Apple : Dell XPS 15 2019: what we want to see |
- Dell XPS 15 2019: what we want to see
- The best gaming routers 2019
- Best Mac apps: the best macOS apps for your Apple computer
- The best Chromebooks 2019
- macOS High Sierra news, updates and features
- Sony's futuristic take on AR shows depth-sensing taken to another level
- Microsoft Surface Laptop 3: what we want to see
- Sony’s PS4 sales surpass 91 million, but that number is slowing
- France vs Wales live stream: how to watch Six Nations 2019 rugby online from anywhere
- Leaked Samsung Galaxy S10E photo has it looking ready to rival the iPhone XR
- Smartphone sales fell nearly 5pc
- Apple breaks Google’s internal iOS apps, but now it's restored
- Sony is lining up more 4K HDR TVs for 2019
- Amazon hit badly by new India e-commerce rules
- iMac 2019: release date, news and rumors
- Nvidia GeForce GTX 1660 Ti release date, news and rumors
- Google Fuchsia release date, news and rumors
- The best Ultrabooks 2019: top thin and light laptops reviewed
- The best browsers for Android 2019
- Best free games: the top free games to download on PC
| Dell XPS 15 2019: what we want to see Posted: 01 Feb 2019 01:15 PM PST Back when the Dell XPS 15 2018 launched, it was packed to the brim with 8th-generation H-series processors, fast SSDs and some gorgeous displays. And, it is still one of the best laptops in 2019. But, now that Whiskey Lake is available, and Nvidia’s Turing graphics architecture is powering some of the best gaming laptops, we thought it was the perfect time to concoct a wish list for what we want to see in the Dell XPS 15 2019. No matter what the result is, it’s going to be way faster than the current model. Beyond certain aspects of the Dell XPS 13 2019 that we think will carry over, like the webcam, we don’t know much about the Dell XPS 15 2019 right now. However, we can still do some speculation, crafting a sort-of wishlist of what we want to see in the next XPS 15. So, keep this page bookmarked, and we’ll update it just as soon as we hear anything. Cut to the chase
Dell XPS 15 release dateIt’s too early to try and point out an exact Dell XPS 15 2019 release date, but instead we’ll look to the past to try to predict the future. Things could shift a little one way or the other, but the next Intel mobile platform is here, so it’s only a matter of time. We’ll probably start to see movement once Intel gets its supply issues under control. Over the last few years, the Dell XPS 15 has had a bit of an uneven release history. While the Dell XPS 15 2018 came out in May of 2018, past XPS 15 models haven’t been totally consistent. In February 2017, we got the Dell XPS 15 2017, but before that, the 2015 model dropped in October. It’s kind of all over the place, and it could mean we have to wait a very long time for the next one. However, we’re sure that if a ton of new hardware comes out, Dell will be close behind with a hardware refresh for the Dell XPS 15. Dell XPS 15 priceThe current XPS 15 starts out at $1,059 (£1,179, AU$1,699) for a quad-core, 8th-generation Intel Core i5 chip, 8GB of RAM and a 1TB 5,400 RPM hard drive. However, you can spec it out for up to $2,959 (£2,279, AU$3,999) for a Core i9, 32GB of RAM and a 1TB SSD. Dell will probably follow the same pricing trend as the current model for the XPS 15 2019 – bring out an entry-level notebook for about $1,050 and let users configure it however they want. However, we could see Dell raising the price a bit for the entry model, as it has for the last few years – plus, computer hardware keeps getting more expensive. Again, we won’t know what the pricing is going to be until we get closer to launch, so stay tuned. What want to see from Dell XPS 15 2019The Dell XPS 15 is already one of the best Ultrabooks you can buy today, but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t have room to improve. So, we went ahead and created a wishlist of things we want to see from the Dell XPS 15 2019, to really elevate it into the laptop stratosphere. Better cooling Because the Dell XPS 15 is a high-end device, we’d love to see a cooling design that, well, keeps it cool. If it comes at the cost of keeping the same thinness as this years model, or even thickening it up a bit, we could live with that – it’s already easy to carry around, we just don’t want to thermal throttle anymore. More ports Move that webcam It’s not an ideal situation for either end of the conversation, and it even makes Windows Hello kind of a pain. Luckily, it looks like Dell may have figured it out – the new Dell XPS 13 has moved the chin-cam up into the top bezel thanks to some kind of shrinking magic. Hopefully, this tiny little camera finds its way into the Dell XPS 15 2019. Unlimited power That’s not to mention graphics. Nvidia just launched its GeForce RTX lineup for laptops at CES 2019, which should improve graphics performance drastically. However, the Dell XPS 15 2019 featured a GTX 1050 Ti, and we still don’t have an equivalent Turing GPU. We might just have to wait until Nvidia fleshes out the low-end of its Turing lineup.
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| Posted: 01 Feb 2019 01:15 PM PST Playing the best PC games online means that you’ve likely run into a ton of lag at some point, but what if we told you that the best gaming routers could make sure your online gaming is never interrupted? It’s true – the best routers for gaming will prioritize gaming network traffic, thanks to a handy little trick called Quality of Service (or QoS), so your gaming won’t be interrupted by someone on an hours-long Netflix binge. You’ll also want to keep an eye out for MU-MIMO Multiple user, Multi Input, Multi Output), so that everyone on your network can get their game on without having to get in each other's way. When you’re playing games online, a wired connection is typically considered the best way to go about it, and we’d have to concur. So, the best gaming routers will have a ton of Ethernet ports. But, no matter how ideal it would be to have every device hardwired, it’s just not feasible without making everyone trip over cords constantly. So, the best gaming routers will feature the latest and greatest Wifi standards – currently Wi-Fi 5. Having external antennae which can be moved to direct the Wi-Fi signal to certain areas of your home can’t hurt, either. So, taking into consideration the needs of gamers, we’ve gathered up all the best gaming routers 2018 has to offer. If you want all the latest tech, but you’re still a fan of that old-school aesthetic, the TP-Link Archer C5400 v2 is right up your alley. This is a gaming router that blends enthusiast-grade features and accessible setup into a package that’s appealing to pretty much everyone. And, when you add in the Alexa support, you have a router that can adapt to any situation, whether you’re focusing hard on winning your latest match in Fortnite, or you have guests all connecting to your network. Read the full review: TP-Link Archer C5400 V2 The Asus RT-AC5300 is one of the best gaming routers – it comes with a variety of advanced features, making online and network gaming as lag and frustration free as possible. This includes an easy-to-use yet powerful interface, as well as comprehensive QoS settings. The spider-like design won’t be to everyone’s taste, but the eight antennae serve a purpose, as they can be used to direct your Wi-Fi signal throughout your home, giving this router an excellent range. Read the full review: Asus RT-AC86U We already covered the TP-Link Archer C5400 v2 earlier, but the manufacturer slapped an ‘X’ at the end of this one, to signify the extreme boost in performance. It’s significantly more expensive, but this may be one of the highest-end gaming routers out there. With eight ethernet ports around the back, it’s perfect for hardwiring a wealth of gaming equipment. And, the MU-MIMO and Tri-band support mean that wireless connections are also top-notch. You’ll be able to top the leaderboards wherever you are in the house. Read the full review: TP-Link Archer C5400X For PC gamers that are always fighting for bandwidth with roommates, a beefy gaming router like the Netgear Nighthawk Pro Gaming XR500 is going to be a godsend. Not only will this gaming router provide an insane 2.6Gbps of speed, but with MU-MIMO support and unique gaming-focused features like location-based connection filters and QoS, you’ll be able to get your game on lag-free. Just prepare for the high price, and maybe wait for a sale to pick it up. Read the full review: Netgear Nighthawk Pro Gaming XR500 The Asus RT-AC5300 is an excellent high-end gaming router that comes with a number of advanced features for making online and network gaming as lag and frustration free as possible. This includes an easy-to-use yet powerful interface, as well as comprehensive QoS settings. The spider-like design won't be to everyone's tastes, but the eight antennae serve a purpose, as they can be used to direct your Wi-Fi signal throughout your home, giving this router an excellent range. Read the full review: Asus RT-AC5300 Tri-band Gigabit Router It might look like it’s getting ready to abduct a close friend or family member, but we promise the Zyxel Armor Z2 AC2600 isn’t as alien in function as in appearance. Rocking the latest MU-MIMO support, which improves speed when multiple devices are connected to the same network, this gaming router prides itself on its performance capabilities. Because it can handle a ton of devices, while prioritizing bandwidth depending on the needs of each device, it’s one of the best gaming routers you can buy today. Read the full review: Zyxel Armor Z2 AC2600 The Asus RT-AC88U is an expensive gaming router, but it justifies the price with insane 802.11 wireless performance. Rocking four antennas and NitroQAM tech, which pushes speeds even further, this gaming router enables wireless performance that can break the 1GB/sec limit. But, there’s a catch – you’ll need to pick up a NitroQAM wireless adapter, like the Asus PCE AC88, to see these fast speeds. But, with speeds like this, it’s easy to see why this is one of the best gaming routers out there. It might look like something from Battlestar Galactica – the old Battlestar Galactica – but, the D-Link DIR 885L/R is a dependable mid-range gaming router with great range and speed. If you’re looking for the best gaming router, you may want to give this one a chance – it has a good variety of port, and a nicely designed UI. It also features DD-WRT open-source firmware, which makes this router as flexible as it is powerful.
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| Best Mac apps: the best macOS apps for your Apple computer Posted: 01 Feb 2019 01:15 PM PST Now that macOS Mojave is available on our Macs, we finally have access to some key iOS apps, like News and Stocks. However, that’s not even close to representing the smorgasboard of software available to macOS. Your Mac can do everything from playing games to getting some work done. At the end of the day, the software, more than anything else, is what keeps people coming back to the Jony Ive-designed hardware year after year. You can do so many different things with the best Mac apps, so some might not appeal to you. However, there are some Mac apps like Evernote, the best note-taking app around, that anyone can find a use for. Not all of the best Mac apps are on the Mac App Store, but that doesn’t mean they’re not worth your time. So, with this guide, we’ve gathered up all our favorite apps that we use every day right here. From free apps and utilities to programs for creatives and professionals, these Mac apps will make even the best Mac better than ever. Bill Thomas and Gabe Carey have also contributed to this article Check out our Linux vs Windows vs Mac - OS comparison video below.
A computer free of annoyances simply doesn’t exist – and Macs are no exception. For the longest time, it’s been impossible to use our MacBooks – unbound by the chains of a power adapter – while video outputs to an external monitor. As we all know here at TechRadar, Apple’s laptops will automatically enter sleep mode when the lid is closed. This can be a huge inconvenience should you prefer the sheer magnitude of one of the best monitors as opposed to a 12, 13 or 15-inch screen. Fortunately, Amphetamine allows you to continue using your MacBook while closed. Before, you could do this by using a similar app called Caffeine, but we prefer the UI features you get with this freebie. Not only does it fit in naturally with the rest of your Menu Bar items, but Amphetamine also supports hotkey commands as well as deactivation reminders – not to mention there are no annoying ads in sight.
While you’ve been able to snap programs to the edge of the screen in Windows since Windows 7, Apple didn’t have a solution until OS X El Capitan. What’s more, even then it lacked some of the comprehensiveness of Microsoft’s alternative. Luckily, HyperDock gives us that full-fledged functionality we so desperately crave, allowing anyone with a Mac to apply it to both the app Dock and windows. In Windows, you can drag an app to the left or right edges of the screen (or the corners) and it’ll automatically fill that space. This makes it much easier to be productive on the desktop without wasting time dragging windows from the corners. For the Dock, hovering over apps activates something close to Windows 7’s thumbnail previews, giving an overview of the window that can be accessed by a click or closed directly from the preview. Useful.
If you have recently picked up a Mac and miss some of your old Windows applications, don’t fret – Parallels Desktop 13 can bring them back. Instead of having to dual-boot your Mac into a Windows partition, Parallels Desktop 13 allows Windows and macOS Sierra to co-exist side by side, and you can even run Microsoft-only programs such as Visual Studio 2015, or the Windows versions of the company’s Office 365 apps, alongside your native macOS ones. All you need is a Windows 10 license – so prepare to buy one if you haven't already. Or, alternatively, you can use Parallels to try a handful of free operating systems including Chromium (a free distribution of Chrome OS) or Linux Debian. The latest version of Parallels in particular has seen improvements such as Touch Bar support, better resolution scaling for Retina displays and picture-in-picture for using other operating systems in conjunction with macOS.
If you’re anything like us, working on just one monitor or screen is just painful. Portable monitors are still fairly expensive (and bulky), luckily, though, you can use an iPad instead using a nifty app called Duet. Developed by ex-Apple engineers, it works by tethering your iPad to your Mac using one of Apple’s Lightning cables and firing up the app on both devices. You can then drag apps and windows onto your iPad’s screen just like you would with a second monitor, and if you have a more recent iPad with a Retina display, you’ll get the full benefit of all those beautiful pixels. Just realize that the bandwidth isn’t quite what you would get with one of the best monitors, so it can be a bit laggy when you bump the quality up. But it’s still better for watching videos, reading websites and typing up documents.
Atom is a text editor that's primarily designed for coders, but its flexibility and customization options make it a viable option for many different types of users. That's because of two reasons: first, you can download a number of different Packages - effectively plug-ins - to make it bend to your will. It can be transformed into a Markdown editor for writing blog posts, for example, or you can hook it up to Evernote for storing notes in the cloud. There's at least 10 different word counters out there, and you can even add typewriter sound effects as you hammer out your delicious prose. Atom is also infinitely customizable on the visual side thanks to an editable back-end, allowing you to do anything from changing the font size, line height and colors to giving the caret Word 2016-like elasticity.
