At a glanceExpert`s Rating Pros Free and integrated into Windows Uses common VHDX containers Backs up your system, user libraries, and internal drives Cons Windows disaster recovery features are limited and unreliable Our Verdict While Backup and Restore (Windows 7) creates viable and fantastically compatible hard drive images, various flaws and limitations with the Windows Rescue/Recovery disks render it basically unusable for disaster recovery. Price When Reviewed This value will show the geolocated pricing text for product undefined Best Pricing Today Believe it or not, there’s an effective drive imaging program integrated into Windows. It’s well hidden in the legacy Control Panel but it’s there, and it’s called “Backup and Restore (Windows 7).” No, really, that’s the name. Alas, primarily because of Windows’ unreliable System Repair and Recovery Drive boot discs, but also because it won’t create a system image to removable media, Backup and Restore (Windows 7) is not a good solution for disaster recovery or OS migration. Read on to learn more, then see our roundup of the best Windows backup software for comparison. What are Backup and Restore (Windows 7)’s features? The first “feature” of Backup and Restore (Windows 7) is its low profile. Most users don’t even know it exists. Perhaps Microsoft would rather you logged on and used Windows Backup to back up to OneDrive? To access Backup and Restore (Windows 7), open the legacy Control Panel app (not Settings), click on System and Security, and scroll down. If you decide to use the program after reading this review, I highly recommend that you create a desktop shortcut as this procedure gets old in a hurry. In at least one way, Backup and Restore (Windows 7) is more convenient than much of the for-pay competition. It uses Microsoft’s VHDX (Virtual Hard Drive) files for images. These may be mounted and browsed using nothing more than Windows Explorer. Cool. Additionally, configuring a backup is extremely intuitive. By default the program will back up all your user folders, drives that aren’t serving as the destination for the backup, and create a full system image of any internal hard drives. But you can opt out of any of those. It uses Microsoft’s VHDX (Virtual Hard Drive) files as containers. These may be mounted and accessed via Windows Explorer without use of any other software. Cool. Backup and Restore (Windows 7) can back up to an internal hard drive (which won’t be backed up) or a network location. The latter is the best reason I can think of for buying a NAS device, because… … For some reason Microsoft won’t let you create a full system image backup to direct attached external media, e.g, a USB hard drive or SSD. You can back up drives and user libraries to external drives, and you can save system images to the network and local drive, so I’m at a loss to explain why. Other than Microsoft being Microsoft, that is. You may, of course, copy a system image backup to external media once it’s finished, but geez, Louise — this is right up there with removing the easy and intuitive “Add folder” function from File History. By the way, if you want to back up non-user folders, simply morph the non-user folder into a user library. Right-click on the folder you want included in the backup, select “Show more options,” click on “Include in user library,” but select the “Create new library” function. Including a folder in a library won’t cause it to be backed up. At least it wouldn’t for me. You may also create a new library in the Libraries section. To un-morph a user-defined user library, go to the libraries section in Explorer, right-click, and select “Delete.” This logical but fear-invoking action does not remove the actual folder, it only kills its status as a user library. “Undefine,” anyone? If you’re going to back up the entire C: drive, you don’t need to bother with the user library trick at all. How well does Backup and Restore (Windows 7) perform? I had zero issues creating VHDX images of my software test bed’s internal drives, though the process was slower than with a lot of pay software. I also had zero issues mounting the drives and pulling files off them. A wholesale restore is theoretically possible, but to recover from a disaster using a system image you need to create a system repair disc. But disc in this case means just that, a disc — as in optical. As in CD/DVD. There’s not even an option to create a ISO. How 2005. So for you, dear reader, I burned a CD (yes, as a storage guy I still have several Blu-ray burners). I then extracted the contents to an ISO and wrote it to a thumb drive using Rufus 4.8. Neither the CD or USB drive would boot. Grrrrrreat! As an alternative, I created a Windows Recovery Drive (that includes system files with the intent to reinstall everything else from the virtual hard drives created by Backup and Restore (Windows 7). Theoretically, a Recovery Drive reinstalls Windows and drivers, then you run Backup and Restore to get everything else back. In practice, Recovery Drive has proven unreliable for me and many other users. In this case, it erased my system then told me there was a problem restoring it. See below. Rescue came in the form of a Macrium Reflect 8 Free system backup that I created before trusting Microsoft with any of this. Just the message I was waiting to see from the recovery disk. Notable backup features that are missing from Backup and Restore (Windows 7) are incremental and differential backup. Also, there’s only one job. If you change the settings, that’s what you have to live with. That’s good enough for most users, but not ideal. Also, you can’t back up external drives. Why? Don’t know and Microsoft was not up for discussion. If unreliable boot disks weren’t enough, there are other caveats. A long-standing issue with Backup and Restore (Windows 7) is that it won’t let you restore to a smaller capacity drive than the one that was imaged — even if the data fits easily. I.e., it won’t shrink (or expand) partitions. An issue with Recovery Drive, which would be used with Backup and Restore (Windows 7), is that it’s basically married to the PC you create it from. Don’t count on it if you’re looking to migrate to a new computer. As a matter of fact, if my experiences count for anything, don’t rely on in at all. If all that sounds a bit daunting, I agree. Should you use Backup and Restore (Windows 7) and/or Recovery Drive? No. At least not for disaster or system recovery. It’s not worth the effort, and the boot disks, quite frankly, stink. Look to the free EaseUS Todo Backup 2025, Macrium Reflect 8 Free, or any number of pay solutions to fill that role. However, if all you want to do is create VHDX images of drives for later browsing and manual recovery, Backup and Restore (Windows 7) works very well. It’s integrated and free, and the images can be mounted by Windows itself, all VM software, and just about any other OS. Read...

