One of the best tech items I got last year was a portable monitor for my laptop. It made my life so much easier, allowing me to work out of coffee shops and libraries with all the extra screen space I need to be productive. If you’re a laptop user and don’t have a portable monitor yet, you’re missing out! Score this awesome 34% discount on Amazon, bringing the price of this KYY portable monitor down to just $67. View this Amazon deal This is a slim 15.6-inch display with a crisp 1080p resolution, which is more than enough for daily use and productivity without breaking the bank. While 2K and 4K portable monitors are out there, they’re quite a bit more expensive than this one. If you’re just dealing with documents, spreadsheets, email, web browsing, and such, this will suffice. KYY’s model features an IPS panel for great color, contrast, and viewing angles, which is perfect for when you’re taking a break and watching YouTube or Netflix. The included smart cover keeps the screen protected when not in use, and it doubles as a stand so you can prop it up and comfortably watch videos or read PDFs. It has three ports—two USB-C and a Mini HDMI—plus all the cables you need to connect it to your laptop. Note that it also works with other video outputs, including your Nintendo Switch, Steam Deck, or even your phone. The built-in speakers won’t blow you away, but it’s a fun way to play games on the go and still get that auditory feedback. You’ll love using this portable monitor, for sure. Take advantage of this Amazon deal and snag it for just $67 while you can! Save 34% on this 15.6-inch 1080p portable monitor for your laptopBuy now at Amazon Read...

Microsoft began testing Windows 11 version 26H1 for the first time with Insider Preview Build 28000. The version is only available in the Canary channel of the Windows Insider Program. Starting with this build, Windows officially displays “Windows 11, version 26H1” for the first time under Settings > System > About and via winver. Microsoft made it clear that this is not a feature update for Windows 11 25H2, but rather a new technical platform version. Here’s what’s new in Windows 11 26H1 and why you should be aware. The purpose of Windows 11 26H1 Windows 11 26H1 is preparation for new hardware platforms. Microsoft is gearing the operating system towards upcoming processors, such as Windows-on-Arm devices. Among others, that includes Qualcomm Snapdragon X2 and X2 Elite plus Nvidia N1 and N1x. These processors differ significantly from traditional x64 CPUs, so Microsoft is making adjustments to key system components for compatibility. These include power management, process planning, driver architecture, and other hardware-dependent parts of the operating system. These changes are hardly noticeable to users in everyday use, but they’re necessary to ensure that new devices will later run stably, efficiently, and at full performance. Thomas Joos For existing x64 PCs, Windows 11 26H1 offers no functional advantages and Windows 11 25H2 remains the main branch for new features. Microsoft is sticking to its familiar update strategy here, with major feature updates released once a year in the second half of the year. What is the enablement package? Windows 11 26H1, similar to 25H2 before it, will be delivered as an “enablement package.” An enablement package is not a complete operating system upgrade—instead, it’s a small activation package that unlocks existing but previously disabled system components. Thomas Joos Microsoft integrates new or modified components into the system in advance via regular cumulative updates. The enablement package then activates the new version identifier and unlocks those existing features. For users, this means shorter installation times, smaller download sizes, and no major changes to interfaces or operation. Canary channel and early development The Canary channel serves as the earliest test environment in the Windows Insider Program. The builds published there aren’t assigned to any specific Windows version and may contain features that will later be changed or discarded. Microsoft expressly says that content from Canary builds won’t necessarily make it into a final Windows version. Another important point concerns channel switching. Leaving the Canary channel is only possible via reinstallation, as switching to channels with lower build numbers is not supported. New features in the Canary channel With the latest Canary builds—for example, starting with Build 28020.1362 (KB5073095) and onwards—Microsoft has integrated numerous features into the Canary branch that were previously available in Dev, Beta, and stable versions of Windows 11 25H2. Microsoft is aligning the feature set, which includes: The Xbox Full Screen Experience (FSE) is now available on more devices, including desktop systems. The interface is based on a console, prioritizes games, and reduces background processes. Click to Do has been redesigned on Copilot+ PCs. The context menu appears automatically for large images or tables and offers direct access to actions such as copying, saving, sharing, and AI-assisted processing. Learn more about why Click to Do is Microsoft’s next big AI move. The Windows Settings agent now allows direct changes from the search field on Copilot+ PCs. Recommended settings can be adjusted via inline action. If a setting can’t be changed further, Windows displays a corresponding explanation. Windows Studio Effects now also support external USB webcams. They can be activated via Settings > Bluetooth & devices > Cameras or via the quick settings in the taskbar. The Drag Tray now supports simultaneous sharing of multiple files, automatically displays matching apps, and allows direct placement in destination folders. The feature can be enabled or disabled via Settings > System > Nearby sharing. Learn more about why Nearby Sharing is one of the best features in Windows. Thomas Joos File Explorer now has a more consistent dark mode. Copy, move, delete, progress, replace, and error dialogues now fully match the dark design. Chart and progress views have also been adjusted. When hovering over files in the Explorer start area, new quick actions such as “Open file location” or “Ask