Apple : Microsoft Paint isn't going anywhere, and gets new accessibility features |
- Microsoft Paint isn't going anywhere, and gets new accessibility features
- Best laptop games: 20 games for laptops that won't melt your machine
- Windows 10 S Mode release date, news and features
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| Microsoft Paint isn't going anywhere, and gets new accessibility features Posted: 15 May 2019 02:01 PM PDT Microsoft has been making a strong push toward accessibility in the past year, with the Xbox Adaptive Controller proving to be one of the best Xbox One accessories. Now, the company is adding accessibility features to one of its most popular, long-standing programs: Microsoft Paint. The new accessibility features will come in the Windows 10 May 2019 Update. And, while Microsoft Paint is already readily usable with a mouse or touchscreen, the new features allow the keyboard to serve as the primary input device in Microsoft Paint. Now, you might be wondering why anything is coming to Microsoft Paint. Previously, the company had signaled that the fan-favorite painting app's days were numbered. Paint 3D was all set to replace Microsoft Paint almost two years ago, but then Microsoft kept Paint around. However, another recent message from a Windows Insider senior program manager claimed Microsoft Paint is sticking around for now. Even though Paint 3D features basically all of the same capabilities as MSPaint with even more on top, the addition of accessibility features to MSPaint would seem to signal the company may keep the app around indefinitely.
How the new features workThe new accessibility features work with a combination of keyboard controls. In general, the arrow keys will move the cursor on the canvas, and the Space key will activate whichever tool is selected. For example, to select an area on the canvas, users will use the selection tool, move the cursor to the starting point of their selection, then hold space and use the arrow keys to stretch the selection box as needed. The various new controls are listed in details in this post from Microsoft. In addition the new the controls, Microsoft has changed the way Paint will work with Screen Readers. This may improve the experience for the hard of sight. The new update that includes these features should be released sometime this month.
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| Best laptop games: 20 games for laptops that won't melt your machine Posted: 15 May 2019 12:47 PM PDT These days, the best games aren’t limited to expensive consoles with online memberships that cost hundreds per year. And, while the best laptops won’t be able to play some of the best PC games, like Far Cry 5, the best laptop games and their convenience more than make up for the lack of visual splendor. Some of the best indie games over the last few years, especially Cuphead, have been beautiful, without relying on complicated graphics. Plus, beloved classics like Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic may look dated, but still make for some of the best laptop games thanks to stellar gameplay and stories (even if, regrettably, that particular game isn’t considered canon anymore). The best laptop games on the market today range from tiny indie games you maybe haven’t heard of, like Thimbleweed Park, to wildly popular triple-A games along the lines of The Sims 4. Whatever your play style, schedule and hardware, we’re willing to bet you’ll find something on this list that you’ll enjoy.
Whether he’s at LucasArts, Double-Fine or here and now in a new indie studio, veteran developer Ron Gilbert is also sure to serve up a slice of veritable gaming gold. That tradition of impeccable output continues with Thimbleweed Park, a pixel art point ‘n’ click adventure that harks back to the glory days of Maniac Mansion while weaving it together with a very modern eye for creativity. It’s effectively a murder mystery graphic adventure, where FBI agents Reyes and Ray - who in now way resemble another famous pair of fictional, UFO-chasing member of the Bureau - arrive in a quiet town to investigate a murder most horrid. The way it weaves together a genuinely clever story and a cast of peculiar yet instantly memorable characters is something most games with far larger budgets miss entirely.
You might be turned off by the intimidating amount of challenge it poses, but we assure you, Cuphead is worth a shot. If you don’t already find its colorful, whimsical art style endearing, then maybe you’ll be convinced by some backstory of how it was made. Cuphead hails from indie developer Studio MDHR (short for Studio Moldenhauer), named after the two brothers who started the project, Chad and Jared Moldenhauer. In fact, the entire company consists of family members and friends who sought out to complete their dream project. Marija Moldenhauer, Chad’s wife, did all of the inking and clean up in this hand-drawn ode to 2D platforming classics like Mega Man and 1930s Fleischer cartoons like Betty Boop. And, if the 19 bosses aren’t enough for you, Cuphead is getting a major DLC next year with new bosses, areas and a new playable character.
If you love farming sims (and, judging by how well the likes of Farming Simulator and Harvest Moon sell, there’s quite a few of you out there), then few games are going to get you jumping for agricultural joy more than the bewitching busywork of Stardew Valley. Taking a cue from the Harvest Moon games, Stardew Valley's top-down point of view and cutesy characters feel meld together perfectly. It doesn’t sound very exciting, what, tending to fields, growing produce and raising livestock – but that’s the beauty of it. There’s a unique kind of peace to the mundanity of Stardew Valley’s minutia as you expand your farm, fish down at the river and even head into the village to strike up friendships (and maybe something a little more) with a cast of NPCs. Farming has never been so much fun.
In many ways, we’re inclined to describe Night in the Woods as Life is Strange meets Bojack Horseman. The interactive dialogue bits derive from the former while the overarching themes of coping with mental health issues rings true in the latter. Night In The Woods itself was developed in Unity by Infinite Fall, the virtual studio where you’ll find coder and composer Alec Holowka and Twitter jokester slash illustrator and animator Scott Benson. Together, these two have created not just a game, but a gorgeous world full of relatable characters that you will hopefully resonate with. You take the role of Mae, a cat who dropped out of college and recently returned to her hometown of Possum Springs. It’s an entirely narrative-driven game, as modern point-and-click adventure games are, with very few gameplay hooks that will keep your attention. So, if you’re into Telltale Games or Life is Strange, Night in the Woods may be the best laptop game for you. Best of all, it will run pretty easily on integrated graphics, given that it has an appealing, but not highly demanding, art style. Surely, this is a title we’ll be talking about for years and years to come, even if it was snubbed at The Game Awards.
You’d wonder whether Hotline Miami’s neon-drenched ultraviolence would exist if the film Drive had never been made, and while it’s hard to miss just how vigorously it doffs its bloody mask at the Gosling classic, the end result is an utterly brilliant little indie title. With a pixel art evoking a top-down look of Grand Theft Auto’s retro years, Hotline Miami indulges in its almost psychedelic violence. The concept is simple: adorn a mask (each one is styled on an animal and adds is own buffs, debuffs and unique abilities), enter a stage and coat the walls with the blood of your enemies. Add in buckets of neon, a synth soundtrack that’ll have you sewing a scorpion onto the back of a white jacket in no time and one messed up storyline and you’ve got a classic in its own right.
Even though its a 2018 title, and has a pretty huge following, your laptop’s integrated graphics can still handle Pillars of Eternity 2: Deadfire. It largely has the same forgiving system requirements that its predecessor does, so if you were a fan of that game, you should be able to enjoy this one as well. Pillars of Eternity 2: Deadfire drops players in the Deadfire archipelago and tasks them with hunting down a rogue god. And, much like its predecessor, it features rich storytelling and deep RPG gameplay that harkens to the days of Baldur’s Gate and Neverwinter Nights. Even though all the backgrounds are in 2D and viewed from a top-down perspective, they’re still lovely to behold. Plus, the myriad spell effects will keep you enchanted as you work your way through the intense and tactical combat. And, because it's coming from Obsidian, a studio known for making the best RPGs of all time, you can be confident that you’re getting an adventure that’s worth every penny.
If someone told you a game about working in a border control office would be one of the most addictive games ever, we’d imagine you’d scoff and walk off shaking your head. That is unless you’ve played a little indie gem by the name of Papers, Please. Set in a fictional take on the Eastern Bloc, you’re an immigration clerk tasked with processing refugees from an unfriendly neighbouring nation. The core concept is simple: check each person’s documents against a clear set of rules, process those who meet the requirements and detain those with false papers. The game’s designed to test your attention to detail, but also the strength of your moral compass. Sometimes you’ll have to decide if certain sympathetic characters should be granted asylum, even if it goes against the rules. The twist is good performance effectively feeds you family, while mistakes put their lives in danger. It’s dark, but engrossingly so.
Come on, do we really need to convince you to go out and own a copy of Knights Of The Old Republic? Arguably the greatest Star Wars game ever made (yes, even better than Dark Forces II and Rogue Squadron), KOTOR proved that the most recognisable lore ever could feel fresh and exciting again outside of the silver screen. Coming from Bioware, the Canadian studio that would go on to create the Dragon Age and Mass Effect series, KOTOR offers compelling characters, intense action that mixes real-time tactics with turn-based mechanics a galaxy of stories that felt tangible and real. Sure, it’s technically not canon anymore, but it still remains one of the greatest games ever coded. Get this in your collection now.
Part role-playing game, part bullet hell shooter, Undertale is a game like no other. The fact that this amazing game is the work of one man is astounding, considering the depth of consequence developer Toby Fox has built into Undertale’s world. In the diminutive boots of a child who’s fallen into a monster-filled world beneath the earth, you’ll encounter vicious bosses where only the quick thinking survive. The fact you can befriend bosses as well as fight them changes the fabric of the story, and proves it’s not just NPCs that offer vital moments of dialogue. It’s a game of empathetic reflection, where your actions dictate how a boss or monster reacts to you. Aggression leads to more powerful attacks against you, while avoiding retaliation will soften the blows. Strange and seductive in its own special way, Undertale is a curio definitely worth chasing.
When it comes to CCGs (collectible card games), Hearthstone does a pretty great job of keeping you and your deck of animated cards entertained throughout - but what happens when you want something a little less innocuous? You give a CCG with a unique spin such as Chronicle: RuneScape Legends a gander. Based on the classic lore of Runescape, Chronicle combines card-dealing with the 3D setup of a RPG. Cards represent real characters and enemies that appear across a 3D-rendered pop-up books. Cards are played sequentially, with player characters facing each one (ranging from foes to curses to stat buffs), before facing off against one another at the end. It’s bizarre, brilliant and absolutely worth your time. Hey, it’s even got new single-player content when you don’t want to test your mettle against other users. Not bad for a low-spec CCG.
FTL sounds like an ultra-hardcore game when you describe it: a real-time strategic space roguelike. A roguelike is a game that makes you start from scratch when you die. However, FTL is actually well-suited to pretty casual laptop gaming. You can even get it for iPad, after all. You tool up your star ship, recruit your crew and do your best not to get destroyed as you take an important message from one end of the galaxy to the other. Screenshots don't really to FTL justice, as all you just see is a blocky graphic of your ship, not really its spacey surroundings. However, it's the perfect game for public play: nothing on-screen to make you feel too embarrassed. Or keep fellow passengers glued to your screen if you play on train journeys.
Few games stay relevant as long as Skyrim. It should feel ancient, but a mod scene has kept it vital for the past half-decade. Being so old has also meant humble hardware has been able to catch up with its real-life spec requirements. It'll run pretty well on Intel Core-series processors from the last 2-3 years, and even plays pretty well on some recent Atom/Pentium CPUs on its lowest settings. If you have a real dog of a laptop, there's also a mod that'll cut down the settings even further than the game itself allows, called Ultra Low Graphics Mod. Imaginative naming. In case you've been locked in a cupboard for the past five years, Skyrim is a massive open-world RPG that won countless 'game of the year' awards when it was released back in 2011.
Remember the game that earned millions and millions of dollars of funding on Kickstarter back when such things were unheard-of? That's Broken Age, the point 'n' click platform made by one of the people who came up with Monkey Island back in the 90s. While it didn't single-handedly revive the genre, it is a fun tale that is nowhere near as frustrating as most of the early 90s adventures, most of which are best viewed through a pair of rose-tinted nostalgia specs. From a distance. You play as both male and female characters, skipping between chapters in their respective stories to make sure the narrative doesn't get stale. We're steering clear of spoilers, so we'll leave it at that.
You might head straight for 2D games when you think of games that'll work with pretty modest hardware. However, some once-fancy 3D games work very well with non-gaming laptops. Valve's Source engine is particularly good at working with lesser GPUs, making classics like Half-life 2 play well on modern integrated graphics hardware. If you're not up for a thinking person's FPS like Half-Life 2, you might want to check out fantastic first-person puzzler Portal 2 instead. It is also based on the Source engine. Portal 2 takes the portal gun from Half-Life 2, which makes teleporting holes in walls, and makes a whole game out of it. Possible one of the best games of all time, actually.
It's easy to think of Minecraft as retro in some way, but it's far more innovative than some of the nay-saying haters would have you believe. It is not just for kids. Try it, you might just like it. This world-building classic was never out to wow audiences with its Crysis-style graphics, but its highly scalable visuals let you tweak Minecraft to suit any machine. As well being able to fiddle with the draw distance and the few visual effects the game uses, you can change the field of view too. Minecraft is also well-suited to laptop gaming because you don't need to be super accurate with your cursor, which is handy if you're using a trackpad rather than a mouse.
Take 90s platform stylings, add a roguelike twist, a thoroughly modern random level generator and a few RPG sprinkles and you have Rogue Legacy. It's one of the most addictive indie games of the last decade. You play as a knight type, leaping right into a castle full of nasties. When you die, and you will die, you return as one of that warrior's descendants. The castle will be different, as will the class of your character. While you have to start from scratch each time, you can unlock bonuses by collecting gold from chests in the castle. This is the bit that makes it more accessible than a true roguelike game, where you really have to start from square one when you die.
