The Verge

Photo by Vjeran Pavic / The Verge If you haven’t been able to land Sony’s next-gen console yet, both Sony and Walmart are currently offering up another chance. Sony is once again selling the PlayStation 5 Horizon Forbidden West Bundle for $549.99, while Walmart is selling the same configuration for $549. If you’re not familiar with the package, the apt-titled Horizon Forbidden West Bundle comes with the disc-based PS5 as well as a digital code to download a copy of Guerrilla Games’ excellent Horizon Forbidden West. Best of all, unlike Sony’s recent restock events, you don’t need to enter an online queue to check out at either retailer — just log in with your PlayStation Network ID or Walmart credentials and check out (seriously).While we obviously can’t guarantee... Continue reading…

It’s a familiar look. | Image: Tecnoblog It seems increasingly likely that Google’s going to be announcing a budget Chromecast at its hardware event on October 6th, and Brazilian site Tecnoblog has posted purported pictures of the device, which the publication says showed up in documents from the National Telecommunications Agency. The device looks pretty much identical to the white model of Google’s current Chromecast with Google TV, but leaks from earlier this week suggest it’ll only be able to stream in 1080p instead of 4K and that it’ll be around 40 percent cheaper than the current model (which is normally $50 but is currently on sale in the US for $40).The images posted by Tecnoblog show the device with a label saying “Model G454V.” That’s the same name that showed up in... Continue reading…

Illustration by Samar Haddad / The Verge Controlling smart lighting with your voice is one of the most useful features of a smart home. Saying, “Hey Siri, turn off the lights” from the comfort of your bed or the couch without having to get up or pull out your phone is really a great experience. And, if you have some Philips Hue smart light bulbs and an iPhone, it's really easy to connect them to Apple’s HomeKit smart home platform to put Apple’s Siri voice assistant to work for you.With this set up you can also sync your smart lighting to other connected devices in your home. This lets you create automations that do things like have your lights turn on and your music start playing in the morning when a motion sensor is triggered or set a Movie Time scene that adjusts your... Continue reading…

In-game Roblox High School. | Image: Roblox Roblox rode a wave of pandemic-era growth to a seven-fold value increase, an exploding user base, and a wildly popular Lil Nas X concert with tens of millions of attendees. That success largely all came thanks to Roblox’s core user base of young and highly engaged players.Now, those kids are getting older, and Roblox is trying to grow up, too. The all-ages, user-generated gaming platform is announcing plans today to add age guidelines to its games and significantly expand its advertising business as it works to court an older demographic, expand its revenue streams, and still support the needs of its millions of young players.The changes are a major step in how Roblox thinks of its users and how the company approaches advertising.... Continue reading…

Quentin Tarantino’s NFT page. Filmmaker Quentin Tarantino and studio Miramax have settled a lawsuit over non-fungible tokens, or NFTs, based on Pulp Fiction. A new court filing indicates the sides will request to dismiss the suit in the coming weeks, and they offered a joint statement, as reported by Deadline. “The parties have agreed to put this matter behind them and look forward to collaborating with each other on future projects, including possible NFTs,” they said. The terms of the settlement were not disclosed.Tarantino introduced his NFT lineup last year at the height of NFT mania, promising each one would unlock a “secret” about his 1994 film. Tarantino said the NFTs were linked with media from the screenplay, which he retained rights to, but Miramax sued on... Continue reading…

So green. | Image: Acer Acer is adding a Chromebook to its Vero lineup, which it says is meant to offer laptop buyers an “eco-conscious” option. Like the (rather disappointing) Windows laptop that came before it, the Chromebook Vero 514 is made using recycled plastics, has a chassis that’s 99 percent recyclable, and comes in packaging that’s 90 percent recycled paper, according to the company. Acer’s press release even suggests that part of the Chromebook’s packaging can be “transformed into a multi-purpose triangular laptop stand,” if you’re loathe to throw anything away.Before we go over the recyclability, though, let’s quickly go through the specs — it weighs in at just a hair over 3 pounds, which is reasonable for a laptop with a 14-inch screen, and is... Continue reading…

