Forget HiLight and Proactive Assistance. The Pixel 11 Pro is at its best with focused new tools that actually work.
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Verge Score
A great foldable with IP68 and a reliable triple camera, trapped in a shape everyone else seems to be moving on from.
I sat down with Google to discuss its vision for the next generation of wearables. It’s a work in progress.
Sandwiched between the 10A and the Pro 11, the regular Pixel 11 is a good value, thanks mostly to compelling features.
Google’s new Camera Looks feature will do less computational photography — and that’s a great thing.
The Fairphone 6 Plus is a refreshed version of the 6, with more RAM and a faster chipset.
Brooklyn-based artist Justin Blinder created a device that illustrates how soaring housing costs are making life in the city that much harder.
The CrossPoint Reader firmware is getting plug-ins that add support for ebooks from Libby, Kobo, and other sources.
Sometimes he just wants attention. And sometimes he just wants to cause mayhem.
These gadgets made a huge difference in how I care for my fish.
Tips and tricks to get your pet looking their best.
An AI future of sleek, streamlined, and totally empty relationships.
Its recent attempts to shore up privacy don’t seem to be convincing skeptics.
It’s early days for Content Seal, but the standard isn’t off to a good start.
The latest ruling in New Mexico’s child safety case brings Meta’s penalties to almost $1 billion.
The KickerAugust 20
If music be the food of love, Jeeves will play on
A new clip shared by the person or group identifying themselves as “CyberLeek” shows Jason Duval, one of the game’s protagonists, shooting the word “LEEK” into a wall, which suggests an actual copy of the game has escaped Rockstar Games’ containment. It’s the latest of several leaks ahead of GTA VI’s launch on November 19th.
A screwdriver is all you’ll need to swap a new battery into the Momentum 5’s charging case and earbuds.
Microsoft loves renaming products as much as Google loves killing them. Now you can relive those reinventions with The Rebrand Registry, a collection of decades of Microsoft branding history for cloud products, including analysis of which product categories get rebranded most often, and a risk index for future renames.
[The Rebrand Registry]
The ‘FLiPP’ tech should also be brighter, more energy efficient, and virtually any size.
Humanoid robot makers are earning much of their revenue selling bots to government-backed training centers, which then sell training data back to the industry, the FT reports. It’s AI circularity all over again, stoking fresh humanoid bubble fears as Unitree soars in its stock market debut despite the US foreign robot ban.
[Financial Times]
AirPods with cameras showed up in a video found in a release candidate of the upcoming macOS Tahoe 26.7 update, but Bloomberg reports that the headphones aren’t in the cards for 2026.
“Galaxy Event August 2026” will take place on August 27th at 8AM ET, Samsung says. Perhaps it’ll be the launch venue for the rumored Galaxy S26 FE?
[Samsung Newsroom]
The company’s lawyers are telling the judge in Epic Games v. Google that developers need around 10 more days to make the fixes he ordered. Judge Donato was not happy with the original way it looked, calling out Google for adding unnecessary “anticompetitive friction”.
Runs beautifully on the Canon T2i / 550D, too. But a missed opportunity for the shutter button to shoot! Not sure why it’s making the rounds now, as Doom-playing Canon DSLRs are nothing new. And have you seen it on the Kodak digicam from 1998? PowerShot pocket cams may be able to play too.
The HoverAir Versa found a loophole in the FCC’s drone ban. But it might not stick.
The acquisition will combine Stripe’s payments platform with OpenRouter, which connects developers to a range of AI models while aggregating the costs of using each one. Stripe hasn’t disclosed the terms of the deal, but The New York Times reports that it’s purchasing the startup for $7.5 billion.
[The New York Times]
YouTube is “close an agreement with several partners” though hasn’t signed any deals yet, according to Bloomberg.
Netflix has been paying YouTube creators, including Alan Chikin Chow, Nick DiGiovanni, and Mythical Entertainment, to post their videos on Netflix the same time they hit YouTube, Bloomberg recently reported.
Senior reviewer Victoria Song leads a Vergecast roundtable with editors Dominic Preston and Cameron Faulkner to talk about the Pixel 11/Pro/Fold and the Pixel Watch 5. We discuss if HiLight is a LowLight, whether we miss the temperature sensor, and if the Watch 5’s GPS truly beats Garmin and Apple. And stay tuned for more camera discussion on Friday’s Vergecast.
