When it comes to robot vacuum cleaners, there’s one brand that probably springs to mind before any other. But there are plenty of great options out there beyond Roomba, and one of our favorite models is on sale for nearly half off. The Anker Eufy BoostIQ RoboVac 11S Max has dropped to $129, which is a discount of 48 percent or $120.
This is our pick for the best ultra budget robot vacuum. Since it has such a deep discount right now, that makes it even more of a budget-friendly recommendation.
We appreciate the slim profile that makes it easy for the RoboVac 11S to clean under low furniture. We found the vacuum to have a long battery life and good suction power, especially for its size.
The main drawback is the lack of Wi-Fi connectivity. That means you won’t be able to bark a request for a spot clean at your voice assistant. Instead, you’ll need to use a remote to control the vacuum, but it still has many of the features you’d expect from an app-operated model, such as scheduled cleanings. You can also start a cleaning by pressing a button on the top of the unit.
The RoboVac 11S starts cleaning in auto mode with the aim of optimizing the process as it saunters around your home. However, you can select spot cleans and edge cleaning using the remote. One other welcome feature, especially for a robot vacuum in this price range, is the inclusion of effective object detection. So if you’re on the hunt for a wallet-friendly robot vacuum for yourself or a loved one, the RoboVac 11S is definitely worth considering — especially at this price.
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This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/deals/one-of-our-favorite-robot-vacuums-is-on-sale-for-only-129-154516914.html?src=rss
No discussion of a new midrange soundbar would be complete without a mention of its biggest competition, so even though this is a review of a Bose product, let’s address that from the start. Sonos has consistently been our top pick for best midrange soundbar for years. The company’s Beam has been a great option for smaller rooms or limited space since it debuted in 2018. The 2021 revamp added Dolby Atmos to the mix, but the price, the lack of upfiring drivers and the subdued bass remained key considerations that may deter shoppers. Three years after the 2nd-gen Beam, Bose is looking to take on Sonos and the Beam with the compact, Atmos-friendly Smart Soundbar ($499).
Bose may be best known for its noise-canceling headphones and earbuds, but the company has a solid track record with speakers and soundbars too. These devices typically exhibit the same fondness for clear, warm sound, which means that finer details are never a problem. Bose also likes to throw in handy features to expand a speaker’s utility, with things like dialog boost, room tuning and more. For the Smart Soundbar though, the company allows you to use a set of its wireless earbuds as rear surround speakers, taking a slightly different approach than Sonos on bringing headphones to the living room.
What’s good about the Bose Smart Soundbar?
Bose succeeded in building a compact soundbar with a simple design that won’t be much of a distraction on your mantle or TV stand. Five drivers provide ample clarity, so even finer details and sound effects come through clearly, and the speaker arrangement offers pleasant directional audio from the soundbar alone. This is partially due to the fact that Bose employs two upfiring drivers in the center of the speaker. For the times you don’t have access to Dolby Atmos content, Bose’s TrueSpace tech will upmix the sound for a spatial experience.
The company provides an AI-powered Dialog Mode that re-balances voices against all of the other sounds so that spoken words can be heard clearly at all times. It does so without sacrificing the immersive aspects of the soundstage, so it’s not just a volume boost on the talking. I found Bose’s take on dialog to be among the best I’ve tested, right up there with Sonos, so I left it active during almost all of my testing, which isn’t the case for most soundbars I’ve reviewed.
The main appeal of the Smart Soundbar will be how Bose chose to integrate a set of its earbuds with the speaker. A feature called Personal Surround Sound puts rear channels inside the Ultra Open Earbuds, leaving the main audio coming from the soundbar. Since these earbuds have an open-ear design, you can clearly hear everything, leaving your brain to mash them together in your head. I think Bose wanted to offer something akin to Sonos’ TV Audio Swap without directly copying it, and Personal Surround Sound allows users to add rear speakers with an investment that doesn’t just sit on a shelf when it’s not in use.
Billy Steele for Engadget
Personal Surround works well, and the best part about it is it’s adjustable. There are options for volume, center channel and “height & surround” levels so you can increase or decrease the amplification of each sound source. These three parameters give you the ability to pipe in more than just the would-be rear channels into the earbuds. You can get some dialog via the center channel control, as well as increase the overall volume if the stock effect is too subdued.
What’s more, you can disable Personal Surround altogether and the Ultra Open Earbuds will play the full audio that’s coming through the Smart Soundbar. Also, lowering the volume on the speaker completely turns the Bose earbuds into something closer to Sonos’ TV Audio Swap, which is great for movies and shows when others are sleeping or don’t want to be disturbed. This mode is what Bose calls SimpleSync, and it’s compatible with the company’s recent Bluetooth speakers as well as the QuietComfort Ultra Headphones, QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds and QuietComfort 45 headphones.
