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Showing posts from August, 2026

GTA VI: all the news on Rockstar’s next entry in the Grand Theft Auto series

It’s been over a decade and two console generations since GTA V came out, and its sequel is still a work in progress. GTA VI has faced multiple delays, with developer Rockstar Games bumping back its predicted release date twice, first to May 26th, 2026, then again to November 19th, 2026 , a full year after its originally planned release window of fall 2025, and facing accusations of union busting after firing more than 30 employees. Now, preorders have opened for the digital code-only game, offering the $79.99 standard edition and $99.99 Ultimate Edition on both PS5 and Xbox Series X / S . Early official glimpses offered a look at the game’s protagonists , Jason and Lucia, as the game will follow the pair around Vice City as they attempt to navigate a criminal conspiracy after a job goes south. After leaks of early builds a few years ago , a new “CyberL eek” series of posts have popped up, showing sequences of the game just days ahead of Rocks...

We’re All Going to the World’s Fair is an intimate coming-of-age horror film

Jane Schoenbrun 's latest film, Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma , is making a splash in theaters right now. So it seems like the perfect time to revisit their first film, We're All Going to the World's Fair . I fell in love with this film when I first saw it at Sundance in 2021. We are immediately introduced to our protagonist, Casey, as she engages in the World's Fair Challenge, a sort of ARG creepypasta meets ice bucket challenge. There's a creepy mantra, some bloodletting, and a mysterious video - basically a speedrun of horror movie tropes. But having them all delivered by this young girl alone in her room who just stares directly in … Read the full story at The Verge. from The Verge https://ift.tt/sO7xWwr

Grand Theft Auto VI exists in its own universe

This is The Stepback , a weekly newsletter breaking down one essential story from the tech world. For more on GTA VI and the state of the video game industry, follow Andrew Webster . The Stepback arrives in our subscribers' inboxes at 8AM ET. Opt in for The Stepback here . How it started Four years ago, fans got a long-awaited look at Grand Theft Auto VI with a huge cache of videos that showed off Rockstar's latest open-world epic. There were 90 videos in total, providing a glimpse at the next-generation take on Vice City, introducing the game's new dual protagonists, and generally showing off the crime-fueled mayhem the series is known for. … Read the full story at The Verge. from The Verge https://ift.tt/5ZGk3hf

W. Kamau Bell has the most practical ‘most indispensable tool’

I’m just as confused as you. | Image: Aundre Larrow W. Kamau Bell is one of those people who has always just seemed to be there. From Totally Biased , to Politically Re-Active , United Shades of America , and We Need to Talk About Cosby , his blend of comedy, social commentary, and political activism has helped him stand out. He's won a Peabody and four Emmys, been a Celebrity Jeopardy! champion, received honors from the ACLU, and been crowned the Ambassador of Fishbone by founding member Chris Dowd. Bell is, if nothing else, a busy man. So we're very grateful that he took time between episodes of his podcast Who's With Me , his comedy tour, and Substack of the same name, promoting his upcoming … Read the full story at The Verge. from The Verge https://ift.tt/S8o2mkt

Amazon just hiked the prices for Echo, Fire TV, and Kindle products by up to 60 percent

The Echo Dot Max went from $99.99 to $119.99 overnight, while its sibling the Echo Dot jumped to $79.99 from $49.99. | Photo by Jennifer Pattison Tuohy / The Verge Citing "significant increases in memory and storage component costs," in a statement given to Fortune , Amazon has raised prices on Echos, Kindles, Fire TVs , and Eeros by up to 60 percent. The cheapest products in Amazon's lineup were hit hardest, with the Echo Dot smart speaker jumping from $49.99 to $79.99. The Fire TV Stick 4K Max also rose by over 40 percent to $84.99, and the base level Kindle now costs $149.99, a nearly 37 percent increase. Amazon's flagship Echo Dot Max smart speaker , which launched last year, now costs $119.99, up from $99.99. Apple increased the price of its comparable HomePod Mini this summer to $129 from $99.99, … Read the full story at The Verge. from The Verge https://ift.tt/HZuifyx

An okay laptop with 16GB of RAM is better than a nice laptop with 8GB, and this $520 HP OmniBook proves it

