Latest news with #DanielCooper
Engadget
3 days ago
- Engadget
The Fairphone 6 leaks ahead of its rumored late June launch
The Fairphone 6 is widely expected to get an official unveiling in the next week but the leadup to the repairable smartphone's launch has been leakier than a bad tap. In a new report from WinFuture , purported images of the Fairphone 6 show that it'll feature two back covers: one for the main body covering the cameras, and a lower panel that can be easily removed by loosening a few visible screws. Doing so grants access to the battery, which WinFuture notes is not glued down, though swapping it out will require you to remove a few additional screws. The back plates are available in three different colors – black green and white – which you're free to mix and match with to give the phone a more personalized look. This being a Fairphone product, the battery unsurprisingly isn't the only removable component. If you know what you're doing, you can also replace the 50- and 13-megapixel main cameras and the 32–megapixel front-facing camera, as well as the display, speaker and USB-C charging port. In terms of specs, the Fairphone 6 is fairly unremarkable, but you'd expect it to be at the rumored €550 (around $630) price point it'll reportedly retail at. As well as the aforementioned trio of lenses, it'll reportedly have a 6.31-inch 120Hz display, 256GB of internal storage (expandable via a MicroSDXC slot), 8GB of RAM and a 4,415mAh battery. Under the hood is a Snapdragon 7s Gen 3, so we're firmly in mid-range territory. The Fairphone 6's expected IP55 rating for water and dust resistance means it'll comfortably withstand a bit of rain, but likely won't take well to a dunk in the bath. Of its predecessor, the Fairphone 5 , released (though not in the US) in 2023, Engadget's Daniel Cooper said: "If you're looking to pick up a mid-range handset that you can keep going for twice as long as any other phone on the market, and you want to do a bit of good in the process, this is probably the phone for you. It's not often the view from the moral high ground is this comfortable."
Engadget
4 days ago
- Engadget
Framework Laptop 12 review: Doing the right thing comes at a cost
Earlier this year, Framework announced it was making a smaller, 12-inch laptop and a beefy desktop to go alongside its 13- and 16-inch notebooks. A few months later, and the former has arrived, putting the same modular, repairable laptop into a slightly smaller body. Unlike its bigger siblings, the Laptop 12 is a 12.2-inch touchscreen convertible clad in brightly colored plastic. It's aimed at students, with a focus on robustness and quality you won't see in the usual machines you find at the top of the bargain list. My initial impression is that it's a damn charming piece of gear, but I immediately wonder how many kids in school will actually get to use this thing given it's far pricier than its competitors. Framework's 12-inch laptop is an alternative to low-cost laptops, but it is too expensive to compete. $799 at Framework Laptop 12 is the first Framework machine clad entirely in ABS plastic, available in black, pink, lavender, gray and green. As soon as you open the packaging, you'll be instantly charmed by its look and feel given how different it is from the rest of the market. My green and off-white review unit (which the company calls 'Sage') stands out from the crowd almost by default. Framework founder Nirav Patel has long harbored dreams of bringing back the translucent and colorful aesthetics found in Nintendo's Game Boy Color. Here, the 12 reminds me of the OLPC XO or one of the fancier LeapFrog 'computers' that glowed up when you weren't looking. Daniel Cooper for Engadget Its footprint isn't dramatically smaller than the 13-inch model, but because it doesn't taper like its bigger sibling, it feels a lot chunkier. The chassis has a metal frame clad in two layers of plastic that, the company promises, will take whatever shocks and bumps you throw at it. It also has the same quartet of expansion card slots, which are now available in a variety of colors if you want things to match (or clash). Plus, all of those cards can be shared with the other Framework machines since they're all, mercifully, uniform size. Framework clearly learned from making its bigger machines, adding several quality of life tweaks to the 12 for both daily use and repair. The folks who regularly open and close their Framework laptop will instantly spot the changes that will make things a lot easier. For a start, the input cover is held in place with more screws (eight, compared to the 13's five), which better balances tension across the surface area. The input cover now slots into grooves on the front of the deck, making it easier to place than the 13. More importantly, the input cover connects to the mainboard via pogo pins rather than with a ribbon cable. I don't think I've ever damaged a ribbon cable myself, but it's always a worry if someone tries to yank off the lid without first disconnecting it from the mainboard. Daniel Cooper for Engadget Rather than screwing the SSD in place, Framework now uses a hinged plastic clip that you press in to secure the drive. Similarly, there's a little flip-down