Epic v. Google, explained

Epic v. Google, explained

Photo illustration by Cath Virginia / The Verge

Everything you need to know about the big app store trial kicking off November 6th.

On Monday, Fortnite publisher Epic Games will drag a tech giant into court, alleging that its mobile app store is an illegal monopoly. You may be feeling some déjà vu!

After all, didn’t Epic already go to trial with Apple, resulting in a ruling where Apple (mostly) won? Didn’t Epic fail to #FreeFortnite with its Llamacorn legal gambit? Didn’t that all happen years ago? What are we doing here again?

The short answer: while Epic’s antitrust claims against Apple got their day in court, a similar lawsuit against Google never did. On November 6th, Epic v. Google will finally go to trial... a mere 1,180 days after Epic originally sued.

Hi, I’m Sean, and I’ll be your guide to this whole delightful mess.

Llamacorn what now? What is happening?

Before we get to the Llamacorn, a little background. Epic is of course the studio behind Fortnite, the extraordinarily popular free-to-play game. Fortnite makes money by selling in-game items with its virtual currency V-Bucks. Players often buy V-Bucks the same place they play Fortnite. And until August 13th, 2020, if the player used an Android or iOS device and installed the game through an official app store, that purchase triggered an in-app payment fee to Google or Apple.

Critics call such fees the “Google tax” or the “Apple tax,” and Epic definitely wasn’t a fan.

When Epic decided to take action against these respective “taxes,” it made August 13th, 2020 a very busy day for Apple, Google, Epic, and us here at The Verge. First, Epic announced it was bypassing Apple and Google’s app store fees. It deployed a hotfix update to Fortnite without either company’s knowledge, letting you purchase V-Bucks directly through its own payment processing option at a discount. Apple and Google almost immediately reacted by kicking Fortnite off their app stores for breaking the rules.

Then: surprise! Epic was ready and waiting with two lawsuits and an attack ad, depicting a Fortnite hero throwing a unicorn-llama hammer into a giant screen reminiscent of Apple’s famous “1984” Macintosh ad.

It was a striking publicity blitz followed by a lot of slow-moving court proceedings. While the Apple lawsuit went to court in 2021, the Google one was delayed again and again. A ruling came down for the Apple trial that September, and it was mostly decided in Apple’s favor, though both parties are waiting for the Supreme Court to potentially weigh in. Meanwhile, the machinations for its fight against Google continued, and now…

It is time for trial number two.

That sounds fascinating, but if I don’t care about Fortnite or rich companies suing each other, what’s in it for me?

The future of Google’s app store could depend on this trial — both Epic and Google agree on that. Epic wants to break up Google’s alleged monopoly on Android app stores and payment methods, so developers aren’t stuck paying the “Google Tax” or passing that fee along to you.

But if Epic wins — according to Google, anyhow — it could make Android phones less safe by dismantling basic protections against sideloaded apps, and damage Android’s ability to compete with the iPhone because it (arguably) can’t run a competitive app store by giving it away for free.

What exactly is Epic claiming?

Epic argues that Google makes it so difficult for developers and users to get around its Android app store, and that app store’s standard fees, that it’s created an illegal monopoly that unjustly enriches Google while artificially driving up app prices because other stores can’t compete.

Epic also claims that Google is illegally tying its Google Play payments platform to the Google Play app store, keeping other potential app payment mechanisms from competing as well.

So, does Google have a monopoly?

A monopoly on what? That’s one of the biggest questions the court will decide. Epic claims that Google has illegal monopolies in “Android app distribution” and “Android in-app payment processing.” It’ll argue that if you buy or develop for Android phones, you’re stuck paying the Google tax.

But Google will say the real competition is from Apple, because people can choose to buy an iPhone instead. It’s pretty tough to argue Google has a monopoly on app stores in general.

This whole line of argument is called “market definition.” If the court decides the relevant market is phones and app stores, not specifically Android ones, then Google’s on the road to victory. If it accepts that Android apps are their own market, Epic will be in better shape. Or, it could pick a different market definition entirely, like the judge in the Apple case ended up doing.

Looking at this from a less academic perspective, it’s worth noting that Google charges up to ten times more per transaction than you pay with PayPal or a credit card, which does seem like a lot! And though Epic can’t argue it in court, I’ll point out that Apple wasn’t able to explicitly justify a 30 percent fee to that case’s judge.

On the other hand, it does kinda seem like Epic wants something for nothing! As far as I can tell, Epic hasn’t stated what kind of fee would actually be reasonable for Google to charge in exchange for placement in Google’s store — instead, Epic CEO Tim Sweeney seemingly suggests there shouldn’t be a Google fee at all if a developer wants to use its own payment system.

How did Epic’s argument fare against Apple?

Well… both sides lost! But Epic arguably lost more. Even though Apple has incredible power over the iPhone, Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers ruled the company didn’t have an unfair monopoly in this case – partly because she decided the relevant market for Fortnite was “digital mobile gaming transactions” rather than, say, iPhone apps. She also decided that Epic violated its developer agreement with Apple and would have to pay.

But she also barred Apple from keeping iPhone users in the dark about alternate ways they can pay for apps – and may have even allowed developers to add their own payment mechanisms. I won’t dwell on the Apple ruling, as I’m ethically bound, but my colleague Adi Robertson has a comprehensive breakdown.

How can Epic possibly have a case against Google when Apple already won?

Epic declined to answer this on the record, among other questions we asked... but three things to consider:

1) That was a different case. Also, that one’s not over till the Supreme Court weighs in or declines to take a look.

2) Google can’t tell jurors that Apple won its case, or that other plaintiffs settled. The judge in this case says so!

3) Oh, and by the way, this is a jury trial.

Wait, why does that matter?

Epic and Google have to convince a jury, not the judge, which is totally different from how the Apple case played out. (That one was a “bench trial.”)

Maybe all the evidence of tricky deals inside Google might sway a jury against the company? Maybe Google scaremongering that sideloaded apps equal gaping security holes will sway a jury against Epic instead? Who knows!

(If you’re a Epic juror reading this — stop! Judge Donato explicitly said you’re in a “news-free bubble” through mid-December, folks.)

Didn’t other parties sue Google too?

They did! And then, they all settled. All 50 state attorneys general and a number of consumers have tentatively settled with Google over app store antitrust claims, though it’s not clear what the deal might include.

Match Group, the company behind Tinder, Match.com, OkCupid and other dating apps, just reached a surprise last-minute settlement too, one that makes it sound like Match effectively gave up.

Epic stands alone.

Could we get a settlement between Google and Epic as well?

Epic seems to have no interest in settling as long as the “Google tax” exists, and the company’s repeatedly said it’s not interested in cash. So far, the company’s been willing to push these cases all the way through multiple appeals, cost be damned.

It’s not clear what Google could proactively offer that would satisfy Epic, since CEO Tim Sweeney has also publicly suggested that Google would simply circumvent any settlement it offers.

