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It’s 2018, and there will likely be a lot of new hardware to excite and delight computer builders this year. In 2017, we saw solid state drives continue their climb in popularity -- a trend that will absolutely continue in the new year.

Today, Plextor launches a new solid state drive with a focus on gaming. The M9Pe series, as it is called, is an M.2 NVMe SSD drive that will be sold in capacities up to 1TB. It uses 64-layer 3D NAND Toshiba flash and the Marvell 88ss1093 controller.

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The OnePlus 5T is slated to receive Android Oreo early this year, but, until the update is deemed ready for prime time, users who want to sample the major changes can now give the first open beta a try.

The OxygenOS build targets more experienced users, as it's meant to be installed manually on the OnePlus 5T, and comes with a significant number of improvements for the launcher and system.

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Depending on which analyst firm you believe, Windows 10 is either a whisker away from overtaking Windows 7 as the most popular desktop operating system, or still quite a distance off.

Steam’s monthly usage survey, which shows usage share from the gamers’ perspective, paints an entirely different picture however. It has consistently reported Windows 10 as the top operating system of choice, until recently, when Windows 7 roared into the top spot.

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There's no denying the massive popularity of Kodi, and the streaming media center has become infamous as well as famous. While the negative press concerning the software tends to focus on the potential for piracy, there's also the question of privacy and security.

Kodi includes -- as does the likes of Plex -- a remote access feature. While wonderfully useful for when you're away from home, it also poses a security risk and represents a serious privacy concern if not correctly configured.

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Sound familiar? A Galaxy Note has a problem with its battery! Samsung has acknowledged that there is an issue with the battery of the Galaxy Note8 -- but unlike the Galaxy Note7, there's no risk of it catching fire or exploding this time around.

A number of Note8 owners have complained that their phones have essentially been bricked after they let the battery run flat. With the battery fully discharged, it has proved impossible to charge the phone again. The problem is mainly affecting Note8 owners in the US.

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Apple has a tendency to pride itself on security, but a researcher has released details of a macOS vulnerability that allows for complete system control by an unprivileged user.

A self-described "hobbyist hacker," Siguza, has published details of the exploit which is thought to have existed, undetected and unpatched for at least a decade. As well as details of the security flaw, Suguza has also published proof-of-concept code for the IOHIDeous vulnerability on GitHub.

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While NetMarketShare’s monthly usage share figures show there to still be a fairly significant gap between Windows 7 and Windows 10 (in the older OS’s favor), rival analyst firm StatCounter has long reported the battle for the top spot to be much, much tighter.

So close is the race in fact, that in October it looked as if Windows 10 would easily pass Windows 7 at some point in the following month. Surprisingly, that didn’t happen, although the gap did narrow. It seemed all but guaranteed that Windows 10 would claim pole position in December, but incredibly it didn’t.

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NetMarketShare reports on the state of the desktop operating system market on the first day of each month, and it has long shown Windows 10 to be lagging well behind Windows 7. However, tweaks to how the analyst firm records these numbers means the gap has closed recently.

The latest figures, for the final month of 2017, show Windows 10 growing and Windows 7 declining, but the difference in usage share hasn’t altered by much.

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As someone who was born in the 1980s, I experienced the golden age of video games. While the graphics were archaic by today's standards, the games were much more fun than the ones of today. People tend to forget that fun is the most important aspect of video games -- sound and graphics be damned. You bought a completed game and there were no updates, DLC or loot crates to be had. It was an amazing time.

Luckily, enjoying these classic games of yesteryear is very easy thanks to emulators. While the legality is a bit sketchy, you can download thousands of retro games (ROMs) and play them on your PC with near-flawless results. To make things even more convenient, the Kodi media center can now be used to play these ROMs. If you want to try this for yourself, I am happy to say you can do so immediately. The folks over at TVAddons have created a very useful guide.

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Today is the big day -- New Year's Eve! Tonight, many people will celebrate ringing in the new year at midnight. They will drink champagne, dance, and generally have a fun time.

If you are a nerd like me, however, you won't be leaving the house. Instead, you will probably be watching Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve with Ryan Seacrest while eating low-quality frozen hors d'oeuvres -- there is no shame in that, though. This year, there is actually something very fun you can do while sitting on your couch -- install a Linux distribution! You see, Manjaro Linux 17.1.0 is now ready for download. Hell, installing an Arch-based Linux distro is better than going to a party, right?

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After admitting to slowing down older iPhones, Apple subsequently apologized for the lack of transparency about the issue. In addition to the apology, the company also announced that iPhone owners would be able to replace their batteries at a discounted rate of $29 starting in late January.

In an update to the original statement, Apple has now brought forward its replacement program so you can get a new battery for your iPhone 6 (or later) handset starting right now. Alternatively, you can do it yourself, with a discounted iFixit kit.

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In an attack on Amazon, President Trump has called upon the US Postal Service to charge the retail giant "much more" to ship packages to customers.

This is not the first time Trump has hit out at Amazon and Jeff Bezos, but his latest vocal volley was not well-received by his followers on Twitter.

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Microsoft's Windows Phone was actually pretty terrible. While it had some redeeming qualities, the now-failed platform was quite deficient compared to iOS and Android. Only the absolute biggest Microsoft loyalists truly embraced it, and even they have mostly moved on. Yeah, other consumers bought Windows Phone devices, but likely just because some of the models were so damn inexpensive -- it was like purchasing a feature-phone. Hell, the NYPD famously regretted choosing Microsoft's mobile OS.

That's why it is surprising that The New York Times -- one of the most important news outlets in history -- is still supporting a Windows Phone app. Well, I should say it was supporting it. You see, in a rather unceremonious announcement, the company says it is ending support for that app.

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For the fashion conscious, the change in seasons usually follows a change in wardrobe and when it comes to upgrading a wardrobe, everyone has different requirements.

But, there are people who avoid retail at all costs, shopping on the internet and ordering everything to their home. You can go one step further as many high street retails have sophisticated apps which make online clothes shopping a pleasant experience. We’ve picked three of the best.

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USB flash drives are becoming less popular thanks to the cloud. If you need to access a file on the go, using a cloud-based storage service like Dropbox is extremely convenient. Unlike a flash drive, you don’t have to worry about losing it.

These diminutive drives definitely still have a place, though. For instance, I use them regularly for installing Linux distributions and Windows 10. Not to mention, they are wonderful when an internet connection is not available. Today, ADATA unveils two new models. Both use USB Type-A for connectivity, but one uses USB 3.1, while the other uses the slower USB 2.0.

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