Your PC is capable of running not one, but two Windows apps designed to protect you and your system against online threats: Windows Security and Microsoft Defender. Telling them apart can be tricky, though. Thanks to a few name changes, what’s old sounds new and what’s new sounds old. If you haven’t kept up with the updates, it may not be clear which one you want — or if you actually prefer to run both.  To help you decide, I’ve broken down what each app does. Let’s dig in. What is Windows Security? PCWorld PCWorld PCWorld Previously known as Windows Defender, Windows Security is the most current name for the app that ties Microsoft’s basic antivirus and network protections together. Similar to third-party antivirus software, you get a unified interface to make changes to the app and access manual scans. Separate tabs break out various settings: Virus & threat protection: From this tab, you can run manual scans (Quick, Full, Custom, or Offline), change how your system screens for threats, and set up more stringent ransomware defenses. Account protection: Guard the Microsoft account tied to your PC, as well as strengthen Windows’ login process. Firewall & network protection: Refine your settings in order to tailor screening of incoming and outgoing traffic. App & browser control: Adjust how Windows screens apps for suspicious behavior, and if Edge runs in an isolated, sandboxed environment. Device security: Get information about your PC’s deeper security protections in Windows — core virtualization, security processor (TPM), and secure boot. Device performance & health: See a quick overview of the general “health” of your PC with regard to software issues or storage drive issues. Family options: Filter viewable content for users on the PC, as well as see breakdowns of device usage. You can manage your family group through the web portal. Click on the arrows (desktop) or swipe (mobile) to see each tab in the Windows Security app. What is Microsoft Defender? PCWorld PCWorld PCWorld Confusingly, the Microsoft Defender app shares its name with the antivirus engine powering Windows Security’s malware protection — but they’re not directly tied. Instead, the Defender app offers additional defenses against online threats for Microsoft 365 Personal or Family subscribers. It works equally with either Windows Security (including the Microsoft Defender Antivirus engine) or third-party antivirus software. Privacy protection: You can funnel your online traffic through Microsoft’s encrypted VPN service whenever you’re on a network connection, like public Wi-Fi you don’t trust. You get up to 50GB of data per month. Microsoft Defender also can now detect unsecure Wi-Fi connections, and not just alert you to them, but automatically turn on the VPN too. Privacy Protection is available on all supported platforms, including Windows, Android, macOS, and iOS. Identity theft monitoring: Through a partnership with Experian, Microsoft Defender will alert you to data breaches and any fraudulent activity on your credit reports. The service also provides up to $1 million in restoration costs and $100,000 in lost funds if you are a victim of identity theft. Device protection: You can watch to see if your devices (up to four) or those linked through your Microsoft Family Group have any suspicious activity occurring and be notified through this app. Notifications will be sent through Windows’ notification system, and you can also view them through the Defender app. Click on the arrows (desktop) or swipe (mobile) to see the different sections of the Microsoft Defender app. Windows Security vs. Microsoft Defender Windows Security and Microsoft Defender are complimentary apps, rather than competing.  Windows Security defends against online threats, including ransomware, and it’s included for free with a Windows license. (Heads-up: If you ever see a popup notification telling you to call a phone number or pay to renew, you’ve either visited a compromised website or your PC has been directly compromised — time to run an antivirus scan ASAP.) Microsoft Defender then rounds out those protections by letting you shield your online activity from other users on the same network, keeping you informed of data leaks and credit fraud, and monitoring your devices for vulnerabilities.  Should you use Microsoft Defender? Windows Security and Microsoft Defender paired together can rival basic third-party antivirus suite subscriptions. Windows Security and Microsoft Defender paired together can rival basic third-party antivirus suite subscriptions.Alaina Yee / Foundry Windows Security and Microsoft Defender paired together can rival basic third-party antivirus suite subscriptions.Alaina Yee / Foundry Alaina Yee / Foundry If you’re already a Microsoft 365 subscriber, having both Windows Security and Microsoft Defender set up and active is comparable to a very simple third-party antivirus suite subscription — and you don’t have to pay extra. However, if you’re not yet a paid Microsoft 365 user, want additional integrated features (like a password manager), or prefer a different interface, independent antivirus software will be a better fit for your needs. You can check out our top recommendations in our best antivirus software roundup, which covers all types of plans. Read...

Amazon apparently wants to milk Prime Video even further by showing more ads than ever before. According to Ars Technica, Amazon will test how much advertising it can get away with before Prime Video viewers revolt (or even cancel their subscriptions altogether). Kelly Day, Amazon’s Vice President of Prime Video International, told the Financial Times in this paywalled article that Amazon will offer more Prime Video ad slots to advertisers in 2025. Currently, it seems that Prime Video users see an average of 2 to 3.5 minutes of advertising per hour. Day told FT that standard Prime Video currently doesn’t show any ads in the middle of content. That could change come next year. In a statement to Ars Technica, an Amazon spokesperson tried to gloss over the threat of “more” ads for Prime Video customers: “We have not changed our plans to have significantly fewer ads than linear TV and other streaming TV providers and to evaluate ad volume to ensure we deliver a great customer experience.” The Financial Times also confirmed that Amazon would be adding “shoppable ads” to Prime Video in 2025, including carousel ads, intermission ads, and brand quiz ads. All of this ad space is meant to target a TV and cinema audience that’s becoming increasingly difficult to reach using traditional advertising methods. Related: What else do I get with Amazon Prime? Ads are invading Amazon Prime Video Amazon increased the number of ads on Prime Video back in February 2024, with movies and TV shows getting two main types of ads: ones for Amazon’s own streaming content in the form of trailers, and one paid for by advertising partners (similar to regular TV commercials). To add insult to injury, some features were silently removed from the standard Prime Video plan and locked behind a paid upgrade that reduces the number of ads for an extra $2.99 per month. Amazon told Ars Technica that Prime Video has 200 million monthly viewers and that the number of subscribers has not fallen dramatically since the company added advertising. In May 2024, less than a tenth of Prime subscribers paid the extra charge for an ad-free subscription. Given that, it’s no surprise that Amazon executives feel bold enough to push more ads on viewers. Not to mention the apparent success of Netflix’s ad-supported plan, showing that we haven’t yet reached the point where enough is enough. How much more can we afford and how many more ads can we stomach? We’ll have to wait and see. Further reading: Oof, when did streaming get so expensive? Read...