Copilot” appear, depending on the region and account type. There’s a new “Mobile Devices” page in the settings that can be used to manage smartphones. Windows can use mobile devices as cameras or display files directly in File Explorer. Desktop Spotlight adds options such as “Learn more about this background” and “Next desktop background” to the desktop context menu. Thomas Joos Additional settings have been moved from the classic Control Panel to the Windows 11 settings. These include the keyboard character repeat rate and cursor blink rate. Control of keyboard backlighting on supported HID keyboards has also been improved. Thomas Joos Pens with haptic support now provide tactile feedback for certain UI interactions, such as moving or docking windows. Microsoft has also fixed various bugs, including issues in File Explorer, Task Manager, Settings, Windows Update, Display and Graphics, and Sign-in. A known bug where Task Manager continued to run as a background process after being closed has been corrected. Known issues with Windows 11 26H1 Microsoft lists several known limitations in these early Windows 11 26H1 builds, which include unexpected scrolling in the new Start menu and issues with hibernation and shutdown on certain systems. Such bugs are typical for early Canary builds. Windows Home users can already test version 26H1 by registering for the Windows Insider Program free of charge and activating the Canary channel. This will let you try out new platform changes while they’re still in early development. Learn more about why you should or shouldn’t become a Windows Insider. Thomas Joos At the same time, it’s important to note that pre-release versions are not stable. Crashes, performance issues, faulty updates, or incompatibilities are possible. The Canary channel is therefore not recommended for systems that need stability and reliability. Should you use Windows 11 26H1? Windows 11 26H1 forms a technical basis for new hardware generations and paves the way for Windows 11 26H2, which is expected to deliver the actual innovations for all users in fall 2026. If stability is a concern, Windows 11 25H2 remains the better choice right now. However, those who are interested in upcoming hardware, especially Arm-based Windows devices, or who want to keep abreast of technical developments at an early stage, will gain deep insight into the future of Windows with version 26H1. Read...

Even if Jensen spent his entire keynote at the Consumer Electronics Show jawing about anything and everything except consumer electronics, Nvidia still had something to announce: the latest version of DLSS. Team Green’s upscaling tech is now at version 4.5. It’s now available to try out (at least in part) via the latest version of the Nvidia Windows app. Before you boot up your benchmarks, be aware that not all of the goodies announced at CES are immediately enabled. That 6x frame gen and dynamic frame gen — which only enables the controversial tech as much as necessary to hit your framerate targets — are notably absent. The only major addition currently enabled in DLSS 4.5 is updated models for Super Resolution, the more basic upscaling tech that Nvidia has been using for a while. Enabling the new models via the DLSS Override features in the Nvidia app gives you access to: Model M — standard optimized DLSS Model L — optimized for 4K resolution Preset K — new default for “remaining DLSS modes” For the time being you’ll need to enable this DLSS override on a per-game basis, so it’s best to give it a shot on high-performance games for which you have a specific target in mind. To that end, the latest Nvidia App update also turns on DLSS override support for 77 new games, notably including Arc Raiders, Call of Duty: Black Ops 7, Europa Universalis V, Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, Ninja Gaiden 4, and The Outer Worlds 2. The update is available in the app right now, or you can always download it manually. Read...

At a glanceExpert`s Rating Pros Impressively lightweight Respectably long battery life Gorgeous display with excellent anti-glare Clean, modest looks Cons Slightly subdued performance Unimpressive speakers Subpar mics and camera Our Verdict It’s not without its faults, but the Acer Swift Edge 14 AI otherwise delivers a great all-around experience with extra points going to the gorgeous matte display. If you’re more often on the move than not, the Acer Swift Edge 14 AI will make a great partner. Price When Reviewed This value will show the geolocated pricing text for product undefined Best Pricing Today Best Prices Today: Acer Swift Edge 14 AI Retailer Price $1,499.99 View Deal Price comparison from over 24,000 stores worldwide Product Price Price comparison from Backmarket Best Prices Today: Check today’s prices Acer has renewed its Swift line with a new compact model in the Swift Edge 14 AI, which not only boasts the thinness the Swift line has been known for but also an exceptionally low weight at just 2.18 pounds. Meanwhile, it packs in hardware that’s up to snuff for most workers and a display that looks great for entertainment — sharp OLED for the win — and for work from different environments thanks to a potent matte finish I’d love to see more of. For the right folks, this could be a very strong option.  Acer Swift Edge 14 AI: Specs and features CPU: Intel Core Ultra 7 258V Memory: 32GB LPDDR5X-8533 Graphics/GPU: Intel Arc 140V Display: 14-inch 2880×1800 OLED touchscreen, 120Hz, Matte Storage: 1TB PCIe 4.0 SSD – Kingston OM8PGP4102Q-AA Webcam: 1080p + IR Connectivity: 2x Thunderbolt 4 / USB-C with Power Delivery and DisplayPort Alternate Mode, 2x USB 3.2 Type -A, 1x 3.5mm combo audio, 1x HDMI Networking: Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 5.4 Biometrics: Windows Hello fingerprint, facial recognition Battery capacity: 65 watt-hours Dimensions: 12.35 x 9.03 x 0.66 inches Weight: 2.18 pounds MSRP: $1,499 as-tested ($1,399 base) The Acer Swift Edge 14 AI comes in a small number of configurations. Our test unit came with the specifications above and a $1,499 price tag. Acer also offers a stepped-down model for $1,399 that swaps to an Intel Core Ultra 7 256V and 16GB of memory, which is sacrificing a bit too much just to shave $100 off. Another configuration bumps up to an Intel Core Ultra 9 288V and raises the price to $1,599.  