Max, Hulu, and Paramount Plus are all heavily discounted for Black Friday Illustration by Cath Virginia / The VergeIf you’re looking to catch up on recent shows and movies — including Shogun, The Penguin, and Dune: Part Two — the upcoming holiday weekend is the perfect time to do so. Thankfully, multiple streaming services are slashing subscription prices ahead of Black Friday and Cyber Monday, including Max, Hulu, an…

Hulu’s best Black Friday deal is back with $.99 a month for an entire year You can’t even buy a bag of chips for $1 anymore. | Illustration by Alex Castro / The VergeHulu is again running one of the best streaming deals we’ve seen in Black Friday sales. Now through December 2nd, new and returning (after more than one month) Hulu subscribers can get ad-supported access to the streaming service for $.99 a month ($9 off) …

Mercedes-Benz now has an Apple Watch version of its mobile app Mercedes-Benz’s new Apple Watch app replicates the functionality of its mobile app so you don’t need to always reach for your phone. | Image: Mercedes-BenzMercedes-Benz announced today it’s bringing popular features from its mobile app to the Apple Watch so owners can interact with their vehicles from their wrists without having to reach for the…

More retractable cables, please The Charger by Counterpart has a built-in 4-foot USB-C cable that can be retracted with the press of a button. | Image: CounterpartThe switch to USB-C has vastly simplified my life, and I am very grateful for it, but I still struggle with cable clutter. Dealing with gadgets and gizmos for a family of four means the outlets on my kitchen counter …

Google’s connecting Spotify to its Gemini AI assistant Cath Virginia / The VergeSpotify is getting support for Google’s Gemini Extensions, which will allow users to search for and play music using the generative AI assistant with natural language requests. The extension was first spotted in the code of the Google app in June, and now it’s rolling out to compatible Android devices, as reported by 9to…

ISPs say there’s no need for new customer service rules; everything is great Cath Virginia / The Verge | Photo from Getty ImagesTrade associations involved in US broadband and wireless service say competition forces them to have good customer service, which may be news to many customers. The comments are in response to the FCC’s October inquiry reviewing the quality of internet and phone providers’ customer support. Ars…

Artists say they leaked OpenAI’s Sora video model in protest A still from a video generated by OpenAI’s Sora. | OpenAIOpenAI first teased its text-to-video AI model, Sora, back in February and hasn’t provided any meaningful updates on when it will be released since then. Now, it looks like some artists leaked access to the model in protest of being used by the company for what they claim is “unpaid R&D an…

The small thing that can keep drivers attentive while using partial automation Image: FordWith more cars equipped with partial automation hitting the road, safety researchers are growing increasingly worried about driver attention and the potential for these systems to cause crashes. A new survey has a possible solution to the problem of wandering attention while using partial automation: let drivers adjust the steering. …

BioWare veteran’s studio shuts down before releasing a game Image: Humanoid OriginHumanoid Origin, the game studio founded by former BioWare general manager Casey Hudson, is shutting down operations. The closure was announced in a post on the company’s LinkedIn page. “Despite efforts to shield the studio from broader challenges in the industry, an unexpected shortfall of funding left us unable to sustain…

Wear OS 5.1 could let you play music on your built-in Android watch speakers Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The VergeGoogle is testing out media playback straight from Android smartwatches’ built-in speakers in Wear OS 5.1, according to Android developer release notes spotted by Mishaal Rahman. That’s in addition to adding support for credential managers in the coming update, which Google revealed is based on Android …

Apple’s latest AirPods Pro are cheaper than the AirPods 4 right now Deals this good rarely stick around.Black Friday and AirPods discounts go together like, well, AirPods and iPhones. We thought the latest AirPods Pro were an incredible deal at their recently discounted price of $189, but they’ve dropped even further at Amazon and Walmart, where you can now pick them up for a new low of $153.99 ($95 off). That’s…

Huawei’s Mate 70 smartphones will run its new Android-free OS Huawei’s new Mate 70 lineup will be the first to offer the company’s HarmonyOS Next that isn’t compatible with Android apps. | Image: HuaweiHuawei has announced its new Mate 70 series smartphone lineup, which will be the first offered with the company’s new HarmonyOS Next operating system that doesn’t rely on Google’s Android services and won’t …

Anker’s 8-in-1 charging station is nearly half off Anker’s orb-like charging stand can power up eight devices, including iPhones, for just $56. | Image: Nathan Edwards / The VergeIf you’re tired of cluttering up your desk with multiple chargers, check out Anker’s MagGo Magnetic Charging Station 8-in-1, because it can probably replace all of them. It’s one of our favorite MagSafe chargers precise…

Rivian gets $6.6 billion government loan to build its EV factory in Georgia Brian Cassella/Chicago Tribune/Tribune News Service via Getty ImagesThe US Department of Energy will loan Rivian $6.6 billion to build an electric vehicle factory in Georgia, as Democrats scramble to finalize their climate agenda before Donald Trump takes office. Rivian, lacking the funds to start the construction process, put its Georgia facto…

Microsoft is killing off its Xbox One-era Avatars in January Xbox Avatar as seen in the Microsoft’s October 2018 Xbox Update video. | Screenshot: YouTubeMicrosoft is shutting down the Xbox Avatar Editor app, reports PureXbox. The Xbox Avatar FAQ says that “due to low engagement and our shift in focus towards delivering other player experiences,” it’s discontinuing the editor as of January 9th, 2025. After…

Star Wars: Skeleton Crew is premiering a day early Disney Plus / Lucasfilm Ltd.While there were only a few days left until Star Wars: Skeleton Crew was slated to debut on Disney Plus, the streamer has decided to bump the premiere up just a smidge. Today, Disney announced that rather than dropping on December 3rd, Star Wars: Skeleton Crew will premiere a day earlier on December 2nd with two episo…

How to use Google Gemini on your phone Image: The VergeWhile Google Assistant is going to be around for a while, the future of Google-powered digital assistants now seems to be Gemini. Gemini comes preinstalled if you buy a Google Pixel 9 phone, and you can install the Android app on older Pixels and non-Pixel handsets. There’s also now an app for the iPhone. Whether you’ve already …

The influencer lawsuit that could change the industry Photo by Liam James Doyle for The VergeOne Amazon influencer makes a living posting content from her beige home. But after she noticed another account hocking the same minimal aesthetic, a rivalry spiraled into a first-of-its-kind lawsuit. Can the legal system protect the vibe of a creator? And what if that vibe is basic? Continue reading…

Video leaks of Samsung’s curvier Galaxy S25 Ultra flagship The edges of the leaked Galaxy S25 Ultra look much softer than the current S24 Ultra flagship. | Image: 1gzlim3 / RedditThe Samsung Galaxy S25 series is poised to launch in early 2025, but a new leak gives us a good idea of what it will look like. A misleadingly titled “S24 Ultra definitely” video posted to Reddit, determined to be the Galaxy S2…

Intel awarded almost $8 billion in bid to protect US chipmaking interests Illustration: Alex Castro / The VergeThe Biden administration is giving Intel $7.865 billion in CHIPS Act funding to boost domestic semiconductor manufacturing in the US. The agreement confirmed by the US Department of Commerce today is the largest award granted under the CHIPS Act to date, though notably smaller than the up to $8.5 billion earm…