The Verge

It can be clunky, but a chilling, gruesome atmosphere makes it work Continue reading…

General Motors, which only a few months ago was forced to ditch its plans to acquire an equity stake in troubled hydrogen truck startup Nikola, is ready to move on. Today, the automaker announced it was teaming up with Illinois-based trucking firm Navistar and OneH2, a North Carolina-based hydrogen fuel cell company, to put more hydrogen-powered long-haul trucks on the road.The three companies, along with JB Hunt Transport Services, are planning to roll out “a complete solution” for a fleet of heavy-duty, zero-emission, hydrogen fuel cell trucks. The move is further evidence that automakers are continuing to place huge bets on hydrogen, the most abundant element in the universe, despite major fueling limitations.As part of the deal,... Continue reading…

Fujifilm has announced the X-E4, which it describes as the most compact interchangeable-lens camera in its X-series lineup. At 121.3mm x 72.9mm x 32.7mm, it’s more than a centimeter thinner than its predecessor, the X-E3 from 2017.The X-E series slots into Fujifilm’s lineup as an option for enthusiast photographers who prefer a rangefinder-style design to DSLR-like cameras like the X-T4 but don’t need the optical viewfinder of the X-Pro3. Alternatively, it could be viewed as an interchangeable-lens, EVF-only version of the X100V.Like the X100V, there’s a 26.1-megapixel X-Trans sensor, dedicated dials for shutter speed and exposure compensation, and a new tilting screen that sits flush against the body. The shutter dial now also has a... Continue reading…

As buttons go, there are few as well-known as Staples’ “Easy Button” — a bright, Staples-red button that was featured in a series of ad campaigns beginning in 2005. The ads were so popular that Staples ended up actually selling real replica versions of the Easy Button shortly after they debuted — and it’s since sold millions of the desk toys.The fictitious Easy Buttons featured in the commercials possess magical qualities that allow the user to sorcerously solve their (usually office supply-related) issues with the press of a button. The sad irony, of course, is that the real-life version of the product is significantly more disappointing. Pressing it doesn’t summon a rain of printer ink or raise the Great Wall to defend against an... Continue reading…

Fujifilm has announced a new medium format camera, the GFX 100S. This new model is essentially a smaller, more accessible version of the GFX 100, which was released in 2019 for $9,999.95.Like the GFX 100, the 100S has a 102-megapixel 43.8 x 32.9mm medium format sensor with 100-percent phase-detection AF coverage. It’s a full 500g lighter, however, and has a few features missing or tweaked: the EVF is no longer interchangeable, for example, and there’s no option for a vertical battery grip.The in-body OIS system is smaller and lighter, but Fujifilm actually says it should slightly outperform the GFX 100’s with up to six stops of stabilization for most lenses. This is all thanks to an upgraded gyro sensor and improved algorithms,... Continue reading…

A promotional image featuring Daniel Craig using an HMD device. | Image: HMD Global The latest James Bond movie’s pandemic-related delays are reportedly causing problems for its marketing deals, with advertisers concerned that the film may end up featuring outdated product placements, The Sun is reporting. The 25th Bond film, No Time To Die, is currently due to release in cinemas on October 8th, over a year after it was originally meant to release.“Some of those things were the very latest models back when they started filming” a source told The Sun, “but by the time the movie comes out now it will look like Daniel Craig and all of the other cast members are carrying something that has been out for ages. That isn’t really the point of these deals.”Although the film will reportedly feature Omega watches, Bollinger... Continue reading…

Photo by James Bareham / The Verge The European Consumer Organisation (BEUC) is calling on the European Commission to investigate Nintendo Joy-Con drift complaints. The BEUC group represents more than 40 consumer organizations across the European Union, and the umbrella organization says it has received nearly 25,000 complaints from consumers across Europe about faulty Joy-Con controllers.“According to consumer testimonies, in 88 percent of cases, the game controllers broke within the first two years of use,” says the BEUC (via Eurogamer). The group has now submitted a complaint to the European Commission claiming Nintendo is involved in premature obsolescence and “misleading omissions of key consumer information.”Nintendo Switch owners have been reporting issues with... Continue reading…

