by Andrew Webster on (#6QACJ)
Image: Ubisoft What Ubisoft's new game lacks in innovation, it makes up for in fan service. Continue reading...
The Verge
| Link | https://www.theverge.com/ |
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| Updated | 2026-05-11 16:03 |
by Lauren Feiner on (#6QACK)
Illustration by Nick Barclay / The Verge TikTok must face a lawsuit over the viral blackout challenge" that several parents blame for their children's deaths, a Pennsylvania-based appeals court ruled on Tuesday. The ruling illuminates how courts are thinking about platform accountability in the wake of a major Supreme Court ruling this year and could highlight the potential limits of a key tech immunity shield.TikTok's algorithmic recommendations on the For You Page (FYP) constitute the platform's own speech, according to the Third Circuit court of appeals. That means it's something TikTok can be held accountable for in court. Tech platforms are typically protected by a legal shield known as Section 230, which prevents them from being sued over their users' posts, and a lower... Continue reading...
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by Emma Roth on (#6QACM)
Illustration: The Verge Soon, all of the blogs on Tumblr will be hosted on WordPress. Automattic, the parent company of WordPress.com and Tumblr, announced on Wednesday that it will start to move the site's half a billion blogs to the new WordPress-based backend.This update shouldn't affect the way Tumblr works for users, whom Automattic promises won't notice any difference after the migration. Automattic says the change will make it easier to ship new features across both platforms and let Tumblr run on the stable infrastructure of WordPress.com. (WordPress.com is a private hosting service built on the open-source WordPress content management software.)We can build something once and bring it to both WordPress and Tumblr," the post reads. Tumblr will... Continue reading...
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by Barbara Krasnoff on (#62VJZ)
Image: Kristen Radtke / The Verge; Getty Images Transcription apps have become an extremely useful way of keeping records. These apps record and make text transcriptions of important conversations. So, for example, when you're having an important conversation with a lawyer, a doctor, or your insurance company, it's really handy to be able to check exactly what was said later. And, of course, it's vital for writers and journalists, who need to keep records of their interviews.For many years, there have been two types of transcription services available online: ones that use an AI engine and ones that use human transcribers. The latter are usually much more accurate but are also considerably more expensive. Recently, as AI transcriptions have become more precise, they have become more... Continue reading...
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by Ben Weiss on (#6QACN)
The rise and fall of NFTs made and unmade OpenSea - the largest marketplace for the crypto asset. But insider accounts of the company reveal a chaotic work environment, ever-shifting priorities, and troubles with the SEC. Continue reading...
by Jennifer Pattison Tuohy on (#6QACP)
Brilliant, maker of smart switches and smart control panels, is back in business. | Photo by Jennifer Pattison Tuohy / The Verge Brilliant is back in business. Three months after laying off its staff, shutting down its support center, and ceasing sales, the maker of smart home control panels has reemerged with a new name, new focus, and a new product on the way. The good news for Brilliant customers is that existing products never stopped working during the transition period and will continue to operate going forward.Now called Brilliant NextGen, the company was bought by two investment firms - Almeida Strategic Investments and Cullinan Holdings - in late July. (No sale price was disclosed.) Earlier this month, they appointed Lisa Petrucci as CEO, Brilliant's former VP of business development and sales. In the last week or so, the web store came back online, and... Continue reading...
by David Pierce on (#6QACQ)
Where to Watch shows you all the sports on ESPN - and elsewhere. | Image: ESPN ESPN's newest feature will be a welcome bookmark for sports fans everywhere: the company just launched Where to Watch," which aims to be a universal guide for streaming sports all over the internet.When you open the page on ESPN's website or in its app, Where to Watch looks like a typical schedule of games, the kind of thing ESPN has had forever - it's sortable by sport and able to show your favorite team at the top. But next to each listing, it now shows where you can watch the game, even when it's not on ESPN.ESPN says Where to Watch has data from more than 250 streaming services. On Wednesday morning, it offered me a baseball game on MLB.TV, a college soccer game on ACC Extra, some MLS on Apple TV Plus, and five different ways to... Continue reading...
