Microsoft Removes Fake Bing Ad for Chrome That Potentially Contained Malware

The Bing ad takes users to a fake Chrome site, and even downloads a seemingly authentic file onto your computer.

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Asus VivoBook S15, VivoBook S14 Lightweight Laptops Launched in India, Starting Rs. 54,990

Asus on Tuesday launched its lightweight Windows 10 laptops - VivoBook S15 (S530) and VivoBook S14 (S430) in India at a starting price of Rs. 69,990 and Rs. 54,990, respectively.

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From Streaming TV to Gmail, It's All About the Cloud

Whether you're watching your favourite show on Netflix or backing up all-important cat photos to Google Drive, the "cloud" has become an essential part of our digital lives.

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Apple Pencil 2 is a radical overhaul, adds wireless charging, gestures and more

With all the big iPad Pro 2018, MacBook Air 2018 and Mac mini 2018 news announced today, you would be forgiven for overlooking another impressive Apple announcement – a new and improved Apple Pencil.

Along with an aesthetic redesign that has dropped the detachable cap and now includes a flat edge and matte finish, the second-gen Apple Pencil boasts a number of noteworthy improvements over its predecessor, including wireless charging and gesture controls. 

That flat edge we spoke of earlier? Not only does it stop the new Pencil from rolling off a table, it also allows it to magnetically snap to the new iPad Pro's side where it can be automatically paired or take advantage of the aforementioned wireless charging functionality – a vastly superior alternative to the old method, which required the original Pencil to be plugged into the iPad's Lightning port.

In terms of gesture controls, users are able to simply switch tools by tapping the side of the new Apple Pencil. That said, users will be able to customize their own gestures, which should come in handy when using non-Apple drawing apps. 

The new Apple Pencil is available to order now from Apple's online store with a dispatch date of November 6, and is priced at $129 (£119 / AU$199). Take note – the new Apple Pencil and its features are only compatible with the newly announced 2018 model iPad Pro. 

• iPad Pro 2018 vs iPad Pro 2017

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iPad Pro 2018 vs iPad Pro 2017

MacBook Pro 15-inch with AMD Radeon Pro Vega graphics are coming soon

The new MacBook Air, iPad Pro and Mac mini might have been the focus of Apple Event today, but one other thing we’re excited to see is new MacBook Pros featuring AMD Vega graphics. 

The MacBook Pro 15-inch specifically will gain new Radeon Pro Vega 16 and 20 discrete graphics options in late November. These new GPU configuration options will replace the older Radeon Pro 500-series graphics to deliver 60% faster better performance according to Apple.

AMD details its Radeon Pro Vega 16 and 20 GPUs will feature up to 20 compute units and 2nd generation HBM2 memory. The component maker also promises users will see world-class HD gaming, responsive 3D rendering and blazingly fast video/photo editing.

Considering how impressive AMD’s Vega integrated graphics have been in Intel Kaby Lake G-powered systems like the Dell XPS 15 2-in-1 and the Intel Hades Canyon NUC, we have high hopes for what these GPUs can do as a discrete graphics solution. 

The MacBook Pro 15-inch won’t be the first of many laptops to receive Radeon Pro Vega graphics. AMD plans to implement its new Radeon Pro Vega graphics into many thin-and-light laptops who want a truly capable mobile workstation and portable PC gaming machine.

Unfortunately, Apple has yet to announce how these new Radeon Pro Vega graphics will affect pricing. We’ll be sure to update this page as soon as the company refreshes the Apple Store again.

• In case you missed it, here's how the Apple October Event went down

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The new MacBook Air is really just a bigger 12-inch MacBook

Apple took the stage at the Brooklyn Academy of Music in New York City to revive its most beloved laptop brand, the MacBook Air, but it ended up doing so only in name. Frankly, what I saw on stage today was basically a bigger and better version of the 12-inch MacBook.

The spirit of the MacBook Air, what that laptop truly represented in the eyes of its fans, was entirely missed in today’s MacBook Air 2018 update.

This is not the no-nonsense, affordable entry point into Apple’s wonderful world of computing that the original MacBook Air quickly became after its launch. Nor does this laptop bring forth the full power of Intel mobile processing into a thinner and lighter design than its rivals.

Instead, what Apple has shown off looks an awful lot like a 2018 version of the 12-inch MacBook with a larger display, Touch ID and one more Thunderbolt 3 port. 

After several years of waiting to see our beloved, approachable MacBook bring that same spirit into the modern era of mobile computing, to have it basically homogenize with an Apple laptop brand that screams luxury above all else, it’s tough not to see a bit of cynicism in this device.

The price

Perhaps the biggest selling point of the MacBook Air, after a revision or two, was its incredible price point. The 11-inch MacBook Air cost just $799 at one point in its life, with the 13.3-inch costing a mere $999 for years right up until today.

While the MacBook Air didn’t start its life as an affordable Apple icon, it certainly developed that reputation over its lifespan. The accessibility of the MacBook Air was lauded in its later years.

In fact, the increasing price of entry into Apple laptops in recent years has become a point of derision, with Apple eroding the lines between its laptop products that had been clearly defined by price. Today, it’s worryingly easy for someone to spend MacBook Pro kind of money on a 12-inch MacBook and get nowhere near the level of power within the former.

The new MacBook Air will make this distinction easier in Apple’s new reality, but it does nothing for the fan that was – arguably rightfully – expecting a brand-new $999 laptop.

The power

First off, the biggest reason that the original MacBook Air models lasted so impossibly long on a charge was because they used far lower-resolution displays than most competing laptops. Frankly, that was just fine for what most everyone used the laptop for: word processing, emailing and watching the occasional video on Netflix. 

Sure, Apple is rating the new MacBook Air for up to 12 hours of mixed online use, but that’s with a completely unnecessary (if absolutely gorgeous) Retina display that, coincidentally, matches that of the 13-inch MacBook Pro. Imagine if Apple would have toned it down a bit with a perfectly-fine 1080p display.

One thing is certain with a lower-resolution display: we would be seeing absolutely massive battery figures from this laptop, figures that would live up to the MacBook Air legacy.

Then we have the processor. The MacBook Air has an 8th-generation, dual-core Intel Core i5 processor, and Apple won’t say much more on the matter. This sounds about right on paper, but the only dual-core, 8th-generation Intel processor is a Y-series Intel Core processor crafted for laptops with fanless designs. 

Every other current Intel Core i5 processor is a quad-core chip and requires fans to cool it. All previous MacBook Air models ran fan-cooled designs with full-fat mobile processors.

The word 'full-fat' today finally means 'quad-core' in Intel's world, so I expected as much with this model considering a major piece of the original laptop's appeal was boasting the power of most rival laptops in a fraction of their size and weight. No matter how you slice it, this will not be the case for the new MacBook Air.

Instead, the MacBook Air won’t be that much more powerful than a 12-inch MacBook is today, and at more of a disadvantage against competing Ultrabooks.

The positioning

While I must admit that the MacBook Air didn’t start its life this way, the laptop quickly became Apple’s affordable entry point into its computing ecosystem. This positioning was so successful that it saw the MacBook Air all but dominate college campuses – and thin-and-light laptop sales – at the time.

The price of this new version for what it gets you doesn’t compare well to the value of competing Windows-based laptops, which positions the MacBook Air entirely differently from its predecessor. Ultimately, it seems as if this laptop isn’t that much more than a 13.3-inch version of the 12-inch MacBook.

By that logic, I’m left wondering why Apple named this laptop the MacBook Air beyond the fact that the name carries incredible brand cache to capitalize on. One thing is for sure: this laptop may be gorgeous and the most affordable Retina MacBook to date, but it certainly doesn’t remind me much of the beloved ultra-light laptop that was basically ubiquitous in its time. 

• These are the best Macs to date

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Apple MacBook Air 2018 vs MacBook Air 2015: just how much has changed?

Apple has heard your cries for a MacBook Air refresh and the company has finally delivered. The MacBook Air 2018 is an interesting device in that it sticks to relatively the same design while completely overhauling the display, processor and inputs.

