Biden Commutes Nearly 1,500 Prison Sentences in Record-Breaking Clemency
Today, President Joe Biden announced that he will commute the sentences of almost 1,500 Americans for non-violent offenses—the most ever granted in one day. Those affected by the commutations are people released to in-home confinement during the coronavirus pandemic, whom some Republicans have pushed to send back to prison. Biden also announced that he would […]
Xbox Game Pass Ultimate subscriptions are up to 50 percent off right now
Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge
If you’ve been contemplating signing up for Xbox Game Pass Ultimate so you can play Indiana Jones and the Great Circle, you might want to head on over to Woot. Now until 1:59AM ET on December 13th, the retailer is offering a three-month subscription to Xbox Game Pass Ultimate for $28.99 (about $31 off) with promo code GAMEPASS. Only customers making their first purchase on Woot are eligible, though; everyone else will have to pay $33.99 to redeem the digital code.
Woot’s current promo is a terrific deal considering a month of Xbox Game Pass Ultimate will normally run you $19.99. After you finish playing the new Indiana Jones game, you can play dozens of other downloadable titles for both Xbox and PC, including new releases like Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 and older titles like Star Wars Jedi: Survivor, Starfield, Diablo IV, Halo Infinite, and Hi-Fi Rush. Subscribers can even stream select non-Game Pass titles they own via their TV, smartphone, tablet, and PC through a web browser. This includes Baldur’s Gate 3, Hogwarts Legacy, Balatro, and more.
In addition to granting access to a wide range of games — including EA Play titles — an Xbox Game Pass Ultimate subscription lets you take advantage of exclusive deals, online multiplayer, and other perks, some of which aren’t available on the cheaper Game Pass tiers.
Other deals and discounts of note
- Elgato’s Stream Deck Neo is on sale for an all-time low of $79.99 ($20 off) at Amazon, Target, and Best Buy. The excellent macro controller comes witheight LCD buttons, which you can program to easily control your smart lights, pause Slack notifications, and perform a variety of other shortcuts with the press of a button. It also comes with some other handy conveniences, including a tiny info display that shows the time and a pair of capacitive buttons that let you quickly cycle through multiple pages of macros.
- The Onn Google TV 4K Prois selling for $39 (about $11 off) at Walmart right now. The streaming device is a higher-end version of the excellent Onn Google TV 4K Streaming Box. It delivers even more value in some ways, though, as it functions as a smart speaker that’s compatible with Google Assistant. The 4K streaming device also adds support for Dolby Vision and Atmos, as well as Wi-Fi 6, while retaining built-in Chromecast support.
- Amazon is selling the Ring Wired Doorbell Pro (formerly known as the Ring Video Doorbell Pro 2) with a Chime Pro for $199.99 (about $90 off), which is $10 shy of the bundle’s best price to date. The wired Pro is one of our favorite video doorbells, one that works with Amazon Alexa and integrates well with Ring Alarm and other Ring cameras. It offers top-notch video quality and a square aspect ratio, though many features — including person alerts and the ability to save and share clips — require a premium Ring subscription plan. The Chime Pro, meanwhile, doubles as a speaker for notifications and a Wi-Fi extender, so the doorbell receives a strong signal.
Threads follows Bluesky’s starter packs with curated collections of people to follow
Illustration: The Verge
Meta’s Threads is getting another feature seemingly inspired by Bluesky: curated groups of accounts that you can follow all at once. They basically sound like Meta’s take on Bluesky’s handy starter packs.
Instagram boss Adam Mosseri announced Thursday that Meta is starting to test the feature, and he said that you’ll see the collections “when signing up for Threads and within the For You feed.” A “handful” of “Threads community leaders” curated and shared the current collections.
People will be able to find collections built around topics like “basketball, style and fashion, food, books, pop culture, and more,” Meta spokesperson Alec Booker tells The Verge. “We’ll iterate on this feature based on learnings from the test, and hope to expand the functionality to more people soon.”
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25787335/Suggested_Profiles_For_You.png)
Image: Meta
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25787340/Suggested_Profiles_Sign_Up.png)
Image: Meta
Meta has upped the pace of Threads feature updates after users really started flocking to Bluesky last month — Threads introduced its own take on custom feeds just five days after announcing the feature in testing, for example.
While I personally think Bluesky is the heir apparent to Twitter, Threads is still significantly larger. Meta saw 35 million Threads signups in November, but Bluesky user growth has seemingly slowed to a crawl: as I write this, Bluesky is on the cusp of surpassing 25 million users, a five million user jump from nearly a month ago.
This drug is the 'breakthrough of the year' -- and it could mean the end of the HIV epidemic
That's the title that Science magazine is bestowing upon the medication called lenacapavir — a twice yearly injectable that prevents infection by the HIV virus.
jsonstein@masto.deoan.org ("Jeff Sonstein") wrote:
okay, playing around some more with using AI-focused promo video production tool... interesting results
Attachments:
28 Years Later's Emaciated Zombie Isn't Cillian Murphy After All
This is an emaciated zombie from the new 28 Years Later trailer. It looks sort of, kinda, maybe like an emaciated Cillian Murphy, the star of the first movie. It turns out that is not an emaciated Cillian Murphy, however. Instead, it’s an art dealer who sometimes models and happens to be very, very thin.
Trump says Kari Lake will lead Voice of America. He attacked it during his first term
If successful, Trump's move would install a loyalist at the helm of the network. A U.S. judge found Trump appointees illegally violated Voice of America's journalistic independence in his first term.
Overwatch 2’s Avatar: The Last Airbender Collaboration Finally Gives An Underserved Hero A Skin
After a brief tease at the end of its most recent trailer, Overwatch 2 has finally revealed the specifics of its Avatar: The Last Airbender collaboration. The event includes six skins for different heroes based on characters from the beloved animated series, but most importantly, it gives one hero who has historically…
Mike Flanagan is writing a Clayface movie for DC Studios
Max
The DC Comics character Clayface has been getting plenty of play on Max’s Harley Quinn series, where he’s voiced by Alan Tudyk. But it’s looking like the shape-shifting villain’s next act will take him to the big screen.
Variety reports that The Haunting of Hill House creator Mike Flanagan has signed on to write a new Clayface feature for DC Studios that will be produced by Matt Reeves and Lynn Harris’ company 6th & Idaho. Currently, there are no details about who will direct the project, but Warner Bros. Discovery reportedly intends for it to begin filming some time next year.
WBD fast-tracking a movie about one of Batman’s goopier rogues might sound odd at first blush, but it makes quite a bit of sense coming after DC Studios co-CEO James Gunn’s reveal of his plan to build a new cinematic universe. Gunn explained last year that DC Studios is “going to have characters move into animation [and] out of animation; usually having the same actor play their voice as who plays them in live-action.”
We’ve already seen a bit of that borne out in Creature Commandos where Viola Davis has reprised her role as Amanda Waller and Frank Grillo is voicing Rick Flagg Sr. ahead of portraying the same role in Peacemaker’s upcoming second season. Though Clayface hasn’t appeared in Creature Commandos just yet, the character (who will once again by voiced by Tudyk) is set to become part of the show some time some time this season.
Because Tudyk also voices Creature Commandos’ Doctor Phosphorous and Will Magnus, it’s not clear yet whether WBD intends for him to portray Clayface is the new feature. But that might not wind up being an issue given how Creature Commandos kinda feels like a show designed to kill off and cycle through DC’s weirder characters.
Kraven The Hunter Reviews Bury The Film In Spider-Man Villain Infamy
Director J.C. Chandor preemptively asked all of us to be nice to his Kraven the Hunter film, imploring us to forget the past failures of Sony’s Spider-Man Extended Universe. Unfortunately for that man, he not only made a movie that brings more attention to why these Spider-Man villain movies aren’t working, but the…
Gemini AI can now summarize what’s in your Google Drive folders
Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge
Gemini’s integration into Google Drive is getting a little more useful. In addition to summarizing documents or answering questions about a project, the AI assistant can now generate summaries of everything inside a folder.
With the feature, you can open a folder and select the new “Summarize this folder” button at the top of the page. Gemini will then give you a breakdown of the folder’s contents. As noted by Google, you can use Gemini to find specific files inside a folder, or ask questions about it, like “What is the theme of this folder?”
You can also drag and drop a folder into the Gemini sidebar, as well as right-click on a folder and choose “Ask Gemini.”
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25787138/gemini_folder_summaries.gif)
GIF: Google
For now, Google says Gemini can only provide information about text documents, PDFs, spreadsheets, and presentations. However, when 9to5Google tested the tool, it found that Gemini could identify images in a folder, too.
Google first brought Gemini to the sidebar in Drive, Docs, Sheets, and Slides in June. Gemini’s folder summary feature is rolling out now to Google One AI Premium subscribers, along with Gemini Business, Enterprise, Education, and Education Premium users.
The extremely online life of the American teenager
Cath Virginia / The Verge | Photos from Getty Images
Nearly half of US teens are “almost constantly” online, though the platforms they spend their time on vary significantly, according to a new Pew survey.
Despite some variety in their overall online habits, virtually all teenagers use YouTube. Of the 1,391 teenagers polled by the Pew Research Center, 90 percent said they use the site, a slight decrease from 95 percent in 2022. And 73 percent of them go on YouTube every day, making it by far the most popular platform for teenage users. The second-most popular app is TikTok, which 63 percent of teens say they use.
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25787153/PI_2024.12.12_teens_social_media_tech_0_01.jpg)
Pew Research Center
Almost all teenagers polled by Pew use YouTube, but very few are on Threads.
But there’s a gender divide, especially among teenagers who say they “almost constantly” use either app: 19 percent of girls say they use TikTok that often, while the same share of boys are constantly on YouTube.
And even this extremely online demographic isn’t using all websites equally. Just 6 percent of teenagers polled said they use Threads, Meta’s microblogging app, and only 32 percent use Facebook — down from 71 percent a decade ago. The only Meta product a majority of teenagers use is Instagram, whose popularity has increased since 2014.
There seems to be a preference for image- and video-based platforms among the teenagers polled: X and Reddit were also much less popular, with 17 percent and 14 percent of teens saying they use them, respectively. And teens’ X usage has declined significantly over the past decade: a decade ago, when it was still called Twitter, 33 percent of US teens used it. But teens’ use of some image-based apps — including Snapchat — is on the decline as well. In fact, the only app that has experienced a rise in popularity is WhatsApp, which is now used by 23 percent of teenagers.
jsonstein@masto.deoan.org ("Jeff Sonstein") wrote:
playing with generating AI-assisted promo video
Attachments:
Microsoft’s Recall AI is creepy, clever, and compelling
Image: Microsoft
I honestly thought I’d hate Microsoft’s controversial Recall feature and immediately disable it, but after using it for the past couple of weeks, I’ve been both creeped out and impressed with what it’s capable of.