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare | Image: Activision Blizzard Activision has announced a showcase that it says will reveal the future of the Call of Duty franchise. Dubbed Call of Duty Next, the showcase will take place at 1PM ET on September 15th, broadcast on Twitch, YouTube, Twitter, and Facebook.According to the press release, the showcase will focus on the upcoming sequel to 2019’s Modern Warfare as well as what it’s calling Warzone 2.0 and the new Warzone mobile experience.Though it’s the premier jewel in Activision’s crown, Call of Duty has been underperforming lately. Activision Blizzard’s proposal for a $68.7 billion acquisition by Microsoft revealed Call of Duty: Vanguard badly underperformed and did not meet its Q4 expectations. As a result, according to a report by Bloomberg, next... Continue reading…

Illustration by Carlo Cadenas / The Verge The Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) is now slowly moving back to capacity after a ransomware attack launched over Labor Day weekend, which prompted an unprecedented shutdown of computer systems in an attempt to contain the effects of the malicious software. The attack on LAUSD, the second-largest school district in the US, put officials on high alert, with fears over lockouts from school management systems and unauthorized access to student data triggering a response from federal, state, and local partners.But it’s not the first time LAUSD systems have been exposed to ransomware — and not the first warning the district has received about ransomware. The same systems narrowly avoided being hit with another similar attack in... Continue reading…

The new Apple Watch Series 8 | Photo by Justin Sullivan / Getty Images Wednesday’s Apple event opened with a warning. The video montage at the start of the event highlighted times when people in emergency situations had their lives saved by the Apple Watch. They used it to call 911 and make phone calls. It flagged dangerous heart conditions. Without the watch, they might not have made it out alive. The implication being: without a watch, you might not make it out alive.Apple has been inching toward that sort of messaging from the very beginning. At the first launch in 2014, Tim Cook called the Apple Watch a health device. In 2018, when Apple introduced the feature that could detect irregular heart rate, Cook called the watch lifesaving. Now, instead of pitching the watch as something that could save a... Continue reading…

It’s one of the easiest things you can do on a Chromebook. | Photo by Becca Farsace / The Verge Sometimes you download an Android app to your Chromebook and learn that it simply doesn’t work. Other times your storage is full and you need to clear it up. Or maybe one of your favorite apps just got a PWA equivalent and you want that Android version out of your life.Regardless of the situation, deleting apps from a Chromebook is an essential skill for any ChromeOS user. And it’s easy. Frankly, it’s much less of a pain than it is on Windows.Here’s how to uninstall apps from a Chromebook.How to uninstall apps from a Chromebook

Samsung’s new Galaxy Buds 2 Pro are $50 off at Woot. | Photo by Chris Welch / The Verge If you’re interested in preordering the $249 second-gen AirPods Pro today but their price is holding you back, you may want to check out today’s deal on Samsung’s new Galaxy Buds 2 Pro. Today, we’ve come across one of the first discounts on the new set of noise-canceling wireless earbuds. Right now, they’re on sale for just $179.99 ($50 off) at Woot with a 90-day limited warranty.In terms of audio, they sound better than some of the top earbuds on the market, including the first-gen AirPods Pro and Google’s Pixel Buds Pro, and they manage to offer remarkable clarity and a wide soundstage. Their noise cancellation is also efficient, and we enjoyed how much smaller and more comfortable they are compared to their predecessor.Like all... Continue reading…

United says its purchase of 200 air taxis from Eve Air is conditional. | United Airlines United Airlines is investing $15 million in Eve Air Mobility, an electric aviation startup owned by Brazilian aircraft manufacturer Embraer. As part of the deal, United will purchase 200 of Eve’s electric air taxis, which can seat four passengers and take off and land vertically like a helicopter.This is the second major investment from United in the nascent world of electric air mobility after investing an undisclosed amount of money in Archer last year. These companies propose to develop small, electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft that can fly from rooftop to rooftop in a dense city as a taxi service. But so far, none have received clearance from federal aviation regulators to fly passengers.But Eve may have to... Continue reading…

