Tile is prepping an AirTags competitor that could let you find lost items through walls

Image: Tile Tile is working on a new tracker that relies on ultra-wideband (UWB) technology, which would put the company in direct competition with Apple’s yet-to-be-announced AirTags, according to a report from TechCrunch . The new tracker would go ... more - theverge

How we exercised during quarantine

Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge With all the mental burdens that came with living in 2020 — including gyms closing their doors — many have found it tough to get in their normal level of exercise. Here at The Verge , we coped with this as ... more - theverge

10 great games to play on your new 2020 VR headset

Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge If you received a virtual reality gaming headset this holiday season, congratulations! Whether you’ve got the newly released Oculus Quest 2, one of the last few units of the now discontinued Oculus Rift S, ... more - theverge

12 great apps for your new iPhone in 2020

Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge If you’re lucky enough to have unwrapped a new iPhone as a holiday gift this year, you’ll probably want to install some new apps on it. Fortunately, we’re here to help with some suggestions. We’ve included ... more - theverge

The New York Times’ crossword can now haunt your living room in augmented reality

I’ve done it. | New York Times A miniature New York Times crossword can now float above your couch, courtesy of an augmented reality effect available on the Times ’ Instagram page. Pull up the effect on your phone, and a prompt will appear saying, “The ... more - theverge

You can now play Microsoft’s Flight Simulator in VR

Image: Microsoft Microsoft Flight Simulator has always been about making you feel like a pilot, but you’ve never been able to experience it in VR — until today. With today’s free update, Asobo Studio has added support for OpenXR-compatible headsets, ... more - theverge

12 predictions for the consumer internet in 2021

I like to end each year by surveying you all about your predictions for social networks and the broader consumer internet in the 12 months to come. One, it’s a lot of fun. And two, a year later I get to read the predictions back and feel extremely dumb. ... more - theverge

Baby Yoda can live on your desk thanks to AR and Google Search

Grogu’s face upon realizing he lives with me. | Image: Lucasfilm Ltd. Google has added Grogu (formerly Baby Yoda) to its augmented reality search results, so some quick typing can drop an AR version of the little guy straight into your bedroom or home ... more - theverge

You can now try on makeup from your home with the power of AR

Google’s new shopping feature will let people virtually try on makeup, the company announced in a blog post. Another feature will show the products on various models. Only lipstick and eyeshadow are part of the feature. It is also limited to a few brands, ... more - theverge

Facebook is temporarily disabling some Messenger and Instagram features in Europe

Some Messenger and Instagram features aren’t available in Europe. Facebook is notifying Messenger and Instagram users in Europe that some features are temporarily unavailable. A small message has appeared in both the Facebook Messenger and Instagram ... more - theverge

Why Half-Life: Alyx is my game of the year

Image: Valve Half-Life 2 is one of the last things that makes me feel like a fan, and that’s why I was afraid of Half-Life: Alyx . Writing about video games changed my relationship with the medium. I’m used to analyzing exactly why I like my favorite ... more - theverge

Oculus is shipping the Quest 2 Elite Strap again and extending its warranty after quality issues

Photo: Oculus Oculus is resuming shipments of its Quest 2 Elite Strap accessory and extending the warranty after reports of defective straps. As UploadVR reported earlier, the Facebook-owned virtual reality company paused Elite Strap shipments in November, ... more - theverge

Google adds more AR animals to mobile Search and most of them are pretty cute

Giant AR cat is giant | Google Google has added 50 new augmented reality animals to Search which can be either cute, or in the case of the giant cat in the photo above, a bit disconcerting. Of course it’s possible that I find the giant kitty menacing ... more - theverge

You can still get free Stadia hardware when you buy Cyberpunk 2077

Image: CD Projekt Red It’s a different kind of Cyber week. Cyber Monday is in the past, but the anticipated Cyberpunk 2077 game has finally launched, and it’s almost impossible to avoid seeing buzz about it online. One of this week’s best deals is aimed ... more - theverge

Medal of Honor’s first VR spinoff falls apart when the shooting stops

EA Medal of Honor: Above and Beyond, the new VR-only title from Respawn Entertainment, can’t get by on authenticity alone. It has the weaponry and set dressing players have come to expect from a first-person shooter set during WWII. But for a console ... more - theverge