Another handy feature is the ability to adjust the center and height channels on the Smart Soundbar itself. Bose also gives you the option to raise or lower the bass and treble, as well as a Wall EQ toggle that adjusts the tone if you’ve mounted the speaker under your TV. This is all nice to have, but I used the center channel adjustment the most as cranking it up increased the effect of directional audio coming from the soundbar. There’s a good amount out of the box, but this tweak takes it up a notch, providing some pleasant sound reflections off of nearby walls. It’s great for movies and shows with lots of zooming vehicles and noise, like race clips in Drive to Survive or battle scenes in Rogue One.
What’s not so good about this soundbar?
Billy Steele for Engadget
Like most soundbars, the Smart Soundbar doesn’t produce enough low-end thump on its own to provide a fully immersive audio experience. Despite the crisp detail and good directional movement, the speaker would benefit from Bose’s wireless subwoofer (starting at $499) for a 5.1 setup. The company also offers two options for rear speakers starting at $399, which would allow everyone in the room to enjoy the added surround channels. Is the Smart Soundbar good enough on its own for smaller spaces? Probably for TV and movies, but if you’re tapping it to pull double duty as a music speaker, you’ll want to add a sub.
Bose’s Personal Surround Sound feature is a nice perk, but only one person can use it at a time, so it’s really for solo watching at this point. Unless, of course, you want to be a jerk and give yourself the expanded sound and leave your partner, family or friends with the stock experience.
Functionally, the Smart Soundbar responded to my commands and all of its modes worked well. One thing that did annoy me was its reluctance to automatically find the correct input when I turned the TV on after listening to music over AirPlay. Every other soundbar I’ve tested will begin playing TV audio when the screen flickers on, although some may take a few seconds longer than others to kick in. With this soundbar, I sometimes had to select the audio source in the app for things to work properly.
I’m not one to harp on soundbar remotes, but I’m compelled to do so here. The accessory Bose includes with the Smart Soundbar feels very cheap. It’s similar to what might come with a fan or lamp, although this one has a more robust plastic frame so it’s slightly sturdier. I understand the desire to include a remote control with a $500 soundbar, but it either needed a little more polish or Bose could’ve just left all of the controls to the app.
Final verdict on the Bose Smart Soundbar
Billy Steele for Engadget
The Smart Soundbar is the same price as the Sonos Beam, which remains great for smaller spaces, and is just a more compact option in general. There are a lot of similarities between the Beam and Smart Soundbar, and a few small but notable differences. Sonos’ advantage lies in its TV Audio Swap tool and larger ecosystem, though that edge is hampered by the ongoing app rebuild. Sonos also provides dynamic head tracking for even more immersion, which Bose’s soundbar lacks. Bose offers multiroom audio with the Smart Soundbar and you can use the Ultra Open Earbuds for personal listening of TV sound on top of the surround feature.
It’s clear that Bose is taking aim at Sonos with the Smart Soundbar, so the question then becomes which company’s audio tuning do you prefer. Since they both offer things like Atmos audio, room calibration, dialog enhancement and headphone use, the choice comes down to personal sonic sensibilities. I think Bose does enough with its earbud integration to make this a tough decision, so long as you’re willing to spend the $300 to get the additional device.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/audio/speakers/bose-smart-soundbar-review-using-earbuds-as-surround-sound-speakers-153028639.html?src=rss
With Christmas approaching, the Google Pixel Tablet is currently 30 percent off — at least the 128GB version. It’s currently $279, the lowest price it’s ever been since its release.
The Google Pixel Tablet has an 11-inch screen with a resolution of 2560×1600 pixels, making it suitable for streaming content. The tablet is compatible with the Charging Speaker Dock (sold separately). If you need a little more convincing, we named it one of our best Android tablets for 2024.
If 128GB of onboard memory isn’t enough for you, the Google Pixel Tablet also comes in a 256GB version, which is 28 percent off at $359. Every other specification is identical to the standard 128GB model, but having double the memory means you can download more pictures, apps and YouTube videos for offline watching. As with Google’s Pixel smartphones, the Pixel Tablet works with Gemini, the tech giant’s AI chatbot.
For those who use tablets as their primary work device, the Google Pixel Tablet supports Split Screen. This feature lets you open two apps side-by-side and use them simultaneously. It’s great for multitasking.
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This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/deals/google-pixel-tablets-are-up-to-30-percent-off-152043181.html?src=rss
The holiday season is upon us and, while that means lots of merriment and fun, it also brings the inevitable stress of picking gifts for all your loved ones. We have list after list of some of the best gifts to get your mom, runners, book lovers, gamers and others, but sometimes the greatest presents come from following the sales.
