At a glanceExpert`s Rating Pros Excellent typing Incredible battery saver mode PBT keycaps (finally!) Cons Screen is unnecessary Single-day battery with lights on Huge price increase Our Verdict The wireless upgrade for one of the best gaming keyboards on the market comes with a huge price increase and a screen it doesn’t need. It still offers fantastic typing and gaming, but this one’s for Razer mega-fans only. Price When Reviewed This value will show the geolocated pricing text for product undefined Best Pricing Today Best Prices Today: Razer BlackWidow V4 Pro 75% Retailer Price $299.99 View Deal $299.99 View Deal Price comparison from over 24,000 stores worldwide Product Price Price comparison from Backmarket If you ask a dozen PC gamers who makes the ultimate gaming keyboard, odds are good that more than one will answer Razer. If you ask Razer which of their keyboards is its own ultimate, they’ll answer “the BlackWidow V4 Pro 75%.” Then they’ll take a breath, because that is a mouthful.  The Pro upgrade to the original BlackWidow V4 75% adds wireless capability, an OLED screen, and PBT keycaps. Oh, and over $100 on the price tag — this $300 keyboard is now the brand’s most expensive by a healthy margin. While it’s not the priciest keyboard on the market, it’s definitely a splashy flex of a purchase, and well beyond the realm of an impulse buy.   Is the Pro version of Razer’s ultimate keyboard design better than its original wired model? Yes. Is it $110 better? No. Is the Pro version of Razer’s ultimate keyboard design better than its original wired model? Yes. Is it $110 better? No. If you want a wireless upgrade that has this keyboard’s premium materials and customizable options, I’d recommend going with a competing model. But if you’re a die-hard Razer fan and you want its ultimate mechanical keyboard, it’s at least plausible as a purchase.  Design  If you’re interested in the BlackWidow V4 Pro 75% (I’m just going to call it the “Pro” from here on out), odds are pretty good that you’ve already looked at the non-Pro predecessor. I’d recommend perusing that review, as I don’t want to cover too much of the same ground. The original is a fantastic mix of custom keyboard and gaming keyboard features, but if you aren’t sold on it, you probably won’t be along for the ride here, either.  Razer BlackWidow V4 75%, top, BlackWidow V4 Pro 75%, bottom.Michael Crider/Foundry But to summarize, the V4 75% is a damn good blend of features from high-end gaming boards you’d expect from the Razer heritage, and a ton of new features borrowed from increasingly popular premium designs from the likes of Keychron and Nuphy. We’re talking high-end, satisfying tactile switches, hot-swap sockets if you want to try out something different, internal padding for a better feel and sound profile, and all the extra goodies like RGB, a volume knob, and side-lighting.  Pretty much the only major features that the original design lacked were wireless and adjustable actuation, the latter of which remains an exclusive to Razer’s Huntsman line. It’s a great choice if you like to tweak your keyboard, but you still love Razer’s gaming-focused features…and you don’t mind a bit of a splurge.  Michael Crider/Foundry Aside from the jaw-dropping asking price, the Pro adds Razer’s high-speed wireless with Bluetooth for multi-device functionality, the company’s first display on a mechanical keyboard (it’s tried this before, but not recently), and upgraded PBT keycaps. Let’s tackle all of those first.  Wireless upgrade Razer has been making wireless PC gaming accessories for a long time now, and pretty much has it down to a science. Testing out the Pro for several weeks I never encountered a single hiccup, even though I was using either the 2.4GHz connection or Bluetooth for almost the entire time. It’s rock-solid, and if you have the superhuman reflexes to notice the 4,000Hz polling rate, I’m sure you’ll appreciate it.  That speedy polling apparently requires a bit more hardware than can be fit into the usual dime-sized dongle seen on other Razer keyboards and mouse. This one needs a separate USB-C cable, and it’s chonky, about the size (but not the weight) of a 9-volt battery. It’s a bit of a disappointment as part of the allure of a wireless keyboard is keeping your desk nice and tidy, and it also limits this thing’s travel appeal.  Michael Crider/Foundry But be honest: If you’re spending $300 on a gaming keyboard, you have a massive desktop setup anyway. One more cable to mind probably won’t be a huge hindrance. A bigger issue might be the battery life, at least when using this keyboard to its full potential. But that’s an issue for later in the review.  PBT keycaps  It’s about damn time.  I’ve complained about Razer’s insistence on cheaper ABS plastic for its keyboards for years, and been told by Razer representatives that its customers only really wanted the more premium feel of PBT on the Huntsman line. This, while offering its own PBT upgrade as a separate purchase, rang hollow to me.  Michael Crider/Foundry I dare say that even Razer couldn’t keep up that reasoning for the most expensive keyboard in its current lineup, no matter what branding was put on the box. The Pro upgrade comes with PBT keycaps out of the box, as it darn well should.  The keycaps are solid and pleasant for both typing and gaming, even while offering shine-through for the RGB lighting. If you’re not a fan of the all-black look you can replace them with your own set, with only the right modifier keys being non-standard. Even then, this 75% layout is so common that you shouldn’t have trouble finding something to match.  