Tom Brady just chucked another Microsoft Surface tablet
Touchdown!
Tom Brady might as well have been practicing his touchdown spike when he whipped a Microsoft Surface tablet into the ground during the Tampa Bay Buccaneers game against the Saints on Sunday night. The quarterback was visibly frustrated following an incomplete pass, tossed his helmet onto the field, and stormed back to the sidelines where he chucked the tablet.
The Buccs were losing when Brady threw the tablet, but they ended up coming back and defeating the Saints 20-10. This isn’t Brady’s first documented case of tablet abuse — he threw the thing so hard against the bench after losing a Saints game last year that it actually bounced.
Microsoft Surface chief Panos Panay responded to the incident on his Instagram story this time around, saying “Rest assured the Surface should be just fine.” I’m not so sure about that, Panos. The last tablet we saw Brady throw was destroyed, and we didn’t get to see how it fared after this temper tantrum.
NFL’s website says Microsoft designed the Surface tablets specifically for football games, ensuring they can “stand up to the occasional drop.” Maybe Microsoft should make sure they withstand a throw from a quarterback’s throwing arm, too.
Correction September 18th, 6:16PM ET:A previous version of the article stated Bill Belichick was the former coach of the Patriots, when he is the current coach. We regret the error.
Why gender is at the heart of the matter for cardiac illness
Studies show that women with heart disease are more likely to be misdiagnosed than men, and will have worse outcomes for surgery. What is behind this bias and how can how it be fixed?
Heart diseases are still chronically misdiagnosed or underdiagnosed in women. With depressing regularity, we see stories of women failed by the health system when they come to hospitals with the symptoms of a heart attack. As a professor of cardiac science with 40 years’ experience, for me it has been a frustrating journey to get to the real cause of this problem: a combination of professional, systemic and technical biases. The experiences of individual patients are complex to analyse and interpret, but now we can view these effects on a much bigger scale.
Women are 50% more likely to receive a wrong initial diagnosis; when they are having a heart attack, such mistakes can be fatal. People who are initially misdiagnosed have a 70% higher risk of dying. The latest studies have similarly shown that women have worse outcomes for heart operations such as valve replacements and peripheral revascularisation. As well as being misdiagnosed, women are less likely to be treated quickly, less likely to get the best surgical treatment and less likely to be discharged with the optimum set of drugs. None of this is excusable, but is it understandable?
US charges Iran trio with orchestrating vast hacking and extortion scheme
Men allegedly tried to extort hundreds of thousands of dollars from groups in US including domestic violence shelter
Three Iranians have been charged with trying to extort hundreds of thousands of dollars from organizations in the United States, Europe, Iran and Israel, including a domestic violence shelter, by hacking in to their computer systems, US officials said on Wednesday.
Other targets included local US governments, regional utilities in Mississippi and Indiana, accounting firms and a state lawyers’ association, according to charges filed by the justice department.
How Russian Trolls Helped Keep the Women’s March Out of Lock Step As American feminists came together in 2017 to protest Donald Trump, Russia’s disinformation machine set about deepening the divides among them.
Will Smith’s ‘Emancipation’: What Will Apple Do? The Civil War drama “Emancipation” finished filming early this year. Now, Apple faces a quandary on what to do with the movie.
South Korean founder of failed cryptocurrency Terra denies he is ‘on the run’
Do Kwon’s whereabouts are still unknown since a South Korean court issued an arrest warrant earlier this week
Do Kwon, the South Korean founder of the failed cryptocurrency Terra wanted by police, has denied he was on the run after Singapore investigators said he was not in the city-state as had been believed.
Kwon’s whereabouts have been thrown into question after a statement from Singapore police late on Saturday, and his tweets did not reveal where he was.
Fortnite’s new season adds Spider-Gwen and goopy chrome
Spider-Gwen in Fortnite. | Image: Epic Games
A new season of Fortnite is upon us, and it’s dripping with chrome. Today sees the launch of Chapter 3: Season 4 for the battle royale game, dubbed “Paradise,” and the big change this time around is a mysterious new substance. It’s called chrome, and it appears to be able to change just about everything it touches: you can splash it on walls to go right through them or splash it on yourself for temporary fire immunity and faster sprinting.
Other additions this season including new locations, like a floating condo, and other points of interest that have, naturally, been infested with chrome. Sniper rifles have received a big buff, increasing both damage and headshot multipliers. There’s also a new kind of vault, which can be opened by finding various keys located across the island, giving players access to high-level loot.
And a new season means a new battle pass, with lots of characters to unlock. Highlighting this season’s battle pass is Spider-Gwen, and players who purchase the pass will immediately get access to a new skin called Paradigm. Other additions include a hipster cat, a strange bear creature, a werewolf (?), and yet another very cool anime skin. Here’s the full battle pass lineup in trailer form:
TP-Link’s latest smart light strip goes with everything
The Tapo L930 has gradient RGB and tunable white light, and works with Apple Home, Google, and Alexa for under $50
TP-Link’s newest light strip, the Tapo L930-5, is a great addition to any smart lighting setup. The full-color gradient LED strip has almost everything you could want in a lighting strip — from tunable white light and dimming to music sync and some neat lighting effects, all for under $50. It’s the first lighting product from TP-Link to work with Apple Home, it also works with Alexa and Google Home, and it uses Wi-Fi, so it doesn’t need a hub.
Smart LED light strips are an easy, plug-and-play way to shed some light on a troublesome dark spot in your home or add some cool lighting effects under your cabinets, counters, or even around your bed — if you’re into that kind of thing.
The Tapo L930-5 is an RGBWIC LED strip — that alphabet soup means it has both RGB (with up to 16 million colors) and tunable white LEDs (up to 1,000 lumens). The separate white LEDs give it brighter and higher-quality white light than strips that only have RGB LEDs. The IC part means it uses an integrated chip, so it can display different colors along its 50 different lighting zones instead of a single color at a time. Very few LED light strips have both tunable white LEDs and addressable lighting, fewer still have all that and Apple Home support, and all of those are far more expensive than the Tapo L930-5.
I’ve tested several smart light strips, from high-end Eve and Philips Hue versions to budget strips from Feit, and the Tapo feels like it should cost more than it does. Even if you don’t need Apple Home support, it’s still better than anything else in its price range.
