In the age of Alexa and Siri, Cortana’s halo has grown dim
Over the past few years Cortana has been seeing a somewhat slow but painful death. It even will even be separated from Windows 10 search in the upcoming April 2019 Update. All that considered, here’s a few reasons why we think the voice assistant is on its way to an eventual doom.
The web has grown up, but browsers haven’t. It’s time for a reboot
The web has changed a lot over the years, and so has the way we use it. The thing that hasn’t changed? The web browser, the tool every one of us depends on. It's well past time for new ideas. I talked to some of the browser futurists making that future a reality.
Intel’s chips are still vulnerable, and the new Ice Lake won’t patch everything
Intel's Ice Lake might have hardware fixes for Spectre variants, but those won't be worth upgrading for, according to our expert. The new range of CPUs is coming later this year, but it won't do much to protect against the worst problems of Spectre and other speculative execution exploits.
It took Dell years to fix 1 problem on its best laptop. Here’s how it did it
The new Dell XPS 13 moves the webcam from the below the screen to the top, finally vanquishing the one obstacle facing thin, sleek laptop displays. Why’s that such a big deal? We have the exclusive story on how it was done -- and the alternative methods that never saw the light of day.
It took three years, but OLED laptops are having another moment at CES
To our surprise, OLED laptops made a strong showing at CES 2019. With options in the works from most of the major PC manufacturers, it seems that OLED is making its comeback, and it could turn out to be one of the most important laptop trends of 2019.
The first Bitcoin was born 10 years ago today. How far we’ve come
The Bitcoin genesis block was mined 10 years ago today, bringing the first 50 Bitcoins into existence. Since then more than 17 million more have been mined and the hardware used to create new tokens is thousands of times more capable. It's also having a dangerous environmental impact.
The STM Myth backpack got us stopped by airport security — for compliments
Backpacks are usually selected for the storage capacity or protective capability. The STM Myth does all that, but manages to exude a style that few others can match, and it's not just us that things this -- it's the world at large, judging by the compliments we've had wearing it. Here's what the STM Myth backpack is like.
The most genre-defying, computer-redefining laptops of 2018
Modern laptops are well-made, incredibly functional, and look great. But they’re mostly the same, without a lot to tell them apart. In 2018, that changed. These three laptops took big risks and delivered some of the most experimental laptops we’ve ever seen.
Are AMD-powered laptops viable alternatives? We put them to the test
It’s not impossible to buy a notebook with AMD inside, even in a market that’s thoroughly dominated by Intel CPUs and Nvidia GPUS. And you can save some money going with Ryzen and Radeon if you’re willing to give up some performance and battery life.
The internet’s free-wheeling spirit is dying, and we have malware to thank
Staying safe online often means using services you know and trust. But does that make it so the next-generation of connected apps and services has a harder time competing? Could malware be making the internet a more monopolized place? And what are the effects on web users?
Canada’s winters inspired a startup to warm homes with cryptomining heat waste
Consuming massive amounts of electricity and generating tons of waste heat has become the price we’re paying to use cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin. It’s a problem that gets worse at scale. But Quebec-based Heatmine thinks there may be a way to replace existing hot water heating systems with mining rigs, solving two problems at once.
I tried an LTE laptop for a month, and I wasn’t really convinced
Coming with all-day battery life, instant-on capabilities, and internet connections anytime and anywhere, LTE laptops show big promises and capabilities like a smartphone. I experienced this with the Verizon LTE service bundled on board the new Samsung Galaxy Book 2, but in the long term, I really wondered, is the new breed of LTE laptops worth it?
‘Battlefield V’ ray tracing tested: Can a patch save RTX?
‘Battlefield V’ is the first game to use Nvidia’s ray tracing support, now available with the RTX 2080 and 2080 Ti graphics cards. The feature can, in an ideal scenario, make the game look better, but the performance hit may not be worth it. Our in-depth ‘Battlefield V’ DXR ray tracing tests measure the quality gained and performance lost.
An inside look at Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8cx, a revolutionary laptop processor
Surprisingly, the future of Windows isn’t steered by long-time Microsoft partners AMD or Intel. Instead, it’s Qualcomm, a veteran chip-maker with no PC experience, that’s proving a path forward in the post-PC era. Here's an inside look at the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8cx: Windows on ARM done right.
The RX 590 is a solid midrange GPU, but it won’t move the needle for AMD
AMD's latest entry in the RX 500-series hopes to steal the spotlight back from away from Nvidia, at least when it comes to mid-range budgets. While RX 590 is the most powerful graphics card you can get for under $300, it doesn't address many of the concerns some gamers have with this series of graphics cards.
Can two operating systems coexist? The Pixel Slate thinks so
The Pixel Slate is a 2-in-1 device like no other. It’s not the most polished product we’ve ever used, but Google has laid the foundation for letting mobile and desktop software sit side-by-side. Here’s what Google has changed in Chrome OS to make it all work -- as well as where it all falls apart.
