These language apps are almost as good as having a babelfish in your ear

There are countless apps out there designed to help you learn a new language, which makes it tricky to pick the right one. You may want to widen your vocabulary, get some conversation practice in, revise your grammar, or all of the above. Whatever your goal, there’s likely an Android or iOS app for you. Below are a few of our current favorites, so you can pick up a foreign tongue without ever stepping foot inside a classroom.

You may also be interested in our picks for the best travel accessories and the best travel adapters.

Duolingo

There are plenty of reasons why Duolingo is one of the most popular language apps around — it’s free, well-designed, and accessible. Lesson are broken down into bite-sized chunks and it feels like you’re playing a game.

The app divides languages into different topics, such as clothing or business, but also into adverbs, pronouns, and other grammatical subjects. You must interpret the text and audio, but you can slow down the audio if you’re having trouble understanding it. The app’s answering structure encompasses a wide range of activities, too, meaning you’ll often switch between typing answers, speaking them aloud, and choosing from a set of multiple choice answers.

Duolingo is a great introduction, but it can feel like you’re learning a random mix of information, often through repetition. Obviously, the more you do, the more robust your vocabulary will be. It’s great for comprehension purposes, yes, but it may not be the best when it comes to developing your conversational skills. The offline mode is limited, too, so you really need a Wi-Fi or data connection to make the most of Duolingo.

Supported languages: English, Spanish, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Dutch, Irish, Danish, Swedish, Russian, Ukrainian, Esperanto, Polish and Turkish.

Download now for:
Android iOS

Babbel

This app is broken down into lessons that last between 10 and 15 minutes each. There are packs of lessons that cover different abilities, including those tailored to both beginners and advanced learners. The app teaches you a range of words and phrases, and challenges you to spell them out, speak them aloud, and fit them into sentences.

The nice thing with Babbel is that it focuses on conversational learning and it explains grammar rules as you progress. Filling in the gaps in mock conversations is fun and the lessons progress in a logical, traditional manner, starting with basic conversational phrases that you’ll want to master. You can also download lessons to work through them while you’re offline.

The app design is a bit rough around the edges, however, and we found that the software’s voice recognition doesn’t always work the way it’s intended to. Also, though you get one lesson for free with Babbel, you have to pay between $5 and $10 a month if you want get full access to the learning materials for a single language.

Supported languages: English, Spanish, French, German, Italian, Brazilian Portuguese, Russian, Turkish, Polish, Indonesian, Dutch, Danish, Swedish, and Norwegian.

Download now for:
Android iOS

Tandem

Everyone knows that the only way to become fluent in a new language is to speak it. Thankfully, Tandem is geared toward conversations with native speakers. The idea is that you can help one another learn new languages via text, audio, and video chat. The app vets you and then helps you to find a partner who shares your interests. They teach you and you teach them.

Once you agree on a time to chat, you can pick specific topics that serve as conversation prompts, which helps ease the initial awkwardness of talking to a stranger. It’s free if you can find a suitable exchange partner, which is easy for popular languages. You can also pay for a lesson with a professional tutor, if need be.

To sign up, you’ll need to use your Facebook or Google account. There are also moderator checks to ensure that you’re serious about learning, and to weed out those who are abusing the service. This means you might have to wait for your profile to be approved. If you’re ready to move onto the next level with your language and want to speak to a native, then Tandem is worth checking out.

Supported languages: English, Spanish, French, German, Portuguese, Italian, Chinese, Japanese, Russian, and nearly 150 other languages.

Download now for:
Android iOS

Memrise

If you want to practice and expand your vocabulary, then Memrise is a fun way to do it. The app is set up like a game, one in which you travel to a foreign planet as a spy and you score points for correct answers. It’s a unique way to frame language lessons, and the bulk of the courses consist of memorizing specific words and phrases using mems, which are strange sentences or images.

You can also listen to audio recordings of various words and phrases, and occasionally see video footage of native speakers saying them. The general idea is to learn words and then review them at predetermined intervals, which grow longer as you memorize the words. There’s some science behind the algorithm, but it ultimately amounts to a sophisticated flashcard system. Still, it seems to be very effective for some people.

Memrise primarily functions as a vocabulary builder, so you’ll want to combine it with conversation and grammar lessons, if possible. Some of the mems are odd, but bizarre associations and images can be a very effective way to memorize things. You can sign up for the app via email, or use your Google or Facebook account, which grants you access to the wealth of community-created content.

