Make way for Matter, the smart home's would-be skeleton key

Make way for Matter, the smart home's would-be skeleton key

At Wednesday's Alexa Live 2021 event, Amazon confirmed that its Echo lineup of speakers and smart displays will soon support Matter, a new, universal smart home standard. The product of a multiyear joint effort with other industry titans, including Apple, Google and Samsung, Matter aims to help your smart home devices play a little nicer together -- and soon, the majority of Echo, Echo Dot, Echo Plus, Echo Studio and Echo Show devices already in people's homes will sync up with the standard via a software update.

The news follows similar curtain-lifts from Google and Apple, each of which announced respective support for Matter in Android and in iOS earlier this year. Together with buy-in from Amazon, it all seems to set the stage for Matter to make a splashy debut in the coming months. It likely won't be long before you start seeing the Matter logo featured prominently on the product packaging for a wide variety of the gadgets that want a place in your home. 

The Matter logo signifies smart-home devices that are certified to get along well with each other and with the Amazon Alexa, Apple Siri and Google Assistant voice control systems.

Connectivity Standards Alliance; illustration by Stephen Shankland/CNET

Matter's potential popularity stems from the appeal of its pitch: a single, IP-based, open-source standard that works over Wi-Fi, supports all major control platforms, and acts like a universal language that smart home devices can use to connect with and understand each other. Think USB, but wireless. After all, the Internet of Things ought to be like the internet -- platform-agnostic and 99% the same, regardless of which device or operating system you're using to access it.

That's the ideal, anyway. At the same WWDC presentation where Apple announced that Matter would make its way to iOS 15, the company also showcased newly opened third-party Siri access that lets you trigger and talk to Apple's AI assistant from devices like the voice-activated Ecobee thermostat. The catch is that you'll still need an Apple HomePod Mini (or the discontinued, full-size HomePod) on your Wi-Fi network to do localized speech processing and security authentication. Let that be a reminder as Matter draws near: The big tech companies might be willing to share the cockpit in your connected home, but they're each going to want a hand on the steering wheel, and that can make for a jerky ride.

Still, smoothing out bumps like those -- while keeping big tech in firm control of the category -- might be Matter's mass effect on the smart home. The three inward-pointing arrows that make up the perhaps soon-to-be ubiquitous Matter logo might as well represent Amazon, Apple and Google, each one focused in on a common center -- and each fixed in place at the center of the action. With Matter, you could move into a home or apartment with preinstalled smart gadgets and have a much easier time controlling them however you like: Apple HomeKit, Google Assistant, Amazon Alexa, Samsung SmartThings, take your pick. And, if you're an Android user who lives with roommates or family members who prefer iOS, Matter might help your smart home harmonize a little better, too.

"It's not just another light bulb standard," said Amazon's Chris DeCenzo, a principal engineer for the smart home, as he outlined the company's goal of making Matter relevant by finding new and practical ways of putting it to use. One of the first areas of focus: smarter smart TVs.

"The industry is really a mess of different protocols," DeCenzo explained, before going on to describe how Matter might be able to help standardize TV voice controls or improve casting performance. There are a number of TV manufacturers already on board with Matter via the Connectivity Standards Alliance, DeCenzo notes.

That's not to say that you should expect the smart home experience to be vastly different than before. These companies are still fierce competitors seeking to outdo each other with new products and features. Their incentive is to differentiate, not to share. Matter won't let you access Apple TV's HomeKit camera controls and multiview interface on a Fire TV Stick or a Chromecast, for instance. And devices like Philips Hue bulbs that communicate using Zigbee, Z-Wave or some other low-powered alternative to Wi-Fi will still need a bridge connected to your network in order to put Matter to work, so don't expect that ugly mess of pucks and hubs on your router shelf to disappear, either.

Where Matter should make the biggest impact is with developers, no doubt exhausted after a decade spent jumping through hoops to keep their devices up to date with the ever-shifting demands of each of the platforms their customers care about. (Imagine a busy restaurant with cooks who all speak different languages, while the waitstaff has to work to understand everyone and get food to the right customers.) With Matter, those device-makers will be able to develop around a single standard that brings all of the big names into play. That's a much lighter lift, and one that could free up time and resources that could be better spent developing better devices in the first place.

So, does Matter matter? The answer is undoubtedly "yes" -- even setting the smart home aside, it's a noteworthy thing when big tech circles the wagons and agrees to baseline standards involving security and data privacy. And while the smart home will never be truly seamless, Matter would seem to be a much better framework for the current landscape, one that's dotted with devices from whatever manufacturer had the best Black Friday sale, and controlled by whichever big tech company you're most comfortable (or least uncomfortable) sharing your home with. Matter won't change that smart home status quo, but it could reinforce it in ways that help the category accelerate. You might say it's just a matter of time.

§

Apple has axed its original HomePod and will turn its attention to the smaller version of its smart home assistant, the HomePod Mini, the company said Friday. 

"We are discontinuing the original HomePod, it will continue to be available while supplies last through the Apple Online Store, Apple Retail Stores and Apple Authorized Resellers," Apple said in a statement. "We are focusing our efforts on HomePod mini."

Read more: Apple HomePod Mini features you should know about: Every tip and trick we've found

Apple will continue providing existing HomePods with software updates and support through Apple Care, the company said.

The HomePod Mini was launched in November last year, costing $99 in comparison with the $300 HomePod original. When it was released in 2018, CNET reviewer Megan Wollerton praised its "stellar" sound but said it didn't offer as many features as competing speakers powered by Amazon's Alexa and Google's Assistant. "If you and everyone else you live with has an Apple device and you're sold on having an Apple smart home, the HomePod is worth a close look," she wrote at the time. 

The HomePod Mini earned similarly strong praise from CNET reviewer Molly Price for its sound when it was released in 2020, with a note that the lower price made it much more attractive. "The HomePod Mini is as on-par as Apple wants to make it with Google and Amazon's offerings, and I'd recommend it to anyone invested in the Apple universe," she wrote.

The news about the original HomePod's demise was reported earlier Friday by TechCrunch.

