Author: Admin

Samsung has unveiled a suite of ultra short-throw projectors under its The Premiere brand at CES 2024, which include 4K and 8K resolutions plus the ability to turn projections into touch surfaces.

The company is set to debut four projectors at the show: The Premiere 5, Premiere 7, Premiere 9 and the Premiere 8K, which is the flagship model. They all boast the new Lightwarp feature that “turns any object in the room into an interactive display surface,” Samsung says, using projection-mapping technology. The company says this is the first time it’s been used in a consumer device. It’s worth noting that similar technologies have appeared in products in the past, like the Amazon Glow, so it’ll be interesting to see how Lightwarp differs.

The projector line will also include the Samsung Gaming Hub for streaming cloud games without a console. The range will also work as smart speakers and include a screen-off mode.

The new projectors are as follows:

• The Premiere 8K: An upgrade to the 4K Premiere projector launched in 2020, the Premiere 8K projector is the first 8K UST projector and can display a 150-inch image on a wall from a foot away. The projector offers both smart TV onboard and Dolby Atmos audio. It includes wireless connectivity to your devices up to 33 feet (10m) away thanks to the Wireless One Connect Box. The company says the projector is capable of 4,000 lumens of auto-brightness with its triple-laser light source.
• The Premiere 5: Samsung says this is the world’s most compact triple-laser UST projector, at 7.9 inches high by 5.4 inches wide and 5.4 inches deep. The Premiere 5 can also wireless pair with, and mirror, a smartphone by tapping the phone on the top of the device. The Premiere 5 is capable of a 100-inch image from 17 inches and includes automatic focus, alignment and color balance.
• The Premiere 7 and The Premiere 9: These upgrades on the current Premiere LSP7T and LSP9T models promise a brighter image as well as a Quantum 4K processor and Dolby Atmos sound.

Pricing and availability is yet to be announced.

Samsung has sold more TVs than any other brand for more than 15 years, and at CES 2024, the company introduced TVs that use both OLED and QLED technology. For the QLED-powered models I’ll describe here, the main picture quality and design innovations are reserved for its TVs with 8K resolution.

The flagship QN900D is billed by Samsung as the slimmest, most premium 8K TV to ever hit the market. Available from 65 to 98 inches, it has a mirrored “floating” stand and a compact, U-shaped One Connect box to connect your gear. Image quality is powered by a mini-LED backlight and beefed-up processing, including an AI Motion Enhancer Pro to improve fast-moving objects and the ability to upscale low-resolution, standard-def content to 8K, which Samsung claims is a first.

Samsung also says the 900D is the first TV to support a maximum variable refresh rate (VRR) of 240Hz, improving the smoothness of games. Most other TVs max out at 120Hz or 144Hz, although Samsung’s step-down 800D 8K TV can go up to 165Hz. Note that these higher refresh rates work only with PCs, not game consoles like Xbox Series X or PlayStation 5, so I don’t consider them a big deal for most people.

4K and 98-inch screens x4

Samsung claims that nearly 40% of high-end buyers are considering an 8K TV, but I still don’t think they’re worth the high price for most people. The company also introduced two high-end Neo QLED 4K models as well, the QN85D and QN90D, available in sizes from 43 to 98 inches and also offering mini-LED backlights. A new Custom Picture Mode shows you a set of four AI-generated images and uses the one you choose to adjust the image.

I didn’t review any Samsung New QLED TVs last year, but judging from the specifications, I’d expect the QN90D to perform at roughly the same level as the QN90B, one of my favorite non-OLED TVs in 2022.

Huge TVs are a big deal at CES, and while Samsung doesn’t have any mainstream models over 100 inches, it will sell four separate series in 2024 that offer a 98-inch size, including a 98-inch version of its affordable Crystal UHD series. True to form, the company created SuperSize Picture Enhancer designed to enhance sharpness and black levels on large screens.

