Binge-watching Doctor Who just got a lot harder

Image: BBC

The BBC is partnering with Disney to bring upcoming episodes of Doctor Who to the Disney Plus streaming platform for global audiences, complete with a brand-new logo inspired by Tom Baker’s era as the galaxy-traveling timelord. But it’s also going to make it way harder to binge-watch the show.

New episodes of the timey-wimey TV show will air on the BBC for the UK and Ireland, with Disney Plus becoming the exclusive home for new seasons of Doctor Who for global audiences. Doctor Who will return to screens in November 2023 to coincide with the 60th anniversary, premiering exclusively on the BBC for the UK and Ireland.

In case you missed the recent finale that ended Jodie Whittaker’s run as the Thirteenth Doctor, David Tennant will be...

Continue reading…

The Victrola Stream turntable seamlessly brings vinyl into your Sonos system

This Works With Sonos turntable is a simple but expensive way for Sonos owners to wirelessly add vinyl records to their audio setup.

Continue reading…

Redfall frightens in new trailer just in time for Halloween

Arkane Studios

With Halloween right around the corner, Redfall has a new trailer that really bares its fangs. This new trailer shows another side of the game, eschewing the quirky and quippy heroes in favor of some of the scares you’ll get investigating the titular town of Redfall, Massachusetts. There are a couple of neat jump scares featuring a stalking vampire — although the moment makes heavy use of a strobing effect, so photo-sensitive viewers beware. Redfall also shows off that monstrous bloodsucking nosferatu aren’t your only enemies. A human faction of zealots that promises protection from the creatures is also running around anointing people in blood. Sticky!

It’s been a minute since we’ve heard any peep about Redfall, a survival horror...

Continue reading…

Apple devices now support Nintendo’s classic game controllers

Image: Nintendo

Apple snuck a nice little surprise in its round of Mac, iPhone, iPad, and Apple TV updates yesterday with the addition of support for Nintendo’s updated classic game controllers. As spotted by developer Steve Troughton-Smith and confirmed by MacStories, Nintendo’s modern SNES and N64 controllers now work with updated Apple devices with macOS 13, iOS 16, and tvOS 16 and up, whether using a wired or Bluetooth connection.

While neither MacStories nor Troughton-Smith was able to test whether the Sega Genesis and NES controllers work with Apple’s devices, we’re assuming Apple added the same functionality. The Verge reached out to Apple to confirm, and we’ll update this article if we hear back.

Neat, iOS/tvOS 16.1 support the official...

Continue reading…

Samsung’s 32-inch M8 4K smart monitor with built-in streaming apps is $170 off

Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge

It’s a pretty good day for deals on Samsung displays (and other deals, too). Starting off, the Samsung 32-inch M8 Smart Monitor is on sale for $529.99 in white at Amazon and Best Buy or in any of its four airy colors direct from Samsung. This $170 discount is around the best price you can get for this unique monitor. It may not be the outright best at any one thing, but its 4K resolution and long list of features make it a convenient display for combining work and play on one screen. It’s kind of ideal for apartment living, where you may not have the room for a big TV and a monitor, especially if you work remotely and find yourself using your laptop for everything from Slack to Netflix.

The M8 has built-in speakers and a microphone, and...

Continue reading…

In its finale, House of the Dragon became a worthy Game of Thrones successor

Emma D’Arcy as Queen Rhaenyra Targaryen. | Image: HBO

House of the Dragon’s season 1 finale pulled the series together by becoming what Game of Thrones was at its best

Continue reading…

Bose discontinues its niche Sport Open Earbuds

Photo by Vjeran Pavic / The Verge

Bose’s Sport Open wireless earbuds hit the market in early 2021, and less than two years later, the company has decided to phase them out of its lineup. The earbuds are marked with a status of “final sale” and are being steeply discounted on Bose’s online store, and Bose spokesperson Joanne Berthiaume confirmed to The Verge that this is the end of the line for the product.