Whether you’re a big time producer or you just like making some jams in your downtime, Macs are kind of known for being among the best laptops for music production – and Logic Pro X is a big part of that. Developed by Apple itself, its accessible interface hides a ton of advanced functionality. The latest version also comes with a svelte design, 64-bit architecture and a new session drummer that will save you from having to drop more cash on a drum machine. It also works in natural harmony with iPads, providing a touch-based alternative method of creating song structures to dragging and dropping blocks in the main visual editor. Whether you're a seasoned producer already (Sia used the app to record her hit song 'Chandelier') or are looking to upgrade from Garageband, Logic Pro X likely has what you need.
An uncomplicated app, but a great one, to do app Wunderlist’s selling point is its cross device functionality. It’s available on Mac, PC, Android and iOS, allowing you to sync your to do list wherever you’re using macOS’ Handoff feature. Once you've started a list, you can schedule reminders, add notes and embed it into the macOS Notification Center using a widget. Team-based features are unlocked by signing up for Wunderlists’s pro subscription, and you can add files of any size without running into limits.
Evernote has morphed into a mighty note-taking app over the years. While some people will say that it's too bloated, the sheer number of things that you can do with it still makes it best-in-class. You can type up notes, obviously, organizing them using a combination of folders and tags. You can even embed Google Drive documents, which are accessible in a click. There's also the ability to set reminders, share notes with friends, find information related to notes using Evernote's 'Context' feature, create lists, and favorite notes that you frequently return to. Better yet, all of your notes are synchronized using the company's servers, making them accessible on nearly any PC (through a browser or the native Evernote app) or mobile device in the world. The paid version lets you use Evernote with more than two devices while upping the amount of data you can sync each month.
GIMP or GNU Image Manipulation, is one of the best free image editing apps out there. It’s a great alternative to Adobe Photoshop and comes with a wide array of pro-level functions that let you tweak existing images in a range of formats or create fresh ones from scratch. Features include layers, highly customizable brushes, automatic image enhancing tools and filters. You can do even more with plugins, which are available to download from the GIMP Plugin Registry.
These days, balancing features with simplicity and good design in the best Mac apps is critically important. However, unlike Word 2016, or even Apple’s own Pages, Ulysses has an extremely minimalistic interface. This allows you to get on with writing without being distracted by so many buttons and menus. The app uses its own version of Markdown – a type of text formatting engine – that allows users to focus on their writing in a way that not only makes organization easier but also makes exporting easier – Ulysses will format it in an attractive way, using one of many export styles, when you’re done writing. There's a handy attachments bar on the right-hand side that features an attractive word counter and lets you write notes to assist you in your writing. Notes can be accessed anywhere thanks to iCloud support, so you can pick up your iPad and carry on where you left off using macOS's Handoff feature.
Sometimes you want to play your Xbox One, but you can’t because your roommate has decided to use the living room TV for watching the whole run of Ugly Delicious in one sitting. Now, you could technically stream Halo 5 or Sea of Thieves if you had a Windows PC. However, you just have a Mac. That’s where OneCast comes in, a third-party work of reverse engineering performed by an independent developer to bring Xbox One game streaming to macOS. It works as easily as connecting both your Mac and Xbox One to the same network and subsequently logging in to Xbox Live. It works pretty well in our experience, though you should have both systems connected to your modem via ethernet if possible.
Nobody can deny that the best Macs are great for network admin uses, and if you need to manage a bunch of Windows devices, being able to remote into a PC to diagnose problems is critically important. Luckily, Microsoft has provided an app just for that. With Microsoft Remote Desktop 10, you get an officially-supported app that gives you remote access to any PCs on your network – as long as you’re a network admin or an authorized user. It can be a bit of a pain to set up, and the PC you’re trying to access will need to be running Windows 10 Pro. But once you get going, you can access files, copy/paste across desktops and even run games – though, we don’t recommend that last bit. Microsoft Remote Desktop 10 is a godsend for network admins and IT professionals, and is easily one of the best Mac apps you can download right now.
Microsoft Office has been available on Mac for years now, but you always had to go through a couple hoops to download it. We’ve been asking for a release on the Mac App Store for a while, and, well, it’s finally here. We’re sure we don’t really need to go into too great of detail what Microsoft Office is, but it’s essentially Microsoft’s suite of office apps, from Word to PowerPoint to Excel. It’s absolutely an essential app to have, but you should keep in mind that you’ll have to get a subscription to Office 365 to use it. It’s one of those Mac Apps that should be essential for any professional, and the fact that it’s finally on the Mac App Store means that you don’t have to worry about keeping it updated.
The market for disk optimization apps is neither desolate nor particularly interesting, particularly on the Mac – where Apple usually does a good job of cleaning up its drives on its own. However, for a program that’s far more intuitive and user friendly than, say, the built-in Macintosh HD storage management software, your best bet is to turn your attention to Dr. Cleaner. This app splits up all your data into easily digestible chunks that would otherwise be obtuse. Dr. Cleaner groups up all the trash on your Mac and labels them in groups like ‘Junk Files’ and ‘Big Files’ – rather than listing off 30GB of documents and 10GB of iOS files you can’t comprehend. Then, you can look at the file names themselves and decide whether or not you want to keep them on your PC. You can also use Dr. Cleaner to monitor CPU, network and RAM usage as well, for the sake of putting some pep in your aging Mac’s step.
It might be kind of like three apps than just one, but SoftMaker Office 2018 takes all the key features of Microsoft Office and puts them into an interface that tailors to your needs. It comes with a group of programs called TextMaker, PlanMaker and Presentations 2018 that are similar enough to Office 365 without the rolling subscription. Regardless of whether you need an easy-to-use word processor or a spreadsheet or slideshow creator of equal accessibility, SoftMaker Office has what you’re looking for. And, because it’s still in beta, you can get a complimentary, albeit temporary, license over email if you want to give it a spin. Otherwise, there’s a permanent free version called SoftMaker FreeOffice, but it’s only available on Windows, Android and Linux.
Since you’re obviously going to install all of the other apps we’ve mentioned, you’re going to need at least a utility that, well, declutters your desktop. Unclutter is the solution you’re looking for whether you’re a frivolous notetaker or a temporary file hoarder like we are. It’s designed to keep your memos, documents and pasteboard clips in one place rather than scattered across several folders. It’s a brilliant idea made even better by the fact that it can be configured for use with gesture controls. At any given point, you can swipe down from the top of the screen with two fingers on the trackpad (or one on the mouse) to reveal a trio of windows that can be concealed and re-summoned whenever you please.
When you’re out there hustling every day, it’s easy to lose track of messages. With so many social media companies, SMS platforms and instant messaging services to choose from, most of us also have a number of different accounts used to administer to all of those messages. But what if you only had to log into one? That’s the central idea in Franz, a messaging app that allows you to view and send messages in WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, Slack, HipChat and more. It lets you seamlessly switch between any of these apps as easily as you can toggle between Slack workspaces. Best of all, there’s no limit to the amount of services you can use at once. That way, even if you have 10 Facebook accounts for whatever reason, all of your messages will be visible in the same place.
If you’re anything like us, you have tons of packages coming in all the time – and it can get hard to keep track of everything. Luckily, there’s an app for that. With Deliveries, you can keep track of all your incoming deliveries in one place in an easy-to-read interface. It will notify you whenever there’s a change in your delivery, syncing the information between macOS and iOS so you are on top of things, even on the go. All you have to do to track a package is hit Command + New and paste in the tracking number – that’s it. It really is one of the best Mac apps for anyone with a busy mailbox.
If you do a lot of cooking, and you have a hard time keeping your recipes organized – especially on a digital platform – you’re going to love Paprika. With this app, you can download any recipe you find online, and it will automatically format it in a way that’s extremely easy to read. What’s more, if you download the iOS app, you’ll be able to sync your recipes between all of your devices, so that you can keep tabs on the ingredients you need when you run to the store in a panic.
Sometimes, life gets hectic, and you need some help getting everything organized. Luckily, there’s an app for that. Fantastical 2 is the most fully-featured calendar and reminder suite we’ve ever seen. You’re able to set events and reminders using natural language, and it’s fully compatible with your iCloud reminders. There’s also an iOS app for iPhone and iPad that will effortlessly sync with the Mac app, so that you can stay on top of your busy life no matter where you are. This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Posted: 01 Feb 2019 01:15 PM PST Chromebooks have been out for a while now, and they’re generally accepted for being great devices for high school students and kids. But, when they first hit the market, no one knew what to make of even the top Chromebooks. That has definitely changed, though – not only are there more than 25 million Chrome OS users, but the best Chromebooks continue some of the best battery life in the game – something that Windows 10 is still catching up on. But, what is a Google Chromebook? Well, they won’t just feature fantastic battery life, but they’re also extremely affordable. This is because Chromebooks don’t really need all the latest and greatest hardware – because they only run Chrome, they pack just the essential hardware. And, with devices like the Google Pixel Slate, the top Chromebooks are getting more advanced every day. And, because you are restrained by your web browser and Android apps, some users may be wary of picking up one of the best Chromebooks, and we totally get it. But, if your computer use just boils down to word processing and email, with very little video editing or gaming, you can’t go wrong with one of the best Chromebooks. Shortly after proclaiming the Chromebook Pixel as dead, Google revived it in a way nobody expected. Now, it’s the Google Pixelbook and it stands completely independent of its predecessor. That’s because, unlike the Chromebook Pixel, it can run Android apps natively, on top of building upon Chrome OS. And, when you add in the huge amount of storage space, fantastic stylus and Google Assistant, it shouldn’t surprise you when we say the Pixelbook is the best Chromebook 2018 has to offer – even so long after its launch. Read the full review: Google Pixelbook Before the Google Pixelbook showed up and showed us exactly what the best Chromebooks are capable of, the Asus Chromebook Flip was the Google laptop to get. Rocking a full-fat Intel Core processor and full-HD display, the Chromebook Flip changed everything. With this Chromebook, all the features we take for granted came to life. Put simply, if you want the key features that the Pixelbook offers, but you don’t want to drop that much cash the Asus Chromebook Flip is a fantastic option. Read the full review: Asus Chromebook Flip When Android apps started heading to the best Chromebooks, it was only a matter of time before Samsung took its mastery of the two OSs and crafted something truly beautiful. With a 12.3 inch QHD touchscreen and a 360-degree hinge, the Samsung Chromebook Pro is widely acclaimed for its built-in stylus – the first of its kind to show up in a Chromebook. Not only does it show up a majority of laptops in its own category, but it’s better than most Android devices as well, even if the keyboard could use some improvement. Read the full review: Samsung Chromebook Pro
The best Chromebooks are kind of synonymous with education in 2018. And, with the Acer Chromebook Spin 13, Acer wants them to be ubiquitous in the business sector, as well. Beautifully built from aluminum with a beautiful QHD screen, it will not only fit into any office, but it might actually draw some envious glances. It’s more than just a pretty chassis, though – the Acer Chromebook Spin 13 is backed by full-fat Ultrabook processors, so it can get work done, and look good while doing it. Read the full review: Acer Chromebook Spin 13 If the Samsung Chromebook Pro is all about versatility, the Dell Chromebook 11 is about value. Reinforced by a 180-degree hinge, sturdy design and a sealed keyboard and trackpad in addition to a punchy typing experience, this Chromebook is a perfectly portable package. Not only adequately suited for school and work, the Dell Chromebook 11 even packs a set of loud stereo speakers for listening to music or watching videos. Don’t worry about dinging it, either, as this device remains the most rugged Chromebook on our list. Read the full review: Dell Chromebook 11 One of the most compelling use cases for the best Chromebooks is that of the student laptop – and the Acer Chromebook Spin 11 is a perfect example. If you’re a student, or even a parent of a student that’s looking for a cheap, capable and, more importantly, durable machine to get some homework done on the go, you shouldn’t need to look further than the Acer Chromebook Spin 11. You won’t be able to do any hardcore gaming or video editing on this thing, but if you just need something to write some papers and watch some YouTube in your downtime – you should give it a look. Read the full review: Acer Chromebook Spin 11 With a pristine build quality that rivals a MacBook, it’s easy to forgive the Acer Chromebook 15’s aversion to 2-in-1 form factors. However, given that most Chromebooks releasing this year are fully convertible, thanks to the wide adoption of Android app support, the Acer Chromebook 15 had to prove itself to us with more than good style. And, beyond its ability to lay flat using a 180-degree hinge, this beautiful 15-inch Chromebook makes a great impression with its battery life, too, lasting nearly 17 hours in our battery test. Read the full review: Acer Chromebook 15 We wouldn’t be surprised to see Acer replacing the Chromebook R11 – at least, judging by the recent release of the Chromebook Spin 11, but it still holds up to this day as one of the best Chromebooks on the market. It isn’t the most powerful option out there, but it still gives you full access to Android Apps on the Google Play store. What’s more, it does so on a touchscreen display that can be rotated around into tablet mode, complemented by an all-metal finish that you won’t be ashamed of. Read the full review: Acer Chromebook R11 In our mind, the best Chromebooks are the ones that balance a rock-bottom price and speedy use of Chrome OS – and the HP Chromebook 14 is a perfect example. While it’s similar to the Acer Chromebook 15 in a lot of ways, this 14-inch Chromebook is a bit more compact and even looks better. Complemented by a bright blue finish and a screen made to astonish, the HP Chromebook 14 boasts the best value of any Chromebook out there. Even if the battery life and performance are average – the HP Chromebook 14 is easily one of the best Chromebooks on the market right now. Read the full review: HP Chromebook 14 The HP Chromebook 13 is way better than anyone would expect from a Chromebook. You’re getting a 1440p display, two USB-C ports and, if you’re willing to shell out a bit more cash, you can get yourself an INtel Core M processor rather than a Pentium. All of this is complemented by incredible style and a metallic design that exudes Pixel influence. It might not be as powerful as the Google Pixelbook, but it’s still one of the best Chromebooks when it comes to sheer style. Read the full review: HP Chromebook 13 Watch the video below for the top 7 things to consider when buying a laptop: Juan Martinez and Gabe Carey have also contributed to this article.