The bike arrives at a time when many people want to work out at home Continue reading…

Photo by Vjeran Pavic / The Verge Samsung’s latest flagship, the Galaxy S21 Ultra, is its first phone to feature Samsung Display’s new power-efficient OLED panels. In a press release, Samsung says the new display consumes 16 percent less power thanks to a “just-developed organic material” that means “electrons flow faster and more easily across the display’s organic layer.”“In other words,” Samsung explains, the technology means its “OLED panels can create brighter light while consuming less power, which improves the battery lifetime.” A smartphone’s display is typically one of its most power-hungry components, so efficiency gains here can have a big impact on the overall battery life of the device. In our review, we remarked that the S21 Ultra has excellent battery... Continue reading…

Lime is adding a new member to its family of shared electric vehicles: mopeds. The mopeds are being offered as part of a pilot program to test whether Lime’s customers prefer vehicles that are faster, heavier, and arguably riskier to ride than your average kick scooter.The mopeds can be rented via Lime’s smartphone app, just like the company’s e-scooters. Lime is still finalizing the price per mile for the mopeds, but it intends for it to be competitive with other shared mobility services.Lime insists its pilot will presage a larger rollout in the springOther scooter companies have flirted with expanding their product lineups to include mopeds, but Lime insists its pilot will presage a larger rollout in the spring. To start, Lime... Continue reading…

Photo by MANDEL NGAN/AFP via Getty Images A group of 75 activist groups and nonprofits have urged against sweeping changes to Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, warning that it could silence marginalized communities while making online moderation harder.“Section 230 is a foundational law for free expression and human rights when it comes to digital speech,” the letter says. The law protects websites and apps from being sued over user-generated content — making it safer to operate social networks, comment sections, or hosting services. “Overly broad changes to Section 230 could disproportionately harm and silence marginalized people, whose voices have been historically ignored by mainstream press outlets.”The letter is signed by a variety of groups supporting racial... Continue reading…

Nothing’s official logo. | Image: Nothing Carl Pei, the OnePlus co-founder who parted ways with the company last year, has announced the name of his next venture: Nothing. It describes itself as a “London based consumer technology company” and counts the likes of iPod inventor Tony Fadell, Twitch co-founder Kevin Lin, Reddit CEO Steve Huffman, and YouTuber Casey Neistat as investors. It plans to release its first “smart devices” in the first half of this year.“Nothing’s mission is to remove barriers between people and technology to create a seamless digital future,” says Pei, Nothing’s founder and CEO, in a press release. “We believe that the best technology is beautiful, yet natural and intuitive to use. When sufficiently advanced, it should fade into the background and feel... Continue reading…

Dan Seifert / The Verge Samsung is expanding its Health Monitor app to 31 new countries, including 28 European countries, and people in those countries will be able to use the app with a Galaxy Watch 3 or Galaxy Active 2 smartwatch to take electrocardiogram (EKG) and blood pressure readings.Samsung says the app was granted a CE marking in December, which means that it complies with applicable regulations in Europe and can be offered in the European Economic Area.Here is the full list of countries in Europe that will soon be able to get the app: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania,... Continue reading…

Photo by Vjeran Pavic / The Verge DJI is now offering flyaway coverage for its Mini 2 and Mavic Air 2 drones, should they develop a mind of their own and take off. The cost of replacing the escaped drone is $225 for the Mini, and $399 for the Mavic, which is on top of the price of DJI’s Care Refresh extended warranty. For that, you’ll pay $50 for the Mini, and $80 for the Mavic. If you already own one of these drones and the extended warranty, you’re eligible for flyway replacements going forward.The extended warranty also lets you replace your drone if you damage it, twice per year, for $50 each. For flyaway coverage, there’s a one-time limit — if your replacement also goes AWOL, you’ll be on the hook to replace it, though there is a two-year version of the warranty... Continue reading…

