Category: Technologies

Dell always has interesting prototypes and concept pieces to show off at CES. I don’t think any of them have actually turned into real products, but this year, we’re seeing some of those prototypes return in a V2 form. Last year’s Concept Nyx was a home gaming server, which let you store games in one place and play them from different screens around the house. This year, I got to see a new Nyx controller, which looks like a standard gamepad but with a lot of extra features packed in.

There’s a fingerprint reader under the central button, which is clever. Touch sensors sit under the shoulder buttons, so you can scroll your finger along them for different effects. There are dual scroll wheels under the center area, giving you new options for zooming and selecting. On the back, there are shift buttons, similar to how some fancy controllers have paddle buttons. These could let you swap between sets of commands — hold down a shift button, for example, and the main face buttons could all do different things.

Much like the Nyx central server unit we saw last year, this is just a concept, but I think it’s promising. There’s a lot of room to improve on the classic Xbox-style controller, which has become the standard for PC gaming but can be limiting.

Nyx and the future of work

The Nyx brand is also expanding to a seemingly unrelated series of experiments involving hybrid office connectivity.

It’s a big collection of hardware and software, and in my hands-on demo I used glasses-free 3D displays and depth-sensing cameras to create a 3D avatar that could participate in VR meetings.

That’s not so new, but then I shifted over to a new prototype big-screen display, which was also autostereoscopic, using eye-tracking cameras to create a custom 3D image for my eyes. I tried a lot of glasses-free 3D technology about 10 years ago, when it wasn’t great, but adding the eye-tracking cameras makes it so much better.

Now playing:Watch this:Dell Shows Off a New Take on Game Controllers with Concept…

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I also jumped into the same virtual meeting using a VR headset (not made by Dell), then later used a small tablet to write on a shared whiteboard you could see in VR, on the 3D monitor and projected onto a wall. The idea is that any kind of future metaverse-related workspace is going to have to seamlessly accommodate people in VR, on flat displays, in meeting rooms and more.

The things that stood out most to me were some of the accessories paired with Dell’s prototype 3D monitor. I loved this little puck, which can slide left and right to highlight menu items in the 3D space, then turn to zoom or rotate.

Like the Nyx gaming hardware, the workplace and connectivity version of Nyx isn’t a specific product or products you’ll be able to buy any time soon, but I’m glad people are thinking hard about the future of work, and I’m pleasantly surprised by the return of autostereoscopic 3D displays.

Nvidia delivered the first of the notable CES livestreamed announcements Tuesday — a day ahead of the primary marathon day of launches — with expected news about its GeForce 40-series mobile GPUs and the long-rumored RTX 4070 Ti desktop GPU. One notable surprise was the new GeForce Now Ultimate tier, which AT&T has already staked out for a six-months-free promotion. The company also gave some updates on its commercial tools for robotics, collaborative design and cars.

Now playing:Watch this:Nvidia Unveils RTX 40 Series Laptops

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RTX 40-series mobile graphics

Nvidia launched a complete line of mobile GPUs, from the RTX 4050 (for barely-there cheap discrete graphics) to the RTX 4060 and 4070 (for mainstream or thin-and-light gaming and graphics laptops) up through the top-end RTX 4080 and 4090.

Thanks to the Ada Lovelace architecture, the new mobile chips are a lot more power efficient, which means a new generation of Nvidia’s Max-Q power-management technology: It incorporates ultra-low voltage DLSS 3, “tri-speed memory control” to drop to lower power memory states on the fly and more. My experience with the 4080 and 4090 showed quite an improvement in DLSS over the last gen. And finally gaining traction is the adoption of Advanced Optimus, Nvidia’s design for allowing the GPU to live on the same bus as the CPU, which lets you use G-Sync on the built-in display and switch to the integrated graphics for lower power use without a system reboot. (Every time the phrase “MUX Switch” is used, my soul dies a little more.)

It highlighted nongaming 14-inch laptops, such as the Lenovo Yoga Pro 14 and Asus ZenBook Pro 14 with RTX 4070, 4060 or 4050 mobile chips, shipping in late February starting at $999. Gaming laptops like the Alienware x16 with an RTX 4080 or RTX 4090 ship in early February, starting at $2,000.

