Disney has had a tumultuous run since Bob Iger’s return as the company’s CEO, which came just two years after he handed the reins over to Bob Chapek. Iger has since worked to undo some of Chapek’s changes as the company contends with a streaming-focused future.
Outside of streaming, Iger is hoping to boost Disney’s slate of films and reinvigorate interest in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. But with Iger’s contract set to expire in 2026, a lot remains unclear about what’s next for the future of Disney. Here are all the major changes Iger has made so far.
After months of preparation, Epic Games will finally take on Apple in court in a trial that could fundamentally change the makeup of the App Store. The fight dates back to August, when Epic added a direct payment mechanism to its hit battle royale game Fortnite in violation of Apple’s rules. The iPhone maker quickly removed the game from the App Store, and Epic responded shortly after with an antitrust lawsuit aiming to establish the App Store as a monopoly. The case will finally be brought to trial starting May 3rd.
The trial promises to deliver huge revelations about the inner workings of one of the biggest and most influential companies in the world, with testimony from Apple CEO Tim Cook, Craig Federighi, Phil Schiller, Epic CEO Tim Sweeney, and more. We’ve already made some fascinatingdiscoveries from documents published ahead of the trial, and there’s sure to be a lot more news ahead.
The European Union’s Digital Markets Act (DMA) has come into force, and it’s meant that some of the world’s biggest tech companies are having to make major changes to how they operate.
The law, which is designed to increase competition in the EU’s digital markets, designates some large online companies and their services as “gatekeepers.” Those that have received the gatekeeper designation — the companies on the list are Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, ByteDance, Meta, and Microsoft — have to meet strict requirements intended to reduce anticompetitive behavior.
Many members of The Verge’s staff enjoy cooking — and all enjoy eating. Inspired by that admittedly obvious thought, we asked them to say which kitchen tools they most enjoy using these days.
We got a wide and fascinating array of answers. They include gadgets that need to be charged, such as electric kettles, blenders, and smart thermometers, as well as simpler, non-powered tools like egg holders, spreader knives, and wooden spoons. (Sometimes simpler can be better.)
So check out how our writers and editors hone their foodie skills, and let us know in the comments what your favorite kitchen tool is. (And feel free to check out our previous listing of favorite kitchen gadgets.)
Charged gadgets
As new parents, my wife and I heat up water a lot, whether it’s for baby formula or for our third cup of a caffeinated beverage to get us through the afternoon. We used to heat our water in a teapot on the stove — the horror — but after getting an electric kettle over the holidays, our lives have been forever changed. With this, the water heats up way faster, and the kettle turns itself off once the water is too hot, meaning it won’t whistle through the house (and possibly wake the baby).
It’s the only kitchen gadget that has a permanent spot on our counters. Maybe I’ll heat up some tea for myself right now. — Jay Peters, news editor
After realizing we’re not a family who likes to get their hands dirty while cooking (we leave that part to mixers and blenders), an automatic soap dispenser has become one of the most used devices in our kitchen. We opted for a cheap $25 option from Amazon that lets you adjust how much foaming soap is dispensed and lasts for a couple months between charges, but companies like Simplehuman sell pricier $80 versions wrapped in brushed metal or other fancy finishes that could better match your decor. We find we use less soap now that it’s always perfectly portioned out, and buying refills in bulk is much cheaper. There’s now one in every bathroom in our home. — Andrew Liszewski, senior reporter
I may take some heat for this, but anyone who tells you that frozen Junior Mints, M&M’s, or — gasp — Sno-Caps are the perfect companion for an at-home movie night is unequivocally wrong. Popcorn is the true film snack, and Presto’s basic air popper has been my go-to in recent years for quickly whipping up large batches of the timeless treat.
