The Verge
Google Pixel 6 event: rumors, news, and announcements
Google will likely reveal more about the Pixel 6 lineup at its October 19th event.
Google’s virtual event is set for 1PM ET / 10AM PT on October 19th
The VergeThe VergeHow to watch Google’s Pixel 6 Fall Launch event
The Pixel 6, 6 Pro, and Android 12 will bring a fresh look to Google’s latest hardware. | Image: Google
With the number of leaks and pre-announcements for the Google Pixel 6, it may seem like the phones should already be here by now. Thanks to Google, we already know the Pixel 6 and 6 Pro exist, what they will look like, and that they will use a Google-designed CPU. We also have an idea what the camera specs will be, what the new wireless charging stand probably looks like, and even what’s inside, courtesy of a teardown video that has since been removed.
The only thing left is for Google to fill out the remaining details we don’t know and launch the Pixel 6 and 6 Pro. Google has one of the worst track records for keeping things secret, so perhaps hoping for a surprise or two might be a stretch, but the long-rumored, folding Pixel could...
The VergeHow Jeep is going electric, with CEO Christian Meunier
Photo Illustration by Grayson Blackmon / The Verge
They’re also working on biometric recognition
The VergeXbox Game Pass now has more than 100 touch-enabled games
Microsoft now has more than 100 games on Xbox Game Pass that support Xbox touch controls. The software giant is adding 13 titles to the list of touch-enabled games today, bringing the total to beyond 100 — a new milestone for Xbox Game Pass.
Touch-enabled games allow Xbox Game Pass members to stream games on Windows PCs, iOS devices, and Android phones and tablets without a controller. Developers have created custom on-screen controls, added gyro aim controls, and lots more to improve the experience of just using a touchscreen to play games.
Touch controls first started rolling out alongside the launch of Xbox Cloud Gaming (xCloud) a year ago, with just _Minecraft Dungeons_supported at launch. Microsoft expanded to 10 touch-enabled games...
The VergeSamsung’s Galaxy Z Flip 3 leads early Best Buy Black Friday deals starting today
The Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 3 sports a 6.7-inch 120Hz screen that folds in half. | Image: Dan Seifert / The Verge
All the buzz of yesterday’s Apple Mac event and today’s Google Pixel launch might fall a little bit flat if you’re a Samsung fan. While there is an Unpacked 2 event set for Wednesday, we’re not expecting any major new announcements aside from some fun color customization options. In the meantime, a big highlight of today is Best Buy’s deal on the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 3, knocking $150 off an unlocked model of your choice.
The Galaxy Z Flip 3 is the latest model of Samsung’s normal-phone-that-folds-into-an-extra-small-phone form factor. Upon its release just two months ago, the Z Flip 3 immediately became the foldable phone to get, with a much more aggressive price compared to its Fold 3 brethren: $1,000. Now you can get it unlocked from...
The VergeVaccine showdown at the radio station conglomerate
Photo by Phillip Faraone/Getty Images for Politicon
Happy Tuesday, y’all. Welcome to the week. As I mentioned in my Thursday Hot Pod Insider, I saw Dune on Friday — loved it. I didn’t know this movie was only part one of two, though! Unfair! Anyway, the podcast news is trickling out this week, and by trickle, I truly mean a drop or two for us to savor, so today’s a fairly short one. Insiders will get more on Thursday and Friday. Reminder that if you want to keep up with all the audio news fit for a newsletter, you can subscribe here. I’m sure your boss will be happy to expense it.
On we go!
Public radio + print newspapers = love ??
Our Insiders got an early peek at this on Friday, but for the rest of you, Aria Bracci, my fellow Hot Pod writer, wrote about how public radio stations are...
The Verge2021 MacBook Pros compared: how Apple’s laptops stack up
Apple just announced new versions of its 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro explicitly designed around their new Arm-based M1 Pro and M1 Max CPUs. Both models are configurable with either CPU and can be equipped with up to 8TB of storage. Models that use the M1 Pro can have up to 32GB of unified memory, while models that have the M1 Max can be configured to have up to 64GB. They also feature more powerful speakers and a greater selection of ports, making them more versatile than the MacBooks that only offered USB-C ports with Thunderbolt 4. (You no longer need a dongle for HDMI or SD cards.)
