Doom VFR review: Everything should be this good

No death is certain when you work for the Union Aerospace Corporation.

Guess what? You’re dead. Yep, Pinky demon came rushing right at you as soon as it locked eyes and you know how that goes. I mean, we’ve all read the briefing reports on those things. They’ll keep running at you until one of you is dead and, well, you weren’t exactly ready for that fight. Not to worry though, your consciousness was uploaded into a shiny new Union drone so you can fulfill your contractual obligations to the corporation!

You’d better get to work, and make sure you have a gun or seven nearby this time. It looks like things are not going well around here.

Read more at VRHeads!

Ask Engadget: What is the best 4K, 3D-capable TV?

The support shared between readers in the comments section is one of the things we love most about the Engadget community. Over the years, we’ve known you to offer sage advice on everything from Chromecasts and cameras to drones and smartphones. In fact, our community’s knowledge and insights are a reason why many of you participate in the comments.

We truly value the time and detail you all spend in responding to questions from your fellow tech-obsessed commenters, which is why we’ve decided to bring back the much-missed “Ask Engadget” column. This week’s question comes to us from a reader who is in the market for a TV with pretty specific features. Weigh in with your advice in the comments — and feel free to send your own questions along to ask@engadget.com!

I really enjoy watching 3D Blu-rays at home and have a good collection. Now that 3D capability seems to have been dropped from most, if not all, new TVs, what do I do? My current TV is a Samsung 55-inch and only 1080p. I really want to get a new 60-plus-inch 4K model with 3D capability (not a projector). What are my best options?

Devindra Hardawar
Senior Editor

Consider yourself a rare consumer. While 3D was something the movie industry and TV makers pushed hard a few years ago, it wasn’t widely adopted by many. Like most failed formats, the problem lay in its complexity. You needed to have a 3D Blu-ray-capable player, as well as a 3D TV.

Once you were set there, you had to figure out what sort of glasses you needed to use (and keep them charged, if they were “active” frames). And, of course, only a few films, like Avatar, Hugo and How to Train Your Dragon, were worth watching again in 3D. So, it’s not a huge surprise to see support for the format dwindling today, especially as we have more impressive technological leaps like 4K and HDR.

So where does that leave you? While you don’t have many 3D options in low-end and mid-range 4K TVs, there’s still support in some higher-end sets. In particular, LG’s 2016 OLED models (the C6, E6 and G6) all feature 3D. You might also see some older 4K sets from around 2014 with 3D, but I’d steer clear of those since they don’t offer HDR, which is the real visual upgrade in modern TVs. And I know you’re not interested in projectors, but honestly they’re worth considering since plenty of 1080p models have 3D, and it’s a format that really benefits from being viewed on a giant screen.

It’s worth noting that LG completely omitted 3D in its 2017 TVs, and you won’t find it on other popular LCD sets, like Sony’s X900E. While it’s likely not difficult for manufacturers to bundle in the technology now, the relatively low adoption among consumers and lack of content makes it an easy sacrifice. Why invest time and energy including something that most people have been ignoring? 3D is clearly on its way out. But luckily for you, now’s a good time to nab one of those LG OLED sets at a huge discount.

NSA surveillance expansion bill moves to House for a vote

Intelligence officials might not get the permanent surveillance powers they’re looking for, but they could get some key concessions all the same. The House Intelligence Committee has passed the FISA Amendments Reauthorization Act of 2017 in a partisan 12-8 vote, clearing it for an eventual vote in the House of Representatives. The bill is ostensibly about renewing the FISA Amendments Act’s Section 702 for 4 years, but it also expands the list of eligible spying targets.

Where the agency previously only had authority to snoop on either foreign powers or an “agent of a foreign power,” it would have the authority to surveil anyone who knowingly helps others who conduct “international malicious cyber activity.” That looser definition theoretically lets the NSA collect data on people who are only incidentally connected, rather than those directly involved.

There are other issues. This would offer guidance on reviving the sweeping “about” collection that scooped up American email en masse, and hints that the NSA could target whole facilities for surveillance, not just specific targets. And when the agency wants to read data caught by widescale surveillance, it would only have the option of seeking a warrant, rather a requirement.