The PopLite doesn’t require oil, nor do you need to shake or stir it like you do traditional stovetop methods. You just toss in the kernels, plug it in, and let the hot air do the work for you. Admittedly, it’s a little loud and bigger than I’d like for a single-use appliance that sits in my pantry, but you’d be hard-pressed to find a more foolproof method of making popcorn. Well, unless you’re into prefab bags of Orville Redenbacher. Even I can’t fault you for that. — Brandon Widder, senior commerce editor
For the past few years, the Instant Pot has been a staple in my kitchen. From making rice to slow-cooking stews and even frying up chicken, it can do just about anything. The best part is that the Instant Pot can cook most recipes in a fraction of the time it would take in the oven or on the stove. Rice, for example, takes just six minutes to cook (not counting the amount of time it takes to build pressure), and there’s no fussing with covering the pot or adjusting the heat. Sometimes, it’s just easier — and much less stressful — to let the Instant Pot take the wheel. — Emma Roth, news writer
How often do you blend things? Is it never? Maybe the reason is that taking out, assembling, and cleaning up after a normal blender is just way too much work. Do you know how many sauces I’ve thickened since getting an immersion blender? This thing is small, quick to set up, and you can mostly clean it with just a blast under the faucet. You’re going to blend so many things. — Jacob Kastrenakes, executive editor
My wife and I bought this small blender to make ourselves smoothies and protein shakes. It’s now used to make purees for our baby. C’est la vie. — Antonio G. Di Benedetto, reviewer
A meat thermometer is essential in my kitchen, and I haven’t found one as easy to use as the Typhur InstaProbe. I just flip and probe, and then I have a temperature reading in seconds — there’s no need to press any buttons or fiddle with any settings. I’ve used it for well over a year and haven’t had to change its batteries once; it always just works when I pull it out of the drawer (not the case with other digital alternatives I’ve tried). It’s also waterproof, so it’s easy to clean. — Jennifer Pattison Tuohy, reviewer
Simple tools
One of the first things I did when I got my own place was purchase a food chopper. Perhaps puritan chefs will disagree with my methods, but this saves me so much time. I like to make tikka masala, which requires dicing ginger. If you’ve ever tried to dice ginger, you know that a food chopper would come in handy. This one did break recently, so I’ll probably replace it with a fancier one. — Kylie Robison, senior AI reporter
Spreading knives are fantastic, especially if you make as many sandwiches as I do. The broad, flat blade is perfect for spreading peanut butter, cream cheese, or whatever, and the serrated edge is sharp enough for removing crusts and slicing bagels.
The one I used growing up was a Cutco, a relic of my dad’s brief, unsuccessful stint as a knife salesman. This is not that knife. That knife costs $94 today, which feels like a bit much — even if the one my parents have is still in great shape after 45 years — so I got this Wüsthof instead. The handle isn’t quite as comfortable, but it’s a quarter of the price, so I’ll live. — Nathan Edwards, senior reviews editor
My partner and I have the unfortunate habit of buying interesting foodstuffs with the intention of eventually using them — and then finding them in the back of the fridge two months later, growing something, well, interesting. To try and track what we’ve refrigerated, we tried all sorts of phone and tablet apps, but in the end, what finally worked was a simple, inexpensive, and thin magnetic whiteboard. It sticks to the door of the refrigerator, along with some dry markers, and now we record what entrees and side dishes are in the fridge. As each is consumed, the entry gets erased.
It’s a simple solution, and it’s not perfect. We still occasionally find a scientific experiment blooming in the back of the fridge, but it’s made us a lot less likely to waste food. — Barbara Krasnoff, reviews editor
I never realized how much joy I could get from a grater until my partner and I picked up a Microplane last year. Whether I’m zesting lemons or creating big, pillowy clouds of grated parmesan for my pasta, the Microplane is an absolute pleasure to use. We still keep a big, blunt box grater around for the occasional vegetable, but the Microplane’s sharper blades are better for absolutely everything else.
It’s not just us, either — we’ve since gifted this twice, to rave reviews. And if you know me in real life, then I’m afraid it’s only a matter of time before a Microplane comes your way, too. — Dominic Preston, news editor
It’s kind of weird how much I like our Gripstics. Bag of chips open? Quick, grab a Gripstic. Kids vibing between two different cereals this week? A well-placed Gripstic will ensure they don’t get all squishy. Tiny package of chocolate chips you used for a recipe that is now kind of open in your cupboard for who knows how long? Just fold the top over, slide a Gripstic on it — the small blue one, thank you — and stop worrying so much.
