Brian Fagioli

When you want a tablet for consumption, there is no better product than the iPad. For creation, however, it can be lacking. For typists in particular -- including students needing to take notes -- the lack of a keyboard makes it a tough sell. While the Pro iPads can be used with an official keyboard from Apple, those tablets are very expensive. Luckily, there are third-party offerings for the more affordable traditional variants too.

Today, Logitech announces a new keyboard case for the 5th generation iPad 2017. Called the "SLIM FOLIO," it transforms Apple's inexpensive 9.7-inch tablet into a laptop. It also protects the iPad from drops, bumps, and scratches. Logitech says the keys are quite durable too, as they are rated for 5 million strokes. Its scissor keys offer an impressive 1.5 mm key travel for a quality typing experience.

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Windows 10 is a great operating system. Despite some vocal detractors, many people enjoy it every day for home, school and work. It is for this reason that Microsoft's overall Windows marketshare is the majority by far -- macOS and Linux-based operating systems are largely insignificant.

In the education segment, however, Google has been having some success with its Linux-based Chromebooks. Microsoft seems unhappy with the search giant taking some of its share of the pie. Today, in response to Google's Chrome OS, Microsoft launches a new operating system -- Windows 10 S. The mantra for this OS, as per Microsoft, is "simplify to magnify."

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Tomorrow in New York City, Microsoft will be holding an event that seems to be geared towards education -- the Windows-maker has been sharing the #MicrosoftEDU hashtag. With Chromebooks gaining in popularity, especially in the school segment, it has been rumored that the company will be revealing a new version of Windows 10 that only runs apps from the Windows Store -- similar to the much-maligned Windows RT. This would, in theory, remove many malware threats, making it a safer platform -- similar to the benefit of Chrome OS.

On the eve of this event, a Twitter user named WalkingCat, using the handle @h0x0d, has leaked some images and details regarding what he/she alleges is the upcoming Surface Laptop that will be revealed tomorrow. The leaker alleges that the laptop will be 14.47mm at its thickest in the rear, and it will taper down to 9.9mm towards the front. It will reportedly be quite light at a mere 2.76 pounds. The 13.5 inch display will have 3.4 million pixels. Oh, and that new version of the operating system? It will be called Windows 10 S and not "Cloud."

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Linux Mint is a very popular operating system -- for Linux, anyway. It is based on Ubuntu, but it ditches one of the most maligned aspects of its base OS -- the Unity desktop environment. Instead, it primarily offers the Cinnamon DE, which is reminiscent of Microsoft's Windows 7. Mint's popularity and relevance is in question lately, however, as Ubuntu itself has decided to stop using Unity too. It remains to be seen if GNOME 3 being the default DE for future Ubuntu releases will decrease the number of folks switching to Mint.

The uncertainty about Ubuntu has not deterred the Linux Mint team, however, as they are moving ahead with plans for version 18.2. While details about the upcoming version of the operating system are scarce, we have learned two important details. First, the code name for the OS will be "Sonya," and second, the distro will use LightDM as default display manager.

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The NES Classic Edition is a very fun nostalgia-based gaming console. As someone who grew up with Nintendo, I knew I wanted the mini system as soon as it was announced. A family member was able to score me one on launch day, and I've been very happy with it. Unfortunately, other people have not been so lucky. Supply was very limited and it has since been discontinued. If you do not already have it, you are sort of out of luck without paying high prices on eBay or Craigslist.

If you are only looking to replay the NES games of your youth, and you are OK with doing it in an unofficial way, emulation is another route. In fact, if you'd rather not play these games on your PC, you can instead use a Linux-based operating system and a Raspberry Pi (or other devices) hooked to a television. One such distro is Lakka, which just reached version 2.0. It is arguably better than an NES Classic Edition as it can also play games from other systems, such as SNES, Sega Genesis, Nintendo 64, PlayStation 1, and many more.

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The government is supposed to work for the people, but sometimes, it can feel like it is against them. In a democratic country like the USA, where many officials are elected by citizens, you would think this wouldn't be the case, but sadly, it often is. As Edward Snowden revealed in his leaks, the US government has programs where it spies on its own people, doing things like scanning and reading their emails.

Today, the National Security Agency announces -- somewhat begrudgingly -- that it will stop the collection of some American emails that simply mention known foreign targets. It will instead only collect communications to and from the target directly. While this is a big win for the privacy of American people, the NSA is seemingly implying that it could have negative implications for safety. In fact, the agency tries very hard to distance itself from any wrongdoing by making it clear that the reading of these emails were legal and allowed.

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With PC gaming still hugely popular, more and more companies are looking to create their own peripherals. As a result, there are countless mechanical keyboards on the market nowadays. I recently reviewed the Logitech G413 which offers amazing value.

Today, popular memory-maker G.SKILL unveils its latest mechanical keyboard -- the RIPJAWS KM560 MX. As the name suggests, it uses Cherry MX switches, and consumers can choose between red, blue, and brown. It is very similar to the company's KM570 model with one big exception -- it is tenkeyless. This means it is lacking the numberpad that is found on most keyboards. In fact, G.SKILL says this will save about 8cm, making it a good choice for those that need desk space.

