News from the web

Holiday cheer is coming early for makers and single-board computer enthusiasts: The Raspberry Pi Foundation just announced the successor to the Raspberry Pi 4, and it looks totally badass. Arriving at the end of October, the new Raspberry Pi 5 has been unveiled with just two variants named so far: a $60 4GB version, and a $80 8GB option. ...   PC World

For more than two decades, Valve’s Counter-Strike: Global Offensive has offered its global community a unique competitive experience. Millions of gamers around the world have played this legendary game, and some people consider the best pure multiplayer shooter ever. Fans have waited patiently for a new chapter for several years, and now the beta phase for Counter-Strike 2 is over. ...   PC World

Microsoft has closed one of the loopholes allowing those with older PCs from freely upgrading to Windows 10 and Windows 11. If you own a Windows 7 or Windows 8 PC, you’ll need to buy a new license to upgrade to either of Microsoft’s most recent operating systems. ...   PC World

At a glanceExpert's Rating ProsRock-solid stabilityThe only (?) dock with RGB lightingConsAverage to slightly poor performanceLack of dedicated display portsA higher price tag than what rivals chargeOur VerdictThe Razer Thunderbolt 4 Dock Chroma is a surprisingly robust Thunderbolt 4 dock, marred only by the lack of display ports and a price tag that’s aimed at the gamer market. ...   PC World

There’s no shortage of Windows tablets on the market. But for some reason, finding one with an AMD processor inside is difficult. There are plenty of 2-in-1 laptops with Ryzen power and AMD’s efficient APU designs are the go-to choice for portable gaming gadgets like the Steam Deck. ...   PC World

How to Move Windows to Another Drive? Your Step-by-Step Guide in Pictures Need a reliable tool to move Windows to another drive without reinstallation? EaseUS software includes two secure and efficient tools to help you with system migration from an old drive to another new disk or SSD drive directly. ...   PC World

Laptops may have risen in dominance, but the desktop PC space is no less vibrant for it. Things have only gotten more interesting in recent years, with the divide between mass-produced prebuilts and highly personalized DIY builds softening. And as of late, system integrators are blurring those lines further by drawing from popular DIY trends. ...   PC World

Baldur’s Gate III has its hooks in me, hard. I’ve been eschewing other big fall releases like Starfield and Cyberpunk: Phantom Liberty because I can’t resist this game’s deep D&D combat or its wonderfully rich characters and stories. ...   PC World

Is it really possible to make current graphics cards from AMD’s Radeon RX and Nvidia’s GeForce RTX series with just one click? Yes, it’s possible, and quite simple, as I will demonstrate in this easy-to-understand step-by-step guide. ...   PC World

At a glanceExpert's Rating ProsSlim and light for a 16-inch laptopSharp, high-contrast OLED displayBroad range of connectivity Strong processor performanceConsDesign doesn’t stand outTouchpad could be larger Lackluster graphics performanceOur VerdictAcer’s Swift Go 16 is a slim, light 16-incher with solid processor performance and a gorgeous OLED display, ...   PC World

With housing prices exploding all over the country, it’s getting harder and harder to find a good deal on property. But it’s a bit easier with the help of a tool like Mashvisor. ...   PC World

If you’ve been patiently waiting for Meta to put the finishing touches on the upgraded Quest 3 VR headset, or even if you’ve been waiting impatiently, we have good news. The company has announced that the Quest 3 be coming out on October 10, with pre-orders live available today at stores like Best Buy. At $499. ...   PC World

Google has given an already-known security vulnerability a new CVE ID with the highest severity level. The reason for this is that the vulnerability, originally classified as a Chrome bug, affects significantly more applications, because it’s a WebP vulnerability instead. ...   PC World

If you’re looking to pick up a brand new gaming monitor, you’ve come to the right place. Newegg’s currently selling the Acer Nitro VG271U gaming monitor for $179.99, which is a savings of $90. This peripheral has a maximum refresh rate of 180Hz, which is perfect for more intensive games. ...   PC World

Almost every CPU designed for a laptop includes an integrated graphics processor, a low-power chip that handles basic video duties. That “iGPU” doesn’t go away if your laptop also includes a discrete graphics card from AMD or Nvidia — in fact, you can use it instead of the more powerful card to save a bit of battery, in a setup called a ...   PC World

At a glanceExpert's Rating ProsFastest PCIe 4.0 SSD to dateDRAM facilitates excellent random performanceSynergy low-level Windows driver improves random performance furtherConsInconsistent pricing on webOur VerdictBest-bar-none PCIe 4.0 performance highlights the P44 Pro from Solidigm. ...   PC World

