Apple : Amazon Prime Day in Australia: What to expect during Prime Day 2019

---

• Amazon Prime Day in Australia: What to expect during Prime Day 2019
• All the phones you can use on AT&T 5G
• If Disney controls Hulu, the streaming service could go global
• Huawei MateBook 14 vs Huawei MateBook X Pro: which laptop is best for you?
• Best gaming laptops 2019: the 10 top gaming laptops we've reviewed
• Tetris 99 and the best free Nintendo Switch games
• Developers enjoying higher UK paychecks
• Thunderclap hack makes Macs and PCs with Thunderbolt ports vulnerable
• Retailers facing more bot attacks than ever
• Smash Bros Ultimate DLC: all the post-launch content coming in 2019
• Best premium WordPress themes of 2019
• The best calendar app 2019: top apps for scheduling meetings
• The best iPhone 5S deals in March 2019
• Samsung launches fastest flash chip
• Polestar's new electric sports car is built to take on Tesla
• Shenmue 3: release date, trailers and news
• The best free website builder 2019
• What is the IoT? Everything you need to know
• Best website builder of 2019

Amazon Prime Day in Australia: What to expect during Prime Day 2019 Posted: 28 Feb 2019 02:25 PM PST While Amazon Prime Day is now a well-established annual bargain-hunting phenomenon in overseas markets, Australia has had just the one so far. That’s because Amazon entered the Australian e-commerce market late, arriving Down Under in December 2017 to an underwhelming response. Despite that, Amazon made every attempt to quickly improve its catalogue of products and has expanded its warehouse network by adding a second one in Sydney. With its Aussie ambitions growing, Amazon finally debuted Prime Day Down Under in 2018, offering some excellent bargains across every category to its Prime members. Read more: Is Amazon Prime worth it in Australia: Amazon’s subscription service explained Amazon raised the price of its Prime subscriptions in the US by 18% last year, leaving Australia with one of the cheapest fees globally. With benefits including free expedited shipping, early access to Lightning deals, and free subscriptions to Prime Video and Prime Music, it’s well worth considering signing up for Amazon Prime even if it's not just for Prime Day 2019. For free, fast delivery and a host of other benefits, sign up for Amazon Prime now Australia wasn’t the only country to debut Prime Day in 2018 – Singapore, the Netherlands and Luxembourg joined the bandwagon as well – making it one of the most successful Prime Days in Amazon history.  But was it worth all the hype, and will it do better in 2019? Let’s find out. Image credit: Amazon What is Amazon Prime Day? Amazon Prime Day began in the US in 2015 as a celebration of the company’s 20th anniversary, with more deals on offer than Black Friday at the time. Today, Prime Day is Amazon’s members-only sale held once a year, historically in July. While it began as a one-day sale, 2018 saw the offers last for 36 hours. To make the most of Prime Day you’ll need to get yourself an Amazon Prime membership which, in Australia, will set you back just $6.99 a month or $59 a year.  Signing up for Prime means you’ll have free access to Amazon’s streaming services, including Prime Video, Prime Music and Twitch. Members also get free access to Prime Reading and Prime Photos for all their ebook and storage needs.  Most importantly, a Prime membership gets you free shipping on domestic purchases, no matter the price of the product, and free delivery for international goods costing over $49 bought from the global section of Amazon’s Aussie storefront. How did Amazon perform on its first Australian Prime Day? According to statistics from Hitwise, Amazon got over over 3.2 million visits (on both the US and Australian sites) on Prime Day 2018, with Aussies preferring the US storefront despite a ban on shopping from overseas sites after new GST laws were passed. That ban, however, has been lifted, which could be good news for Australian shoppers this year. Data from Hitwise shows that Aussie shoppers searched for mobile phones and game consoles the most in the lead up to Prime Day 2018, with Amazon’s own Echo and Kindle products amongst the 10 most viewed items on Prime Day itself. The high volume of visits resulted in a nice number of sales for the e-commerce giant with a conversion rate of 7.77%, the highest rate that any top Australian retailer has reached. Prime Day 2018 earned Amazon a whopping US$1 billion in sales. Image credit: Amazon Prime Day 2018: the best-sellers from last year Prime Day 2018 saw Amazon sell over 100 million products around the world and over one million smart home devices – not just Amazon ones but Philips Hue lights, Hive thermostats and various manufacturers’ smart plugs. It was the biggest day ever for Echo devices, Fire tablets for kids, Kindle e-readers and Fire TV products. A lot of the products that went on sale globally aren’t available on the Australian storefront. According to Finder.com.au, Amazon Australia only had about a tenth of the deals offered to US customers and significantly fewer than those available to Canadian and UK members. Where the US typically offered 2,800 deals at any given time, the Australian version only had 340. On the upside, discounts were more generous. That said, Amazon is still relatively new in Australia, so we can hope it does better this year. And despite the low volume of deals available Down Under, Amazon did sell a whole load of gaming consoles, particularly the Nintendo Switch. The latest console from Nintendo had over 71,500 page views, followed by Sony’s PS4 Pro at over 31,000 views, according to Hitwise. In fact, the Lightning Deal on the Nintendo Switch was offered twice and both times saw the console sell out within seconds of the deal going live. Best deals from Prime Day 2018 While the Nintendo Switch and the PS4 Pro were last year’s bestsellers, some of the discounts on other tech products were also rather significant. For example, the Xbox One S 1TB Minecraft Bundle was on sale for just $199, down from its usual $398 listed price. Bose’s very popular and excellent QuietComfort 35 II noise-cancelling headphones dropped down to a low of $329 a set, although it was even cheaper over the Black Friday sale period in 2018. Amazon’s own Echo devices saw significant price drops, with the original Amazon Echo smart speaker selling for just $109 over the Prime Day sale, while the Echo Dot dropped down to just $39 a pop. Even the basic Kindle ereader saw a great discount of $30, bringing the price down to a very affordable $79. Image credit: Nintendo What to expect from Prime Day 2019 in Australia Amazon has been expanding its catalogue ever since it arrived on Aussie shores, and we’re fully expecting the online marketplace to outdo the 2018 offers. First and foremost, though, expect to see Amazon’s own products to receive significant price drops. Prime Day 2019 would be a great time to nab yourself the 2018 range of Echo devices, including the All-new Echo Dot and Echo Plus. You’ll also find great offers on other smart home products, including the Philips Hue starter kits and bulbs, and also on robot vacuums like the iRobot Roomba 960. Expect the Amazon-owned, and rather expensive, Ring Video Doorbell 2 to receive a discount as well. With more TVs available on Amazon Australia now, we think Prime Day 2019 would be an ideal time to upgrade your home entertainment system, especially if you’re in the market for a good 4K smart telly. We saw premium headphones receive great discounts on Prime Day last year, as well as over the Black Friday shopping period, meaning you’ll definitely be able to snag a pair of Bose or Sony headphones for less. Amazon has also partnered with Samsung to offer Aussie customers an easy one-stop shop for all of the South Korean manufacturer’s products. We’re hoping that some of these, including the latest Galaxy S10 range of handsets, see a slash in prices on Prime Day this year. And avid readers are definitely going to be able to pick up a Kindle, even the premium Kindle Oasis, at a cheaper price. What does Prime Day mean for Black Friday and Cyber Monday? Amazon has historically prioritised Prime Day over Black Friday – according to Digitalcommerce360.com, 67% of the 2018 Prime Day deals available overseas were lower than comparable deals on the preceding Black Friday. In Australia, though, we saw some prices drop lower during the Black Friday sale period as compared to our first ever Prime Day. Perhaps Amazon was testing the waters, and we fully expect the company to outdo itself during both sales in 2019. But Prime Day is more important to the firm, and we’d expect its discounts to be deeper this year, especially on its own devices. Prime Day: why does it matter more to Amazon? There are some crucial differences between Prime Day and Black Friday. The first is that Prime Day is Amazon’s own day. It’s right there in the name which, of course, refers to Amazon’s Prime membership program and associated services. Amazon doesn’t own Black Friday, and that means ultimately it’s just another retailer shouting for attention – a massive retailer with a really loud voice. Black Friday is a sales event for the entire retail sector. With Prime Day as its own take on November sale period, it makes it much harder for rivals to muscle in on something that Amazon has effectively created from thin air. The second and more important difference is that Black Friday doesn’t create new spending. It just moves it slightly. As we’ve discovered in recent years, the money people spend over the Black Friday period is money they were probably going to spend anyway: all Black Friday really does is concentrates pre-Christmas shopping in the last week of November.  Prime Day spending is different in two ways. First of all, people aren’t spending the money they’d already planned to spend on Christmas presents. And secondly, they’re buying mainly for themselves, not for others. There’s another key benefit for Amazon. Its global bestsellers on Prime Day weren’t just Amazon devices; they were Amazon devices that connect to Amazon services. Fire TVs, Kindle Fires, Echo devices, Alexa remotes. Each one of them connecting to Amazon Prime, and each one of them requiring a Prime membership to buy in the first place. So when Black Friday rolls around, Amazon will have a whole bunch of Prime members for whom shopping on Prime is the default, and who might want to enhance their Amazon-powered smart homes with Amazon-branded Black Friday deals. Prime Day means that for Amazon, Christmas now comes twice a year. This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now