Knowing you’re able to charge your phone at any time, no matter where you are, should lift a weight off your shoulders and put some pep in your step when you’re out and about. That’s why you need a power bank, like this Iniu power bank that’s on sale for just $18 on Amazon, currently knocked down by 40 percent off its usual price. If you don’t have a power bank, this is a good one to snag. For starters, it’s super slim and compact, able to fit in your palm or slip into your pocket with ease. It’s also super lightweight, coming in at just 0.44 pounds, so you’ll barely even know it’s there. This Iniu power bank features an in/out USB-C port that delivers 15W of charging power, able to charge an iPhone in about 1.5 hours. It also has two additional USB-A ports so you can charge multiple devices at once. (Keep in mind te speed will drop if you do that.) With a battery capacity of 10,000mAh, this isn’t the largest or chunkiest power bank you could get, but it’s more than enough to ensure you aren’t accidentally left with a dead phone. It’s also small enough to pass TSA regulations for what can be taken on a carry-on bag. Snag this slim $18 power bank on Amazon before this deal runs out. A power bank is one of those things that you always want on hand just in case because running out of juice really sucks. Save 40% off this slim, portable USB-C power bankBuy now on Amazon Read...

As of last month, Thunderbird — which has been operated by Mozilla subsidiary MZLA Technologies since 2020 — is finally done with its notable transition from version 115 to version 128. September 5 gave us Thunderbird 115.15.0, which was the last release of version 115 (“Supernova”) and also the last version to still run on Windows 7, Windows 8, macOS 10.12, macOS 10.13, and macOS 10.14. But if you thought things were going to be simple again, you were wrong. Going forward, Thunderbird will have four release channels on its download page, similar to what we see with Firefox. Thunderbird’s four release channels The main release channel, called ESR (Extended Support Release) channel, is how Thunderbird has been operating so far, with annual feature updates and monthly security updates. All users on modern operating systems are on this channel by default, with the latest version being Thunderbird 128.3.0esr (“Nebula”). The new Release channel, whose version numbers follow the pattern set by Firefox, will start with Thunderbird 131 (without “esr”). The Release channel will be delivering security updates and new features and improvements on a four-week schedule. You won’t find the Release version on Thunderbird’s download page yet because Thunderbird 131 is currently only available to testers. Mozilla / fz Mozilla / fz Mozilla / fz There’s also the Beta channel, which puts out unstable versions for testing purposes. (Unstable means that there could be bugs, crashes, and malfunctioning features that still need to be fixed.) Beta versions are released every four weeks for testing, which then become Release versions If they pass. Finally, there’s the Daily channel, which is the most unstable and experimental of all the versions. Equivalent to Firefox nightly builds, Thunderbird Daily sits on the cutting edge of Thunderbird development and has yesterday’s newest features and latest bugs. Note: Only Thunderbird’s ESR and Release channels are meant to be used on a day-to-day basis for actual productive purposes. The Beta and Daily channels are strictly meant for testing and development, but are available in case you want to give them a whirl. Use the Beta and Daily versions at your own risk. Across both Thunderbird versions 131 and 128.3.0esr, the developers have fixed at least 11 security vulnerabilities, with most of those existing in both versions. (Thunderbird inherits many of the vulnerabilities in Firefox, whose code base also forms the basis of Thunderbird.) In Thunderbird 131, the developers have also fixed 30 other bugs, while Thunderbird 128.3.0esr has significantly fewer issues. Read...

At a glanceExpert`s Rating Pros Top-of-the-line CPU and GPU Bright and beautiful display with HDR Liquid cooling works well Lots of well-positioned ports Cons Expensive Low battery life No Wi-Fi 7 No facial recognition Our Verdict The Lenovo Legion 9i is everything a high-end gaming laptop should be, pairing high-end hardware with liquid cooling and a bright and beautiful display for HDR gaming. But it has a price tag to match. Price When Reviewed This value will show the geolocated pricing text for product undefined Best Pricing Today Best Prices Today: Lenovo Legion 9i Retailer Price Lenovo $3839.99 View Deal Price comparison from over 24,000 stores worldwide Product Price Price comparison from Backmarket The Lenovo Legion 9i is a gaming laptop that goes above and beyond. A top-of-the-line CPU and GPU are table stakes for a high-end gaming laptop. Beyond that, this 16-inch gaming laptop uses liquid cooling to deliver high performance with surprisingly cool surfaces. And, while many gaming laptops skimp when it comes to the display, Lenovo included a mini-LED display with an incredibly high 1200 nits of maximum brightness, enabling HDR gaming on the go. It’s a great package, and it’s even more impressive in a laptop that weighs just 5.51 pounds. But, as with all high-end gaming laptops, this impressive hardware doesn’t come cheap. Further reading: Best gaming laptops 2024: What to look for and highest-rated models Lenovo Legion 9i: Specs The Lenovo Legion 9i (Gen 9) is a high-end gaming laptop with a high-end Intel Core i9-14900HX CPU. It was the fastest mobile CPU we ever tested back in January, and it’s part of Intel’s 14th-generation “Raptor Lake refresh.” Our machine had a top-of-the-line Nvidia GeForce RTX 4090 GPU, but you can also get this machine with an RTX 4080. Our review unit also included 32GB of RAM, although Lenovo also offers this machine with up to 64GB of RAM. Finally, no expenses were spared with the storage: Lenovo included two 1 TB solid-state drives set up in a RAID 0 configuration. That results in a total of 2 TB of usable storage with faster storage speeds than you’d get with a single 2 TB drive. It is worth noting that