The last generation of MacBook Pro still has plenty of power, and for a while was the best option in terms of connectivity for Apple laptops. However,...
The VergeAmazon Music can now play spatial audio on your favorite headphones
Image: Amazon
Amazon has announced that, beginning today, Amazon Music Unlimited subscribers will be able to listen to spatial audio music tracks with their favorite headphones with the Amazon Music app for Android and iOS. The company is supporting two formats of spatial audio: Dolby Atmos (which is also offered by Apple Music) and Sony’s 360 Reality Audio.
The Atmos mixes are provided by record labels, so the “immersive, multidimensional audio experience” should be largely similar between Amazon and Apple’s services — with the exception of head tracking, which Amazon doesn’t support. Apple’s new third-gen AirPods, AirPods Pro, and AirPods Max all have the option for dynamic head tracking, which provides a unique sound experience as you move your...
The VergeApple’s new 140W charger can fast charge a lot more than just your MacBook Pro
Apple’s new 140W charger. | Image: Apple
Apple’s new 140W charging brick, which works with a new MagSafe charging cable to power the new 16-inch MacBook Pro, uses the USB-C Power Delivery 3.1 standard, Apple has confirmed to The Verge. As well as being included with the new 16-inch MacBook Pro, the brick is available separately for $99 (not including the USB-C-to-MagSafe cable, which costs an extra $49). Meanwhile, the new 14-inch MacBook Pros come with 67W and 96W chargers, depending on the exact model.
Using the USB-C PD 3.1 standard means Apple’s new charging brick will be cross compatible with other devices that use the same power delivery standard, which was announced earlier this year alongside the USB Type-C Release 2.1 specification. It also means that MacBook owners...
The VergeFortnite’s Halloween event turns Ariana Grande into ‘the galaxy’s greatest monster hunter’
Fortnite’s big Halloween event, Fortnitemares, is making its return. But this year’s edition comes with a fun twist: one-time Fortnite performer Ariana Grande is now officially part of the game’s lore, with a questline that turns her into “the galaxy’s greatest monster hunter.”
The event runs from today until November 2nd, and — in keeping with this season’s theme — it’s centered on the ever-present cubes that now dominate Fortnite’s island. The story event is called “The Wrath of the Cube Queen,” and developer Epic describes it like this:
Since Fortnitemares began (and even before), the cubes have been mobilizing. Their migration towards the island’s center wasn’t just to spread corruption — they’re now at the center forming the...
The VergeNetflix’s latest live-action Cowboy Bebop teaser makes bounty hunting look easy
It’s still not a full trailer, but Netflix showed off the best look yet at its upcoming live-action Cowboy Bebop adaptation in a new teaser to celebrate the one-month countdown to the show’s debut on November 19th.
Like the previous teasers for the show (which so far have included stills and the opening credits), the latest video, titled “Cowboy Bebop: The Lost Session,” isn’t actually made up of footage from the show but does show off the key trio of Spike Spiegel (John Cho), Jet Black (Mustafa Shakir), and Faye Valentine (Daniella Pineda) in action as they hunt down a bounty, get some noodles, and fight through an army of thugs.
That said, it's a _very_fun teaser, shot with kinetic, color-coded shifting frames that bounce between...
The VergeHow public radio is trying to save print
Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge
Why Chicago Public Media and the Chicago Sun-Times are exploring a merger
The VergeApple updates iMovie to adjust focus in iPhone cinematic mode footage
Apple has updated the iMovie app for Macs to let users edit and adjust the focus in videos recorded using the iPhone 13’s new “cinematic mode” — though you’ll need to wait until you can update to the latest macOS Monterey on October 25th to take advantage.
Introduced in September with the latest clutch of iPhones, cinematic mode uses machine learning to automatically pull focus to the key part of a frame (usually whatever face is biggest and turned towards the camera). It also lets people tap their phone screen to adjust the focal point while recording, and during playback after the video has been shot. Now, iMovie users who have the latest macOS Monterey will be able to make those same adjustments on their computer.