The OmniBook 3 isn’t a sweet treat, but it gets things done on the cheap. | Photo: Antonio G. Di Benedetto / The Verge Laptop prices are out of whack. $500 used to get you a tolerable laptop, and $900 got you a really good one. They often had similar CPU, RAM, and storage options because that stuff was comparatively cheap; the difference was often in build quality and screen rather than power. But RAMageddon has thrown everything off. Even laptops like the $950 Surface Laptop now start with 8GB of RAM, which isn't enough. And on the lower end, where manufacturers are struggling to compete with the $700 MacBook Neo, they're cutting corners on storage, CPU, and build quality too. However, one low-cost laptop has bucked this and genuinely surprised me. HP's 16 … Read the full story at The Verge. from The Verge https://ift.tt/gCSnRN1

Two great new repairable gadgets

Hi, friends! Welcome to Installer No. 141, your guide to the best and Verge -iest stuff in the world. (If you're new here, welcome, I'm newish here too, and also you can read all the old editions at the Installer homepage .) This week, I've been getting back into the Installer groove, trying out some ergonomic Switch 2 grips I bought on Etsy , researching bike stuff because I'm about to get a Velotric e-bike, inching my way through the fourth book in The Dark Tower series, trying to figure out what feels off about Sonic in the new Fortnite season , wondering why Mark Zuckerberg needs a castle , and swatting at a few too many flies that have snu … Read the full story at The Verge. from The Verge https://ift.tt/VIASvmG

Tesla sunsets its Solar Roof tiles

Here’s Elon Musk showing off the Solar Roof plans back in 2016. | Image: Dieter Bohn / The Verge Tesla has discontinued Solar Roof, its solar panels designed to look like regular roofing tiles, Electrek reports. Sources "close to the program" told the publication that Tesla has informed its third-party installer network that Solar Roof is no longer available to order, and that only conventional solar panels will be supplied going forward. While Tesla hasn't officially announced that it's sunsetting the product, it's made several website changes that corroborate the reported discontinuation. The dedicated Solar Roof page ( tesla.com/solarroof ) that launched almost a decade ago now automatically redirects to Tesla's solar panel page inste … Read the full story at The Verge. from The Verge https://ift.tt/fYz9gTP

My big, fat, technophobic cat

He hates weigh-in days. My cat Pablo is a voluptuous boy. His primordial pouch , originally thought to protect cats' squishy insides, hangs low and wobbles to and fro. Once, when he was five or six, a vet sternly sat my spouse and me down, gravely stating, "He's simply too young to be this fat." Pablo didn't care, but we were traumatized. Now that he's 10, the vets have repeatedly scolded us. All 20 pounds of his rotundity, they say, cannot continue. The specter of diabetes and kidney problems, and the fact that his obesity combined with a too-small pee-pee hole increases his risk of urinary crystals, mean that a diet is urgent. I hear this every year. I keep say … Read the full story at The Verge. from The Verge https://ift.tt/SmKHGdc

The Audi S6 Sportback E-tron proves that sedans still matter

Last year, Audi announced that it gave its all-EV-by-2033 plan the boot, and instead will offer a mix of gasoline, hybrid, and electrified propulsion. There's no doubt still some uncertainty among bigger automakers - especially those under the Volkswagen Group umbrella - when it comes to such a (now prior) commitment. Even so, what it's currently offering on the EV front is rather good, and fits into the German brand's under-the-radar fast sedan tradition quite well. I recently discovered this in the 2027 Audi S6 Sportback E-tron . A cross between a sedan and a wagon in terms of its rearward shape, there's no hulking Quattro all-wheel drive … Read the full story at The Verge. from The Verge https://ift.tt/xuaRWg9

Sennheiser’s new Momentum 5 earbuds feature easily replaceable batteries

Sennheiser announced the next version of its flagship wireless earbuds with a major redesign focusing on sustainability. The company claims the new design improves the Momentum True Wireless 5's "comfort, stability, and portability," but a more compelling reason to upgrade is that you won't have to replace them in a few years when they stop holding a charge. Both the Momentum 5 earbuds and their charging case feature user-replaceable batteries that are accessible using a compact screwdriver instead of having to hack through layers of glue. The Momentum True Wireless 5 will be available starting on September 3rd for $299.95, which is the sam … Read the full story at The Verge. from The Verge https://ift.tt/wiej47Y

