Technology

In most contexts, it’s perfectly acceptable to use “approval” and “authorization” interchangeably. But not at the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and definitely not when it comes to COVID-19 vaccines. If the topic comes up at your Zoom holiday party, here’s a cheat sheet for the specific uses of these similar terms. Approval — No COVID-19 vaccines have been approved. Approval means the FDA has officially decided that a product is safe and effective for its designated use. The process for approval involves rigorous reviews of all available data on the product and can take several months. Authorization — To speed things up in an emergency like a pandemic, the FDA can grant an Emergency Use Authorization (EUA). An EUA, as its name implies, authorizes a product for use during unusually urg...

CD Projekt Red (CDPR) has issued yet another statement regarding the ongoing Cyberpunk 2077 debacle, this time clarifying its stance on retail refunds for the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One versions of the game that have been riddled with bugs and performance issues since launch last week. The developer now says it will honor every refund request it receives between now and December 21st out of its own pocket. “We’ve just started reaching out to people who sent us a message with a confirmation of receipt. We send these emails out in waves, so don’t worry if you don’t receive an answer immediately,” CDPR writes in its new statement, issued via the official Cyberpunk 2077 Twitter account on Friday afternoon. “At the same time, we’d like you to know that our intention is for every owner of a phys...

I like to end each year by surveying you all about your predictions for social networks and the broader consumer internet in the 12 months to come. One, it’s a lot of fun. And two, a year later I get to read the predictions back and feel extremely dumb. Our collective guesses for 2020 weren’t terrible, exactly — we nailed Libra (er, Diem) failing to launch, the rise of Discord, the splinternet accelerating, and a total stalemate on Section 230 reform. But we missed a lot, too: a rise in curated experiences did not cause algorithms to “fade into the background”; a deepfake app did not go mainstream in the United States; and Twitch streaming did not power the rise of Oculus. (But the pandemic sort of did? It powered the rise of Twitch, anyway.) I asked you what you thought was going to happe...

Microsoft is designing its own ARM-based processors for servers and possibly a future Surface device, according to Bloomberg News. The processors will be used in servers for Microsoft’s Azure cloud services and be based around ARM designs, according to the report. Microsoft is also reportedly “exploring” using another chip for some of its Surface devices, but it’s not clear if this will progress into a final product. Microsoft currently uses Intel-based processors for the majority of its Azure cloud services, and most of the company’s Surface lineup run on Intel chips, too. Microsoft has worked with AMD and Qualcomm for custom chips for its Surface Laptop 3 and Surface Pro X devices, showing a willingness to move away from just Intel. Microsoft’s custom chips for Surface devices.Photo by A...

Fortnite’s annual holiday event is back, and this time, it brings a surprise: the return of airplanes. “Operation Snowdown,” as it’s called, lasts from December 18th to January 5th, and it adds the expected to the game, including a snowy map and free unlockables like a soldier snowman called Snowmando. Everyone who logs in before January 5th will also get a free caroling emote. The biggest feature, though, is the return of airplanes. The timing is perfect: planes were first introduced in season 7, back in 2018, which was also a winter-themed update for the game. (There was even a militarized Santa character.) They were later removed, and it sounds like their latest appearance will be short-lived as well. In addition to the new missions and free unlockable cosmetics, the event will also inc...

The holidays are upon us, and we’re just about to enter crunch time for gift-getting. If you haven’t made your selections, it’s possible that gifts might not get where they need to go on time — unless you pay for rush shipping or you take advantage of curbside pickup services. I know that’s a lot of pressure, but if you’re ready to make a few purchases for tech fans in your life, we have a few last-minute suggestions that also happen to be good deals. Depending on the retailer, these might not arrive in time for the holidays, but it’s the thought that counts, right? You’ve got this! Photo by Chris Welch / The Verge Google’s latest Pixel Buds wireless earbuds rarely see a discount, but they’re $35 off at online store Antonline. Normally $179, they’re $144 when you enter the code antfarm at ...

