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CNET
6 days ago
- Business
- CNET
The M4 Mac Mini Is the Best Value I've Found From Apple. And It's $100 Off Right Now for Prime Day
I bought the M4 Mac Mini last month after reading CNET laptop expert Joshua Goldman's review on the tiny machine. I was looking for a computer that would increase my productivity and better organize my workflow. In four weeks of usage, I've found it to be the best value for money among Apple's lineup. For less than $600, you can get a more powerful computer than the $999 MacBook Air. Even better, it's now selling for $100 off for Amazon Prime Day. As a result, you can buy an M4 Mac Mini for as low as $500. That's a fantastic deal for work-from-home employees and creatives. The M4 Mac Mini, Apple's smallest computer, is an easy recommendation for me since it's one of CNET's picks for the best desktop computers of 2025. It's also our go-to for the best cheap desktop alternative to a MacBook or iMac. Right now on Amazon, it's currently discounted by 9%, and Prime members can get an additional $46 off when you apply the on-page coupon. That's close to the lowest price we've seen on this powerful computer. The M4 Mac Mini has been my best tech investment this year The M4 Mac Mini plus Apple's current crop of USB-C Magic accessories makes for really nice portable computing solution. Add a portable monitor and you're set. Josh Goldman/CNET I've been joyfully surprised by M4 Mac Mini's value proposition and how wonderful it has been to work from a desk for me. As a freelance remote worker, I travel for at least 10 days every month, so I need a portable computer. Based on my lifestyle, I should be recommending the M4 MacBook Air. But it's the remaining 20 days of the month that I need to work harder than usual to work on new pitches, deliver approved stories, sort admin tasks, coordinate for hardware, research for my work and more. All of this requires immense organization and productivity, and the M4 Mac Mini has helped make my life easier. The smallest Apple computer doesn't compromise on power. It features a 10-core CPU and 10-core GPU, 16GB of unified memory and a 256GB solid-state drive for storage. It's very powerful for a $599 machine and a bargain at $500. You likely won't be able to find similar reliability and power on a Windows machine for $500. I've tried and failed. And no, I'm not forgetting that the Mac Mini doesn't come with a display or a mouse and keyboard. I paired my M4 Mac Mini with a 27-inch LG UltraGear monitor (currently down to $180) and a Logitech mouse and keyboard combo -- all for under $200. The UltraGear's big screen is quite useful for research and multitasking, as well as watching movies. The M4 Mac Mini can be equally excellent for both home office and content creation needs. As CNET's Goldman wrote in his review, "The Mini can fit in your hand and be everything from an everyday home office computer to a full-on professional content-creation machine -- and an easily portable one at that -- with support for up to three 6K-resolution displays." My buying recommendation The M4 Mac Mini was launched in November 2024, and it's now available at a $100 discount, which is close to the lowest price we've seen. The small Apple computer offers a superb value proposition for remote workers and content creators alike. If you've been on the fence about getting a PC for home like me, I'd say pick up a M4 Mac Mini and see the difference for yourself. Want to check out the competition? We've rounded up the best desktop computer deals from the likes of HP, Lenovo, Dell and, naturally, Apple. And if this desktop isn't up to your tastes, you can check out the best laptop deals.
