The PS5 and Xbox Series X will be available today for Walmart Plus subscribers

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge

Console restocks are getting more and more frequent these days — particularly as the Black Friday season heats up and early Black Friday deals continue to roll out — but retailers have been quick to cull the herd of potential customers by putting some stock behind paid subscription services. Walmart has a next-gen console restock happening today at 3PM ET / 12PM PT, though, it’s exclusive to Walmart Plus paid subscribers. You can queue up to purchase a disc-based PlayStation 5 for $500, a PlayStation 5 Digital Edition for $400, or an Xbox Series X console for $500.

Be sure to log into your Walmart Plus account ahead of time, and it’s always a good practice to save your billing and shipping in your account ahead of time. Note that you’ll...

Continue reading…

US government seizes $56 million in crypto from BitConnect’s ‘number one promoter’

Illustration by James Bareham / The Verge

The US government has seized $56 million worth of cryptocurrency from an admitted participant in the BitConnect scam and intends to sell the coins and use the proceeds to reimburse victims. The Department of Justice says that it’s the largest recovery of cryptocurrency to date — and that it was willingly given up by Los Angeles resident Glenn Arcaro, who has called himself BitConnect’s “number one promoter.”

According to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), BitConnect convinced people to invest a total of $2 billion by telling them that it had a bot capable of generating incredibly high rates of return from crypto trading. In other words, BitConnect sold itself as a way for people to easily invest in cryptocurrency and to make a...

Continue reading…

Over 500 Activision Blizzard employees petition to remove CEO Bobby Kotick

Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images

Over 500 employees and contractors at Activision Blizzard signed and published a petition to remove CEO Bobby Kotick from the company.

“We, the undersigned, no longer have confidence in the leadership of Bobby Kotick as the CEO of Activision Blizzard. The information that has come to light about his behaviors and practices in the running of our companies runs counter to the culture and integrity we require of our leadership—and directly conflicts with the initiatives started by our peers. We ask that Bobby Kotick remove himself as CEO of Activision Blizzard, and that shareholders be allowed to select the new CEO without the input of Bobby, who we are aware owns a substantial portion of the voting rights of the shareholders.”

In a...

Continue reading…

Apple employees will return to offices February 1st in a hybrid work pilot

Apple employees will return to offices February 1st | Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge

Apple employees will return to offices starting February 1st as part of a hybrid work pilot and will be able to work remotely for four weeks a year. First reported by The Information, employees learned of the news Thursday via an internal memo from CEO Tim Cook. The company had previously offered two weeks of remote work per year but added two more weeks to give “more opportunity to travel, be closer to your loved ones, or simply shake up your routines,” Cook’s memo said.

The pilot will start workers at one or two days in the office, then in March, workers will come to the office to work on Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday. They’ll be able to work from home on Wednesdays and Fridays. Some employees may be asked to come into the office four...

Continue reading…

Apple reportedly wants to launch a self-driving EV in 2025 with a custom chip

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge

Apple has completed “much of the core work” on a new processor meant to power its secretive autonomous electric car project known as Titan, _Bloomberg’s_Mark Gurman reports. The milestone comes as Apple is reportedly now accelerating its timeline for the autonomous car it’s developing, with a new target of launching it in just four years.

Apple’s own silicon team designed the chip, which Gurman says is the “most advanced component” that’s been developed for the project so far. The company is apparently getting ready to put the chip through its real-world paces in its fleet of test vehicles in California and hopes to make a vehicle with “stronger safeguards than what’s available from Tesla and Waymo,” according to the report.

The goal...

Continue reading…

FCC votes to let people text ‘988’ to reach the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline starting in July

Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge

The Federal Communications Commission voted unanimously on Thursday to expand access to the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline by letting people text 988 starting next year. Text message providers have to support the three-digit code by July 16th, 2022, which is when the code will go into effect. On that same date, people will also be able to dial 988 to access Lifeline following a 2020 FCC ruling. People in need of help before calling or texting 988 is an option can call 1-800-273-8255 (TALK) or get connected to a counselor through an online chat.