Now playing:Watch this:Nvidia Debuts RTX 4070 Ti at CES 2023

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Desktop GeForce RTX 4070 Ti

Nvidia first announced the 12GB card as a low-end RTX 4080, but people pointed out that its specs really didn’t match those expected of an xx80-class GPU, causing Nvidia to “unlaunch” the card. It’s subsequently been reborn as the RTX 4070 Ti, which starts shipping on Jan. 5, starting at $800.

What seems particularly interesting is that despite Nvidia’s generic renderings of the card, there doesn’t seem to be an Nvidia-branded Founders Edition version, which there usually is for this level of GPU. That means there’s no guarantee that there will be an actual card available at that entry-level price; we could always count on an Nvidia Founders Edition to be the one model that hewed to the announcement price. Even if it had a tendency to go out of stock and stayed that way.

Stay tuned for my review!

GeForce Now Ultimate

Nvidia has also upgraded its back-end cloud servers for its cloud-gaming service with RTX 4080-class GPUs from the RTX 3080-class models, which means its top-tier option for its cloud-gaming service gets an upgrade as well. By going with “Ultimate,” Nvidia doesn’t have to rebrand every time it upgrades, as it does from the previous “RTX 3080” membership.

For the same $20 per month, you get the same perks but the better performance afforded by the card. That can translate to effectively 240 frames per second up from 120fps (the details are unclear). Current RTX 3080 subscribers will automatically transition to the new plan when it becomes available. As usual, it will roll out incrementally across different regions.

You may also get GeForce Now as part of your car’s entertainment system if it uses Nvidia Drive technology. Now all you need is a way to create routes based on the quality of your cell signal to prevent interruptions.

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Creator tools

Two notable software tools that run on RTX GPUs join the family. Nvidia Broadcast will get a beta Eye Contact effect — faking eye contact for videoconferences and presentations is the New Big Thing that I don’t like (Windows has it as well). I’ve never seen an implementation that’s not disturbing, and I think at least one of the presenters in the stream was using it because of the unblinking thousand-yard stare that didn’t so much look at you as through you. Maybe that’s just me, though.

The other potentially big feature is RTX Video Super Resolution, designed to improve video streaming on Chrome and Edge. It uses AI upscaling and artifact reduction to improve the look of 1080p video on higher-resolution screens. That will run on RTX 30- and 40-series GPUs.

And Nvidia’s Canvas generative-AI sketch tool, which can work on any RTX GPU, will go into beta this quarter.

Nvidia also provided some updates on its robotics and automotive development technologies. They include new features in its Isaac Sim environment, such as the ability to model multiple humans and arrays of robots (for AI training) and more. CES isn’t a big show for these back-end technologies — that’s more the purview of Nvidia’s designer- and developer-focused GTC and GDC conferences — so most of the news was about partnerships and updates on capabilities entering early access. If that’s what floats your boat, you can get all the details on Nvidia’s site rather than have me de-weed them for you.

TikTok rolled out more audience controls for creators last Friday, according to a Dec. 30 blog post. While the video platform already had policies and technology in place that censor nudity and sensual content, borderline inappropriate or “suggestive” content for children is harder to detect. TikTok now gives creators the power to restrict their content to adults over 18.

The company already allowed creators to restrict content in TikTok Live, meaning some livestreams wouldn’t show up on the For You pages of minor users. Now it’s offering the same control option for short-form videos. This feature will continue to expand globally in the coming weeks.

TikTok is adamant that its “strict policies prohibiting nudity, sexual activity, and sexually explicit content” will still apply to creators who use this new feature. The platform will remove any content that violates its community guidelines and continue to educate creators on these policies.

“Our goal has always been to make sure our community, especially teens on our platform, have a safe, positive and joyful experience when they come to TikTok,” the company said in the post. “We’ve already taken significant strides to help ensure their feeds are full of content that is appropriate for them, and these improvements mark an important next step to meet that goal.”

Separately, TikTok has faced scrutiny over perceptions of its potential threats to national security. Some states — most recently, Virginia — have banned the app from state-run devices and networks. As of last week, TikTok has also been banned from all devices of US House staffers.

Samsung envisions a future in which mobile devices can fold, bend and slide. That’s the message Samsung is sending at CES, where it unveiled a slew of new display concepts, including the slidable and foldable Flex Hybrid.

