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| PC World - 11 May (PC World)Calling all gamers! Whether you consider yourself a competitive pro or someone who’s more casual, we’ve got quite the diverse list below. The best part is that every gaming laptop has been tested by a member of PCWorld and we’ve checked out everything from graphics performance and typing experience to connectivity options and image quality. These rigs can basically do anything a desktop PC can do, and we’ve tested dozens after dozens of them to bring you this roundup of the best gaming laptops around.
Why you should trust us: It’s in our name! PCWorld prides itself on laptop experience and expertise. We’ve been covering PCs since 1983, and we now review more than 70 laptops every year. All of the picks below have been personally tested and vetted by our experts, who’ve applied not only performance benchmarks but rigorous usability standards. We’re also committed to reviewing gaming laptops at every price point to help you find a machine that matches your budget.
See our roundup of the best laptops for even more recommendations—premium laptops, ultraportables, Chromebooks, and more.
Update May 10, 2024: We added the Acer Predator Helios Neo 18 as an alternative option underneath our Best Connectivity Features pick. Not only does it offer great connectivity options and strong performance, but it also has a bigger screen. We’ve also updated our list of recent laptop reviews and added a new “at a glance” section below.
Best gaming laptops at a glance
Alienware m16 R2 (Best overall gaming laptop) $1,849.99 at Dell
MSI Titan 18 HX (Best high-end gaming laptop) $5,449 at Amazon
Asus TUF Gaming A16 Advantage Edition (Best gaming laptop under $1,000) $955 at Amazon
HP Omen Transcend 14 (Most portable gaming laptop) $1,699.99 at Best Buy
Razer Blade 16 (Best 4K gaming laptop) $4,299.99 at Razer
Acer Predator Helios Neo 16 (Best connectivity features) $1,884.99 at Walmart
Acer Chromebook 516 GE (Best gaming Chromebook) $449 at Best Buy
Alienware m16 R2 – Best overall gaming laptop
Pros
Great gaming performance
Durable
Long battery life
Cons
Dim display
Why we like the Alienware m16 R2
The Alienware m16 R2 is a well-rounded gaming laptop, especially for the price and performance. Not only are you getting great graphics performance, but you’re also getting long battery life, an unusual combination for a gaming laptop. The Intel Core Ultra 7 155H CPU and the Nvidia GeForce RTX 4070 GPU are a powerful duo, as shown in our testing. It averaged 144 frames-per-second when running the Shadow of the Tomb Raider benchmark, which is nothing to sneeze at. According to our review, it’s just “four frames-per-second slower than the Razer Blade 16,” which is rocking a more powerful RTX 4090 GPU and a $3,000+ price tag. It also lasted 11 hours and fifteen minutes on a single charge, which is more than a full work day.
Who should buy the Alienware m16 R2
Anyone looking for a fantastic gaming laptop. You can play most games on the High or Ultra graphics preset and the 90 watt-hour battery will keep you going long into the night. The 1600p IPS display is also quite spacious at 16-inches and the 240Hz refresh rate should result in smooth gameplay. The picture quality is quite good, but it’s not an OLED panel, where the colors would be more saturated. While it’s not the brightest or most color rich display we’ve ever tested, it’s still fine for gaming. Besides, if you’re really desperate, you can always plug into an external monitor.
Alternative option: If you’re looking for the same great Alienware package with a bigger screen, the Alienware m18 R2 is worth considering. It offers strong gaming performance, an 18-inch display, and a fantastic mechanical keyboard with Cherry switches. That said, it’s very expensive and the laptop itself weighs a colossal nine pounds (!!!). Talk about a back-breaker!
Read our full
Alienware m16 R2 review
MSI Titan 18 HX – Best high-end gaming laptop
Pros
Tons of connectivity options
Rugged build quality
Fantastic mechanical keyboard
Phenomenal CPU and GPU performance
Cons
Very expensive
Mediocre touchpad
Why we like the MSI Titan 18 HX
The MSI Titan 18 HX is one hell of a powerhouse, so performance is no issue here, as it’ll run pretty much anything you throw at it. Inside the beast’s shell, you’ll find an Intel Core i9-14900HX CPU, an Nvidia RTX 4090 GPU, 128GB of RAM, and 4GB of SSD storage. Holy cow. When we ran the Metro Exodus: Enhanced Edition benchmark, it churned out an outstanding 87 frames-per-second at 1080p resolution with the Extreme detail setting switched on. Did we mention it also has a phenomenal 4K Mini-LED display?
Who should buy the MSI Titan 18 HX
If you’re after the ultimate gaming experience, the MSI Titan 18 HX will certainly deliver. In addition to the massive amount of power this thing generates, it also has loads of connectivity options for those times when you want to hook up to an external mouse or monitor. That said, it’s an incredibly expensive machine. If money is no object, then the MSI Titan 18 HX is the right pick for you. For those on a stricter budget, check out our best budget pick below.
Alternative option: We strongly considered putting the recently reviewed MSI Raider GE78 HX 14VIG on this list. It’s similar to the MSI Titan 18 HX as far as sheer power goes, but it didn’t make the cut because of the finicky rear power port and loud fan noise. That said, these nitpicks are relatively minor. I will say, the MSI Raider GE78 HX 14VIG is less expensive than the MSI Titan 18 HX at $3,799.99.
Read our full
MSI Titan 18 HX review
Asus TUF Gaming A16 Advantage Edition – Best gaming laptop under $1,000
Pros
All-day battery life
Robust chassis
Gorgeous 16:10 display
Cons
720p HD camera leaves little to be desired
Keys feel a little soft
Why we like the Asus TUF Gaming A16 Advantage
The Asus TUF Gaming A16 Advantage Edition is something of a unicorn and I mean that in the best way possible. It exhibits strong graphics performance as well as long battery life. Long battery life? A gaming laptop? How preposterous! Well, not anymore! The Asus TUF managed an incredible 11 and a half hours on a single charge. Also, thanks to the Nvidia GeForce RTX 4050 GPU inside, it achieved an impressive 123 frames-per-second in the Rise of the Tomb Raider benchmark. That’s nothing to sneeze at, especially for a sub-$1,000 gaming machine.
Who should buy the Asus TUF Gaming A16 Advantage
The Asus TUF Gaming A16 Advantage Edition is a good option for those on a tight budget. For under a grand, you’re getting reliable graphics performance, a spacious keyboard, and long battery life. It also works as a good general purpose machine, which is perfect for college students that want to work and play. With a Cinebench R20 score of 589, it should have “no trouble running lightweight apps and programs,” according to our review.
Alternative option: The recently reviewed Lenovo LOQ 15 is another good budget option. It’s affordable and it comes with a better GPU (RTX 4060). Despite getting a high rating, it didn’t earn the nod here because of poor battery life and limited connectivity options. If you plan on mostly staying plugged in and don’t need a long battery life, the Lenovo LOQ may be a better option due to its more capable graphics.
Read our full
Asus TUF Gaming A16 Advantage Edition review
HP Omen Transcend 14 – Most portable gaming laptop
Pros
Compact and lightweight
Gorgeous OLED screen
Good performance for the price
Cons
Keyboard is a bit mushy
Annoying bloatware
Why we like the HP Omen Transcend 14
The HP Omen Transcend 14 is a great machine because of its lightweight design (3.6 pounds!), stunning OLED display, and reliable performance for the price. Most gaming laptops tip the scales at around five pounds or more, so the fact that this machine is a little heavier than your standard ultraportable is downright impressive. In addition to its lightweight design, it also has an all-metal chassis, which means it’s rugged enough to handle the daily abuses of life. The hinge that connects the display to the keyboard deck also feels pretty solid. As for performance, it’s no slouch! Thanks to the Intel Core Ultra 7 155H CPU and the Nvidia GeForce RTX 4060 GPU, it achieved a respectable 93 frames-per-second during the Shadow of the Tomb Raider benchmark.
Who should buy the HP Omen Transcend 14
Anyone that likes to game on-the-go! It’s both lightweight and powerful, which is a rare combination when it comes to gaming laptops. Battery life is quite good, too. The HP Omen Transcend 14’s large 71 watt-hour battery lasted eight and a half hours on a single charge, which is impressive, as most gaming laptops tend to die at the four or five hour mark. The 14-inch 1800p OLED display is lovely as well. It has a maximum brightness level of 500 nits and a maximum refresh rate of 120Hz. According to our reviewer, who normally uses IPS displays on a day-to-day basis, “OLED displays like this one look incredibly beautiful” to him.
Alternative option: If you’re interested in an alternative option, check out the Asus ROG Zephyrus G14. It weighs a scant 3.31 pounds, which is a little less than our current pick. Although it has a nice OLED screen, an exquisite and portable design, and packs a decent punch in the performance department, its ho-hum webcam lands it behind the HP Omen Transcend 14 here.
Read our full
HP Omen Transcend 14 review
Razer Blade 16 – Best 4K gaming laptop
Pros
Dual-mode display is easy to use and beautiful to look at
Attractive design
Powerful
Cons
High price tag
Case is a fingerprint magnet
Why we like the Razer Blade 16
Woo boy. I’m not sure where to begin with this one. The Razer Blade 16 is a unique gaming laptop because it’s like having two displays in one. You get to choose between two modes, the native 3840×2400 panel with a 120Hz refresh rate or the 1920×1200 panel with a 240Hz refresh rate. You can switch between the two with Razer’s Synapse app. So, what does it all mean then? It means you can enjoy intensive shooters at 1080p 240Hz or you can take things slow and soak in all the details in your favorite strategy game. The laptop comes loaded with an Intel Core i9-13950HX CPU and an Nvidia GeForce RTX 4090, so you’re getting gobs upon gobs of power over here.
