Opinion: Why a uni-port MacBook makes sense in a wire-free world
If you're one of the people who threw their arms up in protest when Apple removed the optical drive from the MacBook Pro, guess what: a Retina MacBook Air with a single USB is incoming, and it's going to blow your tiny, progress-fearing mind.
Confused? To recap: Apple is reportedly taking the seemingly drastic step of replacing all of the MacBook Air's current ports with a single reversible USB Type C connection in order to make the machine as slim as possible. And just like banishing the long-unless optical drive from its laptop range, Apple's latest stroke of genius is going to see it once again launch one of the most portable and desirable laptops in the world.
But will it be practical? Until recently, I wasn't so sure. I take my 11-inch MacBook Air everywhere and connect it to multiple DisplayPort and DVI-equipped monitors. If I'm near a power outlet I'll clip in the MagSafe 2 connector to save battery cycles, and for any serious work I can't be without a wired USB mouse.
Moving to a single USB Type C port would require an adapter to connect all of those at once, which would prove a compromise too far -- right?
Wireless is more
For a portically-challenged MacBook to work, wireless technology must come into play. It's just as well, then, that Intel -- which is proving the driving force behind the no-wire computing movement -- has begun to take it seriously.Intel unveiled its fifth-generation vPro Broadwell CPU earlier this week, which natively supports two technologies key to wire-free computing: WiDi (for connecting devices wirelessly to displays) and WiGig (for connecting peripherals such as monitors, mice and printers). WiDi has been finicky in the past, but Intel has refined the tech to the point where connecting a WiDi-enabled laptop wirelessly to a display or dock is as simple as walking up to it. Simply put: it's awesome.
Historically, WiDi has only been compatible with Windows (Apple TV provides similar screen mirroring functionality for Apple users), but it is highly likely that the Retina MacBook Air will use Intel's Core M Broadwell CPU, which can stream wirelessly to displays and docks using WiDi v.5.1 and WiGig.
Power play
Integrating WiDi into the upcoming machine would open up the opportunity for Apple to bake WiDi functionality into a new range of Cinema Displays (WiDi can stream video wirelessly in 4K) -- or even extend functionality to non-Apple displays through an adapter.With the ability to dock wireless displays and peripherals, charging and power management becomes the final challenge in banishing wires for good --- and Intel is already working on it. According to a blog post by Intel Project Manager Colleen Cuthbertson, Intel has successfully demonstrated charging a laptop sitting on a two-inch thick table using a magnetic resonance pad underneath -- a method she writes could be deployed in coffee shops and other commonly used mobile locations.
If any company is going to take a calculated risk by scrapping ports -- including its much-championed Thunderbolt 2 specification -- it's Apple. Should it drop a few ports and succesfully integrate wireless tech into the Retina MacBook Air to make it give it industry-leading, catwalk-thin dimensions picking up a new adapter or monitor will be a small price to pay.
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Week in Gaming: The 8 most bonkers things to happen in gaming this week
1. We discovered that someone made a video of all the Goldeneye death sound effects, and we have no idea why anyone would think this was a good idea.
2. We also discovered that someone made a Super Nintendo Chalmers. And someone else made the worst Mario cake of all time (via Reddit).
3. Nintendo released the Metroid Prime trilogy on Wii U this week for the paltry price of just £9/$10 (after the first week it will double in price). The digital re-release offers 1080p output, and is bad news for anyone whose collector edition copy just dropped in value.
4. Which made us remember that Mega Man reboot Retro Studios once worked on... and later canned. Please Retro, enough with the Donkey Kongs.
5. IGN revealed a stunning piece of concept art from EA's upcoming Star Wars Battlefront. The game's Design Director Niklas Fegraeus said: "We've been showing the game to some close partners and one of the things we hear is that it doesn't feel like other shooters and that it's fully born from Star Wars." You better be right about that, pal.
6. Sega announced that it's making significant cuts across its business to focus on mobile and digital PC gaming. Around 300 staff are being offered voluntary retirement and Sega will close its San Francisco base. We hope Sega can really turn things around this time - maybe now's the time to bring back Sega VR?
7. The owner of a limited edition 20th Anniversary PS4 has coated their console with Swarovski crystals and put it on eBay. It's ugly. Oh my word it's ugly.
8. And finally, we laughed at this:
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Fighting Talk: Straight-laced Netflix has a lot to learn from the Pirate Bay
As you read this, the Pirate Bay could be back online, providing you can find it through the barrier of ISP blocks that try to stop UK residents from accessing it. Or at least, stop UK consumers accessing it with one click.
The site's history of enabling global piracy isn't anything to be particularly proud of, but the excitement surrounding its return tells us one thing – whatever you think of what it does, it does it well and has the fans to prove it.
It has been a slight inconvenience not having the Pirate Bay around. Using advert-plastered alternative torrent sites that outright lie about what they contain is a nightmare. Unfortunately it's the only option, as trying to find legitimate ways to watch the weekend's US telly or ripped VHS content from the 1980s can be nigh-on impossible – even in the streaming, globalised world of 2015.
Those who are into piracy, or have a keen interest in acquiring legal back-up copies of physical media they already own, know the Pirate Bay's still the model media portal.
It's no great looker and there's no revolving HTML5 carousel, but that's part of its appeal as well.
A search box and an unstyled list of everything that's available is vastly more usable than all these dynamic interfaces modern media businesses are pushing out to aid the "discovery" of their content.
The BBC's spent millions redesigning the iPlayer portal, with the end result being that it's now slightly harder to find the mundane BBC4 documentary about the history of gnomes I'm looking for than it was before. The Pirate Bay, with its functional, coded-by-amateurs layout, works better, and is quicker. So I'll still look there first every time.
Likewise, Spotify's great and very clever, but the desktop app's clunky and the web player is overly complex. Why go through that when you can stream everything straight to a folder, for free and without adverts between Girls Aloud's greatest hits?
This must be the place
If I want to watch, say, Total Recall again tonight, where should I go? If I could remember the name of the distributor or studio, perhaps I'd try looking at the particular streaming site they're aligned with. But I know it'll be on a torrent site, in the resolution of my choosing, and it'll fly down at maximum bandwidth.How is it that a hacked-together torrent site run by unpaid admins and populated with content by the general public can beat the official big media resources hands-down when it comes to accessibility and content choice?
The Bay is also properly international – not offering a curated selection of content designed to adhere to the media giants' demands in each territory, as Netflix does. Not split so one half can serve ads to the US while another can be free to the UK, all the while arbitrarily expiring the availability of everlasting digital content seemingly on a whim, as happens on BBC iPlayer.
The Pirate Bay has one list of everything you can get. Now. And it's always there. Imagine a world in which legitimate media was like that.
Take the Pirate Bay legit by having Universal, Sony and the rest clone it and populate it, and you've got the answer to all piracy problems.
Add a £4.99 compulsory license fee to the cost of a broadband connection and stick everything that's ever been recorded or filmed on one massive, bulletproof, utilitarian server, that works all the time, even if we're on holiday in somewhere exotic like France, and we'll be happy.
Piracy won't be crushed until the official options do a better job of competing with the speed, ease of access and global reach of the underground.
Good on Netflix for not (yet) annihilating VPN connections, but why make people go there in the first place? Adding these pretend international boundaries is only making thieving the new films and telly off the old torrent sites even more appealing.
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Review: Viewsonic VX2363Smhl review
We've seen some outstanding monitors appear recently. From the massive-o-monitor that is the Philips BDM4065UC to the wide-screen awesomeness of the LG 34UM95, we've had some great new screens hit our test benches.
What we haven't seen recently though are any budget-oriented screens, just high-spec panels.
So what do you do if you don't have the ready reddies to spend on a massive panel?
Thankfully Viewsonic has been creating good-value monitors, with our favourite IPS panel technology inside, for years. We've been recommending the 23-inch VX2370Smh as our pick of the budget screens for a good long while now, but such things don't last forever and that monitor is now getting harder and harder to find.
Thankfully it's getting replaced by this slightly smaller, but still happily IPS-laden, VX2363Smhl.
This vision in white plastic is reminiscent of some of the budget AOC IPS screens we've seen in the past, using a recessed bezel to make it seem like the panel stretches out to the very edge of the monitor's face.
That gives the screen a nicely classy look on your desktop and the actual panel doesn't disappoint either.
At this price you'd maybe expect to have TN tech forced upon you, but even these 6-bit IPS panels have much better visuals than an old budget TN screen.
The viewing angles aren't up there with the finest panels we've seen recently, but the colours are still vibrant and the contrast levels are good, as well. The black levels and white saturation of this screen, even straight out of the box, are also really impressive.
Not so pro
We're not going to pretend this panel is totally perfect, or will work for photo professionals, but for a seriously budget IPS screen the VX2363Smhl is really impressive for the money.The surrounds, however, are a little less impressive.