Image: Bloodhound LSR For sale: a rocket-powered car named Bloodhound built specifically to break the land speed record. Theoretical top speed of 1,000 miles per hour. Seats one. Price? A paltry $11 million.The tortured saga of the Bloodhound Land Speed Record project has reached a sadly predictable impasse: the current owner is done spending money trying to set a new record after saving the project from bankruptcy in 2018. It’s hard to blame him. The Bloodhound program has been going for the better part of a decade at this point and has yet to break the 763 mile-per-hour record, let alone scratch at the group’s ultimate stated goal of 1,000 miles per hour.The Bloodhound still needs the actual rocket in order to make its full-speed runs, too, despite... Continue reading…

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Microsoft is continuing to attract people to its Xbox Game Pass service. The “Netflix for video games” service now has 18 million subscribers, up from the 15 million previously reported in September. Xbox Game Pass is a subscription service that offers access to a growing selection of more than 100 Xbox games for $9.99 per month.Microsoft has been pushing Xbox Game Pass for more than a year now, and it’s clear the company is heavily invested in its future. Bungie’s Destiny 2 title appeared on Xbox Game Pass late last year, and Control is also available on the service for both Xbox and PC.On an earnings call today, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella also revealed that Xbox Live has more than 100 million monthly active users. Nadella also said... Continue reading…

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Apple just released iOS 14.4 and iPadOS 14.4, and the update notes contain some worrying language (via TechCrunch). Under kernel updates, Apple notes that “a malicious application may be able to elevate privileges,” and under WebKit updates, it says “a remote attacker may be able to cause arbitrary code execution.” After both statements, the update notes say, “Apple is aware of a report that this issue may have been actively exploited.”What this means, broadly, is that you should update your iOS devices as soon as possible. To put the language into plain terms: Apple found a security hole in its operating systems, and it also has evidence that someone may have exploited it. The update notes don’t have any further details, so for now, we... Continue reading…

Tweetbot has long been one of the best third-party Twitter applications around for the iPhone and Mac, and today sees the launch of the latest version for iOS: Tweetbot 6, which converts the app into a paid subscription service instead of the single-time purchase that was previously offered.The new app makes the change to Twitter’s new API that the company introduced last summer, enabling some long-missing features in the premium Twitter app like Twitter cards and polls. That change does come with some trade-offs, though, including the removal of user-selected options for URL shortening, image uploads, and video uploads.The free version of the app offers some basic functionality in allowing users to view Twitter — but you’ll have to... Continue reading…

Image: Google Google is ending development on the virtual reality painting app Tilt Brush — one of the most well-known VR applications — and making it open source. Tilt Brush was acquired by Google in 2015 after launching for the HTC Vive and Oculus Rift, and it was soon folded into the company’s larger VR plans, like its Google Cardboard and Daydream headsets.Tilt Brush’s main feature is three-dimensional painting in VR, but the app received interesting updates over its tenure at Google, including multiplayer support and an open-source toolkit that offered the ability to export Tilt Brush drawings for use in animation. With this latest announcement, that development is coming to an end, and future support of Tilt Brush is in the hands of the... Continue reading…

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Verizon has big 5G plans for 2021 after formally launching its next-gen network in October of last year, and close to the top of its list of priorities is expanding coverage of its ultra-fast mmWave coverage. That flavor of 5G is currently restricted to select areas within select cities in the US, and it’s highly dependent on your proximity to a Verizon 5G site due to the inherent technology that powers it.Marketed under the name 5G Ultra Wideband (5G UW), this variety of 5G is the type with high speeds but poor coverage, meaning Verizon has its work cut out for it expanding network coverage in 2021. But in its earnings report on Tuesday, the company says it plans to nearly double its 5G UW network this year by adding more than 14,000... Continue reading…

Asus’ first Intel Iris Xe graphics card. | Image: Intel Intel is launching its first Iris Xe desktop graphics cards today. Originally codenamed “DG1,” these new desktop GPUs are primarily aimed at small- and medium-sized businesses and mainstream desktop PCs. Intel is teaming up with Asus and other partners to sell these cards to system integrators who will bundle them with prebuilt systems.Much like the Iris Xe Max graphics cards that debuted in laptops back in October, these desktop GPUs aren’t really designed for gaming. Intel is marketing them as a way to improve what’s offered on mainstream desktop PCs, with better graphics, multi-display support, and improved hardware acceleration for certain codecs. Intel is working with other partners on these cards. The cards... Continue reading…