All the phones you can use on AT&T 5G Posted: 28 Feb 2019 01:53 PM PST While all carriers have been excited about 5G networks, AT&T went a bit overboard by rebranding its advanced 4G tech (delivering ‘5G-equivalent speeds’ via millimeter wave) as the misleading “5GE” (for 5G Evolution), which led Sprint to sue AT&T.  In any case, the latter carrier does have plans to implement true sub-6 GHz 5G across its network this year – so what phones will you be able to use on it? Per a press release, AT&T planned to roll out 5G in 12 smaller cities by the end of 2018: Atlanta, Charlotte, N.C. Dallas, Houston, Indianapolis, Jacksonville, Fla., Louisville, Ky., Oklahoma City, New Orleans, Raleigh, N.C., San Antonio and Waco, Texas.  In the first half of 2019, the carrier expects to expand this to nine cities in large markets: Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Nashville, Orlando, San Diego, San Francisco, and San Jose, Calif. Two more cities, Minneapolis and Chicago, have been added to this year’s list. By early 2020, the company hopes to reach nationwide 5G coverage in North America. While AT&T has been pretty quiet about which phones will work on its 5G networks – and when those networks will go live, exactly – but here are your options when they do.  Samsung Galaxy Fold  Shortly after introducing the Samsung Galaxy Fold, the phonemaker announced it would launch on two carriers in Q2 2019: T-Mobile and AT&T. That’s a serious feather in AT&T’s cap for customers who want to get in on one of the first foldable phones on the market, which has a release date of April 26 in the US and May 3 in Europe - assumedly, they’ll be available then on AT&T. The Galaxy Fold is big, powerful, and pricey, expecting to retail for $1,980 (€2,000, about £1,492, AU$2,789). Clamped shut in phone mode, the device has a modest yet functional 4.6-inch screen for you to fiddle with (and very thick bezel to the phone’s edges, but hey, the format is new). Unfold the device completely and its inside display stretches to a QHD+ 7.3-inch screen. Unsurprisingly for a Samsung device, the Galaxy Fold sports a Snapdragon 855 chip, but the rest of its specs far outpace most of the Galaxy S10 flagship line announced at the same time. Who knows how much the foldable really needs the 12GB of RAM to function, but its 512GB of storage is certainly welcome.  The Galaxy Fold also outpaces all other flagships with an unprecedented (and extreme) six cameras: one above the 4.6-inch screen that usable when it’s folded into “phone mode,” two front-facing cameras poking out above the unfolded 7.3-inch ‘innie’ screen, and the same triple rear cameras (12MP wide, 16MP ultra-wide, 12MP telephoto) appearing on the Galaxy S10 and Galaxy S10 Plus.   Samsung Galaxy S10 5G (probably)  At the end of 2018, AT&T announced that its 5G network would support not one, but two unspecified Samsung devices. The second is very likely the Samsung Galaxy S10 5G – especially since all the other major carriers will have it, too. If AT&T is indeed planning to carry the Galaxy S10 5G, it will have a monster phone to peddle. The smartphone will pack everything its coming-sooner siblings have...and more. Its Snapdragon 855 chipset will be the fastest on the market, paired with a huge 6.7-inch AMOLED display, 8GB of RAM and 256GB of storage.  It will also have the same trio of rear lenses (12MP wide, 16MP ultra-wide and 12MP telephoto) as the S10 and S10 Plus, as well as a time of flight sensor to measure depth. Want depth-sensing selfies? There’s a TOF sensor on the front, too. How much will it cost? We don’t know yet, but given the S10 Plus starts at $999 / £899 (about AU$1,398) with lower RAM and storage, the 5G version is expected to be priced higher. But the phone doesn't have a release date, and AT&T hasn't confirmed it will support the phone anyway, so stay tuned. Image credit: AT&T Netgear Nighthawk 5G Mobile hub  AT&T first boasted it achieved millimeter wave 5G mobile with the Netgear Nighthawk 5G Mobile hotspot back in October. While this isn’t a phone, the mobile hub will be an AT&T-exclusive for users to hook up to on the go.  The Nighthawk 5G Mobile packs the impressive Snapdragon 855 and will reportedly retail for $499. Customers will be able to pick up a 5G data plan giving 15GB for $70/month, according to Ars Technica. AT&T hasn’t announced when it the device will be available, but prior coverage asserted it’s coming sometime in spring 2019.   MWC (Mobile World Congress) is the world’s largest showcase for the mobile industry, stuffed full of the newest phones, tablets, wearables and more. TechRadar is reporting live from Barcelona all week to bring you the very latest from the show floor. Head to our dedicated MWC 2019 hub to see all the new releases, along with TechRadar’s world-class analysis and buying advice about your next phone.   This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now

If Disney controls Hulu, the streaming service could go global Posted: 28 Feb 2019 12:25 PM PST A new report suggests Disney is considering an investment in Hulu, the US-only streaming TV and movie service. If the report is correct and the investment materializes, it could allow Disney CEO Bob Iger to follow through on his plan to roll out the streaming service out to the rest of the world.  But, before you cancel your Netflix subscription, a few things need to happen – starting with any proof of the report of Disney buying AT&T’s stake in Hulu being true. Hulu would look mighty nice on the new Samsung Q90 QLED TV Looking for cheap streaming deals? Sling TV starts at just $15 per month Here are the biggest audio trends in 2019 Right now, AT&T and its subsidiary Warner Media own around 10% of the streaming service, but Variety broke the news that it is looking to sell that to the House of Mouse for a potentially large sum of money (around $930 million).  That money would theoretically help pay down AT&T’s reportedly staggering business debt of around $183 billion (£138 billion, AU$258 billion) – and, more importantly, give Disney a sizable 40% stake in Hulu. (Disney already owns 30% of the service.) On its own, that wouldn’t give Disney enough leverage to control the future of Hulu. But add in the additional 30% ownership share Disney will own after it acquires 21st Century Fox, and Disney could feasibly own 70% of the streaming service.  Disney could own Hulu, so what?  This is where things get interesting. During an investment call held in November, Disney CEO Bob Iger was asked about its investment in Hulu, particularly what he would do after the sale of 21st Century Fox was approved. Iger’s response included making larger investments on the content side and a potential global expansion for the streaming service.  “After the deal closes and after we have the 60% ownership, we’ll meet with the Hulu management team and the board, and discuss what the opportunities are in terms of both global growth and investing more in content,” Iger said. “But that’s something that we have to do after the deal closes.” While it’s hard to predict exactly what Disney will do when it finally owns a majority stake in Hulu - and how that might work in tandem with or against its own streaming service – it seems very likely that a global rollout could be in the works. Don’t forget about Disney’s other new streaming service, Disney+ This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now

Huawei MateBook 14 vs Huawei MateBook X Pro: which laptop is best for you? Posted: 28 Feb 2019 12:17 PM PST During MWC 2019, Huawei announced not one, but two fresh laptops for 2019: a refresh of the Huawei MateBook X Pro and the brand-new Huawei MateBook 14. However, looking at the two laptops’ spec sheets, they’re nearly identical – save for some key differences. Naturally, these differences lead to some even more important differences: price. Depending on what you’re looking for from a luxury laptop, you could either get shortchanged by some missing features or end up severely overspending. While all of the pricing we have available at the time of writing is in Euros, we expect these general differences in pricing between models to largely translate across regions. So, here’s a primer for both the brand-new Huawei MateBook 14 and refreshed MateBook X Pro for 2019. The Huawei MateBook X Pro's keyboard webcam. Design  Luckily, this is likely to the be the easiest part of this decision, as both laptops are nearly identical in shape, size, look and feel. Both laptops come in your choice of “Mystic Silver” or “Space Gray” colors, and both feature aluminum shells. However, while the MateBook X Pro is built from a single piece of aluminum for each half of the chassis, the MateBook 14’s base is split between aluminum on the keyboard deck and a less-premium material for the base plate. Similarly, the touchpad on the MateBook X Pro is comprised of glass, whereas the MateBook 14 touchpad is smoothed plastic. Luckily, both versions of the laptop feature Huawei’s fingerprint power button. It should be obvious that the MateBook 14 is the thicker and heavier of the two laptops, sitting at 3.37 pounds (1.53kg) and 0.63 inches (15.9mm). The MateBook X Pro, being Huawei’s utmost premium laptop, comes in at just 2.93 pounds (1.33kg) and 0.57 inches (14.6mm). However, as you will soon learn, those differences will be all but negligible once you see what’s inside these two laptops. The Huawei MateBook 14 in Mystic Silver. Display  Looking at them side-by-side, you might have trouble telling the difference between these two laptops’ displays. After all, both are in a 3:2 aspect ratio, have super-thin bezels and offer touch controls (at the high end, in the MateBook 14’s case). But, there are unique facets to both, some that will affect your purchase decision. The Huawei MateBook 14 uses a strictly 14-inch display with a 2K (2,160 x 1,440) resolution that amounts to 185 pixels per inch (ppi). The screen puts out up to 300 nits of brightness, sports a 1,000:1 contrast ratio and produces 100% of the sRGB color gamut. Meanwhile, the MateBook X Pro’s display remains largely unchanged year-over-year, being a 13.9-inch panel with a ‘3K’ (3,000 x 2,000) resolution amounting to 260 ppi. All around, this is a better display than the MateBook 14 screen, with a deeper 1,500:1 contrast ratio and higher brightness rating of 450 nits while matching the color gamut. It’s obviously clear which display is best here, but keep in mind exactly what you’re getting out of those improved visuals – and whether you even need them. The Huawei MateBook X Pro's smartphone connectivity features at work. Performance and battery life  This is where things get interesting because, between all of the available configurations for either model, these laptops will ultimately offer about the same level of performance. That’s because you can configure either laptop with the exact same parts inside. Both laptops start with the 8th-generation Intel Core i5-8265U processor, 8GB of memory and the Nvidia GeForce MX250 graphics processor, while the MateBook 14 and MateBook X Pro start with 256GB and 512GB of SSD space, respectively.  From there, either laptop can be upgraded to house the Core i7-8565U processor and up to 16GB of memory. Beyond this, only the MateBook X Pro can be upgraded to as much as 1TB of storage. So, it will be safe to expect similar levels of performance from both laptops. In fact, unless Huawei used a higher-wattage version of the MX250 in the MateBook X Pro, the extra pixels in its display will almost certainly introduce additional overhead and reduce the GPU’s effectiveness. It’s important to note, however, that the MateBook X Pro will be able to make more use of these components in one important way: connectivity. The MateBook 14 has one USB-C 3.1 port, one USB 3.0 port, one USB 2.0 port and an HDMI port.  These all help make the MateBook 14 ultimately compatible and versatile, but don’t tap into the laptop’s power as much as the MateBook X Pro’s ports can. This is because of Thunderbolt 3, currently the fastest kind of USB-C port with data transfer rates of up to 40Gbps. Depending on the kind of user you are, that speed could come in awful handy. Otherwise, your experience using a similarly configured MateBook 14 and MateBook X Pro will likely be largely the same, save for niceties such as screen sharpness and how quickly you can throw large files onto a flash drive.  However, know that the MateBook 14 is rated for 14 hours of battery life under general use, while the MateBook X Pro can achieve just 12 in comparison. Given that both laptops have the same battery capacity, this is easily chalked up to the increased pixel density of the MateBook X Pro display. A view of the MateBook 14's Type-A USB ports. Price  While we only have European Union pricing to go off of, these prices are plenty telling as to how they’ll be positioned worldwide. (Unless configurations change drastically, which is highly unlikely.) Here’s how all of the configurations break down at a basic level:  Huawei MateBook 14 ((i5/ 8GB RAM/ 256GB SSD/ MX250): €1,199  Huawei MateBook 14 (i7/ 16GB RAM/ 512GB SSD/ MX250/ Touch): €1,499  Huawei MateBook X Pro (i5/ 8GB RAM/ 512GB SSD/ MX250/ Touch): €1,599  Huawei MateBook X Pro (i7/ 16GB RAM/ 1TB SSD/ MX250/ Touch): €1,999  If you look closely, you’ll notice that you can get functionally the same laptop in the MateBook 14 as the MateBook X Pro for a whopping €400 less. Likewise, you can get a majority of the souped-up MateBook X Pro’s improvements within the MateBook 14 – touchscreen included. Of course, you’re missing out on Thunderbolt 3 connectivity and a massively sharp screen in either case. But, you’re also gaining up to two hours of battery life, should you go with the MateBook 14. The Huawei MateBook X Pro Takeaway  At first, it’s easy to see the extreme similarities in Huawei’s two new laptops to be perhaps uninspired and cynical. After all, certain companies known for all-aluminum products are also known for intentionally confusing their customers into buying things they don’t need. But, here, Huawei is allowing customers to save money on features or niceties they don’t need or even want on their computer to get the same power that its highest-end laptop provides. So, if you don’t find yourself making much use of Thunderbolt 3 ports or gobs of SSD space, or don’t need quite that sharp of a screen, then save yourself a ton of money with the MateBook 14 and have largely the same experience. If you need any of those features that badly, then it’s going to cost you. These are the best laptops the world over Images Credit: TechRadar This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now

