There's nothing like being put on the spot as a D&D dungeon master when your players ask to talk to someone you haven't made notes for. And you know you can't just make up a random name and backstory, because your players will somehow make that one NPC a bigger part of the story than your planned villain.

Pixel phones have never been battery champions for me, but I had mostly learned to live with it. I blamed the usual suspects without realizing that some of Google’s own features were quietly adding to the drain. Once I started digging through their settings and disabled a few things I barely used, the difference was noticeable almost immediately.

Nobody likes long boot times, but long shutdown times aren't welcome either. While you can just click "Shut Down" and be on your way, it probably keeps nagging at you if your PC takes unusually long to power down. If you've checked everything from stubborn apps to Windows Update issues, and are still no closer to an answer, I suggest checking Event Viewer for definitive evidence.

The Apple AirTag may be a jack-of-all-trades - people use it for keeping track of keys, suitcases, backpacks, purses - but I think the most logical use case for it, by far, is keeping track of your pet. I attach it to my corgi Jelly's collar via a matching silicone holder. Have I ever once truly needed it to find her, and do I think she'd ever run off on me? No - she's a pretty loyal herding dog, so she likes to keep an eye on her parents - but just like whatever else you may attach an AirTag to, there's a significant chance that the one time you truly need it, you'll be thanking God that you had it. (Kind of like insurance.)I think it'd b …Read the full story at The Verge.

“Compute is an asset class! Compute is an asset class!” I continue to insist as I slowly shrink down and turn into a corncob | Image: Cath Virginia / The Verge, Getty Images April - 1805Napoleon is master of EuropeOnly the British fleet stands before himCompute is now an asset classI see it is once again time to talk financial innovation. Apollo, BlackRock, Blackstone, Brookfield, Goldman Sachs, and KKR are all working with Nvidia to put together $500 billion in financing to turn compute into an asset class."This is really the first time that technology chips have become an investable asset class," Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang said to CNBC. "These are revenue-generating assets now. They're productive, they're long-lived, they're fungible, they're flexible.""This is the very beginning, like what it was whe …Read the full story at The Verge.

After Microsoft came out of its Copilot-driven stupor earlier this year, we've seen the company focus its attention back on Windows 11. We've already seen the start of its big Windows K2 rollout, which aims to tackle some of the operating system's biggest pain points. Now, it seems the company is also taking note of the privacy concerns people have had with Windows 11, as it is adding a way to disable microphone and webcam access to certain Win32 apps.

The handheld gaming market is vastly different today. While there are plenty of options, their sticker prices feel like they belong in a different league than two years ago. It’s tempting to treat this supply-demand blip as a temporary situation and assume that MSRPs will drift down once component costs settle. That’s not how this plays out.

Prime Air is launching in Georgia, Ohio, Illinois, Idaho, and New York soon. | Image: Joseph Ciembroniewicz/Omaha World-Herald via Getty Images Amazon says its drone delivery service will reach "nearly 500 cities and towns in the United States" by the end of this year, increasing its coverage by six times compared to the current footprint. Prime Air deliveries will soon be launched in the Chicago, Illinois; Syracuse, New York; Cleveland, Ohio; Atlanta, Georgia; and Boise, Idaho metro areas, according to Amazon's announcement, with "more communities to come later this year."These will join 11 locations across the US where Amazon already offers drone deliveries, with each Prime Air site serving an area of approximately 175 square miles. The service aims to quickly deliver packages o …Read the full story at The Verge.

The Scythe Mugen 6 Black Edition CPU cooler is compatible with Intel and AMD's latest chips and delivers impressive cooling with its six-heat-pipe design and two Wonder Tornado 120 fans. If the hardware lineup doesn't sound like much, know this fan moves a lot of air. The MSRP is $75, but you can now get one from Woot for 60% off, down to $30 for a limited time.

I was genuinely annoyed when Pocket disappeared because it was one of those apps I never thought much about until I no longer had it. I tried different apps that promised to fill the gap, but most felt too complicated or lacked the simplicity I wanted. Eventually, I stopped looking at the usual cloud-based options and started exploring what was available in the self-hosted world. That's when I came across Karakeep.

The WSL’s first official fantasy game is putting player photos front and center, which is less common than you might expect. | Image: WSL Football Most fantasy sports leagues suffer the same problem: retention. Leagues play out over months-long seasons, require regular attention, and can punish players severely for missing even a single week. I've started Fantasy Premier League (FPL) multiple times, but never finished a season. That's a problem for any fantasy league, but especially so for a new game in a growing sport, hoping to attract new fans who might grow along with it. And so when Manchester United take on London City Lionesses on the opening day of the Women's Super League (WSL) season next month, fans will have a chance to compete in a fantasy league that's a little differen …Read the full story at The Verge.

Framework launched a second-generation of its colorful 2-in-1 convertible laptop. | Image: Framework Framework has refreshed its 12-inch convertible laptop, introducing Intel's latest Core Series 3 processors, expanded hardware customizations, and a pre-built Linux option. The cheapest pre-built base configuration for the Framework Laptop 12 now starts at $699 - $100 less than the previous version when it launched last year. Preorders are open now, with the first wave of deliveries expected to ship in October.That pre-built base configuration is only available in green, and includes an Intel Core 3 304 CPU, 8GB of RAM, and 512GB of storage. It also comes preloaded with Linux Fedora 44 KDE Plasma, a decision brought on by Framework finding …Read the full story at The Verge.