Apple : Cisco fixes major security flaws in Webex on Windows and Mac |
- Cisco fixes major security flaws in Webex on Windows and Mac
- Could iOS 14 actually be called iPhone OS? This leaker thinks so
- The best cheap monitor sales and deals for June 2020
- US set to block activation of controversial undersea web cable
- This is AMD’s secret weapon against Intel and it could change personal computing forever
- The best Dell laptops 2020
- The best keyboards of 2020: top 10 keyboards compared
- The best gaming PC 2020: top desktops for PC gamers
- Google Chrome might have a huge security flaw
- Disney Plus in July 2020: the Star Wars library is finally complete
- Best portable SSD of 2020: top external solid state drives
- Best business laptops 2020: top devices for working from home, SMB and more
- Did your Sony Xperia 1 II order get delayed? This may be why
- The best cheap PlayStation VR bundles, prices and deals in June 2020
- The best free-to-play Steam games 2020
- Cyberpunk 2077 release date, price, trailers, gameplay and news
- Best 4K monitors 2020: the top Ultra HD monitors and displays
- The best 17-inch laptop 2020: top large screen laptops for your money
- The best Three mobile deals in June 2020
- Garmin launches premium Edge 1030 Plus bike computer with 24-hour battery life
| Cisco fixes major security flaws in Webex on Windows and Mac Posted: 18 Jun 2020 02:03 PM PDT Cisco has addressed two high severity vulnerabilities in its Webex video conferencing software that could have allowed unprivileged attackers to run programs and code on vulnerable systems. The two vulnerabilities, tracked as CVE-2020-3263 and CVE-2020-3342, affect Cisco Webex Meetings Desktop App releases earlier than version 39.5.12. and all Webex users should update their software to the latest version to avoid falling victim to any potential exploits. In an advisory concerning the arbitrary program execution flaw affecting Webex's Windows client, Cisco provided more details on the vulnerability and explained what an attacker could do to a user's system following a successful exploit, saying:
“The vulnerability is due to improper validation of input that is supplied to application URLs. The attacker could exploit this vulnerability by persuading a user to follow a malicious URL. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to cause the application to execute other programs that are already present on the end-user system. If malicious files are planted on the system or on an accessible network file path, the attacker could execute arbitrary code on the affected system.” Webex vulnerabilitiesCisco also patched a remote code execution vulnerability in Webex's Mac client that was caused by improper certificate validation on software update files downloaded by the software. The vulnerability could allow an unauthenticated attacker to remotely execute arbitrary code with the same privileges of the logged in user on macOS. In a separate advisory, Cisco explained how an attacker could exploit the vulnerability, saying: “An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by persuading a user to go to a website that returns files to the client that are similar to files that are returned from a valid Webex website. The client may fail to properly validate the cryptographic protections of the provided files before executing them as part of an update.” Cisco has since fixed both of these vulnerabilities with the release of version 40.1.0 of Webex for Windows and version 39.5.11 of Webex for Mac. Windows and Mac users can update their Cisco Webex clients by following these instructions while admins can update both versions of the client by following this guide.
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| Could iOS 14 actually be called iPhone OS? This leaker thinks so Posted: 18 Jun 2020 01:06 PM PDT As the Apple WWDC 2020 keynote approaches, we may see some rebranding of the company's software: a leak claims that iOS will be renamed iPhone OS. That comes courtesy of noted leaker Jon Prosser. This time, he simply tweeted ‘iPhone OS’: Given the proximity to Apple’s WWDC 2020 event, which starts June 22, it’s possible that Apple will take the opportunity to rebrand iOS to iPhone OS, if this tweet is accurate. In that case, iOS 14 would likely be iPhone OS 14. Why make the switch? Possibly to further delineate the iPhone’s operating system from iPadOS, which has been adding features and capabilities to distinguish itself from iOS since it was released in September 2019.
Will iPhone OS be different from iOS?Since this leak is just two words, we can’t really divine any insight into how iPhone OS would differ from iOS, if at all. Perhaps it’s simply a renaming convention – and, to be clear, a second renaming, since Apple originally changed the name from iPhone OS to iOS back in June 2010. While it’s been a decade under the iOS moniker, now that the operating system has split from covering both iPhones and iPads, it would make sense to switch back to plainly stating which OS supports which device. (That would leave out iPod Touch models, though.) Which doesn’t mean that the operating systems will be totally different from each other: a leak back in February suggested iOS 14 (or iPhone OS 14) could inherit iPadOS features like the app switcher.
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| The best cheap monitor sales and deals for June 2020 Posted: 18 Jun 2020 12:02 PM PDT If you're looking for a cheap monitor to improve your computing experience, then you've come to the right place. We've rounded up the best monitor sales and deals that are available online from retailers like Best Buy and Amazon. Whether you're looking for a display with 4K resolution, a massive screen, or want to improve your gaming experience, we've listed the best cheap monitor options for any desk or budget. Because you can use pretty much any device with an external display these days, we think you should use a monitor for everything from your iPad to your more powerful Surface Book 2. Otherwise, you’re depriving of yourself of some much-needed screen real estate – and, with these cheap monitor deals, you don’t even need to spend much to jump in on the action. To make things easier for you, we've split our selection of monitors into five categories, which include: the best Full HD monitor deal, best QHD monitor deal, best gaming monitor deal, best 21:9 monitor deal, and the best budget monitor deal. See our top cheap monitor sales below so you can find the right monitor for you at the best price. The best cheap monitor dealsThe Dell UltraSharp U2414H is the cream of the crop of standard, 24-inch displays. The monitor offers a sharp, Full HD (1,920 x 1,080) picture with vibrant, but accurate colors and deep contrast. Best of all, Dell personally calibrates every U2414H unit, so you won't have to screw with the gamma, contrast or a multitude of other settings just for a decent picture. If you're looking for a little more sharpness in your computing life, a QHD monitor is the way to go, and the Omen 32-inch QHD screen from HP offers the best frequent deals we've found so far. With 2,560 x 1,440 rich pixels, this Omen display can make everything from movies, games and even websites look that much better. The display also comes packed with AMD's FreeSync technology to reduce gaming frame rate drops, though you'll need an AMD graphics card to use the feature. We're officially entering the 4K age, and finally we're beginning to see some sizable deals on the Ultra HD monitors we've been wanting for so long. The 27-inch ViewSonic XG2700-4K is arguably one of the best 4K monitors around with a 3,840 x 2,160 resolution. Its SuperClear IPS panel tech is no slouch either, with the ability to produce rich colors while outputting a gamer-grade 144hz refresh rate and 5ms response time. Gaming is a pricey hobby, but there are plenty of ways to penny pinch with mid-range components, budget accessories and, of course, excellent deals on displays. The Asus VG245H is one of the most budget gaming monitors we've ever tested. It's no 1,440p panel, but you do get a 75hz refresh rate, blue-light filter and, thanks to its TN panel, response times as quick as 1 millisecond. Read the full review: Asus MG248Q 21:9 monitors are deal for movie buffs; however, their price tags can be scary. Fortunately, the LG 29UM68 is a steal of a deal. Though it's technically just a Full HD monitor with its 2,560 x 1,080 pixel count, you'll likely be too busy immersed in its visual wingspan to care. This IPS panel produces 99% of the sRGB color gamut. Plus, that 21:9 aspect ratio is just too wide to pass up if you're tired of seeing letter-boxed movies on traditional, 16:9 screens. If you're looking for a cheap monitor to get the job done, then the ASUS VS239H-P is a fantastic option. The budget monitor features a 23-inch Full HD display with 1920x1080 resolution and IPS technology, which allows for a 178° wide-view angle. If you're a designer or serious gamer, this monitor won't live up to your high standards, but if you're looking for an affordable option that works, you should consider the ASUS VS239H-P. Learn more about the top monitors with our list of the best monitor 2020: the top 10 monitors and displays we’ve reviewed. This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| US set to block activation of controversial undersea web cable Posted: 18 Jun 2020 12:00 PM PDT The US government will likely block the activation of an undersea web cable linking the US to Hong Kong over fears of Chinese data theft. The Pacific Light Cable Network was first announced in 2016 as a partnership between Google, Facebook and other companies with the aim of boosting internet speeds and capacity between North America and Asia. However, a US government committee known as “Team Telecom” is now recommending that the US denies approval for the undersea cable on the grounds of national security. In a press release, the US Department of Justice explained how one of the investors in the Pacific Light Cable Network could pose a risk to the country's national security, saying:
“As submitted to the FCC, the PLCN application would have allowed for the highest capacity subsea cable connection between the United States and Asia and been the first direct connection between the United States and Hong Kong. This raised national security concerns, because a significant investor in the PLCN is Pacific Light Data Co. Ltd., a Hong Kong company and subsidiary of Dr. Peng Telecom & Media Group Co. Ltd. (Dr. Peng Group), the fourth largest provider of telecommunications services in the PRC.” Pacific Light Cable NetworkThe Pacific Light Cable Network is just one of the hundreds of undersea cables that provide global internet connectivity. When the new undersea cable was first announced, Google said that it would be 8,000 miles long and the “highest-capacity trans-Pacific route”. In addition to connecting the US to Hong Kong, the project also has portions that connect the US with Taiwan and the Philippines. The installation of the Pacific Light Cable Network reportedly cost millions of dollars and the cable itself is ready to be turned on but needs approval to operate. Team Telecom has recommended approval for the Taiwan and Philippines sections of the cable. However, the committee recommends that the activation of US to Hong Kong section should be blocked. While Team Telecom doesn't want to activate the Hong Kong section of the cable, the final decision will ultimately be made by the FCC.
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| This is AMD’s secret weapon against Intel and it could change personal computing forever Posted: 18 Jun 2020 12:00 PM PDT AMD’s big announcement this week was the launch of the new Ryzen 3000 XT CPUs - a stopgap between the current generation and the Ryzen 4000 series expected to launch later this year. Tucked away at the foot of the press release is mention of something that might become a fundamental part of AMD’s toolset, sooner rather than later, as it seeks to compete more sustainably with arch nemesis Intel. TechRadar Pro covered the launch of AMD StoreMi back in April, but version 2.0 has now been announced and will include “a new caching-based acceleration algorithm that enhances data integrity and prioritizes most-used data, speeding up boot times by up to 31% and decreasing game load times by up to 13% vs an HDD only".
The tests were carried out using a hard drive of unknown capacity (or spinning speed) with a PCIe Gen 4 NVMe SSD, again of unknown origin. In reality, you should be able to mix and match any sort of storage, regardless of whether it is magnetic or not. No RAMDisk yetSadly, this version of StoreMI doesn’t (yet) include the Radeon RAMDisk, which would achieve the Holy Grail of allowing RAM and storage to mix, similar to what Intel has done with Optane. We still believe this facility will arrive at some point, but why? Well, AMD has been working very closely with Microsoft on the brand new Xbox One X gaming console and one of the biggest leaps in performance has come from moving to a new storage system that combines software (DirectStorage) with customized hardware. It turns out that DirectStorage is something Microsoft plans to bring to Windows as well, as it can reduce the processor overhead from I/O operations from multiple cores to just a fraction of a single core. While it will not be tied to any custom hardware, AMD is likely to benefit due to the modular nature of its CPU architecture. So where does that leave us? In a not-so-distant future, one can imagine an AMD system that pools together all the available memory/storage resources, managed intelligently in a way that’s far more efficient than what Windows 10 achieves with Virtual Memory, the part of your storage component the operating system uses as RAM. All this is pure speculation, of course, but the fact AMD has dedicated resources to StoreMi makes us optimistic about its future.
