This happened today
Apple Pencil Pro Hits $99.00 for the First Time in 2025.
Apple Pencil Pro deals were prevalent in the lead-up to Black Friday last year, but quickly disappeared as the holiday season continued. It's now been over a month since we last saw a low price on the accessory, but this week Amazon has the stylus for $99.00, down from $129.00. Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with Amazon. ...
Apple Seeds Third Beta of tvOS 18.3 to Developers.
Apple today provided developers with the third beta of an upcoming tvOS 18.3 update for testing purposes. The third beta comes a week after the second beta. The beta is available to registered developers, and can be downloaded from the Settings app on the Apple TV. Apple has also seeded new HomePod 18. ...
Mark Zuckerberg plans to lay off an additional five percent of Meta's workforce.
Meta is preparing for even more layoffs, according to reporting by Bloomberg. CEO Mark Zuckerberg said in a company memo that he plans on cutting about five percent of its "low-performers." “I’ve decided to raise the bar on performance management and move out low-performers faster,” Zuckerberg said in the memo. ...
Comics distributor Diamond is filing for bankruptcy.
Stephanie Gonzaga / Boom! Studios Diamond Comics Distributors, one of the biggest companies involved in getting graphic novels into physical retailers for purchase, is filing for bankruptcy and scaling its business back as the industry braces itself for a new wave of economic challenges. In a letter sent to comics retailers and publishers today, Diamond president Chuck Parker announced that the company has filed for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy and plans to sell off its Alliance Game Distributors arm to Universal in order to “protect the most vital aspects of our business. ...
ChatGPT can now handle reminders and to-dos.
Illustration: The Verge OpenAI is launching a new beta feature in ChatGPT called Tasks that lets users schedule future actions and reminders. The feature, which is rolling out to Plus, Team, and Pro subscribers starting today, is an attempt to make the chatbot into something closer to a traditional digital assistant — think Google Assistant or Siri but with ChatGPT’s more advanced language capabilities. ...
Apple Store Plans in Florida Go Beyond New Miami Worldcenter Location.
Apple recently announced that it will be opening an all-new retail store at the Miami Worldcenter complex on Friday, January 24. A pre-construction render of Apple Miami Worldcenter We have since learned that Apple's retail store plans in Florida go slightly beyond that. In early December, the company closed its store at The Galleria shopping mall in Fort Lauderdale, and opened a new store across the hall from it. ...
Wyze cameras will use AI to describe what they see.
For those moments when you don’t have time to check your camera footage. | Image: Wyze Wyze’s latest AI feature aims to reduce how often you need to manually check security footage by instead just describing what the camera has seen. The new Descriptive Alerts will send notifications that “accurately summarize motion events” with more contextual detail than simply telling users that the camera has detected movement or an object, according to Wyze. ...
Threads is starting to test community notes internally.
Last week, Meta decided it would replace its professional fact-checking program with X-style "Community Notes" and it looks like a version of the feature is already being tested on Threads. Alessandro Paluzzi, a developer who frequently posts leaked details on Meta's apps, shared three screenshots that show an early look of what the Community Notes might look like in Threads. ...
Here's the Latest on Next-Generation CarPlay After Missed 2024 Launch.
Apple said the first vehicles with next-generation CarPlay would arrive in 2024. It didn't happen. Now what? We are two weeks into 2025, and Apple has yet to update or remove the 2024 timeframe for next-generation CarPlay advertised on its website. Apple also remains completely silent about whether or not it still plans to launch the system. ...
Luigi was everywhere at AGDQ 2025.
Image: Nintendo Though there were only a handful of Super Mario games showcased during Awesome Games Done Quick 2025, his brother Luigi was everywhere — and it’s pretty clear why. In the gaming community, Mario’s taller, greener brother is beloved in his own right, celebrated for his goofiness or memed because his genial nature apparently conceals something a bit darker. ...
US finalizes rule to effectively ban Chinese vehicles, which could include Polestar.
Image: Daniel Golson The Biden administration finalized a new rule that would effectively ban all Chinese vehicles from the US under the auspices of blocking the “sale or import” of connected vehicle software from “countries of concern.” The rule could have wide-ranging effects on big automakers, like Ford and GM, as well as smaller manufacturers like Polestar — and even companies that don’t produce cars, like Waymo. ...
Zuckerberg says Meta will lay off more ‘low-performers’.
Image: Nick Barclay / The Verge Meta will soon lay off more “low-performers” across the company, according to an internal memo from CEO Mark Zuckerberg that was shared by a source at the company. “I’ve decided to raise the bar on performance management and move out low-performers faster,” Zuckerberg says in the memo, which you can read in full below. ...
