Twitter’s new CEO wants the company to move a lot faster

Parag Agrawal | Photo Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge

The new CEO of Twitter, Parag Agrawal, has a clear message: expect the social network to move a lot faster than it has in the past.

In his first public appearance since taking the reins of Twitter from co-founder Jack Dorsey, Agrawal says his top priority is “improving our execution” and streamlining how Twitter operates. His comments, made at the Barclays technology conference, come after activist investor Elliott Management shook up Twitter’s board of directors last year and pressured Dorsey to step down from his part-time CEO role. Dorsey remains the CEO of Block (formally called Square).

“I believe we have set them up so they can really move fast”

Despite being Twitter’s CEO for only nine days, Agrawal has already made big changes...

Continue reading…

Microsoft rolls out Notepad with dark mode for Windows 11 Insiders

Image: Microsoft

Microsoft is testing a redesign of its venerable Notepad app, adding some welcomed modern features like a dark mode, a better search / find and replace interface, better undoing, and more.

While the visual updates like the addition of dark mode, updated right-click menu, and Windows’ new theme-adopting material are nice, the functional updates will probably be the biggest upgrade to anyone who actually writes in Notepad. In the current version of the app that ships with Windows 11, the text search tool and the find and replace tool are two different pop-up windows, accessed by two different keyboard shortcuts. The redesign combines them into one floating bar instead of something that looks like it’s from the XP era.

F...

Continue reading…

Your LG TV can now play Google Stadia if it’s running webOS 5.0 or later

Have a gamepad handy and a recent LG TV? You can likely now try Google’s Stadia cloud gaming platform — as of today, it’s an app you can download for your television running webOS 5.0 or webOS 6.0 (read: likely 2020 models or later) in any of the 22 countries that Google covers. You’ll find it in the LG app store on your TV.

LG promised that both Google Stadia and Nvidia’s rival GeForce Now cloud gaming service would arrive on its TVs in 2021, and the company’s made it under the wire — GeForce Now arrived in beta in mid-November. Previously, most Stadia-supported TVs ran some version of Android TV.

Both Stadia and GeForce Now are free to try with a basic account — though they’re not necessarily equal. We were blown away by GeForce Now’s...

Continue reading…

Don’t Look Up is an absurdist mirror of our reality — before it just becomes a regular mirror

Image: Niko Tavernise / Netflix

For a goofy satire about a comet destroying the planet, Don’t Look Up sure takes you on an emotional journey. The film — helmed by writer and director Adam McKay, best-known for movies like Step Brothers and Anchorman — starts out hilarious, with big-name stars trading one-liners amid an impending apocalypse. But over its lengthy runtime, it slowly morphs into something else. Laughs give way to anger, frustration, and ultimately a kind of desperate hope. It’s a trajectory that serves as an eerie mirror to the last two years of pandemic life — just don’t go in expecting lighthearted fun.

Don’t Look Up doesn’t waste any time getting going. It starts out with a pair of Michigan State astronomers, Randall (Leonardo DiCaprio) and Kate...

Continue reading…

Meta Portal now lets you view Facebook Stories hands-free

Photo by Facebook

The Meta (formerly Facebook) Portal is getting a number of updates, including one that lets you browse through your Facebook friends’ stories hands-free, as detailed in a post on the About Facebook blog. You can access the feature by saying, “Hey Portal, show me Stories.”

In addition to Stories, you can now ask the Facebook Assistant to display recent Facebook posts, responses, and photos. Previously, there wasn’t any native support for Facebook, as it was only accessible through a web browser.

The Portal will let you take screenshots during Messenger calls by saying, “Hey Portal, take a photo”

And while the Portal could always take pictures of you during a call, it never had a feature that let you capture images of your friends or...

Continue reading…

Blizzard employee will detail studio’s ‘alcohol-soaked culture’ in press conference

Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images

Lisa Bloom, the celebrity lawyer who represented Bill O’Reilley’s, Donald Trump’s, and Bill Cosby’s sexual assault accusers, as well as once advising Harvey Weinstein in his sexual assault case, has announced that she will be holding a press conference on behalf of one of the survivors involved in the numerous sexual assault, harassment, and discrimination allegations against Activision Blizzard.

