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Image: The Verge Just a couple of weeks after the Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA) surged with enough support to position it to clear the Senate , the path to new child protections on the internet suddenly looks more complex. Seeing the momentum, other lawmakers and outside groups sense it might be time to promote their own favored solutions, which could snarl KOSA’s Senate passage. Sen. Brian Schatz (D-HI), for example, sees this as an opportune moment for his own Protecting Kids on Social Media Act , which would only allow teens under 18 to use social media with their parents’ consent. “I imagine there’s only going to be one moment for all of the tech bills,” Schatz told The Washington Post in a story published Thursday. “I imagine that all of these efforts... Continue reading… source https://www.theverge.com/2024/2/29/24086559/kids-online-safety-act-schatz-tech-groups

Collage by Cath Virginia / The Verge | Images courtesy of Discotek Physical media might seem like it’s on its deathbed, but the anime DVD and Blu-ray industry couldn’t be more alive. Continue reading… source https://www.theverge.com/24062618/anime-dvd-bluray-discotek-physical-media

A man squats on cracked, dry ground. Dead, dry fish lay on the ground where a pond used to be. | Photo by Kevin Herbian/NurPhoto via Getty Images There’s a 90 percent chance that global average surface temperatures will reach a record high for the year leading up to June 2024, according to new research published today in the journal Scientific Reports . Some places will be more sweltering than others, particularly in parts of Asia. The heat has cascading effects, like raising the risk of drought and wildfire. A weather pattern known as El Niño is to blame. El Niño is part of a natural, cyclical phenomenon, but climate change heightens the stakes by raising baseline temperatures before El Niño swoops in to push the mercury up even higher. “We have seen that this type of warming can cause a lot of troubles in the world, so we want to give people a heads up,” says Deliang Chen, one... Continue reading… source https://www.theverge.com/2024/2/29/24085921/el-nino-forecast-record-he

Cath Virginia / The Verge | Photos from Getty Images By the end of January, more than 25,000 Palestinians had been reported killed as a result of Israel’s military assault on Gaza. Just a handful of doctors remained at the largest medical facility in the Gaza Strip, where every day, 10 children lost one or both of their legs amid the Israeli military’s siege. A weeklong communications blackout — the longest since October 7th — cut off civilians from their families and journalists from the rest of the world. A. wanted to help. With a small group of friends, they set up a GoFundMe campaign with a modest goal of $300. They hoped to donate that money to organizers sending eSIMs, a digital version of a SIM card connecting devices to mobile networks, to Gaza. In the months since October 7th,... Continue reading… source https://www.theverge.com/2024/2/29/24085175/gofundme-gaza-palestine-fundraiser-under-review-esims

Project Music GenAI Control is an “early-stage” prototype tool, so it may be some time before Adobe officially launches it. | Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Adobe’s latest generative AI experiment aims to help people create and customize music without any professional audio experience. Announced during the Hot Pod Summit in Brooklyn on Wednesday, Project Music GenAI Control is a new prototype tool that allows users to generate music using text prompts and then edit that audio without jumping over to dedicated editing software. Users start by inputting a text description that will generate music in a specified style, such as “happy dance” or “sad jazz.” Adobe says its integrated editing controls then allow users to customize those results, adjusting any repeating patterns, tempo, intensity, and structure. Sections of music can be remixed, and audio can be generated as a repeating loop for... Continue reading… source https://www.theverge.com/2024/2/28/24085551/adobe-pro

It’s me, living my best life. | Image: Honda Honda announced a new “extended reality” experience that combines virtual reality with personal mobility devices like the automaker’s self-balancing Uni-One wheelchairs. Honda said it will show off its technology at SXSW in Austin, Texas, next month. The aim is to “elevate” the VR experience, which is largely stationary and confined to a single space, by combining it with Honda’s Segway-like Uni-One mobility device that responds to a user’s movements. In this way, Honda can simulate racing through an immersive alien landscape. The device is hands-free, allowing users the freedom to use their upper bodies to enhance the VR experience. The Uni-One can be raised to a “high position” seat height of 27.6 inches, where the user is close to... Continue reading… source https://www.theverge.com/2024/2/28/24085556/honda-extended-reality-vr-uni-one-mobility-wheelchair

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge President Joe Biden has issued an executive order authorizing the US attorney general “to prevent the large-scale transfer of Americans’ personal data to countries of concern.” According to the US Department of Justice today, those countries could include China, Russia, Iran, and North Korea. The White House says it’s targeting data brokers, which it says collect more personal data than ever before — data that includes things like personal health and financial data. The scale can be staggering: in a recent extreme example from a Consumer Reports study, 48,000 companies had sent Facebook data on a single user . Several departments will be required to roll out new protections under the order. The White House writes that the Department of... Continue reading… source https://www.theverge.com/2024/2/28/24085572/biden-executive-order-personal-data-transfer-china-privacy-surveillance