I installed the L930-5 along the underside of my kitchen breakfast bar, where I could use blue light to highlight the blue cabinets and make the bar an architectural focal point or switch to white light to brighten up my dark living room.
The Tapo light strip installed under a breakfast counter.
The 16.4-foot (5-meter) LED strip comes with a small controller with an on/off button and an AC adapter. I connected them, positioned the strip, and stuck it to the underside of my counter (literally stuck; it uses 3M tape). The biggest challenge was finding a spot with an outlet nearby, and I had a bit of trouble getting a smooth fit when going around a tight corner. I ended up cutting the strip instead (the strips are trimmable but can’t be re-connected).
The whole process took less than five minutes, and the end result was wow-worthy. I say that confidently: my teenagers said, “Wow, that’s cool,” when they came home from school, and they are very hard to impress.
The Tapo app, which I’ll come back to, is better than most. But the real power of smart lighting comes from connecting it to a smart home platform like Apple Home (previously known as HomeKit), Google Home, or Amazon Alexa, and Tapo supports all three.
In my kitchen, I have smart light switches from Lutron Caseta and Aqara and smart bulbs from Philips Hue. Using Apple Home, I added the Tapo light strip to a Scene with all those other lights, linked that to a Philips Hue motion sensor, and had them all turn on when someone walked into the kitchen. You can also set up an Alexa Routine to do this. Google Home doesn’t let sensors trigger routines but does support voice control, as do the other two.
TP-Link recently announced the Tapo line will support Matter when the new smart home standard launches later this year. It’s unclear whether existing devices like the L930-5 will be upgraded or whether it will launch new Matter-compatible products, but as Tapo products use Wi-Fi there’s a clear upgrade path. A new version of the Tapo app is coming later this year that Tapo says can “integrate all Matter-supported devices within one ecosystem.”
The Tapo bopping along to some tunes.
Unlike most smart lighting control apps, the Tapo app is well laid out, easy to use, and offers lots of features. I could set the lights on a schedule, create six preset light scenes, choose from 17 effects (as well as create my own), and sync with music. The app also monitors energy usage, has an Away Mode (to turn lights on and off randomly to mimic someone being at home), and a timer that will turn the lights on or off after a set period.
The Tapo app’s lighting effects take advantage of the light strip’s fifty individually addressable lighting zones. My favorites were the Rainbow effect for some vivid pops of color and the Aurora for a more soothing light show. I did try to create some of my own effects, which was easy to do in the app, but the presets looked a lot better than anything I came up with. I’m definitely going to be using the Bubbling Cauldron and Haunted Mansion options for my Halloween setup this year.
The Tapo light strip installed under a kitchen countertop.
The Tapo also includes an Auto White mode, which sets the light to white and automatically adjusts the brightness based on available light — though I’m not sure how it does it as I can’t find an ambient light sensor anywhere on it. This is a nice feature, though, and means you don’t end up with a bright light shining at you when you dim other lights in your house. Unfortunately, while it did dim automatically, it stayed at one color temperature, despite the app saying it should adjust from cool to warm. In my testing, the light strip also didn’t work with Apple Home’s adaptive lighting feature. I’ve reached out to TP-Link about both features.
The Tapo light strip can sync to music or ambient sound, which it did relatively well, if a bit more robotically and less smoothly than Philips Hue’s music sync feature. However, it uses the microphone on your smartphone or tablet, not a built-in microphone, as Nanoleaf lights and some Govee strips have. This was annoying, especially as you need to keep the app open on your phone for it to work, and it kept disconnecting. But that might be for the best if you’re not keen on your light strips having a microphone.
If you have multiple Tapo products, you can link them together in the Tapo app with Smart Actions. These are Scenes that let you control multiple devices at once by tapping a tile in the app or Automations that can run based on time of day or when triggered by another Tapo device. The Tapo app only works with Tapo products, not TP-Link’s other smart home line, Kasa. The Tapo line also has an Apple Home-compatible smart plug, and earlier this year, TP-Link announced an Apple Home-compatible power strip, dimmer switch, and color bulbs are coming soon.
The Tapo light strip produced rich, bright colors.
At $49.99 for 16.4 feet of addressable lighting zones, RGB, and tunable white LEDs, the Tapo L930-5 is by far the best, least expensive light strip that works with Apple Home. But if any one of those features is negotiable, or you really want the Adaptive Lighting feature, you have other options to consider — though most still cost much more.
One thing to note is that the L930-5 only comes in one length right now: 16.4 feet (or 5 meters). That’s much longer than most smart light strips, which usually start around six feet, or two meters, though many can be extended up to 32 feet (10 meters) or even longer. TP-Link doesn’t sell extension kits for the L930, but it says a 32-foot version of the L930 is launching next month.
Even if you don’t want Apple Home support, the L930-5 is compelling. Most light strips in this price range can’t produce high-quality white light because they don’t have separate white LEDs. Losing the white LEDs is not worth the $10 or $15 you’d save by getting the Tapo L920-5, Govee, or Kasa smart light strips.
Unless you’re dead set on Adaptive Lighting or holding out for a light strip that’s guaranteed to work with Matter and Thread, this is the best, most affordable addressable light strip option right now.
The PS Vita’s time is now, again
The 2013 PS Vita still looks and feels surprisingly modern.
Every couple of weeks, I exhume my gadget graveyard from underneath my bed. I look at my iPods, old phones, and some other stuff. Most of it doesn’t stir me anymore, but the PS Vita is another story. It’s the device that I pull out most frequently, charging it up to, well, just to feel like it’s a part of the modern world.
I keep mine in a svelte Waterfield Designs soft case that cleans off fingerprints when it goes in so that it’s smudge-free when I pull it out, revealing design details that I apparently have an unshakable affinity to seeing over and over: gorgeous translucent shoulder buttons; the big (but not too big) display; and the sturdy yet elegant build quality. Almost everything going on with the look and feel of the Vita is still serviceable today, even if it’s daringly tiny compared to the size of, say, the Nintendo Switch.
You’ve probably heard this a million times, but the Vita, announced in mid-2011, was Sony’s compete-with-everything device, unenviably poised to take on mobile phones and Nintendo’s 3DS with console-like controls and graphics as well as forward-thinking (though, ultimately ill-advised) features like 3G support, apps of its own, and a rear touchpad meant to be a playground for innovation in gameplay.
