Android Auto is best-known as a way to access your phone through a car's dashboard — this lets you easily access Google Maps, music apps and data without needing to use your phone. But for years now, Google has also offered an Android Auto experience directly on a phone, for people who don't have a compatible dashboard unit. More recently, Google has also been working on an "Assistant driving mode" (pictured above) that arrived earlier this year after a few delays. Now that Google Assistant driving mode is finished, though, the company will stop offering the old Android Auto experience on phones running Android 12.
A statement from Google shared with 9to5Googleconfirms this plan. Google Assistant driving mode is our next evolution of the mobile driving experience," the statement reads. "For the people who use Android Auto in supported vehicles, that experience isn’t going away. For those who use the on phone experience (Android Auto mobile app), they will be transitioned to Google Assistant driving mode. Starting with Android 12, Google Assistant driving mode will be the built-in mobile driving experience. We have no further details to share at this time."
Before Google confirmed this change, some Pixel owners running Android 12 received a notification when trying to run the Android Auto app on their phones. It said that Android Auto was now "only available for car screens" and recommended that they try the Google Assistant driving experience instead. Given that the new Google Assistant experience will clearly be the focus going forward, switching over probably isn't a big deal for most people. But if you don't upgrade your phone to Android 12, you'll be able to keep running the Android Auto app, at least for the time being.
Earlier this week, Facebook introduced tools to help people in Afghanistan lock down their accounts. Clubhouse, the social audio app, is doing the same thing. The company announced on Twitter that it was proactively making some changes to the privacy settings for users in Afghanistan. Specifically, for users who "haven't been active," Clubhouse is hiding their photo and bio and making it harder to find the accounts in search.
Users are free to then add back any information they feel comfortable sharing, and they can also reach out to support to make their account "more discoverable." As noted by The Verge, Clubhouse says that all the actions it is taking are reversible, and that these changes won't affect users' followers. The company also says that users can use pseudonyms rather than real names for safety purposes.
This move comes about a month after Clubhouse came out of beta and opened its service to everyone. More crucially, it comes as the Taliban has taken control of Kabul, the capital of Afghanistan; the militant organization is using social media to help change perceptions. The US still considers the Taliban a terrorist organization, and as such Facebook has banned all content from the group. There hasn't been a similarly straightforward statement from Clubhouse, but it's clear the company is thinking about how to protect its users in the region.
“With our current forecasts, we expect Google Store in the U.S. to sell out of Pixel 4a (5G) and Pixel 5 in the coming weeks following the launch of Pixel 5a (5G). The Pixel 5a (5G) is a great option for customers and delivers valuable hardware upgrades compared to the Pixel 4a (5G), all at a lower price point,” Google said to DigitalTrends.
On Google's store in the US, both phones are showing as out of stock currently, which means the only Pixel phones currently available are the Pixel 5a (which doesn't arrive until August 26th) and the Pixel 4a, which doesn't have 5G. And since the Pixel 5a is only being sold in the US and Japan, at least for starters, Google will be going without a 5G-capable phone in other markets until the Pixel 6 arrives.
That situation will likely be remedied soon — Google announced the Pixel 5 on September 30th last year, so it seems likely that we'll get an official reveal of the Pixel 6 sometime in the next month, as well. Google's Pixel phones have never exactly sold like gangbusters, but it's still somewhat surprising to see them pull the Pixel 5 so quickly in areas where they aren't seeing the 5a. But given that Google is already showing off the Pixel 5's successor, chances are good most people would wait that extra month to get the the company's next flagship. As the first phone with Google's own custom silicon, it's definitely a lot more intriguing than the somewhat stale Pixel 5, anyway.
YouTube has an impossibly large video library, and the company knows that navigating it is easier said than done. To that end, the company is introducing a few new features to improve the search experience. Probably the most significant new tool is chapter view right from the search results page. YouTube has offered the ability for users to break longer videos into separate chapters so that viewers can quickly find specific information, but they were only visible when you clicked through.
Now, chapters will appear alongside the search results, with a time-stamped image thumbnail for each section. This should give viewers more insight into the content inside each video, and you'll be able to tap or click right into a specific chapter if you find exactly the info you're looking for. We're not yet sure if this feature is coming to mobile, desktop or both, but we asked YouTube and will update this if we find out more.
Another new feature we do know is coming to mobile are the little snippets of videos that automatically play when you mouse over them on the desktop. YouTube says it'll roll out "a version" of these previews on mobile, though it's not clear exactly what gesture will be used to get the snippet to play.