Lifx has a new outdoor line of smart lighting that supports Matter. | Image: Lifx If you’ve been around the smart home for a while, you’ll remember Lifx . One of the first smart lighting companies, Lifx was Philips Hue’s main competitor in its heyday, both being known for high-quality products and compatibility with all the major platforms. But over the last few years, the Australian-based company and its Wi-Fi smart bulbs have struggled, almost going out of business in 2022 . Now, Lifx is back, and it’s promising to be better and brighter than ever. Purchased by US-based Feit Electric early last year , Lifx now has an influx of cash and a robust distribution network to lean on and is ramping up for a big 2024. “Two years before the acquisition, we had one product launch; in the next 18 months, we’ll be launching 11 to... Continue reading… source https://www.theverge.com/2024/2/28/24085310/lifx-outdoor-smart-lights-price-release-date-specs

Cath Virginia / The Verge | Photos by Amelia Holowaty Krales and Getty Images The bright promise of streaming and digital stores has given way to a darker reality: we rarely have ownership over the art we love, and much is getting lost in the process. Only a fraction of movies released over the last century are available on streaming services, while a staggering 90 percent of classic video games are considered “critically endangered” by archivists. As these platforms continue to dominate the media landscape, a whole lot of cultural history is being abandoned. In this special issue, The Verge will explore how physical media factors into this and its importance in keeping art alive and accessible. That could mean boutique publishers releasing beautiful special editions of games and movies, foundations dedicated to... Continue reading… source https://www.theverge.com/entertainment/24054458/physical-media-preservation-discs-cartridges-digital

Image: Lego The transformation of Fortnite into a gaming platform continues with the addition of some new games from Lego . Following the release of the Minecraft -like survival game Lego Fortnite in December , Lego has launched two more titles inside of Fortnite . One is a multiplayer title called Lego Raft Survival; the other is an obstacle course called Lego Obby Fun . Both games were built with the Unreal Editor for Fortnite tool . The launches come as Epic is attempting to expand Fortnite beyond its battle royale roots , with a series of different experiences inside of the game. Lego Fortnite ’s launch was quickly followed by the arcade racer Rocket Racing and the music game Fortnite Festival . Epic and Lego first announced their partnership in 2022 ,... Continue reading… source https://www.theverge.com/2024/2/27/24084644/fortnite-new-lego-games-raft-survival-obby-fun

Image: Wendy’s Imagine waiting in line at your local Wendy’s drive-thru during the lunch rush, only to pull up to the menu board and realize that the spicy chicken nuggets you’ve been craving all day will cost you a dollar extra. That nightmare may soon become a reality, because Wendy’s plans on testing surge pricing that will increase the price of its spicy nuggets, burgers, Frostys, and other favorites during its busiest times. During an earnings call earlier this month, Wendy’s CEO Kirk Tanner said the fast food chain plans on investing $20 million to roll out digital menu boards to US-based restaurants by the end of 2025. As part of the change, Wendy’s will also introduce something called “dynamic prices” that will change the prices on the digital... Continue reading… source https://www.theverge.com/2024/2/27/24084527/wendys-surge-dynamic-pricing-ai-2025

Image: Hugo Herrera / The Verge Crypto miners have successfully blocked the Department of Energy’s (DOE) survey of Bitcoin’s energy consumption in the US. A federal judge has issued a temporary restraining order that prevents the DOE from moving forward with data collection. More Bitcoin is mined in the US than anywhere else in the world , a trend that has sparked legal battles over the impact energy-hungry crypto mines have on the power grid, nearby communities, and the environment. The DOE announced last month that it would start to collect data on the electricity consumption of crypto mines, mandating that companies comply with the “ emergency collection of data request. ” Industry groups were quick to challenge the move in court. The Texas Blockchain Council and... Continue reading… source https://www.theverge.com/2024/2/27/24079048/bitcoin-crypto-mining-energy-department-electricity-survey-restraining-order

Image: Playstack In Casino Royale , James Bond gets a bit of poker advice: You never play your hand. You play the man sitting across from you. Okay, but what if you just played your hand? What if no one was sitting at the other end of the table? Balatro , a new turn-based card game available on most platforms, takes the mechanics of poker and turns them into the basis of a compelling roguelike, the subgenre of games where each playthrough is a single perilous attempt. Balatro is a poker game inasmuch as Scrabble is a word game. Knowing the language and probabilities of poker will help you, but ultimately, this is a logic game. There are no bluffs, no pots, just the pure composition of poker hands satisfyingly paired with a thrilling game loop. This makes B... Continue reading… source https://www.theverge.com/24082252/balatro-review-poker-roguelike-videogame

