At a glanceExpert`s Rating Pros High GPU and CPU performance Competitive price for the hardware Mechanical keyboard Lots of high-end touches Cons No HDR for games Copilot key is rather large “Liquid Teal” color scheme may be divisive Low battery life (obviously) Our Verdict The Alienware 16 Area-51 delivers serious gaming performance in an excellent package, complete with a mechanical keyboard and other high-end touches. It’s competitively priced for the hardware, too. Price When Reviewed This value will show the geolocated pricing text for product undefined Best Pricing Today The Alienware 16 Area-51 is a high-end gaming laptop with a high-end Intel Core Ultra 9 275HX CPU and Nvidia RTX 5080 graphics, which were both just recently released. It’s a beautiful machine with premium touches like a mechanical keyboard. While it’s no budget gaming laptop, it’s competitively priced compared to other laptops with similar hardware — and Alienware’s version may just be a better package. Alienware 16 Area-51: Specs The Alienware 16 Area-51 is a 16-inch gaming laptop that combines a 24-core Intel Core Ultra 9 275HX CPU along with an Nvidia RTX 50-series GPU. Our review model had an RTX 5080 GPU, but you can also get this machine with an RTX 5070 Ti or 5090 GPU. While the model we reviewed retails for $3,349, the base model starts at $2,999. That Intel Core Ultra 9 275HX is worth highlighting! This Core Ultra (Series 2) processor is based on the Arrow Lake architecture and is screaming fast. In our benchmarks, this machine topped out the charts. However, it has a slow neural processing unit (NPU) and doesn’t meet the bar for Windows 11’s Copilot+ PC AI features, if those matter to you. (Unless this is something you know you care about, I wouldn’t worry about it — especially since Microsoft is signaling it may one day roll out these features more widely. But they aren’t here at launch, and that may matter to some people.) Model number: Alienware 16 Area-51 AW30 CPU: Intel Core Ultra 9 275HX Memory: 32GB DDR5 RAM Graphics/GPU: Nvidia GeForce RTX 5080 NPU: Intel AI Boost (up to 13 TOPS) Display: 16-inch 3200×1800 IPS display with 240Hz refresh rate Storage: 1 TB SSD Webcam: 8MP 3840×2160 camera Connectivity: 2x Thunderbolt 5 (USB Type-C), 3x USB Type-A 3.2 Gen 1 (5 Gbps), 1x HDMI 2.1, 1x combo audio jack, 1x SD card slot Networking: Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 5.4 Biometrics: IR camera for Windows Hello Battery capacity: 96 Watt-hours Dimensions: 14.37 x 11.41 x 1.12 inches Weight: 7.49 pounds MSRP: $3,349 as tested This thing looks like it’s about to blast the thrusters and head to outer space. Alienware 16 Area-51: Design and build quality IDG / Chris Hoffman The Alienware laptops I’ve reviewed have had solid build quality, and this laptop is no exception. The “Liquid Teal” color has a lid that looks a lot like forest green in some lighting. Dell describes it as “a dark iridescent finish on the anodized aluminum [that] gives the system a dynamic sheen.” At about seven and a half pounds, it’s no thin-and-light laptop, but it is very reasonable for a machine this powerful. With a glowing Alienware logo on the lid, a light bar on the bump at the back, and black used throughout the rest of the machine — including on the keyboard tray and lid, so you aren’t looking at that Liquid Teal all the time — this is very much an Alienware design. I like the look and how the color stands out. It doesn’t look like just another gaming laptop, but you’ll have to decide whether it’s the right look for you. I know not everyone is looking for this type of color scheme, and there’s a reason why so many gaming laptops are a traditional black or a sharp and clean white. IDG / Chris Hoffman On the bottom, there’s a “thermal bump” with gorilla glass that isn’t just about airflow intake: it lets you look inside the bottom of the machine. This is the kind of high-end touch you’ll find on this machine. It does look cool! The anodized aluminum finish does pick up fingerprints a little more than I’d like — something you’ll see in a few of the photos. That’s not unusual, but since we’re talking high-end touches, it’s worth noting. Alienware 16 Area-51: Keyboard and trackpad IDG / Chris Hoffman The Alienware 16 Area-51’s keyboard is absolutely excellent. Our review unit had a Cherry MX ultra low-profile mechanical keyboard. A mechanical keyboard in a laptop is almost unheard of — I think the only time I’ve ever used a mechanical keyboard built into a laptop was when I reviewed another Alienware machine. It’s definitely a tiny bit louder than the usual non-mechanical keyboards, but it’s fairly quiet. There’s not much room to complain, although I will say that many gamers would probably prefer that the Copilot key wasn’t so large. Located just to the left of the arrow keys, it’s bound to get in the way. Sure, it seems laptops must have a Copilot key these days — but why does the key have to be so wide? Luckily, you can disable it or remap it to another function. The laptop’s