this machine doesn’t have a neural processing unit — much less one that meets Microsoft’s Copilot+ PC requirements — so it won’t get the future AI features Microsoft is releasing for Windows. It also doesn’t have Wi-Fi 7 support. There’s no way around it: Those would be nice future-proof features to have when you’re spending over $4,000 on a laptop. However, this machine does have a Copilot key on the keyboard. While the specced-out system Lenovo loaned us retails for $4059, Lenovo’s starting price for this machine is $3,499. Upgrading to an RTX 4090 accounts for $430 of that cost difference, so you can save some money if you’re happy with an RTX 4080. Model number: Lenovo Legion 9 16IRX9 CPU: Intel Core i9-14900HX Memory: 32GB DDR5 RAM Graphics/GPU: Nvidia GeForce RTX 4090 Display: 16-inch 3200×2000 mini-LED display with HDR, 1,200 nits of brightness, and 165Hz refresh rate Storage: Two 1 TB PCIe Gen 4 SSDs set up in a RAID 0 configuration for 2 TB of storage Webcam: 1080p webcam Connectivity: 2x USB Type-C (Thunderbolt 4), 1x USB Type-C (USB-C 3.2 Gen 1), 2x USB Type-A (USB-A 3.2 Gen 1), 1x HDMI 2.1, 1x combo headphone jack, 1x SD card reader, 1x DC power in, 1x Ethernet (RJ45) Networking: Wi-Fi 6E, Bluetooth 5.1 Biometrics: Fingerprint reader Battery capacity: 99.9 Watt-hour battery Dimensions: 0.75 x 14.08 x 10.93 inches Weight: 5.51 pounds MSRP: $4,059 as tested Overall, the Lenovo Legion 9i is a high-performance gaming PC with an unusually good display — one with an incredible amount of brightness that can deliver a high-quality HDR gaming experience. Lenovo Legion 9i: Design and build quality IDG / Chris Hoffman IDG / Chris Hoffman IDG / Chris Hoffman The Lenovo Legion 9i is a very well-designed 16-inch gaming laptop. At 5.51 pounds and 0.75 inches thick, it’s on the light and thin side for a gaming laptop with such high-end internals. The “Carbon Black” design, mostly made of magnesium, looks great — especially with all the RGB lighting. This machine has RGB lighting on the keyboard, the light bar below the palm rest, and the light bar at the back of the laptop. The “carbon pattern” design on the is a distinct design choice. It looks great in person — and the “Legion” logo on the lid cycles between different RGB colors while the machine is on, too. This laptop has integrated liquid cooling, and the cooling system works very well. The keyboard stays fairly cool to the touch. There aren’t strong fans blowing hot air out of the side onto your mouse hand. This machine does blow a good amount of air out of the back of the laptop, but I was shocked by just how cool that blowing air often was while gaming. For a gaming laptop, this machine runs surprisingly cool and quiet. Yes, it generates heat, and you’ll hear the fans blow. But this machine doesn’t have the extremely loud fans and uncomfortably hot elements that you’ll find on many gaming laptops. The build quality also feels great. The palm rest is nicely smooth and rubbery to the touch. The hinge opens easily with one hand and doesn’t wobble. Lenovo also includes some thoughtful extras here. There’s a switchable keycap kit if you’d like to customize the keyboard further. Plus, Lenovo includes two chargers with this machine. You’ve got the larger one — a nice 330W charging brick — for maximum performance at your desk. Then, you’ve got a smaller, more portable USB-C charger to power this laptop on the go when maximum gaming performance isn’t your priority. It’s a great way to make this machine more portable. Lenovo Legion 9i: Keyboard and trackpad IDG / Chris Hoffman IDG / Chris Hoffman IDG / Chris Hoffman The Lenovo Legion 9i includes a full-size keyboard that has a full number pad at the right. On a 16-inch laptop like this one where there’s space, I love having that number pad. However, some people do prefer to avoid the number pad and have the rest of the keyboard expand to fill the space. Which you prefer is up to you. The chiclet-style keyboard feels excellent to type on. The key travel is 1.5mm, which could be deeper, but I didn’t have a problem with it — and this laptop is also thinner than many of those beefy gaming laptops. It’s not as snappy as a mechanical keyboard, but it isn’t mushy, and I had no problem typing at a fast speed on it. The keyboard has beautiful per-key RGB lighting. The included software makes good use of this out of the box, with animations that cycle between various colors over the keyboard. Also, if you hold the Fn key, most of the backlighting turns off and only the function row keys are lit up. It’s an excellent backlighting setup. While the trackpad is incredibly responsive and smooth to use, it’s on the small side — especially for a laptop of this size. In fact, the keyboard is a little on the small side, too, as the laptop has a large area reserved for cooling above the keyboard. You can get laptops with more spacious keyboards and trackpads, but there are advantages to this configuration. The keyboard stays incredibly cool for a gaming laptop during extended play sessions, which is partially thanks to that keyboard being pushed lower down than it would be on many laptops. The palm rest gets a little warm, but it’s not bad at all. Lenovo Legion 9i: Display and speakers IDG / Chris Hoffman IDG / Chris Hoffman IDG / Chris Hoffman The Lenovo Legion 9i’s 16-inch display is incredible. I’ve reviewed many gaming laptops — even high-end ones — that skimp on the display, especially on the brightness. The Lenovo Legion 9i’s 3200×2000 display delivers up to 1200 nits of brightness, and that results in an excellent HDR experience in games like Cyberpunk 2077. The 165 Hz refresh rate is also nice and speedy. That brightness really is worth highlighting. I’ve reviewed a lot of gaming laptops with 400 nits of peak brightness, which means they can’t deliver HDR in games. This laptop can. The mini-LED display looks great in games, and I was incredibly pleased with it. It’s not all things to all people: Some people will want the more vivid colors of an OLED display — although you’ll likely get less brightness with an OLED display than a mini-LED display. Others will want an even higher refresh rate — while the 165Hz refresh