The Black Friday vibe settled in early this year because the M2 MacBook Air with 16GB of RAM just dropped to $799, a $200 discount from its MSRP and $400 off the price it was just a week ago before Apple updated it. This is easily the best price we’ve seen for this laptop. The best part about this discount is that it makes the 16GB version of the laptop just $50 above the model that sports half the RAM, making the upgrade an easy pick as Apple charges $200 for the upgrade. Both models are otherwise identical down to the same 256GB storage capacity. This is a laptop we loved testing, as our review concluded with a 4.5-star rating and our Editors’ Choice award. Our expert, Jason Cross, praised the laptop’s “outstanding performance in its class,” the amazing battery life, and the improved display. It’s also an even better Apple Intelligence machine than the 8GB model. Apple’s AI in late October arrived with macOS Sequoia 15.1, with features designed to help users write content, edit images, play around with Siri, and much more. So hurry up and snatch the M2 MacBook Air for $799 while it’s still available with this amazing early Black Friday deal. Buy it now at Amazon Read...

Ready to pull the trigger on a top-notch gaming laptop but waiting for a stunning deal? Your time has come! The MSI Katana 15 is absolutely stacked, and right now it’s on sale for $1,200 at Best Buy. That’s a hefty $300 discount, bringing this RTX 4070-equipped laptop down in line with those that only have RTX 4060s. It’s a solid option for gamers and professionals who need power. Under the hood, this MSI Katana configuration features an AMD Ryzen 9 8945HS processor alongside 16GB of DDR5 RAM. That’s more than enough power and memory to handle most of what you could throw at it, and you can later upgrade it up to 64GB of RAM when needed. But the real selling point here is the GeForce RTX 4070 graphics card, which can push your gaming experience to the max in all but the most graphics-intensive AAA games. And you’ll appreciate those visuals on this laptop’s 15.6-inch display with 1080p resolution and 144Hz refresh rate. This MSI Katana 15 also features a 1TB SSD, which should be more than enough for all your photos, videos, games, apps, and more. Not enough for you? It has a USB-C port, three USB-A ports, and an HDMI port so you can connect whatever external drives and accessories you need. Don’t miss out on this fantastic deal on a powerful gaming laptop at a great price. Get this MSI Katana 15 for $1,200 at Best Buy while you still can because this deal isn’t going to last forever. Save $300 on this RTX 4070 and Ryzen 9 gaming laptopBuy now at Best Buy Read...

When you install Windows 11, you’re asked to log in with a Microsoft account (or create one if you don’t have one). Maybe you don’t like this. Maybe you miss the days when you could use Windows on a PC with a local account and not have to worry about being tied online. Well, you wouldn’t be the only one, which is why there have always been tricks and tools to circumvent the Microsoft account requirement — even as Microsoft repeatedly blocks those methods. Recently, a new trick has surfaced: you can now use a PowerShell script called UnattendedWinstall to access Windows 11 without having to log in with a Microsoft account. Not only does it get around the restriction, but it can also do a few other things, too. Bypass the Microsoft account requirement in Windows 11 with PowerShell You can download the necessary PowerShell script on UnattendedWinstall’s GitHub releases page. Make sure to get version 2.0.0, which is the latest release as of this writing. The script is based on Windows’ so-called “response files,” which consist of numerous command-line actions that are used to automate tasks, change system settings, and more. In this case, a response file can even be used to bypass the login prompt. Get Windows 11 Pro for cheap Windows 11 Pro According to its creator, UnattendedWinstall doesn’t just allow you to skip the forced creation of a Microsoft account at setup and forced login without a Microsoft account. It can also: Bypass the system requirements of Windows 11. Deactivate Windows Security services by default. Disable User Account Controls by default. Allow the execution of PowerShell scripts by default. Remove most pre-installed bloatware apps. Disable Copilot and Windows Recall. Limit Windows Update to just security updates for one year. Configure the Windows registry for optimal performance. Disable unnecessary scheduled tasks. Enable the “Ultimate Performance” power plan. With UnattendedWinstall, you can basically get full access to a “purified” version of Windows 11 without having to worry about extraneous features and other bits like the controversial Windows Recall. Here’s the official video with instructions for new users: Caution is advised when using this The developer of this PowerShell script says it’s compatible with the latest version of the operating system, Windows 11 24H2. However, you should never blindly trust any tool that makes system-wide tweaks like this. To be safe, you should first test it in a virtual machine, which you can do for free using VMware Workstation Pro. After running the script, you should also reactivate Windows Security because it’s actually useful and effective at protecting your PC against malware threats. It should also be clear to everyone that Microsoft doesn’t like it when users “purify” the operating system like this. If the tool’s creator runs into problems, it may stop being available. However, because it allows users to still receive security updates, it should be somewhat okay. Further reading: Lesser-known Windows 11 tricks for power users Read...

