Logitech’s Crayon Stylus Expands to All Users Through Apple Store Availability

Logitech today announced that its Crayon stylus, which was previously only available to schools, is coming to Apple retail stores, which means it will be available for everyone to purchase for the first time.

Introduced in March alongside the 6th-generation 9.7-inch iPad, the Crayon is designed to operate as a lower-cost alternative to the Apple Pencil.

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The Crayon features a slim aluminum body and an Apple Pencil-style tip. Functionally, it works just like the Apple Pencil, with support for palm rejection and the same latency and tilt as you get with the Apple Pencil. There is, however, no pressure sensitivity.

Logitech designed the Crayon with students in mind, so it has a flat surface to prevent rolling, a tethered rubber end cap, a comfortable grip for small hands, and the ability to withstand drops of up to four feet.

Like the Apple Pencil, the Crayon does not need Bluetooth to connect to the iPad, and it’s able to last for up to seven hours before needing to be recharged with the built-in Lightning port.

It’s worth noting that the Crayon is designed to be compatible only with the sixth-generation iPad.

We were able to get our hands on one of Logitech’s Crayons ahead of its Apple Store availability, so if you’re considering picking one of these up for your 9.7-inch iPad, make sure to check out our review video above.

The Crayon will be available in Apple retail stores, on the Apple website, and on the Logitech website starting on September 12 before expanding to additional retail outlets in October.

While schools can purchase the device for $50, customers who purchase the Crayon from Apple or Logitech will need to pay $70.

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PSA: The POCO F1 doesn’t have NFC

POCO had to cut a few features to get the F1 down to $300, and NFC is one of them.

The POCO F1 is turning out to be the deal of the year. Retailing for the equivalent of $300, the phone is currently the most affordable device to be powered by the Snapdragon 845. POCO had to cull a few features to get to that $300 figure, and as such the F1 misses out on NFC.

The lack of NFC doesn’t hinder sales in India, where the device is primarily targeted. But with the phone set to go on sale in over 50 global markets — including 30 European markets — the omission of NFC could turn out to be a dealbreaker.

Furthermore, the POCO F1 isn’t quite as affordable in global markets, with the phone retailing for €330 ($385) in Spain. You do get a lot for the asking price, including 6GB of RAM and 64GB of storage, a MicroSD slot, dual 12MP + 5MP cameras at the back, 20MP front shooter, and a massive 4000mAh battery with Quick Charge 3.0.

On the software side of things, the POCO F1 is running a custom version of MIUI that includes a launcher and other tweaks to make it more palatable to a Western audience. The skin is based on Android 8.1 Oreo, with POCO stating that it will roll out the Pie update in the coming months.

POCO F1 review: Incredible performance at an unbeatable price

If NFC is a feature that you absolutely need to have in a phone, there’s always the Nokia 7 Plus. It’s available officially in the UK for £299 ($385), and while the Snapdragon 660 isn’t as powerful, you do get NFC and the promise of quick updates with Android One.

See at Amazon UK

Google researchers examine how to combat smartphone addiction

Tech companies like Apple and Google are working on ways to help us average consumers better manage the time we spend on our digital devices. Apple recently launched the Screen Time tool for the iPhone — and Google released Digital Wellbeing, a similar tool for Android devices and other Google products.

These products, however, seem to be largely built by tech companies who think they know what consumers want or need. A set of researchers from Google, on the other hand, have now conducted a study to see how the average person feels about their phone and technology in general — something that could ultimately help Google better help people manage the time they spend using their tech.

In a blog post detailing the study, the researchers noted that in general, through the advent of social media, email, and news, people overwhelmingly felt a sense of obligation to their devices — something that ended up causing a lot of unnecessary stress. There are a few reasons for this, according to the blog post. First of all, smartphones are built to be engaging — and it’s hard to break the habit of using one. On top of that, people felt an obligation to reply to messages quickly — as though they had to be available at a moment’s notice whenever possible.

The study also noted that while plenty of people look forward to disconnecting, they also want to choose when to disconnect. When it’s forced — like when they run out of battery or forget their phone at home — people feel anxious and worried about missing messages and notifications.