The $199.99 earbuds — now available for $119.99 while supplies last — were marketed as “a truly different kind of sport headphone” upon their release. They don’t actually go into your ear canals or even block them in any way. But rather, the unique open-style design lets them rest above your ears and allows for total situational awareness while listening to music.

...

Continue reading…

The new Motorola Razr has arrived in Europe, but there’s no release date yet

Image: Motorola

Motorola’s third-gen Razr foldable has finally arrived in Europe (via Android Police). The device was first released in China back in August and will cost £949 or €1,199 (about $1,080 or $1,185 USD) once it goes on sale.

Unfortunately, Motorola still hasn’t provided us with the exact European release dates in each country, but we’ll update this article if we hear back. We also don’t know when or if it will go on sale in the US.

The latest iteration of the Motorola Razr has a slightly larger 6.7-inch OLED display with a 144Hz refresh rate when unfolded. It retains the same 2.7-inch FHD Plus display when closed shut, but it’s still bigger than the 1.9-inch outer screen on the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 4, leaving room for a full-size clock and...

Continue reading…

Amazon will let you buy things with Venmo

Friend finally pay you back for picking up burritos? Now you can buy something on Amazon. | Image: Venmo

Amazon’s adding a new payment option: Venmo. Starting on Tuesday, some customers in the US will be able to pay for orders using the popular money sending and receiving service, with availability in the country rolling out by Black Friday, or November 25th.

Using Venmo to pay for an Amazon order is relatively simple; to set it up as a payment method, tap “Select a Payment Method” during checkout and then “Add a Venmo account.” From there, you’ll be prompted to authorize Amazon to use your Venmo account and to choose where you want it to pull money from your balance, linked bank account, or eligible debit card. After agreeing, Amazon will ask you if you want to set it as your default payment method, and you can choose to pay with it...

Continue reading…

Bayonetta 3’s biggest sin is its unwillingness to commit to the bit

Platinum Games / Nintendo

After hours of fun, a late-game plot shift undermines the entire game, Bayonetta’s character, and ultimately the franchise

Continue reading…

Microsoft Surface Pro 9 (SQ3) review: Windows on Arm is not ready

Exceptional hardware is still marred by incompatibilies

Continue reading…

How to find your IP address

Samar Haddad / The Verge

An IP (internet protocol) address is a unique string of numbers assigned to every device that can connect to the internet. That includes your phone, laptop, desktop computer, game consoles, and more.

Here, we’ll tell you a little about your IP address, as well as how to find your IP address on Mac, Windows, Android, and iOS.

What is an IP address?

All devices use a public IP address to connect to the internet and a private IP address to connect to your local network. While each individual device has its own private IP address, they also use the public address assigned to your network’s router. Your internet service provider (ISP) typically allocates one public IP address to your router, which means all your devices in the network should...

Continue reading…

Microsoft Surface Laptop 5 (13.5-inch) review: a few steps forward and one big step back

Microsoft made a few updates to the Surface Laptop, and I’m very sad about one of them

Continue reading…

Getty Images CEO says firms racing to sell AI art could be stepping into illegal territory

A robot wields a paintbrush — but AI artwork is created with algorithms not oil paints. | Photo by Hollie Adams/Getty Images

Getty Images CEO Craig Peters has criticized companies “racing” to commercialize AI art generators, saying firms aren’t thinking through the potential legal and ethical hazards of the technology.

In an interview with The Verge, Peters reiterated Getty Images’ rule against selling AI content (which it banned in September), while announcing a new partnership between the company and Israeli firm Bria to offer AI-powered image editing tools. Getty Images’ stance on AI-generated content marks a clear difference with rival Shutterstock, which announced today it will be integrating AI art generator DALL-E directly into its site’s offerings.

“I don’t think those questions have been answered.”

“We took a step around AI-generated imagery to...

Continue reading…

You can now add your pets and zodiac sign to your Hinge dating profile

Hinge users can now display what pet they own and their zodiac sign to help find their perfect match. | Image: Hinge

Hinge users can add their zodiac signs and pet information to their dating profiles starting today.