But if you do want to see a vision of a future that Epic would accept, look no further than this letter it sent to state attorneys general — laying out a settlement that would basically prohibit Google from doing the anticompetitive things that Epic claims it did.

There’s also this tweet from Sweeney:

Don't interfere with competing stores through technical countermeasures, carrier/OEM agreements, or Google Play anti-store policies; don't impede or gatekeep competing payment systems for in-app purchases; don't impose Google fees on top of third-party payment services.

— Tim Sweeney (@TimSweeneyEpic) November 1, 2023

Google wouldn’t tell The Verge if it’s offered Epic any kind of settlement yet.

Why if I just want the dirty laundry on both these companies?

You’re in it for the juicy dirt? It could get good.

The allegations made before trial suggest Google was playing loads of dirty tricks with names like “Project Hug,” “Project Agave,” and “Project Banyan”, with Epic claiming it’s seen evidence Google was paying off game developers and phone makers not to abandon its app store — to the tune of hundreds of millions of dollars. Google allegedly even toyed with the idea of buying Epic to keep Fortnite from inspiring other game developers to abandon ship.

Plus, there’s evidence Google deleted potentially incriminating messages to keep them out of a court’s hands. Enough that the judge has decided to explicitly tell the jury we’re not seeing all the evidence, because Google employees all the way up to CEO Sundar Pichai were caught setting those conversations to auto-delete. This issue has come up in the US v. Google antitrust trial in Washington, DC — still ongoing at the start of Epic’s trial — as well.

And the dirt isn’t all on Google’s side. Epic was caught straight-up admitting it premeditated the whole plan to bypass Google’s payment systems. Since Google is countersuing over that, it could be a big deal.

When you say “straight-up admitting...”

Here is an email from Epic CEO Tim Sweeney that, I think, speaks for itself:

Image via Epic v. Apple

“Here is our official plan for communicating with Google about bypassing the Google Play Store: SAY NOTHING TILL IT SHIPS”

We’ll have a whole cast of intriguing people called as witnesses during the trial who might dish even more.

Who will Epic and Google call as witnesses?

We are going straight to the top of the org chart, folks. Google CEO Sundar Pichai and Epic CEO Tim Sweeney are absolutely expected to attend. Android co-founder Andy Rubin might be deposed, and Google says we’ll hear from current Android (and Chrome, and Chrome OS) boss Hiroshi Lockheimer. Google also tells us representatives from Apple, Netflix, Motorola, and AT&T should testify as well.

How much hypocrisy can we expect in the courtroom?

I’d say quite a bit! For example:

• Epic says it’s not in this for the money, it’s only suing to end Google’s monopoly — but Epic would surely profit if it doesn’t have to pay Google’s cut.
• It looks like Epic’s going to argue that you’re locked into Android after buying an Android phone, but I can personally attest that switching back and forth between the platforms is easier than ever.
• Google will say that every Samsung Galaxy phone has “a competing app store right there on the homescreen,” even though Google apparently tried to quash that store, too, fearing it could cost the company billions.
• We caught Google trying to play the China card in a pre-briefing with press, reminding us that Epic is 40 percent owned by Chinese company Tencent — even though Google itself allegedly considered teaming up with Tencent to eliminate the Epic threat. While the parties can’t argue it in court, Google can attempt to subtly play the China card: “Google may ask a witness once about Tencent’s domicile,” reads one of Judge Donato’s orders.
• In the same press briefing, Google suggested to journalists that Epic should have joined the company’s “User Choice Billing” program if it wanted an alternative payment system, instead of suing. But that program didn’t exist until 2022, long after the lawsuit, and it only knocks 4 percent off Google’s fee.

When should we expect a jury verdict?

Judge Donato told jurors that we’re looking at roughly five weeks of trial starting November 6th and extending through early December. The schedule suggests the court will take Thanksgiving off, finish looking at all the evidence by December 4th, take a couple more days off before closing arguments, and then let jurors come to a decision.

“I fully expect we’ll have plenty of time to reach a verdict well before the December holiday period,” said Judge Donato.

Okay, I’m sold — how can I watch the trial unfold?

It’s not on Twitch or Zoom or anything like that. But I’m personally going to be in the courtroom, and we’ll have a StoryStream filled with trial coverage starting November 6th, right here at The Verge.

Sam Bankman-Fried’s shadow still looms over the crypto industry

Sam Bankman-Fried’s shadow still looms over the crypto industry

Photo Illustration by Cath Virginia / The Verge | Photo by Bloomberg, Getty Images

Cryptocurrency advocates might believe that FTX’s collapse was an anomaly — but they could have trouble convincing the public of the same.

During Sam Bankman-Fried’s monthlong fraud trial, prosecutors presented damning evidence that the fallen crypto founder knew full well what he was doing from the beginning. He knew that Alameda Research borrowed billions in customer funds from FTX. He knew his fellow executives fabricated balance sheets to send to lenders. He knew FTX wasn’t fine when he told customers it was.

In cryptoland, the response to these revelations was largely to condemn Bankman-Fried and FTX as an aberration. When the truth about FTX came out, Binance CEO Changpeng “CZ” Zhao slammed Bankman-Fried, saying he “lied to everyone.” Similarly, Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong wrote on X (formerly Twitter) that “even the most gullible person should not believe Sam’s claim” that the missing funds stemmed from an accounting error.

But as Bankman-Fried awaits sentencing after being convicted on seven criminal counts, including wire fraud, the rest of the industry has been left to take stock of its future. FTX may have been one of the most brazen fraud operations in recent years, but it’s far from the only embarrassing crypto collapse. While some of the decisions Bankman-Fried made might have been unique to FTX, it’s one of the multiple cases where no one on the outside caught on until it was too late — and in the wake of Bankman-Fried’s trial, it may take work to convince the public he was an outlier.

Before his fall, Bankman-Fried was a poster child for an upstart industry. The 31-year-old power broker maintained the scruffy, somewhat quirky appearance of the kid in your computer science class that you would probably ask for help. (This particular look, according to his ex-girlfriend and former Alameda CEO, Caroline Ellison, was carefully crafted.) He became crypto’s golden boy, appearing on the cover of Fortune magazine and getting profiled in Forbes. He testified about his operation’s safety in front of Congress. While other firms collapsed last year, FTX appeared strong, with Bankman-Fried inviting comparisons to JP Morgan while bailing out other struggling firms.

Some media outlets continued to burnish his representation even after FTX crashed and burned. The Washington Post highlighted Bankman-Fried’s contributions to pandemic research (some of which apparently came from customer funds). Then, The Wall Street Journal focused on how Bankman-Fried’s “Plans to Save the World Went Down in Flames” and said FTX’s collapse “wiped out his wealth and ambitious philanthropic endeavors.” (The ambitions of FTX customers were presumably not headline material.) The information we know now lets us see past that persona — but it also gives the crypto-curious a lot to chew on.