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by Ash Parrish on (#6QACR)
Image: Bandai Namco Blue Protocol, an anime-inspired MMO developed by Bandai Namco, will shut down its Japanese servers on January 18th, 2025. The game was in the process of being released in the West, with publishing handled by Amazon Games. Because of the game's pending shuttering, its Western release has been summarily canceled.Blue Protocol's developers released a statement on the game's website in Japanese and English announcing the cancellation. We have worked hard to prepare for the release; however, we have come to the conclusion that it will not be possible to provide a service that satisfies all of you," read the English statement.According to producer Sokichi Shimooka, Blue Protocol was in development for eight years before its Japanese... Continue reading...
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by Emma Roth on (#6QA9H)
Illustration: The Verge Google will soon let Gemini subscribers create custom chatbots that can serve as a gym buddy, cooking partner, writing editor, and more. Users can give the chatbots - called Gems - distinct personalities and specialties by simply describing a set of instructions.Google first introduced Gems during I/O in May. In an example prompt shown by Google, users can create a knowledgeable, casual, and friendly" Gem that can help people plan low- or no-water gardens. For users who don't want to create a custom chatbot right away, Google is offering some premade Gems, including a learning coach, an idea brainstormer, a career guide, a coding partner, and an editor. GIF: Google You can give Gems a name and a set of... Continue reading...
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by Emma Roth on (#6QA9G)
Google's Imagen 3 is capable of generating photorealistic images of people. | Image: Imagen 3 Google is letting its users generate images of people through its Gemini AI chatbot again after pulling the feature earlier this year amid reports of historically inaccurate images, like racially diverse Nazis. In an announcement, Google says it will roll out an early access version of the capability to Gemini Advanced, Business, and Enterprise users in English over the coming days."This upgrade will be powered by Imagen 3, the latest version of Google's AI text-to-image generator. Google quietly launched Imagen 3 through its AI Test Kitchen earlier this month, and now it's coming to Gemini across all languages. The upgraded tool is capable of generating anything from photorealistic landscapes to textured oil paintings with a... Continue reading...
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by Andrew J. Hawkins on (#6QA9J)
Photo: Getty Images General Motors and Samsung SDI have finalized a $3.5 billion deal to build an electric vehicle battery plant in Indiana, the South Korean company announced Tuesday. The factory will have an initial capacity of 27GWh, which could go up to 36GWh.The factory was expected to start production in 2026, but now it is anticipated that batteries won't start rolling off the line until 2027 at the earliest. Construction at the factory is already underway, The News-Gazette reported.The deal is a sign that the largest automaker in the US is still committed to scaling up EV production, even as its rivals pull back their investment and cancel models. EV sales are still growing, but some automakers are getting cold feet over their earlier... Continue reading...
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by Andrew J. Hawkins on (#6QA5X)
Photo: Getty Images Polestar CEO Thomas Ingenlath is resigning from his position and will be replaced by Michael Lohscheller, who previously served as CEO of Stellantis-owned carmaker Opel, the automaker announced Tuesday.The move comes as Polestar has struggled to keep its finances up amid a wider slowdown in EV sales growth. It has gone through several rounds of layoffs and recently saw Volvo drastically reduce its stake in the company. Polestar is expected to report its second quarter earnings on August 29th. The company's stock is currently selling for less than $1.Ingenlath has been at the helm since Polestar's inception in 2017. He oversaw the release of Polestar's first two models: the $150,000 hybrid Polestar 1 sports coupe and the more... Continue reading...
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by Wes Davis on (#6QA5Y)
Photo: Joe Raedle / Getty Images The first stage of a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket crashed during an attempted landing on a droneship in the Atlantic Ocean last night. The booster had nearly completed its touchdown when it tipped over, dropping into the sea.It was the first time the company has failed to recover one of the reusable boosters since February 2021, ending a streak of 267 successful landings for the reusable boosters, according to CBS News.SpaceX posted about the failed mission at 4:04AM ET, writing that the booster tipped over following touchdown" on what was its 23rd launch. The second stage succeeded in putting a batch of 21 Starlink satellites in orbit, however, 13 of which carry the company's cellular transmission capability.
