Chris Welch
The Verge
New York, NY, United States
Contact Chris
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Past articles by Chris:
Bose just overhauled its entire lineup of headphones and earbuds
Bose has announced the new QuietComfort Ultra Headphones and Earbuds, which both include a new Immersive Audio mode that gives music more spaciousness and a bigger feel. → Read More
Amazon just spoiled the next Beats earbuds before Apple could even announce them
A retail listing for the upcoming Beats Studio Buds Plus was accidentally published by Amazon on Tuesday. The earbuds will offer more powerful noise cancellation and a better transparency mode than the original Studio Buds. → Read More
Google Authenticator finally, mercifully adds account syncing for two-factor codes
The Google Authenticator app for Android and iOS can now automatically sync your two-factor authentication passcodes to a new device that’s logged in to your Google account. The cloud syncing is available in the latest update. → Read More
NBCUniversal’s CEO has been ousted after “inappropriate relationship.”
Comcast abruptly announced the departure of NBCUniversal CEO Jeff Shell on Sunday afternoon. A longtime veteran of the company, Shell admitted “I had an inappropriate relationship with a woman in the company, which I deeply regret.” His exit is effective immediately. Shell had been CEO since January 2020 and oversaw the launch of NBCUniversal’s Peacock streaming service. But after an… → Read More
YouTube TV is testing significant picture quality improvements
YouTube TV has announced it’s testing a higher bitrate and improved transcoding “over the next several weeks.” Upgraded video quality could reach all customers this summer. → Read More
Prime Video adds new Dialogue Boost feature to make voices easier to hear
Amazon Prime Video is introducing a Dialogue Boost feature that makes speech easier to hear. The new option is rolling out worldwide beginning today for select English language Amazon original programming. → Read More
Sonos’ exciting new product category is... commercial audio
Sonos Pro is a new service for businesses like restaurants, bars, retail stores, and doctor’s offices. It lets business owners manage their sound system remotely and includes commercially licensed music and personalized support. → Read More
Dear ChatGPT: Brookfield Place isn’t anyone’s favorite spot in downtown Manhattan.
Casey Neistat’s latest video sees him fully handing the reins over to Chat-GPT 4 for scripting and setting up shots. The AI is smart enough to understand that Casey loves to vlog from his electric skateboard while traversing Manhattan. It suggests some pleasant enough overhead drone clips. But the woefully bland script and dull touristy destinations are where everything falls apart. A mall?… → Read More
Netflix’s Love Is Blind live reunion special was a disaster
Netflix’s planned Love Is Blind reunion live special was significantly delayed by technical issues on Sunday night. It’s the company’s second big live event following a Chris Rock comedy special that streamed in March. → Read More
Google TV’s live guide is getting crammed full of over 800 free channels
Google TV is expanding its lineup of free ad-supported television channels with the addition of Tubi, Plex, and more. Over 800 linear channels in all will be accessible from the live TV guide. → Read More
Google Pixel 7A leak reveals new blue color
Leaked marketing renders of the Google Pixel 7A reveal a new blue color option for Google’s midtier smartphone. It’s expected to be announced at Google I/O in May. → Read More
Party speaker season is upon us.
LG’s latest party speaker, the beefy XBoom XL7, is now available for $599.99. You’re getting a 250-watt system with 20 hours of battery life, an 8-inch woofer, and IPX4 water resistance. It’s got the built-in telescoping handle and wheels for keeping the party moving. Karaoke mode? Obviously. But the real draw, as usual, is all the customizable lighting. The woofer ring lights up, but that’s old… → Read More
WWE and UFC are merging into a sports entertainment behemoth
Ari Emanuel’s Endeavor Group is acquiring World Wrestling Entertainment and will spin out a new publicly traded company that combines it with Ultimate Fighting Championship. The deal is expected to close in late 2023. → Read More
WWE nears sale to UFC’s parent company, Endeavor.
World Wrestling Entertainment has very openly been pursuing a sale over the last several months. And after speculation that has included names like Amazon, Disney, Fox, and others, it seems that Ari Emanuel’s Endeavor (the parent company of UFC) will be the buyer. CNBC reports that both sides are in advanced talks for a deal that would see UFC and WWE form a new publicly traded company. The news… → Read More
This is how you know you’re dealing with a different kind of music app.
My favorite part of Apple’s FAQ about the new Apple Music Classical app is this repudiation of shuffle — from the company that named an iconic music player after the word. Classical fans prefer to not have their movements broken up, thank you very much. Reminder: while Classical itself doesn’t support offline downloads, you can download any album or playlist you’re enjoying from the regular… → Read More
You might never look at eBay the same way after watching this video.
The targeted harassment campaign coordinated by several of its former employees is something that eBay is probably desperate to move past. But last night, 60 Minutes on CBS did a supremely effective job chronicling all the unsettling threats, creepy deliveries, and other torment that Ina and David Steiner endured before authorities cracked the case. I still can’t get over how high up this whole… → Read More
Sonos plans Move (Gen 2) portable speaker for second half of 2023
Sonos is developing a second-generation Move speaker for release this fall. The portable device, model S44, will include more powerful internals and line-in support and will seamlessly support both Bluetooth and Wi-Fi playback — unlike the original. → Read More
Amazon is flooding the zone with new TVs as it crosses 200 million Fire TV devices sold
Alongside news that it has now sold over 200 million Fire TV devices, Amazon has announced new sizes of its Fire TV Omni QLED televisions and a cheaper entry-tier 2-Series that starts at $199.99. → Read More
DPReview’s YouTube hosts already have a new home.
There’s no denying that the loss of DPReview is a major blow for the photography world. Bad move, Amazon. The site has been a tremendous resource with substantive reviews, great tools for comparing cameras, and a vibrant forum community. But there is at least a bit of good news coming out of this: Chris Niccolls and Jordan Drake, the faces of DPReview’s YouTube channel, are moving over to… → Read More
Beats is preparing new ‘Studio Buds Plus’ with more powerful noise cancellation
An unannounced set of new Beats earbuds, the Studio Buds Plus, have appeared in the latest iOS 16.4 beta. The Verge has learned the upcoming buds will offer improved noise cancellation and a better transparency mode. → Read More