plastic cover to protect the RAM, with a large printed reminder to flip it back once you've installed the DIMM. Naturally, the board layout has changed, as has the battery — to a smaller, 50Wh cell — so the mainboard and battery won't work with its slightly larger sibling. (Aside: If you're a hobbyist hoping the 12-inch mainboard will be dramatically smaller than the 13-inch model to make smaller projects, expect to be disappointed. It is smaller, but not by such a significant degree that you probably wouldn't rather just use the 13-inch model instead.) Daniel Cooper for Engadget The power button has been moved from the keyboard to the right side of the deck, next to the expansion card slots. There's no fingerprint reader, either, which is one of several omissions you can attribute to 'cost saving,' 'this is a machine made for kids' or both . Would-be buyers get the choice of a 13th-generation Core i3-1315U or a Core i5-1334U, which can support up to 48GB of DDR5 RAM, albeit only at the slower DDR5-5200. You can throw in an M.2 SSD with up to 2TB of storage, and if that's not enough, you can get an additional 256GB or 1TB unit to sit in one of the laptop's four expansion card slots. Patel knows enough about keyboards and trackpads not to mess with what works, and what people like. The keyboard and touchpad are as robust and pleasing to use as you find on the 13-inch model. I'm not sure yet, but I might actually prefer typing on the 12-inch keyboard compared to the 13's, maybe because of the former's all-plastic build and the slightly louder, punchier keyclicks. Daniel Cooper for Engadget This machine was offered as a better, longer-lasting and more sustainable alternative to those dirt-cheap laptops sold to kids and students. But while everything already mentioned is more than good enough, we soon start to see where the cost-saving trims have been made. This is the first Framework to ship with a touchscreen, which is a 12.2-inch, 1,920 x 1,200 glossy LCD with a max brightness of 400 nits. In short, it's the same sort of screen you'll find on a lot of lower-end notebooks and so adjust your expectations accordingly. The gloss is an occupational hazard given it's a touchscreen, but the weaker backlight means you'll deal with the usual high-reflections and washed-out view in bright light. Framework is presently developing its own stylus, but until that launches, the laptop is compatible with any USI 2.0 or MPP 2.0 stylus. You'll have to source your own right now, and for the review, I was supplied with a Metapen M2 for testing. So far, however, I've found the pen experience to be more than a little frustrating, with the palm rejection a big issue. It needs a tweak — and I'm sure it'll be addressed swiftly — given the amount of times I prodded open a menu or closed a window with the flesh on the side of my hand. Similarly, the 2-megapixel webcam is a big step down from the 9.2-megapixel sensor found in the 13-inch model. Again, you can expect the same washed out, artifact-heavy video as you would find in many other low-cost laptop cameras. Framework has worked to improve its sound quality over the last few years but the size of the 12's chassis is a limiting factor. The pair of 2W speakers here are tinny and quiet even at full volume, but at least they don't rattle or vibrate with heavy bass. My review unit was equipped with a Core i5 with 16GB RAM, and it was more than able to handle the sort of stuff you'd expect to perform on a machine of this class. Writing the bulk of this review, watching videos, viewing and tweaking images are all well within this machine's reach. Hell, I even managed to get Hardspace: Shipbreaker to play, but not very well, and while Fortnite does run, it's janky enough to not be worth your while. Again, tweaked drivers will likely tidy those issues up, but I suspect this machine doesn't have enough grunt for doom room gamers. Of course, it's a Framework laptop, so you can already guess the one major issue that pops up whenever you put the silicon under load. As usual, the fan noise is pretty noticeable when the hardware temperature rises, and I wouldn't recommend you using this thing on your lap. And you should expect to have this thing plugged in for the duration of your time using it, as the battery life isn't stellar. If you're using this to run any sort of demanding app or game, you won't get more than four hours on a single charge. Daniel Cooper for Engadget Right now, you can only buy the pre-built edition in black, with the DIY version the only place you can pick your chassis color. It's available in gray, lavender, bubblegum and sage, and I'd heartily recommend you picking any of those options over the standard black. The pre-built edition starts at $799 with an Intel Core i3-1315U, 8GB of RAM, 512GB SSD and Windows 11 Home. If you want to step that up to the higher-end Performance model with an i5-1334U, 16GB of RAM and a 512GB SSD, it'll set you back $1,049. On the other hand, you can pick up the DIY edition for $549 (for the i3) or $699 (for the i5), leaving you to source your own RAM, SSD and OS. I'll admit I'm struggling to work out what the Framework 12's competitors are, since this is a tricky machine. When announced, the