The Oculus Rift S is $100 off at several retailers

Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge Oculus has knocked $100 off the cost of its Rift S tethered virtual reality headset, which brings the price down to $299. This makes it the same price as the Oculus Quest 2 standalone headset that doesn’t require ... more - theverge

German regulators are investigating Facebook for its controversial Oculus account rules

Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge Germany’s competition watchdog is investigating Facebook for tying its social app to its Oculus virtual reality headsets. Today, the Bundeskartellamt or Federal Cartel Office (FCO) announced a probe of the ... more - theverge

If you’ve got an older iPhone, your FaceTime calls just got better

Photo by Dan Seifert / The Verge When Apple released iOS 14.2 last month, it didn’t mention that FaceTime calls would now be in 1080p for older iPhones. As MacMagazine notes, Apple has updated the product comparison pages of the iPhones 8, X, XR, XS, ... more - theverge

Varjo’s dual-resolution VR and AR headsets just got crisper and cheaper

Varjo Virtual reality company Varjo, known for its unusual dual-resolution displays, has a new generation of virtual and augmented reality headsets. It’s promising even higher resolution, a wider field of view, and AR with advanced depth mapping. Varjo’s ... more - theverge

Super Nintendo World opens on February 4th with AR Mario Kart rollercoaster

Universal Studios Japan has announced an opening date for its long-awaited Nintendo-themed area. The Super Nintendo Land zone will open at the Osaka theme park on February 4th, 2021. That’s actually a little earlier than expected — last month Nintendo ... more - theverge

Oculus has discounted VR games and experiences for Black Friday

Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge Oculus is hosting a big sale on games and experiences for Black Friday, with more discounts coming on Cyber Monday. There are plenty of standalone deals, but Oculus has also curated several bundles, each one ... more - theverge

Google and Disney team up for a Mandalorian AR experience

The Mandalorian just jetpacked into your living room | Google/Disney Google and Disney have teamed up for a new AR experience featuring The Mandalorian and yes, Baby Yoda is involved. The Mandalorian AR experience “puts you in the shoes of a bounty hunter ... more - theverge

Go read this story about resurrecting Sega VR

In the annals of video games, there are an uncountable number of products — canceled games, scrapped hardware — that feel as though they’re lost to time. But most of the time they’re only forgotten, not lost. And that’s where the Video Game History Foundation ... more - theverge

Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp update brings AR features for newer devices

Image: Nintendo Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp , the smartphone entry in the long-running Nintendo franchise, has been updated with a pair of new augmented reality features. The first, AR Camera, lets you place characters and furniture from the game in ... more - theverge

Oppo shows off concept rolling phone and AR glasses

Oppo has held its second annual “Inno Day,” an event where it shows off products in concept form and sets out its vision for the future. Headlining this year is a smartphone with an expandable “rolling” screen and a new set of AR glasses. The Oppo X ... more - theverge

The VR arcade that Disney crowned is teetering on the brink of extinction

Photo by ILMxLab The Void was the poster child for virtual reality arcades, a future that once seemed bright — we covered it numerous times at The Verge , particularly after Disney and ILMxLab chose to bring Star Wars , Wreck-It Ralph and Avengers experiences ... more - theverge

Google is shutting down its VR field trip app Expeditions

Google is ending support for its Expeditions virtual reality app. The app, which offered educational VR tours, will be removed from iOS and Android app stores on June 30th, 2021. “The majority” of its tours will be migrated to Google’s separate Arts ... more - theverge

Oculus rolls out support for 90Hz games in first big Quest 2 update

Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge Oculus has rolled out its first big update for the Quest 2 standalone virtual reality headset, fulfilling a few promises it made when the headset launched last month. Headlining the new features is the 90Hz ... more - theverge

Half-Life: Alyx now has over three hours of developer commentary

Pick up these headsets in-game to listen to commentary It’s worth replaying through Half-Life: Alyx from start to finish once more — if only because Valve’s development team just added over three hours of audio commentary to the VR-only game that launched ... more - theverge

Verge readers can save $100 on Segway’s Max e-scooter with a long 40-mile range

The Segway Ninebot KickScooter Max, AKA the Segway Max | Segway Ninebot The Segway Max is probably a good fit for you if you’re looking for an electric scooter that can travel up to 40 miles per charge — far longer than most other models. The Max happens ... more - theverge