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Twitter could cut back on hate speech with suspension warnings, study says

Twitter could cut back on hate speech with suspension warnings, study says

Since Twitter launched in 2006, it's become a giant networking event, bar hangout, meme-generator and casual conversation hub stuffed into one. But for every 280-word-long timely news update and witty remark, you'll find a violent, hateful post.

Among the crew of experts strategizing to disarm the dark side of Twitter, a team from New York University ran an experiment to test whether warning accounts that hate speech will result in suspension is a functional technique. Turns out, it could be pretty effective.

After studying over 4,300 Twitter users and 600,000 tweets, the scientists found warning accounts of such consequences "can significantly reduce their hateful language for one week." That dip was even more apparent when warnings were phrased politely.

Hopefully the team's paper, published Monday in the journal Perspectives on Politics, will help address the racist, vicious and abusive content that pollutes social media. 

"Debates over the effectiveness of social media account suspensions and bans on abusive users abound, but we know little about the impact of either warning a user of suspending an account or of outright suspensions in order to reduce hate speech," Mustafa Mikdat Yildirim, an NYU doctoral candidate and the lead author of the paper, said in a statement. 

"Even though the impact of warnings is temporary, the research nonetheless provides a potential path forward for platforms seeking to reduce the use of hateful language by users."

These warnings, Mikdat Yildirim observed, don't even have to come from Twitter itself. The ratio of tweets containing hateful speech per user lowered by between 10% and 20% even when the warning originated from a standard Twitter account with just 100 followers -- an "account" made by the team for experimental purposes.

"We suspect, as well, that these are conservative estimates, in the sense that increasing the number of followers that our account had could lead to even higher effects...to say nothing of what an official warning from Twitter would do," they write in the paper.

At this point you might be wondering: Why bother "warning" hate speech endorsers when we can just rid Twitter of them? Intuitively, an immediate suspension should achieve the same, if not stronger, effect.

Why not just ban hate speech ASAP?

While online hate speech has existed for decades, it's ramped up in recent years, particularly toward minorities. Physical violence as a result of such negativity has seen a spike as well. That includes tragedies like mass shootings and lynchings.

But there's evidence to show unannounced account removal may not be the way to combat the matter.

As an example, the paper points out former President Donald Trump's notorious and erroneous tweets following the 2020 United States presidential election. They consisted of election misinformation like calling the results fraudulent and praise for rioters who stormed the Capitol on January 6, 2021. His account was promptly suspended.

Twitter said the suspension was "due to the risk of further incitement of violence," but the problem was Trump later attempted to access other ways of posting online, such as tweeting through the official @Potus account. "Even when bans reduce unwanted deviant behavior within one platform, they might fail in reducing the overall deviant behavior within the online sphere," the paper says. 

Twitter suspended President Donald Trump's Twitter account on Jan. 8, 2021. 

Screenshot by Stephen Shankland/CNET

In contrast to quick bans or suspensions, Mikdat Yildirim and fellow researchers say warnings of account suspension could curb the issue long term because users will try to protect their account instead of moving somewhere else as a last resort.

Experimental evidence for warning signals

There were a few steps to the team's experiment. First, they created six Twitter accounts with names like @basic_person_12, @hate_suspension and @warner_on_hate. 

Then, they downloaded 600,000 tweets on July 21, 2020 that were posted the week prior to identify accounts likely to be suspended during the course of the study. This period saw an uptick in hate speech against Asian and Black communities, the researchers say, due to COVID-19 backlash and the Black Lives Matter movement.

Sifting through those tweets, the team picked out any that used hate language as per a dictionary outlined by a researcher in 2017 and isolated those created after January 1, 2020. They reasoned that newer accounts are more likely to be suspended -- over 50 of those accounts did, in fact, get suspended. 

Anticipating those suspensions, the researchers gathered 27 of those accounts' follower lists beforehand. After a bit more filtering, the researchers ended up with 4,327 Twitterers to study. "We limited our participant population to people who had previously used hateful language on Twitter and followed someone who actually had just been suspended," they clarify in the paper. 

Next, the team sent warnings of different politeness levels -- the politest of which they believe created an air of "legitimacy" -- from each account to the candidates divided into six groups. One control group didn't receive a message.

Legitimacy, they believe, was important because "to effectively convey a warning message to its target, the message needs to make the target aware of the consequences of their behavior and also make them believe that these consequences will be administered," they write.

Ultimately, the method led to a reduction in the ratio of hateful posts by 10% for blunt warnings, such as "If you continue to use hate speech, you might lose your posts, friends and followers, and not get your account back" and by 15% to 20% with more respectful warnings, which included sentiments like "I understand that you have every right to express yourself but please keep in mind that using hate speech can get you suspended." 

But it's not that simple

Even so, the research team notes that "we stop short, however, of unambiguously recommending that Twitter simply implement the system we tested without further study because of two important caveats."

Foremost, they say a message from a large corporation like Twitter could create backlash in a way the study's smaller accounts did not. Secondly, Twitter wouldn't have the benefit of ambiguity in suspension messages. They can't really say "you might" lose your account. Thus, they'd need a blanket rule. 

And with any blanket rule, there could be wrongfully accused users. 

"It would be important to weigh the incremental harm that such a warning program could bring to an incorrectly suspended user," the team writes. 

Although the main impact of the team's warnings dematerialized about a month later and there are a couple of avenues yet to be explored, they still urge this technique could be a tenable option to mitigate violent, racist and abusive speech that continues to imperil the Twitter community.

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Tags:

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• Twitter Hates Free Speech
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• Twitter Hate Speech Dataset
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• Twitter Could çifler

Hp envy sleekbook 6 review hp envy sleekbook 6 1129wm hp envy sleekbook 6 review hp envy sleekbook 6 1010us hp envy sleekbook 6 review hp envy sleekbook m6 k012dx hp envy sleekbook 6 review hp envy sleekbook 6 1129wm hp envy sleekbook 6 review hp envy sleekbook 6 1131nr hp envy sleekbook 14 hp envy sleekbook 6 1010us hp envy 6055e

HP Envy Sleekbook 6 review: HP Envy Sleekbook 6

HP Envy Sleekbook 6 review: HP Envy Sleekbook 6

When is an ultrabook not an ultrabook? This new addition to the HP Envy line asks that very question, with two nearly identical models. One thin 15-inch HP Envy has an Intel Ivy Bridge CPU and is called an ultrabook, while this specific model, the 15-inch HP Envy 6 Sleekbook (the 6-1010us, specifically) is instead called a sleekbook, because it has an AMD CPU and a handful of other component differences.

