The TCL 10 Pro isn’t the best smartphone in the world – and in fact, it didn’t even break into our main list of the top 15 phones you can buy right now – but nevertheless, I'm excited to see it on virtual shop shelves.
The TCL 10 Pro received three stars out of five from TechRadar, and we called it “not a bad phone” with a further (and more damning) clarification that “you can get so much more for the money, whether you’re minded towards Android or iOS.”
For clarity, I didn’t review the TCL 10 Pro for TechRadar so I haven’t used the handset extensively, but I’m excited because this phone shows there’s still space for new entrants in the mobile market.
Welcome to a new contender
That quote from our review is quite damning, right? But that doesn't mean we want TCL to give up. In fact, I want TCL to see that criticism (and it’s not just us, a lot of our rival tech publications seem to agree with our review of the phone) and run further with a sequel.
TCL entering the phone game with its own branding is an exciting move. Previously, the company has produced handsets through its sub brands of Alcatel and BlackBerry, both of which catered to a very different niche than TCL is trying to target with the 10 Pro.
BlackBerry handsets under TCL haven't thrived, but they've consistently offered a business-focused experience that you can't really get anywhere else. Alcatel on the other hand has been consistently producing some of the best affordable phones on the market.
With the TCL brand becoming more and more recognized in the TV market, it makes sense for the company to apply the name – and the methodology associated with it – to smartphones too.
That methodology involves offering a quality product, but making some necessary cuts to ensure it comes in at an affordable price, which is what it has tried to do with the TCL 10 Pro.
The rear cameras on the TCL 10 Pro
The TCL 10 Pro isn't looking to compete with the very top-end handsets for a lower price. This isn’t going to be the phone you consider instead of a Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra or iPhone 11 Pro Max, but it may be an alternative to a Samsung Galaxy A90 5G or even something like the OnePlus 8.
And while the TCL 10 Pro isn't entirely successful, with the experience of making that phone behind it, whatever comes next from TCL may be a true contender for the very best mid-range phone that money can buy.
No matter what, we now have another major manufacturer with a lot of money behind it – along with experience in the consumer tech market – going full throttle and developing 5G handsets for the mid-range mobile phone space.
That's exciting, and while I won't be recommending the TCL 10 Pro itself to people, I'm excited to see what the company is capable of doing next.
Christine Vanderpool is the VP of IT security and the chief information security officer for Florida Crystals Corporation and ASR Group.. When she started, there was no defined cyber security strategy…
It's no wonder that VPNs are so popular in China – while the 'Great Firewall of China' is starting to look less imposing than it once was, there's still massive blocking in place for residents of (and visitors to) China.
Yep, the the aggressive state blocking of certain websites by the China government has eased somewhat in recent months. But if you've had to travel to the country in the last few years – either for work or leisure – you'll be well aware of how tight the state continues to keeps its internet – and now it's threatening to residents of Hong Kong, too. That's why getting the best VPN has become invaluable for residents and visitors to obtain access to restricted online content.
The use of a Virtual Private Network has become a more and more commonly used method for expats and those in academic circles in China to get around the state's very strict policies regarding online content. So if you're looking to access a restricted website then downloading a VPN in China is a solid solution.
Of course the country isn't happy about the use of VPN software, enacting a ban last year – although it remains unclear how (or indeed, whether) users will be punished for using an ‘unauthorized’ software. But many VPN providers are continuing to sell to people within China and we’ve picked out five top-notch efforts for your use.
ExpressVPN is one of the most popular VPNs in China, and it’s a go-to provider for many because it deftly navigates around the Great Firewall. Express' wide array of server locations is a big plus, with Hong Kong, Taiwan and Japan-based servers being especially relevant in this case.
ExpressVPN offers consistent and reliable performance, with smart dedicated apps for most devices including routers. For any trouble that might occur, there’s round-the-clock live chat and email support available from China (the website is not blocked).
This provider actively monitors its network for China accessibility and ensures that its software stays ahead of the censors’ efforts to block connections. Under the hood, ExpressVPN uses obfuscation protocols and advanced technology to provide the best possible experience for users in China.
