The Verge

Huawei has posted another teaser for its upcoming Mate X2 folding phone on Weibo, offering the strongest hint yet that it’ll move away from the original Mate X’s design. The first Mate X, announced in 2019 and refreshed in 2020, had a single large screen that folded in half so that the display was on the outside of the device. The follow-up phone, however, looks like it’ll fold the other way, more like Samsung’s Galaxy Folds.Making reference to a new design for the Mate X2, the teaser image shows the phone from the side open at an angle, with a glow on the inside of the hinge. The picture is also a reference to the timing of the event, which will take place at 8PM China time (7AM ET) on February 22nd.Here’s the full teaser image: ... Continue reading…

Photo by Brennan King / The Verge Samsung has announced that its latest One UI 3.1 software update is rolling out to some of its older phones. The update will trickle down some of the Galaxy S21 lineup’s newer software features to last year’s Samsung flagships, including the Galaxy S20, Galaxy Note 20, Galaxy Z Fold 2 and Galaxy Z Flip phones.Most of the new features are focused on bringing some of the software enhancements that Samsung debuted for the camera on the S21 lineup back down to its older devices. Those include the “enhanced single take” option that automatically captures and generates a variety of still images and videos with just one click, the smart object eraser tool for quickly removing unwanted parts of your photos, and the option to use both your... Continue reading…

Photo by SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images Google removed former president Donald Trump’s 2020 campaign app from Google’s Play Store earlier Wednesday. It wasn’t removed for any of the many other reasons that Trump has been removed from the world’s largest platforms, but rather because it just didn't work, Android Police reports.Prior to its suspension, the app provided campaign news, an event schedule, and ways to donate to the campaign, but at some point, it stopped working, prompting Google to take it down. Android Police confirmed that the app was non-functional before Google removed it. When Android Police tested the app, it was “unable to load content, reporting a network error or simply spinning a loading ‘T’ circle endlessly.” The iOS version of the app is still on the... Continue reading…

Google Google has announced that a built-in screen recorder is coming to Chrome OS in March. Google hopes the tool will make it easier for students and teachers to record virtual lessons. “Teachers have long recorded lessons to help students do homework and study for tests, but in the past year it’s become downright critical for virtual learning,” reads Google’s blog post.It looks pretty simple. Once you’ve pressed the appropriate button on your Chromebook, you’ll see a countdown in the center of your screen. While your Chromebook is recording, a red circle will appear on the right side of the shelf. A few other tools for Chromebook learners are in the works as well, and some have already arrived. Chrome OS’s screen reader,... Continue reading…

Illustrations by Alex Castro / The Verge For the first time in over a year, Nintendo hosted a full-fledged Direct presentation. The latest presentation was focused mostly on games slated to hit Nintendo’s hybrid gaming console, the Switch, sometime during the first half of 2021, though there were a few announcements for games that will hit later than that.The nearly hour-long event included a slew of titles slated to hit the Switch before the year is half over, including ports for indie games such as Fall Guys and Outer Wilds and new installments in franchises like No More Heroes and Splatoon. Here are the biggest news announcements and trailers from today’s Nintendo Direct.Splatoon 3 inks its way onto Nintendo Switch in 2022The third installment in the Splatoon franchise... Continue reading…

The Facebook pages of many Australian government agencies seem to have been caught up in the social media network’s ban on news posts by users and media organizations in the country. Users on Twitter have reported that the pages of agencies like the Bureau of Meteorology, Department of Fire and Emergency Services Western Australia, and Queensland Health have no posts available.When Verge staff in the US tried to access the pages, some saw them as having no posts. Other Verge staffers saw posts appearing as normal, however, though were often viewing pages without logging into Facebook. Still, the volume of Twitter concerns makes it clear that, for at least some users, posts from those pages are inaccessible. It’s unclear whether the... Continue reading…

