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by Sean Hollister on (#5YBE2)
Photo by James Bareham / The Verge I thought it was really strange when Apple kept selling the original $299 HomePod months after it got discontinued. But now, it’s starting to make sense — not only are some people still willing to pay a premium for the somewhat smart speaker, they’re willing to pay more than Apple charged for it.We took a look at eBay sales numbers after spotting 9to5Mac editor-in-chief Chance Miller’s tweet, and we soon discovered it wasn’t just a joke: on average, an Apple HomePod fetched $375 this past week. That’s 25 percent more than Apple charged.Of course, some HomePods are worth more than others — a used speaker with no box might only net you $220 before eBay fees, but we’ve seen a few factory sealed non-refurbished HomePods sell for over... Continue reading…
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The Verge
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| Updated | 2025-11-11 12:48 |
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by Mitchell Clark on (#5YBE3)
And it may not be in a notch. | Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Apple’s next iPhones could have an improved selfie camera, with autofocus capabilities and a wider aperture, according to a prediction by well-known analyst Ming-Chi Kuo. Unlike Apple’s current fixed-focus design, an autofocus-enabled front-facing camera could let the iPhone 14 take clearer pictures even if you’re closer or further away from the camera. A wider aperture — Kuo predicts f/1.9 vs. the iPhone 13’s f/2.2 — would add a touch of background blur and let in more light, making it slightly better for nighttime selfies or FaceTime portrait mode.Kuo and others have predicted that Apple will be getting rid of the notch on the iPhone 14 Pro, instead opting for a hole-punch design. While that does mean that Apple would have to fit the... Continue reading…
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by Mitchell Clark on (#5YBC0)
Ads could be coming to Netflix in the next few years. | Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge After years of rejecting calls for an ad-supported streaming tier, Netflix co-founder and co-CEO Reed Hastings said on Tuesday’s earnings call that the company is “quite open to offering even lower prices with advertising, as a consumer choice.”Apparently, the company is now looking into the option and “trying to figure out over the next year or two.” Hastings admits that introducing an ad-supported tier would be a big change in thinking for the company, saying that he’s historically been “against the complexity of advertising and a big fan of the simplicity of subscription.”Hastings now pitches the idea of an ad-supported tier as something that “makes a lot of sense” for “consumers who would like to have a lower price and are... Continue reading…
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by Sean Hollister on (#5YBC1)
In 2008, the fast-talking expletive-spewing video game reviewer Yahtzee of Zero Punctuation coined the phrase “The Glorious PC Gaming Master Race,” joking about how snobbish PC gamers allegedly looked down upon their “dirty console playing peasant” counterparts. (I remember it being quite funny at the time.)Then, something unfortunate happened: the PC gaming community decided to brand itself that way. “PC Gaming Master Race” became the community’s biggest subreddit, and in 2014, some guy also decided he’d use it to sell mousepads, mice, and keyboards to people, Nazi-era connotations be damned.Some guy has now realized the error of his ways — and so his company, “Glorious PC Gaming Race,” is ditching the name. It’s just “Glorious” now;... Continue reading…
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by Emma Roth on (#5YBC2)
Governor Kevin Stitt is bound by a non-disclosure agreement, preventing him from revealing the company’s name. | Photo by SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images Governor Kevin Stitt of Oklahoma called on lawmakers to approve an enormous financial incentives package that’s supposed to coax an unnamed company with ties to the electric vehicle (EV) industry to the state, according to a report from Fortune and local media outlet News 9. A non-disclosure agreement barred Governor Stitt from revealing the name of the company and the amount of money pledged to the package — but there’s good reason to believe that this company may be Panasonic.“Tens of billions of dollars are going to be invested over the next five to seven years in this space, and we want Oklahoma to be the spot that these folks land,” Governor Stitt said in a press conference. “But I’ll tell you this, if I don’t get it passed, it’s... Continue reading…
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by Jay Peters on (#5YBAJ)
Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Chris Novak, Xbox’s head of research and design who has been at Microsoft for nearly 20 years, is leaving the company, he announced Tuesday on LinkedIn. In his current role, which he’s had for more than five years, he led the user experience for things like Xbox Game Pass, Xbox Cloud Gaming, and Xbox Live, according to his LinkedIn. At Microsoft, he also held the roles of design architect and design director.“I have loved my time with Xbox,” Novak said in a post on LinkedIn. “Building end-to-end experiences for gamers is a privilege. There are very few things one gets to work on in life which evoke such passion in people around the world. I adore listening to gamers and envisioning that next moment of unexpected delight. Gaming is... Continue reading…
