All posts tagged: laptops

System 76 Pangolin Pro Review (2026): Powerhouse Linux Laptop

System 76 Pangolin Pro Review (2026): Powerhouse Linux Laptop

Published by skeptic

I have similar feelings about the very large glass trackpad. For things like photo editing, the trackpad’s size is great, but I found my palms occasionally clicked the buttons at the bottom of the trackpad when I took a break from typing. It didn’t happen often, but I learned to be careful about where I put my palms. The 2-MP 1080p webcam is fine for casual use, chatting with family and friends, but if you do a lot of Zoom meetings in a professional context, you may want an external webcam. Also, open-source purists should note that Coreboot still does not support AMD Ryzen chips (or AMD does not support Coreboot, depending on how you want to look at it), so the Pangolin Pro does not use open firmware. Finally, the Pangolin Pro is easy to open up to replace or repair components. There are nine screws on the bottom of the chassis, and none of them are hidden under the rubber feet or other shenanigans. Unscrew them all, and the bottom lifts off, giving …

I used a free tool to track my laptop’s battery in real time, and it changed how I charge it

I used a free tool to track my laptop’s battery in real time, and it changed how I charge it

Published by skeptic

My Dell Latitude 5420 is an all-round laptop, and I wouldn’t trade it for anything. Sure, it’s five years old, but it’s still a great laptop for my work needs. However, the battery health tells a different story. It only lasts around 2 to 3-ish hours these days, which isn’t surprising for a laptop of its age. Besides, I recently checked the battery report and found out that it can now only hold a full charge capacity of 21,052 mWh, which is about 66.6% lower than its designed capacity of 63,004 mWh. I’ve done some things to get the most out of my laptop’s battery, but I figured tracking the battery degradation more closely would help me understand how it’s actually holding up. So, what did I do? I started using a free tool called BatteryInfoView. Related How to Identify Battery Draining Apps in Task Manager Spot and stop what’s killing your laptop’s runtime. But it’s static, and checking it repeatedly gets tedious Windows already has a built-in battery report tool, and it’s actually pretty …

AI, robots and the world’s lightest laptop – the best gadgets at Europe’s biggest electronics show

AI, robots and the world’s lightest laptop – the best gadgets at Europe’s biggest electronics show

Published by Sam Flores

While you will probably never need a dancing robot in your home, I did see one which purports to be a butler that takes care of housekeeping. Currently, I wouldn’t trust its claw-like hands pouring a glass of red wine anywhere near me, but while you wait for that tech to advance there were plenty of other home robots whose services I would engage. Both Dreame and Roborock have launched stair-climbing robot vacuum cleaners over the last year or so, and one even picks up stray, dirty socks. Dyson is bringing its UV lights to its robot range to better illuminate dirt, and it has developed triangular cleaning pads to reach right into corners. I also saw pool and window cleaning robots from brands including Ecovacs and Roborock, and Eufy and Mammotion’s robot lawnmowers continue to advance, clambering up steeper lawns than ever, and with edge-cutting technology to rival your strimmer. Mova’s mowers even had arms, showcased to dramatic effect with a choreographed fan routine set to music from a live DJ. Whether they can …

The Best Laptop Backpacks for Work, Travel, and Everything Between (2026)

The Best Laptop Backpacks for Work, Travel, and Everything Between (2026)

Published by skeptic

Though I’ve been working from home for the past 15 years, both freelance and full-time, this often means needing to be available 24/7, so I typically carry my laptop everywhere I go—including sports practices, day trips, and vacations. I have used many laptop backpacks in this time, and the dividing line between a work backpack that’s comfortable and fits seamlessly into your daily routine and one that’s aggravating at every turn is a fine one. If you’ve got limited closet space, it also helps if the backpack can pull double duty and be used for travel and/or hiking. The backpacks below are ones either I or another WIRED reviewer have used extensively in real life, taking on planes, hiking trails, vacations, and work trips. For more bag and backpack recommendations, Bag Check features WIRED staffers’ favorite totes, sleeves, and packs. For more portable gear, check out our guides to the Best Wireless Chargers, Best Bluetooth Trackers, and Best Travel Adapters. Updated September 2026: I’ve added the Paramount Daypack Lite 20L and the Navigator Backpack to …

Best Labor Day tech deals 2026: We found laptops, TVs, headphones, and AirTags on sale

Best Labor Day tech deals 2026: We found laptops, TVs, headphones, and AirTags on sale

Published by skeptic

Table of Contents Table of Contents Table of ContentsBest Labor Day Apple dealBest Labor Day TV dealBest Labor Day headphones dealBest Labor Day laptop dealBest Labor Day smart home dealLooking for more Labor Day sales? Labor Day sales are already live in full force. It’s an especially good time to shop if you’ve been thinking about upgrading some older tech: For one thing, these sales offer some welcome relief from RAMageddon-related price hikes (which just keep coming, ugh). For another, they’re probably your last real chance to save on big-ticket gadgets like laptops, TVs, and premium headphones until late October, when early Black Friday festivities get going. Below, I’ve rounded up a big batch of the best Labor Day tech deals that I could find at Amazon, Best Buy, and beyond. That includes new record-low prices on devices from brands like Apple, Sony, and TCL, with discounts soaring as high as 60%. Most retailers’ Labor Day sales run through Labor Day proper on Monday, Sept. 7, so I’ll continue to update this story into the …

Linux hardware support isn’t a gamble on these 6 laptops

Linux hardware support isn’t a gamble on these 6 laptops

Published by skeptic

Installing Linux on a laptop is easy enough now that I’m far more interested in what happens after the installer disappears. Wi-Fi should connect, suspend should wake back up, the webcam should behave, and plugging into a dock shouldn’t stress me. The harder part is knowing which laptops will actually behave that way before you buy one. A spec sheet can tell you the processor and ports, but it rarely tells you whether the fingerprint reader works under Linux or if a routine suspend will turn into a forum search. Hardware compatibility can still be one of Linux’s lingering dealbreakers, which is why some machines remove much more uncertainty than others. Related I tried 4 lightweight Linux distros on a 4GB laptop, and one surprised me It’s always the one you least expect. Framework Laptop 13 with AMD Ryzen 7040 or Ryzen AI 300 Series The modular laptop with Linux baked into the hardware plan Credit: Hannah Stryker / MakeUseOf Framework publishes a Linux compatibility table for each Laptop 13 generation, so you can see what …

The 6 best laptops for college in 2026, tested by experts

The 6 best laptops for college in 2026, tested by experts

Published by skeptic

Here at Mashable, we’re constantly reviewing the best laptops based on an exhaustive in-house methodology that combines real-world use with performance benchmarking. In the past two years alone, we’ve tried over 90 different models across a range of price points. To determine which of them fit the bill for college students, specifically, I researched the top 10 public universities‘ hardware recommendations for the fall 2026 semester and honed our pool of contenders based on the common threads I noticed for different majors. I also gave special preference to laptops that are long-lasting and portable enough to be toted around campus, and those that are competitively priced for the current market. Laptops aren’t cheap right now, but a solid splurge can last you well past graduation. Take advantage of student discounts whenever possible. I eventually settled on six top picks that make the best laptops for college students. Whether you’re a humanities student, a STEM major, or still undeclared, I’m confident that at least one of my options will be your ideal machine. Here’s a quick …

Best Gaming Laptops, CPUs, TVs, And Keyboards To Upgrade Your Set Up For GTA VI

Best Gaming Laptops, CPUs, TVs, And Keyboards To Upgrade Your Set Up For GTA VI

Published by Sam Flores

After 13 years, Grand Theft Auto VI is finally in sight. Almost. With just a couple of months until its official launch (on 16 November, FYI) there’s still a little time to level up your gaming set up so you give the moment the experience you deserve. Whether you need a new gaming laptop, TV, or keyboard, our shopping writer has got you sorted. We’ve scoured the web for the best equipment for gaming, so when the big day comes you won’t have any lag, or miss out on any of those much-anticipated graphics. Keep reading for our suggestions. Best laptops, CPUs, keyboards, and TVs for gaming Best budget gaming laptop Want to be able to take your gaming laptop with you wherever you go? This laptop not only comes in considerably cheaper than the Acer and Alienware models, but is also much lighter. The battery life isn’t ideal, though, so you’ll need to keep it plugged in or carry the charger with you wherever you go. If you don’t mind that, the refresh rate, …

China-linked hackers backdoored executives’ laptops via USB, exploiting a fix companies had but weren’t using

China-linked hackers backdoored executives’ laptops via USB, exploiting a fix companies had but weren’t using

Published by skeptic

A Chinese state-linked hacking group compromised executive laptops at an agricultural industry conference on Hainan Island this spring — not through phishing or a network breach, but by breaking into hotel rooms and booting the machines from a USB stick while the executives were at dinner. CrowdStrike, which tracks the group as OVERCAST PANDA, disclosed the campaign in its 2026 Threat Hunting Report and detailed the operation’s timeline in an interview with VentureBeat at Fal.Con 2026: an intruder entered one room at around 8 p.m. local time and a second room by 9:57 p.m., writing a backdoor called FlowCloud directly to each laptop’s storage before rebooting the machines and leaving. There was no network intrusion, no phishing email, and no credential stolen through a login page. The report dates the intrusions to between March and May 2026, and the timestamps come from Adam Meyers, CrowdStrike’s senior vice president of counter adversary operations, who cleared them for publication in the VentureBeat interview. CrowdStrike’s OverWatch team disrupted the intrusions and assessed that OVERCAST PANDA will almost certainly …

Lenovo’s Project AeroBlade Fanless Laptop Takes Thin and Light to the Extreme

Lenovo’s Project AeroBlade Fanless Laptop Takes Thin and Light to the Extreme

Published by skeptic

Lenovo is well-known for its creative, if wacky, concept laptops, usually involving some sort of display trickery. But at the IFA Berlin 2026 consumer electronics trade show, the company showed a proof of concept that actually looks production-ready. The Project AeroBlade Concept laptop is built around a new active cooling technology from Frore Systems that uses air pressure—instead of fans, heatsinks, and large vents—to expel heat from the CPU. That means thinner laptop designs and quieter operation, and the space savings allow for larger batteries. According to Lenovo, it could reimagine how future high-performance laptops are designed. Under Pressure Photograph: Les Shu Photograph: Les Shu Lenovo is the first computer manufacturer to unveil a laptop that uses Frore’s AirJet Mini fanless air-cooling technology. Frore is known for its liquid-cooling tech that’s used in data centers, but the AirJet is designed for consumer computers. Dubbed the Lenovo Active Flow Thermal Solution, the AirJet module pulls ambient air that’s inside the laptop to create 2,000 Pascals of back pressure (around 124 miles per hour). This high-speed air …