I block every single ad on YouTube. And I’m a hypocrite for doing it. But I’m not ashamed. Because through a series of blunders and malicious decisions, Google has systematically made YouTube a worse and worse viewing experience, abusing its monopoly position as the de facto home of video on the web.  Related: YouTube will shove ads in your face even when you pause videos I’m a hypocrite for blocking ads Let’s start off this rant with a little context. As a web writer, I should never block advertising on the internet. The majority of the money I’ve been paid over the last 13 years has come from web ads, like the ones you’re probably seeing above, below, and around these words. A modern writer for a free-to-read site blocking advertising is kind of like a vegan butcher: problematic at best.  Google Advertising is how the majority of content on the internet is sustainable. Google, Facebook, Reddit, LinkedIn, TikTok, the social media service formerly known as Twitter — if you’re accessing information for free, it’s almost always being paid for by ads. Google isn’t a search company, it’s the biggest advertising company on the planet. And yes, that includes Google’s subsidiary services like Gmail, Google Docs, and YouTube. But the fact that advertising is literally vital to the web doesn’t take away its problems. Modern web ads are targeted towards people with a shocking degree of specificity. Your advertising profile, curated and updated via tracking cookies, probably includes far more data than you’d feel comfortable with if you saw it.   Ads clutter up pages and obscure the content they’re supposed to be supporting, bogging down performance with unnecessary videos and animations. And that’s when they’re not being actively malicious, spreading malware or targeted disinformation, or just plain selling scams. Google officially tries to police what gets advertised with its systems, as do other advertising giants, but this largely automated system has built-in holes that are constantly leaking the stuff of nightmares.  So yeah, I use an ad blocker in my browser, hypocritical as it is for me. And I don’t blame anyone else for doing it, either. It’s become an essential tool for any user of modern technology. I manually turn on my ad blocker only for the most annoying and obtrusive ads. So I’m only mostly a hypocrite.  Michael Crider/Foundry To hold on to a shred of dignity, I don’t block all ads. I use a “reverse allowlist,” only manually blocking ads on websites that bog down my PC with a glut of performance-sapping videos and animations, and only when I don’t have an alternative. As someone who works online and keeps dozens of tabs and windows open concurrently, I really don’t have an option not to block a lot of ads, even on my beefy desktop with 32GB of memory. The reverse allowlist feature is one of the reasons I recommend AdGuard over more popular alternatives like AdBlock Plus. Based on that criteria, I shouldn’t block ads on YouTube. They don’t sap performance (much), and as annoying as they are, they pay for the content I watch for free. Open and shut case, right?  Google makes YouTube worse so you’ll pay to undo it Wrong. Over the last few years Google has abused YouTube, its viewers, and its creators at every opportunity, and I’m sick of it. And since YouTube is an effective monopoly on the web (and hardly the only one Google is abusing), I feel zero shame about skirting around its attempts to make me pay for it with either dollars or attention. Vive la resistance.  Years ago I watched ads on YouTube, patiently waiting for the “skip” button to appear, gritting my teeth as that took longer and longer. I first considered blocking them when I started getting unskippable 30-second advertisements in front of movie trailers posted by Hollywood studios — ads to watch ads, in a twisted mirror of bloated theater previews. But the final straw was when Google began showing two ads at once before pretty much every video.  Tired of seeing political ads on YouTube that literally instruct you to be afraid? Too freakin’ bad.  Michael Crider/Foundry As it happens, I started seeing double the advertising at exactly the same time that YouTube Premium became an option in 2018. Of course that wasn’t a coincidence. Google decided to make the experience of YouTube materially worse at the same time that it introduced a paid option to make it better. We’ve seen the same thing happen with most of the mainstream video platforms: a cheap, ad-supported tier appears, and suddenly the ad-free experience is “premium.” Amazon didn’t even try to hide it — they simply made everything on Prime Video ad-supported, and told everyone to pay up if they didn’t like it. Pay more, I should say, since Prime was already a paid service.  Arbitrarily making your service worse so you can pay to undo the malfeasance really gets my goat. I resolved to begin blocking every YouTube ad I could and never pay for it, simply out of spite. And I succeeded.  Related: YouTube is testing a cheaper ‘Premium Lite’ plan… that still has ads How I block every YouTube ad — even the ones YouTube doesn’t pay for On the desktop the easiest way to go about this is with a standard ad-blocker. Again, I prefer AdGuard, which has generally been reliable for this purpose. And it works in pretty much every browser, including my new bestie Vivaldi. Once you’ve made that jump, there are other ways to enhance your experience that Google probably wouldn’t appreciate. You can skip past repetitive channel intros and outros, even automatically jump past the paid sponsorships that channels are forced to use when YouTube doesn’t pay them enough (the ads upon ads upon ads). The promo page for SponsorBlock says the extension has auto-skipped over thousands of years of integrated ads for its users. Google But that’s just the desktop. What about mobile, where most of the world is actually watching YouTube? On Android this is fairly easy, if not straightforward. You can use a tool like ReVanced to patch the official app, baking those ad-blocking tools right into a customized version. In addition to blocking ads and skipping sponsored segments, it can even unlock the features that Google has placed behind the Premium adwall, like the ability to play audio in the background while you use other apps or have your phone off entirely.  