The look and feel are very similar, and this is one of the thinnest 15-inch laptops you can find, in either the sleekbook or ultrabook versions. In fact, the AMD model reviewed here might even have an edge over the Intel one, because it costs just $599, versus a minimum of $799 for the HP Envy 15-inch with the official ultrabook tag.

You'll trade some performance for the cost savings, and AMD's latest chip family (the company calls it an APU rather than a CPU, which is an Accelerated Processing Unit, combining a CPU and GPU in one package) still don't measure up to Intel's third-generation Core i-series processors in power or efficiency. But, battery life was better than expected and the AMD A6 inside is more than capable of handling everyday online tasks.

Let's be honest. The "sleekbook" name is, to be generous, inelegant. Why not call it a skinnybook? Or a slimtop? Maybe those names didn't focus group test as well. Frankly, the term "ultrabook" has not exactly taken the world by storm, so I don't see a real reason to ape it. It's a needless distraction, or at least confusing to shoppers.

But don't let the awkward name put you off. This is one of the best-looking midsize laptops I've ever seen for $599. If you're shopping for that Intel name brand, or high power for gaming (or a high-res screen), this isn't for you, but for mainstream appeal at a budget price, it's a top contender.

Price as reviewed	$599
Processor	2.1GHz AMD A6-4455M APU
Memory	4GB, 667MHz DDR3
Hard drive	500GB 5,400rpm
Chipset	AMD 1410h
Graphics	AMD Radeon HD 7500G
Operating System	Windows 7 Home Premium (64-bit)
Dimensions (WD)	14.7 x 10 inches
Height	0.78 inches
Screen size (diagonal)	15.6 inches
System weight / Weight with AC adapter	4.6/5.4 pounds
Category	Midsize

HP's Envy family has always (since its 2009 introduction, anyway) been the company's high-end line, with superior design, construction, and materials. I've previously compared them, loosely, with the MacBook Pro or Dell's XPS line, and most HP Envy models have gotten excellent reviews.

This new line, both the AMD and Intel models, take a serious risk by dropping the price and some of the high-end features. While it's great to see a $599 laptop with a brushed-metal look, Beats Audio sound, and a body that's 0.78 inch thick, it also potentially dilutes the Envy brand, which has been a rare high-end success story, refuting the idea that only Apple can sell an expensive laptop.

But, on the positive side, you get a very nicely designed laptop for the same price you might normally pay for a thick, plastic box. This configuration is nearly all black, with a brushed-metal lid and wrist rest, offset by a deep red/burgundy bottom panel. I showed the system off to several people, asking each one how much they thought it cost, and everyone was (pleasantly) surprised by the price.

That said, there are a few physical flaws. The long center hinge is anchored on the inside only, making the screen feel a bit wobbly. The hinge also creaked a bit, especially when holding the laptop in the air while opening or closing it. The metal finish is especially susceptible to fingerprints and smudges. Maybe an antismudge coating was one of the corners cut to keep the price down.

The keyboard and touch pad are very similar to what the other new HP Envy laptops offer. The island-style keyboard had a little flex in the center when typing, but that's typical of budget laptops. A bigger problem is that the keyboard is not backlit, and with black keys against a black keyboard tray, it can be hard to see in even moderately dim lighting conditions. This exact model is a fixed-configuration system, but HP also offers a configurable version (called the Sleekbook 6z-1000, with a silver interior, rather than black) that has a $25 backlit keyboard option.

The touch pad looks like the one on the new high-end Envy Spectre XT; both have a touch pad surrounded by an indented, slightly sunken perimeter. It's a cool look, but I'm not sure what practical impact it has, other than to help differentiate the touch-pad surface from the rest of the wrist rest.

The display has a 1,366x768-pixel native resolution, which is standard for budget or mainstream midsize laptops (and nearly all smaller ones). There's not much more you can ask for at $599, but that 1,366x768-pixel res is definitely starting to look dated on bigger 15-inch displays.

Despite the presence of a Beats Audio subsystem, which gives you an onscreen control panel for tweaking the sound, the built-in speakers are predictably wimpy. The Beats software did allow for a greater range of audio flexibility through headphones, however.

	HP Envy Sleekbook 6-1010us	Average for category [midsize]
Video	HDMI	VGA plus HDMI or DisplayPort
Audio	Stereo speakers, headphone/microphone jacks	Stereo speakers, headphone/microphone jacks
Data	2 USB 3.0, SD card reader	2 USB 2.0, 2 USB 3.0, SD card reader, eSATA
Networking	Ethernet, 802.11n Wi-Fi, Bluetooth	Ethernet, 802.11n Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, optional mobile broadband
Optical drive	None	DVD burner

It's always interesting to see what corners get cut in a budget laptop. In this case, the trade-offs seem smart, with the standard VGA video output getting dropped, but USB 3.0 and Bluetooth staying. It's sometimes hard to fit an Ethernet jack into a slim laptop, and the jack here is the type with a little folding door to fit a Cat5 cable, as seen occasionally on ultraportable laptops.

The big question mark here is the AMD A6 processor. Is it worth giving up that familiar Intel sticker to save a few hundred dollars? It doesn't help that the latest generation of Intel Ivy Bridge processors is excellent, with better performance and power efficiency than even last year's Sandy Bridge models.

From our benchmark results, it's clear the A6 isn't as fast as Intel's mainstream Core i5 CPU, especially when it comes to multitasking. To be fair, AMD isn't claiming that it is a direct performance match. That said, you should think about what type of tasks you use a laptop for. If it's the same as the vast majority of users, that's surfing the Web, e-mail, social networking, and streaming online video.

