 8BitDo's previous Retro Keyboards, right down to the top-mount... Continue reading...
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by Ash Parrish on (#6N4YZ)
Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge It begins. The summer showcase of games technically doesn't officially start until Summer Game Fest next week, but Sony decided it wanted to get a jump on things by announcing its next State of Play event on Thursday, May 30th, starting at 6PM ET.
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by Joanna Nelius on (#6N4VP)
Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge On Wednesday, IP core designer Arm announced its next-generation CPU and GPU designs for flagship smartphones: the Cortex-X925 CPU and Immortalis G925 GPU. Both are direct successors to the Cortex-X4 and Immortalis G720 that currently power MediaTek's Dimensity 9300 chip inside flagship smartphones like the Vivo X100 and X100 Pro and Oppo Find X7.Arm changed the naming convention for its Cortex-X CPU design to highlight what it says is a much faster CPU design. It claims the X925's single-core performance is 36 percent faster than the X4 (when measured in Geekbench). Arm says it increased the AI workload performance by 41 percent, time to token, with up to 3MB of private L2 cache.The Cortex-X925 brings a new generation of Cortex-A... Continue reading...
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by Becca Farsace on (#6N4VR)
Becca Farsace On the dance floor at the Webby Awards in 2023, a very dapper man in a subtle paisley suit came up to me with a huge smile and said I love your content." It's always nice hearing that someone likes your work, but I'd never heard it from someone with an internet presence quite like his. It was Matty Benedetto of Unnecessary Inventions, a creator who has amassed millions of followers across just about every social network by making and displaying all sorts of strange, eccentric, and perplexing gadgets to improve our daily lives.As I said thank you and tried not to blush, I yelled to Matty that I was trying to launch a video series about creators and maybe we could link up." Over a year later, I found myself in the heart of Burlington,... Continue reading...
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by Victoria Song on (#6N4VQ)
This is the Spicy Pebble with the Moovin' Band, with a bumper attached for extra durability. | Photo by Victoria Song / The Verge When Fitbit invited me to a demo of the Ace LTE, its new tracker for kids, I didn't expect much. The previous Ace trackers were pared-down Fitbit bands that didn't do much and lacked GPS. Other smartwatches for kids tend to be boxy, glorified GPS trackers, designed to appeal more to parents than kids. But the Ace LTE? This is a kids smartwatch that feels like it might actually be fun to wear. I kind of wish there were something like it for adults.The $229.95 Ace LTE has a squarish case that's reminiscent of the Fitbit Versa. The main difference is that the materials are more appropriate for kids. (Think plastic and Corning Gorilla Glass instead of sapphire crystal and titanium.) There's also an optional bumper for extra durability.... Continue reading...
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by Andrew Webster on (#6N4RF)
Image: Amazon Amazon is continuing to expand its presence in video game publishing. The latest example: the company is teaming up with Maverick Games, a new studio formed by former Forza developers at Playground, to launch a narrative-led open-world driving game." There's no title or release date for the game, but it'll be coming to PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X / S when it does launch.Publishing has become a large facet of Amazon's push into gaming, with the company partnering with Bandai Namco on the upcoming anime MMO Blue Protocol as well as Crystal Dynamics on the next Tomb Raider game. Amazon is also developing a Lord of the Rings MMO at its internal Orange County studio, which previously launched New World. Many of these projects tie into other... Continue reading...
