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Apple Vision Pro two months later: A telepresence dream

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Two months after I started using the Apple Vision Pro, it hasn’t transformed the way I live. It hasn’t replaced my TV, and it doesn’t make me want to give up my powerful desktop or slim laptops. It’s just another tool in my gadget arsenal — one I can don to catch up on X-Men ’97 in bed, or to help me dive deep into research while I’m away from my office. The Vision Pro becomes normal so quickly, it’s almost easy to forget how groundbreaking it actually is. Its screens are still absolutely stunning, and the combination of eye tracking and Apple’s gesture controls makes for the most intuitive AR/VR interface I’ve seen yet.

While the Vision Pro still isn’t something most people should consider buying, Apple has thrown out a few bones to early adopters. There are more games popping up on the App Store and Arcade every week, and there are also a handful of 3D films being offered to Apple TV+ subscribers. The addition of Spatial Personas also goes a long way towards making the Vision Pro more of a telepresence machine (more on that below). But we’re still waiting for the company to make good on the promise of 180-degree Immersive Video, as well as to let users create higher quality Spatial Videos on iPhones.

Using the Apple Vision Pro with a MacBook AirUsing the Apple Vision Pro with a MacBook Air

Photo by Devindra Hardawar/Engadget

How I use the Apple Vision Pro

Once the pressure of reviewing every aspect of the Vision Pro was over, I started incorporating it into my life like a typical user. (Full disclosure: I returned the unit I originally bought, but Apple sent along a sample for further testing.) Mostly, that means not forcing myself to use the headset for large chunks of the day. Instead, my Vision Pro time is more purpose-driven: I slip it on in the morning and project my MacBook’s screen to clear out emails and catch up on Slack conversations, all while a YouTube video is virtually projected on my wall.

In the middle of a work session, or sometimes right before diving into a busy workday, I run through a five- or ten-minute meditation session with the Mindfulness app. I can easily meditate without any headgear, but I’ve found the app’s calm narration and the immersive environment it creates (since it completely blocks out the real world) to be incredibly helpful. It’s like having your own yoga teacher on staff, ready to help calm your brain whenever you have a free moment.

I’ve also learned to appreciate the Vision Pro as a way to expand where I can get work done. As someone who’s been primarily working from home since 2009, I learned early on that changing locations was an easy way to keep myself engaged. I try not to write in the same place where I’ve been checking email in the morning, for example. I normally hop between a PC desktop and large monitor (currently it’s Alienware’s 32-inch 4K OLED) in my office, and a MacBook Air or Pro for writing around the house. Sometimes I’ll go to a nearby park or cafe when I need to zone into a writing assignment for several hours.

Using the Apple Vision ProUsing the Apple Vision Pro

Photo by Devindra Hardawar/Engadget

With the Vision Pro, I can actually handle some serious multitasking from my deck or kitchen without being tied to a desktop computer. I’ve found that useful for covering events to avoid getting stuck inside my basement office (I can have a video streaming on a virtual window, as well as Slack and web browsers open via a projected MacBook). I’ve juggled conference calls while being sick in bed with the Vision Pro, because it felt more comfortable than staring down at a tiny laptop display.

I still haven’t traveled much with the headset, but I can foresee it being useful the next time I take a weekend trip with my family. Tested’s Norman Chan told me he’s used the Vision Pro during long flights, where it makes the hours just disappear. I’m still working myself up to that — I’d much rather use a small laptop and headphones on planes, but I can imagine the beauty of watching big-screen movies on the Vision Pro while everyone else is staring at tablets or cramped seat-back displays.

The Vision Pro remains a fantastic way to watch movies or TV shows at home, as well. When I’m too tired to head downstairs after putting my kids to sleep, I sometimes just veg in bed while projecting YouTube videos or anime on the ceiling. That’s where I experienced a trippy temporal shift while watching X-Men ’97: As soon as its remastered theme song spun up, I was immediately transported back to watching the original show on a 13-inch TV in my childhood bedroom. If I could somehow jump back into the past, Bishop-style, it would be impossible to convince my 10-year-old self that I’d eventually be watching a sequel series in a futuristic headset, projected in a 200-inch window. How far we’ve come.