The new concept can switch between 10.5-inch and 12.4-inch screen sizes, thanks to its slidable and foldable design. The left side of the screen folds, while the right side slides. In addition to changing the screen’s size, the prototype can also jump between 4:3 and 16:10 aspect ratios. Although the Flex Hybrid is just a concept, it shows that Samsung is investigating what the next evolution of foldable phones and tablets might look like.

In a Jan. 3 press release, Samsung summarized its new display concepts, but the company plans to showcase the technologies at CES. The Flex Hybrid is just one of several mock-ups. There’s also a 17-inch slidable display, which was previewed in September, and a digital cockpit concept meant for self-driving vehicles.

Concepts like these don’t always translate into real products, but the Flex Hybrid feels most in line with Samsung’s current product strategy. Foldable phones only account for a sliver of the broader phone market, but the Galaxy Z Fold and Galaxy Z Flip have become well-established within Samsung’s mobile device lineup. The company’s early entry into the foldable phone space has given it an edge in terms of market share as Samsung accounts for more than 88% of the foldable smartphone market, according to Omdia.

TM Roh, the head of Samsung’s mobile experience business, suggested in an interview last August that the company is already thinking about what’s next after the Z Fold and Z Flip. The introduction of new concepts like the Flex Hybrid underscores that point.

“It’s everything you saw [at CES] plus more,” he said, referencing the display concepts Samsung showcased at CES last year.

But Samsung will also likely face more competition as foldable phones continue to evolve. Motorola and TCL have both shown rollable phone concepts of their own. Oppo’s Find N2, which the company introduced in late 2022, also shows a lot of promise thanks to its lightweight design, as my colleague Sareena Dayaram wrote.

Although Samsung is trying to make foldables a more regular fixture in our daily lives, its goal isn’t to replace regular phones.

“I would not see either just a bar-type, or just a foldable, or just another potentially new form factor dominating the market,” Roh also said during the previous interview. “But rather I see the different categories coexisting together.”

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Asus was first to hit the big 5-0(-0) in May when it introduced the 500Hz refresh-rate ROG Swift. Just as Dell followed Tuesday with its own 500Hz model, Asus once again bests itself with the new 540Hz ROG Swift PG248QP, a 24-incher unveiled at CES that uses the same E-TN (the “E” is for “esports”) technology as the slower model.

TN — twisted nematic — is a veteran LCD technology that’s known for its ability to hit very high refresh rates but lacks the color, viewing angle and brightness of IPS or OLED. That makes it important for esports players who need smooth, fast, low-latency performance more than other monitor qualities, but not great for the majority of gamers.

Now playing:Watch this:Asus Launches New ROG OLED Gaming Monitors at CES 2023

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The 1080p monitor incorporates Nvidia G-Sync with Reflex Latency Analyzer support and has a built in ESS DAC for improving clarity of important audio cues, like weapons fire, when you’ve got a headset plugged in.

Asus says it’s expected to be available by the end of June, but frequently these high-profile monitor announcements never result in a shipping product. As far as I can tell, the 500Hz model hasn’t become available yet. The company didn’t provide pricing.

On the other hand, OLED desktop models are finally hitting their stride — most major monitor companies have new ones for 2023, many for gaming. Asus’s newest offering is the ROG Swift OLED (PG27AQDM) and a 1440p 240Hz model with a peak brightness of 1,000 nits (though only for a window 3% of the screen at a time). That resolution and screen refresh is a nice change from the 4K 120/144Hz models, in part because 1440p is well suited to gaming at 27 inches.

It’s not Asus’ first gaming OLED — the company launched a 48-inch model last year — and the new model incorporates some of the same technology, including burn-in protection and a head sink-plus-airflow cooling system. It’s the cooling that makes the back of the monitor so thick, which we tend not to expect from ultrathin OLED TVs, but is essential for high-brightness desktop monitors.

The OLED is slated to ship before the end of March. Asus hasn’t yet provided pricing.

The Nintendo Switch exploded in popularity upon release and it’s still a fan favorite. With the success of games like Animal Crossing: New Horizons, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe and Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, it’s more fun than ever to share the experience on Nintendo Switch Online. There are a number of other advantages that come with membership, too, including access to a growing catalog of classic NES and Super NES games, cloud backup for your save data and more.

Individual accounts are popular, but with a Family Membership plan, you’ll get those same perks for up to eight people on one account. So if you have multiple Switch users in your household, it’s worth investing in. Amazon is sweetening the deal by including a 256GB memory card ($53 value) and a 12-month family membership in one bundle, meaning you get it all for just $50 — that’s a $38 savings over buying each individually.

