A walkthrough of some of the most interesting features available in iOS 11. Some of the new changes include a merged Lock screen and Notification Center, redesigned Control Center, Siri improvements, and updated design elements. Which feature of iOS 11 is your favorite?
Kaspersky Labs security products have always had a great reputation for accuracy, but you've had to spend real money to get protected.
Kaspersky Free changes the rules by making all the core Kaspersky technologies available for free, to everyone – both personal and business users.
The program covers all the antivirus essentials, including real-world scanning of files, web threats, emails and instant messages. Kaspersky Free has the same top-rated engine as the commercial builds, with the same update, self-defense and quarantine systems, and no stupid restrictions or nag screens to try and make you upgrade.
Unsurprisingly, the program still leaves out a lot of Kaspersky technology. Top of the list is probably Safe Money, a secure environment for protecting your web shopping and banking tasks. There's also no System Watcher, which can roll back some malware actions, perhaps helping to recover files encrypted by unknown ransomware. Bonus extras like webcam protection and the anti-banner module have been dropped, and there's no technical support beyond what you can find on the website.
You may not be able to cover these security holes by running Kaspersky Free alongside some other app. The installer will check for incompatible applications, just like any other Kaspersky product, and demand you remove anything that might cause problems (which is just about every other antivirus engine around).
There are some limits here, then, but that's no surprise with a free product. You're still getting one of the best antivirus engines around for absolutely nothing at all, and that seems like a good deal to us.
Kaspersky Free has a clean and simple console which displays your current security status, and has simple icons to launch its various functions.
Most of the options don't work in the free build, but they're greyed out and easy to ignore. Within five seconds we realized there were only two buttons that mattered: Scan and Database Update.
Kaspersky Free doesn't skimp on scanning modes. The program can check your full system, the essential areas only, external devices or specific files and folders, and Explorer's right-click menu enables scanning objects for viruses, checking their reputation, or getting more information on any application.
Scanning speeds are only average, but Kaspersky Free doesn't grab too many system resources and is unlikely to slow you down.
Explore the Settings box and you'll find options giving you full control over updates, automated scanning, whitelisting, notifications, logging, network use and more. You can optimize settings for speed or security in a couple of clicks, or tweak them all individually.
All of this is easy to find and manage, thanks to the well-designed interface. Kaspersky's Task Manager shows you a quick list of all your recent scans, for instance, but you can easily filter or organize this to find specific information, and export anything as a CSV or TXT file.
Of course, what really matters is protection, and Kaspersky has one of the best-rated antivirus engines around. AV Comparatives' placed Kaspersky third out of 24 in its February to June 2017 Real-World Protection Test, and it blocked 100% of threats in both AV Test's June 2017 Windows Home User test and SE Labs April to June 2017 Malware Protection report. No security software can guarantee to block every threat, but Kaspersky Free gets closer than most.
Note: Kaspersky Free isn’t available in every region globally yet. For the full rollout schedule, which runs until November, check out this blog post.
There was a time when the e-ink display looked to be on the verge of becoming ubiquitous in new tech products. As well as powering our ereaders they’d be used for low-power digital signage, wearable displays, price tags… you name it, ink was going 'e'.
But, as LCD screens have become more reliable and cheaper, it’s really only Amazon's Kindle line, and other ereaders, that have maintained (for consumers at least) a solid interest in e-ink. The Kickstarter-funded Remarkable tablet, being a slate-sized, cloud-connected sketchpad with an e-ink display, harks back to that time when e-ink seemed to be the display option of the future.
And while it’s too expensive, at £579 / $599 (around AU$760), and feature-light to wholeheartedly recommend, it’s an admirably novel product that will appeal to the more eccentric, forgiving gadget fan.
The Remarkable tablet looks like a giant Kindle from several generations back. It’s not unattractive, but it’s certainly going for function over a flashy design. With a 10.3-inch monochrome e-ink screen, it’s close to the size of an A4 sheet of paper – which is exactly the point of the Remarkable tablet, as it gives you enough space to jot down notes and sketch images comfortably.
Though there’s no backlight, the high-quality display has a resolution of 1872 x 1404, giving it sharp 226dpi count. It’s multi-touch enabled and capacitive, meaning you don't need to use its bundled pen to navigate – your fingers will work just fine for jumping through menus, although only the pen can make marks on the digital page.
And it’s when you get the pen involved that the Remarkable starts making sense. It looks and feels just like a standard pen, except it makes use of a 'special high-friction tip'. With the screen offering 2,048 levels of pressure sensitivity, writing with the pen on the Remarkable feels closer to writing on a sheet of paper than any other digital pad out there, be that the Samsung Galaxy Note 8, or the iPad Pro.
Recognizing the difference between your fingers, palm and pen, the Remarkable won’t smudge like ink, or incorrectly assume that your resting hand is a pen stroke. There’s no need to charge the pen either, although the friction-leveraging pen tips will wear out after about three months of regular use. Ten come in the box, but you’ll want to stock up for the lifetime of the tablet – packs of eight cost $12 / £12.
It’s a different experience to an LCD or OLED display then. But while it’s a much more natural-feeling writing experience, the screen is far less versatile than an LCD display. It lacks the color, lighting and refresh rate required for the app or browsing experience you’d expect from an iPad or similar, and so the Remarkable is limited to relatively simple sketching and ebook reading applications.
The Remarkable is charged via a micro USB port on the slate’s bottom edge, while the power button sits on its top edge; you give this a quick press to send the device to sleep, and a longer one to switch it off completely.
Three other square hardware buttons sit on the lower part of the front chassis, with the center one jumping you back to the home screen. The other two are for left and right page turns respectively, which feels a bit old-fashioned seeing as Amazon’s ereaders have for years offered the ability to turn pages in either direction comfortably with a single hand, thanks to additional controls.
