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MARCH 2020 PCWorld 3

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News TECH NEWS AND TRENDS THAT WILL
AFFECT YOU TODAY AND BEYOND.
Galaxy S20 Ultra hands-on:

Samsung’s pro phone is a
monument to excess
It’s got everything (except a headphone jack). BY MICHAEL SIMON
T
he Galaxy S20 Ultra is the most has ever before.
phone I’ve ever held in my hand. At a quick glance, the S20 Ultra doesn’t
I’m not just referring to the screen seem all that different from the S20 or S20+:
size—a hair under 7 inches—or You get the same basic features in
even the weight, which tips the scales at 220 increasingly larger displays (6.2, 6.7, and 6.9
grams. It’s the whole package, which oozes inches, respectively, as you step up the line).
luxury and excess in a way no Galaxy phone But as soon as you pick up the Ultra, you can
IMAGE: CHRISTOPHER HEBERT MARCH 2020 PCWorld 7

NEWS HANDS - ON: SAMSUNG GAL A X Y S20 ULTR A
feel the difference. It feels more

substantial than any other I’ve
ever used, including the
iPhone 11 Pro Max. It’s hefty
without being too heavy, and
gigantic without being
cumbersome. That’s with a
display that’s even bigger than
Samsung’s recent 6.7-inch
behemoths.
Even though the S20 Ultra
is the thickest Galaxy phone Like everything else, the Galaxy S20 Ultra’s camera bump is
since the S5 (and that thickness significantly bigger than the one on the S20+.
doesn’t even include its
bulbous camera bump), the girth without an adapter. This was to be expected
complements its tremendous size surprisingly after the Note 10+ dumped the headphone
well. The rounded corners and slimmer jack last year, but it still stings given the S20
bezels give it a sleeker look than the Note 10. Ultra’s otherwise maxed-out spec sheet.
The taller aspect ratio makes it feel smaller and You get most of the same performance
gives it a surprising holdability. features across the S20 lineup, but the Ultra
Samsung’s color options, which are packs a few more pixels into its Quad HD+
limited to somewhat staid black
and gray, also give the phone a
slimming appearance. That
said, the extra millimeter of
thickness that the Ultra has on
the S20 and S20+ is palatable,
and you’ll notice it, even if the
phone you’re coming from is
several years old.
While you’ll find a ton of
power inside the Ultra’s chunky
frame, you won’t be able to
plug in your wired headphone Next to the Galaxy S10+ (right), the S20 Ultra is a beast.

Infinity-O display.
Samsung has finally
brought a high refresh rate
(120Hz) to a Galaxy
phone, and it feels
luxurious, like my fingers
were running through
water rather than mud.
However, you’ll need to
keep the Ultra locked to
Full HD if you want to use
that refresh rate, which is a
major bummer.
The S20 Ultra is Samsung has moved the position of the fingerprint sensor on the S20,
powered by the same and it’s much easier to hit now.
top-of-the-line Snapdragon
865 processor and 12GB of LPDDR5 RAM as back of my mind while holding it. But with a
the S20, and includes 128GB of base storage, a 5G modem and a 120Hz 6.9-inch display, the
5G modem, and an ultrasonic in-display Ultra is going to need every ounce of juice it
fingerprint sensor. I’d much rather have 3D facial can get.
recognition on a phone this big, but Samsung is
still using the less-secure selfie camera for face ZOOM TO THE MOON
unlock. Nonetheless, during my hands-on I did While the super-sized display and battery
see an improvement in the accuracy of the certainly set the Ultra apart from its S20
sensor compared to the one on the S10+, siblings, the main reason to drop $1,400 on it
especially when using my thumb. I attribute this (or $1,600 if you opt for an insane 16GB of
largely to the sensor’s new position, higher on RAM) is the camera. And for that sky-high
the screen. price, you also get a bit of unsightly “Space
The S20 Ultra is extra-thick because it Zoom” branding on top of an already
includes the largest battery Samsung has ever unappealing camera bump.
shipped in a phone: a whopping 5,000mAh While it has the same 12MP, f/2.2,
cell. That’s a healthy boost from the S10 5G’s 120-degree ultrawide camera as the S20 and
4,500mAh capacity, and I’d be lying if I said S20+, the wide and telephoto cameras are
the Note 7’s exploding battery wasn’t in the quite a bit different. Dig the specs:

NEWS HANDS - ON: SAMSUNG GAL A X Y S20 ULTR A
light and less noise in low

light. Samsung says the
Ultra’s camera will
dynamically switch
between the full 108MP
and 12MP modes to bring
in three times more light
than the S10+ (which has
always been a bit
disappointing when it
comes to nighttime shots).
During my hands-on
In case you couldn’t tell, the Ultra has the bigger bump. demo, I didn’t get a chance
to test the camera in low
Galaxy S20/S20+ light, but I did get to test the S20 Ultra’s other
Wide (main): 12MP, f/1.8 over-the-top camera feature: 100X Space
Telephoto: 64MP, f/2.0 Zoom (also not a typo). Like the Huawei P30
Pro and other long-zoom phones with
Galaxy S20 Ultra periscope lenses, the S20 Ultra’s telephoto
Wide: 108MP, f/1.8 camera sits sideways in the device and refracts
Telephoto: 48MP, f/3.5 the light through a prism at a 90-degree angle.
Samsung says this proprietary hybrid
That’s not a typo. The S20 Ultra has a optical and AI-powered digital zoom solution
ridiculous 108MP sensor, which is a bit of is able to achieve 10X lossless zoom and 100X
marketing bluster. Any photographer will tell max zoom, both of which are impressive
you that megapixels don’t make a great claims. I was in a pretty small room (and I got
camera, but Samsung has done some pretty yelled at when I tried to shoot out the
cool and innovative things with the sensor. window), but the Ultra was able to zoom way
Using a process called nona binning, the S20 further than any other phone I used. Without
Ultra’s main camera merges nine pixels into OIS, it was extremely hard to control at even
one to create a 12MP image using the entire 30X and nearly impossible to keep steady at
108MP sensor. 100X, but a mini zoomed-out viewfinder in
In real-life results, that means the S20 the corner of the screen did help maintain
Ultra’s pictures will have more detail in full some semblance of position. The photos I

ULTRA
EXCESS
The Galaxy S20
Ultra is probably
too much phone
for most people,
but never have I
held a phone
that felt so
consequential.
We might be a little sad that Samsung dumped the headphone jack on the Galaxy Granted, you’re
S20, but we can’t fault the beautiful curves and contours of the overall design. going to pay
dearly—a $1,400
snapped, while extremely noisy and hazy, starting price makes the iPhone 11 Pro Max
were surprisingly legible. seem like a bargain—but switching between
Space Zoom may very well be the thing the S20+ and S20 Ultra felt more dramatic
that compels a few fence-sitters to take the than going from the S10 to the S10+.
$1,400 plunge, but it’s the smaller camera Even more than the Note 10+ 5G, the S20
advancements that will make or break the S20 Ultra is absolutely the biggest and best phone
Ultra. These include enhanced low-light Samsung can build right now (except for that
mode and nighttime hyperlapse; 8K video pesky missing headphone jack). Is it
recording; improved Super Steady; and a excessive? Unapologetically so. But I’ll take it
cool innovation called Single Take mode, over the Galaxy Z flip any day.
which was the smartest
S20 camera trick I tried.
Instead of fussing with
modes and cameras, you
need only take a
10-second video of the
scene in front of you, and
the S20 will use AI to
decide which pics and
video clips best capture
the moment. The Galaxy S20 Ultra (bottom) is about 10 percent thicker than the S20.

NEWS
Samsung Galaxy S20 v S20+: How

do the non-Ultra phones stack up?
To+ or not to +? BY MICHAEL SIMON
DESIGN
I
f you’ve got your eye on a new Galaxy
S20, chances are the Ultra is just too No matter which S20 you buy, you’re getting
much phone for you. It’s huge, powerful, a gorgeous phone, with extremely slim
and, most importantly, crazy-expensive, bezels, a stunning screen, and a striking
so most people are going to be choosing camera array. Samsung isn’t straying too far
between the classics: S20 and S20+. But from its tried-and-true formula, but the S20
just because they don’t have Ultra branding, definitely has a character all its own.
doesn’t mean you’re getting a subpar However, while anyone will be able to
handset: pick the S20 out of a lineup of S10’s, there
12 PCWorld MARCH 2020 IMAGE: CHRISTOPHER HEBERT

isn’t too much of a size difference between respectively, the S20 clocks in at 6.2 inches
the new phone and the old ones: and the S20+ at a whopping 6.7 inches.
S20: 151.7 x 69.1 x 7.9 mm The Dynamic AMOLED Infinity-O display
S20+: 161.9 x 73.7 x 7.8 mm is basically the same save one big, new
S10: 149.9 x 70.4 x 7.8 mm feature: 120Hz high-refresh support, a feature
S10+: 157.6 x 74.1 x 7.8 mm Samsung fans have been clamoring for after
Samsung has taken a page from Google’s the Pixel 4, OnePlus 6T, and other phones
and Apple’s book for the S20’s rear camera gained it last year. That means the display is
array, opting for a big rectangular camera twice as fast as the S10’s 60Hz screen, so
bump rather than the S10’s horizontal array. scrolling and animation will simply fly.
With a trio of cameras inside, it’s a good deal There’s just one problem: You can’t use it
deeper than the one on both the Pixel 4 and at full resolution. Samsung has limited 120Hz
iPhone 11 (but not as gigantic as the Ultra). refresh to 1080p, so you’ll need to make a
While the rear camera will get all of the choice between the clearest or the fastest
attention, the front camera has changed too. version of the screen.
Samsung has corrected the S10’s biggest
blunder—the off-center selfie cam—by BIOMETRICS
centering the hole and reducing the size Samsung introduced the ultrasonic in-display
beyond even what the Note 10 brings. fingerprint sensor with the S10, and it’s
Consequently, the Plus model loses its sticking with it for the S20. However, there
second front lens, and we’re that much further are a couple of changes. For one, the sensor
away from 3D facial unlock (which requires an is larger, so your finger should be able to find
IR camera, flood illuminator, and a dot it quicker, and it’s also been moved higher on
projector). It’s a small price to pay for sweet, the phone so you shouldn’t need to adjust
sweet symmetry. However, you can look all your grip. We’d much rather see 3D facial
you want, but you won’t find a headphone recognition on such large phones, but until
jack anywhere—it’s gone for good. Samsung can come up with a bezel- or
notch-less solution, this is as good as it’s
DISPLAY going to get.
Samsung likes to go bigger whenever it
launches a new Galaxy S phone, and the S20 PROCESSOR, RAM, AND
follows suit. Where the S10 and S10+ were STORAGE
relatively small at 6.1 and 6.4 inches (and the The latest Galaxy S always runs the newest
S10e was downright tiny at 5.8 inches), Qualcomm processor. This year, it’s the

NEWS SAMSUNG GAL A X Y S20 V S20+
Snapdragon 865, which should bring a nice year—but it’s the first Galaxy phone that’s
speed and graphics boost over last year’s 855. exclusively 5G. That’s because Qualcomm is
Far more intriguing is the RAM. Samsung requiring the Snapdragon 865 processor to
has switched to LPDDR5 RAM for the S20, be paired with the X55 5G modem.
which is reportedly 1.3 times faster than the However, you’re not getting an equal 5G
S10 5G’s LPDDR4X. You’re also getting a lot experience on both phones. While the S20+
more of it: Samsung has bumped the base supports both the sub-6GHz spectrum and
RAM to 12GB in all models this year, a mmWave, the S20 supports only sub-6GHz.
50-percent increase over last year’s 8GB. (If That means Verizon customers are going to
you wanted 12GB of RAM in the S10+, you be out of luck with the S20, because the
needed to upgrade to the 1TB Performance carrier is building out its mmWave network
Edition ceramic model for $1,600.) first. However, Verizon will be selling its own
As far as storage goes, both phones offer model of S20 that does support mmWave at
128GB of internal storage with support for a some point, we just don’t know when or how
1TB MicroSD card. The S20+ also has a much it’ll cost. T-Mobile subscribers, on the
512GB option. other hand, will be able to use the company’s
5G network on either phone.
5G
The S20 isn’t Samsung’s first 5G phone—the BATTERY
S10 5G and Note 10+ 5G both arrived last With lots of pixels, 120Hz refresh, and a 5G
modem, the S20 is going
to need lots of battery
capacity. The S20 has a
4,000mAh battery, while
the S20+ gets a
4,500mAh one, a nice
boost from the 3,400mAh
and 4,100mAh batteries in
the S10 and S10+.
The phones are also
equipped with Wireless
PowerShare (for charging
your Galaxy Buds+ or a
Sorry audiophiles, there’s no headphone jack on any model of S20. buddy’s phone), 10W Fast

Wireless Charging 2.0,
and a 25W charger in
the box.
CAMERA
Now for the most
important section: the
camera. While the S20
has a completely new
camera architecture as
compared to the S10,
Samsung isn’t offering
much in the way of
The Galaxy S20 has a camera bump that’s bigger and bulkier than the S10.
upgrades between the
two models: Around the front, both phones have a
single 10MP camera, a bit of a downgrade
Galaxy S20/S20+ from the S10+, which features a dual
Camera 1: 12MP wide, f/1.8 selfie cam.
Camera 2: 12MP ultra wide, f/2.2
Camera 3: 64MP telephoto, f/2.0 COLORS
Camera 4 (S10+): Time-of-flight (depth) The Galaxy S20 comes in a variety of colors,
but the one you like might—ahem—color your
Galaxy S10/S10+ decision:
Camera 1: 12MP wide, f/1.5 Galaxy S20: Cosmic Gray, Cloud Blue, Cloud
Camera 2: 12MP ultra wide, f/2.2 Pink
Camera 3: 1264MP telephoto, f/2.4 Galaxy S20+: Cosmic Gray, Cloud Blue,
While you’re getting the same basic Cosmic Black
capabilities as the S10, Samsung has
significantly upped the camera’s abilities. The PRICE
new telephoto lens is cable of 3X lossless With 5G and bigger screens, the Galaxy S20
zoom and 30X Space Zoom, while the sensor is more expensive than ever, and you’re
is 1.6X bigger than the one in the S10, which looking at a grand just to get in the door.
will allow for greater detail and better low- S20 (128GB): $1,000
light photos, as well as 8K video recording. S20+ (128GB/512GB): $1,200/$1,350

NEWS
Samsung Galaxy Z Flip: 6 features

and facts to know before buying
Only $1,380? We’ll take two. BY MICHAEL SIMON
S
amsung wasted little time in midrange device like the Motorola razr
getting to the good stuff at its first (go.pcworld.com/mrzr). Along with the Flip’s
Unpacked event of 2020. Right off 6.7-inch 1080p display, the Flip has a very
the bat, it took the wraps off the speedy processor. I’m not sure exactly which
Galaxy Z Flip (go.pcworld.com/zflp), its chip it is, but the specs say it’s a 7nm, 64-bit
second folding phone and the first one that’s Octa-Core Processor with a max speed of
actually kind of affordable. Seriously, it’s 2.95GHz, which is actually faster than the
cheaper than the Galaxy S20 Ultra (which has S20. It also boasts 256GB of storage and
a starting price of $1,400; see page 7). 8GB of RAM. Its 3,300mAh battery seems
As far as the specs go, the Z Flip isn’t a small, however.
16 PCWorld MARCH 2020 IMAGE: SAMSUNG

But if you’re wondering
whether to rush to drop
$1,380 on it (it started
shipping on Valentine’s Day,
February 14), here are six
features and facts you need
to know first:
1. THE HINGE HAS

VASTLY
IMPROVED
After last year’s Galaxy Fold The Galaxy Z Flip opens up to a tall 6.7-inch OLED display.
debacle, Samsung had to
work on the hinge for the Galaxy Z Flip. It it’s voice-controlled or accessible via a
remains to be seen whether Samsung’s claims hardware shortcut—but you won’t need to
are believable, but this new model sports a open your Flip to snap a quick selfie.
Hideaway Hinge that uses a fibrous shield to
protect the phone from the dust, dirt, and 3. THE SCREEN IS MADE
debris that brought down the first round of OF GLASS
Galaxy Folds. Samsung says the Flip can be The Infinity Flex screen on last year’s Galaxy
folded and unfolded more than 200,000 Fold felt weird. That’s because it’s not made
times, which is a thinly veiled shot at the of glass. Rather, it was bonded with thin layers
Motorola razr and its own folding issues. of innovative materials crafted into a polymer
that felt just like plastic. Compared to the
2. YOU CAN TAKE SELFIES glass of the Galaxy S10, it wasn’t great, so
WITHOUT OPENING IT Samsung went to work. You can see the
The outside of the Galaxy Z Flip has an results of its efforts in the Galaxy Z Flip’s Ultra
extremely small, 1.1-inch Cover Display. That’s Thin Glass display. That’s right: It’s actually
good for checking the time and date or made of glass, so it should feel just like a
getting a glance at incoming texts, calls, and smartphone when you run your fingers over it.
other notifications, but it’s also hiding another
trick: You can use the tiny screen to take a 4. YOU CAN USE IT AS A
full-sized selfie with the rear camera. It’s not MINI LAPTOP
entirely clear how that would work—whether The Galaxy Z Flip’s design is a major departure

NEWS SAMSUNG GAL A X Y Z FLIP
The screen on the Galaxy Z Flip is made of glass, not plastic.
from the Galaxy Fold. It’s not just that it flips Unpacked this year, unveiling deep Duo
open rather than folds, it’s also that you can use integration that lets you video chat as easily
it without fully opening it. It’s called Flex mode, on your S20 as you do on the Pixel. But the
and Samsung describes it as having a viewing coolest announcement was the free YouTube
area and an interaction area, kind of like a very Premium subscription you get with your
tiny laptop. When opened halfway, certain Galaxy Flip purchase. Unless the subscription
apps (camera, YouTube, Duo, Gallery, etc.) is open-ended, the benefit seems to be tied
will split into two parts, with images at the top to the Flip itself, because Samsung didn’t put
and controls at the bottom, whether that is a a cap on the offer. But even if you need to use
keyboard, trackpad, or buttons. It’s a neat the Flip to enjoy the subscription, that’s still
trick that transforms the Flip’s somewhat a great deal for a service that normally costs
cumbersome 6.7-inch screen into something $12 a month.
much more usable. And even when you need
to open it all the way, Multi Active Window lets 6. IT DOESN’T HAVE 5G
you stack apps, so multitasking is just as easy Samsung talked a lot about 5G during
as it is on your PC. Unpacked, so it’s surprising that the new
Galaxy Z Flip doesn’t support it. There are
5. YOU GET A YOUTUBE any number of reasons why—heat, cost,
PREMIUM SUBSCRIPTION battery—but if you’re hoping for blazing
FOR FREE download speed on your Flip, you’ll have
Google played a surprisingly big role during to wait ‘til the Flip 2.

Microsoft’s Windows 10X:
A dozen ways it’s cooler than
just two screens
There’s a lot more under the hood than we expected. BY MARK HACHMAN
B
efore a recent developer event, all much more, including what’s under the hood.
we really knew about Windows At the event, the company made a
10X was that it would be some Windows 10X emulator available (go.
flavor of Windows 10, optimized pcworld.com/10xm)—though you’ll need to
for dual-screen devices such as Microsoft’s assign a fairly powerful PC to the task, and
own Surface Neo (go.pcworld.com/mneo) dedicate it to the Windows Insider program.
and an unknown number of third-party Microsoft revealed several intriguing
competitors by holiday 2020. Now we know characteristics of the new OS as well,
IMAGE: MICROSOFT MARCH 2020 PCWorld 19

NEWS MICROSOFT’S WINDOWS 10X
including lightning-fast updates, a special way traditional Windows taskbar, as well as the
of handling Win32 apps, and no apparent “app drawer” on smartphones. The Windows
need for anti-malware apps. Start launcher moves from the bottom
Some have characterized Windows 10X as lefthand corner of the screen toward the
a new Windows 10 “experience,” in much the center. The way app icons are aligned on the
same way a movie might be re-released in a screen looks more like what you’d see on a
special director’s cut, with extras and in traditional tablet or phone than the Windows
additional formats. But it’s more than that, as it desktop. Even apps are moved from one
will interact with files and other applications screen to the other via touch points on the
differently than Windows 10 does. Microsoft’s bottom of the window, not the top.
published enough separate documentation Windows 10’s tiled Start interface? That’s
for us to start piecing together how Windows gone, too. Everything within Windows 10X
10X will work. Here are a dozen intriguing looks simple and clean.
features we’ve already learned about.
WINDOWS 10X
A SIMPLIFIED, PRETTIER UNDERSTANDS WHAT THE
WINDOWS SHELL HARDWARE IS DOING
Windows 10X looks different. Most of what Microsoft expended quite a lot of effort
you expect about Windows still works— hammering home why dual-screen devices
various inputs, drag and drop, the Clipboard, are cool, both from a developer and user
and more. But in Windows 10X, there’s a small perspective. Two displays—though separated
dock that incorporates elements of the by a physical hinge—offer a variety of ways of
communicating
information. But
there’s two
separate aspects,
including the
hardware and
the software.
Microsoft
envisions five
separate
The different hardware “postures” for Microsoft’s Windows 10X, specifically the hardware
Surface Neo. modes: laptop,

book, tablet, dual tablet,
and tent. The three most
interesting include tablet
mode, where the rear
display folds back out of
sight and shuts off, to save
on power and mistaken
input. Tent mode, as with
currently available
360-degree convertible Microsoft’s Wonder Bar and Windows 10X makes good use of the extra
laptops, is optimized for space when the Surface Neo’s keyboard is folded over.
presentations. Last but not
least, the Surface Neo’s keyboard flops up to smartphones, but they feel useless in
cover part of the screen, creating what Windows. (Try them yourself in Settings >
Microsoft calls… Devices > Typing > Show Text Suggestions As I
Type.) By placing them right above the
THE WONDER BAR: keyboard, you can quickly reach out and tap
A TOUCH BAR THAT them, then return to typing.
MAKES SENSE
When the Surface Neo’s keyboard is SMART SOFTWARE
attached to the device, a small strip of SPREADS CONTENT
space is left uncovered. That’s what ACROSS SCREENS
Microsoft calls the Wonder Bar, a space for Anyone who’s worked with multiple displays
additional content, suggested emoticons understands the benefits of seeing more
or GIFs, or whatever. information at any given time. Windows 10X
Looks like the MacBook Pro’s Touch Bar, does this in three ways: allowing apps to
you might sniff. But the Wonder Bar is open in what’s known as “expansive
inarguably better: bigger, so it can show workspaces,” spanning apps across dual
more, and it also does more, In this picture, screens; “focused screens,” which puts
posted during Microsoft’s Windows 10X separate apps on each individual screen,
developer presentations, you can see and “connected apps,” which puts separate
Microsoft’s keyboard suggestions—a fantastic apps on either screen but lets them talk with
use of the technology. Auto-completing text one another.
suggestions are an integral part of There already appear to be pluses and

minuses to this approach.

