The Verge
Sony’s budget wireless earbuds are a good value with inevitable compromises
The WF-C700N earbuds fit great, sound decent, and offer plenty of software tricks. But even within Sony’s own lineup, you might have better options.
The VergeThe VergePurah Pad review: a rugged tablet designed for the dangers of Hyrule
Image: Nintendo
It’s never easy to follow up a beloved device, especially when it’s one that managed to fuse ancient technology with a modern-day phablet. But the Purah Pad — a spiritual successor to the Sheikah Slate — manages to add more utility to a device that already let you control physics. It still doesn’t have much in the way of entertainment options, but its new design and feature set are ideal for those traveling around Hyrule, particularly if you also have a wearable that gives you power over space and time.
In terms of hardware, the Purah Pad has a slightly more streamlined setup than its predecessor, with a seven-inch display flanked by physical buttons and other controls on the sides and a USB Type-C port at the bottom. It has a rather...
The VergeTips and tricks to get you through Tears of the Kingdom
Image: Nintendo
Now that The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom is out, you may be overwhelmed by the sheer enormity of all there is to do and see. To guide you through the new and exciting early days of discovery, we’ve assembled a list of tips and tricks to help you get through the wide and wonderful world of Hyrule and beyond.
- It may seem tedious or unnecessary, but pick up every brightbloom seed you find in caves. They will come in handy.
- You can Ascend through grated platforms and wooden planks, too.
Image: Nintendo
You may think you can only Ascend through solid objects but you can also Ascend through semi-permeable planks like this and grated floors.
- There will be lots of times when you need to get up in the air...
The VergeRiot Games appoints Dylan Jadeja as new CEO
Jadeja (pictured) is expected to take over from current CEO Nicolo Laurent by the end of 2023. | Image: Riot Games
Nicolo Laurent is stepping down from his role as CEO of Riot Games and will be succeeded by the company’s current global president, Dylan Jadeja, according to an official statement issued by Riot. Laurent is moving to an advisory role to focus more on his family after six years in the CEO position. The CEO transition is expected to be completed by the end of 2023.
Laurent has been a major part of Riot Games since the company was just a “40-person startup” in 2009, before stepping into the role of CEO in 2017. Under his leadership, Riot Games has been accused of fostering a sexist “bro culture,” during which Laurent was personally accused (and later cleared) of sexual misconduct against his former executive assistant.
After 14 years at...
The VergeAnthropic leapfrogs OpenAI with a chatbot that can read a novel in less than a minute
Image: Anthropic
An often overlooked limitation for chatbots is memory. While it’s true that the AI language models that power these systems are trained on terabytes of text, the amount these systems can process when in use — that is, the combination of input text and output, also known as their “context window” — is limited. For ChatGPT it’s around 3,000 words. There are ways to work around this, but it’s still not a huge amount of information to play with.
Now, AI startup Anthropic (founded by former OpenAI engineers) has hugely expanded the context window of its own chatbot Claude, pushing it to around 75,000 words. As the company points out in a blog post, that’s enough to process the entirety of The Great Gatsby in one go. In fact, the company...
The VergeExclusive: Google’s Sundar Pichai talks Search, AI, and dancing with Microsoft
Photo illustration by William Joel / The Verge; Photo by Jerod Harris for Vox Media
AI is one the deepest platform shifts ever, says Google’s CEO, and he’s not worried about being first.
The VergeThese smart lights can also monitor your home
WiZ’s new home monitoring service uses light bulbs and cameras to protect your space. | Image: Signify
WiZ is launching a new home monitoring feature that leverages the smart lighting company’s existing motion-sensing Wi-Fi smart bulbs. Paired with a new $70 indoor security camera, WiZ Home Monitoring can alert you to potential intruders in your home. Using WiZ’s unique SpaceSensing feature — which detects changes in Wi-Fi signal strength caused by movement to turn lights on or off the lights — the system can send an alert to the WiZ app when motion is detected. The new camera can then show you what’s going on.
The WiZ Home Monitoring Starter kit, which includes three WiZ A19 full-color smart bulbs and one camera, will be available starting June 15th for 159.99 Euro with US pricing not set. Or, if you already have a couple of WiZ bulbs or...