The 30-day money-back guarantee at least gives you some fall-back, and the year-long plan provides the best value for money. The packages available are:
NordVPN has dedicated an entire team to the pursuit of getting around website blocking in countries like Saudi Arabia, Iran and, yes, China. It actively monitors connectivity and then works to carry out any necessary actions to bypass any new blocks.
It's that kind of commitment to bypassing the Great Firewall that makes Nord such an attractive option. It has obfuscated servers in nearby territories such as Japan and Hong Kong, with its Double VPN feature for further anonymity still available in Taiwan. Those local servers should mean more stability and speed when you're logging in from China.
Live chat support isn't as available as with some other VPNs, but query submissions online are answered pretty quickly. Handy if you run in to any problems. And if you're still a bit unsure about whether NordVPN is right for you, there's a 30-day money-back guarantee.
Largely thanks to its great value price points and user-friendly interface, British Virgin Islands-based Surfshark has really risen up our rankings of late. And it has certainly improved its Firewall of China fighting credentials, too.
Like any good VPN these days, Surfshark has loads of servers – over 1,000, in fact – making it a great choice for making a location change to an IP address somewhere else on the world. And if that sounds like something that would be complicated to do, fear not…Surfshark is among the best around for keeping things simple and straightforward, with easy-to-follow buttons ans instructions like its 'Quick connect' function.
If privacy and security while in China are your major concerns, then Surfshark lives up to that requirement, too. It includes OpenVPN UDP and TCP, IKEv2 security protocols, AES-256 encryption, and a kill switch in place in case your connection fails. There's also a private DNS and a double VPN hop for additional security.
Despite the low pricing, Surfshark makes its service available to unlimited simultaneously connected devices. Very impressive value.
One of the main advantages of VyprVPN is its proprietary Chameleon security protocol which can help bypass VPN blocking, scrambling OpenVPN packet metadata to ensure it’s safe from the tendrils of deep packet inspection.
VyprVPN is a tier-1 VPN network, which means the outfit owns all of its servers. There are enough of them to ensure good performance (14 are located in Asia), along with solid support for mobile operating systems, and 24/7 live chat for troubleshooting.
The much-praised Chameleon protocol is excluded from the basic plan, which offers three simultaneous connections. On top of that, it is expensive, and there is no refund, but you do have a 30-day money back guarantee. Despite the cost, what’s on offer here could well be worth paying for – your best bet is the annual Premium plan to make sure you get the benefit from Chameleon, and save the most money. The packages available are:
In VPN circles, Hotspot Shield is probably best known for its market-leading free version. But it's clearly been putting in the hard yards to improve its premium version, too, and it has managed to get around all the blocking attempts in China.
It may sound like something out of an 80s action film, but Hotspot's 'Catapult Hydra' protocol is one of its MVP features and helps the service perform at an extraordinary speed – even when we tested some of the farthest out server locations. Handy if you're in China but are looking to connect back to the US, UK or pretty much anywhere else it has a server location.
How to choose the best VPN for China
Dealing with this level of censorship of the net is far from easy, but some VPNs are willing to tackle the problem, having proven methods of maintaining uptime in a difficult online climate. Obviously you need to look for a capable provider in this respect, and pick out a reliable VPN, too.
Choosing one with high quality customer support is also important, for when downtime does rear its ugly head. And obviously the number and range of available servers (particularly those in Asia) will help you obtain a better, faster connection. Tight security and privacy is, as ever, a primary consideration as well.
Note: China’s official ban on VPNs came into effect on March 31 2018, but at the time of writing, we haven’t received notice from any VPN providers acknowledging that their offerings will be affected.
Want something without paying? These are the best free VPNs (although they may not work in China)
Memorial Day 2020 is almost here, and Best Buy is kicking things off with incredible deals throughout its site. Best Buy's Memorial Day sale includes price cuts on best-selling TVs, laptops, headphones, appliances, and so much more.
Shop more of Best Buy's top Memorial Day deals below, and if you're interested in more bargains, check out our roundup of the best Memorial Day sales that are happening right now.
We were impressed with the Ulefone Armor 7 rugged smartphone when we reviewed the device earlier this year. Now, Ulefone has released a new and cheaper iteration: the Ulefone Armor 7E.
