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| PC World - 5 Jul (PC World)At a glanceExpert`s Rating
ProsBig, beautiful screenAll the ports you could wantRear I/O is perfect for desk useConsLoud fansIncredibly heavyShort battery lifeOur VerdictThe MSI Raider 18 HX boasts a humongous screen as well as all the ports you could imagine, but the windy roar of the fans combined with the high price tag may deter some folks.
Sometimes you just want to game on a truly “all-in-one” powerful laptop. And it doesn’t matter how heavy it is, how loud it is, or even how long that laptop’s battery lasts. So long as you can throw anything at it and get a beautiful glorious gaming experience, that’s all that matters. And for those instances, the MSI Raider 18 HX is here to help you decimate… especially your wallet!
The MSI Raider is first and foremost a gaming laptop and that means by standard laptops it has many flaws. Typing on it isn’t great, the fans are loud, battery life is short, and it’s so heavy that calling it a laptop is almost a joke. But because it’s a gaming laptop, a lot of those flaws are “given” and what really matters is what it can do under the heavy load of AAA games and that’s where it shines. Mostly.
Further reading: Best gaming laptops 2024: What to look for and highest-rated models
MSI Raider 18 HX: Specs
Let’s rip one band-aid off right now. This particular MSI Raider 18 HX is $3,400 or otherwise known as several craploads of money. For that kind of steep price, you should get something that has all the high-end specs and thankfully MSI delivers for the most part. It has more processor cores, RAM, and storage than a lot of desktops and the screen is gigantic. You’re paying for a lot and you’re also getting a lot both in terms of top-of-the-line tech and in next-gen specs thanks to future proof Wi-Fi 7 capability. The one area you might call a miss is the display refresh rate. Sure, it’s a massive 18-inch screen with a beautiful 3840×2400 resolution, but it’s locked to just 120Hz, which might be disappointing depending on how hardcore you are about refresh rates.
Specs as tested:
CPU: Intel Core i9-14900HX
Memory: 64 GB DDR5
Graphics/GPU: NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 Laptop GPU 12G GDDR6
Display: 18? UHD+(3840×2400) 120Hz Mini LED HDR 1000 100 percent DCI-P3
Storage: 2TB NVMe SSD Gen4x4
Webcam: IR FHD webcam
Connectivity: 2 x Thunderbolt™ 4 w DP (1 also with PD3.1), 3 x USB 3.2 Gen 2, HDMI v2.1, SD Card Reader, 3.5mm audio jack,
Networking: Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 5.4
Biometrics: Fingerprint reader
Battery capacity: 99.9 watt-hours
Dimensions: 15.91? x 12.09? x 1.26?
Weight: 7.94 pounds
MSRP: $3,399
MSI Raider 18 HX: Build quality and looks
IDG / Josh Hendrickson
IDG / Josh Hendrickson
IDG / Josh Hendrickson
Picture the quintessential gaming laptop. I bet you’re imagining a giant screen, lights absolutely everywhere, fancy if unnecessary fonts, and touches of red to break up the overwhelming black. That’s the MSI Raider. You’ve probably pictured this laptop thousands of times. The one thing you probably pictured wrong is the weight. Now I know what you’re thinking… it’s a gaming laptop, so it must heavy. But no, it’s even heavier than that. This laptop tips the scales at just under eight pounds. Let’s be honest, it’s not a laptop. Between the weight and the heat (more on that later!), this behemoth of a laptop will never ever fit on your lap. The MSI Raider is a slightly more portable all-in-one desktop with fancier lights.
The RGB is everything a gamer could want (everything a business casual person will hate) and the glowing logo that matches your preferences is the cherry on top.
The keyboard font is a choice, but that can be said about a lot of gaming laptops. What matters is that it’s solidly built and MSI took advantage of ventilation needs to enhance the overall look and feel. I like all the accents along the fans a lot. One downside is the sharp edges. If your arms tend to brush the front edge of the laptop when typing, it might be a little uncomfortable after a while.
Overall, the build quality is as high as you’d expect from such an expensive laptop. There’s hardly any give or wobble in the display, even when typing, and the same goes for the rest of the machine as it never creaks or groans. The overall laptop is built like a tank and feels as heavy as one too. While that means you won’t want to lug this in your backpack, it does give it a certain premium feel that comes with heavier gadgets.
MSI Raider 18 HX: Keyboard and trackpad
IDG / Josh Hendrickson
IDG / Josh Hendrickson
IDG / Josh Hendrickson
I have very mixed feelings about the keyboard and trackpad. Taken apart, both are technically excellent. You get a full-sized keyboard complete with a numpad and the keys themselves have good travel for a laptop. I don’t ache when I type, and that’s always a big deal in my book as I do have issues with non-ergonomic keyboards. MSI buried in a ton of extras in the keyboard as well. Beyond the new Copilot button most modern laptops will adopt, you also get fancy per-key RGB backlighting and a ton of functions. Combining the function key with down gets you a crosshair capability while the up key launches a cooler boost that blasts the fans.
The trackpad is nice, expansive, and adequately clicky too. It does, however, tend to build a bit of dirt and grime into its creases. Taken on its own though, it’s a good enough trackpad that I imagine you won’t use in favor of a dedicated gaming mouse. The real problem is the keyboard combined with the trackpad.
MSI crammed a full-sized keyboard into this beast, including a fairly generous touchpad. But that means when your hands are in home position, they are left of center. The trackpad is perfectly centered, which puts it slightly out of alignment with the main typing area of the keyboard. That’s already slightly awkward, but it also seems to lead to accidental trackpad brushes. In typing this review, I’ve ended up jumping up whole paragraphs mid-word so many times I’ve lost count. It’s frustrating. But if you primarily game, it may not bother you as much as this writer, especially if you use the function keys to disable the trackpad and use your gaming mouse instead.
MSI Raider 18 HX: Speakers and display
IDG / Josh Hendrickson
IDG / Josh Hendrickson
IDG / Josh Hendrickson
I know better than to expect laptop speakers to be good, but I was hopeful here. With a giant price tag, there’s no good excuse not to have amazing speakers, at least for a laptop. And the MSI Raider’s speakers are very best average for a laptop. You’ll find hardly any bass here, and even the upper end of the spectrum could use some clarity. It’s not quite trapped in a bottle sounds, but everything about these speakers screams “bring your own headphones.” And I guess that’s just as well because you won’t be able to hear those speakers anyway. I’d normally talk about the fans elsewhere, but I’m going to mention them here.
This laptop produces so much fan noise that I can hear it three rooms away. I typically leave my laptops on my dining room table to run benchmark tests and this is the first one that has ever interrupted my workflow thanks to the sheer level of jet taking off sounds. I had to close my office door to block it out. And those fans run all the time, even when the Raider is sitting idle. The bottom line is, you’ll definitely need headphones.
As for the display, that’s another story. This 18 inch Mini-LED 120hz screen is awesome. It does have some of the usual downsides with Mini-LED, namely some blooming issues when using Windows in a light theme. But Mini-LED gives you nearly the inky blacks of OLED while also putting out so much brightness you’ll probably never use it at 100 percent. When I did max out brightness briefly, it was blinding. You could practically light up a living room with this display. The refresh rate, however, is a bit of a bummer for such an expensive gaming laptop. It’s just 120hz, which technically is good enough for gaming, but other similar laptops in this price range offer better performance.
MSI Raider 18 HX: Webcam, microphone, biometric options
If you’re planning on streaming with this monster, you’ll find an IR FHD webcam at the top of the display. FHD is technically pretty good for a built-in webcam, but it struggles under anything but bright lighting. Given the laptop’s purpose and price, you might hope MSI somehow slipped in a truly epic webcam, but the truth is laptop webcams are just never any good for a variety of reasons. I do appreciate the built-in physical shutter though, especially with the bright orange accent that shouts “you have privacy” when closed. If you’re streaming, you probably want to pick up an external camera. On the other hand, the IR system does a very good job of logging you in quickly, and you might lose that with an external camera.
That’s not the biggest loss though, since this laptop also has a fingerprint sensor. You’ll find it in the lower right corner below the keyboard, and while it seems small it does the job perfectly fine. This is a case where I appreciate having both options since it feels like buying an external camera seems likely. Pick what’s best for your scenario, and be glad you have options.
The microphone does ok, but it’s nothing to write home about. Again, part of me hoped for something truly special considering the size and price of this laptop, but given the speakers aren’t great it’s not surprising the microphone is merely average too. If you pick up a headset, grab one with a decent microphone and you’re set for team chat.
MSI Raider 18 HX: Ports and connectivity
IDG / Josh Hendrickson
IDG / Josh Hendrickson
IDG / Josh Hendrickson
When it comes to ports, the high price tag pays off. This MSI Raider 18 has all the ports, everywhere. On the right side you’ll find two Thunderbolt 4 USB-C ports (one with PD 3.1 charging), a USB 3.2 Gen2 Type-C port, and an audio combo jack. On the left, you’ll find a Kensington Lock slot, another USB 3.2 Gen2 Type-A port, and an SD Card reader. And on the back, you’ll find the dedicated power port, an HDMI 2.1 port, and an Ethernet port.
I like that power, video, and internet focused ports are on the back, which is convenient for the likely desktop setup you’d primarily use this in. That feels especially important since the power cord isn’t as long as I’d like. I’m less enthused that both USB-C ports are on the right side. It’d be a little more versatile to have one on each.