keyboard also has per-key backlighting you can customize. Even the touchpad is an RGB touchpad that lights up when you touch it — and shortly after, so it’s not on all the time. The touchpad itself feels great to use, with a smooth surface, a crisp mechanical clicking action, and a good position below the keyboard. Alienware 16 Area-51: Display and speakers IDG / Chris Hoffman The Alienware 16 Area-51 has a 16-inch IPS display with a QHD+ resolution (that’s 3200×1800) along with a fast 240Hz refresh rate, 3ms response time, Nvidia G-Sync, and 500 nits of brightness. On paper, these are great specs — and they look great in real life, too. It’s an awesome display that makes games look great, and the fast refresh rate and response time are part of what makes it feel so good. Combined with the speedy hardware, this laptop delivered excellent performance in Doom: The Dark Ages, rendering high detail settings at a high frame rate. The downsides are the same ones you see on paper. There’s no support for HDR in games here, and the resolution comes short of 4K. This isn’t an OLED—some people will prefer the more vivid colors of an OLED display, even if it comes with a lower refresh rate or lower response time. But, if you aren’t itching for HDR or an OLED display, I think you’ll be happy with this display. The speakers are also unusually good for a laptop. Many gaming laptops — even expensive ones — cut corners on the speakers. Audio sounded great and punchy in games like Doom: The Dark Ages. Music was unusually good for a laptop, but I’ll be honest: when it came to the clarity of the instruments in Steely Dan’s Aja and the bass in Daft Punk’s Get Lucky, the speakers didn’t wow as much as the other components on this laptop. The experience is always best with a good pair of headphones or external speakers — no surprise there. Alienware 16 Area-51: Webcam, microphone, biometrics The Alienware 16 Area-51’s 8MP 3840×2160 camera sounds impressive on paper. And it looks fine in the real world, but it doesn’t wow. Look at a good external webcam. This is more than good enough for online meetings and video chats. But, this being a gaming laptop, I’d plan to get an external webcam if you plan on streaming. There’s no physical camera privacy shutter, which I know many people like to see. The microphone setup also just sounds fine to me — it can pick up clear enough audio, but you won’t be getting the kind of crisp, high-quality audio you would with an external microphone. It’s fine, but you’ll always have a better gaming experience with external audio. When it comes to biometrics, this machine has an IR camera for Windows Hello so you can sign in with your face. As usual on Windows 11 laptops, it worked well. There’s no fingerprint reader here, however. Alienware 16 Area-51: Connectivity IDG / Chris Hoffman The Alienware 16 Area-51 has a solid collection of connectivity options. On the left side, you’ve got a combo audio jack as well as a full-size SD card reader. You’ll find most of the ports on the back — which is where I prefer to see them, as it gets them out of the way of your mouse and minimizes annoying cable clutter on your desk. On the back of the machine, you’ll find two Thunderbolt 5 (USB Type-C) ports, three USB Type-A ports, an HDMI 2.1 port, and a place to plug in the power adapter. Thunderbolt 5 has been missing in action, so it’s impressive to see it at all — although configurations with an RTX 5070 and below get those ports in Thunderbolt 4 form. While it’s always nice to see higher-end hardware, it likely won’t make a difference in the real world. On the other hand, that’s it. If you were looking for an Ethernet port, for example, you’ll have to add it via a dongle. Wireless connectivity is good now that Intel’s hardware has caught up — this laptop supports the latest Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 5.4 wireless standards, and I had no problems with the Wi-Fi. Alienware 16 Area-51: Performance The Alienware 16 Area-51 delivered screaming-good gaming performance, and I was tearing through demons in the just-released Doom: The Dark Ages on the highest “Ultra Nightmare” settings with smooth performance. Dell has a lot to say about the “cryo-tech cooling technology” and this laptop’s increased airflow, quieter fans, and all-around improved cooling performance. While gaming, the cooling worked well, with the keyboard staying reasonably cool and the machine blasting most of the hot air straight out of the back where it won’t bother you. As always, though, we ran the Alienware 16 Area-51 through our standard benchmarks to see how it performs. IDG / Chris Hoffman First, we run PCMark 10 to get an idea of overall system performance. With an overall PCMark 10 score of 8,768, this Alienware machine beat other recent gaming laptops we tested with Nvidia RTX 50-series GPUs. It noticeably outpaced the HP Omen Max 16, despite both machines having the same CPU. IDG / Chris Hoffman Next, we run Cinebench R20. This is a heavily multithreaded benchmark