Turn off the lights. Dark Mode on Windows 10 and MacOS compared
Dark mode options are now available by default in both MacOS and Windows 10. Both offer an alternative, more subdued look that expands most of each operating system’s interface. Yet these dark modes aren’t equal. One is darker than the other. Find out who wins the Mac OS Mojave vs. Windows 10 dark mode battle.
Microsoft’s friendly Xiaoice A.I can figure out what you want — before you ask
Move over Siri and Alexa! Microsoft has built a new type of A.I. assistant that wants to be your friend. Called Xiaoice, it is already making a big name for itself in places like China -- and its latest skill set will soon be landing in the U.S.
Smishing sounds funny, but it’s a serious threat to your phone’s security
We all know phishing is a huge security problem, but most people still believe it’s a problem limited to email. According to new reports, more and more phishing scams are appearing in text messages. The problem is much worse than you might assume. Here’s how to protect yourself and the personal data attached to your phone.
Nvidia’s flagship RTX 2080 Ti graphics cards are failing. Or are they?
Owners of Nvidia's RTX 2080 Ti have been complaining about crashes, blue screens, artifacts, and repeated RMA issues for weeks now, but investigations aren't turning up anything too definitive with what's going on. It does appear, however, that the cards causing the most problems are Founders Editions.
Privacy is becoming obsolete, but not everyone thinks you should fear its demise
Privacy often seems to be at odds with government surveillance and smart assistant technologies like Siri and Cortana. But do we need to sacrifice one for the other? We asked experts in a variety of fields to find out what a future without privacy might look like and whether that's really such a bad thing.
Microsoft has #*!@ed up to-do lists on an epic scale
Microsoft bought the popular to-do app Wunderlist in 2015, and rolled out an app called Microsoft To-Do as a replacement a year and a half ago. So, why is Wunderlist still so much better?
Meet the company resurrecting dead celebrities and digitally cloning living ones
From Star Wars to the MCU, the trend for de-aging or even digitally resurrecting old actors is becoming a major part of Hollywood. Digital Domain is one visual effects company leading the charge. Here's how they create their digital actors -- and what it means for the future of movies.
Adobe’s craziest new tools animate photos, convert recordings to music in a click
Software giant Adobe shared a glimpse behind the scenes at what's next -- and the Creative Cloud future is filled with crazy A.I.-powered tools, moving stills, turning your voice into an instrument, watching an animation react to real-time tweets, and quickly masking a video. Here are the sneak peeks from Adobe Max 2018.
Quantum computers could break encryption, so it’s going quantum too
Quantum computers could defeat conventional encryption, but that doesn’t mean our data is doomed. Quantum encryption can be used for defense. We spoke to John Prisco, CEO of Quantum Xchange, about how quantum keys will keep us safe.
How Razer forged the Blade 15, the slim gaming laptop nobody else could build
Razer proved that the right balance of performance, minimalism, and strong build quality is what gamers want, and this year, the company ushered in a new design with the Blade 15. We visited Razer's San Francisco headquarters to talk with Razer about the Blade 15 and what inspired its design.
Apple’s unsafe Mac App Store is simply inexcusable
Apple has ignored the Mac for long enough, and there are bigger implications than just lack of new products. Multiple reports have indicated that top apps in the Mac App Store have been stealing sensitive data right. Not only did Apple not properly vet them, it ignored warnings from security researchers for weeks.
Asus built a screen into a touchpad. Is it the future of computing or a gimmick?
Asus needed its newest ZenBook Pro UX580 to stand out against a crowd of strong 15-inch notebooks, and it chose to dramatically remake the old-school touchpad as the cornerstone of its efforts. The ScreenPad is an interesting idea held back by some bugs and limitations.
Faxploitation: Hackers can use old-school printers to invade your home network
While laptops, computers, and routers are significant security attention, old-school printers and fax machines often go unnoticed. A group of researchers recently showed how they could fax their way into a network and make it out with whatever data they wanted.
The new Logitech G Pro Hero looks familiar, but plays better than ever
After two years of research and testing with more than fifty professional gamers, Logitech G now offers a new family of “Pro” mice consisting of one wired and one wireless mouse. Both models are based on the company’s latest optical sensor, the Hero16K, while the wireless version is ambidextrous.
Garbage to gold: How Yahoo unethically sells your spam email
Think you’re safe from Yahoo’s unethical data mining practices because it’s not your primary email account? As it turns out, Yahoo knows you use it for spam -- and it's turning a quick buck on your junk mail anyways. Here’s how Yahoo is staying alive even as its unpopular online services dwindle.
The MacBook’s keyboard sucks, so use this mechanical keyboard instead
Not all Mac fans appreciate the low-travel keyboards on their devices. The Taptek keyboard offers an alternative with mechanical switches, fancy lighting, and compact design that looks great sitting next to a MacBook. Is this the ultimate MacBook typing experience?
What does that high score cost you? Why one in five gamers falls victim to fraud
Hackers and cheaters might prove problematic for developers and gamers, but financial fraudsters are also giving everyone trouble. A new study suggests that many gamers forgo spending money on their favorite games because of the risk of fraud, and many others still are caught out by the scammers.
