Technology

Chrome for Android will begin adding “fast page” labels to the context menus of pages it considers high-quality, Google announced Monday. The company says the labels will be based on signals from its Core Web Vitals metrics, which keep track of user experience, including page load time, responsiveness, and how stable content is while it loads. Right now, there’s only one way to tell: if you long-press a link before visiting a page, you’ll get that “fast page” label if it meets Google’s standards. But ultimately, a “fast page” might get ranked higher in Google search as well. Google tells The Verge that those same Core Web Vitals metrics are among the criteria that will be considered in search rankings when the labels launch. In the blog post announcing the labels, Google says that “optimiz...

See that little “closed lock” icon in your web browser, right next to the URL? That means you’re browsing via HTTPS, encrypting your traffic so third parties can’t spy on most of the information you’re sending. But secure-looking HTTPS websites can still house insecure HTTP forms for you to fill in your passwords and other personal data — and Google is planning to do something about that in Chrome 86, coming this October (via 9to5Google). Primarily, you’ll get a couple of big, bold warnings, according to Google’s official blog post. The first will look something like this: And if you try to submit your information anyway, you’ll get a second “are you sure?”-style warning: Google’s also disabling autofill on these so-called “mixed forms,” so the fact that your password managers and auto-com...

Only 2.5 percent of colleges are planning a fully in-person semester this upcoming year. Rather than spend a year staring at Zoom, some students are considering taking the semester off. Startups see this as an opportunity to recruit these students into virtual fall internships, Bloomberg reports. Some firms are organizing virtual career fairs, offering grants to teams of entrepreneurs, and compiling lists of potential employers. Others are extending the terms of their summer cohorts. Postmates told Bloomberg that it may keep some interns on if they take time off school. Startups are hoping to compete for top students. The virtual nature of the internships could allow the firms access to a nationwide talent pool. And companies hope that potential employees they hook this fall might stay on ...

Apple TV Plus subscribers can now get a subscription to both CBS All Access and Showtime for $9.99 per month, making it the first video bundle available for subscribers to Apple’s premium streaming service (via 9to5Mac). The deal could be a nice savings for people who already subscribe to all three services. Apple TV Plus costs $4.99 per month, though anyone who buys a new Apple device gets a free year of the service. And if you buy the other subscriptions on their own, CBS All Access starts at $5.99 per month and offers an ad-free version for $9.99 per month — and that ad-free version is what you get with this bundle. Showtime costs $10.99 per month. This new bundle means you might be able to get Apple TV Plus, CBS All Access, and Showtime for $14.98 per month — and if you have a free sub...

If you want to purchase a phone with an under-display front camera right now, you’re out of luck. While several companies have tested the feature, none have yet to ship one to consumers. But that should change soon, as ZTE aims to become the first company to mass-produce and ship a phone with an under-display camera next month. The Axon 20 5G will launch in China on September 1st. ZTE notes in its press release that “all the major industry players” are working on under-display cameras, but it plans to be the first one to get a smartphone with this feature out the door. The Axon 20 5G is said to be the “world’s first mass-produced 5G smartphone,” according to ZTE. Image: ZTE Several companies have been teasing smartphones with under-display cameras over the last year. Oppo and Xiaomi both s...

On Saturday, a Northrop Grumman spacecraft, designed to give a dying satellite a new lease on life, launched into space. Its objective is to latch onto an aging satellite that’s been in space for 16 years and prolong the old robot’s life in orbit by giving it a new set of engines and fuel. The spacecraft is named MEV-2, for Mission Extension Vehicle 2. MEV-2’s predecessor was the groundbreaking MEV-1 satellite, which launched in October 2019. MEV-1 made history in February when it successfully grabbed hold of another satellite already in orbit, marking the first time that two commercial satellites had docked in space. MEV-1’s target was an out-of-commission communications satellite called Intelsat 901, which has been in space for nearly 20 years. After docking with Intelsat 901, MEV-1 nudg...

