TL;DR: Block ads on nine devices for life with Adguard’s Family Plan, now $19 (reg. $169.99). Ads are a frustrating part of using the internet. They’re also entirely avoidable. If you want to block annoying ads for the whole family (or multiple of your own devices), try AdGuard’s Family Plan while it’s only $18.97 (reg. $169.99). With AdGuard, you get Full ad blocking on sites, videos, and apps on up to nine devices Privacy protection that hides your data from trackers Malware and phishing site detection Parental controls to block adult or unsafe content The Family Plan works on phones, tablets, and computers. It runs on Windows, macOS, Android, and iOS, so you can set it up once and protect the whole household. You only pay once, and the license lasts for life. That means updates, improvements, and protection keep coming without another bill. Use code FAMPLAN to get an AdGuard Family Plan for $18.97. Sale ends November 20 at 11:59 p.m. PT. AdGuard Family Plan: Lifetime SubscriptionSee Deal StackSocial prices subject to change. Read...

Optical drives are still practical for many users, whether to play old CDs and DVDs, install software, or create backups—especially with modern laptops, which are usually supplied without a drive. External drives are the solution for continued access to physical media. The Amicool external CD/DVD drive is currently on sale for close to the lowest price it’s ever been: $20.99 (was $28.99). That’s a smooth 28% discount on a great USB accessory with over 10,000 reviews and a solid 4.3-star rating. It sold over 10,000 units just this past month! See it on Amazon What’s great about this CD/DVD drive? This external CD/DVD drive supports data transfer speeds of up to 5 Gbps, which is great for films, files, or software installations. You can quickly and stably read data and burn media, and it’s compatible with USB 3.0, USB 2.0, and USB 1.0 ports. Power is supplied via the connection, so no separate power supply is needed. Thanks to the plug-and-play design, you don’t have to install any drivers either. Another advantage is its broad compatibility: in addition to Windows versions from XP and later, the drive also supports macOS and Linux. The USB-C adapter (included) allows you to connect it to both conventional USB-A ports and USB-C ports on laptops such as the Macbook Air. The device supports numerous media and writing formats, including CD-R, DVD-R, DVD-RW, DVD-R DL, and DVD-RAM. The physical dimensions are compact, too. Measuring about 5.5 x 5.5 inches with a thickness of 0.67 inches, you can easily stow it in your backpack or laptop bag and use it on the go. Score this CD/DVD drive while you can In the reviews, buyers emphasize the good price-performance ratio and ease of use of this USB-connected drive, with many describing the drive as fast and reliable. If there’s any criticism, it’s usually levied against the drive’s ability to recognize certain computers, which is usually due to insufficient power supply via USB. (According to the manufacturer, a direct connection to the PC instead of a USB hub can solve this.) All in all, the Amicool external CD/DVD drive offers an uncomplicated solution for anyone who wants to continue using CDs or DVDs. It’s darn affordable—especially with this current discount—and it’s suitable for both older PCs and modern laptops. Save 28% on this useful external CD/DVD drive for your computerBuy now on Amazon Read...

While it once scoffed at the possibility of offering an ad-supported tier, Netflix has since embraced the idea, with millions of users snapping up its “Standard with Ads” plan, garnering plenty of interest from Madison Avenue along the way.  Since its arrival nearly three years ago, Netflix has added a variety of features to its ad-supported tier to set it apart from the streaming crowd—and for now, its price remains a fraction of Netflix’s priciest 4K streaming plan.  So, how much does Netflix with ads cost, what’s included, and is anything left out? Here’s what you need to know. How much does Netflix with ads cost? Netflix Standard with Ads costs $7.99 a month, which reflects a buck-a-month price hike that Netflix imposed back in January 2025. For some context, Paramount+ Essential is also $7.99 a month, while Peacock Premium—which, confusingly, is ad-supported—costs $10.99 a month. Meanwhile, HBO Max Basic with Ads goes for $10.99 a month (the same as Peacock Premium) after a recent price increase. Finally, the ad-supported Disney+ and Hulu tiers cost $11.99 a month each following (yet another) recent price hike (they’re considerably cheaper if you bundle them together), So for now, Netflix is tied with Paramount+ for the cheapest ad-supported plan among the biggest streaming services. (There’s also Peacock’s new Select tier, another ad-supported plan that goes for $7.99 a month, but it offers only a “selection” of Peacock’s original content.) How many streams do you get with the Netflix Standard with Ads plan? At launch, Netflix’s ad-supported plan (which was initially called “Basic with Ads”) only offered a single stream. But in 2023, Netflix upped the number of concurrent streams available on the Standard with Ads plan to two. Does Netflix with ads offer 4K HDR video resolution? No, but the video quality of Netflix Standard with Ads has improved since the tier was first launched. While ad-supported Netflix once offered only 720p video quality, it has since been boosted to 1080p, same as Netflix’s ad-free Standard plan. Currently, only Netflix’s priciest plan–Premium ($24.99 a month)–offers 4K HDR streaming, with four concurrent streams per household. Netflix, and most other streamers, reserve their 4K HDR streams for ad-free subscribers, although that’s not a universal policy; Paramount+, for one, does allow ad-supported subscribers to stream in 4K. Does ad-supported Netflix offer downloads for offline viewing? One of the best perks offered by the big streamers is the ability to download videos for offline viewing, perfect for binge-watching your favorite series during a long flight or when you don’t want to bust through your ISP’s (or carrier’s) data cap. Until recently, Netflix didn’t allow its with-ads subscribers to download videos for offline viewing, a restriction shared by the other big streamers. But in November 2023, Netflix reversed course, becoming the first big streaming service to enable offline downloads for subscribers to its ad-supported tier. There is a monthly limit to downloads for Standard with