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Image: Nintendo

While we all wait for the reveal of Nintendo’s next console, the company has once again announced something very different. This time, it’s a mobile app called Nintendo Music, which lets users listen to classic gaming tunes from Nintendo games spanning the last few decades, including Splatoon, Animal Crossing, and The Legend of Zelda. It’s only available to Switch Online subscribers, and it’s launching today on both iOS and Android.

The app features curated playlists themed around games, moments, moods, or characters, though you can also build your own. It also supports streaming as well as downloading tracks for offline listening. Curiously, it includes a spoiler feature that lets you filter out tracks that, somehow, might spoil a game you haven’t played or finished yet. And if you just want some Hyrule white noise, the app also lets you “loop songs or extend select tracks to 15, 30, or 60 minutes for uninterrupted listening.”
Here’s a list of all the regions the app will be available in.
The announcement of Nintendo Music comes not long after a handful of other surprise, non-Switch 2 reveals from Nintendo, including the launch of an alarm clock and a mysterious MMO that’s currently in testing.

Image: Nintendo

While we all wait for the reveal of Nintendo’s next console, the company has once again announced something very different. This time, it’s a mobile app called Nintendo Music, which lets users listen to classic gaming tunes from Nintendo games spanning the last few decades, including Splatoon, Animal Crossing, and The Legend of Zelda. It’s only available to Switch Online subscribers, and it’s launching today on both iOS and Android.

The app features curated playlists themed around games, moments, moods, or characters, though you can also build your own. It also supports streaming as well as downloading tracks for offline listening. Curiously, it includes a spoiler feature that lets you filter out tracks that, somehow, might spoil a game you haven’t played or finished yet. And if you just want some Hyrule white noise, the app also lets you “loop songs or extend select tracks to 15, 30, or 60 minutes for uninterrupted listening.”

Here’s a list of all the regions the app will be available in.

The announcement of Nintendo Music comes not long after a handful of other surprise, non-Switch 2 reveals from Nintendo, including the launch of an alarm clock and a mysterious MMO that’s currently in testing.

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Image: Google

Google’s Pixel 9 launched with a cool new standalone weather app that can summarize outdoor conditions using AI. As reported by 9to5Google, the company is rolling it out to older Pixels running Android 15 with all the latest updates installed, including one of ours here at The Verge.
The standalone Google Weather app will pull saved locations from the built-in weather service already present on Pixels to let you track weather in multiple locations, arrange weather data blocks, track weather on a map, and get a summary so you don’t need to figure out if an umbrella is needed for the day.

Image: Google
Some Google Weather features are reminiscent of the discontinued Dark Sky app.

If you have a Pixel 6, 7, or 8 series device, you might start seeing the new Google Weather app as an update in the Play Store.
As of writing, the app currently has a 2.3-star rating, with a few listed complaints like one noting you can’t check the weather in random cities without adding it to your saved locations list first. Google Weather is a welcome new option for those who haven’t found a favorite weather app since Dark Sky was acquired and shut down by Apple in 2020.

Image: Google

Google’s Pixel 9 launched with a cool new standalone weather app that can summarize outdoor conditions using AI. As reported by 9to5Google, the company is rolling it out to older Pixels running Android 15 with all the latest updates installed, including one of ours here at The Verge.

The standalone Google Weather app will pull saved locations from the built-in weather service already present on Pixels to let you track weather in multiple locations, arrange weather data blocks, track weather on a map, and get a summary so you don’t need to figure out if an umbrella is needed for the day.

Image: Google
Some Google Weather features are reminiscent of the discontinued Dark Sky app.

If you have a Pixel 6, 7, or 8 series device, you might start seeing the new Google Weather app as an update in the Play Store.

As of writing, the app currently has a 2.3-star rating, with a few listed complaints like one noting you can’t check the weather in random cities without adding it to your saved locations list first. Google Weather is a welcome new option for those who haven’t found a favorite weather app since Dark Sky was acquired and shut down by Apple in 2020.

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We wouldn’t recommend the latest Air for most people at full price, but the current discount makes it more appealing. | Photo: David Pierce / The Verge

The new iPad Mini has arrived, bringing with it a faster A17 Pro chip, 8GB of RAM, support for the Apple Pencil Pro, and a taste of Apple Intelligence. However, unless you’re dead set on the tablet’s 8.3-inch form factor, the latest iPad Air is a better buy — especially since the 11-inch configuration is on sale at Amazon and Target with Wi-Fi and 128GB of storage starting at $498 ($101 off), an all-time low.