The new Fujifilm X-H2 and XF 56mm f/1.2 R WR. With yesterday’s announcement of the new X-H2 mirrorless camera, Fujifilm is trying to fill a hole in its lineup between its APS-C offerings and its medium format GFX line by putting a 40.2-megapixel sensor in its latest X-series body. This may seem like a bit of a compromise since Fujifilm doesn’t have a full-frame system, but one benefit of sticking with its smaller sensors and just adding resolution is having a camera that’s still fairly compact. I got to briefly try out a preproduction version of the new X-H2 and the recently released X-H2S at Fujifilm’s X-Summit NYC event, and there may be a lot to like here if you’re a loyal Fujifilm user. Here are some initial thoughts and finer details learned from the short time with these... Continue reading…

Apple’s second-gen AirPods will run $249 and launch on September 23rd. | Image: Apple Apple’s “Far Out” event on Wednesday introduced a number of devices to Apple’s existing product lineup, including the iPhone 14, a ruggedized Apple Watch, and an updated version of the AirPods Pro. The second-gen AirPods Pro will launch on September 23rd for $249.99 and are available to preorder now. Apple will continue to sell the entry-level AirPods at their original price of $179; however, it appears Apple is discontinuing the original AirPods Pro with the release of the second-gen model.Not much has changed aesthetically from the previous iteration of the AirPods Pro, with the new model donning the same pearly white exterior as the original model from 2019. The noise-canceling earbuds also retain the MagSafe-compatible charging case... Continue reading…

The Asus ROG Phone 6 has launched in North America. | Image: Asus Asus has made its new ROG Phone 6 and Phone 6 Pro available for preorder in North America after the initial launch in the UK and Europe. The latest version of this gaming-centric smartphone is equipped with the Snapdragon 8 Plus Gen 1 processor, which is a souped-up version of the same CPU shared by many current-gen flagship Android devices like the Samsung S22 Lineup and OnePlus 10. The ROG Phone 6 also has some additional hardware to cement its status as a go-to device for mobile gaming, which includes a minimum of 12GB of RAM and a 165Hz refresh rate screen with a resolution of 2448 x 1080.The standard ROG Phone 6 is available in two different configurations. The base model, priced at $999, is equipped with 12GB of RAM and 256GB of... Continue reading…

This is how the always-on display will look on the iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max, complete with color images. | Image: Apple So, it finally happened. The iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max got an always-on display. If you’ve used a modern Android phone, you probably have experience with always-on screens — and need no convincing of why they’re a handy feature — but this is a new thing in iPhone world. And Apple, of course, is doing it a little bit differently than everyone else.Always-on displays allow a phone to display basic information like the date, time, and notifications even when it’s locked and resting on a table. Typically, your whole display doesn’t remain on, just the most important parts of it. On Google’s Pixel phones, for example, you might see a black screen with just the clock and some app icons lit up. This is particularly useful because... Continue reading…

The Logi StreamCam has features that cannot be activated with Logitech’s current software on newer Macs. Logitech makes some of the most popular webcams in the world, but using them on some of the most popular computers, like the M2 MacBook Air or M1 Pro MacBook Pro, is a less than stellar experience. Plugging one into any M1 or M2 Mac for a video call isn’t an issue, but if you want to tweak in-depth settings or use some of these webcams’ highlight features, doing that right now ranges from clumsy to impossible. That’s because its most capable webcam software, Logitech Capture, isn’t available on computers with Apple silicon.Logitech switched up its software plan for people who use newer Mac laptops and desktops without making much effort to tell anyone. Instead of offering Logitech Capture, its de facto software focused squarely on... Continue reading…

Android call quality is progressing. | Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge The first beta for the Android 13 quarterly release includes a new “clear calling” feature that “reduces background noises during calls.” It was first spotted by Mishaal Rahman on Twitter who also tweeted directions to enable it for yourself without root, if you’re feeling bold.The images shared by Rahman note that Clear Calling works “on most mobile networks,” is “not available for Wi-Fi calling,” and “content from your call is not sent to Google.”

