Indice dei contenuti per June 2016 in Computer Shopper

AS A FORMER teacher, education is still something close to my heart, even though technology now dominates my affections. So when the Raspberry Pi first burst on to the scene, I was intrigued to see if this tiny board stood a chance at fulfilling its objective: to get kids coding and going hands-on with computer hardware. And boy, has it achieved this goal, with eight million units sold, and thousands of young people inspired to create their own Pi projects. But as you’ll see from our Raspberry Pi special starting on page 104, it’s not just the younger generation who can benefit from the £30 device. We’ve got a whole range of Pi projects for you to try out, whether with your kids, grandkids or just for your own satisfaction.…

Smart Security delivers top protection from the word go with its default settings. The sleek user interface allows you to easily set up routine tasks or customise your security profile with over 150 detailed settings. New Banking & Payment Protection ensures that you’re always doing your online banking and shopping in a secure browsing environment, keeping your accounts and your money safe. Smart Security detects and destroys all forms of digital threats, including viruses, rootkits, spyware and worms. The antiphishing feature keeps your usernames, passwords and other sensitive information safe from illegitimate websites. Botnet Protection protects against botnet malware, preventing spam and network attacks being launched from your computer. The enhanced Exploit Blocker protects you against attacks specifically designed to evade anti-virus detection. Even with its extensive protection Smart Security…

Do you wish your computer was faster when booting and loading applications? Thanks to Crucial, you can achieve your dream of a faster PC or laptop with the BX200 SSD. The writer of our Star Letter will be awarded one of these solid-state devices, which can be installed in a desktop PC or a laptop. This fast SSD is 15 times faster than a hard disk, and will make your computer boot incredibly quickly and make applications load faster. With 480GB of storage, there’s plenty of room for Windows and all your apps, too. STAR PRIZE 480GB SSD…

David Ludlow RANTS Faced with a moral dilemma and a life-or-death situation, would you put your trust in a computer? No, neither would we GOOD NEWS, EVERYBODY: you no longer need to crash your car yourself, as a computer can now do it for you. It was bound to happen sooner or later, but when Google’s self-driving car recently hit a bus, it brought home that self-driving cars don’t automatically make our roads safe. Admittedly, the crash only took place at a rather sedate 2mph; it was a combination of operator error and software error; and nobody was hurt. However, the car still made the definite decision to move forwards and hit the bus, and Google has taken the blame in this case. That’s fine, but let’s face it, computers…

APPLE HAS GONE to the public with a dilemma. The hardware firm had been pressurised by US authorities as part of the investigation into the San Bernardino terrorist attack in December. The authorities issued a court order, demanding Apple provide access to an iPhone 5c via its passkey, which Apple refused to do. According to the FBI, its agents needed to access the iPhone’s data to assess whether the attackers were working alone or with others, and had plans for further attacks. Apple warned that what the US government wanted – a front door key to a suspect’s phone – would set a dangerous precedent and could effectively ruin computer security for everybody, for ever. But the dilemma was taken from Apple’s hands before it reached a court decision. The…

£600 inc VAT • From www.palicomp.co.uk VERDICT An affordable, capable and visually striking gaming machine, but the competition offers even better value PALICOMP KNOWS HOW to build a dependable, budget-friendly gaming PC; its £500 AMD Shockwave (Shopper 335) was a bargain when it was released last year, and remains so today. The new i3 Aurora, named for both its processor and its swirling vinyl decorations, is a bit of a pricier proposition, but still remains in reach of entry-level buyers. It’s more eye-catching than most budget PCs. The vinyl design wraps right around the case, forming near-unbroken swooshes of red (blue or green options are also available) over the visible panels. Some may think this garish, but it’s no more brash than the light show of LEDs on certain higher-end…

£1,500 inc VAT • From www.yoyotech.co.uk VERDICT Powerful but quiet, the Warbird RS12 is a great gaming rig with plenty of extras AT £1,500, THE Warbird RS12 is more than twice as expensive as the preceding Warbird RS10 (Shopper 333), but it comes packed with the kind of hardware that ensures it’s just as much of a smart buy for gaming enthusiasts. The build is a strong blend of tasteful looks and extensive functionality. There are four USB ports – two USB3, two USB2 – conveniently located at the front of the all-black case, and the MSI Z170A-G43 housed within grants an additional four USB3 and two USB2 ports, plus an S/PDIF connector for high-end audio equipment and a PS/2 socket. Between the motherboard and the graphics card are a…

£300 inc VAT • From www.carphonewarehouse.com VERDICT This selfie specialist’s sluggish chipset and mediocre battery prevent it from standing out LAST YEAR’S XPERIA M4 Aqua was a great mid-range smartphone, but Sony has gone upmarket for its latest M series entry. The Xperia M5 not only costs about £100 more than the M4 Aqua, it also comes with a much higher specification, including a rear 21.2-megapixel camera, a huge 13-megapixel front-facing camera and a 5in Full HD display. This puts it in competition with Google’s Nexus 5X and Samsung’s Galaxy S5 Neo, but Sony’s handset is more attractive; its glossy frame, reinforced corners and frosted rear glass mean the M5 is almost the spitting image of the former flagship Xperia Z3+. With this kind of build quality, the plastic and…

