In 2026, the Windows ecosystem feels crowded with ‘freemium’ software that’s more interested in upselling you a Pro plan than actually solving your problems. If you are tired of annoying watermarks, the limited export options, or the constant ‘limited time offer’ pop-ups, you are not alone.

The opening notes of "Kravitz", which kicks off Mabe Fratti's 2024 record Sentir Que No Sabes, are lodged in my brain permanently. It's not a showy album, by any means. But there's something about the buzzing of her cello, plucked as you might an upright bass. The way they ring out before coming to an abrupt stop, fuzz still hanging in the air, set against a simple kick and snare sat firmly in the pocket. There's something industrial about the way it all comes together, like a jazzy "Closer." Then come Fratti's paranoid lyrics in Spanish about ears in the ceiling and someone listening through the walls, and the slightly atonal horn blasts. …Read the full story at The Verge.

This is The Stepback, a weekly newsletter breaking down one essential story from the tech world. For more on the EV struggle, follow Andrew J. Hawkins. The Stepback arrives in our subscribers' inboxes at 8AM ET. Opt in for The Stepback here.How it startedApologies to the Toyota Prius, but the first hybrid vehicle of note was the Semper Vivus, developed by Ferdinand Porsche (yes, that Porsche) way back in 1900. The Semper Vivus (Latin for "always alive") used two combustion engines to power generators, which then fed electricity to motors inside the wheel hubs. The fact that it took modern engineers over a century to really appreciate th …Read the full story at The Verge.

Even though 4K TVs are extremely popular these days, many people still watch a surprising amount of 1080p content. Cable TV, older movies, YouTube videos, and even some streaming titles still play at 1080p.

The hottest toy of 1998 was sort of adorable, and sort of annoying. It couldn't do much - couldn't do anything, really - but it could look at you, it could say some nonsense phrases, and it seemed uncannily aware of the world around it. That's all Furby needed to pretty much take over the world.The story of Furby is filled with technical achievement. The fact that the furry little guy worked at all, ever, was a bit of a surprise to a lot of people involved. But Furby also represents a different way of thinking about our relationships with technology, a different idea about human-computer interaction, and maybe even a path worth following f …Read the full story at The Verge.

For years, I traded my privacy for the convenience of setting kitchen timers and turning off lights, but every time I saw that blue ring on my Echo, I had to wonder who else was actually listening.

A pattern you've likely noticed with AI tools is that a lot of them seem to come and go. One day, an AI tool is all over social media and everyone seems to be using it. The next, the hype has already moved on to something else. It's just how the tech industry in general seems to move. New models drop, new features launch, and suddenly the tool everyone was talking about last month is barely being mentioned anymore. However, in all this chaos, there's always the occasional tool that quietly sticks around.

The pink option is one of the prettiest controllers I’ve used. | Image: Cameron Faulkner / The Verge Crowning the EasySMX S10 the best Switch 2 controller last fall was easy. The $60 wireless gamepad, which is often well below $50, mimics or improves on many of the $90 Switch 2 Pro controller's best features. The S10 has great-feeling rumble in games, TMR joysticks that will last longer than Nintendo's, plus amiibo support, comfortable grips, and buttons and triggers that offer satisfying clicks. The new S10 Lite trims away some of those, but builds on EasySMX's lead with one big, new feature that I expect other companies to copy.EasySMX S10 LiteWhere to Buy: $39.99 $34 at EasySMX (code VergeS10lite)The EasySMX S10 Lite is the first thi …Read the full story at The Verge.

Fresh off launching the low-cost MacBook Neo, Apple is reportedly preparing at least three new products that will fit into its highest-end "ultra" lineup. According to Bloomberg's Mark Gruman, the next batch of releases may not bear the "ultra" name, like its Watch, but will all command price premiums over their mainline counterparts.There's the oft-rumored foldable iPhone, which is expected to cost around $2,000, and a touchscreen MacBook Pro is supposedly slated for the fall. Those are pretty straightforward plays for the higher end of the market. More interesting are the next-gen AirPods, which are rumored to include cameras to feed vis …Read the full story at The Verge.

If you've been on the Windows platform for as long as I have, which is, to say, a little over a decade, you'd already know that getting things right the first time isn't really Microsoft's forte. That's something that has been true since Windows Vista, then Windows 8, then the time they rolled out Cortana... the list goes on. Botching, rolling back, and patching has become Microsoft's signature style lately.

2026 is arguably the worst year to build a new PC. If you've checked GPU or RAM prices recently, you already know why. When you have to spend 4x the money on a new DDR5 kit or pay over $1,000 for a mid-range GPU like the 5070 Ti, the idea of building a PC from scratch feels a lot less appealing than it used to. A couple of years ago, you could build a solid mid-range PC for around $1,000. Today, that same amount barely covers the cost of upgrading from AM4 to AM5.

There is so much art out there that it’s absolutely impossible to keep up. Whether it’s a slept-on post-punk album from the ‘80s, a new sci-fi novel, or a cult classic horror movie, we’re always finding new obsessions here at The Verge — and we want to share those obsessions with you. Sometimes that might be a new release, but often it’s going to be something a little older, something not necessarily plastered all over TikTok or sitting at the top of the charts on Spotify.We’ve said it before, but the best way to find new music, a new show to binge, or a self-help book that isn’t pure trash is to skip the algorithm and get a recommendation from actual humans. And it just so happens that The Verge employs a number of those (humans, that is). So checkback regularly for new art to fall in love with, and tell us about your latest obsessions in the comments. Maybe your new favorite album will become one of our new favorites, too. Listen to this: Mabe Fratti’s experimental cello pop You need to listen to Laurie Spiegel’s masterpiece of early ambient music You need to watch the intensely surreal cult classic Possession You need to listen to the new Mandy, Indiana record: URGH You need to listen to M83’s icy post-rock record Dead Cities, Red Seas & Lost Ghosts You need to listen to Billy Woods’ horrorcore masterpiece for the A24 crowd You need to read the subversive cosmic horror novella The Ballad of Black Tom You need to listen to these Christmas deep cuts You need to listen to Sudan Archives’ violin opus for the club You need to watch the modern horror masterpiece His House You need to read the treatise on spacing out, Bored and Brilliant You need to listen to the searing noise pop album Forever in Your Heart You need to listen to this compilation of ‘80s Spanish ambient and electronic music You need to watch the found footage classic, Lake Mungo You need to listen to the brutally oppressive I’ve Seen All I Need to See You need to read the epic Argentinian horror novel Our Share of Night You need to watch the bonkers Japanese fantasy horror film House