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Apple’s widget-heavy watchOS 10 is available to download

Widget showing three complications in watchOS 10

Photo by Victoria Song / The Verge

Along with iOS 17, Apple has just released watchOS 10, the newest version of its smartwatch operating system that fundamentally changes the way you interact with the Apple Watch by reincorporating widgets. This update, available on the Apple Watch Series 4 and up, comes just a few days ahead of the Apple Watch Series 9 and the Apple Watch Ultra, both of which Apple will release on Friday along with the four new iPhone 15 models.

The new widgets include the Smart Stack that Apple added to iOS 14, which is a sort of customizable widget bundle that uses machine learning to surface the widgets it predicts you’ll want to see and use. Swiping up from the bottom brings up those widgets, and that has a big cascading effect on the OS. Control...

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iOS 17 and iPadOS 17 are now available

A hand holding up an iPhone 15 Pro model

Photo by Nilay Patel / The Verge

iOS 17 and iPadOS 17, Apple’s next major updates for the iPhone and iPad, are now available to download.

With iOS 17, some of the biggest new features come to phone calls. Apple’s new Contact Posters let you pick a photo (or Memoji) and font that fill up the screen when you give someone a call. Live Voicemail will show you a real-time transcript as someone is leaving you a message. The end call button is also in a slightly new spot. Messages gets some improvements, too, including a new way to access iMessage apps, and thanks to iOS 17’s upgraded autocorrect, hopefully your texts will have fewer typos.

One particularly cool iOS 17 featureis StandBy. Turn your iPhone into landscape mode when it’s charging, and the screen can show things...

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You can get $500 in credit when you preorder Samsung’s 57-inch Odyssey Neo G9 gaming monitor

The large Samsung Odyssey Neo G9 on a white desk in a bright room near the window.

This big boi comes with a high price tag of $2,499.99. | Image: Samsung

After first making its official debut at CES 2023 earlier this year, Samsung’s massive 57-inch Odyssey Neo G9 gaming monitor is now available to preorder in the US. You can get it for $2,499.99 when you preorder it ahead of its US release date on October 2nd — and even get $500 in Amazon, Best Buy, or Samsung credit to boot.

The Odyssey Neo G9 is the follow-up to Samsung’s Mini LED display of the same name, which was released in 2021. This time, though, it’s eight inches larger, with Samsung claiming the monitor is akin to having two 32-inch 4K displays sitting side by side.

Where to preorder Samsung’s Odyssey Neo G9 gaming monitor

Now through October 1st, you can get $500 in store credit when you preorder Samsung’s 57-inch Odyssey Neo...

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UK antitrust regulator lays out seven AI principles

An image showing a graphic of a brain on a black background

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge

The UK’s Competition and Markets Authority set out specific principles to help guide AI regulations and companies that develop the technology.

The CMA, which acts as the primary antitrust regulator for the UK, focused its attention on foundation models: AI systems like OpenAI’s GPT-4, Meta’s Llama 2, and other large language models that form the basis for many generative AI use cases.

Companies making foundation models should follow seven principles. That includes making sure developers and businesses that use these models are accountable for the output that consumers are given, ensuring broad access to chips and processors and the training data needed to develop these AI systems, and offering a diversity of business models by...

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This cozy Apple Arcade game consumed my entire weekend

A screenshot from the video game Japanese Rural Life Adventure.

Image: Apple

This past weekend, I spent a lot of time thinking about Mount Fuji. Not the real one, but a pixelated version of the mountain range that’s available as a sightseeing opportunity in the new Apple Arcade release Japanese Rural Life Adventure. It’s a cozy game that’s all about making your way in a small mountainside town, giving you a long list of tasks to accomplish, with that beautiful Mount Fuji view pretty far down the line. It has become an important goal for me — for the past three days, I haven’t been able to stop playing, knowing that every cucumber I harvested and every fish I caught was going toward reaching that summit.