FCC chair Jessica Rosenworcel said in a tweet that nearly 6,000 Americans call the Lifeline on an average day. “As we know from 911, creating an easy-to-remember 3 digit number makes it...

Continue reading…

Belkin’s new $150 3-in-1 charger is the first to get Apple Watch Series 7 fast charging

The BoostCharge Pro 3-in-1 Wireless Charging Pad with MagSafe | Image: Belkin

Belkin has a pair of new wireless Apple Watch chargers it’s announcing today, which are notably the first third-party chargers to support the newly added fast charging on the Apple Watch Series 7.

The larger of the two is the $149.95 BoostCharge Pro 3-in-1 Wireless Charging Pad with MagSafe, which follows in the footsteps of last year’s 3-in-1 Belkin charger. In addition to adding Series 7 fast charging, Belkin has ditched the odd sculptural design on the previous model in favor of a more normal-looking flat rectangular pad that will probably fit better on a nightstand.

Image: Belkin

The BoostCharge Pro 3-in-1 Wireless Charging Pad with MagSafe

The new charger aims to hit the perfect trio of Apple charging:...

Continue reading…

BTS fan Twitter accounts say they’re being targeted by copyright trolls

Photo by The Chosunilbo JNS/Imazins via Getty Images

In the past several days, a number of headers, profile pictures, and tweets have disappeared across the wide network of BTS fan Twitter accounts. The culprit, the account owners say, is a recent barrage of fake DMCA takedown notices. Outcry from fans resulted in #TwitterMaliciousDMCA trending worldwide on Wednesday night.

The owner of a fan account with over 233,000 followers, which posts videos, photos, and memes related to the South Korean band, claims that their original header and profile picture, as well as multiple tweets including their own screenshots and memes, have been taken down by the trolls over the past few weeks.

Per the owner’s screenshots, the attackers appear to have reposted the account’s header on a spoof website in...

Continue reading…

Spotify’s latest purchase is about becoming the place you listen to everything

Why it bought an audiobook company

Continue reading…

Microsoft Edge is getting price tracking and leaked passwords features

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge

Microsoft is planning to add a new price tracker to its Edge browser, as well as a new feature that will let people easily change their passwords if they’ve been leaked online. The price tracking feature will be available soon and is designed to track products you’ve recently viewed and alert you of price changes.

Microsoft has focused a lot on shopping improvements with its Edge browser and already has price comparison, price history, and built-in coupons in Edge. “This feature is coming soon and will be built into the browser, so you just need to browse as you normally would, and Microsoft Edge will let you know if any of the items you’ve recently looked at have changed in price,” explains Liat Ben-Zur, a Microsoft executive working on...

Continue reading…

The NFL is attaching NFTs to tickets, and the Lions Thanksgiving game is on the list

“Hey Jared, just read this and you’ll understand what NFTs are, ok?” | Photo by Nic Antaya/Getty Images

Along with their usual dose of sports, beer, and violence, NFL fans will also get a digital token included with the purchase of tickets to certain games this season. Yes, they are NFTs from the NFL.

The blockchain will never forget that you paid to see a Detroit Lions game

The first Virtual Commemorative Ticket game already happened on November 7th when the Cardinals played the 49ers, and the next one is scheduled for Thanksgiving during the Bears / Lions matchup. NFL club business development senior vice president Bobby Gallo says, “Leveraging the emerging world of NFTs is a new and exciting way for us to create additional value and to further engage with fans who attend select games by providing a virtual commemorative ticket. There is...

Continue reading…

New Starbucks Pickup store in NYC uses Amazon Go cashierless technology

Starbucks has opened an Amazon Go themed store in Manhattan | Starbucks

Starbucks has opened a new “pickup cafe” in New York City that uses Amazon Go’s “just walk out” cashierless tech, the companies said Thursday. The store in midtown Manhattan is designed for customers who want to buy coffee or a snack quickly and can’t possibly wait the extra minutes they’d normally spend interacting with a barista or cashier.