VERDICT Beautifully conceived and expertly realised, the Fujifilm X70 is a gem of a camera THE FUJIFILM X70 is everything we want from a camera. At its heart is an APS-C sensor – the same size that’s used in consumer SLRs. This sensor and the f/2.8 lens are equivalent to an f/4.2 lens on a full-frame camera, which puts it in the upper echelons of compact cameras for image quality. There are chunky aluminium dials for exposure compensation and shutter speed, and aperture control is available on a lens ring. A second lens ring can be assigned to ISO speed and various other duties when it’s not controlling manual focus. Around the back there’s an articulated touchscreen. That might not sound quite as impressive as the big sensor or the…

£100 inc VAT • From www.amazon.co.uk VERDICT A rock-solid fit is let down by poor battery life and an unstylish design FOR ALL FITNESS and running earphones, the fit is key. There’s nothing worse than having a pair of earphones fall out or become tangled during a workout. In this regard, the Soul Run Free Pro does well. Our initial worry was that their bullet shape would make the earbuds protrude, giving the cable greater leverage to pull down and away from your ears – an issue we had with the SMS Audio In-Ear Wireless. However, the Run Free Pro comes with three wingtips designed to hold the earbuds in place, plus three silicone tip sizes to fit different ears. Still, we’re not enamoured by that protruding design; the earbuds…

£243 inc VAT • From www.ebuyer.com VERDICT Not for novice users, but for SMEs or workgroups the DiskStation DS216+ is a superb NAS device EVERY SYNOLOGY NAS that passes through these hallowed walls suffers from the success of its predecessor. The range has been on such solid footing now, with the DS215J getting a Best Buy rating back in Shopper 328 despite being a budget model, that the bar the company has set itself is very high. Fortunately, the DS216+ delivers. Clearly aimed at a different audience, the Plus range of drives is the domain of the small enterprise or workgroup, though a large family or heavy home user might find it more useful than a cheaper model. The dual-bay NAS comes with the usual Synology snap-in-place easy disc installation.…

01 A smartphone’s operating system (OS) dictates its basic features and which third-party software you can install. There are three main contenders: Apple’s iOS, which is found on the iPhone, Google’s Android, which is used by various handset manufacturers, and Windows Phone, which is mainly used on Lumia phones. Apple iOS and Google Android have the most apps available but Windows Phone is slowly catching up. 02 All smartphones have colour screens, but their resolutions vary. Basic models have 800x480 pixels, but text can be indistinct. Look for a display that has at least 1,280x720 pixels so it’s easy to browse web pages. Don’t worry too much about built-in media players or Office document editors; you can always install apps to replace these with better versions later. The image quality…

01 A basic 24in LCD monitor costs around £100. It will be fine for typical Windows work but is likely to have poor viewing angles, so you’ll need to sit straight on for the best picture quality. Its colour accuracy may not be very good, either. 02 A VGA input lets you use the monitor with any PC, but the quality may not be as good as it is over DVI or HDMI. Both are digital connections and require a compatible graphics card but they avoid the need for digital-to-analogue or analogue-todigital conversions, which can reduce image quality. A digital connection achieves the best picture automatically, so you won’t have to adjust clock or phase settings as you do with analogue connections. Many DVI and all HDMI connections support HDCP,…

01 Media streamers have come a long way from the hard disk-based set-top boxes of a few years ago. They now come in two main forms: flash drive-sized dongles that plug directly into the HDMI port in the back of your TV, and larger microconsoles that sit under it. Whichever model you choose, it will stream content from the internet rather than storing media files locally. 02 Most streamers use their own operating system, which you can navigate with a bundled remote control, but Google’s Chromecast dongle requires a paired smartphone, tablet or laptop to stream content on the big screen. If you’re looking to set up Netflix for someone who doesn’t have a smartphone, you should buy a standalone streamer such as a Roku or Amazon Fire TV device.…

01 A basic 1TB internal hard disk should cost around £40. This will be fast enough for general use and will provide enough storage for most users. Make sure the hard disk you choose has the appropriate interface type for your PC. Some mechanical hard disks still come with SATA2 interfaces, but newer models and most solid-state drives (SSDs) have faster SATA3 interfaces. You’ll need a motherboard with a SATA3 port if you want to benefit from SATA3’s faster speeds; SATA3 disks will work with SATA2 ports but can only transfer files at SATA2 speeds. 02 SSDs can make the most of SATA3’s extra bandwidth for fast file transfers. They use flash memory similar to that found in USB flash drives, and although they tend to provide less capacity than…

ABELSSOFT UNDELETER 2016 is a free tool for recovering accidentally deleted files. A clear and straightforward interface helps you to get started right away. Just point the program at the drive or device containing your lost files, optionally choose the file type (images, audio, documents) and click Next to begin. Abelssoft Undeleter 2016 supports two scanning methods. Smart Scan is fast (it usually checks your drive in seconds), but may miss some files; Deep Scan finds every remaining fragment of your data, but could take much, much longer. Select your preferred option, click Start, and scanning begins. Any recoverable files are listed as they’re found. The final report can be lengthy, but fortunately there’s a Search box to help you drill down to your lost files. Once you’re ready to…

