HP Spectre x360 (2019) First Impressions

HP’s Spectre x360 has defined the state of the art in the premium portable PC market since the first version appeared in 2015. Since then, the firm has methodically improved the product each year in important ways and amped up its design.
And maybe we should start with that last bit first.
In 2017, the third-generation Spectre x360 design took a controversial turn that replaced the smooth curves of previous versions with a harder, more angular look. My knee-jerk reaction to this change was a bit negative. But the latest Spectre x360 revision takes this change to a new extreme, with chopped off rear corners—which HP calls “faceted edges”—that serve to exaggerate the angular design language.
It looks strange at first, but it’s done for practical as well as aesthetic reasons: The left rear corner holds the device’s power button, while the right rear corner provides a USB-C port which angles the power cord back and away from the side of the device.
To understand why this is desirable, consider HP’s otherwise perfect new EliteBook x360 1040 G5, which provides two USB-C ports on its right side. Both are inconveniently located away from the rear of the device’s side, to make room for full-sized USB and HDMI ports. And that means that the power cord will always be in the way if you’re right-handed. Which most people are.
I’ve always felt that portable PCs with two USB-C ports should split their locations between both sides to accommodate everyone’s preferences. But the 1040 has triggered another concern: Those USB-C ports should likewise be set as far back on the device as possible so that a power cord or other USB-based peripheral doesn’t get in the way.
The Spectre x360’s unique design solves this problem. Whether you think it looks any good is, of course, subjective. I am … still a bit unsure of the visual appeal.
Adding to my hesitancy, the angles extend to the chamfering on both the top lid and bottom deck edges, and to the hinges too. (Even the speaker grill has an angular design.) So there are all kinds of sharp angles going on here. HP says it was inspired by precious gems like diamonds, which are precision-cut in angular ways. I don’t know. Maybe it will grow on me.
Beyond the angles, the design of the latest Spectre x360 has been improved in far more defensible and less controversial ways as well. The already-tiny side bezels on the display are even smaller than before, and as is the case with the EliteBook x360 1040, HP has worked to make what was previously a monster bottom bezel smaller as well. I still feel that a 3:2 display would solve the bezel issue once and for all and be more useful and usable to boot, but this is a welcome change regardless. Size and weight are similar to the previous models.
Functionally, the Spectre x360 is bursting with improvements, too. It features quad-core Intel Core i5 processors, of course, with 17 percent better performance, and the 15-inch version can be configured with six-core Intel Core processors and up to NVIDIA GeForce 1050Ti graphics. There’s Thunderbolt 3, of course. And HP’s vaunted SureView privacy display shield, which can be toggled with a function key. New to 2018/2019 is a hardware kill switch for the webcam and a fingerprint reader, which I’ve always wanted on the Spectre. (Yes, it still supports IR camera-based Windows Hello as well.)
And then there’s battery life.
HP is claiming a 21 percent battery life improvement over the previous model, good for up to 21.6 hours of battery life. It supports HP Fast Charge too, of course. But as notable, HP is providing a new Command Center app that lets the customer configure the device’s system performance and temperature. That way, you can decide whether you value quiet operation over more power but with the resultant fan noise.
From a communications perspective, HP is finally bringing cellular data capabilities to the Spectre x360, via optional Gigabit LTE capabilities. It’s a dual-SIM system, too, with an integrated eSIM and a separate SIM card tray.
Pricing is, well, premium: the HP Spectre x360 starts at $1350 for a version with a Core i7-8565U processor, 8 GB of RAM, 256 GB of SSD storage, a 13.3-inch Full HD BrightView display, and an HP Pen. Versions with more RAM and storage, and a 4K UHD display, run from $1450 to $1550. The 15-inch version starts at $1600, offering the same processor, NVIDIA MX 150 graphics, 16 GB of RAM, 512 GB of SSD storage, a 15.6-inch 4K UHD display, and an HP Pen. Add NVIDIA GeForce 1050Ti graphics and 1 TB of storage, and the pricing jumps to $2050.
I’ll be reviewing the 13.3-inch version first. The review unit is the base $1350 model noted above.

How to Turn on Your Windows PC Automatically Each Morning

Most of us have morning rituals, and yours probably involves a computer at some point. And while it’s not that hard to press the power button, wait for your system to boot up, and then type in your Windows password to log into your desktop, those are a lot of time-consuming steps that morning you has to sit and do. If you’re lucky, you can automate this entire process.
The one problem with this plan is that laptop manufacturers and motherboard manufacturers have a tendency to label settings differently. Nevertheless, the next time you power up your laptop or desktop, mash whatever buttons you need to press to load up its BIOS instead of your operating system.
Once inside, you’re going to be looking for any settings that relate to power. These might be labeled something as simple as “power-on menu,” or “power scheduling,” or whatnot. There might also be a setting for “powering on” by an “RTC alarm,” powering on by “RTC,” or simply “resume by alarm.”
Whatever it’s called—if the option exists—you should be able to then schedule a time that you want your system to automatically boot up each day. You might even be able to schedule which days this happens, too, in case you’re planning to sleep in on the weekend, but want to make sure your laptop or desktop is ready for you to do whatever it is you do in the morning while you’re getting ready for work.
You’re not done, though. If you truly want an automated boot, you’ll also have to disable the password prompt that prevents Windows from going directly to your desktop. In Windows 10, you don’t have an option to not set a password—at least, not if you’re using a Microsoft account to log in, which you should be doing anyway to synchronize your settings across your various systems.
This process will cost you some of your security, but if your desktop or laptop sits in a single room and you’re the only person that ever interacts with it, you shouldn’t worry that much. (You’ll still have a password and/or a PIN, you just won’t need it to boot up.)
To disable Windows’ password prompt, just tap the start button and type in “netplwiz.” Uncheck the option called, “Users must enter a user name and password to use this computer,” and click “OK.” You’ll be asked to enter your Windows 10 password, which your system will then use to automatically log you in. In other words, typo this part, and the entire process won’t work.
Once you’ve finished these two steps—setting up a power-on schedule in your BIOS, and bypassing your Windows password—you’ll then be greeted by your desktop each morning according to whatever schedule you created. If your monitor or laptop is bright enough, and in the same room as where you sleep, maybe you could even use this as an alarm clock.

Dell XPS 13 9380 vs Surface Laptop 2: Which should you buy?

We live and breathe Windows laptops and we've used all the leading Ultrabooks extensively. The XPS 13 and Surface Laptop 2 are two of our top picks, and here's how to choose between them.
Category leader Dell XPS 13 9380
The XPS 13 is generally the best all-rounder when it comes to Windows laptops and became the class leader for a reason. The battery life and port selection in particular are worth highlighting.
Pros
Quad-core processors
Optional 4K display
Great battery life
Thunderbolt 3 USB-C
Cons
No digital pen support
White version will dirty quickly
Creators dream Microsoft Surface Laptop 2
Lacking in only small areas compared to the XPS 13, the Surface Laptop 2 is a great tool for creatives, students, and of course, diehard Microsoft fans.
From $900 at Microsoft
Pros
Touch display on every model
3:2 display aspect ratio
Digital pen and Surface Dial support
Better entry level model
Cons
Alcantara gets dirty easily
No USB-C or Thunderbolt 3
The Surface Laptop 2 is a more significant update than the exterior would have you believe, and where its predecessor was fairly easily overshadowed by Dell's class leading XPS 13, it's a lot closer competition this time around.
XPS 13 vs. Surface Laptop tech specs

Category	Dell XPS 13 9380	Surface Laptop 2
OS	Windows 10 Home Windows 10 Pro	Windows 10 S (upgradeable to Pro)
Processor	Intel 8th Gen Core i3-8145U Intel 8th Gen Core i5-8265U Intel 8th Gen Core i7-8565U	Intel 8th Gen Core i5-8250U, i7-8650U
Display size	13.3 inches	13.5 inches
Display resolution	UltraSharp 4K (3840x2160) FHD (1920 x 1080) non-touch display	2,256 x 1,504 touch (3:2 aspect ratio)
RAM	4GB/8GB/16GB DDR3	8GB/16GB DDR3
Graphics	Intel UHD 620 (Eighth-gen)	Intel UHD 620 (Eighth-gen)
Storage	128GB/256GB/512GB PCIe NVMe SSD 1TB/2TB PCIe SSD	128GB/256GB/512GB/1TB SSD
Ports	Two Thunderbolt 3 with PowerShare One USB-C 3.1 with PowerShare microSD card reader headset jack	USB-A 3.0 Surface Connect Mini DisplayPort 3.5mm jack
Battery	52WHr	45.2 WHr
Weight	Starting weight: 2.7 lbs (1.23 kg)	2.76 lbs (1.25kg)

