It’s been rumored for years, but 2023 might finally see Apple launch its long awaited mixed reality headset. That’s according to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman (and previously reported by Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo), who reports that the device could be revealed ahead of this year’s WWDC, ready to ship this fall. There’s no guarantee that Apple will actually hit this internal deadline (it’s apparently having issues with drop testing), but its announcement still seems closer than ever.
In the more immediate future, Raspberry Pi has a new camera module it’s announcing today. The big addition with the Camera Module 3 is autofocus support, which should allow Pi users to take crisper photographs with the diminutive DIY computers. There are also reports that Apple is preparing to open its first stores in India, a country that’s an increasingly important manufacturing hub for the company.
Finally, if you missed out on our CES coverage this year, then I heartily recommend giving our CES awards a read as a nice summary of the biggest announcements of the show. You can find a complete roundup of our coverage here; just be warned that it’s a little… exhaustive.
For now, here’s a silly tweet to start your day:
Stay tuned, as we continue to update this list with the most important news of today: Monday, January 9th, 2023.
What kind of person would spend $1,186 on a CRT TV / Dreamcast combo unit, and when can I visit them?
Cabel Sasser is the co-founder of Panic (maker of the Playdate handheld) and also, apparently, a sucker for trawling Yahoo Japan auctions.
His annual thread of finds kicks off 2023 with some classic equipment perfect for any retro gamers, an uncle who just woke up from a 17-year coma, or any Sega fanboy / senior news editors you happen to know. And if that’s not rare enough, try this Hitachi Car Navi GPS Sega Saturn with Karaoke.
Android’s Switch Access feature, once part of its Accessibility Suite, is now its own app.
As reported by 9to5Google, Google has pulled its Switch Access feature (which lets you use either physical switches or facial expressions to control your Android phone) from its Accessibility Suite and made it into a separate app. This way, apparently, the feature can be more easily updated. Which is fine, but be aware that you may end up with two separate Switch Access entries in your Accessibility listing — at least, for now.
Curious about this, and Android’s other accessibility features? We’ve got some info for you.
Roblox is coming to Meta Quest.
That’s one of the scoops in the first edition of my new newsletter for The Verge called Command Line, which hit inboxes last Thursday. Also in the edition: an exclusive on how Meta is attempting to fix the bureaucracy in its Reality Labs vision (who knew “pre-meetings” were a thing?), a chat over DM with Jack Dorsey about the promise of decentralized social media, and an interview with Shopify’s COO about the company’s plan to kill meetings.
Subscribe to Command Line to get last week’s edition in your inbox and the next one when it arrives this Thursday.
Transferring games between PCs (and Steam Decks) is about to get easier.
Why re-download a game on Steam Deck if you’ve already got it installed on another PC? Valve has been asking itself that question, too! SteamDB noticed it’s working on a feature where you can transfer games directly over LAN, saving time and/or your data cap.
Steam’s existing vestigial backup feature didn’t work well with Deck; can’t wait to do this instead.
Xbox event expected on January 25th.
Microsoft is rumored to be holding a special Xbox event later this month. Windows Central reports a “Developer_Direct” games show will be held on January 25th with Arkane, Bethesda, and more.
Games like Redfall, Forza Motorsport, and Minecraft Legends are all expected to appear, but Starfield might be skipping the show entirely. Microsoft is expected to announce this event in the coming days.
The Supreme Court won’t block WhatsApp’s lawsuit against the developer of the Pegasus spyware.
In 2019, WhatsApp sued the Israel-based NSO Group for allegedly accessing its servers and deploying Pegasus spyware, allowing it to surveil 1,400 people on the app. With the Supreme Court’s approval, the case will move forward in a California Northern District court.
Netflix’s Inside Job won’t be coming back for a second season, actually.
Netflix initially renewed Shion Takeuchi’s Inside Job adult animated series for a second season shortly after the first half of its first season debuted back in the fall of 2021. Between Netflix’s ordering more episodes, and the second batch of episodes ending on something of a cliffhanger, it seemed very much like the streamer was serious about keeping Inside Job going.
But over the weekend, Takeuchi took to her Twitter account to announce that, unfortunately, Inside Job’s going the way of Blockbuster, 1899, and GLOW.
Your next customer service complaint could be handled by ChatGPT.
ChatGPT has sent the web wild with its surprising and eloquent demos — but don’t forget it’s also a business. Forbes reports that ChatGPT will soon be used by customer service automater Ada, which works with companies from Meta to AirAsia. AI is already widely deployed in customer service, so it’s no surprise that ChatGPT’s skills are being recruited, too.
Best in show.
Becca Farsace and The Verge video team will take you through the best tech Las Vegas had to offer over the last week.
Matter took home our Best in Show award because of its potential for connecting the smart home, but it had plenty of competition on the show floor.
Green light.
And with that, CES 2023 is over.
Now we wait to see all of those screens, chips, sensors, and cars appear in real life. That is, of course, assuming ever actually ship — on the Vergecast we had some doubts about that Sony sedan.
See anything we missed? Let me know in the comments (you can click these posts now, right there on the first line.)
Samsung makes it easy to set up Matter devices.
Version 11.1.08.07 of Samsung’s Nearby Device Scanning adds a new ‘Matter EasyPair’ feature (seen via Sammobile), which automatically alerts Galaxy users to nearby Matter-compatible devices for a speedier connection, similar to Fast Pair on Android.
The update has started rolling out to some users via the Galaxy Store.
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Charles Pulliam-Moore