The 256GB microSDXC memory card from SanDisk for the Nintendo Switch offers more space for your favorite games, and it’s fast, too, offering read speeds up to 100MB per second and write speeds of up to 90 megabytes per second. It’s also backed by a lifetime limited warranty. The family plan for the Nintendo Switch also comes in at just $15 more than an individual plan, so if you have multiple players in your household, it’s a bargain worth grabbing.

Read more: Best Nintendo Switch Deals and Bundles

If you received an online subscription for the holidays, make sure you give it a strong password to keep your information and subscription safe. Ideally, each individual password you create should be at least eight characters in length and consist of capital and lowercase letters as well as numbers and symbols. (Sorry, using “password123” for everything isn’t going to cut it.) It may be tempting, but using one easy-to-remember code across all of your accounts can seriously jeopardize your online security — you don’t want to make yourself an easy target for cybercriminals. In fact, recent research by cybersecurity firm Hive Systems has suggested that a weak password can be cracked instantly by a hacker.

Password managers are vital tools that can help you stay safe online and be more digitally secure by simplifying the process of using strong passwords. And they’re easier to use than you may think. Even so, four out of five American adults don’t use a password manager, according to a study from Security.org.

Here’s why you need a password manager and how to set one up.

Best Password Manager to Use for 2022

See at CNET

What is a password manager, and why do I need one?

A password manager is an online service that stores your passwords as well as other data like credit card numbers, bank account information and identification documents in a secure, encrypted environment. It takes one of the biggest potential vulnerabilities — weak or recycled passwords — and does the hard work for you.

Bad password habits are dangerous for your digital security. Using weak passwords makes your accounts easy to crack, and reusing passwords leaves you open to credential stuffing attacks that can compromise accounts that share the same password.

But with a password manager, you only have to remember one single master password, and the password manager takes care of the rest — allowing you to create strong, unique passwords for each of your online accounts. If you’re not sure how to create a strong password, or if you don’t want to come up with one on your own, your password manager can create one for you. Many password managers also include a feature that analyzes your current passwords and lets you know which ones are weak or reused and need to be changed.

You can also securely share passwords and sensitive documents with family and friends if you need to. And if you’re shopping online, you can easily fill in your credit card information to make purchases without needing to have your physical credit card on hand.

Your password manager can also help you fight against phishing scams. Even if a phishing attempt tricks you into clicking on a malicious link, it won’t trick the password manager. Your password manager will detect that the URL is different than the site you usually log into — regardless of how similar it may look to the naked eye.

If you’re worried about storing all sorts of sensitive information in one place, you don’t need to be. The top password managers use a zero-knowledge approach to securing your passwords and other information you store with them — meaning that even the password manager itself can’t access your passwords or other data, because everything is encrypted before it leaves your device. And if your password manager can’t access your data, then neither can anyone else.

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How to set up a password manager

The first thing you’ll need to do is choose a password manager and set up an account (CNET’s list of top password managers is a great place to start). Some password managers have a free tier that usually includes all the basic features you’d need, but you can expect to pay anywhere from $35 to $60 per year for a premium plan that includes things like access across multiple devices, expanded file storage and family sharing.

As you set up your account, you’ll be asked to create a master password. This is the one password that you have to remember — make sure it’s something you can recall, yet complex enough to make it difficult for others to guess. Also, make sure your master password isn’t one of your existing passwords you’re already using on other sites. Some password managers, like 1Password, offer a printable “emergency kit” that includes information like your username and digital key and where you can write down your master password. Yes, you can write down your password, just make sure to keep the piece of paper locked in a secure location.

We really can’t stress this part enough: Don’t forget or lose your master password or your emergency kit because, as a security precaution, password managers don’t typically offer a way to recover it. If you’re locked out, there’s no way back in.

Once you’re all set up with your account and master password, you can download the software to your devices. Typically, you’ll be prompted to download the app that corresponds to the operating system you’re using when you set up your account (iOS, Android, Windows or MacOS). You can also find download links on your password manager’s website for any other devices you may want to use your password manager on. If your password manager offers a browser extension, go ahead and install it — it will make autofilling your passwords on sites much easier.

