2025 was the year generative AI made its presence felt in the video game industry. Its use has been discovered in some of the most popular games of the year, and CEOs from some of the largest game studios claim it's being implemented everywhere in the industry including in their own development processes. Meanwhile, rank-and-file developers, especially in the indie games space, are pushing back against its encroachment, coming up with ways to signal their games are gen-AI free.Generative AI has largely replaced NFTs as the buzzy trend publishers are chasing. Its proponents claim that the technology will be a great democratization force in …Read the full story at The Verge.

You know, working remotely comes with its fair share of advantages, but it can get pretty lonely at times. Fortunately, if you're seeking a little companion to have by your side while you work, but you're not so keen on investing in a fluffy friend, you can instead opt to build your own. Especially if you're a tinkering fan like us here at XDA.

I get that buying a new graphics card and CPU are some of the most exciting PC upgrades you can make to your PC. After all, the bulk of the performance of your rig is determined by these core components. That said, in a bid to move to the next performance tier, don't forget the non-hardware upgrades that can make as much difference to your overall setup. Protecting your expensive hardware from power surges is just as important as upgrading to more powerful components. And removing a cramped desk and an uncomfortable chair from your setup will pay dividends over the long term. Here are some PC setup upgrades you shouldn't ignore anymore.

I have spent months chasing the next big thing in software and looking for tools that promised to transform my workflow with flashy UIs and AI features. But lately, the most robust part of my entire setup is also the most unremarkable: the Docker container. It doesn’t have a sleek dashboard or a trendy AI-driven interface; it just sits there, silently ensuring that things work exactly the same way every single time.

Christmas Eve has a habit of arriving before the to-do list is finished. That is where a 3D printer really earns its keep, especially when you focus on fast, predictable prints.

Netflix has had an interesting year. Its ad tier, introduced last year, has grown significantly, and its live TV initiative has expanded to include not only weird one-offs like hot-dog-eating grudge matches but also WWE programming. Taking KPop Demon Hunters off Sony's hands for the business equivalent of $200 in a potato chip bag also turned out to be a pretty smart move for Netflix. The animated feature about, well, demon-hunting K-pop stars, became the most watched movie in the platform's history and a global cultural phenomenon in its own right. The sing-along theatrical release sold out, songs from the movie sat comfortably at the top o …Read the full story at The Verge.

It's no secret that RAM prices have spiked in recent months. Due to the AI market devouring all of the sticks off of shelves, manufacturers have raised their prices to deal with the increased interest. This has resulted in RAM sticks and devices that use them to experience some nasty price spikes to cover the cost.

It used to be that a new CPU brought substantial IPC gains, more cores, and faster clock speeds with almost every upgrade. This hasn't been the case for a while, since modern CPUs have pivoted to incremental gains and efficiency improvements rather than game-changing performance jumps. The difference between a previous-gen and current-gen chip, outside of CPU benchmarks, has shrunk to the point that the motherboard has assumed greater importance. Your motherboard's power delivery, PCIe lane sharing, and socket longevity now matter more than the raw performance of your processor. With power limits, boost clocks, and thermals being significantly impacted by your motherboard, it's ever more important to pick the best motherboard features for your money.

Sony’s full suite of PlayStation 5 consoles jumped in price in August due to increased US tariffs, but now through Christmas, you can save $100 on several models. This discount is especially great if you planned to go big with Sony’s PS5 Pro, the company’s priciest, most powerful console yet. Normally $749.99, you can currently grab one at Amazon, Walmart, and Target for around $689.99. Sony’s PlayStation Direct storefront indicates that the PS5 Pro sale ends on December 25th at 3AM ET, although discounts may remain on cheaper models.PlayStation 5 ProWhere to Buy: $749 $648.99 at Amazon $749 $649 at Walmart $749 $649.99 at TargetThe PS5 Pro plays many games at their best resolution, while making far fewer concessions than the standard PS5 when it comes to visual effects (particularly ray tracing and shadow quality). Some games simply look better or run faster on the Pro than the base-model PS5, while others look better and run faster. That said, it’s worth noting that PS5 Pro lacks a disc drive and is thus limited to digital titles, though you can buy an optional drive for $80 if you want to attach one later.The PlayStation 5 Pro has a bigger GPU than any other PS5 model, with twice as much internal storage as the current slim models (2TB versus 1TB). Another notable feature exclusive to the Pro is PSSR (PlayStation Spectral Super Resolution), which uses AI to upscale graphics in supported games to produce a better-looking image. The difference in performance between the Pro and the base PS5 is easy to notice in several games, although it’s safe to say that there hasn’t yet been a title that makes upgrading to one a no-brainer. But if a lower price is all the encouragement you needed to upgrade, now is a good time to get one.Read our full PS5 Pro review.