Yep, there was a first-gen version of the Vita that supported 3G via AT&T.
Ten years later, the Vita is very dead outside of a vibrant homebrew scene that I’m continuously impressed by. It only took a fraction of those 10 years to seal its fate, and it deserved it. Or rather, parts of Sony’s vision for the Vita did. Remember its godforsaken proprietary memory card that cost a fortune and its Micro USB port? Yeah, goodbye. But there’s plenty about the Vita that can be reimagined for 2022; I just like to pretend that the concept of a handheld isn’t so dead to Sony.
I have, um, specific desires.
A new Vita shouldn’t have a brand-new ecosystem for exclusive games and apps built up around it, nor does it need to deliver high-end performance. Really, I would just like a modernized Vita with USB-C charging and a lightweight OS that’s built to supplement Sony’s PlayStation Plus plans, with cloud streaming and all of that. Remove some of the frills of the hardware and ship it. Just give me a reason to stop obsessing over this dead gadget.
Photography by Sam Byford / The Verge
Tell me a new Vita with USB-C, microSD, and Android wouldn’t be the hottest device of 2022.
What else do I want in a next-gen PS Vita? I’m so glad that you asked. Using the late 2013 Vita revision as my reference, I’d be willing to accept a slightly wider and taller handheld to accommodate more buttons (just to reflect what’s on the PS5’s DualSense controller). I really like this Vita’s thickness, which is about as thick as a deck of cards, though I’d be cool with it taking on a few extra millimeters to incorporate a proper set of L2 and R2 triggers. Otherwise, just leave the rest of the design alone — I still love it.
As for the OS, slap Android on it for all that I care. Keep the bubbly user interface, or just make it stock Android. The latter would make it more practical for me to use it for other forms of entertainment, and I’m sure a relatively midrange Snapdragon chipset could get the job done. You can take or leave the game cartridge slot, but a microSD card slot, a headphone jack, and an OLED screen would be nice. I mean, it’s gotta be modern, right? Even the debut Vita model had an OLED. Sony switched it to LCD in the second iteration.
Photo by Cameron Faulkner / The Verge
Traces of Vita DNA exist in Backbone’s Sony-approved iPhone controller.
The last five years in tech have supplied more handhelds than I (and apparently Sony, too) could have ever predicted. Several products have capitalized on the Switch’s dominance in their own way, including multiflavored Aya Neo consoles, the Steam Deck, the Analogue Pocket, and soon (if the rumors are true), Logitech’s own handheld. Some reimagining of the Vita seems like an obvious idea. It belongs in the here and now with all of the other portable consoles, even if Sony doesn’t see it that way.
Dutch town takes Twitter to court over unfounded satanic paedophile claims
Bodegraven-Reeuwijk has been plagued by a conspiracy theory and wants tweets spreading it removed
A small Dutch town took Twitter to court on Friday to demand the social media company take down all messages relating to a supposed ring of Satan-worshipping paedophiles alleged to have been active in the town in the 1980s.
Bodegraven-Reeuwijk, a town of about 35,000 inhabitants in the middle of the Netherlands, has been the focus of conspiracy theories on social media since 2020, when three men started spreading unfounded stories about the abuse and murder of children they said took place in the town in the 1980s.
‘So many people tell me they wish they could get out!’ Can we escape the tyranny of WhatsApp groups?
Group chats were a lifeline during lockdown – but for many, the constant messages have become an oppressive distraction. Leaving, however, is not so simple
As I write, I have 101 unread WhatsApp messages, 254 unread iPhone messages and 46,252 unread emails across three separate accounts. For me, Inbox Zero is a faraway goal, as unachievable as mastering the perfect cat’s-eye flick, or learning how to cook.
But it is the WhatsApp messages, specifically the WhatsApp group chats, that terrorise me the most. If I were a woman of courage, I would simply exit these chats as soon as I am added to them; but I feel the weight of social obligation, and so I remain.
US scientists to test advanced, real-time algae sensor at water treatment plant As danger looms in bodies of water globally where toxic algae blooms, a small plastic storage tub in Toledo sealed to protect against splashes, spiders and bird stool may contain a game-changing technology in the fight against the growing environmental problem.
Biden talks up electric vehicle revolution – but is America ready to give up gas?
President appears at Detroit auto show, where EVs are this year’s stars – but the road to electrification promises to be a bumpy one
Fresh off signing legislation aimed at propelling the nation’s electric vehicle (EV) transition, Joe Biden was in Detroit last week to reaffirm his support for electrification ahead of the opening of the US’s largest annual car show.
“The great American road trip is going to be fully electrified, whether you’re driving along the coast, or on I-75 here in Michigan,” he declared as the first North American International Auto Show since 2019 prepared to open its doors.
Splatoon 3 review – Nintendo’s new squid game is ink-redible fun
Nintendo Switch; Nintendo Never mind the spectacularly colourful paint battles, this is quietly one of the best and most inventive action-puzzle games around
Nintendo’s offbeat hit Splatoon has been around since 2015, but the idea is still so charmingly bizarre that it feels fresh: human-cephalopod hybrids splatter each other and their surroundings with colourful paint on ink-splashed battlefields. You transform back and forth between human and squid (or octopus), swimming through ink, emerging to chuck paint out of a bucket or shoot it from a squirt-gun or spread it with a roller, claiming territory with your own team’s colour. The arenas are city alleyways, abandoned factories, warehouses and urban landscapes – they have the feel of real-life underground skate spots, derelict yet cool.
Splatoon 3 does not change much about this premise, but it’s irresistibly stylish and gives you absolutely loads to do, from those chaotic trademark team battles to co-operative sorties on to industrial islands where you shoot at goggle-eyed fish to steal their shiny golden eggs. The more you play, the more you want to play, as new modes and weapons open up. A triple bow with exploding paint arrows, a transforming sword, an umbrella … they all beg to be toyed with, and they’re all gently hilarious.
Uber apparently hacked by teen, employees thought it was a joke
Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge
Uber says it’s investigating a “cybersecurity incident” amidst reports that the company’s internal systems have been breached. The alleged hacker, who claims to be an 18-year old, says they have administrator access to company tools including Amazon Web Services and Google Cloud Platform. The New York Times reports that the ride-hailing business has taken multiple internal systems, including Slack, offline while it investigates the breach.
