It's always exciting when one of our favorite items goes on sale. This time, it's our choice for the best budget Android tablet, the Samsung Galaxy Tab A9+. The device is down to $170 from $220 on Samsung — a 23 percent discount. This model includes 64GB of storage and 4GB of RAM and is also available for the same price on Amazon. In fact, this deal brings the tablet's price to only $20 more than its Prime Day offer.
Samsung's Galaxy Tab A9+ is an 11-inch tablet with 1900p x 1200p resolution. The LCD screen has a 90Hz refresh rate and 480 nits. The device also has quad speakers that are powered by Dolby Atmos and a 7,400 mAh battery. Plus, it has optional 5G connectivity.
If you want a bit more storage (and power), check out the Samsung Galaxy Tab A9+ with 8GB of RAM and 128GB of storage. That model is currently down to $220 from $270. There's also the Galaxy Tab A9+ Kids Edition, which is available for $230, down from $270 and has 4GB of RAM and 64GB of storage.
October Prime Day 2024 is around the corner, serving as Amazon’s (un)official kickoff to the holiday shopping season. If you’re eager to snag some early holiday deals for those on your list (or yourself), here’s what we know so far about the next Prime Day shopping event.
When is October Prime Day 2024?
Amazon has not announced the dates of fall Prime Day 2024 yet, but we do know it will be returning sometime in October.
What is October Prime Day?
October Prime Day is an extension of the regular Prime Day sale held annually in July. It features exclusive deals on Amazon for Prime members, although not quite on as big of a scale as the main summer Prime Day.
How long is October Prime Day?
In years past, October Prime Day has been two days long, just like Prime Day in July.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/deals/one-of-our-favorite-samsung-tablets-is-back-on-sale-for-close-to-its-prime-day-price-141030465.html?src=rss
It's always exciting when one of our favorite items goes on sale. This time, it's our choice for the best budget Android tablet, the Samsung Galaxy Tab A9+. The device is down to $170 from $220 on Samsung — a 23 percent discount. This model includes 64GB of storage and 4GB of RAM and is also available for the same price on Amazon. In fact, this deal brings the tablet's price to only $20 more than its Prime Day offer.
Samsung's Galaxy Tab A9+ is an 11-inch tablet with 1900p x 1200p resolution. The LCD screen has a 90Hz refresh rate and 480 nits. The device also has quad speakers that are powered by Dolby Atmos and a 7,400 mAh battery. Plus, it has optional 5G connectivity.
If you want a bit more storage (and power), check out the Samsung Galaxy Tab A9+ with 8GB of RAM and 128GB of storage. That model is currently down to $220 from $270. There's also the Galaxy Tab A9+ Kids Edition, which is available for $230, down from $270 and has 4GB of RAM and 64GB of storage.
October Prime Day 2024 is around the corner, serving as Amazon’s (un)official kickoff to the holiday shopping season. If you’re eager to snag some early holiday deals for those on your list (or yourself), here’s what we know so far about the next Prime Day shopping event.
When is October Prime Day 2024?
Amazon has not announced the dates of fall Prime Day 2024 yet, but we do know it will be returning sometime in October.
What is October Prime Day?
October Prime Day is an extension of the regular Prime Day sale held annually in July. It features exclusive deals on Amazon for Prime members, although not quite on as big of a scale as the main summer Prime Day.
How long is October Prime Day?
In years past, October Prime Day has been two days long, just like Prime Day in July.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/deals/one-of-our-favorite-samsung-tablets-is-back-on-sale-for-close-to-its-prime-day-price-141030465.html?src=rss
It's the day after Apple launched the iPhone 16, and though I published my hands-on with the iPhone 16 Pro right after the event, I didn't have a lot of time to spare for the base models until today. With that extra time, I've been able to learn more about the differences between the standard iPhone 16 and the iPhone 16 Pro, and honestly I'm pleasantly surprised that there aren't that many.
One of the most obvious ways to tell the iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Pro apart is in their color selections. The entry-level series has a pleasant, vibrant array of colors this year, with the teal, pink and blue options really catching my eye. These hues are saturated and punchy, compared to the light pastel shades from recent years. I especially like how deep the "ultramarine" blue is — the pictures don't do any of these finishes justice.