The app’s basic functionality is free, but a subscription ($9 a month) will grant you access to additional games and an offline mode.

Supported languages: French, Spanish, German, English, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Turkish, Russian, Italian, Portuguese, and more than 100 other languages.

Download now for:
Android iOS

Busuu

With an impressive user base of more than 60 million people, Busuu is worth checking out. It’s a well-designed app that offers complete lesson packages, which cover a good amount of content. The app provides basic flashcards, along with grammar, writing, dialogue, and pronunciation exercises. The quizzes and vocabulary games are quite fun for testing your knowledge.

Busuu also offers a set of handy travel courses that provide the basics for a particular language, allowing you to better prepare for your next trip. You can even chat with native speakers — and have them correct your text — or earn points by correcting other learners. There’s an offline mode, too, so you can download lessons and study without an internet connection.

You get some basic flashcards and writing exercises for free, but you’ll want to subscribe to unlock all the courses and extra tools, which will cost you somewhere between $6 and $10 a month.

Supported languages: Spanish, English, German, French, Italian, Portuguese, Turkish, Arabic, Polish, Russian, Chinese, and Japanese.

Download now for:
Android iOS

Editors’ Recommendations

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Tinder suffers sign-in problems following Facebook’s privacy changes

Virtual romance has run into a momentary setback — Tinder has confirmed reports that many users can’t sign into its dating service. Those affected are frequently stuck in a login loop where they’re asked for extra Facebook permissions, only to be sent back to the original Facebook sign-in request when they tap the relevant button. Others have had success signing in, but have reported losing all their messages or matches. Suffice it to say that this is worrying if you’ve had your eyes on someone special.

It won’t surprise you to hear the cause. Facebook just altered its developer frameworks in the name of improving data privacy, and the social network has confirmed in a statement that these problems were “part of the changes” and that it’s “working with Tinder” to fix the problem. We’ve asked Tinder for comment and will let you know if it can share more.

There isn’t word of other services breaking as a result of Facebook’s changes, but don’t be surprised if other services struggle for a while as a result. Regardless of what happens, the incident underscores one of the problems with the ubiquity of Facebook as a sign-in option: it’s very convenient when everything works, but even a minor tweak to Facebook’s code can break entire services.

A technical issue is preventing users from logging into Tinder. We apologize for the inconvenience and are working to have everyone swiping again soon.

— Tinder (@Tinder) April 4, 2018

Via: Select All

Source: Tinder (Twitter)

Microsoft AI knows when to (politely) interrupt conversations

Most AI assistants can’t really hold a conversation. They’re fine with I-go-you-go dialogue, but most humans aren’t quite so timid — they know when to interrupt, and when to restart chat when there’s an awkward pause. Microsoft wants to fix that. It just upgraded its Xiaolce chatbot AI with “full duplex” conversation that lets it start speaking when it’s listening to what you’re saying. As it can predict what you’re likely to say next, it knows when to interrupt you with important info or say something more when both sides suddenly go quiet. Think of it as that friend who knows when to speak up without being overly rude.

Besides providing a more natural flow to your conversation, it also spares you from using a smart speaker’s wake word unless it’s actually necessary. Many AI helpers can skip wake words when they want an immediate follow-up (“would you like me to send the message?”) but this would keep the conversation humming until you’re truly done.

The initial plan is to spread this technology to Microsoft’s other chatbots, such as Zo in the US and Rinna in Japan. It’s pretty clear that this could be useful for Cortana and just about any other conversational AI, though. Instead of barking orders to a voice assistant and waiting for answers, you could hold two-way discussions that feel more like you’re asking real people (albeit ones without much personality) for help.

Via: VentureBeat

Source: Microsoft AI Blog

Zuckerberg: Nobody has been fired over Cambridge Analytica

Facebook has been ramping up its damage control as outrage continues over the Cambridge Analytica mess. But it seems nobody at the social media company has been let go as a consequence. On a media conference call, Mark Zuckerberg confirmed that no employee was fired in the wake of the scandal because, in his words, it’s his fault: “At the end of the day this is my responsibility,” he said.

Has anyone been fired in the wake of the Cambridge Analytica data scandal?
Mark Zuckerberg: I have not. At the end of the day this is my responsibility. I’m not looking to throw anyone else under the bus for mistakes that we’ve made here.

