technology

TV Show Reviews After years of brand tie-ins and ill-conceived spinoffs, the series is back — and it’s just as tense as ever. By Andrew Webster, an entertainment editor covering streaming, virtual worlds, and every single Pokémon video game. Andrew joined The Verge in 2012, writing over 4,000 stories. Share this story 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: Netflix The second season sees Gi-hun in a very different place. He’s spent the past few years isolated and paranoid, planning how to use his wealth to shut the games down for good. First up: actually finding where they take pla...

These days, podcasts are going video, and there are a number of visual trends we’ve noticed — some good, some not so much. We’ll show you. By Andrew Marino, an audio and video creator at The Verge since 2015. He has produced shows like The Vergecast, Why’d You Push That Button, and various Verge video content. In 2024, podcasts have gotten closer to becoming a video-first medium. Though video podcasts have been around a relatively long time, shows from The New York Times, NPR, and many other podcast networks that have been audio-only for years have recently started adding a video component in order to gain new listenership. In fact, Spotify, a major player in podcasts, is about to begin paying podcasters to bring videos to the platform.  And after years of producers trying to ge...

This year showed that a roguelike can be almost anything. By Jay Peters, a news editor who writes about technology, video games, and virtual worlds. He’s submitted several accepted emoji proposals to the Unicode Consortium. The roguelike genre has turned from a relative niche into something much bigger. Roguelike games can be famously tough to crack into; generally, they have a high difficulty that means you’ll bang your head against a wall as you learn how to play the game, puzzle out what strategies work best in the procedurally generated levels, and figure out how to overcome tough enemies or challenges. 2024 showed that the genre wasn’t only a commercial force through hits like Hades II and Balatro, and also that a roguelike could be almost anything: from a poker variant to a flashy mu...

/ Shoji Meguro talks about what went into Metaphor’s soundtrack and how he found that chanting monk. 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: Atlus Metaphor: ReFantanzio is one of 2024’s best games racking up a stack of Game Awards including best RPG, best art direction, and best narrative. But one category in which Metaphor particularly stood out was its music. The soundtrack, produced by Shoji Meguro – the long-time music director of the Persona series, is one of the outstanding achievements in video game music this year, particularly its battle theme which became a viral hit. In ...

Deals/ Tech / We also found deals on Sony’s WH-CH720N noise-canceling headphones and speedy USB-C chargers. 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-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: Kobo Amazon might have released a new Kindle Scribe earlier this month for $399.99, but after testing it, I still don’t think it can compete with its rivals. If you’re looking for a good e-reader with more useful note-taking capabilities, the Kobo Elipsa 2E is still one of my favorites, and it’s down to an all-time l...

We got a healthy dose of Star Wars and Marvel shows on Disney Plus this year, but the more mature series from Hulu helped balance things out. By Emma Roth, a news writer who covers the streaming wars, consumer tech, crypto, social media, and much more. Previously, she was a writer and editor at MUO. This year, Hulu officially became a part of Disney Plus, which means no more bouncing back and forth between the two apps if you’re subscribed to both. The two services had some pretty noteworthy releases this year, including several new additions to the Marvel and Star Wars lineups on Disney Plus, along with a variety of binge-worthy shows from Hulu. Here are all the best shows released this year that you can stream on both platforms. a:hover]:shadow-highlight-franklin dark:[&>a:hover]:sha...

It was another sci-fi-heavy year for Apple’s streaming service. By Andrew Webster, an entertainment editor covering streaming, virtual worlds, and every single Pokémon video game. Andrew joined The Verge in 2012, writing over 4,000 stories. If nothing else, 2024 was the year Apple TV Plus firmly cemented itself as one of the best places to stream science fiction shows. This year, in particular, had a breadth of options, with sci-fi series ranging from cozy mysteries to old-fashioned noirs. Of course, there’s more to the streaming service than just sci-fi — which is where the likes of Pachinko and Disclaimer come in. If you’re looking for something new to watch on Apple TV Plus, here are a few great places to start. a:hover]:shadow-highlight-franklin dark:[&>a:hover]:shadow-highlight-fr...

/ Texting your besties is a lot less fun using T9. a]:text-gray-13″>If you buy something from a Verge link, Vox Media may earn a commission. See our ethics statement.

Headphones This year paved the way for a future where earbuds are much more than audio accessories. By Chris Welch, a reviewer specializing in personal audio and home theater. Since 2011, he has published nearly 6,000 articles, from breaking news and reviews to useful how-tos. The year 2024 has been another very good one for wireless earbuds. We’ve reached a point where every tech giant is firing on all cylinders. Apple’s AirPods Pro, Samsung’s Galaxy Buds 3 Pro, and Google’s Pixel Buds Pro 2 are each fantastic in their own right and fairly comparable in the features they offer. Are there advantages depending on which you pick? Sure. Samsung’s new voice controls are super convenient. Google wins out on comfort. And Apple’s new hearing health features really level up what we expect from con...

/ The airline hasn’t said what caused the issues that led to the brief nationwide groundstop. 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 Kevin Carter/Getty Images American Airlines temporarily grounded all of its flights in the US this morning due to unspecified technical issues, disrupting travel at the start of a busy Christmas Eve. Service has now resumed as of 8AM ET according to a statement American Airlines spokesperson Sarah Jantz provided to CNN. The airline suffered a massive system outage according to multiple travelers on X who are facing delays, which prevented boarding ...

/ Even the LED backlit keycaps for the $1,500 Icebreaker are made from aluminum. 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: Serene Industries If statement keyboards are your thing and you have some serious cash to burn, you should check out this brutalist flagship offering from Serene Industries. The Icebreaker is a wedge-shaped mechanical keyboard constructed from a single block of CNC-machined aluminum, featuring hot-swappable aluminum keycaps with configurable RGB backlighting. Preorders are available now, with pricing starting at $1,500 for the wired version. A Bluetooth wireless ...

/ After Marriott and its subsidiary suffered major data breaches, the FTC charged them with failing to protect consumers’ info with ‘reasonable security.’ 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″>A Marriott Hotel in Germany.