If you’re having trouble choosing between Apple’s entry-level iPad and an M4-powered iPad Pro, the 2024 iPad Air represents the middle ground. It’s a good-step option from the base iPad with USB-C charging, support for both the Apple Pencil (USB-C) and newer Apple Pencil Pro, and a laminated Liquid Retina display. The latter isn’t as nice as the 120Hz OLED screen found on Apple’s premium iPads, though, and the Air is still beholden to the same aging Touch ID sensor for logging in as previous models, as opposed to Face ID. Thankfully, it does sport a 12MP landscape-oriented webcam — a welcome tweak from the prior model — and a speedy M2 chip, which allows it to leverage AI-powered writing tools, a new and (slightly) improved Siri, and a slew of minor Apple Intelligence features found in iPadOS 18.1.
Admittedly, none of the AI features currently in beta are revolutionary — ChatGPT integration won’t arrive until December, and some most promising tools won’t arrive until 2025 — but at least you’ll have a futureproof iPad for whatever Apple ships in the coming months.

Read our hands-on impressions.

Other deals. discounts, and ways to save

If you prefer a cheaper Android alternative to Apple’s 11-inch Air, the Google Pixel Tablet is on sale at Wellbots starting at $289 ($110 off) when you use promo code NEW10. That’s not quite the all-time low of $274.99 we saw at Amazon last week, but it’s still a great price on an 11-inch slate with a sharp LCD display and speedy performance. You can also grab the 256GB model with its optional speaker dock at Wellbots for $489 ($110 off) using the same code, if you want to use it as a makeshift Nest Hub. Read our review.
Halloween is less than a day away, which makes now the perfect time to grab SFB Games’ Crow Country, which is on sale in the PlayStation Store through November 6th for $15.99 ($4 off). The sluggish survival horror title is a love letter to PlayStation-era games like Silent Hill and Resident Evil — see the intentionally bad aiming and chunky, 32-bit visuals — but it features juuuuust enough quality-of-life tweaks (including a useful tip system and 3D camera) that it doesn’t come across as totally dated. Read our review.

Apple’s latest AirPods Max with USB-C are on sale at Amazon in select colors starting at $486 (63 off), which is the lowest price we’ve seen on the luxe noise-canceling headphones since they launched at the beginning of September. They’re identical to the original model we reviewed in 2020, meaning they pack the same great sound and deep integration with the Apple ecosystem as other pairs of AirPods, except they rely on a USB-C for charging instead of Apple’s proprietary Lightning connector (phew).

We wouldn’t recommend the latest Air for most people at full price, but the current discount makes it more appealing. | Photo: David Pierce / The Verge

The new iPad Mini has arrived, bringing with it a faster A17 Pro chip, 8GB of RAM, support for the Apple Pencil Pro, and a taste of Apple Intelligence. However, unless you’re dead set on the tablet’s 8.3-inch form factor, the latest iPad Air is a better buy — especially since the 11-inch configuration is on sale at Amazon and Target with Wi-Fi and 128GB of storage starting at $498 ($101 off), an all-time low.

If you’re having trouble choosing between Apple’s entry-level iPad and an M4-powered iPad Pro, the 2024 iPad Air represents the middle ground. It’s a good-step option from the base iPad with USB-C charging, support for both the Apple Pencil (USB-C) and newer Apple Pencil Pro, and a laminated Liquid Retina display. The latter isn’t as nice as the 120Hz OLED screen found on Apple’s premium iPads, though, and the Air is still beholden to the same aging Touch ID sensor for logging in as previous models, as opposed to Face ID. Thankfully, it does sport a 12MP landscape-oriented webcam — a welcome tweak from the prior model — and a speedy M2 chip, which allows it to leverage AI-powered writing tools, a new and (slightly) improved Siri, and a slew of minor Apple Intelligence features found in iPadOS 18.1.

Admittedly, none of the AI features currently in beta are revolutionary — ChatGPT integration won’t arrive until December, and some most promising tools won’t arrive until 2025 — but at least you’ll have a futureproof iPad for whatever Apple ships in the coming months.

Read our hands-on impressions.