Here are the r...
The VergeFisher-Price’s iconic Chatter Telephone now makes actual phone calls
Apple’s iPhone 4 is often held up as a pinnacle of phone design, but what about the Fisher-Price Chatter Telephone? With its friendly features (a big smiley face painted on the front) and mobile design (thanks to its four wheels), the Chatter Telephone has long been the gadget of choice among the aesthetically discerning and the under-4s. This week, to celebrate the device’s 60th anniversary, Fisher-Price has blown our minds once more with its courage and innovation: the Chatter Telephone now makes and receives phone calls.
The new Fisher-Price Chatter Telephone Bluetooth edition is, admittedly, an accessory rather than fully-fledged mobile device. It connects to your Android or iOS phone over Bluetooth, and, according to Gizmodo, you...
The VergeGoogle has tried everything but building the best phone
Image: Google
At 1PM ET, Google will try its best to convince millions of people to buy a Pixel 6 or Pixel 6 Pro instead of Apple’s iPhone 13 or a Samsung Galaxy. Will it work? That depends on whether Google does something it’s never managed to do with a phone launch: fire on every cylinder.
The Google Pixel has never been the it phone, the everything-but-the-kitchen-sink phone, the phone early adopters crave. Samsung originally cornered the Android side of that market with the Galaxy Note, and it was 2017 when Apple crossed the $1,000 mark with the iPhone X and followed it up with the pricey Pro and Pro Max.
Google has arguably never had a truly flagship phone to call its own: while the search giant’s incredible camera software has made the Pixel...
The VergeGoogle’s app privacy briefings go live in the Play Store in February 2022
Google is one step closer to launching its new data privacy section for Play Store apps. App developers can now fill out the relevant details via Google’s new “Data safety form” on the Play Console. The company says the required information will be visible to users from February 2022 and mandatory for developers to submit by April that same year.
This new feature was announced back in May, after Apple started showing similar privacy and data disclaimers for apps in the App Store last December. The data section is supposed to give consumers a quick and simple overview of what apps are doing with their information. Developers will be encouraged to tell users the following:
- What type of data their app collects, including “location,...
The VergePixel 6 will reportedly double Google’s smartphone production
The Pixel 6 Pro. | Google
Google is planning a major increase in its smartphone shipments with the impending launch of the Pixel 6, according to Nikkei. The Japanese publication says that Google has ordered more than 7 million Pixel 6 smartphones to be produced, roughly doubling its entire 2020 production. Nikkei cites figures from IDC saying that Google produced 3.7 million phones last year.
And according to Nikkei, it’s not just the Pixel 6 that’ll account for the boost in shipments — the lower-end Pixel 5A, released earlier this year, is said to have received more than 5 million orders. Together with the Pixel 6, which will be announced in full later today, that means Google should more than triple its 2020 smartphone output.
Nikkei reports that Google is...
The VergeThis Raspberry Pi add-on lets you control Lego robots
Image: Raspberry Pi
Raspberry Pi is releasing an add-on that will let you use many of its tiny, inexpensive computers to control certain Lego robot motors and sensors. The add-on is called the Build HAT (HAT stands for Hardware Attached on Top), and slotting it onto a Raspberry Pi’s GPIO pins will give you four ports that you can use to control Lego Education’s SPIKE components, which the HAT and its software are specially designed for. It’ll also connect to most other parts that use an LPF2 connector, including the components from the Lego Mindstorms robot inventor kit.
There’s also a Python library (basically a set of commands you can use to control the robot) available to go alongside the HAT, which will let you write software to control the robot parts...
The VergeDbrand reveals new PS5 Darkplates days after pulling the originals
Dbrand’s new Darkplates. | Image: Dbrand
Dbrand has revealed a brand-new design for its PS5 Darkplates just days after yanking the originals from sale.
If you weren’t familiar with the original Darkplates, they looked exactly like the side shells of a PS5, but instead of being white, they were matte black. In its marketing of the first version, the company baited Sony to “Go ahead, sue us,” and Sony unsurprisingly followed up with a legal threat. Shockingly, just days after making a big public stink about Sony forcing it to pull the old version, Dbrand is already ready with a new design. The company says they’ve been in development since September, but conveniently would not tell us when Sony sent the cease-and-desist to begin with.
