The Xbox Windows app will let you know if games play well on your PC before you download them

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge

Microsoft is adding a simple label to its Xbox app for Windows, letting PC gamers know if a title runs well on their machine before they go ahead and download it. The feature is currently in testing and limited to certain games before it rolls out to all Xbox app users.

While system requirements have always been listed in the Xbox app, this simple label should make it easier for PC owners to figure out if a game can run on their system. Microsoft is running a performance check against a variety of PC games to build this label.

The new label in the Xbox app.

There are a number of games that don’t have the label yet and simply show “performance check not available yet,” which suggests the Xbox app doesn’t just simply...

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WhatsApp now lets you set all chats to disappear by default

The new features in action. | Image: WhatsApp

WhatsApp is adding new functionality to its disappearing messages feature, which lets users set messages in a chat to automatically be deleted after a set period of time. WhatsApp says users will now have the option to turn on disappearing messages automatically for _all_their new one-on-one chats, so that all future messages will be automatically deleted from the service.

The Meta-owned messaging service also says it’s giving users more options for how long before a message is deleted. When the feature first launched in November last year, users only had the option of having messages disappear after seven days. Going forward, however, there will also be the option of deleting them after just 24 hours or 90 days. The new functionality...

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Theranos is gone, but ads for shady tests aren’t

Theranos claimed it could run hundreds of tests on a single drop of blood. | Photo by Cory Zapatka / The Verge

Companies can market tests that don’t have FDA approval

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Keep it Locked

Security isn’t just about passwords and databases. It cuts down to the most basic questions of what we need to protect ourselves and the people we care about. So this week, we’re bringing you stories about how people protect themselves in the most extreme conditions — whether it’s Muslims navigating FBI surveillance or refugees trying to secure a working SIM card. There’s fun stuff too, like TikTok teens solving a mysterious car crash, but the overall message is clear: it’s rough out there, and you’ll need every trick you’ve got.

Still, it’s not all bad news. We’ll also be showing you some of our best advice on how to navigate your online life — whether it’s recovering your hacked Facebook account or hiding...

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How to hide your email from data collectors

Illustration by Ori Toor

Preventing spam and tracking

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Toshiba’s new 4K Fire TVs might beat out Amazon’s on picture quality

Image: Toshiba

One of Amazon’s Fire TV partners just announced a new model that might outshine the tech giant’s own self-branded TVs that launched only weeks ago. Today Toshiba is introducing the first Fire TV 4K TVs to feature local dimming, a backlight technology that produces improved contrast and black levels compared to the direct LED method used by cheaper sets and Amazon’s new Fire TV Omni series.

Toshiba says the new M-Series contains “up to 48” dimming zones. The TV comes in 55, 65, and 75-inch screen sizes. So assuming that 48 number applies to the biggest model, it’s not exactly going to compete with high-end Vizios or TCLs, which pack more dimming zones into their backlighting systems, but it should still make for a significant improvement...

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Halo Infinite campaign review: playing the hits

Infinite in name, not quite yet in scope

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TikTok drama channels are turning into online intelligence agents

Illustration by Ori Toor

A new class of creators is using OSINT techniques to solve online mysteries

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Should abuse survivors have to disappear from the internet?

Illustration by Ori Toor

Some survivors are challenging the conventional wisdom about how to stay safe online

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Apple is fighting Russian regulator’s demands on alternative app payments

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge

Apple is challenging antitrust action taken by Russia’s Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS), which wants iOS developers to be able to tell customers about alternatives to Apple’s in-app payment option, _Reuters_reports. Apple wants a judicial review of the regulator’s warning, Russia Today notes, which was originally issued with a deadline of September 30th for the US tech giant to change its anti-steering policies. When Apple didn’t comply, FAS announced it was opening an antitrust case against the company at the end of October.

The US tech giant’s policies on in-app payments are contentious, to say the very least. Apple requires iOS developers to use its own in-app payment system, which in many cases allows it to collect up to a...

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Duolingo interprets 2021, with TikTok and Squid Game inspiring users to learn new languages

Illustration by Alex Castro/The Verge

Language learning app Duolingo said its phrase of the year is “I am mentally exhausted,” which appears as part of its Japanese course and does seem to nicely sum up 2021.

Like Spotify and Apple, Duolingo is giving users a look back at the year that was. Starting today, anyone who completed at least 10 Duolingo lessons in 2021 can get a personalized look at what kind of language learner they are, based on when they practice their lessons, how many courses they’ve taken, and how many hours they spent learning on the app.

