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The AMD Ryzen Z1 Extreme is the chip inside the Asus ROG Ally X, Asus ROG Ally, and Lenovo Legion Go — and in early 2025, AMD will announce its successor, the Z2 Extreme, for future PC gaming handhelds.
That’s the word from Digital Trends’ Jacob Roach, who heard AMD computing and graphics boss Jack Huynh say it’s targeting a 2025 release on an IFA stage in Berlin; I just confirmed with AMD spokesperson Stacy MacDiarmid that the company plans to announce it in early 2025, though AMD’s declining to say any more about it today.
The only other things we’ve heard: AMD says it’s working with multiple partners, so the chip may already be in handheld makers’ hands. And it’s probably based on AMD’s Strix Point; so say Jez Corden’s sources over at Windows Central.

AMD’s Huynh also reportedly mentioned he wants to play games like Black Myth: Wukong for three hours on a handheld instead of the current 45 minutes, but it’s not clear whether that was just an anecdote or a hint at what a Strix-based Z2 Extreme can do.
I’m not yet sure how optimistic to be about Strix quite yet; AMD touted the increased performance of Zen 5 in its Strix Point laptop architecture briefings, but it didn’t say a word about increased battery life.
While a performance improvement can sometimes turn into a battery life improvement by changing a chip to that end, AMD’s original Z1 Extreme was largely just a tweaked version of the Ryzen 7840U laptop chip, one that really needed lots of electricity to thrive.
Handhelds like the ROG Ally and Legion Go can turbo up to 40 or 50 watts of total system drain to play games that barely run on the Steam Deck, but that means they fully drain their batteries in under an hour. They couldn’t beat the Steam Deck’s semi-custom chip at 15 watts or get anywhere near as much battery life in less demanding titles.
Eventually, the AMD ROG Ally X brute-forced its way to vastly better battery life by doubling the size of the pack inside. But maybe AMD takes a different route and makes the Z2 Extreme a bespoke handheld chip? That’d be exciting.

The AMD Ryzen Z1 Extreme is the chip inside the Asus ROG Ally X, Asus ROG Ally, and Lenovo Legion Go — and in early 2025, AMD will announce its successor, the Z2 Extreme, for future PC gaming handhelds.

That’s the word from Digital Trends’ Jacob Roach, who heard AMD computing and graphics boss Jack Huynh say it’s targeting a 2025 release on an IFA stage in Berlin; I just confirmed with AMD spokesperson Stacy MacDiarmid that the company plans to announce it in early 2025, though AMD’s declining to say any more about it today.

The only other things we’ve heard: AMD says it’s working with multiple partners, so the chip may already be in handheld makers’ hands. And it’s probably based on AMD’s Strix Point; so say Jez Corden’s sources over at Windows Central.

AMD’s Huynh also reportedly mentioned he wants to play games like Black Myth: Wukong for three hours on a handheld instead of the current 45 minutes, but it’s not clear whether that was just an anecdote or a hint at what a Strix-based Z2 Extreme can do.

I’m not yet sure how optimistic to be about Strix quite yet; AMD touted the increased performance of Zen 5 in its Strix Point laptop architecture briefings, but it didn’t say a word about increased battery life.

While a performance improvement can sometimes turn into a battery life improvement by changing a chip to that end, AMD’s original Z1 Extreme was largely just a tweaked version of the Ryzen 7840U laptop chip, one that really needed lots of electricity to thrive.

Handhelds like the ROG Ally and Legion Go can turbo up to 40 or 50 watts of total system drain to play games that barely run on the Steam Deck, but that means they fully drain their batteries in under an hour. They couldn’t beat the Steam Deck’s semi-custom chip at 15 watts or get anywhere near as much battery life in less demanding titles.

Eventually, the AMD ROG Ally X brute-forced its way to vastly better battery life by doubling the size of the pack inside. But maybe AMD takes a different route and makes the Z2 Extreme a bespoke handheld chip? That’d be exciting.

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With just a single USB-C port, Anker’s new Nano is its smallest and lightest 100W charger yet. | Image: Anker

Anker’s new 100W Nano Charger is about 60 grams lighter than the company’s last ultracompact 100W wall charger, but it has a big tradeoff. To make its smallest 100W power adapter yet, Anker had to sacrifice a couple of USB ports.
The new 100W Nano Charger is available for preorder for $44.99 and ships in mid-September. The new frame is about 26 percent smaller and 30 percent lighter than Anker’s Prime 100W GaN charger, which is the smallest 100W power adapter the company previously sold with two USB-C ports and a single USB-A.
To better put the Nano’s size into perspective, with its prongs folded, it’s only about 17 percent larger than the Apple AirPods Pro 2’s charging case, so the Nano should fit in any pocket you can squeeze AirPods or other earbuds into.

Image: Anker
Anker says the Nano Charger features thicker prongs with a grippier matte finish, so it’s less likely to fall out of an outlet.

Anker is also including a feature it introduced last month that the company claims will help many of its adapters stay securely plugged into wall outlets. The 100W Nano’s prongs now feature a matte finish to improve their grip when plugged in, but it’s a claim we haven’t tested yet.
The new 100W Anker Nano Charger is definitely one of the smallest power adapters we’ve seen to deliver this much power, but with just a single USB-C port, its size may be negated if you don’t want to juggle devices and bring additional adapters to power more than just your laptop.

With just a single USB-C port, Anker’s new Nano is its smallest and lightest 100W charger yet. | Image: Anker

Anker’s new 100W Nano Charger is about 60 grams lighter than the company’s last ultracompact 100W wall charger, but it has a big tradeoff. To make its smallest 100W power adapter yet, Anker had to sacrifice a couple of USB ports.

The new 100W Nano Charger is available for preorder for $44.99 and ships in mid-September. The new frame is about 26 percent smaller and 30 percent lighter than Anker’s Prime 100W GaN charger, which is the smallest 100W power adapter the company previously sold with two USB-C ports and a single USB-A.

To better put the Nano’s size into perspective, with its prongs folded, it’s only about 17 percent larger than the Apple AirPods Pro 2’s charging case, so the Nano should fit in any pocket you can squeeze AirPods or other earbuds into.

Image: Anker
Anker says the Nano Charger features thicker prongs with a grippier matte finish, so it’s less likely to fall out of an outlet.