In anecdotal hands-on use, this laptop, despite the slower processor, is perfectly fine for any of that, even with a standard 5,400rpm hard drive instead of an SSD, and with 4GB of 667Mhz RAM. The fact is, most laptops are very overpowered, considering the relatively simple things we ask them to do.

AMD's A6 is a combination of a CPU and GPU (the company calls it an APU, a bit of made-up marketing speak). The AMD Radeon HD 7500G isn't the same as getting a high-end discrete Nvidia (or even AMD) card, but it's better than traditional integrated graphics. In our Street Fighter IV test, at 1,366x768 resolution, we got a fair 26.7 frames per second. Depending on what you're playing, it's similar to moderately better than Intel's current-gen HD 4000 integrated graphics. Fine for casual gaming, but you'll have to keep the settings turned down for most current A-list games.

Going in, I was a little concerned about the potential battery life on this laptop, as AMD systems have traditionally not been as strong in this area as their Intel counterparts. But, this latest generation of A-series CPUs seems to have made some improvements in this area. The HP Envy 6-1010us ran for 5 hours and 41 minutes on our video playback battery drain test, which is very impressive for a 15-inch midsize laptop.

HP includes a one-year parts-and-labor warranty (although I've seen other, more expensive, Envy laptops start with a two-year plan). Warranty upgrades are confusing, with discounts that don't show up until you've added a specific plan and laptop to your shopping cart. I was able to add a three-year extended warranty, including on-site service and accidental damage protection, for $230, after an arbitrary $99 "discount."

HP's service and support tools are perfectly navigable, and product manuals and software and driver downloads were easy to find. The 24-7 toll-free number can be tricky to spot, however. It's 800-474-6836.

The HP Envy 6-1010us is best described as a pleasant surprise. Would it be a great $899 laptop? Not really, but for $599, it's a great midsize laptop for those willing to trade a little performance for some sharp looks.

System configurations:

HP Envy 6-1010US
Windows 7 Home Premium (64-bit) w/ SP1; 1.4GHz AMD A6-4455MM APU; 4GB DDR3 SDRAM 667MHz; 512MB ATI Mobility Radeon HD 7500G; 500GB Hitachi 5,400rpm

Toshiba Satellite P755D-S5172
Windows 7 Home Premium (64-bit) w/ SP1; 1.4GHz AMD Quad-Core A8-3520M APU; 6GB DDR3 SDRAM 1333MHz; 512MB ATI Mobility Radeon HD 6620G; 640GB Toshiba 5,400rpm

Gateway NV55S05u
Windows 7 Home Premium (64-bit) w/ SP1; 1.5GHz AMD Quad-Core A8-3500M APU; 6GB DDR3 SDRAM 1333MHz; 512MB AMD Mobility Radeon HD 6620G; 640GB Toshiba 5,400rpm

Samsung Series 9 NP900X4B-A02
Windows 7 Home Premium (64-bit) w/ SP1; 1.6GHz Intel Core i5-2467M; 4GB DDR3 SDRAM 1333MHz; 64MB (Shared) Intel HD 3000; 128GB Samsung Solid State Drive

Acer Aspire Timeline Ultra M3-581TG
Windows 7 Home Premium (64-bit) w/ SP1; 1.7GHz Intel Core i7 2637M; 4GB DDR3 SDRAM 1333MHz; 1GB NVIDIA's GeForce GT 640M / 128MB (Dedicated) Intel HD 3000; 256GB LITEONIT Solid State Drive

Find out more about how we test laptops.

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Acer's Predator gaming monitors come for your wallet, while laptops get the latest updates

Acer's Predator gaming monitors come for your wallet, while laptops get the latest updates

This story is part of CES, where CNET covers the latest news on the most incredible tech coming soon.

Three new monitors stand out from Acer's crowd of gaming gear at CES 2022. Not as yowza as Alienware's QD-OLED debut, but with enough yes-I-may-want-it newness for the gamer who's OK spending $1,799 or more for a fast 32-inch 4K HDR monitor or $2,499 for a 48-inch OLED to pair with an Xbox Series X or PS5.

The veteran Predator X32 line welcomes two new members this year -- the, well, Predator X32 and Predator X32 FP. They use the same IPS panel, a DisplayHDR-1000 certified 4K screen with a peak brightness of 1,200 nits and full coverage of the Adobe RGB color gamut and 1ms response time. A new 576-zone Mini LED backlight supplants older versions which had a lot more zones but also tended to generate a lot of heat. They also sport a thin bezel design and minimalist stand.

As the names might imply, though, they differ by some supplementary features. The $1,799 X32 FP uses FreeSync Pro for its variable refresh rate support, and its maximum native refresh rate is 160Hz, or 165Hz overclocked. The $1,999 X32 uses G-Sync Ultimate, which adds to the price and supplies support for Nvidia Reflex latency optimization technology, but G-Sync only works over DisplayPort. Its maximum refresh rate over DP is 160Hz, but over HDMI it's only 120Hz. And unless the specs I'm looking at are wrong, which is quite possible, the X32 only offers HDMI 2.0 connections (three of them) while the cheaper FreeSync model has four HDMI 2.1 connectors as well as a USB-C port with 90-watt power delivery.

The Predator CG48

Acer

The $2,499 Predator CG48 console monitor should offer all the usual benefits of OLED -- a large color gamut, high contrast and fast pixel response -- with a refresh rate of 138Hz in 4K. But seems like it might make some sacrifices. For instance, it's not clear how well it will handle HDR: Acer provides what sounds like a low peak brightness of 450 nits (and a native brightness of 135 nits, which is low) and says it supports HDR10, which means it can decode the stream but won't necessarily display it well.

It does have an HDMI 2.1 connection as well as 3 HDMI 2.0 and a USB hub, though it's odd that the USB-C can only charge up to 65 watts.

All the monitors will ship around October.