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by Andrew Webster on (#6N4RE)
Image: Hello Games Things are about to get a little quieter in the No Man's Sky universe. Developer Hello Games just released the sci-fi adventure's latest update - it's called Adrift," and it introduces an alternative universe that's completely devoid of other characters. That means no NPCs to chat or trade with. The studio calls it the first time players can be truly alone in No Man's Sky."In addition to making the game lonelier and heightening the sense of isolation that was very present in the early days of the game, Adrift" will also make the experience more challenging. Here's how the studio explains it:
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by Jess Weatherbed on (#6N4RG)
Device manufacturers have until January 1st, 2026, to comply with Colorado's new rules. | Screenshot: iFixit via YouTube Colorado now has some of the broadest right-to-repair laws in the US thanks to a new bill signed by Governor Jared Polis on Tuesday. The HB24-1121 Consumer Right to Repair Digital Electronic Equipment" rules require all manufacturers to make it easier for consumers and independent electronics businesses to purchase the necessary equipment needed to repair devices themselves.Under this bill, when an item is broken, it could be a cellphone like this, a dishwasher, a washing machine, or a laptop, Coloradans will have the information they need to repair their own equipment or use the repair provider of their own choice," Polis said at the bill signing, as reported by the Colorado Times Recorder.This builds on Colorado's right-to-repair... Continue reading...
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by Jess Weatherbed on (#6N4MA)
The PSVR 2 headset should have PC support by the end of this year, curtosy of a new adapter. | Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge PlayStation VR2 headset owners are one step closer to being able to use the virtual reality device with PCs. According to a certification discovered by VR enthusiast Brad Lynch, Sony has developed a PSVR 2 adapter" that provides PC support for the otherwise PS5-exclusive device.Sony said that it was working on PC support for PSVR 2 in February, targeting a non-specific 2024 release date, but the company hadn't previously mentioned what form this support would take. With the adapter certification being filed back on March 27th with South Korea's regulator, it seems Sony is on track to easily meet its self-imposed PC support deadline.No other information about this mysterious adapter - including its price, appearance, or specified... Continue reading...
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by Jennifer Pattison Tuohy on (#6N4MB)
Using Apple's RoomPlan Controller for HomeKit has added a map view for Apple Home to its app. | Image: Controller for HomeKit Controller for HomeKit, a third-party app for controlling your Apple Home smart home, has a new Floor Plan feature that adds a map interface for interacting with connected devices like lights, locks, shades, sensors and more. I got some time with the new feature ahead of its launch this week and it's a compelling way to control your smart home. A 3D scan of your house becomes an interactive map filled with all your connected devices providing an intuitive way to control them: Just tap the lamp next to the sofa on the map and that light will turn on.For those unfamiliar, Controller for HomeKit is a well-regarded app that can manage and control any Apple Home and HomeKit compatible devices, scenes, automations, and so on. It uses the... Continue reading...
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by Tom Warren on (#6N4JQ)
Image: GPD GPD has been creating handheld gaming PCs and miniature mobile PCs for years, but it's now turning its attention to regular-sized laptops. After teasing a dual-screen laptop last week, GPD has now published an image of its upcoming GPD Duo - complete with two 13.3-inch OLED displays, a range of ports, and stylus support.While we've seen new dual-screen laptops emerge over the past year, the GPD Duo looks like it might be the most practical yet. GPD is stacking the two 13.3-inch OLED panels so you get an extra screen on top. That's similar to Asus' new Zenbook Duo, but GPD is aiming to do this without a removable keyboard and kickstand, so the second display can fold behind the main one in what looks like a regular laptop form factor.T... Continue reading...
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by Richard Lawler on (#6N4EV)
Illustration: The Verge On November 17th, 2023, OpenAI's board shocked everyone by suddenly ousting co-founder and CEO Sam Altman.He had been overseeing one of the fastest-growing app launches in history with ChatGPT, so what happened? Former board member Helen Toner is filling in blank spaces in an interview on The TED AI Show podcast, providing her perspective on the events that caused board members to stop trusting Altman, as well as how he eventually returned.In her telling, once the board decided they needed to bring in a new CEO, they felt the only way to make it happen was to go behind his back. [I]t was very clear to all of us that as soon as Sam had any inkling that we might do something that went against him, he would pull out all the stops, do... Continue reading...
