Photo by Tom Warren / The Verge Microsoft has started selling a new black version of the Xbox Series S with 1TB of built-in storage. The only changes over the original white Xbox Series S are a black paint job on the exterior and more storage inside. Priced at $349, it’s still one of the most affordable ways to play Bethesda’s new Starfield game, which launches on Xbox Series S / X and PC this week.The carbon black exterior now matches the larger Xbox Series X, with the $299 white Xbox Series S still available with its regular 512GB of storage. The increase to 1TB on this black model will allow you to install a modern Call of Duty game and not have to worry too much about how much storage is left over. You’re essentially paying an extra $50 for 512GB of additional... Continue reading…

Ambient noise podcasters can apparently still make cash through subscribers, lister support, and automated ads. | Illustration by Kristen Radtke / The Verge Spotify is pulling select advertising privileges for white noise podcasts — a type of ambient noise podcast that involves looping relaxing sounds like rain or static — in a bid to boost the audio streaming company’s annual profits. As reported by Bloomberg, Spotify outlined changes to its Ambassador Ads program (which pays creators to read ads promoting Spotify content) in an email to creators on Friday, noting that white noise podcasters will no longer be eligible to participate starting October 1st.Spotify will no longer spend its marketing budget to support white-noise podcasters through ambassador ads, Bloomberg reports. However, such creators can still make money on the platform via paid subscribers, listener support, and automated... Continue reading…

In the world of gaming headsets, there are so, so many to choose from. I see so many options in the Counter-Strike: Global Offensive scene. I know many people who use a HyperX headset and many more who use a regular pair of headphones and a dedicated microphone. I fall into the latter camp and always have (I previously used Sennheiser Momentum 4 Wireless wired to my PC, for example), but the SteelSeries Arctis Nova Pro Wireless actually managed to change that.

As we head into Labor Day weekend, we're seeing plenty of great deals on some of our favorite electronics like TVs, laptops, PC components, streaming media sticks, personal audio devices, and more. Of course, sifting through all the promotions can be time-consuming, so in order to save you time and money, we've picked out some of the best deals we could find. So if you've been looking to pick up some new tech, and want to save big, you've come to the right place.

The Lenovo Yoga 7i is a great laptop thanks to its convertible form factor and astonishingly low price. That means you’ll want to carry it everywhere in case inspiration strikes. To protect it on your journeys, you’ll want a good case or padded bag. That way, you can worry more about what you’re going to create and less about damage to your notebook. Lenovo sells the Yoga 7i in two sizes, 14-inch and 16-inch, and I’ve made lists of my favorites for both.

Though many of Godzilla’s recent appearances in Western-produced projects have framed him as something of a misunderstood hero, Toho’s upcoming Godzilla Minus One from writer / director Takashi Yamazaki is going to take the king of the monsters back to his roots as a horrific metaphor for nuclear devastation.Set in the immediate aftermath of World War II at a time when Japan had been left hobbled by the atomic bombings of Nagasaki and Hiroshima, Godzilla Minus One tells the story of how the country plunged even further into turmoil and chaos when the titular kaiju is awakened for the very first time. Between ongoing efforts to rebuild destroyed neighborhoods and tend to the countless people left injured by the war, resources are already... Continue reading…

Although the Nothing Phone 1 isn't the best smartphone Nothing has to offer anymore, it's still a capable device in 2023. The Nothing Phone 2, released in July, took that crown with an improved processor and camera system. However, you can make your Phone 1 better than ever with a few neat accessories. Aside from putting on a case or screen protector for some added protection, you can add some of the best chargers, cables, and earbuds to your Phone 1 for a much better experience. With Nothing OS 2.0 headed to Phone 1 right now, your phone's internal software is getting a refresh, so all that's left for you to do is refresh your accessory portfolio.

Whether you’re in high school or college, you won’t want to miss this year’s limited quantity deals in Dell’s Back-to-School sale. You can save up to $500 on your next laptop, desktop, or monitor, preparing you for a year of learning without breaking the bank.

A Dolby graphic showing a TV connecting to two asymmetrical speakers. | Image: Dolby The best bit of attending Berlin’s IFA trade show is when companies use it to offer an early look at tech that’ll get a “proper” launch later. That’s what I experienced with a demonstration of Dolby Atmos FlexConnect, a new technology to let you wirelessly connect compatible external speakers to your TV and create an Atmos-enabled spatial audio setup. The most interesting part of Dolby’s pitch for the technology is that it’s supposedly far more forgiving about where you can place these specialized external speakers. They don’t need to be perfectly symmetrical, like the press shots show DTS’s similar wireless Play-Fi Home Theater standard. With Atmos FlexConnect, the idea is you can place your external speakers anywhere in the room with... Continue reading…

Great headphones and excellent earbuds are ubiquitous in 2023, and they're more powerful than ever. That's great for people who love watching media and listening to music on-the-go, but it can be bad news for your hearing. If you listen to headphones for too long at high volumes, you can cause temporary or permanent hearing damage. As part of Apple's recent sweeping health initiatives, it introduced headphone safety notifications on iPhone and Apple Watch, and you can also find them on the upcoming iOS 17 and watchOS 10 updates.

The Samsung Galaxy A53 is one of the best budget Android phones you can buy despite being over a year old. With its premium design, huge 5,000mAh battery, surprisingly solid 64MP rear camera, and five years of guaranteed software updates, the A53 has a lot going on, especially now that you can get it on sale more often.

Microsoft already has some big news lined up for a Surface event later this month, but it looks like the company may have a few more surprises in the works beyond hardware. A leaked video shared by X (Twitter) user WalkingCat shows that the company is unveiling new features for OneDrive on October 3rd.