The researchers didn’t just observe this behavior — they also noted a few ways in which tech companies like Google can help users find a better balance. For starters, our phones should be better at facilitating disconnecting from the digital world by giving users information about the time they spend on their devices. Second, smartphones can help reduce the temptation to re-engage with features like app timers. Last but not least, phones can facilitate partial disconnection — by limiting some apps rather than taking an all-or-nothing approach. As mentioned, Google and Apple are already doing this with Digital Wellbeing and Screen Time.

According to the post, Google isn’t done with helping users manage their digital lives. In fact, it’s working on more tools to specifically help parents manage the access their kids have to technology. As the blog post mentions, “a sense of obligation has crept into tech. People want tools to break it. They want to be able to set aside their phone sometimes, not worry about missing anything absolutely urgent, and feel in control of their phone use. We have a responsibility to make that easier—to give people a way to reclaim their time and not feel tied to their devices.”

Editors’ Recommendations

• Here’s how Google’s Digital Wellbeing feature looks and works in Android 9.0 Pie
• YouTube is making it easier to track how much time you spend watching videos
• Google plans crackdown on tech-support scams appearing in search ads
• ‘Hey Google, tell me something good’ filters out bad news on Home devices
• Google, Microsoft, Twitter, and Facebook team up on new data transfer project

The best car chargers of 2018

Most of us buy into the promise of marathon battery life when we opt for a new phone, but within months, it often seems like they can’t hold a charge long enough to make a call. Thankfully, there’s an assortment of capable phone chargers available for your car — whether you’re an Apple or Android aficionado — to make sure power isn’t an issue when you’re on the road. The best car chargers, however, combine stylish looks and a low price tag with dependable functionality.

Further reading

Best iPhone car mounts

Phones with the best battery life

Best portable chargers

Some have enough energy to simultaneously charge your smartphone and tablet, while others distinguish themselves from the pack with a streamlined design and built-in cables. Below are a few of our personal favorites, from the likes of Moshi and Incipio. Just don’t forget to keep your eyes on the road.

The best

Moshi Car Charger Duo ($25)

Moshi has quickly and quietly become the undisputed king of all things charge related. The Moshi Car Charger Duo — previously known as the Moshi Revolt Duo — is a testament to the company’s steadfast approach to charging, offering two USB ports rated at 2.1A (12-watt) for energizing two devices at once. The anodized-aluminum cover is about as attractive as it gets for a car charger, adorned with a simple LED indicator light that delivers a faint glow. The charger’s power management circuitry provides under-current and over-current protection, but it’s the charger’s subtle design that makes Moshi’s flagship offering a favorite.

Buy one now from:

Moshi

The rest

Scosche reVOLT Dual ($10)

Scosche’s reVOLT Dual is not much of a looker, but the compact charger sports a low-profile frame that sits flush in most vehicle power sockets. Unlike some other chargers in our roundup, each USB port on the sleek device supplies 2.4A (12-watt) of power, which means it’s capable of charging two tablets at a time. The high output also allows it to charge a smartphone quicker than most standard chargers. Oh, and we can’t resist anything that has glowing USB ports.

Buy one now from:

Amazon Walmart

Anker PowerDrive 5 ($23)

Family road trips can be demanding, on both your smartphone and your patience. Fortunately, Anker’s five-port charger is designed for the rare instances when you might need more than one or two USB ports. The robust, 50-watt device outputs 10A overall — enough to simultaneously power five phones or four tablets — while housing premium circuitry that’s designed to prevent your expensive lineup from overcharging. The unique design also places the hub at the end of a cable, so you can rest the charger on the center console and charge everyone’s devices without having to buy extra-long cords. The polished finish and 18-month warranty only help justify the price.

Buy one now from:

Amazon

Incipio Dual USB Car Charger ($35)

Incipio is a household name when it comes to cables, cases, and chargers. The company’s Dual USB Car Charger doesn’t vastly differ from others on our list. The USB port provides 2.4A of power, for example, but it does feature a built-in Lightning cable for added convenience. It’s also relatively sleek, with rubberized sides and a vibrant, blue indicator light on the front for checking the charging status of your device at a glance. It’s on the pricier side, but you’ll also never have to worry about forgetting your cable.

