Innholdsfortegnelse for December 2022 i PCWorld

Microsoft is placing additional limits on the amount of data you can store in OneDrive, beginning in February of next year, and removing a significant anonymity feature shortly thereafter. According to an email sent to users, Microsoft will begin counting attachments linked to your Outlook.com address against your data cap beginning February 1, 2023. (A copy of the email was forwarded to PCWorld by an outside representative of Microsoft, and referenced earlier by Windows Central.) That means that whatever attachments you have stored in your existing inbox haven’t counted as stored files until now, but will beginning in February of next year. “This update will not impact your Outlook.com mailbox storage amount,” Microsoft wrote. “However, this may reduce how much cloud storage you have available to use with your OneDrive.…

How often have you been in the middle of clearing off your desktop by deleting a bunch of unused files, only for Windows to tell you it’s in use by another program? Except that Windows often doesn’t tell you which program is using it, so you shrug like John Travolta in that one Pulp Fiction scene. The latest addition to the immanently useful PowerToys collection can fix that problem. The File Locksmith tool is available in the latest version of the program, 0.64.0. Using the tool is super easy. In Windows Explorer, right-click the file that’s obstinately refusing to be deleted (or in use in any other way), then click “What’s using this file?” The File Locksmith tool will then give you a list of executables that are actively accessing…

A few keystrokes might not seem like a lot, but they add up over time. That’s why text expanders can be a major productivity boost, allowing you to create shortcuts for commonly used phrases across your computer. There are numerous programs that do this on Windows, some of which have been around since the 20th century, but Apple added its own text expander feature in macOS more than a decade ago. It’s long past time for Microsoft to add the same functionality to Windows. SAVING KEYSTROKES, SAVING TIME Anyone who spends a lot of time typing can benefit hugely from a text expander, sometimes called “text replacement.” Instead of typing the same long string of text over and over, you can use these programs to create a shortcut. For example,…

The XPS 13 is a beauty. Among midrange laptops, it boasts the sleekest, most compact design, packing a 13.4-inch 16:10 display into an enclosure that looks hardly any larger than an 11-inch Chromebook. But this is no Chromebook. Made from machined aluminum in an alluring blue hue and only a half an inch thick, the XPS 13 has premium-grade looks. For regular trips and daily commutes, the XPS 13 is an easy travel mate to take along. Despite its luxurious looks, the XPS 13 is a midrange ultraportable. It starts at $749 with Dell’s current discount, and our test system’s upgrades still keep the price at a reasonable $1,149. Our test system features the baseline CPU, a 12th-gen Core i5, that provides acceptable application performance but still trails that of…

We recommend that you consider buying the Microsoft Surface Pro 9 (5G) Windows tablet, with an Arm chip—not an Intel or AMD chip—inside. That’s a first for us, and we hope it’s not the last. Read reviews of the Surface Pro 9 with a large grain of salt, because there are two significantly different products hiding under the same brand name. The Surface Pro 9 is built on an Intel 12th-gen Core chip (Alder Lake), while the Surface Pro 9 (5G) uses a separate SQ3 chip co-developed by Qualcomm to Microsoft’s specifications. We’re reviewing the Surface Pro 9 (5G) here. The Surface Pro 9 (5G) is essentially the Surface Pro X, now renamed and brought under the Surface Pro 9 brand umbrella. Inside it is the SQ3, an Arm chip…

For years, I’ve wanted to be one of those people who can do all my work on an iPad. The idea sounds so appealing: Instead of using a clunky laptop, just carry around Apple’s lightweight tablet with a snap-on keyboard and trackpad. You’ll get snappy performance, excellent battery life, fun apps, and fewer distractions. The way some other tech writers have pulled this off has always made me a bit envious. Yet whenever I try to spend serious time computing on an iPad, even with a keyboard attached, I always come crawling back to my laptop or desktop. The iPad might be where I go to focus on a single task or enjoy a change in computing scenery, but traditional PCs are where my serious work happens. (Case in point: I drafted this…

So you’re done with Twitter. If you want to leave the service completely, you can delete your account—though it will hang around for a bit before finally disappearing into the great digital beyond. Account deletions happen in two stages: First the account is deactivated, which pulls it immediately from the site. If you don’t touch it again, 30 days later the account gets an actual wipe. This gives people who accidentally deactivate (or have second thoughts) an out, as during that grace period, they can revive an account with all data intact. That might sound complicated, but it’s truly not. To nuke everything, all you have to do is request the deactivation and never look back. It takes just a few minutes, so you can be gone very quickly. Note:…