Anker is also including a feature it introduced last month that the company claims will help many of its adapters stay securely plugged into wall outlets. The 100W Nano’s prongs now feature a matte finish to improve their grip when plugged in, but it’s a claim we haven’t tested yet.

The new 100W Anker Nano Charger is definitely one of the smallest power adapters we’ve seen to deliver this much power, but with just a single USB-C port, its size may be negated if you don’t want to juggle devices and bring additional adapters to power more than just your laptop.

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Look out below! | Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge

It’s been a minute since I checked in on our friends at Coinbase, and so when I saw Reuters noting that a class action suit would be going ahead, I thought perhaps we should all reflect together on Coinbase’s cruel summer.
The company’s shares have fallen by more than a third in the last 6 months, to $147.95 as of this writing, from $238.55 on March 6th. On the company’s first day of trading, in April 2021, its closing price was $328.28.
Quite a turn of fortune! Certainly some price fluctuation can be chalked up to the vagaries of the cryptocurrency market — Coinbase was trading at $153.98 at the start of this year, before a Bitcoin ETF got approved. When Bitcoin began a run in February, Coinbase also started trading up. Still, there have been some fairly obvious bits of bad news, such as yesterday’s ruling.
The class action, briefly put, is about whether Coinbase adequately told its investors about the business’s risks from bankruptcy and regulatory agencies. On Sept. 5th, a judge rejected Coinbase’s motion to dismiss the suit.
Backing Donald Trump maybe looked like a better idea when he was running against President Joe Biden
It’s also an election year, and crypto money has gotten heavily involved in politics. Given the existential risk the SEC case against Coinbase poses, this strikes me as entirely understandable. Crypto-friendly regulation could short-circuit that risk. But there’s been infighting in crypto super PACs, with donor Ron Conway writing an angry memo about being left out of donation decisions.
In that memo, Conway writes, “There is an ‘elephant in the room. We have two factions: a moderate faction and a Donald Trump faction (Brian and Marc).” The Brian here is Coinbase’s CEO, Brian Armstrong. (The Marc is Marc Andreessen of Andreessen Horowitz.)
Backing Donald Trump maybe looked like a better idea when he was running against President Joe Biden. But now that Vice President Kamala Harris has whipped up enthusiasm from both donors and voters, that decision might be something of an albatross for Coinbase. Perhaps that’s why Alesia Haas, Coinbase’s CFO, has gone out of her way to say Harris’s official super PAC is accepting donations through Coinbase itself. A perception of Coinbase as a Republican company isn’t going to give it much leverage in a Harris administration, after all.
There’s one more problem with Coinbase’s lobbying efforts: a Federal Elections Commission complaint. Crypto critic Molly White and Public Citizen filed a formal complaint that alleged Coinbase violated campaign finance laws. According to the complaint, Coinbase made donations to crypto super PAC Fairshake and to the Congressional Leadership Fund, a PAC meant to elect Republicans to the House, when it should not have been making donations. (Coinbase was, at the time, in negotiations with the United States Marshals Service. The complaint says that federal laws expressly prohibit making donations while negotiating such a contract.) Coinbase has vigorously denied these allegations.
When the hits keep coming like this, I generally get my opera glasses out. Sure, it’s possible that Coinbase will win its SEC suit, its shareholder suit, and dodge the campaign finance complaint, as well as manage to navigate the new political landscape of whoever winds up in power after the election. But this seems like a lot of expensive distractions, and an awful lot of uncertainty. Coinbase’s top lawyer, Paul Grewal, says he expects a more crypto-friendly Congress. I imagine their shareholders sure hope he’s right.

Look out below! | Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge

It’s been a minute since I checked in on our friends at Coinbase, and so when I saw Reuters noting that a class action suit would be going ahead, I thought perhaps we should all reflect together on Coinbase’s cruel summer.

The company’s shares have fallen by more than a third in the last 6 months, to $147.95 as of this writing, from $238.55 on March 6th. On the company’s first day of trading, in April 2021, its closing price was $328.28.

Quite a turn of fortune! Certainly some price fluctuation can be chalked up to the vagaries of the cryptocurrency market — Coinbase was trading at $153.98 at the start of this year, before a Bitcoin ETF got approved. When Bitcoin began a run in February, Coinbase also started trading up. Still, there have been some fairly obvious bits of bad news, such as yesterday’s ruling.

The class action, briefly put, is about whether Coinbase adequately told its investors about the business’s risks from bankruptcy and regulatory agencies. On Sept. 5th, a judge rejected Coinbase’s motion to dismiss the suit.

It’s also an election year, and crypto money has gotten heavily involved in politics. Given the existential risk the SEC case against Coinbase poses, this strikes me as entirely understandable. Crypto-friendly regulation could short-circuit that risk. But there’s been infighting in crypto super PACs, with donor Ron Conway writing an angry memo about being left out of donation decisions.

In that memo, Conway writes, “There is an ‘elephant in the room. We have two factions: a moderate faction and a Donald Trump faction (Brian and Marc).” The Brian here is Coinbase’s CEO, Brian Armstrong. (The Marc is Marc Andreessen of Andreessen Horowitz.)

Backing Donald Trump maybe looked like a better idea when he was running against President Joe Biden. But now that Vice President Kamala Harris has whipped up enthusiasm from both donors and voters, that decision might be something of an albatross for Coinbase. Perhaps that’s why Alesia Haas, Coinbase’s CFO, has gone out of her way to say Harris’s official super PAC is accepting donations through Coinbase itself. A perception of Coinbase as a Republican company isn’t going to give it much leverage in a Harris administration, after all.

There’s one more problem with Coinbase’s lobbying efforts: a Federal Elections Commission complaint. Crypto critic Molly White and Public Citizen filed a formal complaint that alleged Coinbase violated campaign finance laws. According to the complaint, Coinbase made donations to crypto super PAC Fairshake and to the Congressional Leadership Fund, a PAC meant to elect Republicans to the House, when it should not have been making donations. (Coinbase was, at the time, in negotiations with the United States Marshals Service. The complaint says that federal laws expressly prohibit making donations while negotiating such a contract.) Coinbase has vigorously denied these allegations.

When the hits keep coming like this, I generally get my opera glasses out. Sure, it’s possible that Coinbase will win its SEC suit, its shareholder suit, and dodge the campaign finance complaint, as well as manage to navigate the new political landscape of whoever winds up in power after the election. But this seems like a lot of expensive distractions, and an awful lot of uncertainty. Coinbase’s top lawyer, Paul Grewal, says he expects a more crypto-friendly Congress. I imagine their shareholders sure hope he’s right.