Who should buy the Razer Blade 16
Anyone who desires gaming in 4K! If it weren’t for the $4,000+ price tag (ouch), I’d be tempted to buy this machine myself, as I’m a fan of city management games and would love to get up close and personal with every detail. The price of this laptop is a hard pill to swallow, even with these awesome specs, but the 4K dual-mode display really makes it stand out from the rest of the competition.
Read our full
Razer Blade 16 review
Acer Predator Helios Neo 16 – Best connectivity features
Pros
Reasonably priced
Fantastic connectivity options, includes two Thunderbolt 4 ports
CPU and GPU performance is strong for the price
Cons
Off-center touchpad is awkward to use
Audio is too quiet
Display experienced some stuttering
Best Prices Today:
$1199.99 at Acer$1,629 at Amazon
Why we like the Acer Predator Helios Neo 16
The Acer Predator Helios Neo 16 comes packed with loads of ports and surprising gaming performance. Thanks to the Intel Core i7-13700HX CPU and the Nvidia GeForce RTX 4060 GPU inside, you’ll get reliable performance for productivity tasks or gaming. Where the laptop really shines is its diverse selection of ports. It has two Thunderbolt 4 ports, three USB-A ports, an HDMI port, Ethernet, a Micro SD card slow, and a 3.5 combo jack for audio. The Thunderbolt 4 ports make “downloading files at up to 40Gbps while streaming to an external display as easy as pie,” according to our review.
Who should buy the Acer Predator Helios Neo 16
Anyone who needs a lot of connectivity options. Maybe you’re just the type of person that likes to hook up to an external keyboard, mouse, or monitor. If you look inside of yourself and find that to be true, then the Acer Helios Neo 16 is the one for you. It’s a bit unwieldy when on the go, but as far as connectivity and price-to-performance goes, you can’t get much better than the Acer Predator Helios Neo 16.
Alternative option: The Acer Predator Helios Neo 18 offers plenty of connectivity options, speedy performance, and a comfortable keyboard and touchpad. It just has a bigger screen than our top pick, which some gamers may prefer.
Read our full
Acer Predator Helios Neo 16 review
Acer Chromebook 516 GE – Best gaming Chromebook
Pros
Attractive design
Excellent CPU performance
Plenty of wired and wireless connectivity
High resolution 1600p display
Cons
Mediocre keyboard and touchpad
Disappointing speakers and microphone
Display falls behind in contrast and color vibrancy
Why we like the Acer Chromebook 516 GE
The Acer Chromebook 516 GE offers reliable day-to-day performance as well as smooth cloud gaming gameplay, thanks in part to its fast, high-resolution display. Just so we’re clear–Chromebooks aren’t designed to run games locally, so you’ll need to be a member of a cloud gaming service like GeForce Now or Amazon Luna. Fortunately, this Chromebook has an Ethernet port, which scores major brownie ports as far as stable Internet connections go. Plus, compared to other budget Windows laptops, the $650 MSRP isn’t bad.
Connectivity options are good, too. You’re getting two USB-C 3.2 Gen 2, one HDMI, one Ethernet, and one 3.5mm combo audio. Additional goodies include a 1080p webcam, a 65 watt-hour battery, and a high refresh rate display (120Hz to be exact).
Who should buy the Acer Chromebook 516 GE
Anyone that wants to give cloud gaming a whirl on a reasonably priced Chromebook. The Acer Chromebook 516 GE features strong day-to-day performance and, according to our review, “gameplay felt perfectly smooth” while playing on GeForce Now. That said, if you want to install and run games locally, or have a poor internet connection, one of the Windows-based budget gaming laptops above would be a better option.
Read our full
Acer Chromebook 516 GE review
Recent laptop reviews
Samsung Galaxy Book4 Pro 14: The Samsung Galaxy Book4 Pro 14 is a lightweight, elegant all-rounder for business professionals.
Acer Predator Helios Neo 18: Want a lot of performance for $1,500? Acer’s gigantic Helios Neo 18 is a good bet.
Lenovo Yoga 7i: The Lenovo Yoga 7i (16IML9) is a competent and well-built at a palatable price. It’s not the best value for a standard laptop, but it’s flexibility may make up for its shortcoming for some users.
Acer Swift Go 14: The Acer Swift Go 14 is a reliable travel workhorse through and through.
How we test gaming laptops
The PCWorld team puts each and every Windows laptop through a series of benchmarks that test GPU and CPU performance, battery life, and so on. The idea is to push the laptop to its limits and then compare it against others we’ve tested. Below, you’ll find a breakdown of each test and the reasons why we run them.
PCMark 10: PCMark 10 is how we determine how well the laptop handles lighter tasks like web browsing, word processing, spreadsheets, and so on.
HandBrake: HandBrake is more intensive than PCMark 10. It basically measures how long a laptop’s CPU takes to encode a beefy 30GB file.
Cinebench: Cinebench is a brief stress test of the CPU cores. It does this by rendering a 2D scene over a short period of time.
3DMark: 3DMark checks if 3D performance remains consistent over time by running graphic-intensive clips.
Gaming tests: We benchmark each gaming laptop using several titles.
Video rundown test: To gauge battery life, we loop a 4K video using Windows 10’s Movies & TV app until the laptop dies.
For a much more detailed explanation, check out how PCWorld tests laptops.
Buying Guide: How to pick the perfect gaming laptop
While there’s no such thing as a perfect gaming laptop, you can always find one that fits your budget and lifestyle. Need an affordable, entry-level gaming laptop? First of all, the GPU is the most important aspect to consider. If you think of a game like a vehicle, then the GPU is its driver. You’ll also need a good amount of SSD storage for your games library as well as a high refresh rate display, which keeps visuals looking nice and smooth.
For additional reading, be sure to check out this comprehensive guide on the gaming laptop features that matter most. If you’re on a strict budget, then you should dive into this piece about what a $1,000 gaming laptop really gets you. Otherwise, our FAQ below dives deep into several component considerations for gaming laptops
FAQ
1.
What’s the ‘best’ screen for a gaming laptop?
When you buy a gaming laptop, one of the most important decisions you’ll need to make regards the screen. After all, what you get on day one is what you’re stuck with until you junk the device. You could run an external monitor but then, what’s the point of a laptop? Look for an IPS or OLED display, though gaming laptops under $1,000 sometimes include a TN panel. You can get buy with a 60Hz display if you mostly play single-player games, but thankfully, most gaming laptops these days opt for faster 120Hz+ panels instead.
2.
What’s the ‘best’ screen size for a gaming laptop?
The size of the screen dictates the size of the laptop itself, and thus weight. You can’t, for example, get a 17-inch gaming laptop that’s four pounds (although MSI’s excellent GS75 gets awfully damned close at five), so think long and hard about whether you’re willing to take the weight penalty in exchange for the screen real estate.
If the laptop is going to be your only gaming machine, having a 17-inch screen might be ideal. We should also add that a 17.3-inch screen is easier on weaker eyes than a 15.5-inch screen. This is very much a matter of personal preference.
3.
What’s the ‘best’ screen resolution for a gaming laptop?
The buzzword today is “4K.” That high resolution delivers sharper photo viewing and more space for video editing, but that doesn’t mean it’s for everyone. Anything not using the panel’s native resolution of 3840×2180, such as games running at lower-than-4K resolution, won’t look quite as sharp unless you exponentially increase the graphics power of the laptop.
If you’re running at 1920×1080 resolution because your GPU can’t hit 60 fps at 4K, that feature is moot. For many gamers, 1920×1080 (1080p) or 2560×1440 (1440p) is more optimal.
4.
IPS vs. TN vs. OLED: What’s the difference?
The panel technology is also a key feature. IPS (in-plane switching) generally produces much greater color accuracy and superior off-axis viewing, but tends to lag in response times, which can lead to blurring. TN (twisted nematic) panels can offer far higher refresh rates and usually better response times than IPS, but can look washed out or just blah.
A middle-ground technology that’s appearing more often is VA (vertical alignment). VA is sometimes alternately referred to as “wide viewing angle” technology. (Many assume this to spec to be IPS, but it’s not). In our experience, we’ve found VA panels to run the gamut from being worthy competitors to IPS to being worse than the better TN panels.
Generally, if color accuracy is important, go IPS (a trademark of Sharp), and if you want the fastest response times go for a gaming-oriented TN panel. With the variability of VA, we recommend you check feedback from reviewers and users of a particular model.
The wildcard in all this is OLED. OLED-based panels have been used in phones for years but have recently migrated to larger screens in laptops. IPS, TN, and VA all use LEDs behind the screen or along the edges. “Black” is produced by a shutter-like mechanism that blocks light from coming through. As you can imagine, there’s usually some light leakage, which means the black tends to be gray.
OLED panels don’t rely on edge- or backlighting. Instead, each pixel generates its own light. To produce black, it just switches off the light. This amounts to truly stunning contrast ratios and vibrant colors. OLEDs also boast fantastic response times.
The negatives include smaller screen sizes (we haven’t seen anything larger than 15.6 inches yet), higher cost, and lack of support for variable refresh rate. OLED panels can also use more power than conventional methods if the image is on a white background.
5.
Should a gaming laptop have G-Sync or FreeSync support?
Okay, we called this section G-Sync and FreeSync, but the reality is, when it comes to beefy gaming laptops, it’s a GeForce GPU world. And that means it’s a G-Sync world. In a nutshell, Nvidia and AMD’s respective variable-refresh-rate technologies help synchronize the monitor and the GPU to greatly reduce screen tearing. Variable refresh rates can make gaming at 40 fps far smoother to your eyes than a screen without it.
The first variable-refresh-rate panels for laptops maxed out at 75Hz, only marginally better than the standard 60Hz. More recently, we’ve begun to see laptop panels that can push 120Hz, 144Hz and even 240Hz. This generally means smoother and sharper gaming to your eyes. It even helps smooth out everyday tasks such as scrolling a browser page or Word document.