company said it was an alternative to the sort of entry-level laptops bought for kids and students, which are 'janky, locked-down, disposable, underpowered and frankly, boring.' This means it's going up against $500 notebooks and Chromebooks, the likes of which you'll normally find on sale at Best Buy. The ones that, you know, have a reputation for surviving until a week after the warranty expires, leaving you out of pocket until the next sale. From a utilitarian perspective, the higher price is offset by the knowledge it should outlast every other computer in your kids' cohort. Not only is it durable and repairable, but you should be able to swap out the mainboard in two or three years' time to keep pace with technology. But, by that same utilitarian argument, you could just as easily pick up a refurbished Framework 13 with a Core i5-1340P, when available, for just $779. Daniel Cooper for Engadget I'm fond of the Framework Laptop 12 because I can easily see it having a place in my life when I'm on the go. It's cute, good-looking and small enough you could easily throw it into a bag when you're in a hurry. The durability of the chassis and repairability, plus the swappable expansion cards, means it should run for years and years. And it's fun! I love the idea of a little laptop that stands out against the endless rows of cheap black plastic or silver aluminum notebooks. Those dirt-cheap notebooks built with low-end parts and sold to kids and students for $300 or so aren't much good for anything. If you want quality, you'll need to cough up for it, and this will at least last for years without endless replacements. But. The limited performance and battery life here gives me pause and I'm not sure a machine that, right now, needs a stretch to run Fortnite would be too popular. My gut tells me Framework had intended to sell this for less before tariffs pushed the prices up beyond what made sense. But as a consequence, the Framework Laptop 12 falls between two stools: Not cheap enough to be compelling to the price-sensitive buyers and not powerful enough for people with bigger budgets. Unless you happen to have a spare SSD, RAM and Windows license kicking around that'll bring the cost down to sticker price. My gut tells me that this laptop's real audience will be adults looking for a quirky second device to take on the go.
Engadget
14-05-2025
- Business
- Engadget
Appeals court confirms that tracking-based online advertising is illegal in Europe
The Belgian Court of Appeal ruled today that the Transparency and Consent Framework (TCF) currently used as the foundation for most online advertising is illegal in the EU. This decision upholds the findings of the Belgian Data Protection Authority from 2022 that the technology underpinning online ads violates several principles of the General Data Protection Regulations , an EU digital privacy law that took effect in 2018. Engadget's Daniel Cooper wrote a thorough explainer of the different systems that support the current online advertising ecosystem, which is valuable reading for anybody spending time online. The very simplified version is that advertisers participate in real-time bidding (RTB) to show their content online. Currently, those bids are based on information gathered from tracking individuals' activities online with cookies. The TCF was created by the Interactive Advertising Bureau as a way to standardize how websites ask users for permission to be tracked. The original 2022 decision determined that both the consent collected by the TCF and the data collected in the RTB process were illegal under the GDPR. ADVERTISEMENT Advertisement "Today's court's decision shows that the consent system used by Google, Amazon, X, Microsoft, deceives hundreds of millions of Europeans," said Dr Johnny Ryan, director of Enforce at the Irish Council for Civil Liberties, who has been leading the legal charge against the current approach to ad tech. "The tech industry has sought to hide its vast data breach behind sham consent popups. Tech companies turned the GDPR into a daily nuisance rather than a shield for people." The reaction from IAB Europe, which filed the appeal, seems to mostly be relief that it hasn't been found responsible for the data collected by TCF. "The Market Court has rejected the APD's view that IAB Europe is a joint controller together with TCF participants for their own respective processing of personal data, for instance for the purpose of digital advertising," the organization's statement says. IAB Europe notes that it has already suggested changes to the TCF that better reflect the "limited controllership" and submitted them to the Belgian Data Protection Authority. The group faced fines and was ordered to rebuild its current ad-tech framework as a result of the original decision. We've also reached out to some of the major advertisers that use the RTB technology for comment on the ruling. While this does seem like a big win for privacy advocates and internet users in the EU, it's unclear exactly what the next steps will be for advertisers and for ad tech systems. Most likely, regulators will oversee changes the IAB Europe makes to the TCF, so consent pop-ups may not yet be a thing of the past.
