The Verge

Smash World Tour organizers claim sabotage could be partially responsible for Nintendo’s decision to shut down the third-party tournament. | Image: Nintendo The Smash World Tour has announced that both the upcoming championship tournament and the 2023 Smash World Tour have been canceled after Nintendo demanded the event organizers cease operations “without any warning.”As reported by Kotaku, the third-party event was one of the largest fighting game competitions in the esports scene. “In 2022 alone, we connected over 6,400 live events worldwide, with over 325,000 in-person entrants, making the Smash World Tour (SWT, or the Tour) the largest esports tour in history, for any game title,” said Smash World Tour in a statement addressing the shutdown. “The Championships would also have had the largest prize pool in Smash history at over $250,000.”

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge DoorDash is laying off around 1,250 workers. The update, posted by DoorDash CEO Tony Xu, explains that the company grew too quickly during the covid pandemic, leading to an increase in operating expenses that could soon “outgrow” the company’s revenue.“While we’ve always been disciplined in how we have managed our business and operational metrics, we were not as rigorous as we should have been in managing our team growth,” Xu writes. “That’s on me. As a result, operating expenses grew quickly ... This hard reality ultimately led me to make this painful decision to reduce our team size.”Xu adds that although DoorDash remained resilient during and after the covid pandemic, the company is not “immune” to the current economic challenges.... Continue reading…

General view of SpaceX headquarters on August 03, 2020 in Los Angeles, California. | Photo by AaronP/Bauer-Griffin/GC Images A former SpaceX engineer published an essay today describing alleged age discrimination he says he experienced while he was at the company. “I saw my work roles gradually transferred to younger engineers who fit the company’s ‘frat bro’ mold,” John Johnson writes in the essay published on the platform Lioness.“In the culture, in the environment of SpaceX, old people are rare. And when I say old people, I mean anyone over 40,” Johnson, who is 62, tells The Verge. In a job interview for his role at SpaceX, Johnson says he was asked whether he’d “be okay” working with young colleagues.“In the culture, in the environment of SpaceX, old people are rare. And when I say old people, I mean anyone over 40.”Over the four years Johnson worked... Continue reading…

Corning claims its Gorilla Glass Victus 2 can keep your phone from cracking in more situations. | Image: Corning When Samsung announces its Galaxy S23 lineup in February, it might have the toughest screens on a smartphone yet — because Corning’s just-announced Gorilla Glass Victus 2 can take a bigger beating than ever. For the first time, Corning is advertising that your phone should be able to survive a one-meter (waist-high) drop on concrete specifically, one of the most notoriously difficult surfaces to protect against.More importantly, Corning claims it’s not making any tradeoffs to get there. Like 2020’s Gorilla Glass Victus, the new glass should still withstand a two-meter (head / selfie height) drop on a smoother asphalt surface, survive over 20 one-meter drops in a row, and shouldn’t be any more susceptible to scratches. (In 2018, we... Continue reading…

Mocopi, a riff on motion capture and “copy”, uses small sensors to control an avatar in virtual reality in real time. | Image: Sony Sony has announced Mocopi, a portable and lightweight motion capture system that can be used to control a digital avatar in real time within metaverse applications like VR Chat. The kit consists of six button-like tracking tags — one for your head, hip, both ankles, and both wrists — that use Bluetooth to pair with an Android or iOS smartphone app to input motion data to compatible services like Unity.The Mocopi sensors measure 32mm (around 1.2 inches) in diameter and weigh just 8g, making them lighter than an Apple AirTag despite being of a similar size. The system is portable thanks to being completely wireless and not requiring a base station, and the trackers can be fully charged in around 90 minutes via the USB-C charging case.... Continue reading…

Alex Castro / The Verge Microsoft is offering Windows 11 users a preview of an update that fixes some gaming performance problems. The software maker originally warned of issues with lower than expected performance in some games earlier this month, after some Windows 11 users that had upgraded to the latest 2022 Update (22H2) noticed problems.“Some games and apps might experience lower than expected performance or stuttering on Windows 11, version 22H2,” said Microsoft at the time. “Affected games and apps are inadvertently enabling GPU performance debugging features not meant to be used by consumers.”While Microsoft didn’t list the exact apps and games experiencing problems, the company did block the Windows 11 2022 Update for systems with affected games and... Continue reading…

Photo by Vjeran Pavic / The Verge Valve’s Steam Deck handheld will start shipping to Japan, Hong Kong, South Korea, and Taiwan on December 17th. Reservations for the handheld PC-meets-console opened up through Komodo in August, and customers who preordered will start receiving requests to finalize orders starting December 1st.The first Steam Deck units in Japan, Hong Kong, South Korea, and Taiwan will start shipping on December 17th, and Valve says delivery times are expected “to vary from a few days to a couple of weeks.”

The recently released OnePlus 10T, which will only get three major OS upgrades. | Photo by Allison Johnson / The Verge OnePlus is committing to a longer support period for some upcoming phones, with an announcement that “select devices launched in 2023 and beyond” will receive four major Android updates and five years of security updates. But a company spokesperson declined to give an on-the-record answer about which of its phones will benefit from this extended support period, meaning it’s unclear whether it’ll just apply to OnePlus’ flagship phones or also the midrange Nord lineup.The length of support OnePlus has given to its phones has historically varied between devices but, in general, has started to lag behind what’s offered by other Android manufacturers. Both the OnePlus 10T and OnePlus 10 Pro are due to get three major OS version upgrades and... Continue reading…

You might have to buy Blue somewhere else. | Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Twitter’s revamped Blue subscription might not be available as an in-app purchase on iOS when it eventually relaunches so that it can dodge Apple’s 30 percent cut of App Store purchases, according to Platformer. When the new Blue was briefly available earlier this month, you could only purchase it through Twitter’s iOS app. But while Elon Musk is publicly tweeting his displeasure with Apple, it appears he wants to avoid having to pay Apple’s fees.Musk had said that the new Blue, which allows people to purchase a blue verification check mark, was set to relaunch on Tuesday after signups were paused following a wave of impersonators. But that launch has been delayed, Platformer says, and The Verge has also heard of the delay from a... Continue reading…

iPhone 14 Pros are a scarce sight these days. | Photo by Allison Johnson / The Verge Apple is on track to ship 20 percent fewer iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max units than expected this quarter due to recent covid lockdown restrictions and labor protests at an iPhone production plant owned by Foxconn. The latest report from analyst Ming-Chi Kuo estimates a shortfall of 15 to 20 million units, far worse than the 6 million units predicted earlier this week. The 14 Pro and Pro Max were already hard to find, and Kuo predicts that mass shipments won’t resume until late December at the earliest.Workers at the massive Foxconn facility have reportedly been forced to live on-site in an attempt to contain a covid outbreak. Protests ensued, with workers citing withheld pay and poor conditions, spurring Foxconn to offer some newly... Continue reading…

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Plus another crypto bankruptcy and Mario movie trailer. Continue reading…

My controller’s joystick broke off. Sure, I’ll take the free brand-new controller, but I really just wanted a replacement plastic part. | Image: Umar Shakir / The Verge It’s a good day when you get a free replacement for something broken. For me, it was a new controller. My old controller had its right joystick snap off in my bag. Despite the protruding nub snapping off, the analog mechanism still worked — so I reached out to the manufacturer for a replacement stick, and instead, they sent me a very nice and very new replacement. The thing is, like Carrie from Sex and the City, I didn’t want a replacement Blueberry iBook, Aiden! I just want my PowerBook fixed.Don’t get me wrong. Of course, I am just as grateful for the replacement as I was for the Thanksgiving turkey I’m still digesting. But my request to customer service wasn’t for a replacement — it was for a part. I inquired again about the part,... Continue reading…

Once again Overwatch 2 is the best in show with its skin design. | Blizzard The inaugural season of Overwatch 2’s battle pass is almost done, with season 2 starting on December 6th. With the new season come a fresh set of skins, a new hero, new map, and a new game mode, all with a Greek mythology flavor that might make you forget about that other god of war. (Unlikely.)The biggest development coming with season 2 is the release of the sexy sentient robot Ramattra. Over the weekend, Blizzard revealed more about his design, abilities, and play style, creating what Blizzard’s calling a “tempo tank,” reflecting his unique ability to change his form and thereby his abilities to fit the flow of battle.Ramattra’s two forms are his regular omnic form and a super-beefy nemesis form that has Ramattra hulk up like... Continue reading…

You could win cash, in-game currency, or even consoles during the two-month-long tournament. | Image: Sony Interactive Entertainment Starting on December 1st, PlayStation gamers will be able to compete in ladder tournaments against other players for clout and prizes. Dubbed the “Win-A-Thon,” the ladder tournaments for the PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5 run from December 1st to January 31st and can be entered via the Events page on each console.Sony seems to be making it deliberately simple to use this feature, giving it some front-and-center attention on the homescreen. After all, new features don’t mean much if you can’t find them (RIP Accolades).

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge It’s a lose-lose situation. While some streamers are losing money by paying to get content on their platforms, others are losing money by distributing it on their own platforms. The result? Price hikes. Continue reading…

Illustration by Samar Haddad / The Verge Are you looking for an efficient and easy way to schedule meetings? Sharing your Google calendar helps you do that by essentially handing that job over to the other party. Others can get a glimpse into your schedule and find a time slot that works for both of you. That leaves you free to do more important things than studying your schedule and sending emails about availability.Even better, it’s a pretty simple and painless process, too, one that we’ll guide you through here so you can start sharing your calendar today.How to share a Google calendar with specific individuals

“Orion reached its maximum distance from Earth during the Artemis I mission when it was 268,563 miles away from our home planet.” — NASA | Image: NASA On Monday, NASA’s Orion spacecraft reached its farthest distance from Earth, clocking in at 268,563 miles away from our planet. This marks the halfway point of the 25.5-day Artemis I mission, and the spacecraft will now continue its orbit around the Moon before heading back toward Earth.“Artemis I has had extraordinary success and has completed a series of history-making events,” NASA administrator Bill Nelson said in a press conference, pointing out that Orion was the first spacecraft designed to carry humans to enter a distant retrograde lunar orbit and that it has surpassed the record for the furthest distance traveled away from Earth by a human-rated spacecraft.During Orion’s orbit around the Moon, which will last about a week, it... Continue reading…