I represent a Blizzard employee who alleges she's a victim of sexual harassment. Our press release for our press conference tomorrow at the Irvine headquarters where we will demand accountability for the victims who have been subjected to harassment at the video game company: pic.twitter.com/0PisZ1Zomr

— Lisa Bloom (@LisaBloom) December 7, 2021...

Continue reading…

5G now means some flights won’t be able to land when pilots can’t see the runway

Photo by GEORGE FREY/AFP via Getty Images

Verizon and AT&T are hoping new swaths of C-band cellular radio spectrum will help make the 5G hype closer to reality, but the big mid-band 5G rollout may have a side effect. Airplanes rely on radio altimeters to tell how high they are above the ground to safely land when pilots can’t see, and the FAA is now instructing 6,834 of them to not _do that_at certain airports because of 5G interference.

The FAA ruled on Tuesday that those thousands of US planes (and some helicopters) won’t be able to use many of the guided and automatic landing systems that are designed to work in poor visibility conditions if they’re landing at an airport where there’s deemed to be enough interference that their altimeters aren’t reliable. “Landings during...

Continue reading…

Twitter is testing changes to the way it handles reported tweets

Twitter is testing a new way to report abusive tweets | Illustration by Alex Castro

Twitter says it is testing an overhaul to the process for reporting tweets, which it says will ultimately make it easier for users to alert the company to abusive or suspicious behavior. The approach being tested with a small group of users in the US streamlines the current reporting process so that a person reporting a tweet doesn’t have to choose from a list of pre-selected descriptions of what rule a tweet is violating. Instead, the company says, it will ask the user what happened in a “symptoms-first” approach to gather more complete information.

The blog post used the example of a patient in an emergency; the doctor doesn’t ask them, “Is your leg broken?” but rather, “Where does it hurt?” instead. Brian Waismeyer, a data scientist...

Continue reading…

The best laptop you can buy in 2021

Image: William Joel/The Verge

The best laptops for you, from ultraportables to high-powered editing machines

Continue reading…

The global chip shortage is partially to blame for Final Fantasy XIV’s long queues

Final Fantasy XIV: Endwalker. | Image: Square Enix

Many players eager to jump into_Final Fantasy XIV_’s highly anticipated Endwalker expansion have hit big queues since the game launched in early access on Friday. Part of the reason for the long waits is that the global chip shortage has prevented Square Enix from getting enough servers to handle demand, according to a blog post from producer and director Naoki Yoshida.

“When it comes to adding new Worlds, we need tens of ‘server machines’ for every World that we add,” Yoshida says. “Server machines are high-performance computers, which utilize numerous semiconductors. However, due to the COVID-19 countermeasures currently in place, many factories across the globe which produce semiconductors, have halted production or have faced labor...

Continue reading…

eBay introduces an interactive 3D sneaker viewer

Photo by eBay

eBay now lets you get a 360-degree look at some of the sneakers it has for sale, all thanks to its handy new 3D viewing tool, called eBay 3D true view. In a post on eBay’s website, the e-commerce platform said that the feature will let sellers add interactive images of their sneakers to listings. It’s partnering with Unity, a platform that can be used for real-time 3D modeling, to pilot the feature.

Scans of sneakers will be uploaded to the cloud and processed using AI

Starting this month, eBay says that select sneaker sellers will get the chance to try out the feature, however, the 3D images will only be viewable from its iOS or Android app. To use it, sellers will have to use a proprietary app to take a video of their sneakers from all...

Continue reading…

Amazon starts rolling out Smart Home Dashboard and other new features to Fire TV

Image: Amazon

Amazon is today beginning to roll out new features and functionality to its lineup of Fire TV streaming devices and the recently released Fire TV Omni and 4-Series televisions. At the top of the pile of new tricks is a Smart Home Dashboard that looks similar to what’s already available on the company’s Fire tablets and Echo Show smart displays.

The dashboard, available in the US and Canada, offers quick access and on / off toggles for connected lights, plugs, and switches that are linked to your Alexa system. Smart cameras get their own row in the dashboard, complete with a thumbnail of their perspective — though not a live view until you actually click into them. Previously, you could control your smart home gadgets with voice commands...

