The Metaverse Isn't Just for VR Headsets

HTC's new Desire 22 Pro smartphone aims to provide a way to access the metaverse without a bulky headset.

June 29, 2022   It's June 29, 2022—National Camera Day! Unleash your inner photographer and snap a few photos today (with permission). Don't have a fancy DSLR camera? That's fine, your smartphone should be good enough. ⏰ Today's Big Stories... in 30 Seconds Today We Watched, Read, and Listened to (so you don't have to): 223 articles, 9 podcasts, 13 press releases, 309 tweets, and 16 YouTube videos 1. HTC Announces Surprising Metaverse-Focused Smartphone HTC wants to change our perception of how we enter the metaverse with its Desire 22 Pro smartphone. With it, people can visit HTC's own metaverse, Viverse, without a headset, and can even pair it with the Vive Flow VR glasses. If you're all in on HTC's VR tech, you can pick up the $400 phone in August. 2. CTL Offers Value Touchscreen Chromebook CTL has a new 14-inch Chromebook to add its PX14 series, this time with a touchscreen display. If for some reason you were holding out for a new Chromebook, you can preorder the new PX14EX from CTL for $499. Just don't expect to have it in your hands until sometime in September. 3. Your Switch Is About to Become Your Favorite Console Again Yesterday's Nintendo Direct Mini was all about third-party games, with a lot of returning fan favorites on the horizon. With NieR:Automata, Return to Monkey Island, Portal Companion Collection, Persona 5 Royal, and more coming between now and 2023, you're gonna need another SD card just to hold it all. 🦑 Go Deeper Despite our hopes, long range EVs are still a ways off. It's a bummer, but maybe Jon Bitner can help put it all into perspective. After all, we still have pricing, charging stations, and overall safety to still figure out. 🎱 By the Numbers Metaverse = Meta? Makes sense to us Data: Ipsos We're not surprised people associate Meta with the metaverse—it's in the name—but we're a little surprised people don't feel the same way about Oculus. Maybe because it's more tied to VR? By the way, shoutout to the 22% who don't think about any of these companies. We wanna talk to that group. 🔥 Today's Hot Deal These JBL Wireless Active Noise Cancelling earbuds are a great upgrade from your wired set, and they're down to $44.99 at Woot right now. Best part? Prime members get an extra $5 off, making them $39.99 and an even better impulse purchase. Don't Miss This Deal 🤓 Nerd Out "That's a heck of a diet." —Kyree Leary, Associate News Editor Why is Jupiter so big? According to some researchers, it's because it ate other planets. Don't worry about the gas giant eating the rest of the solar system, though, because it supposedly settled down billions of years ago. (Share on Twitter) 💎 You Know You Want It  Look at all that space Image: Samsung, Amazon So you need a travel-friendly SSD? We recommend looking into the 1TB Samsung T7 Shield. Not only is it small enough to carry around with you, it works with PCs, Macs, and gaming consoles. Just don't try to use it for all three at the same time. 🚀 Facing the Future Who said we were out of ideas? Electricity and hydrogen already power certain vehicles, but could, say, ammonia do the job, too? Turns out that, yes, it could, and people are already exploring its potential. We just hope they get the smell out. 🗞 Extra! Extra! We've got you covered with the best in daily tech news! See the latest on our site or follow us on Apple News and Google News. Did someone forward this to you? Sign up here. Have something you'd like us to write about? We're always open for suggestions, too. You are receiving this newsletter because you subscribed to the Tech Today newsletter. If you wish to unsubscribe, please click here .   Our editors independently research, test, and recommend the best products; you can learn more about our review process here. We may receive commissions on purchases made from our chosen links. A Dotdash Brand 28 Liberty Street, 7th Floor, New York, NY 10005 2020 Dotdash • All rights reserved. Privacy Policy.   [View in Browser]