Some give and take
Overall performance isn't an issue on either of these laptops. Both now come with quad-core processors from Intel (albeit the XPS 13 has slightly more updated versions), options for plentiful RAM, and stacks of storage.
The main differences are exclusive to each laptop. For example, the Surface Laptop 2 not only has a taller, 3:2 display, it supports digital pen, great for not only writing but for digital artists. You get 4K and touch on the XPS 13, but no pen. However, while the Surface Laptop 2 gives with one hand, it takes away with the other, having no support for USB-C or Thunderbolt 3.
The Thunderbolt 3 support on the XPS 13 is a big deal, too. Not only does it mean the new USB-C standard connector is available, but you can hook up peripherals like external high-resolution displays, docks, and even eGPUs to turn your laptop into a powerful desktop gaming PC or workstation. The lack of USB-C even on the Surface Laptop 2 without an adapter is a pretty big omission.
You also can't forget the Alcantara-covered keyboard on the Surface Laptop 2. Alcantara is an Italian-made fabric that looks and feels a lot like suede and has been used on a number of Microsoft products. Fabric gets dirty easily — that's just fact — which means if you decide on the Surface, you're going to have to deal with a mess after a few weeks (although you can clean it).
A harder choice than ever
The Dell XPS 13 is the quintessential Ultrabook. It hasn't been significantly updated in a number of years, but it was well ahead of the curve when it first fell into our hands back in 2015. The latest model continues to follow an upward curve in that it's more powerful, boasts better battery life and now, finally, has the webcam back in the traditional place. Rejoice for no more Skype calls staring up your nose!
The Surface Laptop 2 on the other hand is equally impressive in its own right. Some of its better features are things the XPS 13 doesn't have, like a 3:2 display and digital pen support. It has its own unique, iconic style, but that alcantara is going to get pretty grubby. It's a shame that Microsoft didn't get even USB-C into the Surface Laptop 2, because when it comes to outright performance the XPS 13 has it beat by virtue of its flexibility.
With the Surface Laptop 2 you need to buy into the Surface ecosystem to expand its abilities and use it in a desktop environment. The XPS 13, by virtue of having Thunderbolt 3, can support a range of accessories and docks, as well as an eGPU which can turn your sleek, sophisticated Ultrabook into a frame-ripping gaming rig.
At a pinch, the XPS 13 is still the better overall pick for most people. But if you're a creator in particular, the Surface Laptop 2 will serve you better thanks to that taller display and support for the digital pen. It also has a better entry level model than the Dell while matching it on price.

Chrome OS Dev adds support for backing up and restoring Linux containers

The recent addition of Linux app support to Chromebooks has made the laptops much more useful, especially in the eyes of developers. However, if you needed to wipe or upgrade your Chromebook, there wasn't an easy way to keep your Linux data. Previous code commits hinted at the ability to back up and restore the Linux container, and now that functionality has arrived in the Dev Channel.
There's a new #crostini-backup flag in Chrome OS Dev/Canary, and when activated, an option to backup your Linux files appears in the Settings app. The resulting backup is a .tar.gz file, which can be saved to the Downloads folder or anywhere else. Restoring a backup is also done from the Settings app.
It's nice to see Google continuing to improve Linux apps on Chrome OS — now we just need graphics acceleration and sound support.

Motorola RAZR foldable phone is still coming soon

In the past week, we have seen a flood of upcoming foldable phone announcements from Samsung, Huawei, and others. One of the biggest names in smartphones, Motorola, also has plans for such a device, and it may be coming sooner than you might think.
Engadget spoke to Motorola VP of Global Product Dan Dery at MWC 2019 this week. He confirmed that the company has been working on flexible and foldable phone products for some time and added that Motorola has “no intention of coming later than everybody else in the market.”
That would mean Motorola is targeting a release for its foldable phone in the very near future, considering that Samsung plans to release its Galaxy Fold smartphone on April 26. The Wall Street Journal previously reported that such a phone, which it said would have the company’s RAZR brand name, could be released in February, but that time frame is now looking like it’s inaccurate.
While not confirming what the design of its foldable phone would be like, Dery did state to Engadget that its device is not intended to feature a display on the outside, due to issues with scratching. That would seem to jibe with recently-discovered patent filings by Motorola, which depict a smartphone that has a large and tall display that folds up in half, in a design that’s similar to Motorola’s classic RAZR flip phone.
Dery also stated that Motorola is looking into possibly creating a dual-hinge foldable smartphone. This kind of design would have a big screen that has folds on the left and right side, leaving a screen that’s only one third the size of the main device to be used as a smartphone. In fact, Dery claimed to Engadget that “two very famous” unnamed companies are already working on dual-hinge devices.

Cheap Symbol CS4070 Li-ion Other battery, Brand New CS4070 replacement battery for SYMBOL 82-97300-01 82-97300-02 ZEBRA

950mah/3.52Wh 3.7V Symbol CS4070 Batteries for SYMBOL 82-97300-01 82-97300-02 ZEBRA, Symbol CS4070 Other battery is a brand new,100% Compatible original and replacement Laptop battery,Purchase wholesale and retail CS4070 with high quality and low price!

CS4070 Battery symbol Li-ion 3.7V 950mah/3.52Wh

Specifications

• Brand:SYMBOL
• Capacity :950mah/3.52Wh
• Voltage :3.7V
• Type :Li-ion
• Battery Cell Quality: Grade A
• Descriptive: Replacement Battery - 1 Year Warranty
• Description: Brand New, 1 Year Warranty! 30-Days Money Back! Fast Shipping!

How we test this Symbol CS4070 Battery Li-ion 3.7V 950mah/3.52Wh

Step 1: Make sure customer bought the correct battery.
Step 2: Check battery's appearance and interface.
Step 3: Test battery charger and recharger function.
Step 4: Charger the battery to 100% and recharger to 0% to get real battery capacity
Step 5: Use Ev2300 to check the voltage difference of each goroup cells.
Step 6: Charger battery power more than 30%.
Step 7: Package battery carefully and send out

Compatible Part Numbers:

CS4070

Compatible Model Numbers:

SYMBOL 82-97300-02 ZEBRA

How much do you know about how to run laptop well as any place? The follow Tips cut way back on protecting battery life.

---

1). Please recharge or change your Other battery when battery power low.
2). Using Li-Ion Replacement Symbol CS4070 Other Battery for your notebook which can work longer time than Non Li-ion one.
3). It is better to defragmentation regularly for your Other battery life. 
4). In order to reduce the laptop power consumpition, you can use some optical drive spin-down and hard drive in your Other .
5). Please keep your laptop in sleep or standby model without long time using, which both save the Replacement Symbol CS4070 Other Batterypower and extend battery using life. 
6). Leave your battery in a dry and cool condition when without using.
7). When you rarely or generally plugged in fixed power using, Please take down your battery to avoid hurting battery life.

Hot Products

7.4V 2230mAH/17Wh BOSE 063404 for BOSE SOUNDLINK Mini I Series

11.1V/12.4v 2300mah BOSE 404600 for Bose SOUNDLINK I II III

16.8V/20V 400mA/2200mAH/32Wh BOSE 300769-003 for Bose Sounddock Portable Digita

11.4V 84Wh DELL 4GVGH for DELL XPS 15 9550 4GVGH 1P6KD

3.8V/4.35V 4250mAh/16.2WH LENOVO L15D1P32 for Lenovo Tab 3 8 Plus TB-8703F 8

1 SHUTTLE ENP-2320 for SOLTEK EQ2000 - 200W PFC

90W ASUS ADP-90YD_B for Asus B43V B53V

110W LG 110W for LG ADS-110CL-19-3 190110G

45W SONY 45W for Sony Vaio Duo 13 SVD13215CDB U

240W DELL 240W for DHVJN for Dell Inspiron 3650 O

Cheap Apple A1233 Li-ion Laptop battery, Brand New A1233 replacement battery for Apple Xserve RAID Card 922-8946 923-00864

9Wh 3.6V Apple A1233 Batteries for Apple Xserve RAID Card 922-8946 923-00864, Apple A1233 Laptop battery is a brand new,100% Compatible original and replacement Laptop battery,Purchase wholesale and retail A1233 with high quality and low price!

A1233 Battery apple Li-ion 3.6V 9Wh

Specifications

• Brand:Apple
• Capacity :9Wh
• Voltage :3.6V
• Type :Li-ion
• Battery Cell Quality: Grade A
• Descriptive: Replacement Battery - 1 Year Warranty
• Description: Brand New, 1 Year Warranty! 30-Days Money Back! Fast Shipping!

How we test this Apple A1233 Battery Li-ion 3.6V 9Wh

Step 1: Make sure customer bought the correct battery.
Step 2: Check battery's appearance and interface.
Step 3: Test battery charger and recharger function.
Step 4: Charger the battery to 100% and recharger to 0% to get real battery capacity
Step 5: Use Ev2300 to check the voltage difference of each goroup cells.
Step 6: Charger battery power more than 30%.
Step 7: Package battery carefully and send out

Compatible Part Numbers:

A1233 922-8062 922-8484 922-8946 923-00864

Compatible Model Numbers:

Apple Xserve (Early 2009) MB449LL/A - 2.26 GHz Quad-Core Xeon
Apple Xserve3
Apple1 (A1279) EMC# 2279
Apple Xserve (Early 2009) (BTO/CTO) - 2.26 GHz Eight-Core Xeon
Apple Xserve3
Apple1 (A1279) EMC# 2279
Apple Xserve (Early 2009) (BTO/CTO) - 2.66 GHz Eight-Core Xeon
Apple Xserve3
Apple1 (A1279) EMC# 2279
Apple Xserve (Early 2009) (BTO/CTO) - 2.93GHz Eight-Core Xeon
Apple Xserve3
Apple1 (A1279) EMC# 2279
Apple Xserve (Early 2008) MA882LL/A - 2.8 GHz Quad-Core Xeon
Apple Xserve2
Apple1 (A1246) EMC# 2186
Apple Xserve (Early 2008) (BTO/CTO) - 2.8 GHz Eight-Core Xeon
Apple Xserve2
Apple1 (A1246) EMC# 2186
Apple Xserve (Early 2008) (BTO/CTO) - 3.0 GHz Eight-Core Xeon
Apple Xserve2
Apple1 (A1246) EMC# 2186
Apple Xserve (Late 2006) MA409LL/A - 2.0 GHz Quad-Core Xeon
Apple Xserve1
Apple1 (A1196) EMC# 2107
Apple Xserve (Late 2006) (BTO/CTO) - 2.66 GHz Quad-Core Xeon
Apple Xserve1
Apple1 (A1196) EMC# 2107
Apple Xserve (Late 2006) (BTO/CTO) - 3.0 GHz Quad-Core Xeon
Apple Xserve1
Apple1 (A1196) EMC# 2107

How much do you know about how to run laptop well as any place? The follow Tips cut way back on protecting battery life.