For the most part, the MacBook Air 2018 is a better device than its three-year-old predecessor. However, Apple has made some interesting decisions in keeping certain specs in the past and considerably raising the price on its historically most affordable laptop.

Design

Apple seems to have taken the principle "if it ain't broke don't fix it" to heart with the design of the MacBook Air 2018, as it looks identical to previous models save for smaller and darker bezels. We can hardly blame Apple for sticking with the knife's edge design of the original MacBook Air.

The MacBook Air 2015 and its forbearers are practically timeless products. They all share a design that competitors are still emulating years later – and only recently have done well. 

This sort of tear drop design is what spurred the entire Ultrabook movement in the Windows PC space. Even by today’s standards, the MacBook Air remains to be one of the thinnest, lightest and most stylish laptops in the market.

Of course, beyond aesthetics, the MacBook Air 2018 heavily modernizes original's design. The display features significantly smaller black bezels compared to the thick gray edges you'll find around the 2015 model's screen. In fact, Apple claims it has 50% narrower bezels.

The new MacBook Air 2018 is also 10% thinner measuring just 0.61-inches at its thickest point. Weighing in at 2.75 pounds, it's also a a quarter pound lighter than the previous edition.

This drop in dimensions is largely thanks to the MacBook Air 2018 adopting a fanless Intel Y-series processor.

That said, it's still impressive how Apple managed to make the MacBook Air 2015 so thin and light while still relying on fan-cooled, full-fat Intel processors. Of course, the ports on offer and the display were in dire need of an update.

On this latest MacBook Air, you'll find two USB-C Thunderbolt 3 ports that both support charging, up to 5K display out and 40Gbps file transfers. Mercifully, you'll still be able to find a headphone jack on this laptop as well.

Apple's other modern laptop reinventions have also made there way here including the company's latest-generation butterfly switch keyboard and Force Touch trackpad. 

Although we would have much rather preferred a touchpad that clicked, at least MacBook Air 2018 tracking surface is now 20% larger. On the top right side of that keyboard, you'll also find a Touch ID fingerprint reader.

Last but not least, the MacBook Air 2018 now features dedicated speaker grills, like the MacBook Pro. Those perforations aren't just for show, either; they house speakers that are 25% louder and deliver two-times the amount of bass than that of the previous MacBook Air, according to Apple.

All told, it's a better design in terms of portability, but it doesn't leave much room for power similar to that of what the MacBook Air held against contemporaries of the time.

Display

The higher resolution display is easily the biggest upgrade the 2018 MacBook Air has seen. Now featuring a 2,560 x 1,600 resolution that amounts to 4 million total pixels, the MacBook Pro 2018 screen is four times sharper than the previous 2015 model. Additionally, Apple claims its latest Retina Display renders 48% more color.

Even when it first launched, the MacBook Air display was not nearly as sharp as competing rivals in its price bracket: a mere 13.3-inch panel at 1,440 x 900 resolution. At the time, laptops in its price range were already pushing 1080p resolutions. 

However, the previous MacBook Air may never have achieved its legendary battery life figures if not for that highly-tuned (if awfully muddled) display resolution. And, if you’re the type to simply write papers and read emails on a laptop, the display is completely passable.

We'll have to see how the new MacBook Air fares in our battery tests with its vastly sharper display. It almost seems assured that we won't see run times hit double digits.

Performance and price

Here's where the MacBook Air 2018 fails to impress. We were hoping this latest rendition would feature full fat Intel Core processors that go up to quad-core, instead what we got was a machine that only features dual-core Intel Core Y-series CPUs.

As if that wasn't a bad enough blow, the MacBook Air 2018 only features (albeit faster) DDR3 2,133MHz memory – the same type found on the MacBook 2015 – when many laptops have since moved onto DDR4 memory, which supports larger capacities. The best news here is the new MacBook Air 2018 has increased the maximum memory capacity from 8GB to 16GB.

From its inception to today, the MacBook Air was always billed as a lower-power device – it’s practically in the name. However, we were always surprised by what the laptop could do considering its limitations.

That said, the MacBook Air internals are dated in some areas and (relatively speaking) lower-power than before in others, from the processor in use to the memory type on offer. You could still easily get by merely word processing and web browsing on this laptop.

The original MacBook Air was lauded as the most affordable Mac you could possibly buy, with models starting at $999 (about £770, AU$1,410) in later versions following its 2008 launch.

Unfortunately, the MacBook Air 2018 is quite a bit more expensive at a base $1,199 (£1,199, AU$1,849), thanks to all those display and port upgrades. 

Takeaway

The MacBook Air 2018 undoubtedly a better machine compared to its three-year old predecessor. But, it almost seems like a win by default.

Of course, the MacBook Air 2018 is going to be the winning machine when it features a higher-resolution display, narrower screen bezels and newer processors. However, there are also a few upgrades MacBook Air 2015 users will have to begrudgingly accept with this new model, including the Force Touch Trackpad and higher starting price. 

If you ask us, the MacBook Air 2018 is less of a successor to the affordable Apple laptop of yore and more of a refreshed version of the 12-inch MacBook. 

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Apple October 2018 launch: the new iPad and MacBook as it happened

MacBook Air 2018 news and release date

We’ve been waiting for a new MacBook Air for literally years now, but luckily, Apple has finally announced the follow-up to its most popular laptop. Gone is the ancient hardware design and the dated internals – everything feels like it should in 2018.

But, how does the MacBook Air 2018 differ from its aged predecessor? Well, with modern components, it’s much more powerful, jumping up three processing generations. You should be able to get all your work done without breaking a sweat. The display is also sharper, getting rid of that 900p display in favor of a much more modern Retina display.

And, now that the long-awaited MacBook Air 2018 is arriving soon, we thought it would be the perfect time to dive into everything that this new laptop can do. So, let’s get to it. 

Cut to the chase

• What is it? A hopeful sequel to Apple’s most popular laptop
• When is it out? Next week
• What will it cost? $1,199 (about £930, AU$1,680, AED 5,099)

MacBook Air 2018 release date

Over the last several years, the MacBook Air has received updates on an annual basis since its initial release in 2008, and in largely different months during those years. However, June has always been the most likely month to see the release of a new MacBook Air. 

However, this year, Apple saved the goods for Fall, with the MacBook Air hitting store shelves in early November. You can order the MacBook Air 2018 starting today, with units hitting store shelves next week.

Apple has just barely made the Black Friday and Cyber Monday cut off, and we expect the MacBook Air 2018 to fly off of store shelves this holiday season.

MacBook Air 2018 price

Ever since the 2011 refresh, the MacBook Air has been Apple’s most affordable laptop. Luckily, with the MacBook Air 2018, Apple has kept its pricing scheme intact. You’ll be able to pick up the MacBook Air 2018 for $1,199 (about £930, AU$1,680, AED 5,099) at the base level. If you want to have the strongest MacBook Air on the block, you can configure the MacBook Air with up to 16GB of RAM for more cash. Either way, while a thousand bucks isn’t exactly what we call ‘cheap’, but it’s still the cheapest way to experience macOS Mojave on a laptop.

MacBook Air 2018 specs

Thankfully, the MacBook Air 2018 drastically improves on the processor and display of its predecessor. Instead of having 5th-generation dual core processors and slow RAM, the MacBook Air 2018 has been brought into the future with Kaby Lake Refresh processors and a high-resolution display. The specs of the MacBook Air 2018 are as follows:

• 8th-generation Intel dual-core processors
• Up to 16GB of RAM
• 13.3-inch Retina display

MacBook Air 2018 features

The MacBook Air has finally been updated, with a ton of modern features that bring it to the modern day. No longer is it the outdated embarrassment of the last few years. We can’t wait to get our hands on the MacBook Air 2018.

Retina display
For the longest time, the MacBook Air has had an out-of date display, that wasn’t even full HD. Those days are over, and the new MacBook Air has a Retina 13.3 inch display with a resolution four times better. With up to 4 million pixels all your images will look brilliant.