that focuses on overall CPU performance. It’s a quick benchmark, so cooling under extended workloads isn’t a factor. But, since it’s heavily multithreaded, CPUs with more cores have a huge advantage. With a Cinebench R20 multi-threaded score of 14,145, the Alienware 16 Area-51 topped out the charts once again, narrowly scraping ahead of the Asus ROG Strix G16 and its AMD Ryzen 9 9955HX3D. (Although, to be fair, the results are basically within the margin of error here.) IDG / Chris Hoffman We also run an encode with Handbrake. This is another heavily multithreaded benchmark, but it runs over an extended period. This demands the laptop’s cooling kick in, and many laptops will throttle and slow down under load. The Alienware 16 Area-51 completed the encode process in an average of 434 seconds, which is just over seven minutes. The only other machine even within spitting distance was the HP Omen Max 16, which has the same CPU. (HP’s machine was ahead here for some reason, but we can put it down to the margin of error.) The results show just how powerful Intel’s 24-core Intel Core Ultra 9 275HX CPU is for multithreaded performance. This thing is a beast. IDG / Chris Hoffman Next, getting to gaming performance, we start with a standard graphical benchmark. We run 3DMark Time Spy, a graphical benchmark that focuses on GPU performance. With a 3DMark Time Spy score of 20960, the Alienware 16 Area-51 delivered high performance — coming second to the HP Omen Max 16. Both have the same Nvidia RTX 5080 GPU. Again, this may be the margin of error, or the HP Omen Max 16’s cooling may be a bit more effective. Both machines beat the Razer Blade 16 despite that machine having a faster RTX 5090 GPU. That machine lags in performance, sacrificing it for a sleeker design. This shows how important benchmarks are instead of just on-paper specs! After that, we run the benchmarks built into some standard games. First, we use the benchmark in Shadow of the Tomb Raider to test all the gaming laptops we review. It’s an older game, but it’s a great way to compare graphical performance across different PCs. IDG / Chris Hoffman With an average FPS of 213, the Alienware 16 Area-51 delivered high-end performance and left many similar systems in the dust. Finally, we run the benchmark in Metro Exodus. This is a more demanding game, and we set the benchmark to 1080p resolution at the extreme detail setting. IDG / Chris Hoffman With an average FPS of 92 in this high-end Metro Exodus benchmark, the Alienware 16 Area-51 topped all its competitors — even the Razer Blade with its RTX 5090 GPU couldn’t outpace it, which just goes to show the downsides of packing such powerful hardware into such a thin machine. Overall, the Alienware 16 Area-51 is an absolute monster that squeezes an incredible amount of performance out of its high-end Intel CPU and Nvidia GPU. There’s not much room to improve here — outside of splurging for an upgrade to an RTX 5090 GPU in this machine or getting a desktop gaming PC instead! Alienware 16 Area-51: Battery life The Alienware 16 Area-51 is a gaming laptop designed for maximum performance, not for long battery life. However, Dell has put a huge 96 watt-hour battery in this machine — it couldn’t be much larger or the U.S. Transportation Security Administration wouldn’t allow it on an airplane. IDG / Chris Hoffman To benchmark the battery life, we play a 4K copy of Tears of Steel on repeat on Windows 11 with airplane mode enabled at 250 nits screen brightness until the laptop suspends itself. This is a best-case scenario for any laptop since local video playback is so efficient, and real battery life in day-to-day use is always going to be less than this. The Alienware 16 Area-51 ran for an average of 253 minutes before suspending itself — that’s just over four hours. It’s lower than some of its competitors, though not by much. And that doesn’t really matter if you’re looking for a beefy gaming laptop to use while plugged into an outlet. In other words, you can use this laptop away from an outlet for a few hours in a pinch, but you won’t want to. Also, it’s worth mentioning that, for serious gaming performance, you need to have the laptop plugged into an outlet anyway. Alienware 16 Area-51: Conclusion The Alienware 16 Area-51 is an amazing 16-inch gaming laptop. Yes, it’s a good amount of money — but it’s competitively priced with other high-end gaming laptops with similar hardware, and you also get an amazing package. I love having a mechanical keyboard in a laptop. If you’re looking for a capable PC with the latest high-end hardware and this fits your budget, you’ll be happy with this machine. It’s excellent. But not everything is for everyone! Be sure to consider what type of display you want — if you want an OLED screen, the HP Omen Max 16 may be a better pick. That greenish “Liquid Teal” may give some people pause, too — I like the look, but I imagine it’s not everyone’s style. It’d be nice if Dell offered multiple color options for this laptop. Read...