The stand is a very basic tilt affair, while the sheer mass of plastic on show speaks to its budget heritage, too. But when you're plugging Kyrat's endangered species in glorious Technicolor, you're not going to give a pair of fetid Sky Tiger kidneys what's surrounding your screen.
All you want are the visuals being piped directly into your eyeballs with decent panel tech.
We would also argue there's little point in spending more money on a 1080p panel. If you're going to be splashing any more cash we'd recommend pointing it at a larger, higher-resolution monitor.
The way things are going you're likely to want to upgrade to a higher resolution monitor fairly soon anyways – hardware performance has nailed 1080p even in the lower echelons of GPU tech, so we're moving forwards to 1440p and 4K next.
Spending £110 on this screen will keep you happy with your current rig, offering pleasing IPS visuals without shredding your wallet.
It should also keep you going until your next hardware upgrade, at which point you may well be looking to pick up a better screen to show off your nice new hardware, too.
We liked
The price is the big win for this new Viewsonic monitor as is the fact that it has managed to squeeze an IPS panel in there too.It may only be a 6-bit screen, but we'd still take it over a TN-based monitor even with that 5ms response time.
We disliked
The plastic chassis is a bit clunky, though it doesn't crowd the screen with a hefty bezel. It's also not massively adjustable.Verdict
For a 1080p gaming PC this bargain-priced monitor wouldn't be a bad fit. It's not going to last forever and the 23-inch panel isn't the biggest or most beautiful, but it's a decent IPS screen for the price.
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Opinion: Samsung promised us radical change – instead it's just doing the same old thing
Back in late 2014 it looked like Samsung was about to implode. The Tetris blocks that make up our understanding of the tech market were wobbling as the giant's profits tumbled by 60%.
Samsung said it would change its approach to phones entirely to bring things around. And we're just about to go through the same rigmarole with another earnings call.
Except that when you look at things closer, the situation isn't quite as it appears. Yes, Samsung's profits fell by 60%, but we are fundamentally talking about a company in profit, when so many other giants flit between red and black like a nervous roulette player.
But quarter-to-quarter performance is important in any giant corporation, and it seems to have taken hold of the way the Samsung makes phones.
Sadly.
Crazy from the heat
Samsung has shown an almost pathological need to make its expensive phones stand out from the rest, without ever stepping back to assess whether its hand.Heart rate sensors and fingerprint scanners that barely work. Plastic textured backs that literally no-one out outside of a Samsung board room likes. These things defined Samsung's 2014 in mobile, part of its grand corporate plan to stay market leader.
That was just the beginning. Now Samsung is following those up in 2015 with screens that curve around the sides and, in a rare moment of honest self-improvement, metal edges instead of chromed plastic prone to chipping.
But for the most part, Samsung plugs more and more into its phones until overwhelming public opinion forces it to act against type. This is something we saw in its software: it became more and labyrinthine until this simply became the polar opposite of what people were looking for in 2014.
People-friendly - not
Here we come to the crux of the issue. Samsung's design process is not about what people want or even what they'll come to want when they get their hands on it.It's more about very conspicuous supposed benefits that can be prodded and listed in bullet-point form, not to mention waved in the faces of shareholders by senior execs. And we've heard more than once about how Samsung's Korea-lead 'top-down' approach can lead to the whims and hunches of a few steering an entire division of thousands.
Now, sometimes this can work wonders, and has led to numerous Samsung innovations. But it is a myopic way to operate.
And, boy, have we seen that in action in Samsung.
Value King
Here's the stinger: Samsung hasn't made a good budget phone since 2012, maybe earlier depending on how picky we're feeling.The company spent hundreds of millions of dollars marketing the Galaxy S5 and S4, yet its obsession with high margin phones has seen it almost completely ignore an important segment of the western market.
Phone makers may bang on about developing countries and the hundreds of million of untapped customers just waiting to be turned into smartphone drones. But what about people back home who just won't want to spend more than £200 on a SIM-free phone, or £20 on a monthly contract?
Samsung's efforts in this area over the past two years have been embarrassing. The Galaxy Young and Fame were truly dreadful, and its slightly more expensive models are so thin on the ground that Carphone Warehouse still sells the Samsung Galaxy S3 Mini. That's a two-and-a-half year-old phone that wasn't much cop in the first place, there to cater for those who simply must have a Galaxy.
Its budget phones coast on the Galaxy name, which makes us wonder: does Samsung think budget phone buyers are plain idiots?
The space you made
Consumers aren't the only one's missing out though, Samsung is missing out too. As we've been shown a couple of times before, there's a massive potential audience for a good, simple, affordable phone.The Nokia Lumia 520 remains the best-selling Windows mobile phone ever, and the Motorola Moto G is now by far the best-selling phone Motorola has produced. These products were only as successful as they are because Samsung left this particular field wide open.
After all the phones it has designed, the hundreds and hundreds of millions spent and billions earned, why can't Samsung give us anything remotely similar?
It has the supply chains in place, and with a flick of a proverbial switch could have the economies of scale to match these budget giants, but in 2015 style.
Is it scared? Does it know that for £150 it could make a 4G phone so good that we'd all give up our dreams of owning a fabled Samsung Galaxy S6?
We can imagine Samsung's execs' discomfort at such an idea. The truth is the market is naturally segmented because it relies so heavily on carrier subsidy (in the US/UK at least).
On your A-game
In 2015 Samsung is finally, finally going to re-energise its more affordable phones with the A-series. But it looks as though it'll be a case of too little, too late.Take the Galaxy A3, for example. It costs around £240 SIM-free (available on contract from February) and yet offers lower display resolution than the £100-odd Moto G.
Yes it has metal sides and is skinny, but when you strip out all the extraneous bits you'll get used to in two and a half days, it's no better than some phones that cost half the price. Worse than some even.
Will it sell well regardless? When Samsung gets around to releasing it properly in February, then probably. But we wish Samsung would spend just five minutes considering its customers over its shareholders. Because we've been waiting for a good budget Samsung phone for an awful long time.
We're still waiting.
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Review: HP OfficeJet Pro 6830 e-All-in-One
Introduction
Introduction
On the face of it the OfficeJet Pro 6830 appears to offer just about everything the small business could want when it comes printing, scanning, copying and, should the need still arise, even faxing documents, and all for less than £100 inc taxes (around $156, AUS$190). It can also print and scan in colour, plus it's the first business inkjet that can be used with HP's pay-per-page Instant Ink service. But, and it's a fairly big but, the Officejet Pro 6830 does have its limitations and may not be the business bargain it appears to be.Well put together
A very sturdy and compact device, the OfficeJet Pro 6830 is based around an HP thermal inkjet engine capable of printing up to 18ppm in black and white and 10ppm in colour, with an impressive duty cycle rating of 15,000 pages per month. Four separate ink cartridges are employed and maximum resolution is 600x1200dpi for both monochrome and colour output. An automatic duplexer is also built-in enabling documents to be printed double-sided, with a single 225-sheet A4 input tray incorporating a 60-sheet output tray in its cover.
The 1200dpi scanner sits just above the print engine with an automatic document feeder (ADF) on top which can be lifted up to allow originals to be scanned manually although on this model scanning is single-side only.
A 2.66-inch (6.75cm) colour touchscreen allows for walk-up scan/copy/fax operation and there's a front-mounted USB port for printing and scanning to and from a memory stick as well as options to scan remotely from a browser.
Specification and Performance
OfficeJet Pro in Action
Unpacking and putting the OfficeJet Pro to work was a very quick and easy task, all done from the built-in touchscreen over a WiFi connection and taking around 10 minutes. Drivers and software for Windows and Mac clients comes on a DVD but we opted to download from the HP website to get the latest implementations.In terms of speed we got around 4-5 pages per minute for mixed text and graphics documents and up to 10ppm for pure text with the first page typically appearing in around 15 seconds. Quality was good enough for most business needs, but we did see striations when printing photos and other images, and the finished documents came out a little wet, turning wrinkled when dry. Another irritation was the single paper tray which soon ran out and was far from easy to refill, plus there was a pronounced pause between sides when using the duplexer and our finished documents often overflowed the catch tray onto the floor.
We mostly printed over a WiFi network although you can also print directly using a point-to-point wireless connection or via the HP Connected portal simply by emailing documents to the address assigned. Mobile printing is similarly well catered for on both iOS and Android platforms and hard to fault on a printer in this price bracket.
It's all about the ink
Other than paper handling our main concern was how quickly the ink was used up with the three colours (cyan, yellow and magenta) all but exhausted after just 80 pages. However, that was with low-capacity starter cartridges and we did print a lot of images. High capacity replacement cartridges are available and a big selling point on this OfficeJet Pro is support for HP's Instant Ink service, which can save both time and money as far as ink is concerned.