Other crypto companies seem to think that picking out the one bad apple will be good for the rest of the industry. In a statement provided to CoinDesk, Paul Brody, the head of blockchain at financial consulting firm EY, calls the outcome of Bankman-Fried’s trial a “wonderful moment for crypto,” and Yat Siu, the chairman of blockchain gaming company Animoca Brands, says it marks a “new beginning” for the industry.

“Over the past year, our industry took a reputational hit in Washington, but Sam Bankman-Fried’s crimes had nothing to do with the technology underpinning digital assets,” Kristin Smith, the CEO of the Blockchain Association, tells The Verge. “The trial was about a crook — not crypto. And while the trial hasn’t been a net positive for the industry, it has refocused minds on the fundamental promise of decentralization.”

Indeed, a lot of Bankman-Fried’s misconduct is not inherently related to cryptocurrency — like falsifying his firm Alameda Research’s finances and spending other people’s money without permission.

But much of this appears to have been possible because there was so little meaningful oversight of the crypto industry and so much acceptance of companies playing fast and loose. It’s hard to say if the crypto companies left standing are free from all of FTX’s flaws, or how closely they’ve looked over their partners. And then there’s the simple, inconvenient fact that so many of them are under legal scrutiny.

Earlier this year, the Securities and Exchange Commission sued Terraform Labs, the crypto firm behind the stablecoin that vaporized billions in customer funds when it collapsed last year, for allegedly perpetuating “a fraudulent scheme.” After that, the Federal Trade Commission arrested the CEO of now-bankrupt crypto lending company Celsius over claims he made millions off the lies he spread about the firm’s token.

There’s also the crypto influencer Richard Heart, who the SEC accused of spending at least $12 million in customer funds to purchase sports cars, luxury watches, and a 555-carat black diamond. Other major firms, including Coinbase, Binance, Genesis, and Gemini, also face lawsuits from the SEC.

That I can so easily fill two paragraphs with an (incomplete) list of legal issues the crypto industry is facing doesn’t exactly inspire confidence. This uncertainty is already affecting regulations that the “good” companies in crypto want passed. The industry favors a bill that would limit the SEC’s oversight of the industry, for instance, while granting more power to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission. However, the outcome of Bankman-Fried’s trial could ultimately harm its success. Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) has told Politico that the industry “has serious problems with fraud, and the public no longer has confidence that it’s on the up and up.”

Witness testimonies and a plethora of evidence have revealed a whole range of things that can and could’ve gone wrong. What would’ve happened if CoinDesk never published the article that revealed the massive hole in FTX’s balance sheet? Would Bankman-Fried continue to go about his business — doling out billions in stolen funds to save sinking crypto companies, donating to politicians, and sponsoring sports teams? Would he have kept spending FTX customers’ funds until it either all crashed for some other reason, or until one of his bets — like an investment in the AI company Anthropic — hit big enough to clear the books? Alameda’s unlimited amount of credit makes it seem like a possibility.

Sam Bankman-Fried wanted to prove the world could trust the cryptocurrency industry. Now, the industry hopes to leave him behind. But he might be far from the last bad actor cashing in on crypto — and the crypto world has yet to prove it can spot them before catastrophe strikes.

Look, Up in the Sky! Amazon’s Drones Are Delivering Cans of Soup!

Look, Up in the Sky! Amazon’s Drones Are Delivering Cans of Soup! Amazon’s much-hyped drone project is dropping small objects on driveways. Some customers are not sure what it delivers beyond minestrone.

Sam Bankman-Fried found guilty of fraud

Sam Bankman-Fried found guilty of fraud

Photo Illustration by Cath Virginia / The Verge

Former cryptocurrency kingpin Sam Bankman-Fried has been found guilty of fraud. A New York jury delivered the verdict on November 2nd, concluding a trial that has seen Bankman-Fried defend himself against claims that he criminally mismanaged his crypto exchange FTX and trading firm Alameda Research.

After more than a month in trial, the jury took less than four hours to decide Bankman-Fried’s fate, declaring him guilty on all seven charges, including wire fraud, conspiracy to commit wire fraud, and conspiracy to commit money laundering. He is set to be sentenced by Judge Lewis Kaplan on March 28th of next year and faces decades in prison.

Bankman-Fried started FTX in 2019, and its valuation rose stratospherically during a post-pandemic crypto boom. But prosecutors charged that the operation was a fraud “from the start.” While he promoted the exchange to investors and the public as safe and secure, Bankman-Fried’s former colleagues testified that it falsified numbers and granted secret, special privileges to Alameda — including a $65 billion line of credit and a flag that let Alameda’s balance dip into the negative as it illicitly borrowed FTX customer funds.

The FTX empire collapsed after a November 2022 Coindesk article — published precisely one year before the jury’s decision — revealed the secret blurring of funds and Binance CEO Changpeng “CZ” Zhao announced he would pull out of the exchange. Bankman-Fried resigned and FTX filed for bankruptcy, but he was soon hit with civil and criminal charges of fraud and money laundering.

Bankman-Fried spent the months ahead of his trial antagonizing prosecutors and the court. Originally placed under house arrest, he was sent to jail in August for violations of his bail conditions, including using a VPN to watch a football game and leaking the diary entries of his ex-girlfriend — former Alameda Research CEO Caroline Ellison, who pleaded guilty to federal charges and testified against him in trial — to The New York Times.

His case has further tarnished the reputation of the already embattled crypto industry, thanks to Bankman-Fried’s status as a high-profile representative of the industry. Several other major companies are the subject of civil or criminal charges in the US and abroad, including a few that suffered collapses as sudden as FTX’s.

In court, Bankman-Fried’s defense argued that he had honestly failed at operating a high-risk business. He denied directly supervising the damning code updates that allowed Alameda to spend FTX funds and said he had not participated in trading or questioned employees about billions of missing dollars. His testimony was contradicted by Ellison, his former roommates Adam Yedidia and Gary Wang (the cofounder of FTX), and family friend Nishad Singh; all had worked under Bankman-Fried and later cooperated with prosecutors. Wang, Singh, and Ellison are awaiting sentencing.

Sam Bankman-Fried Is Found Guilty of 7 Counts of Fraud and Conspiracy

Sam Bankman-Fried Is Found Guilty of 7 Counts of Fraud and Conspiracy The case against the founder of the failed FTX exchange had come to symbolize the excesses of the volatile cryptocurrency industry.

At UK Summit, Global Leaders Warn AI Could Cause ‘Catastrophic’ Harm

At UK Summit, Global Leaders Warn AI Could Cause ‘Catastrophic’ Harm At a U.K. summit, 28 governments, including China and the U.S., signed a declaration agreeing to cooperate on evaluating the risks of artificial intelligence.

The best drawing tablets to buy right now

The best drawing tablets to buy right now

Our top picks for the best drawing tablets, with or without a built-in display. | Image: The Verge

Whether you’re new to digital art or a seasoned professional designer, these are our top picks for the best drawing tablets on the market.