Don't Starve is a cracking little game where you wander around in a slightly twisted nightmarish world, exploring and picking up supplies to try to survive, day by day. When the sun goes down, awful creatures start prowling around the shadows. If you don't build a fire, you're a goner. You have to eat to keep yourself healthy, and even your mental health deteriorates if you don't find out ways to pep yourself up. There are some nice visual effects in don't starve, but as a predominantly 2D near-top-down game, it's happy to work with all but the most basic laptops.
If you don't mind a real risk of addiction in your laptop gaming, Hearthstone is a title not to miss. It is a little like nerd classic card battler game (and also video game) Magic: The Gathering, but much better-suited to quick, casual play. Like so many modern casual games, though, you'll probably end up playing it for a lot longer than five minutes. And it feels even more "right" on a laptop than a hulking desktop. It's a Valve game and, like most Valve titles, fares incredibly well on lower-end hardware. It officially supports the Intel HD 1000 integrated GPU, from way back in the Sandy Bridge generation half a decade ago.
Is Civilisation the ultimate "PC" game? Many of us have spent a fistful of full days working through Civilization's virtual recap of the ages of man, whether it was back in the 90s, or just last week. Civilization V has more of the casual vibe that previous Civ games, but that makes it more palatable if you're looking for something to kill 30 mins, rather than 3 hours. It'll work on almost any Intel Core series laptop from the past five years, but if you find yours still isn't up to the task, don't forget Civilization IV. Despite being ancient, it still works fine on Windows 10 through Steam.
EA gets a lot of flak. It was rated as the most hated company in America two years in a row, after all. However, it doesn't half know how to court a big audience. And that means making sure games like The Sims 4 work on just about everything. This infamous lifestyle sim even has a "laptop" mode designed for systems that can barely make it through the title screen of The Witcher 3. The game itself is very much business as usual: you slog through a virtual life, making bucks and designing living rooms. Or doing your best to torture some poor virtual peon by locking them in an inescapable toilet. Other less casual EA games that work amazingly well on most laptops include Dead Space 1-3 and Dragon Age: Origins. This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Windows 10 S Mode release date, news and features Posted: 15 May 2019 12:46 PM PDT Windows 10 S was first revealed back in May 2017 as a standalone OS, but it faced some controversy at launch. A lot of the criticism boiled down to the fact that it restricts users to apps found on the Microsoft Store. Luckily, users can switch out of Windows 10 S Mode for free.Still, the lightweight operating system has proved instrumental in getting Windows 10 to over 825 million installs. Windows 10 in S Mode makes a lot of sense for the right kind of user and device. For instance, the Microsoft Surface Go is a cheap alternative to the Surface Pro, with a low-power Intel Pentium Gold processor, making it a perfect candidate for Windows 10 S. We’ve also seen reports of people getting Windows 10 S running on a Raspberry Pi 3, which would make even more sense for the lightweight OS. Microsoft is also rumored to be working on Windows Lite, which will further the lightweight nature of the OS, to compete with the best Chromebooks. Windows 10 S Mode will also be able to take advantage of any Windows 10 updates, like the October 2018 Update and the upcoming Windows 10 April 2019 Update – though it may be delayed . That means you get neat features like the April Update’s “Light Mode” and useful storage space tools, not to mention the possibility of playing Xbox One games natively. Now, two years after its initial release, Windows 10 S is a major part of the Windows 10 landscape, so we thought it was the perfect time to dive in and explore everything the lightweight version of Windows can do. And, make sure you bookmark this page, as we’ll keep it updated with all the latest and greatest Windows 10 S information that appears. Cut to the chase
Windows 10 S release dateWindows 10 S originally launched on May 2, 2017, with devices using the OS trickling out over the next few months. Fast forward to 2019 and Windows 10 S is bigger than ever. These lower spec Windows 10 devices are more versatile now than ever before. Eventually, there will be a UI toggle that’ll let Windows 10 users switch in and out of S Mode, but that’s not available at the time of this writing. Fortunately, you can still get out of S Mode relatively easily – just head to the Windows Store on your device and search for ‘switch out of S Mode’. As for when we’ll see the switch go live, who knows? However, Microsoft may sneak it in at a later date – we don’t think it’ll appear in the April 2019 Update, though. Now, as for the reveal of Windows 10 S itself – Microsoft’s event invitation was titled ‘#MicrosoftEDU’, making no misgivings about its aims with the new OS. While Windows 10 S is not for individual sale, it is issued to IT administrators in education as well as laptops found in stores and online. It’s no coincidence that Windows 10 S is focused on the education sector, where Google’s Chromebooks are experiencing outlandish success.
Windows 10 S priceWindows 10 S is essentially free for users. Microsoft subsidizes the cost of the OS to hardware manufacturers, assuming they’re not getting Windows 10 S for free. Essentially, as a user, you don’t really pay for Windows 10 S Mode, instead you’re paying for the hardware running it. Save for premium devices like the original Surface Laptop, you can find devices running Windows 10 S Mode starting at just $189 (about £146, AU$251) and cap out around $299 (about £239, AU$396). PC makers across the board, including Dell, HP, Asus, Acer and Lenovo all have Windows 10 S Mode-powered devices in their stables. But, now that Windows 10 S Mode is a thing, it’s a toggle that doesn’t cost anything extra. Both Windows 10 Home and Pro S Mode users are able to go to the Windows Store and opt out of S Mode, though the conversion only works one way – out of S Mode – right now. Though, there will be a switch in the settings app of a future build, that will let users go back and forth.
What is Windows 10 S?Microsoft intends Windows 10 S to serve as a lightweight, more secure version of Windows 10 for lower-end devices. While in “S Mode,” Windows 10 will only support apps that are downloaded from the Windows Store. This talk of a version of Windows that can only download Microsoft-approved apps is familiar, isn’t it? Microsoft believes it has mastered this approach since the turbulent days of Windows 8 RT and Windows 8 with Bing – both of which tried to position Microsoft as the sole provider of apps through curation. The good news is that this allows for a startup time of under 5 seconds as opposed to the 30 - 40 second startup time of Windows 10 Pro. Not only that, but configuring settings (such as Wi-Fi, webcam, etc.) across an entire classroom of students is as easy as inserting a USB stick in each of their laptops. Being in competition with Google’s Chrome OS, Microsoft has, of course, also positioned Windows 10 S as a more secure PC operating system. However, its resilience to viruses is mostly a side-effect of the inability to install apps not approved by Microsoft. Historically, Windows viruses have tended to erupt from untrustworthy internet downloads. Should you find a must-have app that isn't available in the Microsoft Store in Windows 10 S you can switch from Windows 10 S to Windows 10 Home or Pro by just going to the Windows Store and searching for “switch out of S Mode”. Microsoft used to charge a fee for this service, but now it’s free for everyone. Microsoft will also allow users that upgrade to Windows 10 Pro to move back down to Windows 10 S. And, now that Microsoft is rumored to be working on a Windows 10 Lean Mode, which will be even more lightweight and locked down. Oddly enough, the shiny new Surface Laptop 2 now ships with Windows 10 Home, not in S Mode like the previous. That said, what can you expect to see included in devices running Windows 10 S? Well, the Edge browser, OneNote and Windows Ink are all givens. The standard Movies and Groove Music apps, as well as Maps and Mail and Calendar are shoo-ins, too. Of course, we won’t see x86/x64 program support on a Windows 10 cloud operating system until 2019 when the aforementioned Polaris is expected to touch down and implement a ‘virtualization container’ for each of your favorite legacy applications. That means that, yes, should everything work out perfectly, there will be a Windows 10 cloud OS that can emulate the .exe’s of the past. Despite its constraints, Windows 10 S still features File Explorer, and although many of the laptops that come with the lightweight OS pre-installed may ship with smaller capacity SSDs, Microsoft’s forthcoming introduction of OneDrive Files On-Demand will make it so files can be stored in the cloud, but still viewed the same way as locally stored content. All things considered, there are still questions looming around in regard to the viability of Windows 10 S. Fortunately, as new developments emerge to (hopefully) address those criticisms, you can count on us to cover them right here on this page.
Bill Thomas and Gabe Carey have also contributed to this article This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| macOS High Sierra news, updates and features Posted: 15 May 2019 12:44 PM PDT Apple’s macOS 10.13 High Sierra launched two years ago now, and is obviously not the current Mac operating system – that honor goes to macOS 10.14 Mojave. But, because Mojave increased the system requirements by a significant margin, many people will be using macOS High Sierra for years to come. We’re not complaining, though. During macOS High Sierra’s time in the sun, it became one of the best versions of the Mac operating system yet – even if there were some security issues at launch. However, these days, not only have all of the launch issues been ironed out, but Apple continues to provide security updates, even in the face of macOS Mojave. And, while macOS 10.13 did include some time-saving photo editing tools and a whole new file system, it wasn’t immune from criticism when it came out. Namely, it was criticized for simply iterating on Sierra – just like Mountain Lion when it followed Lion. Still, just because the improvements are relatively minor, doesn’t mean they aren’t there, so we’re going to explore everything there is to know about macOS High Sierra. Cut to the chase
Image Credit: Apple macOS 10.13 High Sierra release dateApple revealed macOS 10.13 High Sierra at the WWDC 2017 keynote, which is no surprise, given Apple’s tradition of announcing the latest version of its Mac software at its annual developer event. However, it wasn’t until September 12 that Apple revealed that High Sierra would launch little more than a week later, on September 25. There was a developer beta of the operating system you could enroll in leading to the final release, but that’s not necessary anymore – the final build of macOS 10.13 has been out in the wild for more than a year now. The final build of macOS High Sierra, 10.13.6 is available right now. Beside a few bug fixes, it integrates Airplay 2 into iTunes – though you will need to update iTunes to take advantage of it. You can download the update from the Mac App Store. More importantly, this update contains the bug fix that stops the Core i9 MacBook Pro from thermal throttling. And, you can be sure that Apple will continue to release security updates for macOS High Sierra for years to come. Safari 12 is also available for macOS High Sierra users, which not only supports website icons in your tabs, but also has better security. Websites, for instance, won’t be able to track your specific Mac when using the native web browser. If you’re ready to jump to the next version of macOS , you can download macOS Mojave today. And, fortunately, we can show you how to download and install macOS Mojave.
Image Credit: Apple macOS 10.13 High Sierra compatibilityLuckily, because macOS High Sierra doesn’t really shake things up, the barrier to entry didn’t change. In fact, macOS High Sierra has much more lenient requirements than Mojave, so it should be popular for a while. As long as you're on one of the following Mac models, you can upgrade to macOS High Sierra (if you haven’t done so already).
Bear in mind that if you want to take advantage of the High Efficiency Video Coding (HEVC) benefits posed by macOS High Sierra, you’ll need a Mac donning – at the very least – an Intel sixth-generation Skylake processor. Unfortunately, that discounts everything released prior to 2015, but on the bright side, everything else macOS High Sierra brings to the table is fair game. macOS 10.13 High Sierra featuresBeyond the Hackintosh users being reasonably worried about the newly enforced security checks on EFI firmware automatically implemented each week, Apple has revealed a number of awesome new features with macOS 10.13 High Sierra. The new and improved Safari is one of the most major improvements: it will stop ad-tracking and auto-playing videos in their tracks. But, macOS High Sierra also brings Spotlight Search to the Mail App, along with allowing the Mail app to display a split view for the compose window. And, as an added bonus, macOS High Sierra takes up 35% less storage space. Photos also sees improvements, with a better sorting tool. This is thanks to a better layout, improved facial recognition via neural networks, and improved syncing across all Apple devices. This all makes macOS High Sierra’s photo experience better than ever before.
Image Credit: Apple Editing tools, too, have seen improvements, in turn making it easier than ever to enhance the quality of your photos without learning the ins and outs of Photoshop or Camera RAW. And of course, you can count on Instagram-like filters being a part of this. One of the biggest changes that comes with macOS High Sierra is with the file system. It’s ditching the HFS – which Apple has used for around 30 years, and is now using the Apple File System (APFS) instead. Every Mac that has been upgraded to macOS High Sierra will receive these file system updates automatically with the exception of those sporting Fusion Drives and older HDDs. Similarly, all new Macs will ship pre-formatted for APFS. To be exact, APFS is a 64-bit file system that supports native encryption and faster metadata operation. This may all sound a bit techy, but the bottom line is that this will make your Mac feel a lot faster, while also being more secure and more transparent about the nature of your files and folder contents. Unfortunately, this comes with the caveat of Apple’s confirmation that 32-bit apps will be discontinued in later versions of macOS High Sierra. The update also brings HEVC, or H.265, video compression to the Mac. Apple claims that this new standard can compress video files 40% more than the previous-generation H.264 standard. The end result will be faster video streams at higher resolutions – ahem, 4K – and smaller video files sizes when stored locally.
Image Credit: Apple VR finally comes to the MacOne of the biggest bits of news surrounding macOS High Sierra is that it will finally bring support for virtual reality headsets officially. Namely, the HTC Vive and Steam VR will work with Macs running the new OS this autumn. However to use such a device, you’ll need at least a 5K iMac or MacBook Pro – or, any Mac that can run the new OS with an external GPU solution. Support for such devices comes part and parcel with macOS High Sierra, but won’t be an active function until later this year. The good news is that macOS High Sierra comes with a helping of refinements to its graphics API that make up for the scarce GPU support. Metal was a step forward for hardware-accelerated 3D graphics, but with Metal 2, Apple promises less strain on the CPU as well as proper machine learning and better Xcode profiling/debugging in macOS High Sierra. Perhaps more important, though, is the fact that MoltenVK was recently brought to Mac by Khronos Group. An implementation of the open-source Vulkan API, it’s said to bring frame rate gains of up to 50% in Dota 2. As it’s cross-platform, too – being supported by Windows and Linux as well as Apple’s devices – MoltenVK is likely to be more widely adopted by creators.
