Apple : How to watch Bad Education: stream new Hugh Jackman movie online from anywhere

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• How to watch Bad Education: stream new Hugh Jackman movie online from anywhere
• The Last Dance makes it hard to like the players at the heart of this documentary
• How to watch Run online: stream the new show from anywhere
• How to watch BGT 2020: live stream Britain's Got Talent online anywhere free
• These Lenovo Yoga laptop sales offer excellent price cuts this weekend
• iPhone SE 2020 teardown reveals intriguing facts about battery and camera
• Sony slip-ups: ahead of the PS5, we look back at the PlayStation tech that just didn't work
• Save $600 in the latest Apple MacBook sales at Best Buy
• Missing the MCU? Try Marvel's Wolverine podcasts instead
• If you loved The Sims, now is the perfect time to rekindle your addiction
• This iOS text code can crash your iPhone - here’s how you can fix it
• Samsung Galaxy Tab S7: what we want to see
• Best RPGs 2020: the top role-playing games for console and PC
• Why the Canon EOS R5 could be 'mind blowing' for video, according to a director
• Best FPS games 2020: the most essential first-person shooters for console and PC
• Best MMO games 2020: live a second life on console and PC
• Are the iPhone 8 or 7 worth your time now iPhone SE deals are here?
• BT's fibre broadband deals offer impressive speeds and a £70 Mastercard
• AMD Cezanne leak hints at next-gen laptop CPUs with RDNA 2 graphics that go for Intel’s jugular
• Apple and Google explain more about the privacy of their Covid-19 tracking apps

How to watch Bad Education: stream new Hugh Jackman movie online from anywhere Posted: 25 Apr 2020 02:05 PM PDT It's being hailed as Hugh Jackman's best performance since The Greatest Showman and reportedly cost HBO $20 million to secure the distribution rights to - quite the figure for a film about a suburban district school board scandal. Yet it's won the critics over and is finally ready for the public to pass its verdict - here's how to watch Bad Education online and stream the new movie no matter where you are in the word. Directed by Cory Finley (Thoroughbreds), Bad Education stars Jackman as Frank Tassone, superintendent of the prestigious Roslyn school district on Long Island and a respected public figure in the community. But the behind closed doors, he's as committed to maintaining his lavish lifestyle and secret toyboy as he is to providing students with an exemplary education - and this hubristic streak threatens to lead to his downfall. Alongside Jackman is Academy Award winner and former West Wing star Allison Janney as Pam Gluckin, Tassone's number two on the school board, while Ray Romano is another Hollywood A-lister featuring in the cast - this is definitely not just another 'made for TV' movie. Based on a fascinating true story, it will have to forgo a run at The Oscars as it isn't getting a theatrical release, but it's safe to say it's an early favorite for the Emmys - so here's how to Bad Education and stream the new Hugh Jackman film online no matter where you are in the world right now. Where fact meets fiction - here's how to watch Contagion anywhere How to watch Bad Education online in the US How to watch Bad Education from outside your country As Bad Education is an HBO exclusive, anyone from America who's currently abroad won't find it being aired simultaneously in places like the UK, Canada or Australia - though a UK release date for Bad Education has been promised for later in the year. This is annoying for US residents abroad, however, as trying to tune into HBO like you would from home will likely be impossible because of geo-blocking restrictions. We know that this might not be a likely scenario for many, due to coronavirus travel restrictions, but the fact is people are still being required to travel - and some are even regrettably stuck abroad during this difficult time. Fortunately, there is a solution in the form of a VPN. This nifty bit of software changes your IP address so that you can access all the content you pay for at home, just from anywhere in the world. How to watch The Last Dance Michael Jordan documentary now This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now

The Last Dance makes it hard to like the players at the heart of this documentary Posted: 25 Apr 2020 11:29 AM PDT Sports documentaries, for the most part, need to do two things: be accessible to you even if you know nothing about the discipline, and give you someone to root for. You can’t beat an underdog story like Sunderland ‘Til I Die, but the drama is bound up in your support for the show’s subject, so even if they're global superstars, you’ve got to at least like them. Then that drama shouldn't be weighed down by reams of complex tactical analysis and exposition. In one sense the first two episodes of ESPN's The Last Dance (releasing on Netflix internationally) are successful. But in the other it fails, emphatically. Chasing a second ‘three-peat’ - winning an NBA championship in three consecutive seasons - The Last Dance follows who some consider the greatest ball player of all time, Michael Jordan, and the Chicago Bulls in their 1997/98 season. Supplemented with some never-before-seen footage and illustrious talking heads including all-star ex-pros, Bill Clinton, Barack Obama, and MJ today, this ten-part drama is the result of exclusive access enjoyed by NBA Entertainment cameras. You may not need to know the first thing about basketball to watch it, but you may not develop enough affection for the team to stick with it. How to watch The Last Dance online The best Netflix VPN 2020: stream quality shows anywhere When is the next episode of The Last Dance? Before I started the first two episodes - Netflix is dropping two each week on Mondays until May 18 - I knew little more than what an ‘alley-oop’ was, but it turns out that already made me overqualified to understand what’s going on. Occasionally terms like, steals, rebounds, and playoffs are thrown at you, but you don’t need to know what any of that means to realize that a guy once called 'Mike' Jordan from North Carolina is special at what he does.  MJ steals the show everywhere he goes, so it’s not surprising that he dominates the show’s attention, despite the efforts of some to wrench away the spotlight. Watching the man in action is mesmerizing. The sheer pace and bristling, irresistible energy with which he inhales the court in the sprint to the opposition basket is astounding. I could watch him endlessly as he contorts his body majestically, arms flailing in impossible positions to feint and pulls off ridiculous distance shots. Eventually, however, I found myself appreciating the superstar with a detached admiration. The thing is, Michael Jordan doesn't make a great impression. When asked for an autograph after a game, he wordlessly turns to an assistant who says for him “not now”. Sarcastically offering to shoot hoops with the Bulls’ diminutive General Manager, Jerry Krause, Jordan points out they’d have to “lower the hoops” first. He even buys the team’s second best player, Scottie Pippen, a pair of golf clubs so he can put him in his place in that sport, too. It seems like being told you’re the best NBA player for a decade can really go to your head, which is something that becomes more apparent when the show’s timeline jumps about a bit.  The 97/98 season is the glue that holds the series together, but we also see MJ’s childhood, his time in high school and college, plus the terrible Chicago Bulls roster he vastly improved in the 1980s, which provide valuable context. Experiencing MJ’s time as a child with his pushy father, with his brothers that’d fight if they lost a one-on-one basketball match against each other, and him getting cut from the high school team, makes the lurch back to 1997 even more jarring in an international exhibition win against PSG-Racing in Paris. Refusing to hug his ecstatic teammates, he dismisses the game as one that, for a regular NBA championship winner like him, just “doesn’t count”. Like anyone who’s reached the pinnacle of their discipline, MJ’s overwhelming drive to win is a given. That said, it seems to be all there really is to him, based on this documentary. I was hoping the show would get under his skin, so I could know more about the personality of a man I’d only heard of, but never understood.  But, albeit based on the first two episodes of The Last Dance, winning does seem to be his personality. When his side is losing, he becomes apoplectic. With Pippen sidelined with injury and the team on their worst run in years, it becomes not a moment for reflection that perhaps being a team player is important, but an excuse to yell his teammates’ shortcomings in training. The rest of those associated with the Bulls aren’t much more agreeable. Pippen may be subjected to an overly-long contract unworthy of the second best player in the NBA, but hearing of his berating of Jerry Krause on the team bus makes for uncomfortable television. Then again, despite Krause having the nerve to make the necessary point that “organizations win championships, not players” in what seems like a thinly-veiled dig at Jordan, the GM's attitude towards others in the limelight makes him come off as pretty unappealing in this documentary, also. So they’re not a likeable bunch so far, which is some of an issue when they’re the main cast in a sports documentary. For all MJ’s heroics on the court, you remember he refers to himself in the third person. You’re not invested in seeing his team succeed, no matter how many matches they see out on a knife edge with seconds remaining.  Unlike the underdogs you can’t help but support in Sunderland ‘Til I Die, these players are serial winners. The drama of their petty squabbling doesn’t make up for the reduced stakes of following a group on their quest to simply repeat their success. In the end, unlike the famous Michael Jordan, I just don’t care if he wins. The best Netflix documentaries: from American Factory to Cheer This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now

How to watch Run online: stream the new show from anywhere Posted: 25 Apr 2020 11:19 AM PDT Reuniting Fleabag creators Phoebe Waller-Bridge and Vicky Jones, this new comedy-drama is already a popular and critical hit - read on to find out how to watch Run online and stream it no matter where in the world you are. The show follows Ruby (played by Emmy-winning Nurse Jackie star Merritt Wever) who walks out on her comfortable suburban family life to reunite with Billy, her former college boyfriend from Ireland (Domhnall Gleeson), who has gone on to become a successful life guru. The story unfolds as the pair go off on a whirlwind trip across America as part of a pact the pair had made 17 years earlier. Under the rules of the pact, if either one of them texted the word "run" and the other replied with the same, they would drop everything and meet in Grand Central Station to travel across America together. A transatlantic co-production between HBO and Sky Comedy, Jones serves as writer and producer, while Waller-Bridge stars as key character Laurel as well as getting an executive producer credit. Keep reading and we'll tell you your options for watching Run online from your corner of the globe. Need more drama? Here's how to watch Better Call Saul online  How to watch Run online in the US How to watch Run in the UK How to watch Run online in Canada this week How to watch Run online in Australia  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now