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by David Pierce on (#6QA38)
The NotePin is a voice recorder in the body of a Fitbit. | Image: Plaud After creating an impressive (not to mention somewhat TikTok famous) AI-powered voice recorder, Plaud is launching a more ambitious gadget: a wearable designed to be with you all the time, recording your notes and meetings and helping you get stuff done. The device is called the NotePin, and the pill-shaped gadget and accessory lineup seems to take some cues from early Fitbits. You can wear the NotePin around your neck as a pendant, pin it to your chest, strap it to your wrist, or clip it just about anywhere.AI wearables are everywhere right now and largely fall into one of two categories. There are the companionship devices, like Friend, meant to just provide something to hang with and talk to. Then, there are the productivity devices,... Continue reading...
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by Victoria Song on (#6QA3A)
The Shokz OpenRun Pro 2 have a dedicated speaker for bass. The OpenRun Pro 2 add USB-C charging, a dedicated speaker for bass, reduced vibration, and AI noise cancellation. Continue reading...
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by Andrew J. Hawkins on (#6QA39)
Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Uber to rolling out a few new features for its teenage customers in the first major update since first opening up its platform to teen riders over a year ago.Last year, Uber launched teen accounts in two dozen cities, in which parents and guardians can create accounts for minors aged 13-17. Since then, the list has grown to over 250 cities in all 50 states. Uber says the latest update is in response to feedback from teen users and their families.Uber says the latest update is in response to feedback from teen users and their familiesParents and guardians can now hail a ride for their teenager from their own accounts. Previously, rides could only be hailed from the teen customers' accounts. The ride will feature all the same safety... Continue reading...
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by Jess Weatherbed on (#6QA14)
Illustration by Kristen Radtke / The Verge Apple has eliminated about 100 jobs across its digital services group according to Bloomberg, as part of a shift in priorities" for the division. The majority of those laid off reportedly worked within the team that runs the Apple Books app and Apple Bookstore, with the remaining cuts made to some engineering roles and services like Apple News.According to Bloomberg, the layoffs aren't a sign that Apple is shifting its focus away from services like Apple Books, and the Books app is still expected to receive future updates for new features. While the services division - which includes things like Apple TV Plus, Apple News, and Apple Music - has been a revenue driver for Apple in recent years, the company reportedly doesn't consider... Continue reading...
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by Jess Weatherbed on (#6Q9YV)
The Verge X has updated its artificial intelligence chatbot Grok after five secretaries of state warned it was spreading election misinformation. The AI assistant will now say For accurate and up-to-date information about the 2024 US Elections, please visit Vote.gov," when users ask election-related questions.The change was introduced after election officials from Minnesota, New Mexico, Michigan, Washington, and Pennsylvania sent a complaint letter to X owner Elon Musk earlier this month, highlighting that Grok had provided false information about the ballot deadlines in their states. Grok, which is developed by another Musk-owned company xAI, is only available to paying subscribers on the X social media platform - but the letter signed by the... Continue reading...
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by Tom Warren on (#6Q9YW)
Image: AMD You can't download more RAM, but you can now download better gaming performance if you're the owner of a modern Ryzen desktop CPU. AMD revealed last week that it was working with Microsoft on an optimization patch for Ryzen CPUs that was due with Microsoft's next big Windows 11 version 24H2 update, but Microsoft has now backported this to the existing 23H2 version.The result is a significant performance improvement in gaming across a variety of Zen 4 and Zen 5 desktop Ryzen CPUs, including the popular 7800X3D chip. Users will need to look for KB5041587 under Windows update > Advanced options > Optional updates," says AMD in a statement to Wccftech. We expect the performance uplift to be very similar between 24H2 and 23H2 with... Continue reading...
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by Jay Peters on (#6Q9QZ)
Image: The Verge AT&T was experiencing some issues Tuesday night that left customers seeing SOS" instead of their usual bars of service.We've resolved a software issue that disrupted the ability of a limited number of our customers to connect to our wireless network. We apologize for the inconvenience and we appreciate our customers' patience as we worked to resolve this issue," said AT&T spokesperson Jim Kimberly in a statement sent to The Verge.The number of problem reports tracked by Downdetector started rising after 4PM ET before finally fading out closer to midnight on the East Coast.Many customers disconnected by the problem were tweeting directly at AT&T's Help account on X, reporting issues like being stuck in SOS or having no phone... Continue reading...
