PC/Windows

Microsoft’s original Surface Duo folding phone designed in some serious flaws. The Surface Duo 2, to its credit, appears to have at least addressed them.

When Microsoft launched the Surface Duo folding phone a year ago, Microsoft executives preceded it with a gauzy veil of hype that concealed the many flaws reviewers noted: a poor camera, a lack of NFC and 5G, a subsequently poor track record of patches and updates, and an interface whose bugs made the dual-screen interface painful to use.

Microsoft’s Surface Duo 2 arrives today, available for preorder for $1,499.99 on up, with shipments starting Octobr 21. That’s about the same price as Microsoft’s earlier Surface Duo. Can the new phone fix the flaws of the first? On paper, it takes a good first step.

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Microsoft’s latest premium notebook, the Surface Laptop Studio, borrows the best from Microsoft’s other products: the flexibility of the Surface Studio, the convenience of the Surface Laptop, and the power of the Surface Book. It might not be the Surface Book 4 we were expecting, but with a new pull-forward display, Nvidia GeForce RTX graphics, Thunderbolt, Windows Hello 2.0, and a high-refresh-rate screen, it’s both an interesting fusion of other Surfaces as well as a physical avatar for many of the new capabilities within Windows 11.

The Surface Laptop Studio won’t come cheaply, though. Microsoft has priced the notebook at $1,599.99 and above, with prices climbing to $3,099.99 for the most premium model. The Surface Studio Laptop is available for preorder beginning today, and will ship on Oct. 5.

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Microsoft announced three new Surface tablets on Wednesday, including a larger, more powerful Surface Pro 8, a new Surface Go 3 that boasts options for a faster Intel Core i3 processor, and an updated Surface Pro X. Microsoft’s Surface Pro 8 boasts Thunderbolt ports for the first time, integrated LTE, Slim Pen integrated storage and charging, as well as a new display that can run at up to 120Hz.

The new updates to Microsoft’s tablet lineup are on par with what we expected from this Surface launch, with Windows 11 looming on October 5, though Microsoft’s quick pace of recent tablet introductions means that there’s not as much of a performance gap as with prior generations.

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Glance at the NZXT H510 Flow, and it looks about as you’d expect given current sensibilities. Optimal airflow dominates the scene at the moment. Most new cases now feature mesh front panels, and the H510 Flow is no different.

Yet the Flow represents a shift on NZXT’s part, as you’ll see in the video above. The standard H510 has long sported a solid front panel, as did the H500 and S340 before it. And despite its critics, the case has enjoyed wild popularity. PC builders love this compact ATX mid-tower’s smaller footprint, thoughtful and straightforward design, and minimalist vibe.

But general trends have had their influence, with a result that should quiet most naysayers. NZXT put a steel mesh front panel on the body of the H510, complete with removable dust filter, and made minor additional tweaks. Namely, the two included 120mm fans come mounted at the front and rear, instead of the top and rear. (The standard H510’s smaller air intakes on the right side panel and the bottom front of the case are gone, too.) You’ll find no other changes to the chassis aside from airflow improvements; PC builders still get the same H510 otherwise. The removable hard drive cage, front fan/radiator bracket, and signature cable bar remain so for ease when building.

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In a field dominated by square or rectangular design, the egg-shaped $160 Nexar Pro dash cam (with its equally egg-shaped discrete interior camera) stands out—in a good way. The Nexar Pro is also one of the cheaper options in a dash cam offering cloud storage, bested only in affordability by the previously reviewed Nexar Beam.

This review is part of our ongoing roundup of the best dash cams. Go there for more reviews and buying advice. 

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Previously, I reviewed the RockPals 300W portable power station and rated it 4.5 stars. It had reliable performance, plenty of ports, and a large display that kept you up to speed on everything the power station was doing.

Now I’m taking a look at a device that has the same exact name, but a completely different design. The updated power station lost the dual flashlights, has been shrunk down quite a bit, and the screen no longer details every aspect of the station’s performance.

Note: This review is part of our roundup of portable power banks. Go there for details on competing products and our testing methods.

Features

There are a total of nine ports, all on the front panel of the 300W power station. There are two DC-out barrel ports capable of 12V/60W. There’s a DC input, which you use with the included power adapter to charge the unit itself. And next to the DC ports is a 12V car charger.

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Official news came much sooner than expected. On Tuesday, just a day after leaks surfaced on the company’s Canadian and Mexican sites about models with a bigger screen and dramatically more LEDs, Amazon confirmed the launch of three new Kindle Paperwhites. In addition to a successor for the existing Paperwhite—which was already the best Kindle you can buy—two fresh variants have gone up for pre-order: the Kindle Paperwhite Signature Edition and the Kindle Paperwhite Kids.

A larger screen is the biggest and most notable upgrade on Amazon’s latest e-readers. While these keep the same flush-front design and 300ppi resolution as the current fourth-generation Paperwhite, the display has grown from 6-inches to a roomier 6.8-inches and sports a narrower bezel. It also comes with a new ability to shift the color temperature of the screen’s backlight from white to a warmer amber tone, with the swankier Signature Edition featuring an auto-adjusting light sensor.

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HP will release three new Windows 11 devices to kick off the launch of Microsoft's next-gen operating system, including a fresh Spectre with a juicy OLED display and a webcam designed to blow your socks off, the first laptop with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 7c Gen 2 chip, and an 11-inch tablet with a nifty swiveling camera that lets you show off your homework.

The HP 11 inch Tablet—yes, that's it's name—is among several new laptops, all-in-ones, and monitors that HP dropped on the world today, but it's really the 11 inch Tablet that catches your eye thanks to that unique camera.

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No matter whether you treat your computer as the centerpiece of your home office or just stuff it under your desk, buying the right PC case matters.

At a minimum, you want to pick a PC case that’s the right size for your needs and has room for all your hardware and USB devices. But some PC cases offer much, much more. Spacious innards, lower temperatures, muffled sound, extensive water-cooling support, and fancy-schmancy tempered glass panels or RGB lighting are just the tip of the iceberg.

Here’s a guide to buying a PC case that’s perfect for you. This is just the first step in your DIY journey; be sure to check out PCWorld’s guide to building a PC, too, as well as our guide on setting up your PC's fans for maximum system cooling.

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Windows 11 won’t just change the Windows operating system, it will change the way some Windows apps look and feel, too. Though Windows 11 will launch this fall, Microsoft has already been highlighting several Windows apps that are being updated for Windows 11.

So far, Microsoft has shown off several Windows apps that it’s reworking for Windows 11, including what you might consider to be core Windows apps: Mail and Calendar, Paint, and even the lowly Clock app. Below, we’ll show you what to expect of these new apps within Windows 11. (Remember, Windows 11 is officially in beta. Things may change between now and the final release.)

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With mere weeks left before Windows 11’s launch, Microsoft is deploying its vanguard. The company is expected to launch an arsenal of new Surface devices during its September 22 event, including a significantly redesigned Surface Book 4, the Surface Pro 8, and even a next-generation Surface Duo phone.

Initial reports say we should expect to see:

• A new Surface tablet, the Surface Pro 8
• An updated Surface Pro X, possibly referred to as just the Surface Pro X (2021)
• A slightly updated Surface Go 3
• A drastically updated Surface Book 4
• The new Surface Duo 2
• There have been rumors of a new Surface Dock, as well.

The Verge has reported early information about the new Surface hardware, and Windows Central published Surface details as well. Both sites have a great track record for Microsoft reporting. We’d expect all of these new devices to be powered by Windows 11, either at launch or immediately after. The timing of this event can’t be coincidental. Let’s dig in! 

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How hot is your PC’s graphics card temperature? During normal operations, your GPU temperature shouldn’t matter much—your graphics card should simply drive monitors and play games without overheating and shutting down. But if you have an older PC, or if you want to try your hand at graphics card overclocking, being able to monitor your GPU temperature is vital.

The good news? Checking your PC’s graphics card temperature is dead simple, especially now that Windows finally includes a native way to keep tabs on temps. All sorts of free GPU monitoring tools are also available, and many of them can help you check your PC’s CPU temperature, too.

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Hotspot Shield in brief:

P2P allowed: Yes
Business location: United States
Number of servers: 1,800+*
Number of country locations: 85
Cost: $95.88 per year
VPN protocol: Standard TLS1.2 / DTLS1.2 tunnel using OpenSSL 1.1 library
Data encryption: AES-GCM (128- and 256-bit) and ChaCha-poly1305 supported
Data authentication: All supported cipher suites perform authenticated encryption using an AEAD model.
Handshake: Standard TLS1.2/DTLS1.2

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Anyone who uses a smartphone knows the importance of carrying a backup battery pack. But try searching for one on Amazon, say, and you’re likely to feel overwhelmed by the vast number of options. Besides the various charging specs, ports, and even cables you have to consider, there are a ton of competing brands. How are you supposed to know which ones actually live up to their promise?  

We’ve done the legwork for you, evaluating a wide range of power banks from different manufacturers, costing different prices, and some offering unique features. Our testing is extensive, too, subjecting the packs to real-world usage (read about our testing process in detail below). Our picks below reflect a range of needs. (You might also be interested in our our roundup of USB car chargers if you spend a lot of time in transit.)

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I’ve been quiet for the last few months, but I can explain. I was tasked with testing several power stations, ranging from affordable to almost too expensive. The goal? Find a range of portable power stations for all budgets and use cases.

Admittedly, testing took far longer than I expected. But, alas, here I am, ready with the first review born out of months of testing, frustration, and more testing.

First up is the RAVPower Portable Power Station 252.7Wh Power House, a $179 powerhouse that looks more like a portable speaker than something you’d plug a 110v gadget into, or that could power a lamp for 37:26 minutes. But I’m getting ahead of myself.

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Want to maximize your desktop’s real estate? You have two options: an ultrawide monitor, or a dual-monitor setup. Either choice will massively expand the screen space at your command. But ultrawide and dual-monitor setups are not the same. Each has its strengths and weaknesses.  

Here’s how to decide whether an ultrawide monitor or dual monitors is right for you.

How wide is it?

Everyone looking to buy an ultrawide monitor or dual monitors wants more usable display space. But how much do you gain with each scenario?

A 34-inch ultrawide monitor, the most common size, is not as large you might think. This size of ultrawide is nearly identical to a 27-inch widescreen monitor in height and about 8 inches wider.  

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Adata’s XPG Gammix S70 Blade is the second fastest NVMe SSD we’ve tested, bettering Samsung’s excellent 980 Pro by a smidge—the drive it replaces in the number two spot. It’s also PlayStation 5 compatible and offers a large improvement in real world performance over its predecessor, the previously reviewed and fast-in-its-own-right XPG Gammix S70.

This review is part of our ongoing roundup of the best SSDs. Go there for information on competing products and how we tested them.

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Popups within Windows are one of the operating system’s more polarizing features. If you’re not a fan, you may want to brace yourself, because Microsoft is testing whether or not to add even more to Windows 11. It might not be bad news, though.

As part of the review notes for the Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 22458, Microsoft says that it’s including an enhanced Tips app for Windows 11, with more hints about how to use the new upcoming operating system. But Microsoft also says that it’s going to be scattering more of these hints around the operating system itself.

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