The discount version of Ulefone’s flagship rugged smartphone is available for an attractive $ 229.99 (£188.60/AU$ 370.29) from online retailer Gearbest – that's more than $ 100 less than the original model.
The unit ships for free to the US, UK, Australia and dozens of other territories worldwide, but it's worth noting the price of the system could change in line with exchange rate fluctuations.
There are only two main differences between the Armor 7 and Armor 7E: the latter has half the memory and inferior camera sensors.
All other components found in the original are still present, including a Mediatek P90 CPU with 128GB storage, 6.3-inch FHD+ display, 48-megapixel rear Samsung camera, 16-megapixel front camera and 5500mAh battery.
Other features include 802.11ac Wi-FI, Bluetooth, dual nano SIM card with microSD slot, Bluetooth 5.0, NFC, IP68, wireless charging, heart rate sensor and MIL-STD-810G certification.
Rivals such as the Oukitel WP6 and Doogee S68 Pro may have more memory or a larger battery, but the Armor 7E provides greater balance thanks to a superior processor and overall feature set.
There are plenty of good-looking OLED TVs around these days, and few look better than those put out by LG. The South Korean TV maker has put an immense amount of thought into its premium OLED range, nowhere more so than with the LG E Series OLED – even if it was sadly discontinued this year.
2019’s LG E9 OLED was a masterclass in panel design, offering a glass display that banished the bezel and almost appeared to be floating up from the counter – offering a truly breathtaking visual experience. More than anything else, it looked different from any other TV put out that year.
The E9 didn’t quite make the cut for 2020, though, with the new Gallery Series GX model replacing the E Series line instead. While it presumably made business sense for LG to cut the E Series – which doesn’t seem to have received nearly the amount of media attention as the cheaper (and equivalently specced) C9 OLED, or the more affordable B9 OLED at the bottom of LG’s 2019 OLED range – it’s a loss nonetheless.
We were disappointed not to see an EX model unveiled at CES 2020 along with the other new LG TVs being shown off, and were told simply that the E Series was no longer being pursued.
Neil Robinson, Senior Director for Strategic Projects at LG Electronics, tells us that “The E and G Series were both step-up models, so the GX can be seen as the replacement for the E9.”
Given how close the LG GX and LG WX are in terms of design – both being slim, wall-mounted televisions, with only really a soundbar to differentiate the latter – the removal of an E Series is a move away from variety, even if the GX will be sure to find an audience of its own.
It’s a shame, given the truly unique aesthetic of the E Series compared to other LG TVs. The new BX and CX models look essentially the same as each other, too, like most televisions these days. How much can you iterate on a flatscreen, after all?
The LG Gallery Series (GX) OLED replaces the E Series for 2020
Why we loved the E Series OLED
Certainly, there are plenty of subtle differences between the physical appearances of TVs, whether that’s where the TV brand’s logo sits, what kinds of feet or stands prop it up off a counter, or the thickness and quality of the display’s casing. That’s not to mention the differences in picture quality – which is really the heart of any television experience.
But that’s why the E Series felt so refreshing: offering a unique form factor amid a ceaseless catalogue of identikit rectangles. Most of LG's OLED range shares the same panel and processor, anyway, so differences in design feel even more important
In our LG E9 OLED review last year, we praised the set’s “all-glass, frameless panel” for its “open and expansive air”, as well as “a dazzling picture, with crisp detail and truly cinematic visuals”. Aside from minor irritations – the lack of HDR10+, and a patchy Bluetooth connection – the E9 was and is a knockout television to watch.
The E9 OLED (2019) was a glass-panel beauty
The year before? We called the E8 OLED “arguably the ultimate expression of these OLED advances, thanks to its glamorous design, niftily integrated sound system and, best of all, mesmerizingly good pictures.”
Other LG TVs have similarly intriguing design choices – including the TV stand for the C9 OLED, which is slanted to funnel audio towards the viewer – but it’s frustrating to see successful examples of this not pursued further, limited to just one or two model generations.
So where did the E Series go?
Our senior home entertainment editor, Nick Pino, speculates that “the reason not to make one this year isn’t based on any pre-existing issues [with the E Series design], but rather that LG decided it couldn’t innovate enough to warrant a new model.”