Other deals. discounts, and ways to save

If you prefer a cheaper Android alternative to Apple’s 11-inch Air, the Google Pixel Tablet is on sale at Wellbots starting at $289 ($110 off) when you use promo code NEW10. That’s not quite the all-time low of $274.99 we saw at Amazon last week, but it’s still a great price on an 11-inch slate with a sharp LCD display and speedy performance. You can also grab the 256GB model with its optional speaker dock at Wellbots for $489 ($110 off) using the same code, if you want to use it as a makeshift Nest Hub. Read our review.
Halloween is less than a day away, which makes now the perfect time to grab SFB Games’ Crow Country, which is on sale in the PlayStation Store through November 6th for $15.99 ($4 off). The sluggish survival horror title is a love letter to PlayStation-era games like Silent Hill and Resident Evil — see the intentionally bad aiming and chunky, 32-bit visuals — but it features juuuuust enough quality-of-life tweaks (including a useful tip system and 3D camera) that it doesn’t come across as totally dated. Read our review.

Apple’s latest AirPods Max with USB-C are on sale at Amazon in select colors starting at $486 (63 off), which is the lowest price we’ve seen on the luxe noise-canceling headphones since they launched at the beginning of September. They’re identical to the original model we reviewed in 2020, meaning they pack the same great sound and deep integration with the Apple ecosystem as other pairs of AirPods, except they rely on a USB-C for charging instead of Apple’s proprietary Lightning connector (phew).

Read More 

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge

Are we about to see what’s up Google’s sleeve after its mysterious AR / VR deals with companies like Qualcomm and Samsung? Or might it finally bring its Google Play Store to Meta’s Quest like Meta once asked? Either way, Google seems to be prepping its Play Store for headsets, according to details discovered in app store code by Android Authority.
Screenshots published by the outlet show a small graphic representing a headset in the Play Store’s “Install on more devices menu,” while a bit of text appearing on an app listing elsewhere references an “XR headset” too:

Screenshot: Android Authority

That glyph either represents a headset or a Flintstones-style hunk of meat.

Screenshot: Android Authority

None of this means Google would necessarily release its own headsets again — but despite having heavily trimmed its AR/ VR division, the company continues to make moves in the space. Those include the “micro XR” platform it’s building and wants to license to headset makers, partnerships for new Samsung mixed-reality smart glasses, and a mysterious Magic Leap deal. But there is also that unreleased Google AR glasses prototype that made a brief cameo during the company’s I/O conference earlier this year.
Or, it could be that Google just changed its mind about putting the Play Store on Meta Quest headsets. Meta pressed Google for that very thing earlier this year, months after one of its execs revealed that Google had declined to let Quest users download regular Android apps to the headset. Since then, Meta has announced it will offer 2D apps after all — but from its own app store, not Google’s.
Or maybe — just maybe — we’re about to see the return of Google Cardboard. Hey, a guy can dream, can’t he?

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge

Are we about to see what’s up Google’s sleeve after its mysterious AR / VR deals with companies like Qualcomm and Samsung? Or might it finally bring its Google Play Store to Meta’s Quest like Meta once asked? Either way, Google seems to be prepping its Play Store for headsets, according to details discovered in app store code by Android Authority.

Screenshots published by the outlet show a small graphic representing a headset in the Play Store’s “Install on more devices menu,” while a bit of text appearing on an app listing elsewhere references an “XR headset” too:

Screenshot: Android Authority

That glyph either represents a headset or a Flintstones-style hunk of meat.

Screenshot: Android Authority

None of this means Google would necessarily release its own headsets again — but despite having heavily trimmed its AR/ VR division, the company continues to make moves in the space. Those include the “micro XR” platform it’s building and wants to license to headset makers, partnerships for new Samsung mixed-reality smart glasses, and a mysterious Magic Leap deal. But there is also that unreleased Google AR glasses prototype that made a brief cameo during the company’s I/O conference earlier this year.

Or, it could be that Google just changed its mind about putting the Play Store on Meta Quest headsets. Meta pressed Google for that very thing earlier this year, months after one of its execs revealed that Google had declined to let Quest users download regular Android apps to the headset. Since then, Meta has announced it will offer 2D apps after all — but from its own app store, not Google’s.

Or maybe — just maybe — we’re about to see the return of Google Cardboard. Hey, a guy can dream, can’t he?