Photo by Cameron Faulkner / The Verge Gaming laptops that have Nvidia’s powerful RTX 30-series graphics chips inside are now shipping. I have a first-look at MSI’s 2021 GS66 Stealth with the RTX 3080, and my colleague Monica Chin published two reviews for launch day: the Asus ROG Flow X13 (with its detachable RTX 3080 eGPU) and the MSI GP66 Leopard with the RTX 3070.We discovered something strange: an RTX 3070 can now be faster than an RTX 3080 in some cases. We saw this first-hand in a few benchmark runs, where the RTX 3070 in the GP77 Leopard slightly surpassed the RTX 3080 in the GS66 Stealth. It wasn’t a blowout, just a few odd frames per second more in the benchmarks built into games like Horizon: Zero Dawn, Red Dead Redemption 2, and Shadow of the Tomb Raider. But... Continue reading…

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Verizon says that it has resolved issues with Fios, its fiber optic network, that affected many locations in the Northeastern US for hours on Tuesday. The company says that things should be returning to normal, but a fiber cut in Brooklyn may mean that some might still be without service.Users began reporting problems with Verizon on Downdetector shortly after 11AM ET, and the volume of reports peaked at more than 22,000 on Tuesday. Hotspots for problems on Downdetector’s outage map for Verizon included Boston, New York City, Washington, DC, and more. A few Verge staffers experienced outages as well, though one in Brooklyn still doesn’t have service.“An internet issue impacting the quality of our Fios service throughout the Northeast... Continue reading…

Image: Byte Byte, a TikTok competitor, has been purchased by Clash, another TikTok competitor. It sounds as though Clash may be merged into Byte, but the details are vague for the time being. Clash’s website now directs visitors to download Byte, and the company says Clash won’t be available on the iOS App Store for “an extended period.”Clash co-founder Brendon McNerney told The New York Times that the two apps will be released “together as one product” within a few months.“The market for apps that let you create and post videos from your phone has become extremely saturated. There are many competitors with similar (or better) feature sets, and far more distribution,” Byte creator Dom Hofmann, who was previously a co-founder of the video app Vine,... Continue reading…

AMD is firing on all cylinders these days: it’s the guts of every modern PlayStation and Xbox, it has the desktop CPUs to beat, it’s nearly caught up to Nvidia in GPU performance (if not availability), and it’s about to challenge Intel in laptops as well — with its Ryzen 5000 mobile CPUs and RDNA 2 GPUs due later this year.All of that can translate to eye-popping dollar signs: the chipmaker just announced its Q4 and full-year 2020 earnings, and it’s adding billions of dollars wherever you look:

Microsoft posted the second quarter of its 2021 financial results today, reporting revenue of $43.1 billion and a net income of $15.5 billion. Revenue is up 17 percent, and net income has increased by 33 percent. We saw some impressive growth for Surface, Xbox, and cloud-related services in Microsoft’s previous quarter, and it’s very much the same this time around.The PC market just had its first big growth in 10 years, with around 300 million shipments of devices during 2020. The pandemic has impacted the way a lot of people work or learn, and many have turned to laptops to continue remotely.Windows OEM non-pro revenue has grown by 24 percent for Microsoft, reflecting the demand from consumers. Windows OEM revenue overall, including... Continue reading…

Photo by Becca Farsace / The Verge Google has released the latest version of Chrome OS, with a few new features for Chromebook owners to try out. If you’re a Chromebook owner, your device should have the newest version now or very shortly.First off, your Chromebook can now function as a smart display (like Google’s Nest Hub Max) when you’re not actively using it. Like the Nest Hub, it can act like a digital photo album and display pictures on its lock screen. You can select a photo album for your screensaver to cycle through or pick from a gallery of preloaded images.You can now use the lock screen for other smart display tasks as well. For example, you can play and pause music and check the weather without unlocking the Chromebook.To turn on the personalized lock... Continue reading…

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Three weeks after Google promised it would add Apple’s mandatory app privacy labels “as soon as this week,” none of the company’s main apps have the labels, including Gmail, search, Photos, Docs, and YouTube.There have been some questions about whether Google is purposefully not updating its apps to avoid the labels, so I looked through every Google app in the iOS App Store to find out whether the updates have been coming.Some have: 12 apps now have the iOS privacy labels, though they may not be as recognizable as YouTube or Gmail:

Image: Apple Apple has officially released iOS 14.4 and a matching update for its HomePod mini speaker, adding the long-promised ultra-wideband (UWB) handoff feature that will allow newer iPhones to more seamlessly transfer music, calls, and podcasts between the two devices.While both the original HomePod and the HomePod mini have supported handing off music for some time, the smaller device features a U1 ultra-wideband chip that promises to make it even easier to transfer content over from an iPhone 12 or iPhone 11 device. The new U1-enhanced functionality also adds additional features, including new visual and haptic feedback. The U1-based system also will give the option to show listening suggestions when you bring your phone close and display... Continue reading…

Image: Vizio Vizio’s P-Series Quantum X remains the company’s flagship line of QLED televisions. If you are in the market for a new TV and have room to fit a 75-inch device on your entertainment station, Vizio’s P75Qx-H1 model is $1,600 at Best Buy, B&H Photo, and Vizio. This is $400 off its usual price and the lowest we have seen this TV go for yet.Released last fall, the P-Series Quantum X TVs can hit up to 3000 nits of peak brightness and support a variable refresh rate ranging from 48Hz to 120Hz at up to 4K resolution. Additionally, they feature 384 local dimming zones for great contrast.There are two HDMI 2.1 ports on the side and two HDMI 2.0 ports at the bottom. With HDMI 2.1 support, gamers will be able to take full advantage of their... Continue reading…

Illustration by Alex Castro Twitter on Tuesday announced a significant shift in the type of data it makes available for free to third-party academic researchers interested in studying user behaviors and trends related to online discourse. Now, Twitter says it will no longer require researchers pay for premium or enterprise developer access and will instead make the “full history of public conversation” — what the company refers to as its full-archive search endpoint — available to any researcher or developer who applies as part of the launch of a new academic research track.The change is part of the company’s ongoing efforts to improve the Twitter API, the set of tools it makes available for those outside the company to build something on top of Twitter or use... Continue reading…

An American real estate investor, a Canadian investor, and a former Israeli Air Force pilot are paying $55 million each to be part of the first fully private astronaut crew to journey to the International Space Station. The trio will hitch a ride on SpaceX’s Crew Dragon capsule early next year, with a veteran NASA astronaut as the commander.The Ax-1 mission, arranged by Houston, Texas-based space tourism company Axiom Space, is a watershed moment for the space industry as companies race to make space travel more accessible to private customers instead of governments. Private citizens have trekked to the space station in the past, but the Ax-1 mission marks the first to use a commercially built astronaut capsule: SpaceX’s Crew Dragon,... Continue reading…

Plex, well known as a service for streaming movies, music, and TV shows from your own computer, is now adding another thing you can stream: video games (via Protocol). Plex announced the new service, called Plex Arcade, on its blog and also launched a website for it. The service will cost $3 a month if you’re a Plex Pass subscriber, and $5 a month if you’re not.Instead of focusing on modern console or phone games like its competitors, Plex lets you play Atari games. It’s taking the arcade name seriously, as you can play arcade classics from Atari, like Centipede, Super Breakout, and Missile Command, as well as games from the Atari 2600 and 7800. Overall, there are 27 games available on the service.Unlike other game subscription... Continue reading…

A Cypriot man pleaded guilty to hacking and blackmailing several US companies. Joshua Epifaniou admitted to computer fraud and paid $600,000 in restitution to his victims. He was extradited from Cyprus and will be sentenced on March 3rd.Epifaniou operated what he described as a “hacking, extortion, blackmailing, [and] bluffing” scheme from 2014 to 2016. Going by aliases that included “Charley Sullivan” and “Richard Charley,” he picked targets based on their Alexa traffic rankings. That led him to several well-known online businesses — including the Turner Broadcasting-owned sports site Bleacher Report, the DIY electronics company Adafruit, and the California-based gaming portal Armor Games.Epifaniou exploited security vulnerabilities... Continue reading…

