The best deals on 4K TVs

We’ve got deals on all sorts of TVs, ranging from affordable (yet feature-packed) models to high-end OLED and Mini LEDs that can really wow you. | Image: Chris Welch / The Verge

The future looks bright for those who are looking to nab a great TV in 2023 at a substantial discount. Although a fresh slate of new models was announced at CES 2023, it might be a while until any of those arrive and receive any significant discounts. However, you don’t have to wait to land a great deal on a mid- or high-end TV from LG, TCL, Hisense, or Amazon’s own Fire TV brand, as many of the flagship models from last year are currently selling for hundreds of dollars less than their original list price.

Right now, there are a number of discounted 4K TVs to choose from, spanning a wide variety of prices, size configurations, and feature sets. Whether you want a secondary TV for the bedroom or a high-end OLED that’s built for a...

Continue reading…

Twitter’s latest outage is logging out desktop users

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge

Twitter had plenty of problems in February (the rate limit debacle) and March (when it broke all links and pictures), but through April, the service didn’t register outages of similar significance. Now it’s May, and the streak has ended early as a number of people (including many Verge staffers) report the Twitter.com desktop website has logged them out without warning and won’t let them log back in.

It’s unclear what’s causing the problem, and in place of a functional PR department, Twitter responds to press inquiries with only a poop emoji, so who knows when things may be fixed or if a single engineer has managed to crash something big... again.

The outage is, coincidentally, occurring exactly at the same time it’s becoming a little...

Continue reading…

Lordstown says it’s at risk of bankruptcy if Foxconn walks away from its EV deal

Image: Getty

Embattled electric vehicle startup Lordstown Motors says it could run out of money if its deal with iPhone manufacturer Foxconn fails to go through. The deal is in jeopardy after Foxconn notified Lordstown that it’s in breach of its investment deal because its stock has fallen under $1 a share.

Lordstown traces its origins to GM’s announcement in 2018 that it would be closing down its Lordstown, Ohio, factory. Then-President Donald Trump assailed GM over the decision, leading to the automaker’s decision to sell the plant to a struggling electric truck startup called Workhorse.

Instead, Workhorse’s founder and former CEO, Steve Burns, started a new company called Lordstown Motors with the plan to build electric pickup trucks, centered on...

Continue reading…

It’s getting easier to make an account on Mastodon

Image: Mastodon

Mastodon is making it easier for newcomers to create an account on the platform. On Monday, the decentralized network announced that it will start directing new users to create an account on mastodon.social instead of prompting them to choose from one of the thousands of other servers on the platform.

This update doesn’t mean that Mastodon’s taking away the ability for new users to sign up for an account in a specific community, though. It will simply present two separate options on its signup page: “Join mastodon.social” or “Pick my own server.” The service’s flagship mastodon.social server is the platform’s largest, but the network notes that users can swap instances at any time.

Prior to this change, creating a Mastodon account wasn’t...

Continue reading…

Here are the best Apple Watch deals right now

The Apple Watch Series 8 isn’t a massive step up from the prior model, but it does offer a few new features. | Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge

In September, Apple launched its latest batch of smartwatches, introducing the first-ever Ultra ($799) alongside the Series 8 ($399) and a new Apple Watch SE ($249). Each wearable has its own pros and cons associated with it, but the introduction of the high-end Ultra also means there are now more Apple Watch models on the market before than ever before — and a lot more deals to be had.

But with all of those options, which one should you pick? Generally speaking, you want to buy the newest watch you can afford so that it continues to receive software updates from Apple. The latest update, watchOS 9, launched on the Apple Watch Series 4 and newer models in September, though no one can say with certainty whether the Series 4 will get the...

Continue reading…

Apple’s first iPhone Rapid Security Response patch had a problem, but it’s fine now

Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge

Apple announced the new “Rapid Security Response” updates for iPhones, iPads, and Macs last year at WWDC, and today, the first publicly released patch on the system started to roll out. After rough going initially when the new update claimed every iPhone was “offline,” the new patch is now installed on our devices without a problem.