---

1). Please recharge or change your Laptop battery when battery power low.
2). Using Li-Ion Replacement Apple A1233 Laptop Battery for your notebook which can work longer time than Non Li-ion one.
3). It is better to defragmentation regularly for your Laptop battery life. 
4). In order to reduce the laptop power consumpition, you can use some optical drive spin-down and hard drive in your Laptop .
5). Please keep your laptop in sleep or standby model without long time using, which both save the Replacement Apple A1233 Laptop Batterypower and extend battery using life. 
6). Leave your battery in a dry and cool condition when without using.
7). When you rarely or generally plugged in fixed power using, Please take down your battery to avoid hurting battery life.

Hot Products

7.4V 2230mAH/17Wh BOSE 063404 for BOSE SOUNDLINK Mini I Series

11.1V/12.4v 2300mah BOSE 404600 for Bose SOUNDLINK I II III

16.8V/20V 400mA/2200mAH/32Wh BOSE 300769-003 for Bose Sounddock Portable Digita

11.4V 84Wh DELL 4GVGH for DELL XPS 15 9550 4GVGH 1P6KD

3.8V/4.35V 4250mAh/16.2WH LENOVO L15D1P32 for Lenovo Tab 3 8 Plus TB-8703F 8

1 SHUTTLE ENP-2320 for SOLTEK EQ2000 - 200W PFC

90W ASUS ADP-90YD_B for Asus B43V B53V

110W LG 110W for LG ADS-110CL-19-3 190110G

45W SONY 45W for Sony Vaio Duo 13 SVD13215CDB U

240W DELL 240W for DHVJN for Dell Inspiron 3650 O

Cheap Asus C31N1428 Li-ion Laptop battery, Brand New C31N1428 replacement battery for ASUS Zenbook UX305 UX305LA UX305UA Series

56Wh/4780mAh 11.31V Asus C31N1428 Batteries for ASUS Zenbook UX305 UX305LA UX305UA Series, Asus C31N1428 Laptop battery is a brand new,100% Compatible original and replacement Laptop battery,Purchase wholesale and retail C31N1428 with high quality and low price!

C31N1428 Battery asus Li-ion 11.31V 56Wh/4780mAh

Specifications

• Brand:ASUS
• Capacity :56Wh/4780mAh
• Voltage :11.31V
• Type :Li-ion
• Battery Cell Quality: Grade A
• Descriptive: Replacement Battery - 1 Year Warranty
• Description: Brand New, 1 Year Warranty! 30-Days Money Back! Fast Shipping!

How we test this Asus C31N1428 Battery Li-ion 11.31V 56Wh/4780mAh

Step 1: Make sure customer bought the correct battery.
Step 2: Check battery's appearance and interface.
Step 3: Test battery charger and recharger function.
Step 4: Charger the battery to 100% and recharger to 0% to get real battery capacity
Step 5: Use Ev2300 to check the voltage difference of each goroup cells.
Step 6: Charger battery power more than 30%.
Step 7: Package battery carefully and send out

Compatible Part Numbers:

0B200-01450100 C31N1428

Compatible Model Numbers:

ASUS Zenbook UX305 UX305LA UX305UA Series

How much do you know about how to run laptop well as any place? The follow Tips cut way back on protecting battery life.

---

1). Please recharge or change your Laptop battery when battery power low.
2). Using Li-Ion Replacement Asus C31N1428 Laptop Battery for your notebook which can work longer time than Non Li-ion one.
3). It is better to defragmentation regularly for your Laptop battery life. 
4). In order to reduce the laptop power consumpition, you can use some optical drive spin-down and hard drive in your Laptop .
5). Please keep your laptop in sleep or standby model without long time using, which both save the Replacement Asus C31N1428 Laptop Batterypower and extend battery using life. 
6). Leave your battery in a dry and cool condition when without using.
7). When you rarely or generally plugged in fixed power using, Please take down your battery to avoid hurting battery life.

Hot Products

7.4V 2230mAH/17Wh BOSE 063404 for BOSE SOUNDLINK Mini I Series

11.1V/12.4v 2300mah BOSE 404600 for Bose SOUNDLINK I II III

16.8V/20V 400mA/2200mAH/32Wh BOSE 300769-003 for Bose Sounddock Portable Digita

11.4V 84Wh DELL 4GVGH for DELL XPS 15 9550 4GVGH 1P6KD

3.8V/4.35V 4250mAh/16.2WH LENOVO L15D1P32 for Lenovo Tab 3 8 Plus TB-8703F 8

1 SHUTTLE ENP-2320 for SOLTEK EQ2000 - 200W PFC

90W ASUS ADP-90YD_B for Asus B43V B53V

110W LG 110W for LG ADS-110CL-19-3 190110G

45W SONY 45W for Sony Vaio Duo 13 SVD13215CDB U

240W DELL 240W for DHVJN for Dell Inspiron 3650 O

Cheap Asus C31N1610 Li-ion Laptop battery, Brand New C31N1610 replacement battery for ASUS ZenBook UX330CA Series

54wh/4680mAh 11.55V Asus C31N1610 Batteries for ASUS ZenBook UX330CA Series, Asus C31N1610 Laptop battery is a brand new,100% Compatible original and replacement Laptop battery,Purchase wholesale and retail C31N1610 with high quality and low price!

C31N1610 Battery asus Li-ion 11.55V 54wh/4680mAh

Specifications

• Brand:ASUS
• Capacity :54wh/4680mAh
• Voltage :11.55V
• Type :Li-ion
• Battery Cell Quality: Grade A
• Descriptive: Replacement Battery - 1 Year Warranty
• Description: Brand New, 1 Year Warranty! 30-Days Money Back! Fast Shipping!

How we test this Asus C31N1610 Battery Li-ion 11.55V 54wh/4680mAh

Step 1: Make sure customer bought the correct battery.
Step 2: Check battery's appearance and interface.
Step 3: Test battery charger and recharger function.
Step 4: Charger the battery to 100% and recharger to 0% to get real battery capacity
Step 5: Use Ev2300 to check the voltage difference of each goroup cells.
Step 6: Charger battery power more than 30%.
Step 7: Package battery carefully and send out

Compatible Part Numbers:

C31N1610

Compatible Model Numbers:

Asus ZenBook UX330CA Series

How much do you know about how to run laptop well as any place? The follow Tips cut way back on protecting battery life.

---

1). Please recharge or change your Laptop battery when battery power low.
2). Using Li-Ion Replacement Asus C31N1610 Laptop Battery for your notebook which can work longer time than Non Li-ion one.
3). It is better to defragmentation regularly for your Laptop battery life. 
4). In order to reduce the laptop power consumpition, you can use some optical drive spin-down and hard drive in your Laptop .
5). Please keep your laptop in sleep or standby model without long time using, which both save the Replacement Asus C31N1610 Laptop Batterypower and extend battery using life. 
6). Leave your battery in a dry and cool condition when without using.
7). When you rarely or generally plugged in fixed power using, Please take down your battery to avoid hurting battery life.

Hot Products

7.4V 2230mAH/17Wh BOSE 063404 for BOSE SOUNDLINK Mini I Series

11.1V/12.4v 2300mah BOSE 404600 for Bose SOUNDLINK I II III

16.8V/20V 400mA/2200mAH/32Wh BOSE 300769-003 for Bose Sounddock Portable Digita

11.4V 84Wh DELL 4GVGH for DELL XPS 15 9550 4GVGH 1P6KD

3.8V/4.35V 4250mAh/16.2WH LENOVO L15D1P32 for Lenovo Tab 3 8 Plus TB-8703F 8

1 SHUTTLE ENP-2320 for SOLTEK EQ2000 - 200W PFC

90W ASUS ADP-90YD_B for Asus B43V B53V

110W LG 110W for LG ADS-110CL-19-3 190110G

45W SONY 45W for Sony Vaio Duo 13 SVD13215CDB U

240W DELL 240W for DHVJN for Dell Inspiron 3650 O

Hp HSTNN-CA24 laptop Adapter ,HSTNN-CA24 Adapter for HP Zbook 15 17, 15 G2 17 G2 Workstaion

19.5V 10.5A HSTNN-CA24 Laptop Charger Wholesale,Hp HSTNN-CA24 laptop Adapter is replacement for HP Zbook 15 17, 15 G2 17 G2 Workstaion ,Hp HSTNN-CA24 laptop Adapter discount price,Fast Shipping.