Best gaming laptops 2019: the 10 top gaming laptops we've reviewed Posted: 28 Feb 2019 11:39 AM PST If you would have asked us to find the best gaming laptop a few years ago, we would have pointed you to something with an Intel Core i7 processor, dedicated graphics and 8GB of RAM. A lot has changed in the last few years, though, and the best gaming laptops come in every shape and size. Because it’s harder than ever to find the best gaming laptops, we’ve picked out a few of our favorite devices.  And, while plenty of gaming laptops look like ordinary office devices, you shouldn’t ignore them. Thanks to Nvidia Turing Max-Q graphics for laptops, revealed at CES 2019, the best gaming laptops are stealthy – like the aptly named MSI GS65 Stealth. Don’t worry, though, there are still huge desktop replacement laptops like the MSI GT75 Titan if that’s more your style. So, whether you’re looking for a desktop replacement, packed with an RTX graphics card that can handle Metro Exodus and Anthem with all the bells and whistles, or if you want something thin and light so you can play games in the office, you’ll find something that fits your needs here. We’ve even found some budget models like the Dell G3. And, don’t worry, we’ve tested these gaming laptops ourselves, so you can be sure you’re getting your money’s worth.   These days, many gaming laptop manufacturers seem to be locked into a race to see who can craft the thinnest gaming laptop that doesn’t compromise on power. And, right now, the crown might have to go to the Asus ROG Zephyrus GX701. At just 0.7 inches thick, this monster of a laptop houses an Intel Coffee Lake Core i7 chip, Nvidia GeForce RTX 2080 Max-Q graphics and 16GB of RAM. That means you can crank any PC game under the sun to max settings, and take it with you wherever you go. And, of course, it’s packed with RGB lighting that’ll dazzle anyone that looks at it. Read the full review: Asus ROG Zephyrus S GX701  If you want to play some of the best PC games on the move, but you don’t want everyone to know you’re playing games, the MSI GS65 Stealth is the best gaming laptop for you. Coming in at just .69 inches thick and featuring impressive hardware like Intel Coffee Lake processors and Nvidia GeForce GTX 10-series – refreshed with RTX 20-series graphics at CES – the MSI GS65 Stealth packs a ton of power into a very svelte package. There’s nothing you won’t be able to throw at this thing that’ll slow it down. And, thanks to the subdued design, you’ll be able to bring this beefy rig everywhere you go, making it the best gaming laptop on the market right now. Read the full review: MSI GS65 Stealth  Some gaming laptops just don’t pull any punches, enabling you to run any game you can imagine without breaking a sweat – and the MSI GT75 Titan is one of these laptops. It’s a titanic desktop replacement packing 6-core Intel Coffee Lake processors, plenty of RAM and powerful Nvidia Pascal graphics. You’re not going to be able to carry it around with you, and it’s not going to be something you’ll be caught with in a coffee shop, but if raw power is what you’re after, look no further. Just be ready to break open your piggy bank.  Read the full review: MSI GT75 Titan Thin and light gaming laptops are everywhere right now, but if you don’t care about that, and want a thick, heavy and monstrous laptop that can demolish any game you throw at it – the Asus ROG G703GI is for you. This is a massive – and expensive – laptop, but it justifies its size and price with gaming performance that rivals the best gaming PCs. Just don’t think you’ll be able to haul it along with you to your local coffee shop without its two power bricks – or awkward stares. Read the full review: Asus ROG G703GI  The Razer Blade might still have an unbearably edgy name, but now that the 2018 version is here, it’s fitting – it’s still on the cutting edge. Beyond its insanely high-end specs and beautiful chassis, it can fit up to a 4K Ultra-HD display, with the specs to actually back it up. That’s not to mention the expandability that the Razer Core X opens up. It might be expensive, but if you’re a Razer fan looking for the best gaming laptop, it might just be for you.     Read the full review: Razer Blade If you want one of the best gaming laptops, but don’t want to miss out on the ultra-portable craze, you need to consider the Dell XPS 15 2-in-1. Packed with an Intel Kaby Lake G-series processor, this gaming laptop can keep up with its competitors rocking a GTX 1050 without featuring truly discrete graphics. And, when you combine that gaming horsepower with a chassis that looks this good, it’s a total win – even if you have to endure some fan noise to get there.  Read the full review: Dell XPS 15 2-in-1  It may not boast the most innovative design, substituting the usual black and red aesthetic for one that makes it feel like Halloween all year round (no complaints here). But, it’s undoubtedly one of the best when it comes to gaming in 1080p. In fact, we were able to crank the setting s all the way up in Overwatch without ever straying below 60fps. It doesn’t feature the longest battery life, but the screen, power and onboard sound system more than make up for it. Read the full review: Asus ROG Strix GL502 This product is only available in the US and UK at the time of this writing. Australian readers: check out a fine alternative in the Alienware 17 R5 When you’re setting out to buy one of the best gaming laptops, one of the first things you’ll likely notice is how expensive they can get. Luckily, the Dell G3 15 is not just extremely affordable, but it punches above its weight class with great 1080p gaming performance. With up to an Nvidia GTX 1060 GPU, you’ll be able to play all the latest games at 1080p without breaking a sweat, even if it’s not at max settings all the time. And, that blue on black color combo is quite a looker, if that’s your aesthetic.  Read the full review: Dell G3 15  It used to be that the best gaming laptops were thick, bulky devices that were necessary to experience the best PC games on the move. Those days are over. The Gigabyte Aero 15 packs a 6-core 8th-generation Intel Core i7 processor and a GTX 1060 into a package that allows it to pass as an Ultrabook. And, thanks to that beefy 6-core processor, it’s not just one of the best gaming laptops – it’s one of the best laptops, period. Read the full review: Gigabyte Aero 15 Ever since Intel unveiled its i9-8950HK, we just knew that it would find its way behind the best gaming laptops 2018 had to offer, and we’ve been proven right heading into 2019. The Alienware 17 R5 is a beast of a gaming laptop with the aforementioned CPU and an overclocked GTX 1080. If you’re willing to get an absolute tank of a laptop that weighs nearly 10 pounds, this hulking computer will demolish any and all games you throw at it. Just don’t expect to throw it in a bag without some severe back pain. Read the full review: Alienware 17 R5 Image Credit: TechRadar Gabe Carey and Bill Thomas have also contributed to this article Want more choices? Check out our list of the best laptop 2019 This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now