Seagate’s speedy storage expansion cards are reminiscent of retro memory cards but also expensive without these periodic sales. | Image: Seagate We’ve griped long enough about the ballooning install sizes of the latest AAA games, but complaining won’t slow the trend. Without some miraculous development in data compression technology, the only remedy today is to buy extra storage. Xbox Series X and S gamers have had it the roughest with the exorbitant markups on its proprietary storage cards, but regular discounts are starting to make them a little more affordable. For example, Seagate’s 1TB Storage Expansion Card is down to $125.99 at Amazon ($94 off) , which is the lowest price we’ve seen so far. The 2TB card is also on sale for $249.99 ($110 off) at Amazon , which is only $20 more than its all-time low. Seagate’s storage expansion cards are officially licensed by Microsoft, and u... Continue reading… source https://www.theverge.com/2024/2/26/24083465/seagate-storage-e

Image: Fiat Stellantis-owned Fiat revealed five new concepts that it says will serve as inspiration for a future family of vehicles that will come in a variety of powertrains while sharing the same platform. The new lineup, inspired by the Italian automaker’s Panda city cars, will kick off in July 2024 with a new city car, followed by a new vehicle each year for the following three years. In addition, the concepts preview a pickup truck, a fastback sedan, an SUV, and a camper. Fiat is hedging its bets, committing to producing not only electric versions of each vehicle but also hybrid and internal combustion engine versions. The automaker says this is to “ensure maximum relevance to customers wherever they live in the world.” The new lineup,... Continue reading… source https://www.theverge.com/24083454/fiat-panda-family-concept-ev-hybrid-truck-suv

The ThinkPad T14s Gen 5 | Photo: Lenovo While the ThinkBook Transparent Display laptop Lenovo showed off at MWC 2024 is just a proof of concept, the company also announced refreshed versions of several ThinkPads and ThinkBooks, as well as a few accessories. That includes three refreshed ThinkPad T-series laptops: the ThinkPad T14 Gen 5, ThinkPad T14s Gen 5, and ThinkPad T16 Gen 3, all with Intel Core Ultra processors (or an AMD Ryzen 8040 option for the T14 Gen 5). All three get Lenovo’s Communication Bar, which extends a portion of the top bezel to house the camera and microphones, giving those laptops slimmer top bezels and taller display ratios. Lenovo previously added this feature to other ThinkPad laptops, like the X1 Carbon and X1 Nano . Image: Lenovo ... Continue reading… source https://www.theverge.com/2024/2/25/24081225/lenovo-thinkpad-thinkbook-laptops-mwc-2024

Image: Vjeran Pavic / The Verge Ford has halted shipments of the new 2024 F-150 Lightning electric truck as of February 9th while it carries out quality inspections. Several outlets reported the pause on Friday, but none could say what prompted the check. In the meantime, Ford is still manufacturing the Lightning at the Rouge Electric Vehicle Center in Dearborn, Michigan, according to Automotive News . The carmaker reportedly declined to say when the shipments will be resumed. Ford spokesperson Emma Bergg told CNN that the hold isn’t unusual for the company when production moves to a new year. It’s unclear exactly what is causing this freeze, but Automotive News reports a “supplier parts concern” halted production of both the gas and electric versions of the F-150 for a... Continue reading… source https://www.theverge.com/2024/2/25/24082998/ford-f-150-lightning-2024-stop-ship-quality-check

Avenir Telecom’s Energizer Hard Case P28K is an 27.8mm thick smartphone with a 28,000mAh battery in it. | Photo by Jon Porter / The Verge Four years ago, my then-colleague Vlad brought you news of an 18,000mAh battery with a phone in it . Well, I am delighted to inform you that Avenir Telecom is at it again, only now it’s packed a smartphone into a 28,000mAh battery. That, in this industry, is what we call progress. The device itself is called the Hard Case P28K, and like its predecessor it’ll be sold under the Energizer brand (which Avenir licenses from the battery manufacturer). The company claims the P28K’s battery is substantial enough to last for a whole week regular of usage. The device also has a pretty rugged IP69 rating to survive the kinds of off-the-grid adventures you might want to have while away from a charging point. Talk time is rated at 122 hours (or a... Continue reading… source https://www.theverge.com/2024/2/25/24082954/avenir-telecom-energizer-hard-case-p2

Illustration: The Verge Apple’s future roadmap for wearables may include AI-powered smart glasses, as well as AirPods with cameras, according to Mark Gurman in today’s Power On newsletter for Bloomberg. Both concepts are in the exploratory phase inside Apple, representing more of a look at the company’s future plans than discreet products. The smart glasses would be angled as AirPods stand-ins, he says, just with more sensors, AI features, and longer-lasting batteries. But even though they’d serve as a cheaper head-worn gadget than the Vision Pro , they wouldn’t be the AR face computer with high-quality transparent displays that Apple is trying to get to . Gurman writes that these glasses would instead be a step in that direction that’s more comparable to Meta... Continue reading… source https://www.theverge.com/2024/2/25/24082760/apple-smart-glasses-airpods-cameras-smart-ring

