Google announced that the company is developing a native app whereby players can play Google Play games natively on their Windows PCs. The app is being built without the input of Microsoft or other platforms and will allow gamers to resume their gameplay across Android and Windows devices. The software is expected to launch in 2022.

With the upcoming optional KB5007262 update, Microsoft finally fixes a frustrating Windows 11 bug which significantly reduced the random write speeds of both SSDs as well as conventional hard drives.

Microsoft is now testing a new component of the Xbox app, whereby performance labels are added to certain games that indicate how well a PC game will perform on the user's system. The feature has the potential to help players make more informed decisions before purchasing and downloading games. Xbox Insiders can preview the feature for themselves via the Xbox Insider app.

While Vivaldi 5.0 for Android becomes the world's first mobile browser to introduce two-level tab stacks, as well as desktop-like Panels for tablets and Chromebooks, its desktop sibling comes with a fully reworked theme editor, theme sharing, a translate panel, as well as a download pop-up on the address bar.

The Asus Vivobook 13 Slate brings OLED to the world of Windows tablet PCs. With a starting price of $599, it's affordable, it beats the Samsung Galaxy Book S in terms of performance, and it can easily keep up with the Microsoft Surface Go 2.

For the layperson there may be little difference between owning a Windows-based laptop or choosing a MacBook notebook from Apple. But for those a bit more in the know, there is sometimes a bubbling cauldron of caustic vitriol just waiting to spill out of a hardcore laptop user when confronted by a stereotypically smug Apple fanboy or fangirl. Readers operating Linux on their laptop can look away now.

Those who don't want to spend a lot of money for their work laptop can perhaps find the ideal laptop in the ThinkPad L15 G2 with Intel's Core i3 Tiger Lake CPU.

Steam's hardware survey sometimes offers intriguing insights into the popularity of certain CPUs and GPUs among gamers, but after the October release of Windows 11 it has now given a noteworthy clue about gamers' willingness to upgrade to Microsoft's latest operating system.

The new "visual update" of Office is now becoming official. This cosmetic adjustment makes the productivity suite match the new Windows 11 look, although some users still on 10 might also see the update. It mostly functions to add the new rounded corners and dark themes to 4 of Microsoft's classic work-focused apps.

Microsoft has announced a new feature exclusive to Microsoft Edge users, Clarity Boost, which enhances the visual quality of Xbox Cloud Gaming streams. Clarity Boost is the newest optimisation feature revealed by the company and is available on the most recent version of the Microsoft Edge Canary build.

The rumors of Asus launching a new, 16-inch version of its ROG Zephyrus Duo laptop have gained further momentum with new claims of Ryzen 6000 power for the alleged dual-screen gaming machine. The processor may partner with RTX 3000-series graphics to drive a heightened refresh rate in this apparently upcoming PC, now slated to run Windows 11 out of the box.

The Razer Blade Stealth 13 has received up to a 25% discount, bringing its price down to US$1,499.99. The discount applies to OLED and IPS models, which both feature the Intel Core i7-1165G7 and the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 Ti Max-Q.

The ThinkPad X1 Yoga Gen 6 has received a substantial reduction as part of a promotional campaign. The 14-inch laptop has been reduced from over US$3,600 to US$1,660, a saving of almost US$1,950.

With the U4 UD, Gigabyte offers a very lightweight subnotebook with a very rare but powerful CPU. However, it didn't perform as well as we had hoped in our review. But the Gigabyte U4 ultimately won us over, despite there being a few points of criticism.

The Lenovo ThinkPad X13 Gen 2 is the first ThinkPad laptop with AMD CPUs and a 16:10 monitor. This makes it one of the most interesting business ThinkPads of this year.

MSI has revealed its new gaming systems with Intel's most recent 12th Gen Alder Lake processors. The desktops also feature DDR5 memory and high-end NVIDIA GPUs. The three new models announced are the MEG Aegis Ti5, MEG Trident X and MAG Codex X5.

The Surface Pro 7+ could make an excellent Black Friday purchase for those after a powerful and portable laptop. The machine has a 3:2 aspect ratio, Intel Tiger Lake processors and can be purchased for US$699.99 with a Type Cover included, or US$799.99 if you want a Core i5 model.

The price of the Razer Blade Advanced (2020) has been slashed this Black Friday, with the gaming laptop now available from just US$1,399.99. An RTX 2080 SUPER Max-Q configuration can be ordered for US$1,599.99. Both have 300 Hz displays, among other powerful components.

