On February 2nd, 2025, computer scientist and OpenAI co-founder Andrej Karpathy made a flippant tweet that launched a new phrase into the internet’s collective consciousness. He posted that he’d “fully given into the vibes” when programming with AI assistance. https://twitter.com/karpathy/status/1886192184808149383 The tweet of course kicked off a flame war, because that’s how X works, especially under the current management. But for me, the tweet hit home—because it perfectly describes how I use AI to code. My experience with vibe coding I’ve always had an interest in programming, because I’ve always had an interest in computers. I put together websites in HTML as a teenager (which, yes, were hosted on GeoCities) and have been occasionally dabbling in Python since. Yet none of my projects got very far and, apart from my early websites, I never made anything useful. My efforts all followed a familiar pattern: I’d fixate on a particular resource—like an O’Reilly book or an online course—and get started with great enthusiasm, but as I’d realize I was months or years away from creating anything remotely useful, I’d give up. I’ve used Claude AI to quickly generate a simple dice roller web app.Matt Smith / Foundry That changed in late 2024 when my general frustration with WordPress, which I was using for my personal website, got the better of me. In a fit, I threw my website’s content plus a screenshot of it into Claude 3.5 Sonnet and asked the AI to replicate my site with HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. To my amazement, Claude 3.5 generated a functional website. It wasn’t perfect, but after a couple hours of working with Claude, I wound up with a website I liked even better than its WordPress predecessor. My approach was exactly what Karpathy described. I didn’t read the code, nor did I really try to understand it (though I did have to think a bit about how the featured articles carousel works). That aside, I just told Claude what to do, copy-and-pasted the results in VSCode, saved the file, and reloaded my browser to see what changed. And it worked. A work-in-progress screenshot of my Pico-8 puzzle game and the vibe-coded source.Matt Smith / Foundry But the most important part? It was fun! Fun enough that I’ve since tried my hand at several other coding projects. I made an online tool to track initiative and roll dice when DMing tabletop roleplaying games, I made another tool to simplify rolling dice in Battletech, and I’m currently making a puzzle game for the Pico-8 virtual game console. I also used AI to guide me through setting up tools that require a bit of fussing, like OpenAI’s Whisper speech-to-text model. Notably, all three projects were in different programming languages—HTML/JavaScript, Python, and Lua—none of which I’m even remotely proficient with. I’ve also dabbled in some C#, as I started to make the puzzle game in Unity before deciding it was overbuilt for my needs and swapping to Pico-8. I also toyed with turning my tabletop RPG tool into a Windows app before deciding that wasn’t helpful. The risks and pitfalls of vibe coding So, yeah, I’m vibing. But is it all good vibes? Or does vibe coding herald the same kind of AI slop-driven era for software as we’re seeing for blogs, forums, artwork, video, and music? That’s the big fear of critics, and it’s easy to understand those fears. Karpathy’s “vibe coding” is fast, fun, and approachable, but it isn’t rigorous, detail-oriented, or careful. The code written by AI will often work, but it can contain flaws that aren’t immediately obvious—and that raises an obvious question: how does a know-nothing programmer spot bugs and security flaws in AI-generated code? The simple answer is… they can’t. Take the case of Leonel Acevedo—better known as just “leo”—who posted about his experience vibe coding a SaaS startup, only to find himself dealing with major issues like unsecured API keys. It led to hundreds of videos and social media posts dunking on Leo’s naïveté: https://twitter.com/leojr94_/status/1901560276488511759 To be clear, I don’t have much sympathy for Leo. He used social media to promote his business with posts clearly built to drive engagement. And, well, that’s how chasing influence on social media works. Sometimes you’re the hero and sometimes you’re the villain. (Predictably, Leo is already making content about “rebuilding my SaaS in 30 days.”) Yet, I question what his problems are supposed to prove. Is vibe coding a SaaS and going straight into production dumb? Sure. But are most people vibe coding a SaaS startup and flinging it into the world like the baby in an Xbox commercial? Of course not. The reality is a lot more practical. Some people, like me, see vibe coding as a fun way to tackle simple projects that were previously out of reach. Others, including many software engineers, will use it as way to build prototypes, demonstrate proofs of concept, and—yes!—learn. It’s the blogging revolution… for code In a strange way, vibe coding reminds me of the circumstances from decades ago that paved the way for me to become a tech journalist. I grew up in a small midwestern town. My high school was so small, we didn’t even have a school newspaper. Then I went to college and got a degree… in English Literature. Not journalism or communications. I never wrote for the college paper, either. I then graduated college with no useful contacts or work experience. But I lucked out. I graduated right when the blogsphere exploded and social media took over the internet. Suddenly, formal credentials and an industry-specific degree, though helpful, weren’t necessary. So, I started writing—and eventually publications started paying me for it. I’ve been doing this now for 17 years. To me, vibe coding looks like it will do something similar for future software engineers and the programming landscape. Forget formal training. With AI assistance, people who are interested in programming don’t even need informal training. Anyone who knows their way around a laptop can ask ChatGPT about the tools they need to get started, how to install them and get them working, and generate the very code they need to get the first version of their project up and running. These people will make mistakes. A lot of the code generated will be bad, or at least inelegant. People will lose projects because they encounter a bug they can’t fix. The AI-generated code in my own projects is enough to make a senior software engineer go blind, I’m sure. But if it opens programming a bit wider to people (like me) who otherwise lack the patience to spend six months reading an O’Reilly tome just to spin up a halfway decent Python program, well, that seems like a win. Further reading: I spent $200/mo on ChatGPT Pro so you don’t have to. Here’s what I found and whether it’s worth it Read...

US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said Trump would enact `a special focus-type of tariff` on smartphones, computers and other electronics products in a month or two. Read...

