The best sleep gadgets to help you catch those Zzzs

Sleep trackers, earbuds, and smart beds. | Image: Kristen Radtke / The Verge

Sleep tech runs the gamut from trackers and apps to expensive smart beds, but it doesn’t all address the same issues. Are you trying to see how your sleep impacts your athletic performance? Hoping to mask the sound of a snoring partner? I’ve tested all sorts of sleep tech and can point you toward the right gadget for your sleep goal.

One question to ask yourself is how well a device fits your lifestyle. If you want to monitor your trends, the Oura Ring and Whoop 4.0 have some of the most in-depth sleep and recovery tracking around. But these are devices with a singular focus. Busy folks might want something that’s also useful during the day. Smartwatches like the Pixel Watch, Samsung Galaxy Watch 7, or Apple Watch will get you more utility for the price. On the other hand,there’s no point in wrist-based sleep trackers if you wake up in the middle of the night to take them off. If you can’t wear a watch, earbuds, or a ring to bed, you may want to look into non-invasive options like the Withings Sleep or the Google Nest Hub. And if you’re looking for earbuds to drown out noise,Anker’s Soundcore Sleep A20 buds are great for side sleepers and for folks who like to drift off to podcasts. Some more good news is three ex-Bose engineers have resurrected the Bose Sleepbuds — they’re Ozlo Sleepbuds now.

Performance

A good sleep tech gadget doesn’t try to do too much at once. It ought to be excellent at addressing the main issue it’s trying to solve. The rest is gravy.

Value

Sleep tech can be expensive. If you’re going to shell out, the gadget should make you think “Hell freakin’ yeah, this was totally worth it!”

Comfort

You can’t sleep well if you’re not comfy. Good sleep tech shouldn’t disturb your sleep. Is a tracker too bulky to be useful? Does a smart mattress cover feel lumpy?

Context

Data is useless without context. If it’s a sleep tracker, how well does it present your sleep data? Will you learn anything valuable, or is it a mess of graphs that don’t make sense?

Battery Life

A sleep gadget that can’t last through the night ain’t that helpful. You should be confident the device can last a whole night without dying. If it’s also a fitness gadget or wearable, it should be able to either last all day between charges or support fast charging so it doesn’t run out midday.

Sleep tech has come a long way in just a few short years, but these aren’t medical devices, so take their sleep tracking data with a grain of salt. Gadgets like the Withings ScanWatch, Samsung Galaxy Watch 7 / Ultra, and Apple Watch Series 10 / Ultra 2 have FDA clearance for monitoring sleep disturbances. That doesn’t mean they can definitively diagnose you with sleep apnea. No matter how advanced the sensors are, or how many features a product may boast, trackers are meant to help spot when something’s off. Nothing more.

Taking all that into consideration, I’ve compiled these recommendations based on how well a sleep gadget addresses the problems it’s trying to fix. We also considered comfort, accuracy, battery life, and whether it provides good context for its data.

The best sleep tracker

The $349 Oura Ring 4 isn’t a fitness tracker that happens to track sleep. It’s a sleep tracker that happens to track some fitness metrics. The ring has seven temperature sensors, a green LED sensor for measuring heart rate, and red and infrared LEDs to measure blood oxygen. That’s not including the battery or accelerometers.

All these sensors provide a holistic look at your recovery. Each morning, you’re given a report on your readiness, sleep quality, and activity goals for the day. These reports tell you how your sleep impacts your daily ability to take on stress, and whether you should take it easy or challenge yourself. The app also includes wellness features like guided meditations and white noise to help you fall asleep. Oura recently released its fourth-gen model, and over the past year or so, it has released several new features, including cardiovascular age and capacity, an AI-powered chatbot advisor, daytime stress, and resilience. If you use the Natural Cycles app for digital birth control or fertility planning, it can be used in lieu of a basal body thermometer as well.

Of all the sleep gadgets I’ve tested, the Oura Ring has the best context for its data, which it presents in an intuitive way. Its version of blood oxygen monitoring is also preferable to the random spot checks found on devices like the Apple Watch and Samsung Galaxy Watch 7. Instead, the Oura Ring passively monitors your blood oxygen saturation (SpO2) levels during sleep and encourages you to check your baseline over a long period of time. It’s not exciting, but it’s a more useful measure for the average person. The Oura is also one of the few devices to include a recovery mode. If you’re sick or injured, you can hit pause on your activity goals until you’re back to full health.

But the main appeal here is the form factor: A ring is infinitely more comfortable than a watch. And although it’s not the most fashionable, it’s nondescript enough to wear to any event. Plus, you get up to a week on a single charge.

The only thing I don’t love is that it now comes with a $6 monthly subscription. You can at least save a bit on the hardware if you opt for the last-gen Oura Ring while supplies last. However, if you’re truly passionate about monitoring your sleep and willing to commit long-term, it’s well worth the price.

Read my review of the Oura Ring 4.

The best smartwatch with sleep tracking

The $349.99 Google Pixel Watch 3 has come a long way since the original Pixel Watch launched. For sleep tracking, the most important improvements since launch are better battery life and an automatic Bedtime Mode that detects when you’ve fallen asleep.

On the data side, the Pixel Watch also benefits from being a Fitbit smartwatch. Fitbit might be floundering a bit these days, but it was early to sleep tracking and it shows. Of course, you get sleep stages, but you can also view how your sleep compares to other people of your age and sex. Like the Oura Ring, it eschews SpO2 spot checks for passive overnight tracking (via the Estimated Oxygen Variation metric) and also provides a Daily Readiness Score based on your long-term activity and sleep quality. Since launch, Google also added nightly SpO2 percentagesand Fitbit’s Sleep Profile feature to the Pixel Watch. After 14 days of sleep data in a month, the following month you’ll be assigned a cute sleep animal based on your sleep habits. The idea is to help you better understand your circadian rhythms and how it impacts sleep.Fitbit Premium subscribers also get access to a ton of wellness content, if that’s your thing. Apple and Samsung are still catching up here in terms of accuracy, battery life, and the level of detail in their sleep metrics.

Compared to the Oura Ring, you’re going to get better exercise-tracking capabilities with the Pixel Watch’s built-in GPS. Although Oura has beefed up its exercise tracking, it’s still barebones. And the Pixel Watch is handier in day-to-day life because you can set silent alarms, use it for contactless payments, and receive notifications. It also supports Google Assistant.

If you’re a Samsung user, you might want to consider a combo of a Samsung Galaxy Watch 7 or Galaxy Watch Ultra and the Galaxy Ring. Together, they let you mitigate the watch’s not-so-great battery and rely instead on the Ring to get your sleep data more comfortably. Admittedly, this is an expensive route. Samsung’s accuracy isn’t quite as good as Fitbit’s, but the company’s fleshed out its advanced sleep features. It, too, has a sleep profile feature that’s similar to Fitbit’s, though it arguably has a better selection of cartoon animals. (Samsung’s sleep coach said I was a cautious deer but spiritually, I identify as a nervous penguin.) Another point in Samsung’s favor? It’s been continually improving its sleep tracking. Galaxy Watch users can now view sleep stats in more detail from the wrist. The new software will also introduce a tweaked Sleep Mode, which utilizes the invisible infrared sensor for tracking instead of the visible green LED sensor. Earlier this year, Samsung also added FDA-cleared sleep apnea detection, but you’ll need a Samsung phone to use that feature.

Neither of these two Android-only watches is an option for iPhone users, of course. If you refuse the green bubble life, the Apple Watch is the best smartwatch overall but its native sleep-tracking features have a long way to go. If you’re set on having an Apple Watch, they’ll get you the basics, plus FDA-cleared sleep apnea detection with the Series 10 and Ultra 2, and you can set sleep schedules that sync with your phone’s Focus modes. However, if you want great sleep tracking and are dead set on an Apple Watch, you’re better off downloading a third-party sleep app or getting one of the other options in this buying guide.

Read my review of the Google Pixel Watch 3.

The best sleep tracker for athletes

As far as recovery goes, no sleep tech gadget goes the extra mile for athletes quite like Whoop. It primarily tracks your body’s ability to take on cardiovascular strain, but its take on sleep is unique. Instead of focusing on sleep quality, it zeroes in on your sleep debt and whether the sleep you’re getting is enough to fuel your training.

If you’re into scrutinizing how certain factors impact your sleep, Whoop is far ahead of the competition. You can log how anything from the COVID-19 vaccine to magnesium supplements affects your sleep. It’s not a necessary feature, but it’s a bonus if sleep journaling is important to you.

Unlike with most modern wearables, you’ll get next to nothing in the way of notifications or smart features. However, that also means it’s got good battery life. The Whoop 4.0 also comes with a portable battery pack that slides onto the tracker itself. The result is you can go several days without ever having to take the tracker off. Whoop also gives you flexible options for wearing the device. For example, you can opt to wear it on your bicep, in your leggings, or even in a sports bra.

That said, this is a niche product best suited for athletes who engage in intensive cardio sports. (It’s not the best at tracking strain from activities like strength training.) The device costs nothing, but the $30 monthly subscription is steep. Whoop discounted its pricing for both annual and 24-month memberships in 2023, but if you’re a casual athlete, your money is still better spent elsewhere. But if you are someone who’s always training for an event or prone to overtraining, the Whoop 4.0 can get you that extra edge.

If this option is too pricey — or a minimum 12-month membership isn’t appealing — then you may want to consider a Garmin tracker or smartwatch. Like Whoop, you’ll get long battery life coupled with robust training features that factor in your sleep quality when determining your recovery. Garmin doesn’t have the best sleep stage accuracy, but the fitness insights make up for it. Especially if your real goal in improving sleep is to enhance athletic performance. There are dozens of Garmins to pick from, but if you’re on a budget, we really like the $179.99 Vivomove Sport or the $249.99 Venu Sq 2. The $449.99 Forerunner 265S is also another excellent midrange option for runners or triathletes.

Read my review of the Whoop 4.0.

The best budget sleep tracker

If you don’t want to wear any gadgets to bed, the $129.95 Withings Sleep is a good, affordable option. It’s a long, rectangular mat with sensors and a fabric covering that you slip under your mattress. The sleep tracking was wonky when this product was first launched as the Nokia Sleep, but has since been improved. In addition to your heart rate and sleep cycles, it also tracks snoring and breathing disturbances. It’s also not battery-operated, so you don’t have to worry about charging the device every day.