Read More 

Photo by Al Bello/Getty Images

The World Series between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the New York Yankees is in full swing, and millions of people in the US and abroad are tuning in nightly watch the showdown. Some fans are also being forced to watch graphic and hateful political ads — and though some ads are preceded by a broadcaster’s warning, there’s not much anyone can do about it.
An anti-abortion ad that ran last night during the World Series shows graphic imagery of fetuses alongside a message that “Abortion is murder. Don’t vote for Kamala.” The ad was paid for Randall Terry, a longtime anti-abortion activist who founded Operation Rescue, a group that stands outside of healthcare clinics and harasses patients. Terry is also a no-shot presidential candidate running on the hard right Constitution Party ticket and will appear on ballots in some, but not all, states.
Some stations evidently weren’t happy about running the ad. On Fox, for instance, some viewers reported seeing a warning that reads: “The following political advertisement contains graphic images that may disturb viewers.” It goes on to state that federal law requires Fox to carry the ads because they’re paid for by a legally qualified candidate for public office. A Fox affiliate station in Kansas City published an editorial note online warning viewers about Terry’s ads and explaining why they’re running during programming, as did ABC News.
As the disclaimers explain, the FCC has rules around political advertising on broadcast networks. Stations can’t reject or censor ads paid for by qualified campaigns — even if they’re graphic or offensive. The FCC also requires that candidates get “equal time” on air, with some exemptions.
Terry’s playbook involves taking advantage of this rule. He previously tried to get similarly graphic anti-abortion ads to run during the 2012 Super Bowl. In that case, though, he was stymied. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) ruled that a Chicago TV station wasn’t obligated to run Terry’s ad because he didn’t qualify as a legitimate presidential candidate. It also said because the Super Bowl is one of the biggest TV events of the year and has limited ad space, it may be impossible for stations to provide every candidate with airtime. The law requires only that stations give candidates “reasonable access” to time.
Terry’s graphic anti-abortion ad isn’t the only offensive one running — earlier in the series I noticed an anti-trans ad paid for by Donald Trump’s campaign, among other things referring to transgender women as “biological men” competing in sports with “our girls.”
Part of the reason these ads are so jarring is framing. Trump, obviously, is the Republican nominee for president, and he’s used similarly (or more) inflammatory rhetoric about trans people on the air. But these ads are running smack dab in the middle of a baseball game that is watched by families and kids. The Washington Post reported that other Terry ads were running on ABC during programs like Jimmy Kimmel Live! and The View.
The other reason is that broadcast TV is one of the few US media formats to feature something like the equal time rule. It’s part of broadcast stations’ status as a public trust, licensed to take up rare and valuable spectrum.
At the same time that the World Series is filled with these ads, officials in Florida have been trying to stop local stations from airing ads promoting abortion access. The ads deal with Amendment 4, a ballot measure that Florida voters will weigh in on next week that would eliminate the state’s six week abortion ban. In that case, Florida state officials including surgeon general Joseph Ladapo sent letters to local TV stations demanding they stop running the ads and threatened criminal charges. A federal judge this week blocked state officials from continuing to threaten stations.

Photo by Al Bello/Getty Images

The World Series between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the New York Yankees is in full swing, and millions of people in the US and abroad are tuning in nightly watch the showdown. Some fans are also being forced to watch graphic and hateful political ads — and though some ads are preceded by a broadcaster’s warning, there’s not much anyone can do about it.

An anti-abortion ad that ran last night during the World Series shows graphic imagery of fetuses alongside a message that “Abortion is murder. Don’t vote for Kamala.” The ad was paid for Randall Terry, a longtime anti-abortion activist who founded Operation Rescue, a group that stands outside of healthcare clinics and harasses patients. Terry is also a no-shot presidential candidate running on the hard right Constitution Party ticket and will appear on ballots in some, but not all, states.

Some stations evidently weren’t happy about running the ad. On Fox, for instance, some viewers reported seeing a warning that reads: “The following political advertisement contains graphic images that may disturb viewers.” It goes on to state that federal law requires Fox to carry the ads because they’re paid for by a legally qualified candidate for public office. A Fox affiliate station in Kansas City published an editorial note online warning viewers about Terry’s ads and explaining why they’re running during programming, as did ABC News.

As the disclaimers explain, the FCC has rules around political advertising on broadcast networks. Stations can’t reject or censor ads paid for by qualified campaigns — even if they’re graphic or offensive. The FCC also requires that candidates get “equal time” on air, with some exemptions.

