There’s no scarcity of tablets on this planet, from the ever-dominant iPad to an assortment of Android choices and Fire tabs to the area of interest weirdos just like the E-ink and stylus Kindle Scribe. Now, OnePlus, a Chinese producer recognized for its speedy, stable smartphones, is throwing its personal Android pill onto the desk. The firm introduced the OnePlus Pad this week, together with the second era of its Buds Pro bluetooth earbuds, and an all new mechanical keyboard.
The aluminum-bodied pill seems to be a glossy addition to the usually clunky world of Android tablets. Most notable is its 11.6-inch display screen with a facet ratio of seven:5. That’s odd for a pill; most iPad screens are 4:3, which is similar as a basic tv set. When you maintain the OnePlus Pad in panorama mode, the pill’s display screen ought to be a bit of taller than you is perhaps used to on a pill.
Also notable is the matching keyboard that attaches magnetically, and the stylus for pen enter. Both are offered individually. OnePlus claims the battery life is nice for over 12 hours of steady video playback; you may watch Seven Samurai thrice plus a pair episodes of The Office earlier than recharging. It is obtainable in a single coloration (inexperienced) and shall be out there for preorder in April for an undetermined value. Hovering ominously within the background right here is the notion that Google is predicted to debut its newest Android tablet later this yr, presumably in May.
Here are another tales from the world of shopper tech.
Notflix
Last week, Netflix by accident leaked the information that it’s going to crack down on password sharing. Then it unexpectedly walked that again after a public outcry. But now Netflix has officially announced it’s implementing guidelines that forestall individuals who don’t stay in the identical residence from sharing a single Netflix account. The unfortunate first victims of this coverage are subscribers in Canada, New Zealand, Spain, and Portugal.
In its announcement, Netflix detailed its plans for limiting account sharing. Now, anybody not dwelling in the identical family because the account holder shall be prompted to switch their profiles to a brand new paid account or be reduce off. Netflix says the restrictions will roll out extra broadly inside months. It additionally stated the service would “refine these new features based on member feedback.” As you may think, that suggestions has been not nice.
The streaming service has been building to this for some time now, testing out these restrictions in international locations with a smaller buyer base. The crackdown hasn’t come for the US yet, however that it’s going to appears about as probably as Netflix canceling one among its exhibits after a single season. (Which is to say, very likely.)
Apple Tests Buy Now, Pay Later
Buy-now, pay-later plans are all the craze, permitting clients to pay for stuff in interest-free installments fairly than one bank-breaking chunk. Financial companies like Klarna and Affirm have turn out to be extremely popular amongst cash-strapped customers, who’ve even used them to purchase meals and vacation items. Of course, they’ve acquired some problems. (Who doesn’t love the concept of not paying full value after which doubtlessly getting wracked by debt months later?)
Apple is raring to get in on the BNPL sport underneath its own proprietary system, after all. Apple first introduced the characteristic at its 2022 Worldwide Developers Conference, but it surely has but to make its strategy to the general public. Recently, Apple expanded its testing of the plan to employees at its retail stores, a transfer that has usually preceded different Apple service bulletins. That appears to point that the broader rollout of its BNPL plan is imminent.
The Crypto Keeper
Back within the day, all of the cool child criminals used crypto. Blockchain-based currencies like Bitcoin had been hailed as an nameless, untraceable technique of fee. Aspiring lawbreakers might use crypto to purchase even the darkest of darkish net contraband with impunity, their identities shrouded within the thriller assured by their technique of fee. Or so many individuals thought.
Turns out, Bitcoin and different cryptocurrencies are in actual fact totally traceable. You simply should know the place to look. And sadly for some crypto-carrying criminals, federal legislation enforcement officers knew precisely the way to observe them down.