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by Nicole Wetsman on (#5YB8S)
Photo by Rolf Vennenbernd/picture alliance via Getty Images Blood tests that screen pregnant people for signs of genetic abnormalities run the risk of giving people false or misleading information, the Food and Drug Administration warned Tuesday. The agency put out a safety communication stressing that the widely used tests, often called noninvasive prenatal tests (NIPTs), aren’t cleared or approved by a regulatory body.These tests often screen for rare genetic conditions in developing fetuses. But they’re just screening tests, the FDA said in a statement, and a positive result does not guarantee a fetus has a genetic condition. “We strongly urge patients to discuss the benefits and risks of these tests with a genetic counselor or other health care provider prior to making decisions based on... Continue reading…
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by David Pierce on (#5YB8T)
When Google launched Nearby Share in 2020, Android users everywhere rejoiced. They finally had a tool to rival Apple’s AirDrop, a simple way to move files between devices without having to attach them to an email or upload them to Google Drive just to download them again on a new device.Now, ahead of Google I/O, a few users have noticed an upgrade lurking in Google Play Services that makes Nearby Share even easier. The new “self-share” mode, as spotted by Esper’s Mishaal Rahman (via Android Police), appears to let you send files between your own devices with a single tap. The feature has been rumored for months but now appears to be much closer to being ready.
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by Andrew J. Hawkins on (#5YB8V)
Photo by Becca Farsace / The Verge Tesla is asking a judge to delay a lawsuit filed by California’s civil rights agency that accuses the company of racial discrimination and harassment at its factory in Fremont, California.In a filing in state court in Oakland, Tesla revealed that it is also being investigated by a different civil rights agency into similar allegations, accusing both agencies of conducting a “turf war.” The news was first reported by Reuters.Last February, the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing (DFEH) filed a lawsuit against Tesla in which it accuses the company of operating a “racially segregated” workplace.Tesla revealed it is also being investigated by the US Equal Employment Opportunity CommissionIn its court filing this week,... Continue reading…
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by Jay Peters on (#5YB8W)
Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Netflix announced in March that it plans to crack down on password sharing, and in its first quarter earnings letter to shareholders (pdf), it gave a big clue as to why.
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by Mitchell Clark on (#5YB6V)
Fruit Stand Workers United is organizing at Apple’s Grand Central Terminal location. | Photo by Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images Fruit Stand Workers United, the union attempting to organize Apple’s Grand Central Terminal store, says that if its drive succeeds it plans on pushing for a $30 an hour minimum wage for the location’s employees (via CNBC). The union updated its website on Monday with its goals, including the wage increase, health and safety research, and better education and retirement benefits.A $30 minimum wage means that a full-time employee would start off making roughly $62,000 a year. The union also wants pay calculated using a “matrix based on role, tenure, and performance.”Fruit Stand Workers United says it also wants to negotiate for increases in vacation time accrual, 401(k) matching rates, and tuition reimbursement as well as more options... Continue reading…
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by Chris Welch on (#5YB6W)
Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Netflix’s struggle to boost its subscriber count took a dire turn in the first quarter of 2022. The company reported a loss of 200,000 subscribers globally compared to Q4, and it’s forecasting even bigger losses to come. Netflix estimates it could lose up to 2 million subscribers in the second quarter.“Our revenue growth has slowed considerably,” Netflix acknowledged in its letter to shareholders. “Covid clouded the picture by significantly increasing our growth in 2020, leading us to believe that most of our slowing growth in 2021 was due to the Covid pull forward.” Netflix ended the quarter with roughly 222 million subscribers, so it’s still the largest streamer — but it’s facing a slew of challenges.In January, Netflix announced... Continue reading…
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by Jay Peters on (#5YB4P)
Photo by John Keeble/Getty Images The Pokémon Company has acquired Millennium Print Group, a company that prints cards for the hugely popular Pokémon Trading Card Game. Millennium Print Group has been working with The Pokémon Company since 2015.“With this acquisition, The Pokémon Company International aims to further develop Millennium Print Group’s capabilities, infrastructure, and scale to become a premier printer of trading cards, serving the broader industry,” The Pokémon Company said in a press release. “Millennium Print Group will continue to operate as a separate, autonomous organization, but will gain both investment and industry expertise from The Pokémon Company International.”Pokémon cards have been very popular during the pandemic, with The Pokémon Company... Continue reading…
