MWC’s venue, the Fira de Barcelona Grand Via. | Photo by Joan Cros/NurPhoto via Getty Images Europe’s big smartphone show is here, and big players like Xiaomi, OnePlus, HMD, Honor, and Lenovo have a new generation of devices to show off. Continue reading…

After what felt like an eternity for the virtual reality enthusiasts, Apple’s much-anticipated Vision Pro finally launched at $3,500. For some, the high price tag and an unknown foray into Apple's "spatial computing" push may be too much to ask. But for early adopters, the Vision Pro holds a lot of promise as a do-it-all replacement for your Mac or PC.

It's clear that the AI chatbot market is getting saturated as tech companies flood the space with multi-purpose conversational interfaces powered by large language models (LLMs). A few weeks ago, Google announced that it is rebranding Bard to Gemini, along with offering an advanced version of the model via a paid subscription. Gemini also packs the ImageFX utility based on the Imagen 2 AI model for image-generation capabilities, but now, Google has decided to nerf access to this tool following widespread reports of inaccurate and potentially offensive imagery being generated by the service.

If you wanted a Ring Car Cam you’re too late. | Photo by Jennifer Pattison Tuohy / The Verge Ring confirmed to The Verge that it has stopped selling its Ring Car Cam, a dashcam / security camera hybrid that records the road and the driver while in motion and acts as a security camera when a vehicle is parked. The product, which launched at CES 2023, has been hard to come by since going on sale last January, and customers who tried to purchase one in the last few months are finding those orders canceled."We've experienced ongoing delays with Car Cam and have decided to stop the sale of the device," Ring spokesperson Andrea McDonald told The Verge in an email. "Customers who purchased a Car Cam will continue to receive software updates and support. We remain excited about opportunities to innovate in the auto space." McDonald... Continue reading…

Attendees leaving last year’s Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain. | Photo by Joan Cros/NurPhoto via Getty Images Without looking up any leaks or rumors, I’d bet that you could probably sketch most of the phones rumored to be launching at Mobile World Congress next week. Over the years, smartphones have settled on a relatively consistent design formula of big rectangular touchscreens, small selfie camera cutouts, app-based interfaces, and large camera bumps with an array of different lenses. But more than a decade and a half into the smartphone era, I’m getting more and more curious about what’s going to come next and why existing attempts to reinvent smartphones like foldables have struggled to go mainstream.To my mind, much of the answer comes back to apps. We barely think about them because it’s so easy to take for granted that all your... Continue reading…

Gaming is an expensive hobby, and enthusiasts always need to choose between upgrades. They're searching to find the best value for their money, which is why metrics like "FPS per dollar" and "cost per frame" are often referenced. While this kind of logic applies to CPU or GPU upgrades in an enthusiast gaming rig, it falls short of quantifying the importance of peripherals in gaming. Even a no-compromises gaming PC build can be limited by mediocre peripherals, such as a headset, keyboard, mouse, or monitor.

Alan Wake 2. | Image: Remedy Entertainment From Alan Wake to The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening, you don’t have to look far to see Lynchian influences. Continue reading…

How budget do you want your next PC to be? If you want something that will cost you no more than $20, then the Milk-V Duo S has you covered. While it won't be winning any awards for processing power anytime soon, its 1.7-inch size and its impressive hardware specifications are worth a look for anyone who's a fan of small devices.

Sergey Brin at a World Economic Forum session in 2017. | Photo by Fabrice Coffrini / AFP via Getty Images Google co-founder Sergey Brin is facing a wrongful death lawsuit from the widow of one of two pilots who died in a plane crash off the coast of California in May 2023. It blames a poorly installed modification for the crash and claims his representatives intentionally slowed recovery efforts to destroy evidence, as previously reported by Bloomberg and Fortune. An updated complaint filed on February 13th in the Santa Clara County Superior Court of California says Lance Maclean and co-pilot Dean Rushfedlt were contracted to bring Brin’s seaplane from California to Fiji for island-hopping with friends. Ferrying the $8 million, twin-engine Viking Air Twin Otter Series 400 that far required an auxiliary fuel system, which the complaint... Continue reading…

The longer you use your computer, the more likely it is to become slower over time, especially as you pile up more files on your drives. Filling up your hard drive can significantly downgrade performance, and one good way to help address that problem is to optimize or defragment that drive. In this article, we'll show you how to defragment a drive on your Windows 11 PC.

Image: Nintendo An interview with Twin Peaks co-creator Mark Frost reveals a fateful conversation with Nintendo in 1990. Continue reading…

The Stream Onyx is the turntable to start with if you’re running a Sonos-only home. | Image: Victrola With the ability to stream to practically anything, the Victrola Sapphire is shaping up to be the last turntable you’ll need. It’s not available yet, though, and not everyone will want to spend $1,500 for the privilege of owning one. The Sonos-ready Stream Onyx, while not as ubiquitous, is the cheapest model that will let you stream your record collection to all your Sonos speakers while retaining vinyl’s authenticity and character. We’ve seen it fall to $359.99 in the past, but Amazon is establishing a new all-time low at the moment, dropping it to $341.99 ($258 off). The Stream Onyx is a more affordable alternative to the Stream Carbon, one that lacks the latter’s premium metallic accented finishings and Ortofon Red 2M cartridge. It... Continue reading…