The Verge
Jungle Cruise desperately wants to be The Mummy
Disney
The adventure flick based on a ride has lofty and often entertaining aspirations
The VergeThe VergeGoogle TV for Android gets new discovery features and more streaming services
Google TV for Android shown on a mobile device. | Image: Google
The Android app for Google TV is getting new discovery features and support for a handful of entertainment, news, and live TV apps not previously available, including YouTube TV and FuboTV.
Google TV’s Android app will borrow some of the discovery tools from Google TV on the Chromecast, including more rows of personalized recommendations as well as the “watched” tool already available on the TV experience. To help improve recommendations, users can now head to the details page of a title and select “watched” if they’ve already seen a series or movie that the platform recommends to them.
Additionally, the Android app will now display Rotten Tomatoes scores on show and movie posters, another useful feature carried over from the Chromecast...
The VergeFacebook is giving the Oculus Quest 2 a storage bump and recalling its foam face masks
Facebook is pausing worldwide sales of the Oculus Quest 2 while it upgrades the headset’s storage and replaces its foam facial covers with a new silicone design. Starting August 24th, all Quest 2 virtual reality headsets will come with a minimum of 128GB of storage instead of 64GB. They’ll ship with a silicone interface between your face and the headset instead of the old foam design. And all current Quest 2 owners can request a free silicone mask online to replace their foam one, thanks to a recall after some users reported skin irritation.
Facebook Reality Labs head Andrew Bosworth announced the news in a blog post today. “As more people got into VR with Quest 2, we started receiving reports that a very small percentage of Quest 2...
The VergeThe new Ghostbusters: Afterlife trailer will convince you to see this movie
Sony
There’s a new trailer for Ghostbusters: Afterlife that gives away more of the setting and plot than anything we’ve seen to date — and boy, does it look good.
After a year of really weird Americana trailers more reminiscent of Man of Steel than Ghostbusters, it's nice to see what this movie will actually be about. While early trailers were full of epic music and wide vistas and whispers, this trailer actually has some ghosts! And Annie Potts! And the voice of Dan Aykroyd! This is the first trailer that actually makes the movie feel like a sequel rather than a weird and mopey kid-focused reboot.
Crucially, besides the welcome cameos from the original Janine Melnitz and Ray Stantz, there are a lot of actual ghosts in this trailer for a...
The VergeMicrosoft Flight Simulator on PC now has huge performance improvements
Microsoft Flight Simulator is getting its biggest update ever on PC today, thanks to a new patch that delivers significant performance improvements. The game has been notoriously demanding since its launch last year, but the team behind the simulator has been focusing heavily on improving its CPU and memory usage. PC players can now go ahead and download the latest update, and it should improve frame rates across a variety of hardware.
I’ve been testing the update for the past couple of weeks on my own PC, equipped with an Intel Core i9-11900K and Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 Ti, and the improvements are staggering even on top hardware. I use Microsoft Flight Simulator for benchmarks during our GPU reviews, and in the same section flying...
The VergeHow to turn yourself into a cartoon for your next Zoom call
_Imagine Linguini from_Ratatouille stuck in endless Zoom meetings. | Image: The Verge
Want to make your next quarterly Zoom check-up a little more interesting? Feel like aggravating your colleagues at the virtual all-hands? If so, why not turn yourself into a freakish living cartoon, courtesy of Snapchat’s desktop app?
We’ve written about the Snap Camera app before, as it’s fun, free, and easy to use. But Snap seems to have updated it recently with the cartoon filter from its mobile app, which is worth a look in its own right. The filter turns you into a generic DreamWorks / Pixar creation, and is surprisingly fluid. Its ability to capture your full range of expressions is a little limited (it can’t quite do a proper DreamWorks Face, for example) but access through the desktop app means you can now use the filter on your...
The VergeMaster & Dynamic’s MW08 Sport earbuds have wireless charging and a Kevlar case
Master & Dynamic has announced the latest addition to its distinctive lineup of true wireless earbuds. The new MW08 Sport noise-canceling earbuds are available today for $349, a $50 price increase over the standard MW08 buds released earlier this year. The extra money gets you three main benefits: wireless charging, a redesigned case with a Kevlar finish, and the addition of foam ear tips in the box. They come in black, white, blue, or green.
Despite “sport” being tacked on to their name, these earbuds still closely resemble the MW08 in design — though Master & Dynamic says it’s using sapphire glass this time instead of the ceramic from the regular MW08s. If you’ve ever wanted earbuds that are essentially scratch-proof, here you go. The...
The VergeDiscord now has Threads
Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge
Discord is launching its Threads feature today to allow servers to improve the back-and-forth of conversations on the service. Threads is distinctly different from the Replies feature that Discord introduced last year, and users will be able to create new threaded conversations using a new “#” option across Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android, and the web today.
