Tag: Windows

Dell XPS 14 9440 review: a stunning laptop that gives Windows users a real MacBook competitor

Post author By lisa nichols
Post date April 1, 2024
No Comments on Dell XPS 14 9440 review: a stunning laptop that gives Windows users a real MacBook competitor

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Dell XPS 14 9440: Two minute review

The Dell XPS 14 is the newest entrant into an already storied line of laptops, and it is arguably the best laptop of this newest crop of XPS devices thanks to its powerful new processor, stunning OLED display, and a design that looks better than just about any other Windows laptop on the market.

The XPS 14 9440 starts at a somewhat pricey $1,499 / £1,599 / AU$2,998.60, and it lacks the dedicated Nvidia RTX 4050 GPU and OLED display, so you’ll want to upgrade these two specs in particular, though it will end up costing you much more for the privilege.

To be clear, Dell XPS laptops have never been cheap, but my recommended configuration, the same as the one I reviewed, will set you back nearly $2,400 / £2,650 / AU$4,300. For the hardware packed into such a slim 14-inch form factor, it’s more than worth the investment as this laptop will last for years before it becomes obsolete.

In terms of design, the XPS 14 fully commits to the design changes that the Dell XPS 13 Plus introduced back in 2022, but introduces a couple of quality-of-life improvements on its smaller cousin.

For one, the down-firing speakers have been moved up top alongside the keyboard, producing far better sound in exchange for diminishing the XPS 13 Plus’s infinity edge-style keyboard. This is a much better design choice, ultimately, and you don’t sacrifice much in the way of key space on the deck itself.

The display is what really steals the show here: a gorgeous 3.2K OLED display with super-slim bezels. This latter feature is impressive because Dell has somehow managed to squeeze in a 1080p webcam. There’s no physical privacy shutter, but that’s never really been Dell’s thing, unfortunately.

The Dell XPS 14’s Intel Core Ultra 7 155H and the Nvidia RTX 4050 deliver powerful performance across all workloads, and in some cases can even match or exceed what you’d get from a MacBook Pro 14-inch, especially for gaming (though the RTX 4050 isn’t nearly powerful enough to keep up with the best gaming laptops).

Overall, the Dell XPS 14 9440 is a powerful performer for everything from everyday computing use to 1080p gaming to moderate content creation. It’s an expensive investment, but on balance, it’s one of the best Windows laptops you can buy right now.

Dell XPS 14 9440: Price and availability

A Dell XPS 14 on a desk

(Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)

How much does it cost? Starting at $1,499 / £1,599 / AU$2,998.60
When is it out? It’s available right now
Where can you get it? You can get it in the US, UK, and Australia

The Dell XPS 14 9440 is available now in the US, UK, and Australia, starting at $1,499 / £1,599 / AU$2,998.60. For that price, you get an Intel Core Ultra 7 155H processor with integrated Arc graphics, 16GB LPDDR5x memory, 512GB M.2 PCIe SSD storage, and a 14.5-inch full HD+ (1920x1200p) non-touch display.

My review unit, which sells for $900 / £1,050 / AU$1,300 more, upgrades to discrete graphics with an Nvidia RTX 4050 (30W) GPU, 32GB LPDDR5x memory, 1TB M.2 PCIe SSD, and a 14.5-inch 3.2K (3200x2000p) OLED display.

You can max out your configuration with 64GB LPDDR5x RAM and 4TB M.2 PCIe SSD, in addition to the above, for $3,399 / £3,238.99 / AU$5,999.40.

Dell XPS 14 9440: Specs

A Dell XPS 14 on a desk

(Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)

Swipe to scroll horizontally

Dell XPS 14 9440
Header Cell – Column 0	Base configuration	Review configuration	Max configuration
Price	$1,499 / £1,599 / AU$2,998.60	$2,399 / £2,649 / AU$4,298.80	$3,399 / £3,238.99 / AU$5,999.40
CPU	Intel Core Ultra 7 155H	Intel Core Ultra 7 155H	Intel Core Ultra 7 155H
GPU	Intel Arc Graphics	Nvidia RTX 4050 (30W)	Nvidia RTX 4050 (30W)
Memory	16GB LPDDR5x	32GB LPDDR5x	64GB LPDDR5x
Storage	512GB PCIe SSD	1TB PCIe SSD	4TB PCIe SSD
Display	14.5-inch FHD+ (1920 x 1200) InfinityEdge, 500-nits	14.5-inch 3.2K 93200 x 2000) OLED Infinity Edge Touch	14.5-inch 3.2K 93200 x 2000) OLED Infinity Edge Touch

Dell XPS 14 9440: Design

A Dell XPS 14 on a desk

(Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)

Gorgeous design
OLED display is stunning
Upfiring speakers

The Dell XPS 14 doesn’t shy away from the design choices that the XPS 13 Plus introduced, for better or for worse, but it does make some very important improvements to the previous design iterations.