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| macOS High Sierra news, updates and features Posted: 01 Feb 2019 01:10 PM PST Now that macOS Mojave has taken the crown from macOS High Sierra, you’d be forgiven for thinking that no one cares about that old mountain-themed OS anymore. But, if you think about the fact that macOS Mojave requires more recent hardware, you’ll realize that plenty of users will be using macOS 10.13 High Sierra for a long time. And, while macOS High Sierra may have faced its own problems, like password vulnerabilities and other security issues, back at launch – those days are over. Apple has effectively fixed all those lingering problems, and macOS High Sierra grew into quite a respectable macOS release. Plus, Apple more than made up for any launch issues with that new file system – not to mention those built-in photo-editing tools. When all is said and done, macOS High Sierra faced – and still faces, to a certain extent – the same problems that Mountain Lion did, following Lion. It brings some interesting changes, but doesn’t do anything all that new and exciting. So, without further delay, let’s dive into everything there is to know about macOS High Sierra. Cut to the chase
macOS 10.13 High Sierra release dateApple revealed macOS 10.13 High Sierra at the WWDC 2017 keynote, which is no surprise, given Apple’s tradition of announcing the latest version of its Mac software at its annual developer event. Yet, it wasn’t until September 12 that Apple revealed that the full release of High Sierra would launch little more than a week later, on September 25. There was a developer version of the operating system you could enroll in leading to the final release, but luckily that’s no longer required to take advantage of the latest features found in macOS 10.13. The final build of macOS High Sierra, 10.13.6 is available right now. Beside a few bug fixes, it integrates Airplay 2 into iTunes – though you will need to update iTunes to take advantage of it. You can download the update from the Mac App Store. More importantly, this update contains the bug fix that stops the Core i9 MacBook Pro from thermal throttling. Safari 12 is also available for macOS High Sierra users, which not only supports website icons in your tabs, but also has better security. Websites, for instance, won’t be able to track your specific Mac when using the native web browser. If you’re ready to jump to the next version of macOS , you can download macOS Mojave today. And, fortunately, we can show you how to download and install macOS Mojave. macOS 10.13 High Sierra compatibilityLuckily, because macOS High Sierra doesn’t really shake things up, the barrier to entry didn’t change. In fact, macOS High Sierra has much more lenient requirements than Mojave, so it should be popular for a while. As long as you're on one of the following Mac models, you can upgrade to macOS High Sierra (if you haven’t done so already).
Bear in mind that if you want to take advantage of the High Efficiency Video Coding (HEVC) benefits posed by macOS High Sierra, you’ll need a Mac donning – at the very least – an Intel sixth-generation Skylake processor. Unfortunately, that discounts everything released prior to 2015, but on the bright side, everything else macOS High Sierra brings to the table is fair game. macOS 10.13 High Sierra featuresBeyond the Hackintosh users being reasonably worried about the newly enforced security checks on EFI firmware automatically implemented each week, Apple has revealed a number of awesome new features with macOS 10.13 High Sierra. These include improvements to Safari – which will now stop ad-tracking and auto-playing videos in their tracks – and a more expansive Spotlight Search in the Mail App. Additionally, when you’re composing emails, the app now allows split view for the compose window – and, to make matters better, it uses up to 35% less disk space. The Photos app has also been updated, with a better sorting tool to boot. All of this is accompanied by a better layout, improved facial recognition thanks to neural networks, and improved syncing across all Apple devices – this all makes macOS High Sierra’s photo experience better than ever before. Editing tools, too, have seen improvements, in turn making it easier than ever to enhance the quality of your photos without learning the ins and outs of Photoshop or Camera RAW. And of course, you can count on Instagram-like filters being a part of this. One of the biggest changes that comes with macOS High Sierra is with the file system. It’s ditching the HFS – which Apple has used for around 30 years, and is now using the Apple File System (APFS) instead. Every Mac that has been upgraded to macOS High Sierra will receive these file system updates automatically with the exception of those sporting Fusion Drives and older HDDs. Similarly, all new Macs will ship pre-formatted for APFS. To be exact, APFS is a 64-bit file system that supports native encryption and faster metadata operation. This may all sound a bit techy, but the bottom line is that this will make your Mac feel a lot faster, while also being more secure and more transparent about the nature of your files and folder contents. Unfortunately, this comes with the caveat of Apple’s confirmation that 32-bit apps will be discontinued in later versions of macOS High Sierra. The update also brings HEVC, or H.265, video compression to the Mac. Apple claims that this new standard can compress video files 40% more than the previous-generation H.264 standard. The end result will be faster video streams at higher resolutions – ahem, 4K – and smaller video files sizes when stored locally. VR finally comes to the MacOne of the biggest bits of news surrounding macOS High Sierra is that it will finally bring support for virtual reality headsets officially. Namely, the HTC Vive and Steam VR will work with Macs running the new OS this autumn. However to use such a device, you’ll need at least a 5K iMac or MacBook Pro – or, any Mac that can run the new OS with an external GPU solution. Support for such devices comes part and parcel with macOS High Sierra, but won’t be an active function until later this year. The good news is that macOS High Sierra comes with a helping of refinements to its graphics API that make up for the scarce GPU support. Metal was a step forward for hardware-accelerated 3D graphics, but with Metal 2, Apple promises less strain on the CPU as well as proper machine learning and better Xcode profiling/debugging in macOS High Sierra. Perhaps more important, though, is the fact that MoltenVK was recently brought to Mac by Khronos Group. An implementation of the open-source Vulkan API, it’s said to bring frame rate gains of up to 50% in Dota 2. As it’s cross-platform, too – being supported by Windows and Linux as well as Apple’s devices – MoltenVK is likely to be more widely adopted by creators. Joe Osborne and Gabe Carey have also contributed to this report This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Sony's futuristic take on AR shows depth-sensing taken to another level Posted: 01 Feb 2019 01:03 PM PST In 2015, Sony acquired the Belgian company SoftKinetic, a firm boasting Kinect-style depth-sensing, including tracking light via Time of Flight (ToF). SoftKinetic’s ToF tech ‘DepthSense’ just re-emerged in a video Sony just uploaded, which shows depth-sensing coming to the gadget giant’s line of smartphones. The video (embedded below) shows folks looking through a nondescript phone’s display to see how DepthSense can liven up their lives: 3D neon writing and drawing suspended in the air, a game where players use their finger-guns to shoot at enemies, seeing a shopping item displayed in real space, and so on. Days ago, a leaked photo hinted that the upcoming Sony Xperia XZ4 could pack a 0.3MP ToF camera – so this new DepthSense showcase on a generic (i.e. probably not the XZ4) phone is likely not a coincidence, GSMArena pointed out. In any case, this is tech that could end up in any phone, given how many OEMs install Samsung cameras on their devices. And while we've seen AR effects demonstrated at phone launches before – Apple and Huawei come to mind – Sony is showing off another level of functionality and applications. Instead of sticking cute animated animals alongside people on stage, Sony's tech enables interactive annotation in the AR-space with a phone-based camera setup. Why Time of Flight?Time of Flight is a method of sensing depth using a 2D camera, essentially by tracking the time it takes for light to rebound off surfaces and reach the camera. It’s a scrappy way to determine where objects are in relation to each other – say, for AR games and experiences – without requiring extensive cameras or sensors. Rumors have suggested Apple is lining up to buy Sony’s 3D-sensing tech, which could end up in this year’s iPhone 11. Another leak suggests only a triple-camera setup is coming in 2019’s iPhone crop, but no 3D sensing until the following model in 2020, which might use lasers to sense depth. 3D sensing could be a good feather in any smartphone’s cap – especially since this year’s other phone innovations, like a notch-avoiding punch hole and unfinished folding tech, aren’t terribly exciting. The smartphone market needs novel new ideas: lack of device innovation was a factor that made 2018 the first full year that global smartphone shipments declined.
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| Microsoft Surface Laptop 3: what we want to see Posted: 01 Feb 2019 12:08 PM PST Back when the original Surface Laptop launched back in 2017, it was a Windows 10 S-only device that didn’t make much sense in the tablet-focused Surface lineup. But, when the Surface Laptop 2 launched back in November, it refined the formula to become one of the best laptops. So, we want to know: what will the Surface Laptop 3 look like? Beyond the obvious stuff, like an upgrade to either Intel Whiskey Lake or Ice Lake processors, a higher screen resolution and the inclusion of Thunderbolt 3 would be the most obvious upgrades – that is, if Microsoft is willing to abandon its proprietary Surface connector. Now, obviously, we don’t have any solid information – or even rumors – about the Surface Laptop 3 yet, but that doesn’t mean we can’t craft a sort of wish list of what we want to see in the third Surface Laptop. So, be sure to keep this page bookmarked, and we’ll update it with any Surface Laptop 3 rumors that come our way. Cut to the chase
Surface Laptop 3 release dateUnlike something like the Surface Pro 7, there have only been two Surface Laptop releases, and it’s a product line that’s been around for less than two years. So, we have less info to work from when guessing at a release window. The original Surface Laptop launched in June 2017, with the Surface Pro. But, the Surface Laptop 2 came much later in the year, launching in October 2018. It’s likely that we’ll see the Surface Laptop 3 show up some time in 2019, but it’s hard to predict when exactly we’ll see it. We could see Microsoft launch it during or before September, as it’s a popular laptop for students. However, if Microsoft does launch it then, it would have to use Intel Whiskey Lake processors instead of the next generation Ice Lake chips, and that may not be a substantial enough upgrade from the Kaby Lake Refresh parts in the Surface Laptop 2. This is all speculation, of course, so you should take it with salt. We’ll update this section as soon as we hear anything about the Surface Laptop 2 release date. Surface Laptop 3 priceThe original Surface Laptop launched a $799 (around £560, AU$1,000), with an Intel Core m3 processor and Windows 10 S out of the box. But, the Surface Laptop 2 significantly raised the price of entry, charging users $999 (£979, AU$1,499). This higher price point did come with full-fat Ultrabook processors in every configuration, plus the full Windows 10 Home. We think Microsoft will continue to charge the same $999 (£979, AU$1,499) for the Surface Book 3, to keep it competitive with similar Ultrabooks, like the Dell XPS 13. What we want to seeThe Surface Laptop 2 already improved so much on the Surface Laptop, that it’s hard to think of what else Microsoft could do to make it even better. Still, we’ve come up with a few things we’d like to see in the Surface Laptop 3, using our tech expertise as a guiding hand. Faster processors There are technically faster Ultrabook-class processors out already, with Intel’s Whiskey Lake, but they provide such a small upgrade in performance, that it really isn’t worth upgrading. However, at CES 2019, Intel announced its 10nm Ice Lake processors, promising to increase performance two fold in certain workloads. While Intel’s performance claims should be taken with a grain of salt, the gains to performance and battery life that a 10nm process would afford are still exciting. Thunderbolt 3, please Fortunately, Microsoft has patented a new magnetic USB-C charger, that would have the best of both worlds. We just hope the technology is ready before the Surface Laptop 3 hits the streets. Freshen up the design And, it’s not like Microsoft isn’t pursuing thinner designs. Microsoft has patented a thinner Type Cover, with a touchpad built right into the printed circuit board. This could lead to the Surface Pro 7 to have a smaller footprint overall, but we’d be interested to see if this design philosophy would carry over to other Surface devices. Thinner laptops are always in demand, so a thinner and lighter Surface Laptop 3 is definitely possible. Image Credit: TechRadar This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Sony’s PS4 sales surpass 91 million, but that number is slowing Posted: 01 Feb 2019 12:00 PM PST Sony announced its financial earnings on Friday and despite some falling numbers elsewhere in the business, PS4 remains a strong seller for the company. To wit, Sony says it sold 91.8 million consoles in total with around 8.1 million of those sales happening in the last three months. This latest sales number is just slightly less than the total number of units shipped (94.2 million a the end of last quarter) and could represent an inflection point for the console, which sold 800,000 more units this time last year. Despite the slowing sales number, however, Sony execs are still happy with how the PS4 is getting along. “Hardware sales dropped to 8.1 million units in the quarter, but that’s meeting our expectations for a console entering its sixth year,” chief financial officer Hiroki Totoki said in the earnings briefing. The dawn of a new ageEven if Sony never sold another PS4, the console will have done better than the PS3 (83.8 million units sold), PSP (82 million units sold) and PS Vita (in between 10 and 15 million units sold). But, that being said, the PS4 still has a ways to go to overtake the original PlayStation (102.49 million units) and the highest-selling console ever made, the PS2, which sold over 155 million units in its lifetime. In spite of the console's so-far excellent sales performance, the headwinds are changing and new consoles are rumored to be on the horizon. To that end, we’ve heard rumors about Sony’s next console, which we've taken to calling the PS5, that’s supposed to make its debut sometime this year. Unlike in years past though, that unveiling won’t happen at E3, an event Sony has said it will forego this year. It's hard to know when the right time is to launch a new console, but with PS4 sales starting to slow, now is as good a time as any to consider what comes next for Sony's console business.
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| France vs Wales live stream: how to watch Six Nations 2019 rugby online from anywhere Posted: 01 Feb 2019 11:40 AM PST The Six Nations 2019 is here to pit the biggest, the baddest and the best rugby nations in the world against each other on the field of battle, ahem, we mean play. This year adds an extra flavour as after the action is over the teams will go on to the Rugby World Cup later in 2019. So the pressure to perform now, and set the precedent for what's to come, is high. Good news - you can live stream all the Six Nations rugby action from anywhere you are in the world using this guide, starting with France vs Wales. In last year's match between Wales and France, the team in red took the win with a tight 14-13 final score after a bit of a disjointed game. Since then Warren Gatland's side has gone from strength to strength having won their last nine games in a row. Gatland has said: "We're in a good place in terms of competition in the squad and being able to cope a lot better than in the past in terms of picking up injuries - and mentally, we're in a good place too." France are 14/1 to win the Six Nations while Wales have 5/1 odds for the win. Despite Wales' Leigh Halfpenny being ruled out for the first two games due to injury, the side is still a formidable one. And France are not at their best form with heavy losses in the New Zealand summer series and defeat to South Africa in the autumn internationals. The game itself is free to air in the UK. And you can tune in for free by using a VPN if you're outside the country when the match you want to see is on.