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by Allison Johnson on (#6Q9PR)
Hi, Barbie! | Image: HMD HMD's Barbie-branded flip phone arrives a little too late to catch the Hot Foldable Summer wave, but it's definitely not short on charm. Preannounced at Mobile World Congress earlier this year, the HMD Barbie Phone is now official and goes on sale for $129 in October.The Barbie phone is a true feature phone; no apps, just connectivity for calls and texts. HMD is pitching it as a device for a digital detox so you can take a vacation from your smartphone." That's fine since you probably wouldn't want to do much more on its small 2.8-inch inner screen, but bear in mind that typing out T9 texts is worse than you remember. There's a 5-megapixel camera with a built-in flash, which, as HMD points out, is perfect for that early digital camera... Continue reading...
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by Jordan Pearson on (#6Q9PS)
Image: Cath Virginia / The Verge, Getty Images Telegram doesn't have the moderation of most social networks or the privacy of a true encrypted messaging app. That could leave its operator in hot water. Continue reading...
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by Emma Roth on (#6Q9PT)
Image: Boox Boox, the company behind the pocket-friendly Palma e-reader, has revealed its cheapest device yet. At just $149.99, the Boox 6 Go features a six-inch 300ppi E ink display and a wider-than-the-Palma form factor for reading while on the go.The device uses an upgraded Carta 1300 E ink display that's supposed to offer deeper blacks and brighter whites. Like many of Boox's other e-readers, the Boox 6 Go is pretty light, weighing in at just 146 grams (or 5 ounces) and measuring a quarter of an inch thick. Image: Boox Along with Android 12 and the Google Play Store on board, it runs the latest version of Boox's firmware, which introduces a minimalistic interface, a dark mode option, and a new handwriting tool. The Boox 6... Continue reading...
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by Brandon Widder on (#6Q9MP)
The heavily rumored Apple Watch Ultra 3 might feature a faster processor, but the current model is no slouch. | Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge Apple's next hardware event is officially set for September 9th at 1PM ET / 10AM PT. The forthcoming iPhone 16 is widely expected to be the star of the show, although if the rumors are to be believed, Apple will also likely use the showcase to introduce a new Apple Watch Series 10 and Watch Ultra 3. That said, Apple's third-gen smartwatch is unlikely to debut under $799, which makes the $100 discount we're seeing at Amazon on the Apple Watch Ultra 2 that much sweeter.Right now, all three Ultra 2 models - specifically the Alpine Loop, Trail Loop, and Ocean Band configurations - are down to $699, matching their Prime Day low. Although the rumored Ultra 3 will reportedly get a faster chip alongside the flagship Series 10, the S9 SiP... Continue reading...
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by Joanna Nelius on (#6Q9MQ)
You might not have to worry about taking meeting notes ever again. | Image: Google Google Meet's newest AI-powered feature, take notes for me," has started rolling out today to Google Workspace customers with the Gemini Enterprise, Gemini Education Premium, or AI Meetings & Messaging add-ons. It's similar to Meet's transcription tool, only instead of automatically transcribing what everyone says, it summarizes what everyone talked about. Google first announced this feature at its 2023 Cloud Next conference.Unfortunately, it only supports spoken English right now, but it seems like it could make missing an important meeting less stressful; it automatically takes notes in a Google Doc and will attach that file to the calendar event after the meeting is over, so you can reference them later on. It will also send that... Continue reading...
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by Mia Sato on (#6Q9HS)
Image: The Verge Shein, the massively popular bargain bin retailer selling clothes, accessories, and home goods, said it uncovered two cases of child labor between Q1 and Q3 of 2023.In its most recent sustainability report released last week, Shein said the discoveries were made through the company's audits of suppliers working with the brand. Shein says it defines children as anyone under the age of 15; in China, it's illegal to employ children under 16. Shein didn't specify which factories were employing children or how many were discovered.Upon discovering these violations, SHEIN suspended orders from the contract manufacturers and undertook investigations," the company writes. Under the policy at the time, manufacturers were given 30 days to... Continue reading...