For one, let’s talk about top-firing speakers. Down-firing speakers are genuinely terrible. They might be necessary, but they’re terrible, and any time we can get top-firing speakers on a laptop, your audio experience is automatically going to improve substantially.

A Dell XPS 14 on a desk

(Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)

The exterior finish comes in two colors: Platinum or Graphite. The finish is a CNC machined aluminum with a glass palm rest, and everything about it feels premium. The chasis itself isn’t all that heavy, but it’s not as light as something like the LG Gram or some of the best ultrabooks that prioritize portability over performance.

A Dell XPS 14 on a desk

(Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)

For ports, you have three Thunderbolt 4 ports with power delivery and DisplayPort output, a 3.5mm combo jack, and a microSD slot. Given its size, I’m not expecting all that much on the ports front, but it’s good to see the microSD slot included since this at least gives some flexibility for creative professionals or those who might have a device that saves to microSD, like one of the best drone models.

A Dell XPS 14 on a desk

(Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)

As for the keyboard, this is one area that’s not so great, since the nearly flat surface of the keys makes it difficult for touch typers who are used to a bit more definition to find their place among the keys. You’ll get used to it, but it’s not the best typing experience I’ve ever had on a keyboard out of the box.

A Dell XPS 14 on a desk

(Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)

Another major issue is the trackpad, in that it’s invisible. This does give the laptop a bit of a ‘future’ feel to it, but at the cost of accessibility. Likewise, the touchbar along the top is in place of actual function keys. All of these features work fine enough for me, but I can see someone with reduced vision struggling with this keyboard and trackpad.

A Dell XPS 14 on a desk

(Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)

Next, you have the webcam. Somehow, Dell managed to fit a 1080p webcam into the narrow top bezel of the display panel, and it’s a welcome addition. Too many laptops skip the 1080p webcam in order to retain the thin bezels, and that was fine in the pre-work-from-home era, but nowadays, you need a quality webcam, there’s just no getting around it.

A Dell XPS 14 on a desk

(Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)

Finally, the air intake on the Dell XPS 14 comes in from the side and bleeds out the back though a vent underneath the display hinge. The heat management is ok, but given its thin form factor, the underside can get hot under load.

A Dell XPS 14 on a desk

(Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)

As far as Windows laptops go, this is possibly one of the best-looking laptops going. There are some who won’t love—or even like—the planar-leveled keyboard and lack of physical function keys or clearly defined trackpad, but overall, there is way more to like here than to nitpick, especially if you’re opting for the OLED display.

Dell XPS 14 9440: Performance

A Dell XPS 14 on a desk running resource intensive apps

(Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)

Excellent all-around performance
Surprisingly competitive against the MacBook Pro for creative work
Fantastic productivity and solid gaming performance

Finally we come down to the performance of the Dell XPS 14, and I can definitely say that it is among the best you’re going to get on a laptop right now.

The direct rival of the Dell XPS 14 is the Apple MacBook Pro 14-inch with M3 Pro, and the XPS 14 holds its own against the best Apple has to offer in terms of general performance, features superior gaming performance, and also manages to battle the MacBook Pro 14 to a draw for some typical creative workloads.

While the MacBook Pro 14-inch ultimately offers better single-core performance and slightly better multicore performance, the Intel Core Ultra 7 155H paired with an Nvidia RTX 4050 GPU does an admirable job against one of Apple’s best processors.

In terms of overall system performance, the MacBook Pro 14 with M3 Pro (11-core) does manage to score about 23% better in our Crossmark benchmark, as well as scoring about 12% better in Geekbench 6.2’s multicore performance test.

The two laptops are evenly matched for SSD performance, and the MacBook Pro 14-inch scores better in 3DMark’s Wildlife Extreme and Wildlife Extreme Unlimited. The RTX 4050 in the XPS 14, meanwhile, pulls ahead of the M3 Pro’s GPU in Solar Bay and Solar Bay Unlimited, which are ray-tracing workloads, so this shouldn’t be surprising as Nvidia’s hardware can handle ray tracing far better than Apple’s chips right now.