After a so-called “lost generation” for graphics cards plagued by shortages and scalpers, things are finally looking up for PC gamers—and the battle for next-generation GPU supremacy has finally arrived. Nvidia launched its ferocious GeForce RTX 4090 mere weeks ago, but its monitor-melting lead isn’t going uncontested for long. This week, AMD revealed its next-gen RDNA 3 architecture and two GPUs serving as its paragon: the Radeon RX 7900 XTX and 7900 XT. This ain’t your momma’s GPU throw-down, though. AMD is doing some radically different things with RDNA 3 and the Radeon RX 7900 XTX, and we’ve never seen a graphics card quite like this before. We’ve already covered the Radeon RX 7900 XTX’s technical notes in-depth in our announcement coverage, but if you don’t feel like sifting through a…

A few weeks after USB4 version 2.0 was announced, Intel has returned fire with its own 80Gbps I/O standard, what it’s calling “the next generation of Thunderbolt” for docking stations and other devices. What will likely be called Thunderbolt 5 has its own quirk: In certain situations, specifically transmitting high-definition video, the available channels can be reallocated to allow from 80Gbps to up to 120Gbps of available bandwidth. But Intel isn’t revealing when the next-gen Thunderbolt technology will roll out, or what it will be officially called. What we do know, however, is that several major I/O standards are aligning for the future. USB4v2, whose standard was finalized on Tuesday, will allow its own 80Gbps connections and forms the foundation for the next-gen Thunderbolt spec. DisplayPort, one of the video protocols that can…

ChromeOS has a reputation for running on lightweight, affordable Chromebooks, but that seems to be shifting as of late. With the rise of game-streaming services (RIP, Stadia), several manufacturers have now made “gaming” Chromebooks with powerful processors and fast screens. So it’s appropriate that Steam, the de facto home of PC gaming, is expanding to more Chromebooks as it graduates from a very limited alpha. Starting with Chrome beta version 108 available today, Steam for ChromeOS is also in beta. In addition to offering improved notifications and storage management, the program is expanding its list of compatible hardware to include Core i3– and Ryzen 3–based devices. Other notable updates include initial support for DirectX 12, Vulkan 1.3 support, and a fix that makes games installing content from non-Steam servers (including…

The HP Envy 16 is a big-screen, content-creation laptop that packs a punch. With a roomy 16-inch 16:10 display, media professionals and hobbyists have plenty of space on which to work. And our test system features an OLED panel that offers a dynamic image with a stellar contrast ratio. Powering the display on our test system is an Intel Core i9-12900H CPU and Nvidia GeForce RTX 3060 GPU, a duo that puts our test system on the high end of the price scale. HP offers smart and wide-ranging configuration options for the Envy 16 and, while you can configure a model for your needs and budget, you’re stuck with a rather hefty travel companion. At just over 5 pounds, the laptop is heavy even among 16-inch 16:10 models. I’m also…

Corsair, a company that was once known for its RAM modules, has grown rapidly over the past decade. Now it’s taking a step into the complex and competitive world of laptops with its new Corsair Voyager a1600. Pitched as “the world’s first laptop designed for streamers,” the Voyager a1600 is unique and often enjoyable, but it’s not a flawless gaming laptop. Let’s get right into it. SPECS AND FEATURES The laptop I received for review was a top-tier model with an AMD Ryzen 9 6900HS processor, 32GB of DDR5 memory, and a huge 2TB solid state drive. These are high-end specifications, so it’s no surprise this model comes in at a hefty $2,849.99. CPU: AMD Ryzen 9 6900HS Memory: 32GB LPDDR5 4800MHz Graphics/GPU: AMD Radeon RX6800M Display: 2,560×1,600 16:10 IPS…

If you do a lot of work in a desktop browser such as Chrome, Firefox, or Microsoft Edge, do yourself a favor and upgrade to the beta version. Switching to your browser’s beta channel is a great way to enjoy new features before they reach the general public, and it’s also a simple way to get slightly out of your tech comfort zone. And despite the “beta” branding, these releases tend to be remarkably stable, so you can get a taste of cutting-edge innovation without much risk. THE CASE FOR BETA BROWSING Diving into pre-release software isn’t always a safe bet. The public betas of iOS and Android, for instance, can be quite rocky, with bugs and battery life issues that get in the way of everyday use, and you can’t…

If you’re receiving unwanted communications via e-mail from another Gmail user, it’s pretty easy to block them. Messages from blocked users will then automatically be sent to the Spam folder. However, if you change your mind later on, you can always unblock them. Here’s how to do it. GMAIL ON DESKTOP 1. You can block and unblock Gmail contacts using Gmail on a desktop browser. The first step is to login to your Gmail account and open an e-mail from the sender you wish to block. 2. Click the More icon (three dots) in the top-right corner of the e-mail. Next, select Block contact name from the drop-down menu. 3. You’ll then get a pop-up message asking you to confirm that you want to block the contact. Click the blue…