I don’t know about you or your family’s shopping and eating habits, but try as we might to shop on the outside walls of the grocery store, we inevitably come home with many products packaged in single-use plastic bags. That in and of itself is a frustration, only compounded by those same products going bad if they’re not stored properly. The Gripstics are a simple solution to this universal problem, and one that I’m certain has paid for itself many times over. — Christopher Grant, group publisher, The Verge and Polygon
Pretty much every meal I cook includes garlic, so I genuinely don’t know why it took me so long to get a simple garlic press. But ever since I threw one in the cart absentmindedly on a recent IKEA run, it’s become one of my most-used kitchen tools. I still have to peel the garlic, which I find interminably annoying, but I haven’t had to slice or mince garlic since adding it to my utensil drawer. The press turns the garlic into a kind of mush, and it’s not consistent in the pieces it makes (sometimes larger slivers of garlic get caught around the edges of the press), but for my needs, which is mostly just tossing garlic into a sauté pan or a soup, it’s a dream. — Kristen Radtke, creative director
I love a humble piece of bread and butter, but I hate spreading cold, hard butter on bread. Luckily, I haven’t had to since June 2023, when I finally got an airtight ceramic butter dish to store room temperature butter indefinitely. Am I recommending you do the same? No — I’m not prepared to debate anyone on the science behind keeping butter from spoiling. (The FDA says it can be left at room temperature for only one to two days.) All I will say is that the combination of salted butter, an airtight container, and a pair of kids who help me go through it one well-buttered grilled cheese sandwich at a time, has been more than enough to address my own fears.
There are many options like the small Sweese that I use. It just happened to be the first Amazon pick I didn’t return, because it was the first that fit a single block of Kerrygold almost perfectly. — Sean Hollister, senior editor
My mom bought me this strange-looking juicer. I was skeptical at first, but I love how it folds flat so that it doesn’t catch on the shallow drawer that I store my kitchen spatulas in. And, of course, it works well as a juicer and is pretty easy to clean. — Helen Havlak, publisher, The Verge
Once you get a set of narrow measuring spoons, you’ll never go back. Rather than having to carefully pour a teaspoon or tablespoon of spice into a round measuring spoon that doesn’t fit through the neck of your spice jar, you can just scoop directly from the jar. I absolutely love mine for recipes that require a lot of different spices. This stainless steel set from King Arthur Baking feels solid and has held up well for me despite frequent trips through the dishwasher over the last five years. — Helen Havlak, publisher, The Verge
If you’re a backyard chicken owner (or live in Europeor Asia), this elegant countertop egg holder is an excellent way to display your ladies’ efforts and have easy access to eggs. The Hovico Egg Skelter’s metallic spiral design pushes the oldest eggs to the end so you can use them first. It’s then easy to add the newly laid (or purchased) ones to the top. As a bonus, it doubles as a nice decorative piece for your kitchen counter. (Note: fresh, unwashed eggs do not need to be refrigerated as they have a natural coating.) — Jennifer Pattison Tuohy, reviewer
We have a drawer full of silicon spatulas in our kitchen that I use exclusively for flipping eggs and nothing else. For any other cooking task, I use my beloved wooden spoon. I love that it’s firm but doesn’t scratch ceramic pots and pans, and there is nothing better for deglazing a pan than a wooden spoon, which perfectly scrapes up all the delicious brown bits of a sear after you add a little vinegar or alcohol. While my other spatulas and spoons have broken or the silicone has begun to tear, my wooden spoon is almost indestructible. Bury me with it. — Kristen Radtke, creative director
We all have our favorite stuff. It could be a laptop that you’ve used for several years or the snazzy new one that just arrived last week. It could be the headphones that deliver your favorite music and podcasts, the controller that helps you win your games, or the app that puts a weird background on your Zoom calls.
Of course, we’re not just talking tech. We’re also talking about your favorite coffee maker, the TV shows that you binged through the pandemic, the hiking boots that have never given you a blister, and the immersion blender that your friend gave you for your birthday.
We’ve talked to the people who work at The Verge and asked them to tell us about their favorite stuff, whether it be for working at home, cooking, or playing. Some of these things may be what you already like to use; others may give you ideas of the kind of items you could use for yourself. Either way, we hope you enjoy reading about the things we use and enjoy.
At Samsungâs Unpacked event last month, the company announced the latest smartphones in its Galaxy S-series: the S25, S25 Plus, and S25 Ultra. As The Vergeâs reviewer, Allison Johnson, said in her review, âSamsung didnât need to reinvent the wheel.â The company has had solid scores for the last few years, and it looks like its newest iterations revolve around software â most notably, Galaxy AI and photo processing.Â
The S25 Ultra additions include a 50-megapixel ultrawide lens, LOG video, and AI audio processing. If that sounds familiar, it may be because Apple also equipped its iPhone 16 Pro, which was released in September 2024, with similar features. But which one is better?Â
The Vergeâs supervising producer, Vjeran Pavic, breaks it down by category and takes a deeper look at photos and videos taken on both devices for noise, color, sound, and most of all, ease of use. Watch Vjeranâs full review in our latest video, and let us know what you think.Â
The Last of Us has caught our attention ever since the game’s launch on the PlayStation 3 in 2013, but the cordyceps-infested franchise has only continued to grow since then. While The Last of UsPart II came out on the PlayStation 4 in 2020, the first game’s remake launched on PlayStation 5 in 2021. The second part of the game is also getting the PS5 treatment, with a remastered version due out on January 19th, 2024.