TouchID
The MacBook Air 2018 brings Apple's T2 co-processor, which brings TouchID to the MacBook Air for the first time for increased security. It'll also support Apple Pay, so you can do some secure shopping straight from your Mac.

Butterfly keyboard and Force Touch track pad
While there were some people hoping that the MacBook Air would retain the traditional keyboard, Apple has brought the latest Butterfly Keyboard to the MacBook Air 2018. This is the most reliable and quietest thin-profile keyboard in Apple's repertoire yet, and allows for the thinner design.

Apple has also finally brought the Force Touch track pad to the MacBook Air. This is a huge win, as the Force Touch track pad is among the best in the industry.

Thinner design
In recent years, the MacBook Air lost its 'thin laptop' crown to Windows laptops, but Apple is back to fight for its crown again. The footprint of the MacBook Air has been cut by 10% to 15.6mm, and is now the thinnest Mac around.

• These are the best Macs that 2018 has to offer so far

Gabe Carey has also contributed to this report

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HP’s Halloween sale has some spookily good savings on laptops, PCs and more

HP has a bunch of tempting Halloween deals which are live right now on laptops, desktop PCs, monitors, as well as printers and various other accessories.

You can see the full range of deals – which run through until the end of tomorrow, and are, as ever, subject to stock levels – on the HP store. Although we’ve picked out some of the best deals for your delectation, as follows…

There’s some tempting stuff in HP’s Halloween sale, then, in particular on the notebook front. But you won’t wait have to wait long for further bargains to arrive, because November sees what’s regarded as the biggest sale of all, and there will doubtless be some great Black Friday laptop deals to be had.

• And here’s how to find the best Black Friday deals across a range of tech

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Best business laptops 2018: top laptops for work

If you're looking to buy a new laptop for work, then this list of the best business laptops will help you choose. The best business laptops combine cutting edge productivity features with slimline designs and long battery life that provides mobility and productivity - essential functions for the modern workplace.

While compiling this list of the best business laptops, we've taken into consideration a number of key factors including power, battery life, feature set and sheer value for money.

This means that we've selected a wider range of laptops to suit most (if not all) budgets and hopefully all tastes; there's a mix of cutting-edge products and old favourites here.

Almost all of them come with the professional version of Windows 10 to enhance their business credentials.

We also have our very own price comparison tool that will compare prices and make sure you're buying the very best business laptop for the very best price.

If you're looking for a bit more power, then check out our list of the best mobile workstations, as well as our pick for the best business desktop PC.

• Here's our full list of the best laptops of 2018

Where to buy business laptops

• Apple MacBook Pro
• Lenovo Yoga, ThinkPad and Ideapad
• HP ZBook, Elitebook, Pro and ElitePad
• Toshiba Portege, Tecra and Satellite Pro
• Fujitsu Lifebook and Celcius
• Dell Latitude, Precision and Vostro

Previous versions of the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon have been the absolute best-in-class when it comes to business laptops, and this year's model is no exception, with Lenovo delivering a thinner and smaller design with practically no trade-offs. Despite its small size, the ThinkPad X1 Carbon comes with pretty much every feature you need in a productivity machine, making it the best business laptop money can buy. Thanks to a battery life of up to 15.5 hours, and a rapid charging feature that brings the battery back up to 80% capacity in only an hours, the X1 Carbon is an ultrabook that lets you keep on working while you're on the move.

Huawei may not be the first name you think of when looking to buy a new business laptop - whereas Dell and Lenovo are two names you'd more likely associate with notebooks for work, but the Chinese company has proved to be an excellent laptop manufacturer with its new MateBook X Pro. It has a beautiful design that will get appreciative looks in the boardroom, it's light enough to carry around with you, and it has powerful components and excellent battery life. It's also one of the cheaper ultrabooks on the market.

Believe it or not, Dell classifies the XPS 13 as a business laptop, albeit one that is geared towards a home office environment but businessmen (and women) will love the design. This ultraportable laptop – as Dell puts it – punches above its weight with Windows 10 Pro across the entire range as well as rather attractive pricing.

This award winning laptop (it won best laptop of the year from us and many others) manages to pack a 13.3-inch display into the chassis of an average 11.6-inch model. It was also refreshed in 2017 with even better components, for a much improved business laptop experience.

The laptop can be upgraded to 16GB of RAM and a 1TB M2 SSD drive. Battery life is exceptional as well with almost 22 hours of continual use when using productivity applications.

With the 2018 refresh, the Dell XPS 13 is a slimmer, more powerful version with a stunning 4K display and a gorgeous Rose Gold on Alpine White color option. It's powered by an 8th-generation Intel Core i5 or i7 CPU to boot.

The 2018 model of the 13-inch Macbook Pro with Touch Bar is a brilliant upgrade to Apple's formidable laptop range, and it's one of the best business laptops money can buy. While Microsoft had the performance edge over last year's MacBook Pro, with the Surface Book 2, Apple has come out swinging with some seriously beefed up specs for the 13-inch MacBook Pro 2018. The 13-inch model can be configured with the latest Intel Core processors, all USB-C ports are not Thunderbolt 3, and you can have up to 16GB of RAM. If you want even more performance, the 15-inch version is worth considering, as it bumps the specs up even more.

HP was the only one of the three big laptop vendors who didn't have a flagship thin-and-light laptop: Dell has the XPS 13 and Lenovo, the Yoga 900.

That is now no longer the case with the introduction of the HP Spectre Pro 13 G1. This is a device that not only oozes luxury with a combination of colours and a clever design but also one that packs some incredible components.

Despite being just over 10mm thick and weighing just over 1.16Kg, it manages to pack a proper Core i7 CPU with a full HD 13.3-inch display, a massive 4-cell 38Whr battery and three USB Type C connectors. 

Lenovo took an existing form factor and refined it to deliver the new 2016-2017 ThinkPad E470. Powered by the 7th generation Intel Core processors, this particular SKU has a 14-inch FHD anti-glare display, powered by a discrete Nvidia Geforce 940MX 2GB GPU.

Equipped with a spill resistant keyboard, a TrackPoint and a 3+2 buttons click pad, the E470 has more than enough ports and expansion capabilities to keep the average user happy. Shame that it doesn't do DisplayPort, so no 4K output.

Microsoft's second attempt at a pure laptop isn't a huge overhaul of the original Surface Laptop, but it offers enough improvements in all the areas we were hoping for, that makes it worthy of a place on our best business laptop list. The Surface Laptop 2 comes with improved hardware that brings some impressive performance benefits, and if you want a pure, powerful Windows 10 laptop experience that shows off Microsoft's operating system while featuring a premium build quality and design, then the Surface Laptop 2 is the business laptop for you. It also no longer ships with Windows 10 S mode, and instead comes with the full version of Windows 10 out of the box, which will be welcome news for business users.

Read the full review: Microsoft Surface Laptop 2

Last year’s Dell XPS 15 was already one of the best laptops you could buy, but now that Dell has taken the beautiful redesign of the Dell XPS 13 and applied it here – while also making it a convertible. This makes it easily one of the best business laptops money can buy in 2018. It looks fantastic, feels great to use and it packs one of those new Intel Kaby Lake G-series CPUs featuring ‘discrete-class’ Radeon graphics. This means that this laptop packs serious power – even if it can get a little loud.

Read the full review: Dell XPS 15 2-in-1 

The Surface Book 2 (13.5-inch) is another entry from Microsoft in our best business laptop list, and it's worthy of its spot, as Microsoft has crafted one of the most powerful 2-in-1 laptops in the world. The Surface Book 2 has some powerful enough components to handle most day-to-day tasks, and even some light gaming and video editing if you go for a model with a dedicated graphics card. If you want a bigger screen, then there is also a 15-inch version of the Surface Book 2, which comes with more powerful components.