The Acer Swift Edge 14 AI’s display is perhaps one of the most glorious I’ve seen on a laptop. Acer Swift Edge 14 AI: Design and build quality Foundry / Mark Knapp The Acer Swift Edge 14 AI is a surprise. It comes out of the box feeling a little plasticky and cheap, but its chassis is actually a magnesium-aluminum alloy that proves surprisingly sturdy with little flex. In spite of that, it’s incredibly light at just 2.18 pounds — a precise weight I verified with a scale. It’s also fairly thin with the chassis measuring 0.66 inches thick at its thickest point, though its rubber feet bump that up to 0.82 inches.  It comes with an all white design aside from the black bezels around the display, which gets an appealing matte treatment from Corning. The two display hinges are nice and tight, avoiding any wiggling in use. That comes in clutch for touchscreen use, as tapping on the display and swiping around doesn’t see it start to lean away. The white lid looks nice with little gold accenting, though geometric lines on the lid aren’t quite as engaging as the sort Asus tends to employ. Underneath, the laptop is also simple with two wide rubber feet, a large intake vent, and two small down-firing speaker grilles. The rear edge of the laptop serves as an exhaust.  The Acer Swift Edge 14 AI comes across as fairly simple, and that works for it. It’s delivering on the promise of thin-and-light laptops.  Acer Swift Edge 14 AI: Keyboard, trackpad Foundry / Mark Knapp After testing Acer laptops for years now and consistently being disappointed by their keyboards, I have to admit I didn’t have high hopes for the Acer Swift Edge 14 AI. But it seems like Acer may have turned a corner. The key caps seem just a little bit flatter than prior devices, and that makes a world of difference when it comes to staying centered by feel. Stabilization isn’t impressive, but is sufficient to keep the keys from tilting too much. I found myself much more comfortable typing on this keyboard than just about any other Acer laptop I’ve touched, and I managed a strong 122-word-per-minute typing speed with 122 percent accuracy in Monkeytype — about as fast and accurate as I can get on any given day.  While it’s good to have backlighting on a keyboard, Acer’s implementation isn’t ideal. White keyboards with white backlighting tend to look pretty awful as it turns into a sort of sloppy gray, and the Acer Swift Edge 14 AI is no exception. On top of that, having the backlighting on in a bright room ends up making the keyboard less legible as it reduces the contrast. And Acer opts to turn it on automatically in some cases.  The trackpad is also excellent. It’s sizable, though not monstrously large. It has a smooth and pearly Gorilla Glass surface that’s pleasant to swipe around on. There’s also a little logo in one corner that lights when the computer is doing any AI processing on its NPU.  Acer Swift Edge 14 AI: Display, audio Foundry / Mark Knapp The Acer Swift Edge 14 AI’s display is perhaps one of the most glorious I’ve seen on a laptop. Anti-glare and matte finishes can be contentious, because they lower the perceived contrast when viewing in extremely dark environments. But everywhere else, I find the lack of a reflected image a huge boon for visual clarity. The 14-inch panel has a 2880×1800 resolution that makes for very crisp details made all the better by the infinite contrast of OLED. The display has great motion clarity as well from its 120Hz refresh rate. Factor in the wide color gamut, which covers 100 percent of the DCI-P3 color space and reaches 398.3 nits of peak brightness for a full white screen, and you’ve got something special. The fact that you can enjoy all of that so well with the strong anti-glare properties of the Gorilla Matte Pro surface treatment is just wonderful. Acer even went the extra mile and made it a touchscreen, and it’s very responsive and super-smooth to swipe around on.  Sadly, the speakers on the Acer Swift Edge 14 AI are nothing special. They can put out a good bit of sound, letting you hear them even if you don’t have perfect quiet to listen in. But mids are over-pronounced, leading to a slightly grating sound at high volumes. The speakers also sound a little boxed in, especially at high volumes. For listening to speech, they do the job, but I wouldn’t count on them for music or TV and movies.  Acer Swift Edge 14 AI: Webcam, microphone, biometrics The webcam on the Acer Swift Edge 14 AI captures a decent picture. It’s not stunningly sharp, but it at least has a good exposure. Its support of Windows Hello facial recognition makes for quick sign-ons but also comes alongside a very wide field of view for the camera. This makes me appear very small in the video feed it captures unless I have my face within a foot of the lens. It’s possible to crop in, but that would lower the resolution from the already modest 1080p of the full sensor. Acer’s microphones are disappointing. By default, the system wants to use its AI-enhanced Purified Voice setting, but I found its efforts to cancel out background noise also had a negative impact on actual clarity in what I was saying, sometimes outright cancelling out my voice along with background noise. Disabling the effects resulted in clearer sound, but with more background noise. In either case, my voice wasn’t very full. In addition to facial recognition, the Acer Swift Edge 14 AI supports fingerprint login with a scanner built into the power button. In testing, this worked quickly, easily, and consistently. Acer Swift Edge 14 AI: Connectivity The Acer Swift Edge 14 AI proved strong with its connectivity. It has a respectable array of ports for a thin-and-light, combining two Thunderbolt 4 ports that also handle charging with two USB-A ports, an HDMI 2.1 port, and one audio jack. A microSD slot would have been nice to see. Most of the ports are also on the left side with just one USB-A port and the AUX jack on the right. Splitting up the charging ports to offer one on each side would have been a bonus.  