Table of contents for 642 in Computeractive

You don’t need to wait until your computer is groaning and gasping before trying Robert Irvine’s upgrade tricks in our Cover Feature. I performed them all on a newish Lenovo laptop that felt speedy enough, yet still succeeded in unlocking extra levels of performance I hadn’t anticipated. What was already a greyhound is now a greyhound wearing a jet pack. But you’re bound to notice bigger differences in machines that are beginning to show their age, saving you the cost and hassle of having to buy and install expensive new components. As an example, I’d been planning to add extra RAM – and possibly a new processor – to a sluggish Dell PC bought about seven years ago (less greyhound, more bloated bulldog). But Robert’s tips have perked it up…

Privacy-focused browser Brave (https://brave.com) is to start hiding cookie requests from websites, which it described as an “infamous and near-constant annoyance on the web”. When you update to version 1.45, due in October, Brave will ask if you’d like to block ‘cookie consent notices’ (see screenshot). To activate this you just need to click or tap the blue button. Tap ‘No thanks’ if you want to continue seeing cookie notifications. Brave said it will “hide and, where possible, completely block” these notifications “within a minute or less” of the tool being turned on. It claims this approach is better at preserving your privacy than methods used by other browsers, such as automatically giving consent to cookies. The tool will work on Brave 1.45 for computers and Android devices (install the…

When Windows 11 launched and I read about the hardware requirements needed to run it, I assumed my middleaged computer wouldn’t tick enough boxes. I was surprised, therefore, that it was given the thumbs up by Microsoft’s PC Health Check app (www.snipca.com/43460). But I chose not to upgrade at the time because Windows 11 didn’t seem to offer any significantly new tools. I convinced myself it was time to make the leap after reading your article on the new Feature Update (Issue 640, page 60). I think I got the timing just right, particularly with the addition of two tools I use a lot in Windows 10 – creating Start menu folders and pinning files to taskbar icons. I also love the new-look Task Manager – it makes much more…

Last December, I bought a Samsung Galaxy Tab S7 (pictured) for my wife’s Christmas present. It’s a super device with great sound, but in June it stopped charging, then finally died completely. Amazon told me they hadn’t sold the tablet to me directly, so I had to contact the seller who was responsible, called Virtos. Amazon rejected my claim for a repair or replacement because more than two weeks had passed since purchase. Eventually Amazon wrote to Virtos, who said I was out of time for a refund, repair or replacement. I then spent a lot of time writing letters concerning my consumer rights, but Amazon just went round and round in circles. Finally, I contacted Samsung directly – and what a difference it made. They sent a DPD van…

What can I use to combine two video files? Q I have some video files in MP4 format that were produced from a DVD of some old 8mm home movies. I’d like to join two of the files together and save the combined video separately. Is there a built-in way to do this in Windows 10 or can you suggest a simple video-editing program that can? Campbell Russell A You can easily combine two MP4 files into one video by using the Photos app in Windows 10. This saves you having to download a video-editing program, which may have lots of advanced features that makes it confusing to use. Open the Photos app from the Start menu and click the Video Editor tab in the top-left corner. Click the ‘New…

Small wonder The range in prices between computers that run Windows 11 is vast. At one end of the spectrum, there are desktop PCs and laptops that can cost £2,000 and more. And at the other we see devices like the Beelink U59 N5105 mini PC, which is available directly from Chinese manufacturer Beelink for £199, or from Amazon for £254 (www.snipca.com/43397). Saves you space and money, and copes well with light Windows tasks Obviously you aren’t going to get the same performance from a £200 mini PC that you’d get from a desktop PC that costs 10 times as much, but if your needs are modest, the U59 runs Windows 11 surprisingly well. Inside its tiny case (126x113x40mm) it has a four-core Intel Celeron N5105 processor, backed up with…

Smooth operator With Apple still charging a premium for even its most basic new iPhone (see our review of the iPhone 14 opposite), it’s always worthwhile seeing what Android rivals are offering. Chinese smartphone manufacturer Honor has launched the new Honor 70 at a tad over half the price of the iPhone 14 on Amazon. It’s usually also worth checking out the price when buying directly from Honor (www.snipca.com/43436). At the time of writing it was available for £500, and comes with a case and a set of wireless earbuds included. Considering the price, there are no real downsides You may remember we reviewed this phone’s predecessor, the Honor 50, back in Issue 622. This new model has moved on more in certain aspects than others. For example, it’s powered…