That brings us to Amazon’s current deal on the Elgato Stream Deck Neo. The device is down to an all-time low price of $80, from $100 — a 20 percent discount. The Stream Deck Neo is Elgato’s smaller (and much more affordable) take on one of our favorite game streaming items for 2024: the Stream Deck +. They both have eight customizable keys to make commands easy while streaming. The small but mightly Stream Deck Neo is also built for gaming and making your daily to-do list easier to accomplish with easy shortcuts.
The Elgato Stream Deck Neo has a small display with the time, date and day of the week, making it have a bit of an alarm clock feel. It can integrate with apps like Zoom, PowerPoint, Spotify and more. Plus, you can connect it to your Mac or PC with a USB-C plug. Overall, this is a great gift for anyone in your life interested in streaming or just wanting to access their every day tasks with ease.
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This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/deals/elgatos-stream-deck-neo-is-cheaper-than-ever-144531655.html?src=rss
Raspberry Pi has just released its new computer-in-a-keyboard, the Raspberry Pi 500, the successor to the Raspberry Pi 400. It shares most of the same internal components as the Raspberry Pi 5, but with a keyboard shell and improved heatsink — all for $90.
The Pi 500 is equipped with a 2.4GHz quad-core 64-bit Arm Cortex-A76 CPU and comes with 8GB of RAM. It has three USB A ports (two USB 3.0 ports and one USB 2.0 port) but no USB-C slots besides the charger, which doesn’t support peripherals like mice and docks. Both WiFi and Ethernet are supported natively, along with Bluetooth 5.0. The package also includes a 32GB microSD card preloaded with Raspberry Pi OS, a Linux distribution based on Debian.
Currently, the Pi 500 only has US and UK keyboards, but variants in other languages like Spanish and Japanese are on the way, TechCrunch notes. Depending on the language, the keyboard can have 78 to 83 keys.
The Raspberry Pi 500, by itself or as a desktop kit, is now available through approved resellers. The $120 desktop kit contains the Pi 500 computer, a mouse, a USB-C power supply, an HDMI cable and a beginner’s guide. Monitors aren’t included in the package, though today Raspberry Pi also introduced its new Raspberry Pi Monitor for $100.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/computing/the-raspberry-pi-500-is-a-90-computer-in-a-keyboard-142900379.html?src=rss
What should be done when an AI accuses a student of misconduct by using AI?
Anti-cheating tools that detect material generated by AI systems are widely being used by educators to detect and punish cheating on both written and coding assignments. However, these AI detection systems don’t appear to work very well and they should not be used to punish students. Even the best system will have some non-zero false positive rate, which results in real human students getting F’s when they did in fact do their own work themselves. AI detectors are widely used, and falsely accused students span a range from grade school to grad school.
In these cases of false accusation, the harmful injustice is probably not the fault of the company providing the tool. If you look in their documentation then you will typically find something like:
“The nature of AI-generated content is changing constantly. As such, these results should not be used to punish students. … There always exist edge cases with both instances where AI is classified as human, and human is classified as AI.” — Quoted from GPTZero’s FAQ.
In other words, the people developing these services know that they are imperfect. Responsible companies, like the one quoted above, explicitly acknowledge this and clearly state that their detection tools should not be used to punish but instead to see when it might make sense to connect with a student in a constructive way. Simply failing an assignment because the detector raised a flag is negligent laziness on the part of the grader.
If you’re facing cheating allegations involving AI-powered tools, or making such allegations, then consider the following key questions:
What detection tool was used and what specifically does the tool purport to do? If the answer is something like the text quoted above that clearly states the results are not intended for punishing students, then the grader is explicitly misusing the tool.
In your specific case, is the burden of proof on the grader assigning the punishment? If so, then they should be able to provide some evidence supporting the claim that the tool works. Anyone can make a website that just uses an LLM to evaluate the input in a superficial way, but if it’s going to be used as evidence against students then there needs to be a formal assessment of the tool to show that it works reliably. Moreover this assessment needs to be scientifically valid and conducted by a disinterested third party.
In your specific case, are students entitled to examine the evidence and methodology that was used to accuse them? If so then the accusation may be invalid because AI detection software typically does not allow for the required transparency.
Is the student or a parent someone with English as a second language? If yes, then there may be a discrimination aspect to the case. People with English as second language often directly translate idioms or other common phrases and expressions from their first language. The resulting text ends up with unusual phrases that are known to falsely trigger these detectors.
Is the student a member of a minority group that makes use of their own idioms or English dialect? As with second-language speakers, these less common phrases can falsely trigger AI detectors.
Is the accused student neurodiverse? If yes, then this is another possible discrimination aspect to the case. People with autism, for example, may use expressions that make perfect sense to them, but that others find odd. There is nothing wrong with these expressions, but they are unusual and AI detectors can be triggered by them.
Is the accused work very short? The key idea behind AI detectors is that they look for unusual combinations of words and/or code instructions that are seldom used by humans yet often used by generative AI. In a lengthly work, there may be many such combinations found so that the statistical likelihood of a human coincidentally using all of those combinations could be small. However, the shorter the work, the higher the chance of coincidental use.