Drawing tablets (also known as graphics tablets or art tablets) aren’t just for digital creatives like graphic designers, artists, and photo editors. They’re useful for gamers, office workers, and teachers, too. While varied in design, each drawing tablet serves the same purpose: to replace your mouse or trackpad with a digital stylus that feels more natural to draw or edit with. Some, often called “pen tablets,” resemble a blank slab and pen that controls your on-screen cursor. Others, dubbed “display tablets,” include built-in screens, allowing users to draw directly onto the surface that they’re viewing.

Selecting the best drawing tablet comes down to personal preference and what you’ll be using it for. High-end display tablets that might be ideal for professional comic artists and animators aren’t the best choice if you’re just signing digital documents. Some users prefer to stick with Wacom — the most trusted and recognized brand of drawing tablets — because of their reputation for build quality, reliable drivers, and software. But in recent years, other brands, like Huion, XP-Pen, and Gaomon, have emerged that offer products with similar functionality (albeit with less reliable software and slightly lower build quality) at a fraction of Wacom’s lofty prices.

I have almost 15 years of near-daily experience with both pen and display drawing tablets, and I’ve been lucky enough to own, test, or review a wide range of them over the years. While I haven’t worked as a professional photo editor or illustrator, I’ve used them for everything from designing various monsters and beasties in 3D sculpting software when I worked as a makeup prosthetics artist to drawing cringe fan art of my favorite TV and video game characters in my free time.

There are several things that you need to consider before purchasing a drawing tablet in 2023 (many of which are addressed in our FAQs at the end of this guide), but thankfully, there’s plenty of variety to ensure you’ll find the best choice to serve your needs.

The best drawing tablet overall

Size: 12.9 inches / Screen resolution: 2048 x 2732, 120Hz, HDR10 / Pen pressure levels: N/A (not provided but second-gen Apple Pencil has been tested to 8,192) / Colour gamut: 100 percent P3 / Weight: 1.5 pounds

One of the most popular display drawing tablets isn’t actually a drawing tablet per se. The Apple iPad has gained a positive reputation among creative professionals thanks to apps like Clip Studio Paint for iPad and Adobe Photoshop for iPad that let it compete with full-fat desktop applications at a fraction of the weight and size of an actual desktop or laptop.

Brands like Wacom and Huion offer tablet workstations — essentially display tablets with built-in PCs — but the iPad trounces each and every one of them for convenience and price. Dedicated all-in-one tablet workstations tend to be heavy, loud, and incredibly expensive, and most other mainstream drawing tablets need to be connected to a desktop computer or laptop. While an M2-powered iPad Pro model isn’t exactly cheap, it could be cheaper than purchasing both a display tablet and a system to run it with.

Image: Dan Seifert / The Verge

It’s lightweight, portable, and pretty powerful — for convenience alone, the iPad Pro is hard to beat as an illustration tool.

Some apps, like Procreate — an intuitive illustration software that provides artists with easy-to-use tools — and its upcoming Dreams animation app, are also exclusive to the iPad. Procreate alone has made the iPad coveted by digital artists, and the company is promising that its new animation software will make similar waves across the creative industry when it’s released on November 22nd. If you’re interested in illustration and animation, it’s an exciting time to be an iPad user.

The iPad Pro handles apps for 3D sculpting and high-definition video editing like a champ, which makes it a great accessory for professionals, or a fully dedicated creative device for those just getting started. If you’re on a tighter budget, the more affordable iPad Air (fourth-gen and above) is also capable of running many of the same creative applications, though more intensive workloads would be better suited to the Pro models. That said, the iPad platform doesn’t support every application that a desktop computer system can run, such as Autodesk Maya or Maxon ZBrush, so make sure you check what software you’ll need to use before choosing this as your only drawing tablet.

Photo by Dan Seifert / The Verge

The M2 iPad Pro features a USB-C charging port instead of Apple’s former Lightning port, which some users may find more convenient.

You’ll also have to purchase the second-generation Apple Pencil ($129) separately for the full experience. The setup loses some points here since the Apple Pencil doesn’t provide any physical reprogrammable buttons, but double-tapping the flat side of the stylus will switch between whatever tool you’re using and the erase function (at least in most creative apps). Pair that with a decent paper-like screen protector, and you may find you don’t need to buy a dedicated drawing tablet after all.

Read our full review of the iPad Pro (2022) here.

The best display drawing tablet for beginners

Size: 13.3 inches / Drawing area: 11.6 x 6.5 inches / Screen resolution: Full HD (1920 x 1080), 26ms response time / Pen pressure levels: 4,096 / Colour gamut: 72 percent NTSC / Weight: 2.2 pounds

The Wacom One is one of the company’s most affordable display tablets. The combination of its affordable price point and Wacom’s reputation means that it’s the tablet of choice for many high schools and colleges. If you or your child want to continue projects at home, it may be best to stick with a product that they’re already familiar with. It can take some time to adjust to digital illustration tools if you’ve only experienced traditional media like pencils and ink before, so keeping your tools consistent can make things a little easier.

The Wacom One doesn’t have many frills, nor does it pretend to — what it lacks in features, it makes up for with Wacom’s reliable build quality and frustration-free software. It features a textured full HD 1080p display and comes with a stylus with one customizable side switch. Wacom has also made the One compatible with a host of third-party styluses if you want additional control over things like pen thickness, grip, and button placement for a more comfortable experience.

Photo by Jess Weatherbed / The Verge

The Wacom One lacks physical macro buttons, but you can set up on-screen shortcuts.

There are some similarly priced alternatives from rival brands like Huion and XP-Pen that provide more features, but there are two main reasons why the Wacom One might be a better choice.

First, additional buttons and features might be overwhelming if you’ve never used a drawing tablet before. The Wacom One removes all of that confusion — it’s a display you can draw on, and nothing more. Second, Wacom is the gold standard of reliability when it comes to software and build quality. It’s something you should really experience before buying something from a rival brand, as it’s harder to detect where the quality of these offerings has slipped without anything to compare it to. There’s a reason many professional artists are loyal to Wacom despite its comparatively higher price tags.

The best cheap display tablet for hobbyists

Size: 11.9 inches / Drawing area dimensions: 10.3 x 5.8 inches / Screen resolution: Full HD (1920 x 1080) / Pen pressure levels: 8,192 / Color gamut: 90 percent NTSC, 127 percent sRGB, 94 percent Adobe RGB / Weight: 1.9 pounds

Okay, so perhaps you are ready to start mapping some of your commonly used tools to physical buttons. In that case, the second-gen XP-Pen Artist 12 is an endearing little display tablet that serves as a step up in utility from the stripped-back Wacom One, at the expense of some cursor jitters.

The second-gen XP-Pen Artist 12 display tablet comes with the X3 Elite stylus, which provides 8,192 levels of pressure sensitivity (a figure that’s effectively now the standard for drawing tablets) and 60 degrees of tilt recognition to replicate real brush strokes. There are also two programmable buttons on the side for switching between your current tool and the erase function of whatever software you’re using.