The game series was only the beginning, though. The Last of Us has evolved into a hit TV series on HBO and its streaming service Max. After a successful first season starring Bella Ramsey as Ellie and Pedro Pascal as Joel, the show’s producers are working on a second season for 2025, and details have already emerged about its cast.
Follow along below for all the latest on The Last of Us franchise.
Apple has launched its new iPhone 16E with an updated design, additional features — and no home button or MagSafe charging. This revamped version of the company’s budget phone will be going for $599 and will include a USB-C port, a notch, a customizable Action Button, a fast A18 chip, and lots of extras. So what does that do for those who might have been looking forward to a smaller phone? Is the new Action Button a good thing? Will you miss MagSafe?
We asked the staff of The Verge for their first impressions of the iPhone 16E. Of course, we will be running a full review of the phone, which will ship on February 28th. But meanwhile, here are some of the feelings that the news has generated in some of our iPhone users.
You can’t go Home again
Look, I’m just as much a fan of physical home buttons as anyone, but maybe it’s time we say our goodbyes for good. The swipe-up gestures for unlocking, returning to the homescreen, or managing apps feels natural and fluid now. I sure don’t miss the excessive bezels, and I appreciate the reclaimed screen real estate to enjoy every dot of edge-to-edge OLED goodness I can. And you know what? As much as I hate the notch, it adds more to the overall aesthetic and user experience than it detracts from it, so I’m fine with that tradeoff, too. – Quentyn Kennemer, commerce writer
A customizable Action Button
I love that Apple brought the Action Button to its new affordable iPhone 16E. It’s one of the better hardware features Apple introduced in recent years. It launched on the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max and was included on all iPhone 16 models in 2024. I have mine set to launch a flashlight (and use it all the time), but you can set it to launch other apps, too, like Apple Translate, the camera app, shortcuts, and more. I’m sort of surprised Apple included it since previous iPhone SE mid-year launches usually included a newer processor but in a body a few years old. – Todd Haselton, deputy editor, reviews and commerce
MagSafe is missing
That’s a no for me. Not so much for MagSafe charge speed — wired is always faster anyway — but because the magnetic ring is so handy. You can always add a magnetic case, though, so if the camera is decent enough, I guess it’s not the end of the world. – Nathan Edwards, senior reviews editor
OLED at a nice 6.1 inches
As someone who currently wields a 6.7-inch brick of a phone, I’ve started to long for my iPhone 6S days. At 6.06 inches, the iPhone 16E’s screen size seems like the perfect medium between too big and too small. It’s bigger than the iPhone SE released in 2022 but roughly the same as the standard 6.1-inch iPhone 16 (though it’s also 0.1mm narrower and 0.7mm shorter). That will hopefully be a plus for those of us who want to put our phones in our pockets.
And while the iPhone 16E may be (slightly) smaller and cheaper than the iPhone 16, Apple isn’t skimping out on quality: unlike the last iPhone SE, the iPhone 16E comes with an OLED display panel. It’s nice to see Apple bringing some of its premium features to its budget-friendly devices. – Emma Roth, news writer
Speeding ahead with an A18 chip
I’m slightly relieved to see the new iPhone 16E uses the current A18 processor found in the iPhone 16 and 16 Plus. Previous iPhone SE models also borrowed the latest chips from the pricier iPhones of their time, but there was a part of me that wondered if Apple might surprise us with something like a last-gen A17. (Remember when the iPhone 15 and 15 Plus got year-old holdovers from the 14 Pro?)
The A18 in the 16E does have one fewer GPU core (four instead of five), but I doubt anyone’s really going to feel that difference. Maybe if you do some side-by-side comparisons with high-end games like Resident Evil 4, but nobody buying an iPhone 16E is going to do that (and apparently nobody’s really buying those games anyway).