Chat and Communication Digsby (Build 92) Access all your instant messaging services from one application; there’s support for Windows Live!, Yahoo!, AIM, Google Talk, ICQ and Jabber. Evernote 5.9.6 Store your notes, ideas and plans in the cloud, and synchronise them between computers. Mozilla Thunderbird 38.6 A powerful email client from the organisation best known for the Firefox web browser. Postbox Express 1.0.1 An email client that provides a comprehensive array of tools to help you manage your messages more easily. UPDATED Skype for Windows 7.21 Make internet voice and video calls for free, and buy credit to make calls to mobiles and landlines. Trillian 5.6 Use all your instant messaging accounts with one application; this program has support for Windows Live!, AIM, Yahoo! and Google Talk. Customisation 7 Taskbar…

£679 inc VAT • From www.apple.com/uk VERDICT The iPad Pro is powerful, flexible and has an amazing screen: if it does what you need it’s a brilliant choice, but it won’t suit everyone THE IPAD PRO may look like an oversized iPad Air 2, but once you pick it up and see how light it is (the Wi-Fi model weighs just 713g), it doesn’t feel unwieldy. It has roughly the same footprint as the 13.3in MacBook Pro, only it’s a lot lighter and slimmer. You get the big screen you’d expect from a laptop, but the thinness and light weight you’d expect from an iPad. DISPLAY At 12.9in, the iPad Pro’s screen is the biggest of any Apple tablet. With a whopping 2,732x2,048 resolution, it has the same 264ppi pixel…

£150 inc VAT • From www.ebuyer.com VERDICT Ditching superfluous features makes the Shield Tablet K1 one of the best sub-£200 Android tablets you can buy THE ORIGINAL SHIELD Tablet, released in 2014, was a powerful gaming tablet that packed in a lot of extra value if you happened to own an Nvidia graphics card. Unfortunately, a battery-overheating issue forced the company to recall, and eventually withdraw, the device from sale. The Shield Tablet is now back as the K1, an updated version with a battery that won’t blow up unexpectedly. DESIGN Battery aside, the differences between the K1 and the original Shield Tablet are mostly skin deep. The K1 has a silver Shield logo on the rear rather than a shiny black one, the edges of the tablet are matte,…

THE RASPBERRY PI birthday party in Cambridge was a blast. The rooms, workshops and talks were crammed with people and projects, and all manner of Pi-created mayhem was on display. Children scurried round clutching Pi boards and other accessories, and clustered around a cardboard cut-out of Tim Peake. You could drink Raspberry Pi Irration Ale, if you were old enough, and you could buy enough kit to turn your £30 Raspberry Pi 3 into anything from a theremin to a dance mat to a table-top arcade machine. There was a real spirit of invention in the air, and everybody wanted to see what everyone else had made. Pi founder Eben Upton, who told us he looked forward to going to secondary school because there was one other fan of computers…

There’s no denying that the Raspberry Pi is one of the most popular personal computers on the market, with sales reaching eight million in February of this year. The device has proved perfect for coding beginners and techies who want a bit of fun. Perhaps you’ve already got a Pi, and you may be thinking of upgrading to the third-generation model, which has only just landed. However, it’s always nice to try something new, so here are some Raspberry Pi alternatives worth considering. BeagleBone Black PRICE £39 inc VAT • uk.rs-online.com BeagleBone will load up Linux in just a few seconds, and you only need a single USB connection to get into development. What’s more, it runs Debian, Ubuntu and Android out of the box, so you won’t need to…

Q We have had two tablets for about three years, an Asus EeePad T101 and a Motorola Zoom. Both tablets have updated over time to Android 4.0.3, and that is as far as they have gone. We are now getting messages along the lines of “your device isn’t compatible with this version” when trying to download the ITV Hub and other apps. Are these tablets obsolete after only three years? Have Asus and Motorola abandoned us? Are other tablets that we buy now going to have only a short life? Or is there some way to update Android without the backing of the manufacturers? I have a second issue regarding my desktop PC, which I’ve recently updated to Windows 10. At the same time I decided to upgrade to a…

Clive Webster has been tinkering with computers ever since Windows 98 forced him to manually install his drivers clive@computershopper.co.uk WELCOME TO THE ZONE. That presentation is super-slick; your newsletter has never looked so good; Excel has finally submitted to your merciless will; and your tricky first novel has sprung to life. But now the sun’s fading and you can’t quite read your frantic scribbles, or find that important whatchamacallit. Better turn the lights on. Now, what was that breakthrough thought you just had? No? Bad luck, you have left The Zone. Thankfully, you don’t have to rage against the dying of the natural light with this month’s Advanced Projects, where we help you build an auto lighting system with Arduino. GETTING STARTED: THE PARTS We’ve paired an Arduino Micro with…

Madeline Bennett “A copy of The Martian for tips in case I get stranded” Seth Barton “A dictaphone to record my Captain’s log” Lee Bell “McAfee’s self-installing SiteAdvisor browser bar in the hope that it never returns” James Archer “My laptop; in the vaccuum of space, I would finally be spared the fan noise” Chris Merriman “Every product that Apple has ever made, to throw out of the airlock” David Ludlow “A killer gaming laptop – in zero g who wants an ultra-portable?” Katharine Byrne “My oldest Nokia brick phone, because that’s the only handset likely to survive” Richard Easton “An action camera to capture my gnarly space jumps” David Neal “A return ticket and a Nintendo GameBoy”…

TO XP OR NOT TO XP? Is anybody else as fed up as I am with all the bovine manure about how nobody should use Windows XP any more, and we should all upgrade to Windows 10? Many older machines are simply incapable of running the later versions of Windows, but that is no reason why they should be consigned to the scrap heap (actually the local recycling plant). All right, XP is no longer getting security updates from Microsoft, but used sensibly with a good anti-virus package and malware scanner at home behind a NAT router, the probability of it being hacked is almost zero. If an XP computer is hacked, it should not seriously impact anyone other than the PC owner, providing they have the aforementioned anti-virus and…