— Recode (@Recode) April 4, 2018

Zuckerberg won’t be firing himself, either. Separately, he was asked if he still feels like he’s the best person to run Facebook (‘Yes’) and if the board discussed him stepping down as chairman (‘Not that I’m aware of’). Which was, predictably, an awkward moment in a public call.

Most awkward moment on Facebook press call so far: reporter asks if board has talked about Zuckerberg stepping down. His answer: “Not that I’m aware of.” Followed by 3-second silence.

— Michal Lev-Ram (@mlevram) April 4, 2018

And those of you hoping that #deletefacebook made enough of a dent in the platform’s userbase will be disappointed. When asked if he’d seen any change in usage from the movement, Zuckerberg said “I don’t think there’s been any meaningful impact that we observed. Look, it’s not good. I don’t want anyone be be unhappy with our service. Even if we cant measure change, it still speaks to people feeling like this is a massive breach of trust.”

‘Hitman’ games have brighter future thanks to Warner Bros. deal

The Hitman game franchise has seen some tumultuous times lately: Square Enix tried to offload its developer, IO Interactive, prompting the studio to buy its independence. While that gave IO more control, it also left the company more vulnerable if sales fell short. Not to fear, however: IO has signed a Hitman publishing deal with Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment. The agreement should provide some stability, and even gives fans a re-release in the short term.

Warner Bros. is launching Hitman: Definitive Edition on May 15th for the PS4 and Xbox One, and it includes a handful of content beyond what you received in the Game of the Year Edition release. You’ll get Hitman’s core Season One and GOTY content, of course, but you’ll also receive the Summer Bonus episode, an IO 20th Anniversary outfit collection and a Blood Money Requiem Pack. Although this won’t be nearly as alluring as more missions, it could be a good way to catch up if you hadn’t played all the missions.

It’s too soon to say Hitman games will come in the wake of this deal (Season Two, please?). This suggests Agent 47 isn’t going away any time soon, however, and will make it easier to pick up games if you’re not keen on existing download options.

Source: BusinessWire

Total Number of App Store Apps Shrank in 2017 Thanks to Apple’s Quality Crackdown

The number of apps available in the App Store shrank for the first time ever in 2017, according to data shared today by App Store analytics company Appfigures (via TechCrunch).

At the end of 2017, there were 2.1 million iOS apps available in the App Store, compared to 2.2 million apps at the beginning of the year.

Starting in September of 2016, Apple told developers it would be removing old, outdated apps that had not been updated with compatibility for more recent devices or no longer complied with current review guidelines.

Apple also created new App Store guidelines limiting apps created from commercialized templates or app generation services, and officially banned virus scanning apps, plus it cracked down on clone and spam apps, all of which contributed to the company’s App Store cleanup efforts.

Changes in iOS 11 may have had the biggest impact on the available number of apps in the App Store, though. With iOS 11, Apple stopped supporting 32-bit apps, which the company began phasing out in 2013. 32-bit apps do not open on devices running iOS 11, nor can older 32-bit apps be found in the App Store.

Since 2015, Apple has required all apps and app updates to use 64-bit architecture, so apps that became defunct with iOS 11 had not been updated in at least two years.

Appfigures says that the decrease in apps can also be attributed to a dip in the number of new apps submitted by developers in 2017. Just 755,000 new apps were added to the App Store in 2017, down 29 percent from the previous year. This too could be attributed to Apple’s more restrictive App Store policies cutting down on low-quality apps.

While the number of App Store apps has declined due to Apple’s efforts to make sure apps in the App Store are prioritizing quality, Google Play growth has accelerated. In 2017, Google Play reached 3.6 million available apps, a growth of 30 percent. Android developers released 1.5 million new apps in 2017, up 17 percent.

Tag: App Store
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How to Get the Most Out of Your New Sixth-Generation iPad

Apple last week announced and debuted an attractive new iPad option — a sixth-generation model with an affordable $329 price tag, an upgraded A10 Fusion processor, and support for the Apple Pencil, an accessory previously limited to the more expensive iPad Pro models.

For MacRumors readers who are upgrading to Apple’s stellar new tablet from an older model, we’ve put together a video and guide covering features, accessories, and tips for getting the most out of the sixth-generation iPad.

Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos.

Apple Pencil

Apple Pencil support is the major new feature in the sixth-generation iPad, and there are a ton of useful tricks you need to know if you’re new to the accessory.

