Notion has been my go-to note-taking app for years, and I’d argue it’s still a decent option for those who aren’t too bothered by the pricing model and privacy issues - few tools come close to its note-taking and database capabilities. But I’ve almost completely replaced Notion with open-source alternatives at this point, some of which even outperform it.

It's been a few years since the official introduction of the Bluetooth technology Auracast, which allows devices like earbuds, headphones, speakers, and hearing aids to connect to a single source without the need for pairing. Like a radio picks up your local radio stations, all you have to do is connect to the right broadcast. These could be flight announcements from your gate at the airport, the microphone a teacher is using during a presentation, or the TV you're watching while on the treadmill at the gym.By letting you link directly into one of these broadcasts, Auracast can increase auditory accessibility for those who are hard of hear …Read the full story at The Verge.

Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman is reporting that Johny Srouji, senior vice president of hardware technologies, told Tim Cook he is “seriously considering” leaving Apple for another company in the near future. It was reported in October that Srouji was “evaluating his future at the tech giant.” While nothing is confirmed, it seems the executive is leaning towards not having a future at Cupertino.If Srouji leaves, he would be just the latest in a string of high-profile shakeups in the company’s C-suite. COO Jeff Williams announced his retirement in July, which led to some shifting of roles. But things have only accelerated in December, with AI chief John Giannandrea stepping down, policy lead Lisa Jackson and general counsel Kate Adams announcing plans to retire, and UI design lead Alan Dye departing for Meta, all in the last few days.Apple has struggled somewhat to find its footing as the industry further embraces AI. Now Tim Cook is tasked with trying to stem the bleeding, while being subject to rumors of his own departure. Gurman, who is usually reliable, has said those rumors are premature, but it still adds to the uncertainty surrounding what is typically one of the more stable companies in Silicon Valley.

To many Nintendo fans, the Metroid series is a sacred part of Nintendo's long history of great franchises. While the mainline games have been praised as genre-defining titles, Metroid has also been viewed fondly by fans for taking risks with spin-offs on various Nintendo platforms. The Metroid Prime series has been one of those success stories that people love from the GameCube era, which led to its success over the years up to the release of Metroid Prime 4: Beyond on the Nintendo Switch 2. But the legacy of the series isn't without its failures.

Everyone's aware of M.2 NVMe SSDs. You're probably using one or more of them on your PC right now. What about enterprise NVMe SSDs with form factors like U.2 and SAS? Enterprise SSDs are some of the most durable, reliable, and performant pieces of hardware on the market. They're designed for server environments with 24/7 uptime requirements, and are essentially over-engineered for any consumer setup. If you're able to get used drives for cheap, however, they could be one of the best deals for your PC or home server. Sites like eBay are full of reliable sellers offloading ex-enterprise SSDs for a bargain, and the current SSD market might be the best time to look into them.

I've dabbled in PowerShell scripts over the years, but they present an interesting, albeit niche, problem. There's really no notification that the script has run. While the script might run just fine, the only indication that it has completed is that the terminal window closes. This means you might have a scheduled task running overnight, but you'll have to hunt for log files to see if it actually worked. This extends to simple tasks like backups and file conversions, as well as maintenance jobs. That's where BurntToast comes in. BurntToast fixes that by giving you a direct way to send Windows toast notifications from PowerShell, giving you visible alerts, and making automation easier to track.

The world of tabletop 3D printing has undergone a quiet revolution. What was once the exclusive domain of engineering labs and deep-pocketed hobbyists is now an accessible reality for almost anyone willing to tinker with firmware and mechanics. A decent printer now costs as much as a week's groceries, and the user communities are large enough to guarantee beginners swift debugging. This democratization of manufacturing has fundamentally shifted how individuals like you and I think about our workspaces. Sitting at my PC today and looking back at 2025, there are a handful of prints that stand out to me as the best that I've seen this year in the realm of computing accessories.

Much has been said about what the best alternatives are to Windows. With Windows 10 being officially unsupported for most people, users have been forced to ponder whether to stay on an unsupported OS, upgrade to Windows 11, or switch to Linux, and a lot of people have chosen that last option.