Signify, the world leader in connected LED lighting systems, has released a new range of Philips Hue smart-lighting products that help to create a more immersive entertainment experience for gaming. In this competition, we’re giving away two starter kits each containing a Philips Hue Play Gradient Lightstrip for your PC (main picture), and a Hue Bridge (right). Once set up, the lightstrips produce ever-changing lights to reflect the content on your screen, adding drama and excitement to whatever game you’re playing. The lightstrips attach to the back of curved or straight monitors with the included mounts, and creates a halo effect when the monitor is placed close to a wall. It comes in three sizes: 24-27 inches and 32-34 inches for single monitors, and 32-34 inches for three-monitor setups. To…

As I get older and my hands more jittery, I find it harder to highlight words letter by letter using my mouse. So I’m relieved to have found a trick that lets you highlight text word by word, so you don’t have to stop precisely after a letter. If that sounds confusing, just open a document and highlight text in the usual way – by holding down your left mouse button and dragging across. You have to release the button at the correct moment after a letter to finish selecting. Now try double-clicking the first word you want to select, then without releasing the click drag across the text. You should see that the highlighted text jumps from word to word – not by letter to letter. This makes it…

WINDOWS 10 & 11 Reset your registry to reverse any changes It’s reasonably easy to reset your registry to its default state, reversing any changes you’ve made to its appearance, such as the font size or position of windows. First, press Windows key+R to open the Run box, then type regedit and press OK, then Yes. Next, navigate to HKEY_CURRENT_ USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\ CurrentVersion\Applets\Regedit, or copy this path from www.snipca.com/43535 and paste it into the registry editor’s address bar (1 in our screenshot below). Now right-click both LastKey and View on the right and select Delete 2. Click ‘Yes’ when asked to confirm, then close the registry editor and restart your PC. WINDOWS 11 Master the redesigned Task Manager The tool that received the biggest redesign in version 22H2 of Windows 11…

What is it? Amazon’s new ebook reader that you can write on. What - with a pen? No, silly. It has a stylus that Amazon claims lets you “read and write as naturally as you do on paper”. It’s being released on 30 November, but you can pre-order now from www.snipca.com/43510. So you can scribble over ebooks? Well, no – you can’t obscure what’s written in them. But what you can do is take notes as you read. These are automatically organised by book, keeping them in one place so you can easily return to them, and send them by email over 2.4GHz or 5.0GHz Wi-Fi. Is that easy to do? It certainly looks so on Amazon’s video (www.snipca.com/43512, pictured below). You start taking notes by tapping the screen with…

1080p High-definition video of 1920x1080 pixels. 4K Video with a resolution of at least 3840x2160 pixels. 720p A resolution of highdefinition video: 1280x720 pixels. Administrator Someone who can make changes to a computer that will affect others who also use it. ADSL Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line. A technology that converts a standard phone line into a broadband internet connection. AI Artificial Intelligence. Intelligence demonstrated by a machine rather than a human being. Aluminosilicate glass Chemically strengthened glass to protect against impact and scratches. Bandwidth A measure of how much data can be transferred through a connection at one time. Benchmarking Comparing software and products with an accepted standard. BIOS Basic Input-Output System. Software built into every PC that connects the vital components. Bloatware Unwanted software built into a new device.…

SAMSUNG SHOWS OFF ‘SLIDEABLE’ TABLET Samsung has shown off a ‘slideable’ tablet (pictured) with a screen that extends from 13 to 17 inches. It’s just a concept at the moment, but the company says that slideable screens might eventually replace the foldable screens in its own Galaxy Z Flip and Galaxy Z Fold phones. Watch at www.snipca.com/43502. NHS APP DOWNLOADED 30 MILLION TIMES The NHS app has now been downloaded 30 million times in England since launching in 2018. You can use it to book GP appointments, order prescriptions and download Covid passes. Nearly 450,000 people also used it to register organ donations between September 2021 and August 2022, a rise of 69 per cent from the previous year. Read more and get the app from www.snipca.com/43506. TOMORROW’S WORLD It’s…