Recall, a Windows 11 feature that takes snapshots of mostly everything you see on your screen, quickly became a controversy earlier this year after Microsoft announced it. Privacy advocates immediately started warning about potential issues with Recall without even using it, and security researchers found big holes in a prerelease version of the feature. Microsoft delayed Recall multiple times to give the company more time to address the security issues, and it’s now in testing for Windows Insiders ahead of a broader rollout next year.
The first thing I noticed about Recall is that the initial setup experience is very clunky and feels unfinished. You launch the app, and it redirects you to Windows Update, where AI models will start downloading and installing. Once you’ve installed a trio of these, it looks like the install process is complete — but then Windows Update will find another component of Recall to install. After fiddling around for 10 minutes, Recall will...
Apple gets into AI: all the news on iOS 18, macOS Sequoia, and more
Illustration by Nick Barclay / The Verge
iOS 18 introduces more customization and the first rollout of Apple Intelligence.
Apple has released iOS 18 — plus iPadOS 18, macOS Sequoia, watchOS 11, and other new updates — bringing several key updates to how the company’s devices operate and setting the stage for generative AI features.
The most discussed feature of iOS 18 is the Apple Intelligence suite. With the release of iOS 18.2 on December 11th, features that are available now include generating images in Image Playground, creating custom “Genmoji” emoji, and ChatGPT integration. Other features of Apple Intelligence, including writing tools such as the ability to rewrite your text in different styles, trickled out to customers starting in October.
There are major non-AI changes to consider too, like the ability to change your default apps or test your hearing with AirPods.
Meanwhille, iPadOS 18 now has a calculator app and can solve math equations in notes, watchOS is keeping an eye out for sleep apnea, and now your iPhone can even message Androids with RCS.
Read on for all the news about Apple’s latest set of operating system updates.
Supernote’s new E Ink tablet is upgradeable and repairable
The Supernote A5 X2 Manta is more expensive than the Remarkable 2, but will potentially last longer with upgradeable components. | Image: Supernote
Supernote has announced its new A5 X2 Manta E Ink tablet that could be a potential alternative to the reMarkable 2 for those wanting a larger screen and a device that can be easily upgraded and repaired. It’s available now for $459, something of a jump from the $379 reMarkable 2. The latter also includes a stylus, while the Supernote A5 X2 requires you to provide your own — or spend at least another $59 to buy one of the company’s pens (which, according to Supernote, don’t need charging and are fitted with ceramic tips that won’t wear down).
On the other hand, the new tablet is very fixable. A panel on the back of the Supernote A5 X2 can be removed without tools, giving quick access to some of the tablet’s internal components. This includes its 3,600mAh battery, which can be replaced when it loses capacity or stops charging, and the A5 X2’s motherboard, potentially allowing for performance improvements or new features down the road without having to replace the entire device. There’s also a microSD slot that can use a memory card to expand the A5 X2’s storage from 32GB up to 2TB.
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25787018/supernote3.jpg)
Image: Supernote
You don’t even need to reach for a screwdriver to open the A5 X2’s back panel.
The 10.7-inch 300 ppi E Ink screen on the Supernote A5 X2 is larger and has more resolution than the reMarkable 2’s 10.3-inch 266 ppi panel, but like the four-year-old reMarkable, the A5 X2 skips screen lighting for what the company calls an improved writing experience and a “true paper look in natural light.” That could be a tough sell when alternatives like the Amazon Kindle Scribe and the Kobo Elipsa 2E can be easily used in the dark. Even reMarkable now offers an E Ink tablet with an illuminated screen.
Powered by a 1.8GHz RK3566 quad-core processor, the Supernote A5 X2 runs a custom Android 11-based OS called Chauvet that supports features like two-finger gestures and offline handwriting recognition that can convert your notes to editable text. The tablet also has Bluetooth and Wi-Fi, allowing documents to be synced through cloud-based services like Dropbox or Google Drive, or to be transferred directly to other devices wirelessly using an accompanying mobile app. For extra security, you can even plug a flash drive into the A5 X2’s USB-C charging port and transfer files manually.
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25787060/supernote2.jpg)
Image: Supernote
A loop for holding a stylus to the side of the tablet can be removed for those wanting a cleaner look.
Other features include touch-sensitive strips on the bezels on either side of the screen that can be used to scroll long document and a fabric loop for storing a stylus that can also be removed entirely.
Epic’s holiday sale includes 16 free games this year
Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge
Epic Games’ annual holiday sale is now live, and like previous years, the company is also going to be offering a bunch of free games you can claim during the sale. Over the course of this sale, the store will have 16 free games, according to a blog post.
Epic isn’t spilling the beans about which games will be on offer, teasing only that you’ll be able to claim “some absolutely amazing titles.” But in pervious years, Epic has given away big games like Destiny 2: Legacy Collectionand Control, so fingers crossed that Epic has some good holiday surprises up its sleeve.
For paid deals, there are some good games to sift through, like 35 percent off Dragon Age: The Veilguardand Star Wars: Outlaws. During the holiday sale, Epic is also giving users 10 percent back on their purchases as part of the Epic Rewards program, which is a boost from the usual 5 percent.
The sale ends at 11AM ET on January 9th, 2025.
Reblogged by cstanhope@social.coop ("Your friendly 'net denizen"):
majdal@social.coop ("Majd al-Shihabi 🏴 مجد الشهابي") wrote:
Hello #Mastodon! Moving to a new server, so here's my #introduction.
I'm a technologist, urban planner, and a #PhD student based in #Toronto, with #Luddite tendencies. I research municipal climate action plans and the role of computational modelling in shaping them. Particularly of the emancipatory potnetial of modelling.
I also think and write about #anticapitalist climate futures of #Palestine and the #Levant.
With @bothness, I co-founded Palestine Open Maps https://PalOpenMaps.org
Reblogged by cstanhope@social.coop ("Your friendly 'net denizen"):
loadingartist@mastodon.world ("Gregor") wrote:
deck the malls 🎅
Attachments:
- 6 panel Loading Artist comic. 1: Red and Blue walking through a mall decorated for xmas with xmas music playing. Red, frustrated, says "I can't believe they're already pushing CHRISTMAS". 2: "I mean, it's still OCTOBER!" exclaims Red guy. 3: "... isn't it..?" Red asks unsurely, Blue stares at him. 4: Blue sheepishly says "uhhh" and points behind him at a calendar. 5: Red looks at the calendar, the page is turned to DECEMBER 2024. 6: Red turns around, shocked, and yells "2024?!" (remote)
fromjason ("fromjason.xyz ❤️ 💻") wrote:
Good interview with Ed Zitron.
They end the interview with “What happens when consumers reject AI after all this infrastructure investment?”
My guess—With a little help from regulatory capture, Meta pivots to cloud services and then 4 companies own the internet.
It’s probably time for an updated write-up, but I talk more about that prospect here: https://fromjason.xyz/p/notebook/any-technology-indistinguishable-from-magic-is-hiding-something/
Reblogged by cstanhope@social.coop ("Your friendly 'net denizen"):
Aleums@octodon.social ("petit mordor") wrote:
The standard of the Compact Disc, established in 1982, is rigorously defined. If you want to make a CD player, you read a book, you implement its design specifications, and you can perfectly reproduce the audio on every existing CD. The standard was designed to perfectly encode all the audio signals within the range of human hearing. The discs themselves are portable, stand up well to use, and last a very long time without degrading. Being a digital format, they can easily be transferred to more modern digital storage and reproduced again on the other side of the world.
Compared to vinyl records, they are a little worse for long-term archival, but considerably cheaper to produce and store and are not subject to the infinite gradation of analog reproduction fidelity. Compared to audio files on flash memory, they are more expensive to produce and store, but significantly better for long-term storage with no difference in reproduction fidelity, and benefit from implementing an actual standard that obviates the need for interpretation by software.
It is possible that we could develop a physical audio standard to render the compact disc obsolete obsolete using the technology of flash memory, but we don't have one right now and it's unlikely that we'll see it within our lifetime. We have firmly left the era where companies are willing to invest the time and money to work together to develop a standard like that for physical media - the demand for it has dried up, so we are left with the last best format.
Before someone mentions it, I know that there is an argument to be made for the humble and oft-forgotten minidisc. But I, like many others, have never held a minidisc in my life and so cannot speak to it, and so it is beyond the scope of my writing.
Sonic The Hedgehog 3 Parodies All Your Favorite Christmas Movies With New Posters
Sonic the Hedgehog 3 doesn’t seem to be a Christmas movie, but that hasn’t stopped Paramount from leaning into the fact that the movie is launching less than a week before the holiday. Jim Carrey has at least one scene in the film dressed as Santa Claus, and now Paramount has released several parody posters…
Reblogged by cstanhope@social.coop ("Your friendly 'net denizen"):
SteveBellovin@infosec.exchange ("Steve Bellovin") wrote:
Exploiting mansplaining as tradecraft during WW II:
“If she wants to know something specific, but doesn’t want people to notice her asking questions, she should simply make incorrect statements while in the company of experts. Her companions will correct her, especially if they're men.”
From Elyse Graham's “Book and Dagger”, describing a training school for the SOE.
Biden administration raises tariffs on solar materials from China
A worker handles wafers at the GCL Technology production plant in Xuzhou, Jiangsu Province, China, on Tuesday, July 2, 2024. GCL Technology is one of the world’s largest makers of polysilicon, a key material in solar panels. | Photo: Getty Images
Tariffs on solar wafers, polysilicon, and certain tungsten products from China are going to rise dramatically come January 1st, 2025, the Biden administration announced Wednesday. That means higher price tags on key materials needed to make solar panels at a time when solar is the fastest growing source of electricity in the US.
Polysilicon is used to make solar wafers, which are the semiconductors in solar panels. Tungsten — the same material in old-school incandescent lightbulbs — has many uses in electronics because of its high melting point. The metal is also part of supply chains for the aerospace, automotive, defense, medical, and oil and gas industries.
That means higher price tags on key materials needed to make solar panels at a time when solar is the fastest growing source of electricity in the US
It’s the latest instance of the Biden administration hiking up tariffs on goods from China — which dominates solar manufacturing — as part of its plan to build up domestic supply chains for clean energy.
Solar products from the Xinjiang region in particular also face accusations of forced labor and human rights abuses. The Office of the US Trade Representative (USTR) also said that the decision to raise tariffs follows an investigation into cyber theft and economic espionage by China.
“The tariff increases announced today will further blunt the harmful policies and practices by the People’s Republic of China,” ambassador Katherine Tai said in a statement. “These actions will complement the domestic investments made under the Biden-Harris Administration to promote a clean energy economy, while increasing the resilience of critical supply chains.”