The entire iPhone 16 series has the new camera control, meaning you can use the hardware switch to launch the camera app, and then tweak settings like zoom, depth and tone. Having played with them both, I can confirm that they're equally clicky and satisfying to use. Unlike last year, where only the Pro models got the Action button, the iPhone 16 has similar controls, so you're not missing out on a dedicated key by opting for a cheaper model.
You also gain the ability to record spatial video and audio, thanks to the iPhone 16's updated cameras. In addition to a new ultrawide camera with autofocus and support for macro shots, the sensors have been realigned and are now vertically stacked atop each other. Most intriguing is that the iPhone 16 will also support the new Audio Mix feature that lets you more finely control the voices and sounds in your footage after capture.
Cherlynn Low for Engadget
It'd be easy to assume that the "four new studio-quality mics" on the iPhone 16 Pro are what's behind Audio Mix, but it appears to just be the ability to record spatial audio that enables the new feature. With this you can go into the iPhone 16's video editing interface, tap the tab for Audio Mix and choose between "In-frame," "Cinematic" and "Studio" options. The first one isolates the sound from subjects in the scene and cuts out background noise, while Studio mimics the acoustic environment of a recording studio, complete with dampening walls. Cinematic, meanwhile, consolidates all the sounds in the front and center of the space.
I was able to get a demo of the Audio Mix feature, and was really impressed that the iPhone 16 was able to isolate voices of people it recorded speaking in an echoey outdoor deck in Apple's new Observatory space. Not only did switching between the different mixes effectively change how loud the various sources of sound were, but it was also nice to learn that you can tune the volume of specific streams in each profile. This is something I'm going to want to play with a lot more to better understand it, but for now I'm very intrigued by the possibility of using an iPhone 16 for future Apple event videos.
One disappointing exclusion from the iPhone 16 is the multi-track recording feature coming to iPhone 16 Pro. That Voice Memo update is only going to be available on the Pro models.
In fact, here are the main upgrades if you spring for a Pro: ProMotion screens with higher refresh rates and Always On Display, as well as superior camera hardware with a 48-megapixel ultrawide lens and a 5x telephoto option. The premium handsets also have support for 4K120p high-quality slo-mo footage and professional formats like ProRaw. The Pros also have the A18 Pro chip, compared to the iPhone 16's A18, and the differences mostly lie in GPU performance, so you might have a better time gaming on the more premium model.
Other differences are fairly minimal, like the titanium build and faster USB speeds on the Pros. In general, though, the iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Plus feel like much less of a trade off for the cost savings, and you're also getting more fun colors. They also seem like a greater improvement from their predecessors, which is a welcome change after years of incremental changes.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/mobile/smartphones/iphone-16-hands-on-more-pro-than-i-expected-222843896.html?src=rss
It's the day after Apple launched the iPhone 16, and though I published my hands-on with the iPhone 16 Pro right after the event, I didn't have a lot of time to spare for the base models until today. With that extra time, I've been able to learn more about the differences between the standard iPhone 16 and the iPhone 16 Pro, and honestly I'm pleasantly surprised that there aren't that many.
One of the most obvious ways to tell the iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Pro apart is in their color selections. The entry-level series has a pleasant, vibrant array of colors this year, with the teal, pink and blue options really catching my eye. These hues are saturated and punchy, compared to the light pastel shades from recent years. I especially like how deep the "ultramarine" blue is — the pictures don't do any of these finishes justice.
The entire iPhone 16 series has the new camera control, meaning you can use the hardware switch to launch the camera app, and then tweak settings like zoom, depth and tone. Having played with them both, I can confirm that they're equally clicky and satisfying to use. Unlike last year, where only the Pro models got the Action button, the iPhone 16 has similar controls, so you're not missing out on a dedicated key by opting for a cheaper model.
You also gain the ability to record spatial video and audio, thanks to the iPhone 16's updated cameras. In addition to a new ultrawide camera with autofocus and support for macro shots, the sensors have been realigned and are now vertically stacked atop each other. Most intriguing is that the iPhone 16 will also support the new Audio Mix feature that lets you more finely control the voices and sounds in your footage after capture.
