Search Results for: surface pro

Thanksgiving is coming, which makes me rather happy. I love catching up with family while chowing down on turkey, stuffing, and the like. After the big meal, I like to go through the paper advertisements for stores such as Target, Best Buy, and Kohl's to find the best deals. Then, that night at midnight, I leave the house to score some things I want for Black Friday! In the digital age, this sort of outdated -- I can just as easily shop online, but I cherish the experience. It's fun.

Microsoft has been making quite a mess of things with buggy Windows 10 updates and failing to put USB-C on its latest Surface Laptop 2 computer, but understandably, some of y'all still want/need a Windows PC. If you need a new computer, Xbox, or other tech-related product, Microsoft has finally revealed Black Friday 2018 sales. These are not just deals from Microsoft's own store, but on Windows 10 PCs found at other retailers too.

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Having a problem with Windows 10? Did it delete your files? No? Perhaps it downgraded your Windows 10 Pro installation to Windows 10 Home, or maybe it introduced display audio issues, installed bad audio drivers, failed to handle zip files correctly, or display all unicode characters, or maybe you had problems with Edge and Store apps? No? Maybe it broke Windows file associations for you, so you can’t open files in the default programs you choose.

If your problem is the latter, the good news is Microsoft is working on a fix. The bad news is it doesn’t seem to be in a huge hurry to solve the problem.

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The newest iPad Pro tablets are amazing, albeit overkill for many consumers. Not only are they beautifully designed, but powerful as hell. Believe it or not, they can outperform many Mac computers. In other words, iPad is getting closer to becoming a legit laptop alternative.

Unfortunately, the 2018 iPad Pro still does not have mouse support, meaning navigating iOS while in "laptop mode" with the keyboard attachment can be tedious. While it finally has a USB-C port, there is still no USB Type-A port (and there never will be). Also missing is the 3.5mm audio jack. Luckily, as is typical with Apple products these days, adapters and dongles are here to save the day. Today, Satechi announces the Aluminum Type-C Mobile Pro Hub Adapter which makes the 2018 iPad Pro much more capable.

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The Windows 10 shit show continues with yet more problems with Microsoft’s newest operating system rearing their ugly heads. Some users -- including a friend of my colleague Brian Fagioli -- have suffered from a problem whereby file associations are broken, so you can’t open files in the default programs you choose.

Now a growing number of users are complaining on Reddit that their Windows 10 Pro installations are suddenly reverting to Windows 10 Home.

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While there’s still no sign of a re-release for the botched Windows 10 October 2018 Update, Microsoft is rolling out new builds for the feature update that follows it, codenamed 19H1.

Today’s new release, Build 18277, gains a new focus assist option that will spring into life whenever you’re doing anything full screen on your PC so you’re not bothered by notifications.

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I am old enough to remember the days before USB, and let me tell you -- when it came out, everything changed. It became so much easier to add hardware to a PC -- no need to open the case. USB largely made the term "plug and play" a reality. The problem? The damn thing wasn't reversible! As we all know, you had a 50/50 shot of plugging the Type-A connector in correctly, yet for some reason, it felt like you were almost always wrong the first time. Maddening!

USB-C solved that dilemma, as the connector is reversible. Long gone is the frustration of having to turn the connector around. Adoption of USB-C has been frustratingly slow, with companies like Microsoft still refusing to add it to the Surface Laptop 2. Sigh. With that said, there are many nice USB-C products on the market, and today, StarTech launches a trio. All three products are USB-C hubs, but they are quite different from each other.

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Windows 10 has been a dumpster fire lately, but thankfully, Microsoft's OS stranglehold on the consumer PC business is dramatically diminishing. These days, many consumers would be better served by purchasing a MacBook or Chromebook rather than a laptop running the less-secure Windows. True, Apple's computers are expensive, but luckily, laptops running Chrome OS can be quite affordable. Chromebooks are shockingly capable too -- especially since Android app support was added.

Just as Samsung manufactures excellent smartphones running Google's Android operating system, it also makes quality laptops running the search giant's Linux-based Chrome OS. The Samsung Chromebook Plus V2 is one of the nicer Chromebooks, and today, the company unveils a new variant. The hardware stays the same, except for one addition -- LTE compatibility. In other words, the Samsung Chromebook Plus V2 (LTE), as it is called, is fully functional without Wi-Fi -- just add a mobile data plan!