Image: Cath Virginia / The Verge Hi, friends! Welcome to Installer No. 27, your guide to the best and Verge -iest stuff in the world. (If you’re new here, hello, you’re awesome, and also, you can read all the old editions at the Installer homepage . Oh, and send me some recommendations! The more the merrier!) This week, I’ve been playing Assassin’s Creed Nexus on the Quest 3, reading about obsessive ramen makers and Noah Kahan’s journey to TikTok superstardom , finally watching Dune so I can be ready to see the sequel, also finally watching Patriot , and trying desperately to learn to make crispy Brussels sprouts. I also have for you a mega-viral new camera, a better way to manage your smart home, a new book about Twitter, and a whole bunch of awesome games to play this... Continue reading… source https://www.theverge.com/24081130/balatro-fujifilm-x100vi-drive-to-survive-twitter-books-installer

C’mon Barbie let’s go make some phone calls. | Image: HMD HMD is crossing its fingers for a second summer of Barbie . The company, which has exclusively sold phones under the Nokia brand name for the past seven years, has announced plans to release a Barbie-branded flip phone this July in partnership with Mattel. It’s one of several devices HMD has on the way for this summer, which also include a new Nokia-branded retro feature phone, and an HMD-branded smartphone. Finally, the company has also announced early plans for a new development platform it’s calling “HMD Fusion.” No pricing, specs, or features were announced for the as-yet-unnamed Barbie phone, but expect it to be a traditional feature flip phone rather than a smartphone. In an interview, HMD’s global head of insight, proposition, and... Continue reading… source https://www.theverge.com/2024/2/25/24082418/hmd-human-mobile-devices-barbie-flip-phone-fusion-mwc-2024-barcelona

The fake NBA Top Shot tweet. | Image: X / @wojespn People who still use NBA Top Shot were the primary targets of a scam tweet posted to ESPN reporter Adrian Wojnarowski’s account on X Saturday evening at about 6:30PM ET. The tweet referred to NBA Top Shot as a “popular” NFT platform, despite the fact that current activity levels are a tiny fraction of what we saw during its peak , and falsely claimed a “free NFT pack is available to all customers.” The tweet linked visitors to a scam version of the NBA Top Shot website (the link went to a .org address instead of the official site’s .com URL) that could attempt to drain assets from people who give it access to their crypto wallets. About a half hour later, the official Top Shot account posted, saying, “There is NO Free Airdrop happening... Continue reading… source https://www.theverge.com/2024/2/24/24082520/adrian-wojnarowski-twitter-hack-nft-nba-top-shot

Sergey Brin at a World Economic Forum session in 2017. | Photo by Fabrice Coffrini / AFP via Getty Images Google co-founder Sergey Brin is facing a wrongful death lawsuit from the widow of one of two pilots who died in a plane crash off the coast of California in May 2023. It blames a poorly installed modification for the crash and claims his representatives intentionally slowed recovery efforts to destroy evidence, as previously reported by Bloomberg and Fortune . An updated complaint filed on February 13th in the Santa Clara County Superior Court of California says Lance Maclean and co-pilot Dean Rushfedlt were contracted to bring Brin’s seaplane from California to Fiji for island-hopping with friends. Ferrying the $8 million, twin-engine Viking Air Twin Otter Series 400 that far required an auxiliary fuel system, which the complaint... Continue reading… source https://www.theverge.com/2024/2/24/24082072/sergey-brin-google-2023-plane-crash-lawsuit

Illustration: The Verge Google has issued an explanation for the “embarrassing and wrong” images generated by its Gemini AI tool. In a blog post on Friday , Google says its model produced “inaccurate historical” images due to tuning issues. The Verge and others caught Gemini generating images of racially diverse Nazis and US Founding Fathers earlier this week. “Our tuning to ensure that Gemini showed a range of people failed to account for cases that should clearly not show a range,” Prabhakar Raghavan, Google’s senior vice president, writes in the post. “And second, over time, the model became way more cautious than we intended and refused to answer certain prompts entirely — wrongly interpreting some very anodyne prompts as sensitive.” S... Continue reading… source https://www.theverge.com/2024/2/23/24081309/google-gemini-embarrassing-ai-pictures-diverse-nazi