Photo by Jess Weatherbed / The Verge

Should a gadget’s color be a big consideration in your purchase? Perhaps not, but it’s nice to see some pink / green tech for those who do care.

Essentially, all the stylus basics are covered here to help developing artists adjust to similar features on more expensive display tablets. They might not be the best quality tools, but they get the job done and allow you to better understand the differences between using a professional drawing tablet (which typically has a higher resolution, greater color accuracy, and customization) and something less powerful that’s designed more for sketching or fan art.

The active area is smaller than that of the Wacom One, but it’s enough space for folks looking to use it for sketching or physical note-taking. It comes in a selection of cute pastel colors (and black if you prefer to keep things professional) and provides eight programmable buttons, which is unexpected at this price. It doesn’t include a built-in stand if you’re wanting to use it at an angle, though it’s not entirely needed at this size — it’s lightweight, portable, and can be used either flat on a desk or resting on your lap to help digital art novices adjust to drawing on a screen.

This would also make a great first display tablet if you’re not interested in jumping straight into Wacom’s offerings, but it loses some marks for software. I noticed that my cursor is slightly jittery compared to some of the more expensive display tablets I’ve used, but not enough to make drawing unpleasant. I was happy to use it for all of my usual tasks, from line art on Clip Studio Paint to sculpting models in Blender, with no real issues besides knowing that pricier display tablets would typically produce smoother lines. If you’re inexperienced with using pen tablets or display tablets, then the slight jitter may not even be something you can detect, but that’s a risk you need to decide if you’re willing to take.

The best midsize display tablet

Size: 15.8 inches / Drawing area dimensions: 13.7 x 7.7 inches / Screen resolution: 2.5K (2560 x 1440), 60Hz, 14ms response time / Pen pressure levels: 8,192 / Color gamut: 145 percent sRGB / Weight: 2.6 pounds

The Huion Kamvas Pro 16 (2.5K) hits the sweet spot for midsize display tablets, even with every Wacom offering taken into consideration. The 1440p resolution is ideal for its size, providing a noticeable improvement against 1080p displays at a fraction of the cost of a 4K Wacom Cintiq (which would need to be adjusted in the settings to run at 1440p). There’s also a 4K version available, but it costs considerably more, and unless you really need those additional pixels, the 2.5K offering is a better deal.

Photo by Jess Weatherbed / The Verge

If your tablet comes with a stylus stand, always check to see if there are spare pen nibs or other goodies stashed inside.

There are eight programmable hotkeys and a built-in kickstand that can be deployed in two different positions. Huion used to have a reputation for buggy software, and while it hasn’t completely escaped that reputation, Huion products have drastically improved in recent years and are no longer as risky to invest in.

The Slim Pen PW550S stylus is battery-free (as most modern tablet pens are, Apple Pencil notwithstanding) and provides most of the usual perks, like 8,192 levels of pressure sensitivity and two programmable buttons. You also get a nice donut-shaped stylus stand that opens to reveal a set of replacement nibs.

Photo by Jess Weatherbed / The Verge

The Huion Kamvas Pro 16 (2.5K) comes with a fully detachable stand to angle the tablet into a more natural drawing position.

If you’re a digital illustrator looking to upgrade from your first display tablet, then the Huion Kamvas Pro 16 (2.5K) is a solid choice. Unless you step into working in a field that requires a larger workspace, more pixels, or greater color accuracy — such as photo editing or designing branded logos and graphics — it’s unlikely you’ll ever need something more powerful than this. The size allows it to be thrown into a backpack if needed, and the work area is plenty large enough for character art and web comics.

The best large-screen display drawing tablet

Size: 24.4 inches / Drawing area dimensions: 20.7 x 11.7 inches / Screen resolution: 4K (3840 x 2160), 60Hz / Pen pressure levels: 8,192 / Colour gamut: 99 percent Adobe RGB, 93 percent DCI-P3 / Weight: 13.3 pounds

There’s no shortage of drawing tablet manufacturers gunning for Wacom’s crown these days, but Xencelabs feels like it’s in the best position. The rather unimaginatively named Pen Display 24 is Xencelab’s flagship display tablet offering, and it couldn’t have made a better impression.

The screen itself isn’t quite as suited to the same color-referencing tasks as the Wacom Cintiq Pro 27, but you’re still getting a 4K resolution, 60Hz refresh rate, and coverage for up to 99 percent of Adobe RGB and 93 percent DCI-P3 color spaces. It’s even validated for Pantone SkinTone. That’s plenty good enough for even professional illustration and graphic design, and at just over half the price of Wacom’s flagship offering, it’s hard to beat.

Photo by Jess Weatherbed / The Verge

Having such a sturdy case to store the Xencelabs pens in is a breath of fresh air for those of us who are constantly losing styluses.

$1,899 may seem expensive, but you’re getting your money’s worth. Xencelabs ships the tablet with a bunch of high-quality accessories, including two different pens (a slim Apple-Pencil-like stylus and a chunkier pen with three buttons) in a compact travel case as well as a programmable OLED “Quick Keys” macro pad. Having a choice between different pens is great if you like to switch things up depending on your current task — for example, I prefer to use the slimmer stylus when sketching and move to the thicker pen for coloring or 3D sculpting. The Quick Keys accessory also allows you to label each macro button to keep track of your hotkeys and set profiles for different creative apps. Plus, it’s far easier to use than Wacom’s on-screen macro keys or the Huion KD100 keydial accessory. There are also three programmable buttons built into the tablet itself if needed.

Photo by Jess Weatherbed / The Verge

The Quick Keys accessory (pictured) isn’t just a great freebie; it’s also one of the best tablet macro pads on the market.

I could go on about all the things I loved about the Xencelabs Pen Display 24. The anti-glare etched glass has a nice grain to it that feels almost paper-like when drawing. It runs surprisingly quiet for a display tablet of this size, which usually have fans blasting to keep from overheating. Even without the noise, the glass surface was barely more than warm to the touch, and the free drawing glove provided by Xencelabs to prevent leaving smudges on the display was of a much higher quality than those provided by XP-Pen or Huion.

Wacom will remain my recommendation for creative professionals who are working in an industry role largely because of the company’s reputation for delivering reliable software and drivers. But if you have some flexibility and are looking for a cheaper alternative that somehow feels more premium, the Xencelabs Pen Display 24 is well worth considering.

The best display drawing tablet for creative professionals

Size: 26.9 inches / Drawing area dimensions: 23.5 x 13.2 inches / Screen resolution: 4K (3840 x 2160) 120Hz, 10ms response time / Pen pressure levels: 8,192 / Colour gamut: 98 percent DCI-P3, 99 percent Adobe RGB / Weight: 15.6 pounds

If you want the best of the best, and you’re willing to pay, then the Wacom Cintiq Pro 27 is what you’re looking for. Released last year, the Cintiq Pro 27’s large display is Pantone SkinTone validated and can cover 99 percent of Adobe RGB and 98 percent of DCI-P3 HDR. It can also be calibrated further for maximum color accuracy, bringing it closer to the performance of expensive reference monitors used by professional photo editors. It ships with the battery-free Pro Pen 3, the company’s latest stylus, which provides customizable weights and various replaceable grips and nibs to personalize your drawing experience.

