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The best Android tablets for 2024
There's a huge range of Android tablets out there. Some are great for reading comics, while others can double as laptop replacements. However, with devices starting at under $200 and going up to well over $1,000, picking the right one for your needs can be kind of tricky. We’ve tested dozens of tablets over the years from companies like Samsung, Lenovo and Google. So to help you select a device that fits your life, we've collected our top picks for the best Android tablets across various prices and use cases.
What we look for in a good Android tabletAside from cost, there are several specs and features we check out when evaluating new devices. One of the most important factors is the kind of display a tablet has. Not only its size (from less than seven inches to over 14), but also how bright it gets (ideally upwards of 400 nits) and what type of panel it uses (LCD, Mini LED, OLED, etc.). But it doesn't stop there: it's also crucial to consider things like refresh rate (the higher the better in most cases) as well as color saturation and accuracy, as those can help determine if a tablet is suitable for tasks like photo or video editing.
Performance is also a major benchmark. After all, no one likes to deal with hiccups or lag, especially if you're a gamer as that can make or break your experience. That said, it takes more than a beefy chip to make a device feel truly speedy. If a tablet has sluggish storage or slow wireless connectivity, downloading files or launching apps can become a chore. Generally, we’re looking for at least 8GB of RAM and 128GB of storage with microSD expandability being a major bonus.
Battery life is another major concern because many tablets are designed for use when traveling or working on the go. This means it's critical to consider not just the size of a device's battery, but also how fast it can recharge and if it supports bonuses like wireless power sharing or docking options.
Finally, there are more-specialized features such as stylus support, dedicated desktop modes, and expandable storage that can help tailor a tablet for specific use cases like sketching or productivity. And last but not least, there are design-related factors like dust- and water-resistance that go a long way toward making a device more durable.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/best-android-tablet-120007530.html?src=rssBest Smart Home Gyms for 2024 - CNET
Amazon Big Spring Sale: All of the best tech deals still available today
Amazon’s Big Spring Sale has officially ended but a few deals are still going strong. While this latest event wasn't on the level of a Prime Day or a Black Friday sale, over the past week we found decent savings on some of the gadgets and devices we recommend. Now that the sale is done, the pickings are a little slimmer, but that doesn't mean you're out of luck completely. If you didn't take advantage of the sale while it was live, or if you've still got some shopping left to do, consider this list your last chance to reap the discounts from Amazon's latest sale. (Of course, if you miss out now, Prime Day typically comes back around in July every year.) Here are the best Amazon Spring Sale discounts on tech we love that you can still get today.
Best Spring Sale deals under $50 Best Spring Sale deals on Amazon devices Best Spring Sale deals on Apple devices Best Spring Sale deals on headphones, earbuds and speakers Best Spring Sale deals on smartphones Best Spring Sale deals on gaming gear Best Spring Sale deals on smart home tech Best Spring Sale deals on other tech Best tech deals available elsewhere on the webYour Spring Sales Shopping Guide: Spring sales are in the air, headlined by Amazon’s Big Spring sale event. Our expert editors are curating all the best spring sales right here. Follow Engadget to shop the best tech deals from Amazon’s Big Spring Sale, hear from Autoblog’s car experts on the best spring auto deals on Amazon, and find spring sales to shop on AOL, handpicked just for you.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/amazon-big-spring-sale-all-of-the-best-tech-deals-still-available-today-115547005.html?src=rssThe Morning After: The EU is already investigating Apple, Meta and Google over fees and defensive policies
We had the first wave of changes and tweaks to Apple, Google and other big tech companies’ policies and services just before the EU’s sweeping Digital Markets Act (DMA) took a harder line against monopolistic behaviors and practices. See: third-party app stores with Apple, the option to pay for Facebook (haha!), the ability to choose your own default browser, search engine, and more.
But the EU isn't quite satisfied. Alphabet and Apple, says the European Commission, have not sufficiently allowed “app developers to ‘steer’ consumers to offers outside the gatekeepers’ app stores, free of charge.”
The EC says Alphabet might still be leading users to Google-owned services like Google Flights. Apple may not be allowing users meaningful choice in selecting alternatives to default iOS services or preferences, such as the ability to uninstall any preloaded app.
In January, Apple announced changes to the App Store to comply with the DMA, including the ability to use alternative app marketplaces on iOS in the EU. Included in Apple’s updates was a new “core technology fee” of €0.50 developers will have to pay per user per year after the first million installs of an app — even if a user downloads the software from a third-party marketplace. Many of Apple’s rivals aren’t happy about the App Store changes. Some criticized the company’s fees for third-party payments in the US too.
— Mat Smith
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Florida will require parental consent for kids to join social media Under-14s are completely banned.Florida Governor Ron DeSantis just signed a bill into law with far stricter rules on how kids under 16 can use and access social media. The bill requires a parent or guardian’s consent for 14- and 15-year-olds to make an account or use a pre-existing account on a social media platform. The companies behind these platforms must also abide by requests to delete these accounts within five business days. Failing to do so could rack up major fines, as much as $10,000 for each violation. The bill doesn’t name any specific social media platforms but suggests any service that promotes “infinite scrolling” will have to follow the new rules. So yeah, the usual suspects.
Spotify trials educational video courses in the UK You will still have to pay for them.Spotify has teamed up with content partners BBC Maestro, PLAYvirtuoso, Thinkific Labs Inc. and Skillshare to offer content in making music, getting creative, learning business and living healthily. The test courses are available only to UK users, with free and premium subscribers receiving at least two free lessons per course. The series will range from £20 ($25) to £80 ($101), regardless of a person’s subscription tier. The course content seems to be somewhere between Masterclass and LinkedIn Learning — make of that what you will.
