324: Instagram chaos, Photokina 2018, and Elon Musk gets sued

Summer editions of The Vergecast continue as Nilay and Dieter welcome Ashley Carman and Jake Kastrenakes back to the show to discuss the news that hit the site this week. Elon Musk said he got “verbal” approval from The White House to build a hyperloop on the East Coast, Comcast is back at it again with statements on net neutrality, and we’ve got a few updates in the AI department. Also, Lauren Goode updates us on the newest episode of her series Next Level once again! This week, she visited Dolby Labs to explore their experiments to track people’s emotional responses as they watch movies and TV. There’s a lot more in between that, so listen to it all and you’ll get it all.  02:52 - Pacific Rim: Uprising’s teaser 05:24 - Elon Musk says he has a green light to build a NY-Philly-Baltimore-DC hyperloop 11:47 - Bixby feels more like a return of the old Samsung than a path to the future 20:27 - Next Level episode 2 with Lauren Goode 37:21 - You’ll be able to talk to Alexa on Android phones starting this week 40:25 - Why is Comcast using self-driving cars to justify abolishing net neutrality? 44:09 - Microsoft wants to close the rural broadband gap with TV white spaces 51:58 - Ashley’s weekly segment “Let’s talk about translucent gadgets” 54:26 - Google Glass is back from the dead 58:04 - Snap’s Spectacles are now available directly from Amazon 1:00:18 - How Instagram is reshaping restaurant design 1:04:25 - Apple joined by Foxconn and others in its fight with Qualcomm Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

21 Jul 20171h 6min

Welcome back to another week of The Vergecast. Nilay, Paul, and Dieter sit down in the studio to bring you the news that hit our site this week. First off, the net neutrality day of action was on Wednesday, as was Nilay’s piece on the matter. The gang debate the issue in this net neutrality “season” of news. Halfway through the show, senior tech editor Lauren Goode stops by to talk a little bit about her new video series Next Level, which shows the technology that’s being worked on at some of the world’s most innovative companies and research institutions. You can check out the first episode here. Last, but not least, we have what you’ve been waiting for — phone news! We have a mini Verge mobile show to discuss the deaths and births of the mobile world recently. There’s a whole lot in between that, so listen to it all and you’ll get it all.  03:45 - A Microsoft font may have exposed corruption in Pakistan 07:39 - Comcast, Verizon, and AT&T want Congress to make a net neutrality law because they will write it 23:39 - The FCC says net neutrality destroys small ISPs. So has it? 35:47 - Next Level with Lauren Goode 52:13 - iFixit teardown confirms Note 7 Fan Edition is just a Note 7 with a new, smaller battery 53:30 - BlackBerry KeyOne launches on Sprint, the eternal harbor of innovation 54:25 - Death of Windows Phone 59:47 - The new Pixel XL 1:01:54 - Luxury phone maker Vertu is shutting down its UK manufacturing operation 1:03:27 - Andy Rubin’s Essential is staying quiet on the Essential Phone delay 1:06:51 - Paul’s weekly segment “Mag me later” 1:10:31 - Alexa news Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

14 Jul 20171h 17min

The week of Independence Day, Nilay, Paul, and Dieter get together in a classic format of The Vergecast to bring you the top tech news that hit the site this week. To name a few, we’ve got a review of the Echo Look, a new Android phone announced, and some breaking news in the middle of the show. There’s a lot more in between that, so listen to it all and you’ll get it all. 04:48 - Amazon’s Echo Look does more for Amazon than it does for your style 25:17 - RED is making a $1,200 smartphone with a “holographic display” 32:07 - New report claims iPhone 8 won’t feature fingerprint sensor in display 41:08 - Ashley’s segment “Spotted” 42:16 - Qualcomm is trying to ban iPhones from being sold in the US 51:24 - Paul’s weekly segment “TOOTHPASTE PODS” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

7 Jul 201757min

Did you know it was the iPhone's 10th anniversary on Thursday? The Vergecast knows. Nilay, Dieter, and Paul talk about what the iPhone means to them, to the industry, and to the entire universe. With just a slight tangent to talk about Orbs for Kings. Better yet, Nilay interviewed Verge reporter Russell Brandom about the Petya ransomware. It's a segment Russell calls "CyberTalk," but Nilay wants to call it "Brandom Security with Russell Brandom." Please vote in the comments. 1:00 - The iPhone turns 10 21:56 - iPhone or smartphones: which had the bigger impact? 31:50 - Petya ransomware in “Brandom Security with Russell Brandom” / “CyberTalk” 47:15 - Amazon Echo Show Review 55:31 - iOS 11 preview 66:00 - ARKit 72:30 - Paul’s weekly segment “Spin Safety” 74:50 - Galaxy Note 7 (Fandom Edition) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