Photo by Jess Weatherbed / The Verge

You can attach the Wacom Cintiq Pro 27 stylus holder to several places on the tablet — shame that the pen itself is constantly falling out of it.

There are “grip” handles built into the back of the device that help with maneuvering the heavy 15.6-pound display, each with two buttons that can be reprogrammed to various shortcuts based on what software you’re using. The $500 mount is sold separately, but its weight means that a kickstand would likely be of little use anyway. If you don’t want to shell out that much, the Cintiq 27 Pro also supports standard VESA mounts so you can attach it to a desk-mounted monitor arm.

This is the most expensive drawing tablet on the market right now, and for good reason. Nothing from competing brands can match it for color accuracy or features. You should only consider this if you’re a creative professional who’s outgrown their current tablet or simply have a lot of cash to burn. It’s superseded older models from the Wacom Cintiq Pro range — the previous industry standard drawing tablet for most creative professionals — and will serve as a noticeable upgrade if you’ve been using them for some time. Just one benefit worth noting is that users report it runs much quieter than older Cintiq Pro models, which had noisy fans blasting to keep the device cool during use.

The best pen drawing tablet for beginners

Size: 12.4 inches / Drawing area dimensions: 8.5 x 5.3 inches / Pen pressure levels: 8,192 / Wireless?: No / Weight: 0.9 pounds

Again, Wacom is a beloved brand across schools and colleges due to the build quality and reliability of its products, and the One by Wacom is no exception. Not to be confused with the Wacom One display tablet, the One by Wacom is a cheap and cheerful introductory drawing tablet for students and novices who can forgo fancy features while they adapt to using a digital stylus.

Photo by Jess Weatherbed / The Verge

The One by Wacom is cheap and reliable — ideal for familiarizing yourself with the world of digital content creation.

It’s available in a few colors and comes with a grid of dots to help users understand how their stylus position correlates to the on-screen cursor. The stylus is slim and comfortable and comes with two programmable buttons. The dots on the tablet itself are also useful for rhythm games like Osu! that require the player to tap in precise locations. The One by Wacom isn’t exactly comfy given its lack of wrist rest and the hard plastic edge you need to lean against, but it’s cute, reliable, and gives users a taste of that Wacom quality for under $100.

Outside of content creation (and video games), the One by Wacom is also a great choice for office workers or teachers who want a reliable, convenient tool for signing PDFs, marking and circling sections of projects, or taking physical notes in meetings or lectures.

The best pen tablet for creative professionals

Size: 15.7 inches / Drawing area dimensions: 8.7 x 5.8 inches / Pen pressure levels: 8,192 / Wireless?: Yes / Weight: 1.54 pounds

The Wacom Intuos range has been the darling of the graphics tablet world since it was first released back in 2000, and it’s only gotten better with age. The current version of the Intuos Pro Medium was released back in 2017, and I think the only reason it hasn’t been refreshed is because it would be a disservice to do so — it’s perfect the way it is. You get both wired and wireless connectivity, eight customizable express keys, and a touch-sensitive “loop” wheel that can be used for scrolling or cycling through color and brush options. You can even buy separate “texture” sheets to customize how rough or smooth the drawing surface is.

The difference in build quality between Wacom’s Pro-line tablets and competing midsize pen tablets is like night and day. The buttons are satisfying to press with very little “squish,” and the tablet itself doesn’t feel cheap or flimsy, despite all the black plastic. My own Wacom Intuos Pro served me well for over six years despite the numerous occasions when I dropped it, knocked it around, or put the stylus through the washing machine. And even then, the only reason I still don’t have it is because I gifted it to my younger sibling. If you need a dependable workhorse, this is the tablet you should consider.

Photo by Jess Weatherbed / The Verge

The metal base of the stylus holder is made from weighty, solid metal, so you won’t accidentally send it flying across your desk.

The Wacom Intuos ships with the Wacom Pro Pen 2 stylus. That provides the usual pressure sensitivity and tilt recognition benefits, but it’s also worth noting a feature that’s starting to become a rarity for tablet pens — a physical eraser button. The “button” on the end of the stylus is actually another nib that automatically switched to the eraser tool on software like Photoshop, allowing users to simply flip the pen over and erase any mistakes as they would a traditional pencil.

There are small ($249) and large ($499) versions of this tablet available, but the medium offering will be the best fit for most. Too small, and you risk having insufficient space for your needs, and going too large can feel unnatural if you’re not used to moving your hand so far to draw across the tablet. And of course, no matter what size you opt for, you’re still getting Wacom’s gold standard of quality and software.

The best non-Wacom pen tablet

Size: 13.1 inches / Drawing area dimensions: 10.33 x 5.8 inches / Pen pressure levels: 8,192 / Wireless?: Yes, 16-hour battery life per charge / Weight: 1.5 pounds

Xencelabs is a relative newcomer to the graphics tablet market, but it’s already making massive waves. Its flagship Pen Tablet can be used both wired or wirelessly, and it gently slopes into an ergonomic palm rest to prevent your hands from aching during use. The real value comes from buying the bundle package, though — the Xencelabs Pen Tablet Bundle provides not one but two different styluses (one slim and one chunky with additional buttons) and a Quick Keys, the brand’s fancy macro pad accessory with eight programmable buttons, a physical dial, and an OLED display.

Photo by Jess Weatherbed / The Verge

It really is nice to just have a choice between different styluses — and the all-white color scheme is a rare sight for drawing tablets.

The Quick Keys retails for $100 if purchased separately and doesn’t need a wired connection. It’s a great package deal suitable for all skill levels, from novice to professional. I’ve opted for the special edition here if only to highlight that you can get such a nice drawing tablet in white — a rarity that will match an all-white or Apple setup nicely (though an all-black variant of the same bundle is also available).

Regardless of which of the two stylus options I used, my cursor was smooth and registered every movement and change in pressure. The three programmable buttons on the device itself didn’t feel cheap or flimsy, and the surface was satisfying to draw on. Better yet, I didn’t experience a single issue with any of the Xencelabs software. It all just worked and worked well. It performed similarly to the Wacom Intuos Pro range if you need a comparison, only with better freebies and fewer built-in options for hotkeys and navigation.

Photo by Jess Weatherbed / The Verge

The Xencelabs accessories feel every bit as premium as the tablet itself.

