Tech Advisor - May 2023

INSIDE:
TURN AN OLD
TABLET INTO
A SECOND
PC MONITOR
MAY 2023
AI SERVICES THAT WILL

IMPROVE YOUR LIFE
CONTENTS
87
Credit: Getty Images/MF3d

NEWS MWC 2023
4 Windows 12 inbound? 14 Best of MWC 2023
Microsoft paves way with
Insider Canary Channel REVIEWS
6 Microsoft admits it marked 21 Samsung Galaxy Book3 Pro
ineligible PCs for Windows 29 Lenovo ThinkPad T16 Gen 1
11 upgrades
8 HP printers still block third-party 21
ink: These models have a
workaround
11 Brave and Opera adding
AI-powered summaries
to their browsers
Top cover image: Credit: Getty Images/Smederevac

2 TECH ADVISOR • MAY 2023 Main cover image: Credit: Getty Images/KENGKAT
14
Credit: MWC
35 Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra FEATURES
48 Xiaomi 13 Pro 87 12 not-so evil AI services
61 AOC Agon Pro AG274QZM that can improve your life
69 Keeper 94 How to turn an old tablet
into a second computer
BING CHAT monitor for free
73 Hands-on: Bing Chat
94
WINDOWS 11
79 Review: Windows Security
84 4 new Windows 11 features
you need to try
MAY 2023 • TECH ADVISOR 3

NEWS
Credit: Pixabay
Windows 12 inbound?
Microsoft paves way with
Insider Canary Channel
Be warned: the channel could break your PC. MARK HACHMAN reports
I
f you’re interested in trying out the for you to try out new features before
far future of Windows features – say, they arrive on Windows 11. Typically,
Windows 12? – the new Windows the arrangement goes as follows:
Insider ‘Canary’ channel may be right Release Preview is for code that’s
up your alley. just about to be released, while the
Microsoft debuted the fourth iÌ>
>iÃVìÌ>Ì½ÃìwÌiÞ
new Windows Insider Channel earlier scheduled, through a bit further out.
this month. ‘Canary’ joins the other The Dev Channel and the new
Windows Insider channels as a way Canary Channel are more experimental.
4 TECH ADVISOR • MAY 2023

Microsoft ‘relaunched’ the Dev Channel, Joining the Windows Insider
with an eye toward enthusiasts who want program for Windows 11 is easy. In
to try out new code that may never see its blog post, Microsoft suggested
the light of day. ‘Canary’ is even riskier, that now might be a good time for
and the new channel was accompanied switching channels, which you can do
by warnings that it could end up putting via the Windows Insider portion of the
your PC into a state where you might Settings > Windows Update section
have to reinstall Windows. of the Settings menu. Just remember
On the other hand, the Canary that while it’s easy to switch to more
Channel may end up as a way for you advanced channels (from Release
to see what Microsoft is working on Preview to Beta to Dev to Canary), it’s
for the next release of Windows. What Ài`vwVÕÌÌ}L>VÜ>À`Ã°/>Ì½Ã
Microsoft won’t do, apparently, is always because Windows doesn’t want you
tell you what those features may be. to go ‘update’ to an earlier build. In
“We will offer limited documentation that case, you may have to reinstall
for the Canary Channel, but we will not Windows, which will erase all of your
«ÕLÃ>L}«ÃÌvÀiÛiÀÞy}Ìq installed applications. In other words,
only when new features are available Insider builds are still best left for a
in a build. We will continue to provide secondary machine that’s tolerant of
blog posts for Dev, Beta, and Release bugs and other glitches.
Preview releases like we do normally,” Rumour has it, though, that
Microsoft said in a blog post. Windows 12 could debut in 2024. If
Windows Central points out that you’d like to roll the dice and start
the new channel may be used to getting an early peek, than the Canary
debut so-called Windows vNext, Channel may be for you.
code that won’t end up in Windows
11 but may be released in an entirely
new version, aka Windows 12. Put
another way, the Dev Channel is being
designed for enthusiasts who want to try
out code within the Windows 11 time
frame, but the Canary Channel could
wind up reserved for Windows 12 (or
13?) experiments.

NEWS
Microsoft admits it
marked ineligible PCs for
Windows 11 upgrades
Some laptops and desktops sold with a promised upgrade to Windows 11
>ÀivwV>ÞÕÌvÕV°MICHAEL CRIDER reports
E
very time there’s a shiny new and desktops all over shelves in digital
version of Windows on the and physical retailers, with ‘Windows
horizon, you’ll see them. A XX upgrade available’ printed on them.
horde of stickers. A sea of stickers. A And, without fail, actually securing that
veritable galaxy of stickers on laptops upgrade can be a bit of a headache. So,

it is with some PCs sold with promised hardware or search for a workaround.
upgrades to Windows 11 which, it Speaking of which, Windows
turns out, aren’t coming because the seems to be having a collection of
>À`Ü>ÀiV>½ÌvwV>Þ>ìÌ° embarrassing issues surrounding the
The company said as much on the W11 upgrade as of late. In February
latest update to the Known Issues watermark messages started appearing
section of the Windows 11 21H2 on Windows 11 copies running on
release health post, marked ‘resolved’ >À`Ü>ÀiÌ>ÌìÃ½ÌvwV>ÞÃÕ««ÀÌ
at the top of the issue list: the newer version. This, despite the fact
that it’s been shown that Windows 11
“Some hardware ineligible Windows can run on much lighter systems than
10 and Windows 11, version 21H2 previously suspected, albeit without the
devices were offered an inaccurate vwV>LiÃÃ}vVÀÃvÌ°
upgrade to Windows 11. These In short, the upgrade process to
ineligible devices did not meet the Windows 11 (and the eligibility of
minimum requirements to run Window hardware for said upgrade) remains a
[sic] 11. Devices that experienced this murky mess more than a year after the
issue were not able to complete the operating system’s full public release.
upgrade installation process.”
According to the notes spotted

by Tom’s Hardware, affected versions
include Windows 10 22H2, 21H2, and
20H2, indicating that this is a problem
for at least some PCs sold up to a
couple of years ago.
Microsoft posted this information
in a support changelog and not, say, a
press release, indicating that anyone
who has a problem with their upgrades
suddenly failing via Windows Update
can go suck eggs. (That’s not a direct
quote.) Users who are set on using
Windows 11 will have to upgrade their

NEWS
HP printers still block

third-party ink: These
models have a workaround
9ÕV>Õ«}À>ìÌiÃi*«ÀÌiÀÃÜÌiÜwÀÜ>ÀiÌ>ÜÌÀ`«>ÀÌÞ
ink cartridges to be used. MARK HACHMAN reports
H
P’s ‘dynamic security’ prevents money. So how can you use third-party
you from using third-party ink printer ink? We have a solution for at
with HP printers. While HP least some models.
does this to ‘protect the quality of our Unfortunately, HP’s dynamic security
customer experience’, being able to isn’t new. HP began the practice of
buy cheaper, non-HP ink can save you banning unauthorized printer ink in 2016

ÜÌ>wÀÜ>ÀiÕ«`>ÌiÌ>Ì«ÀiÛiÌi` HP PRINTERS THAT USE
third-party ink from being used. That ‘DYNAMIC SECURITY’ TO BLOCK
hasn’t stopped consumers from being THIRD-PARTY INK CARTRIDGES
outraged that they can’t do what they HP doesn’t make clear which printers
want with printers they purchased, and use the dynamic security feature,
buy whatever third-party ink cartridges which is what Reddit users became
they want to use. infuriated about – HP apparently had
Earlier this month, the topic of permitted the use of third-party ink on
HP dynamic security surfaced again Ìi"vwViiÌÇÇ{ä>`Ìi"vwViiÌ
when users on Reddit discovered Pro 6970, then cracked down. But HP
(or re-discovered) the fact that HP does list some printers which can be
uses what is essentially digital-rights- Õ«}À>ì`Û>>wÀÜ>ÀiÕ«`>ÌiÌ
management (DRM) on its printers eliminate the block on third-party ink.
to identify authentic HP printer ink Even those, however, fall into two
cartridges and prevent unauthorized categories: printers whose dynamic
cartridges from being used. Ars security feature can be disabled,
Technica noted the issue, pointing out and printers whose dynamic security
that HP is currently facing a class-action feature is permanent.
lawsuit over the issue as consumers
attempt to legally prevent HP from HP printers with dynamic security that
blocking third-party ink. can be disabled:*"vwViiÌÈn£ä]
HP maintains that it’s doing this for ÈnÓä]"vwViiÌ*ÀÈÓÎä]ÈnÎä]nÈ£ä]
ÞÕÀLiiwÌ]LÕÌ>ÃvÀiiÞ>`ÌÃ nÈÓä]nÈÎä]nÈ{ä]nÈÈä]8{x£`É`Ü]
that it’s trying to “protect” its own 8{ÇÈ`É`Ü]8xx£`Ü>`8xÇÈ`Ü°
technology. “The purpose of dynamic
security feature is to protect HP’s HP printers with dynamic security that
innovations and intellectual property, can be disabled depending on the
maintain the integrity of our printing date of manufacture:*"vwViiÌ*À
systems, ensure the best customer ÈÇä]ÇÇ{ä]nÓ£ä]nÇää]"vwViiÌÈxä]
printing experience, and protect *>}i7ìÎää]{ää]>`xää«ÀÌiÀÃ°
customers from counterfeit and third- The key is the manufacturing date. If
party ink cartridges that do not contain the printer was manufactured before
an original HP security chip and infringe 1 December, 2016, dynamic security
HP’s intellectual property,” it says. V>Li`Ã>Li`Û>>wÀÜ>ÀiÕ«`>Ìi°

NEWS
If the printer was manufactured after

that date, however, dynamic security
can not be disabled.
Unfortunately, that still leaves

a number of other HP printers
Ì>Ì`½Ì>ÜvÀÌiwÀÜ>Ài
workaround – and HP won’t say which
printers that applies to.
To eliminate HP’s block on third-party
ink, you’ll need to visit the printer’s
Software and Drivers Downloads page.
/iÀi]ÞÕ½w`ÃÌÀÕVÌÃÜ
ÌÕ«}À>ìÌi«ÀÌiÀwÀÜ>Ài°7i
that’s completed, HP says, you’ll be able
to use third-party ink with that printer.
The company still won’t accept
blame for whether or not the process
works, however. “If the cartridge still
fails after the feature is removed, then
the cartridge is most likely defective
and should be returned to your
retailer,” HP explains.

Brave and Opera adding
AI-powered summaries
to their browsers
Brave’s Summarize tool will be featured in its search results; Opera will put
its tool in the browser sidebar. MARK HACHMAN reports
W
hile Microsoft continues browsers Brave and Opera are making
to polish Bing Chat (for plans for AI, too. The two browser
details, see our hands-on, companies said that they will use AI to
on page 73) and Google preps its own summarize articles, with Brave debuting
AI chatbot, Bard, smaller alternative the Summarizer in March.

NEWS
Microsoft’s latest beta version of written summary at the top of the

Edge uses Bing’s AI-powered chatbot search results page, aggregating the
ÌÃÕ>Àâi>ÀÌViÃÌ>ÌÌw`Ã latest sources on the web and providing
on the web, providing a concise source attribution for transparency and
explanation of their contents in the accountability,” says Josep Pujol, chief
sidebar if asked. The Brave Summarizer of search at Brave, in a statement.
is slightly different; instead, it uses its Brave did not use OpenAI’s ChatGPT
own AI-powered tools to examine a as the basis of its Summarizer engine.
page of results and then summarize the Instead, the company said that it had
w`}Ã° À>Ûi«ÀÛìÃÌÃÜÃi>ÀV trained three of its own LLMs to read
tools, and it is using the AI summation the page, rule out spam or hate speech,
to replace the page-generated and then summarize the results.
description with its own. Opera, however, said this month
According to Brave, the company that it will collaborate with OpenAI to
uses its Summarizer tool as a way to implement OpenAI’s ‘state-of-the-art
counteract what it
sees as a problem of
the Large Language
Models (LLMs) that
underlie so-called AI
tools. These LLMs
can ‘hallucinate’ data,
making up facts where
none exist. Brave says
that the Summarizer, by
contrast, simply sums
up what’s there on the
page, leaving the link
intact for attribution.
“Unlike AI chat
tools which can provide
fabricated responses,
the Summarizer
generates a plain- A ‘before and after’ look at how Brave’s Summarizer works.

AI models’ within its browser. That will
include a new ‘Shorten’ button in the
address bar that will be able to use AI
to generate short summaries of any
web page or article, Opera revealed.
However, the company did not offer
any timetable for integrating the AI
technology. Additional AI-powered
services will be added to Opera’s
sidebar, the company added.

MOBILE WORLD CONGRESS 2023
Credit: MWC
Best of MWC 2023
The best new tech we’ve seen in Barcelona. HENRY BURRELL reports
A
s we do every year, pandemic series before the show this year there
permitting, the staff at Tech have been plenty of big launches
Advisor descended on from competing Android brands,
Barcelona with thousands more from announcements from others, and a
the global tech community for 2023’s whole load of new products to get
Mobile World Congress trade show. our heads around. Here are the new
MWC usually serves up a plethora products that stood out to us.
of new smartphones but there’s
plenty more to see from the biggest 1. HONOR MAGIC VS
technology companies. Though Honor didn’t really reveal the Magic
Samsung launched its Galaxy S23 Vs at MWC this year. Its presentation

gives the Z Fold 4 a slight
edge over Honor’s hardware,
but this is close competition
– and the Korean company’s
wÀÃÌÀi>ÀÛ>Ìi
worldwide market.
2. MOTOROLA
n4+<4o|41..#$.'
CONCEPT PHONE
Before you get excited, no,
you can’t buy the Rizr. That
isn’t even technically its
1.
name, as Motorola reps were
at pains to point out: this is
focused on the more powerful, but less an unnamed concept device, but proof
iÝVÌ}>}Vx*À° ÕÌÌÃÃÜi that rollables are still on the way and
Üiw>ÞvÕ`ÕÌvÀÃÕÀiÌ>ÌÌi chasing after the foldable phone market
foldable phone will launch in the UK (and laptop, with a Lenovo rollable
and Europe, and at a Samsung-beating laptop on show at the same time)
«ÀVivå£]x>ÀÕ`Ë£]{Óä®° Named after the company’s
With a slim body and a hinge noughties line of slider phones, the
capable of closing all the way with no ,âÀ½ÃÃµÕ>Ì]x`Ã«>ÞV>iÝÌi`
gap, there’s a physical polish
here that even Samsung’s
hardware lacks. It’s backed
up by an impressive triple
rear camera and the
«ÕVÞ->«`À>}n³
Gen 1 chipset, so it’s no
slouch when it comes to
performance either.
We still reckon
2.
Samsung’s slick software

Õ«Ü>À`ÃÌ>vÕÈ°xÃVÀii> Gen 2 performance, a stunning 120Hz

more traditional form. You can trigger display and much-improved battery
that manually, but it’ll also kick in life among the highlights. You’ll have
automatically when you open the to contend with a hefty camera bump,
keyboard or watch a video in landscape. LÕÌÌiÌÀ«ixä«Ài>ÀÃiÃÀÃ>Ài
What’s won us over is how well ÃÕ«iÀL>`ÌiÎÓ«ÃiwiV>iÀ>
Motorola has thought this through Ã½ÌL>ìÌiÀ°/i*Èn`ÕÃÌ>`
from every angle – literally. When water resistance rating is back after a
rolled down the extra screen wraps one-year absence too, joined by an
around the rear to serve as an always- attractive new ceramic back.
`Ã«>ÞÀV>iÀ>ÛiÜwìÀ]>` Aside from the high price tag (from
it can actually roll inwards even further Ë£]ä®]ÌiÞÌ}`}ÌL>V
ÌÀiÛi>Ìi«i½Ã`ìÃiwi is software. MIUI is far from the best or
camera and earpiece. most intuitive interpretation of Android,
although it’s still very usable and offers a
3. XIAOMI 13 PRO wide array of features.
The Xiaomi 13 Pro is the company’s top- If that’s not a dealbreaker for you,
vÌiiy>}Ã«vÀÓäÓÎq>Ìi>ÃÌ the Xiaomi 13 Pro’s stellar hardware
until the rumoured 13 Ultra potentially i>ÃÌV>ÀÛ>ÌiLiÃÌy>}Ã«
arrives later this year. phones around. But you may also want
It’s a total knockout from a hardware to consider the cheaper regular 13.
«iÀÃ«iVÌÛi]ÜÌÃÌi>À->«`À>}n Four our review of the Xiaomi 13
*À]Ãii«>}i{n°
4. TECNO PHANTOM V FOLD