The system can handle fast wireless connections as well with Intel Killer 1750i Wi-Fi 7. It proved fast and stable in my testing. The Bluetooth 5.4 is a little letdown, as Bluetooth 6.0 has already landed, but even without it, the Bluetooth connected easily and remained stable when paired with headphones in testing.  Acer Swift Edge 14 AI: Performance The Acer Swift Edge 14 AI may not be a high-performance machine, but with its Intel Core Ultra 7 258V, it’s no slouch. That chip is powering a lot of thin-and-light laptops, combining responsive speeds and strong efficiency.  It offers a level of performance that’s ample for basic office tasks, as we see it hit a solid score in the holistic PCMark 10 benchmark. Not only does it perform well for browsing, video calls, writing, and spreadsheet work, but thanks to its Intel Arc graphics, it also gets along modestly in content creation workloads — though it isn’t scratching at the capabilities of high-performance workstation.  One area that holds the Acer Swift Edge 14 AI back from more demanding workloads is its cooling. Being thin and light comes with trade-offs. There’s less room for air to flow effectively, and cooling hardware also adds a lot of weight. Some laptops will let their fans kick up a racket to try staying cool, but the Acer Swift Edge 14 AI opts for quieter operation. The result is that in longer, heavy workloads like our Handbrake encoding test, the system can struggle. It took over half an hour to perform this test while the 2.9-pound Lenovo Yoga 9i 2-in-1 Aura Edition running on the same CPU managed it in just over 22 minutes. Meanwhile, AMD’s hardware in the HP OmniBook 7 Aero actually proved even more stout despite also being in a light setup at 2.2 pounds, with the OmniBook hitting under 20 minutes by a hair. MSI offered the lightest laptop of the bunch, but its performance also lagged behind the pack. Cinebench can show us a bit more about the Acer Swift Edge 14 AI’s overall CPU performance. As we saw in Handbrake, heat is an issue for sustained performance in the Acer Swift Edge 14 AI. It lagged behind in Cinebench R24, which is also a longer test. But when running shorter, bursty workloads like Cinebench R23 and R15, the Acer Swift Edge 14 AI roughly tied with the Lenovo Yoga 9i. Still, neither were a match for the HP system’s faster CPU.  So while the Acer Swift Edge 14 AI may not power through heavy tasks well, it can remain responsive and tackle light tasks quickly. That goes double for single-threaded workloads, where its Cinebench scores actually tended to lead the pack, even beating the AMD and Qualcomm machines.  While the Acer Swift Edge 14 AI may not have been a frontrunner for CPU performance, the Intel Arc 140V graphics on the chip is a little secret weapon for the system. Where graphical horsepower is concerned, it turns the tides on AMD’s integrated Radeon graphics (at least until AMD starts bringing its Radeon 8060S graphics to laptops). In 3DMark’s Time Spy test, we see the Acer Swift Edge 14 AI tied with the Lenovo system and both well ahead of the HP OmniBook 7 Aero. That repeats in 3DMark Night Raid as well, and those wins come in large part thanks to huge leads in the Graphics subtests, though they also lead in the CPU sub-tests likely thanks to their stronger single-core performance. Even the MSI Summit 13 AI+ Evo pulls ahead of the OmniBook, though not by as much. This also showcases a perk of the Acer Swift Edge 14 AI over some of the Qualcomm-powered thin-and-lights that it runs against: compatibility. The Asus ZenBook A14 is a reasonably strong machine, but when it has to emulate x86 programs — as in this 3DMark test — it can fall way behind native hardware from Intel and AMD.  Acer Swift Edge 14 AI: Battery life Battery life can just about make or break a thin-and-light laptop. When they sacrifice performance, they need to make up for it in efficiency. And the Acer Swift Edge 14 AI just about nails it. In our 4K video playback test, which runs the laptop in airplane mode with the display set to 250-260 nits, the Acer Swift Edge 14 AI lasted just shy of 18 and a half hours. While that may not be as impressive as some of the other systems, all of which broke the 21-hour mark (except the OmniBoo, which barely broke 10 hours thanks in part to its much smaller battery). That said, the Acer Swift Edge 14 AI still deserves credit. It runs a sharper display than the MSI and Asus laptops and has a smaller battery than everything but the HP system. Our test also allows for the systems to dim their displays when they reach a low enough charge to enable Battery Saver mode, but the Acer Swift Edge 14 AI only dimmed its display to 48 percent brightness, which still sees it produce a comfortably bright 178 nits that is easily viewable with the matte display finish. More typical office and casual use saw no less impressive battery life. The system was typically on track for anywhere from nine to 14 hours of runtime. Three straight hours of active use only drained the battery by 32 percent. Another session of intermittent use that included watching a whole movie, some browsing, and a lot of idling with the screen on saw the laptop lose just 57 percent charge over the course of eight hours and 15 minutes. All of this was with the display still set to its 250-260 nit level, which is more than bright enough for indoor use thanks to the display’s strong anti-glare effect. And all of that was with the display running at 120Hz. More energy savings can be had by dialing that down to 60Hz.  Acer Swift Edge 14 AI: Conclusion The Acer Swift Edge 14 AI doesn’t knock it out of the park at every turn, but if you’re looking for a lightweight, reasonably speedy machine that’s ready to run all day and look lovely doing it, the Acer Swift Edge 14 AI is a homerun. The display is a special highlight for combining excellent visual quality with a rarely used matte finish that may have a minor impact on brilliance but has a huge impact on how easy it is to see the display in more conditions. Even the keyboard finally shifts away, however subtly, the slightly concave-feeling keys Acer has packed in in the past. All this comes together to make the Acer Swift Edge 14 AI a brilliant little partner for working and entertainment on the move, just bring your own headphones. Read...

