Android has been around for so long, and in so many forms, that the open-source operating system has evolved on multiple fronts thanks to the frantic competition among the many vendors using the platform. For all the bells and whistles of Samsung, LG and HTC, there’s always been a market for something a little purer – a 'stock' OS that strips away all the third-party bloat for an experience that’s as close to Google’s vision of Android as it’s possible to get. From the evolution of Google's Nexus smartphone range (and their successors, the improving Google Pixel phones) to the simultaneous innovation of Android One, pure Android devices have carved out more than one niche for themselves. It’s been quite the journey, and the story isn’t over yet... The Nexus genesisThe 'pure Android' project began in 2009 when Google confirmed it had begun internal testing on a new device it envisioned as offering a true Android experience. Soon after, Google revealed a partnership with HTC. The product of that union? The Nexus One. With a handful of litigation lawsuits to contend with off the bat (one for hardware specs filed by Apple and the other, of all sources, came from the estate of the late sci-fi author Philip K Dick), the Nexus One launched on January 5 2010, and set a blueprint for Google’s streamlined approach to both its own OS and software features. However, despite a handful of attractive utilities, such as voice-to-text transcription, it didn’t offer enough hardware innovations to match the stylized form factor that had given the iPhone such a considerable fan base. Never a company to be accused of twiddling its fingers, Google followed it up by the end of that year with the Nexus S. Trading HTC for Samsung (the carousel of hardware partners would become a calling card for the range), this new handset boasted an architecture similar to that used in the Galaxy S range, and was the first device to run Android 2.3 Gingerbread. The Nexus S was a step forwards in terms of hardware innovation, featuring the earliest Android use of NFC technology, sowing the seeds for Android Pay and Apple Pay in the process. It was also, oddly enough, the first commercial handset to be certified for use in missions by NASA. In 2011, the third entry in the range, the Samsung Galaxy Nexus, continued the partnership with the Korean giant with a dual-core processor, the ability to shoot video in 1080p and the very first use of Google Wallet. In 2012, Google parted ways with Samsung on its mobile front and joined forces with LG to produce the Nexus 4. Like the Nexus S, this next entry in the series was well received by critics, offering relatively high-end specs – such as a Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 Pro processor and an 8-megapixel rear camera – at an affordable price point. It proved to be one of the most popular entries in the range. The end for Nexus, and the birth of Android OneThe following year, Google kept its partnership with LG going to produce the next iteration in the Nexus line: the Nexus 5. As one of the first handsets to ship with Android 4.4 KitKat (this was also the first time Android had used a piece of branded confectionery to name its OS iterations), the Nexus 5 saw Google attempting to revert to the pure ideology of its earlier models with the inclusion of the Google Now Launcher, offering easier access to its smart assistant. Like all of the Nexus devices before it, it wasn’t perfect – shortcomings included a dim screen and a camera that didn’t match up to the power of other ‘less pure’ Android phones – but it was still a traditional Android user’s ideal handset. Having fulfilled its two-device commitment with LG, in 2014 Google decided to work with Motorola (which it had recently sold to Lenovo) for the next handset in its stock range: the Nexus 6. Phablets were the new in thing, with big screens becoming hugely popular, so Google went all-in with a 2560 x 1440 AMOLED display, one of the earliest examples of this high-end screen spec. Based largely on the Moto X, Google used the Nexus 6 as the first handset to support Project Fi, the firm’s own mobile operator service. It was also in 2014 that a new approach to the stock Android experience was born: Android One. The brainchild of Sundar Pichai, product chief and designated CEO of Google, it was designed as a streamlined and unmodified version of Android, specifically for affordable entry-level devices in emerging markets. India served as the testbed for this OS variant, and in the four years since its launch Android One has helped shape the development of Android in Google’s own devices. The ethos of a cleaner UI, with high security and faster updates, can be seen in the Pixel 3 and Pixel 3 XL today. 2015 marked the final year for the Nexus line, and while Google would eventually begin work on what would become the first Pixel handset, it went all out for its Nexus swansong. With Motorola now sold on, Google broke its usual pattern on multiple fronts by returning to LG for the Nexus 5X and Chinese manufacturer Huawei for the Nexus 6P. Needlessly confusing naming conventions aside, these two devices were testbeds for some of Android’s latest features. The Android Sensor Hub (for detecting when the phone has been picked up) and Google Now on Tap helped the 5X stand apart, while the 6P saw the Nexus range out in style as arguably its best entry, with a thinner aluminum body, an octa-core Snapdragon 810 chip and more. Pixel perfectIn October 2016, Google's decision to leave the Nexus range behind, but build on its legacy with a new range of stock-focused handsets, saw the arrival of the Google Pixel and Pixel XL. The even-thinner aluminum chassis and glass rear panel represented a move towards a more premium build quality than the Nexus phones, but it was the new Android features that really made the Pixel stand apart. Google Assistant was originally exclusive to the first generation of Pixels, while access to unlimited, full-resolution Google Photos backup really sold the exclusivity of the Android 7.1 Nougat update that came with this phone. It wasn’t perfect – the lack of waterproofing and a litany of hardware issues butted heads with the higher price point – but as the first genuine pure-Android phone designed, developed and marketed mostly by Google (HTC was technically involved), it was sending a clear message to Samsung and Apple. For the launch of the Pixel 2 in 2017, Google worked with both HTC and LG to produce its regular and XL handsets, but made a point of announcing that there wouldn’t be a ‘cheaper’ version to match some brands' 'lite' models. These were more premium handsets, and their cameras were the centerpiece of the design. Finally living up the Pixel branding, the Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL featured a stunning 12.2-megapixel rear camera that could capture Full HD video, and HDR+ processing. The Pixel 2 XL boasted more premium features, and did make the regular version look a little cheap by comparison, but Google was clearly getting closer to finding its ‘perfect’ pure Android model. Pixel present – and future?So we come to the most recent chapter in Google’s pure Android journey: the Pixel 3. While not a vast improvement on the previous generation of phones, the Pixel 3 and Pixel 3 XL sum up Google’s homegrown approach to phone development. They tick just enough boxes on the hardware front – another impressive suite of cameras, and an overall design that’s easier on the eye – while placing an emphasis on the strength of Android operating at its cleanest. Debuting in 2018 with Android Pie via the Pixel Launcher, the Pixel 3 phones offer the best way yet to experience Android in its pure form. A clean UI, the use of Duplex AI to answer spam calls, and the Digital Wellbeing tool have proved that, while Google is still working out the kinks in terms of hardware, it’s showing the direction in which Google hopes to take its OS innovation.