CNET
01-07-2025
- Business
- CNET
How and Where to Buy Used Camera Gear to Save Money
Beware! Buying used camera gear is addictive. Photography can be an expensive hobby and finding out how easy it is to get great gear at a reasonable price only leads to buying even more gear at a "reasonable" price. Trust me, I've done it a lot. Finding the lens or camera you want at a lower price is great, but even better is finding older, discontinued models that can give that retro look with no editing required. While eBay is the obvious answer for finding anything used, that's only one option and, for a variety of reasons, not the best. Specialized resellers of camera gear might have higher prices but offer peace of mind that random internet sellers do not. So here's where to look for used camera gear and what to consider when you've found the model you were looking for. Where to get used camera gear Delihayat/GettyImages Let me start with that initial obvious answer. The issue with eBay is that you have no real idea about the condition of the camera you're buying. Sure, the better sellers will have detailed photos of (allegedly) the camera you're buying, but a photo can never tell you the whole story. It might seem like it's in good shape, but does the shutter actually work, is there dirt or worse in the lens? I've bought camera gear on eBay, and generally it was fine. But in one case I got a different camera than what the ad claimed to be selling. Specialty resellers CNET The two biggest names in camera gear reselling are KEH and MPB. These sites specialize in buying and selling everything from lenses to cameras to flashes and tripods. The gear they buy gets inspected, the condition rated and it's put up for sale with a price based on that condition. I've bought a lot of gear from KEH over the years, and CNET Managing Editor Josh Goldman has bought a bunch from MPB. While prices and selection are often fairly similar, at least for bigger-name and more popular cameras and lenses, one big advantage that MPB has over other resellers is that they photograph each item. So you can see the condition of the actual item you want to buy. Other options include retailers that also offer used gear. Adorama, for instance, has a ratings system for its used gear. B&H Photo has a similar ratings system for its used department. In both cases, there's a short description to go with the rating -- like "Condition: 9 Minor surface marks," for example -- but no images of the actual item you're buying. I've bought new gear from both but haven't tried any of Adorama's used gear. Depending on where you live, there might still be an actual, physical camera store. Many of these will offer a selection of used gear as well. These stores likely won't have anything close to the selection of the online options, but you'll at least be able to hold and potentially try out any of the gear you're considering. Or maybe you'll find something you weren't considering and buy that too. Now you have two new lenses. Ask me how I know. A listing on MPB for the Fujifilm X100VI, one of our picks for best point and shoot camera. If you're looking for more mainstream items, like popular cameras and lenses, it's worth checking all of the above for the best combination of condition and price. For more rare items, like 20-plus-year-old digital cameras, you might only find them in one place. If you're looking to sell some old gear you found, you might get a better price from one than from another. It's also worth noting that in most cases, they'll give you more money for gear you're selling as store credit than cash. In all the above cases, the biggest benefit is the ability to return the used item if it's not exactly what you were looking for, or rarely, if it doesn't work as promised. You should be able to do that with eBay, but how easy that will be will vary depending on the individual seller. Also, some of the stores above offer a warranty for their used gear, something you won't get on eBay. Yard, garage and estate sales or thrift stores Zoranm/GettyImages You only have to see one great clip from Antiques Roadshow or Pawn Stars to start wondering if you can find undervalued camera gear temporarily in the hands of someone who doesn't know what they have. Theoretically yes, this can happen. There's a lot of used camera gear out there and to someone not curious about the hobby, a lens is a lens and an old camera is an old camera. It's certainly worth keeping an eye out, but this option is best for people who know what they're looking for. I'll explain more in the next section, but a dusty, forgotten lens in the back of a thrift store might be an epic find or damaged trash, ripe with fungus. If you're willing to make that gamble on a potential bargain you could find something special... or not. Important aspects to consider when buying used camera gear Once you've figured out where to buy from, or more likely, the several options where to buy from, there are a bunch of other things to consider. Some of the following will be, or at least should be, addressed by the seller in their listing of the product. Others are questions to ask yourself about whether or not this specific camera or other gear is actually right for you. Condition The most obvious consideration is the condition of the gear. "Scratched but working" is far better than "seemingly undamaged but secretly trash." A dropped lens might not have any external signs that the interior elements are misaligned. A flawless-looking camera from 2005 might not be able to save to its memory card or even boot up. There are a lot of variables, and the better websites will offer significant details into what makes up their condition rating (if any). Batteries The battery is one of the most likely things to die on an older camera. You might be able to find a replacement, but not always. Sarah Tew/CNET All modern cameras need batteries, even most film cameras from approximately the last 50 years. If you're lucky, the camera you're