The Verge

Netflixas gaming strategy to date has been scattershot. Since Netflix gaming debuted in 2021, the streamer has launched indie darlings, streaming tie-ins, and blockbuster ports. There have been studio acquisitions, attempts at original AAA games, and experiments with cloud streaming. A few years on, itas not entirely clear what the strategy is a or if [...]

The European Union has outlined exactly how Apple needs to improve the interoperability of iOS, and the guidance reveals which features could be available to other smartwatches, headphones, and speakers. The specifications adopted by the European Commission on Tuesday explain exactly how Apple needs to open iPhone and iPad operating systems to comply with the [...]

Microsoft revealed earlier this year that it's combining the best of Xbox and Windows together" for handhelds, and now the company is starting to drop the first hints at what that UI might look like. In a blog post about Xbox opening a billion doors," Microsoft briefly revealed a new Xbox UI that looks a [...]

On Tuesday, the president of the United States fired the Democratic commissioners of the Federal Trade Commission in clear contravention of what has been the law since 1935. News outlets aincluding The Verge a allwent up with their articles as fast as they could. The headlines and stories across the board were pretty similar; the [...]

In an effort to improve the chances of finding the email you're looking for, Google is introducing an optional AI-powered upgrade for Gmail's search function. Google searches will no longer just return results in chronological order based solely on the keywords you're searching for, but will instead also take into account other criteria, including recency, [...]

Five major video game companies, including Nintendo of America and Microsoft, are joining a major new cross-industry effort" managed by the Entertainment Software Association (ESA) to share clearer information about the accessibility features in their games. As part of the Accessible Games Initiative," the five founding members" - Electronic Arts, Google, Microsoft, Nintendo of America, [...]

The Google Pixel 9A may have the same Tensor G4 chip as its more expensive counterparts, but it comes with a text-only version of Gemini AI. Google confirmed to Ars Technica that the Pixel 9A doesn't have access to certain features, like the AI-powered Pixel Screenshots app, because of the phone's lower 8GB of memory. [...]

Zagg's new Six-Port Media Hub expands connectivity of iPads, Android tablets, and other mobile devices with a handful of extra ports, including HDMI and a pair of memory card slots. Potentially even more useful is the dedicated set of three playback buttons on the front for pausing or skipping through music and videos. The Zagg [...]

The weather is getting warmer, so it's time to go out, take a walk, and listen to your favorite audio tracks - and a good way to do that is with the Pixel Buds Pro 2. Google's latest pair of wireless earbuds are currently on sale at Amazon, Best Buy, and the Google Store for [...]

Honda and its luxury brand Acura are getting access to more than 20,000 Tesla Superchargers in North America starting in June for their Prologue and ZDX EVs. Both brands will also sell their own EV charging adapters for an undisclosed price through dealerships. The new Honda and Acura branded adapters that convert their vehicles' existing [...]

Meta is finally allowing Threads users to set the following feed or any custom feeds as the default. The change is part of a number of new Threads features, including the ability to now limit post replies to followers only, a better video player, and the option to add topics in your bio. Threads users [...]

Apple is replacing the head of Siri, shortly after pushing back the rollout of its highly-anticipated AI features, according to a report from Bloomberg. Mike Rockwell, the head of Vision Pro development, will reportedly replace John Giannandrea as the leader of AI and Siri. The move comes after Apple CEO Tim Cook lost confidence" in [...]

TikTok will now show AMBER Alerts in the US. If there's a missing child in your area, you'll see an AMBER Alert directly within your For You feed. In the example shared by TikTok, the AMBER Alert shows a photo of the child, along with relevant details and an option to call 911. TikTok is [...]

After trying to woo artists and creative types away from the iPad with its Magic Drawing Pad, XP-Pen has announced a new Android-based note-taking alternative to the Amazon Kindle Scribe and Remarkable tablets. Unlike those digital notebooks, which are appealing because they lack traditional displays, the XP-Pen Magic Note Pad uses a full-color LCD instead [...]

It's not every day you see a tech executive lightly dunk on their competitors, but this week, Netflix's co-CEO Ted Sarandos was feeling a little bold. In an interview with Variety, Sarandos touched on the Max versus HBO name change, sized up Prime Video as a competitor, and expressed confusion over Apple TV Plus, a [...]

LG is shutting down Art Lab, its NFT marketplace for TVs. In a notice posted to its website, LG says it has made the difficult decision" to close the platform on June 17th. LG launched its Art Lab app during the NFT craze in 2022, billing it as a way to buy, sell and enjoy [...]