Gaming and accessibility extras

I’m a fan of Samsung’s Game Bar, which offers easy access to gaming stats like VRR as well as dedicated picture settings. The 2024 version, Game Bar 4.0, adds the ability to automatically detect a game genre, like role-playing, shooters or sports, and switch the game picture setting automatically. (Of course, Samsung calls it AI Auto Setting.) The system can also automatically detect the in-game mini-map to move it to another part of the screen. The Gaming Hub, which can access cloud games including Xbox, has a “tailored UI curated for you and your personal gaming preferences,” according to Samsung.

One cool new accessibility feature called Audio Subtitles recognizes the subtitles at the bottom of the screen and can actually read them out loud in real time, using text-to-speech technology. Last year, Samsung introduced an accessibility feature called Relumino, which improves contrast and sharpness for people with low vision. This year, you can use a split screen to watch normal video on one side and Relumino on the other.

Samsung also announced two series of OLED-based TVs. It didn’t announce pricing on any of its new TVs at CES. The new models will likely start shipping in spring, and I’ll know more once I get the chance to review them in person after that.

Glasses-free 3D monitors remain a niche, no matter how hard Acer tries, but manufacturers do seem to be taking baby steps, mostly for laptop screens (like last year’s Asus announcement). Samsung previewed its own take on it at CES 2024, along with a small teaser for The Link — continuing its tradition of “The” awkward product names — a new general-purpose (aka “lifestyle”) monitor designed specifically to be used with multiple siblings.

The 32-inch, 4K The Link prioritizes aesthetics and easy setup, going for the ultraslim desktop video wall effect. According to Samsung, the monitors connect to each other via POGO pins, letting you daisy chain them off the main connection.

The 3D monitor does sound like it’s for gaming: Samsung says it has eye and head tracking, it’s compatible with existing VR games and content as well as Steam VR, and the company’s working on partnerships with game publishers. Samsung says it can also create 3D effects (presumably for 2D content), but no matter how smart the AI processing is for effects like this, I always find them either underwhelming or annoying.

Samsung will have more information about both monitors later this year.

In addition to the high-refresh gaming monitors and panels it announced earlier, the company also launched the successor to its 32-inch 4K Smart Monitor M70D, the Smart Monitor M80D. As far as I can tell, only a couple of things have changed: The stand has been redesigned with a new base and it now supports HDR10 Plus (up from HDR10). Hopefully, that also means it uses a new panel and that Samsung just failed to specifically mention it.

Imagine being able to dim the living room lights with a turn of the wrist. Or browse Netflix with a few taps of your fingers. At CES 2024 in Las Vegas, I had the chance to slip on an Android watch containing Doublepoint, some early software intended to turn smartwatches running Android’s WatchOS into a kind of remote control you can wear on your wrist.

A Finnish startup, Doublepoint’s software can make an Android watch into a general purpose controller for any device via a Bluetooth connection. It’s up to developers and app-makers to decide what a small gesture like tapping fingers or rotating your wrist will actually do, but watching it all in motion in several demos at a press event was a fascinating glimpse into the future.

So for example, if you wave your arm like it’s a laptop mouse, Doublepoint on the watch can control a cursor on the screen. In another demo, a watch with the software on it navigated Netflix on an iPad when someone tapped their fingers together.

“It’s like a mouse that’s basically on your wrist all the time,” CTO Jamin Hu told me on the CES show floor.

The software also works in tandem with eye tracking and “RayCasting” to make headset screen navigation simpler.

Gesture commands aren’t at all new. For example, Apple’s Double Tap for Apple Watch is an extension of its AssistiveTouch feature. But Doublepoint’s technology will let users assign microgestures for any device running on Android’s smartwatch software.

As AR and VR continue to gain momentum, the future of personal computing is increasingly keyboardless and mouseless, using gestures to do what tapping and clicking do now.

The software will come to developers in the first half of this year, so we’re still a ways out from seeing this technology arrive on the watch you’re wearing right now – but there’s some momentum.

A partnership with chipmaker Qualcomm opens doors for the software to appear on even more devices. “Our hope is that every Qualcomm device that go ends up on a smartwatch or Qualcomm chip that ends up on a smartwatch will have this built in.”

The Seahawks head to the desert needing a win against the Cardinals and some help from the Bears to nab the last Wild Card spot in the NFC playoffs. The Seahawks beat the Cards 20-10 at home earlier this season and will attempt the season sweep on the final Sunday of the regular season. If they win and the Bears beat the Packers, the Hawks are in.