considering uses off-the-shelf batteries, like a pair of AAs or a squat lithium that's expensive but obtainable. If you're not so lucky, you've got your heart set on a camera that uses bespoke rechargeable batteries that have almost certainly aged poorly. Will it hold a charge? If not, can you find a replacement? You should be able to find the owner's manual online, or a web search for "camera model plus battery." If the camera is 15-plus years old and uses a rechargeable battery, I'd be cautious. It might be fine, but more likely it won't be. Memory cards and storage Stephen Shankland/CNET I subscribe to several photography subreddits (shocker, I know). It seems like every week, someone posts about a cool "old" camera they bought that was made in the early 2000s and how they can't figure out how to get the photos from it. More on this broader problem in a moment, but there were two main ways to get images off cameras in ye olden days before Wi-Fi and Bluetooth were in every product. The first is with USB, almost certainly Micro (the tiny flat one) or Mini (the small trapezoid one). Even younger readers have likely used gear with Micro-USB, as it was relatively common until the rise of USB-C a few years ago. Mini was rare at that point, but not unheard of. The good thing about USB is that, in theory anyway, it should "just work" if you have the right cable. You will, of course, need a computer. The computer should recognize the camera and let you access the files. This will largely depend on how popular the camera was in its day and how old it is. A Sony, Canon, Nikon or Panasonic camera from 10 to 15 years ago? Almost certainly fine. A no-name camera from 20-some years ago? Perhaps not. A Nikon D800 (from 2012) with both CompactFlash and Secure Digital (SD) cards. Sarah Tew/CNET The second, and far more common way, was via a variety of nearly forgotten memory card formats. These days, nearly all consumer cameras use one of two sizes of Secure Digital cards. That wasn't always the case. If you didn't have a camera in-era, the two most common types you might not have seen before are Memory Stick and CompactFlash. Memory Stick was Sony's own format. CF was used in a variety of cameras and in various updated forms like CFexpress, used quite regularly, even recently. Assuming the card still works, you should be able to find a reader for it. If it doesn't work, you'll need to hunt for a used replacement. A quick search online turns up some used and allegedly tested options, so you might be OK. Lens system If you're buying an interchangeable lens camera, be it an old film SLR, DSLR or more modern mirrorless camera, it's worth researching how many lenses are available and how easy it is to adapt to use modern lenses. Many older cameras can use modern lenses, sometimes without an adapter. For instance, a 20-year-old Nikon D50 can use the same F-mount lenses as many other older and newer Nikon cameras. Also, some older lenses can be used on modern cameras with an inexpensive adapter. I've used 50-year-old Canon FD lenses on my R6 (RF mount) mirrorless with a $35 adapter. Keep in mind that when you're using older or newer lenses than your camera, the autofocus and auto-aperture might not work. That's all part of the fun, really. A fungus among us A particularly noticeable lens fungus. It can also look like small, almost dust-like clumps. Yuzuru Gima/GettyImages One of the insidious "killers" of lenses is fungus growing inside. These can look like little dots, clumps of dots, or branching lines, all of which can show up as dark spots or blurry areas in your images. Theoretically, you can have a lens cleaned to remove the fungus, but that might not be cost-effective for what you paid for the lens. Reputable resellers will likely not even sell a lens with a fungus issue, or they'll be up-front about it and drastically lower the price. Personally, I wouldn't buy a lens with this issue regardless of price. If you're buying from a less-reputable reseller and the lens you receive has little fungi friends growing inside, I'd recommend returning it. Unsupported antiquity The good thing about film cameras is that they were pretty well standardized for decades. If you buy a Canon from the 1970s, for example, it's going to work similarly to one from the 1980s, 90s or 2000s. New models will definitely have more features, but if you put the film in correctly, you'll likely get photos of some quality (after you get them developed, of course). The Apple QuickTake 200 from 1997, one of the first consumer digital cameras. It had 640x480 resolution and was made by Fujifilm. Oleksandr Rupeta/NurPhoto via Getty Images Digital cameras… well, not so much. It was the wild west there for a while, with many different varieties of the aforementioned memory cards, batteries and so on. There were no apps and no easy transfer of photos and videos. You should be able to connect to a modern computer and access what you shot, but it's possible the computer won't recognize the camera or vice versa. We take for granted how easy things are now, with Bluetooth connectivity, app control, fully functional USB connections and so on. Anyone wanting to ditch that for "the way things were" might be in for a shock when they learn that it was all a bit trash from a usability standpoint. There was a reason everyone ditched cameras for smartphones. It was just way more convenient. I say that as someone who loves and has way too many cameras, both old and new. Just know what you're getting into and enjoy that aspect as much as leaving your phone in your pocket, and just taking photos for the sake of taking photos. In addition to covering cameras and display tech, Geoff does photo essays about cool museums and other stuff, including nuclear submarines, aircraft carriers, medieval castles and epic 10,000-mile road trips. Also, check out Budget Travel for Dummies, his travel book, and his bestselling sci-fi novel about city-size submarines. You can follow him on Instagram and YouTube.