Discord is bringing third-party ads to its mobile platform. The gaming-focused voice and chat app announced that a mobile pilot for Video Quests - ads that allow Discord users to earn rewards like avatar decorations and in-game items by watching a video - will launch in June 2025, after rolling out on PC and consoles [...]

Tesla has issued a recall for 46,096 Cybertrucks in the US to fix a fault that was causing the steel trim on some vehicles to come loose or fly off while driving. The recall applies to every Cybertruck manufactured between November 13th, 2023, and February 27th, 2025, according to the report filed with the US [...]

When asked what they do for work, creative couple Jessie Char and Maxwell Neely-Cohen should probably just say ayes.a True professional multihyphenates, Charas gig history includes stints as a UI/UX designer, conference organizer, concert cellist, and Apple Genius; Neely-Cohen is a novelist, ballet dancer, and coeditor of the experimental literary journal The HTML Review. Together, [...]

Today we're talking about the protests against Tesla, which have been branded on social media under the hashtag Tesla Takedown. The protests are, of course, a reaction to Elon Musk, who has managed to install himself as basically a not-so-shadow president who is tearing the federal government apart, leaving confusion and destruction in his wake. [...]

Mobile card games like Pokemon TCG Pocket and Marvel Snap have proven that folks are willing to fork over real money for digital collectibles if they're presented in just the right way, and now, Bandai Namco wants to get in on the action. During this year's Digimon Con livestream presentation, Bandai Namco announced that it [...]

Avian influenza is aevolving in ways we havenat seen before,a says Martha Nelson, a computational biologist and staff scientist researching pathogen evolution at the National Institutes of Health a one of many scientists who have been monitoring the global H5N1 outbreak. Bird flu ais adapting to mammals, and it continues to show new tricks,a Nelson [...]

YouTube is looking into an issue causing lower than usual video quality" on iOS, desktop, and smart TVs. The platform says the apparent bug could make YouTube videos and shorts stream at 144p or 360p even with a strong internet connection. Over the past week or so, many users on Reddit have reported having YouTube [...]

The space science community has long prided itself on its ability to inspire and move people of all backgrounds, but President Donald Trumpas recent executive orders demanding the end of diversity programs have thrown that optimism into chaos. In response, NASA has suspended funding for diversity and outreach programs, paused the meetings of community groups [...]

Huawei has launched a new flip phone that upends the form factor, opening sideways rather than vertically to create a wider device with a tablet-esque aspect ratio. It's the first Huawei phone to ship without Android app compatibility, and debuts the company's in-house AI assistant, Harmony Intelligence - something the industry shouldn't ignore, Nvidia's CEO [...]

Fujifilm just announced its latest medium format camera, the GFX100RF. This one differs from the company's other GFX models in two key ways: it's the lightest body in the GFX series so far, and it's the first to feature a fixed-lens design. Up front you're getting a 35mm lens (equivalent to a 28mm in full [...]

Can you love and hate something equally? Thatas the relationship I have with Bluettias Handsfree 1 Backpack. For $349 you get a large 42L backpack and a skinny 268.8Wh solar generator built around long-lasting LFP battery cells that can be recharged by up to 200W of connected solar panels. It features two USB-A and two [...]

Meta is bringing its AI chatbot to Europe almost one year after pausing its launch in the region. Starting this week, Meta AI will roll out across WhatsApp, Facebook, Instagram, and Messenger in 41 European countries and 21 overseas territories - but it will be limited to text-based chat features for now. Meta AI launched [...]

Tesla protesters are planning their biggest day of action" yet, aiming for 500 demonstrations at Tesla showrooms across the world on March 29th, organizers said during a mobilizing call Wednesday. The protests started at a handful of Tesla locations in early February, and has grown to hundreds of locations across the world, as more people [...]

President Donald Trump's sudden and unlawful firing of the Federal Trade Commission's two remaining Democrats will serve the tech billionaires who backed him, not the American people, warned one of the ousted officials today. I think we need to be focused on the billionaires over President Trump's shoulder at his inauguration and what this attempt [...]

This week, Roborock announced that its highly anticipatedSaros Z70is now available for pre-order. The Z70 features a robotic arm and is one of the most expensive robot vacuums in the world, at $1,899. For the launch, Roborock is sweetening the pot by bundling the new bot with the choice of a free second vacuum cleaner. [...]