Buy one now from:

Incipio

Aukey Dual Port Car Charger with Quick Charge 3.0 ($19)

This two-port model from Aukey is one of the most popular car chargers on the market, probably because it works with a range of connection types and is 45-percent more efficient than chargers built with Quick Charge 2.0. That said, the Quick Charge capacity only works with smartphones powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon processors (check Qualcomm’s list here). To minimize the risk of circuitry damage, this model also uses the company’s EntireProtect feature, which helps prevent overcharging and overheating.

Buy one now from:

Amazon

Powerbear Fast Car Charger ($15)

PowerBear’s Fast Car Charger relies on Qualcomm technology to quickly charge up to two devices simultaneously. Scratch-proof, it’s capable of restoring 75 percent of your battery’s capacity after just 45 minutes of charging. PowerBear promises its device protects your phone, tablet, or GPS against overcharging, short-circuiting, and overheating. It also comes with a 24-month warranty, which isn’t bad for a charger that won’t break the bank.

Buy one now from:

Amazon

RAVPower Dual USB Car Charger ($13)

The compact RAVPower Dual USB Car Charger is equipped to charge even the largest and most power-demanding devices. The dual 2.4 USB ports use iSmart Technology, allowing them to learn about your device and output the optimal current in terms of safety and speed. The RAVPower’s charger has also been bend tested more than 12,000 times — a testamement to its durability — and features a convenient LED light for when driving at night. The charger even includes a 3-foot Lightning cable and an 18-month warranty, just in case you encounter any manufacturer defects early on.

Buy one now from:

Amazon RAVPower

Editors’ Recommendations

• The best solar chargers for your smartphone or tablet
• The best portable chargers of 2018
• The best wireless phone chargers for your iPhone or Android
• The best iPhone X battery cases
• The 25 best Galaxy S7 cases to safeguard your Samsung smartphone

Hacked Chrome extension disguised as legitimate version steals logins

Cloud storage service Mega.nz revealed that it was hacked on Tuesday, September 4, and users who had installed the service’s Chrome browser extension may have had their passwords to other internet services compromised. The malicious version of the browser extension was uploaded to the Chrome web store by hackers in an effort to gain access to user’s logins for sites such as Amazon, Google, GitHub, and Microsoft. The passwords were sent to a Ukraine-based server.

“On 4 September 2018 at 14:30 UTC, an unknown attacker uploaded a trojaned version of MEGA’s Chrome extension, version 3.39.4, to the Google Chrome webstore,” Mega.nz said in a blog post. “You are only affected if you had the MEGA Chrome extension installed at the time of the incident, auto update enabled and you accepted the additional permission, or if you freshly installed version 3.39.4.” Users accessing the service by typing in the URL into the browser are not affected.

In order to gain access to your passwords, Mega.nz explained that the malicious extension asks for elevated permissions, such as the ability to read and change data on all websites you visited, something that the legitimate version of the extension does not require or ask for. If you’re downloading a browser extension, computer program, or app from the internet — even from what is believed to be a trusted source, as this case proves — you should always review what permissions you’re granting. Additionally, users should also try to limit what they install to stay safe.

Users who downloaded the hacked version of the Chrome extension are advised to change their passwords for any affected sites that they use, including amazon.com, live.com, github.com, google.com (for web store login), myetherwallet.com, mymonero.com, and idex.market. Additionally, if you had submitted any information through web forms as plain text, hackers may have been able to capture that information as well.

It’s not immediately clear how hackers were able to hijack Mega.nz’s account to upload the malicious version of the browser extension to the Chrome web store or how many users were affected, though Mega.nz boasts having 100 million registered users. After the breach was discovered, Mega.nz uploaded a clean version of the extension, version 3.39.5, to the Chrome web store. If you had downloaded the trojanized version of the extension, the browser extension should auto-update to the clean version. Google has also removed the malicious version of the extension.

The best bet to stay safe when it comes to browser extension is to not download any extension you won’t need. Like malicious apps, there have been reports in the past of malicious extensions. However, as the incident with Mega.nz demonstrates, even legitimate extension can be hacked, leaving your passwords exposed.

