You don’t need incredible, teeth-rattling power for a desktop, even a gaming desktop. But you do need something better than the crappy little five-watt nothings that are included in your monitor. Right now, Amazon has the bookshelf speakers that I personally use in my own setup on sale. I’m talking about the Edifier R1280T speakers for just $84, which is 30 percent off its $120 retail price. These speakers have been a staple of PC power users for years, and you’ll see them all over communities like Reddit’s /r/battlestations. They sound great, with crystal-clear mids and a bit of bass power without needing a separate subwoofer. With 42 watts, four-inch primary drivers, and 13mm tweeters, it’s powerful enough to fill an office easily without breaking the bank. And they’re refreshingly simple — you get two analog inputs, a few adjustment dials, and a remote. That’s it. Nothing to mess up. You can read PCWorld’s full review of them here. I’ve been using the R1280T for years with no issues, and I bought a second set for my brother-in-law. Though I’m no audiophile, I can recommend them heartily to anyone who wants to upgrade their desktop sound setup. If you need Bluetooth, the nearly identical R1280DB model is discounted down to just $100 right now. Amazon is calling this a “Black Friday Deal,” so I expect it to stay at this price for the next week. That said, it’s always a popular seller, so I wouldn’t be surprised if it goes out of stock. Get one quick if you’re interested — you don’t want to miss out. My favorite desktop PC speakers are 30% off right nowBuy now on Amazon Read...

Oh boy. We’re just over a week away from Black Friday and the OLED monitor deals are starting to pop out of the ground. We’ve seen multiple stores offering 27-inch gaming OLEDs for as little as $500, but if you want something bigger, Best Buy has this 45-inch LG ultrawide OLED monitor for $1,000. That’s an amazing $700 off its original price. The LG UltraGear 45GS96QB is a unique design. Other ultrawide monitors in this size range tend to go with doubled-up resolutions, but this one has the semi-standard 3440×1440, so it’s basically stretching a 34-inch display to a 45-inch frame. Depending on how you prefer to play, that’s either very weird or very smart — you get a physically larger picture without the big frame rate hit you’d see from, say, a 5120×1440 option. And you’ll want those frames. With its 240Hz refresh rate and 0.03ms response time, plus compatibility with both AMD FreeSync and Nvidia G-Sync, this thing is made for gamers. It doesn’t skimp on connections either, with DisplayPort, double HDMI, and USB-C video with 65 watts of power output to charge a laptop. It can even function as a decent console display with an included remote control. I’ve seen this monitor at Best Buy retail stores, so there seem to be lots of units on hand. It’s available to pick up today at my nearby store… and you might want to try to do the same since it’s showing a massive $200 delivery charge. (To be fair, it is an enormous monitor.) If I had to guess, I’d say this price is likely to remain good through Black Friday, but stock at nearby stores might sell out fast. Take $700 off this 45-inch LG OLED gaming monitorBuy now at Best Buy Looking for other Black Friday monitor deals? Be sure to check out our roundup of early Black Friday deals on monitors. Read...

There are several ways to transfer files from your smartphone to your PC. You can do it via USB cable, stick, Bluetooth, or Android apps. Microsoft’s Edge, Windows’ main browser, is also capable of such an exchange. Whether you’re looking to store your photos or music on your PC or vice versa, we’ll show you how to do it with Edge. Further reading: How to turn off the AI features in Microsoft Edge How to transfer files between your phone and PC using Microsoft Edge First, activate the drop function on the PC. To do this, click on the plus sign in the right-hand sidebar of the browser and navigate to Through Microsoft. Scroll down and click on Drop. A new icon with this name will appear in the bar. Make sure that you’re signed in to your Microsoft account by clicking on the profile button in the top left-hand corner of Edge, selecting the appropriate account under Select account and then Sign in to synchronize data. Now install Edge on your smartphone via the Google Play Store. In Edge, tap on the Add icon with the plus sign and then on Drop under Function shortcuts. Go back to the start page and sign in to your Microsoft account (if you have not already done so). To do this, tap on the profile icon at the top left and select Sign in for synchronization. Click on your account and then Sign in. A new Edge function allows you to send short messages and files to other devices using the browser. IDG You can now send a note from one device to another by entering a text message at the bottom of the window and then tapping the arrow pointing to the right. To send a file, click on the plus sign, select the desired file in the Explorer view and click on Open. After a short time, the file will appear on the smartphone. Tap on Open to view the content in the assigned app. To save the file on your phone, simply tap on the three dots in the top right-hand corner and click on Save copy. It works in the same way from the smartphone to the computer. Windows will display a notification when a message or file arrives. Read...