The Seahawks and Cardinals kick off in Arizona at 1:25 p.m. PT (4:25 p.m. ET) on Fox. We’ll show you how you can watch, even if the game isn’t available on your local Fox channel.

The game will be shown on TV in the Seattle and Phoenix areas (according to 506 Sports) on live TV streaming services, but there may be cases where you’re blocked because of an internet location glitch or if you’ve elected to have an added layer of privacy for streaming.

There is an option that doesn’t require subscribing to something like NFL Sunday Ticket or NFL Plus, or searching the internet for a sketchy website: You can use a virtual private network, or VPN.

Here’s how you can watch the game from anywhere in the US with a VPN.

Read more: NFL 2023: How to Watch and Stream Games and RedZone With or Without Cable

Seahawks vs. Cardinals: When and where?

Week 18 of the NFL season sees the Cardinals host the Seahawks at 1:25 p.m. PT (2:25 p.m. MT, 4:25 p.m. ET) on Sunday. The game will take place at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona, home of the Cardinals.

How to watch the Seahawks vs. Cardinals game online from anywhere using a VPN

If you find yourself unable to view the game locally due to incorrectly applied blackout restrictions, you may need a different way to watch; that’s where using a VPN can come in handy. A VPN is also the best way to stop your ISP from throttling your speeds on game day by encrypting your traffic, and it’s a great idea for when you’re traveling and find yourself connected to a Wi-Fi network and want to add an extra layer of privacy for your devices and logins.

With a VPN, you can virtually change your location on your phone, tablet or laptop to get access to the game. If your internet provider or mobile carrier has assigned you an IP address that incorrectly places you in a blackout zone, a VPN can solve for that by giving you an IP address in your correct, non-blackout area. Most VPNs — like our Editors’ Choice, ExpressVPN — make it really easy to do this.

Using a VPN to watch or stream sports is legal in any country where VPNs are legal, including the US and Canada, as long as you’ve got a legitimate subscription to the service you’re streaming. You should be sure your VPN is set up correctly to prevent leaks: Even where VPNs are legal, the streaming service may terminate the account of anyone it deems to be circumventing correctly applied blackout restrictions.

Looking for other options? Be sure to check out some of the other great VPN deals taking place right now.

Livestream the Seahawks vs. Cardinals game in the US

This week’s Seahawks-Cardinals game is on Fox, so in addition to a VPN set to an area carrying the game (see tips below) you’ll need a live TV streaming service that carries a local Fox affiliate that’s broadcasting the game. The least expensive such service is Sling TV Blue.

Numerous other live TV streaming services carry local Fox stations as well, namely YouTube TV, Hulu Plus Live TV, DirecTV Stream and Fubo. They all cost more than Sling TV, but they also carry more channels, including football-broadcasting channels like ESPN. Check out our live TV streaming services guide for details.

If you live in an area where the game is being broadcast, an over-the-air antenna connected to your TV provides another option for Fox. The best part about antennas is that no streaming or monthly fees are required, although you will need to make sure you have good reception.

Quick tips for streaming Seahawks vs. Cardinals using a VPN

• With four variables at play — your ISP, browser, video streaming provider and VPN — experience and success may vary.
• Sling Blue is only an option if and when the ability to get Fox local affiliates is active on your account. You may want to verify that your billing address is eligible for that option before committing your credit card.
• If you don’t see your desired location as a default option for ExpressVPN, try using the “search for city or country” option.
• If you’re having trouble getting the game after you’ve turned on your VPN and set it to the correct viewing area, there are two things you can try for a quick fix. First, log into your streaming service subscription account and make sure the address registered for the account is an address in the correct viewing area. If not, you may need to change the physical address on file with your account. Second, some smart TVs — like Roku — don’t have VPN apps you can install directly on the device itself. Instead, you’ll have to install the VPN on your router or the mobile hotspot you’re using (like your phone) so that any device on its Wi-Fi network now appears in the correct viewing location.
• All of the VPN providers we recommend have helpful instructions on their main site for quickly installing the VPN on your router. In some cases with smart TV services, after you install a cable network’s sports app, you’ll be asked to verify a numeric code or click a link sent to your email address on file for your smart TV. This is where having a VPN on your router will also help since both devices will appear to be in the correct location.
• And remember, browsers can often give away a location despite using a VPN, so be sure you’re using a privacy-first browser to log into your services. We normally recommend Brave.