There’s no guarantee this will survive a House vote or the rest of the Congressional gauntlet, but there’s clearly an attempt to rush the measure through the legislature and minimize chances for scrutiny. Both the Committee and the public had less than 2 days to see what it contained before the decision to move forward. And what little debate time there was ended up revolving around protections for “unmasking” the identities of Americans, not the broader privacy issues. The NSA could get significantly extended powers with little public discussion.

Via: EFF

Source: House Intelligence Committee (1), (2)

Best Buy Doorbuster Event Day 2: Save $200 on MacBook Pro and $80 on Beats Pill+ Speaker

Today is Day 2 of Best Buy’s 20 Days of Doorbusters sale event, which began yesterday and offers customers new deals on a variety of products every day until December 20. For today’s sale, you can get $200 off the mid 2017 model of Apple’s 13-inch MacBook Pro in three configurations, which we’ve listed below. These discounts are mostly hitting between $50 and $100 below the price of similar models at other retailers like B&H Photo and MacMall, so be sure to check them out before the sale prices disappear tonight at midnight.

Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with Best Buy and Walmart. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.

13-inch MacBook Pro

• Intel Core i5, 8GB, 128GB Flash Storage, Space Gray – $1,099.99, down from $1,299.99
• Intel Core i5, 8GB, 128GB Flash Storage, Silver – $1,099.99, down from $1,299.99
• Intel Core i5, 8GB, 256GB Flash Storage, Space Gray – $1,299.99, down from $1,499.99
• Intel Core i5, 8GB, 256GB Flash Storage, Silver – $1,299.99, down from $1,499.99
• Intel Core i7, 16GB, 512GB Solid State Drive, Space Gray – $1,999.99, down from $2,199.99

Besides MacBook Pro, Best Buy today also the Beats Pill+ speaker on sale for $149.99, a savings of $80 from its normal price of $229.99. You can buy the Bluetooth speaker in Black, White, or (PRODUCT)RED. If you’re looking for other colors, Walmart has the Beats Pill+ at the same $149.99 price point in Asphalt Gray and Turf Green, part of the Beats Neighborhood Collection.

Additionally, there is a collection of MacBook accessories made by Incase available during Day 2 of Best Buy’s Doorbuster event. With these discounts you can get up to $35 off select hard shell, cover, and sleeve accessories created for 13-inch and 15-inch MacBook Pro and 13-inch MacBook Air.

Check out Best Buy’s deals page for more of Day 2’s discounts — which include an Amazon Fire TV, Lenovo laptop, and Google Pixel 2 — and remember that all of today’s sales will end around midnight tonight. For those planning ahead, the next few notable Doorbuster days include headphones (December 4), Smart 4K TV sets (December 6), iPad (December 11), iPhone (December 17), and another MacBook sale (December 19).

To keep track of even more deals going on this week, make sure to head over to our full Deals Roundup.

Related Roundup: Apple DealsTag: Best Buy
Discuss this article in our forums

How to use Bluetooth AptX HD on the OnePlus 5T for a great listening experience

The OnePlus 5T has a very in-demand feature in smartphones right now — a 3.5mm headphone jack; but that doesn’t mean it’s the way you should be listening to music on the phone. OnePlus is one of the few manufacturers that supports Bluetooth AptX HD into its phones. It’s a wireless audio codec that provides a greater than CD quality sound when using compatible wireless headphones.

To experience AptX HD, you need to follow a few simple stages to get it working. Here’s our guide to enjoying AptX HD on your OnePlus 5T. If you haven’t bought a OnePlus 5T yet, read our OnePlus 5T review to find out why you should.

The right equipment

Owning the OnePlus 5T gets you only halfway to AptX HD audio nirvana. You also need an AptX HD-ready pair of headphones. That’s right, your old pair of well-used in-ears that came free with an old phone won’t cut it here. You’re going to have to splash out, but it’s worth it.

The easiest way to find out what headphones are ready for AptX HD is visit the AptX website, where you’ll find a complete, up-to-date list of compatible hardware. We are particular fans of the amazing Audio Technica ATH-DSR9BT over-ears, the Bowers & Wilkins PX noise canceling headphones, and LG’s Tone Active+ halo-style in-ears.

More products are being released with AptX HD support all the time, so if you don’t find a pair to suit right now, do keep checking back.