The Trump tariffs have eased on many technology products, even those from China, according to a new amended executive order the Trump administration filed Friday night. The latest order is a “clarification of exceptions” to Trump’s earlier order on April 2, regarding tariffed goods imported to the United States from China. That order raised tariffs on Chinese goods to 125 percent. Those tariffs of 125 percent remain in place, but exempt a broad swath of the PC industry, plus smartphones. Essentially, it provides relief for PC and component buyers, which has already been plagued by high prices on computers and components. Specifically, the order exempts several classifications of products found on the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS), which in turn provides an esoteric textual description pf products imported to the U.S. For example, one of the listed subheadings, 8473.30, includes “parts and accessories” of “automatic data processing machines” like computers. Those “parts and accessories” specifically describe memory modules. (In this case, The Trump order lists the subheading as 847330, excluding the decimal point.) The list basically includes computers and servers; smartphones; components like motherboards, processors, and memory; monitors; routers and switches; and devices with recorded media upon them, and more. The list also includes category 8542, covering “electronic integrated circuits,” LEDs, and transistors, and machines to produce semiconductors and components. It appears that Trump has totally withdrawn tariffs on all of these devices, based upon the “exemptions” the order lists. It also appears that these products are exempt from tariffs, no matter their country of origin. Gaming consoles like the Xbox Series X and PlayStation 5 do not appear to be included in the exemptions. The entire list of exceptions can be found at the USITC.gov website. The exemptions include the following categories: 8471 847330 8486 85171300 85176200 85235100 8524 85285200 85411000 85412100 85412900 85413000 85414910 85414970 85414980 85414995 85415100 85415900 85419000 8542 Trump’s administration was scheduled to apply a chip tariff of 25 percent to chip imports by April 2, but never did. The president later stated that the chip tariffs would go “substantially higher” over the course of a year. Now, who knows? Read...

The move comes after concerns that tech prices could skyrocket, as many gadgets are made in China. Read...

Microsoft mainly supplies Windows in two different editions: Home and Professional. Windows 11 Home is pre-installed on many PCs, while the Pro edition is often installed on business devices. This is because Windows 11 Pro can be integrated into a company’s network infrastructure (Active Directory), whereas the Home edition cannot. However, this feature is not necessary for private users who are unlikely to operate a Windows server in their home network. Nevertheless, the Windows Pro edition has some features that are of interest to everyone. Saving tip 1: Buy Windows 11 Pro for just $79 instead of $199 Saving tip 2: Buy a Windows 11 Pro upgrade for just $59 instead of $99 If you want to take advantage of this, you can perform a Pro update for a fee. For details, see the box “Upgrade from Windows 11 Home to Pro.” Home or Pro? Users of the Home edition receive most of the additional Pro functions free of charge. Additional tools provide what is missing in the cheaper Windows edition. IDG But an upgrade from Windows Home can also be completely free: Almost all Pro functions can be replaced by free software. It is even possible to unlock two Pro functions in the Home Edition, which we describe in more detail in this article. See also: Windows survival skills: 8 things every PC user should know how to do The differences between Windows Home and Pro There are actually only a few points where the two editions differ. Here are the most important and relevant for private users: Bitlocker encryption, which can be used to secure the entire drive or USB sticks, is reserved for the Pro edition. Bitlocker is particularly useful for laptops so that nobody can access your data if the device is lost. However, Microsoft has added a similar function to the Home edition of Windows 11 24H2 with device encryption (point 3). This requires you to log in with a Microsoft account. Users who do not want a Microsoft account or use Windows 10 can use alternative methods (points 4 and 5). Hyper-V is software that can be used to virtualize operating systems. For example, you can install Linux or Windows in Hyper-V while Windows is running and use it as a virtual second system. We describe how Hyper-V can be activated in the Home edition and what the alternative Virtualbox offers in points 6 and 7. The remote desktop enables remote access to the desktop of another Windows computer via the network. The Home edition only offers remote support, where a user must first invite a helper before they can access the other PC. Both methods are only suitable to a limited extent for spontaneous help via the internet. Remote access only works if the necessary ports are open in the router firewall. This is not necessary for other remote assistance programs (see point 8). Group policies offer centralized management of user rights. They are mainly used in larger company networks in which functions can be restricted or specified on all PCs via the central server. Local group policies are a variant for computers that do not belong to a Windows domain. The editor for this can be activated in the Home edition, or an alternative tool can be used (see box “Configuring Windows with group policies”). Encryption with Windows on-board resources With the Home edition of Windows 10 and 11, you cannot encrypt drives with Bitlocker. However, it is possible to integrate encrypted external hard drives or USB sticks into the file system. Encryption must be carried out on another PC on which the Pro or Enterprise edition is installed. If no other computer is available, use a virtual PC (point 6 or 7). Security for external drives: Encrypt the drive with Bitlocker under Windows Pro. Although the Home Edition cannot create it, it can still integrate it into the file system.Microsoft Go to “Settings” (Win-I), search for Bitlocker and click on “Manage Bitlocker.” Click on the desired drive and then on “Activate Bitlocker.” Tick the box “Use password to unlock the drive” and enter a sufficiently secure password. After clicking on “Next,” save the recovery key in a file, for example. Follow the further instructions of the wizard. A drive encrypted in this way can also be used with the Home edition. If you open it in the file manager by double-clicking on it, Windows will ask you for the password. Device encryption of Windows 11 24H2 Microsoft has equipped Windows 11 24H2 Home with a new function that can be used to encrypt the system drive. Bitlocker provides the basis, albeit with fewer options than the Pro edition. Windows login with a Microsoft account is also required. In Windows 11 24H2 Home: Activate “Device encryption” in the “Settings” if you want Windows to encrypt the system partition. A Microsoft account is required for this.Chris Hoffman / IDG If you are using version 24H2, you should check the option in the “Settings” under “Privacy and security > Device encryption.” If “Device encryption” is not displayed, the system requirements for Windows 11 are probably not met. Then check in the firmware settings of the PC whether TPM and Secure Boot are activated. If you activate device encryption, you should save the associated recovery key. You can determine the key via account.microsoft.com/devices/recoverykey after logging in with your Microsoft account. The recovery key is required so that you can access your data via a rescue or secondary system in the event of Windows or hardware problems. See also: How to make Microsoft Windows services work for you Encrypt drives with Veracrypt If you don’t want to or can’t use Bitlocker or device encryption, Veracrypt is an almost equivalent alternative. The tool also has the advantage that it is available for Linux and Mac OS. You can also use it to integrate encrypted Windows drives under these systems. In terms of security, it is difficult to compare Bitlocker and Veracrypt. With the open source tool Veracrypt, you can examine the source code and check the code quality and implementation of the algorithms. This is not possible with Bitlocker. Neither method can promise 100 percent security — ultimately, the use