TechSpot Weekly Newsletter

Latest in tech

January 28

Ultraportable Razer Blade Stealth (2019) Review
The new Razer Blade Stealth uses an all-new design with new hardware. Powered by a Core i7-8565U processor, the 13.3" ultraportable offers models with and without discrete graphics, 8 or 16GB of RAM and two performance levels of 256GB SSDs running on a 53 Wh battery.

The new Razer Blade Stealth uses an all-new design with new hardware. Powered by a Core i7-8565U processor, the 13.3" ultraportable offers models with and without discrete graphics, 8 or 16GB of RAM and two performance levels of 256GB SSDs running on a 53 Wh battery.
CPU Review Testing Intel Whiskey Lake CPUs: Core i7-8565U Review
Intel unveiled a new series of U-series laptop processors last year designed for ultraportables. These CPUs are codenamed Whiskey Lake, and they're still 8th-gen parts that are not radically different from Kaby Lake Refresh. The focus of this review will be the Core i7-8565U, which is essentially the new flagship 15W CPU in Intel's line-up.

Intel unveiled a new series of U-series laptop processors last year designed for ultraportables. These CPUs are codenamed Whiskey Lake, and they're still 8th-gen parts that are not radically different from Kaby Lake Refresh. The focus of this review will be the Core i7-8565U, which is essentially the new flagship 15W CPU in Intel's line-up.
ZEN 2 AMD's next 12-core CPU appears in benchmark database denoted as Ryzen
When asked about the spare space, Su said to PC Gamer, "I think you might expect that we will have more than eight cores. I didn’t say how many more." At least 12 seems to be the answer, given the…

When asked about the spare space, Su said to PC Gamer, "I think you might expect that we will have more than eight cores. I didn’t say how many more." At least 12 seems to be the answer, given the…
Reverse Supply Chain Reselling Amazon returns has become a billion-dollar business
Liquidation.com is one of Amazon’s main returns resellers, shipping $626.4 million worth of product last year contributing to a total of $7 billion throughout the company’s lifetime. Their business model is to buy returned products from Amazon and other stores,…

Liquidation.com is one of Amazon’s main returns resellers, shipping $626.4 million worth of product last year contributing to a total of $7 billion throughout the company’s lifetime. Their business model is to buy returned products from Amazon and other stores,…
Broadband More cable users are consuming 1TB of data per month, face fines for exceeding caps
Vendor OpenVault has found that US cable internet customers now use 268.7GB per month on average. That’s up from 226.4GB at the end of June 2018 and a 33.3 percent increase over the 2017 year average. The number of power…

Vendor OpenVault has found that US cable internet customers now use 268.7GB per month on average. That’s up from 226.4GB at the end of June 2018 and a 33.3 percent increase over the 2017 year average. The number of power…
Security Japan's government will start hacking its citizens' IoT devices next month
The official hacking campaign is part of a survey that will be conducted by employees of the National Institute of Information and Communications Technology (NICT) and overseen by the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications.

The official hacking campaign is part of a survey that will be conducted by employees of the National Institute of Information and Communications Technology (NICT) and overseen by the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications.
Industry TSMC receives bad chemicals, stopping production for Nvidia and Huawei chips
An incident involving defective chemicals has caused production to grind to a halt at TSMC's Fab 14B production site located in southern Taiwan. The facility's main customers include Nvidia, Huawei, and MediaTek.

An incident involving defective chemicals has caused production to grind to a halt at TSMC's Fab 14B production site located in southern Taiwan. The facility's main customers include Nvidia, Huawei, and MediaTek.
OS Microsoft's Chrome OS competitor Windows Lite could ditch live tiles, streamline Start menu
According to sources that spoke with Windows Central, Windows Lite will feature a static app launcher in place of Windows 10’s Start menu, much like Chrome OS, Android and iOS. This means that Windows Lite will likely drop support of…

According to sources that spoke with Windows Central, Windows Lite will feature a static app launcher in place of Windows 10’s Start menu, much like Chrome OS, Android and iOS. This means that Windows Lite will likely drop support of…
Hardware Double height DDR4 offers twice the capacity but a fraction of the compatibility
Double height DDR4 modules started making noise last year, promising benefits to both small form factor builders and those with the need for more than 64GB of total memory (assuming your platform of choice supports it).