When contacted for comment by The Verge, a spokesperson for the company declined to answer additional questions, and pointed to its statement on Twitter. “We are currently responding to a cybersecurity incident. We are in touch with law enforcement and will post additional updates here as they become available,” the statement reads.
The hacker appears to have made themselves known to Uber’s employees by posting a message on the company’s internal Slack system. “I announce I am a hacker and Uber has suffered a data breach,” screenshots of the message circulating on Twitter read. The claimed hacker then listed confidential company information they said they’d accessed, and posted a hashtag saying that Uber underpays its drivers.
The Slack message from the alleged hacker was so brazen that many Uber employees appear to have initially thought it was a joke, the Washington Post reports. Employee responses to the post included lighthearted emoji like sirens and popcorn, as well as the “it’s happening” GIF. One unnamed Uber employee told Yuga Labs security engineer Sam Curry that staff were interacting with the hacker thinking they were playing a joke.
“Sorry to be a stick in the mud, but I think IT would appreciate less memes while they handle the breach,” one employee’s response read, according to The Post.
Apparently there was an internal network share that contained powershell scripts...
"One of the powershell scripts contained the username and password for a admin user in Thycotic (PAM) Using this i was able to extract secrets for all services, DA, DUO, Onelogin, AWS, GSuite" pic.twitter.com/FhszpxxUEW
The hacker claimed to the NYT to be 18 years old, and told The Post that they breached Uber for fun and is considering leaking the company’s source code. In a conversation with cybersecurity researcher Corben Leo, they also claimed to have gained access to Uber’s systems through login credentials obtained from an employee via social engineering, which allowed them to access an internal company VPN. From there, they found PowerShell scripts on Uber’s intranet containing access management credentials that allowed them to allegedly breach Uber’s AWS and G Suite accounts.
“This is a total compromise, from what it looks like,” Curry told the NYT. “It seems like maybe they’re this kid who got into Uber and doesn’t know what to do with it, and is having the time of his life.”
As Driverless Cars Falter, Are ‘Driver Assistance’ Systems in Closer Reach? With investigations and lawsuits over accidents adding skepticism toward fully driverless technology, car companies are betting on systems that take some, but not all, control.
WiZ’s smart lights can now be motion sensors
SpaceSense will turn WiZ light bulbs into motion sensors. | Image: Signify
Motion-triggered smart lighting is pretty magical. Figuring out how to set up little white motion sensors all over your house to make it work is not. With its new SpaceSense feature, Signify may have come up with the perfect solution: let the light bulbs do the work.
SpaceSense is a software feature coming to Signify’s Wi-Fi smart lighting line WiZ later this month. It uses Wi-Fi sensing technology that detects changes in Wi-Fi signal strength caused by movement to turn lights on when someone walks into a room and off when motion stops. Wi-Fi sensing is already being used in some routers and security systems, and it was only a matter of time until a lighting company figured out how to apply it to their tech.
With WiZ, the sensing technology is embedded directly in the light bulb; you only need two or more WiZ bulbs in a room to get started. Wiz has a wide range of Wi-Fi-powered smart light bulbs starting at $11, so the barrier to entry is low. The company also recently released several new products, including a floor lamp and portable lamp as well as new color-changing outdoor string lights that are coming next month.
Image: Signify
WiZ has a wide range of smart light bulbs and light fixtures that work over Wi-Fi and don’t require a hub. You need two in a room to use SpaceSense.
SpaceSense will be set up and controlled using the new WiZ V2 app, which launches this month. The app also allows a user to adjust the sensitivity of the motion detection and set a delay to keep lights on for a set period of time, even if no motion is detected.
The technology is opt-in and doesn’t detect or record a person's exact location or recognize faces. WiZ says all the detection data is processed locally on the light bulb.
According to WiZ, SpaceSense will work on most WiZ-branded products released since September 2021. It's working on compatibility with older models. Those brands include WiZ lights, Philips Smart LED lights, and any brand with the Connected by WiZ logo. It won’t work with Signify’s Philips Hue lighting products, as Hue uses Zigbee, not Wi-Fi.
YouTube Opens More Pathways for Creators to Make Money on the Platform The video platform will let more creators earn payments and place ads in Shorts, its TikTok competitor, according to audio from an internal meeting.
A hacker apparently compromised an employee’s Slack messaging app and was able to gain access to other internal company systems
Uber said on Thursday it is responding to a cybersecurity incident, after the New York Times reported that a hack had breached the company’s network and forced it to take several internal communications and engineering systems offline.
A hacker compromised an employee’s workplace messaging Slack app and then used it to send a message to Uber employees announcing that it had suffered a data breach, the Times reported citing an Uber spokesperson.
Crypto’s Long-Awaited ‘Merge’ Reaches the Finish Line Ethereum, the most popular cryptocurrency platform, completed its much-anticipated switch to a more energy-efficient infrastructure.
Scientists try to teach robot to laugh at the right time
Research team hopes system could improve natural conversations between humans and AI systems
Laughter comes in many forms, from a polite chuckle to a contagious howl of mirth. Scientists are now developing an AI system that aims to recreate these nuances of humour by laughing in the right way at the right time.
The team behind the laughing robot, which is called Erica, say that the system could improve natural conversations between people and AI systems.
EA’s CEO is following the money to more games with player-created content
The new Skate is expected to offer lots of ways to be creative. | Image: EA
EA sees a big opportunity in games that let players create their own content, CEO Andrew Wilson said at a Goldman Sachs conference on Tuesday, as reported by Axios. Games like Minecraft and Roblox with extensive player creation tools have become huge hits with enduring popularity, and it sounds like EA wants to find more ways to let players create content in its own titles.
He highlighted a few EA franchises he feels have notable creative aspects already, like The Sims (which will soon be free to play), FIFA, and Battlefield, and talked about how the upcoming live service Skate title will offer many opportunities for player creation.
“Just like the real world, where skateboarding leans into fashion and music and automotive and building and brands, we think that franchise can do that as well,” Wilson said. “So you’ll see us lean more into really engaging and investing in creation.” The Skate team has already teased some of the tools they’re working on, such as in-game “CollaboZones” that can be built collaboratively and appear in others players’ worlds in real time.