Dell boosts PowerStore with 30TB QLC drives, metro sync replication and new NFSv4.2 features to pack in more data and harden resilience. Read...

TechHive Editors Choice At a glanceExpert`s Rating Pros Head-to-toe field of view provides very good coverage of visitor and package zones Operates on either battery or hardwired power  2-year battery life on AA lithium batteries Simple DIY installation and flexible mounting (wireless or wired) make it ideal for first-timers Cons Cloud storage and advanced detection features require a subscription Push-to-talk audio (not full duplex) Limited local storage options (included Sync Module Core doesn’t support USB storage) No color night vision Our Verdict The Blink Video Doorbell (2nd Gen) delivers clear video, wide coverage, reliable alerts, and a long battery life at a remarkably low price. If you don’t need advanced features like ultra-sharp resolution, or full-duplex audio, this doorbell is a true bargain. Price When Reviewed This value will show the geolocated pricing text for product undefined Best Pricing Today Best Prices Today: Blink Video Doorbell (2nd Gen) Retailer Price $69.99 View Deal Price comparison from over 24,000 stores worldwide Product Price Price comparison from Backmarket Best Prices Today: Check today’s prices Blink is Amazon’s budget line of smart home products. While Blink gear might not match the industrial design or advanced features of Amazon’s premium Ring products, Blink delivers essential features at a much lower price. Fewer features also mean the Blink Video Doorbell (2nd Gen) is easier to set up and easier to use. Users get clear video, wide coverage, reliable alerts and a long battery life. For many households, especially renters or first-time smart doorbell buyers, that’s exactly the kind of device they need. If you need (or just really want) ultra-sharp resolution, pro-grade audio, or a product that has a broader smart home ecosystem, you’ll need to spend more. Installation You’ll need one or another model of a Blink Sync Module to connect a Blink Video Doorbell (2nd Gen) to your home network. The SKU we reviewed included a Blink Sync Module Core (shown at the far right in this photo).James Barber/Foundry Blink doesn’t include much in the way of instructions in the box. The Quick Start guide suggests downloading the Blink app for iOS or Google. Once you’ve done that and fired it up, you mostly get step-by-step instructions for setting up and installing your doorbell system. Experienced smart home device users will realize that installation should start with the Sync Module, but the app doesn’t suggest that step if you start with the doorbell itself. The Blink app connects the Blink Sync Module Core to your home Wi-Fi, a step that’s usually easy. Blink cameras connect to that, and from there to your home network. The Sync Module Core is included with the doorbell, but if you want local storage, you’ll need to purchase one of the higher-end models. There’s the $50 Blink Sync Module 2, which has a USB-A port you can plug a thumb drive into (max capacity 256GB), or the $70 Blink Sync Module XR, which has a microSD socket (same capacity limit as the other model). The XR also delivers longer range for up to two Blink Outdoor 4 cameras (up to 250 feet in XR mode and up to 400 feet in XR+ mode). Both sync modules support up to 10 Blink cameras. I encountered some trouble with my setup using the Sync Module Core. After several unsuccessful tries, I deleted the Blink app and restarted my iPhone before reinstalling the app. Starting over with the installation didn’t immediately resolve the issue, but I eventually got the Sync Module Core to connect to my network. I’m just not exactly sure if I did anything to make that happen or if the issue fixed itself. Once those issues were resolved, the rest of the installation was easy. The app gave well-illustrated instructions for connecting and mounting the doorbell. I chose to use the included AA batteries instead of hardwiring the doorbell into my existing setup. Once I did that, the steps were tailored to my choice and I didn’t see any of the wired instructions in my Blink app. Blink provides a paper mounting template that makes it easy to drill pilot holes four mounting the Blink Video Doorbell (2nd Gen) in the right locations.James Barber/Foundry I installed the doorbell in a narrow slot between my home’s brick wall and its storm door. The edge of the storm door gasket made it impossible for the mounting plate to sit flush against my door jamb, so I swapped out the included screws for slightly longer ones I had on hand. The included paper drilling template made installation far easier than pushing a pencil through the mounting plate screw holes to draw circles that mark the drill targets. I’ve installed quite a few doorbells and other home security products over the past couple of years, and this is the first one I’ve encountered that came with a template. That may seem like a trivial addition to the installation kit, but I’m now wondering why everyone doesn’t include them. If the Sync Module would have connected on the first try, the entire process would have taken less than ten minutes. Even with a frustrating delay caused by those connection issues, the entire process took less than 30 minutes. The Blink Video Doorbell (2nd Gen) installation should be easy enough for absolute beginners even if the initial steps require a bit more patience. Video quality & coverage The Blink Video Doorbell (2nd Gen) comes with an easy-to-use app and captures video with a 1:1 aspect ratio and 1440 x 1440 pixels.James Barber/Foundry The upgraded square