Double height DDR4 modules started making noise last year, promising benefits to both small form factor builders and those with the need for more than 64GB of total memory (assuming your platform of choice supports it).
Culture Computer Science classes have become so popular that universities can't find enough professors to teach them
Going to school to become a doctor or lawyer used to be the dream of many, but computer science is quickly emerging as the 21st century's most sought after degree.

Going to school to become a doctor or lawyer used to be the dream of many, but computer science is quickly emerging as the 21st century's most sought after degree.
Tech Culture Check out some of the most popular tech myths people still believe
HighSpeedInternet.com interviewed hundreds of people in the US to find out how many believed some of the most popular technology myths. At the top of the list, believed by 86 percent of interviewees, is something that certain phone and camera…

HighSpeedInternet.com interviewed hundreds of people in the US to find out how many believed some of the most popular technology myths. At the top of the list, believed by 86 percent of interviewees, is something that certain phone and camera…
AI Won 10-1 A human player finally beat DeepMind's AlphaStar AI at StarCraft II
After humiliating the world’s best Go players, AlphaGo retired, and DeepMind looked for other challenges for its AI like how to diagnose eye disease and how to make lip-reading experts look like fools.

After humiliating the world’s best Go players, AlphaGo retired, and DeepMind looked for other challenges for its AI like how to diagnose eye disease and how to make lip-reading experts look like fools.
PUBG Lite beta test: a free to play PUBG with lower system requirements
PUBG Lite is cut down in the ways you’d expect, at least for now. The two largest differences are that it only has PUBG’s original map, Erangel, and that first person is unavailable. The developers have said that it still…
The Pentagon deployed more drones domestically last year than the previous five years combined
New data published by the Pentagon has revealed when drones were used, what they were used for and how long their missions lasted. Over half of the missions fell under the "Defense Support of Civil Authorities," which only became viable…
Facebook wants to unify the underlying messaging infrastructure of WhatsApp, Instagram and Messenger
Four people involved in the project tell The New York Times that the overhaul requires thousands of Facebook employees to reconfigure how the platforms function at their most basic level. CEO Mark Zuckerberg has reportedly floated the idea for months…
John McAfee is running for President, on a boat, while on the run from US authorities
The 73-year-old McAfee said he has thousands of volunteers working for his campaign already. He calls them "road warriors who, once a month are going to appear in parks, street corners, restaurants all around America while I speak through loudspeakers."…
Nintendo scraps Metroid Prime 4 progress, shifts development to new studio
Metroid Prime 4 was first announced at E3 2017. Rumors surfaced in early 2018 that Bandai Namco was working on the title. It was originally thought that Retro Studios, the developer behind the first three Metroid Prime games, would get…
Apple is bringing "Hey Siri" to second generation AirPods
Rumors of second generation AirPods are still running rampant. In the latest discovery, a prompt to setup "Hey Siri" for AirPods was found in the iOS 12.2 beta. As clear as day, Apple is presenting a means of calling up…
Are you tone-deaf? Find out using this music quiz
The Music Lab has created the citizen science platform, where it aims to learn more about how the human mind creates and perceives music. It does this by asking people to partake in a series of music tests, which are…
Lian Li's standing desk PC can switch between clear and frosted glass at a click
First shown off at CES earlier this month, the desk is an updated version of the DK-04. While it retains many elements of that model, the latest iteration comes with a unique feature: being able to switch between a clear…
Bluetooth 5.1 will locate your position within mere inches
Numerous wireless technologies can be used to determine the approximate location of a device based on signal strength and response times. Today the Bluetooth Special Interest Group has revealed a feature that determines the direction in which a device is…
Trivia Bluetooth technology is named after...
A medieval Scandinavian king A bear that loves blueberries An electric eel with blue teeth A Native American chieftain
Metro Exodus PC requirements revealed
4A Games has just released the required PC specs for the third main entry in the franchise. As is the case with most modern games, it lists what you need to play the game at Minimum, Recommended, High, and Extreme…
The Nokia 3.1 Plus is tough to beat at just $160
I’ve long championed the use of MVNOs as a viable alternative to pricey mobile plans from the nation’s big four wireless carriers. Similarly, you can save a bundle on smartphone hardware if you’re willing to forego the major players’ flagships…