Terry’s playbook involves taking advantage of this rule. He previously tried to get similarly graphic anti-abortion ads to run during the 2012 Super Bowl. In that case, though, he was stymied. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) ruled that a Chicago TV station wasn’t obligated to run Terry’s ad because he didn’t qualify as a legitimate presidential candidate. It also said because the Super Bowl is one of the biggest TV events of the year and has limited ad space, it may be impossible for stations to provide every candidate with airtime. The law requires only that stations give candidates “reasonable access” to time.

Terry’s graphic anti-abortion ad isn’t the only offensive one running — earlier in the series I noticed an anti-trans ad paid for by Donald Trump’s campaign, among other things referring to transgender women as “biological men” competing in sports with “our girls.”

Part of the reason these ads are so jarring is framing. Trump, obviously, is the Republican nominee for president, and he’s used similarly (or more) inflammatory rhetoric about trans people on the air. But these ads are running smack dab in the middle of a baseball game that is watched by families and kids. The Washington Post reported that other Terry ads were running on ABC during programs like Jimmy Kimmel Live! and The View.

The other reason is that broadcast TV is one of the few US media formats to feature something like the equal time rule. It’s part of broadcast stations’ status as a public trust, licensed to take up rare and valuable spectrum.

At the same time that the World Series is filled with these ads, officials in Florida have been trying to stop local stations from airing ads promoting abortion access. The ads deal with Amendment 4, a ballot measure that Florida voters will weigh in on next week that would eliminate the state’s six week abortion ban. In that case, Florida state officials including surgeon general Joseph Ladapo sent letters to local TV stations demanding they stop running the ads and threatened criminal charges. A federal judge this week blocked state officials from continuing to threaten stations.

Read More 

Image: The Verge

Microsoft’s Q1 2025 earnings are in, and the results show that Microsoft’s software gaming revenues are way up even as Xbox hardware revenue is declining.
The company says that its Xbox content and services revenue grew 61 percent year over year from the previous quarter — a figure driven by “53 points of net impact from the Activision acquisition,” according to the company’s press release. But hardware revenues again declined, down 29 percent this quarter, which may be influenced by Microsoft’s continued strategy to make its games available more widely than just Xbox consoles.
During the quarter, Microsoft introduced its new Xbox Game Pass “Standard” tier and a price hike for Xbox Game Pass Ultimate. Q1 also saw the arrival of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III on Xbox Game Pass, but this quarter doesn’t include the impact of Call of Duty: Black Ops 6, which launched last week.
The company’s Intelligent Cloud division was also a bright spot, with total revenues up 20 percent year over year to $24.1 billion driven by Azure. Azure and other cloud services revenue was up 33 percent, “including 12 points” from demand for its AI services. Productivity and Business Processes, which includes its Office products, was up 12 percent year over year to $28.3 billion in revenues.
Microsoft’s OEM and Devices revenue — which are now reported together — were up 2 percent. However, that figure was driven by “growth in Windows OEM” and “partially offset by a decline in Devices,” Microsoft says.
Microsoft, like many other companies, is investing heavily in AI-focused features and tools right now, especially to improve Copilot. “AI-driven transformation is changing work, work artifacts, and workflow across every role, function, and business process,” Satya Nadella, chair and CEO of Microsoft, says in a statement. “We are expanding our opportunity and winning new customers as we help them apply our AI platforms and tools to drive new growth and operating leverage.”
The company has also made security its top priority and released a report in Q1 about its efforts. During the quarter, Microsoft also had to grapple with the effects of the Blue Screens of Death caused by the massive CrowdStrike outage.

Image: The Verge

Microsoft’s Q1 2025 earnings are in, and the results show that Microsoft’s software gaming revenues are way up even as Xbox hardware revenue is declining.

The company says that its Xbox content and services revenue grew 61 percent year over year from the previous quarter — a figure driven by “53 points of net impact from the Activision acquisition,” according to the company’s press release. But hardware revenues again declined, down 29 percent this quarter, which may be influenced by Microsoft’s continued strategy to make its games available more widely than just Xbox consoles.

During the quarter, Microsoft introduced its new Xbox Game Pass “Standard” tier and a price hike for Xbox Game Pass Ultimate. Q1 also saw the arrival of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III on Xbox Game Pass, but this quarter doesn’t include the impact of Call of Duty: Black Ops 6, which launched last week.