CNET
30-06-2025
- Business
- CNET
Prime Day Sales Don't Always Equal Real Savings: This Trick Can Help
Overspending during sales is Day deals aren't what they used to be. I remember seeing Reddit users complain about Prime Day "markdowns" in a thread last year. Some noted the discounts didn't feel like much, while others reported an actual increase in prices during the sale. Amazon's next Prime Day sale is July 8 to 11. While we expect lots of good deals, not everything is worth the hype. CNET tech and shopping experts recommend comparing and tracking prices before and during sales, especially for big-ticket items like electronics. Prime Day can also pressure us to stretch our budgets because we don't want to miss out on a "now or never" deal. For instance, if you're planning to buy a new TV, saving $530 on the Amazon Fire 75-inch Smart TV, which was originally $1,100, is a win. But if you spend money on an upgrade you don't need, that could put you in the red. What are the best strategies for saving money during Prime Day? I found a useful trick for determining what's worth buying and what's not. This trick can help you spot the real savings There's still some time before Prime Day. CNET editors recommend making a list of items you plan to buy, reviewing prices now and installing the CamelCamelCamel browser extension. "If you're not regularly tracking the prices for a computer, tablet or other device you want, it's tricky to know if you're getting a good deal," says Josh Goldman, managing editor and laptop reviewer at CNET. He says CamelCamelCamel will tell you the pricing history of any Amazon item. So, when the sale rolls around, it's easier to determine whether it's a deal or an everyday price. CamelCamelCamel is free, and you don't need an Amazon account to use it. However, this price tracker only works for Amazon, so you'll need to use other websites or browser extensions, like Honey and Slickdeals, to compare prices from other retailers. Remember it's fine to wait and save instead If you haven't budgeted for spending on certain items, or you don't see worthwhile savings, it may be worth skipping the Prime Day frenzy altogether. Plus, there are plenty of other sales coming up: Labor Day, Black Friday and Cyber Monday. Sometimes, waiting is best. Many of us are cutting back on spending and monitoring the effect of tariffs, which are pushing prices higher. If you have a chunk of money you've set aside for a future purchase, I'd recommend keeping it in a high-yield savings account. Putting your savings into a high-yield account will help you earn interest while you wait. Right now, most HYSAs offer annual percentage yields between 3.60% and 4%, or even higher at select banks with stricter requirements.
CNET
26-06-2025
- CNET
OnePlus Pad 3 Tablet Is Powerful and Elegant, but Its Higher Price Has Me Thinking Twice
8.2 / 10 SCORE OnePlus Pad 3 $700 at OnePlus Pros Impressively zippy overall performance Good battery life Sharp, bright display with 144Hz refresh rate for smooth scrolling and gaming Cons Fairly premium price LCD instead of OLED display No microSD card slot for expandable storage Disappointing front camera OnePlus Pad 3 8.2/10 CNET Score $700 at OnePlus Last year's OnePlus Pad 2 was considered one of the better tablet values, combining premium performance with a midrange price ($550) that would sometimes dip to $500. To a certain degree, the new-for-2025 OnePlus Pad 3 follows the same playbook. Equipped with a top-of-the-line Snapdragon 8 Elite processor and a bright, 13.2-inch, 3.4 K-resolution display with 315ppi pixel density and an adaptive refresh rate up to 144Hz, this is a high-performance Android tablet that gives off premium vibes for a lower price than Samsung's Galaxy Tab S10 Plus. At $700, though, it costs $150 more than the Pad 2, edging it into premium pricing territory and making it less of a bargain. It's available for preorder now with a choice of two "free gift" accessories as an incentive to purchase, and it ships on July 8. Simple yet sleek and slim The Pad 3, which includes 256GB of storage, 12GB of memory (RAM) and runs on Android 15 (you get three years of Android updates and six years of security patches), isn't particularly bold-looking, but I still found its svelte design impressive. Weighing 1.5 pounds (675 grams) and measuring 11.4 by 8.3 by 0.24 inches (289.6 by 209.7 by 6 millimeters), it has an aluminum-alloy unibody in an understated "storm" blue color. Like the Pad 2, the Pad 3 has a 7:5 aspect ratio that's different from