via TechRadar - All the latest technology news http://www.techradar.com/news/from-nexus-to-android-one-a-brief-history-of-purist-android-phones
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AMD’s staunchly amazing 2017 was so hard to follow up that often compare company’s performance 2018 to Age of Ultron in the grand scheme of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. (This is going to be a long, winding metaphor here, but stick with us here) Last year, was practically AMDs first Avengers movie in that it pulled off what nothing we had seen before with Ryzen making Intel quake in its boots, the first 16-core HEDT chips and the first few exciting graphics cards from AMD in a long time. This year was a definite improvement with the introduction of Ryzen 2nd Generation and Threadripper 2nd Generation CPUs, but there was also the severe lack of almost any new discrete GPUs whatsoever. More than anything this year felt like a hold-over – almost a preamble – to AMD’s version of Infinity War that will herald its first 7nm processors and graphics cards coming next year. Winding up for its biggest pitchAMD couldn’t have had a stronger start for 2018. The company was performing well off the back of its new processor families while largely dodging the Spectre and Meltdown vulnerabilities plaguing Intel. At CES 2018, AMD also made a strong showing announcing new entry-level, quad-core mobile processors and powerful Ryzen APUs that would introduce discrete-class Vega graphics to desktop CPUs. The AMD Ryzen 5 2400G and Ryzen 3 2200G were easily highlights of the year in their ability to play modern games at Full HD without breaking a sweat. AMD’s integrated graphics were so impressive that Intel and AMD teamed up to create its first mashup chip, Kaby Lake G. This chip found its way into the impressively powerful, yet small, Intel Hades Canyon NUC, as well as some gaming capable 2-in-1 laptops like the Dell XPS 15 2-in-1 and HP Spectre x360 15. In a true show of force, AMD even announced it plans for the rest of the year all the way into 2020. In 2018, AMD planned to introduce its 12nm Zen+ architecture, would lead to Ryzen 2nd Generation and Ryzen Threadripper 2nd Generation processors. Beyond that, the company also laid out its plans to introduce 7nm Zen 2 architecture following that, as well as 7nm Vega and Navi architectures on the graphics card side. Silicon companies typically don’t reveal what they have in store for even the coming year, so to get detailed, multi-year roadmaps like this was incredible and unheard of. We had to give AMD props for this. Riding on and against the tide of CryptoLike Nvidia, AMD was heavily impacted by crypto, which is to say the company was both profiting from the extreme demand for bitcoin mining GPUs while trying to stay true to gamers first. The company was doing so well from cryptocurrency that it even managed to outpace the popularity of Nvidia for a short time. Despite, doing extremely well thanks to mining, the company promised its first-priority was to gamers. Interestingly, to try and stem the shortage of graphics cards, AMD suggested mining with its Threadripper high-end desktop processors. Partial riseThankfully, we wouldn’t have to wait too long into the year for some new Ryzen 2nd Generation processors. The first quartet of AMD 12nm processors would arrive on April 19th with the introduction of the Ryzen 7 2700X, Ryzen 7 2700, Ryzen 5 2600X and Ryzen 5 2600. All of AMD’s Ryzen 2nd Generation processors pushed the envelope with their higher clock speeds and enhanced overclocking capabilities. In our reviews we found the AMD Ryzen 7 2700X to completely overtake Intel’s existing flagship mainstream CPU, the Intel Core i7-8700K, while the AMD Ryzen 5 2600X was easily the best mid-range CPU for power users. Unfortunately, AMD didn’t really produce nearly as many Ryzen 2nd Generation processors as it did for its previous family of chips. In fact, we had to wait until September for AMD to release its next Ryzen processors, the Ryzen 5 2500X and Ryzen 3 2300X, but these were chips that average consumers couldn’t even purchase. Instead, AMD chose to reserve its lower end chips for OEMs and system integrators. To this day, you still can’t get these CPUs without buying a pre-built PC assembled around them. Overall, we would say AMD did a great job of delivering even more impressive CPUs, but they felt like much more of a blip than setting the narrative for all of 2018 as the previous generation did last year. Ripping it upAMD really threw down the gauntlet at Computex 2018. The company saw Intel’s 28-core processor and raised it a 32-core CPU mammoth, which we would later learn was the AMD Ryzen Threadripper 2990WX. At the computing-focused show, AMD also revealed a new nano-version of the Radeon RX Vega 56 and details of its next-generation 7nm Radeon Instinct graphics card – unfortunately, this would the last time AMD would talk about graphics cards until much later into the year. Not long after Computex, AMD official announced four new Ryzen Threadripper 2nd Generation processors in August. These HEDT processors that not only increased core counts, but also performance while lowering prices. The Ryzen Threadripper 2950X was the perfect example of our latter points, as it vastly outpaced the outgoing Ryzen Threadripper 1950X while coming at a slightly lower price point. Meanwhile, the 32-core and 64-thread Ryzen Threadripper 2990WX delivered the highest multi-core performance we had ever seen from a high-end desktop PC. It seemed like AMD was on track to completely dominate the high-end desktop market, unfortunately, the company waited until the end of October to release the Ryzen Threadripper 2970WX and Ryzen Threadripper 2920X. By this time Intel has announced its Basin Falls Refresh HEDT family and the greater threat of the Intel Core i9-9900K. Better late than neverIf there was one thing AMD lacked in 2018, it was graphics cards. Aside from the impressive integrated graphics the company introduced at the start of the year, AMD only announced a ‘new’ range of Radeon RX 500X Polaris GPUs for OEMs (which were sadly only new in name), a nano-sized version of its existing Radeon RX Vega 56 and a new Radeon RX 590 for the mid-range market. This practically left Nvidia’s new Turing RTX 20-series of graphics cards unchallenged in 2018, but we have high hopes for the 7nm graphics cards AMD is due to announce in 2019. What will 2019 have in store for AMD2019 will be arguably AMD’s biggest year yet. The company has already announced that it would talk about its 7nm processors and graphics cards at CES 2019. This should lead to AMD introducing its 7nm Zen 2 architecture that will lead to Ryzen 3rd Generation and Ryzen Threadripper 3rd Generation processors. From what we know so far, AMD next CPU family will start with quad-core entry-level chips and stack all the way up to 16-core mainstream processors. We may even dare to dream of 48-core or 64-thread HEDT processors on the HEDT front. Meanwhile, AMD 7nm GPU architecture could lead to the introduction of both Vega II and Navi graphics cards we sorely wanted this year. If AMD can successfully pull off all three of these products next year, it will assemble its Infinity Gauntlet of silicon to snap Nvidia and Intel out of existence (or at least from their comfortable thrones). AMD’s greatest threat next year will be Intel, as the company is gearing up to introduce its 10nm Sunny Cove processors and we might even see the introduction of Intel Graphics Cards as well. No matter how you slice it, 2019 should be one of the most exciting years in computing and AMD will undoubtedly play a big part of it. via TechRadar - All the latest technology news http://www.techradar.com/news/amd-in-2018 While Apple has Siri and Amazon has Alexa, there’s a third big player in the voice-assistant game: Google's very own voice-activated effort, Google Assistant. It might not have captured the public's imagination in the same way as its counterparts, and Alexa in particular, but it’s no less useful. In fact, there are some things this handy little tool can do that most users don’t even know it’s capable of. So to make sure you’re making the most of your trusty voice-activated partner, we’ve gathered