Technologies
Meet your kid’s new smart gadget: Your old iPad
New Apple electronics should be on the way, but your old iPad may still come in handy for the little ones. We’ll show you how.
The new iPad Mini 6 may be coming shortly, just in time for the holiday season. You could expect it to have a USB-C port, a Smart Connector for keyboard attachments and other features similar to an iPad Air’s. It’s bound to be on your kid’s wish list (and maybe yours, too).
But what does that mean for your old Apple tablet? Maybe sell it for some extra cash? Or you can keep it around for your kids. Even though the new iPad sounds way better, you can turn that old tablet into a hub, similar to an Echo Show or Google Nest Hub. Repurposing it may be a good way to upgrade your kid’s room with voice commands and automated routines. 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 are some ideas for your kids heading back to school.
A smart home hub
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 on and off the lights 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 baby monitor
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.
An extra gaming console
Sony’s PS5 or the Nintendo Switch might be on your kids’ shortlist for holiday gifts, but 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.
A learning tool
With the new school year here, 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.
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.
To get a running start on the 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’s what we know about the next Apple event if you’re shopping for more gadgets. Or if you’re thinking about keeping your old iPad, here’s what iOS 15 has in store.
Technologies
Apple Reportedly Eyes ‘iPhone Ultra’ Name for Folding Phone Expected This Year
It’s another week and another bunch of rumors about the company’s first foldable phone.
It’s a new week and a new set of rumors for Apple’s first foldable phone. If Tuesday’s reports are true, the device will be called the Ultra, have a bookish shape and launch in September.
The main report comes from Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, who said the foldable is on track for a September launch, despite Nikkei Asia reporting that the phone might not launch until 2027 due to issues that cropped up during the engineering test phase.
Citing unnamed sources, Gurman said Apple will introduce the foldable phone in September alongside the iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max. Those phones would likely go on sale about a week after being unveiled.
An Apple representative didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment. It’s important to note that while rumors abound, Apple has confirmed none of them — not even the existence of a foldable iPhone.
Still, the earlier Nikkei Asia report was jarring enough to send Apple’s stock down 5.1% before it rebounded later, Gurman noted. The Nikkei Asia story said unexpected issues had arisen during engineering testing and that more time was needed to make «necessary adjustments.» Under a worst-case scenario, the first shipment of the foldables would not occur until 2027, the report said.
More from CNET: Foldable Phones Have Solved Nearly Every Trade-Off, Well Before Apple Debuts One
Looks like a book
Meanwhile, consumer tech reviewer Sonny Dickson posted images on X showing dummy models indicating how big the iPhone Fold, iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max might be. In the image, the foldable has an almost square shape when fully opened.
Dummy images are useful for phone accessory manufacturers — such as case-makers — so they can get a head start on mass production before the devices are launched. When phones are released, consumers are quick to order cases and other accessories, so the sizes need to be known. It is unclear whether the dummy models shown are actual mockups from Apple.
People who commented on X didn’t seem to love the dummy images, particularly because the models shown appear to lack MagSafe, Apple’s magnetic system on the back of the phone that lets chargers and other accessories snap on.
Stefan Moser wrote, «If the Fold is missing MagSafe, this will be a big NO for me.»
There were other criticisms, too.
An X user going by DasnkiCS posted that the phone looks «too wide, can’t palm that easily in normal phone use.»
And another X user, Brosnan Hoban, wrote, «Fold looks like a credit card from 2050.»
What’s in a name?
Tuesday’s other big rumor concerned the foldable’s name.
A leaker, Digital Chat Station, posted on the Chinese social site Weibo that the foldable iPhone could be called the iPhone Ultra. The post also said Chinese competitors may use the Ultra name for their own foldables to compete directly with Apple on design, specs, and price.
The predominant rumored name has been the iPhone Fold, but others have included Flip, Duo and iFold.
In March, Gurman wrote in his Power On newsletter that Apple was considering a full line of Ultra products, possibly including a foldable phone, an M6 MacBook Pro with OLED, a foldable iPad and high-end Macs. Gurman also said Apple might introduce AirPods with «computer-vision cameras» to send visual data to Siri for its AI assistant feature.
We’ve seen a steady stream of tidbits about the foldable recently. There could be a large inner screen for multitasking, and people could open apps side by side. There might also be two rear cameras, a front-facing camera and a Touch ID side button.