Ads subscribers, however: 15 downloads per device, resetting on the first of each month. How many commercial breaks does Netflix with ads have? Netflix Standard with Ads subscribers will have to sit through 4- to 5 minutes of commercials per hour, with the ads running at the beginning and during videos (ideally during “natural plot breaks”). Each ad will be either 15 or 30 seconds. That 4- to 5-minute-per-hour figure is pretty much in line with Netflix’s competitors. For example, the “with ads” version of Max averages about four minutes an hour, while Peacock tops out at about five minutes per hour. Is Netflix with ads available on all streaming devices? Most devices that work with ad-free Netflix should also support Netflix Standard with Ads, although a “small percentage” of streaming players and TVs won’t work because the device’s Netflix software can no longer be updated. And while the ad-supported Netflix plan wasn’t initially supported on Apple TV streaming devices, it is now (on Apple TV HD devices and later) following an update of the Netflix tvOS app in March 2023. Netflix with ads is also available on most other streaming platforms, including Amazon’s Fire TV, Android and iOS devices, most smart TVs, Mac and Windows computers, and Google TV players. Does Netflix with ads offer the same content as ad-free Netflix? You’ll find almost, but not quite everything. While the “vast majority” of TV shows and movies on Netflix are available for “with ads” viewers, a “small number” are missing because of “licensing issues,” Netflix says. If you do run across a video that’s unavailable on the Netflix Standard with Ads plan, you’ll see a padlock on the title or a “Change plan to watch” banner in place of the standard “Play” button. Why did Netflix launch an ad-supported plan? Netflix lost subscribers during the first and second quarters of 2022, ending a decade of growth and sending Netflix’s stock price into a tailspin. And while Netflix is ubiquitous in North America, it’s having trouble gaining traction in the rest of the world, where it’s facing tough competition from cheaper streaming services. Meanwhile, Netflix’s rapidly growing competitors, including HBO Max, Disney+, Paramount+, Peacock, and Hulu, rolled out their own cheaper ad-supported plans, all of which undercut Netflix’s least expensive ad-free plans. So while it wasn’t all that long ago that Netflix executives scoffed at the idea of cheaper ad-supported plans, the company abruptly changed course when it became clear that its once seemingly unstoppable growth had stalled. In May 2024, Netflix reported that its Standard with Ads tier had roughly 40 million global active monthly users, up from just 5 million users in May 2023. (Netflix has since ceased tallying its monthly user base for the public.) Updated in October 2025 with the latest pricing details and other recent streaming developments. Read...

Everyone knows what a password is. But we can’t say the same for two-factor authentication or passkeys, which is a shame because these two security features dramatically boost the safety of your online accounts. Using both is actually your best bet, but when to use one over the other can be confusing. If you don’t know much about 2FA or passkeys or you’re unsure which is better, this guide should clear that right up. What is 2FA? Two-factor authentication is a second layer of security you add to an account—think of it like another deadbolt on a door. In order to successfully log in, you must verify yourself a second time. Traditionally, a password (your first “factor”) is something you know. Your second “factor” is something you have (like a phone or a security key) or something you are (like a fingerprint). Two-factor authentication methods include one-time-use codes sent via text message or generated by an app, push notifications via phone app, and a hardware security key (e.g., a YubiKey). Hardware security keys like this YubiKey make 2FA very simple.Alaina Yee / Foundry Not all forms of 2FA are equally secure. Text message codes are the weakest due to the security weaknesses of SMS and mobile phone line porting. (For example, text messages can be intercepted via SS7 attacks, while a SIM jack can steal your phone number from under your nose.) Hardware security keys are the strongest. An attacker would need physical access to the dongle to use it. What is a passkey? A passkey is actually a set of encryption keys used for account authentication. It’s a form of asymmetric encryption (aka public-key cryptography) based on the WebAuthn standard. Creating a passkey generates a unique public-private key pair, bound to the device and website it was made for. The website stores the public key. You keep the private key, which always remains secret—though part of the authentication process, it’s never directly shared. It can’t be derived from the public key, either. You can store a passkey in several ways. For more convenience, save them to a cloud-based password manager. Such a service can be the one built-in to your Google or Microsoft account, or an independent company like Bitwarden or Dashlane. For greater security, save them to a specific device like your Windows PC (not your Microsoft account) or a hardware security key. You can secure a passkey in several ways. You can also create more than one passkey for an account, in case you need backup methods of logging in.PCWorld You can create more than one passkey per account. Though each is unique, they still serve as backups for one another—in the sense that if you lose one, you can still log in with a different one. Making more than one passkey to store on different devices is smart, because you can lose a phone or security key, or have your laptop stolen. And recently, the group behind passkeys (the FIDO Alliance) enabled support for passkey transfers—so if supported by your password managers, you can move between ecosystems or services with little hassle.