The VergeTears of the Kingdom’s dungeons were designed with seamlessness in mind
Link stepping into a magical place within Hyrule. | Image: Nintendo
Breath of the Wildfeaturing over 100 puzzle-filled shrines rather than being built around The Legend of Zelda’s more traditional dungeons was both one of the most refreshing aspects of the 2017 game. It was also one of the most potentially polarizing — especially for those who’d grown to love the old formula of Link taking down dungeons one at a time using his specialized weapons. Ahead of Tears of the Kingdom’s release this week, Nintendo revealed that classic dungeons would be making their return all throughout the new game, and it was easy to get the impression that meant Link would be spending a lot of time in heavily-themed, cordoned-off fortresses scattered across Hyrule.
In some instances, that’s very much the case. But...
The VergeTwitter’s new CEO is probably this NBC exec
NBCU’s head of global advertising and partnerships, Linda Yaccarino. | Photo: Charles Sykes/NBCUniversal via Getty Images
Elon Musk says he has found a new CEO for Twitter and that “she” will start in a matter of weeks. It’s most likely going to be Linda Yaccarino, the current head of advertising and partnerships for NBCUniversal.
I wish I could say with certainty that it’s her, though the deal doesn’t seem to be totally done. The Wall Street Journal is reporting that she’s “in talks” for the job, and Dylan Byers of Puck says Musk “plans” to give it to her. Unfortunately, her spokesperson is ghosting me and Twitter has resorted to responding to press inquiries with a poop emoji.
I do know, however, that Yaccarino has been angling for the job and telling friends she wants it. The advertising world is certainly gossiping that it’s her. She recently hosted...
The VergeArtifact is taking on Twitter and Substack by letting you follow writers
Image: Artifact
Artifact, the AI-powered news app from Instagram co-founders Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger, has a new feature that makes it even more of a news-focused social media app. With the latest version of the Artifact app, you can now follow individual writers. Articles from those writers will be prioritized in your feed and you can opt to get notifications when those writers post.
Writers can also claim their profiles on Artifact to get a verified checkmark beside their name in search and in Artifact’s comments. (Writers can only claim profiles on iOS, but it’s coming to Android soon, Systrom tells The Verge.) Yes, Artifact lets users comment on individual articles, meaning those comments live outside of stories that may already have comment...
The VergeThe best Mother’s Day gifts on a budget
Illustration by William Joel / The Verge
It’s okay to cheap out on a gift for mom as long as you go with something thoughtful. Lucky for you, we’ve gathered recipe books, board games, and plenty of other ideas to consider.
The VergePSA: if you bought The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom digitally, get preloading now
It’s almost time to drop in, folks. | Image: Nintendo
Did you preorder The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom on the Nintendo eShop? Cool. Wait, did you also preorder it using Nintendo’s Game Voucher so you got it for cheaper? Even better — extra points for you! But regardless of how much you paid, if you opted for the digital version of TOTK, you should fire up your Switch and get downloading if you’d like to start playing when the game goes live in the US tonight a 12:00AM ET on May 12th.
While Tears is already playable in time zones that live in the future, and players are already getting up to, well, umm... stuff — we here in the States get to begin at midnight ET / 9:00PM PT (curse you, left-coasters and your respectable bedtimes tonight). TOTK is a 16GB download from the eShop, so...
The VergeHere are 26 last-minute gifts you can still grab before Mother’s Day
Image: Lego
The clock is ticking if you’ve yet to buy your mom a gift. While it might be too late to pick up some items before Mother’s Day arrives on Sunday, not all hope is lost. As it turns out, there are still a number of great gifts — including the latest Kindle and Beats Fit Pro — that will arrive on time, many of which are also discounted in the run-up to the holiday.
We’ve rounded up a selection of the best last-minute gifts below, along with a few digital ideas for the true procrastinators among us. We’ve also curated a wide-ranging Mother’s Day gift guide should you need a little more inspiration as well as a wallet-friendly gift guide for those working with a tighter budget.
Finally, before we dive into the gifts, be aware that you’ll...