Specifications

• Brand:HP
• DC Output:19.5V 10.5A
• AC Input:100-240V,50-60Hz
Premium quality replacement HP Zbook 15 17, 15 G2 17 G2 Workstaion  laptop Adapter . This charger is rated at 19.5V 10.5Aoutput and  of output power. This HP Zbook 15 17, 15 G2 17 G2 Workstaion laptop Adapter is compatible with the original equipment. Designed for reliable performance and high durability, this charger is supplied with a U.S. power cord.

Charger features:

• CE, FCC and RoHS certified to ensure proper adapter safety and quality.
• Sealed for protection against moisture and humidity.
• Designed with internal safety features to protect against voltage spikes, surges or fluctuations.
• Utilizes low voltage shut down protection.
• Utilizes over voltage limiting protection.
• Utilizes output over current limiting protection.
• Utilizes “short-circuit†shutdown protection. 
• Undergone comprehensive quality testing throughout the manufacturing and assembly process.
• Includes a 12-month free replacement warranty for manufacturer's defects.

Compatible Part Numbers:

608431-002 609945-001 HSTNN-CA16 HSTNN-DA16 ADP-200CB BA 608431-001 677764-002 693708-001 644698-002 645154-001 HSTNN-CA24

Compatible Model Numbers:

Hp Elitebook 8560w 8570w 8740w 8760w 8770w
HP Zbook 15 17, 15 G2 17 G2 Workstaion

Description of Hp HSTNN-CA24 laptop Adapter

---

High Quality, Guarantee :
Factory direct price, 100% compatible, No memory effect. Hi-Capacity, Quality garantee, certification Fast shipping. We stand behind our Replace for HP Cord/Charger Hp HSTNN-CA24 100%. 
Low Prices, Guarantee : 
All laptop Replace for HP Cord/Charger Hp HSTNN-CA24 at batteryforpc.co.uk are all directly purchased from various reputable manufacturers in the world and have passed stringent quality assurance procedures to achieve international standards. Through this direct selling model, middleman cost is minimized.
Satisfaction Guarantee : 
Our goal is to make sure you receive the best value of every purchase you make at our site. We want to be your number one choice Replace for Hp HSTNN-CA24. If you have any question or suggestion about this laptop ac adapter, please contact us so we can offer you the most convenient service. 
Secure Shopping Guarantee : 
Shopping from us is safe and secure. None of our customers have ever reported fraudulent use of their credit cards as a result of shopping with us. You can be assured that the information you give us is confidential. We do not sell, rent or share information of our customers with other parties. batteryforpc.co.uk guarantee your Replace for Hp HSTNN-CA24 transaction will be 100% safe.

Hot Products

7.4V 2230mAH/17Wh BOSE 063404 for BOSE SOUNDLINK Mini I Series

11.1V/12.4v 2300mah BOSE 404600 for Bose SOUNDLINK I II III

16.8V/20V 400mA/2200mAH/32Wh BOSE 300769-003 for Bose Sounddock Portable Digita

11.4V 84Wh DELL 4GVGH for DELL XPS 15 9550 4GVGH 1P6KD

3.8V/4.35V 4250mAh/16.2WH LENOVO L15D1P32 for Lenovo Tab 3 8 Plus TB-8703F 8

1 SHUTTLE ENP-2320 for SOLTEK EQ2000 - 200W PFC

90W ASUS ADP-90YD_B for Asus B43V B53V

110W LG 110W for LG ADS-110CL-19-3 190110G

45W SONY 45W for Sony Vaio Duo 13 SVD13215CDB U

240W DELL 240W for DHVJN for Dell Inspiron 3650 O

Apple MacBook vs. Dell XPS 13

Sometimes, you don’t want to carry a lot of laptop around with you. Maybe you’re highly mobile and rarely work in the same place for long. Or maybe you tend to work in cramped environments. Whatever the case, if you want a laptop that won’t take up a lot of space in your backpack or on you’re working surface, you have quite a few options.
We’ve taken a look at a couple of modern options, Apple’s diminutive MacBook with its 12-inch display and tiny chassis, and Dell’s XPS 13 that packs a 13.3-inch screen into a similar size. Which of them provides the smallest laptop with the fewest compromises?
DESIGN
Aesthetically, you can’t go wrong with either laptop. The MacBook conforms to Apple’s conservative yet elegant design in three color options, Gold, Space Gray, and Silver. Dell’s XPS 13 is also relatively conservatively designed, offering three of colors as well including a the business-like black and silver, Rose Gold, and a “Frost” that’s a lighter tone of silver than usual. That’s new for 2019. Thanks to a new webcam on the XPS 13 that’s now above the display and hence avoids uncomfortable up-the-nose angles, Dell can now boast some of the slimmest bezels around without making excuses. The MacBook’s wider bezels look downright old-school in comparison.
Both laptops also boast robust build quality, with the MacBook living up to the usual Apple standards thanks to a unibody aluminum chassis that feels like a solid chunk of metal. The XPS 13 has nothing to be ashamed of either, utilizing a range of materials including aluminum and carbon fiber to provide for a confidence-boosting build.
Although the XPS 13 is a bit thinner than the MacBook, it nevertheless boasts a keyboard with significantly more travel than the MacBook’s second-generation butterfly keyboard that’s incredibly shallow. Dell carried over its magnetic levitation technology from its XPS 15 2-in-1, and that means it’s just as snappy as the MacBook’s keyboard without feeling like you’re typing on a block of wood. The MacBook, on the other hand, benefits from the large Force Touch touchpad that’s one of our favorites, while the XPS 13’s Microsoft Precision touchpad is considerably smaller.
Finally, connectivity is similarly limited and focused on the future. Both laptops are limited to USB-C (including Thunderbolt 3 support), although the MacBook only has one port that’s also used to charge the laptop. If you want to connect a peripheral while charging, you’ll need an adapter. That’s really inconvenient sometimes. The XPS 13 has three USB-C ports, two with Thunderbolt 3, and so it’s far more adaptable. Photographers will love the addition of the microSD card slot as well.
The XPS 13 might be just slightly more substantial, but you get a bigger display, a better keyboard, and better connectivity. It wins this round.
PERFORMANCE
The XPS 13 uses 8th-generation Whiskey Lake quad-core CPUs, up to the Core i7-8565U, that provides a great balance of performance and efficiency. It’s fast enough for demanding productivity tasks, and it’s also efficient. The MacBook, on the other hand, uses 7th-generation Intel Y-series CPUs, meaning it’s more focused on being very quiet thanks to a fanless design and squeezing out as much battery life as possible. It was skipped for an update in 2018, meaning it’s a bit behind. Both use fast PCIe solid-state drives (SSDs) and so can access and save data quickly, but the XPS 13 is simply a much faster laptop.
Both laptops feature outstanding displays. The XPS 13 offers a variety of panels, including Full HD (1,920 x 1,080) displays with and without touch and a touch-enabled 4K UHD (3,920 x 1,080) screen. We tested the 4K display, and it’s bright with a wide color gamut, accurate colors, and high contrast. The MacBook’s 12-inch display sports Retina sharpness at 2,304 x 1,440 resolution, and it enjoys an even wider color gamut with high accuracy to go with similar brightness and contrast. Apple is good about making sure higher resolutions come standard, while you’ll have to pay quite a bit to jump up to the XPS 13’s 4K model.
PORTABILITY
Neither of these laptops will weigh you down or take up too much room in your backpack. Pick either, and you’ll enjoy awesome portability. The MacBook, though, is the smaller laptop thanks to its smaller display. However, it’s closer than you might imagine. It’s 11.04 inches by 7.74 inches by 0.52 inches at its thickest point, compared to the XPS 13 at 11.9 inches by 7.8 inches by 0.46 inches — impressive given the Dell’s larger display. The MacBook is considerably lighter, though, at 2.03 pounds compared to the XPS 13’s 2.7-pound starting weight.
Battery life also matters, though, and they’re roughly equal when comparing the XPS 13 with its high-end 4K display. That is, both laptops are going to struggle to last a full working day. If you step down to the Full HD option on the XPS 13, though, the dynamic likely changes with the Dell being a much longer-lasting option.
With equal displays, portability is roughly the same. But Dell gives you the option of a much longer-lasting laptop in the 1080p model.
THE XPS 13 IS A FASTER AND LONGER-LASTING LAPTOP
The MacBook starts at $1,300 for a Core m3 CPU, 8GB of RAM, and a 256GB SSD, and tops out at $1,600 for a Core i5, 8GB of RAM, and a 512GB SSD. That’s very expensive for the specs.
The Dell XPS 13 is a much more economical option, starting at $900 with a Core i5, 4GB of RAM, and a 128GB SSD, and then pricing goes up from there. It’s $2,010, for example, with a much more powerful configuration of a Core i7, 16GB of RAM, a 512GB SSD, and a 4K display.
You can spend more on the XPS 13, but you’re getting far more power, and you can also save some money and enjoy a longer-lasting laptop. Either choice appeals more to us than the MacBook’s relative compromises in battery life and performance.