Tetris 99 and the best free Nintendo Switch games Posted: 28 Feb 2019 11:08 AM PST With over 1,000 games on the Nintendo Switch, there can be a daunting amount of titles to choose from - and often more than your poor wallet can handle. So where better to start than with some free games. But, with just over 25 games that are actually free to play on the Switch, there’s considerably less garbage to sift through compared to say the smartphone market. Indeed, many either have pretty pristine production values or won't insidiously ask you to cough up cash every other minute, and we daresay a few stand out as some of the best games on the system, period. Who says the best things in life aren’t free? From battle royales to MOBAs to a surprise RPG, we’ve rounded up a list of the best free Nintendo Switch games you can play right now. Fortnite Image credit: Epic Games The biggest gaming phenomenon in the world, Fortnite needs no introduction. This battle royale sees 100 players dropping onto an island where you'll to fight to the death alone, in pairs, groups or in an epic 50 vs 50.  Its vibrant, wacky personality makes it a great fit for Switch, while all the hidden challenges and building mechanics make it more than just a game about running around killing people. While forking out for a Battle Pass nets you the coolest cosmetics and silly dances,  each new season of free content is constantly reshaping the island and bringing fresh surprises. Even better, its new Creative mode is also free. Warframe Image credit: Digital Extremes A super-fast and slick PvE game whether you’re playing solo or with friends, Warframe is one of those Switch ports that looked almost impossible. Indeed, the port was handled by Panic Button, the studio behind the miraculous ports of Doom, Wolfenstein 2 and Rocket League for Nintendo’s hybrid. There may be some visual downgrades from its PC counterpart, but its locked 30fps frame rate still ensures your titular space ninjas are swift in combat whether you’re using melee weapons or guns (motion controls are also supported for aiming).  Most importantly you’re getting all the content and updates that this game has seen on all other platforms in the six years it’s existed. Arena of Valor Image credit: Timi Studio Group Arena of Valor is an arcadey take on the MOBA (multiplayer online battle arena) genre, but also an example of how a game originally made for mobile can shine on Switch, with huge visual improvements and controls intuitively mapped to sticks and buttons. You can play from 1v1 to the full traditional 5v5 battles that include the MOBA staple of fighting your way through a three-lane map in an effort to get past the opposing team’s towers and destroy their core. However, unlike other free-to-play MOBAs like DOTA2, you only get to play with a limited number of free heroes on weekly rotation, so if you want to experiment with all the available classes and unique abilities, you’re either going to have to play a lot or pay real money to unlock them. Paladins Image credit: Hi-Rez Studios Despite initially launching on Switch with the paid Founder’s Pack, the free version of Paladins is just as worth looking into. The next best thing to Overwatch, it’s a hero shooter you can play in first or third-person, supporting motion controls, and unlike Fortnite or Warframe, it actually runs at a smooth 60fps. It’ll take a lot of play time to unlock all 40 playable champions, though it’s at least good to know that everything can be accessed eventually just by playing the game. But even if you’re just dropping in to casually play matches, you’ll still get a chance to experiment with the roster as its champions are also available on a free weekly rotation. Pokémon Quest Image credit: Game Freak Your favorite Pokémon get the Minecraft treatment in this relaxing game where you explore an island befriending cuboid versions of the adorable critters. For some, it might be too relaxing, especially as you can opt to just have the game running in auto-play during the very simplistic battles. Since arriving on Switch last year, its appeal may have waned in light of the Let’s Go games. Nonetheless, it’s still an enjoyable distraction that’s surprisingly generous with its freemium systems, while the island is made of 12 different areas that can keep you exploring for some time. It just might be better to enjoy in the background while you’re catching up on Netflix.  Brawlhalla Image credit: Blue Mammoth Games Yes, Brawlhalla may be an unabashed Smash clone, but it’s also one that you can play for free, and the only entry in this list that you can gather some mates around to play together. As a platform fighter, the principles of damaging your opponents until they’re weak enough to be knocked off the stage remain intact, as is the simple and accessible control scheme. For a clone, Brawlhalla has its own personality thanks its vibrant Saturday morning cartoon art style. And if it kind of reminds you of Rayman, then you’ll be pleased to know you can actually play as Rayman too! While you can either grind or pay up to unlock its 40+ character roster, Brawlhalla generously provides eight free characters on rotation. Galak-Z: Variant S Image credit: 17-Bit An anime-inspired sci-fi shooter that began life on PS4 and PC, Galak-Z: Variant S is both a sequel and an overhaul of the original’s roguelike mechanics, adapted instead into a freemium experience. Piloting both a mech and a fighter jet, you’re on the search for rare upgrades while taking on genuinely tough enemies and hazardous environments. The freemium system means you can expect timers for just about everything from decrypting relics to repairing your ship when you lose all your health unless you fast-track them with some premium currency. But if you can patiently play it in short bursts, there’s a lot Galak-Z has to offer. Deltarune: Chapter 1 Image credit: Toby Fox From Undertale creator Toby Fox comes the mysterious Deltarune. Technically, it’s only the first chapter and is being released as a free work-in-progress demo, while future episodes will cost money. We’re going to make an exception with this 'demo' because a) these episodes could be years from happening, and b) this is a pretty meaty first taste, lasting as long as some of the best indie games out there. While it’ll naturally benefit players who have already played and finished Undertale,  on its own it’s still a fascinating and charming old-school turn-based RPG. Like its predecessor, it employs an innovative twist to its battle system, which is party-based this time round. Tetris 99 Image credit: Nintendo OK, so Tetris 99 is only available to paying members of the Switch Online Service. But you know what, we’re going to make another exception because it’s just brilliant! Tetris, but battle royale, might sound like an early April Fools joke, however, the classic drop puzzler works absolute wonders when played against 98 other players. Your rivals will appear in miniaturized forms around your screen in real-time, as you frantically drop blocks and clear as many lines as you can to send garbage blocks to your opponents, all while the game speed and a remixed Tetris theme get faster. Tetris 99 is a beautiful subversion of what a battle royale and a Tetris game can be, and for those hooked to crack the final 10 and win, get ready to learn about back-to-backs, T-spins and tumble down a rabbit hole of competitive Tetris pro strats. Read more: Best Nintendo Switch games - must-have games to play in 2019 This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now

Developers enjoying higher UK paychecks Posted: 28 Feb 2019 10:42 AM PST Learning to code is certainly paying off for UK developers who earn 145 percent more than the country's average pay of £29k according to new research from Hired. The career marketplace's new global State of Software Engineers Report 2019 has revealed that the UK's top developers embedded engineers, earn an average of £71k.  However, the US is still a more profitable place to work for skilled coders with the top paid developers in San Francisco's Bay Area earning 66 percent more than their UK counterparts with an average annual salary of £118k. Tech's ultimate success: software developers are now more valuable to companies than money These are the best laptops for programming What is application development and delivery? Hired's report also shed light on the fact that global demand for blockchain skills is up by 517 percent compared to this time last year. High demand for developers While blockchain engineers are in highest demand, security engineers are also being courted by companies with demand for workers to fill this role growing by 132 percent. The top three best paid London developer positions are embedded engineer at £71k, blockchain engineer at £69k and data engineer at £68k. The report also revealed that one in five software engineers are self-taught coders and less than half have a computer science degree. Many of these coders learned their skills from developer bootcamps, such as General Assembly and Hack Reactor, and 76 percent of those who did said these workshops helped prepare them for a software engineering job. JavaScript is the most commonly used coding language though Go, Scala and Ruby are the most in-demand languages. Hired's CEO Mehul Patel provided further insight on the report's findings, saying: “Empowering tech talent with data that helps them understand their market worth and reveals hiring trends will help them have a more seamless job search experience. We hope this insight will fuel thoughtful career conversations among the developer community and provide actionable data that will help software engineers reach their goals.”  We've also highlighted the best Linux distros for developers This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now

Thunderclap hack makes Macs and PCs with Thunderbolt ports vulnerable Posted: 28 Feb 2019 10:01 AM PST If you’ve bought a recently released MacBook, Windows laptop or really any PC equipped with a Thunderbolt port, there’s a new vulnerability you should watch out for. The new vulnerability has been dubbed Thunderclap and it could leave computers open to serious attacks such as running malicious code on your system. This is on top of the usual, unwarranted access to important data like passwords, encryption keys and any other sensitive data stored on your system. It’s really bad news mainly because Thunderbolt’s protocols are designed with OS-level access and direct-memory access (DMA) to support high-speed data transfer, video out and its other myriad features. This vulnerability takes advantage of all that high-level access to do more harm. Secure your computer with the best antivirus software Got other macOS 10.14 Mojave problems? We've got the solutions you need We can also help you fix 100 common Windows 10 problems According to the group of researchers that announced Thunderclap at the Network and Distributed System Security Symposium in San Diego, the Thunderclap vulnerability won’t just affect the latest machines equipped with Thunderbolt 3, but older devices that provide Thunderbolt connectivity through DisplayPort instead of USB-C.  Thunderclap will specifically affect “all Apple laptops and desktops produced since 2011 are vulnerable, with the exception of the 12-inch MacBook. Many laptops, and some desktops, designed to run Windows or Linux produced since 2016 are also affected."  How to stay protected from Thunderclap Now the good news is the team of researchers discovered the problem in 2016 and have been working with manufacturers to develop fixes ever since.  MacBooks and other Apple computers running at least macOS 10.12.4 should be partially protected from the bug and newer updates should provide even better protection. Meanwhile, Windows 10 version 1803 provides firmware level protection for devices. The best way to protect yourself from being Thunderclap-ped is to immediately update any computers you have with the latest version of their respective operating systems. Users who want that extra layer of protection can also disable Thunderbolt protocols in your computer's BIOS or UEFI settings. For the most part, this probably won’t be a vulnerability that will affect most users as it can only be introduced directly through a device’s Thunderbolt port. Most users should be safe just by being vigilant about what they plug into their devices.  The first wall of defense from online threads is the best free firewall Via The Verge This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now

Retailers facing more bot attacks than ever Posted: 28 Feb 2019 09:58 AM PST From May to December of last year, hackers directed credential abuse attempts at retail sites more than 10bn times according to new research from Akamai. The firm's 2019 State of the Internet / Security: Retail Attacks and API Traffic report shed light on the fact that the retail industry was the most targeted segment by hackers while also highlighting the prevalence of API-call traffic on the web and the misrepresentation of Ipv6-based traffic. Akamai studied the credential abuse technique known as credential stuffing for its report and examined how hackers have begun to employ botnets to steal login credentials from retail websites. These stolen credentials are used to compromise accounts from which hackers acquire retail merchandise and resell it for cash. Bots try to break the internet, and other trends for 2019 Breaking the credential reuse cycle Half of malicious emails tied to credential phishing According to the report, the AIO bots deployed by hackers are multi-function tools that enable quick purchases by leveraging credential stuffing and a number of evasion techniques. For example, a single AIO bot can target over 120 retailers at the same time. Credential abuse Media and entertainment properties are notable credential abuse victims as well due to the highly valuable personal information these sites maintain. Since end users share their credit card information and demographic data when signing up for over-the-top (OTT) online streaming services, this data is particularly valuable to hackers who sell it on the black market. Akamai also noted significant numbers of credential abuse attacks launched against financial services, hotel and travel and consumer goods sites. Security Researcher and Editorial Director of the company's latest report, Martin McKeay explained why retail sites have become a high value target for hackers in a statement, saying: "The techniques change, but the motivation remains the same: greed. Retailers remain on the front lines, because stolen merchandise sells quickly and at a premium. And for that reason, the data shows which merchandise is of the highest value: Apparel sites are targeted the most."  We've also highlighted the best antivirus to help protect you from the latest cyber threats This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now