The company’s Intelligent Cloud division was also a bright spot, with total revenues up 20 percent year over year to $24.1 billion driven by Azure. Azure and other cloud services revenue was up 33 percent, “including 12 points” from demand for its AI services. Productivity and Business Processes, which includes its Office products, was up 12 percent year over year to $28.3 billion in revenues.

Microsoft’s OEM and Devices revenue — which are now reported together — were up 2 percent. However, that figure was driven by “growth in Windows OEM” and “partially offset by a decline in Devices,” Microsoft says.

Microsoft, like many other companies, is investing heavily in AI-focused features and tools right now, especially to improve Copilot. “AI-driven transformation is changing work, work artifacts, and workflow across every role, function, and business process,” Satya Nadella, chair and CEO of Microsoft, says in a statement. “We are expanding our opportunity and winning new customers as we help them apply our AI platforms and tools to drive new growth and operating leverage.”

The company has also made security its top priority and released a report in Q1 about its efforts. During the quarter, Microsoft also had to grapple with the effects of the Blue Screens of Death caused by the massive CrowdStrike outage.

Read More 

Agatha All Along. | Image: Disney

As Disney Plus has grown, finding things to watch has become increasingly challenging. So the streaming service is rolling out a top 10 list featured on the home screen in hopes of improving discoverability.
It’s not the most novel addition; really, it looks just like similar lists you’d find in competitive services like Netflix and Apple TV Plus. But it’s become a necessary feature as the lineup on Disney Plus has expanded quite a bit over the years, with original shows and movies, along with the integration of Hulu.
According to Disney, the ranking “takes several factors into account, including total views at the episode and movie level within a day and the growing popularity of new titles released during that time frame.” The company adds that “views are a component” but “not the sole determining factor” of what gets featured.
The list also takes into account age-ratings, so you shouldn’t see R-rated movies in your list if the parental settings are set properly. Good news for any parents trying to keep their kids away from Deadpool and Wolverine next month.

Image: Disney

If nothing else, the change points to a maturation of Disney Plus, which started out with a relatively scant library that has steadily grown to the point that finding new episodes of Agatha All Along or Bob’s Burgers can actually be difficult. And with some big series on the horizon, it’s coming at a good time.

Agatha All Along. | Image: Disney

As Disney Plus has grown, finding things to watch has become increasingly challenging. So the streaming service is rolling out a top 10 list featured on the home screen in hopes of improving discoverability.

It’s not the most novel addition; really, it looks just like similar lists you’d find in competitive services like Netflix and Apple TV Plus. But it’s become a necessary feature as the lineup on Disney Plus has expanded quite a bit over the years, with original shows and movies, along with the integration of Hulu.

According to Disney, the ranking “takes several factors into account, including total views at the episode and movie level within a day and the growing popularity of new titles released during that time frame.” The company adds that “views are a component” but “not the sole determining factor” of what gets featured.

The list also takes into account age-ratings, so you shouldn’t see R-rated movies in your list if the parental settings are set properly. Good news for any parents trying to keep their kids away from Deadpool and Wolverine next month.

Image: Disney

If nothing else, the change points to a maturation of Disney Plus, which started out with a relatively scant library that has steadily grown to the point that finding new episodes of Agatha All Along or Bob’s Burgers can actually be difficult. And with some big series on the horizon, it’s coming at a good time.

Read More 

Illustration: The Verge

Kids will soon be able to download the Google Wallet app on their Android phone, allowing them to buy things in store via Google’s tap-to-pay feature, reports 9to5Google. The news comes after Google first added the feature to its kid-focused Fitbit Ace LTE fitness tracker in August.
In a statement given to 9to5Google, the company said there will be ways for parents to supervise usage, with control over approving new cards, removing cards, and viewing transaction history. Parents can supervise children’s accounts via the Google Family Link app that lets parents set restrictions for content and screen time, and added the ability to see when kids leave school and arrive home in 2022.

Kids will be able to make tap-to-pay purchases using standard authentication options, including fingerprint, facial recognition, PIN, or passwords. They can also use Google Wallet to store gift cards and event tickets, but they can’t make online purchases or save health or identification cards. Google’s kids’ payments feature will start rolling out to Google Wallet users in the US and several other countries next year.
With the move, Google is catching up with Apple, whose Apple Cash Family service already lets children use Apple Pay for purchases in stores. It also lets kids buy things online as well as send and receive money through messages.