The ReVanced tool, which can patch the official YouTube Android app, makes the service bearable again.  Michael Crider/Foundry In the interest of total transparency: This is something Google would probably call stealing, and it’s definitely against YouTube’s terms of service. Which is why they fight so hard against these apps. Are you using an iPhone instead of Android, or aren’t keen on the slightly daunting task of messing with the official app? Then there are other options. You can view YouTube through a mobile browser like DuckDuckGo for easy access to ad-blocking and background audio. There are even a few apps like PopTube that are essentially third-party YouTube clients, doing their best to get around Google’s restrictions.  If all else fails, you can use a VPN to pretend you’re in a country where Google doesn’t think it’s worth it to run ads. And because I still need to earn a paycheck, here are some VPNs you might consider. As it happens, the VPN service I pay for every month is cheaper every month than a YouTube Premium subscription. Playing cat and mouse with Google Google is doing its best to get around these methods as they become more popular. The keeper of the keys has been experimenting with a lot of ways to make sure you’re either paying or watching ads — the original “Vanced” app had to shut down for fear of legal repercussions. Google has slowed down the performance of YouTube for users who are blocking ads, trying to make it as frustrating as possible. And every time, the ad blockers have won out. Because YouTube might be powered by money, but ad-blocking developers are powered by spite.  Google’s next attempt to out-fox ad-blockers is baking advertising right into the base of the video stream, encoding the ads into the same file as the video itself. This is a huge technical overhead, something that will put some serious strain on YouTube’s data centers. And I don’t think it’ll work, even if they get it functional. The ability to bypass sponsored ads hard-coded into the videos already exists, and shows up within a few hours of a new video being posted on a popular channel.  If all this seems like a lot just to skip out on $15 a month, well, I suppose it is. Especially since I watch far more YouTube than I do any streaming service I actually pay for. But I’m not the only one who’s fed up with the platform, and sadly has no real alternative. YouTube’s own creators are sick of it too.  Even YouTube creators are sick of YouTube You can’t watch any professional YouTube channel for long without hearing about videos getting taken down for overzealous and questionably legal copyright claims, as the automated systems leave the actual enforcement of fair use to humans. There are also elaborate methods of flagging videos with copyright notices and, instead of removing the video, simply leaving it in place and taking (or stealing) the revenue it creates. This is a system designed to end YouTube’s freewheeling pre-Google days as an open haven for piracy, but now it’s been weaponized as a way for gigantic corporations to fleece genuine creators out of the fruits of their labor.  And that’s assuming that advertisers are willing to pay for it in the first place. YouTube’s demonetization system, by which Google simply refuses to pay a creator because advertisers don’t want to be associated with controversial topics, is just as big a menace for anyone actually trying to make a living on the platform. You’ll see creators censor their own speech to avoid swearing too early, or using ridiculous euphemisms like “unalive” for kill or “self-delete” for suicide, topics that appear next to highly paid advertising on television every single day.  The following (demonetized) video has lots and lots of swearing. Fair warning. See how easy that was? Try to make a video about true crime without saying “murder,” and you’ll see why YouTube creators are always begging you to subscribe to them on Patreon. Because it’s becoming harder and harder to actually make money on YouTube…and there’s no one to blame for that, except YouTube.  And for what? When I use YouTube in another browser or with extensions disabled, I still see some of the same trash ads I used to. Blatant “training methods” for get-rich-quick scams, the same kind of garbage that was stealing people’s money on late night TV thirty years ago. Mobile game ripoffs straight-up lying about what their actual gameplay looks like. “Dating ads” with Photoshopped models that seem like they’re either fake or victims of human trafficking. And just recently, endless, endless political ads with zero standards for either production or truth. I even get advertising for ad blockers. So Google is accepting money to advertise products on YouTube…that it absolutely forbids you to use on YouTube, according to its Terms of Service. YouTube seems to have much lower standards for the people buying ads it than for the people who make the content that enables those ads to function. Dropout.tv To try and alleviate my conscience, I do pay for some of the content I watch. Indeed, I use Patreon to support some of my favorite channels like Drawfee and Second Wind. The YouTube monopoly is the only way they can actually get their content seen and I don’t want them to disappear. I’ve bought D&D merchandise from creators like Pointy Hat when they advertise their own stuff, just as a means of showing my appreciation. And I’m subscribed to the comedy channel Dropout, which evolved out of College Humor, and has become possibly the only self-sustaining streaming service that’s actually worth what it charges.  But pay for YouTube directly? Not a chance. I’ve given Google too much money for phones and tablets in the past, I paid for Google Play Music for years before they once again scrapped it for a worse and more expensive service. Until Google starts respecting both the users that it serves and the creators that it depends upon, it doesn’t get any more of my cash. Read...