College can be extremely expensive — not just with tuition and dorm costs, but with materials, books, software, and more. You might think you have to spend lots of cash on apps to get you through your degree. But, really, you don’t have to spend any money at all! (Except in rare situations where you need a very specific software for class, in which case your college should ideally provide you with a license for it.) Here’s a truly useful collection of free apps that are must-haves for students like you, allowing you to outfit your college laptop with the essential tools to get your work done and do more. Bitwarden for safer passwords Chris Hoffman / IDG A password manager is one of several essential cybersecurity tools for college students. You’ll probably accumulate lots of different logins for various school accounts and resources, right? Well, a password manager not only keeps all of those logins in one place, but also conveniently fills out login forms on your behalf. You’ll never have to remember your passwords again, which means you can freely use long, strong passwords that are unique to each account for maximum online security with close to zero effort. Bitwarden is our favorite free password manager. It’s open-source and can sync between your devices, so you can access all your passwords with convenient auto-fill whether you’re on your laptop, your phone, or any other device. All of its important features are truly free. Further reading: The best free password managers ProtonVPN for network privacy Chris Hoffman / IDG A VPN can be really useful when you’re on a college network. Whether your access to a certain site is blocked or your internet speeds are throttled for certain activities, a VPN can help you get around many restrictions and limitations imposed upon you. Furthermore, VPNs are important for data privacy and security, especially if you’re frequently on the go and constantly using public Wi-Fi networks with your laptop or phone (e.g., at coffee shops). While most trustworthy VPNs cost money, there are some excellent free options if you don’t need all the bells and whistles. ProtonVPN is our favorite free VPN because it’s from the same privacy-focused company that created the famous ProtonMail email service. Further reading: The best free VPNs that don’t suck Microsoft OneNote for taking notes Chris Hoffman / IDG Did you know one of the best note-taking apps is already installed on your PC? It’s called Microsoft OneNote and it’s excellent for students. Whether you want to type notes, insert images, write with a stylus, or even record audio during a lecture, OneNote can do it all. OneNote is extremely flexible, so it’s as powerful as you want it to be. It’s also cross-platform, so you’re leaving yourself open to options by choosing it. If you later switch to a MacBook or Chromebook, you’ll still have full access and functionality. It also works well on iPads and other tablets, in case you like to review notes on such devices. Further reading: The best note-taking apps for college students Microsoft Office for assignments Chris Hoffman / IDG Microsoft’s full-blown Microsoft Office suite with Word, Excel, and PowerPoint normally costs money, but many colleges provide it to students free or charge as part of an agreement with Microsoft. Check with your college acquiring a free educational license for Office. You can also head to Microsoft’s Office 365 Education website and plug in your school email address to see if you get it for free that way. Even if you can’t get Office for free, you can still use Word and other Office apps for free in a web browser or subscribe for $3 per month with a student discount. Microsoft To Do for task management Microsoft A task management app is essential for keeping track of due dates and staying on top of deadlines. If you’re deep into Google apps, you may want to use Google Tasks which is built into Gmail and Google Calendar. Otherwise, I recommend Microsoft To Do. This 100% free to-do app comes included with Windows, and it’s also available on Android and iPhone devices. It’s a powerful, easy-to-use tool that’s packed with features, including collaboration. (You can create a shared task list with a roommate or project partner!) Grammarly or Microsoft Editor for writing assistance and suggestions Chris Hoffman / IDG Many students use writing assistants to polish up their essays, and Grammarly is the premier writing assistant. It’s available both as a browser extension and a Windows app, with the Windows app conveniently integrating with other apps like Microsoft Word. Anyone can use Grammarly Free to get instant access to basic grammar checking and suggestions, but Grammarly Premium with AI writing suggestions costs extra. Some schools offer Grammarly Premium for free to students, but not all of them do. You can also use the Microsoft Editor browser extension, which is completely free and provides similar writing suggestions in your browser. iCloud for Windows to sync your iPhone and Apple services to PC Apple If you’re an iPhone user, I highly recommend installing Apple’s iCloud for Windows app. It provides several integrations with the Apple services you’re probably using on your phone. With it, you can see your iCloud Photos in the Windows Photos app, browse your iCloud Drive files in File Explorer, access your bookmarks in your web browser, and get access to your iCloud Keychain passwords. Quick Share and Phone Link to sync your Android phone to PC Chris Hoffman / IDG If you’re an Android phone user, check out the Google Quick Share app. It integrates your Windows PC with the Quick Share functionality on Android phones so you can wirelessly send files back and forth between PC and phone. It works with Samsung Galaxy, Google Pixel, and more. Microsoft’s Phone Link feature, which is included with Windows, is also very useful if you have an Android phone. You can send text messages, take calls, manage notifications, and view/download photos from your phone’s camera roll, all from your PC. (It kind of works with iPhones too, but it works best with Android phones.) DaVinci Resolve for video editing Blackmagic Design When it comes to video editing, your mind likely goes right to professional software like Adobe Premiere Pro and Final Cut Pro. Those may cost a pretty penny, but there’s an excellent alternative that’s just as good (mostly) and completely free: DaVinci Resolve. DaVinci Resolve is an extremely capable, industry-standard video editing and post-processing tool that’s actually used by professionals. It might actually be overboard if you’re just looking to edit a few clips, although I know some hobbyists who prefer it anyway. If you’re interested in video editing or post-production work and you’re on a tight budget, you owe it to yourself to try DaVinci Resolve. Adobe Photoshop Express for simple photo editing Chris Hoffman / IDG The Photos app built into Windows is a surprisingly capable tool for performing basic photo edits. But Adobe’s free Photoshop Express app is another great tool for quick photo touchups. With Photoshop Express, you can crop images, apply effects and filters, fix red-eye issues, and touch-up blemishes. This free photo-editing tool is meant to be simple and quick, so keep your expectations in check. For more powerful photo editing, you’ll have to look elsewhere. Adobe Photoshop isn’t free for students, but Adobe does offer a student discount on its Creative Cloud plans. Spotify for music streaming Spotify While Spotify has competition, it’s still the music streaming service. It has a high-quality Windows app (not just a web player) that integrates nicely with your PC. Unlike some of its competitors, Spotify offers free music streaming to everyone — you just need to listen to some ads. If those ads are a problem, you can get a student discount with the Spotify Premium for Students plan, which is $5.99 per month and comes with Hulu. (The bundled Hulu account does have ads, but the Spotify Premium account you get doesn’t have ads.) VLC for all-in-one video playback VLC Windows has a capable built-in video player these days, and there’s a good chance you don’t even need it because you’re probably doing most of your watching on YouTube, Netflix, and the like. But if you do find yourself viewing a lot of video files — especially videos in many different formats — then I have to recommend VLC. It’s been the go-to video player for decades. It’s the Swiss Army knife of media players that can play anything you throw at it. WizTree for freeing up drive space WizTree While Windows provides some built-in tools for clearing up space on your computer’s storage, one of the best ways to find out what’s using up all your space is to use WizTree, a free disk space analyzing tool that shows you — visually — how your space is used up. WizTree is the fastest way to analyze your disk space usage on Windows. With a quick scan, you can see exactly which files and folders are clogging up your drives, so you know exactly what you need to free up for the most impact right away. Perhaps you need to uninstall a particularly massive video game? Or maybe you have big media files lying around from a project? WizTree makes it easy to spot it all at a glance. VMware Workstation for virtual machines Christoph Hoffmann You may or may not need virtual machine software depending on your college major, but if you’re studying Computer Science or another along those lines, you might benefit from using virtual machines. Virtual machine software lets you install an operating system within your current operating system, essentially running an isolated instance of that OS within its own sandbox environment. This is a great way to install a full Linux system without giving up Windows, for example. (Or use the Windows Subsystem for Linux feature to run Linux apps on Windows.) VMware Workstation was, until very recently, a paid app. Broadcom now offers it free for personal use. It will likely be your best bet if you’re looking for a virtual machine application. Further reading: How to set up virtual machines with VMware Microsoft PowerToys for various useful tools and features Chris Hoffman / IDG Microsoft PowerToys is a collection of useful power-user tools that you probably didn’t know you needed. It’s packed with nifty utilities that can make your life easier, and they all come bundled together in one convenient (and free) package that’s easy to install. With PowerToys, you can do things like remapping keys on your keyboard (so they function as other keys), bulk rename lots of files at once, get a color-picking tool that gives you the color code for anything on your screen, and so many other useful things. And there you have it! A full assortment of free apps that’ll make your life as a college student that much more productive and enjoyable. For more software recommendations, check out our roundup of useful free apps that are already installed on your Windows PC. Read...