Pairing

Pairing the Apple Pencil to the iPad is as simple as uncapping it and plugging the Lightning connector into the Lightning port on your iPad. You’ll see a popup that asks you to confirm to pair, and once you accept, the Apple Pencil is successfully connected to the iPad.

Charging and Battery

When you connect your Apple Pencil to your iPad, it’ll let you know the battery level. You can also check using widgets accessed by swiping to the right of the Home screen. Scroll down to the “Batteries” section where your iPad and its connected devices (including Apple Pencil) are listed.

Don’t see a battery widget? Tap on “Edit” at the bottom of the list and tap on the “+” icon next to the “Batteries” option.

The Apple Pencil’s battery lasts for approximately 12 hours, and it charges through the Lightning connector on the iPad or with any Lightning cable using an adapter that ships with the accessory.

If your battery is dead and you need your Apple Pencil in a hurry, just plug it in for 15 seconds. That’ll get you enough juice to use it for a half hour, so it’s never out of power when you need it.

Apple Pencil Capabilities

The Apple Pencil is a sophisticated device that does quite a lot when paired with the sixth-generation iPad. A new touch sensor in the iPad allows for the Apple Pencil to work, enabling a lag-free writing and drawing experience that’s identical to using the Apple Pencil on the more expensive iPad Pro.

Your iPad knows when you’re using your Apple Pencil and it blocks out other touch input. That means there’s built-in palm rejection, so feel free to rest your hand on the iPad while you write or sketch.

There are pressure and positioning sensors included in the Apple Pencil, which let it detect a range of forces to enable pressure-sensitive drawing and writing in supported apps. When you press lightly, you’ll get a thin line. Press harder, and you’ll get a thicker line.

On the same note, there are two tilt sensors that determine the orientation and angle of the Apple Pencil while you’re holding it, a feature that lets you add shading to drawings and sketches by using the side of the tip.

Replacing the Tip

The Apple Pencil has a replaceable tip, so when it wears down, you can swap in a new one. An extra tip comes with the Apple Pencil, and you can purchase an additional package of four from Apple for $19.99.

How often you’ll need to change the tip will depend on how much you’re using the Apple Pencil, but on average, a tip should last for multiple months to a year or more. To swap it out, turn the tip counterclockwise to unscrew it and then screw on a new one.

Apple Pencil Apps

The Apple Pencil is ideal for taking notes, writing, sketching, drawing, and other similar tasks on the iPad, and because it’s been around for several years now, there are tons of apps that offer full support for the Apple Pencil’s features. We’ve listed some of our favorites below:

• GoodNotes 4 ($7.99) – GoodNotes 4 is a comprehensive note-taking app that offers a range of writing and sketching tools, along with OCR for searching through your written notes. You can also use it to annotate documents and PDFs with the Apple Pencil.
• Notability ($9.99) – Notability is another app that offers all of the features you need for taking detailed, concise notes with the Apple Pencil. It’s simple, easy to use, and offers tons of writing and sketching tools, but it’s not quite as feature rich as GoodNotes 4.
• PDF Expert ($9.99) – If you’re going to be editing and annotating a lot of PDFs, it may be worth investing in PDF expert.
• Pigment (Free) – Pigment is a coloring book app that lets you color in intricate designs using the Apple Pencil. Kids love it, and it’s relaxing for adults too.
• Affinity Photo ($19.99) – Affinity Photo is a lot like Photoshop – you can use it for drawing, sketching, editing photos, and more. It has full support for Apple Pencil, including pressure sensitivity and tilt. Use it to apply editing effects to photos or create paintings with its extensive brush library and brush tools.
• Procreate ($9.99) – For sketching and drawing on the iPad, you won’t go wrong with Procreate, an app that many iPad artists prefer. Procreate supports high-definition canvases, offers tons of brushes, and has full support for Apple Pencil.

Tracing Through Paper

Want to digitize a drawing that’s on traditional paper? The Apple Pencil works through paper, so just place the sheet over the iPad’s display, where it will be illuminated by the screen, and then trace the design in your favorite sketching app.

Other Apple Pencil Tidbits

Apple Pencil support is built into apps throughout the iOS 11 operating system. Inline Apple Pencil drawings, for example, can be inserted into Notes and Mail, while a useful Instant Notes feature lets you tap your Apple Pencil on the display of the iPad to automatically open a new note in the Notes app without having to unlock the iPad or manually open the app.