Illustration: The Verge

Kids will soon be able to download the Google Wallet app on their Android phone, allowing them to buy things in store via Google’s tap-to-pay feature, reports 9to5Google. The news comes after Google first added the feature to its kid-focused Fitbit Ace LTE fitness tracker in August.

In a statement given to 9to5Google, the company said there will be ways for parents to supervise usage, with control over approving new cards, removing cards, and viewing transaction history. Parents can supervise children’s accounts via the Google Family Link app that lets parents set restrictions for content and screen time, and added the ability to see when kids leave school and arrive home in 2022.

Kids will be able to make tap-to-pay purchases using standard authentication options, including fingerprint, facial recognition, PIN, or passwords. They can also use Google Wallet to store gift cards and event tickets, but they can’t make online purchases or save health or identification cards. Google’s kids’ payments feature will start rolling out to Google Wallet users in the US and several other countries next year.

With the move, Google is catching up with Apple, whose Apple Cash Family service already lets children use Apple Pay for purchases in stores. It also lets kids buy things online as well as send and receive money through messages.

Read More 

Image: Ubisoft

Ubisoft has quietly released its own NFT game to join the ranks of other vaunted, widely-played blockchain enabled titles like Axie Infinity and…uh, Ember Sword. Champions Tactics: Grimoria Chronicles launched earlier this month with relatively little fanfare or marketing. The game comes two years after Ubisoft’s failed bid to make NFTs work in Ghost Recon: Breakpoint, a solid three years after NFT prices and purchases fell off a cliff, and barely a week after it announced it would disband the team behind the critically acclaimed Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown.
Surface level, Champions Tactics is a PC strategy game where players assemble teams of champions to fight their way up the rankings. Teams are composed of three champions, each with their own attributes and abilities that can exploit enemy teams’ weaknesses. At the beginning of each round, players roll dice to determine combat order. Next, they select abilities for their champions before combat plays out simultaneously. Rinse and repeat until one team is defeated. All in all, the game looks like a surprisingly decent, if generic, tactics game.

But then there’s all the NFT garbage. Champions are the game’s NFTs associated with the Oasys blockchain. To acquire champions you have to either forge them from existing champions you own or purchase them off the game’s marketplace. To purchase champions, you can either use the OAS cryptocurrency or plain ole cash money, with the cheapest going for about $7 and the most expensive sitting at an eye-watering $63,000 whole-ass American dollars. To understand what’s in it for Ubisoft to perpetrate this nonsense, the company takes a six percent “royalty fee” for every marketplace transaction, and there are about 2,700 active listings on the site.
But wait! There’s worse! Having more champions increases your VIP status. The higher your VIP status, the more experience points and in-game currency you earn, thus incentivizing players to spend money accumulating champions. To entice even more dollars out of customers, Champions Tactics also features an additional exclusive collection of NFTs to buy called warlords. According to the game’s website, owning a warlord unlocks access to “special events” and even more in-game boosts to earning EXP and gold. Players can use their warlords as their in-game profile pictures. Here’s what they look like.

Ubisoft is one of the biggest developers still apparently all-in on implementing blockchain technology within video games. In addition to trying and failing with NFTs in Ghost Recon: Breakpoint, last year, the company announced a strategic partnership with web3 gaming platform Immutable after reports of Ubisoft employees internally criticizing the company’s blockchain projects. The tragedy is that Champions Tactics seems like it has decent mechanics that’d work just fine as a mobile gacha game. Purchasing champions and forging new ones seems perfectly suited to take advantage of the kind of microtransaction activity gaming companies salivate over. This game doesn’t need NFTs to make the kind of money Ubisoft is after.
But what’s worst of all is that Ubisoft spent money developing a game with features that gamers and developers actively hate, only to push it out to essentially die in obscurity mere days after it essentially said “No, thanks” to the people who made one of its best games in years. Yikes.

Image: Ubisoft

Ubisoft has quietly released its own NFT game to join the ranks of other vaunted, widely-played blockchain enabled titles like Axie Infinity and…uh, Ember Sword. Champions Tactics: Grimoria Chronicles launched earlier this month with relatively little fanfare or marketing. The game comes two years after Ubisoft’s failed bid to make NFTs work in Ghost Recon: Breakpoint, a solid three years after NFT prices and purchases fell off a cliff, and barely a week after it announced it would disband the team behind the critically acclaimed Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown.