Engadget
06-05-2025
- Engadget
Framework Laptop 13 (2025) with AMD Ryzen AI 300 review: The usual iterative upgrade
You might know the story by now: Framework makes repairable, modular laptops where you can sub in new components for old or broken ones. It's been two years since the company debuted an AMD mainboard for the Laptop 13 and so it's time for the first replacement to arrive. The new model gets AMD's Ryzen AI 300, a series of power-efficient chips for notebooks that can do all the Copilot+ AI nonsense the industry insists people need and want. Framework sent me the new AMD mainboard to slot into the existing chassis, along with a new bezel and input cover. Rather than the usual solid colors, the company is now offering translucent plastic versions for all those late '90s kids who owned Game Boy Colors. I prefer the tinted translucent version over the clear transparent one, but you can judge for yourself in the pictures. The upgraded AMD mainboard is faster than its predecessor but not enough to be earth-shattering. $899 at Framework Mainboard with AMD Ryzen AI 300 Daniel Cooper for Engadget Would-be buyers have three options: They can buy a new pre-built laptop with Ryzen AI 300, a DIY edition to assemble or just get the mainboard on its own. Either way, you get the pick of a Ryzen 5 340, Ryzen 7 350 or the flagship Ryzen 9 HX 370 capable of harnessing up to 96GB of RAM. Naturally, the price will start to climb the greater your technological ambitions. I was supplied with the midrange Ryzen 7 350, which took me about 11 minutes or so to swap into the existing AMD model. It's amusing to think it took me the better part of an hour the first time I did this but once you're fluent, it becomes effortless. If you, like me, lost the muscle memory to swap components at the turn of the millennium, don't feel like this is beyond you. The Ryzen 7 350's performance is fine for the sort of tasks you'd expect to do with a 13-inch notebook. I didn't find there was a clear, epoch-shifting leap between what I got out of this and the 7840U it replaced. If you're using it for the usual stuff — work, browsing and watching videos — then it'll handle that all with aplomb. As usual, the best reason to recommend the AMD model over its Intel equivalent is for its greater strength in gaming. After all, you can easily get 50 to 60 fps in titles like Fortnite and Grand Theft Auto V , making this an effective all-rounder. There are two downsides to Framework's modular approach, one of which is that the hardware will always look more functional than its rivals. The second, and more critical, is that all of the CPU cooling has to be integrated onto the mainboard itself. Whereas a lot of machines can be designed around thermal management, this one can't because everything is modular. So the fan on top of the mainboard has to do all of the work with one hand tied behind its back. Consequently both the Intel and AMD versions of Framework's laptops are noisy in ways more modern machines aren't. Framework says it addressed the noise issue by redesigning the heatpipe, improving the fan algorithm and switching to Honeywell's PTM7958 thermal paste. Sadly, as many hours as the company may have put in here, you're still going to have to deal with plenty of fan noise and heat under heavy load. And while AMD promised the 300 AI was designed to be more power-efficient, the new processor further dents this thing's battery life. I didn't get anything close to a full day on a charge here, but that seems to be the way with so many laptops these days. Daniel Cooper for Engadget I've always commended Framework for its commitment to improving every hardware component as it goes. This time around, the company worked with manufacturing partner Lite-On to give its keyboard a makeover. It focused on hard-to-spot improvements like printing the caps in a slightly thinner weight, replacing the fingerprint sensor and redesigning the Shift and Enter keys. Thankfully, what hasn't changed is the 1.5mm key travel, and founder Nirav Patel told me years ago that he had no interest in trying to fix what wasn't broken. This means the keyboard itself remains as easy to use as it was before, albeit with a slightly quieter typing action. The keys aren't as loose in their housing as they were on the older model, which is another sign of higher quality. Users can also pick from keyboards with a dedicated Windows Copilot key or the Framework key, depending on your operating system loyalties. More importantly, the company addressed feedback that the wide keys would rattle when the speaker played at high volumes. There's a new scaffold supporting the Shift and spacebar to reduce vibration when the sound gets