Apple Vision Pro Spatial Persona collaboration with Norm Chan from Tested.Apple Vision Pro Spatial Persona collaboration with Norm Chan from Tested.

Photo by Devindra Hardawar/Engadget

Spatial Personas are a telepresence dream

When Apple first announced the Vision Pro last year, I couldn’t help but be creeped out by its Persona avatars. They looked cold and inhuman, the exact sort of thing you’d imagine from soulless digital clones. The visionOS 1.1 update made them a bit less disturbing, but I didn’t truly like the avatars until Apple unveiled Spatial Personas last week. Instead of being confined to a window, Spatial Personas hover in your virtual space, allowing you to collaborate with friends as if they were right beside you.

The concept isn’t entirely new: I tested Microsoft Mesh a few years ago with a HoloLens 2 headset, which also brought digital avatars right into my home office. But they looked more like basic Miis from the Nintendo Wii than anything realistic. Meta’s Horizon Workrooms did something similar in completely virtual spaces, but that’s not nearly as impressive as collaborating digitally atop a view of the real world.

Apple’s Spatial Personas are far more compelling than Microsoft’s and Meta’s efforts because they’re seamless to set up — you just have to flip on Spatial mode during a FaceTime chat — and they feel effortlessly organic. During a Spatial Persona call with Norm from Tested, we were conversing as if he was sitting right in front of me in my home theater. We were able to draw and write together in the Freeform app easily — when I stood up and reached out to the drawing board, it was almost as if we were standing beside each other at a real white board.

Apple Vision Pro Spatial Persona collaborationApple Vision Pro Spatial Persona collaboration

Photo by Devindra Hardawar/Engadget

SharePlay with Spatial Personas

We were also able to customize our viewing experiences while watching a bit of Star Trek Beyond together using SharePlay in the Vision Pro. Norm chose to watch it in 2D, I watched in 3D, and our progress was synchronized. The experience felt more engrossing than a typical SharePlay experience, since I could just lean over and chat with him instead of typing out a message or saying something over a FaceTime call. I also couldn’t help but imagine how easy it would be to record movie commentaries for podcasts using Spatial Personas. (We’d have to use separate microphones and computers, in addition to Vision Pros, but it would make for a more comfortable recording session than following movies on a monitor or TV.)

Our attempts to play games together failed, unfortunately, because we were running slightly different versions of Game Room. We also didn’t have enough time during our session to sync our apps up. I eventually was able to try out Chess and Battleship with other Vision Pro-equipped friends and, once again, it felt like they were actually playing right beside me. (Norm and CNET’s Scott Stein also looked like they were having a ball with virtual chess.)

The main stumbling block for Spatial Personas, of course, is that they require a $3,500 headset. Apple is laying the groundwork for truly great telepresence experiences, but it won’t matter for most people until they can actually afford a Vision Pro or a cheaper Apple headset down the line.

With Horizon Workrooms, Meta allowed non-VR users to join virtual meetings using Messenger on phones and computers, so that they weren’t left out. Standard FaceTime users can also join Vision Pro chats alongside spatial personas, but they’ll be stuck in a window. And unlike Meta’s offering, regular users won’t be able to see any virtual environments (though you could still collaborate on specific apps like FreeForm). Meta’s big advantage over Apple was with capacity: Horizon Workrooms supports up to 16 people in VR, as well as 34 more calling in from other devices. Spatial Persona chats, on the other hand, are limited to five participants.

Apple Immersive VideoApple Immersive Video

Apple

No momentum for Immersive Video

Apple’s 180-degree Immersive Video format was one of the most impressive aspects of the Vision Pro when I previewed it last year, and the handful of experiences at launch were pretty compelling. But the Immersive Video well has been dry since launch — the only new experience was a five-minute short showing off the 2023 MLS Playoffs, which was mostly disappointing.