One of the best things about search engines is the fact you can increasingly search for a term without needing specific keywords. Microsoft is applying the same concept to the history function within the Edge browser built into Windows. Microsoft’s notes on the current release beta for Edge, as noticed by The Verge, indicate that the company is using what it calls an “AI-powered History search.” If you turn this feature on, you’ll be able to search your history of sites stored in Edge without ensuring that your search query is typed just so: Edge will accommodate “synonyms, phrases, or typos,” Microsoft says. Interestingly, this improved search is one of the functions that Microsoft is using local AI for. “An on-device model is trained using your data, which never leaves your device and is never sent to Microsoft,” Microsoft notes. Microsoft isn’t saying what local model will be used, but it seems fairly likely that it will be the Phi Silica model Microsoft began talking about last year. Whether this means that you’ll need a Copilot+ PC to enable this isn’t clear, either. You do need Copilot+ hardware to take advantage of Recall, the tool that snapshots your PC periodically to improve search. (Recall is protected via encryption and Windows Hello, though I still think Recall is too risky in the current political environment.) Microsoft also says that it will be adding a media control center to Edge, though I think that feature is already here as part of the stable version. Loading our post-show Computex coverage, for example, brings up a small “music note” icon next to the URL bar inside Edge. Clicking it brings up media controls (though a volume control or mute button would be nice, too.) This is what the media controls within Edge look like on my PC. Edge is also adding a Copilot chat summarization option to the context menu which will allow users to ask questions of the current page. If Edge slows down unexpectedly — say, with dozens of open tabs — you may see a notification in the Edge settings, too. These are what Microsoft calls “controlled feature” rollouts, so they may not be available to everyone. Note that you may not see these features if you’re not part of the Microsoft Edge beta program. Chances are, however, that they’ll be pushed to the stable version of Edge before long. Read...

At a glanceExpert`s Rating Pros Easy to install Excellent app makes the system operation simple Can be used without a subscription Ideal for an apartment or condo Cons Adding enough sensors for a large home can be pricey Users must provide their own microSD card for offline video storage Professional monitoring not available, not even as a paid option Our Verdict The Aqara Camera Protect Kit Y100 is one of the easiest to install and set up tech products I’ve tested, and it does an outstanding job of monitoring a relatively small space. But steer clear if you’re looking for a professional monitoring option, as that’s not on offer. Price When Reviewed This value will show the geolocated pricing text for product undefined Best Pricing Today Best Prices Today: Aqara Camera Protect Kit Y100 Retailer Price $119.99 ($30.00 / Count) View Deal $139.99 ($35.00 / Count) View Deal Price comparison from over 24,000 stores worldwide Product Price Price comparison from Backmarket The Aqara Camera Protect Kit Y100 bundles the company’s flagship Camera Hub G3—a Zigbee and Matter bridge—with a door and window sensor, a Motion Sensor P1, and a Vibration Sensor T1 for a solid entry-level security system at a bargain asking price of $140 ($120 street). But before I get too deep into this review, be aware that Aqara does not offer any professional monitoring service, where someone in a central office monitors your security system and can dispatch first responders in the event of a break-in, fire, or medical emergency. While such plans are always paid subscriptions, its absence here will be a deal-breaker for some (Aqara does manufacture a Zigbee smart smoke detector if self-monitoring is all you’re looking for). The Matter-compatible Aqara Camera Hub G3 includes a Zigbee radio and a dual-band Wi-Fi adapter. James Barber/Foundry The camera is a pan/tilt model with 340 degrees of pan, 45 degrees upward tilt, and 15 degrees downward tilt. It has a stationary field of view of 110 degrees. While I can’t imagine anyone