The Morning After: Is the M3 MacBook Air any good?
Plus, TikTok’s stan army and Sony’s A6700 gets reviewed.
Engadget’s resident laptop expert Devindra Hardawar put the 13- and 15-inch M3 MacBooks Air through their paces. Fundamentally, both are fantastic machines but probably lack some of the gosh-wow factor the M2 Airs had when they debuted in 2022. After all, the M2 heralded a new industrial design and far better internals, while the M3 is more of an iterative update. Think of it like the iPhone S-years, when a dramatic redesign (the iPhone 4, say) was followed by a more refined model (the 4S) the following year.
Consequently, reviewing the M3 is an exercise in spotting the small differences, like the faster Wi-Fi (6E), brighter display and quicker processing speed. Benchmarking saw both machines get out ahead of the M2, but you probably won’t notice if you’re using this machine casually. And Devindra’s clearly getting a kick out of being able to run games like Death Stranding on a fanless ultraportable. You can — and should — read on to find out if the M3 is a must-buy.
— Dan Cooper
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Sony A6700 review: The company’s best APS-C camera yet
It’s great for video, less ideal for everything else.
Steve Dent, who knows more about cameras than I know about literally anything, has been using Sony’s A6700 and is now ready to lay down his verdict. He’s never been too much of a fan of Sony’s 6000-series models, which he says aren’t as good looking or usable as Fujifilm’s alternatives. The A6700 is an attempt to remedy this situation, and Steve says it’s a far better camera than its predecessor. But is it good enough for him to want to use it as his daily driver? You’ll have to read on to find out.
TikTok is encouraging its users to call their representatives about attempts to ban the app
Can the US Government withstand the stan army?
The geopolitical quagmire surrounding TikTok isn’t letting up, which has led the platform to use its secret weapon: its Stan Army. TikTok has started sending push messages to users telling them to speak to their representative lest the immensely addictive platform be shut down. It’s one way to get attention, but it may not endear the company to US lawmakers if it can so easily incite millions of people to start scrutinizing the political process all at once.
The real fight isn’t Tyson vs. Paul — it’s Netflix vs. its live streaming infrastructure
And the loser will probably be… humanity itself.
Netflix is devolving into the very thing it sought to destroy. It’s been stepping into the live broadcast space for a while and yesterday announced it would air a live punch fight between two people with extensive Controversies and Legal Issues sections on their Wikipedia pages. Given the high-profile nature of the participants and, presumably, people’s desire to see one or both get punched in the face, it should be a massive event. And it’s going to be the sternest test of Netflix’s capacity to use the internet to deliver millions of simultaneous streams of live TV.
The Tesla Model S shook the industry, but its echo is fading
It upended the EV world in so many ways, at least at the time.
Engadget is celebrating its 20th anniversary with a series of articles looking back on the biggest changes in the tech world over that time. The wonderful Tim Stevens is in the spotlight today to talk about the Tesla Model S and his experiences when it debuted. It’s a tale of the car’s innovations, its highs, lows and how the EV industry has changed in the ensuing years.