Substack is now letting all publishers broadcast live video.
Substack tested live video last year, allowing Substack Bestsellers (the company’s top users) to stream video and connect with a live audience and even collaborate with other Bestsellers. Now, the feature is open to every Substack publisher who wants to go live. The only primary requirement besides needing an account is having at least 10 free subscribers. ...
Meta Quest 3S with 256GB of storage is $50 off right now.
The Quest 3S doesn’t look any less alien than the original Quest 3. | Photo by Vjeran Pavic / The Verge The Meta Quest 3S VR headset is a great alternative to the Meta Quest 3. The base 128GB version of the Quest 3S starts at $299.99 at Amazon, which is $200 less than the Quest 3 yet delivers essentially the same mixed reality experience. ...
FBI hacked thousands of computers to make malware uninstall itself.
Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge The FBI hacked about 4,200 computers across the US as part of an operation to find and delete PlugX, a malware used by state-backed hackers in China to steal information from victims, the Department of Justice announced on Tuesday. In an unsealed affidavit, the FBI says the China-based hacking group known by the monikers “Mustang Panda” and “Twill Typhoon” used PlugX to infect thousands of Windows computers in the US, Asia, and Europe since at least 2012. ...
Disney World and Disneyland Rolling Out Food Order Tracking on iPhone's Lock Screen.
Disney today announced that it is rolling out support for the Live Activities feature on iPhones for mobile food and beverage orders at its two big U.S. parks. The feature started rolling out today at select mobile order locations across Walt Disney World and Disneyland Resort, the company said. Where available, the feature allows you to track the status of your mobile order on the iPhone's Lock Screen or in the Dynamic Island, without needing to open the My Disney Experience or Disneyland apps. ...
Joe Biden signs executive order to speed AI data center construction .
A CloudHQ data center under construction on Waxpool Road in Ashburn, Virginia, US, on Wednesday, March 27, 2024. | Photo: Getty Images President Biden issued an executive order today aimed at speeding the development of AI data centers in the US. It directs the Department of Defense (DOD) and Department of Energy (DOE) to lease federal sites to private companies building gigawatt-scale AI data centers and clean power facilities. ...
WhatsApp is making it easier to react to messages.
Illustration: The Verge WhatsApp is rolling out some new features and design improvements to help you become faster and more creative when messaging. Starting today, WhatsApp users can double-tap to react to messages in chats rather than tapping and holding, with their most-used emojis now being displayed in the scrolling pop-out menu instead of the generic selection that was previously provided. ...
Adobe tests live co-editing on Photoshop.
Photoshop is officially becoming a team project. Adobe has announced the creation of live co-editing on Photoshop, allowing multiple individuals to simultaneously work on the same file from different computers. If you're sick of waiting around for a document back then this is probably great news, but, if you're keen to only share the final product, then you might not want to alert your boss. ...
New High-Speed Technology Paves Way for Apple Intelligence Upgrades.
Apple has backed a technology that could contribute to future Apple Intelligence advancements. The consortium behind the "Ultra Accelerator Link" or "UALink" technology today announced that Apple, Alibaba, and Synopsys have joined its Board of Directors. The three companies will contribute to further development of the technology. ...
Our favorite budget wireless earbuds are down to a record-low price.
The Anker Soundcore Space A40 wireless earphones are now back to their Black Friday and Cyber Monday price, dropping from $80 to $45. These earbuds have made it onto our list of the best budget wireless earbuds and won first place. This pair of earbuds boasts some great features, such as sound customization using the Soundcore app and multipoint connectivity, which lets them connect to two devices at once. ...
Amazon Introduces Big Savings on Portable Power Stations From Anker and Jackery.
Today we're tracking a big selection of discounts on Anker's and Jackery's best portable power stations on Amazon, with as much as $1,500 in savings on these devices. These accessories are high-capacity portable batteries that can provide backup power to a wide variety of devices, from laptops to RVs. ...
Sony offers a first look at the Until Dawn movie.
Sony has revealed a first proper look at Until Dawn, the movie adaptation of Supermassive’s choose-your-own-adventure horror game. Rather than offering up a teaser or a trailer, the company has opted to unleash more of a vignette, with the film’s writer and director explaining how their project differs from the game. ...
Amazon's AI lead says technical issues are holding back Alexa AI.
Amazon had been planning to roll out a new Alexa powered by generative AI in October 2024, but that obviously didn't happen. According to reports that came out back then, the company pushed back its new voice assistant's release to sometime this year. Now, a new report by The Financial Times says the company still needs to be able to overcome "several technical hurdles" before it can launch a more powerful version of Alexa. ...