Amazon’s drones will soon deliver to nearly 500 US cities and towns

Prime Air is launching in Georgia, Ohio, Illinois, Idaho, and New York soon. | Image: Joseph Ciembroniewicz/Omaha World-Herald via Getty Images Amazon says its drone delivery service will reach "nearly 500 cities and towns in the United States" by the end of this year, increasing its coverage by six times compared to the current footprint. Prime Air deliveries will soon be launched in the Chicago, Illinois; Syracuse, New York; Cleveland, Ohio; Atlanta, Georgia; and Boise, Idaho metro areas, according to Amazon's announcement, with "more communities to come later this year." These will join 11 locations across the US where Amazon already offers drone deliveries, with each Prime Air site serving an area of approximately 175 square miles. The service aims to quickly deliver packages o … Read the full story at The Verge. from The Verge https://ift.tt/5SNPurQ

The everyday tech I use to track my corgi

The Apple AirTag may be a jack-of-all-trades - people use it for keeping track of keys, suitcases, backpacks, purses - but I think the most logical use case for it, by far, is keeping track of your pet. I attach it to my corgi Jelly's collar via a matching silicone holder. Have I ever once truly needed it to find her, and do I think she'd ever run off on me? No - she's a pretty loyal herding dog, so she likes to keep an eye on her parents - but just like whatever else you may attach an AirTag to, there's a significant chance that the one time you truly need it, you'll be thanking God that you had it. (Kind of like insurance.) I think it'd b … Read the full story at The Verge. from The Verge https://ift.tt/56SByXs

Framework gave its 12-inch laptop some hardware upgrades

Framework launched a second-generation of its colorful 2-in-1 convertible laptop. | Image: Framework Framework has refreshed its 12-inch convertible laptop, introducing Intel's latest Core Series 3 processors, expanded hardware customizations, and a pre-built Linux option. The cheapest pre-built base configuration for the Framework Laptop 12 now starts at $699 - $100 less than the previous version when it launched last year. Preorders are open now, with the first wave of deliveries expected to ship in October. That pre-built base configuration is only available in green, and includes an Intel Core 3 304 CPU, 8GB of RAM, and 512GB of storage. It also comes preloaded with Linux Fedora 44 KDE Plasma, a decision brought on by Framework finding … Read the full story at The Verge. from The Verge https://ift.tt/fRGF5lO

ChatGPT is getting a dedicated mode for teens

ChatGPT for Teens includes safeguards and parental controls. | Image: OpenAI OpenAI is introducing a dedicated ChatGPT mode for teenagers, combining existing youth safeguards and new safety features under one roof. The launch comes amid mounting public scrutiny over how AI tools affect younger users, as other platforms implement their own age checks and teen-specific protections. ChatGPT for Teens is "an experience designed to help teens learn, think critically, deepen understanding, and use AI with confidence," OpenAI said in a blog post published Tuesday. Teen mode will automatically apply to users who identify themselves as being between the ages of 13 and 17, as well as those the system estimates to be under 1 … Read the full story at The Verge. from The Verge https://ift.tt/9o3VixT

It’s about ethics in journalism, with Ben Smith

Today I’m talking to Ben Smith, the editor-in-chief of Semafor . Everywhere you go, people say they don’t trust the media — and yet they’ve never consumed more of it. Audiences have moved on from legacy names in favor of Substacks and podcasts and TikTok news influencers that seem to be everywhere in our feeds.  Why would anyone want to start a new global news organization in the middle of all that, when even once-storied brands like CBS News can’t seem to figure it out?  Well, that’s what Ben did four years ago. He’s the guy who ran BuzzFeed News at the height of the Facebook traffic boom, and even wrote a book about it, called Traffic , which he discussed with me on Decoder back in 2023 .  Verge subscribers, don’t forget you get exclusive access to ad-free  Decoder  wherever you get your podcasts. Head here . Not a subscriber? You can sign up here . Around that same time, he cofounded Semafor , which launched in 20...