(Currently, only a handful of password managers support passkey portability, with Apple as the biggest participant. But the list continues to expand.) To use a passkey, you must first initiate an authentication request on the site you’re logging into. (Basically, choose the option for signing in with a passkey.) Then you’ll use biometrics like your fingerprint or a PIN to authorize use of your passkey. Security experts consider biometrics more secure, but privacy experts advise a PIN in certain circumstances. (For example, in the United States, the government cannot compel you to share a PIN, but biometric data is not protected in the same way.) So, which is better? Fun fact about passkeys and 2FA—they’re not mutually exclusive! A website or app can choose to allow you to enable 2FA in addition to a passkey for login. However, you won’t find this combination much at all, at least for now. (Amazon is the only major website I’ve seen that still asks for 2FA codes after using a passkey.) If 2FA is enabled, Amazon will still text a one-time use code to your phone after successfully logging in with a passkey.Mark Hachman / IDG Why? A passkey is inherently more secure than a password, since it can’t be stolen or easily shared like passwords. It also blends both information you have (a private cryptography key) and something you are or know (either biometrics or a PIN). Two-factor authentication becomes less necessary to protect against phishing, credential stuffing, and other common attacks that rely on weak or compromised passwords. So our showdown here is more about when best to use one or the either—if you even get the choice. 2FA vs Passkeys: Convenience You can make 2FA pretty seamless — my favorite trick for this is to use a hardware security key and leave it plugged into your PC. Any time you need to authenticate for 2FA, you just touch the key. Meanwhile, a passkey works across all devices without extra setup or purchases, assuming you’re signed up for a free cloud storage service. A Microsoft account will be the most seamless way to get started for PC users, but a Google, Apple, or even Bitwarden account works great too. Ultimately, what’s best for you will be based on personal preference. But for most people, the win goes to passkeys for how cheap (free!) and easy they are to set up and use. Winner: Passkeys 2FA vs Passkey: Security First, so we don’t lose sight of the big picture—any form of two-factor authentication is better than no 2FA. That said, 2FA is only as secure as the method you choose. As mentioned above, text messages (SMS) have exploitable weaknesses. Push notifications are a little better, but they too can be compromised by hackers. If a bad actor knows your password, they can try an MFA fatigue attacks to get into your account—that is, spamming you with successful password use, hoping you accidentally approve a 2FA push notification request during the deluge. I recommend starting with app-generated one-time codes, since they cannot be easily compromised or attacked. But they’re still vulnerable to phishing attacks, where an attacker can steal your 2FA code after you input it into a fake website they control. (This very kind of attack managed to trip up a security guru earlier this year.) The strongest method of 2FA is a hardware security token, which requires human touch to work—and are encrypted in a way not easily compromised. An attacker would need physical access to use such a security key. Meanwhile, for passkeys, its pair of encryption keys are theoretically not crackable by today’s computers. However, storing them in a cloud-based password manager does run a theoretical risk. If that account becomes compromised, your passkeys could be used across the web by the attacker—or ported to another service you don’t control. So in my opinion, this head-to-head works out to a draw. Both of these methods greatly improve security in their own ways, but cannot be compared directly. Also, not all websites support both two-factor authentication and passkeys, so you may not have a choice. I think of these more as complementary security options, rather than head-to-head competitors. That said, if you don’t use strong passwords and will also realistically never turn on 2FA, then passkeys win every time. Winner: Draw 2FA vs Passkey: Price Passkeys are free. The ways you store them may not be. (Maybe you like hardware security keys best.) Many forms of 2FA are free, too. But again, how you approach them could require extra devices. For example, I know individuals who maintain a second cheap cell phone line, used exclusively for 2FA text codes. (Some banks don’t offer other methods of 2FA.) They never share the number, so it can’t be associated with them publicly, and thus minimizes the risk of a successful SIM jacking attack. But paying to use either is optional, even if you don’t own a smartphone. My take? For each person, the winner of this comes down to what forms of 2FA are available to you, your take on security versus convenience, and the supported security features of the websites and apps you use. Plus, how paranoid you are about losing your primary and secondary forms of 2FA or the device(s) with passkeys stored on them. But broadly speaking, I think it’s a draw—convenience and security will play bigger roles in which one you choose. Winner: Draw Read...

TL;DR: The PC Transfer Kit gives you three apps to migrate software, preserve your PC, and fully delete files, and it’s only $35. Moving to a new PC gets messy fast — reinstalling apps, restoring files, and redoing settings by hand. The PC Transfer Kit Bundle cuts the friction with three tools to migrate, back up, and securely wipe your data, and it’s $34.99 (reg. $129.85). The first part of this bundle is a non-expiring license for PCmover Professional, an app that lets you move your applications, files, and user settings from an old PC to a new one. It works even if your old and new computers are running different versions of Windows. Most programs transfer over fully installed and ready to use, so you won’t need to dig up license keys or reinstall anything. If you need help, free transfer assistance is available around the clock. The second tool is DiskImage, which creates a complete image of your computer, including all apps, data, and settings. That image can be restored later in case of system failure, data loss, or a virus. You can also restore it to a different computer if needed. DiskImage supports automated backups, so you don’t have to remember to do it manually. SafeErase permanently deletes sensitive data from your hard drive. It uses government-recommended methods to make sure files are fully removed and can’t be recovered later. It’s useful for everyday privacy protection, but especially helpful if you’re planning to sell or recycle an old PC. Right now, you can get the full PC Transfer Kit on sale for only $34.99. PC Transfer Kit Bundle feat. PCmover Professional, DiskImage, and SafeEraseSee Deal StackSocial prices subject to change. Read...

