by Tauriq Moosa on (#6PAAJ)
Image: Kepler Interactive It has some clever ideas but struggles with a lack of polish and repetitive gameplay. Continue reading...
The Verge
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| Updated | 2025-12-21 06:33 |
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by Andrew J. Hawkins on (#6PA69)
Image: Lilium Lilium, an electric aviation company based in Germany, says it has secured a binding sales agreement for up to 100 electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft with Saudia Group, which operates the largest airline carrier in Saudi Arabia and is wholly owned by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.The agreement is a firm order" for 50 Lilium jets, with an option to purchase up to 50 more, the company said. The deal follows a 2022 memorandum of understanding between Lilium and Saudia to explore ways in which battery-powered multi-rotor aircraft can address the region's transportation challenges.The terms of the deal were not disclosed, but it has the potential to be worth hundreds of millions of dollars. Lilium has said it will sell... Continue reading...
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by Quentyn Kennemer on (#6P9BM)
Image: Shira Inbar for The Verge Amazon's annual sales event might be drawing to a close, but there are still plenty of earbuds, TVs, robot vacuums, and other gems available. Continue reading...
by Chris Welch on (#6PA1H)
Image: Dyson With replaceable ear cushions and outer caps, there are over 2,000 ways to customize these $500 noise-canceling headphones - without the Bane mask this time. Continue reading...
by Brandon Widder on (#6P8FP)
Tribit's StormBox Micro 2 speaker makes for a great bike companion, especially at $42.99. | Image: Tribit Amazon Prime Day marches onward, and while there continues to be an abundance of deals spanning all price points and categories, most of them will cease to exist once the clock strikes midnight tonight. And while many of the steepest discounts in the world of tech are still reserved for premium headphones and TVs, there are still plenty of budget-friendly gadgets and gizmos on sale for those looking to pick up cheap(er) basics, fitness bands, or one of several AAA games for the Nintendo Switch, Xbox Series X / S, or PlayStation 5.The bulk of the sub-$50 highlights below are currently exclusive to Amazon Prime subscribers, though, in some instances, retailers such as Best Buy and Walmart are matching Amazon's pricing. That means,... Continue reading...
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by Barbara Krasnoff on (#6P9VJ)
Image: NuPhy What you have on your desk and in your workspace at home can reveal a lot about you: how you work, what you like to distract yourself with, what kind of toys and other tchotchkes you like to have around you. That is why we have the What's On Your Desk? series, where we look at how some of our coworkers organize their spaces. It gives us - and you, our readers - a glimpse into the personality of the folks here.Out of curiosity, we took a look at some of our past articles to see if any of the devices that our staff use in their day-to-day work have surfaced during Amazon's Prime Day sale. Despite the fact the sale is nearly over, we still managed to find quite a few.Here they are, along with any comments that the folks that use them had... Continue reading...
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by Antonio G. Di Benedetto on (#6P8K8)
Photo by Jennifer Pattison Tuohy / The Verge Everyone loves cheap stuff that's actually good to use or invaluably helpful in your day to day. While Amazon Prime Day offers a deluge of deals on no-name tchotchkes and knockoffs (many of which have inflated, bot-fueled review scores), it does have its fair share of inexpensive hidden gems that are actually worth your money.We know not everyone is shopping for big multihundred- or thousand-dollar tech every time a deal comes around, so we're always on the lookout for sales that fit into more modest budgets like sub-$100 and sub-$50.Here, we're rounding up our top picks for Prime Day that are just 25 bucks or less. Some of them may be ho-hum essentials like a USB-C charging cable, but you may be surprised what kind of tech you can... Continue reading...
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by Chris Welch on (#6P89A)
Photo by Chris Welch / The Verge I don't know how people wear headphones in the summer heat. I'm strictly in earbuds mode when the temperatures climb this high. But no matter your preference, Amazon Prime Day is a great opportunity to upgrade your aging gear (and declining battery life) with the latest and greatest from Bose, Samsung, Sony, and plenty of other brands.For Prime Day 2024, expect plenty of deals that'll have you considering an impulse purchase. Many of our favorite earbud and headphone picks are on sale at some of their lowest prices yet - and those deals have extended into day two.Some products (like Apple's AirPods and AirPods Max) are due for a refresh in the coming months, but there's nothing wrong with picking up the current version - especially... Continue reading...