Image: Warner Bros. Warner Bros. has debuted a new trailer for Black Adam, the DC universe movie starring Dwayne Johnson. If you watched the trailer from in July, you’ll recognize a lot of familiar footage here — Black Adam insists that he’s a villain, but there are some hints that he’ll have to choose to be a good guy in the end.I’ll admit I don’t know all that much about Black Adam as a character, so I’ll point you to my colleague Charles Pulliam-Moore’s article about the July trailer for a bit more context there. The movie will also feature other DC characters like Hawkman (Aldis Hodge), Dr. Fate (Pierce Brosnan), Cyclone (Quintessa Swindell), and Atom Smasher (Noah Centineo), and this movie may not be the only time we see them and their... Continue reading…

It bragged about its starting prices being the same, but that’s not universal. | Nick Barclay / The Verge When Apple announced the iPhone 14 and 14 Pro, it was quick to point out that the phones start at the same prices as their predecessors, despite rumors that they would cost more this year. Likewise, the Apple Watch Series 8 also got a few upgrades, but is still selling for the same price as the Series 7. As CNBC points out, though, those devices have gotten price bumps in several other countries, including the UK, Australia, Japan, Ireland, and Germany.In some cases, getting Apple’s latest devices will cost significantly more now than last year. In the UK, for example, the iPhone 14 now costs £849, whereas the 13 started at £779. The Apple Watch is less of a jump but is still more expensive, with the Series 8 starting at £419, up from... Continue reading…

HP Pavilion x360 14 models in various modes, including tablet at the end | Image: HP Microsoft is reintroducing its tablet-friendly taskbar in the latest preview of Windows 11. The taskbar was first introduced in February alongside other new features included for eventual rollout in Windows 11, but it was later pulled for more internal development. Microsoft said in a blog post that the taskbar is part of an update rolling out to Windows Insiders in the developer channel and is only available for PCs that can be used as tablets like 2-in-1s, not laptops or desktop PCs.The taskbar itself is designed to be hidden when a tablet user isn’t using it, allowing more needed screen space. When it’s collapsed, it shows “critical” things on it like the time and battery percentage. When it’s expanded, it reveals several apps,... Continue reading…

The iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max pack a faster A16 Bionic chip and a 48MP camera under the hood. | Image: Apple It’s official: the iPhone 14 is here. Following months of leaks and speculation, Apple formally announced the latest addition to its smartphone lineup during its “Far Out” event on Wednesday, where the company also gave us a glimpse of the long-rumored Apple Watch Ultra, a new Apple Watch SE, and the second-gen AirPods Pro.Apple’s new iPhone 14 series consists of the iPhone 14, iPhone 14 Plus, iPhone 14 Pro, and iPhone 14 Pro Max. Preorders for all of the phones will start on September 9th, with the iPhone 14, iPhone 14 Pro, and iPhone 14 Pro Max slated to arrive on September 16th. The iPhone 14 Plus, meanwhile, won’t be available until October 7th.The iPhone 14 and 14 Plus bring forth a number of changes to the iPhone lineup,... Continue reading…

A screenshot from Battlefield 2042 | Image: EA EA has established a new Battlefield studio that will be working on a narrative campaign for the franchise. The studio, Ridgeline Games, is based in Kirkland, Washington, and is headed up by Halo co-creator Marcus Lehto, according to a press release.The company didn’t share details about what this new experience might be about, when it might be released, or what platforms it will be available for. But the promise of a dedicated narrative campaign could be good news for Battlefield fans who were disappointed that the live service Battlefield 2042, which had a poorly received launch in November, didn’t have a campaign mode of its own. And as EA continues to push further into live service games, such as the new Skate, it’s good to see... Continue reading…