How to watch BGT 2020: live stream Britain's Got Talent online anywhere free Posted: 25 Apr 2020 11:07 AM PDT Fancy a bit of light-hearted weekend entertainment? Then ITV has you covered as the 14th series of Britain's Got Talent is now underway and we have loads to look forward to! Read on to find out how to watch this week's BGT auditions and stream Britain's Got Talent 2020 live from the UK - and nearly anywhere else in the world. Simon Cowell, David Walliams, Alesha Dixon and Amanda Holden are all set to return to the judges' desk, while Ant and Dec will be back as hosts for the auditions this week. While the competition's early stages were all completed before the coronavirus lockdown and will air as normal, this year's live shows have been postponed by ITV - potentially as far back as the winter - due to the Covid-19 pandemic A promo clip released ahead of the new series revealed a string of hopefiuls set to appear on the show, including a daredevil motorbike riders, dancing gymnasts and a Donald Trump lookalike in pink tights. Last year's winner was 90-year-old singing sensation Colin Thackery who has gone on to release his own album and performed on The Royal Variety Show in front of members of the Royal Family. Not bad! Which would-be stars will be plucked from obscurity this time round? Find out by following our guide below to stream Britain's Got Talent 2020 live online – no matter where in the world you are, we'll show how to watch BGT from anywhere and on nearly any device. Read more: Discover how to watch Onward online How to watch BGT live: stream Britain's Got Talent 2020 for free in the UK As in previous years, Britain's Got Talent will be shown in the UK on ITV1. That means you'll be able to watch the show live via your TV aerial connection or online using the ITV Hub website. The ITV Hub app is also available for Android and iOS smartphones and tablets and will also let you watch ITV content on the go, including Britain's Got Talent 2020. And if you ever miss a few episodes, don't panic as all previous instalments will be available on catch up via the service. Viewers with a recent smart TV should also be able to find a dedicated ITV Hub option within its apps. The service is free to use - however, you will need to register with ITV before being accessing show and hold a valid TV license. Alternatively, there's also online streaming TV service TVPlayer.com, which has all of the UK's freeview channels including ITV in one place. This means you can catch the show on TV, computer, tablet and smartphone for free if you're in the UK - or subscribe to TVPlayer Plus if you want to record it and watch later. How to watch Britain's Got Talent live anywhere in the world  For those outside of the UK that don't want to miss a second of the Britain's Got Talent auditions, your best bet is a VPN. This means that if you've mismatched a holiday or you're temporarily out of the country on worj, don't panic - you can still get your BGT fix, you just need an internet connection.  Yeah, we know - a trip to Bognor sounds positively exotic right now, but normality will one day resume and who knows? You may be one of the hundreds of thousands of Brits currently stranded abroad. Once you get the right VPN you can enjoy a secure and speedy connection, even on open Wi-Fi networks like hotels, enabling you to tune in and watch BGT online for free just like you would at home. Even if you're not that tech-savvy, don't worry - getting a VPN is super simple and we've outlined how to do it in three easy steps below. This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now

These Lenovo Yoga laptop sales offer excellent price cuts this weekend Posted: 25 Apr 2020 10:16 AM PDT Lenovo Yoga laptop sales are offering some fantastic discounts on stunningly powerful machines this weekend. That means you can pick up the laptop of your dreams without having to break the bank right now. From juicy 10th generation processors to massive SSDs, there's plenty to get your teeth into in the latest Lenovo laptop deals.  The cheapest Lenovo Yoga ready to ship is this $779.99 15.6-inch C740 model. Down from $859, you're getting some excellent power under the hood, with 8GB RAM, 256GB of SSD storage, and the latest 10th generation Intel i5 processor. Not only that but with Dolby Amos audio and a Full HD IPS touchscreen display, you're certainly not skimping on features by grabbing the cheapest model in the sale.  That said, bigger savings are available on the C940, which offers a speedier processing architecture, as well as some design and feature revisions to streamline your experience. Highlights include this $360 discount on the 15.6-inch model, now available for just $1,349.99, and packing some serious juice in the form of a 9th generation i7 processor, 12GB RAM, 256GB SSD, and GTX 1650 graphics.  There are plenty of savings to take advantage of in these Lenovo laptop sales, and what's more, doctors, nurses, and first responders can take an extra 7% off these laptop deals right now.  Not in the US? We're rounding up more Lenovo laptop deals further down the page.  The latest Lenovo Yoga laptop sales  Shop all laptop deals at Lenovo Shop all Lenovo laptop sales at Lenovo More Lenovo laptop deals We're tracking all the latest cheap laptop deals right here on TechRadar, but if you're looking for something with a little more scope for RGB you'll want to take a look at the best gaming laptop deals out there as well. Or, if you're after a much cheaper price tag, you can always take a look at this week's Chromebook sales as well.  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now

iPhone SE 2020 teardown reveals intriguing facts about battery and camera Posted: 25 Apr 2020 09:21 AM PDT We’ve been waiting to see what parts are in Apple’s new iPhone - our iPhone SE review left us with a few questions we wanted answering, and iFixit’s iPhone SE early teardown has begun to provide a few of them. While there’s still more to come when the full teardown emerges in a few days, one key thing has been confirmed: the iPhone SE has the exact same battery size as the iPhone 8, at 1821mAh. These are the best iPhone SE deals right now How long until we see an iPhone SE Plus? US only: the iPhone SE is only $184, somehow We did wonder if there might be a smaller power pack in there - as the iPhone SE battery life seems pretty comparable to what the iPhone 8 offered (and Apple confirmed it should be the same on its website), with the efficiency improvements that the A13 Bionic chipset should confer we’d have expected the new iPhone SE to last longer. So it seems that when it comes to battery life, perhaps the size of the power unit inside is the thing that matters most for the Apple’s handsets. Otherwise, the iPhone SE 2020 would have easily lasted longer than 2017’s iPhone 8...but our testing continues to see what we can find. An easier road ahead There’s good news for those that want to keep the new iPhone SE for a few years though: there are a number of components used in the iPhone 8 that have been reused in the iPhone SE 2020. Things like the Taptic Engine, SIM tray and elements of the display structure are apparently all the same as used on the iPhone 8, which means the inventory of those parts will be more plentiful and thus, hopefully, cheaper to repair should you need it in the coming years. According to the intrepid unscrewers at iFixit, they’ve also found that the camera array in the iPhone SE is the same as used on the iPhone 8 - that shows that the improvements to the image signal processor inside the iPhone, brought by the new A13 Bionic processor, really have worked. We were wondering if, despite the specs being identical, whether Apple had upgraded the iPhone SE’s camera hardware in some way over the iPhone 8. But the fact that the components are the same means that the big improvements in color reproduction and low-light performance are impressive reasons to buy the new iPhone SE. We’re waiting for the full teardown to come in the next few days from iFixit, and hopefully more information on the phone will emerge to help us understand exactly what changes (and savings) Apple has made on the new iPhone SE. These are the best iPhones to buy right now This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now

Sony slip-ups: ahead of the PS5, we look back at the PlayStation tech that just didn't work Posted: 25 Apr 2020 09:00 AM PDT As we motor towards the next generation of consoles, Sony currently holds all of the cards and will be looking to build upon the monumental success it found during the current generation. It’s sometimes easy to forget just how well the PlayStation 4 has sold, with more than 102 million sales worldwide, making the system the second best-selling console of all time (not including handhelds).  Furthermore, as we approach the launch of the PlayStation 5, it’s always fascinating to see what new products and devices Sony will concoct – for better or worse. After all, Sony loves to get a bit weird. Who can forget the infamous ‘Boomerang’ DualShock unveiled at the PlayStation 3 conference? Though the controller never released, it’s become hugely memorable… for all the wrong reasons.  That’s why we’ve put together a list of PlayStation innovations that never quite stuck the landing, and while some should be applauded for their boldness and brave experimentation, others do leave you questioning boardroom decisions and bizarre strategy moves.  Best PS4 games: the most essential PlayStation 4 releases DualSense controller: everything we know about the PS5 gamepad PS4 vs Xbox One: which gaming console is better? PlayStation Classic We start with one of the most recent failings from Sony: the PlayStation Classic. The Japanese firm looked to capitalize off the huge appetite for nostalgia-filled throwback consoles, thanks to Nintendo proving its worth via its popular NES and SNES Classic. Yes, the PS Classic seemed like an easy win. That is until the line-up of games were revealed.  Crash Bandicoot, Spyro the Dragon, Castelevania, Tomb Raider, Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater, and more were all missing due to license rights. Not to mention the poor emulation for selected titles, meant that the PS classic felt half-baked. Originally launched at the price of $99/£89.99/AU$149.99, the system quickly freefell and found its way to various bargain bins across stores globally. How did Sony get the PlayStation Classic so terribly wrong? PlayStation Eye - The Eye of Judgement A pack-in game can do wonders. You only have to look at the success of The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild and the Nintendo Switch to see that one game can make all the difference. Now, take the digital camera peripheral known as the PlayStation Eye. Did Sony utilize one of its most beloved mascots to help usher in the new technology? What about Solid Snake? Kratos? Or even PaRappa? Nope, instead it opted for The Eye of Judgement, a turn-based collectible card game featuring generic fantasy monsters.  Apart from reported interface issues, the game struggled to find an audience as many discovered that playing without all the contraptions actually yielded a better experience. While the PlayStation Eye itself went on to become somewhat of a hit (succeeded by the PlayStation Camera for the PS4), The Eye of Judgement went in a blink, being discontinued less than three years after launch. PlayStation Vita After dominating the console space, Sony triumphantly dove into the world of handhelds. The slick, powerhouse that was the PlayStation Portable accumulated more than 80 million sales and received positive feedback from both critics and fans, yet its successor - the PS Vita - failed to surpass the 16 million mark by most estimates.  Spearheaded by an impassioned fanbase (Vita Island forever), the handheld suffered from dire third-party support, exorbitantly priced memory cards, and a frustrating exclusivity deal with AT&T. More so, Sony’s marketing of the product was lacking on all fronts, alongside the most damning nail in the coffin being that first-party support swiftly disappeared. Another time, another place, the Vita could have been a different story altogether, At the least, it became a solace home for indies.  PlayStation TV Another casualty that had so much potential, PlayStation TV could have been up there with the likes of Netflix and Apple today, if better implemented. Offering compatibility with the original PlayStation, PSP, various PS3 titles and the Vita, the concept seemed golden. Handhelds on the big screen at last. This was the dream.  Sadly, the reality was a 720p shaky output with a very limited number of Vita games actually playable, starting the device on the wrong foot from day one. Support from Sony similarly wavered and anyone daring to jump in were discouraged by yet again, the same expensive memory cards that plagued the Vita.  PlayStation Mouse It’s hard to imagine Sony launching a mouse for its hardware these days but, when entering the market in December 1994, the PlayStation Mouse made its debut. With home computers now synonymous with households far and wide, taking advantage of the peripheral to work in-conjunction with a home console made perfect sense.  However, a lack of support from Sony (we’re starting to see a trend here), equaled to only 70 plus games being accessible. Therefore, sales of the PS Mouse diminished and the company scurried away from the idea ever since.  Sony Ericsson Xperia Play (PlayStation Phone)  Sony makes phones. Sony makes game consoles. Why doesn’t Sony make a gaming phone? Well, actually the company sort of did in April 2011 with the release of the Sony Ericsson Xperia Play or, as it was infamously known, the ‘PlayStation Phone’.  Powered by Android, the mobile phone arrived with its own PlayStation Store but was not the fully-fledged gaming phone promised by the manufacturer in early promotions. While the flip-out gamepad proved popular, emulation suffered and subsequently sales came in lower than expected, though Sony never let that slip. "There's no concerns, it's a revolutionary device, it's shaking up the market, we're very pleased with it," said Sony Ericsson head of market development Dominic Neil-Dwyer on May 12, 2011. Less than two week later, it was announced that the Xperia Play would not receive an update to Android 4.0, citing “stability concerns”.  PlayStation Now Released into the wild at the beginning of the PS4’s lifecycle in 2014, the cloud gaming subscription service PlayStation Now has never hit its true heights. In beta for nearly half a decade, Sony’s handling and roll out of arguably one of next-gens biggest enticements has been glacial.  Arriving more than three years on, Xbox Game Pass and its focus on backwards compatibility has put PS Now to shame at nearly every turn, due to the latter’s need for constant and stable internet connection. As consumers' hunger for gaming on demand grows, the failings of PS Now may prove more pivotal come the launch of the PS5 and Xbox Series X. Hindsight can be a wonderful thing.  PS5 vs Xbox Series X: what we know so far This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now