Far be it from us to criticize a little advertising — after all, it’s what keeps the lights on at this site, and pretty much every similar one around the web. But users who buy a computer and, by extension, a $100-plus copy of Windows from Microsoft are on firmer ground for complaint. For example, the latest place Microsoft wants to experiment with a little add-on-advertisement is the Windows 11 Start Menu, specifically the flyout menu you see when you click on your user profile picture. As spotted by Twitter user Albacore (and elaborated by NeoWin), at least some users of the latest Dev Channel version of Windows 11 are seeing little promo spots for Microsoft OneDrive and creating new Microsoft Accounts in this submenu. It’s not especially surprising, or…

AMD’s Advantage series of laptops, built in cooperation with OEM laptop makers like Dell, Lenovo, and Asus, are a hit. Closely integrating Ryzen CPUs and Radeon GPUs under the watchful technical guidance of AMD itself makes some fan-favorite gaming laptop designs, like the Asus ROG Zephyrus G14. Along with the announcement of the Radeon 7000 GPU series, AMD has decided to expand the program to include desktops as well. AMD Advantage Desktops will be available soon from CSL, CyberpowerPC, eBuyer, Falcon Northwest, Maingear, Origin, and Xidax. What qualifies a pre-built desktop for that Advantage label? To start with, it must have nothing but the best from AMD’s chip offerings, the Ryzen 9 7950X CPU and the new Radeon RX 7900 XTX graphics card. On top of that, minimum specs for the other…

Put simply, Microsoft’s Surface Laptop 5 is Microsoft’s answer to your question: What laptop should I buy? The Surface Laptop is Microsoft’s laptop for everyone, its Toyota Camry, remaining virtually unchanged for generation after generation. Your only choice is the size—13.5-inch or 15-inch—and what configuration you prefer. If you’ve read our review of the Microsoft Surface Laptop 4, you know almost exactly what to expect. The Surface Laptop 5 is nearly physically identical (with a sliver of difference here and there) to its predecessor, in both the 13.5-inch and 15-inch editions. Microsoft gave us the latter version for review. The key changes are largely internal: an upgrade to Intel’s 12th-gen Core (Alder Lake) and the addition of Thunderbolt 4, which is tied to that processor’s capabilities. The latter is subtly…

We’ve all heard the slogan: recycle, reuse, reduce. While you likely know what that might mean for everyday items like cans and bottles, how would it apply to a laptop? That’s something Acer is exploring with its Aspire Vero line of computers. The Acer Aspire Vero 14 is a laptop that’s made from a number of materials, many of them recycled—even better, post-consumer recycled. From the unboxing experience to the laptop itself, this is a machine made with the environment in mind. But what will you sacrifice for the bragging rights of toting around a laptop made from trash? Let’s find out. SPECIFICATIONS AND FEATURES Our review unit is packing an Intel Core i7-1225U, 16GB of RAM, and 1TB of NVMe PCIe SSD storage. For more details, check out the…

In a fall crammed with hardware releases, Intel’s new 13th-generation Raptor Lake CPUs may be the most feral of the lot. Raw, unapologetic power is one aspect of it—chipmakers are now shooting as much juice possible through processors to make them scream during tasks, and Intel fully embraces this approach. But performance isn’t what makes Raptor Lake borderline savage. Certainly, Intel’s latest is impressive, as demonstrated by the top-end Core i9-13900K. The way it posts benchmark numbers brings to mind loud, ferocious American muscle cars. No, it’s the timing of its arrival. AMD and Intel’s fight for superiority is no longer a genteel, scripted affair. Instead, we’ve moved into blood sport. Several weeks ago, Intel cast a shadow over the launch of AMD’s juggernaut Ryzen 7000 chips by announcing details…

If you suffer from eye strain or tension headaches, you may want to consider enabling dark mode in Microsoft Office. Not only is it easier on the eyes, but it also helps reduce any issues with glare. Not sure how to go about it? Don’t sweat it. We’ve got you covered. Whether you tango with Windows or Mac, we’ll guide you every step of the way. Note: Dark mode is available for Office 365 subscribers and in certain Office 2019 editions. ENABLE DARK MODE IN OFFICE FOR WINDOWS 1. Open any Office app and click the File tab. 2. Next, click Account at the bottom of the left pane. 3. Click the box under Office Theme to display a menu with several theme options. Black is the true dark mode.…