With Instant Ink you effectively pre-pay for ink via a monthly subscription based on the number of pages (colour or black and white) that you expect to produce. HP will remotely monitor usage and post replacement cartridges to you before they are needed as well as arranging for disposal of empty consumables. Plans start at £1.99-per-month for 50 pages ($2.99 in the US, sorry Australia it's not available yet), with automatic rollover of any unused page allowance. Should this not be enough you can buy extra pages at £1 for each 15 pages ($1 in the US) or switch to either the 100-page/£3.49 per month plan ($4,99) or 300-page/£7.99 per month high use service ($9.99 in the US).
Compared to buying cartridges yourself HP reckons Instant Ink can save up to £516 (around $804, AU$983) per year for customers on the high use plan. That's not something we can confirm but we did find a full set of high-yield cartridges (rated to last for up to 825 pages) selling for £68 (around $106, AU$130) whereas a 3-month Instant Ink high use subscription (300 pages/month) is just £24 ($30 in the US) which is clearly a massive saving.
Verdict
There's nothing intrinsically wrong with the OfficeJet Pro 6830. Indeed it delivers everything a small business needs to print, scan, copy and fax, does it with some aplomb and for a lot less than laser alternatives. However it has the look and feel of a consumer printer rather than a robust business solution, especially when it comes to paper handling which is a real Achilles heel.That aside, if the budget is tight it's still worth considering and we'd definitely recommend signing up for Instant Ink. But if you're going to share the printer with lots of users and you can afford a bit extra you're probably better off with something that has more to offer in the paper handling department.
We liked
Despite its low price and lack of size, the OfficeJet Pro 6830 is bristling with connectivity options plus a full complement of mobile printing and scanning tools that we found easy to learn and highly effective. It's also a very easy device to operate, both via the colour front panel and remotely through either a browser or using custom apps.Inkjets are notoriously expensive to run but HP reckons that the OfficeJet Pro 6830 can produce professional colour documents at up to 50% of the cost of a laser and by signing up to its Instant Ink service this seems more than plausible. In fact, by fixing the cost per page and delivering the necessary ink to your door in advance of it running out, Instant Ink is very much a no-brainer and something we'd strongly recommend to anyone buying this or any other supported HP inkjet.
We disliked
A single paper tray is a real limitation on a business printer, further exacerbated in this case by the lack of a bypass feeder. Not only do you have to keep a close eye on how much paper is available but, in order to print to envelopes, card, pre-printed paper and so on, you have to load the material into the sole paper tray and quickly complete the required print jobs before anyone else tries to use the printer. You then have to remove any unused media and top up with paper to make the printer/copier ready for normal operation.The catch tray on top of the paper drawer is another annoyance, spilling documents onto the floor rather than keeping them safe. Some of ours also got caught on the plastic stop bar, ending up scrunched and smeared. Moreover, in a busy office the catch tray will nearly always be full of forgotten old documents making it even harder to refill the paper drawer beneath.
And lastly, it must be about time for HP and other vendors to drop the built-in fax modem. Very few businesses use fax these days and we're sure most would rather have better paper handling.
Final verdict
A good little all-in-one for sole traders and micro businesses, the OfficeJet Pro 6830 scores high on both the connectivity front and in its printing capabilities. Plus, if you sign up to the Instant Ink service, it can be very cheap to run. The single paper tray is, however, a real drawback when it comes to high print volumes and sharing, and businesses with more than a handful of users are better off with something a little more flexible in this respect.
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Review: UPDATED: iOS 8
Introduction, design and messages
Update: iOS 8.1.3 is available to download. Our iOS 8 review reflects the bug fixes that solve many of the launch problems.There's a lot more to iOS 8 than meets the iPhone. Sure, it doesn't usher in a dramatic new look like last year's mobile operating system makeover from Apple. Instead, it rounds out that flat iOS 7 redesign with less obvious, but equally important extra features.
These new features are more bug-free now that iOS 8.1.3 has launched. It's a worthwhile 247MB download that fixes some of the Wi-Fi and battery drain problems a users have experienced. iOS 8.1.3 isn't alone. Since iOS 8.1, Apple's operating system update has coupled with the debut of Apple Pay and cross-compatible OS X Yosemite features.
It's free to download and install iOS 8.1.3, whether or not you're upgrading to iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus for their larger displays. Apple has made the update compatible with iPhone 4S and later, iPad 2 and later, both iPad mini and iPad mini 2 and iPod touch 5th generation. In fact, the iOS 8 compatibility list only severs ties with the now-four-year-old iPhone 4.
Broad legacy device support is complemented by this year's overarching theme of "convergence." In addition to iOS 8 bringing tighter Mac integration, it welcomes third-party extensions into the fold, even going as far as loosening its grip on allowing developers to use the Touch ID fingerprint sensor.
Apple's roadmap continues to tie everything together among its iPhone, iPad and Macs devices now that iOS 8.1 and OS X Yosemite have launched. It's better than the cross-platform ideas Google has so far envisioned for its Android Lollipop update that launched alongside the Nexus 6 and Nexus 9.
Updates
The latest version of the iPhone and iPad software, but it's hardly the first bug-fixing patch that Apple has attempted in the last six months, and that has to be noted in this review.On its face, iOS 8.0.1 integrated data from third-party fitness-focused apps into Apple's Heath app. But it was far from smooth, and iOS 8.0.2 only partially fixed the problems.
Touch ID, cellular, SIM card, Wi-Fi and battery drain issues sent downloaders downgrading to iOS 7 and all of the negative attention actually hurt the adoption rate.
iOS 8.1.3, the latest update, does the internal storage issues, though there are still lingering Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connectivity issues that people will never stop complaining about.
The good news is that iOS 8 is a worthy upgrade beyond its initial rough edges.
Design
iOS 8 looks and feels the same on its surface, as Apple didn't change the way the homescreen functions. However, almost every menu within has design tweaks that make your iPhone and iPad snappier to use.Double tapping the home button, for example, sends multitasking into overdrive. In addition to its usual swiping through open apps, the top of the screen now features circular profile photos of your most recent contacts.
Swiping to the left lists your favorites in the same setup. This is great for quickly making calls, sending texts and starting FaceTime chats with the most important people in your life. No more digging through the contacts or phone menu anymore.
Spotlight serves a better purpose in iOS 8. It now considers broader sources of data including Wikipedia, the news, movie showtimes and suggested websites. It understands your context and location when doing this, which means Apple is taking one aspect of Google Now. Calling or navigating to the local pizza shop is as easy as typing in its name.
More time-savers come in the form of interactive notifications at the top of the screen. Swiping down on an incoming message gave me the chance to respond without leaving my current app. This applied to SMS, emails, Facebook and Twitter messages. Even quicker is the way to reply to calendar invites via simple accept or decline buttons. Checking off or snoozing reminders, retweeting or favoriting tweets and trashing or marking as read emails received the same treatment.
Messages
By actually opening up that Messages app, you'll find more more ways to communicate than before. The messages text box is now flanked by a camera and a microphone icon.The camera icon on the left we've seen before - it previously attached photos to messages. It still does that, but it also does some new tricks. Holding the icon down reveals a menu overlay that enables quick selfies via the front camera and take video. It's faster to send photos and videos than Snapchat, and though it doesn't have the goofy photo editing perks, it's all integrated into the conversation.
The new microphone icon on the right isn't for dictation. That's still cramping the spacebar in the bottom left corner of the keyboard. Instead, it opens up a similar menu overlay in which you can record audio messages. Again, it's fast to send and the person doesn't have to load a separate app or player in order to listen. It all happens in-line with the new Messages.
You can also share your real-time location in the middle of a Message conversation. This has to be my favorite new addition to iOS 8. I put this to use over the weekend when I arrived at an amphitheater for a comedy tour overrun by 15,000 attendees. I beamed a snapshot of my location to friends without having to randomly describe my surroundings. The map pinpointed where I was at, all from the Messages app.
Your can also share your roaming location for a set period of time: one hour, until the end of the day and indefinitely. It's easier to use than the similar Find My Friends app because there's no setup or separate login screen required. Apple is one step closer to eliminating the pointless "Where are you at? Wait, which street corner?" and I couldn't be happier.
Rounding out the iOS 8 changes to Messages, the new "details" button in the top right corner of conversations replaces "contact" and it's littered with new options. You can set individual and group conversations to "Do Not Disturb" and rifle through attachments including every last photo you've sent someone and they've sent you. Just make sure to delete inappropriate pics before showing off this cool, new feature to mom and dad.