Image Credit: Apple
Joe Osborne and Gabe Carey have also contributed to this report
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| MacBook Pro 2019: what we want to see Posted: 15 May 2019 12:43 PM PDT While the MacBook Pro 2018 is definitely an improvement over the 2017 version, there are still plenty of MacBook users that have started to get tired of Apple’s recent moves. Apple has still been releasing new MacBook Pros and other devices faster than our bank accounts can keep up. And, while some of these upgrades have resulted in improved devices – looking at you, Mac mini – some of these updates have fallen flat. These updates are all due to Apple approaching the MacBook Pro in a different way, starting in 2016, focusing on features that make one of the best Macs more appealing to everyday users by further streamlining the design. This is likely why Apple removed all non-Thunderbolt 3 ports. The MacBook Pro is certainly a case of ‘if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it’, but there are plenty of old-school apple users that are alienated by Apple’s recent design philosophy. However, the MacBook Pro 2018 did benefit from a substantial internal upgrade, now rocking 8th-generation Coffee Lake processors and some of the fastest SSDs we’ve seen to date – giving it unprecedented speed. Apple has also improved the display with True Tone tech, fixed problems with the Butterfly keyboard, or some of them at least, all while maintaining battery levels from the 2017 model. However, things might be changing for the MacBook Pro 2019. Famed Apple analyst Ming Chi Kuo has produced some leaks that suggest Apple is going to release a 16-inch MacBook Pro 2019, with an “all-new” design. We don’t know if this is true or not, but we’re hoping that Apple delivers a new MacBook Pro that’s worthy of its lineage. Cut to the chase
Image Credit: Apple MacBook Pro 2019 release dateAlthough a 2019 update to the MacBook Pro (as well as the Mac Pro) is expected, there’s no rumored release date at the moment. It’s hardly a surprise, as the last update just dropped in July 2018. We might need to wait a few months or even early next year for a clearer date. However, going by Apple’s previous release dates – MacBook Pro 2017 debuted in June 2017 while the MacBook Pro 2018 model came out under the radar in July 2018 – a summer release for the MacBook Pro 2019 makes sense and is highly plausible. However, after Intel announced the 10nm Ice Lake chips at CES 2019 for a late 2019 release date, we could see Apple delay the MacBook Pro until Fall to take advantage of the new tech. In fact, famed Apple analyst Ming Chi Kuo has predicted that the rumored 16-inch MacBook Pro may get delayed until 2020 or 2021. However, Intel has released its 9th-generation Coffee Lake Refresh H-series processors, so we may see a refresh of the 15-inch model before then. So, it looks like we may be waiting quite a while for a redesigned MacBook Pro. But, that doesn’t mean we won’t see a spec bump later in 2019. Either way, we’re stuck waiting until Apple is ready to share MacBook Pro 2019 information.
Image Credit: TechRadar MacBook Pro 2019 priceJust the fact that Apple hasn’t upgraded its non-Touch Bar MacBook Pros this year says a lot about its direction, which is likely to phase them out and continue asking us pay for tech that, while promising, hasn’t been perfected yet. The worst part of the 2018 models is the fact that you need to shell out thousands to get the highest amount of RAM (the 32GB RAM option is only available to the 15-inch models) and the largest SSD combo. Otherwise, you’re stuck with base amount of RAM and a Touch Bar that isn’t even universally compatible yet. Photographers and filmmakers who need a bigger screen? You can forget about getting a non-Touch Bar model. You can also forget about upgrading your 13-inch. The majority of its parts are soldered, so you’ll have to bring in a professional and break your warranty. Then you may have to invest in a third-party docking station because the only ports available to you are the USB-C Thunderbolt 3 ports and a headphone jack. Of course, it’s hard to predict these things, but you’ll probably see more of the same prices. At the moment, the basic 13-inch with Touch Bar configuration, featuring 8GB of RAM, a 256GB SSD and four Thunderbolt 3 ports, will set you back $1,799 (£1,749, A$2,699). You’re basically paying 300 bucks more for the Touch Bar, Touch ID and two additional Thunderbolt 3 ports.
Image Credit: Apple What we want to see from MacBook Pro 2019Apple hasn’t been getting a lot of love lately, what with the great keyboard debacle of 2016-2017, the troubled Touch Bar and the soldered RAM, to name a few. But, we’re still hoping Apple takes a new lease on life in 2019 and actually gives the users some of the things they need. More port variety, please However, if we’re really being honest, limiting us to Thunderbolt 3 is inconvenient. MacBook Pro is for professionals who want a more seamless workflow. Yes, the Thunderbolt 3 is powerful and versatile, allowing for charging, output and data transfers; but we’re still using other devices and accessories that don’t support it. If we’re expected to connect this cable to that adapter to plug in to that port, we’re not going to be happy. And, while we’re at it, can we just bring back MagSafe charging, please? Some of us tend to trip over those cables, and it was nice to know that we wouldn’t damage those older models in the process. But, seeing how Apple launched the latest MacBook Air with just two Thunderbolt 3 ports and no MagSafe charger, we don’t exactly have our hopes up that Apple is going to diversify the ports on the MacBook Pro 2019. Improved Touch Bar That’s all fine and dandy and, we must admit, the technology has promise. However, if Apple is going to ask for a few hundred bucks for a new feature, can we please get more use out of it? So far, Touch Bar compatibility is only limited to a few programs and apps, and we want to see more added to this list. Plus, it would be nice to get it properly working without the freezes and fat finger issues.
Image Credit: TechRadar Or offer an alternative We’d like to see an option for such users. Bring back the Touch Bar-free 15-inch model and upgrade the 13-inch model without it, perhaps. Better keyboard, display and sound The MacBook Pro designers should take cues from the iPhone X and get rid of the bezeled display. That’s a lot of precious real estate wasted, and pushing for a bezel-free display will give users a bigger screen without having to compromise the size. Plus, by going bezel-free, it’ll give the update a fresher, more modern look. Also, a laptop designed to edit 4K media should have a 4K screen option. And, while Apple’s at it, we’d like to see it reconsider those speakers. We get that Apple is pushing for a more compact design, but the speakers in the older MacBook Pros are so much better. With all the technology they come up with, it would be welcome to receive a premium set of speakers with better base and more volume. New Intel processor At CES 2019, however, Intel announced Ice Lake, its first round of 10nm Sunny Cove processors for laptops. We’re expecting to see these chips in late 2019, so if Apple wants to include these next-gen CPUs in its next MacBooks – which it definitely should – it would need to delay the next MacBook Pro until late 2019. However, Intel has released its 9th-generation Coffee Lake Refresh H-series processors for laptops, which should boost performance over the Coffee Lake chips found in the 15-inch MacBook Pro 2018. We could see Apple releasing the 13-inch MacBook Pro with Whiskey Lake processors, then pack the 15-inch model with more powerful Coffee Lake Refresh silicon. We’ve also seen rumors that Apple is going to back up whatever processor it includes in the MacBook 2019 with more RAM – particularly in the 13-inch model. Where previous 13-inch MacBook Pros topped out at 16GB, word on the street is you’ll be able to get an extremely portable Mac with a whopping 32GB of memory. This is excellent news, as memory demands keep going up year over year.
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| The best student laptops: all the best options for school Posted: 15 May 2019 12:40 PM PDT School can get expensive really fast: books, tuition and accommodation – not to mention student laptops – add up quickly. However, the silver lining is that there are dozens of awesome student laptops out there that could save you hundreds of dollars. In fact, the best laptops for students are budget-minded devices that exude style and power, but without charging an arm and a leg. When you’re spending all your money on textbooks and ramen, saving up for a new laptop can be hard. So, the best student laptops will put value above having the best processors and graphics cards. You won’t be limited to Windows 10, either – the best Chromebooks are among the best laptops for students, as you can get all your work done without spending a fortune. Going to school is a stressful time, we know, but that’s why you should ensure that you have one of the top laptops for students. You don’t need to add the pressure of running around campus with a dying laptop to your plate. So, that’s why we went ahead and gathered up the best student laptops you can buy today: no one should be limited to an ancient relic just to get some work done, and you shouldn’t have to sell a kidney, either.
Here at TechRadar, we love it when a laptop can perfectly balance price and performance without any compromises, and the Huawei MateBook 13 comes closer to hitting that perfect balance than anything in 2019 so far. Thin, light, quick and affordable, this beautiful 13-inch Ultrabook will let you get all your work done in style, without dragging down on your wallet. The battery life is a little weak, but that’s a worthy sacrifice to make here – just carry the charger around with you. Read the full review: Huawei MateBook 13
Dell’s flagship laptop has always placed among the best laptops – for college students, professionals and even casual, everyday users. But, the Dell XPS 13 2019 brings back the entry-level option, making it more affordable for college students again. And, Dell managed to fix our biggest issue with the XPS lineup – the webcam. The manufacturer has moved the webcam up to the top of the display, where it belongs, so your friends and colleagues don’t have to stare up your nose when you’re in a video call. Read the full review: Dell XPS 13
The Surface Laptop was already one of the best laptops for students, but it was held back by sub-par performance, a lack of ports and it was equipped with Windows 10 in S Mode. The Surface Laptop 2 massively improves on the original, though – except for the port situation. It’s packed with 8th-generation Intel Kaby Lake Refresh processors, full-fat Windows 10 Home and a black color option. We wish it had even a single USB-C port, but that doesn’t change the fact that you’ll be able to get all your work done in style with this laptop. Read the full review: Surface Laptop 2
When you’re looking for a laptop for school, you should aim for a golden balance between price and performance – and a dollop of style can’t hurt. The Microsoft Surface Go, then, isn’t just one of the best Windows tablets, but it may just be one of the best student laptops, especially from a value perspective. Don’t be fooled by the low-power components, either – Microsoft has engineered this tablet to be able to keep up with all your schoolwork without breaking a sweat. Read the full review: Microsoft Surface Go
The Dell XPS 15 has been one of the best laptops for college students for a few years now, and Dell has taken that old “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” approach here. Not much has changed since the 2017 model, but that’s not a bad thing. What you’re getting here is an Ultrabook that isn’t just reliable, but has enough power to get you through pretty much any assignment. The best part? The Dell XPS 15 doesn’t cost an arm and a leg. While the entry level should be just fine for most users, you can configure this thing with up to an Intel Core i9 processor and 32GB of RAM, transforming the Dell XPS 15 into an extremely powerful workstation. We just wish Dell would move that webcam. Read the full review: Dell XPS 15
When you’re looking for a laptop for school, you don’t need some bougie affair from Apple, that looks like something out of a designer catalog – you need a laptop that’s going to get the job done. And, the Acer Swift 5 should be near the top of your list. This budget-friendly Ultrabook is packed with the latest 8th-generation Intel processors and enough RAM and SSD storage to get you through pretty much any assignment. It’s not the most aesthetic laptop in the world, but it’s hard to argue with that price. Read the full review: Acer Swift 5
The Microsoft Surface lineup has built a reputation for itself for being among the best Windows devices out there – gorgeous touch screens, incredible performance and long battery life. The Surface Pro 6 continues this tradition, even if it doesn’t bring anything new to the table. What you’re getting here is a speedy Windows tablet that can effortlessly turn into a laptop through the Surface Type Cover. You can get your work done and then effortlessly transition into break time. Read the full review: Surface Pro 6
If you’re a student that’s on the market for a laptop that will let you do all your research and type up papers, and nothing else, the Dell Inspiron Chromebook 11 2-in-1 is going to be right up your alley. Most schoolwork that’s not specialized (i.e. engineering) can be done on a Chromebook while saving hundreds of dollars. The Dell Chromebook 11 2-in-1 won’t be able to do much heavy lifting, but at under $300, it doesn’t need to. This is the best laptop for students that need to save a few bucks. Read the full review: Dell Inspiron Chromebook 11 2-in-1
We were left waiting for Apple to renew the MacBook Air for years, as it languished with a 5th-generation Intel Core processor and an out of date, low-resolution display. Thankfully, those days are over. Apple has ushered the MacBook Air into the modern age, with 8th-generation fanless processors, a thinner and lighter design, and perhaps most importantly – a Retina display. No more do you have to compromise on modern features if you want an “affordable Mac”, and that makes the MacBook Air one of the best laptops for college students. Read the full review: MacBook Air
If you’re not too concerned with cash, and you’re a macOS addict (we get it), the 2018 MacBook Pro is the most powerful MacBook that’s ever existed. With its impressive hexa-core processors, and up to a whopping 32GB of memory, this cupertino workstation will get you through whatever you throw at it. It also includes the much-improved third generation Butterfly keyboard that will not only be less distracting to the students around you, but will be less prone to failure if some dust comes within 10 feet. Read the full review: MacBook Pro 15-inch (2018)
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| Doom Eternal: release date, trailers and news Posted: 15 May 2019 12:26 PM PDT The announcement of Doom: Eternal at E3 2018 got a lot of trigger fingers twitching. But what is it, when is it coming, and how will it expand on the well-loved franchise? Few franchises embody the FPS genre quite like Doom. Packed to the seams with blood, hellfire, shotguns, and even more blood, id Software's ultra-violent shooter has earned legions of fans since its first game in 1993: pitching a nameless marine against hordes of demons unleashed from hell. Now, two years after a 2016 reboot brought the franchise successfully to modern consoles, we have word of a direct sequel: Doom Eternal. [Update: Doom Eternal will not only be making an appearance at QuakeCon Europe in July 2019, it'll be playable too! Read on to find out more.] The sequel is aiming to go bigger and better than ever before, introducing an enhanced Doom slayer and a host of new demons - and this time the invasion has spread further than Mars. Cut to the chase