Save $600 in the latest Apple MacBook sales at Best Buy Posted: 25 Apr 2020 08:02 AM PDT Best Buy's Apple sales event is bringing some excellent MacBook deals to your weekend right now, with a stunning $600 saving on one of the latest models. The 15.4-inch 256GB build of the MacBook Pro used to sit at $2,399, but you can pick it up for just $1,799.99 at Best Buy at the moment.  That's a fantastic price, with astonishing savings to be found on a powerful machine. There's a 9th generation i7 processor hiding inside this machine, more than enough horsepower for some serious computing, as well as 16GB RAM and a 256GB SSD. All that juice will make for a buttery smooth experience with plenty of room for multi-tasking between heavier tasks - all in a gorgeous slimline chassis.  We're running through this MacBook deal in more detail below, but if you're looking to shop a little cheaper, or a little more powerful, we've also rounded up some highlights from Best Buy's Apple sales further down the page.  Not in the US? We're  also tracking all the latest MacBook sales where you are.  Check out the best cheap iPad deals of the week Apple MacBook Pro sales at Best Buy More MacBook deals Shop all MacBook deals at Best Buy Check out the full MacBook range at Apple The latest MacBook Pro deals The latest MacBook Air deals We're tracking all the latest MacBook sales right here on TechRadar, but if you're looking for the full suite, you'll also find plenty of iPad deals on offer as well.  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now

Missing the MCU? Try Marvel's Wolverine podcasts instead Posted: 25 Apr 2020 08:00 AM PDT You’ve read every comic and you’ve seen every film, but you still need your Marvel superhero fix. So, what next? Disney’s takeover of the premier comic book production house has seen the likes of Spider-Man and the Avengers ascend to ever greater heights, expanding further into TV and video games than ever before, not to mention the world-beating silver screen flicks. But one area that had been relatively unexplored by Marvel is audio adaptations. Well, not any more, true believers. How to watch the Marvel movies in order The Falcon and the Winter Soldier: what we know about the series Black Widow: what we know about the delayed movie Having feasted on the Marvel Cinematic Universe's visual splendor, podcasts might seem like an unlikely home for Marvel’s heroes. But the company’s podcast tales are among the best audio fiction the podcast format has ever served up. If you haven't got the time to read a graphic novel or marathon a movie collection, they're perfect listening material when you're doing chores around the house.  Marvel has teamed up with podcast production powerhouse Stitcher to make episodic tales based on some of the Marvel universes’ favorite characters. A new universe to explore There are three series so far, two focusing on the X-Men’s gruff king of the claws, Wolverine, and another based on the Marvels graphic novel – considered by many to be one of the finest Marvel tales ever told. Kicking off with Wolverine: The Long Night, we find Logan (voiced by The Hobbit's Richard Armitage) in his old haunt of Alaska. Trying to outrun his past as ever, he soon becomes entangled in a tale of small-town corruption, a murder mystery and the worrying behavior of a local cult. In season two, Wolverine: The Lost Trail sees Logan looking to track down an old flame in New Orleans, Louisiana. You can’t pick New Orleans as the setting, though, without fellow X-Man Gambit making an appearance, and the two get caught up in a story following the disappearance of mutants and humans alike. Marvels tells a completely different story. Based on the graphic novel by Kurt Busiek and Alex Ross, it explores how a world filled with superheroes would affect the everyday lives of the humans on the ground, kicking off in the aftermath of an epic battle between the Fantastic Four and super-villain Galactus: Free to listen to on your podcast service of choice, the 30-ish minute episodes do a great job of capturing the tone of the characters involved, and have so far been impeccably cast. The production values here are through the roof – casting Armitage as Wolverine is inspired (and surely makes him a shoo-in for any big-screen revival of the character), while the production team’s insistence on having as much of each show recorded in real-world environments similar to their fictional counterparts as possible adds to the authenticity of the performances. There’s real chemistry between the cast members throughout. It takes some getting used to initially, listening to Wolverine rather than seeing him in action, and the podcasts so far have been of a slightly slower, more introspective pace than the bombastic action of the comics and movies. But they’re great character studies, and show the flexibility and depth that years of Marvel storytelling has imbued your favorite heroes with. The podcasts are definitely worth settling down with during these uncertain times. Noise Cancelling Podcast: give TechRadar's very own podcast a listen! This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now

If you loved The Sims, now is the perfect time to rekindle your addiction Posted: 25 Apr 2020 08:00 AM PDT With much of the world on lockdown, there's never been a better time to rediscover The Sims. Visit bars, discover a new career, find love, and maybe steal your neighbor's grand piano at a dinner party. The Sims was the brainchild of developer Will Wright, who co-founded games developer Maxis with investor Jeff Braun in 1989. The company had great success with the SimCity series, where players designed and built a city by assigning different zones (residential, industrial and commercial), building water and transport infrastructure, and managing taxes. The tiny occupants of the city were called Sims, and in the early 90s Wright had the idea to take a closer look at these tiny people, inspired by the need to rebuild his own life following a devastating fire. The idea wasn’t an easy sell though. "The board looked at The Sims and said, 'What is this?’” said Braun. “’He wants to do an interactive doll house? The guy is out of his mind,” The game's reception proved him right, though, and three sequels, console versions, various expansion packs and spin-offs followed (including an ill-advised partnership with Katy Perry). Design every aspect of your Sims, from their swimwear to their life's ambition I first discovered The Sims through the pages of PC Zone magazine, and in fact it was the reason my family got our first dial-up internet connection. Before then, I’d take a collection of floppy disks to the local library to download custom wallpapers and outfits for my Sims. I was hooked, but I (wisely) uninstalled the game while revising for exams, and then gradually lost interest as my own life started to pick up pace. Career, marriage, a home – these things are surprisingly time-consuming. Now though, with only occasional trips to the supermarket and a daily run to look forward to, the virtual dollhouse began to look more and more appealing. Eventually I caved, and I think you should too. Choose your own adventure But which one should you go for? The earlier releases might not look too good, but the gameplay has held up surprisingly well, so you’ll soon become totally absorbed in whichever one you pick. The Sims 4 was released in 2014 (EA is expected to announce the next instalment in the series any day now), but I decided to pick up 2009’s The Sims 3 instead. It’s a little less quirky than The Sims 2 (you can’t play rock, paper, scissors with the Grim Reaper, or receive a visit from the terrifying Social Bunny if you’re too lonely) but its character creation is deeper than that of The Sims 4, allowing you to create more rounded little characters. Each Sim can be assigned five traits that define their personality, plus a lifetime wish to aim for. Expansion packs give you more traits, plus extra furniture, outfits, career options and cities to play in. I grabbed the Late Night and Showtime expansion packs, which introduce the ability for form a band and play concerts, visit bars, learn mixology, and move to an analog of San Francisco called Bridgeport. Expansion packs introduce vampires, rockstars, and vampire rockstars I initially tried experimenting with user-created hairdos and outfits too, but one faulty download meant all my adult male Sims began strolling around with their hair in fetching pigtails (it’s a well documented issue) so I ended up purging it all and splashing out on the Diesel Stuff Pack instead. Expensive jeans for all! The ballad of Smelly Hippie The joy of The Sims is that, with only temporary goals defined by the game, the storyline is entirely up to you. My first couple of weeks were spent running the life of a kleptomaniac rockstar vampire. This unusual setup worked very well for my sim, who spent her days in ‘vampiric slumber’ earned a living by performing the occasional show, and visited the homes of other celebrities at night to steal their cars, light fittings and side tables. Sorry, Matthew Hamming, but you would leave your garage door open. It was all a little too easy, so I left her to her life of nocturnal crime and created a new household containing a single sim: Smelly Hippie – a simple man with dreams of moving the countryside and growing his own ginseng. I assigned him the character traits good, green thumb, vegetarian, loves the outdoors and slob (a negative trait always makes life more interesting). Furniture shopping on a budget Smelly’s budget was limited (no rosebud or motherlode money cheat for him), so his humble abode was a grim basement apartment. The slob trait meant he didn’t care though, so he settled in the squalor. He spent a few days hermit-like developing his guitar skill, then ventured outside to busk for cash in the subway – a surprisingly lucrative pursuit, and one that suited him much better than working for The Man. He donated a fair chunk of that cash to Save the Earthworms, squirreled the rest away for his garden fund, and pimped his pad with furniture salvaged from the city’s dumpsters. These efforts yielded a surprising number of chairs and park benches , but most of his trophies were bugs, which he took into his apartment, named, and then tearfully released into the wild. God speed, Mildred the moth. Accidental fame Unfortunately for him, his eagerness to talk to anyone and anything, together with his guitar skills, meant he soon drew the attention of local celebrities, and despite his plans, somehow gained B-list status himself. “No way! Smelly Hippie?! Welcome, welcome,” exclaimed the bartender at exclusive vampire club Plasma 101. “No no, you won’t be paying full price today.” Er, okay then, if you insist. The thrill of fame is hard to resist Can Smelly resist the glitz and glamor (and cheap drinks) of his accidental fame, or will he remain true to his dream of a simple life of organic horticultural bliss? None of this was written, or even particularly planned – it just happened, and that’s the joy of The Sims. While you can decide when they clean the toilet or talk to themselves in the mirror, their lives will take some unexpected turns that are out of your control. And when your own life is so limited, this is the perfect time to explore those possibilities. Go on – Sunset Valley awaits. The best PC games of 2020 This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now

