My home lab has a problem, and it's me. If I create documentation of the experiments I've been doing, it invariably ends up as a Notepad file in the Dropbox folder I use for home lab things. While at least it's saved, it's not very searchable for future use. Other files are saved to GitHub, some are backed up from the folders I use for Docker, and it's all a glorious mess.

Google says that it’s softening its plan to require every Android developer — even outside of the Play Store — to verify their identity, a move which critics warned could kill sideloading for good. The company now says it’s developing a workflow to allow “experienced users” to install apps from unverified developers.Mandatory verification for developers even outside the official Play Store was first announced this August, and would require developers to provide their legal name, address, email, and phone number, and in some cases even upload government ID. It drew criticism from groups like the Keep Android Open campaign and the open source app repository F-Droid, which argued the move “ends the ability for individuals to choose what software they run on the devices they own.”That plan is still going ahead, with early access to the verification scheme launched yesterday, but Google has made an important concession. The company says it is now developing an “advanced flow that allows experienced users to accept the risks of installing software that isn’t verified.” This installation flow will include safeguards to protect people who are being coerced into installing a dangerous app, or tricked by a scammer, along with “clear warnings to ensure users fully understand the risks involved.”Google is also working on a new developer account type for students and hobbyists, which won’t have to go through “full verification requirements,” but will only allow app installs on “a limited number of devices.”“Keeping users safe on Android is our top priority,” Android president Sameer Samat wrote on X. “Scammers rely on anonymity to scale their attacks. Right now, if we block a bad app, they can often just create a new app and try again. Verification stops this “whack-a-mole” cycle by requiring a real identity – making it much harder and costlier to repeatedly distribute harmful apps. This is an important change but we announced it early to get input. Some really good feedback received: Students need a path to learn, and users, especially power users, want to take more risk in what they install. We’re making changes to address both.”Developer verification will roll out in 2026 for developers in Brazil, Indonesia, Singapore, and Thailand, before applying globally in 2027. It’s not the only big change on the horizon for Android: Google has struck a deal with Epic to end their lawsuit, which would see Android lower its developer fees, relax rules on payment methods, and introduce official “Registered” third-party app stores, though that deal is still pending approval from the judge handling the case. 

The Neo 2 adds obstacle avoidance but still features prop guards as a backup. | Image: DJI After launching exclusively in China last month, DJI is announcing wider global availability for its Neo 2 selfie drone, including Japan, Canada, the UK, and other countries where the company sells its drones. But as with the Mavic 4 Pro and 8K Osmo 360 camera, the Neo 2 won’t be available in the US. “DJI remains committed to the US market and serving our US-based customers. Like many global companies, we’ve had to adjust our market strategies as the local conditions and industry environment have evolved,” DJI spokesperson Daisy Kong told The Verge in an emailed statement.The Neo 2’s upgrades include a lidar-based obstacle avoidance system to detect and avoid crash hazards, an improved following speed of nearly 27mph, better wind resistance, and a new gesture control system allowing the drone’s distance and position to be adjusted without a remote. For pilots who prefer a controller, the Neo 2 has an optional antenna that can be installed, but it’s not needed for autonomous flying. Without the DJI Neo 2 Digital Transceiver attached, the drone weighs 151 grams and can fly for up to 19 minutes.Chinese pricing for the Neo 2 started at 1,499 Chinese yuan, or around $211. DJI does not yet have US pricing for the drone since it’s not planning on selling it here through the company’s official website. Canadian pricing is listed in US dollars at $229 without tax, but the company says “this shouldn’t be considered a proxy for an official US price.” In Europe it will start at €239, or £209 in the UK with taxes included, while Japanese pricing starts at ¥38,390, or around $248.Some US stores may sell the Neo 2, as was the case with the DJI Mavic 4 Pro, but DJI’s spokesperson wouldn’t confirm if the company would honor its warranty if the drone were purchased from an authorized US retailer. For warranty claims, the company instead recommends “customers contact DJI Support to determine if their case qualifies for repair.”

If you do any type of creative work, you’ve probably had at least one Adobe subscription, or thought about getting one. I used to shuffle through pretty much every Adobe plan – All Apps, Photography, and the individual apps. Most people end up in this predicament because we usually need at least one app for images, another for videos, and so on. I ended up canceling all my subscriptions this year because of this subscription fatigue.