of any software is a question of trust. A study conducted by the Fraunhofer Institute for Secure Information Technology (SIT) in 2020 is entitled “VeraCrypt with minor flaws.” No serious vulnerabilities were found. Veracrypt is not as well integrated into the system as Bitlocker. It is somewhat cumbersome to use and you have to enter the password for decryption every time you restart Windows. For security reasons, the password should be more than 20 characters long and sufficiently complex. If this is too much effort for you, you should consider whether you really need to encrypt the entire hard drive. Perhaps the solution presented in point 5 will suffice. Please also note that Veracrypt only requests the password on a restart. When reactivating after “Sleep,” only the Windows password is requested by default. If you want to encrypt the system partition, proceed as follows: Step 1: The use of Veracrypt is considered secure. Nevertheless, it is advisable to create a complete backup of the Windows partition or at least the personal files. If, for example, the power fails during encryption, the files on the hard drive will no longer be readable. Also have a USB stick ready that is formatted with the FAT32 file system. About 5MB of free space is sufficient and you can also use the stick for other purposes. In Veracrypt you will have to create a sufficiently long password for an encrypted drive to be used every time you restart your computer. Veracrypt Step 2: In Veracrypt, go to “System > Encrypt system partition/system drive.” Follow the easy-to-understand instructions of the wizard. You can accept the defaults almost everywhere. When entering the password, please note that the Veracrypt bootloader works with the U.S. keyboard layout. The program takes this into account and switches the keyboard layout when entering the password. Tick the “Show password” box to see the actual password. Step 3: The wizard prompts you to create a rescue data carrier. By default, Veracrypt saves the required file under the name “VeraCrypt Rescue Disk.zip” in your “Documents” folder. Unzip the file and copy the “EFI” folder it contains to your FAT32-formatted USB stick. After clicking on “Next,” the wizard will check whether the folder is present. Step 4: In the “System encryption pre-test” step, click on “Test.” Read the description, which is best printed out. Click on “Yes” when you are prompted to restart the PC. Type in the password and confirm with the Enter key. If Veracrypt does not accept the password, for example if it is entered incorrectly, press the Esc key. Windows will then start as usual from the previously unencrypted hard drive and you will have to configure the encryption again. Otherwise, Windows will start after you enter the password. After Windows logon, the “Pre-test completed” window appears automatically, in which you click on “Encrypt.” Veracrypt then starts the encryption process, which may take some time. A window will inform you of the progress. Step 5: Try booting from the rescue drive. You may need to change the boot sequence in the firmware setup. The rescue system offers a simple menu that can be used to repair the Veracrypt boot loader, load an alternative boot loader, or decrypt the system partition. Upgrade from Windows 11 Home to Pro The Home edition can be converted to a Pro edition without reinstallation. All you need is a new product key. Microsoft currently charges $99 for the upgrade in the official store. In the PCWorld shop, however, you can get the official upgrade for just $59. If you have purchased a Pro key, go to “System” in the “Settings” under Windows 11, click on “Activation” and then on “Update Windows Edition.” Click on “Change” after “Change product key” and enter the new product key. Foundry Encrypted container with Veracrypt If you encrypt your Windows partition, you no longer have to worry about the security of individual files. On the other hand, it is not particularly convenient to have to enter a long and complicated password when restarting the system. For more security, only encrypt the files that are really worth protecting. To do this, use Veracrypt to create an encrypted container file that holds the sensitive files. Secure container: Create an encrypted container file with Veracrypt. Store sensitive and important documents in it. The file can be stored on any drive.Veracrypt Step 1: In Veracrypt, go to “Volume > Create new volume.” Leave the first option “Create encrypted container file” and click on “Next” and again on “Next.” Step 2: Specify the storage location and file name after clicking on “File.” Follow the further instructions of the wizard. Step 3: In the “Volume password” window, enter a sufficiently complex password with 20 characters or more. If you tick the “Show password” box, you can check the entry. Step 4 (optional): You can also use a short password or a PIN if you also create a key file. To do this, tick the box next to “Use key file” and then click on “Key files.” Click on “Create key file(s)” and generate the entropy by moving the mouse. Enter a name for the key file, click on the “Create and save key file(s)” button and select the storage location. Save the file to a USB stick. The container cannot be unlocked without the stick or the key file in combination with the password. Close the window, click on “Add files,” select the key file you have just created, and click on “OK.” Continue with the wizard. Step 5: In the Veracrypt main window, click on a free drive letter, go to “Volume > Select file” and specify the file created in Step 2. Then click on “Volume > Mount volume” and enter the password. If you created a key file in step 4, tick “Use key file,” click on “Key files,” and specify the file via “Add files.” Step 6: For faster access to the encrypted container, right-click on the (virtual) drive in the Veracrypt main window and select “Add to favorites” in the context menu. Tick the box “Mount selected volume at login” and confirm with “OK.” Veracrypt then automatically opens a window for entering the password after the Windows logon. If you are using a key file, you should specify this via “Settings > Default key files.” Otherwise, you will have to select the file each time in the password entry window. You can specify the same key file when creating further data containers. Virtual second PC with Virtualbox Virtualbox is open source software and therefore available free of charge for all Windows editions. The range of functions corresponds roughly to Microsoft’s Hyper-V. Install Virtualbox and the Virtualbox extension package, which is required for some functions, such as remote access and encryption of virtual hard disks. Click on the “New” button to start a wizard for setting up a virtual machine in Virtualbox. You enter the ISO image with the installation system and specify the operating system and the size of the RAM and virtual hard drive. After completing the wizard, click on “Start” and install the operating system as usual. Configure VMs with Virtualbox: A wizard supports you with the installation of the system. You will need the ISO file of the Linux or Windows installation system, for example. Oracle In the virtual machine window, go to “Devices > Insert guest extensions” and install the guest extensions from the virtual DVD drive. The optimized drivers ensure better graphics performance, for example. Remote access or remote maintenance via the network Remotely control another PC: The free Rustdesk enables access to a remote desktop. This works in the local network and also over the Internet without further configuration. Rustdesk You do not have to rely on the remote desktop connection of the Pro edition for remote access. There is plenty of software for this task. For example, the open source solution Rustdesk is free of charge. The program does not require a firewall configuration. The connection is established in encrypted form via the provider’s switching server. The program works without installation — the people involved only need to start it. The person seeking help tells you the ID and password displayed. You then establish the connection, which the person on the other PC must confirm. Actions that require increased rights must also be confirmed. For convenient use, however, you should install Rustdesk using the button at the bottom left of the window. This also enables unattended access to a computer. You must set a password for this in the settings under “Security.” Further reading: Every Windows operating system, ranked Read...

