In this episode of Ask TG: we explore whether Apple Intelligence finally makes Siri worth using, if the Quest 3S is the best VR headset for you, where to mount your Frame TV for the perfect view, and which Kindle is worth your money.
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00:00Is Apple Intelligence and Siri finally good or is it still playing catch-up to Google and Samsung?
00:04Want to get into VR? Is the Quest 3S the headset for you?
00:07Thinking of getting a frame TV, here are some tips for mounting setups.
00:10And if you're trying to buy a Kindle today, which one is worth your money?
00:18Welcome to episode two of Ask TG. This is the show where I grab your comments
00:22and questions from our recent videos and get you answers from our Tom's Guide experts.
00:26If you've got a burning question that you want us to answer next time,
00:28just use the hashtag Ask TG.
00:33I'll give you a call, John.
00:36What's your thought on the latest versions of Apple Intelligence and the revamped Siri?
00:42So I feel like Apple is piecemealing the whole rollout versus what you see with the other
00:47competitors like Google and also Samsung. When they unveiled their AI features,
00:52they all came out at the same time. But what I've tried out so far is promising.
00:56For example, you said Siri, the new Siri is much more intelligent.
01:00I love that Siri is more conversational.
01:03The coolest feature I've seen so far with iOS 18.1 with Apple Intelligence is the
01:08cleanup feature with the photos. Magic Eraser has been around for a while now with Google,
01:13but I think Apple has a more intuitive interpretation.
01:16It knows exactly what you're trying to select.
01:18Is it better than Magic Eraser? That's questionable.
01:21I actually wrote a piece on that about which is better.
01:24Any other tools like that that you think maybe gives
01:27Apple an advantage compared to like Samsung and Gemini?
01:31I'm actually testing out the iOS 18.2 developers beta, and with it is visual intelligence.
01:37And that's the next level for the iPhone,
01:40because now you could use the camera to do a bunch of things.
01:42It's kind of like Google Lens or Google Gemini, because now you could just take a photo,
01:48you'll research the information for you. For example, you know, this car here,
01:52I'm test driving right now. It'll tell me what it is.
01:54You know, I could ask follow-up questions. There's ChatGP integration.
01:57So if I want to know how many miles I get out of this EV, it'll do the research for me.
02:02I don't have to open up another app. So in that sense, it's great.
02:05But like you said earlier, it's still playing catch up.
02:08What are you test driving today?
02:09BMW i4 M50. Shimmery, lustry, red paint job.
02:15It got more compliments than any other car I've test driven.
02:18The handling is excellent. You take those tight corners really good.
02:21It's just exhilarating.
02:22Don't forget to watch our full review on the BMW iPhone channel.
02:27See you then.
02:29Next up, if you're interested in getting into VR, maybe you've dabbled with it a bit,
02:32or you're trying to find a headset that's worth your money,
02:35it's a MediQuest 3S the way to go.
02:38Well, I've been using the Quest 3 for, dang, I mean, almost a year now.
02:44But also a couple months ago, I had the chance to try out the Apple Vision Pro.
02:49During that experience, I actually was able to appreciate what $3,500 got you
02:55at the end of the day. And one of my main takeaways was,
02:58no, it's not worth it to me, but I wish I had that user interface.
03:03I wish I had, you know, the apps, the entertainment that made it really great.
03:08But at the same time, it also showed for $500 and now basically for $300,
03:12the 3S, the budget version of this, how close these headsets get to the Vision Pro.
03:17Now, having said that, this is a very powerful device.
03:20And even though I'm in a more unique spot where I don't really use this
03:23for entertainment or playing games as much,
03:25it's more for productivity when I don't want to use that monitor.
03:28I basically am getting a much bigger workspace on the go
03:32than my 49-inch ultrawide in this headset.
03:34And I can use it anywhere, train, plane, car, to get, you know, the same performance,
03:39but with a slightly lower resolution on the 299 3S.
03:44I wouldn't be surprised if they were selling it at a loss, honestly,
03:47because they're making their money on the software and the accessories.
03:50With a lot of people who are either upgrading from the 2,
03:53maybe the original 1, or haven't even tried out VR,
03:56the Quest 3S is an incredible value.
03:59And it's a great introduction, but it's also a great medium ground,
04:03I think, for a lot of people where you're getting a lot of value and performance.
04:06But yeah, if you've been on the fence about trying VR,
04:09you can't go wrong with the 3S.
04:18Hey, Kate.
04:19Hey, what's going on?
04:20So, we actually have someone who commented on our last video
04:24asking about the frame TV.
04:26They need tips for mounting it.
04:28So, they don't want to be too low that it feels like a traditional TV.
04:32So, they've got a wall that's nine and a half feet tall,
04:34and they're probably going to be sitting about 10 feet away from the TV.
04:37So, they want to know what the ideal height should be.
04:40I mean, look, the standard recommendation
04:42is based on having a directly centered eye level view
04:46whenever you're sitting on the couch.
04:48So, when it comes to mounting,
04:49I think that more specific recommendation
04:51is about 45 inches off the ground to the center of the TV.