With the white-fronted casing and chrome rear, it’s a clean design overall. One nice touch is that there are slightly-raised rubberized strips on the rear, preventing the tablet from slipping on a table when in use. There’s also a simple, sold-separately felt carry case for the Remarkable, which includes a slot for slipping the pen into, with the pen’s clip itself sliding out to reveal a compartment for storing a backup nib.
The Remarkable tablet runs its own OS, which is focused on sketching, reading and organizing your sheets into notebooks and folders. From the home screen, a right-hand pane lets you jump to hubs for your entire file collection, your individual notebooks, single documents, your ebook library and your bookmarked pages. Buttons at the top of the interface let you create new folders, notebooks and quick sketch sheets with a single tap.
All these elements can be viewed in a grid or list format. It’s simple, and you’ll quickly be able to navigate its functions upon opening it up. Those looking for the wide app support of iOS or Android tablets will be left wanting though – the Remarkable serves a very specific purpose.
But it serves that main sketching and note-jotting purpose very well. Once you’re into a sketch sheet page, there are a wealth of options to choose from. There are more than 50 page templates to pick from, ranging from a simple blank page to a calendar planner to perspective sheets and storyboard layouts.
If you currently carry around a number of notebooks for different purposes, the Remarkable can easily replace them all (though apps for other tablets could likely offer a similar range more affordably).
The pen and brush options are varied too. There's an ink pen option with three different nib styles, a pencil, a felt tip with three different fill-shade options, and a highlighter. The first three options there have a variety of tip-size choices too, which lead to flexible drawing options when used in tandem with the pressure-sensitive screen.
Undo and redo buttons allow for quick corrections, but there’s also an eraser that can be used as a scrubber, or as an area-select-and-delete tool. A magnifying glass lets you zoom in on specific portions of a page, while there’s also the ability to work in Photoshop-like layers, as well as a tool for selecting portions of a page and dragging them around to other points.
The zooming option is useful to have, but the relatively slow responsiveness of e-ink compared to an LCD can make moving around when zoomed in tiresome. All the page furniture can be hidden away in the corner for distraction-free work if needed.
With Wi-Fi functionality built into the tablet and a free cloud service included, the Remarkable will back up your notes wherever a web connection is present. The 8GB of built-in storage is good for about 100,000 pages, so having the ability to view those scribbles elsewhere is useful.
Mac, Windows, Android and iOS apps are available for moving those cloud-stored pages to, and it’s a relatively painless experience, with the apps mirroring the visual design of the tablet’s built-in software.
Frustratingly, you can’t currently print directly from the tablet, so you’re going to have to download pages through one of those apps and open them elsewhere in order to make hard copies if required.
If you like the sound of reading ebooks on the large e-ink screen, that’s totally possible, but note that it’s not the feature-rich experience you’d get with a Kindle. Sure, you can quickly and easily annotate passages with the pen, but beyond that this is as basic an ereader as you can imagine.
Even jumping around a book is a chore – if you’re reading a book several hundred pages long and wish to jump to a specific passage you’re going to have to either go through a laborious number of page turns, or scroll through an equally painful amount of page lists or grids to find the point you want.
It’s fine for reading shorter texts in a linear fashion, but the slow page refresh speed alone would make dedicated readers look elsewhere. With menu options collapsing into the top-left corner, it’s possible for the 'expand' icon to overlap the first line of a page, too.
The set-up process for the cloud services could be streamlined too. You’ll need to head online to set up a Remarkable account, which then gives you a code which you need to input into the tablet to link you account to it. It feels a bit like busywork, and it's surprising that this stage isn’t integrated into the tablet itself.
It’s hard to shake the feeling that there’s lots left to come in terms of the Remarkable tablet’s software. Simple things like USB file transfer are missing, and there’s no bookstore for getting commercial content onto the device.
A few more features, such as handwriting recognition and third-party cloud service support are the sort of features that could really widen the usefulness and appeal of this tablet. All of the above and more are said to be in the works for the coming months, but the Remarkable would have felt a much more comprehensive device had it left the blocks with all these features baked in.
The Remarkable tablet makes use of a 1GHz ARM A9 CPU, backed up by 512MB of RAM. That’s fine for what you'll be doing on the device, although the relatively slow speed of page refreshes can frustrate.
E-ink displays only perform a full refresh when prompted, which is why they’re perfect for e-readers – as they don’t draw power often, the battery lasts much longer. They optionally don’t have to perform a full refresh either, which speeds up page turns significantly, although this can leave behind artefacts from the previous screen.
The Remarkable performs partial refreshes regularly, meaning it will easily see out a week before needing a recharge. However, for precision sketching, this can leave lots of ghost-like lines on a fresh blank page, with no option to force through a full refresh – particularly annoying when you're erasing elements. And then, when a full refresh does occur, it takes a distracting second to go through.
What can’t be knocked, though, is the feel of the pen on the screen itself. Combined with the multiple pen styles on offer, you have a full range of writing and drawing options at your disposal. Basil, TechRadar's resident artist, felt instantly at home with the Remarkable, declaring it the best non-paper device he’d scribbled on, at least in terms of the pen-to-page feel.
You may miss full color control if you want to create more vibrant artworks, but if it's line work you’re interested in, it ticks the boxes.
The Remarkable tablet is a curious device then. Its USP is well realized, as it's one of best digital drawing and note-taking device out there – provided you’re happy to work in monochrome, with the benefits and drawbacks its screen dictates.