Surface level, Champions Tactics is a PC strategy game where players assemble teams of champions to fight their way up the rankings. Teams are composed of three champions, each with their own attributes and abilities that can exploit enemy teams’ weaknesses. At the beginning of each round, players roll dice to determine combat order. Next, they select abilities for their champions before combat plays out simultaneously. Rinse and repeat until one team is defeated. All in all, the game looks like a surprisingly decent, if generic, tactics game.

But then there’s all the NFT garbage. Champions are the game’s NFTs associated with the Oasys blockchain. To acquire champions you have to either forge them from existing champions you own or purchase them off the game’s marketplace. To purchase champions, you can either use the OAS cryptocurrency or plain ole cash money, with the cheapest going for about $7 and the most expensive sitting at an eye-watering $63,000 whole-ass American dollars. To understand what’s in it for Ubisoft to perpetrate this nonsense, the company takes a six percent “royalty fee” for every marketplace transaction, and there are about 2,700 active listings on the site.

But wait! There’s worse! Having more champions increases your VIP status. The higher your VIP status, the more experience points and in-game currency you earn, thus incentivizing players to spend money accumulating champions. To entice even more dollars out of customers, Champions Tactics also features an additional exclusive collection of NFTs to buy called warlords. According to the game’s website, owning a warlord unlocks access to “special events” and even more in-game boosts to earning EXP and gold. Players can use their warlords as their in-game profile pictures. Here’s what they look like.

Ubisoft is one of the biggest developers still apparently all-in on implementing blockchain technology within video games. In addition to trying and failing with NFTs in Ghost Recon: Breakpoint, last year, the company announced a strategic partnership with web3 gaming platform Immutable after reports of Ubisoft employees internally criticizing the company’s blockchain projects. The tragedy is that Champions Tactics seems like it has decent mechanics that’d work just fine as a mobile gacha game. Purchasing champions and forging new ones seems perfectly suited to take advantage of the kind of microtransaction activity gaming companies salivate over. This game doesn’t need NFTs to make the kind of money Ubisoft is after.

But what’s worst of all is that Ubisoft spent money developing a game with features that gamers and developers actively hate, only to push it out to essentially die in obscurity mere days after it essentially said “No, thanks” to the people who made one of its best games in years. Yikes.

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Now that Apple has finished announcing its slate of new M4-equipped Mac computers, we’ve finally been able to see them in person. The Verge’s Vjeran Pavic got some hands-on time with the new products and took some gorgeous photos that you can peruse below.
I’m blown away by how small the new Mac Mini is; the old Mac Mini, which was already small, seems giant in comparison. Vjeran tells me that, in person, the smaller Mac Mini is cute but that it’s “more like a mini Mac Studio than a mini Mac Mini.” He also says that there’s no way to reach the power button, which is on the underside of the computer, without lifting it up.
As for the other computers, the new colors on the iMac really pop when they’re lined up together in these photos, if you ask me. And while the space black color for the MacBook Pros isn’t totally new, seeing it in these photos makes me really wish that Apple would bring it to the MacBook Air.
The new Macs are all available to preorder now ahead of their official release next week.
Mac Mini

iMac

MacBook Pro

Accessories

There it is: the charging port, still on the bottom.

The Magic Trackpad and its USB-C port.

Why does Apple still have the bad arrow keys on this keyboard?

Now that Apple has finished announcing its slate of new M4-equipped Mac computers, we’ve finally been able to see them in person. The Verge’s Vjeran Pavic got some hands-on time with the new products and took some gorgeous photos that you can peruse below.

I’m blown away by how small the new Mac Mini is; the old Mac Mini, which was already small, seems giant in comparison. Vjeran tells me that, in person, the smaller Mac Mini is cute but that it’s “more like a mini Mac Studio than a mini Mac Mini.” He also says that there’s no way to reach the power button, which is on the underside of the computer, without lifting it up.

As for the other computers, the new colors on the iMac really pop when they’re lined up together in these photos, if you ask me. And while the space black color for the MacBook Pros isn’t totally new, seeing it in these photos makes me really wish that Apple would bring it to the MacBook Air.

The new Macs are all available to preorder now ahead of their official release next week.

Mac Mini

iMac

MacBook Pro

Accessories

There it is: the charging port, still on the bottom.

The Magic Trackpad and its USB-C port.

Why does Apple still have the bad arrow keys on this keyboard?

Read More