together nine handy but not necessarily obvious Google Assistant features that will help to make it genuinely useful in loads of situations you might not have expected. Find your way home (and check for traffic updates)Drawing on the sheer breadth of information at Google’s search engine fingertips, it’s safe to say Google Assistant has a lot of potential uses, including the ability to find the best route to a certain location. Just say “Get me home” and it will draw information from Google Maps to show you (or tell you) the best route based on your current location. You can also use the voice-activated element to check traffic updates, and get the latest information on diversions and closures. This feature is especially useful if you primarily use Google Assistant on the move. Make a shopping list… with your voiceGoogle Assistant has been designed to assist you, after all, so it makes sense that something as mundane (yet important) as making a shopping list can be done with your voice. No more scrabbling for a piece of paper (only to lose it) or typing one out in your drafts – you just need to say “Add [item] to my shopping list.” Not only does Google Assistant collate all those items into one place, it will even read back what’s on your currently saved list to ensure you haven't left anything out, enabling you to go about your day with one less thing to worry about. Listen to the latest news headlinesMost of us are so busy these days that even taking the time to browse the latest stories on Twitter or your chosen RSS feed can feel like a drag on your time. So why not use Google Assistant to read them out for you? It’s not an obvious feature, but if you say “Play the news” Assistant will start reading out stories from your preferred news sources. You can ask it to stop, pause and play at any time, and you can even ask it to read stories from a specific source or specialist media site. If you’re running around the house trying to find your keys while grabbing a piece of toast before work, it’s a great way to keep up to date. Control your smart homeIf you’re like us and you’ve started to slowly add more and more smart devices to your home – be they thermostats, lightbulbs or ovens that preheat themselves – then you can use Google Assistant to connect you to them via a single voice-controlled hub. Open Google Assistant, press the menu icon in the upper-right corner of the screen and select Settings. From there you can add any compatible smart devices (and many devices are compatible) that are currently active in your home. From Philips Hue lightbulbs to Honeywell thermostats, plenty of gadgets will respond to your voice-activated commands. Convert money, measurements and moreWhether you’re looking to check how many dollars you can get to the pound or wondering how many inches there are in a kilometer, you can rely on your voice-activated servant to do the math for you. Google Assistant can perform almost any conversion calculation, and it will read out the answer. The same goes for translations. If you’re wondering what the word for ‘Hello’ is in Swedish, you just have to say “What’s the Swedish word for ‘hello’?” and Assistant will instantly respond with the correct answer: “Hej!” Screen your phone callsTired of getting dogged with cold calls from automated messages and companies trying to sell you a dodgy service? Well, Google Assistant can help with that, too. If you happen to own a Google Pixel 3 or Pixel 3 XL, the voice-activated service includes a feature that will answer certain calls on your behalf. It’s one of the many ways Google is evolving Assistant, with the Call Screen feature enabling you to leave Assistant to answer the call and even record a transcript of the conversation so you can review it later. Telemarketers, beware... Queue up your favorite shows on NetflixNetflix has made its way onto most our smart devices, and whether you’re still mourning the cancellation of Daredevil or looking for a belly laugh or two with Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Google Assistant can help connect you to your favorite TV shows and films, all with voice commands. Simply say, for example, “Play Mowgli: Legend of the Jungle on Netflix” and – as long as Netflix is set up on your Android device, you’re signed into the app and you've connected it up – Google Assistant will queue up the show/film and start playing it in a matter of seconds. This is handier on a TV with Google Assistant built in than on some other devices, but it’s a simple way to call up a movie to watch on your phone too. Check appointments and emailsIf you're using Google Assistant there’s a good chance that you use some of Google’s other services, including Gmail and Google Drive, so why not use Assistant to connect to some of these apps? If you use Gmail as your work account, you can ask the utility to check through your emails for certain keywords, or bring up an appointment that’s been added to your Calendar app. You can even use Google Assistant to take notes with Google Keep, should you need to jot down a quick thought or idea while you’re busy with other tasks. This feature is especially useful if you need to catch up any new emails you’ve yet to read or respond to. Let Assistant entertain youStruggling to find someone to enjoy a quick game with? Want to test your grey matter while you have a few minutes to spare? Well, Google Assistant can help on both accounts by challenging you to a game of solitaire or naughts and crosses / tic-tac-toe. It can also tell you some awful jokes or puns, and even read out an inspirational quote or message if you’re need of a little motivation – you can even ask Assistant to find something funny for you to watch by checking currently trending videos on YouTube.
via TechRadar - All the latest technology news http://www.techradar.com/news/9-things-google-assistant-can-do-that-you-may-not-know-about You can’t avoid the fact that 2018 was simply a bizarre year for PC components overall – especially when it comes to the best processors. Intel spent the whole year churning out microarchitecture after microarchitecture, in an attempt to prevent AMD from taking too much market share. But, throughout the myriad products Intel released this year, we were left wondering if there was something missing. So, we’re going to dive into everything Intel achieved over the last year, creating a sort of report card on how the tech giant handled 2018. Under the Spectre of a MeltdownIntel didn’t exactly start 2018 off on the right foot – a white paper from Google Project Zero revealed the Spectre and Meltdown exploits that made 90% of Intel processors vulnerable to attack. Intel immediately responded, saying it would fix the exploits. However, there was a ton of confusion out there related to these fixes. Initially, Intel suggested that these fixes would impact stability and performance by up to 30%, which it later redacted, saying that the slowdown would be ‘workload-related’, and that most users wouldn’t notice any change. And, eventually the patches made their way through Windows Update, but not everyone got a happily ever after. In April, Intel said that certain older processors wouldn’t be getting the update, namely the Intel Core i7 900 series, due to issues with the microarchitecture itself. It also cited the fact that most of these older processors weren’t being serviced anyway. Luckily, if you buy a newer Intel Coffee Lake Refresh processor you have nothing to worry about. Name a more ambitious crossover eventIn a move that threw us all for a loop, Intel teamed up with AMD earlier in the year to produce 8th-generation Kaby Lake processors for laptops with AMD Vega graphics. Especially in a year when Intel has been plotting its own GPUs, this team up with its biggest rival kind of came out of nowhere. But, you know what? It paid off. These Kaby Lake G processors provided awesome performance without some of the pitfalls that dedicated graphics experience. Laptops like the Dell XPS 15 2-in-1 showed great performance, not just in professional workloads, but even in gaming. That’s right, these laptop CPUs enabled a pretty decent gaming experience on laptops that were thin, light and convertible. Pint-sized gaming computersOf course, Intel doesn’t just make chunks