Illustration: The Verge Google has offered a glimpse into its final arguments to a DC federal judge as it seeks to convince the court it’s not operating an unlawful monopoly in search. The company filed an unsealed version of its posttrial brief on Friday in its battle against the US Department of Justice over its search distribution agreements. The DOJ has argued that Google used exclusionary contracts with phone manufacturers and web browser operators to make it harder for other search engines to compete. It’s expected to file its own brief by the end of the day as well. In the brief filed Friday, Google said that evidence from the trial shows “conclusively” that “Google is the highest quality, most popular search engine in the United States, with the highest... Continue reading… source https://www.theverge.com/2024/2/23/24080493/google-doj-antitrust-search-lawsuit-final-arguments-post-trial-brief-filed

Illustration by Nick Barclay / The Verge I was really hoping I wouldn’t have to do this again . Last year, it seemed like there was no reason to believe Spotify would ever roll out its long-delayed HiFi lossless streaming feature, which was announced in 2021 and then never mentioned again. But then, one of the company’s co-presidents kept hope alive , telling my colleague Alex Heath “we are going to do it.” That was in March 2023. And now here we find ourselves, three years and one day after Spotify HiFi’s buzzy original announcement , and still nothing. Like always, there are signs that the company is continuing to work on HiFi — although it’s unlikely to be called that anymore. And unlike rival services, you’re likely going to have to pay a lot more for it, whenever it actually... Continue reading… source https://www.theverge.com/24080999/spotify-hifi-lossless-high-res-audio-three-years-rip

Corsair’s Scimitar RGB Elite gaming mouse is our top pick for gamers who play a lot of MMOs or MOBAs. | Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge It’s been a good week for gaming accessory deals. Not only is the official Xbox Wireless Controller on sale for just $44 ($16 off) , but you can still replace your Nintendo Switch Joy-Con with the Hori Split Pad Compact for $32.49 ($18 off) . And PC gamers can get in on the savings, too, now that Corsair’s Scimitar RGB Elite is down to $59.99 ($20 off) at Amazon and Best Buy . That’s the lowest price we’ve seen on the wired gaming mouse since Black Friday and only $10 shy of its lowest price to date. Corsair’s gaming mouse is our top pick for playing MMOs, MOBAs, and action RPGs like World of Warcraft and Final Fantasy XIV . With an adjustable 12-button side panel, the USB-A mouse makes it easy to quickly swap weapons or abilities using... Continue reading… source https://www.theverge.com/2024/2/23/24080021/corsair-scimit

Because who wants to pay $70 just to develop analog drift in another three months? | Photo by Cameron Faulkner / The Verge I love the Nintendo Switch’s Joy-Con, but they develop stick drift way too easily , and people with ham-sized hands like mine can’t play for long before cramps set in. They’re also pretty expensive to replace. I’ve personally settled on Hori’s Split Pad Pro Joy-Con replacements to remedy all of that, but it makes my Switch too bulky to fit comfortably in my smaller everyday carry. The Hori Split Pad Compact offer a nice balance between size, affordability, and added grip, and you can get a pair in white / yellow for only $32.49 (about $18 off) at Target . The Split Pad Compact suffers from the same deficiencies as most third-party Joy-Con replacements: you’ll forsake rumble, NFC, and motion control, and you can’t use them individually as... Continue reading… source https://www.theverge.com/2024/2/22/24079982/steelseries-arctis-nova-pro-wireless-hori

Image: Riot Games Riot Games has given Project L , its in-development 2v2 fighting game, an official name: 2XKO . 2XKO — a name that is unlikely to spawn its own catchphrase ala “When’s Mahvel?” — was first announced in 2019 along with a battery of other League -themed projects including Arcane and Legends of Runeterra . Last year, however, Riot underwent layoffs of around 500 people , scaling back projects including Runeterra and shuttering its publishing arm Riot Forge . Since that first announcement, Riot has offered sporadic development updates culminating in the game’s first hands-on demo at EVO 2023. 2XKO is a 2v2 fighter, but unlike other tag-team fighting games like Marvel vs. Capcom , 2XKO lets you play competitively or cooperatively. Players can team... Continue reading… source https://www.theverge.com/2024/2/22/24079608/project-l-2kxo-fighting-game-league-of-legends

It has been hard to pin down what sort of tone Lionsgate wanted to strike with its new Borderlands adaptation from director Eli Roth , but judging from the film’s first trailer, it seems as if the studio’s gunning for a Guardians of the Galaxy vibe. Based on the game series by the same name, Borderlands tells the story of alien outlaw Lilith (Cate Blanchett), a wanted woman from the planet Pandora who returns to her homeworld in search of a fabled vault rumored to be filled with invaluable treasures. Though Lilith knows her way around Pandora, she also knows that her best bet at finding the vault is to go hunting with a team. Lilith’s got little in common with mercenary Roland (Kevin Hart), mad scientist Dr. Tannis (Jamie Lee Curtis),... Continue reading… source https://www.theverge.com/24078786/borderlands-movie-trailer