loud. I think the original problem was overstated, but perhaps my audio picks aren't as bass-heavy as some other folks. Regardless, the changes here are welcome and when I've watched explosion-heavy audio, I found little to no rattle at all. It's not as simple to swap an Intel mainboard for an AMD one as there are issues with hardware compatibility. Similarly, the AMD boards support different USB standards for different expansion card slots, as you can see in the picture. This is true for AMD boards no matter the manufacturer, but it's one thing to remember before you make your purchase. Daniel Cooper for Engadget If you are already inside Framework's ecosystem then feel free to sleep on this upgrade. Yes, the AI 300 is better than the chip it replaces but not to the extent I'd suggest you shell out several hundred dollars on one. If you aren't, then you'll probably be swayed by Framework's broader pitch rather than this specific update. My suspicion is that the company's maturing ecosystem is ideally placed to take advantage of the current geopolitical brouhaha. After all, if the cost of every notebook is at risk of leaping through the roof, being able to keep one machine running for longer is compelling. And, if you're looking to leap in, you should grab one of the discounted Ryzen 7040 machines before they go. After all, if you find the performance a little slow in a few years' time, you'll be well-placed to take advantage of the next generation upgrade when it arrives. I know there are some who feel Framework's underlying platform is getting a little stale, which I do understand. Tech consumers are constantly clamoring for a newer, flashier doodad, and when the Laptop 13 first launched, it already looked a generation behind rival 13-inch notebooks in the same class. When the Laptop 13 first launched, it already looked a generation behind rival 13-inch notebooks in the same class. Five years down the line, it won't beat any machines from Dell, Acer or ASUS in look or feel. But while it may not have the razzle or dazzle, it does have the staying power, and that's going to be a bigger asset in the next few years. If you're the sort of person who would buy a Lenovo Thinkpad and run it until it falls apart, then this is a better option. After all, with a Framework, you won't even have to worry about it falling apart.
Yahoo
12-04-2025
- Yahoo
Engadget review recap: The Pixel 9a, smart glasses and AMD's latest CPU
This installment of our reviews roundup goes in several different directions. We've got an excellent Android phone, some smart glasses and a powerful CPU. Plus, we revisited our old pal the iPhone 16 Pro and offer up a spoiler-free review of The Last of Us season two. There's plenty to catch up on, so keep scrolling to see what our reviews team has been up to over the last few weeks. There's a lot to like about the Pixel 9a. In fact, senior reviews writer Sam Rutherford argues it's the best Android phone you can buy right now in terms of pure value. "I would love to see Google add a true telephoto lens and its charging speeds (both wired and wireless) could be better," he writes. "But for $500, Google's most budget-friendly phone covers all the bases and then some." If you're looking for a pair of smart glasses that are more practical instead of being a content capture device, Even Realities' G1 might be for you. The device impressed senior editor Daniel Cooper, but the caveats will be dealbreakers for some people. "I really like Even Realities' G1 for what they can do right now, but I'm also hopeful that it'll get far more useful in the future," he explains. "It seems to me there are so many things that could be tweaked, primped and plumped to make these far more appealing." The latest AMD Ryzen CPU is a powerhouse, but it comes with a steep price tag. "After releasing a pair of excellent midrange GPUs, which showed that the company can genuinely go toe-to-toe with NVIDIA, this CPU and its accompanying 3D V-Cache technology is a reminder of how AMD is far ahead of Intel in many ways," senior editor Devindra Hardawar says. "While it's certainly not the best deal around, if you can afford it, the 9950X3D is the best desktop CPU you can buy today." We're revisiting big devices about six months after their initial release to see how things are progressing. UK bureau chief Mat Smith recently put the iPhone 16 Pro through its paces again, noting that Apple Intelligence remains a disappointment. Deputy news editor Nathan Ingraham got early access to The Last of Us ahead of the season two premiere this weekend. He explains that the show navigates a rough patch in the source material with relative ease, and his review won't spoil the new episodes.
