Lenovo wants to give the convertible PC a flexible, wraparound display

The U.S. Patent & Trademark Office has published a patent application submitted by Lenovo that describes a laptop sporting a flexible screen that wraps around the lid. This screen is divided into two areas: the main window (front) that you typically view on laptops, and the wrap-around area that may or may not stretch across the lid’s surface (back). 

Lenovo is seemingly taking notes from Samsung, only on a larger, laptop-class scale. Samsung introduced its first “Edge” phone in 2015 featuring a flexible screen that bends around the sides without spilling onto the back. These two “edges” can provide useful information while the main screen is off such as notifications, news feeds, weather, and more. 

Lenovo is targeting a similar idea. In one diagram, Lenovo illustrates a laptop that merely bends the display around to a small area on the rear surface. With this example, the flexible display would only present notifications along the side and across a narrow vertical strip on the rear. Presumably this feature would be useful when the laptop lid is closed, making it actually scrollable while the main screen remains off. 

Another diagram shows the design extending the flexible display across the entire backside rather than just around the lip. Additional microphones and cameras are also present on the rear panel “to provide a field of view and audio field directed away from the rear side.” Based on the diagram, Lenovo is trying to support video calls without everyone hovering over the keyboard. 

The patent application suggests that Lenovo is looking to improve if not redesign the convertible PC. Although these devices have 360-degree hinges enabling four different form factors, Lenovo argues that they’re problematic given how they’re made and switch between physical form factors. 

“Complex interconnection assemblies are utilized to enable the display to rotate, slide, flip, or otherwise turn,” the patent states. “The complex interconnection assembly increases the potential for mechanical and/or electrical failures over an extended period of time.” 

To that extent, Lenovo’s patent becomes clearer. Rather than fold the keyboard back under the display to use the PC as a tablet, simply close the laptop’s lid and use the rear display for tablet functionality instead. Laptop mode would utilize the main front screen while theater mode would utilize the secondary rear screen. For notifications, Lenovo’s design determines which display is currently active and renders the message appropriately. 

What the patent doesn’t address is content management. A recent patent application filed by Dell addresses digital rights management (DRM), but that laptop design describes two physical screens relying on two DisplayPort connections. Lenovo’s patent may not apply because the laptop consists of a single flexible display divided into two viewable areas. 

“The flexible display layer may be elongated and may include a continuous homogeneous two dimensional (2D) rectilinear array of digital pixels arranged in rows and columns that traverse the primary and secondary viewing regions between opposite edges of the flexible display layer,” the patent explains. 

Lenovo filed the patent application from its North Carolina headquarters on November 4. 2016. 

Editors’ Recommendations

• Dell’s new patent application shows how a two-screen laptop deals with DRM
• A future Microsoft laptop could have a foldable touch screen
• Moto G6 vs. Moto G6 Play: Is the G6 worth the extra cash?
• Here’s how to use split-screen mode on your Android phone
• Lenovo’s Mirage Solo headset and VR camera are available for pre-order

How Porsche Design’s unwavering passion shaped the Mate RS phone

Andy Boxall/Digital Trends

It’s very easy to dismiss the $1,880-plus Porsche Design Huawei Mate RS as an expensive smartphone with flashy branding; but that would do it considerable injustice. To understand why, you’ll need to understand Porsche Design’s philosophy: For it to be anything less than 100 percent involved in a project would be unthinkable. We spent some time at the company’s headquarters in Zell am See, Austria, to find out just how deep Porsche Design’s DNA runs in the Mate RS, a sister device to the Huawei P20 Pro.

Huawei chose to partner with Porsche Design because it understands that while it can design phones itself, there are other companies out there that can do it even better. Huawei chose to work with Porsche Design for the third time in its history. In a conversation with Digital Trends, Porsche Design’s Design Director, Christian Schwamkrug, called this project “the most intense,” as they had discussions on every little detail, right down to the amount of mirroring on the rear panel.

No notch

One thing was very clear from the start. Porsche Design is not a company that does things by half measures, and it isn’t going to put its name to a product without having considerable say in how it looks and performs. That doesn’t mean the partnership was tense. Quite the opposite.

Porsche Design is not a company that does things by half measures.

“From the very beginning onwards, we were on one level, with one design approach, and this is why the end result is so perfect,” Schwamkrug said.

One of the most striking visual differences between the Mate RS and the P20 Pro is the screen design. The P20’s screen notch is missing on the Mate RS, as the latter opted for a 6-inch OLED screen that’s curved at the edges, but conventionally flat along the top and bottom. A major smartphone trend at the moment, the notch didn’t win support at Porsche Design.

Schwamkrug made his feelings very clear.

“When I saw the notch for the first time, I nearly couldn’t believe it. It’s disturbing, from a design philosophy,” he said. “A picture is either rectangular or square, with a border line, and a clear frame format. I like symmetry. We didn’t want to have the notch, we think it’s a compromise.”

Andy Boxall/Digital Trends

Why? It’s an excellent introduction to the company’s entire design aesthetic, which can be summed up by a famous quote from Ferdinand Porsche: “If you analyze the function of an object, its form becomes obvious.”

It’s so much a part of Porsche Design, it’s printed on Schwamkrug’s business card. The notch, in terms of design, goes entirely against this philosophy. The Mate RS has a screen that looks like a screen, and that’s that.

Clean design

Who is Porsche Design?

Andy Boxall/Digital Trends

Founded in 1972 by professor Ferdinand Porsche, Porsche Design is a design and innovation group with its headquarters in Zell am See, Austria. Although it has its own range of products, including watches and clothing, its primary business is designing products for other companies. While it’s not the same company as Porsche cars, it has the same values as the famous automotive brand, and in honor of Ferdinand Porsche, it keeps his office the same as the day he left it.

