Technology news

Image: Valve Half-Life 2 is getting a major update in celebration of the classic title’s 20th anniversary. In addition to Steam Workshop support directly within the game, Valve has fixed bugs and restored some content, added new graphics settings, updated gamepad controls, and a whole lot more. You’ll also be able to get the game for free on Steam for free through November 18th at 1PM ET. After that, it will cost $9.99.
Valve is also now including the Episode One and Episode Two expa

Image: ESPN ESPN is testing an AI-generated avatar with the Saturday college football show SEC Nation. Dubbed FACTS, it’s going to be “...promoting education and fun around sports analytics” with information drawn from ESPN Analytics, which includes data like the Football Power Index (FPI), player and team statistics, and game schedules. We haven’t seen the avatar in action, but it sounds like a bot-ified version of stats encyclopedia Howie Schwab, who was ESPN’s fi

UPDATE: Nov. 15, 2024, 4:15 p.m. EST The Slushi was restocked at Best Buy as a Best Buy Drop at 11 a.m. and sold out within minutes. However, it's still in stock at Ninja's website and Macy's, where you can buy it for $299.99.Opens in a new windowCredit: NinjaNinja Slushi$299.99 at Ninja Shop NowAt 11 a.m. ET on Nov. 15, Best Buy restocked the Ninja Slushi as a Best Buy Drop (Drops is a tab in the Best Buy mobile app that features a running list of items dropping that week, which are often high

Illustration: The Verge Google Workspace is rolling out a Gemini-powered AI image generator directly in Google Docs that lets you quickly whip up visuals for your writeups. Essentially, it's a clip art maker that follows in the footsteps of Microsoft’s AI-generated art feature in its Office products.
Google’s image generator in Docs is available to paid Workspace accounts that include the Gemini Business, Enterprise, Education, Education Premium, or Google One AI Premium add-ons.
Tho

Disney Though the remainder of Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur’s final season is set to hit the Disney Channel and Disney Plus some time next year, the studio is reportedly keeping one episode from airing because of its focus on a transgender character.
Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur has often touched on ideas about race, class, and issues like gentrification as it followed the adventures of genius 13-year-old Lunella Lafatette (Diamond White) and her pet dinosaur, Devil (Fred Tatasciore). But

Best early Xbox Black Friday gaming dealsBest Console DealXbox Series X (1 TB)$449.99(Save $50)Get DealBest Controller DealXbox Wireless Controller$49.99(Save $10)Get DealBest Game DealDiablo IV: Vessel of Hatred (Free $5 Xbox gift card and Sound of Slaughter DLC)$29.99(Save $10)Get Deal
Black Friday is almost upon us, and that means it's time to start keeping an eye out for all the deals floating around that you can take advantage of right now. That goes double if you're a big video game fan. T

Photo by Antonio G. Di Benedetto / The Verge The new M4 MacBook Pros that launched last month have an unadvertised change with new quantum dot displays, according to display industry analyst Ross Young and reported by 9to5Mac.
Young posted on X that Apple is adopting quantum dot displays for the first time and that it's using a version of the film that is free of cadmium, which is toxic to humans. “In the past, Apple went with the KSF solution due to better efficiency and lack of cadmium (

Image: Cath Virginia / The Verge Social network Bluesky, in a post on Friday, says that it has “no intention” of taking user content to train generative AI tools. It made the statement shortly ahead of competitor X implementing its new terms of service that spell out how it can analyze user text and other information to train its generative AI tools.
“A number of artists and creators have made their home on Bluesky, and we hear their concerns with other platforms training on th

It seems Google is about to launch an email feature for users, similar to one Apple already provides via iCloud.According to a new report from Android Authority, a new feature called Shielded Email has suddenly appeared in the Google Autofill settings menu. Tapping on the option currently just forwards users to an empty Google account page. However, looking into the latest Google Play Services 24.45.33 update code unveils exactly what Shielded Email will do if Google decides to officially l

Image: The Verge US Senator Mark Warner (D-VA) has sent a letter to Valve CEO Gabe Newell asking if the company intends to take measures to curtail extremist content on Steam. The letter references a report by the Anti-Defamation League that identified a large number of user accounts and user-created groups “that glorified antisemitic, Nazi, white supremacist, gender- and sexuality-based hate, and other extremist ideologies” on the PC gaming platform.The letter features a high-level

There's now a ChatGPT desktop app for Windows. OpenAI announced the news on Thursday, sharing how ChatGPT Windows app has Advanced Voice mode, as well as its latest model o1-preview. Windows users can use the Alt + Space shortcut to invoke ChatGPT. Users can also search the web, share screenshots and upload files and photos to the app. The desktop app is available to Windows 10 and 11 versions.Tweet may have been deletedWhat's new with ChatGPT on Mac?The ChatGPT desktop app for Macs has been out