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| Posted: 18 Jun 2020 10:47 AM PDT The best Dell laptops aren’t just built to last. They also boast components powerful enough to see you through your computing needs. Most importantly for budget-conscious consumers, they typically strike a great balance between price, performance, durability and a stunning design. If you’re considering buying one of the best Dell laptops of 2020, then you’re already on the right path. As there’s quite a lot of them to choose from – spanning gaming laptops, Ultrabooks and even Chromebooks – you’ll find one that’ll meet your needs whatever those are. To make your search easier, we’ve gathered the best Dell laptops of 2020 and put them on this list, alongside our price comparison tool. You’ll not only find your ideal laptop on this list, but also snag the best deal available right now. Best Dell laptops at a glance
The Dell XPS 15 might be a bit pricey for regular students, but it’s easily one of the best laptops for students in the creative field. Combining staggering power in a stylish thin and light chassis, this laptop doesn’t hold back when it comes to internals and features that improve your computing experience overall, making this the best Dell laptop of 2020. Among those amazing features are a gorgeous bright display with 500 nits of brightness, an extremely comfortable keyboard, impressive speakers, and a terrific trackpad. We’re not saying that this laptop is perfect, but our coveted 5 out of 5 rating should speak for itself. Read the full review: Dell XPS 15 Alienware Area-51m is a performance beast fitted with high-end processors and high-end graphics cards. Hands down, the Alienware Area-51m is a stunner of a gaming laptop, with a beautiful yet unique chassis and a comfortable keyboard to complement it. But it goes beyond looks; it’s also by far the most powerful gaming laptop on the market right now (and obviously, one of the best Dell laptops). Not that it’s perfect, as it does get really hot and its fans can get very loud. However, it’s a performance beast fitted with high-end processors and high-end graphics cards, and your gaming experience with it will be an absolute pressure. Read the full review: Alienware Area-51m The Dell XPS 13 (2020) is still among the best laptops on the market years after its first release. The competition in the Ultrabook market is getting tougher every year, and early players have been finding it difficult to keep up. Not the Dell XPS 13, however. Not only has this laptop kept a lofty spot in every best Dell laptops list, but it’s also still among the best laptops on the market years after its first release. This extremely luxurious device comes with an all-day battery life, solid performance and a design that you’ll fall in love with at first sight. Due to its thin chassis that’s only about half an inch, it does compromise on a couple of things, most notably its audio and its price tag, which is pretty high for some people. However, the Dell XPS 13 is worth every penny. Read the full review: Dell XPS 13 (2020) The Dell XPS 15 2-in-1 is a beautiful device with ample grunt for gaming. The Dell XPS 15 2-in-1 cuts no corners, bringing in some serious power within a thin and light package that flits easily between its laptop and tablet modes. The XPS 15 2-in-1 weighs a shade under 2kg and is only 16mm thick, which makes it easy to travel with as well as use on the move. It's also a beautiful device, and although it doesn't have the XPS 13's discrete graphics card, it still has ample grunt for gaming. Despite those sleek lines, it also offers an impressive array of ports: two Thunderbolt 3 and two USB-C, plus a headphone jack and MicroSD card reader. The XPS 15 2-in-1 has come down in price considerably since launch, and is amazingly affordably-priced considering its specifications. It’s easily one of the best Dell laptops you can buy. Read the full review: Dell XPS 15 2-in-1 Dell Latitude 7490 has many of the makings of a great computer. (Image credit: Dell) Despite the derivative design, the Dell Latitude 7490 has many of the makings of a great computer and one of the best Dell laptops 2020 has on offer. It’s all thanks to its excellent performance, a long battery life, and more than decent memory and storage options. It isn’t the cheapest, but it’s definitely worth the price. Read the full review: Dell Latitude 7490 Dell G5 15 5590 will see you through 1080p gaming and last you up to 10 hours of battery life as well. A gaming laptop that delivers a solid performance without costing you a pretty penny is key when you’re a gamer looking to upgrade on a somewhat limited budget. Dell’s 15-inch G5 may not have the highest end specs, but it will see you through 1080p gaming and last you up to 10 hours of battery life as well. All while boasting a robust, appealing, arguably thin chassis and a port selection that’s up to par. Read the full review: Dell 5 15 5590 You'll be hard pressed to find a better machine for serious gaming. If aesthetic is as important to you as power, then look no further than the Alienware m17 (2019). Touting Alienware’s new unique design that kind of makes you think you’re in a really cool sci-fi movie, this stunning 17-inch laptop has a few things going for it. It has a lot of power under the hood, enough to make it future-proof, for one. Plus, it’s thin and light for a gaming laptop, and among the lightest 17-inch laptops in the world. To be fair, it’s not perfect – its battery life is particularly poor, and it’s only got a 1080p display. However, if you’re looking for a gaming laptop that is as good in performance as it looks, the Alienware m17 (2019) is a winner. Read the full review: Alienware m17 (2019) Alienware combines incredible performance, stunning display and gorgeous design in the m15. If you're willing to shell out a bit more money on your gaming laptop, then you'll be impressed by Alienware's combination of incredible performance, stunning display and gorgeous design in the Alienware m15. That's impressive considering this laptop's thin and light packaging. And, that's without mentioning its decent battery life. Plus, as far as premium gaming laptops go, this one's actually cheaper than its main rivals. Read the full review: Alienware m15 The Dell Inspiron 13 7000 2-in-1 is a versatile 2-in-1 with a lot going for it under the hood. The Dell Inspiron 13 7000 2-in-1 is a versatile 2-in-1 with a lot going for it under the hood. This premium laptop is more than just about its premium design; it also has high-end internals to compete with the likes of the more powerful Dell XPS 13. Rounding that out is a 4K display, and a clever stylus slot that makes us wonder whether they actually beat Microsoft to the idea. Granted, the display is a bit of a battery drain, and the speakers impressive, but this is still among the best Dell laptops out there. Read the full review: Dell Inspiron 13 7000 2-in-1 Dell G3 15 When it comes to gaming, more often than not, you have to invest in premium parts to get that gaming edge you want. That’s especially true if you’re going for smooth 1440p or 4K gaming. In other words, while there’s a number of budget gaming laptops out there, very few really get you to where you want to go. Among those few is the Dell G3 15 gaming laptop, Dell’s affordable answer for gamers who want solid performance without splurging. It's all thanks to those latest yet economically-priced internals it's fitted with. It's probably not going to get you competitive level, but if you want a cheaper laptop to game on for the sake of gaming, this will go a long way. Read the full review: Dell G3 15
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| The best keyboards of 2020: top 10 keyboards compared Posted: 18 Jun 2020 10:40 AM PDT The best keyboards can do a lot more than just decking out your rig. They offer the right bounce, travel and tactile feedback for a much more comfortable and less fatiguing experience. More importantly for professionals and gamers, they deliver impressive speed, responsiveness and accuracy. And, they far outweigh their inferior counterparts across the board, enhancing your overall computing experience. The benefits to comfort, speed, reliability and convenience you gain with one of these peripherals easily justifies the asking price, which really isn’t much. And, it’s not just the big gamers playing the best PC games for hours on end that need the best keyboard with all the bells and whistles. Even if what you do all day long is type up documents for work, these keyboards can actually change your experience for the better – not to mention, save your wrists from a lifetime of pain. Whether you need one that’s ideal for multitasking and creative work or one of the best gaming keyboards, we have the best keyboards of 2020 for you right here. The best keyboards of 2020 at a glance:
It has become the norm for keyboard manufacturers to implement their own custom keyboard switches, and Roccat – with the Vulcan 120 Aimo – is no different. While this keyboard is primarily marketed as a gaming keyboard, its Titan Switches are tactile enough to be satisfying, while still bouncing back quickly enough to be comfortable to type on for extended periods. And, we’d be remiss to not mention the looks – the Vulcan 120 Aimo looks like a science fiction keyboard, and we love it. It’s no surprise this tops our list for the best keyboard of 2020. Read the full review: Roccat Vulcan 120 Aimo If you have a home theater PC, you might be frustrated by the lack of keyboards that explicitly appeal to your use case. Luckily, there’s a keyboard for you – the Corsair K83 Wireless is a fantastic entertainment-focused keyboard. Not only is it light and portable, it also has a bevy of entertainment functions that’ll make life easier in your living room. And, with its wealth of connectivity options, including Bluetooth and 2.4GHz wireless through a dongle, you can use it with many different platforms. However, it’s not great at gaming, so keep that in mind. Read the full review: Corsair K83 Wireless As long as you don’t mind missing out on some of that signature ‘thock’ sound that’s associated with regular Realforce keyboards, opting for a silenced model like the 104 UBS offers some solid benefits. Hitting the 104 UBS’s keys produces sound on par with a membrane keyboard, so it’s going to be great if you work in a busy office or a shared bedroom. The ‘dampened’ feel of Topre’s silenced switches can feel kind of like typing on sandpaper compared to a non-silenced board, but we found that it’s worth the trade-off if you need a quieter keyboard.
Filco's keyboards tend to be built like tanks, and the Majestouch TKL is no different. This space-saving mechanical keyboard features a compact tenkeyless design that has less than 1cm of space between the edge of the keys and the keyboard. Its durability doesn't simply allow it to stand up well to knocks and scrapes – it has a positive impact on its typing feel too. You can hammer away on it at speed, even bottoming out to your heart's content, and the Majestouch 2 will take every bit of punishment making this among the best keyboards out there. We’ve seen all kinds of keyboards over the years here at TechRadar, from stylish tenkeyless keyboards to RGB-laden gaming behemoths, but something has always been missing – a focus on creatives. Thankfully, with the Logitech Craft, this is no longer the case. Not only is this a sturdy, tactile and attractive keyboard but it also features a unique dial on its top left corner, which will help creatives expedite their workflow. This dial’s utility will vary depending on the application, from simply controlling the volume on the desktop, to changing levels in various tools in Photoshop. If you spend a lot of time creating content on your PC, the Logitech Craft is one of the best keyboards you can buy today. Read the full review: Logitech Craft The PFU Happy Hacking Professional 2 has somewhat of a cult following in the keyboard scene, and it’s not hard to see why. This keyboard is aimed at coders, but it’s fantastic for all you writers out there, too. It forgoes traditional arrow keys, instead making use of function keys and key combinations to get that stuff done. It will take a minute to get used to, but once you get that out of the way the small size is a huge benefit, as you’ll be able to take it anywhere you go. Plus, that sweet ‘thock’ sound of the Topre switches is a wonder to behold.
You just need to look at Microsoft’s Surface devices to know that they’re kind of killing it when it comes to design, and the Microsoft Modern Keyboard with Fingerprint ID takes things to a whole new level. If you’re running Windows 10, and you’re into the Surface aesthetic, this is easily one of the best keyboards out there. Not only does it feel great, but it also features biometric security, by including a discrete fingerprint scanner right next to the “Alt” key. It is an expensive device, but as with everything Microsoft, you can be sure you’re getting what you’re paying for. Read the full review: Microsoft Modern Keyboard with Fingerprint ID Leopold's Fc660c is more portable than the Realforce 87u, but less so than the lighter and more compact HHKB2. However, the Fc660c benefits from its extra heft and feels like the more solid board. Despite having the same 45 gram actuation force as the HHKB2, the Leopold's keys feel slightly weightier - somewhere nearer to 50 grams. It results one of the most satisfying "thock" sounds on a Topre board.
Remember those old IBM Model M keyboards? Well, that’s what the Unicomp Classic 104 seeks to emulate. Available in both USB and PS/2 versions, it uses a buckling spring switch that takes more effort to press than just about every other modern switch. You’re rewarded for this hard pressing with a tactile response that feels like the classic mechanical keyboards of old, along with a noise that will drive everyone around you mad. Some keyboards just ooze class, and the Das Keyboard Prime 13 is one of them. Its features a solid aluminum top panel for added rigidity and a very minimalistic look. With Cherry's MX Red or Brown switches under the keycaps, you're given a choice between linear and non-linear offerings with a range of actuation points. It's a great option for media enthusiasts thanks to side lit media control and the inclusion of white backlighting is another bonus. It's not the most affordable keyboard on our list, but if you're looking for something a little bit more premium, Das is the way to go. With its latest keyboard, Logitech is targeting smartphone and tablet owners who prefer to use their device while sat at a desk. And, if you were a fan of the predecessor, the K380, the Logitech K780 should be right up your alley, especially with its added number pad. This keyboard still has the ability to pair with three devices using Bluetooth or wireless, so you can swap between all your gadgets on the fly. And, thanks to its comfortable rounded keycaps, it’s still a pleasure to type on. The keyboard’s base is the star of the show, however, as it can hold mobile devices up to 11.3mm thick in an upright position. This places them within arms’ reach to make anything from replying to WhatsApp messages or reading a digital magazine easier than ever. How to determine the best keyboard for you
It goes without saying that if you demand the look and feel only mechanical switches can provide, rather than those that are slim and stealthy, we suggest perusing our best gaming keyboards round-up instead. Gamers prioritize the actuation that clicky feeling mechanical keyboards bring, whereas traditional home and office users are more about practicality. That said, the sheer magnitude of sound produced by a lot of mechanical keyboards is offputting to some. For those folks, we have some membrane keyboards to recommend as well.
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| The best gaming PC 2020: top desktops for PC gamers Posted: 18 Jun 2020 10:37 AM PDT These days, the best gaming PCs are almost like battle stations, complete with the newest and most cutting edge components like Nvidia’s Super RTX graphics cards or AMD’s Navi cards. Since the best PC games have been pushing the boundaries of what a truly engaging and immersive title means, it only makes sense to have a beast of a machine to really get the most out of them. More powerful than ever, the best gaming PCs for gaming can boot up and run graphics-intensive AAA games without so much as breaking a sweat. Even if you’re not playing competitively, if you want to turn up the graphics without severely hampering gameplay, you’ll require something with some serious muscle. And, these will have that and then some. Lucky for many gamers out there, not all gaming PCs are expensive. As quite a few of the best processors and best graphics cards now come with a surprisingly reasonable price tag, you can actually get one of the best gaming PCs without breaking that piggy bank. Whether it’s one of these best budget gaming PCs you want or something to blow all your money all, we’ve got the best gaming PCs for you right here.