Screen…dangit. The OLED screen is perhaps the most dramatic change in the Pro upgrade. It’s a 2-inch, black-and-white strip that can show you your current configuration, offer adjustments to the keyboard, and (most of the time) enhance your typing experience with a looping animation.  Let’s get down to brass tacks: I think putting a screen on a keyboard is stupid. It adds essentially zero functionality — after all, if you’re using a computer you’re already looking at a screen. And any changes or adjustments you make on-the-fly can be communicated via an alert from paired software (Razer’s Synapse in this case) or just displayed via the keyboard’s own lighting (see the Huntsman’s adjustable actuation visualization for a good example).  Michael Crider/Foundry No matter how you dress it up with lighting or keycaps or other ornamentation, a keyboard is a tool you’re not supposed to be looking at while you actually use it. Doubly so if you buy a gaming keyboard, where your attention should be on the screen at 300 frames per second. And if I may bring in a collaborating voice, the PCWorld for the Deathstalker Ultimate keyboard came to a similar conclusion more than a decade ago. All that being said…the screen on the Pro is okay. It’s not so big that it actively distracts me, and it at least has the courtesy to show me important info when I press the Fn button. I like the extra button on the side that quickly cycles through the various functions of the wheel, displayed on the screen (which is not itself touch-enabled).  Michael Crider/Foundry But again, the vast majority of the time it was in use, I had it looping a Pop Tart cat GIF, at the request of a coworker who shall remain nameless Alaina. The screen moves the previously much more serviceable volume wheel and control buttons to the side.  It’s better than the Asus ROG Azoth — the wheel remains a wheel, instead of a rocker. And the mute button is nice and big, easy to press without looking. But if I had my druthers, I’d remake this keyboard without a screen, and smack every other keyboard maker until they followed suit.  Michael Crider/Foundry I fully admit that most of the above is my opinion. It isn’t shared by everyone. But one of the objective downsides of adding screens to wireless keyboards is battery life. And on that note… Battery Life  …it’s awful. But manageable, thanks to some clever choices on Razer’s part.  The bad news is that when operating the Pro at its most bombastic, with full RGB brightness, full screen animation, and 4,000Hz polling, you’ll be lucky to get 18 hours of battery life out of it. That is astonishingly low for any keyboard. I’ve seen the battery readout drop by 10 percent in an hour.  But even if you really love that screen, odds are that you won’t be using it in that mode very often. Because Razer built in a quick switch to an ultra-efficient power saving mode. By default it’s Fn+Escape.  Michael Crider/Foundry In this mode the keyboard cuts the screen and all lighting, and will go to “sleep” in a minute or so without input. Razer claims that this mode lets the keyboard last for 2,100 hours, almost three months of continuous usage. I obviously don’t have that long to test it, but it seems more than reasonable. While using the keyboard in this mode for full work days and several hours of gaming after, it could go for multiple weeks while only dropping a few percentage points.  Featuring this mode so heavily in the promotional material, and making it so immediately accessible on the keyboard’s design, tells me that Razer knew it would be in frequent use. And I appreciate it, since wireless with no lighting and no extras is how I use keyboards anyway. The second or two it takes to wake up after I come back to the desktop is a fair trade as far as I’m concerned.  Michael Crider/Foundry You might feel differently if that flashy screen is something you’re really after in a keyboard. But if that’s the case, I suggest that you might as well just plug this thing in and use it in wired mode anyway. That’ll work better if you’re constantly fiddling with it in Razer Synapse.  Software  Before testing out this keyboard, I’d have said that Razer’s Synapse is probably the best gaming accessory “driver” software on the market. Granted, that’s damning with faint praise, but it’s a big deal for the most intense PC gamers.  Michael Crider/Foundry The Pro upgrade of this keyboard comes with a redesigned beta of Synapse. And it’s rough. The new version handles all the basics of keyboard programming, but I found it extremely finicky. It often failed to detect the keyboard even when directly connected via USB, and it seemed to fight me for basic programming. It took about a half-dozen tries to get a custom GIF programmed, and that’s supposed to be one of the headline features.  All of the standard programming and settings functions are here (including a digital-only version of the contentious “Snap Tap” feature, which I’m still not a fast enough gamer to actually use). But they’ve moved around and they’re harder to find. The new version of Synapse seems at least as interested in selling me new Razer devices as it does actually running my hardware.  Michael Crider/Foundry Worst of all, the issues expanded beyond the keyboard. I use and love a Razer Naga Pro mouse as my all-day device, for both work and gaming. And the beta version of Synapse wiped out the settings I’d had saved for months. It also failed to connect every time I rebooted or even brought my PC back from sleep, forcing me to “reset” the mouse by cycling from to wired mode and back to wireless. Eventually I got so frustrated that I disabled the Hypershift functions I had been using and remapped the buttons to rely on local (mouse) memory only, then shut off Synapse completely.  