Finally, some of Google's auto-translate tools are coming to YouTube search results to make them useful to more people. Specifically, the company is starting to include automatically translated video titles, descriptions and captions to search. These results will show when there isn't enough related content in a user's local language to be useful. YouTube is first adding these translations to English-language videos, and right now it's only being tested on mobile devices in India and Indonesia; the company says it'll "consider" expanding to more locations based on user feedback.
Most credit cards these days offer some kind of reward to users, whether it's a percentage of your spending in cash back, airline miles or some other perk. Venmo launched its own credit card last fall, and while it offers up to three percent cash back, the company is now letting users do something relatively unique with that refund. As of today, Venmo credit card users can automatically get that cash back in cryptocurrency.
Once you opt in, you can choose one of four cryptocurrencies to purchase with your cash back: Bitcoin, Ethereum, Litecoin and Bitcoin Cash. There are no transaction fees for the purchase, and the transfer happens automatically. From there, you can turn that crypto back into cash at any time, or change what currency you get each month from your cash back.
This feature builds on the cryptocurrency features that Venmo added to its app earlier this year. Since April, Venmo users have been able to buy those same four cryptocurrencies directly in the app, so a feature to easily turn cash back into crypto might make it easier for more people to dip their toes into the Bitcoin world.
Parallels, the company best know for its virtualization software that lets you run Windows and Linux directly on your Mac, has had a busy year. In addition to building a version of Parallels that can run on Chrome OS for the first time, the company also had to figure out how to quickly make its software work with the new, ARM-based M1 Macs that arrived last fall. Now, Parallels Desktop 17 is being released with improved performance on M1 Macs, as well as full support for the upcoming macOS Monterey and Windows 11 operating systems.
Before getting into these improvements, though, it's worth taking a moment to talk compatibility. Apple moving the Mac to ARM architecture means there are now two classes of Macs for Parallels to support. As of today, the only versions of Windows that Parallels can run on an M1 Mac are the Insider Previews for Windows 10 and Windows 11 — because those versions of the OS are able to run on ARM-based hardware. But, Parallels unequivocally says that when the full version of Windows 11 is released to the public, it'll run on Parallels 17.
On an Intel-baed Mac, however, users can still run a host of virtual machines, including Windows support all the way back to XP and Windows 2000, and macOS all the way back to 2011's OS X Lion. It can also run eight different Linux distros; M1 Macs can only virtualize four right now, including Ubuntu and Fedora.
So while Intel Macs still offer the broadest compatibility, Parallels has found that the raw power of the M1 chip means users likely aren't giving anything up running the Windows 10 or 11 Insider Previews. Microsoft's built-in emulation for Windows means that Windows 10 Insider Preview can run almost any 32-bit x86 app as well as "many" 64-bit x86 apps, and the M1's power helps to make up for speed lost due to emulation.
As for what's new, Parallels has speed improvements across the board, whether you're running Intel or M1. Regardless of which system you're using, Parallels 17 resumes Windows and Linux up to 38 percent faster, while OpenGL graphics run up to six times faster than the previous version. M1-specific speed improvements include 20 percent faster disk performance when using Windows 10 Insider preview, while DirectX graphics should perform up to 28 percent better. These tests are all run by Parallels, and we can't verify them yet, but improving performance has long been a focus for the company.
There are a handful of new features on board, as well. Parallels improved its "Coherence" mode, where you can run a Windows app without launching into the full Windows UI. Now, things like shutdowns, updates and sign-in screens are windowed as well, making them easier to pop into the background. The ability to drag and drop between Windows and Mac apps has been improved, as well — for example, you can now highlight and drop text and images between Mac and Windows apps, and it'll work with the new Quick Note feature coming to macOS Monterey.
Parallels 17 also contains a virtual TPM (Trusted Platform Module) chip, which lets the system use BitLocker and Secure Boot when running Windows 10 and Windows 11. There's an added layer of intrigue to this feature: Microsoft originally said that a computer with a TPM chip was a requirement for Windows 11 before backtracking (at least for the testing period). It's not clear yet if the final version of Windows 11 will require a TPM chip, but this virtualization should let Parallels users get around this requirement.