With AMD’s solid campaign to win the CPU and GPU markets, it’s no surprise that many of the best PCs are switching over Team Red’s cause. Our favorite Alienware Aurora gaming desktop PC line is among them, fitting its R10 models with AMD’s powerful yet affordable Ryzen CPUs. Not only do these deliver brute strength when it comes to gaming, but they also tout affordability, giving budget gamers to partake in what those with souped up rigs experience everyday without burning a hole in their pockets. Is it a wonder why this tops our list of the best gaming PCs? This rectangular monster is definitely worthy of its moniker as it boasts lots of power. This rectangular monster is definitely worthy of its moniker as it boasts lots of power… more than enough, in fact, for most gamers’ needs. When you’ve the funds for an upper-tier configuration, you’ll get a behemoth. Unfortunately, budget minded buyers will have to be satisfied with gameplay at medium settings, since the lower end models don’t pack the same firepower. Still, because of its high upgradability and tool-less design, such buyers are only an upgrade or two from the best gaming experience on Ultra or Max settings either. Plus, we’ve honestly seen more expensive machines for those specs. Read the full review: HP Omen Obelisk review It’s downright impressive how much power the MSI Trident A Plus boasts under the hood, especially considering its slim and small-ish form factor. The self-proclaimed most compact gaming desktop right now isn’t all talk, it walks the walk too with its 5.1 x 15.06 x 15.6-inch size. For superb performance, it offers 9th-generation Intel Core processors, up to Nvidia GeForce RTX 2080 graphics card and 16GB of memory. While it’s not necessarily kitted out, it still spells sheer power. This small yet mighty gaming PC also delivers 4K gaming experience, customizable Mystic Light RGB LED design and the Silent Storm Cooling 3. The Dell G5 boasts 9th-generation Intel chips as well as Nvidia's most powerful gaming GTX and RTX graphics cards. A unique chassis coupled with a price to beat, Dell’s latest in its G series gaming PCs is a solid contender in budget gaming. The Dell G5 boasts 9th-generation Intel chips as well as Nvidia’s most powerful gaming GTX and RTX graphics cards, starting with an i3 processor and the GTX 1650 to handle many powerful games without burning a whole in your pocket. Of course, if you’ve got more case to spare, it’s VR ready configurations are also on hand, though even those are absolutely affordable. Intel’s NUC has come a long way from its humbler beginnings. For example, while the previous Hades Canyon didn’t come with a RAM or storage, the newer Ghost Canyon has both. In fact, not only does it have more offerings now in terms of specs, but it’s also highly configurable so you can personalize it to your liking before hitting that buy button. With 9th-generation Intel Core chips, up to 64GB of memory and up to 4TB dual storage, we’re all for it. The only catch is that it's pricier now as well. The lower configurations are still quite affordable, and a terrific option for the budget-conscious. However, you may want to stay away from the highest configurations.
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| Google Chrome might have a huge security flaw Posted: 18 Jun 2020 10:27 AM PDT A new spyware campaign has been discovered which used malicious Google Chrome extensions downloaded by 32m people to steal user data and credentials online. As reported by Reuters, security researchers at Awake Security alerted Google to the presence of more than 70 malicious add-ons on the official Chrome Web Store that have now been removed. The majority of the free extensions in question either warned users about questionable websites or were used to convert files from one format to another. However, the extensions actually siphoned off users' browsing history and other data that provided scammers with their credentials.
According to Awake Security's co-founder and chief scientist, Gary Golomb this was one of the most far-reaching campaigns in the Chrome Web Store to date based on the fact that the malicious extensions were downloaded 32m times. Malicious extensionsThe extensions used in the campaign were designed to avoid detection by antivirus software and other security software which evaluates the reputations of domains on the web. It is also unclear as to who designed the extensions as the developers supplied fake contact information to Google when they submitted them. If a user downloaded one of the malicious extensions and then used Google Chrome on their home computer, they would connect to a series of websites and transmit information. However, users browsing on a corporate network would not transmit any sensitive information or even reach the attacker's websites. The 15,000 domains used in the campaign were all purchased from a small Israeli domain registrar called Galcomm. Security researcher from Tripwire's vulnerability and exposure research team (VERT), Craig Young provided further insight on how extensions can undermine Chrome's security, saying: “The proliferation of browser extensions as conduits for all manner of online activity has been absolutely terrible for security. Chrome generally does well at resisting compromise from sophisticated exploits but extensions can undermine this security completely. When installing an extension, users must approve a permissions manifest defining what the extension can access but it’s likely that the majority of users are not reading or understanding the permission list.” While extensions can certainly be useful, users should be wary about installing ones from unknown developers to avoid falling victim to potential scams online.
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| Disney Plus in July 2020: the Star Wars library is finally complete Posted: 18 Jun 2020 10:25 AM PDT The musical Hamilton is the big highlight coming to Disney Plus in July 2020, but Star Wars fans have another reason to celebrate. With the release of Solo: A Star Wars Story on July 10, 2020, the complete library of movies set in a galaxy far, far away is finally finished. Maybe July is a good time to watch the Star Wars movies in order? Below, we've rounded up everything coming to Disney Plus in July 2020. Other big originals include the premiere of new series Muppets Now on July 31. The original cast recording of Hamilton, though, remains the month's obvious highlight: that arrives on July 3. The Secret Society of Second-Born Royals movie, originally scheduled for July, has been pushed back to September, Disney has confirmed. Note that this list only applies to Disney Plus US, but if Disney Plus has launched where you live, Hamilton will release at the same time. If you're outside the US, too, you can already stream Solo on Disney Plus. Update: Disney has also announced the brand new series Rogue Trip for July 2020, with all episodes coming on July 24. Here's what's new on Disney Plus in July 2020:
July 3
July 10
July 17
July 24
July 31
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| Best portable SSD of 2020: top external solid state drives Posted: 18 Jun 2020 10:24 AM PDT The best external SSDs are useful for not only expanding your PC’s storage space, but also keeping your files portable while protected. Unlike portable hard drives, they have no moving parts so they’re faster and less likely to break. And, quite few of them have a rugged build, so you can take them on your travels and adventures. As the best external SSDs bring quite a few benefits to the table, they’re worth considering if you’re thinking about getting additional storage for your laptop or computer. However, as there’s quite a selection of portable SSDs out there, it might be hard to weed out the bad ones and find the best for you. You’d want, first and most important of all, a capacious drive so you won’t run out of space when backing up your important – not to mention, large – files like videos and photos, while also making use of the inherent speed benefits of a solid state drive. The key to finding the best external SSD is to make sure that it ticks all the right boxes. To make your search for the best portable SSD for you easier, we picked out the best portable SSDs money can buy in 2020. Whatever it is you’re looking for, you’ll find it on this list.
The best portable SSD at a glance
Samsung is a company that has made some brilliant portable SSDs, and you'll see a number of its devices on this list, however the Samsung Portable SSD T5 is our pick of the best portable SSD of 2018. It builds on the brilliant design and performance of its predecessor, the Samsung T3 SSD (also on this best portable SSD list), but brings it up to date with an incredibly fast USB Type-C connection that ekes out every last drop of performance from the solid state drive inside. Of course, it's also backwards compatible with USB 3.0 and USB 2.0 if your PC doesn't have USB Type-C. It's expensive, but it's well worth the cash. Read the full review: Samsung Portable SSD T5 Seagate is a well-known brand when it comes to storage, and it's brought its impressive experience to the portable SSD market with the brilliant Seagate Fast SSD. This is an impressively slim external SSD, at only 9mm thick with a footprint of 94 x 79mm. Best of all, it's affordable – with prices likely to drop – and it’s an excellent performer, relatively small, plus it has a nice design and a three-year warranty. Well worth considering if you're looking for a the best portable SSD for a low price. Read the full review: Seagate Fast SSD 500GB If you want speed above all else, and money is (almost) no object, than the Samsung X5 Portable SSD is the best portable SSD for you. It comes with a Thunderbolt 3 connection that takes full advantage of the super-fast speeds of the brilliant Samsung 970 Evo NVMe SSD that comes inside. However, that pure dedication to speed comes at some expense. First, there's the financial expense, as this is a pricey external SSD. It's also larger and bulkier than the Samsung T3 or Samsung T5, which are also on this list. The device is fairly heavy at 150g, triple the weight of the Samsung T5, and at 116 x 60 x 18mm, it can best be described as portable rather than miniature. However, when it comes to performance, the Samsung X5 Portable SSD is definitely the portable SSD to go for. Read the full review: Samsung X5 Portable SSD This small and compact external hard drive offers very decent speeds, as well as a rugged body that keeps it safe from water - as well as drops and knocks. It's not the fastest drive out there - as it's still reliant on the aging SATA technology, rather than the newer - and faster - NVMe tech, but for the money you're still getting a brilliant performer. Adata claims this is the most compact external SSD, and with dimensions of 72.7 x 44 x 12.2mm and weighing only 37g excluding the cable, it is smaller and lighter than Samsung’s T3 and T5 drives - which are also on this list of the best portable SSDs. While it is pricey compared to some of the other external SSDs we have on this list, remember that it comes with military-certified protection. The stringent MIL-STD-810G 516.6 impact resistance test so it should survive accidental drops and shocks without much damage. If you shop around, you can also get it for less than its RRP. Storage giant Western Digital is no stranger when it comes to storage gear aimed specifically at pro photographers, and with the WD My Passport Wireless SSD it has created another brilliant device that photographers (or even regular users) will love. It joins WD's growing stable of wireless hard drives, which allow you to view and move files via a Wi-Fi connection, rather than with a cable, which is handy. However, over Wi-Fi, you're not utilising the full speed of the SSD. It also connects via USB 3.0, which offers very good speeds, but not quite as fast as USB Type-C or Thunderbolt. But the flexibility and durability of the WD My Passport Wireless SSD is certainly tempting, plus it comes with a built-in SD card reader, making it one of the best portable SSDs for photographers. Read the full review: WD My Passport Wireless SSD If you’re looking for a portable SSD with lots of features, then you might want to take a look at the Samsung T7 SSD. This external storage is not only fast – with sequential read and write speeds of up to 1,050 and 1,000 MB/s, respectively – but it also boasts quite a few nifty features in its palm-sized package. The most important of those features is, of course, its built-in security options that use AES 256-bit encryption and give you the option to use fingerprint sign-in, which you can set-up through its own management software. The Adata SD700 will suit those looking for a rugged storage device that can provide ample capacity without costing too much. It offers good speeds, and it's IP68 rated, which means you can carry it around with you without worrying about it getting damaged. It comes in capacities up to 1TB, so you don't have to worry about missing out on storage space just because it uses an SSD. However, it doesn't come with the new USB Type-C connection, which means speeds aren't quite as fast as they could be.
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| Best business laptops 2020: top devices for working from home, SMB and more Posted: 18 Jun 2020 10:10 AM PDT The best business laptops on the market are both powerful and versatile enough to cater to a wide range of requirements and use cases. In this age of working from home, the best business laptops need to do more than just send emails and connect to the internet - it needs to be reliable, robust, and be as easy to use for working remotely as for taking to the office, or events. In short, you need one of the best business laptops on the market, a powerful machine with the latest and greatest internal components as well as the best productivity features and the longest battery life. It's also worth considering which accessories you may need, such as the range of available laptop bags, docking stations, and portable chargers to keep the battery going. You also need to think about your laptop will have any specific needs. While Windows laptops are the most common, sometimes a Linux laptop will be more useful. Additionally, for outdoor use you may need a rugged laptop. Students may find themselves preferring a Chromebook. These considerations are essential whether you’ve got a small startup, a Fortune 500 enterprise, or a home office-based one-man team. And, with them in mind, we put together a list of the best business laptops on offer. So that whether it’s the best Ultrabook or the best mobile workstation or even a thin client you’re seeking, you won’t have to waste countless hours doing research. You’ll find something here to suit the needs of your bus oniness. If you’re looking for something with a bit more oomph though perhaps not as portable, you might just be looking for the best business desktop PC or even a workstation Alternatively, check out our best tablets for business feature as well.
