Thomas Ricker Profile and Activity - Page 2

Deputy Editor

Thomas' first gadget memory was typing 7734 into his father's inverted, HP-35 scientific calculator. Clearly fated to tech blogging, he would have to wait another 20 years before the rise of the medium. A degree in Electrical and Computer Engineering led Thomas to Silicon Valley just prior to the dot-com boom. In June of 2011, Thomas wrote his 1,362,258th word for Engadget, leaving to help launch The Verge.

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Thomas Ricker Oct 3

Xgimi MoGo 3 Pro review.

At $449, this all-in-one Google TV projector is a good choice if portability is important and you already own a battery with USB-C PD 3.0 output. The speaker is good enough, and the auto-positioned 1080p image looks best at night but remains watchable during the day. A $499 bundle incudes a wobbly PowerBase Stand for about two hours of playback. Mine toppled over onto concrete but the projector survived!

<em>The MoGo 3 Pro can automatically hunt for the best image placement, level it, square off the corners, and focus it all while avoiding obstacles. Xgimi makes it easy to then tweak its best guess placement or turn off the ISA 2.0 tech entirely.</em>

<em>It’s small but not that small, measuring 299 x 159 x 145mm and 1.1kg. And you still have to provide power because this is BYOB: bring your own battery.</em>

<em>The projector can rotate up to 120 degrees which is not enough to point the image at the ceiling. </em>

<em>It can also be used as a Bluetooth speaker when in Ambient Light mode (slightly opened) with colors that seem to flicker instead of actually syncing to the beat of the music. </em>

<em>If you’re not happy with the sound produced by the integrated 2 x 5W speakers at the base of the unit, you can pair your own over Bluetooth 5.1. The MoGo 3 Pro also has GoogleCast built-in, but you’ll need to install MagiCast for Apple’s AirPlay support. </em>

<em>Even in Eco mode you get a decently bright and large image that can be enjoyed during the day, so long as it’s not too sunny outside. A brighter Performance mode takes better advantage of its maximum output of 450 ISO lumens but it’s only available when powered by the included 65W AC wall adapter. Unfortunately, this mode also causes the fan to kick on at a very loud 67dB, which is about as loud as a microwave!</em>

<em>I had to manually adjust the image to fit into this oddball space at dusk. Here, I’d turn off the ISA 2.0 tech at startup or when the unit is moved to avoid having to resize everything manually again.</em>

<em>The PowerBase Stand consists of two 16.1-inch sections to create a short tripod or a longer 26.1-inch tripod with 20,000mAh battery. In my testing, that’s enough power for about two-hours of continuous playback when the projector is in Eco mode.</em>

<em>A better look at everything that comes in the box with the $499 PowerBase Stand bundle.</em>

<em>ISA 2.0 automatic keystone correction kicking in. This can be set to happen at startup, when the device is moved, or never.</em>

<em>This flap doesn’t always close which is annoying. Otherwise the build quality is pretty good, if a little too plastic-y.</em>

<em>The USB and Micro HDMI (ARC supported) ports.</em>

<em>Attaching the </em><a href=https://www.theverge.com/authors/thomas-ricker/archives/

$49 Creative Optical Filter</a> to the front of the projector and downloading the XGIMI Wall app lets you project giant magnified lightshows around your space. Cute, but only worthwhile in very dark rooms. You don’t need this." src="data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7" decoding="async" data-nimg="fill" class="relative top-1/2 mx-auto max-h-full max-w-full invisible" style="position:absolute;top:0;left:0;bottom:0;right:0;box-sizing:border-box;padding:0;border:none;margin:auto;display:block;width:0;height:0;min-width:100%;max-width:100%;min-height:100%;max-height:100%;object-fit:contain"/>

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The MoGo 3 Pro can automatically hunt for the best image placement, level it, square off the corners, and focus it all while avoiding obstacles. Xgimi makes it easy to then tweak its best guess placement or turn off the ISA 2.0 tech entirely.

Photo by Thomas Ricker / The Verge

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Thomas Ricker Sep 30
Musk’s $44 billion Twitter now valued at just $9.4b as X.
The markdown comes courtesy of Fidelity which now values its initial $19.66 million investment in X at just $4.18 million.
The asset manager, which helped Musk acquire the social network formerly known as Twitter, has further reduced the value of its holding in X to a total markdown of 78.7 percent as of August’s end, based on newly released disclosures from Fidelity’s Blue Chip Growth Fund.