setting up a smart home hub outside the house, the camera does boast an IP65 weatherization rating. According to our IP code guide, that means it’s impervious to dust ingress and that it’s protected against water projected in jets from any direction. The Aqara Camera Protect Kit Y100 is ideal for a small apartment or condo. Each of the bundled smart home components comes from the factory pre-paired to the hub, so the system works almost immediately after you take it out of the box. Matter compatibility means it can be integrated into any of the major smart home platforms, including Alexa, Apple Home (along with support for Apple’s HomeKit Secure Video), and Google Home. There’s also support for Home Assistant, IFTTT, and SmartThings. The hub itself supports the Zigbee smart home protocol, and it connects to your home Wi-Fi network via either 2.4- or 5GHz spectrum (with support for WPA3). Buyers also get up to 7 days of cloud storage for video recordings, 24/7 local recording to a user-provided microSD card, and full remote access, all without paying for a subscription. Aqara’s optional HomeGuardian service offers a more extensive set of features, including up to 90 days of cloud storage for video recordings. Installation and setup Installation was incredibly simple and took less than five minutes. I rotated the camera-hub’s face up to reveal the microSD card slot and inserted one of my own (Aqara doesn’t include one, but the camera can support cards with capacities up to 128GB). You should consider these features when shopping for a microSD card for a home security camera. Once I plugged in the camera, the Aqara iOS app walked me through adding the unit to my home’s Wi-Fi network, and I used its setting to adjust the tracking and alarm capabilities for the preconfigured Home, Away, and Night profiles. The starter kit includes all the basics, but most people will want to buy more sensors for complete protection. James Barber/Foundry Setting up the door/window sensor, vibration sensor, and motion sensor was just as easy. The app offers suggestions as to where to place these devices, and the batteries come preinstalled. Once I pulled out the plastic strips and made the batteries active, each of the sensors was automatically added to the network. Users can activate or disarm any of those profiles from a pane on the app’s home screen. Just below that pane is the live-camera view. Scroll down to see panels that display the status of each of the kit’s four devices. Real-time usage The Aqara Camera Protect Kit Y100 seemed perfect for a small apartment, so I set it up in my home media room. My dog assisted in the testing, playing the role of intruder. Aqara’s app is well made, easy to use, and responsive. James Barber/Foundry Over the course of a couple of weeks, I learned just how much time he spends snoozing on my ottoman. The system alerted me whenever he nudged the door open (triggering the door/window sensor), nudged a cabinet door (doing the same with the vibration sensor), and bolted in and out of the room (thanks to both the camera and the motion sensor). The camera’s 2K video recordings (encoded as MPEG4 files) were clear when the room was lit, and its night vision was equally good when the room was dark. When I had the system in Away mode, the piercing sound triggered by the tripped sensors sent the dog scrambling from the room. Made for expansion If you have exceedingly modest home-security needs, the Aqara Camera Protect Kit Y100 might be all you need; most people, however, will want to avail themselves of the wide variety of compatible add-on products that are also available. And those expenditures can add up quickly. Most people’s homes have both doors and windows, for example, so if you want to monitor multiple entry points, you’ll need to spend $30 for each additional door/window sensor or $20 for each additional vibration sensor. An alternative means of security would be to install a motion sensor in a room with several windows, but then you might not be notified of a break-in until an intruder is already in the house. One motion sensor can substitute for mounting contact sensors on several doors and windows, with the caveat that an intruder will already be in the house when the system gets triggered. James Barber/Foundry You can also go beyond basic home security to build out a