News from the web

The best wireless keyboards do more than free you from a cable. They let you toss the crummy keyboard you got for free with your PC—does anyone like that one?—and they also give you options. The models we’ve reviewed range from full-size desktop slabs to portable models that skip easily from laptop to tablet to phone. ...   PC World

Anyone who uses a smartphone knows the importance of carrying a backup battery pack. But try searching for one on Amazon, say, and you’re likely to feel overwhelmed by the vast number of options. Besides the various charging specs, ports, and even cables you have to consider, there are a ton of competing brands. ...   PC World

PC users are all in a tizzy about the shiny new Windows 11 that just dropped earlier this month. But don’t forget, Microsoft is still supporting and updating the long-in-the-tooth Windows 10 until at least 2025. As if to prove its point, Microsoft just detailed a new update to Windows 10 coming in November, with Windows Insiders getting an early preview right now. ...   PC World

In this episode of The Full Nerd, Gordon Ung, Brad Chacos, and Adam Patrick Murray explain why PC users should—or shouldn’t—care about Apple’s new M1 Max MacBook Pros, before diving into what you need to know about the rocky performance of Ryzen chips on Windows 11. ...   PC World

As the weekend turns to intense gaming sessions, let this weekend be your last one wishing for a better rig. Best Buy is selling an all-AMD 15.6-inch MSI gaming laptop for $1,300, down from the MSRP of $1,600, and far below the $2,000 or so you’d spend on a comparably performing GeForce RTX 3070 laptop. ...   PC World

Some low-cost Windows PCs and tablets ship with Windows 11 Home in S Mode (also known as “Windows 11 S”) as a way to secure the PC and prevent the use of unauthorized applications by restricting access to Windows Store software alone. ...   PC World

Hordes of people turn to Black Friday and other holiday sales for cheap PCs. On Thursday, Intel warned that there might not be many deals this year. Intel reported its third-quarter earnings on Thursday, reporting mixed results: Profits and revenue rose, though the company also predicted that revenue would be flat heading into the fourth quarter, the traditionally strong end-of-year sales ...   PC World

If you need a new Chromebook for lightweight tasks, it’s your lucky day. Today only, Best Buy is selling an 11.6-inch HP Chromebook for an insane $99. This isn’t a jaw-dropping device, but it’ll get the job done and the price is definitely right. The sale ends just before midnight on Friday evening, Central Time. As this Chromebook only has an 11. ...   PC World

Microsoft has officially fixed an L3 cache performance bug that has been vexing AMD Ryzen owners since the release of the new OS. The Windows 11 Update released today, KB5006746, “Addresses an L3 caching issue that might affect performance in some applications on devices that have AMD Ryzen processors after upgrading to Windows 11 (original release). ...   PC World

The future of portable PC gaming will be built around USB-C charging, and surprisingly, there are a lot of hints in Apple’s new M1 Max-powered MacBook Pro that tell us where it’s headed. If you missed the news earlier this week, the just-revealed MacBook Pro models will feature three Thunderbolt 4 ports and a return of Apple’s proprietary MagSafe connector. ...   PC World

Windows 11 brings Auto HDR, first introduced on the Xbox Series X|S consoles, to the PC. The feature promises to make older titles look just as bright and vibrant as newer HDR-compatible releases without a major hit to performance. That’s sure to have PC gamers eyeing an upgrade to Windows 11. ...   PC World

Intel said Thursday that its PC business was hurt by the worldwide chip shortage, as its customers weren’t able to sell as many laptops using its parts as they would have liked. Intel reported its third-quarter 2021 earnings on Thursday, with both profits and revenue rising compared to a year ago. ...   PC World

Razer’s RGB-laden N95 Zephyr mask is finally here. It’s missing a few of the original features but it’s still easily the craziest mask in town—and not exactly cheap. Razer originally announced its RGB mask at a virtual CES as a prototype dubbed “Project Hazel. ...   PC World

How much is fast memory worth? For people who simply must have the latest and greatest in high-powered PC hardware, price is no object. Which is a good thing, because the price will be considerably higher than even enthusiast PC builders are used to paying for next-gen RAM. ...   PC World

AMD posted a chipset software update Friday morning that fixes problems with Windows 11 not recognizing the best Ryzen CPU core to run on. It’s not the only fix you’ll need to get Ryzen chips operating correctly on Windows 11, but it’s an important one. ...   PC World

If you want to upgrade your gaming life without splurging on a new graphics card during the ongoing chip shortage, we’ve spotted some nice high refresh rate gaming monitors that won’t break the bank. ...   PC World

Nvidia’s monstrous GeForce RTX 3080 graphics card launched over a year ago, but it’s still damned near impossible to get your hands on one if you don’t feel like paying a just-as-monstrous markup on Ebay. ...   PC World

HY-Plugins has released updates for HY-SEQ32, HY-SeqCollection2, HY-RPE2 and HY-MPS2. HY-SEQ32 v1.1.2: Add: Color editor. Change: Improves GUI design. Change: Apple M1... Read More   KVR Audio

Babylonwaves has updated Art Conductor, a collection of articulation switching templates for more than 300 commercial orchestra libraries, to v7.6. Available... Read More   KVR Audio

UJAM has announced the release of Finisher Dynamo, the company's sixth addition to their series of virtual multi-effects that are designed to combine the power of an entire effect rack... Read More   KVR Audio

Roland has announced the release of TR-Editor, a free Mac/Windows software application for the TR-8S and TR-6S Rhythm Performer instruments. Representing the apex of the... Read More   KVR Audio

Acousticsamples has announced the release of VHorns Brass Section, a realistic and easy-to-play horns plug-in that features Acousticsamples' HAT (Harmonic Alignment Technology).... Read More   KVR Audio

SampleScience has released Deep Jupiter, a free ROMpler plug-in for macOS and Windows featuring the raw bass sound of a famous analog synthesizer from the 80s. The plug-in has... Read More   KVR Audio

PSPaudioware has announced the release of PSP Saturator, a new analog saturation plug-in that emulates the way that analog devices such as tape recorders and valve circuits warm up and... Read More   KVR Audio

Solcito Musica has updated the SuperSonico Virtual Analog VSTi to v7.8. Changes: Added window size selection. Internal debugging. The 'Eco CPU' and 'Panic' buttons were... Read More   KVR Audio

KarmaFX Synth Modular has been updated to version 2.01. This release boasts several new features, including GUI improvements, MIDI Polyphonic Expression support (MPE), better... Read More   KVR Audio

Rob Papen has announced the release of three new products: Predator 3, RoCoder and the eXplorer 7 Bundle. Rob Papen eXplorer 7 Bundle The Rob Papen eXplorer 7 bundle now includes... Read More   KVR Audio

Ample Sound has announced the release of Ample Slide Lapsteel (ASL), a newly sampled virtual instrument based on a '70s Jedson Lap Steel (David Gilmour Custom Model with... Read More   KVR Audio

iPhone, iPad / Education / Reference: Fretronome is designed for guitarists to support them in learning the notes and intervals on a guitar fretboard. It's pretty simple, with the first button press it selects a note or interval on the fretboard, with the second it displays the name of the note...   440Software

iPhone, iPad / Tools / Analysis: RTA Audio Realtime analyzer with recording and Visualizer module with export. ••• Realtime analyzer ••• Realtime analyzer gives you the ability to analyze realtime audio input (built-in microphone or external audio accessory inputs) using Fast...   440Software