Darkplates 2.0 look a little...
The VergeAMC expands open captioning on movies in its US theaters
Image: The Verge
AMC has expanded open captioning on some film showings to 240 cinemas in the US, including select showtimes for all of its newer releases. The expansion of support in its theaters across the US — which has been extended to more than 100 markets — is AMC’s most significant push into captioned showings to date.
A spokesperson told The Verge prior to the summer and fall of 2021, just a handful of AMC’s US theaters supported open captioning (which is viewable to everyone in the auditorium and separate from AMC’s closed-captioned assisted moviegoing initiative, which is available at all of its theaters nationwide).
“We anticipate strong demand with growing awareness of open caption showtimes.”
Again, not all AMC showings will include open...
The VergePC games that run great on the Steam Deck will get a special ‘Verified’ check mark
As the Steam Deck’s December 2021 launch approaches, Valve is taking time to make sure gamers know which titles will work on its portable machine. While its site still promises “Your Steam Library, anywhere,” we’ve had an interest — and a little skepticism — about whether or not games built for PCs will actually work well on a handheld device that runs Linux.
The company recently opened up its @OnDeck Twitter account to highlight demonstrations of PC games running on the Steam Deck, and today it revealed the Steam Deck Compatibility program.
Steam Deck compatibility labels appear on any game published via Steam, separating them into four categories. The highest level, Verified, has a green logo with a check mark, indicating games that...
The VergeApple finally listened to the pros
I nearly bought my first MacBook Pro in 2015. It would have been the first Mac I ever personally owned. But I convinced myself to wait another year for faster Intel chips — and in October 2016, Apple took away almost everything I admired about that Mac in one fell swoop.
The comfortable keyboard? Replaced with a too-thin slab that also became a nightmare for many a Mac user over the years, the butterfly switch mechanism so fragile a speck of dust could lay it low. The handy SD card slot for photographers and videographers, and the HDMI port to easily connect to monitors or TVs? Both axed seemingly in favor of selling us more overpriced dongles.
In the quest for ever-thinner and flashier laptops, Apple had seemingly forgotten why people...
The VergeApple’s rumored Beats Fit Pro earbuds could have ear-fitting wingtips
These are are the Beats Fit Pro, according to_9to5Mac._ | Image: 9to5Mac
Apple has just announced the next generation of AirPods, but if you’ve been waiting for new Beats earbuds, you may also have something to look forward to there. A report from 9to5Mac describes the upcoming Beats Fit Pro that, according to the article, will have wingtips that seem to be designed to ensure a better fit in your ear.
You can see the rumored earbuds at the top of this post or in this set of images shared by 9to5Mac, featuring the Beats Fit Pro in black, gray, white, and lavender.
In addition to the new design, the earbuds will have active noise cancelation, Apple’s H1 chip for speedy pairing and Hey Siri, and support for quick pairing on Android through the Beats app, 9to5Mac reports. It also seems as if the Beats Fit Pro...
The VergemacOS Monterey will have the old Safari tab design
If you squint, you can see the old tab design. | Image: Apple
Apple debuted a controversial new Safari tab design this summer at WWDC 2021, and since then, it has tweaked that look and even let you turn off many of the changes. With macOS Monterey, however, the company is going back to the way tabs looked before. On Apple’s official page for the upcoming software update, if you scroll down to the section titled “Access Tab Groups anywhere,” you can just barely see Safari’s older (and arguably better) design in the example screenshots on both a Mac and on an iPad (via Daring Fireball).
Perhaps even more surprising is that the old design is now the default, according to MacRumors, which observed the reverted tabs in the macOS Monterey release candidate. However, if you want to use the design Apple...
The VergeA piece of cloth to clean your Apple devices will cost you $19
Image: Apple
If you were ever concerned about safely cleaning your Apple products, now you can use an official $19 piece of cloth made by Apple to do so. Apple released this polishing cloth after today’s event in addition to its new MacBookPros, the M1 Pro and Max chips, and third-generation AirPods (via 9to5Mac).