To better understand Porsche Design’s approach to design, look no further than its P’3310 pencil. The minimalist stainless steel body compresses to extend the lead, in a stunning, eye-catching fashion. It looks great, it operates in a distinctly unique way, it’s a uniform design, and it’s instantly obvious what it does. Look for similar aspects in all Porsche Design’s products.

Porsche Design knows what looks good, and it’s not one for backing down. We were told a story about Porsche Design’s original involvement with LaCie (now a part of Seagate) and the development of a portable hard drive. The edge of the simple rectangular drive was chamfered and had polished edges. LaCie deemed this unnecessary and pushed for it to be removed. Porsche Design said, essentially, it would walk away from the project if it wasn’t. The polished edge stayed. Porsche Design gets what it wants.

Or does it? It may depend on whether usability is impacted by these design choices. For example, there are two fingerprint sensors on the Mate RS — one on the back under the camera lenses, and the other under the display on the front. Arguably, it really only needs one; but Porsche Design prides itself on designing products that are as much about performance as they are style. Having one of the first in-display fingerprint sensors perfectly aligns with this, and its love of clean design. But as Huawei’s senior product marketing manager Peter Gauden explained:

“Being such a new technology, the in-screen fingerprint sensor may not be the technology people feel the most comfortable with. So, as it lends itself to the symmetry on the back of the phone, the inclusion of the rear mounted sensor still makes sense. When we look at it from a usability perspective, it works really well.”

Porsche Design still got its way, but not at the expense of the user experience, which would also clash with the company’s strong ideals.

Technology firsts

Huawei and Porsche Design also pushed the boundaries in other areas of the Mate RS, with three aspects not seen in smartphones before. The in-screen fingerprint sensor is a first for an internationally available phone; there’s a whopping 512GB of storage space inside — the first we’ve seen on a phone; plus the latest temperature-reducing technology used by the aerospace industry to keep the phone cool. That’s before we get to the 8-angle curved body, which although Schwamkrug accepted the comparison with the Samsung Galaxy S9, he said “the Mate 10 RS is more refined.”

Schwamkrug didn’t look favorably on the camera lenses being placed on the side of the phone either, and wanted the visually-natural symmetry of centrally-stacked lenses. Huawei wants the P20 Pro to resemble a camera. To Porsche Design, the camera bumps are also warts on its beautifully-perfect design, and had the technology been there, it would have preferred to hide the camera lenses under the mirrored rear panel so they couldn’t be seen at all. One for a future Porsche Design phone, perhaps.

Porsche Design’s involvement isn’t only seen on the surface either. In fact, the inside of the phone is where the design starts, as it often dictates how the exterior will look. The team additionally gets deeply involved with the software, the size of the icons, and the fonts used for text. This is not a badging exercise, done purely for profit. You’re getting a phone genuinely crafted by the famous design house, and it wants people who understand its philosophy to see and feel that in the end product.

Cash at the ready?

Does that mean you should rush out and buy it over the P20 Pro? Not necessarily. Despite Porsche Design’s sleek styling, more storage, and no notch, it’s not really worth the extra money unless you’re a true Porsche Design devotee, and go weak at the knees for its attention to detail and unerring commitment to a clear and focused design language.

Porsche Design and technology

Porsche Design has a long history of designing products for technology companies. PD has made everything from landline phones for Samsung to vacuum cleaners for Panasonic, along with headphones for Kef, and hard drives for LaCie. It has even made a laptop under its own name.

Huawei isn’t the first smartphone manufacturer it has worked with either. Before this, it produced versions of BlackBerry phones between 2011 and 2014, all aimed at rich business folk who didn’t fancy owning a regular BlackBerry phone. The Bold inspired P’9981 started the line, the P’9982 was similar to the Z10 touchscreen phone, while the P’9983 reworked the Q10. Check out the familiar PD design aspects — the symmetry, the straight lines, and the clean finish.

It has made three phones with Huawei: The Porsche Design Mate 9, the Porsche Design Huawei Mate 10, and the Porsche Design Huawei Mate RS, plus the Porsche Design Huawei Watch 2. Expect more to come too, as the two companies said this is a long-term partnership.

The P20 Pro is far from being an ugly duckling too, with the blue and purple “twilight” color scheme easily matching the red Mate RS for visual punch. The two also share the same excellent triple-lens camera system. The in-display fingerprint sensor may be technically cutting edge, but it is a misstep, at least based on our early experience with the phone. It isn’t as reliable as the rear sensor because it’s a little slower, and requires some effort to “learn” how it likes to be used. We don’t want that from a security system.

The Porsche Design Huawei Mate 10 RS is still a wonderful thing though, and an example of Huawei seeking out high-quality, confident partners that genuinely enhance its products. Schwamkrug called the Mate 10 RS a, “no compromise” device, adding that, “everything you see is Porsche Design DNA,” hammering home the phone’s exceptional pedigree. By not bending to Huawei’s will on the screen, not compromising on the fingerprint technology, and building in its signature styling details, the Porsche Design Mate RS is a true luxury Porsche Design product.

There’s a reason the Mate RS looks the way it does and why aspects differ greatly from the P20 Pro. By understanding what they are, and why Porsche Design is so committed to its vision, parallels can be drawn between how the Porsche 911 car has altered over its lifetime, and the gradual evolution of Porsche Design’s Huawei phones. Both products crucially and rigidly adhere to that famous quote from Ferdinand Porsche, that so obviously continues to shape the company’s products no matter what they are.