LAST MONTH WE ended halfway through my list of vintage computers that I needed to move out of the garage. The question was: where to? If you’re an aficionado of such artefacts, the prospect of taking them all to the tip will be anathema. The solution presented itself while sitting in the pub after a duathlon race. The legs have a mind of their own after racing 10 hilly miles. I was rehydrating and chatting to fellow competitor Andrew Meese, and it turned out that he’s a programmer with a passion for old computers. He has quite a collection already, but not many that would be duplicated by giving a home to my refugees. The Timex Spectrum described last month had mouth-watering appeal only surpassed by the rarest item in…

When wearables hit the mainstream earlier this decade, many sneered at the idea of the technology being anything more than a flash in the pan. However, almost four years after the first smartwatch – the Pebble – launched via Kickstarter and eventually became the most funded venture ever, we’ve seen a flood of devices launched by tech companies keen to get on board. This far down the line, it’s safe to say that wearables are here to stay. But as they become more prolific, it’s likely they will take different forms as newer generations of devices are released, growing beyond the standard smartwatches that we see in the market today. We got a feel for this new wave of wearables at London’s Wearable Technology Show in March, giving us a…

February 16 Magistrate Sheri Pym of the US District Court of Central California orders Apple to help the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) unlock an Apple 5c February 17 Tim Cook publishes his open letter to consumers, defending their right to privacy and explaining his position. Jan Koum, CEO of WhatsApp, and Google CEO Sundar Pichai publicly support Apple February 19 John McAfee offers to do the deed for Apple or eat a shoe. US Justice Department files motion to force Apple’s compliance with the FBI March 2 American Civil Liberties Union files an amicus brief in support of Apple March3 The Information Technology Industry Council, which boasts Microsoft and Cisco among its members, follows suit March 10 The US Justice Department angrily rejects Apple’s attempts to vacate the order…

MOST GAMING PCs express their flamboyance with LEDs, but for its dual-GPU rig, Falcon has gone for a rather different decoration: a textured vinyl decal of the Arnie-bothering Predator himself. This won’t be to everyone’s tastes, especially those who prefer to balance their PC’s power with a tastefully understated case design. Still, we like how the decal contrasts with the clean, white case, creating a colour scheme (or lack thereof) that continues on the inside as well, with two white Asus-made Nvidia GeForce GTX 970s in the titular Scalable Link Interface (SLI) configuration. This makes it tricky to access the PCI-E x1 and legacy PCI slots, and it’s even harder to access the PSU and 1TB hard drive, which are tucked away under a cover. Still, it’s easy to get…

£569 inc VAT • From www.carphonewarehouse.com VERDICT Its superb screen, top-notch camera and impressive battery life make the waterproof Galaxy S7 the best flagship smartphone you can get WHILE LAST YEAR’S Samsung Galaxy S6 was a much-improved handset, it still suffered from some questionable design choices, such as the removal of SD card support. With the Galaxy S7 – and its curved-display phablet cousin, the Galaxy S7 Edge – Samsung is aiming to fix previous issues while maintaining the flagship series’ strengths. This means that the S7 is more of a refinement of the S6 than an overhaul, with the two phones looking rather similar. This is fine with us, as the S6 was one of the best-looking phones we’d seen, and the S7 remains just as gorgeous. Admittedly, our…

£120 inc VAT • From www.htc.com/uk VERDICT It’s beautifully designed, but slow performance and a poor camera make this a dotty disappointment SAY WHAT YOU will about HTC’s ailing smartphone business, but its design team has been firing on all cylinders lately – as evident in the Desire 530’s beautifully dotty ‘micro splash’ finish. HTC has used a specially designed nozzle to create a unique, paint-speckled polycarbonate shell. It really does make the Desire 530 stand out from its budget competitors, and its sleek, 8.3mm profile also feels more modern and better made than, say, the squat 2nd Gen Motorola Moto E. With such a gorgeous design at its disposal, it seems odd that the Desire 530 is also available in plain old block grey and white models, like the…

£80 inc VAT • From www.very.co.uk VERDICT If you have a compatible Galaxy handset, the Gear VR is a compelling first step into virtual reality SAMSUNG HAS STRUCK a deal with Oculus, arguably the leaders in virtual-reality tech, to bring this – the consumer edition of the Gear VR headset – to the masses. Unlike Oculus’ Rift headset, however, it forgoes an internal display and processor in favour of turning your Galaxy smartphone into a bona fide VR device. The Gear VR is largely similar to the Innovator Edition that’s been around for a while. It’s lightweight, at just 318g (plus the weight of your phone), and comfortable to wear for short periods. It could use a little more padding, particularly above your eyes, but it’s not a major issue.…

VERDICT A solid edition to the already impressive Arlo range, but it doesn’t play nicely with others AFTER THE SUCCESS of the original wireless Arlo range, which won a Recommended award in Shopper 331, it may seem an odd move to go from a wireless camera to a wired one. The Arlo Q is indeed cabled up but it does offer some significant advantages over the original. For a start it does away with the need for a separate hub, connecting as it does over IP. Those who have invested in the original system needn’t worry, though, as it can also slip seamlessly into your Arlo network. The headline features of this new model are the 1080p resolution with night vision, which render some extremely crisp images even at 0…