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SpaceX approached the AI coding startup with an offer, though “the deal talks are not currently active,” according to a report from Bloomberg. The two companies are still reportedly discussing potential partnerships, which could involve Cognition using SpaceX’s computing capacity.
“This is not true,” Cognition co-founder and CEO Scott Wu says on X. “Huge respect for the SpaceX team but Cognition is not for sale and we haven’t been talking.”
Update: Added post from Cognition’s CEO.
Following his breakout success in theaters, director Kane Parsons has returned to YouTube with a new Backrooms short called Everything Must Go. It’s basically like a visit to the surreal set from the film, and the short is also included in both the theatrical re-release and the impending Blu-ray version.
The streaming era has made it harder to capture reliable viewership data.
The Zeekr RT minivan, which has been rebranded as Ojai, is now available to all riders in Phoenix, San Francisco, and Los Angeles (after launching to select passengers last May). The company plans on bringing the egg-shaped shuttle to Denver, San Diego, and Las Vegas as its next cities before the end of the year.
It’s also rolling out the ability to check your work and get help with complicated topics using Google Lens.
Leaked demonstrations show how to use the Steam Frame with its wireless dongle and accessories.
AI data center projects are continuing to pop up across the US, with frequent opposition from locals concerned about their impact. Here are a few recent articles about the projects:
Subscribers, head to our AMA page and leave any question that’s on your mind about Google’s new Pixel 11 phones, be it the plain 11, the 11 Pro, or the 11 Pro Fold. Oh yeah, the Pixel Watch 5, too. We’ll be answering them at 3PM ET.
We also found deals on Garmin’s satellite-connected InReach, an Anker charger, and Marshall’s Stanmore III speaker.
Horizon Hunters Gathering was announced earlier this year, but developer Guerrilla Games has been “working to reboot the game since June” after negative test feedback, according to Bloomberg. The live service elements are apparently being removed, marking yet another live service stumble from Sony. Jason Schreier, who reported the Hunters Gathering news for Bloomberg, has a rundown of Sony’s mostly-failed live service efforts in his video for the story.
As of late, PlayStation has been focusing more on the types of premium single-player games it’s known for. But the next single-player Horizon title “remains years away from completion,” Bloomberg says.
Update: Added Schreier’s video.
The company calls it the world’s first state-backed trial aimed at mitigating warming contrails across an entire flight corridor — specifically the eastern half of the North Atlantic corridor, which accounts for around 5 percent of global contrail warming.
Contrails (not to be confused with conspiracy theories about “chemtrails”) are a big problem for the planet because they trap heat, accounting for about 35 percent of aviation’s global warming impact. Google has been working with American Airlines to help pilots find more sustainable flight paths.
Beginning today, Xbox Insiders will be able to “view, sort, and delete local game saves that aren’t currently in use,” according to a blog post about a few new features in testing. Your saves will remain backed up in the cloud.
AI safety still depends largely on the industry policing itself.
Some of the clips seemingly showing Grand Theft Auto VI footage have been pulled.
After releasing a buildable Xbox 360 in 2023, Mattel is back with a DIY recreation of Microsoft’s original console complete with a chonky replica of the Duke controller. The $324, 3,509-piece set is part of Mattel’s Lego-like Brick Shop line and includes gaming dioramas hidden inside plus interactive lighting and console sounds.
You can share your window with the new Meta AI app, as well as connect it to Google Workspace.
The changes are designed to get you playing the latest Call of Duty faster, though some of the details differ based on what platform you’re on. Activision’s blog post has the rundown.
Modern Warfare 4’s beta kicks off Friday for people who preordered, and an open beta starts the Friday after. The full game launches on October 23rd. A new multiplayer trailer debuted today ahead of the beginning of the beta.
It’s the prize for my previous Today I’m Toying With giveaway! The winner says: “I’m kind of speechless. A big thanks from one very happy gadget nerd!” You can enter the weekly giveaway at theverge.com/TITW (or by email, see the rules) starting 9AM each Wednesday. We’re on Giveaway #8 now!
MS Now — formerly MSNBC — is rolling out a $7.99 / month ($79.99 / year) subscription on September 9th, which will serve as an “additive experience” to the news network, according to an announcement. It will include access to livestreams and TV programming inside the MS Now app, along with the ability to interact with journalists, community features, and “new verticals that explore how news and politics impact everyday life.”
[Versant]
The reviews are live, and now you have a chance to ask us questions about the devices and our experiences testing them.
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