The Withings Sleep is also one of the best options if you’re trying to suss out long-term sleeping patterns. Within the Withings app, you can generate an automatic, comprehensive sleep diary that helps break down important trends and visualize your metrics. That report can then be exported as a PDF that you share with your doctor.

The Withings Sleep isn’t particularly fancy, but it punches above its weight. While we’re bummed that Withings raised the price by $30 a couple of years ago, the Sleep is still often discounted during Black Friday and other shopping holidays. Withings also offers a bundle in case you need a second one for your sleep partner.

Read my review of the Withings Sleep.

The best temperature-regulating sleep tech

For folks who run hot or cold, the Eight Sleep Pod 4 (starting at $2,649) is an effective — albeit ludicrously expensive — way to stop fighting over the blankets. The cover zips over your own mattress and comes with a water pump that regulates temperature on both sides of the bed. You can manually set your temperature schedules, or Eight Sleep has an autopilot function that adjusts the temperature of your bed for you. It plugs into an outlet, so there’s also no need to worry about battery life unless there’s a blackout. The new Pod 4 also gives you the option to go Ultra and add a new tech base for an extra $2,000. The base lets you change your bed’s elevation and slots directly into your existing bedframe. (And if you snore, it can automatically adjust as you sleep to reduce said snoring.) But, like I said, this is a pricey option. On top of buying the thing, there’s also a $17 monthly membership. There’s a more expensive membership option at $25, but the main difference is an extended warranty.

There’s also a silent alarm that vibrates to wake up one partner without disturbing the other. The cover itself has sensors for sleep tracking, though that’s not its primary focus. The app gives good context as to what your sleep data means, though it’s better for monitoring sleep consistency and habits than sleep quality or recovery. Another solid addition to the Pod 4 is the tap zone, which lets you quickly control the temperature, dismiss alarms, and change the bed’s elevation without needing your phone.

Ultimately, this is a big investment and if elevation doesn’t tickle your fancy, then only getting the Pod 4 Cover can save you a lot of money. Or, if you’re like me, you can just scream YOLO and commit to spending big for a really good night’s sleep.

Read my review of the Eight Sleep Pod 4 Ultra.

The best sunrise lamp / smart alarm clock

The $169.99 Hatch Restore 2 is a viral TikTok sensation for a reason. Not only is this an aesthetically pleasing sunrise lamp for your nightstand, but it also doubles as a smart alarm clock and white noise machine. Normally, I’m wary of multi-tasking gadgets, but the Restore 2 blends all three in a natural, intuitive way.

The point of a sunrise lamp is to wake you up gradually with the light of a simulated sunrise. With the Restore 2, you can pick from the whole rainbow of colors, as well as preprogrammed sunrise and sunset palettes. Everyone’s sensitivity to light is different, but the Hatch Restore 2’s linen covering makes for a gentle experience without sacrificing brightness. There are audible alarms as well, but they’re more peaceful than a blaring siren. For example, you can choose from nature sounds or retro lo-fi beats. I also like that there are tactile buttons, which makes it easy to roll over and turn off the alarm (or hit snooze) without having to actually look at the thing.

But the best part of the Restore 2 is that it can help you build morning and nighttime routines. There’s original content that ranges from meditations, positive affirmations, white noise (and pink / brown noise), as well as sleep stories. The only rub is that to get full access to the content library, you need to pay a $49.99 yearly or $4.99 monthly subscription. On the flip side, you don’t need a subscription if all you want are sunrise alarms and sleep sounds. The subscription mostly gets you access to sunset simulations and “morning moments,” which are Hatch’s inspirational audio content designed to kick off your day.

Read my review of the Hatch Restore 2.

The best sleep earbuds

The Bose Sleepbuds had a devoted following — so it was upsetting when the company pulled the plug on them a few years ago. But if you liked those, Anker’s Soundcore Sleep A20 are a good alternative.

Like the Bose, they have a design that sits more flush with your ear than a regular AirPod. That makes it ideal for side sleepers, though it might take some getting used to at first. But one thing these buds have over Bose is you get to play your own content via Bluetooth. Anker’s app also allows you to play sounds from a white noise library as well as track certain sleep metrics — like how often you toss and turn. Plus, you can set alarms, set audio to fade out after a certain period, or have it automatically shut off as you fall asleep. Battery life is also pretty good at around 14 hours.

Just keep in mind that these don’t have active noise canceling. (Which is why they can last 14 hours.) They can passively dampen sound simply by sitting in your ear, but they’re not going to completely block out snoring or noisy neighbors unless you have media playing. The A10 buds are quite similar but have slightly less battery life at 10 hours.

But if you’d really rather the Bose Sleepbuds — good news! They’ve been resurrected as the Ozlo Sleepbuds and are virtually the same product in every way with one key improvement: you can now play your own audio! Sometime in early 2025, Ozlo says they intend to add sleep tracking as well. The downside is that at $299, they’re double the price of the Soundcore A20s.

Read our review of the Anker Soundcore Sleep A20.

Update, February 10th: Adjusted pricing and availability.

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Google Maps now shows the ‘Gulf of America’

Google Maps now shows the “Gulf of America” in place of the “Gulf of Mexico” for users on both web and mobile in the United States. It made the change after the Trump administration formally changed the name today of the body of water spanning between the eastern coast of Mexico and the Florida panhandle. Google says it follows the GNIS, or Geographic Names Information System, a US database of location information.

Users in Mexico will continue to see “Gulf of Mexico,” while the rest of the world will see the original name with “Gulf of America” in parentheses. Google says it determines a user’s location — and thus which version of the body of water they see — using data from their mobile OS, SIM, and network. Desktop users will see changes based on search settings or device location if not provided.

Meanwhile, Apple hasn’t made any changes in Apple Maps yet, although it does redirect “Gulf of America” searches to the Gulf of Mexico. Other mapping companies like MapQuest have not made changes either. However, we found that Google-owned Waze shows both names if you search for “Gulf of Mexico,” but finds nothing when searching for “Gulf of America.”

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Here are the best Apple Watch deals right now

The Apple Watch Series 10 isn’t all that different from the last-gen Series 9, but that isn’t a bad thing. | Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge

In September, Apple launched its latest smartwatch, introducing the Apple Watch Series 10 alongside a black rendition of the Apple Watch Ultra 2. Each wearable has its own pros and cons, as does the second-gen Apple Watch SE, but the recent introduction of the new wearables also means there are now more Apple Watch models on the market than ever before — and a lot more deals to be had.

1. The best Apple Watch Series 10 deals
2. The best Apple Watch Series 9 deals
3. The best Apple Watch SE deals
4. The best Apple Watch Ultra 2 deals
5. A note on the more premium models

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 11, launched in September on the Apple Watch Series 6 and newer, ultimately leaving those still using an older Series 4 or Series 5 behind.

That being said, picking up a watch from the latest (or a recent) generation ensures you’re getting a smartwatch with an updated design, a robust number of features, and plenty of sensors.

Now, let’s get to the deals.

The best Apple Watch Series 10 deals

The Apple Watch Series 10 represents the latest wearable in Apple’s flagship Series lineup. It features the new S10 SiP chip, faster charging, and a wide-angle OLED display that’s brighter, larger, and easier to read than that of previous models. It weighs half as much as the Ultra, too, and is about 30 percent thinner despite its new 42mm and 46mm sizing. Other upgrades include an added depth and water temperature sensor, as well as a new FDA-cleared sleep apnea detection feature, the latter of which is also available on the last-gen Series 9 and Ultra 2.

While the improvements are certainly welcome, the Series 10 isn’t a vast departure from the prior model, the Series 9. That being said, it’s currently on sale at Amazon, Walmart, and Best Buy right now in the 42mm sizing with GPS starting at $329 ($70 off), which matches its all-time low. The 46mm variant, meanwhile, is on sale at Amazon, Walmart, and Best Buy starting at $359 (also $7o off), while the LTE models can be had at Amazon, Walmart, and Best Buy starting at $429 (about $20 off).

Read our Apple Watch Series 10 review.

The best Apple Watch Series 9 deals

In 2023, Apple introduced the Apple Watch Series 9 alongside the second-gen Ultra. It uses Apple’s last-gen S9 SiP chip and a second-gen ultra wideband chip, which allows for onboard Siri processing and precision finding with select iPhone models. It also features a brighter, 2,000-nit display and support for Apple’s nifty “double tap” feature — two minor additions that are also present on the Series 10.

The Series 9 has been out for more than a year, but certain configurations have become increasingly difficult to find with the arrival of Apple’s latest watch. Luckily, the GPS-equipped Series 9 is still on sale in the 45mm configuration at Walmart starting at $249 ($180 off). There are also a handful of deals to be had on the 41mm and LTE models with cellular connectivity, though none of them undercut the current price of the Series 10 model by much, hence their exclusion here.

Read our Apple Watch Series 9 review.

The best Apple Watch SE deals

The Apple Watch SE received a refresh in late 2022. It has the same chipset as the Series 8, which is great, but with fewer sensors, no always-on display, and a slightly outdated design compared to the Series 8, Series 9, and Series 10. Those omissions might take this out of the running for some people, but it still may be exactly what you’re after. Best of all, it starts at $249 for the 40mm Wi-Fi / GPS model, which is $30 less than the previous generation’s baseline cost. Opting for cellular connectivity bumps the starting price up to $299 for the 40mm size (44mm adds $20 to each configuration).

At the moment, the best deals on the latest Apple Watch SE can be found at Amazon, Best Buy, and Target, where you can pick the 40mm model with GPS for around $169 ($80 off). The 44mm configuration, meanwhile, is available at Amazon, Best Buy, and Target for around $199 (also $80 off). If you want the LTE configuration, the 40mm configuration is currently on sale at Amazon, Best Buy, and Target starting at $219 ($80 off), or in the larger 44mm sizing at Amazon, Best Buy, and Target for around $249 ($80 off).

Read our Apple Watch SE (second-gen) review.