Duolingo

Duolingo’s Year in Review will tell you want kind of language learner you were in 2021.

In its 2021 language report and survey, Duolingo said the top five languages learned on the app...

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A humanoid robot makes eerily lifelike facial expressions

Image by Engineered Arts via YouTube

Engineered Arts, a UK-based designer and manufacturer of humanoid robots, recently showed off one of its most lifelike creations in a video posted on YouTube. The robot, called Ameca, is shown making a series of incredibly human-like facial expressions.

Ameca opens its mouth and raises its brows in what it looks like is amazement

At the start of the video, Ameca appears to “wake up,” as its face conveys a mix of confusion and frustration when it opens its eyes. But when Ameca starts looking at its hands and arms, the robot opens its mouth and raises its brows in what it looks like is amazement. The end of the video shows Ameca smiling and holding a welcoming hand out towards the viewer — if that’s how you want to interpret that gesture.

S...

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Clearview AI is closer to getting a US patent for its facial recognition technology

Clearview AI is on track to receive a US patent for its facial recognition technology, according to a report from Politico. The company was reportedly sent a “notice of allowance” by the US Patent and Trademark Office, which means that once it pays the required administration fees, its patent will be officially approved.

Clearview AI builds its facial recognition database using images of people that it scrapes across social media (and the internet in general), a practice that has the company steeped in controversy. The company’s patent application details its use of a “web crawler” to acquire images, even noting that “online photos associated with a person’s account may help to create additional records of facial recognition data...

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The Verizon app might be collecting your browsing history and more

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge

The My Verizon app might be collecting information about your browsing history, location, apps, and your contacts, all in the name of helping the company “understand your interests,” first spotted by Input. The program, which Verizon appears to automatically opt customers into, is called Verizon Custom Experience and lays buried in the privacy settings on the app.

The program introduces two different options that appear in the app, Custom Experience and Custom Experience Plus, each of which varies in terms of invasiveness. Verizon provides additional information about both settings within the app, as well as on a FAQ page on its website. It appears that the Custom Experience option is a stripped-down version of Custom Experience Plus,...

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New trailers: Station Eleven, The Matrix Resurrections, The Book of Boba Fett, and more

Mackenzie Davis stars in Station Eleven | HBO Max

I finally finished The Beatles: Get Back, and even though it meandered a lot, I found myself wanting more. _The Wall Street Journal’_s Jason Gay nicely captures what it felt like to watch this 50-year old footage as a fan, like we were all kinda just hanging out with John, Paul, George, and Ringo as they worked on new material. Highly recommend watching, it will make you question some of the prevailing narratives about the Fab Four (like the widely held belief that they were at each other’s throats constantly as the band neared its breakup).

Also! We got some late-breaking news Saturday about the sequel to _Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse._It’s going to be titled Spider-Man: _Across the Spider-Verse,_andwill actually be a two-parter,...

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An interactive Doja Cat music video can introduce you to programming

The Doja Cat codable music video. | Photo by Girls Who Code

Girls Who Code, the nonprofit organization that aims to get more women and girls interested in the field of computer science, has debuted what it calls the “first ever” codable music video. The organization partnered with Doja Cat, transforming her new music video for Woman into an interactive experience.

HUGE NEWS: We just made the first ever codable music video with @dojacat. You can control the story using code Go try it now at https://t.co/EgVStNr5om! #dojacodepic.twitter.com/q2MQhMDd0s

— Girls Who Code (@GirlsWhoCode) December 3, 2021

You can try out the experience for yourself at Dojacode.com, where you’ll be greeted by a futuristic image of Doja Cat that becomes pixelated as you drag your mouse over the screen. On the next...

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eBay accidentally suspended ‘a small number’ of users

eBay inadvertently suspended an unspecified number of users on December 3rd. The platform has since acknowledged the issue, noting that users who were accidentally suspended have received a notification so they can resolve the issue.

Users across social media began reporting that they’ve been suspended from eBay on Friday, despite not knowingly breaking any rules on the platform. An entire Reddit thread on r/ebay is dedicated to the issue, and although the original post has since been deleted, dozens of other users have added their own experiences to the thread. One user describes their own account of the situation, much of which is echoed by other comments:

Suspended tonight with no chance of appeal, did an online chat and the woman...

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Fortnite: Chapter 3 officially revealed with new island, Spider-Man, and plenty more changes

And then there were three. After a dramatic live event on Saturday, Fortnite is moving on to Chapter 3, which introduces some big changes for the battle royale.