Free download; £2.99 per month or £20 per year • From www.magix.com/gb VERDICT The best introduction to the world of vlogging that we’ve seen IN THIS AGE where the vlog is king and gaming is widely considered a sport, anyone can be a celebrity, and that includes you. If you fancy it but don’t know where to start, Magix Youcast could be the answer, offering as it does everything you need to broadcast live from your laptop. There are three modes: Game Cast allows you to broadcast all the action from your favourite game straight to Twitch or Youtube Gaming; Screen Cast offers a great way to make how-to videos on Youtube; and Live Cast uses your webcam to let you make live or pre-recorded shows. What really impressed us…

01 A basic PC costing around £350 will be able to run everyday office, multimedia and education software and will easily cope with surfing the internet. It might even be able to run some modern games. Many PCs can be sold either with or without a monitor. If you don’t like the display that the manufacturer is offering, you can always use your current one, or buy another one separately. 02 If you want to play games, you’ll have to upgrade the graphics card. Budget cards such as the Nvidia GeForce GTX 950 will cope well with many 3D games, but to play the latest 3D games smoothly (and enjoy the best-quality graphics) it’s worth upgrading to a more powerful card such as the Nvidia GeForce GTX 970. 03 All…

01 All tablets rely on an operating system (OS) to run apps. You have three main choices: Apple’s iOS, which runs on the iPad, Android, which Google licenses to various manufacturers, and Windows 10, which is slowly becoming more common in hybrid tablets and convertibles. If you own an Apple or Google smartphone, you can download your apps, music and so on to a tablet that runs the same OS, so it makes sense to stick with a compatible device. 02 It’s important to pick a tablet that has a good-quality high-resolution screen. Many budget tablets have 1,280x800-resolution displays, but better tablets have Full HD 1,920x1,080 panels, and we’re starting to see tablets that have even higher screen resolutions. Some are as high as 2,560x1,600 or even 4K. Entry-level tablets…

01 A 32in Full HD TV costs around £200 and will suit smaller living rooms. TVs look much smaller in the shop than in your home, so measure the space available before you buy. Curved TVs are becoming increasingly more common, but bear in mind that these typically take up more floor space than a traditional flat set. 02 A 1,920x1,080-resolution TV can display a 1080p image. You can still buy TVs with a 720p (1,366x768) resolution, but they’re no cheaper and the image won’t be as sharp. 3,840x2,560 Ultra HD resolution, or 4K, TVs are finally available at reasonable prices, although you’ll still pay a premium for one over a 1080p model. 03 Consider the number of inputs you’ll need to connect the rest of your equipment. Two HDMI…

01 Laser printers used to be much more expensive than inkjets and were typically restricted to offices. They are now much more affordable, however, and offer several benefits over inkjets, including lower per-page printing costs and faster print speeds. 02 A decent laser printer will typically cost around £80, and will happily print hundreds of black-and-white pages per hour. If documents are your priority, you’ll want a high minimum speed and low print costs. However, you’ll probably be limited to black-and-white printing at this price. 03 Although you can still buy singlefunction laser printers, multifunction peripherals (MFPs) are now far more common. These models can scan and photocopy documents as well as print them, and some of them also have fax capabilities. Laser MFPs start from around £200. 04 Heavy-duty…

01 It’s essential that you buy the right type of motherboard for your processor. Intel’s older Haswell processors require a motherboard with an LGA1150 socket, but newer, fourth-generation Skylake chips need an LGA1151 socket. A board for a Haswell processor must also have an H97 or a Z97 chipset, while Skylake processors use the new Z170 chipset. Skylake CPUs also use newer, faster DDR4 memory. 02 All current Intel processors have built-in graphics chipsets, so if you want to use your chip’s built-in graphics, make sure the motherboard has the video outputs you need, such as VGA, DVI, HDMI and DisplayPort. If you want to play the latest games, you’ll need to fit a dedicated graphics card in the motherboard’s PCI Express x16 slot, although this may block one of…

REQUIREMENTS Windows XP, Vista, 7, 8 or 10, 32/64-bit, 50MB hard disk space WEBSITE www.supereasy.net NOTES The program initially installs as a 10-day trial version. After setup is complete, click ‘Request FREE full version key’ on the splash screen and enter your email address to receive a free licence key. SUPEREASY AUDIO CONVERTER is a versatile suite for downloading, ripping, extracting, converting and saving audio files into the formats you need. The program can import audio and video files in all the main common audio formats, open CDs and DVDs, or download videos from YouTube, Clipfish or Metacafe. Simple editing tools enable you to trim unwanted audio from each clip. You’re able to save audio in AAC, MP3, OGG, WAV or WMA, with your own custom sample rate, bit-rate and…

REQUIREMENTS Windows XP, Vista, 7, 8, 10 32/64-bit, 200MB hard disk space DETAILS www.pandasecurity.com NOTES Six-month licence PANDA INTERNET SECURITY 2016 is a capable security suite with protection for Windows, Android, iOS and Mac. The Windows module offers accurate anti-virus, browser protection (via an optional toolbar), a firewall and Wi-Fi protection to detect intruders on your network. The Data Shield prevents sensitive data falling into the wrong hands, parental controls keep your kids safe online, and there’s a virtual keyboard to bypass keyloggers. Mac and iOS protection is more basic, with anti-virus and an iPhone location service, while the Android tools take this a little further: anti-virus, device optimisation, a location service, and the option to lock or wipe your device remotely. All this is easy to set up, but…