This iOS text code can crash your iPhone - here’s how you can fix it Posted: 25 Apr 2020 07:30 AM PDT There's a text message doing the rounds that can crash iPhones or disable the touchscreen, though Apple already seems to be working on a fix – the beta version of iOS 13.4.5 appears to add extra protection against the rogue message. The damaging string of text is made up of various characters from the Sindhi language, and – somewhat randomly – the Italian flag. It can appear over SMS as well as any other source, like instant messages or social media. It's not clear where this particular combination of characters first appeared, though it's been doing the rounds on Telegram and Discord this week. You can see a demonstration of the effect that the bug can have on Twitter. Apple wants to track Covid-19 iMessage tips and tricks Get ready for the iPhone 12 While there's no protection for the bug at the moment, you can get everything back to normal by resetting the affected device. On newer iPhones, this means pressing and quickly releasing the volume up button, pressing and quickly releasing the volume down button, and then pressing the side key until you see the Apple logo. (You can see the full list of how to reset any iPhone over at the Apple support page). It's a bug's life The bug wreaks havoc as soon as you receive the message, even before you've opened it. Turning off notifications does seem to offer some protection, so you might want to try that for the time being. Apple usually pushes out fixes for these kinds of bugs fairly rapidly, though it hasn't said anything specifically about this one. We'd expect iOS to get patched with an update within the next few days. This is by no means the first time that iOS has been hit by a bug like this – you might remember the 'black dot' bug from 2018 that crashed iPhones running iOS 11, before Apple issued a patch. Go back even further to 2015, and there was another strange string of characters that could crash the messaging app on iPhones. Thankfully, these bugs don't typically cause any real damage. Here's our verdict on the brand new iPhone SE 2020 Via The Verge This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now

Samsung Galaxy Tab S7: what we want to see Posted: 25 Apr 2020 07:00 AM PDT The Samsung Galaxy Tab S7 is expected to be released by the end of 2020, giving Samsung another shot at toppling Apple's reign as the most popular tablet manufacturer. Succeeding the Galaxy Tab S6 from 2019, the Samsung Galaxy Tab S7 will be Samsung's top-end tablet for 2020, sitting above the Galaxy Tab S6 Lite and any Galaxy Tab A devices launched over the year. It's worth pointing out that some rumors suggest the tablet will be called the Galaxy Tab S20 instead, which would bring the slate in line with the Samsung Galaxy S20 phone nomenclature, but this is contested. Apple's premium slates, most recently the iPad Pro 2020, are typically considered the best tablets available right now, and give the tech giant a solid reign at the top end of the tablet market. But the Galaxy Tab S7 could give Samsung another shot at gaining the lead. We've heard a few leaks regarding the Samsung Galaxy Tab S7 now, which we've listed below, but we still don't know much about what could be coming. In the meantime, we've also come up with a wish-list of features we'd like to see in the new device. These are the best Android tablets available now Cut to the chase What is it? Samsung's new premium tablet When is it out? Near the end of 2020, likely August How much will it cost? Likely at least $649 / £619 / AU$1,099 Samsung Galaxy Tab S7 price and release date We've heard the Samsung Galaxy Tab S7 is likely to be launched in August 2020, alongside or just before the Galaxy Note 20 and Galaxy Fold 2 launch.  There hasn't even been a hint of a release date yet, and with the coronavirus pandemic affecting production lines around the world, the products could be available to buy some time after the launch event. This is rumored to be the case with the iPhone 12 among other phones, and the Galaxy Tab is meant to come before that. In terms of price, we haven't heard anything so far, but we can make guesses. The Samsung Galaxy Tab S6 cost $649 / £619 / AU$1,099 and $729 / £689 / AU$1,299 for its lowest storage option, in WiFi-only and with LTE connectivity, respectively. The Tab S7 almost certainly won't be any cheaper than that. The Samsung Galaxy Tab S7 is slated to have 5G connectivity, as well as a bigger display to the Tab S6, and that's just the rumors we've heard about - it seems the newer slate could have plenty of new features which bump up the price quite a bit, so we'd expect to see it retail for much more than the Tab S6. Samsung Galaxy Tab S6 News, rumors and leaks One of the biggest Samsung Galaxy Tab S7 leaks so far (literally) is that the slate could be bigger than the Tab S6, and will also come in multiple sizes. Apparently, you'll be able to pick up the tablet in 11 or 12.4-inch sizes, curiously similar to the 11 or 12.9 inches of recent iPad Pro generations. It also seems the 12.4-inch Galaxy Tab S7 is being referred to internally as the Tab S7 Plus, although it's not clear if this will be a distinct device like the Galaxy S20 is to the S20 Plus, or just different in terms of size. Another big leak suggested the Samsung Galaxy Tab S7 will be 5G-compatible, if you buy a certain variant, giving you next-gen connectivity with top speeds and reliability, which will certainly be useful to certain types of user. That leak also says the tablet will come with the S Pen stylus, which we would've expected given precedent with Samsung's tablets, but it's still good to hear. What we want to see Before more Samsung Galaxy Tab S7 leaks and rumors roll in, we've come up with a brief wish-list; this is what we want to see in the new premium Android tablet. 1. Better tablet software Samsung Galaxy Tab S6 on Android. One of the main reasons that Apple's slates trump Android devices in the tablet realm is operating systems: most people find iPadOS, created intentionally for iPads, easier to use on a larger screen than Android, which is designed more for smartphones. iPadOS has smoother navigation, certain side-panel tools, and an easier-to-use user interface, and its MacOS sidecar feature is useful for some too users. In comparison, Android makes a tablet feel like a large smartphone. If Google were to create an Android branch that worked well on tablets, finally iPads would have real competition, both from the Samsung Galaxy Tab S7 and other such devices. 2. A 120Hz screen iPad Pro 11 with its 120Hz screen Many flagship smartphones in 2020, including Samsung's own Galaxy S20 range, have 120Hz screens. That refers to the refresh rate, so the screen updates 120 times per second, instead of 60 times in your 'standard' phone or tablet. Screens with 120Hz refresh rate feel smoother to use, whether you're scrolling through social media or playing certain compatible games, and if you're using your tablet to view loads of documents or emails you'll certainly notice the difference. Technically iPad Pro tablets have this feature, as the 'ProMotion' tech automatically tweaks the refresh rate to fit the content you're looking at, but there's no way of manually setting it as there is on smartphones. Therefore if the Samsung Galaxy Tab S7 were to have a 120Hz screen it'd be a step ahead of the iPads. 3. A headphone jack iPad 10.2 had a 3.5mm headphone jack Imagine you're using your standard tablet while it's charging, or you're plugged in to an external monitor or hard drive – and whoops, you can't plug wired headphones in, because devices that have dropped the 3.5mm headphone jack require you to rely on the lone USB-C port, just like everything else you need to plug in. Sure, you could resort to wireless headphones, but this isn't always an option. This can be a pain if your wireless headphones are paired to your smartphone, as switching devices can be a hassle, and often isn't worth the effort. Lots of professionals or casual users may want multiple inputs plugged into their tablet at once, whether that's an external hard drive and wired headphones if you're editing video or a charger and wired headphones if you're chilling alone or on a long journey. If there was a 3.5mm headphone jack, like tablets of old and certain budget options, you'd get that versatility of use that certain other top-end tablets don't offer. 4. Improved front-facing camera Samsung Galaxy Tab S6 had some front-facing camera tricks if you used the S Pen. Like in smartphones, newer versions of tablets tend to have better rear cameras, with the Samsung Galaxy Tab S6 boasting two, but there are lots of reasons you'll want decent front-facing cameras. Firstly, if you're on a video call (and have decent internet) it's nice to have a high-res camera to stream your face better. Also some people who need to film themselves, if you've got a job in media or other video-making, will enjoy a front-facing camera that lets them capture themselves in a decent resolution. We'd like to see the Samsung Galaxy Tab S7 come with a better front-facing camera, perhaps with a 12MP resolution or even higher, so you can take pictures and videos that compete with smartphones. 5. A lot of internal storage You can do a lot with iPad Pro's 1TB storage The Samsung Galaxy Tab S7 only came with 128GB or 256GB storage, and while there was a card slot too, we'd argue this isn't necessarily enough for certain types of users, like video editors or publishers, who can often have many hundreds of GB of files just for a single project.  Sometimes taking an external storage solution with you everywhere isn't viable, especially ones that require external power or are large, and cards can only hold so much data at once.  Since the iPad Pro models have 1TB options, it'd be nice to see the Samsung Galaxy Tab S7 match that so it's more viable for productivity, or even for there to be a 512GB version, for people who want to do work and also have movies, music or games downloaded to relax with. These are the best tablets you can buy right now This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now