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by Wes Davis on (#6N4DG)
Image: OnLeaks / SmartPrix It looks like the not-yet-announced Galaxy Z Flip 6 is getting a tiny boost in battery capacity compared to the Z Flip 5, according to FCC testing records spotted by MySmartPrice. The Galaxy Ring's size ranges and battery ratings showed up, too, revealing good news for the small-of-finger, as it's been tested as low as size 5.The Z Flip 6's battery is rated at 3,790mAh, based on screenshots shared by the outlet. That's a touch higher than the 3,700mAh capacity that Samsung advertises for the Z Flip 5. Assuming that translates to increased battery life - which is not safe to assume - it could be a slight if welcome change for a phone that may not be changing all that much otherwise, at least judging from Z Flip 6 renders that leaked... Continue reading...
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by Emma Roth on (#6N4BP)
Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Verizon is doubling down on efforts to sell you streaming services. Starting May 30th, the company will offer a discounted $10 / subscription to YouTube Premium through its myPlan perks.YouTube Premium typically costs $13.99, letting you watch videos on the platform ad-free, download content, and access YouTube Music Premium. You can get the perk if you have one of Verizon's myPlan subscriptions, which lets subscribers tack on services like Disney Plus and Apple One.In addition to YouTube Premium, Verizon is adding Peacock to its digital content hub on June 5th. Verizon Plus Play lets you sign up and manage subscriptions to Netflix, Max, Paramount Plus, AMC Plus, and more from one place. Like most other services available on Plus... Continue reading...
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by Quentyn Kennemer on (#6N4BQ)
It dons a familiar look, but you can expect many meaningful upgrades for the 2024 Beats Pill. | Image: 9to5Mac Leaked renders and celebrity sightings are clues for a likely summer launch of Apple's upcoming Beats Pill speaker - its first since the Pill Plus, which we called the best yet" when it launched in 2015 and was discontinued in 2022. A report from 9to5Mac, citing unnamed sources, gives more details about its modernization.Reported upgrades include up to 24 hours of battery life, IP67 water resistance, faster and more reliable device pairing / switching with Bluetooth 5.3, and integrated Find My tracking on both Apple and Google's networks. 9to5Mac also says Apple plans to update the Pill's charge-out and input ports to USB-C, from USB-A out and Lightning in. There's also a detachable carry strap (as displayed by LeBron James and Daniel... Continue reading...
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by Wes Davis on (#6N4BR)
Once Upon a Time in Shaolin, pictured on its current owner's website. | Image: PleasrDAO Very few people have heard the only copy of Once Upon a Time in Shaolin, the Wu-Tang Clan album that disgraced pharmaceutical executive Martin Shkreli bought at auction in 2015. Starting next month, though, you'll be able to hear a curated, 30-minute excerpt of the album, provided you can get to the Museum of Old and New Art (MONA) in Hobart, Tasmania, between June 15th and June 24th, reports The Washington Post.The MONA's playback of Shaolin excerpts will be part of a months-long exhibit called Namedropping" centered on rare and significant pop culture objects. Tasmanian residents can get into the museum for free, but tickets go for as much as AUS$38 for anyone else.
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by Elizabeth Lopatto on (#6N4BS)
Get a load of this guy. | Photo by David Dee Delgado/Getty Images Fine, Vivek Ramaswamy, you wanted my attention and now you have it. Before now, I knew you primarily as the guy who lied so hysterically my hometown police department had to come out and explain that you'd been parked illegally when you were accidentally rear-ended by a lady who was not very good at backing up.In your quest to unseat Elon Musk as the thirstiest motherfucker alive, you have bought 8 percent of Buzzfeed and sent Jonah Peretti a little nastygram. I am not going to bother with the letter on its merits because you know and I know and the police department of Grinnell, Iowa knows that your word is worth nothing.There is exactly one thing that is relevant here, and it is that Peretti has founder control. As of December 31,... Continue reading...