Image: Snowman When you think of a platformer, you probably think of jumping. The simple move is a staple of the genre, whether we’re talking about classic side-scrolling adventures or larger three-dimensional worlds. But Lucky Luna, the latest release on Netflix’s fledgling games service, offers something a little different: it removes the jump altogether.Lucky Luna takes place in a beautiful pixel art world of ancient ruins and tasks players with navigating a series of levels to uncover its secrets. It has many of the staples of the genre, like collectible orbs, hidden areas, moving platforms, deadly spikes, and enemies that move in specific patterns. The twist is the lack of a jump button. In fact, Lucky Luna doesn’t have on-screen buttons at all.... Continue reading…

Do you think Tim Cook ever sends green bubble texts? | Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Last night, Tim Cook shot down the possibility of solving the green bubble problem — and he revealed the real reason why Apple won’t do it: it doesn’t sell iPhones.At Vox Media’s Code conference, an attendee told Cook that it was difficult for him to send videos to his mom because Apple devices don’t support RCS, the texting protocol championed by Google and supported by major phone carriers. Cook, in response, suggested the attendee buy his mom an iPhone. “I don’t hear our users asking that we put a lot of energy in on that at this point,” Cook said.Blue versus greenThis seems to be the first time Cook has publicly addressed RCS, the Rich Communications Services protocol. RCS is a major improvement over SMS and MMS, letting you do... Continue reading…

New information suggests Overwatch 2 heroes will be gated behind battle pass progression. | Image: Blizzard Entertainment When Overwatch 2 launches on October 4th, fans might have to get on the grind wheel to unlock the newest heroes. A tweet from Jon Spector, Overwatch’s commercial lead, indicates new heroes will be gated behind battle pass progression, saying that “new Overwatch 2 heroes will be available on the free track of the Battle Pass.”Spector’s tweet appears to reference a description of Overwatch 2’s Watchpoint Pack, a purchasable content bundle that grants buyers all kinds of goodies, including skins, in-game currency, and access to the season 1 premium battle pass.

The Fujifilm X-H2 camera with the upcoming XF 56mm f/1.2 R WR prime lens mounted. | Image: Fujifilm After years of APS-C mirrorless cameras with resolutions in the 20-something megapixel range, Fujifilm is finally pushing things forward with the latest camera in its X-series line. At its X Summit event in New York City today, Fujifilm is announcing a new high-res X-H2 camera with a 40.2-megapixel X-Trans sensor with 8K video. This pro-oriented camera looks just like the recent X-H2S it’s based on, matching it with the same processor, in-body image stabilization system, dual card slots, electronic viewfinder, and more. It’s nearly the same camera with a different sensor for those who value megapixels most. Though the higher resolution counterpart will cost about $500 less than the X-H2S when it ships in late September for $1,999.95... Continue reading…

The Nest Hub Max doesn’t need you to call it Google anymore. | Photo by Dan Seifert / The Verge If you have a Nest Hub Max smart display and you’re tired of saying “Hey Google” 50 times a day, a new feature could cut that number down a bit. Quick Phrases — a feature on the Pixel 6 phones, and which Google announced for the Nest Hub Max last year — are now live. This lets the Nest Hub Max (and only the Max so far) respond to certain commands without the phrase “Hey Google,” making talking to the voice interface a little easier.At launch, Quick Phrases — which you need to enable in the Google Home app first — are limited to a few preset commands in four categories: general info (like time and weather), lights, timers, and alarms. Google says the phrases don’t have to be exact and that the Assistant can recognize common variations.... Continue reading…