complete smart home system by adding the Matter-compatible Aqara Smart Lock U200 ($270), Aqara LED Bulb T2 color LED smart bulbs ($23 each), the Aqara Water Leak Sensor ($20), and/or the Aqara Climate Sensor W100 ($40). You can start with the Y100 kit and expand one sensor or complementary product at a time if you decide you need them. I’m sure I could cover my entire house with an added investment of $200 for additional door/window and vibration sensors, while continuing to depend on my doorbell camera to see what’s going on outside. Users can purchase a HomeGuardian subscription from within the app. If you’re using a single camera, the “limited offer” price is $4.99/month or $49.99/year (marked down from $6.99/month or $83.88/year. HomeGuardian also supports an unlimited number of Aqara cameras for $9.99/month or $99.99/year (marked down from $14.99/month or $179.88/year). With that subscription, you get 90 days of cloud storage for event-triggered recordings (in 2K resolution); plus, logs of security events and camera recordings for the same period. Subscribers in North America and select countries in Europe will also receive security alerts via SMS and email. A 30-day free trial is included with your purchase. Placing these stickers on your windows might deter the casual burglars, but Aqara doesn’t offer professional monitoring, even as a paid option.James Barber/Foundry One of the several things I like about Aqara’s offering is that I don’t think I’ll ever need the HomeGuardian plan after installing a 128GB microSD card in the camera (that’s the max supported capacity, by the way). I get alerts on my phone when anything trips the sensors, so I don’t think I need the SMS/email security alerts that come with that plan. Without the automatic back up of video recordings to the cloud, I might lose the camera footage in a fire or a flood. I don’t think making those backups would be top of mind during that kind of disaster. And if a burglar steals the camera, I won’t have any evidence of the crime to provide the police. So, having a subscription is more than a simple matter of convenience. Should you buy the Aqara Camera Protect Kit Y100? Aqara has created a bundle that’s incredibly easy to set up and even easier to use. Most users will find they can use the well-designed app with minimal or even no tweaks required.  This review is part of TechHive’s in-depth coverage of the best DIY home security systems. I’ve previously tried a Ring Alarm Pro system, and that experience involved watching a lot of installation guide videos at the beginning and ended up with what seemed like endless tweaks to unreliable door and window sensors. The Aqara sensors have worked exactly as advertised, and the camera’s video quality is excellent. Aqara’s support for Apple Home, Amazon Alexa, and Google Home means this security setup can grow with an owner’s interest in smart home technology. Anyone who’s taking their first steps into home security will find the Aqara Camera Protect Kit Y100 a strong way to start. Read...

A few days ago, Microsoft announced via the Windows Insider blog some new AI features and improvements for the Photos app. Among the new features is “Relight,” which lets you adjust the lighting in a photo by placing up to three virtual light sources that can each be adjusted for color, intensity, and direction. There are also several built-in preset styles for quicker adjustments. With Relight, you can use the power of AI to dramatically change the mood, tone, and appearance of any photo. However, you’ll need a Snapdragon-powered Copilot+ PC to take advantage of this feature right now. Intel- and AMD-powered Copilot+ PCs will be getting this feature over the next few months. The search function in Photos has also been upgraded, allowing you to search for images using natural language queries instead of keyword-based queries. For example, you can type “sunset at the beach” or “family outdoor fun” to find relevant images, even if they don’t have file names that match those terms. As with Relight, you’ll need a Copilot+ PC to take advantage of semantic searches in Photos. If you don’t know what that means, see our handy overview on what to know about Copilot+ PCs. Read...

Apple’s latest developer conference covered a huge number of features coming soon to the iPhone, iPad and other devices. Read...