But its software needs a lot of work to be considered feature-complete – and that’s before considering the mountains of iOS and Android apps it’ll never be able to support. In its defense, the Remarkable isn't intended to replace devices running those operating systems, but with its high price tag it may struggle to find an audience that’s not already well catered for with traditional tablet tech.
Look at the Venn diagram of crowdfunding prospectors, artists and paper enthusiasts, and the potential market for the Remarkable exists in that small area of intersection. It won’t gain wider appeal until the above issues are addressed, but within that niche it’ll likely find a dedicated fanbase.
When HMD Global first introduced the Nokia 3310, it was a 2G-only device just like the original model that came out years ago. Fast-forward to today, though, and HMD has announced an upgraded model with a notable new feature.
The new Nokia 3310 looks identical to the model that was announced in February, but this one includes 3G connectivity. This model is also slightly larger and, likely due to the addition of 3G, its estimated battery life has dropped from 22.1 hours of talk time on the 2G model to 6.5 hours on the 3G version.
One other notable detail of the 3G-capable Nokia 3310 is that it’s got a slightly different operating system. It runs a Feature OS that HMD says was necessary with the addition of 3G support, but the software is said to be “as easy to use and navigate but with some cool new features.”
The 3G-capable Nokia 3310 will launch in mid-October for €69. Among the first regions to get the device will be Australia, but this 3310 is expected to roll out globally.
While 2G connectivity is in line with the original Nokia 3310, the addition of 3G support should help the device to feel a bit more modern. Obviously you’re not going to be doing anything too data intensive on the 3310’s 2.4-inch QVGA screen, but using apps like Facebook and Twitter will be much more bearable over 3G than it would be over 2G.
Does the addition of 3G make the Nokia 3310 tempting to you?
If you’re wondering what’s the difference between a cheap, inexpensive turntable and ones exalted by audiophiles, it comes down to design, damping, materials and the phono cartridge. A $99 turntable will play records just fine, but you’ll want to spend more if sound quality is your goal.
$400 (£349, AU$550) may sound like a lot to spend on a turntable, but entry-level hi-fi turntables like the Pro-Ject Debut Carbon are actually a bargain.
In the case of the Debut Carbon, the turntable comes with the excellent Ortofon 2M Red phono cartridge as well as a lightweight and rigid carbon fiber tonearm – parts that separate the Pro-Ject from its competitors and the benefits pay off in sonic performance.
Said simply, if you’re serious about record collecting, the Pro-Ject Debut Carbon is one of the best entry-level hi-fi turntables you can buy. For the money, you’re getting a beautiful, well-built turntable that sounds excellent. It’s easy to setup and use, even for absolute beginners.
Our Pro-ject Debut Carbon came in piano black but Pro-ject offers a few variants of the Debut Carbon in white, gray, yellow, red, green, blue and purple. It’s nice to see a legit turntable manufacturer offer colors that aren’t black or silver to show off your personality.
The turntable platter is made out of medium density fiberboard (MDF), which offers good damping for noise isolation from footsteps and vibrations from speakers. The turntable rests on non-adjustable rubberized feet that also aid in damping the turntable from vibration.
Take a look at the motor and you’ll find that it’s decoupled from the turntable via a rubber suspension system. This design ensures that the vibration of the motor doesn’t transfer through the platter, your record and to the needle.
Speaking of the platter, it’s heavy made of metal, topped with a thin, felt mat. The platter is shockingly heavy but that’s a good thing as it is one more way Pro-Ject fights noise and vibration. The only downside is that you’ll have to pick up the heavy platter every time you need to switch from 33 ⅓ and 45 rpm. Switching speeds requires moving the belt between the upper and lower pulley, which is an annoyance but not a deal breaker.
The defining feature that separates the Pro-Ject Debut Carbon from the competition is its single-piece carbon fiber tonearm. Beyond simply looking good, carbon fiber helps fight resonance with its stiff construction and natural damping abilities. It’s also lightweight and helps with tracking records smoothly.
Lastly, the Pro-Ject Debut Carbon comes with a clear acrylic dust cover. It’s attached to the turntable via two metal rods and doesn’t affect the sound quality of the turntable, though you will hear the thud of the cover when you close it when a record is playing, but that’s normal.
There's nothing worse than buying a new record player and having no clue where to start. Thankfully, setting up the Debut Carbon is simple, even for beginners just getting into the hobby. This is due in no small part to the included manual which simply and clearly explains where everything goes.
The most difficult part of the setup was balancing the tonearm, which simply requires you to make sure the tonearm is level before setting the tracking force.
Setting anti-skate is a bit different with the Pro-Ject, as it uses a small weight on fishing line to fight the needle’s natural movement to go toward the center of the record while it plays. It’s not as easy to use as a dial but you won’t be fiddling with your anti-skate much unless you’re constantly switching phono cartridges.
Around the back of the turntable, you’ll find RCA outputs and a ground peg, which means it’s super simple to replace worn cables in the future. Pro-Ject includes a beautiful cable in the box for you to connect to your phono preamp. Note that the Debut Carbon doesn’t include a phono preamp so you’ll have to pick one up on your own.
There’s no need to align the cartridge as the included Ortofon 2M Red comes mounted to the tonearm out of the box. This is great for beginners as aligning a phono cartridge can be the most difficult part of setting up a turntable.
If you do decide to switch cartridges sometime down the road, however, Pro-Ject includes a simple protractor in the box.
If you’re spending $400/£349 on a turntable, it had better sound good and we’re happy to report that the Pro-Ject Debut Carbon sounds spectacular.
Every little attention to detail for damping has paid off as the Pro-Ject doesn’t pick up any noise from the motor and does an amicable job of neutralizing footsteps. However, you’ll want to make sure you place the turntable on a solid surface or buy an isolation rack to completely eliminate the sound of footsteps.