OnePlus 7 won't bring you wireless charging

The upcoming OnePlus 7 will likely rock the latest processor and upgraded cameras. One thing it won't have, though, is wireless charging.
OnePlus phones are known for packing many of the latest features found in premium smartphones like the Samsung Galaxy S10 -- and at a much lower price. But one feature that continues to elude OnePlus is the ability for users to place a phone down on a wireless charging pad for a quick boost. CEO Pete Lau still doesn't think it's worth adding to his products.
"OnePlus charging is one of the best," Lau said through an interpreter in an interview on Monday at MWC 2019. "Wireless charging is far inferior."
Even so, wireless charging has grown in popularity ever since Apple introduced it in the iPhone X, iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus in 2017. Samsung stepped it up by adding the ability to wirelessly charge its Galaxy Buds with its Galaxy S10.
OnePlus is at MWC to show off a prototype of its 5G smartphone, which will come to two carriers in Europe in the second quarter. Lau declined to comment on the OnePlus 7, as well as the rumors that it may shed the notch and add a pop-out camera. He was carrying a prototype of the phone with him, but declined to show it to us.
His comments on wireless charging indicate that one of the key features still on consumer wish lists for an ideal OnePlus phone remains missing.
Lau expressed his skepticism about wireless charging as a consumer benefit, noting that it takes a long time to charge a device with a wireless pad. With the physical quick charge plug, OnePlus says, you can get your battery 50 percent charged in 20 minutes and fully charged in less than an hour.
OnePlus is working on accelerating the delivery of wireless power, but still hasn't figured out how to do it without too much heat. Lau said he doesn't have a date for when that may show up in his company's devices.
Qualcomm said it's bringing its quick-charge technology to wireless charging,which may improve the experience. Lau declined to comment about using it. 

String of ions may out-compute best quantum computers

Usually, I reflexively delete press releases. This one was no different, but as the message vanished, the subject line registered—“IonQ… quantum computing.” It took a second, but I realized that the name might mean something I had never expected: a commercial, ion-based, quantum computer. A quick visit to the trash confirmed my suspicion.
After some negotiation, I was in receipt of a super-secret paper demonstrating the capabilities of IonQ’s new computer.
Engineering ions is not simple
Making an ion-based quantum computer seems like a bad idea. Think about the engineering required to commercialize the computer. You need to have qubits (quantum bits) that are interconnected so that they can perform logic operations, and those qubits need to preserve their quantum-ness.
Pretty much all commercial quantum computing efforts focus on using superconducting rings of current as the qubit. These circuits can take advantage of all the engineering tools available for printed circuit board technology. The control circuits and readouts are all electronic—they send in and receive microwave signals via lines on a printed circuit board. The qubits are interconnected by lines that couple them together. In other words, the engineering is comparatively easy.
In research labs all around the world, however, there are small-scale quantum computers based on strings of ions (an ion is an atom with an electron removed). The ions float in a near-perfect vacuum, trapped by electric fields. Each ion needs to be addressed by two laser beams. The interconnection between qubits occurs via the natural motion of the qubits: they all vibrate together.
Ion qubits and their logic operations outperform their superconducting brethren by a huge margin. But engineering this type of computer at a commercial scale has been an entirely new challenge.
There’s water in your computer
A paper released by researchers uses the IonQ computer to calculate the ground state energy of a water molecule. The calculation itself is something almost any modern computer can do. What makes the calculation stand out is the number of operations required to complete the operation. In choosing water, the researchers have shown ion-based quantum computing at its best.
Let’s put this in perspective. To model a water molecule, the researchers use a standard approach, where it's assumed that the electrons in a water molecule take on a bit of the character of electrons that are in oxygen and a bit of the character of electrons that are in hydrogen. The trick to the calculation is to determine the balance of the admixtures and their energies.
The calculation that does this is a repeated approximation, where additional correction terms make the result (hopefully) more accurate as the calculation proceeds. This allows you to, in a sense, choose your accuracy based on when you stop doing math. As you might expect, each correction term requires more computational resources—for a quantum computer with only a few qubits, that's a challenge.
But if you have nice, stable, long-lived qubits that all talk to each other with a high degree of reliability, then you have a bit of wiggle room. That's one of the key points of this paper: the ion computer allows you to play some clever tricks that reduce the total number of qubits needed in exchange for increasing the number of operations required. That only works if you have time to perform all the operations, and time is something that quantum systems don't always provide in abundance.
Zooming in
According to the press release, IonQ’s computer has either 160 or 79 qubits (depending on whether the computer is storing or operating on quantum information). Looking at the circuit diagram (the program, essentially), I estimate that the calculation required some 30 qubits. That in itself is quite a jump from the typical ion quantum computer, which has about ten ions.
That, however, is the least of it. The calculation requires many sequential gate operations, and unlike digital logic operations, quantum logic operations are not exact. The error in each operation accumulates over many operations, which will leave a calculation in tatters. Ion computers, however, have very high precision in their operations. The researchers reported that they were able to perform 50 consecutive operations while still retaining the qubit in the correct state about three quarters of the time.
The interconnectedness of the ion computer also played an important role in the calculation. The researchers were able to directly entangle arbitrary pairs of qubits during the calculation. In other quantum computers, geometry does not allow all the qubits to be interconnected. As a result, any computation requires information to be swapped back and forth between qubits. Since the information fades away after a certain number of operations, each additional step to move information around reduces the amount of useful computation that can be done.
The end result is an answer that is very close to the results obtained from standard calculations performed on classical computers. And it's surely not the end. Hopefully, IonQ release more details about the computer soon—you can be sure we'll cover it when they do. Even in the absence of more technical details, I’m pretty sure we will see a steady stream of results from users.

Windows 10: New study shows Home edition users are baffled by updates

How annoying are Windows 10's automatic updates? In a new study, a group of UK researchers report that users of Home edition experience unexpected restarts and inconsistent installation times, caused by inappropriate defaults and inadequate notice of pending updates.
The single biggest complaint about Windows 10 is its approach to security and feature updates. Monthly cumulative updates and twice-yearly feature updates are downloaded and installed automatically, which can result in unexpected reboots that disrupt productivity and risk the loss of unsaved work. That pain point is particularly acute for anyone running Windows 10 Home edition, which lacks any controls for delaying and deferring those updates.
Since the initial release of Windows 10 nearly four years ago, Microsoft has been tweaking its approach to automatic updates, adding Active Hours settings to ensure that mandatory restarts are less likely to be intrusive. Recent feature updates have also made notifications of pending updates more obvious.
Are those changes enough to ease the pain? A new study from a group of UK-based researchers suggests Microsoft has more work to do.
The study, titled "In Control with No Control: Perceptions and Reality of Windows 10 Home Edition Update Features," was presented this week at the Workshop on Usable Security (USEC) 2019 in San Diego, California. Researchers Jason Morris, Ingolf Becker, and Simon Parkin of University College London, built a detailed model of Microsoft's update process as of Windows 10 version 1803 and then surveyed a group of 93 Windows 10 Home users.
The overall conclusions were a mixed bag. In general, the survey respondents think that the Windows 10 update approach is an improvement over that found in previous Windows versions. Among participants who had experience with earlier Windows versions 53 percent reported they felt updating Windows 10 is easier, versus only 8 percent who found the process more difficult.
Similarly, a majority of respondents agreed that the Windows 10 update process causes fewer interruptions than in previous versions (43 percent agreed, 21 percent disagreed).
Where Microsoft has fallen down, the researchers argue, is in building an update system that is "dependent on a complex range of user and system properties." That system, illustrated by the flowchart shown here, is simply too complicated for the average home user to understand.
The Active Hours feature draws the most criticism in this respect, with the authors arguing that its default settings are inappropriate for 97 percent of their test subjects.
To minimize disruption, they note, "users need to understand the 'active hours' concept and ... the configuration of active hours should ideally align with their usage patterns."
Neither of those conditions are true, they found. First, only 28 percent of respondents were even aware of the Active Hours feature. Second, the default window of 8AM to 5PM might be appropriate for businesses, but it's wildly out of sync for home users, based on the self-reported behavior of this group. Of the 93 survey participants, only three reported hours of use within those limits, with the overwhelming majority typically using their PC on weekday evenings.
And even among the 26 participants who were aware of the feature, 10 had not changed it from the default settings even though it clashed with their daily schedule.
Not surprisingly, that resulted in about half of the survey respondents reporting that they had experienced unexpected restarts.
The other noteworthy finding from the research is that users don't understand how often updates are delivered, nor do they appreciate the difference between monthly quality updates and semi-annual feature updates. That can lead to anxiety when an unexpected feature update takes well over an hour compared to the 12 minutes or less that a monthly cumulative update takes.
The survey respondents, who were generally well educated and experienced PC users, reported by an overwhelming 95 percent margin that they trust Microsoft as much as or more than other software makers at the task of delivering updates.
The researchers offered a few recommendations based on their findings.
The most important is that Windows "obtain explicit permission for restarts consistently." They note that doing so might require adjustments in the Active Hours default settings for Windows 10 Home as well as better progress displays.
Second, they criticized Windows 10 for offering insufficient notice of restarts. Unlike, say, a Chromebook, Windows 10 Home Edition does not provide a persistent warning that the system has a restart pending.
That's especially a problem when the user chooses the option to restart at a specific time. In that configuration the system shows a warning and then restarts within a few minutes. "If a user is absorbed by other tasks," the researchers argue, "the computer could, in the mind of the user, appear to restart unexpectedly despite them having been responsible for the chosen time. We think that one's computer should not reboot while in active use."
Finally, they suggest that Microsoft do a better job of warning about the significantly longer times required for feature updates. "[W]e think a notification that describes an update as one 'that could take a little longer than other updates' is failing to set accurate expectations to support users in planning around the availability impact of these updates."
That latter recommendation skips right past the real question, of course: Why is it necessary to deliver feature updates twice a year? Given that these updates are time-consuming to install and offer significant potential for disruption, why not offer Home edition users at least some control over when updates are installed.

