The Verge’s Installer No. 131: YouTube Adaptations, Lego Pokémon, and Toy Story 5
The latest edition of The Verge’s Installer newsletter covers the upcoming Hollywood adaptation of a major YouTube phenomenon, alongside new hardware releases and community-driven software recommendations.
The Verge’s Installer newsletter, issue No. 131, has been published, curating a mix of technology reviews, entertainment news, and community software recommendations. Key highlights include the upcoming big-screen adaptation of a YouTube phenomenon, Lego’s Smart Play Pokémon, the release of Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, and Microsoft’s Surface Laptop Ultra. The edition also covers community-driven content such as the CrossPoint open-source firmware project, software tools like Roost and LazyVim, and discussions surrounding the Toy Story 5 media tour and a new Taylor Swift song.
The newsletter notes that the World Cup is approaching, and the author mentions testing Spokenly and buying a full year of GeForce Now. The author also details their recent purchase of an Xteink e-reader and the installation of CrossPoint firmware, an open-source project that has gained popularity and controversy within the e-reading community. Justin Mitchell, the developer behind CrossPoint, shared his homescreen setup, which includes an Unihertz Titan 2 phone, Nothing earbuds, and apps like Vivaldi, Discord, and Audiobookshelf.
Community members recommended various tools: Roost (a messaging app), LazyVim (a text editor), Widow’s Bay (a TV series), Clicks Power Keyboard, Tuna (a Mac launcher), Hank Green’s podcast Humans, Marathon (a video game), Ses (an AI voice dialog bot), Layr (a clipboard manager), and RingConn Gen 2 Air (a smart ring). These recommendations reflect a focus on productivity, minimalism, and specific workflow enhancements among the publication’s readership.
Andrew Stanton, director of Toy Story 5, gave an interview to Polygon discussing the film’s perspective on screens not being villains. The newsletter notes that Toy Story 5 is scheduled for release in two weeks from the time of the newsletter. A new Taylor Swift song has been released in conjunction with the Toy Story 5 promotion, adding to the media tour’s coverage of themes regarding screentime and technology.
The Installer newsletter serves as a weekly guide to technology and entertainment, inviting readers to submit their own recommendations via email or social media platforms such as Threads and Bluesky. The edition underscores the intersection of consumer hardware, software customization, and major entertainment releases, providing a snapshot of current interests within the tech-savvy community.