Developed by Japanese studio Game Start, the game is very much in the same vein as Harvest Moon or its more...

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Moment’s T-Series lenses give your smartphone’s camera superpowers

A picture of the Moment lenses leaning in a row against a flower pot.

Moment lenses from left to right: Macro 10x, Fisheye 14mm, Tele 58mm, Wide 18mm | Photo by Wes Davis / The Verge

Moment’s smartphone lenses are, in theory, perfect for people like me. I love taking pictures and have wanted to try more serious photography for a long time, but nicer DSLR cameras are expensive, bulky, and intimidating.

The new T-Series lenses from Moment, which launched last month and are now for sale, could be just the ticket for letting me take nicer pictures without investing in high-end camera gear. They’re hardly cheap — they range from $120 to $150 a piece — but they’re an easier pill to swallow: they’re cheaper than full-sized camera gear, lighter to lug around, and simpler to get into thanks to their reliance on a smartphone and camera UI you already know.

Moment gave me preproduction versions of four of the six lenses it...

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Disney is releasing a very expensive 100-movie Blu-ray collection

A picture of all the parts of the collection in separate pieces. The volumes are shaped like a pentagram, one is pictured open, with sleeves on the outer edge of the displayed page, which has movie posters near each disc representing the movies. The book is also shown from the back, standing on its own with a stand that folds out like a folio case for, say, an iPad.

The Disney Legacy Animated Film Collection. | Image: Disney

Disney is releasing a 100-film Blu-ray collection on November 14th called the Disney Legacy Animated Film Collection (via The Wrap). Preorders for the Walmart exclusive are available now at Walmart’s website and we regret to inform you it’s $1,499.96_._

The collection includes movies from both Disney and Pixar, all crammed into three volumes of discs that span Disney’s entire feature film history from 1937’s Snow White and the Seven Dwarves to this year’s Elemental.

In an email to The Verge, Disney publicity executive Chris Bess said there are 118 discs in all — 100 for each individual film and 18 additional discs with bonus content for Pixar films. Unfortunately, Bess also says these are HD transfers, not 4K Blu-rays. Alas.

Still, it’s...

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The Verge

Apple’s new AirPods Pro with USB-C charging case is already $50 off on a preorder

Apple’s second-generation AirPods Pro photographed on a reflective black surface.

While this is technically a photo of second-gen AirPods Pro with a Lightning case, the new USB-C model will look identical. | Photo by Chris Welch / The Verge

Apple’s biggest announcement last week at its “Wonderlust” event was, without a doubt, the iPhone 15’s change to USB-C, which is already having a ripple effect, as the AirPods Pro are also ditching Lightning for the port upgrade. Now, surprisingly, you can preorder the new second-gen AirPods Pro with USB-C ahead of its September 22nd release date for $199.99 ($50 off) at Best Buy.

The AirPods Pro are the first of Apple’s wireless earbuds and headphones to get the USB-C treatment — other than that, they’re mostly the same second-gen Pros you can already get with a Lightning port on the case. I say mostly because the new AirPods Pro also get dust resistance and future support for lossless audio with the upcoming Vision Pro VR headset. On...

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The Verge

How to install iOS 17 on your iPhone

iPhone with icons and illustrated background

Illustration by Samar Haddad / The Verge

Okay, it’s time — Apple is rolling out iOS 17 to everyone today. While it’s been possible to download the developer and public betas of iOS 17 for a while, you can now download and install this latest version of Apple’s new mobile operating system, which is stable and ready to go.

But first, an important reminder: whenever you play with your operating system, it never hurts to first back up your device’s data — just in case.

What new features come with iOS 17?

The new iOS offers a wide range of cool new features. These include new safety features, AirTag sharing, a new nightstand mode, better contact cards, improved autocorrect and voice transcription, and Live Voicemail. Not to mention updates to stickers and AirDrop, keyboard updates,...

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Loki’s second season will debut a day early

An image from Loki’s second season.