TL;DR: Windows 11 Pro is just $14.97 — unlock smoother gaming, AI Copilot, and stronger security. A new GPU might be out of budget, but a $14.97 upgrade to Windows 11 Pro could be all your PC needs to feel brand new. For a one-time payment, you’ll get serious gaming enhancements, smart AI tools, and enterprise-grade security — no expensive hardware changes required. DirectX 12 Ultimate comes baked in, delivering higher frame rates, real-time ray tracing, and lower latency for your favorite titles. Add in AutoHDR and DirectStorage, and you’ll see faster load times and sharper visuals across the board. Need help with productivity? Windows Copilot, powered by OpenAI, can assist with everything from summarizing web pages to writing emails or generating content on demand, all right from your desktop. Unlock a suite of pro-level features ??? Snap Layouts and Virtual Desktops for better multitasking ?? Remote Desktop Access to use your PC from anywhere ?? BitLocker, TPM 2.0, and Secure Boot for top-tier data protection ?? Hyper-V and Windows Sandbox for safe testing and virtualization ?? Microsoft Teams is built in for smooth collaboration And here’s something you can’t ignore — Windows 10 support officially ends in October 2025, meaning no more security updates or patches. You’ll have to upgrade eventually. So upgrade on the cheap — Windows 11 Pro today for $14.97. Microsoft Windows 11 ProSee Deal StackSocial prices subject to change. Read...

Smartwatch features from Apple and Samsung now help detect signs of sleep apnoea, raising awareness of this common but underdiagnosed disorder in adults. Read...

Maybe it was the sight of Sengled users literally left in the dark by their useless Wi-Fi bulbs, maybe it was another price hike, or just an overall sense that my smart devices weren’t truly under my control. Whatever the reason, I’d developed a growing desire to build a smart home setup that wasn’t a hostage to the cloud.  Specifically, I’m talking about a locally hosted smart home setup, and I’m currently in the process of building one. And while I’m a smart home expert thanks to my six years’ experience here at TechHive, I’m quickly realizing how much I still don’t know as I tackle the steep learning curve of a DIY smart home.  This isn’t a step-by-step guide of how to build your own smart home system—that might come later—but more of a journal about where I am in my self-hosted smart home journey, where I started, and what I’m hoping to achieve. If you’ve been harboring similar thoughts and my story gives you some inspiration, all the better.  I was a complete smart home novice when I started here at TechHive; I’d been writing about computers and technology for 20 years but had never installed a smart bulb before, much less a smart home hub. Over time, my apartment became stuffed with smart devices, from Alexa speakers and Google displays to Philips Hue bulbs and even a Ring video doorbell. My dumb home was rapidly becoming smart.  What I didn’t like was how smart systems I’d grown accustomed to changed when one manufacturer or another would randomly redesign an app, throwing my smart home workflow into chaos. Nor did I like the occasional server outages that left me unable to control my devices, nor the features that were unceremoniously placed behind paywalls. Oh, and don’t forget the price hikes. Stumbling into self-hosted smart home  I stumbled into the self-hosted smart home world by accident. I was experimenting with an unused Raspberry Pi a few years back (this was before I wound up with four of the diminutive computer boards running on my network) and noticed an option to install something called Home Assistant. Sounded kinda cool, so I tried it, and was astonished to have a Home Assistant instance spun up in minutes.  Easy, right? Not quite. Sure, getting Home Assistant—an open-source smart home platform that offers scores of integrations and boasts hundreds of avid contributors—up and running isn’t a big deal. Getting it configured, though, takes gumption, experimentation, and patience, the latter quality being among those I could use more of. Instead of depending on the cloud, my work-in-progress smart home setup runs on this little Raspberry Pi board.Ben Patterson/Foundry See, Home Assistant is pretty good about pinging your local network and seeing which devices, smart or otherwise, can be set up on the platform. But once you add all those products to a default Home Assistant dashboard, it’s up to you to get them organized and working together. Home Assistant gives you tons of freedom to arrange your devices in practically any way you see fit, but the massive range of options—not to mention dozens of drop-down menus and settings with arcane labels—can be intimidating.  Dealing with the learning curve  That’s why every few months or so, I’d give Home Assistant another go, tinkering away at a custom dashboard but eventually getting nowhere. A proprietary smart ecosystem like Philips Hue, in contrast, is incredibly intuitive and a cinch to set up. The downside of Hue, Ring, and other closed platforms is that you’re subject to their ever-changing whims, whereas your Home Assistant setup is yours—provided you can get it set up.  In the past few weeks, though, things have begun to accelerate. I recently migrated my Home Assistant instance to a more powerful Raspberry Pi 5 (my old Pi 3 just didn’t have the horsepower or the RAM to keep Home Assistant stable), and later I acquired some Z-Wave hardware that basically turned my Pi into a Z-Wave hub.  Next, I spun up a Matter server on the Pi and began controlling my Thread devices directly on Home Assistant, right alongside my Z-Wave products. For now, my Thread setup depends on an Apple HomePod mini and its Thread border router, which requires signing into my Apple account; eventually, I plan on adding a dedicated Thread module to my Home Assistant rig to cut that tie to the cloud.  Just a little help from my (AI) friends  Finally, it was time to deal with that pesky dashboard again, but this time I brought reinforcements—you guessed it, we’re talking ChatGPT. I fed the chatbot a lengthy list of all the devices registered on my Home Assistant instance, and the AI dutifully spat out a raw YAML configuration file. (YAML is a programming language, and the acronym stands for YAML Ain’t Markup Language). I plugged in the code, and voilà—a multi-tabbed dashboard appeared with most of my devices and automations neatly displayed. ChatGPT’s work wasn’t perfect; there’s one tab filled with misconfiguration errors, and some of the tabs aren’t laid out exactly as I’d like. But it’s a starting point—and more importantly, I can study ChatGPT’s work and learn how to do it on my own.  Taking the next step  So, what’s next? A Zigbee module, for starters—and then, if I’m really ambitious, I might unpair my Phillips Hue lights from the Hue Bridge (which, naturally, depends on a cloud connection) and re-pair them directly to the local Zigbee hub. Doing so would mean losing all the extra functionality in the Hue app—no more nifty animations, for example, and so long music syncing—but it would also mean not caring about whether the Hue servers are up or down. (To be fair, Philips Hue servers rarely suffer any hiccups at all, or at least not in my experience.) A steeper hill to climb involves using a voice assistant powered by local AI to control my devices. Home Assistant offers integrations for all the big AI providers, including OpenAI and Google Gemini, as well as Ollama, an app that allows local hardware to run large-language AI models.  But configuring local LLMs to deal with dozens of smart home devices has been a surprisingly tricky task. My locally hosted AI models have routinely choked on the more than 100 entities that are exposed to my Home Assistant instance, so my next task will be to pare down and subdivide that total into bite-sized pieces, as well as to craft a system prompt that will help the AI reliably understand the meaning and intention of my typed commands. (Speech-to-text voice control on Home Assistant requires either local processing, which is an awful lot for my local hardware to take on, or an optional $6.50/month cloud subscription.)  So yes, a locally hosted smart home system like Home Assistant isn’t for everyone. For an easier experience, consider Hubitat, a locally hosted but closed-source smart home system that has a large cadre of fans. (I’ve never tried it, but our reviewer deemed it “impractical” in his 2021 evaluation. We’re way overdue for another look at that, as well as a couple of other newish hubs.) But if you’re ever shaken your fist at a smart home manufacturer for redesigning its app, raising subscription fees, or permanently bricking one of your devices, a self-hosted smart home system is the best revenge.  This story is part of TechHive’s in-depth coverage of the best smart home systems. Read...