Weber aims to deliver smart grilling performance at a lower price with the Smoque.
Weber introduced the all-new Searwood smart pellet grill in early 2024, offering a new design in the follow-up to the SmokeFire series that debuted in 2020. In a bid to offer quality performance at a lower price, the company has announced its Smoque grill (pronounced "smoke"). With a versatile temperature range of 180 to 500 degrees Fahrenheit, this new model is still a do-it-all pellet grill, and a new vent system circulates smoke and heat around the cooking chamber efficiently. ...
DirecTV is launching its first sports-only subscription.
DirecTV just launched its new sports-only streaming service, MySports. The initial launch includes 40 sports from channels like ESPN, Fox Sports, the Golf Channel and more. It also includes sport-specific channels like the MLB Network, the NFL Network and NBA TV. The service will initially be available in 24 metro areas, including New York, Philadelphia, San Francisco and Los Angeles. ...
Pick up this Anker 5K USB-C power bank while it's only $20.
I recently came back from a trip and the whole journey home I had one goal: find an outlet. My phone was at about 30 percent by the time I got to the airport, so I searched for outlets across the terminal and then worried about finding access on the train back home. All of this stress was simply because I didn't bring my Anker Nano Power Bank with me. ...
Motorola refreshes its Moto G and Moto G Power phones with slightly larger displays.
Motorola has refreshed its budget Moto G and Moto G Power phones. The two 5G handsets have larger displays than last year's models with a 0.1-inch bump to 6.7 inches and 6.8 inches, respectively. Both have a high-brightness mode that reaches 1,000 nits to help make the screens more visible in bright daylight. ...
UK opens antitrust investigation into Google's search practices.
The UK's Competition and Market's Authority (CMA) has launched an antitrust investigation into Google's search services, following similar steps from the likes of Japan, the United States and the European Union. It's the CMA's first probe under the UK's Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers (DMCC) Act, which went into effect on January 1, 2025. ...
The latest Audible deal gives you three months of access for only $3.
If you made a resolution in the new year to read more, giving audiobooks a try could open up a fresh way of consuming fiction and nonfiction alike. Audible’s most recent deal will make it easier to dive in — new subscribers can get three months of access to the Premium Plus plan for only $1 per month, or a total of $3. ...
First iPhone Chips Made in America Soon to Start Mass Production.
Apple is nearing the start of mass production for its first U.S.-made A-series chips at TSMC's Arizona plant, Nikkei Asia reports. The report suggests that test production of the chips at the new TSMC plant near Phoenix has already been completed, and Apple is now in the final stages of verifying their quality and performance. ...
DJI's Flip combines the best of its lightweight drones for $439.
DJI continues its streak of innovative (and highly leaked) drones with the launch of the Flip, a lightweight and people-safe model that folds in a new direction — downward — to accommodate the large, shrouded propellers. The new model should appeal to beginners and experienced users alike with features like a large sensor, 4K 100p video, safety features, a three-axis gimbal and an affordable price. ...
The Morning After: What to expect from Samsung's Galaxy Unpacked event next week.
Welcome back to the newsletter. We are changing things up, so expect to see at least two editions each week, with the occasional special edition. The newsletter will continue to live on Engadget.com too, but if you haven’t subscribed, you should do that. Next week, Samsung will reveal its next family of Galaxy phones. ...
The best air purifier for 2025.
You’ve probably heard the statistics about indoor air being more polluted than outdoor air. Cleaning products, pet dander, cooking emissions off-gassing furniture and decor — they all contribute. Letting in fresh air from outside is the quickest way to clear things up, but if that’s not possible — due to wildfires, extreme weather, allergies or just plain bad air quality — an air purifier can help clean the air you breathe. ...
Chinese social media app RedNote is the number one app as TikTok ban looms.
With TikTok likely just days away from being banned in the US, the app’s users are pushing some previously little-known apps to the top of Apple and Google’s stores. The app that has so far seemed to benefit the most is a Chinese social media app called “RedNote” or Xiaohongshu, which translates to "little red book. ...
Apple Stops Signing iOS 18.2, Preventing Downgrading.
Apple today stopped signing iOS 18.2, which means that iPhone users who have upgraded to iOS 18.2.1 can no longer downgrade to iOS 18.2. Apple released iOS 18.2.1 earlier in January. When new versions of iOS are released, Apple typically stops signing the prior version after a week or two. An update that is not signed is not able to be installed on an iPhone because there is a server-side software verification check. ...