The 11-5 Cowboys can capture the NFC East title with a win on Sunday against the Commanders. A loss, however, coupled with an Eagles win against the Giants, will give the division to the Eagles and drop the Cowboys to the No. 5 seed in the NFC playoffs. Expect a full effort from the Cowboys on the road on the final Sunday of the regular season against the woeful 4-12 Washington Commanders.

The Cowboys and Commanders kick off at 4:25 p.m. ET (1:25 p.m. PT) on Fox. We’ll show you how you can watch, even if the game isn’t available on your local Fox channel.

The game will be shown on TV in the Dallas and DC areas (according to 506 Sports) on live TV streaming services, but there may be cases where you’re blocked because of an internet location glitch or if you’ve elected to have an added layer of privacy for streaming.

There is an option that doesn’t require subscribing to something like NFL Sunday Ticket or NFL Plus, or searching the internet for a sketchy website: You can use a virtual private network, or VPN.

Here’s how you can watch the game from anywhere in the US with a VPN.

Read more: NFL 2023: How to Watch and Stream Games and RedZone With or Without Cable

Cowboys vs. Commanders: When and where?

Week 18 of the NFL season sees the Commanders host the Cowboys at 4:25 p.m. ET (3:25 p.m. CT, 1:25 p.m. PT) on Sunday. The game will take place at FedEx Field in Landover, Maryland, home of the Washington Commanders.

How to watch the Cowboys vs. Commanders game online from anywhere using a VPN

If you find yourself unable to view the game locally due to incorrectly applied blackout restrictions, you may need a different way to watch; that’s where using a VPN can come in handy. A VPN is also the best way to stop your ISP from throttling your speeds on game day by encrypting your traffic, and it’s a great idea for when you’re traveling and find yourself connected to a Wi-Fi network and want to add an extra layer of privacy for your devices and logins.

With a VPN, you can virtually change your location on your phone, tablet or laptop to get access to the game. If your internet provider or mobile carrier has assigned you an IP address that incorrectly places you in a blackout zone, a VPN can solve for that by giving you an IP address in your correct, non-blackout area. Most VPNs — like our Editors’ Choice, ExpressVPN — make it really easy to do this.

Using a VPN to watch or stream sports is legal in any country where VPNs are legal, including the US and Canada, as long as you’ve got a legitimate subscription to the service you’re streaming. You should be sure your VPN is set up correctly to prevent leaks: Even where VPNs are legal, the streaming service may terminate the account of anyone it deems to be circumventing correctly applied blackout restrictions.

Looking for other options? Be sure to check out some of the other great VPN deals taking place right now.

Livestream the Cowboys vs. Commanders game in the US

This week’s Cowboys-Commanders game is on Fox, so in addition to a VPN set to an area carrying the game (see tips below) you’ll need a live TV streaming service that carries a local Fox affiliate that’s broadcasting the game. The least expensive such service is Sling TV Blue.

Numerous other live TV streaming services carry local Fox stations as well, namely YouTube TV, Hulu Plus Live TV, DirecTV Stream and Fubo. They all cost more than Sling TV, but they also carry more channels, including football-broadcasting channels like ESPN. Check out our live TV streaming services guide for details.

If you live in an area where the game is being broadcast, an over-the-air antenna connected to your TV provides another option for Fox. The best part about antennas is that no streaming or monthly fees are required, although you will need to make sure you have good reception.