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by Emma Roth on (#6N4A2)
Image: The Verge Browser bloat has long been a problem, but now Microsoft is doing something about it, and not by reducing features but by speeding the browser up. The company is working to make Edge's user interface more responsive, starting with its Browser Essentials menu.This menu - which displays information about Edge's performance - is now 42 percent faster, thanks to a WebUI 2.0 architecture migration. You can see how much faster the Browser Essentials menu loads on WebUI 2.0 compared to React and WebUI with Javascript in the video below. Microsoft says the menu is 76 percent faster on devices without an SSD or with less than 8GB of RAM.Additionally, Microsoft is giving Edge's favorites menu a speed boost in build 124, making it 40 percent... Continue reading...
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by Emilia David on (#6N4A3)
Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Microsoft has added an official Copilot bot within the messaging app Telegram, which lets users search, ask questions, and converse with the AI chatbot.Copilot for Telegram is currently in beta but is free for Telegram users on mobile or desktop. People can chat with Copilot for Telegram like a regular conversation on the messaging app. Copilot for Telegram is an official Microsoft bot (make sure it's the one with the checkmark and the username @CopilotOfficialBot). Several AI companies now let you access their LLMs through messaging apps. Meta added Meta AI to its chat apps, including Messenger, WhatsApp, and Instagram messaging, and you can chat with Gemini inside Google Messages on Android phones.To access Copilot for Telegram, I... Continue reading...
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by Mia Sato on (#6N47K)
Illustration: The Verge Google's search algorithm is perhaps the most consequential system on the internet, dictating what sites live and die and what content on the web looks like. But how exactly Google ranks websites has long been a mystery, pieced together by journalists, researchers, and people working in search engine optimization.Now, an explosive leak that purports to show thousands of pages of internal documents appears to offer an unprecedented look under the hood of how Search works - and suggests that Google hasn't been entirely truthful about it for years. So far, Google hasn't responded to multiple requests for comment on the legitimacy of the documents.Rand Fishkin, who worked in SEO for more than a decade, says a source shared 2,500 pages of... Continue reading...
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by Sean Hollister on (#6N47M)
The NPU inside Copilot Plus PCs takes the stage at a Microsoft Surface and AI event. | Photo by Allison Johnson / The Verge When you launch a game on a Snapdragon on a Windows laptop, you might get an AI frame rate boost from Microsoft's mysterious Auto Super Resolution (Auto SR) feature. But while Microsoft hasn't fully explained how the feature works, The Verge can now confirm it's not Qualcomm technology, not exclusive to Qualcomm's new Snapdragon X chips, and not exclusive to specific games, either.You'd be forgiven for thinking otherwise! Microsoft's new Automatic Super Resolution help page bluntly states that a Snapdragon X chip is required - see screenshot - and that all of its processing occurs on-device using the integrated GPU and Neural Processing Unit." Image: Microsoft But Qualcomm now tells us that Super Resolution is... Continue reading...
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by Emma Roth on (#6N47N)
Image: Hugo Herrera / The Verge PayPal is launching an advertising platform built on a trove of customer transaction data. The company's new advertising business will encompass purchase information and customer spending habits from PayPal and its sister app Venmo, according to The Wall Street Journal.PayPal has brought on Mark Grether, the former vice president and general manager of Uber Advertising, to lead its advertising business. If you're someone who's buying products on the web, we know who is buying the products where, and we can leverage the data," Grether said in a statement to the WSJ. He also said that PayPal will receive shopping data from customers using its credit card in stores.A PayPal spokesperson tells the WSJ that the company will collect data... Continue reading...
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by Wes Davis on (#6N47P)
Image: Lego If your little Lego town has grown big enough, it may be time to add an officially sanctioned Lego Apple Store, something that's vaguely possible if a recently submitted fan build gets the requisite 10,000 votes for Lego to consider it. The immaculately detailed creation has what most people would expect from a modern Apple Store: floor-to-ceiling glass front, tables full of Macs and iPhones, and shelves resplendent with neatly arranged white boxes.One of the project's designers is Truman, aka Legotruman, a Hong Kong-based fan who was behind the Lego Starry Night build and whose Gundam, Lego Anatomy, and Spirited Away ideas Lego is currently considering. Their collaborator, 2A2A, won a Disney-themed Lego design challenge with a design... Continue reading...