At a glanceExpert`s Rating Pros Works with most streaming sites Easy-to-use app Recent app developments point to a bright future Cons No independent audit Small server network Feature set not as robust as some competitors Our Verdict OysterVPN is obviously working very hard to bolster its services with the recent additions of cloud storage and a password manager, which makes it a VPN to watch. However, a small server network and lack of independent audit need to be addressed before it can rank among the best. Price When Reviewed This value will show the geolocated pricing text for product undefined Best Pricing Today Lifetime Plan$59.991-Year Plan$39.99Monthly Plan$5.99 OysterVPN in brief: P2P allowed: Yes Simultaneous device connections: 5 Business location: Dublin, Ireland Number of servers: 441+ Number of country locations: 35+ Cost: $5.99 per month, $39.99 for 1-year, or $59.99 for a lifetime subscription OysterVPN is a relatively new VPN provider based in Dublin, Ireland, that started in 2023. It has quickly expanded its offerings, which now includes a password manager and cloud storage, in order to distinguish itself in a crowded market. But as a relatively small provider, how does it stack up against the most popular VPN services? In my testing I found that it definitely has potential, with decent speeds, a sleek app that’s easy to use, and the ability to effectively unblock most streaming sites. However, there is still room for improvement to its small server network and lack of any published independent security audits.  Read on to learn more, then see our roundup of the best VPN services for comparison. What are OysterVPN’s features and services? At first blush, OysterVPN might seem a little light on features. But if you look at the service as a whole, you’ll find that it does a pretty good job of including all the basics you need from a VPN. It isn’t entirely fair to compare it apples-to-apples against top competitors such as NordVPN and ExpressVPN, which have a ton of extra security features that aren’t necessarily relevant to a VPN’s main purpose. Plus, these other services have been on the market way longer and have had time to establish and test these extra features. OysterVPN, on the other hand, is relatively new. Since entering the VPN market just over two years ago, it has pushed hard to continuously roll out new features for its app—the latest of which are cloud storage and a password manager. Just in the last year, the service has added support for more protocols—including WireGuard–expanded its server network, introduced a split-tunneling feature, and increased the number of supported platforms for its app. Still, it does lack a few VPN features that many users crave. For example, there are no double VPN (or multihop) connections and simultaneous connections are limited to just five devices at a time. That is half of the 10 simultaneous device connections most providers offer and a far cry from services such as Surfshark and IPVanish which allow for unlimited connections. OysterVPN’s app is straightforward and easy to use. Sam Singleton A highlight, though, is OysterVPN’s app interface. When you first open the VPN in Windows you’re taken to a clean-looking home screen split between a column on the left for the server locations and a connection status column on the right. Along the lefthand siderail, you’ll find options for Account information and a Settings menu.  While OysterVPN’s server selection is rather small at just over 400 (at the time of writing), the server menu does indicate streaming-specific servers and does a good job of recommending optimized servers based on your physical location. The “All locations” server menu however isn’t easily sortable or filterable and for some reason wasn’t automatically alphabetized for easy scrolling either.  The settings menu for OysterVPN offers all of the basics such as a kill switch, split tunneling, and protocols.Sam Singleton Under the settings menu you’ll find menus for “Auto-Connect,” “Network Protection,” “Split Tunneling,” and “Protocols.” Under the network protection menu you toggle a full-internet kill switch on or off.  The split tunneling feature is very nice to have as it allows you to pick and choose which app or websites to run through your VPN connection and which to keep separate. This is a nifty way to optimize your connection by routing things you want to keep private, like your browser activity, through a VPN while keeping apps like games outside of it to reduce lag. OysterVPN does offer DDoS protection, making it an enticing option for gamers. Many VPNs safeguard against DDoS attacks just by their very nature, but OysterVPN goes further by actively monitoring and filtering out malicious traffic—such as DDoS attacks—across its servers. For certain gamers this can be a godsend, but everyone should be aware of both the pros and cons of gaming with a VPN before committing. OysterVPN, just like the other best VPNs for torrenting, allows P2P file transfers across all of its servers. There is no option to manually configure SOCKS5 proxies, though. OysterVPN is available for Windows, macOS, iOS, Android, Linux, FireTV, and some browsers including Chrome, Firefox, and Edge. How much does OysterVPN cost? OysterVPN offers budget-friendly pricing that won’t break the bank and even includes an option for a lifetime subscription. Sam Singleton OysterVPN offers three different plan lengths: month-to-month, 1-year, and a lifetime option. The month-to-month plan will set you back $5.99 per month and you’ll get two extra months thrown in for free when you sign up. With this plan you get access to the complete VPN, but not the cloud storage or password manager. The 1-year plan is $39.99, or $3.33 per month, and comes with the VPN and access to the password manager. The lifetime subscription is a one-time payment of $59.99 and comes with one year of 1TB cloud storage. I don’t typically recommend that people opt for lifetime subscriptions to VPNs as there is always a chance that the service will unexpectedly close up shop or its circumstances will change—as has happened recently with BulletVPN and VPNSecure. Still, if you’re willing to risk it, OysterVPN’s lifetime price is pretty affordable. Just be aware that lifetime plans truly mean the lifetime of the service, not your lifetime. Otherwise, the low monthly and yearly prices are tempting for a full VPN service that offers the feature-set that Oyster does. The monthly price in particular is appealing as it’s only half of what most other competitors are charging. The low monthly and yearly prices are tempting for a full VPN service that offers the feature-set that Oyster does. How is OysterVPN’s performance? As always, when testing a VPN’s speeds I measure connection speeds across its servers in different countries all around the world for multiple days and then average them by location and compare them to my baseline internet speed. OysterVPN’s speeds were decent enough in my testing. The average download speed while connected was 51 percent of the base. That’s not bad, but it also isn’t enough to crack the list of fastest VPNs, either. In particular, I was impressed with the speeds on its U.S. servers. Across OysterVPN’s U.S. servers I noticed a much higher average download speed of 60 percent. Upload speeds were a different story though. The average upload speeds only came in at 38 percent of the base speeds. That is a bit disappointing and may make it difficult if you want to upload large files or use video chat while connected to the VPN.  