Doom Eternal release date
The game's Amazon listing sets Doom Eternal's release date as December 28 this year. However, that's a much quicker turnaround than 2016's Doom, which was announced at E3 a year prior to release. It's likely that this could be a placeholder release date in lieu of any concrete information as no confirmation was given by the developer at QuakeCon 2018. Doom Eternal trailersQuakeCon 2018 The Doom Eternal worldwide premiere gameplay reveal of Doom Eternal took place during the QuakeCon 2018 keynote, and was our first chance to see the sequel in action. You can check out the gameplay trailer below: E3 2018 Doom Eternal's E3 2018 trailer had everything we love about the series, dialled up to 11. Get a glimpse of its apocalyptic vision of Earth, with a suitably thumping soundtrack and some jacked-up demons staring down the barrel of a shotgun. Doom Eternal news and rumorsDoom Eternal will be playable at QuakeCon Europe Good news for Doom fans intending to attend QuakeCon Europe in London this coming July—Doom Eternal will not only be the star of the show, it'll be available to play. This marks the first time the game will be playable by the public outside the US. If you want to go along to the show, which runs from July 26 to July 27, you can find out more on the QuakeCon Europe page. Tickets aren’t available yet but they are free so it’s worth signing up for updates. Doom Eternal will be Bethesda's E3 2019 star Ready for an "in-depth look at Doom Eternal"? That's what the blog post accompanying the announcement of Bethesda's E3 2019 showcase promises. Kicking off at 5.30pm PDT on Sunday 9 June, the horror shooter is the first big-confirmed name at Bethesda's showcase, and will take up a large portion of the show. Here's hoping there's room for The Elder Scrolls VI and Starfield, too. Stadia launch title Google is entering the gaming fray via its new streaming service, Stadia, and it's bringing Doom Eternal with it. The iD shooter will be a launch title for Google Stadia. It will allow you to stream the game at maximum PC gaming graphic quality levels in 4K resolution and at 60fps to any screen capable of running the Chrome browser, or connecting to a Chromecast dongle, with apparently little latency. It's not yet certain how much it will cost to access Doom Eternal through Stadia, or when the service will launch beyond a vague "2019" window. Slayer 2.0 The team has created the most powerful Doom slayer we’ve seen yet, with enhanced armor and an arsenal of badass new equipment, including a shoulder-mounted cannon with flamethrower, an extendable blade, and a new dash ability. In addition there's an upgraded selection of guns and mods to play with, such as the Super Shotgun's new Meat Hook attachments which pulls you into the face of enemies. A host of new demons (and returning favorites) Doom Eternal will see the return of classic demons such as the Pain Elemental, Archvile and Arachnotron, alongside an array of brand-new demons like the Doom Hunter and the corrupted Marauders. Invasion An all-new Invasion mode allows other players to invade your campaign as a demon. Likewise, you can join the demon horde yourself and invade other players' campaigns - either alone or as part of a hunting party. There's no place like home Instead of the previous game's isolated mining site on Mars, Doom Eternal brings the action to Earth, and it looks like there's been a lot of damage. Skulls litter the ground, creatures howl, and tendrils pull apart skyscrapers in the distance. While Doom is traditionally known for its tight, claustrophobic level design, a more expansive map could encourage different styles of play and allow for far bigger set pieces (read: bigger demons). We imagine Doom Eternal will continue with the same fast-paced, gun-heavy combat the series is known for. But Bethesda has promised a lot more demons to fight, and that you'll feel a lot more powerful this time around. Could Eternal be online? While Bethesda have clarified Doom Eternal will be a direct sequel to the previous entry, the Eternal branding makes us think there may be more of a stress on online components – especially since Bethesda's Elder Scrolls and Fallout franchises have been branching out in this direction. Could we see an expanded online game mode with regular updates to its world-sized hellscape?
Or will we see a VR version? The last Doom came to the HTC Vive and Playstation VR last year, albeit with some clunky navigation issues and a comparatively stripped-back three-hour story. The upcoming sequel is the perfect opportunity to build on that foundation and make a VR experience deserving of the legendary IP. Could we see it on the Switch? Seeing a bloodthirsty rampage like Doom Eternal on Nintendo's family-friendly Switch seems like an odd match, but Bethesda has confirmed Doom Eternal will indeed be coming to the Nintendo Switch. Keep checking back here for all the latest Doom Eternal news
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| Skull and Bones release date, news and trailers Posted: 15 May 2019 12:15 PM PDT Announced at Ubisoft’s E3 2017 conference, Skull and Bones is a game that will take players into the Golden Age of Piracy and let them take the helm of their very own pirate ship. When it launches, Skull and Bones will be the second of two big pirate titles which were stars at E3 2017—the first being Rare’s now launched Sea of Thieves. The two, however, are really quite different. While Sea of Thieves is a more cartoonish and whimsical adventure, Skull and Bones looks like it will be leaning more towards gritty realism. Created by Ubisoft’s Singapore studio and based on the naval battles of Assassin’s Creed: Black Flag, this is going to be a title for those miss sailing the seas as Edward Kenway. [Update: Ubisoft has announced that its pirate adventure has been delayed until the next fiscal year. This means the game won't be released until April 2020 at the earliest. Read on to find out more.] Cut to the chase
Skull and Bones release dateOriginally slated for a late 2018 release, Skull and Bones has been delayed twice and is now expected to be released between April 2020 and March 2021. The game was first delayed in May 2018, after which Ubisoft announced the game would launch in 2019. However, in May 2019 it was confirmed during an earnings call that the game will be delayed into the company's next fiscal year, meaning no high seas hijinks until 2020 or early 2021. Skull and Bones trailersE3 2018 brought us a brand new gameplay trailer for Skull and Bones, showing off how things will work in the game's cutthroat hunting grounds. Skull and Bones received two trailers during its E3 2017 debut, one which was cinematic and another which showcased the game’s multiplayer and PvP gameplay. Skull and Bones news and rumorsDelayed until 2020 and no appearance at E3 During an earnings call to investors, Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot confirmed (via GameSpot) that Skull and Bones will not release in 2019 as planned and will be pushed into the next fiscal year, making the earliest release date April 2020. It's also been confirmed that the game won't be making an appearance at Ubisoft's conference at E3 2019. Skull and Bones is being adapted for TV Skull and Bones hasn't been released yet but it's been announced that it's being adapted for TV. In a report by the Hollywood Reporter, it's being said that Ubisoft is working with Atlas Entertainment on the project which will be "a female-driven drama set in the lawless frontier of the Indian Ocean at the end of the golden age of piracy in the 1700s". At the moment, that's all there is to know—there's no confirmed air date and no cast to speak of—but this will certainly be a project to keep a weather eye on. E3 2018 Skull and Bones got some time during the Ubisoft E3 presentation. In this game, we were told, there are no heroes. Skull and Bones will take players to the Indian Ocean since piracy is now dead in the Caribbean. Players will target trading ships loaded with coin in a shared open world. It's your aim to collect enough loot and coin that you can become a pirate that no empire can crush and take down. Every player interaction in the world will matter, whether you choose to fight or ally. The reactive and evolving world will apparently change through something called Fortune and you'll need to know the world in order to succeed. Fortunes in the game will reveal changes in factions, weather and trade routes. If there are favorable winds, for example, you'll have more merchants to rob. But that means more competition. We got a better look at gameplay in the hunting ground which you can watch below and we got the chance to go hands-on with the game's Hunting Grounds mode for ourselves: There will be both single player and multiplayer It’s been confirmed that Skull and Bones will have both single and multiplayer elements. However, information on what form the single player mode will take is pretty thin on the ground at the moment since Ubisoft concentrated mostly on the multiplayer during its E3 presentation. From the game’s main website we know that it’ll involve starting from the bottom as a wannabe pirate captain with a single ship. From here, you’ll sail the Indian ocean, preying on trade ships, taking down rival pirate captains and avoiding pirate hunters. Successful heists will mean more wealth and reputation. However, power comes at a price and as your reputation and wealth grow you’ll naturally become a target for other pirates. It’s at this point in the game that it might become somewhat dangerous to sail alone and you’ll need to start growing a fleet of ships as well as making and breaking alliances with other pirate captains.
Multiplayer will be made up of a few different modes. The one that’s seen the most attention thus far (and the one that we’ve had the chance to play for ourselves) is Loot Hunt. This will pit two teams of five players against one another, with each player in control of their own ship. The aim of the game is to be the team that picks up the most loot, taking down ships on the opposing team if you have to. Winning this section is a poisoned chalice, however, as at the end of the mode, pirate hunters will appear to take down the team that’s managed to get the most loot. The aim of the game will then change and it’ll be up to the team to scarper in a given amount of time. Only those that manage to escape the area in the given time will have their treasure collection counted so it’s important to get your most heavily laden ships out of there for a win, even if it means sacrificing yourself. Voice chat is pretty key in this multiplayer mode, as getting the most treasure will involve splitting up and moving around the map while coordinating your movements. Failure to communicate will make things difficult as we discovered with our own demo team.
There will be different kinds of ships Inspired by traditional RPGs, Skull and Bones will have different classes of ships and you can choose the one that best suits your playstyle. Players will have access to lots of different kinds of ships across the game and according to an official video from Ubisoft, they will be able to switch between them during the game to take advantage of their varied abilities and strengths. Different ships will offer different tactical advantages, from large but cumbersome frigates, to faster and more maneuverable brigantines, to long-range sloops of war. We imagine the option to switch between ships will only appear once you’ve started putting together a rag-tag fleet, rather than being an option from the off. This has, however, still to be confirmed. It’ll also be possible to customize your ships; Ubisoft has confirmed players will be able to choose their flags, colors and faction emblems.
There will be realistic tactics and gameplay Just as it was for real pirates sailing the seas and for those who played Assassin’s Creed Black Flag, wind will be a key element in Skull and Bones. Players will have to use the wind and positioning to their advantage. The wind can be used either offensively or defensively but it will be a key part of gameplay whether you choose to fight or run away. There are actually a lot of different things that players will have to juggle. As well as controlling weapons, looking at their surroundings and being aware of the direction and speed of the wind, players will be able to climb to their crows nest for a wider field of view. This will of course, draw them out of the action for a while but it will be key to spotting pirate hunters.
There will be PvE and PvP elements While players will be able to play with and against one another, everyone will be up against the pirate hunters in some more PvE gameplay. These AI ships will be out to take you down in the name of the powers that be and it’s very tough to take them down on your own. Your best bet with these fleets is to use the wind and escape, or make sure you’ve got the back up needed. In an interview with GameSpot, Creative director Justin Farren said that these elements would be woven together and all would inform the game's narrative: "We wanted to create a system that let us tell our narrative month after month, year after year, and then throw in the story elements to it. So, if you're a PVP player, you should still feel like you beat the campaign. If you're a PVE player, or like me, I plan on sailing with my daughter a lot, I want us to be able to go through the story and become kingpins together, and be able to tell the same world narrative through the game ones that we build." An online ongoing game It was revealed during an ‘everything you need to know’ video posted by Ubisoft at E3 that Skull and Bones, like Sea of Thieves, will be an online, ongoing service game set in a shared open world. Players will be the star of their own game and it’s expected that they’ll be able to create their own story in this open world. Over time there will be new seasons, new ships, new weapons, new items, new locations and new game modes introduced. We imagine there will also be active and random in-game events, given the end of the cinematic trailer for Skull and Bones teased what appeared to be a Kraken.
Loot boxes are unconfirmed In an interview with GameSpot not long after the game's reveal in 2017, creative developer Justin Farren wasn't able to offer a confirmation on whether or not loot boxes would appear in the game. Though he said that he had no wish to create a pay-to-win model, Farren did say that in-game purchases for cosmetic and vanity items might appear. This is the most likely route that many games have recently gone down. Is there a Skull and Bones beta?There is a Skull and Bones beta and you can sign up for updates on it on the official website. Simply choose your preferred platform, give them your email address and you'll receive updates as soon as they're announced. This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| 11 best open world games on PC today Posted: 15 May 2019 12:06 PM PDT Now that gaming PCs are more powerful than ever before, the best PC games have evolved in ways no one would have seen coming a decade ago. If you want proof, just take a look at the best open world games on PC. Even traditionally linear franchises are opening up their worlds. For example, The Witcher and Witcher 2 were traditional narrative-based RPGs, but The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt took that formula and turned it into one of the best open world games we’ve ever played. We’d be remiss if we didn’t mention all the brilliant franchises that have been open world games from the beginning. Games like Assassin’s Creed Odyssey and Grand Theft Auto V take open world game design to its limit. There are even a ton of the best indie games that adopt this style. The best open world games are everywhere on PC, but since they take up so much free time, you should only go for the best of the best. Luckily, we here at TechRadar spend way too much time playing open world games, so we picked out the best of the best right here on this list.