In terms of creative performance, the Nvidia RTX GPU in the XPS 14 will outperform pretty much any comparable Apple device when it comes to 3D modeling, since just about every 3D modeling tool relies on Nvidia’s CUDA instruction set, so Apple, AMD, and Intel will always be at a disadvantage.

When it comes to video encoding, the XPS 14 manages to encode a 4K video into 1080p about 7% faster in Handbrake 1.7, though depending on the app you’re using, Apple’s specialized encoding engine might be determinative. If you’re a creative pro working in film and video, you’ll know which tools play best with Apple and which lean towards Nvidia, so which is better will come down to the tools you’ll ultimately need to use.

A Dell XPS 14 on a desk running resource intensive apps

(Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)

Finally, taking the average 1200p gaming performance on Max settings, the Dell XPS 14 does a better job than the MacBook Pro 14 across the board. The XPS 14 does about 62% better with Civilization VI, getting nearly 90 fps at 1200p with performance and memory impact set to max. In Total War: Warhammer III’s battle benchmark, the XPS 14 gets around 40 fps, which is about 25% higher than the MacBook Pro 14-inch’s 32 fps. It’s only in Shadow of the Tomb Raider that the MacBook Pro 14-inch scores a win, getting 48 fps at 1200p on highest settings, while the Dell XPS 14 manages to get 47 fps, but there’s a huge caveat there.

This doesn’t factor in the RTX 4050’s DLSS upscaler, which can push the XPS 14’s fps much higher than that, depending on the settings you select. This is a huge advantage for the XPS 14 that, for right now at least, Apple’s best MacBook struggles to counter since its upscaler, Apple MetalFX, is developer-dependent, and not a lot of games include it as an option.

In the end, then, the Dell XPS 14 manages to go toe-to-toe with the venerable MacBook Pro 14 and comes out with some very important wins in the process.

Dell XPS 14 9440: Battery life

A Dell XPS 14 on a desk

(Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)

Intel Evo is back, baby!
Charges to full in less than 90 minutes

Intel chips have not had good battery life for years. Back in 2020, Intel Evo was a big deal, and one of its biggest qualifiers was achieving more than 9 hours of battery life on a standard battery test. With the 12th-gen Intel Alder Lake laptop processors released in 2021, battery life on Intel laptops absolutely tanked, and Intel Evo faded away for a few years as Intel went through Alder Lake, Raptor Lake, and Raptor Lake Refresh, all of which had generally terrible battery life (even on an ultrabook!).

Now, with the Intel Core Ultra 7 155H, Intel seems to have refocused itself on more battery efficiency rather than dumping electrons into maximum performance.

The Dell XPS 14 benefits with a nine-hour 35-minute battery life on our proprietary web surfing test, which is far better than the six or seven hours these laptops were getting just a year or two ago.

Under heavier load, the XPS 14 still struggles to get more than seven hours of battery life on PCMark 10’s Modern Office battery test, and the PCMark 10 Gaming battery test only ran for about one hour 50 minutes before shutting down.

These are a far cry from what Apple is able to pull off with the MacBook Pro 14-inch with M3 Pro, which lasted about 17 hours 32 minutes in our battery tests, but knowing where Windows laptops have been in the past couple of years, I’ll gladly take a laptop that can last a full workday without a charge.

Should you buy a Dell XPS 14 9440?

A Dell XPS 14 on a desk

(Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)

Buy the Dell XPS 14 9440 if…

Don’t buy it if…

Also consider

Dell XPS 14 9440: Report card

Swipe to scroll horizontally

Value	While it can get very expensive, the Dell XPS 14 starts at a fairly reasonable price and gives you good specs for the investment.	4 / 5
Design	This is easily one of the best looking Windows laptops you can buy, even if some of its design quirks will irk some and will be a deal breaker for a few people.	4.5 / 5
Performance	The XPS 14 goes toe-to-toe with the MacBook Pro 14-inch with M3 Pro and manages to walk away with its head held high.	5 / 5
Battery Life	While not nearly as long-lasting as the MacBook Pro 14-inch, the Dell XPS 14 gets decent battery life for a Windows laptop.	4 / 5
Total	The Dell XPS 14 is one of the best laptops I’ve tested this year, and while it’s an investment, it’ll pay dividends for many years to come.	4.38 / 5

First reviewed April 2024

We pride ourselves on our independence and our rigorous review-testing process, offering up long-term attention to the products we review and making sure our reviews are updated and maintained – regardless of when a device was released, if you can still buy it, it’s on our radar.