of silicon, it also makes full-fledged computers occasionally. And, the Intel Hades Canyon NUC, beyond having an awesome name, is genuinely one of the best gaming PCs you can get – as long as you’re looking for a very tiny machine. Now, while this tiny PC doesn’t come with RAM, storage or an OS – you’ll have to supply all that on your own, you are paying just $799 (£743, AU$1,099) for a pretty powerful little machine. It packs one of those Kaby Lake G processors we just talked about, which means it can provide GTX 1060-level performance for a fraction of the price of a similarly specced gaming laptop. And, because it’s a barebones system, you can upgrade it however you want. Well, barring the GPU and CPU, of course – at least it has ThunderBolt 3 for external graphics. All the cores!Back at Computex 2018, we were sure we’d get some new processors from either Intel or AMD. And, while both manufacturers teased some HEDT chips, we just got some vague glimpses. But, the chip Intel teased was absolutely insane. We’re talking a 28-core, 56-thread behemoth that was overclocked to 5.0GHz across all cores. Turns out that it was overclocked to high heaven using some exotic cooling methods, but it was still impressive anyways. Turns out that it wasn’t a consumer chip at all, but instead the Intel Xeon W-3175X workstation chip. This chip isn’t quite out yet, but it’s around the corner and is rumored to launch it at a whopping $4,000 (£4,000, about AU$5,600) price tag. Still, dreaming about such an insane consumer processor was fun while it lasted. Intel also used the event to introduce a special anniversary processor in the form of the Intel Core i7-8086K to commemorate the original 8086 CPU that released 40 years ago. Just stay mobileCoffee Lake was already a massive success, thanks to the awesome desktop performance it offered, but when Intel brought Coffee Lake H-series processors for laptops, the performance was off the charts. Coffee Lake H-series brought Intel’s 6-core 12-thread mobile processors to laptops for the first time, including the overwhelmingly powerful Intel Core i9-8950HK, found in even the thinnest workstation-class laptops like the MacBook Pro 15-inch. Where these processors really shined, however, was in the best gaming laptops. Devices like the Razer Blade 15 and MSI GS65 Stealth were able to stay thin, light and aesthetic while providing nearly desktop-class performance. However, some manufacturers took that thin, light and powerful concept a little too far. We already mentioned the 15-inch MacBook Pro, but when that thing launched back in July, there was an uproar about its tendency to thermal throttle almost immediately. This problem was patched out by Apple almost immediately – but it still runs dangerously hot. The Core i9-8950HK offers fantastic performance, but it basically requires a heavy duty laptop to reach its full potential. But, the rest of the Intel Coffee Lake H-series mobile processors don’t have the same problem. How many lakes???Intel has never been the easiest manufacturer to follow, but it seems like in 2018, there was just a deluge of different microarchitectures, all of which named after some fictional lake. Beyond the ever-elusive Cannon Lake, we got Whiskey Lake, Cascade Lake, Amber Lake and Coffee Lake Refresh. That’s not even mentioning the non-lake microarchitectures like the HEDT-focused Basin Falls Refresh. Most of the year ended up being a guessing game, trying to pin rumored silicon to the lake it belonged to. And, with Cannon Lake and Sunny Cove already rumored for 2019, it looks like the same shotgun approach is going to repeat itself next year. A refreshing moveAfter months of speculation and false leads, Intel finally released its 9th-generation Coffee Lake Refresh consumer and Basin Falls Refresh HEDT chips. Basin Falls Refresh might not have been all that exciting, but the level of performance offered by Coffee Lake Refresh is worth a mention. The Intel Core i9-9900K, by itself, was worth all the headaches – a 8-core, 16-thread CPU that absolutely demolished the AMD Ryzen 7 2700X – along with many Threadripper 2nd Generation chips. You see, it wasn’t just the core counts that matter here – it’s the clock speeds. This consumer chip is able to boost up to 5GHz – and that’s before overclocking. Less than a month later, Intel would also release the new Intel Core i9-9980XE to reclaim the high-end desktop processor crown. What does 2019 have in store for Intel?2018 was a year of reactions and delays from Intel, as it desperately fought to maintain its place in the market, and basically lost. However, don’t think for a second that Intel is down for the count. After years of delaying its 10nm Cannon Lake chips, there are already rumors that Intel is going to release Sunny Cove next year, which is … well, it’s another 10nm microarchitecture. We should see increased performance and efficiency with this shrink in die size, but with AMD getting ready to launch 7nm Ryzen 3 processors in 2019, the competition is only going to get more heated from here. What should be particularly interesting, however, is Intel’s GPUs. Intel graphics cards have been lurking in the shadows for a while now. We’re not sure what these graphics cards will be capable, and we likely won’t see them actually materialize in 2019. But, if its Gen11 integrated graphics are any indication, we’re going to brace ourselves for a late entry in the Nvidia vs AMD GPU war.
via TechRadar - All the latest technology news http://www.techradar.com/news/intel-in-2018 Welcome to our list of the best 3D printers of 2019. In this guide we've collected the best 3D printers money can buy for a variety of different uses. From home 3D printers for hobbyists, to professional 3D printers, this list has excellent choices for everyone. Because these 3D printers are so different from each other, we've not listed these in any order. So, read our roundup carefully to see which 3D printer is best for your needs. There are small, affordable 3D printers that can sit on your desk, as well as expensive 3D printers that can handle huge volumes. No one wants to spend all their time researching all the best 3D printers – not to mention spending a ton of cash – so our list of the best 3D printers contains clear and concise information on all kinds of 3D printers, so you can find the best 3D printer for your needs. And, our exclusive price comparison tool will pinpoint the best deals on 3D printers, so when you’ve found the best 3D printer for your needs, you can simply buy it, confident that you’re paying the best price. The MakerBot Replicator+ is the successor to the popular MakerBot Replicator 3D printer, and the new version has brought improvements to nearly every part of the Replicator. This means the Replicator+ is faster and quieter than the previous version, while maintaining its excellent design and safety features. This desktop 3D printer is expensive, but it offers excellent print quality, and uses 1.75mm polylactic acid (PLA) filament. It's also user-friendly enough for home users and hobbyists to use - as long as your budget can stretch to the high asking price. If you're looking for a budget 3D printer, then there really is no better option than the XYZprinting da Vinci Mini. It remains one of the most affordable ways to get into 3D printing, and also the easiest, thanks to an easy-to-use interface. Just because it's a budget model, doesn't mean it doesn't produce good results, and the 3D printed objects it creates are very impressive considering the price - and size - of this 3D printer. Speaking of size, the XYZprinting da Vinci Mini is an impressively compact printer that makes it easy to store in an office or on a desk. The Ultimaker 2+ is a 3D printer that offers amazing print quality, making it one of the best 3D printers for professional use. It is incredibly reliable when it comes to producing 3D models, and the accuracy of the 3D replications is incredibly impressive. If you need a 3D printer that can reliably reproduce many 3D objects accurately, this is a fantastic choice. However, it is expensive, and the fact that it is aimed at professional environments means it's less beginner-friendly than some of the other 3D printers here. Home users are better off looking