Check out our Linux vs Windows vs Mac - OS comparison video below. The first two Witcher games were compelling, complex and difficult, but only enjoyed minor success. However, all the word of mouth about the first two games finally paid off when the Witcher 3 came out and absolutely blew up. It was a massive step up in quality, too, and probably one of the best RPGs of all time. You step in the role of Geralt, a mutated monster hunter, or witcher, and search the world for your adopted daughter in a medieval world ravaged by war. The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt is now four years old, but it definitely stands the test of time. It’s still one of the best open world games on the market right now, because the well-realized world blows the likes of Skyrim out of the water. Geralt can walk, ride or sail across the war-ravaged lands (and seas) of Novigrad, Velen and Skellige. With the Blood and Wine expansion, you’ll be able to take on a clan of Vampires in the colorful land of Toussaint, too. You can forage for herbs, explore under the seas or the back alleys of cities and encounter all kinds of folk and creatures. And the other elements of the game are spectacularly polished as well - limber, agile combat, a deep levelling system, and a storyline with some unusually-smart storylines. Last year’s Assassin’s Creed: Origins already felt like a revelation of what an Assassin’s Creed game could be – replacing many of the gameplay mechanics with what felt more engaging, organic and even fun. However, Ubisoft wasn’t done – it has refined everything that made Assassin’s Creed: Origins so great and molded it into the best game in the series so far – Assassin’s Creed: Odyssey. Assassin’s Creed Odyssey places you in the shoes of Alexios or Kassandra in the middle of ancient Greece, as you take on the role of a mercenary trying to find his or her family. Everything else you do is completely up to you – you choose your alliances, you choose your missions and the world is your oyster. The fantastic RPG mechanics from Origins make a return in Assassin’s Creed odyssey – with some much-needed improvements. In so many ways, this game perfects the legendary series’ formula – making for one of the best open world games of all time. Plus, if the massive world wasn’t already enough content for you, Ubisoft is constantly updating it with new content, new mercenaries to hunt down and even some fresh expansions. And, if you pick up the season pass, you get access to Assassin's Creed III Remastered, which includes Assassin’s Creed: Liberation. You might not quite understand why Forza Horizon 4 is even on a list of the best open world games. You might be saying “Forza is a racing series, not an open world game”, but you’re only half right. Sure, it’s definitely a racing game, but the Forza Horizon series has always sat among the best open world games. And, Forza Horizon 4 takes the winning formula even further. Not only are all of the systems that were in place in 2016’s Forza Horizon 3 present here, but they’re refined to create one of the smoothest open world racing games we’ve ever had the pleasure to play. The map is a little bit smaller than the previous offering, but Forza Horizon 4’s world changes seasons every week, changing how each track plays every time you play it (or, at least until you’ve played it on 4 separate weeks). Simply put, Forza Horizon 4 is one of the most fun racing games on the market, and with all the added open world content – like collectable cars and randomly placed ramps – it’s one of the best open world games on the market. Plus, there are new expansions getting added, like Forza Horizon 4: Fortune Island, that add even more content. Grand Theft Auto V has been out for quite a while now, but because we still don’t have Red Dead Redemption 2 on PC, it’s still the best open world game on PC from Rockstar. It’s a huge pastiche of L.A. that you can fly, run or drive across. It’s an amazing achievement and the fact that it works in multiplayer is astounding. What makes it such a success is the freedom it gives you. When you’re not running around and robbing banks during the campaign, GTA V basically lets you do whatever you want – even if it breaks the game. You can go anywhere, do anything and commit however many atrocities as your wicked heart pleases. There are also a ton of side activities available. So, in your downtime from creating all kinds of mayhem, you can take up some tennis, yoga, or even kick your feet up and watch some TV. There’s a reason this game is so beloved. The plot may not have made much sense, but Hideo Kojima’s last entry to the Metal Gear series was a masterpiece of layered open world mechanics – and it’s why we’re so excited about Death Stranding. In the twin deserts of Afghanistan and Angola, Big Boss, or Venom Snake, has a range of objectives to achieve. He traverses the areas on foot, horseback, or in a variety of ground vehicles. You can take either lethal or non-lethal weapons, and a variety of AI companions. The world of Metal Gear Solid V is unbelievably bleak, weather-torn and heavily guarded. Uniquely, it learns from your behavior – overuse a particular tactic and enemies will adapt. For instance, rely too much on headshots and they’ll start to wear metal helmets. Away from the frontline, you can develop Mother Base by building new facilities and airlifting enemy soldiers, prisoners, resources, vehicles, animals and anything else you want to from the battlefield to beef up your armory. Bethesda has made a name for itself over the last couple of decades for making some of the best open world games, and Fallout 4 is a fantastic example of why. You’ll be able to traverse a post-apocalyptic Boston, where you’ll explore the ruins of the city in all it’s retro-futuristic glory. While the plot ultimately revolves around rescuing your kid from their kidnappers, you’ll ultimately forget all about the plot, while you do side missions and plunder loot from super mutants and bandits. And, even once you get everything done (if you ever get everything done), Bethesda’s games have a tendency to be immensely replayable thanks to the way different character builds can interact with the world around you. Plus, if you want to get closer to the action, you can play through Fallout 4 in VR, with the HTC Vive. When Middle Earth: Shadow of Mordor released nearly five years ago, it was praised for its portrayal of Tolkien’s Mordor, alongside with its unique nemesis system. The sequel, Middle Earth: Shadow of War takes this concept and turns it up to 11, setting you loose in the last human stronghold in Mordor – and is thus one of the best open world games you can play in 2019. And, especially after the removal of the microtransactions that plagued the game at launch, the Nemesis system still feels fresh, and the combat is just as good as ever, with a wealth of new skills that you can unlock during its lengthy campaign. Later on in the game, it will start introducing some RTS elements as you command an army of dominated orcs to retake and hold different strongholds. The Middle Earth series has shown some real innovation, and we can’t wait to see what Monolith Studios will be capable of in the future. Last year, Ubisoft took one of the most venerated squad-based shooter series in its arsenal, Ghost Recon, and turned it into an open-world delight. You’re set loose in Bolivia, and you’re tasked with taking down a drug cartel that has taken power over the region. You’re then free to pursue this goal however you feel like. Ghost Recon Wildlands may be one of the best open world games when you’re playing by yourself, but where it really shines is when you’re playing with friends. This is because Ghost Recon, at its very core, has always been a tactical shooter that’s built around working with a team of AI companions. So, naturally, when you team up with your friends, this gameplay is elevated to another level entirely. Just keep in mind that this game is gorgeous, and demands a pretty beefy setup to run properly, so make sure you keep an eye on those system requirements. When the first Crackdown came out way back in 2007, it kind of changed the game. You took the role of a superpowered cop out to bust a cast of zany criminals. And, while Crackdown 3 hasn’t changed much in the 12 years since, it still has its own identity. Crackdown 3 takes the super-powered hijinks of the original and scales it to modern graphics without changing too much of what made the original game so great. This might make it feel a little dated to some, but if you were into the first one, you’ll find a lot to love here. What’s especially noteworthy is the new Wrecking Zone multiplayer game mode, which utilizes the power of Microsoft Azure cloud computing to make the entire city destructible. Far Cry 5 might just be a benchmark of what the best open world games on PC will look like in 2019. Far Cry 5 is unique in the fact that it allows you to truly go anywhere on the map – and do anything. And, it doesn’t water this freedom down by limiting the amount of space you have open to you either, it’s perhaps one of the biggest game maps we’ve ever experienced. Far Cry 5 takes place in the middle of the Montana wilderness, and while it does feature a plot that involves cultists or something, that all falls into the background as you wander around and get lost in the massive world. We haven’t finished Far Cry 5, but we don’t think ‘finished’ exists here. And, we’re obviously not the only ones that love Far Cry 5. At the Game Awards 2018, Ubisoft announced Far Cry: New Dawn, a direct follow-up – a first for the classic shooter series. For years, the Yakuza franchise has been a bit of a hidden gem, but recently these fantastic games have gained some mainstream success. And, with this success, these classic titles are finally, albeit slowly, making their way to PC. Yakuza Kiwami, then, is the remake of the first Yakuza title, released nearly 13 years ago in the US. With this game, PC gamers can finally see how the franchise got its start, placing players in the shoes of Kazuma Kiryu as he fights his way through the Yakuza’s ranks. It’s a compelling mix of serious storytelling and silly moments – something that the Yakuza series would become famous for over the years. When RAGE came out way back in 2010, it was critically panned for being a technical mess on PC. Now, almost a decade later Rage 2 is here and it has improved on almost every aspect of the original. Id software teamed up with Avalanche Studios to bring a perfect marriage of excellent gunplay and open-world shenanigans. You’re let loose in the middle of a surprisingly colorful post-apocalyptic wasteland, where you’re free to destroy everything in your path. Not only are there a ton of big guns, but you get a bunch of deadly Ark powers that you can use to eviscerate your enemies. The mark of a true Rage 2 pro will be the ability to chain all of these abilities together into visceral chains of carnage. The gameplay feels excellent, and you’ll have so much fun blowing everything up that you’ll hardly notice how empty the open world is. And, really, that’s exactly what we wanted out of an open world shooter from id Software, especially after the excellent Doom 2016. This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Best wireless routers 2019: the best routers for your home network Posted: 15 May 2019 12:05 PM PDT The best routers have never been more important, especially when you consider that nearly everything we do is online. We work online, play online, even socialize online. So picking up one of the best wireless routers can make a world of difference. Whether you’re just trying to watch your favorite programs on Netflix, or top the leaderboards in the best PC games, no one wants a poor connection. That’s why picking up the best wireless router is so important. Before you go and upgrade your internet service, though, you should think about grabbing one of the best routers. Even if you have the fastest internet service in the world, it won’t do much good if it’s held back by a less-than-stellar wireless router. So, whether you’re looking for an epic gaming router or a fancy wireless mesh router with tons of coverage, the best routers are critical in 2019. But, what makes for the best wireless router? Well, there are a couple things you need to keep in consideration. MU-MIMO is a priceless feature, as it will allow every device in your home to access the internet without bottlenecking other devices. This is especially important with all the connected devices we rely on in our daily lives. Then, there’s the speed rating – a rated speed of AC1900 should be more than enough for most people. But, keep in mind that among the hundreds of wireless routers out there, it’s hard to find one that checks all the boxes. That’s why we’ve picked out all the best wireless routers we’ve reviewed recently. So, from the Google Wifi to the TP-Link Archer C5400, you can be sure you’re getting your money’s worth.
The days of traditional wireless routers is coming to its end – the age of the wireless mesh router has arrived. Google Wifi is the best proof we can think of for this mesh revolution. You can finally say goodbye to the days when the only way to achieve wireless freedom was to install a bunch of wireless extenders. The premise of Google Wifi is simple – buy a set of points and place them in key locations around your home. Then, just scan a QR code and you’re good to go – it’s not just the best wireless router you can buy, it’s also the easiest to get going. Read the full review: Google Wifi
If you’re familiar with Asus, particularly its gaming products, you’ll know what to expect with the Asus RT-AC86U. This wireless router looks like what would happen if you poured Doritos and Mountain Dew into a wireless router manufacturing machine. Beyond the garish design, though, is hardware that, for its price, easily tops almost anything else on the market. You’re not paying a premium here for a gaming device, and if you’re looking for a fast connection at a great price, the Asus RT-AC86U is a great wireless router. Read the full review: Asus RT-AC86U
When the Netgear Orbi first hit the streets, it completely changed the wireless router game. And, in 2019, Netgear is offering the Netgear Orbi AC2200 RBK23, a more affordable router for casual users that don’t need to cover a stately mansion. It features less antennae and ethernet ports than the original, but it’s still enough to offer very solid network coverage. Plus, the smaller size means that it can more easily blend in – you won’t feel the need to obscure it. Read the full review: Netgear Orbi AC2200 RBK23
Now that smart homes are becoming more and more common, we need wireless routers that can also serve as a smart home hub. This doesn’t just do wonders for convenience, but it would clear out some of the clutter made by multiple routers, modems and hubs. And, the Samsung Connect Home does exactly that. It’s not the most feature-rich wireless router out there, but it’s competitive enough with the Google Wifi, while still packing in the SmartThings hub that it’s still one of the best routers – especially if you have a ton of smart devices. Read the full review: Samsung Connect Home
If you’re looking for one of the best wireless routers, and a ‘90s Sci-Fi aesthetic won’t put you off, the TP-Link Archer C5400 v2 might be for you. Sure, it’s not a trendy mesh router, but it’s unique in that it can bridge consumer and enterprise users by featuring high-end functionality at an affordable price point – with an easy setup to boot. It definitely looks weird, but if you’re looking for a wireless router that can cover a large home, you can’t go wrong here. Read the full review: TP-Link Archer C5400 v2
If you’re ready to bring your office’s networking into the modern age with one of the best wireless routers, you need to take a look at the Netgear Orbi Pro. It’s a modular Wi-Fi mesh router, but it takes some design and performance cues from business-grade products. It’s not cheap, but if you run a business where you can’t afford anyone slowing down due to poor Wi-Fi, it’s worth every penny. Read the full review: Netgear Orbi Pro
These days, wireless mesh routers are everywhere, and we love it – the level of coverage these routers offer is beyond anything we’ve seen in the past. And, with devices like the TP-Link Deco M9, we can see how wireless routers keep getting better. By integrating IoT smart home support, on top of industry standard speeds and coverage, the TP-Link Deco M9 is easily one of the best routers for smart home fanatics. It’s a bit pricey, but with all the features and performance you’re getting, it’s worth it. Read the full review: TP-Link Deco M9
If you want to jump in on the mesh wireless router craze, but you don’t want to break open the piggy bank, the D-Link Covr C1203 may just be the best wireless router for you. Not only does it offer similar coverage to something like the Google Wifi while being more affordable, but it looks good, too. Sure, it’s not quite as fast as Google’s legendary router, but it will still be fast enough for most users. It’s hard to complain about an affordable and attractive device, and that’s why the D-Link Covr C1203 is easily one of the best routers you can buy today. Read the full review: D-Link Covr-C1203
If you’ve been on the market for a wireless mesh router, but wanted to maintain control over your network, you’ll love the Eero Home Wi-Fi system. It’s more expensive than your standard router, but it allows users complete control over their network, while still providing a secure connection through AI. To make things better, the Eero Home Wi-Fi System includes subscriptions to 1Password, MalwareBytes and Encrypt.me VPN – which should keep everyone on your network secure. Read the full review: Eero Home Wi-Fi System
The Amplifi HD is one of the more expensive wireless routers on this list, but with its modern, clean look, it should find a dedicated audience. Aesthetic isn’t high on everyone’s priorities, but it does help encourage users to install it in central locations, boosting the router’s signal. This wireless router features excellent performance and stylistic flair to match, but you’ll be paying for it. Read the full review: Amplifi HD Joe Osborne, Bill Thomas and Gabe Carey have also contributed to this article
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| macOS 10.14 Mojave release date, news and features Posted: 15 May 2019 12:03 PM PDT Now that macOS Mojave has arrived on our Macs, bringing key iOS apps like News and Stocks to the fold, Apple’s OS is better than ever. This update also brings a system-wide Dark Mode and increased productivity through Finder. In the coming years, we’ll see more iOS apps coming to the best Macs – we’ve seen rumors that Apple will release tools to help app developers port iPad apps over to macOS. However, there’s already to love in macOS 10.14. And, while macOS Mojave has dealt with its own fair share of security issues, namely KeySteal, the operating system is generally safe and secure. Apple’s macOS Mojave has been on our Macs for more than six months at this point and most, if not all, of the problems have been addressed. Plus, any problems that do remain are outweighed by the benefits this new OS offers. So, now that we have macOS Mojave, we’re going to dive into all the features of this new OS, along with any new features that are added, so you can decide whether the upgrade is worth your time.