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The Pixel Fold’s successor features an updated format that makes it a joy to use. I can’t overstate how nice it feels to use the Pixel 9 Pro Fold’s inner screen. I’ve never felt so smug using all my little apps at the coffee shop on a big screen, folding it in half, and putting it in my pocket.
Google nailed the hardware this time around. The front screen looks like, well, a normal phone screen. I can’t say the same about the previous Pixel Fold’s front screen or six generations of Samsung’s Z Fold. The Pixel 9 Pro Fold is also light enough that I can forget I’m using a folding phone for whole stretches of time. Imagine!

Google solved a lot of the first Fold’s problems, but it hasn’t solved all of them. Thankfully, the ones that are left are just folding phone problems. The cameras aren’t as good as the cameras on the regular Pixel 9 series. It’s still thicker and heavier than even the biggest slab-style phones. It won’t be as easy to repair, and it’s twice the price of a garden-variety flagship phone. If you’re looking for reasons to talk yourself out of a $1,799 purchase, you’re welcome.
But for someone who’s feeling adventurous and isn’t concerned with the drawbacks of folding phone life, I’m sorry to say, you should probably spend $1,800 on this phone. It’s that good.

Look, just like a normal phone!

Google took exactly the right cues from OnePlus, splitting the difference between the previous Pixel Fold and the Open. The front screen feels like using a normal screen. It’s not much heavier than a normal phone. The inner screen is big. Everything is the way it should be.
This Pixel Fold may be a “Pro” phone, but it shares screen specs with the standard Pixel 9 and not the Pixel 9 Pro. All three devices have a 6.3-inch OLED, but the regular 9 and the 9 Pro Fold have 1080p resolutions and top out at 1,800 nits in peak brightness mode. The 9 Pro’s screen is just a little sharper and brighter, so that’s a tradeoff you’ll need to make if you want the Pixel that folds in half.
The outer screen isn’t quite as “Pro” as it could be, but the inner screen is where the money’s at, and it’s much brighter this year. That’s an important improvement on a device that’s supposed to, you know, go outside with you all the time. What’s the fun in flexing that big display sitting outside of the coffee shop if you have to squint at it? The boosted peak brightness of 2,700 nits makes it much more comfortable to use outside than the previous generation’s screen.

There are some camera hardware tradeoffs. The regular Pixel 9 phones all have a nicer 50-megapixel main camera with a bigger sensor compared to the 9 Pro Fold’s 48-megapixel camera. There’s not a massive difference, but you can squeeze a little more detail in low-light shots out of the regular Pixel 9’s camera. The foldable Pixel’s telephoto lens isn’t quite as good, either, and low-light photos compared to the standard Pixel 9’s 5x zoom are noticeably softer.
It’s a minor feature, but “Made You Look” — which uses the outer display to show an adorable animation to catch a kid’s attention — works exactly as advertised. Yet it uses the outer screen’s selfie camera, which isn’t great in low light. Don’t get me wrong, this is a good camera system overall. But it’s an area where basically all foldables lag behind slab phones, what with all the internal space needed for moving parts. We can’t have it all — at least not yet.
And sorry to keep being a bummer, but you’ll want to consider durability if you’re buying a folding phone versus a slab phone. Its IPX8 rating means the 9 Pro Fold can withstand water immersion, but you’re on your own if a grain of sand works its way into the hinge. Best to figure in the extra $279 for Google’s extended care plan with the purchase price of this already pricey phone.

No tabbing between apps required.

Now, enough of the less fun stuff! Let’s talk about the best part of this phone: using the big screen. The phone’s new, taller format — along with improved rendering from some apps — makes for a much better inner screen experience. You can view two apps on the screen at once, which is great for cross-referencing Google Maps and Eater, but that’s the limit.

I get why Google does this, and you kind of have to be a weirdo like me to want to run three or four apps at once in little tiles. But Samsung’s foldable UI lets you do this, and I’m just a little sad that I can’t have a tiny Spotify player in the corner of the screen while I run two other apps like I can on the Galaxy Z Fold 6.
Still! Using the big screen is a joy. I’m more inclined to use the 9 Pro Fold for complex tasks that would be annoying on a regular phone. Opening Chrome and seeing all my tabs in a row at the top of the screen fills my heart with joy. I can refer to a page on Icy Veins while I arrange my paragon points in Diablo IV, rather than squinting at a little screen. Those little things add up.
I’ve also been impressed with the 9 Pro Fold’s battery life. It’s not quite as robust as the standard Pixel 9 models, but it comfortably lasts through a moderate day with lots of GPS navigation, hotspot use, and time on the inner screen. Even on those days, I always had at least 40 percent left in the tank by bedtime.

A folding phone that almost looks normal in the side pocket of my yoga pants.

The Pixel 9 Pro Fold makes folding phones make sense to me. It’s more like a normal phone than ever, but it’s also not completely like using a normal phone. By opting for a phone that folds, you’re still making tradeoffs, particularly in the camera hardware. The phone’s long-term durability is also an unknown — literally no one has owned a Pixel folding phone for more than a year at this point. Foldable ownership isn’t for the faint of heart.
But the Pixel 9 Pro Fold is the most rewarding folding phone I’ve ever used. Using the phone while it’s closed feels way less cumbersome and much more normal than the previous Pixel Fold or a Galaxy Z Fold. That makes using the big inner screen feel that much more rewarding; I don’t feel like I’m putting up with a bulky phone the rest of the time to get that experience.
This foldable comes with its tradeoffs: the downgraded camera hardware; durability concerns; and oh yeah, the eighteen hundred US dollars it costs. But I think Google made the right tradeoffs here to optimize the inner screen experience. It’s an experience that I’ll miss when I switch back to the next slab-style phone that I test — one that foldable fans and the foldable-curious will find very rewarding, too. Because god damn, this is a nice phone.
Photography by Allison Johnson / The Verge

The Pixel Fold’s successor features an updated format that makes it a joy to use.

I can’t overstate how nice it feels to use the Pixel 9 Pro Fold’s inner screen. I’ve never felt so smug using all my little apps at the coffee shop on a big screen, folding it in half, and putting it in my pocket.

