Although analyst firms recently predicted that PC sales for 2019 would show the first signs of growth in nearly a decade, Gartner threw cold water on those findings on Tuesday: After the Windows 7 to Windows 10 migration ends, PC sales will decline once again.
On the other hand, global device sales—PCs, tablets, and smartphones—should continue to grow slightly by 0.9 percent in 2020, the firm said. Of note, too, is what Gartner predicts about 5G smartphone penetration: an estimated 12 percent of smartphone shipments in 2020, growing to 43 percent in 2022.
Windows upgrades and 5G smartphones won’t prevent total device sales from slowly falling once again, Gartner predicts.
For 2020, Gartner predicts that Microsoft will finally hit its goal of 1 billion PCs sold or installed with Windows 10, a target Microsoft originally thought it would hit in 2017, or at the latest, 2018. That would be about 80 percent of all installed PCs. In September, Microsoft corporate vice president of Modern Life, Search and Devices Yusuf Mehdi tweeted that Microsoft had reached a total of 900 million installs.
The corporate PC transition from Windows 7, whose support expired last week, to Windows 10, pushed PC sales into positive territory, Gartner said. But without that bump, the firm expects PC sales to fall once again. There are some wild cards: China, for example, is going through a process of replacing foreign-made PCs with Chinese-made devices. Small businesses that neglected to transition by the deadline may also give PC sales a bump.
“The PC market’s future is unpredictable because there will not be a Windows 11. Instead, Windows 10 will be upgraded systematically through regular updates,” said Ranjit Atwal, a research senior director at Gartner, in a statement. “As a result, peaks in PC hardware upgrade cycles driven by an entire Windows OS upgrade will end.”
About the only category of device that Gartner sees increasing in sales will be premium “ultramobile” PCs, which will make up a small but growing segment of the PC market. But more mass-market ultramobile (or thin-and-light) PCs will see sales slowly decline over the next few years, too.
In phones, the transition to 5G will help grow the market slightly in 2020 to 1.777 billion phones, Gartner found, as consumers and businesses replace 4G devices. Even then, the firm said, device sales should slowly contract over the next three years.
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Enterprises could be even more vulnerable to email-based attacks according to a new study from BitDam which shows that malicious files regularly bypass all of today’s top email security solutions.
The firm’s study titled “The Blind Spots of Email Security” measured the ability of email security products to detect unknown threats at first encounter.
By using fresh samples of malicious files from a number of sources and qualifying them as unknown threats, BitDam was able to calculate the miss rate at first encounter as well as the Time To Detect (TTD) of today’s top email security products.
Detecting unknown threats
According to the study’s findings, the miss rate over seven weeks at the end of 2019 was about 23 percent for Office ATP while the TTD average was about 48 hours. However, close to 20 percent of missed unknown threats took four or more days to be detected and Office 365 ATP was ‘blind’ to selected unknown threats it did not detect at first encounter. For G-Suite, the miss rate was 35.5 percent and the TTD average was bout 26 hours with around 10 percent of missed unknown threats taking three days or more to be detected.
These large detection gaps provide proof of how enterprises are often unprotected against unknown threats and this can lead to successful email-based attacks such as ransomware, phishing and malware.
Former founder and CTO of Bromium, Simon Crosby praised BitDam’s study for pinpointing the unacceptable gap in detection time by many email security products, saying:
“Mind the gap! is as relevant to CISOs as it is to riders on the London Underground. The time gap between malware delivery and subsequent detection by the industry’s most widely used endpoint protection suites solutions is shockingly long – in practice long enough to be useless. BitDam’s recent study pinpoints this unacceptable gap in detection time, showing that organizations are exposed to cyberthreats for many hours, or even days, before their email security identifies these as malware.”
Looking for the best compact camera in 2020? From straightforward point-and-shoots to feature-packed powerhouses, this guide includes our selection of the finest pocket-friendly cameras you can buy right now.
Whether you want a superzoom for your next getaway, a tough shooter to take on beach weekends or a capable all-rounder to keep in your satchel, all of these compacts offer a stellar blend of portability, features and performance.
With the imaging abilities of smartphones improving every year, compact cameras have had to evolve. Budget holiday snappers have been replaced with more advanced shooting solutions, some of which can deliver results to rival DSLR cameras.
Our current pick of the compact crowd is the Sony RX100 VII. It might be a good deal more expensive than the still pricey RX100 VI, but its impressive autofocus system and superb video quality make it impossible to pass over.
If the RX100 VII is too much, though – and for almost everyone it will be – read on for a host of excellent suggestions to suit every need and budget. Each camera in this list has been tested in-depth by us, while our price comparison tool means you’ll get the best deal on whichever compact camera you choose.
In some respects, this is the best compact around right now. Its autofocus system is way ahead of what anyone else is doing right now, tracking moving subjects with excellent skill and cleverly switch into and out of face- and eye-detection as necessary. Control over video recording is as superb as the quality of the footage itself, while image quality is also stellar. But all of this comes at a price, and for many people it’s just a little too steep for the camera to be included in the main list, but we can’t pass it by as one of the best options there is. So if you have some spare change, we’d highly recommend the RX 100 VII.
If, however, you like the idea of the seventh-generation RX100 but are happy to sacrifice that superb autofocus system, check out the RX100 VI (position 6), which maintains much of what we see here for a little less outlay.
With its fixed-focal-length lens and bulky body, the X100F isn’t undoubtedly a specialist compact camera. But as the fourth entry in a popular series, it takes the best elements from its forebears and elevates photographic performance again. Its 24MP APS-C sensor delivers detailed images with low noise and superb colors, while the manual control dials connect you physically in a way you simply won’t encounter on many other compacts. Video is limited to Full HD recording, but that’s unlikely to be a deal-breaker for many photographers. Is it worth holding out for the rumored X100V? The latest whispers suggest that model will be out in early 2020, and will bring a 26MP sensor and improved autofocus. It will, though, also bring a hefty price tag, and with X100F edging closer to dipping under the £1,000 mark, this remains a great buy for street photography.
Panasonic invented the travel-zoom camera genre – compact cameras that you can fit in a pocket but that have long zoom lenses built-in. Despite strong competition, the ZS range (known as TZ outside the US) has continued to dominate sales, and it looks set to continue this with the brilliant Lumix ZS200 (called TZ200 outside the US). As we first saw with the Lumix ZS100 / TZ100, Panasonic has been able to keep the camera body about the same size as earlier ZS-series cameras but squeeze a much larger 1-inch sensor into the camera to deliver much better image quality. The zoom lens isn’t quite so extensive as some, but the versatile 15x zoom should be more than enough for most users, while you also get (an admittedly small) electronic viewfinder, 4K video and a great touchscreen interface. If you’re looking for a neat all-in-one compact camera that delivers great images, this is it.
If you’re looking for a powerful all-in-one bridge camera, then the RX10 IV from Sony is the best there is. You’ll pay a premium for that performance, but when you look at what else is out there for the same price, the RX10 IV is virtually in a league of its own. Featuring a huge 24-600mm f/2.4-4 zoom lens, the RX10 IV builds on the RX10 III with an overhauled AF system that now does justice to the rest of the camera, while the 1-inch, 20.1MP sensor is capable of achieving excellent levels of detail. Handling is very polished, feeling like a DSLR in the hand and complemented by a large and bright electronic viewfinder. That’s not forgetting the ability to capture video in 4K and shoot at up to 24fps. Impressive stuff.
Sensor: 1-inch, 20.1MP | Lens: 24-100mm, f/1.8-2.8 | Monitor: 3.0-inch touchscreen, 1,040,000 dots | Viewfinder: No | Continuous shooting: 20fps (30fps in Raw Burst mode) | Movie: 4K | User level: Beginner/Intermediate
Super-fast burst shooting
Great build and handling
Lens can be a little soft
No hot shoe
The G7X Mark II proved to be a smash and we’re confident that this will be just a great a hit with vloggers and enthusiast photographers. With the new advantages of 4K shooting, a mic port and live streaming to YouTube joining the previously seen built-in ND filter and flip up LCD screen, this is arguably the strongest compact right now for vlogging. But if you’ve no interest in video there’s still plenty to keep you happy, from 30fps shooting at full resolution to a super-sensitive touchscreen, in-camera raw processing and the added convenience of USB charging. It’s a shame there’s no viewfinder or hot shoe, but then not everyone needs these.
Compact cameras with sensors larger than 1-inch in size are typically limited to fixed-focal-length lenses, which is great for quality but less so for flexibility. But not the Panasonic LX100 II; it manages to marry a 17MP Four Thirds sensor – the same size as those found inside Panasonic’s G-series mirrorless cameras – with a zoom lens equivalent to 24-75mm in 35mm terms, proving that sometimes you can get quality and flexibility at once. The original LX100 was something of a landmark camera for offering something similar, and this latest iteration takes the baton, with a nippy AF system, robust body, clear 4K videos and a useful electronic viewfinder among its highlights.
Sony’s original RX100 was a landmark camera that fused a 1-inch sensor in a compact, metal body with the controls and image quality demanded by enthusiasts. The RX100 VI goes several steps further, though, with a ‘stacked’ sensor design for high-speed data capture. This means it can shoot 4K video, amazing 40x slow motion and still images at 24fps in continuous burst mode. That’s not forgetting the neat little built-in electronic viewfinder that its rivals lack, while this sixth generation model now packs an impressive 24-200mm zoom lens. It’s a pricey option and does have its quirks, but if you’re looking for a versatile, pocket-sized compact with a quality zoom lens, you won’t be disappointed.
A bit pricey, but still an excellent all-rounder for enthusiasts
Sensor: 1-inch CMOS, 20.1MP | Lens: 24-120mm f/1.8-2.8 | Monitor: 3.0-inch tilt-angle touchscreen, approx. 1.04 million dots | Viewfinder: 0.39-inch EVF, 2.36 million dots | Continuous shooting: 20fps (8fps with AF); 30fps in raw burst mode | Movies: 4K (UHD) | User level: Intermediate
Good handling for a small body
Clear, useful EVF
A little pricey compared to rivals
Battery could be better
The second coming of the G5 X is a serious step-change in styling and spec for the series. Gone is the DSLR-style shell in favor of a streamlined body that’s still a pleasure to grip but far easier to slip into a pocket. Inside, a new 20.1MP stacked CMOS sensor, driven by Canon’s DIGIC 8 engine, is able to capture uncropped 4K footage, while a fresh 24-100mm lens offers a generous focal range and a relatively wide maximum aperture. Well-rounded and wonderful to use, the G5 X Mark II delivers reliably good image quality, brisk focussing and a strong feature set. Battery life could be better and the lens can be a little soft at longer focal lengths, but the Mark II remains a very capable all-rounder that’s untroubled by almost all scenes. So why the lower ranking? It needs to come down in price.
Keen photographers usually go for a DSLR or mirrorless camera, but they also want something that will slip in a pocket for those days when the big camera needs to stay at home. Usually, that means putting up with a smaller sensor – but not this time. Somehow, Canon has shoehorned a DSLR-sized APS-C sensor into a compact camera body. There’s also a built-in electronic viewfinder and refined touchscreen interface. The zoom range is a bit modest at 24-72mm, but there’s nothing else quite like it.
It’s tempting for list this model higher up just for the value for money it offer, but it isn’t the newest model and, as a result, doesn’t have the topnotch performance of its newer siblings. The RX100 IV sits in the middle of the RX100 family, and while newer models beat it for burst shooting, autofocus and focal range, for most people this cheaper alternative would still serve them brilliantly. The 1-inch sensor at its heart captures lovely images and super-crisp 4K videos, and while the 24-70mm (35mm equivalent) lens range isn’t quite as broad as on the RX100 VI and RX100 VII, the lens itself has a wider f/1.8-2.8 aperture. The 2.36 million-dot viewfinder cleverly hides away when not in use, while optical image stabilisation inside the lens keeps everything steady. You might want to pair it with a separate grip for better handling, but if you need a powerful compact to slip into your pocket – and you don’t want to spend a fortune getting it – you’ll find the RX100 IV delivers plenty.
The ZS100 may have been refreshed by the ZS200 (position 2) but don’t let that put you off; this is still a fine camera, and its last-gen status means it’s at a better price than ever. Part of its charm is that fact that it partners a large 1-inch sensor with a 10x optical zoom lens, which provides better image and video quality than other superzoom compacts, but with the flexibility of a broad zoom lens – not something many cameras can claim. Other niceties include a built-in EVF, very good quality 4K video and Wi-Fi, along with image capture in raw.
The Q2 is a thing of beauty, and right now it’s arguably the best compact camera around. It’s not for everyone – not least because it costs a small fortune – but if you genuinely want the best compact you’ll be hard pushed to find a finer one than the Q2. Leica hasn’t compromised on the spec sheet, with the 47.3MP sensor producing masses of detail and keeping noise impressive low, while the 3.68 million dot electronic viewfinder is bright and sharp. Also bright and sharp is that 28mm f/1.7 lens, while 4K videos show plenty of detail. It’s not the easiest to handle (although you can get an optional grip) and some may have preferred a tilting screen, but its build quality is near-faultless. If you’re pining for such a camera in your life but can’t quite find the funds, consider the previous Q1 model, which offers a slightly stripped-down feature set by comparison for a hell of a lot less.
Ricoh GR III
Also fairly niche, but great at what it does nonetheless
Sensor: APS-C 24.2MP | Lens: 28mm f/2.8 (35mm-equivalent) | Monitor: 3.0-inch touchscreen, 1,040,000 dots | Viewfinder: No | Continuous shooting: 4fps | Movies: Full HD | User level: Intermediate
Tiny, rugged body
Great sensor and sharp lens
Video quality is poor
So is battery life
We had mixed feelings when we came to review the GR III, but it still deserves a mention here. Why’s that? Because, despite a few quirks, Ricoh managed to get a lot right, and it delivers something no other compact quite manages right now, namely the combination of an image-stabilized 24MP APS-C sensor inside a body that you can squeeze into your pocket. Other advantages include a high-performing lens, fast operation, a revamped menu system and understated styling to help keep you discreet when you’re out shooting. The fixed 28mm-equivalent lens won’t be to everyone’s taste, and the battery life is also disappointing, but for those who need to travel light and take great images, this is a very capable alternative to an interchangeable-lens camera.
If you’re looking for Xbox One, fitness tracker, or 4K TV deals, you’ve come to the right place. Amazon’s current sales offer cash off a range of electronics including fitness trackers, consoles, AirPods, and Beats headphones. There are even some laptop and iPad deals out there to get your 2020 productivity on.
We’ve listed all our favorite Amazon sales right here for you to peruse, with our top picks sitting right at the top.
Amazon Daily Deals: Today’s Top Picks
Smartwatch / fitness tracker deals
Massive Apple Watch and Fitbit sales at Amazon
Fitbit Inspire HR Fitness Tracker: $99 $59.95 at Amazon For a limited time, you can save $40 on the Fitbit Inspire HR fitness tracker at Amazon. The ultra-slim activity tracker is made for everyday wear and offers 24/7 heart rate monitoring. View Deal
Fitbit Charge 3 $149.95 $99.95 at Amazon Amazon has this Fitbit Charge 3 deal on sale for $99.95. The water-resistant fitness tracker offers 24/7 heart rate tracking and provides an impressive seven-day battery life. View Deal
Fitbit Versa Lite | $159.95 $119 at Amazon The Fitbit Versa Lite is one of the cheapest ways to start tracking your fitness from your wrist (with a large screen). You’re getting all the basic monitoring and analysis you’d expect from a Fitbit deal but also phone notifications and sleep monitoring. View Deal
Garmin Forerunner 35 |$169$99.99 at Amazon This easy to use fitness tracker is perfect if you’re just starting to monitor your exercise from your watch. You’re getting 24/7 heart rate monitoring, notifications, and exercise prompts on a high resolution display and it’s all $50 off at Amazon. View Deal
Garmin Vivoactive 3 GPS | $249.99$116.99 at Amazon As a fitness tracker the Garmin Vivoactive 3 excels with 15 preloaded programs targeting various sports and exercises as well as stress tracking boot. As a smartwatch, this $116 wrist piece still doesn’t let up – offering notifications, seven day battery and Garmin Pay as well. View Deal
Garmin Instinct|$299.99$212.51 at Amazon If you’re after a fitness tracker deal more suited to the great outdoors, then this Garmin Instinct has military-grade resistance to thermal, shock and water pressures. You also have access to three global navigational systems and all the fitness and heart tracking you’ll desire. View Deal
Garmin Fenix 5X | $599.99 $359.96 at Amazon The luxurious Garmin Fenix 5X is down to just $359 at the moment at Amazon, meaning you can pick up the feature-loaded multi-sport watch for over $100 less. Stacked with outdoor navigation features, tracking and stat notifications during your workouts, and dozens of connected features, this is a fitness tracker for the serious. View Deal
Apple Watch Series 5 44mm GPS | $399 at Amazon The Apple Watch 5 is the first Apple Watch to feature the always-on display that will keep the time and all of your notifications and complications instantly reachable. Plus, it’s available for a fantastic sub-$400 price tag at Amazon.
Apple AirPods with charging case | $159$129 at Amazon The standard second generation of Apple Airpods are still on sale at Amazon for just $130. We only saw these available for a little less than this price over Black Friday so if you missed out over the deals season, it’s never too late to bag a bargain. View Deal
Apple AirPods with wireless charging case | $199 $169 at Amazon You’re paying $40 more to pick up the wireless charging case with your Apple AirPods deal this week – well worth it if you have a qi charger laying around. View Deal
Beats Powerbeats 3 Headphones: $199.99 $79.99 at Amazon This Powerbeats 3 headphones deal is on sale for only $79.99 at Amazon. That’s a $100+ discount and the lowest price we’ve found for the water-resistant wireless earbuds. The Powerbeats 3 are part of the Beats Decade Collection and come in a black-red color combo. View Deal
Beats Powerbeats Pro | $249.95 $199.95 at Amazon Start 2020 right with these Powerbeats Pro earbuds – perfect for fitness and AirPods’ biggest competitor now reduced back down to under $200. View Deal
Beats Solo 3 Wireless Headphones: $299.99 $195 at Amazon The Beats Solo 3 headphones get a $100 price cut at Amazon. The best-selling wireless headphones provide up to 40 hours of battery life and work with Siri for hands-free control. View Deal
Bose SoundTouch 300 soundbar | $699 $399 at Amazon Save $300 on the Bose SoundTouch 300 soundbar today and take home an excellent audio booster for your TV. With Alexa integration straight out of the box, there are more ways to control your audio than ever. View Deal
Tablet and laptop deals
New offers on iPad and Kindle sales
iPad (2019) WiFi 128GB | $429 $379.99 at Amazon This is the latest flagship iPad to hit store shelves. You’re getting support for all the latest peripherals in this exceedingly cheap iPad deal today, plus a nice price drop at Amazon.128GB is more than enough for storing your entertainment and documents as well as a few high-performance apps to boot. View Deal
Apple iPad Air | 10.5-inch | 64GB | $499 $459 at Amazon The iPad Air takes all the best bits of the classic iPad experience and offers a new lightweight model to get it done with. This is the 64GB model and the cheapest configuration you’ll find in iPad deals this week. View Deal
Apple iPad Pro | 11-inch | 256GB | WiFi | $949 $799.99 at Amazon If you’re looking for more storage space, you might want to consider this iPad Pro deal and save $150. You’ll be able to store a good few high-performance apps as well as a fair number of HD downloads with 256GB. View Deal
Lenovo Ideapad 330 15.6-inch laptop | $499.99 $299.99 at Amazon Save $200 on this Lenovo Ideapad 330 laptop deal at Amazon. You’re picking up 8GB of RAM and a 256GB SSD – great specs at this price, not to mention the AMD A9 processor and Radeon R5 graphics. View Deal
Acer Aspire 5 | $529 $487 at Amazon Equipped with an 8th-generation Intel Core i5 processor, 8GB of RAM and a 256GB SSD, the Acer Aspire 5 is already a budget champion. Save an extra $42 on this Amazon laptop deal today.View Deal
Asus VivoBook 15-inch gaming laptop | $549.99 $479.99 at Amazon You’re getting a quad-core AMD R5 processor with 8GB RAM and a 256GB SSD inside this sleek, thin shell. You’ll also be running Radeon Vega 8 graphics so there’s plenty of reason to get some gaming in there as well.
Lenovo Ideapad 330S 15.6-inch laptop | $559 $475 at Amazon This 330S Lenovo Ideapad model only has 4GB of RAM listed, but you’re also getting 16GB of Intel Optane memory to balance the books on that spec. If you’re after big storage, this 1TB hard drive will do the trick, and while there’s no SSD to speak of, you’re getting efficient power thanks to that Optane memory. There’s also a nice quad-core 8th generation i5 processor to keep everything ticking over. View Deal
Gaming deals
Nintendo Switch, PS4 and Xbox One deals still live
Nintendo Switch | 128GB memory card | $324.49 at Amazon This Nintendo Switch deal would be a lot better if the 128GB memory card wasn’t already on sale at the same time for $25 by itself. While this is on sale separately, you’re not saving any cash by picking up the Nintendo Switch console and the memory card at the same time. That said, we don’t know when this Micro SD card will go back up in price and you’re saving $10 either way. View Deal
Nintendo Switch Pro Controller | $69.99$59 at Amazon You can save $10 on the Nintendo Switch Pro controller at Amazon today and get some serious gaming done with your Switch. It’s the best way to get an improved controller feel without sacrificing your rumble or motion controls. View Deal
PS4 Slim 1TB | God of War, The Last of Us: Remastered, Horizon Zero Dawn: Complete Edition | $249 at Amazon Pick up a massive 1TB PS4 Slim deal for $50 less than the usual console price and take home some of the best exclusive games in one fell swoop. That’s a win in our deal-hunting books. View Deal
PlayStation VR | 5x games | PS4 camera | $299 at Amazon The seasonal sales have so far all but wiped out stock of this popular Mega Pack PlayStation VR bundle. You can still grab the deal for $289 at Amazon and take home the headset, camera, PlayStation Worlds, Skyrim, Astro Bot, Resident Evil 7, and Everybody’s Golf VR. View Deal
PS4 Slim 1TB Console | Days of Play Bundle | $319 $279 at Amazon Get the limited edition Days Of Play Bundle on sale at Amazon for $282.01. The PlayStation 4 console comes in steel black and includes a 1TB hard drive and matching DualShock 4 wireless controller. View Deal
Xbox One S | Gears 5 bundle | $299.99$229 at Amazon Grab all five Gears games and an Xbox One S console for just a bit over $200 this week at Amazon. That’s a fantastic price considering we’ve been seeing these deals rise in cost over the last week or so. View Deal
Xbox One X | Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order | $499.99$398 at Amazon This is a popular bundle offering one of the most revered games of the last few months with Xbox’s most powerful console yet. Plus, you’re saving a good $100 overall and getting the game for free! View Deal
Limited Edition Gears 5 Xbox One X | $499.99 $397 at Amazon This is a limited edition console design with a $100+ price drop – enough to grab any deal hunter’s attention. In addition to a download code for the brand new Gears 5, you also get codes for Gears of War 1-4 and month of free access to Xbox Game Pass and Xbox Live Gold. View Deal
Smart home and Amazon Echo deals
Cheap Echo speakers and displays
Amazon Echo Flex | $24.99 $19.99 at Amazon $5 off an already cheap Alexa solution makes this sub-$20 accessory the most cost effective way to smarten up your home. The Echo Flex is essentially a plug-in Echo speaker with full Alexa functionality, allowing you to add smart features to every room in your house. View Deal
Amazon Echo Dot | $49.99 $34.99 at Amazon The Echo Dot is the easiest way to kick start your smart home. A smart speaker in its own right, though not sitting in the highest tier, the Echo Dot ties together your smart home devices and services in one handy hub. View Deal
Amazon Echo Show 5 | $89.99 $69.99 at Amazon Grab this smart display to open your home to a new world of Alexa commands and responses. Follow recipes, catch up on some Prime Video, video call, and personalise with your own photos on the 5.5-inch touchscreen display. View Deal
Amazon Echo | $99.99 $89.99 at Amazon The all-new Amazon Echo is available for $10 off at Amazon at the moment. It’s not the cheapest we’ve seen the fully fledged smart speaker go on Amazon recently, but if you’re after the Dolby-powered speaker now you can save some cash with this Echo deal. View Deal
iRobot Roomba 675 | $299.99 $199.99 at Amazon The iRobot Roomba is here to take care of all your vacuuming needs automatically. This particular model is fine on carpets and can even withstand pet hair. Self-charging and controllable through Alexa and the Roomba app, you’re saving $100 with Amazon this week. View Deal
TV deals
4K and smart TVs on sale
TCL 40S325 40-inch smart TV | $299.99 $179.99 at Amazon Looking for the cheapest way to bag a new TV at Amazon? Grab a TCL TV deal and you can save over $100 on a cheap and cheerful 40-inch LED smart TV running Roku. View Deal
Toshiba LF711U20 50-inch 4K UHD smart TV | $380 $269.99 at Amazon This Toshiba 4K TV deal is saving you over $100 at Amazon today. Plus, you’re even getting Dolby Vision in the display – a fantastic feature at this price point. View Deal
Samsung UN50RU7100 50-inch UHD HDR 4K TV | $499.99$347.99 at Amazon This 2019 Samsung 4K TV is down by $150 right now at Amazon, meaning you can enjoy its powerful ultra-hd processor and PurColor detail for even less right now. This is a fantastic TV with crisp definition and Amazon Alexa built right in for good measure. View Deal
Samsung QN49 49-inch QLED UHD 4K TV | $999 $597.99 at Amazon If you’re after a higher than average quality display but aren’t too enthused by the going rate of an LG OLED, these Samsung QLED TV deals are perfect. They offer a fantastic display with all the upscaling processing, HDR and smart features you’d expect from a high-end TV without the price tag to go with it. View Deal
Samsung QN55 QLED 55-inch 4K HDR TV | $1,197.99 $697 at Amazon This is a great sub-$700 price on a usually well over $1,000 55-inch QLED TV from Samsung. That’s also an extra $300 off the usual sales price for this particular unit. You’re getting a fantastic quantum processor upscaling everything you see as well as all the Alexa and Google Assistant compatibility you could ask for. View Deal
LG SM8600PUA Nano 8 65-inch 4K UHD smart TV | $1,049 $796.99 at Amazon This NanoCell TV is seeing a great price drop at Amazon today – saving you over $250 on a premium 4K TV deal. The 2019 model has Alexa built-in as well as LG ThinQ technology. View Deal
References to Zen 3, the architecture of AMD’s next-gen Ryzen desktop processors, have turned up in the Linux kernel, hinting that these chips might just arrive sooner than we think.
New versions of the Linux kernel are often combed through as they emerge, looking for clues like references to unreleased hardware, and this time around it’s Komachi_Ensaka (a prolific leaker) who spotted details of AMD’s ‘Family 19h’ processors, and shared them on Twitter.
[PATCH 4/5] EDAC/amd64: Add family ops for Family 19h Models 00h-0Fh https://t.co/wveHQTqrqU>Add family ops to support AMD Family 19h systems. Existing Family 17hfunctions can be used.Also, add Family 19h to the list of families to automatically load themodule.January 18, 2020
As Techspot, which reported on the tweet, points out, Family 19h refers to Zen 3 silicon. Zen 2 – the architecture on which existing Ryzen 3rd-gen CPUs are built – is Family 17h.
The fact that it’s a new family underlines what we’ve previously heard: that Zen 3 is a whole new architecture, with major gains expected as such. Indeed, some speculation contends that Ryzen 4000 desktop processors might witness a 20% performance leap over and above current Ryzen 3000 products.
Zen 3 appearing in the Linux kernel doesn’t mean the release of Ryzen 4th-gen chips is around the corner, by any means, but it does hint that perhaps the mid-year point, or just after, could be feasible for release. And if Comet Lake slides to maybe even May, as current speculation holds, that could leave these Intel chips almost immediately facing off against the next-generation of Ryzen.
AMD CEO Lisa Su recently confirmed that Zen 3 will definitely be out in 2020, and that the company is going to be “very aggressive” with its CPU roadmap, again hinting that we might see Ryzen 4000 desktop chips sooner rather than later in the second half of the year.
Naturally, all of this is merely theorizing on launch timeframes, but Intel is doubtlessly feeling the CPU heat in more than one way right now. The company has already lost enough ground in the desktop processor arena to AMD, without further slipping up.
At CES 2020, AMD came out swinging with a group of GPUs, like the Radeon RX 5700M, for laptops that should see it compete in the market for the first time in years. However, Nvidia’s not going to take that lying down.
We’ve seen a leaked Geekbench result, spotted by renowned leaker Tum Apisak, that suggests that we’ll be getting a Max-Q Nvidia GeForce RTX 2080 Super in the near future – however there are some details that are suspect.
GeForce RTX 2080 Super with Max-Q Designhttps://t.co/JYQVFe9jUEJanuary 20, 2020
The specs reported in the Geekbench leak are a little fishy, which we’ll get into later, but it could just be due to early drivers and misreported system information. This isn’t the first time we’ve heard rumors suggesting that Nvidia could be working on a GeForce RTX Super mobility lineup, so this just helps paint a picture of what the lineup could look like.
At the end of the day, we won’t know whether or not these leaks are accurate until Nvidia deems it necessary to actually announce its Super Mobility lineup – if it ever does. Until then, all we can do is take these leaks and tear them apart to see what we can potentially learn.
Getting our hands dirty
The Nvidia GeForce RTX 2080 Super Max-Q appears in a laptop equipped with an Intel Core i9-10980HK. But, the 10980HK in this Geekbench result only has a maximum frequency of 4.92GHz, short of the 5GHz promised at CES 2020. We did see a leak from Tum Apisak earlier that suggested that the maximum frequency is 4.8GHz, so the sample in this leak is the slowest one we’ve seen – which suggests it may not be real.
The specs for the actual graphics processor seem legit, however. With 48 streaming processors, it matches the spec of the desktop-class RTX 2080 Super. Clock speeds see a massive dip, however, which is to be expected: down to 1.23GHz boost from the 1.815GHz that the desktop card features.
That’s only to be expected – because of the power constraints of the thin-and-light gaming laptops that Max-Q graphics are found in, GPUs simply cannot reach the same clock speeds, and thus result in lower performance overall.
If this mobile GPU is actually real, it should lead to improved performance over the vanilla RTX 2080, though if it mirrors the bump seen when we moved from the RTX 2080 to the RTX 2080 Super on the desktop side, it’ll be a very minor upgrade.
Until Nvidia actually details what the RTX 2080 Super Max-Q can do (if it actually exists), we’re just going to have to keep digging into these leaks. As it stands, because today’s information features hardware that’s either unannounced or is announced with no specific specs, it’s hard to actually trust these leaks.
Either way, because the RTX 2080 Super was such a slight upgrade over the original card when it launched back in July 2019, if you’re looking to buy a high-end gaming laptop, we’d just jump on it now. If real, the RTX 2080 Super will be faster, but it likely won’t be so much faster that waiting a few months will be worth it.
Following the news that the European Commission is considering a temporary ban on facial recognition technology, Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai has voiced his support for the new measure while Microsoft President Brad Smith believes that banning it outright may not be the best move.
At a recent conference in Brussels organized by the think tank Bruegel, Pichai explained that facial recognition regulation should happen sooner rather than later, saying:
“I think it is important that governments and regulations tackle it sooner rather than later and give a framework for it. It can be immediate but maybe there’s a waiting period before we really think about how it’s being used. It’s up to governments to chart the course.”
Benefits of facial recognition
While Pichai cited the possibility that facial recognition could be used for nefarious purposes as his reason for supporting the EU’s ban, Smith stressed that the technology can be used for good and gave the example of NGOs using it to help find missing children, saying:
“I’m really reluctant to say let’s stop people from using technology in a way that will reunite families when it can help them do it. The second thing I would say is you don’t ban it if you actually believe there is a reasonable alternative that will enable us to, say, address this problem with a scalpel instead of a meat cleaver.”
According to Smith, it is important to first identify problems and then create rules to ensure that the technology would not be used for mass surveillance as opposed to banning facial recognition outright.
The European Commission has already drafted a white paper on its plans to temporarily ban facial recognition for three to five years in order to figure out how to prevent the technology from being abused. The paper is expected to be published in February and at that time we’ll have a better idea as to the specifics and whether or not other countries will follow suit.
Gartner 