Image: Disney

Loki has a new premiere date. The second season of the Disney Plus show will now debut on Thursday, October 5th, at 6PM PT, Disney announced on Monday. It was previously set to come out on October 6th.

Disney made the announcement alongside a post on X featuring some footage of the show and interviews with people involved with the show’s production. There are some brief glimpses of what you can expect from the next season as well — though if you’re looking for a more plot-focused video, you should watch the official trailer that premiered in July.

The amazing Loki is back.

Marvel Studios’ #Loki Season 2, an Original series, is time slipping to a new date streaming October 5 at 6PM PT, only on #DisneyPlus.

(Previously recorded.) p...

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The Verge

Good Burger 2 premieres on Paramount Plus on November 22nd

A screenshot from the Good Burger 2 teaser showing the employees of Good Burger in the new film.

A screenshot from the Good Burger 2 teaser. | Screenshot: Wes Davis / The Verge

I bet you forgot or, like me, had completely missed that there’s a Good Burger sequel coming out. Well, it’s coming to Paramount Plus this Friday, September 22nd. Good Burger 2 starsKenan Thompson and Kel Mitchell in a reprisal of their roles as fast-food employees Dexter Reed and Ed.

Some other original cast members are back, too. Josh Server plays Fizz, Lori Beth Denberg is Connie Muldoon, and Carmen Electra returns as Roxanne. The movie centers on a modern-day version of the fictitious chain restaurant and sees Dexter return to Good Burger after a failed invention. The film’s synopsis says Dexter comes up with a scheme that then puts the business at risk. There’s no word if Mondo Burger will return.

Good Burger has floated in the...

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The Steve Jobs Archive is helping nine people follow in the man’s footsteps

Apple CEO Steve Jobs appears at Apple’s special media event to introduce the second generation iPad at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts in San Francisco on March 2, 2011 in California

Jobs was keen to support the liberal arts alongside technological developments at Apple during his time as CEO. | Image: Kimihiro Hoshino / AFP via Getty Images

Today, the Steve Jobs Archive (SJA) — an organization that collects and curates information about the late Apple founder’s life — has introduced a part-time fellowship program that aims to help a new generation of creative and technologically gifted people follow in Jobs’ footsteps.

The first nine SJA fellows are a group of “young creators” that includes musicians, engineers, storytellers, and more who will receive guidance, resources, and financial support over the coming year to help them make their creative ambitions a reality. According to the SJA press release, each of the fellows selected for the program was chosen for their “wide-ranging curiosity, sense of possibility, and determination to leave the world better than they found...

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Here are the best Kindle deals right now

The Kindle Paperwhite against a backdrop of physical books.

Amazon’s latest Paperwhite is on sale with a power adapter and a fabric cover for $174.97. | Photo by Chaim Gartenberg / The Verge

When it comes to finding a device to use to read your ebooks, you have a few options to choose from. You can always buy a tablet or use your phone, but those devices are multipurpose and can be used for a ton of things, like surfing the web or doom-scrolling on Twitter. If you are looking for something to strictly read books, e-readers, while niche, are designed to store all of your books in a virtual library with limited functionality.

Amazon, one of the pioneers of the e-reader, has dominated the space for years with its ever-expanding Kindle lineup, which consists of several unique models with their own pros and cons. The bulk of the devices function as simple ebook readers; however, with the Kindle Scribe, Amazon looks to be moving...

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Windows leader Panos Panay is leaving Microsoft

Panos Panay | Photo by Becca Farsace / The Verge

Panos Panay, the chief product officer at Microsoft, leading Windows development and the company’s Surface line, is leaving Microsoft. In an email on Monday, Rajesh Jha, Microsoft’s vice president of experience and devices, told employees: “After nearly 20 years at the company, Panos Panay has decided to leave Microsoft.”