The Rapid Security Response system is supposed to make things easier, adding security fixes in between larger system updates that could install on some devices without a reboot as well as allowing users to opt out of receiving them entirely or uninstall them if they caused any issues.

this just successfully installed for me and it installed in around 30 seconds. Good to see rapid patches available on iOS

—...

Continue reading…

Asus Zenbook S 13 OLED (2023) review: lighter than Air

If you’re looking for a Windows-based alternative to Apple’s MacBook Air, the Zenbook S 13 is what you want. It’s even thinner and lighter than last year’s version, too.

Continue reading…

EA issues Star Wars Jedi: Survivor patch combating some performance issues on PC

Image: EA

Star Wars Jedi: Survivor released over the weekend with a whole slew of performance problems, and EA is now doing something about it. The company noted the problem over the weekend and is releasing a new patch for the PC version of the game — which has been hammered by negative Steam reviews in the past few days.

EA announced the new Survivor PC patch today on Twitter and says it’s available now. The company claims the patch will provide “performance improvements for non-ray traced rendering.” The company also says it’s “hard at work” making more patches that will fix more bugs across all platforms Survivor is available on.

Today a patch has become available for the PC version of Star Wars Jedi: Survivor, and tomorrow (5/2) we’ll also...

Continue reading…

You can watch streamers play Tears of the Kingdom right now

Image: Nintendo

A couple of weeks before its May 12th launch, it appears that The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom has leaked. According to a report from Kotaku, physical copies of the game have leaked from retailers, and people are streaming the game on Twitch and Discord.

It was relatively easy for me to find a Tears of the Kingdom stream on Twitch hidden within the 300 or so channels streaming Breath of the Wild. The two games have the same art style, UI, and have similar in-game locations, so it can be hard to spot a Tears of the Kingdom stream from a Breath of the Wild one at a glance. I won’t post any spoilers or links (heh), but if you notice a big red hand in the top-left corner of the game screen, back away immediately.

In the stream I...

Continue reading…

Spotify tries to win indie authors by cutting audiobook fees

Illustration by Nick Barclay / The Verge

Spotify-owned audiobooks seller Findaway will no longer take a 20 percent cut of royalties for titles sold on its DIY Voices platform — so long as the sales are made on Spotify. In a company blog post published on Monday, Findaway said that it would “pass on cost-saving efficiencies” from its integration with the streaming service. Last summer, Spotify finalized its $123 million purchase of Findaway in a bid to cement its position in the audiobooks business.

While it’s free for authors to upload their audiobooks onto Findaway’s Voices platform, the company normally uses an 80/20 pricing structure — where Findaway takes a 20 percent fee on all royalties earned. But that fee comes after sales platforms take their own 50 percent cut on the...

Continue reading…

BubbleDeck: The Verge’s first free Stream Deck app is virtual bubble wrap

Pop bubbles on your Stream Deck. | Photo by Sean Hollister / The Verge

I’ve always thought the Stream Deck’s squishy buttons felt like delightful bubble wrap.

What if you could pop them, too?

We just made that a reality with BubbleDeck, our first official and totally free Stream Deck plug-in.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by The Verge (@verge)

Yes, we seriously turned all your extra Stream Deck buttons into fidget toys, complete with sound effects! Whether you’ve got one spare slot or want to fill an entire 32-button page on your Stream Deck XL — we tested, and it works — this free app is for you.

If the direct link doesn’t work on your Stream Deck, just go to Elgato’s plug-in store directly: 1) open your Stream Deck app, 2) tap the little colorful...

Continue reading…

Amazon is adding Prime Video originals to its free streaming service

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge

Amazon will add over 100 original Prime Video titles to Freevee, the company’s free ad-supported streaming option, this year. That includes the first three episodes of shows like The Summer I Turned Pretty and A League of Their Own, which will become available on May 26th.