The best Apple Watch Ultra 2 deals

The latest Apple Watch Ultra launched at $799 in September with GPS and LTE support, much like the original model. The ultra-capable smartwatch has the most features, sensors, and ruggedness of any Apple Watch model available thus far, along with a display that’s 50 percent brighter than the first Ultra. The 49mm smartwatch also packs Apple’s S9 SiP and second-gen ultra wideband chips, just like the Apple Watch Series 9, while maintaining long-lasting battery life, precise GPS tracking, and a bevy of diving-friendly sensors.

In recent months, we saw the Apple Watch Ultra 2 dip to as low as $642 ($157 off) in select configurations. Right now, however, it’s only on sale at Amazon with an Ocean Band starting at $679.99 ($120 off). You can also pick it up with a Trail Loop or an Alpine Loop at Amazon starting at $699.99 ($100 off), which is one of the best prices we’ve seen on either configuration.

Read our Apple Watch Ultra 2 review.

A note on the more premium models

While all of the Apple Watch models and colorways covered here are encased in aluminum (except the Ultra 2, which has a titanium build), Apple does make a more premium range built out of stainless steel and titanium. These offerings are functionally and aesthetically similar to their aluminum counterparts, with slightly refined colors and finishings — polished for the stainless steel and brushed for the titanium. However, they start at much steeper prices of $699 and above. They, too, can often be found on sale, but they’re never discounted as low as the standard base models, so we don’t include them here.

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Hacker pleads guilty of taking over SEC’s X account to post fake Bitcoin news

Hacker Eric Council Jr. pleaded guilty Monday to charges of conspiracy to commit aggravated identity theft and access device fraud after he took over the SEC’s X account in January 2024. Once Council gained access to the account, his unnamed co-conspirators posted a doctored image, message, and fake quote by then SEC Chairman Gary Gensler saying Bitcoin Exchange Traded Funds (ETC) have been approved, which caused the currency’s value to spike more than $1,000.

The 25-year-old Alabama resident had used a SIM-swapping attack to move a phone number associated with the @SEC account to the SIM card in an iPhone he had purchased. After others obtained the personal information of a person with access to the account, Council printed off a fake ID and used it to get AT&T to give him control of their number so that he could have the account’s recovery codes sent to his own phone. The co-conspirators paid Council in Bitcoin for his role in the scheme.

Investigators found after Council’s arrest that he’d made some choice searches, including: “What are the signs that you are under investigation by law enforcement or the FBI even if you have not been contacted by them.”

Council is scheduled for sentencing on May 16th and faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison.

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Elon Musk just offered to buy OpenAI for $97.4 billion

In a dramatic escalation of Silicon Valley’s most heated AI rivalry, Elon Musk just announced that he’s leading a $97.4 billion bid to buy OpenAI’s nonprofit arm, according to The Wall Street Journal. The bid was reportedly delivered to the board Monday morning.

The offer brings together a powerful coalition of backers, including Musk’s own AI company xAI and venture heavyweights like Valor Equity Partners, Hollywood mogul Ari Emanuel, and Palantir co-founder Joe Lonsdale’s venture firm 8VC.

This bid comes at a pivotal moment for OpenAI. CEO Sam Altman is already juggling multiple massive deals: converting the company to a for-profit structure, raising $40 billion at a $340 billion valuation, and launching a $500 billion AI infrastructure project. For Musk, who co-founded OpenAI with Altman in 2015 before departing in 2019, this bid represents his boldest move yet to challenge what he sees as the company’s betrayal of its original mission to develop AI safely and openly (an allegation he’s presently suing OpenAI for).

“It’s time for OpenAI to return to the open-source, safety-focused force for good it once was,” Musk said in a statement provided by his lawyer Marc Toberoff to The Wall Street Journal. “We will make sure that happens.”

The bid also adds a significant layer of complexity to OpenAI’s planned for-profit conversion, as Musk’s team has promised to match or exceed any higher offers. This creates a thorny situation for Altman, who’s already navigating negotiations with Microsoft and other stakeholders over equity in the planned for-profit structure.

Shortly after the news was announced, Altman posted on X: “no thank you but we will buy twitter for $9.74 billion if you want.”

no thank you but we will buy twitter for $9.74 billion if you want

— Sam Altman (@sama) February 10, 2025

OpenAI pointed to Altman’s post when asked for comment. Toberoff did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

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The Verge’s 2025 Valentine’s Day gift guide

Valentine’s Day might seem like any other commercial holiday given the abundance of candy and the sheer number of cards lining store shelves, but if you put in a little effort and a lot of heart, it can be about so much more. After all, at its core, February 14th is about celebrating love in all its forms, with or without sweet treats.

One way to show your appreciation for your loved one — whether it be your partner, sister, parent, or best friend — is with a gift that speaks to who they are. Luckily, if you need some inspiration, the Verge staff has pooled together a list of thoughtful gift ideas. Some of these, such as the AirPods 4 and latest Kindle Paperwhite, are gadgets we use on the daily, while items like Amazfit’s Active 2 and Soundcore’s latest speaker are more recent finds we’re still putting through their paces.

We’ve also sprinkled in a few ideas for those who could use a little less tech in their lives, so there should be something for everybody on your list. After all, nothing says “I love you” quite like a scratcher.

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Big Tech is still silent on Trump’s tariffs

President Donald Trump’s 10 percent tariff on goods imported from China has been in effect for nearly a week. Ahead of the tariff going into effect, I wrote that “Big Tech has been silent on Trump’s tariffs” — almost no one in the industry had a public reaction or said how they would respond. A week later, that hasn’t really changed.

Myself and my colleagues have contacted a wide range of tech companies multiple times since the tariffs on China (and the now-paused tariffs on Canada and Mexico) were announced at the beginning of the month. Here’s what we’ve heard back – or haven’t heard:

• Google spokesperson Jose Castaneda, Microsoft spokesperson Kate Frischmann, Nvidia spokesperson Stephanie Matthew, and Sony spokesperson Kishore Sawh have declined to comment.
• Canon USA, via a generic press email address with no stated spokesperson, said that “Canon U.S.A., Inc. continues to monitor the situation regarding the tariffs.”
• DJI, also via a generic press email with no stated spokesperson, said that “we are assessing the impact internally and will be able to share more details once we complete the full evaluation and receive guidance from the USTR or other relevant departments.”
• Amazon, Apple, Google, Meta, Nintendo, and Samsung have not commented.
• Other companies that haven’t commented include: Alibaba, AMD, AT&T, Best Buy, Broadcom, Dell, EchoStar / Dish, Fujifilm, HP, Intel, Lenovo, LG, Logitech, Newegg, Nikon, Panasonic, Philips, Qualcomm, Shein, Target, TCL, Temu, Texas Instruments, T-Mobile, Verizon, and Walmart.

Just about every Big Tech company makes and ships products from China, so the tariff means higher costs to bring those products into the country. Those higher costs are often passed onto consumers, so if the tariff stays in effect, it seems likely that the companies will raise prices on their products or otherwise see their margins decline.

There are a handful of reasons why companies may be hesitant to comment. It might take time for the companies to feel the effects of the tariff and know how it might impact their businesses. The Trump administration is chaotic, so companies may be waiting to see if the policy changes or gets put on pause, as it already has for Canada and Mexico. The administration is also vindictive, so the companies may not want to draw the ire of the president by blaming the tariffs for hurting their business.

Automakers, on the other hand, have been more vocal.

• BMW: “BMW does not base our long-term strategic plans on political policies or incentives,” BMW Group’s Phil DiIanni says in a statement. “Free trade, which has always been a guiding principle for the BMW Group, is of immense importance worldwide: It is one of the most crucial drivers of growth and progress. Tariffs, on the other hand, hinder free trade, slow down innovation, and set a negative spiral in motion. In the end, they are detrimental to customers, making products more expensive and less innovative.”
• GM spokesperson Liz Winter and Stellantis spokesperson Jodi Tinson both directed me to the American Automotive Policy Council for comment. I’ve emailed the council.
• Ford: Spokesperson Dan Barbossa pointed us to Ford CEO Jim Farley’s comments on the tariffs made during last week’s earnings call.
• Mercedes-Benz: “Free trade and fair competition ensure prosperity, growth and innovation,” according to a “general statement” from spokesperson Andrea Berg last week. “If a general trend towards protectionism gains a foothold, this has negative economic consequences for all stakeholders involved. This cannot be in the interests of politics, business and society. Mercedes-Benz therefore supports a liberal trade order based on WTO rules. This includes the principle that all participants find the same conditions.” Berg also pointed us to the Autos Drive America Association, which has a statement here, and the Alliance For Automotive Innovation, which I’ve emailed for comment.
• Volkswagen: An unnamed Volkswagen spokesperson told CNBC that that the company is assessing the potential impact of the tariffs. “At the same time, we continue to promote open markets and stable trade relations,” the spokesperson said. “These are essential for a competitive economy and for the automotive industry in particular. We are counting on constructive talks between the trading partners to ensure planning security and economic stability and to avoid a trade conflict.”

Tesla hasn’t replied to a request for comment.

The tariffs have already led to some turmoil for shipments and deliveries. Trump briefly removed the de minimis exemption, which allowed packages valued at less than $800 to enter the US duty free. That led the USPS to briefly stop accepting parcels from China and shoppers seeing additional fees on shipments from other carriers. But on Friday, the Trump administration temporarily paused the removal of the exemption until the process could be made more orderly.

Trump also signed an order on Monday to impose 25 percent tariffs on steel and aluminum, NBC News reports.

Update, February 10th: Added Trump’s new tariffs on steel and aluminum.

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Google’s upgraded NotebookLM is now included in its One AI Premium plan

Google is bringing its upgraded note-taking app to its One AI Premium plan. That means subscribers will now gain access to NotebookLM Plus at no added cost, which offers higher usage limits and premium features, like the ability to customize NotebookLM’s responses.

Google first launched NotebookLM in 2023, allowing people to use AI to research specific topics and organize notes. The company has since added more interactive features, including a way to dive deeper into YouTube videos as well as transform your research into a podcast with two AI “hosts” that you can also chat with.

Google launched the NotebookLM Plus plan for businesses, schools, organizations, and enterprise customers in December. In addition to offering five times more Audio Overviews, notebooks, queries, and sources per notebook, NotebookLM Plus also lets you customize how you share your notebooks and see how many people have viewed them per day.