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by Allison Johnson on (#6P8C0)
The pricey Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra is marked down to just under $1,000. | Photo by Allison Johnson / The Verge Thanks to Amazon's ongoing Prime Day sale, there's still time to save on a big smartphone upgrade. Many of the deals are set to expire tonight, but, we're still seeing some of the best prices of the year on phones and accessories. It's an especially good time to stock up on things like chargers, cables, and stands, but if you've been waiting for a good price on a Pixel phone or one of Motorola's new foldables, well, you're in luck.The best Prime Day Apple iPhone dealsThe best Prime Day Samsung Galaxy dealsThe best Prime Day Google Pixel dealsThe best Prime Day Motorola phone dealsBest Prime Day OnePlus phone dealsThe best Prime Day phone accessory deals
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by Sheena Vasani on (#6P8KA)
Photo by Chris Welch / The Verge What do the latest AirPods Pro, Meta Quest 3, and Dreame L20 Ultra all have in common? They're all on sale for Prime Day... for upward of $200. Thankfully, you can still score deals on terrific gadgets and goods without racking up credit debt or dipping into your savings account during Amazon's two-day sale. In fact, there's plenty of tech on sale for less than a Benjamin - even if Prime Day is set to end in just a few hours.Over the years, we gadget nerds at The Verge have tested all kinds of incredible stuff, some of which is currently on sale for less than $100. Current deals range from one of the best e-readers on the market to some of our favorite streaming devices, Fitbits, speakers, video doorbells, and video games. We could go... Continue reading...
by Joanna Nelius on (#6P8TD)
Photo by Chris Welch / The Verge Searching for a good laptop deal on Amazon, even on Prime Day, can feel overwhelming, especially with all the styles, hardware options, brands, and display resolutions - how do you know you're getting a good deal on any of it?Below, we've rounded up the best deals we could find on clamshell laptops, convertibles, MacBooks, Chromebooks, and even some elusive sub-$1,000 gaming laptops. When choosing the best laptop deals, we considered everything from its hardware and port options to the year some options were actually released.There are some good options from major brands like Acer, Apple, and HP, and we found some great deals on monitors, keyboards, and mice, too.The best Amazon Prime Day deals for Windows laptops
by Quentyn Kennemer on (#6P8PX)
You can get a refurbished Xbox Series X for well under $400 today - if you don't mind buying refurbished. | Photo by Vjeran Pavic / The Verge If you've worked hard this year, you deserve to play even harder, and you can do that on a modest budget with some of the Prime Day gaming deals available right now. Amazon's Prime Day 2024 sale runs through the end of today, July 17th, offering plenty of discounts on video games, controllers, headsets, storage, and other gear and accessories to level up your experience.We're seeing new all-time low prices on some of the top games that have been released over the past couple of years. There's a healthy assortment of titles to consider, whether you're playing on PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch, or Xbox Series X / S. There's also quite a few deals for actual hardware, too - though no consoles apart from the Meta Quest 3 as of now.We'll... Continue reading...
by Quentyn Kennemer on (#6P9XP)
One of the best deals of Prime Day doesn't require a premium membership. It's funny how that works. | Photo by Dan Seifert / The Verge Short of Black Friday and Cyber Monday, you probably won't find a better opportunity to save on an iPad than during Amazon Prime Day. Right now, for instance, the 10th-gen iPad with Wi-Fi and 64GB of storage has dropped to an all-time low of $299 ($49 off) at Amazon and Best Buy - no membership required. The 256GB variant is also on sale at Amazon and Best Buy for a record low of $449 ($50 off), though some colors do require a Prime subscription at Amazon.Apple's latest entry-level iPad feels a bit more modern than the outgoing ninth-gen model, and with the current discount, it probably makes more sense to go for the newer kid on the block. Apple stretched the screen a bit to 10.9 inches and updated its design to make it look more akin... Continue reading...