Best RPGs 2020: the top role-playing games for console and PC Posted: 25 Apr 2020 06:23 AM PDT Looking for the best RPGs (or role-playing games) around? Then you've come to the right place. These days it’s more often than not that a game features RPG elements. Whether that’s a skill tree, dialogue options, or anything else that was once a staple of the genre, there’s always something for players to tweak and customize in everything from online shooters to sports titles. That’s not to say that the genre has been neglected, though. In fact, the last couple of years alone have treated us to some sensational RPGs across all platforms – from monster-catching to monster hunting, spiritual successors to full-blown remakes, and vast open worlds you can take with you wherever you go. If you’re longing to level up, dying for a dice roll, or simply want to swing a sizeable sword around, then here are the best RPGs you can find across PC and console. Best FPS games: the most essential first-person shooters for console and PC The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Special Edition It may be nearly a decade old, but Skyrim remains one of the most vital RPGs out there - primarily because of its incredible mod scene on PC. If you played this game back in 2011 and put it to bed, give it another go with some of the graphics and immersion mods. It's like playing Skyrim 1.5. Bethesda has also released The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Special Edition, which includes all of the add-ons that have been released, along with some graphical overhauls. If you have a VR headset, then you can also get The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim VR for PC and PS4, which gives you an even more immersive experience. If you've not played it all, where have you been? This open-world fantasy epic makes it possible to spend hundreds of satisfying hours without even tackling the main story. Few games craft as rich a world as this, and there's enough content to play the game as a whole bunch of different characters without feeling like you're being funnelled into a single "hero" mould. We won't spoil the main storyline, but let's just say it features more dragons than Game of Thrones, and you even get to wield some dragon power yourself.  Platforms available: Xbox One, PS4, PC and Nintendo Switch Disco Elysium One of 2019’s finest titles, and one of the most recent on this list, Disco Elysium is a dialogue-driven RPG set in a sizable, dystopian city. Eschewing combat entirely, problems are instead solved with the use of the protagonist using the ‘Thought Cabinet’, a manifestation of dialogue choices and thematic decisions that permeate every aspect and decision made throughout the story. It’s a risky decision, but one that pays off in no small part due to personable, politically ambiguous writing that is almost entirely player-driven. It’s a must-play for PC players and is coming to console this year. Platforms available: PC (coming to console in 2020) Persona 5 Royal Persona 5 might be the most stylish JRPG you’ll ever play. Everything from its animation, character designs, acid-jazz inspired soundtrack, and even its menus, screams cool. Telling the story of a group of jaded teens ‘changing the hearts’ of evildoers and touching on themes of abuse, breaking free from societal norms, and much more, there’s depth to Persona 5’s story and characters that only grows over the 100-hour campaign. Part social sim, part dungeon-crawler with excellent turn-based combat, the 2020 Royal version adds even more on top of the already huge base game. There are new characters, new battle elements, an entirely new dungeon and a fresh semester. It’s the best version of PS4’s finest JRPG. Platforms available: PS4 The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt If you're after a classic western RPG with a great story, look no further than The Witcher 3. This game has more quality storytelling in some of its fetch side quests than some other games have in their main storylines. You are Geralt, gruff and grey-haired monster hunter chap, a sort of heroic land pirate type. This is a deep-dive adventure you'll want to set a few months aside for, a bit like Skyrim. These two duke it out as favorite accessible beards and swords RPGs, but The Witcher 3 snags the writing and moody-faced adult themes awards. While comparing the two feels natural, Skyrim is a mostly first-person game where The Witcher 3 is third-person like the other Witcher titles. It's also not easy either. You've been warned. Platforms available: PS4, Xbox One, PC and Nintendo Switch Pillars of Eternity II: Deadfire This is what you get if you take the DNA of Balder's Gate and Planescape: Torment, but start making the game almost 20 years after those titles appeared. Pillars of Eternity II: Deadfire is a classic isometric party-based RPG, a style that went out of fashion just after the turn of the millennium, but one that's good to have back. Pillars of Eternity II: Deadfire is saturated with old-school role-playing flavor. It's the story of a blighted land, and playing it is no cakewalk. You'll need strategy, as hack 'n' slash tactics don't work here. Combat is fluid rather than turn-based, but you can pause the action at any point to issue your party orders. If you played and loved Baldur's Gate or Icewind Dale, you'll feel right at home. Platforms available: Xbox One, PC, PS4 and Nintendo Switch Divinity Original Sin II An isometric RPG with incredible lore and world-building, Divinity: Original Sin II is a game that completely commits to the idea of player choice. From character classes that play entirely differently to one another (like the undead character that can only speak to others with a disguise) to the ability to interact with NPCs in whichever way you choose, you can play through much of the game without getting your hands dirty with combat. Thankfully if you do decide to swing your sword, combat is a turn-based treat. You can destroy an explosive barrel to deal huge damage to an enemy, or electrify a puddle to fry them. Then there’s the cast of characters, each feeling surprisingly real considering their origins, and each written with plenty of care and stuffed full of charisma. A modern classic. Platforms available: Xbox One, PC, PS4 and Nintendo Switch Final Fantasy 7 Remake We still can’t quite believe that Final Fantasy 7 Remake exists. Considering it was a game that was considered vaporware for so long, the end product (or at least this first part of it) absolutely astounds with its beauty. By taking elements from many of the Final Fantasy titles that followed the 1997 original, Square Enix has crafted arguably the finest combat system the series has ever seen, allowing players to switch from one iconic party member to the next. Final Fantasy 7 Remake fills in story blanks that we didn’t know needed filling back on the original PlayStation, bringing characters to life in a way we couldn’t have dreamed possible. It’s a love letter to the franchise’s past while giving a glimpse into what’s coming in the future. Platforms available: PS4 The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild The Legend of Zelda franchise has long been known for quality, but in leaning into Western sensibilities and taking inspiration from the likes of Skyrim, it has reached its zenith. Breath of the Wild led many to pick up the Nintendo Switch, and for good reason – it’s an open-world that doesn’t feel crowded with side-quests and icons to unlock. Every quest is given as a suggestion, an open-ended question that doesn’t need an answer. From dozens of puzzle-focused shrines, chances to experiment with a robust physics system, or tough but rewarding combat, few games reward exploration like Breath of the Wild. Even years on from launch, players are finding fresh ways to play in this version of Hyrule. Platforms available: Nintendo Switch Pokémon Sword and Shield Leaving the ‘Dexit’ drama aside, Pokémon Sword and Shield are essentially RPG comfort food. Players can spend hours catching monsters like it’s the mid-nineties, grinding levels and aiming to breed competitive Pokémon – or you can just enjoy its campaign. In the franchise’s first mainline jump to HD, the new Galar Region is stuffed full of detail that simply couldn’t be found on the handheld-only versions. Pokémon wander the world freely, grass sways in the wind, and the new free-camera Wild Area allows for raids that can be enjoyed with friends. It might not be the quantum leap forward many were hoping for, but like its protagonists, the franchise is edging closer to being the best there ever was with every instalment. Platforms available: Nintendo Switch Fire Emblem: Three Houses Strategy RPGs might be a tough nut to crack for genre newcomers, but Nintendo’s latest entry in the Fire Emblem franchise is as welcoming as you’d like it to be. Able to be played as both a relative newcomer and a hardened veteran of the series, Three Houses does away with characters found in earlier iterations and instead brings in a vast new cast. As a tutor at a monastery that prepares its students for life on the battlefield, you’ll come to know each of your charges well – and come to protect them with your life, especially if you have permadeath enabled. Borrowing Persona’s social interactions and having them factor into decisions during combat makes every decision feel critical, and with three perspectives the entire game warrants multiple playthroughs, too. Platforms available: Nintendo Switch Dark Souls III Ready for punishment? Dark Souls III is the latest game in the series that wants to make you cry. This is a new kind of grind. It's not really about levelling-up your character, but a sort of mind-grind where you need to learn environments and enemy attack patterns to survive. It's like games from the old days, but those unflinching tangy bits are poured into a modern action role-player. Dark Souls III has the deepest RPG elements of the series to date too, even if we include Demon's Souls and Bloodborne. As well as choosing a class, your weapons have class-related skills that are a key part of getting ahead in Dark Souls III. It's not just about carefully-timed thwacks anymore. This game requires a certain mood, but for all its grim-ness, it's frequently totally beautiful too. Platforms available: PS4, Xbox One and PC Fallout 4 If you want an RPG but have had quite enough of all the swords and sorcery nonsense, Fallout 4 needs to be on your to-buy list. As any Fallout fan will know, the game is set in a nuclear apocalypse, where every puddle of water pumps radiation into your skin and even the cockroaches are deadly. Well, if you're rubbish at the game anyway. This time around, you wake up from cryostasis in one of the bunker Vaults to find your spouse killed and your son kidnapped. You have to find him, even though he was taken 20 years before you wake up. Throw in some great quest writing and the ability to design your own little towns, and you have a bit of a role-playing winner. As with Skyrim, there is also Fallout 4 VR for people who have a virtual reality headset. Platforms available: PS4, Xbox One and PC Undertale It took about five minutes post-release for Undertale to be called a cult classic. It's a story-driven role-player with a JPRG edge, but how it approaches its battles and its work is quite different from the norm. In Undertale, combat can be non-violent. It's what you want most of the time, because you'll feel awful for hurting the game's 'enemies'. Even how you fight isn't normal. Fights take place as a bullet hell arcade-style game that plays out as your character and the enemy talk. It's an RPG that prods your emotions. It might even make you cry. Platforms available: Nintendo Switch, PS4 and PC Dragon Age: Inquisition We've been spoilt with ultra-high quality RPGs over the last few years. Dragon Age Inquisition is where to head if you find the Witcher 3 that bit too brooding and serious. You play Inquisition as an almost god-like figure. Marked with a sigil on your hand, you're a chosen one, who can close up rifts in the sky that keep appearing. Neat, right? As well as making you a bit of a medieval The Matrix Neo figure, your position means you end up with some political power at your fingertips, choosing who to tick off and not. Of course, this is the narrative story sauce atop a regular action RPG sundae. Dragon Age Inquisition is slightly less open than The Witcher 3 or Skyrim, based around large areas rather than an almost one-piece world, but it's still massive. Platforms available: PS4, Xbox One, PlayStation 3 andXbox 360 Mass Effect 2 If you don't mind heading back a few years for your RPG fix, you shouldn't miss Mass Effect 2. This is, so far, the sweet spot of the space opera RPG series from EA. It's much more accessible than the first Mass Effect, and much less of a thin adventure than Mass Effect 3. It is a grand space opera of a game, a sprawling story of warring factions, alien racial tensions and legitimately interesting characters that are much more than ciphers. Mass Effect 2 is also a great RPG for those who might be turned off by standard role-playing trappings - like impenetrable stat screens and chat that sounds like it has been cribbed straight from The Lord of the Rings. This is an EA game, and has a lot of that big publisher accessibility to it. Platforms available: PC, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 Best MMOs: live a second life on console and PC This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now