If you use the the document scanner in the Notes app to scan a piece of paper, you can then sign it or annotate it with Apple Pencil. It’s a useful feature for documents that you need to sign and return to someone. You can also sign standard PDFs, either in the Mail app or right in the Files app.

With the sixth-generation iPad, Apple also added Apple Pencil support to all of its iWork apps, so you can use Apple Pencil with Pages, Keynote, and Numbers. You can also use the Apple Pencil for drawing on and annotating screenshots and photos with Instant Markup, a feature available in the Photos app or whenever you take a screenshot (just tap on the screenshot icon in the lower left corner).

The Apple Pencil is, of course, designed for note taking and sketching, but you can also use it for navigation just like your finger.

Augmented Reality

The sixth-generation iPad includes an A10 Fusion chip, and while it’s not as speedy as the A10X Fusion in the iPad Pro, it’s still able to run any app or game in the App Store. Apple specifically said the more powerful A10 Fusion, which was first introduced in the iPhone 7, was added to the sixth-generation iPad to support augmented reality content.

There are now tons of augmented reality apps built using ARKit in the App Store, and you can download everything from Pokémon Go to apps that let you preview furniture to educational apps, all of which have AR content. In the iOS App Store, you’ll want to check out the specific AR categories in the apps and games sections.

iOS 11 on the iPad

iOS 11 introduced a whole slew of iPad-specific features that make using an iPad as a computer replacement a much more pleasing experience. The new sixth-generation iPad, with its A10 Fusion processor, supports all of these features.

A persistent dock, for example, houses all of your apps and makes it easier to use the built-in multitasking features for accessing two apps side by side. Using simple drag gestures that are easy to learn, you can use multiple apps in a variety of ways with Slide Over and Split View arrangements, as demoed in the video.

Picture-in-picture, another multitasking feature in iOS 11, lets you watch a video on YouTube or another source while continuing to use other apps, which is super handy, and drag and drop features make it simple to move files and content from one app to another.

Control Center has been merged with a useful new App Switcher, accessible by swiping up from the bottom of the iPad. With the App Switcher, you can access all Control Center options and quickly switch between open apps with just a tap.

You can find more detail on all of these iPad features in our iOS 11 roundup, which is complete with tons of how tos that are worth checking out for learning even more about iOS 11 and the new iPad.

Adding Accessories

While the new iPad supports the Apple Pencil, it doesn’t have a Smart Connector and there’s no option for a Smart Keyboard. Bluetooth keyboards are supported, though, and if you want to use your iPad for writing, coding, or other keyboard intensive tasks, it’s worth picking one up.

The sixth-generation iPad’s design is the same as the fifth-generation iPad’s design, so all existing iPad keyboards will work with the new model, and there are tons of options out there. Brydge, for example, makes a highly rated $99 iPad keyboard, and there are multiple options from Logitech, like the $99 Slim Folio. You can also use Apple’s own Magic Keyboard for a Mac-like typing experience.

Did you get a new iPad? Are there tips and tricks worth knowing that we haven’t covered here? Let us know in the comments.

Related Roundup: iPadBuyer’s Guide: iPad (Buy Now)
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Boardefuse review: It has a purpose but we just can’t figure out what it is

If you’re looking for a ever-popular “brain trainer” or puzzle-type of apps or games, a new one available in the Play Store is Boardefuse. Boardefuse is a new all-ages puzzle game from the developer Chronohole. Like, very new… 10+ installs to-date (as of time of writing)! No, not 10 million— 10. And that’s ok; many new apps come out every day, gaining a very small following on it’s way to global domination. It just means it’s new, and that the masses have yet to discover it.

But for a new app to garner quick attention- to grow the way the developer dreams of, the app has to be a number of things including pretty, to learn, offer a general amount of variety, and be immediately (let’s face it) addictive. Finding this combination is the secret sauce that all developers chase on a daily basis.

To be frank, Boardefuse doesn’t quite hit the mark on these primary features. I also have to admit that during my time with Boardefuse, I was generally confused most of the time.

Game Premise

The idea of Boardefuse is a combination puzzle game and brain trainer, forcing you to think creatively to defuse as many bombs as possible on a given game board; linking them under a set of rules/constraints mandated by the game.

Tutorial home screen.