Read the full review: Microsoft Surface Book 2 (13.5-inch)

Chromebooks might not be the most obvious devices for business laptops, but the Asus Chromebook Flip proves that they can be excellent work tools. It comes with a full-fat Intel Core processor, full HD 1080p display and backlit keyboard. ChromeOS is now a more robust operating system with plenty of tools, and if you rely on web-based CMS or Google Docs to do your work, then the Asus Chromebook Flip is an affordable, well built and handy business laptop.

Check out our laptop buying guide video below.

• Want more choices? Check out our list of the best laptop 2018

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Nokia 6.1 Android 9.0 Pie Stable Update Starts Rolling Out

Nokia 6.1 or the Nokia 6 (2018) has now become HMD Global’s second smartphone to receive the final Android 9.0 Pie stable build.

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MacBook Air's Apple T2 Security Chip Prevents Hackers From Tapping Microphones

Apple says that its T2 Security Chip disconnects the microphone when users close the lid.

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watchOS 5.1 Update Rollout Suspended After Reports of 'Bricked' Apple Watch Series 4 Units

With the launch of its latest premium iPad Pro tablet series, Apple also released its latest iOS 12.1 and watchOS 5.1 software updates.

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MacBook Air 2018 With 13.3-Inch Retina Display and Touch ID Launched, Price Starts at Rs. 1,14,900

Apple's October 30 event saw the launch of the new MacBook Air, which hasn't seen a refresh in design since 2010.

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Mac mini 2018 With Up to 6-Core Processors Launched, Price Starts at Rs. 75,900

Mac mini price in India now starts at Rs. 75,900, which gets you a four-core processor, 8GB of RAM, and 128GB of storage.

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iPad Pro 2018 Models With Face ID, USB Type-C, and Slimmer Bezels Launched

iPad Pro 2018 price in India starts at Rs. 71,900 for the 11-inch model. New iPad Pro models come with Face ID and USB Type-C connectors.

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Apple Launches 11-inch iPad Pro at $799, New MacBook Air With Retina Display, Mac mini Portable Desktop: Highlights

Live updates from Apple's New York event, which begins at 7.30 pm IST and is likely to witness the launch of new iPads and Macs.

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iPad Pro With Facial Recognition, New Macs Expected at Apple's Brooklyn Event

iPad Pro with thinner bezels and more screen space, along with the face unlock, expected to launch at Apple's Brooklyn event.

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Pixel 3 XL vs iPhone XS vs Galaxy Note 9: Which Phone Has the Best Camera in Business?

We take the best smartphone cameras and put them in the ring, to see if we have a definitive winner. Guest starring, the Google Pixel 2 XL.

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iPhone XR First Weekend Sales Reportedly Top 9 Million

Analysts have trimmed their estimates for the production and shipments of the new iPhone models for the fourth quarter by 6 million units.

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Samsung Posts Record Profit in Q3 Despite Smartphone Struggles

Samsung profits have been driven by its mighty semiconductor unit, which provides chips for its own devices as well as competitors including Apple.

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Samsung's First 512GB microSD Card, Cheapest Wireless Charger Listed on Company Site

Samsung Evo Plus microSD Card with 512GB storage capacity is currently listed on the German version of its website priced at EUR 289.90 (roughly Rs. 24,200).

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Samsung Galaxy S10 May Come With 93.4 Percent Screen-to-Body Ratio: Report

The display in Samsung Galaxy S10 could feature a 93.4 percent screen-to-body ratio, close to Oppo Find X and Xiaomi Mi Mix 3.

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Pixel 3 XL vs iPhone XS vs Galaxy Note 9: Which Phone Has the Best Camera in Business?

We take the best smartphone cameras and put them in the ring, to see if we have a definitive winner. Guest starring, the Google Pixel 2 XL.

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Samsung Mobile Tops List of India's Most Popular Brands: Brand Asia Survey

The latest entrant in the Indian telecom space, Reliance Jio, has been ranked eighth in the list of top 10 brands by Brand Asia Survey 2018.

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Samsung 860 Evo

The Samsung 860 Evo had a hard act to follow – the Samsung 850 Evo is still among the best SSDs we’ve ever used. Ever since it released in December 2014, the 850 Evo has enjoyed its prominence, thanks to fast speeds, tested endurance and great value. 

Luckily, the Samsung 860 Evo successfully inherits all of its predecessors fine characteristics with faster speeds and even greater endurance. After thoroughly testing both the 2.5-inch and M.2 SATA versions of the 2TB Samsung 860 Evo, we can confidently say it’s one of the best affordable solid state drives on the market today.

Features and price

As with Samsung’s recently revamped 860 Pro SSDs, the 860 Evo series is powered by 64-layer V-NAND technology. (V-NAND stands for vertical NAND, which contains  flash cells stacked vertically and 3 dimensionally for greater density and speed) Additionally, the drives utilize a MJX SATA controller paired with 2GB of LPDDR4 DRAM – specific to 2TB models only – for enhanced speed and power efficiency.

Put all together, these specs allow the M.2 SATA version of the Samsung 860 Evo series to achieve sequential read speeds up to 560 megabytes per second (MB/s) and sequential writes up to 520 MB/s. The 2.5-inch drives from the same line differ with a slightly lower 550 MB/s maximum sequential read speed, but you’ll only find 4TB Samsung 860 Evo SSDs in this form factor.

Samsung has also improved its endurance with the 860 Evo. Usually this is measured through a unit known as Total Bytes Written, which is mostly meant to give users a sense of how long their drive should last. Whereas Samsung pinned its last generation 850 Evo with a  TBW of 300TB, the 860 Evo is rated with a TBW  of 1,200TB – in other words, four times the endurance.

Just like its predecessors,the Samsung 860 Evo series is meant to be both affordable and deliver a huge amount of solid state storage. Prices for both the M.2 SATA and 2.5-inch versions start at $94 (£98, AU$139) for 250GB, ramping up to $169 (£169, AU$245) for 500GB, $329 (£329, AU$476) for 1TB, $649 (£629, AU$1,049) for 2TB and $1,399 (£1,399, AU$2,249) for 4TB. If these prices look great, then you’ll be happy when the Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals drive them even lower. 

Performance

In our testing, we saw small but noticeable improvements in the 860 Evo’s performance over its predecessor. Namely, there are 5-20 MB/s improvements in both sequential read and write speeds. The 2.5-inch version of the Samsung 860 Evo also achieved significantly higher random read and write speeds that are 60-70 MB/s faster.

One odd thing we noticed was the fact that the M.2 SATA version of the Samsung 860 Evo won’t achieve its maximum rated speeds in CrystalDisk Mark. This is probable because of driver issues or incompatibilities with our benchmarking software, which we hope will be fixed in the near future.

Beyond that, ultimately nothing seems to be hampering the performance of the M.2 SATA drive, as it ran away with the fastest single file and file folder transfer by almost a full second in each regard.

When stacked against an Intel SSD 540s Series SSD (2.5-inch), Samsung comes out on top with significantly faster speeds overall, not to mention it costs less. Whereas this 480GB Intel drive is priced at $199 (£199, AU$269), the 500GB Samsung 860 Evo runs for $169 (£169, AU$245).

Teh Samsung 860 Pro still reigns as king of the SATA SSDs with a  faster sequential read and write speed, on top of 10-20 MB/s faster random read and write speeds. Both of which ultimately lead to faster – if only imperceptibly so – load times, booting sequences and general file transfers.

Final verdict

The Samsung 860 Evo is an undeniably better series of solid-state drives than their predecessors. They achieve noticeably faster speeds and offer quadruple the endurance. While we struggled to see the 860 Pro as a noteworthy upgrade, Samsung has brought its budget SSD line to flagship spec – or at least the highest spec the aging SATA 3 standard will allow.

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Intel Core i7-8700K

Intel upped the core count on its mainstream processors with Coffee Lake. This had to happen, and frankly, would have been unthinkable if Team Blue introduced yet another generation of quad-core chips in light of how AMD has redrawn the battle lines with Ryzen and Threadripper.