Years before the pandemic, planetary scientist Lindy Elkins-Tanton was thinking about the best way to change the world. In conversations with her husband and son, she kept coming back to one thing: education. More specifically, teaching people skills that will help them continue to learn even after school and help make a difference in their own communities. “Every person has their own miraculous ability to find and solve problems,” Elkins-Tanton says. Elkins-Tanton is a professor at Arizona State University and the principal investigator of NASA’s Psyche mission to visit a metal asteroid. She’s also co-founder of Beagle Learning, a startup that has developed an online platform to support inquiry-based learning. In a nutshell, inquiry-based learning lets students guide their classes by aski...

Amazon’s Echo Studio smart speaker has never been cheaper than $170, where it’s at today at both Amazon and Best Buy. If you’re interested in an Alexa-powered speaker that sounds great with an interesting 3D audio feature and Dolby Atmos support, you should really check out the deal that Best Buy is offering. The $170 speaker includes a free Echo Show 5 smart display and a white Bluetooth-enabled Philips Hue smart bulb with the purchase (normally $300 altogether). So not only is this the lowest price, but it’s a fantastic value if you want to go all in on Amazon’s Alexa ecosystem. These complimentary products will be added to your cart automatically when you add the Echo Studio. Photo by Vjeran Pavic / The Verge B&H Photo is currently offering the OnePlus 7T for $400 (usually $600), th...

The partnership between Verizon and Disney seems to be working out well for both sides: today, the carrier announced that alongside the free 12 months of Disney Plus streaming it was already including with unlimited plans, it’ll now throw in Hulu and ESPN Plus, too. But the full bundle only goes to customers on either the Play More or Get More unlimited plans, which are Verizon’s most expensive options. Unlike before, where the free promo was only good for 12 months, now you’ll get continued access for as long as you remain with Verizon on those plans. The refreshed plans go into effect on August 20th. “Existing customers currently receiving 12 months access to Disney Plus on us can move to our new Play More and Get More Unlimited plans with The Disney Bundle included, or for $6 per month ...

A new online multiplayer co-op mode is heading to Ghost of Tsushima, Sucker Punch Productions announced today. Legends, which follows four warriors of legendary renown, will be available for free this year. Its locations and enemies are inspired by Japanese mythology. “We designed Legends to be an exclusively cooperative gameplay experience,” Sucker Punch says. Players will be able to use matchmaking or play with friends in groups of up to four. In a full squad, players can try wave-based survival missions. The mode includes four character classes, with more details on their abilities to come. “With two players in Ghost of Tsushima: Legends, you’ll be able to play a series of co-op Story missions that escalate in difficulty, building on the foundation of combat from the single-player campa...

Google has published an open letter about a newly proposed government regulation that would compel it to pay media outlets for news content. Australians visiting their local Google homepage are presented with an ominous pop-up which warns that “the way Aussies use Google is at risk” and “their search experience will be hurt by new regulation.” It’s a bold lobbying move that puts Google’s arguments against the change in front of millions of Australians. Australia’s consumer watchdog pushed back, saying the letter “contains misinformation,” adding that “a healthy news media sector is essential to a well-functioning democracy.” Australia’s proposed News Media Bargaining Code law, which is currently in draft and targets Facebook alongside Google, follows a 2019 inquiry in Australia that found ...

Facebook has come under heavy criticism over the past year for how the social media behemoth has fumbled its approach to civil rights issues on the platform. A recent audit found that despite recent steps to expand its policies and prohibit discrimination, Facebook continues to undermine its own progress. A new report from The Washington Post digs into the ways the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative (CZI), the philanthropic organization founded by Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg and his wife, pediatrician Priscilla Chan, has fallen short of many of its stated goals as well. CZI is a separate entity from Facebook, but Black employees of CZI say that particularly when it comes to issues of racial justice, company leadership makes too many compromises. Some Black employees say that their voices have bee...