Google currently offers its One AI Premium plan for $19.99 per month with 2TB of storage and access to the company’s Gemini Advanced models, along with Gemini in Workspace apps like Gmail and Docs. Students over the age of 18 in the US can also get the One AI Premium plan for $9.99 per month for one year.

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Elon Musk’s DOGE activities trigger protests, vandalism for Tesla

Berlin, Germany protestors opposing Musk’s virtual appearance at the WELT Economic Summit last month. | Photo by Annette Riedl/picture alliance via Getty Images

Elon Musk’s role in carrying out President Donald Trump’s dirty work has triggered a wave of opposition that is spilling over into protests against his flagship company, Tesla. Over the last week, some people have held demonstrations while others have vandalized Tesla vehicles owned by individual buyers and showrooms — with actions stretching from New York, Colorado, and California, to as far as The Netherlands and Germany.

Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) has accessed sensitive government data and cut congressionally mandated funds to agencies. After court orders demanded a halt to some of its actions, Musk and Vice President JD Vance have hinted they may ignore the rulings. Tesla’s hundreds of showrooms, as well as other locations, present a ripe target for venting frustrations about Musk’s political activities.

A group called Rise and Resist organized a February 9th protest outside a Tesla showroom in Manhattan’s meatpacking district, reports amNY. A group of protestors held signs and chanted “stop the coup,” referring to what is widely considered a constitutional crisis.

🚨🚨🚨🚨🚨 Stop the Coup! Nobody voted for Elon Musk! @riseandresist.bsky.social Tesla showroom!!!

— Sandi Bachom 📹🎥🎬 (@sandibachom.bsky.social) 2025-02-09T18:33:59.787Z

Earlier in the month, a Michigan State University alum organized the protest of a Tesla recruiting event at the school. And about 50 people expressed similar sentiments at a Tesla location in San Luis Obispo, California. “We’re here because we don’t know what else to do. We can’t stand idly by while our democracy is being destroyed with all kinds of illegal activities,” one person told local station KSBY 6.

Future protests seem to be on their way. A call for broad picketing at every Tesla showroom on February 15th has been spreading this morning on Bluesky, accompanied by the hashtag #TeslaTakeover.

Most of us can't get to DC to protest what is happening to our government, but we do have options. Come out and participate in an international picket #TeslaTakeover locally. Stand up and be counted!

— BostonJoan 🏳️‍🌈 🦫 (@bostonjoan.bsky.social) 2025-02-10T17:03:49.870Z

Tesla showrooms and vehicles have also been vandalized. In Loveland, Colorado on Friday, Tesla vehicles at one of the company’s locations were vandalized with “offensive and hateful” graffiti, CBS News reported. The location had apparently been hit twice before, on January 29th and February 2nd. A similar thing happened in January in Redwood City, California, when a person spray painted “Nazi” on the side of a Cybertruck.

In The Netherlands earlier this month, people spray-painted swastikas, “No to Nazis,” and “Fuck off fascist,” outside of a Tesla showroom in The Hague. In Germany, an activist group projected an image of the word “heil,” alongside a photo of Musk’s infamous (supposedly not a) fascist salute from Trump’s inauguration, on Tesla’s factory in Berlin.

Tesla Gigafactory, Berlin – right now!

In cooperation with @ByDonkeys pic.twitter.com/2zQoUV0GRY

— Zentrum für Politische Schönheit (@politicalbeauty) January 22, 2025

Tesla’s reputation is closely tied to Musk’s, and Tesla’s sky-high stock prices are responsible for a large chunk of his wealth. Unsurprisingly, we’ve seen similar Tesla-related protests in the past, such as a June 2024 incident where 34 Cybertrucks were spraypainted with the words “Fuck Elon” in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Consumer sentiments toward Musk have declined as the CEO has spread rightwing conspiracy theories and allied himself with far-right politicians, correlating — alongside other factors — with falling sales for the company.

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Amazon’s latest Kindle Paperwhite is nearly matching its best price to date

The latest Paperwhite offers a sharp seven-inch display that’s incredibly easy to read.

If you’re wondering what to gift the bibliophile in your life for Valentine’s Day, Amazon’s ongoing President’s Day sale is worth a look. The Kindle Colorsoft Signature Edition has returned to its best price to date, while the latest Kindle Paperwhite has received its first discount since the holidays. Right now, the ad-supported Paperwhite, one of our go-to gift recs for Valentine’s Day, has dropped to $134.99 ($25 off) at Amazon, Best Buy, and Target, which is just $5 shy of the all-time low we last saw during Black Friday.

The Kindle Paperwhite is one of our favorite e-readers, particularly for people who own a lot of Kindle books. It’s waterproof, unlike the cheaper entry-level Kindle, and features an adjustable warm white frontlight, which makes it easier to read at night. It also offers a larger seven-inch display, sharp 300ppi resolution, and rich contrast levels that make for a crystal-clear reading experience.

In addition to offering an easy-to-read screen, it’s the first Paperwhite to use a dual-core processor. That makes it faster and more responsive than prior models, something that’s particularly noticeable while opening large PDF files and cycling through pages. The newer e-reader also lasts up to a month on a single charge and retains USB-C support, which allows for relatively fast charging.

As for the Kindle Colorsoft, it’s almost identical to the Paperwhite, only with a seven-inch color E ink screen that drops to 150ppi resolution while displaying color. The resulting hues are somewhat muted in comparison to, say, an iPad or a glossier tablet, but they’re more vibrant than those on rivals like the Kobo Libra Colour. Plus, you get wireless charging, 32GB of storage, and — like the step-up Paperwhite Signature Edition — no lockscreen ads.

Read our Kindle Paperwhite and Kindle Colorsoft reviews.

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Apple releases security updates to block iPhone passcode hacking tools, again

Apple released iOS 18.3.1, iPadOS 18.3.1, and iPadOS 17.7.5 today to address a zero-day exploit that might allow attackers to access data on a locked device.

The update patches the OS against an attack on USB Restricted Mode, which Apple first implemented in devices with the release of iOS 11.4.1 in 2018, to prevent attempts to bypass device passcodes and get around the encryption safeguards that protect user’s data. According to Apple, the exploit reported by Bill Marczak of The Citizen Lab “may have been exploited in an extremely sophisticated attack against specific targeted individuals.”

Apple has patched flaws in USB Restricted Mode before, and in iOS 18, it added a new “inactivity reboot” that would restart unused devices after a few days so that they require a passcode for access. Today, it also issued new updates for the Mac, Apple Watch, and Vision Pro platforms but has not yet released any security notes to go along with those.

Apple’s details about the new update:

iOS 18.3.1 and iPadOS 18.3.1

Released February 10, 2025

Accessibility

Available for: iPhone XS and later, iPad Pro 13-inch, iPad Pro 12.9-inch 3rd generation and later, iPad Pro 11-inch 1st generation and later, iPad Air 3rd generation and later, iPad 7th generation and later, and iPad mini 5th generation and later

Impact: A physical attack may disable USB Restricted Mode on a locked device. Apple is aware of a report that this issue may have been exploited in an extremely sophisticated attack against specific targeted individuals.

Description: An authorization issue was addressed with improved state management.

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Apple gets into AI: all the news on iOS 18, macOS Sequoia, and more

Apple has released iOS 18 — plus iPadOS 18, macOS Sequoia, watchOS 11, and other new updates — bringing several key updates to how the company’s devices operate and setting the stage for generative AI features.

The most discussed feature of iOS 18 is the Apple Intelligence suite. With the release of iOS 18.2 on December 11th, features that are available now include generating images in Image Playground, creating custom “Genmoji” emoji, and ChatGPT integration. Other features of Apple Intelligence, including writing tools such as the ability to rewrite your text in different styles, trickled out to customers starting in October.

There are major non-AI changes to consider too, like the ability to change your default apps or test your hearing with AirPods.

Meanwhille, iPadOS 18 now has a calculator app and can solve math equations in notes, watchOS is keeping an eye out for sleep apnea, and now your iPhone can even message Androids with RCS.

Read on for all the news about Apple’s latest set of operating system updates.

• Apple releases security updates to block iPhone passcode hacking tools, again
• Bloomberg: iOS 18.3 added Starlink support on iPhones.
• iOS 18.3 is out with tweaks to AI notification summaries
• Apple Intelligence is enabled by default in iOS 18.3
• Apple says it will ‘clarify’ AI summaries after botching BBC headlines
• iOS and iPadOS 18.2.1 are out.
• Apple’s iOS 18.3 public beta is now available.
• Apple’s App Store is inviting me to ‘search the way you talk’
• Apple releases iOS 18.3 developer beta and tests Genmoji in macOS Sequoia.
• Apple’s AI summary mangled a BBC headline about Luigi Mangione
• You can now use AirTags to expedite a lost luggage reunion through United’s mobile app
• With iOS 18.2, Apple completes its AI starter kit
• The iPhone 16 Pro now lets you layer recordings in Voice Memos
• The Vision Pro’s ultrawide Mac display is very close to being a killer app
• iOS 18.2 and all the other Apple updates are available now.
• iOS 18.2 is rolling out now, adding ChatGPT integration and more Apple Intelligence tools
• Apple Pay’s first competitor on the iPhone has arrived in Norway
• The latest Apple betas let you copy links to highlighted text in Safari.
• Apple AI notification summaries exist; rarely useful, often hilarious
• Apple’s iOS 18.2 public beta starts opening up access to more AI features
• iOS 18.2 puts Safari download progress right on your iPhone’s lockscreen.
• iOS 18.2 could finally estimate your iPhone’s charging time
• Apple Intelligence will come to EU iPhones in April
• If you want to try Apple Intelligence, you’ll have to get on a waitlist.
• Apple Intelligence is here, but it still has a lot to learn
• Apple Intelligence is out
• Siri’s big ChatGPT upgrade is here — for better and worse
• The confusing state of Apple Intelligence
• With iOS 18.2, EU users can delete the App Store.
• Apple will let everyone set new default phone and messaging apps with iOS 18.2
• The iOS 18.2 beta brings categories to the Mail app.
• Apple’s first iOS 18.2 beta adds more AI features and ChatGPT integration
• Apple is ‘concerned’ about AI turning real photos into ‘fantasy’
• Apple’s AirPods Pro hearing health features are as good as they sound
• iPhones now support wired Xbox controllers.
• Your iPhone 16 may get its first Apple Intelligence features later this month
• iOS 18 message effects are more fun than I thought.
• watchOS 11 puts a Dynamic Island on your wrist
• Apple Intelligence update schedule.
• Let’s just start with the camera.
• Apple Intelligence is now available in public betas
• With visionOS 2, Apple’s Vision Pro comes into focus
• Apple now lets you add Matter devices to Apple Home without a hub
• You’ll be able to use an iPhone to wirelessly restore an iPhone 16
• In defense of the iPhone Action Button
• Here’s how green bubbles are getting upgraded in iOS
• Now Halide is on your iPhone’s lockscreen
• iOS 18 is a smart upgrade, even without the AI
• Name that tune.
• watchOS 11 is now available with sleep apnea detection for the Series 9 and Ultra 2
• macOS Sequoia is out now with iPhone mirroring but no Apple Intelligence — yet
• iOS 18 is here with RCS and homepage customization features
• Apple Sports 2.0 has arrived.
• Apple confirms the iPhone 16 has 8GB of RAM
• Apple’s AirPods Pro 2 could forever change how people access hearing aids
• iOS 18 has a tool to help configure genuine replacement parts.
• Here’s everything coming in iOS 18.
• Here’s what your iPhone 16 will do with Apple Intelligence — eventually
• iOS 18 allows iPhone users to pause video recordings
• iOS 18 will launch next week with new ways to customize your homescreen