Illustration: The Verge ChatGPT users began reporting odd responses from the chatbot last night that included switching between languages , getting stuck in loops , or even repeatedly correcting itself . Some of the responses were just pure gibberish. While discussing the Jackson family of musicians, the chatbot explained to a Reddit user that “Schwittendly, the sparkle of tourmar on the crest has as much to do with the golver of the ‘ moon paths’ as it shifts from follow.” At 10:40PM ET, OpenAI acknowledged on its status page that it was “investigating reports of unexpected responses from ChatGPT,” and a few minutes later said it had found the issue and was working on a fix. As of this writing, the status page still features a yellow-bordered box at the top... Continue reading… source https://www.theverge.com/2024/2/21/24079047/chatgpt-malfunction-hallucination-responses-openai

Pound for pound and dollar for dollar, it’s one of the best controllers you can buy. | Photo by Antonio G. Di Benedetto / The Verge A sudden gout attack dictated that my long holiday weekend was full of gaming. Between fraught journeys across the high seas in Skull and Bones , I scratched my competitive itch with several rounds of Tekken 8 and Madden NFL 24 . However, my game time was interrupted by a few too many dropped combos and misfires due to worsening button responsiveness in my controller. It would have felt good to exhaust my frustration by chucking the controller right through my TV, but a much less expensive (and less alarming) solution would have been to replace it with one of the official Xbox wireless controllers currently on sale. Amazon has core colors such as white , black , and red starting at $44 ($16 off). You can also pay $49 ($16 off) for blue , g... Continue reading… source https://www.theverge.com/2024/2/20/24078124/xbox-controller-elgato-steam-deck-

Image: Arc Arc is ready to make a splash with its latest electric boat model: a wake sports boat appropriately called the Arc Sport. With 226kWh of battery capacity and a 570-horsepower motor, Arc claims that the Arc Sport will have “more than double the torque of most premium wake boats.” The new model is aimed at the growing wake sports segment, which has been called the fastest-growing water sports category in the world. That means that it’s also leading to a profound impact on the environment, especially around lakes, where most wake sports boats are used. And while the Arc Sport will be unique in its lack of carbon emissions, it will still have an impact on aquatic life. Wake boats have been known to disturb sediment at the bottom of lakes ,... Continue reading… source https://www.theverge.com/2024/2/20/24075155/arc-sport-electric-wake-sport-boat-specs-price

Image: Alex Parkin / The Verge Last year was a big one for the right-to-repair movement , with California and other states passing laws that promised consumers they can fix their own stuff — or take that stuff to a third-party repair shop without breaking their warranty or their gadgets. This year, more states are considering laws to the same effect, and the tech industry appears to be more behind the effort than ever. (Some companies appear to be only begrudgingly behind it, but it’s a win for the movement nonetheless.) But whenever you ask about the state of the right-to-repair fight, you tend to hear a lot of optimism and then two scary-sounding words: parts pairing . Those words, and what they mean for your ability to actually fix your stuff, are what might be... Continue reading… source https://www.theverge.com/24078212/right-to-repair-xbox-game-pass-cloud-vergecast

John Oliver poses with his Emmy awards on January 15th, 2024. | Photo: Kevin Mazur / Getty Images HBO has long posted the main segment from new episodes of Last Week Tonight With John Oliver to YouTube on Monday to coincide with the episodes’ premiere, but now you’ll have to wait. John Oliver posted yesterday that “HBO has decided they’re going to wait until Thursday to post them to YouTube from now on,” adding that he hopes HBO changes its mind. HBO confirmed the change to Variety yesterday, saying that when the show first premiered, “the convenience of watching on Max did not exist,” so it leaned on YouTube clips for exposure and promotion. The rep added that the company hopes “fans choose to watch the entire show on Max.” I know I usually share a link to our main story here on Mondays, but HBO has decided they’re going to wait... Continue reading… source https://www.theverge.com/2024/2/20/24078148/hbo-last-week-tonight-with-john-oliver-youtube-clips-delayed-thursday

Photo by Becca Farsace / The Verge Fujifilm’s X100V became so wildly popular that it felt like the camera was endlessly backordered at every camera retailer around. On the secondary market, prices for the rangefinder-style mirrorless camera shot up into truly silly territory after it had a big viral moment on TikTok. The X100V was so in demand that Fujifilm could’ve taken the easy route for a successor and still been guaranteed to have a hit on its hands. The new model, being announced today, looks practically the same on the outside, but the X100VI includes meaningful improvements that will make it a more capable camera — in far more shooting environments — than any previous entrant in the X100 series. The flip side to those upgrades is that the price has climbed by... Continue reading… source https://www.theverge.com/2024/2/20/24075147/fujifilm-x100vi-camera-announced-features-price