£130 inc VAT • From www.pcworld.co.uk VERDICT It’s far from a powerhouse, but the Yoga Tab 3 is ideal for kicking back with Netflix THANKS TO THEIR bulging bases and integrated kickstands, Lenovo’s Yoga Tabs have always been distinctive, and the third iteration is no different. The large, cylindrical base gives you something to grip when holding the tablet in one hand; it also holds a larger-capacity battery and makes room for the unique hinged stand that can prop the screen up for hands-free use. It’s sturdy enough that you can tap the screen without sending it tumbling over. There’s even a hole that you can hang the tablet from, making it ideal for reading recipes in the kitchen. CAMERA & DISPLAY Lenovo has improved the formula this year by…

£319 inc VAT• From www.samsung.com/uk VERDICT Samsung’s slim and light slate is a fantastic compact Android tablet FOR ITS SECOND round of Galaxy Tab devices, Samsung decided that the only way to beat its big rival Apple was to meet it head-on in every respect. The Galaxy Tab S2 8.0 has the same size display, the same screen resolution and launched at the same price as the iPad Mini 4. DESIGN We liked the 9.7in version of the Galaxy Tab S2, but felt it lost out to its Apple rival in terms of power and had some serious competition from the not-much-smaller and far cheaper Google Nexus 9. The 8in Galaxy Tab S2, however, is under less threat from Google’s cut-price slate. The difference in screen size translates to 30%…

The Raspberry Pi is compact, silent and uses very little power, so is well suited to being an always-on network-attached storage (NAS) device. In this guide we’ll show you how to set up file sharing on the Pi, using an external drive to store your data. The Pi can struggle to power USB-powered external hard disks, so you may be best off using a mains-powered external hard disk, a USB flash drive or a low-power disk designed especially for the Pi, such as the Western Digital PiDrive 314GB, which costs £27 from tinyurl.com/wdpidrive. Installation First, install Raspbian as usual (see page 110). Plug in your USB drive while the Pi is off, then boot into the operating system, connect to a network and make sure the OS is up to…

CONTACT LETTERS letters@computershopper.co.uk BATTERY CHICKENS Chris Finnamore’s opening sentence (Shopper 339) should be read closely by your phone reviewers: “In a world where it’s difficult or even impossible to do something as simple as replace the battery in your smartphone…” This is followed 14 pages later by a preview of LG’s G5, which says, “if you have a spare you can just take out the existing battery and clip the new one in its place”. A phone should give access to the battery, at the very least. For years, Shopper has rated sealed phones with unswappable batteries as ‘kewl’ without thinking of the features people actually need, such as more battery power easily provided by having a spare (or two). Phones with such features are essential for some but you…

ON SALE in newsagents from 12th May REFRESH YOUR PC Is your slow computer starting to bother you? Don’t replace it yet, as our guide will show you how to fine-tune settings, hunt down bad software and return your PC to pristine condition. DIGITAL ASSISTANT FACE-OFF Siri, Cortana, Google Now: the digital assistants itching to answer questions on anything from historical events to where to buy a sandwich. But which will show you what you need to know, and which will leave you shouting at your phone? PRINTERS Whether you need a printer for your business or home, we’re here to help you make the right decision, as we round up the best inkjet and laser printers available today. 3D-PRINTING THE PAST We investigate the amazing things that are being…

With more than 30 years of experience in law enforcement, our retired cop gives a police officer’s perspective on the sticky subject of cybercrime letters@computershopper.co.uk THERE IS A battle going on out there at the moment. The two sides are both pretty entrenched in their positions, and there’s no doubt the outcome could have some far-reaching implications. I know which side I find myself on, but it would be good to know what you think, so I’d like to walk you through a scenario and invite you to come to a conclusion. Imagine you’re a seasoned investigator working for a renowned and highly regarded law-enforcement agency. You’ve spent considerable time and effort in your professional studies, fully deserving the senior investigator position you’ve achieved. You have a number of successful…

Oculus has 30 games ready for launch day OCULUS HAS ANNOUNCED that it has 30 playable titles lined up for the virtual reality Rift experience when it launches, and it claims to have a good range. “These games take you to the outer reaches of space, mysterious labyrinths of wonder, and fantastic worlds of adventure. And they’re just the beginning,” said the firm. “We’re working with thousands of developers on entirely new VR experiences. There are over a hundred more games coming to Oculus this year,” the company added. The games on show already look interesting, and some of them you may have played before. Anyone who remembers ever playing space game Elite may enjoy the benefit of being fully immersed in that, while other more conventional platform gamers might…

£30 inc VAT • From www.thepihut.com VERDICT An incremental but important update, the Raspberry Pi 3’s enhanced speed and integrated Wi-Fi make it a winner IT MAY HAVE sold more than eight million of its Pi mini-computers, but the Raspberry Pi Foundation isn’t resting on its laurels. In 2015, the Raspberry Pi 2 seriously impressed us by packing relatively huge amounts of power into a tiny, £30, USB-powered computer, and this year the firm has upped the ante once again with the Raspberry Pi 3. The new model’s headline features include a speed boost (the Foundation claims a 50% increase) as well as built-in Wi-Fi and Bluetooth capability. The inclusion of Wi-Fi is particularly good news, as it means you’ll no longer need to take up one of your precious…