Michael Crider/Foundry That’s a pretty terrible state of things, since I was previously happy to let Synapse run in the background of Windows, something I don’t often allow from gaming apps. I think there’s a good chance that Razer will improve this beta version of Synapse considerably — it’s one of the few accessory companies that really pays attention here. But at present when the beta version is the only one compatible with this new keyboard, it’s an unavoidable low point.  Value and conclusion The Pro version of this keyboard keeps all the good stuff from the original V4 75%. The great typing, the custom flexibility, the comfy magnetic wrist rest that’s the best in the category. And the wireless addition is great, especially if you don’t need the light show and use it in the super-efficient battery saver mode.  Michael Crider/Foundry But to get those goodies you have to get over a $300 asking price. And that price seems even higher when Corsair offers all of these features, minus the wrist rest and the entirely unnecessary OLED screen, for half the price with the excellent K65 Plus Wireless 75%.  Faced with that alternative, to say nothing of the original BlackWidow V4 75% for those who don’t need wireless, I can’t recommend this keyboard at this price. It makes too many sacrifices for that screen, while adding far too few actual capabilities, to justify the expense.  Corsair offers all of these features, minus the wrist rest and the entirely unnecessary OLED screen, for half the price. If you’re a huge Razer fan, you have money to burn, and you really need to see a black-and-white looping animation on your keyboard, go for it I suppose. Just remember that if you want to see it for more than a few seconds at a time, you’ll be plugging it in. Read...

Microsoft just released a new version of PC Manager, the free tuning tool for optimizing Windows 10 and Windows 11 systems. PC Manager 3.14 now allows you to view your internet speed on the desktop directly in the Windows taskbar. This means you can see how fast you’re surfing in real time, as reported by Window Latest, and you’re able to see both downstream and upstream speeds. Get Windows 11 Pro for cheap Windows 11 Pro Microsoft has also added a new algorithm for freeing up storage space that’s taken up by files that are no longer required. This improvement makes PC Manager better able to recognize and remove both temporary files and otherwise unneeded files more quickly. Also new with this update to PC Manager is the ability to integrate PC Manager into Windows 11 Widgets. (If you aren’t using Widgets yet, you should really consider it. They’re a great way to access a wealth of information with a single keystroke, and one of the most overlooked Windows 11 features actually worth trying.) We’re really pleased with PC Manager and consider it a must-have app for regular PC maintenance. Check out our guide to using PC Manager for a digital spring cleaning and reclaim all kinds of storage space you didn’t even know you had available. Further reading: The best apps for speeding up your Windows PC Read...

At a glanceExpert`s Rating Pros Attractive, minimalist design  Includes LG webOS, remote control, and webcam  Has USB-C with 90 watts of Power Delivery  Cons LG webOS is sluggish at times  Low contrast ratio  Mediocre color gamut   Unimpressive HDR   Our Verdict The LG MyView 32SR85U is packed with features but fails to deliver on image quality. Price When Reviewed This value will show the geolocated pricing text for product undefined Best Pricing Today Best Prices Today: LG MyView Smart Monitor 32R85U Retailer Price LG $449.99 View Deal Price comparison from over 24,000 stores worldwide Product Price Price comparison from Backmarket The differences between monitors and televisions seem to become slimmer every year. Some people now use a television as their monitor and others use monitors like televisions. The LG MyView 32SR85U is an example of the latter. It’s a 32-inch 4K monitor that uses LG’s webOS to provide access to streaming apps and control smart home devices. It even has a bundled webcam.  LG MyView Smart Monitor 32SR85U specs and features  The LG MyView 32SR85U’s basic specifications are typical for a 32-inch 4K monitor that is priced around $500. It has a resolution of 3840×2160 across an IPS panel, with a refresh rate of 60Hz.  Display size: 32-inch 16:9 widescreen  Native resolution: 3840×2160  Panel type: IPS  Refresh rate: 60Hz  Adaptive sync: None  HDR: HDR10  Ports: 2x HDMI 2.0, 1x USB-C upstream with DisplayPort and 90-watts USB-C Power Delivery, 2x USB-C downstream  Wireless: AirPlay, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth  VESA mount: 100x100mm  Speakers: Yes, 2x 5-watt  Price: $599.99 MSRP, $449.99 typical retail  However, several specifications stand out, though none of them have anything to do with the display panel. The monitor has several USB-C ports with up to 90W of USB Power Delivery, which makes them useful for charging a connected tablet or laptop. The monitor also ships with LG’s webOS, which is a smart television operating system that can be used to access streaming apps. And, because it has webOS, the monitor also supports Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and AirPlay.  