The VergeTwitch made it easier to edit clips for TikTok and YouTube Shorts
The Clip Editor allows you to quickly grab sections of your livestream and edit them effectively for vertical video formats. | Image: Twitch
Twitch is launching a new web-based desktop clips editing tool to help streamers grow their audience by sharing curated snippets of their content to other platforms. The aptly named Clip Editor tool is rolling out today, allowing users to easily edit livestream footage directly from the Clip Manager in the Twitch Creator Dashboard.
Streamers can use the Clip Editor tool to convert their recording to a portrait mode orientation at the click of a button, suitable for vertical video platforms like TikTok. Those clips can also be directly exported to YouTube Shorts within Clip Manager.
Image: Twitch
You can only upload directly to YouTube Shorts for now, but the edited clips can also be saved for use on other...
The VergePeloton recalls over 2 million bikes due to faulty seats
The seat on certain Peloton bikes may break during use. | Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge
Peloton is eager for people to know it’s more than “that bike company.” Unfortunately, those bikes are at the heart of the beleaguered fitness company’s latest woes. Today, Peloton and the US Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) issued a voluntary recall of 2.2 million Peloton Bikes after 35 reports of seats either breaking or falling off during use.
A Bloomberg report offers some more details about the faulty seat. Namely, the part that attaches the seat to the bike frame could potentially break off at the welding joint. Of the 35 reports, 13 resulted in injuries, including a fractured wrist, lacerations, and bruises.
The affected bikes were sold at Peloton and Dick’s Sporting Goods retail and online stores as well as on Amazon....
The VergeElon Musk has found his replacement as CEO of Twitter
Live by the poll, get replaced by the poll. | Illustration by Kristen Radtke / The Verge; Getty Images
Elon Musk has announced plans for a new Twitter CEO but hasn’t said who it is. In a tweet on Thursday, Musk says that he has “hired a new CEO for X/Twitter” and that “she will be starting in ~6 weeks.” Musk will instead assume the role of executive chair and chief technology officer, “overseeing product, software & sysops” of Twitter.
While Musk may soon no longer be CEO, he still owns the company, which he has renamed “X.” It seems unlikely that giving someone else one specific title will make Twitter any less of a wild ride. Musk became “Chief Twit” last October, when he closed his acquisition of the company, followed by the immediate firing of large portions of its executive staff and thousands of other employees.
Another question is...
The VergeXbox exec hints at bringing features like Quick Resume to Windows gamers
Photography by Vjeran Pavic / The Verge
During a launch event for the Asus ROG Ally handheld gaming PC, Roanne Sones, the head of Xbox devices, discussed how the device is “making us think differently about the experiences” for gaming on Windows PCs.
Specifically, she called out how today’s consoles let you quickly resume a game and said the ROG Ally pushes Microsoft to think about that for PCs as well: “How do we think about integrating this into the Windows platform?” Another focus is on making it easy to immediately pick up where you left off, moving from gaming on a PC to a session that’s ready to go on this kind of handheld.
Sones has made similar comments before, as my colleague Tom Warren points out. During another ROG Ally event in April, she discussed working with...
The VergeI won’t spend more than $250 on a new smartphone
The Pixel 7A has a more than capable camera. | Photo by Allison Johnson / The Verge
I won’t spend more than $250 on a phone. I know what you’re thinking: that doesn’t sound like a lot of money considering how expensive some phones are these days. (And by these days, I mean yesterday, and by expensive, I mean the Pixel Fold’s eye-watering $1,800 price tag.)
But yesterday, I also ordered a new Pixel 7A and, after two years of rebates on Google Fi, it will come out to a clean $250. That’s the same $250 I spent on the Pixel 6A last year, which I will hand over to my partner to replace the Pixel 4A 5G that I bought in 2020, which also cost me… you guessed it, $250.
It’s not that I have always lived by this rule. I bought my first iPhone in 2008, the iPhone 3G, whose 16GB variant cost me $299 on a two-year contract. Before...
The VergeThe Pixel Tablet is half of what it could have been
Everyone knows the Pixel Tablet’s dock is just a dock. What this article presupposes is: what if it weren’t?