Spanning a webpage across
both screens—with a gap in the
middle—looks a bit awkward
when the gap splits a page
vertically. But Microsoft’s right in
suggesting that if we’re reading
email on one pane, we might
want to open a Calendar app in
a second pane.
According to Kevin Gallo,
corporate vice president of the
Windows Developer Platform, Spanning content within Windows 10X doesn’t look that hot…
apps will open in a single
display by default. Searching for a WINDOWS 10X IS READ-
restaurant in Edge, for example, will open ONLY
the browser in one pane. Tapping a map of The core Windows 10X operating system is
the area will open the Maps app in a designed in a locked-down mode, so that
second pane, while leaving the first open. only trusted apps are able to run in the
This makes sense. operating system. You’ve heard this before—
that’s the same model for
Windows 10 S. (But wait! Legacy
Win32 apps are supported, and
we’ll explain how in a bit.)
What’s different is that Windows
10X also runs signed code and
apps with a “good reputation,”
including those published in the
MSIX container, widening the
available apps beyond just the
traditional UWP apps, such as
Mail and Calendar.
That doesn’t mean that apps
…but it makes a bit more sense like this. will have to be downloaded

Windows apps like Photos will be the most commonly used within Windows 10X, certainly.
from the Microsoft Store app, either. As long within the OS, Microsoft executives said.
as the app is trusted, it can be downloaded
from a website, USB key, or another location. WINDOWS UPDATES WILL
That’s a big change from Windows 10 S. TAKE 90 SECONDS
All this is going to have interesting According to Andrew Clinick, a Microsoft
follow-on effects, including: partner group program manager, Windows
10X won’t require more than 90 seconds to
WINDOWS 10X WON’T update your PC. How? For one, they’ll take
REQUIRE ANTI-MALWARE place in the background. Clinick also said that
As with Windows 10 S, Microsoft believes Windows 10X will operate a bit differently
that relying on signed and trusted than Windows 10, in that the operating
applications will remove the need for anti- system will be downloaded as a separate
malware applications, even possibly including state, presumably as a patched copy of the
Windows Defender. That means the OS that will exist entirely separate from the
performance overhead that anti-malware unpatched OS. You’ll apparently have one
requires can be re-allocated to other areas version of Windows 10X running in the

When a new
app is downloaded,
the hashes of each
of the components
will be compared
against the update.
If a particular
component (say the
app icon) is left
unchanged, it won’t
be downloaded
and updated,
Developers will be able to try out this Windows 10X emulator from Microsoft. saving bandwidth.
But even if a
foreground, another one downloading in the component is downloaded, it will be divided
background, and the reboot will simply swap up into blocks, and only those blocks that have
between the two. been changed will be downloaded. Even
better, those blocks can be downloaded and
APP UPDATES WILL BE then merged with the app later on, taking care
INCREMENTAL of the process in the background.
You’ll see some improvements in app It sounds like this same approach will be
updates, too. John Vintzel, the program used to patch the Windows 10X OS, too. The
manager lead for Microsoft, said that one secondary patched OS will be constructed from
advantage of a new MSIX app packaging just what’s new, saving you from re-downloading
container will be that all of the app’s resources the entire OS every time a patch is released.
will be contained within it, each with its own
unique software hash. In fact, there will be FAREWELL, REGISTRY
three containers: native containers for UWP CLEANERS
apps, which will offer the best performance as The UWP apps within Windows 10X,
well as battery life; the MSIX containers, incidentally, will only be able to access certain
which will offer high compatibility with libraries. Photos would just be able to access
existing apps and a robust installation / your Photo library, for instance, just as UWP
uninstallation procedure; and the new Win32 apps behave within Windows 10. “Apps can
container, which we’ll discuss in a bit. interact with the OS, but only via a clear set of

APIs,” Clinick said. THE WIN32 CONTAINER:
“No more registry fiddling to optimize the HOW LEGACY APPS ARE
OS,” Clinick added. “And my personal SUPPORTED IN WINDOWS
favorite, no more registry cleaners.” 10X
How Windows 10X deals with legacy Win32
SAY GOODBYE (AGAIN) TO apps is one of the most fascinating parts of
“BIT ROT” Windows 10X, and it builds upon a number of
Microsoft promised this with Windows 10 S, the other components we’ve already
and it’s making the same pledge again with mentioned. Basically, Windows 10X will support
Windows 10X: Because the initial code and most legacy Win32 apps, and it will do so by
subsequent OS and app updates will be stealing a few tricks from Microsoft’s secret
clean and tidy, you shouldn’t see “bit rot,” the sauce: virtualization (go.pcworld.com/scsc).
degradation of performance that often Every app within Windows 10X runs within
accompanies a PC over years of operation. its own container—intended to protect the
“We’re going to have sustained performance, OS from potential malware. But the Win32
ensuring the performance you see on day one Container exists separately, as a large vault of
stays with you for the lifetime of the machine,” sorts for legacy Win32 code. (MSIX
Clinick added. “That’s so important. Because last Containers will run inside the Win32
time I checked processes don’t get slower, the Container—yes, as a container inside a
more you use them.” container, too.) Inside the Win32 Container
runs all of the
legacy Win32
apps that you
may want to
keep around:
system
utilities, old
games, and
the like.
There’s even a
traditional
Windows
directory tree,
A diagram of what the Win32 container looks like inside the Windows 10X host. and its own

kernel, drivers, and registry. PRIVACY WITHIN

The Win32 Container is essentially a WIN32 APPS
virtual machine, though with higher There will be a few bumps along the way.
integration, much lower latency, and with While all “typical” PC hardware—mice,
access to more resources on the host keyboards, pens, touchscreen, printers,
Windows 10X than a VM has. Together, it all networking devices—should work as
offers greater overall performance, according expected within Windows 10X, there will be
to Peter Torr, a principal program manager at limitations on “non-standard hardware” and
Microsoft. Oh, and if there are no Win32 apps “app-installed drivers,” Microsoft says.
running? The whole thing shuts down. Even Microsoft’s also putting some broad
inactive Win32 apps are “tombstoned,” limitations on what it’s calling “privacy-
essentially left in a very low-power state to sensitive hardware,” such as the camera
preserve battery. and microphone. In this case, all Win32
But opening the Win32 app within apps will have access to the mic, or none
Windows 10X doesn’t actually launch it will; there are no per-app permissions,
directly. Instead, what Windows 10X does is Torr explained.
create “proxy” apps within the Windows 10X Torr listed other limitations to Win32
host operating system—essentially, using a apps in Windows 10X: No system tray
Remote Desktop-like interface to access the applets will be allowed, and you won’t be
secured Win32 app within the Win32 able to use File Explorer add-ins or
Container. Microsoft promises you’ll have namespace extensions, for example. If
near-native performance of these apps, but there’s an app or utility that you interact with
some sort of slowdown would seem likely. via the system tray, it’ll have to move
elsewhere within
Windows 10.
There’s a lot here
already, and it’s still early
in the year. Expect to hear
more about Windows 10X
as 2020 progresses,
including at Microsoft’s
Build 2020 conference in
late May (go.pcworld.
Some of the limitations of Win32 apps within Windows 10X. com/mb20).

Threadripper 3990X review
roundup: AMD’s 64-core CPU can
play Crysis, but it’s not for everyone
Its performance is in a class by itself, but it has some distinct limitations. BY GORDON MAH UNG
A
MD’s 64-core CPU has officially Newegg. If you’d rather get that brick-and-
gone on sale, and early reviews mortar experience, Microcenter has it in
of AMD’s flagship high-end stores and online at the chip’s $3,990 list
desktop processor give the price (go.pcworld.com/mctr).
chip very high marks—assuming you can Before you break out that roll of hunnert-
make use of it. dollar bills though, you should ask yourself:
And provided you can afford it! Newegg Is it worth it?
is selling the new Threadripper 3990X for
$3,989.99, which is a penny below its MSRP VIDEO: THREADRIPPER
of $3,990 (go.pcworld.com/thdr). Anything
3990X ROUNDUP
Watch now at go.pcworld.com/39x
below MSRP on a new CPU launch is rare for
IMAGE: AMD MARCH 2020 PCWorld 27

NEWS THREADRIPPER 3990X REVIEW ROUNDUP
Most reviewers are saying: “It depends.” at half its price:

Here are the highlights from major sites and “For the first stage, the consumer/
some other interesting places that tested it. prosumer level, our conclusion is that the
usefulness of the 3990X is limited. Aside from
ANANDTECH SAYS a few select instances (as mentioned, Corona,
THREADRIPPER 3990X IS A Blender, NAMD) the 32-core Threadripper for
“NO BRAINER” (BUT...) half the price performed on par or with
Kicking off the review roundup are margin. For this market, saving that $2,000
Anandtech.com’s Dr. Ian Cutress and Gavin between the 64-core and the 32-core can
Bonshor, whose views don’t fit into sound easily net another RTX 2080 Ti for GPU
bites (go.pcworld.com/nrev). acceleration, and this would probably be the
Cutress and Bonshor say the consumer/ preferred option. Unless you run those
prosumer chip is stunningly fast in some specific tests (or ones like it), then go for the
workloads, but many times it has issues 32 core and spend the money elsewhere.
outrunning the 32-core Threadripper 3970X Aside from the core count there is little to
differentiate the two parts.”
As anticipated, Anandtech’s
review shows the single-chip
Threadripper 3990X outpacing
$20,000 dual-socket Xeon chips,
which makes it an easy win.
“The second stage, the
enterprise level, it becomes a no
brainer to consolidate a dual socket
system into a single AMD CPU—the
initial outlay cost is substantially
lower, and the long term power
costs also come into play. This is
what the enterprise likes to combine
into ‘Total Cost of Ownership’, or
TCO. The TCO and performance
advantage of AMD here is plain to
Anandtech.com showed one of the challenges for
Threadripper is out of its control: Which version of Windows see in the benchmarks and the
you use matters. pricing.”

Anandtech’s review interestingly digs 3990X’s performance, but we can’t tell the
deep into one of the biggest challenges whole performance story due to spotty
for AMD’s 64-core, 128-thread chip: software support for a processor of this class,”
Windows itself. Alcorn writes. “Outside of AMD’s targeted
Cutress and Bonshor ran the Threadripper workloads, most software can’t extract the
3990X through different flavors of Windows best performance from this processor.”
to show off the issues in how the OS handles Still, Alcorn notes in his review: “...the
not just 64-core processor pools, but also Threadripper 3990X is an incredibly
how some versions of it treat the new CPU as impressive chip. Just three years ago, an
a dual-socket system even though the eight-core $1,000 chip represented the best
Threadripper is a single chip. As part of their the industry had to offer on an HEDT platform,
testing, Cutress and Bonshor found disabling but now we have up to 64 cores and 128
SMT in the CPU in Windows 10 Pro yielded threads at our disposal, and AMD says it
better performance in some workloads, while won’t slow down as it shrinks to smaller
Windows 10 Enterprise performed far better. . process nodes. As crazy as it sounds, we’ll
see higher core counts in the future.
TOM’S HARDWARE SAID Hopefully the software and operating system
MORE IS YET TO COME AFTER ecosystems respond with performance-
THREADRIPPER 3990X boosting optimizations so this kind of
Paul Alcorn of Tom’s Hardware, who also incredible performance benefits more types
showed the Threadripper 3990X outpacing of workloads.” Amen, Paul.
Intel’s dual socket Xeon chips was a bit less on
the fence on the 64-core part saying (go. HOTHARDWARE’S TAKE ON
pcworld.com/alcn): “The Threadripper THREADRIPPER 3990X
3990X is pretty much exactly what AMD says Marco Chiappetta of Hothardware.com
it is: A highly specialized processor that described Threadripper 3990X as a “beast”
provides incredible performance in a narrow (go.pcworld.com/hthd) though with the
cross-section of workloads, but at an same “under the right conditions” qualifier as
extremely attractive price point given its other reviews.
capabilities.” Chiapetta continues: “The AMD Ryzen
Yet, like Anandtech.com, Alcorn said Threadripper 3990X isn’t perfect and it’s
there are clearly limitations—not all of them meant to appease a specific sub-set of users,
within AMD’s control. “We’ve done our best obviously. Even still, we must commend AMD
to show you the best of the Threadripper for continually and aggressively pushing the

NEWS THREADRIPPER 3990X REVIEW ROUNDUP
envelope since the introduction of its first-gen

Ryzen architecture. AMD’s efforts that [sic] last
few years have re-shaped the enthusiast
computing landscape and injected some real
excitement. If AMD continues on this
trajectory with Zen 3 and beyond, we can’t
wait to see what the company has in store for
us all next year.”
PUGET SYSTEMS ON
THREADRIPPER 3990X
FOR PREMIERE
It wasn’t just YouTubers and hardware sites
Tweaktown said the Threadripper 3990X
who got first dibs on Threadripper 3990X. PC consumes up to 800 watts and more by flipping
workstation maker Puget Systems put the new on PBOC and XMP profiles.
chip through its Adobe Premiere CC
benchmark (go.pcworld.com/psys) and Bassiri of TweakTown.com (go.pcworld.com/
answers the singular question of “Is the AMD twkt) might have had the most fun, noting:
Threadripper 3990X good for Premiere Pro?” “The Ryzen Threadripper 3990X eats up
The answer isn’t likely to shock anyone: No. power, but not nearly as much as we
“While there may be some niche uses for expected, at least at stock. We saw total
the AMD Threadripper 3990X 64 Core within system power go to around 370W, with the
the greater video editing industry, the 3990X CPU pulling about 300W. We noticed that
is underwhelming for Premiere Pro. It is AMD achieved this by greatly reducing the
certainly no slouch, but only performs roughly core voltage, so we were pulling a bit over
on par with the Threadripper 3960X 24 Core 300A at less than 1v. HOWEVER, look below
for both live playback and exporting,” Puget’s to see what happens when we enable PBOC;
Matt Bach writes. hint, the system power went over 1000W.”
Bassiri said he believes Threadripper
TWEAKTOWN SAYS YOU’LL 3990X itself was likely consuming about
WANT A BIG PSU FOR 800 watts.
THREADRIPPER 3990X Yup. Throw in a GeForce RTX 2080 Ti and
Many reviewers looked at power custom liquid cooling, and the days of a
consumption of the new chip, but Steven 1,500-watt PSU just might be back.

LINUS TECH TIPS RUNS 256GB. That’s a mere quarter of what Intel’s
CRYSIS ON THREADRIPPER Xeon W-3175X can take, he points out.
3990X
But can it run Crysis?! Glad you asked. Besides PHORONIX: WHAT ABOUT
showing the chip easily ripping through LINUX ON THREADRIPPER
rendering tests, Linus Sebastian of Linus Tech Tips 3990X?
shows the CPU is actually capable of running We’ll close off our review roundup by
Crysis (go.pcworld.com/lnst). And no, we don’t satiating Linux fans, who are all screaming,
mean running Crysis on a GPU in the system with “It’s Windows’ fault!”
Threadripper 3990X, we mean, actually running Phoronix’s Michael Larabel (go.pcworld.
Crysis rendered in software mode ON THE CPU. com/phrn) writes that the “AMD Ryzen
It’s an amazing feat worth watching. Threadripper 3990X Offers Incredible Linux
Sebastian does point out the odd position Performance.”
AMD occupies at the moment. Yes, Larabel continued: “When taking the
Threadripper 3990X eats Xeons for breakfast in geometric mean of the benchmarks for this
compute, but he notes that AMD is now at the article today, The Threadripper 3990X came out
point where it has put artificial limitations on the overall 26% faster than the dual Xeon Platinum
3990X so as not to compete with its own Epyc 8280, which is a very nice accomplishment
server chips, which support much higher RAM since such a configuration currently retails for
capacities than Threadripper does. In $20,000 USD worth of processors alone. For
Sebastian’s eyes, the new chip is a “$4,000 those doing serious content creation work like
deadend” due to its “low” memory limit of Blender or other CPU-based renderers/
modeling, engaging in heavy
multi-threaded workloads that
aren’t memory intensive
(where instead you’d be
better off with the EPYC 7002
CPUs with eight-channel
memory), or code
compilation of large software
projects, the AMD Ryzen
Threadripper 3990X is a
Can it run Crysis?! Yes, in fact Linus Tech Tips used the 64-core
Threadripper 3990X to do just that. And no, not on the GPU: The game
mighty impressive
ran rendered in software on Threadripper. competitor.”

NEWS
Microsoft walks back plans to

switch Chrome search to Bing
for Office 365 customers
Microsoft may think it’s helping, but really, what gives them the right? BY MARK HACHMAN
I
n what seems like a broad case of evolves the Bing search engine into a way to
overreaching, an upcoming version of delve through your corporate files and other
Microsoft’s Office 365 for enterprises will information. But still, altering another
automatically switch Google Chrome’s company’s search engine to do so?
search engine to Bing. And Firefox is next on (We reached out to Google for comment, but
the list. the company hadn’t responded by
Yes, Google Chrome. Yes, Bing. Microsoft press time.)
says it’s doing so to enable Microsoft Search Microsoft laid out its plans in a support
(go.pcworld.com/mssr), which essentially document (go.pcworld.com/mpln) that
32 PCWorld MARCH 2020 IMAGE: MICROSOFT

surfaced recently, in part due to a report by web interface to help your users find
Thurrott.com (go.pcworld.com/thur). workplace information more easily, including
Specifically, the change will be made to files and documents, internal sites and
Office 365 ProPlus, a version of Office specific business tools, people and org charts,
to enterprises. The change will be deployed building information, and other relevant
as early as February for “targeted” users who information from within your organization,” it
receive monthly channel updates, and at a says. “Microsoft Search accesses files,
later date for others. Users in the United SharePoint sites, OneDrive content, Teams
States and the United Kingdom will be and Yammer conversations, and other shared
affected, as well as those in some other data sources in your organization, as well as
regions, Microsoft said. the internet.”
Microsoft refers to the changes made to What’s not exactly clear is how Microsoft
Chrome as an extension: specifically, adding can sink its hooks into Chrome to do this. The
the Microsoft Search in Bing extension to Twitter security handle SwiftonSecurity noted
Office 365 Pro Plus. Here’s how Microsoft (go.pcworld.com/swsc) that it actually
explains what it is and what it does: violates Windows Defender’s prohibition
“Microsoft Search in Bing provides a familiar against installing software without your
An example of what users would see searching with Microsoft Search using Google Chrome.

NEWS MICROSOFT WALKS BACK CHROME SEARCH PL ANS
consent. The support document also makes clear whether admins can lock this down.
the greater intent clear: Microsoft’s adding To disable Microsoft Search and restore
the tweaks to Chrome first, but “support for Google as your search engine, users should
the Firefox web browser is planned for a later be able to click the magnifying glass search
date,” it says. icon next to the address bar in Chrome, and
then toggle off the Use Bing As Your
HOW TO BLOCK MICROSOFT Default Search Engine selection.
FROM CHANGING Unfortunately, Microsoft’s efforts to “help”
CHROME’S SEARCH ENGINE users with Microsoft Search could easily be
IN OFFICE 365 seen as just another example of the
IT admins who don’t want the extension company’s heavy-handed approaches to, say,
installed have a way around it. Enterprises can upgrading users to Windows 10 (go.pcworld.
use either the Office Deployment Tool or com/nw10). The next natural question to ask
Group Policy to prevent it, but it has to be is: Could Microsoft do this to consumers,
done before the extension itself is installed. If too? Here’s something to think about: In the
an admin waits too long, they’ll have to run a new, Chromium-based Edge, Microsoft
command (go.pcworld.com/rncm) to hasn’t touched Chrome’s choice of search
remove it. engine. But it has buried Edge’s search-
Fortunately, it sounds like individual engine options (go.pcworld.com/bury) in a
users will have the option of disabling deep level where they’re difficult to find, and
Microsoft Search as well—though it’s not made Bing the default.
Users can click the

magnifying glass
search icon to switch
out of Microsoft Bing.

How ‘Warcraft III’ became a great
‘Lord of the Rings’ game
It doesn’t get discussed as much as ‘Defense of the Ancients,’ but ‘Warcraft III’ had a surprising
symbiosis with ‘The Lord of the Rings’—one that’s worth revisiting. BY HAYDEN DINGMAN
arcraft III: Reforged has
W
Blizzard’s authored story is the smallest
been released. We may portion of my love for Warcraft III though. I
never get a Warcraft IV, played it for years, and what kept me coming
but at least III and its back is an element that was incredibly
expansion The Frozen Throne are finally important at the time, but rarely discussed
getting some love: A refined user interface, now: Warcraft III was one of the best Lord of
more detailed units and buildings, native 4K the Rings games. Maybe the best.
support, and so on. It’s been a while since I’ve And it happened by accident.
played either campaign, and I’m looking
forward to revisiting it. Arthas’s downfall is still YOU BOW TO NO ONE
one of Blizzard’s best story lines, and I’m Warcraft III shipped in 2002 with a robust set
excited to see it fully redone. of mapmaking tools. To younger folks that
IMAGE: WARCRAFT III: REFORGED MARCH 2020 PCWorld 35

NEWS HOW WARCR AFT III BECAME A GREAT LORD OF THE RINGS GAME
might sound weird now. “Mapmaking tools?” Ring released in December of 2001, a mere
But once upon a time it was normal. In the six months before Warcraft III. The Two Towers
‘90s and early ‘00s, most multiplayer games released six months after, in December of
shipped with official tools for creating custom 2002. Then you get Warcraft III: The Frozen
maps or scenarios. I imagine a number of Throne in the summer of 2003, and The Return
today’s developers grew up making maps for of the King in December 2003.
Unreal Tournament, Quake, Counter-Strike, Both took place in fantasy realms
Age of Empires II, and yes, Warcraft III. populated by humans, elves, dwarves, and
People tend to remember Warcraft III’s orcs. Better yet, Warcraft III introduced
custom scene because of Defense of the “Hero” characters, bigger and more powerful
Ancients, which makes sense. There’s a “student units that gave modders a perfect way to
becomes the master” aspect to it, with the fairly separate rank-and-file armies from named
rough Defense of the Ancients mod eventually characters like Gimli, Legolas, and Aragorn.
spawning two of the biggest games in the The timing was perfect. You had these
world, Dota 2, and League of Legends. enormously popular films, a cultural zeitgeist
For me it’s always Lord of the Rings, that raked in awards, completely changed the
though. Peter Jackson’s The Fellowship of the “acceptable” length of a movie for over a
decade, sold
goblets at Burger
King, etcetera.
Then on the
gaming side you
had a hit strategy
game that drew
from the same
ur-fantasy source
material, primed
for custom content.
The two became
weirdly
intertwined.
Not officially, of
course. EA made
Warcraft III: The Frozen Throne. the “real” Lord of

the Rings games,
serviceable
hack-and-slashes
that attempted
to capture the
scope of the
films on
PlayStation 2-era
hardware—and
did an okay job,
by 2002
standards.
Warcraft III
felt more
grandiose
though. It had
the eye-in-the- The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers.
sky viewpoint
that only a strategy game could give. The Those touchstones made Helm’s Deep a
armies were larger, the battles more chaotic perfect fit for modders. They gave the conflict a
and unpredictable. structure: An asymmetrical hold-out mission,
The Battle of Helm’s Deep became a with a fixed number of defenders fighting back
particular favorite, and for good reason. There an unlimited orc army. The battle evolved—first
are so many unique elements. There’s the a fortress siege, then a chaotic scrum after the
curved bridge leading up to the walls, archers walls are breached, and then a desperate final
peppering the oncoming orcs with arrows. stand in the keep itself. A timer counted down
Behind the door, elven swords arrayed a dozen the minutes to Gandalf’s arrival, forcing the
ranks deep defending a narrow chokepoint. orcs to play aggressively and giving the
Gimli and Legolas competing for kills. defenders some small measure of hope.
And of course, the two pivotal moments: It felt...well, maybe not real, but
The Uruk-hai blasting a hole through the cinematic. Dynamic, in a way that most
fortress walls and streaming into the Warcraft III maps were not. Modders
courtyard, and then the last-minute rescue by competed, creating ever-larger and more
Gandalf and the Rohirrim at dawn. sophisticated simulations of the battle. I

NEWS HOW WARCR AFT III BECAME A GREAT LORD OF THE RINGS GAME
must’ve played dozens of different iterations seven-tiered city didn’t translate well to
back in the day. Hell, I think I even tried to Warcraft III’s landscape tools and overhead
create one. camera, nor were there as many hooks for
There were other Lord of the Rings maps scripting.
as well, though none quite as successful as Many of the late-era maps opted to cover
Helm’s Deep. The Mines of Moria had a few the entirety of Middle Earth instead. These
different adaptations, wending through went by various names, including “The Ring
Balin’s tomb and down all those rickety Wars,” “War of the Ring,” and “The Third
staircases and across the bridge where Age,” but essentially you’d play a standard
Gandalf faced off against the Balrog. Again, RTS battle out across a scale map of Middle
instantly recognizable locations—though it Earth. One person would play Gondor, one
tended to be better for solo play than the big Rohan, one Mordor, and so on.
multiplayer battles. It was the closest you could get to a full
With the release of the Return of the King, retelling of Lord of the Rings in Warcraft III, but
the Battle of the Pelennor Fields also became again lacked the storytelling and the
popular. This one was harder to simulate than immediacy of Helm’s Deep. It was more like
Helm’s Deep though, as Minas Tirith’s playing Risk, less like watching the films.
So maybe it’s
just that Warcraft III
was a great Helm’s
Deep game, and
only a passable
Lord of the Rings
game. Still, I find it
fascinating. You
have this perfect
right-place–right-
time crossover,
and it happened
naturally. These
days, something like
Fortnite’s recent Star
Wars event is a
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King. co-marketing deal

Warcraft III: Reforged.
months in the making. It’s two corporations almost twenty years later. A bunch of Warcraft
coming together to sell more of their III maps built with 2002’s finest map-making
respective products. tools probably won’t cut it.
Warcraft III became a Lord of the Rings I can’t imagine Warcraft III without Lord of
vehicle out of happenstance though. Blizzard the Rings, though. It wouldn’t have been the
released a popular (and modular) fantasy same game, for me and (I imagine) so many
game just as Peter Jackson turned fantasy into others. And sure, I could say the same of Dota
a box office juggernaut. Then bystanders said and tower defense—but those already get
“Wouldn’t these be great together?” plenty of credit when people discuss Warcraft
And they were. III’s legacy. The Lord of the Rings? Not so much.
It was very much of that time and place, two of
BOTTOM LINE 2002’s brightest stars overlapping by mere
As I prepare to dip into Warcraft III: Reforged, I coincidence and then largely forgotten after
find myself hoping I can find a few people pop culture moved on, the only record being
playing Helm’s Deep again. I’m sure it won’t the dozens of Helm’s Deep maps that come up
live up to my memories, because it can’t. when you search for “Lord of the Rings Warcraft
Even the films don’t entirely hold up for me, III” on Google.