Having the latest-gen processor means the iPhone 16E should see years of support, which is one of the benefits of buying an iPhone. And it’s arguably more important these days now that some Android manufacturers have gotten their act together and promised up to seven years of software updates on some of their latest models. – Antonio G. Di Benedetto, reviewer
Bye-bye Lightning, hello USB-C
I love my iPhone 12 Mini, but I’ve also been thinking about upgrading because I want an iPhone with a USB-C port. I probably don’t actually need most of the fancier features on the main iPhone 16 lineup, so the new iPhone 16E seems like it could serve me well for many years.
But do I really want to pay $599 mostly for a USB-C port? My iPhone 12 Mini still works well, especially after I replaced the battery last year. My Lightning cables still work fine for charging, as does my Lightning-equipped MagSafe Duo. I don’t really need a USB-C port for any other reason except convenience.
I think I’m just going to hang on to my iPhone 12 Mini and see what’s in store for the iPhone 17 lineup. But I don’t think I’ll wait much longer to get a USB-C iPhone. – Jay Peters, news editor
An easy unlock with Face ID
At this point, switching between phones is actually pretty simple. Both Android and iOS have made upgrades easy, and you can even switch between operating systems with a cable and a couple of hours. But every time I switch to a device without Face ID or a similar gaze-based authentication system, my muscle memory collapses. Whether I’m paying for stuff, accessing passwords, or trying to lock myself out of social media apps, I use the biometric system more than I realize — and face unlock is faster, more reliable, and just easier. I love the tactility and smashability of a home button, but I’ll happily trade it for that instantaneous, my phone is already unlocked feeling you get from Face ID. – David Pierce, editor-at-large
Now with a notch
This design change means the SE finally feels like a modern take on an affordable phone: extremely powerful, packed with AI (for better or worse), and with a full-screen design that doesn’t stick out like a sore thumb.
The notch isn’t exactly Apple’s bleeding edge — I guess we’ll have to wait a few more years for the Dynamic Island to work its way down to the SE line — but it brings with it both Face ID and a lot more screen real estate. It is the end of an era, though: there’s no longer any iPhone on the market that has an uninterrupted display. – Dominic Preston, news editor
Only one rear camera? No problem
It isn’t remotely surprising to me that the iPhone 16E only provides one rear camera. Not only does that mirror the 2022 iPhone SE (which sported a 12-megapixel sensor, compared to the iPhone 16E’s beefier 48-megapixel sensor), but cameras also tend to have a noticeable correlation with phone price. This is an ideal choice for people who don’t need all the fancy camera hardware provided on powerful, more expensive flagship phones.
Photography-driven creative folk typicallysplurge on the latest Pro or standard iPhone model anyway or use a dedicated camera. The design and performance of the iPhone 16E have already been modernized in line with most of Apple’s current generational lineup — any more and it might as well just be an iPhone 16. – Jess Weatherbed, news writer
The right price for a proper phone
It’s been a long time since Apple offered an “affordable” iPhone that doesn’t require making massive feature tradeoffs for the price. That seems to be changing in the new $599 iPhone 16E, and it’s about time. The Android ecosystem has had some really nice options around $500 for the past few years from Google, Samsung, and OnePlus — all with big, modern screens, plenty of storage, and night mode in the camera app. That’s just not a combination you could get from a new iPhone for under $800 over the last three years.
Some folks might be disappointed by losing the home button or having to switch to USB-C (one of us… one of us…), but I think bringing a modern feature set to the iPhone SE and keeping the price relatively affordable more than makes up for the loss. I’d love for it to be a bit cheaper, and not offering MagSafe is a weird choice. But this might be the phone that finally gets my husband to upgrade from his XR, and for that, I am grateful. – Allison Johnson, reviews writer
With artificial intelligence being so prevalent across, well, just about everything these days, it’s no small feat for AI developers to make their products stand out among the deluge. Very few have managed to capture as much attention as Rabbit, the AI startup that’s managed to sell 40,000 units of its standalone $199 R1 gadget within eight days of launching the device at CES in January this year.
The AI-powered Rabbit OS behind the Rabbit R1 is essentially a dedicated virtual assistant that’s designed to interact with your favorite apps like a kind of universal controller. The OS is built upon a “Large Action Model” trained to interact with common apps like Spotify and Uber to get things done; from sending messages, controlling music, making online purchases, and more.
At around half the size of an iPhone, the orange Rabbit R1 gadget was designed in collaboration with Teenage Engineering, and features a 2.88-inch touchscreen, a scrolling navigation wheel, and a rotating camera. It’s a little reminiscent of the Playdate handheld game console.