Cherlynn Low for Engadget
It'd be easy to assume that the "four new studio-quality mics" on the iPhone 16 Pro are what's behind Audio Mix, but it appears to just be the ability to record spatial audio that enables the new feature. With this you can go into the iPhone 16's video editing interface, tap the tab for Audio Mix and choose between "In-frame," "Cinematic" and "Studio" options. The first one isolates the sound from subjects in the scene and cuts out background noise, while Studio mimics the acoustic environment of a recording studio, complete with dampening walls. Cinematic, meanwhile, consolidates all the sounds in the front and center of the space.
I was able to get a demo of the Audio Mix feature, and was really impressed that the iPhone 16 was able to isolate voices of people it recorded speaking in an echoey outdoor deck in Apple's new Observatory space. Not only did switching between the different mixes effectively change how loud the various sources of sound were, but it was also nice to learn that you can tune the volume of specific streams in each profile. This is something I'm going to want to play with a lot more to better understand it, but for now I'm very intrigued by the possibility of using an iPhone 16 for future Apple event videos.
One disappointing exclusion from the iPhone 16 is the multi-track recording feature coming to iPhone 16 Pro. That Voice Memo update is only going to be available on the Pro models.
In fact, here are the main upgrades if you spring for a Pro: ProMotion screens with higher refresh rates and Always On Display, as well as superior camera hardware with a 48-megapixel ultrawide lens and a 5x telephoto option. The premium handsets also have support for 4K120p high-quality slo-mo footage and professional formats like ProRaw. The Pros also have the A18 Pro chip, compared to the iPhone 16's A18, and the differences mostly lie in GPU performance, so you might have a better time gaming on the more premium model.
Other differences are fairly minimal, like the titanium build and faster USB speeds on the Pros. In general, though, the iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Plus feel like much less of a trade off for the cost savings, and you're also getting more fun colors. They also seem like a greater improvement from their predecessors, which is a welcome change after years of incremental changes.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/mobile/smartphones/iphone-16-hands-on-more-pro-than-i-expected-222843896.html?src=rss
Every year, the calculus of choosing which iPhone to get feels increasingly frustrating. Do you opt for the standard iPhone? Do you splurge for the latest and greatest Pro model, something that might take two years to pay off completely? Or should you just buy a slightly older used or refurbished model to get the best deal possible? And of course, there's always the safest bet: Save your money and keep your current phone for as long as possible.
After sitting with Apple's announcements for a day, one thing has become clear: The plain $799 iPhone 16 is a pretty solid deal, at least compared to basic iPhones from the last few years. It actually has a new processor, Apple's A18, instead of reusing an older chip. It brings over the Action button from the iPhone 15 Pro and it also has Apple's new camera button. The iPhone 16 is also relatively future-proof since it supports Apple Intelligence, something that doesn't work on the non-Pro iPhone 15 and older models.
Apple
While the $999 iPhone 16 Pro has an additional camera and supports more powerful photography and filmmaking features, the line between that device and the standard iPhone 16 is blurrier than ever before.
It certainly makes more sense to invest in the iPhone 16 today, instead of the poor, beleaguered iPhone SE. That device sports an aging A15 chip, the tiny 4.7-inch screen of yore and it still costs $429 like it did in 2022. It's rumored that we'll see a new iPhone SE sometime next year, but the current model is simply a terrible option in Apple's current lineup.
If you don't care about Apple Intelligence and you'd like to replace an older device, you can currently find a refurbished iPhone 15 on Amazon and elsewhere between $500 and $600. But really, if you're willing to shell out that much money for a used device with a limited warranty, it might make more sense to grab an iPhone 16 and pay it off over time via your carrier. Trade-in deals can also shave off a significant chunk of a new phone's price. Verizon, for example, is currently offering $800 off a Pixel 9 or iPhone 15 when you swap out an older device.
