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2021 BACK ISSUE CD NOW ON SALE! p34 I must have YouTube open in my browser for about 40 hours a week, and yet I hardly ever visit the site. That’s because I’ve customised it to run in the background while I work, playing music to help me concentrate. My top three hacks are: one, play it in Brave to avoid adverts; two, install the Music Mode extension to ensure smooth streaming; and three, use Enhancer to control playback speed via my mouse. YouTube guru Robert Irvine mentions all three tricks in his Cover Feature, which reveals other expert tips such as bookmarking specific moments in videos, adding a download button to the player, and stopping Google knowing what you’ve watched. Actually, there’s a fourth hack I use, which is…

My new PC from CCL (www.cclonline.com) has a lightningfast SSD, but my internet with Virgin Media was painfully slow at just 10Mbps, even though I was paying for 130Mbps. I spoke to Virgin’s support team, who were very helpful. Inevitably I had to wait while they performed lots of tests, but they eventually diagnosed that the Ethernet adapter had been set to a download speed of just 10Mbps. We reset that to 1000Mbps and now we’re motoring. I know that Virgin are expensive, but this kind of service makes it worthwhile. Here’s where he told me to look: open Settings (press Windows key+I), click ‘Network & Internet’, then click ‘View hardware and connection properties’ and check the ‘Link speed’ (see screenshot). Would you have found that on your own? Gervais…

How can I listen to podcasts on my phone? Q I’m a keen podcast listener, and until recently I used the default Apple Podcasts app on my iPhone to listen to them. Recent updates have made its interface difficult to use, however, which has put me off. Can you recommend a decent podcast app so I can finally ditch Apple’s? Kev Williams A There are lots of good podcast apps to choose from, but our favourite is Pocket Casts (www.pocketcasts.com). Available for Android and iOS, it’s packed with useful features for podcast fans, including the ability to create filters, so you can quickly find relevant episodes to listen to. It automatically generates an Up Next queue of your favourite shows, which you can sync across devices, and includes options for…

Magic square You may know Box (www.box.co.uk) as an electronics retailer rather than a PC manufacturer, but the Sutton Coldfield company has actually been building PCs for 20 years. This is the first time we’ve reviewed one, however, so let’s see how it fares. “Easy to configure, performs well in Windows and can play the odd game” Box builds the Cube Mythic around the six-core Ryzen 5 5500 processor and an RTX 3060 graphics card. While this particular configuration isn’t one of the six Mythic models listed on Box’s website, the above link will take you straight to the specification we put together. All Box’s PCs are easy to configure, so it’s simple to recreate. We took the basic £979.99 model with a Ryzen 5 5500 processor, upgraded the graphics…

Small change We reviewed the OnePlus Nord 2 in Issue 613, but now OnePlus has launched a successor. It’s not different enough to merit a whole new model number, but has a few tweaks over the Nord 2 that make it worth a look, particularly since the launch price of £369 is also a little lower than the Nord 2’s £399. On the outside it’s almost exactly the same size as the Nord 2, give or take the odd fraction of a millimetre, with dimensions of 8.2x73x159mm. It also weighs a gram more at 190g. This makes the Nord 2T feel relatively compact in the pocket. Together with the familiar curved rear, it sits just as well in the hand. “Lower price and decent performance for a modest upgrade” The…

Can I plug in a second monitor? Q I’m working from home on a Lenovo X13 laptop. I’ve connected a monitor to the laptop’s HDMI port to get more screen space. Is it possible to hook up another monitor, perhaps by using a hub? Simon A The Lenovo X13 laptop has a Thunderbolt 3 USB-C port, which can carry a video signal to a monitor. If your second monitor also has a USB-C port, you can use a compatible USB-C cable to connect the two and it should work seamlessly. The cable needs to be Thunderbolt 3-compatible, though, such as the £21.99 Anker cable, available from Amazon at www.snipca.com/42167. However, if your chosen monitor has only standard video ports, such as HDMI, you will need to buy a USB-C hub.…