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by Ash Parrish on (#5YB29)
Blizzard Entertainment World of Warcraft is bringing back the dragons. In a livestream, World of Warcraft developers announced Dragonflight, WoW’s ninth expansion in 18 years.Dragonflight will focus on the return of the Dragon Aspects, the magical guardians of Azeroth who disappeared after the events of the Cataclysm expansion 12 years ago. Players will journey to the mysterious and heretofore hidden Dragon Isles to explore five zones, each themed after one of the five dragon aspects. Dragonflight will also add a new race / class combo called Dracthyr Evokers, a race of draconic humanoids (think the Worgen from Wrath of the Lich King) with ranged damage and healing powers related to the Dragon Aspects. Unlike the Worgen, however, Dracthyr can only be the... Continue reading…
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by Monica Chin on (#5YB2A)
I didn’t want to get rid of this handy left-hand search bar either. | Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge If you’re like me and are using an old-school desktop PC, you probably haven’t been able to install Windows 11. You may also still be running Windows 10 if you’re a business user with a workflow still optimized for Windows 10 or a leisure user who just prefers it. Motives aside, there are a lot of us. And, fortunately, we now have an update available.Windows 10 version 21H2 is now available for broad deployment according to Microsoft (first spotted by Neowin). If you’re not an IT administrator, the changes in this update likely won’t be too interesting to you. It’s stuff like “GPU compute support for the Windows subsystem for Linux (WSL)” and “Wi-Fi WPA3-Personal H2E support.” If you are an IT administrator, Microsoft has an article... Continue reading…
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by Victoria Song on (#5YAZR)
Apple introduced blood oxygen readings on the Series 6. | Vjeran Pavic / The Verge If you’ve been hunting for a new smartwatch, you’ve probably come across the terms SpO2 sensors, pulse ox, or blood oxygen levels. SpO2 sensors measure your blood oxygen saturation — or, put more simply, the amount of oxygen you have in your blood. In fact, these sensors and metrics are included in most modern smartwatches and fitness trackers. The only issue is that not every wearables maker uses these sensors in the same way.Some smartwatches measure your SpO2 passively as you sleep while others will let you take a direct measurement. But don’t worry, we’ll get into what SpO2 sensors are, how they work, and their limitations. We’ll also dive into how to set up SpO2 measurements on some of the more popular wearables that support this... Continue reading…
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by Jay Peters on (#5YAZS)
Assassin’s Creed Origins is set in Ancient Egypt. | Image: Ubisoft Ubisoft’s Assassin’s Creed Origins (the one set in Ancient Egypt) is headed to Xbox Game Pass, Microsoft’s Megan Spurr said in a blog post on Tuesday. Spurr said the game will arrive sometime “in the next two months” and will be available to play on console, over cloud streaming, and on PC via the Ubisoft Connect app.We’ve asked Ubisoft if it can share a more specific date for when we might expect the game. Microsoft spokesperson Autumn Fox said the company doesn’t have additional information to share beyond what’s in the blog post.Ubisoft has a few other games on Game Pass already, including Rainbow Six: Extraction, which was available on Game Pass the same day the game was released in January. Ubisoft also plans to bring its... Continue reading…
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by Adi Robertson on (#5YAZT)
Meta Meta is updating its mixed reality hand tracking system with support for more types of motion, including gestures like clapping. A new version of its Presence Platform API is launching for everyone after a limited preview with a few developers, promising more sophisticated and reliable interactions on the Meta (formerly Oculus) Quest headset.The Presence Platform update is designed to improve Quest hand tracking — which uses cameras mounted in the headset to replace the default hardware controllers — across the board. In addition to general reliability updates, it focuses on recognizing movement when part of your hand is blocked from the camera’s view. It’s now supposed to catch clapping, high-fives, crossed hands, and other gestures... Continue reading…
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by Mitchell Clark on (#5YAZV)
Photo by Camilo Freedman/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images Delta CEO Ed Bastian said the airline has tested out SpaceX’s Starlink technology, according to a report by The Wall Street Journal. The report calls the tests “exploratory” and says there weren’t any further details, but it does seem like one of the major US airlines is at least interested in Elon Musk’s satellite internet service.In July last year, SpaceX said it was “in talks with several” airlines and that it was trying to “get that product finalized to be put on aircraft in the very near future.” A few months before that, the company sought FCC approval to provide service to moving vehicles such as planes, boats, and trucks. (CEO Elon Musk has said the equipment is currently too big to put on passenger cars, though that hasn’t... Continue reading…
