Technology

Microsoft is holding an online hardware event on Wednesday, September 22nd, at 11AM ET / 8AM PT, where it’s expected to announce redesigned Surface tablets and laptops (and potentially a new phone). The Verge will be covering any announcements from the event and running a world-class live blog, and here’s how you can watch along with us, too. It’s simple: Microsoft will have a livestream on the events page of its website, and you’ll also be able to watch it on on Microsoft’s Surface Twitter account. You can follow @verge on Twitter to see news from the event as it happens. Looming over the event is the upcoming release of Windows 11, which will be coming out on October 5th. While it’s almost a given that anything Microsoft announces at Wednesday’s event will be running the new OS, it will ...

Piaggio Fast Forward, a subsidiary of storied Italian automotive firm Piaggio, has launched its second robot, a compact version of its cargo-carrying bot Gita named Gitamini. The form and function of Gitamini remain the same as that of full-sized Gita (the name is Italian for a small trip or outing). The robot consists of two large wheels, a central trunk, and a machine vision system that it uses to identify and follow its owner. Gitamini weighs 28 pounds and can carry up to 20 pounds in its interior for 21 miles. That makes an interesting comparison to Gita, which can carry more — 40 pounds but only for 12 miles. Gitamini uses an array of cameras and sensors, including radar (not available for the original Gita), to navigate and follow its user. To activate this follow mode, you simply st...

Apple introduced its latest iPad lineup — the 9th generation iPad and new iPad mini — at its annual Keynote event last week, packing powerful features into the lightweight mini and providing an affordable entry point for the iPad curious with the latest iteration. The new iPad, while not receiving any major aesthetic updates, has been outfitted with Apple’s A13 Bionic chip, a 10.2-inch Retina LED display with the smart True Tone feature,  a 12MP Ultra Wide front camera with the delightful Center Stage feature, an 8MP back camera and twice the standard storage compared to the previous generation. The device is available in two colors — space gray and silver — and comes in as the most affordable option in Apple’s current iPad lineup, starting at $329 USD. It does not support the latest ...

NASA‘s first mobile robotic mission on the Moon has been planned for 2023. It was officially announced yesterday that the Volatiles Investigating Polar Exploration Rover (VIPER) will be sent to the Nobile Crater in 2023 with the task of discovering resources and mapping where water exists, what form it’s in, and where it came from. The VIPER mission is part of NASA’s Artemis Program, aimed at landing the first astronauts on the dark side of the Moon by 2024, and will launch on the SpaceX Falcon Heavy Rocket under NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services Initiative. A mountainous region west of the Nobile Crater was chosen as the landing site. The area lies on the South Pole of the Moon alongside other relatively accessible craters and is one of the coldest places in our solar system with p...

SharePlay has returned in the iOS 15.1 beta, according to 9to5Mac, after Apple delayed the major iOS 15 feature to “later this fall” instead of having it launch alongside the OS upgrade as planned. It’s not the only feature that’s hasn’t made it to release yet, but it could be a useful one during the ongoing pandemic — it lets you watch videos, screen share, or listen to music with other people over a FaceTime call. Its existence in Tuesday’s new beta could indicate that it could be coming sooner than later, though that’s not a sure thing. MacRumors reports that the 15.1 beta also lets users add their COVID vaccine card to the Wallet app, once you’ve first added it to Health. Similar to how Google’s version of this feature works, you’ll have to get your vaccine info from your medical provi...

iOS 15 is finally here, and while it can’t be called a revolutionary update, there are enough cool new features that you may not want to wait until Apple notifies you that the update is ready. It’s easy enough to get the update without waiting, though. Here’s what you do. Your phone is backed up, right? Go to “Settings” > “General” > “Software Update.” Give it a moment. If the update is ready for you, it may appear on your update screen. In that case, tap on “Install Now.” You’ll probably be asked for your passcode and will have to agree to Apple’s “Terms and Conditions.” Your update to iOS 15 may be waiting for you. You’ll have to agree to Apple’s “Terms and Conditions.” If you don’t see the update, look toward the bottom and tap on “Upgrade to iOS 15” > “Download and Install.” (...