Panay’s departure from Microsoft is somewhat abrupt. Just last month, Panay mentioned he was excited to appear at Microsoft’s special event that’s set to take place on Thursday, September 21st, where the company is poised to reveal the latest additions to its Surface lineup and “AI innovation.” However, Microsoft spokesperson Frank Shaw tells The Verge Panay will not appear at this week’s event.

Panay first joined...

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The cable bundle of the future is officially here

A colorful graphical illustration of the Disney Plus logo.

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge

Disney and Charter’s historic agreement has introduced a new kind of cable bundle, and it could be the thing that saves cable TV... or destroys it.

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The Verge

Carrot will report the weather in your own voice on iOS 17

A screenshot of Carrot Weather on the iPhone’s StandBy mode.

You can also make the app impersonate celebrity voices if you don’t fancy hearing yourself being imitated. | Image: Carrot / The Verge

Carrot Weather — the forecasting app known for its hilariously snarky weather updates — is introducing some new features that make use of the iOS 17 and watchOS 10 software updates coming today, including new weather widgets and a voice impersonation feature.

Available on the App Store today, version 5.12 of Carrot can now mimic a user’s own voice or imitate a celebrity when providing weather updates thanks to the new Personal Voice accessibility feature included in iOS 17 and previewed in this video from Marques Brownlee.

The Carrot app for Apple Watch has been redesigned for watchOS 10, with the main interface now using a vertical tab view for quick switching between current, hourly, and daily forecasts. Each section of the redesigned...

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Google’s Nest Hub Max is dropping support for Google Meet and Zoom

A photo showing people using Zoom on a Nest Hub Max

Image: Google

Google is axing support for Google Meet and Zoom on its Nest Hub Max smart display. As spotted by 9to5Google, some users are seeing a notice on their device that states they can no longer join meetings through Google Meet starting September 28th.

Similarly, a support page updated by Zoom in July states: “All Zoom support for Google Nest Hub Max will end on September 30th, 2023.” After that date, the Zoom app will stop working, and users will no longer be able to install or update the app. The Verge reached out to Google with a request for more information but didn’t immediately hear back.

Google first rolled out support for Meet and Zoom on its Nest Hub Max in the midst of the covid pandemic in 2020. At the time, Zoom also arrived on...

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We tried to make a hit song with only AI tools — and it got messy

Illustration of the Vergecast logo

Illustration by Samar Haddad / The Verge

With only a couple of minutes and access to YouTube, you can now make SpongeBob SquarePants sing your favorite Taylor Swift song. Or make Taylor Swift sing your favorite Drake song. Or make Drake sing your song. AI covers and AI-generated originals are suddenly everywhere on the internet, to the point where even diehard fans don’t know what’s a real leak and what’s a generated one. It’s a complicated ethical and legal mess and makes being a music fan weirder than ever.

That’s only the very beginning of the ways AI is coming into the music-making process. There are tools like Suno and Soundful that can create a supposedly original song based only on a text prompt; platforms like Magenta and BeatBot that can generate beats and instruments...

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The Elder Scrolls VI will skip PS5 and isn’t coming until at least 2026

The logo for The Elder Scrolls VI.

Image: Bethesda Softworks

A document released as part of the FTC v. Microsoft case confirms what was long expected: The Elder Scrolls VI isn’t going to launch for a few years, and it isn’t coming to PlayStation. According to the new chart, which Microsoft produced for the FTC, the next Elder Scrolls game isn’t expected to launch until at least 2026 — something a Microsoft lawyer also mentioned in the court case. And much like Bethesda’s most recent games — Starfield and Redfall — it’ll be available on both PC and Xbox when it does launch.

In a statement about exclusivity attached to The Elder Scrolls VI section of the chart, which comes from an interview with Xbox head Phil Spencer in GQ, Spencer said, “In order to be on Xbox, I want us to be able to bring the...