Lenovo introduces the ThinkVision M14—a 14-inch, portable, USB-C monitor

Mobile World Congress is mostly about phones and other mobile tech, but Lenovo also used the show to introduce a handful of new products outside that narrow-but-vast category. The most interesting of them is a portable monitor that lets you bring the dual-monitor user experience with you and your laptop when you travel.
Labeled the ThinkVision M14, it's a 14-inch monitor with an IPS panel. The resolution is 1920x1080 pixels, which is plenty for 14 inches. It's built with modern laptop trends in mind, so it connects to your computer with USB-C. In fact, it has two USB-C ports, and both can be used for passthrough, provided you connect the monitor to an AC adapter. You can power the monitor from your laptop, but that doesn't seem like enough for passthrough, and Lenovo hasn't specified just how much power it needs from said laptop.
The ThinkVision M14 weighs 1.3 pounds and is 4.6mm thick. The only adjustment available is in the foot, which you can see in action in one of the render images above. The monitor will be available starting in May of this year for $249.
We're always happy to see options like this. Creatives (like video editors in particular) will appreciate the additional screen even when they're on the go. That said, Lenovo hasn't said anything about colorspaces and the like, so tread carefully if those are important to you—at least until more information is available.
Lenovo laptops
Lenovo also used MWC to announce updates to its ThinkPad laptop line with several new models—the T490s, T490, T590, X390, and X390 Yoga—and its mid-range IdeaPad line with the new C340, S340 and S540 models. It also introduced the 14w and 14e laptops for firstline workers in the enterprise; the former of those two runs Windows 10 Pro, the latter is a Chromebook. Most of the models introduced are just spec bumps over last year.
The ThinkPads offer Dolby Vision HDR, low-power display options, and faster, Wi-Fi 6 connectivity, along with eighth-generation Intel Core CPUs and an overhauled BIOS experience. The IdeaPads are pretty standard mid-range laptops with a range of configuration options. You can read more about the myriad laptop launches on Lenovo's website.

Xiaomi Mi 9 is a three-eyed fast charging monster

The king of value returns with a three camera, OLED, wireless charging superphone
Motorola and OnePlus consistently deliver great phones at amazing prices, but since entering the UK in 2018, few have been able to match Xiaomi for value. The latest entry in what we're calling the "how are you actually making money from this?" category is the Mi 9, which should be releasing in the UK at the end of March. The headline features are: a 6.39-inch OLED display, the latest Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 processor and three camera lenses on the rear. But then dig beneath the surface and there's even more to shout about: 20W wireless fast charging fills the phone in 90 minutes, the DxOMark camera score is just one point behind the new (and much more expensive) Samsung Galaxy S10, and the in-screen fingerprint sensor is 25 per cent faster. Oh, and the phone's curved back has been certified by The Gaudi Academia of Knowledge, because, er...it's launching in Barcelona, we guess? Either way, this looks to be a stunning phone for the money, and should reach the UK around the end of March at 449 euros for the 64GB storage model, and 499 euros for the 128GB version.

LG’s answer to the foldable mania is a second screen

A more pragmatic and immediate way to have a foldable device
If you haven’t already soaked up the leaks about it, the new LG V50 introduced today is a souped-up V40 with the new Snapdragon 855 processor, improved cooling, bigger battery, and the futuristic addition of 5G. The V50 is LG’s first 5G phone, in fact, and it’s also the first to be compatible with a new accessory the company is rolling out: an entire second screen.
The LG Dual Screen is essentially a folio case with a second OLED screen in it. The V50 has a 6.4-inch display, however the secondary panel here is limited to a 6.2-inch diagonal measurement, owing to its bigger bezels. I got to try out the Dual Screen system for myself here at Mobile World Congress, and there are both good and bad things to say about it.
Starting with the positive, I’m confident that there’s demand for this kind of extra screen real estate. The more screen manufacturers can squeeze into a pocketable shape, the higher a price they’ll be able to charge. And, indeed, an LG V50 with an LG Dual Screen attached to it is pretty much as pocketable as the LG V50 itself. The added thickness won’t affect whether or not the already large device is a fit for your attire, Also cool is the hinge design on the case, which can rotate a full 360 degrees, allowing you to mirror your screen, which can be handy to show someone you’re photographing how you’re framing the shot.
LG is employing a proprietary Wi-Fi chipset that uses very short-range and high-bandwidth communication to transmit between the V50 and its extra screen. In my testing of the V50 plus Dual Screen combo, I was unable to detect any latency or other communication issues between the two panels in front of me. It worked as smoothly as you might expect when operating two monitors on your desktop.
There are Pogo pins on the back of the V50, which connect to the Dual Screen case and draw power for the auxiliary display from the phone’s battery. There’s no supplementary battery in the second screen, though adding one would probably have bulked it out further than LG was willing to go.
The downsides to LG’s new offering are predictable. Firstly, the two screens are not of identical quality: I notice a slight, but detectable, difference in color temperature and viewing angles between them. I also don’t enjoy the asymmetry in size. LG’s software design for this system isn’t bad, but it does exhibit weird behaviors, such as showing the on-screen keyboard on the left screen when I’m trying to input something on the right. I also had a mighty struggle getting a racing game to recognize the second-screen’s simulated gamepad controller, and it’s those initial glitches and imperfections that put most people off before they’ve even tried a gadget like this properly.
It would be naive for me to conclude this by saying “if LG can only polish its software,” given how many years I’ve been waiting for LG to do just that on a number of other fronts. And yet, I feel like the company’s approach this year has been the most pragmatic and grounded among its competitors. Sure, it’s doing a 5G phone, but LG is refraining from launching any flying porcine foldables to wow people without offering them an attainable thing they can actually buy. The LG Dual Screen is the less glamorous, but far more pragmatic approach to cramming more screens into pockets.
LG tells me it plans to make all of its future 5G devices compatible with a second display of this kind, though I couldn’t get the company to commit to all such devices being compatible with this particular model. In other words, every 5G LG phone will probably have its own Dual Screen variation to offer. Oh, and in unhappy news for US V50 buyers, the Dual Screen option won’t be offered in the American market.
The price for the LG Dual Screen has been left a mystery for now, though we can probably rest assured that a V50 plus Dual Screen will be hundreds of dollars cheaper than the truly extravagant Samsung Galaxy Fold and Huawei Mate X foldables that got unveiled this week.

Lenovo’s smallest and best-selling ThinkPad laptops get refreshed for 2019

More affordable IdeaPads get thinner display bezels and privacy features
Lenovo is making some largely incremental updates to its more affordable IdeaPad laptops and its ThinkPad X and T series today. While $1,000 and above laptops might be the more exciting and premium devices, it’s the models under $1,000 that most consumers opt for. Lenovo is now trying to bring some its more premium features to these lower price points.
Lenovo’s updated IdeaPad S540 now includes Intel’s 8th Gen Core i7 processors or AMD’s Ryzen 7 3700U processors and an option for Nvidia’s GeForce GTX 1050 discrete graphics card. Lenovo has also trimmed its bezels by more than 25 percent, and added a privacy guard for the webcam — both are trends that started at the premium end of laptops. The IdeaPad S540 will be available in both 14- and 15-inch (1920 x 1080) versions, with up to 12GB of RAM, and up to 512GB of SSD storage. Lenovo is launching three versions in April and June, with the 14-inch Intel model starting at $879.99, the 15-inch Intel version at $849.99, and a 14-inch AMD variant starting at $729.99.
This year’s IdeaPad S340 is also getting some similar upgrades, with a choice between Intel’s 8th Gen Core i7 processors or AMD’s Ryzen 7 3700U processor. Both models will include up to 12GB of RAM, and 14- or 15-inch display options. Lenovo is also trimming the bezels here and adding a webcam privacy feature, alongside using carbon fiber and an aluminum finish. Both models will be available in March and April, with the 14-inch Intel variant priced from $369.99, the 15-inch at $449.99, and the 15-inch AMD model priced from $429.99.
Over on the ThinkPad side, the smallest ThinkPad is getting a bigger 13-inch display this year. That doesn’t mean it’s getting bigger overall, though. Lenovo has squeezed this 13.3-inch display (1920 x 1080) into the ThinkPad X390, with 50 percent thinner bezels. Inside there’s the 8th Gen Intel Core vPro i7 processor, up to 32GB of RAM, and up to 1TB of PCIe SSD storage. Lenovo says this tiny ThinkPad will run for nearly 18 hours on battery power, and it has a Thunderbolt 3 port, USB-C, two regular USB ports, and even a HDMI port and microSD support.
Lenovo has also built a clever PrivacyGuard feature into the ThinkPad X390 that uses the IR camera to detect if someone is behind you to enable privacy alerts or even the ability to darken the display and make it only viewable if you’re sitting directly in front of the laptop. ThinkPads are aimed at businesses big and small, so it’s a smart feature to stop people peering over your shoulder if you’re working on a confidential document in a coffee shop or on a plane. There’s also a ThinkShutter webcam cover for extra privacy. Lenovo’s ThinkPad X390 will be available in June starting at $1,099, and the company is also releasing a ThinkPad X390 Yoga variant with its typical 2-in-1 features priced from $1,359.
Lenovo is also updating its best selling T series of ThinkPads for 2019. Much like the IdeaPads, it’s mainly refinements for the ThinkPad T490 this year, with the PrivacyGuard feature, ThinkShutter webcam cover, dual far-field microphones, and a new HDR IPS display option. The slimmer T490s is also getting a HDR display option or a low power 1080 panel, the PrivacyGuard feature, a new aluminum top cover, and overall it’s 13 percent thinner than last year’s model. Both the ThinkPad T490 and T490s will be available in June, with the T490 priced from $999 and the T490s priced from $1,279.