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Sonos’ chief marketing officer has left the company

In a continued shuffling of the top ranks at Sonos, chief marketing officer Jordan Saxemard has exited the company. His departure is effective immediately. The news was announced during an internal call on Monday. Lindsay Whitworth, who has been at Sonos for over 20 years, will lead the brand’s marketing on an interim basis.

Internally, employees are happy about Whitworth taking over. She’s a longtime Sonos veteran who understands the company’s culture and customer base. Saxemard joined Sonos in May 2024 and was hired by former CEO Patrick Spence. From what I’m told, he never quite gelled with the audio brand’s mission. He also had the unfortunate luck of immediately facing a challenging ordeal when Sonos prematurely rolled out an overhauled mobile app that was buggy and missing features.

“Sonos head of marketing Jordan Saxemard has departed Sonos effective immediately,” Sonos said in a statement provided by spokesperson Erin Pategas. “We thank him for his contributions to the company. Lindsay Whitworth, Vice President of Global Consumer Direct will lead the marketing team in the interim. A search for a new marketing leader is underway.”

During last week’s earnings call, Sonos declined to offer any specifics on sales of its Ace headphones, though CFO Saori Casey admitted that the company’s first-ever headphones were derailed by the software controversy. Sonos spent big on marketing the headphones — including a hard-to-miss New York City subway campaign — but those ads rarely highlighted the unique features of the product like TV Audio Swap.

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The Sonos app fiasco: how a great audio brand nearly ruined its reputation

In May 2024, Sonos released a completely rebuilt and overhauled mobile app for Android and iOS. The new software was meant to improve performance, make the app feel more customizable, and allow for new features in the future. But customers immediately complained about countless bugs, degraded Sonos speaker system performance, and features that had gone missing.

The controversy effectively torpedoed Sonos’ reputation with many customers. In the months since, Sonos has worked to regain their trust, address issues with the redesigned app, and bring back features that were absent at launch. The company still hasn’t fully recovered from its enormous mistake. On January 13th, 2025, Sonos announced CEO Patrick Spence would step down after he was unable to turn things around.

• Sonos’ chief marketing officer has left the company
• Sonos explored creating a MagSafe speaker for iPhones
• Sonos lays off 200 employees as its struggles continue
• Sonos continues to clean house with departure of chief commercial officer
• Sonos’ chief product officer is leaving the company
• Sonos’ interim CEO hits all the right notes in first letter to employees
• Sonos CEO Patrick Spence steps down after disastrous app launch
• Sonos plans return-to-office push for its product teams
• Sonos Arc Ultra review: don’t call it a comeback (yet)
• Sonos revenue falls in the aftermath of the company’s messy app debacle
• Sonos has a plan to earn back your trust, and here it is
• You can now gripe to Sonos about its app on the weekends, too.
• Sonos opens a Trello board so we can see how it’s fixing the busted app
• Sonos’ latest app update fixes just a fraction of its problems
• Sonos CEO says the old app can’t be rereleased
• Sonos considers relaunching its old app
• Sonos lays off 100 employees as its app crisis continues
• Sonos delays two new products as it races to fix buggy app
• Sonos puts the apology for the new app right in the app.
• Sonos CEO apologizes for disastrous rollout of new app
• Sonos customers complain about missing features in redesigned app in community AMA
• Sonos says its controversial app redesign took ‘courage’
• Sonos announces redesigned app that puts everything on your homescreen
• This is the new Sonos app, coming May 7th

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US tariffs: how Trump’s tax is hitting Big Tech and beyond

President Donald Trump has announced that he’s imposing a tariff on goods from some of the US’s biggest trade partners: Canada, Mexico, and China. Under the executive orders signed on February 1st, Canada and Mexico will face a 25 percent tariff, while goods from China will be subject to a 10 percent tax. Energy resources from Canada will also have a lower 10 percent tariff.

Trump positioned the tariffs as a way to “halt the flood of poisonous drugs into the United States,” referring to fentanyl. The change will have a big impact on the cost of a wide variety of goods imported from each country, including electronics, produce, clothing, and much more.

Though Trump previously said the tariffs will “enrich” citizens, consumers are expected to bear the brunt of the fees as they typically lead to higher prices. Here’s all the latest news on Trump’s tariffs.

• Trump suspends order that created delivery chaos
• Donald Trump’s tariffs, explained
• Shipping companies warn of delays and new charges from Trump’s China tariffs
• Your packages from China are about to get more expensive.
• China tariffs may already be hiking up import fees
• Qwertykeys halts keyboard shipments to US over tariff costs and confusion
• USPS backtracks, will accept parcels from China after all
• Your packages are about to get slower and more expensive
• China opens Google antitrust probe in retaliation to tariffs
• Shein and Temu depend on a 100-year-old tariff loophole that Trump wants to close
• Trump agrees to a one-month pause on Mexico, Canada tariffs
• Big Tech has been silent on Trump’s tariffs
• Ontario holds off on ‘ripping up’ Starlink deal with US tariffs delayed
• Automakers brace for ‘massive’ impact of Trump’s tariffs
• China responds to Trump’s tariffs threatening ‘corresponding countermeasures.’
• Canada will retaliate against Trump with tariffs on US goods
• Trump imposes sweeping tariffs on Canada, Mexico, and China
• Canadian officials have reportedly been notified of tariffs.
• Trump’s first round of tariffs is almost here
• Trump says he’ll put tariffs on imported chips ‘in the near future’

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Roblox, Discord, OpenAI, and Google found new child safety group

Roblox and Discord have faced criticism for failing to protect children on their platforms.

Google, OpenAI, Roblox, and Discord have formed a new non-profit organization to help improve child safety online. The Robust Open Online Safety Tools (ROOST) initiative aims to make core safety technologies more accessible for companies and provide free, open-source AI tools for identifying, reviewing, and reporting child sexual abuse material.

The initiative was partially motivated by changes that generative AI advancements have made to online environments and aims to address “a critical need to accelerate innovation in online child safety,” according to founding ROOST partner and former Google CEO Eric Schmidt. Details about the CSAM detection tools are slim beyond that they will utilize large language AI models and “unify” existing options for dealing with the content.

“Starting with a platform focused on child protection, ROOST’s collaborative, open-source approach will foster innovation and make essential infrastructure more transparent, accessible, and inclusive, with the goal of creating a safer internet for everyone,” said Schmidt.

The ROOST announcement comes amid a huge regulatory battle regarding child safety on social media and online platforms, with companies seeking to appease lawmakers with self-regulation methods.

The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) reports that suspected child exploitation increased by 12 percent between 2022 and 2023. As of 2020, over half of US children were on Roblox, and the company has been repeatedly criticized for failing to tackle child sexual exploitation and exposure to inappropriate content on its platform. Roblox and Discord were also singled out in a social media lawsuit filed in 2022 that alleged the platforms failed to stop adults from messaging children without supervision.

Some founding members of ROOST like Discord are providing funding, while others are opening their tools or expertise to the project. ROOST says it’s partnering with leading AI foundation model developers to build a “community of practice” for content safeguards, which will include providing vetted AI training datasets and identifying gaps in safety.

The initiative says it will be making “tools that already exist” more accessible, effectively combining various detection and reporting tech from its member organizations into a unified solution that’s easier for other companies to implement. Naren Koneru, Roblox’s vice president of engineering, trust, and safety, told Fast Company that ROOST may host AI moderation systems that companies can integrate through API calls. There’s some ambiguity about what ROOST’s AI moderation tools will include, however.

For example, Discord says its contributions will build on the Lantern cross-platform information-sharing project it joined in 2023 alongside Meta and Google. It could also include an updated version of Roblox’s AI model for detecting profanity, racism, bullying, sexting, and other inappropriate content in audio clips, which the company is planning to open-source this year. It’s unclear precisely how the tools will intersect with existing first-line CSAM detection systems like Microsoft’s PhotoDNA image analysis tool.

Alongside its participation in ROOST, Discord has released a new “Ignore” feature that allows users to hide messages and notifications they receive without notifying the people they have muted. “At Discord, we believe that safety is a common good,” Discord’s Chief Legal Officer Clint Smith said in the ROOST announcement. “We’re committed to making the entire internet – not just Discord – a better and safer place, especially for young people.”

ROOST has raised more than $27 million to support its first four years of operations, backed by philanthropic organizations including the McGovern Foundation, Future of Online Trust and Safety Fund, Knight Foundation, and the AI Collaborative. The ROOST organization will also be supported by experts in child safety, artificial intelligence, open-source technology, and “countering violent extremism” according to the press release.

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Roblox: all the news about the popular social and gaming platform

Roblox is a massive app — as of September 2023, Roblox says it has more than 65 million daily active users — and it’s becoming an increasingly interesting platform to watch amid growing competition from social and metaverse platforms like Epic Games’ Fortnite and Meta’s Horizon Worlds.