£160 inc VAT • From www.microsoftstore.com VERDICT Superb build quality and a fantastic OLED display are hamstrung by a terrible processor FROM THE OUTSET, it seems there’s been no expense spared in making the Lumia 650 one of the best-looking budget handsets. Whereas the preceding Lumia 640 came clad in a glossy plastic chassis, the Lumia 650 has swapped it for a gorgeous metal frame and smooth, matte plastic rear. Measuring just 6.9mm thick, the diamond cut edges can sometimes feel a little rough on your palm, but they provide plenty of grip and it feels very well made for the price. Lift off the plastic back and you’ll also find a replaceable 2,000mAh battery, as well as a microSD card slot and a nano SIM card slot. However, the…

£357 inc VAT • From www.wexphotographic.com VERDICT Slim, straightforward and excellent image quality – the Canon G9 X is a recipe for success THE CANON G9 X is part of a growing trend for compact cameras with 1in sensors and wide-aperture lenses. Its lens and sensor configuration is equivalent to an f/5.5-13.5 lens on a full-frame camera, which means it can compete with bulkier SLRs and compact system cameras (CSCs) for image quality. This is the slimmest and lightest camera with a 1in sensor to date. Rival cameras weigh in at around 300g or more and are at least 41mm thick, but the G9 X is just 207g and 31mm thick and will easily slip into a jeans pocket or a small handbag. Its launch price is also the lowest…

£50 inc VAT • From www.amazon.co.uk VERDICT These cans won’t break the bank, but you get what you pay for AT THIS PRICE, you’d usually be hardpressed to find a pair of on-ear Bluetooth headphones from a recognisable brand. However, initial inspection of the Skullcandy Hesh 2.0 Wireless makes it clear that some tempered expectations are still in order. While the plastic casing has a nice soft finish, the headband isn’t padded in any way, so tends to sit a little uncomfortably on the top of your skull. The earcups at least are generously padded with synthetic leather, but the tight headband still has a habit of crushing them against your ears. However, the earcups seem unable to decide if they want to be circumaural or supra-aural in that they…

£56 inc VAT • From www.amazon.co.uk VERDICT Epson’s XP-432 is small and smart, but there are better MFPs at this price IF YOU WANT a small, smart inkjet MFP for the home, Epson’s Expression Home XP-432 looks promising. It can print, scan and copy, and if you have a wireless network you can share it among several users, or use various mobile functions and cloud services. On the front there’s a decently sized colour screen on which you can preview the images from an inserted SD card; you can print them off, or scan new images directly to the card, too. We love the fact that the installer configures your computer to use the card reader; you can copy files to your PC directly from an SD card inserted in…

01 A basic laptop costing around £300 will run everyday office, multimedia and education software, but it won’t be suitable for 3D gaming or processor-intensive tasks such as video editing. Many laptops at this price have a 15.4in screen and weigh around 2.4kg, so they’re best used around the house and for occasional journeys. 02 If you want to play modern games, you’ll need a laptop with a dedicated graphics chip such as the Nvidia GeForce GTX 960M. Good gaming laptops tend to have large 17in screens and weigh around 3kg, so they’re best suited to use at home. 03 If you want a laptop that you can take everywhere, look for a model that weighs less than 2kg. For the best portability, buy one that has an 11in or…

01 If you’re ready to step beyond the basic controls of a compact camera, or you want greater flexibility than an ultra-zoom can offer, a compact system camera (CSC) is the next logical upgrade. With interchangeable lenses, manual controls and stellar image quality, these cameras give proper digital SLRs a run for their money. 02 There are three competing types of CSC mount, and the one you buy determines the number of compatible lenses and accessories you have available. Samsung’s NX-mount is arguably the most limited in terms of lens selection, and the company has confirmed that it’s shutting down its European camera business, so it’s best to avoid these altogether if possible. Sony’s E-Mount has a slightly wider range, but Micro Four Thirds offers the widest variety. Both Panasonic…

01 If you don’t have space in your home cinema setup for a set of surroundsound speakers, a soundbar is the next best thing. Whether you opt for a soundbar (which typically sits in front of your TV stand) or a soundplate (which sits underneath your TV), you’ll be getting significantly better audio than the weedy speakers today’s flatscreen TVs provide. 02 If you want to cut down on cable clutter, look for a soundbar with multiple HDMI inputs and outputs as well as Audio Return Channel (ARC). Not all soundbars use HDMI, with many making do with digital optical audio connections instead. This means you’ll have to connect Blu-ray players, games consoles and set-top boxes to your TV and run all audio through a single cable. Also look for…

01 A network-attached storage (NAS) device lets you store documents, media, and other files on its hard disks so you can share them with other devices on your network. Some have disks already installed, while others are empty enclosures into which you install your own disks. Buying an empty NAS can often be the more cost-effective option, as they’re usually less expensive and give you the freedom to expand the number of disks at a later date. You should buy one with a Gigabit Ethernet interface, as these provide the highest transfer speeds. To use a NAS device at these speeds, you’ll need computers with Gigabit Ethernet network adaptors and a Gigabit Ethernet switch or router. Computers with Fast Ethernet adaptors can still access the NAS device, but only at…