I always thought that buying a 4K webcam was only something that streamers and influencers should care about. I mean, how much better am I really going to look when I’m on a Teams call with my editors, or on a Skype call with my mom? It seemed quite silly to think about. But I’ve been playing around with several webcam options to see what difference they actually make to everyday video calls and meetings — and as it turns out, there are some real positives with 4K webcams. There are some negatives, too. (And I don’t just mean that suddenly everyone can see that pimple you didn’t bother to cover up.) Here’s what I’ve learned about why 4K webcams can be worth buying (and why they might not be) depending on your needs and use cases. Related: How we test webcams at PCWorld Pro: 4K image quality is indeed better I know, mind-blowing take here… but bear with me. Yes, 4K webcams obviously look nicer than their 1080p or 720p counterparts, and that’s thanks to more details captured in their images. The improved sensor quality in 4K webcams makes a massive difference to how you and your environment look on camera. Take a look at my selfie shots below, which were taken with three different webcam resolutions, all in the same lighting condition. The first shot comes from the built-in 720p camera on a 2019 Acer Predator Triton 500 laptop. The second is from a 1080p Logitech C920s Pro. The third is from a 4K Logitech MX Brio. Taken with 720p Acer Predator Triton 500 laptop webcam.Jon Martindale / IDG Taken with 1080p Logitech C920s Pro webcam.Jon Martindale / IDG Taken with 4K Logitech MX Brio webcam.Jon Martindale / IDG These were taken with ambient light, with the two main sources being the window (behind me) and a static ceiling light (above me). It’s fair to say that the 4K webcam looks substantially better than the 720p option, and even quite noticeably better than the 1080p alternative. It has a much wider field of view, plus greater detail and clarity. The colors are more natural and nuanced, and it’s better at handling the contrast of a bright backdrop (the window) with a darker foreground. Sure, going from a 720p built-in webcam to a 1080p standalone webcam still offers the biggest bump, but there’s definitely an argument to be made that the image quality of a modern 4K webcam stands out. Related: Why are laptop webcams so bad? Con: 4K webcams are silly expensive With most laptops — and even some monitors — coming with their own built-in webcams, it can seem silly to spend any money on a separate webcam, let alone a lot of cash. But if you’re thinking of buying a 4K webcam, then you will have to spend quite a bit for one. The Logitech C920s Pro webcam (1080p) that I used in these comparisons is available for around $70 at most retailers, which is fairly affordable and maybe even justifiable. But the Logitech MX Brio webcam (4K) is sold for around $200. That’s… not cheap. Throw in that anyone spending this much on a webcam should also consider some kind of external lighting setup — see below — and the price for looking hot on camera starts to seem kind of mad, especially if you’re only using it to chat with relatives or for your virtual D&D game. Pro: Software adjustments make a big difference with 4K webcams Jon Martindale / IDG With a 4K webcam, you actually get more than just the physical hardware for your money. For example, the Logitech MX Brio comes with a range of software features that help make it (more) worth it. Also, keep in mind that with a 4K resolution, you have more pixels to work with — and that means digital zoom is far more capable. You can zoom in or crop down to whatever shape and size you like, all without compromising on image quality. Meanwhile, zooming in on a 1080p video is pretty noticeable, and don’t even think about zooming in on a 720p image. (Many built-in webcams don’t even have this functionality.) In the case of the MX Brio — and some other 4K webcams — you can also adjust exposure (automatically or manually), switch on HDR mode, enable low-light compensation, adjust color balance and temperature, and even change focus manually. That can be awesome if you don’t want autofocus overreacting every time you adjust your positioning. Con: A non-4K webcam can be just as good with proper lighting Remember when I said it was worth getting an external light for use with your webcam? Well, it turns out you can get a pretty great-looking picture even with a cheaper webcam as long as you have good lighting. That’s because cheaper cameras cut corners in areas like low light compensation and high dynamic range. If you can provide enough light for the webcam to work with, and if you position those lights to illuminate you the right way, then your webcam will produce a far better image. The best part? The price of a good lighting setup plus a modest webcam is usually cheaper than a high-end webcam. Better lighting, taken with 720p Acer Predator Triton 500 laptop webcam.Jon Martindale / IDG Better lighting, taken with 1080p Logitech C920s Pro webcam.Jon Martindale / IDG Better lighting, taken with 4K Logitech MX Brio webcam.Jon Martindale / IDG See above for a comparison of my three webcams again, except this time I’m using a Logitech Litra Beam to better illuminate myself. To be fair, the 4K webcam still looks the best — but the gap between the 4K and 1080p image is far smaller now, surprising given the less-than-a-third-of-the-price nature of the C920s Pro. Even the built-in 720p laptop webcam looks noticeably better with improved lighting. Of course, the Litra Beam is an expensive streaming light and complete overkill for most people. You can just as easily grab a cheap ring light for $20 to get a similar result, and that would make the overall package far cheaper than buying an expensive 4K webcam. Pro: Build quality is better in 4K webcams A $200 webcam has a greater build quality than a $70 one? Ha! That should surprise no one. But it’s true. Sarcasm aside, Logitech’s MX Brio is a much nicer piece of equipment than the C920s Pro. It’s