the 16:10 aspect ratio found on many Android tablets. It's a little more of a square look, akin to Apple's iPad and iPad Air's 4:3 aspect ratio or the 11-inch iPad Pro's 3:2 aspect ratio. Some people prefer the squarer design, and the Pad 3's 7:5 aspect ratio is arguably a selling point. The 13-megapixel rear camera is more bland-looking than the camera that OnePlus features on its phones. But it's been moved from a central position on the back to the top-left corner -- or the right corner in portrait orientation -- which is probably a better spot for it. There's also an 8-megapixel front-facing camera that's fine, but nothing special. Enlarge Image The OnePlus Pad 3 with the new Smart Keyboard. Josh Goldman/CNET The Pad 3's 3,392x2,400-pixel LCD is sharp, but its black levels and contrast fall short of what you get with the superior OLED displays found on Samsung's high-end Galaxy Tab S10 Plus and S10 Ultra. (The Pad 3's contrast hits just 1,123:1 when displaying a checkerboard pattern.) On the bright side, literally, it shines with a whopping 600 nits for a whole-screen image and is rated to go up to 900 nits in a special high-brightness mode (I could only measure the brightness in standard mode). I also liked that the screen features a 144Hz refresh rate that makes for buttery scrolling and gaming. OnePlus Pad 3 Specifications Price as reviewed $699 + $199 keyboard case + $99 Stylo 2 Cameras 13MP rear, 8MP front Display 13.2-inch, 3.4K (315ppi), 144Hz (7-step adjustable), Dolby Vision, 12bpc, 900 nits CPU Snapdragon 8 Elite (Gen 1) Memory 12GB LPDDR5X GPU Adreno 830 Storage 256GB UFS 4.0 Networking Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 5.4 Battery 12,140 mAh, 80W charging Operating system Android 15, OxygenOS 15.0 (+3 OS updates and 6 years of security patches) While Samsung's more affordable version of the Galaxy Tab S10 Plus, the Tab S10 FE Plus, doesn't have the same aspect ratio at the Pad 3, it's got a 13.1-inch screen that uses LCD technology, is 6 millimeters thick, weighs 1.5 pounds (664 grams) and starts at $650, so it's in the same price class as the Pad 3 and probably it's most direct competitor. The Tab S10 FE Plus' screen refresh rate only hits 90Hz, so technically the Pad 3 has an edge there. And the Pad 3's Snapdragon Elite processor is significantly more powerful than the Tab S10 FE Plus' Samsung Exynos 1580 processor. Both Samsung's Galaxy Tab S10 and Tab S10 FE series have microSD expansion slots for adding more storage, while the Pad 3 has no expansion slot. You'll have to make do with the 256GB of built-in storage (which should be ample for most people). Enlarge Image The rear camera has been moved from the center of the device to the corner. Josh Goldman/CNET Incredibly zippy performance The OnePlus Pad 3 packs the best chipset for Android devices I've tested. The Snapdragon 8 Elite offers huge improvements on the already impressive Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chipset used in leading phones and tablets in 2024. The OnePlus Pad 3 puts up impressive performance numbers across benchmarks, with especially strong results from the GPU. The Pad 3's Geekbench 6 results saw it even beat the Windows-based Asus ProArt PZ13 ($1,300) in single-core performance, though it still lagged behind in multicore performance. When it came to graphics, though, the OnePlus Pad 3 achieved more than double the PZ13's scores in 3DMark's Steel Nomad Light and Wildlife Extreme tests. The tablet's larger footprint allowed OnePlus to pack in a sizable 34.8-square-centimeter graphene composite vapor chamber to dissipate heat, and it does its job admirably. Running the Steel Nomad Light Stress Test, which cycles the benchmark 20 times in a row, the OnePlus Pad 3 had 84.5% consistency and saw its CPU temperature rise from 28 degrees Celsius to just 31 degrees, one of the more impressive results I've seen. Enlarge Image The screen has a 7:5 aspect ratio. Josh Goldman/CNET All that speed lets the tablet run incredibly smoothly, with nary a hitch in everyday operation. It also easily handles heavy games, like Delta Force, while remaining comfortable to hold (heat-wise, not so much bulk-wise). The newer chip also gives the Pad 3 the edge over even gaming-focused devices like the Lenovo Legion Tab Gen 3. We were also impressed with the Tab 3's battery life. Its 12,140-mAh battery rocks, easily lasting through the workday for everyday tasks. And in our online streaming battery test with the display set to 50% brightness (measured at 125 nits), it