Transmission towers and power lines lead to a substation after a snowstorm on February 16th, 2021, in Fort Worth, Texas. Winter storm Uri has brought historic cold weather and power outages to Texas as storms have swept across 26 states with a mix of freezing temperatures and precipitation. | Photo by Ron Jenkins / Getty Images Texas’ massive energy crisis didn’t have to happen, experts say — and it doesn’t have to happen again. Authorities can start working on solutions now that could prevent future blackouts. But unless the state gets to work fast, its energy system will be vulnerable to the next shock.Unless the state gets to work fast, its energy system will be vulnerable to the next shockFor starters, Texas’ grid needs to prepare for more blows from extreme weather, and the change can’t stop there. Upgrading homes and buildings is a straightforward way to keep people safe during catastrophic conditions like this week’s cold snap. Emergency response efforts need an update, too.Michael Bates, general manager of Energy at Intel, lives in Austin where he... Continue reading…

Image: Aspyr Media If you ever wanted a zombie game where you played as the undead instead of fending off against it, you’ll have another chance soon. Stubbs the Zombie in Rebel Without a Pulse is being rereleased on March 16th for PC, PS4, Switch, and Xbox One and will be playable on PS5 and Xbox Series X / S via backwards compatibility.Aspyr Media, the company that originally published Stubbs the Zombie, is handling the port. The studio recently worked on porting Star Wars Episode I: Racer to modern consoles, so it’s safe to say this remaster is in good hands.Originally released in 2005 on the Xbox, Stubbs the Zombie has players control the titular character with the main goal of wreaking havoc and devouring human brains. It’s a third-person action... Continue reading…

Image: Velan Studios Velan Studios, the studio behind the mixed-reality racer Mario Kart Live: Home Circuit, has revealed its next title: Knockout City, a team-based online dodgeball game. And it’s launching soon, as the game will be released on May 21st on Origin, Steam, the Playstation 4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch, with enhancements for the PS5 and Xbox Series X. EA is publishing the game under its EA Originals label.Knockout City’s take on dodgeball is similar to what you probably played in gym class. You and your team are trying to hit your opponents with balls while simultaneously avoiding and catching the balls thrown at you. In addition to straight-on throws, you can curve your shots, lob balls over obstacles, and even fake throws to try to catch... Continue reading…

Nintendo ended its Direct live stream on Wednesday with a surprise announcement of Splatoon 3.Very little about the game was shown in the introduction trailer beyond customization options for a player’s inkling and what at first glance appears to be a more narrative-focused approach, showing the inkling traveling by train from a desert location to a large Tokyo-style city. Nintendo has this to say about the game in its YouTube trailer description:

The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword is getting an HD rerelease on the Nintendo Switch, the company announced today during its Nintendo Direct event, set to release on July 16th.Skyward Sword was originally released for the Nintendo Wii, and it relied heavily on that console’s motion controllers for gameplay. The HD Switch port will offer similar features using the Switch’s Joy-Con controllers — with the company promising even smoother combat thanks to the Switch’s faster processor.But Nintendo also is introducing a new button-based control scheme for Skyward Sword HD that relies on tilting the right thumbstick to control Link’s sword, allowing players using the Switch in handheld mode, a Switch Lite, or a Pro Controller to still enjoy... Continue reading…

Nintendo In celebration of Mario’s 35th anniversary, Nintendo is adding Mario-themed items to Animal Crossing: New Horizons. New content will be available on February 25th, the developer announced today.Included in the update are Mario and Luigi’s signature costumes as well as items like Bowser flags and blocks to make islands feel a little more in tune with the mustachioed plumber. A trailer released alongside the news today features an impressive look at the possibilities, from classic dungeon-themed items to villagers hanging out in costume. The update will be available for free.Nintendo teased the update earlier this year, though it’s arriving a little earlier than expected. Animal Crossing: New Horizons continues to hold in-game events... Continue reading…

Screenshot by Nick Statt / The Verge Nintendo is bringing back its Mario Golf series for the Switch with a new entry, Mario Golf: Super Rush, arriving June 25th. The game is the sixth entry in the series and the first since World Tour released for the Nintendo 3DS handheld back in 2014. It’s also the first home console Mario Golf since 2003, Nintendo confirmed.The game looks like it features your standard Mario sports-themed gameplay, with multiplayer and a variety of modes, including a speed golf mode. Nintendo also revealed a new story mode for Super Rush and the ability to play as your own customizable Mii.

