The PC industry is no stranger to shooting itself in the foot, especially when it comes to launching inconsequential or downright terrible products. But, some scandals go beyond disappointing products into the realm of unbelievably bad decisions, drawing universal ire from the community and industry, entering the record books in the most infamous of ways.

Photo by Spencer Platt / Getty Images The auto industry’s main lobbying group is requesting the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration “reconsider” its recent rule requiring all vehicles sold in the US to have robust automatic emergency braking (AEB), calling the current technology insufficient to meet the high standards outlined by the government. In letters sent to NHTSA as well as members of Congress, the Alliance for Automotive Innovation, which represents most of the major automakers, argues that the rules finalized earlier this year are “practically impossible with available technology.” The group claims that the auto industry’s suggestions were rejected during the rulemaking process. And it’s requesting that regulators reconsider several key aspects in order... Continue reading…

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Multiple photographers are complaining that Meta is wrongly adding its “Made by AI” label to real photos they’ve taken, TechCrunch reports.Several photographers have shared examples over the past few months, with Meta recently marking a photo former White House photographer Pete Souza took of a basketball game as AI-generated. In another recent example, Meta incorrectly added the label to an Instagram photo of the Kolkata Knight Riders winning the Indian Premier League Cricket tournament. Interestingly, like Souza’s photo, the label only shows up when viewing the images on mobile, not on the web.Souza says he tried to uncheck the label but was unable to. He theorizes that using Adobe’s cropping tool and flattening images before saving... Continue reading…

Less than a year after its iPhone debut, Blackmagic’s robust camera app is now available for select Android devices. | Image: Blackmagic Design After launching on the iPhone last September, the robust Blackmagic Camera app is available on Android devices today, with the same professional-grade shooting features and compatibility with Blackmagic Design’s other video production pipeline tools.“The Blackmagic Camera app for iPhone has been incredibly popular since it was launched last year,” says Grant Petty, the company’s CEO. “We are excited to be able to give customers with Samsung Galaxy or Google Pixel phones the same controls for shooting digital film as our professional cameras.”A Blackmagic Design spokesperson, Terry Frechette, confirmed to The Verge that there is one unfortunate limitation to the Blackmagic Camera app on Android. The app “can be used on phones running... Continue reading…

Apple is once again the focus of the EU’s competition policy. | Cath Virginia / The Verge Apple’s App Store “steering” policies violate the EU’s Digital Markets Act meant to encourage competition, said regulators in their preliminary ruling Monday. The European Commission has also opened a new investigation into Apple’s support for alternative iOS marketplaces in Europe, including the core technology fee it charges developers.“Our preliminary position is that Apple does not fully allow steering,” said Margrethe Vestager who heads up competition policy in Europe. “Steering is key to ensure that app developers are less dependent on gatekeepers’ app stores and for consumers to be aware of better offers.”Under the DMA, Apple and other so-called gatekeepers must allow app developers to steer consumers to offers outside their app... Continue reading…

Photo by Vjeran Pavic / The Verge Apple might finally allow retro video game emulators on the App Store, but this month, the company rejected submissions of iDOS 3, a new version of the popular DOS emulator, and UTM SE, an app that lets you emulate operating systems like Windows on iOS. In both instances, Apple said the new releases violate guideline 4.7 of the App Review Guidelines, which is the one that allows for retro game emulators.Chaoji Li, the developer of iDOS 3, shared some of Apple’s reasoning for the rejection with The Verge. “The app provides emulator functionality but is not emulating a retro game console specifically,” according to Apple’s notice. “Only emulators of retro game consoles are appropriate per guideline 4.7.”“When I asked what changes I... Continue reading…

Image: Apple Apple released new developer betas for iOS 18 and macOS Sequoia on Monday, and spokesperson Fred Sainz confirmed on Friday that the company planned to introduce the ability for users to mirror their iPhone on their Mac. Sainz also said the iOS 18 beta would include new SharePlay screen sharing capabilities. The new feature, which Apple first announced at its Worldwide Developers Conference earlier this month, lets you interact with your iPhone right from your Mac, meaning you can browse apps and even drag and drop files from your Mac to your phone. Your Mac will even show notifications from your iPhone, and when you click on them, your Mac can open them in the mirrored iPhone interface. Image: Apple While mirroring... Continue reading…

Illustration: Kristen Radtke / The Verge Combatting “cyber and other threats posed by the People’s Republic of China” (PRC) is a top priority for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) through the end of 2025, according to a guidance document the department released last Thursday. The document describes a “whole-of-society effort” to protect critical infrastructure from outside threats, and China is at the top of the list.Other priorities include managing the “evolving risks” of artificial intelligence and other emerging technologies, mitigating supply chain vulnerabilities, preparing for climate change-related risks to critical infrastructure, and addressing dependency on satellite-based services and communications.“From the banking system to the electric grid, from... Continue reading…

Remember when you could use a Local account on Windows without a problem? Microsoft added a way to sign into your PC with a Microsoft account, which began the company's crusade to get people off of using Local accounts. Now, the company has doubled down on its stance by removing a guide informing users on how to convert a Microsoft account into a Local one.

The original Steam Deck is still a great handheld, and right now, it’s as affordable as it gets in new condition. | Photo by Vjeran Pavic / The Verge Summer has various official and unofficial starts to kick off the season, but the real one for many of us gamers is Steam’s annual Summer Sale — which Valve recently announced will begin on Thursday, June 27th, at 10AM PT / 1PM ET. And as an added treat, Valve’s entry-level Steam Decks are already on sale for an all-time low in the run-up to the event.Valve is discounting the base Steam Decks sold through Steam’s online storefront by 15 percent through 10AM PT / 1PM ET on July 11th, dropping the price of the LCD-equipped handheld to $296.95 (about $52 off) in the 64GB configuration and $381.65 (about $67 off) in its 512GB variant. In addition to the storage upgrade, the 512GB model features an antiglare etched glass cover on its... Continue reading…

Image: Paramount Just like it did last summer, Paramount Plus is getting ready to hike the prices on some of its streaming service subscriptions.Paramount announced today that, beginning August 20th, the monthly costs for its Paramount Plus with Showtime, Paramount Plus Essential, and Paramount Plus with limited commercials plans will increase for all new subscribers. Paramount Plus with Showtime will now cost $12.99 a month ($1 more expensive), Paramount Plus with limited commercials will now cost $7.99 a month, and Paramount Plus Essential will now cost $7.99 a month ($2 more expensive).Prices for annual Paramount Plus Essential and Paramount Plus with Showtime aren’t changing, and people already subscribed to Paramount Plus Essential on a monthly... Continue reading…

Although Samsung has released the new Galaxy S24 series, there are still plenty of reasons you still might want to pick up a Galaxy S23. For one, it's going to get the same new Galaxy AI features coming to the newer phones.