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by Emma Roth on (#6P9XQ)
Image: NASA/Daniel Rutter NASA isn't moving forward with its VIPER program - short for Volatiles Investigating Polar Exploration Rover - which aimed to put a rover on the far side of the Moon to search for water. On Wednesday, NASA cited cost increases and several delays as its reasons for canceling the project.VIPER was originally expected to launch at the end of 2023. However, NASA pushed the date to September 2025 due to supply chain and scheduling delays.Astrobotic, the same company behind the ill-fated Peregrine Moon lander, was supposed to launch the VIPER aboard its Griffin spacecraft. Despite VIPER's cancellation, Astrobotic will continue its contract with NASA to land the Griffin lander on the Moon without the rover no earlier than" fall 2025.
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by Tom Warren on (#6P9XR)
Illustration: The Verge Microsoft is integrating Nvidia's GeForce Now service into its store pages for Xbox games. The integration will allow you to pick between either Xbox Cloud Gaming or Nvidia's GeForce Now service when you view a game listing on the web.Currently, Microsoft only lists its own Xbox Cloud Gaming service under play with cloud gaming" on game listings, so it's surprising to see the company add Nvidia's GeForce Now service. At the time of publication, the new play with cloud" button isn't available just yet, so it's not clear whether this is simply a link to the main homepage of GeForce Now or whether this deep links and launches the game directly on Nvidia's cloud gaming service.
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by Antonio G. Di Benedetto on (#6P8BY)
Photo by Chris Welch / The Verge Conventional wisdom says that if you want the very lowest prices on a 4K TV, you wait until Black Friday / Cyber Monday in November, but Amazon's Prime Day can offer some solid discounts during the dog days of summer.And what you plug into your TV is just as important, especially since many modern TVs have terrible built-in audio that sounds tinny or leaves spoken dialogue difficult to hear and app interfaces that are slow and annoying to use. Thankfully, some of these shortcomings can be countered by a decent soundbar or a streaming device from the likes of Amazon, Roku, and others.If you're in the market right now for a big and flashy new TV, something modestly sized for a kitchen or bedroom, or some accessories that allow you to... Continue reading...
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by Sheena Vasani on (#6P619)
The Kindle Scribe is down to an all-time low price. | Image: Amelia Holowaty Krales Amazon Prime Day 2024 has officially arrived. We've already published a detailed guide to the best Prime Day deals, but if you're just interested in Amazon devices, this is where you'll find the ones that are actually worthwhile. From Alexa-based Echo smart speakers to video doorbells, Amazon is discounting a wide range of gadgets, some of which are currently seeing their lowest prices to date.Of course, the main caveat here is that you'll have to be an active Amazon Prime member to take advantage of any and all Prime Day deals. Luckily, Amazon makes it pretty easy to sign up, especially since new members can take advantage of the exclusive discounts with a free 30-day trial.The best streaming device and TV deals
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by Andrew Liszewski on (#6P9VG)
Until the end of July, you can save $12 on Nintendo's retro gamepads. | Image: Nintendo If you're looking for a more authentic way to set a new speedrunning record when Nintendo World Championships: NES Edition launches tomorrow, Nintendo's now offering a 20 percent discount on its wireless NES gamepads, bringing the price down from $59.99 to $47.99 for a pair of them.The promotion runs until July 31st, so you've got a few weeks to take advantage of the deal. However, the controllers are only available to those with a paid Nintendo Switch Online membership - and the free trial doesn't count. You'll need to log in with your Switch credentials to buy them through Nintendo's online store, and Nintendo is limiting sales to four sets of two NES controllers. Image: Nintendo The wireless NES gamepads... Continue reading...
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by Sheena Vasani on (#6P8PW)
The latest iPad is down to an all-time low price. | Photo by Dan Seifert / The Verge Thanks to Amazon Prime Day, you don't need to wait until Black Friday this year to save big on Apple gadgets. Despite being an Amazon event, some of the best deals surprisingly include popular Apple products, ranging from the high-end latest AirPods Pro to the entry-level third-gen AirPods - both of which have new all-time low prices.It's not just AirPods that are receiving steep discounts, though, but also the Apple Watch Series 9, the latest iPad, and other excellent Apple devices. Below, we've rounded up the cream of the crop to make diving through the deals easier. If you're interested in deals outside of the Apple ecosystem, check out our main Prime Day roundup so you can save even more.The best AirPods deals
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by Victoria Song on (#6P8TB)
Now's a good time to cop last year's flagship models at a lower price. | Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge Amazon Prime Day 2024 is here and, with it, a whole bunch of deals on Apple Watches, Android smartwatches, or even just a regular ol' fitness tracker. Fall product launches are right around the corner, but if you're on a budget, now is a great time to snag discounts on higher-quality materials and last year's premium devices.Wading through thousands of deals can be a pain, especially when you factor in the dozens of smartwatch models, sizes, colors, and materials. Never fear - we've already done that for you and compiled the best deals out there. (Just make sure you have a Prime membership to access them!) And when you're done checking out smartwatches and fitness trackers, you can head back to our main Prime Day deals page for more.A... Continue reading...