How to activate AptX HD

You’ve got your OnePlus 5T, and the right pair of Bluetooth headphones all ready to go. Now, we need to prepare and then pair them together. Here are the stages you need to follow:

• First, open Settings and scroll down to Advanced. Tap to open and look for the Bluetooth Audio Codec option at the bottom of the page. Tap it and select AptX HD in the menu that appears.
• Once you’ve activated it, go back to the Bluetooth settings and pair your smartphone with the headphones. Tap Bluetooth and make sure it’s switched on using the slider at the top of the menu page. Ensure your headphones are also turned on and in Bluetooth pairing mode.

• Look for the headphones in the Available Devices list, and tap to pair.
• Just as the two devices pair up, provided AptX HD has been activated correctly and you have a compatible pair of headphones, you’ll see a notification at the bottom of the screen saying AptX HD is active.

That’s it, you’re now set up for the best wireless audio quality you’ll hear.

Use the best music sources

When you use AptX HD and play hi-res files, the sound is as close to high resolution audio quality usually provided by wired headphones as you’ll get. It plays up to 48kHz/24-bit LPCM audio, and it’s genuinely unlike any wireless Bluetooth experience you’ll have had before. To get this, you should use hi-res sources, such as Tidal HiFi, or your own hi-res music files.

Playing regular MP3 files, or music from Spotify, will sound better using AptX HD; but it won’t be the eye-opening experience you’ll have with hi-res content.

Editors’ Recommendations

• OnePlus 5T review
• These OnePlus 5T tips and tricks will help you master your new phone
• How some of the best wireless headphones were almost never made
• Can wireless audio quality finally match wired? We tested the latest, AptX HD
• Bluewave Get Hi-Fi Wireless Headphone Amp review

The best wireless keyboards for every platform and computer

Tablets and laptops are getting more and more advanced all the time, but our input options often have a hard time keeping up. If you want to get down to business, a touchscreen keyboard usually just won’t get the job done. Serious work needs a proper keyboard.

You could opt for something big and chunky, or perhaps a mechanical keyboard that offers a more tactile typing experience. But if you are on the go, you’ll probably want something more compact that you can throw in your bag without all the wires. This guide will take you through some of the best wireless keyboards available today, for all sorts of different budgets and uses.

Note that we’ve omitted designs that integrate a case or cover, as with various iPad combinations or the Surface keyboard. First-party devices are generally high quality, but we’re focusing on solutions that work with multiple form factors and platforms.

Our pick

Logitech K780 multi-device wireless keyboard ($84)

William Harrel/Digital Trends

Unlike the K480, we absolutely adored the Logitech K780 when we got a chance to test it. Compatible with Windows, MacOS, Android, and iOS, this versatile wireless keyboard comes with a tray to seat your tablet in, supports up to three devices at once, and comes with its own USB dongle for use with systems without Bluetooth support.

We did feel the lack of NUM lock and caps-lock indicators when we tested it and no backlighting does mean that you aren’t going to want to use this one in the dark — unless you’re a pro touch-typer — but overall this is the best wireless keyboard we’ve tested in quite some time.

It’s comfortable, versatile and the battery life is said to last as long as two years on just two AAA batteries. Although this keyboard is more expensive, that’s comparable to our choice for best battery-life on this list.

Available now in two different colors, the Logitech K780 is our pick for the best wireless keyboard you can buy right now.

But it now from:

Amazon Logitech Store

Best budget keyboard

OMOTON Bluetooth Keyboard ($16)

If you’re looking for the absolute cheapest Bluetooth keyboard you can get, the OMOTON $16 keyboard is a good option. It might look like a rip-off of Apple’s Magic Keyboard, but don’t be fooled: it’s made entirely of plastic. However, it is quite thin and light, making it convenient to quickly thrown in your bag with your iPad or laptop. The manufacturer claims 30 days of continuous use, using two AAA-batteries, which aren’t included in the package.

It really is made with the iOS in mind, but should work across the board for MacOS, Windows 10, and Android — though longevity for future updates is questionable.

Buy it now from:

Amazon

Best battery life

Microsoft Wireless Desktop 900 ($30)

As much as you might only be looking for a wireless keyboard to augment your tablet experience, the Microsoft Wireless Desktop 900 goes a step further and comes with a fully-functioning wireless mouse too. Don’t fret that that will make this option the most costly, as its MSRP of $50 is hardly extortionate. Better yet, you can regularly find this wireless peripheral bundle for as little as $30.