NEWS
Activision Blizzard just pulled its

games from Nvidia’s GeForce
Now, and that sucks
Game over man, game over. BY BRAD CHACOS
N
vidia and Activision Blizzard beta. But a mere week after GeForce Now
seem like close partners. Call of fully launched and obliterated Google
Duty: Modern Warfare is one of Stadia’s value proposition (go.pcworld.com/
the biggest games to take gnow), Activision Blizzard’s games are being
advantage of the real-time ray-tracing yanked from the service at the publisher’s
capabilities in modern GeForce graphics request, effective immediately.
cards, and games like Overwatch have graced No more playing Overwatch on your crappy
Nvidia’s GeForce Now for most of the old laptop. No more Diablo III on your phone.
gaming-from-the-cloud service’s multi-year No more playing the latest World of Warcraft
40 PCWorld MARCH 2020 IMAGE: BLIZZARD

raid boss in way better fidelity than your potato are some of the most-played and most-loved
PC can normally handle. No more real-time ray franchises in PC history. Call of Duty,
tracing from the cloud in Modern Warfare. meanwhile, tops sales charts year-in and
Nvidia announced its removal with the year-out, and Modern Warfare’s removal
following statement (go.pcworld.com/nvst): means you won’t be able to try out its ray
“As we take GeForce NOW to the next step tracing with your fancy GeForce Now
in its evolution, we’ve worked with publishers to Founders subscription. This hurts.
onboard a robust catalog of your PC games. We spoke at length about GeForce Now
This means continually adding new games, and and why it rocks on a recent episode of our Full
on occasion, having to remove games—similar Nerd podcast (go.pcworld.com/p124), and its
to other digital service providers. value proposition isn’t limited to gamers alone.
“Per their request, please be advised Nvidia’s service doesn’t sell you games
Activision Blizzard games will be removed directly. Instead, it basically rents you a gaming
from the service. While unfortunate, we hope PC in the cloud, and you sign into gaming
to work together with Activision Blizzard to platforms like Steam, the Epic Game Store, and
reenable these games and more in the future. (formerly) Battle.net to play games you already
“In addition to the hundreds of games own. Nvidia doesn’t take an extra cut. By
currently supported, we have over 1,500 giving you access to more powerful hardware
games that developers have asked to be than you might already own, GeForce Now
on-boarded to the service. Look for weekly effectively encourages you to buy more games
updates as to new games we are adding.” through existing storefronts. It feels like a
On the plus side, since Bungie recently win-win for everybody involved.
broke away from Activision Blizzard, you’ll still be In his hands-on with the service, my
able to play Destiny 2 on GeForce Now. The Macworld colleague Leif Johnson (go.
game is central to Google Stadia’s $10 per pcworld.com/gnrv) stated that GeForce Now
month Pro subscription, but you can play it for no is probably as good as Mac gaming is ever
cost whatsoever on GeForce Now, as the base going to get.
game’s free-to-play and Nvidia offers a totally “Blizzard, which famously used to
free-as-in-beer-free tier (go.pcworld.com/frbr). simultaneously release PC and Mac games at
Still, Activision Blizzard’s withdrawal is a once, has yet to release a Mac port of
major, major bummer. Sure, GeForce Now Overwatch five years after its release,” he
still offers vastly more games than Stadia and wrote. “…Nor is there any reason to pour
other cloud-based challengers, but Blizzard’s around $1,000 into an external GPU and
Warcraft, Diablo, StarCraft, and Hearthstone graphics card (go.pcworld.com/gpue) just so

NEWS ACTIVISION BLIZZ ARD PULLS GAMES FROM GEFORCE NOW
Nvidia’s GeForce Now lets you play PC games across a wide variety of devices.
you can play something as graphically already own and paid for on other platforms.
uncomplicated as World of Warcraft on your It’s not an all-you-can-eat-buffet subscription
MacBook with the settings at maximum.” like Netflix or Hulu. Activision isn’t losing out
Fortunately, GeForce Now remains an even if the company decides to start its own
outstanding value proposition. While Stadia is rival cloud gaming service. GeForce Now is
limited to a couple dozen titles that won’t more like playing a game you already own on
work on any other platforms, Nvidia’s service another PC, just one in the cloud. If you’re as
still supports nearly 400 games, with new bummed about this decision as we are, your
titles added every week. You can also install best course of action is reaching out directly
another 1,000 or so “single-session” games to Activision Blizzard’s support (go.pcworld.
through Steam, which haven’t been officially com/blzd) and letting them know it,
optimized for the service yet, but can still be especially if the decision prevents you from
played on-demand, with Steam cloud saves playing games you’ve purchased.
tracking your progress. Since Activision In the meantime, if you need to level up
Blizzard’s biggest titles live in the company’s your hardware to be able to play Activision
own Battle.net client, don’t expect that to Blizzard games you used to play over
work as a side-door here. GeForce Now, be sure to check out our guide
Fingers crossed that Activision Blizzard to the best graphics cards for PC gaming (go.
and other holdout publishers like EA decide pcworld.com/grcr). Local games aren’t
to play nice with GeForce Now—and again, disappearing anytime soon, as this headache
Nvidia’s service only lets you play games you proves.

Discover the unsearchable
Discover the forest
Find a trail near you at

DiscoverTheForest.org
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There’s more than enough food in America for every child
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Reviews & Ratings
TESTED IN PCWORLD LABS
WE PUT HARDWARE & SOFTWARE
THROUGH RIGOROUS TESTING
Microsoft Surface
Pro 7: Still the best
Windows tablet
you can buy
For now, Microsoft owns the Windows
tablet category. BY MARK HACHMAN
Microsoft’s Surface Pro 7, the few and far between. At this point, the field
latest in the company’s consists largely of Microsoft’s Surface Pro
excellent Surface Pro series, models, the Surface Pro X (go.pcworld.com/
continues the tradition of msfx), Lenovo’s ThinkPad X1 Tablet (go.
being a durable, dependable tablet for the pcworld.com/x1ta), monstrous tablet
ages. It’s measurably better this time around, workstations like the HP Zbook X2 (go.
too, with an internal upgrade to Intel’s pcworld.com/zbx2), and our longstanding
10th-gen, 10nm Ice Lake chip and a nod to favorite, the Lenovo IdeaPad Miix 520 (go.
the future, a USB-C port. There are many pcworld.com/miix). There’s a definite gap
good reasons why the Surface Pro 7 won between these and $300-ish Atom-powered
our Editor’s Choice award, as you’ll see in tablets from names like RCA and iView, which
our review. we wouldn’t necessarily recommend. If you’re
Granted, it’s a lot easier to be the best looking for a full-fledged computer that’s
game in town when rival Windows tablets are extremely portable and can even work as a
IMAGE: MICROSOFT MARCH 2020 PCWorld 45

REVIEWS MICROSOFT SURFACE PRO 7
tablet, the Surface Pro 7 is your best choice. (as tested)

Storage: 128GB, 256GB (as tested),
BASIC SPECS 512GB, 1TB SSD
The Surface Pro 7 is a full-fledged PC made Ports: 1 USB Type C, 1 USB Type A,
superportable. You won’t get discrete MicroSDXC reader, Surface Connect, 3.5mm
graphics, but you will get CPU choices up to a audio jack
Core i7, and generous RAM and storage Camera: 5MP front-facing, 8MP rear-
options. Here are the full specs: facing, w/1080p video
Display: 12.3-inch PixelSense display Battery: 43.2Wh (reported)
(2736x1824) Wireless: WiFi 6 (802.11ax), Bluetooth 5
Processor: Intel Core i3-1005G1, Core Operating system: Windows 10 Home,
i5-1035G4, Core i7-1065G7 (as tested) version 1909
Graphics: Iris Plus 940 Dimensions (inches): 11.5 x 7.9 x 0.33
Memory: 4GB, 8GB, 16GB LPDDR4x inches (8.5mm)
Microsoft’s Surface Pro 7 virtually requires a Type Cover of some sort, transforming it into a lightweight
laptop.

Yes, the Microsoft Surface
Pro 7 is indeed a tablet.
Weight: 1.74 pounds, 2.42 pounds with to the Surface Pro X ($900 on Amazon [go.
Signature Type Cover, 3.04 pounds total with pcworld.com/msfx]), though that tablet ships
charger with its own set of issues.
Colors: Platinum, Black Our Surface Pro 7 test unit shares an Intel
Price: $1,399 MSRP as tested, $1,199 at Core Ice Lake processor with the Surface
Microsoft (go.pcworld.com/amp7); prices Laptop 3 (for Business [go.pcworld.
range from $675 to $2,099 com/3bus]), a substantial improvement in
Optional accessories: Surface Pro processing power from the prior generation.
Signature Type Cover ($160 on Amazon [go. Traditionally, this has been what’s separated
pcworld.com/sgcv]), Surface Pen ($100 on one Surface Pro from its predecessor.
microsoft.com [go.pcworld.com/mspn]). Versus a modern laptop or Android tablet,
The Microsoft Surface Pro 7 offers the the Surface Pro 7’s bezels are relatively
same tablet experience as in years past: Prop ginormous: about a half-inch along the left
it up with its iconic kickstand, connect the and right bezel of the device, and slightly less
“optional” Surface Signature Keyboard (that along the top and bottom. They’re a
you’ll want unless you’re seriously tablet- necessary evil for enjoying the Surface Pro 7
centric), and get to work. A Surface Pen, as as an actual tablet, and holding it by its
always, is optional. Though it’s among the edges. Still, the large, chunky bezels give it a
most portable of Microsoft’s Surface offerings, rather dated look.
the tablet isn’t quite the mobile-forward The built-in, glossy 2736x1824 display
design that you might have hoped—that’s left remains unchanged from previous models,

slightly less than the true 3000x2000 com/0pen), the Surface Pro 7 is decidedly
resolution of, say, the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 sealed (go.pcworld.com/seal).
Tablet (3rd Gen; go.pcworld.com/x1ta).
Microsoft hasn’t moved to OLED technology A SOLID KEYBOARD AND
yet, unfortunately. The 396 nits of brightness TYPING EXPERIENCE
that the display puts out is in line with that of As always, if you do buy the Surface Pro 7, be
previous Surface tablets, and not too far out sure and budget for a Surface Pro Signature
of line with rival notebooks and tablets. It’s Type Cover, $160 from Microsoft (go.
still not bright enough for working in full pcworld.com/prsg). (We’ve also seen
sunlight, though, especially as the glossy discounted prices from Amazon [go.pcworld.
display is very reflective. Inside my somewhat com/cvsg].) Unofficially, you have cheaper
dim basement office, though, the Surface Pro alternatives: If you can track down the Surface
7 was a pleasure to work upon. Type Cover for the Surface Pro 3 (with a pen
By the way, while Microsoft claims that loop!) or the $50 Surface 3 Type Cover (go.
users may be able to open the Surface Laptop pcworld.com/3tcv), they’d both work—I
3 and upgrade the SSD (go.pcworld. attached each in turn to the Surface Pro 7 and
wrote a couple of
paragraphs in this
review. They rattle a
bit, and the layout is
slightly different
compared to the
more modern
Signature Type
Covers that begin
with the Surface Pro
4. But they cost a
lot less.
The older Type
Covers feature larger
keys, though with
less key travel and
After a decade or so, the Surface Pro’s kickstand might be taken for granted.
Don’t—it’s still a key part of the Surface Pro 7’s value. The power button and resistance. In some
volume rocker are on the top of the tablet. ways, I prefer the

Cover to accompany the Surface
Pro 7. Other color options
include Poppy Red and Ice Blue.
All three are coated in the soft,
yet durable Alcantara fabric,
which seems a bit less furry than
in generations past.
As you might expect, the Type
Cover includes a Microsoft
Precision Touchpad, which easily
processes taps and other gestures.
It’s clickable over its entire surface,
Microsoft’s Surface Signature keyboards provide a comfortable though it requires a bit more effort
typing experience. near the top.
At this point, Microsoft has
older Type Covers, as there’s a happy medium done a surprisingly good job of nailing the
between the need to depress the keys and inking experience. You’ll have to buy a
the desire to glide over them quickly. Over Surface Pen, sure. But setup is a breeze,
succeeding generations, the Type Cover’s with a quick walk-through via the Surface
individual keys have shrunk, giving more app. A click of the rubber eraser and the
room to the trackpad. Like any keyboard, Surface Pro 7 launches the Whiteboard
however, the feel is subject
to individual interpretation.
The Type Cover also
protects the Surface Pro’s
display. The more modern
Type Covers feel a bit stiffer
and more sturdy, suggesting
they might shelter the screen
even more. They also offer
three levels of backlighting,
or no lighting at all.
We were sent the The long magnetic strip at the top of the keyboard feels a bit weaker
Charcoal Signature Type than usual in this current version of the Signature Type Cover.

app—not my first choice for drawing, but a Some rivals go beyond this to offer a
real pleasure to use nevertheless. Digital ink Thunderbolt-enabled USB-C port, which
flows smoothly as the Pen glides over the allows more bandwidth for connecting to
display, and the pen connects magnetically secondary monitors and the like. In the
to the side of the tablet. Surface Pro 7’s case, its USB-C port
Note that the Camera app turns on the (specifically USB 3.1 Gen 2, at 10GBps,
user-facing camera by default—perhaps using DisplayPort 1.4) will accommodate a
assuming you live within Skype. The pair of external 4K displays at 60Hz. The
rear-facing camera offers normal and Surface Pro X’s capabilities slightly outshine
panorama photography, plus document- the Surface Pro 7’s: It can connect up to
scanning and whiteboarding options. two 4096x2304 displays using its pair of
Virtually everything on the Surface Pro 7 is USB-C ports.
about productivity. The Surface Pro 7’s USB-C port can also
PORTS: USB-C, BUT NO

THUNDERBOLT YET
If you’ve owned a previous Surface, you’ll be
happy to know that the Surface Connector
remains the same, allowing you to use an old
Surface charger with the new model. The
same goes for the Surface Dock, which
Microsoft has never updated.
What is new about the Surface Pro 7 is the
addition of the USB-C port—and the removal
of miniDisplayPort. In all, this is a net positive
for the Surface Pro lineup, given the wide and
varied range of USB-C hubs to compensate
for a single, dedicated port. Tablets like
Lenovo’s ThinkPad X1 tablet have previously
offered more flexible port options, and it’s
nice to see Microsoft’s prosumer tablet line
catch up. The Surface Pro X offers a pair of
Microsoft removed the miniDisplayPort connector
USB-C ports, however, compared to the and replaced it with a USB-C port. The Surface
Surface Pro 7’s single port. Connector for the Surface Dock remains.

On the other side of the
tablet is a lonely 3.5mm
headphone jack.
be used to charge the tablet, which offers include a microSD slot, however.
additional flexibility. Like the Surface Laptop So far, Microsoft hasn’t announced an SP7
3, the included charger offers quick-charge with an integrated or external SIM. For that,
capabilities, too. you’ll want the Surface Pro X.
We’ve beat this drum before, but we’ll
sound it again: If the Surface Pro series had UNEXPECTEDLY NICE
Thunderbolt as well as the Surface Connector, AUDIO
you’d have two high-speed I/O interfaces. Microsoft has usually designed its tablets with
You can still connect to the Surface Dock. But audio in mind. Microsoft’s Surface Pro 7 offers
there seems to be a missed opportunity here. a wide, balanced range of highs and lows,
Don’t forget about the microSD card slot though you’ll still miss some of the deeper
under the kickstand, as in previous models. bass notes.
Sure, Microsoft would like you to upload your The Surface Pro 7 includes Dolby Audio
smartphone photos directly to the cloud. But within the Realtek Audio Console app, and
as long as point-and-shoot cameras exist, the sound enhancement is on by default.
schlepping the microSD card from the camera Though the app doesn’t provide any
to the phone remains an easy way to upload equalizer functions, the default
your photos. Most USB-C hubs already configuration sounds suitably balanced for

you to enjoy audio

over the tablet’s
speakers—still a rare
luxury in today’s
laptops.
DTS Sound
Unbound is a
surprise, a paid app
that’s bundled with
the tablet. It asks you
to pay a whopping
$15 to unlock
surround sound from
both your speakers
and headphones,
similar to what THX If you buy a Surface Pro 7, check out the free 15-day trial of the DTS Sound
Unbound app. The positional demo is unreasonably fun.
offers for free with
Walmart’s Motile laptop (go.pcworld.com/ primary device, however, we can’t use the
motl). To my ears, the DTS solution sounded same criteria.
much better than what THX offered, and the We also can’t directly compare the
positional audio was the best I can recall since Surface Pro 7 to Microsoft’s recent Surface
Aureal Semiconductor’s HRTF positional audio Pro X in all but a small handful of
demo two decades ago. benchmarks. In large part, that’s because
the two devices use different
PERFORMANCE: TOP OF microprocessors: The Surface Pro 7 uses
THE TABLETS Intel’s mobile Ice Lake chip, while the
It would be nice to wave away some of the Surface Pro X uses a custom chip based on
Surface Pro 7’s performance requirements, in Qualcomm’s Snapdragon architecture. The
an argument that a simple tablet deserves latter can’t run most benchmarks that we use
some concessions. That argument holds to test Windows laptops and desktops, but
more water with the Surface Go (go.pcworld. you’ll see it in a few where they intersect.
com/sfgo), hovering around $500. Because Given the somewhat limited comparison
there’s a strong chance that our $1,200 set, we’ve also included the Ice Lake-based
Surface Pro 7 will replace a notebook PC as a Surface Laptop 3 for Business. This laptop

and its tablet cousin actually bear a close benchmark, used in part because we could
resemblance on paper—they share the pull results from a couple years’ worth of
same exact processor and GPU, clocked tablets. It measures light gaming, photo and
identically. As you’ll see from the CPU- video editing, and web browsing. Not
specific Cinebench test below, the CPU surprisingly, the Surface Pro 7 excels.
performance of both the Surface Pro 7 and Note that the default behavior for the
the Surface Laptop 3 are close. Surface Pro 7, like the Surface Laptop 3, is to
Our daily experiences with the Surface prolong battery life, sometimes at the
Pro 7—everyday Office use, web browsing, expense of performance. That’s a perfectly
and the like—were more than acceptable. The acceptable choice, but we also tested while
Surface Pro 7 also offers “instant on” maximizing the performance (noted with
capabilities, waking almost instantly with a “Max” in the tables). In some tests, that made
combination of the Windows Hello-enabled a difference. In others, it didn’t.
camera and a fast internal SSD. In terms of pure CPU workloads, we use
Our first test is the older PCMark Creative the Cinebench benchmark, which renders a
CGI scene using the
full power of the
PCMark 8 Creative CPU. The Core
(Native resolution)
i7-1065G7 is a
Microsoft Surface Pro 7 Max
(Core i7-1065G7, 2736x1824) 4,273 4-core, 8-thread
Microsoft Surface Laptop 3
(Core i7-1065G7, 2496x1664) 4,033 processor, just like
Microsoft Surface Pro 7 the older chips that
(Core i7-1065G7, 2736x1824) 3,904
power the Lenovo
Lenovo IdeaPad Miix 520
(Core i5-8250U, 1920x1200) 3,455 IdeaPad Miix and
Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Tablet, 3rd
3,261
ThinkPad X1 Tablets.
Gen (Core i5-8250U, 3000x2000)
Microsoft Surface Pro 6

But it’s fabricated at
(Core i5-8250U, 2736x1824) 3,253
10nm, giving it a
(Core i5-8250U, 2256x1504) 3,001 performance
Microsoft Surface Go advantage over the
(Pentium 4415Y, 1800x1200) 1,805
older 14nm chips.
Microsoft Surface Pro X
(Microsoft SQ1, 2880x1920) 1,768 Our other CPU
LO N G ER B A R S I N D I C AT E B E T T ER P E R F O R M A N C E
benchmark is a
Especially when you dial up the performance, Microsoft’s Surface Pro 7 is the stress test, a
fastest tablet around for everyday use, as measured by PCMark 8. prolonged

Two identical
processors, two
nearly identical
Cinebench R15.038
scores. (All threads)
(Core i7-1065G7, 2496x1664) 751
transcoding (Core i7-1065G7, 2736x1824) 737
exercise using the Microsoft Surface Pro 7 Max

(Core i7-1065G7, 2736x1824) 723
open-source Microsoft Surface Pro 6
(Core i5-8250U, 2736x1824) 576
HandBrake app. It
tests both the CPU’s (Core i5-8250U, 2256x1504) 558
stamina and the Lenovo IdeaPad Miix 520
533
(Core i5-8250U, 1920x1200)
device’s ability to Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Tablet, 3rd
Gen (Core i5-8250U, 3000x2000) 457
stay cool during a
Microsoft Surface Go
rigorous workload. (Pentium 4415Y, 1800x1200) 160
The Surface Pro 7 LO N G ER B A R S I N D I C AT E B E T T ER P E R F O R M A N C E
delivers decent
performance here,
but we suspect
some slight
HandBrake 0.99.0 Encoding (H.264)
(Seconds)
throttling may be Microsoft Surface Laptop 3
(Core i7-1065G7, 2496x1664) 2,973
at work.
Microsoft Surface Pro 7 Max
When it comes (Core i7-1065G7, 2736x1824) 3,278
to graphics Microsoft Surface Pro 7
(Core i7-1065G7, 2736x1824) 3,313
benchmarks, the
differences become (Core i5-8250U, 2256x1504) 3,874
clear. We saw some (Core i5-8250U, 1920x1200) 4,024
rather significant Microsoft Surface Pro 6
(Core i5-8250U, 2736x1824) 4,116
differences in GPU
frame rate in our Gen (Core i5-8250U, 3000x2000) 4,877
3DMark Sky Diver Microsoft Surface Go

12,384
(Pentium 4415Y, 1800x1200)
test, which S H O R T E R B A R S I N D I C AT E B E T T E R P E R F O R M A N C E
developer UL touts
The chart is distorted by the agonizingly slow performance of the Microsoft
as a benchmark for Surface Go, but the Surface Pro 7 is still superior. Better cooling on the Surface
gaming machines. Laptop 3 helps its prevail.

The Sky Diver
benchmark shows
3DMark 8 Sky Diver 1.0 Overall sharp differences
(Demo Mode Off) between the
Microsoft Surface Laptop 3 Surface Laptop 3
(Iris Plus, 2496x1664) 10,441 and the Surface
Microsoft Surface Pro 7 Pro 7, but there is
(Iris Plus, 2736x1824) 6,999 also a pronounced
Microsoft Surface Pro 7 Max performance
(Iris Plus, 2736x1824) 6,954
improvement on the
Microsoft Surface Pro 6 older tablets.
(UHD620, 2736x1824) 4,690
(UHD620, 2256x1504) 4,658
4,384 Though the
Gen (UHD620, 3000x2000)

Surface Laptop 3 for
(UHD620, 1920x1200) 4,207
Business and the
Microsoft Surface Go
(UHD620, 1800x1200) 3,082 Surface Pro 7 share
a common CPU and
GPU platform, the

differences in this
benchmark are
Battery Life stark. Why? Using
(Minutes)
Intel’s Power
(Core i5-8250U, 2256x1504) 633
Gadget widget, we
(Core i7-1065G7, 2496x1664) 626 traced the GPU
Microsoft Surface Pro 6 power and
(Core i5-8250U, 2736x1824) 588
frequency as it ran
(Core i7-1065G7, 2736x1824) 536 the benchmark. The
Microsoft Surface Pro X
(Microsoft SQ1, 2880x1920) 521 Surface Pro 7 seems
Microsoft Surface Go to throttle the GPU
(Pentium 4415Y, 1800x1200) 435
pretty hard in this
Gen (Core i5-8250U, 3000x2000) 426 particular test.
330 Though the SP7’s
(Core i5-8250U, 1920x1200)
GPU occasionally
spikes to a peak
The Surface Pro 7 delivers about what we’d expect of a prosumer-level tablet’s speed of 3.7GHz, it
battery: about 9 hours from a 43Wh supply. tends to run at

prolonged periods at 267MHz. The Surface BOTTOM LINE

Laptop 3’s typical speed is 283MHz, and with It’s no surprise that the Microsoft Surface Pro
much longer prolonged “spikes” of 3.35GHz 7 comes out on top within its limited field of
to 3.75GHz. This translates to better competitors, especially because it’s the first
prolonged graphics performance. Windows tablet we’ve seen with the Intel Ice
The gist of this result is that quasi-modern Lake platform.
games like Grand Theft Auto V will play, The Surface Pro design retains some
though you’ll have to dial down the resolution advantages. For many, the inclusion of a
to 720p or so and turn off most of the USB-C and an older USB Type-A port
advanced graphics options. The Iris Plus represents an ideal compromise, even if
graphics integrated into Intel’s Core we would have preferred Thunderbolt.
i7-1065G7 provides decent GPU The kickstand is overlooked as an
performance, almost (but not quite) to the absolute necessity for desk work. Even the
point of a low-end discrete GPU. chunky bezels make the tablet easier to
As noted above, we definitely see tote from room to room while playing Spotify
some throttling going on within the Ice or Netflix.
Lake GPU, resulting in a sharp difference Surface pioneered the Windows tablet
between the Surface Laptop 3 and the market and has delivered a quality experience
Surface Pro 7. Stay focused on the real generation after generation in the years since.
message, though: The Surface Pro 7 Nothing has changed in that regard. Right
outperforms all other tablets we’ve tested now, the Surface Pro 7 is the best Windows
by a substantial amount. tablet you can buy.
Finally, we look at battery life. We charge
to full and then pull the plug as we loop a 4K Microsoft Surface Pro 7
video, with volume set to about 50 percent,
until the battery dies. At a design capacity of PROS
• Powerful Intel Ice Lake CPU boosts performance.
43.2Wh, it’s a tad smaller than the Surface Pro • USB-C, USB-A ports allow for peripheral flexibility.
6’s 45Wh battery. (Full charge capacity on the CONS
SP7 was 46.4Wh, indicating some variation in • Lack of Thunderbolt and WWAN option are
disappointing.
the manufacturing.) The older Core i5-8250U BOTTOM LINE
can run as low as 10W, while the i7-1065G7 Microsoft updates its Surface Pro 7 Windows tablet
with a powerful Intel Ice Lake chip and a modern
runs as low as 12W. Did that make a USB-C port.
difference? Perhaps. In any event, battery life $1,499
just shy of 9 hours is satisfactory.