How to live stream Wales vs France in the UK for freeHow to live stream the Six Nations when you're not in your countryIf you're outside your country of residence - whether that be the UK or anywhere else - and try to start streaming the rugby via your native broadcaster, you'll soon discover that you can't as it is location restricted. Fear not, the action is still within your reach. All you need to do is download and install a VPN to effectively trick your computer into thinking that it's back home. That way you can enjoy your home coverage without delving into the dangers of an illegal stream. Live stream France vs Wales in AustraliaLive stream Wales vs France in New ZealandHow to watch a Wales vs France live stream in the USLive stream the rugby union in Canada and more - for FREEImages courtesy of sixnationsrugby.com This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Leaked Samsung Galaxy S10E photo has it looking ready to rival the iPhone XR Posted: 01 Feb 2019 11:31 AM PST A new Samsung Galaxy S10E photo has leaked, showing exactly what you'll get if you opt for the likely-cheaper Samsung phone instead of the flagship Galaxy S10. What are the big differences? It'll have two, not three, cameras on back – presumedly regular and telephoto lenses – and a single front-facing camera, not two like we've seen on the more premium Samsung Galaxy S10 Plus. It still appears to have Samsung's new extra-expansive Infinity-O display, with space for a punch-hole camera in the top right corner of the screen. Samsung's looking to embed the front camera in the screen instead of resorting to a notch at the top. This latest leak backs up previously-seen sizing details for the Samsung Galaxy S10E's 5.8-inch display. That means the screen should (diagonally) reach the same length as the Galaxy S9, making the higher-tier 6.1-inch Galaxy S10 and 6.4-inch Galaxy S10 Plus roomier options. Leaked photo of the cheaper Samsung Galaxy S10E, front and back (Image Credit: winfuture) Samsung Galaxy S10E vs iPhone XRGalaxy phone prices have risen to rival those of Apple's iPhone in recent years, but Samsung has always offered better value. That seems to be happening again. The leaked Galaxy S10E specs include 128GB of internal storage and 6GB of RAM, which would be higher than the iPhone XR's 64GB of storage and 3GB of RAM. You can always upgrade Samsung's phone with a microSD card, something you can't do on any iPhone. Moreover, Samsung's lower-cost Galaxy S10 is set to retain a dual-lens camera, as we see from this official-looking photo and other leaks. The iPhone XR has a single-lens rear camera, leaving the iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max as the only dual-lens options. This leaked Samsung Galaxy S10E photo backs up every rumor we've seen so far. We'll know how accurate it is on February 20 at Samsung's Unpacked launch event. This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Smartphone sales fell nearly 5pc Posted: 01 Feb 2019 10:42 AM PST The global smartphone market continues its decline as consumers hold onto their devices longer than ever before and new research from the the International Data Corporation (IDC) has revealed that 375.4m smartphones were shipped to customers during Q4 2018. These figures are down by 4.9 percent when compared to the same period in 2017 and this is now the fifth consecutive quarter of decline making 2018 the worst year ever for smartphone shipments. Only 1.4bn units were shipped throughout last year as global shipments dipped by 4.1 percent. The Chinese smartphone market experienced the worst slump, reporting a decline in shipment volume by 10 percent. China accounts for 30 percent of the world's smartphone consumption and while other markets declined in the past, the country was previously able to avoid falling victim to market saturation. Samsung retained its place as the top smartphone vendor by volume and the South Korean electronics manufacturer ended the holiday quarter with 70.4m total shipments marking a 5.5 percent decline from the same period last year when it shipped 74.5m devices. Apple also saw the volume of its iPhone shipments fall by 11.5 percent as customers failed to justify the high price of its latest models. Smartphone slumpThe program vice president of IDC's Worldwide Mobile Device Trackers team, Ryan Reith put the smartphone market's decline into context, saying: “Globally the smartphone market is a mess right now. Outside of a handful of high-growth markets like India, Indonesia, Korea, and Vietnam, we did not see a lot of positive activity in 2018. We believe several factors are at play here, including lengthening replacement cycles, increasing penetration levels in many large markets, political and economic uncertainty, and growing consumer frustration around continuously rising price points.” While Apple and Samsung's sales declined, China's top four smartphone brands, Huawei, Oppo, Vivo and Xiaomi, were able to grow their market share by 78 percent. Huawei's shipment volume was up 43.9 percent year-over-year, Oppo saw full-year growth of 1.3 percent and Xiaomi increased its shipments for 2018 by 32.3 percent. Declining smartphone sales will likely lead device manufacturers to experiment with new designs and the rollout of 5G in 2020 will certainly help boost sales as consumers upgrade their devices for improved network speeds. Via VentureBeat This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Apple breaks Google’s internal iOS apps, but now it's restored Posted: 01 Feb 2019 10:08 AM PST Update: Apple has restored Google's internal corporate apps, according to a Google statement provided to CNET. Apple has purposely broken Google's internal iOS apps for improper use and privacy concerns, reportedly affecting its pre-release beta and employee-only apps software. Revoking Google's enterprise certificate comes one day after Apple did the same to Facebook. Both companies misused their developer certification, which is supposed to be for internal-only apps for employees, to make consumer-accessible ones that collected user data. That's a no-no, according to Apple's rules. But it wasn't specifically the user data collection that sparked Apple's ire. Instead, it was using the certification - which should only be used to create employee apps - to quietly make a consumer-accessible app, which circumvents Apple's standard review process. Google voluntarily shuttered its own app in question, Screenwise Meter, yesterday after press attention and publicly apologized. Like Facebook’s app, Screenwise monitored how folks used their iPhones. And while it seems like Google’s app had less access than Facebook’s, it still broke Apple’s policy regarding its enterprise certificate: “Any developer using their enterprise certificates to distribute apps to consumers will have their certificates revoked.” Apple’s move today to revoke Google’s certificate has blocked its use of early versions of Google Maps, Hangouts, Gmail and other pre-release beta apps, according to The Verge. A serious, but likely temporary blockConsidering how important testing apps is to both Facebook and now Google, it’s likely the companies are rushing to fix their strained relationship with Apple – not to mention access to their iOS testing systems. Google is already in talks with Apple, notes Bloomberg’s Sarah Frier, and iMore's Rene Ritchie confirms that Apple is in talks with Google. Facebook seems to have already negotiated to restore their certificate and reactivate their internal app library.
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| Sony is lining up more 4K HDR TVs for 2019 Posted: 01 Feb 2019 09:51 AM PST January blues are officially over. Sony is ploughing ahead with its range of 4K HDR Smart TVs, after announcing a number of new televisions on February 1. The new list consists of the XG83 (43", 49"), the XG81 (43”, 49”, 55”, 65”), the XG80 (43”, 49”, 55”, 65”, 75”), and the XG70 (43”, 49”, 55”, 65”). While the XG81 appears to be a new model entirely, the other three are all upgrades to models seen last year: the XF83, XF80, and UK-exclusive XF70. We know they'll be coming to the UK, though are waiting to hear of corresponding models being announced in the US - aside from the XG80, which will be called the X800G in the US (it's likely all but the XG70 will make their way stateside). Pitched as more mid-tier alternatives to more advanced sets like the Sony Master Series Z9G, the new sets are all compatible with HDR10 (though not HDR10+ or Dolby Vision), and with 4K resolution as standard.
The long gameIt's usual form for Sony to announce its flagships first, then introduce more mid-tier sets in the coming months for consumers who didn't rush to buy a high-end model. There's no firm release date for these HDR TVs as of yet, but we can expect the sets to hit shelves in a few months time. For now, you can check out every Sony TV coming in 2019 in our extensive TechRadar guide.
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| Amazon hit badly by new India e-commerce rules Posted: 01 Feb 2019 09:48 AM PST The introduction of new e-commerce rules in India has led to widespread disruption on Amazon's local site which was forced to take down its grocery service as well as remove a number of products such as sunglasses and floor cleaners from its store. India's new regulations went into effect at midnight on Thursday and the US e-commerce giant began removing products a few hours ahead of the deadline. Back in December, the country changed its foreign direct investment rules for its growing e-commerce sector and the move has drawn fire from Amazon as well as Walmart as the companies look to expand their online presences in India. The new e-commerce investment rules prohibit online retailers from selling products from vendors in which they have an equity interest and making deals with sellers to sell exclusively on a platform is no longer allowed as well. Empty pantryIn addition to the removal of products sold by Amazon vendors like Cloudtail, the company's grocery service, Amazon Pantry, was also discontinued sparking outrage from customers that rely on the site for grocery delivery. Amazon has even forecasted first quarter sales below Wall Street estimates as a direct result of growing uncertainty in India which the company sees as one of its key growth markets. India's new e-commerce policy was announced after small traders in the country complained that e-commerce giants were creating an unfair marketplace by exercising their control over inventory from affiliated vendors. Amazon and Walmart both unsuccessfully lobbied against the country's new rules and even pushed for their implementation to be delayed. The future of India's e-commerce market is in doubt and at this time it is still unclear as to whether the new rules are here to stay. If so, Amazon, Walmart and other foreign businesses looking to expand in the country will have to change their business structures in order to be in compliance with the new rules. Via Reuters
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| iMac 2019: release date, news and rumors Posted: 01 Feb 2019 09:45 AM PST A new iMac is bound to hit the market eventually, and we’d love to see an iMac in 2019. Because, shortly after the iMac 2017 came out, backed with 7th-generation Intel Kaby Lake processors, the chip manufacturer released its 8th-generation Coffee Lake chips – followed by the 9th-generation Coffee Lake Refresh CPUs in 2018. So, the iMac is currently two generations behind the curve when it comes to silicon, but we thin, the iMac 2019 could level the playing field. Following the surprise announcement for the MacBook Pro 2018, we may see the same happen with the iMac 2019. We previously heard speculation that the iMac 2018 would be among the Macs Apple would release in late 2018, but when the Mac Mini 2018 and the new MacBook Air launched, that was obviously false. Instead, Apple will likely stay quiet about the iMac 2019 until it’s ready to release the all-in-one. Until we hear more about a new iMac from Apple, be sure to keep this page bookmarked, as we’ll keep it updated with all the latest information as it comes out. Cut to the chase
iMac 2019 release dateThe 2017 iMac was revealed back at WWDC 2017, but Apple didn’t repeat themselves last year. And, because there was no Mac hardware at the iPhone XS event, or the October 30 Mac event, we didn’t get a new iMac in 2018. But, we’re hoping to see an iMac 2019 Whether or not we see an iMac 2019 launch remains to be seen, but we’re sure that Apple won’t abandon the iMac lineup. We could see a special event for the new iMac, or we could even see it launch at WWDC 2019. iMac 2019 priceAgain, there’s not much to go on right now concerning what the price of a 2018 iMac might be. Hopefully, the price won’t stray too much from last year’s models, unless there is going to be some seriously large upgrades when it comes to components. The base price of last year’s iMac is $1,099 (£1,049, AU$1,599), so we’d like to see a similar price with the iMac 2018. Of course, the iMac comes in various configurations (and prices) to suit your needs. However, recent shortages, especially in Intel’s processors, may lead to an increase in manufacturing costs that Apple will likely pass on to the consumer. With the high-end iMac Pro starting at $4,999 (£4,899, AU$7,299), we can envision an iMac 2018 costing between $1,000 (£1,000, AU$1,500) and $2,500 (£2,000, AU$3,000). iMac 2019: what we want to seeWhile we don’t know much of anything about the iMac 2019 , we still have plenty of ideas about what we’d like to see in a new version of the all-in-one. Read on for your wish list of what we want to see out of the iMac 2019. A revamped designWhile we love the look of the iMac, it’s sort of had the same design for the past 12 years, so 2018 could be a great year to tweak the look. That could mean a minor revision, such as slimming the body even further, or something more drastic. Rumors of an iMac redesign have been swirling since a post on Reddit, apparently by a ‘Foxconn Insider’ who worked for the company that builds the devices for Apple, claimed there would be an update to the iMac and its peripherals. Color-wise, the aluminum design of the iMac has been a staple since 2007, so we wouldn’t mind seeing another color option with the iMac 2019 – perhaps a Space Gray version, like the iMac Pro? Take inspiration from the iMac ProThe iMac Pro is a fantastic device, and while it is definitely a product aimed at a completely different audience than the iMac 2019 will be, there are a few things the standard iMac could incorporate from its more expensive sibling. We’d love to see the iMac 2019 ditch the hard drive, and instead stick with solid state drives – this would allow Apple to make it even slimmer, while giving it a huge speed boost. Even better for photographers and filmmakers is if Apple allowed UHS-II SD card support, thereby streamlining the post-production process. The iMac Pro also features some clever cooling technology to help reduce the heat of the components, again allowing for a thinner design without noisy fans, and we’d love to see that in the iMac 2019 as well. However, if Apple includes the T2 chip used for security and ‘Hey, Siri’ commands in the iMac 2019, users might have to deal with the fact that Apple locked it out to third party repairs. Make sure you pick up that AppleCare, is all we’re saying. Oh, and did we mention we’d really like to see a Space Gray iMac? Take inspiration from the MacBook and iPhoneWhilst we’re getting ideas from other Apple devices, there’s a few things we’d like to see from the iPhone and MacBook appear in the iMac 2019. For example, how cool would it be if the Touch Bar from certain MacBooks turned up on a redesigned iMac keyboard? Those touch-sensitive buttons would be a fantastic addition. Also, we’ve been very impressed by the Face ID technology of the iPhone XS and iPad Pro, so if Apple is thinking of upgrading the FaceTime camera on the iMac 2019, we’d love to see this included, so we could unlock our new iMac with just a glance. Boosted specsWhile know pretty much nothing about the hardware that’ll be included in the iMac 2017, we’d love to see it include the latest and best components when it’s revealed. Now, what we really want to see is Apple shoving the latest 9th-generation Coffee Lake Refresh processors into the iMac 2019, so that Apple fans could have access to these octa-core behemoths. But, even if Apple is more conservative and sticks with an 8th-generation Coffee Lake processor, the iMac 2019 will still get a huge performance boost over last year’s model. We’re also fairly certain that Apple will use one of its T2 co-processors in the iMac 2019, probably for ‘Hey Siri’ commands, much like the rest of Apple’s recent devices. Apple is also reportedly working on crafting its own processors, in a rumored program called the ‘Kalamata Initiative”. This will see the Cupertino giant replace all Intel processors with its own by 2020. This is a huge ordeal, to be sure, but Apple seems to be well on the way working on its own chips in a super-secret lab. Fingers crossed we see some – or all – of these predictions come to fruition.