rate on this machine is good, some gaming laptops have displays with a 240Hz refresh rate. Some people may even want a touch screen — there’s no touch screen here! But it’s an awesome display. The Lenovo Legion 9i also has an unusually good built-in speaker setup for a laptop — as it should for the price! The sound is good and loud, the bass is very reasonable — although it’s not so booming that it shakes the chassis of the laptop, as the speakers do on some other high-end gaming laptops I’ve reviewed. But they’re very good for built-in speakers. Lenovo Legion 9i: Webcam, microphone, biometrics The Lenovo Legion 9i includes a 1080p webcam. The image quality looks fine, which means this webcam looks great for a gaming laptop. While gaming laptops often include cheaper webcams with worse picture quality, this webcam keeps pace with many productivity laptops. The microphone also sounds fairly clear, doing a good job of picking up my voice. Neither the webcam or microphone feels as top-of-the-line as most of the other hardware in this machine, but this is perfectly adequate for online meetings and video calls and competitive with many productivity-focused laptops. There’s also a physical “e-shutter switch” to disable the webcam on the right side of the laptop. That’s a great privacy feature to have. The Lenovo Legion 9i includes a fingerprint reader for Windows Hello, which lets you unlock your PC with your fingerprint. It’s integrated into the circular power button above the keyboard. The fingerprint reader works well, although I do wish Lenovo had also included an IR camera so you could unlock this PC with facial recognition. Lenovo Legion 9i: Connectivity IDG / Chris Hoffman IDG / Chris Hoffman IDG / Chris Hoffman The Lenovo Legion 9i has a healthy selection of ports positioned in smart places. On the left side, you’ll find a combo audio jack and a full-size SD card reader. On the right side, you’ll find a USB Type-C port and a USB Type-A port — these are both USB 3.2 Gen 1 ports. IDG / Chris Hoffman IDG / Chris Hoffman IDG / Chris Hoffman Most of the ports are on the back. There, you’ll find a DC power in port, another USB Type-A port (USB 3.2 Gen 1), two USB Type-C ports (Thunderbolt 4 / USB4), HDMI 2.1 out, and an Ethernet (RJ45) port. Realistically, all the ports you’ll want are here. Most of them are also well-positioned at the back of the laptop where they’ll stay out of your way, with ports like the headphone jack, a few USB ports, and the SD card reader on the sides where they’re close at hand. Wireless connectivity options are slightly disappointing, which is expected. Lenovo has included Killer Wi-Fi 6E hardware with Bluetooth 5.1 support here. Intel’s Raptor Lake refresh is getting a little long in the tooth — most of Intel’s attention is going towards more power-efficient laptop CPUs like Lunar Lake now — but it would be nice to see Wi-Fi 7 support on a high-end gaming laptop at this point. Most people don’t have Wi-Fi 7 networks yet, but gamers who buy this kind of high-end hardware might well be early adopters. Lenovo Legion 9i: Performance The Lenovo Legion 9i delivered excellent gaming performance. I played Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty cranked up to maximum settings with ray tracing enabled. It was very playable, and it also looked beautiful — especially thanks to the screen’s high brightness and excellent HDR support. Of course, we ran the Lenovo Legion 9i through our standard benchmarks to get a more detailed picture of the machine’s performance. With the liquid cooling Lenovo is talking up, I’d expect to see some great numbers. IDG / Chris Hoffman IDG / Chris Hoffman IDG / Chris Hoffman First, we run PCMark 10 to get an idea of overall system performance. This benchmark is designed to benchmark overall PC performance, but the CPU is a much bigger factor than the GPU here. With an overall PCMark 10 score of 8719, the Legion 9i comes in faster than the average gaming laptop. That’s an awesome result. IDG / Chris Hoffman IDG / Chris Hoffman IDG / Chris Hoffman Next, we run Cinebench R20. This is a heavily multithreaded benchmark that focuses on overall CPU performance. It’s a quick benchmark, so cooling under extended workloads isn’t a factor. But, since it’s heavily multithreaded, CPUs with more cores have a huge advantage. The multi-threaded score of 12078 blows most other PCs out of the water. This benchmark demonstrates this machine’s impressive CPU horsepower. IDG / Chris Hoffman IDG / Chris Hoffman IDG / Chris Hoffman We also run an encode with Handbrake. This is another heavily multithreaded benchmark, but it runs over an extended period. This demands the laptop’s cooling kick in, and many laptops will throttle and slow down under load. The Legion 9i completed the encode process in an average of 581 seconds. That’s under 10 minutes, and it’s another very impressive result. This benchmark shows that this system’s cooling works very well over extended CPU-heavy workloads. IDG / Chris Hoffman IDG / Chris Hoffman IDG / Chris Hoffman Next, we run graphical benchmarks. This is a gaming laptop, so graphical benchmarks are extremely important. First, we run 3Dmark Time Spy, a graphical benchmark that focuses on GPU performance. The Legion 9i delivered an impressive Time Spy score of 20,428. While that’s an excellent result, it’s worth noting that this machine is no longer outpacing the Alienware m18 R2, as it did in the CPU benchmarks above. In fact, that Alienware machine beat the Lenovo on this benchmark. After that, we run the benchmarks built into some games. First, we use the built-in benchmark in Shadow of the Tomb Raider to test all the gaming laptops we review. It’s an older game, but it’s a great way to compare graphical performance across different PCs. IDG / Chris Hoffman IDG / Chris Hoffman IDG / Chris Hoffman The Lenovo Legion 9i came in at 220 frames per second with our standard Shadow of the Tomb Raider benchmark settings. Once again, it’s back on top of even the Alienware m18 R2 machine. I would assume that, as a game and not a dedicated 3D benchmark, Shadow of the Tomb Raider uses more CPU resources than the 3Dmark Time Spy benchmark. Finally, we