Technology

Google’s Stadia controller now has support for USB-C audio devices when playing on a Chromecast or via a web browser. That gives you an easy way to add headphones and a microphone, since you can simply plug in a set of wired USB-C earbuds like the Google’s Pixel USB-C earbuds, gaming headset, the Asus ROG Delta, or even the wireless SteelSeries Arctis 1 gaming headset with its wireless USB-C adapter (It works, a Redditor confirms.) It’s nice that Stadia players have another audio option beyond the built-in 3.5mm jack, and it’s cool and unusual for any game controller to offer USB-C audio, but it still took almost a year for Google to add it after promising the feature was coming. Up until now, you could only use the controller’s USB-C port to charge the controller or to plug it into a smar...

I can’t put it better than SEGAbits: “Famitsu magazine took the photo we all wanted to see.” The photo is of Sega’s upcoming Game Gear Micro — perhaps the most ridiculous miniature gaming nostalgia bomb ever announced by virtue of the exorbitant price you’ll pay to carry just four games at a time — and the Dreamcast’s infamous VMU, also known as the unholy spawn of a PlayStation memory card and the original Nintendo Game Boy. Truth be told, I didn’t know I needed to see this photo until I saw it, because I never could have imagined the glory that I now behold. Or maybe just because I didn’t do the math. It also reminds me that although Chaim has an excellent column called Button of the Month, he has yet to fulfill his 2018 promise to one day feature the Dreamcast’s VMU. It’s time, Chaim. Y...

One of Nintendo’s more intriguing upcoming games is Mario Kart Live: Home Circuit. Developed by Velan Studios, it’s a title that follows the likes of Labo and Pokémon Go, attempting to take Nintendo’s playful experiences and translate them into the real world. In this case, Home Circuit is both a game you play on a Switch and a remote control racer that will take over your living room. There’s a lot going on, and I recently had a chance for a hands-off demo of the game, where I learned a few interesting tidbits about what the experience will be like. Here’s what you need to know ahead of Home Circuit’s launch on October 16th. [embedded content] What you get in the box The $99.99 package comes in two varieties — Mario or Luigi — though both offer the same basic experience. For that price yo...

1.44 percent of Amazon’s front-line employees, or 19,816 workers, have tested positive or been “presumed positive for COVID-19,” Amazon said in a blog post published Thursday. The company says it employs 1,372,000 front-line employees across both Amazon and Whole Foods. The blog marks the first time Amazon has disclosed how many of its workers have contracted COVID-19, and comes after months of demands for increased transparency from workers, governments, and Amazon investors. Amazon warehouse workers have reportedly even worked amongst themselves to attempt to determine how many of their colleagues have contracted the disease. The disclosure is also notable following comments from Amazon senior vice president of worldwide operations Dave Clark in May, who said that the “total number of ca...

Facebook moderators employed by third-party contracting firm Accenture and based in Austin, Texas are being forced to return to the office on October 12th, The Verge has learned. Employees, almost all of whom are contractors, were instructed of the new policy at a company-wide town hall meeting today, say multiple people familiar with Accenture’s plans. Accenture, which has allowed its workforce of hundreds of moderators to work from home since March due to the COVID-19 pandemic, has not given the employees a reason for why they must return to the office. Accenture did not take questions at the town hall meeting, telling concerned employees that it would schedule a second call to answer COVID-specific questions regarding matters like sick leave and time off. High-risk workers are being ask...

Google just announced a new Chromecast yesterday, and the company is already offering a good deal on one — all you have to do is sign up for YouTube TV and pay for one month of the service. If you want to take advantage of the deal, you should be able to access it here. There are a few caveats, however. You can only take advantage of this if you’re a first-time YouTube TV subscriber, according to the deal’s terms. You then have to make a payment toward your YouTube TV subscription between October 15th and December 31st in order to receive the offer for the free Chromecast. And the deal is only available in the US. You should also know that paying $64.99 for one month of YouTube TV costs more than just buying the new Chromecast on its own for $49.99. But if you’ve had your eye on both YouTu...