Although there have been some reports of a slightly noisy spacebar, the keyboard in this bundle features quiet keys and a smooth typing experience. Its wireless signal is even encrypted to an AES 128-bit standard, so you can rest assured that what you’re typing won’t be intercepted. Keys are reprogrammable too, letting you customize the keyboard layout as you wish.

The big selling feature of this set though is battery life. With just two AAA batteries, Microsoft claims that you can have up to two years of operation out of both the keyboard and mouse. That means they will be a long, long time before you even have to think about replacing the batteries.

Buy it now from:

Amazon Microsoft

Best for Apple devices

Apple Magic Keyboard ($88)

Apple’s redesigned Magic keyboard is everything Apple fans (and others) could want from a minimalistic Bluetooth keyboard design. The older Magic keyboards had a rolled base that propped the back of the keyboard up and made room for AA batteries. The new version now has a rechargeable battery, so the keyboard lies much more flat. It might be a little bigger than some of the other options on the list, but it works well with both iOS and MacOS products.

The keys also received an upgrade, and now have a little more weight when typing, which is generally also an improvement. The arrow key redesign is somewhat less welcome, but the advantages to this new design are hard to deny. The Bluetooth battery claims a one month charge, too, so you can carry this keyboard around without worrying about it too much. That’s not a patch on some of the others on this list, but for Apple loyalists this is the keyboard to buy.

The next version may even come with Apple’s famed touch bar, though we hope it doesn’t.

Buy it now from:

Amazon

Best compact option

Arteck HB030B Universal Slim Keyboard ($20)

Those looking for a super-compact Bluetooth keyboard for their mobile devices may find the inexpensive Arteck HB030B perfect for their needs. This 0.24-inch thin keyboard is easy to slip into most computer bags or backpacks, and is compatible with pretty much every common mobile platform. It’s tiny and scrunched, which might be just what you want when you need to type on the go.

It also comes with a surprising amount of backlighting, with seven different color options and two levels of brightness. Perfect for those who need a mobile keyboard in low-light conditions.

Buy it now from:

Amazon

Updated 12/01/2017 by Jon Martindale – Overhauled categories and updated text. 

Editors’ Recommendations

• Here are the 26 best iPad keyboard cases, from the Mini to the Pro
• Here are the 12 best deals on accessories for the Apple iPad, iPhone, and Watch
• The best iPad cases and covers for the new iPad (2017)
• 12 must-have portable tech gadgets you can score for cheap right now
• The top 8 Bluetooth speaker deals will help you keep the party going

The best wireless keyboards for every platform and computer

Tablets and laptops are getting more and more advanced all the time, but our input options often have a hard time keeping up. If you want to get down to business, a touchscreen keyboard usually just won’t get the job done. Serious work needs a proper keyboard.

You could opt for something big and chunky, or perhaps a mechanical keyboard that offers a more tactile typing experience. But if you are on the go, you’ll probably want something more compact that you can throw in your bag without all the wires. This guide will take you through some of the best wireless keyboards available today, for all sorts of different budgets and uses.

Note that we’ve omitted designs that integrate a case or cover, as with various iPad combinations or the Surface keyboard. First-party devices are generally high quality, but we’re focusing on solutions that work with multiple form factors and platforms.

Our pick

Logitech K780 multi-device wireless keyboard ($84)

William Harrel/Digital Trends

Unlike the K480, we absolutely adored the Logitech K780 when we got a chance to test it. Compatible with Windows, MacOS, Android, and iOS, this versatile wireless keyboard comes with a tray to seat your tablet in, supports up to three devices at once, and comes with its own USB dongle for use with systems without Bluetooth support.

We did feel the lack of NUM lock and caps-lock indicators when we tested it and no backlighting does mean that you aren’t going to want to use this one in the dark — unless you’re a pro touch-typer — but overall this is the best wireless keyboard we’ve tested in quite some time.

It’s comfortable, versatile and the battery life is said to last as long as two years on just two AAA batteries. Although this keyboard is more expensive, that’s comparable to our choice for best battery-life on this list.

Available now in two different colors, the Logitech K780 is our pick for the best wireless keyboard you can buy right now.

But it now from:

Amazon Logitech Store

Best budget keyboard

OMOTON Bluetooth Keyboard ($16)

If you’re looking for the absolute cheapest Bluetooth keyboard you can get, the OMOTON $16 keyboard is a good option. It might look like a rip-off of Apple’s Magic Keyboard, but don’t be fooled: it’s made entirely of plastic. However, it is quite thin and light, making it convenient to quickly thrown in your bag with your iPad or laptop. The manufacturer claims 30 days of continuous use, using two AAA-batteries, which aren’t included in the package.