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by Antonio G. Di Benedetto on (#6P9VH)
Photo by Chris Welch / The Verge Finding especially good deals on Amazon Prime Day can be challenging (trust me, I do it nonstop for our coverage), but the discount on the Bose SoundLink Flex is a standout one. For now, you can get the portable Bluetooth speaker in select colors for $99 ($50 off) at Amazon and direct from Bose or for $99.99 at Best Buy. Amazon gates the deal behind its Prime membership paywall, but anyone can buy from the other two retailers.This is the lowest price to date on the SoundLink Flex, which is our top pick of Bluetooth speakers under $200. Bose's colorful speaker has a small footprint, making it easy to throw in a bag and travel with, but it sounds like a much larger speaker. It's got a nice, bass-rich sound that doesn't cross into that's... Continue reading...
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by Antonio G. Di Benedetto on (#6P98Z)
Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge The Apple Watch often sees its fair share of limited-time discounts throughout the year, but Amazon's Prime Day offers a chance for someone to shop deals across most available models all at once.For this Prime Day, we're seeing some worthwhile sales across the range of the 2022 Apple Watch SE, Apple Watch Series 9, and even the pricey Apple Watch Ultra 2. Most of these require an Amazon Prime subscription, but Amazon's excellent $100 discount on the Ultra 2 does not.While most Apple Watches are pretty similar at their core (iOS notifications on your wrist, fitness tracking, health metrics, etc.), it's the extra features added or omitted from some models that often determine which is right for you - as well as your budget, of course.... Continue reading...
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by Jennifer Pattison Tuohy on (#6P8C3)
The Blink Video Doorbell is down to $30 for Prime Day. | Photo by Jennifer Pattison Tuohy / The Verge Amazon's Prime Day 2024 runs from Tuesday, July 16th, through Wednesday, July 17th, and is an excellent way to stock up on smart home gear. I spent hours sifting through the best deals to bring you my picks for the best buys.Grab some serious bargains on robot vacuums, smart kitchen gadgets, and lots of smart plugs. Plus, smart lighting favorites Philips Hue and Lutron Caseta have some select savings on their popular products. Read on for all the latest deals, and be sure to check back, as I'll keep this updated throughout the sale.Best deals on Amazon Echo devices
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by Umar Shakir on (#6P9RT)
Didn't think we'd see this phone again. | Image: Essential Someone obtained Essential's unreleased smartphone that took the candy bar" style phone a bit too far. Originally revealed in 2019 as Project Gem," this PH-2 looks like what you'd get from splitting an already tall Sony Xperia 1 in half. It reminds me of memes that popped up about the slightly taller 4-inch screen on the iPhone 5, as people imagined what might happen if phones just kept getting taller instead of wider.Rob Wainwright, a software engineer who works on the Nova Launcher, says he bought the phone on eBay, and in his video, you can see the mostly operational PH-2 with card-style widgets for apps like Spotify and Uber, along with a smartwatch-style clock at the top.Why didn't it come out? The first Essential phone in... Continue reading...
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by The Verge Staff on (#6NZKP)
Image: Shira Inbar for The Verge Amazon Prime Day 2024 is here. The annual two-day super sale started July 16th and runs through July 17th, bringing with it a treasure trove of discounts, promos, and exclusive deals for Amazon Prime subscribers. It may not be the only Prime Day event we see this year - Amazon has recently taken to hosting a second shopping event in the fall - but it will likely remain one of the best opportunities of the year to score discounts on a range of tech outside of Black Friday and Cyber Monday.Like in previous years, we're highlighting the best deals on a variety of Verge-approved gadgets and gizmos, from the latest laptops and OLED TVs to robot vacuums that can leave your hardwood floors as spotless as your living room carpet. We're also... Continue reading...
