Welcome to Installer No. 145

Jay Peters, senior reporter at The Verge, hosts this week's guide to the best tech and culture. Peters recently traveled to San Francisco to try Meta's new hardware and has been exploring new releases across gaming, software, and devices.

Google reveals Googlebooks laptops

Google has released details about its Googlebooks laptops, which appear particularly suited for people using Android phones. The company promises ten years of updates, signaling commitment to the platform. The first five models come from Acer, Asus, Dell, HP, and Lenovo.

Meta launches camera-free smart glasses

Meta is releasing Ray-Ban Meta Audio glasses without cameras. The glasses retain microphones and speakers for music and AI interaction. Battery life is longer than previous models, and new styles are available, including a Clubmaster design that Peters particularly likes.

“Not going to lie, I really like the Clubmaster style.”

Remedy's Control sequel arrives

Control Resonant, the sequel to Remedy's Control, moves the action from the contained Oldest House to Manhattan and strange new locations. Peters has completed the game and loves where the story goes, though he prefers the original's more confined setting.

Horror games for Halloween

Konami's Silent Hill: Townfall, set in a town in Scotland, is receiving strong reviews and is positioned as a worthy addition to the franchise. It offers a timely option for those preparing for Halloween.

Peloton's folding treadmill

Peloton has released the Tread Flex, a folding treadmill designed for people with smaller living spaces. It is Peloton's most affordable treadmill, though it still costs two thousand one hundred ninety-five dollars.

Microsoft's updated Surface Mouse

The second-generation Microsoft Surface Mouse includes haptic feedback, an action button, and can pair with three devices simultaneously. Priced at seventy-nine dollars and ninety-nine cents, it offers a solid option for those seeking a quality mouse.

Logitech's new Blue Yeti successor

Logitech G's Yeti 2 follows the original Blue Yeti, one of the most recognizable microphones ever made. The new version features an LED display and can track voice with an audio proximity sensor.

Brad Bourque's homescreen setup

Brad Bourque, who joined The Verge's commerce team to cover deals and gaming tech, uses a Pixel 9 Pro XL with a mellow green plant wallpaper on his homescreen and a fan-made Tekken Tag Tournament poster on his lockscreen.

“It doesn't have to make sense if the vibes are right.”

Bourque's favorite mobile games

Bourque plays Idle Obelisk Miner, an idle game he started a month and a half ago and has reached three point one six percent completion on. He also plays Nubby's Number Factory, an oddball roguelike with funky style and charm reminiscent of old Adobe Flash browser games.

Bourque's current gaming focus

Bourque is working through Destiny 2 expansions he missed and finishing old collections following the final major update. He is also playing Old School RuneScape extensively, drawn to how different it is from other MMOs like World of Warcraft.

Bourque's entertainment and music

Bourque watches Game Changer, Dropout TV's groundbreaking game show where rules change each episode, religiously on Monday evenings. For music, he listens to Janelle Monáe's The Age of Pleasure and Tom Misch's Full Circle, and has been enjoying vinyl records for their ritual and rhythm.

Community picks: NostalgiaTV and Fire Emblem

Installer readers recommend NostalgiaTV, an app for self-hosted media servers that creates live TV channels from your library. Another reader is playing Fire Emblem: Fortune's Weave in the evenings and reading The Iliad during weekday evenings and weekend mornings.

“Totally unnecessary and also way more fun than I thought it would be.”

Community picks: Planet Money and The God of the Woods

A reader discovered Planet Money's new book at their library and is pleasantly surprised by how good it reads. Another is reading The God of the Woods by Liz Moore, which is being adapted into a Netflix show and describes the mystery as hard to put down.

Community picks: Star Wars and film photography

A reader is in the final act of Star Wars Zero Company and calls it very good. Another recently returned to film photography after years of iPhone shooting, rediscovering their Ricoh GRIII and Olympus XA2 cameras and enjoying the patience required for film development.

Peters reflects on travel challenges

Peters struggled during his Meta campus visit, unable to follow his tip from last week about eating at familiar restaurants while traveling. A busier schedule and limited eating options on Meta's campus left him tired and hungry, though he did enjoy protein bars.

“Boy was I tired and hungry.”