HP Elite Dragonfly: The corporate
laptop that’s too good for your boss
It’s thin, light, and beautiful, with a battery that won’t quit. BY GORDON MAH UNG
The HP Elite Dragonfly is a (thanks, boss!).

corporate laptop made to Just remember, the Elite Dragonfly is
please your manager—and designed for the boardroom, not the
isn’t that the best way to get racetrack, so don’t expect blazing speed.
ahead in the working world? With a What you will get is a solid configuration with
fingerprint-resistant finish, a beautiful cerulean some premium options; good performance,
magnesium body, and shoulder-friendly amazing battery life; and let’s not forget the
weight, the Elite Dragonfly is sure to earn you truly classy design. Hmmm, maybe this laptop
permission to leave 15 minutes early on Friday is too good for your boss?
IMAGE: GORDON MAH UNG MARCH 2020 PCWorld 57

REVIEWS HP ELITE DR AGONFLY
Elite Dragonfly also has a better chance of

hitting the floor—and maybe surviving—as HP
said it passes nine MIL-STD drop tests in drop,
shock, and vibration.
What’s inside still matters, though, and
like most corporate premium laptops, the
Elite Dragonfly features the top-end, 8th-gen
Intel Core i7-8665U. You can view the full
details of the Core i7-8665U on Intel’s ARK
database (go.pcworld.com/akdb), but in
performance you get about 200MHz higher
clocks in Turbo Boost and 100MHz higher
base clocks on paper. Most important is
INCREDIBLY LIGHT WEIGHT, actually the support for Intel’s vPro feature,
INSANE BATTERY LIFE which enables easier management of the
The Elite Dragonfly’s main claim to fame is its laptop in a fleet environment, where 200 or
weight, which approaches 2.2 pounds when 2,000 have to be accounted for.
equipped with the base 38-watt-hour battery. The Core i7-8665U also supports Intel’s
The trade-off is that
paltry battery HP’s Elite Dragonfly
is a lightweight
capacity. HP also
convertible laptop.
offers a 55-watt-hour
battery for additional
cost. Personally, we’d
opt for the larger
battery (supplied in
our review unit),
which increases the
weight by just 3
ounces to 2.5
pounds.
Because your
boss is likely to be
butter-fingered, the

TSX-NI and Stable Platform features. Even H10 (go.pcworld.com/ih10) for the full details
though the latter promises better on the drive, but we’re generally fans of it.
performance for multi-threaded apps, it’s
supported on very few CPUs despite being PORTS
introduced four generations ago with the You won’t have to worry about your boss
Haswell line. barging into your cubicle to steal—borrow—
another dongle. The Elite Dragonfly features
SPECS AND FEATURES two Thunderbolt 3 ports, an analog combo
The Elite Dragonfly embraces its executive- jack, a wedge-style lock port, and a USB Type
laptop status, delivering a feature list that’s A port. The Elite Dragonfly also somehow
first-class all the way. Here are the details: manages to pack a full HDMI port into its
CPU: 8th-gen quad-core Intel Core svelte body. We wish the Thunderbolt ports
i7-8665U with vPro support weren’t both on the right side, however, as
GPU: Integrated Intel UHD620 they could impede mouse usage.
RAM: 16GB LPDDR3/2133 in dual- Our review unit featured an Intel 4G
channel mode XMM7360 CAT 9 modem. That’s Intel’s older
Display: HP offers three
screen options for the
Dragonfly: A 4K UHD OLED
screen that hits 500 nits; a
blazing 850-nit Sure View
Gen 3 FHD screen that lets
you switch on a privacy
Despite its relatively thin body, the Elite Dragonfly still features USB
mode so those to your right Type A and full-size HDMI ports, along with two Thunderbolt 3 ports.
and left can’t read the
screen; and a power-
sipping 1 watt FHD screen,
which was configured in our
review model.
Storage: Our review
sample included a 512GB
capacity Intel H10 Optane
Memory hybrid drive. You The Elite Dragonfly’s left side features a USB Type A port, a power
can read our review of the button, a lock port, and a SIM slot.

and slower 4G chip. If you want a CAT 16 conferencing apps.

modem, HP also offers an XMM7560 One feature we do like is the dedicated
upgrade. And yes, if your boss asks, just say mic mute button. It lights up, so no one can
it’s a “5G modem” anyway. say they didn’t know they weren’t on mute
when they bad-mouth the CEO during a
KEYBOARD AND TRACKPAD videoconference.
The input devices are top-notch, starting with Speaking of privacy, HP has also cleverly
a full-travel dome keyboard. There are two integrated a physical shutter over the camera.
levels of backlighting (plus, no lighting at all). Unfortunately it also blocks the infrared
Keys are generally well placed, but HP does camera, so you can’t use the Windows Hello
combine many key functions, such as pressing facial recognition when the shutter’s active.
the function key and the right shift button to Luckily there’s a fingerprint reader as an
access the print screen. HP’s reason for not alternate authentication method.
having a dedicated print screen button is so it The Synaptics trackpad is glass and fairly
can have dedicated keys to access the smooth. The trackpad is compliant with
calendar as well as several IP-based video Microsoft’s Precision touchpad requirement,
The HP keyboard is a full-travel rubber dome design and features dedicated keys for the calendar, VOIP
and muting the microphone.

which is an indication of its accuracy. measures ranging from prudent to Draconian.
As with all security procedures, the levels of
OLEOPHOBIC COATING pain are up to the administrator.
Here’s another fairly unique feature on the
Elite Dragonfly: an oleophobic coating to CPU PERFORMANCE
help it repel fingerprints and other greasy The Elite Dragonfly’s performance reflects the
marks. We tested it against our typical snack priorities of corporate laptops, which put
fare, and found it effectively repelled most security and reliability over raw speed. You
smudges from fingers that had recently can see that odd dynamic right here: The
handled corn chips and nacho tortilla chips. 8th-gen Core i7-8665U in the Elite Dragonfly
However, it was no match for the gold has a higher clock speed than the common
standard of potato chips, which caused our consumer Core i7-8565U CPU. But one look
fingers to leave a snail-like trail on the palm below and you won’t see it.
rest. The oleophobic coating helps, but don’t Maxon’s 3D rendering Cinebench R15
expect it to work miracles. benchmark, which measures a CPU’s multi-
threaded performance, shows the Elite
SECURITY FEATURES Dragonfly under-performing against laptops
APLENTY with slower CPUs.
As a corporate laptop, the Elite Dragonfly is When we task Cinebench with using a
hardened against attacks, including those to single CPU core, the situation doesn’t change
the BIOS. HP says it can both detect scary much: The Dragonfly is still a little slower than
UEFI-targeting root kits and recover from most other laptops. The good news is that in
them. The Dragonfly also integrates single-threaded tasks—which is the bulk of
Bromium’s security technology (go.pcworld. what’s done on small, thin laptops—it’s not a
com/brom) in its Sure Click feature. It big deal at all.
basically takes the sandboxing approach of Our harshest test of a CPU uses the free
many browsers, but enforces it in hardware. HandBrake utility to encode a 30GB 1080p
Set up as a consumer would, the Sure file. The task typically takes an hour on thin-
Click would automatically sandbox PDF files and-light laptops, and it stresses the cooling
in micro-virtual machines. By default, risky capabilities of any laptop. We again see the
attachments are opened in micro-virtual Elite Dragonfly underperform other laptops.
machines using the Chromium browser. If you’re starting to wonder just why the
With its hardware-based security, the Elite CPU has a higher boost clock on paper, but is
Dragonfly lets you set up the laptop with actually slower, the reason is that it’s a business

Like most business-

class laptops, the Elite
Dragonfly doesn’t
Cinebench R15.038
set any performance
(Multi-core performance)
records. Dell XPS 13 7390
(Core i7-10710) 1,106
Dell XPS 13 2-in-1 7390
(Core i7-1065G7) 788
HP Spectre x360 13 5th Gen
laptop. Yes, we (Core i7-1065G7) 714
know, you’re Dell XPS 13 9380
705
(Core i7-8565U)
wondering why not Microsoft Surface Laptop 3 15”
(Ryzen 7 3580U) 695
just buy a slower
HP Spectre x360 13 2019
CPU? The problem (Core i7-8565U) 623
is your boss still HP Elite Dragonfly
(Core i7-8565U) 585
wants the best.
Lenovo IdeaPad 730S
That’s not to say (Core i5-8265U) 555
the Core i7-8665U HP Spectre x360 13 2017

(Core 7-8550U) 553
is actually slower LO N G ER B A R S I N D I C AT E B E T T ER P E R F O R M A N C E
than a consumer
Core i7-8565U—it’s
just that to make it
Cinebench R15.038
that fast, HP would (Single-core performance)
have to add in, say, Dell XPS 13 7390
(Core i7-10710) 197
two fans instead of
Dell XPS 13 2-in-1 7390
one, and beefier (Core i7-1065G7) 184
heat pipes. That HP Spectre x360 13 5th Gen
184
(Core i7-1065G7)
adds weight, Dell XPS 13 9380
(Core i7-8565U) 181
increases fan noise,
and removes space (Core i7-8565U) 172
HP Elite Dragonfly
(Core i7-8565U) 170
Lenovo IdeaPad 730S
In single-threaded (Core i5-8265U) 156
tasks, the Dragonfly
again underperforms (Core 7-8550U) 156
against other
Microsoft Surface Laptop 3 15”
technically slower (Ryzen 7 3580U) 152
CPUs, but not by LO N G ER B A R S I N D I C AT E B E T T ER P E R F O R M A N C E
much.

The Dragonfly also
HandBrake 0.99 Encode comes in well behind
other technically
(Seconds)
slower CPUs in our
Dell XPS 13 7390 Handbrake stress test
(Core i7-10710) 2,635
too.
(Ryzen 7 3580U) 3,280
Dell XPS 13 9380
(Core i7-8565U) 3,469 for, say, more
Dell XPS 13 2-in-1 7390
3,549 battery capacity.
(Core i7-1065G7)

The truth is,
(Core i7-8565U) 4,302
none of this matters
HP Elite Dragonfly
(Core i7-8565U) 4,355 in a corporate
HP Spectre x360 13 2017 environment. The
(Core 7-8550U) 4,373
next test is PCMark
(Core i7-1065G7) 4,399 8 using various
Lenovo IdeaPad 730S simulated Corporate
(Core i5-8265U) 4,611
S H O R T E R B A R S I N D I C AT E B E T T E R P E R F O R M A N C E
Drone tasks of word
processing,
browsing, video
PCMark 8 Work 2.0 Conventional conferencing, and
(Native resolution) spreadsheeting.
Dell XPS 13 2-in-1 7390 As you can see,
(Core i7-1065G7) 3,893
that back-of-the-pack
(Core i7-1065G7) 3,807 performance of the
3,632 Elite Dragonfly
(Core i7-8565U)
HP Elite Dragonfly
suddenly looks pretty
(Core i7-8565U) 3,577
good. The truth is the
(Core 7-8550U) 3,510 Elite Dragonfly is just
Lenovo IdeaPad 730S
3,431
fine for what 95
(Core i5-8265U)
Dell XPS 13 7390

(Core i7-10710) 3,338
Dell XPS 13 9380
(Core i7-8565U) 3,205 PC Mark 8 tells us
it’s all good for the
(Ryzen 7 3580U) 3,017 majority of work
LO N G ER B A R S I N D I C AT E B E T T ER P E R F O R M A N C E you’d do on a thin-
and-light laptop.

Graphics performance
is in line with that of
all other UHD laptops,
3DMark Sky Diver 1.0 Overall
and fine for your boss
(Demo mode off)
to play Flash-based Dell XPS 13 2-in-1 7390
(Core i7-1065G7) 9,804
games.
(Core i7-1065G7) 9,287
(Ryzen 7 3580U) 8,382
percent of Corporate Dell XPS 13 7390
5,015
(Core i7-10710)
Drone work requires. Dell XPS 13 9380
(Core i7-8565U) 4,963
Just remember to tell
HP Elite Dragonfly
your boss, “it’s (Core i7-8565U) 4,831
200MHz faster!” Lenovo IdeaPad 730S
(Core i5-8265U) 4,646
Our last pure
performance test (Core i7-8565U) 4,421
uses 3DMark to HP Spectre x360 13 2017

(Core 7-8550U) 4,370
measure the
graphics capabilities
of the Elite
Dragonfly. No
surprise, it’s
4K Video Playback Battery Life
(Minutes)
basically no better HP Spectre x360 13 2019
(Core i7-8565U) 971
and no worse than
HP Elite Dragonfly
most laptops using (Core i7-8565U) 965
Intel UHD or HD HP Spectre x360 13 5th Gen
(Core i7-1065G7) 956
graphics. We’d
recommend that (Core 7-8550U) 769
any gaming or Dell XPS 13 2-in-1 7390

(Core i7-1065G7) 707
graphics be kept to Lenovo IdeaPad 730S
(Core i5-8265U) 627
Dell XPS 13 7390
(Core i7-10710) 568
The HP Elite
Dell XPS 13 9380
Dragonfly’s (Core i7-8565U) 543
battery life doesn’t
disappoint in our (Ryzen 7 3580U) 445
offline video run LO N G ER B A R S I N D I C AT E B E T T ER P E R F O R M A N C E
down test.

the bare minimum. If your boss’s idea of
“gaming” means solitaire or Flash-based
games, you’ll be OK.
BATTERY PERFORMANCE
Perhaps the most important test for a laptop
this portable is battery life. To test that, we
loop a 4K video using Microsoft’s Movies &
TV app. We set the display at a relatively
bright 250 to 260 nits, switch off Wi-Fi, and For consumers looking for a little more rated
connect a pair of earbuds for sound. durability and versatility in a laptop, the Dragonfly
With its “1 watt panel” and large battery, is worth a hard look—if you can stomach the
it’s no surprise the Elite Dragonfly knocks it price. As a corporate laptop with manageability
out of the park in battery life. And yes, that’s features such as vPro and the “faster” Core
about 18 hours of video playback. i7-8665U CPU, it’ll set you back $2,000 to
Remember: Video playback is mostly on $2,200. And that’s without the optional $76 HP
cruise control today. Fire up Office and sit in a Active Tilt Pen. You could skip the pricier
spreadsheet all day scrolling around, and you’ll corporate features and still get a lot of laptop.
likely whack off a third of the run time. Fire up
Chrome and fill it with 25 tabs, all looping and HP Elite Dragonfly
downloading continual Flash-based ads, and
you can probably expect to cut the run time in PROS
• Lightweight.
half, which is still about nine hours. Fire up any • Long battery life.
application that grinds on the CPU or GPU for • Enhanced security features.
the whole time, and you probably shouldn’t CONS

• CPU performance lags behind others.
expect more than two to three hours at best. • Charging ports only on the right side of laptop,
which can hinder mouse use.
• Some key functions force use of separate function
BOTTOM LINE key.
We’ll admit, we’re impressed by the HP Elite BOTTOM LINE
The HP Elite Dragonfly is a corporate laptop offering
Dragonfly. It transcends our expectations for a solid configuration with some premium options;
corporate laptops. Instead of boring, black, good performance, amazing battery life; and a truly
classy design. It’s made for your boss, but whether
and basic, the Elite Dragonfly is beautiful, it’s deserved is another matter entirely.
impressively light, and surprisingly $2,100
well-equipped.

REVIEWS
Samsung Portable SSD T7 Touch:

Faster, with fingerprint security
This successor to the T5 is thinner and faster and adds a fingerprint scanner,
but without adding much to the price. BY JON L. JACOBI
Samsung’s Portable SSD T7 cost far more than the T7, which gives you this
Touch is a very nice upgrade extra bit of security while remaining within the
to the older T5 (which will still price range (currently $130 on Amazon [go.
be available). It’s thinner, a pcworld.com/smt7]) of a normal USB SSD.
significantly faster reader, and it also sports a That makes it a sweet deal for the average
fingerprint scanner that you can employ, or user who still wants effective data protection.
not—your choice. Sure, you could get an (Corporations generally require FIPS, and
official FIPS-certified secure drive, but those secure government use always does.)
66 PCWorld MARCH 2020 IMAGE: SAMSUNG

DESIGN AND SPECS
The T7 is a USB 3.2 Gen 2 (10Gbps) SSD
that’s roughly the shape of the older T5,
but at 3.3 x 2.2 x 0.3 inches, it’s thinner
and weighs a mere 2 ounces. It’s
light. Very light. I’d
actually prefer if it
were a bit more
substantial in the palm
of my hand. The
The Samsung T7 has a
improved performance is largely
fingerprint scanner, but
because the unit is NVMe on the inside, its use is strictly optional.
but Samsung was mum as of the time of this
writing as to which type of NAND is So what’s it like using the T7 in 256-bit
employed, whether TLC or QLC. AES hardware encryption mode? Actually,
The T7 ships in three capacities: Our kind of fun with the fingerprint recognition.
500GB test unit ($130 on Amazon [go. The scanner responds quickly, and the simple
pcworld.com/smt7]), plus 1TB ($230 on swipe required is a pretty painless routine.
Amazon [go.pcworld.com/t71t]), and 2TB You don’t need the software to use the
($400 on B&H Photo [go.pcworld.com/ scanner other than for initial configuration. A
bht7]). That’s about what you’d pay for similar password mode that’s less fun and efficient
non-secure drives, and far less than FIPS- does require the software, but I’m guessing
certified units or Thunderbolt SSDs. The drive it’s there largely in case something goes
is available in basic, businesslike charcoal and awry with the scanner.
silver hues. Samsung’s three-year warranty is a You can turn off secure mode at any time,
bit skimpy, and the company also declined to but you’ll need to go through the entire
provide a TBW (Terabytes written) reliability password selection and fingerprint
rating, but it’s unlikely you’ll come close to acquisition routine again to turn it back on.
maxing out whatever is inside in even 10 years. As I said, it’s kind of fun. Give it a whirl if you
By far the most salient new feature on the buy a T7.
T7 is the square fingerprint scanner on top of
the unit. It’s inactive by default, but you can PERFORMANCE
enable it using the Windows/macOS app If you saw nothing but the CrystalDiskMark 6
that ships with the drive. and AS SSD 2 synthetic benchmark results,

REVIEWS SAMSUNG PORTABLE SSD T7 TOUCH
you’d think the T7

outperformed the T5 by a CrystalDiskMark 6
mile. While it’s reading or (MBps)
writing to cache, it does. 925
Sequential Write
(Q=32, T=1) 507
Off-cache it’s a bit slower. 511
The SSD creates cache by
1,034
treating some of the Sequential Read
(Q=32, T=1) 542
NAND as SLC (generally) 561
by writing only 1 bit—a
Samsung T7 Samsung T5
much quicker operation
Sandisk Extreme Portable SSD
than writing the 3 bits TLC
is capable of storing, and
especially the 4 bits QLC According to CrystalDiskMark 6, the T7 is megafast. With very small
can store. amounts of data it is, but in real-world copies, it’s not nearly this fast.
Our test 500GB model
had around 20GB of cache, so we expect that to 375MBps. That deficit slowly catches up
the 1TB will have 40GB of cache, and the with the drive as the amount of data being
2TB, 80GB. Samsung and most vendors have written increases, so it actually turned in
historically assigned cache by percentage, slower 48GB and 450GB write results than
but we didn’t have the larger-capacity drives the T5. If you write only to the cache, the T7
to check that theory on the T7. There are tops 500MBps and is much faster. That’s likely
smart cache allotment controllers out there 99 percent of the time for most users.
that will increase cache according to need, The T5 (350MBps) is actually a bit faster
but from the behavior, it doesn’t seem as if writing once the T7 runs out of cache
the T7 is one of them. (300MBps). With our 500GB T7, that was at
According to CrystalDiskMark 6, the T7 roughly the halfway mark in the 48GB write
is megafast. With very small amounts of test, allowing the T5 to catch up. The 1GB T7
data that’s true, but in real-world copies, its would likely have posted better numbers in
reading and writing is about half what CDM this test.
6 (and AS SSD—not shown) show. What can The 450GB copy shown below is a test
we say? we use to reveal cache dropouts with larger-
Once the T7 dropped out of cache, it capacity drives, which may allot more cache
wrote about 50MBps slower than the older than the 48GB we’re limited to writing from
T5, which maintains long writes at 350MBps our 50GB RAM disk. It can also illustrate

48GB copies
(Seconds)
638
Total 721
843
272
48GB Folder Write 257
329
203
48GB Folder Read 225
270
136
48GB Write 127
135
72
112 Sandisk Extreme Portable SSD
48GB Read
109
The older Samsung T5 is a bit faster writer than the T7, once the latter runs out of cache. On our 500GB T7,
that was at roughly the halfway mark in this test, allowing the T5 to catch up.
Tortoise-vs.-Hare (go.pcworld.com/trhr) above. The T7’s 500MBps write speed while

behavior, as it did with the T7 and T5. its cache lasted gave it a hefty head start;
The T7 was eventually caught by the T5 however, the T5’s steady 50MBps advantage
and posted a longer time, as you can see off cache allowed it to catch up at the very
end. Again, with the 1TB
or 2TB T7 with their
450GB Write
(Seconds) larger amounts of cache,
1,366 this likely would not have
450GB Write
1,325 happened.
The screen capture
below more vividly
illustrates the drop in
In our 450GB write test, which we use largely to spot any dips in speed when the T7 runs
performance due to running out of cache, the T5 eventually caught the
T7. FIX It was near run thing as the T7’s cache gave it a hefty head start out of cache. Note that
writing at well over 500MBps. 300MBps writing is still

REVIEWS SAMSUNG PORTABLE SSD T7 TOUCH
fast compared to most external

2.5-inch hard drives, though the
best modern 3.5-inch hard drives
write at 250MBps.
The T7 ran only slightly warm
during long transfers. That’s nice
when you need to grab it and
skedaddle as soon as an operation is
over. Samsung talks about using
encapsulated phase change
materials (ePCM), which is a fancy
In our 48GB write test, our Samsung T7 drive slowed from
way of describing stuff that radiates over 500MBps to around 325MBps at around the 20GB mark.
heat in a controlled, gradual fashion.
Whatever the company is doing, it works. incredibly affordable for a secure drive, albeit
For everyday use, the T7 is clearly one that’s not FIPS-certified for government or
superior to the T5. The deficit in speed on enterprise use. That fingerprint scanner is
long writes is a minor factor for most users there if you need it, and not in the way if you
and shouldn’t be an issue at all with the don’t. I like it.
larger-capacity drives.
Testing is performed on Windows 10 Samsung Portable SSD T7 Touch
64-bit running on a Core i7-5820K/Asus X99 (500GB)
Deluxe system with four 16GB Kingston
PROS
2666MHz DDR4 modules, a Zotac (Nvidia) • Fast everyday reader and writer.
GT 710 1GB x2 PCIe graphics card, and an • Fingerprint scanner (optional use).
• Extremely affordable for a secure drive.
Asmedia ASM2142 USB 3.1 Gen 2 (10Gbs)
• Runs only warm to the touch.
card. Also on board are a Gigabyte
CONS
GC-Alpine Thunderbolt 3 card and • Slightly slower during long-sustained writes than
the T5.
Softperfect’s Ramdisk 3.4.6, which is used for • Three-year warranty is on the short side.
the 48GB read and write tests. BOTTOM LINE
The Samsung Portable SSD T7 Touch is faster
(mostly) and lighter than its T5 sibling. It also sports a
BOTTOM LINE fingerprint scanner for both biometric and password
security while avoiding the high cost of FIPS-certified
There’s a whole lot to like about the Samsung secure drives. Sweet.
Portable SSD T7 Touch. It’s the fastest $129
portable USB SSD we’ve tested, and

EVGA GeForce RTX 2060 KO:
Ray tracing gets affordable
The EVGA GeForce RTX 2060 KO makes some smart compromises to hit a truly
compelling $300 price point. BY BRAD CHACOS
The EVGA GeForce RTX 2060 spotlight in a crucial segment of the market by
KO offers something for significantly undercutting its competitors.
everybody. And Nvidia gets to clear out stock for a
Gamers like you and me different GPU, surprisingly enough, while
get a custom GeForce RTX 2060 graphics fielding a headache-free rival to the new $280
card and all its benefits—great 1080p gaming, Radeon RX 5600 XT (go.pcworld.com/plrd).
good 1440p gaming, and real-time ray Okay, maybe AMD doesn’t get anything
tracing—for just $300, a full $50 below the out of it.
RTX 2060’s suggested price. EVGA steals the EVGA’s graphics card cuts some corners
IMAGE: BRAD CHACOS MARCH 2020 PCWorld 71