Cut to the chase
macOS 10.14 Mojave release dateApple announced macOS Mojave back in June 2018 at WWDC 2018, where most of the features were detailed. This was followed by a public beta launch back in July, then finally the macOS Mojave launch on September 24 2018. Apple is keeping macOS Mojave updated with all the latest features. The latest of these updates, macOS 10.14.4 brings Dark Mode to Safari, along with the new Apple News+ service. Past updates included a fix to the FaceTime Bug that allowed people to access your camera without you answering their call, and a supplemental update, boosting reliability for the 2018 MacBook Air. Apple has also released macOS 10.14.5, which will likely one of the last major updates to the operating system before macOS 10.15 is revealed. This update focuses on stability, without any marquee features. You should still download it, though. Keep it tuned, because we will keep this section updated with all the newest updates as they release.
macOS 10.14 Mojave featuresSo, now that macOS Mojave has been out for a while, there are a ton of new features available to your Mac. And, we’re going to dive into a detailed overview of everything your Mac can do. From Finder improvements to more rigid security, the best Macs are about to become a lot better. Read on to discover all the new features coming to your Mac when you update to macOS Mojave.
Dark ModeApple’s macOS Mojave introduces a system-wide dark mode, which will extend to every first-party program on your Mac. Even Xcode gets a full makeover, completely in black, making those extended programming sessions more comfortable for your eyes. Third party programs will also be adopting this new theme, with changes happening automatically for any app that uses standard colors through AppKit. Even developers that don’t use AppKit are working on bringing Dark Mode to their programs. For example, in a recent bug report, Google Chrome developers confirmed they’re working on a way to implement Dark Mode into the hugely popular web browser – they just have some issues to iron out first. Group FaceTimeInitially shown as part of the initial release of MacOS Mojave, Group FaceTime has finally been released as part of macOS 10.14.1. This feature allows you to have FaceTime conversations with up to 32 people across iOS and macOS devices. This feature is implemented in a way that makes it extremely intuitive in macOS Mojave. You can start a group FaceTime chat from any group iMessage thread, and invites will be sent via a ringless notification, so you won’t be disruptive. Once you’re in a Group FaceTime Chat, it will automatically detect whoever’s speaking and bring them front and center, so that you’re always looking at the person actively speaking.
StacksIf your desktop starts to look like a virtual hurricane blew through it after a full day of work like ours does, your days of cluttered desktops end with macOS Mojave. With Stacks, macOS Mojave will sort similar files together so that you have a less cluttered desktop – photos with photos, pdfs with pdfs – it’s great. You’re even able to scrub through thumbnails with a two-finger scroll, so that you can make sure the file you’re looking for is actually in the stack.
Gallery ViewIn macOS 10.14 Mojave, Apple has added a new Gallery View to Finder. This will let you quickly browse through, annotate and edit files. No matter what kind of file you select, you'll be able to quickly and easily find exactly what you're looking for. This is made even easier, thanks to Apple adding a very detailed metadata display to the Preview pane. This makes it easier than ever before to take note of all the information of any file on your Mac. And, thanks to the inclusion of Quick Actions in the Preview pane, you won’t even need to leave Finder to work on files. You should be able to edit images, add protection to files and more. You can even assign Automator tasks as Quick Actions to make browsing through files even easier.
Continuity CameraHave you ever found yourself working on a project, and you needed to implement a document or a photo? Well, with Continuity Camera, it’s easier than ever to do just that. Across a multitude of different apps, like Numbers and Pages, you’ll be able to simply Control + Click in the body of the document, and select “Take Photo” or “Scan Documents.” It’ll then open the camera on your iPhone or iPad, where you’ll be able to take a photo and instantly pop it right into what you’re working on. It’s smooth, it’s convenient, and it’s going to be a boon for anyone that needs to save some time while doing schoolwork or that next big project.
Markup in Quick Look and ScreenshotsQuick Look is already an easy way to look at files quickly, and in macOS Mojave, you'll be able to quickly and efficiently use Markup to edit files you open in Quick Look. Markup is also implemented into screenshots. You’ll be able to bring up any screenshot and instantly edit any content within. Being able to quickly crop screenshots in macOS Mojave without any third-party photo-editing software is going to be a huge time-saver. Once you capture a screen, you’ll see a preview image open up, similar to iOS 12, which you can click to preview and edit your screenshot. That's not all though, Screenshots are still a simple shortcut away, but with macOS Mojave, a new easy-to-use menu includes screen-recording tools, so that you can capture animated content. And, perhaps most importantly, you can choose to save the screenshot to your clipboard, saving time if you just need to send someone a quick screenshot.
AppsApple News, Stocks, Voice Memos and Home are all brought over from iOS to macOS Mojave, with special care given to reformatting them to fit your computer. These apps leverage the power of the best Macs to deliver an awesome experience. Voice Memos, for instance, will automatically transfer any memos you take between your iOS and macOS devices – rewarding anyone who utilizes the ‘Apple Ecosystem’. This isn’t a full iOS app migration, though. In fact, since these apps are specially redesigned for macOS, they feel like new Apps. Plus, the new Apple News+ service is available on Mac the same day as iOS. Apple did say that it’d be bringing more iOS apps to Macs this year, so we’ll just have to wait until WWDC 2019.
SecurityApple is concerned about your device security, and now macOS Mojave asks for permission with more features, now including the camera and microphone. Mojave’s security also provides more robust protection for your file system. Safari also has its own share of security enhancements, shutting down cookies that track you across websites, making sure Safari asks permission before it allows cookies of any kind to access your browsing data. This even includes those annoying social buttons that mysteriously appear on every page – Facebook and Twitter can’t track your activity outside of their own websites unless you grant them permission to.
New Mac App StoreThe App store has been a macOS staple for years now, but it always seemed a little out of place. That all changes with macOS Mojave. Apple has completely refreshed the Mac App Store, and it’s now designed exclusively for the best Macs. Not only does it look great, but it also lets you browse through apps depending on what you’re trying to install. If you’re looking for an affordable alternative to Logic Pro X or Adobe Photoshop, it’s simple to find the best Mac apps for you. The new Mac App Store also adopts the iOS App Store’s approach to editorializing its content. It’ll now have a much more modern interface with featured apps getting tutorials, spotlights and other such content. It really does bring the Mac App Store into the modern age. And, perhaps more exciting is that a ton of third-party developers, like Adobe and Microsoft, are bringing their apps to the Mac App Store, so you don't’ have to go through dodgy websites to get the apps you need.
macOS 10.14 Mojave specificationsUnfortunately, with all these new features, some older Macs will have to go without updating to macOS Mojave. This is a departure from macOS High Sierra, which basically had the same requirements as macOS 10.12. First off, macOS 10.14 requires at least 14.3GB of hard drive space for the installation, as that’s what was required last year. To keep it on the safe side, make it 20GB. However, macOS Mojave requires more powerful hardware than High Sierra. macOS 10.13 required at least 2GB of RAM and OS X 10.8 or later – that’s not the case anymore. These are the Macs supported by macOS 10.14 Mojave.
Unfortunately, while the required models rarely change year over year, they have with macOS 10.14, so if you have an older MacBook, you might need to upgrade to enjoy this new version of the OS.
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| Dell XPS 15 2019: what we want to see Posted: 15 May 2019 12:02 PM PDT Back when the Dell XPS 15 2018 launched, it was packed to the brim with 8th-generation H-series processors, fast SSDs and some gorgeous displays. And, it is still one of the best laptops in 2019. However, we now know that the Dell XPS 15 will be featuring 9th-generation Intel Coffee Lake Refresh processors and Nvidia Turing 16-series GPUs. So, the Dell XPS 15 2019 will be much faster than the current offerings. Hopefully, Dell will combine this raw power with some of the improvements we saw in the Dell XPS 13 earlier this year. We’re sure that certain aspects of the Dell XPS will carry over – namely the much-improved webcam. But, beyond that and internal improvements, we don’t have all the details. However, we can do some Dell XPS 15 2019 speculation, crafting a sort of wishlist of what we’d like to see. And, be sure to keep this page bookmarked, as we’ll update it with all the latest information. Cut to the chase
Dell XPS 15 release dateWhile we don’t know the exact date the Dell XPS 15 will launch, we do know that its coming in June, which lines up with previous releases. As for when we’ll see the exact date, we will probably be waiting until Computex 2019. The Dell XPS 15 2019 is coming out a bit later than the Dell XPS 15 2018, which launched back in May 2018, but it’s likely that it came down to the new hardware on offer. And, who knows, this delay might mean that we might actually see that webcam moved up to the top bezel.
Dell XPS 15 priceThe current XPS 15 starts out at $1,059 (£1,179, AU$1,699) for a quad-core, 8th-generation Intel Core i5 chip, 8GB of RAM and a 1TB 5,400 RPM hard drive. However, you can spec it out for up to $2,959 (£2,279, AU$3,999) for a Core i9, 32GB of RAM and a 1TB SSD. Dell will probably follow the same pricing trend as the current model for the XPS 15 2019 – bring out an entry-level notebook for about $1,050 and let users configure it however they want. However, we could see Dell raising the price a bit for the entry model, as it has for the last few years – plus, computer hardware keeps getting more expensive. Again, we won’t know what the pricing is going to be until we get closer to launch, so stay tuned.
What want to see from Dell XPS 15 2019The Dell XPS 15 is already one of the best Ultrabooks you can buy today, but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t have room to improve. So, we went ahead and created a wishlist of things we want to see from the Dell XPS 15 2019, to really elevate it into the laptop stratosphere. Better cooling Because the Dell XPS 15 is packing updated Nvidia Turing graphics and Intel 9th-generation processors, we need a cooling design that keeps all of that high-power hardware cool. Honestly, if it means that the Dell XPS 15 2019 is a bit thicker than last year’s model, we’d be ok with that – it’s already easy to carry around, we just want it to last a couple of years. More ports Move that webcam It’s not an ideal situation for either end of the conversation, and it even makes Windows Hello kind of a pain. Luckily, it looks like Dell may have figured it out – the new Dell XPS 13 has moved the chin-cam up into the top bezel thanks to some kind of shrinking magic. Hopefully, this tiny little camera finds its way into the Dell XPS 15 2019. Unlimited power And, those Nvidia Turing GPUs should massively boost graphics performance. It still won’t be the best gaming laptop, but it should be more than enough to play your favorite games in 1080p without suffering through a slideshow.
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| Best Nvidia GeForce GTX 1660 Ti: which version is best for your PC? Posted: 15 May 2019 12:00 PM PDT Right now, the Nvidia GeForce GTX 1660 Ti is the best graphics card for anyone looking for an affordable GPU that doesn’t compromise on performance. We weren’t even sure it would be real, but we are so happy that it is. If you’ve been waiting for an Nvidia Turing card in your price range, the Nvidia GeForce GTX 1660 Ti is the card for you.. The Nvidia GeForce GTX 1660 Ti manages to hit the price-to-performance sweet spot by cutting out the RT and Tensor cores that power Nvidia’s new RTX and Deep Learning Super Sampling (DLSS) technologies. And, even after sacrificing these extra features, the GTX 1660 Ti is such a great performing card that’s made even better thanks to its affordability. It is, without a doubt, the best budget graphics card on the market – though the GTX 1660 gives it a run for its money. With this new focus on value, it’s easy to see why Nvidia Turing sales are doing so well. However, unlike Nvidia launches in the past, Team Green didn’t release its own Founders Edition of the GTX 1660 Ti. Without this base model to set the stage for what we could expect from third-party cards, you’ll find a wide variety of cards going for varying prices. The good news is that we went ahead and gathered up the best Nvidia GeForce GTX 1660 Ti models you can buy today.