As with most software these days, Parallels Desktop 17 is being sold as a subscription. The standard edition is $79.99 per year, and the pro edition costs $99.99 per year. If you're on a subscription, you'll get Parallels updates as long as the subscription is active. If you prefer, though, you can get a perpetual license of the standard edition Parallels 17 for $99.99; people who have purchased a past perpetual license can upgrade for $49.99.
In the last few years, many of the biggest social media companies have been throwing money at creators, trying to get them to embrace their platforms and bring loyal audiences to their apps. Earlier this year, YouTube announced a $100 million fund specifically to pay creators who use the platform's new Shorts format, which just came out of beta and rolled out to 100 countries last month. That fund is now live as of today, so the company is dropping more details on how you can get paid.
As YouTube announced earlier this year, the company plans to invite "thousands of eligible creators" to claim a payment from the program from now through 2022; YouTube is offering from $100 to $10,000, depending on how many people watch the Short as well as some other engagement metrics. Anyone posting shorts is theoretically eligible to get picked for a payment, not just creators who participate in the YouTube Partner Program (that's the program YouTube launched 14 years ago so that users could get paid for their content).
Naturally, there are a number of standards that these Shorts need to meet to be eligible. Most of them are pretty straightforward, like abiding by YouTube's community guidelines and copyright policies. YouTube also doesn't want people just re-uploading content they created for Snapchat or TikTok, so any Shorts with watermarks or logos from other social networks won't qualify. YouTube says it'll be awarding payments on a monthly basis so interested creators will be incentivized to keep making new Shorts.
While YouTube Shorts is a relatively new platform, TikTok has had a similar fund for its creators since 2020. It was announced as a $200 million fund, double what YouTube currently has budgeted for its Shorts fund, and those interested would have to submit their best work. But while TikTok's fund may be larger than this Shorts program, YouTube notes that it has nine other ways for its creators to monetize their content.
While YouTube Shorts is a relatively new platform, TikTok has had a similar fund for its creators since 2020. It was announced as a $200 million fund, double what YouTube currently has budgeted for its Shorts fund, and those interested would have to submit their best work. But while TikTok's fund may be larger than this Shorts program, YouTube notes that it has nine other ways for its creators to monetize their content.
Not to be outdone, Facebook recently launched its own $1 billion program to lure creators to Instagram as well as its main service. Perhaps more significantly than the sheer dollar value is the fact that Facebook isn't going to collect a cut of creators' revenue through 2022, making a focus on the platform even more potentially lucrative. The size of this move is an admission from Facebook that it's a little behind the curve here; Instagram didn't offer any kind of revenue share until last year, in fact.
Between TikTok's massive influence and Facebook's massive war chest aimed at creators, YouTube is going to need to keep offering its users more ways to make cash — and the company knows it. Indeed, it said in today's news that the $100 million fund is the "first step" in its plans to monetize Shorts.
Despite the pandemic, Apple has spent most of the last two years relentlessly upgrading its product lineup, and its moves are definitely paying off. The company just announced financial results for its fiscal year third quarter (for normal humans, the months of April through June), and the company made a shocking amount of money. All of its product segments (the iPhone, Mac, iPad, services, and wearables/home/accessories) increased in revenue year-over-year, leading to total revenue of $81.4 billion. As has often been the case, iPhone revenue of $39.6 billion made up almost half of that figure.
Quarterly revenue was up 36 percent year-over-year, and as such profit grew in a big way, too — in fact, it nearly doubled. Apple reported $21.7 billion in net income, up 93 percent compared to a year ago.
As already mentioned, all of Apple's product categories grew last quarter, but the biggest winner was the iPhone. Revenue grew 50 percent year-over-year, making it pretty clear the iPhone 12 lineup is a major success for the company. Apple's services division continues to explode; $17.5 billion in revenue represented 33 percent growth, and the category makes more than double the money of any other division in Apple, with the obvious exception of the iPhone.
The company's "wearables, home and accessories" group lumps the Apple Watch in with devices like the HomePod mini and the new AirTags. It grew 36 percent and made $8.8 billion in revenue. The Mac and iPad had more modest gains, with Mac revenue increasing 16 percent year over year to $8.2 billion and iPad revenue climbing 12 percent to $7.4 billion. While the Mac number isn't an eye-popper like services, it's worth nothing that just a few years ago, Mac revenue was pretty flat, sitting in the $4 billion range for a while — but it seems like the M1 Mac move has helped spur some big increases.
As usual, Apple CEO Tim Cook is holding a call with investors — we'll update this story with anything we learn.