Linux servers targeted by dangerous espionage malware as Windows threat makes the jump

Post author By lisa nichols
Post date April 1, 2024
No Comments on Linux servers targeted by dangerous espionage malware as Windows threat makes the jump

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A dangerous espionage malware, previously only used against Windows devices, is increasingly being observed on Linux machines, too, experts have warned.

Following earlier reports by ESET and Trend Micro, Kaspersky is now warning of the Dinodas Remote Access Trojan (RAT), signaling the rising popularity of the malware.

Kaspersky claims the backdoor is “fully functional, granting the operator complete control over the infected machine, enabling data exfiltration and espionage”. DinodasRAT is designed to monitor, control, and steal data from target endpoints. Besides stealing data, it can run processes, create a remote shell for direct command, or file execution, update and upgrade itself, uninstall itself and delete all traces of its existence.

XDealer and DinodasRAT

Older reports indicate that DinodasRAT is a Linux version of a known Windows RAT dubbed XDealer. Earlier in March, Trend Micro observed the Chinese APT group known as “Earth Krahang” using XDealer against both Windows and Linux systems belonging to “governments worldwide”.

The researchers did not detail how the attackers managed to drop the malware onto target endpoints, but did stress that since October 2023, the targets were mostly located in China, Taiwan, Turkey, and Uzbekistan.

Today, many nation-states are engaged in cyber-warfare, disrupting operations and stealing sensitive data from their adversaries. Besides China, there are notable threats coming from North Korea (Lazarus Group, for example), Russia (Fancy Bear), Iran (Scarred Manticore), and others.

With war raging in Ukraine, China eyeing Taiwan, Israel engaged against Hamas, as well as other potential hotpots (the issues of migration in both Europe and the States, U.S. presidential elections), it is no wonder that not a day goes by without news of state-sponsored hacking groups engaging in cyber-espionage.

The rising popularity of DinodasRAT only demonstrates the increasing use of Linux-powered devices in government agencies around the world.

Via BleepingComputer

HP Spectre x360 14 Review: The Best Windows 2-in-1 Laptop

Post author By miranda cosgrove
Post date April 1, 2024
No Comments on HP Spectre x360 14 Review: The Best Windows 2-in-1 Laptop

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Once an edgy alternative to stuffier laptops like the Lenovo ThinkPad line, the HP Spectre x360 series has settled into a much more corporate groove of late. Back in the late 2010s, Spectres looked like props from Tron, with sharp edges, cut corners, and gold trim on some models, for Pete’s sake.

Alas, those days are over, and while the Spectre x360 is still a top-shelf ultralight Windows laptop, it has traded in style for consistency. All-gentle, OSHA-friendly curves clad in corporate black, silver, and blue give the sense that the Spectre didn’t sell out, but rather bought in.

The 2024 rendition of the Spectre x360 sticks closely to the design of the 2023 model, all built around showcasing the “360” portion of the name. A pair of hinges allows the screen to fold back 180 degrees, converting the laptop into a 14-inch tablet. A fingertip works on the screen, as does the stylus included in the box, and the rechargeable active pen snaps magnetically to the side of the chassis when not in use.

Laptop folded outward like a tablet with a digital pen in front. Screen has abstract background and menu in the center.

As with most new machines hitting the market this season, the major upgrade here is the introduction of the AI-infused Intel Core Ultra CPU—in this instance, the Ultra 7 155H model, backed up by a beefy 32 GB of RAM and a 2-TB solid state drive. The unit is a bit light on ports, with two USB-C Thunderbolt 4 ports (one used for charging) and a single USB-A port partially covered by an awkward and unnecessary spring-loaded, flip-out panel.

Sure enough, there’s ample power in those specs, and the Spectre x360 turned in the best performance I’ve seen to date on general business apps—by a healthy margin of 20 percent or more versus other Core Ultra laptops on many tests. It was about par for the course on graphics apps, though no slouch in this department either. Despite improvements in the Core Ultra’s integrated GPU, you’ll still need to upgrade to a laptop with a discrete graphics processor if you want to undertake significant gaming or rendering activities. On AI tasks, the Spectre fell just a hair shy of the high mark set by the MSI Prestige 13 AI Evo in my prior testing.

Size and weight are fine, although the unit is heavier than the similarly sized Lenovo X1 Carbon, with 19 millimeters of thickness and a 2.4-pound weight. That’s not bad considering the inclusion of a touchscreen and the 360-degree hinge. The extra weight may also reflect a slightly larger battery. My testing (with a YouTube video playback at full brightness) achieved 10.5 hours of running time—significantly better than other Core Ultra laptops I’ve tested to date.