After that, you’ll need to add your passwords to the password manager. Most password managers offer easy ways to import your passwords from various locations, whether that’s your browser, a spreadsheet or another password manager. You can also input your passwords manually.

Once you’ve got your passwords loaded into your password manager, you’re good to go. As long as you’re logged into your password manager, it will offer to fill in your login information as you visit the sites and services you use online. It will also offer to save new, secure login credentials on new accounts you create — ultimately saving you from putting your online security in peril.

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A combination of severe weather and labor shortages has resulted in thousands of flights being severely delayed or straight-up canceled this holiday season. There are certain things you can do to help avoid flight delays and cancellations, but sometimes it’s just inevitable, and so it’s best to be prepared.

Read more: What to Do If Your Flight Is Canceled or Delayed

The best way to do that is to closely keep an eye on flight information, like delay times or gate changes, whether you’re the one flying or you’re expecting family and friends from out of town.

You could obviously get this information from an airline app on your phone or by looking at a flight information display system at the airport, but there’s an easier way that doesn’t involve downloading anything or having to walk anywhere.

All of the flight information you need can be found on your iPhone — inside of your text messages.

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How to track a flight via text message on your iPhone

Before we start, there are a few prerequisites you must meet:

• Make sure iMessage is enabled (it doesn’t work with SMS/MMS).
• You’ll need your flight number somewhere in your text messages, whether you’ve sent that information to someone (even yourself) or it’s been sent to you.
• The flight number must be sent in this format: [Airline] [Flight number], for example, American Airlines 9707.

Launch the native Messages texting app on your iPhone and open the text message thread that contains your flight information. You’ll know the flight tracker feature works when the text with the flight information appears underlined, which means it’s actionable and you can tap on it.

However, if your flight is still several months away or it’s already passed, you might see a message that says, “Flight information unavailable.” You might also see another flight that’s not yours because airlines recycle flight numbers.

Access the hidden flight tracker in different ways

Although the airline name/flight number format highlighted above is the best way to go, there are other texting options that will lead you to the same result. So let’s say we stick with American Airlines 9707, other options that may bring up the flight tracker include:

• AmericanAirlines9707 (no spaces)
• AmericanAirlines 9707 (only one space)
• AA9707 (airline name is abbreviated and no space)
• AA 9707 (abbreviated and space)

I would suggest you keep the airline name spelled out completely and add a space between the two pieces of information — like in the previous section — because for some airlines these alternative options may not work.

Track your flight in real time: View flight status, delays, baggage claim and more

Once everything is set, tap on the flight information in your text messages. If the feature works correctly, you should see the following two options appear in a quick-action menu:

• Preview Flight: View the flight’s details. Tap this if you want to view more information about the flight.
• Copy Flight Code: Copy the flight code to your clipboard (in case you want to send your flight details to someone else via text or email).

If you select Preview Flight, at the top of the window, you’ll see the best part of this feature: a real-time flight tracker map. A line will connect the two destinations, and a tiny airplane will move between them, indicating where the flight is at that exact moment.

Underneath the map, you’ll see important flight information:

• Airline name and flight number
• Flight status (arriving on time, delayed, canceled, etc.)
• Terminal and gate numbers (for arrival and departure)
• Arrival and departure time
• Flight duration
• Baggage claim (the number of the baggage carousel)

If you swipe left on the bottom half of the flight tracker, you can switch between flights, but only if there’s a return flight.

Your iPhone comes with many hidden features, but don’t worry, we’ve got you covered. Check out iOS hidden features and tricks you didn’t know you needed, the hidden app that lives in your iPhone and the hidden information in your iPhone photos that might be giving away your location.

Video conferencing on Zoom, Google Meet and the likes is no longer novel. While many aspects of our lives have returned to normal, working from home and distance learning are here to stay. If you haven’t already, it’s important to get a quality webcam and set up the rest of your telecommuting gear so that you look and sound your best during remote video calls and meetings.

Part of this means learning the fundamentals of a videoconference meeting on camera. You don’t need an HD webcam to get good results — optimizing lighting conditions (don’t try to stream in low light), choosing the ideal environment and positioning the camera lens in just the right way can make your video call look much more professional. Truly, you don’t need to be a professional YouTube personality or Twitch streamer with a great webcam, even better external mic and lighting options galore to look good during live streaming and video recording — even a novice can function competently without too much of a learning curve.