Photo by Barry Chin/The Boston Globe via Getty Images In a hearing on her nomination for Commerce Department secretary on Tuesday, Rhode Island Governor Gina Raimondo told lawmakers that she will pursue changes to Section 230 if confirmed.Responding to questions posed by Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI), Raimondo said that she would use the tools available through the Commerce Department’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) to convene stakeholders, industry leaders, lawmakers and others to identify the means of reform to the pivotal internet law.“I think platform accountability is important because I’ve seen in my own state that misinformation hurts people,” Raimondo said. “But of course, that reform would have to be balanced against the fact that these businesses... Continue reading…

Photo by Paul Hennessy/NurPhoto via Getty Images Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles was the biggest COVID-19 testing site in the United States, with the ability to test over 10,000 people each day. But two weeks into January, amid a chaotic and slow-moving COVID-19 vaccine rollout, the city shut down the site in order to convert it into a vaccination site. The city closed another testing site, as well, temporarily slashing government-run COVID-19 testing capacity by one-third.It’s a pattern playing out across the country, in states like Florida, Nevada, and Illinois. Health departments are working with limited resources to fight COVID-19, and many had to make a choice: keep testing at the same level or focus on vaccinating. “We remain very concerned that there’s only so many resources to... Continue reading…

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge In Apple and Epic’s ongoing court battle over App Store fees, one of the key sticking points has been Apple’s insistence on maintaining a 30 percent cut as a cornerstone of the storefront.But newly revealed Apple executive emails from the case show that the App Store rules that Apple flouts as essential to the fairness of the app economy were carefully negotiated into existence over time in a way that ensured Apple wasn’t “leaving money on the table.”The emails date back to a 2011 discussion, which included Apple software and services leader Eddy Cue, around how Apple would handle subscription video applications on the Apple TV — an important conversation, given the rise in popularity of streaming services. And while the discussion... Continue reading…

Image: Sony Sony has today announced its most advanced mirrorless camera yet: the $6,500 Alpha 1 features a new 50.1-megapixel full-frame sensor, is capable of continuous photo shooting at 30 images per second, and can record 8K video at 30fps. It’ll ship beginning in March.The powerhouse camera is priced significantly above the highest-end mirrorless cameras from Canon and Nikon, but Sony promises that customers who buy in will be rewarded with “the most technologically advanced, innovative camera” it’s ever made.It sounds like a dream for sports and action photographers: even with its large sensor, Sony says the buffer lets you shoot “up to 155 full-frame compressed RAW images or 165 full-frame JPEG images at up to 30 frames per second with the... Continue reading…

The Xperia Pro can be used as an external monitor for a camera. | Image: Sony The Xperia Pro, Sony’s first smartphone with 5G in the US, is launching today for $2,499.99. Sony is targeting the device at professional users, who it hopes will use its HDMI input to turn the phone into an external camera monitor and its 5G connectivity to quickly upload or live-stream footage. Sony says it currently has no plans to release the Xperia Pro in Europe.Outside of its HDMI input and US 5G support, the Xperia Pro’s hardware is very similar to last year’s Xperia 1 II (which shipped with 5G support in Europe but was limited to 4G LTE in the US). That means it’s powered by a Snapdragon 865 processor with a 4,000mAh battery, and around the back, there are the same 12-megapixel wide, telephoto, and ultrawide cameras. The Xperia... Continue reading…

Disney has released the second trailer for Raya and the Last Dragon, giving the best look yet at the upcoming animated fantasy film, which is set to hit both theaters and Disney Plus’ Premier Access program on March 5th.The new trailer sees Raya (voiced by Kelly Marie Tran) putting together a crew of warriors and con artists (including a surprisingly nimble baby) to join her on a quest to find the titular “last dragon,” which legends promise can save her people. But, as the trailer reveals, the mythical dragon, Sisu (voiced by Awkwafina) turns out to be, in her own words “that one kid [in a group project] who doesn’t pitch in as much but still ends up with the same grade.”Plus, the movie looks absolutely stunning, as Disney Animation... Continue reading…

