David Pierce

We have all become desensitized. Every place is like every other place, every experience is happening at a remove and on a screen. And Ian Bogost, a Washington University professor and a writer at The Atlantic, argues in a new book called The Small Stuff that this “dematerialization” is making our life worse. He tells us of the magic of paper tickets, why he’s kind of obsessed with the rubber on his water bottle, and why you don’t need to throw phone into the ocean — but you should probably watch more ASMR videos.

Pete Holmes has a lot of good tech takes in this Wired interview. He also, against all odds, made me want the iPhone Air:

Did you see that Bloomberg report yesterday about the Netflix shows that fall way off in their second season? Our friend Ryan Broderick over at Garbage Day has a good take on what’s going on — and why it’s about more than just production times.

We promised ourselves a while back that, if and when the Trump Phone ever arrived, we would immediately go live and talk about it. I’m still not entirely sure why. But we are people of our word, and Dominic Preston and I now have Trump Phones! Update: Thanks to everyone who watched and commented! You can catch up on the stream below, or wherever you get podcasts.

For many of us in the US, it’s the beginning of a holiday weekend. So we figured we’d try and help you out. We grabbed a bunch of Verge staffers, and asked them all a simple question: How do you disconnect? We have ideas about Wi-Fi, about phone hygiene, about smartwatches, and much more. We’re certainly not here to tell you to ditch screens entirely, but… screen responsibly, you know? Send us your tips, and have a great summer vacation!