The Tecno Phantom V Fold is the
wÀ½ÃwÀÃÌiÛiÀv`}«i°Ì½ÃÌ
coming to Europe or North America,
but we wish it was.
Not only does this book-style
v`>LiÃ}wV>ÌÞÕìÀVÕÌÀÛ>Ã
«ÀVivÀf£]ä]>ÀÕ`Ë£x®]
it also has a crease down the middle
3.
that actually lives up to the ‘almost

based (just India initially), but don’t
sleep on the Phantom V Fold.
5. XIAOMI WIRELESS AR
).#55|&+5%18'4;'&+6+10
Xiaomi wouldn’t allow many
journalists access to its new
impressive but clunkily-named
Xiaomi Wireless AR Glass Discovery
4.
Edition, but we’ve seen enough
>LÕÌÌ>Ì7
Ìy}>>Ü>À`
invisible’ claims. You can still just about ÌÃ`ÀiVÌ°/iVwÀÃ>ÛiL}}i`
see it, but it doesn’t get in the way of up augmented reality (AR) for several
ÌiiÝViiÌÇ°nx]ÓÌiÀ>`Ã«>Þ° years now. The idea (as seen in so many
The 6.42in cover screen is almost as ÃVwÛiÃ®ÃÞÕV>Üi>À}>ÃÃiÃ
good (both are adaptive 120Hz), and that allow you to see what’s in front
i>ÃÞÕV>i>ÃÞÌ>iÃiwiÃÜÌ of you but also display things such as
the triple rear cameras. messages, map overlays, or a 3D model
>VvÌixä«>]xä«ÓÝ vÞÕÀiÝÌÃv>ÌÃiiÜÌwÌÃÜÌ
telephoto and 13Mp ultrawide perform your living room’s look.
well in bright environments, but it’s With Xiaomi the clue is in the
low light where Tecno puts much of name. These are wireless AR glasses,
its focus. That includes
dedicated night modes
for portrait shots and 4K
Ûì°i`>/i½Ãy>}Ã«
iÃÌÞäää³V«ÃiÌ
means performance is
excellent, while Tecno’s
Android skin includes
plenty of software features
designed for foldables.
It might not be
5.
available where you’re

cutting the cord often connected to a them change opacity, so you can fully
PC or similar power source with many view the world around you or block it
wearable glasses. These are compatible out depending on the app.
with Qualcomm’s Snapdragon Spaces Mainstream AR isn’t quite here yet
Ƃ,«>ÌvÀÌ>ÌvwV>ÞÜÀÃÜÌÌi but more than any other AR glasses, the
OnePlus 11 and is coming to other top Xiaomi Wireless AR Glass prove it’s on
end Android smartphones. the horizon.
We saw a demo of the glasses in
action with a woman very engrossed 6. REALME GT 3
in a Space Invaders-style game. It Ridiculously fast charging has remained
wasn’t console level, but we can the preserve of concept phones, until
ÃiiÜÌi>««V>ÌÃ>Àiw>Þ now. The Realme GT 3 goes on sale in
being developed, with an ecosystem either May or June this year, and has
partners such as Qualcomm and app crazy-fast 240-watt charging, which
developers combining to make AR V>wÌiL>ÌÌiÀÞvÀy>ÌÌvÕ
products a reality rather than a concept. under 10 minutes.
It also helps the Xiaomi design here is The phone is essentially a global
relatively sleek and at least try to look rebrand of the Chinese-exclusive
like sunglasses – this ain’t Google Glass. ,i>i/ ix]ÜV>ÕVi`ÕÃÌ
The lenses have electrochromic a few weeks prior to MWC.
colour change pass-through that lets We do have some concerns about
the long-term battery life of a
phone that charges this quick
– heat stress on batteries is
the big one – but Realme has
VwÀi`Ì>ÌÌi«i>Ã
a vapour cooling system and
claims that it should last 1,600
charging cycles while retaining
ÀiÌ>nä«iÀViÌvÌi
original battery capacity.
The GT3 also has an RGB-lit
rectangle that lights up different
6.
VÕÀÃvÀÛ>ÀÕÃÌwV>ÌÃ]

which is a nice touch for
the overall design. It also
Ã«ÀÌÃ>->«`À>}n³
Gen 1 processor and
an OLED display with a
144Hz refresh rate, which
vÀfÈ{ËÌLV®Ã>
impressive spec.
7.
7. NOKIA G22
Nokia launched three
budget phones during MWC, but the having another phone manufacturer on
Nokia G22 was the star of the show. It is board with at-home repairing is great
designed for DIY repairs and allows you ÌÃii°ÌÀi>vwÀÃ >½ÃVÌiÌ
to replace the battery, display and other to being conscious of the environment
parts, should they have any faults. with its products and services, which is a
HMD, the company that licenses the breath of fresh air in a world of constant
Nokia brand for phones, has achieved phone releases.
this by making alterations to the design
for quicker and simpler access. For 8. ONEPLUS PAD
example, it replaced the glue on the The OnePlus Pad looks like it will be
back with plastic grips to allow users to a relatively premium device that has
take it off and on again without issues the potential to be a worthy rival to
and included easy-to-access screws for the iPad Air.
replacing delicate parts. Coming in a stunning ‘Halo Green’
>LÀiw}]> >Ã«iÃ«iÀÃ >ÕÕ>ÞwÃ]ÌiÌ>LiÌÃ
Ài«>Vi`ÌiL>ÌÌiÀÞÕìÀwÛi lightweight and slim despite a big
minutes and told us that a display and bright 11.6in display with a 144Hz
change would take just 20 minutes. refresh rate and support for Dolby
Customers can save money by not Vision. This is paired with punchy quad
having to hire someone, and ultimately speakers with Dolby Atmos support.
save their pockets (and the planet) by It has 67-watt fast-charging to top up
holding onto devices for longer. It’s ÌÃ}iiÀÕÃ]x£äƂL>ÌÌiÀÞÜV
ÌÀÕiÌ>Ì>À«i``ÌÃwÀÃÌ]LÕÌ should yield 12.4 hours of continuous

9.
video playback. OnePlus also demoed

a matching stylus and keyboard, which
both had the same high-end feel, those
these will be optional extras.
Pre-orders for the OnePlus Pad
begin this April. While no price has
been announced, the brand is known for
offering a lot of bang for the buck with
its smartphones, so we’re hoping to see
a similar trend with the tablet.

Samsung Galaxy Book3 Pro
Price: Ë£]Ç{vÀv>Ûi°VÉ{ä£ÌÓ
S
amsung’s 2023 Galaxy Unpacked regular clamshell laptop available with
event was all about the Ultras, either a 14- or 16-inch screen.
with the updated Galaxy S23 None of these are touchscreens,
version joined by a brand-new Galaxy and they don’t have the S Pen support
Book Ultra. But the latter was just one we’ve come to associate with Galaxy
of four new laptops announced by Book range. And although I just said
Samsung, and the other three, cheaper ‘cheaper’, the Book3 Pro isn’t exactly
options are likely to be more popular. cheap. Is there enough here to justify
They include the Galaxy Book3 Pro, a the high price? The short answer to that

REVIEWS
That choice of materials

also helps the Book3 Pro to
remain impressively lightweight
for its size. The 14-inch
model weighs 1.17kg, while the
16-inch version is only slightly
i>ÛiÀ>Ì£°xÈ}°Ìi>ÃLÌ
are very portable, especially
with the chassis no more than
£Ó°xÌV°
It means the Galaxy Book3 Pro has a near-identical A thin and light laptop often
aluminium body to its predecessor. risks durability, but that doesn’t
seem to be an issue here. The
is no, but it’s still excellent for everyday combination of premium materials and a
use, so don’t stop reading just yet. solid hinge design means the Book3 Pro
feels impressively robust. You will notice
DESIGN the wobbly display at times, especially
Samsung has stuck with the same basic while typing, but there’s no indication of
design for its laptops since relaunching it causing any long-term damage.
them in 2020, and there’s no sign of that I’m also very glad to see a healthy
changing any time soon. port selection, something which is
It means the Galaxy Book3 Pro has consistent across both sizes. Both USB-C
a near-identical aluminium body and ports support Thunderbolt 4, making
understated aesthetic to its
predecessor, with a silver logo
punctuating an otherwise very
plain exterior.
Some may see it as boring,
but I love the minimalist
design Samsung has gone for.
It’s available in two colours –
Graphite and Beige – and the
Beige model I tested certainly
looks the part. The laptop has a healthy selection of ports.

for fast data transfer and easy
connection with a range of other
devices and accessories. They’re
joined by one USB-A, one full-
size HDMI, a microSD card slot
>`>Î°x>Õ`>V°
If I’m being really picky, it’d
have been nice to have another
USB-A port – you may still need
an adapter or hub – but I can’t
really complain. Many thin and
light laptops do away with the Below the Galaxy Book3 Pro’s keyboard, complete with
port entirely. number pad, is a huge trackpad.
KEYBOARD a room that’s completely dark, and at

Both sizes of the Galaxy Book3 Pro can 100 percent the light is still visible when
comfortably accommodate a full-size there’s more ambient light.
keyboard, but only the 16in model The main criticism of the keyboard
includes a separate number pad to the is the row of function keys at the top.
right. A feature like this falls into the They offer all the usual quick access to
‘nice to have’ category, but I wouldn’t volume adjustment, brightness controls
have missed it if it wasn’t there. and other key settings, but you need
The keys themselves adopt a to hold down the Fn key at the same
‘chiclet’ design, meaning they have time to use them. This is something
>Ãi«>À>Ìi`]y>ÌÌiÀÃ>«i>`vviÀ that affects all Samsung laptops, but it
Ã}wV>ÌÞiÃÃÌÀ>ÛiÌ>Ãi annoys me every time.
other laptops. This sounds like a bad iÜÌiiÞL>À`]ÞÕ½w`>
thing, but typing on the Book3 Pro is huge trackpad. It extends across half
great. Each key feels very clicky and of the width of the keyboard on the
responsive, which improved the speed 16-inch model, and covers almost the
and accuracy of my typing. entire distance between the space bar
Samsung offers three levels of and edge of the device.
backlighting. At the dimmest setting This gives the illusion of more
it’s bright enough to comfortably use in control, but I found the opposite. Oddly,

REVIEWS
it lacked the precision

of smaller versions,
such as the ones
ÞÕ½w`ÌiÀ
Galaxy Books. I often
had trouble clicking
>Ã«iVwV>Ài>vÌi
screen or highlighting
Ã«iVwVÌiÝÌ°/i
cursor also sometimes
moved erratically.
Plus, the sheer
size of the thing led
to a few accidental /iÃVÀiiÃivÌiLiÃÌÞÕ½w`>Þ>«Ì«°
clicks simply because
it leaves limited space to comfortably DISPLAY
rest your palms. That sounds like a lot of Samsung knows how to make a great
criticism, but it’s not a dealbreaker. display, and the Galaxy Book3 Pro’s
At the top-right of the keyboard, ÃVÀiiÃivÌiLiÃÌÞÕ½w`
ÞÕ½w`>«ÜiÀLÕÌÌÜV any laptop. It delivers a rich, detailed
`ÕLiÃ>Ã>w}iÀ«ÀÌÃiÃÀ°Ì½Ã and vibrant viewing experience that
easy to set up, fast and reliable – just you’ll want to keep coming back to
what you want. Ì½Ã>Ó]nnäÝ£]nääƂ" «>i
However, that’s your only biometric on both 14- and 16-inch models,
option for unlocking the Book3 Pro. resulting in a shift to the 16:10 aspect
With no IR sensor, it doesn’t support À>ÌvÀÌiwÀÃÌÌi°/ÃÃ>}`
Windows Hello face unlock. move for most people, as the taller
ÃÌi>`]ÞÕ½w`>Ã}i£änä« ÃVÀii>ÜÃÞÕÌwÌÃ}ÌÞÀi
webcam above the display. It’s one of content. Photos and videos in 16:9 will
the best built-in sensors on any laptop, include black bars above and below
offering impressive detail and handling iÌÌiÀLÝ}®]LÕÌÌiÞÃÌwi°
exposure well. Alongside dual studio Colour accuracy is also excellent.
mics, the Book3 Pro is a great laptop for According to internal testing, it
video calling. covers the full sRGB and DCI-P3

VÕÀ}>ÕÌÃ]«ÕÃn«iÀViÌv VÀÃ«]Àw}ÃÕ`°Ì½ÃLiÌÌiÀ
Adobe RGB – one of the best results suited to voice-based content than
we’ve seen on any laptop. music, though, with bass-heavy music
That’s before you even get to the tracks sounding slightly washed out.
ÀivÀiÃÀ>Ìi]ÜVV>LiwÝi`>Ì iÌiiÃÃ]ÌiÃiÃ«i>iÀÃ>Àiwi
60- and 120Hz or dynamically switch for casual use such as video calls.
between the two. The latter offers a
}Ài>ÌL>>ViLiÌÜiiiÝÌÀ>yÕ`ÌÞ PERFORMANCE
and battery life, so I’d recommend Despite the Pro name, the Galaxy Book3
it for most people. You won’t notice Pro’s performance specs aren’t anything
the high refresh rate as much as on a special. It offers a choice between Intel’s
smartphone, but it still makes everything
Àix£Î{ä*>`
ÀiÇ£ÎÈä*]vÀ
feel smooth and slick. the 2023 Raptor Lake range.
With all that in mind, it should While it’s great to see 13th-gen chips
probably come as no surprise that arrive in laptops so soon after they were
the top-of-the-line Galaxy Book Ultra announced, these are only from the
has the exact same display specs. You P-series, rather than the more capable
can’t get much better than this on a H-series found in the Galaxy Book Ultra.
consumer laptop. You also miss out on the Core i9 option.
However, neither of these devices Samsung is generous when it comes
are touchscreens, meaning there’s to RAM, though. You get 16- or 32GB
no S Pen support either. Samsung vÌi,xÃÌ>`>À`]ÜVi«Ãii«
makes plenty of laptops which do, everything running smoothly – even
but it’s worth being aware of if you’re if you rely on Google Chrome, which
VÃìÀ}ÌÃÃ«iVwVìÛVi° tends to use a lot.
In terms of brightness, a test result Performance is very good as a result,
v{äxÌÃÀ}ÌiÜÌ->ÃÕ}½Ã ÜÌiÛiÌi
ÀixìiÝVi}
advertised 400-nit maximum. It means across a range of everyday tasks. I
you can get away with using it outside, primarily used it for web browsing,
just not under bright sunlight. social media, watching videos and
Audio isn’t quite as impressive, but >>}}wiÃ]>vÜVÌV>>ì
Ìi Î*ÀV>ìwÌiÞ`ÌÃ without any problems whatsoever.
own. It has quad speakers and Dolby But you’ll run into issues with more
Atmos support, helping it to deliver demanding workloads, where the lack

REVIEWS
of a discrete GPU is more noticeable. Microsoft Surface Laptop 5: 13 hours,

The device uses Intel’s Iris Xe integrated 40 minutes
graphics, which makes it unsuitable for Huawei MateBook 14s (2021): 13 hours,
tasks such as video editing or gaming. £nÕÌiÃ
In summary, the Book3 Pro is plenty
powerful enough for most people. But Charge in 30 minutes
it can’t handle the kind of intensive Samsung Galaxy Book3 Pro: 33%
workloads the ‘Pro’ name might Samsung Galaxy Book2 Pro: 43%
suggest. However, in the benchmarks LG Gram 16 (2022): 33%
below, it more than holds its own. Huawei MateBook 16s (2022): 43%
Microsoft Surface Laptop 5: 37%
Geekbench 5 (multi-core) Huawei MateBook 14s (2021):xÇ¯
Samsung Galaxy Book3 Pro:]£nä
Samsung Galaxy Book2 Pro:n]ÎxÈ Unlike some laptops, there’s plenty
LG Gram 16 (2022): 6,439 of internal storage whichever model
Huawei MateBook 16s (2022): 9,917 you choose. The Book3 Pro starts with
Microsoft Surface Laptop 5:È]Çn >x£Ó --]LÕÌÞÕV>Õ«}À>ì
Huawei MateBook 14s (2021):x]ÈÈ to 1TB if you’d prefer. If that’s not
enough, it supports expansion via
PCMark 10 microSD card up to 2TB.
Samsung Galaxy Book3 Pro:x]{xÎ In terms of connectivity, the device
Samsung Galaxy Book2 Pro: 4,900 features both Wi-Fi 6E and Bluetooth
LG Gram 16 (2022): 4,974 x°£°"ÞÌivÀiÀÃÌi>ÌiÃÌ
Huawei MateBook 16s (2022):x]ÈÓ{ standard, but you’re unlikely to miss
Microsoft Surface Laptop 5:x]äÈ ÌLi}Õ«}À>ì`Ì ÕiÌÌx°Î°
Huawei MateBook 14s (2021):x]ÓÎn Ƃ>VvxÀ{®}ÌLiÀi
grating, though.
Battery life
Samsung Galaxy Book3 Pro:£nÕÀÃ BATTERY LIFE
Samsung Galaxy Book2 Pro:nÕÀÃ]£Ç Battery capacity is something that
minutes Û>ÀiÃÃ}wV>ÌÞLiÌÜiiÃâiÃvÌi
LG Gram 16 (2022): 16 hours, 42 minutes Galaxy Book3 Pro. The 14-inch model is
Huawei MateBook 16s (2022): 12 hours, equipped with a respectable 63Wh cell,
6 minutes but the 16in version bumps that up to

76Wh. That’s due to the larger display, underwhelming. I recorded 33 percent
although I can’t comment on how that in 30 minutes and 66 percent in one
affects the 14-inch Book3 Pro. What I ÕÀvÀvv°/>Ì½ÃwivÀÃÌ
can say is that battery life on the 16-inch people, but certainly not the fastest.
model is truly excellent.
Ì½ÃÀiyiVÌi`ÕÀÇÓä«Ûì« SOFTWARE
test, where the Book3 Pro lasted an The Galaxy Book3 Pro ships running
VÀi`Li£nÕÀÃ°/>Ì½ÃivÌi Windows 11 Home. But unlike on its
best scores we’ve ever seen, bettered phones, Samsung’s software tweaks
only by ARM-based devices. >Ài½ÌÃ}wV>ÌÕiÃÃÞÕÜÌiÀ
Video playback doesn’t necessarily Galaxy devices. The user interface is
ÀiyiVÌÀi>ÜÀ`ÕÃ>}i]Üi£Óä identical to any other Windows 11
nits of brightness is relatively dim. device, with only a handful of extra
However, turning on battery saver at the apps pre-installed.
default 20 percent (rather than turning These are as follows: Flow (for
it off, as was the case for this test) will syncing between devices), Recovery,
help it last long. Account, Bluetooth Sync, Gallery,
But it can comfortably last a full Notes, Quick Share, Second Screen and
eight-hour workday on a single charge, Galaxy Book Experience (quick access
even with high brightness and the to key features). Samsung also has its
display set to 120Hz. If you only use it in own version of Settings, but it’s nothing
your spare time, three or even four days like the full Windows 11 version.
are within reach.
The battery capacity plays
a big role here, as does the
«ÀÛi`«ÜiÀivwViVÞv
13th-gen Intel CPUs.
When you do eventually
run out, Samsung includes a
ÈxÜ>ÌÌV>À}iÀÌiLÝ°
This can be used to charge
any Galaxy devices which
use USB-C, but speeds on
the Book3 Pro are slightly The Galaxy Book 3 Pro ships running Windows 11 Home.

