Inhoudsopgave van May 2024 - Tech Advisor

Update KB5034765 (fave.co/4c6lyV7), an important security update pushed as part of this month’s Patch Tuesday barrage, is turning into a nightmare for many Windows 11 users. It’s wreaking havoc on some Windows 11 machines that were previously working perfectly. Many users who install this update on computers with Windows 11 22H2 or Windows 23H2 (the most current major versions of Windows 11) are horrified to see that the update or installation process hangs at 96 percent. The installation is then cancelled with the error code 0x800F0922. Microsoft has now confirmed this problem. The failed installation is part of an already long chain of problems caused by the Windows update KB5034765 since its release on 13 February. For example, the taskbar sometimes disappears or File Explorer crashes after installing KB5034765. Some…

One of the constant annoyances of Windows 11 are the reboots after installing updates. Sometimes a Windows PC even has to reboot several times in a row until it finally completes all the updates. But this should soon be a thing of the past, at least for security updates categorized as ‘critical’. In the Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 26058 for Windows Insider Canary/Dev testers, Microsoft is trialling ‘hot patching’ (fave.co/4ce6WTC), or the installation of Windows 11 updates while the system is running and without restarting the computer. Microsoft has plenty of experience with hot patching, as the Redmond-based company already uses this patching process for Windows servers and Xbox. Microsoft is explicitly testing new features with the aforementioned build 26058, which are planned for a ‘24H2’ update this autumn…

Price: £199 from fave.co/48R78Fh Lenovo is one of the few manufacturers that consistently spits out new Android tablets. Even so, they struggle to match the features and success of Samsung and Apple. One of the latest is the Tab M11, a mid-budget tablet priced from £199. It was unveiled at CES in January, and is now available in Lenovo’s web shop and a small number of stores. The ones available in stores are not exactly the same product as the one I got to test. Mine includes a charger in the package. The ones I can find in stores do not. For exactly the right package, you have to go to Lenovo and order it. DESIGN Another big difference between the tablets available in the big stores and mine that…

Laptops are here to stay, despite a brief challenge from tablets to replace them, and they are thinner, faster and more impressive than ever. Picking one from a huge choice is an extremely difficult task though, especially when there are so many elements to factor. You need to consider size, operating system, specs, price and more. We are here to help make that decision easier with our expert in-depth reviews and buying advice. Each of the devices in this list is an excellent laptop, but only for a certain kind of user. It’s also not an exhaustive list, with some of the best 2-in-1s, student laptops, business laptops, budget laptops and cheap gaming laptops not making the grade. We also only include Windows and macOS computers here, and it’s still…

After three years, it’s finally time to upgrade to Windows 11. With Windows 11, Microsoft shifted into productivity mode, and to this day Windows 11 still feels like the operating system for work, while Windows 10 still feels lively and fun. But Windows 11 not only is where entertaining new features are landing, but also includes new AI capabilities that may improve your lives. It’s time to embrace the change. Last year, I was split: I wrote five reasons to switch to Windows 11, and five more to remain on Windows 10. In my initial review of Windows 11 I called it “unnecessary”, and I know that many of you will still agree with me. But I’m less reluctant now, and I think we’re approaching a tipping point for most…

Microsoft appears to have pushed the ability to upload documents, screenshots, and images to Windows 11’s Copilot AI assistant, allowing you to ask it to make sense of documents stored on your PC. Being able to ‘query’ a document is a subtly powerful capability that you may have never taken advantage of. And it’s way, way faster than running it on your own PC. Unfortunately, this new capability may suffer from the same problem that other LLMs might struggle with: persistence. ‘Querying’ a document means asking Copilot questions about it. “What’s it mean?” “Sum it up for me in 30 words.” “What next steps should I take?” Ideally, Copilot should be able to take an involved, complex document like a contract and allow the average user (you and I) to…

Mobile World Congress (MWC) returned last month and hosted some of the world’s biggest tech brands. As ever, our team of intrepid editors hit the show floor to find the best gadgets. Although the trade show, held annually in Barcelona, is primarily focused on smartphones, there were plenty of other interesting devices to be found. We’ve searched high and low to create something of a wish list of gadgets you’ll want to own this year. 1. XIAOMI 14 SERIES Two of the best phones to launch at MWC this year were the Xiaomi 14 (£849 from fave.co/49IJcW0) and its bigger brother, the Xiaomi 14 Ultra £1,299 from fave.co/4a46HZj). Both phones are highly specified starting with Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 processors and 12- or 16GB of RAM respectively. They also have…