It’s possible that LG backed itself into a corner with the glass panel design. The TV market demands iteration, and the unique design constraints of a glass display may have meant there was less room to alter or improve its shape going forward compared to other designs (the GX really feels like an iteration on the W Series, rather than a standalone model).
The LG WX and GX are alike in all but the former’s soundbar
OLED panels are also infamous for often getting damaged during production – given their sensitive, organic materials – and we can’t imagine an all-glass display offsetting worries about breakages either.
The LG E9 OLED is still on sale for those wanting something different – costing roughly half what it did at launch this time last year – and we recommend you take a look if you aren’t sold on the new Gallery Series GX OLED, which offers the only notable divergence from LG’s existing models. Processing enhancements are likely to be minimal compared to the 2020 range too.
Chuwi’s UBook Pro is probably the best alternative to the Surface Go that Microsoft seems to have retired. All stocks of the diminutive tablet are currently out of stock and have been so for a while. You can still get it from third parties, often at a much higher price.
Gearbest sells the Chuwi UBook Pro for $ 399.99 (or £340/AU$ 670) when you use the coupon code GBCHUWI123. Exact prices after the discount in other territories will vary depending on the day’s exchange rate. Gearbest ships to most territories worldwide via expedited shipping although you may be levied additional charges and fees by customs.
Add the capacitive stylus pen and the original keyboard cover and the price creeps up to just under $ 470, which is still far lower than the 128GB version of the Surface Go (that comes without accessories).
What do you get for your money? A Gemini Lake-based Intel Celeron N4100 that is significantly faster than the Pentium 4415Y (based on CPUBenchmark numbers), 8GB of RAM, a 256GB SSD – that’s twice the storage capacity of the Surface Go, a 12.3-inch display with a full HD resolution.
The Surface Go has a smaller display size so, understandably, it is lighter and has a smaller footprint. The camera sensors on Microsoft’s tablet have a higher resolution but the UBook Pro has more connectors (including a useful HDMI one). This means you won’t mean any docking station to connect to a monitor.
We reviewers are used to obsessing over incremental technology changes, but every now and then a supernova appears on our radar – something that can single handedly change the status quo.
The AMD Ryzen 4000 family is one such supernova and promises to bring some of the best processing performance ever to laptops, at a price that defies logic.
When we first laid eyes on the Ideapad 5 15, it was immediately clear Lenovo is going for the jugular.
Available for as as little as £475 (roughly $ 590/AU$ 920), the IdeaPad is considered an entry level model, so we were delighted to see the AMD Ryzen 7 4700U making an emphatic appearance.
The laptop comes with 8GB of RAM and a 128GB SSD (M.2 2242, PCIe-NVMe, TLC) and, most importantly, you can swap out Windows 10 for FreeDOS (an MS-DOS equivalent).
You can also add a dummy hard disk drive for free, which means you can integrate a secondary 2.5-inch SSD at a later date.
It also features a 15.6-inch full HD TN display, which you can swap for a touch/non-touch superior IPS model for a small additional fee.
Likewise, if your budget will allow, you can add a fingerprint reader, replace the 45Whr battery with a 57Whr model and exchange the Wireless 2×2 AC for a more advanced Wi-Fi 6 2×2 AX.
Note, the machine is not yet available in Australia or the US, but we've contacted Lenovo to find out when it will appear in non-European regions.
The best TED Talks make you think, leave you inspired and, very often, make you laugh as well. We've been watching Ted Talks evolve and grow over the last 15 years and have come to treasure the nuggets of wisdom they impart.
But if you're just discovering Ted Talks for the first time – or feel like you've missed a bunch throughout the years – we want to help you dive head-first into the heady lecture series with a round-up of our absolute favorites: What you'll find below is a collection of personal picks from the TechRadar team that we feel best exemplify what a Ted Talk can be.
Not seeing one of your favorite talks below? Drop me an email and I'll try to add it to the list.