The included Ortofon 2M Red does a good job of pulling detail out of records. It tracks nicely and has good dynamic range. Whereas cheaper turntables like the Denon DP-300F make cymbals sound splashy and harsh, the 2M Red makes them sound smoother and more life-like. While you won’t get the micro-details and expansive air that more expensive phono cartridges are capable of, the 2M Red is a perfectly good starting point on your audio journey.
In terms of tonal balance, the Pro-Ject Debut Carbon and Ortofon 2M Red combination sounds neutral with crystalline highs and velvety mid-range. Bass is adequate but may disappoint audiophiles who prefer a slightly warm tilt.
We talked a lot about Pro-Ject’s attention to detail when to comes to damping and it pays off in sonic performance. The turntable is extremely quiet, which lets you hear more of the record itself instead of the hum of a motor or the subtle vibration of an a poorly damped turntable.
The carbon tonearm definitely helps cut down resonance, allowing you to hear more of the record and less of the equipment that it’s playing on.
The Pro-Ject Debut Carbon is well built, beautifully designed and just sounds awesome. It’s not the most resolving turntable but you wouldn’t expect it to be at this price range. When looking at the Pro-Ject Debut Carbon as a package, it’s hard to think of another turntable in this price range that can top it.
While it's still incredibly easy to use (especially for anyone used to setting up more complicated players), you are giving up conveniences like auto start/stop, an anti-skate dial and a built-in phono preamp but for audiophiles, none of these downsides matter as the turntable’s sonic performance vastly outweighs its minor trade offs.
For those who want a set-it-and-forget-it experience, check out the Denon DP-300F. It doesn’t sound nearly as good, but it’s the simplest way to start listening to records with its automatic tonearm and built-in preamp.
While it's not the cheapest record player on the shelf, the Pro-Ject Debut Carbon is still an incredible value. We can’t recommend this turntable enough.
We reviewed the Hammer Axe Pro from myPhone earlier this year. Well, not the exact model here, but the ODM (original design manufacturer) version from a Hong-Kong based vendor called Nomu. The S30, as it is known, impressed us back then thanks to a balanced combination of grunt and keen pricing (you can see the two phones next to each other in the following two screenshots below) .
With a retail price of just over £173 ($230) at the time of writing (purchased from Geekbuying and including delivery but not local taxes), the Nomu S30 is indeed a bargain.
However, there are instances when buying from a non-European country may not be a particularly enticing option, because of issues such as value added taxes, business support, the need for localization or other similar restrictions.
That’s probably why Polish-based company myPhone chose to build its business model on “localizing” smartphones like the S30, thereby mitigating the business risks associated with buying a ruggedized smartphone from somewhere like China.
(That said, you can buy the Nomu S30 for as little as £219.99 – $295 – fulfilled by Amazon).
The Hammer Axe Pro is a chunky smartphone – measuring 162 x 83 x 13.35mm, and weighing 270g – but this handset is different in its look and feel from most of the competition. It eschews the traditional rubbery, utilitarian look of many of its rivals for something more subtle.
The manufacturer opted for a more stylish design with a textured back – polycarbonate plastic is the dominant material used in its chassis which has a titanium alloy structure.
The biggest selling point of the Hammer Axe Pro is that it is IP68-rated; this means that it should withstand being immersed in 1.5m of water for up to 30 minutes. Nomu claims that the S30 should be able to survive underwater for two hours to depths of up to 5m – and that’s likely to be the case for the Axe Pro as well.
The audio connector is located at the top of the Axe Pro and the microUSB port at the other end, with both being covered by flaps which are cumbersome to remove every time you have to charge your phone or connect a pair of headphones. We’d prefer to have both located at the same end of the device, ideally.
Note that the USB port doesn’t requires a USB cable with a longer-than-usual connector as is the case with many of its competitors.
There’s one speaker located at the bottom of the Hammer Axe Pro. A programmable SOS key can be found on one side of the phone while the other hosts the power button and a volume rocker switch which can be used as a camera button. There are no notification lights, though.
The front of the phone plays host to three capacitive buttons and there’s no fingerprint reader. Check out the original Nomu S30 review for a more detailed look at the design.
Back in January, the S30 was the most powerful rugged smartphone on the market. Since then, however, Blackview’s BV8000 Pro, the Doogee S60 and the AGM X1 have surpassed it in terms of raw performance and functionality.
That’s not to say that it is a run-of-the-mill handset. The Mediatek P10 system-on-a-chip is still a very capable model, clocked at 2GHz with eight cores. 4GB of system memory (LPDDR3) and 64GB of eMMC 5.1 storage means that it will easily run the latest version of Android.
The 5.5-inch Full HD IPS display is covered by a Gorilla Glass 3 overlay and delivers vibrant colors even in bright sunlight outside. Two microSIM slots and one microSD card slot can be found under a cover at the back; you can use all three at the same time unlike many rivals
Connectivity-wise, you’ve got Bluetooth 4 and 802.11n Wi-Fi, and even NFC. The front-facing camera is a 5-megapixel shooter (Omnivision OV5648) while the one at the back is a 13-megapixel affair (Sony IMX214) that can record in Full HD. The phone is powered by a massive 5,000mAh battery and supports fast charging thanks to a 6V,2A charger.
We couldn’t get the Hammer Axe Pro to install the latest firmware – the smartphone would crash and spew some gibberish text, which was a bit problematic.
The Hammer Axe Pro runs Android 7.0 – surprisingly, Nomu itself has yet to confirm when Android 7.0 will ship for the S30.
The screen is a fingerprint-magnet thanks to the lack of an oleophobic layer. Fortunately, this doesn’t apply to the rest of the chassis.