Starting next year, tariffs on polysilicon and solar wafers will double from 25 to 50 percent. Tariffs on certain tungsten products will go from zero to 25 percent. Chinese companies produce more than 75 percent of the world’s polysilicon. Considering all the manufacturing stages for solar panels, which includes polysilicon and wafers, China holds more than 80 percent of global capacity.
American manufacturers welcomed the changes. “These trade measures will begin to counter the pervasive Chinese government subsidies in solar manufacturing. It is a step in the right direction,” Mike Carr, executive director of the Solar Energy Manufacturers for America (SEMA) Coalition, said in an emailed statement.
To be sure, Chinese policies aimed at boosting solar manufacturing have led to economies of scale that have allowed prices for solar panels to plummet around the world. Chinese companies also make much more affordable electric vehicles than US manufacturers. EVs from China have been similarly subject to soaring tariffs during the Biden administration to 100 percent from 25 percent this year. In May, Biden also announced that tariffs on battery parts and lithium-ion batteries would rise to 25 percent from 7.5 percent. In addition, he increased the tarifff rate on solar cells from 25 percent to 50 percent. And by 2025, the rate on semiconductors from China will double to 50 percent.
President-elect Donald Trump has said he plans to hike tariffs on imported goods from China even more than his predecessor, which is expected to increase prices on everything from cars to electronics.
pzmyers@octodon.social ("pzmyers 🦑") wrote:
Sexual dimorphism makes me nervous. I've got a bunch of dainty little male Latrodectus lined up for introduction to some beefy, swole females. Will it be an orgy, or lunch? Tune in tomorrow to find out!
Attachments:
FAA chief Mike Whitaker announces that he will step down in January
Mike Whitaker says he will step down as head of the Federal Aviation Administration on Jan. 20. It's not unusual for FAA administrators to resign at the change of administration, though some have stayed longer.
YouTube quietly made some of its web embeds worse, including ours
Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge
For about a year, I’ve gotten notes from readers asking why our YouTube embeds are broken in one very specific way: you can no longer click the title to open the video on YouTube.com or in the YouTube app. This used to work just fine, but now you can’t.
This bothers us, too, and it’s doubly frustrating because everyone assumes that we’ve chosen to disable links, which makes a certain kind of sense — after all, why on earth wouldn’t YouTube want people to click over to its app?
The short answer is money. Somewhat straightforwardly, YouTube has chosen to degrade the user experience of the embedded player publishers like Vox Media use, and the only way to get that link back is by using a slightly different player that pays us less and YouTube more.
I know this because I’ve spent months chasing down the mystery of the broken links, and after tons of back and forth between Vox Media’s teams and YouTube, and even me pushing this up to YouTube CEO Neal Mohan, they’re not going to change it.
Here’s the really long version: like everyone, we publish our videos on YouTube. But YouTube isn’t the same for everyone. Publishers like Vox Media can use something called the YouTube Player for Publishers, or PfP, which has been around since 2016 and basically competes with the wacky custom video players you see on so many other sites. It allows publishers to sell their own ads at higher rates while still having the videos live in the YouTube ecosystem, which is a nice win-win and not something anyone had to think about until earlier this year. (I didn’t even really know about it until this links kerfuffle — if you listen to The Vergecast this week, you know our newsroom is firewalled from the business side of our company.)
But around the beginning of this year, YouTube decided to change PfP and remove all of its branding from the publisher player. And “branding,” according to YouTube, includes that title link back to YouTube. If publishers want that link back to YouTube, they have to use the standard YouTube player — and give up their ad revenue and control to YouTube. That’s why so many YouTube players around the web — not just ours — don’t have links that work, even though they otherwise look and behave just like YouTube’s standard player.
Here’s what YouTube spokesperson Mariana De Felice told me about it: “News publishers can choose between the standard YouTube embedded player or a version designed specifically for them, which gives greater control over the ads experience, but removes YouTube branding and links back to YouTube. This version provides publishers greater control over the ads running on their videos, but YouTube doesn’t have visibility into which ads are served. In order to protect our advertisers and partners, we’ve removed our branding and links back to YouTube from the player.”
I am a real brat and have complained about this for months now — it had all worked fine since 2016! — but that’s the situation. Our choices are basically leaving things alone, making less money to have the link work, or switching to some other player on the site in protest, which would also not have a link back to YouTube but would at least let us pretend there’s market competition in video players.
Ultimately our business side will make the call, but that’s why the link is broken — a tiny example of the modern platform internet that tells a huge story about how everything else works.
How to choose which Apple Watch to buy
Image: Cath Virginia. / The Verge
Between the Apple Watch Series 10, the Ultra 2, and the second-gen SE, there are more options than ever. We’ll help you sort through them.
Reblogged by cstanhope@social.coop ("Your friendly 'net denizen"):
drachenmagier@mastodon.art wrote:
Done and scanned. :D
I started that one simply because I wanted to draw something glowy. And I really like how that fire drake turned out! <3
Acrylics and alcohol markers on bristol paper.
#drachenmagier #dragon #fantasy #fantasyArt #traditionalArt #traditionalMedia #creature #fire #phoenix #drake #MastoArt
Attachments:
Reblogged by cstanhope@social.coop ("Your friendly 'net denizen"):
cwebber@social.coop ("Christine Lemmer-Webber") wrote:
Are you excited about @spritely? Do you care about decentralized networks? Do you also, potentially, like lisp and scheme? Are you, by any chance, a fan of functional programming or functional package managers like #Nix or #Guix?!
If ANY of these are true, you should come to my talk TODAY, in 2.5 hours, where I'm going to talk about Spritely! WebAssembly! Decentralized networks! And video games! Don't miss it! https://www.meetup.com/guix-social/events/303599147
BuzzFeed is selling Hot Ones
First We Feast.
After months of searching for a buyer to take First We Feast — the production company behind Hot Ones — off its hands, BuzzFeed has finally secured an $82.5 million all-cash deal to sell First We Feast to “a consortium led by an affiliate of Soros Fund Management LLC” The consortium’s list of investors includes First We Feast founder Chris Schonberger and Hot Ones host Sean Evans.
In a press release, BuzzFeed CEO Jonah Peretti said that selling off First We Feast “marks an important step in BuzzFeed, Inc.’s strategic transformation into a media company positioned to fully benefit from the ongoing AI revolution.”
“In the coming years, we will continue to invest in our most scalable and tech enabled services, launching new AI-powered interactive experiences, and delivering for our loyal audience and business partners,” Peretti said.
BuzzFeed acquired First We Feast in 2021 when it bought rival media outfit Complex, the production company’s original owner. Though BuzzFeed wound up selling Complex off to Ntwrk earlier this year for $108.6 million, it elected to retain control of First We Feast.
The deal comes after months of speculation about how BuzzFeed might go about paying down $123.5 million in debt and interest payments. Failed Republican presidential candidate and soon-to-be DOGE co-head Vivek Ramaswamy (who recently purchased a 9 percent stake in BuzzFeed) previously insisted that BuzzFeed wouldn’t be able to get on top of its debt problem and that he could somehow end up running the company.
However, with cash on hand plus $75.6 from this sale, Buzzfeed says it can pay down the debt, and end up with more cash on its books than debt.
I saw Google’s plan to put Android on your face
Google didn’t let me take my own photos, but this is strikingly similar to the demo I saw with my own eyes. | Image: Google
I demoed Google’s new Android XR platform, Samsung’s Project Moohan, and prototype smart glasses. I felt as close to Tony Stark in a controlled demo as I’ll ever be.
It’s an ordinary Tuesday. I’m wearing what look like ordinary glasses in a room surrounded by Google and Samsung representatives. One of them steps out in front of me and starts speaking in Spanish. I don’t speak Spanish. Hovering in mid-air, I can see her words being translated into English subtitles. Reading them, I can see she’s describing what I’m seeing in real time.
I mumble an expletive. Everyone laughs.
This is my first experience with Android XR — a new mixed reality OS designed for headsets and smart glasses, like the prototypes I’m wearing. It’s Google’s big bet to power a new generation of augmented reality devices that embody all our wildest dreams of what smart glasses can be.
Google is no stranger to augmented reality. Google Glass crashed and burned with the public more than 10 years ago before being repurposed for enterprise users and eventually discontinued. But things are different now. Apple has the Vision Pro. Meta has the Ray-Ban smart glasses, and their AI features have garnered positive buzz. That’s why Google is jumping back into the fray with Android XR.
Google wants everyone to know the time is finally right for XR, andit’s pointing to Gemini as its north star. Adding Gemini enables multimodal AI and natural language — things it says will make interactions with your environment richer. In a demo, Google had me prompt Gemini to name the title of a yellow book sitting behind me on a shelf. I’d briefly glanced at it earlier but hadn’t taken a photo. Gemini took a second, and then offered up an answer. I whipped around to check — it was correct.
On top of that, the platform will work with any mobile and tablet app from the Play Store out of the box. Today’s launch is aimed at developers so they can start building out experiences. The average person won’t be able to buy anything running Android XR right now, but in 2025, Samsung will be launching its long-rumored XR headset. Dubbed Project Moohan (Korean for infinity), the headset will be the first consumer product to ship with Android XR. Technically, it’s running the same software as the glasses I tried, but Project Moohan will also be capable of VR and immersive content — stuff that wouldn’t be suited to a pair of smart glasses. It’s essentially a showcase for everything that could be possible. Hence why Google is going with XR — a catch-all term that stands for “extended reality” and encompasses AR, VR, and mixed reality.
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25786842/Project_Moohan_Side.jpg)
Image: Google, Samsung
Project Moohan felt like a mix between a Meta Quest 3 and Vision Pro headset.
Samsung’s headset feels like a mix between a Meta Quest 3 and the Vision Pro. Unlike either, the light seal is optional so you can choose to let the world bleed in. It’s lightweight and doesn’t pinch my face too tightly. My ponytail easily slots through the top, and later, I’m thankful that I don’t have to redo my hair. At first, the resolution doesn’t feel quite as sharp as the Vision Pro — until the headset automatically calibrates to my pupillary distance.
It’s at this point when I start feeling deja vu. I’m walked through pinching to select items and how to tap the side to bring up the app launcher. There’s an eye calibration process that feels awfully similar to the Vision Pro’s. If I want, I can retreat into an immersive mode to watch YouTube and Google TV on a distant mountain. I can open apps, resize them, and place them at various points around the room. I’ve done this all before. This just happens to be Google-flavored.
I want to ask: how do you expect to stand out?
I don’t get the chance to before I’m told: Gemini.
For the skeptic, it’s easy to scoff at the idea that Gemini, of all things, is what’s going to crack the augmented reality puzzle. Generative AI is having a moment right now, but not always in a positive way. Outside of conferences filled with tech evangelists, AI is often viewed with derision and suspicion. But inside the Project Moohan headset or wearing a pair of prototype smart glasses? I can catch a glimpse of why Google and Samsung believe Gemini is the killer app for XR.
