Home labs come in so many different shapes and sizes, and as is the case with modern PC builds, shape and size is rarely a great indicator of overall performance or capability. Of course, there are limits to what you can do within a certain physical space, but for the most part, a home lab that's built from a spare laptop, small NAS enclosure, and an old gaming PC can be just as capable as old enterprise gear. A rack necessitates a certain form factor for your hardware, and unless you're planning to expand in a way that a rack would make logical sense, it's the last thing most people need for their home lab, especially if you're just starting your journey.

From left: Randi Weingarten, Steve Bannon, and Ralph Nader. | Image: Cath Virginia / The Verge, Getty Images In early January, a group of 90 or so political, community and thought leaders gathered in a New Orleans Marriott for a secret conference on artificial intelligence - so secret, in fact, that no one knew who else had been invited until they walked into the room. Church leaders and conservative academics were sitting next to labor union representatives. Progressive power brokers who'd drafted Bernie Sanders to run for president suddenly found themselves breathing the same air as MAGA talking heads. And the AI thought leaders who'd invited them to New Orleans were hoping that none of them would kill each other.On Wednesday, the Future of Li …Read the full story at The Verge.

Look, I love my curved OLED monitors, and I can't argue against anyone who wants to update their setup to one. I'm not even going to try, but a considerably cheaper upgrade made my desk a much happier place to be. That's a cheap KVM, so I could use the same set of peripherals and one monitor with multiple computers.

While it's always cool to see what the ESP32 expert wrangles up, it's always important to support those who are working to make using the microprocessor more accessible. After all, the only way we'll see more ESP32 projects in the future is if people pick up and enjoy working with the chip, and anything that helps reduce the barrier of entry does wonders for adoption.

The Kobo Remote is small and lightweight, but large enough to be comfortable to hold. Does anyone really need a remote for a device you’re already either holding or using at arm’s length? E-readers have saved us from the risk of paper cuts and the burden of physically turning pages, but Kobo is making it even easier by releasing a wireless page-turning remote. The Kobo Remote might be indulgent and basic, but it’s all about maximizing convenience, and at the end of the night when I’m looking to unwind with a good book, that’s exactly what I want.Wireless remotes for e-readers aren’t a new idea, but none of them just directly connect to Kindles and Kobos, despite recent versions of those e-readers now supporting Bluetooth. You either need to jump through hoops to modify the software on your e-reader to make it connect to specific third-party remotes, or settle for a remotely operated accessory that attaches to an e-reader and physically taps the screen to turn the page.Clip-on page turners have always felt too cumbersome and complicated to me. I’m probably not alone, because shortly after it launched last November, the $30 Kobo Remote quickly sold out and remained out of stock for several months. It wasn’t until late January that I was finally able to buy one, and while I think Kobo could have squeezed in a little more functionality, both my wife and I have readily embraced the remote.At just shy of 4 inches long and about the size of a pack of Juicy Fruit, the Kobo Remote is a lot smaller than I was expecting. It feels even smaller in my large hands, but at the same time big enough to comfortably hold and operate, and to not get lost in the bedsheets if dropped. The remote includes an optional wrist lanyard, which on more than one occasion has prevented it from going missing when I’ve fallen asleep reading.There’s no rechargeable battery, but Kobo says the included AAA should last for months. The remote will only connect to Kobo devices that support Bluetooth for audiobooks, but the pairing process is as painless as connecting headphones. Once paired, the remote automatically reconnects when your Kobo wakes, requiring just a second or two before it’s ready to go. If you want to connect it to a different e-reader, a button on the front edge of the remote manually activates pairing mode.The remote has two clicky buttons. The larger one goes to the next page, and the smaller one flips back. They’re  easy to differentiate by touch — in addition to the size difference, one button is concave, while the other is convex — but you can’t customize their functionality. It would be nice to be able to press and hold either button to increase or decrease screen brightness, or make font size adjustments. And my wife, a voracious consumer of audiobooks, was disappointed to find she couldn’t use the remote’s buttons to adjust the volume or pause playback — they only skip forward or back 30 seconds at a time.Is the Kobo Remote a must-have accessory for every Kobo user? Probably not, but we’ve already found several scenarios where it’s been a welcome upgrade. My wife, who uses her Kobo mounted to a bedside stand, can now read books while staying completely cocooned under the covers. I prefer reading while laying on my side and can now prop my Kobo up on my nightstand and flip pages without having to awkwardly reach over. Kobo RemoteWhere to Buy: $29.99 at Rakuten Kobo $32 at AmazonThe remote has also made reading on the treadmill easier. And for Kobo e-readers lacking buttons, it can facilitate page turns while wearing gloves during a chilly morning commute, or save your screen from greasy fingerprints while snacking. It’s an accessory that’s all about comfort, ease, and convenience, and these days I’ll take about as much of all of those as I can get.Photography by Andrew Liszewski / The Verge

You can say whatever you please about OpenAI, but you can't say that they're never keen to make a new app or service. We've already seen the AI giant make its own browser and a TikTok-esque AI video tool, and as the company strives to make its LLMs actually turn a revenue, we will likely see it make a few more OpenAI apps and services in the future.