Wilson expects that down the line, “there will be the creation of new worlds that sit right next to the worlds that we create, and people will move frictionlessly between those two things,” he said. This sounds somewhat similar to what you can see in Fortnite today — expansive player-made worlds are served up right next to Epic’s own modes in the game’s discovery tools.
Wilson indicated that there’s a significant business opportunity in encouraging players to create content. The correlation of “minutes engaged” (aka, how long somebody might be playing a game) to money spent is almost one to one, he said, so whether players or EA creates the content, there’s “an extraordinary opportunity for [EA].”
While EA is going to invest in gaming creation tools, Wilson discussed how the company doesn’t plan to pour money into gaming-adjacent entertainment opportunities like film, like some other companies have. “I’m not going to go out and buy a movie studio just because I think there will be a convergence between linear and interactive,” he said. “I think there are different ways we can do that.”
And despite the popularity of EA’s sports franchises, he’s not looking at expensive sports broadcast rights, either. “I’m not going to go out and spend billions of dollars on linear broadcast sports rights, because I think there’s a way we can deliver and fulfill the needs and motivations of our sports fans inside of our ecosystem in a far more deliberate way that is far more aligned with how they want to consume that content.”
He also addressed the state of the Battlefield franchise, which is trying to recover from the widely-criticized launch of Battlefield 2042 last year, and acknowledged that EA didn’t live up to expectations. “I don’t think we delivered in the last two iterations in the way that we should have,” he said. “There’s a lot of work we’ve got to do there.” EA has “an extraordinary creative team involved in Battlefield now,” he says, and I do think there’s a good chance it’s now on the right path. Vince Zampella, who heads up Apex Legends and Titanfall developer Respawn, is now in charge of the franchise, and there are new Battlefield experiences in the works like a new “narrative campaign” and a mobile game.
Wilson believes Battlefield could fill any potential vacuum left by Call of Dutyfollowing Microsoft’s pending Activision acquisition. “In a world where there may be questions over the future of Call of Duty and what platform that might be on or might not be on, being platform agnostic and completely cross platform with Battlefield is a tremendous opportunity,” Wilson said.
And while Wilson is on guard for disruption from tech giants that have stepped into gaming (some more successfullythan others), he believes EA will endure. “I tell our teams: Never underestimate these giant companies that have innovative DNA, monopolistic tendencies, and deep pockets,” he said. “We always have to ask ourselves what happens if they get it right. But as of today, we have this very, very unique and special opportunity to deliver the future of entertainment.”
Tesla is being sued over Autopilot and Elon Musk’s Full Self-Driving predictions
Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge
A lawsuit filed in San Francisco by a Tesla owner claims the automaker and its CEO / Technoking Elon Musk are “deceptively and misleadingly” marketing the Autopilot and “Full Self-Driving” advanced driver assistance features that are available as paid software add-ons (via Automotive News).
The filing claims Tesla and Musk “deceived and misled consumers regarding the current abilities of its ADAS [advanced driver-assistance system] technology and by representing that it was perpetually on the cusp of perfecting that technology and finally fulfilling its promise of producing a fully self-driving car,” and that “contrary to Tesla’s repeated promises that it would have a fully self-driving car within months or a year, Tesla has never been remotely close to achieving that goal.”
The plaintiff, Briggs Matsko, says he spent $5,000 for the package in 2018, like many Tesla drivers who’ve paid thousands of dollars for Enhanced Autopilot. That was sold as a precursor to “Full Self-Driving” tech, a now $15,000 software add-on package that still isn’t ready to ship. Matsko is seeking class-action status for the lawsuit, while the company is already facing another class-action lawsuit targeting “phantom braking incidents” that have plagued the adaptive cruise control features on Teslas for years.
The lawsuit calls out Tesla’s features terminology, including the name “Autopilot,” as well as Elon Musk’s public statements and tweets regarding the perpetually unfinished Full Self-Driving system. It specifically mentions Musk’s claim that an autonomous US cross-country trip will be performed by 2018, and his 2019 claims about putting 1 million robotaxis on the road, saying, “A year from now, we’ll have over a million cars with full self-driving, software... everything.”
The road trip was eventually put on hold indefinitely, with Musk admitting that it would need a specialized route to work, and saying he preferred to have the Autopilot team focus on safety features. The robotaxis have not become a reality.
As for Full Self-Driving, the lawsuit backs its claims of fraud using this 2016 video released by Tesla — and still featured on its website — seemingly demonstrating a Model X leaving a garage, driving through a city, dropping off the “driver,” and then automatically finding a parallel parking spot to wedge itself into. Reportedly, former Tesla engineers that were there for the video’s production claimed the car used a pre-charted and 3D mapped route — technology that is not built into any production Tesla.
The lawsuit also makes the case that not only are Full Self-Driving and Autopilot misrepresented, but they’re also dangerous. It points to incidents like the 2018 crash where a Model X on Autopilot crashed into a concrete barrier in California, killing the driver, or another one where a Tesla on Autopilot crashed into the back of a stationary fire truck, prompting a federal investigation.
Matsko’s lawsuit says he’s looking for “injunctive relief prohibiting Tesla from continuing its deceptive and misleading marketing of its ADAS technology, restitution of the money Plaintiff and Class members paid for technology that Tesla promised but never delivered, and all available damages including punitive damages to punish Tesla for years of using deceptive and misleading marketing to eventually establish itself as a dominant player in the electric vehicle market.”
Android and iOS take big steps toward launching Matter smart home compatibility
Matter is a new smart home interoperability standard both Apple and Google helped create. | Image: CSA
It’s getting closer. With the drop of the iOS 16.1 and iPadOS 16.1 developer betas today, we have confirmation that “Matter Accessories” are on their way to Apple iPhones and iPads. Plus, Google’s Google Home Developer Console, which helps developers add Matter devices to its smart home platform, also went live today.
Matter is a new smart home connectivity standard that promises to unify all your connected devices, making it easier for your smart thermostat to talk to your connected door lock and for you to talk to either one using any voice assistant or smart home app you choose. At WWDC this year, Apple announced that iOS 16 would support Matter, and now we are seeing the first implementations.
A screenshot of the Settings page on an Apple iPad running iPadOS 16.1 developer beta.
A new option menu has appeared in Settings > General on both iPads and iPhones running the beta. Spotted by Aaron Zollo, it lists “Matter Accessories” and, when you tap it, takes you to a list of Matter accessories that have been added to “a connected service.”