When it comes to unblocking streaming content, OysterVPN did pretty well. Using its streaming-specific VPN servers, I was able to seamlessly access and watch content from Netflix U.S., Amazon Prime, Hulu, and even the notoriously difficult HBO Max. I did hit a snag with Disney+ where I kept running into an error. Also, DAZN worked with some servers, but didn’t work with others. This isn’t to say that the server won’t work for you, though, as streaming sites and VPNs are always in flux—VPNs are constantly rotating around IP addresses and using obfuscated servers to circumvent streaming site blacklists. By and large, streaming with OysterVPN was smooth and reliable. You can check out my list of the best VPNs for streaming if you’re looking for even more great services that work with streaming sites. How is OysterVPN’s security and privacy? OysterVPN recently updated its service to offer the WireGuard protocol, which is currently one of the fastest and most secure protocols available.Sam Singleton OysterVPN employs the industry-standard 256-bit AES encryption. It also offers a large selection of protocols to connect with including IKEv2, OpenVPN, PPTP, L2TP/IPSec, and WireGuard—just implemented in the last year. That’s actually more options than many competitors. While I recommend that most people stick with WireGuard, power users will appreciate the abundance of protocols to choose from. When I tested the service for DNS and IPv6 leaks, I found no leaks on any of its servers. These leaks can potentially expose your real IP address thereby compromising your privacy and defeating the purpose of a VPN. As a result, you can feel confident privately and securely browsing while connected to OysterVPN’s servers. The service claims to abide by a zero-logs policy, but they haven’t yet published an independent audit to verify these claims. That doesn’t mean it hasn’t undergone an audit, but until it publicly releases this information, it’s hard to verify this claim. For now, you’ll just have to take its word for it that user data is not stored or logged—something that doesn’t really assuage privacy concerns. According to its Privacy Policy, OysterVPN does not collect or store “information on user activity, such as the websites, apps, or online services they visit, the online content a user engages with through clicking, playing, downloading, or uploading, or the information they enter into such online websites, apps or services.” It does collect some basic information such as user payment method and email, connection timestamps, and which VPN servers and IP addresses were used—seemingly to help optimize server load in the future. OysterVPN is based in Dublin, Ireland, which not only enjoys privacy-friendly laws, but also isn’t a member of the Five, Nine, or Fourteen Eyes data sharing alliances. This is a big win for privacy-conscious users as it means that there is no legal mandate that would force OysterVPN to retain or share user data with any governments. Is OysterVPN worth it? Overall, OysterVPN is a good budget-friendly option that is only getting better with each passing year. The recent additions of the WireGuard protocol, a password manager, and cloud storage are all signs that the company is serious about investing in the future of this VPN. Despite it being a relatively new service, it’ll provide a good VPN experience for most users, even if it still lacks a few tools. It provides decent enough speeds, works with most streaming platforms, and comes with robust security features—ticking all of the boxes for the basics you’d want from a VPN. However, its server network and feature set are both still small in comparison to competitors. The lack of any published independent audit is also a concern. Still, OysterVPN is well worth checking out as an alternative service thanks to its ease-of-use and affordability. It’s also one to watch for the future. Editor’s note: Because online services are often iterative, gaining new features and performance improvements over time, this review is subject to change in order to accurately reflect the current state of the service. Any changes to text or our final review verdict will be noted at the top of this article. Read...

Earlier this month, Microsoft announced via admin center message that certain existing features will no longer be available in older versions of Office 365 apps starting end of January 2026. The change is due to a backend service update that impacts these features. For the first time, a regular Office update will be mandatory for all users. The affected features include Transcription, Dictation, and Read Aloud. Transcription and Dictation are only available in Word, while Read Aloud is available in Word, Outlook, PowerPoint, and OneNote. To continue using these features, you will need to update your Office 365 to at least version 16.0.18827.20202 by end of January 2026. If you’re the admin of an organization, Microsoft advises that you should take action by checking your organization’s Office version and updating well ahead of time. Without updating, these features will stop working altogether; meanwhile, the update itself is straightforward and brings with it several new features and security improvements. This measure is another move by Microsoft to free up resources for current services by dropping support for older services. Users with outdated installations risk not only missing features but also security vulnerabilities. Switching to Microsoft 365 or alternative Office solutions could be an option for those affected. Read...

At a glanceExpert`s Rating Pros Attractive, classy exterior design Broad suite of smart TV features Excellent contrast and color performance 165Hz refresh rate with FreeSync, G-Sync support Includes 4K webcam and dual-mic array Cons Limited ergonomic stand adjustment Confusing options and menu system Downstream USB connectivity is just two USB-A 2.0 ports HDR brightness fails to impress Our Verdict The Samsung Smart Monitor M9 is basically a 32-inch smart OLED TV, with most of the features you would expect a TV to have. That’s great if you want to stream Netflix or a cloud gaming service, but it leads to confusing menus and design quirks. Price When Reviewed This value will show the geolocated pricing text for product undefined Best Pricing Today Best Prices Today: Samsung Smart Monitor M9 Retailer Price $1,599.99 View Deal $1599.99 View Deal Price comparison from over 24,000 stores worldwide Product Price Price comparison from Backmarket Best Prices Today: Check today’s prices Want a 32-inch smart television with good image quality? Or a 32-inch OLED monitor that you can use for Netflix and cloud gaming even when your PC is turned off? The Samsung Smart Monitor M9 might be your solution. This smart monitor has Samsung’s Tizen OS and supports all the features and functionality you’d expect of a Samsung television—for better, and sometimes, for worse. Read on to learn more, then see our roundup of the best monitors for comparison. Samsung Smart Monitor M9 specs and features The Samsung Smart Monitor M9’s basic specifications are typical for a 32-inch OLED, though just a tad underwhelming. It offers 4K resolution, but the maximum resolution is 165Hz (some competitors reach 240Hz). The monitor supports HDR10+, but not Dolby Vision. And while it supports USB-C upstream input with 90 watts of power, it has limited downstream USB connectivity. Display size: 31.5-inch 16:9 aspect ratio Native resolution: 3840×2160 Panel type: QD-OLED (matte) Refresh rate: 165Hz Adaptive sync: Yes, AMD FreeSync Premium Pro and Nvidia G-Sync Compatible HDR: Yes, HDR10+ Ports: 1x HDMI 2.1, 1x DisplayPort 1.4, 1x USB-C with 90 watts of Power Delivery, 2x USB-A 2.0 downstream Audio: 2x 10-watt speakers Additional features: Tizen OS, remote control, 4K webcam and dual-microphone array, Wi-Fi 5, Bluetooth 5.2 Price: $1599.99 MSRP, $1,299.99 typical retail However, the Smart Monitor M9 has what most 32-inch OLED monitors lack—a smart TV operating system. Specifically, it ships with Samsung’s Tizen OS. To support that, it also has a remote control, Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth. A webcam with microphone is thrown in for good measure. The Smart Monitor M9 has a retail MSRP of $1,599.99, but it doesn’t appear to retail at that price often. It’s frequently discounted to $1,299.99. That’s a bit expensive for a 32-inch OLED monitor, but in line with premium competitors like the HP Omen Transcend 32 and LG Ultragear 32GS95UE-B (neither of which have smart TV features). Samsung Smart Monitor M9 design The Samsung Smart Monitor M9 leans on a conservative, classy design that doesn’t take risks but should look good in any situation. From the front it’s almost all screen, aside from the top bezel, where a webcam lurks. Around back it’s an expanse of gunmetal materials, mostly plastic, which are understated but look expensive. The panel is quite thin, too, and while it does have a bump-out that contains the ports, it’s small and unobtrusive. Matthew Smith / Foundry The monitor ships with an L-shaped stand that has a compact, flat base that won’t take up much space on a desk. Annoyingly, though, the stand requires a screwdriver to assemble (most monitor stands use a thumb screw). While the stand provides ergonomic adjustment, it’s not great. It adjusts 120mm for height and can also pivot 90 degrees. However, it can’t actually be used in portrait mode because the amount of height adjustment available doesn’t hold the display high enough off a desk to support portrait mode. Instead, the edge of the display will run into your desk at around 60 degrees of rotation. The stand allows tilt but doesn’t swivel, which most 32-inch monitor stands support. The monitor is also compatible with 100x100mm VESA mounts for use with third-party monitor arms and stands. Samsung Smart Monitor M9 connectivity The back of the Samsung Smart Monitor M9 provides three video inputs. One HDMI 2.1, one DisplayPort 1.4, and one USB-C with DisplayPort. All three support the monitor’s maximum refresh rate and resolution, though only in Game Mode (the maximum outside Game Mode is 120Hz). Three video inputs are typical for the category, though some, like the HP Omen Transcend 32, provide four. Connecting to the USB-C port also provides 90 watts of USB Power Delivery, which is enough to power many mid-range Windows laptops, and most MacBooks. The USB-C port provides downstream access to a pair of USB-A ports. They’re only USB-A 2.0, though, so they’re mostly there for a wired keyboard and mouse. That makes the Smart Monitor M9’s connectivity a bit of a mix. On the one hand, it provides a good variety of inputs and USB-C with Power Delivery, which is a must-have on a monitor in this price range. But it’s outclassed by monitors like the HP Omen Transcend 32, which not only has more video inputs, but also has USB-C with 140 watts of power. The LG UltraGear 32GS95UE-B also has a slight advantage, as its USB-A ports are at least USB 3.0, and it has a 3.5mm audio-out, which the Smart Monitor M9 lacks. Samsung Smart Monitor M9 Smart TV features The “Smart” in the Samsung Smart Monitor M9’s name means it ships with Samsung’s Tizen OS, the same operating system found on the company’s smart televisions. And much like on smart televisions, Tizen provides access to a huge range of apps and services. You can watch Netflix or play cloud gaming services like Amazon Luna, among other things. Put simply: The Smart Monitor M9 is a smart TV. In fact, it’s arguably more than that. It can even access some productivity apps, like Microsoft 365, so you can sorta-kinda use the monitor like a computer. You can use the Smart Monitor M9 to control Samsung SmartThings devices, too. Remember, though, that because it lacks a TV tuner, the Smart Monitor M9 can’t natively handle an over-the-air or coaxial cable TV signal. I go back and forth on how Samsung’s Tizen OS compares to LG’s WebOS, found on monitors like the LG MyView Smart Monitor 32SR85U, and Google TV OS, found on monitors like the MSI Modern MD272UPSW. Tizen OS is certainly the busiest of the three, in no small part due to the range of Samsung features that are integrated (you can use some Samsung phones to calibrate the monitor, for example, though you can also use some iPhones). That’s handy if you’re all-in on the Samsung ecosystem. If not, it can prove distracting. Matthew Smith / Foundry Unfortunately, the smart monitor features mean that setup is much more complicated than most monitors. It’s a multi-step process that involves Wi-Fi, Samsung accounts, terms of service, and more. I finished setup in about 5 minutes, but it’s sure to annoy those who just want a monitor to be plug-and-play. Oh—and what about the 4K webcam? It’s an odd inclusion but also a nice bonus. The webcam is available as a plug-and-play camera for any PC connected to the monitor’s USB-C port. That’s handy and, better still, both the camera and microphone array provide better quality than a run-of-the-mill webcam. It’s not perfect; the webcam lacks a physical privacy shutter, and the default field-of-view is strangely wide. Still, it’s nice to have if you regularly use a webcam to take video calls at your desk. Samsung Smart Monitor M9 menus and settings Smart TV features aside, the Samsung Smart Monitor M9 provides a decent range of image quality adjustment. There are options for gamma, color temperature, color calibration, and several preset modes that target specific color space. The menu system is confusing, however. Samsung inexplicably constrains the menu to a small portion of the display, so there’s not enough space to list the full text of some menu items (they instead scroll). I also noticed that many menu options, like fine-grain color temperature adjustments, are locked behind specific modes, while others are listed yet didn’t seem accessible. The monitor’s manual wasn’t helpful, either. Samsung, like LG, also makes the strange decision to summon an alternative menu when Game Mode is turned on. The menu is arranged differently and highlights different options, adding to the confusion. Game Mode is also required to access the 165Hz refresh rate. In summary: The menu system is a bit of a mess. The same is also true of LG webOS smart monitors, but I think Samsung’s menu system might be even worse. Both Samsung and LG would do well to re-think their menu systems. At the very least, can we get a menu large enough to list the full text of the options on-screen and ditch the weird alternate menu system for Game Mode? The Samsung Smart Monitor M9 isn’t a gaming monitor, but it still provides a respectable maximum refresh rate of 165Hz. Samsung Smart Monitor M9 audio The Samsung Smart Monitor M9 ships with 10-watt speakers that provide adequate audio. They are clear, crisp, and enjoyable at lower levels of volume, but quickly become muddy and harsh as volume levels ramp up. I’m honestly a bit perplexed as to why Samsung even allows the speakers to become as loud as they can, as they’re obviously not up to the task of delivering quality audio at anything above roughly half the speaker’s maximum volume. Despite that, it’s worth mention that many competitors don’t even have built-in speakers, and those that do have them are often worse. The HP Omen Transcend 32 has a pair of 3-watt speakers and the Alienware AW3225QF doesn’t have speakers at all. The Smart Monitor M9’s audio is fine for less demanding situations. For example, they were enjoyable when playing Rimworld and listening to podcasts on YouTube. LG’s Ultragear 32GS95UE-B, which has an innovative “Pixel Sound” system, is the one competitor that puts the Smart Monitor M9’s audio to shame. The LG 32GS95UE-B is not a smart monitor, though, and it’s usually $100 more expensive than the Samsung.   