We didn’t detect any noticeable lag when operating the smartphone. myPhone (and Nomu) has kept the phone remarkably bloatware-free, aside from myPhone’s own registration app. This is in stark contrast to most of the rugged smartphones we’ve tested until now.
Performance is more than acceptable on the nine benchmarks we tested with. The Hammer Axe Pro is a capable mid-range smartphone, that much is clear.
The Hammer Axe Pro costs £364 ($490) from Amazon, which is about twice the price of the Nomu S30, a 110% margin to be more precise. You don’t get a lot more for that premium, however, and as a result you’ll definitely be better off buying the Nomu S30 (or indeed two of them for the money).
If you can live with the quirks of the original S30 and the risk associated with importing a product without local insurance, then it is an absolute no-brainer bargain. However, if you want the peace of mind associated with a local company that can give you a VAT refund, then the Axe Pro might be a better option.
Sony's smartphones, while perhaps not grabbing as much of the market's attention as other manufacturers' devices, have traditionally been pretty great handsets. At least on the hardware level. The cameras have been solid, the hardware worthwhile, and the company has managed to check off plenty of must-have boxes for customers over the years. For some folks, Sony is the perfect choice and the company they keep going back to.
Back when Sony was selling phones under the Sony Ericsson brand, I was a pretty big fan of the creations they came up with. They had phones that spun around to reveal the number pad, and handsets that were "designed for music," thanks to the Walkman brand tagging along. They were pretty cool devices, but, since then, I've sort of dropped off the wagon.
The hardware on Sony phones has never really pulled me away, but it's been the software. I'm not a huge fan of Sony's proprietary user interface, and if I basically have to re-skin and add apps to replace your own efforts --basically changing the entirety of the software experience-- I'm more likely to just use a different phone.
Plus, getting a Sony-branded smartphone from my carrier has been a nonstarter for many years.
One of the complaints lobbied against Sony recently is the fact it hasn't quite jumped on the same design bandwagon as the other companies out there. Basically, not adopting the bezel-less design. But it looks like the company has plans to fix that issue, because a major redesign for its hardware is on the way. And while the safe bet is that Sony will shrink the bezels, there is one hardware change I'm wondering if Sony will make with its next flagship: The 3.5mm headphone jack.
To some people, removing the headphone jack is simply user hostile and that's the end of the story. For others, it's not a big deal. For me, I just see it as an inevitability at this point, so I'm trying to just prepare accordingly (and hope wireless technology keeps improving). Some manufacturers have removed the port from their phones, and others haven't (yet).
I can't help but wonder what Sony will be doing with the headphone jack in its next flagship. Will Sony, a company that sells a range of wireless headphones, go the route that sees its phones remove the jack altogether? Or will the company's flagship keep it around for a little while longer?
The big question, to me, is whether or not you, as a customer, would consider a Sony-branded flagship smartphone if it didn't include the 3.5mm headphone jack. If Sony removes it, will this make their new device, even if it adopts the bezel-less design, looks great doing it, and offers all of the standard flagship features along with it, a no-go for you? Let me know!
We've compiled a top 10 list of our favorite Android apps to hit the Play Store in September 2017. The apps highlighted in this video include Life Hacks, Amazing Weather, Clockwise, Split-screen Creator, Smartphone Upgrader 2017, BubblOO, Tap the Tower, AMOLED mnml, and WhiteHole. Which app is your favorite?
Did you buy the 12-inch MacBook? I did, but not because I wanted one.
No: the laptop I really wanted was a new MacBook Air, or even a redesigned 13-inch Retina MacBook Pro with a sleeker chassis. Of course, neither came. And like many other Air fans, I realised that another year was to pass by without Apple's best laptop getting an upgrade. So I bought the next best thing.
The MacBook is all about compromise. With more pixels than the Air, its display allows me to be more productive on the move and slinging it into a backpack almost feels like cheating. While no powerhouse (editing 4K images on it is slightly painful), it handles basic tasks with ease.
One year later, Apple has refreshed the MacBook with Intel's sixth-generation Skylake processors while introducing faster storage, memory and graphics for the same price. The most interesting change is on the outside: a new Rose Gold finish that genuinely makes me consider owning a shiny pink laptop for the first time. Gender stereotypes be damned.
But despite its upgrades, the new MacBook is not the MacBook Air replacement that rumors once again predict will arrive this summer - it's the same unique, dazzling and challenging laptop as the one that launched one year ago. Only faster, and with longer-lasting battery life.
A new processor, coupled with faster internal storage, memory and graphics has brought tangible improvements to the MacBook's performance. You'll still have to somehow manage with a single USB-C port, bolting on adapters and connectors to equip your FrankenMac with vital extra limbs.
And if you didn't get on with its super-shallow keyboard, your fingers will remain as unconvinced as they were before - especially during long typing sessions. The MacBook brings more megahertz, and I'm not talking about clock speed.
It hasn’t been an exceptional long-time coming, but users in hot pursuit of software that breathes new life into their still-youthful 12-inch MacBooks will be pleased to know that macOS High Sierra is finally available to download and install.
Though it’s admittedly not perfect, there’s plenty to love about Apple’s refinements to its Mac operating system. Aside from offering better photo editing tools, disbanding auto-playing ads in Safari and introducing a new file system, it also brings Google back to Siri and Spotlight.
Unfortunately, if you were holding out for a new MacBook (though we’re not sure why you would, considering the last one came out in June), you’ll have to prolong your wait until next spring. Until then, there’s still plenty of juice left in Apple’s featheriest laptop.
