Technology

How to/ Tech / There are a variety of ways you can sell or give away items you no longer need without resorting to the local dump. a]:text-gray-13″>If you buy something from a Verge link, Vox Media may earn a commission. See our ethics statement. a:hover]:text-black [&>a:hover]:shadow-underline-black dark:[&>a:hover]:text-gray-e9 dark:[&>a:hover]:shadow-underline-gray-63 [&>a]:shadow-underline-gray-13 dark:[&>a]:shadow-underline-gray-63″>You may be wondering what you can get for that years-old iPhone. Planning to buy a new phone or laptop? Before you make the purchase, you might be able to take some of the cost of the new tech off the top by trading in your old device. a:hover]:shadow-highlight-franklin dark:[&>a:hover]:shadow-highlight-franklin [&>a...

Movie Review Director Kenji Kamiyama’s new Lord of the Rings anime film feels like what happens when you try to turn a footnote into a feature-length story. By Charles Pulliam-Moore, a reporter focusing on film, TV, and pop culture. Before The Verge, he wrote about comic books, labor, race, and more at io9 and Gizmodo for almost five years. Share this story

Policy/ Tech / A federal judge said The Onion’s bid didn’t ‘maximize’ the amount of money the sale of InfoWars could bring in. a:hover]:text-gray-63 [&>a:hover]:shadow-underline-black dark:[&>a:hover]:text-gray-bd dark:[&>a:hover]:shadow-underline-gray [&>a]:shadow-underline-gray-63 dark:[&>a]:text-gray-bd dark:[&>a]:shadow-underline-gray”>Photo by Joe Buglewicz/Getty Images The Onion’s acquisition of InfoWars isn’t happening — at least for now. In a ruling on Tuesday, a Texas bankruptcy judge rejected The Onion’s purchase of the conspiracy-ridden website founded by Alex Jones, according to a report from The New York Times. Last month, The Onion announced that it had purchased InfoWars during a bankruptcy auction of Jones’ assets. It had the support of the fam...

Policy/ Tech / Andrew Ferguson also pitched himself as somebody who will ‘reverse Lina Khan’s anti-business agenda’ and ‘fight wokeness.’ a:hover]:text-gray-63 [&>a:hover]:shadow-underline-black dark:[&>a:hover]:text-gray-bd dark:[&>a:hover]:shadow-underline-gray [&>a]:shadow-underline-gray-63 dark:[&>a]:text-gray-bd dark:[&>a]:shadow-underline-gray”>Image: FTC President-elect Donald Trump has selected Andrew Ferguson to be the next chair of the Federal Trade Commission. Ferguson will take over for Lina Khan, who has earned praise from Vice President-elect J.D. Vance for her efforts to fight big tech. “Andrew has a proven record of standing up to Big Tech censorship, and protecting Freedom of Speech in our Great Country,” Trump says in a post on Truth Social. ...

/ Automattic and its CEO Matt Mullenweg also have to quit interfering with WP Engine’s ACF plugin. a:hover]:text-gray-63 [&>a:hover]:shadow-underline-black dark:[&>a:hover]:text-gray-bd dark:[&>a:hover]:shadow-underline-gray [&>a]:shadow-underline-gray-63 dark:[&>a]:text-gray-bd dark:[&>a]:shadow-underline-gray”>Image: Cath Virginia / The Verge WP Engine just won a preliminary injunction against WordPress.com parent company Automattic. On Tuesday, a California District Court judge ordered Automattic to stop blocking WP Engine’s access to WordPress.org resources and interfering with its plugins. The preliminary injunction comes after WP Engine, a third-party WordPress hosting service, filed a lawsuit that accused Automattic and its CEO, Matt Mullenweg, of “mult...

/ You can get a 1TB model for $519. a]:text-gray-13″>If you buy something from a Verge link, Vox Media may earn a commission. See our ethics statement.