While that short had such great resolution and depth that it felt like I was actually on the pitch, the MLS experience is disorienting because it cuts far too often, and with no sense of rhythm. Once you get settled into a scene, perhaps watching someone gear up for a well-placed goal, the camera view changes and you have no idea where you are. It’s almost like a five-minute lesson in what not to do with Immersive Video. Hopefully, the MLS has a longer experience in the works.

I’m not expecting a tsunami of Immersive Video content, since the Vision Pro is still an obscenely expensive device meant for developers and professionals, but it would be nice to see more of a push from Apple. The company is teasing another six-minute episode of Prehistoric Planet for later this month, but again that isn’t really much. Where are the creators pushing Immersive Video to new heights? While the content is likely hard to work with since it’s shot in 3D and 8K, the format could be a perfect way for Apple to extol the virtues of its new chips.

In lieu of more Immersive Videos, I’ve been spending more time re-watching Spatial Videos captured with my iPhone 15 Pro. They still look more realistic than 2D clips, but I’ve grown to dislike the 1080p/30fps limitation. It’s just hard to accept that resolution when I know my phone can also produce crisp 4K and 60fps footage. The $3 app Spatialify helps somewhat by unlocking 1080p/60fps and 4k/30fps spatial video capture, but its footage is also more shaky and buggy than the iPhone’s built-in camera. At this point, I’ll consider using Spatialify if my phone is on a tripod or gimbal, but otherwise I’ll stick with the native camera app.

Using the Apple Vision Pro with a MacBook Air outsideUsing the Apple Vision Pro with a MacBook Air outside

Photo by Devindra Hardawar/Engadget

What’s next for the Apple Vision Pro

We’ll likely have to wait until Apple’s WWDC 24 event in June before we hear about any more major upgrades for Vision Pro or visionOS. That would be appropriate, since last year’s WWDC was the headset’s big debut (and a hellish day for us trying to cover all the news). Now that the hardware is in the wild, Apple has to convince developers that it’s worth building Vision Pro apps alongside their usual iOS, iPadOS and macOS wares. It’s not just some mythical spatial computing platform anymore, after all.



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Keeping the 2-in-1 laptop dream alive

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The idea behind convertible, or 2-in-1 PCs, has remained the same over the last decade: Why buy a tablet when your laptop can fold a full 360 degrees, allowing you to use it as a large slate, or a screen propped up without a keyboard in the way? Most PC makers have moved on from the concept entirely, but HP remains one of the holdouts. While Windows never became the tablet-friendly platform Microsoft envisioned, there’s still plenty of value in having a machine that can transform to suit your needs.

That was my takeaway two years ago when I tested HP’s 16-inch Spectre x360, and now the company has returned with a smaller model, the Spectre x360 14. It features Intel’s latest CPUs with AI-accelerating NPUs (neural processing units), faster Intel Arc graphics and a beautiful 2.8K OLED display. And best of all, it’s still usable as a tablet, unlike its larger sibling.

HP

The HP Spectre x360 14 has everything you’d want in a 14-inch convertible notebook. It’s fast, features a gorgeous screen and can rotate to suit your needs.

Pros

  • Versatile convertible screen
  • OLED display is incredibly vibrant
  • Solid CPU upgrade
  • Starts with 16GB RAM
  • Excellent keyboard
  • Plenty of ports,
Cons

  • HP’s design hasn’t changed in years
  • Haptic touchpad is a bit finicky
  • Average battery life

$1,450 at HP

Even if you never plan to twist its screen around, though, the HP Spectre x360 14 is still an attractive premium laptop. For some, it may also serve as a more traditional alternative to Dell’s new XPS 14, which has an invisible trackpad and a capacitive function row. While that computer looks great, getting used to its less conventional features takes some time. The Spectre x360 14, on the other hand, is both attractive and familiar to anyone who’s ever used a laptop. (Its rotating screen takes just 10 seconds to figure out for the first time, while Dell’s invisible trackpad still tripped me up hours after I started testing it.)