While Roblox has traditionally been associated as a platform for kids, the company has done a lot of work as of late to make it more appealing to older audiences. The platform now allows developers to make experiences that are exclusively accessible to users that are 17 and over, for example, and is introducing its own spin on video chat. It even has ambitions to be a place where adults can meet and date.

The company is also investing heavily into generative AI tools to help creators make experiences more easily, including a new Roblox Assistant AI chatbot.

Here’s all of our coverage of Roblox.

• Roblox, Discord, OpenAI, and Google found new child safety group
• Some Robux casinos have shut down.
• Find your next favorite song… on Roblox?
• Roblox tries to skirt app store fees by making Robux worth more on other platforms
• Roblox will restrict kids under 13 from chatting outside of games
• Roblox is banning kids from ‘social hangout’ spaces
• Roblox is making changes for pre-teen users after reports that it failed to protect children
• Roblox accused of lying to investors about user numbers by Hindenburg Research
• Roblox’s CEO on getting to 1 billion users
• Roblox will start sharing more revenue with creators
• Ikea will pay 10 Roblox players to roleplay as employees in its virtual store
• Roblox executive says children making money on the platform is ‘a gift’
• Roblox heads to Washington
• Roblox releases real-time AI chat translator
• Roblox has a new music-themed metaverse experience, too.
• Roblox’s chatbot assistant for developers is available now in beta.
• You can now buy subscriptions in Roblox experiences that offer them.
• Roblox is launching its take on video calls.
• Roblox is still popular — and still growing.
• Roblox is taking less money from subscriptions, but for a limited time.
• Here’s your TL;DR on some Roblox news tidbits.
• Here’s a few more things I wanted to share about Roblox.
• Roblox says employees must return to office because the metaverse still isn’t good enough
• Roblox is now available on PlayStation.
• The CEO of Bumble says that the metaverse is “kind of contrary to everything I believe in in terms of getting humans to look each other in the eye.”
• I asked David Baszucki about the potential of interoperability between different virtual worlds platforms.
• Roblox hasn’t given up on China.
• Roblox is rolling out in-experience subscriptions, but you can’t buy them yet
• Roblox is finally coming to PlayStation
• Roblox’s new AI chatbot will help you build virtual worlds
• Roblox is going to let creators that make assets and tools keep nearly all of their sales
• Roblox is putting its own spin on video chat
• Roblox is about to let users sell custom-made avatar bodies and heads
• Roblox makes an in-Roblox career center that’s all about Roblox
• Roblox is aiming for Westworld-like ease of design with generative AI tools
• Roblox on Quest VR headsets has gotten ‘well over’ 1 million downloads
• Roblox is now available to try on Meta Quest VR headsets
• Data breach exposes personal information of 4,000 Roblox developers
• Roblox is going to let developers offer subscriptions in their experiences
• Roblox is coming to Meta’s Quest VR headsets
• Roblox will allow exclusive experiences for people 17 and over
• Roblox goes to college
• Roblox really wants you to know that it isn’t just for kids
• Roblox creators can now make and sell limited-run avatar gear
• Fortnite and Roblox are dueling for the future of user-built games
• Roblox is working on generative AI tools
• Roblox’s new Creator Hub could make things a lot easier for developers
• How are these fake Roblox and Ohio governor Twitter accounts still up?
• Roblox and Parsons School of Design are creating a digital fashion course
• Anti-social media lawsuits are coming for Roblox and Discord
• Walmart launches ‘metaverse’ experience in Roblox to sell toys to children
• Roblox is ready to grow up
• Roblox’s new ‘oof’ sound is a big oof
• Gucci built a persistent town inside of Roblox
• Spotify brings music-themed islands to Roblox
• Roblox’s Game Fund games don’t look like most Roblox titles
• Roblox is hiring a PlayStation engineer
• Roblox shuts down Chinese mobile app to work on a new version
• Roblox sues YouTuber for temporarily shutting down conference with fake terrorist threat
• Roblox is back online after an outage that lasted three days
• Roblox was down all weekend, and not because of Chipotle
• Roblox is negotiating with music publishers after settling a copyright lawsuit
• Roblox is getting voice chat, starting first with ‘Spatial Voice’
• The game makers and artists pushing Roblox to its limits
• Roblox, explained
• Roblox signs music partnership with Sony
• Stranger Things’ Starcourt Mall comes to Roblox
• Music publishers sue Roblox for letting users upload pirated songs
• You can now explore a surreal Gucci garden inside Roblox
• Apple said Roblox developers don’t make games, and now Roblox agrees
• Roblox to introduce content ratings for games to better restrict age-inappropriate content
• Gucci designed virtual sneakers for hypebeasts in Roblox and VRChat
• YouTube hit Ryan’s World comes to Roblox
• Roblox is hosting a Ready Player Two treasure hunt inside its own virtual universe
• Roblox goes public so that it can build a bigger metaverse
• Lil Nas X’s Roblox concert was attended 33 million times
• Roblox has big plans for virtual music events
• Over half of US kids are playing Roblox, and it’s about to host Fortnite-esque virtual parties too

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Wool, clay, and elbow grease: bringing stop-motion games to life

One of the biggest lessons of working on stop-motion video games? Rolling up your sleeves — literally.

“It’s such a nightmare,” Talha & Jack Co developer Jack King-Spooner told me over a video call. “You spend maybe half an hour doing one of the cutscenes. The cutscenes are the most precarious things because you have to have everything in the scene exactly the same. And then your sleeve catches something and you’re like ah, Jesus, and I have to do everything again.”

King-Spooner worked with Talha Kaya on 2024’s Judero, an action-adventure game based on the folklore of the Scottish Borders. Now, the creative duo is running a Kickstarter campaign for its new project, Mashina, centered around a cute robot who has to drill. It’s a stop-motion game again, but this time, the team is facing the laborious process with some hard-learned lessons.

The seemingly innocuous gesture of rolling up your sleeves is one of many considerations that studios need to keep in mind when experimenting with handmade characters, objects, and scenes for their games. Stop-motion games aren’t new — the likes of The Neverhood, The Dark Eye, and Skullmonkeys have been toying with this physical-meets-digi …

Read the full story at The Verge.

Chip race: Microsoft, Meta, Google, and Nvidia battle it out for AI chip supremacy

The rise of generative AI has been powered by Nvidia and its advanced GPUs. As demand far outstrips supply, the H100 has become highly sought after and extremely expensive, making Nvidia a trillion-dollar company for the first time.

It’s also prompting customers, like Microsoft, Meta, OpenAI, Amazon, and Google to start working on their own AI processors. Meanwhile, Nvidia and other chip makers like AMD and Intel are now locked in an arms race to release newer, more efficient, and more powerful AI chips.

As demand for generative AI services continues to grow, it’s evident that chips will be the next big battleground for AI supremacy.

• OpenAI is reportedly getting closer to launching its in-house chip
• Intel is canceling Falcon Shores, its next big AI chip.
• Intel cancels AI chip, talks painful past and simplified future
• Nvidia’s market cap drops by almost $600 billion amid DeepSeek R1 hype.
• Elon Musk, White House adviser, says OpenAI deal announced at White House is a sham
• An AI supercomputer you can carry around.
• PlayStation and AMD are teaming up to infuse games with AI
• China opens an antitrust investigation into Nvidia
• What happened to Intel?
• Intel’s CEO is out after only three years
• Nvidia says its Blackwell AI chip is ‘full steam’ ahead
• Nvidia just made nearly $20 billion in pure profit in a single quarter.
• Intel’s Gaudi AI chips are far behind Nvidia and AMD, won’t even hit $500M goal
• OpenAI will start using AMD chips and could make its own AI hardware in 2026
• “We had a design flaw in Blackwell,” admits Nvidia CEO.
• AMD’s AI chips are coming for Nvidia — but how quickly?
• Samsung and TSMC have reportedly discussed building AI chip “megafactories” in the UAE.
• Qualcomm wants to buy Intel
• Apple A16 chips are reportedly being made in America.
• Intel’s big turnaround plan includes spinning off its chipmaking business
• Sony reportedly picked AMD over Intel for the PS6
• TikTok’s parent company reportedly gets closer to making its own AI chips.
• AMD is turning its back on flagship gaming GPUs to chase AI first
• The Nvidia AI antitrust investigation is ‘escalating,’ reports Bloomberg
• Don’t expect affordable Nvidia Blackwell gaming GPUs to arrive anytime soon.
• Geekbench has an AI benchmark now
• Some good news from Intel.
• The terror machines at Elliot Management view Nvidia as overvalued and say AI isn’t going to live up to the hype.
• AMD is becoming an AI chip company, just like Nvidia
• OpenAI wants in on the AI chip business.
• AMD will acquire an AI startup for $665 million.
• a16z is trying to keep AI alive with Oxygen initiative.
• Softbank is trying to borrow $10 billion for AI-related projects.
• Apple Silicon exec joins Rain AI to develop new hardware.
• Nvidia overtakes Microsoft as the world’s most valuable company
• Nvidia is the world’s most valuable company at the moment.
• Nvidia is now more valuable than Apple at $3.01 trillion
• Even the Raspberry Pi is getting in on AI
• Intel, Google, Microsoft, Meta, and more want to standardize the tech used in AI data centers.
• Nvidia will now make new AI chips every year
• Nvidia just made $14 billion of profit in a single quarter thanks to AI chips.
• Google announced Trillium, its sixth generation of Tensor processors.
• Apple plans to use M2 Ultra chips in the cloud for AI
• Apple’s ‘Project ACDC’ is creating AI chips for data centers.
• US plans $285 million in funding for ‘digital twin’ chips research
• With $1B in sales, AMD’s MI300 AI chip is its fastest selling product ever.
• OpenAI will give you a 50 percent discount for off-peak GPT use.
• Meta’s new AI chips run faster than before
• Intel launches new AI accelerator to take on Nvidia’s H100.
• The US is reportedly working on a list of restricted Chinese chipmaking factories.
• Inside TSMC’s very secretive chip training facility.
• A $40 billion AI investment fund?
• Nvidia reveals Blackwell B200 GPU, the ‘world’s most powerful chip’ for AI
• Google engineer indicted over allegedly stealing AI trade secrets for China
• The GDDR7 graphics memory standard is here.
• Intel plans to be inside 100 million AI PCs by next year.
• Leading edge chipmakers requested $70 billion in CHIPS Act grants.
• Nvidia’s role in the AI wave has made it a $2 trillion company
• Microsoft and Intel strike a custom chip deal that could be worth billions
• “Generative AI has hit the tipping point.”
• Nvidia lets Google’s Gemma AI model loose on its GPUs.
• Intel announces bleeding-edge Intel 14A, targeting 2027 with High-NA EUV.
• SoftBank founder Masayoshi Son wants $100 billion for a new AI chip venture.
• Nvidia is now worth more than Amazon and Alphabet
• AI expert Andrej Karpathy confirms he’s left OpenAI.
• Biden administration says it’s investing $5 billion in research to boost US semiconductor manufacturing.
• Nvidia plans to help companies make custom versions of its expensive AI chips.
• The latest rumor about Sam Altman’s AI chip-building dream could require up to $7 trillion.
• Huawei just retasked a factory to prioritize AI over its bestselling phone
• Meta’s reportedly working on a new AI chip it plans to launch this year.
• AMD says its MI300 AI accelerator is “now tracking to be the fastest revenue ramp of any product in our history”.
• Nvidia’s AI partners are also its competition.
• OpenAI CEO Sam Altman is talking to TSMC about fabricating AI chips.
• OpenAI CEO Sam Altman is still chasing billions to build AI chips
• Intel’s Core Ultra CPUs are here — and they all come with silicon dedicated to AI
• AMD releases new chips to power faster AI training
• The GPU haves and have-nots.
• About that new venture.
• Microsoft is finally making custom chips — and they’re all about AI
• Nvidia is launching a new must-have AI chip — as customers still scramble for its last one
• Meta is working on a new chip for AI

