Mark Zuckerberg, Meta CEO. | Photo: Bloomberg via Getty Images ​​On Wednesday evening, I had a profound sense of déjà vu. When I watched Mark Zuckerberg open his Meta Connect keynote by giving the world a live backstage tour from his new glasses, I was transported back to 2012.I was in the live audience at Google I/O when Sergey Brin introduced the world to some friends about to jump out of an airship, high above the event. I watched, agape, as athletes dove through the sky, launched bikes across the roof, rappelled down the side of the Moscone Center in San Francisco, then strode onto the stage right in front of me - all while streaming the whole thing live from their Google Glass headsets.We'd nev …Read the full story at The Verge.

Keep tabs on your wallet if you’re an Android user. | Image: Ugreen Ugreen has released a new wallet tracker that’s just as thin as the FineTrack Slim Smart Finder the company debuted earlier this year, but with a massive boost in battery life from 12 months to five years. However, while the previous version was compatible with Apple’s Find My network and recharable, the new FineTrack Slim Smart G only works with Google’s Find Hub network and lacks charging capabilities and a replaceable battery. When it dies, you’re left with a credit card-sized piece of e-waste. You can find it on Amazon for $25.99.At 1.7mm thick – roughly the same thickness of two credit cards – the FineTrack Slim Smart G is thinner than competitor’s wallet trackers including the 2.5mm Tile Slim which also lacks charging capabilities and is limited to three years of use. With 12 months of battery life between top-ups, Ugreen’s older rechargeable FineTrack Slim will definitely outlast this new Android-only version, but every wallet tracker will eventually become e-waste when their non-replaceable batteries stop taking a charge. In five years’ time you’ll probably be eager to upgrade to the latest tracking technology anyways.Other features include IP68 dust and waterproofing so the FineTrack Slim Smart G can survive dunks to up to 1.5 meters for up to 30 minutes, although it will be completely untrackable while submerged. It also has a built-in 80dB alarm that will potentially make it easier to locate the tracker when Google’s Find Hub app tells you it’s nearby but your wallet is in a pair of pants buried in a pile of dirty laundry.

Outside quick questions, I often don't turn to Google or even AI chatbots like ChatGPT and Gemini when I need real answers. More often than not, I end up on Reddit. Now, here's the issue with Reddit: it's extremely easy to get sidetracked and fall into a rabbit hole of endless threads. Before you know it, you've spent hours and hours scrolling through random Reddit posts, even when the original question that brought you there was solved long, long ago.

Michael Eisner, Disney's former CEO who ran the company for 21 years and oversaw its acquisition of ABC in 1995, does not think his successor, Bob Iger, made the right decision in moving to put Jimmy Kimmel Live! on indefinite pause following threats from Trump-appointed FCC chairman Brendan Carr. In a post to X about the Kimmel situation, Eisner - who once opted to suppress the theatrical release of Martin Scorsese's Kundun in response to pressure from the Chinese government - wrote, "Where has all the leadership gone?"Michael Eisner, who served as CEO of Disney for 21 years and acquired ABC while he was in charge, slams his successor …Read the full story at The Verge.

People migrate from Windows to Linux for a multitude of different reasons; for me, it was to give my aging PC a second lease on life after the Windows 10 end-of-life date arrives. Yes, I could force an upgrade to Windows 11. Yes, I could extend my Windows 10 security license another year. But I'm not a fan of Windows 11, and I don't want to be stuck on an operating system that won't receive any new content updates ever again.

Have enough Copilot buttons in your life? No you don’t — have another one! This one pops up in the latest Windows 11 Insider Preview when mousing over an open app in your taskbar; it lets you share the contents with Copilot Vision. Want to know who is celebrating in that dogpile on the mound, or dig a little deeper on that sculpture you took a photo of? Just click that “Share with Copilot” button that pops up in the window preview. Copilot Vision scans what’s on your screen, analyzes it, and lets you discuss the contents of the window with Microsoft’s AI chatbot to get more context, including offering tutorials. Of course, it doesn’t exactly seem like Windows users are clamoring for more Copilot in their lives. There’s already buttons popping up in Microsoft Paint, Notepad, in the taskbar, on your keyboard, and right on the front of some PCs. There’s even another, more useful Copilot feature in the same Windows 11 preview that translates on-screen text. Microsoft does say it’s just “trying out this taskbar capability”, so don’t be shocked if it gets axed in an upcoming build before it actually ships to regular users.

When we consider performance-enhancing techniques outside buying brand-new hardware, most people probably think of things like improving cooling, increasing the power limit or overclocking. While these are absolutely valid ways to squeeze more performance out of a component like your graphics card, there's another, perhaps counterintuative, way to do that, and that's through undervolting.