elsewhere. The Formlabs Form 2 is an excellent 3D printer for enthusiasts who don't mind paying extra to get the very best print quality. It's a beautifully-designed 3D printer, and can be connected to PCs via USB, Wi-Fi and Ethernet. It doesn't quite have the print reliability of the Ultimaker 2+, but the print quality more than makes up for a few errors. The M3D Micro 3D Printer is an excellent 3D printer for beginners. Its low price means you're not investing lots of money if you're not entirely sure 3D printing is for you, while the compact, cube, design means it can be easily placed within the home or office. It looks good, and is impressively quiet when in use. The print quality isn't the best, however, and it is only able to make small models (not too surprising, considering the diminutive size). However, if you're looking for your first 3D printer, this is an excellent choice. The FlashForge Creator Pro 2017 is the best 3D printer that sits between budget 3D printers and expensive professional models. It's a lot cheaper than pro models, though it maintains the build quality and reliability that you'd come to expect from a professional 3D printer. It's not quite as cheap as the budget and beginner models in this list, but it offers greater accuracy when printing 3D models. It is a tad noisy in use, however. If you're looking for a first 3D printer to learn the ropes with, then the LulzBot Mini is another excellent choice. It's got a decent price, and is easy to use, though the print speed is quite slow. The hardware is open source, which means it has a flexibility that propitiatory hardware lacks, as a committed community of makers can work together to create add-ons for the printer. The bulk of home 3D printers are limited to one- or two-colour printing, but the CubePro Trio has the capability to print three different materials in one session. This can be especially useful if you want to create an enclosed mechanism: nylon can be used for the gears, ABS for the surround and PLA for the support structure that can then be dissolved with caustic soda. The CubePro is an ideal solution for modellers and engineers who need to create 3D prints with moving parts. In general terms 3D printers are designed as boxes with purpose, however BeeTheFirst has created a printer with both quality of print and actual design in mind – this is a machine that really wouldn't look out of place in a modern living room. BeeTheFirst has also thought about how and where people will be wanting to use their printers – at work, home or both – and has incorporated a thin design with a handle that enables the printer to be easily transported. Initially you might be hard pressed to see the differences between the Taz 5 and 6; both feature a solid open frame build, large print base and ease of use. However take a closer look at the refinements in design and improvements in usability and the upgrades quickly stand out. Features such as the auto leveling base has evolved from the one featured on the Luzbot Mini and works just as well on this larger scale, and the slight changes to frame layout and control panel are all welcome. The Taz 6 is a big machine with an impressive print area of 280mm x 280mm x 250mm, with a 0.5mm nozzle capable of a minimum layer height of 75 microns and takes 2.85mm filament.
via TechRadar - All the latest technology news http://www.techradar.com/news/best-3d-printer The best portable projectors allow you to easily carry around the device in a bag, or even in your hands, letting you quickly and easily set it up while you're travelling. This makes them excellent devices for professionals who travel a lot, and ideal for presentations. Of course, they can also be used for entertainment as well, giving you an impressively large screen to watch movies or play games on. When buying the best portable projector for your needs, there are certain things you should look out for. First of all is connectivity. Most should have HDMI, which will let you plug in almost any device into it, though some will have a mini HDMI port, so you'll need a special cable. Others have USB, and some are wireless, which makes broadcasting from your smartphone or tablet easy. Some of the best portable projectors also have batteries, which makes them easy to place for optimum image quality. You should also check to see if a portable projector has built-in speakers. If it does, it means that's one less thing to carry around with you, but don't go expecting cinema-like sound quality from those small speakers. Also, make a note of maximum screen size and resolution. Many portable projectors can project large images, especially considering their small size. As well as listing the best portable projectors, we also have our very own price comparison tool that will help you find the best prices as well. The Philips PicoPix PPX4010 is impressively small, even by portable projector standards. It's so small, that you wonder what use case demands it be that small, aside from it being able to easily fit into a your briefcase, or even a jacket pocket. It features an easy setup and is able to project content only drawing power via USB. The Philips PicoPix PPX4010 has a 100 lumens brightness, which means it doesn't have to be used in pitch black conditions to see. The ML750e by Optoma is a lot more powerful than the pocket-sized PicoPix from Phillips, but it's not quite as small. Still, it weighs just 380g with a small footprint that makes this easy to carry around. The differences in size between this and the PicoPix are negligible for the power you get in return: a 700 Lumens lamp that lets you present in rooms that aren't completely darkened. The Optoma ML750e is one of the best portable projectors in the world thanks to its impressive range of ports. It comes with one MHL-ready HDMI input, a USB 2.0 slot for thumbdrives, a universal I/O slot, and a microSD card slot. The ML550 handled our 90-inch test screen with impressive results, and peaked at a 60-inch-or-so size. However, you need to buy a dongle for Wi-Fi access. Usually when you choose a portable business projector you have to make a few sacrifices in order to have such a small device – but that's not the case with the Epson EB-S41. Its 3,300 lumen brightness is much brighter than many other portable projectors, and means you have more flexibility when setting up the EB-S31 in environments where there is still ambient light. The EB-S41 is small and light enough to carry around with you on business trips, but it also has a very large projection size – up to 300 inches – which makes this an incredibly versatile portable business projector. The LG Minibeam PH550G is a brilliant portable projector that's ideal people who often work on the road thanks to its compact size. It's also wireless as well, allowing you to connect a smartphone or tablet to it, and showcase your presentations or media quickly and easily. This is great for impromptu meetings, and despite its small stature, it offers brilliant image and sound quality. The Asus ZenBeam E1 is a beautifully designed pocket projector that's small and light enough to carry around with you if you often make presentations on the road - or if you like to watch movies while travelling. Despite its small size, it can project images up to 120 inches in size, and it has a built-in 6,000mAh battery that can power the projector for up to 5 hours, which makes it rather flexible, as you don't have to worry about finding a plug socket to power the device. In a rather nice touch, the projector can also double as a power bank for other mobile devices. The Asus ZenBeam E1 isn't the most powerful portable projector, but its versatility, ease of setup and eye catching design gives it a place on our list of best business projectors. The ViewSonic PLED-W800 is an excellent performer and one of the best portable projectors money can buy, weighing in at 830g and measuring 175 x 138 x 51.5mm (W x D x H). With a lamp that can reach up to 800 lumens, you can still run a presentation in whatever room you can bring it to, provided you can shade the windows and lower the lighting. It comes with an SD Card slot, a USB slot, an MHL-ready HDMI input (for connecting DVD/Blu-ray players and also smartphones/tablets) and a VGA input for laptops.