Editors’ Recommendations

• The best web browsers
• The demand for hacking tools and malware is greater than the current supply
• Google Chrome now consumes more memory due to a new Spectre fix
• Use your face or finger to log into accounts using Microsoft Edge
• How to take a screenshot on a Chromebook

Optoma NuForce BE Live5 headphone review: Wireless headphones with clarity and average battery life

NuForce is the audio-focused sub-brand from Optoma specializing in high-quality audio products. Previously known for its award-winning BE6i Bluetooth headphones, NuForce has prepared a follow up in the form of the BE Live5 headphones. Similar to the BE6i the BE Live5 are Bluetooth headphones this time using smaller 8mm drivers and packed into a smaller body. We were provided with these headphones for review courtesy of Optoma for an honest and unbiased review.

Packaging

I don’t often cover the packaging of a product unless there is something exceptional about it or there is a problem. Unfortunately, in the case of the BE Live5 it is the latter. While the packaging looks as good as you could expect, one of the buds was wedged in too tightly.

I fought with it for a while pulling on the cable until I was afraid it could get damaged. Then I resorted to using a pen to try to pry it out to no avail. Finally, I broke out my knife and had to cut it free, and in the process partially from haste and partially from frustration also scratched up the finish on the buds.

I’m certain this won’t be the typical experience for most customers and it was an anomaly, but it is important to point out every aspect good and bad.

Design

When it comes to earbuds there isn’t much you can do to stand out. In order to fit the drivers, battery, and other electronics they all generally take on the same shape. Some standouts with the NuForce BE Live5 though are the aluminum build, flat cable, magnetic backs, ipx5 sweat protection, hard case, and included Comply foam tips.

Out of all of these features, the magnets are my favorite. It’s not something new or unique to the BE Live5 buds, but it is quite convenient none the less. The option to wear them around your neck as a necklace using the magnetic clasp makes it easier to carry around and I really appreciate that.

The in-line controls can be found on the right side of the tangle free cord along with the micro USB charging port. Unfortunately, it is micro USB and not USB-C, but that’s hardly unusual and similar among other Bluetooth headphones. The controls are easy to distinguish with touch alone and are snappy and responsive.

While the buttons work well NuForce uses a pairing shortcut that requires holding down the power button. In order to pair you will have to continue holding down the power button after turning the headphones on. Otherwise, there is no other way to enter pairing mode and you’ll end up turning them off.

It is always annoying when this shortcut is used on Bluetooth headphones. A better alternative would have been a shortcut requiring you to hold down both the volume up and down buttons for pairing.

Fit and Comfort

The Optoma NuForce BE Live5 headphones include three pairs of ear tips and two Comply foam tips along with three sizes of ear wings. For someone like myself with smaller ear canals, it can be challenging to find headphones with ear tips in the proper size. Some brands such as Klipsch provide a smaller option which fit perfectly.

While most tend to include ones too large and the buds are constantly falling out. That was the case with the BE Live5 buds. Fortunately, when you combine it with the included ear wings it provides a much more secure fit. With this combination, I no longer had any issues with them falling out.

I was also impressed the included ear wings were so flexible soft, making them more comfortable than others I’ve tried in the past. The more rigid ear wings can often lead to early ear fatigue and don’t stand up to long listening sessions.

Between the smallest ear tips and medium-sized ear wings, the fit was extremely comfortable, making it easy to listen to music for hours without any discomfort.

On a side note replacing the ear tips was extremely frustrating. This was by far the most difficult pair of headphones I’ve ever had to deal with when it came to inserting the ear tips. If you’re lucky, you won’t have to exchange them swap them out repeatedly to find a comfortable secure fit.

Sound Quality

The BE Live5 make use of the aptX and AAC codecs for Bluetooth streaming. These two codecs provide near CD like quality if both your headphones and phone support it.

The sound signature of the BE Live5 is light and crisp with wonderful detail and excellent separation. Thanks to this I was able to pick up on some subtle nuances in songs that can get lost on other pairs of headphones. Bass lovers should look elsewhere, however.

For all of the clarity, the BE Live5 provides the bass takes a backstage here. That doesn’t mean there is no bass, only that the bright highs and crispness takes center stage here. The BE Live5 headphones would be better suited for music lovers who prefer a more balanced and clear sound.

Battery

Battery life on the BE Live5 headphones was pretty average. They are rated for 8 hours of usage and that is pretty close to what I experienced. There are headphones that offer more, generally ones with charging cases or collar designed headphones though.

One major annoyance with the BE Live5 headphones is once you reach 20% battery it constantly announces your battery is low in a loud overpowering voice. The repetition was completely unnecessary and the volume of the voice was actually painful to my ears.