made of aluminum (and low-carbon aluminum, at that) instead of plastic for a premium feel, and the housing doesn’t flex or creak when you apply pressure or move it around. The mount is excellent, too, and it has a magnetic attachment rather than a screw-thread. Combine that with a tilting mechanism for the camera, which lets you point it down at your desk to show off documents and trinkets, and you have a clearly superior option. It’s just easier to maneuver the camera into whatever position you need it to be in. Related: The best webcams actually worth buying Con: Higher bandwidth costs are a concern Chris Montgomery / Unsplash While some of you are no doubt living your best life with Google Fiber and 10Gbps up and down, some of us aren’t so lucky. We have to worry about data caps and bandwidth limits. If you’re like me, you might be fine uploading 5Mbps of 1080p webcam video while your kids are streaming Netflix in the other room. But if you were to upgrade to a 4K webcam, you’d suddenly be sending 20Mbps upstream — and that could be a real internet bandwidth clog. The issue is even worse if you ever plan to use the 4K webcam while on the go, where your 5G signal might be too weak to stream properly, where roaming charges can mount up, or where public Wi-Fi just isn’t suitable for handling your 4K webcam. It goes both ways, too. Your own internet might be great, but what about your grandma’s internet? She might not be able to handle the barrage of video data from your 4K webcam. How much time do you want to spend troubleshooting for her the next time you’re on a call together? I’ll keep it, but not sure I’d buy it Whenever I write about my own experiences about something and some of the hardware was provided for me, I have to couch any opinions I have with the fact that I didn’t actually spend my own money on it. Which raises the question: Would I pay money for it? Well, the 1080p Logitech C920s Pro webcam is something I did actually buy on my own, and I would 100 percent buy it again. It’s far, far better than the built-in webcam of any laptop I’ve used — and it’s not just about image quality but also the ability to move the webcam around and even unplug it whenever I need extra, guaranteed privacy. That alone is enough for me to recommend it. The 4K Logitech MX Brio is undoubtedly the better webcam, and I am glad to have it because it does make me look better on conference calls and in virtual D&D sessions. But would I pay $200 for it? Probably not. An external light and a 1080p webcam are good enough for me. Further reading: What to do when your webcam is on for no reason Disclosure: For full transparency, I want to say up front that some of the hardware discussed in this article was provided by outside sources. Specifically, the MX Brio was sent to me by Logitech and the gaming laptop was provided by another publication I write for. The C920s Pro was purchased myself. Read...

At a glanceExpert`s Rating Pros Image quality is quite good AI features feel well thought-out Very good noise cancellation Innovative solution for group settings Cons 4K turns to 1080p when AI is enabled Utility app is buggy Hard to find in stores A bit overpriced Our Verdict The Coolpo AI Huddle Mini Lite is a unique, laptop-mounted webcam that can be used either for individual use or a small group. It largely delivers what it promises, with one significant exception. Price When Reviewed This value will show the geolocated pricing text for product undefined Best Pricing Today Best Prices Today: Coolpo AI Huddle Mini Lite Retailer Price $219.99 View Deal Coolpo $220 View Deal Price comparison from over 24,000 stores worldwide Product Price Price comparison from Backmarket Coolpo’s AI Huddle Mini Lite does double duty as an individual webcam and one that can show off a number of participants in the same room, in a pinch. It’s a smartly designed “4K” camera, which foregoes frills for a simple, easy-to-use interface. Coolpo is one of those hundreds of little startups in Shenzhen, China, whose products come and go quickly. At press time, Amazon was out of stock, but the manufacturer still had availability. Keep in mind, though, that the MSRP, about $220, is way, way more than many of the webcams in our list of recommended webcams. For the price, it might have been nice if the Coolpo AI Huddle Mini Lite offered Windows Hello capabilities. Alas, it does not. You may have to tap your department’s IT budget to get it approved. Is it worth it? Not quite. One of the features this webcam offers is automatic panning and zooming, a value-add feature that was much more impressive before Microsoft added it to some of its Copilot+ devices armed with an NPU. Coolpo’s webcam intelligently crops and zooms to achieve the same effect. A webcam that can be used for both individual use as well as for small groups adds a lot of value. Unfortunately, it leaves a bit to be desired as a personal webcam. Coolpo AI Huddle Mini Lite: Build quality Coolpo’s AI Huddle Mini Lite is rather impressively chunky for a modern webcam, spanning 4.5 inches across the top of your monitor or display, extending 3.2 inches back, and measuring 2.5 inches from top to bottom. A cord stretching about 6.25 feet plugs into a USB-C slot on the back of the webcam, and to a USB-A port on your laptop or hub. It includes a physical shutter, which slides across. The Coolpo AI Huddle Mini Lite will grip a laptop, but it works better on a monitor.Mark Hachman / IDG Like most webcams, the Mini Lite’s mount includes a “tooth” that extends down from the “jaw” of the webcam’s mount. The tooth hooks over the edge of the display, while the flexible “jaw” opens and closes to support the webcam at a given angle. Some webcams include an additional “tongue” to support the webcam as it leans against your display; this webcam does not. Is it a problem? Not that I can see. The weight of the webcam helps hold it steady, and the webcam itself swivels up and down to line up your face. The AI software takes care of the rest. Coolpo’s camera appears