The SLS rocket and Orion spacecraft sit on the launchpad on September 6th, 2022. | Photo by CHANDAN KHANNA / AFP via Getty Images After repeated delays, NASA is lightly penciling in launch dates of September 23rd or 27th for its Artemis I mission. A lot of things will have to go right for either of those dates to be possible, including repairs to the rocket’s fueling system, a sign-off from the Space Force, and managing to avoid an assortment of space scheduling conflicts.Artemis I will mark the first launch of the agency’s massive Space Launch System (SLS) rocket and will send a spacecraft called Orion out on an orbit far past the Moon. This mission will be uncrewed and serve as a test for later missions that will send astronauts back to the Moon for the first time in decades.After a hydrogen leak foiled NASA’s third attempt to launch the mission on... Continue reading…

Some, but not all, Withings products will see price increases in the coming weeks. | Image: Nokia A banner has appeared within the storefront of the Withings website announcing that several products within its lineup will see price increases over the coming weeks. If you click through, you’ll find the entire Withings catalog with tags applied to identify which products will be affected by the changes. In the US, it notes that only Body Cardio, Sleep Analyzer, BPM Connect, and 38mm ScanWatch products will see increases between $20 and $30.The dates appear to be staggered slightly by region — for example, the Netherlands will see price changes on September 19th, while prices in the US won’t switch until October 1st.Withings states that “since 2020 some of our components, such as the microcontroller in Body Cardio, have increased by... Continue reading…

The Apple Watch SE (2022) is the new entry-level model, with the Apple Watch Series 8 and Watch Ultra above it. | Image: Apple During its “Far Out” event, Apple announced the iPhone 14, iPhone 14 Pro, new AirPods Pro earbuds, and a whole slew of new Apple Watches. We’re used to seeing an annual refresh of the Apple Watch, where a Series flagship begets another flagship — but this year marks the introduction of three new models: the Apple Watch Series 8, Apple Watch Ultra, and a new Apple Watch SE. These watches are designed to offer new options at the entry-level, flagship (for generalists), and specialized markets.At the bottom of the new lineup, the new Apple Watch SE continues the 2020 SE’s formula. It’s the “bargain” model, sacrificing niceties like an always-on display for the sake of a much lower price. Apple’s SE brand of budget-tier products are rarely... Continue reading…

Bee and Puppycat. | Image: Netflix Netflix’s new Bee and PuppyCat series will make you fall in love with the story that started it all Continue reading…

A host of new features for accessibility and personalization are coming to Android devices. | Image: Google Android is introducing a clutch of new features to improve accessibility, personalization, and productivity across various devices. One of the major announcements is that Nearby Share — Google’s AirDrop competitor — is getting a much-needed update that allows users to easily send files between their own devices.After you opt in to use the new feature on your Android phone or tablet, all transfers between these devices will be automatically accepted, even if your display is switched off. Image: Google The new self share feature can be used to send photographs from your phone to your tablet with ease. This self-share feature has been anticipated for a few months, and while we’re happy to see that file... Continue reading…

More pixels, more problems with the X2D 100C Continue reading…

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge YouTube is introducing a handful of new features for creators and institutions using the platform for educational content.In a blog post today, YouTube says it’s launching an embeddable video player for education apps that removes ads, external links, and recommendations so viewers can “avoid distractions.” Having a player without YouTube’s recommendation algorithm — built to keep you watching and serve you new content — is probably good for students using the platform for school. YouTube’s recommendation algorithm has been the subject of scrutiny for years over how it can serve up extreme content and misinformation.The ad- and recommendation-free player will be open to select partners to start, including education tech companies like... Continue reading…

Ford’s BlueCruise allows for hands-free driving on pre-approved divided highways. | Image: Ford Ford is rolling out its first major update to its BlueCruise advanced driver-assist system, adding hands-free lane changing and several other new features, the company announced Thursday.BlueCruise, which Ford is positioning as a viable competitor to GM’s Super Cruise and Tesla’s Autopilot systems, first launched in 2021 with the Ford Mustang Mach-E and has since rolled out to 75,000 Ford and Lincoln owners.The software update, BlueCruise 1.2, will arrive this fall, starting with the 2023 Mustang Mach-E before landing with other models. (For Lincoln owners, the update will roll out as ActiveGlide 1.2.) Both updates will include three new features: lane change assist, predictive speed assist, and in-lane repositioning.lane change... Continue reading…