It really is made with the iOS in mind, but should work across the board for MacOS, Windows 10, and Android — though longevity for future updates is questionable.

Buy it now from:

Amazon

Best battery life

Microsoft Wireless Desktop 900 ($30)

As much as you might only be looking for a wireless keyboard to augment your tablet experience, the Microsoft Wireless Desktop 900 goes a step further and comes with a fully-functioning wireless mouse too. Don’t fret that that will make this option the most costly, as its MSRP of $50 is hardly extortionate. Better yet, you can regularly find this wireless peripheral bundle for as little as $30.

Although there have been some reports of a slightly noisy spacebar, the keyboard in this bundle features quiet keys and a smooth typing experience. Its wireless signal is even encrypted to an AES 128-bit standard, so you can rest assured that what you’re typing won’t be intercepted. Keys are reprogrammable too, letting you customize the keyboard layout as you wish.

The big selling feature of this set though is battery life. With just two AAA batteries, Microsoft claims that you can have up to two years of operation out of both the keyboard and mouse. That means they will be a long, long time before you even have to think about replacing the batteries.

Buy it now from:

Amazon Microsoft

Best for Apple devices

Apple Magic Keyboard ($88)

Apple’s redesigned Magic keyboard is everything Apple fans (and others) could want from a minimalistic Bluetooth keyboard design. The older Magic keyboards had a rolled base that propped the back of the keyboard up and made room for AA batteries. The new version now has a rechargeable battery, so the keyboard lies much more flat. It might be a little bigger than some of the other options on the list, but it works well with both iOS and MacOS products.

The keys also received an upgrade, and now have a little more weight when typing, which is generally also an improvement. The arrow key redesign is somewhat less welcome, but the advantages to this new design are hard to deny. The Bluetooth battery claims a one month charge, too, so you can carry this keyboard around without worrying about it too much. That’s not a patch on some of the others on this list, but for Apple loyalists this is the keyboard to buy.

The next version may even come with Apple’s famed touch bar, though we hope it doesn’t.

Buy it now from:

Amazon

Best compact option

Arteck HB030B Universal Slim Keyboard ($20)

Those looking for a super-compact Bluetooth keyboard for their mobile devices may find the inexpensive Arteck HB030B perfect for their needs. This 0.24-inch thin keyboard is easy to slip into most computer bags or backpacks, and is compatible with pretty much every common mobile platform. It’s tiny and scrunched, which might be just what you want when you need to type on the go.

It also comes with a surprising amount of backlighting, with seven different color options and two levels of brightness. Perfect for those who need a mobile keyboard in low-light conditions.

Buy it now from:

Amazon

Updated 12/01/2017 by Jon Martindale – Overhauled categories and updated text. 

Editors’ Recommendations

• Here are the 26 best iPad keyboard cases, from the Mini to the Pro
• Here are the 12 best deals on accessories for the Apple iPad, iPhone, and Watch
• The best iPad cases and covers for the new iPad (2017)
• 12 must-have portable tech gadgets you can score for cheap right now
• The top 8 Bluetooth speaker deals will help you keep the party going

How to enable Night Light blue light filter on Chrome OS

Night Light is a feature that lets users avoid eye strain when using a screen late at night, and it is now available for Chrome users.

As someone who spends most of his waking day staring at one of a few screens, night mode is my favorite feature to come along in the last few years. On Windows, Android and iOS, users can flip a switch to filter out the blue light spectrum coming from their screen.

The blue part of the color spectrum has some interesting effects on the human eye — exposing yourself to too much of this light at night will make it much harder to get to sleep. Fortunately, Chrome users also have the option to toggle night mode as well.

This feature is available in the stable channel of Chrome OS, which means users don’t need to deal with potentially buggy software to enable this. It does require a trip to the Chrome flags page, rather than just flipping a toggle in settings. There are some extensions available on the Chrome Web Store that duplicate this feature, but having it as part of the operating system will make the feature more stable and less likely to impact your battery life. Here’s how to enable the Night Light feature:

Open a new tab, and type chrome://flags into the address bar.
Hit Control+F on your keyboard to search for text in the page.
Type Night Light to find the night light setting.
Click Enable under the setting.
Click Restart Now to restart the device so the setting can take effect.

Now, you’ll have the Night Light toggle available to you in the quick settings menu. At press time, there isn’t an option to schedule this setting to take effect at sundown, so the user will need to manually toggle it. Here’s how to toggle the Night Light setting:

Click on your account photo in the lower right corner of the screen.
Click on the moon icon to turn Night Light on.

• When you’re ready to turn the filter off, simply click on the moon icon again.

We used this feature on newer Chromebooks without issue, but an older device may not have the feature available or it might be less stable. Are you going to use Night Light on your Chromebook? Let us know down below!

Chromebooks

• The best Chromebooks
• Should you buy a Chromebook?
• Google Play is coming to Chromebooks
• Acer Chromebook 14 review
• Join our Chromebook forums

Best subscription gifts for Canadians

What are the best subscription gifts for Canadians

It’s that time of the year again where we all start thinking about buying gifts for our loved ones. Can’t figure out what to get someone on your list? Why not buy them a gift that keeps giving throughout the year!

There are a good number of subscription services available in Canada that would make for great gifts this holiday season. Let’s dive in!

Spotify Premium

It’s 2017 — if you’re not streaming your music you’re doing it wrong. Amongst all the different music streaming services out there, Spotify is the best. Spotify Free is alright, but once you’ve gotten a taste for Spotify Premium there’s really no going back. You get to stream all your favorite music in high quality with no ads, unlimited skips, and the ability to download your favorite albums or playlists for offline listening

If you have a music lover on your shopping list and they aren’t on the Spotify bandwagon yet, you can be their hero and gift them a subscription to Spotify Premium this holiday season. E-Cards are available starting at one month for $9.99 and going all the way up to a full year for $119.88, with 3- and 6-month options also available. Give the gift of unlimited streaming music!

Learn more at Spotify

Netflix

It’s honestly hard for me to remember what life was like before Netflix. We truly are spoiled to live in a time with so much great content is available to us wherever we go. Netflix is available for smartphones, most smart TVs, Android TV boxes, video game consoles — pretty much if you can plug it into a TV it can probably play Netflix.

Whether or not the person you’re buying for already has a Netflix subscription doesn’t matter, because if not having to pay for Netflix for a few months is as good as getting Netflix for the first time.

Online gift cards are unavailable up in Canada, but you should be able to find physical gift cards sold at wherever gift cards are sold including Best Buy, Shoppers Drug Mart, 7-Eleven, and Safeway locations in your neighborhood.

Learn more at Netflix

Google Play

A Google Play gift card is one of the simplest and most versatile gifts you can buy the Android fan in your life because you’re able to spend it on such a variety of different apps, e-books, movies, or towards a Google Play Music subscription.

Google Play Music is quite comparable to Spotify in that a premium subscription gets you unlimited access to millions of songs that you can stream anywhere. If they’ve never tried out Google Play Music before, they can sign up for a 30-day free trial before deciding whether to continue the subscription.

Say you know the person you’re buying for is getting a new Android phone for Christmas (good job, Santa!) — a Google Play gift card is the perfect gift because it gives the power of choice to the recipient. They can spend it on paid apps or games, or put their credits towards a couple free months of music.

Learn more at Google Play

CraveTV

Canadians don’t get Hulu or YouTube Red, but we do have CraveTV. Owned and operated by Bell Media, it does a good job of filling in the gap of some TV shows that aren’t available on Netflix for Canadians. We’re talking HBO programming, from recent hits like Curb Your Enthusiasm and True Detective to classics like The Sopranos and Mr. Show alongside content from Showtime. It’s a great mix of classic shows like Seinfeld, South Park, and all the Star Trek series’ up to Discovery along with original content like the cult hit Letterkenny series.

You can gift a CraveTV subscription starting at just $24 for three months or save over 15% by giving a full 12-month subscription for $80. It’s a great gift option if they’ve binge-watched their way through everything Netflix has to offer.

Learn more at CraveTV

Xbox Live Gold

Gaming isn’t cheap. First, you gotta buy the console, then you gotta shell out to buy the games, and then if you want to play online you gotta sign up for an Xbox Live subscription — and that’s without even touching on micro-transactions for loot boxes.