Quick tips for streaming Cowboys vs. Commanders using a VPN

• With four variables at play — your ISP, browser, video streaming provider and VPN — experience and success may vary.
• Sling Blue is only an option if and when the ability to get Fox local affiliates is active on your account. You may want to verify that your billing address is eligible for that option before committing your credit card.
• If you don’t see your desired location as a default option for ExpressVPN, try using the “search for city or country” option.
• If you’re having trouble getting the game after you’ve turned on your VPN and set it to the correct viewing area, there are two things you can try for a quick fix. First, log into your streaming service subscription account and make sure the address registered for the account is an address in the correct viewing area. If not, you may need to change the physical address on file with your account. Second, some smart TVs — like Roku — don’t have VPN apps you can install directly on the device itself. Instead, you’ll have to install the VPN on your router or the mobile hotspot you’re using (like your phone) so that any device on its Wi-Fi network now appears in the correct viewing location.
• All of the VPN providers we recommend have helpful instructions on their main site for quickly installing the VPN on your router. In some cases with smart TV services, after you install a cable network’s sports app, you’ll be asked to verify a numeric code or click a link sent to your email address on file for your smart TV. This is where having a VPN on your router will also help since both devices will appear to be in the correct location.
• And remember, browsers can often give away a location despite using a VPN, so be sure you’re using a privacy-first browser to log into your services. We normally recommend Brave.

The final game of the NFL’s regular season is huge, with two AFC East rivals looking to lock in a playoff spot and a division crown. Miami has made the postseason already, but after getting crushed 56-19 by the Ravens last week, Tua Tagovailoa and company will be looking to claw back momentum at home. The streaking Bills, meanwhile, could guarantee their own place in the playoffs by beating or tying the Dolphins.

Kickoff for the big game on Sunday Night Football game is scheduled for 8:20 p.m. ET (5:20 p.m. PT). It’s available to watch and stream nationally on Peacock and also on your local NBC station via live TV streaming services.

Bills vs. Dolphins game today: When and where?

This Week 18 NFL game sees the Dolphins host the Bills at 8:20 p.m. ET (5:20 p.m. PT) on Sunday. The game will take place at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami.

How to watch Bills vs. Dolphins in the US

The Bills-Dolphins game is on NBC, so your local NBC station will carry the game. In addition to cable, satellite and an over-the-air antenna — which lets you watch NBC for free — you can also watch the game live using a streaming service. The least expensive is Peacock Premium at $6 per month. Most live TV streaming services including YouTube TV and Hulu Plus Live TV also carry your local NBC station (see below), but they’re a lot more expensive.

You can also subscribe to NFL Plus, the NFL’s own streaming service at $7 per month, but streams are limited to just watching on a phone or tablet (not a TV).

All the live TV streaming services above offer free trials, allow you to cancel anytime and require a solid internet connection. Looking for more information? Check out our live TV streaming services guide.

AI is already everywhere at this week’s CES, the world’s largest technology trade show, where CNET is on the ground covering the ins and outs of the show ahead of its official kickoff. In the runup to the heavy AI focus, Microsoft announced it will introduce a new, dedicated key to launch its AI tool, Copilot on Windows 11 laptops and PCs.

With the push of a convenient keyboard button, Windows 11 users can launch Microsoft’s generative AI tool, which is designed to do everything from help you shop for specific items to write a short story, get information and plan travel or a meal.
Not only is the Copilot AI key the biggest change to Windows keyboards in almost three decades, the new keyboard button serves as a physical portal to its Copilot service, which helps people perform tasks like summarizing documents, recommending music and answering questions you might ask a search engine or AI chatbot. Microsoft’s move is a step toward putting its AI services in front of more than a billion Windows users.

Read more: With Windows Copilot, AI Is Getting Into Microsoft’s Most Important Software

“We believe it will empower people to participate in the AI transformation more easily,” Yusuf Mehdi, Microsoft’s executive vice president and consumer chief marketing officer, said Thursday. “The new key will invoke the Copilot in Windows experience to make it seamless to engage Copilot in your day to day.”

Microsoft is investing $10 billion into ChatGPT-maker OpenAI, and in the stunning shakeup that momentarily saw OpenAI’s co-founder and CEO Sam Altman ousted by its own board, Microsoft CEO Sundar Pichai immediately hired Altman and other key employees. While Altman has since been reinstated at OpenAI, Pichai’s quick action underscores Microsoft’s big bet on AI chatbots and search through Copilot, formerly called Bing Chat. Microsoft has incorporated generative AI into some of its most important products over the last year, including Windows 11 and Microsoft search engine Bing. Copilot relies on large language models, particularly Open AI’s GPT-4.