Google is celebrating its 25th birthday with a special Doodle. Anyone who currently visits the Google homepage is greeted by a changing Google logo, starting with the first iteration and then transforming through the various versions released throughout the years, up to the current logo of the search engine. ...   PC World

Microsoft releases a new version of its two operating systems Windows 10 and 11 every autumn. However, the software company has only delivered new features for Windows 11, limiting Windows 10 to basic upgrades alone. Windows 10 also received an update a short time later, but you won’t find any real innovations. ...   PC World

At a glanceExpert's Rating Pros6 NVMe drive slotsDual 2.5GbE LAN portRAM ExpandableSMB MultichannelConsWe need more bandwidthOddly shaped enclosureNo M.2 2230 supportsOur VerdictA very easy-to-configure and use NAS from Asustor, made practical by the recent drops in NVMe drives. If those price drops continue and NVMe drives get bigger, this could soon be one of the best NAS drives to own. ...   PC World

Whether you’re tired of cable clutter on your desk or you keep running out of power while you’re commuting or traveling, you’ll love the InCharge® X Max 100W 6-in-1 Charging Cable. This innovative cable is reduced to just $16.97 between 9/23 and 9/30. ...   PC World

Death and taxes may be the most famous of life’s certainties, but you can also always count on Google to kill off another service or feature. It’s often something fiercely beloved or downright useful, too. (No, I’m still not over losing Google Reader.) And unfortunately, the Grim Reaper has appeared once again. ...   PC World

It seems like VR gaming has been in kind of a holding pattern for the last year or two, ever since Half-Life: Alyx came out. I suspect that, with Facebook/Meta pushing hard to get AR into the hands of more regular consumers, and the looming threat of Apple’s Vision Pro next year, a lot of companies are using this time to shore up their core products. ...   PC World

AI will change the way that we work. Or so says the most fervent purveyors of the tech, which now includes Microsoft. But after seeing ChatGPT, Dall-E, and other AI systems integrated into the latest versions of Windows 11, Office, and the company’s Microsoft 365 platform, I can’t say that I agree. ...   PC World

Buying and selling used PC parts is a time-honored tradition, but it’s rare for a big-box retailer to get in on the action. Newegg is trying just that, offering a trade-in program for graphics cards that will give you credit towards the purchase of a new one. ...   PC World

Let’s face it. Gaming rigs can be expensive, sometimes costing up to $4,000 or more depending on the hardware inside. If you’re looking for a more budget-friendly option, you’ve come to the right place. Best Buy’s currently selling the HP Victus gaming laptop for just $599.99, which is a savings of $300. ...   PC World

Does the world need laptops with gigantic screens that fold in half? The jury is still out. But in the meantime, manufacturers are still throwing designs at the wall to see what sticks. [Editor’s note: Do not throw your laptop at the wall. It will not stick.] The LG Gram Fold packs a 17-inch folding OLED screen and the now-familiar detachable keyboard and rear stand. ...   PC World

Network specialist Netgear has announced in a support document that Windows 10 will not support the new, faster Wi-Fi 7 standard, confirming previous reports. The Netgear support document in question is about Wi-Fi over the 6 GHz band. This was introduced with the Wi-Fi 6E standard and is also mandatory for Wi-Fi 7. ...   PC World

At a glanceExpert's Rating ProsCherry Red switchesGood lighting USB-C cableConsFew featuresRattling stabilizers So-so priceOur VerdictThe KM360 is an average budget keyboard, but even its Cherry switches can’t get it to match the value of G.Skill’s smaller and much more flexible design. Price When Reviewed£63.23 Best Prices Today: G. ...   PC World

It’s hard to miss how much attention AI image generators alone have attracted in recent months. With good reason, because they demonstrate the progress of deep learning models in a vivid and playful way. ...   PC World

At a glanceExpert's Rating ProsIPS Black panel improves contrast ratioExcellent color gamut and accuracySharp 4K imageUSB-C connectivity with Power Delivery, DisplayPort-OutConsGeneric designAwkward on-screen menu systemLackluster HDR, 60Hz refresh rateOur VerdictThe Philips Creator Series 27E2F7901 delivers the benefits of IPS Black and USB-C connectivity while undercutting competitors on ...   PC World

Xhun Audio has updated WindChant, the procedural audio simulation of the fluid dynamics underlying the natural wind action, to version 1.2.0. Improvements: DSP side:... Read More   KVR Audio

XILS-lab has announced the release of Ring'X, a new multi-effect plugin for Windows and macOS in AAX, AU, VST2, and VST3 plugin formats. For a number of years, customers have... Read More   KVR Audio