Keyboards, extensions and camera
Keyboards and extensions
iOS 8 comes with what Apple likes to call its smartest keyboard yet, and it's hard to disagree. Sure, the keys remain in the same place, but above them are clutch word suggestions that predict word you're typing and then what you're going to say next. Better yet, it's supposed to learn as it goes times goes on. It'll also suggest different words if you're casual on the SMS front, but all business in the Mail app back.Quicktype mimics the suggestions candidate bar introduced by third-party Android keyboards like SwiftKey, Swype, Fleksy and others. Like those options better? They're actually part of iOS 8 too. Sliding around one of these keyboards to spell words without ever - literally - lifting a finger is a welcomed addition to Apple's ecosystem.
I appreciate that these new keyboard extensions learn from my habits on Facebook, Twitter, Evernote and Gmail to improve predictions, come with custom themes and log my email address. I can finally quit typing that into every single username form. QuickType doesn't have can these perks at the moment, as much as I prefer Apple's virtual keyboard layout that has become second nature over the last seven years.
Extensions go beyond keyboards. 1Password, for example, has an extension that unlocks its password vault and automatically fills in your credentials with Touch ID. The app, now free and more popular than ever on the App Store charts, works with Safari and just thirty apps. If you're using an unsupported app or a different mobile browser like Chrome, you're out of luck.
Camera
You won't get that enhanced 8-megapixel camera with focus pixels unless you upgrade to iPhone 6 or iPhone 6 Plus, but there are new features for the iOS 8 camera app. Apple is now giving manual camera enthusiasts a little more freedom to shoot and edit.Apple's camera app lets you fine tune the exposure on photos without the hassle of having to apply filters in post-production. Sliding your finger up and down on the viewfinder, aka your iPhone screen, adjusts a sun icon and vertical slider bar that appears.
Still not satisfied? Jump into the editing menu to use new tools like smart crop, tilt and rotate and then fine tune with controls for the light, color and black-and-white in your Kodak moments. My one complaint is that the default camera's there's been no change to the way you switch between photos, square pictures, portraits, video, slow-mo and the new time lapse modes. It works exactly as it did in iOS 7, which seems to confuse every old person who begs me for help while accidentally recording the entire thing.
There's a new search icon at the top of the iOS 8 photos app, letting you hunt down photos taken in specific places and dates. Rapidly scrolling up and down your entire gallery to show someone one particular picture is now a thing of the past - partially. People's names and captions have never been a part of this app, so there's only so much data to sift through. I also wish there was a way to sort by size. When I was a lowly 16GB iPhone 5 owner always at my memory cap, I would have seriously appreciated that.
As easy as iOS 8 made finding photos through search, it wasn't until iOS 8.1 that "Camera Roll" came back to the albums menu. It was deeply missed by enough users that Apple related on the omission.
Today and notifications Menu
The swipe-down gesture on iOS 8 now reveals a simplified Today and Notifications menu, in effect condensing last year's All and Missing tabs into Notifications. It's cleaner and easier to keep track of notifications, though they're still grouped by app. An option to sort notifications by time (from newest to oldest) would be appreciated whenever a lockscreen notification passes me by and I want to take a second look. I'd rather not have to track down which one says "Now" in a long list of uncleared notifications.The basics of the Today menu don't change without your input. It lists the day and date, peoples' birthdays and the weather. Calendar appointments come next followed by reminders and tomorrow's events - if you so choose. iOS 8 makes all of these settings editable. Add in traffic conditions, headlines from the Breaking News app, upcoming OpenTable reservations and Evernote. These new widgets options show up automatically in the edit menu as widgets.
iOS 8's new Today menu is more bare than I'd like it to be, but it's a potential challenger to the know-it-all Google Now interface on Android phones and through a separate iOS app. I've yet to see shipped packages being tracked, flight check-in reminders and where I parked notifications, but hopefully third-party apps can populate this data on iOS 8 soon.
Health app and minor updates
iOS 8 Health app
We finally got a chance to test out the pre-loaded Health app in full and there's more coming from third-party developers. They just started getting access to the platform with iOS 8.0.2. Apple's stat-tracking ecosystem currently includes 38 apps dividing into two categories: fitness & wellness and food & nutrition. Names like Withings, Jawbone Up, Runtastic, Strava and MyFitnessPal have joined.
Not on the Apple diet is Fitbit, which has refused to sync its popular data with the iOS 8 app for now. It's sticking to its Fitbit Flex and Fitbit Force provided software. The iPhone 5S, iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus can work without these app extras and their wearables. The M7 co-professor logs steps directly from the phone.
Health apps are just getting into their workout routine. Right now, we really like the Apple's well-thought-out and potentially life-saving Medical ID card. It gives you a chance to list your medical conditions, blood type, allergies and medications among other health stats.
Emergency contacts are just one press away, and this data can - optionally - even be access through the lockscreen. If it catches on and medical workers know where to look, it could become vital a tool if you're ever in an emergency.
OS X Yosemite integration
The most exciting features for any Mac owner who seldom leaves his or her desk have launched thanks to the release of iOS 8.1 and OS X 10.10 Yosemite. The two fulfill our long-held desire for deeper integration with cross-talk between all of our Apple-owned devices.
Handoff allows you to pick up on a Mac what you've started looking at on an iPhone or iPad, and vice versa. Now that email you started typing out on a Mac can be finished when you're on the run with only your iPhone in hand. Click on some Facebook clickbait through the iOS app that you want to read it in the proper Mac Safari browser? A special Safari app icon is sitting on your much more suitable 13-inch MacBook Air.
There's no need to email or text yourself the link anymore now that Apple-owned apps and programs overlap between devices.
A similar relay-style feature can be found in iMessages when receiving an SMS from anyone - including your green-bubbled Android friends. With an iPhone in Bluetooth shouting distance, all text messages show up within the Mac Messages app as well as iMessages on the iPad. Now you can stop ignoring your friends who are outside of your iPhone-owning circle.
Calls are also ported over to the Mac in case you're stuck working at a computer for hours on end and the last thing you want to do is run over to your charging iPhone to fetch a call (or decline a telemarketer).
Odds and ends
Apple rounded out its iOS 8 package with even more tweaks than it cares to highlight on its own pages. Take the new battery usage list as a great example. It's buried in the settings menu and isn't a visual show-stopper, but it's important to nearly every power-hungry iPhone owner out there. Knowing why your battery is draining and shutting down background app refresh on weighty apps you had no idea were still open is a feature Android owners have been reveling in.I just wish there was a "close all" button on the multitasking window to quickly clear all open apps. It's still not here in iOS 8.
Apple also matches Android's "Okay Google" trigger word with "Hey Siri." Siri asks "How can I help you?" without having to hold down the home button. That's great for the car when you want to initiate hands-free driving directions. Sadly, Siri's always-listening mode only works when you're plugged in. We're still waiting for Apple CarPlay to make it even smoother.
Just as clutch is the Send Last Location buried within iOS 8's Find My iPhone menu of iCloud. Turn it on to automatically beam your device's location to Apple's servers when the battery becomes critical. You won't be frantically searching for your dead iPhone that way, you'll know if a nefarious crook walked off with it or if it's innocently between the couch cushions... again.
We'll update this ongoing iOS 8 review as Apple introduces more updates to its software and features for the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus like Apple Pay.
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Running man of tech: 10K a day: heart rate monitors for beginners
The tech behind a 10k-a-day runner
One of the hardest things about running long distances is deciding what comes with you: it needs to be no hindrance but still motivate you to push harder.This week, I've been looking at two very different propositions, and both are aimed at the relative beginner with a bit of cash. Both packing heart rate sensors, they're designed to make you feel that you're doing it right when tramping the streets at speed. Or stumbling half-heartedly through a park, cursing every slight incline as a mountain into the very heart of Hades. Either attitude works.
Here's the key thing: a heart rate monitor will make you a better runner by letting you see what your body is really feeling.
If you're thinking that you're too tired to run, these little gadgets will help let you know if your engine is running too fast and you should ease back – and they also give you license to go faster when conditions are good).
Adidas FitSmart
The eagle-eyed among you will notice that this is very similar to the watch I reviewed last week: the Adidas SmartRun. The OCD sufferers will cringe at the name swap - surely SmartFit would have been better?I quizzed Adidas on this, and was told the name was already taken, so this was the only way around. Fair enough.
The band/watch is something between a 'proper' GPS running tracker and a fitness band. The rubberised stylings mean it's comfortable to way day to day, and the LED lights are stylish and cool.
In fact the only irritation with the design is that the clock doesn't stay on, meaning you have to press the shallow main button (hard to hit on a run) to call up the clock.
On the back is the same optical heart rate monitor found on the SmartRun, allowing the band to work out just how hard you're running without having to resort to sky satellites.
However, the main difference between this and the larger watch is simple: this is aimed at the newer exerciser who wants some motivation to get out and run.
