In this episode, Chris Cochrane dives into Apple's $599 MacBook Neo - the cheapest Mac laptop ever made - and whether it spells trouble for Chromebook makers. He also covers Samsung's CEO blaming AI for rising phone prices, Framework raising RAM prices for the third time in three months, Meta unveiling four custom AI chips, NVIDIA's GTC 2026 conference preview, a billion-dollar bet against large language models, Microsoft's game-changing Project Helix Xbox with native Steam support, Windows 11's new Xbox Mode, and SpaceX gearing up for a critical Starship Flight 12 test.
Microsoft is planning to hike its Xbox Game Pass Ultimate pricing again in September, alongside launching a new “standard” subscription that doesn’t include day-one access to first-party Xbox games. The Xbox maker has started emailing Xbox Game Pass Ultimate subscribers of a price increase to $19.99 a month that starts on September 12, a $3 increase over the $16.99 a month
The dust is finally starting to settle from Microsoft’s huge acquisition of Activision Blizzard, but even Blizzard president Mike Ybarra still isn’t exactly sure how things will change for the company, The Verge reported. “I literally haven’t sat down with [Microsoft Gaming CEO] Phil [Spencer] and said, “So, what does all this mean?” Ybarra tells The Verge in an interview.
A huge collection of purported Xbox files related to the Federal Trade Commission’s case against Microsoft have been published online, spilling some of the company’s plans for the gaming console into public view, NBC News reported. The files were uploaded Friday to a website hosted by the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, where the FTC is
Xbox provided information about their Enforcement Strike System. The purpose appears to be a means of giving players, who are doing things Xbox doesn’t like, to have a penalty. From the blog post: We are constantly improving our safety measures and bringing more systems and tools in place that empower players to respectfully interact with one another - because everyone
After nearly two decades, Xbox Live Gold will die on September 14, Kotaku reported. In its place is Xbox Game Pass Core, a cheaper version of the Game Pass service that’ll allow gamers to play online together, as well as offer a curated selection of games to play. And, yes, that also means Games with Gold is going away too.
Bloomberg reported that Microsoft Corp’s video gaming chief Phil Spencer said he doesn’t “feel an imperative” to come out with a major upgrade of its Xbox game console. (The rest of Bloomberg’s article appears to be behind a paywall.) Fortunately, IGN reported that Phil Spencer is adamant that consoles are “critical” to Xbox’s business going forward, saying that dedicated gaming