The new SlimBlade Pro. | Image: Kensington Kensington’s new version of its SlimBlade trackball mouse has a big improvement over the original model: wireless connectivity. With the SlimBlade Pro, which Kensington announced on Tuesday, you’ll be able to connect the trackball to your PC or Mac via Bluetooth or with a 2.4GHz wireless dongle (via 9to5Mac).Kensington claims the SlimBlade Pro will be able to get up to four months of battery life on a single charge, so you should be able to use the trackball for quite a while before needing to plug it in. The dongle has a handy storage spot on the bottom of the trackball if you want to keep it out of sight. And if you prefer keeping your mouse or trackball hooked up to your computer all the time, the SlimBlade Pro works with a wired... Continue reading…

A Rolls-Royce AE 2100-A regional aircraft engine converted to perform a hydrogen test at Boscombe Down in the UK. | Image: Rolls-Royce Rolls-Royce and European airline easyJet announced that they’ve successfully tested a hydrogen jet engine — technology the companies hope might eventually help erase aviation’s greenhouse gas emissions. The ground test marks “the world’s first run of a modern aero engine on hydrogen,” Rolls-Royce said in a press release yesterday.Aviation is considered one of the most difficult industries to clean up because it’s much harder to make electric planes than electric vehicles. Batteries charged with renewable solar and wind energy are still too bulky for long flights. So airlines and plane manufacturers are working to develop planes that can run on cleaner fuels like hydrogen, which produces water vapor instead of carbon dioxide when burned.... Continue reading…

YouTube Music’s 2022 recap will highlight your top tracks and artists. | Image; Google The end of the year is fast approaching, which means it’s time for the world’s biggest music streaming services to summarize your listening habits in the most shareable ways possible. First out of the gate this year is YouTube Music’s 2022 Recap feature, launching today.Like last year, the main attraction is the personalized music stats it pulls together, highlighting the artists, songs, music videos, and playlists you’ve most listened to and watched throughout the course of the year. But there are also some new inclusions, including highlights of artists you might have discovered before they blew up and a new “music personality” feature that attempts to analyze your listening habits to deliver a verdict on your “music vibe.”It’ll... Continue reading…

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Twitter will no longer take action against tweets that contain covid misinformation or the accounts that post them. Instead of announcing the change, the platform added a note to the pages that outline its covid misinformation policies, saying, “Effective November 23, 2022, Twitter is no longer enforcing the COVID-19 misleading information policy.”Twitter first introduced these policies in 2020 and began applying labels to tweets that contained disputed information about covid and its vaccines. The platform also removed tweets that contained “demonstrably false or potentially misleading content” and permanently suspended accounts if they continuously broke the rules. According to data posted by Twitter, the company suspended a total of... Continue reading…

Portal, the first-person puzzle game that spawned a thousand memes, is getting a glow-up on December 8th, courtesy of a free piece of DLC. Portal with RTX was originally announced alongside Nvidia’s new RTX 4080 and 4090 graphics cards and adds ray-tracing support along with remade hi-res textures and models to the game. The result is much more realistic lighting and reflections, making the 15-year-old title look almost brand new.Nvidia says the DLC was created with RTX Remix, its new modding platform that’s designed to make it easier to add support for modern technologies like ray tracing, enhanced materials, and DLSS to classic titles. Portal with RTX supports DLSS 3, the latest version of Nvidia’s AI upscaling technology, which is... Continue reading…

The M2-powered MacBook Air is on sale. | Photo by Becca Farsace / The Verge Times are hard, and if you’ve been stressing about how you’re going to afford a good gift this holiday season, it’s understandable. Thankfully, Cyber Monday offers one of the best (and last) opportunities to save big before the holidays. As we highlighted in our guide to the best Cyber Monday deals, we’re seeing some steep discounts on some of the newest and most popular products, including the new AirPods Pro and LG’s latest C2 OLED. There are also deals still available that won’t absolutely destroy your budget — like those on the new fifth-gen Echo Dot and even a year of Hulu.Below, we’ve curated a guide to some of the best deals on presents you can still get. Many of these are taken right from our various holiday gift guides as... Continue reading…

Photo by Chris Welch / The Verge Whether you’re shopping for yourself or trying to come through with an amazing gift for someone else, Black Friday and Cyber Monday are great opportunities to pick up the latest wireless earbuds and headphones. Some of this year’s best models from Apple, Samsung, Sony, Bose, Beats, and others have now been on the market for a few months and seeing their first big discounts. Meanwhile, old favorites are hitting all-time lows.You can expect most of the deals to continue through Cyber Monday; we’ll be keeping an eye on this list and updating it with notable new discounts as they pop up.The best Cyber Monday deals on Apple AirPods