Technology

Fortnite’s next season, which kicks off on August 27th, could be a full-season collaboration with Marvel, as suggested by a teaser released by Epic Games on Friday. But due to Epic’s public dispute with Apple over the iPhone maker’s App Store policies, Epic currently isn’t able to update Fortnite on iOS. That means iPhone and iPad players will miss out on the new season unless something changes between Epic and Apple before Thursday. Apple yanked Fortnite from the App Store on August 13th after Epic added a direct payment system into the game, which goes against App Store rules. Epic then sued Apple, released an in-game short parodying one of Apple’s most famous commercials, and began telling iOS players that they wouldn’t be able to play the upcoming season because Apple pulled Fortnite f...

When a trailer for Crysis Remastered leaked online in July, fans criticized the game’s graphics for looking far too much like the original’s from over 10 years ago. But today, Crytek released a new trailer that shows drastic improvements to the game’s visuals, and it announced the remaster will be coming to multiple platforms next month. Crysis Remastered will now launch on the PS4, Xbox One, and Epic Games Store on September 18th for $30. In July, following backlash from fans, Crytek announced that it would delay these versions of the game by several weeks. Crytek acknowledged the leaked trailer in its delay announcement and promised to use the extra time “to get Crysis Remastered up to the PC- and console-breaking standard you’ve come to expect from a Crysis game.” ‘Crysis Remastered’ la...

Brydge, the maker of keyboard accessories for iPads and other tablets, has a line of new accessories for Windows 10 devices that includes two new keyboards for the Surface Pro and Surface Go: the $149.99 Brydge 12.3 Pro Plus and $139.99 Brydge 10.5 Go Plus. Both keyboards are designed to do the same thing: turn your Surface device into a traditional clamshell laptop. And after testing both models for a couple of weeks with a Surface Pro 5 and a Surface Go 2, I can confirm they do exactly that. The keyboards function similarly to the models that Brydge has for Apple’s iPad: they connect to your device via Bluetooth and have hinge clamps the tablet slides into. The hinges are stiff, so the tablet doesn’t move when you touch it or are using it on an unstable platform such as your lap, and the...

When the pandemic hit this spring, a lot of teachers turned to Minecraft during their mad scramble for tools that could make remote learning work. Earlier this year, Microsoft added an “education” section to the Minecraft marketplace, and since March, 63 million pieces of content have been downloaded. While Minecraft: Education Edition isn’t new, its digital nature makes it an almost ideal tool for this strange time. It allows for multiplayer activities, is available on a large range of devices, and — perhaps most importantly — is something kids already enjoy doing. “We already had a lot of the features in the game, so we were well-suited from the beginning,” says Deirdre Quarnstrom, GM of the Minecraft Atlas division, which focuses on broader initiatives like education. The educational of...

If you’re used to working in an office full of coworkers, but are now forced to labor from home, you may be feeling that things are a little quiet — too quiet. The solution might be to listen to whatever music, talk, or other background audio can keep your spirits up and your attention focused. You may be listening to the same music or podcasts that you listened to through your headphones in the office. Or you may have decided you need something completely different to get you through your work-at-home days. We polled the staff of The Verge to find out what what they are listening to during working hours, be it a podcast, an album, a favorite musician, a music genre, whatever. Here’s what they told us. Read on — and who knows? You might be motivated to try a whole new audio experience. Wri...

Google launched the Pixel 4A in August but told us we’d have to wait to see the Pixel 5 and Pixel 4A 5G. They’re due to arrive sometime this fall (probably in early October), but new renders purportedly showing the Pixel 5 give us some idea what to expect. The renders come from regular leaker @OnLeaks and Indian tech site PriceBaba. There are no real surprises here, with the images showing a fingerprint sensor on the rear; square-shaped camera array containing what looks to be two cameras, a flash, and an unknown sensor; and a holepunch front-facing camera in the top left of the display. It’s hard to judge the render’s authenticity, but the sand-blasted texture on the case looks the same as the side-on peek of the Pixel 5 and Pixel 4A 5G Google shared earlier this year. Grid View What’s a ...

