Avast wants you to upgrade to a paid plan with lots of extras and additional tools. Bitdefender offers a bare-bones, no-nonsense antivirus that provides complete protection without other bells and whistles. Overall Findings Avast and Bitdefender are both fantastic antivirus programs. Both provide the same level of protection you’d expect from a decently priced antivirus application, but for free. Avast and Bitdefender have both chosen not to compromise their free versions, opting instead to add more to their paid offerings....

Brickit is amazing, but isn’t the point of LEGO to open up a kid’s imagination, not just to teach them to follow instructions? Watch any kid playing with one of the world’s favorite toys, and they soon go off-course. They may start following the instructions to build a LEGO Minecraft Panda Nursery, but soon enough, they will be free-styling. Does an app like Brickit dull these creative urges? Or is there more to it?...

Reasons Why Your Internet Isn’t Working There could be any number of reasons you can’t reach the internet: The firewall might be malfunctioning, the wireless signal might be blocked or too weak to use, the router might be experiencing issues, there could be IP address conflicts . . . the list goes on. The good news is that there are 10 key steps you can take that will solve most connection issues....

How to Watch Discovery+ Without Using Mobile Data Unfortunately, even though you might want to download Discovery+ shows so you can watch them without an internet connection, you can’t. If you’re watching on your smartphone and don’t have an unlimited plan, you’re at risk of overage charges. On the other hand, open Wi-Fi networks have security risks and often unreliable connections. But you can avoid that by using a mobile hotspot or travel router and securing your Wi-Fi connections....

Motley is the founder and CEO of Mentor Spaces, a community-driven mentorship platform designed to make it easier for companies to attract, hire, and retain underrepresented talent. Founded in summer 2020, Mentor Spaces grew from Motley’s experience connecting with a mentor while working at Goldman Sachs. He said his story and professional life could have been different had he not had this positive experience. Mentor Spaces manages a community of mentors and underrepresented professionals who can connect based on interests and goals and converse about career advancement....

This test is a completely free, web-based tool that you can use to see how much available bandwidth to the internet you have right now. In other words, using the Comcast Speed Test, you can get a general idea of how quickly you’re able to download and upload information over the internet, which impacts how well movies and music stream, how fast files download, and even how smooth your regular internet browsing is....

Here’s a look at the top tools you can use to view, edit, and create Word documents for free. Word Online includes sharing features, so you can invite other users to view or collaborate on any document. It also includes a feature that embeds documents into a blog post or personal website. Word Online is compatible with the latest versions of most well-known browsers on Linux, Mac, and Windows operating systems....

A bootable installer of macOS Sierra allows you to perform a clean install, which completely replaces the contents of your Mac’s startup drive with a brand-new, fresh install of Sierra. The bootable installer can also be used to install macOS Sierra on multiple Macs, without having to resort to downloading the installer app from the Mac App Store each time. This is a nice feature if you have a problematic or slow connection to the internet....

According to tech news site Gizmodo, the new lineup features a portable 14-inch monitor, a 24-inch monitor, and several 27-inch options. The 14-inch display is 4.95mm thick (less than a quarter of an inch) and around 1.3 pounds. It has a stand on the back that allows you to tilt the display back between 10 and 90 degrees. The display comes with a Full HD IPS display with a 16:9 aspect ratio and can connect to computers via USB-C cable....

Think Netflix meets Black cinema. That’s what prompted Spencer to launch kweliTV, a streaming service that specifically features Black independent films, documentaries, news, and other content that can’t easily be found elsewhere. For a small monthly fee, viewers can tap into Black entertainment spanning various genres, from shorts to dramas, science fiction films, and more. When someone first suggested she start a Black-focused streaming service when she couldn’t find the type of content she was seeking, Spencer said she thought they were crazy....