Chromebooks have earned a reputation for being cheap and limited, but that hasn’t been true for a while now. The combination of years worth of software updates and laptop manufacturers making more powerful and better-built Chromebooks means there are a ton of good Chrome OS machines that work well as everyday drivers. Of course, there are an unnecessary number of Chromebooks on the market, so choosing the right one is easier said than done. Fortunately, I’ve tried enough of them at this point to know what to look for and what to avoid.
What is Chrome OS, and why would I use it over Windows?
That’s probably the number one question about Chromebooks. There are plenty of inexpensive Windows laptops on the market, so why bother with Chrome OS? Glad you asked. For me, the simple and clean nature of Chrome OS is a big selling point. If you didn’t know, it’s based on Google’s Chrome browser, which means most of the programs you can run are web based. There’s no bloatware or unwanted apps to uninstall like you often get on Windows laptops, it boots up in seconds, and you can completely reset to factory settings almost as quickly.
Of course, the simplicity is also a major drawback for some users. Not being able to install native software can be a dealbreaker if you’re, say, a video editor or software developer. But there are also plenty of people who do the vast majority of their work in a browser. Unless I need to edit photos for a review, I can do my entire job on a Chromebook.
Nathan Ingraham / Engadget
Google has also added support for Android apps on Chromebooks, which greatly expands the amount of software available. The quality varies widely, but it means you can do more with a Chromebook beyond just web-based apps. For example, you can install the Netflix app and save videos for offline watching; other Android apps like Microsoft’s Office suite and Adobe Lightroom are surprisingly capable. Between Android apps and a general improvement in web apps, Chromebooks are more than just a browser.
What do Chromebooks do well, and when should you avoid them?
Put simply, anything web based. Browsing, streaming music and video and using various social media sites are among the most common things people do on Chromebooks. As you might expect, they also work well with Google services like Photos, Docs, Gmail, Drive, Keep and so on. Yes, any computer that can run Chrome can do that too, but the lightweight nature of Chrome OS makes it a responsive and stable platform.
As I mentioned before, Chrome OS can run Android apps, so if you’re an Android user you’ll find some nice ties between the platforms. You can get most of the same apps that are on your phone on a Chromebook and keep info in sync between them. You can also use some Android phones as a security key for your Chromebook or instantly tether your laptop to use mobile data.
Nathan Ingraham / Engadget
Google continues to tout security as a major differentiator for Chromebooks, and I think it’s definitely a factor worth considering. The first line of defense is auto-updates. Chrome OS updates download quickly in the background and a fast reboot is all it takes to install the latest version. Google says that each webpage and app on a Chromebook runs in its own sandbox, as well, so any security threats are contained to that individual app. Finally, Chrome OS has a self-check called Verified Boot that runs every time a device starts up. Beyond all this, the simple fact that you generally can’t install traditional apps on a Chromebook means there are a lot fewer ways for bad actors to access the system.
As for when to avoid them, the answer is simple: If you rely heavily on a specific native application for Windows or a Mac, chances are good you won’t find the exact same option on a Chromebook. That’s most true in fields like photo and video editing, but it can also be the case in fields like law or finance. Plenty of businesses run on Google’s G suite software, but more still have specific requirements that a Chromebook might not match. If you’re an iPhone user, you’ll also miss out on the way the iPhone easily integrates with an iPad or Mac, as well. For me, the big downside is not being able to access iMessage on a Chromebook.
Finally, gaming is almost entirely a non-starter, as there are no native Chrome OS games of note. You can install Android games from the Google Play Store, but that’s not what most people are thinking of when they want to game on a laptop. That said, Google’s game-streaming service Stadia has changed that long-standing problem. The service isn’t perfect, but it remains the only way to play recent, high-profile games on a Chromebook. It’s not as good as running local games on a Windows computer, but the lag issues that can crop up reflect mostly on Stadia itself and not Chrome OS.
What are the most important specs for a Chromebook?
Chrome OS is lightweight and usually runs well on fairly modest hardware, so the most important thing to look for might not be processor power or storage space. That said, I’d still recommend you get a Chromebook with a relatively recent Intel processor, ideally an eighth-generation or newer M3 or i3. Most non-Intel Chromebooks I’ve tried haven’t had terribly good performance, though Lenovo’s Chromebook Duet 2-in-1 runs surprisingly well on its MediaTek processor.