We have accessed exclusive documentation from our sources that indicate Microsoft has set stringent webcam and real-time communication (RTC) requirements for all Windows 11 laptops coming this Holiday 2021. Microsoft's recommendations are categorized into entry-level, mainstream, and premium and may finally herald the arrival of some much-needed standardization in webcam and microphone quality.

Qualcomm is currently thought to have a successor to the Snapdragon 8cx Gen2 chipset for PCs in development. Now, more evidence of possible progress with this SoC has emerged on Geekbench, in the form of a mystery Lenovo machine that has appeared on this database. Its performance seems to build on that of the processor's alleged initial outing on the same benchmark.

Early adopters of Windows 11 have been reporting several performance issues with the new OS including laggy File Explorer and context menus. That is likely to change next year as Microsoft is working on improvements to the WinUI framework including new Mica and Acrylic controls. Microsoft also said that it is accelerating offering Windows 11 to compatible devices given an overall positive feedback.

More details about the ONEXPLAYER mini have leaked, a 7-inch gaming handheld. The ONEXPLAYER mini is expected to launch with a high-end Tiger Lake processor, perhaps even the Core i7-1195G7. The ONEXPLAYER mini will be much smaller than the Steam Deck and will be on par with the AYA NEO.

Honor has brought the MagicBook V 14 to Europe as the MagicBook View 14. The Core i7-11390H-powered laptop has a 90 Hz display, 512 GB of storage and 16 GB of RAM. The MagicBook View 14 costs €1,499.90 and comes with a free Honor 50 smartphone.

One-netbook has made the AMD versions of the ONEXPLAYER available to order. The ONEXPLAYER can now be configured with either a Ryzen 7 4800U or Ryzen 7 5700U. The difference between the Ryzen 7 5700U and Core i7-1165G7 model can be minimal in some games, though.

Qualcomm Snapdragon Developer Kits can now be purchased by all developers targeting the Windows on ARM platform. The Snapdragon Developer Kit is powered by an entry-level Snapdragon 7c Compute SoC and allows developers test, optimize, and deploy ARM64 apps on Windows.

Microsoft has announced that the Groove Media app will be replaced by a new Media Player developed for Windows 11. The new software will allow playback of both music and video files in a well-organised library. Windows Insiders can test the new program from the Dev Channel.

Huawei has lifted the lid on the MateBook E, a 2-in-1 with a 2.5K OLED display. The device comes in three configurations, has a Thunderbolt 4 port and will be available in two colours.

The latest Satellite Pro models feature Intel Core i5-1135G7 and i7-1165G7 processor options that integrate Iris Xe iGPUs, up to 16 GB of RAM and up to 512 GB of NVMe SSD storage. Windows 11 is preinstalled and configurations costs range between US$770 and US$930.

The HaxMini is now available to order on Kickstarter. The machine features an Intel Core i5-8305G processor and comes in two configurations, starting at US$499. HaxMini expects to ship its eponymous mini-PC in February 2022.

Microsoft has confirmed that you must use Windows 11 for x64 emulation on ARM chipsets. For some reason, the company has decided to drop Windows 10 on ARM, which has supported x64 emulation for nearly a year.

Qualcomm has announced that its first serious high-performance Arm based Windows PC SoC will launch in 2023. The new chip will, as has been expected, be developed by the Nuvia team it recently acquired which includes several former Apple chip designers.

In a rather silent move, Google introduced Chrome 96 on all platforms. However, it looks like this new piece of code is all about under-the-hood changes. The update will roll out to all devices in the coming weeks and — at least for now — there is no information regarding security updates that come with it.

Microsoft unveiled the release of Halo Infinite multiplayer on November 15. The free-to-play multiplayer crossed 200,000 concurrent players on Steam, which is a Steam launch record for Microsoft. However, Season 1 has been extended by three extra months to allow for healthy game development.

The KIWI310 is a new single-board computer (SBC) built around the Raspberry Pi form factor. The SBC features an x86 processor rather than an ARM one though, and supports 5G connectivity.

The Surface Neo may have never made it to market, but it has made a cameo in Red Notice, a new movie starring Ryan Reynolds, The Rock and Gal Gadot. The cancelled device has also leaked in several hands-on photos showcasing the Surface Neo next to the smaller Surface Duo.

Huawei has teased a new version of its MateBook E with strong overtones of the device being a Surface 8 Pro competitor on its launch. This may have been further underpinned by the reported release of a new app specifically for its new detachable keyboard dock onto the Chinese version of the Microsoft Store.

Chrome OS devices can be the path of least resistance to productivity on a budget or within space constraints. However, those potential advantages are not a lot of good to those who still need Windows apps such as those of MS Office for work. CTL may have solved this problem with a new SKU of its Chromebox CBx2 with Parallels Desktop.