A fertility app that helps women monitor their cycles when hoping to become pregnant was sharing user data with several Chinese companies, The Washington Post reported on Thursday. The International Digital Accountability Council (IDAC), a nonprofit consumer privacy watchdog, said its research found that the Android version of the app was sharing data with three Chinese analytics firms, including unique device identifiers which could help them follow users’ activities across other apps and websites. IDAC sent letters to the FTC, Google, and the attorney general of Illinois, where Premom is based, earlier this month. Since users had no way to opt out of the tracking and were not aware it was even happening, IDAC says the practice could violate state and federal law. It’s also a violation of...

Facebook’s “classic” experience, the interface with the iconic blue navigation bar at the top, is disappearing for good in September. Engadget reports that a Facebook support page has been updated saying everyone will soon have the new design. Although you can temporarily switch back to the old interface on Facebook’s site, the button warns that “the classic Facebook will no longer be available starting in September.” The new design was announced at Facebook’s developer conference last year, and initially rolled out on the service’s iOS and Android apps. In March it got a widespread release on desktop as an opt-in feature, leaving people free to continue using the old design if they want to. Come September, however, the old design will disappear for good. Attempting to switch back to the o...

Tesla is working on a new motion-detection sensor that could detect a child left behind in a hot car. According to Reuters, the company is seeking approval from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to market the technology, which would use unlicensed millimeter-wave radar sensors designed to operate at higher power levels than allowed under existing rules. In its application, Tesla said the device could be used to “reduce the risk of pediatric vehicular heatstroke, protect vehicle occupants from injury through advanced airbag deployment and seatbelt reminders, and enhance theft prevention systems.” “reduce the risk of pediatric vehicular heatstroke” Tesla envisions using radar imaging to measure body size so it can tell the difference between adults and children. This can help the c...

Major US news publishers have joined the list of companies and app developers criticizing Apple’s App Store terms as unfair and potentially anti-competitive. The digital media trade association Digital Content Next — which includes newspapers like The New York Times and The Washington Post and numerous magazines, broadcasters, and websites (Vox Media, parent company of The Verge, is also a member) — sent a letter to Apple CEO Tim Cook on Thursday. The letter asks the Apple chief executive what would be necessary to negotiate a deal similar to the one it granted Amazon in 2016 for its Prime video app. News of the letter was first reported today by The Wall Street Journal. “We would like to know what conditions our members — high quality digital content companies — would need to meet in orde...

Fortnite-maker Epic Games and Apple are currently embroiled in a public battle over Apple’s App Store policies, and in the latest move in the dispute, Epic has announced a Fortnite tournament taking place August 23rd where players can compete to win anti-Apple prizes. Last week, Epic added a new direct payment system to Fortnite in violation of Apple’s policies. Apple removed Fortnite from the App Store the same day, and shortly after, Epic launched a campaign against Apple by suing the company, releasing a “Nineteen Eighty-Fortnite” video mocking Apple’s famous “1984” ad, and promoting the hashtag #FreeFortnite. Players who compete in the tournament have the opportunity to win an in-game skin of the evil-looking apple featured in Epic’s “Nineteen Eighty-Fortnite” video (cheekily dubbed th...

Facing higher production costs due to the inclusion of 5G hardware in this year’s “iPhone 12” series, Apple is attempting to use less expensive components in other areas, according to analyst Ming-chi Kuo (via MacRumors and AppleInsider). One of the biggest cost reductions is believed to come from battery technology; Kuo says Apple is reducing the number of layers in the battery board and placing cell components in a smaller area. This will result in a battery board that’s 40 to 50 percent cheaper than the iPhone 11’s equivalent part, according to Kuo, and next year’s iPhone batteries will get a further 30 to 40 percent price decrease due to additional design changes. Apple is also said to be trimming battery costs for a third-generation AirPods release next year by switching to a “system-...