As you might expect, things have been relatively quiet on the deals front since Black Friday, particularly when it comes to discounts on charging accessories. Thankfully, Anker’s aptly titled Laptop Power Bank is once again on sale at Amazon and Walmart for $87.99 ($47 off), which matches the record-low price we last saw at the end of November.Anker Laptop Power BankWhere to Buy: $119.99 $87.99 at Amazon $119.99 $89.99 at Best Buy $119.99 $87.99 at WalmartUnless you’ve been living under a proverbial rock for the past several years, you’re probably aware that Anker makes an ungodly amount of charging accessories. The portable A1695 “InstaCord” has quickly become a favorite among Verge staffers, however, owing to the fact that it comes with a retractable USB-C cable and a second that doubles as a handle, both of which are bidirectional and allow for passthrough charging. The 25,000mAh / 90Wh power bank also sports a USB-A port and an additional USB-C port, allowing you to charge your phone, a MacBook Pro, and up to two other devices simultaneously. In terms of output distribution, Anker’s 600-gram Laptop Power Bank can deliver up to 165W when two devices are plugged in, or up to 130W when charging three or four gadgets. It’s carry-on compliant, too, meaning you shouldn’t have any trouble getting it through TSA while traveling, which isn’t the case if your charger is above the agency’s 100 watt-hours threshold for carry-on devices. It even features a built-in LCD display, allowing you to quickly view the remaining charge, overall power output, battery temperature, and other info at a glance.More ways to save todayThe Bose SoundLink Home has fallen to around $179 ($50 off) at Amazon, Best Buy, and Target, which is about $15 more than its all-time low. It’s a bit more limited than other speakers you might get at this price — there’s no water or dust resistance, for example, and the battery tops out at 9 hours — but it still offers great sound for its size, supports USB-C audio in, and features a handsome, mid-modern look that few speakers can match. Read our review.If you own an older TV that lacks built-in support for streaming apps, Roku’s Streaming Stick 4K is on sale at Amazon, Best Buy, and Target for $24.99 ($25 off), a mere $1 shy of its best price to date. The small HDMI stick supports 4K resolution and all your major 4K HDR formats, not to mention Roku’s TV interface, which remains the gold standard in terms of simplicity. It also draws power directly from your TV, allowing you to skip the cable.Microsoft jacked up the price of the Xbox Series X in mid-September; however, Amazon, Best Buy, and Walmart are now selling the company’s latest gaming console for $599.99 ($50 off). It’s certainly not the cheapest we’ve seen it go for — hell, it once dropped to $340 at Best Buy — but it’s likely the best price we’re going to see until the ongoing tariff situation in the US is resolved and prices begin to come back down. Read our review.

It's a good thing that we already know a second season of Pluribus is on the way. Because the season finale for the show - a sci-fi drama on Apple TV, helmed by Breaking Bad creator Vince Gilligan - made it clear that things are just getting started. The episode brought together a number of significant threads but, more importantly, opened up potentially explosive (literally) new lines of inquiry for what comes next.Spoiler to follow for the first season of Pluribus.First, a little reminder of how we got here. The inciting incident of Pluribus was the release of a virus of unknown, but extraterrestrial, origins, that turned almost the en …Read the full story at The Verge.

I vividly remember my first encounter with Docker. The idea of using command-line tools to manage and deploy self-hosted services felt complex at the time. I diligently followed tutorials and soon began managing containers, adding and removing them, monitoring status, managing Swarm, and more. However, Portainer made me avoid the terminal interaction for the most part, as I could directly access a container, which made managing other Docker containers a painless task.