Some people expected Apple to discount its refreshed MacBook to sweeten the deal. It didn't. The entry-level model still costs £1,049 ($1,299 or AUS$1,999), around $50/$73/AUS$99 more than the 13-inch Retina MacBook Pro.
If the cost remains too high for you, then consider picking up last year's version from Apple's refurb store. While the 2016 refresh is technically the better machine, you wouldn't be able to tell the difference between the two when undertaking low-level tasks such as surfing the web or typing up documents in Pages.
At the time of writing, the entry-level version is on there for £749 (around $1,108 or AUS$1,457) alongside eight other models of varying specs and price.
First reviewed: April 2015
Gabe Carey has also contributed to this review
Apple often shaves a millimetre or two from its laptops when they undergo refreshes, but the 12-inch MacBook leaves no room. At 11 x 7.8 x 0.5 inches (or 280 x 197 x 13.1mm - W x D x H), the MacBook has a smaller footprint than another skinny Core M-powered laptop, the Asus UX305, which spans 12.7 x 8.9 x 0.5 inches (324 x 226 x 321mm).
It also out-skinnies the MacBook Air's 12.5 x 8.9 x 0.6 inches (325 x 227 x 17mm). The 12-inch MacBook is the lighter of the two laptops, weighing just 2.03 pounds compared to the Air's 2.38 pounds. That's roughly the same as holding two iPad Pro 9.7s in the hand.
In comparison, Microsoft's Surface Pro 4 weighs 2.37 pounds with the keyboard cover attached. Other Windows machines are quickly catching up the design stakes - check out HP's Spectre 13 for evidence of that. While the MacBook remains a fine feat of engineering that hasn't lost its allure, strides being made by the competition means that you won't have to choose between slick design and practicality for much longer.
Here is the configuration of the review model supplied to techradar:
The MacBook is offered in three configurations, starting with the entry-level model that comes with 256GB of flash storage. Apple has swapped out last year's fifth-generation Broadwell processors for Intel's newer Skylake variants, with the cheapest MacBook housing a lower powered Core m3 chip clocked at 1.1GHz (Turbo Boost to 2.2GHz).
Starting at £1,299 ($1,599 or AUS$2,249), the more expensive configuration doubles that model's storage and houses a Core m5 processor with a faster clock speed of 1.2GHz (Turbo Boost to 2.7GHz). Both are equipped with faster RAM compared to last year's MacBook (8GB of 1867MHz DDR3, up from 1600MHz), and Apple claims that the Intel HD Graphics 515 solution in this year's models is 25% faster.
For extra oomph, the MacBook can be configured with a faster 1.3GHz dual-core Core m7 processor with a maximum clock speed of 3.1GHz for another £120 (around $175 or AUS$230).
Aside from new configurations, Apple has made a more subtle change to this year's MacBook. In its teardown of the device, iFixit discovered that they use new hinge screws featuring heads filled with a substance that disintegrates when a screwdriver is used on them. These could be used to indicate to Apple that you've tampered with the machine, which may have a knock-on effect when it comes to solving warranty-related issues, though this is yet to be confirmed.
Plus, Apple's Mac App Store has come on in leaps and bounds in recent years, proving an excellent resource with frequent recommendations on apps in multiple categories, such as Games, Productivity, Writing, Navigation and more. Here's every app you'll find upon booting up a New MacBook for the first time:
Intel's Core M processor has, perhaps unfairly, earned itself a poor reputation since sliding under the bonnet of the Yoga 3 Pro back in 2015. The Yoga and other early machines that adopted Intel's fanless processor (ironically, the Yoga 3 Pro wasn't fanless) were sluggish and the performance hit wasn't considered worth it to get hold of their sleek new designs.
However, successive generations have seen Core M's performance increase to the point that you often wouldn't be able to tell whether a laptop houses a Core M or Core i-series processor, depending on what it is you're using it for.
Unfortunately for the 2015 MacBook, the Core M processors inside weren't powerful enough to provide a smooth experience under OS X 10.10 Yosemite. I found that disabling transparency effects and animations, while taking care not to open too many apps at once, was vital to prevent applications from temporarily freezing.
So how does the refreshed MacBook fare?
Here's how the MacBook performed in our suite of benchmark tests:
For comparison, here is the performance of the entry-level MacBook, configured with a 1.1GHz Intel Core m3-6Y30 processor clocked at 0.90GHz (Turbo Boost to 1.1GHz), Intel HD Graphics 515 and 8GB of 1867MHz memory.
The good news is that the spec bump has turned the MacBook into a machine that runs much efficiently under more stress. I tried both the entry-level and the mid-spec version, and found that both machines provided a smooth experience out of the box without any tweaking of OS X 's settings.
Running my usual load of office applications, which includes multiple Firefox browsers, GIMP image editor, Skype, Evernote, Filezilla, Wunderlist, Ulysses, Slack, Echofon, Reader and Spotify (they're all essential, alright?), the MacBook didn't so much as stutter. I still wouldn't be confident opening another few FireFox windows and loading 30 tabs into each of them, but that's more of a criticism of the browser than it is of the MacBook's performance.
The 2,304 x 1,440 pixel-resolution display remains one of the best I've seen on a notebook, and is the best on a MacBook. It brings incredibly rich colors and excellent 170-degree viewing angles.
There's another advantage: you can scale it up to get more desktop space and go far beyond Apple's default scaled resolutions. By adding a custom resolution, I managed to soar all the way up to 1,920 x 1,080 in High-DPI mode using SwitchResX, which allowed me to see the same amount of spreadsheet rows and columns as a 27-inch monitor. Sure the text was tiny, but I could still make out the numbers and edit the spreadsheet without any trouble.