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by Wes Davis on (#6Q9EW)
Image: Cath Virginia / The Verge Meta is shutting down all third-party face filters and AR effects on Facebook, Instagram, and Messenger, along with the tools used to create them, on January 14th, 2025. That includes any created by brands and other third parties, the company wrote in a blog post today. Meta's own AR effects will continue to operate, however.The Meta Spark platform is used to create face filters like those you'd see on Snapchat or TikTok that make you look old or reimagine you as a cartoon character, as well as AR games and ads. Any videos that have used Spark-based AR effects will stay up on Facebook, Instagram, and in messages sent over Messenger, the company says in its FAQ about the change.Meta introduced its AR tools in 2017, giving it an answer... Continue reading...
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by Emma Roth on (#6Q9EX)
Illustration by The Verge | Photo by Tom Williams via Getty Images In a letter to the Republican-led House Judiciary Committee on Monday, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg said the Biden administration repeatedly pressured" his teams to censor" content related to covid in 2021. Zuckerberg told the committee chair, Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH), that the pressure was wrong" and he regrets not being more outspoken about it." He also told Jordan he would avoid repeating a 2020 donation to support local election infrastructure, aiming to avoid the perception of playing a non-neutral role in politics.The letter largely comes as a response to increasing scrutiny from Republicans, who have accused platforms like Facebook and Instagram of being biased against conservatives for years. More recently in May, Rep. Jordan led... Continue reading...
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by Victoria Song on (#6Q9EY)
The new Dyson Airwrap i.d. now connects to a smartphone app. | Image: Dyson The Dyson Airwrap is getting an upgrade. The new Airwrap i.d. will now feature three new attachments, Bluetooth connectivity, and personalized curling sequences via a smartphone app. It'll also come in two types: one for straight to wavy hair, and another for curly to coily hair. And in true Dyson fashion, it'll cost $600.Dyson has loomed large in beauty tech for years now, but this is the company's first connected beauty device. (It also has multiple hair dryers.) The Airwrap was last updated in 2022; that version allowed for multidirectional curling. The Airwrap i.d. is a much techier update. You'll now be able to enter a hair profile into the MyDyson app that includes hair type, length, and your own skill level. It'll then develop a... Continue reading...
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by Justine Calma on (#6Q9EZ)
A cooling center in Sacramento, California, on July 3rd, 2024. | Photo: Getty Images Heat-related deaths are on the rise in the US, according to a new analysis published in the Journal of the American Medical Association.The number of heat-related deaths recorded in the US jumped 117 percent between 1999 and 2023, it finds. These kinds of deaths are preventable and had previously been on the decline. This study is likely the first to show an about-face in the US since 2016, the authors write.Authorities need to put appropriate safety measures in placeKeeping people safe when temperatures spike is becoming more difficult in a warming world. Heatwaves are more frequent and more intense than they used to be. Authorities need to put appropriate safety measures in place to prevent more deaths in the future, the paper... Continue reading...
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by Emma Roth on (#6Q9CA)
Photo by Dan Seifert / The Verge Thirteen years after launching on the iPhone, Snapchat has finally brought its app to the iPad. In an update note on Monday, Snapchat announced that it now offers native support for the iPad, allowing the app to fill your entire screen for the first time.Until now, iPad users were stuck using the iOS version of the app, leaving them with unsightly black borders surrounding an iPhone-sized Snapchat interface. This made it less than ideal to view or take snaps on the app, as well as try on filters. Image: Snapchat Image: Snapchat Of course, this shouldn't be an excuse to start slinging your iPad around in public to send pictures to your friends. Snapchat is available with iPadOS 13.0 or later.... Continue reading...