Editors’ Recommendations

• Here’s everything you need to know about the Huawei P20
• How do you prune a Porsche? Add carbon and cut carpet (but not the glovebox)
• Can a phone A.I. control a car? We hopped in a Huawei-driven Porsche and found out
• Huawei P20 Pro review
• Huawei P20 Pro vs Google Pixel 2 XL: Can the P20 Pro dethrone Android royalty?

Firefox 60 is the first browser to support password-free internet logins

The latest version of Firefox “Quantum,” version 60.0, is out, and with it arrives support for password-free logins on the internet. This is made possible by the Web Authentication standard and USB-based security keys like Yubico’s YubiKey devices. Chrome 67 will reportedly offer support later this month, followed by Microsoft Edge. 

“WebAuthn is a set of anti-phishing rules that uses a sophisticated level of authenticators and cryptography to protect user accounts,” Mozilla explains. “It supports various authenticators, such as physical security keys today, and in the future mobile phones, or biometric mechanisms such as face recognition or fingerprints.”

Yubico offers a variety of standard YubiKeys spanning your typical USB-A and USB-C models that remain plugged into your PC (full-size or nano). Meanwhile, the “Neo” models hook onto your car keys and sport USB-A and NFC connectivity for PCs and Android phones. Yubico’s “FIPS” models are built specifically for government and regulated industries. 

With Firefox and a YubiKey in hand, you can create a web-based account using a one-time registration token. The next time you log into that account, you won’t need to enter a password as long as the authenticator is present. Eventually with support for face recognition and fingerprint scanning, all you’ll need is your pretty face or finger. 

The benefits of using WebAuthn are tremendous for web surfers. Because it uses encrypted public and private keys, there are no passwords stored in a website’s database. Even more, there’s no password for hackers to scoop on a compromised website, and nothing to intercept as data passes from your PC to the website. 

The goal is to authenticate account owners using something that’s physically unique, like their face or fingerprint, and not with letters, numbers, and characters hackers could eventually discover. The standard also wasn’t meant to rely on devices you own for authentication, but they have to suffice for now. 

That said, don’t start deleting your passwords just yet. WebAuthn is in its early rollout stages and currently only supports desktop web browsers. But once WebAuthn supports smartphones, switching over from the current two-factor authentication systems is expected to be quick and painless for developers and companies. 

Outside new support for WebAuthn, the latest Firefox release provides a wider layout on new tabs, a larger “Top Sites” menu sporting eight icons, and larger “Highlights” icons. The Pocket’s recommendation section now displays an occasional sponsored story as well. Mozilla claims recommendations take place locally on your PC, and thus Mozilla, Pocket, and the associated sponsors aren’t receiving a copy of your browsing history and making recommendations based on that data. 

For the enterprise, Firefox 60 now enables IT to customize the browser for the office. Customization can be performed using the Group Policy tool on Windows, or through a JSON file supporting Mac, Linux, and Windows. There’s also a choice of deploying the Rapid Release build that auto-updates roughly every six weeks, or the Extended Support Release that updates once per year. These updates include new features and performance improvements. 

Editors’ Recommendations

• Major web browsers will support web-based fingerprint, facial authentication
• Firefox to take another crack at putting ads in new browser tabs
• The best web browsers
• The best password managers for protecting your data online
• Keep on clicking with the 10 best browsers for Android

How to choose a smartphone

Julian Chokkattu / Digital Trends

You need a smartphone, and you need it now. Maybe it’s your first phone, maybe your contract is up for renewal, or maybe you just dropped the last one in the toilet. Fear not. There are a lot of good options out there and we’ve got a quick guide about how to choose a cell phone that’s right for you.

For a more in-depth look at what the smartphone market has to offer, take a look at our guides for the best smartphones, best Android phones, and best cheap smartphones.

Figure out what your needs are

Andy Boxall/Digital Trends

There are a lot of different things to consider when you’re buying a new smartphone. Do you need a phone with a large screen? Maybe you prefer something that you can use one-handed? Are you looking for long battery life or the best camera phone you can find? Do you need a lot of storage for your music collection? Maybe you’re a frequent traveler and a dual-SIM phone would be useful?

Start by drafting a list of the most important features for you and use it to compare devices to ensure your new smartphone ticks all of your boxes.

Choose an operating system

There are really only two smartphone operating systems worth considering today: Android and iOS.

Both are easy to use and support a wide variety of apps and games. While you can change from Android to iOS, or from iPhone to Android, there is a learning curve. You’ll be most instantly at home on whatever platform you’re used to.

Android offers a wider choice of devices at different prices, it offers more customization options, and Google’s excellent suite of services and apps is built in. If you already use things like Google Maps, Gmail, and Google Docs, then Android will be the better choice for you. It also features the best virtual assistant — Google Assistant — which is growing more useful all the time.

Apple’s iOS offers a more uniform, accessible experience, it’s more secure, and the App Store experience and quality of apps is slightly better. If you already have a MacBook or an iPad, then an iPhone is probably going to make the most sense for you. You’ll also find an enormous choice of accessories for iPhones, something that can be limited for lesser-known Android devices.

For a more in-depth breakdown of the top two smartphone platforms check out our guide to Android vs. iOS, where we put them head-to-head in various categories.

Features you’ll want in your phone

Picking the right phone for you can be tough, and you can’t trust most employees at stores to know what they’re talking about or to steer you in the right direction. We recommend that you shop around and get a hands-on with the smartphone you fancy before buying. If you don’t know much about specs, try to bring along a knowledgeable friend if you have one, but if not, here are a few things you’ll want to think about.