The new zodiac signs feature allows users to add their sun sign — that’s another term for your main star sign — to profile vitals. If you don’t think you’d be compatible with a Libra, or want to be upfront about being a Scorpio then you can skip the awkward questions and get straight to the point, making the information readily available for any potential dating partners.

Google search trends show that interest in Astrology has been growing in recent years

Interest in Astrology has been growing in recent years, with Google Trends showing that searches for “birth chart” and “star sign” spiked during 2020 and 2021, which might explain the...

Continue reading…

Shutterstock will start selling AI-generated stock imagery with help from OpenAI

Shutterstock will begin selling AI-generated artwork made using DALL-E in “the coming months.” | Image: Shutterstock

Will AI image generators kill the stock image industry? It’s a question asked by many following the rise of text-to-image AI models in recent years. The answer from the industry’s incumbents, though, is “no” — not if we can start selling AI-generated content first.

Today, stock image giant Shutterstock has announced an extended partnership with OpenAI, which will see the AI lab’s text-to-image model DALL-E 2 directly integrated into Shutterstock “in the coming months.” In addition, Shutterstock is launching a “Contributor Fund” that will reimburse creators when the company sells work to train text-to-image AI models. This follows widespread criticism from artists whose output has been scraped from the web without their consent to create...

Continue reading…

Nothing will open a physical store in London by the end of the year

The store is due to open soon in London’s Soho district. | Image: Nothing

Nothing plans to open its first physical retail location in London’s Soho district before Christmas this year, the company has announced. The store will be located at 4 Peter Street, between Gosh! Comics and the London outlet of fashion brand Supreme. News of the store comes a day before Nothing is due to announce its latest pair of earbuds, the Ear Stick, which it will sell at the store alongside its other devices.

In the past, Nothing has used pop-up locations to promote and sell products, but this is the first time the company will have a permanent retail presence. Nothing CEO Carl Pei has said in the past that his ambition is for Nothing to compete with Apple, which has long operated a global network of stores to offer sales and...

Continue reading…

EcoFlow’s redesigned River 2 batteries double as kettle bells

From left to right: the new River 2 Max, River 2, and River 2 Pro family of portable batteries from EcoFlow. | Image: EcoFlow

Big-ass battery maker EcoFlow is announcing the redesigned River 2 series today fitted with long lasting LFP (LiFePO4) batteries and lots of ports to power your AC and DC devices. These are batteries sized to power your weekend away or a music festival.

The River 2 series consists of three batteries that vary by storage capacities, maximum AC power (pure sine wave) output, and charging ports:

• River 2: 256Wh, 300W AC output, and 5 output ports
• River 2 Max: 512Wh, 500W, and 9 output ports
• River 2 Pro: 768Wh, 800W, and 10 output ports

The batteries can be charged in four different ways: a standard AC wall outlet, portable solar panels, a 12V car socket, and USB-C. The base River 2 can charge to 100 percent in as fast as 60 minutes, while...

Continue reading…

Nvidia investigating reports of RTX 4090 power cables burning or melting

Photo by Sam Byford / The Verge

Nvidia says it’s investigating two reports of RTX 4090 cards that have had power cables burn or melt. Reddit user reggie_gakil was the first to post details about their Gigabyte RTX 4090 issues yesterday, showing burn damage on the new 12VHPWR adapter cable that Nvidia ships with the RTX 4090. The connection on the actual card was also damaged and melted.

A second Reddit poster replied to the same thread showing off similar damage to an Asus RTX 4090 graphics card power connector.

“We are investigating the reports,” says Nvidia spokesperson Bryan Del Rizzo in a statement to The Verge. “We are in contact with the first owner and will be reaching out to the other for additional information.”

Image: reggie_gakil (Reddit)...

Continue reading…

WhatsApp is down in a major outage

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge

WhatsApp is down in a major outage affecting the communications app. The service started experiencing issues at around 3AM ET, with users greeted with a “connecting” message. If you’re attempting to use WhatsApp web, you’ll see a “Make sure your computer has an active internet connection” error. Downdetector has more than 60,000 reports of issues with the service, and the outage appears to be affecting users globally.