via TechRadar - All the latest technology news http://www.techradar.com/news/best-portable-projectors A man from Columbus, Ohio has reported that his three-week-old iPhone XS Max caught fire in his pocket while inside a case – causing smoke, the burning of his skin, and a dead iPhone that Apple has since offered to replace. Apparently when the melted handset was taken into an Apple Store, they were at a loss to explain exactly what had gone on, iDrop News reports. The man involved says he's less than happy with Apple's response to the incident, quite aside from selling him an iPhone that seemed to catch fire without any kind of trigger. For now this is only an isolated incident – and one that hasn't been verified by Apple – so it's far too early to start putting your own iPhone XS Max in the fridge for safe keeping. You can see one of the photos of the burned phone below. There is precedent for this of course: Samsung had to recall the Galaxy Note 7 in 2016 after it was found to have a defective battery problem that could cause it to ignite, while one iPhone X did catch on fire late last year. Even with all the safety precautions and testing routines that modern-day smartphones go through, it seems that occasional incidents like this can't be eliminated completely. If Apple responds officially to the news or there are any further updates in the case of the melting iPhone XS Max from Ohio, we'll post them here. With only one report in the wild though, we wouldn't expect this to develop into a major safety issue – so you're fine to keep on using your 2018 iPhone as normal. As for what Apple is working on for next year, we've got some ideas on that too. via TechRadar - All the latest technology news http://www.techradar.com/news/now-theres-a-report-of-an-iphone-xs-max-catching-fire With 2018 is drawing to a close, and the post Christmas and New Year sales going strong, now is an ideal time to think about getting a new laptop, and our list of the best laptops money can buy is here to help. No matter what kind of laptop you're looking for, our best laptop guide lists a wide range of excellent laptops, from super-slim and all-powerful Ultrabooks, to high-end laptops, Apple MacBooks, gaming laptops and budget laptops as well. To make choosing the best laptop for your needs even easier, our very own price comparison tool looks at retailers across the internet and highlights top deals, so you can buy in confidence knowing you're getting the best laptop for the best price. Every entry in this best laptops buying guide has been thoroughly tested by us, and we only include laptops that have seriously impressed us and convinced us they are worthy of a place in this list. This guide is also constantly updated to include the best new laptops as they are released, so as soon as a new device comes out that we think is worthy of a place in this article, we'll put it in. The best laptops of 2018:The Huawei MateBook X Pro is our pick for the best laptop money can buy in 2018. After years of this list being dominated by the (still excellent) Dell XPS 13, the MateBook X Pro has proved to be a truly brilliant challenger. This is a gorgeously-designed laptop with a stunning screen (albeit with a rather odd aspect ratio), and it comes packed with cutting edge components that allows it to perform brilliantly, and a battery life that runs rings around many of its rivals. It also has a very competitive price, giving you features, design and performance for quite a bit less money. Sadly, it's not available in many countries, so if you struggle to grab hold of it, look into getting the Dell XPS 13 (below). Read the full review: Huawei MateBook X Pro
Even though the Dell XPS 13 has been knocked into second place by the sublime MateBook Pro X, it’s still an absolutely brilliant laptop. There’s a good reason why it was at the top of our best laptops list for three years running. The 2018 Dell XPS 13 is a slimmer, more powerful version of the award-winning laptop with a stunning 4K display and a gorgeous Rose Gold on Alpine White color option. The Dell XPS 13 rocks an 8th-generation Intel Core i5 or i7 processor and a bezel-less ‘Infinity Edge’ display, this Dell XPS 13 continues to be the most popular Windows laptop in the world. What’s more, there’s a wide range of customization options, so you can really make the Dell XPS 13 the best laptop for your needs. Read the full review: Dell XPS 13 Asus has struck gold with its new refresh of its ZenBook Flip S 2-in-1 laptop, with the Asus ZenBook Flip S UX370 impressing us so much it's landed straight at number 3 in our best laptops list. With a new Kaby Lake R 8th-generation processor powering the device, plenty of RAM and a super-fast PCIe SSD in certain models, this is an absolutely stunning laptop. Its 2-in-1 design means you can use it as both a laptop and a tablet, and while it's not as affordable as some machines on this list, if you have the budget you'll be really happy with this fantastic device. Read the full review: Asus ZenBook Flip S UX370 If you're after the latest and greatest laptop from Apple, we suggest you look into the 2018 model of the 13-inch MacBook Pro with Touch Bar. While Microsoft had the performance edge over last year's MacBook Pro, with the Surface Book 2, Apple has come out swinging with some seriously beefed up specs for the 13-inch MacBook Pro 2018, and even more so if you go for the larger 15-inch model. The headline Touch Bar – a thin OLED display at the top of the keyboard which can be used for any number of things, whether that be auto-suggesting words as you type or offering Touch ID so you can log in with just your fingerprint – is again included. It's certainly retained Apple's sense of style, but it comes at a cost. This is a pricey machine, so you may want to consider one of the Windows alternatives. If you're open to switching to a PC, definitely consider the XPS 13 or the excellent MateBook X Pro. But, if you're a steadfast Apple diehard, this is definitely the best laptop for you! Read the full review: Apple Macbook with Touch Bar 13-inch (2018) The new MSI GS65 Stealth has knocked our previous choice of the best gaming laptop, Asus ROG Zephyrus GX501, off this list, thanks to its excellent array of cutting edge components, which includes an 8th-generation Intel Core i7-8750H CPU and an Nvidia GeForce GTX 1070 GPU. It's also more reasonably priced than the Zephyrus GX501, and its subtle design means that it can double as a work or study laptop without raising any eyebrows. If you're looking for a more affordable gaming laptop, however, check out the Dell Inspiron 15 7000 Gaming below. Read the full review: MSI GS65 Stealth Microsoft's second attempt at a pure laptop device is an absolute winner in our view, and while it doesn't represent a huge overhaul of the original Surface Laptop, it offers improvements in all the areas we were hoping for, including updated hardware that brings serious performance benefits. This is a laptop that finally delivers on what Microsoft set out to do with the original: a pure, powerful Windows 10 laptop experience. If you're not sold on the 2-in-1 nature of the Surface Book 2 (which is also on this best laptops list), but love Microsoft's premium build quality and design, then the Surface Laptop 2 is the laptop for you. A very worth addition to this list. Read the full review: Microsoft Surface Laptop 2 Last year’s Dell XPS 15 was already one of the best laptops you could buy, but now that Dell has taken the beautiful redesign of the Dell XPS 13 and applied it here – while also making it a convertible. Well, it’s amazing. Not only do you get one of the most aesthetically pleasing 15-inch laptops on the market, but it also packs one of those new Intel Kaby Lake G-series CPUs featuring ‘discrete-class’ Radeon graphics. This means that this laptop packs serious power – even if it can get a little loud. Read the full review: Dell XPS 15 2-in-1 The Acer Predator Helios 300 is a fantastic affordable gaming laptop that proves that even if you don't have the kind of money to buy the MSI GS65 Stealth that also features on this best laptops list, you don't have to sacrifice too much when it comes to power. The Acer Predator Helios 300 packs some excellent components, such as a new 8th generation 6-core Intel Core i7 processor, Nvidia GTX 1060 graphics card and 16GB of RAM. While it's still an expensive proposition compared to regular laptops, for a gaming notebook you are getting a heck of a lot of power for the price. Read the full review: Acer Predator Helios 300 When it comes to the best Chromebook laptop, you have a choice between two stark alternatives. There's the premium Chromebook