Google is pausing the rollout of its AI-powered “Ask Photos” feature within Google Photos, which has been slowly expanding since last fall. “Ask Photos isn’t where it needs to be,” wrote Jamie Aspinall, a product manager for Google Photos, in a post on X responding to criticism, citing three factors: latency, quality, and user experience. … Read more
TikTok is expanding Manage Topics, a feature that lets you customize how often content in the platform’s top 10 categories surfaces in your feed, like sports, travel, humor, creative arts, and dance. After rolling out a pilot in the US last year, TikTok spokesperson Jessica Allen confirmed to The Verge that it’s now launching globally. … Read more
An aging nuclear power plant that has been on the verge of shuttering since 2017 has a new lease on life after Meta agreed to support its operations for the next 20 years. Meta and energy company Constellation announced the deal today, which helps the plant expand its operations while Meta uses it to try … Read more
TikTok introduced a slew of new advertiser tools at the company’s annual advertiser summit on June 3rd. The new products range from AI-powered ad tools to new features connecting creators and brands, but the overall picture is clear: advertiser content on TikTok is about to become much more tailored and specific. The company will give … Read more
The 2026 Polestar 4 — the one without a rearview window — is now on sale in the US. And instead of being manufactured in China like the 2025 version, this all-electric coupe will be imported from South Korea. Of course, Polestar is a Volvo offshoot based in Sweden, and like Volvo it’s owned by … Read more
The Nintendo Switch, opened. Would you call the Nintendo Switch easy to repair, what with its infamously drifting joysticks, glued-in battery, tiny and easy-to-damage ribbon cables, and lack of official repair instructions and replacement parts? iFixit doesn’t think so anymore. After giving Nintendo’s handheld a rosy welcome at its 2017 debut, the online repair site … Read more
Epic Games is going to allow Fortnite creators to make AI-powered NPCs that work similar to the recently-launched AI Darth Vader. The company showed off the tech at its State of Unreal show on Tuesday. Using the Unreal Editor for Fortnite (UEFN), creators can make characters with personalities that they can voice chat with. Creators … Read more
If you’re thinking about getting a MacBook Pro, but you aren’t exactly sure which of the many configurations is best for you, perhaps this discounted model might be just what you’re after. The latest 14.2-inch model with an M4 chip (10-core CPU, 10-core GPU), 16GB of RAM, and 1TB of storage is $1,457.87 at Amazon, … Read more
As the tech world has standardized on USB-C, charging your devices has become much simpler. But it’s still not simple enough. Sure, most things plug into most other things, but now you have to worry about power and data throughput, making sure that everything works properly with everything else. That’s why we’ve spent years longing … Read more
Epic Games’ hyperrealistic MetaHuman characters are seriously impressive, and now the company is making it easier for developers to incorporate them into their projects. At its State of Unreal show on Tuesday, Epic announced that the MetaHuman Creator is now embedded within Unreal Engine as part of Unreal Engine 5.6. The company is also bringing … Read more
The Hue Play Smart Wall Washer can output white or colored light with more vibrant colors and smoother gradients. | Image: Amazon Amazon’s UK site has an early listing for what appears to be a successor to the Philips Hue Play Light Bar. The new Philips Hue Play Smart Wall Washer also casts an ambient … Read more
An ongoing tradition at Epic’s big keynotes is a gorgeous tech demo that shows off what its game engine is capable of. For this year’s State of Unreal, the company turned to The Witcher and Cyberpunk 2077 developer CD Projekt Red. This new demo a beautiful glimpse at its fantasy world, filled with blood, fire, … Read more
Meta is pushing ahead with a lightweight headset that could come with a “tethered compute puck” that powers the device, according to a report from UploadVR. Sources tell the outlet that Meta now aims to release the mixed-reality device by the end of 2026, while sidelining two Quest 4 headsets rumored to launch next year. … Read more
Sony has announced it will hold a summer State of Play presentation on Wednesday, June 4th, making this first week of June an all-timer for the video game industry. Not only do we have the Switch 2 launching this week, but all the video game showcases are dropping at once, because while E3 is a … Read more
Nvidia has added support for a new theme in its main Windows app, allowing you to toggle between the dark mode default and a lighter option. The light mode addition is part of a number of updates to the Nvidia app this month, including optimal settings for 12 new games, bug fixes to the DLSS … Read more