Windows Recall has always been Microsoft’s best argument for upgrading to one of those brand-new Copilot+ computers… and it’s also been the most controversial addition to Windows in years. The AI-powered feature periodically “reads” your on-screen activity and saves each moment as a series of searchable screenshots. If you’re interested, the Recall feature is rolling out to the Windows Insider Release Preview channel now. You’ve probably heard a lot about Recall since Microsoft revealed it last year, because, well, there’s a lot to say. Our Windows expert Mark Hachman gave it a thorough test when it hit the Insider Preview Dev channel in December (that’s roughly analogous to an alpha test for Windows 11, versus the Release Preview’s beta test). He found Recall’s performance to be slow and stuttery, though there are a few somewhat comforting nods to the privacy issues, like making you authenticate with Windows Hello whenever you open your own activity history. But the system was inconsistent at best and buggy at worst, and not anywhere near ready to replace, say, a manual screenshot or bookmark you take yourself for referring back to later. Is that worth the privacy risk of having a huge, visual history of your PC activity, even if you take Microsoft at its word on how secure and safe it is? Well, that’s for you to decide. I imagine enterprise users have expressed distaste, because Microsoft has already confirmed that it’ll be disabled by default on the enterprise version of Windows. If you’re not fond of the idea, Recall can be disabled and removed by regular users, too. I don’t have a Copilot+ PC handy to test out the new and improved version of Recall on the Insider Release Preview, but you can try it yourself if you’re so inclined. After a disappointing announcement, Microsoft will probably try to get it out to the general Windows 11 user base—again, with the feature only available to PCs and laptops with newer Copilot+ processors—sometime later in 2025. Read...

If you’re confused about what the new Trump tariffs will mean for your wallet, you’re not alone. Consumers and PC vendors alike are trying to figure out what it means and how everyone can avoid paying more than they have to. Fortunately, some vendors are starting to come forward and explain how their costs are being affected and how they’re being passed along to you — or not. PC vendors are just like you, in that they’re buying processors, GPUs, and other components for their products. But while you can track an SSD price as it rises and falls on Amazon, you have no real way of knowing what the future holds. PC vendors do, because they talk to component vendors regularly. Normally, however, they keep these conversations secret. Recently, two PC vendors, Framework and Puget Systems, have not only begun talking about how tariffs will affect the price of the products that they sell to you, but also about the prices they’re paying for components and whether they’ll go up or down — and by how much. It’s all extremely valuable information, especially if you’re confused about what tariffs will affect which parts inside of a PC. Even better, they’re updating their insights as new info comes in, especially because the expected cost of the tariffs has been vague and changing. Of course, neither vendor can say for certain what will happen at any moment in time; President Trump has raised and lowered tariffs unexpectedly throughout the past few days. As of press time, tariffs on imported Chinese goods stand at 125 percent, while he has enacted a “pause” on other worldwide tariffs — but they’re still 10 percent, regardless, while the “cheap tariff loophole” has been eliminated, too. And remember, chip tariffs could begin on June 1. A year ago, no one cared where a PC or a component was made. Now, you absolutely should. Tariff lessons you can learn from Framework Framework, a modular PC supplier, sources its components from a variety of companies and countries. As a small supplier, the tariffs have hit hard; Framework only recently began allowing customers to pre-order its latest Framework Laptop 12 in the U.S., and earlier “paused” some existing Laptop sales in response to the ongoing tariffs. Nirav Patel, the chief executive and founder of Framework, explained that Framework was originally founded five years ago upon the principle that, eventually, U.S.-China relations would sour, and tariffs would be applied. Framework thus performs much of its assembly in Taiwan. The Framework Desktop.Mark Hachman / Foundry At Framework, here’s how it breaks down: Framework laptops, desktops, and its mainboards are assembled in Taiwan — subject then to a 32 percent tariff, which has now fallen to 10 percent. Some of its pluggable USB-C modules are made in Taiwan, but the majority are made in China, still subject to a 125 percent tariff. Framework buys Western Digital’s modules from Malaysia (then: 24 percent tariff, now: 10 percent). Framework’s Patel had some interesting advice for customers looking to buy their tariffed storage: “[We] recommend that you purchase it elsewhere for your DIY Edition if possible, like directly from the Western Digital website.” The other lesson? Bye-bye, budget PCs. If low-priced PCs can’t be sold at a high enough profit, PC vendors will withdraw them. “For our lowest-priced base systems, where we’re unable to absorb the remaining 10 percent tariff, ordering is still paused for US customers,” Framework said. “Many of our modules are manufactured in China, which now face higher tariffs. On these items, we are keeping elevated pricing for now to cover the tariff cost. We’ll continue to monitor this situation and update pricing if needed.” What Puget predicts will happen with PC part pricing Puget Systems is a smaller boutique workstation vendor, which has published detailed updates on how the tariffs are affecting its own costs and end prices. Puget has also drawn a distinction between directly tariffed goods and indirect tariffs — for example, while DRAM might be manufactured in the United States, the printed circuit board on which it is mounted might ship from China. How tariffs will affect Puget Systems, a boutique PC and workstation company.Puget Systems The biggest impact, Puget says, will be felt on the most expensive components — with one exception. Processors, both from AMD and Intel, are exempt from the tariffs, apparently because they are officially shipped from the United States. Some video cards are, too. On the other hand, demand and prices for Nvidia’s latest GeForce 5090 were already insane, and they’re probably going to get worse. “When a new product is released and in high demand, supply is typically constrained, causing prices to inflate significantly,” Puget president Jon Bach wrote. “The 5090 definitely falls into that camp! I can’t remember a product in recent history that has been in such short supply for so long after launch, and the future doesn’t look much better.” Here’s how Puget sees the tariff increases affecting the prices of the components it buys. While the actual percentage costs were tied to the earlier, per-country tariffs, you can basically take them as an indicator of how price-sensitive they are. Motherboards: Puget said on April 1 that it would absorb any price increases in motherboard costs, if only because they come from a variety of countries. CPUs: No impact! SSDs: Puget expects prices to climb by 10 percent — but not from tariffs, but from supply constraints. Memory: Prices were on a downward trend before the tariffs hit, so the price that Puget (or you) pays could remain flat or even slightly dip. GPUs: An enormous question mark. GPUs were previously tariffed at 20 percent, and this may have already been partially priced in. “This is the worst news in this post because these components have a high cost to begin with, so even a smaller percent increase means a bigger dollar increase!” Bach wrote. Network and storage controllers: Puget expects to pay about 20 percent more here, although these would probably be confined to its workstation/rack products. Chassis