Fidelity has cut X's value by 79% since Musk purchase
[TechCrunch]

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Thomas Ricker Sep 27
Amazon x Anthropic cleared in UK.
The regulator had until October 4th to launch a more in-depth probe. Now none is needed, which is good news for the imminent launch of “Remarkable Alexa.”

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Thomas Ricker Sep 27
Combining an electric RV with a range extender just makes sense.
RVs are notorious gas guzzlers, averaging just 10mpg at best. This Class A eRV prototype from Airstream-parent Thor has an impressive 500 mile range: 150 miles from its 140kWh battery pack which can be recharged on the fly with a built-in combustion engine that acts like a generator. The hybrid RV will be available to buy in 2025.

Thor Industries debuts the world’s first hybrid Class A motorhome. Too bad it’s ugly.
Image: Thor

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Thomas Ricker Sep 27
Starlink passes 4M users.
It’s taken just four years and more than 6,000 satellites placed into low Earth orbit — at a rate of about 24 per launch — with service now in over 100 countries.
As noted by TechCrunch:
The milestone would mean that SpaceX has gained a million new customers since the end of May alone. This outpaces the company’s already impressive rate of growth: Starlink started providing beta service of its product in October 2020; it hit 1 million subscribers in December 2022, 2 million subscribers in September 2023, and 3 million in May.
I’ve been a user since 2022 and am currently testing the Starlink Mini — ask me anything.

Starlink is connecting more than 4M people with high-speed internet
[Twitter]

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Thomas Ricker Sep 26
Air France is also going Starlink.
Two weeks ago it was United announcing fast free in-flight Wi-Fi for all. Who’s next?

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Thomas Ricker Sep 26
ESR Geo wallet with Apple Find My review.
The $44 Geo Wallet looks like a normal-sized wallet but has Apple’s location tracking built-in so you don’t have to carry a thick AirTag or one of those bulky “credit-card sized” trackers. The wallet can’t be located with Apple’s “Find Nearby” ultra-wideband tech but it shows up on a map and emits a decently-loud tone when left in a cab or just down the hall.

Exentri wallet — <a href=https://www.theverge.com/authors/thomas-ricker/archives/"https://www.theverge.com/2020/2/4/21080075/valentines-day-gift-guide-tech-gadgets-games-home-ideas-2020">a Verge favorite</a> — which makes the Geo Wallet look giant by comparison." src="data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7" decoding="async" data-nimg="fill" class="relative top-1/2 mx-auto max-h-full max-w-full invisible" style="position:absolute;top:0;left:0;bottom:0;right:0;box-sizing:border-box;padding:0;border:none;margin:auto;display:block;width:0;height:0;min-width:100%;max-width:100%;min-height:100%;max-height:100%;object-fit:contain"/>
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The Geo Wallet is average sized, and definitely not freakishly large even after stuffing it full of cards and cash. If you find the Indiegogo listing annoying (it is), ESR will start open sales on Amazon around mid-October.
Photo by Thomas Ricker / The Verge

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Thomas Ricker Sep 26
RIP iMore.
Last month it was Anandtech, now the Apple enthusiast site founded in 2008 is no more. Both were owned by Future PLC.
iMore leaves the stage at a pivotal crossroads for online publishing, where the battle for readers’ time and attention is more demanding than ever before, and the aforementioned AI advances and search discovery methods further complicate the playing field.

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Thomas Ricker Sep 25
Torras iPhone 15 Pro case review.
Instead of buying the new iPhone 16, I decided to change the look of my trusty iPhone 15 Pro instead. The name might suck, but I’ve fallen in deep like with the $39.99 Torras 360-degree Ostand R Rotated Stand MagSafe Case anyway.
I had no idea I was a kickstand guy!

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I’ve never had a kickstand for my phone before, but now I don’t want to be without it. It’s great for video calls, watching videos, or just keeping an eye on notifications.
Photo by Thomas Ricker / The Verge

Rideables
Rideables
Brompton improves on a good thing with new G Line of bicycles
Thomas Ricker
Sep 24|