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by Nicole Wetsman on (#5YAZW)
Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) officially launched a new center that will forecast infectious disease outbreaks. The Center for Forecasting and Outbreak Analytics is “the equivalent of the National Weather Service for infectious diseases,” the agency said in a statement Tuesday.Along with experts in data analytics and disease modeling, the center will also have communications specialists on staff to interpret the information for the public.Planning for the center began last August. It attempts to correct some of the major deficiencies the COVID-19 pandemic revealed in the United States’ public health infrastructure. The CDC has never had a dedicated infectious disease forecasting program, and it has spent the... Continue reading…
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by Justine Calma on (#5YAZX)
At the Material Recovery Lab in Austin, Texas, engineers and experts use a pilot-scale industrial electronics shredder for research and development. Apple’s newest recycling machine, Taz, was developed out of this process, designed to help conventional bulk electronics recyclers recover more precious materials. | Image: Apple Apple products contained almost 20 percent recycled materials in 2021, the highest percentage the company has achieved to date. Apple shared new details on its recycling programs today, along with some new features it’s offering customers ahead of Earth Day on April 22nd.In a first for any Apple device, recycled gold was used in the plating of the main logic board in the iPhone 13 and iPhone13 Pro, as well as in wire in the device’s front camera and rear cameras. That “milestone,” Apple says, was the result of the company “pioneer[ing] industry-leading levels of traceability to build a gold supply chain of exclusively recycled content.”A first for any Apple deviceThat builds on the company’s previous efforts to retrieve gold from... Continue reading…
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by Ash Parrish on (#5YAXP)
Photo by Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images for BAFTA LA Amy Hennig’s new video game studio is working on a Star Wars game. In a press release, Skydance New Media wrote it is working in “collaboration with Lucasfilm Games to develop and produce a richly cinematic action-adventure game featuring an original story in the legendary Star Wars galaxy.”Skydance New Media, a video game offshoot of the Skydance movie production company, was formed in 2018 with former EA and Naughty Dog creative director Amy Hennig as its president. Ironically, Hennig was already working on a Star Wars title at EA before leaving the company in 2018.“I’m not doing anything Star Wars,” Hennig told Eurogamer in an interview about her departure from EA.It is not yet known if this game is the same as the one Hennig was... Continue reading…
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by Mia Sato on (#5YATW)
Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Spotify is shutting down its live audio app creator fund without much fanfare, the company told applicants in an email on Monday. Greenroom (now called Spotify Live) launched last June as a Clubhouse competitor, where users stream live conversations with celebrities, influencers, and other creators. The fund, announced in tandem with the live audio app, was meant to lure in creators through weekly payouts based on performance.In an email obtained by The Verge, Spotify tells people who had registered to the fund that the program would not be moving forward. “We plan to shift toward other initiatives for live creators,” the company writes. Spotify didn’t offer an explanation for the change in plans and did not immediately respond on the... Continue reading…
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by Loren Grush on (#5YATX)
The planet Uranus, seen from Voyager 2. | Image: NASA/JPL-Caltech The space science community thinks the time is ripe to study Uranus in depth — and they’re being serious. A new report compiled by planetary scientists from across the United States says that sending an interplanetary probe to study the ice giant planet should be considered the top priority for planetary exploration over the next decade.Specifically, scientists are calling on NASA to create the Uranus Orbiter and Probe, or UOP. The mission concept would send a spacecraft into orbit around Uranus, along with a probe that would plunge into the planet’s atmosphere. Scientists envision such a mission launching sometime in the early 2030s as long as engineers get started on it as soon as next year.If it works, the UOP mission could provide... Continue reading…
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by Emma Roth on (#5YATY)