The best business laptops at a glance:
Combining staggering power in a stylish thin and light chassis, this laptop doesn’t hold back when it comes to internals and features that improve your computing experience overall, making this one of the best business laptops of 2020. Among those amazing features are a gorgeous bright display with 500 nits of brightness, an extremely comfortable keyboard, impressive speakers, and a terrific trackpad. We’re not saying that this laptop is perfect, but our coveted 5 out of 5 rating should speak for itself. Read the full review: Dell XPS 15 If you don't want a Windows laptop and you want only the best Mac laptop you can get, then the MacBook Pro 16" is truly the best laptop from Apple you can choose. Aside from its large and beautiful 16" screen, the technical specifications make this probably the most powerful laptop on this list, and should provide many years of excellent use. There's a choice of 6-core or 8-core processor, and for RAM the base model comes with 16 GB with the option to expand to 64 GB. There's also a choice of graphics cards available, allowing this laptop to handle even the most demanding applications. All in all this is a beautiful and powerful machine, but as you'd expect, it comes with the biggest price tag of all of the laptops featured here. If you want only the best, then the MacBook Pro 16" should probably be at the top of your list. Previous versions of the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon have been the absolute best-in-class when it comes to business laptops, and this year's model is no exception, with Lenovo delivering a thinner and smaller design with practically no trade-offs. If you're looking for one of the best Lenovo laptops with business grade capabilities, you've got an ace here. Despite its small size, the ThinkPad X1 Carbon comes with pretty much every feature you need in a productivity machine, making it the best business laptop money can buy. Thanks to a battery life of up to 15.5 hours, and a rapid charging feature that brings the battery back up to 80 percent capacity in only an hours, the X1 Carbon is an ultrabook that lets you keep on working while you're on the move. Huawei may not be the first name you think of when looking to buy a new business laptop - whereas Dell and Lenovo are two names you'd more likely associate with notebooks for work, but the Chinese company has proved to be an excellent laptop manufacturer with its new MateBook X Pro. It has a beautiful design that will get appreciative looks in the boardroom, it's light enough to carry around with you, and it has powerful components and excellent battery life. It's also one of the cheaper ultrabooks on the market. If the Dell XPS 15 is a little large or expensive for your needs, then the Dell XPS 13 makes for an excellent second. This ultraportable laptop – as Dell puts it – punches above its weight with Windows 10 Pro across the entire range as well as rather attractive pricing. This award winning laptop (it won best laptop of the year from us and many others) manages to pack a 13.3-inch display into the chassis of an average 11.6-inch model. It was also refreshed in 2019 with even better components, for a much improved business laptop experience. The laptop can be upgraded to 16GB of RAM and a 1TB M2 SSD drive. Battery life is exceptional as well with almost 22 hours of continual use when using productivity applications. Dell has once again given the Dell XPS 13 a boost when it comes to components, and the webcam is now placed above the screen for better video calls, which helps make the Dell XPS 13 once again one of the best business laptops money can buy. The MacBook Pro (13-inch, 2020)’s entry-level model may miss out on some of the lineup’s new toys. However, going for the higher-end configurations will get you new (and powerful) Intel processors and improved RAM speeds for better performance, all packed in the 13-inch incredibly svelte body. Apple rounds it all out with that incredible Magic Keyboard from the new 16-inch, finally getting rid of that problematic keyboard. Even if you don’t go for the 10th-generation Intel Core configurations, you might still appreciate the fact that all models come with more storage capacity for the same price as their predecessors. Read the full review: MacBook Pro (13-inch, 2020) The Lenovo Yoga C630 is hands-down the best Snapdragon-powered laptop ever made. Unlike other Windows laptops that run on Intel or AMD hardware, the Lenovo Yoga C630 runs on Qualcomm's Snapdragon 850 SoC. This is usually found in flagship smartphones, and it allows the Lenovo Yoga C630 to have some of the best smartphone features – but in a laptop. So, you get instant-on startup times and 4G connectivity. This makes it one of the best business laptops because it means you don't have to rely on Wi-Fi. You can be out almost anywhere, and as long as you have a 4G SIM installed, you can access the internet quickly and securely. The Lenovo Yoga C630 is also always connected, which means even when it is not being used, it's still connected to the internet. So, when you next turn it on, all your emails, messages and notifications will be there waiting for you. Best of all, it's got a phenomenal battery life of almost 24 hours. That means it can go several work days on a single charge. The only problem is that because it doesn't run on traditional hardware, not all applications are compatible. Hopefully that will change in the future, but if your business relies on a certain program, make sure it runs on Snapdragon or ARM hardware before you buy. Apple’s thinnest and lightest MacBook is back in 2020 with a vengeance. Not only has it fixed a lot of the complaints with its predecessors – namely, that problematic keyboard is now gone, replaced by a drastically improved keyboard. But it also comes with new and more powerful internal components, even more storage space options, and a lower price of entry. There are a couple of things we’d do better, like the muted screen and the average battery life. However, all things considered, this model of the MacBook Air is better than anything we’ve seen from the line to date, and among the best business laptops for Apple fans who want to travel light. Read the full review: MacBook Air (2020) The Surface Book 2 (13.5-inch) is another entry from Microsoft in our best business laptop list, and it's worthy of its spot, as Microsoft has crafted one of the most powerful 2-in-1 laptops in the world. The Surface Book 2 has some powerful enough components to handle most day-to-day tasks, and even some light gaming and video editing if you go for a model with a dedicated graphics card. If you want a bigger screen, then there is also a 15-inch version of the Surface Book 2, which comes with more powerful components. Read the full review: Microsoft Surface Book 2 (13.5-inch) Google continues its tradition of making the best Chromebook in the world. This is a Chromebook that proves that these devices can be just as stylish and powerful as traditional laptops, and the Pixelbook Go brings a lot of the original Pixelbook's premium features to a more affordable device. It also features a fantastic battery life and a brilliant keyboard that makes typing on a pleasure. This is among the best business laptops for professionals looking to save some cash. Read the full review: Google Pixelbook Go Michelle Rae Uy also contributed to this article. Check out our laptop buying guide video below.
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| Did your Sony Xperia 1 II order get delayed? This may be why Posted: 18 Jun 2020 10:01 AM PDT The Sony Xperia 1 II has been delayed for a variety of customers who pre-ordered the handset ready for the June 18 release date in the UK. According to numerous sources who contacted TechRadar, Sony delayed orders that were made on its "official partner store". Some of those customers were informed on June 17, which was the day before the phone was meant to arrive for many.
A Sony spokesperson told TechRadar, "We are aware of a number of reports of customers who pre-ordered Xperia 1 II and have received incorrect delivery information due to a system error. "We are in the process of issuing the correct information and would like to reassure our pre-order customers that their Xperia 1 II will ship from end June as expected. We apologise for any inconvenience this error may have caused to our customers and are working to prevent such errors in the future.” If you've been impacted by this problem, you should find Sony will contact you soon to confirm a new time and date when your phone will be delivered. Two of the customers affected by the issue who spoke to TechRadar have had their confirmation that the device will now be dispatched by the end of June. But then there's O2Alongside this, some of those who pre-ordered from O2 have been informed of a delay too. According to a variety of posts on Reddit, some customers were delayed but have been told to expect their Sony Xperia 1 II orders by the end of next week. The O2 website now also says the device has been delayed, and delivery will take up to three weeks from today. TechRadar has asked O2 for clarification, and we'll update this article when we hear back. For anyone wanting to get the Xperia 1 II, this must be frustrating as the device was unveiled in February and it has taken a long time to actually become available. We'll update this story with further information once we hear it. This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| The best cheap PlayStation VR bundles, prices and deals in June 2020 Posted: 18 Jun 2020 09:57 AM PDT PlayStation VR bundles are beginning to trickle back into action this week now retailers in both the US and US have had a chance to replenish their stocks. Even though we've just missed Sony's recent Days of Play sales, we're still seeing some decent Playsation VR prices return, even in the US. We've rounded everything up just below, so simply scroll down to see the latest Playstation VR bundles to get straight into the thick of it. Now that stocks finally returning, the PlayStation VR is one of the cheapest ways to get into the wonderful world of VR gaming. VR deals in general rarely come as cheap as the PSVR and many don't offer such a fantastic library of quality games either. While stock is low this week, you'll still find the popular Blood & Truth and Everybody's Golf bundle available in the US. Meanwhile, the UK is enjoying a stock replenishment of both the cheaper Starter Pack and the five-game Mega Pack bundle - now both available at Currys and Very. Originally $399/£350 at launch for the headset alone, we've found some great VR deals for way less than that including great game bundles such as VR worlds, or handy accessory additions, such as the PSVR Camera. You'll also be happy to know that while the PS5 launch is creeping closer, Sony's new console will retain all the VR functionality - so there's really no need to wait if you're preparing for those PS5 pre-orders. Just use the handy quick links on the right here to jump to the best cheap PlayStation VR prices along with some great bundle options. In the individual sections, we'll let you know which ones are the best value for money. This cheap PlayStation VR bundle deals page can also help you prepare by picking up the other kit you'll need to enjoy the best PlayStation VR experience. You'll want to pick up the PS4 camera as you need it for the PlayStation VR headset to work - thankfully it's included in the vast majority of bundles now. You could also grab a couple of PS Move motion controllers, as some VR games support them. You can also use these items with a small number of Move-based PS4 games like SportsFriends or Just Dance. If you're looking for the ultimate upgrade, check out our PS4 Pro bundle deals, or shop around a little more as we run through the best VR headsets and best PSVR games on the market right now. PlayStation VR pricesThe grid below will be regularly updated with the latest PlayStation VR prices for the headset from different retailers. After seemingly endless stock shortages originally, units seem to be back in stock at most stores. Which is fantastic news with more games to enjoy than ever. PlayStation VR bundles (USA)PlayStation VR bundles are starting to return to shelves this week thankfully, with stock currently available at B&H, Best Buy, and Newegg. B&H is currently the cheapest and you can check out their deal just below. If you're too late to grab it or want to check the other retailers, then we've also added some direct links to the main retailers down below.
