Meta

Google, Meta, Qualcomm, Nothing, Lenovo, Opera and several other tech companies have announced a collaborative effort to push for "open digital ecosystems" in what appears to be a pointed move against Apple (via Reuters). The group, calling itself the Coalition for Open Digital Ecosystems (CODE), seeks to encourage more open platforms and systems in Europe. Other members include Motorola,...

Facebook parent company Meta today announced the upcoming launch of the $500 Meta Quest 3, its newest mixed reality headset that goes up against the much more expensive Vision Pro that Apple plans to launch next year. Meta claims that the Quest 3 was redesigned from the inside out, and it features "4K+ Infinite Display resolution" thanks to two displays with a 2064x2208 resolution per eye...

Meta today released its overhauled WhatsApp app for macOS, introducing support for group calls, dragging and dropping files, and more. The new native Mac app is optimized for large displays and desktop-class experiences like dragging and dropping files into chats and viewing more messages in chat histories. It also touts better performance and supports WhatsApp group calls from macOS for the ...

Meta today started rolling out a highly-requested "Following" tab in its Threads app, allowing users to view posts from accounts they follow in reverse-chronological order. The app continues to show algorithmically recommended posts under the "For you" tab. The addition of a "Following" tab brings Threads more in line with its rival Twitter, and it will make the app more useful for keeping...

The Threads social network from Meta today received its first significant update that introduces a range of new features that improve the functionality of the social network. Updates include a tab for seeing who follows you so you can follow them back, an option to subscribe to unfollowed users, improvements to activity feed loading times, and translation option to translate posts that are in a...

In a companywide meeting with employees today, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg responded to Apple's announcement of the Vision Pro, according to The Verge's Alex Heath. Zuckerberg said the Vision Pro has no "magical solutions" that Meta has not thought of, and "costs seven times more" than its recently-announced Quest 3 headset. Zuckerberg added that Apple's announcement "really showcases the...

Facebook parent company Meta today announced the Quest 3, its next-generation mixed reality headset launching later this year. The announcement comes just days ahead of WWDC, where Apple is expected to unveil its own long-awaited AR/VR headset. Meta said the Quest 3 features a 40% slimmer and more comfortable design, a higher-resolution display, and up to twice the graphics performance as...

Facebook owner Meta has been hit with a record $1.3 billion (€1.2 billion) fine by European Union regulators for mishandling user information, and has been ordered to suspend the transfer of data from users in the EU to the United States. The fine was issued by Ireland's Data Protection Commission, which regulates Facebook across the EU, after it ruled that the social network's data...

Facebook Messenger's Apple Watch app will be discontinued at the end of this month, according to Meta, ending the ability for users to reply to messages on the service from their wrist. Posts shared on social media carried a screenshot of a notification sent to a handful of users in recent days informing them that Messenger won't be available as an Apple Watch app after May 31, but that...

United States Facebook users who had an active Facebook account between May 2007 and December 2022 can now apply to receive a portion of the $725 million that Meta paid to settle a class action lawsuit over the Cambridge Analytica data scandal. Claims can be submitted on the Facebook User Privacy Settlement website through August 25. Facebook users who want to get a payout will need to...

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg over the weekend announced the upcoming launch of a new "Meta Verified" subscription service that's designed for Facebook users, which will provide verification for $11.99 per month on the web or $14.99 per month on the iPhone or the iPad. Zuckerberg described Meta Verified as a subscription that lets individuals verify an account with a government ID, get a blue...

Meta has scrapped the development of its health and messaging-focused smartwatch, in an abrupt end to the company's plans to directly compete with the Apple Watch. Employees were reportedly told on Friday that work on its smartwatch project would be halted as part of a cost-cutting effort that will involve structural changes to the company. Meta's smartwatch development team will now...

WhatsApp is "far more private and secure" than Apple's iMessage platform, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg has claimed in a new Instagram post. In a post sharing a Meta billboard in New York City promoting WhatsApp over SMS or iMessage, Zuckerberg said WhatsApp is far better for privacy-concerned users thanks to its end-to-end encryption, ability to set messages to disappear after a set period of...

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg has criticized Apple's pricing strategy by claiming that the tech giant typically "charges as much as it can" for hardware, whereas Meta will take a different approach by selling products like its new $1500 AR/VR headset at a "break even" price point, or in some cases even a loss (via Business Insider). In a podcast interview following the launch of Meta's new "Quest ...

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg today announced the launch of the Meta Quest Pro, a new $1500 mixed reality headset that's aimed at "making the metaverse a reality." The Meta Quest Pro has several features that are rumored for Apple's AR/VR headset, which we are expecting to see launch next year. The mixed reality headset incorporates both augmented and virtual reality, and it is equipped with...

Meta is facing a new proposed class action lawsuit that accuses it of tracking and collecting the personal data of iPhone users, despite features and policies made by Apple which are meant to stop that same type of tracking. In August, it was revealed that with the Facebook and Instagram apps, Meta can track all of a user's key taps, keyboard inputs, and more, when using the in-app browser....

Meta is in a "very deep, philosophical competition" with Apple over the future of technology and the metaverse, the social network's CEO Mark Zuckerberg told employees in an internal meeting last month, reported by The Verge. It's no secret Meta and Apple have been competitors for several years, with the rivalry ramping up in recent years over privacy and the different approaches to user...

Facebook parent company Meta today announced that it is raising the price of its Meta Quest 2 virtual reality headsets by $100, making the 128GB version $400 and the 256GB version $500. The price change is set to go into effect on August 1. Meta is adding no new features to the Quest 2 to justify the price increase, and the company says that it is adjusting the price in order to "continue...

Apple is not among the founding members of a new "metaverse" standards body that includes Meta, Microsoft, Sony, Epic Games, Nvidia, Adobe, and others (via Reuters). Announced in a press release, "the Metaverse Standards Forum brings together companies and standards organizations to foster alignment on requirements and priorities for metaverse interoperability standards, and accelerate their ...

Meta, still better known as Facebook, plans to hire fewer new employees for the remainder of 2022 than previously planned, the company's chief financial officer, David Wehner, said in an internal memo obtained by Business Insider that partly blamed Apple. In the letter to Meta employees, Wehner said that the company needs to "take another look at our priorities and make some tough decisions...