Nitecore’s UFZ100 is compatible with an array of Sony cameras. | Image: Nitecore The Nitecore UFZ100 camera battery is here to release photographers from Sony’s proprietary grasp — a built-in USB-C charging port lets you power it up using the same hardware as many of your other devices (via Gizmodo). It hasn't been officially released yet, but you can use the battery with the Sony A7 III, A7R III, A7R IV, A7S III, A9 (ILCE-9), A9 II, A6600, A7C, A1, FX3, and A7 IV, saving you from lugging around a separate charger if you want to bring along (and charge) an extra battery on a shoot.As Gizmodo points out, the battery has a slightly smaller capacity than its proprietary equivalent, with the Sony NP-FZ100 coming with a 2,280mAh capacity and the Nitecore UFZ100 featuring 2,250mAh. In terms of charging times, Nitecore’s... Continue reading…
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by Nilay Patel on (#5YAR9)
Photo Illustration by The Verge A plan to revive US manufacturing gone wrong Continue reading…
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by Andrew J. Hawkins on (#5YARA)
Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images A number of transportation providers, including Uber, Amtrak, and all three major airlines, said they wouldn’t require employees or customers to wear masks anymore after a federal judge struck down the Biden administration’s mask mandate.On Monday, US District Judge Kathryn Kimball Mizelle ruled that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention does not have the authority to introduce a mask mandate and did not follow the proper rules to implement a mandate. The Biden administration said it was weighing whether to appeal the ruling. (The mask mandate for air travel and public transportation was set to expire April 18th but was recently extended to May 3rd.)many private transportation providers aren’t waiting for the White House’s... Continue reading…
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by Amanda Chicago Lewis on (#5YARB)
Illustrations by Emily Lopez for The Verge As the world shut down in March 2020, anxious knowledge workers barricaded themselves at home, scrubbing produce with soap. Fear sometimes manifested as altruism: checking on neighbors, organizing mutual aid. But the crisis also prompted cynics to root around for new loopholes to exploit, for ways to raise prices, feign hardship, get a rent reduction, slack off. For every person who spent that spring self-soothing with Animal Crossing or struggling to manage small children, there was someone else out there thinking, “How can I take advantage of the chaos?” This is a story about one of those people.You see, freaking out was for normies. In the early days of the pandemic, a true hustler smelled opportunity, and Hiam Kaplan is a true... Continue reading…
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by Antonio G. Di Benedetto on (#5Y9ST)
Sony PlayStation 5 restocks are still trickling in. | Photo by Vjeran Pavic / The Verge It’s time for another chance to buy the most sought-after console currently on the market: Sony’s PlayStation 5. Walmart once again has a restock of PS5 consoles coming up for Walmart Plus subscribers. The members-only drop is scheduled for today, April 19th, at 12PM ET / 9AM PT, and it’s set to include both the disc-based PS5 for $499 and the PS5 Digital Edition for $399. You’ll need a paid Walmart Plus account to get a crack at either one (no free trials allowed), and while the premium subscription costs $98 annually, you can subscribe for just one month for $12.95 to try your hand at a PS5.We’ve been through this drill at Walmart many times before, and while nobody likes paying extra for access to purchase a console, the retail giant... Continue reading…
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by Sean Hollister on (#5YANM)
The cards in this photo are now worth $1,569 — down from $2,605 last March. | Photo by Sean Hollister / The Verge For nearly two years, netting a PS5, Xbox Series X, or AMD Radeon and Nvidia RTX graphics cards without paying a fortune has been a matter of luck (or a lot of skill). At its peak, scalpers were successfully charging double or even triple MSRP for a modern GPU. But it’s looking like the great GPU shortage is nearly over.In January, sites including Tom’s Hardware reported that prices were finally beginning to drop, and drop they did; they’ve now dropped an average of 30 percent in the three months since. On eBay, the most popular graphics cards are only commanding a street price of $200–$300 over MSRP. And while that might still seem like a lot, some have fallen further: used Nvidia RTX 3080 Ti or AMD RX 6900 XT are currently fetching l... Continue reading…
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by Andrew Webster on (#5YANN)
While many big games have been delayed recently, Xenoblade Chronicles 3 is moving in the opposite direction: Nintendo announced that the sci-fi RPG will now launch on July 29th instead of the previously planned September release. No specific reason was given for the change. The game will be a Nintendo Switch exclusive.Xenoblade Chronicles 3 will be the first main game in the series since its predecessor debuted on the Switch in 2017 and Nintendo first announced it earlier this year as part of the February 2022 Nintendo Direct. Like the rest of the series, the new game takes place in an expansive sci-fi universe; in addition to the release date, Nintendo also revealed a new trailer (embedded above) to further tease the story and world.T... Continue reading…
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by Sheena Vasani on (#5YANP)