Image: Dbrand Skin company Dbrand is now selling its blacked-out PlayStation 5 “Darkplates” for the digital edition of the console. The company released the panels for the disk version of the console last week, but now they’re available for people who have said goodbye to physical media as well. At time of writing, Dbrand is estimating that the digital edition plates will ship in May, and they cost $60.95.The “Darkplates” are designed to replace the PS5’s standard (and striking, but not necessarily in a good way) white side panels with matte black ones instead. The company is also sticking with its typically aggressive marketing style by replicating Sony’s texture patterning, but with images of Dbrand’s logo instead. If you’re lucky enough to have... Continue reading…

The RetroN Sq comes in two colors: “black gold” and “hyper beach.” | Image: Hyperkin Hyperkin is best known for making gaming peripherals, but it also creates clones of consoles that allow you to play retro games in modern resolutions. Now it is releasing a new retro console that will allow you to play Game Boy games on your TV. Hyperkin's RetroN Sq (Square) is a console that will allow you to play Game Boy, GBC, and GBA cartridges.The RetroN Square includes one wired USB “Scout” controller with a shape similar to a SNES controller. Instead of composite video hook-ups, the RetroN Sq connects to a TV via HDMI with games upscaled to 720p resolution; there’s also a switch that will allow you to switch the aspect ratio to either 4:3 or 16:9, depending on your preference.The console will allow you to natively play Game Boy... Continue reading…

Fall Guys: Ultimate Knockout is launching for Nintendo Switch this summer. The news was announced today during a special Nintendo Direct.Mediatonic’s summer hit is a battle royale game in which players compete in massive elimination-style party games. The developer released season 2 last fall, which added medieval-themed games into the mix.The game is also being ported to mobile, but only in China.Developing... Continue reading…

The Motorola One 5G Ace is now available for sale through Google’s MVNO. | Photo by Allison Johnson / The Verge Google Fi is adding three new Motorola phones: the One 5G Ace, Moto G Power (2021), and Moto G Play (2021). The devices are available for sale directly through the MVNO with the Ace priced at $279, the Moto G Power for $199, and the Moto G Play for $99. You’ll also find last year’s versions of the Power and Play for sale.The One 5G Ace has the highest specs of the three, offering a big 6.7-inch 1080p screen, 5,000mAh battery, a capable Snapdragon 750G chipset, and of course, 5G. Google Fi is selling the less expensive version with 4GB of RAM and 64GB of storage.The G Power model at Fi is the more expensive variant, and that’s a good thing: it includes 64GB of storage rather than the 32GB offered by the base model, which is just not... Continue reading…

Nintendo has announced that Pyra and Mythra from Xenoblade Chronicles 2 will be joining Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, as part of the news from its Nintendo Direct presentation. Pyra and Mythra are set to release in March, with the company promising more details closer to release.The duo marks the latest additions from the Xenoblade franchise to join Super Smash Bros., following the addition of Shulk — the protagonist of the original Xenoblade Chronicles — as part of Super Smash Bros. on the Nintendo 3DS and Wii U. The choice of Pyra and Mythra are in some ways an unconventional one, with Nintendo choosing the two companion characters from Xenoblade Chronicles 2 over the game’s main playable character, Rex. Pyra and Mythra... Continue reading…

This case has been recalled, which is a shame as it looks stunning | NZXT PC case and peripheral maker NZXT has recalled its H1 mini-ITX case due to the possibility of a fire hazard under normal use (via Tom’s Hardware). If you used the metal screws included with the $350 case to secure your graphics card or other PCIe device to the riser, there was a chance you’d create sparks, or a fire, if it came into contact with a trace in the printed circuit board.NZXT seemed to know this in late 2020 when it opted to send out nylon plastic screw kits for H1 owners (upon request) to use in place of the metal ones. But it didn’t issue a full recall at that point, instead opting to resume selling the case. It initially stated that the issue affected “fewer than ten H1 cases,” but more recently YouTube channel Gamers... Continue reading…

Photo by Noam Galai/Getty Images AMC Theatres has announced another extension for subscribers of its Stubs A-List membership who are mulling over when to reactivate. Now, existing members of the MoviePass-style plan can wait until July to decide whether they’d like their plan to resume or whether they’ll cancel instead.Previously, AMC said in November it would give subscribers a deadline of March 1st to reactivate or cancel their membership. Since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic, AMC Theatres has allowed its A-List members to keep their plans but pause payments due to widespread theater closures and a severely constricted pipeline of new Hollywood releases.AMC launched A-List in 2018, following MoviePass’ meteoric rise and prior to its disastrous crash.... Continue reading…

With orders for new shows, specials, and movies from some of Cartoon Network’s biggest franchises — including Ben 10, Teen Titans Go!, and The Amazing World of Gumball — HBO Max is leaning hard into kids’ and family content in an effort to compete with top players like Netflix and Disney Plus.At the center of WarnerMedia’s plans to make HBO Max a must-have streaming service for families in the way that Disney Plus and Netflix have is “unveiling” Cartoon Network as the core family brand at WarnerMedia. The new series and specials ordered for HBO Max will join a library of shows and movies that make up 3,000 hours of content. Branding is important — and hard — but it’s what works for a studio like Disney. Disney Plus is built around its... Continue reading…

The $1,099 iPhone 12 Pro Max is currently the top 5G phone in the US, according to research firm M Science. | Photo by Chaim Gartenberg / The Verge Some new data reported by PCMag indicates that the iPhone 12 Pro Max, 12 Pro, and 12 are already the three top-selling 5G phones in the US. That the phones are just four months old speaks to the continued popularity of the iPhone in the US and just how big of a role it will play in driving 5G adoption in this country.These reports come from research firm M Science’s sales data and information gathered from Ookla Speedtest users. M Science tracks cumulative sales of 5G phones in the US. This data set includes sales as of the week of January 23rd and notably does not include Galaxy S21-series phones, which hadn’t started shipping at that point. These are third-party reports, so they should be taken with a grain of salt, but M Science’s... Continue reading…

Director Tim Burton is making a new live-action Addams Family spinoff series for Netflix: a coming of age series focused on Wednesday Addams that will fittingly be called Wednesday.The show — which has yet to announce any details on cast or release date — will mark Burton’s directorial debut for television. Burton is known for his work on gothic horror and comedy, and his filmography includes movies like Beetlejuice, The Nightmare Before Christmas, Corpse Bride, Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, Dark Shadows, as well as the campy superhero films Batman and Batman Returns. A live-action Addams Family spinoff would seem to fit perfectly in his oeuvre.

Photo by Chris Welch / The Verge Apple’s new Mac mini with the M1 chip is on sale at select retailers. If you are looking to buy the base configuration, which has 8GB of memory and 256GB of SSD storage, you can grab it for as low as $600 at Costco, but please note membership is required. If you don’t want a Costco membership, you can buy that same configuration for $669 at Amazon and B&H Photo.If you need a bit more storage, B&H Photo also has the model with 512GB of SSD (with 8GB of RAM) for $849.If you prefer a laptop, the M1-powered MacBook Pro is one of the best-performing laptops on the market. Both Amazon and B&H Photo have marked the late-2020 MacBook Pro base model, which includes 256GB of storage and 8GB of RAM, down to $1,199, which is the best price on... Continue reading…