and power supplies: Puget expects to pay 20 percent more, and it seems reasonable that enthusiasts would too. “Large-scale chassis production almost always comes from China, so our costs are directly impacted,” Bach wrote. CPU coolers and fans: Puget’s Bach said that prices of these components should rise by about 20 percent. Fortunately, they’re not that expensive, relatively. It’s a hard sell, but you might want to buy now. Puget’s Bach said he expects the Trump chip tariff to kick in on June 1, with potential cost increases of between 20 and 45 percent. Fortunately, Puget is using the “pause” in tariffs to import as much inventory as the company can to stockpile parts in U.S. warehouses before any additional tariffs are implemented again. Framework gets nerdy about tariffs Since PC vendors do as much assembly as they do building, how does the government decide which products are tariffed and which aren’t? Framework drew back the curtain to explain how its products were affected. (This might be too much information!) “When goods are imported into the US, tariffs are assessed based on the country of origin and the HTS (Harmonized Tariff Schedule) code that the goods are classified as,” Framework’s Patel wrote. “We ship all of our products DDP (Delivered Duty Paid), meaning we pay tariffs as goods clear customs and include the cost inside of our product pricing,” Patel added. “The tariff is calculated against the value of the product at import, meaning our cost as the importer, rather than the final price we charge for the product. The country of origin is defined as the last location in which “substantial transformation” occurs. For computers, US Customs has specifically defined substantial transformation as the location at which the main circuit board is assembled.” Ugh, right? Being a smart PC builder right now means that you might have to take an economics class in your spare time. Hopefully more PC vendors come forward to share what they know. Read...

If you’re in the market for new consumer electronics—like laptops—then you might be worried about the tariffs being imposed by the United States on imports from numerous foreign countries. As of this writing, most of the tariffs are currently on pause, but the tariffs on China are not. This could be bad news if you’re shopping for a laptop, as many laptops are assembled in China. And right now, the current tax on Chinese imports could go as high as 125 percent. Unfortunately, some retailers and manufacturers are taking advantage of the situation with subtle tricks to get you buying less-than-worthwhile models. Here’s what you need to avoid and what you should do instead if you need to buy a laptop before tariff price bumps kick in. Trick #1: Suspiciously good sale prices The best-selling laptop on Amazon right now is an unspecified Lenovo IdeaPad that’s being sold by a third-party seller named AZXUT STORE—and this product listing is highly suspicious. It first appeared on Amazon in early April at a price of $1,499, then was cut down to $399. It has since increased to $429, meaning the laptop is listed as “71% off.” It’s also labeled as the “#1 Best Seller” in the Traditional Laptop Computers category. It even lists 32GB of memory and a 1TB solid state drive. With all that, I can’t blame anyone who bought this over the past few days. It looks like a killer deal. But it isn’t. Matt Smith / Foundry The first sign that something’s fishy is the processor. The listing claims that this laptop has an Intel Celeron N4500, a dual-core processor that released in 2021. The Celeron N4500 was among the slowest processors produced by Intel at the time, and today its performance is truly abysmal. According to Geekbench 6, a typical laptop with a Celeron N4500 hits a multi-core score of 731. Meanwhile, Intel’s Core Ultra 120U—a modern chip found in many budget laptops—typically scores about 7,500. To me, this stinks of a scam that’s preying on less knowledgeable folk. The seller, AZXUT STORE, has many recent 1-star reviews. Some customers say the products they received were used, that they didn’t match their respective listings, or that they received nothing at all. I couldn’t find contact information for AZXUT STORE, and the contact button on Amazon’s website directed me to a chatbot. I’ve reached out to Amazon for comment on the situation. Trick #2: Deceptive marketing claims The #1 best-selling laptop on Amazon is plenty suspicious, but it isn’t the only way sellers are looking to pull one over on shoppers. Some are trying to trick buyers by misrepresenting what a laptop can do. Gaming laptops are a particularly deep reservoir of terrible listings. A search for “gaming laptop” on Amazon will surface comically terrible laptops like the ACEMAGIC AX16PRO, NIMO N155, and the… uh… “Gaming Laptop, Laptop Computer, Computer Laptop.” Matt Smith / Foundry The ACEMAGIC, being sold by a company called SMART DEALS WAREHOUSE, is guilty of the first trick mentioned above with a very high listed price of $1,600 that’s discounted down to $500. But it pours salt on the wound with a second trick: it misrepresents itself as a gaming laptop. The listing claims it’s an “ACEMAGIC 2025 Gaming Laptop” and uses generic marketing images with attractive anime characters and race cars, with particular focus on the laptop’s AMD Radeon Vega 8 graphics. As you probably already know, the Vega 8 is the integrated graphics solution included with many AMD Ryzen chips. Not only is it an iGPU, it’s not even the latest iGPU. The Ryzen 5700U on this laptop was launched back in 2021, so its equipped Radeon integrated graphics are a couple generations behind the latest hardware. PC World’s review of the HP Envy x360, a laptop with the same Ryzen 5700U and Radeon Vega 8 graphics, found it achieved a 3Dmark Time Spy score of roughly 1,500. Laptops with the latest integrated graphics from Intel and AMD tend to score at least 3,000 in that test. Can the ACEMAGIC laptop load and play a PC game? Sure. But the experience isn’t going to be any better than what you can get with any other budget or mid-range laptop with integrated graphics. Trick #3: High-pressure sales tactics Vaio, the remnant of the Sony Vaio brand (which Sony sold years ago), was quick to take advantage of the April tariff announcement. The company swiftly sent out a marketing email that urged shoppers to buy a laptop now at “tariff-free” prices before the tariffs went into effect. This trick is a bit less shady than the first two. The laptops that Vaio linked to in the email were no different than the laptops they usually offer, nor did they have marked-up prices or ancient hardware. Still, the email was an obvious scare tactic meant to push consumers into making panic buys, which could lead shoppers into buyer’s remorse. Matt Smith / Foundry Vaio laptops don’t have a strong presence in the United States. While there’s nothing wrong with the configurations they offer, Vaio laptops are pretty unremarkable. And I’d say they’re on the pricey side, too. A laptop like the Vaio FS—sold for $1,099.99 online via Costco—is a decent laptop, but if you had the chance to look into similar machines, you’d likely find a better deal… like, say, the Asus Vivobook S 16 Flip for $1,069. Vaio is hardly alone. I’ve received several marketing emails from other companies in the past few days that play up these fears. Plus, Vaio laptops are advertised as “proudly manufactured in Japan,” which is funny since it means Vaio laptops won’t be subject to the steepest tariffs. In that sense, US tariffs on China could work out well for Vaio in the long run. But that also means there isn’t as much pressure to buy a Vaio ASAP. If you need to buy a laptop now, do this You now know three common tricks that retailers and manufacturers are trying to pull to get you buying a laptop now. But knowing these tricks only tells you what you need to avoid. What should you actually look for? It’s obviously a complex topic, but I have some simple advice. First, identify what CPU (and GPU, if applicable) the laptop has. If you can’t find that information in the listing, don’t buy it. Then, once you know the CPU (and/or GPU), pull up your favorite search engine and search for that exact CPU (and/or GPU) to find the date it was released. You’ll want a CPU that launched in the last year or two, and a GPU that launched in the last three years. If the CPU and/or GPU in the laptop you’re eyeing is older than those thresholds, yet the retailer is claiming that the laptop is “new,” then don’t buy it. For more guidance on how to buy a good budget laptop without being cheated or swindled, see our articles on minimum specs for a budget laptop and what a $500 laptop looks like these days. For straight-up recommendations, check out the best laptops under $500. 