For me, it’s the fact that I don’t have to be specific when I ask for things. Usually, I get flustered talking to AI assistants because I have to remember the wake word, clearly phrase my request, and sometimes even specify my preferred app.
“One thing I’m really confident about, something that’s not just different from before, is that Gemini is really that great,” says Kihwan Kim, EVP at Samsung Electronics, who nods furiously in agreement when I mention this. To Kim, it’s the ability to fluidly speak to Gemini and the fact that it understands a person’s individual context that opens dozens of different options for the way each person interacts with XR. “That’s why I clearly see that this headset will give more insight about what [XR] should be.”
I was shocked at how well my translation demos went, which were in the same spirit as the video here.
In the Moohan headset, I can say, “Take me to JYP Entertainment in Seoul,” and it will automatically open Google Maps and show me that building. If my windows get cluttered, I can ask it to reorganize them. I don’t have to lift a finger. While wearing the prototype glasses, I watch and listen as Gemini summarizes a long, rambling text message to the main point: can you buy lemon, ginger, and olive oil from the store? I was able to naturally switch from speaking in English to asking in Japanese what the weather is in New York — and get the answer in spoken and written Japanese.
It’s not just interactions with Gemini that linger in my mind, either. It’s also how experiences can be built on top of them. I asked Gemini how to get somewhere and saw turn-by-turn text directions. When I looked down, the text morphed into a zoomable map of my surroundings. It’s very easy to imagine myself using something like that in real life.
But as cool as all that is, headsets can be a hard sell to the average person. Personally, I’m more enamored with the glasses demo, but those have no concrete timeline. (Google made the prototypes, but it’s focusing on working with other partners to bring hardware to market.) There are still cultural cues that have to be established with either form factor. Outside of Gemini, there has to be a robust ecosystem of apps and experiences for the average person, not just early adopters.
The headset demos felt more familiar, though Circle to Search was unique to Android XR.
“It’s not going to be a singular product. It’s Android,” says Shahram Izadi, Google’s VP of AR and XR, noting that Google has a three-pronged strategy for Android XR: laying the groundwork with devs is one element; Gemini’s conversational experience is another; and the third is the idea that no one device is the future of XR. Headsets, for example, may just be “episodic” devices you use for entertainment. Glasses could supplement phones and smartwatches for discreet notifications and looking up information.
“The way I see it, these devices don’t replace one another. You’ll use these devices throughout your day, and if there’s consistency with Gemini and generative AI experiences across these form factors, people will get more comfortable with wearing computers on their faces. That’s the on ramp to get to more immersive devices,” says Izadi.
Listening to Kim and Izadi talk, I want to believe. But I’m also acutely aware that all of my experiences were tightly controlled. I wasn’t given free rein to try and break things. I couldn’t take photos of the headset or glasses. At every point, I was carefully guided through preapproved demos that Google and Samsung were reasonably sure would work. I — and every other consumer — can’t fully believe until we can play with these things without guardrails.
But even knowing that, I can’t deny that, for an hour, I felt like Tony Stark with Gemini as my Jarvis. For better or worse, this example has molded so much of our expectations for how XR and AI assistants should work. I’ve tried dozens of headsets and smart glasses that promised to make what I see in the movies real — and utterly failed. For the first time, I experienced something relatively close.
Google announces Android XR, a new OS for headsets and smart glasses
XR stands for “extended reality,” which you should get used to explaining to lots of people. | Image: Google
Google is taking another run at making headsets work. The company just announced Android XR, a new operating system designed specifically for what Google calls “extended reality” devices like headsets and glasses. It’s working with Samsung and lots of other hardware manufacturers to develop those headsets and glasses, is making the new version of Android available to developers now, and hopes to start shipping XR stuff next year.
We don’t yet have a ton of details on exactly how Android XR will work or how it might differ from the Android on your phone. (The Verge’sVictoria Song got to try a few demos and prototypes — make sure you read her story.) Google is making immersive XR versions of apps like Maps, Photos, and YouTube and says it’s developing a version of Chrome that lets you do multiwindow multitasking in your browser. It will also support existing phone and tablet apps from the Play Store, much in the same way Apple supports iPad apps in the Vision Pro.
Google’s Gemini AI, of course, is at the very center of the whole experience. Google has been trying to crack headsets for more than a decade — there was Glass and Cardboard and Daydream, all of which had good ideas but none of which turned into much — and the company thinks AI is the key to making the user experience work. “We believe a digital assistant integrated with your XR experience is the killer app for the form factor, like what email or texting was for the smartphone,” said Sameer Samat, who oversees the Android ecosystem at Google, in a press briefing ahead of the launch. As Gemini becomes more multimodal, too, able to both capture and create audio and video, glasses and headsets suddenly make much more sense.
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25786860/Screenshot_2024_12_12_at_09.05.29.png)
Image: Google
This is the kind of AR interface you’ll get with Android XR.
The choice of the term “XR” for the OS is maybe the most interesting part. There are a million terms and acronyms for this space: there’s virtual reality, augmented reality, mixed reality, extended reality, and others, all of which mean different but overlapping things. XR is probably the broadest of the terms, which seems to be why Google picked it. “When we say extended reality or XR,” Samat said, “we’re really talking about a whole spectrum of experiences, from virtual reality to augmented reality and everything in between.”
Google imagines headsets that can seamlessly transition from virtual worlds to real ones — again like the Vision Pro — and smart glasses that are more of an always-on companion. It’s also interested in audio-only devices like the Ray-Ban Meta Smart Glasses. Some things might be standalone; others might be more like an accessory to your phone. We’ll see if Google ends up building its own XR hardware, but it’s clearly trying to support a huge spectrum of devices.
Android XR is still in its early stages, and most developers are only now going to start getting the software and hardware they need to build for the new OS. But Google’s trying to move quickly next year: a device it’s building with Samsung, codenamed Moohan, is apparently slated to ship next year. Android XR is, in some ways, a culmination of bets Google has been making in AI, the broader Android ecosystem, and the wearable future of technology. All of those bets are about to get the real test: whether anyone actually puts them on.
The Indian audio app spinning its own stories
Image: Cath Virginia, Adobe Stock
The Indian storytelling app gives its audience an unending stream of audio stories about lucky individuals who become rich. It might as well be an allegory for its own creator economy.
Kia drivers are going to get Google Maps data soon
Photo by Andrew J. Hawkins / The Verge
Hyundai and Kia will integrate Google Maps data into their current vehicle infotainment platforms ahead of a switchover to the Android Automotive operating system, the automakers announced today.
Hyundai, Kia, and the luxury nameplate Genesis will use Google Maps Platform’s Places API to inject 250 million points of interest into the existing navigation software. Kia will be the first to get the new data integration in North America, with “subsequent expansions” to other Hyundai, Kia, and Genesis models globally. Hyundai says the changes are part of an ongoing Google partnership that accelerates their development of what the automaker calls “software-defined vehicles,” or SDV.
We asked Hyundai if current models on the road will get Google Maps data through a software update and will update this story when we get a response. The current navigation app for the companies primarily uses points of interest data from digital mapping company TomTom. Tesla is also one of several automakers that has its own navigation software on a closed OS but uses Places API for mapping data.
However, Hyundai, Kia, and Genesis will soon follow the industry-wide trend of moving to Google’s Android...
As Time's 'Person of the Year,' Trump outlines his top priorities in lengthy interview
In a wide-ranging and long interview, President-elect Donald Trump tells TIME Magazine his priorities for the first days of his second time at the presidency.
Dragon Ball: Sparking Zero Fans Are In Love Again After A Surprise Update Addresses A Ton Of Complaints
The vibes in the Dragon Ball: Sparking Zero community have been absolutely rancid lately, but a huge free update has just changed that. The 3D arena fighter’s latest patch fixes a ton of broken mechanics and OP abilities that were ruining the game’s ranked mode. Even more importantly, local multiplayer can finally be…
YouTube TV’s monthly cost soars to $82.99
Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge
I maintain that YouTube TV is the very best of the streaming TV services, but good grief is it getting expensive. Today YouTube announced the service’s latest price hike, which brings the monthly subscription to $82.99. The change is effective immediately for new customers and will be reflected starting January 13th for “most existing customers.” As usual, the company attributes this increase to “the rising cost of content and the investments we make in the quality of our service.”
YouTube TV last raised its subscription cost to $72.99 in March 2023. Before that, it was $64.99. The days when the service ran only $50 now feel like a lifetime ago. Some of you who got in early might even remember it costing a mere $35 per month.
But since then, YouTube has routinely found itself in carriage disputes with Disney, NBCUniversal, and other content owners, and those renegotiated agreements have led YouTube TV’s price to climb higher and higher. The YouTube TV of today is much different than it used to be; there are more channels, yes, but the service has also shed a number of regional sports networks.
The company is quick to note that none of the service’s core benefits are changing. The base subscription still includes over 100 channels, cloud DVR with unlimited storage, up to six user accounts per household, and the flexibility of three concurrent streams. But YouTube TV still charges extra for 4K streaming, which seems harder to rationalize after this $10 price bump.
Customers are predictably none too pleased about the news and are weighing whether a service that now costs more than double its original price is still worth it.
Missing American Travis Timmerman found wandering barefoot outside Damascus
The 29-year-old had last been seen in Budapest, Hungary. He said he was detained earlier this year after crossing into Syria on foot from Lebanon and held in prison until the fall of the Assad regime.
Sora’s AI video revolution is still a ways off
Prompt: “King Charles III UK eating a Greggs sausage roll on the throne.” There’s a lot wrong with these results... | Image: OpenAI / The Verge
The first version of OpenAI’s Sora can generate video of just about anything you throw at it — superheroes, cityscapes, animated puppies. It’s an impressive first step for the AI video generator. But the actual results are far from satisfactory, with many videos so heavily plagued with oddities and inconsistencies that it’s hard to imagine anyone finding much use for them.
Sora was released on Monday after almost a year of teasers heralding its capabilities. There are a few hurdles before you get to the video generation features, though. For one, account creation was closed within hours of launching due to the overwhelming demand. Those who did manage to sign up will find that its features also require a subscription to unlock: a $20 monthly “Plus” membership will let you generate videos at 480p or 720p, capped at either five or 10 seconds in length depending on the resolution. To unlock everything, including 1080p quality and 20-second-long videos, you need to cough up $200 a month for the “Pro” Sora subscription.
Prompt: “An indigo-colored cat lounging on a green armchair while wearing a pair of wireless headphones. A smartphone beside it is playing the Vergecast podcast.”
...
Warner Bros. Discovery restructures to split up streaming and cable businesses
Photo by Aleksander Kalka/NurPhoto via Getty Images
Warner Bros. Discovery is reorganizing its business into two separate units: one for linear networks, and the other for streaming and studios business. The move, which is set to be complete by mid-2025, is meant to help the company “pursue further value creation,” potentially bringing it closer to breaking off its linear business entirely.