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Earlier today, Acer unveiled its new line of Windows computers. While they all look great, there was one model that damn-near knocked me off my chair. The Predator Triton 700, as it is called, is yet another gaming laptop that a manufacturer is calling thin and light. Yeah, we have heard that before -- "thin" for a gaming notebook is often still rather chunky. There it was, though -- an honest to goodness svelte portable PC. It is a mere 18.9 mm thick and 5.7 pounds.

The thin aluminum body is just part of the story, however, as it also has very respectable specifications. "Powering the beast within is a standard-voltage 7th Generation Intel Core processor, latest high-performance NVIDIA GeForce 10-Series graphics, two NVMe PCIe SSDs in RAID 0 configuration and up to 32GB of DDR4 2400MHz memory," says Acer.

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PC gamers have many decisions to make when buying peripherals. Price and brands aside, there are various technologies and style choices. For instance, if you buy a mechanical keyboard, what types of switches should you get? The toughest decision is probably when selecting a mouse -- do you want wired or wireless? While a cordless variant may look nicer, a wired mouse doesn't need a battery and can have less lag.

Today, Razer announces a new product that might make choosing a mouse even tougher. The Lancehead wireless gaming mouse is chock full of cool features, including a super-high 16,000 DPI optical sensor. It charges using USB, and the cable can double as a receiver extender. If you are dead-set against a wireless mouse, do not worry -- the company is launching a wired "Tournament Edition" of the Lancehead with a laser sensor.

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I recently bought the all-new iPad 2017 and love it very much. The problem? There aren't many cases for it. While some first-gen iPad Air cases may work with it, that is not a guarantee. Sure, there are some universal cases that leverage elastic straps to accommodate many models, but those are often a poor experience.

Today, Logitech announces an all-new universal keyboard case that actually looks good. Rather than use cheap elastic, the company has come up with some brilliant 4-point adjustable grips. This looks to be a very elegant product that solves a common problem. Of course, it will not work with all tablets, just some models that range from 8.9 to 10 inches. Best of all? The clever case is compatible with iOS, Android, and Windows 10.

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Summer is right around the corner, meaning the temperatures in many places will begin rising to uncomfortable levels. It's funny -- in the winter, many people get cold and dream of summer, and once that season comes, they complain about the hot weather. There' s just no pleasing some folks!

Thankfully, with the invention of air conditioning, human beings can use technology to stay cool. If you aren't lucky enough to have central air in your home, a window unit is the next best thing. Today, GE Appliances announces that its Wi-Fi connected window models are getting Amazon Alexa support. In other words, using the power of your voice, you can control the air conditioning.

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Amazon Echo, and the associated Alexa voice assistant, are wildly popular. This is fairly surprising, as you would expect such a successful product to come from Apple or Google. While the latter has since launched its "Home" competitor, Amazon's offering still reigns supreme in the hearts and minds of consumers.

Not satisfied with resting on its laurels, today, Amazon announces that it is pushing the envelope even further. You see, the company will be launching a new product -- Echo Look. This device works with Alexa like the other Echo products, but with a unique twist -- it has a camera. No, it is not designed for communications, but instead, for fashion. The Echo Look will help you look stylish, by taking your photo or video in an outfit, and making suggestions.

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Thanks to media streaming and cloud storage, many home consumers no longer need massive hard disk drives. Instead, a fast SSD with a lesser capacity can often meet needs. Of course that isn't a fact for everyone -- some folks still prefer local storage, and mechanical HDDs are ideal from a cost perspective.

Home users aside, businesses still largely have a need for hard drives with large capacities. Trade secrets and customer information can't always be stored in the cloud. While some data centers are embracing solid state drives for better performance, that is not really cost effective at this time. Today, Western Digital begins shipping the 12TB HGST Ultrastar He12 Helium 7200 RPM hard disk drive. This is a HDD with monstrous capacity that is designed for the enterprise.

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When you are a PC gamer that seemingly already owns everything for gaming, what is left to buy? Besides your hardcore gaming rig, you probably already have a mechanical keyboard, mouse, and headset, right? Heck, you may even have a fancy mousepad. But does your pad even glow, bro?

Today, SteelSeries launches the QcK Prism dual-surface RGB illuminated premium gaming mousepad. Yeah, it is a gaming mousepad that glows thanks to RGB lighting. While not the first RGB mousepad, SteelSeries says it is the first-ever dual-sided variant. You see, one side is cloth, while the other is hard plastic.

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Forgetting where you parked your vehicle can happen to anybody at any age. It happens to me quite often, as I am known to be daydreaming as I walk from my car to a store, such as the mall. On more than one occasion, I've walked around a parking lot, hitting the "panic" button on my keys so that I can hear the horn honk. Heck, there is an entire episode of Seinfeld that deals with the topic.

Thankfully, Google is giving us some relief. The search giant's Maps app has a new feature that will record where you parked your vehicle. It is not an Android-only affair either, as it also works on iOS.

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