The Xencelabs Pen Tablet is also a solid choice for creative professionals — it doesn’t lose points for not being a Wacom product per se, but some traditionalists have a hard time moving away from the Wacom ecosystem. On the flip side, some artists who are frustrated with the high price of Wacom tablets may be looking for an alternative brand that can match it for quality and performance. Xencelabs can’t match Wacom in years of industry experience, but my own experience testing the Xencelabs Pen Tablet has assured me that the company has a decent shot of encroaching on Wacom’s long-held status as the industry standard for drawing tablets.

The best cheap pen tablet for office and gaming

Size: 12 inches / Drawing area dimensions: 7 x 4.3 inches / Pen pressure levels: 8,192 / Wireless?: No / Weight: 0.6 pounds

The XP-Pen Deco Mini 7 is a great choice for folks who just need something cheap to sign or add written notes to digital documents and projects. It’s easy to slip into a bag and can take a greater beating than a display tablet because it lacks a delicate glass screen.

Its small size means that you can reach every corner of the tablet without wasting precious time moving your hand, and it even comes with eight programmable buttons that you can allocate in-app or in-game shortcuts to. The stylus is also lightweight and battery-free and provides two more programmable buttons.

Photo by Jess Weatherbed / The Verge

No frills here — just eight programmable buttons and a silicone-wrapped stylus to improve grip.

If you’re a competitive Osu! player, then you may want to stick with Wacom for its reliable software, but for the majority of rhythm gamers, this weeny XP-Pen Deco Mini 7 will be the ideal choice. This wouldn’t be a great option for illustration, as the size is fairly restrictive, but there are plenty of offerings included on this list that are better suited for such a task. This should be your choice if you’re simply looking to replicate the accuracy of pen / paper on a computer for noncreative projects.

Bitwarden begins adding passkey support to its password manager

Bitwarden begins adding passkey support to its password manager

Bitwarden has added support for the more secure passkey login method. | Image: Bitwarden

Bitwarden, one of our top picks for free password managers, is adding support for passkeys in the latest version of its browser extensions. Passkeys can use your device’s pin, face, or fingerprint for authentication, and are a more secure and convenient alternative to traditional passwords that are also more resilient to phishing attacks.

Although the company has announced that passkey support is coming in the new 2023.10 release, the update appears to be in the process of rolling out — I’m still seeing the previous 2023.9.2 version listed on the Chrome Web Store as of this writing. But I’ve verified that it’s working on Safari with the latest version of Bitwarden’s Mac app and extension. The rollout of the feature follows support from Apple and Google’s built-in password managers, as well as competing third-party password managers like 1Password.

With its latest release, Bitwarden supports storing and logging in with passkeys using its browser extensions, and released a couple of instructional videos showing how the process works. The browser should prompt you to save a passkey as a new login method when it detects that a compatible website is trying to create a passkey, and then it’ll ask if you want to login with this passkey when you return to the same website later. You can verify a passkey login using a PIN, pattern, password, or biometrics, depending on the device you’re using, according to Bitwarden.

Although passkeys aren’t as widely supported as traditional passwords, an increasing number of websites are adding them as a login option. This community-run database should give you some idea of which websites support logging in via passkeys, and in recent months we’ve seen big players like Amazon, Google, and Nintendo making moves to support and promote their use.

Although Bitwarden now supports storing and logging in using passkeys from its browser extensions, it’s not currently possible to store passkeys in the company’s mobile app. According to Bitwarden’s FAQ, this feature is “planned for a future release.”

Closing time for Sam Bankman-Fried

Closing time for Sam Bankman-Fried

Smoke ‘em if you’ve got ‘em. | Photo Illustration by Cath Virginia / The Verge | Photos by Michael M. Santiago, Bloomberg, Klmax, Whyframestudio, Yevgen Romanenko, Pixhook, Peter Dazeley, Jimkruger, Getty Images

Mistakes aren’t illegal, but fraud is — and Bankman-Fried’s lawyers never made his defense land.

Let’s be honest: The facts are bad for Sam Bankman-Fried. The prosecution, in the closing statement delivered by Nicolas Roos (pronounced “Rose”, though he won’t correct you if you get it wrong, as Judge Lewis Kaplan did for most of the trial) today, went through a lot of contemporaneous written evidence that suggested that Bankman-Fried was very, very guilty of wire fraud and conspiracy charges at FTX. Roos gave a confident, restrained argument, relying heavily on that evidence to argue Bankman-Fried had used FTX customer deposits as his own private piggy bank, funneling them through his trading firm, Alameda Research.

He also pointed to why Bankman-Fried had done it: “The defendant was greedy.”

That closing statement honestly could have ended after the first hour. The evidence that Bankman-Fried was involved — from his Google Meet with the other alleged co-conspirators, to the metadata linking him to various incriminating spreadsheets, to the funds traced to entities he controlled — would have been enough. But we got a few more hours anyway, as though Roos had rented a backhoe for his pile of evidence and was going to get as much use out of it as possible.

As Roos spoke, the jury was focused very closely on him. No one appeared to be napping. I didn’t see anyone glance at the clock; many jurors were taking notes. Though Roos was interrupted by an AV mishap when the screens used to show the jurors the evidence briefly went out in the middle row, the closing argument was smooth. Roos talked directly to the jury, glancing occasionally at his own notes.

Cohen said the prosecution was trying to make Bankman-Fried into a villain

Watching Roos, I came to understand why the defense had been jumping around in time so much. Chronological order was bad for Bankman-Fried: it showed pretty clearly that he was learning things and lying about them. The “Assets are fine” tweet, sent November 11th, was four hours after a Signal chat where Bankman-Fried acknowledged an $8 billion difference between what he owed customers and what FTX could pay.

So I was sympathetic to Mark Cohen, the lawyer for the defense, who didn’t seem like he had much to work with. But then his closing statement managed to make things worse? To begin with, he appeared to be reading directly from a document he’d created, rather than looking up at the jury. He spoke softly, almost in a monotone, as though he was hoping to lull the jurors to sleep.

Perhaps predictably, Cohen emphasized that mistakes aren’t illegal. And he sought to present Alameda and FTX as legitimate, innovative businesses. It was sort of hard to understand exactly what they were innovating or how, but never mind. It is certainly true that at its peak, FTX’s valuation was very high.

Cohen said the prosecution was trying to make Bankman-Fried into a villain. He then showed the jury a number of photos that made Bankman-Fried look, well, bad: him hanging out with Bill Clinton and Tony Blair, lounging on a private jet, and at the Super Bowl with Katy Perry and Orlando Bloom. I don’t know why Cohen chose to remind us of these photos, but he did. Yes, the prosecution was painting an uncharitable picture of Bankman-Fried but there’s no need to reinforce it.

Cohen introduced matters that I think were meant to confuse the jury, but seemed to merely bore them

We learned Bankman-Fried was working very hard, 12 hours a day, which seemed low: Bankman-Fried had previously testified he worked as many as 22 hours a day. But I couldn’t tell you what exactly he was doing for all that time, as there was precious little testimony about it. Similarly, I heard a lot about a data protection policy the defense could not produce.