Further reading: See our roundup of the best monitors to learn about competing products. LG MyView Smart Monitor 32SR85U design   The LG MyView 32SR85U’s design is simple but effective for a monitor meant for home office use and entertainment. LG goes for a sheer, ultra-white look which is attractive and should match any similarly colored peripherals you might have on your desk.   An L-shaped monitor stand keeps the display stable. The stand has a small base that minimizes the space the monitor takes up, and the base is flat, so you can still place notebooks or knick-knacks on the stand itself. The stand includes ergonomic adjustments for height and tilt, but I was a bit disappointed to find it doesn’t swivel or pivot into portrait orientation.  Matthew Smith / Foundry The stand also omits a thumb screw for securing the base to the stand neck and instead uses two Phillips head screws, which must be installed with a screwdriver. That’s unusual for a monitor in this price range and makes the monitor slightly more difficult to set up. A 100x100mm VESA mount is included for use with third-party monitor stands and arms.  LG MyView Smart Monitor 32SR85U connectivity   LG takes a somewhat unconventional approach to video connectivity with the MyView 32SR85U. It has two HDMI ports and one USB-C upstream with DisplayPort for video input and provides up to 90W of power delivery for charging connected devices, which is excellent. DisplayPort, the most common connection for a PC monitor, is not included.   The USB-C upstream port connects to two additional USB-C ports, so the monitor functions as a USB-C hub to connect wired USB-C peripherals. USB-A is not available, however, and the monitor doesn’t include a KVM switch function.  The monitor’s physical connectivity is joined by wireless options, which include Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and Apple’s AirPlay. Wireless connectivity not only provides access to streaming services available through the LG webOS operating system but also allows wireless connections with other devices, like smartphones or a wireless gamepad.   And, because it has AirPlay, the monitor even supports wireless video streaming from an iOS or MacOS device. This is a small but notable advantage over Samsung’s Odyssey OLED G8, which has Wi-Fi and Bluetooth but lacks AirPlay.   LG MyView Smart Monitor 32SR85U features  Technically, the LG MyView 32SR85U is not a television because it lacks a TV tuner and can’t connect to cable or antenna television over coaxial. It does have LG’s webOS smart television operating system, though, so it effectively works as a television in many situations. WebOS provides access to all the usual streaming apps like Netflix, Hulu, and YouTube. It also supports cloud gaming services like Nvidia GeForce Now and Amazon Luna.  Because of this, the LG MyView 32SR85U requires a bit of setup before it’s ready to use. When first turned on, the monitor will ask you to connect to Wi-Fi and complete a few setup steps. Setup takes about five minutes and is like setting up the Samsung Odyssey G8 OLED. However, compared to Samsung (which uses Samsung’s Tizen OS), LG’s setup is less visually appealing, and the setup menu feels a bit sluggish.  Matthew Smith / Foundry That sluggishness continues to the general webOS experience. I found the main webOS interface, which displays the available apps and video sources, was responsive. However, it takes a few seconds to load when switching to it from an app or the Windows desktop. The monitor’s on-screen settings menu was also slow. It often took more than a full second to appear (though, again, it was responsive once the menu was visible).   LG includes a remote control to access the MyView 32SR85U’s features, most of which focus on webOS and connectivity instead of image quality adjusts. The monitor’s settings are also accessible through a joystick on the rear of the display, though there’s not much reason to use it when the remote is available.     While I found the MyView 32SR85U’s menus sluggish compared to the Samsung, LG does a slightly better job of arranging the on-screen menus. LG’s menus are arranged in a layout more typical of a monitor (with easy-to-read text labels and nested menus). That contrasts with Samsung’s Odyssey monitors, which place some settings in a confusing “Game Bar” that appears at the bottom of the display.   That makes for a tough comparison with Samsung’s alternatives. I think the LG MyView 32SR85U with LG webOS is easier to use than a Samsung Odyssey with Tizen OS, but the LG was less responsive when navigating the OS. Shoppers must pick their poison.  WebOS provides access to all the usual streaming apps like Netflix, Hulu, and YouTube. LG MyView Smart Monitor 32SR85U camera and speakers  The LG MyView 32SR85U has a bundled webcam that attaches magnetically to the top of the monitor. It’s unremarkable. The webcam’s image quality is no better than a typical mid-range laptop webcam. While it’s nice that it’s included, that inclusion probably adds to the price—and I’m not sure it’s a worthwhile trade-off.  A pair of 5-watt speakers are bundled into the monitor. They offer passable sound for listening to a podcast but have a harsh, hollow quality that quickly becomes irritating. Most people choosing the MyView 32SR85U will need to budget for external speakers or a soundbar—especially if you plan to use it like a Smart TV.  Matthew Smith / Foundry LG MyView Smart Monitor 32SR85U SDR image quality  While the LG MyView 32SR85U and the Samsung Odyssey G8 are similar in terms of display size, resolution, and Smart TV features, the similarities end there. LG’s MyView 32SR85U is roughly half the price of the Samsung. That’s good news for your wallet, but it’s not great news for the monitor’s SDR image quality.   