The new store on 59th Street between Park and Lexington Avenues is one of three Starbucks Pickup locations the Seattle coffeemaker plans to open this year. It has the full Starbucks menu and a “curated assortment of food and beverages” in its Amazon Go market section, including sandwiches, salads, and snacks. Starbucks’ senior vice president of global growth and development, Katie Young, said in a...

Continue reading…

Kid A Mnesia Exhibition is an unsettling and beautiful Radiohead art exhibit

I watched some Radiohead concert footage with my good friend here.

Kid A Mnesia Exhibition isn’t a traditional video game

Continue reading…

After COVID boom, ebook aggregators face licensing questions from Congress

Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge

A Democratic senator launched an investigation into how publishers license ebooks to libraries on Thursday, calling on nine major ebook aggregators to provide details on the licensing agreements they make with libraries.

Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR), along with Rep. Anna Eshoo (D-CA), sent letters demanding that aggregators like Overdrive and EBSCO provide them with examples of standard ebook licensing agreements for every major publisher they work with, including Penguin Random House and Simon & Schuster.

“Many libraries face financial and practical challenges”

“Many libraries face financial and practical challenges in making e-books available to their patrons, which jeopardizes their ability to fulfill their mission,” the lawmakers wrote....

Continue reading…

Google will finally let you preorder the new 23W Pixel Stand for $79

Google’s new Pixel Stand wireless charger. | Image: Google

Despite more than a few issues with the preorder process and shipping, Google’s Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro have made their way into the world, and now the company is ready to sell an upgraded version of its Pixel Stand for wireless charging on your desk or side table. This new stand costs $79, just like the first-gen model did when it launched in 2018 with the Pixel 3.

Like the original, it automatically adjusts the phone’s UI for docked use to pull up photo frames or shortcuts to your Nest Security cameras and can switch into do not disturb mode at night.

However, this time around, Google is trying to justify that relatively high price by offering faster charging. The new Pixel Stand can charge compatible phones at up to 23 watts, which,...

Continue reading…

Nreal’s $599 mixed reality glasses are launching in the US on Verizon

Nreal

Nreal’s augmented reality glasses are coming to the US through a Verizon partnership. The $599 Nreal Light glasses will appear in 20 Verizon stores nationwide on November 30th and be available for purchase online December 2nd. The glasses are compatible with several recent 5G-enabled Samsung phones and one OnePlus 5G device.

The Nreal Light is one of the only consumer-focused AR headsets on the market. The Light glasses launched first in Korea last year, and they’ve since expanded to Japan and Germany. They support projecting 3D images into real space using reflected micro OLED displays, while outward-facing cameras let the glasses scan real space and pin virtual objects — like screens or game boards — into particular locations. The...

Continue reading…

Warner Bros. Smash-style fighter pits Bugs Bunny against Arya Stark

After numerous leaks hinted that a new fighting game with Warner Bros. characters was in the works, Warner Bros. Games finally put the rumors to bed with the announcement of Multiversus. The announcement was a three-minute trailer showing off a healthy chunk of gameplay and some of the initial roster of characters including Bugs Bunny, Steven Universe, and, curiously, Arya “A Girl Has No Name” Stark.

Multiversus is a free-to-play Smash Bros-like game director Tony Huynh says is focused on teamwork and social play. Characters are designed to be mixed and matched together with strengths that augment one another. In the video, you can see Steven Universe using his signature shield to protect his partner, while Wonder Woman whisks her...

Continue reading…

The new Moto G Power offers a 50-megapixel camera and three days of battery life for $199

Motorola has announced the latest version of its budget Moto G Power smartphone, which keeps the $199.99 starting price point and three-day battery life, but with additional camera, display, and spec improvements.

The new Moto G Power (which I’m referring to as the 2022 model for sanity’s sake, especially considering that it’ll be out sometime in “the coming months”) has a lot in common with the company’s previous model released earlier this year. The new model looks to improve on most aspects of the device in one way or another, though.