Apple’s 14-inch MacBook Pro is down to $1,749.99 at Amazon, a price you’ll see at checkout. | Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge Somehow, we’ve reached the middle of April, which means graduation for the class of 2022 is just around the corner (congrats in advance). If you’re looking for a pricey-yet-practical gift, Apple’s newest 14-inch MacBook Pro would certainly be a welcome present. It’s an especially good one to consider today now that this model is on sale for just $1 shy of its best price to date. Right now, Amazon is selling the M1 Pro-powered MacBook Pro with 16GB of RAM and 512GB of SSD for $1,749.99 ($200 off). Note, however, that the current discounted price applies at checkout.We gave the latest 14-inch MacBook Pro, which can be configured with either Apple’s new M1 Pro or M1 Max processor, a rare 9.5 out of 10 in our review. We were impressed with... Continue reading…
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by The Verge Staff on (#5YANQ)
Illustration by Melissa Mathieson / The Verge A big part of imagining the future is picturing what we’ll bring with us from the present. Some things will stubbornly cling to us — like a produce sticker refusing to be composted. But other visions of the future will take a bit more work to manifest. During The Verge’s Conservation Week, we’re looking at the efforts of people who want to bring different worlds into being: whether that’s a forested future, thanks to tree-planting drones; a wildlife-filled future fueled by AI-backed research; or even a future where the world’s first MMO is still online. Along the way, meet a sustainability scientist using TikTok to fight climate doom, a group of fans fighting to preserve an early virtual world, and a community trying to maintain a more... Continue reading…
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by Jennifer Pattison Tuohy on (#5YANS)
The Wyze Lock Bolt is a $70 smart lock with fingerprint and keypad access. | Image: Wyze Wyze’s latest product is something of a departure for the smart home company. The Wyze Lock Bolt is a smart lock that ditches cloud connectivity in favor of local control over Bluetooth. A rectangular matte black keypad with a fingerprint reader, the Wyze Lock Bolt replaces your entire deadbolt and costs $69.99 (plus $10 shipping), in keeping with Wyze’s reputation for high-level tech at rock bottom prices. The lack of an internet connection may be a wise move for Wyze right now, considering the recent controversy around the company’s failure to disclose a security flaw with its original cloud-connected Wyze Cam.Available starting today, the Wyze Lock Bolt is a motorized deadbolt that can be unlocked with your fingerprint or with a... Continue reading…
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by Allison Johnson on (#5YANR)
The OnePlus N20 5G offers an OLED panel and a 64-megapixel main rear camera. | Image: OnePlus OnePlus is bringing a new Nord device to the US: the N20 5G will arrive at T-Mobile starting April 28th for $282. It will be exclusively available through the carrier, at least at first. The N20 5G, like the N10 5G that preceded it, includes a Snapdragon 600-series chipset, 128GB of storage, 6GB of RAM, and — naturally — 5G connectivity. It’s a step up from the more basic N200 5G — also sold at T-Mobile — and it comes with a notable screen upgrade to an OLED rather than last year’s LCD panel.That 6.4-inch screen features 1080p resolution and a standard 60Hz refresh rate. That’s a slower rate than the N10 5G’s 90Hz panel, but that screen was an LCD — typically not as rich and contrast-y as an OLED. In that way, the N20 5G is an upgrade,... Continue reading…
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by Jasmine Hicks on (#5YANT)
Illustration by Melissa Mathieson / The Verge Alaina Wood discusses her content and how climate doom impacts mental health Continue reading…
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by Ash Parrish on (#5YAKE)
Illustration by Melissa Mathieson / The Verge Habitat, the world’s first MMO developed for the Commodore 64 personal computer, went offline in 1992. It came back online in 2017 through the efforts of MADE, the Museum of Art and Digital Entertainment.Founded by Alex Handy in 2011, MADE “seeks to legitimize the preservation of video games as both a historic and artistic medium within the context of our time.” To that end, MADE amassed a collection of working video game consoles and a library of old games for patrons to play.“We do exhibits, we do preservation activities to preserve old systems, old code, and old games,” Alex Handy told The Verge via Zoom.But what’s exactly involved in bringing an MMO back from the dead? A generous donation, a lot of luck, and an absurd amount of... Continue reading…
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by James Vincent on (#5YAHE)
A screenshot from Jet Set Radio HD. Sega has reportedly started work on big-budget reboots of two cult titles: Crazy Taxi and Jet Set Radio. According to a report from Bloomberg citing “people familiar with its plans,” the Japanese game giant wants to create new games that can become global hits like Fortnite and deliver recurring revenue.Fortnite, of course, has built its success on a number of attributes. It’s cross-platform, free-to-play, and generates money for publisher Epic Games through the use of cosmetic micro-transactions. Bloomberg doesn’t state that Sega is following this mold exactly, but it’s hard to know how you’d create a Fornite-like hit without ... replicating Fornite’s key traits.Sega wants to reboot old games to boost flagging video game revenueV... Continue reading…