TikTok turns to its teenage ‘youth council’ 15 teens will advise the company. GettyLast summer, TikTok said it planned to form a “youth council” of teens to advise the company as part of a broader push to beef up safety features for the app’s youngest users. That group is now official, just as TikTok contends with a bill that would force parent-company ByteDance to sell the app or face a ban in the United States. While it’s unclear how much influence TikTok’s youth council will ultimately wield over the company’s policies, it underscores just how important teens are to the platform. The company has tried to mobilize its users, many of them teens, to oppose the bill being discussed by the US government.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/the-morning-after-the-eu-is-already-investigating-apple-meta-and-google-over-fees-and-defensive-policies-113558285.html?src=rssDell Inspiron 14 Plus 7440 Review: Long-Running, All-Metal Mainstream Laptop - CNET
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Microsoft merges its Windows and Surface teams under one leader
Microsoft is bringing together its Windows experiences and its Windows devices teams to form one division, and it has appointed company veteran Pavan Davuluri with the task of leading it. As The Verge notes, Davuluri has been serving as head of the Surface team since last year, after Microsoft split up Windows experiences and devices following Panos Panay's departure. The company is expanding his role again after another departure, this time of former Windows experiences lead Mikhail Parakhin, who was in charge of the Bing search engine and its advertising business.
In a letter written by Rajesh Jha and obtained by the publication, the company's technology chief said Parakhin "has decided to explore new roles." It's not quite clear if he's leaving Microsoft altogether or is still exploring for new opportunities within the company. But it's worth noting that he decided to vacate his role a week after Microsoft hired Deepmind co-founder Mustafa Suleyman, who apparently asked Parakhin to report to him directly. For now, Parakhin is still with Microsoft and will report to company CTO Kevin Scott during the transition period.
Jha wrote in his letter that merging the two teams will enable the company to "take a holistic approach to building silicon, systems, experiences, and devices that span Windows client and cloud for this AI era." While Davuluri now heads both web experiences and devices team, the former is still required to report to Suleyman, who's in charge of Microsoft's AI efforts.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/microsoft-merges-its-windows-and-surface-teams-under-one-leader-103204076.html?src=rssThe Oversight Board weighs in on Meta’s most-moderated word
The Oversight Board is urging Meta to change the way it moderates the word “shaheed,” an Arabic term that has led to more takedowns than any other word or phrase on the company’s platforms. Meta asked the group for help crafting new rules last year after attempts to revamp it internally stalled.
The Arabic word “shaheed” is often translated as “martyr,” though the board notes that this isn’t an exact definition and the word can have “multiple meanings.” But Meta’s current rules are based only on the “martyr” definition, which the company says implies praise. This has led to a “blanket ban” on the word when used in conjunction with people designated as “dangerous individuals” by the company.
However, this policy ignores the “linguistic complexity” of the word, which is “often used, even with reference to dangerous individuals, in reporting and neutral commentary, academic discussion, human rights debates and even more passive ways,” the Oversight Board says in its opinion. “There is strong reason to believe the multiple meanings of ‘shaheed’ result in the removal of a substantial amount of material not intended as praise of terrorists or their violent actions.”
In their recommendations to Meta, the Oversight Board says that the company should end its “blanket ban” on the word being used to reference “dangerous individuals,” and that posts should only be removed if there are other clear “signals of violence” or if the content breaks other policies. The board also wants Meta to better explain how it uses automated systems to enforce these rules.
If Meta adopts the Oversight Board’s recommendations, it could have a significant impact on the platform’s Arabic-speaking users. The board notes that the word, because it is so common, likely “accounts for more content removals under the Community Standards than any other single word or phrase,” across the company’s apps.
“Meta has been operating under the assumption that censorship can and will improve safety, but the evidence suggests that censorship can marginalize whole populations while not improving safety at all,” the board’s co-chair (and former Danish prime minister) Helle Thorning-Schmidt said in a statement. “The Board is especially concerned that Meta’s approach impacts journalism and civic discourse because media organizations and commentators might shy away from reporting on designated entities to avoid content removals.”
This is hardly the first time Meta has been criticized for moderation policies that disproportionately impact Arabic-speaking users. A 2022 report commissioned by the company found that Meta’s moderators were less accurate when assessing Palestinian Arabic, resulting in “false strikes” on users’ accounts. The company apologized last year after Instagram’s automated translations began inserting the word “terrorist” into the profiles of some Palestinian users.
The opinion is also yet another example of how long it can take for Meta’s Oversight Board to influence the social network’s policies. The company first asked the board to weigh in on the rules more than a year ago (the Oversight Board said it “paused” the publication of the policy after October 7 attacks in Israel to ensure its rules “held up” to the “extreme stress” of the conflict in Gaza). Meta will now have two months to respond to the recommendations, though actual changes to the company’s policies and practices could take several more weeks or months to implement.
“We want people to be able to use our platforms to share their views, and have a set of policies to help them do so safely,” a Meta spokesperson said in a statement. “We aim to apply these policies fairly but doing so at scale brings global challenges, which is why in February 2023 we sought the Oversight Board's guidance on how we treat the word ‘shaheed’ when referring to designated individuals or organizations. We will review the Board’s feedback and respond within 60 days.”
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/the-oversight-board-weighs-in-on-metas-most-moderated-word-100003625.html?src=rssMicrosoft Has a New Windows and Surface Chief
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