30 Jun 20171h 22min

Here we go, another classic episode of The Vergecast. There were a lot of little things that happened this week, and we wanted to discuss them all, so Nilay, Dieter, and Paul go through their list of hits on the site. Also, to continue our weekly summer interview series, Nilay sits down with culture reporter Kaitlyn Tiffany to talk about her recent piece on Tumblr’s relationship with the fight over net neutrality. There’s so much in between all of this, so listen to it all, and you’ll get it all. 01:17 - OnePlus 5 4:29 - Scott Forstall breaks silence to talk about the iPhone’s creation 10:34 - First look at Samsung’s Bixby Voice preview for Galaxy S8 13:58 - Samsung’s Galaxy Note 8 will reportedly be announced in August 17:10 - Amazon's new Dash Wand is half magic, half boring 21:12 - You can now watch your smart home camera from an Amazon Echo Show 27:48 - Verizon is killing Tumblr’s fight for net neutrality with Kaitlyn Tiffany 45:36 - Travis Kalanick resigns as Uber CEO 1:00:00 - Paul’s weekly segment “My Dinner with Andre” 1:02:59 - iPad Pro 12.9 review: a great iPad, one I won’t buy 1:03:57 - 3.33 years after its release, someone actually beat Threes 1:04:58 - Microsoft now lets Surface Laptop owners revert to Windows 10 S 1:07:11 - You won’t be able to use your Surface Book if you want to take the bar in Tennessee Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

23 Jun 20171h 14min

Day two of The Vergecast this week! Yesterday, Nilay interviewed Brian Merchant, author of The One Device: The Secret History of the iPhone. Today, we have another full episode with a lot going on. First off, E3 happened this week, and there’s a ton of news in the gaming world. Paul interviews culture reporter Megan Farokhmanesh (who is at the expo) live on tape to talk about what happened on the show floor, the press conferences, and the multitude of games that were shown. Next, Dieter and Nilay have a fun conversation with special guest Panos Panay from Microsoft to talk about Microsoft’s newest product, the Surface Laptop. And, of course, we have new reviews out this week! Along with the Surface Laptop, Nilay, Paul, and Dieter discuss the 10.5-inch iPad Pro and the future of these new kinds of computers. There’s a whole mess of stuff in between that, so listen through it all, and you’ll get it all. 05:37 - Xbox One X 13:47 - E3 2017 with Megan Farokhmanesh 34:44 - Panos Panay interview 1:00:57 - 10.5-inch iPad Pro and Surface Laptop reviews 1:17:44 - Paul’s weekly segment “I C Seed; so much seeing” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

16 Jun 20171h 23min

We’re doing two episodes of The Vergecast this week — the usual one on Friday, and this very special edition with Brian Merchant, author of The One Device: The Secret History of the iPhone. We ran a big excerpt of the book this week, and we got deep on talking about the book, where it came from, and Merchant’s feeling that we should know more about the technology products in our lives — and know more about the hundreds of people who make them, from the unsung engineers at tech companies to the extremely unsung miners who dig the raw materials out of the ground. And, of course, we talk about the quotes from Tony Fadell and Bill Bilbrey in the excerpt we just published, in which Fadell tells a story about Phil Schiller arguing the iPhone should have a hardware keyboard. Schiller has said the story isn’t true, and Fadell has tried to walk it back as well. “So I wasn't in the room at Apple 10, 15 years ago when this would have happened,” says Merchant, who has the exchange on tape. “But this is a quote verbatim as Tony Fadell who was in the room told it to me. He told me this quote in such detail and he gave such a vivid account and I had no reason to believe it was untrue.” Merchant says the controversy has “blown him away.” “It certainly wasn't intended to make Phil Schiller look dumb. It was an opposing viewpoint... I think that it's totally fine to be a dissenting voice and want to contextualize this emergent technology and even be opposed to it. Why would you not have someone in the room who is forcing people to think critically about this potentiality?” There’s a lot more on the podcast, including a deep dive into the early research projects at Apple exploring touch interfaces. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

15 Jun 20171h 3min

This week, it’s Apple’s turn to take over The Vergecast. Dieter and Jake have just come back from WWDC while Nilay and Paul watched from afar so the gang has a lot to talk about with the new products announced. We also have Ben Popper stop by the show to talk about DJI’s newest drone, the Spark. There’s a whole lot more in between that so listen to it all you get it all. 04:56 - Apple announces HomePod speaker to take on Sonos 32:14 - DJI Spark review with Ben Popper 47:22 - Apple announces new 10.5-inch iPad Pro 1:02:51 - Apple is launching an iOS ‘ARKit’ for augmented reality apps 1:06:05 - iMac Pro introduced / macOS High Sierra 1:18:37 - watchOS 4 brings new Siri watchface, fitness coaching, and a new app-browsing UI 1:21:32 - Paul’s weekly segment “Gates-all-around, all around” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

8 Jun 20171h 25min