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by Jay Peters on (#6Q9CB)
Image: Instagram Instagram will now let you add text to your photos right from the post editor, meaning you won't need to edit your photos in a separate app just to add some text. A bit of text might help your post stand out from the rest of the photos on your feed - or help people see information that might otherwise get lost in your caption.From the post editor, you'll also now be able to layer another photo on top of a photo as a sticker. When you tap on that layered photo, you can change its shape from a rectangle to a square, circle, heart, or star, according to Instagram's blog post. This feature seems fun to me - I suspect people will find some clever ways to use this in their photos.Reels and stories are getting some text improvements, too.... Continue reading...
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by Andrew Webster on (#6Q9CC)
Image: Konami Three of the best Castlevania games are launching on the Switch very soon - Nintendo just revealed the Castlevania Dominus Collection, which will be available on August 27th.The bundle brings together the trilogy of Castlevania titles that originally debuted on the Nintendo DS; that means Dawn of Sorrow, Portrait of Ruin, and Order of Ecclesia. As a bonus, the 1987 arcade game Haunted Castle is also included. Konami says that the games have been updated with extra features such as save states or rewind." That might make up for the lack of a second screen for displaying the map.With the launch, the Switch is slowly turning into the ideal Castlevania machine thanks to a number of other bundles, like the Castlevania Anniversary... Continue reading...
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by Emma Roth on (#6Q98A)
Image: EA MySims is back, and it's coming to the Nintendo Switch. A new bundle featuring revamped versions of EA's MySims and MySims Kingdom will revive the classic simulation titles with Switch-optimized controls and updated textures.If you've never played MySims, it's sort of like a cross between The Sims and Animal Crossing. In the mainline game, you're tasked with rebuilding a run-down town by procuring blueprints, constructing houses, and making furniture to attract new residents. Each character has their own unique characteristics, like the bug-loving Gertrude Spackle and Yuki, who often threatens to bite your face for some reason.MySims launched on the Wii and Nintendo DS in 2007 before arriving on PC and Blackberry. MySims Kingdom, which... Continue reading...
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by Wes Davis on (#6Q98B)
Travis and Jason Kelce after the 2024 AFC Championship. | Photo: Patrick Smith / Getty Images Taylor Swift's boyfriend, Travis Kelce, and his brother Jason have inked a $100 million deal to hand over distribution of their sports podcast series, New Heights with Jason & Travis Kelce, to Amazon's Wondery publisher, reports The Wall Street Journal. The deal gives subscribers to Wondery Plus early and ad-free" access to the popular series, Amazon announced.Wondery Plus subscribers will also get a once-a-year livestream of the Kelces' show, according to the Journal. Otherwise, folks who listen to New Heights (which launched in 2022 and has since become one of the top US podcasts) on other platforms like Apple Podcasts and Spotify, or watch it on YouTube, probably won't notice much of a difference.
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by Andrew J. Hawkins on (#6Q98C)
Photo by Andrew J. Hawkins / The Verge The Biden administration says that the number of EV charging stations in the US has doubled since 2021 as it announces another round of grants for states looking to install more charging locations.The administration claims that there are now over 192,000 publicly available charging ports in the US, with approximately 1,000 new public chargers being added each week. That's up from approximately 100,000 ports that were in operation at the outset of 2021 when President Joe Biden first took office.EV charging is often held up as a culprit in the frustratingly slow adoption of electric vehicles in the United States, with EV owners frequently citing in surveys infrequent charging or broken equipment as one of the pain points in their... Continue reading...
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by Emma Roth on (#6Q98D)
Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge Sony will now let you customize your PlayStation 5's DualSense Edge controller on your PC. The new Accessories app for Windows lets you customize button assignments, change stick sensitivity, adjust trigger deadzones, and more.This replaces the Firmware updater for DualSense wireless controller" app introduced in 2022. It takes things a step further by letting you customize your DualSense Edge controller the same way you would on your PlayStation 5. Like the outgoing app, you can still use Accessories to update the firmware on the DualSense Edge and the standard DualSense from your PC.
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by David Pierce on (#6Q98E)
Phones have been getting wet for years - but now they're getting better at dealing with it. | Photo: The Verge Millions of viewers are turning to videos to get the water out of their phones. I tried to figure out whether they actually work. Continue reading...
