Technologies

Two new iPads are coming. Here’s how to recycle your old one for your kids

You can download the iPadOS15 to give that old tablet new life. Here’s how it may come in handy for your family.

It’s official: Two new iPads are hitting the stores this Friday, Sept. 24.

Apple announced the iPad Mini and the 10.2-inch iPad at its big event last week. Both iPads come with a new high-resolution camera that includes Center Stage (a new digital zoom feature) and a few big upgrades that we’ve been anticipating. The iPad Mini comes in four new colors, has a True Tone display and supports 5G connectivity. On the other hand, the ninth-generation iPad works with the first-gen Apple pencil and other wireless keyboards. It favors the eighth-gen a lot but comes with a faster, A13 bionic chip.

If you’re shopping for a new iPad, there’s no better time. But what does that mean for your old one? Maybe sell it for some extra cash to cover the cost of the shiny, new iPad? Or you can keep it around for your kids and download iPadOS15 to give them a few of the new iPad perks for free. Even though the new iPad sounds way better, the old one can still come in handy. You can use it as a smart hub that’s similar to an Echo Show or Google Nest Hub. Or you can turn it into a new baby monitor (more below). Interested? We’ll show you how.

We also have ideas for what you can do with your old Android phone (maybe turn it into a security camera). And here’s what else was unveiled at the Apple event. There’s a new Apple Watch and the iPhone 13 is finally here with two new colors.

Turn it into a smart hub and use Apple’s HomeKit

You don’t need to buy Apple’s HomePod or HomePod Mini to put an Apple smarter speaker in your kids’ room.

You can turn your old iPad into a smart home hub that lets your kids play music, turn the lights on and off, and even control the temperature in their room with the tablet.

To turn your iPad into a smart home hub for your kids’ room:

1. On your iPad, go to Settings.

2. Scroll down, tap Home and then toggle on Use this iPad as a Home Hub.

If you want to give your kids control just over the smart-home devices in their room and not everywhere in the house, you can set limits on what they have access to in the Home app.

A smart baby monitor for much cheaper

Most baby monitors make it easy to check on your little one from your phone or computer. But they aren’t cheap. Turning your old iPad into a baby monitor can be a more affordable way to keep track of your baby.

Baby monitor apps like Cloud Baby Monitor can let you check in on your kid. You can also get motion and noise alerts, just like from popular baby monitors — the Owlet Smart Sock Plus is a popular one. Note that if you’re looking for a monitor that keeps an eye on your baby’s oxygen levels, temperature and sleep quality, an iPad won’t do that for you.

A soothing night light and sound machine

If your kids are starting to sleep on their own and you want to create a serene sleep haven for them, your old iPad is up to the task. With an app like Baby Night Lite, you can set up a night light for the kids’ room with a variety of small animals and colors along with a sound machine that comes with a variety of songs and white noise and ambient background sounds. And you can set a timer and create a playlist of peaceful, soothing music or lullabies. For older kids who are beyond lullabies and dancing sheep, an app like Night Light Lite lets you pick from a variety of sounds, such as beach waves and running water, and night light colors to help them get to sleep.

A new gaming console and features with iPadOS 15

Sony’s PS5 or the Nintendo Switch might be on your kids’ shortlist for holiday gifts. But the iPadOS15 has a few new widgets to improve gaming, including a Continue Playing feature to pick up where you left off and a widget that lets you see what games your friends are playing.

And for fun and variety, it’s hard to beat an iPad paired with Apple Arcade games, such as NBA 2K21 Arcade Edition or The Oregon Trail. And if you have more kids in the home than gaming devices, converting that old iPad into a gaming device may be just the ticket.

Plus, the iPad gives your kids a bigger screen to play multiplayer games on. And you can even add a PlayStation or Xbox wireless controller to the iPad for your kids to play without hogging the TV or your phone.

An educational tool with learning games and apps

If your kids are going to start needing the home computer for their schoolwork, turning an iPad into a dedicated educational tool may be the perfect use for your older Apple tablet. You can even pair it up with a keyboard and a mouse to make the iPad feel more like a computer. Plus, the new iPad update comes with a Split View so you can take notes and watch a video or use an app, making that old iPad even more useful.

If you’re worried about your kid becoming distracted by messages, games, alerts and social media, you can use Apple’s parental controls to set limits and what they can and can’t do on the device. You can also use Focus mode to silence any notifications, distractions and create a screen that only shows the apps you choose.

To stay ahead this school year, here are a few apps that can help your kids study, keep track of their day and take notes.

If you’re still leaning toward getting a new iPad, here’s our guide to the best iPads available right now and the big differences between them. And here are the big differences between the two new iPads if you’re debating which one to get.

Technologies

Roblox Will Pay $12 Million to Settle Nevada Child Safety Lawsuit

The deal with the Nevada attorney general will require Roblox to have stricter safeguards to protect children online.