Threads work very similar to how they do in many other chat clients, allowing Discord users to branch off a conversation away from a main channel feed. A separate feed is generated for threaded conversations, and Discord server admins will be able to control which members of a server can participate in threads. Moderators will even be able to remove people from threads if they’re...
The VergeThe careful balancing act of translating an Ace Attorney game
A chat with localization director Janet Hsu
The VergeInstagram is making accounts for users under 16 private by default
Facebook is making Instagram safer for young people while developing Instagram for under-13s. | Image: Instagam
Facebook-owned Instagram is introducing changes designed to make the app safer for young people. From now on, anyone signing up to the service who’s under the age of 16 (or under 18 in certain countries) will have their account set to private by default, though the option to switch to public will still be available. Anyone under these ages with a public account now will be sent a notification encouraging them to switch to private.
Instagram has been edging toward making private accounts default for young people for a while. In March, it started showing young people signing up to Instagram a message extolling the virtues of having a private account. Now, it’s making private the default.
Advertisers will only be able to target people...
The VergeWatch Joby Aviation’s electric air taxi complete a 150-mile flight
Electric air taxis aren’t a real thing yet, but a host of well-financed startups are out to change that. Chief among them is Joby Aviation, an electric aviation company based in Northern California that just posted a noteworthy video of its six-rotor aircraft completing an impressive 150-mile flight.
Granted, it doesn’t sound too impressive, but it’s actually among the longest flights ever performed by an electric aircraft. It’s equivalent to a trip between Seattle and Vancouver, or Los Angeles to San Diego — the type of regional trip conducted hundreds of times a day by regional partners to major airlines. Swapping out those polluting airplanes for a zero-emissions aircraft like Joby’s could be a major step toward the reduction of CO2...
The VergeThe Sony ZV-E10 is an E-mount camera for vloggers
The ZV-E10 features an E-mount for interchangeable lenses and a large, 24-megapixel sensor. | Image: Sony
Sony has announced the ZV-E10, an APS-C interchangeable lens camera it hopes will appeal to the needs of vloggers. It brings many of the features we liked from the fixed-lens ZV-1 into a bigger sensor format, including shortcuts to focus and exposure settings vloggers may need to access quickly. Being a bigger camera, there are also some significant benefits that the pocketable ZV-1 didn’t have the real estate to accommodate, like a headphone jack, better battery life, and a larger sensor with more depth-of-field flexibility. And at $799 with a 16-50mm kit lens, it’s a pretty good deal — just over the ZV-1’s current $749 asking price.
While the ZV-E10 addresses many of our complaints with the ZV-1, the latter still has one feature not...
The VergeIt looks like Fortnite’s next big event is happening on August 6th
Fortnite’s next big live event appears to be very close. After the game’s most recent update, a new alien ship can be found hovering over the center of the battle royale island, projecting a clock counting down to August 6th.
Given Fortnite’s history with live events — which have included everything from a Galactus attack to an island-destroying black hole to an actual single-player mission — it seems likely this countdown will end in the latest such moment. Developer Epic, as always, is being cryptic about what’s happening. “Its intent doesn’t seem to be for harm,” the developer says of the ship. “It’s predicted its purpose will become clearer in the near future.” Previous leaks have also suggested an Ariana Grande concert is coming to...
The VergeNothing officially reveals its $99 Ear (1) true wireless earbuds
An Ear (1) earbud perched atop its charging case. | Image: Nothing
Nothing, the consumer tech startup led by OnePlus co-founder Carl Pei, has officially announced its Ear (1) true wireless earbuds. The noise-canceling buds launch after months of teases, concept images, and even a presale in which Nothing auctioned off 100 pairs of the earbuds prior to their official reveal. The Ear (1) earbuds will go on sale on August 17th across 45 countries including the US and UK, priced at $99 / £99 / €99.
In a statement, Pei calls the Ear (1) “a breath of fresh air in a cluttered and indifferent market,” and said the earbuds will “[set] the tone for our connected digital world to come.” Pei has previously said his plan for Nothing is to build up an ecosystem of devices across increasingly complex product...
The VergeAmazon’s second-gen Echo Buds are down to their lowest price since Prime Day
The second-gen Echo Buds surpass their predecessors with better noise cancellation and sound. | Photo by Chris Welch / The Verge
Unsurprisingly, Staples isn’t the only retailer discounting the AirPods Pro and other earbuds in the buildup to the fall semester. Best Buy, for instance, is currently offering a sizable $40 discount on the second-gen Amazon Echo Buds, bringing the price of both the white and black models down to their lowest price since Prime Day. Now on sale for $80, the 2021 Echo Buds build upon their predecessors in a variety of ways, offering up effective noise cancellation, solid sound, and a first-rate passthrough mode that allows you to stay in tune with the world around you. They also support hands-free Alexa, meaning you can quickly check the weather, queue up your Discover Weekly in Spotify, and carry out a host of other voice-enabled tasks...