First, it’s essential to have the right gear, including the best webcam and microphone. Unfortunately, in most cases, your laptop’s built-in camera and microphone stink — and they’re preventing you from coming across as professionally as possible on videoconferencing calls. You should ditch the integrated webcam and invest in a standalone webcam and stereo microphone with noise cancellation. Even a cheap webcam with autofocus and a decent microphone can improve picture quality and sound enough to take things to the next level when on a video call.

Upgrading your audio and video tech is fairly easy from a technical perspective, however, and relatively affordable — and it will dramatically improve your production values in virtual meetings. We’ve compiled a shortlist of the best gear for video chats from home webcams, lights, mics and more that will enhance your video chatting. This list has plenty of input from CNET’s on-camera video team, all of whom are working from home now, too. Our favorite picks for the best webcam and external mic options are below, and we’ll update this periodically.

(Note that prices are accurate at time of original publication, but may fluctuate. Also, availability and delivery times are changing all the time, so be sure to check before moving forward with any purchase.)

Read more: Best Wireless Earbuds and Bluetooth Headphones for Making Calls

Logitech

Logitech Brio Pro 4K webcam

Best webcam

After the masses began working from home in the pandemic, it became difficult to find a brand name webcam anywhere. My favorites — Logitech’s StreamCam and the 4K-capable Brio — are pricey and frequently out of stock, but worth the money if you can find them.

In the meantime, if your laptop’s integrated camera isn’t doing the trick, you can use a tripod and your phone’s HD camera to boost video chat quality when live streaming. Here’s how to do it.

Read our Logitech Brio 4K Pro Webcam preview.

$130 at Amazon

$200 at Best Buy

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Amazon

Lume Cube

Fix the lighting

I’ve tried many, many lights over the past few months and, so far, the Lume Cube is my favorite. This bright LED light is highly adjustable — with a physical toggle to change the brightness and color temperature — and the nifty display shows all the levels and how much juice is left in the USB-C rechargeable battery. You can position it in landscape or portrait mode using the included suction cup mount.

About that mount. I should note that there are plenty of Amazon user complaints about it not working properly, but I can’t seem to replicate the issue with my Lume Cube. I’ve stuck it securely to the back of multiple laptops and a standalone monitor, and I can’t pull the thing off — even with sustained force — without first loosening the suction mechanism.

My backup choice is the Joby Beamo Mini, which is about the same price as the Lume Cube. It’s extremely compact, waterproof and — capable of blasting out 1,000 lumens — incredibly bright, though the iOS app and included diffuser make it simple to dial in the perfect amount of light. It has a magnetic back that will stick to any metal surface and will also screw on to a tripod.

$80 at Lume Cube

$80 at Amazon

GripTight/Amazon

Phone tripod mount

Free up your laptop

It’s hard to multitask on a webconference: Opening and closing apps, resizing browsers and windows, all while you’re talking to your boss on your Google hangout or Zoom call — it can all be a bit much. One solution is to offload all of your audio and video recording tasks to your phone — which may have better camera, video quality and mic technology, anyway — freeing up your laptop to take notes, consult documents and spreadsheets or whatever else. (Here’s how to do it.)

If you take this route, you’re going to want to have an adjustable tripod that can securely hold your phone steady — and at a flattering angle. I like this tripod kit from Joby, currently on sale for $30, which includes a clamp that’s big enough to accommodate my iPhone XS Max. And I also like the company’s bendy Gorillapods, which can be wrapped around posts or other nonflat surfaces.

$40 at Best Buy

$40 at Amazon

Sarah Tew/CNET

Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Yoga

Get a laptop with a decent processor

If you’re running an older MacBook Air or Windows laptop that came out several years ago, you’ll find that a single Zoom session can send your computer’s fans whirring and reduce your multitasking options to zero. Getting a newer laptop with an updated processor and webcam software — a ninth- or 10th-gen Core i5 or AMD Ryzen 5 should do the trick — will make those videoconferencing sessions a lot easier to bear.

I recently put aside my aging MacBook Air and picked up a Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Yoga and have been amazed by all that I was missing out on: blazing speed (courtesy of the modern Intel processor), USB-C ports and a touchscreen display. It currently starts at $959. For other recommendations, check out our list of the best laptops for 2022.