As an afficionado of all things mechanical keyboard, I’ve seen a few wild designs in my time. But I’ve never seen a commercial keyboard brand make something quite so unique or charming as this. Epomaker’s newest design is a full split ergonomic keyboard that’s all wireless and all wood. It’s also expensive — the complete set with a wireless numpad and wrist rests will cost $549. But dang it if that might actually be justified in this case. The Epomaker x Feker Alice 60 Wood keyboard’s body and keycaps are all made of 100 percent real dead tree. It looks like the legends are even using wood inlay with either a different wood or a different stain for contrast. And the beauty isn’t just skin-deep. It’s rocking triple-mode wireless (multi-device Bluetooth and 2.4GHz wireless) for all three separate panels, gasket mounting for a “bouncy” typing feel, and the all-important hot-swap switch sockets for maximum customization. Epomaker If $549 seems like a lot to pay for a keyboard… well, it is. But in the context of super-premium, custom mechanical designs, it’s not actually that insane. I’ve put about $500 worth of parts (and probably at least that much in my own labor hours) into a single custom keyboard before. And wood keycap sets and keyboard bodies are understandably expensive if you get them custom-made. Here’s a $900 one on Etsy with perfect five-star reviews. Consider that Razer asks for $350 for its most expensive gaming keyboard, with a near-useless screen and zero wood, and this doesn’t seem too bad at all. That said, I should also tell you that split keyboard users are a very particular bunch, and might not appreciate every design decision here. When asked for a quote, my coworker and split keyboard expert Alaina Yee offered, “Where tf is my tenting?” (She’s talking about add-on tools that let you adjust the vertical angle of the keyboard in one or more directions.) And if you’re asking for a ton of money for a split keyboard that claims to be ergonomic, that’s a fair question. If you’re okay with a paucity of particular positioning powers, the Epomaker x Feker Alice 60 Wood is up for pre-order now and will ship in late December this year. Read...

Microsoft wants to be done with Windows 10 and have everyone move to Windows 11. It’s given the nine-year-old operating system an official expiration date next year, and it’s not shy about leaving those users behind. But its latest attempt to spur them on is its most brazen yet: full-page ads telling you to just go buy a Copilot+ laptop. This isn’t Microsoft’s first alert to users that Windows 10 is being retired, and it’s not even the first time it has resorted to full-screen alerts to drive the message home. But the newest flavor of the, ahem, helpful message is much more blatant about being an advertisement. It isn’t telling users to upgrade their current operating system, which would be a legitimate and fairly easy option for any machine sold in the last three years or so. It’s something that similar alerts offered earlier this year. Get Windows 11 Pro for cheap Windows 11 Pro Rather, this new alert spotted by The Verge is just a full-on advertisement for a brand-new laptop. Specifically, Microsoft’s own Surface Laptop line, though it’s merely pictured instead of named. “Want the ultimate Windows 11 experience?” asks the message. “Level up to the new Copilot+ PCs — the fastest, most intelligent Windows PCs ever.” The message reminds you that Windows 10 will no longer be supported after October 2025. There are ways around that, but they’re expensive and temporary. Microsoft seems increasingly insistent — or possibly desperate — to get users off the older operating system. While Microsoft tells users that they’re running out of time, you might say the same for the company itself. Less than a year away from its ultimatum, just under 61 percent of Windows machines are still running Windows 10 while Windows 11 only makes up about 35 percent. The numbers are shifting — six months ago, Windows 10 was almost 70 percent of the Windows market — but it’s a slow drift. Let’s compare that to the same figures for Windows 8.1 and Windows 10, respectively, a year before Windows 8.1 was retired for Windows 10. According to Statcounter, at the same point in January 2017, Windows 8.1 was just 9.65 percent of the market while Windows 10 was 32.84 percent. There’s an X factor here in Windows 7, which was still running on an astonishing 47.46 percent of machines. It would take another year for Windows 10 to overtake it. Microsoft has had a tumultuous time with the last few major releases of Windows, even while it maintains its dominance of the desktop and laptop market. In brief, people hated Windows Vista, loved Windows 7, hated Windows 8, tolerated the less-radical Windows 8.1, and loved the more conventional and powerful Windows 10 again. I wouldn’t say that people hate Windows 11, but it’s definitely gotten a much colder reception than its predecessor due to some major interface shifts and a lot more in-your-face advertising and promotion. The forced integration of Copilot AI features is also turning off a lot of power users. Microsoft probably feels comfortable trying to strong-arm users off its older OS — it’s no stranger to doing that, after all. But 2024 is a very different time than 2017. A lot of users (possibly even the majority?) now interact with their phones more than their primary PCs, and both Macs and Chromebooks are more competitive. Microsoft still has a stranglehold on the business market, but general consumers have a lot more options in a lot more form factors. I wonder if trying to nag people off of an OS they like and onto one they don’t is the wisest move. Read...