REVIEWS EVGA GEFORCE RT X 2060 KO
to hit the $300 mark, but they’re wholly use case, but if you use Blender, it’s enough
reasonable tweaks, and the lower price point to push you toward the EVGA KO over rival
makes Nvidia’s entry-level ray-tracing option RTX 2060 models.
much more appealing. So does EVGA’s $300 EVGA offers two different variants (go.
GeForce RTX 2060 KO and overclocked pcworld.com/2dif). The $300 GeForce RTX
$320 RTX 2060 KO Ultra manage to knock 2060 KO (go.pcworld.com/gfko) sticks to
out AMD’s latest GPU? And what about the GPU’s stock 1,680MHz Boost clock
Nvidia’s own RTX 2060 Founders Edition (go. speeds, while the $320 EVGA RTX 2060 KO
pcworld.com/60fd), which just received a Ultra (go.pcworld.com/koul) offers a mild
price cut to $300 itself (go.pcworld. overclock to 1,755MHz. You can overclock
com/300c)? Let’s dig in. them further yourself, but EVGA prevents
users from increasing the power limit to keep
SPECS, FEATURES, from overloading the board’s 4-phase VRM.
AND PRICE The KO and KO Ultra are identical other than
Surprise! The EVGA GeForce RTX 2060 KO the clock speeds. We’re reviewing both
doesn’t use the TU106 GPU found inside configurations: EVGA sent us the Ultra model
other GeForce RTX 2060 cards, at least in our along with the BIOS for the cheaper version,
review sample. Instead, it revolves around a so we could test both.
version of the TU104 GPU found inside the
much more powerful GeForce RTX 2080, but GPU ENGINE SPECS
cut-down to match TU106’s specifications. Nvidia CUDA cores 1,920
That means the EVGA KO packs the same
RTX-OPS 37T
1,920 CUDA cores and 30 dedicated
ray-tracing cores as other RTX 2060s, tied to Giga Rays/s 5
the same 6GB of GDDR6 VRAM with a Boost Clock (MHz) 1,680
192-bit bus, bringing the total overall
Base Clock (MHz) 1,365
memory bandwidth to a blistering 336Gbps.
It behaves exactly like its TU106-based
MEMORY SPECS
siblings in both gaming and ray-tracing
Memory Speed 14 Gbps
performance in our testing. Gamers Nexus
(go.pcworld.com/gnxs) discovered one key Standard Memory Config 6 GB GDDR6
performance difference: The TU104-based Memory Interface Width 192-bit

EVGA KO performs up to 57 percent faster in
Memory Bandwidth (GB/s) 336 GB/s
Blender rendering tasks. That’s a very niche

KO includes a metal
backplate that looks nice
and clean in your case,
while the two large fans
adorning the shroud
support the crucial idle fan
stop feature. Idle fan stop
prevents the fans from
spinning when the GPU
isn’t under heavy load,
creating an utterly silent
Port report. environment when you’re
just tooling around on
You’ll notice some cost-saving measures your desktop. EVGA’s Precision X1
as soon as you take the EVGA RTX 2060 KO monitoring and overclocking software
out of the box. It’s a tiny card that reuses the remains among the best available, too.
design of the $240 EVGA GeForce GTX 1660 Of course, as a GeForce RTX 20-series
Super SC (go.pcworld.com/spsc), eliminating graphics card, the EVGA KO can run real-time
development costs for another custom cooler. ray tracing in the games that support it, and it
The shroud’s plastic, rather than metal, and supports all Nvidia’s latest hardware
lacks the RGB lighting options found on most innovations. Check out our Turing architecture
modern custom graphics cards. The KO also deep-dive for more information on that front
sticks to a very basic port
configuration, with singular
DisplayPort, HDMI, and DVI
connections. Those are all
reasonable downgrades to
shave $50 off the normal
cost of RTX 2060 models, in
our opinion.
EVGA still managed to
sneak some nice extras onto
the card despite its budget
price, however. The RTX 2060

• Asus Maximus X
Hero motherboard ($420
on Amazon at
go.pcworld.com/c240)
• 64GB HyperX
Predator RGB DDR4/
2933 ($420 on Amazon)
• EVGA 1200W
SuperNova P2 power
supply ($230 on Amazon at
The EVGA GeForce RTX 2060 KO uses a single 8-pin power connection. go.pcworld.com/mxmc)
• Corsair Crystal 570X
(go.pcworld.com/trar). On the software side, RGB case, with front and top panels removed
the EVGA KO plays nice with GeForce and an extra rear fan installed for improved airflow
Experience and its myriad features, including ($130 on Amazon at go.pcworld.com/crst)
Ansel super screenshots, ShadowPlay video • 2x 500GB Samsung 860 EVO SSDs ($78
recording (go.pcworld.com/shad), integer each on Amazon at go.pcworld.com/smev)
scaling for retro games, low-latency modes We’re reviewing both the $300 EVGA
for competitive titles, and more. GeForce RTX 2060 KO and the $320 RTX
But onto the real question: How does it 2060 KO Ultra. Because the cards are identical
game? other than clock speeds, EVGA supplied us
with the KO Ultra as well as a VBIOS that
OUR TEST SYSTEM transforms the card into the cheaper model.
Our dedicated graphics card test system is The RTX 2060 is a known quantity at this
packed with some of the fastest point, so we’re comparing EVGA’s card only
complementary components available to put against its most direct rivals: The $280
any potential performance bottlenecks Radeon RX 5600 XT, the Nvidia GeForce RTX
squarely on the GPU. Most of the hardware 2060 Founders Edition (go.pcworld.
was provided by the manufacturers, but we com/60fd; which itself recently dropped in
purchased the cooler and storage ourselves. price to $300), and AMD’s reference $350
• Intel Core i7-8700K processor ($350 on Radeon RX 5700 (go.pcworld.com/r57x).
Amazon at go.pcworld.com/700k) The Radeon RX 5600 XT had a messy launch
• EVGA CLC 240 closed-loop liquid cooler due to a last-second VBIOS upgrade that won’t
($120 on Amazon at go.pcworld.com/c240) be applicable to every model (go.pcworld.

com/vbis), and often won’t be applied to the Each game is tested using its in-game
first wave of stock on store shelves even if you’re benchmark at the highest possible graphics
getting a faster version. We’ve included results presets unless otherwise noted, with VSync,
for both the reference configuration and the frame rate caps, real-time ray-tracing or DLSS
faster VBIOS provided for the Sapphire Pulse effects, and FreeSync/G-Sync disabled.
Radeon RX 5600 XT (go.pcworld.com/plrd). We’ve enabled temporal anti-aliasing (TAA) to
push these cards to their limits.
Metro Exodus We run each benchmark at
(Frames per second) least three times and list the
53
Sapphire Pulse Radeon
42
average result for each test.
RX 5600XT
Sapphire Pulse Radeon 59

RX 5600XT (new BIOS) 47 GAMING
GeForce RTX 2060 (FE) 42
54 BENCHMARKS
Metro Exodus
EVGA GeForce GTX 56
2060 KO 43 One of the best games of 2019,
EVGA GeForce GTX 57 Metro Exodus is one of the
2060 KO Ultra 44
best-looking games around,
69
Radeon RX 5700 51 too. The latest version of the 4A
1080p 1440p Engine provides incredibly
luscious, ultra-detailed visuals,
with one of the most stunning
Borderlands 3 real-time ray-tracing
(Frames per second) implementations released yet.
65
43
We test in DirectX 12 mode with
RX 5600XT
71
ray tracing and DLSS disabled.
RX 5600XT (new BIOS) 50
GeForce RTX 2060 (FE)

63 Borderlands 3
44
Borderlands is back! Gearbox’s
EVGA GeForce GTX 65
2060 KO 45 game defaults to DX12, so we do
EVGA GeForce GTX 65 as well, and gives us a glimpse at
2060 KO Ultra 46
the ultra-popular Unreal Engine
80
Radeon RX 5700 56 4’s performance—though this
1080p 1440p game’s implementation leans
heavily in AMD’s favor.

The Division 2
The Division 2 is one of the The Division 2
best looter-shooters ever (Frames per second)
created. The luscious visuals RX 5600XT 54
generated by Ubisoft’s Sapphire Pulse Radeon 88

Snowdrop engine make it
83
even easier to get lost in GeForce RTX 2060 (FE) 56
post-apocalyptic Washington 86
EVGA GeForce GTX
57
D.C. The built-in benchmark 2060 KO
cycles through four “zones” EVGA GeForce GTX 89

2060 KO Ultra 58
to test an array of
90
Radeon RX 5700
environments, and we test 60
1080p 1440p
with the DirectX 12 renderer
enabled. LO N G ER B A R S I N D I C AT E B E T T ER P E R F O R M A N C E
Strange Brigade Strange Brigade

Strange Brigade is a cooperative (Frames per second)
119
third-person shooter where a Sapphire Pulse Radeon
87
RX 5600XT
team of adventurers blasts 133
through hordes of mythological RX 5600XT (new BIOS) 97
enemies. It’s a technological GeForce RTX 2060 (FE)

144
103
showcase, built around the
EVGA GeForce GTX 147
next-gen Vulkan and DirectX 12 2060 KO 106
technologies and infused with EVGA GeForce GTX 149

2060 KO Ultra 108
features like HDR support and
145
the ability to toggle Radeon RX 5700 107
asynchronous compute on and 1080p 1440p
off. It uses Rebellion’s custom
Azure engine. Last year, we used
the DX12 renderer as it offered improved Shadow of the Tomb Raider
performance. In 2020, we’ve switched to the Shadow of the Tomb Raider concludes the
Vulkan renderer with async compute enabled, reboot trilogy, and it’s gorgeous. Square Enix
as it’s now your fastest option and Vulkan games optimized this game for DX12, and
are rare indeed. recommends DX11 only if you’re using older

hardware or Windows 7, so we
test with DX12. Shadow of the Shadow of the Tomb Raider
(Frames per second)
Tomb Raider uses an enhanced
version of the Foundation RX 5600XT 56
engine that also powered Rise Sapphire Pulse Radeon 95

of the Tomb Raider and
94
includes optional real-time GeForce RTX 2060 (FE) 62
ray-tracing features. 96
EVGA GeForce GTX
2060 KO 62
Ghost Recon Breakpoint EVGA GeForce GTX 99

2060 KO Ultra 65
It may run in DX11, but like its
101
Radeon RX 5700
predecessor, Ghost Recon 69
1080p 1440p
Breakpoint and its AnvilNext
2.0 engine absolutely melts
GPUs—so much so that we test
this game on Very High rather Ghost Recon Breakpoint
(Frames per second)
than Ultra settings. Sapphire Pulse Radeon 89
RX 5600XT 71
94
Total War: Three Kingdoms Sapphire Pulse Radeon
76
RX 5600XT (new BIOS)
Most of the games in our suite
101
are shooters or adventure 77
games, but we’ve included EVGA GeForce GTX 100

2060 KO 78
Total War: Three Kingdoms to
give us a glimpse at RTS 2060 KO Ultra 79
performance. It’s another DX11 96

Radeon RX 5700 80
game, running on an improved
1080p 1440p
version of the same engine LO N G ER B A R S I N D I C AT E B E T T ER P E R F O R M A N C E
found in Creative Assembly’s

previous Total War entries.
turned to Very High, all Advanced Graphics
GTA V options except extended shadows enabled,
This game isn’t really a visual barn-burner, but and FXAA. GTA V runs on the RAGE engine
still tops the Steam charts day in and day out. and has received substantial updates since its
We test Grand Theft Auto V with all options initial launch.

reliable (and fun) option than

Total War: Three Kingdoms the Forza series. It’s built on the
(Frames per second) latest version of Codemasters’
RX 5600XT 37 buttery-smooth Ego game
Sapphire Pulse Radeon 62 engine, complete with support
for DX12 for the first time. We
GeForce RTX 66
2060 (FE) 43
test two laps on the Australia
66
course, with clear skies.
EVGA GeForce GTX
2060 KO 44
EVGA GeForce GTX 68 Real-time ray tracing

2060 KO Ultra 44
Unlike AMD’s rival Radeon
Radeon RX 67
5700 45 cards, Nvidia RTX GPUs pack
1080p 1440p
dedicated hardware to
enable real-time ray tracing,
though the cutting-edge
GTA V lighting effect can put a big
(Frames per second) damper on performance
98
82
depending on the
RX 5600XT
102
implementation. Nvidia’s
RX 5600XT (new BIOS) 91 Deep Learning Super
GeForce RTX 98 Sampling (DLSS) technology
2060 (FE) 85
claws back some of those
2060 KO 86 frames in games where it’s
EVGA GeForce GTX 102 available, though.
2060 KO Ultra 87
To see if the EVGA KO’s
Radeon RX 101
5700 91 unique cut-down TU104 GPU
1080p 1440p performs differently than the
TU106 GPU in standard RTX
2060 models, we’ve
F1 2019 compared its ray-tracing performance against
The latest in a long line of successful racing Nvidia’s Founders Edition in Shadow of the
games, F1 2019 is a gem to test, supplying a Tomb Raider and Metro: Exodus at 1440p
wide array of both graphical and resolution.
benchmarking options, making it a much more (Spoiler: The KO isn’t faster.) Tomb Raider

lacks DLSS, and we’ve tested it with ray-traced POWER DRAW, THERMALS,
shadows set to both Medium and Ultra. Metro AND NOISE
Exodus supports DLSS. We test power draw by looping the F1 2019
We tested it using the RTX preset in benchmark for about 20 minutes after we’ve
the benchmark, which sets its ray tracing to benchmarked everything else and noting the
High and activates DLSS. A more intense highest reading on our Watts Up Pro meter.
Ultra setting is also available, but we didn’t The initial part of the race, where all
test it here. competing cars are onscreen simultaneously,
tends to be the most
F1 2019 demanding portion.
(Frames per second) Here’s where the switch
105
83
from TU106 to a cut-down
RX 5600XT
114
TU104 GPU makes a slight
RX 5600XT (new BIOS) 90 difference. The EVGA GeForce
GeForce RTX 111 RTX 2060 KO sucks down
2060 (FE) 83
slightly more power than the
2060 KO 83 Nvidia Founders Edition. Not
EVGA GeForce GTX 111 by much though. It’s
2060 KO Ultra 83
interesting to note, but it isn’t a
Radeon 118
RX 5700 93 practical consideration in the
1080p 1440p real world.
We test thermals by leaving
GPU-Z open during the F1
Ray-Tracing Performance 2019 power draw test, noting
(Frames per second) the highest maximum
40
Geforce RTX 51
temperature at the end.
2060 (FE)
35 Despite its small stature
EVGA GeForce GTX
40 and reused cooling design,
52
2606 KO 35 the EVGA RTX 2060 KO stays
EVGA GeForce GTX
41 nice and cool, never going
53
2606 KO Ultra 36 above 73 degrees even in its
Metro/RTX preset SOTR/RTX Medium overclocked form. It’s not all
SOTR/RTX Ultra roses though. Subjectively,
the EVGA KO gets louder than

most graphics cards in this price range to hit review sample had some slight coil whine
those chilly temperatures, and it’s more during especially intense gaming scenes as
audible than the Founders Edition’s dual fan well.
setup or the whisper-quiet cooler on the Still, the sound levels aren’t bad, and the
Sapphire Pulse Radeon RX 5600 XT. Our KO proves quieter than AMD’s recent blower-
style reference coolers. It’s a
Whole System Power Draw reasonable compromise to hit
(Watts) the $300 price point. The
216
53
EVGA KO’s wonderful idle fan
RX 5600XT
244
stop feature, which Nvidia’s
RX 5600XT (new BIOS) 53 Founders Edition card lacks,
237 makes it much preferable to
54
use when you’re not gaming,
2060 KO 53 as it’s silent during desktop
EVGA GeForce GTX 253 use.
2060 KO Ultra 53
247
Radeon RX 5700 56 BOTTOM LINE
Load Idle If you’re on the hunt for a solid
1440p graphics card, or one
capable of feeding an ultra-fast
Max GPU temperature under load 144Hz 1080p monitor, the
(Celsius) $300 EVGA GeForce RTX 2060
65
KO should be on your shortlist,
RX 5600XT
especially if you’re interested in
72 real-time ray-tracing
RX 5600XT (new BIOS)
capabilities. It’s a steal.
GeForce RTX 2060 (FE) 67 At $350, the normal price
for GeForce RTX 2060 models,
EVGA GeForce GTX
72
2060 KO we tend to recommend the
EVGA GeForce GTX Radeon RX 5700 (go.pcworld.
73
2060 KO Ultra
com/r57x) for 1440p gaming,
Radeon RX 5700 78 as it’s slightly faster and has 2GB
more memory, bringing it to
8GB of GDDR6 in total. But

EVGA’s cheap RTX 2060 is much more EVGA’s card doesn’t have to deal with any
appealing at $50 less. It’s almost as fast as the of that software headache. It just works out of
RX 5700 in most games, trading blows with the the box. And that price. At $300, the KO
excellent Sapphire Pulse Radeon RX 5600 XT undercuts most dual-fan RTX 2060 models by
(go.pcworld.com/plrd), which costs $290. $40 or more, delivering excellent gaming
AMD’s Radeon RX 5600 XT had a messy performance at a steep discount. Better yet, at
launch, however, with some models being $300 and with performance comparable to
much faster (go.pcworld.com/fscd) than the Sapphire Pulse Radeon RX 5600 XT, you’re
others thanks to a last-second BIOS upgrade. basically only paying a $10 premium for
The first wave of faster cards on store shelves real-time ray tracing. The cutting-edge lighting
will probably require users to upgrade their technology is still is in its infancy, with only a
BIOS to get the additional performance. The handful of games supporting it thus far, but it’s
EVGA GeForce RTX 2060 KO is significantly very much on the upswing and well worth the
faster than Radeon RX 5600 XT models that investment in for such a minimal surcharge.
don’t get upgraded memory speeds, and Nvidia’s own GeForce RTX 2060
that’s the majority currently—faster, upgraded Founders Edition (go.pcworld.com/60fd)
models are few and far between. dropped to $300 to counter the Radeon RX

5600 XT, and it’s also worth considering. We power limit, and the minuscule performance
prefer the premium metallic look of the boost provided by the pricier EVGA RTX 2060
Founders Edition, and Nvidia’s card runs a bit KO Ultra (go.pcworld.com/koul) isn’t worth
quieter under load, but the 2060 FE lacks the the extra $20. At $320, it’s probably worth
EVGA KO’s crucial idle fan stop feature, which looking instead for a quieter, fuller-featured RTX
creates a silent desktop browsing experience. 2060 model on sale for a few dollars more.
They’re both solid options, though it remains Don’t let that dissuade you though. This is
to be seen how many Founders Edition cards a great, no-frills graphics card for people who
Nvidia makes available at this price. That just want to put their graphics card in their
luxurious shroud ain’t cheap. EVGA’s card has system and play. The $300 EVGA GeForce
seen high demand too, however. RTX 2060 KO (go.pcworld.com/gfko)
EVGA cut some corners to achieve this delivers everything you need for a kick-ass
awesome price. The KO sports a plastic shroud gaming experience, even ray tracing, and it
reused from a lower-end GTX 1660 design made some reasonable sacrifices to hit a truly
(albeit augmented by a fetching metal compelling price point—no confusing BIOS
backplate), and its fans get a little loud to upgrades required. It’s highly, highly
maintain chilly temperatures. The port recommended. You can find more feature-
selection is basic. Overclockers will want to packed GeForce RTX 2060 models, but
look elsewhere, as you can’t increase the card’s they’ll cost you a whole lot more.
EVGA GeForce RTX 2060 KO EVGA GeForce RTX 2060 KO

Ultra
PROS
• Great 1440p and 1080p gaming performance. PROS
• Outstanding price vs. other RTX 2060 models. • Great 1440p and 1080p gaming performance.
• RTX hardware for ray tracing and DLSS. • RTX hardware for ray tracing and DLSS.
• Metal backplate, idle fan stop features. • Metal backplate, idle fan stop features.
CONS CONS
• Ray tracing and DLSS picking up steam, but not • Basic, no-frills design.
widely available in games yet. • A little louder than rival GPUs.
• Basic, no-frills design. • Overclock offers little real-world performance for
• A little louder than rival GPUs. $20 premium.
BOTTOM LINE BOTTOM LINE
The EVGA GeForce RTX 2060 KO makes some smart The EVGA GeForce RTX 2060 KO is a solid low-cost
compromises to bring real-time ray tracing under RTX 2060 option, but isn’t as successful as its
$300, drastically undercutting its rivals. non-Ultra sibling because its slight overclock isn’t
worth a $20 premium.
$300
$319

HP Pavilion Gaming Laptop:
Affordable gaming with caveats
The dim display and lack of real mouse buttons could frustrate some. BY HAYDEN DINGMAN
H
P’s Pavilion Gaming Laptop may Gaming Laptop is just an Omen in disguise,
seem like a relic from years past, an entry-level peer with mainstream branding.
given the rise of HP’s Omen line.
Granted, the Pavilion line lacks VARIANTS
Omen’s “For Gamers, By Gamers” cred, but... The pricing is mainstream, too. The Pavilion
well, what’s in a name, really? The Pavilion Gaming Laptop starts at just $640 for a base
IMAGE: HAYDEN DINGMAN MARCH 2020 PCWorld 83

REVIEWS HP PAVILION GAMING L APTOP
Pavilion 15t model on hp.com

(go.pcworld.com/hp5t), with
Intel Core i5-9300H and a
last-gen GTX 1050. The model
we received is essentially HP’s
“high-end” unit, the poetically
named 15-dk0045cl, a $1,250
version sold at Costco (go.
pcworld.com/csco) and
equipped with an Intel Core
i7-9750H, an Nvidia GeForce
GTX 1660 Ti, 16GB of DDR4
RAM, a 256GB M.2 SSD, and a
1TB HDD. It’s a good deal. If
you’re not a Costco member, an
identical model based on the
Pavilion Gaming Laptop 15t at hp.com costs Omen, which is only a little more expensive.
$1,440 (go.pcworld.com/hp5t). The similar For instance, you can configure a Pavilion
Pavilion 15-dk0046nr is available for $1,300 Gaming Laptop 15t on hp.com for $1,490
on hp.com (go.pcworld.com/46nr) with a (go.pcworld.com/hp5t) with a Core
Core i7-9750H, 12GB of RAM and a 256GB i7-9750H, GTX 1660 Ti, a 512GB SSD, and a
SSD, and a step down in graphics to Nvidia’s 144Hz display. The same configuration in an
GTX 1650. Omen Laptop 15t on hp.com is $1,550 (go.
Storage is a place you can skimp, pcworld.com/o15t). It’s only a $60
depending on your needs. On hp.com, difference, but the Omen line is arguably
opting for only the 256GB SSD saves $100, slightly better, as you’ll see when we delve
though you’ll be packing games in like into the design.
sardines at that point. A 512GB SSD might be
the better option—still small by modern DESIGN
standards, but more than enough to keep a The difference is in the details—some small
few games installed at all times, and you’ll still ones, but also some very important ones.
save $50 over the 256GB SSD/1TB HDD Let’s start with the aesthetics.
combo. The Pavilion Gaming Laptop looks every
Aim low, or you might as well check out bit as good as HP’s Omen lineup. It features

the same centered hinge as the Omen 17 (go. 1080p IPS screen with a 60Hz refresh rate.
pcworld.com/om17) we reviewed in Not every laptop needs to be 144Hz or 4K
November, the same almost-rectangular resolution—but it does need to be bright
shape. But where the Omen opted for a enough to see. I’m frustrated because I just
brushed-metal look inside and outside, the applauded HP for equipping the Omen with a
Pavilion goes with a matte-black finish—and a bright 362-nit screen, a rarity for budget-
proper HP logo, instead of Omen’s conscious manufacturers. The Pavilion
demon-face. Gaming Laptop tops out at 250 nits plugged
Honestly? I prefer the Pavilion Gaming in, our baseline for viewing comfort.
Laptop to the Omen cousin. It’s a However, it dims to 200 nits unplugged, far
go-anywhere laptop, a day-to-day workhorse short of that baseline, which we use for
that also plays games on the weekends. Even battery benchmarking.
the “Acid Green” variant we reviewed is fairly What that means for you depends on your
inoffensive. The electric-green keyboard use case. The Pavilion Gaming Laptop is
backlighting invites Razer comparisons, but plenty bright with the lights out, so late-night
HP went with a jewel-tone emerald accent for gaming sessions are fine. Even a single
the lid logo that’s eye-catching but not overhead light is enough to wash out the
eye-searing, a fine line to walk. I recommend Pavilion Gaming Laptops’s display, though,
paying $10 for the white logo and and window glare can be a real problem
backlighting if you really want to blend in, but during the day, especially unplugged. Picture:
I have no problem with the
Pavilion Gaming Laptop
aesthetically.
Unfortunately most of the
other differences between the
Pavilion and the Omen go in
the latter’s favor. First and
foremost, the 15.6-inch display.
This is an area where lower-cost
laptops often skimp, because
the display is one of the priciest
components.
The Pavilion Gaming
Laptop defaults to a standard

Those huge glass panes at the airport, and but I think dedicated left- and right-click
you squinting to see your screen. buttons are a must for gaming laptops. Sure,
HP does offer two additional display you’ll plug in a real mouse for anything
options: 1080p at 144Hz, and 4K. Assuming serious, but there are plenty of times when I’m
the 144Hz variant is the same used on the on the road without a mouse, or where a
Omen though, it’s probably worth the $100 mouse isn’t feasible (i.e., airplanes). In those
upgrade. That alone would add a half-star to situations, having reliable left- and right-click
our rating here. buttons is crucial to playing even simple
Below the display, you’ll find a row of adventure games. Tap-to-click isn’t good
upward-firing speakers. This, too, differs from enough, and it’s a shame HP went that route
the Omen, and I don’t necessarily hate the with the Pavilion Gaming Laptop. It’s the one
change in isolation. The Pavilion Gaming aspect where head-to-head the Omen
Laptop gets loud, and the audio
output is reasonably clear. These
speakers are decent for watching
YouTube, fine for listening to
some slightly tinny music, and...
well, pretty unpleasant for
gaming. Use a headset.
The larger issue, though is
that the speakers came at the cost
of a larger trackpad and
dedicated mouse buttons.
I’ve said it again and again,

definitively comes
out on top. HandBrake 0.99.0 Encoding (H.264)
(Seconds)
You could also
argue the Omen Dell G7
1,740
(Core i7-9750H)
keyboard’s zone MSI GS65 Stealth 9SD
(Core i7-9750H) 1,838
RGB lighting is
HP Pavilion 15 Gaming Laptop
better than the flat (Core i7-9750H) 2,070
single-color lighting HP Omen 17
2,115
(Core i7-9750H)
on the Pavilion, Acer Nitro 7
(Core i7-9750H) 2,220
though that’s less
Acer Nitro 5 15
crucial. Just be sure (Core i5-9300H) 2,642
to get the color S H O R T E R B A R S I N D I C AT E B E T T E R P E R F O R M A N C E
variant you prefer,

either green or white. Regardless, HP’s laptop Pavilion line is solidly mid-tier elsewhere, the
keyboards continue to impress me. They’re reliable family sedan of gaming laptops.
stiff, but with a satisfying click. With both the Omen and Pavilion lines, HP
Lastly, ports. As I said in our Omen review, opted for Intel’s familiar Core i7-9750H part,
“Accolades for putting all the ports on the allowing us to do some head-to-head testing.
side.” Too many gaming laptops put And you know what? The Pavilion Gaming
important I/O on the rear—great for keeping Laptop really is an Omen in disguise. Below
cables out of the way on a desk, but a pain to you’ll see the results of our HandBrake test,
access on the road. The Pavilion Gaming wherein we use the free utility to encode a 30GB
Laptop includes power, two USB 3.0 ports, MKV file down to the “Android Tablet” preset.
and a 3.5mm jack on the right side, plus We’ve tested and tested and tested the
HDMI-out, an additional USB-A 3.0 port, Core i7-9750H and the Core i7-8750H before
ethernet, an SD card reader, and a USB-C port it, so any deviation sticks out. Notice that the
on the left. Pavilion Gaming Laptop drastically
underperforms compared to the Dell G7 and
PERFORMANCE MSI GS65—with the Omen 17 sitting right
Don’t expect record-setting benchmarks alongside. Both struggled with this task, taking
here. Yes, we tested the “high-end” Pavilion nearly five minutes longer than the norm.
15 with a Core i7-9750H, GTX 1660 Ti, and As I said in our Omen 17 review, it
16GB of RAM, but the quotation marks are doesn’t really matter. Most games are
there for a reason. What’s high-end for the constrained by the GPU, not the CPU.

