Researchers say we’re talking less than ever
Researchers at the University of Missouri-Kansas City and the University of Arizona say that between 2005 and 2019, the number of words we speak out loud to another human being fell by nearly 28 percent. And that has likely only gotten worse following the pandemic.
The researchers actually counted the number of words we were speaking on average (16,632 in 2005). They looked at data from 22 studies in which over 2,000 people recorded audio of their daily lives. Over time, as ordering through apps became the norm, texting increased, and our lives became increasingly online, they found that number had dropped dramatically. By 2019, we were onl …
Sharge’s fast Qi2.2 MagSafe battery is down to $70 with a free USB-C cable
I’ve been testing compact, magnetic Qi2 power banks that can snap onto your phone for an upcoming buying guide. They make recharging much easier than bringing along a huge battery that weighs down your bag. One of my favorites so far is the Sharge Icemag 3, a 10,000mAh model that can wirelessly output 25W to iPhone 16-series phones and newer models. It also offers a built-in kickstand and a 35W USB-C cable that doubles as a lanyard, plus a USB-C port for passthrough charging.
For a limited time, Amazon Prime subscribers can get it in either white or black for $69.90 ($10 off), and Sharge will include a basic 60W USB-C cable for free when you add both items to your cart. Alternatively, you can get the Icemag 3 for $2 less (sans the free cable) through Sharge’s own storefront. Using code ICE15 will knock it down to $67.92.
Sharge Icemag 3 Power Bank
Where to Buy:
I’ll save my detailed charging speed test results for a later date, but I’m impressed so far with the Icemag 3. While it’s thicker than some other Qi2 power banks, the build quality is stellar, and it’s speedy when it comes to both wired and wireless charging. I also adore its see-through window, which showcases an LED-packed fan that keeps the battery cool while it recharges my gear. Plus, a free USB-C cable is a nice little gift.
The Govee smart lamp brightened up my room, and then my life
I knew things were not quite right when I had to throw a towel over a broken Ikea lamp to block out its light. How did I get here? I cover fancy and capable tech for a living, and yet, it took me two years to get rid of a pair of old, broken Ikea lamps in my bedroom. Then I got some floor lamps from Govee that changed everything.
Those Ikea lamps were around for two years after I moved from Orange County to Los Angeles. Soon after that move, my mom's Parkinson's disease - a neurodegenerative condition with no cure - progressed quickly, my mental health took a hit, and most of my own to-do list quietly slid to the back burner as she lost mob …
Xbox’s weirdest studio is on a roll
For a while there, it seemed like Double Fine might be struggling under the Microsoft corporate umbrella. The game studio led by Tim Schafer is beloved for offbeat titles like Brütal Legend and Broken Age, but after being acquired by Microsoft in 2019, its only new release for years was a long-awaited sequel to Psychonauts. Of late, though, Double Fine is on something of a roll. Last year the studio released the wonderfully strange Keeper, a game about a sentient lighthouse. This week, it launched Kiln, a multiplayer brawler with adorable spirits and a whole lot of pottery. It's yet another oddball delight that could only come out of Double …
Sho Miyake answers life’s greatest questions
Acclaimed Japanese director Sho Miyake has arrived in the States. He's brought with him two feature films: Small, Slow But Steady and Two Seasons, Two Strangers, a pair of naturalistic portraits that deal with the uneasy human desire to relate to other people. Seclusion and unease are bedrocks to Miyake's growing filmography. "I like these characters that have a sense of discomfort that slowly starts to distance them from society," he tells The Verge.
I first saw Small, Slow But Steady at New Directors/New Films (lowkey one of the better film festivals New York has to offer). It's an affectionate story of a deaf boxer, Keiko (Yukino Kishii), …
The most exciting laptop I’ve seen in forever
Hi, friends! Welcome to Installer No. 125, your guide to the best and Verge-iest stuff in the world. (If you're new here, welcome, send me cereal recommendations, and also you can read all the old editions at the Installer homepage.)
This week, I've been reading about NASA seamstresses and friction and Muskism and scooters, highlighting the heck out of Jeff VanderMeer's terrific new short story, listening to the Dissect podcast's new season about Daft Punk, giving Firefox another run as my go-to browser, having my mind blown by amazing music video directors, and nodding along to John Oliver on prediction markets. I've also been dealing wit …
The US gets the worst phones
Apple and Samsung dominate the US phone market, and they've done so for years. Together with Google, they've shaped our sense of what a smartphone is and what it can do, pushing the boundaries of mobile photography, software, and processing power. But over the last few years, they've sat back, content to iterate rather than innovate - and in the interim, China's tech giants have plowed ahead. Now a gulf is growing between the phones on sale in the US and those available in the rest of the world. US phone buyers are missing out.
Some of the blame for that gap lies with Apple. Where it goes, the market follows, and in recent years it's gone s …
Microsoft will let you pause Windows Updates indefinitely, 35 days at a time
Windows users will no longer be forced to run automatic updates in the middle of a game or a busy day. Microsoft is rolling out some long-awaited changes to Windows Update to users on its Dev and Experimental Windows Insider channels, including the ability to indefinitely delay updates up to 35 days at a time.
Last month, Microsoft announced a slew of upcoming changes to improve Windows 11 and address some of users' most common complaints about the platform. Chief among the company's planned fixes was making updates less disruptive. In its blog post on Friday, Microsoft says you'll be able to "extend the pause end date as many times as you …
Alex Jones has uncovered another massive conspiracy
Alex Jones may soon lose Infowars, the digital perch that he's used for decades to traffic in conspiracy theories, to The Onion, the satirical newspaper. But not before he's uncovered something truly dastardly: comedian Tim Heidecker's past (publicly available) work.
"The Onion newspaper has been rocked by the discovery that their new creative director, produced pro pedo/child kidnapping, torture and murder programs," Jones wrote on X on Friday. "Below is an actual mug shot of the creep.." he continued. Included in the post is a fake mugshot of Heidecker taken from a 2017 Adult Swim courtroom series, in which he's standing trial for 20 coun …
The person who allegedly leaked Paramount’s new Avatar movie has been arrested
Following Paramount Skydance's move to launch an investigation into how its upcoming Avatar Aang: The Last Airbender animated feature leaked onto the internet, a suspect has been taken into custody by police.
The Straits Times reports Singaporean police have arrested a 26-year-old man who is alleged to have uploaded the new Avatar movie (previously titled The Legend of Aang: The Last Airbender) online after accessing a server where the project was being held ahead of its scheduled October 9th premiere on Paramount Plus. According to the authorities, a copy of the entire movie was found on the suspect's electronic devices. If he is ultimatel …