The screen is now slightly smaller, at 6.5 inches instead of 6.6 inches, but adds a faster 90Hz refresh rate for smooth scrolling. RAM has been bumped up from 3GB to 4GB, and the two storage tiers have...

Continue reading…

The Verge’s favorite holiday gifts under $25

Illustration by Richard Parry

Cross some names off your list without spending a mint

Continue reading…

Motorola Moto G Pure review: an easy bargain

For casual users, this $160 4G phone is good enough

Continue reading…

AMD’s powerful 5800X processor is down to its lowest price yet at Newegg

Team red is at it again

The AMD Ryzen 7 5800X has been discounted at Newegg, letting you save up to $75 with the promo code BFPAYA526. This brings the total down to $374, the lowest price we’ve seen for this particular processor. As an added bonus, this CPU comes packaged with a free month of Xbox Game Pass Ultimate.

The 5800X is part of the latest Zen 3 architecture and uses the same AM4 socket used by AMD's previous generation of processors, which for most people should allow you to swap in this new CPU without having to invest in a new motherboard. This eight-core CPU has a base clock speed of 3.8GHz but is capable of up to a 4.7GHz boost clock speed. While this CPU is quite powerful, Newegg has also discounted the 5900X and 5950X to $524 and $746,...

Continue reading…

Ring doorbells will be able to greet people with holiday cheer

Photo by Dan Seifert / The Verge

Ring is releasing some holiday-themed Quick Replies to add some cheer to its doorbell’s automatic answering feature. Instead of the usual “We can’t answer the door right now, but if you’d like to leave a message, you can do it now” types of messages, you can instead have your Ring greet visitors by saying “We’re busy wrapping presents right now,_”_or have it automatically thank delivery workers for bringing gifts to your door.

According to Ring, Quick Replies are available on pretty much every Ring doorbell. While the feature is free, you’ll have to be a paying subscriber if you want any visitor responses to your doorbell’s “Happy Holidays!” greeting to be recorded (though you can watch them happen live without a Ring Protect plan).

Like...

Continue reading…

Nvidia’s GeForce Now subscriptions now come with free Crysis Remastered for PC

Last month, Nvidia settled the age-old question once and for all — yes, it can run Crysis, whatever it is, as long as it can stream the company’s GeForce Now cloud gaming service. To prove it, Nvidia’s now giving away a copy of Crysis Remastered for free with every new six-month GeForce Now subscription, as well as the first wave of customers who’ve already subscribed or preordered GeForce Now’s impressive new RTX 3080 tier. It’s a limited-time offer.

You don’t even have to play that copy of _Crysis_using GeForce Now, by the way — it’s a full PC copy delivered via the Epic Games Store, and you can run it on your gaming desktop or laptop too. It’s yours to keep even after your subscription is over. Nvidia says it’s the first time GeForce...

Continue reading…

Halo Infinite is getting better Battle Pass progression later this week

If you’re still stuck on level 1 of the Halo Infinite Battle Pass, fear not, as 343 Industries is making some much-needed changes to progression later this week. “To address the feedback on Battle Pass progression we will be making targeted tunings to our model later this week,” says Halo community manager John Junyszek.

The existing Halo Infinite Battle Pass makes it difficult to level up, as you’re limited to completing daily or weekly challenges instead of earning XP for every game you play. While that isn’t changing yet, 343 Industries is adding “Play 1 game” challenges “to help make sure you consistently progress through the Battle Pass by playing matches the way you want,” according to Junyszek.

To address the feedback on Battle...

Continue reading…

Spotify launches lyrics feature globally for free and paying users

Alex Castro / The Verge

Today, Spotify is finally rolling out its real-time lyrics feature globally, after previously only offering it in a limited selection of countries.

The lyrics themselves are provided by Musixmatch, which claims to offer lyrics for “over 8 million” titles. and will be accessible on basically every platform where Spotify has an app. This includes iOS, Android, desktop computers, gaming consoles, and smart TVs. The feature is available to both free and premium listeners.