How to gain control of your free time by Laura Vanderkam
There’s a certain irony in watching a YouTube video on how to save time, but Laura Vanderkam’s talk is worth the 10 minutes of your life. It’s all built on the basic idea that shaving 5 minutes here and there from your favorite activities isn’t really going to give you more control of your life – rather, you need to set priorities for yourself and then build a schedule around those priorities.
The hilarious example Vanderkam offers is that, instead of skipping commercials to save eight minutes of every half hour of TV you watch, maybe you could just watch a little less TV and do something else with your time. The message is simple, effective and engaging, all the hallmarks of a good TED Talk.
What makes a good life? Lessons from the longest study on happiness by Robert Waldinger
“Good relationships keep us healthier and happier. Period.” That’s the results of a landmark study of happiness conducted by more than four generations of researchers over the last 75 years, tracking hundreds of participants and measuring every facet of their lives.
This Ted Talk takes awhile to get to the juicy details but the story of this preternatural study on happiness illustrates the lengths the researchers have gone through to get this invaluable data that shows us what makes people happy at the end of their lives. The results sound simple – almost infuriatingly so – but the lesson here is that anyone can be happy with the right relationships in their lives.
The game that can give you 10 extra years of life by Jane McGonigal
Gamers, it turns out, are pretty awesome. They’re committed to saving virtual worlds and with the right skills and focus they might be able to save the physical world, too. McGonigal, a game developer and author, has spent years creating different apps and games that use in-game rewards to push players to solve real world problems.
The talk, which is a bit long at 20 minutes, walks the audience through her previous experiences creating these games and the research data that she uses to get gamers engaged before diving into Superbetter, the app she developed to make everyone who plays it live better, fuller lives.
The art of asking by Amanda Palmer
Former busker-turned-successful-musician Amanda Palmer has a key lesson for everyone: don’t be afraid to ask. Society puts an inherent shame on those who ask – whether that’s for financial help or security, emotional help or even basic requests like where to find something – when, in fact, asking for help is one of the best things we can do. Asking, Palmer says, is inherently human and powerful, it allows us to create connections and leverage those connections to do more. That was evident when she wanted to crowdfund her band’s next CD, asking for $ 100,000, and raising over a million dollars instead.
The point here is that next time you look down on someone asking, instead view them with compassion and make a connection – because in the long run that’s more powerful, more effective and, well, more human.
The first 20 hours — how to learn anything by Josh Kaufman
Have you ever heard the old adage about needing to spend 10,000 hours to learn a skill? Good news, it's wrong. As it turns out, the research that factoid is taken from was studying experts in their respective fields, and not, say, the average trombonist.
In this talk, new father Josh Kaufman walks us through how long it actually takes to learn a skill – which, incidentally, is only around 20 hours. Now sure, 20 hours of practice isn't going to make you the next Bobby Fischer, but it will be enough time to teach you the basics and, most importantly, how to auto-correct yourself when you've done something amiss. If you've ever felt like the ship has sailed on learning a new language, playing an instrument or learning a new skill, this talk is for you.
Everything you think you know about addiction is wrong by Johann Hari
Journalist and author Johann Hari (Lost Connections, Chasing the Scream) offers a wide-ranging look at addiction in this 14-minute talk, whether that’s addiction to hard drugs, alcohol, or the endlessly-updating feeds on our smartphones.
We tend to think of addiction as a problem caused by the substance itself. We say that phones are addictive, or heroin is addictive – but Hari makes a case for a more nuanced understanding, one that sees how social circumstance affects our propensity for addiction, and the difference that strong bonds to those around us can make.
The power of vulnerability by Brené Brown
With over 47 million views, Brené Brown’s Ted Talk on the power of vulnerability is one of the most watched Ted Talks of all time, and for good reason.
In this 20-minute presentation, Brown shares what she’s learnt about the nature of shame, and how our fear of vulnerability prevents us from being able to fully embrace ourselves. As a researcher trained to “control and predict” phenomena, she shares her difficulty accepting the idea that to live fully is to stop attempting to “control and predict” at all.
An incredibly powerful talk that shows you – rather than just telling you – what it means to be vulnerable, and explores what a world that embraces vulnerability might look like.