Whatever Apple finally comes up with, it will be playing catch-up. Other major phone-makers already have foldable phones on the market, including the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7, the Google Pixel 10 Pro Fold, the OnePlus Open, the Huawei Mate XT, the Honor Magic V5 and the Motorola Razr Ultra.
Technologies
Artemis II Astronauts Name Moon Crater After Commander Reid Wiseman’s Late Wife
The emotional moment was streamed by NASA moments after the crew made history.
On Monday, after the crew aboard Artemis II made a historic feat by breaking Apollo 13’s distance record, they made the moment even more special by proposing to name one of the craters on the moon «Carroll,» in memory of Commander Reid Wiseman’s late wife.
While contacting Mission Control, Mission Specialist and astronaut Jeremy Hansen stated that the «close-knit astronaut family» previously lost a loved one who was «the spouse of Reid, the mother of Katie and Ellie.»
«It’s a bright spot on the moon,» Hansen said while describing the crater during the emotional call. «And we would like to call it Carroll.»
After the request, you can see Wiseman embrace Hansen before the rest of the crew joins in for a group hug.
Carroll Wiseman died in 2020 at 46 years old from cancer. Wiseman’s NASA bio page states that Carroll «dedicated her life to helping others as a newborn intensive care unit Registered Nurse.»
Before the Artemis II mission, Wiseman posted a selfie with his two daughters on X with a caption that reads in part, «I love these two ladies, and I’m boarding that rocket a very proud father.»
Follow CNET’s coverage of the 10-day Artemis II mission as the Orion makes its way back to Earth.
Technologies
Artemis II Astronauts Are Using iPhones to Capture Stunning Space Images
After smartphones were cleared by NASA for space missions, the crew members of the Integrity spacecraft are beaming back lots of iPhone photos.
The four astronauts aboard the Integrity spacecraft now headed home from their historic arc around the moon really are like the rest of us: Sometimes they reach for their smartphones to snap photos.
For the Artemis II mission, iPhone 17 Pro Max phones have been used to capture photos inside the capsule of the astronauts pondering the views of Earth and working on mission objectives. (Technically, NASA refers to them as PCDs – personal computing devices.)
Smartphones were cleared for use in space for the first time in February. In a post on X, NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman wrote, «We are giving our crews the tools to capture special moments for their families and share inspiring images and video with the world.»
Early in the mission, Commander Reid Wiseman snapped a pair of photos looking out the window with Earth behind him. Mission specialist Christina Koch and her dynamic curls in zero-gravity also captured a pensive view looking out over the planet. All three were made using the front camera — because wouldn’t you want to grab a selfie if you were in space?
The iPhone 17 Pro’s rear cameras are pulling their own weight during the mission, too. During the live broadcast as the crew approached the moon, Wiseman took a photo of the moon’s surface using the iPhone’s telephoto camera at 8x zoom. He turned the screen toward one of the video cameras mounted inside the spacecraft, creating an image of the moon’s surface alone against the darkness of the unlit cabin, with the iPhone’s signature rounded edges and Dynamic Island cutout at the top.
The main photo workhorses on this trip are a Nikon D5 DSLR and a Nikon Z9. The D5 is a model that has been used on several space excursions, and the Z9 is onboard as an experimental camera.
For NASA missions, every piece of equipment must be tested and certified, which is why the previously-approved D5 has a secure spot. Cameras must be resistent to space environmental factors like radiation, and safe if they’re floating around the capsule. However, the iPhones in space now are off-the-shelf models, according to a report by Jackie Watties of CNN.
The moon flyby was especially photo-intensive, with astronauts switching places several times so that two were always at windows with cameras and relating what they could see with their eyes. This photo of mission specialist and Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen taking images using one of the Nikon cameras shows how some windows have camera shrouds attached. The shroud ensures that light from the interior isn’t reflected in the glass.
In a particularly relatable photo, Hansen is also using the front-facing camera of a white iPhone 17 Pro — as a portable mirror while he shaves. As the (modified) saying goes, the best selfie screen is the one you have with you.
The iPhone 17 Pro isn’t the first Apple product to go into space. Crew members have taken iPods, iPads and AirPods on missions since the Space Shuttle era. The Mac Portable even went up on a shuttle (and revealed that its trackball in zero-G isn’t the best option).
An Apple representative didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
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