HP Spectre x360 14 front viewHP Spectre x360 14 front view

Photo by Devindra Hardawar/Engadget

Design and hardware

That familiarity could also be seen as a shortcoming of HP’s. The Spectre x360 14 has everything you expect to see in a premium laptop today: A sleek metal case, a gorgeous screen with ultra-thin bezels and a luxuriously large trackpad with haptic feedback. But really, it doesn’t look that much different from the 13-inch Spectre x360 I reviewed in 2019. It would be nice to see HP take a few major design leaps, but on the other hand, I can’t blame the company for sticking with a winning design.

With the Spectre x360 14, HP focused on minor updates. It has a wide 14-inch screen with a 16:10 aspect ratio, compared to the previous model’s 13.5-inch display that was a squarish 3:2. Its trackpad offers configurable haptic feedback and is 19 percent larger than before, so much so that it completely dominates the palm area. HP stuck with its wonderfully responsive keyboard, but its key caps are 12 percent larger, making them easier to hit. And to simplify functionality a bit, HP unified the power button and fingerprint sensor (the laptop also supports Windows Hello facial biometrics).

The port situation hasn’t changed. There are two USB-C connections along the right rear (including one on its unique chopped corner), as well as a drop-down USB Type-A port on the left and a headphone jack on the corner. As usual, it would have been nice to see some sort of card reader built in, especially for a machine aimed at creative professionals.

HP Spectre x360 14 headphone jack and USB-A portHP Spectre x360 14 headphone jack and USB-A port

Photo by Devindra Hardawar/Engadget

The Spectre x360 14 may look very similar to its siblings, but HP says it’s been tweaked significantly under the hood. It now supports 28-watt Intel Core Ultra CPUs, instead of the previous 14-watt options, and offers 10 percent more airflow than before. The company also managed to engineer those improvements without increasing the machine’s 17 millimeter height. At 3.2 pounds, it’s a bit more portable than the 3.5-pound MacBook Pro 14-inch.

The Spectre’s 9-megapixel webcam is also a major upgrade from the previous 5MP option. The new sensor offers hardware-enabled low light adjustment thanks to quad-binning, the process of taking data from four pixels and combining them into one. That allows cameras with smaller pixels to let in more light, resulting in a brighter overall picture. During Google Meet and Zoom calls, the webcam delivered a sharp picture with bright and bold colors. It looked almost like a mirrorless camera once I enabled Windows Studio Effects background blur, though the picture occasionally looked overexposed in direct sunlight.

HP Spectre x360 14 USB-C portsHP Spectre x360 14 USB-C ports

Photo by Devindra Hardawar/Engadget

Video chats also sounded great through the laptop’s quad-speaker array, which consists of two upward firing tweeters along the keyboard and two woofers along the front. There’s not much low-end (especially compared to Apple’s MacBook Pro speakers), but voices and music sound surprisingly clear. The speakers can also get pretty loud without distortion, which is impressive for such a thin system.

While the laptop has an NPU-equipped processor, which powers features in Paint, ClipChamp and Windows Studio Effects, the Spectre x360 14 isn’t technically an “AI PC” under Intel and Microsoft’s definition. The reason? It doesn’t have a dedicated button for Windows Copilot. Personally, though, I haven’t found that key to be very useful on the XPS 14 and 16. Triggering Copilot from the taskbar or Windows sidebar isn’t very difficult, and it’s certainly not onerous enough to warrant giving up a spot on the keyboard.

