Synology is a well-known brand for their NAS solutions. In 2015, they broadened their portfolio with their first router, the RT1900 ac, that didn’t got released in Europe. The Asian brand will try again with another model that we will be able to find in authorized distributors and comes with a pristine specs sheet. We’ve been testing it during the last few weeks and these are our impressions.
The Synology RT2600ac is a high-end product, aimed to a highly advanced user profile, who wants and knows how to make the most of his network. In fact, it utilizes technologies and functionalities that are also valid for professional environments, such as small offices.
Gaming laptops are not as expensive as before, which has moved hordes of players that see these devices, with screens between 15 and 17 inches, as a nice alternative for polyvalent computers that don’t take too much room space and are portable, so they can enjoy games wherever they go. This group of gaming laptops, …
Whether you’re an amateur looking to learn the poker ropes, a semi-pro player with skills, or a professional poker player looking to grind a consistent profit at the poker tables online, a solid computer setup will aid you. Without a fast, reliable desktop, amateurs won’t be able to get to grips with the fast online action and the pros can’t multi-table and benefit from the use of heads up displays (HUDs) to inform their decision-making. This article may well be particularly useful for those considering grinding online poker. This means someone who is going to play many tables at once, potentially across a variety of poker disciplines, over a number of hours.
This is not the first time that two standards face one another to see which one will take over the market. What is weird this time is that these two standards do not come from rivaling business interests, as it happened with Blu-ray and HD-DVD or Beta and VHS. These two Wi-Fi standards come from the ‘Wi-Fi Alliance’ organization that allows all of us to enjoy compatibility between devices, legacy compatibility and many other advantages.
This organization sets a standard for the IEEE 802.11 protocol that is refined and enhanced as technology improves. This standard is open and global, therefore it is the starting point for every manufacturer in order for their products to be easily used on the market and to interact with other brands’ compatible devices, etc.
You probably remember that our first experience with FreeSync was, to say the least, disappointing. We would like to remind you that behind the name FreeSync lies AMD’s answer to Nvidia’s G-Sync, that is to say a technology for the handling of variable display refresh rates. The idea behind this concept is that it helps to improve the game-play experience by providing an increased sensation of fluidity. How is FreeSync doing these days you might ask? As long as the proper monitor is used, it actually works quite well and costs quite a bit less than G-Sync!
After much fanfare in January 2014, the arrival of the first FreeSync compatible monitor had to wait until March of 2015. And, unfortunately, their performance was far from impressive. On paper, the advantages offered by this technique of monitor management were many fold, starting with the fact that it relied on an open technology standard which is much less costly than that of Nvidia’s G-Sync. However, entry-level monitors which didn’t provide the required fluidity left us feeling disappointed with the whole concept.
Adaptive-Sync, FreeSync and G-Sync
Under the banner of these three terms, or brands if you prefer, lies the technology for the management of variable refresh rates (VRR). A classic fixed refresh rate of 60 Hz will offer an imperfect visual experience when playing video games. As each image is different, it follows that the time required for the calculation of each image also differs. This discrepancy results in synchronization problems. While a higher refresh rate, of 144 Hz for example, decreases the impact of the problem it does not eliminate it entirely. The graphics card might miss a display cycle, spend too much time waiting for the next cycle or disregard a cycle entirely, all of which will result in image breakup (tearing).
The use of VPN connections has a number of advantages that allow us greater privacy when browsing the internet.
In a world where the Internet is essential for a large part of human activities, and where being disconnected is either an eccentric quirk, an age thing or materially impossible, where threats to the security of the network are numerous, growing and continuous and, moreover, where accessing content can depend on the country in which you find yourself, feeling protected and free to explore all the virtual universe is a reassuring and even pleasant experience.
And something that can help us to achieve this is a VPN connection (virtual private network) such as the irreverent Hide My Ass! since with them we can use the web as a private network as it were, i.e. as an extension of a secure local network over a public one without controls. Any computer connected to a VPN sends and receives data hiding your real IP address under any of the shared network, giving the impression that the user is where the VPN servers are, which prevents its location being known and puts a barrier network and all its safety measures up against threats, all this with the corresponding encryption of the information.
When we assemble a PC or update an existing configuration we have the option of choosing high-end or mid-range graphics cards, a decision that can end up being rather complicated , especially if we have a decent budget.
The decision is important because it affects not only user experience when it comes to playing our favourite games, but also the upgrade cycle which we will be subjected to.
If we opt for a high end graphics card it is very likely that we won’t have to upgrade for up to four or five years if it our monitors native resolution doesn’t change. On the other hand if we chose a mid-range graphics card it’s is very likely that we will have to upgrade sooner (between two and three years).
Increasingly more users are deciding to rely on free antivirus to protect against malware. While for a long time the two free antivirus stars have been Avast and Avira, the main antivirus companies have decided to enter this sector of the market of releasing free versions of their paid antivirus so that users who don’t want to part with their cash have a basic security tool. Kaspersky is the latest security company to launch its free antivirus for Windows.
Yesterday afternoon, Russia’s Kaspersky Security firm announced its new security product: “Kaspersky Free Antivirus”, a free version of its well-known paid antivirus falls into the gap for the users looking for a solution free of charge to protect their systems.
What has Kaspersky deleted from it’s antivirus to make it free?
A characteristic shared by all the free antivirus on the market is that they typically only provide users with free antivirus protection, but the rest of the protective shields and security modules are limited to users of the paid versions. Kaspersky Free is no different.
Although the laptop market has been greatly affected by convertible and 2-in-1 devices, current technology provides smaller components and more efficient processors that make laptops the talk of the town, and models such as those in ASUS’ ZenBook lineup are the centerpiece when talking about outstanding devices sporting thin and light designs.
We already reviewed the ZenBook 3 UX390UA, which is a model that won our best ultrabook on the market prize thanks to its good finish and performance, when it was launched. This year, the company announced that model’s successor: the ZenBook 3 Deluxe UX490UA currently sitting on our hands, with which the brand takes advantage of the new bezel-less displays and of additional connectivity options, updating their flagship ultrabook.
The ZenBook 3 Deluxe UX490UA’s general design barely changes, because, as some say, if it’s not broke, don’t fix it.
It still has a premium feel thanks to its polished aerospace-grade aluminum unibody chassis, its golden diamond-cut edges and its concentric finish, giving it a unique touch when we compare it to other average ultrabooks on the market. In this case, we have the blue variant, which undoubtedly gives it a very original touch.
The new AMD’s Ryzen processors’ performance took everybody by surprise by taking us back to those times when the competition between AMD and Intel was much harder and when users were always introduced to better products at more attractive prices.
I do not know if it is already too late for AMD to go back to the position it had almost a decade ago, but Ryzen has undoubtedly given us back the hope for a less monopolized and more open PC world. Right now, no one doubts that Ryzen processors are a technical success, but it is too early to tell if they are also a commercial success since AMD does not provide sales figures. Today we will go over the progress that the product has made in the past few months, although it could not escape some controversy.
Software and programs optimization
Although x86 is a well-known architecture that has been around for some time, there is always room for resource optimization and performance improvement. All of this is usually done on several software levels where every one is equally, or even more important than the others.