Julian Chokkattu/Digital Trends

Design

If you want something you can use one-handed, then pick it up and try it out. A lot of phones nowadays are glass front and back, but that makes them fragile and prone to smudges, so they won’t suit everyone. Check that the fingerprint sensor position suits you as well — they’re generally being moved from the front to the back. The right design for you should look and feel good.

Nice screen

You’re going to spend many hours gazing at it, so make sure that your smartphone screen is a good size for you and that it boasts a high resolution. We recommend a minimum of Full HD, which will be 1920 x 1080 pixels, or perhaps 2160 x 1080 pixels if the phone has a modern 18:9 aspect ratio. Anything that’s 1080p or higher will be sharp enough. In terms of the underlying technology, OLED screens have better contrast, with deeper blacks than LCD screens, and we prefer them overall. Both Samsung’s Galaxy range and Apple’s iPhone X sport OLED screens, but you won’t find them at the budget end of the market.

Good performance

This will mainly be determined by two things: The processor and the RAM. The processor is the most important thing, and newer is generally better in terms of both speed and power efficiency. Apple’s A series chipset tends to outperform the competition. For an Android phone, Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 845 is currently the cream of the crop. It’s debatable how much RAM you need in a smartphone, but we recommend looking for at least 4GB. This doesn’t apply to iPhones, however, because they deal with memory management differently and don’t require as much RAM. If in doubt, read reviews or play with your prospective smartphone in a store to test it.

Up-to-date OS

If you buy a new iPhone, then you’ll get the latest version of iOS on it, but this isn’t always the case with Android phones. Because the manufacturers often apply their own user interfaces on top of Android, it can take a while to get the latest updates, and you may not get future versions of Android upon their release — or maybe not at all, if the manufacturer decides not to update. Only stock Android phones from Google, such as the Pixel 2, are guaranteed to get immediate and consistent Android updates. The current version to look for is Android 8.0 Oreo, but Android P is just around the corner. Always try to get the latest version you can.

A good camera

Smartphone cameras have come on in leaps and bounds over the last few years. The choice can be bewildering, but it’s important to note that good camera performance is about a lot more than just a high megapixel count. If you’re able to test the phone out for yourself, you certainly should, but you’ll also find useful information in reviews, and we do a lot of camera shootouts here at Digital Trends.

Bloatware

Be careful of bloatware or hobbled features, especially if you’re buying Android. Sometimes carriers block specific features or change defaults. Carriers and manufacturers also often add a lot of apps that are superfluous, and you may find that you can’t uninstall them.

Battery life

Removable batteries are rare nowadays, so you want to pick a phone that will be able to keep up with you. Check the consensus on battery life in reviews. The mAh rating will give you some indication, but the capacity is also impacted by the screen size, resolution, and software, so you need to look beyond the number.

Storage

The latest smartphones generally come with enough storage built in. When 16GB phones were common — and they had 10GB used up out of the box — you could run out of space alarmingly quickly. We recommend a minimum of 32GB, but 64GB is better. Much depends on how you use your phone. You’ll obviously need more space if you like to load your MP3 collection on there. Having a MicroSD card slot allows you to expand your storage space relatively cheaply, but Apple never includes MicroSD card slots, so this is something you’ll only find in some Android devices.

Durability

We mentioned the dangers of glass phones briefly, but if you buy a glass phone and you’re prone to dropping it, make sure you get a protective case. You should also get a phone with some water resistance. The top flagships tend to have IP67 or IP68 ratings nowadays, which means they can be submerged in water without damage. Even budget phones often come with some water resistance, but it’s worth checking.

Choose a wireless carrier

It’s important to choose a carrier that offers good coverage in your area so you’ll have a strong signal. We recommend doing a little research at Open Signal where you’ll find comprehensive coverage maps for different areas and carriers. Simply enter your location and pick a carrier to see what the coverage is like where you live and work. If you want to be able to do data intensive things — like stream video or play multiplayer games — without Wi-Fi, then make sure that 4G coverage is good in your area.

The four main choices are Verizon, AT&T, T-Mobile, and Sprint, but there are other carriers such as MetroPCS, Boost, Cricket, and Virgin that may be worth considering. If you plan to buy your smartphone from your carrier, along with your service, then you should also check that they offer a phone you want. We recommend buying an unlocked phone when possible because it will work out cheaper in the long run and give you the freedom to change carrier in future.

Assuming there isn’t much difference in coverage quality for your area, and you can get the phone you want on multiple carriers, you may want to refer to our next section before making a decision.

Pick a service plan

Carriers will always try to sell you expensive plans, so it’s worth considering what you actually need. If you tend to be on Wi-Fi a lot, then you probably don’t need a lot of data. Minutes and texts tend to be very cheap, so it’s usually the amount of data that determines the monthly cost. We have a guide to data usage that will help you figure out how much you use and what you need.

Once you have an idea of the data, minutes, and texts you need, try using a comparison service like Wirefly to find the best deal quickly. It’s worth considering that the more products and services you take from a single carrier, the more of a discount you can expect, though you may have to ask for it.

There are a lot of different service plans out there, but competition is usually good for consumers — you just have to shop around for the best deal. We’ve done some of the legwork for you in trying to identify the best family plans, best unlimited data plans, and best cheap phone plans.

It’s also a good idea to try and negotiate a better deal every once in a while. If you find a better plan for the same money somewhere else, but you don’t really want to leave your current carrier, then call them up and ask them about it. You want to get put through to the retention department, as they often have the power to offer you discounts and other incentives to stay, but it’s important to stick to your guns and be prepared to leave if they won’t match or beat the deal you’ve found.