2 side views of a thin black laptop while closed

The OLED screen is dazzlingly bright, which is right in line with the rest of the market today. The speakers on the unit are also excellent, with top-firing tweeters and two front-firing woofers, improved by an impressive cooling system that barely saw the super-silent fan kicking in at all.

My only real complaint is a fairly mild one. While the Spectre’s keyboard is fine, the haptic touchpad can be erratic, missing taps and clicks, depending on where you hit it. I don’t know whether this is a simple user error due to freakishly long fingers, but it’s an issue I’ve had with various Spectres for years. It has arguably improved a bit with the new touchpad, but it’s still a thorny problem that created a minor headache for me during extended use.

Pricing is tricky, as the exact specification I was sent isn’t readily available. You can get a close version for $1,400 on HP.com with 16 GB of RAM, but if you configure it on HP’s website, you’ll come up with a price of around $1,850. Even at the higher price, I’d say the exceptional performance, battery life, and usability options merit the outlay.

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Tags 2in1, laptop, Review, Spectre, Windows, x360

Featured

How to move your taskbar in Windows 11

Post author By lisa nichols
Post date March 31, 2024
No Comments on How to move your taskbar in Windows 11

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The release of Windows 11 in 2021 brought a whole new look to the Windows user interface, including a less cluttered taskbar with centralized icons, reminding many users of the MacBook interface.

Although Windows 11 doesn’t give you the same flexibility in personalizing your screen as previous versions (more on that later), it is still possible to change the alignment of your toolbar icons. This step-by-step guide will show you how.

How to move your taskbar in Windows 11

These screenshots were taken on a Windows 11 running version 23H2 (the 2023 release), but these instructions will work on any Windows 11 version.

1. Right-click on your taskbar

Screenshot showing how to change the alignment of your Windows 11 taskbar - right click on taskbar

(Image: © Future)

By default, your taskbar will be aligned to the center of the bottom of your screen. To change the alignment, right-click the taskbar and select Taskbar settings from the options.

2. Find Taskbar behaviors option

Screenshot showing how to change the alignment of your Windows 11 taskbar - select taskbar behaviors

(Image: © Future)

This will open the Settings, Personalization, Taskbar window. Scroll down the page until you see Taskbar behaviors. You may need to click the arrow to the right to expand the list and see the options.

3. Select your alignment option

Screenshot showing how to change the alignment of your Windows 11 taskbar - Select left or center

(Image: © Future)

Under Taskbar behaviors, you will see the setting for Taskbar alignment. This will display your current alignment setting. Selecting the arrow to the right will show you both alignment options, which are left and center. Select the alignment option you want.

4. Check the taskbar is showing correct alignment

Screenshot showing how to change the alignment of your Windows 11 taskbar - taskbar will move

(Image: © Future)

When you select either left or center, the taskbar alignment at the bottom of the screen will change immediately. You can then close the settings window without saving.

Moving the taskbar to the top, left, or right of the screen

In Windows 10 and earlier versions, you could move your taskbar from the bottom of the screen to the top, left, or right. Microsoft has removed this functionality in Windows 11.

In the first version of Windows 11 (released in 2021), you could work around this by changing the values in the Windows registry. However, this no longer works for Windows 11 versions released in 2022 or later. You can check which version you are running by going to Settings > System > About > Windows specifications > Version.

There are third-party apps available that enable you to move the position of the taskbar in Windows 11. For example, Explorer Patcher gives you the option to use a Windows 10-style taskbar and change its location on your screen.

You should exercise caution when downloading third-party applications to your computer and always ensure they are from a reputable source.

Final thoughts

You now know how to use the Windows Personalization setting to change your taskbar alignment. There are also other Taskbar settings that you can modify to ensure that your screen is set to the way you want. These include choosing whether or not to display Copilot, Task View, and Widgets icons, and toggling on and off options to combine taskbar buttons, hide labels, and show badges.

If you find that Windows 11 personalization options aren’t giving you everything that you’re looking for, there are several third-party applications available that can do the job.

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Tags Move, taskbar, Windows

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$50 bundle packs Microsoft Office Pro Plus 2019, Windows 11 Pro

Post author By miranda cosgrove
Post date March 27, 2024
No Comments on $50 bundle packs Microsoft Office Pro Plus 2019, Windows 11 Pro

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Last-minute gift alert: Give a PC lover Microsoft Office 2019 and Windows 11 Pro for less than $50. — This Microsoft productivity bundle is for PC owners only. (Sorry, Mac fans!)
*Photo: Cult of Mac Deals*

We’ve got a great deal on a comprehensive Microsoft productivity bundle for PC users. This all-in-one Microsoft bundle gives users lifetime access to Microsoft Office Pro Plus 2019 for Windows and Windows 11 Pro for only $49.97 (regularly $408).