Windows 11 24H2 has already caused so many issues since it first started rolling out in October, and there doesn’t seem to be an end in sight. Microsoft is scrambling to address concerns left and right, and here’s another one to add to the ever-growing list. After updating to Windows 11 24H2, some users who don’t have administrative privileges are reporting that the Date & Time section of Windows Settings can’t change the time zone anymore. “The expected time zone option is not visible to non-administrator users,” says Microsoft on the relevant support page, aware of the issue. To be absolutely clear, this is a problem that’s isolated to Windows Settings and its Date & Time section. The problem doesn’t stem from any changes made to the system’s settings, permissions, or user policies. Users with administrative privileges can still access and change the time zone setting through Windows Settings. If you’re affected and you need to change your PC’s time zone, you can do so through Control Panel: Search for “control panel” in the Start menu and launch it. In Control Panel, navigate to Clock and Region > Date and Time > Change time zone… Alternatively, you can use the Run prompt (open it with the Windows key + R keyboard shortcut) to execute the timedate.cpl command. Microsoft is actively investigating the issue and promises a fix in an upcoming Windows update. However, according to Windows Latest, it’s unlikely we’ll see that patch until January 2025 or later. In addition to time zone problems, some users are also reporting that the system time isn’t syncing correctly after daylight savings time changes, and other users are reporting that the system time is occasionally incorrect after the system comes out of sleep mode. Read...