With that in mind, Adidas has created weekly targets, where you'll tell the app or website what you want to achieve (speed, endurance etc) and the fitness level that you're at.
You'll need to complete a 12-minute assessment, but after that it will know you. Your heart rate at different speeds, the different speed 'zones' themselves, your hopes, your dreams, your darkest secrets.
Well, perhaps only the first two.
From there, you're on your own. Get out and run, and as long as you spend the allotted time each week in the correct coloured zone, such as 1 hour in blue (warm up), all the way to 8 mins in the red (sprint) zone, you'll get a hefty pat on the back from the app after 7 days before helping you decide what's next.
And I'll admit it: that's pretty motivating. I found myself strapping it on and pushing a little harder in some runs just to get my red and yellow zone time up, which shows the idea works.
But I'm already comfortable going faster and slower at the right times - what Adidas has done here is confuse things for the newer runner.
How do you know when to sprint hard or take it easy? What does a yellow zone feel like?
In fairness, there are coloured LEDs on the band to let you know, but keeping your pace consistent is hard at times, especially at speed.
What's most frustrating is Adidas is brilliant at giving structured plans through its MiCoach app.
It could easily make a week's plan for you that, if followed, would give you correct amount of time in the right zones with prompts while running (through a buzz and helpful up and down arrow) to speed up or slow down, and yet that's not on offer.
There's also the issue of price: at £130, it's more expensive than many fitness bands and doesn't even track your progress.
Verdict
If Adidas can provide a little more information and leverage its excellent arsenal of training plans, the FitSmart could be a winner. Right now, it's a cool idea that needs more tweaking to be worth the tag price. Sorry, price tag.Best for: the committed newbie
SMS Audio BioSport In-Ear Headphones
I love a good pair of headphones. It's best not to use them in a race (unless you're plodding along at the back) as you can be deaf to other runners trying to get past. But for training, there's nothing better than settling into a long run with a podcast or two, or a decent Spotify playlist and drifting off into a sweaty trance.So when I heard about these SMS Audio BioSport headphones, I was massively intrigued. While the price of £129 was high, they do come with good technology in the shape of a heart rate monitor built in.
The heart rate coming from the ears is apparently one of the most accurate you can get (so say the medical doctor people) and these little ear-dwellers don't even need to be charged, drawing power through the headphone jack instead.
The design is nice: nothing overly stylish but the little wings look cool and the cord is a flat design that doesn't tangle.
Add in the control panel connected to the right ear wire that can both control calls and music (using a little slider) and these seem like winners.
The problem I have is that, unlike normal people, I have really shallow ears that don't allow in ear products like this to sit well without some sort of extra guard.
By my own poor standards, these earphones weren't easy to hold in the ear, despite trying a range of bud sizes. However, I found that testing them on others produced a good and comfortable fit with minimal chance of them falling out.
You'll need to be sure they're in snugly though, as without it the heart rate monitor will flip around and not give as accurate a reading as a dedicated chest strap.
While the packaging on the BioSport headphones promises to work with multiple sports apps, it seems only RunKeeper is supported right now - although you do get one month's free Elite membership, even if most people won't get the benefit in the first 30 days of running.
That's not a problem, given that it's a decent app with a good community and excellent user interface, especially for the newer, slower runner. But that doesn't give a lot of wiggle room if you're already tempted by something like Strava, which does support a plethora of sensors, so the omission is annoying.
The sound quality of the Bio Sport headphones is pretty good when they stay in. However, adding to the fit problem is the control panel. It's heavy and yanks at the ear with the heart rate monitor in, which can't help the accuracy - although did seem OK in tests.
Having to switch the little heart rate monitor on with a slider is OK at the start of a run, but if you want to take a call mid-trot you have to fumble and turn it off.
And with no volume control, it's not a super helpful thing to have pulling at your ear. The ability to skip tracks and pause songs is good, but most headphones will have that trick.
The range of supported phones needs improving too: while most iPhones are A-OK, there are only a smattering of compatible Android handsets, and big hitters like the HTC One M8 aren't there.
Verdict
In short, while I love the idea of these headphones they need to be made a little more robust and work with a greater variety of phones. The control panel needs to be shrunk (or moved away from the ear) and the heart rate tracking needs to actually work during vigorous exercise.There's a good idea here, but the SMS Audio BioSport headphones aren't quite the finished product, especially for the higher price.
Best for: The RunKeeper fanatic desperate to run with a heart rate monitor
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HTC is missing its own 90-day update deadline for Lollipop
HTC usually sticks to its goal of getting new OS updates out within 90 days of their release, but that deadline for Android Lollipop is about to arrive - and many HTC devices will miss it.
February 1 was HTC's own self-imposed goal, and the company's Vice President of Product Management, Mo Versi, has take to HTC.com to explain why it will come and go with no Lollipop for many.
- The LG G4 is shaping up nicely
"We've been diligently working to fix some of them on our end and incorporating Google's fixes as quickly as possible, but despite everyone's best efforts some carrier versions of the HTC One (M8) and HTC One (M7) will not meet our 90 day goal, which is February 1st," he continued. "While we are committed to delivering within this time period, we are even more committed to ensuring these updates result in an even better experience with your device because that is what the updates are intended to do."
He said that HTC is trying to get the updates out as soon as possible, but that their quality is more important than hitting the deadline.
At least we know Motorola isn't the only one having trouble getting Lollipop out. You can keep track of HTC's progress at the company's updates hub, so keep checking back if you're getting sick of KitKat on your HTC One.
- Is the Moto 360 the best-looking smartwatch out there?
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Sony Unlimited Video is also being rebranded as a PlayStation service
Sony this week announced that it will shut down Music Unlimited in March in favor of the Spotify-powered PlayStation Music service, but there was no word of Video Unlimited - until now.
Like Music Unlimited, Video Unlimited will be rebranded and revamped into PlayStation Video, reports IGN.
- The Samsung Galaxy S5 was an evolution, not a revolution
That means you'll still be able to rent and buy movies for whatever region in which you live, making this more of a branding change than anything else.
Expect to see PlayStation Video in February and PlayStation Music some time after March.
- HTC did it again with the HTC One M8
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Google Now is getting some help from Pandora, Lyft and other apps
Google Now up to this point has been a useful tool that's limited by its ability to pull and show information only from Google apps.
That's changing today with the introduction of third-party app cards in Google Now, as detailed in a Google blog post.
- Can the iPhone 6 compete?
The post gives a ton of examples, from Google Now cards with the latest news from The Guardian to cards with your daily language lesson from Duolingo.
Other apps Google calls out specifically include Instacart, Pandora, Airbnb, Lyft, and more than 30 others.
These new third-party Now cards will arrive on Android "over the next few weeks," Chennapragada wrote.
- What's the best Android phone? TechRadar rates the top chocies
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Verizon will soon let you opt out of its persistent perma-cookies
Verizon has announced that it will soon allow users to opt out of the customer-tracking identifiers that have come to be known as "supercookies."
The undeletable cookies are part of Verizon's ad-targeting process, though users have been able to opt out of that part for a while.
- The Xbox One has a lot of good ideas
Critics' choice
Critics - including the US Senate's Committee on Commerce and the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) - have pointed out that advertisers and other third parties could potentially exploit the Verizon supercookies and use the data to track users whether we want it or not, and Verizon has now responded by announcing they'll soon let users shut the cookies off entirely."We listen to our customers and provide them the ability to opt out of our advertising programs," a Verizon spokesperson told the site. "We have begun working to expand the opt-out to include the identifier referred to as the UIDH, and expect that to be available soon."
The EFF, however, maintains that the carrier should go one step further and have the tracking shut off by default, allowing customers to choose to opt in if they wish. Whether or not that happens, this is still a positive step.
- Is the PS4 Sony's best console?
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Microsoft confirms 2016 launch for Windows Server
In a blog post, Microsoft has confirmed that Windows Server and System Center will not launch until 2016. The move is a departure from Microsoft's historic strategy of launching its server platform alongside the general consumer release of Windows. As it stands, Windows 10 will launch this year, and Windows Server won't be finalized until 2016.
"Our next preview is planned for the spring of 2015. Windows Server will continue to share the same core technology as Windows and we will continue working together on solutions for our customers," Microsoft's server and cloud team announced. " In fact, the next version of System Center Configuration Manager, which delivers support for Windows 10, will ship in a timeframe that aligns with Windows."
Though Windows Server won't officially debut until 2016, Microsoft will continue to launch preview builds for the platform through 2015. The first preview build of Windows Server was released in October alongside the preview of Windows 10.
"We're already busy building the next version of Windows Server and System Center, making it easier to implement hybrid by taking our learnings from running Microsoft Azure at hyperscale to Windows Server and System Center."
Prior to the official announcement, there had been speculations that Microsoft may delay Windows Server's launch.