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by Ash Parrish on (#6Q98F)
Image: The Verge While we wait for a Switch 2 announcement, Nintendo is showing off 40 minutes of game announcements from indie developers and third-party partners. Continue reading...
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by Ash Parrish on (#6Q98G)
Image: Paramount Oh, hell yes! The first trailer for Sonic the Hedgehog 3 is out, giving fans a first listen of Keanu Reeves as Shadow the Hedgehog.Reeves doesn't put too much spin on his interpretation of Shadow, sounding very much like himself. But considering fans were hype as hell that he was doing Shadow's voice, I think Keanu doing his best Keanu will go over fine with audiences. The trailer sets up Shadow the Hedgehog as the toughest enemy Team Sonic has ever had to face, requiring them to call in outside help. Jim Carrey returns as Dr. Robotnik, who has apparently let himself go. For Sonic 3, they're not wasting a drop of Carrey's comedic talent, having him play not one Robotnik but two.Shadow's arrival was teased at the end of Sonic 2.... Continue reading...
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by Tom Warren on (#6Q943)
Image: AMD AMD promised that Microsoft's upcoming 24H2 update to Windows 11 would improve performance for its new Ryzen 9000 series CPUs, but it's also giving a significant boost to some older Ryzen CPUs. Hardware Unboxed has tested the Zen 4-based Ryzen 7 7700X and the new Ryzen 7 9700X (Zen 5) on both Windows 11 version 23H2 and 24H2 and found a significant performance increase thanks to Microsoft's OS update.On average, Hardware Unboxed found an improvement of 10 percent across multiple games running at 1080p resolution on the older Ryzen 7700X running Windows 11 version 24H2. On the latest Ryzen 9700X, Windows 11 24H2 provides an 11 percent performance improvement on average in the same game tests. KitGuru has also tested AMD's best gaming... Continue reading...
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by Victoria Song on (#6Q944)
The new Garmin Fenix 8 series adds voice commands and a new Messenger app. | Image: Garmin Garmin's back with two new rugged smartwatches: the all-new Fenix 8 and Enduro 3. The $999.99 Fenix 8, one of Garmin's top-of-line flagships, will get a built-in speaker and microphone, along with several new training features. Meanwhile, the $899.99 Enduro 3 will feature an LED flashlight plus solar charging to extend battery life up to 320 hours in GPS mode.If there's any theme to the Fenix 8's updates this time around, it's in making the device smarter while also giving athletes more choices. For example, it now has a built-in speaker and microphone so you can make and take phone calls from the wrist. You'll also be able to issue voice commands like set a timer for 5 minutes." For voice commands, a connection to your phone isn't... Continue reading...
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by Tom Warren on (#6Q945)
Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge You may have read headlines last week about Microsoft removing the Control Panel from Windows soon, but the death of the Control Panel has been greatly exaggerated. The inaccurate reports stemmed from a single support document, originally spotted by Neowin. Microsoft has now updated the support document to make it clear that Control Panel isn't in danger of being removed from Windows anytime soon.The Control Panel is in the process of being deprecated in favor of the Settings app," said Microsoft in its support note last week. While Microsoft has been working on moving Control Panel items to the Settings interface for more than a decade, this seemingly small update to a support document triggered headlines about the Control Panel being... Continue reading...
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by Jess Weatherbed on (#6Q946)
Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Samsung says it will provide seven years' worth of Tizen operating system updates for its newer AI-powered TVs in a bid to fend off competition from Chinese rivals. The announcement was made last week at Samsung Electronics' Suwon Campus according to Business Korea, and will first apply to TV models released in March 2024, alongside some products released in 2023.The policy extension is a notable jump from the updates Samsung currently provides, which typically address bugs without upgrading the Tizen OS itself. The move comes as Samsung, currently the world's biggest seller of smart TV, finds its market leadership being challenged by Chinese companies like Hisense and TCL. Research from analytics firm Omdia found that Samsung had a... Continue reading...