The VergeApple Watch’s data ‘black box’ poses research problems
Apple Watch | Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge
A Harvard biostatistician is rethinking plans to use Apple Watches as part of a research study after finding inconsistencies in the heart rate variability data collected by the devices. Because Apple tweaks the watch’s algorithms as needed, the data from the same time period can change without warning.
“These algorithms are what we would call black boxes — they’re not transparent. So it’s impossible to know what’s in them,” JP Onnela, associate professor of biostatistics at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and developer of the open-source data platform Beiwe, told The Verge.
Onnela doesn’t usually include commercial wearable devices like the Apple Watch in research studies. For the most part, his teams use research-grade...
The VergeHow a teen punk led a movement for disabled people online
Illustration by Ari Liloan for The Verge
From Tumblr to TikTok, young disabled people are deciding how to represent themselves
The VergeSpotify makes paid shows from Slate, Acast, and more playable from its app
Spotify wants to be the place you listen to all your podcasts, even the ones you pay for outside the app, so today’s it’s making that a possibility. The company announced multiple new partnerships today that’ll allow paid shows from third-party platforms and networks to be played on the app — something that’s been impossible until now because Spotify doesn’t support private RSS feeds.
Among the platforms supporting the tech, called Open Access, are Acast, Memberful, Supporting Cast, Glow.fm, and Supercast. Networks supporting the tech include Vox Media and, more specifically, its Cafe Studios; Slate; Der Spiegel; and Mamamia. (Disclosure: The Verge is owned by Vox Media.) You can see the full list here with each platform and network...
The VergeLenovo ThinkBook 13S review: business on a budget
A solid, affordable business notebook
The VergePinterest now lets influencers make money off shoppable pins
Pinterest is going after the influencer market. The platform announced its first set of tools today to let content creators earn money by promoting items from around the site.
The platform is adding support for affiliate links, letting creators get a cut of purchases they drive. It’s also adding product tagging to its story-like Idea Pins to drive sales from more places, and it’s adding a new “paid partnerships” label to support sponsorships within Idea Pins. The updates come a few months after the platform launched a $500,000 fund for BIPOC creators and sharpens the company’s focus on shopping as other platforms, like Instagram, start to take on shopping, too.
It’s all a way to promote shopping on the platform
Businesses can already...
The VergeChuck Todd on why Meet the Press can’t survive on just one platform
Photo Illustration by Grayson Blackmon / The Verge
Personality-driven journalism applies to traditional media, too
The VergeAmazon denies report claiming imminent acceptance of Bitcoin payments
Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge
Amazon has denied a report that claimed it plans to start accepting Bitcoin as payment before the end of the year. “Notwithstanding our interest in the space, the speculation that has ensued around our specific plans for cryptocurrencies is not true,” a spokesperson for the company told Reuters, “We remain focused on exploring what this could look like for customers shopping on Amazon.”
The denial came after London-based financial paper City AMreported on a specific series of plans sourced from a company insider. According to City AM, Amazon is ready to accept Bitcoin as payment this year, followed by other popular cryptocurrencies like Ethereum, and even Amazon’s own “native token.” Instructions for the cryptocurrency initiative were...
The VergeVigilante app Citizen is paying users to livestream crime scenes and emergencies
Citizen alerts users to local crime and emergencies based on their location. | Image: Citizen
Citizen, an app dedicated to blasting people with notifications about emergencies and crime scenes in their area, has been paying users to film its content.
The company has been recruiting “field team members” via online job listings, offering applicants $200 to $250 a day if they can track down and livestream events in their local area. These events could range from “child reported missing, to house fire, to anything else,” says the listing, with workers expected to interview witnesses and police officials.
“You will need to be very quick on your feet”
As per the listing: “You will need to be very quick on your feet, not only in terms of going live during moments that provide value to its users and support the app’s mission, but being...
The VergeAndroid 13’s dessert codename might be Tiramisu
Laura Chase de Formigny for The Washington Post via Getty Images; food styling by Lisa Cherkasky for The Washington Post via Getty Images
Tiramisu is a deliciously simple Italian dessert made from coffee-infused ladyfingers and whipped mascarpone and/or cream, but it could also be the internal codename for the next version of Android. That’s if a new commit reported by XDA Developers is to be believed. “Rename T to Tiramisu,” the note reads, in what _XDA_notes is the first public mention of a dessert-based codename for Android 13, expected to release next year.
Up until Android 10, each version of Google’s mobile OS had both a version number and a dessert-based name, which progressed alphabetically with each new release. Android 4 was Ice Cream Sandwich, 4.1 was Jelly Bean, 4.4 was KitKat, and so on. But Google dropped the dessert names with Android 10, when it was in the...