Legendary boxer Mike Tyson is set to fight Jake Paul, the influencer turned boxer, in a fight broadcasted live on Friday on Netflix. Here's the TL;DR: The fight will air on Netflix on Friday, Nov. 15, with coverage beginning at 8 p.m. ET. The exact time of the fight, however, isn't exact because there will be four total fights on the main card, which will affect the start time of the Paul vs. Tyson bout. If you want to watch a lot of boxing, there will also be undercard fights starting at 5:30 p

Several Garmin smartwatch models are already on sale ahead of Black Friday:The best Garmin smartwatch deals at a glance:BEST OVERALLGarmin Venu 3$349.99(save $100)Get DealBEST DEAL UNDER $200Garming vívoactive 5$199.99(save $100)Get DealBEST RUNNING WATCH DEALGarmin Forerunner 955$399.99(save $100)Get DealBEST SPLURGEGarmin Fenix 7 Pro Solar (47mm)$549.99(save $250)Get Deal
We're still a week away from Amazon's official Black Friday sale kickoff, but deals have been rolling in pretty stea

Early Black Friday SSD dealsBest Xbox SSD dealSeagate 2TB Storage Expansion Card for Xbox Series X|S$199.99(save $160)Get DealBest PlayStation SSD dealWD_BLACK 2TB SN850P Internal SSD for PlayStation 5$179.99(save $50)Get Deal
Nobody likes playing the "storage shuffle." You know, the dreadful game we have to play when we run out of space on our consoles for new games, so we have to carefully select which ones to delete to make room? Talk about killing your darlings. Luckily, there's a fix for th

This could be so much better. | Photo by Allison Johnson / The Verge We could argue all day about the merits of iOS versus Android, but there’s one thing the Android ecosystem offers that you definitely won’t find from Apple right now: a decent midrange phone.By “decent,” I mean something I can enthusiastically recommend. Not “Eh, if it’s literally your only option, then it’s fine,” which is how I’ve caveated my recommendations of the iPhone

"I feel like I'm a background character in someone else's story."So goes the internal monologue of Interior Chinatown protagonist Willis Wu (Jimmy O. Yang), who works as a waiter in Chinatown. While Willis' musings about his role in life could just be the result of aimless angst, they are actually 100-percent true.SEE ALSO:Should you sign up for Hulu? Our film critics weigh in.
That's because this Chinatown is not what it seems. It's part of the fictional town of Port Harbour, which is the setti

On Nov. 1, 2024, Amazon launched a Virtual Holiday Shop, a virtual showroom where Amazon shoppers can browse some of the retailer’s best gifts, decorations, and other festive items. SEE ALSO:60+ of the absolute best stocking stuffers for 2024
Here’s more info on what Amazon's Virtual Holiday Shop offers and how it can help you check off your holiday shopping list. What is the Amazon Virtual Holiday Shop?The Amazon Virtual Holiday Shop is a digital showroom that uses 3D technology to

Apple upgraded the newest MacBook Pro's display without telling anyone.That's according to prominent display analyst Ross Young, anyway. Young took to X on Thursday to point out that Apple has adopted a "quantum dot" display for the M4 MacBook Pro. The hardcore technical details are that Apple replaced the red KSF phosphor film it had used on previous MacBook displays with quantum dot film. But Young's post also makes it clear, in layman's terms, what this means for you, the user.SEE ALSO:Apple

Casio’s smart ring is a tiny digital watch. | Image: Casio Not to be outdone by its longtime rival, Casio has announced its own digital ring watch that brings more functionality than Timex’s wearable that debuted last month. Created to help commemorate the 50th anniversary of Casio getting into the digital watch business, the CRW-001-1JR will be available in Japan starting in December for ￥19,800, or around $128.
Although the tiny watch’s case is just shy of being an inc

There's definitely something to be said for the crisp handheld control of a powerful cordless Dyson. But if you're not one to classify cleaning as cathartic, why not outsource that tedious task to one of the best robot vacuums?Are Roombas the best robot vacuums?Though Roombas are really good robot vacuums, they aren't the only good robot vacuums. iRobot dominated the robot vacuum realm from the early 2000s up until a few years ago, so it's no surprise that much of the general public forgets that

Image: Cruise GM’s Cruise will pay a criminal fine of $500,000 to resolve a federal investigation and accept a deferred prosecution agreement after the company admitted to falsifying a report to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) “with the intent to impede, obstruct, or influence the investigation” of a crash where one of its driverless vehicles struck and dragged a pedestrian in 2023.
NHTSA had already fined Cruise $1.5 million in September for submitti

Gifting a laptop can be a daunting experience, with countless options and confusing specs that can lead you down a scrolling spiral. But fear not — we've done the heavy lifting for you.This holiday season, we've rounded up a list of next-gen laptops that cater to everyone on your list. While each machine boasts its own bells and whistles, they all share one standout element: the cutting-edge Snapdragon® X Elite processor.Known as Copilot+ PC laptops, these six powerhouses are redefinin

