Technology

The OnePlus Nord N20 5G is OnePlus at its best. While the company hasn’t quite mastered the flagship, it has dialed in the recipe for a stellar budget phone. For $282, the N20 delivers performance that feels like you’re getting away with something. It’s not perfect, but it strikes an excellent balance of price and features that makes it easy to recommend — if you’re on T-Mobile. That’s one of a few “ifs” that makes it difficult to recommend the N20 5G to absolutely anyone looking for a budget Android phone. As it’s being introduced in the US, the N20 5G will only be sold through T-Mobile. OnePlus says it plans to sell the phone unlocked at a later date, but a company spokesperson, Spenser Blank, wouldn’t offer any comment on whether the company will seek 5G certification on Verizon and AT&...

E3 2022 may be canceled, but it looks like we’re still getting at least one big gaming event in June. Today, Microsoft announced the Xbox & Bethesda Games Showcase, which will take place on June 12th at 1PM ET. There aren’t many details about the event itself just yet, but the company says that it “will include everything you need to know about the diverse lineup of games coming soon to the Xbox ecosystem, including upcoming releases to Game Pass on Xbox and PC.” The teaser art, which features the Xbox logo floating among the stars, suggests we’ll see more of Bethesda’s upcoming sci-fi RPG Starfield, which is due to launch in November for Xbox and PC. Last year’s June showcase featured news like the reveal of vampire shooter Redfall, a first look at Forza Horizon 5, Starfield’s release...

In Bubble, a new anime film on Netflix, there are plenty of the typical hallmarks of a dystopic city. The movie takes place in a version of Tokyo that’s been almost entirely abandoned, and there are lots of rusted cars, crumbling buildings, and greenery reclaiming its place amongst the urban sprawl. But there’s also a vibrancy to the city — something that was very important to director Tetsuro Araki. “We wanted to make it light and colorful because we wanted to present this dystopian landscape almost as a utopia,” he tells The Verge. The reason for that tone might have to do with Bubble’s rather unique premise. It’s not a typical end of the world story. Instead of a planet beset by war or natural disasters, in Bubble, the earth is attacked by… bubbles. Five years before the events of...

New details have emerged about the time-limited game trials that Sony previously announced would be part of its new PlayStation Plus Premium subscription tier. According to sources speaking to Game Developer these free trials will be required for any game with a wholesale cost of $34 (€33) or above, and must be at least two hours long. They won’t be required for previously released games, or PlayStation VR titles. Game Developer’s initial report raised concerns that requiring developers to offer these time-limited trials could place a significant burden on smaller teams. However, Kotaku’s Ethan Gach reports that the PlayStation Store team will create the trials, suggesting developers shouldn’t have to put any extra work in. Source tells me PlayStation Store team will create the 2 hour time...

Climate change is pushing mammals into new territory, increasing the number of opportunities for viruses to jump from species to species — including humans. By 2070, if global temperatures continue to rise as predicted, there could be a total of 15,000 new cross-species “viral sharing events,” according to new research published today in the journal Nature. Of the at least 10,000 virus species in mammals capable of infecting humans, most are still only circulating among animals in the wild. The worry is that more of those viruses could eventually make the leap to humans, potentially sparking a health crisis like the COVID-19 pandemic. “Ultimately, this work provides us with more incontrovertible evidence that the coming decades will not only be hotter but sicker,” Gregory Albery, a disease...

Sony’s WH-1000XM4 wireless over-ear headphones have been at the top of most tech charts recently due to their quality performance and specifications, but rumor has it, that the tech giant is looking to give its dominating headphones an upgrade with the upcoming WH-1000XM5. While the current model is anything but extraordinary with good reason, according to the German tech news website TechnikNews, the WH-1000XM5 will be launching with new tweaks to the overall body and specifications. The current WH-1000XM4 boasts top-of-the-line ANC within the market, but some may shy away from the pair due to the seemingly bulky design. As per the leaked photos, the latest model looks to be a lighter rendition with a sleeker modern shape and comes in the same black and silver color options. The headband ...

This morning, we heard some news that would be exciting if true — that Belkin is working on what could be the very first consumer gadget with truly wireless charging, the kind that actually beams a small amount of power through the air and across a room. That’s what Wi-Charge founder and chief business officer Ori Mor told TechCrunch this morning — going so far as to claim that Belkin would launch a specific, “center-stage consumer product” with the tech later this year. But Belkin is now denying much of that report, telling The Verge that not only is there no product as of today, but the two companies also haven’t even moved to the product concept phase yet. Belkin spokesperson Jen Wei confirmed that Wi-Charge and Belkin do have a partnership to explore some product concepts but that “the...

Motorola has announced the Edge 30, a pared-down version of its pricier Edge 30 Pro, coming to Europe for €449 (about $475) before reaching other markets in Asia and the Middle East later this year. North America is not on that list, but Motorola says the region will get another (unspecified) Edge family device later in the year. The Motorola Edge 30 offers a smaller screen and thinner build than the Edge 30 Pro — also known as the Edge Plus in North America. Its 6.5-inch 1080p OLED supports a fast 144Hz refresh rate, like the 30 Pro, but uses a Snapdragon 778 chipset that’s a step down from the 8 Gen 1 processor in the flagship. Rear cameras appear to be the same configuration of a stabilized 50-megapixel f/1.8 wide, 50-megapixel f/2.2 ultrawide, and a 2-megapixel depth sensor. There’s a ...

In the past year, Ubisoft has ceased online support for a list of games that has grown to 91 titles. This means that any multiplayer components associated with these games will no longer be accessible, along with any achievements or unlockables attached to the online aspect of the game. It’s worth mentioning, however, that the support for these games wasn’t cut off all at once and doesn’t necessarily impact all platforms. Many of the titles are remarkably old and no longer playable on modern hardware, with some reaching back to the Wii era. However, at the risk of aging myself, a good portion of the list reads like a rap sheet of my wasted hours in college. Some of the standouts include Tom Clancy’s Endwar, Splinter Cell, and World in Conflict. Even some staples of the 360 and PS3 generati...

Dell announced that the bold XPS 13 Plus it debuted back at CES 2022 is now available for purchase. It starts at $1,299, and while Dell didn’t detail the exact specifications for this configuration, it’ll likely get the lowest specs listed in a spec sheet shared by the company. Those include a 13.4-inch 1920 x 1200 16:10 aspect ratio display with 500 nits of peak brightness, Intel’s 12th Gen Core i5-1240P processor (28W, 12-core, 4.4GHz boost clock), 8GB of LPDDR5 RAM clocked at 5,200MHz, and a 256GB SSD. Each model includes a 60W USB-C AC adapter and features two Thunderbolt 4 ports (but no headphone jack), a Windows Hello 720p webcam, as well as a fingerprint reader embedded in the power button. there will also be a Developer Edition that will ship with Ubuntu 20.04 As we noted back at C...

Those with an Apple Watch Series 6 that’s experiencing blank screen issues are now in luck: Apple says that it’ll be repairing your devices completely free of charge. First spotted by The Verge, the tech giant has now launched a new service program targetting Apple Watch Series 6 models that won’t boot properly and instead just display a permanently white screen. The affected models were sold between April to September of 2021 and mostly revolve around the 40mm variant, but any Apple Watch purchased within the last two years will be eligible. All you have to do is head over to the company’s website and enter the serial number on your wearable to check if you qualify for the free repairs. While you don’t need an active warranty for this, it’s also important to highlight that the repair...