The downside of high-refresh rate panels is the technology it’s available on: TN. As we said earlier, TN generally looks less vibrant and less accurate than IPS. The off-axis view is generally inferior, too. You’ll also need a far more powerful GPU to feed that high-refresh rate monitor at its native resolution.
One last very important note: G-Sync screens have to be connected directly to the laptop’s discrete GPU, which means a large hit in battery life. In most laptops without G-Sync, the Intel integrated graphics is connected directly to the screen, so the GPU can be turned off when not being used. So while G-Sync is beautiful to behold, the cost in battery life is huge.
Which is right for you? If it’s primarily a gaming laptop—go for a high refresh rate and G-Sync (or FreeSync, if you can find a laptop that supports it with a Radeon GPU). If you tend to also push pixels in Photoshop or do any color-critical work, skip variable refresh for an IPS panel.
6.
What should you look for in a gaming laptop keyboard and trackpad?
A new trend in gaming laptops is the offset trackpad, which is more conducive to gaming than a dead-center trackpad. The concept is sound, but anyone who actually cares about PC gaming will just plug in a mouse. The worst thing about that offset trackpad is when you try to use it for non-gaming purposes.
As far as keyboards go, the most important gaming feature is n-key rollover. This means the keyboard physically scans each key separately. If you wanted to, you could press 20 keys simultaneously and they’d all register, as each is independently wired. That probably sounds excessive, but keyboards that lack this feature can suffer missed keystrokes, which both ruins gameplay and hurts in everyday tasks. Anyone who’s used an Adobe product that might require a left-Alt, left-Shift, left-Ctrl plus two more keys to do something may have run into the limitations of non-n-key keyboards.
Other keyboard considerations include LED backlighting (which adds ambiance but does nothing for gameplay) and mechanical keys vs. membrane. Mechanical keys are excellent—but are available on only a handful of laptops that usually weigh a ton. We have seen a few designs with low-profile mechanical keyboards, but even we admit they can be an acquired taste.
7.
What kind of storage is best for a gaming laptop?
Having your games load from an SSD instead of a hard drive significantly cuts down on load times. But beyond that, we haven’t found it to matter that much whether it’s a super-fast NVMe PCIe drive or a slower SATA SSD.
What does matter more today is the size of the SSD rather than the interface it uses. With games now topping 50GB and some touching 100GBs, a once-spacious 256GB SSD will feel too small with just four games installed.
So when spec’ing out that gaming laptop, be mindful of just how much total storage you have. If you go for laptop with a small SSD and large hard drive combo, expect to install your games to the hard drive. If the laptop will have an SSD only, choose an absolute minimum of 512GB, with 1TB preferred.
8.
How much RAM do you need in a gaming laptop?
When laptop makers spec out gaming laptops, one of the levers they use to try to convince you to buy their product is upping the amount of RAM. It’s not hard to find gaming laptops with “upgraded” configurations that go from 16GB of RAM to 32GB.
While having an adequate amount of RAM is important for gaming, today’s games typically top out at 16GB of RAM, and sometimes can run fine with just 8GB of RAM. Most people should invest in a gaming laptop with 16GB of memory if possible, and it makes sense to opt for 32GB if you plan on holding onto your gaming laptop for a long time. Modern games are only getting more memory-ungry.
9.
Should a gaming laptop have dual-channel or single-channel RAM?
Besides the amount of memory, a couple of other important, but not critical, questions to ask is what clock speed and what mode. Modern CPUs let you run RAM in sets to increase the memory bandwidth.
More memory bandwidth immediately helps laptops that are running integrated graphics, but the conventional wisdom has long been that discrete GPUs in laptops don’t benefit as much because they have their own dedicated, much faster GDDR5 RAM to use. That’s typically the case, but the performance of today’s GPUs and CPUs can make this conventional wisdom wrong.
Gaming performance is often about a balance between the CPU and the GPU, and how graphically intensive a game is. With games that are graphically intensive, the GPU is the primary bottleneck on performance. Play a game that isn’t graphically intense, though, and the CPU can rapidly become the bottleneck on performance.
With the power of today’s GPUs, a lot of games, especially at a sedate resolution of 1920×1080, have shifted more performance to the CPU. The reason we’re talking about this now is if you rob the CPU of memory bandwidth, even a decently fast one, you can take a sizable hit in gaming performance.
The basic lesson is you should opt for dual-channel memory bandwidth configurations when possible. On a laptop spec sheet, you typically would see this expressed as “dual-channel” or “2 x 8” to indicate that two 8GB memory modules were used in a laptop.
Some laptop makers will express memory in clock speed, so you’ll see “DDR4/2,133 or DDR4/2,400.” While a higher memory clock does increase memory bandwidth, the impact isn’t quite as great as going from dual-channel to single-channel mode.
10.
How many CPU cores do you really need in a gaming laptop?
How many cores do you need in a gaming laptop? For most people on a budget, a 4-core CPU with Hyper-Threading will function just fine in most games, especially when combined with a lower-cost and lower performance GPU.
Still, if you have the extra cash, a 6-core CPU with Hyper-Threading is likely the sweet spot for today and tomorrow. If you plan to stream your gaming live or edit it, investing in a 6-core is recommended.
Intel and AMD’s top-end 8-plus-core CPUs will deliver the greatest benefit to those who might do other graphics-intensive tasks, such as 3D animation or video editing. If you also plan to record and stream video, the 8-core will offer a performance benefit there, too.
If you’re thinking, great, let me buy a 4-core Core i5 or Ryzen 5 CPU with a luxury laptop to save money, you usually can’t, because PC makers typically only offer budget CPUs with other budget parts. Why? Well, most budget shoppers can’t afford any luxury items, and most PC makers like to add in the extras to increase the profit.
11.
What GPU is best for a gaming laptop?
The single most important piece of hardware in a gaming laptop is undoubtedly the GPU. For AMD fans, the situation is as sad as it is in CPUs: It’s an Nvidia GeForce world. As with CPUs though, the good news is that the dominating products are top-notch.
The hardest part will be deciding just how much GPU you need. Our general guidance is to buy as fast a GPU as you can afford and are willing to heft. Generally, the faster the GPU (or GPUs), the larger and heavier the laptop. If you’re talking about playing on a higher-resolution panel of 2560×1440 at high-refresh rates, then keep increasing the amount of money spent on the GPU.
12.
What kind of battery life should a gaming laptop have?
The last topic we’ll cover is battery life. The best way to understand battery life on a gaming laptop is to accept that it’ll be horrible for all things gaming.
The minute you crank up a GPU on a gaming laptop to play a game, you’re basically limiting yourself to an hour or an hour and a half of battery runtime. Period. And in some cases, far less than that.
The only reason to consider battery life on a gaming laptop is if you want to use your laptop unplugged for non-gaming purposes. In that respect, you’ll find a lot of variance, with some offering decent battery life, albeit with a trade-off in gaming performance.
Gaming, Gaming Laptops, Laptops Read...Newslink ©2024 to PC World | |
| | | PC World - 11 May (PC World)Man, there seem to be a lot of high-profile issues with the Chrome browser lately. Google issued an update yesterday with a security patch for an “in the wild” bug that exploits a use after free error. The good news is that the fix is being applied just two days after it was discovered by an anonymous user. The bad news is that this is becoming depressingly frequent.
As BleepingComputer reports, this is the fifth time in 2024 that Google has needed to issue an urgent update for Chrome, following no less than three zero-day exploits discovered at the Pwn2Own contest in March. For those of us without a compsci degree like yours truly, a zero-day exploit is a means of attacking software that takes advantage of an unknown flaw. Two of the other 2024 issues were also use after free errors, which occur when a program incorrectly uses dynamic memory after an operation is finished.
And just to make you a little more anxious, remember that these are the issues we know about and that Google has fixed. The very nature of zero-day exploits means that there are almost certainly more out there, which may or may not be known and in use. Google isn’t sharing the full details of the latest one until a greater percentage of people are running the latest version.
That being said, Chrome is a huge priority for Google now that it’s the most-used web browser on the planet. (That’s true across all platforms including mobile, but Chrome has pretty much the same 65 percent share of the PC/Mac laptop and desktop market, too.) And any software as complex and frequently updated as Chrome is going to have inevitable flaws.
So yeah, make sure you keep your browser up to date. Don’t let that “click here to update” message linger in the menu bar for too long, or in cases like this, force it by heading to Options > Help > About Google Chrome.
Security Software and Services Read...Newslink ©2024 to PC World | |
| | | PC World - 11 May (PC World)Antivirus software is a necessary tool in today’s online world. Attacks are only becoming more sophisticated, especially with the continued rise of AI. Even the most tech-savvy and cautious among us can drop their guard at wrong time or get tricked into exposing themselves to a malware, spyware, or ransomware vulnerability. Antivirus protection is an essential backup against such threats.
We’re not suggesting that PC security software is fool-proof, but it does a great job of protecting your computer against harmful malware and ransomware. Most systems come with security software baked into the OS, but this is often the bare minimum you need. Choosing to purchase more robust antivirus software will provide you with features such as an advanced firewall, sandbox environments for suspicious programs, and multi-device protection, among other things.
How do you choose a good antivirus? We’ve tested a multitude of offerings, including all the big names, so you don’t have to! When testing antivirus software, we look for products that strike a balance between excellent protection, a worthwhile selection of features, and minimal performance impact on your PC. For more information, you can read about how we test antivirus software below our picks.