Over the summer, rumors suggested that WBD planned on severing its streaming business from its legacy networks completely, freeing Max from the company’s mountain of debt. The company’s linear networks have been struggling for a while now, with WBD taking a $9.1 billion writedown on its channels in August after TNT lost live NBA games to Amazon Prime Video.
WBD isn’t the only one shaking up its cable business. Last month, Comcast announced that it’s spinning off its cable TV channels into a new company. As noted by Deadline, Disney CEO Bob Iger also said last year that the company’s linear networks “may not be core” to its business.
WBD will move forward with the “foundational steps” of the new structure now, which CEO David Zaslav said will open up “potential future strategic opportunities across an evolving media landscape.”
Kash Patel Claims He Played a Major Role in the Benghazi Case. Former Colleagues Say He Didn’t.
In his 2023 book, Government Gangsters, which claims a supposed Deep State has been plotting against Donald Trump for years, Kash Patel, whom Trump has tapped to replace Chris Wray as FBI director, recounts his three-year stint as a mid-level attorney at the Justice Department. For him, this gig was apparently a radical learning experience. […]
How to watch the 2024 Game Awards
Photo by Franziska Krug/Getty Images for game
It’s December, which means one thing: it’s time for another round of The Game Awards. As with last year — and every year — the awards themselves aren’t really the highlight of the Geoff Keighley-hosted event. Instead, the show has become a very long stream full of video game announcements, reveals, and trailers, punctuated by the occasional award and musical performance.
This year, we know at least a few of the major reveals, which will include the first gameplay trailer for Borderlands 4 and the next release from Hazelight Studios, the team behind surprise hit It Takes Two. Games like Palworld, Dying Light, and Mafia: The Old Country, are all confirmed to make an appearance, and it wouldn’t be much of a surprise if Hideo Kojima showed up as well, either to show off Death Stranding 2 or OD.
If you are interested in the awards, this year’s top prize features a solid lineup of competing games, including Astro Bot, Balatro, Black Myth: Wukong, Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree, Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, and Metaphor: ReFantazio.
How and when to watch The Game Awards 2024
The ceremony kicks off at 7:30PM ET on December 12th and, as per usual, it’s streaming a huge bunch of places including YouTube, Twitch, X, Facebook, Instagram, and many others. (You can find the complete list right here.) It’ll also be streaming inside of Fortnite, if the metaverse is your thing.
Character.AI has retrained its chatbots to stop chatting up teens
Image: Cath Virginia / The Verge
In an announcement today, Chatbot service Character.AI says it will soon be launching parental controls for teenage users, and it described safety measures it’s taken in the past few months, including a separate large language model (LLM) for users under 18. The announcement comes after press scrutiny and two lawsuits that claim it contributed to self-harm and suicide.
In a press release, Character.AI said that, over the past month, it’s developed two separate versions of its model: one for adults and one for teens. The teen LLM is designed to place “more conservative” limits on how bots can respond, “particularly when it comes to romantic content.” This includes more aggressively blocking output that could be “sensitive or suggestive,” but also attempting to better detect and block user prompts that are meant to elicit inappropriate content. If the system detects “language referencing suicide or self-harm,” a pop-up will direct users to the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, a change that was previously reported by The New York Times.
Minors will also be prevented from editing bots’ responses — an option that lets users rewrite conversations to add content Character.AI might otherwise block.
Beyond these changes, Character.AI says it’s “in the process” of adding features that address concerns about addiction and confusion over whether the bots are human, complaints made in the lawsuits. A notification will appear when users have spent an hour-long session with the bots, and an old disclaimer that “everything characters say is made up” is being replaced with more detailed language. For bots that include descriptions like “therapist” or “doctor,” an additional note will warn that they can’t offer professional advice.
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25786007/Screenshot_2024_12_11_at_4.07.16_PM.png)
Character.AI
Narrator: it was not a licensed CBT therapist.
When I visited Character.AI, I found that every bot now included a small note reading “This is an A.I. chatbot and not a real person. Treat everything it says as fiction. What is said should not be relied upon as fact or advice.” When I visited a bot named “Therapist” (tagline: “I’m a licensed CBT therapist”), a yellow box with a warning signal told me that “this is not a real person or licensed professional. Nothing said here is a substitute for professional advice, diagnosis, or treatment.”
The parental control options are coming in the first quarter of next year, Character.AI says, and they’ll tell parents how much time a child is spending on Character.AI and which bots they interact with most frequently. All the changes are being made in collaboration with “several teen online safety experts,” including the organization ConnectSafely.
Character.AI, founded by ex-Googlers who have since returned to Google, lets visitors interact with bots built on a custom-trained LLM and customized by users. These range from chatbot life coaches to simulations of fictional characters, many of which are popular among teens. The site allows users who identify themselves as age 13 and over to create an account.
But the lawsuits allege that while some interactions with Character.AI are harmless, at least some underage users become compulsively attached to the bots, whose conversations can veer into sexualized conversations or topics like self-harm. They’ve castigated Character.AI for not directing users to mental health resources when they discuss self-harm or suicide.
“We recognize that our approach to safety must evolve alongside the technology that drives our product — creating a platform where creativity and exploration can thrive without compromising safety,” says the Character.AI press release. “This suite of changes is part of our long-term commitment to continuously improve our policies and our product.”
Pokémon TCG Pocket Getting Mew-Themed Booster Set Amid Whopping 60 Million Downloads
Pokémon TCG Pocket seems to be going rather well for The Pokémon Company. With rumors that the game has netted over $200 million in its first month, it’s now been officially announced that the mobile app has been downloaded over 60 million times since its October 30 launch. To accompany this news, the Pocket devs have…
Reblogged by slightlyoff@toot.cafe ("Alex Russell"):
jonty@chaos.social ("Jonty Wareing") wrote:
So I've been notified that my role is at risk. Would anybody like to hire a me.
I've spent the last 7 years as chief architect, which realistically meant doing every job from infrastructure to product and occasionally acting CTO. For the last two years I've been merging platforms of two billion dollar companies.
I am interested in everything, and curious to try new things.
I like python and postgres, but happy to quickly pick up any stack. You do not want me anywhere near your frontend code.
A North Carolina Judge Won Two Recounts. Republicans Are Still Trying to Overturn Her Election.
After trailing by more than 10,000 votes on election night, Democratic North Carolina State Supreme Court Justice Allison Riggs pulled off an unexpected victory by 734 votes after absentee and provisional ballots were counted and the results were affirmed by two recounts, including a hand count completed on Tuesday. “Let this race serve as a […]
A North Carolina Judge Won Two Recounts. Republicans Are Still Trying to Overturn Her Election.
After trailing by more than 10,000 votes on election night, Democratic North Carolina State Supreme Court Justice Allison Riggs pulled off an unexpected victory by 734 votes after absentee and provisional ballots were counted and the results were affirmed by two recounts, including a hand count completed on Tuesday. “Let this race serve as a […]
Mafia 4 Trailer Leaks Ahead Of Game Awards, Coming Out Summer 2025
The fourth entry in 2K’s gangster series isn’t far away. A new leaked ad for Mafia: The Old Country ahead of The Game Awards 2024 reveals a summer 2025 release window and our first real look at the upcoming prequel.
You can now use AirTags to expedite a lost luggage reunion through United’s mobile app
Apple’s new Share Item Location is already integrated into the latest version of United Airlines’ mobile app. | Image: United Airlines
Following the official release of Apple’s new Share Item Location feature with iOS 18.2 yesterday, United Airlines has announced it has integrated it into its mobile app. Passengers finding themselves at their destination without their luggage can now file a delayed baggage report through United’s app along with a Share Item Location link that will potentially expedite a reunion.
Passengers will need to ensure the United mobile app is up to date, but once a report has been submitted with a Share Item Location link connected to an AirTag or a tracker that’s compatible with Apple’s Find My network, customer service agents will be able to determine its current or last known location using an interactive map, according to United Airlines. Having access to the Find My network data for a missing bag will allow the airline “to more quickly find delayed bags and reunite them with customers.”
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25786823/united2.jpg)
Image: United Airlines
Sharing a lost bag’s location through United’s mobile app will potentially expedite its return.
You don’t actually need the app to take advantage of the new integration. After filing a delayed baggage report either in person at an airport, over the phone, or through United’s website, passengers will “receive an automatic text notification with information to track misplaced luggage and add a Share Item Location link for their AirTag or Find My network accessory.”
Once a passenger is reunited with a missing bag its shared location will be disabled automatically. The location sharing can also be manually stopped by the passenger at any time, and for added security and privacy the link will automatically expire after seven days — hopefully long after the luggage is located and returned.
Apple says that Air Canada has also integrated the feature, and in the coming months more than 15 airlines “will begin accepting Find My item locations as part of their customer service process for locating mishandled or delayed bags.”
Assassin's Creed Shadows Will Have A 'Canon Mode' For Animus Purists
Ubisoft is an strange ol’ publisher, closing down teams and killing off so many projects—but the games that do reach us tend to be the most extraordinarily accessible, replete with groundbreaking options to make the games playable for the widest numbers of people, in the most specific ways possible. With next year’s As…
With iOS 18.2, Apple completes its AI starter kit
Plant identification — now powered by ChatGPT. | Photo: Allison Johnson / The Verge
I was about to okay my friend’s restaurant suggestion for lunch — an Indian place on 2nd — when Apple Intelligence swooped in with another idea. “How about The Ritz?” appeared above the keyboard as a suggested response, highlighted in that telltale AI rainbow glow. The other suggested response, “Sounds good!” was much more reasonable. But ignoring both, I typed out my affirmative answer, hopped on my bike, and headed to downtown Seattle, where there are, to my knowledge, zero Ritzes.
Suggested replies aren’t new in iOS 18.2, but they’re a piece of the Apple Intelligence feature set that’s falling into place with this week’s public release of 18.2. Those suggestions I got while planning lunch kind of sum up my whole experience with Apple’s AI up ’til now: occasionally helpful, sometimes way off base, and often good for a laugh. But once the novelty wears off, it’s easily ignored — just like the AI feature sets on every other so-called AI smartphone I’ve used this year.
Apple had to get something out the door for its “built for Apple Intelligence” iPhones
Apple took its time getting here. The first set of AI features dropped with iOS 18.1 at the end of October, including...
