4 Best Smart Displays (2024): Google Assistant and Amazon Alexa - Technology news - NewsLocker (2024)

Ever wish you could smash a tablet and smart speaker together? These devices offer the best of both.

The Hacker Who Hunts Video Game Speedrunning Cheaters

Allan “dwangoAC” has made it his mission to expose speedrunning phonies. At the Defcon hacker conference, he’ll challenge one record that's stood for 15 years.

The cheapest Cybertruck is now almost $100,000

Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge Tesla has stopped selling the $60,990 RWD Cybertruck, the cheapest version of its angular EV truck, Jalopnik writes. At the same time, the company increased the price of the next-in-line AWD Cybertruck by $20,000. Now $99,990, it elevates the EV’s price floor by a whopping $39,000.
The Cyberbeast — the tri-motor version of the truck with more torque and a higher top speed than the standard all-wheel drive EV — is also costlier, at $11

Apple Prototypes and Corporate Secrets Are for Sale Online—If You Know Where to Look

On the hunt for corporate devices being sold secondhand, a researcher found a trove of Apple corporate data, a Mac Mini from the Foxconn assembly line, an iPhone 14 prototype, and more.

Advertisem*nt

Former YouTube CEO Susan Wojcicki Dies at 56

Susan Wojcicki is one of this era's great unsung executives—and was crucial to Google's trajectory from its very beginnings in her garage.

The FCC proposes requiring robocallers to disclose when they’re using AI

Illustration by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) proposed a new set of rules this week that would require robocallers to disclose when they’re using artificial intelligence for phone calls and text messages.The proposal builds on the FCC’s ban on making AI-generated robocalls without the express prior consent of the person being called. The agency now hopes to require callers to say, while seeking that consent, whether they plan to use AI

HexClad Cookware Review: Unjustifiably Expensive

Want some of the benefits of two separate pans, combined into one pan? HexClad has you covered—sort-of.

Google’s Pixel Fold one year later: I can’t wait for the sequel

Photo by Chris Welch / The Verge Using the Fold can feel special, but Google needs to make some obvious upgrades for the follow-up.Continue reading…

Advertisem*nt

LG S95TR 9.1.5 Soundbar System Review: Perfect Audio for Your OLED

This wireless surround sound system from LG sounds fantastic, especially if you have one of the brand’s latest TVs.

A Russian Chess Player Allegedly Poisoned Her Opponent With Mercury

At a regional chess tournament earlier this month, one competitor was allegedly caught on film lacing her opponent's board with liquid mercury.

Acer Chromebook Plus 516 GE Review: A Game-Streaming Laptop

This iterative refresh has an excellent 16-inch screen, good performance (for a Chromebook), and great battery life.

The Sonos ‘Ultimate’ Home Theater System Needs a Lot of Elbow Grease

Sonos software still stands in the way of enjoying the company’s gorgeous, innovative hardware.

The 36 Best Shows on Amazon Prime Right Now (August 2024)

The Boys, Batman: Caped Crusader, and Fallout are just a few of the shows you should be watching on Amazon Prime Video this week.

How Do You Get Drugs to the Brain? Maybe Try a Parasite

A common parasite could one day deliver drugs to the brain. Here's how scientists are turning Toxoplasma gondii from foe intofriend.

How to Watch Billie Eilish and Snoop Dogg at the Summer Olympics Closing Ceremony

The closing ceremony of the 2024 Paris Olympic Games will see a symbolic handover from Paris to Los Angeles that also features a performance by the Red Hot Chili Peppers.

Long-time Google exec Susan Wojcicki has died at 56

Photo: Dennis Troper (Facebook) Susan Wojcicki, Google’s 16th employee who helped jumpstart the company in her garage, ran its advertising business, and then helmed YouTube for most of the past decade, has died at 56, according to posts by her husband Dennis Troper and Google CEO Sundar Pichai.
She joined Google in 1998 and was CEO of YouTube from February 2014 until February 2023, when she stepped down to focus on “family, health, and personal projects.” Troper and Pichai say

Avatar: Fire and Ash hits theaters next December

Disney After The Way of Water, James Cameron’s Avatar franchise is turning the fire up next December.
At this year’s D23 Exp James Cameron, Zoe Saldana, and Sam Worthington announced that Avatar: Fire and Ash will hit theaters on December 19th, 2025. Disney also revealed a new title card that makes it seem like the film will focus on Pandora being engulfed in flames.
Just announced at #D23, our title for the next Avatar film:Avatar: Fire and Ash. Get ready to journey back to Pandora,

Google Researchers Found Nearly a Dozen Flaws in Popular Qualcomm Software for Mobile GPUs

The vulnerabilities, which have been patched, may have novel appeal to attackers as an avenue to compromising phones.