Smash Bros Ultimate DLC: all the post-launch content coming in 2019 Posted: 28 Feb 2019 09:34 AM PST Super Smash Bros Ultimate’s DLC is coming. While not everyone will feel a need to add to the game’s already towering roster of fighters, those who can’t get enough of their Smash Bros fix will be waiting to pounce on the additional fighters, outfits, soundtracks and more coming their way in 2019. Super Smash Bros Ultimate is the biggest, and possibly the best, Smash Bros fighting game to grace our Nintendo consoles. Packed to bursting with over 100 stages, 74 starting fighters, and a dedicated single-player mode alongside tons of co-op content, and there’s never been as much Smash Bros to enjoy in one place. Not content to rest on its laurels, though, it’s clear Nintendo has big plans for Smash Bros UItimate beyond its recent launch. You don’t put all that work into one game just to replace it two or three years in, after all – and Nintendo will be hoping to keep players buying and playing their title well into the next decade if they can. So what downloadable content / DLC can players hope to get in 2019? Here’s our list of everything on the cards, and how you can make sure you don’t miss out. Image Credit: Nintendo Smash Bros Ultimate DLC characters The real draw of Smash Bros DLC is in the fighters. Nintendo has teased a total of five fighters coming over the next year, though only a couple have been announced so far. Piranha Plant (available for download) A potted plant may not seem like the best fit for an action-packed fighting game, but Piranha Plant is a classic Mario nemesis going back decades – Nintendo certainly likes to play by its own rules. You can see some of Piranha Plant's moves in the video below, including a monstrous Final Smash featuring Petey Piranha. Players who bought Super Smash Bros Ultimate by the end of January 2019 had a chance to download the fighter early, but Piranha Plant is now available on the Switch eShop for $4.49 (£4.49 / AU$7.80). Joker (coming April 2019) No, not that Joker. Nintendo teased the trickster from Atlus’ paranormal RPG Persona 5 shortly after Ultimate’s launch, with a nifty animated teaser you can see below – showing off a glimpse of the game’s eye-catching graphic art style that we’re hoping will be carried over with the fighter. There are a ton of fun combat possibilities, with surely some of them seeing Joker draw on supernatural forces… Persona 5 is a PS3 / PS4 exclusive, though, making Joker's appearance on Switch all the more intriguing – and fuelling speculation that Persona 5 could be coming to Nintendo Switch. Smash Bros Ultimate Challenger Packs Technically you don’t just get a new fighter with each DLC pack. The new fighters each come in a bundle called a ‘Challenger Pack’, which throw in a new stage, and new soundtrack alongside the new character. You can buy each of the five Challenger's Packs individually for $5.99 (£5.39 / AU$7.80).  Alternatively you can buy an all-inclusive Fighters Pass for $24.99 (£22.49 / AU$32.50), which nets you each pack as it arrives, as well as a Mii Fighter outfit based on Xenoblade 2's Rex. Image Credit: Nintendo Smash Bros Ultimate DLC leaks and rumors So what of the remaining unannounced characters? Rumored leaks come through regularly, though so far none have really proved to be particularly trustworthy. We’ve heard calls for Banjo Kazooie so often it’s started hurting our ears. And while we’d love to see Crash Bandicoot or Spyro the Dragon appear on the roster, we aren’t holding out. Some proactive datamining of Smash Bros Ultimate seems to have preempted the Joker announcement (under a file name ending ‘Jack’), while another file labelled ‘brave’ could arguably refer to Dragon Quest 3 hero Erdick, given the Japanese name for the hero would translate as ‘brave man’. You can read the whole conspiracy theory over at GamesRadar. Could we see Doomguy on Switch? (Image credit: Bethesda) There are also reports of the shotgun-wielding demon-slayer from Doom featuring in the list – and given Bethesda’s increasing library of ports to the Nintendo Switch, we think this one actually seems pretty likely. Perhaps a joint Xbox / Nintendo announcement at E3 2019, to show off more of Doom Eternal alongside a Smash Bros rendering of Doomguy? It’s worth mentioning that the confirmed DLC listed above is only the road-map for 2019, or possibly briefly into 2020 new year. Nintendo are unlikely to let new content dry up entirely, so we could be seeing a steady drip of new fighters – or other game modes and customization options – coming in the long term. How to unlock every character in Smash Bros Ultimate How Smash Bros 64 became kind of the crossovers This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now

Best premium WordPress themes of 2019 Posted: 28 Feb 2019 09:25 AM PST While there are thousands of free WordPress themes available, these are mostly suitable for hobbyists and small-time websites.  Whether you are a food lover looking to monetize your passion or a business owner who wants to raise your company's profile, WordPress can help. In this guide, you’ll discover five premium WordPress themes suitable for a wide range of professional users. By paying a few dollars, you’ll benefit from extra features such as displaying pictures in a slideshow or ecommerce compatibility. We've also highlighted the best ecommerce WordPress themes X X is a paid WordPress theme suitable for all types of websites.  The theme comes with four categories of built-in demos. Each of these themes cover a wide variety of potential projects. This means that no matter what you have in mind, X more than likely has a design suited to your needs. X comes with Cornerstone, one of the most popular WordPress web page builders. The drag and drop feature is easy to use. Users are able to see exactly what their page will look like live as they are building. This enables users to change and edit while building their site. There are a huge number of customization options, with which users can build a unique webpage. X comes with a feature called ‘the customizer’. This is a handy tool as many premium themes come with their own theme options page that are not entirely compatible with WordPress. ‘The Customizer’ is highly intuitive. It integrates seamlessly with WordPress. It will help you to customize the look and feel of your website. The regular license for X is $59 (£44.4) which includes future updates and 6 months customer support. Users can opt to extend support to 12-months for an additional $17.63 (£13.3). You can sign up for X here Divi Divi is a multi-purpose theme. It has website options for most users and is highly customizable. The theme comes with WooCommerce functionality. The drag and drop feature allows users to include pricing tables, video sliders, tabs and videos. A rating module is also available. Users can access a variety of pre-built layouts. These range from creating a sales page, multiple blog layouts and a variety of portfolio types. Divi is one of the few WordPress themes to include a front-end page builder tool with point and click editing. This gives users instant feedback on any editing that takes place. Users can upload logos, choose a new color palette, decide how many posts are displayed on a page and setup social media integrations amongst others. Newer users will find Divi particularly simple to use as you don’t need any coding skill or any former experience building websites. The user-friendly interface makes this process seamless. Divi allows you to use multiple rows, columns and content elements. All layouts are fully responsive. The theme comes with an impressive array of content elements which include audio player, bar counter, blog, number counter, shop, testimonial and contact form amongst others. Divi can also be translated into more than 30 languages such as Chinese, Arabic, Czech, Russian and Spanish. Users can try a demo version of Divi for free. Users can also purchase a one-year subscription to all of Elegant Themes’ products for $89 (£67.69). There is also a Lifetime option for $249 (£187.4). You can sign up for Divi here Uncode Uncode is a multi-purpose theme suitable for most users.  The theme offers users a huge variety of website demos. These include classic, portfolio, blog and ecommerce layouts. Uncode’s images are fully adaptive so that they adjust automatically to whatever screen size they are being viewed on. Users can edit their demos through the WPBakery Page Builder Plugin. They can also access to the handy drag and drop content editor. Uncode is compatible with most third-party plugins. The themes large media library makes it easier for users to embed any type of media to your WordPress site. Uncode has over 6 different menu types with advanced options. These include top right, justify, left, center, overlay, offcanvas and lateral. The theme is WPML certified and offers RTL (Right to Left) support. The premium themes included are VC Page Builder, VC Clipboard, VC Particles, LayerSlider, Slider Revolution and iLightBox. In the recent update, new features are available like animated headlines and highlighting effects, among other things. You can purchase for $59 (£44.87) and includes future updates and 6 months support. If you want to extend support to 12 months, an additional $17.63 (£13.3) is needed.  Some online commentators have expressed frustration over difficulties with customization. You can sign up for Uncode here The Core The Core is a multi-purpose theme which requires no coding skills. The theme has been built on the Unyson network to aid with customization. Users have access to the fully featured page builder. This allows you to edit the demos that are included or create new layouts to suit your needs.  The Core theme includes demo content install. Users can choose from three different sliders: Slider Revolution, Layers Slider and its own custom-built slider.  The theme is retina ready and fully responsive. Users can edit the colors of their theme using simple color pickers. The Core is also fully compatible with the WooCommerce plugin. Users have access to Google’s free collection of fonts. You can also choose to use the sticky header to ensure your menu bar always remains visible no matter how far down you scroll. The Core is translation ready and is compatible with WPML. Support is available through live chat 24/7 or email. There are also over 100 support articles. Users can purchase the theme for $49 (£37.26).  Online commentators have lamented the lack of a front-end page builder. You can sign up for The Core here Foodie Pro Foodie Pro helps users to create a beautiful blog based around all sorts of culinary delights. It is created by the Genesis Framework. This means your website will have a solid combination of this Framework along with WordPress. The theme comes with a huge amount of typography and color options. Users can build their site using up to 3 homepage and 5 site wide widget areas. These can be customized to fit around your brand. The theme allows users to upload their own logo with one click. There is also full support for text-based logos. Foodie Pro’s ‘Theme Customizer’ allows users to customize the theme’s settings, colors and backgrounds images. The ‘Foodie Pro Theme’ can be purchased for $129.95 (£98.85) for one year. This includes the Genesis Framework, Foodie Pro Theme, instant access, unlimited updates, supports, sites and access to detailed tutorials. If this is not enough, users can avail of the ‘Pro Plus Membership’ for $499.95 (£380.22). This includes all the ‘Foodie Pro Theme’ has to offer plus access to every theme the company makes including future themes. You can sign up for Foodie Pro here Top Image Credit: The Core We've also highlighted the best website hosting services This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now