3 great laptops you can buy right now We have a frequently updated guide to the best laptops, which is always a great place to start when you need a new machine. But if you’re buying quickly before tariffs fully kick in, here are three high-quality Chinese-made laptops to jump on before prices shoot up. Asus Asus Zenbook 14 OLED: The Asus Zenbook 14 OLED is a superb pick if you want a Windows laptop that’s versatile, portable, and not too expensive. It’s a relatively recent release in the Asus line, so even the older models are still decent. I personally like this model found on Best Buy, which has a recent Intel Core Ultra 7 processor, 16GB of RAM, and a 1TB SSD, currently priced at $850. See my review for more details. Lenovo Lenovo Yoga 7i 2-in-1: If you want a laptop with a larger 16-inch display, consider the Lenovo Yoga 7 and Yoga 7i line. These 2-in-1 laptops are less portable than 14-inch machines yet still have good battery life. The more expensive models are speedy, too. Current pricing remains reasonable with AMD options starting around $650 and Intel around $1,050. Check out PCWorld’s review for more details. Lenovo Lenovo Legion 5i: Gamers looking for a capable, yet reasonably-priced laptop should consider the Lenovo Legion 5i. Typically priced around $1,299, it offers a fast Intel CPU and Nvidia RTX 4060 graphics. Better still, its flavor of RTX 4060 is at the top of the range, and in some cases can beat more expensive laptops with an RTX 4070. Check out PCWorld’s review for more details. Further reading: Everything you need to know about how US tariffs will disrupt the tech industry Read...

If you’re a smartphone owner—and chances are that’s everyone reading this—you’ve probably encountered an eerie, but all too common scenario: One day you’re talking about a random topic while your phone is next to you and the following day you notice ads start popping up related to that same topic. It’s unsettling. How do these ads know what you were talking about? Your smartphone may be the culprit. Every smartphone has its built-in microphone constantly turned on in order for the virtual assistant to hear your voice commands. So, could it be that these devices are also secretly eavesdropping on your conversations in order to serve you ads? Here’s everything you need to know, plus a simple test to find out. How to find out if your phone is listening to you To test if your phone is listening to your conversations, start by openly discussing a unique topic that you’ve never searched for or discussed previously while your phone is turned on next to you. It’s crucial that this be something that isn’t related to your usual interests or search queries. Spend a day or two discussing this topic out loud with your phone next to you the whole time. Make sure that you don’t search about this topic on any of your devices—not just your phone.  You can also try talking about specific things related to this topic. For example, if you’re discussing traveling to Spain, you can discuss learning Spanish or what the best restaurant is for paella in Madrid. During this time, pay close attention to the ads you’re served while online—ads on social media feeds, websites you visit, apps you use, and those on your smart TV if you have one. Then, if you begin seeing ads about the topic you chose to discuss, chances are you’ve confirmed the eavesdropping and caught your phone red-handed. What to do if you think your phone is eavesdropping Before you go taping over the microphone and camera on your phone or throwing it in a lake, there are a few less drastic things you can do to curb the potential eavesdropping. The first is to carefully review the app permissions on your device. It’s likely that you downloaded an app and allowed it to access your microphone without ever realizing it. Comb through the permissions for each app on your phone and limit apps that don’t need access to your microphone, camera, or location settings. Under the respective settings menus, you can turn off Google Assistant on Android phones or Siri on iOS devices to make sure they aren’t eavesdropping. Sam Singleton Next, clear the voice history and disable your phone’s digital assistant. Google, Siri, and Alexa are all very convenient, but might be actively (and passively) recording everything you say without you knowing. Just last year, 404 Media reported that a third-party company named Cox Media Group (CMG), which offers “Active Listening” technology, was working with companies such as Amazon, Google, and Microsoft. While these companies have since denied using this technology to spy on phone users, the fact is that the capabilities exist and it’d be foolish to assume that companies wouldn’t take advantage of ways to more effectively advertise to consumers—after all, ads drive most of their revenue. Finally, while companies are the most likely source of eavesdropping, there is always the potential for hackers to exploit vulnerabilities on your device and take control of the microphone or camera as well. The best way to combat this is to make sure you always have the latest updates for both your phone’s OS and all of the installed apps. All of these steps will help cut off unwanted access to your phone’s microphone, but if you’re still unsure, there’s a simple solution. Just turn off your phone or leave it behind when you want to discuss private matters. It’s the best way to ensure your phone can’t hear you. If your phone isn’t listening, then how’s it getting your data? While the prospect of your phone constantly eavesdropping on your every conversation may be disconcerting, there are myriad ways that you could be divulging this same info without ever saying it out loud. Each smartphone is a veritable treasure trove of personal data for any and all apps to pull from. They are essentially mini-computers packed with sensors: gyroscopes, accelerometers, magnetometers, and just about any other -meter you can think of. The data collected from these sensors can provide a shocking amount of info about our routines, habits, and personalities.  Everywhere you visit, other people you talk to or spend time with, lifestyle choices, and personal health data are just some of the metadata and telemetry—phone sensor data—collected by your phone. Not to mention all of the vast amounts of data you’ve already provided over the years to your apps and via Google searches.  Your phone and the installed apps hoover up all of this data and send it off to third parties such as data brokers to be analyzed, sold, and regurgitated back to you in the form of personalized ads.  So, even though you may not have talked about or searched that trip to Spain, your phone may have intuited what you were thinking and come to the conclusion on its own based on the data it collected. Maybe your friends were searching for Spanish AirBnBs while next to you, or maybe you downloaded Duolingo and started learning Spanish recently, or maybe your shopping trends show a recent uptick in the amount of saffron and jamón you’ve been buying.  Any and all of this metadata could be the reasoning for the eerily relevant ads you’re seeing. And while your phone could truly be listening in, it might just be the unspoken data you’re sharing in other ways that gives you away. Further reading: How often should you turn off your phone? Here’s what the NSA says Read...