We hope these tips will help you get the right smartphone for you. Hit the comments if you have a question and we’ll do our best to answer it.

Editors’ Recommendations

• Save data, save money: How to reduce your data usage on Android or iOS
• How to find a lost phone, whether it’s Android, iPhone, or any other kind
• The best cheap phones you can buy
• The best smartphones
• How to photograph lightning: Tips for getting the best shots

Acer Switch 7 Black Edition vs. Microsoft Surface Pro

The Windows detachable tablet is probably the most flexible PC around. You can use it on a desktop like a laptop or like a tablet while lying in bed — just tear off the keyboard and you’re holding real PC power in a (usually) very thin and light machine. Usually, that means that performance is limited to mere productivity levels, but Acer has a trick up its sleeve with its Switch 7 Black Edition tablet — a discrete GPU that offers light gaming capabilities.

Microsoft’s Surface Pro is the standard-bearer for the tablet 2-in-1 market, and so we pitted it against the Switch 7 Black Edition to see if the latter’s more powerful graphics give it the edge.

Design

The Surface Pro sports Microsoft’s iconic Surface aesthetic and build, meaning it’s a flat silver-grey color thanks to a magnesium alloy chassis that’s thin, light, and very robust. Overall, it’s a solid-looking and -feeling tablet that’s modern and elegant. You’ll notice a row of vents along the edges for moving in and out for cooling, which is passive in the lower-end Core i5 versions and fan-based in the faster Core i7 models. Connectivity is at a minimum with the Surface Pro, with just a single USB-A 3.0 port and a mini-DisplayPort to go with the usual Surface Connect port for power and docking.

The Switch 7 Black Edition is a different beast entirely. Its aluminum chassis is all-black (hence the name), with only the stainless-steel kickstand’s chrome accent breaking up the stealthy aesthetic. It’s more rounded than the Surface Pro, making it comfortable to hold (although check out the portability section for the downside here), and it’s completely sealed thanks to a liquid cooling system and zero fans. The Switch 7 enjoys both a USB-A 3.0 port and a USB-C port with full-speed Thunderbolt 3 support that promises excellent display and external GPU support along with the most futuristic connectivity.

While the Surface Pro’s kickstand is a simple yet effective flip-out design, Acer got clever with its engineering and built a spring-loaded version that we found a bit clunky in real-life use. Each tablet’s detachable keyboard provides for a fine typing experience with excellent touchpads, and both pens support 4,096 levels of pressure sensitivity and tilt — but the Surface Pen is full-size compared to the Acer pen that’s diminutive and slips into the tablet’s chassis for storage. Which is better comes down to whether you like a heftier pen or the convenience of easy storage, although we’ll note that the Surface Pen is an optional $100 add-on.

Performance

The Surface Pro is stuck with 7th-generation Intel Core processors, up to the Core i7-7660U with an Intel Iris Pro GPU for slightly faster graphics performance than the usual integrated options. The tablet sports a PCIe solid-state drive (SSD) that coupled with up to 16GB of RAM makes for a fast tablet that’s great for the usual productivity tasks. The 12.5-inch display (2736 x 1824 or 267 PPI) is up to the typical Surface standards, with great sharpness, superior contrast and brightness, and a midrange color gamut with decent accuracy.

The Switch 7 Black Edition is more up-to-date, and in fact is one of the first tablets to ship with Intel’s 8th-generation Intel Core i7-8550U. This is a capable CPU that’s both fast under demanding loads and efficient when it’s not being heavily tasked. Acer’s tablet can be equipped with up to 16GB of RAM, while storage is relegated to a slower SATA SSD that’s a few steps behind the faster PCIe specification. In spite of the slower storage, the Acer is simply a much faster tablet than Microsoft’s option.

But Acer went a step further, building in the Nvidia GeForce MX150, a bona fide if entry-level discrete GPU that’s much faster than the Surface Pro’s Iris Pro graphics. That makes the Switch 7 much better equipped for light gaming and for tasks like video editing that can benefit from a faster GPU. The GPU drives a 13.5-inch display (2,256 x 1,504 or 201 PPI) that’s easily the Surface Pro’s equal — a rarity among Microsoft’s competitors — with similarly excellent contrast and brightness and slightly better color gamut and accuracy.

Portability

The Surface Pro’s 12.5-inch display and relatively small bezels make for a truly portable tablet. It’s incredibly thin at 0.33 inches without the detachable Type Cover (which is an optional accessory at $160) and very light at around 1.7 pounds depending on the CPU. The 45 watt-hour battery capacity provides close to all-day longevity, which is very good for a tablet 2-in-1.

The Switch 7 is a very different animal, with its larger 13.5-inch display that’s surrounded by relatively wide bezels that make for a much larger tablet in width and height. It’s thin enough at 0.39 inches, but it’s also roughly a pound heavier. And, it only packs in 37 watt-hours of juice, making for battery life that’s significantly less and that makes it more likely that you’ll also need to carry along a power brick.

Conclusion

Mark Coppock/Digital Trends

We like the Switch 7 Black Edition’s performance, particularly when entry-level gaming or running demanding creativity apps. But the Surface Pro is so much smaller and lighter and easier to carry around, and it lasts for longer away from a plug.

We think fewer people are looking for gaming tablets but rather want something that’s easy to tote and take notes on, and that makes Microsoft’s Surface Pro the overall winner in this shootout. Just note that you’ll spend $1,700 for the Switch 7, while the similarly equipped Surface Pro with keyboard and pen will run a much heftier $2,460.

