The Vergecast: Ad-Free Edition

Nilay Patel and Dieter Bohn interview CEO of Eero Nick Weaver live at On The Verge in New York City.The discussion includes how the Ring Alarm Pro came together, Eero supporting Thread and Matter, integration of 5G, and what's next for the smart home. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Nilay Patel and Dieter Bohn chat with policy reporter Makena Kelly about Pres. Biden's $1 trillion infrastructure package and what it will do to improve broadband access in the US.Senior science reporter Loren Grush joins the show to talk about Russia destroying one of its own satellites with a ground-based missile.Managing editor Alex Cranz stops by to chat about Apple opening up iPhones and Macs to DIY repairs.Stories referenced: Biden signs $1 trillion infrastructure package into law Biden’s FCC is still deadlocked, and net neutrality hangs in the balance Biden’s pick for FDA chief works at Google Russia blows up a satellite, creating a dangerous debris cloud in space NASA delays ambitious human lunar landing to 2025 NASA’s Moon landing will likely be delayed ‘several years’ beyond 2024, auditors say Blue Origin loses lawsuit against federal government over NASA’s human lunar lander contracts SpaceX’s Starlink reveals new smaller, rectangular user dish to connect to satellites Apple will sell you iPhone parts to fix your own phone at home The shareholder fight that forced Apple’s hand on repair rights Apple reportedly wants to launch a self-driving EV in 2025 with a custom chip The Balmuda Phone is a compact Android phone from a high-end toaster company Meta’s sci-fi haptic glove prototype lets you feel VR objects using air pockets Sonos finally adds DTS audio support to its home theater lineup Hyundai’s restomod Grandeur is the perfect EV for a supervillain Google explains the tradeoffs that led to Pixel 6’s slow charging complaints A look under the hood of the most successful streaming service on the planet Meta goes into lockdown Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The Verge's Dieter Bohn dives into the messy past and uncertain future of Rich Communication Services, or RCS, a new texting standard that Google had been pushing for Android users.Guests include: Sanaz Ahari, Senior Director of Communications Products at Google Ron Amadeo, reviews editor at Ars Technica Relevant links: RCS: What it is and why you might want it AT&T, Verizon, Sprint, and T-Mobile have finally agreed to replace SMS with a new RCS standard A decade and a half of instability: The history of Google messaging apps Google is rolling out end-to-end encryption for RCS in Android Messages beta SVP of Android offers open invitation to help Apple put RCS texting on the iPhone Produced by Andru Marino, Liam James, and Dieter Bohn Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The Verge's Nilay Patel, Dieter Bohn, Alex Cranz, and Sean O'Kane discuss electric vehicle startup Rivian becoming a publicly traded company after executing one of the biggest initial public offerings in history.The crew also cover multiple stories about Apple from this week, Microsoft's Windows 11 SE release, and a new Surface Laptop for schools.Further reading: Rivian goes public in one of the biggest IPOs ever Rivian’s mega IPO is a good test of the meme stock craze Judge orders Apple to allow external payment options for App Store by December 9th, denying stay Apple must allow other forms of in-app purchase, rules judge in Epic v. Apple Apple backs off of breaking Face ID after DIY iPhone 13 screen replacements Tim Cook says he owns cryptocurrency Apple hires Tesla’s former Autopilot software director Johnson & Johnson’s CEO joins Apple’s board iPhone 13 Pro vs. Pixel 6 Pro: what 2,000 photos tell us Microsoft announces Windows 11 SE, a new Chrome OS competitor Microsoft’s new $249 Surface Laptop SE is its first true Chromebook competitor Microsoft partners with Meta to integrate Teams into its Facebook-like Workplace Microsoft fixes Windows 11 features failing due to an expired certificate  Updating The Verge’s background policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The Verge's Dieter Bohn dedicates this week's Tuesday episode to the fractious history and fraught future of USB-C.Guests include: CTO of ASTC Rod Whitby, who has worked with USB-C standards since its infancy Verge senior reporter Chaim Gartenberg, who explains the many variations of USB-C cables Ken Pillonel, a hacker in Switzerland who figured out how to replace his iPhone's lightning port with USB-C Relevant links: USB-C cables are getting new, confusing logos for faster 240W charging standard You can now, technically, build your own USB-C iPhone EU proposes mandatory USB-C on all devices, including iPhones Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The Verge's Nilay Patel, Dieter Bohn, Alex Cranz, and Tom Warren discuss Microsoft's take on the metaverse at their Ignite event this past week.Verge editor Chris Welch joins to chat about his review of the Beats Fit Pro and Apple's third-gen AirPods.Stories from this week: Microsoft Teams enters the metaverse race with 3D avatars and immersive meetings Microsoft is planning 3D metaverse apps for Xbox and gaming Microsoft Loop is a new Office app for the hybrid work era