We’re keeping track of all the latest updates surrounding the Rabbit R1 so that nothing gets buried in the hype — providing the device lives up to its sizable expectations.
A bunch of Verge staffers came back from the weekend chatting about our experiences with Elden Ring Nightreignâs network tests. We generally enjoyed the fast-paced, co-op-focused spin on Elden Ring that takes cues from roguelikes and battle royale games â and when things were good, they were really good. But we also ran into some frustrating connection issues that we worry could dampen the experience of the full game if theyâre not worked out.
Read more about what we thought below. The game will be officially released on May 30th.
While playing the Elden Ring Nightreign network test, the word that kept coming to mind to describe it was âfrantic.â
I played the original Elden Ring at a plodding pace. For every possible encounter, I cast spells from a distance as an astrologer to avoid the scary baddies, and I took advantage of numerous guides to find great gear and easy leveling spots.
I couldnât do that with Nightreign; its constant, looming, battle royale-style closing ring of danger forces you to stay moving. The persistent threat of the storm meant I had to make quick decisions about which weapons to experiment with. To get runes to level up, I had to fight ene …
Apple has announced an update to the iPhone SE, but this time around, it’s called the iPhone 16E. As the rumors predicted, Apple’s new budget iPhone model has an updated design with a Face ID-enabled notch, replacing the old model that had a home button and Touch ID interface.
Another new element is that this is the first iPhone with an Apple-designed 5G modem inside, the new C1, which Apple says is “the most power-efficient modem ever on an iPhone.”
The iPhone 16E has a 6.06-inch OLED display, customizable Action Button, and Apple Intelligence-ready A18 chipset to match the standard iPhone 16, but not a Dynamic Island display, no MagSafe support, and only a single 48MP rear camera lens. It also has a USB-C port instead of Lightning, and unlike the SE, it’s not much smaller than Apple’s flagship iPhones.
The iPhone 16E launch is scheduled for February 28th, with preorders starting on February 21st, with two colors (white or black) and three storage capacity options (128GB, 256GB, and 512GB) and a starting price of $599.
Read on for all of the updates about the new iPhone 16E.
Here’s everything you need to know about Tesla’s first pickup truck, which Elon Musk has called “heart-stopping” and his “personal favorite” of Tesla’s vehicles.
Pickups have become more popular lately — their share of the US light vehicle market increased to 17.5 percent in 2019, from just under 13 percent in 2012. They’re also the fastest-growing auto segment in the US. That makes Tesla’s entry into pickups sensible, analysts say. Another pickup perk: pricing. Pickups tend to be expensive.
Even with direct competition from established players (like Ford’s forthcoming electric F-150) and newcomers (like Rivian), there is a ton of money to be made in pickup trucks.
Subreddit r/WallStreetBets has been the talk of the Internet this week, as its members have driven GameStop’s stock prices from around $20 to over $300. The community brands itself as “like 4chan found a Bloomberg Terminal,” and as time has gone on, it’s targeted other unlikely stocks like AMC, Blackberry, and Tootsie Roll. They’ve also been banned from Discord for hate speech.
If you want to read about how the group was able to manipulate the stocks of a massive company like GameStop — and the potential fallout — maybe start with our explainer?
Otherwise, you can use this storystream to get caught up on the full story. We’ll be updating it with all the latest twists and turns.
A promotional image of Humane’s AI Pin. | Image: Humane
After a very long windup, Humane finally revealed all the details of its AI-powered wearable at the end of 2023.
The small gadget could attach to your clothes using a magnetic battery pack so that it’s within easy reach. By tapping the AI Pin, you could ask it to do smartphone-y things like make phone calls, text your friends, play music, and catch you up on your email, and it had a laser projector built-in to cast the UI on your hand for control.
At $699 with a $24-per-month subscription, it was never cheap, never very good, and now, less than a year after launch, it’s gone. HP is acquiring the team and technology of Humane for $116 million, which will wind down services and support for the AI Pin after February 28th without offering refunds to owners outside the 90-day return window.
The new see-through Beats Studio buds along with other transparent tech. | Photo by Chris Welch / The Verge
Gadgets, much like fashion, can make style comebacks. For tech: we’ve lived through the ’80s beige keyboards, transitioned to the ’90s with gray and black plastic video game systems plus bright colors for Sony’s Walkman and Nintendo’s Game Boy handhelds, and then, at the turn of the millennium, welcomed the amazing see-through iMacs, N64 controllers, and other gadgets with clear casings.