And, so, here we are.

The Intel Core i7-8700K is at the head of the Coffee Lake desktop processor lineup with six cores, 12 threads and higher frequencies than any of AMD’s Ryzen 7 processors. After using this processor for about a week, 2017’s mainstream flagship is everything we’ve been asking for from Intel with out of this world gaming performance and hyperthreading numbers that outpace Ryzen – with plenty of overclocking headroom.

Pricing and availability

Priced at $359 (about £270, AU$460), the Intel Core i7-8700K takes on AMD’s best Ryzen 7 processors including the $399 (£319, AU$499) 1700X and $499 (£399, AU$649) 1800X. 

Although this processor comes with two fewer cores than its rivals, the 8700K pulls ahead with higher base and boost frequencies of 3.7 and 4.7GHz, respectively.

A hexa-core mainstream processor is a big step forward for Intel, who previously placed anything with more than four-cores within its high-end-desktop (HEDT) E- and X-series ranges.

Speaking of which, Intel’s older six-core i7-7800X Skylake-X CPU might come super close in price at $379 (£349, AU$495), but those X299 motherboards come at a higher premium than the new Z370 standard. Unfortunately, if you’re thinking about moving on up to Coffee Lake-S, you’re definitely going to have to buy a new motherboard, as older the Z270 platforms don’t support latest generation’s higher power delivery demands.

While we’re tallying up the extra expenses, bumping up the core count has resulted in a small price increase. The Kaby Lake processor the 8700K replaces, the Intel Core i7-7700K, was a teensy bit more affordable at $349 (£299, AU$459).

Still, Coffee Lake Refresh has arrived and we think Black Friday and Cyber Monday are going to offer some major price drops. That is, if Intel has enough 14nm supply to go around, however. 

Features and chipset

Intel worked some form of black magic to squeeze 18-cores into the tiny Intel Core i9-7980XE, and some of that witchcraft has found its way into the Intel Core i7-8700K. Despite packing in two more cores than we ever saw on Kaby Lake, the processor package hasn’t grown by a single millimeter. 

While that’s impressive, it’s also slightly annoying that this new generation of CPUs still demands us to buy into a whole new motherboard.

However, the Z370 isn’t actually much of an improvement over last-gen’s Z270 chipset. It still only supports dual-channel memory and, out of the 40 available PCIe lanes, only 16 are directly connected to the processor. The other 24 PCIe lanes share a single DMI 3.0 connection to the processor – which means you can only squeeze out the full potential of two GPUs – or one graphics card and two M.2 NVMe SSDs.

Thankfully, Z370 does have a silver lining of adding official support for DDR4 2,666MHz memory – up from the 2,400MHz frequency seen on Z270 – and improved power delivery for some of the greatest overclocking we’ve seen on a mainstream processor.

Performance

The Core i7-8700K brings Intel’s multi-core performance up to and well above the high benchmark Ryzen has set this year.

This chip soundly overtook AMD’s competing Ryzen 7 1700X in Geekbench 4, with a score several thousands of points higher – by extension, this makes the previous-generation Intel Core i7-7700K’s multi-core numbers look like a joke.

What’s even more impressive is Intel’s latest part beat the pants off its predecessor in all our single-core tests, too.

All of this processing power also ends up helping the 8700K convert video as fast as some of the industry’s most overpowered CPUs, like the Intel Core i9-7980XE and AMD Ryzen Threadripper 1950X – though these aforementioned chips will still win any hyper-threading race through sheer brute force.

In terms of gaming performance, by our testing, you’re not going see a huge improvement. Compared to the Intel Core i7-7700K, the shiny new hexa-core successor increased frame rates across the board, with the greatest improvement seen in titles running at Full HD and Ultra quality settings.

Overclocking and heat

Obviously, with a core count increase comes the inevitable rise in power consumption. However, we weren’t expecting the Intel Core i7-8700K to be twice as power hungry as its Kaby Lake predecessors. Still, at idle, the 6-core chip sips electricity at an average of five wats, way less than the 12 watts the AMD Ryzen 1700X gulps, so Intel hasn’t completely abandoned energy efficiency.

On the flipside, the 8700K is more than happy to soak up extra current and push itself beyond its rated maximum 4.7GHz frequency.

We easily achieved a 5.0GHz frequency across all the cores just by giving the processor an extra 0.02 volts of juice, and only saw the maximum temperature jump to 85-degrees Celsius and 152.84 watts of power consumption. Another extra dab of juice allowed us to further clock up the Intel Core i7-8700K to 5.1GHz across all cores without significantly detrimental effects.

Pushing the six-cores to 5.2GHz unfortunately proved to be too unstable to even get Windows 10 to load properly. While this might seem disappointingly short from the 8700K’s maximum speed of 4.7GHz, we’re impressed with how little extra heat and power demands overclocking created.

At the end of the day, the Intel Core i7-8700K stays relatively cool, maxing out at just 76 degrees, while operating normally and comfortably under a Thermaltake triple radiator as its cooling blanket. The only time it got a bit hot under the covers was when we overclocked the processor to that 5.1GHz mark, where it reached a peak temperature of 87 degrees.

Final verdict

Intel Core i7-8700K proves Team Blue is still the top dog in the processor world. Coffee Lake is a clear improvement over Kaby Lake with impressively higher single-core and multi-core numbers, and ever-so-slightly better gaming performance. What’s more, the staggering hyper-threading performance puts it well above AMD’s octo-core Ryzen processors and even into the realm of some high-end desktop (HEDT) parts.

The Intel 8700K gets a little hotter and more power hungry than we would like, but that was somewhat expected with the bump up in cores. What we didn’t expect as a pleasant surprise was the ease of overclocking the processor to 5.1GHz, not to mention the relatively low-impact of doing so.

The toughest pill to swallow out of all of this is having to get a new motherboard to even use Coffee Lake-S. But, if you’re willing to spend the money to upgrade both components, the Intel Core i7-8700K is the best mainstream processor on the market, and it comes with all the bragging rights of having the highest benchmark numbers in its class.

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HyperX Cloud Revolver S

Turtle Beach XO Three

These days, the vast majority of games – even on consoles – feature online multiplayer (competitive, co-operative or both), so the best gaming headsets are essential for the modern gamer.

There are gaming headsets out there that cost as much as a new console, but are these premium cans really necessary for those who aren’t interested in one-upmanship?

The Turtle Beach XO Three resists that concept – it’s a no-frills, wired gaming headset for the Xbox One X that will only set you back $69 (£49, AU$79), with Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales likely making it even cheaper. It’s a gaming headset meant for users that like playing games, but either aren’t swimming in cash or don’t harbor aspirations to become professional ESports players. 

Design and build quality

As gaming headsets go, the Turtle Beach XO Three is about as basic as they come. It uses 50mm drivers – bigger than you would expect at the price – and has a detachable, high-sensitivity microphone boom which can be bent into whatever shape you feel most comfortable with. 

The Turtle Beach XO Three is physically impressive. It feels solid enough to handle some punishment (as headsets often do when playing games that are harder than Dark Souls), with a chunky leather strap that has plenty of cushioning. The earcups are big and comfortable, even if they use normal foam rather than memory foam. Green highlights signify that it’s meant for the Xbox One, but pedants may argue that it’s more a yellowy green than the one Microsoft uses.

The XO Three doesn’t look or feel cheap, and we were happy to wear it for several hours at a stretch.

The cable features both a microphone and a mute slider – that’s all you get. There’s no surround sound, active noise cancellation or ways of changing the equalisation.

Compatibility

The Xbox One has a design quirk which has been winding us up something chronic for years: its standard controller doesn’t have a 3.5mm jack for a gaming headset. Instead, you have to buy an ugly, lozenge-shaped Xbox One Stereo Headset Adapter, which costs a tenner and slots into the proprietary connector on the controller. 