PlayStation VR bundles (UK)PlayStation VR bundles are also running low in the UK until this week but a handful of retailers have managed to get some bundles back on the shelves. That means you can pick up the slightly cheaper Starter Pack for lower than the standard £249 price in the UK right now, as well as the higher value £299 5-game Mega Pack bundle as well. PlayStation VR game dealsKeep an eye on this handy chart below as we'll update it with the latest prices for a wide range of PlayStation VR games. To compare prices on individual titles, click the 'View all deals' button at the bottom of the chart. You can also find plenty of cheap PS4 game deals available right now as well. PS4 camera dealsIt's crucial you buy a PS4 camera along with your VR headset if it's not already in the bundle, otherwise, it will not work. Don't pay more than the standard £45/$60 for the camera though. Sony released an updated, rounder (see image above) model with a built-in TV-mount and there are deals included in the chart below. The older PS4 camera is also compatible with PlayStation VR. If there's nothing tempting below, maybe try for a new/preowned unit via eBay? PlayStation Move controller dealsThe PlayStation Move motion controllers are very much an optional purchase as not every game supports them. Many that do, also have options to use the standard DualShock 4 PS4 controller instead. Move wands aren't as readily available as the cameras at the moment, but there are deals to be found if you shop around - or let us do it via that magical box below. It's worth noting, as well, that some of the more expensive results are actually for twin packs. We'd advise a little caution if you're considering pre-owned units, as the lack of use in recent years may have dulled the charge capacity of the battery compared to new controllers. If you want to try your luck (and probably save a fair amount), here are some handy links for eBay. DualShock 4 Back Button Attachment pricesSony have just released the DualShock 4 Back Button Attachment, a small device that clips onto the back of your controller and adds two extra mappable buttons for extra control configurations. The device has so far been wildly popular, especially in the US, so stock is always temporary at the moment. If you see a price you like below, grab it before it's too late. Why can it be difficult to find good PlayStation VR bundles?PlayStation VR bundles are looking sparse right now, thanks to a surge in demand depleting stock across the US and UK. In usual times, we'd expect to see between three and four options for discounted PlayStation VR bundles available in the US and UK, because packaged deals are still fairly limited for this particular console anyway. We'd recommend staying on top of your favorite retailers and checking back regularly to be the first to grab any new PlayStation VR deals. We'll update these PSVR prices on a regular basis and add any bundles that may appear featuring the headset, camera, controllers or games. Need an extra standard controller? Check out the best DualShock 4 deals. This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| The best free-to-play Steam games 2020 Posted: 18 Jun 2020 09:50 AM PDT The best free Steam games offer endless fun without costing you a penny. While the best PC games are perhaps more popular titles in the gaming community, amassing a library of them will burn a hole in your pocket if you’re not careful. Not only are these free games just as entertaining as the most popular PC titles, but they’ll also save you a ton of cash. The best free-to-play Steam games, therefore, are just the ticket to fill the gaps in your collection or get that much needed distraction in your downtime. And, while in some cases, you do have to keep an eye out for those microtransactions and loot boxes, they’re most certainly free to play if you don’t want to spend anymore money.. Boot up your gaming PC, take a look at our picks for the best free-to-play Steam games of 2020. These free games on Steam offer lots of fun while keeping your wallet safe and fat. Best free-to-play Steam games at a glance
Fractured Space is one of the most exciting MOBAs on PC. 1. Fractured SpaceWhen it comes to MOBAs (multiplayer online battle arenas), not every game has to be a fantasy-based romp with daggers, spells and cutesy champions. Take the science fiction ship battles of Fractured Space. Sure, it’s a MOBA-style 5v5 affair, but now you’re in control of a powerful frigate as your hurtle across the stars and attempt to destroy your opponent’s base before your own suffers the same fate. Skewing the classic MOBA concept as a space-based naval affair gives the setup you know and love a much-needed breath of fresh air, while blowing away all the cobwebs. You can customize your ship and crew, as well as hotkeying weapons and abilities so you can combine the best ships for the task ahead. It’s one of the most exciting MOBAs on PC, and it's free to play on Steam. Download here: Fractured Space Gigantic tasks you with killing an enemy giant while attempting to protect your own. 2. GiganticMuch like Paladins, Gigantic offers a team-based shooter that’s part-Overwatch, part MOBA and part something brand new. Instead of having you defend a slow-moving carriage through a map (because that never gets old) or destroy an enemy base (in classic MOBA style), Gigantic tasks you with killing an enemy giant while attempting to protect your own. Sounds mad, right? It is, but a brilliant kind of mad all the same. With an art style that mashes up Studio Ghibli flourishes and classic Disney cuteness, Gigantic’s 20-strong character roster offers enough skills, weapons and attributes to appease even the pickiest of players. Each match is a 5v5 event, with players working together to power up their own Guardian (that’s your giant weapon/walking base) while risking it all to lay siege to the enemy. The roving nature of your Guardian makes every match an intense affair, and best of all, it’s 100% free on Steam. Download here: Gigantic 3. Idle Big DevilIdle Big Devil from Hong Kong Spark Software may still be in Early Access, but the idle RPG game has already gotten a lot of raving reviews from Steam gamers. While it is an idle game, which lets you progress through the game without much interaction, there’s a lot of stuff to do while you wait so it never gets boring. You also get a ton of free currency in the initial play, giving new players a chance to progress quickly. In this game, you’re appointed by the king as the lord of killing the Undead and creatures possessed by evil spirits. You do so with the aid of a total of five heroes whom you recruit yourself throughout the course of the game. As you travel the continent, you can participate in different events that allow you to collect loot, as well as complete daily tasks that reward you with prizes. You can also gather resources to power up your heroes and upgrade your castle. Idle Big Devil does get a bit complicated and harder as you progress, and you will get to a point where you have to decide whether to spend money or endure a slower progression in the game. However, this game can be completely free to play, if you choose not to spend money. Paladins: Champions of the Realm is one of the best free Steam games in 2019. 4. Paladins: Champions of the RealmPaladins launched just after a certain team-based shooter from Blizzard, and it's hard not see the similarities. Still, that doesn’t mean Hi-Rez Studios’ free-to-play FPS isn’t worth your time – it just means you get play something that’s often just as fun and rewarding without forcing you to break the bank with a full-game price. With a menagerie of characters to choose from (known as Champions), each match offers an objective-based experience that feels more like triple-A fare than other free-to-play shooters. Paladins includes everything from Overwatch-style payload defence/offence to a Survival mode akin to the popular ‘battle royale’ sub-genre made popular by PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds and Fortnite. It offers a consistently enjoyable and rewarding place to spend your time, even if it’s a tad derivative. It's free to play on Steam, and there's no need to sink any money into it as long as you’re willing to grind for the first few hours. Download here: Paladins: Champions of the Realm 5. Crusader Kings IIWe’ve all fantasized about what it would be like to roam Europe in the Middle Ages. Well, with Crusader Kings II, you can do exactly that, playing a Christian lord looking to expand and preserve his dynasty while the whole continent is in turmoil. And, it’s not just invaders you have to worry about. Your vassals and courtiers are also busy plotting against you too. You’ll also introduce laws, make friends with other nobles and defend your religion against the heretics. Whatever decision you make, just remember that this is a game of strategy. So even the smallest ones can affect whether or not your dynasty will survive the Dark Ages. If you fancy playing with friends, this game has a competitive multiplayer mode. So you can play with up to 32 other players. Warface: Blackout has also honed its online economy. 6. Warface: BlackoutFree-to-play shooters in their more traditional, deathmatch-esque form are often a hit and miss affair, but despite all those polished triple-A offerings from the likes of Activision and EA, Crytek Kiev has managed to put together a robust little FPS that can be just as exciting and enjoyable as many other entries in the bullet-ridden genre. Warface: Blackout offers four classes to choose from, with weapons, gear, attachments and specific skills tied to each one. Having the right balance of classes in your squad adds a more Battlefield-style teamwork ethic, especially when engineers can repair armour and snipers can pull off game-changing one-shot kills. After four years of rotation on the field, Warface has also honed its online economy, neatly offering you the ability to spend in-game currency on a rental system that lets you test out guns and gear before investing time and cash into your own version. Download here: Warface: Blackout Art of War: Red Tides takes that classic MOBA structure, but strips out all the busywork in between. 7. Art of War: Red TidesAre you looking for a MOBA spin-off that’s light on the RTS elements but deep enough to keep you engaged through every match? Well, we’ve got just the free-to-play beauty for you. Art of War: Red Tides takes that classic MOBA structure – funnelling you down a channel with loads of units as you attempt to destroy a base at the other end – but strips out all the busywork in between. It might not appeal to the hardcore among us, but for those looking to replicate the relaxed involvement of a mobile title at your PC, this is right up your alley. That’s not to say it’s a spectator title. You’ll still need to survey the battlefield and use your energy reserves to build units to counter those already on the field. There are a trio of modes available, but it’s in the 3v3 mode the setup works best, with matches often coming down to which team pulls off the best combo. Download here: Art of War: Red Tides Warframe is one of the best examples of how to do the best free Steam games right. 8. WarframeOkay, so the word ‘war’ features quite a lot in some of the best and most popular free-to-play titles, but that’s because few things are as fun to wage when you’re spending no money. Another such example is Warframe – an online melee brawler/shooter that’s evolved into one of the most enjoyable games on PC. Putting you in control of a sword-wielding space ninja (yes, it’s as cool as it sounds), the game feels like a cross between For Honor and Destiny 2, with modes offering PvE and PvP matches to keep you engaged. There’s even a story mode, and it’s actually pretty fun, if a little repetitive in places. Developer Digital Extremes has also been dedicated to Warframe, rolling out regular updates and events that offer new upgrades and expansion on its rich lore. It may have floundered on consoles, but Warframe is one of the best examples of how to do the best free Steam games right. Download here: Warframe Star Conflict is one of the most enjoyable games we've played on this list. 9. Star ConflictThere’s been a resurgence for the sci-fi dogfighting subgenre in the last few years – thanks in part to the rise of VR – but there aren’t many titles that let you take to the stars and shoot space ships for nada. In fact, there’s just the one, and it’s one of the most enjoyable games we’ve played on this list. The game is split into four main modes – PvP, Open Space, Sector Conquest and Missions – offering plenty of content for absolutely no pounds/euros/dollars. You can atomize other players in classic deathmatches, explore an impressively vast universe in Open Space, or head into co-op for a bit of PvE action in Missions. You can set up custom battles with friends if you’re in mood for a private dust up. Ship designs offer different attributes depending on your play style, and earning new ones can be pulled off without spending a penny if you’re willing to grind. Download here: Star Conflict Atlas Reactor borrows those now ubiquitous decision queues and adds a neat twist. 10. Atlas ReactorPart MOBA, part RTS, Atlas Reactor borrows those now ubiquitous decision queues and adds a neat twist: instead of each player acting out their turn one after the other, everyone gets to play at the same time. The result? A strategy game in actual real-time as players move units around the map, exchanging actions in a chaotic flurry. It can be a little more luck based than we would like (since you don’t know what you’re opponents are going to do next, it’s often guess work alone), but the pace soon hooks you in. Decision, one of two main modes in the game, forces you to make these decisions in 20 seconds or under for each turn (making every match hella fun and hyper intense), while Resolution slows things down into four phases as you plan out your moves and set traps as you attempt to win each 4v4 showdown. Download here: Atlas Reactor
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| Cyberpunk 2077 release date, price, trailers, gameplay and news Posted: 18 Jun 2020 09:47 AM PDT Cyberpunk 2077 is a massive dystopian RPG from CD Projekt Red, the studio behind the acclaimed Witcher series. After a second delay, the game is set to launch on Xbox One, PC, and PS4 on November 19, with a Google Stadia release coming later in the year. Although its release comes towards the end of the current-generation, it looks like Cyberpunk will also move into the next generation, with an Xbox Series X release confirmed and a PS5 one highly likely to follow. Set in Night City, a corporations-controlled metropolis in the Free State of California, Cyberpunk 2077 is set to be a vast open-world game that allows players to play through numerous branching storylines and experience the neon-drenched, gritty cities and futuristic gadgets and weapons associated with the the cyberpunk sci-fi genre. Through an extended Cyberpunk 2077 trailer as well as a hands-off demo at E3 2019, we've had the chance to see some of the scale of the game. But we're hoping we'll get our best look at Cyberpunk 2077 yet during CD Projekt Red's Night City Wire stream that's taking place on June 25. While we wait for that, here's all the news, trailers, and announcements we've had on Cyberpunk 2077 so far. Or, if you can't take the anticipation ahead of the game's 2020 release, check out our thoughts on the Cyberpunk RED tabletop role-playing game instead. [Update: CD Projekt Red has announced on Twitter that the game will be delayed until November 19 2020. The developers say that the game is finished in terms of content and gameplay, but says it needs more time to balance the systems and fix bugs.] Cut to the chase
What is Cyberpunk 2077?Cyberpunk 2077 is a neon cyberpunk game that has The Witcher 3 developer CD Projekt Red moving from a gritty, high fantasy world to an equally gritty, science fiction world metropolis. It's based off the pen-and-paper RPG of the same name, but plays a hell of a lot like The Matrix game we've always wanted. We caught our first peek at the game behind closed doors at E3 2018 – you can check out what we saw in the 48-minute walkthrough video below (in the trailers section). Cyberpunk 2077 is a game that looks vastly different from its developer's The Witcher series, with towering neon skyscrapers, bionic enhancements and a focus on vertical movement rather than wide open plains. It's also all in first-person. At E3 2019 we learned a lot more about the plot of the game, which features the one and only Keanu Reeves. Reeves plays a character named Johnny Silverhand who's embedded in a biochip that's placed in the main character's brain. In order to unlock the secrets to the biochip, what basically becomes the main thread of the game, Silverhand will guide you to Alt Cunningham, the most legendary net runner of all-time. The only problem? She’s dead. But her consciousness lives on the web and you’ll need to do whatever it takes to track her down – including, but not limited to, befriending or eliminating leaders of the biggest gangs in Night City. Cyberpunk 2077 release dateThe Cyberpunk 2077 release date is November 19, 2020. It wasn't always that way, as the game's first official teaser trailer stated it would come out “when it’s ready.” It didn't have a solid date attached to it until the E3 2019 trailer, which gave it an April 16, 2020 launch date. That was the constantly touted Cyberpunk 2077 release date for six months until it got a second delay to September... and now a third delay to November. The reason for the Cyberpunk 2077 delay to November isn't because the game isn't done. CD Projekt Red says it's finished, but more time to fine-tune the expansive game is necessary. It is, after all, a massive RPG. Cyberpunk 2077 trailersThe latest Cyberpunk 2077 trailer is a 15-minute deep dive into the game's lore, world, and gameplay. If you don't mind spoiling some of the visual treats in store – including what it's like to actually step into cyberspace – check out the video here. E3 2019 gave us an incredibly slick trailer, with a look at some new characters, weapon-play – including Keanu Reeves, who will be playing the rock star Johnny Silverhand. Get your fix in the trailer below. In March 2019, we got yet another video, this time of the development team gearing up for the E3 2019 showcase event. Those hoping for a 2019 release may want to start to brace themselves however – though the game remains without a release date, the suggestion of the video below is that development is still in full swing, and a release date may be some time away yet: After a veritable truckload of hype, CD Projekt Red released 48 minutes of gameplay footage, based on the demo journalists saw at E3 2018. In it, you'll see what gunplay looks like, character creation and backstory assignment, plus how you'll upgrade yourself via cybernetic enhancements. You'll meet some of the characters in Cyberpunk's seedy crime circuit and explore the city on foot and in vehicles. (Quick warning: the trailer contains nudity, violence and swearing.) We were treated to a Cyberpunk 2077 trailer during E3 2018 which you can watch below:
Cyberpunk 2077 news and featuresXbox One controller easter egg The Cyberpunk 2077 Xbox One controller is apparently hiding a fun easter egg for fans. As reported by Reddit user UglyDucklingTaken, the back of the controller features a QR Code which, when scanned, takes players to an unlisted video of a track from the game's soundtrack: "The Ballad of Buck Ravers" by in-game band SAMURAI. This comes after those who purchased the special edition Cyberpunk 2077 Xbox One X console discovered a hidden message on its back that can only be discovered using UV light. The message was found to read (via VG247) "Many languages, one message" followed by Thank You in multiple languages. Coming to Stadia later Cyberpunk 2077 will not be available on Stadia when it launches on Xbox One, PS4 and PC on November 17. This was revealed in an unrelated press release (via ArsTechnica) which states that the Google Stadia version is "set to launch in the same year". Though there's no solid date attached to the Stadia launch, this at least tells us it'll be between November 17 and December 31 2020. Night City Wire The stream was originally scheduled to happen on June 11 but was postponed by CD Projekt Red. M for Mature PS5 and Xbox Series X set to get 'full-blown next-gen' Cyberpunk 2077 – but not at launch “In terms of Microsoft’s console, like I said, we have officially confirmed both the update and the cross-gen availability, meaning that you’ll be able to play the game from the get-go on the next-gen,” CD Projekt SVP of business development Michal Nowakowski said during the call. “However, when it comes to a proper, full-blown next-gen version, that’s going to come later, we haven’t announced when and I don’t have a new comment here on that." So far, Cyberpunk 2077 has only officially been confirmed for Xbox Series X. CD Projekt Red previously confirmed that Cyberpunk 2077 will make use of the Series X's Smart Delivery feature, offering players the chance to upgrade their Xbox One version of Cyberpunk 2077 to an Xbox Series X version for free – and now that decision makes a bit more sense. A CD Projekt Red spokesperson has confirmed to VGC that the “full-blown next-gen version” Nowakowski referred to is the previously announced Xbox Series X upgrade. But what about Sony? CD Projekt seemed to suggest during the earnings call that Cyberpunk 2077 will be coming to PS5 – we can't see why it wouldn't – but that the company is waiting for Sony to make the announcement first. “There’s no official announcement coming from PlayStation so we really can’t confirm or deny anything,” Nowakowski said. “It’s PlayStation that first needs to address these issues and then we’re happy to make a comment, but we can’t jump the gun ahead of them.” Committed to no further delays Hopefully the studio's efforts will be as successful as it hopes and will avoid any delays but, of course, the health and safety of the studio's employees is far more important than that. Submitted for age rating This is an exciting reveal to fans after the game's five month delay and Badowski notes teasingly that the game is "looking better and better with each passing day". Based on ratings for The Witcher 3 and what we know already about Cyberpunk 2077, it seems likely that the game will receive a high age rating. Who are the Tyger Claws? The gang, which also exists in the tabletop RPG of the game, is described in the video as being “a Japanese booster gang" which "settled in the district of Westbrook, also known as ‘Japantown,’ the part of the city where people go when they’re looking for thrills. As they are the protectors of the Japanese community at large, it is thought they are backed up by one of the most powerful megacorporations of Cyberpunk 2077: Arasaka.” The contents of the video haven't been confirmed by CD Projekt Red but adding some credence to it is a Tyger Claws poster over on the official Projekt Red store which describes Tyger Claws as a Night City gang hailing from Japantown. Another gang poster features a group called the Valentinos from the barrio. Grimes tells all in apparent gameplay leak Grimes appeared on a live stream in late February, and spoke about her involvement in Cyberpunk 2077 as the singer / performer Lizzy Wizzy, possibly revealing more than she was meant to, with mention of how her in-game character appears and the rather sci-fi situation she finds herself in. Spoilers below, obviously. The YouTube video was quickly pulled, but this thread on Reddit features a "summary" of what was mentioned (meaning this may not be perfectly verbatim): "I did my voice acting for Lizzy Wizzy, that game is going to be fucking good. I mean I haven’t played it, but I saw someone play an hour of the game. The game was fantastic, and I play a pop star who committed suicide on stage, and they had to quickly come and preform emergency surgery and replace her whole body with cybernetics while she was dead for an hour and then she finished the show as a cyborg. One of the greatest pieces of performance art ever made." Confirmed for Xbox Series X – as a Smart Delivery title The official Twitter account for the game responded to news of Microsoft's new Smart Delivery feature – which allows Xbox owners to access souped-up versions of previously-purchased games, even after switching to a next-gen console – stating that anyone buying Cyberpunk 2077 on Xbox One would get the game for free on Xbox Series X. It's a big incentive to buy early, rather than wait for the improved graphical power of the next-gen console. We doubt PS5 will have the same feature, though you can be sure we'll get official word on the game coming to the next-gen PlayStation console too. As to when the next-gen versions will land? The tweet only says "when available", though we expect it will happen some time in 2021. Nvidia GeForce Now support You'll have to buy Cyberpunk 2077 on Steam before playing it on GeForce Now but this is a big win for Nvidia after losing Activision Blizzard's games. VR not happening Mamais wasn't particularly forthcoming on the topic of a port for Nintendo Switch, either, saying it's unlikely but that similar things had been though of The Witcher 3. “I don’t know if Cyberpunk 2077 would work on the Nintendo Switch. It might be too heavy for it. But then, we did put Witcher 3 on it and we thought that would be too heavy too, but somehow we pulled it off.” Big names on the soundtrack Game map Reddit Q&A reveals more details According to the poster, the game's day and night cycle will have an impact on quests; at certain times of day, for example, a location may be more or less guarded which could impact your likelihood of success. Weather, though, won't have an impact quite so severe although in-game characters will react to it. The game's crime system has been revealed as being similarly dynamic— so police won't jump on you for a small crime like, say, assault on a particular individual. But they will "absolutely try to fry your ass" for more extreme things like causing harm to large groups of people with a gun or vehicle. Quests in the game will be wide-ranging, branching and evolving, even impacting one another. And the game won't necessarily end with the completion of the main story; you can opt to keep playing. Replayability is said to be higher with this game than The Witcher 3. As far as customization goes, the developer has acknowledged that players are interested in car customization but has asked for more patience before saying anything with regards to any plans, while, interestingly, there won't be an option to buy a new apartment. Instead V's apartment will evolve and change depending on the paths that players take when playing the game and it'll feature options within it for customization and expression though what they are has not been confirmed. Post-launch content In an interview with GameSpot at PAX Australia, the head of CDPR's Krakow office, John Mamais said “I think it’s a bad idea to do microtransactions after you release a game. It seems like it’s very profitable, though. It’s probably a hard decision for the guy that runs the business to decide if we should do it or not. But if everyone hates it, why would we do something like that and lose the goodwill of our customers?” As far as Mamais is concerned, the Witcher 3's model which saw free DLC launched with big paid expansions was "a good model" which "worked pretty well." As a result, Mamais added "I don’t see why we wouldn’t try to replicate that model with Cyberpunk 2077. We’re not talking about that yet, but it seems like that would be the smart way to go.” Photo mode? The video shows a scene of the Night City skyline while the symbol of a camera shows briefly. The hashtags on the tweet itself read Capture Cyberpunk and Photos From Night City. This makes a photo mode seem very likely and given it's a feature found in most big budget games these days that may not be entirely surprising. However, the game's first person perspective may present some challenges if CD Projekt Red wishes to allow players to take pictures which will include their fully-customised avatars. No Reeves romance for you What about multiplayer? Character creation will be gender fluid Jonkers said that "you don’t choose your gender anymore. You don’t choose, ‘I want to be a female or male character’ you now choose a body type. Because we want you to feel free to create any character you want." GTA-style radio Coming to Stadia Spin-off card game “The game thrusts players into the dark alleyways of Night City, where ruthless gangs clash with corporations in an endless war for money, power, and control. “In Cyberpunk 2077: Afterlife, players become Fixers, the data brokers and masterminds in Night City that recruit cyberpunks, equip them with gear, and send them out on missions. But nothing's free in Night City. Players need to balance between what they want and what they can actually afford. Using an innovative drafting mechanic and special dashboard, players must decide which cards they want to buy, and which to sacrifice for funds in order to purchase new ones. Each successful mission raises the player's Street Cred, with mission survivors becoming Veterans, imparting their knowledge and experience to newer recruits. In this chrome-infused world, Street Cred is the only currency that truly matters.” Hardcore mode that says goodbye to UI Of course, it’s not just the hardcore players that are being catered to in Cyberpunk 2077; Liu revealed that there will also be modes for those who are less experienced with first person games and shooters and wish to enjoy a more laidback experience. “If you want to play more casually for the story and maybe you’re not experienced with shooters, which was a real big concern for us. We want to tell a story and maybe you’re a big fan of The Witcher and you’re not comfortable playing a shooter, we have settings available for that.” Liu explains that as well as settings for less experienced players, there will also be weapons. The smart gun, for example, will help players to aim. Though it comes at the cost of the smart gun being a weaker and slower weapon. It will, however, be a good start for those looking to get to grips with the aiming system. For those unfamiliar with first person games, there’s also going to be a Field of View slider. Making more of the game world visible through the eyes of the avatar should alleviate that sense of tunnel vision that comes from trading third person view for first person and the potential for nausea this can cause some players. Environmental hazards Settings available for those uncomfortable with FPS Cyberpunk 2077 will look just as good on console as PC "Actually no, we have a very custom engine, the RED Engine," Liu responded. "And actually, we’re targeting consoles as first-class platforms and it looks amazing there. So obviously, if you spent, you know, $2,000 building your PC rig, it’s going to look better on that. But the graphics are quite amazing for what you’re going to get from Cyberpunk 2077 on consoles and low-end PCs." Could we see a movie adaptation in the future? "I can’t really say anything on that," Pondsmith told VGC in response to whether he is optioning the Cyberpunk movie rights. "But with Keanu Reeves being tied up in things, it’s become much more of a possibility." "At this point we are teaching people about this new kind of cyberpunk. My favorite film is Blade Runner, but I recognise inherently that it’s a cerebral film and 2049 was even more cerebral. A cerebral film is not necessarily going to allow other people to enter that space and understand it, but at the same time you don’t want to do it totally action." Keanu Reeves' band gets its first single There may or may not be three games in development Take your pick of protagonists There will be romance There will be no morality system There's more than Night City In an interview with VG247, the Lead Quest Designer, Pawel Sasko, revealed that players will be able to go beyond the walls of the metropolis and explore an area known as the "Badlands". Largely desolate and populated by Nomads, this area will have its own quests. You can even start the game as a Nomad and begin your story outside of the city. Multiple Endings New Cyberpunk 2077 gameplay shown at E3 2019, but not playable Inside Pacifica, two gangs – The Animals and The Voodoo Boys – are fighting for supremacy. In order to meet Bridgitte, the head of the Voodoo Boys, you'll have to first deal with her lieutenant Placide, who wants you to infiltrate The Animals' hideout. Your goal, at least you're told, is to find a high-tech van that's monitoring all the network traffic in Pacifica. To get to this van, you'll have to make your way past The Animals' crew. The reason they're called The Animals, it turns out, is because they take a drug that enhances their muscle mass. To get through them you'll either need to fight your way through – a risky proposition – or sneak your way into the hideout. Customization: perks, skills and attributes The choices are vast, and while they're not completely limitless, CD Projekt Red doesn’t want to confine you to a single play style or set path. The reasoning behind that, it seems, is to better mirror the game’s source material – a 30-year-old tabletop role playing game called Cyberpunk (however, there was also a later edition called Cyberpunk 2020). Behind all of the hacking and gunplay lies a fairly complex RPG – the perks screen we saw during our demo had more than 20 perks to choose from and level up. These perks impact how your character plays, but can also impact what choices you have in conversations with the world’s NPCs. Image Credit: CD Projekt Red Vampire Bloodlines and Deus Ex were inspirations for the game Tomaskiewicz said that games such as Deus Ex, Vampire Bloodlines and Elder Scrolls had influenced him in his work on Cyberpunk 2077's quests. He cites the original Deus Ex as a particular influence and praises the ways in which it gives players the freedom to complete missions in multiple ways. This suggests we can expect a great deal of freedom and complexity and non-linearity in Cyberpunk 2077’s missions as well as in the protagonist you'll be using to cause havoc in the game world which is something quite different from the tight gameplay-loop found in The Witcher. CD Projekt Red is working on two AAA titles – both to be released by 2021 This release window was reaffirmed on the official CD Projekt Red forums, with moderator Donata Popławska confirming the studio is sticking to its original roadmap. "As far as the strategy of the CD Projekt Capital Group for 2016-2021 is concerned, its plans to release the second AAA game by 2021 remain unchanged," the moderator wrote (translated via Resetera user Antiax). However, Popławska did not expand on what the second AAA title to be released in this time frame could be. "We are currently focusing on the production and promotion of Cyberpunk, so we do not want to comment on further projects," they continued. Lady Gaga could be making an appearance? In addition ActuGaming claimed the collaboration would be officially announced at E3 2019, with Gaga rumored to be making an appearance at the gaming convention however that didn't happen. In 2018 Gaga tweeted a strange mix of letters and numbers, which the official Cyberpunk 2077 Twitter account replied to with "Of course! Of course we will!", suggesting the A Star is Born actress would be involved with the game in some way or another. E3 2018 confirmed features It's a first person RPG set in a huge open world known as Night City – a metropolis split into six districts, each offering a different environment to explore. During the demo we only saw a small part of one of them. Players can create their own character called V and embark on their journey to crawl up from the criminal underbelly. This is a dark game and though The Witcher series is mature, this takes it to a new level. As you'd expect, the game lets you augment your body using various bits of tech – illegal or otherwise – and you can use drugs to enhance your combat, or a kind of digital brain-hack called 'Braindance'. We know weapons are wide ranging and seriously creative, with smart guns and bullets as well as terrifying Mantis Blades for melee. There are no loading screens in Cyberpunk 2077 and the story and side quests are branching and numerous, and your choices genuinely impact the outcome. You can read more about how impressed were were by what we saw. Image Credit: CD Projekt Red It will be on Steam It’s going to be bigger than The Witcher 3 In fact, he said that The Witcher 3 was being treated as a learning experience and that they could do better. To do better, the studio has doubled in size with studio head Adam Badowski saying that after The Witcher 3, Cyberpunk 2077 needs to be “even better, even bigger, even more revolutionary” than what had originally been planned. There may be multiplayer The company president said in March 2018 that these elements are not on the table right now, so it's possible that they'll be introduced after the game's release in a sort of online world like GTA Online. There will be online Whether or not the online elements will feed into the multiplayer is unclear. But there won't be microtransactions It appears that while many studios are feeling the need to move to a service model to ensure their titles make money, CD Projekt is staying committed to the story-driven single player experience with Cyberpunk 2077, one which served them very well with The Witcher. This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Best 4K monitors 2020: the top Ultra HD monitors and displays Posted: 18 Jun 2020 09:47 AM PDT The best 4K monitors offer more than just incredibly high resolutions. With these monitors, you’re also getting more screen real estate, and therefore, much more space that they actually help improve your workflow. Because streaming, gaming and other visual media are getting better and better in 2020, having the best monitors offering UHD and 4K quality in your PC setup is starting to become the standard. If you’re everyday computing life includes hours of gaming or heavy multitasking and creative tasks like 3D design and video editing, then the best 4K monitors are worth looking into. Luckily, they cost even less than a 4K TV, so the price of entry is even more accessible to those on a budget. To help you find the best 4K monitors for your needs, we’ve assembled our picks for this list, including a couple of the best USB-C monitors. Let us help you cut through all the chatter and save you some time searching for that perfect 4K display.