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by Nilay Patel on (#6P9RV)
Photo by Nilay Patel / The Verge My friends, it is Prime Day, and that means you can justify buying silly gadgets because they are even slightly on sale. This is what it means to be American.In my case, that gadget is the Neohipo ET30, a vintage-looking VU meter that swings its needles around when you listen to music. I have mine connected between my Sonos Amp and my speakers for maximum accuracy, but you don't need to do that: it has a built-in mic that makes the needles bounce if you're playing music through any old speaker in the same room. It also lights up in 34 colors. I am in love.I want to be clear: there is a scale printed on these meters, but it means literally nothing because you can adjust their sensitivity at will. They are just for show, and the show is... Continue reading...
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by Emma Roth on (#6P9RW)
Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Instagram will let a select group of researchers access its data to study how the platform affects the mental health of teens and young adults. The pilot program, launched in partnership with the Center for Open Science (COS), could produce independent studies that offer insight into the relationship between social media and a teen's well-being.Researchers will gain access to Instagram data for up to six months, which may include information on how many accounts a teen follows, how much they use Instagram, their account settings, and more. However, Meta notes it won't provide access to a user's demographic information, nor will it include the contents of their posts, comments, or messages.
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by Jay Peters on (#6P9NY)
Illustration: The Verge Google appears to be showing its AI-generated search results less often in recent weeks, according to a recent study from an SEO company.The data, collected by BrightEdge and reported on by Search Engine Land, suggests that AI Overviews dropped from appearing in 11 percent of queries on June 1st to 7 percent of queries on June 30th. BrightEdge's data also indicates that AI Overviews cite Reddit and Quora dramatically less than they did before.Since the launch of AI Overviews in May, Google has had to make changes to address bizarre results like recommending that you put glue on pizza (which appears to have been pulled from a Reddit thread) and suggesting that you eat rocks (seemingly pulled from an article in The Onion). In response,... Continue reading...
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by Jennifer Pattison Tuohy on (#6P9NZ)
Robot vacuums with multifunctional docks that make cleaning virtually hands-free - like the Dreame L20 Ultra - are seeing some serious discounts this Prime Day. | Photo by Jennifer Pattison Tuohy / The Verge Robot vacuums have come a long way since their bump-and-roll days, when they had to be rescued whenever they encountered a sock or a particularly scary-looking chair leg.Today, high-end robot vacs have advanced sensors that help them nimbly navigate your home, charging docks that suck the dirt out of the bin so you don't have to get your hands messy, and self-filling water tanks so they can mop more of your floor in one clean.The problem with all these fancy features is that they can cost over $1,000 for the privilege of less hands-on time with your floor cleaner. However, this Prime Day, we're seeing the first serious discounts on several of these high-end, multifunctional cleaning robots.iRobot's Roomba Combo j9 Plus, Roborock's... Continue reading...
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by Allison Johnson on (#6P9P0)
C'mon, how cute is that. | Image: TinyPod If you've been feeling nostalgic for your old iPod lately, well, I have great news. TinyPod is a case you put on your Apple Watch - sans strap - so you can hold it and use it like your favorite vintage MP3 player. A $79 version includes a scroll wheel, which physically turns the watch's digital crown. For $29, you can get a case without the scroll wheel and with a cutout so you can access the digital crown directly.But TinyPod could be more than just a way to turn your watch into a cute media player - it's designed to make your watch a more capable companion to your phone. Recently, we've seen all kinds of gadgets and minimalist phones that promise to help you disconnect while still keeping you connected to the essentials. But largely,... Continue reading...
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by Andrew Liszewski on (#6P9P1)
EPFL researchers drew inspiration from bats and owls to design a flying robot that crash lands with style. | Image: Nature Instead of hunting for a runway, researchers have built an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) that can land by crashing into trees or poles and wrapping its grippy wings around them to prevent a fall. It's an unorthodox approach but one that could make it easier to position surveillance or inspection equipment in hard-to-reach areas.The UAV, which its designers from the Laboratory of Intelligent Systems at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (EPFL) have called the PercHug, is yet another robot built to emulate a behavior seen in nature: bats and owls using their wings to both fly and climb or perch onto trees.The PercHug robot is designed with dual-purpose hinged wings that remain rigid and outstretched, allowing the UAV to fly, but... Continue reading...