"When I spoke to Mike Neil, General Manager of Windows Server at TechEd Barcelona in October, he told me the plan of record was to make the next public preview available in "early 2015," so something changed between then and now," ZDNet's Mary Jo Foley states.
Microsoft has not elaborated on why it has pushed back the release of the next public preview from early 2015 to spring 2015.
- Read our review of Windows 10.
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Updated: Super Bowl 49: how to live stream Sunday's big game
Come February 1, the NFL will have a new champion.
Super Bowl XLIX, featuring the New England Patriots and Seattle Seahawks, kicks off Sunday at 6:30 pm EST / 3:30 pm PST. on NBC.
"Wait a minute," you say incredulously. "I thought the Super Bowl was only broadcast on Fox or ABC." Well it is, sometimes. But not this year. Every year the network rotates in order to spread the wealth amongst the top three biggest broadcast stations.
But just because NBC's running the show, you don't need cable to watch the big game: Check down below for ways to watch with - or without - a cable subscription.
Your best bet – NBC Sports Live Extra app or website
If you've got a desktop or laptop, I've got good news. All you need to do come Sunday is head on over NBCSports.com where the network will broadcast everything from pre-game coverage to the post-game wrap up in an 11-hour block.Tablet owners have it a bit harder as they've got to download the Live Sports Extra app from either the iOS or Google Play stores. Log in to the app on Sunday and you, my friend, are ready for some football. It's that simple.
"Wait," here we go again. "If it's so simple why don't we do it all year round?" Oh you!
NBC Sports typically locks this section of the website down during the NFL season, requiring you to enter in your cable provider information to get anywhere close to the gridiron. Everyday of the season, that is, except Super Bowl Sunday.
This year the stream is not only free but, for the first ever, will include the halftime show featuring Katy Perry and special guest Lenny Kravitz.
Having the rights to the music has always been a huge barrier to showing the spectacle, but it looks like NBC has made it happen for Super Bowl 49. Stick around after the game's done and you'll be able to catch an episode of The Blacklist before the service goes back under lock and key.
A good backup – Verizon NFL Mobile app
NBC, as powerful as it is, bends a knee to Verizon come Super Sunday.Verizon has exclusive rights to show the big game, along with commentary, behind-the-scenes interviews and four different cameras for replays, all on its NFL Mobile app.
The problem however, is that you need to have Verizon's signature "More Everything Plan" to access the NFL Mobile app. The plan, for the most part, isn't costly ($45 a month for individuals and family plans for $140 a month), but unless you're the biggest fan of football in the world, upgrading your plan just to watch the game seems a little silly.
OK, but what if you don't have a laptop or a desktop or a smartphone with Verizon service? We've got two more ideas for you. Make a friend at your local alehouse or watch the game with a buddy at their place. I mean, what's Super Bowl Sunday if you don't have someone to share it with?
NFL Audio Pass and foreign-language radio
Technology has come a long way since the First AFL-NFL World Championship Game was played in 1967. 4K TVs. Lossless media streaming. Xbox One. 2015 has it all.But let's say you want to relive football's glory days and celebrate the Super Bowl like it's 1969. You'll definitely want to check out the Super Bowl XLIX live audio feed.
It's a subscription service, however, and costs $9.99 per season. (Pro-tip: The season ends with the Super Bowl). This means you'd usually want subscribe at the beginning of the season, rather than the end of it.
Still, if you need a quick audio fix, audio subscriptions can be purchased at audiopass.NFL.com.
Need audio in a different language? The NFL will make Spanish, Hungarian, Japanese, French, Portuguese, Mandarin Chinese and German language webcasts available also on its website.
Image credit: Daniel X. O'Neil
- Need a new screen for the big game? Check out our list of the best 4K TVs in the world!
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Review: Acer Chromebox CXI
Introduction and design
Chrome OS has revolutionized the way we look at "inexpensive" and "capable" in the computing world. After producing some truly long lasting laptops, including the Acer Chromebook 13, the Taiwanese electronics maker has turned its attention to desktops with the Chromebox CXI.No bigger than most wireless routers, the Chromebox CXI brings Google's cloud-based OS to desktops. Of course, small family computers aren't a novel concept. Mini-ITX systems equipped with only a bare minimum of components have long existed. Similarly Intel has also introduced its own line of compact computers with the NUC and then there's also the all-in-one LG Chromebase.
Starting at $179 (£178, about AU$230), the Acer Chromebox CXI is a wonderfully affordable way of turning any monitor or HDTV into a capable computer.
Design
The Acer Chromebox CXI looks best standing up and, for a simple plastic box, it's quite attractive. The exterior of the unit is adorned with a diamond-like engraved texture that's a refreshing change to the usual slab of matte plastic on most Chrome OS devices.
The miniature computer is also about the size of a small paperback book. The unit's small footprint makes it easy to place anywhere, whether you're standing it vertically next to a monitor or placing it horizontally into a small corner of your desk.
Users can also attach the Chromebox CXI onto a small stand accessory with rubber feet to prevent it from sliding off surfaces. Alternatively, the small Chrome OS desktop comes with a fully metal VESA mounting bracket, which allows the device to hook onto the back of a monitor or HDTV, turning displays into a makeshift all-in one PC.
Looking around the device, you'll also notice the Chromebox CXI is outfitted an abundance of ports. In the front we have two USB 3.0 ports with a SD card reader. Around back there are another two additional USB 3.0 ports along with a DisplayPort as well as HDMI.
The position of some of the ports also ends up ruining part of the Chromebox's design. Firstly, Acer chose to put the headphone and microphone combo jack on the back. My other issue lies with the hard L-shaped power that plugs into the back, which just ends up sticking out whether you place the unit on its side or standing up. It's an unfortunate design choice that detracts from the CXI's otherwise clean look.
Plastic, fantastic peripherals
The Chromebox CXI ships with an included mouse and keyboard that are surprisingly more than decent considering the low price of this overall package.The keyboard is firm and solid despite being entirely made of plastic. What's more, the action on the keys feels nice and springy, with each button traveling approximately two centimeters when depressed.
Similarly, the mouse is more than serviceable with audibly clicky buttons. The sides of the peripheral also feature a dimpled texture, which adds a bit more for users to hold onto with a claw-style mouse grip.
Of course, you're free to hook up any peripherals you see fit. The Chromebox had no qualms with connecting to my gaming keyboard or gaming mouse. I was also able to easily pair a set of Wearhaus Arc bluetooth headphones with the Chrome OS desktop.
Specifications, performance and verdict
The Chromebox CXI is a very compact package measuring 1.3 x 5.1 x 6.5 inches overall. The Intel NUC, on the other hand, is more of a squared off puck with 4.6 x 4.4 x 2 inch dimensions. The LG Chromebase is by far the largest device next to these two micro PCs, thanks to it's included 21.5-inch display. As such, you'll need to clear off some more room on your desk to make way for the 20.8 x 15.6 x 7.4 inch all-in-one.Here is the Acer Chromebox CXI configuration given to TechRadar for review:
Spec Sheet
- CPU: 1.4GHz Intel Celeron 2957U (dual-core, 2MB cache)
- Graphics: Haswell Intel HD Graphics (200 -1000 MHz)
- RAM: 4GB DDR3 RAM
- Storage: 16 GB SSD
- Ports: 4 x USB 3.0, SD card reader, headphone/mic jack, Ethernet, DisplayPort, HDMI
- Connectivity: 802.11bgn with Bluetooth 4.0 + Low Energy
- Weight: 1.2 pounds
- Size: 1.3 x 5.1 x 6.5 inches (W x D x H)
The LG Chromebase, unsurprisingly, comes at a much steeper $319 (£250, AU$599) premium on Amazon. However, dropping the extra 100 clams nets you a decent 1,920 x 1,080 IPS panel outfitted with a very similar 1.4GHz Intel Celeron 2955U processor with 16GB of SSD storage, but only 2GB of RAM.
Users looking for a completely barebones computing experience can pick up the Intel NUC DN2820FYKH for $134 (£99, AU$159) at Newegg. It's the cheapest device in this bunch, but keep in mind it only comes with the hardware inside, which includes a 2.13GHz Intel Celeron N2820 processor with 1GB of RAM, and that's it. Users will have to supply their own keyboard, mouse, screen, operating system and even the storage device.
Performance
Despite being powered by just an 1.4GHz Intel Celeron chip, the Acer Chromebox CXI is no slouch. The compact computer handily kept up with an intense web browsing session in which I opened 30 Chrome tabs open across three browser windows while streaming Google Play Music and editing images in yet another window streaming the Photoshop beta for Chrome OS.The Acer Chromebox also had no problems driving a 1,920 x 1,200 display and playing YouTube clips, Jack Reacher on Netflix or local HD files I had on tap.