Bluetooth Range

Similar to most Bluetooth devices I’ve reviewed the BE Live5 performs well within 30ft. without any interruptions or drop outs. If you’re indoors with walls between you and your device you can expect to lose signal occasionally once outside of 30ft. When outdoors the distance is a little better only deteriorating around 40ft. or more.

Conclusion

Overall, the NuForce BE Live5 are a decent value if you aren’t a bass head and prefer a more balanced sound. The comfort fit will keep you immersed in your music for hours enjoying every bright detail. That is until it begins yelling repeatedly in your ear the battery is low. However, if you’re someone who prefers more bass in their music than I’d look elsewhere.

U.S. Army wants to use laser power to keep drones airborne indefinitely

Drones can be used for a wide variety of purposes, but one problem that hinders almost all of them is limited battery life. Consumer-focused drones have a flight time of around 10 to 20 minutes, while even the most serious, record-breaking unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) can stay airborne for only hours, or maybe a few days at the most. The U.S. Army has a plan to change all that, however — by using lasers to power multicopters indefinitely through a sophisticated wireless-charging technique.

Unlike the kind of Qi wireless-charging standard employed in today’s smartphones, this wouldn’t require physical contact between a charging pad and the device. Instead, it will use laser light directed from the ground to the drone’s onboard photovoltaic cell. This laser light would then be converted into electricity to help keep the drone’s batteries fully juiced. This could reportedly be achieved from a distance of more than 1,600 feet.

The researchers involved with the project are hoping to show off a working ground-to-ground system early next year. This will be followed by a functioning ground-to-air demonstration in 2020.

Before this can be achieved, though, a few problems still need to be sorted out. The biggest challenge, according to a report by New Scientist, involves thermal management, i.e., making sure that the process doesn’t wind up damaging the drone via excess heat. The researchers hope to solve this issue by developing accurate beam control, along with allowing the excess heat the opportunity to properly dissipate.

The U.S. Army isn’t the only group researching drones that can fly for vastly extended periods of time. In the U.K., the defense company BAE Systems is working on the development of a high-altitude, long-endurance drone that’s capable of achieving flight time of up to one year. To do this, it will use a combination of long-life battery technology and ultra-lightweight solar cells. The team is aiming to test full size-prototypes in the second half of 2019.

While it seems likely that these tools will be used for military applications first, hopefully it won’t be long before similar technology is available for the drones that you and I can purchase.

Editors’ Recommendations

• 7 amazing anti-drone technologies designed to swat UAVs out of the sky
• The best drones under $500
• 9 bizarre drones, from web slingers to lake hoppers
• Like a vice principal in the sky, this A.I. spots fights before they happen
• Prisons are fighting back against contraband-dropping drones. Here’s how

Watch live: Twitter and Facebook executives testify before Congress

Facebook COO Sherly Sandberg and Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey appeared before Congress on Wednesday, September 5, offering testimony on the state of social media. Two congressional hearings were set for the purpose. Alphabet CEO Larry Page and Google CEO Sundar Pichai were also invited but declined to attend, opting instead to send written testimony t0 address issues like Russian meddling in U.S. elections and bias.

The Senate Intelligence Committee hosted the morning session, focusing on efforts being made to keep elections safe. “But we’ve also learned about how vulnerable social media is to corruption and misuse. The very worst examples of this are absolutely chilling and a threat to our democracy,” Senator Richard Burr (R-NC) said.

Facebook and Twitter owned up to their missteps. “We were too slow to spot this and too slow to act,” Sandberg said. “This interference was completely unacceptable. It violated the values of our company and of the country we love.”

Lawmakers praised the efforts that technology companies have made to take down fake accounts and combat hacking, but they remain skeptical that the companies will be able to fight the good fight alone.

“I’m afraid that there is a lot of work still to do,” Senator Mark Warner (D-VA) said. “And I’m skeptical that, ultimately, you’ll be able to truly address this challenge on your own. Congress is going to have to take action here.”

In a second session before the House Energy and Commerce Committee this afternoon, the technology companies will address bias within social media. President Trump had fired accusations against Google recently for suppressing the voices of conservatives, a charge that Google denied.