The VergeRealme is the first to bring magnetic wireless charging to Android
A leaked image of the upcoming Realme Flash and its MagDart magnetic charger | GSMArena
Realme has teased a new device called the Realme Flash, which it claims will be the first Android phone to use magnetic wireless charging. While it looks to be the company’s take on Apple’s MagSafe system for the iPhone 12 range, Realme is taking a somewhat different approach with the initial hardware.
As reported by GSMArena and confirmed by The Verge, Realme will release a magnetic wireless charger called MagDart that’s far bulkier than Apple’s MagSafe puck. Charging speeds are said to exceed the 15W that MagSafe reaches, making it the fastest magnetic charger in the world, but the tradeoff is that the device is much thicker and requires an active cooling fan.
Gizmochina
An alleged Realme MagDart charger.
R...
The VergeSpotify adds What’s New feed for all the music and podcasts you follow
A blue icon will indicate when new content has released. | Image: Spotify
What’s New is a new section in the Spotify app that collects together new music and content from musicians and podcasts you follow on the platform. The feed, which is rolling out globally over the coming weeks on iOS and Android, will be accessible via a new bell icon on the top right of the app’s home screen. A blue dot will show when there’s new content in the feed, and artists and podcasts can be added by tapping the “Follow” button on their respective pages.
“What’s New makes it easier than ever to catch all the latest songs and episodes from the creators you follow,” Spotify’s announcement says. “Plus, it’s even updated in real time, so you know you’ll get to listen to new content just as it’s released.”
GIF:...
The VergeSamsung’s Odyssey Neo G9 is a high-end TV disguised as a 49-inch curved gaming monitor
It’s the same size as last year, but with plenty of changes behind the panel.
Samsung’s follow-up to the excellent Odyssey G9 curved gaming monitor is nearly here: the 49-inch Odyssey Neo G9 will cost a staggering $2,499.99 when it goes on preorder starting Thursday, July 29th. That’s nearly $1,000 more than the original, but this isn’t just a simple bump. The new Neo G9 now has a Mini LED backlit panel that can hit 2,000 nits of brightness, with full-array local dimming for the kind of deeper blacks and convincing HDR that the original didn’t quite manage.
intense brightness, deep color, enveloping curve
I recently had the enviable opportunity to test out the Odyssey Neo G9 with Doom Eternal and Cyberpunk 2077, and the thing that stood out to me the most — aside from practically being enveloped in its 1000R curve...
The VergeLucasfilm hires the YouTube deepfaker who put its Luke, Leia and Tarkin cameos to shame
I recently re-watched _Rogue One: A Star Wars Story._It mostly held up — except for Lucasfilm’s attempt to bring Carrie Fisher’s Princess Leia and Peter Cushing’s Grand Moff Tarkin back to the big screen using CGI. That’s something that only bugged me the tiniest bit the first time I watched it.
But Lucasfilm’s Industrial Light and Magic may now have the ability to make those movies a tad more futureproof, because it’s hired a YouTuber who specializes in deepfaking Star Wars and other big-budget movies, showing up their CGI de-aging techniques. Shamook is the one who “fixed” Luke Skywalker’s cameo in The Mandalorianto the tune of 1.9 million videos, and the improvements to Rogue One’s Tarkin are phenomenal:
Peter Cushing was certainly...
The VergeApple releases iOS 14.7.1 to fix Apple Watch unlocking and a zero-day exploit
Dieter Bohn / The Verge
Last week iOS 14.7 appeared, adding features including support for Apple’s magnetic battery pack. Unfortunately, the update also interrupted the “Unlock with iPhone” feature that Apple Watch wearers used for easy access to their wristwear. Now, another update is going out to fix that.
However, even if you don’t have an Apple Watch, you should still install iOS 14.7.1 (and for Mac owners, macOS 11.5.1) as soon as you can, because security notes from Apple reveal that the two updates it pushed today fix flaws that are already being exploited in the wild. The memory corruption issues in Apple’s desktop and mobile operating systems have been assigned the same vulnerability ID and attributed to an anonymous researcher.
IOMobileFrameBuffer
A...
The VergeParking lots and airports don’t count for rural broadband funding, FCC tells SpaceX
Photo by Joan Cros/NurPhoto via Getty Images
The Federal Communications Commission told SpaceX and other companies on Monday that the billions in rural broadband subsidies it doled out last year can’t be used in already connected areas like “parking lots and well-served urban areas,” citing complaints. The commission, in an effort to “clean up” its subsidy auction program, offered the companies a chance to rescind their funding requests from areas that already have service.
The companies that got the subsidies must do the work to determine they qualify for the money, wrote Michael Janson, director of the FCC’s Rural Broadband Task Force, in a letter addressed to SpaceX’s finance director David Finlay. Similar letters, first reported by Bloomberg, were sent to other recipients of...