Image Credit: PNY The PNY GeForce GTX 1660 Ti XLR8 Gaming OC may look like a small graphics card, but it packs a punch. Equipped with a 70MHz factory overclock and otherwise solid specs, this card delivers on the dream of 1440p Ultra quality gameplay at 60 fps. Better yet, all of this performance costs less than 300 smackers. This is the best bang-for-your-buck graphics cards you can get. Read the full review: PNY GeForce GTX 1660 Ti XLR8 Gaming OC
Image Credit: Asus Looking to max out the performance of the GeForce GTX 1660 Ti? Well, then the Asus ROG Strix GTX 1660 Ti OC is the right card for you. It features the highest factory overclock we’ve seen on this mid-range graphics card yet. Additionally, its oversized heatsink and triple axial fans keep this card running a full 10C cooler than most. Overclocking this card is a breeze, thanks to its extreme cooling system. Read the full review: Asus ROG Strix GTX 1660 Ti OC review
Image Credit: Gigabyte Looking for something in the middle of the road between basic and extreme? The Gigabyte GeForce GTX 1660 Ti Windforce OC is the closest thing to your average GeForce GTX 1660 Ti. Although it’s only equipped with a pedestrian dual-fan cooler, Gigabyte has made use of 3D molded curves on the fan blades for increased airflow. The graphics card’s fans also spin in alternate directions to further increase airflow. Top that off with a 1,845MHz boost clock, and this card delivers more performance for not much more money.
Image Credit: Palit The Palit GeForce GTX 1660 Ti StormX OC is one of the most compact graphics cards designed to fit in the smallest of PC cases. Despite its small size, this GPU still packs all the might of a full-sized GTX 1660 Ti and then some with a factory set 1,815MHz boost clock. Best of all, it costs the same amount as the most inexpensive versions of the GeForce GTX 1660 Ti, so it’ll be light on your wallet too.
Image Credit: MSI Just because you’re gaming with a mid-range card doesn’t mean you can’t be stylish. The MSI GeForce GTX 1660 TI Gaming X 6G is easily the most handsome of the bunch with a sharp aesthetic and fully addressable RGB lighting – in other words, you can customize how it glows in sync with an MSI motherboard. Looks aside, this card delivers tuned up performance and a Twin Frozr cooler designed to keep it chilled.
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| Death Stranding release date, trailers and news Posted: 15 May 2019 11:47 AM PDT What is Death Stranding about? Despite being in development for years, most of the chatter around Hideo Kojima's upcoming PS4 game – the first from his new studio Kojima Productions, after a much-publicized departure from Konami – is still about how hard the game is to define. We saw an in-depth showcase at E3 2018, showing a game that was broadly sci-fi, but featuring elements of trippy horror, melding the techno-future trappings of the Metal Gear series with Kojima's own mind-bending Silent Hill series. A recent panel discussion at Tribeca Film Festival also gives more hints as to the kind of gameplay we can expect. At this point, though, it's almost all entirely conjecture. Sony and Kojima are playing up to the mysterious nature of the game, allowing very few details to be revealed. As the first game from Kojima Studios, there's a lot riding on its success, and the PR campaign to drum up interest is already creating a fever-pitch of anticipation. While fans the world over try to piece together the bread crumb trail to find out what exactly we're all waiting for, let this article guide you through everything there is to know about Death Stranding so far. [Update: It looks like Hideo Kojima could be teasing some Death Stranding news. Read on to find out more.] Cut to the chase
Death Stranding trailers and screenshotsThe Tokyo Game Show 2018 trailer revealed voice-acting veteran Troy Baker has joined the cast as the mysterious villain The Man in the Golden Mask. E3 2018 brought Death Stranding gameplay to our eyes and left our minds somewhat confused. Before E3 2018, Death Stranding featured at the Game Awards 2017. Coming in at nearly eight minutes long, this isn't a quick watch and unfortunately it doesn't answer many of the questions we have about the game (actually we think we have more). Watch it for yourself below: The reveal trailer that was shown at E3 in 2016 may have been more than 3 minutes long, but it didn’t reveal much about the game at all other than that it would star The Walking Dead’s Norman Reedus.
A second even longer and 4K trailer was shown at The Game Awards at the end of 2016. This trailer starred Hannibal’s Mads Mikkelsen and Guillermo Del Toro and although it didn’t give us any more of an idea of what the game will actually even be about (in fact leaving us more confused than we were before) it did send expectations soaring. From what we can guess, the events of the second trailer take place before the events of the first, since the baby being transported in the incubator (in the second) is almost certainly Norman Reedus (as seen in the first trailer). They have the same handcuff and stomach scars. As for what this means we have absolutely no idea. Bear in mind Kojima has, in the past, been a fan of including footage in trailers that never made it into the final game. Anyone remember the 'Grand Theft Auto' exchange from the first MGS3 trailer?
Death Stranding release dateThere’s no definite release date just yet, despite Kojima having told fans during the 2016 Tokyo Game Show that Death Stranding would be out before 2019. In an interview with Dengeki PlayStation (via Wccftech) at the end of 2017, Kojima said that development of the game was going well: “Development on Death Stranding is going well enough that [Sony Interactive Entertainment] told us, ‘We have never before seen a game being created at such a fast pace.’ We are planning an announcement that will further surprise everyone in 2018.” A preemptive listing on Amazon UK put the release date as March 29, which came and went. A 2019 release still seems possible, though we've had no official confirmation of when to expect it. In addition, Kojima revealed that the voice actor strikes in 2018 held up development as he was unable to record with Norman Reedus and Mads Mikkelsen during that period – delaying recording for the game.
What do we know so far about Death Stranding?Hideo Kojima is teasing an update Given Sony has said it won’t be attending E3 2019, it’s somewhat hard to predict when we’ll see news relating to its exclusive titles. However, Hideo Kojima has been hinting that we’ll see something from his exclusive, Death Stranding, soon. Kojima has posted a Tweet with a photo of himself in front of a pair of monitors, one showing the Death Stranding title while the other has what appears to be some video editing software in action. This suggests that a trailer is highly likely to be incoming. This isn’t the first time Kojima has posted such a photo—in April he posted something similar, just without himself in it. If these posts are pointing to a trailer release, they don’t offer any kind of date or even an idea of what will be shown (we're not entirely sure how to interpret the emoji). It’s likely fans will be keeping a close eye on Kojima’s social media activity for the next tease, or maybe even a trailer drop. Death Stranding is in a 'critical phase', according to Kojima The following tweet by Kojima (roughly translated by MSPoweruser), explains that while Death Stranding is fairly far along in development, there's a lot of polishing to still be done. "Death Stranding is not yet in the debugging stage, but is currently having all the game elements and tools from different development systems combined into the game," Kojima writes. "It’s a process that involves connecting the parts, adding feeling, looking over the production, the specifications, looking out for trouble, taking things out and adding things in. "I’m playing the game on PlayStation 4 every day. It’s a critical phase." Tribeca Film Festival “In Death Stranding I’m trying to put every aspect [of Norman] in there,” Kojima said through his interpreter, “and you will see his … everything, in the game,” he finished, suggestively, cracking up the crowd. By the end of the game, he says, you’ll “love Norman”. Non-branching narrative Online features
Troy Baker is a villain E3 2018 We also got look at two more famous faces who will make an appearance in the game – Léa Seydoux and Lindsay Wagner. Something edgy Back in 2015 Kojima starting giving hints around the game's tone and star-studded voice cast in an interview with IGN. According to Kojima his first title with Sony is going to be “slightly more edgy”, as while he wants “to create something that’s what people expect” he also wants to bring “something new that people haven’t seen before.” We do know that Kojima is planning to do something different with the game’s mechanics, most notably around the concept of dying and involving the baby that has appeared in every trailer. Kojima said in the interview that the mechanics of Death Stranding were inspired by a Japanese short story.
In the story it’s stated that the first tool mankind creates is a stick for protection, but that the second tool mankind created was a rope to keep things close and secure. “Most of your tools in action games are sticks,” Kojima explained, “You punch or you shoot or you kick. The communication is always through these 'sticks.' In [Death Stranding], I want people to be connected not through sticks, but through what would be the equivalent of ropes… But of course you will be able to use the sticks too.” Unfortunately we haven’t seen any gameplay that would give us a better insight into how this rope approach will actually work. A mystery to its own devs Before this, the game's star Mads Mikkelsen admitted he "got lost" when Kojima tried to explain the game's plot to him. Sporadic details We know the game will run on the Decima engine which was created by Horizon: Zero Dawn developers, Guerilla Games. Kojima praised this engine during PSX 2016 as being an excellent engine for creating open world games, something that Horizon: Zero Dawn’s reception suggests has an element of truth to it. Though its unsettling trailers suggest otherwise, Kojima has said that Death Stranding won’t be as dark as some fans are expecting. It’s certainly not a horror game, he told Glixel, and it would have comedic moments which isn’t entirely surprising considering the overarching tone of the Metal Gear series.
An impressive cast O'Brien recently posted a picture to Instagram which showed her alongside Baker and Reedus, with a caption stating "Honored to be working alongside these two fine lads on [Hideo Kojima's] new project Death Stranding." While Baker is well known for his starring roles in video games such as The Last of Us and Bioshock Infinite, O'Brien has had roles on both TV and in games, featuring in Telltale's Guardian's of the Galaxy and Batman: The Enemy Within as well as Rock in a Hard Place. Players won't die The game apparently explores the themes of life and death and it's for this reason that Kojima would like to explore the traditional death mechanic in games and let players know that in-game death isn't the end for them when it happens. In this underwater area, he explains, “you're not dead or alive. It's the equivalent of that screen that says 'Continue?' and a counter ticking down towards zero.” When players decide they're ready to leave and return to the game world, they won't be returned to a point before their death. Instead the game acknowledges their defeat and coming back to life is more of a reincarnation than a respawn. There's a weird time rain What's the deal with the babies? There will be online elements “I think there are a lot of people out there who still enjoy single-player games, aside from some microtransactions." This suggests that while the game will have online co-op elements, they won't make up the entirety of the game. What could it all mean?Though the game’s trailers don’t tell us much about how we’ll eventually play Death Stranding, they do reveal some important thematic elements. Quotes from William Blake, the repeated appearance of ruined dolls, and the inclusion of what looks like oil (but could very well be ink) and dead sea creatures suggests Kojima will be exploring the fractious relationship between man and the natural world and the impact it has on us and future generations. The littering of dead crabs on beaches and tanks with definitely living tentacles coming out of them suggests to us a post-apocalyptic world over-run with robotic sea creatures which would certainly be interesting. After all, Kojima is working closely with Guerilla Games whose Horizon: Zero Dawn game focused on robotic dinosaurs.
There’s also a curious mix of futuristic technology and elements of the past in the game’s various trailers. In the second game trailer though Mads Mikkelsen is wearing a modern army uniform and appears to be using some kind of cable, the undead soldiers around him are wearing WW2 era uniforms and the game world outside of the tunnel he’s in is almost certainly from the second world war time period.
Whether this mix of past and future will manifest itself as time travelling or simply alternate universe science fiction isn’t clear. Safe to say, as a Kojima title, there’s a lot of mystery and symbolism at play here and fans online are tearing through what little materials there are to try and find out more information about the game. We’ll keep updating as more solid information becomes available. All image credits: Kojima Productions This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| China Telecom outage takes down Apple, Microsoft and AWS for 7 hours Posted: 15 May 2019 11:30 AM PDT China Telecom recently experienced a significant outage that lasted nearly eight hours and affected many Western sites and services such as Apple, Amazon, Microsoft, Slack, SAP and others. The network monitoring company ThousandEyes first discovered the outage when its global vantage points began to detect substantial packet loss across China Telecom's backbone for internet traffic both entering and exiting China. The packet loss continued sporadically over several hours and primarily impacted network infrastructure in mainland china but China Telecom's network in Singapore and in multiple points in the US including Los Angeles.
At its peak, ThousandEyes detected over 100 services that were disrupted as a result of network conditions in China Telecom's global backbone. China Telecom outageThe outage has now been resolved but it serves as an example of how well connected China is to external sites and services when it comes to serving commercial interests. China's internet service providers (ISPs) do block some Western sites and services but when it comes to cloud-based business services, their standard operating procedure is to allow access to them. Allowing access to these types of sites from within China serves the country's interests by allowing both domestic and foreign-based organizations to conduct business more effectively. ThousandEyes research into the outage also shed light on the fact that Chinese ISPs such as China Telecom have a global presence. The scope of infrastructure controlled and managed by China Telecom extends far beyond China's geographic borders and the provider also maintains global interconnects, peering with service providers in a number of locations across the globe. Additionally, this and previous global outages show how connected the internet really is even in countries like China and Russia which have stricter controls on what sites can be accessed within their borders. When an ISP experiences outages, the ripple effect is felt across the rest of the internet.
