Technology

Comics have never been bigger: with Marvel TV shows, DC movies, and indie adaptations growing by the day, comic books have never been more prominent in pop culture. This weekly Verge column recommends comic series new and old, whether you’re a longtime fan or a newcomer. WandaVision’s season finale has hit Disney Plus, but if you’ve got a hankering for more surreal suburban comic book drama, look no further than Vision, a 12-issue run from writer Tom King and artist Gabriel Hernandez Walta, which explores further the idea of a superhero trying to step back and start a family — no matter the cost. What is it? Vision is a 12-issue comic series. While it lightly ties into the character’s past history over decades of comics, it’s largely a standalone story: Vision moves to the DC suburbs, and ...

Disneyland, Universal Studios other theme parks, and sports stadiums in California can reopen beginning April 1st, the California Department of Public Health said Friday. But there are caveats: the health department is requiring “significantly reduced capacity, mandatory masking and other public health precautions” due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. How many people will be allowed in the parks depends on the number of COVID-19 cases in the counties where they’re located. For amusement parks, counties in the “red” tier of California’s four-tier reopening risk system— red is the second-highest risk category— will be limited to attendance of 15 percent capacity. In the orange tier, the limit increases to 25 percent capacity and in the yellow tier, to 35 percent. Attendance will be restr...

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) is looking into allegations of racial bias and hiring practices at Facebook, a probe which the agency has designated as “systemic,” Reuters reported. In July, Facebook employee Oscar Veneszee, Jr., who is Black, filed a complaint with the EEOC along with two people Veneszee recruited but whom Facebook did not hire. The complaint alleges that the social platform discriminates against Black job applicants and employees and promotes racial stereotypes. Veneszee told NPR that Facebook has “a Black people problem,” and that the company has failed to create a culture to attract and retain Black workers. The EEOC has not brought allegations against Facebook, Reuters notes, and the agency’s investigation may not produce findings of any wrongdoing ...

On Tuesday, Sonos will introduce its latest product called the Sonos Roam, which The Verge extensively detailed a couple of days ago. Now I’m able to share a bit more about new functionality that will debut first on the tiny, take-everywhere speaker. My previous report laid out the core specs of the Sonos Roam. Measuring 6.5 inches long and weighing around a pound, the portable speaker will offer up to 10 hours of battery life on a charge. Just like the Move, it will support voice commands for either Amazon Alexa or Google Assistant. Sonos plans to sell it for $169, and the Roam will ship in April. But now on to the new stuff: The Sonos Roam will include automatic Trueplay.Like the pricier, larger Move, Sonos is building its Auto Trueplay audio tuning feature right into the Roam. The speak...

This was another week of gaming dominating our deals coverage. That’s mostly because my colleague Taylor Lyles has been diligently keeping readers in the know about every (fleeting, sadly) restocking of the PS5 and Xbox Series X / S consoles. Outside of consoles, there are some good game deals happening, in addition to tech that might be able to make gaming more enjoyable. Save on this speedy 1TB external SSD from Crucial Whether you need a fast external drive for plugging into a PS5, Xbox Series X, or PC, this Crucial model is a good deal at $125. Its low-profile design means it can fit easily in most entertainment centers or desk arrangements, and it ships with a USB Type-A adapter in case your device doesn’t have a USB-C port. Crucial X8 1TB SSD $125 $150 17% off Prices taken at time of...

In a sign that the iMac Pro is on the way out, the only model currently available for purchase on the Apple Store website is the $4,999 base configuration, “while supplies last.” As first reported by 9to5Mac, all build-to-order configurations for the iMac Pro have been removed from Apple’s site (but may still be available at third-party retailers like Amazon). Apple tells The Verge once supplies of the base model run out, iMac Pro will no longer be available. A screengrab of the Apple Store listing for the iMac Pro on March 6th, 2021Kim Lyons/The Verge It’s not a huge surprise that Apple may be phasing out the iMac Pro; there have been well-sourced reports that the company will be introducing a redesigned iMac and doing a revamp of the Mac Pro sometime this year. Bloomberg reported in Janu...

Razer’s Blade 15 Base isn’t broken necessarily, but it could use a tune-up anyway. It’s emblematic of the company’s excellent design chops — stuck in a loop of flexing it in practically the same way as last year and the year before. The laptop’s all-aluminum build is still impressive to see and use. And yes, it has a webcam, unlike some of the gaming laptops we’ve reviewed recently. But the effect it gives off is getting stale, and Razer still hasn’t addressed all of the annoyances that have been present since this design debuted in 2018. It’s a magnet for fingerprints and smudges, and for a laptop that starts at $1,699.99, its lack of any biometric login method is baffling. You’ll need to type in your password or PIN every time you log in. It’s no longer as ahead of the pack in terms of d...

The US government is feeling optimistic about vaccines. By the end of May, it should have enough to vaccinate every adult in the country, President Joe Biden said on Tuesday. Not only that, but Americans are feeling pretty good about the vaccine, too. About 69 percent of Americans had either already gotten the vaccine or were willing to get one when they could, according to a new survey from Pew Research Center. That’s a huge relief to public health experts. Last year, they watched vaccine polling numbers drop dramatically during just four months. In September 2020, only half of people polled said they’d be willing to take a hypothetical vaccine. Not exactly surprising, given that, at the time, the Trump administration was promising to have vaccines in October, and people were worried that...

Applying to an elite middle school sounds like a stressful experience, and I’m sure COVID-19 doesn’t help. With things like open houses, campus tours, and in-person interviews off the table, applicants have fewer chances to experience their prospective schools — and admissions offices have fewer chances to meet their prospective students. One San Jose private school has come up with a unique solution: The Harker School, self-described as “one of the nation’s top college prep schools,” is putting teams of sixth grade applicants through a virtual escape room. Over a Zoom call, the 11-year-olds work together to solve a series of Harker-themed puzzles, and admissions officers observe their behavior. Harker let me go through the game myself, alongside a friend of mine who’s an experienced escap...

YouTube terminated five Myanmar military channels from its platform on Friday, Reuters reports. The removals include YouTube channels for the government-run Myanma Radio and Television (MRTV) network and the military-owned Myawaddy Media used to spread military propaganda in Myanmar. YouTube’s action is the platform’s first major intervention following the military coup that was staged in February and the subsequent military crackdowns against protesters that have left at least 38 dead. “We have terminated a number of channels and removed several videos from YouTube in accordance with our community guidelines and applicable laws,” a YouTube spokesperson tells The Verge. Prior to the coup, the company also terminated 34 channels used as “influence operations” during Myanmar’s election in 20...

Perseverance, the car-sized rover NASA landed on Mars last month, has taken its first spin on the rocky surface of Jezero Crater, NASA announced today. The rover’s six wheels drove about 21 feet to carry out a key mobility test on Thursday, as engineers back on Earth prepare to execute the mission’s core science objectives. The rover’s six aluminum wheels left tracks on the Martian dirt — as captured by one of its on-board cameras — after driving straight for 13 feet, then turning around to back up 8 feet. Anais Zarifian, Perseverance’s mobility testbed engineer, told reporters it went “incredibly well” and performed better than it did during pre-launch tests on Earth. An animation showing Perseverance’s first drive on Mars.Image: NASA/JPL “I don’t think I’ve ever been happier to see wheel...