I’m not surprised; I’m just disappointed.
As expected, Google launched the Pixel Tablet at its Google I/O developer conference yesterday. It’s an 11-inch Android tablet with a “charging speaker dock,” and when it’s on the dock, it looks and functions like a Nest Hub Max, Google’s top-of-the-line smart display. Google kept saying the Pixel Tablet was “like” a smart display, while insisting that it isn’t one.
The thing is, when the tablet is docked in Hub mode, it certainly seems like a smart display. The tablet acts like a digital photo frame. You can talk to Google Assistant. You can use it as a smart home controller. You can Chromecast audio and video to it. Those are all things the Nest Hub does. The dock, which comes with the tablet,...
The VergeWhere to preorder the Asus ROG Ally
A handheld window to Windows gaming. | Photo by Vjeran Pavic / The Verge
The Asus ROG Ally is the first mainstream competition for the Steam Deck, and while its Windows operating system may be both a blessing and a curse, it’s exciting to see the handheld PC gaming arena slowly grow. If you’re looking to get an Ally of your own, warts and all, preorders are now open at Best Buy for the higher-end model with an AMD Z1 Extreme processor costing $699.99 and due out on June 13th.
As for the base model with a standard AMD Z1, that’s not expected until the third quarter of 2023 — though it will also be sold at Best Buy, which for now, is the exclusive Ally retailer. (I guess that makes Best Buy an Ally ally?)
Our own Sean Hollister had mixed praise for the ROG Ally, as it’s a powerful device whose biggest fault is...
The VergeHP Dragonfly Pro Chromebook review: a colorful competitor
Several companies have tried pricey Chromebooks with premium builds and gorgeous screens. HP’s Dragonfly Pro Chromebook is just the latest — and it’s a solid machine, but some hiccups with battery life, weight, and connectivity keep it from being a really great buy.
The VergeEpic Games invested in a digital fashion company
Image: CLO Virtual Fashion
Epic Games and digital fashion company CLO Virtual Fashion have purchased shares in each other, the two companies announced on Thursday. The press release doesn’t specify how much each level of investment actually represents, but it’s a clear sign of Epic’s interest in virtual fashion as another aspect of its growing metaverse ambitions.
CLO Virtual Fashion offers tools like fashion design software that already integrates with Epic’s Unreal Engine and a marketplace where garment designs are bought and sold. Epic has been pushing for Unreal Engine to be used beyond game development — it’s becoming increasingly popular in the automotive world — so it makes some sense that Epic wants industries like fashion to use Unreal Engine as well.
“...
The VergeAsus confirms the ROG Ally will start at $600 — if you can wait till Q3
The Asus ROG Ally gaming handheld. | Photo by Vjeran Pavic / The Verge
The Asus ROG Ally handheld gaming PC is officially on preorder today for $700, shipping June 13th — but there’s also a less expensive, less powerful model shipping in Q3 for $600 that reviewers haven’t yet been able to try.
Asus PR told us it wouldn’t have pricing and availability for that model today, so it’s a bit of a surprise to see official confirmation!
Screenshot by Sean Hollister / Image by Asus
Pricing.
Better still, it looks like Asus isn’t skimping on storage, as it’ll come with a 512GB PCIe Gen 4 SSD for that price. (Leaked data suggested it’d have a 256GB SSD.)
Considering Valve charges $650 for its 512GB Steam Deck with a last-gen processor, that model is starting to look like a pretty good...
The VergeNetflix canceled its in-person upfront, probably to avoid the WGA’s picket lines
Illustration by Nick Barclay / The Verge
Just a few months ago, Netflix was proud to announce that it was putting on its first-ever in-person upfront week presentation in New York City alongside other networks and streamers vying for advertiser cash, like NBCUniversal, Fox, Disney, and Warner Bros. Discovery. But after being tipped off by the NYPD about striking WGA writers planning to protest outside of the event, Netflix has suddenly decided to shift to an all-virtual presentation with no celebrities in attendance.
AdWeek reports that Netflix’s move to cancel its in-person upfront at New York City’s Paris Theater in favor of a new “produced to stream” presentation came after the streamer was made aware of the plans of local WGA members to demonstrate — plans that the WGA...