Google nailed the hardware this time around. The front screen looks like, well, a normal phone screen. I can’t say the same about the previous Pixel Fold’s front screen or six generations of Samsung’s Z Fold. The Pixel 9 Pro Fold is also light enough that I can forget I’m using a folding phone for whole stretches of time. Imagine!

Google solved a lot of the first Fold’s problems, but it hasn’t solved all of them. Thankfully, the ones that are left are just folding phone problems. The cameras aren’t as good as the cameras on the regular Pixel 9 series. It’s still thicker and heavier than even the biggest slab-style phones. It won’t be as easy to repair, and it’s twice the price of a garden-variety flagship phone. If you’re looking for reasons to talk yourself out of a $1,799 purchase, you’re welcome.

But for someone who’s feeling adventurous and isn’t concerned with the drawbacks of folding phone life, I’m sorry to say, you should probably spend $1,800 on this phone. It’s that good.

Google took exactly the right cues from OnePlus, splitting the difference between the previous Pixel Fold and the Open. The front screen feels like using a normal screen. It’s not much heavier than a normal phone. The inner screen is big. Everything is the way it should be.

This Pixel Fold may be a “Pro” phone, but it shares screen specs with the standard Pixel 9 and not the Pixel 9 Pro. All three devices have a 6.3-inch OLED, but the regular 9 and the 9 Pro Fold have 1080p resolutions and top out at 1,800 nits in peak brightness mode. The 9 Pro’s screen is just a little sharper and brighter, so that’s a tradeoff you’ll need to make if you want the Pixel that folds in half.

The outer screen isn’t quite as “Pro” as it could be, but the inner screen is where the money’s at, and it’s much brighter this year. That’s an important improvement on a device that’s supposed to, you know, go outside with you all the time. What’s the fun in flexing that big display sitting outside of the coffee shop if you have to squint at it? The boosted peak brightness of 2,700 nits makes it much more comfortable to use outside than the previous generation’s screen.

There are some camera hardware tradeoffs. The regular Pixel 9 phones all have a nicer 50-megapixel main camera with a bigger sensor compared to the 9 Pro Fold’s 48-megapixel camera. There’s not a massive difference, but you can squeeze a little more detail in low-light shots out of the regular Pixel 9’s camera. The foldable Pixel’s telephoto lens isn’t quite as good, either, and low-light photos compared to the standard Pixel 9’s 5x zoom are noticeably softer.

It’s a minor feature, but “Made You Look” — which uses the outer display to show an adorable animation to catch a kid’s attention — works exactly as advertised. Yet it uses the outer screen’s selfie camera, which isn’t great in low light. Don’t get me wrong, this is a good camera system overall. But it’s an area where basically all foldables lag behind slab phones, what with all the internal space needed for moving parts. We can’t have it all — at least not yet.

And sorry to keep being a bummer, but you’ll want to consider durability if you’re buying a folding phone versus a slab phone. Its IPX8 rating means the 9 Pro Fold can withstand water immersion, but you’re on your own if a grain of sand works its way into the hinge. Best to figure in the extra $279 for Google’s extended care plan with the purchase price of this already pricey phone.

No tabbing between apps required.

Now, enough of the less fun stuff! Let’s talk about the best part of this phone: using the big screen. The phone’s new, taller format — along with improved rendering from some apps — makes for a much better inner screen experience. You can view two apps on the screen at once, which is great for cross-referencing Google Maps and Eater, but that’s the limit.

I get why Google does this, and you kind of have to be a weirdo like me to want to run three or four apps at once in little tiles. But Samsung’s foldable UI lets you do this, and I’m just a little sad that I can’t have a tiny Spotify player in the corner of the screen while I run two other apps like I can on the Galaxy Z Fold 6.

Still! Using the big screen is a joy. I’m more inclined to use the 9 Pro Fold for complex tasks that would be annoying on a regular phone. Opening Chrome and seeing all my tabs in a row at the top of the screen fills my heart with joy. I can refer to a page on Icy Veins while I arrange my paragon points in Diablo IV, rather than squinting at a little screen. Those little things add up.

I’ve also been impressed with the 9 Pro Fold’s battery life. It’s not quite as robust as the standard Pixel 9 models, but it comfortably lasts through a moderate day with lots of GPS navigation, hotspot use, and time on the inner screen. Even on those days, I always had at least 40 percent left in the tank by bedtime.

The Pixel 9 Pro Fold makes folding phones make sense to me. It’s more like a normal phone than ever, but it’s also not completely like using a normal phone. By opting for a phone that folds, you’re still making tradeoffs, particularly in the camera hardware. The phone’s long-term durability is also an unknown — literally no one has owned a Pixel folding phone for more than a year at this point. Foldable ownership isn’t for the faint of heart.

But the Pixel 9 Pro Fold is the most rewarding folding phone I’ve ever used. Using the phone while it’s closed feels way less cumbersome and much more normal than the previous Pixel Fold or a Galaxy Z Fold. That makes using the big inner screen feel that much more rewarding; I don’t feel like I’m putting up with a bulky phone the rest of the time to get that experience.

This foldable comes with its tradeoffs: the downgraded camera hardware; durability concerns; and oh yeah, the eighteen hundred US dollars it costs. But I think Google made the right tradeoffs here to optimize the inner screen experience. It’s an experience that I’ll miss when I switch back to the next slab-style phone that I test — one that foldable fans and the foldable-curious will find very rewarding, too. Because god damn, this is a nice phone.

Photography by Allison Johnson / The Verge

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Illustration: The Verge

As Roblox marches toward its ultimate goal of 1 billion users, the company is finding new ways to share revenue with the developers who have made millions of games on the platform.
During the company’s annual developers conference in San Francisco on Friday, CEO David Baszucki announced that creators of these games, which Roblox calls experiences, will be able to keep between 50 and 70 percent of revenue from their paid titles when they’re purchased in real currency on desktop computers. That’s significantly more than the roughly 30 percent revenue split Roblox gives developers for purchases made with its native Robux currency inside freemium experiences.
The move could help incentivize the creation of more premium games as Roblox looks to attract older users. Baszucki says the intention is to also bring these new economics to paid experiences bought on other devices, including mobile phones and consoles, though app store fees will likely get in the way on iOS and Android. He declined to share specifics.

Image: Roblox
A breakdown of Roblox’s revenue sharing for paid experiences on desktop.