to work right out of the box, as a generic USB camera. But if you want to use the added features, you’ll need to read the manual closer to unearth the download link. You’ll then need to download a small utility file to allow the value-added features to work. (I confirmed that the software will run on Windows on Arm PCs.) Coolpo AI Huddle Mini Lite: Image quality As a webcam, Coolpo’s AI Huddle Mini Lite does a pretty good job. As I explain in my webcam testing methodology, I do not try to take an “ideal” photo or screenshot, as I like to see how the webcam does in average to poor conditions. Downstairs in my cave-like office with artificial lighting, my blue shirt looked a bit grainy but the colors were otherwise on point. The screenshot looks a little soft though, for reasons I’ll explain below. Mark Hachman / IDG Upstairs, my go-to shot is in full, natural light, but with the light coming from one side. I thought the camera did a nice job processing the fall sun, as well as picking out the details of my face and hair. There’s only one problem with the color, and that’s that I’m wearing a green sweater. It looks about the same color as the dark gray couch. This camera doesn’t indicate that it has HDR, and I see no signs of it here. Mark Hachman / IDG Coolpo’s AI features: What do they do? The Coolpo utility software is somewhat hit or miss. For one, it had a persistent bug that caused the utility to disappear when the screen was moved from one display to the other, forcing me to detach and re-insert the webcam. The app also left a dialog box at the bottom of the app that wouldn’t go away, asking whether I wanted to save a custom configuration of various settings. Once you download the software, however, the “Meeting flex AI,” if enabled, goes to work. But, there’s a catch. Though this camera does go up to 4K (2160p) resolution, it only does so with AI off. The camera has an adjustable field of view (60/90/120 degrees) that can be adjusted manually or by letting the AI do the work. The AI software can be set up either in “Frame Master” (in group or individual mode) as well as “Division Master.” Coolpo’s software is simple yet functional.Mark Hachman / IDG In Frame Master mode, the webcam crops and zooms to fit one or a group, up to seven people. In individual mode, however, the webcam can’t crop in at 4K resolution (which is 30Hz, maximum). Instead, it crops down to 1080p resolution. The camera will maintain 4K resolution, but without panning or zooming, in a 120-degree field of view. That’s not ideal. Otherwise, the pan and zoom is very good, responsive without being twitchy — some cameras will refocus or recenter you at the smallest movement, which is distracting to an audience. Division Master is a very interesting mode, and helps justify this webcam as a business expense. When Division Master is on, the screen subdivides itself into four separate vertical video windows that somehow individually focus and lock in on the four faces. It’s a neat trick. (I tested this using the preview mode of the Coolpo app with my family, who asked me not to take a screenshot to preserve their privacy.) If the number of people in the room is between five and seven, the camera simply shows static images of their faces instead. The noise cancelation capabilities of the Coolpo AI Huddle Mini Lite aren’t bad. I typically play back rock music and a separate white noise track on a phone, and move them around while I record my voice using the camera mic. The Mini Lite did a decent job filtering out the music, and I could barely hear the much more neutral sounds of a recorded rainstorm. That’s what I would hope for. Is the Coolpo AI Huddle Mini Lite worth it? Coolpo is pitching this camera as an ideal solution for a “huddle room,” where a small team video chats with a remote audience. I would think that most teams would have a pricier, more complex solution, but maybe not. The Coolpro webcam seems like it could certainly work, especially in a pinch. In fact, given the price, using it for groups seems to offer the best value. Sure, I’d much rather have a “true” 4K camera with a zoomed-in field of view, or at least the option for it. But I give credit to Coolpro’s engineers for addressing a problem with some innovative solutions. As a personal webcam, however, Coolpo’s AI Huddle Mini Lite comes up a bit short for a bit too much. There are just too many superior options for less money to settle for the Coolpo’s compromises. Read...

According to Windows Central, Microsoft might be looking to rebrand its collection of Windows AI capabilities under a new name. A couple of weeks ago, one Twitter user was digging through the AppPrivacy.adml file in the latest version of Windows 11 and found references to something called “Windows Intelligence.” Specifically, a setting called “Let Apps Access Windows Intelligence.” Get Windows 11 Pro for cheap Windows 11 Pro Microsoft has up until now been using the name “Copilot” for over a year to identify its suite of AI-powered tools and features. However, keen readers will remember that Copilot itself was a rebranding of what was previously known as Bing Chat, with the term “copilot” reminiscent of GitHub’s AI-driven Copilot code completion tool. Now, it seems that Microsoft might be repeating history, except this time following in the footsteps of Apple. A few months ago, Apple announced its own collection of AI tools under the name Apple Intelligence. Could it be that Microsoft wants to hitch onto Apple’s coattails? Note that the Copilot brand itself doesn’t actually have to be phased out for Microsoft to move towards Windows Intelligence. In fact, the generative AI chatbot currently known as Copilot could simply be one of many tools wrapped up into a broader Windows Intelligence set. Microsoft has not commented on the potential Windows Intelligence rebrand, what a rebrand would mean for Copilot or Copilot+ PCs, or how all of this has been influenced by Apple Intelligence. Further reading: What can Microsoft 365’s Copilot Pro do? Read...