The best 4K monitors at a glance
If you have the horsepower to drive the LG 27UD88-W, you should pick it up. (Image credit: LG) When you’re looking for the best 4K monitor, you want to find something that’s affordable, but also has fantastic picture quality. It’s a balance that’s pretty rare, but the LG 27UD88-W hits it out of the park. Not only does this panel cover 99% of the sRGB color space, but it does so with an insane contrast ratio and a response time to display the best PC games as they should be seen. The best part? It does all this while maintaining a reasonable price tag. If you have the horsepower to drive the LG 27UD88-W, you should pick it up. Read the full review: LG 27UD88-W The Philips Brilliance 328P really is one of the best 4K monitors out there. (Image credit: Philips) As both 4K panels and HDR technology become more ubiquitous, we’re starting to see more affordable monitors take on the market, and the Philips Brilliance 328P does just that. This 4K monitor combines a 4K VA panel with decent HDR performance at a price point that won’t force you to break open the piggy bank. Its brightness doesn’t quite reach its lofty HDR 600 rating, but at this price, it’s hard to complain. The Philips Brilliance 328P really is one of the best 4K monitors out there. Read the full review: Philips Brilliance 328P LG Ultrafine 24MD4KL is the perfect match for your Mac or Ultrabook. 4K fans will find a lot to love in the LG Ultrafine 24MD4KL, especially if they’re photographers or videographers who need all that prime real estate and high resolution. From its 4K resolution and color accuracy, to its plethora of USB-C and Thunderbolt 3 ports and buttonless design, this 4K display is the perfect match for your Mac or ultrabook. And, despite those bizarrely thick bezels and high price tag, this display might be hard to resist. Read the full review: LG Ultrafine 24MD4KL When you get the BenQ PD2700U, you are getting a lot of pixels. (Image Credit: BenQ) If you’re on the market for one of the best 4K monitors for everyday computing and productivity, without all the fancy bells and whistles, you’ll want the BenQ PD2700U. This monitor doesn’t feature fancy Quantum Dot tech, or Adaptive Sync, it doesn’t even have USB-C input! But, when you get the BenQ PD2700U, you are getting a lot of pixels, which is all you really need. It’s not the cheapest 4K monitor on this list, but it’s color accurate, has plenty of desktop real estate, and will comfortably fit in any office environment. Read the full review: BenQ PD2700U Monoprice 27" 4K UHD's IPS panel allows for extremely sharp image. (Image Credit: Monoprice) You may not have heard of Monoprice, but this brand is behind some of the most affordable monitors out there right now. Its Ultra-Slim Aluminum monitor, for example, is hailed for its sleek, ultra-thin bezel design and ultra-wide viewing angles at 178°. This monitor isn’t particularly feature-rich – there are no built-in speakers, for example – but its IPS panel allows for extremely sharp image, FreeSync tech reduces screen tearing and Monoprice’s Pixel Perfect Guarantee gives it vibrant color performance. Plus, with two DisplayPorts and two HDMI ports, there’s plenty of connectivity on offer. Asus ROG Swift PG27UQ is a 4K gaming monitor with HDR and the kind of color support you see in professional displays. (Image Credit: Asus) While 4K monitors are becoming more and more common, even without particularly powerful hardware, we still run into the kind of monitor that changes everything. The Asus ROG Swift PG27UQ is one of these. Asus has managed to craft a 4K gaming monitor with HDR and the kind of color support you see in professional displays – and render that all at 144Hz with G-Sync no less. There are only a few monitors out there that packs as many features as this Asus screen, and that’s why it’s one of the best 4K monitors. But, keep in mind, you’re going to have to pay for something this advanced – and we mean pay. Read the full review: Asus ROG Swift PG27UQ ViewSonic XG2700-4K boasts amazing picture quality, quick response time, accurate color performance and multiple ports. (Image Credit: ViewSonic) If you’re looking for a 4K monitor for gaming, ViewSonic’s XG2700-4K is the perfect fit. It is not without quirks: the screen brightness could be higher, the red on black trim is an acquired taste, and it has no built-in speakers. On the other hand, you get amazing picture quality, quick response time, accurate color performance, multiple ports, and a versatile stand for multiple viewing angle options. Its most notable feature is AMD FreeSync to prevent tearing and ensure that your games are running smoothly. Of course, the picture-in-picture and picture-by-picture modes are also helpful because who doesn’t multitask nowadays. The AOC U2879VF has a 1ms response time and a refresh rate of 144Hz for a low price. (Image Credit: AOC) IPS displays may offer better viewing angles and color representation, but a good TN panel makes for a much better gaming monitor, thanks to much faster response times, higher refresh rates and affordability. This is why the AOC U2879VF has a 1ms response time and a refresh rate of 144Hz for a low price. If you can forgive the restricted viewing angles, the occasional flickering at 144Hz, the absence of a USB port, and the ho hum color performance, this AMD FreeSync enabled monitor is for you. Read the full review: AOC U2879 VF If you need the tech, it's definitely there in the Acer Predator X27. (Image Credit: Acer) If you have an absolute beast of a gaming computer – think two Nvidia RTX 2080 Tis in SLI – and you need a monitor that can keep up, you might want to take a look at the Acer Predator X27. Not only is it a 27-inch 4K monitor with HDR, but it also has a refresh rate of a whopping 144 Hz. If you have the horsepower, you can play games in 4K competitively without losing an edge to the person playing in 1080p. But, as you may expect from a spec sheet like this, it’s very expensive – but if you need the tech, it’s definitely there. Read the full review: Acer Predator X27 The LG 43UD79-B's features will more than make up for its flaws. (Image Credit: LG) You’ll need a bigger desk with 43UD79-B’s hefty, 42-inch screen. Unfortunately this bigger than life screen might also be darker around the edges and a sluggish refresh rage. However, this 4K monitor’s other features will more than make up for its flaws. The screen split software, for one, allows for a range of screen configurations. This, coupled with its four HDMI inputs, a DisplayPort 1.2a port, and a USC-C port, will let you effortlessly run multiple devices at once. Along with its true IPS screen, color-rich display, and FreeSync compatibility, you might just be getting a bargain.
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| The best 17-inch laptop 2020: top large screen laptops for your money Posted: 18 Jun 2020 09:37 AM PDT The best 17-inch laptops are ideal for a desktop replacement. These large laptops not only have the screen real estate perfect for gaming and content creation, but they also have a large chassis to allow for good ventilation and powerful internal specs. And, since they’re great for gaming, they often sport that gaming aesthetic complete with RGB lighting to make any gamer blush. Armed with more powerful components than the smaller options, such as discrete graphics like the Nvidia’s Max-Q GPUs, the best 17-inch laptops dwarf their 13-inch and 15-inch laptop cousins in a lot of ways. They can even hold their own next to gaming PCs when it comes to handling the latest AAA games. So, unless portability tops your priority list, these laptops really are among the best options for heavy gaming or serious creative work like video editing. These laptops are excellent choices for photographers, for video editing and for gaming, all while slimming down their dimensions over older models for more compact and mobile designs. We’ve rounded up our selection of the best 17-inch laptops for you. No matter what you’re looking for, you’ll find something right for you. The best 17-inch laptops at a glance:
The best 17-inch laptops of 2020The Area-51m benefits from a great build quality and striking design. Alienware makes some fantastic gaming machines, including the best 17-inch model on the market in our opinion. The Area-51m benefits from a great build quality and striking design, but more importantly, some supremely powerful components to drive fast frame-rates. This laptop can pack up to an Intel Core i9-9900K processor and GeForce RTX 2080 graphics, all backed with up to 64GB of RAM. All of this helps to make the most out of the Full HD display’s 144Hz refresh rate, with G-Sync on hand to keep everything super-smooth in demanding games. There are plenty of other smart touches with this Alienware model, including the ability to upgrade the GPU and CPU for future-proofing, a quality keyboard, and some very impressive speakers delivering both clarity and bass. Notebook speakers that don’t suck? Yes, they do exist… The downside is the amount of damage the Area-51m will do to your bank balance, particularly for a higher-end spec. Still, if you’ve got the cash, it’s well worth the outlay. Read the full review: Alienware Area-51m The Alienware m17 for 2019 boasts more powerful internal components and a bold new design. The Alienware m17 2019 boasts more powerful internal components and a bold new design that you won’t see on any of its rivals. This Alienware gaming laptop looks good inside and out, so you can have the most immersive gaming experience of your life and look good while gaming, whether you’re at home on your couch or at a cafe. It’s portable as well, with an impressively thin and light chassis that’s ideal for gaming on the go. This is the most well-rounded 17-inch laptop for gaming you’ll ever find. Just be prepared to shell out a bunch of cash. Read the full review: Alienware m17 (2019) The Razer Blade Pro 17 2019 boasts enough power and delivers a fantastic enough performance to deserve to be called a workstation. You’d be doing this laptop a disservice by not taking it seriously. The Razer Blade Pro 17 may be a laptop designed for gaming – and an excellent one, at that. But, it also boasts enough power and delivers a fantastic enough performance to deserve to be called a workstation, making it one of the best 17-inch laptops to consider if you work hard and play hard. That comes at a steep price, but this laptop is future-proof and somewhat upgradeable, it should last you a long while too. Read the full review: Razer Blade Pro 17 If affordability is a priority, the HP Omen 17's definitely a shoo-in. The recently refreshed HP Omen 17 comes with many of the most powerful specs in a gaming laptop. The only difference between this and its rivals is, it won’t cost you an arm and a leg to take one home. It’s a nice surprise, especially considering that HP can and does charge a premium for many of its best laptops. The thing to really pay attention to here, however, is the display, as HP does offer a number of options that include a couple of 1080p ones with blazing fast refresh rates. If affordability is a priority, this one’s definitely a shoo-in. Read the full review: HP Omen 17 The ROG Zephyrus makes it possible to have an incredibly powerful portable that is svelte. Who says you can’t have your gaming cake and eat it, because with laptops like this ROG Zephyrus, it’s possible to have an incredibly powerful portable which isn’t even remotely hefty, but remains very svelte and, er, portable. It is, in short, a gaming machine for which you don’t have to employ air quotes around the word ‘portable’, being 18.7mm thick (or rather, thin) and weighing 2.7kg. Compare that to the above Alienware which is 43mm and 4.8kg… Yet with this Asus 17-inch laptop you still get a Core i7-8750H hexa-core CPU backed by a GeForce RTX 2080 Max-Q with 8GB of video RAM (there’s up to 24GB of system memory, incidentally). All this means you can ramp up the detail levels and enjoy any game you want. The display is also a fabulous piece of work, and what’s more it’s Pantone Validated with 100% sRGB color gamut, meaning the color accuracy is spot-on out-of-the-box, and this notebook can be used for professional photo or video editing. Bear in mind however that battery life is disappointingly short, and the price is disappointingly hefty. For those who don’t have the hefty budget to cope with this, or the aforementioned Alienware laptop’s price tag, breathe easier and check out our next entry for a more affordable gaming option. Read the full review: Asus ROG Zephyrus S GX701 The Gram 17 is extremely light for a large machine. As you might guess from the name, LG’s focus with the Gram is on making a very lightweight and thin notebook which still manages to pack in 17-inches of screen real-estate. The Gram 17 is 17.8mm thick, appropriately, and weighs 1.34kg, making it extremely light for a large machine. Unbelievably light, in fact. That 17-inch IPS display, incidentally, boasts a resolution of 2,560 x 1,600 and is fantastic for a spot of movie watching on the go. Another major positive with the LG Gram 17 is a good level of battery longevity, which helps if you