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Apple made it way cheaper to repair an iPhone 15 Pro’s broken back glass

Apple iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max in natural titanium

iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max. | Photo: Dan Seifert / The Verge

It’s significantly cheaper to repair the back glass on an iPhone 15 Pro than it was on the iPhone 14 Pro. Apple posted price estimates for its new phones over the weekend, listing a repair price of $169 for the 15 Pro and $199 for the Pro Max to replace either phone’s shattered back glass.

That’s up to a $350 decrease from the repair price for last year’s models. For the iPhone 14 Pro and 14 Pro Max, Apple charged $499 and $549 for back glass replacement — frankly, outlandish prices that ran more expensive than the cost of an (admittedly much lower-end) new iPhone SE.

Here’s what the current pricing looks like for these repairs:

These newly reduced prices, first spotted by 9to5Mac, are likely due to a major design change made by Apple:...

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Protesters take over NYC streets to tell Joe Biden to ‘end fossil fuels’

Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge

Demonstrators flood city streets ahead of a key United Nations climate summit with a clear message for Joe Biden: ‘end fossil fuels.’

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Activision was briefed on Nintendo’s Switch 2 last year

A Nintendo Switch

Photo by James Bareham / The Verge

Rumors of a Nintendo Switch 2 announcement have grown recently after reports of developer demos at Gamescom last month. Now we know that Activision was briefed on a next-generation Nintendo Switch last year, thanks to internal emails from the FTC v. Microsoft case.

Activision executives, including CEO Bobby Kotick, met with Nintendo executives in December 2022 to discuss a next-generation Switch. In an internal email chain, Chris Schnakenberg, head of Activision’s platform strategy and partner relations, prepared a summary of the “Switch NG” (Switch next-generation) inside a document labeled “NG Switch Draft.pdf.”

The document is heavily redacted, but it does reveal that performance of the next-generation Switch will be close to that of...

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Sonos Move 2 review: a slam-dunk sequel

With stereo sound, twice the battery life, and line-in playback, the Move 2 improves upon the original at every turn — unless you need Google Assistant.

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Apple’s AirPods Pro just got much better — no matter what port is on the case

Apple’s second-generation AirPods Pro pictured in a side profile photo of a woman’s head.

The new AirPods Pro software update is available starting today. | Photo by Chris Welch / The Verge

Last week, as predicted, Apple announced that the second-generation AirPods Pro would start shipping with a USB-C charging case instead of one using the company’s Lightning port. But surprisingly, this refresh isn’t strictly about the case: Apple also added dust resistance (on top of the existing water resistance) to the USB-C AirPods Pro. And the company announced that these AirPods Pro — and not the model from last year — will support lossless audio when paired with the upcoming Vision Pro headset next year.

I’ve been using the refreshed second-gen AirPods Pro for a few days now, and while the dust resistance makes for some added peace of mind, I can’t imagine that anyone except for the staunchest USB-C loyalists will feel any...

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Amazon’s fall Prime Day sale is happening October 10th and 11th

Illustration showing Amazon’s logo on a black, orange, and tan background, formed by outlines of the letter “A.”

It’s another sale to convince you to subscribe (or stay subscribed) to Prime. | Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge

We knew it was coming, but now we can officially mark our calendars for the next Prime Day sale. Amazon has announced that its fall Prime Day is scheduled for October 10th and 11th. Last year’s fall sales event from around the same time was called the Prime Early Access Sale, and this time around, Amazon is calling it Prime Big Deal Days.

Setting aside the confusing fact that Amazon can’t settle on consistent naming, Prime Big Deal Days is designed to kick off the early holiday shopping season well ahead of Black Friday / Cyber Monday, and frankly, it sounds a whole lot like last year’s event.

Amazon says there will be big discounts and seasonal deals from brands like Sony, iRobot, Dyson, Jabra, and likely more. The entire event is...