“We believe we’re setting the groundwork for a more expansive range of type of content on the platform,” Baszucki tells me with regard to paid experiences. In addition, he says there’s “a huge effort within the company to support 100-plus-player open-world sports or battle royale-type experiences on low-end devices.” Though he doesn’t say it, that strategy is seemingly aimed at competing more directly with Epic Games’ Fortnite, which Roblox still doesn’t have a viable alternative to on its platform.
Another way Roblox is sharing money with creators is via a new affiliate link program. Those who are accepted into it will be able to earn up to 50 percent (capped at $100) of Robux purchases a new user makes within six months after joining from their sign-up link. “I think it’s going to make it a lot easier for creators to be comfortable leaning into heavy social marketing” for the platform, says Baszucki of the new program.

Image: Roblox
Roblox’s new Party mode.

Roblox’s other big announcements at this year’s developer conference include a new “Party” mode that lets up to six people communicate and move between experiences as a group. Starting early next year, it’s also partnering with Shopify to let developers sell real-world items through the platform. Revenue sharing terms of that arrangement haven’t been disclosed yet.
While Roblox’s daily user base continued to steadily grow to 79.5 million last quarter, the company has come under fire in a recent Bloomberg investigation titled “Roblox’s Pedophile Problem.” After that story was published this summer, the government of Turkey banned Roblox, citing its hosting of “virtual sex parties” and “violent games” played by children. Roblox this week appealed the ban, and Baszucki tells me, “We’re optimistic and working with their government and their courts.”
He says that “any incident on our platform is unacceptable” and that trust and safety is the “top priority” inside the company. “Our AI gets better all the time. Our human review gets better all the time. So, from my standpoint, the quality of our safety systems has constantly been improving.”

Illustration: The Verge

As Roblox marches toward its ultimate goal of 1 billion users, the company is finding new ways to share revenue with the developers who have made millions of games on the platform.

During the company’s annual developers conference in San Francisco on Friday, CEO David Baszucki announced that creators of these games, which Roblox calls experiences, will be able to keep between 50 and 70 percent of revenue from their paid titles when they’re purchased in real currency on desktop computers. That’s significantly more than the roughly 30 percent revenue split Roblox gives developers for purchases made with its native Robux currency inside freemium experiences.

The move could help incentivize the creation of more premium games as Roblox looks to attract older users. Baszucki says the intention is to also bring these new economics to paid experiences bought on other devices, including mobile phones and consoles, though app store fees will likely get in the way on iOS and Android. He declined to share specifics.

Image: Roblox
A breakdown of Roblox’s revenue sharing for paid experiences on desktop.

“We believe we’re setting the groundwork for a more expansive range of type of content on the platform,” Baszucki tells me with regard to paid experiences. In addition, he says there’s “a huge effort within the company to support 100-plus-player open-world sports or battle royale-type experiences on low-end devices.” Though he doesn’t say it, that strategy is seemingly aimed at competing more directly with Epic Games’ Fortnite, which Roblox still doesn’t have a viable alternative to on its platform.

Another way Roblox is sharing money with creators is via a new affiliate link program. Those who are accepted into it will be able to earn up to 50 percent (capped at $100) of Robux purchases a new user makes within six months after joining from their sign-up link. “I think it’s going to make it a lot easier for creators to be comfortable leaning into heavy social marketing” for the platform, says Baszucki of the new program.

Image: Roblox
Roblox’s new Party mode.

Roblox’s other big announcements at this year’s developer conference include a new “Party” mode that lets up to six people communicate and move between experiences as a group. Starting early next year, it’s also partnering with Shopify to let developers sell real-world items through the platform. Revenue sharing terms of that arrangement haven’t been disclosed yet.

While Roblox’s daily user base continued to steadily grow to 79.5 million last quarter, the company has come under fire in a recent Bloomberg investigation titled “Roblox’s Pedophile Problem.” After that story was published this summer, the government of Turkey banned Roblox, citing its hosting of “virtual sex parties” and “violent games” played by children. Roblox this week appealed the ban, and Baszucki tells me, “We’re optimistic and working with their government and their courts.”

He says that “any incident on our platform is unacceptable” and that trust and safety is the “top priority” inside the company. “Our AI gets better all the time. Our human review gets better all the time. So, from my standpoint, the quality of our safety systems has constantly been improving.”

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iPhone 15 Pro shoots 4K 60fps in ProRes. | Photo by Vjeran Pavic / The Verge

Apple’s iPhone 16 event is in three days, and today, there’s a new leak (from “reliable sources” speaking to 9to5Mac) that claims the Pro version will support the ability to record video in 4K at an impressively smooth 120fps. According to that same source, iPhone 16’s rumored new camera trigger button will support changing from the default camera app to a third-party one.
The article goes on to state that the 4K 120fps video can be shot up to ProRes quality when used with an external SSD. Apple is also reportedly improving its photo mode video recording shortcut QuickTake to shoot in 4K quality instead of 1080p. Other features like JPEG-XL image format support, the ability to pause a video recording, wind noise removal, new special video modes, and improved ML image processing for skin tones are also coming. The sensors could support 8K video, too, but that feature might have to wait for a future iPhone.
As for the new Camera Button, which is apparently the internal name of the new iPhone side trigger, it will reportedly support slide gestures to adjust zoom or exposure, in addition to the soft and hard press support for focus and shoot. The button will use the same iOS 18 API that lets you replace the homescreen camera button with another similar app — Halide fans, rejoice!
The report also corroborates previous rumors, including that the new iPhone 16 Pro and Pro Max models will have matching tetraprism 5x zoom lenses and upgraded 48-megapixel ultrawide cameras.

iPhone 15 Pro shoots 4K 60fps in ProRes. | Photo by Vjeran Pavic / The Verge

Apple’s iPhone 16 event is in three days, and today, there’s a new leak (from “reliable sources” speaking to 9to5Mac) that claims the Pro version will support the ability to record video in 4K at an impressively smooth 120fps. According to that same source, iPhone 16’s rumored new camera trigger button will support changing from the default camera app to a third-party one.

The article goes on to state that the 4K 120fps video can be shot up to ProRes quality when used with an external SSD. Apple is also reportedly improving its photo mode video recording shortcut QuickTake to shoot in 4K quality instead of 1080p. Other features like JPEG-XL image format support, the ability to pause a video recording, wind noise removal, new special video modes, and improved ML image processing for skin tones are also coming. The sensors could support 8K video, too, but that feature might have to wait for a future iPhone.