Image: Roaring Kitty/Keith Patrick Gill “Roaring Kitty,” also known as u/DeepFuckingValue on Reddit and Keith Patrick Gill in real life, is now the target of a lawsuit (which you can view below) that claims he manipulated the market to increase GameStop’s stock price.The lawsuit claims that he created a “fake persona” of an investment newbie, while actually having several financial certifications and working for an insurance company. That company, Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Company, is also named as a defendant, with the case saying that it should’ve prevented Gill from talking about the stock.Gill is well known on the WallStreetBets subreddit, where he’s been posting for a year about GameStop’s stock, its value, and how much he has invested. He would also post h... Continue reading…

Image: Andy Baio XOXO Festival co-founder Andy Baio unveiled his newest project on Tuesday: a new platform for virtual events called Skittish.Skittish looks like a very cute version of social spaces in video games like Second Life or VRChat but built specifically to host online events. You attend events as an adorable animal avatar, and explore the worlds created for you by clicking around with your mouse or navigating with the WASD keys on your keyboard like you might in a video game.

Image: Zillow Zillow’s 3D Home app can now generate home floor plans based on scans a user uploads, the company announced today. The new feature, powered by the company’s artificial intelligence technology, is available today in the Zillow 3D Home app and could prove useful for people looking to relocate during the pandemic — or just anyone fantasizing about living in a mansion in Nebraska.Zillow 3D Home was originally launched in 2019 as a way to offer customers a more immersive way to view listings on its site and real estate agents and property managers an easier way to create them. Using a phone or a 360° camera and the Zillow 3D Home app, you can upload a series of photographs that the app can stitch into a 3D tour. It’s not quite the same as... Continue reading…

Nomad has updated its lineup of rugged leather iPhone cases for the iPhone 12, 12 Pro, 12 Pro Max, and 12 mini with the much-anticipated addition of support for Apple’s MagSafe charging standard.At $59.95 for the regular case or $79.95 for the folio-style one, the Nomad cases aren’t cheaper than, say, Apple’s official leather MagSafe cases. In fact, they’re actually $10 more than Nomad’s original line of iPhone 12 cases, which look virtually identical from the outside. (The new MagSafe cases will replace the older models once stock runs out, the company says.)But the Nomad cases are more solidly put together than Apple’s own offerings. As the “rugged” in the name suggests, the Nomad models feature a plastic shell and rubber frame... Continue reading…

Photo Illustration by Rafael Henrique/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images The world’s largest phone show, Mobile World Congress, is moving forward with an in-person event in June, despite the risks that it could turn into a COVID-19 superspreader event.Over 100,000 people usually attend MWC. John Hoffman, the CEO of the GSM Association (which organizes the show) says those numbers will be scaled back this year. He told Mobile World Live that he’s expecting around 50,000 people will travel to Barcelona, interact with each other and locals, and then fly back home.The event’s safety and security page says organizers will be “controlling crowd density” and requiring masks. Hoffman said he wouldn’t expect everyone in attendance to be vaccinated against COVID-19. “Our view is it would be great if the world was... Continue reading…

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Google is announcing a swath of new features for its education-focused products today, including that G Suite for Education is being rebranded to Google Workspace for Education. The company first unveiled the Workspace branding for its office apps suite in October, but the education-focused suite had retained the G Suite branding until now.Among other changes to the different tiers, the free edition of G Suite for Education is being renamed to Google Workspace for Education Fundamentals and G Suite Enterprise for Education is being renamed to Google Workspace for Education Plus. If you’re already a G Suite Enterprise for Education customer, you’ll automatically roll over to Google Workspace for Education Plus.Google is also announcing... Continue reading…

Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge Facebook has decided to block both Australian users and media companies from sharing links to news articles and related content on its main social network, following the country’s proposed landmark regulatory measure that would force tech giants to pay Australian news organizations for using their content.The bill passed the Australian House of Representatives today and is believed to have enough votes to pass the Senate, The New York Times reported. The bill also targets Google, which at one point last month threatened to leave the country entirely. However, Google has since decided to start cutting deals with major Australian media organizations, like Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp., to comply. Facebook, it appears, will not follow suit... Continue reading…

Photo by Alix Diaconis / The Verge iHeartMedia, the company behind podcasts like Stuff You Should Know and hundreds of radio stations across the US, announced today that it’s spending $230 million to acquire a platform many people outside the audio industry have likely never heard of: Triton Digital.Triton Digital specializes in audio ad technology, particularly for live radio broadcasts and podcasts. The company is able to insert ads dynamically, meaning they’re tailored to the individual listener on the fly, and create its own podcast rankings based on access to third-party podcast networks, like NPR. Essentially, iHeart can now take on an even bigger role in the audio advertising space, both in selling and programming ads.This news suggests ad technology will... Continue reading…

The Justice Department unsealed charges Wednesday for three North Korean computer programmers accused of conspiring to extort over $1.3 billion from banks and other businesses across the globe, as first reported by The Washington Post.In 2018, the Justice Department brought charges against one North Korean operative, Park Jin Hyok, for their involvement in the infamous Sony Pictures hack in 2014, as well as the devastating 2017 WannaCry ransomware attack. In Wednesday’s unsealed indictment, Park and others are accused of participating in a sweeping conspiracy to hack into banks and crypto exchanges as well as creating the WannaCry virus.“North Korea’s operatives, using keyboards rather than guns, stealing digital wallets of... Continue reading…

Image: Microsoft Microsoft is launching a new FPS Boost feature for its latest Xbox Series X and Series S consoles that’s designed to make existing games run better. While Microsoft has previously focused on improving frame rates with backward compatibility for its latest Xbox consoles, FPS Boost is specifically designed to improve older games without developers having to put in any additional work.Some games will nearly double frame rates, and Microsoft says it has seen a few instances where backward-compatible titles even quadruple in frame rates. The first games to support FPS Boost are Far Cry 4, New Super Lucky’s Tale, Sniper Elite 4, UFC 4, and Watch Dogs 2. The improvements vary across games, with New Super Lucky’s Tale now running at up to... Continue reading…

Photo by Sam Byford / The Verge Brydge has announced a new firmware update for its Pro Plus iPad keyboards that promises to hugely improve the trackpad experience. The update brings “native” multitouch to the trackpads, meaning you can use the same kind of multi-finger gestures on a Brydge device as Apple’s own Magic Keyboard.The Brydge Pro Plus was the victim of unfortunate timing. It was originally announced as a power-user product designed to support Apple’s experimental cursor feature, but then Apple turned that into consumer-level functionality with iOS 13.4 and released its own keyboard/trackpad accessory, the expensive but excellent Magic Keyboard. At launch, the Pro Plus’ trackpad was usable for basic tasks, but it didn’t have full gesture support and couldn’t... Continue reading…

Image: Ring The Los Angeles Police Department requested access to Amazon Ring footage while investigating vandalism during last summer’s anti-racism and police brutality protests, according to newly released emails. The Electronic Frontier Foundation calls it the first evidence of police trying to identify protest attendees with home surveillance cameras — although it’s part of a much longer relationship between Amazon and law enforcement.The EFF published a string of redacted emails between the LAPD and an Amazon representative. The document includes copies of several requests to Ring customers, asking for surveillance footage from their camera-equipped doorbells. Many of the forms are heavily redacted, but on June 16th, Amazon submitted a request... Continue reading…

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Never mind the House hearing, the company’s full steam ahead Continue reading…