Which Windows 11 laptops and PCs will use the Copilot keyboard key?

The Copilot key will live to the right of the space bar and activate Microsoft Copilot, and will replace either the menu key or the right control key on some keyboards.

The new button will arrive on the first wave of Windows 11 laptops and PCs of Microsoft’s partners in the days leading up to CES this week, as well as at the technology conference itself. The imminent new line of Dell XPS laptops, which CNET has already seen, features the new key.

Microsoft says to expect a wider release in late February through spring, including on upcoming Surface devices. In time, the Copilot button will become a required feature.

For Windows users who don’t have Copilot enabled or those who live in countries where Copilot is not available, the new key will bring up Windows Search. Windows users currently can bring up Copilot by pressing the Windows key + C.

“This [new button] will not only simplify people’s computing experience but also amplify it, making 2024 the year of the AI PC,” Mehdi wrote.

Read more: Remember Bing? With ChatGPT’s Help, It’s Coming for Google Search

Editors’ note: CNET is using an AI engine to help create some stories. For more, see this post.

The Packers may enter Week 18 at 8-8, but they still control their own destiny for the playoffs. Currently in possession of the NFC’s seventh and final playoff spot, a win against the rival Bears and they head to the postseason in their first year without Aaron Rodgers (a handful of other scenarios can also push the Pack forward).

Chicago, meanwhile, enters this weekend with its eyes on next season. The good news for Bears fans is that they’ve already locked up the No. 1 pick in this spring’s NFL Draft.

Kickoff is called for 4:25 p.m. ET (1:25 p.m. PT) on CBS. We’ll show you how you can watch, even if the game isn’t available on your local CBS channel.

The game will be shown on TV in many cities across the country (according to 506 Sports) on live TV streaming services, but there may be cases where you’re blocked because of an internet location glitch or just want an added layer of privacy for streaming. One option doesn’t require subscribing to something like NFL Sunday Ticket or NFL Plus, or searching the internet for a sketchy website: You can use a virtual private network, or VPN.

Here’s how you can watch the game from anywhere in the US with a VPN.

Read more: NFL 2023: How to Watch and Stream Games and RedZone With or Without Cable

Bears vs. Packers game today: When and where?

This Week 18 NFL game sees the Packers host the Bears at 4:25 p.m. ET (3:25 p.m. CT, 1:25 p.m. PT) on Sunday. The contest will take place at Lambeau Field in Green Bay, Wisconsin, home of the Packers.

How to watch the Bears vs. Packers game online from anywhere using a VPN

If you find yourself unable to view the game locally due to incorrectly applied blackout restrictions, you may need a different way to watch the game and that’s where using a VPN can come in handy. A VPN is also the best way to stop your ISP from throttling your speeds on game day by encrypting your traffic. It’s also a great idea for when you’re traveling and find yourself connected to a Wi-Fi network, and you want to add an extra layer of privacy for your devices and logins.

With a VPN, you’re able to virtually change your location on your phone, tablet or laptop to get access to the game. If your internet provider or mobile carrier has stuck you with an IP address that incorrectly shows your location in a blackout zone, a VPN can correct that problem by giving you an IP address in your correct, non-blackout area. Most VPNs, like our Editors’ Choice, ExpressVPN, make it easy to do this.

Using a VPN to watch or stream sports is legal in any country where VPNs are legal, including the US and Canada, as long as you’ve got a legitimate subscription to the service you’re streaming. You should be sure your VPN is set up correctly to prevent leaks: Even where VPNs are legal, the streaming service may terminate the account of anyone it deems to be circumventing correctly applied blackout restrictions.

Looking for other options? Be sure to check out some of the other great VPN deals taking place right now.

How to watch Bears vs. Packers in the US

This week’s Bears-Packersgame is on CBS, so in addition to a VPN you’ll need a live TV streaming service that carries a local CBS affiliate that’s broadcasting the game. The good news for football fans is that CBS is available on most of the major streaming services. The least expensive option is Paramount Plus.