Price: £319 from fave.co/43aF7Yi For a company that was only founded in 2020, Nothing has generated a huge amount of interest. The firm has made a few pairs of earbuds, but its smartphones get most of the attention. The original Phone (1) made a real splash, though the follow-up Phone (2) was a very small upgrade. However, for Nothing’s third smartphone, the company is doing something a little different. The Phone (2a) is significantly more affordable than both previous handsets, though Nothing says it’s technically a Phone (1) successor. On paper, it’s a noteworthy upgrade over the original that still manages to reduce the price. But does that make it the best phone you can buy for under £350? I used the Phone (2a) as my main smartphone for over…

What’s the simplest way to create AI art on your PC? An application called Fooocus. Although Stable Diffusion is often seen as the best way to create AI art on your PC, Fooocus offers a simple set-up experience, with rewarding depth for those who wish to dive deeper. Stable Diffusion debuted two years ago as the way to create AI art on your PC. While I’ve used some of the techniques that David Wolski outlined in his tutorial on using Stable Diffusion (fave.co/3VeCuT5), it just feels so complicated to set up. Fooocus offers essentially a one-click set-up process in the same vein as something like winget: You tell it what to do, and then Fooocus goes out and does it. It’s an absolutely free app that runs on Windows, with…

In addition to closing security gaps, the monthly Windows updates are used in particular to solve errors and problems that have arisen in the meantime. In practice, however, it is not uncommon for the updates to cause new problems. There are many reasons for this, ranging from errors in quality assurance to the fact that, unlike Apple computers, the software and hardware used in Windows systems is extremely heterogeneous. This is why Microsoft introduced the so-called Known Issue Rollback (KIR) three years ago. If it turns out that an installed update is causing problems on a large number of computers, Microsoft sends a KIR update afterwards. This either restores the affected Windows systems to the state they were in before the faulty update or distributes a corrected update version straight…

Microsoft is unexpectedly killing off its support for Android apps within Windows 11, although you’ll have a year to play games on your Windows tablet until support officially expires. But if you haven’t already installed support for Android apps, you’re out of luck. The tech giant isn’t saying exactly why it’s ending support for the Windows Subsystem for Android, though notice was given as part of an official Microsoft developer document (fave.co/49OHmD0). That means that the existing Android app store on Windows, published by Amazon, will cease working. “Microsoft is ending support for the Windows Subsystem for Android (WSA),” Microsoft wrote. “As a result, the Amazon Appstore on Windows and all applications and games dependent on WSA will no longer be supported beginning March 5, 2025. Until then, technical support…

Price: £1,199 from fave.co/3IB5bSE Huawei’s ongoing US trade ban has badly affected its Android smartphones and tablets in the UK and Europe. However, an agreement with Microsoft means there are no such problems for its laptops, which run on full Windows 11. What’s more, MateBook devices are renowned for their excellent value for money, especially when compared to the likes of Dell’s XPS range and Apple’s MacBook Pros. So, if you’re looking for a 16-inch laptop and don’t need top-tier performance, why wouldn’t you go for the 2024 edition of the MateBook D 16? It starts at just £699 for the entry-level model (we reviewed the £1,199 option), but there are a few reasons why it might not be right for you. DESIGN If you’ve used any recent Huawei laptop,…

Price: £299 from fave.co/3Td9tEW OnePlus made a rocky debut in the smartwatch world in 2021 with its first model, which was chock-full of bugs and lacked many features that rivals boasted. After a few years away from the scene, the ‘Never Settle’ brand is back with the follow-up model, the OnePlus Watch 2. Thankfully, there’s been a major shake-up in the software, with the latest wearable sporting the latest edition of Google’s Wear OS instead of the firm’s own effort. Though it’s a big step forward from the OnePlus Watch, the build may not suit everyone – it certainly wasn’t for me. DESIGN The Fluororubber strap comes in either Black Steel or Radiant Steel, which matches the colour options that the OnePlus 12 comes in, a nice touch if you’re…

If you’re in the market for a new laptop, it’s easy to get overwhelmed by the literal hundreds of choices. And it seems like every laptop out there advertises a different set of ‘must-have features’ adding to the confusion. But the truth is, most of that is just hype to get your hard earned pounds. And, realistically, most laptops share the same basic features you should care about and only after you settle on those do you need to worry about any extras specific to your needs. We’ve narrowed down the five laptop features that really matter. That said, if all you want is the absolute best laptop recommendation, whether it’s for gaming or day-to-day tasks, we have that covered for you too. But if you prefer a ‘choose your…

Ransomware is nasty stuff. This type of malware encrypts files on your PC so that you can’t access them – unless you pay the attacker to unlock the data. In other words, your files are held hostage until you cough up the demanded ransom, unless you’re able to survive the ransomware attack using other means. The best defence against ransomware is avoiding sites and downloads riddled with it, but you can take other protective measures, too. Modern antivirus software often restrict which apps can change files in folders commonly targeted by ransomware. Microsoft Defender, 1. which is built into Windows, can do this too. (Microsoft changed the name from Windows Defender several years ago, but it’s the same program.) Some antivirus suites also run automatic backups, in case you need…