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by Kylie Robison on (#6N44C)
Illustration: The Verge Jan Leike, a key OpenAI researcher who resigned earlier this month citing safety concerns," has joined competitor Anthropic to work on scalable oversight, weak-to-strong generalization, and automated alignment research," according to Leike's post on X.Anthropic has positioned itself to be the antithesis of OpenAI: a public benefit corporation dedicated to cautious progress. It was founded by ex-OpenAI employees who departed, according to the Financial Times, because they believed OpenAI was straying from its mission of developing safer, more ethical AI and becoming too focused on commercial interests after the $1 billion Microsoft deal. For those following the AI drama, Leike joining Anthropic comes as no surprise.We are long... Continue reading...
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by Ash Parrish on (#6N44D)
Image: YouTube Everybody's getting into gaming these days. YouTube joins the slowly growing list of companies with gaming initiatives, rolling out its Playables program across mobile and desktop. To play, simply visit YouTube's website or Android / iOS app and look for Playables in the sidebar. YouTube will let players save their progress and keep track of high scores. There are over 75 games to choose from, including chess and crossword games to more popular casual mobile titles like Angry Birds Showdown!, Trivia Crack, and Cut the Rope.YouTube began its foray into gaming last year, offering Playables to YouTube Premium subscribers. That initial phase had far fewer games and was only around for a relatively limited amount of time, with the phase... Continue reading...
by Lauren Feiner on (#6N44E)
Image: Cath Virginia / The Verge In 2020, Epic Games sued Apple for antitrust violations. It's been years since the trial wrapped and judgment was rendered, but for the past few weeks, Apple and Epic Games have been back in front of Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers once more. Gonzalez Rogers mostly ruled in favor of Apple last time. Things might not go so well for the company this time.As a reminder, this whole case got started when Epic challenged Apple's up to 30 percent fees to developers for in-app purchases through a splashy campaign where it basically ignored Apple's App Store guidelines and put in its own mobile payment processing system in its popular game Fortnite. That got the Fortnite app kicked off of the App Store, setting up the perfect scenario for Epic to... Continue reading...
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by Quentyn Kennemer on (#6N0C9)
Amazon's latest Echo Show 8 is still on sale at one of its best prices to date. Memorial Day weekend may now be a thing of the past, but don't feel too sad. Many retailers are still celebrating Memorial Day with quite a few good deals. Others have ended their official Memorial Day sales, but are still offering the same discounted prices regardless.Below, we've rounded up the best Memorial Day deals you can still get on an array of gadgets and gizmos. They include the Beats Solo 4 - which is on sale for the first time - and Apple's entry-level iPad, which is even cheaper now. And don't worry if you're on a budget, as retailers are also still discounting items that don't cost a couple hundred, like smart displays and games. So let's dig in.Earbud and headphone deals
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by Emilia David on (#6N44F)
Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Opera browser users can get more up-to-date information and more conversational responses as it integrates Google's Gemini AI models into its existing Aria AI extension.Aria, released last year, acts like an AI assistant to answer user queries, write code, and perform other tasks. According to Opera, Aria does not rely on one AI model to respond to users but chooses the AI model it feels will work best for the specific task. With this new integration, Aria can tap into Gemini, which the company says provides Opera users with the most current information at high performance."Aria is available on all Opera browsers, including its gaming browser, Opera GX.The Gemini family of large language models consists of several models of... Continue reading...
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by Wes Davis on (#6N44G)
Image: Porsche Porsche has announced the 2025 Porsche 911 Carrera GTS, its first hybrid electric model, a car that it says can go from zero to 60mph in 2.9 seconds and tops out at 194mph.There's also some new tech in the dash, including an all-digital instrument cluster on a 12.6-inched curved display that now shows information from CarPlay, which it says is integrated more deeply into the vehicle."But Porsche's all-digital cockpit" doesn't appear to be the next-generation wireless CarPlay that Apple announced in 2022 and that both Porsche and Aston Martin recently said would be coming first to their cars. Porsche spokesperson Frank Weissman told The Verge via email that this is a similar setup to what we introduced on our latest Cayenne,... Continue reading...