The Bipartisan Bill Fighting Trump’s Attempts to Silence Critics
Last week, Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) and Kevin Kiley (R-Calif) introduced federal anti-SLAPP legislation, in a bid to protect journalists, whistleblowers, and individual internet users from those who use lawsuits as an intimidation tactic. SLAPP suits—formally, Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation—are designed to prevent people from exercising their free speech. A common example is a person […]
Epic and Lego have a long-term plan to make Fortnite more than battle royale
Image: Epic Games
A year ago, Epic kicked off a bold plan to turn Fortnite into a broader ecosystem for all kinds of games. And that plan was led by the launch of Lego Fortnite, a Minecraft-style survival game that sits alongside the likes of battle royale and the music-themed Fortnite Festival inside of Fortnite. Now, Epic is pushing into another new direction with the launch of Brick Life, a Lego-themed city where players can live virtual lives, much like in Grand Theft Auto roleplaying servers.
The ongoing goal, according to Devin Winterbottom, Epic’s executive vice president of game development, is to keep expanding in ways that make people rethink what Fortnite actually is. “The worst outcome for us is that everything looks like battle royale,” Winterbottom says. “That’s not what we want to do.”
For Brick Life, that takes the form of a family-friendly nonviolent space where players can explore and socialize inside of a Lego city. It launches today as part of a broader rebranding of Lego Fortnite; now, those two words refer to a hub that houses all of the Lego experiences in the game, while the survival title has been renamed Lego Fortnite Odyssey. In between those two major releases, Lego...
Palmer Luckey’s defense tech company will make next-gen military aircraft with Archer
Image: Archer
Electric aviation startup Archer Aviation signed an exclusive deal with Palmer Luckey’s defense contractor, Anduril Industries, to jointly develop next-generation aircraft for the military. Archer also announced a new funding round of $450 million to help propel its defense ambitions.
The first product will be a hybrid propulsion vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) aircraft that will serve as the basis for the companies’ bid for a contract with the US Department of Defense. Archer is also formalizing its efforts to be an aircraft supplier to the military through the creation of a new internal division called Archer Defense.
While Archer has been racing to finalize the government certification process that it will need to get the necessary government approvals for its electric vertical takeoff and landing, or eVTOL, aircraft, it’s also getting more deeply involved with the military-industrial complex. The San Jose, California-based company also recently delivered one of its Midnight eVTOL aircraft to the US Air Force as part of its evaluation program. Other advanced aviation companies have made similar moves.
The first product will be a hybrid propulsion vertical takeoff and landing aircraft
Archer also announced it will be the recipient of a fresh capital round, with $430 million coming from preexisting investors such as Stellantis and United Airlines as well as new funders like Wellington Management and Abu Dhabi investment holding company 2PointZero, a subsidiary of the United Arab Emirates’ largest listed entity, IHC. Archer says it has raised a total of $2 billion to date.
Archer came out of stealth in spring 2020 after having poached key talent from Wisk (formerly Kitty Hawk) and Airbus’ Vahana project. (Wisk later sued for alleged trade secret theft, which was finally settled last year.) The company has a $1 billion order from United Airlines for its aircraft and a deal to mass-produce its eVTOL craft with global automaker Stellantis.
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25786093/2024_1209_Lockup_16_9_vF.png)
Alongside Archer, other eVTOL companies hope to eventually win full Federal Aviation Administration approval. That got a boost recently when the agency published highly anticipated final regulations for eVTOL vehicles that it says will chart the path for the “air travel of the future.” Archer praised the FAA for “providing clear direction on what is required for the safe operation of eVTOL aircraft in the U.S.”
Air taxis, sometimes misidentified by the mainstream media as “flying cars,” are essentially helicopters without the noisy, polluting gas motors (though they certainly have their own unique noise profile). In addition to Archer, companies like Joby Aviation, Volocopter, and Beta Technologies have claimed they are on the cusp of launching services that will eventually scale up nationwide. But others have floundered; German company Lilium recently said that two of its subsidiaries were insolvent and could cease operations.
Meanwhile, Anduril is a military technology company, founded by Oculus creator Luckey, that makes surveillance and reconnaissance tech as well as military drones. The company recently teamed up with OpenAI to integrate the ChatGPT maker’s software into Anduril’s counterdrone systems.
Pokémon TCG Pocket’s new expansion drops next week
The Pokémon Company
If you’ve been playing Pokémon TCG Pocketsince launch, you’ve probably already collected most of the cards from the game’s first expansion. But a new set is about to debut in just a few days.
Today, The Pokémon Company announced that Mythical Island, a new expansion set featuring the pokémon Mew, is coming to Pokémon TCG Pocket on December 17th. A trailer for the expansion reveals a handful of new Pokémon cards coming to the game for the first time like Purrloin, Serperior, and Marshadow. Previously, the only way to obtain a Mew card was by collecting cards featuring each of the 150 original pokémon from the Kantonian Pokédex, but it should be much easier to snag the new Mew EX card simply by ripping a few packs.
The Pokémon Company also announced that TCG Pocket has exceeded 60 million iOS and Android downloads since the game launched at the end of October. The ability to actually trade cards with other people hasn’t come to the game just yet, but it’s going to be very useful given that there’s a bunch of fresh cards on the way.
Reblogged by cstanhope@social.coop ("Your friendly 'net denizen"):
interlisp@fosstodon.org ("The Medley Interlisp Project") wrote:
Hello from the Medley Interlisp Project! We revive and modernize the Medley Interlisp extensible graphical operating and programming environment created at Xerox PARC.
We post news & updates, tips, historical info, and more. We look forward to connecting with researchers, software preservation experts, Lisp programmers, retrocomputing enthusiasts, and anyone interested.
#interlisp #lisp #retrocomputing #VintageComputing #SoftwarePreservation #xerox #introduction #parc
Attachments:
- Screenshot of the black and white desktop of a 1980s graphical workstation environment. The desktop has a gray background pattern and several windows with a white background and a title bar with white text on a black background. The windows display text, bitmaps, graphs, icons, sketches, and other graphical documents and elements. (remote)
Reblogged by cstanhope@social.coop ("Your friendly 'net denizen"):
amoroso@fosstodon.org ("Paolo Amoroso") wrote:
@interlisp 👆 The Medley Interlisp Project lands on the fediverse with the official Mastodon account @interlisp ran by yours truly. It's the beginning of a new adventure in Lisp and the history of computing you're invited to join.
Reblogged by jsonstein@masto.deoan.org ("Jeff Sonstein"):
bucknam ("Alan Bucknam") wrote:
Attachments:
![Screenshot of a social media post. First part has a quote, second has an image of the person quoted in the first part signing bombs with a sharpie. Post reads: Pop Base @PopBase Governor Josh Shapiro comments on the arrest of Luigi Mangione: "Some attention in this case, especially online, has been deeply disturbing as some have looked to celebrate instead of condemning this killer. [...] In America, we do not kill people in cold blood to resolve policy differences or express a viewpoint." governor josh shapiro literally signing bombs:](https://files.mastodon.social/media_attachments/files/113/630/292/434/993/085/original/3c899914f575c3c5.jpeg){kind=link}
jsonstein@masto.deoan.org ("Jeff Sonstein") wrote:
Today in History: First wireless message sent across Atlantic by Marconi, 1901
jsonstein@masto.deoan.org ("Jeff Sonstein") wrote:
Today in History: E.G. Robinson born, 1893
Biden commutes the sentences for 1,500 people, the largest act of clemency in a day
The 1,500 people had been serving long prison sentences that would have been shorter under today's laws and practices. They had been on home confinement since the COVID pandemic.
Inside the launch — and future — of ChatGPT
Image: Cath Virginia / The Verge, Getty Images
OpenAI worried that ChatGPT would be a dud two years ago. Now, the stakes have never been higher.
FBI Director to resign. And, UHC CEO killing brings attention to U.S. life expectancy
Why FBI Director Christopher Wray will step down from the role at the end of Biden's term. And, the UHC CEO killing turns public attention to the U.S. life expectancy and health care.
jsonstein@masto.deoan.org ("Jeff Sonstein") wrote:
hilarious... doing a s/w update from Apple & I see "nsurlsessiond" at the top of my sucking-up-bandwidth list. is this left over from the days of the NSAPI? in the early days of the Web, there was commercial competition to grab the server market. Netscape's offering had an API you could tie into to extend the usual Web capabilities & HTTP (to make things like early attempts at what we now know as socmedia services, like Arcadium). this concept is what spawned things like servlet engines &etc
Attachments:
Some Syrian refugees in Berlin ponder returning post-Assad, others call Germany home
Germany hosts almost a million Syrians who fled war and dictatorship.
Voicemod launches its voice-changing dongle for Xbox, PlayStation, and Switch
Image: Voicemod
Voicemod has released a hardware solution that enables its popular soundboard and voice-changing desktop software to work on Xbox, PlayStation, and Nintendo Switch consoles. The Voicemod Key dongle is now available in the US after initially being teased in July, with Voicemod planning to launch it in additional countries “soon.”
Universal voice changers have previously been limited to desktop PCs and Macs, with software limitations preventing Voicemod from building an app for consoles. The Voicemod Key serves as a workaround — it sports a USB-C connection that plugs into a tablet or smartphone (including older iPhones thanks to an included lightning adapter), and two audio jacks that connect to your console and a wired gaming headset. The Voicemod mobile app can then be used to access the platform’s soundboard and real-time voice-changing features in console chats.
Image: Voicemod
Here’s an example of how the setup works — it’s worth noting that Voicemod Key will only work with wired headsets.
The Voicemod Key is supported on iOS 16 and Android 8.1 or higher. Availability is restricted to paid Voicemod subscribers, and the Key price will depend on your...
South Korea's Yoon defends martial law decree as an act of governance
In an address to the nation, President Yoon Suk Yeol claimed the opposition-controlled parliament has been destroying the country's liberal democratic order.
Why Describing Climate Shifts as “Tipping Points” May Backfire
This story was originally published by Grist and is reproduced here as part of the Climate Desk collaboration. Climate tipping points are a specter looming over our future—thresholds beyond which the Earth’s systems switch into new states, often abruptly and irreversibly. The long-frozen soil beneath the Arctic could rapidly thaw and release vast amounts of carbon dioxide and methane stored within […]
The Geminids meteor shower peaks at the end of the week. Here's what to expect
The Geminids are one of the best and most visible annual meteor showers, when at least 120 meteors can usually be seen per hour. But 2024 will be different, thanks to the year's final full moon.
“It’s the Economy, Stupid” Is Never Just About the Economy
Amid the inevitable Democratic identity crisis this post–presidential election winter, there have been exasperated calls for the party to return to “the economy.” The op-ed writers, angling for their future role, are painting the usual scene. The party must sit once again at the kitchen table and talk pocketbook issues. It is a long-held idea. […]
These neurons in the abdomen help form the gut-brain connection
Scientists have identified two types of brain cells in the abdomen that appear to control different aspects of digestion.
UHC murder suspect railed about U.S. health care. Here's what he missed
The man charged in the killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson was critical of U.S. health care. Experts say the system's problems are complex and can't be pinned on one player or industry.
Dear Life Kit: My daughter was left out of the holiday newsletter — again!