Continue reading…

Final Fantasy XIV: Endwalker’s early access period didn’t provide much access

On December 3rd, Final Fantasy XIV’s latest expansion launched its early access period, allowing those who preordered the game the opportunity to play Endwalker in advance of its December 7th release date. Or at least that’s how it was supposed to work. For lots of players, the early-access experience was an exercise in patience. With game servers at max capacity and login queues containing upward of 4,000–8,000 players, if you were in early access and actually got access, you were one of the privileged few.

Square Enix warned players this would happen. Days before early access began, it published a notice detailing what the company had done to prepare for the inevitable congestion, along with tips to mitigate wait times. Still, after a...

Continue reading…

Power companies commit to building nationwide EV charging network

City leaders and representatives from NRG eVgo unveil three new electric vehicle charging stations at the public parking structure in Hermosa Beach, CA on Friday, September 05, 2014. | Photo by Scott Varley/Digital First Media/Torrance Daily Breeze via Getty Images

Over 50 utilities across the US have come together to speed up the build-out of electric vehicle charging stations along the nation’s highways. The new National Electric Highway Coalition was announced today by the Edison Electric Institute (EEI), an association of investor-owned power companies.

Together, the companies aim to “fill charging infrastructure gaps along major travel corridors,” according to a fact sheet. Each utility that’s a member of the coalition must commit “in good faith” to create an EV fast charging network across its service territory “using any approach they see fit” by the end of 2023. The US will need more than 100,000 fast charging ports for the 22 million electric vehicles expected to traverse American...

Continue reading…

The vice president should not be using Bluetooth headphones

Yesterday, Politico opened its newsletter with an article on Vice President Kamala Harris’ aversion to using Bluetooth headphones. The VP was “Bluetooth-phobic,” the story claimed, “wary” of her AirPods and cautious with her technology use to an extent former aides described as “a bit paranoid.” Proof could be seen in her televised appearances: wires dangling from her ears in an interview with MSNBC’s Joy Reid or clutched in her hand during the famous “We did it, Joe” call.

But for a high-profile public official, this is a lot more reasonable than you might think. As security researchers were quick to point out, Bluetooth has a number of well-documented vulnerabilities that could be exploited if a bad actor wanted to hack, say, the...

Continue reading…

Alleged Bitcoin inventor trial ends without a real Satoshi standing up

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge

A jury has ruled that Craig Wright, a man who claims to have invented Bitcoin, won’t have to give up half of his supposed stash of crypto — a stash valued at over $50 billion. The court case has generated a lot of buzz in the Bitcoin community because he would have had to transfer those Bitcoins if the court had ordered him to, and that’s something only the real Satoshi can do.

If the name Satoshi Nakamoto rings a bell, it’s because that name shows up on the original whitepaper that described how Bitcoin would work. While Satoshi is a hallowed name in Bitcoin lore (it’s also used as a way to denominate the smallest unit of the currency), Nakamoto’s identity has never been proven — we don’t even know if it was one person or a group of...

Continue reading…

Instagram makes it easy for teens to find drugs, report finds

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge

Instagram’s algorithms recommend drug dealers’ accounts to minor users, according to a new report from the Tech Transparency Project. The platform also suggests drug-related hashtags, the report found.

In the report, published Tuesday, the Tech Transparency Project (TTP) created seven fake accounts for teen users aged 13, 14, 15, and 17. Instagram did not stop those accounts from searching for drug-related content. In one case, the platform auto-filled results when a user started typing “buyxanax” into the search bar. One suggested account was a Xanax dealer.

After following the account of a Xanax dealer, a fake minor user got a direct message “with a menu of products, prices, and shipping options,” the report found. A fake minor...

Continue reading…

NASA’s newest astronauts talk about their journeys to becoming spacefarers

NASA’s new astronaut candidates posing for a photo | Photo by THOMAS SHEA/AFP via Getty Images

Yesterday, NASA announced its newest class of astronauts: 10 new candidates who will train to fly to space with the agency over the next two years. The group included plenty of qualified individuals with backgrounds in the military, as well some with more unique professions. One of the candidates was most recently a flight surgeon at SpaceX, while another has worked as a drilling engineer on remote rigs in the Arctic.

The Verge spoke briefly with three of the newest astronaut candidates to get a better understanding of their backgrounds and what inspired them to pursue becoming an astronaut. Learn more about the newest members of NASA who could fly to deep space one day.