Photo by Michael M. Santiago / Getty Images Steve Bannon, Trump ally and former White House adviser, surrendered himself to the Manhattan district attorney’s office on Thursday and is expected to face charges related to his role in an online crowdfunding effort to fulfill Trump’s promise to build a wall along the US’s southern border with Mexico, according to CNN.Bannon and three others were previously arrested and charged with defrauding donors to their “We Build the Wall” online fundraising campaign. The group raised over $25 million to build a wall along the US-Mexico border, promising to use “100 percent” of donations to fund the wall’s construction. But the group was found to have paid more than $1 million to cover personal expenses, including boats, an SUV, and cosmetic... Continue reading…

Image: Microsoft Microsoft is starting to test new changes to the Xbox Home UI that will eventually arrive for everyone in 2023. The changes will include tweaks to the layout and design to make it easier to find Xbox games and apps or navigate to areas like the settings interface. Microsoft will conduct a variety of Xbox Home experiments over the coming months before launching its new Xbox Home UI in 2023.“We know the Xbox homepage is where our gamers spend the most time, and it’s a space that’s very personal,” says Ivy Krislov, senior product manager lead of Xbox experiences. “We also know we can always be listening and learning how we can do better here while keeping your experience fast and familiar. With that, we’re kicking off a multi-month series... Continue reading…

Bollinger’s B1 and B2 electric trucks were put on pause, but now Mullen says they will go into production. | Image: Bollinger Mullen Automotive has acquired a controlling stake in electric vehicle startup Bollinger Motors, buying up 60 percent of the struggling company’s stock for $148.2 million, the companies announced Thursday.Mullen said it will add Bollinger-designed medium-duty trucks and sport utility trucks to its inventory. The deal “positions Bollinger to capture the electric sport utility and commercial vehicle markets,” the company added.Mullen is a relatively unknown Southern California electric vehicle manufacturer with the stated goal to build “the next-generation of premium electric vehicles that are affordable and built entirely in the United States.”Mullen is a relatively unknown Southern California electric vehicle manufacturerBollinger... Continue reading…

A photo illustration of Axiom Space’s space suit | Image: Axiom Space NASA is already packing for its next Moon landing, and it’s ordering some new spacesuits for the trip. It has awarded a $228.5 million contract to Axiom Space to make a “moonwalking system” for the agency’s return trip to the lunar surface, NASA announced Wednesday.Axiom was one of two companies in the running to make spacesuits for NASA’s Artemis program, which is aiming to send astronauts back to the Moon for the first time in more than 50 years. NASA already has a limited supply of spacesuits for use on the International Space Station, but lunar spacesuits will have to be very different. In addition to extreme temperature swings, they’ll have to contend with the Moon’s gravity and the notoriously problematic lunar dust that has a... Continue reading…

The big phones have won. | Photo by Vjeran Pavic / The Verge Well, that’s it then — after just two iterations, Apple seems to be done with the iPhone Mini. Sure, it’ll still sell you a new one; last year’s 128GB iPhone 13 Mini is currently available for $599, but the new iPhone 14 lineup doesn’t include any models with the smaller 5.4-inch screen that some people have come to love.I may be disappointed, but I’m not surprised. Rumors of the Mini’s death have been swirling almost since it debuted in 2020. In early 2021, reports started to surface that Apple had vastly overestimated demand for the phone and had to slash production of it and that it only accounted for single-digit percentages of all iPhone sales.The Mini wasn’t perfect, and it was niche — a perfect formula for a cult classicP... Continue reading…