Why you should trust us: PCWorld has been deep in the trenches of testing computer hardware, software, and services since 1983—including security suites. For antivirus apps, we continually evaluate popular or noteworthy software. We consider the user experience, strength of protection against threats (online and offline), and how well it addresses the ever-expanding types of attacks. Our guide on how we test antivirus software at PCWorld gives the full details of our review process, but for the results of our work, read on.
Update May 10, 2024: Want to further strengthen your security? A simple question can help keep your antivirus software’s workload a little lighter. We’ve also updated our AVG Internet Security and Avast One reviews to reflect the latest benchmark data from AV-Test and AV-Comparatives.
Best antivirus of 2024 reviewed and ranked
Norton 360 Deluxe – Best antivirus for PC overall
Pros
Strong antivirus protection
Wide protection against major online threats
Simple, straightforward features
Cons
Performance impact on some PCs
User interface would benefit from consolidation
Upselling of additional services
Why we picked Norton 360 Deluxe
An ideal antivirus suite packs in a little of everything needed for security without costing a ton—and that’s why our pick for the best antivirus software of 2024 is still Norton 360 Deluxe. Despite its slightly awkward interface, this software’s wide protection and affordable pricing is ideal for most users.
This plan has just about everything most PC users need, without extra bloat. In addition to the antivirus engine and firewall to protect against malware and network threats, you get malicious link and attachment screening, dark web and privacy monitoring, and webcam safeguards. Norton also tosses in 50GB of storage for cloud backups, access to Norton’s password manager and VPN, parental controls, and PC utilities that include the ability to monitor for outdated software.
Those major extras—the password manager, VPN, and parental controls—have easy, simple interfaces, without feeling stripped to the bone. You’ll actually want to use them, unlike some rival plans from Norton’s competitors.
For antivirus performance, Norton doesn’t hit perfect marks across the board, but its online protection is strong. In tests performed by leading security research institutes, like AV-Test’s zero-day attack and malware tests for November and December 2023, Norton detected 100 percent of the threats. Similarly, in AV-Comparatives’ real-world protection test for July through October 2023, Norton blocked 99.8 percent of the 512 test cases. And when tasked with the 10,007 samples in AV-Comparatives’ September 2023 malware protection test, Norton 360 scored a 99.98 percent online protection rate and 99.7 percent online detection rate. Its 86.0 percent offline detection rate puts it in middle on the leaderboards, but fewer users go offline these days, much less plug in unknown USB drives into their systems these days. Most file transfers and downloads are done online now.
In our in-house benchmarks of system performance, Norton can hit a slower or older PC harder than other antivirus software during a full scan—at least, when faced with many new files. If you don’t do a lot of downloading or copying to your hard drive(s), the scans go pretty quickly and have a more minimal impact.
Overall, Norton is an excellent option for those looking to consolidate their online security protections into a single software interface. It has a couple of quirks (namely a dual user interface that can mildly slow navigation), but its strengths far outshine its weaknesses.
Who should use Norton 360 Deluxe
Norton 360 Deluxe works for everyone—it consolidates all the biggest protections you need online into one package, including parental controls. If you have trouble keeping up with security experts’ recommendations (or haven’t yet gotten around to following all of them), this suite centralizes and simplifies it all.
Read our full
Norton 360 Deluxe review
Avast One – Best overall runner-up
Pros
Good new design
Well priced
Excellent performance
Cons
Smart scan requires too much user intervention
Avast asks to install Google Chrome
Why we picked Avast One
Avast not only offers solid protection, but a simple, friendly interface. Combine that together with useful extra features and multi-device coverage, and you have a winning combo in Avast One.
Rounding out that top-notch antivirus and firewall are safeguards against remote webcam takeovers, malicious websites, and trackers—these keep you safe against major online threats. The Avast One plan also includes dark web monitoring (which looks for your email address in data breaches and alert you to compromised passwords), a VPN with up to 5GB of bandwidth per week, and protections for saved passwords in a browser. You get utilities to help you keep your PC’s drivers up to date, clean up your PC, and optimize your apps.
These features may sound standard, and to be fair, many of them can be found in rival software. But Avast makes staying on top of security dead simple, whether you’re a novice or a security veteran. Its default settings require little input to keep your PC protected, and if you want to dig in further or tinker, you still have that option, too.
In evaluations by leading security research organizations, Avast runs with the very top performers on the leaderboards. AV-Test gave it perfect scores for protection against zero-day and prevalent malware in its November and December 2023 evaluation. Meanwhile, AV-Comparatives’ September 2023 Malware Protection Test found that Avast blocked 99.97 percent of online threats, with similar marks for online and offline detection rates. In its July through October 2023 real-world test, Avast’s antivirus engine blocked 100 percent of the 512 samples. And the software had no real effect on system performance in our in-house hardware benchmarks.
So what keeps Avast out of the top spot, when its software outperforms Norton’s? The amount of features for its price. Norton’s performance isn’t perfect, but it’s about as good for online protection, which is where it counts. And the two software plans cost about the same—Avast One is $51 for 5 devices (or $70 for up to 30 devices) during the first year. The cost rises to $110 and $150, respectively, per year afterward. In the end, the more well-rounded subscription wins out.
Who should use Avast One
You’re someone who has a password manager already set up, don’t need parental controls, and prioritize the highest marks in threat detection tests. Avast One lacks the first two features, and takes top marks for catching both online and offline risks.
AVG Internet Security – Best budget antivirus suite
Pros
Top-rated antivirus protection
Expanded protection against malicious websites and remote attacks
Clean, straightforward interface
Cons
Some PCs may experience a performance hit during heavier workloads
Several features are a bit rudimentary
Why we picked AVG Internet Security
AVG is best known for its excellent free antivirus software, but there’s good reason to upgrade. AVG Internet Security not only offers more comprehensive protection, but also easy management of those tools. That can be valuable if you find keeping up with online threats too overwhelming or time consuming.
The Internet Security plan builds upon the free version’s protection against malware and web, email, and network threat by adding five features. You get safeguards for the passwords saved to your browsers; webcam takeovers; unknown access to files with sensitive data; malicious redirects for websites you’re trying to visit (aka DNS hijacking); and attacks conducted through Windows’ remote desktop protocol.
In addition to real-time scanning of your PC and network, AVG Internet Security watches for malicious websites as you browse online—and even monitors where your email address appears online. If it’s spotted in a data leak, you’ll get a notification in the app.
When tested by leading security organizations, AVG earned high marks for antivirus and malware protection. In AV-Test’s zero-day attack and malware tests for November and December 2023, Internet Security detected 100 percent of the threats. Similarly, in AV-Comparatives’ real-world protection test for July through October 2023, AVG’s core antivirus component blocked 100 percent of the 512 test cases. When faced with 10,007 samples in AV-Comparatives’ September 2023 malware protection test, it scored a 95.3 percent offline detection rate, 99.5 percent online detection rate, and 99.97 percent online protection rate, with just one false positive.
In our own PCWorld performance testing, AVG Internet Security had minimal impact on system resources during everyday tasks like video chatting and web browsing. Even a more intensive task like encoding a video was barely affected. However, during heavier Microsoft Office use, you can see a drop in performance when a full scan is happening—especially if you’re on an older or slower machine. Scheduled scans are timed to happen during off-hours by default, though, so most users won’t notice too much of a hit.
Despite its quirks (like advertisements for additional paid features), AVG Internet Security is reliable antivirus software with a user friendly interface—and at just $60 during the first year for 10 devices, it’s affordable, too. In fact, it’s solid enough to earn a recommendation despite how strong the free version is on its own.
Who should use AVG Internet Security
You need deeper control and more expansive protection from your antivirus software, but you don’t want to pay extra for features you don’t want. AVG Internet Security expands just enough on the company’s free antivirus to make it worthwhile, even though it lacks elements like parental controls, VPN, and a password manager.
Read our full
AVG Internet Security review
Trend Micro Maximum Security – Best antivirus for beginners
Pros
Mute Mode is an excellent feature for power users
PC Health Checkup helps clean-up your PC
Cons
Some of the privacy features didn’t work reliably
Data theft prevention not as robust as it could be
Best Prices Today:
$39.99 at Best Buy
Why we picked Trend Micro
The best antivirus suites are as simple as possible—one where the app lays everything out clearly for users of all stripes. Trend Micro Maximum Security nails this principle with some of the easiest navigation we’ve seen.
It also packs in extras beyond protections against malware, ransomware, and web threats that aren’t often found in rival software. For starters, you can open Chrome and Firefox in a sandboxed mode to protect your banking and other sensitive browsing sessions. You can also enter information like a credit card number, email address, or telephone number into the app and it will automatically warn you if that data is leaving your PC.
This suite also offers a browser-based password manager to safeguard your logins, as well as parental controls to filter websites, set time limits, and control access to Windows programs.
When tested by leading security research organizations, Trend Micro’s antivirus engine takes top marks for online protection. It scored 100 percent in AV-Test’s November and December 2023 evaluation, catching all zero-day and web/email threats, as well as currently prevalent malware. Likewise in AV-Comparatives’ malware protection test, Maximum Security locked in a 97.95 percent online protection rate. It caught all 512 samples in the July through October 2023 real-world protection test, too. However, Trend Micro isn’t as good at detecting offline threats, with a score of 57.1 percent, and also had a higher false positive rate than rivals.
Most PC newbies won’t be affected by these performance results, since they’ll be online all the time. Only those on an older or slower PC might feel the effects of running Trend Micro Maximum Security, especially if during a CPU intensive task like encoding—during our in-house benchmarks, we saw system performance drop under heavy load. But this kind of intensive work isn’t usually typical for less seasoned computer users.
If this easy-to-use, robust suite sounds appealing, it gets even better when you look at its cost. You’ll pay just $45 during the first year for five devices, and $76 every year thereafter. You can save more if you drop down to three devices, which is just $30 for the first year, and $46 every year afterward.