run the built-in benchmark in Metro Exodus. This is a more demanding game, and we set the benchmark to 1080p resolution at the Extreme detail setting. IDG / Chris Hoffman IDG / Chris Hoffman IDG / Chris Hoffman The Lenovo Legion 9i scored 95 frames per second in this demanding benchmark. That’s a great result. While it’s actually two frames per second slower than the competing Alienware m18 R2 machine, this is well within the margin of error. For many games, GPU performance is the biggest factor, so those incredibly CPU performance numbers won’t always make a big difference in games. Overall, the Lenovo Legion 9i delivers incredible performance. It’s especially impressive when it comes to raw CPU performance, but the Nvidia GeForce RTX 4090 delivers top-of-the-line graphical performance as well. While the Alienware m18 R2 did beat it on a few benchmarks, the Lenovo Legion 9i beat that machine. That’s more impressive than it sounds: That Alienware m18 R2 is an 18-inch laptop that weighs 9.32 pounds. This Lenovo Legion 9i is a 16-inch gaming laptop that weighs 5.51 — and it often outclasses that machine on performance! Lenovo Legion 9i: Battery life The Lenovo Legion 9i contains a massive 99.9 Watt-hour battery. The maximum battery size the U.S. Transportation Security Administration allows on an airplane Is 100 Watt-hours, so Lenovo has gone right up to the line here. Of course, gaming laptops aren’t known for their long battery life. IDG / Chris Hoffman IDG / Chris Hoffman IDG / Chris Hoffman To benchmark the battery life, we play a 4K copy of Tears of Steel on repeat in the Movies & TV app on Windows 11 with airplane mode enabled until the laptop suspends itself. We set the screen to 250 nits of brightness for our battery benchmarks. This is a best-case scenario for any laptop since local video playback is so efficient, and real battery life in day-to-day use is always going to be less than this. The Lenovo Legion 9i lasted an average of 281 minutes, or just over five and a half hours. And that’s in an ideal scenario — you’re going to get less than that as you use applications. That battery life is on the low side, even for a gaming laptop. You can use this laptop away from an outlet for a few hours — but that’s it. Obviously, battery life isn’t usually a big concern with laptops like this one. And Lenovo does bundle that extra, more portable charger with this machine, so you don’t need to bring your big charging brick on the go. But, if battery life is a huge concern to you, you may want to look for a different gaming laptop. Lenovo Legion 9i: Conclusion Overall, the Lenovo Legion 9i is a high-performance gaming PC with an unusually good display — one with an incredible amount of brightness that can deliver a high-quality HDR gaming experience. It’s surprisingly light and compact while remaining cool to the touch. The display is a real standout feature. I often find myself noting that even many high-end gaming laptops have fairly dim displays — ones that are too dim to deliver HDR in games. The Lenovo Legion 9i delivers HDR gaming while many other gaming laptops don’t. And it’s got a great package of high-end hardware with excellent cooling. The main downside is the high price. You can have a great PC gaming experience without spending anywhere near this much money. But this is a gaming laptop that spares no expense to deliver high-end hardware. If you want to spend that much money on a gaming laptop, you won’t be disappointed. Read...

Modern Windows PCs often include some kind of biometric hardware, mainly in the form of facial recognition (using infrared cameras) or fingerprint scanning. Both of these features let you use Windows Hello for better and more convenient PC security. get windows 11 pro for cheap Windows 11 Pro Not only are face IDs and fingerprints harder to hack than PINs and passwords, they’re much quicker to input when it comes to unlocking your PC. Signing in a lot faster and you’re better protected and you can use some really cool extra features in Windows Hello. Keep reading to learn more about what Windows Hello is, why you should be using it, and how to set it up as painlessly as possible. (This applies to both laptops and desktop PCs!) What is Windows Hello? Windows Hello is an operating system feature that lets you securely sign into your PC without typing your Windows account password. It supports biometrics, so you can sign in with facial recognition or fingerprint scans (as long as you have the requisite hardware). Windows Hello’s fingerprint scan prompt to unlock 1Password. Windows Hello’s fingerprint scan prompt to unlock 1Password.Chris Hoffman / IDG Windows Hello’s fingerprint scan prompt to unlock 1Password.Chris Hoffman / IDG Chris Hoffman / IDG But Windows Hello isn’t just for signing in. You can also use Windows Hello to unlock certain applications, like password managers. You can access your password vault without your huge master password. And if you’ve ditched passwords altogether for passkeys instead, Windows Hello is doubly useful — it integrates with passkeys in web browsers like Google Chrome and Microsoft Edge. You can create a passkey for a website, which is then secured with Windows Hello so that you must authenticate (with your face or finger) to sign in. Related: How to start using passkeys on Windows Technically, Windows Hello also includes the PIN login method, but I don’t recommend using that. When security experts talk about Windows Hello, they’re mainly focusing on the more secure biometric options. Is Windows Hello secure? For starters, Windows Hello never syncs your facial recognition data, fingerprint data, or even your PIN between your devices or to your Microsoft account. It’s all stored only and entirely on your PC. Windows Hello’s security relies on the underlying Trusted Platform Module (TPM) hardware that’s found on modern PCs (a required PC component if you want to install Windows 11). The TPM handles the authentication and signing in process, and it’s also used for other things like encrypting and decrypting your computer’s storage. Related: What is the Trusted Platform Module? Explained And again, Windows Hello is separate