These interviews have been edited for brevity and clarity.

Anil...

Continue reading…

Amazon outage isn’t just online: delivery vans and warehouse bots aren’t moving packages

Amazon Prime delivery van | Photo by Paul Hennessy/NurPhoto via Getty Images

The Amazon Web Services outage that started this morning might be worse than it seemed. That’s not only because it’s reportedly cutting off some streams from Amazon Prime Video, Disney Plus, and Netflix, but because the apps that keep warehouse, delivery, and Amazon Flex workers connected are down too.

Amazon has confirmed it’s “experiencing elevated error rates for EC2 APIs in the US-EAST-1” region, meaning that connections from one of its largest server operations are spotty at best. Posts in the Amazon employee subreddits say many people can’t access the AtoZ app that manages practically everything about their jobs.

Warehouse workers report entire facilities shut down due to network problems and have posted pictures of the company’s...

Continue reading…

Amazon Smart Thermostat review: a $60 stunner

The budget thermostat Nest should have made

Continue reading…

Apple Music’s voice plan likely to launch with iOS 15.2

Apple Music’s new voice plan will cost $4.99 per month. | Image: Apple

Apple seems to be close to rolling out the Apple Music Voice Plan, a more affordable tier of Apple Music that lets you access music using only your voice and the company’s Siri assistant. The new plan appeared in the update notes for the iOS 15.2 release candidate, according to MacStories editor-in-chief Federico Viticci, which suggests it will be available widely sometime soon.

It's iOS 15.2 RC time! Apple also confirmed Apple Music Voice Plan will launch with iOS 15.2 pic.twitter.com/6uHeaTdr41

— Federico Viticci (@viticci) December 7, 2021

Apple first announced the Voice Plan at its October event, and at the time, said the new tier would be available in seventeen countries and regions “later this fall.” It will cost $4.99 per...

Continue reading…

Roku could lose YouTube this week — so now’s a good time to download the app

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge

An escalating feud that has pitted YouTube, one of the most popular streaming apps in the world, against Roku, a leader in TV streaming devices, could be about to boil over. Both companies have said that unless they can reach a new distribution agreement in the coming days, the YouTube app will be removed from Roku’s channel store for new users on December 9th.

The major development would follow months of stalled negotiations, and there have already been consequences for consumers caught in the middle: the YouTube TV app was pulled from Roku’s channel store earlier this year, though it can still be accessed by customers who already downloaded it. Now the much more popular YouTube app, a portal to the world’s largest video sharing...

Continue reading…

Microsoft says it took over servers being used by China-based hacking group Nickel

The Microsoft Digital Crimes Unit (DCU) has seized 42 websites that the China-based hacking group Nickel used to attack organizations in the US, as well as around the world, according to a report on Microsoft’s blog (via Bleeping Computer). Microsoft says that the attacks were likely carried out to gather intelligence from government agencies, think tanks, and human rights groups.

A US District Court in Virginia gave Microsoft permission to take control of the comprised websites on December 2nd, as outlined in the court document (PDF), allowing Microsoft to redirect traffic from those sites to Microsoft’s servers. While this won’t stop Nickel’s attacks completely, Microsoft says it should help “protect existing and future victims while...

Continue reading…

Ubisoft is bringing NFT gear to Ghost Recon

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge

Ubisoft is officially getting into NFTs. On Tuesday, the company announced a new platform, Ubisoft Quartz, where it will offer NFTs that it’s calling Digits. The Digits will be available first as in-game items like vehicles, weapons, and equipment in Ghost Recon Breakpoint in beta on Windows beginning later this week, according to a press release.

NFTs, or non-fungible tokens, are unique digital goods that can be bought or sold with ownership tracked on the blockchain. NFTs are becoming an increasingly popular way to attempt to add value to digital goods, and that seems to be part of what Ubisoft is trying to do with Digits.

The company says that each Digit is unique, will track who has owned it over time, and will have its own serial...

Continue reading…

Amazon’s new thermostat is already on sale

The lowest price ever on this smart thermostat

Amazon's new smart thermostat just received its first-ever price break. Normally, this thermostat costs $59.99, but is currently on sale for $47.99 at Amazon. It’s the best price we’ve seen yet for this particular device, and considering it didn’t get a discount during Black Friday, this sale may not last.