It seems like there’s no sign of tech news stopping for the holidays. In The Vergecast’s last regular episode of 2020, The Verge’s Dieter Bohn and Nilay Patel bring on senior reporter Adi Robertson and editor Chris Welch to explain the biggest stories in tech from this past week. In the first half of the show, Adi explains two (!) more antitrust cases brought against Google this week: one from the Texas attorney general and the other from a coalition of 38 states. The Vergecast breaks down their arguments about Google’s alleged anti-competitive behavior around ad tech and search manipulation. In the second half of the show, The Vergecast shift gears to a review of the latest product announcement from Apple: the AirPods Max. Chris reviewed the new $550 headphones for the site, and he detail...

This year, millions of people turned to bicycles as a safe and socially distanced way to get out of their homes, shake off that cabin fever, and get some fresh air, and suddenly — thanks to COVID — bikes were in. But unless concerted efforts are made to ensure people can continue to cycle safely and in great numbers, all those bikes may soon be gathering dust. Things looked grim at first, with bike sales plummeting as cities went into lockdown. But as the year plodded along, bike sales started really getting up to speed. Popular bikes went on backorder. Local shops and big-box retailers struggled to keep up with demand. The humble bicycle emerged as one of the rare winners of the pandemic. For the first time in, well, a century, the playing field was tilted in favor of bikes. Driving rates...

A text message program designed to track side effects in COVID-19 vaccine recipients is currently only available in English, which could limit the data it is able to collect. The program, called v-safe, is one way the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will follow up with people who take the vaccine. It was rolled out with the first wave of vaccinations last week. “When you’re talking about technology, literacy and language are usually second tier,” says Jorge Rodriguez, a health technology equity researcher at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston. “Version one is English-speaking, and the Spanish version will come later, the Mandarin version will come later.” The CDC plans to roll out a Spanish version of v-safe “fairly shortly,” Tom Shimabukuro, a member of the Vaccine Safety T...

Google plans to shut down Android Things, a stripped-down version of Android designed for smart home devices. The OS never really got off the ground, so this isn’t all that much of a loss, but it is yet another entry in Google’s expansive graveyard of shut-down projects. The smart home project got its start in 2015 under the name Brillo, which was meant to provide the “underlying operating system for the internet of things.” In 2016, Google revamped Brillo and relaunched the initiative as Android Things, which was likewise meant to run on products like connected speakers, security cameras, and routers. By relying on Android, the OS was supposed to be familiar to developers and easy to get started with. The system will shut down in January 2022 Then nothing happened. In 2018, some initial s...

If you’ve been waiting anxiously for your radio-controlled Cybertruck, you’re going to have to wait a little longer: Mattel has had to delay it until May 2021, according to Bloomberg. The RC cars, announced in February, were supposed to ship this month, but have been delayed because of “unforseen production issues.” Mattel appears to be experiencing “manufacturing hell,” though the company did not release details on the delay. Just another way that the model imitates reality These toys are scaled-down versions of the real Cybertruck, and come in two models: an 1:64 scale model, which costs $20, and an 1:10 scale model that costs $400. Both models went out of stock after pre-orders. Tesla’s Cybertruck, unveiled in November 2019, is a futuristic, electric spin on a pickup truck. The angular,...

Google has added Grogu (formerly Baby Yoda) to its augmented reality search results, so some quick typing can drop an AR version of the little guy straight into your bedroom or home office, no spaceship required. Searching “Grogu”, “The Child”, “The Mandalorian”, or “Baby Yoda” on mobile or in the Google app will return the usual Knowledge Panel with a Wikipedia summary of the character. But now you can click “View in 3D” to check out a model, and if you’re really feeling like noted Baby Yoda fan Werner Herzog, “View in your space” to get up close and personal in AR. Interactions are limited to zooming in and out, but he’s a really cute alien. Maybe that’s enough for you. Conveniently, Grogu is only slightly bigger than my water bottle. Google last added 50 new animals to its AR search res...