Amazon has launched a new Fire HD tablet with a six-core processor that it claims is 30-per-cent faster than the previous Fire HD, which had four cores. The new Fire HD 8 also improves battery life – albeit by only one hour – from 12 to 13 hours, and has a tougher screen made from aluminosilicate glass. Other than that, it’s roughly the same device as the last edition of the Fire HD 8, released in 2020. It has the same eight-inch screen, two-megapixel front and rear cameras, and microSD card slot for up to 1TB of extra storage. Amazon Prime members can watch Prime Video on the tablet, and also get free and unlimited full-resolution photo storage and 5GB video storage. As before, it charges via USB-C, has 2GB…

Is £174 a decent refund after five years’ use? LEAD CASE Q I’m having real problems with Currys concerning the 2015 MacBook Pro (pictured) that I bought in May 2017 for £1,100. The screen developed a fault and Apple then recalled the laptops because it said the problem is inherent. Currys says it can’t repair it, and wants me to keep the laptop and give me £174. Doesn’t the Consumer Rights Act (CRA) say a retailer has to try to repair a device? And is £174 a fair refund after five years of use? Jackie Blake A Retailers are allowed to attempt a repair, but they don’t have to, so Currys can offer money back instead. It’s harder to answer whether £174 represents an acceptable refund. The CRA states that…

The UK’s National Archives, based at Kew, offers access to many of its records through subscription-based websites such as Ancestry, Find my past and The Genealogist. Perhaps less wellknown are the free records available on the Archives’ own website, provided as digital microfilms that you can search and download. Look through the A-Z of documents There are 79 wide-ranging collections, sourced from Government departments including the Admiralty, the War Office, the Home Office, the Treasury and the Foreign Office. To name just five, you’ll find ‘Records of service of the Coastguard 1816-1947’; ‘Lists of officers in the Royal Marines 1760-1886’; ‘Home Office: Convict Transportation Registers’; ‘War Office: Long Service and Good Conduct Awards, Registers’ (covering 1831-1953); and the ‘War Office: Records of Officers’ Services’ registers’. Here, I’ll explore the Coastguard…

Many speed sites, such as www.speedtest.net, test how fast your internet connection is – and this is fine for checking your broadband speed. But what they don’t do is test how fast your actual Wi-Fi network is at home. This should be much faster than broadband, and is crucial for tasks you perform on your local network, such as copying files to and from a NAS drive. I need to measure network speeds when testing routers, so I use TamoSoft’s free Throughput Test. I also use it around my house to identify Wi-Fi dead spots. TamoSoft requires two components: a server and a client. The former is the computer that the test data is sent to and from; the client is the device that starts the test and measures the…

Better by some distance This kit solves the common problem of poor Wi-Fi coverage by combining a mesh Wi-Fi system with wired powerline that uses your home’s existing electrical wiring to transfer data between the two router units. This leaves the Wi-Fi free to handle your PCs, TVs, phones and tablets. Powerline networking is often a good option for larger homes, with multiple floors and thick walls. Reaches the parts standard routers cannot reach The Zen WiFi includes two identical mesh routers, which support dual-band Wi-Fi 6 with a top speed of 1.8Gbps. That’s backed up by the powerline wired connection, which provides a speed of 1.3Gbps. Those rates are relatively modest, but the focus is on reliability rather than pure speed, though it’s still fast enough to cope with…

Fire it up Readers will be well aware of Chinese manufacturer Xiaomi thanks to its Android smartphones that we often review, but this is the first time we’ve seen it move from small-screen technology to large-screen TVs. And it has made the transition with some aplomb, teaming up with Amazon to produce an affordable range of sets that don’t set out to reinvent smart TV, but instead comes with Amazon’s Fire TV service – which brings together subscription services such as Amazon Prime Video, Netflix and Disney+ with catch-up services like BBC iPlayer. It’s a smart move, helping keep the price of the 43in model reviewed here down to an affordable £299. If you want to go larger, there’s a 50in screen for £349 and a 55in model for £399.…

Hardware doesn’t get slower as it ages. Rather, we demand more and more of it by installing software and updates which its components were never designed to handle. In essence, it takes longer for the same hardware to process the increased number of instructions being thrown at it, and inevitably it feels like it’s running more slowly – even though, technically, it’s running as quickly as it ever was. Manufacturers eventually stop supporting old devices because doing so would hold back owners of newer, ‘faster’ hardware – and, at that point, you must make a decision. Do you buy a new device? Keep running your existing device with out-of-date software? Or install a new operating system? Here, we’re going to take the third option. We have a second-generation Nexus 7…