Gifting a gamer an Xbox Live Gold subscription is such a nice gesture, especially for younger gamers who might not have any other means of acquiring one without their parents help. Not only does it allow for unlimited online play, but you also get free games every month along with discounts on select titles in the Xbox Store. It is truly a gift that will keep giving throughout the year.

You can buy Xbox Live Gold subscription cards at most places where gift cards are sold, or online through the Microsoft store. A 12-month subscription card is $70, with 3- and 6-month subscription options also available

Learn more at Microsoft

PlayStation Plus

Buying for a PlayStation fanboy and don’t know which games they own? Consider gifting them a PlayStation Plus subscription. If they don’t already have a subscription, you’ll be unlocking online gaming on the PS4 along with a ton of great free games and discounts from the PlayStation Store. If they already have a subscription, they’ll remember you fondly every time they log on to frag some terrorists in Call of Duty.

Just like Xbox Live Gold, a 12-month subscription runs you $70. There are also 3-month subscription gift cards available for just $25 bucks.

Learn more at PlayStation

1Password

Alright, so far everything on this list has been fun and games, but you want to get someone a subscription that they’ll really appreciate when they’re no longer scrambling to try and remember all the different passwords for their accounts.

1Password is the best password manager for Android, but it also works just as well on PC, Mac, and even on Chromebooks. Not only does it handle the task of storing all your account information, it uses way stronger passwords than you could ever possibly remember yourself to ensure your accounts are kept secure.

Whether you’re buying it for that one forgetful friend that could really use it, or gifting it to your whole family, its just a sensible gift option especially with all the security breaches and hacking that goes on in the world these days.

An individual subscription starts at $2.99/month, or you can get a family plan for up to 5 people starting at $4.99/month. Give some peace of mind this holiday with 1Password.

Learn more at 1Password

The Athletic

It can be tough buying gifts for sports fans. Sure, you could buy them another piece of clothing or whatever with their favorite team’s logo on it, but that’ll just get lost amongst the rest of their stuff over time. Instead, you could get them a subscription to The Athletic and help them follow their favorite sports deeper than ever before.

The Athletic is a sports journalism subscription service that offers a mix of unique content from top local and national sportswriters, featuring in-depth coverage for all sports, cities, and teams. You get the best analysis available that can be customized to cater to your specific sports, teams, or cities. With newspapers putting up paywalls for their content, The Athletic lets sports fans keep up with the latest news and opinions without dealing with ads, clickbait, or pop-ups — just the best news delivered to you daily on your web browser our through The Athletic app.

An annual subscription fee runs at around $57. It’s a really thoughtful gift for any sports fan, plus it helps support quality journalism. Win-win!

Learn more at The Athletic

Some more fashionable options

Alright, so everything up to this point has been tech related, but we’d be remiss if we didn’t mention a couple other subscription services available that offer something a bit more tangible for the gift recipient. Plus, everyone could use a fresh pair of underwear or socks, right?

• MeUndies: Members get a fresh pair of stylin’ underwear each month for $16 a month. Subscriptions are available for both men and women.
• SockBox: Socks are a classic Christmas gift. Give the gift of a fresh pair each month with a 3-, 6-, 12- or 24-month subscription.
• TeeBlox: Perfect gift for the pop culture geeks in your family. Each month they will receive a new funky t-shirt featuring some rad designs.

Any subscription services you’d recommend for Canucks?

These are our picks, but what subscription services have you tested out? Drop us a line in the comments!

EA’s ‘UFC 3’ beta is live this weekend on Xbox One and PS4

Earlier this month, EA revealed its third big UFC game, which brings an improved career mode and quickplay options to the franchise. Though UFC 3 is set to launch on February 2nd, console owners can get an early look this weekend: The beta is live for Xbox One and PS4 owners through 11:59pm on Monday, December 4th.

Join the fight. Download the #EAUFC3 Open Beta now.

Play on Xbox One 👉 https://t.co/JCis0uikg5
Play on PS4 👉 https://t.co/PuYqyibnPh pic.twitter.com/PzqnLT3g0K

— EA SPORTS UFC (@EASPORTSUFC) December 1, 2017

The beta provides access to Fight Now, Online Quick Fight, Practice Mode and UFC Ultimate Team modes. That means fans won’t get to try out the improved GOAT Career Mode, which will require players to make choices outside fights to grow their fanbase and generate hype. But if you want a preview of the actual, y’know, combat, the beta is free and open to all for the weekend.