In Cohen’s telling, the government’s cross-examination had been unfair to Bankman-Fried — if he answered at length, Roos framed his answers as too rambling, and if he answered briefly, Roos said he sounded evasive. Look, I was there — and I know word salad and evasions when I hear them. It is kind of my business! Bankman-Fried’s answers to questions he didn’t like, even when posed by the actual judge, weren’t good. Saying he was “far from polished,” and “was himself; he was Sam” doesn’t really get the work done. It especially doesn’t get the work done when the Bankman-Fried we saw on direct examination was warmer, funnier, and very different than the one we saw on cross. That Bankman-Fried was an awful lot like the one we knew from media appearances before November 2022.

Cohen introduced matters that I think were meant to confuse the jury, but seemed to merely bore them. During a long digression about Alameda’s net asset value, for instance, I saw several jurors glance at the clock at the back of the courtroom. The same went for discussion of FTX’s risk engines.

Cohen even managed to make Alameda CEO Caroline Ellison sound more reliable, not less, by defending the tweets she sent out in the November period when FTX was failing. That is an unforced error. Undercutting Ellison’s testimony — alongside that of Gary Wang, Adam Yedidia, and Nishad Singh — was one of the rare gambits I could imagine working for Bankman-Fried’s defense. If Cohen is saying she is reliable here, why should we doubt her elsewhere?

Even the most talented defense lawyer would struggle with this case

We still have to hear the prosecution’s rebuttal to Cohen’s arguments, such as they were, before the case goes to the jury. But I think even the most talented defense lawyer would struggle with this case. The documentary evidence for the prosecution is just too overwhelming, and there’s very little evidence to back Bankman-Fried’s telling of events, which contradicts all three cooperating witnesses — and Yedidia, who hasn’t been charged with anything. Plus, the last person the jury heard speak was Bankman-Fried, and we did establish at length that he loves to lie.

The main thing the closing arguments made clear was how lopsided the case was. Bankman-Fried’s defense appears to be that he is a nice boy who would never do anything to hurt anyone on purpose. An introvert! Who doesn’t even do recreational drugs! When Cohen asked the jury to keep him in mind as they deliberated, Bankman-Fried crumpled the water bottle in his hand, making a noise. Glancing over, I saw he was looking directly at the jury, with an expression on his face that suggested he might cry.

Bankman-Fried is right to be frightened. He brought excuses. The prosecution brought receipts.

Those Promotions Promising a ‘Free’ iPhone? It Isn’t Free.

Those Promotions Promising a ‘Free’ iPhone? It Isn’t Free. The so-called iPhone giveaways marketed by Verizon, T-Mobile and AT&T can make customers spend more on perks they don’t need.

Meta is investigating Quest 3 issues after controller tracking complaints

Meta is investigating Quest 3 issues after controller tracking complaints

Meta has yet to confirm the cause of the tracking issues, or provide a possible workaround. | Photo by Becca Farsace / The Verge

Meta is investigating reports of tracking issues blighting its Quest 3 VR headset following user complaints that controller tracking performance is “much worse than the Quest 2” in some games. Over on the Meta community forums, user NotDream flagged issues with tracking performance on the Quest 3 controllers while playing Gorilla Tag (a VR game that requires users to run, jump, and climb by moving their arms around) claiming that they “lose tracking during medium-fast to fast hand movement” such as throwing or catching a ball.

“This is a big issue for games/activities involving fast-paced hand movement as it’s not nearly as reliable as the Quest 2 controller tracking performance,” said NotDream.

Other forum members in the same thread claim to have encountered similar tracking issues across other VR titles like Beatsaber, Supernatural, and Tennis Esports. One comment from a game developer (known as carrotstien) for Eleven Table Tennis claims the issues stem from the LED arrangement on the controller. “Oh how I wish the developers of sports games were invited to the table when discussing controller design,” said carrotstien, adding that “there are users which are simply sticking with their quest2 headsets and returning their quest3s because of the tracking issues.”

“I wish the developers of sports games were invited to the table when discussing controller design”

As reported by New World Notes, complaints have also been posted to Reddit in the last few weeks echoing similar tracking problems. The issues seem especially noticeable for competitive gamers who utilize adapters — controller attachments like batting handles that make gameplay feel more natural.

In response to NotDream’s post, Meta Quest Support said that the team is actively investigating tracking issues and is working to improve performance, especially for “competitive players” across titles like Gorilla Tag, Supernatural, IB Cricket, and Eleven Table Tennis. Some of these improvements are expected to roll out in upcoming releases. We have reached out to Meta for more information on what’s causing the tracking issues and to clarify when a fix will be released.

A new top 5 smartphone manufacturer is challenging Apple and Samsung

A new top 5 smartphone manufacturer is challenging Apple and Samsung

The Phantom V Fold, from Transsion brand Tecno. | Image: Tecno / Transsion

Transsion, a Chinese smartphone manufacturer whose brands include Tecno, Itel, and Infinix, has quietly grown to become the world’s fifth largest smartphone manufacturer, according to recent market reports from Canalys (via Android Central), IDC, and Omdia.

Despite being one of the few smartphone brands to grow in the third quarter of this year, many in Europe and North America won’t have heard of Transsion given its focus on markets in Africa, the Middle East, Latin America, Asia, and Oceania. Transsion has a particularly strong base in Africa, according to IDC, where it sells more phones than Samsung and Xiaomi. Although this suggests Transsion is focused on affordable smartphones, its Tecno brand recently released its first foldable device.

Image: Canalys

Canalys chart showing Transsion’s growth.

The exact quarter Transsion entered the global top five differs depending on whose reports you trust the most. IDC and Omdia have Transsion overtaking Vivo in the second quarter of this year, while Canalys thinks it happened in the third quarter. But all three of them agree that it’s now a top five player behind traditional heavyweights Samsung, Apple, Xiaomi, and Oppo.

That said, Counterpoint Research’s latest report disagrees, placing Vivo in the fifth largest spot. But is also says Transsion was one of just a few brands to record year-on-year growth in Q3. Honor and Huawei also grew, with the latter benefitting from the release of the Mate 60 Pro with a processor that’s been held up as proof of advances in China’s domestic chipmaking capabilities despite US sanctions.

The reason for Transsion’s growth appears to be its focus on emerging markets, where demand has been relatively strong this year compared to more developed markets. Counterpoint notes that the Middle East and Africa was the only region to record year-on-year smartphone growth in the third quarter of this year, and says Transsion benefitted from this recovery. Meanwhile Canalys analyst Amber Liu says that Transsion (along with Xiaomi) has “swiftly capitalized on the rebound in the emerging markets with competitive products and channel engagements.”

The big question is whether Transsion will be able to hold on to this position, or whether 2023 will end up being an outlier. Counterpoint notes that 2023 is expected to be the worst year for smartphone shipments in a decade as people, mostly in developed markets, choose to replace their phones less often. If the trend continues, that could result in a big opportunity for manufacturers focused on emerging markets.