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by Brandon Widder on (#6Q8TW)
Garmin's midrange running watch is $100 off in both the standard configuration and the smaller 42mm sizing. | Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge As part of its Glowtime" event on September 9th, Apple is expected to reveal the Apple Watch Series 10 and possibly a new Apple Watch Ultra. However, while both watches are expected to feature new chips and better displays, neither of them will likely rival the Garmin Forerunner 265 when it comes to dedicated running features or battery life. Luckily, Garmin's excellent running watch is currently on sale at Amazon, Best Buy, and REI for $349.99 ($100 off) - an all-time low.Of all the running watches Garmin currently sells, the platform-agnostic Forerunner 265 probably strikes the best balance between price and performance. Both the 265 and smaller 265S offer multiband GPS for more precise tracking, onboard music storage, and a... Continue reading...
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by Emma Roth on (#6Q8QP)
Illustration: The Verge Apple announced that chief financial officer Luca Maestri will step down from his role at the start of next year. He'll remain at the company as the head of its corporate services team, leading information systems and technology, information security, and real estate and development."Maestri joined Apple in 2013 after serving as the CFO of Xerox. He became the CFO just one year later, replacing Peter Oppenheimer. CNBC notes that when he took over, Apple's annual revenue was $183 billion, and last year, it reached $383 billion. Apple also announced an expansion to its share repurchase program to $90 billion, which Maestri would oversee.This spring, Apple announced it would increase the amount from $90 billion to $110 billion, breaking... Continue reading...
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by Jay Peters on (#6Q8QR)
Illustration: The Verge Google is making it easier to keep track of Google Meet calls - which can easily get buried in your tabs - while you're using desktop Chrome. The company is now rolling out a feature that automatically opens a Google Meet call in picture-in-picture mode when you switch tabs in Chrome, according to a blog post.As shown by Google in a GIF, when you click away from the Google Meet call, a new Meet window pops up elsewhere on the screen so that you can keep an eye on who's speaking. This might be handy when you're definitely looking at the document somebody shared around and definitely not checking your Threads feed. GIF: Google The automatic picture-in-picture feature isn't gated to paid accounts; Google says that... Continue reading...
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by Andrew J. Hawkins on (#6Q8N1)
Rivian's factory in 2022. | Photo by Brian Cassella / Chicago Tribune / Tribune News Service via Getty Images A fire broke out in a parking lot at Rivian's Normal, Illinois, factory over the weekend, damaging several electric vehicles, local media is reporting. No injuries are being reported at this time.A spokesperson for the Normal Fire Department told The Verge that a report of a fire was called in at 9:43PM CT on Saturday at the Rivian factory. That said, Rivian is now leading the investigation into the nature of the blaze, along with the company's insurance company, with the town's fire officials lending their support as needed, Normal Fire Department spokesperson Matt Swaney said in an email.It is a very intricate and complex investigation so we do not have a timeline of when and if any origin or cause may be determined at this time,"... Continue reading...
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by Wes Davis on (#6Q8N2)
Image: Sony Sony has announced the $59.99 WF-C510 wireless earbuds, the latest budget offering in its Truly Wireless" line. They're fairly bare-bones but improve on their predecessor with voice isolation and slightly longer battery life while costing $30 less. The earbuds come in four colors - black, blue, white, and yellow - and are available for preorder now on Sony's website or at Amazon.The WF-C510 earbuds, besides having a name that rolls right off the tongue, come with Ambient Sound Mode (Sony's transparency mode, which pipes in external sound) in addition to voice isolation. They're also the smallest ever closed type earbuds" Sony says it has produced. According to Sony's specs list, they'll get as long as five hours of continuous... Continue reading...
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by Mia Sato on (#6Q8N3)
Photo: Getty Images Newspaper giant Gannett is shutting down Reviewed, its product reviews site, effective November 1st, according to sources familiar with the decision. The site offers recommendations for products ranging from shoes to home appliances and employs journalists to test and review items - but has also been at the center of questions around whether its work is actually produced by humans.After careful consideration and evaluation of our Reviewed business, we have decided to close the operation. We extend our sincere gratitude to our employees who have provided consumers with trusted product reviews," Reviewed spokesperson Lark-Marie Anton told The Verge in an email.But the site more recently has been the subject of scrutiny, at times by... Continue reading...
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