Day-to-day use is unlikely to tax a CPU as of the last-gen GTX 1060 and the RTX 2060,
hard as HandBrake, and short-burst and without the ray-tracing capabilities
performance is less impacted, as evidenced provided by the latter. It handily beats out the
by our Cinebench testing below. GTX 1650, though—important, given that it’s
The HandBrake results are interesting, a lower-cost option for the Pavilion Gaming
though, if only because there’s a clear Laptop. You’re much better off with a GTX
relationship
between the Omen Cinebench R15.038
and Pavilion lines. (All threads)
These really are two MSI GS65 Stealth 9SD 1,247
(Core i7-9750H) 188
flavors of the same
Dell G7 1,204
laptop, one aimed (Core i7-9750H) 171
low-end and one HP Omen 17 1,153

(Core i7-9750H) 176
high-end, with
HP Pavilion 15 Gaming Laptop 1,088
some minor overlap (Core i7-9750H) 181
in the middle. 993
Acer Nitro 7
I do wish we’d (Core i7-9750H) 181
tested an HP Omen Acer Nitro 5 15 766

(Core i5-9300H) 173
with a GTX 1660 Ti Multi-threaded Single-threaded
so we could do LO N G ER B A R S I N D I C AT E B E T T ER P E R F O R M A N C E
further direct
comparisons. Alas,
the Omen 17 we 3DMark FireStrike Extreme 1.1 Graphics
tested (go.pcworld. (Demo mode off)
com/om17) in HP Omen 17
(Core i7-9750H) 8,908
November
Dell G7
contained a full-size (Core i7-9750H) 7,009
MSI GS65 Stealth 9SD
RTX 2070, a high- (Core i7-9750H) 6,496
performance HP Pavilion 15 Gaming Laptop
(Core i7-9750H) 6,005
powerhouse.
Acer Nitro 5 15
The GTX 1660 Ti (Core i5-9300H) 4,161
is a humbler card, Acer Nitro 7

4,064
(Core i7-9750H)
somewhere LO N G ER B A R S I N D I C AT E B E T T ER P E R F O R M A N C E
between the power

1660 Ti, as
evidenced by our Middle Earth: Shadow of Mordor
3DMark testing. (Frames per second)
Is the GTX 1660 HP Omen 17
(Core i7-9750H) 134.92
Ti worth the extra
Dell G7
$270 HP charges? (Core i7-9750H) 116.63
That’s a steep price, MSI GS65 Stealth 9SD
109.45
(Core i7-9750H)
but I think so. The HP Pavilion 15 Gaming Laptop
(Core i7-9750H) 105.8
GTX 1650 works,
Acer Nitro 5 15
but barely. With new (Core i5-9300H) 69.8
consoles coming Acer Nitro 7
(Core i7-9750H) 69.2
next year, the GTX
1660 Ti is a slightly
more future-
proofed option. It’s
still going to
Rise of the Tomb Raider
(Frames per second)
struggle to run
HP Omen 17
newer games with (Core i7-9750H) 98.83
all the bells and MSI GS65 Stealth 9SD
89.43
(Core i7-9750H)
whistles, but it Dell G7
(Core i7-9750H) 82.34
should remain
viable an extra two (Core i7-9750H) 69.94
or three years Acer Nitro 7
(Core i7-9750H) 59.9
longer than the GTX
Acer Nitro 5 15
1650—and by then (Core i5-9300H) 55.56
we’ll be well into LO N G ER B A R S I N D I C AT E B E T T ER P E R F O R M A N C E
the next hardware

cycle, and upgrading won’t feel as volatile. impressive as that game is more CPU-
The gap in performance is even more constrained, but there’s still a jump between
evident in real-world testing, where the GTX the GTX 1650 and the GTX 1660 Ti.
1650 struggles to run Shadow of Mordor at Per usual, we end on battery. Based on
Ultra—a six-year-old game—while the GTX our chart, the Pavilion 15 handily beats the
1660 Ti breezes past the 100-frames-per- Omen—and several other gaming laptops as
second mark. Rise of the Tomb Raider is less well. Lasting well over five hours, battery life is

that we reviewed is a
4K Video Playback Battery Life hard sell. It’s close in
(Minutes) price to a similarly
Acer Nitro 5 15 configured Omen, but
(Core i5-9300H) 435
with a dismal display and
MSI GS65 Stealth 9SD
(Core i7-9750H) 374 no mouse buttons.
342 You’d be better off
(Core i7-9750H)
Acer Nitro 7
spending more for the
(Core i7-9750H) 316
Omen, I promise.
Dell G7
(Core i7-9750H) 223 The Pavilion
HP Omen 17
122 Gaming Laptop
(Core i7-9750H)
nevertheless punches
well above its weight in
the entry-level range. If
actually very respectable. you’re looking for a sub-$1,000 gaming
Remember that the numbers don’t tell the laptop, HP’s built one every bit as sturdy and
whole story. We typically do our battery refined as its high-end counterparts—because
testing at 250 nits, but as I said earlier the at the core, they’re the same laptop. Branding
Pavilion Gaming Laptop dims to 200 nits is funny sometimes, eh?
when unplugged. Thus our result here comes
with an enormous asterisk, because the HP Pavilion Gaming Laptop
screen might be too dark for you to actually 15-dk0045cl
use the Pavilion Gaming Laptop, no matter
PROS
how long it lasts. That said, the Omen 17 we • Understated design.
tested had a better screen but terrible battery • Solid deal on entry-level hardware.
• Long battery life.
life. It’s a compromise either way.
CONS
• Lacks dedicated left and right mouse buttons.
BOTTOM LINE • Dim screen.
• Intel’s Core i7-9750H underperforms in HP’s
I came into this thinking I’d find a pitched implementation.
battle between HP’s Pavilion and Omen lines. BOTTOM LINE
Really, they’re just two sides of a coin. The HP’s Pavilion Gaming Laptop (15-dk0045cl) is just a
low-end Omen without the Omen branding—and
Pavilion’s your entry-level Omen, whether more importantly, without the Omen’s better-looking
screen.
HP’s willing to call it that or not.
$1,250
As such, I think the Pavilion Gaming Laptop

Kentucky Route Zero: The game
that defined (and was defined by)
a decade
Wild horses couldn’t drag me away. BY HAYDEN DINGMAN
It’s said that Velvet Under- write about games. I naively thought, “I’ll play
ground’s first album sold it when it’s done.” Now I’m seven years older
dismally, but that everyone and coming up on my seventh anniversary at
who bought a copy later PCWorld. Everything has changed. Kentucky
started a band. Kentucky Route Zero didn’t sell Route Zero has finally finished.
quite so poorly, but it’s destined to take up a And oh, what a journey.
similar position in the game industry’s psyche
I think. It defined a decade, and was in turn THE ROAD LESS TRAVELED
defined by that decade. Coming to Kentucky Route Zero this late is
I hadn’t touched it until this week. The first fascinating because there’s a sense of familiarity
chapter released in 2013, before I got paid to that I doubt existed in 2013. It is still one of the
IMAGE: HAYDEN DINGMAN MARCH 2020 PCWorld 91

REVIEWS KENTUCK Y ROUTE ZERO
strangest and most ambitious games I’ve ever game was clearly influenced by Kentucky
played—and yet slightly less so, because like Route Zero.” Not without the developers
the Velvet Underground, Kentucky Route Zero copping to it, anyway. I recognize so many
has gone on to inform so much that came after. other games within Kentucky Route Zero
Even if you’ve never played a single moment of though, or rather the reverse.
it, you’ve probably played something made by And the common denominator is writing.
someone who did. Kentucky Route Zero is a game of
Disco Elysium (go.pcworld.com/dsel) conversations. There is walking between
seems like an obvious heir, its prosaic and conversations, and a genre purist might call it
dreamlike writing very reminiscent of Kentucky an adventure game. Like Heaven’s Vault
Route Zero. Where the Water Tastes Like Wine though, or Disco Elysium, the walking is only
(go.pcworld.com/wine) and its Americana ever in service of more reading and the
folklore and fascination with the open road, occasional stunning vista.
that’s another. Inkle’s games (go.pcworld. You start the game as Conway, a truck
com/inkl), and the idea that lots of small driver with one last delivery to make. Trouble
choices are more important than a few is, he can’t find the address, a “5 Dogwood
massive ones. Celeste (go.pcworld.com/ Drive.” He and his dog have stopped at a gas
celt), and how it handles conversations. And station to ask directions, only to find out his
the list goes on, a list that includes Night in the destination lies down the titular Route Zero.
Woods (go.pcworld.com/ntwd), Paratopic, Where’s Route Zero? Nobody really knows—
maybe even Control (go.pcworld.com/cntl). but oh, Weaver Marquez might be able to help
Perhaps I’m wrong. It’s hard to point you find out, and so off you go to find her.
fingers and name names, to say, “Well this That’s the hook.
Forget the
mystery for a minute
though. Something
more important
happens in that first
scene. In the first
conversation, even.
You walk up to the
gas station
attendant, introduce
yourself, and then

the attendant asks for your dog’s name. Three not because someone references it six hours later.
options pop up: “Homer,” “Blue,” or “Just Even by 2020 standards, with many of the
some dog, I don’t know his name.” games it inspired already in the rearview,
Moments later the attendant tells you to log Kentucky Route Zero has a remarkable view of
into his computer, says the password is the player’s role. It’s authorial almost, allowing
something “lyrical,” and that you’ll “feel it out.” you to not only define the character you’re
Again, multiple options are given, lines like playing but the world he lives in. And even
fragments of a poem.
“Wheels slide loose,”
“The stars drop away,”
“You just breathe
road,” and so on.
There is no right
answer, no puzzle to
solve. Whatever you
choose, that’s his
password. The
decision matters
because you chose it,

within its world.

On that level, it’s a
surreal road trip
about a non-
Euclidean highway
and TV repairs and
two android
musicians and a
museum filled with
houses. It’s a
young boy and his
big brother, an
eagle, and the
that’s not entirely correct, as Kentucky Route flights they take together nightly. It’s an
Zero soon expands to multiple characters with impossible forest, a captivating visual reference
multiple viewpoints, and you’re often to Magritte’s painting “The Blank Signature.” It’s
controlling both parts of a back-and-forth an underground lake and the restaurant that
conversation. You’re the writer, the director, floats in the middle, serving up strange creatures
the actors, all of it. to its loyal patrons. It’s a telephone hotline that
The entire undertaking is sprawling and says “For the monument to something that we
unwieldy and messy and disjointed, and in some don’t remember, press three.”
way I think that’s why it’s successful. It’s unlikely And sometimes it’s a 40-minute theater
that every part of Kentucky Route Zero will production, an homage to Waiting for Godot
resonate with every person, but you’re almost that you sit and watch in real-time. Sit, watch,
guaranteed to find something to latch onto. and do nothing—except you’re a participant
It’s about found family and lost family, the in the play, and your role is to do nothing, so
burdens of capitalism and the ways we define really you’re an actor...right?
ourselves by our work, the slow decline of rural Kentucky Route Zero is a weird and
America but also the mythology around it, wonderful experiment that I find almost
self-determination versus community, impossible to write about in its fullest sense.
gentrification, the small rituals we perform daily. Instead, certain sequences keep playing out
And sometimes it’s about none of that. in my head.
Kentucky Route Zero rewards picking apart its One in particular has stuck with me. Towards
every scene, but it’s also a joy to simply exist the end of Act IV you find yourself in what used to

be a train station, before it
was flooded. It was then
reclaimed for use by the
phone company, housing
the switchboards and the
operators needed to run
them. Then the
omnipresent
Consolidated Power
Company (a key
antagonist) bought up the
phone lines and fired all
but one of the operators,
saying they needed her to train an automated everyone else and left her here in the dark to
system to eventually do the work. do the work of thirteen people, forever.
She explains all this, the slow decay of this That it’s cheaper for them that way.
once vibrant work environment, victim to an I don’t know why that sequence hit me so
unfeeling and unsympathetic corporation. hard. Of all the criticisms Kentucky Route Zero
And then, having talked through it, she levies at capitalism, this is neither the subtlest
realizes the truth: That there is no automated nor the most poignant. I suspect it’s because
system, no relief coming, and that the journalism’s taken on that same feeling for me, of
Consolidated Power Company simply fired everyone making do with less and less. Less
money, less people,
less time. To be clear,
journalism is not the
only industry suffering
under those
conditions, and I am
(comparatively)
blessed to work with
PCWorld of all outlets.
But still, for a moment
I recognized me and
my compatriots and

my friends in that poor telephone operator, rose and fell and then rose again. Eons passed.
waiting for another golden age that will likely And now it’s finally over. I hope the
never come. developers get some rest.
Anyway, Kentucky Route Zero is the type of
game best enjoyed in the wee hours of the night, BOTTOM LINE
an hour at a time. And it’s the type of game best Above all, Kentucky Route Zero is an argument
enjoyed twice, or maybe even three times. I’ve that games can be more. That argument isn’t
now replayed the first episode (or act), and it’s nearly so revolutionary now as it was in 2011
amazing how much is set up in those early hours when development began, or 2013 when the
that doesn’t pay off until three, even four acts first act released. We’ve (thankfully) made some
later. Seven years. A lifetime, for me and for the decent progress in the years since. People
country and for the development team as well. bought Kentucky Route Zero, and those
Auteur theory is unpopular in video games, people did go start their proverbial bands.
and for good reason. It usually entails It’s still a stunning piece of fiction though.
misallocation of credit, either unintentional or Surprising from beginning to end, I finished
intentional. In the case of the former, the “lone and felt heavy—my head, my heart, all of me
genius” getting praised for the work of the just heavy. Two days later and I’m still
team. In the latter, “a giant asshole” stealing that digesting it, still figuring out what it means for
same praise. me as a person and a writer.
It seems relevant in light of Kentucky Route Hell, maybe I’ll start a band too.
Zero though. Cardboard Computer is three
people, and you can almost feel them change Kentucky Route Zero
over time, and the game changing with them.
Even taken all in one sitting, or maybe PROS
• Surprising from beginning to end.
especially when taken in one sitting, it’s hard • Plays with dialogue and scenery in fascinating
not to notice how certain story threads are ways.
• Uses magical realism as a vessel for a rich
entertained and then cast aside, how certain subtextual layer.
themes become more or less prominent as CONS
• Movement can be finicky.
you venture through the five acts.
• Less revolutionary now than it was in 2013.
As I said, it’s a game that defined a decade BOTTOM LINE
and was defined by it in turn. It was one of the A magical adventure almost a decade in the making,
Kentucky Route Zero is every bit as good as you’ve
earliest crowdfunding successes, completed heard—and maybe more.
after crowdfunding mostly died off. An entire $24.99
console generation passed. The indie scene

His first football season, Isaiah
told us, ‘Wear a jersey with my
name on it. I want everyone to
know you’re here for me.’
Darnell and Denna, adopted 16-year-old Isaiah
LEARN ABOUT ADOPTING A TEEN

YO U C A N ’ T I M AG I N E T H E R E WA R D
A D O P T U S K I D S . O R G
FEATURE
I SWITCHED FROM
ANDROID TO iPHONE:
HERE’S
WHERE
APPLE’S
PHONE
WINS
& FAILS
WHAT HAPPENS WHEN AN
ANDROID DIE-HARD SWITCHES
TO iPHONE? OUR ANDROID
EXPERT EXPLAINS WHERE APPLE
IMPRESSED HIM—AND WHERE HE
EXPERIENCED MAJOR PAIN POINTS.
BY RYAN WHITWAM
IMAGE: TYLER LASTOVICH / PEXELS MARCH 2020 PCWorld 99

FEATURE I SWITCHED FROM ANDROID TO iPHONE
I
hopped on the Android bandwagon skeptical when Apple decided to make
early: I sold my iPhone 3G in 2009, gestures mandatory for navigating its phone,
bought an HTC Hero, and never looked but its gesture scheme is a significant
back. I’ve been using Android every day improvement on a physical button. In fact,
since then, writing about Google’s platform Apple’s gesture approach is the best I’ve
as a tech journalist. Nonetheless, I’ve tried to seen. The gestures are all incredibly smooth
keep pace with iPhone developments, and and don’t require long swipes—it feels like
recently set aside a week of my life to get you’re flinging the UI around. I also appreciate
reacquainted with Apple’s smartphone. that the gesture pill at the bottom of the
I put all my Android phones in a drawer screen doesn’t take up too much space.
and settled into life with the iPhone 11 Pro. There’s a reason Google straight-up copied
Admittedly, the iPhone does some things some of Apple’s gestures in Android 10.
extremely well, even for a long-time Android Battery performance: Apple prioritizes
user like myself. However, there are also battery life on the iPhone, and that’s a
plenty of things I hate with a fiery passion. refreshing change for me. The early days of
Android were a free-for-all in which app
WHERE THE iPHONE WINS developers could do almost anything, and
Apple’s Taptic Engine: Haptics are an many apps siphoned off battery power with
under-appreciated but important aspect of impunity. Google has tamped down on the
interacting with a smartphone, and
Apple understands this. The “Taptic
Engine” is essentially a giant
vibration motor bolted right to the
iPhone’s frame, and it’s fantastic. The
haptic feedback is tight and
powerful, surpassing all Android
phones on the market. It can almost
feel like you’re pressing physical
buttons on the screen sometimes.
Google’s Pixel phones have by far
the best haptics on Android, but
even those devices are far behind
Apple.
Gesture navigation: I was iPhone gestures beat Android phone gestures. They just do.

worst excesses, but iOS has
always been more measured.
It slowly added new features
to the OS, and apps are
kinder to your battery as a
result. The iPhone 11 Pro will
last an entire day, even if you
use it heavily. It’s about on a
par with Android phones
with 20 to 30 percent larger
batteries. The iPhone’s silent mode switch sure comes in handy.
Silent switch: The
iPhone’s silent mode switch is a quick, simple 4, but it’s nowhere near as effective.
way to shut up your phone. My old iPhone AirDrop: Sharing content with the
3G had one, and I’m happy Apple has stuck internet at large is easy these days—there’s
with it. There are still ringer volume controls Facebook, Twitter, Snapchat…take your pick.
and a Do Not Disturb mode, but you have to But sharing something securely with a person
wake up the phone to use those. The iPhone’s right next to you is comparatively difficult on
switch doesn’t move far, but it has delightful Android. On the iPhone, it’s a breeze thanks
tactile click, and you get haptic feedback to AirDrop. Just hit the share menu, pick
when activating silent mode. It’s so easy and AirDrop, and nearby contacts will appear like
reliable, you can change the ringer mode magic. The recipient has the option to accept
while the phone is in your pocket. or decline each transfer. If you’re daring, you
True Tone display: Color accuracy is a can even allow AirDrop visibility for people
noble ideal, but that’s not always good for a who aren’t in your contact list.
phone display you might be staring at for
hours. Apple’s True Tone technology tweaks WHERE THE iPHONE FAILS
the color temperature of the display based on The home screen: Ten years after I left the
environmental lighting, making it easier on iPhone behind, its home screen remains
the eyes. So, you get nice, bright whites almost entirely unchanged. This was one of
outside and warmer, less-distracting tones the biggest pain points for me coming over
inside. The iPhone screen “blends in” with from Android—I missed my app drawer so
the world much better than other phones I’ve much. In addition, iOS only supports
used. Google has a similar feature on the Pixel rudimentary widgets, and they’re all crammed

FEATURE I SWITCHED FROM ANDROID TO iPHONE
into one screen on the far left. It’s also for third-party keyboards a few versions back,
frustrating that every app I install ends up on but they don’t have the same level of system
the home screen, forcing me to obsessively integration as Apple’s keyboard. The iPhone
organize this ever-expanding list of icons if I also likes to re-enable the default Apple
ever want to find anything. During these keyboard at seemingly random intervals. The
frequent reorganizations, the launcher has a default app situation is a huge pain, especially if
maddening habit of assuming I want to make you’ve grown accustomed to choosing your
a folder when I hover over an icon for even a defaults on Android.
fraction of a second anywhere near another No always-on display: Apple was late
icon. The process is so tedious, I avoided to the game with OLED screen technology,
installing apps I didn’t absolutely need. and it’s missing one of the key benefits now
Default apps: Try as you might, you will that it does use them. Most Android phones
never escape Apple’s default apps on the have support for an always-on display feature,
iPhone. You can install different browsers, email sometimes called an ambient display. This
clients, and so on, but they’ll be treated like allows you to see notifications and other
second-class apps on Apple’s platform. For information at a glance, and it doesn’t drain
example, URLs will always open in Safari. If the battery much because black OLED pixels
someone sends you an address, it’ll open in use no power. Apple doesn’t have anything
Apple Maps. Apple grudgingly added support like this, and the iPhone wakes up the full
panel when you get
notifications. It’s
just a waste.
Notifications:
Apple had just
implemented push
notifications when I
ditched the iPhone
years ago. Today,
Apple has a
notification center
that looks a bit like
Android’s, but the
similarities are only
Apple’s insistence on pushing default apps is downright annoying. skin-deep. The

iPhone’s notifications
management is far, far
behind Android. The
phone dumps notifications
into a different section after
you’ve seen them once,
making it difficult to track
things down. When you do
find that notification, the
snippet might be too short,
and notifications don’t
expand like they do on
Android. You have to open
apps to get more Apple’s approach to notifications is just bad UX. Bad, bad, bad.
context—how barbaric.
Clearing notifications also requires multiple Apple has already moved to USB-C on
actions (like a swipe, followed by a tap). And tablets and laptops, so it’s probably just a
then we have the icon badges, which are a matter of time until it does the same on
profoundly bad way of relaying information to phones. Until then, iPhone users are stuck
the user. Apps can notify for all kinds of with this proprietary cable.
reasons, and the red counter doesn’t tell you Siri: Apple was the first smartphone maker
anything about why an app wants your to push a virtual assistant as a game changing
attention. They also have zero relationship with feature, and Siri was basically unopposed for
what’s in your notification center. several years. But Google Assistant is a much
Lightning and charging: I’m heavily better experience than Siri today. Assistant
invested in USB Type-C at this point. I have has more smart home integration, much
computers, headphones, cameras, and even better general search functionality, and it’s
keyboards that use the new standard. So, much more adept at understanding queries. I
moving to Apple’s Lightning port was also like that Assistant is more fully integrated
extremely disruptive and it offered zero with my data on Android. Perhaps Apple’s
benefits. USB-C is not only universal, it careful approach to privacy is part of the
supports extremely fast charging speeds. problem here, but I’m willing to trade a little
Even with Apple’s new, faster charger, privacy for a digital assistant that doesn’t
many Android phones leave it in the dust. make me want to pull my hair out.