REVIEWS
The good news is that these can more functionality for less, the Book3
all be uninstalled at any time, and it’s Pro ends up in an awkward middle
easy to avoid interacting with them ground. It’s an impressive laptop, but
altogether. But if you have a Samsung so are many others around this price
phone or tablet, some features will be – including the LG Gram 16, Huawei
genuinely useful. MateBook 16s and Microsoft Surface
Another positive is that all >«Ì«x°Anyron Copeman
Windows 11 devices are expected to
get updates for the duration of the SPECIFICATIONS
operating system’s lifespan. Microsoft •£ÈVÓ]nnäÝ£]nää®£Óäâ]£È\£ä
ÃÞiÌÌVwÀÜ}Ì>Ì½Li] AMOLED 2X display
but it usually supports (popular) major • Windows 11 Home
versions for around a decade – that • Intel Core i7-1360P processor
would take us to 2031. • Intel Iris Xe GPU
• 16GB RAM
VERDICT •x£Ó --
The Galaxy Book3 Pro isn’t as class- • 2x USB-C (both Thunderbolt 4)
leading as its price may suggest. But • 1x USB-A
there are many highlights including a • 1x HDMI 1.4
gorgeous 120Hz AMOLED display (14- • microSD slot
or 16-inch), an impressive selection of •Î°x>Õ`>V
ports and stellar battery life. •£änä«ÕÃiÀv>V}®V>iÀ>
You also get Samsung’s trademark • Wi-Fi 6
premium design, plus some great • ÕiÌÌx°£
video calling features. • 76Wh battery
Performance is solid too, but it can’t •ÎxxÝÓx£Ý£Ó°x
handle the demanding workloads you •£°xÈ}
might associate with a ‘Pro’ laptop.
With an iffy trackpad and no touch
(or S Pen) support, there are enough
reasons to hesitate before buying one
– especially at full price.
With the Ultra taking many of the
headlines and 360 models offering

Lenovo ThinkPad T16 Gen 1
Price: Ë£]£äxvÀv>Ûi°VÉÎ- µv
S
ometimes all you need is a ultrabook thinness, plenty of ports,
gigantic screen. Whether it’s to and a meaty Intel i7 chip, this business
get a better look at a PowerPoint laptop is plenty productive even without
slide or blow up a dense Excel external screens or desktop docks.
spreadsheet, it’s easier to get a lot of
work done when you’ve got a larger FEATURES
canvas. In years past, that might have Our review unit has an Intel Core i7-
meant springing for a bulky 17-inch 1270P CPU, Intel Iris Xe graphics, 16GB
class laptop. Thanks to narrow bezels, v,{,Ƃ>`x£Ó v 6i
Lenovo’s ThinkPad T16 Gen 1 has PCIe SSD storage. For more details, see
managed to cram a 16-inch display ÌiÃ«iVwV>ÌÃÃÌ«>}iÎ{°
into a frame that would’ve housed a If we can give Lenovo points for
£xVÕÃÌ>viÜÃÀÌÞi>ÀÃ>}°7Ì anything, it’s consistency. If you get

REVIEWS
a ThinkPad, it acts like a ThinkPad. your small ultrabook, you actually might
Rarely does a fashionable computer be better off toting one of these big-
get the ThinkPad badge but instead screened workstations instead.
these are intended for years of use. The
ThinkPad T16 Gen 1 embodies this no- CONNECTIVITY
nonsense, function-over-form design. Although it’s as thin as a smaller
Its most distinctive features are its big ultrabook, the Lenovo ThinkPad
screen and wide keyboard, both of /£È>>}iÃÌwÌÌi«ÀÌÃÞÕ½`
which make this big machine perfect for want in 2023. It has not one but two
an all-in-one workstation. Thunderbolt 4 ports, a full-size USB 3
Just about everything else about «ÀÌ]>vÕÃâi«ÀÌ]>Î°x
this big, slim wedge is made for getting i>`ÃiÌ>V]>ìÛi>vÕÃâi,{x
down to your spreadsheets, emails, and Ethernet jack all along the left side of
Word docs. Its lightly textured plastic the device. On the right side, there’s a
gives it a durable feeling, like it’d be well-placed USB 3 port, perfect for a
able to sustain some bumps and jostles corded mouse if you’re right-handed.
during its service lifetime. Since it is Overall, for a device in 2023, it represents
such an expansive laptop, it has a little a wide variety of options, meaning if
LÌvyiÝ]LÕÌÛiÀÞÌÌivÌ>Ì>ÌÌiÀÃ you have few enough peripherals the
once you place the T16 where you’d T16 might even be suited for desk duty
likely use it – on a desk. With its rubber without a dock or dongle.
feet sitting stably on a work surface, Wireless connectivity is exactly what
the T16 stays planted very nicely. In an we’d expect from a modern, Intel-based
vwViÃiÌÌ}]V>ÃiiÌÃÜÀ}Üi laptop featuring Wi-Fi 6E and Bluetooth
on its own, or in a hot desking scenario x°£°ƂÃÃiÀ}>â>ÌÃ}ÌÜ>Ì
hooked up to external screens with a mobile wireless as well, Lenovo offers
Thunderbolt hub. up cellular, although our model didn’t
While I found it to be a bit big for ViÜÌ{Àx°>Þ]vÞÕÀwÀ
a café table (and you probably won’t uses smart cards, there’s a spot for an
be using it on an plane’s tray table), optional smart card reader as well.
ÌiÃ«Àwi>iÃÌi>ÃÞÌwÌÌ
>L>}i>ÌvÀ>£xV>«Ì«°v KEYBOARD AND TRACKPAD
you’ve ever thought about getting a Keyboard quality is a hallmark of the
portable USB-C powered display for ThinkPad brand and the T16 is no

Þ>À]ÜVviiÃwiLÕÌ
Ì½Ã>ìwÌi`Ü}À>ì
from a glass material.
Real ones know that
ThinkPads also come
with an alternative to the
trackpad, which is called a
TrackPoint. This red nub in
the middle of the keyboard
lets you use the mouse
Keyboard quality is a hallmark of the ThinkPad brand and the without moving your hands
T16 is no exception. down to the trackpad.
It’s an acquired taste, but
exception. It has a light-but-precise- the TrackPoint is pretty awesome once
feeling keyboard with comfortable you’ve mastered it. With three buttons
keycaps and I was happy to write the (the middle lets you scroll when held
majority of this review on it. Given the down), it’s a far better option for high-
big, 16-inch display inside the T16, precision mouse use.
there’s extra space on the right side
of the keyboard that’s given over to a DISPLAY
numpad. While I’ve seen some laptop The star of the show here is the
keypads crammed into smaller laptops ThinkPad T16’s huge 16-inch
with uncomfortable narrow buttons, the widescreen IPS LCD. Although it’s
numpad on the T16 looks and works like not 4K or any other bananas high-
a natural extension of the keyboard. resolution, at 1,920x1,200 and with a
The big touchpad is perhaps less up usefully-tall 16:10 aspect ratio, it’s still
to par here, and I found it to be overly an excellent default option. The 300-nit
sensitive and often hijacked my cursor «i>LÀ}ÌiÃÃvÌÃ>ÌÌiwÃi`
while I was trying to work. The palm panel was also just right, making glare
detection in particular wasn’t well-tuned a non-issue in every location. Assuming
by default and since the trackpad takes you’re tackling ordinary business tasks
up a good portion of the wrist rest, it’s and not video editing or graphic design
an issue I ran into frequently. Its surface jobs, the T16’s big screen feels so much
is supposedly made from a slippery more expansive than a usual ultrabook

REVIEWS
I found that in a café

involving mixed warm
indoor and cool outdoor
lighting, it was unable to
make me look like anything
but a ghost. Compared to
other cameras I’ve tried
lately, this is passable but
not ideal.
PERFORMANCE
The star of the show is the 16-inch widescreen IPS LCD. In terms of performance,
the ThinkPad T16 Gen 1 is
than the extra 2 or 3 inches on paper a bit of a sleeper. Although it’s a plain-
may suggest. looking business workstation, it’s quiet
While I was hoping for impressive and powerful. The 12 core, 16 thread
audio performance from the ThinkPad Ìi
ÀiÇ£ÓÇä*>Ã>Ón7/*]
T16 Gen 1, I came away disappointed. and the bigger laptop body means it’s
7iÌiÌÜÓÜ>ÌÌÃ«i>iÀÃ>Àiwi] kept cool and quiet even at full tilt. We
they’re blown away by other, smaller put the T16 through its paces with our
laptops packing twice the speakers suite of benchmarks and found it to
with a offering far ‘bigger’ sound. It’s be competent and capable of ripping
workable if you’re mostly listening to through typical business tasks, but
meetings on Microsoft Teams, but if you probably not graphically intense chores
like to crank up some jams while you like 3D games or creative work.
get down to business you might want to We use the PCMark 10 benchmark
grab a nice pair of headphones instead. to get a repeatable, comparable look
The webcam is another mixed bag. at a laptop’s abilities in a range of
Although I loved that it has a physical normal tasks. With all its cores, the T16
shutter and supports Windows Hello Gen 1 handily beat other thin business
face login, it’s not particularly great notebooks, and bested many of its
at making faces look their best or smaller business rivals. There’s little
sharpest (it has a maximum resolution doubt that for complex analysis work,
v£]ÓäÝ£]änä]>`ÃÀ>ÌiÀÃÞ®° you shouldn’t end up waiting long at all.

PCMark 10 should handle business-oriented tasks
Lenovo ThinkPad T16 Gen 1:x]xxÎ without struggle.
Dynabook Portégé X40:x]{£{
*À>}yÞÎ\ 4,722 3DMark Time Spy
Microsoft Surface Laptop 5: 4,230 Lenovo ThinkPad T16 Gen 1:£]{Èn
Dell Latitude 7330 Ultralight:x]£ää Dynabook Portégé X40:£]{nÓ
*À>}yÞÎ\£]Èx
In this performance test, we use Microsoft Surface Laptop 5:£]Çxä
iLiV,£xÌ}iÌ>ÃiÃivÀÜ Dell Latitude 7330 Ultralight: 1,410

well all a laptop’s processors work Our last performance comparison
together to render 3D graphics. With takes a look at video encoding, using
its dozen cores, the ThinkPad T16 held >}ìwÌwiÀ««i`vÀ>
up well. It’s clear that the extra threads Blu-ray disk. Using Handbrake, we time
as well as the bonus performance cores how long it takes to turn the movie
in the Intel P chips make a difference in Ì>Ì>LiÌvÀi`ÞwiÌ>Ì½Ãi>ÛÞ
these types of scenarios. compressed. In this test, the T16 was
crushed by the high-powered Asus
Cinebench R15 Zenbook Pro 14 Duo with its powerful
Lenovo ThinkPad T16 Gen 1: 1,791 i7-12700H chip, but bested the U-class
Dynabook Portégé X40:£]Çxx processor seen in machines like the HP
*À>}yÞÎ\£]ä£x À>}yÞÎ°
Dell Latitude 7330 Ultralight: 1,410
Handbrake
Your boss would love knowing Lenovo ThinkPad T16 Gen 1: 1,791
that you have a ThinkPad T16 simply Dynabook Portégé X40:£]xää
because it’s rather mediocre at *À>}yÞÎ\ 2,232
graphically-challenging tasks like Asus ZenBook Pro 14 Duo OLED: 1,260
gaming. The i7 chip inside has Intel’s
latest Xe Graphics onboard, but tested Even though it’s a slim notebook, the
behind some other models with more ThinkPad T16 Gen 1 has a fairly large
graphics cores when we threw an the L>ÌÌiÀÞÃì]VV}>ÌnÈ7°
3DMark Time Spy test at it. Rest assured our looping video test, we measured
that if you aren’t planning to secretly just under seven hours of runtime.
«>Þ>wÌi>ÌÜÀ]Ìi/£È This means it can last a decent

REVIEWS
amount of time while away from a If you’re considering the T16 for
charger, although its big screen and yourself or people in your organization,
higher performance P-class chip seem you’ll appreciate the quality keyboard,
to suck down more battery. ARM-based full-sized numpad, capable processor
like the Surface Pro 9, with the SQ3 and big display. For people who
chip, continue to offer the best battery manage databases, tackle a ton
life around, but we do wonder if there of email, or hardcore spreadsheet
will ever be a big-screened laptop with jockeying, this is the portable, powerful
that kind of processor inside. work laptop that can help you stay in
the zone at a desk or wherever you
Battery Life work. Brendan Nystedt
Lenovo ThinkPad T16 Gen 1: 6 hours,
xÓÕÌiÃ SPECIFICATIONS
Dynabook Portégé X40:ÇÕÀÃ]xÈ • 16-inch: (1,920x1,200) matte IPS LCD
minutes display
*À>}yÞÎ\ 10 hours, 6 • Windows 11 Home
minutes • Intel Core i7-1270P processor
Microsoft Surface Laptop 5: 10 hours, • Intel Iris Xe GPU
26 minutes • 16GB RAM
Microsoft Surface Pro 9:£xÕÀÃ]{È •x£Ó --
minutes • 2x Thunderbolt 4
• 2x USB-A 3.2 Gen 1
VERDICT • 1x HDMI 2.0b
It isn’t surprising that the Lenovo •Î°x>Õ`>V
ThinkPad T16 Gen 1 is a capable • Wi-Fi 6E
workhorse. After all, the ThinkPad • ÕiÌÌx°Ó
name still stands for something and • Windows Hello facial recognition
that something is getting work done. • Fingerprint reader
While I wouldn’t recommend it for heavy • 76Wh battery
graphics tasks or intensive editing in •ÎÈ£°ÝÓxx°xÝÓä°x
Adobe Premiere, this is a single machine • 1.77kg
Ì>ÌLÀ`}iÃÌiÜÀ`ÃvvwVi
desktop and laptop roles with aplomb
and as little nonsense as possible.

Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra
Price: Ë£]Ó{vÀv>Ûi°VÉÎ19L
W
hen the Galaxy S23 Ultra was If you want a device with every
announced, I said it showed conceivable smartphone feature
Samsung doesn’t have to try crammed into a glass block you can
anymore because the phone is so similar ÕÃÌ>LÕÌ®wÌÞÕÀ«ViÌ]ÌiÞÕ
to the Galaxy S22 Ultra from 2022: see probably don’t need to look any further.
Tech Advisor May 2023. The best screen on a phone, a stylus,
I stand by that. This phone looks and a 200Mp camera, and the latest in
feels like the one that came before it mobile processing power isn’t cheap.
in the range. But that doesn’t stop the /i-ÓÎ1ÌÀ>ÃÌ>ÀÌÃ>ÌË£]Ó{>`Þ
newer S23 Ultra being one of the best gets more expensive if you want more
phones ever made and one of the best ÃÌÀ>}i° ÕÌÜÌwÛiÞi>ÀÃvÃvÌÜ>Ài
phones you can buy. support it’s built to last.

REVIEWS
it feels incredibly premium.

/iÃìÀ>Ã>Ài>ÃÌy>Ì
but curve off towards the
front and back of the very
slightly curved edge screen,
with the top and bottom of
the device the only parts
Ì>Ì>ÀiV«iÌiÞy>Ì°
It’s a better feel than the
*i½ÃV«iÌiÞy>Ì
The phone’s squared off corners lends the Ultra a serious, sides and screen.
computer-ish look. The only buttons are the
volume rocker and power
DESIGN buttons on the right edge – thankfully
So yes, the S23 Ultra looks a lot like there’s no dedicated voice assistant
the S22 Ultra, which means it’s a very switch (good riddance). The bottom
large heavy (234g) block with glass on edge has a USB-C port, dual SIM tray,
both sides, aluminium rails around the mic, speaker grille, and S Pen that slots
edges, and squared off corners to make into the far left side.
the screen rectangular. Many phones My green review unit was a lovely
have rounded screen corners these hue though you might prefer the other
days, so it lends the Ultra a serious, colours of cream, lavender, or black.
computer-ish look. Worth mentioning also are this
The back is covered in Gorilla phone’s top tier haptics. That is, the
Glass Victus 2, same as the
screen. This is the strongest
phone glass going, but I still
recommend putting this very
smashable phone in a case
even if it makes the phone
even larger. There’s no pre-
installed screen protector
either. Though the phone is The bottom edge has a USB-C port, dual SIM tray, mic,
tough to use with one hand, speaker grille, and S Pen that slots into the far left side.

quality of the vibration
ÌÀvÀÌwV>ÌÃ]
calls and alarms, but also
for within the system for
going back or for keyboard
feedback when typing. They
are truly excellent and make
the phone feel as premium
as its price tag.
DISPLAY
The display might be the
best thing about the S23 The 6.8in AMOLED offers incredible clarity thanks to a
Ultra. It’s stunning. I say 3,088x1,440 WQHD+ resolution.
this often about the latest
top of the line Samsung phone, but it’s mode, which helps for reaction-
true: it’s the best screen I’ve seen on important games.
>«iÌ`>Ìi°Ì½Ã>È°nƂ" The dual stereo speakers are
with incredible clarity thanks to a also some of the best on a phone.
Î]ännÝ£]{{ä7+³ÀiÃÕÌ]ÌÕ} Music played out of phone speakers
ÞÕV>ÌÕiÌ>Ì`ÜÌ£änä« is usually heresy but here it doesn’t
settings to save battery life (there’s also distort, even at the highest level.
a 720p setting, don’t go there). The audio quality is nowhere near
Colour is uniform even at peak as good as a small Bluetooth speaker
brightness, which Samsung says is such as the UE Wonderboom 3, but
£]ÇxäÌÃ°9ÕV>ÃiiÌiÃVÀii it is passable, and the speakers in
total direct sunlight, which isn’t true general are excellent for YouTube and
for most phones. With LTPO tech, the podcast sessions.
screen can also refresh between 1
and 120Hz depending on what you’re PERFORMANCE
doing, and the lower Hz usage also Samsung sometimes gets dinged for the
saves on battery. slightly laggy feel of the performance
The phone also ups the touch and software on its phones even when
sampling rate to 240Hz when in game new, but that’s not the case here. I’m

REVIEWS
not sure what the company

has done differently, but this
«i>LÃÕÌiÞyiÃ°Ì
feels as fast as the Google
Pixel 7 Pro and OnePlus 11.
It could be down to the
chipset, which is a custom
version of Qualcomm’s
->«`À>}niÓ
Ã«iVwV>ÞÌÕi`vÀÌi
Galaxy S23 Ultra (and for
the regular S23 and S23 7iÌViÃÌ«iÀvÀ>ViÌÃ«iyiÃ°
Plus). The chip has been set
to reach a higher clock speed than other Vivo X90 Pro: {]ÓxÈ
«iÃÜÌÌiniÓÃÕV>ÃÌi Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra: Î]ÈÓn
OnePlus 11) and paired with the 12GB Google Pixel 7 Pro: 3,162
RAM of my review sample it made for
y>ÜiÃÃ«iÀ>Ì° GFX Manhattan 3.1
The CPU can allegedly reach a single Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra: 101fps
core clock speed of 3.36GHz instead of OnePlus 11: 60fps
3.2GHz on other phones and 719MHz Vivo X90 Pro: 119fps
vÀÌi*1ÛÃÈnäâ°/>Ì½Ã}Ài>Ì] Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra: xÓv«Ã
but in reality won’t equate to much of a Google Pixel 7 Pro: nv«Ã
performance gain.
The extra bit of oomph is at least Charge in 15 minutes
ÀiyiVÌi`>ÕÌVÀiiiLiVx Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra: 21%
score of 4,996, the best Android score OnePlus 11: 71%
we’ve seen, beaten only by the iPhone Apple iPhone 14 Pro: 32%
14 Pro’s A16 chipset. Vivo X90 Pro: 70%
Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra: 31%
Geekbench 5 (multi-core) Google Pixel 7 Pro: £n¯
Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra: 4,996
OnePlus 11: {]nn{ ÞÀiÛiÜÃ>«iV>iÜÌÓxÈ
Apple iPhone 14 Pro: x]Óx{ non-expandable storage, though in the

UK Samsung appears to only be selling -ÓÓ1ÌÀ>½Ã£än«V>iÀ>ÕiÃÃÞÕ
>ÓxÈ ìÜÌn ,Ƃ°/iÀi½Ã shoot in full 200Mp mode and really
>Ã>£Ó ,ƂÉx£Ó ÃÌÀ>}i look hard.
«ÌÀ>Õ}i£Ó É£/ ° By default, the S23 Ultra doesn’t
shoot at 200Mp resolution. Instead,
PHOTOGRAPHY it uses pixel binning, a technology
Samsung is making a big deal of the that here combines a 4x4 area of pixel
Óää«vÉ£°Ç>iÃÌi-ÓÎ1ÌÀ> squares into one larger pixel area that
LÕÌÌ½ÃÌÌiwÀÃÌ«iÌÀi>VÌi improves detailing, particularly in low
200 megapixel mark – we’ve reviewed light. It means shots out the box are
the Motorola Edge 30 Ultra with one £Ó°x«]LÕÌÌiV>iÀ>>««iÌÃÞÕ
already: see Tech Advisor January 2023, ÃiiVÌxä«>`Óää«vÞÕÜ>ÌÌ
«>}ixÎ°>Û}Àii}>«ÝiÃ shoot in higher resolutions.
doesn’t always equal better photos on Alongside that lens are a 12Mp
a phone. The Google Pixel 6a takes vÉÓ°ÓÕÌÀ>Üì]£ä«vÉÓ°{ÓÝ«ÌV>
phenomenal photos with a 12Mp Ìii«Ì]>`>£ä«vÉ{°£äÝ«ÌV>
lens thanks to Google’s superlative zoom lens. Those four sensors make for
software processing. the most versatile camera set up on any
Whatever Samsung’s doing with its phone on the market, bar the similarly
lens is very good – but there’s not much equipped S22 Ultra.
of a jump in quality compared to the Having a 3x optical and 10x optical
zoom is pure mobile photography
luxury. I took shots at 10x with the
S23 Ultra that won’t win a Pulitzer
but are sharper than anything I could
achieve on the iPhone 14 Pro, whose
optical zoom is limited to 3x.
The 10x lens can also do
Samsung’s ‘space zoom’ which can go
to 100x and is pretty much called that
because you can get a grainy photo
of the moon’s craters. Don’t get me
wrong, the fact it can do it is amazing,
The 200Mp lens is very good. the results themselves are not that.

REVIEWS
Here’s the
same scene
taken with
the main
lens…
…the 3x
zoom…

… the 10x
zoom…
…and
w>ÞÌi
100x zoom.

REVIEWS
Next up,
we have a
couple of
low light
shots.

/iÃiwiV>iÀ>Ã}Ài>Ì`>Þ}ÌivÌ®]LÕÌÛiÀÞ«ÀÜ}ÌÀ}Ì®°
Space zoom is this phone’s gimmick. unavoidable. The lighting in the pub
Better to focus on the excellent was bad, but other phones at this price
software portrait mode, which gives can take better shots than this:
a very good bokeh effect, even if Even with its PDAF autofocus
phones like the Vivo X90 Pro with the main lens can’t cope with fast
larger sensors are starting to do it with moving subjects either (though many
just hardware now. other phones cannot). The S23 Ultra
/i£Ó«vÉÓ°ÓÃiwiV>iÀ>Ã> struggled to photograph my friend
on-paper downgrade from the S22 holding a wriggly dog without it blurring
Ultra’s 40Mp lens but the S23 is doing considerably. I took several shots, and
something cleverer with the processing. they all look like this:
Shots looks sharper and more detailed, Samsung still enjoys saturating
with better colour. colours to make photos pop. Skies are
That’s only in daylight though – bluer than in real life and grass and
ÌiÃiwiÃÌiÀÃÛiÀÞ«ÀÜ plants hum a vibrant green not quite
light, with bad detail and blurry shots of this world. But when out with friends

REVIEWS
and family, without fail I would show a All I know is the S23 Ultra charges
photo to someone after taking it and slower than some phones that cost a
they would complain how much better it quarter of its price. The phone comes
looked than their phone’s version. with a USB-C to C cable in the box but
If you like your colours true to life LÀVÌÌ>i>`Û>Ì>}ivÕ«Ì{x
and muted the iPhone is for you. But watts charging speeds. With kit of my
if you like shots pulsing with colour own, I charged the phone to 43 percent
and ready to post to social media, the in 30 minutes, and it was only at 21
Galaxy is a better bet. «iÀViÌ>vÌiÀ£xvÌÃi°
It’s worth it if you also download /i"i*ÕÃ££]ÜVVÃÌÃËÇÓ
Samsung’s Expert RAW app to shoot in and comes with a 100-watt charger in
the RAW format and tinker with manual ÌiLÝ]V>À}i`ÌÇ£«iÀViÌ£x
modes. It’s odd it must be a whole minutes and was full before half an hour.
separate app, but at least it exists. If charging speeds matter to you, it’s
It points you to Adobe Lightroom to worth noting.
edit, and you could fall down a camera The S23 Ultra can be charged
settings rabbit hole, but that’s what wirelessly (slower) though, a feature the
you’d expect on a phone that costs OnePlus doesn’t have. It also means you
this much – and the cameras are good can charge other Qi wireless devices
enough to justify your effort. (phones, watches, earbuds) on the back
Video is also very good with up to of the S23 using the phone’s power.
n>ÌÎäv«ÃÌiÀi>ÀV>iÀ>>` It sort of didn’t matter to me that
UHD at 60fps on the front. A pro video the phone charges slower than others
mode with solid stabilization means the though because the battery life is so
S23 Ultra is a good shout if you are into }`°Ƃ«iÌÃL}i>ÃÞwÌÃ>
mobile videography, but the iPhone 14 x]äääƂVi]>`Ì>ÃÌiì>`>Þ
series still bests it for pure quality and with no issues at all. I got a solid day
better (miraculous) stabilization. and a half of use out of a single charge
even when using the phone extensively
BATTERY LIFE vÀÌÃÀiÛiÜ>`VÕ`Ì>LÕÌn
Samsung, along with Apple, is a curious hours of screen on time before things
hold out on truly fast charging in its started to get dicey.
phones. What do these two know that This is also with the screen set to
we don’t? Ìi>ÝÕ7+³ÀiÃÕÌ>`

The phone ships with
"i1x°£ÛiÀƂ`À`
13 and I quite like it. One
UI remains quite busy and
Samsung certainly changes a
lot of the aesthetic compared
to a ‘stock’ look or Google’s
Pixel Launcher, but there is a
lot of customization you can
get into – though other skins
like Oppo’s ColorOS let you
The phone ships with One UI 5.1 over Android 13. w`ìÀiÜÌÌi
and feel of Android.
at the adaptive 120Hz rate. As a UK It took me three days or so to tweak
reviewer who has had to put up with One UI to my liking but I could happily
Exynos version of Galaxy S phones for live with it full time.
years with worse battery life than their It was maddening to see an advert in
Qualcomm counterparts overseas, I am ÌiÌwV>ÌÃvÀ>->ÃÕ}>«Ì«
}>`ÌÃiiÌi->«`À>}niÓ and there’s certainly a lot of Google and
shipping in every unit. Samsung apps you could do without,
but you can uninstall them. I say this
SOFTWARE as some of my colleagues think it’s
Samsung continues to lead the Android bloated, but it is very performant on the
pack with a promise of four years of S23 Ultra’s hardware.
Ƃ`À`«>ÌvÀÕ«`>ÌiÃ>`wÛiv I really enjoyed having the S Pen
security patches for the S23 Ultra (and stylus on the phone for about two
many other devices). OnePlus has just days before I put it away and forgot it
caught up but only for one phone, was there. It’s a genuinely handy tool
Üi}ivviÀÃÌiÃ>iwÛiÞi>ÀÃ but in my case, only when I need to
of security but only three Android do something like sign a document
version updates. Apple outdoes or edit a photo. I’m sure some people
Samsung here, as does Fairphone. write notes on the thing or use it as an
ÕÌwÛiÞi>ÀÃvÃvÌÜ>ÀiVÛiÀ> artist’s tool, but with a display too tall
phone is still excellent. and narrow for that sort of thing, most

REVIEWS
should be looking at an
iPad or Surface.
More useful is
Samsung DeX – plug the
phone into a compatible
USB-C monitor and it
turns the Android OS
into a desktop mode for
input with a keyboard
and mouse via Bluetooth.
It also works with
wireless displays and is a The S23 Ultra is the most phone you can get for your money.
legitimate way to use a
desktop set up all powered from your just as it does with the most expensive
phone. This should be the future. iPhones out there.
9Õ}ÌÜiw`>ÌiÕÝÕÀÞÞÕ
VERDICT want in the regular S23 or S23 Plus, or
The Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra is the another top Android phone. Yet if you
most phone you can get for your money, Ü>ÌÌi`VÌ>ÀÞìwÌvÌi
but that doesn’t necessarily mean it is ‘most phone’, the S23 Ultra is it – for
the best phone you can buy. now. Henry Burrell
It is a kitchen sink phone with every
possible feature stuffed into it. In a SPECIFICATIONS
way, having this much in a phone sort • È°nÎ]ännÝ£]{{äÆÎÎ««®Þ>V
of excuses it being such a squared off AMOLED 2X, 120Hz, HDR10 display
brick of a thing. An amazing camera • Ƃ`À`£Î]"i1x°£
set up, great battery life, best in class • +Õ>V-nxxäƂ
->«`À>}n
screen, stylus, full desktop mode, and Gen 2 (4nm) processor
the zippiest software performance I’ve • Octa-core (1x 3.36GHz Cortex-X3,
seen on a Samsung – I’ve used Samsung ÓÝÓ°nâ
ÀÌiÝƂÇ£x]ÓÝÓ°nâ
>>ÝÞ«iÃÃViÓä£xq>`ÌÃ
ÀÌiÝƂÇ£ä]ÎÝÓâ
ÀÌiÝƂx£ä®
phone is a winner. CPU
But it costs a lot, which makes it • Adreno 740 GPU
harder to recommend to everyone, • n É£Ó ,Ƃ

• ÓxÈ Éx£Ó É£/ ÃÌÀ>}i
• Four rear-facing cameras: 200Mp,
vÉ£°Ç]Ó{Üì®]£É£°Î]ä°È]
multi-directional PDAF, Laser AF,
"-Æ£ä«]vÉ{°]ÓÎä«iÀÃV«i
Ìii«Ì®]£ÉÎ°xÓ]£°£Ó]Õ>
Pixel PDAF, OIS, 10x optical zoom;
£ä«]vÉÓ°{]ÇäÌii«Ì®]
£ÉÎ°xÓ]£°£Ó]Õ>*Ýi*Ƃ]
"-]ÎÝ«ÌV>âÆ£Ó«]vÉÓ°Ó]
13mm, 120-degree (ultrawide),
£ÉÓ°xx]£°{]Õ>*Ýi*Ƃ]
Super Steady video
• -iwiV>iÀ>\£Ó«]vÉÓ°Ó]ÓÈ
(wide), Dual Pixel PDAF
• 7näÓ°££>ÉLÉ}ÉÉ>VÉÈi]ÌÀL>`]
Wi-Fi Direct
• ÕiÌÌx°Î]ƂÓ*]
• GPS, GLONASS, BDS, GALILEO
• NFC
• USB Type-C 2.0, OTG
• Fingerprint scanner (under display,
ultrasonic)
• ÀiÛ>Lix]äääƂÌÕ
polymer battery
• £ÈÎ°{ÝÇn°£Ýn°
• 234g

REVIEWS
Xiaomi 13 Pro
Price: Ë£]ävÀv>Ûi°VÉÎ-,nƂ
A
fter a name change and the From testing the 13 Pro, it’s hard to
reintroduction of a Pro model imagine a non-gaming phone which
last year, it’s more of the same could be more capable than this –
for Xiaomi at the start of 2023. At MWC perhaps only the Galaxy S23 Ultra.
in late February, the company launched With Qualcomm’s latest silicon, a main
ÌÜiÜy>}Ã«Ã}L>Þ\Ìi£Î>` camera equipped with a huge 1in
13 Pro. An even more capable Ultra sensor, and some of the fastest charging
model is expected at some point, but around, the device is almost unmatched
8>>ÃVwÀi`Ì>ÌÌiÀi½Li when it comes to hardware. But familiar
half-step ‘S’ update later in the year. frustrations remain on the software side,

and they’re the main reason this isn’t an
instant recommendation.
DESIGN
Xiaomi has revamped the design of the
13 Pro – just not in a good way. Most
of the phone retains its usual sleek
appearance, but the gigantic camera
module sticks out like a sore thumb.
ÌÀiyiVÌÃ8>½ÃiÜ«>ÀÌiÀÃ«
with camera company Leica, along
with some big upgrades to the rear
sensors. But there’s no denying it looks
Õ}Þ]>`«ÀÌÀÕìÃÃ}wV>ÌÞvÀ /iiV>iÃ«ÀÌÀÕìÃÃ}wV>ÌÞvÀ
the back of the phone. the back of the phone.
The effect can be reduced by
applying the silicone case in the a ceramic one. It certainly feels very
box, although even then there’s a premium, but adds to the total weight
Ã}wV>ÌÜLLiÜiÕÃi`v>Vi Ã}wV>ÌÞ°ƂÌÓÓ}]Ì½ÃÕVi>ÛiÀ
up on a table. The huge emphasis on Ì>>ÃÌÞi>À½Ã£Ó*ÀÓäx}®]>ì
«iV>iÀ>Ãi>Ã>yÕÃV>iÀ> of the heaviest phones full stop.
module isn’t realistic, but
surely Xiaomi could’ve
done better than this.
While the regular
Xiaomi 13 also has a
huge module, it doesn’t
stick out nearly as much.
You can’t complain that
it looks like all other
phones, at least.
Another key change
sees the glass back of The ceramic rear means will it always be more vulnerable to
the 12 Pro swapped for shattering than plastic.

REVIEWS
That rear design is also highly on the right, then a SIM tray (supports
ÀiyiVÌÛi]i>}ÌµÕVÞ `Õ>-®]Ã}i`ÜÜ>À`wÀ}
>VVÕÕ>ÌiÃÌVi>Liw}iÀ«ÀÌ speaker and USB-C port on the bottom.
smudges. This can be mitigated by Ìi>ÃÌiÀi½ÃÎ°x>Õ`>V]
popping on a case, which also adds but that’s not at all surprising.
much-needed grip to an otherwise
slippery device. DISPLAY
The 13 Pro is well-built and feels The Xiaomi 13 Pro’s display has only
impressively robust, but a ceramic been slightly tweaked compared to
rear means will it always be more last year, and it’s functionally identical
vulnerable to shattering than plastic. for most people.
While the front is equipped with tough As it was already one of the best
Gorilla Glass Victus, there are no such displays on any phone, that’s hardly
guarantees for the back. surprising. You still get a large 6.73in,
One big improvement is that there’s 3,200x1,440 OLED panel, giving it an
Ü>*ÈnÀ>Ì}q«ÀiÛÕÃÞÃii increasingly common 20:9 aspect ratio.
on the Mi 11, but dropped for last The screen is a joy to behold, with
year’s phones. It means the phone superb detail and dynamic colours that
is fully protected against dust and really pop.
ÃÕLiÀÃÕ«Ì£°xvÜ>ÌiÀvÀ It combines with an adaptive refresh
up to 30 minutes. rate, meaning the display can be set
Colour options are limited, with to automatically move between 1
just black and white models to choose and 120Hz depending on what you’re
from. But if you’re going to apply a case doing. This is a great way to balance
anyway, it doesn’t really matter. performance and battery life, only
It’s also worth mentioning the giving you those slick higher refresh
vibration motor, which provides subtle À>ÌiÃÜiÞÕ½>VÌÕ>ÞLiiwÌvÀ
haptic feedback as you navigate them. You can manually set it to 60Hz or
the phone. It does a good job of 120Hz if you’d prefer, but the dynamic
simulating real button presses, and refresh rate is a great feature that you
feels very high quality. Ü½Ìw`>Þ«iÃ°ƂvÌiÀ
Xiaomi keeps things simple on the iÝ«iÀiV}ÌiÃV]yÕ`ÌÀ>ÃÌÃ
aluminium sides of the phone, with just on the 13 Pro, you’ll never want to go
the power button and volume controls back to a 60Hz display again.

volume without much
distortion, but there’s
very little bass or depth
to the sound.
PERFORMANCE
8>½Ãy>}Ã««iÃ
are usually equipped with
Qualcomm’s latest and
greatest chips, and the 13
Pro is no different.
The display is a joy to behold, with superb detail and dynamic The phone is powered
colours that really pop. LÞÌi->«`À>}n
Gen 2, which provides
Xiaomi says the screen can hit an LÌ«iÀvÀ>Vi>`«ÜiÀivwViVÞ
incredible 1,900 nits of peak brightness. LiiwÌÃV«>Ài`ÌÌini£vÕ`
That’s far higher than most phones, and in the Xiaomi 12 Pro. Whether you
you’ll have no problem using the 13 Pro can tell them apart is another matter,
on bright sunny days. Yes, there were a but there’s no doubting the excellent
couple of these in the UK winter! performance here.
7ÌÌi`Ã«>ÞÞÕ½w`> Alongside 12GB of RAM on either
«ÌV>w}iÀ«ÀÌÃiÃÀÜVÃi>ÃÞ Vw}ÕÀ>Ì]Ìi£Î*ÀLÀiiâiÃ
to set up and works well most of the through almost every task you can
time. However, there is quite a small think of with ease. That includes web
target area to aim for, and any moisture browsing, texting, watching videos,
will stop it from unlocking. browsing social media and taking
Strangely, Xiaomi has decided to photos, plus quickly switching between
ditch the 12 Pro’s quad speaker system, apps and using them side-by-side.
although they weren’t particularly There’s wasn’t even a hint of
impressive. Combining a single stuttering or hesitation throughout my
`ÜÜ>À`wÀ}}ÀiÜÌÌii>À«iVi testing time, something which can’t be
means you still get a stereo set-up, but said for most phones. It even extends
the audio hasn’t improved much. It’s to mobile gaming, with Call of Duty:
generally clear and can reach a decent Mobile, PUBG Mobile and Asphalt

REVIEWS
9 all remaining smooth

and responsive.
Even in these
demanding scenarios,
the 13 Pro only gets
slightly warm to the touch.
Overheating is something
previous Snapdragon-
powered phones have
struggled with, but it’s not
an issue here. That might
change if you want to play There’s no doubting the phone’s excellent performance.
games for several hours,
but there are dedicated phones for that. Charge in 15 minutes
The 13 Pro keeps up with this year’s Xiaomi 13 Pro: Èx¯
ÌiÀy>}Ã«ÃÌiÃÌ}]Þ>}}} Xiaomi 13: 47%
behind those with lower resolution Xiaomi 12 Pro: Èx¯
displays, which have an easier time in Samsung Galaxy S23+: 24%
the graphics-heavy GFXBench. OnePlus 11: 71%
Vivo X90 Pro: 70%
Geekbench 5 (multi-core)
Xiaomi 13 Pro: 4,790 In terms of storage, there are two
Xiaomi 13: x]äx{ VViÃ\ÓxÈ Àx£Ó °/iÀi½Ã
Xiaomi 12 Pro: Î]{În support for expandable storage.
Samsung Galaxy S23+: {]nÓ Being powered by the Snapdragon
OnePlus 11: {]nn{ niÓi>ÃÌi£Î*À>Ãx
support, alongside the latest Bluetooth
GFX Manhattan 3.1 x°Î>`7È ÃÌ>`>À`Ã°8>
Xiaomi 13 Pro: 107fps also says it’ll be compatible with the
Xiaomi 13: 121fps upcoming Wi-Fi 7 via a software update.
Xiaomi 12 Pro: Ènv«Ã
Samsung Galaxy S23+: 120fps PHOTOGRAPHY
OnePlus 11: 60fps Xiaomi has teamed up with camera
Vivo X90 Pro: 119fps company Leica for the 13 series, with

both regular and Pro models featuring shots from quite a long distance away,
ÃiÃ}wV>ÌV>}iÃ° although relying on digital zoom after
That might not be immediately that (all the way to 70x) leads to a rapid
apparent from the specs, with the hefty decline in quality.
Ài>À`ÕiÃÌVÌ>}ÌÀiixä« /iÌiÀi½ÃÌixä«ÕÌÀ>Üì]
lenses. However, that main sensor is ÜVvviÀÃÌiÃ>i££xÂwi`v
ÜÌiÕV>À}iÀ£-Þ8n view as its predecessor. Keeping the
– the same as in current camera champ megapixel count so high means there’s
Vivo X90 Pro and last year’s Xiaomi 12S only a slight drop in detail compared
Ultra – so it’s no surprise that the shots it to the main sensor, and its versatility is
produces are impressive. great in a variety of scenarios.
The phone is particularly well suited As you might expect, there are
to landscape shots, but architecture loads of different modes to choose
and street photography also look great. from in the camera app. Among those,
However, without a dedicated depth you can choose between ‘Leica Vibrant’
sensor, the software-based portrait and ‘Leica Authentic’ modes. I stuck
mode is hit and miss. An attractive with the latter for the most part, which
background blur (which can be adjusted lacks the usual saturation of many
after the photo is taken) is possible, but smartphone cameras but remains
it often struggles with edge detection. impressively true to life.
If most of my shots above look a If you’d rather go for the vibrant
little washed out, that’s because they mode, look out for vivid, eye-catching
were taken on a winter day in the UK: colours that really stand out. In many
that was how the scenes actually looked. situations, you won’t need to do any
But across all scenes, you get clear, editing before sharing, especially for a
well-exposed shots with plenty of detail personal social media account.
and great dynamic range. Key parts of While the main lens handles low-
the shot are still clearly visible when light environments well, there’s also
cropping in, so you don’t lose anything a dedicated night mode. This adds
important in the background. a natural-looking brightening effect
/ixä«Ìii«ÌiÃÃ>ÃÜ without losing key details or introducing
larger, meaning it offers 3.2x optical too much noise. Pretty much every
zoom rather than the Xiaomi 12 Pro’s phone camera has a night mode, but
2x. It means you can get some detailed this is one of the most impressive.

REVIEWS
We’ll start
of our
series of
test shots
with the
same scene
taken with
the main
lens…
…2x
zoom…

…3.2x
zoom…
…and
w>ÞÌi
70x zoom.

REVIEWS
Next up,
we have
night
mode on…
…and off.

Here’s an
example of
>Ãiwio
…and
here’s a
portrait
Ãiwi°

REVIEWS
7i½wÃ
off with
a macro
shot.
/iÃiwiV>iÀ>Ài>Ã>ÌÎÓ«] with its successor. The combination of

but it’s still one of the best. Exposure, >>À}iÀ{]nääƂVi>`«ÀÛi`
details and colours are all on point, and ->«`À>}niÓ«ÜiÀivwViVÞ
it does a decent job of portrait mode. means it can now comfortably last a full
Make no mistake: this is one of the best day – even with some intensive tasks
phone camera systems around. such as gaming or using GPS.
The phone can record video up to />Ì½ÃÀiyiVÌi`Ìi*
>À
n>ÌÓ{v«Ã]LÕÌÌiìv>ÕÌ£änä«>Ì battery test, which simulates real-
30fps is a better option for most people. world usage at a fairly typical 200 nits
Footage won’t rival an iPhone, but OIS on vLÀ}ÌiÃÃ°ƂÌiv££ÕÀÃxÈ
the main lens means it remains clear and minutes is well over four hours better
steady – even with lots of movement. than its predecessor, and above average
among the high-end phones we’ve
BATTERY LIFE recently tested.
Battery life was a key weakness of the With the improvement here, the
Xiaomi 12 Pro, but that’s not the case 13 Pro is one of the few phones that

delivers great battery life and charging rather than adding to it.
speeds. The 120-watt adapter in the box Then there are all the pre-installed
will get you a full charge in less than half apps, and there are some strange
>ÕÀ]ÜiÌ>ÃÃÕ««ÀÌÃxäÜ>ÌÌ choices here. Xiaomi seems to think
wireless charging and 10-watt reverse everyone wants to use the likes of
wireless charging. The latter is great TikTok, LinkedIn, and Solitaire, though
for quickly charging accessories such at least these can be uninstalled.
as a watch or phone, but it supports all The company has its own apps for
devices with the Qi standard. iÃÃ>}}]ÃiVÕÀÌÞ]wi>>}iiÌ]
web browsing and many more, none
SOFTWARE of which you can remove. Your best
/i£Î>`£Î*À>ÀiÌiwÀÃÌ8> alternative is to hide these in the app
phones to run Android 13 out of the drawer and never use it, but they
box. However, both have Xiaomi’s MIUI ÃÕ`½ÌLiÌiÀiÌiwÀÃÌ«>Vi°
14 skin over the top, which remains I’ve used a few Xiaomi phones now,
the single biggest reason not to buy so know what to expect. But there’s a
the 13 Pro. Ã}wV>Ìi>À}VÕÀÛivÞÕ>Ûi½Ì
Essentially, MIUI 14 dilutes what tried one before.
makes Android so great, then adds a In terms of software support, Xiaomi
garish colour scheme and annoying commits to three years of security
apps you can’t uninstall. It’s perfectly updates and four of security patches.
ÕÃ>Li]LÕÌ>Ã}wV>Ì`Ü}À>ì That means you can expect Android 14,
compared to the software
experience on many
other phones.
Key differences
compared to ‘stock’
Android include a split
ÌwV>ÌÃ>ì>`
control centre, colourful
icons, and a redesigned
Settings menu. All of
these take the polish
off the user experience, The Xiaomi 13 Pro runs Android 13 out of the box.

REVIEWS
£x>`£È]«ÕÃ«>ÌViÃÕÌÓäÓÇ° ÓÝÓ°nâ
ÀÌiÝƂÇ£x]ÓÝÓ°nâ
This is roughly in line with other
ÀÌiÝƂÇ£ä]ÎÝÓâ
ÀÌiÝƂx£ä®
Android manufacturers, albeit behind CPU
both Samsung and Apple. • Adreno 740 GPU
• n É£Ó ,Ƃ
VERDICT • £Ón ÉÓxÈ Éx£Ó ÃÌÀ>}i
The Xiaomi 13 Pro takes what made • /À«iÀi>Àv>V}V>iÀ>Ã\xä°Î«]
the 12 Pro so great and makes it vÉ£°]ÓÎÜì®]£ÌÞ«i]£°È]
even better. But that doesn’t mean Õ>*Ýi*Ƃ]>ÃiÀƂ]"-Æxä«]
you should buy one. vÉÓ°ä]ÇxÌii«Ì®]*Ƃ£äV
Performance from the Snapdragon ý®]Î°ÓÝ«ÌV>âÆxä«]vÉÓ°Ó]
niÓÃ>LÃÕÌiÞv>Ì>ÃÌV]ÜÌÌÃ £{]££xì}ÀiiÕÌÀ>Üì®]Ƃ«]
«ÀÛi`«ÜiÀivwViVÞ>`>>À}iÀ vÉÓ°x]Üì®
L>ÌÌiÀÞìÛiÀ}Ã}wV>ÌL>ÌÌiÀÞ • -iwiV>iÀ>\ÎÓ«]Üì®
life improvements. New Leica cameras • 7näÓ°££>ÉLÉ}ÉÉ>VÉÈi]`Õ>
>ÀiVÃiÌÌiLiÃÌÞÕ½w`>Þ band, Wi-Fi Direct
phone, with great results across all four • ÕiÌÌx°Î]ƂÓ*]
lenses. But a huge new camera bump • *-£³x®]" Ƃ--£®] -
interrupts an otherwise sleek design, £³ £V³ Ó>®]Ƃ " £³ x>®]
while the software experience remains a +<--£³x®] >Û
x®
major source of frustration. • NFC
ƂÌÌÃy>}Ã««ÀVi«Ì]ÌÃi • USB Type-C 2.0, OTG
shortcomings are hard to ignore. The • Fingerprint scanner (under display,
Xiaomi 13 Pro is a great phone, but it’s optical)
not best-in-class. Anyron Copeman • ÀiÛ>Li{]nÓäƂÌÕ
polymer battery
SPECIFICATIONS • £ÈÓ°ÝÇ{°ÈÝn°{
• 6.73inÎ]ÓääÝ£]{{äÆxxÓ««®/*" • 229g
AMOLED, 120Hz, Dolby Vision,
,£ä³`Ã«>Þ
• Android 13, MIUI 14
• +Õ>V-nxxäƂ ->«`À>}n
Gen 2 (4nm) processor
• Octa-core (1 x3.2GHz Cortex-X3,

AOC Agon Pro AG274QZM
Price: ËvÀv>Ûi°VÉÎ<+ Û,
I
t’s happening. Mini-LED backlights, FEATURES
once reserved for monitors priced at The AOC Agon Pro AG274QZM’s
ËÎ]äääÀÀi]>Ûiw>ÞVi Ã«iVwV>ÌÃ>ÀiViÀÌ>Ì>««i>Ì
to monitors with more palatable price gamers. It’s a 27-inch monitor with a
tags. AOC’s Agon Pro AG274QZM is >ÌÛiÀiÃÕÌvÓ]xÈäÝ£]{{ä>`
an example of this new breed. Though an IPS panel with Mini-LED backlight
not inexpensive, it successfully ducks technology. It also has a refresh rate of
ÕìÀË£]äääÜÌÕÌV«ÀÃ} 240Hz and supports Nvidia G-Sync.
on HDR performance. AOC packs in the latest connectivity.

REVIEWS
This includes two HDMI 2.1 ports and and the red chrome badging adds an
a USB-C 3.2 port with DisplayPort over-the-top, supercar feel.
ƂÌiÀ>Ìiì>`ÈxÜ>ÌÌÃ*ÜiÀ Build quality is not as nice as
Delivery. The USB-C port connects to monitors from Alienware or the Asus
four additional USB-A ports. That’s good Republic of Gamers line, as the design
to see on a gaming monitor – though, at is not as cohesive and doesn’t gel
Ë]ÃÕViÝÌÀ>Ã}ÌLiiÝ«iVÌi`° around a recognizable brand identity.
For a complete list of the monitor’s It’s close, though, and AOC deserves
Ã«iVÃ]Ãii«>}iÈn° credit for delivering a handsome piece
of kit for the price. The AG274QZM is
DESIGN among the least expensive Mini-LED
The monitor has an aggressive design monitors on the market today, yet feels
with red chrome accents and RGB nearly as premium as competitors sold
lighting. It’s an in-your-face look that’s for hundreds more.
better suited to a gamer’s desk than The monitor includes a sturdy stand
>ivwVi°>`ÀiÌ]ÌÕ}]vÀ that offers ergonomic adjustments such
doing a few things differently: The RGB as height, tilt, swivel, and pivot (rotate)
light bar along the chin is a nice touch, for use in landscape orientation. The
stand is too wide, however,
and also too deep, so it
takes up more desk space
than it should. That could
prove annoying if your
desk is small or narrow. A
100x100mm VESA mount
is available for third-party
monitor stands and arms.
FEATURES
#0&|/'075
The Agon Pro AG274QZM
offers excellent
Red chrome accents and RGB lights give the AOC Agon Pro connectivity for a gaming
AG274QZM a gamer appeal. monitor. One USB-C port

is available, and includes both
DisplayPort Alternate Mode
>`Õ«ÌÈxÜ>ÌÌÃv1-
Power Delivery. The USB-C
port also serves as a USB-C
hub driving four USB-A ports.
This is still rare among gaming
monitors, though it’s starting
to become more common.
Gamers are unlikely to use
the USB-C port, even with
gaming laptops, because it
doesn’t deliver enough power The menu joystick on the rear is easy to use.
to charge a gaming laptop.
Still, it’s a useful inclusion for PC gamers controlled with a joystick on its right
who have a gaming desktop and a less Ài>Ày>°Ƃ"
½ÃiÕÃÞÃÌiÃ
powerful laptop with USB-C ports (such attractive, but a bit more confusing
as a MacBook Air or Dell XPS 13). than those used by Dell, BenQ, and
A USB-B upstream port is also ViewSonic, among others. Most menu
available, making the USB hub available options are nested, with no previews
to devices without USB-C. of what’s inside a menu, and some
Video connectivity includes two menu labels aren’t ideal. The menus
HDMI 2.1 inputs and two DisplayPort are speedy and responsive, though, so
inputs, one of which is handled over accidentally opening the wrong item
USB-C. All of the ports can handle the isn’t much hassle.
monitor’s native 1440p resolution at its Image-quality options are a bit
maximum refresh rate of 240Hz. limited. The monitor has several
ƂÎ°x>Õ`ÕÌÃ>Û>>LivÀ gamma modes, but none promise a
passing audio through to speakers or a particular gamma curve. It’s a similar
headset. The monitor also has speakers story with colour temperature. Colour
built-in, but they’re weak and deliver a customization is only available in the
lacklustre experience with any content custom colour temperature mode,
more complex than a podcast. and this offers only three-way colour
The monitor’s menu system is adjustment. There’s no sRGB or DCI-P3

REVIEWS
mode, either (there is an sRGB colour of brightness is enough for use in nearly
temperature mode, but seems to only any situation, including a room lit by
adjust colour, not brightness or gamma). ÕÌ«i]ÃÕÌyÀÌVi}Ü`ÜÃ°
I’d prefer to see a wider range
of image-quality options, as those Contrast Ratio
available on the AG274QZM will fall AOC Agon Pro AG274QZM:Ó]xä\£
short for most serious content creators, ViewSonic Elite XG341C-2K:{]äxä\£
and may also cause problems for čiÜ>Àič7Î{ÓÎ7\wÌi
anyone looking to precisely calibrate the čViÀ*Ài`>ÌÀ8 ÓÇÎ1\nä\£
monitor. Some less expensive monitors, Asus ROG Swift PG27AQN:nÇä\£
like the Gigabyte M27Q X and NZXT
Canvas 27Q, do better. The maximum contrast ratio came
>ÌÓ]xä\£°/>Ì½Ã>}`ÀiÃÕÌ
SDR IMAGE QUALITY compared to an IPS monitor without
The AOC Agon Pro AG27QZM promises a Mini-LED backlight system, yet also
excellent HDR performance, but SDR behind top-tier competitors such as
performance remains important. Most the Alienware AW3423DWF. Make no
content you’ll view when browsing the mistake: OLED still has a big advantage
web or writing in Word will be in SDR. when it comes to contrast.
The AG274QZM is no slouch here, but Still, the AOC Agon Pro
doesn’t always impress. AG274QZM’s performance delivers an
obvious boost over most monitors on
Maximum SDR Brightness the market. Images have an excellent
AOC Agon Pro AG274QZM:{nÌÃ sense of depth and dimensionality,
ViewSonic Elite XG341C-2K:ÇäxÌÃ with many appearing to leap out of the
čiÜ>Àič7Î{ÓÎ7\ÓxäÌÃ screen. The monitor achieves a dark,
čViÀ*Ài`>ÌÀ8 ÓÇÎ1\xÓÌÃ convincing black level in dark scenes,
Asus ROG Swift PG27AQN:{xÌÃ though it may still seem ever-so-slightly
hazy when viewed in a pitch-black room.
Brightness starts off strong with a
maximum SDR brightness of 602 nits. Colour Gamut (AdobeRGB)
That’s an excellent result for a monitor AOC Agon Pro AG274QZM: 100%
and, as the graph shows, generally ViewSonic Elite XG341C-2K: 93%
superior to the competition. This level čiÜ>Àič7Î{ÓÎ7\x¯

čViÀ*Ài`>ÌÀ8 ÓÇÎ1\n¯ Average Colour Error
Asus ROG Swift PG27AQN:n¯ AOC Agon Pro AG274QZM:£°n
ViewSonic Elite XG341C-2K: 1.29
Colour Gamut (DCI-P3) čiÜ>Àič7Î{ÓÎ7\ 0.91
AOC Agon Pro AG274QZM:x¯ čViÀ*Ài`>ÌÀ8 ÓÇÎ1\ 1.11
ViewSonic Elite XG341C-2K: 96% Asus ROG Swift PG27AQN:£°x£
čiÜ>Àič7Î{ÓÎ7\ 99%
čViÀ*Ài`>ÌÀ8 ÓÇÎ1\x¯ Colour accuracy is not as strong,
Asus ROG Swift PG27AQN:nÈ¯ but certainly more than adequate for
nearly all situations. The monitor’s
Colour Gamut (sRGB) colour appears realistic and lifelike.
AOC Agon Pro AG274QZM: 100% As mentioned, though, the monitor
ViewSonic Elite XG341C-2K: 100% doesn’t have preset modes tailored to
čiÜ>Àič7Î{ÓÎ7\ 100% a particular colour gamut, so colours
čViÀ*Ài`>ÌÀ8 ÓÇÎ1\ 100% may appear oversaturated depending
Asus ROG Swift PG27AQN: 100% on the content shown.
The monitor’s default colour
Colour gamut is a major strength, as temperature came in at 6600K, which
the AOC Agon Pro AG274QZM delivers ÃÃ}ÌÞvvÌiÌ>À}iÌvÈxää°/Ã
100 percent of sRGB, which is common, means the image is slightly cooler and
and 100 percent of AdobeRGB, which more blue than the target, but it’s close
is extremely rare even among top-tier enough that the difference is tough
OLED and IPS monitors with Quantum to notice. The default gamma curve
ÌÃ«>iÃ°/iÌÀ>ìÃx came in at gamma 2.3, off the target
percent of DCI-P3. It has a 10-bit panel, of 2.2, which means content is a bit
as well, which means colour banding is darker than expected. Once again, this
rarely visible due to the extreme number is close enough that the difference can
of colours available. be hard to notice.
These results add up to one simple Sharpness is a problem. The
conclusion: The AG274QZM can deliver AG274QZM’s native resolution of
a spectacular range of colour. It’s a real 1440p is reasonably sharp for a 27-
knockout when displaying bright, vivid inch monitor, providing a pixel density
content like animated movies or punchy, of 109 pixels per inch. Despite this,
vibrant games such as Overwatch 2. I noticed some colour fringing and

REVIEWS
pixellation around small fonts and HDR IMAGE QUALITY

text. It’s an unexpected result for a The AOC Agon Pro AG274QZM
modern IPS monitor, and one that supports HDR and is VESA DisplayHDR
replicates the sub-pixel issues found £äääViÀÌwi`°Ì½Ã}iiÀ>Þ>}`
in many OLED monitors including the HDR performer, and certainly far better
Alienware AW3423DWF. than most monitors that lack a Mini-LED
The Mini-LED backlight also has backlight. But it’s not perfect.
ÕµÕi`ÜÃìÃ°/ÃÌÀ>ÃxÇÈ Let’s start with brightness. I
dimming zones, which is less than what’s measured a maximum HDR brightness
found in more expensive monitors like v{nÌÃ]ÜVÃÛiÀÞVÃiÌÌi
the Asus ROG Swift PG32UQX and promised maximum of 1,000 nits. The
ViewSonic Elite XG341C-2K. That’s a monitor delivered a slightly lower
fair number, but it can cause problems maximum brightness in a 10 percent
around high-contrast borders. When window, with a maximum brightness
placing a bright, white Word document vn£{ÌÃ°
over a dark desktop background, for This level of brightness is excellent,
example, you may notice blooming (the >`ìwÌiÞiÕ}ÌìÛiÀ>
light leaking into the dark areas of the real punch in HDR. I also noticed the
image) or vignetting (the edges of the monitor’s contrast ratio increased to
document not lighting as brightly as 4,210:1 in HDR. This doesn’t happen
they should). on most IPS monitors because any
In short, SDR image quality can increase in brightness also increases
be excellent but also suffers some the brightness of the entire display,
ÌVi>Liy>ÜÃ°/iƂ"
Ƃ}*À including dark areas of the image. But
AG274QZM is a stellar performer in with a Mini-LED monitor, such as the
colour gamut, delivering a huge range AG274QZM, only the bright areas need
of colours with minimal banding. It’s to be lit, while others can remain dark.
also extremely bright and offers a It’s a major upgrade.
good contrast ratio. The monitor’s 9Õ½ÌViÌiLiiwÌÃÜi
sharpness issues are a disappointment, viewing any HDR content, whether it’s
ÌÕ}]>`Ãi>Þw`Ìi games, HDR movies, or even HDR clips
LED backlight distracting, especially on YouTube. A sunset will appear bright,
when using the monitor for basic VÀÃ«]>`ìÌ>i`]Üi>y>Ã}Ì
desktop productivity. in a foggy midnight forest will appear

as a spot of brilliance in an otherwise desktop PC but don’t want to go
foreboding scene. broke obtaining it.
Yet I said it wasn’t perfect – and
Ì>Ì½ÃLiV>ÕÃiÌiÌÀ½ÃxÇÈ MOTION PERFORMANCE
dimming zones remain an issue. Notice, The AOC Agon Pro AG274QZM is a
for example, that my tests show the 240Hz display that promises a grey-
monitor is brighter when displaying a to-grey response time as low as one
full, white screen than when only 10 millisecond. It also supports Adaptive
percent of the screen is lit. Usually, -ÞV]ÜÌvwV>ÃÕ««ÀÌvÀ Û`>
the situation is the opposite. In this G-Sync. AMD FreeSync is not listed,
case, it appears the monitor is slightly but FreeSync functioned when the
decreasing the brightness to limit how monitor was connected to an AMD
severely a brightly lit zone will bleed Radeon RX 6600.
into other, darker areas of the screen. Motion performance is excellent.
Still, the AOC Agon Pro AG274QZM The AG274QZM delivers an extremely
is a good HDR performer, and certainly crisp image that’s right on par with
stands out when compared to most other excellent 240Hz monitors, such
monitors in its price bracket. It’s a as the Gigabyte M27Q X and Sony
tantalizing compromise for those InZone M3. Scrolling test images
who want super-bright HDR on their of DOTA 2 and League of Legends
showed that most
wiìÌ>Ã]VÕ`}
character names and
enemy health bars,
were visible, and that
character outlines
were easy to make out.
AOC includes
three overdrive
modes: Weak,
Medium and Strong.
The feature is turned
off by default. When
240Hz motion performance is impressive. turned on, overdrive

REVIEWS
doesn’t cause distracting image where high-contrast elements are

quality problems. This is true even extremely common.
at the highest preset. Competitive These shortcomings limit the
gamers will be pleased to see a minor monitor’s appeal, but if you want solid
improvement in motion clarity with HDR in games and movies, and want to
overdrive on, and that using this mode pay as little as possible, this AG274QZM
doesn’t reduce image quality to an is hard to beat. Matthew S. Smith
ugly mess. The monitor doesn’t have a
backlight strobing feature, though, so SPECIFICATIONS
gamers who like that particular form • ÓÇVÓ]xÈäÝ]£]{{ä®Ó{äâ]*-
of motion clarity enhancement will monitor with Mini-LED
need to look elsewhere. • Nvidia G-Sync
• 6 -ƂÃ«>Þ,£äääViÀÌwi`
VERDICT • 2x HDMI 2.1
The AOC Agon Pro AG274QZM is a • 1x DisplayPort 1.4
solid choice if you want a good HDR • 1x USB-C 3.2 with DisplayPort
experience on your PC but don’t ƂÌiÀ>Ìiì>`ÈxÜ>ÌÌÃ
Ü>ÌÌ«>ÞÀiÌ>Ë£]äää°" • Î°x>Õ`ÕÌ
competitors have better contrast, but • Power Delivery: 1x USB-B upstream,
fall behind in brightness, while IPS 4x USB-A downstream
monitors without a Mini-LED backlight • ÓÝxÜ>ÌÌÃ«i>iÀÃ
are inferior in both. This makes the • Stand adjustment: Height, tilt, swivel,
AG274QZM a practical compromise. It’s pivot
rarely perfect, but often good enough. • VESA mount: 100x100mm
Throw in top-notch motion clarity and • {ÓÇ°Îx{Ç°ÎÝÈ£Ó°ÝÎxÓ°£
you’ve got a recipe for success. • Ç°x}
Despite its strengths in HDR,
the AG274QZM is a mediocre
monitor for day-to-day productivity
or content creation. It delivers on
colour performance but the monitor’s
sharpness is disappointing. The Mini-
LED backlight’s limited dimming
zones are obvious in productivity,

Keeper
Price: ËÓä°vÀv>Ûi°VÉÎ9-Î
K
eeper has always emphasized some smart updates since the last time
security, more than some other I reviewed it, including modernizing
password managers. But in its interface, while strengthening its
the past that sometimes came at the already impressive security features. Its
expense of things that consumers «ÀV}>Ã>Ã`À««i`ÌËÓä°vÀ
prize like ease-of-use and eye-catching Ìi*iÀÃ>*>>`Ëxä°ÎvÀÌi
aesthetics. Thankfully, Keeper has made Family Plan.

REVIEWS
Keeper’s guided multi-step set-up including text message, Google

gets you up and running quickly. You’re Authenticator (TOTP), Smart Watch, RSA
wÀÃÌ>Ãi`Ì«ÀÌ>Þ«>ÃÃÜÀ`ÃÞÕ SecurID, and DUO Security and FIDO
have saved in your browser. Given the Universal 2nd Factor (U2F) compatible
inherent risks of storing passwords this hardware security keys.
way, all users should happily oblige. As with other password managers,
You can also import passwords from Keeper’s main utility is capturing your
£xÌiÀ««Õ>À«>ÃÃÜÀ`>>}iÀÃ] credentials whenever you log in to a
VÕ`}>Ã>iv>Ûi°VÉÎ<,ÝÞ® ÜiLÃÌi°7iÞÕwÀÃÌÛÃÌ>ÃiVÕÀi
>`>ÃÌ*>ÃÃv>Ûi°VÉÎ<*6+Ý®° site after installing Keeper, you can have
Next, it walks you through the process it save your login when prompted or
of installing the Keeper browser create a new username and password
iÝÌiÃ]VÀi>Ì}ÞÕÀwÀÃÌÀiVÀ`] directly in Keeper by clicking the
and adding your personal and credit VVÃÌ>Ì>««i>ÀÌÃiwi`Ã°
V>À`vÀ>ÌvÀ>ÕÌvÀw}° ii«iÀÜ}iiÀ>Ìi>«>ÃÃÜÀ`vn
Finally, it prompts you to turn on two- Ìx£V>À>VÌiÀÃÕÃ}>VL>Ìv
factor authentication; it supports several upper- and lower-case letters, numerals,
different authentication methods, and symbols. When you save the record,
ii«iÀ>ÕÌ>ÌV>ÞwÃÌi
ÃÌi½Ã}wi`ÃÜÌÌi
new credentials.
Once you’ve saved
your login credentials for a
website, Keeper will surface a
pop-up prompt each time you
return, asking if you want it to
>ÕÌwÌiVÀiìÌ>Ã°vÞÕ
have multiple logins for a site
– a bank where both you and
your spouse have accounts,
for example – you can view
all of them by clicking the
7iÞÕÃ>Ûi>ÀiVÀ`]ii«iÀ>ÕÌ>ÌV>ÞwÃÌi lock icon and select the
ÃÌi½Ã}wi`ÃÜÌÌiiÜVÀiìÌ>Ã° >««À«À>ÌiivÀ>ÕÌw°

Keeper also recognizes
when you’ve accessed
a website’s ‘change
password’ page and
surfaces a one-click
update-and-save option
to store the new password
in your vault. It does
not, however, support
automated password
updates as this violates
Keeper’s ‘zero knowledge’
policy – to ensure your
sovereignty over your
passwords, the password Keeper’s BreachWatch feature scans the Dark Web to see if
manager eschews any your passwords have been compromised.
features that would expose
your login credentials to the company. The vault displays all your passwords
As a Keeper contact explained to me, in a list or as tiles, and you can group
automatic password updates require records into folders if you want to
passwords to temporarily reside on organize them further. Every password
Keeper’s servers and that is anathema ÀiVÀ`>ÜÃÞÕÌ>ÌÌ>VwiÃ>`
to the company. «ÌÃ]VÀi>ÌiVÕÃÌwi`Ã]>`>``
The Keeper browser plug-in is notes. The vault also keeps a complete
>°ƂÌÌiÌ«Ã>Ãi>ÀVwi`vÀ record of every password you’ve used
looking up password records by website for a site and allows you to restore
name. Beneath that is a toggle for them. It maintains version histories
i>L}É`Ã>L}ÌiVVÃÌ>Ì v>>ÌÌ>Vi`wiÃ]>ÃÜi°*iÀÃ>
>««i>ÀÜiLÃÌiÃ½}wi`Ã]>` information and credit card records are
buttons for accessing your vault, various stored in their own section.
Keeper settings, a user guide and a The Security Audit section of the
logout button. interface assigns a password strength
Clicking on ‘vault’ in the browser to each entry so you can easily identify
extension opens Keeper’s web interface. weak and reused passwords and

REVIEWS
change them. It also displays how ËÓä°>Þi>À]Ìi*iÀÃ>«>>``Ã

long it’s been since each password unlimited password, payment, and
was changed, though NIST guidelines ìÌÌÞvÃÌÀ>}iÆw}iÀ«ÀÌ>`
v>Ûi°VÉÎ" 7®}iÀ face ID login; emergency access; and
recommend regularly changing you Ó{ÉÇÃÕ««ÀÌ°/i>Þ«>VÕì`
password and advise you to do it only everything in the Personal plan and
after you know it’s been compromised. >``ÃwÛi«ÀÛ>ÌiÛ>ÕÌÃ]£ä -iVÕÀi
Keeper’s BreachWatch feature makes File Storage, and the ability to share
it easier to discover stolen passwords, folders and records, and manage
by scanning the Dark Web to see if any «iÀÃÃÃ]vÀËxä°Î>Þi>À°
of your credentials have been found in
previous breaches. VERDICT
Keeper supports secure sharing of Thanks to some welcome features
any password with anyone who has a updates, Keeper is one of the strongest
Keeper account. If you try to share a password managers available. While
record with someone who doesn’t, they seriously security-minded users stand to
will be instructed to sign up for a free get the most out of its robust features
account. By default, the recipient will set, even those just wanting an easier
be able to use the login but not change way to manage their passwords will be
it. You can expand permissions on the safer for using it. Michael Ansaldo
record up to making the recipient its
owner. You can also share multiple
passwords by creating a shared folder,
with permissions working much the
same as with an individual record.
Keeper’s Emergency Access feature
>ÜÃÞÕÌ}À>Ì>VViÃÃÌÕ«ÌwÛi
trusted contacts, who can log in in the
event you can’t for whatever reason.
Keeper’s free version provides
access to your password vault on
unlimited devices and secure sharing.
It’s worth starting there to determine
if you want to pay for the service. For

Hands-on: Bing Chat
Price: Free with Microsoft Bing
B
ing’s new AI-powered chatbot currently offers, with lengthy, detailed
is basically ChatGPT with ads… responses that can help you in many
and one that refuses to do your walks of life. But they may end with a
homework for you. Well, sometimes. jarring ad that looks (and probably is)
That’s not necessarily a derogatory ripped straight from Bing. That said,
criticism; the new Bing is pretty the fresh AI experience already work
>>â}°ÞÕÀwÀÃÌviÜÕÌiÃÜÌ shockingly well more often than not.
the new Bing chat interface, you’ll The new Bing experience is basically
probably see even more sophistication two parts. There’s the traditional search,
than the free version of ChatGPT with a list of search results and a new

BING CHAT
Bing thinks would

be the best vacation
destinations for you
to go to. This is a
version of the new
ChatGPT-powered
conversational
experience that
Microsoft launched
recently.
The key difference
Bing’s new home page. A query will generate the traditional page between the left and
of search results, while there’s a link to the chat interface, above. the right side appears
to be that Bing is
contextual interface to the right; and collating the results listed on the left –
the new ‘Chat’ interface, which can be saving you a click or two, in other words.
accessed either by swiping up from the (The publishers of those sites might
list of links or via its own link. Microsoft’s replace ‘saving’ with some derivative of
new Bing.com, for those who have ‘robbing’, as your click helps drive them
access, features a large search box ÌÀ>vwV>`ÀiÛiÕi°®ƂÌÌii`vÌi
in the centre, with room for lengthy box, there is a list of footnotes: links that
searches of up to 1,000 characters. It’s expand if you hover over them, as well
>LÛiÌ>ÌÃi>ÀVLÝÜiÀiÞÕ½w` as follow-up questions that can take the
the small ‘Chat’ link. conversation further.
If you click them – or the related
HOW TO USE THE NEW BING button, ‘Let’s chat’ – the entire interface
Like any other search engine, the new will scroll upwards, opening up a
Bing isn’t complicated to use. Type new space above the search results.
in any traditional search query (best Welcome to the new Bing, powered by
Caribbean vacation spots, for ChatGPT. You may see a message box
example) and Bing will return a list of under a result that allows access to the
traditional search results. But wait – chat window, too.
to the right is something new: a text The Bing search and chat is
box with a textual description of what supposed to work within Edge as

be called Codex.) For now,
the experience is entirely
free, though you’ll need
to be logged into your
Microsoft account to see
ÌiLiiwÌÃvÌiV>Ì>`
the new Bing experience.
Until Microsoft pushes the
entire Bing experience live,
you’ll be forced to join a
wait list. Even then, you’ll
Bing’s new ‘traditional’ search will add a new contextual be allowed to ask the new
information box to the right, leading to the chat interface. Bing a limited number of
queries, we’re told. For
well, in the sidebar of the browser. now, Microsoft isn’t allowing anonymous
Additional capabilities include the queries, though that should be added in
ability to summarize PDF documents the future, Microsoft said.
and provide additional contextual Unfortunately, Bing’s chatbot would
information, Microsoft says. But when occasionally disconnect, generating
we downloaded the Edge Dev version in an error message or the option to
which the Bing sidebar was enabled, we refresh the page. If you do, all of your
couldn’t seem to trigger the function. conversations disappear. This isn’t
always a problem, but Bing (and other
WELCOME TO BING CHAT AI) often regenerate answers that
If you’re familiar with
ChatGPT, the Bing interface
won’t feel all that different.
The idea is that you can
ask the chatbot questions,
receive responses, and follow
the conversation further or
pursue other angles. (Clicking
the Feedback section reveals You’d expect Microsoft Bing to able to suggest tools and
that this product appears to tips to assist you in using its own products.

BING CHAT
differ, so that a good, comprehensive In terms of a much more innocuous

answer might not appear again the µÕiÀÞº7ÜÕ`Ü>w}Ì]
second time you ask. Hawkman or Captain America?”),
So what’s it like using Microsoft’s however, Bing actually picked a
Bing chatbot? Anecdotally, it feels winner. Well, it did, once. ChatGPT
somewhat like the old days of ChatGPT. usually demurs until prompted further.
ChatGPT emerged without a number of Naturally, Bing will write code for you,
guardrails, answering without restriction too. Limericks? Songs? Absolutely.
on a number of queries. Bing feels a The key difference between Bing
little bit looser, though it will also set and, say, Google Bard, is that Bing
polite limitations, as well: it declined to footnotes its responses, visually
respond when asked for the nicknames indicating what portion of its response
for various ethnicities (a lead-in to racist comes from what site. At the end of the
slurs) and smartly declined to answer response, Bing supplies a list of links,
“how to pick up a girl” as a query that which you can click or at least hover
LiVÌwi`Üi°ÌiÀiÃÌ}Þ]ÌÌi over for more information. It often
later erased the second answer entirely, adds a little emoji, too, humanizing
responding that I had to search Bing. the conversation.
VÌw`ÕÌÀi° On occasion, though, there’s also
an ad. Ask Bing
about a Caribbean
vacation and it
will close with a
sponsored link;
ask it how to
change the RAM
in your laptop
and it will end
with a ‘carousel’
of shopping
links. (That query
completely ignored
/iwÀÃÌÌi>Ãi`ÌÃµÕiÃÌ] }ÃiÌÌi`Ìi>ÌÌiÀv>ÛÕÀ the very valid issue
of Hawkman. A while later, it wasn’t so decisive. of exactly what type

does offer footnotes,
which Bard does not.
Bing also does seem
more comprehensive
than what You.com
offers. Is Bing better
than ChatGPT? In
some ways, yes. So
far Bing feels more
comprehensive than
the free version of
ChatGPT, although
A visual ad in an otherwise text-based interface is a little jarring. OpenAI’s chatbot
does seem much
of RAM to buy or insert.) more willing to serve as a study aid.
You probably won’t care that users When asking both engines to write
will pass over those links, disappointing an essay comparing and contrasting two
publishers. Microsoft promises that artistic styles, ChatGPT actually wrote
the chat interface won’t be full of the essay. Bing just supplied an outline,
sponsored content, what you might call forcing any student using it to do the
‘advertorial’. It does matter that in the ÜÀÌÃiv°7i]ÌiwÀÃÌÌi]>ÞÜ>Þ°
traditional Bing list of links, sponsored When I tried to grab a screenshot (and
>`Ã>««i>ÀwÀÃÌÆÌiV>ÌLÌ] then copied the question again) Bing
sponsored ads appear last. That may i«vÕÞÜÀÌiÌiiÃÃ>Þ°v>ÌwÀÃÌÞÕ
mean that consumers prefer using the don’t succeed…
chatbot to traditional links. Analysts In other ways, Bing limits itself much
I spoke to insist that this will change more. Bing won’t dispense medical
search forever; if this cultural trend advice, and baulks at anything sexual.
takes hold, it might. (Ironically, those answers can be sought
using the traditional search interface.) It
IS NEW BING BETTER won’t generate content that is harmful,
6*#0|%*#6)26! offensive, or copyrighted. It’s also good
So is Bing better than Google’s Bard? at preventing end runs around those
Until Bard is released, we can’t say. It restrictions. In a test asking for an Excel

BING CHAT
Originally, Bing decline to write an essay. But after another prompt, it did.
vÕVÌÌ«iÀvÀ>Ã«iVwVÌ>Ã]Ìi
two tied: Bing gave more methods than
ChatGPT, but ChatGPT’s examples not
only explained the code but were much
more focused.
We’ll need more study before we
V>ìwÌÛiÞÃ>ÞiÃLiÌÌiÀÌ>
the other, though.
Ultimately, though, you can’t help
but feel that Bing is being extremely
generous about the whole thing, as far
as its competition is concerned.
“Ultimately, the choice between
Bing and Google Bard may depend
on your personal preferences, needs,
and expectations,” Bing responded,
including the emoji, when asked
whether it or Bard was better. “You may
want to try both of them and see which
one suits you better. ” Mark Hachman

Review: Windows Security
Price: Free (built into Windows 10 and 11)
T
he common perception is that other tools designed to protect your
paid security products from *
]ÞÕÀwiÃ]>`ÞÕÀi>VÌÛÌÞ
third parties must be more from malicious threats.
effective than any security built into an
operating system like Windows. That FEATURES
may have been true in the past. But Known collectively as Windows Security,
over the years, Microsoft has beefed the built-in defences start with the
up the security features that come Microsoft Defender antivirus tool.
with Windows. Beyond just basic Defender automatically resides in
antivirus protection, Windows 10 and memory to offer real-time protection
11 both include a healthy line-up of against malware. But you can run a

WINDOWS 11
want to enable or
Vw}ÕÀiÌi>Vi
your security.
The customizable
settings for Microsoft
Security are quite
thorough with real-time
protection and the
latest cloud-delivered
protection both
enabled. If you run into
>ÃÕÃ«VÕÃwi]>
Microsoft Defender provides four different types of scans, helps you submit the
including one to ferret out rootkits and other challenging threats. sample to Microsoft
for analysis. A feature
variety of on-demand scans, including called Tamper Protection tries to
a quick scan, a full scan, a custom scan prevent malicious apps from changing
vÃ«iVwVvìÀÃ>`V>ÌÃ]>` and thereby thwarting the security
iÛi>vyiÃV>ÌÕÌvÀÀÌÌÃ settings for Microsoft Security. Further,
and other malware
that’s otherwise
`vwVÕÌÌÀiÛi°
By default, any
malicious items
are automatically
quarantined. Microsoft
Security keeps track
of all threats via its
Protection history.
Here, you can view
new, quarantined, and
cleaned items and also
see recommendations Microsoft Security offers a protection history in which you can see
on settings you may different threats that have been caught and act on them.

you’re able to exclude
Ã«iVwVwiÃ]vìÀÃ]
and processes that you
don’t want scanned.
Also part of Microsoft
Security is ransomware
protection. This protects
ViÀÌ>wiÃ]vìÀÃ]>`
areas of memory from
unauthorized access and
changes by malicious
or suspicious apps. You
can view the folders /iLÕÌwÀiÜ>Ã>ÕÌ>ÌV>ÞÌÕÀi`]>`ÞÕV>>``
that are automatically allowed apps and customize its rules.
protected this way
and add additional folders you want >Ü>Ã«iVwV>««ÌÀÕ}vÀ>
secured. To help with data recovery in private or public network. You’re also
the event of a successful ransomware >LiÌ>VViÃÃ>`Û>Vi`wÀiÜ>ÃiÌÌ}Ã
attack, Microsoft steers you to its own through a snap-in module where you
OneDrive backup and syncing service can customize existing rules and create
ÜÌ>Ã«iVwV«ÌvÀÀiVÛiÀ} iÜwÀiÜ>ÀÕiÃ°
>ÞV«ÀÃi`wiÃ° Microsoft’s SmartScreen feature aims
Beyond Microsoft Defender, to stop potentially malicious, suspicious,
Windows Security ties in with other or low-reputation apps, websites, and
aspects of the operating system. Under wi`Ü>`Ã°ÜiÛiÀ]->ÀÌ-VÀii
Account protection are links to view has a history of false positives to
your Microsoft account, set up Windows the point that some people end up
i>ÕÌiÌV>ÌvÀw}iÀ«ÀÌÀ disabling it, which obviously defeats
facial recognition, and enable Dynamic its purpose. Exploit protection tries to
Lock to automatically lock your PC when block malware that takes advantage
you leave with your smartphone in hand. of vulnerabilities to infect your system.
/iLÕÌwÀiÜ>Ã>ÕÌ>ÌV>Þ Also in the line-up is Device security,
enabled for domains, private networks, which taps into your PC’s built-in
and public networks. You can easily hardware security defences to combat

WINDOWS 11
SmartScreen that
the site was unsafe.
The eicar.com,
iV>À°V°ÌÝÌwi]
and the eicar_com.
â«wiÜiÀi>
prevented from
being downloaded
as Defender
labelled them
The dashboard for Windows Security provides easy access to all of unsafe. And the
the built-in tools and features. iV>ÀVÓ°â«wi
was blocked with a
malicious code and other threats. notice that a virus was detected.
The overall Windows Security In Chrome, I was stopped from trying
dashboard is well designed, offering ÌÃ>Ûii>VvÌivÕÀwiÃLiV>ÕÃi
access to each of the different features. a virus was detected. In Firefox, I was
In Windows 10, go to Settings > Update >LiÌÃ>Ûii>VvÌiwiÃ° ÕÌÜi
& security, and then Windows Security. I tried to run or open them, Microsoft
In Windows 11, go to Settings > Privacy Defender prevented the action, telling
& security, and then Windows Security. me that it found a virus or potentially
From there, either click the button for unwanted software.
Open Windows Security to view and ƂƂ6/iÃÌÀiÛiÜvÀ ÛiLiÀÉ
access the different tools, or click a iViLiÀvÓäÓÓv>Ûi°VÉÎv£9®
Ã«iVwVÌÌÛiÜÀÕÃiÌ° gave Microsoft Defender grades of 6
out of 6 for protection and usability, and
PERFORMANCE xÕÌvÈvÀ«iÀvÀ>Vi°/iÃÌ}vÀ
/iÕÃÕ>ÌiÃÌwiÃvÀÌi
Ƃ, AV Comparatives in from September
ÌiÃÌ}ÃÌiv>Ûi°VÉÎ7Ó<®«À«Ìi` >`"VÌLiÀvÓäÓÓv>Ûi°VÉÎ À*«®
security responses from Microsoft awarded the program generally good
Defender, though the results differed grades but knocked it down a few points
slightly by browser. for too many false positives and a low
In Microsoft Edge, clicking each of vyiìÌiVÌÀ>Ìi°ƂiViLiÀÓäÓÓ
ÌiÌiÃÌwiÃÌÀ}}iÀi`>Ü>À}vÀ >>ÞÃÃvÀ- >LÃv>Ûi°VÉÎÞây£®

gave Microsoft Defender top grades for
protection and accuracy.
VERDICT
Overall, Windows Security offer several
LiiwÌÃ° iÞ`Ìi7`ÜÃiviìÀ
antivirus protection there are other solid
security features. The settings are easily
accessible and customizable. And since
the protection is built into Windows,
you don’t have to install anything. If
you need more features, such as a VPN,
encrypted cloud backup, or online
privacy tools, a third-party program
is still the way to go. But for basic
protection and then some, Microsoft
Security is quite capable. Lance Whitney

WINDOWS 11
4 new Windows 11
features you need to try
A surprise care package by Microsoft. BRAD CHACOS reports
W
indows 11 may have to the native Teams chat experience,
switched to once-yearly Facebook widgets, improved tablet
major updates, but that behaviour, and so on. But there are
doesn’t mean new features can’t show several nifty features with a broader
up more often. Case in point: on 14 appeal that I can’t wait to try out – and
March, Microsoft dropped a massive you probably will too. Let’s dig in.
‘quality update’ for Windows 11 that
was brimming with fresh goodies. 1. NOTEPAD TABS
There’s a lot of new stuff that isn’t I’m a massive fan of Stardock’s
relevant to me, such as better AI tools ÀÕ«ÞÃvÌÜ>ÀiË£ä°vÀv>Ûi°
on Qualcomm-powered PCs, tweaks VÉÓ6Li8®ÌÌÕÀiÛiÀÞÜ`Ü

into a tab, but it won’t
be needed for much
longer if Microsoft
keeps this up. At the
end of 2022, Windows
££w>Þ>`ìì
Explorer tabs after
years of begging by
enthusiasts, and the
March 2023 quality
update brings tabs
1.
to the venerable
Notepad app.
Oh, and in case you missed it, are several catches involved in Windows
Notepad was also updated last year to 11’s new iPhone support. Because of
support Windows 11’s Dark Mode. that, you may be better off using Intel’s
1Ã>««vÀiivÀv>Ûi°VÉÎL>> Õ®
2. iPHONE SUPPORT to get iMessage on Windows instead. It
IN PHONE LINK ostensibly only supports Intel-based PCs
Android users have been able to control though, so AMD Ryzen users still have
their phones via the Windows Phone a lot to look forward to in Windows 11’s
Link app for years now, but Apple’s new native iPhone capabilities.
tighter rules have prevented
iPhone support. No longer.
You’ll need to be a Windows
Insider to use it right now,
but Windows 11’s March
ÓäÓÎµÕ>ÌÞÕ«`>Ìiw>Þ
adds the ability to manage
iPhones from your PC.
You’ll be able to send
and receive calls, texts and
more right on your desktop,
2.
but Apple’s rules mean there

WINDOWS 11
All you have to do

is click the new record
button in Snipping Tool
to start capturing a
video, then click it again
to stop. You now have a
quick clip to share with
friends, helpfully saved
to a default folder. This
could be insanely handy
while troubleshooting or
3.
explaining a process to
other people.
3. SNIPPING TOOL
5%4''0|4'%14&+0) 4. ENERGY
Windows has offered a rocking RECOMMENDATIONS
Snipping Tool for a long time now, Electric bills are skyrocketing. Enter
but it could only be used to quickly the new energy recommendations in
grab screenshots. With the Windows Windows 11, designed to help ease
11 March 2023 quality update, the the burden on both the environment
Snipping Tool can record videos as well. and your wallet. You’ll a list of settings
suggestions in
Settings > Power
& battery > Energy
recommendations,
where you can apply
them piecemeal or
whole-hog at the press
of a single button.
Even if you decide not
to take every action
Microsoft recommends
every little bit helps.
4.