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by Andrew J. Hawkins on (#5YAHF)
Audi completed its luxury concept car triptych with the unveiling of the Urbansphere, a massive, fully autonomous people mover that somehow manages to be entirely too large for the streets it’s designed to travel.Audi says the Urbansphere was designed “for use in traffic-dense Chinese megacities, although the concept is also suitable for any other metropolitan center in the world.” And yet the vehicle’s staggering size — a whole two feet longer than the 2022 Cadillac Escalade — practically disqualify it from being driven on any city street, regardless of country of origin.Its minivan-esque appearance in the renderings is misleadingIts minivan-esque appearance in the renderings is misleading, based on the numbers provided by Audi.... Continue reading…
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by James Vincent on (#5YAFJ)
Photo by Natt Garun / The Verge Amazon has been ordered to reinstate an employee unlawfully fired by the company two years ago for his involvement in safety protests at a Staten Island warehouse.Gerald Bryson was protesting outside the Amazon facility known as JFK8 on April 6th 2020, when he got into an argument with an employee on a break. Court filings (which include transcripts of the incident taken from videos as appendixes B and C) show that both Bryson and the employee used profanities and insults against one another. Bryson said Amazon should shut down the warehouse for failing to adequately protect workers against COVID-19, while the employee replied “it’s the only fucking job open so appreciate it.”Amazon fired Bryson for abusive language, but not the other... Continue reading…
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by Andrew J. Hawkins on (#5YAFK)
On Tuesday, Mercedes-Benz unveiled the EQS SUV, an all-electric seven-seater that shares a platform with the automaker’s recently released luxury EQS sedan. With an estimated range of 373 miles (600 km), the Mercedes-Benz EQS SUV will go toe to toe with the Tesla Model X and BMW iX when it goes on sale in the US later this year.Mercedes isn’t releasing pricing information yet, but the SUV is expected to retail for $110,000 to $130,000, depending on the trim level. It will be the German automaker’s first electric SUV to reach the US after the EQC SUV’s release was delayed indefinitely.In many respects, the EQS SUV is simply a larger EQS: same 56-inch, pillar-to-pillar Hyperscreen (for the higher trim level), same 107.8kWh battery,... Continue reading…
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by Cameron Faulkner on (#5YAB0)
Only the graphite-colored model pictured here is available in both left and right-handed options. | Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge Logitech has announced Lift, a $69.99 wireless vertical mouse that’s launching today in multiple colorways, as well as with both right- and left-handed options. The Lift features a vertically oriented design that puts your hand at a 57-degree angle for better ergonomics. Compared to using a traditional mouse, using mice like the Lift may help to greatly reduce wrist strain since you’re holding your wrist at a similar angle to shaking someone’s hand. At least, that’s what I experienced. Last year, I made the shift to a split ergonomic keyboard, and a mouse like the Lift completes the setup.For those keeping track, the Lift isn’t quite as fully featured as the pricier $99.99 MX Vertical, but it could be a good starting option if you don’t... Continue reading…
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by Kim Lyons on (#5Y9JZ)
Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images As millions of Americans file their 2021 income taxes online today, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) is demanding answers from Intuit about its popular TurboTax e-filing product.In a letter to Intuit CEO Sasan K. Goodarzi, Warren says the company has used “extensive lobbying and adroit influence peddling” to prevent Americans from filing their taxes for free online.The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) filed suit against Intuit in March for deceptive marketing, an action Warren calls “both welcome and long overdue.” Reps. Brad Sherman (D-CA) and Katie Porter (D-CA) also signed onto the letter.“scamming taxpayers into paying for services that should be free”Many of Warren’s complaints center on the Free File program, an IRS partnership... Continue reading…
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by Jay Peters on (#5YA4P)
Image: Netflix The third “volume” of Netflix’s science fiction anthology series Love, Death, and Robots will debut on May 20th. The company announced the release on Monday with a short video — though don’t be fooled by the footage of The Crown and The Queen’s Gambit at the beginning. The streaming service teased that a third volume was on the way when it announced Volume 2 almost exactly one year ago, but only gave a vague “2022” release at the time.In the video, Netflix didn’t specify how many episodes would be included with the new season. Volume 1 had 18 episodes, while Volume 2 had eight, and according to a report from IGN last year, there will be eight episodes in the third volume as well. We’ve reached out to Netflix to see if that’s still the... Continue reading…