FEATURE
T H E H A R D WA R E I S
C H E A P, T H E G A M E S
A R E PRO M ISI N G,
AND VIRTUAL RE ALIT Y
C O U L D F I N A L LY B E
R E A DY F O R T H E
M A I N S T R E A M . O R AT
L E A S T, T H E S L I G H T LY
MORE MAINSTREAM.
104 PCWorld MARCH 2020 IMAGE: DAMIR KHABIROV / GETTY IMAGES

FEATURE VIRTUAL REALIT Y IN 2020
M
aybe this will be the year I could be wrong. I certainly hate to get
virtual reality goes excited about virtual reality’s prospects in
mainstream. If we say it 2020, in a “Fool me twice” sort-of way. I’ve
enough times we’ll be right had my heart broken by VR before. And yet…
eventually, yeah?
But it really does feel like 2020 might be QUEST FOR GLORY
the year. Four years into consumer virtual If VR does take off in 2020, much of the credit
reality, I finally feel excited again. The needs to go to Oculus and its Oculus Quest
hardware is great, and cheaper than ever (go.pcworld.com/ocqu). And listen, I love
before. The games are promising, albeit few. the fidelity of Valve’s high-end Index headset
And there’s a sense that maybe the “We need (go.pcworld.com/indx) driven by my desktop
software to sell hardware to make developing PC and its Nvidia GeForce RTX 2080 Ti. Who
software worthwhile” vicious cycle has finally wouldn’t? The image quality is fantastic, the
been overcome. Maybe. tracking is pinpoint precise, the sound is

confined to a small room,
but they have a sizable
living room that would be
perfect for room-scale VR.
Not to mention the fact
that you can travel with
Quest, or take it to a
friend’s house to demo.
And for an extra $80,
you can have a perfectly
capable PC-based VR
system anyway. Oculus
phenomenal. Link (go.pcworld.com/ocln), which went into
The Quest is none of these things. It looks beta in November, allows you to hook the
okay. The tracking is easily broken. The sound Oculus Quest up to your PC with a USB-C
is good enough. cable. There are cheaper cables on Amazon
It doesn’t matter, because Oculus broke for $20 or so, but Oculus now sells a bespoke
free from the tyranny of the tether. Suddenly cable for $80 that’s both longer and lays flat
VR isn’t a $1,500 investment but a $400 one, along the side of the headset, which is a little
period (at least when stock is available). No less janky than having some random Anker
hidden costs, no “Oh, actually you need to cable sticking out the side at a right angle.
upgrade your graphics card.” It’s the headset that VR needed. There’s a
Even if you have a
gaming PC, Oculus
Quest’s flexibility is mighty
appealing. I have plenty of
space to use the Index
with my desktop, but still
find myself reaching for
the Quest simply because
it’s less hassle. Friends of
mine have expressed an
interest in Oculus Quest
because their PC is

place for Index, and its cousin the HTC Vive those numbers public.
Pro (go.pcworld.com/vipr). Hell, there’s still a There was a lot of encouraging news last
place for the original Vive hardware as well year though. First, Mark Zuckerberg claimed
(go.pcworld.com/rviv). Oculus Quest is a during a midyear earnings call that “We’re
great untethered headset though and a “good selling [Oculus Quest units] as fast as we can
enough” entry-level tethered headset, and it’s make them.”
cheap as hell. No surprise people are buying Soon, even that wasn’t enough. The
it in droves. holidays were full of reports of Quest
shortages…pretty much everywhere. In fact
SELL OUT WITH ME Quest is still sold out on Amazon at the time of
And people are buying it. That’s, I think, the this writing, or at least only available through
second part of this story. It’s hard to get resellers for an inflated price. Placing the
reliable sales figures, as neither Valve nor order through Oculus’s site (go.pcworld.
Facebook appears interested in making com/ocls), I’m told it will ship by March 4.

Valve’s Index is hard to get, too. The first made a dozen Index kits for the holidays, sold
reports of Index shortages came in late out, and is now trying to build a dozen more.
November, and by early December it was Until we see sales figures, it’s hard to know
gone. Valve kept orders open for a few more otherwise.
weeks, with shipping estimates slipping first And as a percentage of the PC audience?
to February, then to March. And now? Going The numbers remain a rounding error.
to the Index’s Steam page (go.pcworld.com/ Looking at the Steam Hardware Survey (go.
inpg), you’re met with a Notify Me button. pcworld.com/shas), all the Vive and Rift and
Valve’s effectively closed orders until it can Index owners combined still make up less
meet the existing demand. than 1 percent of Steam users. Hell, throw in
Even the much-maligned Oculus Rift S the Windows Mixed Reality owners as well,
headset (go.pcworld.com/srft) is sold out for you still only get 0.87 percent of the Steam
the moment. That’d be my last pick for VR audience owning a VR headset—or about
now that Quest does everything the Rift S 800,000 people, doing some back-of-
does and more, but Oculus is still struggling napkin math.
to keep up. Sure, that doesn’t account for Oculus
Again, it’s hard to pin actual numbers to Quest owners, nor for those who own a
any of these headsets. For all we know, Valve headset but don’t keep it regularly hooked

Half-Life: Alyx.
up. Still, VR’s a long way from mainstream. Wilson’s Heart (go.pcworld.com/wlht),
There’s interest in the platform though— Stormland, Asgard’s Wrath—Oculus has had a
and growing interest, if the current shortages hand in a staggering percentage of the VR
are anything to go by. People want VR, or at games worth mentioning since the Rift’s
least enough people to outpace whatever consumer launch.
Valve and Oculus planned for ahead of time. And they’ll continue to do so in 2020. In
September, we finally got a look at
HALF-LIFE, AND MORE Respawn’s long-awaited partnership with
While Oculus deserves most of the credit on Oculus, and it’s Medal of Honor: Above and
the hardware side of virtual reality, it’s safe to Beyond. That’s a huge series to see
say Valve deserves most of the credit on the resurrected on VR, whether or not I came
software side. away impressed by our initial demo (go.
It feels almost unfair to write that, because pcworld.com/mdem). Ready at Dawn’s
Oculus has put a lot more money into VR’s Lone Echo II is planned for 2020 as well,
software ecosystem since 2016, funded a lot and given the original is one of Oculus’s
of studios both internal and external, and put (and VR’s) strongest titles, I’m hoping the
out a lot of good-to-great games. Lone Echo, sequel can set the bar even higher.

If there’s a forthcoming game fueling a interesting. Nor do I know whether it will
rush on VR headsets though, it’s undoubtedly outsell Beat Saber, the success of which
Half-Life: Alyx (go.pcworld.com/alyx). made arcade/session-style games de rigueur
Announced in November and set for a March for the last year or two, at the expense of
release, it’s the first Half-Life in over a more ambitious (and risky) narrative-heavy
decade—and it’s a VR exclusive. experiences.
Note that it’s not an Index exclusive. Sure, Still, there’s a feeling I think that in
Index owners get the game for free and the Half-Life: Alyx, virtual reality finally has its
Index controllers will have some additional showcase experience. This is Valve’s
functionality, but Valve’s been very clear that chance, and by extension everyone’s
you can play Half-Life: Alyx on a Rift, Rift S, chance, to prove the platform’s usefulness.
Quest, Vive, HP Reverb, or whatever the hell That’s a lot of weight to put on one game,
you have lying around. but it’s almost certainly what’s fueling
This is Valve’s big first-party VR push recent sales, and if in the future VR is as
though. And it’s the closest we’ve got to a common as WASD controls and physics
system seller. I don’t think that’s a controversial engines, I expect March of 2020 will be
statement—and I say that as someone who seen as a major inflection point.
absolutely loves Google Earth VR (go.pcworld.
com/govr) and Tilt Brush, Job Simulator and BOTTOM LINE
Vacation Simulator, Lone Echo, Asgard’s Wrath, Or maybe Half-Life: Alyx will come and go
Audioshield and Pistol Whip and Beat Saber, and VR will continue on as it has, slow and
Robo Recall, Moss, and too many more to steady. There’s that possibility as well. I
mention. remember the heady days before the
Point being, I’ve played a lot of VR games consumer launch of virtual reality,
over the years, and had favorites come and following each new development and
go. I keep a mental shortlist of games for new thinking “Wow, VR is going to change
owners to buy, games that are great to show everything.” Four years later, it hasn’t. Not
off to first-timers, and so forth. I imagine every even close.
VR headset owner has a similar list. Maybe VR’s moment is 2020. Maybe it’s
But none—no matter the quality—have 2021. Maybe it’s 2031. If nothing else, I’m
done so much with so little as Half-Life: Alyx. confident VR isn’t disappearing anytime
With one trailer, Valve upended the entire soon, even if “Slow but constant growth”
idea of what a “major” VR title might mean. I isn’t nearly as compelling a story as “One
don’t know if it will be good, or even day, everything changed.”

Based on USDA food security data released in 2018
,
Here’s How HOW TO BUILD, MAINTAIN,
AND FIX YOUR TECH GEAR
Use your TV as a computer monitor

Everything you need to know. BY SARAH JACOBSSON PUREWAL
ou’re not the first person who’s You’ve probably already got a big screen
Y wondered what it would be

like to have a giant desktop
monitor. Think of all the multi-
tasking and immersive gaming you could
manage if you had a 50- or 60-inch
in your house, though—a TV. At the end of
the day, isn’t an HDTV just a giant, living-
room-oriented computer monitor?
Not exactly. While you can use a TV as a
computer monitor in most cases, that
monitor instead of a standard 24-inch doesn’t mean it’s the best option. In fact, it’s
monitor! But you’ve probably noticed likely less attractive, convenient, and usable
that as monitors get bigger, they also than you think (not to mention, probably not
tend to get prohibitively expensive. that cheap). There’s a reason dirt-cheap
IMAGE: GETTY IMAGES / DMITRIY MOROZ MARCH 2020 PCWorld 113

HERE’S HOW USE YOUR T V AS A PC MONITOR
32-inch HDTVs aren’t flying off the shelves to

be used as budget-friendly jumbo screens.
You definitely can use an HDTV as your
PC’s display, though. Here’s everything you
need to know about how to set up a TV as a
computer monitor—and why you might
not want to.
WILL IT EVEN WORK?

The short answer: Yes. You may
need a special cable, depending
on your PC’s outputs and your
HDTV’s inputs, and you’ll need to check a HDMI connectors are ubiquitous, and even
couple of settings, but you shouldn’t have Amazon brands its own.
too much trouble hooking most modern
PCs up to most modern HDTVs. get with an HDMI or DVI cord.
Modern HDTVs have HDMI outputs. If you want to use your HDTV as a second
Some older HDTVs have DVI inputs, and or third monitor, you may need to use a
some even have VGA inputs specifically different port, such as your graphics card’s
designated for “PC use.” If your graphics DisplayPort output. In this case, you’ll need
card has an HDMI output, you’re good to to use a different cable (DisplayPort-to-
go: Just use an HDMI cable to connect your HDMI). The main advantage to using the
PC to your HDMI. DisplayPort output instead of DVI or VGA is
If you’re using an older graphics card or that HDMI and DisplayPort carry both video
motherboard that only has a DVI output, you and audio signals. A DVI-to-HDMI cable can
can snag a cheap DVI-to-HDMI cable and transmit both video and audio if your
plug it into your HDTV’s HDMI output. graphics card supports HDMI audio via
Amazon sells a six foot AmazonBasics DVI—unlikely if it doesn’t have any HDMI
version for just $7 (go.pcworld.com/amb7). ports—while VGA only transmits video. If you
Although some older HDTVs and some use DVI or VGA, you will most likely need to
older computers only have VGA inputs/ connect your PC’s audio up to the HDTV
outputs, they aren’t an ideal choice. VGA’s separately, or use external speakers or a
an analog signal that will give you a far headset.
fuzzier, lower-resolution image than you’ll Bottom line? Try to stick to HDMI or

DisplayPort-to-HDMI connections if it’s resolution and select it.
possible. It’s the easiest solution. Will it look good? Maybe. It depends on
how you’re using it.
GETTING YOUR PC READY
You’ll also need to determine whether your HDTV FEATURES TO KEEP IN
graphics card (or your PC’s integrated MIND
graphics) is capable of outputting at the If you’re turning your HDTV into a
resolution of your HDTV. To do this, you will PC-backed multimedia powerhouse, and
first need to find the resolution of your HDTV you plan on using it primarily as a television
by consulting the manufacturer’s manual. and streaming hub—e.g., a screen you’ll
Some HDTVs have non-standard resolutions; continue to view from several feet away—it
it’s not a given that your HDTV will be will probably look fine. But if you’re trying
supported. Most stick to standard 720p, to stick a 60-inch HDTV on a desk, you’re
1080p, or 4K resolutions however. Next, more likely to end up with headaches and
find the maximum resolution your graphics eye strain.
card/integrated graphics supports. There are a few different factors to keep
Open the Windows 10 Start menu and in mind if you want to use an HDTV as a
head to Settings > System > Display > computer monitor.
Advanced Display Settings > Display and
select Display 1 under Choose Display. In the Pixel density
window that pops up, click List All Modes. Pixel density, or the number of pixels packed
Find the resolution that matches your HDTV’s into one square inch of screen (measured in
pixels per inch, or
ppi), is the most
important factor to
consider. A 15.6-
inch laptop screen
with a 1920 x 1080
resolution has a
pixel density of
141.21 ppi, while a
32-inch HDTV
screen with the
same resolution has

a significantly lower pixel density of 68.84 no larger than 27.5 inches diagonally, and
ppi. The lower the pixel density, the less for 4K sets, you’ll want to max out at 55
clear and detailed the image becomes. inches, like the $500 TCL 55R617 4K UHD
But the importance of pixel density Roku TV (go.pcworld.com/55r6) shown
decreases with viewing distance. The further below. We reviewed it, and it’s solid.
you sit from a screen, the lower the pixel Important: “4K” is not a market standard.
density needs to be for you to have a A 4K HDTV can mean 4x720p (3840x2160
comfortable viewing experience. You won’t resolution) or 4x1080p (4096x2160
have any problems looking at a 15.6- resolution). Most models use 3840x2160,
inch/141.21 ppi screen from two feet away, but you should check the exact specs of
but you will find it much harder to view a your model to determine pixel density.
32-inch/68.84 ppi screen from the same
distance. This is why a “Retina” screen on Input lag
the iPhone has a pixel density of 326 ppi, Input lag (go.pcworld.com/inlg) is the delay
but a Retina screen on the MacBook Pro has between movement you make on your input
a pixel density of just 226 ppi. device (in this case, a mouse and keyboard)
A normal user typically sits between two and what displays on your screen. While
and three feet away from a desktop monitor. most computer monitors prioritize minimal
To comfortably view a monitor at this lag times, HDTVs generally do not—they
distance, you should aim for 80 ppi or prioritize (laggy) video processing instead.
higher. This means that for 1920x1080 These extra milliseconds may not seem like
(1080p) resolution, your screen should be they matter, but they will make a massive
difference if you’re trying to
do something like
competitive online gaming.
DisplayLag maintains a
good database of input lag
times (go.pcworld.com/lgtm),
sortable by display type. An
input lag of less than 30
milliseconds is considered
good for an HDTV if you’re
using it as an HDTV. For a
6 Series TCL TV. computer monitor, you’ll want

Refresh rate
Another factor that may affect performance is a
display’s refresh rate. Refresh rate is the number
of times a display “refreshes,” or re-draws, its
image each second. Most modern displays
have a refresh rate of 60Hz, which means they
refresh their image 60 times per second. But
Also pay attention to the type and number of you’ve probably also seen higher-end gaming
ports. This is only one of two port areas on an LG
TV. Many TVs offer ports nearer the side as well for monitors and HDTVs with higher advertised
the sake of easy access. refresh rates—120Hz, 144Hz, or even 240Hz.
This can be misleading, however, because a
to aim for less than 20 milliseconds, and the computer monitor with a 120Hz refresh rate
lower you can go, the better. may not be the same as an HDTV with a 120Hz
refresh rate.
Response time The reason for this is because the content
Often confused with input lag, response time people watch on a television is produced at
describes how long it takes for a display’s either 24 fps, 30 fps, or 60 fps. The content
pixels to switch colors between scenes. people view on a computer monitor can be
HDTVs and computer monitors can have very very different—many games can output
different response times. HDTVs tend to frame rates higher than 60 fps if you have a
prioritize richer colors, higher contrast, and powerful enough graphics card.
wider viewing angles—all of which lend to a An HDTV with a high advertised refresh
longer response time. Computer monitors rate may use post-processing technology to
tend to drop some of the image processing achieve that rate, such as by creating
and viewing angles for faster response times. additional frames to upscale content, or by
If you use a display with a slower response adding black frames between each frame to
time, you may see “ghosting” in fast-paced prevent image blur. The good news is that
video and gaming sequences. this probably won’t make a difference if
Some HDTVs have a game mode setting, you’re not playing PC games at very fast
which cuts some of the image processing to frame rates. But if you have a PC designed
improve both input lag and response time. If for the best possible gaming experience,
you plan to play PC games on your TV, hooking up an HDTV instead of a computer
definitely dig around in your HDTV’s options monitor likely means that you’re not getting
to see if it has this feature. the most out of your machine.

IS IT WORTH IT? HDTV-makers suggest sitting several feet away

There’s no harm trying to connect your from their displays. If you need a display that
computer to a TV you already own to see if it will multitask as an up-close work/email
works for you. Go for it! display as well as a movie/entertainment
Our advice varies if you’re shopping display, you’ll want something with a high
though. If you’re looking to get the best enough pixel density that text won’t be a pain
bang for your buck, an HDTV isn’t to read—and even with a high pixel density, a
necessarily going to save you money over a large display may still cause eye and neck strain
monitor. In fact, if you’re purchasing a new if you sit too close to it.
display, I recommend sticking with the There is an ideal situation in which the
tried-and-true computer monitor. For one HDTV-as-monitor shines, though.
thing, smaller, cheaper HDTVs are typically If you want to add an extra display to a
720p resolution, not 1080p, while similarly single- or multi-display setup for
priced monitors will almost always be entertainment—say, so you can watch Netflix
1080p. So if you’re looking for something or Twitter while you write articles, or so you
under 27 inches, an HDTV will probably be can play Skyrim on a 60-inch screen—then
more expensive and lower-resolution. an HDTV can be a very capable (and cool!)
These lower-priced 1080p monitors monitor replacement. Bonus points if you
often support AMD’s FreeSync adaptive sync happen to have an extra HDTV lying around,
technology (go.pcworld.com/fstc) as well, or if you can pick one up for dirt cheap.
which can help
your games look
buttery smooth.
You won’t find that
in a cheap TV.
If you’re looking
for something larger
than 27 inches,
remember that pixel
density decreases
significantly with
every few inches
you gain, and An HDTV as a secondary monitor is perfect for streaming Twitch, watching
there’s a reason Netflix, or keeping an eye on Twitter in real time.

Wallpaper bug from Windows 7’s
‘final’ update will get fixed
Dead OS walking. BY BRAD CHACOS
indows 7 may have gone turned black. While some forum-goers were
W
be the final update.
end-of-life recently, but
Microsoft’s preparing a
postmortem patch to fix a
bug introduced in what was supposed to
quick to grab their torches and pitchforks,
convinced it was a last second-middle finger
to lingering Windows 7 users, that’s not the
case whatsoever. It’s a bug, and Microsoft’s
readying a fix for it despite Windows 7 being
After installing the KB4534310 update out of support.
(go.pcworld.com/kb45) on Patch Tuesday, “We are working on a resolution and will
many users complained that their wallpaper provide an update in an upcoming release,
IMAGE: PAN XIAOZHEN MODIFIED BY IDG COMM./MICROSOFT (CC0) MARCH 2020 PCWorld 119
HERE’S HOW WINDOWS 7 WALLPAPER BUG WILL BE FIXED
which will be released to all customers alternatives, but Fill, Fit, and Tile work too.
running Windows 7 and Windows Server Once you’ve switched away from a stretched
2008 R2 SP1,” the update’s support page wallpaper, your imagery should return.
now says. At first, Microsoft only promised a Better yet, you could move to a still-
fix for organizations paying for Extended supported operating system at no cost, as
Security Updates, as the Verge (go.pcworld. Microsoft’s free Windows 10 upgrade (go.
com/frw7) noted, but a change of heart’s pcworld.com/f10u) is still officially-unofficially
occurred and now everybody’s getting it. available. Staying on an operating system
Good. that isn’t receiving security patches is a bad
In the meantime, the black screens idea. But if you’re dead-set on sticking with
happen when you set your wallpaper to an end-of-life OS, be sure to grab a
Stretch. Using another configuration option security suite (go.pcworld.com/scsu) and
when you’re setting your wallpaper works read our guide to staying safe on Windows
around the issue—Center or selecting a 7 after the security patches stop (go.
custom-sized image matched to your screen pcworld.com/scpt). It’ll keep you as
resolution are probably the best Stretch protected as possible.
Microsoft’s free Windows 10 upgrade is still officially-unofficially available.

How to create Excel macros
and automate your spreadsheets
Use macros to combine multiple tasks into a single transaction. BY JD SARTAIN
xcel macros are like mini- EXCEL MACROS: TIPS FOR
E programs that perform repetitive

tasks, saving you a lot of time and
typing. For example, it takes
Excel less than one-tenth of a second to
calculate an entire, massive spreadsheet.
GETTING STARTED
We’re going to show you how to write your
first macro. Once you see how easy it is to
automate tasks using macros, you’ll never
go back. First, some tips on how to prepare
It’s the manual operations that slow you your data for macros:
down. That’s why you need macros to • Always begin your macro at the Home
combine all of these chores into a single position (use the key combination Ctrl+
one-second transaction. Home to get there quickly).
IMAGE: ROB SCHULZ MARCH 2020 PCWorld 121

HERE’S HOW HOW TO CREATE EXCEL MACROS
• Use the directional keys to navigate: own books for years, which wasn’t an easy
Up, Down, Right, Left, End, Home, etc., and task for a single store, and now she has 12.
shortcut keys to expedite movement. She has to collect data from each store and
• Keep your macros small and focused merge it to monitor the health of her entire
on specific tasks. This is best for testing and company.
editing (if needed). You can always combine We created a few mini-macros to perform
these mini-macros into one BIG macro later the following tasks:
once they’re perfected. 1. Collect and combine the data from her
• Macros require “relative” cell 12 stores into one workbook in a Master
addresses, which means you “point” to three-dimensional spreadsheet.
the cells rather than hardcode the actual 2. Organize and sort the data.
(or “absolute”) cell address (such as A1, B19, 3. Enter the formulas that calculate the
C20, etc.) in the macro. Spreadsheets are combined data.
dynamic, which means they constantly Once the mini-macros are recorded,
change, which means the cell addresses tested, and perfected, we can merge them
change. into one big macro or leave them as mini-
• Fixed values and static information macros. Either way, keep the mini-macros,
such as names, addresses, ID numbers, etc. because it’s much easier and more efficient
are generally entered in advance and not to edit the smaller macros and re-combine
really part of your macro. Because this data them, than try to step through a long,
rarely changes (and if it does, it’s just to add detailed macro to find errors.
or remove a new record), it’s almost We’ve provided a sample workbook for
impossible to include this function in a the above scenario so you can follow along
macro. with our how-to. Feel free to create your own
• Manage your data first: Add, edit, or spreadsheet too, of course (go.pcworld.
delete records, then enter the updated com/wkbk).
values. Then you can execute your macro.
PREP WORK: THE MASTER
WHY STARTING WITH MINI- SPREADSHEET
MACROS IS EASIER If you’re building your spreadsheets from the
For this example, we have a store owner ground up, start with the Master
who has expanded her territory from a single spreadsheet. Enter the date formula in A1
store to a dozen in 12 different major cities. and the store location in B1. See screen shot
Now the CEO, she’s been managing her opposite.

1. Enter this date formula in cell A1: Description, the Product Price, sales tax
=Today(). Now this cell always displays percentage, etc.
today’s date. Be sure; however, that your Do not skip rows or leave any rows blank
store location (branch name and number) for column A. Every row must contain the
are entered in B1. unique field’s data—if not a product code,
2. Leave row 2 blank. Once the static then some other unique identifier. We do
data and initial dynamic data are entered, this for two reasons:
we’ll use row 2 for the totals. This might • Column A is the main navigational
seem like a strange custom, but for macro column. The macro moves and navigates
spreadsheets, it’s the best way because this through the spreadsheet based on the
row is stationary and always visible. Home (A1) position and column A. The
3. Next, enter the field names (and/or macro will fail if you ignore this rule, because
any other field-specific information) in row 3 blank rows disrupt the actions of the
(e.g., from A3 through J3, or however many directional keys.
fields your spreadsheet requires). • If you decide to create multiple/
Tip: You can text-wrap the information in relational tables later for Pivot Reports, you
the individual cells if the data is lengthy. For must have a unique, key field to connect the
example, you can put the store contact related tables. Check out our Excel pivot
information all in one cell and wrap the lines. tables tutorial for more information (go.
Press Alt+ Enter to insert
extra lines in the cells.
4. Next, enter the static
data in column A. That is the
record information in your
spreadsheet that rarely
changes. If your business uses
product numbers or ID
codes, which are unique
because there is only one
code per product, enter
those in column A beginning
on row 4 (don’t skip to row
5). Other static data fields
might include the Product Build the Master spreadsheet first.

pcworld.com/pivt). database area. For example, if the formula

5. Normally, the Product Description says =SUM(B3:B20) and you insert or use a
resides in column B, the Quantity Sold in row outside of the formula’s range like B21,
column C, Product Price in column D, the new record’s data is not included in the
Extended Cost in E, Discounts in F, Sales Tax formula and therefore, does not calculate.
in G, and Totals in H. The column totals are 8. Now we’ll set up that formula range.
across the top on row 2, remember? Format Enter the following formulas on row 2 (this is
the column widths based on the length of a one-time task):
the field names, and adjust the row height to C2: =SUM(C4:C500)
20 on all rows. Change the Top/Bottom E2: =SUM(E4:E500)
alignment to Center, select the justification F2: =SUM(F4:F500)
you prefer (left, right, center), and then G2: =SUM(G4:G500)
format the spreadsheet “styles” to your H2: =SUM(H4:H500)
preference. Next, enter the following formulas in
6. Once the master database is set up, these columns (also a one-time event):
do not move anything. If you need to add E4: =SUM(C4*D4), then copy from E4
fields, use the Insert Column command. For down to E5:E500
example, if you wanted to
add a second sales tax,
position your cursor
anywhere on column H
(Totals) and click the tab:
Home > Insert > Insert
Sheet Columns. The new
column drops in to
become the new H
column, and the Totals
column moves over to I.
This process does not
affect the macro.
7. The same process
applies to rows. Normally I
would caution you to insert
rows “inside” the active Enter the formulas to calculate the columns and rows.