Nokia 9 PureView has 5 rear cameras: *yawn*

Phones are already camera-studded in 2019, and now we have this.
The Nokia 9 PureView has five rear cameras and that doesn't even seem like that big of a deal. The anticipated Nokia 9 PureView is HMD Global's newest and boldest flagship phone under the Nokia brand the Finnish startup acquired several years ago. A word of warning: HMD says this phone is a "limited edition," being offered in a limited run. But it should be coming to the US (the phone costs €599, or $699, roughly converting to £535 and AU$980).
About those five cameras: remember Light?
It's five Zeiss camera lenses, but it looks like seven in a ring, like a spider's eyes. Three are 12-megapixel monochrome cameras, two are 12-megapixel RGB cameras, all f/1.8, 28mm. One spot is a flash, and the other is a time-of-flight sensor for depth mapping.
It's the first five-rear-camera phone. But is that even a big distinction, now? The Samsung Galaxy S10 has three rear cameras (and four on the upcoming 5Gversion), and a total of six cameras inside and out of the Galaxy Fold.
Nokia's cameras don't do extra levels of optical zoom. Instead, they're all meant to capture a massive amount of data for HDR and depth based photography. The camera array was partially developed by Light, the company that also made the wild 16-lens L16 camera, and has recently announced a partnership to develop more computational photography products with Sony image sensors.
Light's initial 16-lens standalone camera vision was to offer up a Swiss army knife of options for any photo need. Light's L16 camera was reviewed to some disappointment when it debuted, but hinted at a multi-camera phone future. Light was expected to release a phone with nine cameras last year.
Against those devices, the five-camera Nokia 9 PureView seems tame by comparison, but this phone aims for computational advantages over other phone cameras. In a brief hands-on with the phone, I tried shooting some photos. Images looked sharp, but photo processing seemed to take a long time (HMD said that's being improved before release).
The photos taken with the Nokia 9 PureView can be depth-edited after the fact by tapping anywhere on the photo, and works with depth editing on Google Photos, so uploaded photos can still be depth-edited, too.
The depth map on photos taken with the Nokia 9 is 12 megapixels, with 1,200 layers of depth data, according to HMD. The phone takes five minimum exposures, captures around 60 to 240 megapixels of data and reduces it back to a 12 megapixel photo. Photos can also be taken in RAW DNG format, but blend a composite of the images taken with all cameras, with a varying file size around 30MB.
Adobe Lightroom will edit the phone's DNG photos, and will come with custom lens profiles "tuned specifically" for the phone.
The Nokia 9 PureView claims better HDR shots than the competition with all those cameras, and a dedicated monochrome mode. And photos can have multiple focal points in bokeh shots, meaning that bottles or light bulbs at different distances can be in focus at the same time. How much better will they be? Check out a sample photo below, which was one of the only ones HMD Global shared of the shots I took.
The rest of the phone: more straightforward
This phone doesn't sport a new Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 processor; instead, it has a Snapdragon 845 that Qualcomm's representatives say is fully utilized to process the phone's photos, plus a dedicated Light Camera Lux Capacitor processor in the phone. This is also an Android One phone like the Nokia 8.1 and 7.1, which means it'll have two years of guaranteed Android updates and regular security updates.
The phone also has a 20-megapixel front-facing camera, a 5.99-inch 2K pOLED display, an under-the-screen fingerprint reader, face unlock via the phone's front camera, wireless charging and IP67 water resistance. At least all those rear cameras are flush with no camera bump.
Whether you crave the Nokia 9 PureView really depends on whether you want to play with a five-camera computational camera for HDR and depth, or prefer something like a good old everyday three-camera variable zoom lens phone. It's only a matter of time before someone decides to go to six cameras, or seven or nine. If camera lenses are like razor blades, the Nokia 9 PureView has earned a novelty spot for now... but that moment probably won't last very long.
HMD Global has already indicated that the company plans to release about a phone a month, and the Nokia 9 PureView is one of five phones the company's announced at Mobile World Congress, after debuting two other phones just a few weeks ago. At this rate, if you're waiting for another exciting Nokia phone, maybe just wait another month.
What I really want to see is the full 16-camera Light camera vision on a phone next.
Specs:
Qualcomm Snapdragon 845
5.99 inch 2K QHD pOLED display
6GB RAM
Five rear cameras plus time of flight sensor (Three 12-megapixel monochrome, two 12-megapixel RGB)
20-megapixel front camera
128GB storage
A single color: Midnight Blue
8mm thick
172g
IP67 water resistance
Gigabit LTE
3,320 mAh battery
Wireless charging
Gorilla Glass 5
Under-screen fingerprint sensor, face unlock via front camera
USB-C
18W fast charging
No headphone jack

Motorola releases Pie kernel code for the P30 Note and G6 Plus

Slowly but surely, Android 9 Pie is rolling out to Motorola's lineup of phones. That also means new kernel source packages, which can be used by developers to create custom Pie-based ROMs and recoveries. Motorola has now released two new source packages for two (or possibly three) devices.
The first kernel source package is for the Moto P30 Note, nicknamed 'Chef.' The internationally-released Motorola One Power is based on the P30 Note, and even shares a similar nickname ('chef_sprout'), so it's possible this kernel package is for both devices.
Motorola has also uploaded Pie kernel source for the Moto G6 Plus, nicknamed 'Evert'. You can download both releases from the links below.

Defence finally ditches XP for Windows 10

100,000 Defence users have made the migration from the operating system that Microsoft officially stopped delivering support for in 2014.
The Department of Defence has announced upgrading its operating system to Windows 10, finally ditching Windows XP, which Microsoft first pushed on the world in 2001.
The department contracted Leidos for the migration, which saw 100,000 Defence personnel receive a new "contemporary end user environment", for a cost of AU$67.6 million over a three year term.
A statement from Assistant Minister for Defence David Fawcett said Leidos has been contracted to provide ongoing sustainment support for Windows 10, including "maintaining a reliable and secure ICT capability, and managing access to applications for users".
Microsoft extended support for Windows XP officially ended on April 8, 2014. However, Microsoft seemed willing to release patches for its customers that had paid enough.
XP is fraught with problems, explained by ZDNet's Jason Perlow following the WannaCry outbreak that plagued XP systems across the globe in 2017:
Let me say this as simply as possible: If you are still using XP, you are the end-user equivalent of an anti-vaxxer. You are a menace to society and everyone around you. You are a walking malware vector. You should be shipped out to a remote island with no internet access to fend for yourselves so you can't infect anyone else.
And, if you are an IT professional who serves in a decision-making capacity with an organisation that continues to use XP or Windows Server 2003 and SQL Server 2005, you should be fired. You should never be allowed to work in the computer industry again.
Defence announced earlier this month that Leidos had been appointed as the Prime System Integrator to deliver the first tranche of Joint Project 2096 Phase 1.
For a cost of AU$500 million, the first tranche of Joint Project 2096 is expected to see Leidos integrate selected intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance data and applications.
"This project will allow intelligence analysts to rapidly search and discover collected data to improve intelligence and decision support to Australian Defence Force and whole of government decision makers," Minister for Defence Christopher Pyne said in a statement.

HACK A THINKPAD DISPLAY

Hackers really like their tools. This leads to holy wars over languages, editors, keyboards, and even laptops. The problem with laptops is that they age, and not always gracefully. [Syonyk] likes his ThinkPad T430S, except for one thing, its TN display wasn’t really very good. These flat screens use an older technology and show color changes with different viewing angles among other problems. So he managed to upgrade the device’s screen to IPS with the help of a replacement screen and an adapter (see right). Apparently, many similar ThinkPads can take the same sort of upgrade.
The problem is that the laptop uses LVDS to talk to the TN screen, while newer screens are likely to use Embedded DisplayPort (eDP) which is a different protocol entirely. However, there’s now a converter that [Syonyk] found on eBay (from China, of course). For about $70, the motherboard’s LVDS output can transform to eDP. Of course, you also need an IPS display panel.
With the news full of cybersecurity stories, [Syonyk] thought about the risk of putting a board of questionable origin in his laptop. However, the board doesn’t interface at all with the CPU, so it seems unlikely that it could do anything more than scrape the screen and it would not have an easy way to send the data away.
Being a veteran of many laptop teardowns, he had no trouble opening this one — the ThinkPad is known to be relatively easy to work on. He does pass along some good tips about making sure you don’t accidentally blow fuses.
It looked like a lot of work, but none of it was difficult. In addition to having a better display, the laptop also now has a higher resolution. A pretty good upgrade if you plan on keeping the machine going.
A lot of people like to hack ThinkPads. You can upgrade practically all of one, if you have a mind to do so.