Editors’ Recommendations

• Acer Switch 7 Black Edition review
• Microsoft Surface Pro (2017) review
• Laptop kickstands don’t need to be fancy, they just need to work
• The best tablets you can buy
• Acer Switch 7 Black Edition vs. Microsoft Surface Book 2 13

Nvidia saw a revenue spike from sales of graphics cards to crypto miners

One of Easy Crypto Hunter’s six-card GTX 1080Ti mining rigs. Jon Martindale / Digital Trends

Despite Nvidia originally downplaying the impact of cryptocurrency miners on the availability and pricing problems facing the graphics card industry over the past year, new financial data suggests the impact may have been great. In the last quarter alone, Nvidia estimated that almost 10 percent of Nvidia’s revenue came from cryptocurrency miners and that doesn’t even factor in cards bought by miners under the guise of being high-end gamers.

We’ve been covering the unprecedented spikes in graphics card pricing for the past year and documented how most mainstream cards were priced far beyond what gamers could afford to pay. Cryptocurrency miners were blamed for buying up much of the stock and Nvidia’s new financial report suggests that could well have been the case. With near $290 million in sales to miners in the last quarter alone, Nvidia has made a lot of money from miners buying its graphics cards.

Overall Nvidia’s revenue reached $3.21 billion in the first quarter of the 2019 financial year, a rise of 66 percent over a year ago. That can be broken down into several key areas. Hardware sold for rendering purposes made up $250 million, while automotive graphics purchases topped $145 million, and datacenter sales hit a new high of $700 million. “OEM and IP” sales accounted for $387 million, but gaming still made up the largest portion of Nvidia’s revenue stream, reaching $1.723 billion, but Nvidia did say that may not be entirely accurate.

Nvidia’s CEO, Jensen Huang, said in an interview that there was no accounting for cryptocurrency miners who purchased gaming cards from retailers, as there is no stipulation that they need to be forthcoming about what they were buying the cards for. There’s also no telling how many ‘gamers’ also used their cards for mining in their downtime, as some companies have previously suggested they do.

“There is no way to tell [how many gamer cards were sold to miners] because a lot of gamers when they aren’t playing games, they’re doing a little mining,” Huang told MarketWatch. “The reason why they bought it is for gaming, but while they’re not gaming — while they’re at school, at work, or in bed — they’ll turn it on and do a little mining. There’s nothing wrong with that, I think that’s fine, but the real reason why they bought it is for gaming.”

Editors’ Recommendations

• Nvidia CEO: cryptocurrency mining “is not our business”
• AMD gains ground on Nvidia thanks to cryptocurrency miners
• Fed up with GPU prices? Crypto-rig builder says gamers must suck it up and mine
• Who’s to blame for the GPU pricing crisis? Everyone
• Nvidia’s top-end GTX graphics cards could more than double in price

Gamers aren’t convinced by Windows Mixed Reality headsets

Dan Baker/Digital Trends

Windows Mixed Reality (WMR) headsets, such as Acer’s blue-painted option, are not setting the world on fire, at least when it comes to gamers. The latest Steam hardware survey shows that of the total number of virtual reality headset owners on the platform, WMR makes up just 5 percent. That’s a lower market share than it had a few months ago.

Although marketed as something new and blending both the real and virtual worlds, Windows Mixed Reality is, for now at least, a virtual reality platform — it’s just Microsoft’s interpretation of it. While we found early hardware passable, we’ve not come across a headset that really impressed us just yet. Apparently, our feelings are mirrored by the gaming community, which still unequivocably prefers existing standouts like the HTC Vive and Oculus Rift.

To the credit of Microsoft and its partners, WMR hardware did steal a portion of the VR market when they launched, notching up to above 5 percent in a couple of months after the platform debuted last year. However, those numbers have remained pretty stagnant, and lately they’ve even fallen, dropping around a third of a percent since the start of February.

In comparison, the HTC Vive and Oculus Rift have battled back and forth with one another with around 45 percent share a piece, though the Rift currently has a little more at 47.5 percent. Oculus also enjoys a slightly bolstered position in the market with just under two percent of all VR users still running the old DK2 developer headset from time to time.

All of the major VR headsets have been falling in price over the past six months, with the Rift now sitting at $400, the Vive at $500, and the PSVR at $210. Those prices will have helped them all remain competitive, though WMR hardware has fallen in price right along with them. Some headsets can now be found for close to $200, making it one of the more affordable VR platforms, but that doesn’t appear to have enticed Steam gamers to opt for it over the more established competition.

Perhaps what WMR needs, as MSPowerUser suggests, is a concerted push for the fledgling technology from Microsoft. If the software giant hopes that its new platform will catch on among the increasingly saturated VR space, it may need to.

Editors’ Recommendations

• Oculus Rift is now more popular than HTC Vive among Steam users
• ‘Beat Saber’ becomes highest-rated Steam game on Star Wars Day
• Sharp’s new countertop cooker uses superheated steam
• Steam Machines quietly disappear from Valve’s home page
• Gabe Newell says Valve currently has multiple games in development

Google Duplex sounds human when it, um, calls to book appointments

Dan Baker/Digital Trends

For some people, the reason for choosing one hair salon over another is based solely on its ability to book an appointment online. At the Google I/O  developer conference, Sundar Pichai, the company’s CEO, explained how its Google Duplex technology can help the phone-shy avoid having to actually speak to someone to make an appointment.