HP Spectre x360 14 screen stand formationHP Spectre x360 14 screen stand formation

Photo by Devindra Hardawar/Engadget

In use

The HP Spectre x360 14 I reviewed performed similarly to other machines we’ve tested with Intel’s Core Ultra 7 155H chip. It’s fast and relatively efficient, especially compared to systems from two years ago. My review unit, which came with 32GB of RAM and a 2TB SSD, was 30 percent faster in the PCMark 10 benchmark compared to the Spectre x360 16 from 2022 (6,493 points, up from 4,785 points). This year’s Spectre also scored 78 percent higher in the Cinebench R23 multi-core benchmark, a testament to the improvements Intel has made since its 11th-gen CPUs.

Geekbench 6 CPU

PCMark 10

Cinebench R23

3DMark Wildlife Extreme

HP Spectre x360 14 (Intel Core Ultra 7, 2023)

2,273/11,735

6,493

1,651/8,481

5,952

ASUS ZenBook 14 OLED (Intel Core Ultra 7, 2023)

2,240/10,298

6,170

1,599/7,569

4,827

Apple MacBook Pro 14-inch (Apple M3, 2023)

3142/11,902

N/A

1,932/10,159

8,139

HP Spectre x360 16 (Intel i7-11390H, 2022)

N/A

4,785

1,515/3,722

N/A

The most noticeable upgrade for the Spectre x360 isn’t AI smarts; it’s Intel’s Arc graphics, which are dramatically faster than Intel’s older integrated graphics. In 3DMark’s TimeSpy Extreme benchmark, it almost kept up with NVIDIA’s RTX 3050 in the x360 16 (1,435 points compared to 1,730). That’s impressive for a machine that’s far slimmer and lighter. Sure, it’s no gaming rig, but I was still able to play Halo Infinite in 1080p at around 30 fps. I’m sure it would handle smaller indie titles just fine.

Thanks to the wealth of RAM and Intel’s Core Ultra chip, my review model tackled everything I threw at it without any noticeable slowdown. During a typical workday, I juggle dozens of browser tabs, photo editing apps, YouTube streams, video chats, Slack and Evernote. The Spectre x360’s OLED display also made everything look fantastic, even if I was just staring at words on a news site. It supports a variable refresh rate up to 120Hz, so scrolling through documents and sites was very smooth.

HP Spectre x360 14 keyboardHP Spectre x360 14 keyboard

Photo by Devindra Hardawar/Engadget

When I first tested a Spectre x360 five years ago, I immediately fell in love with its keyboard. Typing felt incredibly satisfying, thanks to a healthy amount of key travel and feedback. It was one of those rare designs that almost felt like it was begging me to use it, like a finely tuned piano that’s simply urging you to play. Thankfully, HP didn’t mess with any of that keyboard magic: The large new key caps are even more comfortable to use, and the actual typing experience is as great as ever.

I have a few complaints about the Spectre x360’s new trackpad though. It’s smooth and accurate for swiping, and its haptic feedback is indiscernible from a trackpad that physically depresses. But HP’s palm rejection software feels sloppy — occasionally, while typing up a storm, my hand would hit the trackpad and push the cursor to select another window. It happened often enough that it became a creativity flow killer. I’m hoping this is something HP can sort out with a software update eventually.

As a convertible notebook, the Spectre x360 14 is far more useful than the 16-inch model. A gentle push on the screen is all it takes to flip it around the keyboard — it becomes a tablet when it’s fully turned around, or you can stop that process halfway and flip the Spectre around for its “tent” mode. The 14-inch x360 is better at being a slate, simply because it’s lighter and easier to hold with one hand (though you’ll probably want to prop it on your lap for longer sessions).

Rotating the screen was also less cumbersome, since the display was far less wide. I used the tent formation to watch YouTube videos in bed, while on the couch I occasionally folded the keyboard behind the Spectre, so I could use it like a large touchscreen with a stand. I appreciate the versatility of 2-in-1 convertibles more than the flexible OLED screens we’re seeing on new machines. It’s cheaper to implement, and for my purposes, convertibles are simply more pragmatic.