If you can’t install Windows 11 on your computer, you don’t have to discard your hardware after support for Windows 10 ends. Chrome OS Flex and Linux are available free of charge, and there are other alternatives as well—even without a PC. Because millions of PCs do not fulfil the lofty hardware requirements of Windows 11, Microsoft officially recommended that their owners should simply buy a new computer. But instead of scrapping perfectly functioning hardware, you can continue to use it safely for many years to come with an alternative operating system . The change won’t cost you a cent and can be completed in half an hour. You’ll need a little more time to fully familiarize yourself with the new system after many years of using Windows. But you can get started and launch your first programs immediately. The whole operation is very similar to that of Windows so even noobies can feel confident switching over. Free and simple: Linux and Chrome OS Flex for every PC Both the open-source Linux and Chrome OS Flex from Google run smoothly on older PCs and notebooks. Linux Mint Cinnamon Edition: Although the desktop is different from Windows, it’s quite easy to use.Linux This allows you to continue using non-Windows 11-compatible computers productively and securely. While the goal of both alternatives is identical, the implementation could hardly be more different: While Linux works locally, the cloud-based Google operating system focuses primarily on online operation. Our advice for newcomers to Linux or Chrome OS: Simply try out one of the systems (or both). It’s free, easy and can even be undone after backing up your existing Windows system and all data with Aomei Backupper on an external hard drive. So nothing is broken! Linux has a similar long history to Windows, but unlike the Microsoft system, Linux was initially controlled via commands in the command line. Those days are long gone and most distributions can be operated in a similar way to Windows thanks to the graphical user interface and mouse. Linux Mint makes it easy for long-time Microsoft users to make the switch. This is how it works: The first step is to create a bootable installation disc. To do this, insert a USB stick (with at least 4 GB of memory) into a Windows PC, start Rufus and mount the ISO file with Linux Mint via “Select” on the program interface, click on Start, activate “DD mode”, confirm twice with OK and wait a few minutes. Once you’ve backed up the Windows partition and data from the old PC, boot the computer from the installation stick you have just created and continue with the “Start Linux Mint Cinnamon 64-bit” option. Mint will then start as a live system from the stick. To use Linux permanently from the hard drive, double-click on Install Linux Mint at the top left of the desktop and connect to your WLAN if necessary. Then decide whether you want to install Linux Mint alongside Windows or replace the Microsoft system completely. Follow the next steps and complete the installation by clicking on Restart now. After the reboot, you will be greeted with the message “Welcome to Linux Mint”. Click on Let’s go to access the driver management and the detailed manual. As a rule, everything works straight away, including the connected devices and printers. Linux can be that easy! Chrome OS Flex places important apps in the taskbar, the launcher on the left includes all programs, and the settings of the Google operating system are at the bottom right.Google Installing Chrome OS Flex is similarly simple, either as a live system for booting from a stick or permanently installed on the hard drive. Two notes: Firstly, unlike on the “real” Chromebooks (see below), no Android apps run on the Flex alternative for the PC. Secondly, because Chrome OS Flex always overwrites the entire hard drive and therefore deletes all saved data, it’s essential to back up your data beforehand. Abolish everything on the smartphone and PC? The question of whether you still need a traditional computer at home may sound provocative, but it is a serious one. After all, thanks to the two million or so apps in the Google Play Store and Apple App Store, practically everything can be done on a smartphone. So the question is: is it practical and is that what you want? If you don’t want to make do with the touch keyboard and small display, you don’t have to invest a lot of money to connect your smartphone to a keyboard, mouse and monitor. Combined keyboard and mouse sets via Bluetooth work with any mobile device and start at under $30. Without a PC! Even typical office tasks such as word processing and spreadsheets can be carried out on a smartphone as usual with a mouse, keyboard, and large screen.Foundry Existing USB input devices can be used via a Y-connector—USB-C plug for smartphone and two USB-A sockets for keyboard and mouse. The prerequisite for this $15 investment is that the smartphone supports USB OTG (“on the go”). Most Android devices do, and you can check this with the “USB OTG Checker” app from the Play Store. Android version 16 and higher also offers a real desktop mode, but only on a few devices. The option of mirroring the smartphone display to the monitor using a USB-C HDMI adapter is far less common. Check with the manufacturer of your phone or google your specific model to check compatibility. If your mobile device is not able to do this, a slightly more expensive alternative is to transmit the signal via Wi-Fi using a suitable TV or streaming stick: For Android smartphones, this must support Google’s Chromecast standard, or for iPhones Airplay from Apple. Chromebooks and MacBooks can be both cheap and expensive alternatives The question of Windows alternatives has long since been discussed, regardless of the end of support for Windows 10. Apple already has a good 20-30 percent share of desktop operating systems in the U.S.. The advantages of MacOS and the entire ecosystem with iPhone, iPad, and many Apple services therefore need little introduction. Everything comes from a single source and is perfectly harmonized. Until now, however, Apple has also been able to shield its system from the outside world to a large extent, which is why critics like to talk about it as a “golden cage”. In the EU, the Commission responsible for competition is now obliging the U.S. manufacturer to achieve greater interoperability, but interaction with devices and services from other manufacturers remains limited. After all, the devices are not only high-quality, but usually also expensive: the cheapest Apple notebooks can be double or triple the price of some Chromebooks. The Macbook Air from Apple impresses with a fast M4 processor, high-quality workmanship, low weight, and much more. However, all this comes at a price.Foundry At the lower end of the price scale are the so-called Chromebooks, i.e. notebooks with Google’s ChromeOS operating system (without the “Flex” suffix). Because many applications run on them as web apps in the cloud, the hardware requirements are low and therefore the prices are sometimes very favorable. The cheapest Chromebooks are available online for as little as $200, but please don’t save money in the wrong place. Because Google has opened up its desktop operating system to Android apps from the Play Store, a touchscreen is virtually mandatory. Secondly, before you buy, check when support for the model you have chosen will expire. Only Chromebooks released since 2021 will receive security and system updates for the next ten years. As some shops still offer older devices, make sure you check before you buy! Realistically, a modern Chromebook with a full HD touch display costs upwards of $300 of $400. Chromebooks such as the Acer model 514 do not require powerful hardware thanks to the Chrome OS cloud operating system and are therefore comparatively inexpensive. Foundry If you take this into account, you get an easy-to-use and secure system with integrated Google services such as Google Drive, Docs, Sheets, and Gmail, cloud storage and countless apps from the Chrome Web Store and Android Play Store, many of which are free. Other plus points are the comparatively long battery life in Chromebooks, the fact that it’s ready to use right out of the box, and the fact that the system runs practically maintenance-free for years. Google automatically installs monthly updates. On the other hand, you should bear in mind that Windows programs do not run on the devices and that you need a Google account to use all services. Conclusion: A lot of mental effort and familiarization Experience shows that even long-time Windows users quickly get used to a different OS. So feel encouraged to try out one of the alternatives at least once. Chrome OS Flex and Linux are free, quick to install and deserve a chance. Much is a matter of attitude and habit, and ultimately it doesn’t have to be an either-or choice. Read...