Running local LLMs is all the rage these days in the self-hosting circles. And if you've been intrigued, or have dabbled in it, you'd have heard of Koboldcpp and LM Studio both. While I'd previously dabbled in LM Studio, I recently discovered Koboldcpp and decided to give it a whirl to see if there are any notable differences. Turns out, despite running the same LLM, the two apps use fundamentally different approaches that give their own unique strengths. Specifically, if you are someone who cares about narrative workflow, like storytelling or even role playing, Koboldcpp stands out in a few ways over LM Studio. Here's what I discovered.

People love to hop online for matches of Call of Duty multiplayer, especially when the servers are filled with players to squad up with. With Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 coming out, the online servers are going to be bustling with people that are ready to drop in and start racking up killstreaks. But not every match of Call of Duty multiplayer can end up being a fun time, regardless of what platform you're on. There are moments that can be a real dampener on the excitement of playing online with others, especially when they're the result of something out of our control. As action-packed as Call of Duty multiplayer can be, it can also lead to endless amounts of frustration for even the most patient of gamers.

Samsung’s trifold phone on display at the K-Tech Showcase exhibition in October. | Photo: SeongJoon Cho / Bloomberg via Getty Images Reputable gadget leaker Evan Blass has taken to X with “some confirmed details” on Samsung’s upcoming trifold phone.It’ll be called the “Galaxy Z TriFold,” according to Blass, with a 6.5-inch cover display that maxes out at 2600 nits brightness. It unfurls to produce a 10-inch display on the inside capable of reaching a peak brightness of 1600 nits. The Galaxy Z TriFold is also expected to host a 200-megapixel main camera, 5,437mAh battery, and Snapdragon SoC under the hood. The thicknesses of the three panels varies from 3.9mm to 4.0mm to 4.2mm, according to Blass. That makes for a phone that could be as thin as 12.1mm when folded, or a little thinner than Huawei’s 12.8mm trifold. But nothing will be officially official until Samsung announces it. Rumored dates for the company’s first trifold have come and gone with the latest suggesting a December 5th launch in Korea, priced around $3,000.

PC hardware design has gone through quite an evolution in the last couple of decades. We departed the beige boxes of the 90s and early 2000s for powder-coated black chassis with single-colored lighting, plexiglass panels, and finally to tempered glass side panels and internals lit up brighter than the monitor you game on. Personal expression is great, but in my opinion, there are 5 hardware aesthetics that are beginning to be overdone, and for one reason or another, deserve to be left behind.

There was a time I was a staunch Windows user, particularly when Windows XP was still the ruling Microsoft operating system. That was some time ago, and now I would rather buy a Mac and boot up macOS than install Windows on my primary system. That's simply because I don't get on with Windows 11 as it stands today and Microsoft as a company. I don't like being forced to log into a Microsoft account to install an OS. I don't like being bombarded with advertisements during boot up, and I sure don't like having most control taken away from me for various parts of the software. It's not a bad OS, mind you, it's just not for me anymore, and that's perfectly fine. I've been using Linux for years now and won't be returning anytime soon.

I've spent a lot of my time recently testing out different AI browsers, and finding different ways to automate repetitive tasks I do every single day that takes a significant chunk of my time. Though I initially thought I'd immediately uninstall the first AI browser I downloaded and vow to never try one again, I surprisingly ended up converting to an AI browser for good.

The definition of "high-refresh-rate displays" is a dynamic one. For many of you, anything below 240Hz might not qualify, while for others, a 144Hz display will still be a fast and smooth display. Whatever the case, one thing is common between these two camps: most people never max out their high-refresh-rate monitor. You might be playing at 80 FPS on your 144Hz monitor or enjoying 100–150 FPS on your 240 or 360Hz display, but the true potential of your fancy display remains untapped, except in esports and indie titles, or through the use of flawed tricks like frame generation.

The release of Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 is approaching pretty fast. Many fans of the series are looking forward to diving into the new multiplayer content the game will bring online, as well as the new campaign that will present a new story with futuristic combat. But despite how much Black Ops 7 is set to make a massive splash in the gaming industry, it still will have a lot to live up to in the eyes of Call of Duty players. Just because it bears the Call of Duty name in the title, that doesn't mean fans of the series won't have their expectations for what Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 should deliver upon its release.