Matthew Smith / Foundry The LG MyView 32SR85U gets off to a modest start in brightness with a maximum sustained SDR brightness of 311 nits. That’s bright enough for most situations, but it’s not as bright as many competitive monitors, and it might look dim if the monitor is used in a room with bright interior lighting or large, sunlit windows.   Matthew Smith / Foundry Contrast, however, is where the LG MyView 32SR85U really runs into problems, as it has a maximum measured contrast ratio of 950:1.   IPS panels are notorious for limited contrast due to their elevated black levels in dark scenes. Still, the LG MyView 32SR85U’s contrast is unimpressive, even by modern IPS display standards.   The low contrast ratio reduces the sense of depth and immersion in the image and introduces a distracting issue known as “IPS glow.” This happens when too much light from the backlight escapes through the display in dark scenes. The problem is obvious, and distracting, on the LG MyView 32SR85U.  Matthew Smith / Foundry The LG MyView 32SR85U delivers similarly mediocre results in color gamut. The monitor’s color gamut covers 90 percent of DCI-P3 and 84 percent of Adobe RGB. These would have been great results a few years ago, but times have changed, and modern monitors tend to offer a slightly wider color gamut. This is especially true for OLED monitors and those with quantum dot technology. OLED monitors are more expensive, but monitors with quantum dots are available around $500 and below.  That’s not to say the MyView 32SR85U’s color performance is bad. On the contrary, it provides a vivid, punchy, and saturated image. Still, a more limited color gamut means the display will seem a bit dull compared to a monitor with a wider gamut. It’s also an obstacle for content creators, who often work in DCI-P3 or AdobeRGB and crave color gamut coverage well above 90 percent.   Matthew Smith / Foundry While the LG MyView 32SR85U has a modest color gamut, the monitor has top-tier color accuracy. The only exception is in blue and cyan hues, which have a color error in a range that would be visible. Still, this level of performance indicates the monitor provides an extremely realistic and lifelike image.   However, the MyView 32SR85U’s color temperature is not ideal. It measured a default color temperature of 7300K, far above the target of 6500K. That means the image looks much cooler than we prefer. Additionally, the monitor’s default gamma was measured at 2.3, which is slightly off the target of 2.2. That means content may appear a bit darker than it should. However, the gamma result is close enough that most viewers won’t be bothered by it.  Sharpness is certainly an advantage for the MyView 32SR85U, as the monitor’s 3840×2160 resolution offers a tack-sharp look. This is close to the sharpest image available in a 32-inch display, beaten only by a rare few 5K and 6K monitors. They’re far more expensive, though, so I doubt shoppers will compare them to the LG.  Unfortunately, the LG MyView 32SR85U’s SDR image quality isn’t impressive for a 32-inch 4K monitor. The main issue is the low contrast ratio, which saps immersion and leads to distracting “IPS glow.” The monitor also delivers mediocre results in brightness and color gamut. These problems are especially disappointing for a display with Smart TV features. You can use the MyView 32SR85U to watch Netflix or stream a movie from Apple TV—but most viewers won’t be happy with the image quality.  LG MyView Smart Monitor 32SR85U HDR image quality  The LG MyView 32SR85U’s disappointing SDR image quality spells trouble for its HDR performance.  While the monitor can accept an HDR10 signal, it lacks VESA DisplayHDR certification. In my testing, it hit a maximum sustained brightness of just 372 nits in HDR mode. To be fair, that’s similar to price-competitive monitors that have VESA DisplayHDR 400 certification (like the Asus ProArt PA278CFRV). However, 372 nits isn’t enough to deliver on HDR’s potential. As a result, bright objects and scenes often look blown-out.  The LG’s contrast ratio is another significant issue. Dark scenes appear flat and washed out, with a noticeable grayish haze or “fog” over the image. It’s a serious problem in dark, moody movies like The Batman or Pan’s Labyrinth.  While the monitor’s HDR performance is underwhelming, it’s typical for a 32-inch 4K monitor in this price range. Shoppers looking for great HDR in a 32-inch 4K display must spend more for a Mini-LED monitor (like the Samsung Odyssey Neo G8) or an OLED monitor (like the Samsung Odyssey OLED G8 or LG Ultragear 32GS95UE-B).  LG MyView Smart Monitor 32SR85U motion performance  The LG MyView Smart Monitor 32SR85U isn’t a great monitor for motion clarity. It sticks to a 60Hz refresh rate and doesn’t support Adaptive Sync for smooth frame pacing in 3D games. Motion clarity is fine for a 60Hz monitor, but motion blur is obvious and details become difficult to see when panning the camera quickly in a 3D game.  Should you buy the LG MyView Smart Monitor 32SR85U? LG’s MyView Smart Monitor 32SR85U provides a long list of useful extras including Smart TV functionality, a remote control, wireless connectivity, and a bundled webcam. Yet these extras are held back by the monitor’s low contrast ratio, which is limited even for a mid-range 32-inch 4K monitor.   The monitor’s features and quality are at odds, too. It has LG webOS and can be used as a Smart TV, but it lacks the image quality to help shows, movies, and games look great. If you use it for productivity, on the other hand, webOS may feel like an unnecessary distraction. Read...