So dust off your Apple Studio Display CRT monitor, Toys R Us-exclusive Extreme Green colored N64 controller, and your other favorite transparent gadgets as you scroll through all of our clear tech news.
The Vision Pro is Apple’s highly anticipated “spatial computing” headset, and Verge editor-in-chief Nilay Patel tested all it’s capable of. The verdict? It’s the best video passthrough headset ever made, but not without some major tradeoffs. #apple#visionpro#headset#vr#tech#techtok
In our review, we said the Vision Pro’s display is a technical marvel, with hand and eye tracking that’s a leap forward beyond what previously existed, however, those controls can be inconsistent, and in our experience, Apple’s Personas virtual avatars could be “uncanny and somewhat terrifying.”
The new headset uses two Apple Silicon chips (M2 Ultra and R1) and can be used for up to two hours with a tethered battery pack or for as long as you want if it’s plugged in. It also uses “natural control” with hand and eye tracking as well as voice commands. Users can switch between AR and VR using a digital crown-style dial, and depending on what they’re viewing, it displays their eyes on the front so that others know the person wearing it can see them.
Read on for all our coverage so far on Apple’s Vision Pro headset.
The first Nintendo Switch will be a tough act to follow. With more than 130 million units sold, the hybrid tablet has become the company’s bestselling console to date, besting the Wii, and slowly but surely approaching the DS handheld.
It seems like Nintendo just revealed its mysterious device that recently crossed the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) — and it’s not the Switch 2. On Wednesday, Nintendo announced, of all things, the “Alarmo” alarm clock. But in classic Nintendo fashion, the clock has some playful tricks.
The clock responds to your movements, which you can use to snooze your alarm with motion. Its faces feature Nintendo characters from franchises like Super Mario and Zelda, and you can set the alarm to wake you up with music from those franchises. The Alarmo can also track how much you move in your sleep.
The Alarmo — officially, the “Nintendo Sound Clock: Alarmo” — is available to purchase in “early access” for Nintendo Switch Online subscribers and at the Nintendo NY store. We’ve actually already picked one up, and we’ve published some initial impressions and a bunch of photos.
Here’s all of our coverage of Nintendo’s Alarmo clock.
The Vision Pro is Apple’s newest computing platform, and that means we’re going to see a whole bunch of new apps. Apple pitches apps built for the Vision Pro as “spatial” experiences, and even after our initial review experience, we’ll have to see how those differ from or improve upon the virtual reality and mixed reality experiences we’ve seen on other platforms. Of course, the Vision Pro can run iPhone and iPad apps, too, and display the screen of your nearby Mac laptop or desktop.
The Vision Pro launches on February 2nd, and there are sure to be some good, bad, and flat-out weird apps in the weeks and months to come. (What will be the next I Am Rich?) Here’s all of our coverage of the apps for Apple’s new platform.
The electric vehicle tax credit, also known as the “clean vehicle tax credit,” or 30D, if you like IRS code, can offer up to $7,500 off the purchase of a new EV. Sounds nice, right?
But of course, it’s not that easy. This is the IRS we’re talking about after all.
Before you can collect your $7,500 credit from the government, there are a few rules that must be satisfied — rules about where the vehicle is made, where the battery is made, where the minerals are processed, the price of the vehicle, your own annual income, and much, much more.
If you thought it would be as easy as walking into a dealership, picking out the EV of your choosing, and collecting your credit, you were sorely mistaken.
The EV tax credit is more than just an incentive to get Americans to ditch their dirty gas-powered cars and replace them with clean, quiet zero-emission vehicles. It’s also an energy security measure aimed squarely at busting up China’s influence over the EV battery industry.
Will it succeed? Automakers are falling over themselves to set up manufacturing operations in North America in order to comply with the rules. And car buyers are making decisions based on which cars are eligible.
In addition to the stories listed below, here are a few resources to help you figure out if the car you want qualifies for the $7,500 credit:
The list of eligible vehicles is very fluid. Cars are being added, removed, and being re-added. It will likely remain this way for a while as the auto industry acclimates to the rules and customers continue to lean toward those vehicles that qualify.
But one thing is for sure: the tax credit will continue to loom large over the industry’s shift to electric. Just be sure to talk to an accountant before you try to claim it.