To be clear, all of the preceding advice only applies if you need to replace a trashed iPhone, or you’re excited to play with Apple Intelligence. Judging from the latest rumors, we’ll likely see an ultra-thin iPhone model next year (similar to the latest iPad Pro), so it might just make sense to hold onto your existing device. And don’t forget, Apple’s AI features won’t be immediately available at launch — you’ll have to wait until an October update for the first batch of features, and Siri won’t get all of its new smarts until the first half of 2025.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/mobile/smartphones/its-a-good-year-to-buy-the-vanilla-iphone-16-and-avoid-the-se-at-all-costs-192919611.html?src=rss
Amazon’s Fire HD 8 tablet is more than half off, bringing the cost down to just $55. The original asking price is a whopping $130, so this is quite a bargain. As a matter of fact, it’s just $5 shy of the Amazon Prime Day price.
This is a decent tablet, even at the original sum. It boasts a hexa-core processor, 13 hours of battery life per charge, 2GB of RAM, 64GB of storage and a microSD slot for up to 1TB of additional storage.
It’s fairly thin and light, making it a budget-friendly option for a “kick around the house” tablet. Just plop it on the nightstand and use it for emergency Netflix sessions. We recommended the tablet in our official review, calling it “a great communal device.” It’s not going to win any design awards, but it gets the job done.
There are two caveats. First of all, this is an ad-supported model. There are ads on the lockscreen. I hate advertisements with the heat of 1,000 suns, but this never bothered me. The whole thing is fairly innocuous. The other potential downside involves the app store. This tablet can only access the Amazon Appstore and not Google Play. You’ll be able to find all of the big apps and games, but the more niche titles may not be available.
Amazon is also selling the slightly beefier Fire HD 10 tablet for $90, which is close to its Prime Day price. This one boasts a 10.1” FHD screen, an octa-core processor and 3GB of RAM.
October Prime Day 2024 is around the corner, serving as Amazon’s (un)official kickoff to the holiday shopping season. If you’re eager to snag some early holiday deals for those on your list (or yourself), here’s what we know so far about the next Prime Day shopping event.
When is October Prime Day 2024?
Amazon has not announced the dates of fall Prime Day 2024 yet, but we do know it will be returning sometime in October.
What is October Prime Day?
October Prime Day is an extension of the regular Prime Day sale held annually in July. It features exclusive deals on Amazon for Prime members, although not quite on as big of a scale as the main summer Prime Day.
How long is October Prime Day?
In years past, October Prime Day has been two days long, just like Prime Day in July.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/deals/amazons-fire-hd-8-tablet-is-more-than-half-off-and-close-to-its-prime-day-price-164258054.html?src=rss
If you're eager to get your hands on a MacBook Pro but want to save some cash, Amazon has a good deal right now on the 14-inch MacBook Pro M3. That laptop is down to $1,300 for the model with 8GB of RAM and 512GB of storage, which represents a $300 discount (a steeper sale than what we saw during Amazon Prime Day in July). The typical price for this version is $1,500, so you're saving a good chunk of change. Keep in mind, though, that October Prime Day is likely right around the corner — Amazon announced it would return this year, although no specific dates yet. There's a chance we could see a deeper discount during that sale event, but there's no guarantee.
This is the latest MacBook pro with an M3 chip that was released last year. It comes with a 14-inch display, an 8-core CPU and a 10-core GPU. We loved this laptop in our official review, calling the design a “major improvement” over previous MacBook Pro releases and praising the “gorgeous” Liquid Retina XDR display, the abundant selection of ports and that speedy M3 processor.
This machine also made our list of the best MacBooks, and for good reason. We called it “the best MacBook for creatives” due to the incredibly efficient and powerful CPU. Apple silicon ain’t no joke. The battery life is on point, lasting around 24 hours per charge. That’s about three full work days.
There’s one caveat here. This is the model with 8GB of RAM and 512GB of storage. The storage is fine, as there are plenty of ports for external drives and an SD card slot. If you are going with a MacBook Pro over an Air, however, it might be a good idea to spring for a model with 16GB of RAM to get the most out of the machine. Luckily, the 1TB/16GB version is also on sale via Amazon for $1,700.
October Prime Day 2024 is around the corner, serving as Amazon’s (un)official kickoff to the holiday shopping season. If you’re eager to snag some early holiday deals for those on your list (or yourself), here’s what we know so far about the next Prime Day shopping event.