This morning developer Epic detailed season 1 of the new chapter, called “Flipped,” and the most dramatic change is the shift to a fresh, snow-covered island, one that features weather conditions, along with new locations like Sanctuary — which appears to play a large part in Fortnite lore — and the Daily Bugle. Those who pick up the new battle pass will also be able to get their hands on characters like Spider-Man and (eventually) The Foundation, voiced by Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson. You can get the full run-down of the battle pass right here:

(It’s been a busy weekend for...

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The first trailer for Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (Part One) teases a stunning animated sequel

The first trailer for the highly anticipated sequel to the animated Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse just dropped, revealing both the title — Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (Part One)— and the surprise that the upcoming adventures of Miles Morales will actually be a two-part affair.

The first-look trailer picks up right where the last Spider-Verse movie left off: with Miles (Shameik Moore) lying in bed, before a portal to Gwen Stacy (Hailee Steinfeld) and her universe opens.

From there, it seems like _Across the Spider-Verse (Part One)_is going to be trying to one-up the already stellar animation of the original film, with Miles bouncing across multiple animated universes in a variety of art styles as he dukes it out with...

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Google Pixel mail-in repairs have allegedly twice resulted in leaked pics and a privacy nightmare

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge

After game designer and author Jane McGonigal sent her Pixel 5a to Google for repair, someone allegedly took and hacked her device. This is at least the second report in as many weeks from someone claiming they sent a Google phone in for repair, only to have it used to leak their private data and photographs. McGonigal posted a detailed account of the situation on Twitter on Saturday and advised other users not to send their phones in for repair with the company.

Yeah, don't send your Google phone in for warranty repair/replacement. As has happened with others, last night someone used it to log into my gmail, Drive, photos backup email account, dropbox, and I can see from activity logs they opened a bunch of selfies hoping to find...

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The Fortnite island flipped over during Chapter 2’s final event

Screenshot: Jay Peters / The Verge

Fortnite’s big chapter-ending event just ended, and it was a big one. After an all-out war against UFOs, zombies, and the Cube Queen, players were saved in a rescue mission led by Dwayne Johnson. (Well, his in-game character.) Then, the island flipped over.

The event

Let’s back up a bit. The game’s latest season has been all about the cubes, and right when the event loaded up, a mysterious giant blue cube spawned on the map next to all of the players in my lobby. Jumping at the cube bounced players away, but it otherwise, didn’t do anything beyond loom ominously. We also could look at the Cube Queen in the distance, which has been floating in an energy ball over the center of the island for part of the season.

S...

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Activision Blizzard won’t play a part at The Game Awards this year

The Game Awards

Geoff Keighley, the executive producer and host of The Game Awards, sent out a tweet to confirm that outside of its nominations, Activision Blizzard “will not be a part of this year’s #TheGameAwards.” This is in light of claims about the company’s toxic culture, as well as allegations of CEO Bobby Kotick’s history of abuse and harassment.

Beyond its nominations, I can confirm that Activision|Blizzard will not be a part of this year’s #TheGameAwards

— Geoff Keighley (@geoffkeighley) December 4, 2021

In an interview with The Washington Post, Keighley hinted at Activision Blizzard’s potential removal from the award show, noting that he was contemplating how to “navigate” the situation with the company without harming its developers or...

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Spotify removes popular comedians’ content over royalties dispute

Spotify has pulled the works of some of the most popular comedians, including Kevin Hart, Tiffany Haddish, John Mulaney, and Jim Gaffigan due to a royalties dispute. First reported by The Wall Street Journal, a number of high-profile entertainers are pursuing royalty payments for their jokes when they’re played on the radio, as well as on services like Spotify, Pandora, YouTube, and SiriusXM.

After failed negotiations with Spoken Giants, Spotify removed hundreds of comedians’ content from the service

The comics’ efforts are backed by global rights administration company, Spoken Giants, which works to ensure that entertainers are properly compensated for spoken-word content. As the WSJ notes, comedians are typically paid by their label...

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Leaked Fortnite trailer reveals Spider-Man and a new island for Chapter 3

Spider-Man appears to be coming to_Fortnite._ | Image: Streamable video

Fortnite’s Chapter 2 comes to an end on Saturday, but a trailer for Chapter 3 has already leaked, reportedly from Epic Games’ Polish YouTube channel (via Kotaku). Based on the trailer, the next chapter is poised to be a significant update, adding a brand new island, new mechanics, and your friendly island Spider-Man.

