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 Apple's iPhone became qualified for extended use in space back in February, and during the Artemis II mission to the Moon in April, NASA astronauts shared several photos taken with the iPhone 17 Pro Max.
Like watching sunset at the beach from the most foreign seat in the cosmos, I couldn't resist a cell phone video of Earthset. You can hear the shutter on the Nikon as @Astro_Christina is hammering away on 3-shot brackets and capturing those… pic.twitter.com/8aWnaFJ69c
— Reid Wiseman (@astro_reid) April 19, 2026
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Gemini can call around to find that one travel essential you forgot about.
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Sony is adopting new age verification policies for PlayStation users in the UK and Ireland. The company isn't making this a blanket requirement, but steps to confirm age will be needed to access "communication, broadcasting, and certain in-game features" beginning in June 2026. That includes essentials for online and social gamers, such as joining a party, voice chatting, text messaging or using third-party chat programs such as Discord. Some in-game communication tools, like chats or sharing user-generated content, will also only be available after an age check is completed. Although the new requirements will not be enforced until summer, users are already being prompted to get the verification process squared away.
Several states and countries began adopting this type of legislation in 2025, pushing restrictions as a way to protect children and teens from inappropriate content. It seems the trend will be continuing into this year, despite the concerns about privacy risks and new questions about whether these restrictive laws are even effective at their stated goals, but companies have still been moving to comply. Discord was one of the more notable gaming-centr
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Meta is testing out a premium version of its messaging app, called WhatsApp Plus, that will include several paywalled features. As first spotted by WABetaInfo, Meta is currently rolling out a paid version of WhatsApp, which features mostly cosmetic upgrades. According to the Help Center page, WhatsApp Plus subscribers will get access to premium stickers that can have special effects and the ability to personalize the app's themes and icons.
Beyond the decorative elements, WhatsApp Plus users can pin up to 20 chats, set a premium ringtone for certain contacts and further customize chat lists with alerts, ringtones and themes. According to WABetaInfo, WhatsApp is exploring more features for its premium plan, but there's no exact pricing announced yet. Subscription costs currently range from 229 Pakistani Rupees, or less than $1, to €2.49, or around $3, according to WABetaInfo.
Meta isn't paywalling any of WhatsApp's basic functions, so the ability to send messages, make voice calls and take advantage of end-to-end encryption remains free. However, the introduction of WhatsApp Plus follows Meta also trialing
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