Conclusion
After living a week mostly using just Chrome OS, the Acer Chromebox CXI proved to be solid for micro computer at home and work life. There still a few notable omissions in Google's cloud-based world – most notably gaming and media playback – that will make a Chrome OS desktop unappealing to all users.But for those who need a no frills home computing experience for relatively little money, the Acer Chromebase CXI is an easily recommended option.
We liked
The Acer Chromebox CXI is an attractive little system. The Chrome OS desktop's inherently small shape makes it easy to place anywhere on or off a desk already littered with electronics. What's more, if you have a spare screen on hand, this is an affordable way to add yet another capable computer to the house.I was pleasantly surprised with how well the Chromebox CXI handled itself despite running with some rather meager components. Whether it was opening 30 Chrome tabs, streaming 1080p YouTube videos or editing images in the Photoshop streaming beta, this little rig rose to the challenge and performed admirably.
We disliked
I only have a few nitpicky issues with the Chromebox CXI. The position of the ports could use bit of revision, especially with the headphone port being located around back. Additionally, it's hard to hide the power cord. And finally, the small fan on the back of the Chromebox can wind up to an annoying whir in a quiet room.Final verdict
The Acer Chromebox CXI was made with affordability with mind for users whose digital lives gravitate to the web, and it delivers spectacularly on this promise. For $219 (£195, AU$359), this compact Chrome desktop comes at a major bargain compared to building your own mini computer.Of course, users who don't have a spare display lying around should look to the LG Chromebase for a more complete all-in-one PC package. Conversely, the barebones NUC comes with the absolute bare minimum leaving users with greater freedom, and expense, to supply all the other essentials, including everything from a storage drive and OS to the keyboard and mouse.
The Acer Chromebox CXI fits into a neat middle ground. It's the perfect device for users who want a smaller device that they can plug into nearly any screen and peripheral setup, with the simplicity of Chrome OS.
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Lumia Icon Denim update will probably arrive in February
The Lumia Icon is one of the most well-regarded Windows Phone devices out there, despite its Verizon exclusivity.
Users have been waiting for their Denim update ever since late 2014, when Microsoft Operating Systems Group Corporate Vice President Joe Belfiore promised it would arrive in early 2015.
- TechRadar rated the best gaming laptops top to bottom
"Lumia icon people asking what I meant by 'early 2015': The first part of the year. In my mind that means jan/feb or so. Less likely March," he tweeted.
"Know that Vzw & MS are actively, daily working on getting it done. The test process has unpredictability so we can't say a firm end date," he added in a subsequent tweet.
So while the Lumia Icon Denim update might be pushed back to March, according to Belfiore a February release is more likely. Fingers crossed!
- The best laptops of 2015 are easy to spot
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Motorola explains why most of its devices still don't have Lollipop
Android Lollipop is rolling out very slowly to most users, and Motorola fans are no exception.
The company today confirmed that the first- and second-gen Moto G have received their Lollipop updates in India, as was previously rumored, as well as in Brazil, but what about the rest of the world?
- Android 4.4 KitKat is still a popular version
"Though we try to make the process seem easy, it's actually pretty complicated," the post reads. "That's because we want to ensure a quality experience across every device that gets the upgrade."
The process
Apparently Lollipop is "the biggest and most ambitious" Android release to date, and even though Google reportedly "improved" the release process with this one, it's still a slow process.It begins when Google releases the new version of Android to the Android Open Source Project - the "public push," in other words - and Motorola and other device makers begin testing it on various devices and carriers.
Motorola then releases updates to small groups for testing purposes before wider release commences.
The company encourages users still waiting for updates on their devices to check its software upgrades portal regularly.
- What's the best Android phone?
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Review: mini review: Koss BT540i
I discovered the Koss Porta Pro headphones while I was in college. Oblivious to their decades-old legacy, I found satisfaction in these headphones primarily for their budget-friendly price, but also their ear-opening performance, which offered a higher-quality sound than I was used to.
Fast forward to 2015, the Porta Pro are in their 31st year of manufacturing. At the same time, the Milwaukee, Wis.-based company has marched forward into the world of wireless with the BT540i. At $199 (about £176, AU$256 through international shipping), can these flagship wireless headphones provide the near-perfect balance of value, build-quality and sound performance to kick it with today's innovative competition?
Design
Right off the bat, it's fair to say that the BT540i don't make a loud fashion statement. It's not trying to. The BT540i delivers a favorably plain, but very streamlined design that is eye-catching.
Included in the zip-up carrying case is the BT540i, along with a 3.5mm cable for alternative wired listening and a micro USB charging cable.
Black matte plastic with hints of brushed metal make up the finer details found on the flexible earcups. Moving them around in my hands, the BT540i have a generous range of motion, allowing them to perform a full 180-degree lateral swivel. If you, like me, have a hefty cranium that tests the limits of most hats, you'll be A-OK with the fit of the BT540i.
The functionality of the BT540i is all crammed into the right earcup. Moving your fingers around the outside ring of the cup reveals the 3.5mm input for wired listening, the Micro USB port and the unit's buttons (5 in total with one on/off switch that also toggles Bluetooth discover functionality). The buttons jut out a few centimeters, just enough to feel them with your fingertips, but they're barely noticeable from an onlooker perspective.
The hinges are located just above the earcups. The metal detail capping each end looks fantastic, but doesn't makes a lick of difference in the tensile strength of the already heavy-duty plastic hinges.
Finally, the metal-reinforced headband is covered in leather on the top. The underside of the band is fluffy and soft with cushion wrapped in a material that feels like felt cloth.
Good design is important. A healthy set of features is too. But what commonly detriments an otherwise appealing product is when there's too much pizazz in place of an absence of performance. Can the Koss BT540i strike this balance without sacrifice?
Performance
Something sounded familiar with the BT540i. The drivers are Koss' own unique PLX40 drivers, but the sound signature I enjoyed in the Porta Pro is back, but better than ever in these wireless headphones.Comparing the new BT540i to the aging, but still great Porta Pros won't do us much good anymore. It's time to leave nostalgia behind. What matters more is how the BT540i ranks up against some of the prominent contenders in the wireless headphone space.
For the price, it's tough to beat these Koss headphones. I was tickled how spot-on the sound was. The stunning clarity at which the lows, mids and highs present their accuracy can be heard with this music sample, "Love Cry" by Four Tet.
The BT540i presents a natural, balanced sound that steers clear of being too bass or treble-heavy. It's a sound signature that I enjoy, but it's not quite what some of my colleagues in the office were looking for. There are, undoubtedly, many of you who also prefer a warmer sound that leans more on the low-end, or a cooler sound that's more mid-rich.
Battery performance and Bluetooth connectivity fared well through more sedentary day-to-day operation like sitting at my work desk. They also delivered through more frantic activity like speed-walking through my commute. Some tests proved that connecting via NFC was a little difficult, but still possible. Call clarity was clear and the dual microphones helped to transmit my voice without feeling the need to shout.
We liked
The Koss BT540i are a winning option if you're looking for a set of headphones that pump out great sound. They're an even better option if you're also in the market for wireless headphones that won't break the bank and can stand up well to the scrutiny of everyday use.We disliked
The button layout on the right earcup takes some effort to learn. Since it's out of sight, errors will occur until you warm up to it.I was a little buggered by the finicky NFC-connectivity, which was really hit or miss with the NFC-enabled HTC One. After 5 minutes of awkwardly smacking the phone against the BT540i, it connected. A very inelegant solution to what shouldn't be a problem at all.
Final verdict
The BT540i don't offer the most innovative list of features for a modern set of wireless headphones, especially when compared to flashy alternatives like the JBL Synchros S400BT. If you're looking to spend even less money, check out the JBL Synchros E40BT, which we liked a lot for under $100.On the other hand, if you're jonesing for premium features, like active noise cancellation, prepare to pony up to $250 for the Plantronics BackBeat Pro. Ultimately, at $200, the Koss BT540i work superbly and are a fantastic value for anyone looking for a straight-shooting set of wireless headphones.
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Review: Amazon Echo
Design and sound quality
"Hi Alexa, my name is Nick.""I'm sorry, I don't understand the question."
"That's OK," I continue, "Alexa, I like the Red Hot Chili Peppers."
"Now playing samples of the Red Hot Chili Peppers."
"Cool."
This is the first conversation I had with Alexa, a personal assistant built-in to the $199 Amazon Echo (about £125, AU$230), a cylindrical wireless Bluetooth speaker developed by an experimental e-commerce giant.
After spending a week with it in my home, it's clear that Amazon Echo is something you don't know you want until you have it, and something you don't miss until it's gone. Which is surprising, really, when you consider that its primary function – a Bluetooth speaker for music – is actually pretty subpar.