Applied Acoustics Systems has released the Real Illusions sound pack for the Multiphonics CV-2 and free AAS Player plug-ins in collaboration with Romanian sound designer Cipryan Bot.... Read More   KVR Audio

PSPaudioware has released version 2.0.0 of PSP ConsoleQ and updated Lexicon PSP42 to v2.0.1. New in PSP ConsoleQ v2.0.0: 31 band spectrum analyzer. Adjustable frequency... Read More   KVR Audio

Roland has announced the release of GAIA 2, an advanced hardware synthesizer with a newly developed hybrid sound engine and a friendly panel layout 'that makes learning synthesis and exploring... Read More   KVR Audio

Modartt has announced the release of Organteq 2. The new version of the physically modelled pipe organ introduces a new collection of German Baroque stops, an enhanced sound engine, new... Read More   KVR Audio

Ueberschall just released their newest Elastik loop library, Brass Funk & Soul. Here is what they say about it: Is there anything that defines classic funk better than... Read More   KVR Audio

Audioblast has updated BreadSlicerPro to v1.3.2, featuring a new UI (the old one is still available - you can switch in the settings). Changes: Added: new UI selection.... Read More   KVR Audio

GForce Software has announced the release of version 1.6 of Oberheim SEM, featuring a complete GUI overhaul of the officially endorsed emulation of the legendary monophonic... Read More   KVR Audio

MixMeister has released a free 'remastered' update of its DJ software that now supports 64-bit operating systems (Windows 11, macOS 12-14) and includes performance enhancements, saying:... Read More   KVR Audio

Martinic has released Diaphanous Collection for the AX73 synth plugin. Diaphanous Collection is a musical masterpiece meticulously crafted by renowned designer Daniel Stawczyk... Read More   KVR Audio

Bitwig and PreSonus are making it easy to share projects between programs for producers using multiple DAWs. Transferring projects between programs can be time-consuming or... Read More   KVR Audio

apulSoft has updated apShaper to v1.2.1. Changes: Added a second dynamics detector. Bug Fix: unable to switch presets when not processing audio.... Read More   KVR Audio

Avid has announced Pro Tools Sketch a new non-linear, clip-based creation tool in Pro Tools software that is also available as a free iPad app. Pro Tools Sketch enables musicians... Read More   KVR Audio

Bremmers Audio Design has updated MultitrackStudio to v10.7 and MultitrackStudio for iPad to v4.8.2 which support MIDI-CI. MIDI-CI is part of MIDI 2.0, it allows a sender to receive information... Read More   KVR Audio

VAST Dynamics has announced that the hybrid wavetable synthesizer sampler plug-in, Vaporizer2, is now freely available as open source software under GPL3 at github.com. This... Read More   KVR Audio

suzumushi has updated PolyPortamento, a free MPE FX / Utility VST3 Plugin for Windows, to version 1.1.0. PolyPortamento is a plug-in enabling polyphonic portamento with MPE... Read More   KVR Audio

AudioThing has updated miniBit, an 8-bit/chiptune synth plugin, to version 1.6.5, adding support for Linux and iOS. Changelog for desktop version: Added: CLAP plugin... Read More   KVR Audio

Deskew Technologies updated Gig Performer, the advanced VST/AU plugin host for live performers, to v4.7. First introduced in 2015, Gig Performer receives high marks from its... Read More   KVR Audio

AudioRealism has updated Bass Line 3 to v3.3.2.6. Changes: Higher resolution background. VCO Model 2 is now the default when launching a new session. Pattern grid view,... Read More   KVR Audio

XiiixxiQ has updated Roundels to v1.2.0. Changes: Re-written MIDI clock/trigger routine making it much more reliable. Re-coded general routines to lower CPU usage. Some... Read More   KVR Audio

Woodman's Immaculate Maple Syrup Studio has released WoodValvet v1.1 for MacOS and iOS. New features in WoodValvet 1.1: Added oversampling (1,2,4,8): avoids (lower) un-harmonic... Read More   KVR Audio

iPhone, iPad / Tools / Controllers: Easily deploy BYOD into your AV installation with Xilica XTouch iOS app for Xilica Solaro Series devices. Easily develop UI control of Solaro and networked third-party devices using Xilica's Designer software with simple drag-and-drop configuration. Please...   440Software

iPhone, iPad / Education / Chords and Scales: To improve your guitar playing, learn scales, chords, and the relationship between them. Stay in tune with the tuner and enhance your rhythm by practicing with the metronome. Practice scale loops to master positions and develop muscle memory. Engage...   440Software