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This is how Microsoft reacted to Sony’s PS5 announcement and price hike

The PlayStation 5 console on a wooden table

Photo by Vjeran Pavic / The Verge

Microsoft was, as you’d expect, following Sony’s reveal of the PS5 very closely. Sony announced the full PS5 tech specs in March 2020, which prompted an Xbox executive to provide Xbox chief Phil Spencer and Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella with a summary of Sony’s console, internal emails from the FTC v. Microsoft case reveal. Then, more than two years later, Microsoft also reacted to Sony’s PS5 price increase.

The emails show Liz Hamren, former head of platform engineering and hardware at Xbox, pointing out the strengths and weaknesses of Sony’s PS5 specs compared to Microsoft’s Xbox Series X. PlayStation hardware lead Mark Cerny detailed the PS5 specs just two days before Microsoft publicly announced its own Xbox Series X specs.

Hamren...

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Microsoft is planning to stream PC cloud games, internal emails reveal

Xbox logo

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge

Microsoft has been planning to stream PC games over the cloud, internal emails from the FTC v. Microsoft case show. Microsoft currently streams games through its Xbox Cloud Gaming service, but it’s limited to Xbox titles as the servers run specialized Xbox Series X chips. Microsoft has been working on leveraging its Azure servers to stream PC games over Xbox Cloud Gaming.

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella emailed Xbox chief Phil Spencer, Kareem Choudhry, head of cloud gaming at Microsoft, and Sarah Bond, head of Xbox creator experience, in July 2021 after rumors emerged of Google turning Stadia into a white-label cloud gaming service for developers to run their games on.

Image: US Courts

Satya Nadella’s email about...

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The Verge

Grand Theft Auto V is now 10 years old

A promotional image for Grand Theft Auto V’s tenth anniversary event.

Grand Theft Auto V turns 10. | Image: Rockstar Games

It’s been exactly 10 years since Grand Theft Auto V first launched on the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, followed soon after by Grand Theft Auto Online. In a thread on X today, Rockstar Games thanked fans, calling them “the reason GTA V has thrived across multiple console generations.”

Last week, Rockstar announced new content for GTA Online commemorating the anniversary: new outfits; GTA V-themed weapon finishes; extra modes; a stock car called the Bravado Hotring Hellfire for GTA+ members; and other collectibles and bonuses for playing certain missions.

Celebrate 10 years of Grand Theft Auto V in GTA Online this week with a trio of outfits inspired by Michael, Franklin, and Trevor.

Plus, get bonuses on classic modes including 4X GTA$...

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Tim Cook talks advertising on X, Vision Pro, and more in a new interview

A picture of Tim Cook on a multicolored background.

Laura Normand / The Verge

Apple CEO Tim Cook acknowledges in an interview with CBS Sunday Morning that there are “some things about” the platform formerly known as Twitter that he doesn’t like. Cook called the platform’s apparent anti-Semitism problem “abhorrent” but said, “Twitter is an important property; I like the concept that it’s there for discourse.” He didn’t say whether he believes Apple should be advertising on X, only that it’s something the company “constantly” asks itself.

Dickerson also pushed Cook on the Vision Pro’s release schedule, asking him about reports that the headset is facing manufacturing delays. Cook said emphatically that the Vision Pro remains on track, echoing his claims from the iPhone 15 “Wonderlust” event last week. He added that...

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Apple’s USB-C shift could bring back the MagSafe Duo and Battery Pack

A picture of the USB-C port on the bottom of an iPhone 15

Photo by Dan Seifert / The Verge

Mark Gurman writes in the subscriber edition of his Power Onnewsletter for Bloomberg from this morning that he expects Apple to finish its transition to USB-C by 2025. Gurman says that, in addition to other products, he expects the company will release USB-C versions of the now-discontinued MagSafe Battery Pack and the MagSafe Duo “eventually. But don’t hold your breath.”

By comparison, Apple took either a little over a month or about two years to totally move over to Lightning, depending on how you look at it.

The company retired the 30-pin port from its most important products when it launched the fourth-gen iPad a little over a month after the iPhone 5’s September 2012 debut. But it also kept the iPod Classic in its stable until...

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