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by Quentyn Kennemer on (#6P8K6)
Now is a good time to consider ditching your older, slower chargers. | Image: Satechi If you're still charging your phone with whatever random wall wart came in the box three phones ago or your laptop with the bulky brick it came with, now is a great time to upgrade. Advances like GaN chargers have led to smaller, faster USB-C chargers for phones and laptops alike, and Qi2 gives iPhones (and maybe soon some Android phones?) MagSafe-speed charging at lower prices. And with Prime Day deals available now, you can save quite a bit and charge in less time, too.There is a sizable selection of charging devices on sale, whether you're looking to outfit a home office or your coffee office. Nearly all of the brands we trust have something on offer, including Anker, Belkin, Ugreen, and Satechi.Prime Day ends after today, July... Continue reading...
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by Barbara Krasnoff on (#6P8C2)
Image: Joseph Joseph Amazon Prime Day 2024 is underway! For more deals we recommend across all categories, check out our full roundup.Every month or so, we like to ask our staff about their favorite stuff - whether it's board games, smart tech, or kitchen gadgets. 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 devices 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 pretty cheap, but maybe I'll wait until the price goes down some... Continue reading...
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by Barbara Krasnoff on (#6P9P2)
Illustration by Samar Haddad / The Verge While I edit and write how-to" articles, I also sometimes find myself in need of how-to directions myself. But when I do a search for guidance on, say, a difficult crochet stitch, it often helps to have a blow-by-blow text explanation that I can have handy without having to sit and watch a video over and over again.For that, there's YouTube's automatically generated transcript. A transcript is not only useful when you want to view a text scroll of what's being said while you're watching the video, but it is also handy as a reference point afterward. For example, if you don't have the time or patience to sit through an entire video, then you can simply glance through the transcript to get the gist of the subject and save it for future... Continue reading...
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by Kylie Robison on (#6P9P3)
Photo by Kimberly White/Getty Images for WIRED Fei-Fei Li, the renowned computer scientist known as the godmother of AI," has created a startup dubbed World Labs. In just four months, its already valued at more than $1 billion, the Financial Times reported.World Labs hopes to use human-like processing of visual data to make AI capable of advanced reasoning, Reuters reported in May. The research to make it human-like, much like what ChatGPT is trying to do with generative AI, is still ongoing.Li is best known for her contributions to computer vision, a branch of AI dedicated to helping machines interpret and comprehend visual information. She also spearheaded the development of ImageNet, an extensive visual database used for visual object recognition research. Li headed AI at... Continue reading...
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by Jess Weatherbed on (#6P9JF)
Premium Spotify subscribers can switch between DJ's English and Spanish voice options. | Image: Spotify Spotify is launching a Spanish-language version of its AI DJ" feature. The new Spanish-language voice has been provided by Spotify's senior music editor, Olivia Livi" Quiroz Roa, with users able to switch between hearing Livi or Xavier X" Jernigan, another Spotify staffer who voices the English-speaking DJ variant released in February 2023.The feature uses an AI-generated voice to create radio-like commentary that provides users with additional context and information about the song they're hearing, which Spotify says makes listeners less likely to skip to another track. This commentary is paired with an endless playlist of personalized music recommendations that change based on user activity, such as if users switch to different... Continue reading...
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by Chris Welch on (#6P9JG)
Photo by Chris Welch / The Verge Samsung's new Galaxy Buds 3 Pro underwent a major redesign, making them look much more like AirPods and any number of other stemmed earbuds. So far, my impressions have been quite positive - full review coming soon - but even before the earbuds are widely released on July 24th, early buyers have been running into a frustrating issue.Apparently, the ear tips are quite fragile and can be prone to breaking if you're not careful. Reddit is already starting to light up with examples:
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by Wes Davis on (#6P9JH)
The wrecked bow of the Titanic. | Image: NOAA / Institute for Exploration / University of Rhode Island A pair of remote-operated submersibles (ROV) is heading down to the wreckage of the Titanic this week to conduct digital 3D scans and take high-resolution images of the ship's remains. Orchestrated by RMS Titanic, Inc., the expedition is the company's first to visit the ship since 2010.RMS Titanic's seven-person crew arrived at the Titanic's coordinates last night, according to the company's most recent Instagram update.