ran for 16 hours and 20 minutes (it ran an additional 40 minutes after the display dimmed, giving it a total battery life of 17 hours). It can also recharge at up to 80 watts with the included charger, reaching full capacity in 92 minutes. Alas, the USB-C charging port isn't high-bandwidth, as it tops out at the USB 3.2 Gen 1 spec of 5Gbps. While camera performance has been impressive on OnePlus phones of late, the same can't be said of this tablet's cameras. Both the front and rear cameras are only mediocre, failing to offer very sharp or low-noise images. The tablet packs eight speakers (four for the low end and four for high frequencies), which would seem like a recipe for excellence. But the sound quality was only decent, not great -- basically what you'd expect from a premium tablet. Not surprisingly, the midrange, where vocals live, was the strongest, with voices sounding loud and clear. However, like with most tablets and laptops, the speakers just don't output a ton of bass, and you're not getting any semblance of surround sound. OnePlus Pad 3 accessories Samsung's Galaxy Tab S10 series tablets are pricey (the Tab S10 FE models could also be included in that statement, even though they're more affordable). But Samsung is always offering big discounts in its online store if you trade in an older tablet or another device. If you play your cards right, you can get several hundred dollars for an earlier Tab S series model to put toward the latest model. OnePlus only gives up to $100 for trade-ins in its online store, but it tends to throw in an accessory for "free" as a value-added incentive to buy the device. In the Pad 3's preorder window, which ends July 7, OnePlus is going a step further, allowing buyers to pick two of three accessories as "free gifts." The accessories available are a $49 folio case, the $199 OnePlus Pad 3 Smart Keyboard and the $99 OnePlus Stylo 2 (yes, the same stylus offered with the OnePlus Pad 2, but the other two accessories are new for the Pad 3). Given the choice of two accessories, I suspect most people would take the Smart Keyboard and the Stylo 2. And if only one accessory was available as a free gift, the Smart Keyboard would likely be the first choice. Enlarge Image A closer look at the keyboard. Josh Goldman/CNET The keyboard is pretty good, with a more tactile feel to the keys than the earlier version. OnePlus says the Pad 3 Smart Keyboard "has larger, spaced-out keycaps that give a PC-style feel, as well as a range of useful command keys and a dedicated AI button -- all while retaining the same massive trackpad. It can also be adjusted to between 110- and 165-degree angles and continues to support NFC transfers and instant magnetic connection." If I had a gripe, it was that the behavior of the trackpad is a little odd. The mouse movement wasn't perfectly smooth and was sometimes a little jumpy, struggling to detect nuance. This hampers its principal utility: fine control. We struggled to select text quickly and accurately. Using two fingers to scroll webpages, we found the trackpad often accidentally registered a click, and I ended up opening plenty of advertisements this way. In some cases, the trackpad actions don't even work. Google Docs wouldn't allow it to scroll pages, and many times I'd be clicking around the web and would come across something that I couldn't click on with the trackpad, so was forced to reach up and tap the screen. Note that while you can attach the keyboard case to the tablet magnetically, you can also detach it and use it wirelessly over Bluetooth (sometimes when the case was jostled, it detached a little too easily and had to be reattached). The Smart Keyboard is decent enough if included, but it isn't worth anywhere near its $200 price. I suspect OnePlus intends to heavily discount the keyboard or continue offering it as a free gift alongside the tablet, which is what it did with the Pad 2. The Stylo 2 stylus has a magnetic anchor point along its top edge, where it also charges the pen. This arrangement could use more work, as the stylus is easy to attach in the wrong position (it's not clearly demarcated), and it's all too easy to pop the stylus loose while moving the tablet into or out of a bag, even when it's attached correctly. The stylus is accurate and helps facilitate some interesting features, including the ability to write words into text fields on the tablet and have your handwriting converted into neat text (most pen-based tablets offer this feature). It supports a whopping 16,000 levels