As for RAM, 4GB is enough for most people, though 8GB is a better target if you have the cash, want to future-proof your investment or if you’re a serious tab junkie. Storage space is another place where you don’t need to spend too much; 64GB should be fine for almost anyone. If you plan on storing a lot of local files or loading up your Chromebook with Linux or Android apps, get 128GB. But for what it’s worth, I’ve never felt like I might run out of local storage when using Chrome OS.
Things like the keyboard and display quality are arguably more important than sheer specs. The good news is that you can find less expensive Chromebooks that still have pretty good screens and keyboards that you won’t mind typing on all day. Many cheap Chromebooks still come with tiny, low-resolution displays, but at this point there’s no reason to settle for anything less than 1080p. (If you’re looking for an extremely portable, 11-inch Chromebook, though, you’ll probably have to settle for less.) Obviously, keyboard quality is a bit more subjective, but you shouldn’t settle for a mushy piece of garbage.
Google has an Auto Update policy for Chromebooks, and while that’s not a spec, per se, it’s worth checking before you buy. Basically, Chromebooks get regular software updates automatically for about six years from their release date (though that can vary from device to device). This support page lists the Auto Update expiration date for virtually every Chromebook ever, but a good rule of thumb is to buy the newest machine you can to maximize your support.
How much should I spend?
Nathan Ingraham / Engadget
Chromebooks started out notoriously cheap, with list prices often coming in under $300. But as they’ve gone more mainstream, they’ve transitioned from being essentially modern netbooks to the kind of laptop you’ll want to use all day. As such, prices have increased a bit over the last few years. At this point, you should expect to spend at least $400 if you want a solid daily driver. There are still many budget options out there that may be suitable as couch machines or secondary devices, but if you want a Chromebook that can be your all-day-every-day laptop, $400 is the least you can expect to spend.
There are also plenty of premium Chromebooks that approach or even exceed $1,000, but I don’t recommend spending that much. Generally, that’ll get you better design quality with more premium materials, as well as more powerful internals and extra storage space. Of course, you also sometimes pay for the brand name. But, the specs I outlined earlier are usually enough.
Right now, there actually aren’t too many Chromebooks that even cost that much. Google’s Pixelbook Go comes in $999 and $1,399 configurations, but the more affordable $650 and $850 options will be just as good for nearly everyone. Samsung released the $1,000 Galaxy Chromebook in 2020; this luxury device does almost everything right but has terrible battery life. Samsung quickly learned from that mistake and is now offering the Galaxy Chromebook 2 with more modest specs, but vastly better battery life at a much more affordable price (more on that laptop later). For the most part, you don’t need to spend more than $850 to get a premium Chromebook that’ll last you years.
Engadget picks
Best overall: Lenovo Flex 5 Chromebook
Nathan Ingraham / Engadget
Look beyond the awkward name and you’ll find a Chromebook that does just about everything right that’s also a tremendous value. It gets all the basics right: The 13-inch 1080p touchscreen is bright, though it’s a little hard to see because of reflections in direct sunlight. It runs on a 10th-generation Intel Core i3 processor, the eight-hour battery life is solid, and the backlit keyboard is one of the best I’ve used on any laptop lately, Chromebook or otherwise. The Flex 5 is now a little over a year old, but it still holds up well and is even cheaper than it was when it first launched. It can now regularly be found for well under $400 on Amazon. (As of this writing, it’s priced at $329.) That’s an outstanding value for a Chromebook this capable.
Naturally, Lenovo cut a few corners to hit that price. Most significantly, it only has 4GB of RAM and 64GB of storage. Normally, I wouldn’t recommend anyone buy a computer with those specs — but Chrome OS is far less dependent on local storage. Unless you were planning to store a ton of movies or install a huge variety of Android apps, 64GB is enough for moderately advanced use. I was concerned about the non-upgradeable 4GB of RAM, but my testing showed that the IdeaPad Flex 5 can run plenty of tabs and other apps without many hiccups. If you push things hard, you’ll occasionally have to wait for tabs to refresh if you haven’t viewed them recently, but other than that this is a solid performer, particularly for the price.
Other things in the IdeaPad Flex 5’s favor include that it has both USB-C and USB-A ports and a 360-degree convertible hinge. I personally don’t find myself flipping laptops around to tablet or stand mode very often, but it’s there if you like working in those formats. At three pounds and 0.66 inches thick, it’s not the lightest or slimmest option out there, but those specs are also totally reasonable considering the price.