The Spectre x360’s major flaw is battery life: It lasted five hours and ten minutes in the PCMark 10 Modern Office test, whereas the ZenBook 14 OLED pushed through for 12 hours and 43 minutes. There’s a cost for keeping its frame so thin, after all. During real-world testing, it would typically need to charge around six hours into my workday.

HP Spectre x360 14HP Spectre x360 14

Photo by Devindra Hardawar/Engadget

Pricing and the competition

The Spectre x360 14 is a decent deal for a high-end convertible, starting at $1,450 with an intel Core Ultra 5 125H, 16GB of RAM and a 512GB SSD. At the time of writing, that configuration has been discounted by $300, which is an even better value. (Credit to HP for not offering a meager 8GB RAM option, which would only lead to headaches for most users.) For $1,900, you can bump up to a Core Ultra 7 155H chip, 32GB of RAM and a 2TB SSD.

Your options are somewhat limited if you’re looking for other upper-tier convertible laptops. Dell’s XPS 13 2-in-1 is still running older 12th-gen Intel chips, and you’ll have to look to the middle-range Inspiron and Latitude lines for more modern options. We’re also still waiting to see Lenovo’s Yoga lineup get upgraded to newer Intel chips. And we haven’t tested Samsung’s Galaxy Book4 360, but it doesn’t have the style of HP’s design.

Microsoft’s Surface Laptop Studio 2 is also technically a convertible (its screen pulls forward, instead of flipping around), but it starts at $1,900. For that price, you’re better off going for the x360 14’s beefier hardware, instead of the Surface’s unique screen.

HP Spectre x360 14 case rearHP Spectre x360 14 case rear

Photo by Devindra Hardawar/Engadget

Wrap-up

It’s unclear how much life is left in the convertible PC format, but I wouldn’t be surprised if HP ends up being one of the last companies still giving it a shot. The Spectre x360 14 is one of the best laptops you can buy today — the fact that it can also be flipped around in multiple orientations is just icing on the cake.

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How a spreadsheet helped me to land my dream job

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Overhead view of a person working at a laptop on a standing desk.

Searching for jobs can be a daunting endeavour.Credit: PA Images/Alamy

About a year ago, a colleague and I were lamenting the hardships of the academic job market. She had landed a tenure-track position at a prestigious research university the previous year. Now it was my turn. To help smooth the process, she sent me the link to a shared spreadsheet. Little did I know that it would become one of the most precious assets in my job-search toolkit — and academic life in general.

Open to anyone with the link, the spreadsheet — this year entitled ‘2023 – 2024 Management PhD job doc’ — has been passed from generation to generation among graduate students for more than a decade. Its main purpose is to provide an anonymous forum and listings board for job seekers in my field, management. Around May each year, candidates create a new spreadsheet to kick off the job-market season, but links to old spreadsheets are retained so their precious content isn’t lost to future generations.

The spreadsheet uses a tab-based structure. Some tabs provide a question-and-answer forum on a particular area of management; a tab called Catharsis is where academics can share unsettling experiences from their work life and discuss job-market frustrations. Others list open job postings and provide status updates on contributors’ job-hunt processes. And then there’s WWW — the who went where tab, where job seekers’ names are revealed at the end of the academic year to share where they landed after their search. There are also links to useful web resources and, naturally, memes.

If that sounds similar to Slack and other messaging tools, it is. But the spreadsheet is completely anonymous. It is also incredibly flexible, quick to load and easy to search. Plus, researchers are already well versed in spreadsheets — and appreciate the ability to trawl job-search boards while looking as if they’re working.

Resource and sounding board

On a typical day, the spreadsheet has some 30–45 concurrent users, including graduate students and early-career researchers but also hiring-committee members, journal editors and members of editorial boards. This breadth and variety makes the question-and-answer process incredibly effective: users can ask a question and get multiple responses in minutes.