aspect ratio (1:1) and expanded 150-degree field of view let you see a visitor’s face, a package on the ground or anyone standing at the door edge. Resolution is improved over the previous Blink model—1440 x 1440 pixels—but opting for that highest quality will lower the doorbell’s battery life (that’s not an issue if you’re using hardwired power). In practice, image clarity is good for the price, but not stunning. I’ve tested video doorbells with image quality suggesting a 4K movie. You might think of the Blink Video Doorbell (2nd Gen) as DVD quality, a resolution that was once considered a miracle. In low light, you’ll notice the absence of color night vision. If you live in a location with very dim lighting, you might get shadowy footage if you don’t have a front porch light or it’s not always on at night. This is the single missing feature that might tempt users to upgrade to a pricier device, but I think the image quality was more than good enough for most users. Battery vs. hardwired installation Blink says the Blink Video Doorbell (2nd Gen) can operate for as long as two years on three AA lithium batteries. You also have the option of hardwiring it to a transformer.James Barber/Foundry As with Blink’s Outdoor 4 camera, battery endurance is one of the big positives here. Blink claims up to two years of battery life with AA lithium in typical use with Sync Module.  In real-world use, the figure will vary based on Wi-Fi strength, motion frequency, recording length, whether wired or wireless), but even a year of trouble-free battery life would be excellent. If you don’t want to worry about constant recharging or pulling new wiring, this is a big win. The wired option is still present if you have an existing doorbell circuit, giving you the benefit of using your in-home chime. Using the Blink app The Blink app is required to set up your Blink doorbell. It’s also where you can watch any live video or recorded clips or communicate with anyone standing in front of your doorbell. Blink gear is optimized to work with Alexa, and you can connect your Amazon and Alexa accounts in the app. Most of the functionality built into the Blink app is designed for Blink’s extensive line of home security cameras. If you enjoy their doorbell, Amazon hopes you’ll add a half dozen cameras and build a full Blink monitoring system that you’ll control in the app. Subscription plan options You can use the Blink Video Doorbell (2nd Gen) in its basic mode without paying for a subscription, but you will not get its full feature set. Without a subscription, you have access to a live view, alerts on door-press/motion, two-way talk, and limited video capture (if you also purchase a Blink Sync Module 2 or Sync Module XR). If you don’t already have one of Blink’s Sync Modules, you can buy the doorbell bundled with a very basic Sync Module Core, but both the Blink Sync Module 2 and the Sync Module XR offer the option of 256GB of local storage (USB or microSD respectively).James Barber/Foundry A Basic Plan subscription ($3.99/month or $39.99/year) covers one Blink device. You get person and vehicle detection, motion event recording, up to 90 minutes of live view recording (you’re limited to 5 minutes of live viewing without a subscription), and cloud storage for up to 60 days, Blink Moments (which combines related clips across devices into one video), the ability to snooze notifications to temporarily pause alerts for up to 24 hours, and an extra 10 percent off future Blink devices on Amazon. There’s also a Plus Plan that ($11.99/month or $119.99/year) that covers an unlimited number of Blink devices in multiple locations and extends the warranty coverage on all devices for as long as the subscription is active. Unlike some competitors or prior Blink models, local/USB storage is no longer built-in via Sync Module Core. If you need video storage, you should factor the $40/year Basic Plan into your calculations. Value This Blink doorbell is a strong contender in the entry-level bracket ($60 to $80). Many other budget doorbells cost more, offer less battery life (or require hardwired power), or provide an even more limited set of features. Mid-tier models ($100 to150 range) get better analytics, color night vision, local storage, and advanced sensors, but usually require a more expensive subscription in addition to their higher cost. The Blink Video Doorbell (2nd Gen) represents a “good enough” option for most users. Not everyone needs the most advanced features, and it’s hard to beat the Blink’s value when the doorbell on sale (it was going for as little as $30 during the recent holidays). Should you buy a Blink Video Doorbell (2nd Gen)? Blink nails the basics with this video doorbell. If you just want to see who’s at your door and talk with them via app from the other side of the house, it’s a simple solution at a remarkable price. A $40-per-year subscription adds almost all the recording features you might want; and/or if you want local storage, consider adding one of the higher-end Blink Sync Modules. You won’t get the highest-definition video or the best quality audio, but either of those options will give you an effective record of what’s going on at your front door. Amazon’s Blink Video Doorbell (2nd Gen) lowers the barrier to entry for home security to a place where it’s affordable for almost anyone. You get a quality product with the support of a major company that has years of success in the field and avoid the shoddy quality (and questionable security) of no-name brands available online. This review is part of TechHive’s in-depth coverage of the best video doorbells. Read...