As far as brands go, Intel has etched itself deeply into my mind as a brand I can trust. To say I get a little excited with each successive chip release is an understatement, especially when they offer substantial performance gains over previous generations. But I haven’t arrived at that point overnight. In one way or another I’ve been enjoying the fruits of the company’s labor for decades — starting with the Intel 386 processor which powered many hours of Wolfenstein 3D gaming. Decades later that trust has been validated time and time again in my job as a reviewer of PC hardware… But, as much as I hate to say it: not so much of late. It’s a situation that doesn’t sit right with me, hence why I’m rooting for a successful Intel Core Ultra Series 2 (Lunar Lake) reception now that laptops with the chips have already started to ship (as of September 24). It’s off to a great start, as our initial Lunar Lake deep-dive shows. Why Intel needs a golden ticket Suffice it to say, the last 24 months haven’t been the greatest for Intel. One big issue the company has faced has been a problem with some of its desktop processors. In case you’ve been living in a cave, back in 2022 users found stability problems with some of the company’s high-powered 13th- and 14th-generation desktop CPUs, which experienced spontaneous crashes and/or blue screens. It goes without saying that a blue screen is the last thing gamers who’ve forked out serious cashola want to see when they’re just one swipe away from finishing off the Supreme Inspector boss in a game of Black Myth: Wukong. `A nearly perfect productivity pc` with lunar lake Asus Zenbook S 14 (UX5406SA) Read our review Best Prices Today: $1499.99 at Asus To unpack that issue a little more and why it caused such a stir, it wasn’t so much the fact that there was a hardware problem that hit consumer confidence so badly, but the fact that it took the company so long to diagnose and offer a fix for it. Although the problem was first reported in December 2022, the root cause (Vmin shift instability) was only discovered in July 2024, more than 19 months later. Then, still, Intel only released the first urgent update to the microcode to fix the problem in August this year. The sense of confusion about the issue was only heightened by the media circus that surrounded it. Reports played out like a hard-to-watch beat-up scene in a Rocky film, with Intel receiving blow after blow like Sylvester Stallone’s character Rocky Balboa boxing against a more muscular opponent. The Intel stability issue affected some 13th- and 14th-generation desktop chips running at 65W or above. Intel The blows came from multiple sources, but the ones that hit home the most were the ones from super smart tech folks who seemed to have the upper hand in suggesting a possible cause of the problem before Intel could put a finger on it. But that hasn’t been the only issue Intel has had to deal with recently. To rub salt into its wounds, two of the company’s recent processor releases, its Meteor Lake and Raptor Lake refresh, received only a lukewarm reception. To be fair, these CPUs were dropped into one of the most competitive CPU markets we’ve seen in a long time. They came amid some of the most powerful AI-capable and affordable AMD Ryzen chips we’ve seen to date — not to mention whole new chip types for Windows 11 laptops from Qualcomm. The latter’s entry into the market has presented a kind of existential dilemma for Intel. Qualcomm has shown that — yes, Arm chips can successfully run Windows 11 PCs with similar performance to Intel chips and with only minimal compatibility issues. What’s more, Windows laptops running off these SoCs benefit from unprecedented battery life, sometimes double that of laptops running off Intel’s Meteor Lake chips. Is Lunar Lake Intel’s white wizard? I chose the Rocky Balboa analogy because he’s almost always down and out at the start of each Rocky film but then comes back with a vengeance. It’s what I expect Intel will do, luck being on its side. In my view, the company’s new mobile-first Lunar Lake chip is revolutionary enough to put the company firmly back on top in the chip game. Lunar Lake is a fresh and exciting technology based on a brand-new microarchitecture which includes new P-cores, E-cores, and Battlemage graphics and a new NPU. The new system-on-system design triples the size but quadruples the performance of the processor’s AI accelerator. `lunar lake does it all` Lenovo Yoga Slim 7i Aura Edition Read our review Intel promises Lunar Lake will deliver significant performance gains over rival chips while also providing up to 30 percent reduction in power draw. That means these chips will be extremely zippy but should deliver battery life on par with, or longer than the lengthy ones seen in Snapdragon powered AI laptops. On top of that, Lunar Lake’s AI processing power looks to be formidable. To be sure, it features an NPU with up to 45 TOPS, which equals that delivered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon X Elite chip. It will, however, outperform the X Elite in this regard, thanks to another 60 TOPS AI processing power delivered by the chip’s integrated Xe2 graphics component. Admittedly, it has only one drawback that I can see: That is, since the RAM will be built onto the same package as the CPU, you’ll be limited to a maximum of 32GB, which may not suit some power users. Then again, not everyone needs 64GB RAM in a laptop anyway. Further reading: Tested: Intel’s Lunar Lake wants you to forget Qualcomm laptops exist Read...