Continue Reading…

OpenAI is reportedly getting closer to launching its in-house chip

OpenAI remains on track to start producing its in-house AI chip next year, according to a report from Reuters. Sources tell the outlet that OpenAI plans to finalize its design over the next few months before sending it to the Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC) for fabrication.

By making a chip of its own, OpenAI won’t have to use Nvidia’s chips as much to train and run AI models. TSMC will produce the chip using the more efficient 3-nanometer technology, with “high-bandwidth memory” and “extensive networking capabilities,” according to Reuters.

At launch, OpenAI will deploy its in-house chip on a “limited scale” and will mostly use it for running AI models, Reuters reports. The company also reportedly plans to develop future versions of the chip with more advanced processors and capabilities.

This follows last year’s report from Reuters, which suggested OpenAI is working with Broadcom to develop a custom chip. OpenAI’s chip design team is led by former Google TPU engineer Richard Ho and has increased from 20 to 40 people in recent months as efforts ramp up, according to Reuters.

Tech giants like OpenAI have poured billions into building out AI infrastructure and buying up chips to power their data-hungry AI models. It doesn’t look like the spending will slow down anytime soon, despite the AI startup DeepSeek calling into question whether companies really need to purchase thousands of chips to power their systems.

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Our favorite mopping vacuum is a whopping $500 off right now

The Freo X Ultra and its base station are bigger than most mopping robot vacuums, but also very effective.

Whether you’re picking up after a rowdy Super Bowl party or need help battling a growing army of children, cats, and dogs, grabbing a robot vacuum that can mop is one of the smartest decisions you can make going into 2025. There are a number of great options available, but few can match the mopping prowess of Narwal’s Freo X Ultra, which is on sale through February 16th for $899 ($500 off) direct from Narwal or at Amazon for the same price thanks to an on-page coupon.

The Freo X Ultra stands above other mopping robots we tested primarily thanks to its triangular spinning mop pads, the pressure of which it can automatically adjust based on the floor type it detects. The two four-liter water tanks allow for longer mopping routines, which is helpful considering the robovac might take additional passes when its dirt-sensing technology deems it necessary to do so. If it somehow happens to miss a spot, you can also use Alexa or Google Assistant voice commands to initiate cleaning and help get it back on track.

The combo vac comes with a base station where it can refill its mopping solution and clean and dry its pads, but it won’t automatically empty the one-liter dustbin like other models. Instead, it uses a compression technique that allows it to run for up to 60 days before you’re required to empty it. We also found the Freo X Ultra works well for vacuuming most surfaces thanks to its 8,200Pa of suction power. That being said, it has trouble clearing plushier carpets due to the substantial mop pads, and its lidar-based navigation isn’t as good at obstacle avoidance as other models that also incorporate cameras.

More Monday morning deals

• Kendrick Lamar keeps insisting we turn the TV off, but that can be hard with so much entertainment yet to be discovered. Amazon’s newest Fire TV Stick 4K Max can help you cut through the noise, though. It’s on sale at Amazon through February 14th for $34.99 ($25 off) — which is only $3 more than its all-time low — when you use promo code 4KFTVGAME. You can use the streaming stick’s included Alexa Voice Remote to ask Alexa for recommendations on new things to watch, listen to, or play with immersive home theater enhancements like HDR10 Plus, Dolby Vision, and Dolby Atmos. You can also use it to control smart home devices and view your Ring or Blink camera feeds from your TV.
• If you need a new TV altogether, you can get a 55-inch Hisense U7N QLED for $498 ($300 off) at Amazon, which is about $20 more than its lowest price to date. Hisense models strike a nice balance between affordability and visual fidelity. The 2024 U7N runs Google TV and is suitable for gaming thanks to its native 144Hz refresh rate. You’ll get full-array local dimming coverage across its 1,500-nit panel to maximize black levels, plus Dolby Vision and HDR10 Plus (with Dolby Atmos audio support) to automatically dial in the cinematic appeal envisioned by film directors and game developers.
• The Shokz OpenRun Pro 2 are on sale for $139.99 ($40 off) at Best Buy, which is the lowest price we’ve seen since they launched in late 2024. The bone-conduction headphones improve on the original pair with stronger bass and USB-C charging, though we found the new AI-powered noise cancellation for call quality isn’t as effective as advertised. That said, they’re a great pair of open-ear headphones if you want to hear your surroundings while working from home or working out in public. Read our review.

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TikTok now offers its Android app for download outside of Google Play

TikTok’s APK download is easy to sideload.

TikTok is now offering US downloads of the Android version of the app on its own website, the company announced last night. With the change, Android users in the United States now have an easy way to download or update the app for the first time since Google removed it from Google Play last month in response to a US ban on the app.

You can download both TikTok and TikTok Lite, a version of the app designed to work with slower internet connections. Once that’s done, you can install or update the app just by opening the file and approving its installation. The process is quick — I was able to update to the most recent version of TikTok on my Pixel 6 in about as much time as it takes to get an app from Google Play.

We're enhancing ways for our community to continue using TikTok by making Android Package Kits available at https://t.co/JoNVqKpnrS so that our U.S. Android users can download our app and create, discover, and connect on TikTok.

More information at our Help Center:…

— TikTok Policy (@TikTokPolicy) February 8, 2025

Like Apple, Google requires app makers to follow certain rules to be listed on the Play Store — rules TikTok isn’t necessarily bound to when offering the download on its own. A TikTok help page claims that, nevertheless, the app “remains safe and secure.” It says that TikTok’s source code is still examined by Oracle and the “Independent Security Inspectors” that ByteDance selected last year following former reported accusations that its Project Texas effort to wall off its US operations from China and appease US lawmakers was “largely cosmetic.”

Google did not immediately respond to The Verge’s request for comment.

Apple doesn’t allow sideloading in the US, so iPhone owners will have to continue using it in a web browser while waiting for Apple to reinstate the app on the App Store. That may not happen anytime soon, as neither Google nor Apple have seemed eager to defy the ban and risk billions in fines, despite President Trump’s executive order staying enforcement of it.

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Federal judge blocks DOGE from accessing sensitive Treasury records

A federal judge temporarily blocked Elon Musk’s DOGE from accessing Treasury Department records containing personal information like Social Security numbers early this morning, reports Inner City Press.

The order is in response to a lawsuit filed yesterday in New York’s Southern District Court. The suit alleges that the administration exceeded its authority, broke the US Administrative Procedures Act, and violated the US Constitution’s separation of powers doctrine when it granted DOGE access to the Treasury’s federal payments system.

District Judge Paul A. Engelmeyer’s order now prohibits the Trump administration ”from granting access to all political appointees, special government employees, and government employees detailed from an agency outside the Treasury Department, to any Treasury Department payment record, payment systems, or any other data systems maintained by the Treasury Department containing personally identifiable information and/or confidential financial information of payees.”

Engelmeyer also orders that those prohibited from accessing the records must “immediately destroy any and all copies of material downloaded from the Treasury Department’s records and systems” since January 20th, 2025. A hearing is scheduled for February 14th.

In a press release announcing the lawsuit Friday, New York Attorney General Letitia James, who filed the lawsuit, explained:

President Trump does not have the power to give away Americans’ private information to anyone he chooses, and he cannot cut federal payments approved by Congress. Musk and DOGE have no authority to access Americans’ private information and some of our country’s most sensitive data.

Attorneys General from these other states joined James in the lawsuit: Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, North Carolina, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Wisconsin.

The lawsuit is one of several levied against Trump’s administration since he took office, including a separate one over DOGE’s access to Treasury records filed on February 3rd. Responding to other legal action, federal judges have also blocked Trump’s executive order targeting birthright citizenship, with one calling it “blatantly unconstitutional.”

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How to stream Super Bowl LIX on Fox and Tubi

Getting ready for the Big Game? Once you’ve invited your friends over and picked what food to order, the most important thing is deciding how and where to watch Super Bowl LIX. But thankfully, it’s going to be very, very easy to catch the Eagles and Chiefs facing off in New Orleans.

If history’s anything to go by, betting against Patrick Mahomes seems ill-advised. Repeating the outcome of this matchup two years ago is his goal. Denying Kansas City a history-making three-peat would be quite the triumph for Philadelphia, however. So if you’re looking for the best way to experience Sunday night’s spectacle (and Kendrick Lamar’s halftime show), I’m here to help.

When is Super Bowl LIX?

The Philadelphia Eagles and Kansas City chiefs will collide on February 9th at Caesars Superdome in New Orleans. Official coverage begins at 6:00PM ET with kickoff scheduled for 6:30PM.

Where can I watch Super Bowl LIX?