Ultimately, the Ideapad Flex 5 hits the sweet spot for a large majority of potential Chromebook buyers out there, providing a level of quality and performance that’s pretty rare to find at this price point. That said, given this laptop has been out for over a year now, we’re keeping an eye out for any potential replacements Lenovo offers, as well as comparable options other manufacturers release.
Premium Chromebooks with more power, better design and higher prices have become common in recent years. If you want to step up over the excellent but basic Lenovo Flex 5, there are two recent options worth considering: Samsung’s Galaxy Chromebook 2 and Acer’s Chromebook Spin 713.
The Galaxy Chromebook 2 is infinitely more stylish than most other Chromebooks, with a bright metallic red finish and a design that looks far better than the utilitarian Flex 5 and Chromebook Spin 713. As I mentioned earlier, Samsung’s Galaxy Chromebook 2 fixes some of the serious flaws we identified in the original. Specifically, the 2020 Galaxy Chromebook had terrible battery life and cost $999; this year’s model starts at $549 and can actually last seven hours off the charger. That’s not great, but it’s far better than the lousy four hours the original offered.
Samsung cut a few corners to lower the Galaxy Chromebook 2’s price. Most noticeable is the 1080p 13.3-inch touchscreen, down from the 4K panel on the older model. The good news is that the display is among the best 1080p laptop screens I’ve seen in a long time, and the lower resolution helps the battery life, too. The Galaxy Chromebook 2 is also a bit thicker and heavier than its predecessor, but it’s still reasonably compact.
Finally, the Galaxy Chromebook 2 has a 10th-generation Intel Core i3 processor rather than the Core i5 Samsung included last year. All these changes add up to a laptop that isn’t as ambitious, but is ultimately much easier to recommend. Instead of pushing to have the best screen in the thinnest and lightest body with a faster processor, Samsung pulled everything back a bit to make a better-priced but still premium laptop.
Nathan Ingraham / Engadget
Acer’s Chromebook Spin 713, by comparison, doesn’t look like much from the outside — it’s a chunky gray slab with little to distinguish it from many other basic laptops. While it doesn’t seem exciting, the Spin 713 is just as well-made as the Galaxy Chromebook 2, with a sturdy hinge and body. But what’s most interesting is the display, a 13.5-inch touchscreen with a 3:2 aspect ratio. That makes it a much better option than 1080p displays when you’re scrolling vertically through documents and webpages. It has a somewhat unusual resolution of 2,256 x 1,504, thanks to the taller aspect ratio, but it makes for a more pixel-dense display than you’ll find on your standard 13.3-inch, 1080p laptop. Long story short: The screen is great.
As for the rest of the hardware, the 11th-generation Intel Core i5 processor is more than enough power for most tasks, and the keyboard and trackpad are solid, if not the best I’ve used before. The same can be said for battery life: I got about the same six to seven hours using the Spin 713 as I did using the Galaxy Chromebook 2. I wish it were better in both cases, but it’s in line with other premium Chromebooks I’ve used lately.
The Spin 713 configuration that I tested costs $699, the same as the Galaxy Chromebook 2. Because I’m such a fan of the 3:2 display, I prefer the Spin 713 (which also has a more powerful processor), but the Galaxy Chromebook 2 is worth a look if you want a laptop that has a little more style and a better keyboard.
Last year, Google’s Pixelbook Go was our pick for the best premium model. It’s still an excellent choice and one of my favorite Chromebooks to use, but it’s almost two years old. Its age coupled with its aging 8th-generation Intel processor make it tougher to recommend. That said, it’s still one of the thinnest and lightest Chromebooks around, and it still handles everything I can throw at it. It also has the best keyboard I’ve used on any recent Chromebook. There’s still a lot to like, but it’s harder to justify spending $650 or more on it. Hopefully Google will release an updated version this fall.
While Lenovo’s Flex 5 is inexpensive enough that you could get one for your kid, Acer’s Chromebook 512 might be a better option for young ones in your life. First off, it’s specifically built to take abuse. In addition to the military-rated (MIL-STD 810G) impact-resistant body, you can spill up to 330mL of liquid on the keyboard. A drainage system will flush it out and keep the insides working. (Note that I haven’t actually tried that.) The keyboard features “mechanically anchored” keys that should be harder for kids to pick off, too. Regardless of exactly how much water you can pour onto that keyboard, the Chromebook 512 should handle a child’s abuse better than your average laptop.