Credit: Getty Images/ MF3d
12 not-so evil AI services
that can improve your life
ChatGPT, Bing and Bard aren’t the only AI services in town. You use AI
every day and probably don’t even know it. MARK HACHMAN reports
A
I is already here – and it’s not That’s a scary concept to some. AI
just services like ChatGPT, Bing, can make ‘dumb’ devices smarter, but at
or the upcoming Google Bard. the cost of knowing more about you and
Developers have already infused AI into your daily lives. AI isn’t perfect, either
products you use every day, with further – and our tolerance for its mistakes
improvements to come. is evolving, just as the technology is.

FEATURE
However, manufacturers across the Today’s smartphones – pretty much

board will continue to use AI in a bid to all of them, from Apple’s iPhone to
keep improving their products. Android smartphones – replicate that
Let’s throw some light on just effect using AI. ‘Portrait mode’ uses
where AI is already touching your daily what the camera ‘knows’ of the scene to
life, and new services that can help you judge what it thinks is the subject, and
improve it further. then intelligently blurs the background.
Where ‘good’ smart bokeh differs from
1. YOUR SMARTPHONE ‘bad’ bokeh is often how intelligently
CAMERA’S PORTRAIT MODE the camera judges the dividing line
Let’s start with one you already know. between foreground and background. A
Traditional ‘dumb’ SLR cameras can ÌV]LÕÀÀÞi>ÀÕ`ÞÕÀÃiwi]À>
create a photographic effect called shot where part of your face or hair ends
‘bokeh’, where the background up blurred and out of focus, is often the
becomes blurred under certain difference between a ‘good’ and ‘bad’
conditions. This serves to highlight Ãiwi°Ƃ`ÜÜ>ÌÃÌ>Ì¶
the subject of the photo, and Finally, be aware that the Qualcomm
`ÃÌ}ÕÃÌvÀÌiÃ}wV>Vi Snapdragon chips powering many of the
of the background. world’s top Android smartphones are
already trying to detect what
you’re shooting and enhance
it before you take the photo,
using AI to improve cellular
connections, and more.
2. NVIDIA DLSS
Nvidia’s Deep Learning
Super Sampling (DLSS)
sounds impenetrable, but the
technology is quite simple:
By knowing what part of
the scene you’re looking at,
*ÀÌÀ>ÌìÜÀÃLiÃÌVi>ÀÞìwiìÃ]i DLSS can focus your GPU’s
this statue, as shot by the Samsung Galaxy S20+. rendering power there. In

real life, that means
that GPUs focus their
horsepower on just what
you’re looking at. That
maximizes your game’s
frame-rate performance,
delivering a better,
smoother experience.
DLSS is several years
old. Nvidia debuted
DLSS 2.0 in 2020, and ChatGPT (left) versus Bing, showing off how differently the two
we’d expect further can respond to an identical prompt.
development as time
goes on. However, as GPUs stubbornly It’s also a bit more ‘loose’ in how it
refuse to come down in price, DLSS at approaches various topics, so you have
least stands as a technology that can the freedom to customize its responses.
extend the longevity of your GPU and Don’t treat ChatGPT as an infallible
enable solid gameplay for years. And it’s oracle, nor as a replacement for your
all premised on AI, and what your GPU VÕÀÀiÌL°/ÜiÌÞwÛiÞi>ÀÃ>}]
knows about humans playing games. however, 3Dfx and Rendition were
debuting 3D graphics that looked like a
3. CHATGPT jumble of triangles. We would assume
Now, let’s move on to the AI of the that the technology will continue to
future. ChatGPT looks amazing, as it’s improve.
a conversational chatbot that can be
used for search, as a conversation, 4. BING CHAT AI
coding – the potential applications are Bing’s AI chatbot (typically referred
numerous and diverse. It’s free and we to as just Bing) is currently in trials.
would encourage you to try it out on Ì½ÃLÌÃÌÕvwiÀ>`ìÌiÀi`Þ
what you don’t know as well as what you more friendly than ChatGPT, with a
know. You’ll see that it can be shallower sprinkling of emoji at the end of its
than what you’d might like, sometimes responses. I was shocked when its
‘hallucinates’ false data, but that it can content guardrails failed (after Microsoft
stimulate ideas for you to develop. spent six years putting them in place),

FEATURE
but Microsoft also quickly

Ûi`ÌwÝÌi°,}Ì
now, Bing delivers lengthier
responses, and footnotes
its answers so you can
check them yourself or
follow up for more content.
Is it better? That’s hard to
say. For now, it’s entirely
free, though it requires
a Microsoft subscription.
Google’s Bard also promises Microsoft’s Photos Legacy app (not the default Photos
the same basic features as app) does a nice job surfacing scenes that you can identify
Bing or ChatGPT, but until through search terms.
it shows up, it’s largely a
two-horse race. attached to the photo to determine
the location, but that’s not much help
5 FACE AND SCENE if you want to search for ‘ski trip’ or the
RECOGNITION IN PHOTOS ‘mountains’ of France or Switzerland.
One of the consequences of always /iÀi]ÞÕ½w`Ì>ÌƂÃÃV>}Ìi
having a camera in our pocket is the photo to determine what’s in the scene.
ÀÃÌ>ÌÜi½iÛiÀLi>LiÌw` You’ll need to go into the Settings
our photos again. ‘Smart’ albums, menus of apps to enable these
including Google Photos, allow you to recognition features. However, AI
organize your photos both by subject search might already be there on your
as well as the scene. It’s really nice to phone: Try clicking the search icon
be able to search a photo as easily within the Gallery app on a Samsung
as you search Gmail, either for the Galaxy camera, and you’ll likely see
scene or location (‘Bahamas’) or simply facial recognition already there and
clicking on the face of your children, ready to go.
grandmother or best friend.
A photos app like the Windows 6. WINDOWS HELLO
Photos Legacy app (free from fave. 6ÃÕ>ìÌwV>Ì`>ÌiÃ>ÌiÜ>Þ
VÉÎ `,Ã®V>Ãi>ÀVÌiiÌ>`>Ì> back to the original Microsoft Kinect:

Remember how the Kinect technology wrinkles and bags from under your eyes.
for the Xbox could automatically All of these are AI features you’d rather
recognize you? Talk about a technology not give up, we’d bet.
that was way ahead of its time. Now,
Windows Hello uses a depth camera 8. AI ART
on your laptop to do the same thing. For now, set aside concerns about
You can argue that it’s not truly AI, as training generative AI art on
the technology essentially is matching copyrighted images, or potential threats
your real-life visage against a stored to small artists and their commissions.
record. But it’s likely that Microsoft is For small projects – say, a bake sale,
thinking about how AI could be used Back to School night, or a church
to accommodate changes in your face, breakfast – generative AI art may prove
with new glasses, wrinkles, or a beard to be a handy bit of casual clip art that
complicating matters. can be brought in on a custom basis.
There are a number of AI art services
7. MAKING YOU that are just emerging: Microsoft
$'#76+(7.|10|%#/ iÃ}iÀv>Ûi°VÉÎ,n®Ãi
Microsoft Teams, Zoom, and other it could be quite handy, some of the
services already blur
your backgrounds,
hiding the mess you
forgot to pick up last
night or entertaining
your co-workers with
a fun background.
Microsoft’s Windows
Studio Effects use AI on
the Microsoft Surface
*Àx®ÌwÌiÀÕÌ
background noise,
pan and zoom, and
more. Samsung’s new There are a number of AI art services out there, but Midjourney
Galaxy Book3 laptops continues to be near or at the top of the heap. (Prompt: ‘Walking
even try to smooth out in a literal sea of stars’.)

FEATURE
art we’ve seen from

Midjourney (fave.
VÉÎ+{*ÎV®ÃÃ«Þ
breathtaking, and
Stable Diffusion (fave.
VÉÎ/«8®ÜÀÃ
right on your PC.
Human-authored
digital art isn’t going
away. Still, we can’t
help but think of it as a
travel agent: An agent
V>VÀ>vÌ>>}wViÌ AI is simply something digital assistants require to function.
custom travel package,
but sometimes you’d rather save distinguishing them from background
the commission and book through noise), comprehending them, and
Google Flights, Tripadvisor, or another then responding. You can even ask
service yourself instead. Decide what a smart assistant to recognize your
works for you. voice and tailor actions, such as a
reminder or appointment – to you,
9. YOU.COM rather than other members of the
You.com isn’t a big name in AI yet, family. Natural-language processing
but that’s not to say that it won’t be. is part and parcel of AI, in how it
Implementing search, an AI chatbot, and intuits meaning from your words and
generative AI art in the same interface phrases. In fact, society seems to prefer
makes it worth checking out. It’s also that AI technology not listen on our
totally free and otherwise ad-free. conversations, which is why the idea of a
trigger phrase came into being.
10. SPEECH/VOICE Journalists love Otter.ai and similar
RECOGNITION tools, because they can automatically
We don’t think much of Amazon’s transcribe spoken interview audio into
Alexa and Google’s Home devices text that’s easily transcribed into text.
using AI, but they obviously do However, it doesn’t seem too hard to
in simply parsing your words (and peer into a future where that’s just the

norm, and not a paid service. improved upon mere spelling and
grammar suggestions to analysing
11. AUTOCORRECTIONS your copy for inclusiveness and tone,
#0&|#76157))'56+105 to what we’d assume will be more
Whether it’s your phone’s keyboard, powerful content creation as Microsoft
Gmail, or Microsoft Editor, vÕÃiÃÌi"vwVi>««ÃÜÌƂ°
autocorrections and autosuggestions
simply take what it knows of what 12. RECOMMENDATION
you’re writing and suggests a ALGORITHMS
correction, the next word, or even a Unfortunately, not all of us like the
whole phrase to save you time and recommendations that Google, or
effort. Yes, autocorrect trips up, often iÌyÝ]À>`ÃiÀÛiÀÃìÛiÀÌÕÃ°
humorously. But it can absolutely There’s a theoretical trade-off: give an
save you time when typing out a long algorithm more data, and its advice
email on your phone. will improve. Anecdotally, that’s true to
This same technology is moving some extent. Where the system breaks
onto the PC, either in apps like down is where a service has to balance
Google Workspace or Microsoft Editor. what it thinks we’ll like versus what it’s
Editor and Microsoft Word have quietly paid to recommend – and we often can’t
tell the difference.
We still think that
iÌyÝ>`-«ÌvÞ]vÀ
example, do a fairly
good job matching
our preferences to the
content they suggest.
7>ÌÃÕ`Ü>ÌV iÌyÝ¶-ÌÀi>}ÃiÀÛViÃV«iÜ>Ì
ÌiÞÜ>LÕÌÞÕÌÀiVi`ÞÕÀiÝÌw°

FEATURE
How to turn an old tablet

into a second computer
monitor for free
Put your spare screens to work. JARED NEWMAN reports
I
f you’re used to working with boot. Fortunately, though, there’s a
multiple computer monitors at free way to use old iPads, Android
your desk, traveling with a laptop tablets, or even other laptops as extra
can be tough. Suddenly, you’re monitors for your Windows PC.
back to the single-screen lifestyle, The solution is a utility called
and on a cramped laptop display to Spacedesk. It may not be the only

multi-monitor software out there,
but it’s the most versatile free
option I’ve found so far.
INSTALLING SPACEDESK
FOR WINDOWS
Spacedesk consists of two parts:
• Spacedesk’s Driver software runs

in the background on your PC and
1.
connects to your other screens. You
can install it from the Spacedesk
ÜiLÃÌi\v>Ûi°VÉÎ«8vV° ÌiÌ>Ì recognize your computer automatically
ÞÕ½ii`Ì>i>wÀiÜ>iÝVi«Ì if it’s on the same Wi-Fi network, so
for Spacedesk to work. An option to do you can select it and launch second-
so is included in the installation process. screen mode (1.).
• Spacedesk’s Viewer apps can CONFIGURING SPACEDESK

be launched on other devices, at By default, Spacedesk doesn’t scale
which point your PC will recognize up any display elements, which can
them as additional monitors. Apps make things look too small on your
are available for Windows (fave. iÝÌÀ>ÃVÀii°/wÝÌÃ]i>`Ì
VÉÎ,Ý{9®]"-v>Ûi°
VÉÎ«i}Ƃ/®]Ƃ`À`v>Ûi°
VÉÎ/>Õ®]Ƃ>âìÛViÃ
v>Ûi°VÉÎ9*>Õ®]>`>Þ
other device via the web
ÛiÜiÀv>Ûi°VÉÎ,Ü8Þ®°
The server connection

works over Wi-Fi. Once
you’ve installed the Driver
software, open the Viewer
2.
app. Spacedesk should

FEATURE
Spacedesk’s taskbar icon,

select ‘Spacedesk driver
console’, then uncheck the box
that says ‘Automatic Start at
System Boot Time’ (3.).
>iÃÕÀiÌVw}ÕÀiÞÕÀ
monitors in Windows as well.
Head to Settings > System >
Display, and you’ll see a layout
of all your screens, which you
V>`À>}>``À«ÌÀiyiVÌÌiÀ
3.
actual positioning at your desk.
Now you can move your mouse
Windows Settings > System > Display in the direction of your additional
(2.), select your new display from the screens, and they’ll be right where you
list of monitors, then try adjusting both expect them.
the display resolution and scaling to a In the Viewer app, you can also click
more comfortable level. the Gear icon and select Settings for
Also, note that by default, additional options, including screen
the Spacedesk Driver will always resolution and quality (4.).
launch when your computer boots Unfortunately, Spacedesk only
up. To change this, right-click on supports wired USB connections on
Android devices, and the
company has indicated that
this may become a premium
feature in the future.
But even over a wireless
connection, Spacedesk is
good enough for referencing
emails, documents, or team
chats alongside your main
windows. It also has no
issues playing video in sync
4.
with system audio.

INSIDE: WINDOWS 11 TIPS & TRICKS
APRIL 2023
GALAXY BOOK3 PRO 360

SAMSUNG’S STUNNING NEW LAPTOP
PLUS:
HOW AI COULD
IMPROVE
WINDOWS 11

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INSIDE:

AI SERVICES THAT WILL

Credit: Getty Images/MF3d

Top cover image: Credit: Getty Images/Smederevac

MAY 2023 • TECH ADVISOR 3

4 TECH ADVISOR • MAY 2023

MAY 2023 • TECH ADVISOR 5

6 TECH ADVISOR • MAY 2023

According to the notes spotted

MAY 2023 • TECH ADVISOR 7

HP printers still block

8 TECH ADVISOR • MAY 2023

MAY 2023 • TECH ADVISOR 9

If the printer was manufactured after

Unfortunately, that still leaves

10 TECH ADVISOR • MAY 2023

MAY 2023 • TECH ADVISOR 11

Microsoft’s latest beta version of written summary at the top of the

12 TECH ADVISOR • MAY 2023

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14 TECH ADVISOR • MAY 2023

MAY 2023 • TECH ADVISOR 15

Õ«Ü>À`ÃÌ>vÕÈ°xÃVÀii> Gen 2 performance, a stunning 120Hz

4. TECNO PHANTOM V FOLD

16 TECH ADVISOR • MAY 2023

MAY 2023 • TECH ADVISOR 17

18 TECH ADVISOR • MAY 2023

MAY 2023 • TECH ADVISOR 19

video playback. OnePlus also demoed

20 TECH ADVISOR • MAY 2023

MAY 2023 • TECH ADVISOR 21

That choice of materials

22 TECH ADVISOR • MAY 2023

KEYBOARD a room that’s completely dark, and at

MAY 2023 • TECH ADVISOR 23

it lacked the precision

24 TECH ADVISOR • MAY 2023

MAY 2023 • TECH ADVISOR 25

of a discrete GPU is more noticeable. Microsoft Surface Laptop 5: 13 hours,

26 TECH ADVISOR • MAY 2023

MAY 2023 • TECH ADVISOR 27

28 TECH ADVISOR • MAY 2023

MAY 2023 • TECH ADVISOR 29

30 TECH ADVISOR • MAY 2023

MAY 2023 • TECH ADVISOR 31

I found that in a café

32 TECH ADVISOR • MAY 2023

iLiV ,£xÌ}iÌ>ÃiÃivÀ Ü Dell Latitude 7330 Ultralight: 1,410

MAY 2023 • TECH ADVISOR 33

34 TECH ADVISOR • MAY 2023

MAY 2023 • TECH ADVISOR 35

it feels incredibly premium.

36 TECH ADVISOR • MAY 2023

MAY 2023 • TECH ADVISOR 37

not sure what the company

38 TECH ADVISOR • MAY 2023

MAY 2023 • TECH ADVISOR 39

40 TECH ADVISOR • MAY 2023

MAY 2023 • TECH ADVISOR 41

Õ«Ü>À`ÃÌ>vÕÈ°xÃVÀii> Gen 2 performance, a stunning 120Hz

iLiV,£xÌ}iÌ>ÃiÃivÀÜ Dell Latitude 7330 Ultralight: 1,410

/iÃiwiV>iÀ>Ài>Ã>ÌÎÓ«] with its successor. The combination of

change them. It also displays how ËÓä°>Þi>À]Ìi*iÀÃ>«>>``Ã