“We’re aware that some people are currently having trouble sending messages and we’re working to restore WhatsApp for everyone as quickly as possible,” says Meta spokesperson Joshua Breckman in a statement to The Verge.

This is the first major WhatsApp outage since the service went down as part of a massive outage that also...

Continue reading…

Toyota reportedly considers hitting the reset button on its EV transition

Photo by Abigail Bassett for The Verge

Toyota may have finally announced an electric vehicle strategy last year, but new reporting suggests that the automaker could be headed back to the drawing board. According to Reuters sources, an internal group at Toyota is tasked with working out plans to improve its current e-TNGA flexible EV platform or for developing a new EV architecture.

The e-TNGA platform is already in use in the all-electric bZ4X crossover SUV and is (for now) planned to underpin the upcoming 2023 Lexus RZ 450e.

As these changes remain under discussion, Toyota reportedly is also suspending development on certain other EV projects, including a compact electric cruiser (inspired by the FJ Cruiser) and the Toyota Crown hybrid sedan. The existing strategy called...

Continue reading…

Best Buy Upgrade Plus financing lets you pay for that new MacBook over three years

Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge

Best Buy’s new MacBook upgrade program locks you into three years of monthly payments before giving you the option to upgrade to the latest and greatest machine (via Apple Insider). Called Upgrade Plus, it lets people with approved credit finance either a MacBook or MacBook Air via Citizens Bank.

As an example, Best Buy says you can purchase the $999 M1-powered MacBook Air for as low as $19.99 for 36 months and then pay out the remaining $280.35 in month 37 to keep the device. That is, assuming you qualify for a zero-percent APR offer — the program’s FAQ indicates offers may carry interest of up to 29.99 percent, depending on creditworthiness.

But if you don’t want to pay the higher amount on that last payment, Best Buy says you will...

Continue reading…

Amazon union organizers call off election attempt at a California warehouse

Currently, there’s no explanation for why the election’s being called off. | Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge

The Amazon Labor Union has withdrawn its petition to hold an election at an Amazon fulfillment center in Moreno Valley, California, according to Kayla Blado, a spokesperson for the National Labor Relations Board. It’s a sharp-turn around for organization efforts at the facility, known as ONT8; the petition was filed on October 12th, and the NLRB had confirmed that there was a sufficient showing of interest to proceed with the election, according to The Los Angeles Times’ Suhauna Hussain.

It’s unclear why the petition was withdrawn or if it has any relation to the ALU’s recent loss in Albany, New York. The withdrawal request isn’t currently publicly available, but petitioners don’t have to tell the NLRB why they’re withdrawing, according...

Continue reading…

Google Chrome will no longer support Windows 7 next year

The final update for Chome on Windows 7 and 8.1 is scheduled to be released in early February. | Illustration: The Verge

Google will release the final version of Chrome for Windows 7 and Windows 8.1 sometime next year. Chrome 110, which is tentatively scheduled to be released on February 7th, 2023, will be the last version that supports the two older Microsoft operating systems, according to a Google support page (via Android Police).

This could be a bigger deal than you might think. Despite Windows 7 first being released in 2009 and Microsoft officially ending support for it in 2020, data suggests that the operating system is still running on a whole lot of devices: as recently as last year, that number was estimated to be at least 100 million PCs. That means a lot of people could soon be both an unsupported operating system and an unsupported web...

Continue reading…

Disney Plus’ ad-supported plan may not let you watch movies with far-away friends

It seems like Disney’s following in Netflix’s footsteps. | Illustration by Nick Barclay / The Verge

If you subscribe to Disney Plus’ upcoming ad-supported tier, you may miss out on features that are available to other subscribers. Some code discovered by MacRumors’ Steve Moser suggests that GroupWatch and SharePlay — features that let you remotely watch a movie or show with friends and family — won’t be available if you’re using the $7.99 version of Disney’s service (via XDA).