CHROME Translate selected text on web pages Chrome 106, which was released on 27 September, doesn’t introduce any notable new features – though we have heard some exciting things about version 107. However, it does add a hidden ‘experiment’ that gives you the useful ability to translate selected text on web pages. Currently, the browser lets you translate an entire page into English – or your preferred language – but with the new option you can translate specific sections of foreign text. Simply highlight the relevant passage, then right-click it and choose ‘Translate to English’ (see screenshot below). To activate the experiment, type chrome:flags into the browser’s address bar then press Enter. Find the entry Desktop Partial Translate, select Enabled in the dropdown menu next to it and click Relaunch.…

MICROSOFT OFFICE Add ‘Publish as PDF’ option to toolbar If you often have to convert Word documents, Excel spreadsheets or PowerPoint presentations into PDFs, it might make sense to add this option to the Quick Access Toolbar, which sits above the ribbon at the very top. To do this, click File in one of the three programs, then Options at the bottom. Now click Quick Access Toolbar in the left-hand menu, and in the ‘Choose commands from’ dropdown menu select All Commands (1 in our screenshot). Next, scroll down the list below to find and select ‘Publish as PDF or XPS’ 2, then click Add 3 in the middle and you’ll see the option appear in the box on the right. Click OK, then check the Quick Access Toolbar and…

Google will soon warn you if your phone number, email address or home address show up in search results (see screenshot 1). Clicking the warning will show you the results Google has found 2. You can click a ‘Request to remove’ button to ask Google to remove the information from its results. However, to remove the details from the internet completely, you’ll have to contact the website they appear on. Google said on Twitter (www.snipca.com/43528) that it will start sending alerts from early next year, initially in the US, and that it’s “opt in” – meaning you’ll have to agree to receive the warnings. The alerts are part of Google’s forthcoming ‘Results About You’ tool, which lets you request the removal of personal info you’ve found online. The tool will…

TalkTalk has called on the Government to launch a national campaign promoting the benefits of full-fibre broadband in order to encourage more people to sign up for it. The company warned that without a “full-fibre first approach” from the Government, regulator Ofcom and other providers, the UK could end up “falling behind the rest of the world”, while individuals face losing out on the advantages of fast broadband. It said in a report (www.snipca.com/43470) that more focus should be placed on how many people actually upgrade to full-fibre speeds, not just on how many households are able to get it. Without urgent action, it claimed that more than a third of Brits would be left out of the “full-fibre revolution”, and one million people wouldn’t be able to rejoin the…

Pointless to choose hard drive when upgrading old PC… Issue 641’s ‘Question of the Fortnight’ (pictured) raised some interesting points about the relative merits of hard drives and SSDs and you’re undoubtedly right that the former are much cheaper per gigabyte than the latter. But it seems pointless to me to choose a hard drive over an SSD when upgrading an old computer. It’s true that the upfront cost saves you about £50, but think about it spread over five years, by when your hard drive would probably have run out of life. Viewed this way, buying an SSD costs you just an extra £10 a year, and you won’t have to go through the hassle of replacing it as early. I’ve installed SSDs in three of my ageing machines,…

One of the obstacles in claiming a decent refund for a broken device is proving what caused the flaw, as reader Michael Newton has found out. He contacted us not knowing whether to chase John Lewis or Apple for help when his wife’s iPhone 8 (pictured) stopped working after it was updated to iOS 15 (see Issue 636). Had the update broken the device, then Apple would have been responsible. But the company said the phone was unrepairable, and insisted Michael talk to John Lewis, which had sold it to him in 2019. While we were investigating, a local shop actually managed to fix the phone, despite Apple saying it was beyond help. The shop charged Michael £125, so he asked John Lewis to refund that amount. However, it agreed…

AUDIO EDITOR Audacity 3.2 www.snipca.com/43504 What you need: Windows 7, 8.1, 10 or 11, macOS or Linux Described as a “gigantic release” by the developer, Audacity 3.2 breathes new life into the popular audio editor, which has been around for more than 22 years. The program’s interface has been streamlined and simplified, and new options bring it closer to being a professional digital audio workstation (DAW). Regardless of your level of experience, Audacity is the best free tool for editing audio files, and it’s now even better. The most exciting new feature is support for ‘real-time’ effects, which you can now apply to entire tracks to enhance and experiment with their sound. These are installed as plugins. Click the Effect menu and choose Add Real-time Effects (or just press E…