Microsoft mainly supplies Windows in two different editions: Home and Professional. Windows 11 Home is pre-installed on many PCs, while the Pro edition is often installed on business devices. This is because Windows 11 Pro can be integrated into a company’s network infrastructure (Active Directory), whereas the Home edition cannot. However, this feature is not necessary for private users who are unlikely to operate a Windows server in their home network. Nevertheless, the Windows Pro edition has some features that are of interest to everyone. Saving tip 1: Buy Windows 11 Pro for just $79 instead of $199 Saving tip 2: Buy a Windows 11 Pro upgrade for just $59 instead of $99 If you want to take advantage of this, you can perform a Pro update for a fee. For details, see the box “Upgrade from Windows 11 Home to Pro.” Home or Pro? Users of the Home edition receive most of the additional Pro functions free of charge. Additional tools provide what is missing in the cheaper Windows edition. IDG But an upgrade from Windows Home can also be completely free: Almost all Pro functions can be replaced by free software. It is even possible to unlock two Pro functions in the Home Edition, which we describe in more detail in this article. See also: Windows survival skills: 8 things every PC user should know how to do The differences between Windows Home and Pro There are actually only a few points where the two editions differ. Here are the most important and relevant for private users: Bitlocker encryption, which can be used to secure the entire drive or USB sticks, is reserved for the Pro edition. Bitlocker is particularly useful for laptops so that nobody can access your data if the device is lost. However, Microsoft has added a similar function to the Home edition of Windows 11 24H2 with device encryption (point 3). This requires you to log in with a Microsoft account. Users who do not want a Microsoft account or use Windows 10 can use alternative methods (points 4 and 5). Hyper-V is software that can be used to virtualize operating systems. For example, you can install Linux or Windows in Hyper-V while Windows is running and use it as a virtual second system. We describe how Hyper-V can be activated in the Home edition and what the alternative Virtualbox offers in points 6 and 7. The remote desktop enables remote access to the desktop of another Windows computer via the network. The Home edition only offers remote support, where a user must first invite a helper before they can access the other PC. Both methods are only suitable to a limited extent for spontaneous help via the internet. Remote access only works if the necessary ports are open in the router firewall. This is not necessary for other remote assistance programs (see point 8). Group policies offer centralized management of user rights. They are mainly used in larger company networks in which functions can be restricted or specified on all PCs via the central server. Local group policies are a variant for computers that do not belong to a Windows domain. The editor for this can be activated in the Home edition, or an alternative tool can be used (see box “Configuring Windows with group policies”). Encryption with Windows on-board resources With the Home edition of Windows 10 and 11, you cannot encrypt drives with Bitlocker. However, it is possible to integrate encrypted external hard drives or USB sticks into the file system. Encryption must be carried out on another PC on which the Pro or Enterprise edition is installed. If no other computer is available, use a virtual PC (point 6 or 7). Security for external drives: Encrypt the drive with Bitlocker under Windows Pro. Although the Home Edition cannot create it, it can still integrate it into the file system.Microsoft Go to “Settings” (Win-I), search for Bitlocker and click on “Manage Bitlocker.” Click on the desired drive and then on “Activate Bitlocker.” Tick the box “Use password to unlock the drive” and enter a sufficiently secure password. After clicking on “Next,” save the recovery key in a file, for example. Follow the further instructions of the wizard. A drive encrypted in this way can also be used with the Home edition. If you open it in the file manager by double-clicking on it, Windows will ask you for the password. Device encryption of Windows 11 24H2 Microsoft has equipped Windows 11 24H2 Home with a new function that can be used to encrypt the system drive. Bitlocker provides the basis, albeit with fewer options than the Pro edition. Windows login with a Microsoft account is also required. In Windows 11 24H2 Home: Activate “Device encryption” in the “Settings” if you want Windows to encrypt the system partition. A Microsoft account is required for this.Chris Hoffman / IDG If you are using version 24H2, you should check the option in the “Settings” under “Privacy and security > Device encryption.” If “Device encryption” is not displayed, the system requirements for Windows 11 are probably not met. Then check in the firmware settings of the PC whether TPM and Secure Boot are activated. If you activate device encryption, you should save the associated recovery key. You can determine the key via account.microsoft.com/devices/recoverykey after logging in with your Microsoft account. The recovery key is required so that you can access your data via a rescue or secondary system in the event of Windows or hardware problems. See also: How to make Microsoft Windows services work for you Encrypt drives with Veracrypt If you don’t want to or can’t use Bitlocker or device encryption, Veracrypt is an almost equivalent alternative. The tool also has the advantage that it is available for Linux and Mac OS. You can also use it to integrate encrypted Windows drives under these systems. In terms of security, it is difficult to compare Bitlocker and Veracrypt. With the open source tool Veracrypt, you can examine the source code and check the code quality and implementation of the algorithms. This is not possible with Bitlocker. Neither method can promise 100 percent security — ultimately, the use of any software is a question of trust. A study conducted by the Fraunhofer Institute for Secure Information Technology (SIT) in 2020 is entitled “VeraCrypt with minor flaws.” No serious vulnerabilities were found. Veracrypt is not as well integrated into the system as Bitlocker. It is somewhat cumbersome to use and you have to enter the password for decryption every time you restart Windows. For security reasons, the password should be more than 20 characters long and sufficiently complex. If this is too much effort for you, you should consider whether you really need to encrypt the entire hard drive. Perhaps the solution presented in point 5 will suffice. Please also note that Veracrypt only requests the password on a restart. When reactivating after “Sleep,” only the Windows password is requested by default. If you want to encrypt the system partition, proceed as follows: Step 1: The use of Veracrypt is considered secure. Nevertheless, it is advisable to create a complete backup of the Windows partition or at least the personal files. If, for example, the power fails during encryption, the files on the hard drive will no longer be readable. Also have a USB stick ready that is formatted with the FAT32 file system. About 