Bombs can have numbers or symbols on them; or can be blank (a deactivated bomb). On each game board there is a central blue “B” bomb that you create your links from. Each bomb’s number indicates the quantity of bombs that have to be linked in front of it (e.g.; a “3” bomb has to have 3 bombs in the chain before it).

Blank bombs and ones with symbols allow you to tweak these rules to help reach your goal. You can also acquire tools (e.g.; nippers to defuse bombs) as bonus items or in-app purchases.

The boards start easy, but as you progress through them they become increasingly complex and difficult. Again, the intent is to provide an easy-entry puzzle game that make you think, without being too involved.

Game Reality

Okay, maybe I’m just not getting it, but I’ve had a hard time with Boardefuse as a player. To me, the entire experience is confusing and ambiguous. I’m really not even sure where to start as the whole experience meanders.

I honestly

don’t know what

these screens do.

Starting with the overall aesthetic, the combination of earth-tone colors and thin font made it fairly difficult for my eyes to read, and to understand the flow of the interface.
The nine tutorial levels are intended to guide you through all the basic game mechanics and challenge types to encounter. But when I completed level 9, I did not feel much more prepared for gameplay than I was at level 1.

Navigating Boardefuse felt like I was on my own most of the time. There’s a lot of icons, without a lot of explanation. If you were to hand me your phone asking me for help in getting to a certain screen, I don’t believe I could do it in under three tries.

Not a fan of the font.

Tutorial home screen.

Yep, I died.

Once gameplay began, the experience was similarly underwhelming. The same earth-tones just don’t offer a feeling of invitation and stimulation. The gameplay itself was just ‘blah’; it offered no excitement or invitation to keep playing on. On the positive side, gameplay mechanics were pretty good; the game icons were responsive to touch and slide inputs.

Overall

I just can’t recommend Boardefuse to you. From the drab colors, to the ambiguous interface, to the lack of instruction; I never did get beyond the “OK, how does this work?” phase of gameplay.

Maybe I’m all wet here. Maybe there’s something basic I’m just flat-missing. But until that enlightenment happens, I would move on to other, more established puzzle games. If you do decide to give it a try and have better luck than I do, please let us know at AndroidGuys.

If you must, download Boardefuse from the Play Store here.

New York City’s WiFi kiosks now offer real-time bus arrivals

Numerous cities display real-time bus arrivals on public screens, but New York City? Not so much — you’ll probably have to pull out your phone to know if you have a chance of making your ride. That shouldn’t be a problem before long, as the city has launched a pilot program that puts real-time bus info on LinkNYC’s gigabit WiFi kiosks. Visit one of 29 kiosks in Brooklyn’s City Council District 39 and you can see arrival times for nearby stops at a glance, letting you know when you need to hustle.

The two plan to bring arrivals to kiosks in every borough in the “coming weeks.”

LinkNYC’s stations were initially focused on plain internet access, phone charging and other fundamentals, but they’ve gradually rolled in features like social service access and even messages to Santa. Bus data is just a logical extension of that strategy — the kiosks are quickly becoming catch-alls for any info that might be helpful when you’re navigating the sidewalks.

Source: NYC DoITT

Consumer tech lobbyist calls China tariffs a ‘poison pill’

The White House might argue that its proposed tariffs on Chinese tech would punish the harvesting of American intellectual property while preserving the US economy, but don’t tell that to the Consumer Technology Association’s Gary Shapiro. The industry lobbying group CEO has issued a statement describing the tariffs and the likely Chinese response as a “poison pill” to production, the “innovation economy” and customers’ wallets. Instead, he suggested that the US slap China-style requirements (not necessarily joint ventures) on foreign companies while pushing for greater transparency, competition and respect for patents.

The CTA hasn’t finished reviewing the would-be tariffs, but it’s concerned that some sections (such as those dealing with electronic components) could hurt US technology. Shapiro called on both companies and the public to take advantage of the public comment period on the tariffs to voice their objections.

It’s far from certain that the White House will listen to the objections, let alone change its mind as a result of them. However, it’s notable that the CTA is speaking up in the first place. The Association does speak out on issues, but it tends to take a relatively safe position. Here, it’s concerned enough about the potential consequences of the tariffs that it’s willing to stick its neck out and risk antagonizing supporters of President Trump’s economic policies for the sake of protecting the tech industry’s interests.

Via: John Hendel (Twitter)

Source: Consumer Technology Association