NEW FORTNITE CHAPTER 3 TRAILER LEAKED ONLY WATCH IF YOU WANT TO!! #FortniteChapter3pic.twitter.com/N0SBoJaF4I

— GalaxyBoi ❄️ (@DaRealGalaxyBoi) December 4, 2021

The Chapter 3 island looks to have a lot of new areas to explore, including the Daily Bugle and a location reminiscent of the Aztec-themed Sunny Steps from Fortnite’s first chapter. There appear to be new ways to get around, such as sliding down hills to get...

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Twitter reportedly suspended accounts by mistake after extremists abused new private media policy

Illustration by Alex Castro

Twitter has reportedly suspended a number of accounts by mistake after far-right extremists began exploiting the platform’s new private media policy, according to a report by The Washington Post.

The platform has since launched an internal review of the matter and has made the necessary corrections, The Post notes. Twitter’s new policy, which allows individuals to request takedowns of photos or videos that contain them, has become the target of far-right activists who seek to remove pictures of them taken at hate rallies. The platform originally said that the rule was put in place to “curb the misuse of media to harass, intimate, and reveal the identities of private individuals,” which Twitter says disproportionately affects “women,...

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Ludwig’s livestream was interrupted by a copyright warning days after joining YouTube

Image: Ludwig via YouTube

Just three days after Ludwig Ahgren left his massive Twitch following for YouTube, he was hit with what he thought was a suspension from the platform. According to a report from Kotaku, Ahgren was playing other YouTube videos during his stream, when he landed on the infamously catchy Baby Shark song. His stream was shut down shortly thereafter, giving his viewers — and himself — the impression that he was banned for violating YouTube’s copyright policies.

you could say the switch has been going well... pic.twitter.com/dnkjSUkT0o

— ludwig (@LudwigAhgren) December 3, 2021

However, Ahgren wasn’t actually struck with a copyright strike or a suspension. “Ludwig wasn’t suspended,” Lauren Verrusio, the head of creator and consumer...

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Buy two Nintendo Switch games and get one free at Best Buy

Buy two, get one free

Best Buy is still hosting its mix-and-match sale featuring some excellent titles from the Nintendo Switch game library. Right now you can get a third game of equal or lesser value for free if you buy two other select titles. This offer includes first-party titles like The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, and Mario Tennis: Aces that rarely see discounts. While this offer is limited to 11 titles, this is one of the best ways to stock up on games that are exclusive to the Nintendo Switch.

While not quite as enticing as Black Friday prices, Best Buy has discounted all models of the 11-inch iPad Pro that launched in 2020, with some versions receiving discounts of up to $200. This tablet is available with up to 1TB of built-in storage and...

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Call of Duty made $3 billion in 2020, so of course Activision Blizzard is laying off QA

Image: Activision Blizzard

One of the studios responsible for Call of Duty’s success is laying off QA testers that are reportedly earning $17 an hour for their work on the franchise Activision Blizzard said brought in $3 billion dollars in 2020. Raven Software, known for its work on Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War and CoD: Warzone has now laid off a third of its contract QA testers, according to reports by Kotaku and The Washington Post.

Raven’s Associate Community Manager Austin O’Brien said that team members were being called into individual meetings to be told whether or not they would still have a job come January 28th. So far, the company has reportedly laid off about a third of its QA testers, or around a dozen people, but it’s possible more could follow_...._

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It’s the last Bandcamp Friday of 2021

Photo by Guillaume Payen/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images

In March 2020, Bandcampstarted a promotion where it would forego taking a revenue share from sales artists made on its platform, providing some additional support to performers with suddenly limited opportunities due to the coronavirus pandemic. The arrangement turned into a monthly event, as Bandcamp Fridays encouraged fans to keep the support coming by purchasing audio tracks and merchandise over the last two years.

Bandcamp pledged to keep things going throughout 2021 and has dutifully turned off its cut on the first Friday of each month. The only question left is, what happens next? The note about Bandcamp Friday sticking around for 2021 is no longer included on the blog post announcing the promotion, and no one has updated...

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Google TV’s nifty new personalized profiles have been delayed

The individual user profiles that were expected to arrive on Google TV last month have been delayed, meaning those personalized content recommendations are unfortunately on hold.

The company had initially said the new user profiles would arrive on Google TV last month, but Google spokesperson Ivy Hunt tells The Verge today that the profiles will now begin rolling out “in the coming months.” News of the delay was earlier reported by 9to5Google.

That’s a bit of a bummer for multi-user households who were looking forward to profile features like customized watchlists, personalized help from Google Assistant, and weeding out the content interests of others using the same device (e.g., roommates, kids, etc. — although Google previously...

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