I might not be doing it all the time, but compared to my old setup, which was an 11-inch MacBook Air connected to a portable USB DisplayLink monitor, I now have enough desktop real-estate to switch to see more on the screen at the same time. That's been possible on high-resolution Windows and Apple machines for some time, but having all that desktop space is even more impressive on a 12.1-inch machine as thin as a pencil.
The 2016 MacBook isn't going to win any new converts, but it leaves no excuse to pick one up if you're already swayed by what Apple's machine has to offer. Better yet, its new Rose Gold option is gorgeous.
Now that there's more horsepower under the MacBook's bonnet, you won't have to tweak OS X El Capitan's settings to get hold of a smooth experience. As the old Apple motto goes: it just works. The increase is marginal, but it undoubtedly makes a difference. That doesn't mean you're suddenly going to be swapping your MacBook Pro for one to undergo heavy computing lifting.
Apple didn't tweak the MacBook's chassis because it didn't need to. It still can't be matched even by its Windows-based counterparts, though I wouldn't be confident of saying that six months down the line. Its color-packed display is as vibrant as it was on the previous model, and you just try finding a 12- or 13-inch laptop with better speakers. It's a near-impossible task.
That single USB-C port remains the biggest problem with the 12-inch MacBook. It's simply too much of a compromise to use it as your main machine, and even if you're on the move you're forced to make a decision between connecting a peripheral or charging a device if you don't have a dongle to hand. It would have been nice to have seen a price drop too, if only because it feels like the MacBook should have come with sufficient power to deliver a smooth experience in the first place. If new MacBook Air and Pro models appear this summer, you can count on it taking a price dip then.
Should you buy the 12-inch MacBook? The question is a little more complex with the possibility of new MacBook Air and MacBook Pro models arriving at WWDC. One way of thinking of it is that neither are likely to be as thin and portable - it would take a near-impossible engineering feat for that to happen. On the other hand, if you're happy to wait for a machine with more power, hanging on may be the way to go.
If you do decide that Apple's mini marvel for you, buying this year's MacBook is less of a risk than getting the previous version. With faster internals, it's capable of zipping through lesser-demanding tasks without complaining and leaves you with more confidence when slinging it into a bag to take on the road.
When Google announced their new messaging and video call applications, Allo and Duo, during Google I/O last year, I was ecstatic. Finally, here was the iMessage/FaceTime competitor we have been waiting for, available on both Android and iOS. It might take some convincing to get people to try Allo out – and might be a difficult sell, considering I also tried to convince people to use Hangouts before, too. But assuming this was the all-in-one messaging solution I thought it was going to be, it would be well worth it.
Except it kind of wasn’t.
It turned out that Allo and Duo weren’t much like iMessage and FaceTime at all. They had the same concept, but iMessage and FaceTime were far better integrated with each other than Allo and Duo were. Allo in particular suffered because it didn’t technically support SMS, which is a big setback here in the States where SMS is still the default method of texting. Allo also didn’t offer direct access to Duo from within the app, which fragmented what should have been a seamless experience.
Things have changed for the better over the course of a year, however. Google implemented direct access to Duo from Allo, and Allo now has a web interface that users can access through the Chrome browser on a PC. Unfortunately, Allo still doesn’t support SMS, and it’s not even clear if SMS will ever be integrated into the app. Although the improvements to Allo over the past year are welcome ones, for many it matters not without proper SMS support. Without SMS, Allo is just another frivolous messaging app to add to a likely extensive collection, therefore not worth the effort.
Duo, on the other hand, is my new go-to, even after switching back to iOS.
Truthfully, I’ve never been a big fan of video calls, but over the past year I’ve needed video calls more than ever for a multitude of reasons, so Duo arrived at the perfect time for me. Although many of my contacts have iOS and could use FaceTime, most of them also have Duo installed, and almost all of my Android contacts have it as well.
Aside from its availability across platforms, Duo has something else going for it: simplicity. Its no-frills approach to video calling is exactly the kind of straightforwardness I want out of a video call. You just tap, connect, and you’re set. Even its interface is as barebones as it gets. Now, I will admit I was not a fan of the “Knock Knock” feature at first, which allows the recipient to view live video before answering, but I’ve since embraced it by making horrible faces at people while waiting for my call to connect – assuming they even accept the call.
Connection with Duo isn’t immaculate; there has been a time or two where the voice or video cuts out temporarily, although I’ve yet to experience a true dropped call. Aside from that, it’s been a clean experience and has worked well no matter which phone I’m using it with.
That’s really all there is to say about it. It’s clean and works well. Because of its ease of use, how well it has worked for me, and how many people have readily adopted it as their go-to, Duo has become my main app for video calls and I’m happy that Google released it. I wish I could say the same for Allo, because I really did want to use it. Even after its debut, only a handful of people were willing to try it out with me. In the year since, only one other person still uses it with me, and that’s only when they’re traveling overseas. Most of the time it sits dormant in a folder, collecting virtual dust.
Now that I’m back on iOS it isn’t a big deal. I just use iMessage, which seamlessly transitions between iMessage or SMS, depending on who I am texting. But one day I will return to Android, as I often do, and iMessage won’t be an option. That’s never been enough to deter me, but it would have been nice if Allo had been as easy to use and carefree as Duo was. Fortunately, Allo isn’t the first nor the last messaging app to work on both Android and iOS, so there isn’t much of a loss.
Readers, what are your thoughts on Allo and Duo? Do you use either app as your go-to these days? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!
Despite most sane people still thinking they're a solution waiting for a problem, true wireless earbuds are here to stay, with launches from Apple, Philips, Jaybird, Onkyo, B&O, Motorola and dozens of no-brand Chinese alternatives on Amazon showing the big brands' desire to enter this category.