from your Microsoft account. Even if someone were to capture your fingerprint, face, or PIN, they would only be able to use it to log into your Windows Hello-enabled PC and wouldn’t be able to access your Microsoft account. (All of this Windows Hello data is stored securely in the TPM, so hackers can’t access it.) Windows Hello is also secure against anyone who tries to unlock your PC via facial recognition trickery. For instance, Windows Hello isn’t fooled by someone holding up a photo of your face because Windows Hello facial recognition uses an infrared (IR) camera to ensure it’s looking at a real live person. That’s why you need a Windows Hello-compatible IR camera to even start using Windows Hello facial recognition. Of course, Windows Hello isn’t perfect. Fingerprint scanners are still vulnerable to James Bond-style attacks where someone lifts your fingerprint off a glass and uses that to sign into your PC. (CEOs of major companies and political dissidents may want to be extra careful.) But it’s more than secure enough for the average person, especially since those spy movie-style attacks require access to both your physical laptop and a carefully duplicated copy of your fingerprint. Facial recognition vs. fingerprint reader: Which method is better? If your PC only has one or the other, you don’t really have a choice — use whichever Windows Hello method is available to you. If it has both, then you can actually use both. But if you only want to use one, then it ultimately comes down to personal preference. I prefer facial recognition, especially on laptops. It works surprisingly well and the experience is seamless. As soon as you open your laptop, Windows scans your face with the IR camera, then signs you in. It all happens so quickly — an automatic sign-in without you having to press anything at all. Just open up your laptop. And some newer, higher-end laptops even have “presence sensing” hardware that detects when you physically sit down in front of your PC. It then automatically wakes up and uses the IR camera to sign you in via Windows Hello. A secure way to sign into your laptop just by sitting down in front of it? It’s as awesome as it sounds. Of course, fingerprint scanning also works almost as smoothly, especially if the fingerprint scanner is integrated into the power button. In that case, you go to press the power button to wake up the laptop, then keep your finger resting on the fingerprint reader to unlock your machine. So, again, it’s a matter of personal taste. Note: When you’re shopping for a laptop, make sure to check out the biometric options it offers — whether it has a Windows Hello-compatible IR camera, a fingerprint scanner, both, or neither. We always mention these features as a matter of course in our laptop reviews here at PCWorld. How to set up Windows Hello Windows normally prompts you to set up Windows Hello when you first sign into a new PC, but you probably skipped it when you were setting everything up. That’s okay, because you can always configure later. If you’d like to set up Windows Hello (or maybe just see which biometric options are available on your laptop), you can do so from the Settings app on either Windows 11 or Windows 10. To configure Windows Hello, open the Settings app, select Accounts, and select Sign-in options. You’ll see options for configuring your machine’s available sign-in methods under Ways to sign in. Note: If your PC doesn’t have a certain option, like facial recognition or fingerprint scanning, then you’ll see the message: “This option is currently unavailable.” Setting up Windows Hello options in Windows 11. Setting up Windows Hello options in Windows 11.Chris Hoffman / IDG Setting up Windows Hello options in Windows 11.Chris Hoffman / IDG Chris Hoffman / IDG Here, you can also tweak and configure facial recognition and fingerprint recognition. For example, you might want to scan your face in different lighting conditions, train Windows to recognize your face with and without glasses, or add an additional fingerprint. Some applications will also prompt you to authenticate with Windows Hello. For example, the 1Password password manager lets you quickly use Windows Hello to unlock your password vault. How to add Windows Hello to any PC Not all PCs come with Windows Hello biometrics. Some laptops just don’t include Windows Hello hardware, which can be one way to keep costs down on otherwise expensive builds (e.g., gaming laptops). Also, if you’re building your own desktop PC, you won’t get Windows Hello unless you incorporate compatible hardware. If you don’t have Windows Hello but you want it, the easiest and most effective option is to buy a Windows Hello-compatible webcam. And not just one that has IR technology, but one that’s a high-quality webcam in its own right so you look good in video calls and meetings. Related: The best webcams for Windows Hello The other option is to hunt down a fingerprint scanner that plugs into your computer via USB. Be sure to pick one that explicitly states compatibility with Windows Hello! I’ve personally used this inexpensive Kensington USB fingerprint reader in the past, and I have no complaints despite it only costing $18 on Amazon. Take the next step with Windows Hello Windows Hello is far from mandatory. You can certainly use your PC without it — and along with millions of other PC users who have gotten by without biometrics thus far, you can probably get by just fine. But biometric PC security is absolutely a step up, not only in terms of protection but also convenience. The first time you open your laptop or sit down at your desktop PC and you’re automatically signed in with facial recognition? It’s almost surreal. After that, it’s tough to go back to typing a PIN every time you need to sign back in. Whenever I review a laptop and it turns out the manufacturer skipped Windows Hello hardware to keep costs down, I think it’s a real shame. It’s just an awesome feature that makes using Windows PCs a lot nicer. I highly recommend you get Windows Hello hardware in your next laptop, or pick up a compatible webcam for your desktop PC. Further reading: Is Windows 11’s built-in antivirus enough? Read...