want to watch a couple of movies while on a long journey. You also get a good selection of ports, and while the SSD may not be the fastest, this notebook still offers great performance for everyday computing thanks to an Intel Core i7-8565U processor capable of Turbo to 4.6GHz, along with 16GB of system memory. The end result is an excellent all-rounder which can cope with everything, bar gaming – but it wasn’t designed for that. Furthermore, LG’s Gram can truly be dubbed ‘ultraportable’, which is a real achievement given the 17-inch chassis – and that’s why this LG machine snatches our accolade for best overall 17-inch laptop. The Asus FX705DT gaming laptop packs a Ryzen 5 3550H processor with a GeForce GTX 1650 graphics card. The words ‘cheap’ and ‘gaming laptop’ don’t mix well. Simply put, if you’re on a strict budget, you won’t get a machine capable of playing the latest games at palatable frame-rates – especially if you want a 17-inch screen to boot. So that’s why the FX705DT is our ‘affordable’ pick as opposed to ‘budget’. Remember, if you want to go really bargain basement, you’ll be confined to casual gaming only. This Asus gaming laptop, however, packs a Ryzen 5 3550H processor with a GeForce GTX 1650 graphics card with 4GB of video RAM, plus there’s 8GB of system memory. The FX705DT also boasts a roomy 512GB NVMe SSD and a backlit keyboard optimized for gaming. All of which makes it a great choice for tackling the majority of games at good detail levels while still keeping things pretty smooth – and remaining relatively wallet-friendly. At the time of writing, there are some pretty tempting deals to be had on this Asus machine, too. The HP ZBook 17 G5 is a top-performing machine particularly when fully specced-up. If you want extreme performance from your 17-inch laptop, HP’s most recent ZBook is absolutely packed with power. We’re talking Intel Xeon processors at the top end – or up to a Core i9-8950HK – backed with heavyweight graphics in the form of up to an Nvidia Quadro P5200 (with 16GB of video RAM). The ZBook comes with a 17.3-inch 4K IPS DreamColor screen which boasts 100% AdobeRGB coverage (or there’s an option for a more basic 1,600 x 900 panel). There are various storage options for PCIe NVMe SSDs or solid-state hybrid drives, or indeed Intel Optane Memory to accelerate that storage. That display truly is a fabulous thing, and the HP ZBook 17 G5 is obviously a top-performing machine particularly when fully specced-up, but there’s an equally obvious downside in that it’s very (unsurprisingly) expensive. Still, if you want an incredibly powerful PC capable of crunching through heavyweight computing tasks which you can take on the move with you, well, here it is. The Lenovo ThinkPad P73 represents a somewhat cheaper – and indeed a slightly slimmer – alternative to the above HP machine. This is another mobile workstation, but it represents a somewhat cheaper – and indeed a slightly slimmer – alternative to the above HP machine, with the P73 being ideally suited to content creators. You get the choice of an Intel Xeon E-2276M processor or 9th-gen Intel Core CPU (up to an i9-9880H with vPro), with up to Nvidia Quadro RTX 5000 graphics and up to 128GB of system memory. But the display is the jewel in the crown featuring a 4K resolution, 400 nits brightness, Dolby Vision HDR and 100% coverage of the Adobe color gamut. The screen is, quite simply, ideal for serious photo or video editing. The cutting-edge hardware support continues with Wi-Fi 6 on board, and you get a good selection of ports for wired connectivity, including a pair of Thunderbolt 3 connectors. Creative pros need look no further for something that can cater for all their needs, at a relatively reasonable asking price for the workstation market. This dedicated Linux portable from System76 is a great pick if you want the Linux environment. There aren’t many choices for your operating system if you want an alternative to Windows 10 with your 17-inch laptop – there’s no MacBook, or Chromebook at this size – but you could, of course, run with Linux. And this dedicated Linux portable from System76 is a great pick on that front (although it’s worth noting that some 17-inch workstations do have a Linux option, like the above Lenovo which can be pre-installed with Ubuntu rather than Windows 10 Pro). With the Serval WS you can opt for either Ubuntu 18.04 LTS or Pop!_OS, and choose between a Full HD or 4K display. There’s also a choice of 9th-gen Intel processors (up to the Core i9-9900K) backed with up to an Nvidia GeForce GTX 2080 graphics card. It’s possible to load this portable with up to 64GB of system RAM, as well, and up to 8TB of storage. So there’s a good deal of power on offer here, and you get impressive connectivity, along with quality input peripherals like a very nifty backlit keyboard. Those who want a 17-inch Linux machine can’t go wrong here.
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| The best Three mobile deals in June 2020 Posted: 18 Jun 2020 09:23 AM PDT Three Mobile is known for one thing above all else big data plans. Whether its the 100GB option or the unlimited data plan, Three Mobile deals continue to serve up contracts for the gamers, streamers and those testing the boundaries of data. Until very recently, Three stood unopposed as the place to go for unlimited data and despite rising competition from all sides, it remains one of the best places to go for a complete lack of caps on your data plan. However, to help deal with this rise of competition, a new set of Three Mobile deals was added - 100GB data plans. Since their release, these plans have quickly shot to the top of our lists across a massive range of phones. The iPhone 11, Huawei P30 Pro, Google Pixel 4 - the list goes on. For anyone considering a Three Mobile contract, tracking down either a 100GB plan or something unlimited will be the way to go. But now time for the catch. Looking for cheap Three Mobile deals? You might struggle. While Three has the big data area nailed down, low data cheap plans are just completely missing, for the tiny price rise we would always suggest one of the larger plans. Ready to see what Three Mobile deals there are? Scroll down to see the best plans across a range of devices, retailers and price points. It's the best phone Samsung has ever made and possibly the best smartphone currently on the market. It comes packed with a massive 5000mAh battery, a 6.9-inch display and 12GB RAM. Camera-wise, you're getting a quad lens set-up with a pretty over-the-top 100x zoom function.
The latest in Samsung's long line of devices, the Samsung Galaxy S20 is packed full of high-end specs, offering a massive 4000mAh battery, a triple camera set-up and even a hefty 8GB RAM.
The latest and greatest from Huawei, the P30 Pro is now easily our choice for best smartphone camera on the market. Combine top of the line camera quality with an impressive battery life and beautiful screen and you get easily one of the best phones on the market.
Samsung's newest release, this phone is rocking a completely flat, notch-less screen with a pin hole camera, giving it a unique style. Whether it's the triple cameras on the back, fast processor or reverse charging, there is a lot to love here.
Samsung's brand new budget flagship, the S10e features high-end specs for an affordable price. If you want the best Samsung has but don't want to have to pay through the roof to get it, this is the way to go. With all of the same features as the S10 with a few cutbacks, this is a high-end phone with mid-range pricing.
The iPhone 11 has come along to offer fans of Apple a 2019 device without going all out on cost. It arrived with a SIM-free price less than the iPhone XR on release while boosting specs in almost every department - better screen, the fastest CPU on the market and a much needed battery development.
Every single year, Samsung's Note design keeps getting better and better. The latest iteration - the Note 10 - is clearly a combination of everything Samsung does well. Yes, the display is only Full HD but through the use of Samsung's 'S' pen, an impressive battery size, a beautiful design and a top-tier video camera, the Note 10 is one of the best phones you can buy right now.
Thanks to the spectacle that was the iPhone X launch, the reception for the iPhone 8 was a little bit flat. Perhaps unfairly as it does improve on the iPhone 7 with wireless charging and an improved camera. Plus, it's quite a bit cheaper. So if you're looking for the best iPhone but are avidly avoiding the prices of the likes of the iPhone X and XS try the 8 on for size instead.
In 2019 Google came back with a vengeance, doing what they do best - cameras. The Google Pixel 4 promises features ranging from 'astrophotorgrahy, next level night mode and some improved internal processing power. The battery life isn't outstanding but the camera and processor sure are.
What are the benefits of Three?The benefits of getting a Three mobile deal can be split into three main categories: Another factor that has made Three so popular is its offer off massive amounts of data (or even unlimited) at some brilliant price points. Can I keep my number when I switch to Three?You sure can, if you switch over to an Three mobile deal and want to keep your old number, then simply call your old network, get a PAC code and transition it over. If you were previously on Three, you can still keep your number but it is slightly more complicated. They won't let you keep your number, so you have to use this workaround. Buy a free pay-as-you-go SIM from any other network and tell your network that you're moving. They'll release the PAC code, which you then give to the substitute network. Then, you immediately get another PAC code from them. Take that to your old network, and they'll move your number to your new contract. Long winded, but easier than learning a new number! Can I use my Three phone abroad?When it comes to roaming abroad Three mobile deals are a pretty great way to go. With access to free roaming anywhere in Europe and options in at least 71 countries, Three trumps the rest for roaming charges. There are select countries where you will have to pay extra to use your data, you can check Three's website to find these countries. Can I get a Three Mobile deal with no upfront costs?Don't want any bills at the start? Three has plenty of deals like this. In fact, phone contracts with no upfront costs are a frequent sight in the phone market. Obviously as soon as you cut upfront costs, the monthly cost does tend to receive a bump. But if you're lucky it could end up being a complete bargain. This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Garmin launches premium Edge 1030 Plus bike computer with 24-hour battery life Posted: 18 Jun 2020 09:22 AM PDT Garmin has launched two new bike computers, including a premium model for serious mountain bikers with super-long battery life that can last up to 24 hours between charges, even under heavy use. The Garmin Edge 130 Plus is an all-purpose bike computer with GPS, GLONASS and Galileo satellite navigation to help you stay safely on course in places where an ordinary cycle computer might lose connectivity. You can see routes preferred by other cyclists or plan your own ride, and the Edge 130 Plus can direct you safely back home once you're done exploring. Accident detection lets an emergency contact know if you've taken a fall, and tracking lets them monitor your location in real time. You can also connect the computer to your phone and receive text messages on its 1.8-inch screen; no need to fumble for your phone in the middle of your daily commute or weekend joyride.
The Garmin Edge 1030 Plus is made with mountain bikers firmly in mind, and is the model that can keep you rolling for up to 24 hours between charges. You can create new courses right on the device's color screen, or see other riders' preferred routes, with turn-by-turn navigation to help you prepare for sharp bends, but if you choose to stray off the beaten track, you can pause the directions while you go exploring. No more annoying warnings that you're off course while you're trying to check out an interesting new trail. When you've finished exploring, the computer can redirect you safely back onto your original route. Stay connectedOut for a group ride and starting to lag behind? The Edge 1030 Plus can warn your friends or clubmates that you're starting to get separated so you can pause for a cafe break, or split into two groups to keep going safely. Once you're done, all of your ride data will be uploaded to your Garmin Connect account, plus Komoot and Strava (for those all-important club segment challenges). Much like a dedicated fitness tracker, the computer can calculate recovery time, training load, training focus and estimated V02 max. You can choose to receive warnings when it's time to reach for your water bottle or an energy gel, too. Both computers are available now. The Edge 130 Plus ranges in price from £169.99 (about $200 / AU$300) to £239.99 (about $300 / AU$450), while the Edge 1030 Plus ranges from £519.99 (about $650 / AU$950) to £599.99 (about $750 / AU$1,100).
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