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The Neo king of affordable laptops. | Photo: Antonio G. Di Benedetto / The Verge When the MacBook Neo arrived last month, I knew Windows laptop makers were in trouble . For $599, the Neo offers fantastic build quality and solid performance in a sleek and ultra-portable package. Windows laptops in this price range tend to be ugly, cheap-feeling, and a little slow. Despite years of rumors, the MacBook Neo still seemed to take the Windows world by surprise. I expect proper competitors to pop up just as soon as the companies can manage, but I wanted to see what the competition in the PC space is like now. So I asked a bunch of laptop manufacturers to send me their best answers to the MacBook Neo. The MacBook Neo is a 13-i … Read the full story at The Verge. source https://www.theverge.com/tech/908328/macbook-neo-windows-laptop-competitors-asus-lenovo-acer-review-comparison

The new controls apply to both individual and family accounts. | Image: Spotify Spotify is adding new toggles to stop any and all video from playing inside the app, for both music and podcasts. The controls are rolling out worldwide, work across all platforms and devices, and can be used by managers of Family Plans to limit video content for every member on the subscription. The new controls haven't arrived on my UK account or devices yet, but will appear under the "Content and display" settings on a phone, or the "Display" section on desktop. The existing toggle to disable Canvas clips - the short, looping, autoplay videos that Spotify added to the app in 2019 - is joined by a new toggle that disables access to music … Read the full story at The Verge. source https://www.theverge.com/entertainment/909099/spotify-video-controls-music-podcasts-canvas

150Nm of raw climbing assist. | Image: Amflow Amflow, the e-bike brand spun out of DJI, is back with two impressive electric mountain bike ranges built around its incredibly dense Avinox motors. The e-MTBs aim to break the traditional trade-off between power, range, and weight. The flagship Amflow PX (weighing around 20kg / 44lbs) and the Amflow PR (weighing around 22kg / 49lbs) are powered by Avinox's new M2S and M2 drive systems, delivering up to 1,500W of peak power and up to 150Nm of torque - enough to easily snap chains and shred gear teeth if not managed properly. The carbon fiber frames offer an impressive 40 potential geometric combinations, allowing riders to extensively tune … Read the full story at The Verge. source https://www.theverge.com/transportation/909060/amflows-latest-e-bikes-raise-the-bar-again

This thing is poised to eat their lunch. | Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge The MacBook Neo is disrupting the laptop space and putting Apple into the conversation as a value option like it’s never been before. With a price starting at $599 (or $499 for students and teachers ), the colorful laptop’s A18 Pro chip may be stolen from older iPads and iPhones, but it offers more than enough performance for everyday tasks and web browsing. From the screen sharpness, trackpad/keyboard feel, and its aluminum build, everything else about it is in line with more expensive MacBooks. And that means PC makers have a hot new competitor to contend with and adapt to — one that they weren’t ready for . Here’s all the news and analysis of Apple’s Mac for the masses. A MacBook Neo heatsink mod dramatically improves its gaming performance. I’m testing the MacBook Neo’s competition. What do you want to know? A simple mod with a sliver of thermal pad boosts the MacBook Neo’s performance...

Microsoft is losing another veteran executive. Julia Liuson, head of Microsoft's developer division (DevDiv), is resigning from the software giant after 34 years. Liuson spent the past 12 years leading Microsoft's developer business, during a period Microsoft focused more on open source projects and acquired GitHub for $7.5 billion. Liuson will continue as head of DevDiv until the end of June, and then move to an "advisory role" reporting to Microsoft CoreAI chief Jay Parikh, according to an internal memo seen by The Verge . It's not immediately clear who will replace Liuson, or whether the DevDiv team will simply report up to Parikh in the … Read the full story at The Verge. source https://www.theverge.com/tech/908793/microsoft-devdiv-julia-liuson-resignation

Meta Superintelligence Labs is launching its first model since Mark Zuckerberg spent billions overhauling the company's AI efforts. Called Muse Spark, the model now powers the Meta AI app and the Meta AI website in the US, per the company's announcement. In the coming weeks, Meta says, it will appear in WhatsApp, Instagram, Facebook, Messenger, and Meta's smart glasses, as well as roll out in other countries. Like Google Gemini, which easily integrates into Google's product suite, Meta touts Muse Spark as "purpose-built for Meta's products." The model, the first in a new series, will also be available to some of Meta's partners in private … Read the full story at The Verge. source https://www.theverge.com/tech/908769/meta-muse-spark-ai-model-launch-rollout