ExpressVPN, PCWorld’s top VPN provider, just made its service even better thanks to the launch of a new suite of identity-theft protection tools.  The new bundle called Identity Defender provides three-part security: identity-theft alerts, identity-theft insurance, and a data-removal service. All new U.S.-based subscribers to ExpressVPN’s 2-year plan will have access to these security tools beginning today. Additional availability is expected to roll out in the future. In a statement, Lauren Hendry Parsons, a Digital Privacy Advocate with ExpressVPN said, “Discovering that your personal information has been compromised is stressful enough, but figuring out what to do next can be an even bigger challenge. With Identity Defender, we aim to provide users with a one-stop solution that not only helps them quickly determine if their information is at risk but also guides them through effective steps to address any issues.” The ID Alerts feature offers three monitoring tools: change of address monitoring, dark web monitoring, and Social Security number monitoring. It will continuously scan the web (and dark web) for any of your personal information and then alert you if anything is found. Additionally, it’ll let you know anytime your Social Security number is used or your address has been changed. Then there is the ID Theft Insurance feature that will help cover you with financial support of up to $1 million in the event that your identity has been stolen. It is worth noting, however, that this perk will only be included with 1-year or 2-year subscription plans. Subscribers to the monthly plan will need to pay an additional $7.99 per month for coverage. Lastly, there is also the new Data Removal service that will search for your personal information on known data-broker sites and then submit removal requests on your behalf. It will then continue to monitor the sites to ensure your data does not reappear in the future. All of these new features are available now and can be accessed with either Android or iOS devices, with more platforms to be supported in the near future. Read...

TL;DR: FastestVPN offers a balance of high-speed performance and powerful security features for up to 10 devices with this lifetime deal for $29.99 through October 27. In a world where privacy and speed shouldn’t be a trade-off, FastestVPN steps in as the go-to solution for security-conscious users who want top-tier performance. From streaming your favorite shows to downloading files in record time, this VPN for $29.99 is a speed demon wrapped in a blanket of strong encryption. What sets FastestVPN apart is more than its blazing-fast connection speeds. With 256-bit AES encryption, a NAT firewall, and a kill switch, your online footprint stays invisible to prying eyes, even in sketchy Wi-Fi zones. Plus, FastestVPN’s strict no-logging policy means they don’t keep tabs on your activity, unlike some competitors who aren’t as transparent with their privacy standards. For tech enthusiasts looking for more than the basics, FastestVPN’s advanced features provide the ultimate customization experience. From the flexibility of 10 simultaneous device connections to specialized servers for streaming and torrenting, it’s got all the bells and whistles you’d expect from a high-performance VPN — minus the bloated price tag. Until October 27 at 11:59pm Pacific, score a lifetime subscription to FastestVPN for up to 10 devices on sale for $29.99.   FastestVPN: Lifetime Subscription (10 Devices) – $29.99 See Deal StackSocial prices subject to change. Read...

Apple has unveiled its latest M4 Pro and M4 Max chips, enhancing Mac performance with cutting-edge technology and promising increased power efficiency. Read...