Samsung Smart Monitor M9 SDR image quality The Samsung Smart Monitor M9 of course has a Samsung QD-OLED panel. QD-OLED is a known quantity at this point. It consistently provides great performance, so much so that I’ve argued it doesn’t really matter which OLED monitor you buy—at least, not when it comes to SDR image quality. The Smart Monitor M9 does little to disprove that point, but it looks great. It also has a matte display finish, which is unusual for an OLED and will make or break the display for some. Matthew Smith / Foundry The Samsung Smart Monitor M9 produced a sustained SDR brightness of 252 nits. As the graph shows, that’s typical and mid-pack for an OLED monitor, with most falling between 240 and 260 nits. That level of brightness is fine for indoor use in a room with light control, but it might seem dim in a very brightly lit room, or opposite a sunlit window. With that said, the Smart Monitor M9 has a matte coat, which is unusual. The coat effectively diffuses reflections, which makes it easier to see the monitor in bright rooms, or when a bright light source is opposite the display. On the downside, though, it will make the monitor seem a bit less contrast-rich than a glossy alternative. I prefer a matte coat over glossy, but your opinion may vary, and it’s a key point. The matte display finish might be the reason you choose the Smart Monitor M9, or avoid it, depending on your preference. Matthew Smith / Foundry While the matte coat can reduce apparent contrast due to how it diffuses light across the display, the Smart Monitor M9 still provides the same infinite contrast ratio as other OLED displays. That’s true because it reached a perfect minimum luminance of zero nits. As a result, it provides a rich and immersive image with a good sense of dimensionality. The same is true of all modern OLED monitors, however. The contrast ratio, though obviously excellent, doesn’t set the Smart Monitor M9 apart from the pack. Matthew Smith / Foundry QD-OLED monitors are excellent in color gamut, providing a wide color gamut that displays many colors. As a result, the Smart Monitor M9 can display 100 percent of the sRGB color gamut, 98 percent of DCI-P3, and 94 percent of AdobeRGB. The monitor looks vivid and saturated. However, once again, the Smart Monitor M9’s excellent performance doesn’t separate it from the pack. All QD-OLED monitors have similar color gamut. Monitors with an LG WOLED panel fall a bit behind QD-OLED, though their color gamut is still solid overall. Matthew Smith / Foundry The Smart Monitor M9 also has excellent color accuracy straight out of the box. While keen users with specific needs may want to calibrate it to reach certain standards, the default image is exceptionally accurate for general use. The monitor’s color error is more prominent in grayscale than it is in color, which contributes to a default gamma curve value of 2.3. That means the image is a bit darker than intended. It’s a small difference but might result in some slight loss of shadow detail in uniformly dark scenes. Color temperature, on the other hand, was spot on the target value of 6500K. That means the image doesn’t look too warm or too cool. Sharpness is a perk. The native resolution of 3840×2160 works out to about 140 pixels per inch across the 31.5-inch OLED panel. Though obviously not as sharp as a 27-inch 4K display, it’s still an excellent pixel density that looks sharp in everything from games to Microsoft Word. In summary, the Samsung Smart Monitor M9’s SDR image is exactly as excellent as expected. It performs identically to other QD-OLED monitors. The only major difference is subjective: the matte display finish. Whether you like that, or not, will depend on your own preference. Samsung Smart Monitor M9 HDR image quality The Samsung Smart Monitor M9 is VESA DisplayHDR 400 True Black certified. That’s typical for a QD-OLED monitor. However, it turns out that HDR brightness is a downside for the Smart Monitor M9. Matthew Smith / Foundry I tried the Smart Monitor M9 in all available HDR modes, but it never crept much higher than 450 nits even in peak highlights. Lighting a larger area of the display led to even lower HDR brightness, which is typical for an OLED monitor. That’s not to say the Smart Monitor M9 looks bad in HDR. It still has the contrast and color performance needed to deliver a vibrant, saturated, accurate image. However, the lack of brightness will be noticeable in bright HDR highlights. In the Gargantua scene from Interstellar, for example, I noticed less detail in the bright swirling gasses closest to the black hole. Subtle variations in brightness that are visible on some other OLED monitors weren’t visible on the Smart Monitor M9. On one final note, the Samsung Smart Monitor M9 does allow brightness adjustment in HDR mode. While increasingly common, not all monitors allow this, as HDR typically controls brightness based on content. For a monitor, however, full brightness control is preferable, and I am glad to see the Smart Monitor M9 provides it. Samsung Smart Monitor M9 motion performance The Samsung Smart Monitor M9 isn’t a gaming monitor, but it still provides a respectable maximum refresh rate of 165Hz. That’s not as good as 32-inch OLED gaming monitors, which tend to hit 240Hz, but it still provides a major boost in motion clarity over a 60Hz display. Fast-moving objects look crisp and fast camera pans in 3D games provide respectable detail. The difference between the Smart Monitor M9’s 165Hz refresh rate and a superior 240Hz monitor is most noticeable when viewing small text or UI elements. If you’re trying to track the HP bar or status icons above an enemy, for example, it can be a bit more difficult on the Smart Monitor M9 than on a 240Hz alternative, like the HP Omen Transcend 32 or Alienware AW3225QF. Of course, those alternatives aren’t smart monitors, so you’ll have to make a choice between motion clarity and smart features. Adaptive Sync is supported on the Smart Monitor M9, and it even lists official support for AMD FreeSync Premium Pro and Nvidia G-Sync Compatible. That’s great to see in a monitor that doesn’t bill itself as a gaming display. Should you buy the Samsung Smart Monitor M9? Samsung’s Smart Monitor M9 is a bundle of perks and downsides that make for a confusing recommendation. The monitor has a confusing menu system, limited downstream connectivity, and mediocre HDR brightness. However, it also packs useful smart TV features, complete with remote control, and has a rare (for OLED) matte display finish that reduces glare and makes the monitor more viewable in brighter room. Deciding whether the Smart Monitor M9 works for you requires careful consideration of these perks and problems. It can work as a TV alternative in small spaces, has the color performance for creative work, and a matte coat that looks great when writing in Word or browsing the web. But if you want an OLED monitor largely for PC gaming, or HDR entertainment, you’ll find better performance elsewhere. Read...

