The Aptoide iOS game store launches in closed beta today in Europe. | Photo by Thomas Ricker / The Verge Aptoide is the fourth third-party iOS marketplace to launch in Europe. Will its unique model find success where others have struggled? Continue reading…

The first four Nerf N-Series blasters shipped to reviewers. When I was a kid, “It’s Nerf or nothing” meant you couldn’t find a better dart blaster. Starting today, it means you’ll have to buy Hasbro’s own overpriced darts if you buy Hasbro blasters for your kids.The company is revealing its new Nerf N-Series lineup today, and a new “N1” dart it’s calling “the future” of the Nerf brand — a future where Hasbro blasters for 8- to 14-year-olds only fire Hasbro darts that cost three to five times the competition. Lose a dart? That’ll be 25 cents, because only official darts have the patented nub that pushes a safety mechanism out of the way. Nerf says it literally built 1,000 different darts to get the range, accuracy, and safety it wanted. The integral nub... Continue reading…

Image: Grubhub Grubhub will partner with Starbucks to deliver beverages and food to US customers starting this month, the food delivery app announced on June 6th.Starbucks will be accessible through the Grubhub mobile app and website in Pennsylvania, Colorado, and Illinois first, starting this month before expanding nationwide by August. Customers will be able to buy most beverages and food available on the Starbucks menu and can customize their orders as well.According to Grubhub, Starbucks is the most searched for business not yet available on its marketplace. With this partnership, Grubhub is now catching up with rivals like DoorDash, which started offering Starbucks delivery in the US last year. Customers can also order Starbucks via Uber Eats... Continue reading…

Illustration: The Verge Google launched its note-taking app NotebookLM last year for researchers, students, and anyone who needs to organize the information they’ve gathered. Now, users can now upload Google Slides and web URLs as sources, not just the Google Docs, PDFs, and text files it accepted previously. The new Notebook Guide also reads sources in NotebookLM and creates study guides, FAQs, or briefing documents, and inline citations can point to your own sources to fact-check AI responses — up to 50 sources per “notebook,” or project, and each source can be 500,000 words long. Previously, people could only upload five sources. Users can also now ask questions about charts, images, and diagrams they uploaded to the platform because NotebookLM is running... Continue reading…

So it came as no surprise that we got to see some new PC gaming handhelds during Computex. In addition to the new Asus ROG Ally X, we also got to see something completely new and unexpected with the Zotac Zone and MSI Claw 8 AI+. While these and other devices are certainly going to draw some heavy interest from enthusiasts, it looks like one company is really trying to push the envelope with a gaming handheld of its own.

Computex is one of the biggest trade shows of the year, and we've been on the show floor checking out some of the craziest up-and-coming tech out there. These are some of the most interesting keyboards that we saw at the show. Ranging from beautiful to ones focused on gamers, there really was everything!

Microsofts Surface Pro lineup finally has a change of heart. After introducing the Surface Pro 10 with Intel Core Ultra CPU (available for business purchase), the popular 2-in-1 device has received the latest Arm CPUs from Qualcomm. With a couple of powerful CPU options, LCD or OLED display, several RAM and SSD configurations, plus optional accessories, the Surface Pro 11 is definitely among the top Windows convertibles.

There's nothing wrong with getting a small boost of help when you need it most. And that's exactly what this smartwatch from Fitbit can provide if you're looking to get into better shape or just get a better understanding of the way your body works. While these types of devices can be tempting, the price can often become the biggest hurdle, with some models costing over $200.

Photo by Mu Yu / Xinhua via Getty Images Good luck finding a bicycle — an especially an e-bike — made in the US. It only took 30 years for the US to lose its entire bike manufacturing industry. China dominates global bike manufacturing, with imports accounting for 97 percent of bikes purchased in the US, according to one report. Indeed, China has captured some 86.3 percent of the US bike market. And now tariffs threaten that market. Congressman Earl Blumenauer sees an opportunity. The 75-year-old Democrat from bike-friendly Portland, Oregon, is introducing a new bill that aims to re-shore domestic bike manufacturing by stealing it back from China while also helping protect electric bikes from high tariffs that could put them out of reach for many Americans. China dominates... Continue reading…

Windows 11 has many features hiding just beneath the surface, many of which have been around for years. One of these is a program called Task Scheduler, which can automate tasks on Windows 11 so that they always happen on a regular basis. You can also create tasks that are triggered by other specific events on the computer.

SpaceX is aiming to perform a controlled reentry for Starship, with a splashdown in the Indian Ocean. | Image: SpaceX SpaceX is preparing to send its massive Starship rocket on its fourth flight test on Thursday. The Starship Super Heavy vehicle is scheduled to lift off from SpaceX’s launch site in South Texas, during a 120-minute window that opens at 8:00AM ET. Space says it’s targeting an 8:50AM ET launch with weather conditions looking 95 percent favorable.You can watch the livestream via SpaceX’s account on X, which is scheduled to start at about 30 minutes before liftoff.SpaceX says the primary objective for the fourth flight test is to demonstrate the ability to return and reuse Starship and its Super Heavy booster — requiring the spacecraft to survive the reentry phase through Earth’s atmosphere where it broke apart during its last flight test.... Continue reading…

The Brick Cross Train Station. | Image: brickester (Lego Bricklink) Four months ago, a Lego fan earned around half a million dollars when Lego put his limited-edition set on sale. Now, Lego is opening orders for round two of the BrickLink Designer Program at 8am PT / 11am ET on Thursday, June 6th — featuring five more limited-edition sets, each a fan’s dream come true. They’re charming, quaint, look like wonderful playsets, and the fan designers will get five percent of the proceeds from each sale! My eye’s on the incredibly detailed Brick Cross Train Station... but I already splurged on last time’s Parisian Street so I’d probably best not!Ready for high-res images, prices, and designer video interviews around each new set? Here you go: Ominous Isle — $239.99I am in awe of how many Lego hot dogs... Continue reading…