Only there are no Matter-compatible accessories yet, as the Matter standard hasn’t been finalized. But this is a sure sign that developers and manufacturers are testing prerelease software ahead of the anticipated launch of Matter this fall.
That demo highlighted one of Matter’s core features — multi-admin control — which is hinted at in the iOS and iPadOS betas. This allows devices to have multiple masters, so you can ask Siri to turn down your Nest thermostat or have a Google Nest Hub control your Amazon smart plug.
Apple has been involved with Matter since it first began as one of its founding members, along with Google, Samsung, and Amazon. All three smartphone manufacturers have publicly stated that their smartphone and tablet devices will be Matter controllers, meaning they can onboard Matter devices to your smart home network.
Some screenshots that also surfaced today indicate Google is well on its way to adding a Matter Accessories section to its operating system. Android Police reports a Matter Devices & Services section has appeared in the Google account settings for some users, with a prompt to connect a new Matter device and the option to automatically show a notification when Matter devices are nearby. This hints at another key feature of Matter: a streamlined, more unified setup for smart home devices.
All this activity makes it seem increasingly likely that Matter will hit its goal of a fall launch, despite multiple previous delays.
Here come high-powered USB-C chargers that can fully power a 16-inch MacBook Pro
The HyperJuice 140W is one of the first USB PD 3.1 chargers to become available. | Image: Hyper
When Apple released the M1 Pro and M1 Max MacBook Pros last year, the 16-inch models came with a new kind of USB-C charger — one that can deliver up to 140W of power to the MagSafe 3 port. That’s because Apple’s biggest MacBook Pro charger supports the latest USB Power Delivery specification: USB PD 3.1, which goes beyond the previous 100W limitation for a single USB-C port.
The USB Promoter Group published the latest specification of Power Delivery in May of last year, but accessory manufacturers are only now delivering products that support it. And it’s about time because 16-inch MacBook Pro users who swear by fast charging have been stuck with the included non-travel-friendly brick that only has one USB-C port. Now you can get ones with multiple ports, giving you the flexibility to share all that power with a phone, tablet, or even another laptop along with the MacBook Pro.
We haven’t tested these yet, but some USB PD 3.1 multiport charger options include the HyperJuice 140W for $129.99 and the Ugreen Nexode 140W for $149.99. Both of these chargers have two USB-C ports and one USB-A port for more flexibility but only support the max 140W out of one specific port and up to 100W out of the second one, individually. For the USB-A ports, the Nexode can do up to 22.5W, while the Hyper does 30W.
Image: Ugreen
Ugreen claims its Nexode 140W can fast charge a 16-inch MacBook Pro from 0 to 56 percent in 30 minutes.
The HyperJuice and the Nexode seem like similar products otherwise (even though the Nexode is $20 more), but they actually behave differently when plugging more devices in. For instance, if you plug in two laptops to the HyperJuice, it can deliver up to 100W to the first device but only 20W to the second one. The Nexode, however, will split the power equally — giving each laptop up to 65W of power.
When occupying all three ports, the HyperJuice will still push 100W out of the first port, but then the second USB-C and the USB-A port will now share the same small 20W pool. That’s okay if your second and third devices are lower-power tablets, phones, or accessories, but if you’re like me and use an iPhone MagSafe charging puck and an old Apple Watch charger, then my iPhone might not be able to fast charge wirelessly.
Ugreen’s charger splits the joules differently in three ways: 65W to the high-powered USB-C, 45W to the second, and up to 22.5W out of the USB-A port. This is certainly a more versatile split, but if your main laptop is more power-hungry, then the HyperJuice option might make more sense.
Image: Anker
The Anker 717 also has the USB PD 3.1 Spec for 140W, but only has one port.
This is just the beginning of a new era of compact multiport chargers. They will keep getting smaller and more powerful — but only if we get more devices that demand the power. The 2.1 revision of the USB-C PD 3.1 spec (yes, it’s quite confusing) is capable of up to 240W of power, so perhaps power-hungry gaming laptops are the next devices to push that envelope.
Lawmakers Grill TikTok Executive About Ties to China TikTok’s chief operating officer, Vanessa Pappas, faced questions about whether the company would ever hand over user data to Chinese officials.
The Nintendo DS was more than just a console – it’s part of my family history
As the games writer’s house move drags on, he seeks solace in old handheld consoles. But one held a surprise …
As a result of a house move that grew more complicated with every passing day, I have spent another couple of weeks in the barbaric situation of not having a gigantic TV to play games on. So I have continued to seek solace in storage boxes containing handheld consoles of the past – specifically, this time, an old Nintendo DSi and assorted cartridges.
This machine was mainly used by my kids more than a decade ago, when they were aged between six and 11, so the bag is full of loose games such as Nintendogs, Eco Creatures: Save the Forest, Tamagotchi Connection: Corner Shop and Catz – games that hold no interest for a man in his 50s, and whose spelling offends me.
Google loses appeal over illegal Android app bundling, EU reduces fine to €4.1 billion
Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge
The EU has upheld a 2018 antitrust charge against Google, confirming that the company imposed “unlawful restrictions” on Android phone manufacturers in order to promote its search engine on mobile devices.
Google has been attempting to appeal the charge, which was announced in 2018. It included a record-breaking €4.3 billion fine, which the EU’s General Court this morning reduced to €4.1 billion after announcing that it “largely confirms” the ruling. This confirmation is a serious blow for Google and strengthens the position of the EU’s antitrust advocates, who, led by Margrethe Vestager, have targeted the abuses of Big Tech.
The original 2018 charge against Google found that the company abused its market dominance by forcing Android phonemakers to restrict how they sold their devices. Manufacturers had to agree not to sell phones using variant versions of Android (“forks”) not approved by Google, and to pre-install Google’s Search and Chrome apps alongside the company’s app store, the Play Store. Google also paid phonemakers and mobile operators to exclusively install Google search on devices as part of a revenue-sharing scheme.
According to the Commission’s analysis, Google saw the rise of smartphone as an existential threat to its (then-desktop-based) search business. So, the tech giant strong-armed phone makers into making its search engine front-and-center on their devices.