Photo by Apple
The Apple-branded cloth, made of unspecified nonabrasive materials, will be available to purchase separately. Other than having an Apple logo stamped on it, it’s unclear how the cloth is any different from a typical microfiber cloth that you can get for a fraction of the price.
Apple recommends using “soft, lint-free cloth” and avoiding “abrasive cloths, towels, paper towels, or similar items” when...
The VergeNetflix will support Twitch co-streaming for the first episode of Arcane
Image: Netflix
Arcane, Riot’s upcoming League of Legends-adapted fantasy series debuting on Netflix next month, will become Netflix’s first show to premiere with co-streaming on Twitch.
Arcane will premiere on Netflix globally on Saturday, November 6th. The partnership with Twitch will allow communities to stream Arcane’s first episode with community members and allow Twitch streamers to share their reactions in real-time.
A spokesperson for Riot tells _The Verge_that anyone can stream the first episode of Arcane on Twitch — no pre-approval required. The series premiere will coincide with a Global Premiere Event at Riot’s Los Angeles headquarters. The company says in a press release that the event will be streamed by influencers representing over 30...
The VergeWant a fully specced-out MacBook Pro? You’ll have to pay more than $6,000
Apple’s most expensive laptop is, well, expensive. | Image: Apple
Apple announced new M1-equipped MacBook Pros on Monday, and they look like very good upgrades, with powerful chips, adaptive refresh rate displays, the return of some beloved ports, and more. They don’t come cheap, though, with the 14-inch MBP starting at $1,999 and the 16-inch one starting at $2,499.
And if you want to buy the absolute highest-end model, with 64GB of unified memory, 8TB of SSD storage, a 140W USB-C power adapter, and the M1 Max chip, that will cost you a cool $6,099, according to Apple’s online store.
Image: Apple
Here’s the cost and specs of the most expensive MacBook Pro.
That hefty price is the tally before you buy any software for the machine, by the way; Apple helpfully recommends Final...
The VergeRegulators say GameStop rally ‘raises questions of market efficiency’
Illustrations by Alex Castro / The Verge
On Monday, the Securities and Exchange Commission published an official staff report on the GameStop rally earlier this year, calling for more scrutiny of both short-seller activity and broker-dealers like Robinhood. The report is particularly harsh on Robinhood’s “payment for order flow” system, which rewards the company for increasing the number of trades.
Released under the anodyne name “Staff Report on Equity and Options Market Structure Conditions in Early 2021,” the report is the SEC’s first full opportunity to weigh in on the confusion surrounding GameStop’s unlikely stock market rally, as well as some of the Robinhood features that critics say made the rally more chaotic.
In January, the number of daily GameStop traders jumped...
The VergeSony tests PS5 captures that pop up on your phone for sharing
Sony is testing a way to share screenshots and video captures taken on your PS5 with the PlayStation app, the company announced Monday. The new feature is part of a “limited-release beta” available to all PS5 users in Canada and Japan.
Once you have the feature enabled, new captures should start to show up in the app. “Video clips and screenshots of games are available in [the PlayStation app] for 14 days after you manually create them on your PS5 console,” Sony says in an FAQ. You won’t need a PlayStation Plus membership to use the feature (at least in this beta).
However, clips can only have a resolution of up to 1920x1080 to appear in the app — Sony says clips in a higher resolution won’t be uploaded. If you delete a screenshot or...
The VergeApple’s website indicates macOS Monterey will launch without Universal Control
Universal Control, Apple’s upcoming feature that lets you control multiple devices with the same mouse and keyboard, will probably not be launching at the same time as macOS Monterey. While Apple has said that the OS upgrade will be available on October 25th, its features page has been updated to say that Universal Control will be “available later this fall,” a change spotted by MacRumors.
Universal Control was one of the most impressive demos at WWDC 2021, where Craig Federhigi dragged a file from an iPad across a MacBook’s screen and then dropped it onto an iMac. While Universal Control is mostly just Apple combining technologies that it’s been developing for years, if Apple wants the real-world experience to be as good as that demo,...