It’s great for anyone who uses a Windows machine and wants to avoid annoying subscription fees. (We know plenty of you run setups with both Macs and PCs.)

A Microsoft bundle designed for enhanced productivity

With this PC software bundle (rated four stars out of five), you gain access to Microsoft Office Pro Plus 2019. The software suite includes top-rated Microsoft productivity apps like Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, Teams and OneNote.

It also comes with Publisher (for creating documents like newsletters and flyers) and Access (for managing data seamlessly).

Add Windows 11 Pro to your PC

In addition, you get Microsoft’s latest operating system: Windows 11 Pro. The updated Microsoft OS is designed to be highly intuitive and offers productivity-enhancing tools like customizable widgets, snap layouts, Wake and Lock, and seamless re-docking.

Professionals will enjoy Windows 11 Pro’s business-friendly tools like Microsoft Remote Desktop, Windows Hello for Business, Group Policy Management and more. Meanwhile, gamers will go crazy for DirectX 12 Ultimate, which significantly enhances gaming graphics.

Windows 11 Pro also brings innovative security features like Windows Information Protection, Microsoft Information Protection, BitLocker Encryption, Smart App Control and Microsoft Sandbox. You’ll enjoy a more secure and protected user experience with this OS.

Save on Microsoft Office and Windows with a low one-time price

Grab this all-in-one Microsoft bundle featuring lifetime licenses to Microsoft Office Pro Plus 2019 for Windows and Windows 11 Pro for just $49.97. No coupon needed.

Buy from: Cult of Mac Deals

Prices subject to change. All sales handled by StackCommerce, our partner who runs Cult of Mac Deals. For customer support, please email StackSocial directly.

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Tags Bundle, Microsoft, Office, packs, Pro, Windows

Business Industry

Galaxy Books with Windows can now show more widgets on lock screen

Post author By miranda cosgrove
Post date March 25, 2024
No Comments on Galaxy Books with Windows can now show more widgets on lock screen

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Earlier this year, Microsoft updated Windows 11 with the ability to show a card containing the weather information on the lock screen, allowing people to check the forecast without unlocking the device. Well, the company is now updating the operating system with the ability to show cards for other types of updates on the lock screen.

Microsoft is rolling out an update to Windows 11’s Release Preview Channel. Among other features, it gives the operating system the ability to show information about finance, traffic, and sports on the lock screen. Each type of information appears on a different card. Clicking on a card opens the relevant section on the MSN website.

The update containing the latest feature changes the build number to 22631.3371. Neowin says that to get these widgets on the lock screen, you have to download the ViveTool from GitHub and follow a short process to be able to options to activate those widgets from Settings » Personalization » Lock Screen » Lock Screen Status.

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Tags books, Galaxy, Lock, Screen, Show, Widgets, Windows

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CdkeySales March Madness Sale: $17 for Windows 10 Pro

Post author By miranda cosgrove
Post date March 22, 2024
No Comments on CdkeySales March Madness Sale: $17 for Windows 10 Pro

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The CdkeySales March Madness Sale is upon us. While dozens of college basketball teams battle, you can score amazing deals on Microsoft software. Tons of slam-dunk bargains await on Microsoft productivity software like Windows and Office. That includes a winning Windows 10 Pro deal — just $17.05, with a free upgrade included!

You can find surprisingly low prices at software activation keys provider CdkeySales.com now and throughout the year. To get the most savings, enter promo code CULT. That cuts an additional 30% off the site’s low prices on software keys. And what’s more, if you buy Windows 10, you get a free upgrade to Windows 11.

CdkeySales March Madness Sale: Score Windows 10 Pro for $17, Pro 11 for $22

If you’re still running an older version of Microsoft’s operating system, you owe it to yourself (and your PC) to take advantage of CdkeySales’ amazing prices on Windows 10 Pro and Windows 11 in its CdkeySales March Madness Sale.

Updating to at least Windows 10 proves important for several reasons. It’s not just to get the software’s new, powerful features. It’s because Microsoft eventually stops supporting Windows versions. For example, Microsoft ceased offering technical support and software updates for Windows 8.1 on January 10, 2023.