Amazon is also offering discounted bundles that combine the thermostat with a fourth-generation Echo Dot for $77.98 (normally $109.98) and another bundle that throws in a second-generation Echo Show 5 for $92.98 (normally $144.98). However, it's worth noting that the two bundles being offered may not arrive until after Christmas.

The thermostat isn’t particularly fancy, but was built in collaboration with the thermostat experts at...

Continue reading…

Scuf’s Reflex for PS5 is a pricier, customizable take on the DualSense

I adore the face buttons that don’t show the signature shape indicators. | Scuf

Scuf has introduced the Reflex lineup of customizable wireless controllers made for the PS5 and PC, consisting of three pricey controllers. Pricing starts at $199.99 for the Reflex, $229.99 for the Reflex Pro, going all the way up to $259.99 for the Reflex FPS, and each model has its own unique features.

Across the range, the Reflex is built upon Sony’s first-party DualSense controller board. That means it’ll receive updates through your console and that its feature set is almost identical to what you’d get from Sony’s controller (Scuf’s Instinct Pro for Xbox was built this way, too, mirroring Microsoft’s first-party controller). The Scuf Reflex is rechargeable and supports USB-C charging, and it has a mute button and features a...

Continue reading…

Intel is taking its self-driving company Mobileye public in 2022

Intel announced that it will take public its self-driving technology company Mobileye, the Israeli company it acquired for $15.3 billion in 2017. The chipmaker said that by listing Mobileye’s shares on the stock market, it hopes to unlock more value for Intel’s shareholders. Intel will remain the majority shareholder in Mobileye.

In a statement, Intel heralded its acquisition of the company as a noteworthy success, noting that Mobileye’s revenue in 2021 was 40 percent higher than the previous year. An IPO “provides the best opportunity to build on Mobileye’s track record for innovation and unlock value for shareholders,” Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger said.

The news comes as a number of electric and autonomous vehicle companies have gone...

Continue reading…

Jessica Rosenworcel confirmed by Senate to lead the FCC

On Tuesday, the Senate voted 68 to 31 to confirm Jessica Rosenworcel’s re-appointment to the Federal Communications Commission, putting her in place to be the first permanent chair of the agency under President Biden. Rosenworcel will also be the first female chair in the 86-year history of the FCC.

The vote officially confirmed Rosenworcel’s reappointment as FCC commissioner, but with Senate approval in place, it makes her formal ascension to chair all but certain. In a speech announcing the floor vote, Majority Leader Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) called Rosenworcel “a remarkable, highly experienced and historic nominee.”

“It’s the honor of my lifetime to lead the @FCC and serve as the first permanent female Chair,” said Rosenworcel in a...

Continue reading…

Razer made a $60 RGB cooling fan with MagSafe for your iPhone

Razer has announced its latest smartphone accessory: the Razer Phone Cooler Chroma, an RGB-light infused cooling fan for your iPhone or Android device that’s designed to help cool down your phone during intense gaming.

The Cooler Chroma fan comes in two versions, both of which cost $59.99: a magnetic model that’s compatible with Apple’s MagSafe accessory system that snaps right onto the back of your iPhone, and a model with a “universal clamp” for Android devices or iPhones without MagSafe.

Despite its mobile-focused design, the Cooler Chroma fan doesn’t seem to have a built-in battery, meaning that you’ll need to plug it into a USB-C power source when you want to use it (which will likely limit how useful it’ll actually...

Continue reading…

An Amazon server outage is causing problems for Alexa, Ring, Disney Plus, and others

Photo Illustration by Igor Golovniov/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images

Problems for some of Amazon’s AWS cloud servers are causing slow loading or failures for significant chunks of the internet. The company’s widespread network of data centers powers many of the things you interact with online, including this website, and people started noticing problems at around 10:45AM ET.

There are reports of outages for Disney Plus streaming, PUBG, and Amazon’s own products like Kindle ebooks, Amazon Music, or Ring cameras. The Down Detector list of services with spikes in their outage reports runs off nearly any recognizable name: Tinder, Roku, Coinbase, both Cash App and Venmo, and the list goes on.

There are reports from network admins everywhere about errors connecting to Amazon’s instances and the AWS Management...

Continue reading…