Illustration: The Verge The Justice Department wants to learn more about Google’s AI strategy in order to determine what kinds of changes it will ask for to resolve Google’s monopoly in search. The request came during a hearing on Friday in a federal court in Washington, DC, where Google and the DOJ met before Judge Amit Mehta, who recently ruled in favor of the DOJ and agreed that Google is an illegal monopolist. Mehta’s decision officially ended the first phase of the trial, which focused on whether Google is liable under antitrust law. Now the parties are moving onto the remedies phase, where the government will propose solutions to correct the illegal behavior and restore competition to the market. DOJ attorney David Dahlquist told the court that the... Continue reading…

Building your network-attached storage (NAS) device from scratch is an excellent way to tailor the system to your precise requirements. It's also enjoyable and provides a strong sense of accomplishment when everything is up and running. Still, there are some mistakes you should bear in mind to not repeat with your NAS build. From picking the wrong CPU to not using enough active cooling, I'll go through some beginner mistakes to show what to look out for.

Closing your laptop lid while using a great external monitor is a practice mostly seen in offices. It allows users to connect their laptops to a dock and use a bigger monitor or a dual monitor setup without keeping their laptops open. It provides more screen space to work with, helps to prevent accidental damage, and can even prolong the life of the laptop screen.

Illustration: The Verge Meta has finally pulled the curtain back on what its plans for third-party chats in WhatsApp and Messenger will look like. The change, which is coming for users in the European Union, introduces new options to put Messenger and WhatsApp messages in the same inbox as third-party chats or keep them separate.It’s building new notifications into Messenger and WhatsApp as well, which will let users know when they can link chats from newly supported apps. Meta says it has “gone above and beyond the ‘basic’ features required for interoperable messaging” and will offer rich messaging features, like reactions, direct replies, typing indicators, and read receipts. Image: Meta It will also start including the option to create... Continue reading…

With the yearly release window for new MacBooks fast approaching, you might be tempted to upgrade. After all, the M4 iPad Pro is a beast, so it's a given that MacBooks (or any other Macs) using the M4 chip will also be fantastic. They're not among the most popular and best laptops on the market for nothing, especially after the transition to Apple Silicon. The thing is, if you already have a Mac or MacBook with Apple Silicon, you probably don't need to upgrade. Sure, newer M-chips are faster, but you might not notice them in everyday use. Here are a few other reasons you might want to quash your itch to upgrade.

If you've ever looked at the prices for curved monitors, they aren't cheap. Some of the best ones can easily cost $1,000, which can leave you scratching your head if you're trying to buy one for a good price. Luckily, there are alternative options that still offer a good experience and can save you a lot of money in the process.

The AMD Ryzen Z1 Extreme is the chip inside the Asus ROG Ally X, Asus ROG Ally, and Lenovo Legion Go — and in early 2025, AMD will announce its successor, the Z2 Extreme, for future PC gaming handhelds. That’s the word from Digital Trends’ Jacob Roach, who heard AMD computing and graphics boss Jack Huynh say it’s targeting a 2025 release on an IFA stage in Berlin; I just confirmed with AMD spokesperson Stacy MacDiarmid that the company plans to announce it in early 2025, though AMD’s declining to say any more about it today. The only other things we’ve heard: AMD says it’s working with multiple partners, so the chip may already be in handheld makers’ hands. And it’s probably based on AMD’s Strix Point; so say Jez Corden’s sources over... Continue reading…

With just a single USB-C port, Anker’s new Nano is its smallest and lightest 100W charger yet. | Image: Anker Anker’s new 100W Nano Charger is about 60 grams lighter than the company’s last ultracompact 100W wall charger, but it has a big tradeoff. To make its smallest 100W power adapter yet, Anker had to sacrifice a couple of USB ports.The new 100W Nano Charger is available for preorder for $44.99 and ships in mid-September. The new frame is about 26 percent smaller and 30 percent lighter than Anker’s Prime 100W GaN charger, which is the smallest 100W power adapter the company previously sold with two USB-C ports and a single USB-A. To better put the Nano’s size into perspective, with its prongs folded, it’s only about 17 percent larger than the Apple AirPods Pro 2’s charging case, so the Nano should fit in any pocket you can squeeze AirPods... Continue reading…

The Samsung T7 is an excellent drive if you're looking for something compact and quick. Right now, you can score the 4TB model for a great price, with Amazon knocking 42% off the original price of the portable SSD, driving it down to $279.99 for a limited time.

A still image of Doom on a volumetric display. | Photo by James Brown (@ancientjames) In 2022, I introduced you to James Brown, the Weta Workshop graphics engineer whose hobby is building amazing displays. Now, he’s built a crystal ball filled with shimmering, spinning volumetric light — and of course he’s playing Doom on it. But not just any Doom. Voxel Doom, where every dot of the game’s graphics lives in 3D space, just like the dots of the volumetric display he’s created. As he explains on YouTube, the physical illusion is fairly simple: “It’s like a hologram fan, but instead of spinning a 1D strip to make a 2D image, it spins a 2D panel to make a 3D image.” On his Mastodon, he breaks it down a bit more with visual aids: Brown’s been working on this for over a year now: if I’m not mistaken, he introduced the... Continue reading…

Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge Rumors about the Watch Series 10 have been relatively scant in the runup to Apple’s event next week, where it’s expected to debut alongside the iPhone 16. However, a report from 9to5Mac says it will have an upgraded ECG sensor capable of detecting sleep apnea.That backs up today’s reporting from Bloomberg, which says the Watch Series 10 will be capable of identifying whether someone shows signs of sleep apnea — a condition that causes people to suddenly stop breathing during sleep. If the watch determines that the user may have sleep apnea, it will then recommend that they see a medical provider for more tests.Some other upgrades potentially coming to the Watch Series 10 include slightly larger displays and a thinner case, as well as... Continue reading…

Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft that launched NASA’s Crew Flight Test astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams to the International Space Station is pictured docked to the Harmony module’s forward port on Wednesday, July 3, 2024. | Image: NASA The Starliner is flying home empty after undocking autonomously, while the astronauts it took to the ISS will make a separate trip back to Earth in 2025. Continue reading…