I don’t know how your tech drawers look, but mine are filled with wires I’ll likely never use again because technology has advanced quite a bit. Thankfully, USB-C seems to be here to stay since there is no wrong way to plug these things in. It’s not just smartphones, tablets, and laptops that use these, however, but also a long list of gadgets. We’ve scoured the market for hidden gems: 13 gadgets that will make you think “Wow, I didn’t know I needed that, but it will make my life so much easier!” Let’s dive in and see what cool devices you’ll be able to use your type-C cables and ports with. Unihand rechargeable hand warmers Unihand As the weather is getting colder, you sometimes wish you could warm up your hands a bit faster. Well, these $18 hand warmers are rechargeable and perfectly ready to keep your fingers toasty for up to 20 hours on a single charge. These gadgets feature a temperature sensor chip that helps you pick one of three temps for precise control. There are plenty of colors to choose from, too. Wowstick 1F+ mini electric screwdriver Wowstick If you often have to fiddle around with your computer or other gadgets, this Wowstick mini electric screwdriver may be just what you need. This pen-shaped screwdriver features three LED lights so it’s easier to see what you’re working on and rotates 200 times per minute so you can finish the job faster. The screwdriver has a stylish base so you can hold it on your desk, and a whole collection of 56 aluminum alloy bits. The screwdriver can be charged via USB-C and it can last for hours. This super fun electric screwdriver usually goes for $41. Anker Nano Power Bank Anker One thing you need to have in you bag/pocket/backpack is a power bank because you never really know when your phone will fail you and cry for a recharge. Well, the Anker Nano power bank is tiny enough to fit just about anywhere. It comes with a foldable USB-C connector and a port on the side so you can charge two devices at once if you need to. The 5,000mAh capacity is just about enough for a full phone recharge, so it will be great in a pinch. It’s also only $30, but we’ve seen it as low as $16. Endoscope camera with light Ennovor Although it’s not something you’ll use every day, this Ennover endoscope camera can definitely come in handy. You just plug it in your phone, install and app, and see everything your camera does. Our team swears by it, using it for finding whatever they dropped behind the desk, while working on the car, or looking for pipe leaks. Since it has an IP67 rating, you can even plop it in your aquarium. The camera comes with a 16.4ft semi-rigid cable and several accessories, including a hook, magnet, and a mirror. You can get this one for $17 right now. Blukar flashlight Blukar I don’t care who you are—you need a flashlight. The smaller, the better, because you get to shove it into any pocket. This model from Blukar comes with a built-in 1800mAh battery that you’ll recharge with one of those many type-C cables you have in that tech drawer we were talking about. It can work for up to 16 hours on a single charge, which is pretty decent. There are four different lightning modes to cycle through, including one that will help you signal for help. Plus, one of these is less than $8, so no excuse to pass on this one. Heat It insect bite healer Anyone plagued by mosquitoes in the summer will be particularly pleased with this ingenious gadget. This tiny device, which can be easily connected to your smartphone via USB-C, can significantly reduce the itching of bites and stings with targeted heat. You simply charge the small Heat It bite healer via the app and then hold it on the bite. The heat then does the rest, breaking down the proteins in the mosquito bite that cause the area to swell, itch, and hurt. A true must-have for summer, and it costs only $20 when on sale. A tiny air pump Also perfect for summer is this small air pump from Cycplus, which fits in any bag while on the go. Not only can it inflate a bicycle tire in two minutes at the touch of a button, but it’s also USB-charged. According to the manufacturer, it’s suitable for mountain bikes, road bikes, motorcycles, and even cars! In addition to being an air pump, this practical gadget can also be used as a flashlight or power bank for on-the-go use — all things that come in very handy on a bike ride. And at just $57 (although we’ve seen it for as low as $35) it’s highly recommended if you need quick help with a flat tire. USB-C mini fan These little fans are also pretty ingenious; you can easily carry them in your pocket in the summer and quickly use them whenever you need them. Anyone who’s ever sat on a crowded subway train in 30-degree heat and wished for at least a little fresh air will love this gadget. The mini fan, which costs just $20, has a USB-C port and can be easily powered by power banks, computers, laptops, or USB chargers. There are even smaller and cheaper fans available that can be connected directly to your phone, costing under $10 each. But these also provide less powerful airflow, so we recommend the standalone version. Reading light with a book clamp Anyone who enjoys reading a lot, sometimes late into the night, will appreciate this little gadget: a reading lamp that you can simply clip onto your book. It may not be groundbreaking, but with a total of three color temperatures and five different light modes, you can individually adjust how much light you need for reading. The Gritin reading lamp costs just $8 on Amazon and features a 1200 mAh battery that lasts up to 80 hours depending on usage. Afterward, you can easily recharge it via USB. You can swivel the neck of the lamp back and forth as desired, and there’s