As well as using the lyrics to sing along yourself, there’s also a social element which allows you to share lyrics to social media. Spotify says the feature will be available across the “majority” of its music library.

Here’s how to access the lyrics (and share them) as...

Continue reading…

Zipline starts first commercial US drone deliveries with Walmart partnership in Arkansas

Walmart and drone delivery company Zipline are launching a delivery service in Pea Ridge, Arkansas — the first commercial drone delivery service offered by Zipline in the US. Customers will be able to choose from “thousands of products,” though are restricted to health and wellness items like “over the counter allergy medicine, bandages, ibuprofen.”

The project’s launch shows there’s continuing belief in the potential of drones to perform commercial deliveries. But the technology’s slow rate of adoption (Walmart first tested drone deliveries back in 2015) and the lack of large-scale implementations (the Pea Ridge service only covers a 50-mile radius) also shows there are plenty of questions to be answered if drone deliveries are to...

Continue reading…

Google explains the tradeoffs that led to Pixel 6’s slow charging complaints

The Pixel 6. | Photo by Becca Farsace / The Verge

Google has responded to allegations that the Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro don’t charge as fast as some have expected, confirming that their charging speeds are a deliberate tradeoff for better battery life. It follows a report from Android Authoritywhich found that the phones’ maximum power draw was around 22W, well short of the 30W that Google’s latest USB-C charging brick is technically capable of.

Writing in a community support post, a spokesperson for Google confirmed that the maximum power draw of the Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro are 21W and 23W respectively when used with its 30W USB-C charging brick. They added that charging speeds also decrease as the phones’ batteries fill up to preserve their longevity.

In their post, they note that...

Continue reading…

Microsoft is celebrating 20 years of Xbox in secret style

The new Halo-themed Xbox Series X. | Photo by Tom Warren / The Verge

Microsoft has been having a hell of a time celebrating 20 years of Xbox this week, adding 76 new games to the Xbox backward compatibility library, launching a Halo-themed Xbox Series X, and a 20th anniversary translucent controller. But, true to the company’s habit of corporate mischief, it’s also been leavening its announcements with plenty of Easter eggs.

The new hardware that launched this week features the best looking Xbox Series X console and controllers we’ve seen so far, particularly the stylish translucent one. All of this new hardware also includes some hidden secrets, too. For example, Reddit users have discovered that the Halo-themed Xbox Series X console has a hidden Zeta Halo symbol on the front.

Image: R...

Continue reading…

Xbox November update brings quick controller swaps, lower latency, and accessibility tags

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge

Microsoft is rolling out a new November update for Xbox consoles that will make it a lot easier to swap your controller between a console and a PC or laptop. Instead of having to trawl through menus to change connections, the update lets you switch between previously connected devices by simply double tapping the controller’s pair button.

This feature has been available on modern Xbox Series X / S controller since their launch last year, but the new firmware update brings this option to Xbox One controllers with Bluetooth support and the Xbox Elite 2 controller. However, you’ll only be able to use it to quickly switch between a Bluetooth device and an Xbox console, and not two Xbox consoles.

did you know Xbox controllers have a secret...

Continue reading…

Boost Mobile’s new plan offers $100 for one year of service, includes 1GB of data per month

Boost Mobile is introducing a full year of service for just $100. | Image: Dish

Now that Boost Mobile will be on the AT&T network, after its owner Dish signed with AT&T back in July 2021, the MVNO is changing things up with its service plans. Today, Boost is announcing the first of many so-called “Carrier Crusher” plans it will be rolling out this holiday season.

If you’re paying for your unlimited cellular service plan but have been living on a Wi-Fi connection since 2020, Boost Mobile is offering an interesting proposition for new and existing customers. You can get 12 months of unlimited talk and text, plus 1GB of 4G or 5G data per month, for just $100 for the year (plus tax) from Boost. This works out to $8.33 per month (again plus tax), considerably less than even the lowest cost prepaid plans. Both current and...

Continue reading…