It’s a great time to consider buying Nintendo’s latest console. | Photo: Cameron Faulkner / The Verge Cyber week has just about wrapped up, but there are still some amazing Cyber Monday leftovers that you can save money on. The one deal we can’t stop telling readers about is the unexpected $50 discount on Nintendo’s Switch 2 console bundle that includes Mario Kart World, bringing it down to $449.99 (was $499.99). Currently, you can snag the bundle at Amazon, Walmart, and Best Buy. It’s the best Switch 2 console to buy for the holidays because it comes with Mario Kart World, a fun racing game that’s $79.99 to buy outside of the bundle. You’re getting it for free instead.A price drop for the new handheld was about the last thing we expected to see this week, and we’re happy that the deal has endured over multiple days. We don’t know when it will end, so we’re treating every day like it’ll be the last.If you’re shopping for a Switch 2 console, there are some extras that you may want to consider buying along with it. Games aside, we have buying guides with recommendations if you’re looking for cheap, but great wireless controllers, protective cases that are better than the rest, as well as the best Switch 2 screen protectors we tried.Nintendo Switch 2The Nintendo Switch 2 has a 7.9-inch LCD display, magnetically attached Joy-Con 2 controllers, backwards compatibility with most original Switch games, and exclusive titles including Donkey Kong Bananza and Kirby Air Riders. Read our review.Where to Buy: $499.99 $449 at Amazon (Mario Kart World bundle) $499.99 $449.99 at Walmart (Mario Kart World bundle) $499.99 $449 at Best Buy (Mario Kart World bundle)We learned something interesting, but not entirely surprising, about people who were reading our Black Friday coverage: they love ice cream. They flocked to the $70 off deal that’s still happening at Amazon and Best Buy on Ninja’s Creami ice cream maker that can seemingly do it all. You’ll have a tough time finding a more capable machine at its $279.99 sale price (if you frequently treat yourself and the family to ice cream cones, the Creami’s cost will be offset faster than you might think). This machine has a ton of modes, letting you craft soft serve or thicker, scoopable ice cream. You can use it to craft sorbet, gelato, frozen custard, or froyo – or whip up a milkshake. One full batch of ice cream can fill four small cones, or four scooped bowls.Ninja Creami Scoop & SwirlNinja’s clever 2-in-1 machine can spin up soft serve and traditional hard scoops in a few easy steps, not to mention creamy milkshakes, gelato, and frozen yogurt. Where to Buy: $349.99 $279.99 at Amazon $349.99 $279.99 at Best Buy $349.99 $279.99 at SharkNinjaNot everyone is ready for smart glasses that have cameras built into them. We get it (some Verge staffers feel the same way). However, if you want glasses with some smarts — the ability to take audio calls and listen to music and podcasts, or get Alexa assistance with questions or commands — look no further than the Black Friday bundle that includes Amazon’s latest Echo Frames glasses. The glasses typically sold for over $300 before Black Friday, but you can get the glasses in multiple styles for just $114.99 at Amazon.Amazon Echo Frames (latest verion)The smart glasses resemble a pair of regular eyeglasses but can be used to listen to music, take calls, and perform a range of Alexa-enabled tasks. They feature up to six hours of audio playback with their open-ear design.Where to Buy: $299.99 $114.99 at Amazon (original)Other Verge-approved deals we dug this weekFor a limited time, B&H Photo has the best price on the M4 Mac Mini that has 24GB of RAM and 256GB of storage — definitely an odd configuration, but a fast one, nevertheless! Normally $779, you can snag it for $679. Of course, most people who want this much memory probably want a bigger SSD than what’s offered here. Unfortunately, getting 24GB RAM with a 512GB SSD costs $904 at Amazon. If you prefer having a 512GB SSD and are alright settling with just 16GB of RAM, Amazon has that model for $729. As for my opinion on the matter, get the model with more RAM. Read our review.JBL’s Tour One M3 over-ear headphones plummeted to their lowest price yet at Amazon and B&H Photo, where the black or blue color schemes are $249.99 (originally $449, but commonly discounted to about $380). These hang with other flagship headphones in terms of sound quality, comfort, and have a robust active noise cancellation effect (they hit my radar thanks to a May 2025 review from Wirecutter). They’re especially interesting because they include an Auracast transmitter, with which you can plug into any device to beam a Bluetooth signal that any other Auracast-enabled device can connect to (the Tour One M3 is supported, obviously). In normal use, the transmitter is handy for setting up no-fuss connections to really any device with a headphone jack, be it in-flight entertainment, a treadmill, a laptop, or a portable gaming console, to provide some examples.I have another treat for your ears — this one being particularly good for PC gamers. The Fractal Scape is a wireless gaming headset better than most at its sale price of $169.99 ($30 off) at Amazon and Walmart. Not only does it sound very good while playing games and listening to music, its web browser-based tool makes it very easy to customize equalizers, in addition to tweaking the built-in LEDs built into the ear cups. Two other things make this one worth considering: recharging them is really easy, as you simply put them on the included docking station, and its Digital Crown-esque knob makes adjusting the volume or skipping tracks a breeze. Read our review.

HP makes some of the best business laptops, and while most of the HP EliteBook 6 G1q is underwhelming, it has one killer feature — optional 5G connectivity that's unlimited usage in the U.S., and connects to all the major carriers, so you'll always have the best chance of a strong signal. HP Go is seriously good stuff, and it's a shame that companies keep cellular-equipped laptops for business users and not the general consumer.

I have always believed in optimizing my workflow, but my mastery and knowledge of Microsoft Excel remained stuck in the basics. I knew there were advanced tricks out there, but they always felt intimidating and out of reach. Here is where I turned to NotebookLM, which helped me cut through the noise of complex tutorials and pinpoint the most effective, advanced Excel tricks that immediately shaved hours off my weekly tasks.

Noticed your home network slowing down? Spinning wheels while browsing your favorite websites? Transfer speeds that seem to go backwards? You might be tempted to blame your router for the issues, and often it is the culprit, but there are plenty of other things that can break your home network. Smart home devices are a frequent culprit at my home, as are cloud providers, device updates, and the occasional knocked cable.