The best calendar app 2019: top apps for scheduling meetings Posted: 28 Feb 2019 09:00 AM PST Having the best calendar app installed on your smartphone, tablet or PC can make a world of difference to your time management. Not only do the best calendar apps tell you the date, but they can keep you posted about upcoming events and meetings. They can also give you directions to where the meetings are, invite other people or tell them if you're running late. In this guide to the best calendar apps of 2019, we take a look at a range of calendar apps for mobile devices and computers. Image credit: Any.do Any.do is our pick of the best all-round calendar app. It is available on mobile and desktop platforms, but it really shines on mobile thanks to an easy-to-use interface that gives you all the tools and information you need on smaller touchscreens. It easily connects to existing calendar apps to import events, and it color codes various calendars and events to help keep everything in order. It's not as in-depth as some specialised business calendar apps, but for most people this is a brilliant way of keeping your meetings and appointments in order. Best of all, there's a free version you can try. Image credit: Flexibits If you've got a wide range of Apple devices, from MacBooks to iPhones and even an Apple Watch, then Fantastical 2 is the best calendar app for you. It has an app for pretty much every Apple product, and has been built from the ground up to support macOS. Best of all, it all syncs seamlessly between your devices, making this a powerful and useful calendar apps for Apple fanatics. You can quickly and easily set up meetings and events, and it can also check to make sure your coworkers are available for a proposed meeting using Google Apps or Exchange, making it a more powerful app than Apple's default calendar. Image credit: Appgenix Software Android users are a bit spoiled, as the default Google Calendar app is so good, however, the best calendar app for Android devices is Business Calendar 2. Don't be put off by its name, as although this is an app that's geared towards business use, it is an attractive and easy-to-use calendar app that is perfect for home users as well. It comes with a number of themes and widgets that lets you customise the look and feel of your calendars. It does an excellent job of handling multiple calendars and displaying them in an easy-to-understand layout and it comes as a free download. There's also a pro version that removes ads and includes a few extra features, all for a reasonable price. Image credit: Microsoft If you're a Windows 10 user, then Microsoft's very own Outlook Calendar is arguably the best calendar app for you. It integrates closely into Windows 10 and uses the same Microsoft account you use to log into Windows, which means your contacts, events and calendars should all be waiting there for you. It's free, but if you subscribe to Microsoft's Office 365 service then you get premium features that makes it an essential business calendar app as well. You can even connect your LinkedIn account. Despite it being made by Microsoft, the Outlook Calendar is available on a huge range of platforms, including Android and iOS, and you can view your calendar online as well. Image credit: Mozilla There are a number of open source calendar apps for Linux, but in our view the Lightning add-on for Mozilla's Thunderbird email client is the best. It has an easy to use (if slightly dated) interface, and as an add-on it integrates easily with Thunderbird, allowing you to turn emails into events, as well as respond to meeting invitations. You can easily manage multiple calendars and to-do lists, and it's easily configurable as well. The downside is that it's not a standalone app, so you need to use it with Thunderbird (and install it from the Thunderbird add-ons website). However, Thunderbird is also one of the best email clients, so we'd recommend installing it anyway. It also works with Windows PCs. Best business laptops 2019: top laptops for work This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now

The best iPhone 5S deals in March 2019 Posted: 28 Feb 2019 08:58 AM PST It's been long replaced by the iPhone SE as Apple's go to budget handset, but if you're looking for a cheap iPhone then the iPhone 5S deals are worth considering before committing to your purchase. Unfortunately deals are now far between and we would recommend going for something newer like the iPhone 6S Plus or iPhone SE if you want an iPhone for a budget price. Apple is no longer producing iPhone 5S handsets, and so it's no longer available on contract brand new from any of the major networks. But if you're still interested you can still get one. Refurbished models come on to the market from time to time (although their prices don't look too good) and there are still plenty of retailers stocking the 5S handset only, and for well less than £200. So you could easily buy it SIM-free and then get hold of a cheap SIM only deal to put in it. This will give you much more flexibility than getting it on contract anyway. We've built a dedicated comparison chart below showing all the best unlocked iPhone 5S prices, or hit the 'Handsets' tab at the top of the first table. More options: iPhone SE deals | iPhone X deals | iPhone 6S deals | iPhone 6 deals | iPhone deals | SIM only deals iPhone 5S debuted Apple's newfangled fingerprint sensor and 64-bit processor three years ago, and it's still a viable smartphone for anyone on a budget. It's held up well enough with a good camera and iOS 11 software update - just don't expect the specs of the iPhone X! Read Techradar's full iPhone 5S review here This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now

Samsung launches fastest flash chip Posted: 28 Feb 2019 08:56 AM PST Samsung has announced that it has started mass producing the world's first 512GB smartphone chip with embedded Universal Flash Storage (eUFS) 3.0 specifications. The new chip could find its way into the Galaxy Fold and other upcoming smartphones from the Korean hardware giant, giving them read and write speeds comparable to ultra-fast laptops. Back in 2017, Samsung first debuted a 512GB eUFS but that chip had sequential read speeds of 860MB per second and write speeds of 255MB per second. The company's latest offering more than doubles its sequential read speed to 2,100MB per second with write speeds also seeing an increase to 410MB per second. Will Samsung enjoy first mover advantage with 5G? Samsung launches first-ever US retail stores Samsung invests $22bn in AI and 5G To put things in perspective, the UFS 2.1 chips Samsung launched in January are only half as fast as the new 3.0 model. eUFS 3.0 chips According to Samsung, its new chips' read speeds are 20 times faster than a typical microSD card and even manage to be four times faster than a SATA SSD. The company's executive vice president of memory sales and marketing, Cheol Choi explained how its new chips give it a leg up on the next-generation of mobile phones in a statement, saying: “Beginning mass production of our eUFS 3.0 lineup gives us a great advantage in the next-generation mobile market to which we are bringing a memory read speed that was before only available on ultra-slim laptops. As we expand our eUFS 3.0 offerings, including a 1-Terabyte (TB) version later this year, we expect to play a major role in accelerating momentum within the premium mobile market.”  Samsung's new 512GB eUFS chip will launch this month alongside a 128GB version though the company plans to start manufacturing a 1TB and 256GB model during the second half of the year. Via Engadget This is everything you need to know about Samsung Cloud Storage This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now

Polestar's new electric sports car is built to take on Tesla Posted: 28 Feb 2019 08:55 AM PST Polestar has unveiled its first fully-electric sports car – the Polestar 2 – with an explicit plan to take on Elon Musk. The five-door fastback will enter production in 2020, aimed at the same audience as the Tesla Model 3. "Polestar 2 is our first fully electric car and first volume model. Everything about it has been designed and engineered with passion and dedication," said the company's CEO Thomas Ingenlath. The guide purchase price of the launch version will be €59,900 (about $68,000/£51,000/AU$96,00). Polestar will announce subscription pricing at a later date. Electric vehicles explained: everything you need to know Everything you need to know about wireless EV charging Your complete guide to self-driving cars In an unusual move, the car's infotainment system is powered by Android, giving drivers access to a the Google Play Store's full collection of apps. Google Maps will provide turn-by-turn navigation on an 11-inch touchscreen. Powered up Convenient charging looks set to be one of the Polestar 2's main attractions. The company, which is jointly owned by Volvo and Chinese automaker Geely, says it's working with the owners of public charging networks so drivers can juice up whenever they need to. Tesla, meanwhile, is planning to expand its Supercharger network throughout Europe this year, but recently ended its free referral program and raised prices by 10%. If Polestar can offer a more affordable alternative, it may be in with a chance of eating Elon Musk's lunch.  IBM's Watson can show you the fastest, easiest way to travel in cities This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now

Shenmue 3: release date, trailers and news Posted: 28 Feb 2019 08:43 AM PST It's been 18 years since the release of Shenmue 2, and, for a long time, it looked like we would never see another installation in the action-adventure series. But, thanks to unrelenting fans, the persistence of director Yu Suzuki, and a successful Kickstarter, we're finally seeing Shenmue 3 release in 2019 (apparently).  Continuing on from its predecessor, Shenmue 3 will continue the story of teenage martial artist Ryo Hazuki as he searches for his father's murderer in 1980's China.  So, without further ado, here's everything we know about Shenmue 3 so far. Cut to the chase What is it? The third instalment in the Shenmue action-adventure series What can I play it on? PS4 and PC  When can I play it? August 27, 2019 Shenmue 3 trailers The Prophecy trailer The most recent Shenmue 3 trailer gave us a closer look at the game's story and finally revealed an ambitious release date of August 27, 2019.  Take a look: Teaser trailer The first teaser trailer for Shenmue 3 showed us small slice of an in-development build of the game, and gave us a sneak peek at the new look of the main characters, new characters, as well as the re-imagined Shenmue world.  Check it out below: Shenmue 3 news  Delays Originally, we were due to get our hands on Shenmue 3 in December 2017 but, unsurprisingly, the release date was delayed into 2018. Publisher Deep Silver then announced the release window was once again being pushed back to 2019. It was finally revealed in August, 2018 that Shenmue 3 will release on August 27, 2019. Better late than never, right? Mini games and QTE will return It looks like mini games will be making a return – while new games will be added. A poll on the Shenmue 3 Kickstarter suggested the YS Net was trying to survey which were the favorites among fans. If you're a Lucky Hit fan then you'll be pleased to know that it seems to be returning – and apparently you can win special prizes from playing it and other mini games.  In addition, Suzuki has confirmed quick time events will also be returning, so get your reflexes ready. Image credit: YS Net Open-world Speaking to GamesRadar, Suzuki said: “I decided to go all-in with making the world-building distinctive. There are a lot of open-world games out there, but I don’t believe many, if any, are quite like Shenmue.” Read more: Most anticipated games 2019 This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now