Check out these deals on the latest versions of Microsoft Windows:

Hot buys: Microsoft Office Pro Plus and 365

If you ever worked on a computer, you should be familiar with Microsoft Office and the various programs that come in the world’s most popular software suite. And if you need the software, why pay more? These Microsoft Office deals are hard to beat.

Major savings on Windows and MS Office bundles

If you happen to need both Windows and Microsoft Office, you can save even more with combo deals from CdkeySales:

CdkeySales March Madness deals — Find big savings on genuine Microsoft software in the CdkeySales March Madness Sale. Just head to CdkeySales.com using these links. And don’t forget to enter promo code CULT to get extra savings.
Photo: CdkeySales.com

Purchase and activate Microsoft software keys

If you’ve never bought software activation keys before, don’t worry. We’ll walk you through the process. We promise that it’s simple and straightforward.

First, go to CdkeySales.com. On the software activation key purchase page for the product you want, just click the Buy Now button. (What could be simpler, right?)

Then just sign up quickly for your free CdkeySales account (or log in if you’re a repeat customer). After you complete your purchase, you will receive your software activation link via email.

Order confirmation at CdkeySales.com — This page confirms what you ordered and lets you enter the code CULT for maximum savings.
Photo: CdkeySales.com

Next, click on the link in the email you received to get your OEM product key. Then go to Windows 10 Settings. Just click Start > Settings > System > About the program > Change product key, and enter your new product key.

After you activate the OEM key, you should see the following message on the activation page: “Windows is activated with a digital license linked to your Microsoft account.”

CdkeySales March Madness Sale: Install and activate new software

CdkeySales Microsoft activation — The process for activating your new software is straightforward as well.
Photo: CdkeySales.com

Installing and activating new software via Microsoft is also a straightforward process. For example, let’s say you want to activate a Microsoft Office package. Just follow these steps:

Go to the official Microsoft page for the Office software.
Enter your Microsoft credentials (or create a profile if you do not already have a Microsoft account).
Enter the purchased product key in the appropriate field (from the CdkeySales email you received after your purchase).
After selecting your language and region, click Next to complete the activation.
Now you can install Microsoft Office on your PC.

What is CdkeySales.com?

CdkeySales.com also offers a range of software activation keys for games on an array of platforms, including Steam, Origin and Ubisoft Connect. Plus, the company sells hardware, network cards, gift cards, PC games and expansion packs.

If you encounter any problems before or after purchase, just contact CdkeySales.com’s customer service department via email at [email protected] for a quick response.

Sponsored by Mediamz.

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Tags CdkeySales, Madness, March, Pro, Sale, Windows

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Windows 11 Pro sale: Upgrade for just $29.97

Post author By miranda cosgrove
Post date March 19, 2024
No Comments on Windows 11 Pro sale: Upgrade for just $29.97

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Upgrade your OS to Windows 11 Pro for under $33 this Labor Day. — See what Windows 11 can do for less than $33 this Labor Day.
*Photo: Cult of Mac Deals*

Not every Cult of Mac reader is all Mac, all the time. We know many of you use PCs for various reasons — and here’s the Windows 11 Pro sale you’ve been waiting for.

For a limited time, you can get a lifetime license to Windows 11 Pro for less than $30 from Cult of Mac Deals.

Save on Windows 11 Pro

For PC owners, upgrading to the latest Microsoft operating system just makes sense. For one thing, installing it means you get access to updates and other features as they roll out, keeping your computer running smoothly and safely.

Windows 11 Pro comes with Microsoft Teams, which you can use to set up remote meetings with a single click on the taskbar. Plus, the new biometrics login functionality makes sure that you — and only you — can access your device. You can even set up a “wake and lock” mode that powers on before you sit down.

The OS also offers full touchscreen support. And you can use Windows Studio Effects to touch up your photo album in ways you never thought possible. And speaking of looks, DirectX 12 Ultimate will make you feel like you’re right in the middle of your favorite games.

Upgrade your PC for less with this Windows 11 Pro sale

You can rely on this Micorsoft’s latest operating system. It’s rated an average of 4.5 out of 5 stars by verified purchasers at Cult of Mac Deals. And it’s on sale for now: Get Windows 11 Pro through March 24 for just $29.97. That’s an 84% discount off the regular price of $199.

Buy from: Cult of Mac Deals

Prices subject to change. All sales handled by StackCommerce, our partner who runs Cult of Mac Deals. For customer support, please email StackCommerce directly.