Who should use Trend Micro
Trend Micro Maximum Security is perfect for anyone wanting antivirus software that feels less intimidating to use—especially if you’ve got accounts and kids to protect. Maximum Security includes a password manager and parental controls, both of which are vital tools for online safety.
Read our full
Trend Micro Maximum Security review
Avira Prime – Best antivirus for beginners runner-up
Pros
Strong security with a reasonable subscription price
Well designed and user-friendly
Offers a host of features in the areas of security, privacy, and performance
Cons
No subscription option for fewer than five devices
Simplicity of app feels slightly at odds with the depth of the PC tools
Best Prices Today:
$59.99 at Avira Operations GmbH
Why we picked Avira Prime
Trend Micro Maximum Security may be our current pick for best beginner-friendly antivirus suite, but not for a lack of trying on Avira Prime’s part. In fact, Avira is arguably the better choice for those seeking more help with managing their PC.
In addition to a simple, clear interface for malware scans and online protections, Avira Prime offers a password manager, unlimited VPN, and a boatload of PC utilities for tuning up your computer. These tools aim to boost your computer speed, save on laptop battery life, keep apps and drivers up to date, enhance game performance, locate duplicate files, and securely delete sensitive data. You also get many backup options that extend beyond just documents.
The one major feature missing from Avira Prime (and partially the reason for its runner-up status) is a set of parental controls. You can’t use it to filter web content or monitor device usage.
For antivirus protection, Avira generally provides solid protection against malware and other threats, with high performance in tests done by security research institutions. In AV-Test’s zero-day attack and malware evaluation for November and December 2023 (the most current as of this article’s publishing), it caught 100 percent of the threats. It did almost as well in AV-Comparatives’ real-world protection test for July through October 2023, blocking 99.4 percent of the 512 test cases simulating online dangers. Meanwhile, in AV-Comparatives’ September 2023 malware protection test, Avira scored a 99.97 percent online protection rate, 99.1 percent online detection rate, and a respectable 92.5 percent offline detection rate.
Avira only stumbles against more sophisticated, targeted threats—in AV-Comparatives’ November 2023 Advanced Threat Protection Test, it spotted just 8 of the 15 test cases imitating threats like malicious scripts and fileless exploits. Rivals also missed test cases, however.
During our in-house benchmarks evaluating system performance, Avira Prime only minimally affects performance when left to run in the background. But when full scans are running, this security suite can hit slower and older PCs extremely hard if combing through every file—as can happen if you’ve added or changed large quantities of files on your computer. Most people won’t notice Avira running, though.
For those who want the comprehensive simplicity that this security suite offers, you’ll pay $60 for the first year, and then $105 for every year after. That slightly higher cost is the other reason Avira Prime couldn’t quite dethrone Trend Micro Maximum Security as our newbie-friendly pick.
Who should use Avira Prime
Avira Prime will likely feel best to users who want a simple antivirus suite, broad online protections, and robust PC utilities—and also want to use those latter tools for more confident management of their computer. Not every utility is a winner, but the overall set can help you identify and understand the more technical aspects of Windows and system upkeep. Parents will need to look elsewhere for controls that let them monitor and limit their kids’ PC use, however.
Read our full
Avira Prime review
McAfee Total Protection – Best for privacy
Pros
Good protection
Nice features like file shredder and home network analyzer
Cons
Mixed impact on performance
New app design is a little scattered
Best Prices Today:
$89.99 at McAfee
Why we picked McAfee Total Protection
Decades ago, McAfee made a name for itself for antivirus protection—but the company has kept the most current threats to PCs in its sights. These days, dangers extend beyond just malware to identity and privacy issues, and McAfee Total Protection addresses these just as much as it does ransomware and phishing sites.
That ID protection makes it stand out against competitors, especially if you’re willing to pay to scale up the level of service. The plan we tested included dark web scanning, which keeps an eye out for any of your personal information that you’ve shared with the app (email address, phone number, social security number, passport, driver’s license, date of birth, tax ID, credit card, usernames, and more). If any of those details show up in a data leak, you get notified. The app also offers to help change your password for an online account when applicable.
As a supplement for the identity protection, McAfee gives you a score on how well protected you are online, to help point out potential weak spots to fix. You also get access to a secure VPN to enhance both security and privacy—especially useful if you are on public Wi-Fi but need to conduct a sensitive transaction.
In evaluations by leading security research organizations, McAfee passed AV-Test’s zero-day and prevalent malware tests with scores of 100 percent in both November and December 2023. For AV-Comparatives, McAfee earned 99.6 percent in the real-world protection test between July and October 2023, with just one false positive. For the malware-protection test in September 2023, McAfee earned a 99.95 percent online protection rate and 99.2 percent online detection rate. Its offline detection rate was much lower, coming in at 65.2 percent, but unless you often connect USB sticks of unknown origin into your computer while offline, this score matters less. Most threats these days get on to a PC while connected to the internet.
More relevant is that mid-tier and budget machines could see some impact on system performance when running McAfee scans. During our benchmarks, where we ran a full scan during a variety of common tasks (web browsing, document editing, etc), we did notice some dips in performance. You can mitigate this effect by timing scans for off hours, though.
Currently, McAfee Total Protection is available through third-party sellers (McAfee has turned its attention to its slightly newer McAfee+ plans on its website). We like this version still because of how deeply affordable it is—for example, a license on PCWorld’s own software site is just $19 per year, which covers up to ten devices for one year.
Who should use McAfee Total Protection
Your personal information can be used against you online—and with data breaches so painfully common these days, it can be a relief to have help in tracking who has your info. For anyone who doesn’t have as much time to handle that work themselves, or even keep track of a separate service, McAfee can serve as a central spot for managing all your online security concerns.
Read our full
McAfee Total Protection review
Panda Dome Complete – Most feature-rich offering
Pros
Very easy-to-understand mobile-like interface
Contains some basic smart home network monitoring
Month-to-month pricing option
Cons
Good performance results but currently limited in third-party testing
Best Prices Today:
$30.10 at Panda Security
Why we picked Panda Dome Complete
All of the deluxe antivirus suites offer extra tools as part of their package, but if we had to pick one that stands out in this respect, it’d be Panda Dome Complete. And not only does it come with those noteworthy features, it also has one of the most striking interfaces we’ve seen. Similar to Microsoft’s Bing homepage, Panda Dome features a beautiful background photo, with the interface elements placed on top of it.
The two features that particularly stand out are Rescue Kit and the Virtual Keyboard. Rescue Kit helps when dealing with advanced virus problems—it lets you create a recovery drive to boot your PC and then disinfect the machine. If that doesn’t work, you can try the advanced virus detector that uses Panda Cloud Cleaner, which can run on your desktop or off USB stick to dive deeper into your system.
Meanwhile, Virtual Keyboard is a software keyboard you operate with your mouse. It’s supposed to prevent any keyloggers installed on your system from grabbing your login info, credit card details, or other sensitive data when you type them in.
Also included with Panda Dome Complete are utilities like an update manager for your Windows apps, a disk defragmenter, hard drive cleaner, and startup apps manager. It also packs in Wi-Fi protection (which lets you see what devices are connected to your network), a password manager, parental controls, and a VPN that offers 150 megabytes of bandwidth per day. These come in addition to the core antivirus protection and safeguards like a ransomware monitor for folders often targeted by such malware.
When evaluated by AV-Comparatives, a leading security research organization, Panda scored well in its real-world protection test for July through October 2023. The suite blocked 98.6 percent of the 512 test cases, with about 20 false positives. In the malware protection test for September 2023, Panda blocked 99.41 percent of more than 10,000 samples. Its offline detection rate was among the lowest, however, coming in at 59.8 percent—but few people these days plug in unknown USB drives into their PC while offline.
More importantly, Panda tracks close to Windows Security (Windows’ built-in antivirus defense) in antivirus protection performance, while providing a centralized interface for all of its many features—several of which you won’t find in many rivals, including Windows Security. It also has the most minimal impact on system performance in our in-house benchmarks. So minor, in fact, that in the real-world it works out to no difference.
As one of the most feature-rich offerings, Panda Dome Complete also one of the most expensive, too. You can purchase a subscription for $64.50 during the first year ($86 per year afterward), but that’s covers just one device. Fortunately, it only costs a little more to upgrade to a three device plan ($72 for the first year, $96 per year afterward) or five device plan ($79 for the first year, $105 per year afterward).
Who should use Panda Dome Complete
Panda Dome Complete puts a ton of features right at your fingertips—an ideal interface for those who want to dive into everything straight away. If you hate buried or oversimplified menus, you’ll feel right at home with this software.
Read our full
Panda Dome Complete review
Windows Security – Best free antivirus
Pros
Built into Windows 10 and 11
Settings are easy to review and customize
Integrates with other security aspects of Windows
Cons
Tends toward false positives, especially with SmartScreen
Lacks the advanced features found in third-party products
Why we picked Windows Security
If Windows’ built-in security suite already performs on par with the best free antivirus options—as we discovered in our roundup of the best free antivirus—you may ask yourself if you need the baggage of a third-party program. Sure, other antivirus programs might offer marginally better protection, but not enough to outweigh the convenience of rolling with Microsoft’s home-grown offering.
Windows Security is a multi-piece suite, with both well-known and newer protections. Most users will recognize Defender, which monitors for viruses and malware, and Firewall, which blocks malicious incoming traffic and suspicious outgoing traffic. But it also includes ransomware protections (including controlled access to folders, as well as data recovery via OneDrive integration), app restrictions, and even basic parental controls.
The most important of these protections are automatically enabled in Windows—you don’t have to lift a finger to get real-time antivirus scanning or network protection. You will have to manually switch on some features, though, including ransomware folder controls and file recovery. (To learn more, see our video on How to use Windows Security.)