The best free website builder 2019 Posted: 28 Feb 2019 08:32 AM PST Creating a website used to be the domain (geddit?) of professional designers and coders, but thanks to free website builder applications, these days it's something anyone can tackle. The problem is that there are so many website creation applications and services vying for attention that it can be difficult to know which one to opt for – this is where we can help. We've collated the very best free website builders available, including a mixture of offline software and online tools. It's usually quicker, easier and more efficient to create and edit a site entirely online with a WYSIWYG editor, but if you want complete control over every aspect of your site's design and web hosting, you'll need a desktop-based free website builder. So whether you're looking to create a site for your business, a new blog, or you just fancy creating an online presence for yourself, here are the best free website builder services to help you out. If you want website builders with more oomph and features, check out our best website builder shortlist which includes paid-for services. Wix makes it very easy to design a website, while giving experts plenty of power to customize elements if they need it Wix is a big-name website builder which offers a free plan, enabling you to have the run of this service without having to put your hand in your pocket. And you benefit from one of the most impressive website editors in the business. This editor can be run in ADI (Artificial Design Intelligence) mode, which has a very basic interface to keep everything really simple and user-friendly. This is great for beginners, as you can create a basic site without even remotely breaking a sweat (a range of attractive templates are provided, as well). Those who want to get more involved with tweaking the design of their website can step up to the full Wix editor, which boasts powerful functionality, and the ability to really hone your website and get it looking just as you want. Visual previews of page elements make it easy to pick what you need for any particular part of a web page, too. Wix is so polished that putting together your site using the editor feels more like using a native application rather than a website builder, and it also sports excellent support for a diverse range of media, and quality customer support as well, even on the free plan. In addition, Wix Turbo was recently released which improves the performance and speed of all Wix websites. Powerful blogging functionality rounds things off nicely, and you’re getting a truly high quality offering with the free version of this website builder. Try Wix online If you want to create a website as quickly as possible, look no further than Weebly. It's so easy to use, you'll have a great-looking site online in mere minutes Weebly offers you two ways to build your website. Both involve creating it online, and both are as quick and painless as possible. The simplest option is to use the basic editor builder which will guide you through a series of questions before automatically creating a site for you. There is scope for customization, but the focus here is really on fast results for anyone who is terrified of designing websites. A more hands-on approach is available if you decide to use the standard Editor. There are literally hundreds of stylish templates to choose from – and, yes, they are genuinely impressive – which you can tweak and tailor to your needs using a beautiful WYSIWYG editor. Despite being a cloud-based website builder, Weebly gives you a great degree of control over the look of your site and placement of page elements. You can also liven it up using additional features such as a newsletter and live chat. This power and flexibility make Weebly a top-notch website builder. Try Weebly online WordPress is the tool of choice for many blog owners. It takes a little getting used to, but once you've mastered it, you'll love its flexibility Causing a slight degree of confusion, there are actually two different versions of WordPress. The more complex variant can be downloaded from wordpress.org, and you will need to upload it to your own web space and install it using the automated online installer. You can then customize the templates and use add-ons to make the site your own. This is the route many bloggers go down, but there is a simpler option for people who don’t want the hassle of fiddling about with scripts and getting dirty with hardcore editing. The hosted version of WordPress lets you create your own site on wordpress.com. You can create everything from a blog or photo site, to a fully fledged online store, and there are a number of templates to choose from. Whether you're creating a static site, or a blog-style site with regularly updated content, the online editor is a joy to use and allows just about anyone to create an impressive, professional-looking site. The only downside is the limited range of plugins and templates compared with the desktop website builder. Try WordPress online Download WordPress WebSite X5 makes building a website on your desktop easy, with good-looking templates and an intuitive site builder Incomedia WebSite X5 normally sells for $19.99 (about £15/AU$27), but it's free to download for TechRadar readers. There is also a demo version that everyone can use for free. Unlike WordPress and Wix, WebSite X5 is a desktop website builder, which means you can work on your site offline and have more freedom to make your website look exactly the way you want. There's a range of ready-made templates to choose from, or you can create your own design from scratch. Next, build up your site map, showing the hierarchy of your pages and how they connect to one another – a feature you won't find in most web-based site builder apps. Once that's done, you're ready to start building your pages using Website X5's simple drag-and-drop interface, which includes tools for editing both rich text and photos.  If you don't want to be tied down to an online site builder, WebSite X5 is the tool for you. Download Incomedia Website X5 CoffeeCup Free HTML Editor isn't a WYSIWYG website builder, but it provides a live preview of your site as you create it CoffeeCup Free HTML Editor is one of a dying breed of web building programs that don't use a CMS (content management system). While not in the same league as the likes of Adobe Dreamweaver, Free HTML Editor packs quite a professional punch. With split screen code/preview views, it's possible to see the effect the changes you make have straight away. To help you get started quickly, there are a number of templates built into the program, and there are some very nice features such as tag and code suggestions as you type. For absolute beginners, the program might seem a little overwhelming to start with, but it's worth sticking with – assuming you have some HTML knowledge. There is one slight issue; a number of features, such as spell-checking and code optimization, are only included in the paid-for version of the program. CoffeeCup Free HTML Editor review Download CoffeeCup Free HTML Editor If you've used WordPress before, you might be interested in the power of Joomla. It's not as easy to use though, so beginners are better off sticking with a simpler option like Wix Joomla is a well-known name in the CMS world. It may not be as popular as WordPress, but it offers the same two options: build a site using the web app at launch.joomla.org and have it hosted on the company's servers, or download the software from joomla.org and host it yourself. If you choose the latter option, you'll notice that the interface is much less approachable than WordPress. It's not completely impenetrable, but there are lots of menus and options to work through and it doesn't feel quite as polished as WordPress. Joomla's online website builder is nearly as complex, but doesn't involve the same setup process, making it a better option for beginners. Its key selling point is a huge collection of themes and extensions, which provide endless ways to customize the way your site looks and works. Try Joomla online Download Joomla You might also want to check out our other website hosting buying guides: WordPress Cloud hosting E-commerce Dedicated server Small business Windows Managed Green Business Colocation Email hosting Resellers VPS Shared Cheap Website builders Best website hosting This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now

What is the IoT? Everything you need to know Posted: 28 Feb 2019 08:28 AM PST What is the IoT? The world around us is getting smarter and more connected as technology becomes a common sight in many areas. Digital devices are not just in our pockets or our offices, but increasingly in our homes, buildings, and many places and cities. Helping collect, analyse and monitor data and information about their surroundings, these devices are able to communicate with each other through the ‘Internet of Things’. Often shortened to the IoT, this worldwide, interconnected network allows devices to talk to each other and to us, delivering reams of data through smarter processes that will greatly increase the quality of life around the world.  The Internet of Things is predicted to revolutionise the way in which we live our lives, with many industry experts tipping it to have the biggest technological impact since cloud computing, as more data than ever before can be collected, stored and analysed. Many consumers are already enjoying the benefits of the IoT, as popular products such as the Amazon Echo smart speaker and the Nest thermostat from Google becoming common sights in homes around the world. But the wider world can also benefit from the IoT, with businesses being able to streamline previously complex and data-hungry processes through improved automation, freeing up employees for other tasks.  Public sector organisations such as hospitals can also use sensors to monitor patients more effectively, and local governments can monitor pollution, traffic levels, weather data, and much much more. The IoT is growing fast, and is set to affect more and more areas of our lives in the years to come, resulting in a smart world that previously was only imaginable in science fiction. IoT - the latest news and views 27/02 - Vodafone: Partnerships like AT&T and ARM will drive IoT success - Vodafone IoT platform boosted by new partnerships... 26/02 - SAP wants to power the next generation of IoT - SAP Leonardo IoT will help drive digital transformation for the IIoT and Industry 4.0... 19/02 - IoT technology now vital for business success - Vodafone report finds use cases for IoT are greater than ever... 05/02 - Insecure apps put half of IoT devices at risk - IoT apps lack encryption and leave devices vulnerable to hackers... 28/01 - Japanese government will hack citizens' IoT devices - Unconventional survey planned to help secure consumer IoT devices... 15/01 - UK firms can't tell if their IoT is secure - Only half can detect if their IoT devices have been breached... 14/01 - Open source may be the key to securing IoT - Adding ready-made software to IoT devices without having to write code... 09/01 - IoT devices now top priority for cybercriminals - Hackers utilise Thingbots to launch IoT attacks... 04/01 - IoT spending to reach new highs in 2019 - Manufacturing, transport and utilities will top IoT investment... 03/01 - Fake apps and IoT attacks top 2019 threats - Avast's 2019 Threat Landscape Report sheds light on this year's biggest threats... 27/12 - The Future of IoT connectivity - IoT vendors and network providers must work together... 20/12 - Malware threats continue to rise and target IoT - IoT malware and ransomware still on the rise, McAfee Labs report finds... 17/12 - Qualcomm 9205 LTE modem promises flexible connectivity and low power for IoT - New modem builds on success of predecessor... 05/12 - Top IoT standards could be compromised by hackers - Unsecured machine-to-machine deployments leave IoT devices at risk... 29/11 - Don’t bank on IoT - Trading security for convenience... 07/11 - How banks can create a successful IoT strategy - Infosys Finacle tells us why the IoT could be the key to a new level of innovation... 07/11 - How 5G will enable the next generation of IoT deployments - Canonical head tells us why next-generation networks are the key to innovation... 01/11 - What “x-as-a-service” means for IoT - It's never been easier to become a Mobile Virtual Network Operator... 31/10 - CIOs fear "burden" of IoT projects - IoT multiplies the complexity of enterprise cloud ecosystems... 29/10 - Seven critical questions every business needs to ask before implementing an IoT plan - Fail to prepare, prepare to fail... 11/10 - How interoperability accelerates IoT collaboration - Issues with connecting multiple devices and services have slowed IoT adoption... 10/10 - Enterprises expect IoT results in less than three years - IoT is no longer an emerging technology... 09/10 - Connecting the seas: How radio is aiding maritime IoT - KNL Networks says its radio network can keep ships stay connected... 01/10 - IoT technology 'vital for success' of UK businesses - Businesses of all sizes see this emerging technology as vital to their future success... 01/10 - Steak & chips: how IoT and machine learning will disrupt risk in animal insurance - Even farm animals are becoming connected in today's digital world... 01/10 - Six principles to secure the IoT - It's up to IoT leaders to take the lead in security and privacy... 27/09 - "Most sophisticated" Torii botnet targeting IoT devices - The newly discovered malware strain is building the most sophisticated botnet ever seen... 21/09 - Privacy in the age of IoT: the future’s connected for VPN - Many have asked: do ‘normal people’ actually care about online privacy and VPNs? Yes, they do... 20/09 - How can the IoT transform the sports business? - Sports venues are getting a much needed upgrade from IoT technology... 19/09 - IoT malware grew significantly during the first half of 2018 - New research from Kaspersky Lab reveals how cybercriminals are targeting IoT devices... 06/08 - Why IBM is pushing to be the driving force in the IoT - The IoT and IBM could prove to be a match made in heaven... 03/08 - Qualcomm reveals major IoT push - Chipmaker unveils its plans to help power the global IoT.. 18/07 - Vodafone expands IoT range for businesses - New surveillance and energy management tools bring IoT to more companies across the UK... 17/07 - Microsoft and GE team up for major IoT launch - Partnership will see major expansion of Industrial IoT from Azure and GE Digital... 13/06 - Vodafone: 5G smartphone uncertainty means focus on core network and IoT - Vodafone UK CTO says 5G will be a gamechanger, but smartphone innovation in the 4G era won't be matched... 04/06 - Vodafone and Deutsche Telekom test NB-IoT roaming - Two operators claim trial is massive step forward for cross-border IoT... 01/06 - LPWAN is the final piece in the mobile IoT puzzle - Vodafone's IoT business is focusing on services and partnerships rather than technology... 31/05 - GSMA: Mobile operators must change to grab $1.1tn IoT market - GSMA warns that just 5 per cent of IoT revenue will be found in connectivity, so mobile operators need to evolve... 17/05 - Mobile IoT networks to be a 'core component' of 5G - GSMA says NB-IoT and LTE-M deployments are paving the way for massive IoT powered by 5G... 08/05 - Nokia snaps up SpaceTime Insights to boost IoT drive - SpaceTime Insights acquisition allows Nokia to expand IoT work... 24/04 - Telcos exploring mixed approaches to IoT - Communications providers see the potential in IoT but are taking multiple paths, Ericsson report says... 23/03 - Operator partnerships could be the key to IoT success - O2 says it wants to do more than just dish out SIMs and connectivity... 22/03 - IoT security spend to reach £1bn in 2018 - Gartner figures suggests increased awareness of threats is boosting spend... 07/03 - New internet of things security code aims to stamp out Mirai and other threats - The government is taking action on IoT security... 22/12 - Why 2018 could be a decisive year for IoT - Major report highlights struggle between competing technologies over the next year... This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now