Image: Porsche Porsche announced two new plug-in hybrid Panameras, as the German automakers looks to hedge its bets by offering a broader set of electrified options . Late last year, Porsche unveiled the third generation Panamera, which included the Panamera Turbo E-Hybrid as the first of four Panamera E-Hybrid models that will eventually be offered. Today, the automaker is adding two more: the Panamera 4 E-Hybrid and the Panamera 4S E-Hybrid. The fourth model will be announced at a later date. Porsche says it is responding to “significant demand for efficient and dynamic E-Hybrid powertrains” with the release of these two new variants. Indeed, hybrids are increasingly in demand in a variety of markets , even as sales growth of pure battery-electric... Continue reading… source https://www.theverge.com/2024/2/19/24077329/porsche-hybrids-4-4s-panamera-specs-price

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge This year’s first Direct will take place Wednesday morning at 9AM ET, and, according to Nintendo, the 25-minute presentation will feature Switch games “coming in the first half of 2024 from our publishing and development partners.” We didn’t need to consult the video game oracles to know a Nintendo Direct was on the way. Not only have Microsoft and PlayStation shared their upcoming release schedules, but taking a look at the dates of the last handful of Directs revealed that Nintendo is fond of the first week of February . A #NintendoDirect : Partner Showcase is coming! Watch on-demand via YouTube on 2/21 at 6am PT for around 25 mins of info focused on #NintendoSwitch games coming in the first half of 2024 from our publishing and... Continue reading… source https://www.theverge.com/2024/2/19/24062039/nintendo-direct-february-2024

Getting water on phones happens to the best of us. Lucky for us, there’s one household staple the internet consistently suggests will draw that liquid out and save phones: uncooked rice. But contrary to popular advice, Apple, like most people in tech support, explicitly advises against putting your wet phone in a bag of rice. “Don’t put your iPhone in a bag of rice. Doing so could allow small particles of rice to damage your iPhone,” Apple support documents said. The support documents first spotted by Macworld are technically addressing what to do when you get the liquid detection alert on your iPhone. They’re not just out to put a long lingering internet myth to bed. To that end they also suggested avoiding using an external heat... Continue reading… source https://www.theverge.com/2024/2/19/24077532/apple-support-document-wet-iphone-no-rice

Image: Apple Slowly but surely, Apple TV Plus has morphed itself into arguably the premier destination for streaming science fiction. (Or at least streaming sci-fi not named Star Wars or Star Trek .) There are adaptations like Silo and Foundation ; original stories like Invasion , For All Mankind , and Severance ; and even a franchise spinoff with Monarch: Legacy of Monsters . There’s a nice range to the service’s offerings — and now it’s adding another flavor with the premiere of Constellation . In its first few episodes the show is dark, creepy, and will mess with your mind in a way that makes it just the thing for those already missing True Detective: Night Country . The first three episodes of Constellation premiere on February 21st, and they follow an... Continue reading… source https://www.theverge.com/24065198/constellation-review-apple-tv-plus

A charging station outside of a Toyota Store in Blauvelt, New York, on February 5th, 2024. | Image: Kena Betancur / VIEWpress / Getty President Biden’s administration plans to pull back on strict new Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rules that would have forced US automakers to turn EVs into their main business by 2032. That’s according to The New York Times , which wrote yesterday that industry players had moved the administration to give them more time to bring down EV costs, and for a nationwide charging infrastructure to be more fully built out. The Times writes that labor leaders pressured Biden to give them more time to extend union membership to those working in new US EV plants. As the article notes, labor union support is crucial as Biden faces re-election where he’s straddling a dire climate situation and attacks from candidate and former President Donald... Continue reading… source https://www.theverge.com/2024/2/18/24076585/biden-emission-rules-relaxed-pollut

Image: The Verge Apple will reportedly have to pay around €500 million (about $539 million USD) in the EU for stifling competition against Apple Music on the iPhone. Financial Times reported this morning that the fine comes after regulators in Brussels, Belgium investigated a Spotify complaint that Apple prevented apps from telling users about cheaper alternatives to Apple’s music service. The issue comes down to Apple’s efforts to keep apps and users corraled inside its App Store payments system. Spotify complained in 2019 that Apple’s policies muted competition against Apple Music, kicking off an EU investigation the next year . The EU whittled its objections down to oppose Apple’s refusal to let developers even link out to their own subscription... Continue reading… source https://www.theverge.com/2024/2/18/24076526/apple-music-antitrust-fine-brussels-eu-spotify