Pixel, which we list further down this page, and then there's the excellent Asus Chromebook Flip C302, which combines premium features in a much more affordable package. For many people, Chromebooks are excellent and affordable laptops that are perfect for students, and the Asus Chromebook Flip C302 is easily one of the best Chromebooks, and one of the best laptops, money can buy. It comes with an Intel Core processor, full 1080p display, touchscreen, backlit keyboard and USB-C port. Read the full review: Asus Chromebook Flip With the Surface Book 2 (13.5-inch), Microsoft has crafted one of the most powerful 2-in-1 laptops in the world. The Surface Book 2 has some powerful enough components to handle most day-to-day tasks, and even some light gaming and video editing if you go for a model with a dedicated graphics card. Brilliant build quality and excellent battery life makes this a wonderful device for using as either a laptop, or as a powerful Windows 10 tablet. It also comes in a 15-inch version, which is more powerful and with a larger screen. If you're after a more affordable 2-in-1 device, then the Acer Switch 3, below, is well worth checking out. Read the full review: Microsoft Surface Book 2 (13.5-inch) If you want the Microsoft Surface Book 2 but you want to spend a lot less, the Acer Switch 3 2017 is definitely the your best option. It's designed around essentially the same concept as the Surface Book 2 and it's a less capable thanks to slightly lower power innards, but for most tasks it's a brilliant little machine. What's more, to add further value this 2-in-1 laptop/tablet comes with the keyboard upgrade which means no little extras to pay for. As usual it comes in several different versions, with USB Type-C, 8GB RAM, an IPS display and Intel Core i3 7100U CPU coming with the more expensive option. Read the full review: Acer Switch 3 Last year's iteration of the MacBook is another win for Apple, and it's once again won us over with a gorgeous design, excellent performance and best-in-class battery life. Apple has updated the processors with Intel's 7th-generation Kaby Lake range, which means you get improved performance and longer battery life without sacrificing the thin and light design that the MacBook is famous for. While the MacBook 2017 is not designed as a pure productivity machine, like the more powerful and versatile MacBook Pro above, or as a gaming machine like the Asus ROG Zephyrus GX501, it's still one of the best laptops in the world right now thanks to being a super slim and light MacBook that you can take anywhere without even noticing the weight, and being a powerful showcase for macOS High Sierra. If you're after a MacBook, this year's model is easily one of the best. Read the full review: Apple MacBook The best Chromebooks have experienced huge success in recent years as a result of their accessibility, and the Google Pixelbook is no exception. Even though it costs twice as much as the average Chrome OS device and doesn’t come with a stylus as you may expect, the Pixelbook is built to withstand the future. It features a pair of Thunderbolt 3 ports for accessories and super fast file transfers, a hinge that flips inside out for watching movies on planes and a taste of Android. You get full access to the Google Play store on the Pixelbook, from playing Sonic the Hedgehog to watching videos in VLC. The icing on this pixelated cake is its long battery life – it lasted nearly 8 hours in our own testing, so you shouldn’t need to worry about the Pixelbook dying on you. Read the full review: Google Pixelbook
While you may have been convinced that ‘budget Ultrabook’ was an oxymoron up until this point, the Acer has turned this common misconception on its head with the Swift 3. That’s because the company has taken the all-aluminum chassis of the Acer Swift 7 and stuffed some more affordable components inside for everyone to enjoy. It doesn’t run macOS, but the Acer Swift 3 does put the age-old MacBook Air to shame in about every other regard, including the nigh-unbeatable price tag. Of course, in the process of demolishing the competition, Acer did have to cut a few corners in order to keep the price so impressively low. So although you can’t expect much in the way of an Ultra HD display or quality onboard sound, the performance benchmarks alone give even the Surface Laptop a run for its money. We've also had a glance of the upcoming 2018 edition of the Swift 7 at CES 2018, which comes with boosted graphics and processing specs. It could be a shoe-in for a place on this list when it launches later this year. Read the full review: Acer Swift 3 While it may not have the best keyboard in the world, the Samsung Notebook 9 is still one of the best laptops you can buy in 2018. Packed with more horsepower than the MacBook Pro, but at a much lower price, Samsung has crafted a laptop that has just as much substance as it does style. Plus, on top of its killer specs, it’s lightweight and thin, making this one of the most portable 15-inch laptops you can buy today. Read the full review: Samsung Notebook 9
Which type of laptop is best for you?General laptops: Where the best cheap laptops are found, devices that focus more on practicality than style, portability or power. That’s not to say they can’t be fast, but you’ll typically find a non-Ultrabook clamshell laptop with an HD screen and spinning drive-based storage for less than $600 or £400. Ultrabooks: Where you’ll find thin-and-light notebooks sporting SSD storage and display resolutions that exceed 1080p. Paired with powerful, albeit mobile-centric components and especially long battery life, the best Ultrabooks will cost a pretty penny – $700 or £500 to $2,000 or £1,800. 2-in-1 laptops: Where notebooks that double as tablets are located. The Surface Book 2 might be a ways off, but many of the best 2-in-1 laptops are available right now. Outfitted with both detachable and 360-degree rotating hinges, these hybrids are the most versatile way to experience Windows 10 (or Chrome OS) on a touchscreen. Chromebooks: Where you’ll find the best Chromebooks running Chrome OS. These do much of what Windows and macOS can in the browser, focused on cloud storage over local, while recently getting Android app support for touchscreen models. They generally cost less than $300 or £200 and some can even withstand a slight tussle. Gaming laptops: Need a laptop to play games (almost) just like a shiny desktop PC can? Then you’ll want one of the best gaming laptops. These machines generally cost from $800 or £600 to upwards of $3,000 or £2,800 and they’ll likely be the ones to take advantage of AMD’s laptop-grade Ryzen processors first. Laptop-tablet hybrids: Designed from the tablet-first approach to laptop-tablet hybrids, the best Windows tablets pack beyond-HD touchscreens, sometimes with kickstands in their frames or provided via keyboard covers. These generally shine with a stylus, and range from the budget to the premium price ranges. Linux, Windows or Mac - which one is best for you? Watch our guide video below: via TechRadar - All the latest technology news http://www.techradar.com/news/mobile-computing/laptops/best-laptops-1304361 A new patent has been spotted which suggests that Microsoft is looking into ways to add a magnetic USB-C port onto future Surface devices. Microsoft has been frustratingly hesitant to add USB-C to its Surface lineup of tablets and laptops. USB-C allows for much faster data transfers and the ports can be used to charge devices as well, without being stuck with proprietary chargers that can be expensive to replace if you lose it. The new patent, known as 'Magnetically activated latch mechanism' describes a USB-C port that uses magnets that allows people to easily connect the charging port, with the magnets holding the cable in place without users having to use much force to insert the cable. Mag-neatoThe patent describes a system similar to Microsoft's previous proprietary Surface connector, as well as Apple's old Magsafe system. Not only does the magnetic port hold the cable safely in place, but it means the port is less likely to get damaged by inserting the cable too strongly, or if you accidentally rip the cable out. Best of all, it seems to work with USB-C. While the patent suggests that both the USB-C cable and the port will be magnetised, it will also work with standard non-magnetic USB-C cables. It's certainly an interesting idea, and we're glad to see Microsoft apparently willing to embrace USB-C, as many of its competitors do. The patent was applied for in May 2018, and has just been published, so hopefully Microsoft is working on this new port for an upcoming Surface device.