Last week at CES 2026, AI-capable Copilot+ PCs were all over the convention show floor, with many PC makers promoting their so-called “AI PCs” with NPUs and other cutting-edge features. AI PCs have been hyped since 2024 as the next evolution of home computing, but it appears consumers aren’t buying into the new technology. That’s according to Dell’s sentiment at CES 2026, where an executive confirmed that the company would shift its focus away from AI PCs and re-center itself on the areas consumers care about: “We’re getting back to our roots with a renewed focus on consumer and gaming.” In other words, very few users seem to be buying new computers solely for the ability to run AI models and features locally. Dell might just be the first of many makers who are catching on to the lack of consumer interest in AI PCs. This goes hand in hand with Dell’s other refocusing efforts after listening to its consumers: the bringing back of its XPS line. Going forward, Dell will continue to sell computers with Copilot+ PC branding to comply with its partnership agreement with Microsoft, but the company’s marketing efforts won’t emphasize AI. It’s unclear how this shift will affect the pricing and availability of Dell PCs, as current market conditions and AI-driven RAM shortages are expected to drive up the costs of PCs by up to 20 percent. Read...

Can you get your tasks done with a regular 16:9 1080p monitor? Sure, you can. But I bet you could get more done faster and with less frustration if you had a 1440p ultrawide. That’s right, these monitors aren’t just for gamers—they’re excellent for productivity and comfort, too. And right now, Samsung’s 34-inch ViewFinity S65UA is down to a new best price: get it for just $300 on Amazon (was $540). View this Amazon deal More than just a solid display, the ViewFinity S65UA for $300 is now at a price that’s well below what we saw back during the Black Friday and Prime Day sales (when it was available for $330). This awesome 34-inch monitor is neither too big nor too small, and the stunning 3440×1440 resolution is uber-crisp—you’ll definitely be able to tell the difference if all you’re used to is 1080p on 21-inch or 24-inch screens. That large ultrawide resolution provides so much more screen real estate than you’re probably used to, and whatever you put on screen (from Netflix to Reddit to Microsoft Excel to Chrome) will look way better to your eyes. The 100Hz refresh rate is unimpressive, so maybe don’t get this if you’re a hardcore gamer who needs frame rates over 100. Otherwise, it’s great for casual and home office tasks. It also has a gentle 1000R curve that subtly wraps around your eyes, boosting immersion and easing eye strain over long periods at your PC. The borderless design is sleek and minimizes distractions. It also features a USB-C port with 90 watts of power delivery, so this is perfect to use with laptops as it’ll keep your laptop charged while connected. Don’t have USB-C video? You can still use it via HDMI or DisplayPort, too. Don’t miss out on this chance to get the fantastic Samsung ViewFinity S65UA for only $300 while this deal’s still live on Amazon. Save 44% on Samsung`s 34-inch 1440p ultrawide! It`s an all-time low priceBuy now at Amazon Read...

Months ago, Microsoft announced that every Windows 11 PC would be an “AI PC”, even the non-Copilot+ ones. Then why is everyone pushing Copilot+ AI PCs at CES 2026? The industry finally caught up to Microsoft’s Copilot+ requirements—with a big NPU push from Intel in particular—but Microsoft isn’t explaining why we should care. I’m seeing a wave of Copilot+ PCs at CES 2026, but it feels like they’re chasing an AI PC strategy that Microsoft has already abandoned. With Microsoft now downplaying NPUs and few applications taking advantage of them, the great NPU push doesn’t feel very important. That’s especially true since the Windows AI Foundry will use GPUs and CPUs for AI applications instead of NPUs, as the initial Copilot Runtime did. NPUs seem less necessary to the future of AI on Windows, even as they’re starting to pop up everywhere. Did Microsoft get distracted just as its PC hardware partners crossed the finish line? At CES 2026, NPUs finally feel fast enough When Microsoft unveiled Copilot+ PCs, the company required NPUs capable of at least 40 trillion operations per second (TOPS). This was a huge blow to Intel. Most Intel-powered machines have been shipping with NPUs capable of 13 TOPS at best, aside from Lunar Lake-powered machine with NPUs capable of 48 TOPS. 2024 was “the year of the AI PC,” but even throughout 2025 most laptops I reviewed couldn’t muster the specs needed for AI features on Windows 11. I spoke to PC manufacturer PR people who showed me the new versions of laptops I reviewed last year. “And it’s a Copilot+ PC,” they say proudly. It seems they’ve finally caught up to the requirements. The NPUs everyone’s talking about at CES Intel’s Core Ultra Series 3 (Panther Lake) hardware is the big advance at this year’s CES, given that Intel was so far behind on NPUs before. Core Ultra Series 3 has a 50 TOPS NPU and also promises big improvements to multithreaded performance, but we’ll have to run our own benchmarks to see just how big an upgrade it is in practice. While Intel’s Lunar