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by Quentyn Kennemer on (#6N41R)
At just $299.99, Apple's entry-level iPad offers even better value if you're looking for a powerful tablet for basic entertainment purposes and light productivity. | Photo by Dan Seifert / The Verge I got a nice sunrise surprise this morning. Sure, trees and power lines in my little corner of Texas were being hewn to the ground by the storms ripping across the central South, and I'm still without power as of this writing - but I have just enough juice in my power bank to inform you that we've found the best deal yet on the 10th-generation iPad. The 64GB / Wi-Fi configuration is down to $299.99 (about $34 off) at Amazon in select colors when you clip the on-page coupon. That's a new price record for Apple's entry-level iPad.The latest baseline iPad now looks more like the pricier ones in Apple's lineup, although it's lost the home button and headphone jack and switched out the Lightning port for USB-C. And while it's still on the... Continue reading...
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by Justine Calma on (#6N41S)
Image: The Verge More than 77 percent of people who participated in a big Apple-sponsored study have experienced tinnitus at some point in their lives, according to preliminary data. Around 15 percent say they're affected daily by tinnitus, perceiving ringing or other sounds that other people can't hear.In one of the largest surveys of its kind, researchers at the University of Michigan gathered data from more than 160,000 participants who responded to survey questions and completed hearing assessments on Apple's Research app since 2019. The goal is to study the effects of sound exposure through headphones, how tinnitus impacts people, and perhaps develop new methods for managing the symptoms.The trends that we're learning through the Apple Hearing... Continue reading...
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by Ash Parrish on (#6N3Z5)
Lego's Great Deku Tree set. | Image: Lego The rumors were true: Lego is finally making a Legend of Zelda set. The Great Deku Tree 2-in-1 includes 2,500 pieces, is available for preorder now for $299.99, and will start shipping out in September.The set covers two different Zelda games: Ocarina of Time and Breath of the Wild, letting you build the Great Deku Tree in green summer foliage or pink spring cherry blossoms. It features several versions of Link, including Link as a child and an adult in Ocarina of Time's green Hero of Time tunic and Link in Breath of the Wild's blue Champion's tunic.According to Lego, the Great Deku Tree set will have interactive features including the ability to animate the tree's facial expressions. The set also includes a skulltula, koroks, Hestu... Continue reading...
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by Joanna Nelius on (#6N3Z6)
Image: Google Google announced Tuesday it's adding Gemini and AI features from its other devices to Chromebook Plus laptops, including a few from Asus and HP already on the market and brand-new ones from Acer. These and future Chromebook Plus laptops will support new features like Google's Help me write" tool and the ability to make custom wallpaper with generative AI. Magic Editor on Google Photos is coming to Chromebook Plus, too, which has also started to appear on older Android devices.The company said previously it would integrate Gemini with the Chrome desktop browser - so it's no surprise to see it baked into Chromebook Plus, which tends to be more powerful (and more expensive) Chromebooks. Google added the Gemini icon to the app shelf for... Continue reading...
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by Emma Roth on (#6N3Z7)
Illustration: The Verge OpenAI is forming a new safety team, and it's led by CEO Sam Altman, along with board members Adam D'Angelo and Nicole Seligman. The committee will make recommendations on critical safety and security decisions for OpenAI projects and operations" - a concern several key AI researchers shared when leaving the company this month.For its first task, the new team will evaluate and further develop OpenAI's processes and safeguards." It will then present its findings to OpenAI's board, which all three of the safety team's leaders have a seat on. The board will then decide how to implement the safety team's recommendations.Its formation follows the departure of OpenAI co-founder and chief scientist Ilya Sutskever, who supported the board's... Continue reading...