Paramount Plus announced today that it’s launching a new streaming bundle for both its ad-supported and premium tiers that include Showtime. Paramount Plus offers two subscription options: a pared-down essential plan with limited ads for $5 per month and an ad-free premium plan for $10 per month. ViacomCBS’s Showtime is offering the bundle at special introductory pricing of $10 per month and $13 per month, respectively. Like other services similarly looking to lure subscribers by offering, for example, limited free-to-stream content or slashed promotional pricing, Paramount Plus hopes the package will help it win new customers. Tom Ryan, president and CEO of ViacomCBS streaming, said the company expects the “competitively priced bundle to only further expand the reach of both services.” It...

The body of NASA tasked with managing human spaceflight is being split into two distinct directorates, the agency’s chief announced on Tuesday, embarking on a major reorganization that past officials have tried and failed to execute for years. The move comes as private companies like SpaceX demonstrate leaner methods of putting people in space and as NASA pushes ahead with ambitious plans to build settlements on the surface of the Moon in the next decade. The breakup of NASA’s human exploration wing, called Human Exploration and Operations Mission Directorate, will spawn two new bodies: first, the Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate, which will manage NASA’s most ambitious development programs like the Artemis program that are still in formative and testing phases. The seco...

Brittany Gould, wearing a black mask with a clear window through which you could see her mouth, got choked up as she told the court about her experience with Theranos in 2014. She’d used the company’s tests because they were cheap — her language was “cost-effective” — and the results told her, wrongly, that she was miscarrying. It would have been her fourth miscarriage in a row. The defense in US v. Elizabeth Holmes blocked testimony from Gould about the emotional impact of the bad test, so jurors didn’t hear how it affected her. But “the loss of all these babies and pregnancies, and going through the experience of thinking I’m losing another one, is a lot,” Gould told The Wall Street Journal in an interview before the trial. The experience was unremarkable — until the wrong result came ba...

Apple announced on Tuesday that it will soon be bringing COVID-19 vaccination cards to the Apple Wallet. The tech company rolled out a number of new features with its iOS 15 update, including upgrades to the Wallet app that will soon allow it to support driver’s licenses and digital keys. iOS 15 will also allow users to download and store verifiable health records, including COVID-19 vaccinations and test results, in the Health app, and users can choose to share this information with third parties that may require proof of vaccination, including airlines, event venues and other businesses. It’s unclear when COVID-19 vaccination cards will be available to store in the Wallet app, but Apple developers say it will arrive in an upcoming software update. Apple first touted its enhancements...

The Italian company behind the iconic Vespa scooter has debuted a miniature robot that’s designed to help its owners hauling items while they run errands. Out from Piaggio Fast Forward, which calls itself a leader in smart technology, the gitamini is a 28 lb (13 kg) mobile robot that not only carries cargo but also follows the rules of the road. The gitamini is about the size of a medium-sized dog and comes programmed with an extensive body of knowledge regarding pedestrian mobility and etiquette. It also comes loaded with handles on its front and back for manual maneuvering over bumps and hills, as well as an impressive roster of cameras and radar technologies that enable it to detect its surroundings and navigate crowded environments. The bot can be packed with up to 20 pounds (32 kg) of...

Google got ahead of any possible news leaks about the Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro by announcing the phones back in August, including that they would run on the company’s long-in-development Tensor chip. But it’s possible that some leakers have recently got hold of an actual unit. A video posted to Twitter by @thisistechtoday may be showing off a pre-production version of the Pixel 6 Pro, complete with its triple rear camera array. Of course, Google hasn’t been coy about sharing what the device will look like — even installing dummy units in its NYC store for people to ogle. To that end, the device that’s spun around in this short clip looks like what we’ve seen so far — the strange Google logo placeholder notwithstanding. The phone in this video appears to have a hole-punch selfie camera, and ...