F4: =SUM(E4*10%), the current correct formulas, make 12 copies in
discount percentage in your store, then worksheets 2 through 13. Edit the tabs on the
copy from F4 down to F5:E500 bottom to identify the individual stores.
G4: =SUM(E4-F4)*6.25, where 6.25 is Change the name of the sheet1 tab to Master,
the sales tax in your area, then copy from G4 because this is your master database file.
down to G5:G500 11. Change the location data on row
H4: =SUM(E4-F4+G4), then copy from 1 to identify the store information (that
H4 down to H5:E500 matches the store on the tab) on all 12
Now that you have all the spreadsheet spreadsheets. Next, email an electronic
formulas in place, all you have to do is enter copy of each branches’ spreadsheet to
the quantity (column C) for each computer each of the store managers; for example,
sold (daily, weekly, or monthly). If the prices send the Boston sheet to Boston, the
change, enter the new prices in column D. Dallas sheet to Dallas, etc.
The rest of this database is all formulas or Their copies include the spreadsheet
static information. formulas that work on their individual
9. As seen above, with “macro” spreadsheets (but not the formulas of the
spreadsheets, you set the formula range to combined spreadsheets in the workbook).
be many rows beyond the last record, so you 12. The macro provides the formulas for
can just add new records at
the end and not worry about
adjusting the range. Because
the macro sorts the
database, the new records
are relocated to the proper
position. The spreadsheet
data in our example ends on
row 210. The formula range
extends out to row 500, so
it’s safe to add the next new
record on row 211.
10. Once the
spreadsheet is defined and
set up with the structure,
static data in place, and Copy the Master spreadsheet 12 times, then name the tabs.

the Master. The Master is the spreadsheet for BostonDB.xlsx

the combined totals of all stores. If you are 3. Move your cursor back to the
the one who collates all the data and MasterDB so it’s the active sheet.
executes the Master macros AND you also 4. Select the Developer tab and click
manage an individual store, you must use Record Macro or press ALT+ L+ R. The
one of the 12 sheets you copied for your Macro Name field says Macro1, and that’s a
store. The Master is for the grand totals only. good name.
13. Once the branches email their 5. Enter a shortcut key (if you like) in the
individual spreadsheets, it’s safer to copy the Shortcut_key field box (enter the letter M)
individual sheets from the 12 stores’ (you can create a button on the Ribbon
workbooks manually. menu later).
6. In the Store Macro In field box, click
PROGRAMMING MACROS the down arrow and select Personal Macro
Macro1: Collect and combine data Workbook from the list, then click OK.
1. Access your database folder and open Now you are recording the macro.
your spreadsheet titled MasterDB.xlsx Follow the instructions below, exactly,
2. Open one of the new store and use your mouse to navigate around the
spreadsheets, such as the one titled spreadsheet. Please note that phrases inside
square brackets are tips,
notes, and explanations of
the instructions. Do not
include these phrases or
anything they say in your
macro.
1. Move back to the
BostonDB spreadsheet, then
right-click the Boston tab. In
the popup menu, select
Move or Copy …
2. In the Move or Copy
dialog, check the box that
says Copy.
3. In the Move Selected
Record macro dialog box, macro shortcut_key. Sheets dialog, click the down

arrow beside the To Books field box. tab that says “Boston2.” Verify that the info in
4. Select “MasterDB.xlsx” from the list. cell A1 shows the store number followed by
5. In the second dialog: Before the a recent date (9/29/18 in this example). If
Sheet, select the first spreadsheet on the list yes, you’re good to go.
called “Master,” then click OK. 7. Right-click the tab of the original
6. Excel copies the sheet and relocates Boston spreadsheet and select Delete from
your cursor to the MasterDB. Notice the new the popup menu.
8. Excel warns in a dialog
box: You Can’t Undo . . .
Record the macro, combine the Delete or Cancel? If you’re
data, delete duplicate sheets. certain you want to remove it
click Delete. Why? Because
you want to replace it with
the NEW Boston sheet that
the Boston manager sent to
you.
9. Move the Boston2 tab
between the Master and
Chicago tabs. If you keep
the ‘2’ from Boston2, it will
be easier to quickly
recognize which sheets have
been updated each month.
10. Click Ctrl+ Home
to relocate cursor to cell A1
and re-enter this date
formula: =TODAY(), (if this
formula is missing), then
press the Enter key
Execute the Macro

1. Select the Developer tab
again and click Stop
Recording or press ALT+

T+ M+ R. Shift+ M, Ctrl+ J, and Ctrl+ Shift+ J.

2. Save the Master file, then save the Because shortcut keys are in short supply
BostonDB file. and the character combinations don’t make
3. Go back to the MasterDB spreadsheet any logical sense anyway, the best solution
and run the macro: Press Ctrl+ M. for your mini macros are macro buttons on
NOTE: Remember that the plus sign the Ribbon menu with names that make
means a “simultaneous” combination sense, such as Boston for the Boston
keystroke; that is, Ctrl+ Shift+ J means: Press macro and Dallas for the Dallas macro.
and hold down the Ctrl and Shift keys with Check out this other Excel macros how-to
your left hand, then press the J key with your (go.pcworld.com/xmcr), where there’s a
right hand, then release all three keys section with detailed instructions on
simultaneously. The dash (or hyphen) means how to create, name, and use macros
a “consecutive” combination keystroke, such (go.pcworld.com/cmcr).
as End- Down, which means press the End
key and release, then press the Down arrow Macro2: Organize and sort data
and release. These are NOT This one is easy, but with so many
interchangeable, so watch the signs. spreadsheets, it can be a daunting task if you
4. If the macro
works as expected,
repeat this process
again for each of
the remaining 11
spreadsheets, then
run the macros,
save the files, and
exit all
spreadsheets
except the Master.
NOTE: The
only available
shortcut keys are
Ctrl+ M (which
you have already
used), Ctrl+ Macro sorts the spreadsheet by Model Number.

do it manually. Excel actually provides a way 8. Select the Developer tab (from Ribbon
to modify all your spreadsheets at once, but menu) and click Stop Recording or press
this task is unreliable when sorting. Alt+ T+ M+ R.
Follow the Record Macro instructions (4, 9. Save the Master file, MasterDB.
5, 6 under Macro1 above) to create this next 10. With cursor still in MasterDB
macro. Name the macro Macro2 and use spreadsheet, run the macro: Press Ctrl+
Ctrl+ Shift- M for the shortcut (you can Shift+ M.
create a button on the Ribbon menu later).
This macro affects all the spreadsheets in Macro3: Enter formulas
the MasterDB, so ensure this file is open The formulas for the individual stores’
and active. spreadsheets are already in place. You
1. Press Ctrl+ Home [to move cursor to entered those back in step #9 of the Prep
A1]. Work section above. These formulas are for
2. Press the Down arrow key three times. the Master spreadsheet, which calculates all
3. Press Shift- End- Down- End- Right the others and combines the grand totals
[Hold down the Shift key, press the End key into one “master” sheet. We use a macro for
and release, press the Down Arrow and this process rather than doing it
release, press the End key and release, press manually 12 times.
the Right arrow and release]. Follow the Record Macro instructions (4,
4. Select Data > Sort. In the Sort dialog, 5, 6 under Macro1 above) to create this next
choose Model Number from the drop-down macro. Name the macro Macro3 and use
list in the Sort By field box, then choose Ctrl+ J for the shortcut (you can create a
Values from the Sort On field box, and then button on the Ribbon menu later). This
choose A-Z from the Sort Order field box, macro affects all the spreadsheets in the
and click OK. MasterDB, so ensure this file is open and
5. Press Ctrl+ Home. active.
6. Click the next tab at the bottom to 1. Press Ctrl+ Home [to move cursor to
access the next spreadsheet (i.e., Chicago A1].
after Boston), and repeat all steps above: 2. Press Down- Right- Right.
1-6, and then continue with the following 3. =SUM(Boston:Denver!C2) Enter
instructions below. Remember, the macro is [Enter this formula in cell C2, where the tabs
recording through all these steps. named Boston and Denver represent the first
7. Click the Master spreadsheet tab, and last spreadsheet tab names in your
press Ctrl+ Home. workbook. This is excluding the Master, of

simultaneously or select the

Developer tab and click
Stop Recording].
Save, copy, and

distribute
1. Ctrl+ Home.
2. Save the Master file,
MasterDB.
3. Send copies of the
MasterDB to all store
managers.
DEBUGGING
YOUR MACROS
Debugging macros in Excel
Enter+ calculate formulas in Master for multiple sheets. is actually easier than you
might think. Printing and
course, because you are calculating all the reading through your macros will help you
values in cell C2 from the first tab Boston learn more about how Excel’s macro
through the last tab Denver and entering the language (Visual Basic) works. You don’t
totals in cell C2 of the Master. Then Enter key have to be a programmer to debug macros,
is pressed). and the more you know, the easier it gets.
4. Up arrow, Ctrl+ C [Moves cursor back 1. First, create a simple macro so you can
up to cell C2 and copies this formula] see what the various instructions look like in
5. Right- Right- Shift- Right- Right- Visual Basic.
Right Enter [moves cursor to the right twice 2. Select the Developer tab, then click
and stops on cell E2, press the Shift key and the Record macro icon/button.
hold down while moving to the right three 3. Enter the keystrokes that perform the
times, which highlights cells E2 thru H2, task you are automating, then click the
then press the Enter key]. Macro Stop icon/button.
6. [While these cells are still highlighted, 4. To view your macro, click the Macros
press] Shift+ Ctrl+ 4. icon/button or press Alt+ F8.
7. Alt+ T+ M+ R [Press these keys 5. The Macros dialog appears,

How to
debug a
macro.
displaying all the macros saved to the “All Select Range D3. Then enter formula
Open Workbooks” area. =SUM(RC[-2]*32%) in that ActiveCell
6. Locate your macro, click to select, Select Range E3. Then enter formula
then click the Step Into button. =SUM(RC[-3]:RC[-1]) in that ActiveCell
7. Your macro code appears in the Visual Next, it says:
Basic macro debug window Select Range C3 through E3 and Copy
The first line says: Sub macroname() Select Range C4 through E12 and Paste
Sub means Subroutine, which alerts Application.CutCopyMode = False [this
Excel that a macro follows. “Sub” begins the means clear the clipboard]
macro and “End Sub” ends it. The next line Then it continues with:
shows the macro name (I named it xdebug(). Select Range E4
Sub xdebug() Select the End key, then go down one row
The next section says this: Select Range E13. Then enter formula w
Select Range C3. Then enter formula in that ActiveCell
=SUM(RC[-1]*10%) in that ActiveCell These next lines are text alignment
The following commands are similar: commands:

Select Range E13 Just like HTML and most other languages,
With Selection (format as follows) certain statements (or commands) that have
.HorizontalAlignment = xlGeneral a beginning or open statement must also
.VerticalAlignment = xlCenter have an ending statement.
.WrapText = False To make changes, just type them in, then
.Orientation = 0 click Alt+ Q to return to the spreadsheet.
.AddIndent = False Excel displays a dialog window that says: This
.IndentLevel = 0 command will stop the Debugger. Just click
.ShrinkToFit = False the OK button and the macro disappears.
.ReadingOrder = xlContext If you make an editing mistake, exit, then
.MergeCells = False run the macro, Excel displays this error
End With message: Compile Error: Syntax Error.
With Selection (format as follows) Compile means “convert the code” to
.HorizontalAlignment = xlCenter whatever format is required to make this
.VerticalAlignment = xlCenter program/macro function. Syntax just means
.WrapText = False “sentence,” or basically, you have an error in
.Orientation = 0 one of your command sentences.
.AddIndent = False Click the OK button, and Excel displays
.IndentLevel = 0 the macro code on the screen. The location
.ShrinkToFit = False of the error is in red, so you can go directly
.ReadingOrder = xlContext to the mistake and fix it. Once repaired, the
.MergeCells = False red text will turn black. Then save it again;
End With Press Alt+ Q, run it again, and if the fix was
End Sub correct, the macro works.
Understanding macro error messages.

How to use, modify, and create
templates in Words
Plus, creating custom interactive templates for special projects. BY JD SARTAIN
n Microsoft Word, templates are professional. (You can also find templates
I pre-designed documents that you

or someone else (such as Microsoft)
creates to use as a pattern for a
project. The template could be for a
business card, brochure, resume,
for Excel, PowerPoint, and other
applications, but in this article we’re
focusing on Microsoft Word.)
The template contains a specific layout,
style, design and, sometimes, fields and text
presentation...the list goes on. that are common to every use of that
Regardless of the purpose, templates template. Some templates are so complete
provide the design consistency that any (such as business cards), you only have to
organization (or individual) needs to look change the individual’s name, phone

HERE’S HOW HOW TO USE TEMPL ATES IN WORD
number, and email address. Others, such as ACCESS MICROSOFT

business reports or brochures, could require WORD’S STOCK TEMPLATES
that everything is changed except the layout Fortunately for us, Microsoft provides many
and design. hundreds of templates for all of its programs.
Once you create a template, you can use Note that most of Microsoft’s templates are
it over and over. Remember that while you online, which means you cannot access them
open a template to start a project, you save unless you’re connected to the Internet.
the project as another file type, such as the To open one of the system-provided
basic .docx Word format, for editing, templates in Word:
sharing, printing, and more. The template 1. Open Microsoft Word and select New.
file stays the same, unless or until you want 2. Peruse the Suggested Search
to change it (more on that later). categories: Business, Personal, Industry,
Design Sets, Events, Education, or
Letters. For this exercise, select
Business.
3. Word displays a message
that says, “Searching thousands of
online templates.”
4. Word displays template
search results on-screen, plus a
comprehensive list of categories in
a scrolling panel on the right.
5. Scroll down the page or
choose a different category, then
select a template that fits your
current project.
We selected the Internet Café
template. Notice the photos,
graphics, and main information,
such as hours, are already created
in the template. you only have to
type over the existing data with
your firm’s data, and the brochure
This is a sample template in Microsoft Word. is complete.

Save the document as a template.
navigate to the applicable folder and give

the template a new name.
2. Remember that once you click the
down arrow beside the Save As Type in the
input box and select Word Template (*.dotx)
from the list (and change the name, of
course, in the File Name input box),
Select a template from a category, then start filling Microsoft automatically puts the file in its
in your own data and images. own template folder.
3. Once saved as a template, close the
MODIFY A MICROSOFT file.
WORD TEMPLATE 4. Now open it again. Note that it is not
You can change the colors, font, photos, in the folder you specified. Don’t panic.
logo, and anything else on this template. If Navigate to C:\Users\owner\Documents\
you have not selected the Internet Café Custom Office Templates and your custom
brochure, please do so now. Before you templates are there. Select the one you just
make any changes, go ahead and save this saved from the list and open it.
template with a new filename. 5. Change the sections on the new
1. If you follow normal document-saving template that will be on every brochure,
procedures (and you can here), you select such as the logo, or contact information.
File > Save As > Computer > Browse. Then Then save it as a template again by pressing

for instance.
First, create a document—
design and format it, add graphics
and photos. If it’s interactive, select
Controls from the Developer tab
and create custom input fields for
user interaction.
For this exercise, create an
announcement flyer for a Meet &
Greet conference including lunch,
cocktails, and dinner for the
company’s senior management and
This Internet Café template has been modified and saved as a its new interns.
document brochure. 1. Start with a blank document.
2. Create two columns: The left
Ctrl+ S. It will save in the same location. is 4.5 inches and the right is 2.5 inches, and
6. Next, fill in all the other information the space between the columns is about
and save it—this time, as a document, so you 3/8 of an inch. These measurements are
can print it out or share it with others. only suggestions. Adjust as necessary for
Whenever you’re ready to create a new your project and the images and graphics
brochure, just open the template, enter the you choose.
new data, and save the completed brochure 3. Add a title.
as a document. 4.Choose a font (we’re choosing
Century Gothic), style (sans serif), and color
CREATE CUSTOM (white), for that title.
TEMPLATES IN WORD 5. Repeat this process for a subtitle. In
Custom templates can be as simple or our example, we’re changing the font color
complex as needed. For example, you to dark teal.
might create a template for your company’s 6. Create some graphic boxes for the
newsletter, posters for a seminar, or title (dark teal) and the subtitle (light teal).
invitations for corporate events. You can Select Insert > Shapes and choose a
also create interactive templates to load on rectangle from the icon list.
the Intranet, so others can fill in the blanks to 7. Insert an applicable photo in both
print their own envelopes and letterhead, columns. Choose Insert > Pictures and select

photos from your Pictures Library. Adding 8. Enter the schedule and agenda in
images gives you an opportunity to eyeball column one. Use Century Gothic 14 (in
image sizes and column widths and adjust black) for the body text and Century Gothic
them as needed. 18 (in dark teal) for the headers.
9. Enter the time and place plus the
conference hosts in column two, with the
same fonts and colors for the body text and
headers.
10. Once satisfied with the final
product, click Save As > Meet+Greet.docx
(a regular Word document), so you can
share or print.
11. Before you exit, also save this
document as a template. Click Save As >
Save As Type, choose Word Template
[*.dotx] from the list, and save as
Meet+Greet.dotx. Next conference, the
template is ready to get you started.
Once you have some custom templates
in your Custom Office Templates folder,
when you open Word and select New,
Create a custom event template. Word provides a new category on the
backstage menu called Personal.
Click this category to see and open
your saved templates.
ADD AN INTERACTIVE
COMPONENT TO A
TEMPLATE
Some templates use interactive
controls for user input. For
example, imagine that once a
month, the branch managers,
Open your custom template under New > Personal. assistant managers, and loan

originators of a large
banking institution
have a meeting at
one of the 12
branches. It’s your
assistant’s job to
email the date, time,
location, speakers,
topics, and agenda
to each attendee.
Rather than have that
person retype the
data in a regular Insert a date field that automatically updates.
template, you can
create a template where options can be Control Properties dialog window opens.
chosen from a list. For example: 8. Click the Add button, enter a
1. First, create the template, then decide branch name in the Add Choice dialog
which fields (date, time, etc.) can be box, then click OK. Repeat this process
selected from a list. until all the branch locations are entered,
2. Click the Developer tab. then click OK again to close this dialog
3. Position your cursor on the template window.
where the date goes. 9. If you want to modify, remove, or
4. Select Insert > Text > Quick Parts > move an entry up or down, highlight the
Field, then choose Date from the Categories entry, then click the appropriate button.
panel and select a date format from the 10. You can change the color of the
Properties panel. Click OK. Now the date Combo Box frame and change or create a
will update automatically. custom style (fonts, color, attributes, etc.) for
5. Next, position your cursor on the the typeface used inside the Combo Box.
template where the location goes. 11. Repeat steps 5 through 8 above to
6. Select Developer > Controls > Combo create Combo Box Content Controls for the
Box Content Control. Word places this item remaining fields: meeting date and time,
on your template. speakers, and topics.
7. With the Developer tab still selected, 12. When finished, save the document
click Controls > Properties, and the Content as a Word Template (*.dotx).

template name. For
example, if you’re
creating a custom
brochure template, you
might name it and the
stylesheet Brochure1.
Then future brochures will
be much easier to design.
1. Choose the Home
tab, then click the small
arrow in the bottom right
corner of the group
called Styles. From the
drop-down menu, click
the New Styles button
Create a Combo Box Control so users can select options from a list. (bottom left).
2. In the popup dialog
TEMPLATE TIPS: CREATE Create New Style from Formatting, enter the
CUSTOM STYLESHEETS name of the style, such as Brochure1.
The default stylesheet in MS Word is called 3. Next select Paragraph from the Style
normal.dotx. It’s not a good idea to alter this Type field list, which affects the entire
stylesheet because, later on, it could result in paragraph, as opposed to a Character style,
some unwanted effects. It’s best to create that affects only the characters inside a
custom stylesheets for each custom paragraph.
template. For example, the normal.dotx font 4. You can choose to make the style
is Calibri, paragraphs are left aligned, based on another style, such as the Normal
spacing is 1.15, etc. Heading 1 is Cambria 16 style, one of the Header styles, or No style. If
point, etc. You can change these settings you plan to use most of the formatting
manually throughout your document without features in the Normal style except a few
saving them to the normal stylesheet, and differences, then base it on the Normal style.
before you save the document as a template. If the custom style will be completely
Once satisfied, use those custom different, then choose the No style option.
settings for your new stylesheet, which 5. Under Formatting, select a Font and
could be named something similar to the Size, then choose a Font Color such as

Brown, Alignment such

as Justify, Spacing such as
1.15, and Indents. Notice
that the box in the center
of the dialog window
shows how the
paragraph looks with the
format options you
select.
6. In the bottom left
corner, click the Format
button. Notice the nine
options in the drop-
How to create a custom stylesheet down list. In the Font
dialog, you can further
customize the font options such
as font style (bold, italic, etc,),
underline style; Sub- and
Superscript, Small Caps, etc.
7. In the Paragraph dialog,
you can customize the Indents &
Spacing and the Line & Page
Breaks. Use the Tabs dialog to
customize the alignment and the
leader of your tabs, such as the
dots between the chapter name
and chapter page number on a
table of contents.
8. The Borders & Shading
dialog provides Border options
such as Box, Shadow, 3D, etc.; and Shading
How to options include colors and patterns. The
format a
custom Language feature is, of course, the language
stylesheet. of the paragraph such as French or Italian.

Note that if you want only specific words
in another language, such as c’est la vie in
the middle of a paragraph, then create a
character style called French.
9. The Frame option is actually the Text
Wrap feature, which includes how the text
wraps around a graphic in a paragraph,
the spacing around the graphic, and how
it’s positioned on the page. Choose
Numbering to define how you want the
numbers to appear such as the standard
Arabic numbers, Roman Numerals, or
Characters; how they are spaced; and
delineated such as with a period after or
parentheses, etc. Bullets are also defined Where the personal custom templates and the stock
under this list choice, which provides templates are located.
standard and custom bullets.
10. Next is the Shortcut Key options, templates are stored at C:\Users\Owner\
which lets you choose a custom Shortcut key Documents\Custom Office Templates,
for your Paragraph or Character style, such where <Owner> is your login name. When
as Ctrl+B for bold (which is a Word default), you open the Users folder, you’ll see your
or define your own. Last on the list is Text login name on the list of folders. If not there,
Effects, which lets you define the color, it should be in the folder that’s actually called
gradient, pattern, outline, and transparency Owner.
of a paragraph such as the title on the title Microsoft stores its templates at:
page of a book or manual. Additional Text C:\Users\<your login name>\AppData\
Effects include Shadow, Reflection, Glow, Roaming\Microsoft\Templates
Soft Edges, and 3D Format. Again, if you failed to create a unique
login name, this folder may be called
WHERE TO FIND THE <Owner>. If you can’t find it, the AppData
TEMPLATE FILES ON YOUR folder and all of its files and subfolders are
COMPUTER hidden.
The custom templates that you create or To view the Hidden files:
modify from one of Microsoft’s stock 1. Select the Start/Windows button >

Control Panel > Appearance and You can also click the Start button, then
Personalization copy and paste this: %appdata%\
2. Select File Explorer Options/Folder Microsoft\Templates in the Search box
Options > Show hidden files and folders and press Enter. The Templates folder
3. On the next screen, check the tick appears in the Start box. Double-click to go
mark beside Show hidden files, folders, and straight to the stock templates folder.
drives, then click Apply and OK.
To discover the actual name of the
Templates folder:
1. Select File > Options > Advanced
2. Scroll about two-thirds of the way
down the screen.
3. Click the File Locations button, and
the File Locations window appears.
4. Word displays the locations and
paths to all the template-related files.
Two more ways to locate the stock templates

Show Hidden Files and Folders. folder.

prevent
wildfires,
for the
love of the
outdoors.
Tech Spotlight A video showcase
of the latest trends
Watch the
video at
go.pcworld.
com/erg
Dive into retro

gaming with ≥ Over 2019, we
an emulator played on a lot of

retro gaming
devices. With so many options available
(including, of course, playing on a PC!), we
decided to sit down and chat about the best of
the bunch and who should buy them.
144 PCWorld MARCH

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