5MB of free space is sufficient and you can also use the stick for other purposes. In Veracrypt you will have to create a sufficiently long password for an encrypted drive to be used every time you restart your computer. Veracrypt Step 2: In Veracrypt, go to “System > Encrypt system partition/system drive.” Follow the easy-to-understand instructions of the wizard. You can accept the defaults almost everywhere. When entering the password, please note that the Veracrypt bootloader works with the U.S. keyboard layout. The program takes this into account and switches the keyboard layout when entering the password. Tick the “Show password” box to see the actual password. Step 3: The wizard prompts you to create a rescue data carrier. By default, Veracrypt saves the required file under the name “VeraCrypt Rescue Disk.zip” in your “Documents” folder. Unzip the file and copy the “EFI” folder it contains to your FAT32-formatted USB stick. After clicking on “Next,” the wizard will check whether the folder is present. Step 4: In the “System encryption pre-test” step, click on “Test.” Read the description, which is best printed out. Click on “Yes” when you are prompted to restart the PC. Type in the password and confirm with the Enter key. If Veracrypt does not accept the password, for example if it is entered incorrectly, press the Esc key. Windows will then start as usual from the previously unencrypted hard drive and you will have to configure the encryption again. Otherwise, Windows will start after you enter the password. After Windows logon, the “Pre-test completed” window appears automatically, in which you click on “Encrypt.” Veracrypt then starts the encryption process, which may take some time. A window will inform you of the progress. Step 5: Try booting from the rescue drive. You may need to change the boot sequence in the firmware setup. The rescue system offers a simple menu that can be used to repair the Veracrypt boot loader, load an alternative boot loader, or decrypt the system partition. Upgrade from Windows 11 Home to Pro The Home edition can be converted to a Pro edition without reinstallation. All you need is a new product key. Microsoft currently charges $99 for the upgrade in the official store. In the PCWorld shop, however, you can get the official upgrade for just $59. If you have purchased a Pro key, go to “System” in the “Settings” under Windows 11, click on “Activation” and then on “Update Windows Edition.” Click on “Change” after “Change product key” and enter the new product key. Foundry Encrypted container with Veracrypt If you encrypt your Windows partition, you no longer have to worry about the security of individual files. On the other hand, it is not particularly convenient to have to enter a long and complicated password when restarting the system. For more security, only encrypt the files that are really worth protecting. To do this, use Veracrypt to create an encrypted container file that holds the sensitive files. Secure container: Create an encrypted container file with Veracrypt. Store sensitive and important documents in it. The file can be stored on any drive.Veracrypt Step 1: In Veracrypt, go to “Volume > Create new volume.” Leave the first option “Create encrypted container file” and click on “Next” and again on “Next.” Step 2: Specify the storage location and file name after clicking on “File.” Follow the further instructions of the wizard. Step 3: In the “Volume password” window, enter a sufficiently complex password with 20 characters or more. If you tick the “Show password” box, you can check the entry. Step 4 (optional): You can also use a short password or a PIN if you also create a key file. To do this, tick the box next to “Use key file” and then click on “Key files.” Click on “Create key file(s)” and generate the entropy by moving the mouse. Enter a name for the key file, click on the “Create and save key file(s)” button and select the storage location. Save the file to a USB stick. The container cannot be unlocked without the stick or the key file in combination with the password. Close the window, click on “Add files,” select the key file you have just created, and click on “OK.” Continue with the wizard. Step 5: In the Veracrypt main window, click on a free drive letter, go to “Volume > Select file” and specify the file created in Step 2. Then click on “Volume > Mount volume” and enter the password. If you created a key file in step 4, tick “Use key file,” click on “Key files,” and specify the file via “Add files.” Step 6: For faster access to the encrypted container, right-click on the (virtual) drive in the Veracrypt main window and select “Add to favorites” in the context menu. Tick the box “Mount selected volume at login” and confirm with “OK.” Veracrypt then automatically opens a window for entering the password after the Windows logon. If you are using a key file, you should specify this via “Settings > Default key files.” Otherwise, you will have to select the file each time in the password entry window. You can specify the same key file when creating further data containers. Virtual second PC with Virtualbox Virtualbox is open source software and therefore available free of charge for all Windows editions. The range of functions corresponds roughly to Microsoft’s Hyper-V. Install Virtualbox and the Virtualbox extension package, which is required for some functions, such as remote access and encryption of virtual hard disks. Click on the “New” button to start a wizard for setting up a virtual machine in Virtualbox. You enter the ISO image with the installation system and specify the operating system and the size of the RAM and virtual hard drive. After completing the wizard, click on “Start” and install the operating system as usual. Configure VMs with Virtualbox: A wizard supports you with the installation of the system. You will need the ISO file of the Linux or Windows installation system, for example. Oracle In the virtual machine window, go to “Devices > Insert guest extensions” and install the guest extensions from the virtual DVD drive. The optimized drivers ensure better graphics performance, for example. Remote access or remote maintenance via the network Remotely control another PC: The free Rustdesk enables access to a remote desktop. This works in the local network and also over the Internet without further configuration. Rustdesk You do not have to rely on the remote desktop connection of the Pro edition for remote access. There is plenty of software for this task. For example, the open source solution Rustdesk is free of charge. The program does not require a firewall configuration. The connection is established in encrypted form via the provider’s switching server. The program works without installation — the people involved only need to start it. The person seeking help tells you the ID and password displayed. You then establish the connection, which the person on the other PC must confirm. Actions that require increased rights must also be confirmed. For convenient use, however, you should install Rustdesk using the button at the bottom left of the window. This also enables unattended access to a computer. You must set a password for this in the settings under “Security.” Further reading: Every Windows operating system, ranked Read...