You can turn this modular clamp-on controller into an N64 or GameCube gamepad
Hyperkin announced a new clamp-on style wireless controller created in collaboration with GameSir. The X5 Alteron features similar functionality to GameSir's GameSir G8 Plus that debuted in 2024 with an expanding telescopic mechanism that can clamp onto smartphones, tablets, and several versions of the Nintendo Switch, replacing the Joy-Cons. What sets the X5 Alteron apart is a modular design allowing most of the controls on the front to be swapped out with alternate layouts, buttons, and joysticks.
Neither company has announced when the X5 Alteron will be available, how much it will cost, or how the alternate control modules will be sold. …
Spotify is finally bringing your friends’ Listening Activity to mobile
Since almost day one, Spotify has offered the ability to creep on your friends' listening habits - but you could mostly only uncover those guilty pleasures on the desktop app. The company experimented with a community feature on the mobile app back in 2022, but it never officially launched. Now the company is finally bringing Listening Activity to the mobile app for real.
Listening Activity is opt-in, rather than opt-out, which is nice. To turn the feature on, you'll need to go into your privacy settings on the mobile app. You can even choose which of your friends to share your listening activity with, just in case you don't want to unfrie …
What surprised us the most at CES 2026
There are some things you can reliably expect to see at the Consumer Electronics Show every year. Companies will announce big splashy TVs, there's going to be a bunch of new gadgets for charging your other gadgets, and the odds are good that a robot or two is going to hilariously malfunction.
But CES always manages to sneak in a few surprises, whether with what has been announced, what hasn't made an appearance, and trends that no one saw coming. We've rounded up the biggest CES 2026 curveballs so far.
Motorola made a book-style foldable
Motorola has really gotten into a groove with its clamshell-style flip phones over the past few years. …
Ikea is expanding its Matter support to two stylish lamps
After debuting 21 new Matter-compatible smart home devices last November, Ikea is expanding Matter support to some of its existing home furnishings starting with two upgraded lamps at CES 2026. The Varmblixt donut lamp is getting a small redesign to complement its new color-changing smart home capabilities, while the new Varmblixt pendant lamp will let you fine-tune the warmth of its white LED lighting.
The original version of the Varmblixt donut lamp featured a glossy finish designed to reflect the lighting in a room, but the new smart version has a soft, matte white finish to accentuate the appearance of its own internal lighting. Using a …
Netflix is bringing back some big franchises in 2026
Last year was a pivotal one for Netflix, as it saw arguably the streamer's two most prominent series - Stranger Things and Squid Game - come to an end. And while Netflix has a number of competing priorities now, its lineup for 2026 also shows it's not quite done with blockbuster franchises just yet.
The company just released its planned lineup for the year and it features plenty of major names. In terms of series, that includes the return of 3 Body Problem (season 2), the live-action Avatar: the Last Airbender (season 2), and The Witcher (a fifth and final season), none of which currently have a premiere date beyond a vague 2026. Other heav …
Ikea’s $10 Kallsup speakers are tiny, colorful, and surprisingly loud
Ikea's new cute, colorful Kallsup Bluetooth speakers cost just $10 (€5 in Europe) each and feature instant Bluetooth pairing. Pair one to your phone, then, with a two-button sequence, another Kallsup can join the party.
You can theoretically pair up to 100. The team I chatted with at CES - where Ikea is making its debut this year - says they've only paired 40 so far in their office. Challenge accepted!
Designed by Swedish designer and Ikea collaborator Ola Wihlborg, the portable square speaker measures just 2.75 x 2.75 x 3 inches. It has small legs on the bottom, a speaker grill on the side, and two pairing and play/pause …
The best tech announced at CES 2026 so far
The CES show floor officially opened its doors yesterday and along with it came a deluge of more announcements and reveals. If you're struggling to stay on top of all the new tech, gadgets, concepts, and AI-powered devices as day two gets underway, we've rounded up some of the best hardware and upgrades that have debuted so far so you can quickly get up to speed.
There's still lots more to come, so you can check back here every day, or catch up on all of The Verge's CES 2026 coverage here.
Lenovo Legion Pro Rollable gaming laptop
How does Lenovo plan to top the ThinkBook Plus Gen 6 laptop it debuted at CES 2025 with a rollable screen that …
The weirdest tech we’ve seen at CES 2026
There's never a shortage of exciting and innovative tech at CES. A superthin TV and tri-folding phone are cool and all, but sometimes the weirdest gadgets are the ones that make us go "huh."
Luckily, there was plenty of wacky stuff on the show floor this year, and we've rounded up some of the most bizarre (in no particular order).
A hair dryer that doubles as a lamp
Instead of stepping out of the shower and having to wave your hair dryer around your head for 15 minutes, imagine just sitting on your couch while a crescent-shaped device hangs over your head, drying your hair as you watch TV or play a video game. Well, that's exactly what a …
Logitech caused its mice to freak out by not renewing a certificate
If you're among the macOS users experiencing some weird issues with your Logitech mouse, then good news: Logitech has now released a fix. This comes after multiple Reddit users reported yesterday that Logi Options Plus - the app required to manage and configure the controls on Logitech accessories - had stopped working, preventing them from using customized scrolling features, button actions, and gestures.
One Reddit user said that the scroll directions and extra buttons on their Logitech mouse "were not working as I intended" and that the Logi Options Plus app became stuck in a boot loop upon opening it to identify the cause. Logitech has …
I played with the Lego Smart Brick
When The Lego Group announced that its biggest innovation since 1978 would be a tiny proprietary computer brick, the reactions were divided. I heard from people concerned this was the death of imagination from a company that's all about imagination - and from people who thought it sounded pretty cool!
Personally, I walked in skeptical. My kids loved Lego's previous computer bricks, the Lego Mario toys, but don't play with them for long because they're predictable and fiddly to use! But I walked out with a grin on my face. These Smart Bricks are far smarter and more imaginative than I expected.
This isn't like Lego Mario where scanning a b …