I’m typing this on the world’s first rollable laptop. With an OLED display that extends upwards at the push of a button, it feels like something you’d see in a science fiction show—or like a tech demo you’d see at CES that would be too costly to produce and sell. But it’s here! Should you buy one yourself? Probably not. It’s beyond the average laptop buyer’s price range! But that’s not the point. The point is that it’s new and exciting. It’s experimental, it’s interesting, and it’s fun. You aren’t stuck with a one-size-fits-all idea of what a computer can be, which is what you get when you buy from Apple. Thinking back to Apple’s old “Get a Mac” ads, I say with pride: I’m a PC. The PC platform is fun, experimental, flexible, while the Mac platform is stuffy, old, and boring. Apple would never release a product this wild. I love that Lenovo’s rollable laptop exists Lenovo’s world-first rollable laptop—the ThinkBook Plus Gen 6 Rollable—features a rollable OLED screen and a motor that engages at the press of a button. The display unrolls itself from within the laptop, and then shrinks itself back to normal laptop size when you don’t need it. It sounds like it shouldn’t work very well, but it does. For a first-generation product, it’s incredible and feels like magic. Sure, it’s a whopping $3,300 and not everyone can afford it, but that’s okay for now. Maybe rollable laptops will be the new foldable phones in a few years. (By the way, foldable phones are another thing Apple refuses to make. For fun stuff like that, you’ll need to switch to Android.) Matt Smith/Foundry I can hear the Apple apologists now. “It’s not polished enough!” Yes, you can barely see a few odd reflections from just the right angle due to the rollable display, and Apple would never release a product like that. If you’re a Mac, you’re not getting a product like this until Apple decides a rollable display is right for every MacBook user—and as long as it isn’t for everyone, then it isn’t worth developing. And that’s why MacBooks are so boring. If you want anything beyond a basic traditional laptop experience, you’re out of luck. If you’re a Mac, there’s really only one way to use a laptop; if you’re a PC, you get to make your own choices. PCs are about choice — and freedom Lenovo’s rollable laptop is just one example of choice and freedom. You can also get a dual-screen laptop—like the Lenovo Yoga Book 9i, which is a 2-in-1 convertible featuring two displays attached at a hinge. It’s also brilliant to use on a regular basis. IDG / Matthew Smith There are other types of 2-in-1 laptops, too. With a PC, you can get convertibles like the Surface Pro with its awesome tablet-with-a-stylus experience that lets you use full desktop art software, or 2-in-1 “yoga”-style laptops that fold back on a 360-degree hinge and can be navigated using a convenient touchscreen. (Want a stylus on a Mac? Too bad! That’s what iPads are for—and iPads don’t run full Mac apps.) IDG / Chris Hoffman Powerful gaming laptops and high-end gaming desktops are also exclusive PC territory, as Apple has never shown much of an interest in gaming (aside from microtransaction-filled mobile gaming). But the industry has embraced handheld gaming PCs starting with Valve’s Steam Deck. It’s a sign of what’s possible with PC hardware, with the Steam Deck running on the Linux-powered SteamOS. PCs have grown bigger than Windows, and even PC gaming has now grown beyond Windows to offer even more flexibility. The Raspberry Pi is another awesome device that only exists in PC land. On the Mac side, the closest thing is a Mac Mini, which is much more expensive and has less flexible hardware and software. IDG / Chris Hoffman The PC experience lets you build and upgrade your own hardware. You can now build and upgrade your own laptops with the Framework Laptop, and you also have the Framework Desktop, which might just be the easiest PC you’ll ever build. These feel a lot closer to Apple’s original hacker spirit when it was founded in 1976. Today, they feel almost the opposite of what Apple is all about. Apple’s famous ad feels different now Remember Apple’s famous 1984 ad from over 40 years ago? A hero—representing Apple—bravely charges into a dark gray room and smashes a telescreen. The Macintosh was all about “Thinking Different” and not being like everyone else, at least according to the marketing. In 2025, the Mac has devolved into a one-size-fits-all platform. Meanwhile, PC manufacturers—like Lenovo with its rollable laptop, Valve with its Steam Deck, and many others—are playing around and trying different things. Apple is the company that says you can’t be trusted to run unapproved software on your phone or tablet. (Thankfully, you can still run whatever you want on a Mac.) Macs work well and they’re polished, for sure. If you want Mac software and the MacBook form factor is what you want, great. If you want anything else—if you want to “think different”—then you’ll need to stop marching in line with the Macs and be a PC instead. In 2025, I’m still a PC and proud of it I don’t really want a Mac. I prefer the Windows desktop experience, and I like playing PC games and having a Steam library. But I like Linux, too. I like having flexibility and choice in my hardware. I’m glad I’m comfortable with Windows. If I had been using macOS for decades with a big library of Mac software, I’d be trapped. I wouldn’t want to leave Apple’s ecosystem and I’d be stuck with whatever hardware Apple’s employees in Cupertino think I should be using, even as the rest of the industry moves on to new, interesting, fun ideas. Don’t let Apple make you think PCs are boring. PCs are fun, free, and creative—the kind of thing Apple talks up in advertisements but no longer delivers. That’s why I’m a PC, and that’s why PCs are awesome. Further reading: Why I’m switching to an eco-friendly laptop Read...

A decent antivirus program and VPN are a great first line of defense against hackers. But if you haven’t tweaked certain Windows settings, you could still be leaving back doors open for malicious actors to access your PC and compromise your sensitive data. Here are the top six Windows settings and changes you need to know about to minimize the risk of getting hacked. Check Windows Exploit Protection settings If you haven’t heard of Windows Exploit Protection settings, basically they adjust how Windows runs apps and programs to limit the number of exploits that are activated by them. You can find these settings by navigating to Settings > Privacy and Security > Windows Security > App and browser control > Exploit protection settings. In this menu you’ll find two sub menus: System settings and Program settings. In the Programs settings tab, Windows will typically add a program or app to the protection list after you’ve used it. Have a browse of that list. If you don’t see programs or apps that you think should be on it, you’ll need to add them manually with the + feature to ensure they’re protected against exploits. Now in System settings you should also check that all the settings are toggled on by default, except for the tab named Force Randomization for images (Mandatory ASLR). Keep this off to prevent errors occurring in apps that don’t support it. Dominic Bayley / Foundry Disable Windows Network discovery This feature of Windows allows my PC to discover and connect to other devices on the same network and vice versa. But it can also leave my PC vulnerable to malicious attacks if it’s activated when I’m connected to unsafe or unknown networks. To switch it off in Windows Settings I go to: Network & Internet > Advanced Network Settings > Advanced Sharing Settings. Then I just switch the toggle to Off next to Network discovery in both public and private networks. With these settings toggled off, devices on the same network can’t connect to my PC. Dominic Bayley / Foundry Turn off Remote Desktop Remote Desktop is a cool feature of Windows that lets me access my PC from another device — so it’s ideal for when I’m working remotely or need to send and receive files from my PC and I can’t physically access it. But this feature can also be an easy way for hackers to also access your desktop remotely, so I’ve changed the settings on my PC to stop that happening. To do that, I opened Windows Settings and navigated to System. Then I clicked on Remote Desktop and toggled the setting Off. I then clicked Confirm to validate my choice. Dominic Bayley / Foundry Activate Windows Firewall I don’t use a separate firewall, so I always have Windows Firewall turned on as a second layer of defense after my antivirus app. To turn it on, in Windows 11 Settings select Privacy and Security > Windows Security > Firewall and network protection. Now click on Domain network, Private network, and Public network sequentially and in each tab toggle Microsoft Defender Firewall to On. Dominic Bayley / Foundry Disable Windows Script Hosting Windows Script Hosting is a feature that allows you to automate processes in Windows using scripts. Like other useful features of Windows, it can be exploited by malicious actors to run malware and then compromise your PC files or data. I don’t use this feature, so I keep it disabled as a precaution against hackers running their own malicious scripts, which they’ve been known to do. To do the same, type reg into Search and then select Registry Editor in the menu to open it. Now, navigate to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE > Software > Microsoft > Windows Script Host > Settings. Once there, right-click in the box to create a new DWORD (32-bit) value and name it “Enabled.” Set the Value Data to 0. Once that’s done restart your PC and your WSH should be disabled. Dominic Bayley / Foundry Stop your PC automatically connecting to a Wi-Fi network After you’ve connected to a public Wi-Fi network, your PC saves the SSID and password you typed in in Managed Networks. If it’s set to connect automatically to Wi-Fi, it’ll then go ahead and connect to that same Wi-Fi network the next time you’re within range — that’s whether you want it to or not. It’ll even connect before you’ve had the chance to open your VPN and or antivirus programs. That’s why I disable this feature. To follow my lead, in Settings click on Network & internet on the left. Then navigate to Wi-Fi > Manage known networks. Browse the list of networks and select the one you want. Once selected, untoggle Connect automatically when in range to prevent your PC connecting automatically to that Wi-Fi network next time. Dominic Bayley / Foundry Read...