Acer also brought forth refreshes of its Nitro 5, Triton 500 SE and Predator Helios 300, but nothing really makes them stand out from the crowd on paper. They've all had minor makeovers to tone down the gaming vibe (but just a bit) and the Triton has slimmed down. The Triton will be marketed as a creator-focused laptop in some regions, so a more subtle style is warranted. 

All get the usual upgrades to the newest versions of whichever processor and graphics card they use. That means the Nitro gets 12th-gen Intel Core H and AMD Ryzen 6000 H models, along with all the perks of the new platforms like support for DDR5.

The Predator Triton 500 SE

Acer

• The Predator Triton 500 SE ships in March, starting at $2,300
• The Predator Helios 300 ships in May, start at $1,650 for the 15-inch model and the 17-inch ships in March starting at $1,750
• The Acer Nitro 5 with Intel ships in March starting at $1,050 for the 15-inch and April starting at $1,100 for the 17-inch; with AMD the 15-inch ships in April starting at $1,100 and the 17-inch ships in May starting at $1,150

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Apple tv plus review small library but the quality is not good apple tv plus review small library but the quality is good apple tv plus review small library button apple tv plus reviews apple tv plus movies apple tv plus channels apple tv 4k

Apple TV Plus Review: Small Library but the Quality Is Topnotch

Apple TV Plus Review: Small Library but the Quality Is Topnotch

Apple made its official entry into the streaming wars in November 2019. Apple TV Plus debuted weeks before Disney Plus, putting both streaming services in the competitive spotlight. At $5 a month, Apple TV Plus is the lowest-priced premium, ad-free streaming platform around, but it still packs high-end features like 4K resolution, HDR and mobile downloads -- as well as some of Hollywood's biggest stars, such as Jennifer Aniston, Jason Momoa, Tom Hanks and Samuel L. Jackson. 

One of the youngest streamers in the game, Apple TV Plus produces high quality, award-winning content. Its feature film CODA earned an Oscar, making it the first streaming service to win Best Picture. While the popular comedy show Ted Lasso has garnered multiple honors, other releases such as The Morning Show, Pachinko, The Tragedy of Macbeth and Severance showcase how Apple TV Plus invests in premium content. 

Like

• Low cost
• Ad-free
• Top-quality, star-studded originals
• Mobile downloads
• 4K HDR and Dolby Vision and Atmos

Don't Like

• Very small catalog
• No older content
• Unavailable on Android devices
• Confusing app experience

The platform now has more than 60 original exclusive TV shows and movies and began streaming its first live sports events with Friday Night Baseball for Major League Baseball's 2022 season. But in some ways, the service is still an underdog. The number of titles on the streamer is tiny compared to Netflix, Disney Plus or HBO Max, in part because Apple TV Plus has almost no back catalog of shows and movies.

Whether the service is worth $5 a month for you -- or less, depending on whether you get it for free with a new Apple device or a discount as part of Apple's Apple One bundle -- depends on how excited you are to watch those originals. Its biggest breakout hit so far has been Ted Lasso, the Jason Sudeikis dramedy about an American football coach who gets hired to coach an English Premier League soccer team. Shows like Mythic Quest, Severance and Schmigadoon! have also garnered critical praise, but few have made cultural waves the way that, say, The Mandalorian did for Disney Plus.

All original content, nothing familiar to binge

Apple's current slate of original shows and movies includes comedies, dramas, documentaries and talk shows. At launch in 2019 it had only nine titles on the whole platform, with a strategy that seemed to be focused on keeping it small and high-quality. Its marquee drama, The Morning Show, which stars Reese Witherspoon, Jennifer Aniston and Steve Carrell, had a huge, $300 million reported budget. 

Ted Lasso, a fish-out-of-water sports dramedy, has been one of Apple TV Plus' most popular shows. 

Apple

For a while, that was the closest the platform had to a real breakout -- until Ted Lasso premiered in August 2020 and made the title character the world's midwestern sweetheart. Though Apple doesn't report viewership data, Deadline reported that Ted Lasso became the most-watched show on the platform in 2021 across all top 50 countries and that it greatly increased subscriptions. Other originals at launch included the postapocalyptic thriller See starring Jason Momoa, the alternative retelling of the space program For All Mankind and the Hailee Steinfeld-starring comedy Dickinson about poet Emily Dickinson. 

New additions include the sci-fi spectacle Foundation, book adaptation The Last Days of Ptolemy Gray, historical drama Pachinko and the genre-bending series Severance. You'll find a few selections for kids, like Snoopy in Space, Luck, Amber Brown, and Hello, Jack! The Kindness Show but the catalog is definitely more adult-oriented. 

Though you won't find a treasure trove of blockbuster films on the service, Apple Original Films partners with the studio A24 for theatrical and streaming productions. For example, The Tragedy of Macbeth debuted in movie theaters in December 2021 and landed on Apple TV Plus the following January. During Apple's Peek Performance event in March, the company announced a slate of new upcoming films and series. Viewers can soon watch Killers of the Flower Moon from Leonardo DiCaprio and Martin Scorsese; the star-studded Argylle, featuring Henry Cavill, Dua Lipa and Samuel L. Jackson; and the Christmas comedy Spirited, starring Will Ferrell and Ryan Reynolds.

Most Apple TV Plus series initially premiere a few episodes at once, followed by one new episode each week to keep you hooked. But sometimes the service drops a full season in one go, similar to Netflix. Ultimately the platform is hurt by its lack of a back catalog -- especially compared with NBC's streaming service, Peacock, which has a free tier with 13,000 hours of shows that include bingeable favorites like Parks and Recreation and 30 Rock. 

Apple's strategy appears to be shifting. The company started acquiring older movies and TV shows to round out the service, but this remains very limited. So far, all we have is the 1980s Jim Henson TV series Fraggle Rock, as a complement to its own new series of shorts based on the show. But there hasn't been any other news about what an expanded back catalog will look like, or how it'll compare to those of competitors.

After adding Friday night games from Major League Baseball to its service earlier this year, the company seems to be leveling up its live sports offerings. In June, Apple struck a 10-year deal with Major League Soccer to stream matches on the Apple TV app. The catch? Only selected games will be available for Apple TV Plus subscribers.

Read more: Best TV Shows on Apple TV Plus

Severance scored 14 Emmy nominations this year.

Apple TV Plus

Top-tier features at a low price, but no Android phone or tablet support

You can't really beat Apple TV Plus in terms of the features. Its originals are available in 4K, HDR, Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos sound. Like Netflix, it's completely ad-free. You can share your subscription with up to five other people on your Apple Family plan and stream on up to six devices at once. You can download all shows to your mobile device to watch offline as well. It's available in 100 countries.

You can watch Apple TV Plus on any Apple device (iPhone, iPad, Apple TV or Mac), via AirPlay or SharePlay. You can also watch on your PC, Roku devices, Amazon Fire TV devices, Samsung, Panasonic, LG and Vizio smart TVs, as well as on the web at tv.apple.com. 

Device support is narrower than most other major services, however. Apple TV Plus isn't available on any mobile devices except for iPhones and iPads, so owners of Android phones and tablets are out of luck. Since launch, Apple has added support for the PlayStation and Xbox -- and it does support some Android-powered TV devices, namely Chromecast with Google TV and Sony smart TVs.

Read more: New to Apple TV Plus? Here Are 9 of Its Coolest Hidden Features

Small selection, small price 

Besides offering first-rate content, Apple TV Plus is attractive due to its low monthly price. For less than the cost of your average McDonald's combo meal, you can access every title on the platform for $5 per month. There are also a few ways to use the service for free. 

New users can hop on a free seven-day trial or try out the service for free for 30 days with an Apple One bundle. The Apple One package allows you to have up to six Apple services depending on your account type. Additionally, if you purchase a new Apple device, you can receive Apple TV Plus free for three months, as long as you redeem the offer within 90 days. And if you have a T-Mobile Magenta wireless plan, the service is included for free for one year.

With the $5 monthly subscription to Apple TV Plus, up to six people can stream from one account and you can hold watch parties on FaceTime. Content is what will hold your attention, but compared to the world's other top streaming services like Netflix and Disney Plus, the price is right. 

Streaming Services Compared

	Apple TV Plus	Netflix	HBO Max	Disney Plus	Hulu	Amazon Prime Video
Monthly price	$5	Starts at $10	$10 for basic with ads, $15 for ad-free	$8	Basic $7 with ads, ad-free Premium for $13, Live TV for $70	$9 (or included with $120-per-year Prime membership)
Ads	No	No	No	No	Yes	No
Top titles	Ted Lasso, The Morning Show, CODA, Severance	Stranger Things, Squid Game, Bridgerton, Ozark, Money Heist	Game of Thrones, Dune, Euphoria, DC titles	The Mandalorian, Loki, Encanto, The Simpsons	Handmaid's Tale, Pen15, Lost, Bob's Burgers	Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, The Boys, Reacher, The Wheel of Time
Mobile downloads	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
4K HDR available	Yes	Yes (on Premium plan)	No	Yes	Yes	Yes
Number of streams:	6	1 (2 for Standard, 4 on Premium)	3	4	2 (Unlimited with Live TV $9.99 add-on)	2

A confusing app experience

Apple TV Plus differs from other streaming services in that it doesn't live in its own app. Instead, you'll find the service inside the Apple TV app, alongside programming from other video subscriptions, as well as Apple iTunes movie and TV rentals and purchases. 

In practice we found this arrangement confusing. When you enter the Apple TV app, the format is similar to other streaming services, letting you search by movies, TV shows, sports or kids. Though Apple TV Plus content is highlighted at the top of the screen, you'll see Apple TV originals mixed in with a ton of content available a la carte to buy, as well as stuff from other streaming services. At first glance, it looks like Apple TV comes with all of these shows and movies -- until you click on them and are taken to a purchase page. 

You have to click on the Apple TV Plus "channel" to actually see the streaming service's offerings, which is a little confusing.

Sarah Tew/CNET

To see only Apple TV Plus content, you'll have to scroll to the Channels section of the app and click Apple TV Plus, which you'll find alongside others like Showtime, Starz and many others.

Within the channel, you'll see every show, but navigation isn't perfect. You'll find the following categories: latest originals, book adaptations, entire seasons, drama and comedy series, feature films, nonfiction series, kids and family... and that's it. No search bar, and no bar across the top where you can scroll between TV shows, movies and kids' programs that are strictly the Apple TV Plus brand, as you typically see with other streaming services. However, if you're using a mobile device such as an iPad or iPhone, there's an "Originals" icon at the bottom of the screen you can click to find branded content in that category.

You'll find the latest available trailers in the Coming Soon section, which is nice to give you an idea of what to look forward to. You'll also see a section called More From the Stars of Apple TV Plus, with black-and-white tiles of some of the big names on the platform (like Tom Hanks and Denzel Washington). Clicking one of those will take you to the Apple TV Plus show you can watch them in, as well as all of their other shows and movies on other platforms. Sort of handy, but ultimately not doing much more than IMDb in terms of connecting you to someone's body of work -- and then asking you to pay for it.

Once you select a show you'll see a large photo and the option to play the first episode or add it to your list. Underneath this section, you can scroll through the list of episodes for each season with or without having to use the drop-down menu. 

The Apple TV Plus voice experience worked best on Apple TV and Roku. When on the home screen of either streaming box, when we said something like, "Watch Defending Jacob," the device would automatically open the Apple TV app and start the pilot episode, no second action needed. On the Amazon Fire TV stick, the voice command took us to another menu, where we'd have to manually select the show to watch. Otherwise, the experience was very similar across platforms.

Being a part of the Apple ecosystem can enhance your experience with the iPhone version: Under a More to Explore tab, you'll find show soundtracks and playlists in Apple Music and related books in Apple Books. 

Apple TV Plus Originals feature big stars like Tom Hanks.

Sarah Tew/CNET

Should you get Apple TV Plus?

If you've bought an Apple device over the past year, or plan to do so once the iPhone 14 is released this fall, you're eligible for the free trial of Apple TV Plus -- and you should definitely take advantage of it. You (or your family) will likely find something you'd like to watch among the original shows and movies. 

I'd recommend the free trial to see if any of Apple's originals strike your interest. (We can confirm that seven days is long enough to finish the first season of Ted Lasso.) If they do, $5 a month really isn't much to pay for high-quality content -- especially when most streaming services like Netflix are implementing price increases. 

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Best Innerspring Mattresses in 2022

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Best Innerspring Mattresses in 2022

In this article

Memory foam mattresses and bed-in-a-box models are the most popular, but innerspring mattresses are still one of the oldest and most common types of mattresses you can buy. They don't arrive conveniently rolled up in a box, but they come with several other perks including a plusher top and a more supportive surface without that sinking feeling that often comes with memory foam and hybrid mattresses.

Traditionally, mattresses with coils are known for having a bit more bounce than other mattress types, but thanks to advanced technology, the best innerspring mattresses can isolate motion almost as well as memory foam -- or at least a lot better than the old spring mattress in the spare bedroom of your grandparents' house. 

I've personally tested more than three dozen mattresses and can attest to the fact that there's nothing quite like a really great innerspring mattress for a good night's sleep, but it does take some work to separate the good from the way-too-bouncy. That's why I did it for you. Here are my favorites.

Note that all prices are for the queen size model of the mattress at the time of publishing. If you're interested in other mattress sizes, check out our lists for the best twin, king and California king mattresses.

Is Labor Day a good time to buy an innerspring mattress?

There are special holidays when mattress manufacturers like to discount their beds, and Labor Day is certainly one of them. You can expect major markdowns from 20% to 40% off and generous bundle deals if you buy a new bed. Other key holidays include Memorial Day, Independence Day, Black Friday, President's Day and Christmas. For the most up-to-date deals from your favorite brands, check out our list of Labor Day mattress deals.

Macy's

Type

Hybrid mattress

Firmness

6 or Medium to Medium-Firm

Trial

120 nights

Warranty

10-year limited warranty

Price (queen)

$3,499

• Type: Hybrid mattress
• Firmness: 6 or Medium to Medium-Firm
• Trial: 120 nights 
  
• Warranty: 10-year limited warranty
• Price (queen): $3,499

The Beautyrest Black is a fan-favorite and the best innerspring mattress overall. There are different models, but with its plush pillow top, 16-inch profile and advanced cooling technology, the C-Class is one of the most luxurious. Technically a hybrid, it's made with a couple layers of pressure-relieving cooling and gel memory foams. This pocketed coil mattress has a base layer with an 850 pocket coil count.

The coils are constructed with a proprietary technique, called T3 Pocketed Coil Technology, that's found only in the Beautyrest Black models -- which is a fancy way of saying that each coil has three strands of steel that are wound into one. This solves some of the typical problems associated with innerspring mattresses by reducing motion transfer, absorbing bounce and the innerspring coils provide extra support so the mattress doesn't sag over time. This mattress has five comfort levels and is compatible with an adjustable bed.

Saatva

Type

Hybrid mattress

Firmness

3 firmness levels | Plush Soft: Medium or 5 | Luxury Firm: Medium-firm or 7 | Firm: 9/10 or firm

Trial

360 nights

Warranty

lifetime warranty

Price (Queen)

$1,595

• Type: Hybrid mattress
• Firmness: 3 firmness levels | Plush Soft: Medium or 5 | Luxury Firm: Medium-firm or 7 | Firm: 9/10 or firm 
  
• Trial: 365 nights
  
• Warranty: Lifetime limited warranty
  
• Price (Queen): $1,595

The Saatva Classic hybrid mattress is where the traditional innerspring mattress meets the modern need for increased comfort. It has two layers of springs. The first is a dual coil base layer that provides advanced support, prevents sagging, allows for increased airflow so the mattress doesn't trap heat, and is recommended for hot sleepers. 

The middle layer consists of individually wrapped coils made from durable coil gauge that relieve pressure points and quickly respond to your body's movement to prevent motion transfer. On top of those steel coils sits high-density memory foam and a 3-inch Euro pillow top that really gives it some extra oomph, if that's what you're looking for.

It comes in two mattress heights, 11.5 and 14.5 inches, and three comfort levels, Plush Soft, Luxury Firm and Firm. The Plush Soft is ideal for all types of sleepers, but the Luxury Firm is most popular (what 82% of customers ultimately end up choosing, according to Saatva). Firm is best for spinal alignment and back support, especially if you're a heavier sleeper. This Saatva mattress is compatible with an adjustable base. Read more in our Saatva mattress review. 

Mattress Firm

Type

Hybrid mattress

Firmness

Plush: Medium or 5 | Firm: Firm or 9/10

Trial

90 nights

Warranty

10-year warranty

Price (Queen)

$2,249

• Type: Hybrid mattress
• Firmness: Multiple firmness levels
• Trial: 120 nights
• Warranty: 10-year limited warranty
• Price (queen): $2,199

Stearns & Foster mattresses are on the pricier side, but they're still a great value, especially when you consider the quality. The Estate Rockwell 15-inch Luxury Firm Pillow Top Mattress, which was designed by scientists from Tempur-Pedic, is made with an exclusive type of coil system called IntelliCoil. This memory-foam mattress has an individually wrapped pocket and has two coils -- one that rests inside the other -- for added durability, advanced contouring and even weight distribution. 

A layer of memory foam sits on top of the coils to help relieve pressure and optimize comfort. This specific model is classified as a Luxury Firm, which means it offers that initial plush feel when you first climb onto it, but with an under layer of firm support, no matter your sleeping position. If Luxury Firm isn't for you, the mattress also comes in a Luxury Plush model. It has a similar construction, but with the addition of extra pressure-relieving memory foam. Read more in our Stearns & Foster mattress review. 

Avocado

Type

Organic latex hybrid mattress

Firmness

2 firmness levels | Standard: medium or 5 | Plush: medium-soft or 3

Trial

365 nights

Warranty

25-year warranty

Price (Queen)

$3,499

• Type: Latex hybrid mattress
• Firmness: 2 firmness levels | Standard: 5 or Medium | Plush: 3 or Medium-Soft
• Trial: 180 nights
• Warranty: 25-year warranty
• Price (queen): $3,499

The Luxury Plush Mattress is the newest model in Avocado's already impressive line. This extra deep mattress has a total of 21 layers of premium materials like natural latex, wool, silk and cotton (all organic and/or natural) combined with 3,136 individually pocketed coils. Everything is strategically arranged into five ergonomic comfort zones that relieve pressure where you need it and provide extra support where you don't. 

There are two models, standard or one with a pillow top. The pillow top comes at an additional cost of $800 to $1,200 depending on the size of the mattress, but it adds 3 inches of plushness, extra contouring and advanced motion isolation. The only catch is that, because the mattress is so tall, it requires deep pocket sheets even without the pillow top, so keep that in mind. 

Mattress Firm

Type

Hybrid mattress

Firmness

3-5 or Medium to Medium-Soft

Trial

120 nights

Warranty

10-year limited warranty

Price (queen)

$1,100

• Type: Hybrid mattress
• Firmness: 3-5 or Medium to Medium-Soft
• Trial: 120 nights
• Warranty: 10-year limited warranty
• Price (queen): $1,100

Sleepy's is a Mattress Firm exclusive brand that offers comfort at an affordable price. While this mattress isn't as luxurious as some of the other models on this list, it's expertly designed to provide advanced pressure relief. The mattress is built on a layer of individually wrapped, encased coils that absorb shock, minimize motion transfer and provide support to keep your spine properly aligned in any sleeping position. 

On top of the coils sit four layers of foam -- two quilt-foam layers for pressure relief, a comfort-foam layer for body contouring and a gel-infused foam layer to dissipate heat and help you sleep cooler and more comfortably. At 11 inches tall, it's the thinnest mattress on this list, but the pillow top adds enough padding that you don't need the extra layers or height.

Macy's

Type

Hybrid mattress

Firmness

5 or Medium

Warranty

10-year warranty

Price (queen)

$2,039

• Type: Hybrid mattress
• Firmness: 5 or Medium 
• Warranty: 10-year warranty
• Price (queen): $2,039

Sealy may be one of the most recognizable names in the world of innerspring mattresses. Over the past 65 years, the company has been working on perfecting its mattresses and the Posturepedic Silver Pine 15-inch Medium Euro Top Mattress is one of the most recent, and high-quality, models. It has heavy-duty coils that are designed to reduce movement and provide extra reinforcement to the mattress' edges, so there's no sinking or sagging no matter where you're positioned on the mattress.

A couple layers of memory foam and a Euro plush pillow top sit on top of the coils, adding some extra softness that contours your body while also providing adequate support. It's classified as a "Cushion Firm," which means it has a bit more give than typical firm mattresses, but with a little extra padding in areas you need it most, like your hips and shoulders.

Wayfair

Type

Hybrid mattress

Firmness

4 or Medium to Medium-Soft

Trial

100 nights

Warranty

10-year limited warranty

Price (queen)

$1,070 (Wayfair) or $831 (Amazon)

• Type: Hybrid mattress
• Firmness: 4 or Medium to Medium-Soft
• Trial: 100 nights
• Warranty: 10-year limited warranty
• Price (queen): $1,070 (Wayfair) or $831 (Amazon)

Another model from Beautyrest, the Silver 12-inch Plush Innerspring Mattress is a budget-friendly option that doesn't skimp on comfort. Its base layer is made with what the brand calls "Plush Pocketed Coils" -- a specialized system of individually pocketed springs that move independently to adapt to your body shape while also eliminating motion transfer. 

Gel memory foam, which offers advanced lumbar support and breathability to keep you cool, sits on top of the innersprings, while a thin layer of memory foam underneath the coils provides extra support for your body and the mattress. This under-layer of memory foam adds a little bit in terms of comfort, but it mostly prevents the springs from sagging in one spot and eliminates the need to have to regularly flip the mattress -- a common complaint with older innerspring models.

Other mattresses we've tested

Our CNET Sleep editors collectively write our best mattress lists based on their experience with over 100 different mattresses. The beds listed above are all top picks, but with so many to choose from, there are a few great beds that deserve an honorable mention. 

Leesa Legend mattress : The Leesa Legend mattress is a thick, premium bed that boasts two layers of coils. One layer is made with pocketed coils, while there is also a microcoil layer in the top layers. This is pretty unique for a mattress, and it offers a ton of back support. Especially if you're somebody who weighs over 230 pounds. As far as comfort goes, it has a medium firmness level that's really accommodating and a fluffy, soft foam feel that is more responsive than traditional memory foam. 

Brooklyn Bedding Signature : Value shoppers should keep Brooklyn Bedding Signature on their list of ideal options. It's a premium hybrid mattress that costs the same price as popular foam mattresses like Casper or Purple. It also is available in three different firmness levels, so any sleeping position can find a comfortable option.  

How we test

CNET editors pick the products and services we write about based on editorial merit. When you buy through our links, we may get a commission. Read more on how we test mattresses.

Innerspring mattress FAQs

Do people still buy innerspring mattresses?

Yes and no. People don't buy the traditional type of innerspring mattresses your mom or grandma had as a kid. However, modern mattresses do utilize coils or innersprings to provide ample support and durability. However, there are usually layers of foam materials, cotton, or wool for added comfort. 

How many springs in a mattress is good?

The best innerspring mattresses have 1,000 springs or more. However, smaller mattresses like twin or twin XL beds may have slightly less because they aren't as large and require less springs in their constructions. 

Is an innerspring or coil mattress better?

The term innersprings and coils can almost be used interchangeably, and often offer the same benefits of support and durability. However, pocketed coils are all individually cased in fabric, and move independently from one another. This makes it better at isolating motion than traditional innerspring systems which all moved as one cohesive unit. Most innerspring beds these days are made with "pocketed coils" rather than regular innersprings. 

More products and reviews 

The information contained in this article is for educational and informational purposes only and is not intended as health or medical advice. Always consult a physician or other qualified health provider regarding any questions you may have about a medical condition or health objectives.

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