Lake hardware was Copilot+ PC-capable, it was severely limited on multithreaded performance, which meant that an Intel laptop had no hope of running Copilot+ PC features unless you were willing to make big performance sacrifices and prioritize low power consumption and long battery life. Foundry / Mark Hachman AMD’s Ryzen AI 400 series hardware includes an NPU capable of 60 TOPS, and it’s coming to both laptops and desktop PCs. While AMD has been delivering capable NPUs for a while—unlike Intel-powered laptops—it’s an increase from the 50 TOPS NPUs in the Ryzen AI 300 series. However, with so few applications taking advantage of the NPU, that bump of 10 TOPS won’t be noticeable to the average laptop buyer, even if it looks like an upgrade on a spec sheet. Qualcomm is extremely proud of its TOPS speeds, highlighting that the Qualcomm Hexagon NPUs on Snapdragon X2 Elite and Snapdragon X2 Plus hardware deliver 80 TOPS of performance. Qualcomm’s Snapdragon X platform was the big launch partner for Copilot+ PCs, and Qualcomm is once again ahead. But as it was during the flashy Copilot+ PC launch, there still isn’t a great argument for NPUs just yet. All those new processor platforms are now delivering fully capable NPUs that will end up in laptops from all the big PC manufacturers. Going into 2026, Copilot+ PC-capable NPUs are finally becoming much more common. But will it matter? All Windows 11 PCs are now AI PCs Back in October, Microsoft revealed its plan to make every Windows 11 PC an AI PC. Here’s what Yusuf Mehdi told reporters at the time: “We did all of this years of work that let us get to the point of understanding what’s the right way to bring AI in. We’ve learned a lot from that—you know, what features resonate. And one of the big things that I think really came to us is, while Copilot+ PCs really are the tip of the spear and are gaining, you know, fast traction, the big thing was, let’s bring that AI capability to all Windows 11 PCs and make it really simple for anyone to try it. So, that has been the big thing.” As we turn the corner and head into 2026, it doesn’t sound like Microsoft is all that excited about NPUs anymore! And that’s without even mentioning the Windows AI Foundry. Developers can use it to write AI apps that perform inference on GPUs, CPUs, or NPUs. It replaces the Copilot Runtime, which required an NPU on Copilot+ PCs. Copilot+ PC features haven’t taken the world by storm I was in a Lyft earlier this week in Las Vegas. After asking me what I did for a living, the driver mentioned he was still using Windows 11. “There’s probably a newer version by now, right?” No, I explained: Windows 11 is still the latest version. You get some extra AI features if you have a newer PC—but only certain newer PCs. On those Copilot+ PCs, you don’t get extra Copilot features. Instead, you get minor features like Windows Studio Effects webcam effects, image generation in the Photos app, Windows Recall for searching your PC usage, and Click To Do for taking basic actions on text. Chris Hoffman / Foundry Based on Microsoft’s talk about delivering more AI features to all Windows 11 users, I don’t expect NPUs to become the crown jewel of the Windows AI experience in the future. If anything, I expect the opposite: I can picture a Windows 11 update that delivers Copilot+ PC features to a wider variety of machines, letting your PC’s GPU power features like image generation and text summarization. That’s what I hope to see. Microsoft should’ve never required NPUs for Copilot+ PC features. Even my $3,000 gaming PC still can’t run Copilot+ PC AI features, which is astonishing considering the fact that a speedy discrete GPU is still the best way to run more “serious” AI tools like LM Studio. Read...

TL;DR: ChatPlayground AI lets you compare 25+ AI models side by side with unlimited lifetime access for $79—one prompt, better answers every time. AI is moving fast—and if you’re only using one model, you’re missing half the picture. ChatPlayground AI is built for people who want better answers, not just faster ones. It puts today’s top AI models into a single interface so you can compare responses side by side from one prompt. Instead of guessing whether GPT-4o, Claude Sonnet, Gemini, or DeepSeek will give you the best result, ChatPlayground shows you all of them at once. Same prompt. Multiple outputs. Clear winner. That alone can save hours of back-and-forth prompt tweaking. The platform supports 25+ AI models and works for chat, coding, research, prompt engineering, and image generation—all from one dashboard. You can upload PDFs or images to get context-aware answers, save chat histories for ongoing projects, and refine prompts to consistently improve output quality. For heavy users, the Unlimited Plan removes caps entirely. You get unlimited messages, priority support, and early access to new features and models—ideal for prompt engineers, startups, and anyone running constant AI experiments. There’s also a Chrome extension, making it easy to compare AI outputs while you work across the web. This ChatPlayground AI lifetime subscription is available for a one-time payment of $79 (MSRP $619). ChatPlayground AI: Lifetime Subscription (Unlimited Plan)See Deal StackSocial prices subject to change. Read...