Best website builder of 2019 Posted: 28 Feb 2019 07:55 AM PST Website builders have been around for decades but a new generation now exploit new technologies like responsive and mobile platforms. A website builder can help individuals or businesses build anything from a simple single-page site to a professional web store, even if you've no design or HTML experience at all.  Whether you're a sole trader or a multinational corporation, just about every business needs an online presence – in other words, a website. A growing number are adding bells and whistles like an email list or form facility, domain name registration and much more. Even if you don't sell products online a site can help people find you, learn more about your skills and services, and provide a way to share your details with other potential customers. It's like having a permanent, always-on-call personal assistant, ready to answer queries. And it can even be free Also check out our best website hosting services for 2019 More experienced users can customize and fine-tune the design to suit their own needs, or perhaps install a more traditional web design package that allows them to build the perfect site from scratch. There are free options, but these often have major restrictions, including limits on the size of the site and the lack of any ability to use your own domain. Fortunately, the commercial options are very reasonably priced, from around £5/$5 to £10/$10 a month, with hosting included. To help you decide which option is best for your needs, we’ve picked out the cream of the crop: these are the five top players in the website building world right now.  Wix has more than 100 million registered users Wix is one of the most popular online website creators, offering a range of plans and products. The free version has Wix branding, limited storage space (500MB) and bandwidth, but move up to the most popular plan (unlimited) and there’s no Wix ads. You get unlimited bandwidth (hence its name) and 10GB storage, along with a free domain, Google Ad vouchers and much more. The e-commerce plan adds an online store along with 20GB storage for a reasonable $16.50 (£12.30) per month. Read our review of Wix An excellent collection of 500 plus templates gets the design process off to a quick start. The drag-and-drop editor gives you all kinds of tools and features to explore – an image editor, video backgrounds, animations, social buttons, an integrated site blog – and just about everything can be tweaked, tuned and restyled. Furthermore, as of recently, Wix introduced Wix Turbo, which increases the speed and performance of websites substantially. All the core editing functions are really smartly designed, and operate more like a native app than your average website builder. Wix does have some weaknesses, with tech support seeming a little sluggish and limited in some respects. But there’s no denying that the superb editor and range of top-notch templates make it easy for web building novices to create something impressive. 1&1 IONOS is one of the biggest web hosting companies in the world There’s a lot to like here in terms of a powerful drag-and-drop editor bristling with professional features and highly customizable templates, but at the outset, let’s make it clear that this isn’t the cheapest service around. There’s no free plan (or indeed trial – although there is a 30-day money-back guarantee), and the most basic plan is priced at $1 (£0.75) a month for first six months, rising to $7 (£5.40) afterwards. That gives you unlimited pages and web space, a simple integrated blog, limited SEO settings, plus website backup and restore, so it’s a touch pricey for what you get. Read our review of 1&1 MyWebsite That said, 1&1 IONOS MyWebsite offers a wide range of responsive templates, and an editor which provides loads of potential adjustments and tweaks, all with plenty of visual feedback and context-sensitive menus to help streamline the whole process. What’s clever here is that the top-level stuff is easy to use and understand for beginners, yet expert users can dive more deeply into the menus to really play around and customize elements. You also get your own personal consultant free of charge. Other highly useful features include the ability to point to your old website in order to import media content from there straight into your new site. This could be a huge timesaver for some. There’s no e-commerce plan here, but there is a separate Pro plan for that functionality (starting at  $1 – £0.75 – a month for the first six months, rising to $20 - £15.40 a month). Weebly is one of the few website builders that offer a free hosting tier. Weebly is another big name in the website building world which offers a powerful editor and capable set of features. There’s a free plan, which like Wix limits space to 500MB and imposes ads on your site. However, if you move up to the Professional plan – at $12 (£9.5)  a month – the ads and storage limit are dropped, plus you get a free domain, and even support for a web store containing up to 25 products. The supercharged Business plan lets you create sites with unlimited web store products and high-end store features like product reviews and discount coupons, retailing at $25 (£19) a month. Read our review of Weebly The service offers hundreds of professionally-designed web templates, covering just about any site type. The drag-and-drop editor is neatly designed, although you don’t get full control over where you can position elements on the page, and the interface can seem a little cluttered. A further niggle is that there is no global Undo feature. Like Wix, we found tech support was a little wobbly in terms of sluggish responses, but Weebly offers a host of powerful features, some very stylish templates, and easy access to free images for your site is another definite boon. As we’ve seen, many a website builder pitch themselves towards novices and making life easy for the less site-savvy out there, but what about experts who want powerful low-level control? Those are the users Voog has in mind. So you don’t get many templates here, for example, and there’s the bare minimum of media support – but what you do get is a compact drag-and-drop editor which does its best to stay out of your way. There are weaknesses here, and the interface is somewhat clunky in respects – and it’s another which lacks a global Undo function – but it has some real power you can drill down into. Read our review of Voog For example, clicking a text box gives you the option to use bullet-point lists, insert tables or videos, or even edit the HTML source to customize effects. Voog also lets multiple users easily collaborate on a site project, and if you’re after nifty, unusual features like these, you won’t see them elsewhere. The entry-level Starter plan is priced at $7.40 (£5.30) per month (billed annually) and gives you 2GB storage, and all the core features you’ll need, including SSL security (although it’s limited to 30 pages). If you know what you’re doing in terms of website design, and want some true power and customization capabilities, there is a 30-day trial you can check out (no credit card details needed). Jimdo is a somewhat quirky website builder targeted largely at novice users, but it’s well worth your attention for a number of reasons, not the least of which is a free plan which boasts more than the average offering. Yes, there are the usual limitations including adverts, a 500MB storage limit, no custom domain, and very limited SEO. But there are a few features you won't get in other free plans, like a password protected area, for example. Read our review of Jimdo The site editor itself is simple and consistent, even if it’s somewhat unconventional in terms of its design. Also, the editor doesn’t have as many functions and features as some rivals. For example, there aren’t that many templates, and the widgets on offer aren’t as plentiful as you might find elsewhere – plus there’s no global Undo (although Jimdo isn’t alone in this respect). Another neat touch is a good web knowledgebase which means help is generally close at hand when it comes to troubleshooting. Overall, this is a compelling product, that is well worth giving a whirl. You might also want to check out our other website hosting buying guides: WordPress Cloud hosting E-commerce Dedicated server Small business Windows Managed Green Business Colocation Email hosting Resellers VPS Shared Cheap Website builders Best website hosting This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now

You are subscribed to email updates from TechRadar - All the latest technology news. To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now.	Email delivery powered by Google
Google, 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, United States