Photo: Vizio Super Bowl Sunday is less than two weeks away! Sure, the game itself won’t be streaming in 4K resolution, but that doesn’t mean you can’t spoil yourself with a new UHD television for your bedroom or living room.Over at Best Buy and B&H Photo, you can pick up Vizio’s 65-inch M-series (M65Q7-H1 model) 4K television for only $600. It’s not the lowest price we have seen it go for ($580), yet this is still a great deal given the TV’s specs and size. Vizio’s M65Q7-H1 stands out (especially at this price point) because of its QLED panel, allowing for a more accurate contrast and colors, unlike televisions with standard LED.Don’t have room for a 65-inch television? Not a problem. Hisense’s 55-inch Class H8 4K TV (model 55H8G) is a good... Continue reading…

Apple is launching a limited-edition Apple Watch for Black History Month, with a unique watch band, new watchface, and some of the proceeds going toward civil rights organizations.The watch, part of a new Black Unity Collection of products, comes with a black, green, and red striped band and face, meant to reflect the Pan-African flag. It otherwise appears to be the standard aluminum version of the Apple Watch Series 6, with pricing starting at $399. The band will also be available separately for $49.Apple also plans to highlight Black artists, authors, and developers throughout its appsThe products will go on sale starting February 1st at Apple and Target. The band will remain on sale all year, but the watch as a whole will only be... Continue reading…

The next in-game event for Animal Crossing: New Horizons will bring a little more color to your island. Today, Nintendo revealed its next big update, the highlight of which is Festivale, a carnival-like event that will take place on February 15th. Here’s how Nintendo describes it:

Photo Illustration by Grayson Blackmon / The Verge Cybersecurity reporter Joseph Menn on the massive breach the US didn’t see coming Continue reading…

Pinterest now displays a row of stories at the top of its home screen when you open up the app. It’s an interface that should look familiar to anyone who has used a social media app in the past few years: it’s the same tack taken by Instagram, Twitter, Facebook Messenger, and plenty more. The change will start appearing today on iOS and Android.“Story Pins” were introduced to Pinterest in September. They worked like pretty much any other story format, with short videos posted back to back that you could tap to move between. Where they differed most was how you found them: Story Pins appeared like any other post on Pinterest, as just another box on various grids of pins.Now, those Story Pins will have an easier time standing out.... Continue reading…

Francois G. Durand/Getty Images YouTube has paid out more than $30 billion to creators, artists, and media organizations over the last three years, according to a new letter published by CEO Susan Wojcicki.In Wojcicki’s first letter to creators of 2021, the CEO spent some time addressing YouTube’s growth. The number of new channels that joined the company’s Partner Program, which allows creators to earn advertising revenue, more than doubled in 2020. YouTube also “contributed approximately $16 billion to the U.S. GDP in 2019, supporting the equivalent of 345,000 full time jobs,” according to an Oxford Economics report that Wojcicki highlights.The letter also focuses on the work YouTube’s team still has in front of them. Mainly, transparency, especially where content... Continue reading…

Step-up performance at the right price Continue reading…

A top-notch convertible with a pricey sidecar Continue reading…

Photo: Lego Lego is launching a new, augmented reality social video service called Vidiyo that will let users create their own music videos and dance clips and share them with friends, all while applying their own effects and styles to the videos.It sounds a lot like TikTok but aimed at younger children with strict moderation built in, and a Lego twist that makes most of the UI built in real-world Lego bricks instead of toggles in an app.To create a Vidiyo, users will have to download the app and select a song (the toy company is partnering with Universal Music Group, so there will be a wide variety of licensed songs from actual bands to choose from, like 5 Seconds of Summer or Imagine Dragons). Photo: Lego A Lego Vidiyo... Continue reading…

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Twitter is acquiring Revue, an email service that lets writers publish newsletters. The move allows Twitter to capitalize on its user base of writers, journalists, and publications that regularly use the service to reach readers and grow their audiences.“With a robust community of writers and readers, Twitter is uniquely positioned to help organizations and writers grow their readership faster and at a much larger scale than anywhere else,” explains Twitter product lead Kayvon Beykpour. “Our goal is to make it easy for them to connect with their subscribers, while also helping readers better discover writers and their content.”Twitter’s acquisition of Revue also places it in direct competition with Substack, a rival email newsletter... Continue reading…