TL;DR: Get the ultra-compact Nanophone for $99.97 through October 27 — tiny, powerful, and packed with everything you need. Ever wish your phone felt a little more like a gadget out of a spy movie? The Nanophone has you covered. This miniaturized smartphone is discreet, powerful, and seriously cool — all while fitting comfortably in your pocket. On sale for $99.97, you get all the features you need without lugging around a bulky device. Think of it as your secret agent sidekick. With a sleek, compact design, it’s perfect for slipping into your pocket, bag, or wherever you need to stash it on the go. Despite its tiny size, the Nanophone doesn’t skimp on functionality. It comes with Bluetooth for wireless connectivity, dual SIM support so you can manage multiple numbers with ease, and an FM radio for those who like to tune in on the go. Plus, its long-lasting battery keeps you powered up, and the full-color display ensures everything looks sharp, even in such a compact device. Whether you’re channeling your inner 007 or just want a super portable smartphone that keeps things simple, the Nanophone is a great gadget for anyone who values both function and style. Until October 27, get the NanoPhone Miniaturized Smartphone on sale for $99.97 (reg. $199).   NanoPhone – A Miniaturized Smartphone Packed with Mega Features! – $99.97 See Deal StackSocial prices subject to change. Read...

CrowdStrike`s expanded Marketplace now features over 260 listings from 140 partners, including AWS and NVIDIA, enhancing its Falcon cybersecurity platform. Read...

Microsoft brings two new opt-in trial features to some users of its Copilot AI-assistant. Read...

At a glanceExpert`s Rating Pros Functional built-in stand Two USB-C ports, both with DisplayPort and Power Delivery Includes touchscreen and stylus Extremely sharp image Cons Mediocre maximum brightness Unimpressive color gamut Only 60Hz refresh rate Expensive for its size Our Verdict The Lenovo ThinkVision M14t is a productivity-focused portable monitor with several notable features including a built-in display stand, a touchscreen, and a bundled stylus. It’s expensive, though, and while the monitor looks sharp its color performance is mediocre at best. Price When Reviewed This value will show the geolocated pricing text for product undefined Best Pricing Today Retailer Price CDW $377.99 View Deal Price comparison from over 24,000 stores worldwide Product Price Price comparison from Backmarket Best Prices Today: Lenovo ThinkVision M14t Retailer Price CDW $377.99 View Deal Price comparison from over 24,000 stores worldwide Product Price Price comparison from Backmarket Buying a portable monitor is incredibly easy, or surprisingly difficult, depending on your needs. There’s lots of inexpensive portable monitors on Amazon, and some are quite good for the price. But if you want more specific features, like a touchscreen, stylus, or a display with above-average sharpness, your options begin to narrow. The Lenovo ThinkVision M14t caters to those looking for such extras, though it charges a high price for them. Lenovo ThinkVision M14t Gen 2 specs and features The Lenovo ThinkVision M14t is a 14-inch widescreen portable monitor. That’s a common size, but a few specifics stand out. This is a 16:10 display, not 16:9, which provides a bit more vertical space. It also provides a resolution of 2240×1400, which is quite a bit higher than the 1080p resolution common to budget 14-inch portable monitors. Finally, the display is a touchscreen, and it’s bundled with a passive stylus (Lenovo’s active pens are supported, too, but must be purchased separately). Display size: 14-inch 16:10 widescreen Native resolution: 2240×1400 Panel type: IPS 10-point capacitive touchscreen Refresh rate: 60Hz Adaptive sync: None HDR: None Ports: 2x USB-C with DisplayPort and up to 65 watts USB Power Delivery VESA mount: 100x100mm Speakers: None Price: $400 (approximate) The monitor is mostly sold through retailers that cater to enterprise customers, like CDW, and is relatively expensive at nearly $400. That’s a high price for a 14-inch portable monitor, though not out of line with top-tier options like the Viewsonic VX1655-4K-OLED. Further reading: See our roundup of the best portable monitors to learn about competing products. Lenovo ThinkVision M14t Gen 2 design The Lenovo ThinkVision M14t is part of the company’s “Think” brand, which includes the famous ThinkPad — so, unsurprisingly, it looks a lot like a ThinkPad. That means an all-black design with a grippy, soft-touch coat on the backside of the display panel. The coat readily shows fingerprints, but also makes the display easier to handle and less likely to slip or slide on uneven surfaces. A stand is built into the bottom half of the M14t. It folds up against the back of the display when not in use and, when needed, can rotate up to 90 degrees. That means the display can accommodate any position from flat on a desk to perfectly upright, which is about as wide a range of adjustment as a portable monitor can offer. Foundry Foundry Foundry Less expensive portable monitors, like the Arzopa A1 Gamut, often use the display cover as a prop for the monitor itself, providing a much more limited range of viewing angles. The M14t has an edge against the Viewsonic VX1655-4K-OLED, which also has a built-in stand, but can’t sit upright in the same way as the Lenovo. For protection, Lenovo ships the M14t with a soft fabric sleeve. It looks nice and offers some cushion against bumps. I would prefer a cover that can clip over the top of the display, but the sleeve does the job, and owners who planned to use a sleeve anyway might prefer it. The Lenovo ThinkVision M14t ships with a stylus designed to work with Windows and Android/Chrome devices (Mac support is not listed, and did not function in my testing). The bundle’s stylus is passive, however, so it’s not precise and only works well for jotting down an occasional note or tapping a touch button in an app. Lenovo says the M14t is also compatible with the company’s active pens, which are much more precise, but you’ll need to buy the active pen separately (they’re typically around $50). The stand offers enough stability to accept touch input at angles up to about 60 degrees. Beyond that, the stylus still functions, but trying to draw or write towards the top half of the display can cause it to wobble backwards. Foundry Foundry Foundry Lenovo ThinkVision M14t Gen 2 connectivity and menus Lenovo provides just two ports on the ThinkVision M14t: a pair of USB-C ports with DisplayPort and up to 65 watts of USB Power Delivery. That means both ports can be used as a video input and/or to charge the M14t. Lenovo does not ship the M14t with a USB power brick, so you’ll