Why the Canon EOS R5 could be 'mind blowing' for video, according to a director Posted: 25 Apr 2020 06:00 AM PDT The Canon EOS R5’s latest teaser announcement caused quite a stir this week. Not only is this relatively small, full-frame mirrorless camera shaping up to be a powerful stills camera, it appears to have cinema-grade video powers, too. It’s fair to say we haven’t seen a full-frame camera with this much crossover appeal for some time. But are Canon’s claims that the EOS R5 will “shoot comfortably on high-end production sets” really possible? And how excited should YouTubers and amateur filmmakers be about this camera? We spoke to an award-winning director to find out. Tim Bunn is Writer/Director at Belafonte and director of short film The Girl Is Mime, starring Martin Freeman. He also has a BFI-backed short coming out in 2020. Tim mainly shoots with a Canon EOS C200, a camera from the company’s Cinema range that the EOS R5 incredibly trumps in some departments, at least on paper. So it was great to get his thoughts on how exciting this camera really is for video, the potential challenges and opportunities of shooting in 8K, and where the EOS R5 might inevitably fall down compared to dedicated Cinema cameras.   Been eyeing up the Canon EOS R5 as the camera to launch you towards filmmaking glory? Here are a director's thoughts on the specs and features we know about so far... Read our Canon EOS R5: release date, news and features round-up As someone who works on the “high-end productions” that Canon says the EOS R5 is designed for, how impressed are you by its video specs? “The video specs for the EOS R5 are pretty mind-blowing. There isn’t anything out there right now that currently compares to it, without being a fully-fledged cinema camera,’ director Tim Bunn said. “The Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera comes to mind, but this ‘only’ records in 6K. 8K captured in RAW in a camera this size offers so many possibilities and will mean the camera has a much broader appeal. Typically, the mirrorless cameras geared towards video will appeal to videographers and small production companies who produce online content. I can see proper feature film productions looking at this camera and thinking ‘we could do something with this’”, he added.  What are your thoughts on shooting in 8K with the EOS R5? Is it just for future-proofing or would it be useful for your shoots today? “Generally, no one is delivering video or film in 8K; there’s no need to because there’s no realistic way of viewing 8K. That will of course change in time, but for now it does mean that the R5 is well future-proofed,” he said. “That’s not to say that 8K video doesn’t have its uses. Where 8K is useful for filmmakers is the ability to crop the frame. If I edit an 8K video file in a 4K timeline, I’m only looking at 50% of the total image size. This means I can zoom in by up to another 50% without losing any resolution. This gives me a tighter shot and also gives me a cut (a second camera, if you will) within the edit, which, at times, can be a lifesaver. This was the typical workflow when 4K arrived. Initially, people continued to deliver in 1080p, using the full 4K resolution to give them options within the edit,’ he added. “But even with this ability to use 8K in this way, I still think that the majority of users are going to shoot in either 4K or 6K – if the latter option is available, I’ll be surprised if it isn’t. Purely because of the space that those 8K files are going to take up and the recording time available at 8K. Both in terms of how much time you’d be able to get out of a decent sized memory card, and whether Canon will limit recording time at 8K to protect the camera’s processor from overheating,” he noted. “There are also the headaches to consider in dealing with 8K footage in your post-production workflow. It’s a lot of pixels to push around and your computer will struggle to keep up, unless it’s a newly minted Mac Pro,” he added. Do you think the Canon EOS R5 is an exciting camera for YouTubers and aspiring directors? Would you consider it as your main camera if you were starting out now? “The first proper short film I shot was on a Canon EOS 5D Mk II, this was the camera that changed the game for digital film and video. It was the first time, if I remember correctly, that you could record video on a full-sized sensor, without having to spend tens, possibly even hundreds of thousands of pounds,” he said.  “Filmmakers could finally create cinematic-looking images without having to be a Hollywood feature film director. It was all about that lovely depth of field. I desperately wanted a 5D Mk II, but even at what was a comparatively affordable price, given what it could do, I still couldn’t afford one,” he added.  “I imagine that the R5 isn’t going to be the cheapest camera in the world, but I’m sure it will still offer exceptional value for money. But this doesn’t mean that everyone will be able to afford one and, typically, filmmakers at the beginning of their journey tend not to be the flushest of fellows. If you’ve got the budget, it looks like you’d be silly not to consider the R5,” he said. Canon says the EOS R5 will make an “ideal support camera” for pros. How well would it work as a partner for your Canon Cinema cameras and how might it complement them? “For small production companies like mine, the R5 would be a great support camera. Our main camera is a C200, one of Canon’s Cinema cameras, and on paper, the EOS R5 has the more impressive video specs. But where it won’t be able to keep up is in the practicality area,” he said.  “It’s not going to have full-size XLR connections, built-in ND filters or anything like the same number of programmable buttons. But that’s not to say that the EOS R5 would be relegated to B-Cam for every shoot. There are plenty of run-and-gun situations where the R5 would be more than enough. For most videographers it will need a few accessories to make it truly usable and as I said before, I expect that there will be people rigging this thing up to shoot broadcast ads and even elements of full-on feature films,” he added. “For me and many others, one of the main draws of Canon cameras is the color science, and it will be interesting to see how the EOS R5 compares to the cinema cameras in this respect. We currently use a C100 as a B-Cam to our C200 – while they work well together, the colour output differs more than I expected it to, and I’ve always put this down to two sensors that are quite different. The R5 is going to present another gear-change in sensor tech, so getting it side-by-side with some of its bigger brothers will be fascinating,” he said. Lastly, do you have any concerns about some of the video specs Canon hasn’t elaborated on yet? “The recording limit is always a concern. I expect that recording in 8K will be limited to protect the processor from overheating, but the reality of this doesn’t bother me too much, based on how the full 8K resolution is likely to be used. I expect 4K recording will not have a time limit – if it does, this would be more of a concern,’ he said. “Although Canon has confirmed Raw recording, I’d like to see how this is implemented. Raw video isn’t actually Raw video, there is always some form of compression, and this is even true of the big cinema cameras like RED and Arri, their Raw data still uses some form of compression. Our C200 offers the ability to shoot in Canon’s Cinema Raw Light, and I’d guess this is what they’ll opt for on the R5,’ he added. “Again, though, how much the average user will opt to shoot in this format remains to be seen. It adds steps to your post workflow and also means you’re dealing with bigger file sizes and more limitations on your recording time. At the end of the day, if you’re a run-and-gun shooter or a small production company and uploading exclusively to the web, I just don’t think shooting Raw is worth the extra hassle,” he said. These are the best cameras you can buy right now This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now

Best FPS games 2020: the most essential first-person shooters for console and PC Posted: 25 Apr 2020 05:00 AM PDT Looking for the best FPS games right now? Then you're in the right place. First-person shooters have dominated the culture of games for decades now. A lot of the most influential and popular games of all time have been consumed via the first-person perspective, often with a loaded weapon in tow.  What’s remarkable is the sheer variety of games that use this tried and tested tactic to deliver new mechanics and ideas. The genre hasn’t been around for too long, but it’s still constantly innovating and showing no signs of wear.   So, with that in mind, below we've put together a list of the best FPS games available right now for console and PC.  Best PS4 games: the most essential PlayStation 4 releases Best Xbox One games: the most essential Xbox One releases Best PC games: the top PC games right now Doom Eternal If id Software’s compelling reboot of the Doom franchise in 2016 wasn’t enough of a riveting success, Doom Eternal doubles down on its pristine systems and satisfying shooting, drafting in platforming to make the combat more fluid, a rogue’s gallery of deadly bosses and an engrossing storyline.  Doom Eternal eschews the horror elements found in Doom 3 and proceeds at a blistering pace, focusing on the gore and intricate animations that let you pound demons into a fine red mist with unbeatable flair. Better yet, your chaotic escapades will be soundtracked by Mick Gordon’s exquisite electro-metal offerings, designed to inject you with adrenaline and dress your palms with sweat. Platforms available: PC, PS4, Xbox One and Stadia (Switch release confirmed for later date) Counter-Strike: Global Offensive If you’re very serious about accuracy and competition in games, then Counter-Strike: Global Offensive may be the game for you. Given its status as a great breeding ground for esports professionals, Global Offensive demands a level of skill and tactical knowhow that is far beyond the more casual shooters in this list and will certainly test your limits as an FPS player.  Even if you’re not trying to be the next Shroud, squadding up with your friends, learning the maps and concocting stealthy hero moments, unravelling an enemy team’s composition with clever wall bangs and grenades is deeply satisfying, and something to try if you’re bored of the mainstream shooters that constantly coddle the player. Platforms available: PC Grab Counter-Strike: Global Offensive from Steam Halo: The Master Chief Collection One of the most important and influential shooters ever made, Halo completely changed the landscape of the genre and gave many developers a new bar to surpass when it came to shooter campaigns and online multiplayer. Luckily for those of you who may have clung to the PlayStation side of the aisle for the past two decades, Halo: The Master Chief Collection is now available on PC via Steam as well as Xbox One.  They’re effortless to return to and hold up extremely well thanks to a series of dedicated ports and remasters from 343 Industries. The co-op campaign that spans the collection and tells the tale of Master Chief’s odyssey is particularly exciting and full of fun challenges and set pieces to work through in good company. Platforms available: Xbox One and PC Half-Life 2 Speaking of influential games, Valve’s Half-Life 2 came out in 2004 and revolutionized the shooter as we knew it. With a dynamic physics system that is still hard to top, a surreal setting and a suite of unforgettable characters, Half-Life 2 delivers an adventure that demands to be played if you’ve got any desires to understand many of the shooter games that have launched to acclaim over the past two decades.  The game doesn’t show any signs of wear even 16 years after its release, which is testament to the success of its fundamental aspects. Follow Freeman into one of the best shooter campaigns ever crafted. Platforms available: Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and PC Superhot An excellent FPS and an antidote to most modern shooters, Superhot is an indie puzzle piece where time moves when you move. This means that careful manoeuvering and precision shots are of utmost importance, and the game consistently lobs intricate combat arenas at the player to test their reaction speed and the finer points of their FPS skills. This is all wrapped up in a simple but effective art style and an unexpectedly engrossing campaign which is far too good to spoil.  If you’re lucky enough to own a virtual reality headset, you can check out Superhot VR, which ups the immersion and expertly transposes this puzzle shooter gem into the virtual realm.  Platforms available: Oculus Quest, PS4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch and PC Call of Duty: Modern Warfare / Call of Duty: Warzone If you’re not looking for something as serious as Counter-Strike but want a game that is still systematically satisfying and tons of fun to play with friends, you can’t go wrong with Call of Duty: Modern Warfare, which is a reinvention of the 2009 classic Call of Duty 4.  Call of Duty has dominated the shooter space for decades now and there’s a good reason why. It still feels great to play and is very accessible as far as the popular modern shooters go. Even better, Modern Warfare recently added a free battle royale mode known as Warzone that has quickly become a tremendous success. In any event, playing some or all of this shooter package is worth your while, especially if you’re into military shooters with fancy perks, attachments, vehicles and more. Platforms available: PS4, Xbox One and PC Bioshock Remastered A key talking point in the initial discussions about whether games “could be art,” Bioshock launched in 2007 to critical acclaim, creating a peanut butter and chocolate combination of an immersive simulator (think Thief, Deus Ex) with a focused campaign full of survival horror elements and surreal characters.  Most importantly, it delivered a gripping political tale that will act as a sufficiently mind-bending chaser to the safe and boring campaigns often tacked on to most modern shooter games. Just make sure you play the Remastered edition… and save all of those Little Sisters, you monster!  Platforms available: PS4, PC, Xbox One and Nintendo Switch Left 4 Dead 2 By now, it should be fairly clear that Valve knows how to make FPS games, and zombie horde shooter Left 4 Dead 2 is testament to the studio’s ability to consistently reinvent aspects of the shooter genre. In this exciting gem from 2009, that holds up effortlessly today, you push through carefully crafted gauntlet maps whilst an AI director places new zombie types, hordes and items to challenge teams of four in a procedural fashion.  Every round is unpredictable and full to the brim with a special kind of chaos, one that is only exacerbated in Versus mode, where teams of four can face off against each other, swapping each round to play as the zombies and the humans. It’s a deliciously clever game bursting with smart systems that are well worth getting the gang together for. Platforms available: PC and Xbox 360 Overwatch Contrary to popular belief, Overwatch isn't a MOBA. It is, however, a colorful, competitively focused first-person shooter from Blizzard featuring different classes incorporated across a variety of different heroes. Pitting two teams of six players against one another, Overwatch is all about teamwork and cooperation with their respective squads. That said, you'll want to make sure a healthy balance of offensive and defensive characters is secured if you ultimately seek survival. After all, you wouldn't want to be demolished by the opposing team just because you have too many healers and not enough tanks or vice versa. Platforms available: PS4, Xbox One, PC and Nintendo Switch Rainbow Siege Siege Rainbow Six Siege isn't just a technical marvel, it's an ongoing tactical endeavor. Like a handful of other titles on this list, Siege is about teamwork. Without it, it's your standard deathmatch shooter, save some impressively realistic destructible environments.  Acting on the goal of either defending or challenging objectives, the five-on-five online co-op game is certainly no Call of Duty. Instead of running around swiftly across maps, dodging bullets and taking headshots, characters are given abilities and limited resources, such as wall reinforcements, barbed wire, traps, and explosives, to overthrow and denounce victory over the opposing team. Platforms available: PS4, Xbox One and PC (confirmed for PS5 and Xbox Series X) Destiny 2 As you'd expect from the creators of Halo, Destiny 2 features world-class shooting with a variety of increasingly exotic, collectable guns. The game's been around for so long, now, that it's amalgamated an absolute ton of content, including five story campaigns of varying length and quality across many different worlds. The seasonal content fluctuates wildly in quality, with the player base's perception of the game shifting all the time as a result, but there are potentially hundreds of hours of shooting to enjoy here if you get into it. Just note that the loading times on consoles now are extremely long, making us all the more excited for the SSDs that'll come with both the PS5 and Xbox Series X. Platforms available: PS4, Xbox One and PC New games 2020: the biggest games coming to console and PC This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now