Numerous other live TV streaming services carry local CBS stations as well, namely YouTube TV, Hulu Plus Live TV, DirecTV Stream and Fubo. These cost far more than Paramount Plus, but they also carry many live channels, including football broadcasting channels like Fox and ESPN. Check out our live TV streaming services guide for details.

If you live in an area where the game is being broadcast, an over-the-air antenna connected to your TV provides another option for CBS. The best part about antennas is that there are no streaming or monthly fees required, though you will need to make sure you have good reception.

Quick tips for streaming the Bears vs. Packers game using a VPN

• With four variables at play — your ISP, browser, video streaming provider and VPN — experience and success may vary.
• If you don’t see your desired location as a default option for ExpressVPN, try using the “search for city or country” option.
• If you’re having trouble getting the game after you’ve turned on your VPN and set it to the correct viewing area, there are two things you can try for a quick fix. First, log into your streaming service subscription account and make sure the address registered for the account is an address in the correct viewing area. If not, you may need to change the physical address on file with your account. Second, some smart TVs — like Roku — don’t have VPN apps you can install directly on the device itself. Instead, you’ll have to install the VPN on your router or the mobile hotspot you’re using (like your phone) so that any device on its Wi-Fi network now appears in the correct viewing location.
• All of the VPN providers we recommend have helpful instructions on their main site for quickly installing the VPN on your router. In some cases with smart TV services, after you install a cable network’s sports app, you’ll be asked to verify a numeric code or click a link sent to your email address on file for your smart TV. This is where having a VPN on your router will also help since both devices will appear to be in the correct location.
• And remember, browsers can often give away a location despite using a VPN, so be sure you’re using a privacy-first browser to log into your services. We normally recommend Brave.

Acer is out with more Meteor Lake laptops. The first Core Ultra-equipped Acer Swift Go 14 was released last month as part of Intel’s Meteor Lake launch day. It was the first laptop based on one of Intel’s new Core Ultra processors that we tested and reviewed. You’ll soon have three more Core Ultra options in the Swift line with today’s announcement of a second Acer Swift Go 14 model with an Imax Enhanced OLED display, a larger Swift Go 16 model with a up to a 16-inch 3.2K Imax Enhanced OLED display and a Swift X 14 with RTX graphics. The laptops will be available in February or March.

A pair of Swift Go models get the Core Ultra treatment

The Swift Go 14 (SFG14-73/T) and Swift Go 16 (SFG16-72/T) offer a variety of Intel Core Ultra processors, including the midrange Ultra 7 155H chip that was featured in the Swift Go 14 (SFG14-72/T) model we reviewed. Two other H-series processors, the Core Ultra 9 185H and Ultra 5 125H, are offered along two chips from the more-efficient U series in the Ultra 7 155U and Ultra 5 125U.

Both laptops feature integrated Intel Arc graphics and multiple display options. On the 14-inch model, you can opt for up to a 2.8K, 90Hz OLED panel and up to a 3.2K, 120Hz OLED on the 16-inch model. Both of these display options are Imax Enhanced Certified. Both models also feature a high-res 1440p webcam.

The 14-inch model features a touchpad that can be enabled with virtual media-control buttons, which for some reason are not offered on the Swift Go 16 that, with its larger display, is arguably better suited for consuming and controlling media.

The Acer Swift Go 14 (SFG14-73/T) will be available in the US in March starting at $750. Also shipping in March, the Acer Swift Go 16 (SFG16-72/T) will start at $800.

New Swift X 14 combines Core Ultra with RTX

Acer’s RTX-equipped 14-inch model, the Swift X 14 (SFX14-72G) is an update to the Swift X 14 I reviewed last year. It offers up to a Core Ulta 7 155H CPU and RTX 4070 graphics for creators looking for a compact yet powerful laptop. The top-end option for the 14.5-inch display is a 2.8K, 120Hz OLED display that’s Calman verified. Unlike the Swift Go models, however, it features only a 1080p webcam.

The Swift X 14 (SFX14-72G) starts at $1,400 and starts shipping in February.