This computer isn’t a speed demon, but the Intel Celeron N4000 chip coupled with 4GB of RAM and 32GB of storage should be fine for basic tasks. The 12-inch screen isn’t a standout either, but it has the same taller 3:2 aspect ratio as Acer’s Chromebook Spin 713. That means you’ll get more vertical screen real estate than you would on the 16:9, 11-inch panels typically found in laptops of this class. (The Chromebook 512’s screen resolution is 1,366 x 912, whereas most 11-inch Chromebooks use a 1,366 x 768 panel.)
All in all, it’s a fairly modest computer, but grade-school kids, a computer that can take some abuse and runs an easy-to-use OS that’s well supported in education should fit the bill well. The Chromebook 512 is priced at $249.99 direct from Acer, but it's going for $219.99 as of this writing at other retailers.
iPadOS 15 is arriving at a crucial time for the iPad. Ever since the well-designed and overly powerful 2018 iPad Pro arrived, people have increasingly asked Apple to make its tablet software as flexible and impressive as its hardware. This year’s iPadOS update isn’t going to satisfy those who want the iPad to work more like a Mac — it still feels like an iPad, for better or worse.
That said, Apple has made a handful of significant changes and a host of smaller ones, all of which add up to an experience that makes the iPad more customizable and flexible than before while still retaining (and improving upon) the basic iPad experience. There are a lot of new features to unpack, and the just-released iPadOS 15 public beta is still a work in progress, but here are some of the most significant changes to look forward to when the final software arrives this fall.
Should you install iPadOS 15?
But first, a note about that beta status. Apple’s public betas are generally pretty reliable, and that’s true here, too. I’ve generally been able to use my 11-inch iPad Pro without any issues, but apps occasionally crash and throw me to the Home Screen; interacting with notifications doesn’t always work; and there are various other hiccups here and there. (Examples: my cursor doesn’t always move to the search field when I summon it, and the last few letters of my messages are sometimes cut off when using the app in Slide Over.) It’s nothing deal-breaking, but it’s noticeable, particularly when I use my iPad for multiple hours at a time. Unless you're extremely curious, I'd wait for a few more beta versions to be released before giving it a shot, unless you can put it on a back-up iPad.
Widgets and Home Screen updates
With that out of the way, let’s dig into the new features. The most obvious change in iPadOS 15 is that widgets have come to the Home Screen. As with last year’s iOS 14, iPad users can now pin widgets anywhere they want. You can also select which apps you want to show on the Home Screen and stash the rest in the App Library, an auto-organized place to find everything you’ve installed on your iPad. Both widgets and the App Library came to the iPhone last year, and it was surprising that they didn’t arrive on the iPad until now.
My "work" home screen.
I’m glad Apple did this, because it makes your iPad’s home screens far more customizable than before, something sorely needed on a big-screen device. It took a little work, but I’ve now hidden the apps I don’t use as much in the App Library and now have five home screens curated for work, entertainment, games and so forth. For example, my work screen only has six app shortcuts (Drive, Docs, Sheet, Trello, Slack and LastPass), but the variety of widgets I have installed provides glanceable info and easy access to a lot of tools. I have a widget showing recent notes in the “work” folder, another with Reminders (also specifically from my work group), an Apple News widget showing the latest tech news, and widgets for Google Calendar and Gmail. All that, plus the apps in my dock, make this the prime place to go when I need to get things done.
Quick Notes
The other new feature that could fundamentally change the iPad experience is Quick Notes. As Apple’s Craig Federighi said during last month's WWDC keynote, Notes are now a “system-wide” feature. Swiping in from the lower right corner summons a new note that floats above whatever apps you’re using. You can quickly type or write down (with the Apple Pencil) whatever comes to mind and then swipe the note away when you’re done. Depending on your settings, you can start a new note every time you access Quick Notes, or just keep adding to the same one. Finally, you can swipe between Quick Notes you’ve started if you want to get to a specific document.
At the top of this Quick Note is a button that automatically appears to let you save a link to the page you're visiting.
The iPad’s Slide Over multitasking feature offered an approximation of this experience, but Quick Notes is far more flexible. For starters, you can move a Quick Note anywhere on the screen you want, making it feel like a true “window” reminiscent of something you would use on Windows or macOS. If you’re going to jump in and out of the same note frequently, you can dismiss it to the side of the iPad screen where a little arrow shows that you can summon it back quickly.