Via Patently Mobile via TechRadar - All the latest technology news http://www.techradar.com/news/microsoft-patents-innovative-magnetic-usb-c-surface-connector It’s safe to say 2018 has been quite a year for videogames and interactive media. Of course, it’s easy to claim that about any 12 month period when you’ve come to the end of it, but this year seemed to overflow with soaring highs and painful lows. Since January we’ve seen once stagnant franchises find new life, we’ve borne witness to some shocking launches and seen many a studio rise (and fall) along the way. Plagiarism reared its ugly head at one of the biggest sites in the gaming media. Battle royale continued to dominate sales and streaming charts. Esports and competitive sports grew even larger in scope and coverage. And a little developer called Rockstar revealed a culture of unhealthy hours and unrelenting ‘crunch’ before unleashing a record-breaking cowboy simulator. Like we said, 2018 has been quite the year. Eternal FortniteIt’s incredible to look back and see how little enthusiasm players and critics shared for Fortnite when it finally left early access and launched across platforms in the summer of 2017. Then PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds came along and revealed to the world a ‘new’ subgenre all about players fighting one another until only one victor remained. Then Epic Games added in a Battle Royale mode to Fortnite, made it free-to-play and boom - one instant mega-hit. With the advent of multi-year season passes, the game has only grown in popularity in 2018. In November, it was revealed that it now has over 200 million registered users, something no doubt helped by the one million-plus players now enjoying it on-the-go on Nintendo Switch. It’s become a phenomenon of Minecraft proportions, made superstars of some of its biggest Twitch streamers (although you could argue they’ve made it as much as it made them), with Tyler ‘Ninja’ Blevins rubbing shoulders with celebrities on prime-time TV despite a prickly demeanour and a controversial decision to avoid playing with any female streamers. Snap, crackle and crunchCrunch continues to play an important role in how many studios finish a game’s development cycle, but it launched itself firmly into the mainstream headlines for once when Rockstar head Dan Houser mentioned how many of his employees were working 100 hour weeks to get Red Dead Redemption 2 to gold status. He meant it to be an endorsement of their hard work, but in reality it cracked open the lid on a culture at the GTA studio where an expectation to work evenings and weekends became the norm. For a studio like Rockstar that normally shies away from revealing the inner workings of its many studios, the developer was forced to rescind a clause that stopped employees from discussing their work experiences with the media. Plenty of programmers, designers and testers said they never felt pressure to work extra hours, but a lot did and it took some of the shine off the eventual release of RDR2. It still made the Housers millions in a couple of weeks of release, though. Plagiarism rocks the games pressIt’s not often something as serious as plagiarism is placed at the door of one of the games media’s biggest websites, but that’s just what happened when a video from a small-time YouTube channel called Boomstick Gaming turned up near-verbatim in a review on IGN.com. The video went viral, every major news site in games picked up and soon everyone was discussing Metroidvania platformer Dead Cells for all the wrong reasons. It was revealed Nintendo Editor Filip Miucin had copied large parts of the review for IGN’s written and video-based review, and it didn’t take long for readers to find similar copied segments in countless other reviews of his on the site. IGN began frantically pulling down most of Miucin’s work and dismissed him almost immediately but it rocked the games media with a scandal it’s never really had to contend with before. Miucin even took to his own YouTube channel to make an apology video where he never actually apologized. Retro revival remasteredRemasters are nothing new to videogames - in fact, they pretty much kept the PS4 going during its first year - but 2018 has gone one better by either reviving some once great franchises for a new generation and offering new ways to play the games of yesteryear. The launch of the Nintendo Switch Online paid service in September saw the launch of a growing library of NES games - with full Joy-Con support - while Sony rounded off the year with the completely original Sony PlayStation Classic. Sony would have gotten away with its revival if it wasn’t for some clear disparity between the different emulations used on the console (and the PlayStation hits that were clearing missing from its collection). Elsewhere, Spyro the Dragon had all three of his original PlayStation instalments revitalized from the ground up with Spyro Trilogy Reignited. Following in the successful footsteps of Crash Bandicoot: N’Sane Trilogy, it would be Toys for Bob - the developer who originally used Spyro to launch the now dormant Skylanders franchise - that would help re-imagine Insomniac Games’ much-loved platforming trinity. We also got news of a MediEvil remaster along the same lines, and confirmation that Blizzard is working on Warcraft 3: Reforged and World of Warcraft Classic. Retro never really goes out of fashion, does it? Studio acquisitions and closuresEvery year we see new studios form, while others sadly close their doors for the last time. However, there was a lot of activity on this front in 2018. On the plus side, Microsoft clearly showed its making big preparations for the next generation of Xbox by acquiring not one, but six new developers (Obsidian Entertainment, The Initiative, inXile Entertainment, Compulsion Games, Undead Labs, Playground Games and Ninja Theory) into its growing suite of first-party studios. However, there were some notable closures, too. Telltale Games - which was once the hottest ticket in town thanks to its narrative-driven take on The Walking Dead, A Wolf Among Us and Batman - saw its employees forced to find work elsewhere in September thanks to an overloaded schedule of projects, the loss of a major investor and stories of mismanagement behind the scenes. Another publisher stepped in to help fund and finish the final episodes of TWD’s swansong season, but it’s a bittersweet end to a developer that’s left an indelible mark on the industry. Games, games and more gamesAnd, of course, there’s been a gluttony of new games - some of which will likely be looked back on as the titles that defined the generation (as is often the case in the twilight years of a console’s lifecycle). Sony killed it with their exclusives, with a revitalized God of War giving the two-dimensional god-killer Kratos some much-needed depth. Detroit: Become Human just about managed to overcome David Cage’s script-writing hang-ups thanks to some brilliant performances from its cast and Insomniac’s Spider-Man offered the best take on the Web-Crawler since Spider-Man 2 on PS2. High praise indeed. Xbox One didn’t have quite so many killer apps, but Sea of Thieves has grown into a charming multiplayer take on the golden age of piracy and Forza Horizon 4 has proved even a spin-off can overtake the series that originally spawned it. Nintendo Switch also came out swinging in 2018 with some absolute belters in the form of Octopath Traveller, Mario Tennis Aces, Pokemon: Let’s Go Pikachu/Let’s Go Eevee, Kirby Star Allies and a little thing called Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. It’s been a huge year for videogames - both better and for worse - and we can’ wait to see how 2019 is going to top it (for the better, we hope)... via TechRadar - All the latest technology news http://www.techradar.com/news/gaming-in-2018-a-retrospective |
Jonmichael MoyJonmichael Moy is a hi-tech executive based in Toronto, Canada. He has more than 15 years of experience in the IT and technology business. ArchivesNo Archives Categories |