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Interest in tablets has been waning for years -- even Apple can’t really get us that excited about new iPads. People are still buying Amazon’s Kindle Fires, but mainly because they are so attractively priced.

At its 'Made by Google' event in New York today, Google revealed a brand new Chrome OS tablet called the Pixel Slate with an optional keyboard and Pixelbook Pen.

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If you want a Windows 10 laptop, you can do much better than Microsoft's buggy Surface devices. Companies such as Dell, Lenovo, and HP make some excellent notebooks these days. I mean, look, Microsoft's homegrown computers aren't totally bad, but they are a bit overpriced and historically have had terrible bugs and driver issues. For a while, the much-respected Consumer Reports refused to recommend the computers -- something on which they've recently done a "180."

Today, with surprisingly little fanfare in New York City, Microsoft unveiled some new Surface devices, including the Surface Pro 6 -- a tablet with a floppy keyboard that needs to die already. The true star of the Surface line these days is the unimaginatively named Surface Laptop -- a surprisingly decent computer. Microsoft has upgraded the laptop's internals, given it a new color (black), and put the number 2 at the end of its name. Unfortunately, Surface Laptop 2 is a tragically boring upgrade -- very slight evolution instead of revolution.

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Last year Consumer Reports stripped Microsoft Surface laptops of its coveted "recommended" status because of concerns about reliability. But now the badge of honor has been restored, with the publication saying: "Microsoft's reliability is now on par with most other laptop brands".

While the vast majority of the Surface laptop range is now recommended by Consumer Reports, the Surface Go is not. The reason for this is that in lab tests, the device's performance was found to be subpar.

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Microsoft has announced that it is launching the Surface Hub 2S in the second quarter of 2019. The next version of the company's gigantic, business-focused touchscreen display is (slightly) smaller at a mere 50.5 inches, rather than the existing 55- and 84-inch options.

Following on from this in 2020 is the Surface Hub 2X which brings not only multiuser login, but also the ability to rotate and tilt the screen. Interestingly, an upgrade will be possible from the 2S to the 2X by means of a removable processor cartridge.

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If you're in the UK, you'll know that this weekend is the August Bank Holiday. This not only means a day off work -- for most people, at least -- but also big Black Friday-type sales from major retailers.

Amazon is one of those offering big discounts, and you don't have to wait until the weekend to make a saving. For the next week, from today until next Wednesday, the online retailer has some incredible deals on Surface tablets and laptops meaning that there's never been a better time to buy one.

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Next month, students across America will be returning to school. Whether K-12 or college, technology has become increasingly important in the classroom. It is for this reason that a laptop can be an essential tool for a learner.

Microsoft recently launched the Surface Go, and while the underpowered tablet looks like a decent enough option for students on a budget, let's be honest -- it isn't a true laptop. Its floppy keyboard (which is sold separately) means it is not sturdy on a lap. Not to mention, it is more of a secondary computer -- not a main PC. If you would rather equip the student in your life with a true computer, why not turn to Linux? After all, open source is the future of computing. System76 has a new back-to-school sale that makes buying a computer running Ubuntu or Pop!_OS much more affordable.

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Microsoft Surface Go is not an expensive tablet. Starting at just $399, it costs far less than the Surface Pro. Still, if you are spending your hard-earned money on it, you probably want to protect the investment. After all, if it does break, you probably cannot repair it on your own.

A case is a great way to shield the Surface Go from damage, and today, Urban Armor Gear launches two such products. Both cases -- the Metropolis and Plasma -- are MIL-STD 810G 516.6 rated and compatible with the official type cover. They even feature a place to hold the Surface Pen.

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The Microsoft Surface Go launched this week, and unsurprisingly, it seems to be quite polarizing. Some reviewers give it high marks, while others disliked its anemic performance. While I have yet to try the device myself, I totally expected that -- people have different needs and expectations, and that includes reviewers. In other words, if you have meager needs, it will probably be a dream, but you obviously shouldn't expect too much from a computer that starts at $399.

Today, popular site iFixit did its typical "teardown" of the Surface Go, and the results are exactly what they should be -- it is a repairability nightmare with a lowly score of 1/10. You know what? While Microsoft haters will use that to take shots at the Surface Go, it really isn't a computer that is intended to be repaired. Starting at $399, it isn't exactly disposable, but if you do break it, it really wouldn't make sense to fix it. Right or wrong, just like Android tablets and the iPad, Surface Go isn't meant to be opened up.

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