An e-reader work wonders for bookworms struggling with library management. You don’t even have to spend that much either, as today’s entry-level options pack a ton of features. Case in point: Amazon’s latest Kindle, which just launched in mid-October. It offers a 300 ppi display, an improved front light, and audiobook playback. Still, a higher-end model can bring material benefits. That’s especially so when comparing the basic Kindle against the more luxe Kindle Paperwhite (and its fancier Paperwhite Signature Edition variant), which also have been refreshed for 2024. A few key differences exist between the two models that can dramatically tip the scales in favor of one over the other, depending on your situation. To make it easier to decide between the two, we’ve highlighted the main features of each model. We’ve also included a chart at the end of the article that shows the full spec comparison.  Kindle vs. Kindle Paperwhite Display The base Kindle model has a 6-inch, 300-ppi screen with front lighting capable of 94 nits of maximum brightness—a boost of 25 percent brightness over the 2022 model, according to Amazon. The 2024 Kindle Paperwhite upgrades that to a larger, front-flush 7-inch, 300-ppi screen. While the Paperwhite’s front lights have the same max brightness of 94 nits, you can change their color from white to amber for more comfortable nighttime reading. Dimensions and weight The Kindle measures 6.2 x 4.3 x 0.32 inches (157.8 x 108.6 x 8 mm) and weighs 5.56 ounces (158g). It’s smaller and lighter than the Kindle Paperwhite, which comes in at 7 x 5 x 0.3 inches (176.7 x 127.6 x 7.8 mm) and 7.4 ounces (211g) for the standard edition. The Kindle Paperwhite Signature Edition of the Paperwhite is a touch heavier at 7.5 ounces (214g). Storage The 2024 models of the Kindle and Kindle Paperwhite offer 16GB of storage. You can get even more space by stepping up to Paperwhite Signature Edition, which offers 32GB on-device storage. Battery life Voracious readers who are often away from a power outlet will feel the difference between the Kindle and the Kindle Paperwhite. The basic Kindle gets up to six weeks on a full charge, while the Paperwhite gets up to 12 weeks on a full charge. Amazon bases these estimates on 30 minutes of reading per day, with wireless capabilities off and the front light set to 13. Water resistance People who read near (or in) water, take note: The basic Kindle isn’t water resistant. For that kind of protection, you’ll want the Kindle Paperwhite, which is IPX8-rated and can survive in up to 2 meters of fresh water for an hour at a time. Charging The entry-level Kindle and Kindle Paperwhite both have USB-C charging ports. For wireless charging, you can upgrade to the Signature Edition of the Kindle Paperwhite, which is compatible with Amazon’s new wireless charging dock and Qi charging pads (the latter is slower). Colors The 2024 Kindle can be found in two shades, black and matcha (light green). Meanwhile, the 2024 Kindle Paperwhite is available in three hues: black, jade (teal-green), and raspberry (bright pink). The Paperwhite’s Signature Edition comes in metallic versions of the standard Paperwhite’s colors. Kindle vs. Kindle Paperwhite: Full specification comparison PCWorld Read...

Modern VPNs are designed for everyone, from first-time novices to IT professionals. Not only can just about anyone benefit from using a VPN, but they also come with a few not so obvious upsides—and one or two downsides. You may be about to use a VPN for the first time or just have questions about why certain things occur while connected to one. If so, welcome. I’m here to walk you through the most common things you’re likely to encounter while using a VPN. Let’s get started. If you’re on the hunt for a new VPN, check out my list of the best VPNs to make sure you maximize the upsides. Getting connected to a VPN is very easy A VPN might come across as intimidating to the uninitiated—after all, Virtual Private Network sounds like something straight out of the IT department. But VPNs are actually very easy to use. Millions of non-tech people use them every day and if they can figure it out, so can you. Our favorite VPN Overall ExpressVPN Read our review Most VPN providers understand the trepidation that new users have and they’ve designed the apps to be as intuitive as possible. Top services such as ExpressVPN and AVG Secure VPN allow you to quickly connect with just one click. If you don’t want to worry about scrolling through a long list of servers either, almost every VPN has a “Quick connect” option that will choose for you. Simply start up the VPN, click “Quick connect” and you’ll instantly be enjoying a secure, private connection. It’s as easy as that. Options, options galore VPNs such as NordVPN come with a plethora of options to tweak.Sam Singleton While getting up and running with a VPN is the main goal, there is so much more you can explore in the app as well. Almost every VPN comes with at least a few configurable settings. Some even come with a head-spinning number of options that you can play around tweaking with for hours. Power users or tinkerers can optimize connections with everything from kill switches to protocols, split tunneling to multi hop connections, and more. If that sounds like a bunch of technospeak to you, don’t worry. We have plenty of VPN explainer articles, guides, and how-tos here at PCWorld for you to learn from. Start with our guide to the 5 VPN features you need to start using today. You can also find a lot of additional information on a VPN provider’s webpage. Streaming services have different content based on your location Connecting to a VPN server in a different country or region may allow you to watch different content. Due to various copyright and distribution restrictions, some streaming services only allow certain content to be shown in certain areas. Using a VPN, such as any of my top picks for best VPN for streaming, is a great way to access region-locked content. This works well if you’re traveling as well. If you’re abroad and want to catch up on a show from back home, just set your server location to your home country then connect, and