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by Andrew J. Hawkins on (#6P9JJ)
Photo by Jia Tianyong / China News Service / VCG via Getty Images The US Commerce Department is expected to issue new rules in August placing limits on vehicle software that comes from China, according to Reuters.The new rules come as the Biden administration ramps up its scrutiny of Chinese auto imports in an effort to prevent the country from flooding the market with cheap electric vehicles.While speaking at a forum in Colorado, Alan Estevez, who serves as under secretary of commerce for industry and security, said that the department would propose rules that would require certain vehicle software be made in the US or by its trade partners. The rules would pertain to key driver components of the vehicle that manage the software and manage the data around that car," Estevez said, according to R... Continue reading...
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by Umar Shakir on (#6P9JK)
Canon EOS R5 Mark II | Image: Canon Canon's new EOS R5 Mark II and EOS R1 cameras both have better autofocus performance than their predecessors, with computations powered by a new Digic X processor. That includes a Digic Accelerator that is behind a new Dual Pixel Intelligent AF autofocus system capable of body, joint, and head area estimation, as well as focusing on people other than the subject.Both cameras share much-needed upgrades, like backside illuminated sensors with faster readouts and Canon's unique eye-controlled autofocus, which was only available in the R3. Also, one of the most requested features for filmmakers, support for Canon Log 2 color profile, is now included. Image: Canon R5 Mark II The R5 Mark II is Canon's sweet spot... Continue reading...
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by Jess Weatherbed on (#6P9EQ)
Image: Meatly The UK is now the first European country to green-light the sale of lab-grown meat, but with pets instead of human consumers as its first guinea pigs.The UK's Animal and Plant Health Agency and the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs granted London-based startup Meatly regulatory approval to produce lab-grown pet food, which described the clearance as a huge leap forward for the cultivated meat industry."Pet parents are crying out for a better way to feed their cats and dogs meat," Meatly CEO Owen Ensor said in a statement, pitching that the company's cultivated pet food would allow them to do so in a way that is kinder to our planet and other animals."Meatly says it plans to launch commercial samples of its first... Continue reading...
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by Emma Roth on (#6P9ER)
Image: Cath Virginia / The Verge; Getty Images Sam Altman's $27 million San Francisco luxury abode is apparently plagued with issues, ranging from a leaky infinity pool to faulty piping that dumped raw sewage on the property. That's according to a lawsuit that The San Francisco Standard linked to the OpenAI CEO's residence, which claims Altman purchased a lemon" with pervasive shoddy workmanship and corner-cutting."The 9,500-square-foot estate is situated on San Francisco's iconic Lombard Street, where it overlooks the city and the bay. As you can see in this walkthrough of the home, some of its key features include a four-sided infinity pool that hangs off the edge of the house, a Batcave" leading into a garage, as well as a system that uses recycled rainwater to irrigate an... Continue reading...
by Andrew Webster on (#6P9ES)
Image: Home Depot Five years ago, Home Depot stumbled upon a viral hit with a 12-foot-tall skeleton nicknamed Skelly. The towering Halloween decoration can be seen year-round in some neighborhoods, has been featured in countless memes and TikToks, and remains a hot ticket - it went back on sale in April and promptly sold out. Now the company is bringing back a slightly refreshed version of the skeleton as part of a huge lineup of Halloween creatures packed with LEDs and animatronics, as it looks to keep its undead hit alive.Skelly remains the centerpiece. The skeleton is going back on sale with a slight tweak: now those creepy LED eyes are customizable, with eight different presets so you can keep Skelly in style for multiple holidays. One of the options... Continue reading...
by Ash Parrish on (#6P9ET)
Nintendo On a random Wednesday in July, Nintendo asked #WhoIsEmio?" and accompanied the question with a cryptic and creepy 15-second teaser. Now, with an official announcement and a new listing on the Nintendo eShop, we know.Emio, known as Smiling Man in the Japanese version, is not a new horror project but, rather, the latest entry in Nintendo's Famicom Detective Club series. In it, you'll play as - what else? - a detective tasked with solving the gruesome murder of a student who was found with a paper bag with a smiling face over his head. Contrary to the rumors that suggested The Medium studio Bloober Team was the game's developer, Emio - The Smiling Man: Famicom Detective Club was actually developed internally at Nintendo, with Metroid... Continue reading...