The company is also adding the first few episodes of The Terminal List and Paper Girls to Freevee this month, along with all episodes of Goliath and The Tick. Freevee is also getting the first season of Upload, the second season of Homecoming (it already has the first), and the sci-fi movie The Vast of Night.

Amazon says other Prime Video content, including the first seasons of Reacher, The Wheel of Time, and more will become available on Freevee “later this year.”...

Continue reading…

Microsoft’s new Xbox Home UI looks way better with more room for backgrounds

The new Xbox Home UI. | Screenshot by Tom Warren / The Verge

Microsoft has reworked its Xbox Home UI to better accommodate background images and simplify access to key parts of the Xbox dashboard. The software giant halted a test of an upcoming Xbox Home UI last month to rework it, and the result looks like a great improvement for Xbox owners.

The new Xbox Home UI moves the tiles of apps and games down further, so there’s a lot more space to see a background. The tile sizes have also been reduced, and there’s a new responsive game art that will update the background when you hover over certain games and apps.

Image: Microsoft

Microsoft’s old Xbox Home UI test.

Image: Microsoft

The new Xbox Home UI.

At the top, there’s a new floating UI that...

Continue reading…

Bing, Bard, and ChatGPT: AI chatbots are rewriting the internet

Álvaro Bernis / The Verge

How we use the internet is changing fast, thanks to the advancement of AI-powered chatbots that can find information and redeliver it as a simple conversation.

Continue reading…

Schools bought millions of Chromebooks in 2020 — and three years later, they’re starting to break

Back in early 2020, as the covid pandemic drove classrooms online, school districts found themselves needing to bulk purchase affordable laptops that they could send home with their students. Quite a few turned to Chromebooks.

Three years later, the US Public Interest Research Group Education Fund concludes in a new report called Chromebook Churn that many of these batches are already beginning to break. That’s potentially costing districts money; PIRG estimates that “doubling the lifespan of Chromebooks could result in $1.8 billion in savings for taxpayers.” It also creates quite a bit of e-waste.

One of the big problems is repairability. Chromebooks are harder to upgrade and repair, on average, than Windows laptops. That’s in part,...

Continue reading…

Microsoft Teams now lets small businesses charge for appointments, webinars, and more

The payments app works in the US and Canada. | Image: Microsoft

Microsoft is launching a payments system inside Microsoft Teams that lets small businesses earn money from appointments, classes, one-on-one sessions, webinars, and much more. Teams business users in the US and Canada will now be able to collect payments during a meeting, opening up the service to financial advisors, lawyers, instructors, tutors, and other small and medium-sized businesses (SMB) to collect payments for virtual meetings.

Over the past few years, we’ve seen a shift in how services are offered online, thanks in part to the pandemic and the growth and ease of virtual meetings. “The pandemic changed the game,” says Brenna Robinson, general manager of Microsoft 365 small and medium business, in an interview with The Verge. “I...

Continue reading…

Meta is hosting its next VR gaming show in June

Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge

Meta is hosting another gaming showcase for its Quest VR headsets on June 1st, the company announced on Monday. The event will feature “over 40 minutes of content,” according to a blog post, including game announcements, first looks, updates, and a preshow and postshow.

The show will mark Meta’s third annual Quest Gaming Showcase. The 2022 event, which took place in April, featured some pretty cool games, including Resident Evil 4, Among Us VR, and a new add-on for Beat Saber. Here’s hoping Meta has some good things in store for the event, though some VR fans might still be unhappy that the company is shutting down the widely praised Echo VR.

The event’s preshow begins at 12:45PM ET, with the main show starting at 1PM ET. You’ll be able...

Continue reading…

Here are the best AirPods deals you can get right now

Apple’s second-gen AirPods Pro are $50 off, matching their all-time low.

