Hello everyone! Welcome to Installer No. 148, your source for the top and most Verge-like items around. (New readers, glad to have you here during this season of pumpkin treats, and past editions are available on the Installer homepage.)

This week I explored pieces on Marc Andreessen and math's future along with Mike Tomlin and Citizens United, recalled MySpace's peak era, shared an article to make up for poor texting habits, enjoyed the Pet Shop Boys' fresh Alan Turing record and Dwarkesh Patel's AI insights, resisted ordering an iPhone Duo early, pondered that airborne Tesla Roadster concept, and hunted endlessly for phone tripods suited to social clips. Tripods occupied far too much of my attention lately.

I also have a pair of major tech documentaries and numerous devices worth checking out. Gadget season is here! Time to dive in.

(Your suggestions remain the highlight of Installer. What are you viewing, reading, hearing, playing, or packing this week? Share all details at installer@theverge.com. Know others who might appreciate Installer? Pass it along and invite them to subscribe.)

The Drop

You Can See Everything. Few films have excited me as much lately, particularly one running three hours. The mix of Elizabeth Holmes with Nathan Fielder, the deep access granted, and the layered self-reference throughout make it essential viewing from the start. Follow it with Josh Johnson's full hour on Holmes topics for extra enjoyment.
Musk. Another four hours of tech-focused documentary awaits. Reviews have been strong, and even longtime followers of recent events will likely find the compiled narrative impactful.
The Apple HomeView. The new $299 home hub keeps drawing my attention to its purchase option. While my simple smart setup functions well, the notion of a shared family device feels refreshingly classic. Fewer phone glances appeal to me right now.
The new Siri Remote. A full $300 Apple TV unit does not earn my endorsement, yet the $60 Find My remote makes sense. Hold off until your current one vanishes, as these accessories tend to disappear easily.
The Fairphone Fairbuds 2. Fairphone's clean design and focus on easy repairs stand out, and fitting those traits into a lighter, compact, longer-lasting option at a lower price than AirPods proves appealing.
The Xbox Nano Controller. This compact controller fits pockets well and proves useful during waits or downtime, delivering expected controls for Xbox titles and beyond. Solid battery performance would make it a strong choice.
The Fitbit Edge. My time with the Fitbit Air has been positive, though a tracker showing the time was missed. This model adds that feature with extra workout and health metrics. Its look stays true to the Fitbit style without standout flair.
The CMF Speaker S. Bluetooth speakers with strong design draw me in, and these milk carton-inspired units look excellent. One small model was purchased right away, with thoughts of a second for stereo setup. More brands should prioritize attractive speaker aesthetics.
E Ink Kaleido 4. This update benefits many devices rather than one gadget alone. The refreshed color E Ink panel promises improved hues and speed. Prior versions had shortcomings, yet this iteration sparks interest in upcoming products.

Kevin Roose's latest book, The AGI Chronicles, has been my reading this week, and it earns a strong recommendation. While AI enthusiasm sometimes draws comment, the reporting here delivers insights and clarifies much about the industry.

Kevin continues with plans alongside Casey Newton for their upcoming Machine Gods show next week. Hard Fork listeners will want to tune in. This seemed a good moment to check how Kevin manages his schedule and tools.

Here is Kevin's homescreen along with app details:

The phone: iPhone 15 Pro (limited function, short battery, full storage, yet waiting for the Duo preorder).

The wallpaper: Image of his son fishing at the Russian River.

The apps: Voice Memos, WhatsApp, Signal, Spotify, Google Maps, Safari, Day One, Brick, Stash, Superwhisper, Substack, Slack, Town, Apple Notes, Phone, Gmail, Messages.

Dictation features heavily with Superwhisper and Voice Memos handling most input. A custom Pocket alternative called Stash remains satisfying. AI agents include Skynet for personal tasks via ChatGPT Dot, Hootie for work on Town, and Nancy for Kalshi trades with modest losses so far.

A red flags folder holds social media and distractions, a green flags folder covers enriching items, and an AI folder manages the bots.

Kevin also shared current interests:

Balatro, the poker roguelike from Casey, has become a strong habit.
Preparing a YouTube-first podcast means studying popular shows like New Heights and Good Work.
Hobby channels include Served with Andy Roddick and Roffle Lite for Balatro, plus family picks like Mark Rober, Bluey, and Yoto stories.
Dreambeans from Google Labs stands out for its AI-generated daily activity suggestions with cartoon illustrations, though its future remains uncertain.

Crowdsourced

Installer readers share their current favorites. Send your own picks for anything to installer@theverge.com or via Signal at @davidpierce.11, and some will appear here weekly. More ideas appear in replies to the Threads and Bluesky posts.

"The markdown app Em works well with Ghost and has drawn me from iA Writer." - Chris

"Bose Wired Earbuds bring back the excitement last felt with AirPods." - Sai

"Shelf and Story helps find strong books for children where Goodreads fell short." - Martha

"Bingers, from the TV Time founder, tracks media with useful date updates and watchlists, outperforming Letterboxd so far." - pegasusisme

"The latest Jet Lag: The Game season ranks among the best and suits newcomers." - Shane

"Waiting on local internet fixes." - Kev

"Annual Snow Crash listen with Jonathan David narration remains rewarding." - Jonathan

"Fire Emblem: Fortune's Weave completed one path just as the expansion pass arrived." - Connor

"Small roguelikes like Combolands and Ultrapool suit the Steam Deck with trackpad adjustments." - Scott

Signing off

Last week brought another notes app shift to Capacities. The key appeal lies in treating items as distinct objects rather than plain notes, with separate handling for images, PDFs, and text. Organization via tags and dates helps, though setup requires effort to define each type properly. An afternoon of adjustments during a game made retrieval much easier.

This approach may not suit everyone due to its detail level, yet the documentation page on objects offers useful guidance for those exploring it.

Until next week!

Follow topics and authors from this story to see more like this in your personalized homepage feed and to receive email updates.

David Pierce