REQUIREMENTS Windows XP, Vista, 7, 8 or 10, 32/64-bit, 30MB hard disk space WEBSITE www.reallusion.com NOTES Get your registration code at reallusion.com/event/CT7std/computershopper.aspx STANDARD PORTRAIT SHOTS of friends and family can often seem a little dull – but it doesn’t have to be that way. Reallusion CrazyTalk can take a still image of any face – friend, family member, celebrity, whoever – and bring it to life. The head will move, eyes will blink, the nose will wrinkle; you can even make your animated friend talk, and say anything you like. You don’t need Pixar-level animation skills to make this happen, either. Just import an image, draw a box around the face, then position four dots around the eyes and mouth. Set the orientation of the face (is it looking left,…

REQUIREMENTS Windows XP, Vista, 7, 8 or 10, 32/64-bit, 300MB hard disk space WEBSITE www.xara.com NOTES Get your registration code at xaraphoto9.disc.computershopper.co.uk XARA PHOTO AND Graphic Designer is a one-stop graphics package with the power to satisfy all your creative needs. Photo editing An excellent core set of features caters for all the most common requirements, such as cropping, resizing, fixing red-eye, sharpening and fixing perspective problems. If you need more, the program supports Photoshop plug-ins so can be extended just as much as you like, and there are 46 bundled filters to help you get started. Illustration The QuickShape tools allow you to draw pre-set shapes in seconds. There are plenty of other vector and line-drawing tools on offer, too. 3D extrusion means you can drag any shape to…

Browsing and video Samsung Galaxy Tab S2 8.0 Some might say that a 16:9 tablet would be better for movies and TV than the 4:3 Galaxy Tab S2, but there’s much more about this ultra-thin slate that makes it perfect for general use. Chief among these is the display: with a 2,048x1,536 resolution and Super AMOLED screen, it’s super-sharp, so you won’t miss any details or vibrancy in video content. The aspect ratio also makes it perfect for web browsing and, as it’s only 5.6mm thin and 265g light, it’s easy to hold. Gaming Nvidia Shield Tablet K1 A quad-core 2.2GHz processor, 2GB of RAM and a GeForce Kepler GPU combine to make the Shield Tablet K1 a superlative option for gaming fans. Whereas less powerful tablets stumble over games…

From £749 inc VAT • From www.microsoftstore.com VERDICT Powerful and versatile, this is the ultimate Windows 10 device MICROSOFT HAS ALWAYS insisted its Surface tablets can ‘replace your laptop’, but the Surface Pro 4 goes much further. Even for the most proactive multitasker, it can replace your laptop, your desktop and your notepad, becoming the only device you’ll need. We tested a mid-range Surface Pro 4, with a 256GB SSD, Intel Core i5-6300U processor and 8GB of RAM. The price for this model, including the Surface Pen stylus, is £1,079, but pricing starts at £749. You’ll also need to fork out £110 if you want the Type Cover keyboard. DISPLAY By itself, the Surface Pro 4 is a light, if slightly thick tablet with a 12.3in screen. Despite having the…

The Pi may have a proper desktop operating system and be fine running a web browser and office applications, but whether you’re turning it into a network-attached storage device (see page 113) or trying your hand at programming, you won’t always want to have an extra monitor, keyboard and mouse taking up space on your desk. For this reason, we’re going to show you how to put the Pi into headless mode, so you can control it over your network from a Windows PC. You’ll still need peripherals to install the Pi’s OS, so plug it in and install Raspbian as usual using NOOBS (see page 110). Once it’s installed, go to Menu, Preferences, Raspberry Pi Configuration, then click the Interfaces tab and check that SSH is enabled. You should…

Not only is the Raspberry Pi a great way to learn how to code, it’s also perfect for techies who want to work on mini development projects, whether it be controlling drones or creating applications. While the Pi is a lot of fun on its own, it’s even better with some accessories. And there are plenty of them, from touchscreens to heatsinks to ensure the Pi doesn’t overheat. Here’s our pick. ModMyPi Raspberry Pi Heat Sink Kit PRICE £4 inc VAT • www.modmypi.com The longer you use your Raspberry Pi, the hotter it will get – just like any other computing device. How can you avoid this? By getting yourself a heatsink, which will ensure the Pi doesn’t end up overheating. ModMyPi’s Heat Sink Kit provides two high-quality aluminium sinks,…

Setting up Outlook message templates Q I work for a number of companies as a freelance public relations person. I have separate email accounts that I use for the different companies, and most of them have their own corporate font and signature that they require me to use. I manage all the accounts from a single Outlook profile and, when I change from one profile to another, I have to remember to change the font and style settings. Is there a way to change over automatically, perhaps using a macro? Janet Anderson A The best way to do this is to set up different message templates for each company, then use those to create your messages. You can make them easier to use by creating a macro. To create a…

Photographer, musician, sound engineer, designer and video producer Ben Pitt guides you through a multimedia project ben@computershopper.co.uk The thing I love most about video production is how it draws together so many different skills and people. One minute I might be adjusting the white balance on my camera, the next I’m dancing on the edge of a roof wearing size 11 high heels. The medium of moving pictures is a melting pot of written words, acting, photography, costume design, makeup, architecture, interior design, carpentry, painting, computer-generated imagery, music and dance. Anything goes, and often it all has to come together at the same time while the camera is rolling. Making videos with friends, family or colleagues on a low budget can be a wonderfully chaotic experience, but sometimes it’s worth…