voilà—sit back, grab some snacks, and enjoy your unlocked content. Prices while online shopping may change We all love the convenience of online shopping. Not only does it allow us to find just about everything we need, but we can even compare prices across retailers with ease. What you may not know is that retailers often set different prices across different countries, or even times of day, for the same items or services—sometimes drastically so. You may notice that when connected to a VPN the prices for items will be suspiciously different than when disconnected. Savvy shoppers can absolutely use this to their advantage to save money while shopping online. Plus, with a VPN, you get the added benefit of a more secure transaction. Speeds may decrease (or increase!) Something that you’ll inevitably notice when you start using a VPN is that your internet speeds will decrease. Sorry, but it’s just the nature of the game when it comes to VPNs. By encrypting all of your traffic and then rerouting it through a remote server, your ping is bound to increase.  Depending on the VPN you use and the specific server, you may also run into server load issues that can potentially slow down your connection as well. For those who are looking to stream or game with a VPN, it’s imperative that you choose a fast VPN in order to minimize performance issues. On the flip side, and if you’re lucky, you may notice that your internet speeds actually increase while connected to a VPN. If this is you, the likely culprit is your ISP, who may have been throttling your home internet connection for some reason—congratulations, you’ve finally found a way to stick it to your ISP. Further reading: How to test your VPN speed Websites may still know who you are VPNs are really good at anonymizing and obscuring your traffic from your ISP, but they aren’t so great at hiding your data from websites. This is because websites, particularly those that you log into, are going to track your activity with cookies.  Cookies are storage files that remember how you interact with a website. This is how the site knows what you add to your cart, what articles you click on, and other site preferences. It doesn’t matter what IP address or server you log in from with a VPN, the website will still be able to recognize the cookies on your device and track you from there. This is why it’s so important to regularly clear the cookies on your devices. You’ll run into more CAPTCHAs ninefotostudio / Shutterstock.com One of the most annoying things on the internet nowadays are those “prove you’re not a robot” tests. Well, guess what? Using a VPN is going to result in you taking even more of those. They’re called CAPTCHAs, and are designed to protect services and websites from being overrun with bots.  Because a VPN server often hosts many users at the same time, traffic from these servers is frequently flagged as being potential bots. And while, sure, these CAPTCHA tests are annoying, they are also mercifully easy to pass. It’s a small price to pay for the added privacy and security you’re getting with a VPN connection. You’ll probably run into less ads A great ad-blocking Vpn NordVPN Read our review Now this is going to depend a lot on your VPN. If it comes with a built-in ad- and tracker-blocking feature then you should notice less ads while browsing. Services like NordVPN and Surfshark are just some of the VPNs offering powerful ad-blocking tools that help keep those pesky pop-ups at bay. It might not be possible to completely block out ads while browsing, but a VPN with these features turned on can dramatically reduce their occurrence. When you connect to a VPN server, you are using a new IP address, meaning many websites won’t recognize you. So essentially just by connecting, you are already mitigating the instances of targeted ads. As I mentioned earlier though, a website can still serve up targeted ads if you don’t take extra precautions such as wiping cookies regularly or using private browsing. Sometimes, websites just don’t like VPNs While using a VPN is a great way to keep your browsing private and get around certain internet blocks, you’ll just have to accept that some websites refuse to work for VPN users. Not every site will allow traffic coming from a VPN, and some actively block known VPN server IP addresses. This is an unfortunate truth that you’ll have to accept when using a VPN. If you still want to access the site while using a VPN you could try out connecting to different servers. If that doesn’t work then you could use the split-tunneling feature to omit that specific site or app while keeping everything else protected. Finally, if all else fails you might just need to accept that accessing that site requires turning off your VPN for a bit. Read...

TL;DR: On sale for a one-time payment of $99.99, Microsoft Visio Professional 2024 delivers powerful, intuitive tools to turn ideas into organized, visual plans. Sometimes, explaining complex ideas or processes requires more than words alone. Microsoft Visio lets you create professional-level diagrams and flowcharts that make your vision clear and accessible. Ideal for both business and creative applications, this lifetime license to Visio for $79.99 provides a range of templates and shapes to map out workflows, systems, floor plans, and more. With a user-friendly Windows interface, Visio Professional 2024 gives you drag-and-drop functionality for easy layout, plus built-in tools for adding data and customizing details. Whether you’re building an organizational chart, illustrating complex processes, or designing a floor plan, Visio’s flexible features help you bring your ideas to life. Perfect for those who need their presentations to speak volumes without saying a word, Microsoft Visio Professional 2024 is a powerful tool for creating organized, visually impactful diagrams that simplify the complex and clarify the unknown. For a limited time, take advantage of this deal on a lifetime license to Microsoft Visio Professional 2024 on your PC for $79.99.   Microsoft Visio Professional 2024: Lifetime License for Windows – $79.97 See Deal StackSocial prices subject to change. Read...