Illustration: William Joel / The Verge Hi, friends! Welcome to Installer No. 26, your guide to the best and Verge -iest stuff in the world. (If you’re new here, welcome. So psyched you found us, and also you can read all the old editions at the Installer homepage .) This week, I’ve been playing with the redesigned You.com for AI research, trying out the Phanpy Mastodon client, getting back into Zombies, Run after reading Vee Song’s great story about Fantasy Hike , and reading the new “lost chapter” of The Martian before probably just rereading The Martian again. I also have for you some non-earbud earbuds, a nerdy video about nerdy stuff, a new to-do list app, a new thing in ChatGPT, and much more. Let’s do it. (As always, the best part of Installer is your ideas and tips. What... Continue reading… source https://www.theverge.com/2024/2/18/24075077/bose-ultra-open-superlist-bulletin-text-files-note-apps-installer

Not today. It appears that Apple Pay is down, particularly for Chase customers — Verge staffers have had their cards declined while trying to pay with Chase cards using Apple Pay, while using the same physical card works just fine. Several people on Threads confirmed the same issue when I asked — although people with non-Chase banks like Citi appear to be using Apple Pay just fine. Apple’s system status page says that Apple Pay and Wallet have a maintenance in progress which started at 12PM — which is a pretty weird time to start a maintenance that disrupts payments. The page also says that “Some Maryland Users may have issues,” but we’ve had reports in both New York and LA, so it appears we’re all into crab cakes and football today. ... Continue reading… source https://www.theverge.com/2024/2/17/24075840/apple-pay-is-down-for-chase-customers-and-perhaps-others

Illustration: The Verge Reddit will let “an unnamed large AI company” have access to its user-generated content platform in a new licensing deal, according to Bloomberg yesterday. The deal, “worth about $60 million on an annualized basis,” the outlet writes, could still change as the company’s plans to go public are still in the works. Until recently, most AI companies trained their data on the open web without seeking permission. But that’s proven to be legally questionable , leading companies to try to get data on firmer footing. It’s not known what company Reddit made the deal with, but it’s quite a bit more than the $5 million annual deal OpenAI has reportedly been offering news publishers for their data. Apple has also been seeking multi-year deals with... Continue reading… source https://www.theverge.com/2024/2/17/24075670/reddit-ai-training-license-deal-user-content

Paramount Both Paramount Plus and Peacock have been working hard to court subscribers in order to further solidify their respective statuses as lasting players in the streaming space, but according to a new report, the platforms’ parent companies could be considering a unique partnership. The Wall Street Journal reports that Comcast and Paramount have been in recent talks about a potential streaming partnership that could see Paramount Plus and Peacock being offered to subscribers together as a package deal. Along with making access to the two platforms comparatively cheaper than buying separate subscriptions, the partnership would help Comcast and Paramount “produce significant cost savings — from spending on programming to marketing.” Word of... Continue reading… source https://www.theverge.com/2024/2/16/24074887/paramount-plus-peacock-partnership

Illustration by Erik Carter A decade later, Spike Jonze’s sci-fi love story is still a better depiction of AI than many of its contemporaries. Continue reading… source https://www.theverge.com/24066233/her-ai-film-spike-jonze-joaquin-phoenix-scarlett-johansson

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge YouTube now lets creators add and remix music videos in their Shorts. In its post announcing the feature , YouTube points out that creators can use music videos from artists like Beyoncé and Maggie Rogers — even as TikTok fights with the record label representing them. The timing suggests it’s a direct response to TikTok’s current music licensing battle. Earlier this month, TikTok lost tracks from artists like Taylor Swift, Drake, and Olivia Rodrigo due to a dispute with Universal Music Group (UMG). TikTok and UMG never renewed their licensing deal after the music label accused TikTok of trying to “bully” it into a bad deal and claimed the social platform wants to “build a music-based business, without paying fair value for the music.”... Continue reading… source https://www.theverge.com/2024/2/15/24074036/youtube-shorts-music-video-remix-umg-tiktok

“The godfather is returning,” Scout CEO Scott Keogh said. “If you think about it, Scout sort of invented the segment.” | Image: Scout The VW-owned brand broke ground on its new factory in South Carolina, where it eventually will churn out hundreds of thousands of rugged, battery-powered off-roaders. And that includes “chunky buttons.” Continue reading… source https://www.theverge.com/2024/2/15/24073745/scout-motors-ev-truck-factory-groundbreaking-ceo-interview

Photo by Michael M. Santiago / Getty Images New York City is the latest government to go after big tech companies for allegedly addicting kids to their platforms. Several city agencies, including NYC’s Department of Health and Mental Hygiene and Department of Education, filed suit against Meta, TikTok, Snap, and Google, accusing them of “fueling the nationwide youth mental health crisis.” The city charged them with public nuisance and negligence. The city claims that the platforms’ design features, including recommendation algorithms and likes, addict children to the services and manipulate them into spending more and more time online. The lawsuit adds to a growing wave of litigation from state and local governments that target tech platforms for allegedly addictive features... Continue reading… source https://www.theverge.com/2024/2/15/24073777/new-york-city-suing-tiktok-meta-google-snap-kids-mental-health