In tests performed by independent security organizations, Microsoft’s antivirus protection holds up well. It scored a 6 out of 6 for protection against malware in AV-Test’s November/December 2023 evaluation, and also turned in perfect marks for performance and usability. Testing from AV-Comparatives showed similar strong performance against online threats—in the September 2023 Malware test, it scored 99.95 percent in online protection, and a slightly lower 95.8 percent detection rate. (The best antivirus suites still clock in at 99 percent or higher for online detection.) However, for offline protection, Microsoft’s Defender engine slides down to a mere 77 percent—over 20 percent lower than top antivirus rivals. But for most people, who are online at all times, this score won’t affect their protection as much.
You can find more features in other antivirus suites, like online privacy tools, a VPN, and encrypted cloud backups. But this free protection comes preinstalled on Windows machines and does a good job of keeping you protected from most threats.
Who should use Windows Security
You’re looking for lightweight, unobtrusive antivirus protection—and don’t mind configuring it, nor managing separate security tools to make sure you’re properly protected online. To get the most out of it, you must tinker with Windows Security’s settings. (You can learn more in our video on How to use Windows Security.) You also have to figure out your own online privacy tools, VPN, password manager, and encrypted cloud backup.
Read our full
Windows Security review
Intego Mac Internet Security X9 – Best Mac antivirus
Pros
Two-way firewall
Good performance
Cons
Mac-specific (no Windows / Android protection)
Why we picked Intego X9
As the headline reveals, the focus of this roundup is the best antivirus for Windows PCs, but many PC enthusiasts are the de facto IT for friends and family. If you want to help an associate or loved one achieve strong antivirus protection for an Apple machine, our colleagues at Macworld recommend Intego’s Mac Internet Security X9.
In the suite are two utilities. The better known one is VirusBarrier, which spots and eliminates malware threats—it was one of the first virus scanners on Mac. It comes paired with NetBarrier, a two-way firewall that watches for suspicious outgoing traffic from rogue apps on your Mac, as well as unusual incoming connection requests from the internet to your Mac. For the price of this suite, NetBarrier’s inclusion isn’t common, but definitely welcome.
As part of its protection, VirusBarrier X9 scans for threats on your Mac’s internal storage drive (including any downloaded email and compressed archives), as well as connected disks and iOS devices. The app quarantines suspicious files, which you can then mark as trusted, leave in quarantine, or try to have repaired.
In testing performed by independent research organizations, Intego’s VirusBarrier got high marks. It received an “Approved” rating in AV-Comparatives’ June 2023 test, detecting 99.4 percent of Mac malware, 97 of potentially unwanted applications, and 100 percent of Windows viruses (thus thwarting spread of infections to susceptible PCs). In AV-Test’s June 2023 evaluation, VirusBarrier earned a 5.5 out of 6 for protection, a 5 out of 6 for effect on Mac performance, and a full 6 out of 6 for usability.
In Macworld’s own testing, VirusBarrier caught all the samples thrown at it, including those designed for other platforms. It also correctly flagged a disk image tainted with a malicious installer.Overall, Intego’s Mac Internet Security X9 offers good compatibility with macOS while looking like a real Mac program, too. It costs just $25 (or £20.00) for the first year using this special Macworld link. If you need additional tools, like a backup utility, speed optimizer for your Mac, or parental controls, you can upgrade to the Mac Premium Bundle X9 for $40 for the first year (£23.99).
Who should use Intego X9
Intego VirusBarrier not only offers good compatibility with macOS, but it also looks like a real Mac program, too—making it an ideal match for anyone looking for an effective app that blends in seamlessly.
How to choose the best antivirus software
There are three basic requirements that an antivirus suite should meet:
High-detection rate for malware and other threats
Low impact on system resources
An easy-to-use interface
That’s not all to consider, however. These days, many security suites come with extras such as a backup service for your most essential files, Android and iOS apps for mobile security, a more advanced firewall, family protection (read: child restriction) features, and the right to use the program on multiple PCs. Access to a VPN and a password manager have become more common, too. Whether you need those extras depends on how much you’re willing to spend and your personal situation.
If you’re looking to go beyond the basics, our baseline recommendation is to find a suite that comes with a firewall, supports enough devices to cover what you own, and (if you don’t already have separate services set up) access to a password manager and VPN.
How we test antivirus software
Our approach to testing antivirus software is multi-pronged—we look not just at how well the suite catches malware and other threats (though that’s certainly a top factor), but other elements as well.
First, we take a look at the interface to determine how easy or complicated it is. Does the interface make it easy to get at essential tools like PC scans and password managers, for example, or is everything buried under multiple clicks? Are there elements that look like they should be clickable but aren’t? Are alerts interactive or purely informational, and do they make sense in context?
We also examine the features on offer. Every good antivirus suite should have the basics like scanning and real-time protection, but many vendors offer elements that go beyond basic security like password managers or firewalls. We try to discern whether any of these extra features are particularly useful, or just frills that look nice but don’t serve a practical purpose.
To test the suite’s demand on system resources, we run three benchmarks. The first is PCMark 10’s Extended test, which simulates a variety of workloads including editing spreadsheets, browsing the web, running video chat, and light gaming.
PCWorld
PCWorld
PCWorld
We run the benchmark before the security suite is installed. Then we install the software, have it run a full scan on our Windows 11 test machine, and start a second run of the benchmark at the same time. Then we compare the overall scores to see if the decline between the two benchmark runs is significant.
We repeat the same process using UL Procyon, which simulates document editing in Microsoft Office apps—e.g., Word, Excel, PowerPoint. Then, as the harshest stress test, we use Handbrake to transcode a video before and after installing the antivirus software. On many home PCs, this encoding task utilizes 100 percent of the CPU. We then compare transcoding times to see if there’s any significant decline.
Our test machine is an Acer Aspire 3 15 with an AMD Ryzen 5 7520U, 8GB RAM, and a 512GB SSD. Each security suite is tested on a clean install of Windows 10 Home.
As for the antivirus suite’s detection capabilities, we rely on the opinions of security researchers dedicated to this task. We take into consideration reports from outlets such as AV Comparatives and AV Test.
We also take pricing into account and what you get for it.
When possible, we review security suites using a free trial to get a sense of what consumers see when they first try out a new product.
Still have questions about our review process? You can get even more details (and the philosophy behind why we test as we do) in our full explanation about our antivirus testing practices.
FAQ
1.
Is antivirus necessary in 2024?
Unfortunately, yes. Viruses, malware, and other online threats have only increased and become more sophisticated over time. Spending time on the internet or attaching any external drives to your computer without antivirus software is like going into battle without a stitch of armor.
2.
Does Windows 10/11 need antivirus?
In the basic sense, absolutely yes—which is why Windows 10 and 11 come with in built-in antivirus protection. But while Windows Security performs well, the best third-party antivirus software have even higher rates of detecting threats. The top antivirus apps also offer more control over settings, detailed logs of your PC’s activity, a more user-friendly interface, and additional features to strengthen your online security beyond just viruses and malware. So strictly speaking, a Windows PC doesn’t need third-party antivirus software, but you can benefit from more comprehensive online protection.
3.
Will antivirus software slow down my computer?
The short answer is maybe, but probably not. Antivirus software scans files and programs to ensure there is no malware or other harmful threat present. The longer the time frame between each scan, the more files the program will need to check. These intensive scans may have some noticeable effect on your computer speed. It’s therefore recommended that you schedule your scans to run more frequently and/or at night so as to not impact your computer usage.
While antivirus software can affect the speed of your computer, it is most likely not the only factor—or even the most prominent. Other factors such as unnecessary startup and background programs, insufficient RAM, or even undiagnosed malware can have more drastic effects on your computer speed than a simple antivirus scan.
4.
Should you pay for antivirus?
It depends on what antivirus features are most important to you. Do you just need a program that will scan, detect, and remove malware? Then go with a free version. But if you are looking for more advanced features such as the ability to block webcam hacking, run suspicious apps in a sandbox environment, and permanently delete sensitive files, then you should seriously consider upgrading to a paid premium antivirus service.
Overall, premium antivirus software is better suited to more complete coverage against threats—especially for inexperienced users. Children and seniors are particularly vulnerable to modern threats and therefore paid antivirus apps, which allow for multiple-device protection, may be a better option for families.
5.
How many antivirus programs are recommended for one computer?
These days, most antivirus software are full suites. They take over completely for Windows’ built-in protection, and that single suite is all you need. More than that, and the different apps can start to conflict with one another. So no need to double up!
6.
What should I do if my antivirus detects a threat?
In a perfect world, your antivirus software will halt and clean the infected files for you. However, this largely depends on which antivirus program you are using.
In general, the antivirus will send a warning to you and try to quarantine the infected file in order to keep it from spreading. Once isolated, the software will give you the option to try to remove the infection or delete the file altogether.
7.
What is the difference between a full scan and a quick scan?
A full scan performs a comprehensive and thorough check of your whole system. It usually checks your system memory, startup programs, system backup, email databases, hard drives, and any removable storage drives.
A quick scan only checks a few areas including startup programs, system memory, and boot sectors. It may not detect all malware, but it can usually give you an idea if your computer has a virus.
As to when you should do either, we recommend a full scan once per week, during computer usage downtime (such as late at night). A quick scan can be done anytime you like, but it’s usually only necessary if you notice suspicious activity on your PC.
8.
Do I need to update my antivirus software?
Absolutely! Keeping your antivirus software up-to-date is crucial in helping you to avoid the most recent threats.
That being said, most antivirus software today—whether free or paid—will default to automatic updates. This way you don’t need to worry about manually updating your software. It may still be worth checking to confirm that your antivirus is running the most up-to-date version from time to time.
