Summer's finally coming to an end and for some it's already time to start school again. With a new school year, it means new beginnings, and with that said, it might be a good time to refresh your favorite tech, while also getting a sweet discount. Best Buy is currently holding its back-to-school sales event, offering impressive discounts on some of its best laptops, personal audio devices, TVs, PC accessories, and more. So if you or a student you know have been looking to upgrade or add some tech items to their daily rotations, now's going to be the perfect time to shop.

Image: Edie Leong for The Washington Post via Getty Images Tesla is in trouble with the federal government. Again. A newly discovered version of Autopilot that allows drivers to operate the advanced driver-assist feature without applying any torque to the steering wheel — a long sought-after feature by Tesla drivers and one used by several other automakers as well — has caught the attention of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. In a July 26th letter (first reported by Bloomberg), NHTSA ordered Tesla to respond to a list of questions about the feature or face an escalating series of fines. The company was ordered to respond by August 25th; it’s unclear whether Tesla complied. NHTSA ordered Tesla to respond to a list of questions about the feature or face an escalating series... Continue reading…

In recent years, Thunderbolt has become an essential part of many laptops and PCs. Developed by Intel, the Thunderbolt protocol uses USB Type-C ports to deliver very high speeds — up to 40Gbps, as of Thunderbolt 4 — that can be used to connect all kinds of peripherals. Many of the best laptops you can buy today come with Thunderbolt ports, and the accessories you can use with them range from docking stations to external GPUs, all of which can greatly expand the capabilities of your laptop.

Panic / The Verge Today, Panic put on its very first game publisher showcase. The showcase was short but very sweet, featuring some of the most interesting and innovative indie games coming to PlayStation, Xbox, PC, and Switch. Here are all the highlights, including a surprise announcement from the makers of Untitled Goose Game.ArcoArco comes from an international team of developers, artists, and storytellers. It’s a tactical action game that pits regular people against an all-powerful corporate gang. In the reveal trailer, the diverse landscapes exude so much ecological detail rendered in pixel graphics, and the combat seems like a real-time action game. Arco is due on Steam in 2024.Thank Goodness You’re HereThank Goodness You’re Here, or TGYH for... Continue reading…

Buying a new laptop is always hard, but it's not for lack of choice. There are lots of fantastic laptops out there, and even a lot of great deals you'll see on Surface devices, so choosing one can be tricky. There are different form factors, sizes, processors, and many other factors to consider. But one factor that tends to be pretty important when choosing a laptop is its weight. Laptops are meant to be portable, and carrying a heavy device in your backpack gets uncomfortable very quickly.

Photo by Chris Welch / The Verge Apple is planning to launch a pair of “updated” AirPods with USB-C during its iPhone 15 event in September, according to a report from Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman. Rumors have been circulating for months about the possibility of Apple introducing AirPods with a USB-C-compatible charging case, but we haven’t heard anything this definite until now. However, we still don’t know whether the AirPods Pro will get the USB-C charging case, too, and Gurman doesn’t specify.In 2022, Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo predicted that Apple would introduce AirPods with a USB-C charging case sometime this year. It’s also not clear whether Apple will make any significant changes to the AirPods themselves aside from the new case. Kuo said earlier this year that... Continue reading…

Chromebooks offer much more than just a web browsing experience in 2023. Just like Windows laptops, Chromebooks now come in all shapes and sizes and are solid options even against MacBooks. There are a wide variety of devices to choose from, including ChromeOS clamshell laptops, convertibles, and even desktop Chromeboxes.

Illustration by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge The US government just helped dismantle a massive network of computers infected with one of the world’s most notorious pieces of malware. According to the FBI, a multinational effort led by the US took down Qakbot, a malware that made its way into over 700,000 computers around the globe.Hackers typically target victims with Qakbot by sending them spam emails containing malicious attachments or links. As soon as a victim downloads the attachment or clicks the link, Qakbot infects their computer, which then becomes part of a botnet — or a network of infected computers controlled remotely by hackers. From there, bad actors can install additional malware on their victims’ devices, such as ransomware.Today, #FBI Director Christopher Wray... Continue reading…

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge The US Copyright Office is opening a public comment period around AI and copyright issues beginning August 30th as the agency figures out how to approach the subject. As announced in the Federal Register, the agency wants to answer three main questions: how AI models should use copyrighted data in training; whether AI-generated material can be copyrighted even without a human involved; and how copyright liability would work with AI. It also wants comments around AI possibly violating publicity rights but noted these are not technically copyright issues. The Copyright Office said if AI does mimic voices, likenesses, or art styles, it may impact state-mandated rules around publicity and unfair competition laws. Written comments are due... Continue reading…

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Verizon will offer a new $90 monthly cellphone plan called Unlimited Ultimate, announced in an update to the May blog post that announced its myPlan lineup. It offers 60GB of mobile hotspot data (double what you get with the $80 Unlimited Plus plan), 10GB of unthrottled international data, and includes access to the company’s 5G Ultra Wideband network that's a mix of the company’s C-band wireless signal and its faster mmWave 5G. T-Mobile similarly just introduced an expensive new "unlimited" data plan to its Go5G line with the $100 per month Go5G Next plan to complement its C-band spectrum. It offers slightly less hotspot data at 50GB but comes with Netflix Basic and Apple TV Plus and the option to upgrade your phone on a yearly... Continue reading…

There are a lot of critical components when it comes to building a PC, and while the process can be fun, sometimes it can be a little daunting if it's your first time. Luckily, there are now wide range of quality options, making it more affordable than ever to build your own computer.

Smart speakers have become ubiquitous in daily life, enabling voice assistant control of our smart devices and dispensing facts without picking up our phones. While all the smart speakers on the market have differing levels of sound quality, I’ll let you in on a big secret. They all perform great voice assistant duties.