04:55But most people aren't really going to do that
04:57because if you're looking at it visually
04:58or from like a home aesthetic perspective,
05:01you're mounting it in a place where you might have
05:03some other stuff set up on the wall.
05:05I think it could look a bit off.
05:07But I would look to mount it maybe closer to 60 inches
05:10from the center off the ground.
05:11I think that might split the difference
05:13between the so-called traditional standard
05:16to having, you know,
05:17the full effect of something mounted on your wall.
05:20So, with that said,
05:20let's say you have other pieces of furniture
05:23or like maybe even a fireplace or something like that.
05:25Would you say that the rules kind of differ?
05:28100%, yeah.
05:29So, I think if you're going for that wall art effect
05:32and that's a priority,
05:33that's what you're paying the premium for.
05:35I definitely think it's worth compromising.
05:37Think about it this way.
05:38If you're getting a TV that can emulate art
05:41so it can look really nice on your wall,
05:43why wouldn't you hang it to have wall art?
05:46First, get that direct line of sight,
05:47then maybe go up about 10 to 15 inches.
05:50If you were to buy a brand new TV right now,
05:53would you have your mind set on a frame TV?
05:55I know you also really like OLEDs.
05:56I think the frame TV,
05:57it usually goes down to like,
05:59it could be up to like $1,000 off,
06:02honestly, depending on the size.
06:03That said, OLED is usually the best bang for your buck
06:08and TV deal season is definitely upon us.
06:11An OLED TV is pretty different from a frame
06:14for what it's worth.
06:15It's also a bit more forgiving with that off angle viewing.
06:18What I think most people want to know about TV deals wise
06:21is related to LG OLED TVs specifically,
06:24which makes sense.
06:25It's the leading OLED brand
06:27and often among our top rated options.
06:29The best deal I've seen so far is for the LG C4,
06:32which is one of this year's flagships.
06:34It's 45% off in that 55 inch size.
06:37And I think if you can get a 55 inch
06:39or a 65 inch OLED TV and see it for under $1,400,
06:43that's a pretty great find.
06:45And if you're willing to compromise on a TV
06:47that's a year or two old,
06:49you might even be able to get a TV in one of those sizes
06:52closer to $1,100.
06:58I don't think Tony's online right now,
06:59but I'm curious to see what he thinks about this.
07:01Okay, so let's put it this way.
07:03For reading books primarily,
07:05I know Tony reads a lot of comics.
07:07It'll be interesting to see what he says about that.
07:09Let's put it out this way.
07:12He thinks it's for Tony because Tony reviewed it.
07:14What did Kate send?
07:17She went with the Kindle Paperwhite.
07:19Kate with the Kindle Paperwhite.
07:21John with the cheap HD tablet.
07:23Anthony, regular Kindle.
07:25Once you try black and white e-ink,
07:27it's hard to use anything else.
07:29Think of it as blue light glasses for your books
07:32that you don't have to wear.
07:33The Paperwhite is a bit better though.
07:34I'm not that eager to upgrade.
07:36No, given my Kindle is less than two years old,
07:38still in good condition.
07:40All right, finally, we got a reply from Tony.
07:42He's going with the Kindle Colorsoft
07:45since he likes seeing his book covers in color.
07:48But for those who don't really care about that,
07:50which I guess a lot of people might not,
07:52he suggests the Paperwhite
07:54since it has a nice seven inch display.
07:56Regular Kindle is nice,
07:57but might be too small for some people, sure.
08:00I wouldn't recommend an iPad
08:02if you're primarily reading
08:03since you'll get too many distractions,
08:05plus Kindles produce less or no eye strain.
08:08And I think that's a big one.
08:09As much as I do love reading on my iPad during the day,
08:13like in my living room, it's fine.
08:16You know, it's definitely bright enough.
08:17But as soon as one of two things,
08:19I go outside, it's either completely washed out
08:21and I can barely read it.
08:23Or when it comes to nighttime,
08:24even on its lowest setting,
08:26and when you put its color shift,
08:28so it's a little bit more yellow on the page,
08:30it's still not, you know,
08:31the same as reading with a nice soft light
08:34and reading a traditional book.
08:36An iPad for $349 or a cheap Fire HD for $75.
08:40From my new point of view,
08:42the Paperwhite is amazing and I'd buy it.
08:44If you can get the 2021 model at a good price,
08:48it might be worth it since upgrades are small.
08:50Oh, okay, there you have it.
08:53Minor upgrades,
08:54might as well look for the previous model,
08:57save a bit more cash.
08:59That's probably the way to go.
09:00I'm also curious as well,
09:01how many people can relate to this.
09:02If you were to compare having a tablet,
09:05which can do so much, you know,
09:08you play your games, your movies, your shows, whatever,
09:11versus just something that's supposed to be
09:13a modern version of a book,
09:15I feel like I might be more likely to read more
09:19with a product that's dedicated as a book replacement
09:24versus something that can replace my books
09:26and everything else.
09:28That's also worth thinking about.
09:31That's it for episode two.
09:32Use the hashtag AskTG for your chance to get featured
09:34in another episode.
09:36Follow us everywhere at Tom's Guide.
09:37You can follow me to see what I'm reviewing next.
09:39Until the next one, catch you later.