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by Tom Warren on (#6N3Z8)
Image: Activision Microsoft is confirming today that Call of Duty: Black Ops 6, the next installment in the popular franchise, will be available day one on Xbox Game Pass. After a premature notification earlier today, an official Xbox Wire blog post has now revealed that Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 will be available on Microsoft's game subscription service later this year.We're excited to confirm that Game Pass members will be able to jump into Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 on day one with Game Pass," says Megan Spurr, senior community lead of Xbox Game Pass. In a separate trailer from Xbox, Microsoft confirms Black Ops 6 will be available on both Xbox Game Pass for consoles and PC Game Pass.The confirmation of a Game Pass release for the next Call of Duty... Continue reading...
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by David Pierce on (#6N3Z9)
Image: Alex Parkin / The Verge Almost 12 years ago, Microsoft showed us the Surface for the first time. Back then, the company's big bet was that the laptop market was ready for a shake-up, that it could radically change both the hardware and software of a Windows PC and make everything better. Windows 8 didn't go so well, and neither did the early attempts at building Windows on top of Arm processors. The Surface, though, has turned into a pretty great device.Now, Microsoft is making a very different wager, this time on AI being the future of computing in practically every way you can think of. And once again, it's making that bet with the Surface.On this episode of The Vergecast, Microsoft's Windows and devices head Pavan Davuluri joins the show to discuss the... Continue reading...
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by Jess Weatherbed on (#6N3WC)
Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge T-Mobile has agreed to purchase parts of regional wireless carrier US Cellular in a $4.4 billion deal that includes US Cellular's wireless customers, stores, and approximately 30 percent of spectrum assets. US Cellular will retain ownership of its towers and approximately 70 percent of its spectrum portfolio across several spectrum bands," with T-Mobile entering a long-term arrangement to lease space on more than 2,000 towers.According to T-Mobile, the deal will improve nationwide coverage for US Cellular wireless customers while providing better 5G connectivity in underserved rural areas" where T-Mobile sometimes struggles compared to AT&T and Verizon. It would also reduce the number of carriers competing in markets where US... Continue reading...
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by Nathan Edwards on (#6N3JH)
Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge An upcoming version of Microsoft Phone Link lets you select and copy text from within images synced from your Android phone. The feature is live now in Release Preview Insider builds, so it should roll out to everyone soon.Phone Link (called Link to Windows on the phone side) lets you sync calls, messages, notifications, and images - and cast your entire phone - from your Android phone to your Windows computer. It also works in a more limited fashion with iOS devices, which only sync notifications, messages, and calls over Bluetooth. Screenshot: Nathan Edwards / The Verge Phone Link will now let you select and copy text from images synced from your Android phone. The Windows Snipping Tool got text... Continue reading...
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by Emma Roth on (#6N3EK)
The Verge Elon Musk founded xAI last summer, and today it announced raising $6 billion in funding, saying it will help bring the startup's first products to market, build advanced infrastructure, and accelerate the research and development of future technologies."So far, xAI has launched Grok, a supposedly edgier version of OpenAI's ChatGPT available via X, formerly known as Twitter, where the chatbot is currently only available to X Premium subscribers.Funding in this round came from several sources, according to xAI, including Andreessen Horowitz, Sequoia Capital, and Saudi Arabian Prince Al Waleed bin Talal. Last year, a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission showed that xAI was looking to raise up to $1 billion in equity... Continue reading...
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by Emma Roth on (#6N3CS)
Illustration by Nick Barclay / The Verge Netflix isn't just programming content only a small group of people would like - it's intent on having a little something for everyone. During an interview with The New York Times, Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos says he regrets comparing Netflix to HBO and its more limited selection of content in the past.Here's the quote, published in this 2013 GQ profile of Reed Hastings:
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by Charles Pulliam-Moore on (#6N3AA)
HBO Director Muta'Ali's MoviePass, MovieCrash is a thorough but circuitous breakdown of how executives' obsession with exponential growth all but destroyed the company. Continue reading...