A father wonders why his father-in-law keeps neglecting to mention his daughter in his annual newsletter to family. It includes updates on the other grandchildren. Why not her?
The Game Awards 2024: Key nominees and what to expect
Morning Edition host A Martinez and NPR gaming editor James Mastromarino discuss the nominees of this year's Game Awards and their significance in gaming culture.
Epic’s dream is starting to come true — its store will be preinstalled on ‘millions’ of Android phones
Illustration by Cath Virginia / The Verge
Telefónica, one of the largest carriers in the world serving the UK, Spain, Germany, and Latin America with the O2 and Movistar networks, will begin preinstalling the Epic Games Store on every new compatible Android phone it sells — including Samsung phones.
It’s part of a “long term partnership” to bring the store and smash hit Fortnite to “millions” of the carrier’s devices, according to Telefónica and Epic. It’ll be the first time the Epic Games Store is preinstalled on consumer phones, and it could be the next big step in realizing Epic’s dreams of challenging Google’s app store monopoly and increasing its cut of revenue.
Last December, a federal jury unanimously sided with Epic Games in Epic v. Google, finding that Google had turned its Android app store and Google Play Billing service into an illegal monopoly. Epic originally sued in 2020, alleging that Google had “blocked” or “bribed” phonemakers and cellular carriers to keep games like Fortnite and alternative app stores from being preinstalled on phones.
But now, roughly a month after Judge James Donato barred Google from any further potential blocks or bribes, one of the world’s largest carriers will begin those preinstalls, adding an entire rival game store (one that may also carry non-game apps in the future) to Google’s own.
Technically, Epic only launched its Epic Games Store on mobile this past August. Previously, it wanted nearly every phonemaker and carrier to preinstall one of a couple different types of Fortnite installer apps to bring the game to their phones. It offered a variety of deals to tempt them, and Samsung, LG, OnePlus and Huawei all initially agreed to do so.
But OnePlus only ever managed to do so in India, allegedly because it needed permission that Google wouldn’t grant. (Google disputes that reasoning.) LG apparently backed out because of a Google contract as well.
Telefónica wasn’t one of the carriers that Google “bribed,” Epic spokesperson Natalie Muñoz confirms to The Verge, so it’s not like Judge Donato’s order is making this newly possible.
In fact, Telefónica has partnered with Epic in the past. In 2020, it began letting Movistar customers in Spain tack their Fortnite purchases onto their phone bill. That year, court documents revealed Telefónica could expect to earn five percent of the proceeds from those Fortnite players as a result. Verizon and Hutchison (Three, Wind Tre) were offered similar deals, but we don’t know if they’ll now follow suit.
I wonder what Samsung thinks about Telefónica preinstalling the Epic Game Store on its phones — this September, Epic sued Samsung as well.
nadim@infosec.exchange ("Nadim Kobeissi") wrote:
This is me according to Apple Intelligence’s new Image Playground feature
Attachments:
An explosion in the Afghan capital kills the Taliban refugee minister
The explosion struck inside the ministry, killing Khalil Haqqani, officials said. His last official photo showed him at a meeting chaired by the deputy prime minister earlier Wednesday.
Judge declares mistrial over killing of gay University of Mississippi student
Jimmy "Jay" Lee's body has never been found, but a judge declared him dead. Jurors said they were unable to reach a verdict after over nine and a half hours of deliberation.
Rights group accuses Russian mercenaries of abuses against civilians in Mali
Malian armed forces, the Russia-backed Wagner Group and jihadi groups deliberately killed civilians and burned homes in Mali according to Human Rights Watch.
North Carolina GOP lawmakers enact a law eroding the Democratic governor's powers
North Carolina lawmakers have enacted a law over the governor's veto that would diminish the powers afforded to his successor and other other Democratic statewide winners in the Nov. 5 elections.
cstanhope@social.coop ("Your friendly 'net denizen") wrote:
Letting Aurora set the mood for the evening as I get ready to rest for the night. "Dreams":
fromjason ("fromjason.xyz ❤️ 💻") wrote:
WordPress CEO Rage Quits Community Slack After Court Injunction:
"“I’m sick and disgusted to be legally compelled to provide free labor to an organization as parasitic and exploitive as WP Engine. I hope you all get what you and WP Engine wanted.” His username on that Slack has been changed to “gone 💀”"
Is there anyone from the web’s old guard who’s normal? https://www.404media.co/wordpress-wp-engine-preliminary-injunction/
GossiTheDog@cyberplace.social ("Kevin Beaumont") wrote:
ai is the future, burn the planet
Attachments:
fromjason ("fromjason.xyz ❤️ 💻") wrote:
Shoutout to my elder millennials who grew up watching these shows and still managed to find class consciousness.
Attachments:
jsonstein@masto.deoan.org ("Jeff Sonstein") wrote:
ChatGPT seems to be barfing... too many folks wanting to use new video generation tool?
The best deals on Apple Watches right now
The latest Apple Watch SE is an entry-level smartwatch if there ever was one. | Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge
In September, Apple launched its latest smartwatch, introducing the Apple Watch Series 10 alongside a black rendition of the Apple Watch Ultra 2. Each wearable has its own pros and cons, as does the second-gen Apple Watch SE, but the recent introduction of the new wearables also means there are now more Apple Watch models on the market than ever before — and a lot more deals to be had.
But with all of those options, which one should you pick? Generally speaking, you want to buy the newest watch you can afford so that it continues to receive software updates from Apple. The latest update, watchOS 11, launched in September on the Apple Watch Series 6 and newer, ultimately leaving those still using an older Series 4 or Series 5 behind.
Picking up a watch from the latest (or a recent) generation ensures you’re getting a smartwatch with an updated design, a robust number of features, and plenty of sensors. Now, let’s get to the deals.
The best Apple Watch Series 10 deals
The Apple Watch Series 10 represents the latest wearable in Apple’s flagship Series lineup. It features the new S10 SiP chip, faster charging, and a wide-angle OLED display that’s brighter, larger, and easier to read than that of previous models. It weighs half as much as the Ultra, too, and is about 30 percent thinner despite its new 42mm and 46mm sizing. Other upgrades include an added depth and water temperature sensor, as well as a new FDA-cleared sleep apnea detection feature, the latter of which is also available on the last-gen Series 9 and Ultra 2.
While the improvements are certainly welcome, the Series 10 isn’t a vast departure from the prior model, the Series 9. That being said, you can already pick up Apple’s latest wearable at Amazon in the 42mm sizing with GPS starting at $329.99 (about $69 off) thanks to an on-page coupon. The GPS-equipped model is also on sale at Amazon in the 46mm variant for $359.99 (about $69 off), while the LTE models can be had at Amazon starting at $429.99 (about $69 off). Both of the latter discounts also require you to clip the on-page coupon.
Read our Apple Watch Series 10 review.
The best Apple Watch Series 9 deals
In 2023, Apple introduced the Apple Watch Series 9 alongside the second-gen Ultra. It uses Apple’s last-gen S9 SiP chip and a second-gen ultra wideband chip, which allow for onboard Siri processing and precision finding with select iPhone models. It also features a brighter, 2,000-nit display and support for Apple’s nifty “double tap” feature — two minor additions that are also present on the Series 10.
The Series 9 has been out for more than a year, but certain configurations have become increasingly difficult to find with the arrival of Apple’s latest watch. Luckily, the GPS-equipped Series 9 is still on sale at Target in the 41mm sizing starting at $299.99 ($100 off), or in the 45mm configuration at Walmart and Target starting at $329 ($100 off). There are also a handful of deals to be had on the LTE models with cellular connectivity, though none of them undercut the current price of the LTE-equipped Series 10 model by much, hence their exclusion here.
Read our Apple Watch Series 9 review.
The best Apple Watch SE deals
The Apple Watch SE received a refresh in late 2022. It has the same chipset as the Series 8, which is great, but with fewer sensors, no always-on display, and a slightly outdated design compared to the Series 8, Series 9, and Series 10. Those omissions might take this out of the running for some people, but it still may be exactly what you’re after. Best of all, it starts at $249 for the 40mm Wi-Fi / GPS model, which is $30 less than the previous generation’s baseline cost. Opting for cellular connectivity bumps the starting price up to $299 for the 40mm size (44mm adds $20 to each configuration).
At the moment, the best deals on the latest Apple Watch SE can be found at Amazon and Walmart, where you can pick the 40mm model with GPS in select styles starting at $189 ($60 off). The 44mm configuration, meanwhile, is available in select styles at Amazon and Walmart starting at $219 ($60 off). If you want the LTE configuration, the 40mm configuration is currently on sale at Walmart for $229 ($70 off), or in the larger 44mm sizing at Walmart for $259 ($70 off), its usual sale price.
Read our Apple Watch SE (second-gen) review.
The best Apple Watch Ultra 2 deals
The latest Apple Watch Ultra launched at $799 in September of last year with GPS and LTE support, much like the original model. The ultra-capable smartwatch has the most features, sensors, and ruggedness of any Apple Watch model available thus far, along with a display that’s 50 percent brighter than the first Ultra. The 49mm smartwatch also packs Apple’s S9 SiP and second-gen ultra wideband chips, just like the Apple Watch Series 9, while maintaining long-lasting battery life, precise GPS tracking, and a bevy of diving-friendly sensors.
In recent months, we saw the Apple Watch Ultra 2 dip to as low as $642 ($157 off) in select configurations. Right now, however, it’s only on sale at Amazon and Best Buy with a Trail Loop starting at $719.99 (about $79 off) or Amazon with an Alpine Loop starting at $759.99 (about $39 off). You can also pick it up with an Ocean Band at either Amazon or Best Buy, though neither retailer is currently discounting the burlier configuration.
Read our Apple Watch Ultra 2 review.
A note on the more premium models
While all of the Apple Watch models and colorways covered here are encased in aluminum (except the Ultra 2, which has a titanium build), Apple does make a more premium range built out of stainless steel and titanium. These offerings are functionally and aesthetically similar to their aluminum counterparts, with slightly refined colors and finishings — polished for the stainless steel and brushed for the titanium. However, they start at much steeper prices of $699 and above. They, too, can often be found on sale, but they’re never discounted as low as the standard base models, so we don’t include them here.
Steam is adding a new default option for game updates
Illustration: The Verge
Valve is testing an option in the new Steam client beta that will force games by default to only download updates when you launch them.
Currently, Steam by default decides what game updates to download based on a few different things. As explained by Valve:
For games you recently played, Steam will download game updates shortly after they are released. For games that you haven’t played in a while, Steam might wait a few days to bundle multiple updates together or choose to download the update while you are asleep.
This new default option to wait to download an update gives players more control; as Valve points out, it means that users can hold an updating a massive game until they actually want to play it, which could be a relief for people with bandwidth caps.