A worker installs a new row of Bitcoin mining machines at the Whinstone US Bitcoin mining facility in Rockdale, Texas, on October 9th, 2021 | Photo by MARK FELIX/AFP /AFP via Getty Images Crypto industry operations in the US use about as much electricity as all of the nation’s home computers combined, according to a report released today by the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy. The report paints the clearest picture yet of what crypto operations are costing both power grids and the environment in the US. It also lays out some potential actions the Biden administration could take to address these challenges.Democratic lawmakers in particular have been worried about whether the crypto industry that has exploded in the US over the past year might derail climate goals. And as extreme weather pushes power grids to their limits across the US, there’s growing concern that the most electricity-hungry... Continue reading…

A screenshot from Borderlands 3. | Image: Gearbox Software Humble is hosting an excellent bundle of PC games right now, straight from 2K Games’ vault. For your $16 contribution, you can get the big suite of games, including Borderlands 3 Super Deluxe, XCOM: Ultimate Collection, PGA Tour 2K21, BioShock: The Collection, and more. You can, of course, pay more if you want as well as customize how your pledge is split among Take-Two Interactive, Humble, and the Covenant House charity that provides care and services to youth experiencing houselessness and trafficked young people. This deal will end in about two weeks.There’s another stellar deal happening for a limited time. Disney is offering a one-month subscription of its Disney Plus service to new and eligible returning subscribers for just... Continue reading…

Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge One of the things about this job is that everyone in your life — from friends to relatives to distant acquaintances and strangers on the internet — asks you questions about laptops all the time. A very common one I hear is also one of the harder ones to answer: “What makes a good laptop?”Unfortunately, my dear question asker, that answer — as is the case with so many answers in life — is subjective. Sometimes I will hate a laptop that my fellow reviewers love, and vice versa. (I’m always the one who’s right, of course. Don’t listen to them.)But this question has prompted me to step back and do a bit of introspection (as one does). What distinguishes a laptop that I like from a laptop that is good?First off, it’s much easier to... Continue reading…

Image: Mercedes-Benz / Rivian Mercedes-Benz and Rivian have formed a new joint venture to build “bespoke large” commercial electric vans, the companies announced Thursday.The companies signed a memorandum of understanding to start a strategic partnership that will invest in a new plant, with its target set on using an existing Mercedes-Benz site in Central or Eastern Europe. This marks Rivian’s first foothold in the continent; the automaker only has one manufacturing facility in the US.There will be two van models, one built on Mercedes’ Vans Electric Architecture (VAN.EA) platform and the other on Rivian’s second-generation electric van platform, called Rivian Light Van (RLV). Mercedes-Benz has been building commercial vans for more than two decades and has... Continue reading…

Netflix finally dropped the first trailer, technically a teaser, for Glass Onion: A Knifes Out Mystery. The film is set in the same universe as Knives Out, the award-winning murder mystery from 2019.The new film is as notable for how much it cost Netflix as it is for its very large cast, which includes Janelle Monáe, Leslie Odom Jr., David Bautista, Jessica Henwick, Kathryn Hahn, Kate Hudson, and Edward Norton. Daniel Craig also returns as the Foghorn-sounding detective Benoit Blanc.The original film was a bit of an unexpected hit, which led Netflix to spend an eye-watering $469 million to secure the rights for two sequels. Glass Onion is the first of those films.You just need a good story.It’s a little odd that Netflix waited... Continue reading…

Nvidia is teasing next-gen GPUs. | Image: Nvidia Nvidia wants the world to know it’s getting ready to launch its next-gen 40-series GPUs. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang will hold a special “GeForce Beyond” keynote at the company’s GTC 2022 conference on September 20th.Nvidia is widely expected to announce its 40-series GPUs at this event after the company confirmed it would discuss its next-gen GPU architecture at GTC. Codenamed Lovelace, the next GPU architecture will usher in the new RTX 40-series graphics cards to replace Nvidia’s existing Ampere architecture.