9.
What features should my antivirus software have?
Great question—especially since antivirus software continues to add more and more components to help keep you safe online. At absolute bare minimum, your app should have a scanner to protect against malware and online threats like phishing sites and a firewall. But other services like remote access protection, individual file encryption, and a password manager can be helpful too. Our breakdown of antivirus software features lays out the details you need to know, so that you can decide what you need.
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| | | PC World - 11 May (PC World)The default pasting behavior of Microsoft Word is a nightmare, and has been forever. If you want to add a text or image using the standard option, you can easily mess up the entire formatting in the text if a completely different font suddenly appears. The horror!
After many years of complaints, Microsoft is finally listening to user feedback and changing the default behavior when pasting in Word. From now on, the source’s formatting will no longer be automatically retained. Instead, “Merge formatting” will be the new default for everyone, as Microsoft explained in a blog post this week.
This means that after the update, newly pasted text will take on the font size, font type, and color of the text written in Word. However, special features such as lists or italicized elements will be retained. If you want these elements to be automatically adapted to the Word text, you must select the option “Keep text only”.
How do I change the default behavior for pasting in Word?
To change the default behavior in Word, go to “File,” then “Options,” and finally “Advanced”. There you go to the sub-item “Cut, copy, and paste” and find the option “Paste from other programs.”
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You can now choose whether you would prefer to revert to the old version with “Keep original formatting”. Or you can select “Keep text only” if you prefer, which removes all formatting whatsoever.
The option is integrated from Word for Windows 2405, Build 17624.20000. However, it is not available for the web version or for Word for Mac.
This article was translated from German to English and originally appeared on pcwelt.de.
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| | | CNet News - 10 May (CNet News)Are you a retiree looking for cheap broadband? CNET compiled the top internet deals and discounts for seniors to help you save money and avoid scams. Read...Newslink ©2024 to CNet News | |
| | | PC World - 10 May (PC World)At a glanceExpert`s Rating
ProsCompact (18-liter)Optional glass side panel ships insideMouse, keyboardConsCable management could be betterA lack of configurabilityLack of dust filtersOur VerdictAcer’s Predator Orion 3000 gaming PC offers an attractively compact form factor, power, and price — with some extras thrown in.
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The Acer Predator Orion 3000 is an attractively compact prebuilt gaming PC that combines a powerful 13th-gen Intel Core i7 with a powerful midrange GPU, the Nvidia GeForce RTX 4070. It might not be as configurable as we’d like, but it’s a solid option for high-performance 1080p and 1440p gaming.
PCWorld typically caters to the DIY audience, where we encourage you to buy separate components and build a finished PC. (Check out our YouTube channel for builds, breakdowns and more.) But everything from GPU shortages to just plain convenience can also push you to buying a prebuilt gaming PC.
You usually have one of three directions to pursue: buy from a boutique builder like Falcon Northwest, which can order and configure the right mix of parts; buy a prebuilt from a company that buys and combines third-party components; or select from a manufacturer like Asus, which either makes its own components or works directly with third-party suppliers.
Prebuilt gaming PCs come in a variety of shapes and sizes; you’ll want a compact model like the Acer Predator Orion 3000 if you’d like to save desk space. Smaller models can sacrifice airflow and future expansion capabilities.
Mark Hachman / IDG
Mark Hachman / IDG
Mark Hachman / IDG
The Acer Predator Orion 3000 (PO3-650-UR17) is available in a single configuration, listed below, though you’re obviously free to upgrade it yourself. I couldn’t find it on Acer’s United States site, though it’s available in Canada. Customers living in the United States can buy it from either Amazon or Newegg.
You’ll need to pair this PC with a great gaming monitor. We’ve got tried-and-tested suggestions.
Acer Predator Orion 3000 (P03-650-UR17) specifications:
Processor: Intel Core i7-13700F
Graphics: Nvidia GeForce RTX 4070 w/12GB GDDR6X video memory
Memory: 16GB DDR5-4400
Storage: 1 TB M.2 PCIe Gen4
Ports: 1 USB-C (20Gps, 2×2); 1 USB-A (10Gbps), 2 USB-A (5Gbps), 4 USB-A (480Mbps); 3 DisplayPort 1.4a; 1 HDMI 2.1, RJ-45 (Ethernet)
Wired Connection: Killer E2600 Gigabit Ethernet
Wireless: WiFi 6e (AX211); Bluetooth 5.3
Operating system: Windows 11 Home
Dimensions (inches): 14.84 x 6.89 x 15.16in
Weight: 24.5 pounds
Colors: Black
Also in the box: Keyboard, mouse, glass window
Price: $1,699.99
Acer Predator Orion 3000: build and chassis
Out of the box, Acer’s Predator Orion 3000 is pretty simple. The box includes the chassis, the power cord, and a few extras: a mouse and keyboard as well as an optional glass side panel. That’s a nice touch, especially if you want a better view of the internal components as well as a way for the internal RGB lighting to illuminate your bedroom, office, or den. Otherwise, some of the internal RGB is somewhat muted.
Acer rates this compact little 18-liter minitower at about 15 inches tall by 15 inches deep — less than the height of a monitor, which makes it appropriate for either on top of or underneath your desk. Acer said that the case is a custom design, and the motherboard is, too. The included graphics card is made by “one of the largest ODM/OEM graphics makers,” an Acer representative said.
The power button lives on top of Acer’s desktop, but that’s the only control available from that location.
The power button lives on top of Acer’s desktop, but that’s the only control available from that location.Mark Hachman / IDG
The power button lives on top of Acer’s desktop, but that’s the only control available from that location.Mark Hachman / IDG
Mark Hachman / IDG
I prefer to keep my desktops below my desk, out of the way. Acer didn’t really design the Predator Orion 3000 for that configuration, however, as only the power button is top-mounted. All of the other ports are on the I/O panel on the rear (as expected) or on the right side of the front panel, which includes a USB-A port, 3.5mm jacks for headphones and mics, and the 20Gbps USB-C port to connect an external high-throughput SSD for gaming.
At 24.5 pounds, the chassis is easy enough to lift out of the box with an angled design that allows it to be gripped from the top, via a handle. Acer includes rubber feet on the bottom of the chassis, which keeps it from sliding about but will also mean that you have to lift it up even for small adjustments.
Mark Hachman / IDG
Mark Hachman / IDG
Mark Hachman / IDG
Acer Predator Orion 3000: Cooling and ports
Cooling is provided by two 92mm FrostBlade 2.0 fans — one on the front, and one on the rear –with four RGB LEDs mounted on the front and rear fans. These fans can be configured via the PredatorSense utility that Acer ships as a default app on most if not all of its gaming products. Additional fans are mounted on the CPU and GPU, all controlled by PredatorSense.
Air is pulled in from the front through a fan mounted at the bottom of the case, then routed through the chassis where it either exits via the rear exhaust fan or through a grille at the top of the case. Airflow appears to be just okay, though adequate for this design.
The cables aren’t sleeved, and this isn’t one of the latest premium cable-free designs, of course. One cable also traversed the front of the rear exhaust fan.
Mark Hachman / IDG
Mark Hachman / IDG
Mark Hachman / IDG
Acer says that the arced fan blade design helps keep the system cool while reducing noise, and I’d agree. The Predator Orion 3000 keeps very quiet, whether it be sitting idle on the desktop or under load. There was no distracting coil whine, either.
While some prebuilt PCs don’t shy away from using third-party components, Acer badges mostly everything under the Predator brand: the GPU, the memory (from Adata, hidden behind a Predator shield which populates two out of the four available DIMM slots) and an anonymous 500W (80 Plus Gold) power supply.
The exception is an PCIe Gen 4 SSD from SK Hynix, which fills an M.2 slot. (The other M.2 slot, underneath the graphics card, is filled by the Intel AX211NGW Wi-Fi/Bluetooth controller.) There are two physical 3.5-inch drive bays, both vacant.
Mark Hachman / IDG
Mark Hachman / IDG
Mark Hachman / IDG
On the rear of the chassis lie the rest of the ports: the three DisplayPort 1.4a ports as well as the HDMI 2.1 port for connecting any available displays; and then the bevy of six USB-A ports on the back. None are marked, however. Acer tells me that the bottom two ports are rated at 5 Gbps, with the remainder supplying 480Mbits of legacy throughput. There are an additional three audio jacks here, too.
Acer Predator Orion 3000: Expansion and configurability
Acer tells me that both the motherboard and case are custom, so you probably won’t be able to swap out the motherboard for an upgrade. It even appears that part of the motherboard disappears into the case itself in one spot.
Acer includes the option to swap out the side panel (a metallic grille) for one made of EMI-compliant tempered glass. Acer makes this easy and convenient; two screws connect the existing side panel, and they can be removed via a screwdriver so you can slide the panel out. The tempered glass replacement has padding around the edge to dampen any vibration and to seal in the airflow. Attaching it is as easy as lining up the screw holes and tightening them. You can screw them in with a flat-head screwdriver, but hand-tightening seemed to work just fine.
I don’t see too much additional space for expansion, however. Two of the DRAM slots are empty, allowing for a maximum of 64GB if filled completely. Both 3.5-inch drive bays are available, too. But you’ll have to remove the Wi-Fi card to access the second M.2 slot, mounted underneath the graphics card; otherwise, the stock SSD fills the first. The Predator Orion 3000’s case doesn’t appear to leave enough room for additional fans, either.
Part of the chassis juts outward in the front, housing the input fan. But that part of the chassis really doesn’t seem to be (easily) user-accessible, even though Acer says that it is by removing the side panel and some screws. It actually appears that it might be removable via series of plastic pegs, but I couldn’t budge it.