As for the new Camera Button, which is apparently the internal name of the new iPhone side trigger, it will reportedly support slide gestures to adjust zoom or exposure, in addition to the soft and hard press support for focus and shoot. The button will use the same iOS 18 API that lets you replace the homescreen camera button with another similar app — Halide fans, rejoice!

The report also corroborates previous rumors, including that the new iPhone 16 Pro and Pro Max models will have matching tetraprism 5x zoom lenses and upgraded 48-megapixel ultrawide cameras.

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Image: Cath Virginia / The Verge, Getty Images

In a post on Telegram Friday, founder and CEO Pavel Durov set out a new approach for the app and announced it’s disabled some “outdated” features. The first changes to the app following his arrest in France last month affect its built-in blog posts and a “People Nearby” location-based feature.
The changes come as Durov attempts to reverse Telegram’s reputation as a hotspot for criminal activity that came as a result of lax moderation policies. In late August, French authorities arrested and charged Durov with enabling legal transactions and complicity in the distribution of child sexual abuse material.
Durov’s first post-arrest statement Thursday said, “Telegram’s abrupt increase in user count to 950M caused growing pains that made it easier for criminals to abuse our platform. That’s why I made it my personal goal to ensure we significantly improve things in this regard.” He also said that during the four-day interview after his arrest, “I was told I may be personally responsible for other people’s illegal use of Telegram, because the French authorities didn’t receive responses from Telegram.”
Telegram has since reworked some of its language surrounding private chats and moderation and followed up with these new updates. It’s also adding Star giveaways and enabling a reading mode for its in-app browser.

“While 99.999% of Telegram users have nothing to do with crime, the 0.001% involved in illicit activities creates a bad image for the entire platform,” Durov’s message says. “That’s why this year we are committed to turn moderation on Telegram from an area of criticism into one of praise.”
Durov says the service has stopped new media uploads to its standalone blogging tool, Telegraph, because it was “misused by anonymous actors.”
Launched in 2016, Telegraph lets anyone anonymously create a post, upload media, and then share the webpage on social media or Telegram. However, security researchers reported that bad actors use the tool to carry out phishing scams by creating phony website landing pages or notices that trick users into divulging personal information.
Telegram has also removed its People Nearby feature, which lets you find and message other users in your area. Durov says the feature has “had issues with bots and scammers” and was only used by less than 0.1 percent of users. Telegram will replace this feature with “Businesses Nearby” instead, allowing “legitimate, verified businesses” to display products and accept payments.
Here’s Durov’s full message:

Telegram has reached 10 million paid subscribers. 10 million people are now enjoying Telegram Premium!
Today, we’re introducing new features while phasing out a few outdated ones.
We’ve removed the People Nearby feature, which was used by less than 0.1% of Telegram users, but had issues with bots and scammers.
In its place, we will be launching “Businesses Nearby”, showcasing legitimate, verified businesses. These businesses will be able to display product catalogs and accept payments seamlessly.
We’ve also disabled new media uploads to Telegraph, our standalone blogging tool, which seems to have been misused by anonymous actors.
While 99.999% of Telegram users have nothing to do with crime, the 0.001% involved in illicit activities create a bad image for the entire platform, putting the interests of our almost billion users at risk.
That’s why this year we are committed to turn moderation on Telegram from an area of criticism into one of praise.

Image: Cath Virginia / The Verge, Getty Images

In a post on Telegram Friday, founder and CEO Pavel Durov set out a new approach for the app and announced it’s disabled some “outdated” features. The first changes to the app following his arrest in France last month affect its built-in blog posts and a “People Nearby” location-based feature.

The changes come as Durov attempts to reverse Telegram’s reputation as a hotspot for criminal activity that came as a result of lax moderation policies. In late August, French authorities arrested and charged Durov with enabling legal transactions and complicity in the distribution of child sexual abuse material.

Durov’s first post-arrest statement Thursday said, “Telegram’s abrupt increase in user count to 950M caused growing pains that made it easier for criminals to abuse our platform. That’s why I made it my personal goal to ensure we significantly improve things in this regard.” He also said that during the four-day interview after his arrest, “I was told I may be personally responsible for other people’s illegal use of Telegram, because the French authorities didn’t receive responses from Telegram.”

Telegram has since reworked some of its language surrounding private chats and moderation and followed up with these new updates. It’s also adding Star giveaways and enabling a reading mode for its in-app browser.

“While 99.999% of Telegram users have nothing to do with crime, the 0.001% involved in illicit activities creates a bad image for the entire platform,” Durov’s message says. “That’s why this year we are committed to turn moderation on Telegram from an area of criticism into one of praise.”

Durov says the service has stopped new media uploads to its standalone blogging tool, Telegraph, because it was “misused by anonymous actors.”

Launched in 2016, Telegraph lets anyone anonymously create a post, upload media, and then share the webpage on social media or Telegram. However, security researchers reported that bad actors use the tool to carry out phishing scams by creating phony website landing pages or notices that trick users into divulging personal information.

Telegram has also removed its People Nearby feature, which lets you find and message other users in your area. Durov says the feature has “had issues with bots and scammers” and was only used by less than 0.1 percent of users. Telegram will replace this feature with “Businesses Nearby” instead, allowing “legitimate, verified businesses” to display products and accept payments.

Here’s Durov’s full message:

Telegram has reached 10 million paid subscribers. 10 million people are now enjoying Telegram Premium!

Today, we’re introducing new features while phasing out a few outdated ones.

We’ve removed the People Nearby feature, which was used by less than 0.1% of Telegram users, but had issues with bots and scammers.

In its place, we will be launching “Businesses Nearby”, showcasing legitimate, verified businesses. These businesses will be able to display product catalogs and accept payments seamlessly.

We’ve also disabled new media uploads to Telegraph, our standalone blogging tool, which seems to have been misused by anonymous actors.

While 99.999% of Telegram users have nothing to do with crime, the 0.001% involved in illicit activities create a bad image for the entire platform, putting the interests of our almost billion users at risk.

That’s why this year we are committed to turn moderation on Telegram from an area of criticism into one of praise.