When is October Prime Day 2024?
Amazon has not announced the dates of fall Prime Day 2024 yet, but we do know it will be returning sometime in October.
What is October Prime Day?
October Prime Day is an extension of the regular Prime Day sale held annually in July. It features exclusive deals on Amazon for Prime members, although not quite on as big of a scale as the main summer Prime Day.
How long is October Prime Day?
In years past, October Prime Day has been two days long, just like Prime Day in July.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/deals/amazon-discounts-the-apple-14-inch-m3-macbook-pro-below-its-prime-day-price-152341957.html?src=rss
If you thought the price of a fully specced iPhone 16 Pro Max or Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6 was high, Huawei has a new flagship that might require some folks to pull off a bank heist to afford. The Mate XT, which the company claims is the first triple-fold phone to hit the market, will debut in China and start at 19,999 yuan (approximately $2,800). That's enough to buy an 11-inch iPad Pro, M3 MacBook Air and an iPhone 16 — and still have cash to spare.
It took Huawei five years to develop the Mate XT, according to the chairman of its consumer business, Richard Yu. As part of that process, the company is said to have made breakthroughs in screen and hinge technology. The device folds up accordion-style, with one hinge bending outward and the other inward, leaving one of the panels available to use as a 6.4-inch exterior display.
“Huawei Mate XT is the world’s first triple-fold smartphone, and the largest and thinnest foldable handset globally,” Yu said during a launch event, according to CNN. “We are the first in the world to achieve outward folding (in smartphones) and the first to create an inward-folding phone with no gaps.”
Despite the high price, the Mate XT has already caught the imagination of Chinese consumers. By early Tuesday, Huawei had received 3.7 million preorders.
It's no surprise as to why Huawei formally revealed the device hours after Monday's iPhone event — it's looking to steal some of Apple's thunder. Given its pre-order numbers and the relatively modest iPhone hardware updates this year (Apple is banking on the delayed Apple Intelligence features as a key selling point), Huawei may have just pulled that off.
When completely unfolded, the Mate XT has a 10.2-inch 3K display with a 92 percent screen-to-body ratio. Buyers can use one, two or all three panels at once (the size of the two-panel display is 7.9 inches). It comes in red or black with a leather finish on the rear and gold trim on the edges and folds. When they're out of range of a cell network, owners will be able to communicate with the rest of the world via satellite.
As you might imagine, there are a bunch of generative AI features too, including a voice input function that can polish and translate a transcript. There's the option to have a chatbot open on one side of the screen to answer questions and summarize articles. There's an AI photo-editing tool too. On that note, Huawei says the triple-camera system (which features a periscope telephoto camera and an ultra-wide-angle camera) includes an approximate optical zoom of 5.5x.
The rollout plans for the Mate XT outside China are not yet clear. The Mate XT is unlikely to officially come to the US, given sanctions that have been in place against the company over the last few years.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/mobile/smartphones/huaweis-first-tri-fold-phone-starts-at-an-eye-watering-2800-145113669.html?src=rss
There’s a meme that comes around when people are urged to see a movie on the biggest screen as the filmmaker intended. People then mock up images of them watching it on the worst, least-immersive devices possible, from iPods to Game Boys. It came to mind during the iPhones 16 launch event, Apple said its new models have CPUs that can challenge “even high-end desktop PCs” and “desktop-class GPU architecture.” And it made me wonder if anyone is actually playing AAA games on a 6-inch smartphone for any real length of time?
Look, we all know this is just Apple flexing the power of its homegrown silicon, given even its A-Series SOCs run almost as fast as a flagship Intel CPU. We also all know that if you tried to run your iPhone with the same load as you could put on a desktop, you’d quickly burn it out. (Case in point, Resident Evil Village caused GamesHub’s iPhone 15 Pro to run “uncomfortably hot” and burned through 30 percent of its battery life in an hour.) All of that power is great for the sort of tasks an iPhone needs to do which are only demanding in short bursts. Processing audio and video, or the odd blast of generative AI (when it arrives) that Apple is understandably proud of being able to do on-device.