Windows, dual-screen devices and shells: Piecing together Microsoft's Chromebook-compete strategy

It's Microsoft codename-apalooza time. How do Lite, Centaurus, Pegasus, WCOS and now, Santorini, all fit into what seems to be Microsoft's evolving Chromebook-compete strategy? Read on.
and stripped down version of Windows which may not be branded "Windows" as it looks very little like Windows. And there's the Windows Core Operating System (WCOS), which we Microsoft watchers believe to be the successor to Windows OneCore -- Microsoft's effort to make the core of Windows more modular so that it can be shared across Windows 10 devices.
New Windows 10 devices like Centaurus, Surface Hub 2 and HoloLens 2 are all expected to be running WCOS under the covers. (Whether Microsoft ever publicly acknowledges this is a different question.) Different "shells," specific to particular devices/experiences, plug into WCOS. Surface Hub 2 will be WCOS plus "Aruba," the Hub 2 shell, we've heard. HoloLens 2 will be WCOS plus the "Oasis" holographic shell. Centaurus could be WCOS plus a CentaurusOS shell. Or -- if Centuarus ends up running Windows Lite, maybe it will be WCOS plus the Lite shell.
I'm hearing the codename for this Windows Lite shell is "Santorini." Santorini is what will enable Windows to work on foldable and other dual-screen form factor devices. Windows Central reported today that they believe Santorini is the replacement codename for Windows Lite, but my contacts say Santorini is the Lite shell, specifically. In either case, Santorini and Lite seem to be related, according to the codename keepers.
My contacts say Centaurus is not inextricably linked to Windows Lite. Nor is Windows Lite the absolute must-have operating system for Centaurus and Pegasus devices. These things could ship independently or not. I, like others, have heard Microsoft is looking for ways to make sure Win32 apps can run on WCOS devices without requiring them to be rebuilt as "Centennial" applications, which may mean containers/virtual machines will be involved in some way. If that's true, this means Windows Lite devices won't just be limited to Universal Windows Platform (UWP) applications, which is good, since that limitation has led to the failure of Windows 10 S, the "mode" of Windows 10 that only allows users to run UWP/Store apps.
There are a lot of moving pieces here. Maybe Microsoft will be ready to explain some of this at its Build 2019 developers conference in early May. But there's also the realistic possibility that Microsoft officials won't ever get into the nuts and bolts of WCOS and different Windows shells, given Microsoft's leadership is continuing to try to take the focus off Windows and instead get investors, developers and customers to only think about the intelligent cloud/intelligent edge.
In case it's not already clear, Microsoft officials are not talking about any of these codenames or unannounced form factors. This is just a codename fiend (me) trying to keep all these constantly-changing names straight without resorting to a spreadsheet.

Windows 10 Timeline now works with Chrome

Microsoft responds to users requests by releasing a Chrome Timeline extension.
A new Windows 10 extension for Google Chrome allows users to access Windows 10's Timeline feature with Chrome. Timeline displays recent activity -- across Windows 10 PCs, enabled apps, the Edge browser for iPhone and Android devices and Office 365 apps -- in a visual catalogue that makes it easier to view and navigate.
Timeline was the star of the Windows 10 April 2018 Update, but the only browser it worked with was Microsoft Edge, leaving fans of other browsers out in the cold. Apparently, Windows Insiders have been pushing for the Chrome extension ever since. Dubbed "Web Activities," the extension launched last week, but Microsoft kept the news under the radar, burying the announcement at the bottom of a blog post.
"Browser support was especially high on our Insider's wish list -- which lead the recent introduction of our Chrome extension. Now, Timeline can now bring together even more activities," the company wrote. Microsoft teased to "look for even more Timeline updates in the future." But it's not clear what those future updates will look like or if Timeline will support other browsers, like Firefox, anytime soon.

The Dell XPS 13 finally solves its nose-cam problem

I had to look long and hard to find anything I didn't like about the 2019 Dell XPS 13. Pressed to come up with a list, I'd say the woven glass fiber palm rest doesn't look or feel as high-end as it should. The white backlight shining through white keys (on the white and rose gold versions) sometimes makes it harder to see the keys, not easier. And in order to get a touchscreen model, you have to trade up to a 4K display, which is more expensive and not as battery-friendly.
Other than that, with this latest version of the XPS 13, Dell has done nearly the impossible -- it's made a laptop I can find almost no fault with. Since Dell introduced ultrathin screen borders in its 2015 model (the XPS 13 has been around since 2012), the company has steadily been chipping away at my laundry list of complaints, making the XPS 13 smaller, lighter, more powerful. And now, the most critical remaining issue has been taken care of.
The nose job
The system's biggest knock has long been its webcam. Because of the very thin screen border (also called a bezel), the webcam had been relegated to a spot below the screen, rather than above it. That led to an unflattering up-the-nose angle that made the XPS 13 less useful for Skype calls, YouTube videos or any other video-recording or streaming needs.
After years of saying it was a problem impossible to solve while maintaining the thin bezel look, Dell has gone ahead and solved it. The new webcam somehow fits into that very slim top border, thanks to a new lens design that's only 2.5mm high. That adds a hair to the width of the top screen border, but it's a fair trade-off.
We have not extensively tested the webcam yet, but a few test shots show that the angle is much more natural, and the image is clear and noise-free. Both video and photo top out at 720p resolution, I'd like to see at least full 1,920x1,080 HD. But compared with a photo snapped from the previous generation XPS 13, the difference is clear.
C times three
If you're one of those people bothered by the rapid shift to USB-C in laptops at the expense of nearly every other type of port, well, the tide doesn't look like it's turning back anytime soon. Three USB-C ports here handle all the heavy lifting, including power, but two of them are also Thunderbolt ports for hooking up high-speed peripherals.
There's still a microSD card slot, which is something of a rarity these days. That's especially useful because the less-expensive configurations include only 128GB of SSD storage, so at least you can shoehorn in some more.
The price is (mostly) right
If you were going to bid on this slim design with a high-end aluminum/carbon fiber body, multiple Thunderbolt ports, and nearly edge-to-edge screen in a Showcase Showdown, you could easily overbid. The new XPS 13 starts at $899, or $300 less than the base model MacBook Air. UK prices start at £939, and the new model doesn't appear to be available in Australia yet.
But keep in mind the entry-level model loses some important features. The FHD (full HD, or 1,920x1,080) display is nontouch. The processor is a lower-end U-series Intel Core i3, and the 4GB of RAM and 128GB SSD don't feel especially future-proof, or even today-proof for some users.
Kicking in an extra $100 gets you up to a current-gen Core i5, which is perfectly fine, but getting to even 8GB of RAM and a 256GB hard drive is currently $1,209, making it a closer match to the latest MacBook Air.
Our higher-end review unit has the touchscreen 4K display, a Core i7 CPU, 16GB of RAM and a 512GB SSD, which is currently $1,850. Yes, the white or rose gold color options are an extra $50. Seems a bit nitpicky for an $1,800 laptop; they should throw the color option in at that price.
Colorful combos
Even talking about laptop color options can be a minefield. No matter how much consumer design advances elsewhere, most laptops are still somewhere on the gray-to-silver spectrum, and nothing seems to change that. You'll occasionally find black, or a couple of candy-colored red, blue or what-have-you options, usually on plasticky budget laptops for students. It's only in the past few years that we've seen more high-end laptop color options, led by color additions to MacBooks (in silver, gray and rose gold) and systems like the HP Spectre and Surface Laptop.
The white and rose-gold versions of the XPS 13 will definitely turn a few heads at your local coffee shop. The look is clean and minimalist, and the back of the lid has a matte, almost ceramic-like finish. My one aesthetic issue is the woven glass fiber/carbon fiber palm rest. It's strong, light and made of premium materials, but it also looks and feels like plastic (at least according to the initial impressions of a few people who have seen the system without knowing its backstory).
It's not a deal-breaker, and one of only a small handful of complaints I could muster about this otherwise fantastic laptop, but for these prices, you should be absolutely happy with the design.
Pixels vs. battery
The display is really a standout feature on the XPS 13. Of course, it's designed to literally stand out, with screen bezels only a few millimeters wide on three sides, allowing the very bright, rich 4K display to go nearly edge-to-edge. It's a laptop for video watchers, designers or anyone else wanting to get a really bold visual experience. With an Intel Core i7 CPU (in this higher-end model), running powerful software like Photoshop or Illustrator is no problem.
But there's a potential price to pay -- in our testing, we've historically found that 4K displays result in much shorter battery life than similar configurations with only a standard full HD display. The difference can sometimes be measured in hours. For a laptop this thin and light, and clearly intended for travel, that can be a big deal.
When in doubt, I generally suggest picking a 1080 screen over a 4K one, although I'm also in favor of touch as an option where available. The FHD battery gains are usually worth it, as 4K on a 13-inch laptop screen is overkill for mainstream users.
We are currently benchmark testing the 2019 version of the Dell XPS 13, including battery life, and will report our findings in our upcoming full review.