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Allison Johnson

Allison Johnson

Allison is a senior reviewer covering smartphones and wireless carriers for The Verge. Previously, she wrote about digital cameras and mobile photography at DPReview. She’s a small phone enthusiast, home barista in training, and a roller derby retiree. You can find her on Threads most hours of the day at @allisonjo1.

More From Allison Johnson

Allison Johnson
Allison Johnson
Dreame’s detachable 8K action cam will cost $449.

The Leaptic Cube action camera that Dreame announced back in January will be available in the US, the company says. It’s priced to compete with Insta360’s Go Ultra, but shoots up to 8K video rather than 4K. It’s expected to ship in October, and in the meantime Dreame has a few more camera concepts it’s showing off at IFA, because of course it does.

<em>Some of Dreame’s camera concepts look a bit like existing products…</em>
<em>…and some of them look like WALL-E.</em>
1/5Photo: Jennifer Pattison Tuohy / The Verge
A day-one briefing for Apple’s new CEO

An executive summary to get John Ternus up to speed.

Allison Johnson
Sleep score court is in sessionSleep score court is in session
Allison Johnson
The TCL Note A1 is a kinder, gentler tablet

6

Verge Score

It’s easy on the eyes, comes with a stylus, and got me to write out an 1,100 word review by hand. But it isn’t E-Ink.

Allison Johnson
Allison Johnson
Allison Johnson
TIL you should read the instructions first. Even for a PopSocket.

Just a PSA that if you happen to order a novelty hot dog PopSocket like I did, definitely take a look at the directions before you tear it out of the packaging. Unconvinced? Ask me about the twenty minutes I spent trying to free a tiny plastic disc from another piece of plastic and then coercing it back into its rightful home. Guess a SIM tool is still good for something these days.

<em>If your PopSocket looks like this, you messed up.</em>
<em>I fixed it.</em>
1/2
If your PopSocket looks like this, you messed up.
Allison Johnson
Allison Johnson
These french fries told me I made a really good point.

AI terminology has broken containment so thoroughly that there’s actually something called “Fries GPT” on the menu at Dave & Buster’s, I regret to inform us. GPT stands for garlic, parmesan, and truffle dust in this case, which is a lot going on, flavor-wise. Personally, I think D&B should have committed to the bit and let you wash them down with an ice-cold LLMonade, but alas.

Finally, french fries that can help you plan a vacation.
Finally, french fries that can help you plan a vacation.
Photo: Allison Johnson / The Verge
The square-ish phone that I wanted to love

The charming Ikko MindOne Pro isn’t all it’s shaped up to be.

Allison Johnson