Apple’s Quick Note demos mostly focused on using the Apple Pencil to quickly jot things down, but it works just as well with a keyboard. When I’m doing work, it’s almost always with the Magic Keyboard attached, and being able to quickly summon a persistent document to take notes in, regardless of what else I was doing, makes the iPad feel significantly more versatile. It’s a great tool when doing research, especially since you can add links to web pages in Safari or destinations in Maps with one tap. My only real complaint is that the “swipe in from the bottom right” gesture is a little awkward, especially when using the iPad docked to a keyboard. It’s much with the Apple Pencil.
Multitasking
Multitasking was a major focus at WWDC, as well. While Apple did make some useful changes here, the fundamental iPad multitasking experience is still the same. Apps can take up the whole screen, or share the display with a second app in Split View. There’s also the Slide Over area, which lets you quickly summon a floating window containing another app. Apple has made major improvements to these features over the years, but they’re the same fundamental multitasking options we’ve had since iOS 9 back in 2015.
The tiny multitasking menu can be handy, once you know how to use it.
If you’ve been hoping for a true windowed multitasking experience, this isn’t it. But Apple has made it easier to work with the multitasking features it does offer. Now, there’s a tiny three-dot menu at the top of every app you use that lets you move the app between full screen, slide over and split view. As I compose this sentence, I’m typing in the Notes app, full screen. If I want to take Notes into Split View and share the screen with Safari, I just tap the multitasking menu and hit the Split View icon. This gives me a full view of my Home Screen, which then lets me pick anything I want to go alongside Notes.
Being able to quickly choose from any app on your Home Screen when setting up a multitasking view is a big improvement; before, you primarily had to use search to find the app you want, or drag one of the apps available in your dock. The menu also makes it a lot easier to move apps between Split View, Slide Over and full-screen views. Previously, you had to be aware of a variety of gestures, but a few minutes of playing with the multitasking menu makes the behavior pretty clear.
Safari
The last major change I’ll cover at this early stage is Safari. It’s one of the most important apps on the iPad, and it’s gotten a lot better in the last few years. But for iPadOS 15, Apple has made what I predict will be a polarizing design decision. In an effort to slim down the top menu bar, Apple crammed the URL bar and open tabs into one row. Essentially, a tab and its URL bar are now represented by a single visual cue.
This means that the location of the URL bar moves. If you’re looking at the right-most tab you have open, for instance, the URL bar is all the way to the right. It definitely takes some time to get used to, since most of us are used to it always being right in the center of whatever browser we’re using. This also makes it harder to see all your tabs; besides the “active” tab, I can currently see eight others. The rest are hidden off to the left and right of my active tab. To see them, you’ll have to scroll either direction to find what you’re looking for.
Because my active tab is the one furthest to the right, the URL bar in my window is also far to the right.In this case, my active tab is to the far left, and so is the URL bar.
Apple’s menu bar cleanup also means it removed the button that zooms out to show you a preview of every tab you have open. I used that constantly, so I hate this change. And unlike on the Mac, you can’t customize the Safari menu on the iPad at all. Now, you either have to use a keyboard shortcut or pull up the new sidebar, which contains all the open tabs in a window along with your bookmarks, reading list, history and links shared in Messages.
Safari on the iPad already did a great job of hiding the menu bar once you started scrolling through a site, so this change feels unnecessary to me. I’ll be curious to see what kind of feedback Apple gets during the beta, because I wager plenty of other people will prefer the old layout.
Safari's new sidebar holds your tab groups as well as usual items like bookmarks and your reading list.
There is at least one good thing about the new Safari: tab groups. They’re handled elegantly, with a button in the sidebar letting you open either a new “blank” group for you to populate or taking all your current tabs and saving them as a group. You can swap between groups in the sidebar, and access any groups you’ve created in any open Safari window you have. Groups will also sync across your other devices, assuming you’ve upgraded to iOS 15 or macOS Monterey. Having different tab groups for different tasks has already proven useful to me, and I’ll probably use them even more as I get used to incorporating them into my workflow.
More to come
There are plenty of other significant changes to iPadOS 15, things like the new Focus system and notifications revamp, improvements to FaceTime and Messages, the new Universal Control system that works between a Mac, iPhone andiPad, and plenty more. (You can read about some of these changes in our previews of iOS 15 and macOS Monterey.) We’ll be doing a proper review of all the new software in its final form this fall, but in the meantime I’m going to keep digging into the future beta releases to see how iPadOS 15 changes between now and its wider release.