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by Wes Davis on (#6N2S1)
Illustration: The Verge Apple will finally tell its own AI story at WWDC 2024, but it may not mean the sorts of showy features demoed by the likes of Google, Microsoft, or OpenAI. Instead, the event may see Apple rolling out basic AI features like transcribing voice memos or auto-generated emoji - and announcing a rumored partnership with OpenAI, according to Mark Gurman's Power On newsletter for Bloomberg today.Recent rumors have held that Apple will be allowing chatbots to integrate more deeply into its operating systems, and it seems that OpenAI is getting the first crack at that with ChatGPT. But Apple is still working on an agreement with Google to do the same with Gemini, according to Gurman. It's also been rumored to be talking to Anthropic. (Those... Continue reading...
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by Liam James on (#6N2S2)
Image: Samar Haddad / The Verge From the earliest pixelated games to the outrageously realistic experiences of today, flight simulators have always been pushing the boundaries of what can be visually recreated in a video game. It's one thing to make space look good; it's another thing entirely to faithfully recreate the cockpit of a 747 and the whole world around which it might fly.On this episode of The Vergecast, the fourth and final installment of our series on the five senses of video games, we asked Polygon's Charlie Hall to help us make sense of the current state of the art in flight simulation. Hall, who once spent more than four months in VR mapping the edge of the Milky Way galaxy in Elite: Dangerous, has more experience in a virtual cockpit than most. We... Continue reading...
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by David Pierce on (#6N2PA)
Image: David Pierce / The Verge Hi, friends! Welcome to Installer No. 39, your guide to the best and Verge-iest stuff in the world. (If you're new here, welcome, get ready for gadgets this week, and also, you can read all the old editions at the Installer homepage.)This week, I've been writing about Surfaces and other tablets, chatting with some internet friends about the fall of Red Lobster, reading about Magic: The Gathering and the history of emoji, watching MoviePass, MovieCrash, weeding my patio with a literal flamethrower, and for some reason, eating a lot of popcorn. Like, a lot of popcorn.I also have for you a bunch of cool new gadgets, a new YouTube channel you're going to love, a new-old Mario game, a clever new AI tool for Windows, lots and lots of fun... Continue reading...
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by Sean Hollister on (#6N2NB)
Bambu P1P vs. Creality K1C: an easy' 3D printer showdown. Continue reading...
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by Thomas Ricker on (#6N2KE)
Ventje's eVentje. The eVentje custom buildout is a worthy all-electric successor to the iconic VW Camper. Continue reading...
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by Wes Davis on (#6N2HJ)
Tap the waveform icon, circled above, to search with sound. | Screenshots: YouTube Music The Android YouTube Music app is rolling out a feature that's part Shazam and part your friend when you say, hey what's that song that goes..." right before you hum out a bar. The feature lets you hum, whistle, sing, or play a recording of a song to figure out what it is.If you have the new feature, you'll see a new waveform icon next to the microphone icon that appears when you tap the search button in the upper right corner of the app. Tap this, and the app will start listening. It's not too shabby, either! When I tested, it was able to identify actual recordings with what seemed like uncanny speed, making it a great replacement for Shazam.As far as listening to me hum, it accurately picked out most of the songs I sang, whistled,... Continue reading...
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by Wes Davis on (#6N2FD)
Image: Bungie A jury found on Friday that Phoenix Digital, which owns the cheat mod site AimJunkies, is guilty of violating Bungie copyrights when it created cheats for Destiny 2, reported Stephen Totilo, who has written about Bungie's cheating lawsuits for Axios. The landmark decision may be the first time a jury has agreed that a cheat creator violated a gaming company's copyrights.Yesterday's jury decision awarded Bungie (PDF) a tidy sum of $63,210. Bungie counsel James Barker said in a statement emailed to The Verge that the company is committed to our players and will continue to protect them against cheats, including taking this and future cases all the way to trial."In 2021, Bungie sued AimJunkies and four defendants (here's a PDF of the... Continue reading...