Disney didn’t immediately reply to The Verge’s request for comment on whether it’s actually planning to not allow ad-supported users to watch content with it or Apple’s system. The code seems pretty unambiguous; it’s a tooltip saying, “Groupwatch and Shareplay unavailable for accounts on the ads tier.” However, it could always be a placeholder or a decision that...

Continue reading…

Wikimedia is adding features to make editing Wikipedia more fun

The Wikipedia logo | Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge

Wikipedia is one of the sturdiest survivors of the old web, as well as one of the most clearly human-powered ones, thanks to a multitude of editors making changes across the globe. But after celebrating the site’s 20th birthday last year, the Wikimedia Foundation is turning to new — and more heavily automated — tools in search of its next wave of contributors. It’s adding features designed to ease users into making their own edits, including suggestions for easy first steps like cross-linking different articles. It’s doing so while trying not to weaken the bonds of its individual communities — and, the Wikimedia team hopes, possibly even making them stronger.

Wikimedia has been testing extra features for newcomers since 2019, and it’s...

Continue reading…

How do you clean your fabric-covered smart speaker? Carefully

Illustration by Samar Haddad / The Verge

At a staff meeting this afternoon here at The Verge, several people started complaining about the problem of keeping their fabric-covered tech clean. It turned out that this is definitely a problem in search of a solution.

For example, if you are keeping an Apple HomePod Mini, a Google Assistant speaker, or an Amazon Echo in your kitchen, the device is going to start accumulating crumbs and grease really quickly. Not to mention the pet hair that the fabric is going to attract or what it will look like after being carried from room to room by grubby little four-year-old hands.

So how do you keep them clean?

I looked it up in various sources, and most agreed: there are a few things you can do to try to keep the surface of your...

Continue reading…

The Apple Watch Ultra gets another battery-saving workout setting

There’s an additional battery-saving setting that, combined with Low Power Mode, can get you an estimated 60 hours. | Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge

The Apple Watch Ultra can now last even longer on a single charge. In watchOS 9.1, Apple has added a workout setting that extends battery life to an estimated 60 hours by reducing GPS and heart rate readings.

Battery life estimates for the Ultra can be a little tough to parse. The official line is that the watch lasts up to 36 hours with normal use and up to 12 hours during an outdoor run. However, Apple also introduced a Low Power Mode in watchOS 9 that limits or disables certain features to last enough to finish an Ironman race — roughly 14-15 hours. But to get that 60-hour estimate, you have to enable both Low Power Mode and the new “Fewer GPS and heart rate readings” setting.

The vanilla Low Power Mode turns off the always-on...

Continue reading…

Chinese spies allegedly tried to obstruct Huawei investigation

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge

The Justice Department has announced charges against two Chinese intelligence officers, accusing them of attempting to obstruct a US investigation into the telecommunications giant Huawei.

In charging documents made public on Monday, defendants Guochum He and Zheng Wang were accused of working on behalf of the Chinese government to obtain confidential information and trial evidence related to a Justice Department investigation into Huawei. US law enforcement officials declined to name the company, but both CNN and The Wall Street Journal reported that the case concerns Huawei, which is the subject of an ongoing trade secrets prosecution.

“This case exposes the interconnection between PRC intelligence officers & Chinese companies, and it...

Continue reading…

Microsoft’s Windows-flavored Android 12L arrives on the Surface Duo

Image: Microsoft

The Microsoft Surface Duo is getting Windows-like UI tweaks, as well as the improvements that come with Android 12L, an operating system built specifically for devices with larger screens. In an update on its blog, Microsoft shared some of the changes coming to its folding phone, which include revamped icons, colors, and controls made to look as if they’re on a Windows device.

We first heard Android 12L’s coming to the Surface Duo back in March, and after some testing, the update is rolling out on Surface Duo devices now. According to Microsoft, the refreshed look extends to the Duo’s Quick Settings and System Settings menus, as well as the Pen menu that appears when using the Surface Slim Pen 2.

Just like on a standard Windows device,...

Continue reading…