even a small charging indicator. What more could you want? External DVD Drive Amicool If your laptop is like mine and lacks a DVD drive, then this little gadget will come in handy for you. This Amicool external DVD drive uses a USB-C (or USB-A) to connect to your laptop and give yout he optical drive you sometimes need. It can read and burn DVDs and CDs with ease, allowing you to install software, copy files, back up data, play games, and so on. You won’t even need to install drives as this thing is plug and play. While this thing’s usually $29, you can often get it for around $20, which is an absolute bargain. Samsung flash drive Samsung The vast majority of flash drives have a USB-A connector, but this one from Samsung has a Type-C connector. With transfer speeds of up to 400MB/s, you’ll move files around in no time. The beauty of this thumb drive is that you can even pop it in your smartphone to record 4K vids directly on it. The Samsung Type-C flash drive comes in multiple storage options, starting at 64GB and up to 512GB and they start at $14. The 256GB version, for instance, is $27 at the time of writing. Type-C microSD card reader Ugreen Most laptops nowadays don’t come with a card reader anymore (I know mine doesn’t), so finding other ways to get data off those little buggers is a must. Whether you need to pull data off your dashcam’s card or if it’s from your camera, this tiny Ugreen USB-C microSD reader will work just fine. This reader is tiny enough that you should probably put it on a keychain of some kind. If you’d rather a slightly more versatile version, Ugreen has a model that also works with SD cards and features both USB-C and USB-A connectors. Any of these will cost you less than $10, so they’re worthwhile investments. USB-C to HDMI adapter Anker If your laptop has a USB-C port but you haven’t updated your monitor in ages, your display won’t feature a Type-C port. This Anker adapter fixes this problem for you, enabling you to connect the regular HDMI cable you plug in your monitor with this gadget. The adapter supports resolutions of up to 4K at 60Hz, which is pretty awesome. This is also a nifty way to connect your phone or tablet to your monitor or TV. This thing’s $20, but we’ve seen it as low as $12. Editor’s note: This article was originally published on May 16, but was updated to include additional devices. Read...

Google has taken a decisive step towards practical quantum computers. A research team from Google Quantum AI has reported the first “verifiable quantum advantage”—in other words, a measurable computing advantage over conventional supercomputers that can be reproduced by other systems. At the center of it all is a new algorithm called “Quantum Echoes,” which ran on Google’s new “Willow” quantum processor that was unveiled in December 2024. The system performed a simulation of quantum dynamics in just two hours, a task that would have taken the “Frontier” supercomputer around 3.2 years. That’s a 13,000-fold jump, according to a report published in Nature. A bigger leap forward than last time Google previously announced “quantum supremacy” in 2019, but was criticized at the time because the demonstrated computational task was far too theoretical and difficult to understand. This time it’s different. The results of Quantum Echoes are verifiable, meaning that other quantum computers can perform the same exact calculation and arrive at the same result. This is the first measurable proof of the superiority of a quantum architecture in a real scientific task. How Quantum Echoes works The Quantum Echoes algorithm uses a method called out-of-order time correlator (OTOC). Researchers send a signal into the quantum system, deliberately disturb a single qubit, and then reverse the process. The returning “echo” reveals how stable the system remains. (You can think of it similar to an acoustic echo in classical physics.) The experiment ran on Google’s 105-qubit Willow processor, which has already played a role in earlier advances in quantum error correction. The new demonstration shows that Google’s hardware is now precise and stable enough to deliver reproducible results, which is a critical step in building error-resistant quantum computers. This method is not only theoretically exciting, but it can also be used in real-world applications. In cooperation with University of California, Berkeley, the Quantum Echoes algorithm was used to analyze molecular structures—and the results were consistent with nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), except it also provided additional details that aren’t captured by conventional measurement methods. What does this mean for the future? According to Google, the Quantum Echoes algorithm could pave the way for practical use cases within the next five years. Examples include pharmaceutical research, the development of new materials, or even the creation of more powerful batteries. AI systems could also benefit, with quantum computing one day generating data that classical computers can’t even simulate. Hartmut Neven, founder and head of the Google Quantum AI Lab, looks ahead: “Classical computers can naturally make approximations in these cases, but they cannot precisely calculate what happens at the molecular level. With a quantum computer, on the other hand, we can speak the language of nature and manage this complexity.” According to Stern, the newly crowned Nobel Prize winner in Physics Michel Devoret, Chief Scientist at Google Quantum AI, calls Quantum Echoes yet another milestone. “If another quantum computer were to perform the same calculation, the result would be the same. This is a new step towards full-fledged quantum computation.” Read...