If you know where to look, there are often some great discounts available on Apple’s ever-popular AirPods. Since Apple launched the third-gen AirPods toward the end of 2021, we’ve seen the starting price of the second-gen, entry-level model slowly dip to around $100. And now that you can buy the second-gen AirPods Pro at most retailers, we’re seeing even better discounts on the last-gen Pro and other models.

Below, we’ve curated the best deals currently available on each model, including the entry-level AirPods, the AirPods Pro, the third-gen AirPods, and the AirPods Max.

The best AirPods (second-gen) deals

In 2021, Apple lowered the list price of the second-gen AirPods — now the entry-level model — from $159 to $129. It now only...

Continue reading…

Bing AI comes barging in on Samsung Galaxy devices with built-in SwiftKey

Illustration: The Verge

SwiftKey recently received Bing AI integration that puts Microsoft’s chatbot right at the fingertips of users who’ve installed the software keyboard. But now, the OpenAI-based search tool is making its way automatically onto pretty much every modern Samsung Galaxy device, SamMobile reports.

You see, Samsung Galaxy devices use their own One UI Android launcher, and that launcher includes a SwiftKey keyboard integrated into the system. This means Microsoft’s Bing AI is straight up making a Kool-Aid entrance onto Galaxies. Last week, Microsoft also barged in on users who went to try rival Google’s Bard on Edge browser.

We are rolling out the new Bing AI features to the Samsung users. Look for the new update (Android v9.10.11.10) in the...

Continue reading…

The second-gen Apple Pencil returns to its best price of $89

Drawing, doodling, note-taking, or looking cool while you wield your big tablet. The Apple Pencil has many uses. | Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge

The latest Apple Pencil is back on sale for its lowest price of $89. You can pick one up, saving $40 in the process, from Amazon, Best Buy, or Walmart. If you have a compatible iPad, then Apple’s second-gen Pencil is the best stylus option for note-taking and drawing. Yes, there are third-party clones out there that can do a lot of what the Pencil offers for much less, but they can’t match Apple’s convenient software integrations with its own accessory — like easily checking its battery level when charging or a fancy hover feature on M2-equipped iPad Pros.

If you have an older iPad or a current 10th-gen iPad, the original Apple Pencil is also on sale for its respectively lowest of $79 ($20 off) at Amazon and Best Buy. The first-gen...

Continue reading…

Motorola ThinkPhone review: business class

The ThinkPhone is a successful collaboration nine years in the making and a step in the right direction for Motorola.

Continue reading…

Inside Amazon’s canceled plan to make Halo a fitness success

Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge

A redesigned Halo service was due this fall with an AI-powered personal trainer, celebrity-led fitness classes, and even Apple Watch support. But Amazon threw in the towel on Halo before it got there.

Continue reading…

NYPD’s answer to TikTok car theft challenges: 500 free AirTags

Photo by Vjeran Pavic / The Verge

The New York Police Department is turning to Apple AirTags to combat a rise in stolen vehicles it blames on a TikTok car theft challenge. In a press conference on Sunday, NYC Mayor Eric Adams announced that the city is handing out 500 free AirTags to help residents track their cars in case they’ve been stolen.

Mayor Adams said there’s a direct link between the increase in car thefts in the city and the viral TikTok videos from thieves known as the “Kia Boyz” that first emerged last summer. In clips posted to the platform, the pair taught users how to exploit a Hyundai and Kia defect that let them start a car using a USB cable and other readily available tools.

The 21st century calls for 21st century policing. AirTags in your car will...

Continue reading…

Drake’s AI clone is here — and Drake might not be able to stop him

Illustration by Hugo Herrera for The Verge

Major record labels are going after AI-generated songs, arguing copyright infringement. Legal experts say the approach is far from straightforward.

Continue reading…

Join us this Thursday in NYC for a Verge fan screening of BlackBerry!