But this emphasis on raw power suggests the company has lost sight of what the iPhone is for, and what its limitations are. Yes, I’m sure some people love playing Death Stranding on the bus into school, or work. I’m sure there are some people who will try and use the Notes app to write their term papers, and one or two filmmakers who will use the iPhone instead of a Red, but those can’t be massive constituencies of the overall user base.
It’s hard to see people using their iPhone to get the sort of Serious Work done that you’d need a better user interface to achieve. iPhones are great for photography, social media, communication, casual gaming, but they can’t be a comprehensive replacement for a laptop or games console. Well, you can use them for those purposes, but I’m not sure anyone should.
Another telling example was the demo showing a person using Voice Notes to record a new vocal over a backing track they’d previously recorded. It’s a great way to show the iPhones 16’s ability to isolate audio even when the sources are so close together. Apple added the feature to Voice Notes because it has seen user feedback that it’s become a valuable tool in a musician’s arsenal. But it’s also something of an own-goal given Apple’s own multi-track recording platform, Garageband, has been left (deservedly) ignored and unloved for the last decade.
I suspect all of this points to the fact that Apple, with its key strengths of merging hardware and software, has run out of worlds to conquer in the former. After all, as glorious as the new iPhone is, the upgrades have been incremental for a long while now. As fancy and high-tech as the new camera shutter button is, it’s not as if adding a dedicated button for capture is groundbreaking — I had one of those on my Sony Ericsson K750i. I’m also curious how many iPhone users actually harness those extra camera features (like adjusting the focal length, or shooting in RAW) when they’re snapping clips for TikTok. And if you, like me, don’t really value Apple Intelligence, or just think those features aren’t really compelling, then there’s little reason to rush out and upgrade.
It doesn’t help that I was also reminded of what Steve Jobs said in 2010, describing personal computers as “trucks” whose prominence would fall as people switched to the “cars” of phones and tablets. Trucks were go-anywhere, do-anything tools that were vital a century or more ago but were phased out when people started using more specific tools suited to their needs. The iPhone 16 launch event, however, felt like Apple showing everyone that it’d managed to cram a Big Rig engine into a Porsche.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/mobile/smartphones/apple-needs-to-remember-what-the-iphone-16-is-for-134535338.html?src=rss
Apple Intelligence is coming next month. The company has revealed that its artificial intelligence platform is arriving on iPhones, iPads and MacBooks with the iOS 18.1, iPadOS 18.1 and macOS Sequoia 15.1 updates rolling out in October. It will only work on Apple's newer and more powerful devices, though, including the iPhone 15 Pro and the upcoming iPhone 16 models, as well as MacBooks and iPads running on M-series chips. In addition, the first batch of Apple Intelligence features will only be available in US English. Support for English in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, South Africa and the UK will be available in December, while for other languages, including Chinese, French, Japanese and Spanish is coming next year.
One of the first Apple Intelligence features you'll be able to use is Writing Tools, which can rewrite, proofread and summarize text for you in Mail, Notes, Pages and even in third-party apps. The Memories feature will give you a way to easily create movies in Photos when you type a description for the kind of images you're looking for. You'll even be able to search for specific photos and videos by using natural language. And if you want to quickly remove background objects in images without damaging the rest of the photo, you can use the Clean Up tool.
There's also a feature you can use to record, transcribe and summarize audio in Notes and Phone. If you initiate a recording while on a call, for instance, Apple Intelligence will generate a summary after it ends. A new Focus feature called "Reduce Interruptions" will surface only notifications that need immediate attention, while Priority Messages in Mail will put time-sensitive messages at the top based on the contents of those emails. You'll also see summaries of an email's most important information across your inbox and then use Smart Reply, which identifies questions and suggests quick responses, to fire off a quick message.
Apple says its AI technology will make Siri more natural and more integrated into its platforms, as well. The voice assistant will apparently be able to understand your inquiries, even if you stutter or stumble over your words, and it can follow your train of thought even if you switch between text and voice. Apple says it's releasing more AI features over the next few months, including one that can generate an image using context when you circle an empty space and another that can create original emoji (or "Genmoji") based on a description you type.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/apple-intelligence-for-iphone-ipad-and-mac-arrives-in-october-120502268.html?src=rss