Welcome to The Full Nerd newsletter—your weekly dose of hardware talk from the enthusiasts at PCWorld. Missed the hot topics on our YouTube show or latest news from across the web? You’re in the right place. Want this newsletter to come directly to your inbox? Sign up on our website!  Pretend for a moment that for a satellite, the only thing that matters is what it does while in orbit. From that view, the news about Starlink’s amped-up new V3 satellites is pretty astounding—as reported by my former colleague Michael Kan, these hulking contraptions will not only dramatically expand download capacity for customers, but also support gigabit speeds. This development definitely piques my interest. And I’m diehard fan of wired internet. Wireless technology captures the heart—it always feels futuristic, no matter how mundane the application. Or how rudimentary the tech. I remember when satellite internet was synonymous with slow. Practically speaking, you signed up for such a service only because nothing better existed. But emotionally? It was comforting to have the option available. And also, as a child of the 90s (when connecting to the web happened via whining beeps and boops), knowing the internet could be beamed to you from the sky was super cool. Heck, even spoiled now by always-connected pocketable computers (aka smartphones), I still feel joy whenever I use a basic wireless keyboard. Something about breaking free of tethers is wondrous—for me, it represents freedom. Infinite possibility. When you can connect without physical contact, the sky is the limit.  (Now literally so, thanks to hardware in literal space, blasting internet into homes at the same theoretical rates as earth-bound services.) Evgeny Opanasenko / Unsplash Still, the pragmatist in me wants to see more. Not more satellites, per se—that’s actually a potential risk, given how at least one Starlink satellite burns up each day, and such debris could add to the severity (and resulting consequences) of climate change. I’m hoping to see an even tighter closing of the gap between wireless and wired technologies. Because as good as it’s become, wireless still has one main weakness. It remains bound by physics. Signal interference will always give wired connections a leg up when rock-solid dependability matters. Starlink’s improved a lot. But heck, even the wireless keyboard I’m currently reviewing acts up if I put its receiver behind the PC. If the technology could become resilient enough to trust through thick and thin, I’d consider abandoning my wired internet. (Or at least, trusting I don’t have to have wireless access points connected via Ethernet backhaul.) Maybe my other wired tech, too. I’m hoping it will. Because even though I am a hard sell on this point, I love that we have options. I love alternatives. I love that a bunch of smart folks decided to trade one set of limitations (physical linking as a requirement) for a different set, so that you can choose what best fits your situation. I love someone asked, “Isn’t this a neat idea?” Because yeah, it is. In this episode of The Full Nerd In this episode of The Full Nerd, Adam Patrick Murray, Brad Chacos, Will Smith, and special guest Tom Peterson, Fellow at Intel, dive deep into Xe3 gaming, making a better GPU, and much more. As always when TAP visits us, he guides everyone through an incredible amount of detailed, insightful information—for over two hours! Plus, Tom adds yet again to The Full Nerd cookbook with two mouth-watering suggestions—chicken ballotine and “the best brownie ever.” In his words, these brownies are not chewy but cakey, and “very, very nice.” (Also, I’m hereby proposing that for every guest we have on the show, we ask for a recipe contribution so we can put it into a TFN Cookbook collection at each year’s end.) Willis Lai / Foundry Missed our live show? Subscribe now to The Full Nerd Network YouTube channel, and activate notifications. We also answer viewer questions in real-time! Don’t miss out on our NEW shows too—you can catch episodes of Dual Boot Diaries and The Full Nerd: Extra Edition now! And if you need more hardware talk during the rest of the week, come join our Discord community—it’s full of cool, laid-back nerds.  This week’s wild nerd news So apparently, I should take vacation more often—I was not expecting to come back to word of an itty bitty PCs housing a desktop 5060 Ti 16GB chip, much less a report on butt-breathing could become an actual medical treatment (yes, you read that correctly). Now that is a toy I’d want under my Christmas tree.Mikael Lindkvist ‘Butt-breathing might soon be a real medical treatment’: Look, I can’t summarize this article better than its headline, so I’ll just once again tip my hat in respect to the fine writers at Ars Technica. Also, what clever science. This takes me back: This week’s dose of 90s nostalgia comes courtesy of a Microsoft devblog post, which digs into Windows 95’s most iconic icons. Seeing that desktop computer PC icon hit me hard. Never change, Japan: I sincerely hope Japan never loses its love for physical media—books, discs, and the like. I love the charm of disc drives and calculators (yep, a whole bin full of basic, desk-sized ones) stocked alongside $1,000 AM5 motherboards in Akihabara stores. Fingers crossed mini-disc players have a revival. It doesn’t snow where I live, but I want one: OK, this smart snow blower isn’t computer hardware. It’s also $5,000. But you control it with a dupe of an Xbox controller and it looks like one of my favorite construction toys from when I was a kid. I’m in. Mini but mighty: I built a big PC just a few weeks ago, but I love tiny gaming PCs. And Zotac’s sub-3L offering with a desktop 5060 Ti stuffed inside is delightful. Turns out, enshittification has nuance: At least, Cory Doctorow (the original inventor of the term enshittification) takes this approach to the concept. After reading this interview, I can’t wait to get my hands on his full book. Why put Battlefield 6 on an AIO screen? Why not?Allround-PC.com Battlefield 6 blinding you? The fine folks over at PCGamer have you covered—try their suggestion for adjusting the brightness settings. Or I guess you could just play Battlefield 6 this way instead: I’m betting on a screen that small, it won’t blind you. Well, not from brightness. I’m not the only one: When an astoundingly broad range of people sign an open letter asking for AI development to be paused until it can be done safely—and with large public buy-in—it seems like maybe the tech industry is ignoring how problematic the current approach is. GoG Games has some crazy tales: I think none of us appreciate enough the lengths GoG has gone to preserve gaming—at least, I feel I didn’t after reading about this particular tale. Wow. Well, it was a good run while it lasted: I like how the earth gets a finite end date, but the calculus for humanity’s survival is generalized to, “Well, definitely not as long as earth’s lifespan.” More lucky thrift shopping: On a more cheerful note—$500 for a PC with a 2080 Ti inside. Hot dang. Catch you all next week—I believe the whole TFN crew will be celebrating Halloween in full style. At least, we will be if Adam has anything to say about it. ~Alaina This newsletter is dedicated to the memory of Gordon Mah Ung, founder and host of The Full Nerd, and executive editor of hardware at PCWorld. Read...