With the VerveOnes+, Motorola – via the parent company Binatone - were one of the first to the high street, offering Bluetooth convenience plus a water-resistant build.
On launch in 2016 they cost a mighty $250/£230 (around AU$315), which was ludicrously expensive given they didn't offer half the features of something like the Jabra Elite Sport, but as the competition has caught up the price has been slashed to $190/£180 (roughly AU$240) via the Verve.life website or even lower if you shop around.
Motorola also offers the all-white VerveOnes Music and all-black VerveOnes True, which are both almost identical, but lack the VerveOnes+ waterproof build quality.
But are any of these really worth the outlay? How good do they sound in comparison to, say, a pair of $100/£75/AU$125+ wired headphones? Will the battery life bother you? And won't you be constantly worried about losing them?
Whether you think they're a daft idea or not, there's no denying the engineering expertize involved in squeezing speakers, Bluetooth receivers, Siri/Google Now control and more into LEGO brick sized (35 x 35 x 90mm) earbuds.
They're not the smallest or lightest earbuds, but with an IP57 rating they can be dunked to depths of 1 meter for 30 minutes, which is impressive, if not a bit over the top. Splash and sweat proof would have sufficed, but at least you're safe if they pop out into your sports drink.
They're nicely put together , the matte rubber finish can be gripped easily, and the large single button on each ear – for skipping tracks, pairing and voice control - can be pushed easily without shoving the whole earbud further into your head.
The charging case, while enormous compared to the Apple AirPods dental floss case, is nicely designed, protecting the buds and offering an extra three full charges. It's not pocket-friendly (unless you’re a lover of cargo pants) though, which means you'll need to carry a bag, or make sure you're not off anywhere for more than a couple of hours.
Take one earbud out of the case and, after an initial pain-free pairing process, the Bluetooth connects quickly. Pop out the second bud and sensors recognize the action and connect it all together.
It can take 15 seconds to be up and running, which is quite long, but just enough time to make sure the earbuds are wedged in your ears.
The VerveOnes+ come with six sets of rubber ear tips to help secure the fit, but unusually there are no wing tips included. Those little flanges of silicone are sorely missed here, and while the rubber-backed earbuds do a good job, they don’t feel especially secure, and would benefit from the second line of defense the wing tips would offer.
That said, despite being a bit bulbous, and feeling like they shouldn’t stay put, the fit was deceptively secure. If you don’t sweat much when you exercise the sense of freedom as you run is hugely enjoyable, but if you drip like a leaky tap they will slip eventually.
Conscious of the lack of silicone wing tips, we were constantly checking the position of the buds as we ran… just in case.
As for battery life, the Motorola VerveOnes+ suffer the same fate as many true wireless earbuds. Without the top-up battery from the charging case you'll do well to get two hours from each earbud. Fine for a commute, but hopeless for marathon training.
The battery case is generous though, offering three full charges before it needs to be plugged in. You'll still not want to take them long haul, but at least you can top up while at work.
We did run into a few connection issues when testing, with the left and right ears dropping signal for a second or two every now and again, and the Bluetooth stuttering heavily if we put our phone in our bag instead of the front pocket of our jeans.
We've experienced similar issues with many pairs of true wireless earbuds, so it's not unique to Motorola, but that doesn’t stop it from being irritating.
So, the Motorola VerveOnes+ fit surprisingly well, but how do they sound? In one word; average. They’re not terrible, and tweaking the EQ settings via the companion app can improve things – especially with the bass, but they sound no better than a cheaper pair of wired headphones.
If you’re after in-ear headphones with detail, punchy bass and a well-balanced tone, you might be disappointed, but if you need loud, thumping gym companions these will do the job.
Most companion apps can be dismissed once initial Bluetooth pairing has taken place, but the Hubble does offer a few handy extras, most notably the EQ settings. Playing with these can make a huge difference to the sound quality, and help boost the volume.
You can also turn on 'Ear Detect', which means the buds will pause when you take them out of your ears, plus 'Pass-Through' which allows more of the outside world in; handy if you run along busy roads.
There's also a small map showing the current and/or last known location of your earbuds. Potentially useful if you need confirmation that you've left them at work, but the tracking only works for the charging case, not individual buds.
So there's lots to tinker with via the app, but in our extensive test we found the app buggy, difficult to sync and that it dropped connection regularly.
True wireless earbuds are great fun, and offer new levels of freedom, especially if you love to run. Not having a cable takes getting used to, but it is liberating, and once you secure them and trust the VerveOnes+ not to pop out you'll forget they're in.
The cable free convenience also means you won't have your ears violated when you snag the cable when taking off a bag/coat/hoodie.
They're also well-built and offer decent protection against sweat and the elements.
Despite the impressive feature set the overall experience is a bit clunky, with all-too-frequent connection drop outs and app glitches spoiling the experience.
Battery life is also too short – even with the battery pack – and while topping up is quick and convenient, it's hardly ideal if you're staring down a long train journey and you can’t watch a film without needing a recharge.
Sound quality is also mediocre compared to similarly priced wired (or Bluetooth) headphones, with a lack of detail and balance. It's fine for running, gym work and commuting but don't expect more than basic playback.
The Motorola VerveOnes+ are impressively robust, they have a just about acceptable battery life and connect seamlessly to your smartphone, but you'll be lamenting the sound quality and lack of silicone wing tips, which would give them universal security.
As a result, don’t be surprised if you spend more time pushing them back in your ears than pushing for a personal best.
The price drop will make them appealing to many though and they remain superior to the cheap no-brand options available. The companion app and ability to tweak the sound quality is extremely useful, and they're undeniably fun to use… assuming you can find your perfect fit.
First reviewed: September 2017