Users are based all over the world, and often discuss how various aspects of academic life compare between geographical locations or according to an institution’s focus — for instance, comparing research-oriented institutions with teaching-oriented or ‘balanced’ ones. Threads might include comparisons of tenure requirements, teaching loads and co-authorship etiquette.

Screengrab of a spreadsheet.

Shared spreadsheets can provide a lightweight group chat and knowledge base for job seekers.Credit: Silvia Sanasi

For job candidates, the spreadsheet is an important source of kinship. But it serves a similar role for more senior faculty members. Users discuss everything from how to handle journal reviews to overcoming methodological or technical issues and the economics of job offers. In this way, the spreadsheet also promotes transparency, providing information about hiring conditions, expectations and compensation. It also helps to reduce ethnic and gender imbalances — because salary guidelines are made public (albeit anonymously) — and to foster awareness of standards in the marketplace.

Community outlet

The spreadsheet helped me to navigate the job market while also learning about the nuts and bolts of my field and of academic life more broadly. Among other things, I learnt how to structure my application package and answer common interview questions, and found out about salary expectations, negotiation tips and the etiquette of interacting with hiring-committee members. Those lessons helped me to land my dream job at my postdoctoral institution, which I accepted last month.

I also routinely consult the spreadsheet to get tips on the review process for specific journals, seek advice on how to handle difficult reviewers and simply rant about rejections. In this way, the spreadsheet makes me feel like part of a community and helps me to find resources on how to become a better researcher, (co-)author, reviewer and colleague. Whatever your field, such a forum can provide important benefits to mental health, which is often strained in academic life. It can also be invaluable for reducing the differences caused by geographical location and resource availability.

The management spreadsheet is not unique. Similar forms of collaboration exist in other domains and should be easy enough to establish in fields where they do not. The biggest challenge is critical mass: this spreadsheet grew out of one of the field’s most-attended conferences and has been promoted year after year, through doctoral consortia and word of mouth. Today, it is self-sustaining.

I hope this article can inspire scholars in other disciplines to adopt similar solutions to help researchers at all levels — from graduate students to senior faculty members — to navigate the difficult life of an academic.

This is an article from the Nature Careers Community, a place for Nature readers to share their professional experiences and advice. Guest posts are encouraged.

Competing Interests

The author declares no competing interests.

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The Dream Vapor Xbox Wireless Controller drops to a record low of $58

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Do you really like the aesthetic of bowling but have no interest in the game itself? In January, Xbox released the special edition Dream Vapor controller with swirls that look like they’ve been pulled right from a bowling ball. Now, the Dream Vapor controller — which is a great accessory for the Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One or Windows — is on sale for $58, down from $70. The 17 percent discount puts the model at the lowest price we’ve seen yet.

Xbox

Xbox’s Dream Vapor controller is — dare we say — beautiful. It has pink and purple accents that swirl together to create a calm, aesthetically pleasing look. Even the buttons are in a light pink with purple accents. The wireless controller works like its counterparts, offering 40 hours of battery life, custom button mapping and a share button.

The Dream Vapor model isn’t the only Xbox controller available for a record-low price. If you’re looking for a basic new controller, the Robot White Xbox controller is down to $45 from $60 — a 25 percent discount. It’s a sleek but fun option with ABXY buttons in a range of bright colors.

Follow @EngadgetDeals on Twitter and subscribe to the Engadget Deals newsletter for the latest tech deals and buying advice.



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How to Plan Your Dream Smart Home Setup With Google Bard

Dream Smart Home

This guide is designed to show you how you can use AI tools like Google Bard to plan your Smart Home setup. Welcome to the exciting world of smart homes, where technology seamlessly integrates with your living space to enhance comfort, convenience, and security. As a seasoned tech writer, I’ve witnessed the evolution of smart home technology firsthand, and I’m thrilled to share my knowledge to help you build your dream smart home with the help of Google Bard – your AI-powered planning assistant.