Ford will only sell electric vehicles in Europe by 2030, it said Wednesday. The automaker said it will spend $1 billion to convert its factory in Cologne, Germany, into its first EV production line on the continent.Ford says it will transition to EV-production gradually over the next decade. By 2024, the company’s entire commercial vehicle lineup will be “zero-emissions capable, all-electric or plug-in hybrid.” By mid-2026, Ford says “100 percent” of its passenger vehicle lineup will be the same. And by 2030, Ford expects two-thirds of its commercial vehicle sales to be all-electric or plug-in hybrid, while all of its passenger vehicles sold will be pure battery-electric.Ford said it will increase its investment in electric and... Continue reading…

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge As part of its ongoing fight over an Alabama warehouse’s efforts to unionize, Amazon reportedly changed the timing of a traffic light outside the warehouse, according to reporting by More Perfect Union. Union organizers at the site had previously accused the company of altering the timing so that pro-union workers would not be able to canvass workers while stopped at the light.Until recently, the altered timing on the traffic light outside the factory had been dismissed as a rumor. But More Perfect Union confirmed with Jefferson County officials that last year, Amazon notified the county of traffic delays during shift changes and asked for the light to be changed. On December 15th, the county increased the green light duration in an... Continue reading…

Photo by Scott Olson / Getty Images From the start of the COVID-19 vaccine rollout, experts warned that it would take careful attention to make sure it was distributed equitably. Making sure non-white and poorer communities had access to life-saving vaccines would be an issue of justice and a public health necessity. Throughout 2020, these groups had higher rates of death and disease from the virus than white and wealthy people, so protecting them would be key to the overall goal of using vaccines to save the most lives.Despite those warnings, the COVID-10 vaccination campaign got off to a rough and unequal start. By the middle of January, when 17 states were reporting race and ethnicity data, analyses showed that Black and Hispanic people were vaccinated at lower rates... Continue reading…

As of yesterday, it’s been 20 years since “All Your Base Are Belong To Us” was uploaded to Newgrounds. Let that sink in. And while you’re doing that, feel free to watch the video in its entirety there, too. It’s been kept safe in a Flash-emulating container, so even now, it’s safe from the inconvenient fact that Flash has been discontinued.As Ars Technica reports, the history of the “All Your Base” video is longer than just a single upload. Much of it is taken from a tiny GIF of the Mega Drive game Zero Wing, which had been circulating widely online because of its disastrous English translation (and the GIF itself existed because of early emulation culture). “Early Internet communities poked fun at the sequence by creating and sharing... Continue reading…

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge New York Attorney General Letitia James filed a lawsuit against Amazon in the state’s supreme court on Tuesday, claiming the company failed to protect its workers early on in the COVID-19 pandemic and also retaliated against employees who voiced concerns over what they felt were inadequate safety measures.The news, reported yesterday by The New York Times, follows Amazon’s decision earlier this month to preemptively sue the New York AG’s office in an effort to prevent James from bringing charges, doing so by trying to have jurisdiction over its workplace safety measures in New York be deemed a federal issue not within the purview of the state AG.“Amazon’s extreme profits and exponential growth rate came at the expense of the lives,... Continue reading…

There’s a moment in the first trailer for Disney’s live-action Cruella movie when Emma Stone utters in a terrible faux British accent, “I am woman, hear me roar.” It feels less like something Disney fans will remember from the iconic 101 Dalmatians villain, Cruella de Vil, and more like Jared Leto’s Joker telling Batman, “We live in a society.”All of which is to say that Disney may have found its own Joker-type character in Stone’s Cruella de Vil... but not necessarily in a good way.Cruella is set in 1970s London. Stone plays the soon-to-be-villain in an origin story of sorts. She’s an aspiring punk designer — and a grifter — who is trying to get society’s wealthiest people to take notice of her and her designs. Throughout the... Continue reading…