The FDA Just Rejected a Bid for MDMA’s Approval to Treat PTSD

The agency has asked drugmaker Lykos Therapeutics to run an additional study on the use of the psychedelic drug in patients with post-traumatic stress disorder, pushing back its next proposal by years.

The FDA Just Rejected a Bid for MDMA to Treat PTSD

The agency has asked drugmaker Lykos Therapeutics to run an additional study on the use of the psychedelic drug in patients with post-traumatic stress disorder, pushing back its next proposal by years.

Noah Lyles’ Olympic Run Is the New Normal for Living With Covid

Dozens of Olympic athletes competed with Covid as society increasingly treats it like the flu or the common cold. Public health experts warn that it's anything but.

Sony’s adorable Astro Bot controller is now available for preorder

Just look at those eyes. | Image: Sony As expected, Sony’s limited edition Astro Bot DualSense controller for the PS5 is now available for preorder for $79.99. The forthcoming gamepad, which is currently only available through the PlayStation Direct storefront and Antonline, will launch alongside the next Astro Bot game on September 6th, giving those who’ve secretly been wishing their peripherals had more, huh, eyes, another option to consider.This isn’t the first time Sony Int

Nearly everyone working on Nova Launcher has been laid off

Nova Launcher, in a very dated screenshot on top of the project’s website. | Image: Nova Launcher Nearly the entire team working on Nova Launcher, one of the biggest names in Android homescreen replacements, has been laid off. The team is now down to just one full time developer: Kevin Barry, the launcher’s founder.
Barry said development will continue and that he will remain in charge of the project. But team members who were laid off said work on Nova will have to slow down, and Ba

Instagram is testing its own take on Snap Maps

Illustration: Alex Castro / The Verge Instagram has starting testing a new feature that looks a whole lot like Snap Maps.
This allows Instagram users to post text and video updates to a map based on where they were taken. The map is shared with friends, whose updates can all appear alongside each other. It is, pretty much, just Snap Maps, which was originally launched in 2017.
The difference for now seems to be that Instagram may have much more limited privacy settings. Users have to choose a &l

Signal has been blocked by Venezuela and Russia

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Signal is being blocked in Venezuela and Russia. The app is a popular choice for encrypted messaging and people trying to avoid government censorship, and the blocks appear to be part of a crackdown on internal dissent in both countries.
In Venezuela, the blockage follows the disputed results of the country’s presidential election last month, which have led to protests and arrests as president Nicolás Maduro clings to power, according to MSNBC

D23 2024: all the biggest trailers and news out of Disney’s biennial showcase

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Disney’s D23 showcase of new projects from Marvel Studios, Lucasfilm, Pixar, and more is upon us.Continue reading…

Flaws in Ubiquitous ATM Software Could Have Let Attackers Take Over Cash Machines

Six vulnerabilities in ATM-maker Diebold Nixdorf’s popular Vynamic Security Suite could have been exploited to control ATMs using “relatively simplistic attacks.”

ATM Software Flaws Left Piles of Cash for Anyone Who Knew to Look

Six vulnerabilities in ATM-maker Diebold Nixdorf’s popular Vynamic Security Suite could have been exploited to control ATMs using “relatively simplistic attacks.”

You can get the first six Final Fantasy games for around $10 a piece on this weekend deal

Final Fantasy VI is a hallmark of the series thanks in part to its dark story. | Image: Square Enix It’s wild to think that the Final Fantasy series is nearly four decades old, but it’s thankfully less hard to believe you can get all six of the original games in cleaned-up remastered form for just $60. That’s exactly what’s happening now with this weekend deal discounting the Final Fantasy 1-6 Pixel Remaster bundle to $59.99 ($15 off) at Humble (PC), the Nintendo eShop, a

Netflix’s Arcane, Terminator Zero, and other anime series leak

Image: Netflix Several upcoming anime titles from Netflix have shown up on X and 4Chan, including season two of Arcane and Terminator Zero. Today Netflix confirmed the leaks, as reported earlier by IGN.
“One of our post production partners has been compromised and footage from several of our titles has unfortunately leaked online. Our team is aggressively taking action to have it taken down,” Netflix spokesperson Sabryna Phillips said in a statement provided to The Verge.
Netflix&rsq