need to rely on the USB Power Delivery capabilities of the computer you use with the M14t or use a third-party power adapter. The M14t’s specifications quote a maximum power draw of about 10 watts, though, so most USB ports with Power Delivery should be able to handle it, as will most USB-C chargers. The monitor’s on-screen menu system is unique and excellent. Instead of relying on buttons to navigate the menu, which is often fiddly, tapping the menu button opens a touchscreen menu in the monitor’s lower right quarter. It’s responsive and easy to use. There’s not a ton of menu options to change, however: The monitor only provides vague color temperature controls and doesn’t have gamma presets. Foundry Foundry Foundry What it does have, though, is a wake-on-touch function and an auto rotation function. Both are excellent for a touchscreen portable monitor. You can use a touch to wake the monitor, if desired, and easily swap between portrait and landscape orientations. Just be warned that portrait orientation is a bit awkward, as the stand does not tilt in that direction (meaning that, in portrait mode, you can only position the monitor upright 90 degrees or flat on a surface — unless you use a third-party stand, of course). Portrait mode will also obstruct one of the USB-C ports, and will leave the other positioned in an awkward angle. Lenovo did give this some thought, though, and compromises with an included 90-degree USB-C adapter that makes the USB-C cable a bit less obtrusive in portrait mode. The M14t Gen 2 is best for people who aren’t overly concerned about color gamut or contrast but instead need a reliable, versatile portable touchscreen monitor. Lenovo ThinkVision M14t Gen 2 SDR image quality The Lenovo ThinkVision M14t doesn’t make any big claims about its image quality. It doesn’t support HDR, it quotes a contrast ratio of just 1500:1, and it only promises to cover 100 percent of the sRGB color gamut (which is the least impressive of modern color gamut standards). That’s not to say the monitor’s image quality is bad — but it is more focused on sharpness and functionality than wow factor. Foundry Foundry Foundry I measured a maximum SDR brightness of only 250 nits, which isn’t great. The touchscreen is glossy, too, so glare can easily overwhelm the monitor if it’s used in a brightly lit room. Using the monitor outdoors, or near large sunlit windows, borders on impossible. Many portable monitors have similar problems. Increasing brightness increases power draw, which is an issue for a portable display. Still, buyers should keep this in mind when thinking about how they’ll use the M14t. It’s best in a room with light control. Foundry Foundry Foundry The M14t achieved a contrast ratio of 1880:1 at 50 percent of maximum brightness. That’s actually not bad for a monitor with an IPS touchscreen, and it’s enough to deliver a good sense of depth and immersion when using the monitor in a lit room. OLED monitors, like the Viewsonic VX1655-4K-OLED, deliver a much better contrast ratio, but the M14t’s contrast is fine for day-to-day productivity. Foundry Foundry Foundry Color gamut is a weak spot for the M14t. It can cover the entire sRGB color gamut, but only 79 percent of DCI-P3 and 77 percent of AdobeRGB. That is a rather limited color gamut, and it means the M14t can’t display as many colors overall as its competition. OLED portable monitors have a serious edge, and provide a vivid, punchy image that’s more alluring than what the M14t achieves. Foundry / Matt Smith Foundry / Matt Smith Foundry / Matt Smith While the M14t can’t display an impressive range of color, the colors it can display are much more accurate than typical for a portable monitor. The monitor’s average color error is close enough to perfect that most people won’t notice color imperfections. The sole exception is blue and cyan hues, which had a color error much higher than all other colors. Still, most people will find the M14t’s presentation realistic. This is helped by the monitor’s gamma curve of 2.2 and color temperature of 6300K. The gamma curve is exactly on-target, and it means that content displayed on the monitor will not look brighter or darker than it should. The color temperature of 6300K is a bit warmer than our target of 6500K, but not so much that it’s a problem. With that said, the M14t doesn’t have any gamma adjustments and only four color temperature adjustments, which might be a problem if you want to change the gamma or color temperature to your preference. Sharpness is clearly the M14t’s greatest strength. The 14-inch 16:10 panel provides a resolution of 2240×1400, which works out to roughly 189 pixels per inch. That’s a higher pixel density than a 27-inch 4K monitor. Video looks ultra-sharp and small text is surprisingly legible with no noticeable pixelation around high-contrast edges at a normal viewing distance. It’s a super-crisp experience. On the whole, the M14t seems more interested in nailing the basics of image quality, like sharpness and accuracy, than stretching to provide a more alluring, vivid display. That’s a reasonable decision, as the M14t is pitched as a portable monitor for productivity and business. However, competitors like the Innocn 15A1F and the ViewSonic VP16-OLED deliver a much wider color gamut and better contrast at a similar price, though at the expense of a softer 1080p image. Lenovo ThinkVision M14t Gen 2 motion performance The Lenovo ThinkVision M14t Gen 2 makes no claims that would hint at superior motion performance. It’s a 60Hz IPS panel and doesn’t support adaptive sync. Motion clarity isn’t great. Scrolling test images from games like DOTA 2 and League of Legends showed that character silhouettes and map details were difficult to make out, while the names and hitpoint bars above characters were impossible to read. This is typical performance for a 60Hz monitor with an IPS display, but it’s still not great. Lenovo’s one concession to entertainment is an “Extreme” response-time mode. It does slightly offer a tad more motion clarity, but this feels like trying to split hairs. The improvement isn’t enough to make fast motion any more legible. Should you buy the Lenovo ThinkVision M14t Gen 2? The Lenovo ThinkVision M14t Gen 2 is a solid option if you need a portable monitor with touchscreen support. It has several strong features including a fold-out stand with a significant range of adjustment, a bundled stylus, and a 16:10 aspect ratio with a resolution of 2240×1400. The M14t’s image quality doesn’t stand out, though, and its price tag of nearly $400 feels steep. The M14t Gen 2 is best for people who aren’t overly concerned about color gamut or contrast but instead need a reliable, versatile portable touchscreen monitor. Read...