The main attraction is the always listening, always-connected AI, Alexa. She can understand everything from music requests (a feature that works better if you're an Amazon Prime subscriber) to basic trivia. Alexa can give you a morning news briefing and even add items to your shopping or to-do lists, which can be found in the accompanying Echo app.
What Alexa can do is slightly limited at the moment – don't try asking about specific historical, sports, entertainment or political events. But focusing only on what it (she?) can do right at this moment devalues the product and, more importantly, Amazon's grand, invite-only experiment.
Design
If I didn't know what I know about portable Bluetooth speakers, it'd be easy to mistake the Echo for a portable dehumidifier. It's all matte black exterior and 9.25 x 3.27 inch cylindrical shape gives it the kind of camouflage you'd expect from an appliance.
Another difference between the Echo and other portable speakers is that the Echo isn't exactly portable. It needs to be plugged in and connected to Wi-Fi at all times. (Which, considering the six-foot power cable, can be a bit of a struggle.)
And this decision makes sense when you give it some thought. How could an always-on microphone hear you if it runs out of power? It couldn't. Moreover, how would it send your voice to Amazon servers without a connection to the Internet? Again, not going to happen.
Sure, it's a hassle to always be connected, but Wi-Fi networks are a dime-a-dozen in 2015.
On top of the cannister are two buttons, mute and listen, while the top ring rotates to raise or lower volume. If you're worried about regular controls (play, pause, forward and backward), don't. The Echo comes with a traditional remote identical to the one that comes with the Amazon Fire TV, or can be controlled from your phone via the Amazon Echo App.
Speaking of, the app isn't the most fleshed-out companion app I've ever used, and can feel pretty barren in comparison to the Amazon Fire TV storefront. I found a few of the selections relatively useful – controlling radio stations via the app is painless compared to asking Alexa to do it – but the design looks and feels like it certainly wasn't ready for release.
Along the bottom of the Echo is a 360-degree speaker grille that gives it some surprisingly room-filling sound along with a small, white Amazon logo.
Sound quality
While the Echo can crank the volume, the quality of the sound near its upper and lower limits leaves a lot to be desired.Testing took place in two environments: my small, 12 x 14 ft bedroom and much larger 20 x 15 ft living room. The confined space, as you might expect, benefitted the quieter volume levels and completely muddled anything above 7. Given enough space, sound only faltered at the highest levels, 9 and 10, but Alexa had a tougher time picking up commands. At least the balance around volumes 4-6 were spot on.
Any other Bluetooth speaker with these kinds of problems would've been grounds for a failing grade. But the fact that Alexa not only needs to produce a lot of noise, but be able to hear over it as well, is good reason to cut it some slack.
Streaming music selection
Now that I've sold you on its music-playing capabilities (not), you're probably thinking, "but gee, what can I play on it?"The Echo supports TuneIn, iHeartRadio and, if you're a Prime subscriber, Amazon Prime Music.
The first two require syncing registered accounts to your companion app, and can be activated by some very round-about voice commands. ("Alexa, play Foo Fighters on iHeartRadio." "Would you like me to add a Foo Fighters station to your iHeartRadio account?" "Uh...yes?" "OK. I've added it.")
Most of the time though, Amazon Prime Music is Alexa's go-to media app. If the song isn't available on Prime Music – and trust me, two out of three songs are not – then Alexa will play a sample from the Amazon Music Store instead. Decide you like what you're listening to? Buying the song or album is as simple as saying "Alexa, buy this song," and confirming the price.
But, if all else fails or you don't feel like re-buying songs you've paid for on other services, there's one last-ditch effort to get your music: Amazon will actually allow you to import 250 songs to the cloud from your personal collection for free. This may not sound like a lot, but for those of us with one or two go-to playlists, it compensates for any slight inconvenience it caused to add them.
Limitations and verdict
When it works, Alexa feels like the talking computer sci-fi has been dreaming of for the last 50 years. Conversations can happen in informal language and queries are picked up by natural cues instead of awkward syntax. Both "Alexa tell me about razors" and "Alexa, what is a razor?" lead me to the same answer, and feel completely natural when said out loud.I'm sorry Nick, I'm afraid I can't do that
At this stage however, Alexa's knowledge base is limited. Asking something like "Alexa, who's the best player on Real Madrid?" or "Alexa, who's the Green Bay Packer's quarterback?" won't turn anything up. Amazon provides a work-around in the Echo app, allowing you to perform a Bing search on every interaction, but in the time it takes to pull out my phone and find my question in the app, I could've easily used Google or, you know, asked Siri.Another hurdle for the Echo is that it's not dialed in to my email, cell phone contacts or calendar in the same way Siri or Cortana are. Ultimately this means no sending voice messages to friends or modifying my schedule for the day. This is something the competition does so well it's almost second nature, so to see no attempt to take this on from Amazon was disheartening.
Alexa, as an AI, feels more like a fun parlor trick that I could show off at a dinner party, rather than a full-fledged personal assistant like the other two. What's there is solid and fun, and hopefully the functionality for everything else comes sooner rather than later.
Final verdict
In almost every scenario I can think of, the Echo, and by extension Alexa, are more of a novelty than a necessity. They're not practical tools to get work done, and even as a standard Bluetooth speaker failed to pass an aural test.The upside is that for $199 ($99 for Prime members) it's not the most expensive novelty I've ever purchased. As I stated earlier, I really can't see myself going back to a run-of-the-mill speaker after spending so much time with the Echo.
Amazon has its work cut out for its AI team, as there are still dozens of areas where Siri and Cortana run circles around Alexa. It's not fair to expect that Alexa knows the answer to obscure pop-culture questions, but I think it's reasonable that Alexa should know what's on my calendar for the day.
If you're paranoid of Amazon always listening-in on your conversations or content with the one know-it-all AI you already own, the Echo really isn't worth the price of admission. But, if you're ready to take a step into the connected home and are willing to ride out a few bumps on the way, you'll find the Echo a nifty way to unwind with some music at the end of the day.
Editor's note: We've reached out to Amazon about UK/AU pricing and availability details, and will update this review when we know more.
Originally reviewed January 2015
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Microsoft outlines enterprise upgrade path for Windows 10
Microsoft has just announced an enterprise update path for existing Windows 7 Enterprise and Windows 8/8.1 Enterprise customers. Enterprises will be part of the Windows Software Assurance program, bringing more flexibility to how Windows 10 is managed and deployed as Windows becomes a service.
Unfortunately, participation in the Window Software Assurance (SA) program means that businesses will not be offered the same free upgrade path to Windows 10 for the first year of release that's part of the consumer release.
With the SA program, Microsoft is allowing enterprise customers and partners more flexibility and control on how updates are applied and deployed. While consumers expect the latest software updates automatically pushed to their devices, businesses require more control to see how the updates impact their software, systems, and networks.
Long Term Servicing branch
Microsoft will provide Long Term Servicing branches "at the appropriate time intervals" for mission critical environments that require strict change management policies, like hospital emergency rooms, air traffic control towers, and financial trading centers.Through Long Term Servicing branches, Microsoft is able to deliver security and critical updates while minimizing changes to customers devices by not delivering new features for the duration of mainstream or extended support periods.
Enterprises can choose to deploy security updates and fixes through Windows Server Update Services, giving them full control using management solutions like System Center Configuration Manager, or to push these updates automatically to devices using Windows Update.
Organizations will be able to easily move between different Long Term Servicing branches or skip a branch by using in-place upgrade technology in Windows 10. New features will be available at appropriate time intervals to add new functionality.
Current branch for Business
While some enterprise devices need strict management in mission critical environments, there are also many end user devices that do not need the complexity of Long Term Servicing."Many IT organizations have told us they would like to get out of the business of managing end-user devices," Microsoft says. "They are looking for ways to keep devices up to-date with more discretion than simply treating them the same way they treat consumer devices."
To meet these needs, Microsoft is creating a Current branch for Business. Devices marked for the Current branch for Business will receive updates for new features "after their quality and application compatibility has been assessed in the consumer market, while continuing to receive security updates on a regular basis."
IT administrators could choose to automatically push these updates through Windows update or through WSUS. Administrators can also move devices between Current branch for Business and the Long Term Servicing branch.
Compatibility and availability
Microsoft says that its goal is ensure that apps will just work and that the company is working to ensure that there will be compatibility between Windows 7, Windows 8, and Windows 10 apps.Microsoft is also incorporating compatibility at the hardware level to make upgrading easier. The company says that Windows 10 will have the minimum hardware requirements as Windows 7 and Windows 8, meaning that your enterprise can upgrade to the latest edition of Windows on existing hardware.
Microsoft will be making its enterprise Long Term Service branch available in the same time frame as when Windows 10 arrives for the consumer market.
- Check out our hands-on review of Windows 10.
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