of sensitivity and has haptic feedback that helps simulate the feel of paper. But there's no getting past how smooth the screen's glass is. It just doesn't give that right amount of resistance to feel like paper. Should you get the OnePlus Pad 3? It's hard to say what the Pad 3 would have cost without the Trump administration's tariffs coming along, but it likely would've been $50 to $100 cheaper. So it goes. All things considered, the Pad 3 is still a decent value, particularly when you compare it to the Samsung Galaxy Tab S10 FE Plus, which retails for about $50 less but can't come close to matching the zippy performance that this model's Snapdragon Elite processor serves up. And it matches up quite well against Apple's similarly priced iPad Air M3, offering better specs in some areas and better overall performance, though iPadOS has some advantages over Android in general. The Pad 3 isn't quite ready to be a laptop replacement, which you could argue is the case for most Android tablets and iPads. For a true laptop replacement in a tablet form factor, Windows-based machines like Asus's aforementioned ProArt PZ13 or Microsoft's Surface Pro remain your best bet. But despite its small shortcomings, the OnePlus Pad 3 is one of the best premium Android tablets and certainly makes for an excellent entertainment device, offering strong performance for gaming (it's also well-suited for Xbox Cloud Gaming) and light productivity. Geekbench 6 (Android version) Single Core OnePlus Tab 3 3,076.5 Lenovo Legion Tab Gen 3 2,228 Samsung Galaxy Tab S10+ 2,127 Samsung Galaxy Tab S10 FE+ 1,259 OnePlus Pad 2 958 Note: Longer bars indicate better performance. Geekbench 6 (Android version) Multicore) OnePlus Tab 3 9,021.5 Samsung Galaxy Tab S10+ 7,126 Lenovo Legion Tab Gen 3 6,600 OnePlus Pad 2 4,610 Samsung Galaxy Tab S10 FE+ 3,871 Note: Longer bars indicate better performance
CNET
13-05-2025
- Business
- CNET
I Tested AI for Its Best Laptop Picks. I'm Glad I Fact-Checked Before I Bought
If you're looking to buy a computer right now, please accept my condolences. With the ongoing tariff madness, it's a heady time to be researching your options and choosing a new PC. The tech market is in flux, and you're no doubt concerned about the potential for price increases. CNET is tracking how political and financial developments are impacting the prices of things like smartphones, TVs, game consoles and laptops. Meanwhile, shopping assistant chatbots have proliferated, and the best-known one, ChatGPT, says it's rolling out a shopping experience soon -- so maybe you're tempted to take a shortcut by using an AI chatbot to help you narrow down the options to find a suitable computer in your target price range. I tested it out, cross-referencing its suggestions with CNET's guide on the best desktop PCs, the best MacBooks and the best laptops, assembled by a staff of experts based on hands-on testing. And in my experience, as you'll see, the AI recommendations all had notable shortcomings. The AI's suggested picks "are all old and, for the most part, they are underpowered for what we asked for," CNET managing editor and laptop expert Josh Goldman said. "With two exceptions." A laptop for value and flexibility The MacBook Air M1 laptop was released in 2020 and discontinued in 2024. Josh Goldman/CNET You need a laptop that checks a ton of boxes while also staying well within your budget. What Microsoft Copilot picked was a laptop from 2020 -- the Apple MacBook Air (M1, 2020). The M1 Air is only available new in one configuration from Walmart, but you can get a refurbished one at Best Buy or buy the M2 model (see it at Best Buy). "Despite its advanced age in computer years, the M1 Air is a good all-around choice for school, home office, entertainment and basic content creation," Goldman said. Where the AI recommendations started to really fall off was when I tried to use the free versions of Copilot and Perplexity to help with the mind-numbing work of identifying which retailers accept buy now, pay later purchasing options, such as Klarna and Affirm. These allow you to make purchases in installments instead of owing the total cost at checkout while avoiding high-interest credit cards. The AI-enabled search tool Perplexity confirmed that Walmart offers the ability to pay for products using Affirm, and its recommendation of the Apple MacBook Air as a budget-friendly option agreed with CNET's advice. However, be warned -- Perplexity was terrible at identifying afterpay options available directly from