SAVE $99.96: As of Nov. 15, get the Fitbit Google Ace LTE on sale for $129.99 at Woot, down from its usual price of $229.95. That's a discount of 43%.Opens in a new windowCredit: WootFitbit Google Ace LTE$129.99 at Woot $229.95 Save $99.96Get DealYour kids are clamoring for a smartwatch. You know they don't need one just yet, but an activity tracker makes sense for their active lifestyles. Or maybe you want to encourage your little ones to start getting up and out there to get their blood flowin

Image: Nick Barclay / The Verge Facebook is making “views” its primary metric to measure the performance of content, bringing it in line with Instagram metrics.
Views will be measured not just on video content but also on photos, text posts, and more. When Instagram head Adam Mosseri announced the switch to views this summer, he said that having one consistent metric across the platform would make it easier for creators to understand how their content was performing. For reels, a vie

Image: The Verge Threads is testing a way to create custom feeds for certain profiles or topics, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced on Friday. The upcoming feature should make it easier to keep tabs on different interests, such as your favorite sports team or even technology-related news.
It sounds similar to the custom feeds feature Bluesky rolled out last year — but Threads’ version seems a lot simpler. To create a custom feed, just search and tap into a topic. From there, select t

Image: Kristen Radtke / The Verge; Getty Images Elon Musk has updated his fraud, breach of contract, and racketeering lawsuit against OpenAI to make antitrust claims against Microsoft, accusing the two companies of attempting to “monopolize the generative AI market.” The amended complaint filed on Thursday names Microsoft as a new defendant, as well as LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman and Microsoft VP Dee Templeton, a former OpenAI board member.
Microsoft has invested $14 billion in

GET FREE AUDIOBOOKS: Stuff Your Earbuds Day is here! Get free audiobooks on Nov. 15 and Nov. 16. If you thought Stuff Your Kindle Day was exciting, get ready for its audio equivalent: Stuff Your Earbuds Day. This lesser-known shopper’s holiday is the best way to score free audiobooks and treat yourself to a cozy Autumn night in.Here’s how to make the most of Stuff Your Earbuds Day.What is Stuff Your Earbuds Day?Stuff Your Earbuds Day is an annual event hosted by romance author Rebecc

Check out the best Amazon deals of the day as of Nov. 15:OUR TOP PICKGarmin Venu 3 (45mm)$349.99(save $100)Get DealBEST OUTDOOR DEALSolo Stove Bonfire 2.0 with stand$195.99(save $104)Get DealBEST APPLE DEALApple 2024 iMac (M4, 16GB RAM, 256GB SSD)$1,349.99 (save $149.01 with on-page coupon)Get DealBEST HEADPHONES DEALSony WH-1000XM4 noise-cancelling headphones$198(save $150)Get Deal
Before you head into the weekend, check out some of our top picks for the best Amazon deals of the day. Though we

Photo: David Pierce / The Verge The Rabbit R1 can now use AI to redesign the device’s entire interface based on a prompt. Some examples shared by Rabbit CEO Jesse Lyu show a Legend of Zelda-inspired interface, another made in the style of Windows XP, and one using a “dark green scanline background.”
Though this seems like a fun way to customize the R1, Rabbit says responses on the AI-generated interfaces are “slower than the default UI on R1 and can take over 30 seconds t

Amazon’s latest Fire TV Stick 4K Max is a snappy streaming stick with impressive Alexa integration.| Image: Amazon If you missed out on Amazon’s fall Prime Day event, the retailer’s early Black Friday sale is offering everybody another chance to score steep discounts on Amazon devices. One of the best deals currently available is on the latest Fire TV Stick 4K Max, which has dropped to an all-time low of $32.99 ($25 off) at Amazon, Best Buy, and Target.Amazon’s latest str

Image: Alex Parkin / The Verge Bluesky hit 15 million users this week. And then 16 million. The vibes on Bluesky are immaculate, and it seems to have a real and renewed chance to be the place that replaces Twitter for a lot of people. But then there’s Threads, which grew by approximately one Bluesky just this month. There’s also Mastodon, which is still hanging around, and of course there’s X. There are more options than ever, and it’s more confusing than ever.
On this ep

Nick Barclay / The Verge The hacker behind one of the biggest-ever cryptocurrency heists will serve five years in prison for conspiring with his wife to launder billions in stolen Bitcoin. Ilya “Dutch” Lichtenstein was sentenced in Washington federal court Thursday after he admitted to hacking the Bitfinex crypto exchange in 2016 and stealing almost 120,000 Bitcoin tokens.
Lichtenstein and his wife Heather Morgan were arrested in 2022, and in August last year both pled guilty to cons