What Is a Fixed Lens Camera? Fixed lens cameras range in size from vintage models with large image sensors to tiny point-and-shoot devices. Cellphone cameras are technically fixed lens cameras, but the term is most often used to describe larger cameras that look like DSLRs. Fixed lens cameras typically have large zoom lenses, and they usually cost more than beginner models. Some fixed lens cameras can slightly increase their zoom and wide angle capabilities through the use of conversion lenses, but this is rare....

By using a scene mode, the photographer simplifies the process of matching the camera’s settings to the scene. Camera designers simplify the process of matching the scene to a keyword. Why Use Scene Modes? If you’re shooting outdoors in the winter, for example, use the snow-scene mode. The camera will then adjust the exposure to compensate for the bright white of the snow. You might select a sports scene mode to tell the camera to shoot with the fastest shutter speed possible to freeze the action without blurring the subject....

A new patent application by Apple shows the company is working to make passports that are entirely digital. The application details software that could ensure the person holding an iPhone with digital ID is the actual owner. But ID theft isn’t the only issue with digital documents. “When you deploy a completely digital, paperless passport system, the entire threat model changes,” Attila Tomaschek, a researcher for the website ProPrivacy, said in an email interview....

This how-to wizard is used to walk you through the wipe process to make it super simple to erase a hard drive. How Does Disk Wipe Work? Disk Wipe is completely portable, which means you don’t need to install it to use it. After running the program, every internal and external hard drive will be listed, including flash drives. However, because Disk Wipe runs from inside the operating system, as opposed to from a disc (like with DBAN), it can’t be used to erase the drive that Windows is installed to....

Diskpart Command Availability The diskpart command is available from within the Command Prompt in Windows operating systems, including Windows 11, 10, 8, etc. You can also access this command from the Recovery Console in Windows 2000 and Windows XP. Diskpart Command Syntax For this one, the diskpart command will remove the Partition1 partition located on the hard drive \Device\HardDisk0. This command will remove the partition currently assigned the drive letter G....

This fourth entry into DJI’s Mini Series lacks the obstacle sensors found on the front of its predecessor and has a shorter 10km range compared to the Pro’s 12km. In terms of what it offers, it sits between the more expensive Mini 3 Pro and the Mini 2. One of the DJI Mini 3’s main features is its camera, which can record video at up to 4K and 30fps or take still photos at up to 12MP....

Weighing 2.3 pounds and less than an inch thick, the X40L-K is among the first in its line to have 12th Gen Intel Core processors, LPDDR5 RAM, and Windows 11 Pro in one package, according to Dynabook. The new versions of the X30L and X30W will add similar components, plus unique features like Corning Gorilla Glass. The X40L-K is made out of a magnesium alloy, a lightweight metal known for its durability....

Epic Games, makers of Fortnite, and The Lego Group have teamed up to design and develop a metaverse destination specifically for children, as noted in an official press release. The creation of this family-friendly sector of the new internet is still in its nascent stages, but the companies promise a “long-term partnership to shape the future of the metaverse.” The press release touts Epic’s recent acquisition of SuperAwesome, a company known for developing a suite of tools offering kid-safe digital services....

Fans of Mario Kart 8 Deluxe have been getting a steady stream of bonus tracks since the Booster Course DLC launched earlier this year, which continues with this upcoming third batch. And you won’t have to wait very long to get rubber on the road (or wood, or… light bridge?), either. Once this third wave is out, players will have a total of 24 tracks that weren’t initially included in the game, with another 24 planned to release in three more waves up through the end of 2023....

What Was the iPod Touch? The iPod Touch, sometimes incorrectly called the “iTouch,” was the top-of-the-line iPod. In fact, it’s missing just a few features that make it different from an iPhone. The iPod Touch has long been referred to as “an iPhone without the phone,” and that’s basically correct. The hardware and software features of both devices are fairly similar (though the iPod touch isn’t updated as often as the iPhone, so the closest relative to the latest iPod touch is the slightly old iPhone 6 series)....