What evidence is there that the student did the work? If the assignment in question is more than a couple paragraphs or a few lines of code then it is likely that there is a history showing the gradual development of the work. Google Docs, Google Drive, and iCloud Pages all keep histories of changes. Most computers also keep version histories as part of their backup systems, for example Apple’s Time Machine. Maybe the student emailed various drafts to a partner, parent, or even the teacher and those emails form a record incremental work. If the student is using GitHub for code then there is a clear history of commits. A clear history of incremental development shows how the student did the work over time.
To be clear, I think that these AI detection tools have a place in education, but as the responsible websites themselves clearly state, that role is not to catch cheaters and punish students. In fact, many of these websites offer guidance on how to constructively address suspected cheating. These AI detectors are tools and like any powerful tool they can be great if used properly and very harmful if used improperly.
If you or your child has been unfairly accused of using AI to write for them and then punished, then I suggest that you show the teacher/professor this article and the ones that I’ve linked to. If the accuser will not relent then I suggest that you contact a lawyer about the possibility of bringing a lawsuit against the teacher and institution/school district.
Despite this recommendation to consult an attorney, I am not anti-educator and think that good teachers should not be targeted by lawsuits over grades. However, teachers that misuse tools in ways that harm their students are not good teachers. Of course a well-intentioned educator might misuse the tool because they did not realize its limitations, but then reevaluate when given new information.
“it is better 100 guilty Persons should escape than that one innocent Person should suffer” — Benjamin Franklin, 1785
As a professor myself, and I’ve also grappled with cheating in my classes. There’s no easy solution, and using AI detectors to fail students is not only ineffective but also irresponsible. We’re educators, not police or prosecutors. Our role should be supporting our students, not capriciously punishing them. That includes even the cheaters, though they might perceive otherwise. Cheating is not a personal affront to the educator or an attack on the other students. At the end of the course, the only person truly harmed by cheating is the cheater themself who wasted their time and money without gaining any real knowledge or experience. (Grading on a curve, or in some other way that pits students against each other, is bad for a number of reasons and, in my opinion, should be avoided.)
Finally, AI systems are here to stay and like calculators and computers they will radically change how people work in the near future. Education needs to evolve and teach students how to use AI responsibly and effectively. I wrote the first draft of this myself, but then I asked an LLM to read it, give me feedback, and make suggestions. I could probably have gotten a comparable result without the LLM, but then I would likely have asked a friend to read it and make suggestions. That would have taken much longer. This process of working with an LLM is not unique to me, rather it is widely used by my colleagues. Perhaps, instead of hunting down AI use, we should be teaching it to our students. Certainly, students still need to learn fundamentals, but they also need to learn how to use these powerful tools. If they don’t, then their AI-using colleagues will have a huge advantage over them.
About Me: James F. O’Brien is a Professor of Computer Science at the University of California, Berkeley. His research interests include computer graphics, computer animation, simulations of physical systems, human perception, rendering, image synthesis, machine learning, virtual reality, digital privacy, and the forensic analysis of images and video.
Disclaimer: Any opinions expressed in this article are only those of the author as a private individual. Nothing in this article should be interpreted as a statement made in relation to the author’s professional position with any institution.
This article and all embedded images are Copyright 2024 by the author. This article was written by a human, and both an LLM (Llama 3.2 3B) and other humans were used for proofreading and editorial suggestions. The editorial image was generated by AI (Adobe Firefly) and then substantially edited by a human using Photoshop.
Apple’s upgrades to the 2025 iPhone SE 4 go beyond OLED, with one report claiming it will also gain a 48-megapixel rear camera.
Phone SE 4 could look like iPhone 14, but with one rear camera
The iPhone SE 4 has been rumored to arrive in March 2025 with a lot of updates. In a Sunday report from South Korea, it seems the list of changes has more to come.
Sources ofET News say that LG Innoteck and LG Display are supplying the cameras and displays for the iPhone SE 4. In the case of LG Innotech, while it previously only supplied the rear camera for the iPhone SE 3, it will do the front as well for the iPhone SE 4.
South Korean press unexpectedly claims that Apple’s anticipated new HomePod with a display will use high-quality OLED screens, all of which are to be manufactured in China.
An artist’s rendition of a HomePod with a display
The much-rumored HomePod with a built-in screen has most recently been predicted to be launched in the second half of 2025. But Chinese display firm Tianma is said to have already got the exclusive order, and will be making OLED screens.
According to Seoul Economic Daily, the company is believed to be planning screens of between 6 inches and 7 inches, and using the low-temperature polycrystalline silicon (LTPS) version of OLED. Reportedly, this is also the first time that a Chinese company has gained an exclusive contract, beating South Korean rivals.
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