More recently, Twitter found itself in hot water after The Wall Street Journal reported that Dorsey had overruled his staff in reversing the bans on Alex Jones and Richard Spencer. Jones is an alt-right conspiracy theorist and Spencer is a white supremacist. Twitter denied the report, but the move spurred users to demand more monitoring on social media for hate speech, violence, threats, and harassment.

“Twitter does not use political ideology to make any decisions, whether related to ranking content on our service or how we enforce our rules,” Dorsey said in a prepared statement. “We believe strongly in being impartial, and we strive to enforce our rules impartially.”

Social media companies are also under pressure to help users navigate their privacy rights. Earlier this year, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg testified about the company’s privacy practices when it was revealed that Cambridge Analytica had improperly accessed the data of more than 87 million Facebook users. Facebook announced a series of changes in an effort to rebuild trust after the controversy.

“The era of the Wild West in social media is coming to an end,” Warner said. “Where we go from here is an open question.”

Editors’ Recommendations

• Google responds to Trump’s tweet-rage: We didn’t rig search against you!
• Facebook and Twitter introduce new tools regarding ad transparency
• Facebook, Twitter boot accounts tied to Iran, Russia for coordinated deception
• Despite promising to stop sharing your data, Facebook continues to do so
• Two U.S. senators think your TV is spying on you, ask the FTC to investigate

Lenovo IdeaPad 530s vs. Acer Aspire E 15

Mark Coppock/Digital Trends

There was a time when budget notebooks were mostly indistinguishable. That is, they were usually equally bad. That’s no longer the case — today, you can spend well under $1,000 and get a notebook with excellent performance, a solid build, and good battery life. We’re not talking bargain-basement pricing here, but it’s no longer true that you need to break the bank to get a serviceable notebook.

Lenovo’s IdeaPad 530s is one of the company’s latest budget-oriented notebooks, aimed at providing value to those with less cash to spend. We’re pitting it against the Acer Aspire E 15, one of our favorite budget notebooks, to see which attempt at low-cost perfection comes closest.

Design

Mark Coppock/Digital Trends

The IdeaPad 530s brings a solid, all-aluminum build to the budget category, with no flex in the keyboard deck or bottom of the chassis and only the slightest give in the lid. The aesthetic is laid back and conservative, centered around a Mineral Gray color scheme with only some chrome trim around the edges of the chassis and the touchpad to spruce things up a bit. All of this quality feel is jammed into a thin and light chassis, coming in at 0.66 inches thin and 3.72 pounds — quite nice for a notebook with a large 15.6-inch display.

The Acer Aspire E 15 takes a completely different tack. It’s quite thick at 1.19 inches and heavy at 5.27, and thus doesn’t even pretend to fall into the thin and light category. It’s also a mostly plastic build, with an aluminum keyboard deck adding some extra rigidity. Overall, it doesn’t enjoy quite the same structural soundness as the IdeaPad. That doesn’t mean it’s flimsy, though, and all that extra space allows for a rarity in notebooks today: A DVD-RW drive.

Both notebooks offer comfortable keyboards and touchpads that are as pleasant to use as those on much more expensive machines. And both have a wealth of connectivity options, including both USB-A and USB-C ports, HDMI ports, and more. Neither has Thunderbolt 3 support, unfortunately.

Overall, the IdeaPad gets the nod for a more modern design with small bezels against the Aspire’s massive versions, and it’s thinner, lighter, and more solidly built. But the Aspire does benefit from a chassis that offers easy access to the RAM and storage options, and so it can grow with the user.

Performance

Mark Coppock/Digital Trends

Both notebooks utilize the outstanding Intel Core i5-8250U, an 8th-generation quad-core processor that’s both fast and efficient. Not surprisingly, they achieved similar scores in our suite of CPU benchmarks, and they’re both more than fast enough for even intensive productivity tasks.

Step beyond the CPU, though, and these two notebooks diverge. When it comes to graphics, the Aspire E 15 takes the lead by equipping a discrete GPU, the Nvidia GeForce MX150 that provides for decent entry-level gaming. The IdeaPad 530s relies on the much-slower Intel UHD 620 integrated graphics. Storage is the other area of differentiation, with the IdeaPad using a fast PCIe solid-state drive (SSD) compared to the slower SATA SSD that Acer used in the Aspire E 15.