Fox will be airing the game on cable, and you can also watch it through various internet TV services like YouTube TV, Hulu with Live TV, and Fubo. Comcast will presenting it in Dolby Vision and Atmos.

But the simplest option for many will be to tune into Tubi’s free live stream of Super Bowl LIX. You won’t need a cable login to watch any of the action live, and the Fox-owned app will be serving the game in upscaled 4K and HDR. And don’t worry: you’ll get all the same, big-money ads during commercial breaks as everyone else.

Which devices support the 4K stream of Super Bowl LIX on Tubi?

Tubi’s website says “you’ll be able to stream in 4K on supported devices like Roku, Fire TV, Android TV, and Apple TV” as long as your streaming player and TV are both 4K-compatible.

Continue Reading…

Everything we think we know about the next iPhone SE

The 2025 iPhone SE is rumored to feature a notch and a single rear camera. | Image: Majin Bu

Apple is expected to announce a new iPhone SE as early as next week, and it could mark a major shakeup to the company’s affordable iPhone, adding in Face ID and killing off the classic home button. We have a pretty good idea of what’s coming after months of leaks and rumors, so here’s everything we expect to see next week.

There won’t be a home button…

The biggest change is that Apple is upending the iPhone SE’s design, after leaving it broadly unchanged since the series’ inception in 2016. The 2022 SE is the last iPhone still using a home button, with a thick bezel around the top and bottom of the screen. But rumors say Apple will now ditch the button, slim the bezel, and add Face ID.

The result will be a phone that looks like the iPhone 14 from the front. Like that phone, it’s expected to place its Face ID sensors in a notch, rather than using the less obtrusive Dynamic Island design that was introduced in the 14 Pro and has been used in every iPhone since then. Apple can’t resist keeping its SE series just a little behind the times.

We’ve seen the notched design in a video shared by the leaker Majin Bu, which shows them handling what is likely a non-functional dummy unit, used by case manufacturers to design and test their accessories.

Here's what the iPhone SE 4 looks like pic.twitter.com/pEyIAJ34VR

— Majin Bu (@MajinBuOfficial) January 25, 2025

…but there will be an Action button

Bu’s video suggests that the SE 4 will include a customizable Action button, but not the Camera Control introduced on the iPhone 16.

Like other SE models it appears to stick to a single rear camera. One leaked spec list suggests that the SE will use a 48 megapixel sensor on the rear, with a 12 megapixel selfie camera on the front, but this is an area where there have been few reports so far.

It’s not going to be a small phone

The redesign will allow the 2025 SE to have a larger screen than the 4.7-inch panel used by the 2022 model. It’s expected to instead use a 6.1-inch display, the same size as the standard iPhone 16, and will also upgrade to OLED.

The bigger screen means the phone as a whole will be larger than any previous iPhone SE, and there will no longer be any iPhone smaller than the standard model. If we assume the new phone will have similar dimensions to the iPhone 16 then it could be 9mm taller than the 2022 SE, and weigh about 25g more.

Lightning is out, USB-C is in

It’s pretty much certain that the phone will have a USB-C port rather than Lightning, allowing it to once again be sold in the EU. The previous SE model was discontinued in EU markets along with every other iPhone using a Lightning port.

iPhone SE 4 looks so beautiful pic.twitter.com/ezhNrrhyf8

— Majin Bu (@MajinBuOfficial) January 26, 2025

It’ll be one of the most powerful iPhones around

On the inside, Bloomberg reports that the phone will use the same A18 chip as the iPhone 16 and 16 Pro models. That’s the same approach Apple has used for its last two SE phones, which have paired the latest silicon with more dated designs. The A18 is expected to be combined with an increase to 8GB of RAM, the minimum required to run Apple Intelligence, the company’s AI tools that provide notification summaries and other functionality, and are now enabled by default. That would all make it more powerful than 2023’s iPhone 15.

It will even beat this year’s iPhone 17 series to feature Apple’s first in-house 5G modem, replacing the Qualcomm components that iPhones have used in the past. Apple has been developing its own modems for over half a decade, but Bloomberg warns that the first iteration is a “downgrade” from the modem in the latest flagship iPhones, and won’t support mmWave 5G, only sub-6 — though that was true of the last iPhone SE too.

It’s coming real soon

While previous rumors have pointed to a launch in March or April, Bloomberg reports that Apple will announce the phone next week, though doesn’t expect it to go on sale until later in the month. It predicts a price of “roughly $500,” higher than the 2022 model’s starting price of $429. That may be offset by a default storage spec of 128GB, meaning there would no longer be any 64GB iPhone on the market.

There’s also a possibility that it won’t be called the iPhone SE after all. Two leakers have predicted that it will instead be called the iPhone 16E, though since the SE name has popped up more often we think that’s still more likely.

If Bloomberg is right, we don’t have long to wait to find out for sure. The SE would be the first of several big iPhone launches this year, with Apple tipped to reveal a slimmer iPhone 17 Air as well as “major updates” to the iPhone 17 and iPhone 17 Pro.

Continue Reading…

Spirit Swap has way more than lo-fi beats to match-3 to

It’s odd that a match-3 game got me in my feelings so much that I’m considering adding making games to my profession of covering them. But that’s exactly what happened after my delightful time with Spirit Swap: Lofi Beats to Match-3 To.

It’s a mouthful of a name, but damned if the game doesn’t do exactly what it says on the tin. There are little colorful block-shaped spirits, and you swap ‘em around to match three (or more) while charming and calming lo-fi beats bang out of your speakers. It reminds me of the recent trend in anime where the titles of shows are hyper-descriptive to the point of hilarity, and just like those shows, there’s a lot more going on than a simple match-3 game with a chill soundtrack. And I love it.

In Spirit Swap, you play as Samar, a witch with a lovely technicolor wardrobe who protects the material plane from mischievous but benign spirits that occasionally cross over and gunk things up. Throughout the game, Samar encounters her gaggle of friends, talking them through their myriad problems by challenging them to spirit-swapping competitions — think Dr. Robotnik’s Mean Bean Machine with a dash of informal talk therapy.

Swapping is gen …

Read the full story at The Verge.

Zoox robotaxi hands on: safe, but lagging

I’m standing outside a nondescript corporate office park in Las Vegas next to a box-shaped vehicle with no proper front or back. It’s got a set of sliding doors, no steering wheel, and touchpad controls. It’s bidirectional, meaning it can move in either direction without turning around. And to be completely frank, it looks more like an oversized toaster than an actual car.

This is the second-generation Zoox robotaxi, a purpose-built autonomous shuttle that has been testing in and around Las Vegas for the last year and a half. Zoox, a subsidiary of Amazon, has been working on it for over a decade, and during this year’s CES, it finally let a few journalists take a ride.

So far, the only robotaxis operating on public roads in the US are run by Alphabet’s Waymo. Others have tried but tend to run out of money or get sidelined by traffic mishaps (or, in the case of Cruise, both). Unlike Waymo, Zoox isn’t open to the public. It hasn’t even said when it will be. And as Waymo eyes new cities and new partnerships, Zoox is still stuck in beta mode.

But maybe it’s about to get unstuck. Inviting journalists to go for a ride is certainly a step toward a public launch.

“W …

Read the full story at The Verge.

My water filtration kit for good times and the very bad

Water water everywhere, nor any drop to drink… without a filter like this.

Access to water is always a concern when heading off the grid in my van — not when I’m home in Amsterdam, a city surrounded by the stuff. That certainty changed recently when government ministers began quietly prodding citizens to stock up on emergency supplies due to an increased risk of armed conflict and other regional unpleasantries.

One recommendation, of many, is to have three liters (almost one gallon) per person per day on hand, or 15 liters per day for my five-person household. That means 105 liters for just one week or 450 liters each month! I don’t have space for that. Who does?

So, I started thinking: why not augment my emergency freshwater stores with a filtration and purification kit that can adapt to all the water sources around me? And since I’m a budding vanlifer and chronic adventurer, let’s make it portable so I can take it anywhere.

I came up with this as a first-time prepper: pairing quick-connect water filters like the $42 LifeStraw sold by Camelbak with Dometic’s portable 11-liter Go water jug ($69.99) and its rechargeable Go Hydration Water Faucet ($99.99). Dirty water goes in and clean water comes out with a double-tap on the faucet. It eve …

Read the full story at The Verge.

PlayStation Network is down

PlayStation Network (PSN) is experiencing some major problems as of Friday evening. According to Sony’s PSN status page, account management, gaming and social, PlayStation Video, PlayStation Store, and the PlayStation Direct website are all dealing with issues.

For gaming specifically, Sony says that “you might have difficulty launching games, apps, or network features.” A colleague wasn’t able to load their purchased digital games or see their friends, trophies, or even their online status on their PS5. Sony is vowing to fix the problems “as soon as possible.”

Sony’s status website says the issues started at 7PM ET, but user reports started spiking on Downdetector at about an hour earlier at around 6PM ET. As I write this, there are less than 70,000 reports of problems on Downdetector, though the volume of reports seems to be dropping. An r/PlayStation thread about the outage has more than 1,600 comments.

Sony didn’t immediately reply to a request for comment.

PSN had an outage that lasted for around eight hours back in October. It dealt with a partial outage in May, too.

Continue Reading…

Meta goes to war with leakers

During a Q&A with employees earlier this week, one of Meta’s top executives gave an ominous warning.

After lamenting “a tremendous number of leaks” from inside the company, CTO Andrew Bosworth said that, while he didn’t want to “ruin the surprises,” the company was “making progress on catching people.”

Since Mark Zuckerberg’s comments at a recent all-hands meeting were published, Meta’s leaders have tried to clamp down on an agitated and tense cohort of workers. The power struggle isn’t over. It’s unclear how Meta is going to look on the other side.

“There’s a funny thing that’s happening with these leaks,” Bosworth said during his Q&A earlier this week (a recording of which I obtained). “When things leak, I think a lot of times people think, ‘Ah, okay, this is leaked, therefore it’ll put pressure on us to change things.’ The opposite is more likely.”

“This is a company that, from Mark’s inception, as far as I can tell, has always played the repeat game,” he said. “And if you create an environment where leaks cause people to make things change internally, then it creates more leaks. You create an incentive structure that’s wrong… I …

Read the full story at The Verge.