Around 60 percent of U.S. businesses don’t have online booking systems, according to Google. It’s been working on a way for users to give a time and date to Google Assistant, which can then make the call and set up an appointment. “It brings together all our investments over the years in natural language understanding, deep learning, text to speech,” said Pichai.

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Duplex scheduling a hair salon appointment

It can be an incredibly complex interaction. Using an actual call between Google Assistant and a hair salon, Pichai showed how it would work. The user asked the Assistant to make an appointment on Tuesday morning “anytime between 10 and 12.” During the call, Google Assistant sounded convincingly human, tossing in “ums” and “uhs” in a woman’s voice. “Give me one second,” the salon employee said. “Mm-hmm,” the Assistant responded. After some back and forth, the employee made an appointment for Lisa at 10 a.m. and sent a confirmation notification to the phone’s screen. There was no appointment available at noon — the time the A.I. initially requested.

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Duplex calling a restaurant

For the next call, Google Assistant had to overcome a bit of a language barrier. The restaurant employee thought it was calling to make a reservation for seven people, not for the seventh. When she informed the A.I. caller that the restaurant didn’t reserve tables for parties of fewer than seven, the A.I. asked how long the wait time would be. When the employee assured the Assistant it wouldn’t be a long wait on a Wednesday, it replied, “Oh, I gotcha, thanks.”

This technology isn’t quite ready at the moment, but Google is rolling out what Pichai called an “experiment.” During holidays, restaurants and businesses often have different hours. Google plans to use its Assistant to make one phone call to a bunch of businesses, then update their holiday hours for web searches. That way, restaurants can avoid getting dozens of calls about whether or not they’re open on Memorial Day, for example. Pichai said this experiment would start in a few weeks, so if it’s not working for that holiday, check again on the Fourth of July.

As exciting as it may be to have a remarkably human-sounding bot doing all your chores on your behalf, the Duplex announcement catalyzed quite a bit of controversy around how it would identify itself on the phone. After all, wouldn’t you want to know if you were speaking to a bot rather than a live being? Now, Google has weighed in, noting that it will include disclosures in the feature.

“We understand and value the discussion around Google Duplex — as we’ve said from the beginning, transparency in the technology is important,” a Google spokeswoman said in a statement. “We are designing this feature with disclosure built-in, and we’ll make sure the system is appropriately identified. What we showed at I/O was an early technology demo, and we look forward to incorporating feedback as we develop this into a product.”

Updated on May 11, 2018: Google is designing Duplex with disclosure that people are talking to a bot built-in. 

Editors’ Recommendations

• Updates to Google Assistant could make it the most natural digital helper yet
• Google Home vs. Google Home Mini vs. Google Home Max: It’s all about the sound
• Before Google’s lifelike Duplex A.I., these chatbots paved the way
• Google Assistant is going international with plans to expand across the globe
• Microsoft wants Cortana and Alexa to be friends. Is that cool or just awkward?

Acer Switch 7 Black Edition vs. Microsoft Surface Book 2 13

Mark Coppock/Digital Trends

As yet another indication of their willingness to innovate, Windows PC makers have been working hard to squeeze increasingly powerful components into modern 2-in-1s. One example is the discrete GPU, which has made its way into a handful of convertible 2-in-1s such as the Microsoft Surface Book 2 13, promising significantly better performance over relatively slow Intel integrated graphics. Now, Acer has taken steps to make the detachable tablet 2-in-1 more powerful with its Switch 7 Black Edition.

Which 2-in-1 most benefits from an infusion of faster graphics, the Acer Switch 7 Black Edition or the Microsoft Surface Book 2 13? We took an in-depth look to find out.

Design

Bill Roberson/Digital Trends

Microsoft’s Surface Book 2 is standout in terms of innovative design, with its tear-off display that houses the machine’s main PC components and turns into a surprisingly thin and light tablet. In terms of its aesthetics, it fits perfectly within the Surface lineup, with a futuristic and yet conservative silver-grey color. It’s all wrapped up in a solid, all-magnesium alloy build that exudes quality. For your average 2-in-1, the complete package is a little thick (0.90 inches along the rear thanks to its “fulcrum hinge” that’s required to balance the PC components packed into the display) and slightly heavy at 3.38 pounds.

The Switch 7 Black Edition takes a completely different approach to achieving a modern and elegant aesthetic. It sports an all-black design that’s stealthy and attractive without being ostentatious. It’s also pretty chunky for a tablet, with very large bezels flanking its display that add considerably to its width and height. The metal and glass design add to the weight, coming in at 2.6 pounds for the tablet alone and 3.53 pounds with the keyboard attached. The tablet has a (slightly overcomplicated) kickstand that makes it easier to prop up on a flat surface, while the Surface Book 2’s tablet is significantly smaller and lighter and so easier to carry around on its own.

They’re both well-built machines, but the Surface Book 2 works better as both a traditional notebook and a tablet than does the Switch 7.

Performance

Mark Coppock/Digital Trends

Microsoft built the Surface Book 2 around the latest Intel 8th-gen CPUs, topping out at the very fast Core i7-8650U. These quad-core processors are very speedy when running demanding loads, and they’re also efficient when performing lighter tasks. Packed away in the keyboard base is the Surface Book 2’s trump card: An Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050 GPU that’s great for entry-level gaming when playing modern titles at 1080p and moderate graphical details. The PCIe SSD is also very fast, and overall the Surface Book 2 is a well-performing 2-in-1 indeed.