retailers, and confidently conflated store credit cards and high-interest payment plans as "pay-as-you-go" options, so make certain you double-check the cited results. (As a side note, I've been putting AI tools through their paces for a year now, and I have noticed some are getting worse, with more frequent hallucinations and bad information being returned. Perplexity in particular admitted in the chat that there is a "disconnect" between its "capabilities" and what it can actually accomplish.) A laptop for browsing and bed rotting An HP Chromebook was suggested by AI for binge-watching your favorite shows. HP Screen time can also be self-care if you do it right. You deserve a lightweight, internet-optimized laptop with a screen big enough for bingeing Columbo episodes on Prime Video (just me?) under the covers in your personal cocoon. I asked Microsoft's AI-enabled in-browser search tool, Copilot, to find me laptops I'd use while mostly horizontal. No powerful frills necessary. This needs to be built for comfort, not speed, with a price to match. What it came back with: the HP Chromebook 11 (see it at Amazon) -- which it called the "HP Lightweight 11," no doubt confused by its description online -- with an 11-inch HD IPS display, Intel Celeron processor, 4GB of RAM, 64GB of storage and Windows 11. To throw in another warning about using AI, Copilot returned a great list of very affordable options optimized for lounging and bingeing, but it fabricated links that were not active on any sites instead of providing real links to review the products. After this deceptive hallucination was discovered, another query had to be done for active links to the products. Copilot / Screenshot by CNET Goldman, CNET's laptop expert, disagreed with the choice, though. "For binge-watching, the correct answer is an iPad or Apple tablet, frankly," he says. "An 11-inch laptop would not be enjoyable because the screen and audio quality at that price would be disappointing. Performance would be pretty disappointing too." A laptop for gaming power and portability The Lenovo IdeaPad Gaming 3 laptop is great for gaming. Josh Goldman/CNET I'm not going to suggest you touch grass, but it would be nice to play Baldur's Gate while looking out a window or, better yet, at Ren Faire on the shared Wi-Fi with three of your best Tavs. I asked Copilot to recommend laptops that are blessed with long battery life and are feature-rich, yet have affordable graphics chips that can run a game like Baldur's Gate 3 smoothly. The first suggestion was the Lenovo Ideapad Gaming 3 (see it at Amazon) -- the second recommendation that Goldman agreed with. But here's what else Copilot recommended: Copilot / Screenshot by CNET Although Copilot's list of laptops were technically capable of running the game, only the Lenovo Ideapad Gaming 3 met the recommended specs for an epic title like Baldur's Gate 3. Copilot / Screenshot by CNET After prodding, the AI tool admitted that the Lenovo Ideapad Gaming 3 was the only option that met the search criteria. So, as always, make sure you double-check the info AI is giving you -- and cross-reference it with CNET's recommendations for gaming laptops before making a purchase. A laptop for content creation and connectivity You have a gift, an expertise or another light inside you that you want to share with the world, and being afraid of overpaying for a laptop shouldn't deprive us of your contributions. I asked Copilot to show me laptops and computers built for content creation, photo and video editing, and easy, creative collaboration that wouldn't set me back more than $500. Copilot / Screenshot by CNET Copilot returned a list of options that made some sense; however, when asked to crown a content creation laptop champion, its criteria and methodology were lacking. The tool first identified a laptop option that was not on the initial list provided and was well over the $500 budget. When prodded, Copilot recommended the HP 15.6-inch FHD Chromebook (see it at Best Buy) as the best budget option; however, when compared directly, the Acer Aspire 3 Premium (see it at Amazon) beat the HP on all criteria, including price. Copilot / Screenshot by CNET Key tip on using AI to help you choose your tech Working with conversational AI-integrated search tools is a give and take, and you should never take the first answer at face value. Challenge the AI, be specific about what you want and scrutinize the results, comparing them against actual human expert advice like CNET reviews for the best outcome.