Microsoft did at least address that issue with the Xbox One S, whose controller – hallelujah – does come with a 3.5mm jack. But for years, we’ve dreamed of the day when an Xbox One-specific gaming headset comes with an Xbox One controller adapter as standard. Sadly, the XO Three has missed that chance to impress us.

However, the XO Three does take advantage of a piece of technology recently added to all varieties of the Xbox One via an update: Windows Sonic for Headphones. Enable that on your Xbox One, and you will be able to get 3D surround sound in your XO Three – which is something of a revelation for a $70 headset. 

Performance and sound quality

Among the games we tested the XO Three with were Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel and Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare. Both of which demonstrated that the Windows Sonic for Headphones 3D surround sound actually works. It may not provide the subtlest of 3D sound implementations – you can tell very clearly whether sounds are coming from left or right, but not, say, if they are just left or right of centre. But it does work, nevertheless, and proved very handy at giving advance warning of incoming enemies, or a general idea of the direction of incoming bullets from unseen enemies.

Surprisingly, Windows Sonic for Headphones had another beneficial effect: it gave the XO Three a noticeable bass-boost, which was pretty welcome since in its base state, it’s a very neutral-sounding headset without the bass extension commonplace among headsets costing $100 or more. 

But with Windows Sonic for Headphones doing its stuff, the XO Three’s sound became much more dynamic, with that atmospheric bass rumble which gamers love coming into play. One minor complaint we had was that the top end sounds a tiny bit hollow (rather than warm), but for the price, the XO Three sounds simply spectacular. 

And we found a way to make it sound even better, by swapping the Xbox One Stereo Headset Adapter for one of Turtle Beach’s orange Elite Pro Audio Adapters, which packs an amplifier and various EQ options. The only slight problem is that it costs $49.99 – the same as the XO Three itself, which rather defeats the object of buying an XO Three. 

But the fact that it opened up the sort of dynamic sound that you would expect from a headset costing over $100 illustrates that the XO Three has the basics right – its 50mm drivers, in particular, are decent. The microphone proved sensitive enough to allow clear chat even in artificially noisy surroundings, and was outstanding in more typical situations.

Final verdict

Overall, we reckon that the Turtle Beach XO Three might just be one of the best $70 headsets you can currently buy for the Xbox One. It takes great advantage of Windows Sonic for Headphones, rendering it suitable even for hardcore gamers on a strict budget. 

Perhaps if you’re on the fringes of a pro-career in Call of Duty or Rainbow Six: Siege, you might want to gain an edge by splashing out on a headset with more sophisticated surround-sound. 

But for games like Destiny, Ghost Recon: Wildlands or their ilk, or any flavour of MMO, it sounds decent enough to let you play to your full potential, and is sufficiently comfortable to let you play games for much longer at a single stretch than you really should.

• Check out our other top picks for the best Xbox One headsets around

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Logitech G413 Carbon

Samsung Notebook 9 Pro

Convertible laptops have been refined down to a science since their awkward first steps onto the market a few years ago, and Samsung is perhaps most representative of this. The firm’s Notebook 9 Pro is a brilliant example of a meteoric improvement.

Available in both 13.3 and 15-inch versions the Samsung Notebook 9 Pro is a convertible 2-in-1 laptop, far removed from the traditional trappings of last generation. Rather, Samsung has decided to simplify things with a single configuration for both models, while focusing its energy on incorporating its S-Pen tech and Air Command software.

This culminates in an economically-configured, svelte, all-metal Ultrabook packed with Samsung’s latest touchscreen and stylus technology. To be honest, we’re so impressed by the device’s aesthetic and power despite its price and specs that we’ve granted it our Editor’s Choice award.

Price and availability

Samsung has smartly specced and priced the Notebook 9 Pro to be affordable. The 15-inch version we’ve reviewed – its only configuration – costs $1,299 (about £1,000, AU$1,720). (The 13-inch model goes for $1,099,about £850, AU$1,460.)

For the list of parts you see here, that’s quite the deal compared to, say, HP’s 15-inch hybrid, the HP Spectre x360 15. Although, it only offers half as much RAM to start, it’s competitive otherwise with Nvidia GTX 940MX graphics driving a far sharper UHD 4K touchscreen for $1,279 (about £1,004, AU$1,684). To wit, it includes an HP Active Pen stylus, though its version isn’t built into the laptop’s frame and requires a AAAA battery.

Meanwhile, the 15-inch MacBook Pro costs nearly twice as much at $2,399 (£2,349, AU$3,499) for a sharper-still screen, the 2,880 x 1,800 Retina display backed by slightly stronger Radeon Pro 555 graphics. Notably, the Notebook 9 Pro’s 16GB DDR4 memory is a step above the MacBook Pro’s 16GB of DDR3 memory. Plus, facial login and a touchscreen on the Samsung hybrid are stand-ins for Apple’s Touch ID and the Touch Bar, respectively.

For the utility that the Samsung Notebook 9 Pro provides with a smart, economic array of components, we’d say it’s a way better deal than the MacBook Pro for most users, and butts heads rather closely with the HP Spectre x360. And, that’s before Black Friday and Cyber Monday – we expect a wealth of deals to come around in November. 

Design

The Samsung Notebook 9 Pro builds upon the tech behemoth’s modern laptop design in a way that’s more uniform and closer to how it constructs smartphones. This results in a curvier laptop than ever, in both the lid and keyboard deck, with an outward silver sheen bedecked by a carbon-colored metal on the interior.

The Samsung Notebook 9 Pro keyboard deck is both spacious and comfy, with a ton of room for the enormous trackpad. In spite of the size, Samsung opted for more spacing between the well backlit keys over a numeric keyboard.

Instead, extra space is given to page control keys as well as arrow keys, meanwhile the speakers are relegated to beneath the base. You’ll find plenty of punch in those rounded keys, and the slightest curve to their surface.

Samsung managed to achieve delightfully thin bezels on the display’s sides, squeezing a 15-inch diagonal screen within a 13.67-inch-wide frame. Likewise, the laptop measures just 1.7cm (0.67 inches) thin and weighs 1.7kg (3.79 pounds).

The screen is as color-rich as any of Samsung’s smartphone displays, making the absolute most of its comparatively just-satisfactory resolution of 1080p. Samsung also calls this a RealView display, able to shine at 350 nits brightness in normal mode and up to 450 nits in outdoor mode.

This makes it easier to see your work or play in the sunlight, though it’s still a glossy panel, making glare an inherent annoyance. That said, games and video look brilliant on the display, as do doodles in the Samsung Air Command app.

The S-Pen on Windows 10

Speaking of which, the inclusion of the S-Pen here is pretty clever, with a slot for the stylus embedded into the right side of the base at the lip. Unlike digital pens, it requires no charging, and yet, offers up to 4,096 levels of pressure sensitivity as well as tilt controls. This stylus is competitive with even Microsoft’s latest Surface Pen, which weighs twice as much and requires a battery for the same basic functions save for a software eraser and deeper Windows controls.

Drawing the S-Pen from its sheath automatically conjures a radial menu of options from where the Action Center appears. This is called Air Command, and the options available include Create Note, View All Notes, Smart Select, Screen and Show Window.

The first option is a notetaking app similar to OneNote, called Samsung Notes, though much simpler than Microsoft’s version. It offers various ink types and colors ... and not much more. At least you can save and share those notes as well as draw over existing image files.

Smart Select is a much more powerful tool, allowing you to use the S-Pen to draw out rectangular or oval-shaped screenshots, and can even read text from said image and extract it into another document. Better yet, the tool can create GIFs by framing a recording space over your favorite video clips no matter the source.

Screen Write simply captures a screen and allows you to doodle on it, while Show Window allows you to choose which windows are shown on which displays in multi-screen environments.

All in all, it’s a robust stylus offering that feels perfectly light and fast. Digital ink doesn’t lead too much while drawing and writing, thanks in part to strong display response. While we prefer the “truer” eraser in the Surface Pen, we’ll take the button-based one on the S-Pen for its improved portability and fun features.