You’ll find the new option in the beta Steam client settings under the Downloads section. “You can set the default to: let Steam decide when to update the game (based on factors like when you last played the game, bandwidth availability, etc.) or wait to update until the game is launched,” Valve says.
You can still set per-game download settings in a game’s Properties that override the global setting, but those options have “cleaned up descriptions,” according to Valve. And with the beta, you can also manage the per-game overrides in the overall Steam client Downloads settings.
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25786275/a14b86155903326a56c8a1f50e6204dbd7abfb4b.png)
Image: Valve
The Steam client Updates settings with “cleaned up descriptions.”
Arizona Sues Saudi-Owned Farm Draining Groundwater in the Desert
Arizona’s attorney general has sued a Saudi-owned farm operating a massive hay operation in the middle of the Arizona desert, alleging that the business is hastening the loss of the rural community’s rapidly depleting groundwater supply. The farm owned by Fondomonte uses billions of gallons of groundwater in La Paz County each year to irrigate […]
Here are the best iPad deals right now
Deals on Apple’s latest slates are finally worth springing for. | Screenshot: Apple
While the best iPad deals usually land during major sale events like Black Friday and Amazon Prime Day, many great iPad deals are attainable outside those times. The day-to-day discounts may come and go like changing winds, but there’s often something to be saved, particularly on the more affordable iPads. The most recent iPad Pro and iPad Air are also starting to see substantial price reductions, and now that Apple has a new iPad Mini, we’re seeing regular discounts on the last-gen Mini as well.
It’s difficult to know where exactly you can find the most notable iPad deals unless you’re scouring the major retailers on a daily basis. But that’s often what our deal hunters at The Verge are doing each and every day, so let us help you out. Below, we’ve listed the best deals you can get on each iPad model that is currently available, from the cheapo ninth-gen iPad of 2021 to the latest models equipped with Apple’s powerful M2 and M4 chips.
The best iPad (2021) deals
Announced alongside the iPhone 13 way back in 2021, the ninth-gen iPad is Apple’s aging entry-level tablet, one that’s still great at carrying out everyday tasks despite having been discontinued. The ninth-gen model originally started at $329 with Wi-Fi and 64GB of storage, which arguably makes the newer 10th-gen model the better deal if you don’t need a home button or a headphone jack, as it now starts at $349 and is often on sale for even less.
The last-gen iPad has been receiving a steep discount for quite a while, but it’s becoming increasingly difficult to find in most configurations. That being said, Walmart is still selling the 64GB base model with Wi-Fi for $249 ($80 off), which is about $50 shy of its all-time low. As for the step-up 256GB variant, Amazon has it in silver for $359 ($120 off), which is $10 more than its lowest price to date.
A last-gen model is still worth considering
The last-gen iPad uses an A13 Bionic processor and a 12MP wide-angle camera with Center Stage, a feature designed to keep you framed up and centered while on video calls. The tablet also carries over a number of features from its predecessor, such as the 10.2-inch display, a Touch ID fingerprint sensor built into the home button, and a smart connector for connecting a smart keyboard.
The best iPad (2022) deals
Although the newer 10th-gen iPad came out in late 2022, it’s still an excellent tablet — one we consider to be the best value for most people (once Apple dropped its price). The latest iPad modernizes the design with a switch to USB-C, uniform bezels with no home button, a side power button with a fingerprint sensor, and a larger display, but it eliminates the 3.5mm headphone jack.
In the past, you could often buy Apple’s latest entry-level iPad for $349 ($100 off its initial launch price) — which is now the MSRP. Right now, however, the base model with 64GB of storage is on sale at Amazon, Best Buy, and Walmart for $279 ($70 off), which is about $30 more than its lowest price to date. Amazon and Best Buy are also selling the 256GB model starting at $429 ($70 off), which nearly matches its all-time low.
The best iPad Mini (2021) and iPad Mini (2024) deals
The new iPad Mini is similar to the outgoing 2021 model but comes with faster Wi-Fi and USB-C speeds, support for the Apple Pencil Pro, and a newer processor that supports Apple Intelligence. That said, the sixth-gen iPad Mini could still be worth a look if prices continue to drop. It has an 8.3-inch Liquid Retina display, an A15 Bionic processor, a USB-C port, and options for 5G. It lacks the 3.5mm jack and dedicated home button found on the prior model, but so do all of the tablets in Apple’s current lineup.
Despite its age, the 2021 iPad Mini still technically starts at $499 with 64GB of storage (the seventh-gen model starts at the same price with 128GB of storage). Electing for 256GB of storage brings the price up to $649, while the 5G cellular models are $649 for 64GB and $799 for 256GB. These are some big numbers for a small iPad, and the larger iPad Air might be worth considering if you prefer your dollar to go further with more screen real estate. But if you want an Apple tablet in the smallest possible form factor, this is where the action is.
Although the seventh-gen iPad Mini is now widely available, it’s not worth the upgrade unless you want to leverage Apple Intelligence or the newer Apple Pencil Pro. Thankfully, you can still pick up the 64GB iPad Mini from 2021 at Walmart for $389 ($110 off), which misses its all-time low by $40. The 256GB sixth-gen Mini is also on sale at Walmart in select colors for $549 ($100 off), which is $50 more than its lowest price to date.
If you do want the newest Mini, you can get the 128GB base configuration with Wi-Fi at Amazon and Best Buy for a record low of $449 ($50 off). You can also get the Wi-Fi model with 256GB of storage for $549 ($50 off) at both Amazon and Best Buy, though Amazon currently does not provide a shipping estimate for the tablet.
The best iPad Air (2024) deals
Apple just recently launched the 2024 iPad Air, which features several small upgrades. The newer model doesn’t feature any groundbreaking changes compared to the 2022 release, but notably, there is now a 13-inch configuration in addition to a base 11-inch model. Apple also added Wi-Fi 6E radios and upgraded the chipset to M2, which enables the hover feature when using Apple’s latest styluses. You can use the newer iPad Air with the Apple Pencil Pro and both previous-gen Magic Keyboards, too. The 11-inch iPad Air starts at $599, while the comparable 13-inch model starts at $799.
Deals for the 2024 iPad Air started to appear before the latest model even hit store shelves. Right now, you can pick up the 11-inch base model with 128GB of storage and Wi-Fi at Amazon and Best Buy starting at $499 ($100 off), which is its best price to date. The 13-inch iPad Air with 128GB of storage, meanwhile, is on sale at Best Buy for an all-time low of $699 ($100 off).
The best iPad Pro (2024) deals
Compared to the latest iPad Air, the 2024 iPad Pro is a far more impressive upgrade. The 11- and 13-inch models start at $999 and $1,299, respectively, and they are the first Apple devices to feature the company’s latest M4 chip, which brings moderate performance gains and dedicated hardware for on-device Apple Intelligence processing. The new Pro models can claim other firsts, too, such as being the first iPad models with OLED displays and the lightest Pros yet, which is true for both sizes. They also feature repositioned front-facing cameras that sit along the horizontal edge, which prevent you from looking as though you’re staring off into space on a video call.
As for deals, the 11-inch iPad Pro with Wi-Fi / 256GB of storage is on sale at Amazon, Best Buy, and B&H Photo starting at $899 (about $100 off), which is only $2 more than the lowest price to date. The sleek and super-thin 13-inch model, meanwhile, is on sale in its 256GB base configuration at Amazon and Best Buy for $1,099 ($200 off), which is an all-time low price.
Reblogged by isagalaev ("Ivan Sagalaev :flag_wbw:"):
signalapp@mastodon.world ("Signal") wrote:
It costs around $50 million every year to ensure Signal is robust and available all over the world for anyone whenever they need it.
And as a nonprofit, that money comes from all of you; the people who believe that we all deserve a place to speak freely.
The best MagSafe and Qi2 chargers for your iPhone
Image: Cath Virginia / The Verge
Thanks to Qi2, there are way more great chargers for your MagSafe phone than ever before.
Call of Duty Dev Explains Why Black Ops 6 Has So Many Wacky Skins
Black Ops 6, the latest entry in the Call of Duty series, contains some really bizarre and wacky cosmetics. And while some players hate them, it doesn’t seem like the developers behind the game are going to stop making them any time soon.
The Verge’s 2024 holiday gift guide for tinkerers
Photo: Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge
Whether you’re assembling a PC, planning an epic Etsy crafts store, or just fixing a squeaky old chair, we found some handy tools that anyone can appreciate.
Ridley Scott Leaked Paul Mescal's Involvement In Beatles Biopic
With friends like Ridley Scott, who even needs a publicist? In a candid moment between directorial demigods Scott and Christopher Nolan at the Directors Guild of America, the Gladiator II director let it slip that his latest leading man, Paul Mescal, would be “doing the Beatles next,” in reference to the actor working…
Fortnite's New FPS Mode Is Good, But A Bit Janky
Fortnite’s latest game mode, Ballistic, plays a lot like Valorant or Counter-Strike. The mode, currently labeled as being in “Early Access,” is rough around the edges and feels more like a demo than a full game. However, Ballistic is also proof that Epic can build first-person shooters that work in Fortnite, and…
Reblogged by cstanhope@social.coop ("Your friendly 'net denizen"):
OpenResearchIns@micro.blog ("Open Research Institute") wrote:
Courtesy of our Director Steve Conklin, we are hearing about this: www.fcc.gov/document/…
What do you think about this? Are there some #opensource #digital #radio opportunities here?
fromjason ("fromjason.xyz ❤️ 💻") wrote:
UnitedHealthcare’s Leaked Talking Points:
"The guidance makes specific mention of “(social)media reports on claim denial rates,” directing employees to basically say they’re fake news. “The information circulating online about our claims is false,” one talking point reads. “A chart being widely spread on social media is false.” These assertions, however, make no reference to any specific “information,” so it’s ... https://micro.fromjason.xyz/2024/12/11/unitedhealthcares-leaked-talking.html
Sonos plans return-to-office push for its product teams
Image: Cath Virginia / The Verge
Sonos will soon encourage employees on its various product teams who live near its US office locations to come in for at least two days per week, The Verge has learned. That’s a notable break from the company’s history, throughout which Sonos has enthusiastically supported fully remote and hybrid work. Job listings at Sonos routinely state that “it’s about impact, not location.” Glassdoor reviews have long backed this up, with employees reporting no pressure to come into the office.
But that lax stance is set to change slightly as Sonos continues its effort to right the ship following this year’s app mishap and stay on track with upcoming products. It’s adopting a stricter policy that will call for product employees within proximity of Santa Barbara, Boston, Seattle, and San Francisco to regularly be present at those offices. The Santa Barbara location is where Sonos is headquartered. The company also currently operates international offices in Paris and the Netherlands
“Flexibility has been a core tenet of how Sonos has operated since our founding. Flexibility is not going away, but like many companies, we are evaluating the impact that in-person collaboration has on the...