The smart home holds so much promise. It can make life more convenient with lights that turn on as you walk in a room, doors that unlock as you approach, and robots that clean your floors. It can also make your home safer, more energy efficient, and even a little more fun. (Have you tried [...]

Newsletter platform Ghost switched on its fediverse connectivity this week, allowing bloggers to share their works across the various social platforms that support the open ActivityPub protocol. Ghost initially promised the feature would go live in 2024. But it's available now in beta for Ghost(Pro) users, TechCrunch reports. With ActivityPub, users on platforms such as [...]

A legal permanent resident claims he was tortured by customs agents after returning home from a trip to Europe. A doctor with a work visa was denied entry into the country a then flown out of the US in spite of a court order halting her deportation. Two German tourists were hassled at a port [...]

This deal caught my eye last night. Google is knocking $200 off its flagship Pixel 9 Pro and Pixel 9 Pro XL, which means the smaller model now starts at $799, or the same price as the regular Pixel 9. That's a no-brainer right there.Or, you can head to Best Buy where it starts at [...]

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella is moving the companyas HR chief, Kathleen Hogan, into a new role focused on corporate strategy. Announced in an internal memo to Microsoft employees this morning, Hogan will report directly to Nadella and be responsible for strategy and transformation. Hogan has been at Microsoft for more than 20 years and spent [...]

Netflix just announced Spirit Crossing during a press event at GDC 2025. Spirit Crossing represents a first for Netflix, becoming the service's first MMO offering. It was developed by Spry Fox, one of Netflix's in-house game studios, and will launch sometime later this year. Spirit Crossing is described in the press release as a cozy [...]

Netflix is making a big push into video games. The company first dabbled in games with interactive titles like Black Mirror: Bandersnatchand aCarmen Sandiego game. But starting in 2021, it made gaming a much bigger priority - Netflix hired a former EA exec and let people play a selection of mobile games for free as [...]

Andor showrunner Tony Gilroy told Collider he has killed plans to publish the critically acclaimed show's scripts, despite having the 1,500-page collection ready to go, due to fear that the material would become training fodder for artificial intelligence systems. At an Emmy event in 2023, Gilroy announced plans to launch a free website featuring all [...]

Verizon's previously announced satellite messaging service is now available to owners of some Android smartphones, the company said in a statement today. It comes at no extra charge to Verizon customers, though you'll need a Google Pixel 9 or Samsung Galaxy S25 series phone to take advantage of it. The service allows people to send [...]

The European Commission is instructing Apple to make iOS work better with third-party devices like smartwatches and headphones. The Commission adopted two legally binding decisions Tuesday under the Digital Markets Act (DMA), the European competition law that governs large digital gatekeepers. The first decision will give app developers and device manufacturers more access to key [...]

Analogue has released a new firmware update for its Pocket handheld with bug fixes and expanded support for wireless controllers. PocketOS v2.5 - available for download here - fixes an issue with backup save exports for Game Boy and Game Boy Color games, but also introduces a long list of updates for the Pocket's TV [...]

There's a lot of interest in daily puzzle games right now. The New York Times has a great collection of games like its crossword, Wordle, Connections, and Strands. Apple is in the mix with crosswords and more in Apple News Plus. Zach Gage's puzzle gaming platform Puzzmo has some fun twists on classic games and [...]

Last year, GameStop shut down Game Informer, laying off all its staff and putting an end to one of the last remaining video game magazines still published in the United States. But now, cryptic posts on social media hint that the publication may make a return. On Bluesky, the Game Informer account, which had not [...]

Plex is raising the price of its Plex Pass from $4.99 to $6.99 per month and gating a key featurebehind the subscription. Starting April 29th, users who want to stream content from their media server outside their homes - and let other people access it for free - will need a Plex Pass subscription. The [...]

Death. Taxes. All your streaming services getting a little more expensive all the time. These are the new certainties in life, it seems. In recent years, as the streaming TV and movie business has gotten more competitive and companies around Hollywood have thrown billions into building their own platforms and libraries in order to compete [...]

Google is breaking European antitrust laws by favoring its own Shopping, Hotels, and Flights search services over rival comparison providers, according to the European Commission. The EU announced in its preliminary ruling today that Google's parent company, Alphabet, had also violated anti-steering rules under the Digital Markets Act (DMA) by preventing app developers on its [...]

The European Union's Digital Markets Act (DMA) has come into force, and it's meant that some of the world's biggest tech companies are having to make major changes to how they operate. The law, which is designed to increase competition in the EU's digital markets, designates some large online companies and their services as gatekeepers." [...]