Popular gaming platform Roblox agreed to pay more than $12 million and implement new safety features as part of a settlement with the state of Nevada. This settlement comes amid several lawsuits accusing the company of an alleged lack of protection of children on the platform.

The agreement resolves potential litigation over allegations that Roblox failed to adequately safeguard children while they played the online game, Nevada Attorney General Aaron Ford said in a press release on Wednesday.

As part of the deal, Roblox will spend $10 million over three years to encourage children to engage in non-digital activities, as well as institute age verification for all users. This will include «facial age estimation technology and government-issued ID for age assurance, and will use behavioral monitoring to identify users who may have been aged incorrectly,» according to the press release.

«The injunctive relief that Roblox has agreed to will give parents the tools they need to protect their children on the platform; institute default protections to block predators from engaging with children; and ensure that messages involving minors are not encrypted,» Ford said in the press release.

Roblox also committed to spending $1 million over two years on a campaign to educate minors and adults about online safety and another $1.5 million to develop a law enforcement liaison position to work with state law enforcement agencies over concerns about the platform.

Roblox Chief Safety Officer Matt Kaufman said it’s part of the company’s «work to establish a new standard for digital safety.»

«This resolution creates a blueprint for how industry and regulators can work together to protect the next generation of digital citizens,» Kaufman said Thursday. «We have no finish line when it comes to safety.»

Roblox is under significant legal pressure amid more than 140 lawsuits, according to Reuters. The suits, filed in 2025, allege the company knowingly created a gaming platform that allowed child predators to target minors.

The company also faces lawsuits from state attorneys general in Texas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Iowa, Nebraska, Tennessee and Florida over similar accusations.

Age-based accounts coming soon

Two days before the settlement announcement, Roblox CEO and founder David Baszucki revealed new accounts for younger Roblox users.

Roblox Kids will be available for children between the ages of 5 and 8, and Roblox Select is for those ages 9 to 15. Roblox is reportedly used by nearly half of US children under 16. Children who are older than 16 will be in their own age group, simply called «Roblox.»

Kids and Select accounts would be available in those age groups as determined by Roblox’s age-check technology or by a verified parent.

Unmonitored chat in the game has been a point of criticism for the platform, as it allows predators to chat with children. Kids’ accounts will have chat turned off by default, with limited access to Minimal or Mild games as determined by the platform. Select accounts will have chat with safeguards and access to games with Moderate content, which is described by the platforms as having «moderate violence, light realistic blood, moderate crude humor, unplayable gambling content, and/or moderate fear.»

These new age-based accounts will roll out sometime in early June.

Technologies

Opera Adds Browser Connector Feature to Integrate AI Chatbots Into Browsers

New feature will allow users to include the AI tools of their choice.

Opera announced Thursday the launch of a new tool that allows users of its browsers to include more AI chatbots in their browsing experience.

Browser Connector is a free feature for Opera One and Opera GX browsers that allows users to integrate AI tools such as OpenAI’s ChatGPT and Anthropic’s Claude into their live browsing sessions via Model Context Protocol. MCP is an open standard developed by Anthropic that allows for a secure two-way connection between AI models, external data sources and tools such as search engines.

(Disclosure: Ziff Davis, CNET’s parent company, in 2025 filed a lawsuit against OpenAI, alleging it infringed Ziff Davis copyrights in training and operating its AI systems.)

Last month, Opera introduced MCP compatibility to Opera Neon, its subscription-based agentic AI browser. Opera says the new feature willallow a user’s AI of choice to provide real-time context of open tabs and active content.

«With Browser Connector, Opera ensures users aren’t bound to a single company’s ecosystem, but are instead free to combine the best tools for their specific needs,» Mohamed Salah, senior director of product at Opera, said in a statement.

To enable the feature, which is now available in Early Bird mode, users need to go to Settings in the browser, search for «AI Services» and install the Browser Connector feature. They then have to connect ChatGPT or Claude to the feature.

Technologies

Today’s NYT Connections: Sports Edition Hints and Answers for April 17, #571

Here are hints and the answers for the NYT Connections: Sports Edition puzzle for April 17 No. 571.

Looking for the most recent regular Connections answers? Click here for today’s Connections hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle and Strands puzzles.

Today’s Connections: Sports Edition is a tricky one, especially the purple category. If you’re struggling with today’s puzzle but still want to solve it, read on for hints and the answers.

Connections: Sports Edition is published by The Athletic, the subscription-based sports journalism site owned by The Times. It doesn’t appear in the NYT Games app, but it does in The Athletic’s own app. Or you can play it for free online.

Read more: NYT Connections: Sports Edition Puzzle Comes Out of Beta

Hints for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups

Here are four hints for the groupings in today’s Connections: Sports Edition puzzle, ranked from the easiest yellow group to the tough (and sometimes bizarre) purple group.

Yellow group hint: «Yer out!»

Green group hint: They score goals.

Blue group hint: Daddy dearest.

Purple group hint: Home, home on the…