Image: IFC Films

Calling all BBM fans: we’re inviting you to join us in NYC this Thursday, May 4th, for an exclusive Verge screening of BlackBerry, starring Jay Baruchel, Glenn Howerton, and Matt Johnson. The screening will take place at the IFC Center at 6PM, located at 323 Sixth Avenue. Following the screening, Nilay Patel and Alex Cranz of The Vergecast will hold a Q&A with director Matt Johnson.

Attendance is free for Verge readers 18 and older, and we’re taking individual reservations on a first-come, first-served basis. (Sorry: because seating is limited, we’re not taking plus-ones.) If you’d like to join us for the movie, send an email to events@theverge.com with your first and last name. If we’ve got room, you’ll get a response confirming your...

Continue reading…

The Super Mario Bros. Movie has made a cool $1 billion

Bowser gazing at a Super Star. | Image: Universal

The writing’s been on the wall basically from the moment The Super Mario Bros. Moviefirst hit theaters, but after weeks of sitting comfortably at the top of the domestic box office, Universal, Illumination, and Nintendo’s big movie collaboration has officially made $1 billion.

It’s been less than a full month since co-directors Aaron Horvath and Michael Jelenic’s The Super Mario Bros. Movie premiered, but in those few short weeks, the project’s already raked in a cool $490 million domestically and $532 million internationally, making it the fifth pandemic-era movie to cross the $1 billion mark. Given how the film only just opened in markets including South Korea and Japan within the past few days, it’s all but assured to make quite a...

Continue reading…

The UK doesn’t want Microsoft’s Activision Blizzard deal, so what happens next?

Microsoft’s giant deal hangs in the balance. | Image: Microsoft

Microsoft is furious. Last week, a surprise decision from the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) left its $68.7 billion deal to acquire Activision Blizzard blocked in Britain, thanks to concerns about the future of cloud gaming.

Microsoft president Brad Smith was awake at 2AM that morning hastily writing a response from across the pond, according to Bloomberg. He spoke to the BBC a day later and called the UK regulator’s decision the “darkest day” for Microsoft in its four decades of working in Britain. He went a step further and said “the European Union is a more attractive place to start a business” than the UK, a particularly stinging statement given the political issues around Brexit.

Now, Microsoft is bruised, angry, and...

Continue reading…

The Verge’s favorite Stream Deck hacks

Image: Elgato

Stream Deck fever has hit The Verge — here are some of the uses that we put ours to.

Continue reading…

‘Godfather of AI’ quits Google with regrets and fears about his life’s work

Geoffrey Hinton (foreground) has left Google to speak out on the dangers of AI. | Image: Getty

Geoffrey Hinton, who alongside two other so-called “Godfathers of AI” won the 2018 Turing Award for their foundational work that led to the current boom in artificial intelligence, now says a part of him regrets his life’s work. Hinton recently quit his job at Google in order to speak freely about the risks of AI, according to an interview with the 75-year-old in The New York Times.

“I console myself with the normal excuse: If I hadn’t done it, somebody else would have,” said Hinton, who had been employed by Google for more than a decade. “It is hard to see how you can prevent the bad actors from using it for bad things.”

Hinton notified Google of his resignation last month, and on Thursday talked to CEO Sundar Pichai directly, according...

Continue reading…

Twitter will let media publishers charge per article starting in May

Keep media companies paid while regularly antagonizing them is definitely a strategy. | Illustration by Kristen Radtke / The Verge; Getty Images

Full-time Twitter CEO and part-time Tesla enthusiast Elon Musk said on Saturday that users of his social media platform will be able to avoid media subscriptions and pay per article starting “next month.” Musk says that Twitter’s forthcoming “one-click” service “should be a major win-win for both media orgs & the public” by allowing media companies to charge a higher per article price to readers who wouldn’t necessarily pay a full subscription rate.

Musk didn’t say what percentage Twitter would pocket for itself or what conditions media publishers would need to abide by.

Rolling out next month, this platform will allow media publishers to charge users on a per article basis with one click.

This enables users who would not sign up for a...

Continue reading…