Google’s legal response focused on a number of arguments, including that the Commission incorrectly judged the company to be dominant in the mobile market (because iOS exists), and that its actions were necessary to stop the Android ecosystem fragmenting into many incompatible operating systems. (To which the Commission replies: incompatible or not, fostering rival mobile OSes is exactly the desired outcome of a competitive market.)
The ruling by the General Court today upheld the vast majority of the Commission’s original charges. However, the Court did find that Google’s revenue-sharing schemes with manufacturers did not constitute an abuse of Google’s market power, and so reduced the fine accordingly by roughly five percent to €4.1 billion.
Today’s decision comes from the EU’s second-highest court, the General Court, meaning that Google can appeal this decision yet again with the bloc’s highest court, the Court of Justice. Google now has to wait two months and ten days before it can appeal once more.
In a statement from a spokesperson, Google said: “We are disappointed that the Court did not annul the decision in full. Android has created more choice for everyone, not less, and supports thousands of successful businesses in Europe and around the world.”
Update Wednesday 14th September, 5:22AM ET:Added Google statement.
Text Messaging Is Cool. But Where Are Its Boundaries? Apple and Google have added useful features to texting apps, yet the apps still lack a major component: an effective way to set limits.
Logitech’s new webcam has a neat built-in privacy shutter
Logitech’s new Brio 500. | Photo by Jon Porter / The Verge
Logitech’s Brio 500 is a new webcam with a compact design that features a neatly integrated physical privacy shutter and a “Show Mode” designed to broadcast what’s on your desk. It’s 1080p rather than 4K, the same as Logitech’s classic C920 webcam. It’s going on sale this month for $129 alongside a new Bluetooth headset called the Zone Vibe 100, which will retail for $99.99.
The Brio 500 has a cylindrical design, with its 4-megapixel camera flanked by a pair of beamforming microphones that are designed to reduce background noise during calls. The privacy shutter design is pretty slick and can be brought down by turning a dial on the right side of the webcam. Showing off your desk is achieved by “tilting the camera angle towards the desk,” according to Logitech.
Photo by Jon Porter / The Verge
Photo by Jon Porter / The Verge
Photo by Jon Porter / The Verge
The magnetic mount allows the webcam to be rotated 360 degrees.
In terms of image quality, the Brio 500 is a 1080p webcam, and you have to drop its resolution down to 720p if you want 60fps rather than 30fps. Although that’s the same on paper as the C920, Logitech spokesperson Wendy Spander tells me it features an upgraded sensor, which should hopefully make for better image quality. (I saw the webcam briefly in person, but not for long enough to make any final judgments on image quality.) Its field of view is 90 degrees, but the webcam can digitally crop in to 78 or 60 degrees for a tighter view. Logitech advertises that it’s able to automatically center the camera on the person speaking and adjust lighting if you’re in a dimly lit or backlit environment.
Finally, the Brio 500 has an interesting magnetized mounting mechanism for monitors. It’s formed of two parts. There’s the standard plastic mount that’s designed to clamp onto the top of your monitor like normal, and then the webcam itself is magnetically attached to this plastic mount. It’s a design that means you can rotate the webcam 360 degrees if you so choose. If you’re not into magnets, then you can unscrew the magnetic mount from the bottom of the webcam to reveal a standard tripod mount.
Image: Logitech
The Logitech Zone Vibe 100 headset.
Alongside the Brio 500, Logitech is also announcing a new headset today, the Zone Vibe 100. It’s a Bluetooth-only version of the previously released Zone Vibe 125 headset, which could also connect via a wireless USB-A receiver. The new Vibe 100 has up to 20 hours of battery life while listening to music, or 18 hours if you’re using it for calls. Its mic arm is flip-to-mute, and the headset is available in gray, off-white, and light pink (same as the Brio 500).
Here are the first not-an-NFT “digital collectibles” for PlayStation Stars
Image: Sony
During its State of Play even on Tuesday, Sony gave us a look at some of the first “digital collectibles” that’ll be available as rewards for its PlayStation Stars loyalty program. The items — which Sony insists are not NFTs or based on the blockchain — are basically little virtual statues of devices like the PlayStation 3 and the PocketStation PDA / handheld gaming device, as well as characters from games like Ape Escape 2, and Sony mascots like Polygon Man.
When Sony announced the PlayStation Stars program earlier this summer, it said that members will be able to earn points alongside digital collectibles. It’s not entirely clear what the points will do yet, but the company has hinted that you may be able to buy some PlayStation Store products or even wallet funds that could be put toward a game purchase. To get points and collectibles, PlayStation Stars will have you participate in campaigns, which will involve things like participating in tournaments or even just playing a game once a month. Another campaign mentioned on the PlayStation site mentions earning one by being the first person to snag a particular platinum trophy in your time zone.
According to a blog post from Tuesday, one of the first campaigns will be called “Hit Play/1994,” which will involve launching “games that match song-based clues.” That’s pretty much all Sony’s said about the event at this point, noting that more details are coming later, and that participating will let you win digital collectibles.
Sony says the program will launch in “some regions in Asia” in late September before coming to the US and Europe in “the weeks that follow.” The program won’t be available on actual PlayStations at first — it’s rolling out via the PlayStation App for Android and iOS.
EA announces kernel-level anti-cheat system for PC games
EA’s new anti-cheat arrives in FIFA 23 first. | Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge
Electronics Arts (EA) is launching a new kernel-level anti-cheat system for its PC games. The EA AntiCheat (EAAC) will debut first in FIFA 23 later this fall and is a custom anti-cheat system developed in-house by EA developers. It’s designed to protect EA games from tampering and cheaters, and EA says it won’t add anti-cheat to every game and treat its implementation on a case-by-case basis.
“PC cheat developers have increasingly moved into the kernel, so we need to have kernel-mode protections to ensure fair play and tackle PC cheat developers on an even playing field,” explains Elise Murphy, senior director of game security and anti-cheat at EA. “As tech-inclined video gamers ourselves, it is important to us to make sure that any kernel anti-cheat included in our games acts with a strong focus on the privacy and security of our gamers that use a PC.”
Kernel-level anti-cheat systems have drawn criticism from privacy and security advocates, as the drivers these systems use are complex and run at such a high level that if there are security issues, then developers have to be very quick to address them.
Image: Electronic Arts
FIFA 23 will be the first game with EA’s new anti-cheat system.