Gabe Carey has also contributed to this report This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Nvidia GeForce GTX 1660 Ti release date, news and rumors Posted: 01 Feb 2019 09:41 AM PST Do you find the price tags of Nvidia’s new Turing-based RTX graphics cards so high, they induce a mild bout of vertigo? Even Nvidia itself has admitted that poor sales of RTX GPUs have been down to the fact that some folks are waiting for prices to drop with the higher-end models. However, if it’s affordability you want, then another more tempting Turing option could be in the works with the rumored GeForce GTX 1660 Ti. This purported graphics card may drop the ray tracing technology – hence the GTX branding, rather than RTX – in order to become a more wallet-friendly Turing GPU option. The GTX 1660 Ti name might sound rather improbable – and seemingly plucked out of nowhere – but evidence surrounding the existence of this graphics card has been mounting as of late. Nvidia has been long rumored to introduce some kind of non-ray tracing alternative to its more expensive RTX models, and it seems increasingly likely that this will be the GTX 1660 Ti – possibly alongside a vanilla GTX 1660 and GTX 1650. Whatever the case, we’ve rounded up all the latest chatter from the Internet grapevine regarding this GPU (and its potential siblings) in one easy to digest article. Because, you know, we’re good like that. Cut to the chase
Image Credit: TechRadar Nvidia GeForce GTX 1660 Ti release dateThe GTX 1660 Ti is expected to be unleashed on February 15, according to industry sources who spoke to HardOCP. Naturally, that’s a rumored date, though, it’s more specific than speculation surrounding launches can sometimes be. The rumored launch window is also imminent, so we’ll discover the truth behind it soon enough (doubtless, Nvidia won’t be able to resist a pre-launch teaser). The alleged GTX 1660 is rumored to be scheduled for a March debut – not far behind – with the GTX 1650 supposedly following in late March to round off the range. Image Credit: TechRadar Nvidia GeForce GTX 1660 Ti priceAccording to the same sources who divulged the launch time frame, the GTX 1660 Ti is expected to retail at $279 (around £210, AU$390). That would be much more affordable than the GeForce RTX 2060, the cheapest ray tracing-capable card which weighs in at $349 (£329, AU$599). Let’s cut quickly to the caveats here, namely that this is merely a speculated price tag, and even the rumor peddlers themselves warned that this could change before launch. Looking at the bigger picture, the GTX 1660 Ti needs to be priced fairly below the RTX 2060 – otherwise you’d just buy the latter. That said, at $279 (around £210, AU$390), it would actually come in costing less than the outgoing GTX 1060 which retails at $299 (£249, AU$499). Mind you, with all this talk of high RTX price tags, maybe Nvidia figures it needs to court some goodwill on the pricing front. The supposed GTX 1660 is expected to carry an asking price of $229 (around £175, AU$320), with the GTX 1650 dipping to a rumored $179 (around £135, AU$250). Image Credit: TechRadar Nvidia GeForce GTX 1660 Ti specsThe GTX 1660 Ti is rumored to be built around a TU116 (Turing) GPU with 1,536 CUDA cores and 6GB of GDDR6 video memory. As already mentioned, the GPU won’t have any ray tracing capabilities, so this will be one of the main differences between this and the RTX 2060 – that and having fewer CUDA cores (1,536 versus the 1,920 cores on the 2060). These specs were detailed in the initial leak of the 1660 Ti, and the presence of 6GB of video RAM is backed up by leaked model listings of Gigabyte and MSI graphics cards publicized the EEC (Eurasian Economic Commission). Incidentally, that leak from the EEC is some of the most concrete evidence that proves the 1660 Ti is indeed in the pipeline. If those Gigabyte and MSI model names are indeed real, it confirms the card will be called the 1660 Ti, even if that still seems like an odd choice (the more logical progression would be the 1160 Ti). We've also seen some slightly shakier rumors, like a photo showing the GPU being revealed as a cheeky “one more thing” item at the end of an Nvidia pre-briefing event for third-party manufacturers, which could conceivably have been faked. As to the raw power of the GTX 1660 Ti, we’ve had a glimpse of that thanks to a leaked Ashes of the Singularity benchmark, which indicates that the GPU will be almost 20% faster than the GTX 1060. Bear in mind, though, that pre-launch benchmarks can be off the mark due to early sample hardware – or indeed made-up entirely. Even the benchmark score proves to be legitimate, this is only one game, so it hardly gives us a full picture. Still, it’s a promising result, which actually puts the 1660 Ti in the same ballpark as the Nvidia GTX 1070 when it comes to pixel-pushing power. And considering the rumored $279 (around £210, AU$390) price tag of the Turing newcomer, you get some idea of the tasty price/performance ratio we might just be looking at. Fingers crossed, then, that all this pans out. There are scarce details on the specs of the GTX 1660 or 1650 as yet, assuming they exist, of course. What little we have seen suggests the GPUs will be architecturally similar to the 1660 Ti, but will use slower GDDR5 memory. The GTX 1660 may run with 1,280 CUDA cores (256 fewer than the 1660 Ti) according to reports. If these affordable Turing cards break onto the scene as predicted, you can expect stock of the last-gen Pascal GPUs to dry up pretty quickly – although some speculation (again from those HardOCP sources) indicates that Nvidia intends to keep on producing the GTX 1050 Ti, maintaining it as a bottom-end option below the GTX 1650.
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| Google Fuchsia release date, news and rumors Posted: 01 Feb 2019 09:40 AM PST We were expecting to see Google announce Google Fuchsia, or Google Andromeda – a fusion of its Chrome and Android operating systems (OS) – back in October 2017. That announcement never happened. But, what will Google Fuchsia look like? Well, the Google Pixelbook and some of the other best Chromebooks, are able to run both an early build of Fuchsia itself, and Android apps from the Google Play Store – which Fuchsia itself is rumored to do. We think that Google Fuchsia – if and when it gets a release date – will end up being the penultimate Google operating system across all different kinds of devices. Basically, we don’t know what Google Fuchsia will ultimately be. Google Fuchsia is both thin on the ground and arcane. However, we do know that Google Fuchsia centers on the idea of being able to do whatever you want on whatever device you have handy. We can see this approach in some recent moves by Google – like bringing Android Messages and a VR video editor to a broad range of devices. In fact, the Google Pixel Slate may give us a glimpse into what the future may hold for Google Fuchsia – even if we’re no closer to an actual release of the fledgling OS. With this new tablet, Google has changed up the UI of Chrome OS to be more palatable on a tablet – bringing it closer to a unified OS across different families of devices. Whether or not it relates to Fuchsia remains to be seen, but it could be a step in the right direction. So, regardless of what the final product is, or whether or not Google Fuchsia ever makes it to the public, be sure to keep this page bookmarked, as we’ll update it with any new information comes our way. Cut to the chase
A Google Pixelbook running an early version of Fuchsia OS (Image Credit: Ars Technica) What is Google Fuchsia?Right now, there appears to be a divide within Google regarding what Fuchsia actually is. While the team working on it says they want Fuchsia to be the penultimate Google OS, running on all phones, tablets, laptops and smart home devices – Google’s leadership is still referring to it as an experiment. So, we’ll just have to wait and see what happens, and what materializes out of all this experimentation. Google Fuchsia, then, is a hybrid OS that is still very much in development. The entirety of Fuchsia OS is comprised of two distinct but connected user interfaces (UI): a phone-centric one codenamed ‘Armadillo’ and a traditional desktop UI known as ‘Capybara’ internally, according to 9to5Google. So far, more is known about the mobile version of Fuchsia than the laptop one, but ArsTechnica was recently able to get Fuchsia running on a Google Pixelbook in an awfully early state. And, it looks like both versions should be able to run Android apps, much like many Chromebooks in 2019. So, backwards compatibility looks to be something that early Fuchsia adopters can look forward to.
Dividing the OS up into two separate UI based on the hardware it’s being used with is a classically Microsoft-inspired move. Windows 10 already scales depending on whether it’s being used with a desktop computer, phone, tablet or game console. In fact, Windows 10’s only unifier is its kernel, the root code that controls the bulk of the operating system. In the case of Fuchsia, that kernel is known as ‘Zircon’, and it’s designed to be consistently upgradeable in addition to being safe from applications accessing it constantly, adding an extra layer of security and eliminating situations in which apps are rendered incompatible with OS updates. Whether it’s in the mobile or desktop orientation, Fuchsia is laden with Google’s Material design found all over its Android and Chrome OS products. Shadows are a big focus on the design aesthetic, using a new Vulkan-based graphics renderer known as ‘Escher’ to do the job. The result is an interface with more depth to its look than traditionally flat OS products. Google Fuchsia as it appears on a smartphone device. Fuchsia is also heavily focused on a cards-based interface, in which every app you open appears inside one of these cards – plus, you can place multiple apps into a single card. This orients the user around tasks at hand rather than apps. Those apps are expected to look the same across different devices because of a new cross-platform mobile app development framework, developed by Google, known as Flutter. Beyond that, Google Fuchsia revolves around Google Assistant more deeply accessing and working with your apps and information to provide even more actions and insights. Google has referred to these apps and pieces of information as ‘entities’, according to a GitHub developer page, and they’re all accessible by Google Assistant on Fuchsia. We’ve even seen a recent demo that further illustrates how deeply ingrained Google Assistant is on Fuchsia. And, it looks like Google will also be changing how it collects analytic data within Fuchsia, according to a report from 9to5 Google. Fuchsia will see the implementation of a new analytic program called ‘Cobalt’ which will collect information on how you use apps within the OS. Cobalt is supposedly a part of Google’s security-minded approach to the OS, but encryption hasn’t been worked in yet – but, we’re sure Google will work better security into Cobalt eventually. Google Chrome, or at least an early build of Chromium is up and running on early builds of Google Fuchsia, according to a report from 9to5 Google. And, while it’s not ready for the spotlight, this does mean that the fledgling OS is getting closer to being usable without days of preparation. Finally, Fuchsia wants to be the best cross-device OS to date. To achieve this, Fuchsia uses a new tool known as ‘Ledger’ by the GitHub community. Ledger, once you’re signed into a Google Account on a Fuchsia device, will automatically save your place in all installed apps across all Fuchsia devices. All in all, Fuchsia is Google’s attempt to get the best of Chrome and Android into a single operating system that’s more efficient both while you’re using it and when you’re away – not to mention in between those states or between devices. This is likely where Fuchsia will make its debut. Google Fuchsia release dateEver since August 2016, we’ve seen a ton of rumors about Google Fuchsia’s release date – and each turned out to be false. These rumors usually come up before Google’s big Google IO developer event in California, or when we know a big hardware release is around the corner. Back in February, it was revealed that Google’s former head of Android platform security, Nick Kralevich, had left the Android team to ‘define security’ over in the Fuchsia department. Describing it as a “new, experimental operating system,” Kralevich doesn’t hint at any specific launch window, however it does show where Google chooses to put its most crucial resources. Right now, the speculation points to Fuchsia running within the next three years just on smart home devices, with a full public release coming within the next five years. However, even that seems to be an extremely shaky rumor – we’d be surprised if we saw it release before 2024 (or actual androids), if it ever actually comes out. However, recent developer messages through the Android Open Source Project suggest some movement. One of the commits mentions two repos, that the folks at 9to5Google take to be the “incorporation of the official Fuchsia SDK”. Another commit mentions the Huawei Honor Play smartphone, so we could see Fuchsia tested on actual devices soon. What might help point to some movement for the Google Fuchsia release date, though, is a new hire from Apple. Bill Stevenson, a senior macOS engineer for Apple, announced on LinkedIn that he is joining Google to bring Fuchsia to market. At any rate, keep it locked to this page as we draw closer to a possible release date and therefore might have some new information for you. Is Fuchsia the end of Android as we know it? What could Fuchsia mean for Android and Chrome – and Windows and macOS?Word on the street is that Google Fuchsia is Google’s answer to Microsoft and Apple’s united platforms. In turning Android into one of the two biggest smartphone platforms and later popularizing Chrome OS – not to mention G-Suite, Google’s web-based productivity programs. Google has already kind of become a major player on all platforms. From the sound of it, Google is setting out to accomplish much of what Microsoft and Apple already have in place with Windows 10, iOS and macOS High Sierra. Continuity, respectively, but in a very Google way. It’s easy to expect access to Google’s inimitable search and data-tracking at your fingertips – Google Assistant and ‘entities’, anyone? – which it could boast as better than Microsoft and Apple’s, and an interface that evolves to meet the needs of the device from which it’s accessed. Will this eventually mean the end of Android and Chrome? In name, most likely, but their principles will almost certainly live on – there's too much solid foundation not to build on top of them. Just look at the Material design language found throughout these early builds of either version of Fuchsia. The end result, likely to be seen in a preview form later this year and in purchasable devices in 2019, will be just one platform for Google to worry about. With Fuchsia, Google will be able to push new updates and features to all versions at once, simplifying support as well as user understanding. With that, Google will become that much more formidable a foe to Microsoft and Apple, and that much appealing an option to Android and Chromebook users all over. Who knows, perhaps it will be enough to bring people over from the other side of Microsoft and Apple’s fences.