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by Loren Grush on (#5YA4Q)
Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge This evening, Vice President Kamala Harris is announcing that the United States will no longer conduct anti-satellite, or ASAT, missile tests — the practice of using ground-based missiles to destroy satellites in orbit around Earth. Harris is challenging other countries to make the same commitment and establish this policy as a new “norm of responsible behavior in space.”Harris will speak more extensively on the new commitment during a speech at Vandenberg Space Force Base in California this evening. Harris currently serves as the chair of the White House’s National Space Council, an executive advisory group that helps to set the nation’s space agenda.This declaration comes five months after Russia conducted an ASAT test in November.... Continue reading…
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by Richard Lawler on (#5YA3C)
Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales Odd issues have popped up following software updates Google’s released for its latest flagship phones frequently enough for us to look into why Android 12 has been so buggy for certain phones. Now some Pixel owners report that their phones are failing to complete a fairly basic task — ringing when there’s an incoming call.Unlike the issue with notification vibrations suddenly changing without explanation, this isn’t something we’ve been able to confirm. However, posts on Reddit (via Android Central and Phone Arena) and Google’s support forums describe issues where some incoming calls seem to be silently rejected, sending the caller directly to voicemail.
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by Emma Roth on (#5YA2H)
A movie based on the classic Streets of Rage game series is in the works, according to a report from Deadline. John Wick creator Derek Kolstad reportedly wrote the script on spec (without a studio deal), while the production company behind the Sonic the Hedgehog films will produce the adaption. Escape Artists, the studio behind The Equalizer franchise, is also on board to produce the film, Deadline reports.Streets of Rage was first released for the SEGA Genesis back in 1991, with Streets of Rage 2 and 3 launching on its heels in 1992 and 1994. In each game, you play as badass vigilantes punching the crap out of villains polluting the streets of the city. The fourth installment of the side-scrolling beat-’em-up came out in 2020, 26... Continue reading…
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by Jay Peters on (#5YA2J)
Photo by David Livingston/FilmMagic The years-in-the-making Minecraft movie from Warner Bros. might be one step closer to becoming a reality, as Jason Momoa, who you might know as Aquaman, is in “final negotiations” to star, according to Substack publication The Ankler, The Hollywood Reporter, and Variety. However, it still seems the movie might be a long way from actually hitting theaters, though, as neither THR or Variety provided a projected release date. Warner Bros. didn’t immediately reply to a request for comment.The Minecraft movie has hit a few blocks (buh-dum tish) over the past several years. The movie was first announced in 2014, and months later, Night at the Museum and Free Guy director Shawn Levy was reportedly set to direct. But in 2015, Rob McElhenney,... Continue reading…
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by Emma Roth on (#5YA10)
Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Today I learned (TIL) there’s an 83-page FBI “guide” to internet slang filled with abbreviations entered either by a complete troll or someone totally clueless, as recently reported by Input. And yes, TIL is actually included in the guide, but so are thousands of other abbreviations that I’m convinced someone just made up. Because no one actually uses BTDTGTTSAWIO (been there, done that, got the T-shirt and wore it out) ...right?As Input points out, the FBI’s guide was made available through a 2014 Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request. If you decide to check it out, you should know it’s in pretty crappy quality, but it’s still readable for the most part. The Verge actually reported on this back when it was first released; it... Continue reading…
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by Charles Pulliam-Moore on (#5YA11)
Jane Foster gripping the hilt of Mjolnir. | Marvel Studios Though it’s very much felt as if Mjolnir’s days of being important in the Marvel Cinematic Universe were over, Thor: Love and Thunder is set to bring the magical weapon back and put it in the hands of Natalie Portman’s Jane Foster. In her brief appearance in the movie’s first trailer, Jane’s new armor and ability to call a reformed Mjolnir to her suggests that she, along with Chris Hemsworth’s Odinson, will bear “Thor” as a title, a concept explored in Marvel’s The Mighty Thor comics from writer Jason Aaron and artist Russell Dauterman.Thor: Love and Thunder tells the story of how the original Thor is pulled out of his adventurous but relatively chill retirement by the arrival of Gorr the God Butcher (Christian Bale), a killer on an... Continue reading…
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