/ Automatic dubs will add AI voiceovers in other languages to content made by YouTube Partners making knowledge and information videos. a:hover]:text-gray-63 [&>a:hover]:shadow-underline-black dark:[&>a:hover]:text-gray-bd dark:[&>a:hover]:shadow-underline-gray [&>a]:shadow-underline-gray-63 dark:[&>a]:text-gray-bd dark:[&>a]:shadow-underline-gray”>Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge YouTube says it has expanded its AI-powered auto-dubbing to “hundreds of thousands of channels” in the YouTube Partner Program that are “focused on knowledge and information.” YouTube says it will bring the feature to “other types of content soon.” What the dubs consist of depends on the language used in the original video. If it was in English to start, it’ll be translated in...

/ Trial reels won’t appear on the creators main reels tab or be shown to their existing followers. a:hover]:text-gray-63 [&>a:hover]:shadow-underline-black dark:[&>a:hover]:text-gray-bd dark:[&>a:hover]:shadow-underline-gray [&>a]:shadow-underline-gray-63 dark:[&>a]:text-gray-bd dark:[&>a]:shadow-underline-gray”>Illustration by Kristen Radtke / The Verge Instagram is allowing creators to test their reel ideas on new audiences before sharing them with followers. Trial reels will be shown to non-followers first, providing engagement data including views, likes, comments, and shares approximately 24 hours after publishing to help creators determine whether it’s worth sharing with people following their account. The feature aims to help users try out new ideas and...

Policy/ Tech / A new bill would require social platforms to warn users about the potential impact on the mental health of kids and teenagers. a:hover]:text-gray-63 [&>a:hover]:shadow-underline-black dark:[&>a:hover]:text-gray-bd dark:[&>a:hover]:shadow-underline-gray [&>a]:shadow-underline-gray-63 dark:[&>a]:text-gray-bd dark:[&>a]:shadow-underline-gray”>Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge A new California bill could require social media platforms to display warning labels about the potential risk to kids and teens. The bill (AB 56), introduced by Assembly member Rebecca Bauer-Kahan and California Attorney General Rob Bonta, is meant to help address “the growing mental health crisis” among young people. If passed, social networks would have to show a “...

/ The new season starts tomorrow, and the game’s final episode will debut in January. An offline mode is being added, too. a:hover]:text-gray-63 [&>a:hover]:shadow-underline-black dark:[&>a:hover]:text-gray-bd dark:[&>a:hover]:shadow-underline-gray [&>a]:shadow-underline-gray-63 dark:[&>a]:text-gray-bd dark:[&>a]:shadow-underline-gray”>Image: Warner Bros. Games Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League only came out in February, but the game’s final season, which starts tomorrow, is going to be its last. Season 4 Episode 7 launches on Tuesday, and Episode 8, which is set to release on January 14th, 2025, will “serve as the last seasonal Episode for Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League,” developer Rocksteady announced on Monday. After the release of the fin...

/ Google says Willow is a quantum computing chip capable of performing a task in 5 minutes that would take a supercomputer 10 septillion years to complete. a:hover]:text-gray-63 [&>a:hover]:shadow-underline-black dark:[&>a:hover]:text-gray-bd dark:[&>a:hover]:shadow-underline-gray [&>a]:shadow-underline-gray-63 dark:[&>a]:text-gray-bd dark:[&>a]:shadow-underline-gray”>Image: Google Google’s quantum computing lab just achieved a major milestone. On Monday, the company revealed that its new quantum computing chip, Willow, is capable of performing a computing challenge in less than five minutes — a process Google says would take one of the world’s fastest supercomputers 10 septillion years, or longer than the age of the universe. That’s a big jump from 2019 when ...

/ Spotify’s Car Thing is displaying a final goodbye message for any remaining owners, although some have found new uses for the gadget. a:hover]:text-gray-63 [&>a:hover]:shadow-underline-black dark:[&>a:hover]:text-gray-bd dark:[&>a:hover]:shadow-underline-gray [&>a]:shadow-underline-gray-63 dark:[&>a]:text-gray-bd dark:[&>a]:shadow-underline-gray”>Photo by Ashley Carman / The Verge Spotify has officially shut down its Car Thing accessory that offered simple and slick control over music and playlists while driving, and it’s giving owners just over a month (January 14th) to reach out to the company and get a refund. The device started to display its final words early today as enthusiasts mourn the loss of the device on its dedicated subreddit. The final message...