Amazon’s mid-range tablet is the first to get Show Mode. Not only can you use the Alexa voice assistant hands-free, as with an Echo smart speaker, but it also works like the Echo Show, making better use of the screen to display web content found by Alexa. Currently, the bigger Fire HD 10 has hands-free … Read more
Give your PC a burst of speed with this collection of tools to tweak, optimize, and reinstall Windows By Maximum PC Staff When it comes to outright speed, your PC never seems to have enough. Or to put it another way, it doesn’t matter how smoothly it’s running, your PC could always do with being … Read more
YOU’LL NEED THIS UNLOCKED INTEL CPU Any X299 CPU or K series chip. ASUS X299 MOBO – And don’t forget cooling. SUITABLE PSU If you’ve read our review of the Core i9-7980XE [Image A], you’ll know it’s one monster of a processor. This thing is a beast: 18 cores and 36 threads of pure 14nm fury made manifest. … Read more
The GPU in the Raspberry Pi is remarkably powerful and energy-efficient. Tim Anderson talks to its creators…“This is for me probably the finest bit of engineering I’ve ever been involved in,” says Eben Upton, founder of the Raspberry Pi Foundation. He is talking about VideoCore IV, the Broadcom GPU (graphics processing unit) in both the … Read more
INTERIOR DESIGN SOFTWARE www.sweethome3d.com Min requirements: Windows 7/8.1/10, Mac OS or Linux File size: 49.4MB If you’ve just moved into a new house, are thinking of rearranging your furniture or want to make significant changes to the layout of your current home, Sweet Home 3D could be just what you need. This sophisticated free interior-design … Read more
THE 12.9IN IPAD IS POWERFUL AND EXPENSIVE, BUT TURNS APPLE’S TABLET INTO A TRULY PROFESSIONAL TOOL While overshadowed by the IPhone 6s, the really big news from Apple this month Is the 12.9ln IPad Pro. I was fortunate enough to spend some time with the device – and It’s a colossal new product from Apple. … Read more
Best Android phone ever? At first glance, Samsung’s Galaxy S7 looks almost unchanged from 2015’s S6. For several reasons, however, it’s actually a significant upgrade. Perhaps the most important is the microSD card slot, which lets you add up to 128GB for around £30 whenever you need to. The S7 runs Samsung’s TouchWiz version of … Read more
A simpler all-in-one computer Compared to Dell’s bigger and pricier XPS 27 all-in-one, the 24in Inspiron looks more restrained and businesslike. Instead of an in-your-face multi-speaker grille, you get a neat, dark grey front with elegantly slim bezels and a more conventional grille below the screen, through which the built-in audio sounds decent. [wpsm_toplist] [sc … Read more
Martin Pipe reckons that Synology’s DS119j budget NAS could revolutionise your viewing habits – but you’ll need to add your own HDD [wpsm_toplist] [sc name=”Youtube”] WE ARE GETTING used to the idea of cloud storage thanks to online services like Google Drive, Dropbox and iCloud. Accessing your data from anywhere, on any device, is attractive. … Read more
A versatile high-end NAS for the home or small office says Lindsay Handmer. And who are we to disagree? [wpsm_toplist] [sc name=”Youtube”] Specs OS: QTS 4.3.4 CPU: Intel Celeron J3455 quad-core 1.5GHz GPU: Intel HD Graphics 500 Mem: 2GB (up to 8GB), 2x SoDIMMs Bays: 4x 3.5/2.5-inch SATA 6Gb/s Comms: 2x Gigabit LAN Ports: 5x … Read more
Apple’s iTunes is the beating heart of music, movies, podcasts and other media sitting on a Mac. It also allows you to manage your iPhone, iPad and any iPods you might have. With iTunes 12, Apple has introduced a stylish new interface and a few (though, not many) features. WHAT IS iTUNES FOR? Despite its … Read more
ASUS’S LATEST DSL ROUTER AIMS TO BE AN ACE OPTION FOR HOME NETWORKS. LOOKING LIKE THE front of some kind of cyberpunk muscle-car, Asus’s most-recent 802.1 lac muter brings together a huge range of features with built-in DSL modem into one family-oriented device. Matching the excellent RT-AC88U ‘s 802.11ac Wi-Fi capabilities (with top 5GHz speeds … Read more