Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Meta is starting to prompt users to sign up for the paid “no ads” version of Facebook and Instagram that’s launching in Europe. It’s rolling out as Meta responds to new EU privacy regulations by positioning the use of its services with targeted ads as a choice by users. Of course, that choice is also the only alternative available to paying around $20 per month to disengage from ads on Facebook and Instagram.The new prompt clarifies that people using both Facebook and Instagram will eventually need to pay an additional fee to cover both profiles. The pop-up appeared on one of our editor’s Instagram accounts (and Matt Navarra mentions people are seeing them on Facebook as well), so you can see what it looks like right here. ... Continue reading…

Photo by Dan Seifert / The Verge Apple struck a deal with Amazon to strip competitors’ ads off of pages for iPhones, iPads MacBooks, and its other products, according to a report from Insider. The agreement makes search results and product pages for Apple devices cleaner than those of competitors.While Amazon still lists competing products on search result pages for Apple products, it limits the ads it sticks above, below, and between results. For example, when you search for an iPhone 15 on Amazon, you’ll only see an Apple product in a banner at the top of the page along with another ad banner at the very bottom. Meanwhile, searches for competing devices, like the Samsung Galaxy S23, surface ads for other products and services throughout the results page. ... Continue reading…

Image: Supergiant Games Oh damn: Netflix is bringing Hades to its gaming service in 2024. We’ve known Netflix is serious about its gaming library. Ever since it added the Oxenfree series and, arguably, going all the way back to Hextech Mayhem, Netflix has shown its gaming offerings weren’t going to be just silly, time-wasting waiting room games but solid mobile versions of indie games with name recognition, including the announcement of Braid earlier this week. Never has that idea been more expressed than in this latest announcement that Supergiant Games’ Hades will debut exclusively on mobile via Netflix.Hades is an isometric dungeon crawler roguelike in which you play the seriously hot Zagreus, prince of Tartarus and son of Hades, as he tries to escape his... Continue reading…

When it comes to handheld gaming PCs, Valve's Steam Deck is one of the most popular. Since last year, though, there have been many Steam Deck alternatives, including those from Chinese brand Ayaneo. The Ayaneo Geek is one among the six Windows-led handhelds the company has launched so far. It sports a powerful AMD Ryzen 7 6800U processor and RDNA 2 graphics, it runs on Linux-based Ayaneo OS, and it has an impressive FHD+ display. However, Ayaneo doesn't bundle a carrying case in with your purchase, so if you want protection, you'll have to rely on third-party cases. While some cases may be made for the Steam Deck, they can also house the Ayaneo Geek comfortably, given its compact dimensions. Here’s a list of eight cases that will provide ample protection to your Ayaneo Geek.

Image: Netflix It’s been a while since we learned that Netflix was teaming up with Production I.G for a Terminator anime, but today we finally have some more details on the show. The debut teaser for the anime was featured at Netflix’s Geeked Week event, and it shows, well, the title and not much else.For the unaware, animation studio Production I.G has worked on some of the most iconic anime ever, from the original Ghost in the Shell film all the way up to recent releases like the Star Wars Visions anthology. For Terminator — which doesn’t have an official name yet, by the way, and is somehow the first animated take on the franchise — the eight-episode series will be directed by Masashi Kudo, best-known for working on the Bleach franchise, with... Continue reading…

Containers are a method of running virtualized applications on your computer, similar to virtual machines, but using a different set of underlying technologies. They can be complex to understand, but they're essential for running everything from Minecraft servers to Google. And we're going to show you how to set them up.

It remains to be seen just how much of the fascinating, winding complexity of Cixin Liu’s The Three-Body Problem ends up making it into Netflix’s upcoming adaptation of the novel from co-creators Alexander Woo, D.B. Weiss, and David Benioff. But in a new clip from the show that’s just dropped as part of Netflix’s Geeked Week showcase, it looks like 3 Body Problem (that’s how Netflix is spelling it) is going to get one of its most important worldbuilding elements very right in a way that makes the story’s deeper mystery interesting to watch unfold.While the new teaser clip debuted during Geeked Week doesn’t really broach the way 3 Body Problem’s story delves into China’s past and what becomes of humanity at one of the most pivotal... Continue reading…

Just like with your iPhone, you might download an app to your Apple Watch only to realize you don’t need, like, or want it anymore. Maybe you found a better app for one of the best Apple Watches that does the same thing or just want to keep your app screen clean or storage free on the watch. It’s just as simple to remove an app from Apple Watch that you have previously downloaded as it is to download an app to Apple Watch.

Both keycaps are made of metal and are available in a choice of three colors. | Image: Dbrand Love or hate its irreverent branding, you have to give props to Dbrand for its consistency. The company best known for its range of skins and cases for consumer tech gadgets is releasing its mechanical keyboard keycaps today, and they’re remarkably on-brand. The Pyramid keycap is a pointy escape key that the company says stabs whoever presses it (“lawyers advised that we soften the tip a little bit, but rest assured you’re never more than one firm key press away from drawing blood”) and a replacement enter key called The Enter that simply reads “fuck off.”Rather than full keycap sets that are designed to replace all the keys on a keyboard, these novelty keycaps are designed to just replace a couple of keys. The company says they’re... Continue reading…

The Steam Deck is an incredible portable PC gaming machine that offers access to thousands of games through Valve's Steam storefront. It's not a cheap device, however, so we highly recommend using some form of protection. Valve includes a high-quality carry case with the portable console, but this is only handy while you're not in-game. For those times when you find yourself with an opportunity to score some goals and smash some skulls, we've compiled a list of the best cases to help protect your Steam Deck.

Image: Netflix Following last year’s The Sandman, Netflix is bringing even more beloved Neil Gaiman characters to the small screen. This time it’s Dead Boy Detectives — which was originally slated to stream on Max — based on a crime-solving duo who made their debut in a Sandman comic in the ’90s. The news was paired with the first trailer for the series, which shows off a pretty fun-looking supernatural whodunit.For those unfamiliar, here’s the basic setup, courtesy of Netflix:Do you have a pesky ghost haunting you? Has a demon stolen your core memories? You may want to ring the Dead Boy Detectives. Meet Edwin Payne (George Rexstrew) and Charles Rowland (Jayden Revri), “the brains” and “the brawn” behind the Dead Boy Detectives agency. Teenagers born... Continue reading…

Smart glasses have been around for more than a decade, but I am glad that they're slowly breaking out of their "niche category" shell to land in the hands of more consumers in 2023. We're still a ways away from realizing the dream of true spatial computing with smart glasses, but I have to admit that viewing a bright and colorful virtual screen right in front of your eyes is quite impressive, to say the least. Having a portable, private screen for yourself is excellent for things like watching movies and TV shows, reading a book, or even gaming. In fact, having spent the last few weeks with two of the best smart glasses out there in 2023, I am convinced that they are the best accessory you can pair with your handheld gaming consoles.