Gabe Carey has also contributed to this report This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| The best Ultrabooks 2019: top thin and light laptops reviewed Posted: 01 Feb 2019 09:40 AM PST In 2019, the best Ultrabooks are kind of the ultimate status symbol, especially if you’re a student, a professional, or you just spend a lot of time in your local coffee shop. Rather than having a big and bulky budget laptop or Chromebook, you’ll bring out a lighter, thinner and faster laptop, one packed with the best SSDs and processors you can find today. These thin and light laptops are as much about portability as raw power. The best Ultrabooks aren’t going to freeze up in the middle of an important project or run out of battery on a short flight – you don’t have to worry about any of that. So, we took the time to find all the best Ultrabooks 2019 has to offer. The year is just getting started, but we got a sneak peek of what’s to come at CES 2019 – so these peeks will look a lot like 2018 for a while. From brands you know and love, like HP and Dell, to those you may not know, like Huawei, we reviewed them all for their designs, performance and battery life. For a few years now, Huawei has been lurking in the shadows, ready to take on the best Ultrabooks, and its time has finally arrived. Like the Huawei MateBook X Pro before it, the Huawei Matebook 13 packs in a ton of powerful hardware into an attractive shell, while keeping the price low enough for anyone to afford. Plus, we have to mention those discrete graphics – it may be one of the smallest laptops out there to pack an MX150 GPU. It’s not hard to see why the Huawei Matebook 13 is the best Ultrabook right now. Read the full review: Huawei MateBook 13 Sometimes, we’ll come across an Ultrabook that completely destroys everything that came before. The Huawei Matebook X Pro is one of these Ultrabooks. This gorgeous laptop brings high-end components into an elegantly-designed package that puts even the MacBook Pro to shame. And, with its 3K touchscreen, the Huawei MateBook X Pro has a display that’s just as nice to look at as the chassis. It really is one of the best Ultrabooks you can buy today. Read the full review: Huawei MateBook X Pro The Dell XPS 13 has been the best Ultrabook for years, and while it’s been dethroned by the Huawei MateBook 13, it remains one of the Ultrabooks to beat in 2019. This time around, Dell has moved the webcam from the bottom of the display to the top, fixing one of the biggest problems faced by the XPS 13 for years. Add in the updated internals, and the Dell XPS 13 is still one of the best Ultrabooks out there – even if some of the competition has caught up. Read the full review: Dell XPS 13 The original Surface Laptop was one of the best Ultrabooks when it first came back, though it was held back from true greatness due to its relatively weak hardware and Windows 10 S. However, in 2018, the Surface Laptop 2 had come back with a vengeance – bringing stronger quad-core processors and the full-fat version of Windows 10. It’s through these core improvements that the Surface Laptop 2 is able to bring the purest Windows 10 experience on a laptop, at a price that won’t make you gasp in horror. Read the full review: Surface Laptop 2 Few Ultrabooks are as brilliantly designed as the Lenovo Yoga 920, a 2-in-1 laptop that’s as illustrious to look at as it is to use. In contrast to its nearest competitors, such as Microsoft’s Surface Book 2, it’s also a far less expensive endeavor. For the modest price you pay, you’re getting a gorgeous, all-metal finish that can be flipped inside out for extended functionality. It also houses the latest 8th-generation Intel processors, just in case speed was a concern. Read the full review: Lenovo Yoga 920 From the moment your eyes meet the HP Spectre 13, you’ll be impressed by its sheer beauty. HP has taken the already luxurious Spectre and dialed the design up to eleven with gold trim and packed it with internal specs that blow the competition out of the water. One of the first Ultrabooks rocking an 8th-generation Kaby Lake Refresh chip, the 2017 Spectre 13 more than doubles the CPU performance of most of its competitors. This added performance comes at the cost of battery life, but clocking in at just under 6 hours – the battery life is still passable. Read the full review: HP Spectre 13 Razer has been known as a gaming company for years now, but with the Razer Blade Stealth the green-themed manufacturer wants to dispel that. If you’re not convinced, this Ultrabook might change your mind by turning into a 13.3-inch, QHD+ beauty. You can no longer upgrade to 4K, but the performance this Ultrabook offers is more than worth that compromise – especially given how beautiful the chassis is. Read the full review: Razer Blade Stealth It’s rare that a manufacturer thinks of everything when creating one of the best Ultrabooks, but for what it’s worth, the HP Spectre x360 comes pretty close. It’s a 2-in-1 convertible laptop,, which by itself makes it a bit of a niche product. Still, for those right-brained users out there, the HP Spectre x360 comes bundled with a Windows Ink-compatible stylus, unlike the vast majority of hybrids. That would mean very little if the HP Spectre x360 didn’t have great sound and visuals – and it definitely does. Read the full review: HP Spectre x360 Anyone familiar with Apple’s thinnest and lightest laptop would be wise to compare the Asus ZenBook 3 to the 12-inch MacBook. The similarities are obvious, but one look at the specs and the differences stand out too. Adorned with the choice of a U-series Intel Core i5 or i7 processor, the ZenBook 3 is awfully powerful considering it’s less than half an inch thick and weighs two pounds. The port selection is sparse, but ultimately it’s well worth the sacrifice. Read the full review: Asus ZenBook 3
It’s no secret that Apple neglected the MacBook Air – at least until the MacBook Air 2018 launched – but, in some cases a Windows Ultrabook can be just as good. Take the Asus ZenBook UX310UA, for instance. With still-good 7th-generation Intel Kaby Lake processors, a 178-degree viewing-angle QHD+ display, a USB-C port and an aluminum build, it’s still one of the best Ultrabooks out there, even after all this time. Read the full review: Asus ZenBook UX310
Bill Thomas and Gabe Carey have also contributed to this article This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| The best browsers for Android 2019 Posted: 01 Feb 2019 09:38 AM PST When you're browsing the internet on your Android phone, it's easy to opt for either your phone manufacturer's default browser or Chrome (if they aren't one and the same). It can certainly be convenient, typing everything together neatly with your Google account, but there's a wealth of other Android browsers out there, including some that may be a better fit for you. Several of the browsers we've looked at here are specially designed to be as lightweight as possible (something Chrome isn't particularly well known for), making browsing faster and easier on less powerful phones. Other browsers are privacy-focused, making sure you leave no trace once you finish a browsing session, and blocking any tracking cookies that may otherwise allow advertisers to follow you around the web. Tempted? All these mobile browsers are free, so download any that take your fancy and take them for a spin. They might change the way you surf forever. Image credit: TechRadar 1. Firefox FocusThe full mobile version of Firefox is an excellent browser (not least because, unlike many others, it supports extensions), but Firefox Focus is our favorite of Mozilla's Android offerings. Focus is relatively new, having only arrived on Android in July 2017, but it's come a long way since then with new features including search suggestions and Google Safe Browsing, which checks for potential phishing sites. When you close Firefox Focus, all traces of your browsing history will be deleted, but you can also erase your current session by tapping the trashcan icon that appears in the bottom right when you begin browsing, and if you navigate to a different app, the option to end your browsing session will appear in your phone's notification area. Firefox Focus is very well thought through, and Mozilla is adding new features regularly, so we expect it will become even better will time. Image credit: TechRadar 2. Opera TouchLike Mozilla, Opera is best known for its hugely customizable desktop browser, which lets you tinker with and tailor virtually every element on the screen, but the organization has also produced some superb mobile browsers. Our favorite is the lightweight Opera Touch, which has been carefully designed with one-handed use in mind. The button that appears at the bottom of the Opera Touch interface is an unusual design feature, but makes it easy to access common controls (including refresh, close and search) with a single touch. You can also use this share pages to connected PCs, avoiding the need to email URLs to yourself. Searching using voice commands is just as easy as typing (just tap the microphone icon that appears and begin speaking. Opera Touch is also a great choice for the security-conscious Android user, with one-tap ad-blocking and a dedicated tool for protecting your phone from cryptominers. Image credit: TechRadar 3. Microsoft EdgeIf you use Windows 10, you'll be so used to Microsoft urging you to make Edge your default desktop browser, you might not have realized it has a mobile counterpart – and a very good one at that. The mobile version of Edge is developed by a separate team to the desktop browser, so you'll find features differ substantially between the two. Most recently, Microsoft added an optional tool that can alert you when you visit a website that has a reputation for poor quality news reporting. Logging into Edge for Android using your Microsoft account will let you sync all your bookmarks automatically, and provided you're using Windows 10, you can move webpages seamlessly between your phone and your PC. Even if you're not a fan of Edge on the desktop, the mobile version is well worth a look, particularly if you use other Microsoft software regularly. Image credit: TechRadar 4. PuffinPuffin is billed (pun intended) as one of the fastest mobile browsers around, and while it's hard to say if it's absolutely the speediest in all circumstances, it certainly feels pretty nippy. That speed wouldn't mean much if it meant sactificing safety, but thankfully that's not the case. Puffin is also a great browser for protecting your privacy, automatically encrypting all connections, and includes a built-in ad-blocker. Puffin also gives you an unusual choice of input options, including a virtual controller that makes it easier to enjoy games in the browser, plus a virtual cursor that makes it easier to navigate pages that are wider than your screen (like large spreadsheets, for example). Image credit: TechRadar 5. FlynxFlynx is an unusual Android browser. Rather than occupying the entire screen of your phone or tablet, it appears floating on top of whatever you're doing in another app. It's enormously useful if you use social media and messaging apps regularly. Whenever you tap a link in an app and select 'Load with Flynx', the browser will load it quietly in the background. Once it's done, tap the globe icon on the right to open it in a floating window. When you're done, simply drag the icon down to close it. Many apps, including Facebook and Pinterest, have their own in-app browsers, but Flynx is more convenient and helps avoid the risk of getting distracted surfing when you've got other things to be doing. This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Best free games: the top free games to download on PC Posted: 01 Feb 2019 09:35 AM PST Everyone loves free stuff, and when it comes to the best PC games it’s no different. There are tons of free games out there right now. And, unlike PlayStation and Xbox, which have their own ecosystems for free games through PlayStation Plus and Xbox Games with Gold, the best free games on PC take on a different – and dedicated – approach. The best free games will be available from Steam, GOG and even (brace yourself) EA’s Origin client, due to the huge popularity of free-to-play titles. You can even download the Epic Games Store app and get some premium indie games for free every couple weeks. So, from Battle Royale free-to-plays, like Fortnite, to MMORPGs, like Lord of the Rings Online, the best free games cover a wide range of genres and styles. Let’s dive in. Linux, Windows or Mac - which one is best for you? Watch our guide video below: Gabe Carey has also contributed to this article Save up to 46% on a magazine subscription Everyone knows Monster Hunter at this point – it’s basically become an overnight success on PC – even Capcom was surprised. However, what if we told you there was a cheaper way to get into some monster hunting action, that was also easier on your hardware? Enter Dauntless. Rather than the clear environmentalist focus of Monster Hunter: World, where you’re trying to preserve the habitats, Dauntless simplifies things a bit and just tasks you with slaying behemoths to protect a human colony. The gameplay itself is much simpler as well, free of some of the more obtuse gameplay systems that you either love or hate in the Monster Hunter series. But, the core DNA of the series is there – hunt monsters, craft gear, hunt more monsters. And, this time, it’s free to play. 1. Fortnite Battle RoyaleThe Battle Royale trend is huge right now, and Epic Games has all but perfected it with Fortnite Battle Royale. Initially developed as a sort of add-on for Fortnite, Battle Royale took off in a way that nobody was anticipating, quickly becoming one of the most played games of 2018. The game is entirely based around a simple scenario: you’re dumped in a map with 99 other players in a free-for-all melee, and the only winner is the one who is left standing at the end. And, thanks to its meteoric success, Epic Games is hard at work adding new game modes and features all the time. Take Playground mode, for instance – it dumps you in the map and lets you build up structures for a set amount of time before the floodgates open and the carnage begins. What’s especially cool is that Fortnite lets you play with your friends, no matter what platform they’re on. Whether you’re on PC, Xbox One, iOS, Android and even soon PS4, you’ll be able to be matched up against millions of other players from all different platforms. 2. Dota 2The Dota universe may have derived from a Wacraft 3 mod, but Dota 2 is very much its own entity, not to mention one of the most popular free-to-play games. This top-down arena battler is incredibly active, attracting multi-million dollar prize funds for serious tournament players. It's not just for obsessives, though. A brief tutorial now points out the ropes, with the Steam Community stepping in to provide guides to the original MOBA. Don't expect a warm welcome or easy learning curve from its sophisticated gameplay mechanics, but bring a few friends and Dota 2 will have you hooked on one of the biggest crazes in PC history. 3. Planetside 2Two years before Destiny dropped into orbit, we had Planetside 2. It’s an epic, all-out first-person battle so unbelievable, you’ll have to pinch yourself every time you load it up to remind yourself it’s completely free. There are in-game purchases, sure, but you can still dive into the biggest battlefield in gaming and be useful with the default equipment. There's simply nothing like taking part in a massed assault on an enemy base and coming out on top, or living in a world where an enemy convoy could appear on the horizon at any second. If you need any proof that 'free' doesn't mean uninspired, Planetside 2 will provide it.