EA says kernel-level protection is “absolutely vital” for competitive games like FIFA 23, as existing cheats operate in the kernel space, so games running in regular user mode can’t detect that tampering or cheating is occurring. “Unfortunately, the last few years have seen a large increase in cheats and cheat techniques operating in kernel-mode, so the only reliable way to detect and block these is to have our anti-cheat operate there as well,” explains Murphy.
EA’s anti-cheat system will run at the kernel level and only runs when a game with EAAC protection is running. EA says its anti-cheat processes shut down once a game does and that the anti-cheat will be limited to what data it collects on a system. “EAAC does not gather any information about your browsing history, applications that are not connected to EA games, or anything that is not directly related to anti-cheat protection,” says Murphy.
Kernel-level anti-cheat systems are becoming increasingly common these days. Activision launched its own custom Ricochet anti-cheat system in Call of Duty last year with a kernel-level driver, and the world’s biggest PC games have been using similar techniques to fight a surge in hackers and cheaters in recent years.
Apple will let you roll back the iPhone’s security patches
But doing so obviously leaves your phone unprotected. | Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge
Apple will let you remove the security patches installed by iOS 16’s Rapid Security Response system, which can install patches without the need to fully update your iPhone (or even without having to restart it, in some cases). According to a support document spotted by MacRumors, you can remove a Rapid Security Response update by going to Settings > General > About, then tapping on the iOS Version. From there, you’ll be presented with a “Remove Security Update” button.
The document doesn’t give any examples of why you’d need to uninstall one of the patches, leaving your phone open to the vulnerability it protects against. It’s easy to imagine a few special circumstances where the feature could be useful, perhaps if one messes up some special work-related software or management tools, for instance. Otherwise, it’s one of those features that most people should probably never use unless they have a very specific reason and fully understand what they’re doing — kind of like the new extreme Lockdown Mode, which is included to protect users from “highly sophisticated” targeted cyberattacks.
Rapid Security Response is turned on by default, although you can turn off the updates by going to Settings > General > Software Update > Automatic Updates and toggling “Security Responses and System Files.” If you do so, you’ll have to wait for full iOS updates to get the security patches. Again, I’d personally recommend against turning the feature off unless you have an explicit reason to, given how many of Apple’s recent updates have patched out pretty serious vulnerabilities.
The system is also coming to macOS in Ventura, which hasn’t been officially released yet — so far, Apple’s support documents for its desktop OS don’t mention whether you’ll be able to roll back those updates as well.
EA and Koei Tecmo are partnering on ‘the next great hunting game’
Concept art from EA and Koei Tecmo’s new game. | Image: EA
EA and Koei Tecmo are partnering on a new title that they’re describing as “the next great hunting game.” When I first read that description, my thoughts jumped to Big Buck Hunter, the arcade series of hunting games where you shoot wild animals, but looking at the concept art (above), combined with who’s making it, I’m guessing this game will actually be much more like Capcom’s popular Monster Hunter series.
In a press release, EA and Koei Tecmo describe this new game as an original IP that “delivers a truly AAA experience based in fantasy feudal Japan.” It will be developed by Koei Tecmo’s Omega Force, which is known for the Dynasty Warriors and Samurai Warriors “musou” action games. And a statement from an EA exec Jeff Gamon says Omega Force is “merging their proven talent for combat gameplay with unexpected and innovative mechanics.”
Those factors, taken with the “hunting game” description, suggest to me that the developers are probably working on something with Monster Hunter-style gameplay, where you team up with other players to take down gigantic monsters. Big Buck Hunter, on the other hand, is essentially glorified target practice. A spokesperson for EA didn’t immediately respond to a request for clarification, so if this does turn out to be teasing a Japanese video game equivalent of Cabela’s, I’ll update the post to let you know.
Unfortunately, EA and Koei Tecmo didn’t share much more about the game, so we don’t know when the game will be released or what platforms it might be available on. However, Gamon says that the game will be introduced “later this month,” so we may not have to wait too much longer to learn more.
This new game will carry the EA Originals label, which it has previously used when publishing indie titles like It Takes Two and Knockout City.
The Nissan Leaf can now officially power homes using bidirectional charging
Fermata Energy’s FE-15 bi-directional charger in a commercial use case. | Image: Nissan
Nissan has approved the first bidirectional charging system for use with its all-electric Leaf vehicle in the US. The FE-15 charger by Fermata Energy, which can power homes using the EV’s battery, charge it, and send stored energy back to the grid, is the first system of its kind to earn UL 9741 certification for bidirectional charging solutions.
Back in 2012, Nissan promised its maybe soon-to-be-discontinued EV would eventually share its stored battery power back to your home or the grid during peak hours or even in emergencies. This technology is broadly known as Vehicle-to-Grid (V2G), Vehicle-to-Home (V2H), and Vehicle-to-Load (V2L), which all can be used interchangeably to describe a system that converts EVs to a backup power station.
For Nissan and Fermata, the solution is straightforward. In a press release, Fermata Energy CEO David Slutzky said that the Leaf owners can “create additional value from the energy stored in the vehicle’s battery” and that the charger can help reduce the EV’s total cost of ownership by letting the building pull energy from it at peak times. Slutzky says it could also help reduce stress on the power grid, a problem that, while it doesn’t exist right now, could be an issue in the future unless utilities and grid operators make the right investments.
All model year 2013 and newer Nissan Leafs are approved for use with the FE-15 bidirectional charger, and the automaker states that battery warranties will not be affected. You’ll need to have a quick-charging CHAdeMO port on the Leaf to take advantage of bidirectional charging, which sometimes didn’t come standard. Notably, the 2013 model of the Leaf received a more robust but similar capacity 24kWh battery than the 2012 model, and although previous models did have an option for fast charging, Nissan might not want to be responsible for the batteries’ health rapidly depleting.
Those interested in the FE-15 charger can contact the company through their website. Fermata Energy isn’t the only product in Nissan’s sight, though — the automaker is also working with another company called Dcbel that is creating a home-specific bidirectional charging solution.
Image: Dcbel
Dcbel’s r16 bi-directional charger is specifically designed for homes.
It’s amazing to see the CHAdeMO charging standard suddenly having a last hurrah. The port is slowly disappearing at various charging stations as CCS Combo has taken over. A new feature like this is great to see and a great story to add to the Leaf’s legacy.
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