This laptop is, thankfully, future proof as well. You get Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 5.4, which is probably advanced enough you don’t have anything to fully supports those standards yet. But even in my Wi-Fi 6E home, speeds are killer and nearly max out what my network is capable of providing. That’s impressive over a Wi-Fi connection. Granted, you should probably still use the ethernet cord for gaming and wired peripherals as well if latency is a factor you care about at all. But at least it’s nice to know that if you do ditch cords, this machine will keep up and then some.
MSI Raider 18 HX: Performance
Going in, one can expect the MSI Raider 18 to crush benchmark testing, at least compared to everyday laptops. It does have an i9 processor, 64 GBs of RAM, a dedicated NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 laptop grade GPU, and a 2 TB NVMe SSD. If that doesn’t spell performance, it’ll be because of heat alone, which explains the incredibly loud fans the laptop rocks.
IDG / Josh Hendrickson
IDG / Josh Hendrickson
IDG / Josh Hendrickson
The first test we run is PCMark 10, which helps determine overall performance. We run with laptops plugged in and that’s important to keep in mind as some processors throttle when unplugged. Then again, this is a gaming laptop, so you’d probably use it plugged in too. The other thing to note is that PCMark 10 tends to favor CPU before GPU.
And that shows here. The MSI Raider beat the competition, taking home a first win in this benchmark. But the other MSI Raider from last February came within a statistical margin. Re-run these tests enough times and they’d likely swap places.
IDG / Josh Hendrickson
IDG / Josh Hendrickson
IDG / Josh Hendrickson
After that, we ran Cinebench R20, which is a multithreaded CPU test. To my surprise, this MSI Raider didn’t fair near as well here, falling squarely in the middle of the pack. That confused me because the other MSI Raider in our comparison data did much better on the same processor. But while they’re close, there are some key differences, including overall size, display, and weight. Perhaps those differences add up. I re-ran the tests a few times just to be sure and came back with consistent results.
I’m also not too worried. This MSI Raider is still putting up a respectable enough number and the kind of testing Cinebench is doing here doesn’t translate to gaming, which is a much more GPU-focused task. What we learn from this test is that outside gaming, this MSI Raider should be able handle any application you throw at it.
IDG / Josh Hendrickson
IDG / Josh Hendrickson
IDG / Josh Hendrickson
And that fact shows in our Handbrake test. This test involves encoding a video file, which puts the laptop under heavy load. A less capable laptop will likely overheat, throttle, and accomplish the job at a slower pace. Not the MSI Raider. We measure in minutes and I’m used to this test drifting into the four digit territory. But all our gaming laptops make short work of the task and the MSI Raider puts even those to shame.
That’s likely down to all those fans and vents. This Raider runs them at the drop of a hat, even when you wouldn’t think the device needs to jettison heat, and all that cooling seems to pay off. That should bode well for gaming, too.
IDG / Josh Hendrickson
IDG / Josh Hendrickson
IDG / Josh Hendrickson
To test graphics capability, we run 3Dmark’s Time Spy benchmark. And here, the MSI Raider truly shines. That goes for both models on our list, actually. That’s not surprising, as they’re running the same processor and have similar graphics cards. The previous MSI we reviewed leads the pack here due to it having a more powerful GPU (a 4090 vs 4080). This is another case where with enough re-running of the tests, the two might trade places. That’s why we do more than benchmark, as those only tell you part of the story. And the story so far says this is a capable gaming machine.
IDG / Josh Hendrickson
IDG / Josh Hendrickson
IDG / Josh Hendrickson
Up until now, we’ve used standard industry benchmarks you can run on just about any modern laptop. But this is a gaming machine, so we want some tests focused on that purpose. To start, we run Shadow of the Tomb Raider’s built-in benchmarks. This is admittedly an aging game, but in some ways that’s a benefit: no updates mean reliable data across our testing machines.
This is, however, another test that made me go “huh” at first. Sure, technically speaking 120fps isn’t bad, just ask the PS5, but it does put it firmly lower on this list. And then I remembered two factors. One, this laptop runs an RTX 4080, which is holding it back compared to the other MSI’s RX 4090. And two, the built-in display is capable of 120hz anyway. If you don’t intend to hook up a monitor with a higher refresh rate, then you don’t need a benchmark to tell you it can do better. And you might not actually want an external monitor. This is an expensive device, after all, and one of the perks is the glorious 18 inch mini-LED screen. Take advantage of it.
For what it’s worth, we run this test at 1080p, because most gamers would rather have higher framerate even if it means settling for lower resolution. Just to see what would happen, I re-ran the test at 4K and it still managed an average of 90fps, which is pretty darn good. If you’re on the fence of resolution versus frames per second, this is a laptop that could give you options.
IDG / Josh Hendrickson
IDG / Josh Hendrickson
IDG / Josh Hendrickson
We also run the benchmark test found in Metro Exodus. This is much more demanding game and run the test using the “extreme” option in 1080p. I checked, and at PCWorld we’ve never seen a machine hit 120fps in this benchmark, and many struggle to even hit 60.
So, it’s fairly heartening to see this MSI back on top again, pulling off an average of 105 frames per second in this benchmark. That puts it ahead of even the other MSI Raider in our comparison list, and of the others as well. If I had to guess, that’s going to be down to cooling as this benchmark did produce some of the loudest “jet engine” noises of all.
In general, these tests are admittedly a little inconsistent. In some areas the MSI Raider seems to excel, and other areas it falls behind. But as always, benchmarks only tell you so much. Real world testing is the final note on the story. And let me tell you, gaming on this 18-inch behemoth is glorious. It can handle everything I throw out it and looks gorgeous in the process.
MSI Raider 18 HX: Battery life
IDG / Josh Hendrickson
IDG / Josh Hendrickson
IDG / Josh Hendrickson
This MSI Raider has a 99.9 watt-hour hour battery powering this machine, and that’s as big as you can get and still take your laptop on an airplane. Very few laptops host anything anywhere near this large, and I have a feeling it’s half the reason this Raider weighs so much. Now you might be tempting to think with this humongous energy pack the Raider might be able to pull off all day battery life. Nope!
We test battery life by putting the laptop in airplane mode, reducing brightness to 50 percent, and looping a 4K copy of the Tears of Steel film until the device dies. This MSI Raider gave up the ghost after just 234 minutes. That’s a half hour less than the other MSI Raider in our comparison chart, and a little over half the time as HP Omen. And I want you to think about this: putting the Raider in airplane mode and turning down the brightness is a “best case scenario.” Even looping a video is less energy intensive than gaming.
And the real proof is in the pudding. I’ve used the MSI Raider to write the majority of this review. But not all of it. And the reason for that? I tried to do it on battery alone, and it died on me. Twice.
MSI Raider 18 HX: Conclusion
I’ve come away from with somewhat mixed feelings. The benchmarks are just like my feelings, actually. Mixed and messy. When this laptop excels, it absolutely slays. The display is gorgeous and can get so bright you could feasibly pull off that “hacker in the dark” look Shutterstock is so fond of. You know the one, where somehow the single monitor in the dark room seems to be bright as the sun. That’s this display. Seriously.
And for gamers, there’s plenty of great touches. The RGB is everything a gamer could want (everything a business casual person will hate) and the glowing logo that matches your preferences is the cherry on top. I could probably get used to the trackpad placement or, better yet, turn it off in favor of a gaming mouse.
But there’s other areas that hold me back. The fans are so dang loud that I’d not only recommend headphones, I’d suggest you get something with ANC to combat the windy roar. Part of me wants better FPS performance (and a display that can match) for this price. It’s also far too heavy and the battery life much too short to consider gaming on-the-go. At best, this is an all-in-one that you can easily take over a friend’s place. It’s a gaming machine built for a very particular person, someone who wants to buy just a laptop, maybe a mouse and headset. And for that person, this will do the trick. For everyone else, it might be worth looking around at the competition.
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| ![](/n.gif) | | PC World - 5 Jul (PC World)The best webcam makes you look your best — for less. Most laptops ship with a 720p webcam, so a 1080p webcam or even a 4K webcam can make you stand out by comparison.
I haven’t tested every one of these webcams, just most of them — and I describe how I test under my recommendations. You can also refer to my separate story on the best Windows Hello webcams for recommendations that aid videoconferencing and log you into your PC. Two recommendations from that list — a premium and budget option — appear on this list.
Take note of the FAQ at the bottom of this article, as there’s a new upcoming Windows feature that may create some big ripples on the webcam industry!
Why you should trust me: PCWorld has been testing PC hardware since the 1980s, and I’ve been a technology journalist for 30 years, with extensive experience in reviewing PC hardware. When it comes to webcams, my recommendations are based on hands-on testing in real-world scenarios. I also tap the expertise and published reviews of my counterparts in Sweden and Germany to offer a comprehensive view of the current webcam landscape.
Updated July 4, 2024: My most recent review is of the eMeet Smartcam C960 2K, a 1440p webcam that offers decent value at a $50 price tag. It’s good enough that I’ve named it as a runner-up in the best budget webcam category.
Anker PowerConf C200 – Best overall webcam
Pros
2K (1440p) resolution with autofocus
Adjustable field of view
Solid low-light performance
18-month warranty
Cons
Lacks 60fps support
Anker software is necessary for full control
Color balance is middling
Best Prices Today:
$59.99 at Amazon
Why I like the Anker PowerConf C200
The Anker PowerConf C200 offers an affordable yet substantial upgrade from the 720p cameras found in most laptop webcams to a 1440p webcam, yet does so at an affordable price. The webcam also works well in low light, a pitfall of many webcams. For all that, at just $60? That’s a solid value in my book, and makes this webcam our top recommendation.
(Anker and Amazon characterize this as a “Mac” camera. It’s plug-and-play within Windows, however.)
Additional features include an adjustable field of zoom that crops down to 65 degrees, meaning you can orient the camera on your face alone. The camera autofocuses, too. Naturally, there are noise-canceling mics and a privacy shutter that actually turns off the entire device. You will need Anker’s free Windows software, though, to enable some of these features. (That’s available on the Anker website.) We weren’t sold on the need for original software at first, but many other webcams now offer similar apps to enable full functionality.
Who should buy the Anker PowerConf C200
What sold us on this webcam are the basics: It’s just a good webcam for an affordable price. As such, it will appeal to a broad segment of buyers: work-from-home employees, small businesses, and general consumers. If you’re tired of your laptop’s 720p webcam and want even more, start here with the Anker PowerConf C200.
NexiGo HelloCam – Best overall webcam runner-up / Best for Windows Hello
Pros
Windows Hello included
1080p
Solid value
Cons
Cord is short and sometimes loose
Free utility software needs to be loaded
Best Prices Today:
$69.99 at Amazon$69.99 at NexiGo
Why I like the NexiGo HelloCam
My preferred webcams offer at least 1080p resolution at a ballpark price of between $50 to $70. This webcam goes a step further by offering Windows Hello. This biometric login technology is found on most modern laptops, but not on older ones. If your laptop lacks this technology, the HelloCam is an excellent way to add it — and for very little out of your wallet.
Once you set up the HelloCam, you’ll just need to present your face to the camera, and poof! You’re logged in. With biometric identification becoming more and more important to PC security, this is a worthwhile investment.
Otherwise, this is a good 1080p/30fps fixed-focus webcam, whose other signature feature is an iris-like physical webcam shutter. Once the webcam is in use, the iris opens; if turned off or disconnected, the shutter closes. The images this webcam produces are good, and the noise-cancelling mics are too.
Who should buy the NexiGo HelloCam
Budget buyers and mainstream users looking to improve upon their laptop’s 720p webcam, and who also want the added security of Windows Hello biometric security. Until recently, Windows Hello capability would probably have put this webcam over $100. (If you want Windows Hello with even more advanced features, see our pick below for best premium Windows Hello camera.)
Creative Live! Cam Sync 4K – Best budget webcam
Pros
4K resolution for cheap!
Backlight adjustment isn’t bad
Cons
Poor color balance
Adjustable focus is of iffy value
Cheats a bit in frame rate
Best Prices Today:
$45.04 at Amazon$49.99 at Creative
Why I like the Creative Live! Cam Sync 4K
The question you should always ask of budget hardware is, what corners did they cut? Here, the answer is: not many. This is a 4K webcam at a cheaper price than many 1080p webcams, and that alone makes it noteworthy. Okay, it has manually adjustable focus, but that’s not a problem if you don’t move around a lot. Similarly, backlight adjustment is typically handled automatically, but this webcam’s manual adjustment is not a problem you work in a single location you can dial it in and forget it. There’s a flip-over privacy shutter, and a button to mute the mic.
You’re going to find that it cheats in the frame rate a bit, and I wasn’t wild with how well it captured my image, from a color perspective. But for about $50, for a 4K camera? It’s worth investigating.
Who should buy the Creative Live! Cam Sync 4K
If 4K matters, and you don’t feel like spending a lot, this is the camera for you. To me, this feels like a good choice for a student, or someone who wants to look good in front of their friends and maybe while taking remote classes, but just doesn’t want to spend a ton of money.
It’s also best for someone who will be streaming from an environment without a lot of (changing) natural light, but is still well-lit by a lamp or screen.
Read our full
Creative Live! Cam Sync 4k review
eMeet SmartCam C960 2K – Best budget webcam runner-up
Pros
Very good value
1440p, 30Hz, autofocus
Good noise-cancelling mics
Cons
Autofocus doesn`t work as well in dim lighting
Somewhat precarious connection to a laptop
Unnecessary utility software
DIY privacy shutter
Best Prices Today:
$37.98 at Amazon
Why I like the eMeet SmartCam C960 2K
My previous pick, the Monoprice 2K USB Webcam, always felt a little deficient: not bad, but not great either. I wasn’t especially happy with the quality. eMeet’s camera feels like a step up. It’s not perfect. However, the 1440p resolution is a better both on paper and in the real world. The other part of the equation that often gets passed over are how well the noise-cancelling mics work, and in this case I was pretty impressed.
This camera is also available from multiple retailers, which helps keep the price down — a must for a budget webcam. To be fair, you’ll notice the review compares the C960 2K to its predecessor, the more vanilla (1080p) C960. It’s about $10 cheaper. The C960 2K’s picture is marginally better, with improved autofocusing, but I think that the C960 2K’s mics are genuinely superior.
I don’t love some of this webcam’s features, including the stick-on privacy shutter…but it is a budget webcam, after all.
Who should buy the Monoprice 2K USB Webcam
This is for the person who says, “I want to upgrade my webcam, but I want to spend the least amount of money possible.” You’ll still get a decent upgrade; more than you would expect, actually. If a $10 discount matters, buy the cheaper 1080p version.
This webcam is also going to work better on a desktop monitor, by lieu of its rather simple mount. It feels flimsier when attached to a laptop.
Read our full
eMeet SmartCam C960 2K review
BenQ IdeaCam S1 Pro – Best premium webcam
Pros
Great value
Robust physical design
Integrated ring light
Macro lens genuinely seems useful
Slick remote control included
Cons
Not quite 4K (but close enough)
No 60fps option
No AI pan or zoom, though manual zooming is allowed
Legacy USB-A connector
Separate privacy shutter
Best Prices Today:
$199.99 at Adorama$199.99 at Amazon
Why I like the BenQ IdeaCam S1 Pro
BenQ’s marvelous webcam offers a substantial amount of value, from its midrange price to the multiple, useful accessories that ship right inside the box. What I think I like most about this webcam, though, is that it excels as a webcam, then adds additional value through its peripherals, including both a macro (closeup) lens as well as a free remote control. This almost-but-not-quite 4K webcam even flips over for a top-down view.
The IdeaCam S1 Pro would probably be our favorite webcam if it wasn’t for the $100 or so price premium it commands, which isn’t for everyone. It’s robustly built, and ships with a free software utility that adds to its capabilities. (Zooming in and out is most easily accomplished via the remote control, which does take up more room on your desk.)
The webcam slides in and out of a robust mount quite easily. Pair that with the macro lens, and you can zoom in on detail work for presentations or hobbyists. The webcam has autofocus, though you’ll probably want to lock down the focus for the macro lens. It all works surprisingly well together, though.
Who should buy the BenQ IdeaCam S1 Pro
If you’re a streamer (a woodworker or baker, say) then the ability to flip the webcam into a top-down mode, then undock the IdeaCam S1 Pro and the bring it in close with the macro lens, feels like a tool no other webcam offers.
But yes, the IdeaCam S1 Pro also works as a generic everyday webcam, too. It also looks particularly nice under good lighting, so it’s better for a user who isn’t expecting the camera to do a lot of heavy lifting in that regard. And while it might not offer the absolute top-of-the-line options, it never really fails at anything, either. It’s just a good, solid value. Period.
Read our full
BenQ IdeaCam S1 Pro review
OBSBOT Tiny 2 PTZ 4K – Best premium 4K webcam
Pros
Superb 4K video in multiple lighting conditions
60Hz option
Excellent utility software and configurability
Solid mic
Voice commands are a nice touch
Cons
Doesn’t sit as securely as Tiny 1
“Beauty” options aren’t worth it
Best Prices Today:
$329 at Amazon
Why I like the OBSBOT Tiny 2 PTZ 4K
This 4K webcam does something unique: It follows you. Floating on a gimbal, this tiny(!) webcam can literally pan, zoom, and rotate essentially 360 degrees, using AI to lock on your face and follow it as you walk around a room.
While the Tiny 2 webcam boasts the same gimbal and tracking features as the first Tiny PTZ webcam, OBSBOT used a bigger 1/1.5-inch 50Mpixel sensor in the new model that lets in more light and provides a slightly clearer picture. So it accomplishes what you’d expect in a webcam: It wildly succeeds as just a webcam, with gorgeous 4K HDR images — but provides the increased tracking capabilities to add value. It almost tracks a little too well; avoid zooming in too close if you walk around so as not to give your viewers vertigo!
I also love the fantastic software package that accompanies the webcam, which on the Tiny 1 was the best I’ve ever seen. I’m less impressed by two new features: voice commands, which are useful but not necessary, and new “beauty” features that use AI to adjust your face. While the latter features work, I prefer a more natural appearance, flaws and all.
Who should buy the OBSBOT Tiny 2 PTZ 4K
If the budget webcams we selected above were ideal for students, this is the lecturer’s webcam. Share your slides with your student (or your clients, in a business setting) and let your video app project a snapshot of your face over them as you illustrate your point. If you walk and talk, this is the webcam for you.
Read our full
OBSBOT Tiny 2 PTZ 4K Webcam review
Razer Kiyo Pro Ultra – Best premium 4K webcam runner-up
Pros
‘DSLR-quality’ imaging
4K options, HDR too
Terrific configurability
Lens cap as well as a privacy shield
Cons
Whew, that price!
Average mic quality
No Windows Hello
Limited purchase options; just Razer.com for now
Best Prices Today:
$299.99 at Razer
Why I like the Razer Kiyo Pro Ultra
The Razer Kiyo Pro Ultra claims to offer DSLR-quality images, and boy, it comes pretty close! This webcam captures video with a massive 2-inch lens at 4K at 30Hz or 1080p at 60Hz, using autofocusing technology that does a great job. The camera also can zoom in to offer a field of view between 72 degrees and 82 degrees, making sure that you, and you alone, are on cam.
All of this combines to produce an image that looks simply outstanding. It would be nice to see this camera produce 60Hz at 4K; instead, you have to choose one option or the other. But check out the sample screens in our review, and you’ll agree that it all looks as though a professional captured it. It even handles odd lighting situations very well. Colors just pop! We’ve highlighted some of the shortcomings above, but they’re overshadowed by everything else this webcam does.
Who should buy the Razer Kiyo Pro Ultra
If you want to look your very best on cam, buy this webcam. The lack of 4K60 captures may rule out high-end game streaming, but the ability for the camera to capture your face under most lighting conditions means a lot of other people will love it. Whether you’re pitching products on a Zoom or Teams call or you want to stand out among style-conscious peers, the Razer Kiyo Pro Ultra is the webcam for making a strong impression.
Read our full
Razer Kiyo Pro Ultra review
NexiGo N980P – Best webcam for wide-angle
Pros
60fps
120-degree viewing angle
Privacy shutter
Cons
Lack of fine adjustments
Best Prices Today:
$54.99 at Amazon
Why I like the NexiGo N980P
Not everyone needs a wide-angle webcam. But this does allow you to show off more of a scene than an ordinary webcam does, which makes it a valuable tool for specialized applications.
This fixed-focus 1080p webcam captures frames at a smooth 60 frames per second, as opposed to the more standard 30fps. You’ll look smoother and more lifelike as a result. The wide angle means that it will work well in a conference room. A privacy shutter is included.
Who should buy the NexiGo N980P
If you have more than one person on camera at any one time, consider something like the NexiGo N980P. During the pandemic, the local middle school’s drama department broadcast monologues and scenes via Zoom, which allowed students the opportunity to perform. But a narrow webcam wouldn’t have allowed these scenes to be broadcast as effectively.
This camera would work equally well with a small conference room or even a family gathering, such as a living room where one family talks to grandparents overseas. It’s still a fixed-focus camera though— if you want an autofocusing model I recommend you pay about $100 for the upgraded NexiGo N680p instead.
Logitech Brio 4K Ultra HD Webcam – Best premium webcam for Windows Hello
Pros
Sharply detailed resolution with vibrant colors
Wide-angle field of view
Infrared-based facial recognition
Cons
Expensive
Best Prices Today:
$144.90 at Amazon$199.99 at Adorama$199.99 at Best Buy
Why I like the Logitech Brio 4K Ultra HD Webcam
Why wouldn’t you buy a webcam that can protect your PC via biometrics, log you in with your face, and make you look great on a video call? The Logitech Brio 4K Ultra HD webcam is one of the small group of Windows Hello webcams that can perform both tasks.
The autofocusing Logitech Brio 4K supports various resolutions and frame rates, including 4K Ultra HD at 30fps, 1080p at 30- or 60fps, and 720p (HD) at 30- or 60fps. According to our review, Logitech’s RightLight 3 technology snaps photos and video in a range of lighting conditions. It can adjust the field of view from between 90 degrees to 78 degrees or 65 degrees. You will need to download the Logitech app for fine-grained control options, however.
Who should buy the Logitech Brio 4K Ultra HD Webcam
Anyone who doesn’t like entering a password or PIN but doesn’t want to skimp on webcast quality, either. Seriously, as biometric identification becomes more prevalent, with passkeys standing in for passwords, Windows Hello will become more important. Put that way, the Brio 4K is cheap at the price.
Read our full
Logitech Brio 4K Ultra HD Webcam review
How to shop for a webcam
A standalone 1080p webcam can greatly improve how you look on your next Zoom call. Here’s what to look for: Prioritize a 1080p webcam, then a higher refresh rate, then jump up to 4K. If you can get more than one feature, great! Unless you’ll be moving about a lot, a fixed-focus webcam will do just fine.
It’s important to note that of the three major videoconferencing services (Microsoft Teams, Zoom, and Google Meet) only Teams will automatically scale up your video to 1080p if your network and your webcam support it. You can enable 1080p video in Zoom and (finally!) in Google Meet, but they require some manual adjustment in the app’s Settings menu. All three services will eventually auto-scale video calls for 1080p cameras — it’s just a matter of time.
Looking like you’re on television will subtly lend you authority. People gravitate toward celebrities, and a 4K, 60Hz webcam is basically what your TV offers. If you’re an executive or making sales calls over Zoom or Teams, a premium webcam may give you an edge. That’s why professional streamers use them, after all.
Adjustable or fixed focus
Don’t worry about fixed-focus, as virtually all webcams have been pre-configured at a focal length that’s about the distance between your face and your laptop or monitor. You’ll need to account for this with tripods, however, or pay a little more for an autofocusing webcam. Autofocus webcams are handy for situations where you may be moving about the room, but beware distracting webcams that frequently refocus.
Higher frame rates
A standard webcam captures video at 30 frames per second, and will look “normal.” You’ll notice the smoothness of a 60fps camera though, and so will people you’re on a video call with.
Field of view (FOV)
The camera’s field of view can vary. A 90-degree FOV helps people focus on you (and perhaps not the mess you’ve hidden off to the side). A 110-degree or higher FOV works better for group shots, although distortion can become a problem the wider your FOV gets. A 65-degree FOV may be perfect if it’s just you.
Think of a 90-degree FOV as one that would show two people seated side-by-side at what you would consider a “standard” distance from a webcam, or a foot or two. A 110-degree FOV can show three people, squeezed a bit close together. Keep in mind that many videoconferencing applications offer the option of virtual backgrounds, which eliminate visual clutter.
Privacy shutter
These devices are not a privacy threat, for the simple reason that they can be unplugged easily. Most have a flip-down privacy shutter, but you could always put tape over the camera or drape it with a dark cloth.
Ring lights
Yes, integrated ring lights are now a thing on premium webcams, and worth the money if lighting is a challenge for you. While the integrated light will certainly help with lighting, a big bright monitor display (use a full-screen version of Notepad for a white screen) in front of you can serve a similar function. You can also purchase a ring light separately.
Windows Hello
You may have used Windows Hello with a fingerprint reader or another laptop. The camera simply “recognizes” you, logging you in. It’s exceptionally convenient. We have a separate article on the best Windows Hello webcams.
Tripod bundle
With so many webcams on the market, manufacturers are trying hard to differentiate their products. The new trend is a small tripod, which gives you more options for mounting the camera. Not all webcams include this. Normally, however, you can simply clip the webcam to the top of a display or a laptop with its “jaws” clamp, so a tripod isn’t really necessary unless you move around a lot or want a different angle.
AI
There’s a potential wild card that may be attached to webcams in the future: artificial intelligence, specifically Windows Studio Effects. Right now, the current Surface Pro 9 (5G) uses the AI capabilities in the Qualcomm Snapdragon processor to apply background blue, automatic panning effects, and more. (Our review discusses this.) Other laptops that use Intel Core and AMD Ryzen processors don’t include AI capabilities — yet. Specific models in the 13th-gen mobile Core and AMD Ryzen 7000 Mobile series include some basic AI capabilities, and future processors in both families may offer AI capabilities and therefore Windows Studio Effects.
The OBSBOT webcams don’t need any of this, using an independent gimbal and tracking software to keep you in the frame.
How we test webcams
Our recommendations for webcams are weighted pretty heavily toward the image each webcam produces, as you might expect. But there are a number of additional criteria we look at when making a webcam recommendation. A separate article provides a detailed explanation of how we test webcams at PCWorld, but here’s a summarization of the process:
Our first criteria is price. We don’t want you spend more than you have to. But it’s fair to say that a more expensive webcam might be worth it if it offers more. So we factor in features: the resolution, the refresh rate, whether the camera pans or zooms, or offers something rather novel, such as the ability to show a different perspective.
From there, we remove the webcam, examine the packaging, and see how well it sits atop some of our monitors and laptops. Does it grip tightly, or tend to wobble? Is the cord long enough, and does it use USB-A or USB-C?
As the lead reviewer, I take sample images both in my downstairs office, which is normally lit by a combination of dim artificial light and indirect natural lighting. I use a second shot in brighter light, with a nice colorful background that mimics a real-world environment. I’m not really looking for the best-case scenario, as most webcams now take good shots in clear, natural lighting. But how do they do when lighting conditions aren’t ideal? I think that’s important.
I also load any utility software available and explore what options those provides. Does the webcam provide any additional functions, such as a top-down perspective? Ring lights? I try those out, too.
Finally, if the webcam provides any noise-cancelling mics (and most do) I play some background music on my phone and make a recording on my laptop using Windows Sound Recorder. A good noise-canceling mic will try and minimize these distractions.
FAQ
1.
Can you use a smartphone as a webcam?
Soon, yes! Microsoft is testing a smartphone webcam feature in Windows 11 that sounds like it should be out in a month or two. The feature would allow you to mount a smartphone (how you do it is up to you) and then use either its front or rear camera as a webcam in any and all video applications. You’ll need a phone running Android 9 or above, and the connecting software to enable it to talk to Windows.
Sorry, iPhone users: This is only for Android smartphones.
2.
Do you need Wi-Fi for a webcam?
Yes and no. These webcams all connect to your computer directly, via a USB port, and you can record video from them while offline. Your computer will then need to be connected to either ethernet or to Wi-Fi for you to be able to chat with a friend or business partner, however.
3.
Can a webcam work without a computer?
Some webcams can work without a computer, but not all of them. USB webcams, featured here, connect via USB to a computer and require it to operate. USB webcams are most often those used for video chat or live streaming from your computer on websites such as Twitch.
IP webcams however, can connect directly to a network, router, or modem and do not require a computer at all in order to work. IP webcams are most often used as security cameras or for live feeds that upload directly to the cloud. Those are separate products, however, and not the same webcams we’re talking about here.
4.
How do I connect my webcam to the internet?
For USB webcams, it will be as simple as plugging the camera into your computer’s USB port, and then connecting to the internet via your computer.
5.
What software do I need to connect my webcam?
Technically, most webcams are plug and play, so you should simply be able to connect them to your PC to get them to work. Many, however, require their own software utilities to be installed to take advantage of specific features and to facilitate automatic updates. To actually use your webcam in a conference call, however, you’ll need to use Zoom, Microsoft Teams, Google Meet, or another videoconferencing app. Make sure you enter the app’s settings menu and select the webcam’s camera and microphone to provide the audio and video for your call.
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| ![](/n.gif) | | PC World - 4 Jul (PC World)TL;DR: Affordable business web hosting is easy with HostVerge. Get a lifetime subscription for more than $500 off at just $178.99 now.
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HostVerge: Lifetime Subscription (Tier 4) – $178.99
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| ![](/n.gif) | | PC World - 4 Jul (PC World)If you’ve ever been in the mood to upgrade to Windows 11, now is the time. PCWorld’s software store is taking an additional 20 percent off Windows 11 licenses and 10 percent off of our Windows 11 Pro upgrade price for July 4th weekend, with deals running until 11:59 p.m. Pacific time on July 7.
Yes, that’s even less than the already rock-bottom prices we normally charge for our legitimate Windows 11 licenses. You can buy a Windows 11 Home license for $48, a Windows 11 Professional license for $64, and the Windows 11 Pro upgrade (from Home) license for $47. Remember, the normal Windows 11 Home price is $139, Pro is $199, and the upgrade from Home to Pro is $99. You save a massive pile of cash with this limited-time deal.
Remember, this deal ends when July 7 ends. If you’re headed out for the holiday, be sure and grab it so you don’t forget. (If you’re reading this while relaxing in a hammock, never fear — you can still grab the codes on your phone.)
Windows 11 matters not just for the new features, but also because Windows 10 is going end of life next year. If you’re building a new PC, or upgrading an old one, it makes sense to get started with Windows 11. Better yet, Windows 11’s launch bugs are smoothed out by now. As we’ve said before, it’s time to upgrade to Windows 11.
Okay, so why would you want to upgrade to Windows 11 Pro? While we explain the advantages to upgrade to Windows 11 Pro in our upgrade story, there are three immediate benefits. BitLocker allows you to both to encrypt your SSD/hard drives and back up the keys to unlock them to your Microsoft account. Gamers, creators, and big data crunchers will appreciate that Windows 11 Pro allows you to use more memory. Any my personal favorite is Windows Sandbox: a quick, one-click virtual machine that allows you to surf potentially sketchy web sites with little worry of something being surreptitiously downloaded in the background.
Regardless of whether you choose to go Pro or stick to Home, our summer sale can help you save big on Windows 11.
Buy windows 11 home on pcworld for $48
Buy Windows 11 Pro on PCWorld for $64
Buy Windows 11 Professional (Upgrade) on PCWorld for $47
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| ![](/n.gif) | | PC World - 3 Jul (PC World)If you need a productive daily driver laptop but don’t want to spend a fortune, this deal’s for you: the Dell Inspiron 15 is now available for just $300 on Dell’s online store, down from $380. This makes an already great-priced laptop a total bargain.
This affordable notebook is the perfect choice for your home office, for studying, or for daily web browsing.
Under the hood, you’ll find a 12th Gen Intel Core i3 processor, which is far from the latest model but still provides decent enough performance. Paired with 8GB of DDR4 RAM, this laptop can easily multitask applications and handle tons of browser tabs.
Need a lot of storage space? The Dell Inspiron 15 comes with a 512GB SSD, which should be more than enough for day-to-day use. And since it’s an SSD, rest assured that booting up will only take seconds.
The 15.6-inch display offers a solid 1920×1080 resolution, which is pretty much all you need for general streaming and productivity. One nice detail is that the screen has an anti-glare coating, so you’ll even be able to use your laptop comfortably in bright rooms.
At just $300, you can’t go wrong with the Dell Inspiron 15 if you just need a dependable laptop for everyday use.
The Dell Inspiron 15 is only $300 right nowGet it now via Dell
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| ![](/n.gif) | | PC World - 3 Jul (PC World)Since Microsoft moved from selling Office as a software package for Windows and Mac to selling subscriptions to Microsoft 365, the company has added a range of additional programs and services to the package. Some are old-fashioned desktop applications, some are web apps, and some are pure services or add-ons.
In this article, I’ll walk you through OneDrive, OneNote, and Clipchamp, showing you what they can do for you and how to use them as part of your Microsoft 365 subscription. I’ll also cover Microsoft’s library of stock images of all kinds, which are now part of the classic Office programs and make it easy to spice up documents with ready-made photos, illustrations, icons and more.
Further reading: 6 reasons why a Microsoft 365 subscription is worth the money
Get to know OneDrive and keep track of your files
Most people are familiar with Microsoft’s OneDrive cloud storage service, but it’s important to learn how the Windows version works so you don’t risk losing any important files. Questions about OneDrive syncing are common and it’s easy to get it wrong.
If you use a Microsoft account to sign in to your computer and have your Microsoft 365 subscription on the same account, Windows will automatically sign you in to OneDrive and start basic synchronization.
Files on demand or sync everything
OneDrive has two ways to synchronize files between cloud and desktop. The basic setting is called Files on demand where OneDrive keeps track of how much free space you have on your computer. If space is running low, it will delete the local copies of files you haven’t opened in a while, but will keep a shortcut to the file that you can see in Explorer. If you double-click on such an offloaded file, OneDrive will download a new copy from the cloud.
If you prefer to have all files both in the cloud and locally on your computer, do the following: Click the OneDrive icon in the notification area on the right side of the taskbar. Click on the cogwheel and select Settings. Open the tab Sync and backup tab. Click on the Advanced settings and scroll to the bottom. Click on the Download all files.
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If you later change your mind and want to start using automatic offloading of rarely used files, do the same but click Free up space instead. You can then right-click on individual files or folders in Explorer and choose to always keep them on the drive.
Deselect individual folders
If you’re using OneDrive as a storage location for an application that stores a lot of data that isn’t needed outside that application, it might make sense not to include the folder that application uses in OneDrive for Windows. Open the OneDrive settings as above and select the tab Account. Click on the Choose folders. Untick a folder or individual file and OneDrive will stop syncing it to your computer and hide it in Explorer.
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Back up with Onedrive
OneDrive has a built-in backup feature. It doesn’t apply to your entire computer but to a few selected folders in your user account: Documents, Pictures, Desktop, Music, and Videos. Open OneDrive’s settings, select Sync and back up and click on Manage backup to choose which folder or folders you want to back up.
This works differently from regular sync. If you delete or modify a file, the old version of the file is saved so you can restore it. This provides partial protection against, for example, ransomware, as Onedrive on Windows cannot delete the older versions. However, more sophisticated extortion attacks can bypass it.
Another way to back up to Onedrive is to use it as a backup target with a third-party programme like Arq Backup or Duplicati. This is a handy way to utilise all five of the extra accounts you can have with a Family subscription, but you can also use it with your regular account if you’re nowhere near using the full terabyte included per account.
If you are backing up in this way to the same Microsoft account you are logged into in Windows, you should definitely follow the instructions above to turn off synchronisation of the folder the backup software saves the backups in. Otherwise it will be unnecessary cake on cake.
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OneNote – Microsoft’s misunderstood notepad
Calling Onenote a note-taking application gives an incomplete picture of what it actually is. There are many programs for collecting notes, but nothing else that works quite like OneNote. While Word and Excel have many clones that are more or less identical, OneNote is almost unique.
In simple terms, OneNote is hierarchically organized free-form notes. A note is a page that can be anything, on which you can place text (in text boxes that you can move around), images, PDFs, and more. There is no predefined layout; you can place all the content you want yourself.
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Each note is part of a section, which in turn belongs to a notebook. You can have as many notebooks and sections as you want. It’s a good idea to divide the notes into different notebooks, as the program can become sluggish if you have a lot of notes. Since you can close one notebook and reopen it later, you can keep the notebook(s) you are currently working in open and close the others.
One of the great advantages of OneNote is that, like Word, Excel, and PowerPoint, it has co-editing, so you can create shared notebooks with, for example, a partner, members of an organization, or colleagues. Everyone invited to edit can be in at the same time and changes usually sync in near real-time.
Links create a web of knowledge
You can create links between different pages, sections, and notebooks. This makes it easy to reference previous notes without having to type or paste the same things again. This is especially useful in a shared notebook with hundreds of notes that several people are working in.
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The easiest way to place a link in a note is to right-click where you want the link and select Link. This opens a dialogue box where you select the destination of the link. You can also enter a text for the link. If you don’t, the title of the target will be displayed, but you can write, for example, “Click here to view the gluten-free cake base recipe” to make the purpose of the link clearer.
Links allow you to stick to many smaller notes instead of building huge individual notes.
Clip simple films together with Clipchamp
Clipchamp is a web-based video editor that Microsoft acquired in 2021. It has replaced the simple video editor previously embedded in Photos, both on Windows 10 and 11. The basic features of the program are free for all users, but there are also premium features that cost money. Some of these — but not all — are included for Microsoft 365 subscribers.
Although it’s a web-based service and not a “true” Windows application, Clipchamp supports drag-and-drop from Explorer, for example, which isn’t always the case in similar applications. Once you have created a project, you can drag video files to the media list associated with the project, on the left next to the vertical list of tool tabs.
The application uses a typical timeline to cut the video together. Drag videos from the list on the left to the timeline to position them, and the same with texts and transitions, for example.
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Move the timestamp (the vertical white line) by clicking in the row of timestamps at the top of the timeline. Then split the clip into two separate clips by either pressing the S key or right-clicking in the timeline and selecting Split. Splitting a clip into several smaller clips allows you to remove sections in the middle, not just trim the clip from the ends.
When you select a video clip, effect, text or transition in the timeline, individual settings and tools for that item appear in a vertical column on the right. For example, a video clip with audio will have an audio tab where you can change the volume of that particular clip without affecting the rest of the film.
Clipchamp requires a relatively modern and fast computer with a powerful graphics card to run smoothly, otherwise it can become sluggish as it constantly reloads the preview when you jump along the timeline.
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Make the most of your subscription with stock images, icons, and illustrations
Did you know that a Microsoft 365 subscription gives you access to a library of stock images of various kinds without having to pay extra? Microsoft added it in 2020 and it might be easier than rummaging through free stock image sites like Unsplash and Pixabay.
You can find the stock photos via Insert > Pictures > Stock images in Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Outlook (but unfortunately not in OneNote). The images are divided into various categories, such as Images, Icons, and Cartoon People.
Icons are black and white vector graphic shapes and can therefore be made as big or small as you want. Stickers are similar to the same feature on Facebook Messenger, for example, and include the popular Pusheen cats.
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Cutout People are photos of people with the background removed. By right-clicking and selecting Wrap Text > Through you can use the image in text so that the text flows around and follows the outer shape of the person.
Illustrations are particularly interesting. They are vector graphic shapes but have three components: gray scale areas that always look the same, lines that you can change the color of under Graphics Outline and colored areas that you change the color of under Graphics Fill.
Microsoft gives you the right to use any stock image almost any way you want, even printed or exported to PDF and in files you sell. What you are not allowed to do is export and use the images in other programs, on websites, or printed on products. So you can’t make your own Pusheen mugs and sell them on Etsy.
Clipchamp has its own version of the stock image library with content more suited to use in videos.
Best options
Thinking of cancelling your Microsoft 365 subscription or just don’t like any of these apps? Here are some sensible alternatives.
OneDrive
Cloud storage abounds. In addition to Apple’s iCloud Drive, Google Drive, and Dropbox, there are many smaller players with decent services. Here are a few:
Proton Drive
Shadow Drive
Pcloud
Box
Icedrive
OneNote
Unlike Word and Excel, for example, there’s no free alternative to OneNote that works the same way. There are almost infinite variations on notebooks, but services like Evernote and Zoho Notebook lack many of OneNote’s features and, most importantly, are not Windows programs but web apps.
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Obsidian is the most sensible option I’ve found to mimic OneNote’s hierarchical arrangement of notebooks > sections > pages and an infinite note-taking space. It’s free for individuals, syncs across devices, and stores content in standard open formats instead of a closed database.
For those looking mainly for handwritten notes, Xournal++ is a decent open-source option, but it lacks sync functionality and is poorly adapted for use mainly with mouse and keyboard.
Clipchamp
Many people dislike the fact that Clipchamp is web-based, and for larger projects it can be slow. Fortunately, there are plenty of alternatives. Among the simpler ones is Videoproc Vlogger, which is relatively beginner-friendly. Open source options include Shotcut, but like many open source programs, it’s a little more complicated and buggy.
The best free option, however, is Davinci Resolve. It’s a professional video editing software used in Hollywood, but the free version for individuals has almost all the features of the paid version. It takes a little longer to get started with, but there are plenty of guides on YouTube and elsewhere, and once you’ve learned to edit with it, you have unlimited freedom to create.
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| ![](/n.gif) | | Aardvark - 2 Jul (Aardvark)News, as a commodity, used to be extremely valuable but then the internet came along
and turned news organisations into professional beggars. Can that be fixed? Read...Newslink ©2024 to Aardvark | ![](/n.gif) |
| ![](/n.gif) | | PC World - 2 Jul (PC World)Need a great laptop that doesn’t cost a fortune? This 15.6-inch HP Pavilion is down to just $550 at HP’s online store, an unbeatable savings of $450 on a high-performance machine.
This laptop features an Intel Core i7 processor and 16GB of RAM, making it a great choice for both work and play. It also has a 256GB SSD, which isn’t the biggest but is still big enough for day-to-day use.
What’s missing here is a proper graphics card, so don’t expect to do much gaming on this laptop unless you’re into web games. The onboard Intel graphics card is enough to watch movies on Netflix or browse YouTube, but it won’t do much for more demanding apps.
This HP Pavilion laptop has a 15.6-inch 1920×1080 display with a tiny edge, and the anti-glare coating makes the screen easier on your eyes for all those long hours spent in front of the computer.
It also features a 720p HD camera with dual-array microphones and temporal noise reduction, highly suitable for Zoom meetings. It has reasonable connectivity as well: one USB-C port, two USB-A ports, one HDMI 2.1 port, and a headphone/microphone combo jack.
At just $550, this HP Pavilion workhorse laptop combines power, performance, and portability at an incredible price. As long as you don’t expect gaming rig-level performance, you’ll be more than happy with it.
This HP Pavilion laptop is 45% off (only $550)Get it at HP right now
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| ![](/n.gif) | | PC World - 1 Jul (PC World)At a glanceExpert`s Rating
ProsAmazing battery lifeBeautiful OLED screenGreat pricing on RAM and storage upgradesConsNo headphone jack or USB-A portWindows on Arm app compatibility isn’t perfect“Yoga” name is misleading as this isn’t a 2-in-1Copilot+ PC AI features are half-bakedOur VerdictThis Snapdragon X Elite-powered laptop combines a beautiful 14.5-inch OLED display with long battery life. But Snapdragon laptops without an OLED screen will get even longer battery life, and application compatibility still isn’t perfect on these new Arm PCs.
The Lenovo Yoga Slim 7x is one of the first Copilot+ PCs. While Microsoft is talking up AI features, the real story here is the Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite hardware inside this PC. Microsoft has been releasing Arm-based Windows PCs since the Surface RT, but this is the first time that Arm-based Windows PCs have finally become seriously competitive.
Yes, this Snapdragon X Elite-powered 14.5-inch laptop delivers extremely long battery life with snappy performance and cool and quiet operation in day-to-day use. The experience with day-to-day productivity applications is beautiful – just like the OLED display this machine has. (Despite the “Yoga” name, however, this is not a 2-in-1 laptop).
Of course, the Windows on Arm experience isn’t perfect. Microsoft’s Prism translation software offers much improved compatibility with traditional x86 apps. Most existing x86 applications “just work,” but not everything “just works” at the moment. And, while gaming performance is decent thanks to both the Prism translation layer and the impressive integrated GPU, this can’t deliver as much graphical horsepower as a discrete Nvidia or AMD GPU in a more traditional gaming laptop.
Looking for more options? Check out PCWorld’s roundup of the best laptops available today.
Lenovo Yoga Slim 7x: Specs
The Lenovo Yoga Slim 7x is part of the first wave of Copilot+ PCs, and it includes an Arm-based Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite chip. All Snapdragon X Elite chips include a neural processing unit (NPU) capable of 40 trillion operations per second (TOPS) as well as a Qualcomm Adreno GPU. This particular machine has Snapdragon X Elite X1E-78-100 hardware.
There are four Snapdragon X packages at launch, from lowest-end to highest-end:
The Snapdragon X Plus X1P-64-100 avoids the “Elite” name and only has 10 cores.
The Snapdragon X Elite X1E-78-100 in this machine includes 12 cores.
The Snapdragon X Elite X1E-80-100 has 12 cores as well, but it gains a “Dual Core Boost” feature that can go up to 4.0 GHz for extra power when the CPU needs it.
The Snapdragon X Elite X1E-84-100 has 12 cores, but its Dual Core boost goes up to 4.2 GHz. It also offers faster multi-threaded CPU performance and a high-performance Qualcomm Adreno GPU.
It’s unclear how much the differences between these chips will matter in the real world until we see more reviews and have a chance to benchmark more laptops with the different models ourselves.
Qualcomm
Qualcomm
Qualcomm
There aren’t a lot of other hardware options when configuring this $1,199 machine. Our review model came with 16 GB of LPDDR5X-8448MHz RAM, but you can get this machine with 32 GB of RAM for an extra $69. Like many modern PCs, the RAM is soldered. You have to make your decision when buying the machine — you can’t upgrade it later.
Additionally, our system included a 512 GB PCIe Gen4 SSD for storage. You can upgrade to a 1 TB SSD for an extra $45. Those are very reasonable prices for the upgrades. At that price, I’d recommend it.
This machine has a neural processing unit (NPU) that can deliver 45 TOPS (trillion operations per second) of performance. That means it gets access to a variety of Copilot+ PC AI features. Unfortunately, with the splashy and controversial Recall feature delayed, the AI features on Copilot+ PCs aren’t particularly compelling at launch. They may become compelling in the future, especially when Recall launches, or if third-party application developers start using the NPU to power AI features in their Windows applications.
CPU: Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite X1E-78-100
Memory: 16 GB LPDDR5X-8448MHz
Graphics/GPU: Qualcomm Adreno
Display: 2944×1840 OLED with 90Hz refresh rate and touch screen
Storage: 512GB PCIe Gen4 SSD
Webcam: 1080p camera with shutter switch
Connectivity: 3x USB-C Full-Function ports (USB4 Gen 3, Power Delivery 3.1, DisplayPort 1.4)
Networking: Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 5.3 (with Bluetooth 5.4 capable hardware)
Biometrics: IR camera for Windows Hello
Battery capacity: 70 Watt-hours
Dimensions: 12.8 x 8.86 x 0.51 inches
Weight: 2.82 pounds
MSRP: $1,199 as tested
Lenovo Yoga Slim 7x: Design and build quality
IDG / Chris Hoffman
IDG / Chris Hoffman
IDG / Chris Hoffman
While there are transformational changes under the hood, Lenovo didn’t reinvent the wheel with the Lenovo Slim 7x’s design. The chassis is a spitting image of the Lenovo Slim 7 14 we reviewed just a few months ago.
Like that laptop, this machine is made of aluminum and has a nice smooth metallic finish with lots of rounded edges and a small bezel around the display. Lenovo calls this laptop’s color scheme “Cosmic Blue.” It’s a nice, dark, professional-looking metallic finish. It has the “communications bar” at the top of the laptop’s display. That bar gives the webcam and IR camera a place to live, letting Lenovo shrink the bezel around the screen – and giving you a convenient handhold when opening the laptop.
While this machine bears the “Yoga” name, it doesn’t have a 360-degree hinge. This laptop does have a touch screen, but it’s not a convertible “2 in 1.” In fact, the screen doesn’t even lie flat. That’s fine, but I do think it’s a little confusing considering what the Yoga name has meant in the past. I showed this machine to another person who expected it to be a 2-in-1 thanks to the “Yoga” name. Lenovo says that it’s moving forward with using the “Yoga” name for more laptops in the US and that it’s already been using the name in this way internationally. Once again, that’s fine – just don’t be misled by the name.
At 2.82 pounds, this is a nice light laptop. The build quality feels nice and premium – the laptop is solid and doesn’t flex in any strange ways. The hinge action feels great. Lenovo says this “durable aluminum design” is tested to MIL-STD 810H military-grade standards, and it feels solid and sturdy while remaining lightweight.
Software-wise, this is a familiar Lenovo laptop experience. Bloatware is very restrained, but Lenovo does install a trial of McAfee antivirus, which will show you popups with a “welcome offer.”
Unlike Microsoft’s Surface Laptop, however, which omits the stickers below the keyboard, Lenovo chose to stick a variety of stickers to the left of the touchpad. It would be nice to see manufacturers move on from those stickers, but maybe we’ll be stuck with them going forward.
Lenovo Yoga Slim 7x: Keyboard and trackpad
IDG / Chris Hoffman
IDG / Chris Hoffman
IDG / Chris Hoffman
The Lenovo Yoga Slim 7x’s keyboard feels very nice to type on. The specs sheet says it has 1.5mm of key travel, which is nice for a laptop – especially one this thin. With plenty of travel, the keys are enjoyable to type on. They’re pleasantly snappy. This is no surprise as we spoke positively about this keyboard in our Lenovo Slim 7 14 review, too. The keyboard also has a nice white backlight.
The touchpad here is good. It’s a fairly standard touchpad with a reasonable size, accurate tracking, a good click, and solid palm rejection. These days, a standard touchpad on a PC laptop is pretty good. Lenovo hasn’t gone above and beyond the average ultrabook when it comes to the touchpad – but that makes sense, as this is a pretty good price. In addition to the touchpad, this machine also has a touch screen.
Lenovo Yoga Slim 7x: Display and speakers
IDG / Chris Hoffman
IDG / Chris Hoffman
IDG / Chris Hoffman
The Lenovo Yoga Slim 7x’s display is the star here. Lenovo included a 14.5-inch 2944×1840 OLED display with a 16:10 aspect ratio, 90Hz refresh rate, and a touch screen. It’s a bright, beautiful display. An OLED display means deep dark blacks and vivid colors, and you’re getting that here.
Really, it bears repeating: That display is one of the big reasons you’d pick this machine out of the first Copilot+ PC lineup. Microsoft’s Surface Laptop isn’t available with an OLED display, so you have to go for a Surface Pro tablet or a laptop from another manufacturer.
In our review of the Intel Core Ultra-powered Lenovo Slim 7 14 from earlier this year, we noted that its 1920×1200 OLED display was a step behind the competition. The upgraded display is awesome. And, thanks to the Snapdragon X Elite hardware here, Lenovo managed to deliver a higher-resolution OLED display and longer battery life versus than the Intel-powered Lenovo Slim 7 14.
The OLED display is a little on the glossy side and can pick up reflections, as you’ll notice in some of the photos in this review. But it’s bright enough that it was plenty readable even in the direct sunlight outdoors, which is a worst-case scenario for any laptop.
The speakers here are similar to that Intel-powered model. There are upward-firing speakers on each side of the keyboard. In our review of the Slim 7 14, we said that the speakers were typical for a laptop of this size and price range, saying that they “provide acceptable audio with good volume and clarity, but they lack the depth and complexity available in Lenovo’s more expensive laptops and 2-in-1s.” That’s a spot-on description of this laptop’s speakers, too.
Lenovo Yoga Slim 7x: Webcam, microphone, biometrics
The Lenovo Yoga Slim 7x includes a 1080p webcam, which is on the “communications bar” that juts out a tiny bit above the display. It’s a nice webcam, and the quality seems a touch better than some other 1080p webcams I’ve used recently. It’ll be great for video meetings.
This machine has a physical webcam switch on its right side. Flip the switch and the webcam will be cut off. You might prefer a physical shutter that covers the laptop’s webcam if you’re a fan of webcam privacy tricks, but that’s often a more expensive feature for higher-end business laptops.
This machine has an IR camera for Windows Hello logins. It works very well: You can open your laptop, and it sees your face and signs you in. But this machine goes beyond that with an interesting presence sensor. If you activate the presence sensor, it will notice when you get up and walk away from your laptop, locking the laptop – which is great for both security and battery life. And, when you sit down in front of the laptop, the presence sensor will activate the laptop and sign you back in with Windows Hello. It’s a nice feature, and it’s something Microsoft’s Surface Laptop doesn’t offer.
Lenovo Yoga Slim 7x: Connectivity
IDG / Chris Hoffman
IDG / Chris Hoffman
IDG / Chris Hoffman
The Lenovo Yoga Slim 7x’s selection of ports feels simultaneously generous and skimpy.
If you’re looking for USB-C ports, it’s generous: You’re getting three USB-C ports, two on the left side of the laptop and one on the right side. They’re all “USB-C Full-Function ports” with USB4 Gen 3, Power Delivery 3.1, and DisplayPort 1.4. You will have to plug the charger into one of them to charge this machine, but you still have two USB-C ports to play with while it’s charging before you even have to think about a dongle.
That’s it, though. There are no other ports here: Not even a traditional audio jack or single USB-A port, and certainly not a microSD card reader or an HDMI port.
That’s fine if you’re willing to go all-in on USB-C! But it’s worth noting that some of these Snapdragon X Elite-powered Copilot+ laptops do offer more ports, so you do have the option of getting them along with this new Arm hardware. Asus’s larger Asus Vivobook S 15, for example, includes USB Type-A, an audio jack, HDMI out, and a microSD card reader.
The Lenovo Yoga Slim 7x includes Wi-Fi 7 support along with Bluetooth 5.4-capable hardware. The laptop’s Wi-Fi performed well, although I don’t have a Wi-Fi 7 network to test the latest standard on yet.
Lenovo lists Bluetooth 5.3 on this laptop’s spec sheet, but a Lenovo representative tells me that the company is a little conservative – other companies may list Bluetooth 5.4 as the hardware is capable of it, even though Windows doesn’t yet deliver it. Rest assured this laptop has just as much Bluetooth 5.4 capability as any other Snapdragon X Elite-powered laptop.
What about application compatibility?
Windows on Arm’s application compatibility is now very good — but not perfect. Remember: We’re talking about a major architectural shift for Windows here. These Snapdragon X Elite-powered laptops are Windows on Arm PCs that can run traditional x86 Windows applications through a Prism translation layer.
For the most part, applications “just work” — either because they have a native Arm version already available or because the x86 version runs through Prism. If it does “just work,” you don’t have to think about it.
But not everything works. Some applications will show errors and refuse to install. For example, the official Google Drive sync tool doesn’t work on these machines. It has to integrate with File Explorer, and it can’t do that through the Prism translation layer. Google hasn’t ported it to Windows on Arm yet.
Applications that need low-level access will be a problem in general. If you have a very old printer lying around that needs a manufacturer printer driver, for example, that traditional printer driver was likely created only for x86 versions of Windows. It likely won’t work on an Arm-powered laptop.
While PC gaming has been a focus of Qualcomm’s marketing, Microsoft says productivity applications will work better than PC games. The Windows on Arm Ready Software website attempts to catalog PC game compatibility, and it notes that Fortnite doesn’t run at all on these machines thanks to anti-cheat support. That’s just one example: Wide game compatibility isn’t here yet.
Lenovo Yoga Slim 7x: Performance
The Lenovo Yoga Slim 7x delivered very snappy day-to-day performance while running on battery power in typical desktop applications, including web browsers like Edge, Chrome, and Firefox, as well as popular productivity applications like the Microsoft Office suite and Slack. While this laptop has fans for active cooling, it stayed cool and quiet in normal use.
The Lenovo Yoga Slim 7x is a great laptop for day-to-day use with typical desktop applications.
We ran the Lenovo Yoga Slim 7x through our standard benchmarks to see how it performs.
IDG / Chris Hoffman
IDG / Chris Hoffman
IDG / Chris Hoffman
First, we ran a CPU benchmark with Geekbench 6. We normally run PCMark 10, but it doesn’t run on Arm computers like this one. Geekbench 6 runs natively on ARM, so we can get an idea of this machine’s CPU performance when running native Arm code without Microsoft’s Prism translation layer involved.
The Lenovo Yoga Slim 7x delivered an excellent score of 14013 in the multi-threaded CPU benchmark, beating both the Snapdragon X Elite-powered Microsoft Surface laptop and the Asus Zenbook 14 OLED with its Ryzen hardware. You can see the huge improvement from the older Arm-based Microsoft SQ3 processors in the Microsoft Surface Pro 9.
The fans stayed nice and quiet while this benchmark was running.
IDG / Chris Hoffman
IDG / Chris Hoffman
IDG / Chris Hoffman
Next, we run Cinebench R24. Cinebench R24 has a native Arm version, which means it isn’t running through the Prism translation layer. This is a heavily multithreaded benchmark that focuses on overall CPU performance. It’s a quick benchmark, so cooling under extended workloads isn’t a factor. But, since it’s heavily multithreaded, CPUs with more cores have a huge advantage.
The Lenovo Yoga Slim 7x delivered a score of 1023 in the multi-threaded benchmark, beating all the older machines we compared it to. It’s faster than recent Intel Meteor Lake CPUs here — in fact, it’s even noticeably faster than Microsoft’s Surface Pro 2-in-1.
The fans spun up while this multi-threaded benchmark was running — they kick in to provide extra cooling for intensive workloads like this one. (I didn’t notice them running much at all during day-to-day application use.) While Snapdragon X Elite laptops deliver cool and quiet operation in day-to-day use, they will run hotter and louder while performing CPU-intensive tasks.
IDG / Chris Hoffman
IDG / Chris Hoffman
IDG / Chris Hoffman
Next, we run a graphical benchmark. Despite Qualcomm talking a lot about gaming performance, this isn’t really a gaming laptop. It’s a laptop that can run some games in a pinch, but Microsoft says compatibility will be better with productivity applications than games. As always, we run 3DMark Time Spy, a graphical benchmark that focuses on GPU performance. We also run 3DMark Night Raid.
Time Spy is running through the Prism translation layer, while Night Raid is running natively on Arm. The pair of results shows the difference between x86 code translated with Prism and native Arm code.
The Yoga Slim 7x delivered a score of 1902 in the Time Spy benchmark. That’s faster than the Surface Laptop, once again. It’s noticeably slower than recent Intel and AMD chips. While Qualcomm is talking up gaming performance of existing PC games that haven’t been ported to ARM, one of the tricks it depends on is Auto Super Resolution, which uses the NPU to upgrade the image. That trick isn’t available to this laptop in this benchmark.
IDG / Chris Hoffman
IDG / Chris Hoffman
IDG / Chris Hoffman
When we ran the Night Raid benchmark, which runs natively on Arm, the Qualcomm Adreno GPU shot past the Intel Arc graphics in the Lenovo Slim 7 14, coming a close second to the AMD Radeon 780M graphics. While Prism works well, it’s clear these machines will perform best when running native Arm code.
While these graphical benchmarks hit the Yoga Slim 7x’s Qualcomm Adreno GPU hard, the laptop’s fans weren’t especially loud while they were running. The GPU can deliver its performance without a lot of noise or heat.
Overall, the performance was impressive. It’s exactly what I’d hoped to see: Nice snappy performance in desktop applications with competitive performance in traditional x86 applications running through the Prism translation layer. This machine also delivered slightly better performance than the Surface Laptop and Surface Pro across our benchmarks.
However, despite all the hype about gaming performance, I wouldn’t buy a Snapdragon X Elite with gaming in mind. Not all games run — and I was surprised to see that even Microsoft’s own Game Pass service for PCs won’t let you install PC games on these computers. It only offers the ability to stream Xbox games from the cloud. If these machines are great at running games, Microsoft’s Xbox team certainly hasn’t gotten the message yet.
For now, you’ll want a more traditional gaming laptop for maximum compatibility and maximum performance.
Lenovo Yoga Slim 7x: Battery life
The entire industry has been talking up the battery life of these Snapdragon X Elite-powered laptops. Lenovo says the Yoga Slim 7x has “multiday battery life,” which the company describes as two 8-hour workdays of mixed workloads. Additionally, Lenovo says this machine has “Rapid Charge Express” technology and can get up to 3 hours of runtime in 15 minutes of charging time, and it seemed to charge nice and fast.
With a battery-sipping Snapdragon X Elite chip and a 70 Watt-hour battery, it should get pretty good battery life. We saw incredible battery life for a laptop with an OLED screen, although it’s not as much battery life as Microsoft’s Surface Laptop with its more energy-efficient display.
IDG / Chris Hoffman
IDG / Chris Hoffman
IDG / Chris Hoffman
To benchmark the battery life, we play a 4K copy of Tears of Steel on repeat in the Media Player app on Windows 11 with airplane mode enabled until the laptop suspends itself. We set the screen to 250 nits of brightness for our battery benchmarks, and it’s worth noting that OLED laptops have a bit of an advantage, as OLED screens use less power to display the black bars around the video. This is a best-case scenario for any laptop since local video playback is so efficient, and real battery life in day-to-day use is always going to be less than this.
The Lenovo Yoga Slim 7x lasted for an average of 951 minutes, which is a tad under 16 hours. That’s a truly incredible number for a laptop with an OLED display. In real use, too, the laptop delivered snappy performance in day-to-day computer usage — applications like Chrome, Edge, video meetings, Microsoft Office, and Slack — while the battery level dropped much slower than it would on the typical Intel or AMD laptop I’ve been reviewing.
Of course, that 14.5-inch OLED display is draining the battery a bit faster. Microsoft’s Surface Laptop beat this laptop in our benchmarks with an extra four hours of battery life — all while having a smaller 54 Watt-hour battery. If you’re looking for the longest possible battery life, you’ll likely want to look elsewhere. But you’ll be getting a less vibrant display. The trade-off is up to you — but, with battery life this good, sacrificing a little bit of it for a more beautiful OLED display feels like a reasonable move.
Lenovo Yoga Slim 7x: Conclusion
The Lenovo Yoga Slim 7x is a great laptop for day-to-day use with typical desktop applications. It offers nice, snappy performance even on battery power. Thanks to the incredible energy efficiency of the Snapdragon X Elite hardware and the reasonably large 70 Watt-hour battery in this machine, this PC gets great battery life – even though it has a high-resolution OLED display.
If you’re interested in this machine, you’re likely in one of two situations:
First, you may be curious about Snapdragon X Elite PCs in general. If so, you should probably do some research to see whether the applications you depend on run on Snapdragon X Elite PCs in general. The lack of Google Drive will be a big deal for some people — and that’s just one example. PC game compatibility isn’t perfect, either. Intel’s Lunar Lake may deliver an experience more like this one with full x86 compatibility later this year. But, if the applications you do rely on work on this hardware and you’re interested in the excellent day-to-day performance with long battery life without waiting to see Intel’s next hardware release, I think you’ll be happy with one.
Second, you might be comparing the various Snapdragon X Elite Copilot+ PCs available now. Compared to a Surface Laptop, for example, this machine trades some of that battery life for a big and beautiful OLED display. And it offers a good deal if you want more RAM and storage, too. If maximum battery life is all that’s important to you, look elsewhere — like the Surface Laptop. If you want more ports (like a USB-A port, HDMI port, or headphone jack, this also isn’t the machine for you.
Ultimately, the Lenovo Yoga Slim 7x is a beautiful machine. Its main problems are with software: Windows on Arm still doesn’t have perfect software compatibility, and these Copilot+ PC AI features aren’t all they’re hyped up to be at launch. But I can’t help but love this kind of performance and battery life combined with a vivid OLED display.
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