• Compare this to Apple's MacBook 2017 and MacBook Pro 2017

The Notebook 9 Pro won’t disappoint the average user, offering more than suitable performance for the student or home user with its Core i7 processor and AMD graphics. 

You can even expect to game moderately well, though don’t expect to get much further than games like World of Warcraft or Hearthstone.

With 16GB of DDR4 memory, you can expect to be able to multitask particularly well, with room for plenty of browser tabs in there. As we’ve said before, the touchscreen delivers as well, with snappy response to the stylus and facial login via Windows Hello is speedy.

This laptop seems to prioritize getting to whatever it is that you’re doing quickly, and in style, above most other factors. That’s where Samsung’s smart economic decision making came into play, opting for Full HD 1080p rather than 4K screen resolution, for instance.

Decisions like these not only helped the Notebook 9 Pro outperform the Spectre x360, competing against its own 4K display essentially, in graphics, but also in longevity.

Battery life

We saw varying battery life scores from the Notebook 9 Pro in our two tests, providing testament to how much they should be trusted. While the Samsung laptop came in an hour short of the HP device in our PCMark 8 battery test, the Notebook 9 Pro smoked its rival in battery life by nearly three hours in our own video playback test.

Beyond that, we’ve found general use to sit between 6 to 8 hours. This could in part be thanks to battery-saving improvements Microsoft introduced to Windows 10 with the Creators Update just this past spring, after the Spectre x360 was reviewed. Meanwhile, the indomitable 15-inch MacBook Pro boasts a much-closer 7 hours and 45 minutes.

Still, this battery outlasts both, and even supports fast charging through the laptop’s USB-C port. In our book, those are the makings of a winner.

We liked

Samsung truly is cramming a lot of value into this package for the price point, remaining well competitive with rivals while providing much of the same power and panache as a MacBook Pro for far less. We also appreciate the laptop’s long battery life and bevy of ports new and old, namely the combination of USB-C and USB 3.1 as well as microSD support. The screen is also rich in color and just sharp enough.

We disliked

While it’s not a knock against the S-Pen, we prefer our styluses a little weightier, though, not having to charge is a huge plus. We just wish that, with rather ample space, the speakers could have been better positioned. And, if we’re really nitpicking, the bottom bezel on the display is a little thick for our tastes.

Final verdict

We may not be huge fans of hybrid laptops of this size, Samsung has done it so well that we may well be converts. Awfully competitive with close rivals and taking the 15-inch MacBook Pro to task, the 15-inch Samsung Notebook 9 Pro should be on your list of go-to 15-inch laptops.

Should you never turn the laptop 360 degrees via its gorgeous, sturdy hinges, you can still appreciate so much power and convenience from this machine. It’s for that reason that we’ve deemed the Notebook 9 Pro worthy of our Editor’s Choice Award.

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HyperX Cloud Alpha

Throughout the last few years, we’ve seen so many gaming headsets like the $99 (£199, AU$169) Logitech G433, $79 (£54, AU$99) Astro A10 and the $99 (£84, AU$159) SteelSeries Arctis 5. And, even if HyperX has already released the Cloud Stinger ahead of these headsets, it’s now bringing in a slightly more mid-range HyperX Cloud Alpha that ups the quality without upping prices too much.

In fact, at $99 (£99, AU$169), the HyperX Cloud Alpha is one of the best gaming headsets in its price bracket, even if it doesn’t have the same versatility as some comparable headsets. Plus, with Black Friday and Cyber Monday incoming, we’re expecting prices to drop drastically.  

Design

If you’ve seen the previous two iterations of HyperX’s Cloud and Cloud II gaming headsets, the Alpha will look fairly familiar – though there have been improvements.

The new slotted metal frame gives the headset a more industrial look than the crescents of solid metal used in previous HyperX Cloud products. At the same time, we appreciate the fact that the peripheral maker has finally given the headset one cohesive, anodized look, matching the plastic bits to the aluminum frame.

HyperX has also padded out the cushions on the both the ear cups and headband with thicker and spongier foam. The pliable cushions help make wearing the headset for long play sessions more bearable.

However, even with these small improvements, this still really isn’t a headset we would be caught outside with. Its blaring style sticks out in the streets more than the Logitech G433’s subdued sports-mesh wrapped exterior or the SteelSeries Arctis 5’s massive cans.

Performance

Moreover, the Cloud Alpha’s sound profile lends it to being one of the best gaming headsets, but not much more than that.

The HyperX Cloud Alphy may only offer stereo sound, compared to the DTS 7.1 surround sound on the Logitech G433 and SteelSeries Arctis 5, but HyperX’s 2.1 channels sound fully baked and less artificial than its competitors simulated surround sound.

Even without the directional audio, I could clearly tell from whether a Winston was dropping in or if a Reaper was trying to get a sneaky “Play of the Game” in Overwatch. 

With this headset, HyperX has introduced a new dual chamber driver for better audio and less distortion. Basically, this added complexity allows for the bass to reverberate in its own space while mid tones jump off the closed back end of the headset. Luckily, during our testing the HyperX Cloud Alpha proved to provide fuller mid tones and beefier bass.

Unfortunately, the lows don’t get nearly as much attention and become a bit muddled. Luckily, this will only factor with certain songs and the subtle dialogue of a Scorsese flick. If you’re looking for a gaming headset that works just as well for listening to music regularly, you’re better off with the Logitech G433.

Final verdict

The HyperX Cloud Alpha isn’t the one-all-be-all headset its competitors are trying to sell. Instead, it’s a well-conceived gaming headset that makes subtle, but significant improvements over its predecessor. For $99 (£99, AU$169), you won’t find a better sounding stereo gaming headset, but you’ll have to look elsewhere for something more versatile.

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Mac mini (2018)

The new Mac Mini 2018 marks the return of a fan-favorite Apple computer, one that packs a lot of power into a compact, square aluminum shell. The specs and our brief hands-on time with this tiny, but mighty Mac proves is a sizable upgrade.

It's five times faster than the previous Mac Mini, and while that computer maxed out at 16GB of RAM, the new Mac Mini goes all the way up to 64GB of RAM. Apple is also kicking up the speed and capacity on its onboard storage, going SSD-only up to 2TB.

Sure, the design changes in four years time basically amounts to a color change. It now comes in space gray. The real overhaul is under the hood, with up to six cores on an 8th generation Intel Core i5 or Core i7 chip.

The Mac Mini is being positioned as a tool for creators, with Apple claiming that it's 30 times faster at encoding HEVC video. And, it has a bunch of ports on back – just one HDMI port, though. Thankfully, there are four Thunderbolt 3 USB-C ports to take their place.

Price and availability

The Mac Mini starts at $799 (£799, AU$1,249) and tops out at $1,099 (£1,099m, AU$1,699). It goes up from there, especially if you add more internal storage and RAM. 

Comparatively, the Surface Studio 2 starts at $3,499 (AU$5,499, about £2,680) and comes equipped with an 7th Generation Intel Core i7 processor, Nvidia GeForce GTX 1060 (6GB GDDR5 memory) graphics, 16GB of DDR4 memory and a 1TB NVMe SSD – not to mention the touchscreen.

Pre-orders for the new Mac Mini 2018 start today, with the official release date set for November 7.

Design

The Mac Mini design is small, compact, and fairly boring if you're looking for some excitement. Design flair isn't what this workhorse Mac is all about. What's unique about it is how much Apple is able to pack into a small square-shaped aluminum case.

There are at least some interesting tweaks to the new Mac Mini, now in Space Gray to match the iMac Pro (and your only color option). It has a 2x airflow thermal system while still being quiet, according to Apple and 60% post-consumer plastic in certain parts (like the foot), made from 100% recycled aluminum.

On back, we got to scope out the ports:

• 1x 10GB Ethernet
• 1x HDMI
• 2x USB-A
• 4x Thunderbolt 3 USB-C
• 1x Headphone jack
• 1x Power cable

There's also the power button on the back corner, and on the opposite end is a standard 3.5mm headphone jack – it lives. 