Best MMO games 2020: live a second life on console and PC Posted: 25 Apr 2020 04:57 AM PDT Explore vast, fantastical worlds with the best MMO games 2020 has to offer. MMOs are Massively Multiplayer Online games and offer a gaming experience like no other.  What’s so unique about MMOs is that they give players extraordinary, incredibly detailed worlds to explore and the ability create their own avatars, that they can then level up and enhance over time through interactions, battles and play. And, these virtual worlds get filled with enough players – all plugging in from all corners of the Earth – to fill a small country. The best MMO games offer you a chance to actually lead a second life or simply a break from your current one. They also offer a certain level of freedom you don’t have in the real world, with so many possibilities, a world of adventures, opportunities to make new friends and even the possibility to fly across space in your own ship. And, even if they don’t exactly appeal to all gamers, the best MMO games have become so popular that even Amazon has been busy building its own – a 17th century set game called New World. If you’re new to the acronym MMO or its popular variation MMORPG (RPG means Role Playing Game), don’t panic. We've gathered up the best MMO games 2020 has to offer. Whatever it is that appeals to you, one of these MMO games will draw you in. Best free games 2020: the top free games to download on PC World of Warcraft Let's face it, this was an obvious one. Blizzard's World of Warcraft has been going since around 2004 and it's been the reigning champion of the MMO genre for a long time. But, in that time, it's changed quite a lot.  World of Warcraft is one of the most successful and influential games in the genre, with new content frequently being added for a thriving, dedicated player base. If subscriber numbers look like they're wavering even slightly, you can be sure Blizzard will come out with another great expansion to corral everyone back into the fold and maybe bring some newbies with them. The latest expansion, Battle for Azeroth, hit in August 2019 and packs in a new load of dungeons, with a raised level cap for experienced players, and an option to 'boost' your level for newer ones wanting a more level playing field. And a new expansion, Shadowlands, is due for release this year. World of Warcraft is kind of an essential for anyone interested in the high fantasy MMORPG and we can’t see it being knocked from prominence any time soon.  You can download the game for free on the official website.  What can I play it on? PC What’s the payment structure? Free trial up to level 20, then a monthly subscription fee Planetside 2 Planetside 2 is a first-person shooter on a massive scale. If you're not interested in the kind of granular play offered by games like Black Desert Online, then this game's focus on all out war against other players might appeal to you. The game revolves around three factions in a constant state of war. Players choose their faction and then spend their time attacking and defending bases on a huge map to remain ahead of the competition. One day you could be on the attack, the next you could be desperately defending. Either way you're always fighting.  Planetside 2 is now seven years old and, though it doesn't have quite the same popularity or player base as it once did, it offers something a little different to the rest of the MMOs on this list.  You can get going for free on the official site.  What can I play it on? PS4 and PC What's the payment model? Free-to-play Secret World Legends Rather than a sprawling world with endless choice, Secret World Legends is an MMO which places a lot of focus on storytelling. If you're tired out by the usual high fantasy and space fare, this is a game which is set in a world very close to our own. Well, kind of. It's our world if cults, mythological creatures, crazy conspiracies and supernatural phenomenons were commonplace.  There's more than 100 hours of story to enjoy here and players are able to explore locations all over the world and take part in a range of missions to unlock the mysteries of the world.  While it's possible to play through the story on your own, you can also team up with others and adventure with players from across the world.  You can start your story via the official website or on Steam.  What can I play it on? PC What's the payment model? Free-to-play  Guild Wars 2 If you're looking for player-versus-player combat then you should definitely give Guild Wars 2 some of your time. Whether you like fighting other players in contained structured modes or you'd be interested in fighting against hundreds across sprawling maps in World-versus-World mode, Guild Wars has you covered.  For those that don't enjoy the grinding that's traditionally involved in MMOs then Guild Wars 2 will also appeal – this is an accessible game and it doesn't try to copy World of Warcraft. The game's world is dynamic and player decisions have real consequences which promises a story that feels individual. You can download the base game for free on the official site. What can I play it on? PC What's the payment structure? You can download the base game for free and then each expansion is buy-to-play Lord of the Rings Online Few fictional worlds are as perfect for the MMO treatment as Tolkein's Middle-earth. Sure, Frodo's adventure was thrilling, but we all know we could have one equally as exciting if we had the chance. You get to choose between being a Human, Elf, Dwarf or Hobbit before you drop into Middle-earth and explore the locations you know and love with an intimacy that no other Lord of the Rings game has allowed.  You can expect to find the usual World of Warcraft style of questing here, alongside crafting mechanics and the ability to purchase and set up a home. Overall, it's a pretty standard MMORPG in terms of mechanics, but its setting really helps it stand out.  Though the game is free-to-play, there are expansions available for purchase which add to the game's story and introduce new items and mechanics. Even better for Tolkien fans: the storylines follow in line with the books.  You can fine the base game for free on the official site or Steam. What can I play it on? PC What's the payment model? Free-to-play, with purchasable DLC and optional subscription The Elder Scrolls Online It's been a while since the last mainline Elder Scrolls release, and we're pretty sure it'll be a while until the next one, so if you're a fan looking to breathe fresh life into Tamriel, Elder Scrolls Online is an excellent option. Like Final Fantasy XIV, this is a game that struggled initially. But since dropping its subscription fees for a buy-to-play model, perception has dramatically improved. Despite being one of the most modern and recent MMOs to hit the market, Elder Scrolls Online has really picked up traction, which is undoubtedly helped by being in a recognizable universe that many wish to return to.  After the success of Morrowind, Elder Scrolls Online has had several DLC updates including Summerset, Wolfhunter and Murkmire. Here you'll find the traditional Elder Scrolls viewpoint and combat but it’s all neatly tied in with those traditional MMO features like looting, crafting systems and PvP and PvE missions.  What can I play it on? PS4, Xbox One, PC What's the payment structure? Buy-to-play Runescape Like World of Warcraft, Runescape is one of those names that's renowned in the MMO world, partly because it's one of the oldest games in the genre still going. And yet, with its user base managing to double in 2018, it's still very much alive and kicking. Originally a browser-only game, over the years Runescape has expanded into its own program with vastly improved visuals and mechanics. At its heart, though, it remains a game that's dedicated to giving players freedom in combat and questing. It's perhaps for this reason that it remains one of the most popular and updated games in the MMO genre. You can start playing via the official Runescape site.  What can I play it on? PC and Android Early Access with iOS coming in 2020 What's the payment structure? Free-to-play but can pay monthly membership for extra content - membership also includes mobile access Black Desert Online Black Desert Online certainly isn't one of the more accessible games on this list, but it's one that you may find it worth investing some time into. As a Korean MMO, it does place a heavy emphasis on grinding, but for anyone looking for in-depth profession and crafting systems, it's a contender. More than many other MMOs, this is one that will try to draw you into a second life. It also has one of the most robust character creation systems in the genre. This is a game that has something to engage with on big and small scales. Want to fish and farm? You can do that. But you can also take part in guild wars and sieges past a certain level.  Don't expect a vast story here – this is very much a sandbox game where you craft your own story and adventure.  But there are various systems and mechanics to engage with and connecting them together can be rewarding, even if the process proves time-consuming and complicated.  Black Desert Online is a complex but stunning game. It has its problems, but its move from PC onto Playstation and Xbox One has only made it more relevant for a mainstream audience. What can I play it on? PC, Xbox One, PS4 What's the payment structure? Buy-to-play with optional in-game purchases Eve Online There's been a lot of high fantasy in this list so far – but if you're more of a space age type then you might want to take a look at Eve Online. A word of warning, though: we said Black Desert Online is complicated but Eve Online edges to beat it. This is a game world that's been going for 17 years and it's become somewhat infamous for being one of uncaring betrayal. While you can do whatever you want in the game, just remember that others can do whatever they want. And sometimes that involves ruining you. Space colonization is a tough game and there's no room for lasting friendships.  Eve Online is kind of the ultimate in sandbox MMO gaming – it's a game world driven by its playerbase; a playerbase capable of dragging out wars and schemes over periods of months with plenty of fighting, smuggling and sabotage in between.   Just because it's not the easiest game to learn doesn't mean you can't do it, though. Unlike the creators of Black Desert Online, over the years developer CCP has attempted to make it slightly more accessible and the developer has put together a thorough and helpful tutorial for beginners.  Besides, sometimes there's no better lesson than getting something horrifically wrong. The introduction of a free-to-play option is also a great chance to dip your toes in and see if you're interested in delving deeper.  You can download Eve Online from its official website. What can I play it on? PC What's the payment structure? Free-to-play or subscription Final Fantasy XIV It's not been an easy journey for this Final Fantasy MMO. First launched in 2010 to an overwhelmingly negative response (and for good reason), Square Enix then spent two years reworking and rebuilding it to create something much better.  In its latest and vastly improved form, Final Fantasy XIV is a game that will appeal to franchise fans and newcomers alike.  Boasting an accomplished class system and a story that builds steadily over the game's various expansions, this is an MMO which really captures the essence of the Final Fantasy franchise with plenty of fan service.  What can I play it on? PS4 and PC What's the payment structure? Buy-to-play Best PS4 games: the most essential PlayStation 4 releases Best Xbox One games: the most essential Xbox One releases This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now