4. Path of ExilePath of Exile is a free dungeon crawler in the style of Diablo III, and it’s a bit different than most free games out there. It’s not just about fragging real-life people until they scream at you in shrill pubescent tones through their Skype headsets. It’s a bit more slow-paced than your typical multiplayer fragfest, but if you give it time, you may just get addicted to this loot gathering hit – it’s really the best free games for Diablo addicts. There are hidden depths that you can uncover after playing for hours and a huge skill tree to slowly progress through. There are no game ruining issues like that short-lived real-money auction house, either. Instead, even basic loot can be useful because there's always an opportunity to enhance even the simplest weapon with magic. If you got tired of the grind of Diablo III, it's a good one to check out. 5. League of LegendsPick a champion and head into battle in this seminal free-to-play game from the creators of the Warcraft III mod, Dota. League of Legends’ automated matchmaking, diverse cast of characters and pristine maps have made it a multiplayer behemoth over the last few years, and one that will certainly stand the test of time. It’s an aggressive gameplay experience, but one that rewards good teamwork and careful tactics. You won’t master it overnight, but you’ll be having fun shortly after you hit that ‘play’ button. Like Dota 2, League of Legends attracts many high-end players, and the top tournaments offer prize pools of over $1 million. The weird world of esports, eh? 6. Hearthstone: Heroes of WarcraftEver played Magic the Gathering, the card game? Hearthstone is Blizzard’s attempt at making a free online version of it. And, in typical Blizzard style, it’s awesome. It’s immediately inviting, lacking the terrifying learning curve you would expect from an online fantasy card game. Hearthstone plays quickly, boasts a very casual visual approach, and benefits from a basic rule set, all of which adds up to a very accessible card battler that will give you plenty of enjoyment – especially if you’re a World of Warcraft fan. Despite being accessible, it's still quite challenging as well, especially if you're up against an opponent that plays their cards right. 7. Star Wars: The Old RepublicTaking the Star Wars MMORPG after Star Wars Galaxies went away (rest in peace), Star Wars: The Old Republic was not free at release. However, since then, like so many MMORPGs before it, adopted the free to play model. If you want to get Sith kicks, this is the best way to get them for free. Keep in mind though, that subscriptions are still available, and will give you more in-game potential and end-game content. All the story missions, however, are still available for free – it just might take a bit longer now. It’s worth your time just to see the Star Wars universe from different sets of eyes, like the hyper-professional Imperial Agent and Bounty Hunter. If you want to go with the dull option and just have a generic Jedi Knight, though – you can totally do that. 8. Forza Motorsport 6 ApexWhen Xbox head Phil Spencer said he was going to bring the console's best franchises to the PC, he wasn't joking around. Among these notable series is Forza Motorsport. Shunned by petrol-heads and embraced by gamers, Forza Motorsport may seem like an arcadey offshoot of its biggest rival on PlayStation, but it consistently looks and feels superb nonetheless. Forza Motorsport 6 Apex in particular brings a complete Forza Motorsport game to PC gamers for the first time – before Forza Horizon 3 came out in 2016. While it’s not quite the full-fledged experience you can expect with full entries to the series, Forza Motorsport 6 Apex is the best free game would could have asked for from Microsoft’s long-standing racing series. 9. Killer InstinctRare's classic fighting series Killer Instinct may not be the household name it once was, but the ability to play one character for free is enticing nonetheless. What's more, characters can be purchased a la carte as downloadable content, which means you don't have to shell out a wad of cash unnecessarily for characters you'll never play. And, for the Xbox fans out there, this game is essentially Microsoft's equivalent of Super Smash Bros. and PlayStation All-Stars: Battle Royale since you can pick up numerous Xbox mascots. These include Arbiter (Halo), Rash (Battletoads) and General RAAM (Gears of War) in addition to a growing catalog of Killer Instinct-specific characters. While Killer Instinct isn't as popular with the Fighting Game Community, there is a certain novelty of being able to control these classic Xbox-derived characters, and on PC at that. 10. World of TanksWorld of Tanks is a different kind of MMO – which you should have guessed from the title. Team-based, massively multiplayer action with a huge range of war machines to drive into battle awaits, with new players able to jump into the fray right away. The upgrade system adds a sense of personalization, while being surrounded by an entire army at all times reminds you that loners won’t survive on the battlefield. Get sucked in, though, and you may find yourself spending a chunk of your wages on great big chunks of virtual metal. While some premium tanks cost just a few dollars, others are more expensive. You can see where maker Wargaming is earning some cash from World of Tanks enthusiasts. 11. Heroes of the StormIt was only a matter of time before Blizzard dipped its toe into the MoBA phenomenon, and with Heroes of the Storm, we’re left asking: what took so long? It’s an incredibly approachable esports title, somewhere between League of Legends and DOTA 2 in terms of complexity, with the added bonus of characters you know and love. That’s right, the roster is completely made up of Blizzard characters from across its library of classic games. Have you ever wondered who would win in a fight between Thrall and Kerrigan? Well, now you can see that fight play out on the battlefield. Blizzard knocked it out of the park here, making one of the best free games that keeps getting better by the day. 12. EverquestThough its future was briefly uncertain after the sale of Sony's online entertainment division in February 2015, Everquest has returned better than ever with new expansion packs and continued support by Daybreak Game Company. The first of its kind to commercially succeed with a 3D game engine, Everquest was released in 1999 as an MMORPG (massively multiplayer online role-playing game) and has since been documented as one of the most important games in the medium's history. Featuring consistently released expansion packs (quite massive in scale, at least early on) with vast new areas, races and classes, Everquest brings to the table just about everything you would expect from an MMO – plus it's notably better at handling co-op than its alternatives. 13. RiftOriginally hailed as the game that would finally dethrone World of Warcraft, Rift had its moment – and is still going strong depending who’s talking. It brought innovation to a genre that was changing very slowly, letting you change your class whenever you felt like it. The whole game is focused on separating giant boss battles and events that occupy entire zones. It’s ambitious, exciting and huge with dozens of interdimensional rifts that keep things fresh and unique from other MMOs. And, after Rift went free to play, Trion has stayed on top of things, releasing regular expansions for everyone to enjoy. Plus, you can ride on a landshark. 14. RunescapeRunescape is one of the biggest free-to-play MMOs out there, and now would be a good time to take a look. In 2013 it entered its third reboot – this is actually 'Runescape 3', although just jumping in now you might not appreciate it has been around in one form or another for more than 10 years. It's certainly not the shiniest MMO in the world despite the revamp, but hanging onto this many players shows it's doing something right. The big change introduced in Runescape 3 that made it appear a lot more modern was the ability to see much further – in Runescape 2 the horizon quickly gave way to fog. Not so now. You can download the game for free or run it in your browser using Java, making it much more convenient than most other online role-players of this epic scale. 15. MaplestoryIf the bleak appearance adopted by the typical MMORPG is a turn-off for you, you’ll be delighted to see that Maplestory takes the traditional art style of the genre and turns it on its head. Described by Nexon as the original 2D side-scrolling MMO, Maplestory takes the classic Dungeons & Dragons-inspired genre and makes it kawaii. The lighter tone and customization of Maplestory makes it feel more like Harvest Moon than World of Warcraft or Rift. It’s also more focused on improving cosmetics than many other MMOs, allowing players much more control over how their characters look. There’s even in-game weddings and dinosaurs that play guitar. Really, the only thing Maplestory is missing is an Oasis-composed soundtrack. 16. WarframeIf you're into third-person co-operative shooters, Warfarme is one of the best free games out there. Players take control of members of the Tenno, an ancient race at war with enemies such as the Grineer, the Corpus, the Infested and the Sentients. Your Tenno soldier uses the Crysis-style Warframe armor equipped with guns or melee weapons to fight back. Better looking than your average free-to-play shooter, much fun can be had in Warframe's player-vs-enemy raids — so much so that some gamers see it as, "The Destiny that never was". High praise indeed. 17. SmiteGods from every pantheon come together in Smite to battle it out in a free Dota/MOBA inspired clash. Even though Smite wears its influences on its sleeve, it comes from the same developer that made the FPS smash Tribes Ascend – a completely different beast. The camera is behind the characters this time, making for a more direct connection to the action than simply guiding your lord around with a mouse, but the premise will be either familiar if you've played its inspirations, or a way to get the feel for the style if you haven't. Gods include Zeus, Thor, Kali, Artemis and... Cupid? Well, at least he has his own bow… 18. Lord of the Rings OnlineThere are so many MMOs that have been launched or relaunched as free-to-play games, but Lord of the Rings Online is one of the titles that most warrants a second look. Not only is it an excellent game in its own right, it’s one of the more mature MMOs on the market. You’ll probably have to pay eventually, if only to unlock adventure packs, but there’s no subscription fee and nothing to buy up front. If you missed it at launch, or even if you quit playing since then, it’s time to give it a try. 19. The Awesome Adventures of Captain SpiritLife is Strange, and its sequel, are among the best modern adventure games on PC in 2018, and luckily, there’s now a free way to get into this amazing series. Revealed back at E3 2018, the Awesome Adventures of Captain Spirit places you in the shoes of a 9-year-old Chris as he, and his alter ego, Captain Spirit, goes on, well, an awesome adventure. It’s a free-to-play single player adventure game free of any kind of malicious microtransactions or predatory monetization – just a nice prelude into Life is Strange 2. Just don’t go in expecting the longest gameplay experience in the world, you’ll likely get through it in just a couple of hours. 20. Eve OnlineIn 2003, Icelandic developer CCP Games unleashed Eve Online, an immersive and in-depth “sci-fi experience” that would eventually garner the attention of well over 500,000 players. Eve Online is unlike any game in its category, thanks to the vast range of activities to take part in as well as its (appropriately) out of this world in-game economy. Unfortunately, the Eve Online player base has been dwindling since 2013. It shouldn’t be surprising that as time goes on, fewer and fewer gamers are interested in paying a subscription fee for a glorified space sim with a steep learning curve. However, since the Ascension Update, released back in November 2016, Eve Online has gone free to play – at least to an extent. The new ‘alpha clones’ system featured in Eve Online is similar to the “unlimited free trial” featured in World of Warcraft. You can still engage with other player in piracy, manufacturing, trading, mining, exploration and combat, but certain skills will be off limits. If you don’t want to limit your access to some of the game’s most lumbering ships you can always opt for the Omega subscription – otherwise, the game won’t cost a cent. 21. Blacklight: RetributionWhile it may not be as ‘free’ as it was before it showed up on PS4, Blacklight: Retribution is still a damn fine and affordable way to play an FPS. Almost like a free-to-play Titanfall, Blacklight: Retribution has no single-player mode to offer and takes place in a futuristic Cyberpunk setting complete with fan-favorite game types like Deathmatch, Capture the Flag, Team Deathmatch, Kill Confirmed, King of the Hill and Domination. Featuring customizable weapons and mechs, of course, Blacklight: Retribution is a fun, free and safe way to let off steam after that 9 to 5. Plus, with over 1 million registered players and counting, there's bound to me no shortage of teammates (and rivals) to join up with. 22. HawkenAs it's been in beta since 2012 with little to no marketing push, you may have forgotten about Hawken or were unfamiliar with it in the first place. Most notably, Hawken is a game about mechs. But, not just any mechs – fast mechs. These are your average slow, lumbering tanks of MechWarrior Online. These are more comparable to the Exoskeletons of Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare. Of course, being a free-to-play game, you can expect to pay for upgrades to your starter mech. However, you can still get a taste for Hawken without spending a dime. Plus, attach an Oculus Rift and you can see for yourself what VR games have in store for you. Admit it, you've wanted to know what it's feels like to power a mech for yourself since Pacific Rim came out. 23. Evolve Stage 2Hey, remember Evolve? Yeah, we didn’t think so – it quickly fell off the face of the Earth after release, until it was eventually removed from Steam. Turtle Rock then re-released Evolve back into beta a year and a half after its initial release. It was then that Evolve was released as a free-to-play experience, and even given a new name: Evolve Stage 2. Despite going free-to-play, the game's core structure remains intact. It's a game of humans vs. zombies, err, monsters, a new twist on a beloved pastime. A team of four players, called hunters, is pitted up against a single monster, with each hunter assigned their own class. Of course, with four players taking on one, there is a unique catch: hence the game's title, monsters start out at a basic level but evolve over time by killing and consuming wildlife in nearby areas. Evolve cost $40 before, so rest assured you'll get access to a game that looks triple-A, even if much of the content is locked behind a paywall. Nevertheless you can give it a shot for yourself for the nominal cost of $0 on Steam. 24. The Elder Scrolls II: DaggerfallWhile we sit, anxiously awaiting whatever The Elder Scrolls VI ends up being, you should take the time to give the classic The Elder Scrolls II: Daggerfall a try. This 1990s RPG is a precursor to those incredibly popular RPGs, and is a bit of a classic in its own right. Its game world is many times the size of any of its sequels, and indeed it’s the size of a continent – and it’s absolutely packed with atmosphere. It might look a little rough by today’s standards, but it’s worth looking at if you’re an Elder Scrolls fan. It's available direct from Bethesda. The publisher started offering it for free to celebrate the 15th anniversary of the game. As if we didn't feel old enough already. 