Ecobee SmartCamera. | Image: Ecobee Ecobee has updated its SmartCamera home security camera with a few new features that make it easier to use as a baby monitor. The new Baby Monitor mode, which is enabled during setup of the camera, adjusts the camera’s settings to dim the LED lights on the front, makes it harder to accidentally enable the camera’s Siren alarm, and, perhaps most importantly, adds an audio-only streaming option that lets you continue to listen for disruptions even if you switch to a different app or lock your phone.Using a home security camera as a baby monitor is hardly a new idea, but this is the first one to my knowledge that actually makes it easier to do so. While traditional video monitors provide an always-on feed to a dedicated screen, home... Continue reading…

Illustrations by Alex Castro / The Verge If you’re into gaming, you’ll want to know that Nintendo is hosting a 50-minute live stream today that it calls Nintendo Direct, and the company will focus on games coming to the Switch in 2021. This is the first time the company has hosted a full-fledged Nintendo Direct live stream since September 2019.Nintendo already confirmed on Twitter that it would be announcing information on Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, but it did not offer any hints, though there’s a good chance we’ll be hearing about a new character for the game’s second Fighter Pass. Outside of Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, the live stream will focus on games coming to Nintendo Switch “in the first half of 2021,” leaving fans to speculate what could be shown during the... Continue reading…

YouTube is gearing up to launch a beta version of its TikTok competitor, Shorts, in the United States beginning in March, chief product officer Neal Mohan announced today.In a blog post announcing a number of features coming to YouTube in the coming months, Mohan said the YouTube team will be giving more creators access to Shorts in the United States. The YouTube team has seen success with Shorts in India, where the feature has existed for several months, according to Mohan. Since December, “the number of Indian channels using Shorts creation tools has more than tripled, and the YouTube Shorts player is now receiving more than 3.5 billion daily views globally,” he wrote.Reports that YouTube was working on a TikTok competitor first... Continue reading…

Hello Games is adding companion animals to No Man’s Sky. Today, the developer announced a new update that allows players to tame wild creatures, bond with them, and even breed them. “They will travel side-by-side with you as you adventure through the universe both as a friend and as a valuable aide on your voyage,” Hello Games said.Once tamed, you can feed, play with, and explore with your companions; a “neural harness” transmits their thoughts directly to the player’s communication channels. “Creature personalities are defined by their species and ecosystem, such that no two creatures are alike, and their personalities develop further as you deepen your bond with them,” the developer said. It’s also worth noting that running into other... Continue reading…

Image: YouTube TV If the monthly price for all of these streaming TV services is going to keep going up, the least they can do is throw in some new features and better video quality, right? That’s what YouTube says you can soon expect from YouTube TV; today, the company announced that in the coming weeks, the service will “introduce a new add-on package with 4K streaming, offline viewing, and unlimited concurrent streams at home.”Unfortunately, a YouTube TV spokesperson didn’t have much else to share beyond the top-level news of these upcoming additions. It’s not clear whether there will be any limits on what channels or shows support offline downloads, nor is YouTube giving any examples of what content will be available in 4K. One would hope for some... Continue reading…

Photo by Chris Welch / The Verge Google Maps is adding a couple of new useful features: the ability to pay for parking or buy a train ticket right from the app.Google Maps is integrating two mobile parking payment services into its app, Passport and ParkMobile. Both offer the ability to find, pay for, and replenish parking meters or parking lot fees through a smartphone app. Now, those features will also be available in Google Maps. According to the company:

The first three gadgets in Amazon’s Build It program. | Image: Amazon Amazon is launching a new consumer outreach program it’s calling Build It. The idea is a safer spin on a familiar crowdfunding idea: if enough people preorder something, Amazon will produce it. And if not, it won’t. The company is starting with three Alexa-powered gadgets: a cuckoo clock, a thermal sticky note printer, and a smart scale that can provide details on the food you’re weighing via a separate Echo device.All three “concepts” are going up for preorder today as part of Amazon’s program for creating experimental hardware. It has already made some devices it doesn’t consider mainstream yet — like the Echo Frames — under the Day 1 Editions branding. Built It is a subset, designed for gadgets that won’t even be released without... Continue reading…