Recall is a feature in Windows 11 that regularly creates screen recordings and saves them locally. This also involves processing with AI so that users can search through the data. The aim is to make past work steps, websites, or documents retrievable via a search feature. Microsoft first introduced Recall in 2024, but withdrew it after massive criticism due to insufficient security. The feature has been integrated again since the current versions of Windows 11 from 24H2. In Europe, it is available as an opt-in and can be completely deactivated or removed. Access is via a timeline or by entering keywords in the search. The results appear regardless of the program or browser window in which the content was originally visible. Chris Hoffman / Foundry Tip: If you are using Windows 11 Home, you will miss out on the many advantages of the Pro version, which you can get for a significant discount at the PCWorld Software Store. Activation and everyday use Recall is an optional feature in the current versions of Windows 11, which is only offered on Copilot models. This includes computers with a Neural Processing Unit (NPU), at least 16 gigabytes of RAM, and active drive encryption. After installing a corresponding update, the new “Recall and snapshots” section appears in the settings under “Data protection and security.” The feature can be activated here. Sam Singleton The system only starts to capture screenshots after this conscious consent has been given. In practice, Recall checks every five seconds to see if any content has changed and then adds new recordings. After just one working day, several hundred files are created, which can take up several gigabytes of storage space in total. It is operated via a timeline in which you can jump back to specific points in time. Alternatively, a keyword search can be started. One example is entering “orange sofa,” whereupon Recall suggests a shopping page with the product you are looking for. Content from Office documents, PDFs, or locally saved images also appear in the hits. Deactivation via settings and group policies The feature can be paused or completely deactivated at any time via the settings. Companies have further options via group policies. The “Allow Recall to be enabled” policy exists there. If it is set to “Disabled,” the feature disappears completely from the system, the associated files are removed, and a restart completes the process. This method is intended for the Pro and Enterprise editions of Windows. The recall search via keywords divides the results here into text and visual matches. Text matches are assigned to the applications from which the recorded content originates.Mark Hachman / IDG Windows 11 Home users must use the registry editor. Under “HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\WindowsAI,” a new DWORD value with the name “AllowRecallEnablement” can be created and set to 0. After a restart, all components are removed. Microsoft also offers administrators the PowerShell command “Disable-WindowsOptionalFeature -Online -FeatureName ‘Recall’ -Remove” which also removes the feature from the system. Security protection The data that Recall collects remains stored on your own computer. It is not automatically transferred to Microsoft servers or a cloud. To ensure that no one can access these recordings unnoticed, Windows requires you to log in via Windows Hello. This means that you must either enter your PIN or use a biometric method such as fingerprint or facial recognition. The recall search via keywords divides the results here into text and visual matches. Text matches are assigned to the applications from which the recorded content originates.Chris Hoffman / Foundry Windows also protects the recall data with a technology called VBS Enclave. You can imagine this as a closed area in the computer that is separated from all other programs. Only Windows itself is allowed to look into this area. This prevents external programs from simply reading the recall data. This is exactly what has happened in the past. Microsoft therefore withdrew this feature at the end of 2024. Encryption keys are anchored in the device’s TPM chip. In theory, this prevents attackers from reading the database without a valid login. However, our tests have shown that this protection has its limits. If a device is controlled via remote software such as Teamviewer, it is sufficient to enter the PIN to gain access to the entire recall history. Biometric procedures can be bypassed in this scenario. The risk of an external connection allowing access to all stored content remains. Filter mechanisms and their limits To protect sensitive data, Microsoft promises a filter that removes passwords or credit card information from the recordings. In practice, this only works to a limited extent. Although passwords are hidden in bank login windows, user names still appear. Credit card numbers in form fields are recognized in most cases, but in emails or unprotected text documents they end up unchanged in the recordings. Account balances from online banking applications also regularly appear in the database, even if parts of the page are anonymized by the filter. The handling of self-created password lists is also problematic. If a text file does not contain any unique keywords such as “password,” it is saved by Recall without restriction. This means that access data can be searched for in plain text if it is visible on the screen in an unprotected document. Benefits in everyday working life Regardless of the risks, Recall certainly offers advantages. In an environment with many applications open in parallel, the search makes it easier to find your way around. If you switch between projects, you can pick up where you left off with just a few clicks. The feature also saves time when researching on the web when dozens of tabs are open. Instead of laboriously searching through the history, a keyword is enough to open the page you are looking for. Recall can also be helpful for users who frequently work with visual content. A designer reviewing visual material can use the keyword search to find screenshots that were only briefly displayed. In this use case, Recall replaces manual documentation of work steps. Legal framework conditions in Europe The delayed introduction in the European Union shows that the regulatory framework plays a central role. Data protection authorities only gave the green light after Microsoft designed the feature as an opt-in and created the option to uninstall it. Users must actively agree before Recall starts. The European version also allows the feature to be removed completely. Mark Hachman Additional requirements apply for companies. Recall may not be used without the consent of employees. Administrators can control the provision, but cannot force snapshots. Microsoft is thus complying with the General Data Protection Regulation, which sets particularly high standards for the processing of personal data. Weighing up the benefits and risks The tests so far have made it clear that Recall is a tool with considerable potential, but also with clear weaknesses. While local storage and encryption provide a solid foundation, the filters remain unreliable. Confidential information can end up in the database and be accessed remotely. Anyone using Recall must be aware that the added convenience of seamless documentation comes with a loss of control over sensitive data. This may be acceptable on private devices with manageable risks. In a corporate environment, however, the concerns outweigh the benefits. Recall should only be used here after careful consideration if there are clear guidelines on the use and protection of data. Conclusion Recall in Windows 11 is technically mature enough to be used productively, but at the same time not yet reliable enough to dispel security concerns. The feature creates transparency about past work steps, but inevitably also saves content that does not belong in a search database. If you want to use Recall, you should check the settings carefully, adjust filters, and empty the database regularly. For security-conscious users, deactivation via group policies, registry, or Powershell remains a necessary means of minimizing risks. It is to be expected that Microsoft will make improvements, but it is also to be expected that tools will appear that can override Recall. From our point of view, the use of Recall is currently not recommended. Further reading: Windows Recall is too risky for your PC. I can’t recommend it Read...