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| Red Dead Online: latest news, updates and multiplayer features Posted: 15 May 2019 09:54 AM PDT Red Dead Online has now officially left beta testing - bursting out of the stables with a massive new update. But with such a massive open-world to explore in Red Dead Redemption 2's single-player story, why should you be excited about the game's online mode? Rockstar's open-world Western game, a prequel to 2010's Red Dead Redemption, was released to wide critical acclaim last year and was all anyone could talk about for months on end. While you might have expected an online mode to be live from the game's successful launch, it makes sense that Rockstar wants you to focus on the main story – and boy is there a lot of it – before waltzing into a less narrative-driven multiplayer experience in Red Dead Online. Rockstar has proved itself at converting a massive single-player game into a lively online experience, as shown in the launch of GTA Online in 2013, which has become almost as massive a phenomenon as the mainline GTA V game it spun off from. So what can you expect from Red Dead Online, and how can you access it?
Red Dead Online update news and patch notes
Red Dead Online is officially out of beta testing and the new content with the latest update brings lots of meaty additions. Perhaps the most meaningful change is a new anti-griefing system. Players will be able to set their profile as either offensive or defensive, increasing or decreasing respectively their visibility on the map to those looking to engage in player-vs-player combat. The penalties for attacking both play styles will scale intelligently with new hostility system tweaks, making those that continually disrupt peaceful players' games likely to find themselves in the firing line. The core Jessica LeClerk online story campaign also gets updated, with new story missions for both honourable and dishonourable players, while characters from the main Red Dead 2 storyline will now pop up in free roam. New mission types include jailbreaks and wagon thefts, while the dynamic, random encounters you'd face out on the prairies in the solo game (such as sucking venom from a snakebite victim) will now be introduced into the online mode, complete with rewards of their own. Gold payouts for missions is now up across the board, with the biggest rewards now as much as doubling compared to previous rewards. Poker tables have been added for gamblers, and Posse Versus activities now include fishing, bird shooting and herb gathering challenges. That's just the tip of the iceberg for a very rich update. Find out more in Rockstar's complete patch notes.
Red Dead Online: tips and tricks guidesThe wild west is dog eat dog. So make sure you're not the mutt of the litter with our Red Dead Redemption 2 guides which cover everything from fishing and hunting to mini-games and weapons.
Red Dead Online: how to accessIt doesn't take much to jump into Red Dead Redemption 2's online mode. You can access Red Dead Online by selecting the 'Online' option from the Red Dead Redemption 2 title menu (at the top-right hand side of the screen). You then pick which online mode you would like to play and wala!
Red Dead Online - what's next?According to Rockstar Games, a bunch of new content is coming to Red Dead Online in the next few months, including new Free Roam characters and Showdown modes. T his includes new Free Roam Missions and clothing for both PS4 and Xbox One on May 21, along with new PS4 Early Access content. Meanwhile, a new Head for the Hills Showdown Mode and the Wild Animal Kills Competitive Free Roam Challenge will roll out on May 28. This will be followed by the Public Enemy Showdown Mode and Railroad Baron Free Roam Event, where players capture cars on a moving train, on June 4. Then June 11's update includes the Sport of Kings Showdown Mode, plus new limited-time and permanent clothing additions to the Wheeler, Rawson and Co. Catalogue. Rockstar has also told players to keep an eye out for weekly bonuses like RDO$ and Gold gifts, increased payouts, care packages, exclusive gifts and more. Beyond that, Rockstar promises "future updates will offer new ways to fully inhabit your character as you progress in multiple roles and carve out your own place on the frontier". Players will be able to take on the first three of a series of new roles: track down wanted criminals as a bounty hunter; search the world for treasure, and other exotic items to sell as a collector; or build a business at camp as a trader. Each new role comes with unique gameplay, outfits, weapons and rewards.
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| Samsung Galaxy S10 5G is out in the UK early next month Posted: 15 May 2019 09:21 AM PDT Samsung has announced that its first 5G phone will be ready to buy in the UK early next month. The Samsung Galaxy S10 5G will be released on Friday, June 7, and you'll be able to pre-order it in from Wednesday, May 22. You'll have the choice of Majestic Black or Crown Silver for the color of the phone. It'll be sold by Samsung itself as well as Vodafone and EE, which are the exclusive networks for the first 5G Galaxy handset. The Galaxy S10 5G is set to be released in the US on Thursday, May 16, so it's great to have the company confirm its plans for bring it to the UK even though it is a bit later than some had hoped. Samsung has fitted the device with a 6.7-inch display, either 256GB or 512GB of internal storage and a variety of other top-end specs. It's arguably the most high-tech phone Samsung has ever made, and we'll have an updated review later this week.
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| This TechRadar exclusive internet offer is the cheapest fibre broadband deal around Posted: 15 May 2019 09:15 AM PDT For the longest time, the title of cheapest fibre broadband deal has gone to lesser known Onestream. But now, that position has been pulled out from beneath it from another underdog of the internet service provider world - POP Telecom. Haven't heard of POP? That's okay, it's here to show the big names of internet some competition with impressively cheap broadband. All you need to know is that exclusively for you readers of TechRadar it is offering the cheapest fibre broadband on the market. How cheap exactly? With a monthly price of £19.90, POP is offering prices nearer to old-fashioned ADSL packages than fibre. The even better news is that POP hasn't given an end date for this offer so there's no need to panic buy it in the next hour. But like all good things, it will eventually come to an end so we wouldn't wait around too long. Ready to cut your internet bills down? You can see this offer in full down below. But if you want to see just how much you're saving here, you can compare this offer with the rest of the market on our broadband deals page.
This exclusively cheap broadband dealHow does this compare to other broadband deals?So you already know you won't get a cheaper fibre broadband deal but what other options are out there? Possibly the best known name UK broadband is BT, a provider with a pretty brilliant offer right now. Get either BT's Superfast fibre 1 or Superfast fibre 2 package and you'll not only get superfast fibre speeds, but also a pre-paid Mastercard and a free gift. You can choose between an Amazon Echo, JBL Bar studio or Hive Smart Lights pack. Or for another brilliant offer from a well-known name, Vodafone is offering fibre internet at the price of £21 a month. While that is already pretty affordable, it gets even better with TechRadar's exclusive offer of a £30 Amazon UK gift card. This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Posted: 15 May 2019 08:55 AM PDT The best Chromebooks of 2019 are more powerful, flexible and with longer battery lives than ever before. In this list of the best Chromebooks, we've gathered together the top devices that show what these affordable Chrome OS-based laptops are capable of. Before you buy the best Chromebook for your needs, you may be wondering what exactly is a Chromebook? Well, Chromebooks don’t just feature fantastic battery life, but they’re also extremely affordable. This is because the best Chromebooks don’t need the latest and greatest processors – as they run Chrome OS, a lightweight operating system, and they only pack what they need to get the job done. Plus, with devices like the Google Pixel Slate the best Chromebooks are getting more advanced by the day. However, some users may be wary of picking up one of the best Chromebooks because of the restrictions they place, and that’s totally fair. But, if your computer use just boils down to word processing and email, with very little video editing or gaming, you really can’t go wrong with one of the best Chromebooks.
The Google Pixelbook is the best Chromebook of 2019 Shortly after proclaiming the Chromebook Pixel as dead, Google revived it in a way nobody expected. Now, it’s the Google Pixelbook and it stands completely independent of its predecessor. That’s because, unlike the Chromebook Pixel, it can run Android apps natively, on top of building upon Chrome OS. And, when you add in the huge amount of storage space, fantastic stylus and Google Assistant, it shouldn’t surprise you when we say the Pixelbook is the best Chromebook 2018 has to offer – even so long after its launch. Read the full review: Google Pixelbook
The best convertible Chromebook Before Google put the Pixelbook out, and showed us exactly what Chromebooks could be, the Asus Chromebook Flip was our ideal Google laptop. With a full Intel Core processor and a full-HD display, the Asus Chromebook Flip changed the game. Put simply, if you want key features that the Pixelbook offers, but you don’t want to deal with that massive price tag, the Asus Chromebook Flip is the next best Chromebook. Read the full review: Asus Chromebook Flip
A brilliant Chromebook for productivity When Android apps started heading to the best Chromebooks, it was only a matter of time before Samsung jumped into the ring to craft something truly beautiful. With a 12.3-inch QHD touchscreen and a 360-degree hinge, the Samsung Chromebook Pro also includes a built-in stylus – the first of its kind to show up in a Chromebook. Not only does it show up many of its competitors, but it’s better than most Android devices, too, even if the keyboard could use some tightening up. Read the full review: Samsung Chromebook Pro
Another top convertible Chrfomebook When you think of Chromebooks, education is one of the first things that comes to mind. And, with the Acer Chromebook Spin 13, Acer wants them to be synonymous with business, too. Beautifully built from aluminum with a gorgeous QHD screen, it won’t just fit in the office, but it may actually draw some jealous looks. It’s more than just an attractive chassis, though: the Acer Chromebook Spin 13 is backed by full-fat Ultrabook processors, so it can get work done, and this Chromebook will look good while doing it. Read the full review: Acer Chromebook Spin 13
Another great 2-in-1 Chromebook In our minds, the best Chromebooks are affordable devices that anyone can get their hands on. And, in that spirit, it’s not hard to see why the Dell Inspiron Chromebook 11 2-in-1 fits the bill. This isn’t the most powerful Chromebook on the market – instead it boils Chromebooks down to what they need to be: affordable, easy to use and durable. This Chromebook will be great for doing all your web browsing and video editing, and may just be one of the best laptops for kids, as it won’t break from a simple drop. What more can you ask for? Read the full review: Dell Inspiron Chromebook 11 2-in-1
Acer has made one of the best Chromebooks ever with the Chromebook Spin 11 The best Chromebooks are most compelling as student laptops, and that’s exactly where the Acer Chromebook Spin 11 excels. If you’re a student, or even a parent of one, this is a cheap, capable and, more importantly, durable machine that can get some homework done on the go. Sure, you can’t get any hardcore gaming or video editing done on this thing, but if you just need something to write some papers and watch some YouTube in your downtime – the Acer Chromebook Spin 11 should be at the top of your list. Read the full review: Acer Chromebook Spin 11
Another brilliant Chromebook from Acer With a pristine build quality that rivals a MacBook, it’s easy to forgive the Acer Chromebook 15’s aversion to 2-in-1 form factors. However, given that most Chromebooks releasing this year are fully convertible, thanks to the wide adoption of Android app support, the Acer Chromebook 15 had to prove itself to us with more than good style. And, beyond its ability to lay flat using a 180-degree hinge, this beautiful 15-inch Chromebook makes a great impression with its battery life, too, lasting nearly 17 hours in our battery test. Read the full review: Acer Chromebook 15
Acer Chromebook R11 has a 360-degree hinge We wouldn’t be surprised to see Acer replacing the Chromebook R11 – at least, judging by the recent release of the Chromebook Spin 11, but it still holds up to this day as one of the best Chromebooks on the market. It isn’t the most powerful option out there, but it still gives you full access to Android Apps on the Google Play store. What’s more, it does so on a touchscreen display that can be rotated around into tablet mode, complemented by an all-metal finish that you won’t be ashamed of. Read the full review: Acer Chromebook R11
A brilliant value Chromebook from HP In our mind, the best Chromebooks are the ones that balance a rock-bottom price and speedy use of Chrome OS – and the HP Chromebook 14 is a perfect example. While it’s similar to the Acer Chromebook 15 in a lot of ways, this 14-inch Chromebook is a bit more compact and even looks better. Complemented by a bright blue finish and a screen made to astonish, the HP Chromebook 14 boasts the best value of any Chromebook out there. Even if the battery life and performance are average – the HP Chromebook 14 is easily one of the best Chromebooks on the market right now. Read the full review: HP Chromebook 14
HP Chromebook 13 looks and performs great The HP Chromebook 13 is way better than anyone would expect from a Chromebook. You’re getting a 1440p display, two USB-C ports and, if you’re willing to shell out a bit more cash, you can get yourself an INtel Core M processor rather than a Pentium. All of this is complemented by incredible style and a metallic design that exudes Pixel influence. It might not be as powerful as the Google Pixelbook, but it’s still one of the best Chromebooks when it comes to sheer style. Read the full review: HP Chromebook 13 Watch the video below for the top 7 things to consider when buying a laptop:
Juan Martinez and Gabe Carey have also contributed to this article.
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| This exclusive Samsung Galaxy S10e deal is the best price you will find Posted: 15 May 2019 08:47 AM PDT With Galaxy S10e deals helping bring Samsung's newest range into the realms of affordability, it was a low blow when they recently shot up in price. But for those wanting to grab this more affordable flagship, there's some good news and some even greater news. The good news is that we've recently seen prices fall back down making this an affordable option once again. The great news? TechRadar readers get the best S10e price on the market. It all starts with a deal from Mobiles.co.uk. Offering 5GB of data at £24 a month and £135 upfront. While that is already a brilliant price to pay for a Samsung Galaxy S10e, TechRadar readers can knock the upfront down by an extra £25 by applying the code TECHS10E at the checkout, making this a market leading offer. We've given you the good news, the great news and now it's time for the bad news. This offer will come to an end on Monday so getting the phone this cheap will involve some snappy decisions. That time limit cause some difficulties for you? You can check out our guide to the best mobile phone deals for the rest of your options.
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