Step 1: Envision Your Smart Home Lifestyle

Before diving into gadgets and gizmos, take a moment to envision how you want your smart home to function. Consider your daily routines, pain points, and desired conveniences. Do you crave automated lighting that mimics natural sunrise and sunset? Perhaps you dream of a voice-controlled thermostat that adjusts the temperature based on your presence and preferences. Maybe enhanced security with smart locks and cameras is your top priority.

Bard’s Brainstorming Power:

  • Ask Bard: “What are the most popular smart home devices for busy families?” or “Suggest creative ways to use smart lighting to improve my sleep quality.
  • Mind Map: Use Bard’s mind mapping feature to visually organize your smart home ideas, categorizing them by room, function, or desired outcome.

Step 2: Choose Your Smart Home Ecosystem

With a plethora of smart home platforms and devices available, choosing the right ecosystem is crucial. Consider factors like compatibility, scalability, security, and ease of use. Popular options include Google Home, Amazon Alexa, Samsung SmartThings, and Apple HomeKit.

Bard’s Comparison Guru:

  • Compare Platforms: Ask Google Bard to compare the features, strengths, and weaknesses of different smart home ecosystems based on your needs and budget.
  • Compatibility Check: Use Bard to research device compatibility with your chosen platform to avoid compatibility headaches down the line.

Step 3: Prioritize Your Smart Home Starters

Start small and focus on devices that address your most pressing needs and offer the highest impact. Popular starter options include:

  • Smart Lighting: Philips Hue, LIFX, Nanoleaf
  • Smart Thermostats: Nest Learning Thermostat, Ecobee Smart Thermostat
  • Smart Speakers: Google Home, Amazon Echo, Sonos One
  • Smart Doorbells: Ring Video Doorbell, Nest Hello Doorbell
  • Smart Locks: August Smart Lock Pro, Schlage Encode Plus

Bard’s Shopping Buddy:

  • Product Research: Ask Google Bard for in-depth reviews and comparisons of specific smart home devices based on your budget and desired features.
  • Deal Finder: Utilize Bard’s knowledge of current deals and promotions to score the best prices on your smart home purchases.

Step 4: Embrace the Power of Routines and Automation

The true magic of smart homes lies in automation. Utilize your chosen platform’s built-in routines or create custom ones using Bard’s help. Imagine lights automatically adjusting as you enter a room, the thermostat warming up before you wake up, or music playing personalized playlists based on your mood.

Bard’s Automation Architect:

  • Routine Inspiration: Ask Bard for creative routine ideas based on your daily habits or specific scenarios like movie nights or romantic dinners.
  • Customization Coach: Get Bard’s assistance in setting up and fine-tuning custom routines to perfectly match your preferences and needs.

Step 5: Expand Your Smart Home Horizons

As you get comfortable with your core smart home setup, explore the vast array of additional devices and integrations available. Consider:

  • Smart Kitchen Appliances: Coffee makers, refrigerators, ovens that can be controlled remotely or even preheat based on your schedule.
  • Smart TVs and Entertainment Systems: Voice-controlled streaming, personalized recommendations, and seamless integration with smart lighting for an immersive viewing experience.
  • Smart Security Systems: Motion sensors, leak detectors, and security cameras that provide peace of mind and remote monitoring capabilities.
  • Smart Yard and Garden Tools: Automated sprinklers, robotic lawnmowers, and weather-based irrigation systems for effortless yard maintenance.

Bard’s Innovation Hub:

  • Stay Informed: Ask Google Bard about the latest smart home trends, innovative devices, and upcoming releases to keep your setup future-proof.
  • Problem Solver: Having technical difficulties or integration challenges? Bard is always available to provide help and advice to make your smart home journey smoother.

Remember, building a smart home is an ongoing journey, not a one-time destination. Embrace the process of experimentation, refinement, and discovery. With Google Bard as your AI-powered planning partner, you can create a smart home that perfectly reflects your unique lifestyle and brings you joy, comfort, and convenience every day.

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