Everything is situated in the back for a clean look, which keeps wires situation from sprawling all over the place in a Medusa-like fashion.

With just one HDMI port, you're going to have to either upgrade to a Thunderbolt 3 monitor or live the dongle life in order to support more than one monitor... on a desktop machine. Considering the Mac Mini is built as a creator's tool, multiple monitors are often a must, so many people will have to buy extra accessories. 

The good news is with Thunderbolt 3, you'll be able to run two 4K displays at once, and you'll still have two ports leftover – maybe one for an external graphics card solution, which the Mac Mini 2018 supports. As per usual, the keyboard isn't included, but an additional accessory.

Performance

Although we only had a short time to play around with the Mac mini, it felt plenty speedy on the performance front. MacOS Mojave was incredibly responsive, and processor intensive apps, like Final Cut, ran without any hick ups.

The Mac mini runs with desktop-grade 8th Generation Intel Core processors in quad- and- hexa-core iterations, so we have high hopes for its computing power. According to Apple, its new square-shaped desktop delivers five times the amount of performance over its predecessor.

We're also extremely happy that Apple went with SO-DIMM memory, which should make it easy to upgrade this machine's memory. Unfortunately, Apple hasn't revealed whether it went with its proprietary NVMe SSD controller, but we're hoping to discover if the flash storage inside this desktop is also user upgradable. 

The only limitation we foresee is this machine only comes with Intel UHD 630 integrated graphics. We would have much rather seen some form of discrete graphics, but those looking for a boost in performance on this front could plug in an eGPU.

Early verdict

The Mac mini fulfills the wish of everyone who demanded that Apple upgrade its smallest desktop computer. Apple did just that, without doing anything to the overall design, and that's perfectly okay for a creator's tool. All of the power is on the inside.

You're going to pay dearly for upgrades beyond the entry level price, which is higher than the Mac mini price from four years ago. But, it'll upgrade you to the future of Thunderbolt 3 speeds and pure SSD storage, which should be worth the cost.

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New iPad Pro 12.9 (2018)

Apple’s ‘other’ iPad is arguably its most impressive, with the larger screen and reduced bezel something that really stands out the second you pick it up.

The fact this thing is mostly screen means you’re carrying an incredibly powerful and versatile tablet around with you at all times, and yet it doesn’t pack the heft of the previous two iterations of the ‘massive iPad Pro’ – those 12.9-inch models were large beasts with meaty bezels.

The specs on the new iPad Pro 12.9, beyond the larger display and battery, are pretty much identical to those of the new iPad Pro 11, so if you want to read in depth about what’s going on with the new range, we suggest you check out our hands-on New iPad Pro 11 review.

We’ll whizz through the main talking points here too though, as well as giving you a rundown on how the larger size feels to use.

New iPad Pro 11 price and release date

Oh, the other thing that’s different about the new larger iPad Pro: the cost. It’s pretty hefty, as you can imagine, coming in at $999 to start – although given what you’re holding, in terms of design and screen quality, it doesn’t actually feel that bad.

The cheapest version of the iPad Pro 12.9 comes with 64GB of storage and the price starts at $999 / £969 / AU$1,529. The 256GB costs $1149 / £1,119 / AU$1,749, while the 512GB model is $1,349 / £1,319 / AU$2,049. Then there’s the largest, 1TB version, which costs $1,749 / £1,719 / AU$2,649 – that's a lot of money for a tablet.

And those prices are for the Wi-Fi-only version, so if you want a mobile connection to your iPad you’ll be spending $150 / £150 / $220 on top of the prices above.

Apple has set the new iPad Pro 12.9 release date for November, meaning you won’t have to wait long to get your hands on the new device.

Pre-orders are live already, so if you’ve decided that you want to dump a truck-load of cash on a new tablet, you can do so – and then avoid looking at your bank balance for a while.

Design

The first thing you'll notice when picking up the new iPad Pro 12.9 is that it's BIG. We're talking gargantuan in your hands – well, that is if you've not used one of the other 12.9-inch models before.

The reason we add that caveat is because, to our eye, one of the most impressive things about this new, ginormous tablet is that it doesn't actually feel that big. 

Having used the previous iPad Pro 12.9 models, this one feels like their futuristic cousin, shorn as it is of those chunky bezels.

The outer rim is now much slimmer and cleaner than before, and you can just make out the sensors locked away on the left-hand side, glinting and trying to pick up your face. 

Compare this to the iPad Pro 12.9 of 2015 and you’ll feel like you’re holding something truly next-generation.

The loss of the home button on this tablet is felt the least out of all the Apple products to eschew it – there's no way that you can easily plop your thumb on that section of the bezel anyway, without worrying that you're going to drop your expensive iPad Pro.

New gestures

iOS 12 brought the same gesture-based interface from the iPhone to the iPad, and we’ve found it’s far more intuitive for a larger device.

The size also means the loss of the headphone jack is less of a hassle than you might expect – yes, we're irritated by the need to have a set of Bluetooth headphones, or an adaptor to use wired options, but with the tablet becoming slimmer the loss of the jack was inevitable.

The screen quality of the new iPad Pro 12.9 is what sells this device – it's just so expansive, and impressive for something that's more portable than you might imagine. Combine that with the power of the new A12X Bionic chipset inside, and there's very little this thing can't handle.

Apple has been making a big deal about the augmented reality capabilities of its devices of late, telling anyone who'll listen that AR is going to become a 'thing' in the near future.

On the one hand, the massive iPad Pro 12.9 screen is just what's needed to scope out space aliens hidden in your living room (or similar) but it's also a bit large to hold when you're wheeling around.

The new Apple Pencil complements the new iPad Pro 12.9 pretty well, and it’s so much better now that it’s able to sit magnetically on the top and charge. The old ‘alien' antenna was a big miss, it felt. 

The new USB-C connector means you won't be able to use any Pencils of old though – those Pencils needed to be plugged into the Lightning Port in order to pair with the iPad – which will probably annoy those who are upgrading from the iPad Pro 12.9 that was first unveiled in 2015.

Using the Apple Pencil on the new iPad Pro 12.9 was a strong experience though, with the latency of the ‘touch to brush’ the best we’ve felt on an iPad so far – much more than with previous Pros we feel like this is something we’d want to regularly use. It really does feel like it could replace a notepad, and on the larger screen it's much easier to see what you’re sketching out.

Battery and camera

The new large iPad Pro is supposed to last ‘all-day’ on a single charge if you're just using your tablet for general tasks, and not trying your hardest to run down the battery. However, Apple really skirted over this element in the keynote, so something tells us that battery life isn’t going to be a headline spec here at all.

There's also the same 12MP camera here as seen on the iPad Pro 11, so if you need to use the camera for work, or in an educational scenario, we're thinking this is a nice thing to have. 

Please don't use the iPad Pro 12.9 as your main photography device though, given the whoppingly large screen that will get in the way of anyone trying to actually see the thing you’re trying to snap.

The sound quality out of these speakers is better than ever before – and as we were already taken with the power of the iPad Pro as a multimedia device, and given how much thinner it is than before, this achievement is doubly impressive.

In the loud auditorium of the demo area at the launch event it was almost impossible to hear people speaking, but still ‘Ready Player One’ was kind of audible over the din – and the vibrations from the speakers certainly felt powerful in the hand.

Early verdict

If we were going to buy a new iPad Pro, this would certainly be the one. The extra $200 is a lot to take, given you’re not getting that much more of a spec bump beyond the screen, but it’s just so nice to hold.

This is the tablet you want if you’re a photographer looking to check out your images on the go, or any professional who needs excellent image quality in a highly portable form factor.

There are still inherent limitations within iOS 12 that will prevent many power users from being able to use the iPad Pro as their main device – it can’t multi-task on a larger screen, for instance – and it sucks that you have to buy the keyboard and Pencil separately.

But for day to day use, for a device that lets you interact with creative projects on the go, there’s not much that’s going to come close to this device.

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