When I need to communicate with friends, family or colleagues, I often turn to Hangouts. The reason why is simple -- most of them have Gmail accounts, which in turn, means they can be contacted on Hangouts too. Not to mention, the service is available for all platforms, except the lowly Windows Phone, of course.

Unfortunately, the Android app has been lagging behind for a while now. For whatever reason, the iOS version has been superior, in both usability and appearance. Today, this changes, as Google finally pays attention to Android users and delivers Hangouts 4.0.

Me and my Surface Pro 3 are the best of friends. Not only is Microsoft's computer a great tablet and laptop, but a wonderful desktop too. It can drive a 4K monitor, albeit not at 60hz, making it a solid workstation -- especially when paired with the optional dock.

Where the Surface falls short, sadly, is gaming, so with the release of Windows 10 and DirectX 12, I wanted to build a new gaming PC. My goal was to see if it can be done in a fairly affordable way. The best route for this, is an AMD APU. If you aren't familiar, an APU is essentially a CPU and GPU in one. This means you can forgo buying a dedicated graphics card to save some money.

I am a strong believer that all mobile data plans should be unlimited and not throttled. The smartphone revolution was dealt a serious blow when cell phone carriers started limiting the data a customer could use -- developers shouldn't have to be concerned with how much data their apps use.

Today, Verizon announces that new data plans will roll out on August 13th. While they are still not unlimited, they look pretty reasonable. More importantly, however, the company is doing away with contracts altogether. In other words, it might be a great time to make the jump to the carrier that many people -- myself included -- consider to be the best in the USA.

When you are hungry, and your wallet is a bit light, there is one place you should visit -- the all-you-can-eat Chinese buffet. For a small entrance fee, you can gain access to passable food, and eat until you are ready to explode. Typically, the food is neither healthy nor high quality, but it does fill you up.

This same business model is behind streaming services like Spotify and Netflix. You get to consume as much media as you'd like for a monthly fee. Have you ever dreamed of having something like this for x-rated adult videos? Well, you are in luck. Pornhub announces a new Premium service that will allow you to watch all the porn you want for a paltry $9.99 per month. This is not just video clips, but full-length high definition films too.

Healthcare and prescription costs have been going through the roof in recent years, while people still struggle with a bad economy. To make matters worse, older people are living longer (a good thing), while many younger people are in worse health than ever before (a terrible thing). Obesity, diabetes, heart disease -- huge problems.

With all of these struggles, people turn to the internet for medical advice and discount drugs -- scary. True, not all online pharmacies are bad; quite the contrary, but some of them sell expired, dangerous, and counterfeit drugs, which can have tragic results. Luckily, Bing is now protecting its users from this scourge. Whether you are buying Viagra, insulin or heart pills, Microsoft's search engine will have your back.

Apple is one of the most forward-thinking companies in the world. Its products are legendary, and the innovative iPhone revolutionized the smartphone market. Heck, iOS has impacted the entire computer industry arguably for the better.

Unfortunately, Google's Android has been a thorn in the company's side for years, stealing market share and allegedly angering the beloved Steve Jobs in the process. With that said, it is very curious to see Apple hiring Android software engineers. Yup, you are reading that correctly. Could Apple be planning to release apps for the Android platform?

While Acer is normally a value-focused PC manufacturer, it has been branching out beyond its niche. Its Predator line of gaming desktops are well-received in the PC gaming community and a great choice for those that do not want to build their own rig.

Today, Acer announces its latest gaming offering, the Predator G6-710 desktop. It contains the top-of-the-line, freshly released, Intel Skylake processor (Core i7-6700K) and looks drop-dead gorgeous. Acer is pairing that brand-new CPU with a powerful NVIDIA GPU, the GeForce GTX 980.

When Microsoft unveiled its legendary Start Menu in Windows 95, it changed everything. The usability resonated with consumers, arguably leading to a huge increase in personal computer sales. While the menu remained mostly unchanged for many years -- apart from small additions and appearance tweaks -- Windows 8 replaced it with a Start Screen that consumers largely rejected. Things were looking bad for Windows for a while there.