‘Tesco’ app that wants to make phone calls If Google approves an app for its Play Store, you’ll see ‘Verified by Play Protect’. It’s there in screenshot 1 for this app that appears to be from Tesco. It must be genuine then, yes? No. Despite appearances, it has absolutely nothing to do with the supermarket giant. Google Play Protect apparently “checks your apps and devices for harmful behaviour” and “warns you about potentially harmful apps”. So perhaps someone at Google can explain why this shopping app asks for permission to access your photos and make phone calls as soon as you launch it 2? If using the name of one of the world’s biggest supermarket brands wasn’t enough to trigger the Google alarms, there are other red flags. That logo,…

Great camera work The iPhone 14 is the basic version of Apple’s latest range of smartphone models and comes with a 6.1in screen. There’s also the iPhone 14 Plus with a larger 6.7in screen, and two Pro models (the Pro and the Pro Max), which come with 6.1in and 6.7in screens respectively, but contain a few more new features. As you move up the range, the phones get more expensive, with the Pro Max starting at £1,199. It doesn’t reinvent the wheel, but upgrades to the camera make it worth considering Back to the iPhone 14, then, and it’s surprising how little has changed since the iPhone 13. It looks identical, uses the processor from last year’s Pro models and comes with the same screen. There are some other internal…

LAPTOP Lenovo Yoga 6 Gen 7 £780 from www.snipca.com/42509 Tested Issue 637 Lenovo’s new laptop has an amazing screen, a fast processor and lasts 15 hours on a single charge. It has all the ports you need, including two USB-C, two USB 3.0 and HDMI. At £663. It represents stunning value. ALTERNATIVE Dell XPS 13 New Intel CPUs and a taller screen make this a more powerful, all-round slim laptop. Prices start at £949 from www.snipca.com/42979 ANDROID TABLET Samsung Galaxy Tab S8 £649 from www.snipca.com/42211 Tested Issue 634 Samsung has replaced its own Tab S7+ to become our favourite Android tablet. It’s fast with a stunning 11in screen, and has a longer battery life than the iPad. This model gives you 128GB – you’ll need to pay £699 for 256GB.…

ANDROID & iOS Hide your online status in WhatsApp In Issue 635 (page 44), we explained how you can hide your ‘Last seen’ status in WhatsApp to stop people knowing when you last used the chat app. This privacy feature has now been expanded to let you conceal that you’re online, allowing you to read, write and send messages without being drawn into unwanted conversations. To access the new setting on your Android phone, tap the three-dot ‘More options’ icon and choose Settings, then Account and select Privacy. On your iPhone, tap Settings, Account then Privacy. Press ‘Last seen and online’ and choose either Nobody or ‘My contacts except…’ under ‘Who can see my last seen’. With the second option, select the people you want to hide your online status…

Create an email signature for your club It’s easy to create a plain-text signature in whichever email program you use, but spending the time to make a graphical signature gives your messages a professional touch and adds credibility to your club. It’s also a great way for members to quickly identify official club messages among the deluge of messages they receive. Here, we’ll explain how to do this using the free online design tool Canva. Select a signature template First, create an account at www.canva.com. This is free, though some of the email templates require a paid-for Pro membership (these are indicated by a small crown icon in the template’s thumbnail image). There are, however, enough free email templates to create an impressive signature. Canva also lets you log in…

How can I open TV Bro app? Q I wanted to use the TV Bro app (www.snipca.com/42469) after reading about it in your Cover Feature on the best apps for smart TVs (Issue 636, page 56). I installed it on my Samsung tablet, running Android 6, but all it does is launch Sky News on YouTube. I can’t watch anything else on it. What’s going wrong? Christopher Clayton A TV Bro is a web browser for smart TVs running the Google TV operating system (OS), rather than for tablets. The reason you might want to install it on your TV is because (as we mentioned in our Cover Feature) Google’s smart TV OS doesn’t come with a web browser, meaning you won’t be able to view web pages or browse…

As the weather gets colder and energy bills more expensive (though thankfully not as high as they could have got), like many people in the UK, I’ve become obsessed with my power consumption. Does leaving my TV on standby use more electricity than switching it off and on again? Will turning the fridge down a couple of notches conserve power without spoiling the cheese? And should I remove the plug from my convection heater lest I be tempted to use it when winter bites? Although I felt like I was being told off, this was useful information Particularly concerning is my laptop, which is active and connected to the mains for at least 10 hours a day. That may seem silly on my part, but its battery rapidly runs down…