Pet health data, now available at your wrist. Smart pet tech company Fi’s new AI collar allows dog owners to monitor their pooch’s movements, health, and habits via their Apple Watch. The Fi Series 3 Plus launched on Monday with new behaviour detection features, Apple Watch app integration, and improved GPS tracking compared to its … Read more
Epic Games’ 2025 edition of its Unreal Fest conference is set to kick off on June 3rd in Orlando. There’s likely going to be a lot of news from the show; the company’s Unreal Engine is used as part of making many of the world’s biggest video games and entertainment, and Fortnite is still a … Read more
The new Wyze Bulb Cam adds a camera to a smart bulb. Wyze’s new security camera is attached to a lightbulb. The smart home company has devised a genius, if janky-looking, solution to illuminating your porch or patio with light while also keeping an eye on potential prowlers. The Wyze Bulb Cam ($49.98) is a … Read more
There’s a lot going on in gaming this week: Summer Game Fest, an Xbox showcase, and a little console launch from Nintendo. But before it all begins, Fortnite maker Epic Games is hosting its annual State of Unreal event. Last year, Epic spread a lot of news across two events in San Francisco and Seattle. … Read more
Most of us are familiar with the three basics of moving: packing, moving, and unpacking. But there are a multitude of things to be done both before and after a move that demand just as much of our attention — and for many of these, there are ways that tech can help. In this special … Read more
Moving four times in six years has taught me a lot. Mainly, changing addresses is utterly exhausting, but also that it’s a lot more complicated than just putting your stuff in boxes and transporting them from point A to point B. This is especially true when it comes to moving your money and payments along … Read more
The Bing Video Creator is rolling out now to Bing mobile app users. Microsoft has added a new AI video generator to its Bing mobile app that’s built on OpenAI’s Sora text-to-video model. The Bing Video Creator announced on Monday provides a free way to generate short clips with Sora, which is normally locked behind … Read more
Just after 11PM ET, many people started reporting problems with TikTok, which isn’t completely offline, but definitely has been dealing with some kind of outage. Downdetector listed 44,000 reports at our last check, and the issue isn’t fixed yet. Based on reports from Reddit, Twitter, Bluesky, and looking at our own devices, at the moment, … Read more
Microsoft’s changes in response to the Digital Markets Act already included allowing Windows machines in the regions it covers to uninstall Edge and remove Bing results from Windows search, but now the list is growing in some meaningful ways. New features announced Monday for Microsoft Windows users in the European Economic Area (the EU plus … Read more
Russian Governor Igor Ivanovich Kobzev shares an image of the strike’s aftermath in the Irkutsk region. | Image: Telegram Ukraine launched a surprise attack on Russia that targeted more than 40 of the country’s military aircraft on Sunday. The mission, called Operation Spiderweb, involved sending 117 drones over Russia’s borders and into several of its airfields. … Read more
iPhone repair kit (2022) Texas moved closer to becoming the next state with a right to repair law on the books, as the state Senate unanimously voted 31 – 0 to finalize HB 2963 this weekend. It would require manufacturers to make spare parts, manuals, and necessary tools available for equipment sold or used in … Read more
Google Wallet will soon no longer let you pay with your PayPal account in the US. On a help center page spotted by Android Authority, Google says it will stop supporting the payment method and automatically delete linked PayPal accounts on June 13th, 2025. The company has also stopped letting users link PayPal accounts to … Read more
Rivian is overhauling the charging experience for its EV customers, offering them more information about how their battery-powered vehicles take in and use energy. The automaker is rolling out a software update to its vehicles and smartphone app that aims to give its customers a more thorough and holistic view of their vehicle’s charging capabilities, … Read more
June is here, and with it comes a wave of Father’s Day sales from a range of retailers — including Sonos, which is discounting everything from the Arc Ultra soundbar to the excellent Era 100 smart speaker. The Sonos Ace deal particularly stands out, as the wireless headphones are available from Amazon, Best Buy, and … Read more
While we’re still a ways out from The Boys returning to Amazon for its fifth season, the franchise’s spinoff series, Gen V, will be back this fall. At this year’s CCXP convention in Mexico, Amazon announced that Gen V is set to return for its second season on September 17th with a three episode premiere. … Read more