Microsoft’s GitHub CEO steps down Beats Fit Pro review: sporty AirPod Pros with better sound Beats announces Fit Pro earbuds with wing tip design and $200 price Apple AirPods (third-gen) review: new design, same appeal The best wireless earbuds to buy right now ‘Sideloading is a cyber criminal’s best friend,’ according to Apple’s software chief Verizon and AT&T delay crucial 5G expansion over aircraft interference concerns Facebook is shutting down its Face Recognition tagging program Instagram and Twitter finally make link previews work again Zillow reportedly needs to sell 7,000 houses after it bought too many Ford’s selling electric crate motors based on the one in the Mach-E The 2022 Volkswagen ID 5 is a sporty electric SUV with over 300 miles of range Gobble, gobble: GE Appliances wants you to trust its smart oven to cook the perfect turkey  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Nilay Patel and Dieter Bohn are joined by Verge alums Joanna Stern and David Pierce live on stage at The Verge's 10th anniversary party.Stories discussed from "Episode 69" Tim Cook must testify in ebook price fixing case FCC approves T-Mo/MetroPCS merger Google Reader shuts down Intel in discussions to make Apple chips Wii U sales slump Release date announced for first BB10 phones Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The Verge's Nilay Patel, Dieter Bohn, Alex Cranz, and Alex Heath discuss Facebook's new name. Dan Seifert joins to discuss the reviews for Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro as well as MacBook Pro. Mark Zuckerberg on why Facebook is rebranding to Meta Facebook’s new name is Meta What is the metaverse, and do I have to care? Facebook’s Oculus Quest will soon be called the Meta Quest Oculus users are getting a new metaverse home Facebook is adding a mixed reality platform to Oculus Quest Facebook teases ‘Project Cambria’ high-end VR / AR headset Amid the fluff, Meta showed an impressive demo of its Codec Avatars Eight things we learned from the Facebook Papers  Facebook’s lost generation Facebook says it’s refocusing company on ‘serving young adults’ Google Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro review: finally, more than just good cameras The Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro will arrive with a day-one update Intel's 12th Gen Alder Lake chips usher in a new generation of … Amazon Kindle Paperwhite (2021) review: a bigger and better ... Apple AirPods (third-gen) review: new design, same appeal  Adobe brings a simplified Photoshop to the web Sony Xperia Pro-I: A camera first, phone second  Samsung announces cloud gaming for Tizen TVs, offers no further details Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Dieter Bohn hosts a discussion with Verge editor-in-chief Nilay Patel and Verge reviewer Monica Chin about The Verge's approach to reviewing gadgets, focusing specifically on Apple's 2021 MacBook Pro.The crew are still in the process of reviewing the laptop, so the conversation also leads to topics like how battery testing has evolved the past decade, how The Verge scores reviews, and how to find the right angle for writing a review. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The Verge's Nilay Patel, Dieter Bohn, Alex Cranz, and Alex Heath discuss Facebook's plan to rebrand the company with a new name, the products announced at Apple's Unleashed event, and what happened at Google's Pixel 6 event. On The Verge is happening October 22nd and 23rd, and you’re invited  Facebook is planning to rebrand the company with a new name The 8 biggest announcements from Apple’s Unleashed event Apple announces 16-inch MacBook Pro with new M1 Pro and M1 Max processors Apple announces new 14-inch MacBook Pro with a notch Apple’s new MacBook Pro has a notch Apple is ready to admit it was wrong about the future of laptops Apple’s new M1 Pro and M1 Max processors take its in-house Arm-based chips to new heights The new MacBook Pros have one big question mark: battery life PSA: the MacBook Pro 14-inch’s $20 power brick upsell is probably worth it Apple brings MagSafe 3 to the new MacBook Pro Apple’s new 140W charger can fast charge a lot more than just your MacBook Pro macOS Monterey is officially launching on October 25th Apple’s HomePod Mini gets three new color options Apple announces third-generation AirPods for $179 Apple quietly added a MagSafe charging case to its AirPods Pro, too A piece of cloth to clean your Apple devices will cost you $19 Apple Music’s new voice-only plan costs $4.99 per month The biggest announcements from Google’s Pixel 6 event Sundar Pichai and Rick Osterloh think the Pixel 6 is Google’s breakout phone Google Pixel 6 and 6 Pro have big screens, big ambitions, and small prices Google’s Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro finally bring new camera hardware in addition to software The Pixel 6’s Tensor processor promises to put Google’s machine learning smarts in your pocket Snapchat says the Pixel 6 is ‘the fastest phone to make a Snap’ The Google Store is open again, and Pixel 6 delivery dates are all over the place Samsung is adding new watchfaces to the Galaxy Watch 4 Samsung will now let you design your own Galaxy Z Flip 3 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices