Pixel 9a review: Google’s cut-price Android winner

Google’s latest cut-price Pixel offers the best bang for your buck in Android phones and is arguably better in many areas than some models costing twice the price.The Guardian’s journalism is independent. We will earn a commission if you buy something through an affiliate link. Learn more.The Pixel 9a starts at the same £499 (€549/$499/A$849) as last year’s equally good value model

‘She helps cheer me up’: the people forming relationships with AI chatbots

Men who have virtual “wives” and neurodiverse people using chatbots to help them navigate relationships are among a growing range of ways in which artificial intelligence is transforming human connection and intimacy.Dozens of readers shared their experiences of using personified AI chatbot apps, engineered to simulate human-like interactions by adaptive learning and personalised responses, in response to a Guardian callout.Many respondents said they used chatbots to help them manage different aspects of their lives, from improving their mental and physical health to advice about existing romantic relationships and experimenting with erotic role play. They can spend between several hours a week to a couple of hours a day interacting with the apps.Worldwide, more than 100 million people use personified chatbots, which include Replika, marketed as “the AI companion who cares” and Nomi, which claims users can “build a meaningful friendship, develop a passionate relationship, or learn from an insightful mentor”

Mobile phones in schools can be an aid to learning | Letter

It is incredibly disappointing to read that so many schools in England have implemented an outright ban on phone use (More than 90% of schools in England ban mobile phone use, survey shows, 10 April). While student engagement and the addiction to phones and social media certainly need to be addressed, schools are more likely to support students’ development if they teach them how to use technology in ways that are healthy, purposeful and life-enhancing. A balanced, nuanced approach to phone use can still promote social interaction for children of all ages and encourage learning beyond the classroom.All students should be equipped to access quality information and transfer knowledge quicker in their pursuit of independent learning. If phones or tablets can help achieve that goal, maybe we should not be so quick to dismiss them in schools

Meta faces antitrust claims at trial over Instagram and WhatsApp ownership

Facebook parent Meta Platforms faces a high-stakes trial in Washington starting on Monday on claims it built an illegal social media monopoly by spending billions of dollars to acquire Instagram and WhatsApp, in a case in which US antitrust enforcers seek to unwind the deals.The acquisitions more than a decade ago aimed to eliminate nascent competitors who could threaten Facebook’s status as the go-to social media platform for users to connect with friends and family, the US Federal Trade Commission claims. It filed the case in 2020 during Donald Trump’s first term.The FTC seeks to force Meta to restructure or sell parts of its business including Instagram and WhatsApp. The trial poses the first major test for the FTC under the second Trump administration

‘A man approached him’: parents describe their children’s Roblox problems

David, a 46-year-old father from Calgary, Canada, initially did not see a problem when his 10-year-old son started to play on Roblox, the platform of user-generated games and virtual environments that has exploded in popularity in recent years, particularly among younger gamers.“We saw it as a way for him to maintain a level of social interaction during the Covid lockdowns,” David said, assuming his son was using the platform’s chat function only to speak with friends he knew personally.After a while, his parents found him speaking to someone in his room in the middle of the night.“We discovered that a man from India had approached him on Roblox and coached him to bypass our internet security controls,” David said. “This person then persuaded my son to take compromising nude images and videos of himself and send them via our Google Mini

Risks to children playing Roblox ‘deeply disturbing’, say researchers

“Deeply disturbing” research exposes how easy it is for children to encounter inappropriate content and interact unsupervised with adults on the gaming platform Roblox.It comes as parents shared their serious concerns about children experiencing addiction, seeing traumatising content and being approached by strangers on the hugely popular website and app.Roblox acknowledges that children using the platform may be exposed to harmful content and “bad actors”. It says it is working hard to fix this, but that industry-wide collaboration and government intervention are needed.Describing itself as “the ultimate virtual universe”, Roblox features millions of games and interactive environments, known collectively as “experiences”