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Tags Pro, Sale, upgrade, Windows

Entertainment

How to watch the Microsoft Surface, Windows AI and Copilot event

Post author By lisa nichols
Post date March 19, 2024
No Comments on How to watch the Microsoft Surface, Windows AI and Copilot event

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It’s almost time for another Microsoft livestream event, the first since September of last year. The festivities start at 12PM ET on Thursday, March 21. The best way to watch everything unfold is via the official Microsoft stream; it doesn’t look like they’ll have a stream on YouTube this time. This is the first Microsoft live event without former chief product officer and longtime keynote presenter Panos Panay, who departed for Amazon last year.

What to expect from Microsoft

The event is being advertised as a “new era of work”, so there’s going to be a major focus on the commercial space. There are plenty of rumors that Microsoft will take the opportunity to unveil a spate of new Surface devices. Windows Central claims that an OLED Surface Pro 10 and a Surface Laptop 6 will headline the event.

The Verge suggests that both devices will only feature minor spec bumps compared to the previous generation. There’s also conflicting reports as to whether or not these Surface devices will get a more comprehensive redesign later in the spring to suit non-business consumers. We won’t know until Thursday.

A closeup of the Copilot key. — Microsoft

There’s one safe bet. Microsoft will continue its commitment to AI. Rumors swirl that the Surface Pro 10 and Laptop 6 will be powered by Intel Core Ultra and Snapdragon X Elite silicon CPUs with next-generation neural processing units (NPUs) that have been designed specifically for advanced AI tasks. To that end, there are reports that these devices will be called “AI PCs” and will include a dedicated button to bring up the company’s Copilot digital assistant. The Intel variants are expected to launch in April, while the Arm-based Snapdragon ones will reportedly show up this June.

AI, AI and more AI

The rumor mill has been grinding overtime for this event. Reports also suggest that Microsoft will unveil a suite of new AI features that could be coming to Windows computers, including real-time captioning and translating, upscaling and frame-rate smoothing for games and upgraded Windows Studio Effects.

There’s also likely to be something called AI Explorer announced at the event. This is rumored to be a built-in timeline feature that is searchable via natural language. It’ll reportedly live on your device and log everything you do and see. So, you could ask AI Explorer to “find that thing I looked at earlier about dinosaurs” and it would search through every moment in your PC’s history to find the relevant content. This could be a privacy nightmare, but it could also finally make digital assistants actually useful. We fully expect Microsoft to offer security assurances when it comes to AI Explorer.

These AI features won’t be exclusive to the Surface Pro Pro and Surface Laptop 6, as reports indicate they will be part of the company’s annual feature update for Windows 11, which is expected this fall. Engadget will offer full coverage of the event and will spotlight all of the interesting tidbits.

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Tags Copilot, Event, Microsoft, Surface, Watch, Windows

Entertainment

Proton’s Windows and macOS mail app is out of beta and available now

Post author By lisa nichols
Post date March 15, 2024
No Comments on Proton’s Windows and macOS mail app is out of beta and available now

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Proton, the privacy-focused company that offers a variety of internet tools like mail, calendars, online storage and a password manager, continues to built out its portfolio. As of today, Proton’s desktop mail app for Windows and macOS is out of beta and now available to all its paid users. At the same time, Proton is also releasing its app for Linux users in beta.

If you’ve used Proton Mail before (or any recent / modern mail client), the app won’t be a surprise —it’s the standard three-pane view, with different folders on the left, a list of message in the middle and a preview of the message contents on the right. Like in Gmail, there’s a right-hand rail that has icons for your contacts and calendar that’ll expand to show the selected item if you click them. But for more calendar details, there’s a button to switch the whole window view from mail to calendar and back. Proton Drive and Proton Pass already have a desktop app, but for now Proton is keeping it separate from mail and calendar, which makes sense. Those two tools go hand-in-hand, but storage is kind of its own thing.

While the new mail app doesn’t improve on or change the design of Proton’s web tools in any major way, I can say that the beta app felt quite responsive in a little testing I did. And while I wouldn’t mind more than a slightly tweaked web wrapper (being able to draft an email in its own window would be nice), I do prefer keeping my email out of my browser window. I’m sure there are other Proton users who feel the same way and will find this app pretty handy for that.

If you’re not currently paying for Proton Mail, you can give the new app a try for two weeks, but after that you’ll need to upgrade your account to keep using it. The Mail Plus plan costs $4/month if you sign up for a year, or you can get Proton Unlimited for $10 per month with a year plan that includes 500GB of storage (instead of 15GB for Mail Plus) and Proton Drive, Pass and VPN.

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Tags App, Beta, macOS, Mail, Protons, Windows