A significant update is coming to the Windows 11 Start Menu: Microsoft is now testing a wider, scrollable design, complete with the Windows Phone sidebar. This latest change follows the introduction of a “category” view last year, showing ongoing development. If this sounds like old news, it is, sort of. While Microsoft’s new “category” view within Start was hidden in a build last year, it resurfaced in February when Microsoft announced it would debut in a Windows Insider test channel soon. By April, the wider, scrollable Start menu was unearthed by Twitter sleuths, again as a hidden feature. In June 2024, Microsoft also began testing a “sidebar” to the Windows 11 Start menu for Android phones, then added iPhone support to the sidebar as well. (Microsoft is also testing allowing users to mirror their Android phones’ screens from this sidebar as well.) If you’re a member of the Windows Insider program and subscribe to the Dev Channel, this is all coming together: the category view, the wider Start, and the phone sidebar. (Though I added the screen mirroring feature, that’s the only bit left out in the latest build, Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 26200.5641 (KB5060824). The wider Windows 11 Start menu with the phone sidebar.Microsoft It’s all obviously more than a bit confusing, since Microsoft tests features in various channels, off and on, before an eventual launch. The “Dev” channel is one of the most experimental, so there’s no guarantee you’ll see these features anytime soon. Just know that Microsoft is playing with what works and what doesn’t inside the Start menu, and you can be part of it if you choose. A little flexibility comes to Start Basically, Microsoft is testing a more responsive Start menu. If you pin apps, you’ll see those on top. If you don’t, you may see the “Pinned” row shrink. Underneath those apps, Start will continue to include “recommended” files—but you can turn those off inside the Windows Settings, too, via a toggle. Microsoft’s Windows 11 Start’s Categories and Grid view.Microsoft Underneath the “recommended” files will be a list of “all” apps, organized into one of two views: Category or Grid view. Category view will use AI to group apps into cards. Microsoft’s example uses “productivity,” “creativity,” and “social.” The grid view feels more like the Start menu of old. There won’t really be a “grid” of apps, but they’ll be arranged alphabetically: all of the “A” apps together, then the “B” apps, and so on. If you have a large or widescreen display, the Start menu will stretch wider than it has before. Microsoft’s Settings menu allows Start to be tweaked and configured. “Have a larger-screen device? You can expect to see a larger Start menu, by default, so you can see more of your apps and files,” Microsoft said. “On larger devices, users can expect to see eight columns of pinned apps, six recommendations, and four columns of categories in the Start menu. On smaller devices, you’ll see six columns of pinned apps, four recommendations, and three columns of categories.” If you have a mobile phone, you’ll also be able to push the small “phone” icon and open up the sidebar, where you’ll be able to access messages, calls, and possibly more. Read...

Apple has a reputation for reimagining products launched by other companies, polishing them so thoroughly that they’re often seen as synonymous with Apple itself. With the macOS 26 “Tahoe” update that Apple launched at WWCD 2025, the OS arguably has achieved what Windows 11 has struggled to be: warm, polished, and smart. Apple’s new macOS Tahoe is first defined by its “Liquid Glass” design aesthetic, a new universal design language, that I think hearkens back to Windows 10 and earlier versions of Windows operating systems. But beyond look and feel, there are practical elements, like the Spotlight search bar that understands what’s on your Mac and taps into local intelligence to find what you want. There are also shortcuts or macros to help you complete tasks, and a phone application that looks as rich as what Microsoft offers. There’s even a rudimentary Game Bar. I much prefer Windows over macOS, and have used Windows and Android products for decades. Nonetheless, there have been a few times that I’ve been impressed with what Apple has accomplished—the Apple Watch integration with iOS, for example. There’s a level of polish and integration here that I think Microsoft should pay attention to. If I had to sum it up: What I use on a day-to-day basis on Windows feels like a rough draft. What Apple showed off at WWDC seems more like the final product. Warm and rich From day one of Windows 11, I wrote that Windows 11 felt like an unnecessary replacement for Windows 10. I’ve since changed my mind about that, in part because Microsoft has pivoted toward features like Windows Spotlight and adding AI capabilities like Copilot. MacOS Tahoe looks and feels somewhat like Windows Vista’s Aero Glass design language, but you can’t hold that against them—some of Microsoft’s early Windows efforts were fondly remembered for their UI. Sure, this is way too much. But Windows just doesn’t really allow this level of customization.YouTube / Apple Apple’s widgets look very much like the old Gadgets on Windows Vista, too. They just appear to be small widgets that float on the desktop, with large icons that can show your calendar and the weather. Windows has its own Widgets Panel, of course, and there will be those who prefer that that information hides off screen. Again, however, for those who liked Windows 10’s