You’re more likely to notice the much faster graphics on the Acer than you are the IdeaPad’s faster storage. That makes the Aspire E 15 the performance leader, suitable even for some entry-level gaming to offer a distraction.

Regarding display quality, both of these 15.6-inch notebooks have relatively narrow color gamuts and mediocre accuracy. The IdeaPad’s display is brighter, but the Aspire E 15 has better contrast. You’d be hard-pressed to tell the difference between them except when you’re in a bright environment, where the Lenovo wins out.

Portability

Mark Coppock/Digital Trends

The IdeaPad is clearly the easier notebook to carry around, being about half as thick and weighing about two pounds less. It’s much easier to toss into a backpack and carry around.

But the Aspire offers a larger 62 watt-hour battery compared to the IdeaPad’s wimpy 45 watt-hour version. That results in a significant difference in battery life, with the Aspire lasting for 12 hours in our video looping test and the IdeaPad failing to make it to eight hours. It was the same story when browsing the web, where the Acer lasted for over nine hours were the Lenovo barely made it past six hours.

Simply put, if you’re going to be putting in a full day’s work, you’ll have to add some bulk to your backpack by including the IdeaPad’s power brick. You can leave that behind with the Aspire E 15, making it the more convenient notebook for true road warriors.

The Aspire E 15 is a better bang for your buck

The IdeaPad 530s starts out at $735 for our review configuration of a Core i5, 8GB of RAM, and a 256GB SSD. At the high end, you’ll spend $950 for a Core i7-8550U.

The Aspire E 15 is a cool $600 for the same configuration, which also comes with a discrete GPU and a much larger battery. Acer charges $150 more for the Core i7 version.

The IdeaPad is prettier, more svelte, and slightly more robust. But the Aspire E 15 offers better overall performance and lasts significantly longer on a single charge. It’s also less expensive, holding onto its place as our favorite 15.6-inch budget notebook.

Editors’ Recommendations

• Lenovo IdeaPad 530S review
• Acer Aspire E 15 review
• The best laptops for college in 2018
• Acer Spin 5 vs. Lenovo Yoga 730
• The best laptops for video editing in 2018

How to delete messages in Facebook Messenger

Further reading

How to maintain your privacy on Facebook

Best text messaging apps

How to use Facebook

Let’s face it, we’ve all sent things online that we wish we could just erase from our minds and online history, whether it be embarrassing photos or not-so-nice gossip we told in our younger years. Thankfully, there is a way to delete them forever, should you decide you no longer wish to look at them. Deleting Facebook messages on your desktop or mobile device takes mere seconds, however, keep in mind that deleting the aforementioned messages does not delete them from your friend’s inbox.

Assuming you want to continue, read on for all the details.

Deleting messages on your desktop

Step 1: Log into Facebook like you normally would.

Step 2: Click the chat bubble in the upper-right corner, followed by See All in Messenger. The latter option is located in the bottom left.

Step 3: To delete an entire message thread, hover over the conversation and click the cog icon in the bottom-right corner. Afterward, hit Delete.

Step 4: You will then be presented with three options: Cancel, Delete, or Archive. Click Delete to continue.

Step 5: To delete a part of your conversation, click into the conversation and hover over the message you would like to delete. Then, click the three horizontal dots and hit Delete.

Deleting messages on your mobile device

Step 1: If you haven’t already, download the Messenger app for either iOS or Android, and log in as you normally would.

Step 2: If you want to delete an entire conversation, hold down the thread and select Delete Conversation from the resulting menu.

Step 3: If you just want to delete a single message, go into the conversation, hold down the message you want to delete, and select Delete at the bottom.

If you aren’t ready to part with those embarrassing messages or conversations quite yet, you can always archive them, which will hide them from your inbox until the next time you chat with the person in question. Here’s how.

How to archive messages in iOS

Step 1: Open Messenger.
Step 2: Navigate to the Home tab on the left.
Step 3: Scroll through the conversation list and find the one you want to delete.
Step 4: Lightly tap and hold the conversation. Note: Do not use Force Touch.
Step 5: Select More on the resulting screen.
Step 6: Tap Archive.

How to archive messages in Android

Step 1: Open Messenger.
Step 2: Tap the Home icon to see a list of your conversations.
Step 3: Press and hold the conversation you want to archive.
Step 4: Tap Archive.

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