Luckily, Microsoft was on the right track with the much maligned Start Screen -- its innovative live tiles just needed to be delivered in a different way. Enter Windows 10. The latest version of Microsoft's operating system combines the classic Start Menu with the best aspects of the Start Screen and so far, consumers seem to love it -- sentiment has largely been positive on social media. Want proof that the Windows 10 Start Menu is revolutionary? Look no further than the prestigious digital design award bestowed upon it today!

If you are looking to either build or buy a gaming desktop, and money is no object, you want Intel processors. Its chips offer the best performance by far, although you usually have to pay to play. Comparatively, AMD's processors can be less powerful in some areas, but offer great value for the money.

Today, Intel announces its 6th generation of "i" processors, code-named "Skylake" by releasing two new chips. The Core i5 and i7 chips are perfectly timed for Windows 10 as they feature DirectX 12 graphics support, but hardcore gamers will want to add a discrete card from AMD or NVIDIA anyway.

The saddest thing about the summer is that it must end. If you are a student -- high school or college -- you are probably sad about your vacation ending. Yeah, it stinks, but you know what makes it stink less? Buying new technology -- hopefully with your parents' money!

While laptops and calculators used to be the only tech a student would need to focus on, 2015 has so much more. There are tablets, e-readers, music players, alarm clocks, and so on. It can feel overwhelming, but don't worry -- I've got you covered. Here is the tech you need for the upcoming semester.

Windows 10 is off to a very successful start. All around the world, users of Windows 7 and 8 are upgrading to the new version at a furious pace. This is a very smart move, as for the first time ever, a major update to Microsoft's operating system is being offered to the masses at no charge.

While Windows 10 should run absolutely fine on existing computers and current accessories, that doesn't mean there can't be improvements. Today, Microsoft announces updates to its well-respected line of mice and keyboards, with a focus on Windows 10. Will you upgrade your keyboard and mouse to its new offerings?

When Google's Chromebooks came onto the retail scene, consumers were dubious, and rightfully so. After all, for the most part, the operating system appeared to be nothing more than a web browser. While Chrome OS is actually a full-fledged Linux distribution, the focus is on the web browser, so consumers aren't far off -- perception is everything.

While Chromebooks can be a great option for people with limited computing needs, Windows 10 offers so many more possibilities. Despite limitations, what kept Chromebooks semi-popular, was the low cost. Unfortunately for Google, that benefit is short-lived. Today, Acer announces its Aspire One Cloudbook line. With super-low prices and Windows 10 Home, these are sure to be wildly popular; consumers may forget about Chromebooks altogether.

When you work in sales, there can be rewarding moments, but there are many negative moments too. Not only can the career be boring at times, but it can also be very stressful. You constantly have to worry about meeting goals and performing well. A bad month or quarter could mean a loss of employment or the inability to pay bills.

Gamification, however, can make reaching goals fun. If you aren't familiar, this is a method of integrating video game type badges and levels into boring work tasks in an effort to make it more fun and less stressful. Today, Microsoft announces the acquisition of Incent Games Inc, and its gamification platform, FantasySalesTeam.

One of the worst tragedies a person can experience is a home fire. If the flames themselves don't destroy your belongings, the smoke, and water from hoses probably will. In other words, it is a very serious thing and should not be taken lightly.

Sadly, Nvidia's Shield tablets are a fire-hazard. If you own one of the affected tablets you should stop using it immediately. Do not charge it and do not power it on other than to verify if it is affected. Not sure if yours is impacted? Read on to learn more.

With the release of Windows 10, many people are looking to not only buy new computers, but build them too. Building a new PC can be a very rewarding experience, as you can pick all of the components and customize it to your liking.

One of the most important parts of any build is the chassis, or case. Not only can the case design impact cooling performance, but it determines the overall aesthetics. Today, Thermaltake announces the all new Core V51 Riing Edition Mid-Tower Chassis. Not only is it beautiful, but its green color scheme makes it unique too.