The graphics card can be removed by unscrewing a screw on the outside of the case, which secures the mounting bracket that ships with the Predator Orion 3000. Two more screws secure the card’s bracket internally, and the cable runs make accessing them more difficult than they probably need to be. The graphics card can then be detached from the bracket itself. There’s not a whole lot of play in the Predator’s mounting bracket, probably less than an inch, so you’ll need a card whose length can fit the bracket, about 10.5 inches. I originally tried detaching the card from the internal bracket using an offset ratcheting screwdriver to get the card out, but gave up. The cable assembly didn’t give me enough space to access both retaining screws.
The Predator Orion 3000 doesn’t have any dust filters, which means that you may have to periodically open the case and try to blow out any lint or hair that penetrates the interior. That could be an issue, given that front assembly.
Acer also includes a small mouse and basic keyboard inside the box, adding to the value. Both are good starter peripherals, and useful if you’re migrating from a laptop equipped with a keyboard and touchpad. The keyboard, though narrow, has a full keypad to the right and is actually fairly comfortable to type upon, though it lacks a height adjustment. The mouse is a basic three-button mouse with scroll wheel, not rated for any particular frame rate. It slides easily, but I’d still recommend that you select from our recommended gaming mice (and favorite gaming keyboards) instead.
Mark Hachman / IDG
Mark Hachman / IDG
Mark Hachman / IDG
Acer Predator Orion 3000: Performance
As a re-entrance into the world of prebuilt gaming desktops, we don’t have any existing pre-built desktops to compare Acer’s Predator Orion 3000 to. For now, we’re going to compare it to a number of gaming notebooks — it’s not ideal, but you’ll also know how this desktop compares to the less powerful but mobile versions of this system.
I used stock settings for testing, which included the “Auto” settings in PredatorSense.
Regardless, some of the same benchmarks apply. I tested the Acer Predator Orion 3000 (P03-650-UR17) using PCMark 10, a good overall benchmark that measures performance across several applications, from web browsing, CAD work, and light gaming; along with Cinebench, which measures the relative CPU performance. In 3D graphics, we’ve stuck with 3DMark’s Time Spy benchmarks as a general indicator of 3D performance.
In general, the 13th-gen Acer Predator Orion, with a slightly slower GPU, seemed to outperform everything but the MSI Raider, which should be at or near the peak of 14th-gen mobile gaming hardware. One exception was PCMark, where it finished atop the heap.
Mark Hachman / IDG
Mark Hachman / IDG
Mark Hachman / IDG
Flip that on its head, though, when the Core i9 laptops come out to play. Yes, the desktop architecture performs well, but the Raider still beats it. Easily.
Mark Hachman / IDG
Mark Hachman / IDG
Mark Hachman / IDG
That’s it for the CPU-centric benchmarks, though. Since this is a gaming PC, we look next at the 3DMark Time Spy benchmark.
The results aligned with how you might expect: The laptops with higher-end RTX 4000-series GPUs cluster at the top. The desktop-class RTX 4070 helps elevate the Acer Predator Orion 3000’s performance, though.
Mark Hachman / IDG
Mark Hachman / IDG
Mark Hachman / IDG
Since this is a gaming PC, of course, we’ve also added several games to the mix: Rise of the Tomb Raider, Shadow of the Tomb Raider, Metro: Exodus, and Cyberpunk 2077. As a rule, gamers use 60 fps as the absolute minimum for gaming — and it typically depends on the game. A frame rate of 90 fps is preferred, with even smoother, better experiences produced by higher frame rates.
We can compare the Predator Orion 3000 to the notebooks, but most of the games we’ve tested seem playable. Note that we typically test at 1080p, however, so a higher resolution will result in slower frame rates. In general, the RTX 4070 should deliver exceptional 1080p and 1440p gaming alike, especially when you flip on Nvidia’s various DLSS features in games that support it.
Mark Hachman / IDG
Mark Hachman / IDG
Mark Hachman / IDG
Rise of the Tomb Raider is a 2015 third-person action game developed by Crystal Dynamics, where Lara Croft jumps, scrambles, and shoots her way through Tibet. We test at 1080p using “Very High” settings, and the Predator Orion chews through the game.
Though the 2018 sequel, Shadow, was developed by Eidos-Montreal, though using an enhanced version of the Foundation engine developed by Crystal Dynamics. Again, the Predator Orion 3000 has no problems.
Mark Hachman / IDG
Mark Hachman / IDG
Mark Hachman / IDG
Metro: Exodus is a 2019 first-person shooter, which tracks the protagonist across the post-apocalyptic Moscow steppe. It uses the 4A Engine from 4A Games. We run our tests at 1080p resolution using the Extreme setting.
Here, the Predator Orion 3000 struggles with the increased complexity of the scenes. A framerate of 72 fps is probably marginal for many gamers.
Mark Hachman / IDG
Mark Hachman / IDG
Mark Hachman / IDG
Since we added Cyberpunk to our testing repertoire relatively recently, we don’t have a series of notebooks to compare it to. But we can say that the Predator Orion 3000 delivered 116 frames per second at 1080p, Ultra settings, without any upscaling active. That’s slightly less than the 123 fps that the MSI Raider delivered — so the notebook wins that round.
One note: You might not care about AI performance, but the rule of thumb seems to be that VRAM is king. This RTX 4070 includes 12GB of GDDR VRAM; if AI matters, you might want to choose (another) PC with more VRAM, perhaps running an RTX 4060TI with 16GB of VRAM.
Should you buy the Acer Predator Orion 3000?
Charging $1700 for a 13th-gen Core i7 combined with an RTX 4070 seems reasonable, though it also seems reasonable to assume you’ll want to spend about $55 or so and fill the available RAM slots with an additional 16GB (2x8GB) of DDR5 DRAM. That’s the only real (semi-)shortcoming, on paper, that needs addressing, and in the real world, the stock 16GB of memory should hold up just fine in the vast majority of games.
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Otherwise, the Acer Predator Orion 3000 is a nice, compact desktop that could use some improvements in cable management, but offers some value-added features like the side panel, mouse and keyboard. All of those add up to make the Acer Predator Orion 3000 a good value for 1080p and 1440 gaming.
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| | | PC World - 10 May (PC World)In the spirit of full disclosure: I really despise Comcast’s Xfinity Internet. Which is why its new prepaid nationwide Internet service, NOW Internet, looks surprisingly like something I would use–close, but not quite.
Comcast’s NOW service is a new brand for the company. It’s wired Internet, at affordable, all-inclusive rates: $30-45 per month, including taxes, fees, a router, and unlimited data. Is there a catch? The service maxes out at 200Mbps per month — which is still much faster than most people’s basic connections, to be fair — but otherwise, not really. It’s a seemingly customer-friendly service from a company that has never really been seen as customer-friendly for more than a decade.
You know the routine: You receive your bill. Your eyes pop, you gasp, your blood pressure rises. You book an hour or two on your schedule to call, complain, wheedle, yell — all part of the Comcast Xfinity negotiation we advised you to perform a decade ago. After threatening to leave, you end up on the cheaper promotional plan.
Now, Comcast NOW actually promises to change that. Two plans are available: a $30/mo NOW Internet plan that offers 100Mbps speeds, and the more expensive 200Mbps plan for $45 per month. Want TV on top of that? NOW TV offers a $20 package that includes “40+ live channels, more than two dozen integrated FAST channels, and Peacock Premium,” — all streaming, however, and on the Xfinity Stream app. There’s even NOW Mobile: $55 per month if you bundle Internet and TV, and $25/mo for each additional line.
Comcast also offers a NOW WiFi Pass: unlimited access to 23 million Xfinity hotspots (the ones that your Xfinity service probably turns on by default) for 30 days. all for $20.
Comcast even goes so far as to literally spell out what you’ll get, in detail, in its list of NOW plans. For example, Comcast claims that you’ll receive a typical download speed of 234.27Mbps with the 200Mbps plan, an upload speed of 11.68Mbps, and latency of 20.174 milliseconds.
Comcast
Comcast
Comcast
Is there a catch? If there is, it’s not an obvious one. Comcast says that the service is subject to the Xfinity Residential Services contract, which includes its Acceptable Use Policy. That policy does specify that you can’t use your PC as a Web host or to share files. There’s also a NOW policy (PDF) that basically says that the service can be cancelled for a refund before it’s turned on. Comcast does require you to use a “refurbished” gateway instead of a new one, and to pay online.
Since Comcast NOW is a monthly service, though, that shouldn’t matter. “This monthly price is not an introductory rate,” Comcast says. “There is no term contract. Price is subject to change.”
Comcast doesn’t seem to even be offering the standard “input your address, and we’ll tell you if you can be a customer” page. It is nationwide, after all.
Is Comcast NOW Internet right for you?
For me? Not quite. My family doesn’t need the eye-popping 10-gigabit speeds that my colleague Gordon Ung signed up for. Instead, we make do with about 500Mbps. That’s more than enough for streaming and downloading, even with my family of four on the Internet all at once. Because of how our house is designed, we have a much harder time actually distributing that Internet around the home — I hate spending a ton for good mesh networking just as much, honestly.
So, yeah, Comcast Xfinity’s new NOW service is a little slow. If they increased the speeds to 400Mbps…maybe. But for me, I simply hate seeing a massive bill for Internet services. I’ve actually lobbied my small Bay Area town to let in rival ISPs, but Comcast still has monopoly status. If T-Mobile were to build 5G towers a bit closer to my house and improve the router, its fixed wireless broadband may be in my home today.
And it’s unlimited, too. Comcast seriously pissed me off when it ended its unlimited broadband service near the end of the pandemic — but left it in place in the Northeast. That’s always struck me as deeply unfair.
As it is, I seriously have to wonder: did Comcast actually do something good for a change? On paper, it sure looks like it.
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