If you’ve been looking for a reliable and affordable way to host your Jellyfin media server, chances are you’ve considered using a Raspberry Pi or repurposing an old desktop. Both options are popular, but neither is a perfect fit. The Pi often struggles with transcoding and multiple streams, while a power-hungry tower PC is noisy and inefficient. That leaves many people stuck trying to balance performance, cost, and convenience.

amFilm’s OneTouch screen protectors start at $4.49. Happy iPhone Day! If you’re picking up the new iPhone 17 or iPhone Air and want to avoid scratches or cracks on its front glass, we spotted a great deal on a two-pack of amFilm’s OneTouch screen protectors over at Slickdeals. Designed specifically to fit the front of the new 6.3-inch iPhone 17, you can buy a pack on sale starting at a new low price of just $4.49 ($7.50 off) when you apply the promo code EUZWG92J at checkout at Amazon. The promo code also extends to discounts to tempered glass protectors made for other models, including the 6.3-inch iPhone 17 Pro, the 6.5-inch iPhone Air and for the 6.9-inch iPhone 17 Pro Max (this one costs $4.99 with the code).The Verge’s own Cameron Faulkner swears by amFilm, which he uses to cover nearly all his devices. Made from tempered glass, they’ll do a good job of protecting your phone’s screen from accidental drops without interfering with touch sensitivity. Each protector has an anti-fingerprint coating that helps keep your display clear and relatively smudge-free, without compromising your phone’s brightness or clarity. What’s more, they’re also super easy to install. The company includes a guide, alignment tool, dust remover, and bubble remover. In the unlikely event of a botched installation, there’s a second protector included as a backup option. Additionally, each set includes rings to go around the rear lenses to keep them free of scratches.amFilm OneTouch screen protectoramFilm’s tempered OneTouch screen protectors will protect your new iPhone 17 or Air from scratches and cracks, and includes a second protector as a backup. Use code EUZWG92J to save.Where to Buy: $11.99 $4.49 at Amazon (iPhone 17) $11.99 $4.49 at Amazon (iPhone Air) $11.99 $4.49 at Amazon (iPhone 17 Pro)Three more deals worth a look Anker’s Nano Travel Adapter is back down to an all-time low price of $19.99 ($6 off) directly from Anker when you apply the code ANKERVOX1. The compact adapter works in over 200 countries and regions, from the UK and most of Europe to Australia, Japan, and more.  It also features a single AC outlet, two USB-C ports (one with up to 20W of power), and two USB-A ports, allowing you to charge up to five devices at once.The 43mm OnePlus Watch 3 is on sale for $267.09 ($32 off) at Amazon, which is its best price to date. OnePlus’ latest wearable is the upgraded version of our favorite alternative to Google and Samsung smartwatches. It’s extremely similar to its predecessor, but offers some welcome improvements, including Google Gemini, a rotating crown, and a 60S Health Check-In, which gives you an overview of your heart rate, blood oxygen, mental wellness, wrist temperature, sleep quality, and vascular age. Best Buy is including a $10 e-gift card when you preorder Battlefield 6 starting at $69.99 for PS5, Windows PC, and Xbox Series X. The highly-anticipated first-person shooter will hit stores on October 10th, and fans are hoping it will mark a true return to form for the franchise after the release of its disappointing 2021 predecessor, Battlefield 2042. 

Even after I moved all my data to my brand-new NAS, I knew that cloud storage would continue to hold importance in my storage setup. The convenience of the cloud remains unmatched, allowing you to access your files from almost anywhere. However, there are still so many areas where a network storage server wipes the floor with cloud storage services like Dropbox. When you have a lot of things to manage, the tools you’re using become quite central to your system, and that’s when having a central server makes sense. Here are seven such moments that made it clear.

Microsoft is raising the prices of its Xbox Series S / X consoles in the US next month. The Xbox Series X will be priced at $649.99 in the US starting October 3rd, up from its existing $599.99 price. The Xbox Series S will move to $399.99, up from $379.99.Microsoft blames the price hikes on “changes in the macroeconomic environment,” which is a lot of words to say: tariffs. Xbox console pricing outside the US will remain the same. Thankfully, pricing for controllers and headsets will remain in the same in the US. The price rises mean Xbox Series S consoles will increase by $20, Xbox Series X consoles by $50, and the 2TB Galaxy Black Special Edition Xbox Series X is increasing by $70 all the way up to $799.99.Here’s the full list of price increases in the US:ProductNew US price (RRP)Previous US price (RRP)Xbox Series S (512GB)$399.99$379.99Xbox Series S (1TB)$449.99$429.99Xbox Series X$649.99$599.99Xbox Series X Digital$599.99$549.99Xbox Series X 2TB Galaxy Black Special Edition$799.99$729.99Microsoft only just raised the prices of its Xbox products worldwide in May, with price hikes to the Xbox Series S / X consoles, controllers, and headsets. Those previous price increases already bumped the Xbox Series X up by $100, and the Xbox Series S by $80. Coupled with today’s announcement, that means the Xbox Series X has increased in price in the US by $150 and the Series S by $100 in just six months.Microsoft’s Xbox Series X 2TB Galaxy Black Special Edition originally debuted nearly a year ago at $599.99, and it’s now about to be $799.99 — a $200 increase in just a year. Microsoft’s latest price increases are the second this year, following initial price hikes in 2023.Microsoft also planned to hike the price of some of its first-party Xbox games to $80 this holiday, but then walked back those changes in July.

There seems to be an increasing desire from many people to ditch Windows 11 in favor of Linux, and I've been caught up in it. I've tried a few Linux distros over the past few months, and I've settled on Arch Linux with KDE Plasma for what I now consider my main laptop.