Live Tiles and how they showed “live” information, Tahoe’s Live Activities look warm and engaging. (I don’t like Tahoe’s new ability to color-code or label folders, weirdly. It feels superficial, like something that Windows would do. ) Apple appears to have more than just light and dark modes in mind. It all looks very personal. That’s something that Windows 11 really doesn’t offer. Windows 11 is functional, but I always feel like a cubicle worker rather than someone more creative. Apple appears to be leaning harder into the individual. YouTube / Apple Productivity, too Some of what Apple showed off at WWDC looked familiar. Apple’s Control Center is just Windows’ Action Center, providing quick shortcuts to apps and controls. Apple Continuity is Apple’s efforts to traverse its iPhone, iPad, and Vision OS platforms, by allowing you to share content across platforms — something that Microsoft doesn’t do well, but hardware makers like Samsung, do. I was more impressed with Live Activities, a more dynamic sort of widget. In one example, Apple’s Craig Federighi showed an Uber delivery app connected the Mac via the iPhone, displaying a summary of how far away the driver was. Apple’s Live Activities connected the iPhone and the Mac.YouTube / Apple Interestingly, one area where it feels like Windows has an advantage is in the Phone application. On Windows, you can read and write SMS messages, grab photos from your phone, and even see the (Android) phone’s desktop. On the Mac, Apple supplies tools that are more integrated into the phone itself, such as Live Voicemail and the ability to perform live translations. Microsoft offers the latter, but that’s built into Windows itself. On the other hand, Microsoft’s UI still feels rather cold and functional, while the macOS interface bursts with life. Apple’s phone app connects the iPhone and the Mac, too. It’s livelier than what Windows offers, but sligtly less functional.YouTube / Apple Shortcuts and Spotlight Apple also showed off an updated version of the Shortcuts application, powered by Apple Intelligence. Shortcuts is a bit like IFTTT or even the Windows Power Automate application: It’s designed to take actions in response to certain conditions. Automations, in other words. On Windows, the Power applications are apps that I’ve struggled with for a few years, since it was essentially a coding language that you had to create a workflow for. Apple is trying to reduce that complexity by asking those actions to be triggered automatically, without a great deal of setup. It’s not clear how successful this application will be. Again, however, it looks crisp and clean. Shortcuts in action.YouTube / Apple The twist that Apple is adding is that macOS users will be able to create shortcuts, essentially macros that are triggered by a keyboard shortcut. One of those allows you to access the built-in version of Apple Intelligence directly, so that your queries don’t have to go out to the cloud. In a Windows context, that would be like Microsoft adding a local version of Copilot — something that it’s hinted at, but has yet to implement. If you want to use the cloud, Apple is apparently partnering with OpenAI, giving direct access to ChatGPT. One example that Apple showed off was recording lecture audio, then comparing it to notes that the student had taken, and then add to that. Shortcuts has previously lived on iOS. It will be interesting to see how Shortcuts fares on macOS, since it’s an app that hasn’t received much fanfare. This is Apple’s Spotlight, looking for local files that are relevant.YouTube / Apple Shortcuts is also being integrated with Spotlight, which is essentially Apple’s search and utility interface. It’s receiving the “biggest update ever,” Apple said, and will quickly allow you to find files that are relevant to you. Windows users will probably compare Spotlight to the built-in Windows search function and File Explorer. They’re comparable, but Apple’s Tahoe certainly looks fresh, inviting, and useful. Apple has even brought in a feature I remember from Windows 10 and Cortana: the ability to draft an email from the search box. It’s an integration that Microsoft pioneered, then dropped — and now Apple has picked up the baton and started running. YouTube / Apple Apple even spent several minutes opening a document in Pages, then adding a graphic and moving it around the page. That’s something Word has struggled with, for years. It’s time for Microsoft to pay attention Apple’s rollout of macOS 26 Tahoe didn’t push “AI” every other sentence. Instead, Apple emphasized its own “Apple Intelligence,” gently deflecting away from the acronym that divides its creative customers. Everything felt very warm, colorful, lively, and human — undoubtedly deliberately so. Microsoft could take a lesson here: Technologists are designing products for people. Windows hasn’t forgotten this, but it’s definitely downplayed it. For years, we’ve gently mocked Apple for following where others have led. This time, I think Microsoft could learn a lesson from Apple instead. Read...

Apple has previewed visionOS 26, introducing new spatial widgets, shared experiences, AI-powered photo scenes, and enhanced personalisation for Apple Vision Pro users. Read...

Apple unveils watchOS 26 with a fresh Liquid Glass design, Workout Buddy and smarter features for a personalised, motivating Apple Watch experience. Read...

Apple launches macOS Tahoe 26, featuring a sleek new design, enhanced Continuity, smarter Spotlight, and expanded AI tools for a seamless Mac experience. Read...