Jacob Wohl, a conservative activist known for his largely bumbling attempts to stage political scandals, has been charged with running a robocalling scheme to spread false election information. Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel filed four felony charges today against Wohl and his partner Jack Burkman. They’re accused of targeting Detroit residents with calls that discouraged voting, including false claims that mail-in ballots would let health agencies “track people for mandatory vaccines.” Wohl and Burkman allegedly targeted voters in Michigan, New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, and Illinois, making a total of around 85,000 calls in August. The calls claimed to come from a group called “Project 1599, a civil rights organization founded by Jack Burkman and Jacob Wohl,” and they were aimed at...

Verizon’s 4G LTE-based home broadband service targeting rural communities is now available in 48 states, and it might be worth a look if it’s available in your area. The service, called “LTE Home Internet,” offers unlimited data, no data usage caps, and typical download speeds of 25Mbps with peak speeds of 50Mbps. But it’s only available in “parts” of 189 markets, and only in areas where the company doesn’t already offer other broadband options such as Fios or its in-home 5G service. LTE Home Internet starts at $40, but that’s only if you’re already on a monthly Verizon wireless plan that costs $30 or more. Those who don’t have an eligible Verizon wireless plan will instead pay $60 per month for LTE Home Internet. And the prices of both of tiers go up by $10 if you aren’t enrolled in Auto ...

Comcast is announcing a new version of its hexagon-shaped xFi Pods, the mesh Wi-Fi extender pods it sells to extend Wi-Fi networks around your house, with more Wi-Fi bandwidth (up to 500Mbps, which it says is twice as fast) and a second wired Ethernet port on each pod as well. (Disclosure: Comcast is an investor in Vox Media, The Verge’s parent company.) The company originally began selling its Wi-Fi extender pods to consumers in 2018 in packs of three or six plugs, but the new ones come in packs of one or two. Comcast is recommending one pod for a 3-4 bedroom house, and two for 5+ bedrooms or houses with thick walls — which were its same recommendations for its 3-pack and 6-packs respectively, before. Image: Comcast Similar to its predecessor, the xFi Pods maintain a six-sided polygonal d...

macOS Big Sur, Apple’s upcoming release of its Mac operating system, will finally let you watch 4K HDR Netflix content, but it turns out it’ll only work on 2018 or later Macs with Apple’s T2 security chip, according to a new Netflix support document (via Apple Terminal). That means the full list of Macs that can watch 4K content on Netflix, at least for now, is as follows: iMac (2020) iMac Pro Mac Pro (2019) Mac mini (2018) MacBook Air (2018 or later) MacBook Pro (2018 or later) There’s an easy way to check whether your Mac has a T2 chip, as Apple points out on its website. Disappointingly, older iMacs and pre-2018 Mac laptops that could theoretically play Netflix 4K content, whether on their built-in displays or via an 4K or 5K external monitor, won’t be able to. It’s not clear why the T2...

If you’re not the inbox zero type — and I’m definitely not — you might sometimes rely on Gmail’s “Select all conversations that match this search” option to read, archive, or delete hundreds or thousands of messages at once. Except we can’t do that anymore, and neither can a number of angry Gmail users we’ve spotted. The option has up and disappeared. @gmail Hey, how come there’s no longer an option to “Select all conversations” to mark thousands as read at once? I’m typing “is: unread” + selecting the “All” check box, but instead of “Select all conversations” at the top of my screen, it says “No results found”…? pic.twitter.com/dercwGE5OE — Laura McQuillan (@mcquillanator) September 30, 2020 incredible that the ...

Jeffree Star, one of YouTube’s most prominent figures and the owner of a multimillion-dollar cosmetics company, is being accused of sexual misconduct and other bouts of physical violence, according to a new report from Insider. Insider spoke to four people who said Star “groped men around him without consent” and five people who said they saw Star use a short-range stun device on people as a means to intimidate them. Star’s attorney denied all allegations made in the Insider piece, which goes back years to Star’s days as a MySpace celebrity in the late 2000s. The story describes alleged instances of Star using his celebrity and influence to reportedly harm people around him. In one instance, Star allegedly tased a homeless teen he knew, invited him back to his apartment, gave the teen Ambi...