Firefox launched long ago on November 9, 2004, which means we’re just over one week out from the browser’s 20th anniversary. Who knew that a spiritual successor to Netscape Navigator would last this long? With Firefox 132 being released yesterday, it’s close enough to count as a celebration — and the update fittingly brings some good news with it, including improved privacy with blocked third-party cookies, plus some other cool features worth updating for. Mozilla plans to release Firefox 133 on November 26, 2024. What’s new in Firefox 132? Firefox 132 is now ready for 4K video playback from major streaming services, but this feature is currently in a rollout phase. Through support for Microsoft PlayReady, Firefox will be able to play encrypted media at a baseline of 1080p with 4K support on top. Initially only on selected websites, this feature should spread to more sites over time — and another big benefit of it is that you’ll experience less battery drain and better performance while streaming video. This update also sees improvements to data protection. If you’ve enabled “strict mode” in Firefox’s Settings > Privacy & security > Improved protection against activity tracking, then Firefox 132 will now block all third-party cookies. The maximum lifetime of cookies is now limited to 400 days. If you use the “Copy link without website tracking” feature, Firefox can now filter out more tracking parameters, too. If you use Firefox on more than one device, you can now synchronize bookmarks, open tabs, and passwords between devices. If the new sidebar for synchronized tabs is activated, you can close tabs on other devices via the context menu. However, if required, you must first activate this new sidebar via about:config. There, change the flag labeled sidebar.revamp to true by double-clicking on it. A brief history of Mozilla Firefox Marc Andreessen, one of the developers of the NCSA Mosaic browser, founded Netscape in 1994. With Netscape Navigator, the company supplied the world’s most widely used browser in the mid-1990s (market share over 80 percent). But after Microsoft ended the so-called browser war with widespread adoption of Internet Explorer, AOL took over the losing browser company. In 1998, Netscape published the source code of its browser and allowed the newly founded Mozilla Foundation to manage further development. Mozilla eventually released Firefox 1.0 on November 9, 2004, and we’re about to hit that 20-year mark in about 10 days as of this writing. Security flaws fixed in Firefox 132 Mozilla’s security report for Firefox 132 shows 11 vulnerabilities have been fixed in the update, with two of them classified as “high” risk. One of those high-risk flaws is CVE-2024-10459, a use-after-free vulnerability in the layout component when accessibility is enabled. With it, an attacker can provoke a crash and possibly execute injected code. The other high-risk flaw is CVE-2024-10458, which allows authorizations to be transferred from a secure site to an insecure site. Other internally discovered vulnerabilities can potentially be exploited to execute arbitrary code, but they’re only categorized as moderate risk. Firefox ESR, Tor Browser, and Thunderbird In addition to releasing Firefox 132, Mozilla has also updated its long-term versions, with 10 security vulnerabilities patched in Firefox ESR 128.4.0 and three patched in Firefox ESR 115.17.0. (Firefox ESR 115 will continue to be supported until March 2025.) The updated Tor Browser 14.0.1 is based on Firefox ESR 128.4.0, but Tor’s developers state that they have also ported the security improvements from Firefox 132. An update for Tor Browser 13.5 to 13.5.9 is also available if you’re on Windows 7 or 8.1 or macOS 10.13 or 10.14. Thunderbird 128.4.0esr fixes 10 vulnerabilities and a few bugs. In contrast to Firefox, Thunderbird no longer supports older operating system versions, as version 115.16.2 is the end of the line for Thunderbird 115. Thunderbird 132 (without “esr”) is only available for testing purposes. Further reading: Thunderbird gets new release channel for updates Read...

Do you know how rare it is for us to give any product a clean 5-star rating? It happens maaaaybe twice per year, if that. Well, it certainly happened with the Logitech G502 Lightspeed wireless gaming mouse, the very same mouse that’s on sale for $88 at Amazon, down from its original $150 price. (That’s 41 percent off!) Not only did this gaming mouse earn a perfect score in our review, but it also secured our Editors’ Choice award. Our reviewing expert praised how comfortable it is to use and how lightweight it is. Plus, it has a battery life that lasts about 60 hours on a full charge. This particular model is an upgrade to its previous wired version. But despite the fact that it went wireless, it hasn’t gained much weight at all. In fact, it’s even gained a few features, like PowerPlay, which allows for wireless charging if you have a compatible PowerPlay mousepad. The G502 Lightspeed features 11 programmable buttons, so you can customize them to your specific needs in your various games, along with customizable RGB lighting for that true gamer vibe. One of the best wireless gaming mice of all time at nearly half its original price? It’s honestly a steal. Grab this Logitech G502 Lightspeed for $88 on Amazon while you still can! (We haven’t seen a better price since the summer Prime Day event, and even then it was only $8 less.) Save big on the legendary Logitech G502 Lightspeed mouseBuy now on Amazon Read...

Chrome is the most popular browser on the planet, but even its most ardent fans will admit that this thing gobbles up memory like an Olympic swimmer chomping down protein bars. Google has tried various methods over the years to slim down its memory footprint, but the newest Performance Detection feature might finally make it a lot more effective. According to a blog post, Performance Detection “proactively identifies potential performance issues and offers solutions.” How, exactly? It’ll tell you which tabs are hogging memory and processor cycles, then give you a one-click option to deactivate them. They won’t disappear — they’ll just stop actively loading. Simple but effective, I suppose. Google Google also says that Memory Saver, a feature that frees up memory from inactive tabs, is more granular in the latest version of Chrome. It can now operate in Moderate, Balanced, and Maximum modes, basically determining how aggressive Chrome will be in automatically deactivating tabs that are using too much memory. Both Performance Detection and Memory Saver can be adjusted and disabled in the Settings menu. You can selectively disable both of them for specific websites, too. Personally, I’ve had to be more proactive in memory management thanks to my browser tab addiction. I’ve been using Tiny Suspender for years, particularly enjoying its options for disabling background suspension for particular websites or even entire domains. And yes, since most Chromium-based browsers can share extensions, I use it on Vivaldi, too! Further reading: I got sick of Chrome’s BS and switched to Vivaldi Read...