25. Starcraft IIOne of the biggest games to ever hit the PC/Mac landscape is Starcraft II, a competitive real-time strategy game whose Wings of Liberty installment is just one of three parts of the campaign. At one time, it was a phenomenon in South Korea, but the scene fizzled out a bit when MOBAs like League of Legends and Dota 2 took the world by storm. Maybe that’s why Blizzard decided to convert Starcraft II to the free-to-play business model. As a result of its compelling strategy game mechanics, combined with brilliantly designed environments and a fascinating narrative that can only be expressed in a video game, Starcraft II is one of the most widely enjoyed eSports in the entire world. Of course, being a Blizzard game, you’ll need a Battle.net account to enjoy it, but otherwise, both the campaign and the multiplayer are free to enjoy. Only certain characters require your prized coin. 26. Wolfenstein 3DInterested in knowing what Wolfenstein was before The New Order? Wolfenstein 3D is now free, and will take you back to the year 1992 when celebrity game developers John Carmack and John Romero teamed up to make a shareware game like nothing before it. Wolfenstein 3D took concepts from Muse Software's Castle Wolfenstein and Beyond Castle Wolfenstein to create a three-dimensional first-person shooter that would later inspire the development of Doom. Keep in mind while playing, though, that while Wolfenstein 3D was impressive for its time, it's probably not what you would expect from a first-person shooter of today's standards. Nonetheless, it's an easy and free way to experience game history in an old-school World War II game rich with narrative about, well, shooting Nazis in the face. Don't expect to be blown away by the story in the same way as the Wolfenstein franchise's more recent entries. 27. Team Fortress 2It may be an old vet in gaming terms, but nothing offers so much crazy fun as Team Fortress 2. Unlike most shooters of its age, players are still there to have a good time rather than hurl abuse at newcomers, and there's no shortage of cool toys to have fun with. Endlessly silly and amazingly fresh, it's still one of the shooter genre's kings, free-to-play or not. As you might guess, there are some micro-transactions involved. You can buy additional items, often used to customise your character. You can create your own. It's fun, and gets you even more involved in TF2. Those cheeky devils at Valve know what they're doing. 28. GiganticThough it may have gotten lost in the fog of Overwatch, Lawbreakers and the like, Gigantic is yet another hero shooter in a jumbled sea of hero shooter fanaticism. The difference is that Gigantic, much like the unfortunately fated Battleborn, is a lot more MOBA-esque than Blizzard and Boss Key Studios’ similarly styled games. The gameplay largely revolves around two teams of five players who are both trying to defeat both each other and a mystical leviathan known as a guardian. Likewise, Gigantic gives players the choice between a wide variety of characters each with their own abilities and upgrades. Plus, it’s on Xbox One, too, in case you want to continue the fun in the living room. 29. Magic DuelsMagic: The Gathering is fun, right? But what if you could play it from the warmth and comfort of your PC? Luckily, Magic Duels will let you do just that. Whether you’re a first time player or a 20-year vet, Duels will let you do everything the card game does and more. While over 300 new cards are advertised as being attainable throughout the game, there’s also a unique story mode where you can experience Magic like never before. If narrative in your card games isn't your cup of tea, there's also a Battle Mode in which you can challenge your friends, a four-player Two-Headed Giant battle and even an offline solo mode you can use for practice against AI. 30. DC Universe OnlineThough it's yet another free-to-play MMO on this list, DC Universe Online takes characters like Superman, Batman, Green Lantern and more into a massive (and shared) public world. Choose whether you want to be a member of the Hero or Villain faction then customize your character and you'll be sent out into the world of DC Universe Online at the hands of Daybreak Game Company. After some training, the game assigns you a position as either a member of the Justice League or The Society depending on your choice of hero or villain. Unlike other MMOs on this list and outside it, DC Universe Online is designed to be much more interactive while still retaining traditional MMORPG elements such as leveling, raiding, inventories and post-game progression. Favorably, it's not difficult to play without using real-world currency too. 31. PaladinsIt’s not hard to see why Paladins catches a lot of flack for its resemblance to Overwatch. At the same time, the team-based shooter bears many distinctions from that of Blizzard’s. Abilities are upgraded based on a collectible card system, which can completely change the way each character plays. What’s more, unlike Overwatch, Paladins is completely free-to-play. While cosmetic items are available to buy using real-world currency, everything else can be unlocked simply by playing the game. For instance, you’ll start Paladins with a single deck of basic cards, and from there, more dramatically impactful decks can be unlocked. Regardless of how you choose to play Paladins, you’ll get XP as you play. As long as you’re completing the daily quests and achievements featured in the game, you’ll be rewarded with Radiant Chests and Gold. These can be used to purchase more cards, costumes and weapon skins to make your characters more unique and skillful on the battlefield. 32. Pro Evolution Soccer 2018 LiteYou may be familiar with Fifa already, but Pro Evolution Soccer – or PES – is one of the best-selling video game franchises of all-time. It doesn’t have all the flair (or the licensing) of its EA Sports rival, but some would argue that it’s the better soccer game series, not to mention one of the better sports series overall. PES 2018 in particular isn’t too much of an improvement over its predecessor, but it does introduce better dribbling and makes an effort to perfect the fan-favorite Master League mode. The ‘Lite’ version of Pro Evolution Soccer 2018 gives you access to the Online myClub and PES League Mode in addition to the Offline Exhibition Match and Training Mode, entirely for free. There are in-app purchases along the way, but you can always upgrade to the full version later should this one not satisfy. 33. SpelunkyYou can now get Spelunky on all sorts of platforms – it's pretty high-profile for an indie title. But it began its life PC-exclusive, and its original 'non HD' Classic version you can still get for free today. The catch is that every time you play, the entire game is randomized. In one game you'll stumble through screen after screen of spiked horrors and swarming monsters; in the next, the software will bend over backwards to give you gold and help you on your way. You learn how each randomized world ticks and which equipment will give you a fighting chance. And then you'll die some more. And scream. And restart. Again. 34. NeverwinterAs a free MMO, Neverwinter sets a high standard for itself as it's based on perhaps the most iconic role-playing game of all-time, Dungeons & Dragons. Like everything else in the Dungeons and Dragons universe, the game takes place in Forgotten Realms, specifically, as the name suggests, in Neverwinter. Featuring eight character classes with groups of up to five players supported, Neverwinter is based on the fourth-generation rules of Dungeons & Dragons. However, the rules are slightly modified, letting players heal their allies in addition to allowing for the use of special abilities in combat after racking up enough action points. 35. Doki Doki Literature ClubAn ostensibly charming visual novel on the surface, Doki Doki Literature Club is a game that’s best experienced blindly. It comes from Dan Salvato, a game developer known best for his work in the Super Smash Bros. Melee modding community, who says he developed Doki Doki Literature Club because of his indifference towards anime. That’s ironic considering the main character in Doki Doki Literature Club is obsessed with anime and manga and has minimal experience with the writings of more prestigious authors. As engrossing as the trio of female supporting characters appear to be in Doki Doki Literature Club, we would advise getting too attached to them. Without spoiling the story, the first thing you see when you boot up Doki Doki Literature Club is a content warning, suggesting that those with severe anxiety refrain from playing at all. It’s not entirely unwarranted either, as you’re bound to learn the hard way that Doki Doki Literature Club is more horror than generic fan service. 36. Puzzle Pirates: Dark SeasFor nearly 15 years now, Puzzle Pirates has been a household name for kids with unrestricted access to the computer labs at school. It’s a completely free-to-play massively multiplayer online role-playing game originally developed by the Sega-owned Three Rings Design. The goal is to join a crew and ideally become a captain, by completing puzzles alongside other players. Puzzle Pirates: Dark Seas, on the other hand, is the Steam-exclusive version of Puzzle Pirates that introduces an entirely new ocean known as Obsidian. Dark Seas introduces factions and player-versus-player (PvP) combat in a way that didn’t exist prior to the Steam release of Puzzle Pirates. It also comes from a different developer, a nonprofit called Grey Havens founded by several former members of Three Rings Design. Before the advent of Dark Seas, you could only get the multiplayer portion of Puzzle Pirates on Steam. Now it appears as though the single-player mode can be downloaded and installed from Valve’s client as well. Although it’s only in early access for the time being, early reviews suggest that it’s worth a shot for Puzzle Pirates veterans and newcomers alike. 37. Phantom DustIts development cycle was a disaster, but in the end, the Phantom Dust remaster turned out just fine. A new IP in the form of a Japanese budget card game for the original Xbox, it seemed to good to be true when Microsoft revealed back at E3 2014 that a complete remake was in the works… and, as it turns out, it was. The remake was canned in 2016, but Microsoft still wanted to revive the cult classic one-off. As it turns out, the company did so with a remaster, not a remake. Luckily, the new version of Phantom Dust for Windows 10 (and Xbox One, for console-goers) doesn’t cost a thing to play unless you opt to purchase some of the in-game “multiplayer cards”. 38. Dwarf FortressInspiring the creation of Minecraft was no small feat for 2D sandbox game Dwarf Fortress. Dubbed a construction and management simulator, Dwarf Fortress takes simple text-based graphics into a more modern, 2006 piece of software. The game is often classified as a cult classic because of its open-ended nature and serving as one of the most iconic examples of a procedurally generated roguelike. This means Dwarf Fortress both randomizes its environments and makes the game's permadeath system a much more difficult problem to avoid. This led to the unofficial slogan for the game "Losing is fun," which was either ironic or an accurate description of what happens in the game. Tough to say either way. One thing's for sure, though. If you want to experience an important part of games history, Dwarf Fortress is a solid start, as it was exhibited at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City back in 2013. Can't say that for a lot of free-to-play games. 39. Fable FortuneAfter a troubled development cycle, Fable Fortune is the collectible card game that you probably thought would never release. Either that, or you’ve never even heard of it. We wouldn’t blame you. The team behind the Fable franchise – the illustrious group of individuals at Lionhead Studios – has since departed its doors, which were coincidentally permanently shut two years ago. In the time following Lionhead’s closure, its parent company, Microsoft, licensed off Fable Fortune to a group of former Lionhead developers at a new company called Flaming Fowl Studios. It was there that Fable Fortune found private funding despite a failed Kickstarter campaign. The end result is a fairly competitive card game that’s completely free to play. Skeptics will be quick to compare Fable Fortune to Hearthstone. However, the two games differ drastically due to its more complex set of hero powers, less randomness and a morality system that rewards an understanding of its ‘good’ and ‘evil’ points. 40. Fallout ShelterIf you're more interested in the property management systems of Fallout 4 rather than the overwhelming majority of the role-playing game's content, Fallout Shelter is a great place to start. Up until recently, the simulation game was limited to mobile platforms Android and iOS. However, with the introduction of Quests in version 1.6 of Fallout Shelter, Bethesda Softworks also felt the need to port the game to PC by way of the Bethesda.net client. All in all, Fallout Shelter doesn't feel much different on PC, and that's undoubtedly a good thing. Mouse controls work well in place of a touchscreen, graphics are optimized even for low-end hardware and with windowed mode enabled by default, it's easy to find yourself caring after your vault residents during your downtime at work. With an indisputably manageable price point (free), Fallout Shelter could very well become the next Solitaire in your office or at school. 41. BrawlhallaHave you been watching all your friends play Super Smash Bros Ultimate, but missing out on the action because you don’t have a Nintendo Switch? Well, with Brawlhalla, you’re in luck. Brawlhalla is a 2-8 player 2D brawler that draws very heavy inspiration from Nintendo’s classic franchise. And, it pulls it off. It’s an extraordinarily fun way to pass a few hours. And, with an esports league, you can rest assured you’ll always have people to test your skills against. It’s not quite the same as playing some Smash on a friend’s couch, but it’s close enough to be worth your time. 42. BattlebornCEO and president of Gearbox Software Randy Pitchford will tell you differently, but Battleborn is free-to-play. Officially classified as a “free trial” on Steam, there isn’t much to differentiate the hero shooter from other free-to-play games on the market. You can play for as long as you want using six of the game’s 30 characters, rotated weekly to shake things up. Battleborn was originally released in May 2016, the same month as Overwatch. The main difference is that Battleborn draws influence from MOBA games while Overwatch is a more traditional PvP shooter with an eccentric cast of characters. Battleborn also has a single-player campaign, which can be unlocked using real-world currency. 43. The Elder Scrolls: LegendsThere’s an ostensibly neverending arms race developers are in right now to put out the next Hearthstone. That is, a wildly popular collectible card game (CCG) that’s “easy to learn but challenging to master.” Those are the words, verbatim, publisher Bethesda Softworks is using to describe The Elder Scrolls: Legends. A CCG that draws from the lore of the company’s beloved RPG franchise, The Elder Scrolls: Legends differentiates itself from the likes of competing virtual card games such as Hearthstone and The Witcher 3’s Gwent by enacting a two-lane system that keeps players on their toes when it comes to devising strategies. And, if you’re simply craving more Skyrim, you’ll be elated to know that the Heroes of Skyrim expansion for The Elder Scrolls: Legends packs in 150 additional cards, some of which are familiar faces like Aela the Huntress, J’Zargo and Delphine. 44. RobocraftWhether you loved or hated World of Tanks, you’ll be pleased to know that Robocraft is what you get when you take conventional vehicle combat and completely turn it on its head. From independent developer and publisher Freejam, Robocraft lets you commandeer jet cars (not jets and cars, but jet cars), tanks, flying warships, helicopters and drones. In doing so, you’ll spend most of your time engaging in combat with other players online. Like a vehicle-based Fortnite, you’ll also experiment with different combinations of 250 preset blocks using a simple crafting interface, allowing you to equip the vehicle of your choosing with the weapons of your choosing as well. Likewise, Robocraft lets you create or join clans with up to 50 members. Within those clans, you can invite friends to ‘parties’ and play cooperatively in an effort to take down other teams. Once everything is said and done and you’re satisfied with your creations, you can show them off at the virtualized Community Robot Factory in exchange for likes and shares. 45. Total War Battles: KingdomReal-time Strategy (RTS) games don't come much grander than those in the Total War series, and the latest entrant, Battles KINGDOM, is free-to-play. Currently in open beta on the PC, it's also available to play on iOS and Android, so you can pick up where you left off when you're away from your battlestation. Set at the turn of the 10th Century, Total War Battles: Kingdom combines army management with kingdom building to deliver a bite-sized RTS game you can pick up and play anywhere, anytime. This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
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