More and more Wi-Fi 7 routers seem to be cropping up these days, perhaps due to newer devices like the iPhone 17 supporting the standard. Wi-Fi 7 builds on Wi-Fi 6E, improving speeds, latency, and bandwidth use, but most people don't have the network infrastructure to truly benefit from all the promised advancements. Even if your internet plan exceeds Gigabit speeds, an "older" Wi-Fi 6 router is still up to the task. Besides, the other parts of your home network, such as the switch, mesh nodes, and devices, may not be equipped to leverage the peak performance of Wi-Fi 7. Simply buying a Wi-Fi 7 router will not magically improve your network, and more importantly, it may not need improving at all.

One of the most trusted leakers for Call of Duty will no longer share confidential information about the gaming franchise after being hit with a cease and desist order. TheGhostOfHope (also known to the community as "Hope") announced on X that he is complying with legal demands from developer Activision to "stop leaking and disseminating confidential information related to Call of Duty/Activision.""Still gonna stick around and chat about Official Call of Duty info and anything not related to leaks/confidential information," Hope said. "Cheers for these past few years."Hope gained a reputation for sharing reliable information about past, …Read the full story at The Verge.

I've been using Docker for years. It's simple to use, a popular choice in the self-hosting communities and has made ensuring that deployments remain consistent across my various NAS boxes seamless. It's hard to get over the fact that it takes just a handful of commands to get my preferred services up and running everywhere. But while working straight with Docker easy enough, I've come across enough quirks for me to consider alternative options.

It's not for everyone, but some believe that an ergonomic mouse can be an absolute game changer. Of course, that requires change, and it doesn't come for free. However, it really does have the power to improve the way you work, we think this ergonomic mouse from Ugreen is worth taking a look at. And, in order to give you a slight push, the price of this mouse comes in at just $16, which is quite cheap.

Depending on who you talk to, mini PCs are an expensive or cheap alternative to a traditional desktop PC. Sure, going with a mini PC with 96GB of RAM isn't going to be easy on the wallet, but if you temper your expectations and are looking to grab one that can do almost everything you need, then finding one for under $300 isn't unheard of.

Anker’s last-gen earbuds are tiny and lightweight, making them comfy to wear while sleeping. | Image: Anker Bad news: most Americans are about to lose an hour of sleep next week. Good news: if you have trouble falling (or staying asleep), Newegg is currently selling Anker’s Soundcore Sleep A20 earbuds for $113.99 ($66 off) when you use coupon code MMSF88 at checkout, which drops them to just $6 shy of their lowest price to date.Anker Soundcore Sleep A20Where to Buy: $179.99 $113.99 at Newegg (with code MMSF88)A couple of us here at The Verge are fans of Anker’s last-gen sleep buds, which do a good job of muffling disruptive noises (including snoring). They’re lightweight and comfortable enough to wear overnight, even while sleeping on your side, with multiple ear tips and wings for a personalized fit. In fact, in his review, my colleague Thomas Ricker said that they improved his average sleep time by nearly 30 minutes within a two-week period. What’s even more convenient is that they offer a variety of sleep-focused features to help you rest better. For example, you can use them to play a range of relaxing sounds, from meditation exercises and nature clips to white noise. You can use them as a regular pair of Bluetooth earbuds, too, just in case you prefer to listen to audiobooks or your own curated sleep playlist. They even come with adjustable EQ as well, though we wouldn’t recommend using them as your primary earbuds for music, given that they can’t match the audio quality you’d get from a pair of midrange earbuds from Apple, Sony, or Bose.In addition, the Sleep A20 offer up to 14 hours of battery life and sleep tracking, providing insights into how long and how well you’ve slept via a companion app that also details your sleep positions and movements. The newer Soundcore Sleep A30 feature active noise cancellation, which is more effective at masking sounds than the A20’s passive isolation, but Anker’s last-gen earbuds remain a decent, budget-friendly option that can help you comfortably tune out most nighttime distractions for nearly half the price.