Are the iPhone 8 or 7 worth your time now iPhone SE deals are here? Posted: 25 Apr 2020 04:30 AM PDT The second generation adaptation of Apple's popular iPhone SE is finally here, offering Apple fans a new cheap iPhone to dig their teeth into. Yes, it embodies all of the affordable ethos that the original SE stood for... it just looks nothing like it. But this new iPhone does look like another Apple device - the iPhone 8. With the same shape, style, screen size and quality, resolution and even the exact same dimensions, the iPhone SE is pretty much a modern iPhone 8. That's not necessarily a bad thing - iPhone 8 deals are great! They offer Apple's iOS platform at a much lower price while not plunging you quite into the old world of phones like the iPhone 6S or original SE would. But while iPhone SE deals look almost identical to the iPhone 8 on the outside, the inside is a whole other story. The SE packs Apple's 2020 high-powered A13 Bionic chip (the same as the iPhone 11), a 4K video camera, reverse charging and a host of other top specs. And yet iPhone SE deals stick to a very low price with the RRP starting at £419. In other words, Apple's latest launch has rendered everything pre-the iPhone X slightly obsolete, providing better specs for a similar price.  The best new iPhone SE deals: Mobile phone deals: compare the best prices currently out there Is the iPhone SE a good phone? As we said above, the iPhone SE is simply a modern rendition of the iPhone 8, complete with high-end 2020 specs. We've been waiting for a cheap iPhone for a while now and Apple has really delivered! 4K video, Apple's super-powered A13 Bionic, wireless charging, an increased battery and an IP67 rating feature amongst the more impressive features of this device. To lower the price however, Apple has gone back to the design of the iPhone 8, brought the camera lenses down to just one and dropped the screen quality. Realistically, this is one of the best iPhones we've seen in a long time, not because of its specs but because of the excellent value Apple has managed to create. Read our full iPhone SE review This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now

BT's fibre broadband deals offer impressive speeds and a £70 Mastercard Posted: 25 Apr 2020 04:06 AM PDT BT remains the UK's most popular broadband provider, sporting fast speeds, impressive hardware and more. Where it sometimes falls down is in its affordability but right now that isn't the case. On its Fibre 1 package, you will be paying £28.99 a month for speeds averaging 50Mb. While that doesn't sound like anything to shout about, it becomes a real winner when you take into account the £70 Mastercard BT is offering on top. That extra incentive quickly launches BT to the top, becoming one of the best value plans with ease. While not quite as mind-blowing as Vodafone's latest offer, this is certainly an easy choice for fans of what BT has on offer. The one thing you will need to take into account here is that the UK wide lockdown has caused issues with broadband installation. If you have a phone line, it's all good! You can simply install your broadband yourself. If you don't have a phone line, you will have to wait a while until you can get things installed. Try 4G home broadband if you need a temporary solution Below you'll find everything you need to know about BT's latest offering and see a few of the biggest competing broadband deals. Still too expensive? Compare all of the cheap broadband deals available BT's best value broadband deal: Vodafone's mega fibre broadband offer: Today's best broadband deals This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now

AMD Cezanne leak hints at next-gen laptop CPUs with RDNA 2 graphics that go for Intel’s jugular Posted: 25 Apr 2020 03:54 AM PDT AMD Ryzen 4000 (codenamed Renoir) mobile chips are still very much fresh on the scene – and making a huge impact in terms of competitiveness in the laptop world – but we’ve already seen a leak for next-gen APUs apparently codenamed Cezanne (a name which has been doing the rounds in leaks for some time now). The follow-on chips, which logically will be the Ryzen 5000 series, are shaping up to be something truly special, at least going by some details spilled on Twitter by _rogame (as spotted by TechPowerup), a hardware leaker with a considerable pedigree. So as you can see, next-gen Cezanne APUs will be built on Zen 3 and will offer a ‘significant’ boost in performance compared to Ryzen 4000 processors, which are already proving to be excellent performers. Intel vs AMD - who makes the best CPUs? Here are the best processors Best gaming laptops of 2020 Perhaps even more exciting is the fact that the integrated graphics could come courtesy of Navi 23 and be RDNA 2-powered, which would be a major leap for wallet-friendly gaming laptops using these chips. However, we have to treat that possibility with caution, because as _rogame observes, the integrated GPU is still an ‘unknown’ and this is simply what he thinks is most likely to be the case. For that matter, we have to treat this entire rumor with a healthy degree of skepticism, of course. Dell leak That said, it is backed up by a second rumor floating around, spotted by Notebookcheck.net and citing another Twitter leaker who uncovered details (accidentally posted on an AMD community forum) that point to Dell planning 15.6-inch laptops which will use the Cezanne-H APU. As _rogame makes clear, these Cezanne chips are likely set to take up the battle against Intel’s incoming Tiger Lake processors with integrated Xe graphics, which as we recently reported, are set to tackle AMD’s Ryzen 4000 mobile CPUs. However, if Tiger Lake laptops start arriving at the end of 2020 as planned, next-gen Cezanne APUs could be hot on their heels – they should arrive in a similar timeframe to Ryzen 4000, meaning this time next year, _rogame believes. The fact that they’re purportedly pin compatible with Ryzen 4000 should mean that laptop manufacturers won’t need to change motherboard designs much for Cezanne, either, which will help speed the arrival of portables with these APUs in them. And these Cezanne chips could be something truly special, certainly if this chatter from the grapevine is on the money – there’s no understating how much impact integrated RDNA 2 graphics could potentially have in the budget gaming laptop category (for those who want to avoid the cost of a discrete GPU). And that’s a truly worrying prospect for Intel, which absolutely must hold onto its lead in the laptop world, where it’s currently dominant (after having well and truly lost the initiative in the desktop space to AMD Ryzen processors). Check out the best gaming PCs of 2020 This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now

Apple and Google explain more about the privacy of their Covid-19 tracking apps Posted: 25 Apr 2020 03:30 AM PDT In the not-too-distant future, we could all be walking around with a smartphone app designed to track and trace the spread of Covid-19. That has set some privacy alarm bells ringing, and now Apple and Google have explained more about how their apps will work to try and put minds at rest. New documents published online explain various aspects of the Bluetooth, cryptography and data storage protocols that are going to be used, so that everyone knows what they're letting themselves in for once they activate these apps. There's also a FAQ about the privacy implications. If you're just getting up to speed with this, Apple and Google are working together on phone software that will alert other people that you've recently been physically close to if you contract Covid-19. The whole process will operate anonymously, and so far it's very much a work-in-progress, with no official launch yet announced. Check out the best Netflix movies Dell takes on the MacBook Pro Nvidia working on a mystery project Today we have a few more details: randomly generated keys and Bluetooth encryption will be used to make identifying individuals very, very difficult. If your phone pings to say you've been near someone who may have Covid-19, you won't know who it is – just that you've been in their general vicinity. Any questions? Readings (of where you are and where other people are) will be taken every five minutes and capped at 30 minutes per pairing, while various other tweaks should improve the draw on battery life and the accuracy of these apps. It will be completely up to you, the user, whether these tracing technologies are turned on at all, and whether or not the data is shared with apps, and the software will rely on Bluetooth readings to work out which devices you're near – no location data (e.g. where you are in the world) will be logged. You can see the full FAQ here. Technically, these aren't "apps" as such – they're APIs or Application Programming Interfaces that other app makers (like health services and governments) can use to tap into the data being collected by iOS and Android. Apple and Google say the number of apps that will be able to access this data will be tightly controlled. The tech giants and the governments of the world know that public trust and support is essential for these apps to work as intended, and so you can expect to hear plenty more on privacy protections before the actual tech is out in the wild. Not every smartphone will be able to run these tracking apps Via MacRumors This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now

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