Acer’s approach was similar in terms of the CPU, using the slightly slower Core i7-8550U that’s still a quick and efficient processor. Then, it packed in the Nvidia GeForce MX150 entry-level discrete GPU that’s best for esports titles and modern games at lower resolutions and graphical detail. That’s impressive for a tablet, but it doesn’t put the Switch 7 Black Edition in the same class as the Surface Book 2. The slower SATA SSD also holds the tablet back a bit.

Both 2-in-1’s have 13.5-inch displays in the productivity-friendly 3:2 aspect ratio, with the Surface Book 2’s being sharper at 3,000 x 2,000 (267 PPI) compared to the Switch 7’s 2,256 x 1,504 (201 PPI). Both provide excellent contrast and brightness, although the Surface Book 2 is one of the best we’ve tested in these aspects, and their color gamuts are just about equally wide. The Switch 7’s colors are slightly more accurate, though, and it’s gamma is perfect. You can’t go wrong with either display.

The Surface Book 2 is the faster machine by all accounts, even while noting that the Switch 7 is impressive for a detachable tablet.

Portability

Mark Coppock/Digital Trends

The Surface Book 2 sports a very specific 2-in-1 design where the display is heavier than usual and its fulcrum hinge makes for an extreme wedge shape. That makes it thicker in the rear than the typical notebook (although it also adds a nice curved edge for carrying it around), and the extra battery capacity and electronic components on the keyboard base add to its weight. Even so, the Surface Book 2 is lighter than the very chunky Switch 7 Black Edition, although the latter is thinner even when its detachable keyboard is included. Call it a wash in terms of tossing these 2-in-1s in a backpack and heading out — neither is the thinnest or lightest 2-in-1 you’ll find, but they’re not unreasonably large or heavy, either.

The real difference in portability is how long these two machines can last away from a plug. The Surface Book 2 packs in a whopping 70 watt-hours of capacity between the tablet and the keyboard base, compared to the Switch 7 Black Edition that houses a skimpy 37 watt-hours. Simply put, the Surface Book 2 demolishes the Switch 7 in terms of battery life, whether you’re working hard or just watching movies. For example, Microsoft’s 2-in-1 lasts for almost 17 hours when playing a local video compared to the Acer’s barely more than six hours, putting the Surface Book 2 at the top of the heap and the Switch 7 closer to the bottom.

Conclusion

Mark Coppock/Digital Trends

It might seem strange to compare these two very different machines, but the rationale is simple: They’re both attempts to pack faster graphics into the 2-in-1 format for enhanced gaming and creativity performance, and they take very different approaches that make them an interesting contrast.

In terms of price, the Switch 7 starts at $1,700, and doesn’t offer any other configuration options in the US, which makes it fairly limited in its use case. Meanwhile, the Surface Book 2 ranges from $1,200 all the way up to $3,300. There’s no one-for-one comparison because of the different components offered in each, but it should be noted that you can’t get a Surface Book 2 with a discrete GPU for less than $2,000.

Overall, the Surface Book 2 13 is the better choice for most people, though, providing an overall faster experience and more 2-in-1 flexibility. All the while, it’ll weigh you down slightly less and ensure that you don’t need to carry around a power supply.

Editors’ Recommendations

• Acer Switch 7 Black Edition review
• Dell XPS 15 2-in-1 vs. Surface Book 2 15
• Microsoft Surface Pro (2017) review
• Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Yoga Gen 3 vs Microsoft Surface Book 2 13
• Asus ZenBook Flip 14 vs. Microsoft Surface Book 2 13

World domination, phase two: Facebook ponders its own cryptocurrency

After forming an internal team dedicated to blockchain technologies, Facebook is reportedly jumping into cryptocurrency with both feet. Speaking with anonymous sources close to Facebook, Cheddar claims the social media giant is considering the release of its own virtual token for electronic payments.

“They are very serious about it,” an anonymous source told Cheddar.

This news comes just days after Facebook’s internal blockchain team went public. Headed up by Messenger chief David Marcus, the new team will be exploring how blockchain technologies could be used to improve Facebook.

“Like many other companies Facebook is exploring ways to leverage the power of blockchain technology,” a Facebook spokesperson told Cheddar. “This new small team will be exploring many different applications. We don’t have anything further to share.”

It’s important to point out that Marcus is a cryptocurrency evangelist, as evidenced by his early investments in Bitcoin. He also recently joined the board of Coinbase, a popular cryptocurrency exchange. When asked if Facebook would be integrating cryptocurrency into its apps anytime soon, Marcus mentioned that he thinks cryptocurrencies have ample room to improve their effectiveness.

“Payments using crypto right now is just very expensive, super slow, so the various communities running the different blockchains and the different assets need to fix all the issues, and then when we get there someday, maybe we’ll do something,” Marcus said in an interview with CNBC.

Let’s put all this in context. This is big news if it turns out that Facebook is serious about potentially developing its own cryptocurrency. A “Facebook Coin” would have the potential to become the premier cryptocurrency, with Facebook’s massive number of daily active users. Creating and controlling a universal currency could put Facebook into a unique position going forward.

Already under congressional scrutiny for its privacy missteps, the development of its own cryptocurrency to rival Bitcoin, Ethereum, and even the U.S. dollar could attract the watchful eye of federal regulators.

Not to mention, if Facebook does in fact intend to develop its own cryptocurrency, it also casts the recent expulsion of all cryptocurrency-related advertisements from the platform in a particularly nefarious light.

Editors’ Recommendations

• What is a blockchain? Here’s everything you need to know
• Before crypto nirvana, blockchain needs to solve these basic problems
• Google is working on blockchain technology for the cloud
• Facebook confirms it’s making a big move with many of its executives
• Amazon patent wants to unmask Bitcoin users, sell data to law enforcement, others