Read More 

Spectators and cyclists during a heatwave coinciding with the Paris Olympics on August 4th, 2024. | Photo by Magali Cohen / Hans Lucas / AFP via Getty Images

The Northern Hemisphere just experienced the hottest summer on record since at least 1940, even topping last year’s record-breaking season, according to the European Union’s Copernicus Climate Change Service.
“The temperature-related extreme events witnessed this summer will only become more intense.”
Scorching temperatures so far this year also put 2024 on track to be the hottest year since recordkeeping began in 1850, potentially unseating 2023 for the top spot. Temperatures have risen steadily since greenhouse gas emissions from burning fossil fuels soared with the Industrial Revolution, showing a clear trend in the data.
“The temperature-related extreme events witnessed this summer will only become more intense, with more devastating consequences for people and the planet unless we take urgent action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions,” Samantha Burgess, deputy director of the Copernicus Climate Change Service, said in a statement today.

Image: Copernicus Climate Change Service / ECMWF

Hotter summers can trigger all sorts of negative consequences. Olympic athletes raised concerns about the heat impacting their performance and posing health risks in Paris this year, with many teams opting to ship in their own air conditioning to the Olympic Village. The Games aside, spikes in electricity demand for air conditioning during heatwaves can raise electricity bills, stress out the power grid, and cause more blackouts during the summer.
And when people can’t cool down, heat exhaustion can lead to heat stroke and even death. Heat-related deaths have climbed in the US since 2016, peaking with 2,325 documented last year. This is a problem felt across the world. This June, at least 1,300 people died during the annual pilgrimage to Mecca as temperatures reached as high as 49 degrees Celsius (120 degrees Fahrenheit).
The dataset Copernicus uses for its analysis only goes back to 1940. But other recently published research using markers in ancient tree rings found that summer 2023 was likely the hottest for the Northern Hemisphere in at least 2,000 years.

Image: Copernicus Climate Change Service/ECMWF
Global-average surface air temperature anomalies relative to 1991–2020 for each boreal summer (June to August) from 1979 to 2024.

Even compared to more recent years, this summer was hot. Global average temperatures between June and August were 0.69 degrees Celsius above the average for 1991 to 2020. Every fraction of a degree matters since climate change can lead to much more stark impacts at the local level.
The goal of the Paris climate agreement is to keep global average temperatures from rising more than 1.5 degrees Celsius higher than they were before the Industrial Revolution. Doing so would have tremendous health benefits, preventing between 110 and 2,720 heat-related deaths each year across 15 US cities, researchers estimate.

Spectators and cyclists during a heatwave coinciding with the Paris Olympics on August 4th, 2024. | Photo by Magali Cohen / Hans Lucas / AFP via Getty Images

The Northern Hemisphere just experienced the hottest summer on record since at least 1940, even topping last year’s record-breaking season, according to the European Union’s Copernicus Climate Change Service.

Scorching temperatures so far this year also put 2024 on track to be the hottest year since recordkeeping began in 1850, potentially unseating 2023 for the top spot. Temperatures have risen steadily since greenhouse gas emissions from burning fossil fuels soared with the Industrial Revolution, showing a clear trend in the data.

“The temperature-related extreme events witnessed this summer will only become more intense, with more devastating consequences for people and the planet unless we take urgent action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions,” Samantha Burgess, deputy director of the Copernicus Climate Change Service, said in a statement today.

Image: Copernicus Climate Change Service / ECMWF

Hotter summers can trigger all sorts of negative consequences. Olympic athletes raised concerns about the heat impacting their performance and posing health risks in Paris this year, with many teams opting to ship in their own air conditioning to the Olympic Village. The Games aside, spikes in electricity demand for air conditioning during heatwaves can raise electricity bills, stress out the power grid, and cause more blackouts during the summer.

And when people can’t cool down, heat exhaustion can lead to heat stroke and even death. Heat-related deaths have climbed in the US since 2016, peaking with 2,325 documented last year. This is a problem felt across the world. This June, at least 1,300 people died during the annual pilgrimage to Mecca as temperatures reached as high as 49 degrees Celsius (120 degrees Fahrenheit).

The dataset Copernicus uses for its analysis only goes back to 1940. But other recently published research using markers in ancient tree rings found that summer 2023 was likely the hottest for the Northern Hemisphere in at least 2,000 years.

Image: Copernicus Climate Change Service/ECMWF
Global-average surface air temperature anomalies relative to 1991–2020 for each boreal summer (June to August) from 1979 to 2024.

Even compared to more recent years, this summer was hot. Global average temperatures between June and August were 0.69 degrees Celsius above the average for 1991 to 2020. Every fraction of a degree matters since climate change can lead to much more stark impacts at the local level.

The goal of the Paris climate agreement is to keep global average temperatures from rising more than 1.5 degrees Celsius higher than they were before the Industrial Revolution. Doing so would have tremendous health benefits, preventing between 110 and 2,720 heat-related deaths each year across 15 US cities, researchers estimate.

Read More 

Image: The Verge

Imagine an iPhone. But slightly bigger. And slightly faster. Okay, now add another button to the side. Make it gold. You in?
Apple’s next event is on Monday, and the rumors and reports have been swirling for months about what we will and won’t see. New iPhones are a safe bet. New Apple Watches seem to be on the docket, and there’s strong evidence we’ll get some new AirPods, too. There’s even some smoke suggesting a new Mac Mini is in the offing… but that’s probably coming a bit later.

On this episode of The Vergecast, we discuss all the rumors, reports, speculation, and blatant wishful thinking surrounding the event. We talk a lot about cameras because that’s frankly mostly what iPhones are for now, and we talk a lot about AI because that’s what Apple wants iPhones to be for going forward.
Once we finish with Apple, we talk about the gadget news of this week, which is all the stuff coming out of IFA. It’s a big year for phones, laptops, smart home stuff, and much more, and it’s an especially big year for wild new ideas about how screens are supposed to work. We dig into all of what’s happening in Germany this year.
Finally, in the lightning round, we talk about Verizon’s boomerang purchase of Frontier, Snap’s turn toward in-your-face ads, Concord’s brutal flop, and a new way to make money in the fediverse. Turns out the business of the internet, no matter which part of the internet you’re working on, is complicated.
If you want to know more about everything we discuss in this episode, here are some links to get you started, beginning with Apple:

Apple’s iPhone 16 launch event is set for September
Apple’s iPhone 16 event: how to watch and what to expect
Apple’s rumored Mac Mini redesign may ditch the USB-A port
Is our long FineWoven nightmare almost over?
Ted Lasso could come back for a fourth season
From MacRumors: What Not to Expect at Apple Event on September 9: ‘It’s Glowtime’

And on IFA gadgets:

IFA 2024: all the news from the big Berlin tech show
The Remarkable Paper Pro is as outrageous as it is luxurious
Honor’s superthin foldable is another cool phone the US won’t get
TCL’s new Nxtpaper phones have a dedicated button for maximum monochrome

The Pixel 9 Pro Fold is TCL’s new Nxtpaper phones have a dedicated button for maximum monochrome

Our first official look at Huawei’s tri-fold.
Acer’s first handheld gaming PC is the Nitro Blaze
DJI’s $199 Neo selfie drone is going to be everywhere
Acer’s Project DualPlay concept laptop has a pop-out controller and speakers
Acer’s 14-inch laptops claim 24 hours of battery life from Intel, Qualcomm, or AMD
Qualcomm’s new eight-core Snapdragon X Plus makes these Windows laptops cheaper
IFA 2024: hands-on (and off) with Lenovo’s Auto Twist AI PC concept
Intel strikes back against Windows on Arm

And in the lightning round:

Nilay Patel’s pick: Verizon looks to expand Fios with $20 billion purchase of Frontier

David Pierce’s pick: Snapchat to put ads next to chats with friends

Alex Cranz’s pick: Concord was worse than bad — it was forgettable

Nilay’s other pick: Sub.club is here to help the fediverse make money

Image: The Verge

Imagine an iPhone. But slightly bigger. And slightly faster. Okay, now add another button to the side. Make it gold. You in?

Apple’s next event is on Monday, and the rumors and reports have been swirling for months about what we will and won’t see. New iPhones are a safe bet. New Apple Watches seem to be on the docket, and there’s strong evidence we’ll get some new AirPods, too. There’s even some smoke suggesting a new Mac Mini is in the offing… but that’s probably coming a bit later.

On this episode of The Vergecast, we discuss all the rumors, reports, speculation, and blatant wishful thinking surrounding the event. We talk a lot about cameras because that’s frankly mostly what iPhones are for now, and we talk a lot about AI because that’s what Apple wants iPhones to be for going forward.

Once we finish with Apple, we talk about the gadget news of this week, which is all the stuff coming out of IFA. It’s a big year for phones, laptops, smart home stuff, and much more, and it’s an especially big year for wild new ideas about how screens are supposed to work. We dig into all of what’s happening in Germany this year.

Finally, in the lightning round, we talk about Verizon’s boomerang purchase of Frontier, Snap’s turn toward in-your-face ads, Concord’s brutal flop, and a new way to make money in the fediverse. Turns out the business of the internet, no matter which part of the internet you’re working on, is complicated.

If you want to know more about everything we discuss in this episode, here are some links to get you started, beginning with Apple:

Apple’s iPhone 16 launch event is set for September
Apple’s iPhone 16 event: how to watch and what to expect
Apple’s rumored Mac Mini redesign may ditch the USB-A port
Is our long FineWoven nightmare almost over?
Ted Lasso could come back for a fourth season
From MacRumors: What Not to Expect at Apple Event on September 9: ‘It’s Glowtime’

And on IFA gadgets:

IFA 2024: all the news from the big Berlin tech show
The Remarkable Paper Pro is as outrageous as it is luxurious
Honor’s superthin foldable is another cool phone the US won’t get
TCL’s new Nxtpaper phones have a dedicated button for maximum monochrome

The Pixel 9 Pro Fold is TCL’s new Nxtpaper phones have a dedicated button for maximum monochrome

Our first official look at Huawei’s tri-fold.
Acer’s first handheld gaming PC is the Nitro Blaze
DJI’s $199 Neo selfie drone is going to be everywhere
Acer’s Project DualPlay concept laptop has a pop-out controller and speakers
Acer’s 14-inch laptops claim 24 hours of battery life from Intel, Qualcomm, or AMD
Qualcomm’s new eight-core Snapdragon X Plus makes these Windows laptops cheaper
IFA 2024: hands-on (and off) with Lenovo’s Auto Twist AI PC concept
Intel strikes back against Windows on Arm

And in the lightning round:

Nilay Patel’s pick: Verizon looks to expand Fios with $20 billion purchase of Frontier

David Pierce’s pick: Snapchat to put ads next to chats with friends

Alex Cranz’s pick: Concord was worse than bad — it was forgettable

Nilay’s other pick: Sub.club is here to help the fediverse make money

Read More 

Image: Instagram

Instagram is adding a handful of new features to direct messages, including photo editing capabilities and stickers.
Users will be able to edit photos by drawing on them or adding stickers before sending them via DM, similar to editing features that already exist for Instagram Stories. The company also said users will be able to make their own custom stickers from existing photos and use them in DMs. Put together, the photo editing tools in chats are expanding to be closer to Stories.

Instagram is also adding new chat themes that change the look and design of DMs, like a fall theme or one promoting a new album by pop star Sabrina Carpenter. Users can also now add a birthday cake icon to Notes, the away status-like blurb that is visible at the top of users’ DM inboxes.
Direct messaging has been an area of growth for Instagram, according to company head Adam Mosseri, so it’s not surprising that there’s an emphasis placed on new tools and features. In fact, messaging is so important that Instagram uses it in part to rank content on the platform: in July, Mosseri said that a key thing Instagram looks at for ranking is how much a post is sent via DMs.
“Think about making content that people would want to send to a friend, to someone that they care about, and it will help your reach over time,” he said in a video.

Image: Instagram

Instagram is adding a handful of new features to direct messages, including photo editing capabilities and stickers.

Users will be able to edit photos by drawing on them or adding stickers before sending them via DM, similar to editing features that already exist for Instagram Stories. The company also said users will be able to make their own custom stickers from existing photos and use them in DMs. Put together, the photo editing tools in chats are expanding to be closer to Stories.

Instagram is also adding new chat themes that change the look and design of DMs, like a fall theme or one promoting a new album by pop star Sabrina Carpenter. Users can also now add a birthday cake icon to Notes, the away status-like blurb that is visible at the top of users’ DM inboxes.

Direct messaging has been an area of growth for Instagram, according to company head Adam Mosseri, so it’s not surprising that there’s an emphasis placed on new tools and features. In fact, messaging is so important that Instagram uses it in part to rank content on the platform: in July, Mosseri said that a key thing Instagram looks at for ranking is how much a post is sent via DMs.

“Think about making content that people would want to send to a friend, to someone that they care about, and it will help your reach over time,” he said in a video.

Read More