$1,000 at Lenovo

$959 at Amazon

Blue Microphones

Blue Yeti USB mic (Update: Out of Stock)

Get a better microphone

Nothing can torpedo an online meeting quicker than background noise and audio that’s cutting in and out, and your laptop’s lousy built-in microphone may be the culprit. Once you’ve added a decent webcam to your setup, you’ll be in better shape — but a standalone microphone will make you sound clear, rich and full. This Blue Yeti model has long been a staple of podcasters and streamers, and it’s what I use when I record audio or participate in a high-stakes video chat.

Yes, it looks like something you’d see in a 1940s radio station, but the audio technology is 100% modern. It has three capsule microphones, four pickup patterns (for different kinds of recording) and just enough controls to help optimize the way you sound without overloading you with super technical features.

$130 at Best Buy

$119 at Amazon

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More WFH advice

• The Best Wireless Range Extenders in 2023
• Learn to Code with These 5 Online Coding Courses for Beginners

• Best Kids’ Tablets for 2023
• 7 Must-Have Ergonomic Upgrades for Your Home Office

• Ultimate Webcam Tips: How to Look and Sound Great Online

• Zoom vs. Microsoft Teams: Which to Use for Videoconferencing

• Twitch Streaming Gets ‘Sudden Influx’ of Copyright Takedown Requests

• Best Video Streaming Devices for 2023

• Best Headphones for Noise Cancellation
• How to Use Your Phone as a Webcam

The most recent version of the Microsoft Office suite, Microsoft 365, includes tools that you probably use at home, school or on the job. The most popular way to access these apps is by buying a Microsoft 365 membership, but those fees mount over time and can discourage you from using Word, Excel, PowerPoint, or other products. Fortunately, you can snag Microsoft 365 at no cost.

Microsoft’s suite of productivity software consists of classics like Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook, as well as newer apps like Microsoft Teams, OneDrive and SharePoint. The Microsoft 365 collection typically costs between $70 and $100 every year for subscription access across devices and family members. Microsoft also released a new stand-alone version of Microsoft Office for Windows and Mac, called Office Home and Student 2021, for a flat $150 — no subscription required.

Want to improve your cybersecurity?

We’ll teach you why protecting your identity and data is important. Plus, get recommendations for VPNs, Password Managers and Antivirus Software.

Here are the versions of Office 365, Microsoft 365 and their apps that you can find online for free right now.

Get Microsoft Office 365 free if you’re a student or a teacher

If you’re a student, teacher or faculty member with an active school email address, you’re likely eligible to get access to Office 365 for free through Microsoft, with Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote, Microsoft Teams and additional classroom tools.

All you have to do is enter your school email address on this page on Microsoft’s website: Get started with Office 365 for free. In many cases, you’ll be instantly granted access thanks to an automated verification process. If you attend an institution that needs to be verified, it might take up to a month to confirm your eligibility.

Recent graduates who want to stick with Office 365 can also get Microsoft 365 Personal for $12 for 12 months, with a valid school email address.

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How to get Microsoft Office suite free if you’re anyone else

Anyone can get a one-month free trial of Microsoft 365. However, it does require you to enter a credit card number, and if you don’t cancel before the month is up, you’ll be charged $100 for a one-year subscription to Microsoft 365 Family (formerly called Office 365 Home).

The good news is if you don’t need the full suite of Microsoft 365 tools, you can access a number of its apps online for free — including Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneDrive, Outlook, Calendar and Skype. Here’s how to get them:

1. Go to Office.com.

2. Click Sign up for the free version of Office under the “Sign in” button.

3. Log in to your Microsoft account or create one for free. If you already have a Windows, Skype or Xbox Live login, you have an active Microsoft account.

4. Select the app you want to use, and save your work in the cloud with OneDrive.

So what’s the catch for the free version?

You may be saying, “Wait a minute, if I can get all of those apps for free, why pay for Microsoft 365 in the first place?” Well, the functionality of the free apps is limited: They only run in your web browser and you can only use them while you’re actively connected to the internet. They also have fewer features than the full Microsoft 365 versions.

There are still a number of benefits, however, including the ability to share links to your work and collaborate in real time, similar to what G Suite tools allow. If you’re looking for basic versions of each of these apps, the free version should work well for you.

For more productivity coverage, check out all of the best features in Windows 11, how to take screenshots in Windows 10 or 11 and the best resume-building apps. You can also take a look at CNET’s list of the best Windows laptops.