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by Andrew J. Hawkins on (#6P9BK)
Image: Mercedes-Benz Mercedes-Benz and Starbucks are teaming up to install fast electric vehicle chargers at 100 coffee-slinging locations on Interstate 5, which runs along the West Coast from Canada to Mexico.The new stations will be part of the German automaker's $1 billion plan to build 2,000 new EV charging hubs across the globe. Its first station, complete with a swanky waiting area and 400kW charging speeds courtesy of ChargePoint, opened in Atlanta last year.Now it looks like Mercedes is ready to embark on the next phase of its installations, with a primary focus on Starbucks locations along I-5. The two companies said in the announcement that they share an ambition to identify additional opportunities in key markets, including core urban areas,... Continue reading...
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by Justine Calma on (#6P9BJ)
Steel in a scrapyard to be recycled into new steel. | Photo by Roger Ball/Worldsteel via Getty Images The Biden administration announced $160 million in grants to projects meant to measure the climate impact of new-fangled construction materials. The grants cover a spectrum of potential alternatives from hemp-based products to bamboo, recycled steel, and more.Scientists and startups have proposed all sorts of new ways to cut down carbon dioxide emissions from building materials that have become a big climate problem. But it's hard to suss out how effective proposed solutions are without metrics in place to compare products. There's also potential for greenwashing, when companies make sustainability claims that they can't back up with evidence.The grants cover a spectrum of potential alternatives from hemp-based products to bamboo,... Continue reading...
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by Andrew Webster on (#6P9BH)
Image: Nintendo There are few things I know better than Super Mario Bros. 3. Over the last few decades, I've replayed the game across basically every Nintendo platform, exploring its levels over and over, searching out each and every secret. But there's one thing I never paid attention to: the timer. I've always taken a slow, methodical approach to the game, ignoring the tiny countdown clock. That changed with Nintendo World Championships: NES Edition, a collection of NES classics that have been chopped into pieces in the interest of pure speed. It showed me a new side to games I thought I knew intimately.Named after Nintendo's occasional in-person esports competition, the collection takes 13 of the company's most iconic titles and divides them into... Continue reading...
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by Allison Johnson on (#6P98Y)
AI definitely nailed the right surly energy for this orange cat. The pirate ship in Elliott Bay was one thing, but it was a little blurry bee that sent me over the edge.Samsung would very much like us (and its shareholders) to know that its new phones are the AI-est phones that ever AI-ed, and the Fold 6 that I'm testing comes with a new tool called sketch to image." Draw a rough sketch on a photo or an empty note page, and it will use generative AI to turn that thing into an image. I shrugged it off as just another AI thing when Samsung announced it onstage at Unpacked - but y'all, it's really good. So good that it worries me a little.Using the sketch to image tool in a note is pretty harmless: you draw something, highlight it, and choose from a handful of styles like 3D cartoon" and... Continue reading...
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by Jess Weatherbed on (#6P990)
It's not immediately clear what Tinder's Photo Selector feature looks for in a good" selfi. | Image: Tinder Tinder is releasing an AI-powered feature that supposedly makes it easier for users to select better photos for their dating profiles. The dating app says its new Photo Selector tool aims to take out the guesswork" when picking your most flattering photos by curating a diverse selection that's optimized to help users find a match."To use Photo Selector, users will need to take a selfie within Tinder and allow the app to access their device's camera roll. Tinder's new AI feature will then use facial recognition to collate a selection of images for the user to review and add to their profiles. The curation is processed on-device and doesn't upload the user's camera roll to Tinder's systems. We have asked Tinder to clarify the criteria... Continue reading...
by Antonio G. Di Benedetto on (#6P8C4)
Image: Shira Inbar for The Verge Day one of Prime Day is underway, and we've got the skinny on which tech deals are worth your attention (and maybe your money). Continue reading...