Meeting the Enemy: A feminist comes to terms with the Men’s Rights movement by Cassie Jaye
What filmmaker Cassie Jaye does here that’s so special is that she walks us through an immense period of growth in her life thought-by-thought. At one point a stringent feminist, Jaye began a documentary about the Men’s Rights movement that asks for the acknowledgement of certain, specific issues that men face – a movement she thought ran counter to the central points of feminism.
What she learned in over a hundred hours of interviews with men’s rights activists is that these men didn’t want fewer rights for women, but some of the same care and devotion to some of the issues impacting men like veteran care, suicide, disproportionate parental control, length of prison sentences and others that do well and truly impact the life of men. The evolution of Jaye’s thoughts and the admission of her own preconceived notions is enthralling from beginning to end.
How I climbed a 3,000-foot vertical cliff without ropes by Alex Honnold
If you don’t have time for the excellent – but nearly two-hour – documentary Free Solo, check out this 10-minute Ted Talk by legendary rock-climber Alex Honnold who did something many thought to be impossible – or at least incredibly dangerous – when he climbed El Capitan, a sheer rock face in Yosemite National Park without ropes.
Honnold’s Ted Talk gives a great overview of the climb, as well as his previous experiences leading up to it. Listening to Honnold describe certain parts of the trek are legitimately sweat-inducing and his experiences post-climb are both hilarious and heart-warming. It’s well-worth the watch.
This is what happens when you reply to spam email by James Veitch
Not all Ted Talks have to be heady ventures to the core of who we are. They can, in fact, just be funny and lighthearted, too. There’s no better example of these kinds of talks than the ones given by James Veitch (yes there’s more than one) wherein he takes annoying-but-easily-ignorable situations like unsubscribing from an email chain and turn them into absurdly funny matches of verbal wit between two utterly committed individuals. If you need a laugh after all this profound introspection, Veitch’s talks are the best bet.
BONUS: Bobby McFerrin Demonstrates the Power of the Pentatonic Scale
OK, while this one technically isn’t a Ted Talk, it has the spirit of one and includes Bobby McFerrin, which really just sells itself.
Just try not to sing along, it's impossible not to.
Looking for more things to watch? Check out our list of the best Netflix shows
After a whirlwind of leaks, Crytek announced the game, for PC, Xbox One, PS4 and Nintendo Switch, coming Summer 2020 (June-August for folks in the Southern Hemisphere). Crysis Remastered will be filled to the brim with technological advancements, with software-based ray tracing being chief among them.
Either way, we'll show you how to build a PC so you're ready for Crysis Remastered
We've reached out to both Crytek and Nvidia about what exactly this means, and will be sure to update this article if we hear back from either company, but it could be a game changer. Most ray tracing found in the best PC games right now is hardware-based, thanks to Nvidia Turing's RT cores that accelerate this computationally heavy workload.
It's extremely likely that Nvidia's RT cores will still be able to accelerate Crysis Remastered ray tracing, so that's not such a huge deal. The huge news here is that it will open the window to other hardware manufacturers (read: AMD) to easily get ray tracing running on their hardware.
Crysis with ray tracing is going to be quite the visual delight. The original game, launched way back in 2007, still looks good to this day, so coupled with all the other visual additions, Crysis Remastered could very well end up being 2020's graphics tech showcase. We'll just have to wait and see, though.
Look at all that juicy tech
No matter what happens, you should just brace yourself for an onslaught of "can it run Crysis" jokes.
Besides the always-demanding ray tracing, Crysis Remastered is going to be including stuff like volumetric fog and god rays, along with what Crytek is calling "state-of-the-art" depth of field. To someone who doesn't spend their lives surrounded with PC gaming jargon probably won't know what these mean, and that's fine.
What you need to know is that this will make Crysis Remastered look really good, and may make the title verge more into remake territory rather than the straightforward remasters we're used to.
Given that Crytek's teaser trailer opens with a bunch of clipped comments about Crysis's legacy as an extremely demanding PC game, we're putting our money on Crysis Remastered taking that legacy back.
We were finally able to run original Crysis at 4K 60 fps with everything maxed out on an Nvidia GeForce RTX 2080 Ti – now it's time for Crysis to push that out of reach once more. And, really, we're totally OK with that.
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