The VergeRaycast’s new Pro subscription adds AI and syncing features
Image: Raycast
Raycast, the full-featured launcher for Mac, has announced an $8 per month Pro subscription (billed annually) that adds new AI and syncing features, along with the option for unlimited clipboard history, as reported by MacStories.
The Pro subscription expands on Raycast’s existing launcher functionalities, which are quite extensive. It replaces the app’s existing search bar with “Quick AI,” allowing you to ask it to come up with blog post titles, solve programming problems, and more.
You can copy and paste the answer into whatever you’re working on or bring your conversation into Raycast’s new AI Chat feature. This AI-powered chatbot lives in a resizable window that you can toggle with an assignable hotkey.
There are also new AI...
The VergeWhales are dying, but it’s not because of wind farms
The tail of a dead beached whale is seen on Rockaway beach on December 13th, 2022, in the Queens borough of New York City. | Photo by Bryan Bedder / Getty Images
Whales are washing up along the east coast of the US. Offshore wind opponents blame future wind farms. Experts see a different threat.
The VergeEU draft legislation will ban AI for mass biometric surveillance and predictive policing
The draft legislation will ban mass facial recognition, among other uses of AI, but has yet to be confirmed as law. | Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge
The EU has taken a step closer to enforcing strong regulation of AI, drafting new safeguards that would prohibit a wide range of dangerous use cases.
These include prohibitions on mass facial recognition programs in public places and predictive policing algorithms that try to identify future offenders using personal data. The regulation also requires the creation of a public database of “high-risk” AI systems deployed by public and government authorities so that EU citizens can be informed about when and how they are being affected by this technology.
The law in question is a new draft of the EU’s AI Act, which was approved today by two key committees: the Internal Market Committee and the Civil Liberties Committee. These committees...
The VergeVolvo may have gone too hard on software because now the EX90 is getting delayed
Image: Volvo
Volvo announced that it was delaying production for its next-generation flagship electric SUV, the 2024 EX90, citing a need for further “software testing and development.”
The EX90, a seven-seater luxury family-mover with 300 miles of range and a starting price under $80,000, was expected to go into production in late 2023 and hit showroom floors in early 2024. Now production won’t start until the first half of 2024, the Swedish automaker said in a statement. That likely means customers won’t take delivery until the second half of the year.
“Demand for the Volvo EX90 remains high and to ensure a high-quality introduction of the car and to maximize customer benefit from its technology from day 1, Volvo Cars needs additional time in...
The VergeGoogle’s new Pixel 7A comes with free earbuds and a case or a $50 gift card
The 7A’s lovely coral color is exclusive to the Google Store, but it also comes in charcoal, light blue, and white elsewhere. | Photo by Allison Johnson / The Verge
Google actually did it. It made a new, very good, fairly affordable midrange phone and started shipping it right away. And not only is the Pixel 7A already released into the world for you to buy but also you can have your pick of some nice deals and early bird incentives. When you pick up the new Pixel 7A for its regular $499 price, Google is throwing in a $100 credit toward a pair of Pixel Buds (making the Pixel Buds A-Series free or the noise-canceling Pixel Buds Pro $99.99) and a free Case-Mate case (a $25 value). Meanwhile, retailers like Best Buy and Amazon are offering a $50 gift card with your purchase.
The 7A costs $50 more than the Pixel 6A it replaces, but that extra money nets some nice upgrades like wireless charging, a...
The VergeMicrosoft won’t give salaried employees raises this year
Illustration: The Verge
Microsoft is skipping raises for salaried employees this year. In an internal memo obtained by The Verge, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella told employees that only hourly workers will receive raises and blamed the move on the uncertain state of the economy.
“We are clear that we are helping drive a major platform shift in this new era of AI, and doing so in a dynamic, competitive environment while also facing global macroeconomic uncertainties,” Nadella wrote. “We must maintain a leadership position in our at-scale businesses of today, generating enough yield to invest and lead in the next wave, while staying on the frontiers of both performance and efficiency.”
While Microsoft will still offer salaried employees bonuses and stock awards,...