At a glanceExpert`s Rating Pros Rock-solid stability A lovely mix of display ports Superb front-mounted charging options A nice mix of USB-A ports Good performance Cons Way, way overpriced at MSRP Dock gets finicky when connecting to more than two displays Our Verdict If price is no object, Anker’s 778 12-in-1 Thunderbolt dock is one of the best docks you can buy. I love all of its features…just not its price tag. Price When Reviewed This value will show the geolocated pricing text for product undefined Best Pricing Today Best Prices Today: Anker 778 Thunderbolt Docking Station (12-in-1, Thunderbolt 4) Retailer Price $299.99 View Deal Price comparison from over 24,000 stores worldwide Product Price Price comparison from Backmarket Anker’s 778 12-in-1 Thunderbolt 4 laptop docking station is superb, with a solid feature set minus a couple of puzzling omissions. It’s simply overpriced. Our sister site, TechAdvisor, has previously reviewed the Anker 778 12-in-1 Thunderbolt 4 docking station. Now it’s moved to the front of my testing queue, too, where I can take a fresh look. As the name suggests, this dock is similar to the Anker 777, a $299 Thunderbolt 4 dock that I was less impressed with. On paper, the 778 is about as flexible a dock as you might like. With a dedicated Thunderbolt 4 (USB-C) upstream port, DisplayPort as well as HDMI, chances are that you can connect to an external display or two without the need for an adapter. In fact, if you use the Thunderbolt port as well as two of the other ports, Anker says you’ll be able to connect up to three 4K displays. Four displays is also possible, though with limitations. Even though Thunderbolt 5 should be a 2024-2025 product, the lack of virtually any laptops or docking stations that support the technology makes Thunderbolt 3 and 4 still viable. (One customer on Amazon complained that this dock didn’t work with her Thunderbolt 3 laptop.) In fact, if you don’t really care about running a 4K display at 144Hz, as Thunderbolt 5 allows, this dock will be just fine. It’s just a pricy solution. Further reading: The best Thunderbolt docks On the front of the Anker 778 Thunderbolt 4 docking station are a pair of USB-C slots offering 30W charging.Mark Hachman / IDG There are a couple of features that I’ve always liked about Anker’s docks: The charging ports on the front of the dock are labeled — in this case, two 10Gbps USB-C ports supplying a rated 30W each. I’ve also liked the fact that Anker indicates which ports are which — USB-A ports can be tricky. I wish Anker would have labeled its two “USB 3.0” port on the back with a marker indicating its 5Gbps speed, but the other two USB-A ports at least have a “mouse and keyboard” icon over the top of them to indicate their legacy 480Mbps speeds. Anker’s 778 12-in-1 docking station is excellent, and one I’d absolutely recommend buying if the price fell within the range other docks cost. As it is, Anker charges way too much, even as good as it is. To reiterate, this dock includes two 10Gbps USB-C charging ports (30W) on the front. On the side, Anker includes a somewhat short charging cord, about 27 inches. On the rear, Anker’s dock includes a Thunderbolt 4 upstream port, two DisplayPort 1.4 ports, an HDMI 2.1 port, gigabit Ethernet, and four USB-A ports (two 480Mbps, and two 5Gbps). A Kensington lock slot is tucked into the other side. The only two notable omissions? A headphone jack and SD/microSD card slots. I think the latter is of less concern, save for photographers. A headphone jack is optional, especially if you already have a laptop in front of you. But it’s a nice feature whose absence feels a bit out of place. The dock is made out of what appears to be plastic, and it will warm up a bit more than a dock made of metal. It’s rather long at about 8 inches across, and 3 inches deep and an inch high. Anker added a Kensington locking slot to the side of the Anker 778 Thunderbolt 4 docking station. The opposite side houses the Thunderbolt 4 cable.Mark Hachman / IDG Anker is one of the few dock makers that offers a downloadable utility, through which you can update the device firmware. There was an update waiting for me, which promised to clear out a few random bugs. It’s worth noting that even after updating the firmware there were a lot of on-again, off-again disconnections from my connected monitors; if this happens, simply restart your computer. The dock became absolutely stable after that. The Anker 778’s performance is mostly solid Anker allows you to connect two 4K displays at 60Hz via either the HDMI or DisplayPort ports, plus a third 4K display at 60Hz if you connect it to the Thunderbolt port. If you use all four ports (two DisplayPort, HDMI, plus Thunderbolt), Anker says you can connect four 4K displays. Only one will light up at 60Hz, however; the others will use a 30Hz refresh rate instead. You may struggle to get this dock to connect to multiple displays. As a “generic” Thunderbolt 4 dock, connecting to two 4K60 displays, this dock works perfectly well. But adding a third display required downloading the Anker software, rebooting, and fiddling with the display configurator within the Windows settings menu. I typically use a variety of laptops to test docks. In general, more modern hardware is more compatible with a modern dock like the Anker 778, and most laptops with a 12th- or 13th-gen Intel Core chip seemed to do well connecting to the dock, after I downloaded the utility software and rebooted. The rear of the Anker 778 Thunderbolt 4 docking station, with four USB-A ports, an HDMI port, two DisplayPort ports, and an upstream Thunderbolt 4 connection.Mark Hachman / IDG You may have a less satisfactory time with some of the power-sipping laptops that have shipped recently; Microsoft’s Surface Laptop with a Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite chip only “saw” two displays. An Asus VivoBook with Intel’s Lunar Lake/Core Ultra 200-series chip would only connect to three displays, period — if I tried to connect it to three external displays, the laptop’s own display shut off. That’s not the way it’s supposed to work! With two 4K displays, this dock was absolutely solid, stability-wise. When I connected three, I felt less certain that the average user would have a good experience, especially with variations in hardware. Four seems like a bridge too far for most setups. Anker’s docks (like the Anker 568 we reviewed last year) have always performed excellently in terms of charging power, and the Anker 778 is no exception. The front charging ports, rated at 30W, still deliver 26W by my measurements, which pushes into fast-charging territory for a smartphone. Traditionally, the upstream Thunderbolt port can double as a charging port. Don’t bother with the USB-A ports, except for bus-powered devices under 5W. The dock itself is rated for 100W power delivery. I usually take a laptop and run a game to push its power draw. On one laptop, power surged to over its rated 100W, which I’ve never seen before — it touched 102W a few times. On another laptop, the power draw was rock-solid at 87W. Either way, the Anker 778 delivers the power your laptop needs, consistently. Anker’s dock doesn’t suffer in the performance category, either. The dock didn’t drop a single frame while playing back a 4K, 60Hz video. My storage tests were maybe a tad low: 126.8MBps, as opposed to the 130- to 132MBps I usually see. (For more, see how I test Thunderbolt docks at PCWorld.) That dropped to 126MBps when I streamed the video at the same time. My file-copy test completed in one minute, five seconds — again, quite normal. Should you buy the Anker 778? I would absolutely buy this docking station. But I would absolutely not spend what Amazon, Anker, and other retailers are asking for it. Too many of our best Thunderbolt docks hover at or around $250, and this goes way above that. Ironically, many vendors on eBay have adopted that price point (or lower) in selling the 778. If you don’t mind buying through eBay, go for it. Otherwise, I’d opt for the Anker 568 instead. The lack of an SD card slot and headphone jack isn’t a dealbreaker. I’m surprised, however, that Anker hasn’t lowered the overall price to attract more business. This is a premium dock of premium quality, but at an ultra-premium price that you might not be willing to pay. Read...

Starting November 12, Windows 10 users have been running into problems when trying to update or uninstall apps. Normally, your first thought would be that such an issue is due to a Windows update… but that’s not the case here! Yesterday, Microsoft officially confirmed the problem and explained that it’s rooted in an update to the WinAppSDK 1.6.2 package, which was published on November 12. As such, this problem — the inability to update or uninstall — only affects apps that are dependent on WinAppSDK. Unfortunately, a lot of apps are. When you try to update an affected app through the Microsoft Store, you’ll see the “Something happened on our end” error message. Currently, this issue affects Microsoft Teams and other third-party apps on Windows 10 22H2. Other versions of Windows 10 and all versions of Windows 11 are immune. Get Windows 11 Pro for cheap Windows 11 Pro Microsoft is aware of the problem and working on a solution, with a footnote stating that a fix will be made available via Windows Update and other methods in “the coming days.” Until then, if you need an immediate workaround and if you have administrator privileges, you can use these PowerShell instructions to fix affected devices and apps. Read...

Apple’s latest MacBook Air is getting the Black Friday treatment, dropping to a new best price of $849 on Amazon, a rare 23 percent off its original $1,099 price. That’s an absolutely lit discount for a laptop that’s only been out for about eight months, and doubly so because Apple tends to be stingy with its sales. This 13.6-inch laptop features Apple’s speedy M3 chip, which is phenomenal for multitasking, streaming content, and even casual gaming. The 16GB of RAM ensures you have a smooth experience no matter what you’re doing. This is a productivity powerhouse. But if there’s one thing that truly sets MacBooks apart from their counterparts, it’s their gorgeous displays equipped with Liquid Retina technology. The latest MacBook Air is no different, delivering vibrant colors and sharp details and an overall great viewing experience. Also worth noting is this laptop’s incredible battery life. Apple claims you can get up to 18 hours of active use on a full charge, so you won’t have to worry about taking the charger with you if you decide to work out of a coffee shop, for instance. This is a stunning early Black Friday deal that you don’t want to miss, especially if you’ve been eyeing a MacBook Air for a while. Save $250 on this MacBook Air M3 on Amazon while you still can! This MacBook Air M3 is the perfect Black Friday treatBuy now on Amazon Read...

Phishing attacks were so well-orchestrated that they fooled some of the best in the business. Read...