Power play Movie Studio 2022 is the new name for German developer Magix’s video-editing software, previously known as Movie Edit Pro Premium. Magix hasn’t reinvented the wheel, though, and the new software looks very similar to the previous version. This is good, because the software has always been well designed and reasonably easy to use, despite being powerful and packed with features. “Enough new tools to justify upgrading from the 2021 version” One of the best new features is the tool for moving video clips around the preview window, which makes it easier to create collages and split-screen effects. The handles you use to manipulate footage are bigger in this version, giving you more control when tweaking a clip’s position and scale. There’s also a better clip-rotation tool, which lets…

Winner of a Recommended award in Issue 633, Anker’s PowerConf C200 webcam delivers great 2K video-chat quality, and is easily attached to the top of your screen. It’s superbly built, has a simple plug-and-play setup, and comes with clever software to finetune how it works. When you’re not using it, you can slide its privacy cover to ensure you’re not visible. The versatile C200 lets you adjust how much it can see by selecting the lens’s viewing angle. Without losing any image quality, you can choose from a 65°, 78°, or 95° field of view to show just your face or include what’s behind you. It also has two specialised mics that pick up your voice while simultaneously reducing background noise for crystal-clear audio. To enter this competition, answer the…

Email us your tips: letters@computeractive.co.uk TIP OF THE FORTNIGHT Open Thunderbird emails in multiple windows After years of using Thunderbird (www.thunderbird.net) for my email, I’ve just discovered how to open multiple messages so that each appears in its own window. The default setting opens multiple messages in a single window, which keeps the interface looking neat and tidy but can feel restrictive, because you can see only one email at a time. To remedy this, first select Tools, then Preferences. If you can’t see the Tools option, try pressing the Alt key. Make sure General is selected on the left (1 in screenshot), then scroll down to the ‘Reading & Display’ section, where you’ll find a setting labelled ‘Open messages in’. The default option is ‘A new tab’, but I…

Smart Clean Chromium www.snipca.com/42106 Deleting data such as cookies, browsing history and cached images and files helps protect your privacy and blitz junk, but it also involves delving into your browser’s settings every time. Smart Clean makes things easier by letting you clear these elements, as well as passwords and downloads, at the click of a button or by using the keyboard shortcut Alt+C. You can choose the time frame for data deletion, from the last hour to the last month (see screenshot) or ‘all time’, and go into the extension’s settings for useful extra options. These include playing a sound to confirm data removal, and deleting selected items automatically after a specific time or when your browser starts. You can also whitelist sites so that their cookies are never…

SiteSeeker Free Android www.snipca.com/42213 iOS www.snipca.com/42214 SiteSeeker is the official app from The Camping and Caravanning Club. You’ll need to join the club (£45) to take full advantage of all the tools on offer, but many features are available for free, including the ability to browse 1,600 club camp sites across the UK and download maps for offline use. Members get access to exclusive offers and further camp sites. Best For Caravanning club members Searchforsites Free Android www.snipca.com/42215 iOS www.snipca.com/42216 Designed with motorhome owners in mind, this free app lists 31,000 campsites in the UK and Europe. Icons on the map denote different types of site. Tapping one provides details including prices and amenities. Maps are downloaded so the app can be used without Wi-Fi. Best For Motorhome owners AllTrails…

Video-sharing site TikTok has become a global phenomenon, with its short videos even propelling the UK’s Eurovision runner-up, Sam Ryder, into the limelight. Part of the reason for TikTok’s success is that its videos are intentionally short: creators have to work out how to get their point across in under 10 minutes. However, TikTok is popular mostly with the young, and your club members will probably be more familiar with YouTube. So, we recommend trying its Shorts service, which lets you record videos that are either 15 or 60 seconds long (nothing in between). Once you’ve recorded it, you can upload it to your YouTube channel to promote your club or an event. To start, open the YouTube app on your phone or tablet, then tap the ‘+’ button at…

ADD A DISC FOR £5.95 Buy Windows 11 Pro for just £79.99! In this special offer you can buy Windows 11 Pro for just £79.99 – that’s £140 cheaper than Microsoft’s full price of £219.99. To buy Windows 11 Pro, visit www.snipca.com/41588 and click the red Buy Now button on the right. If you have any questions about your order please email editor@computeractive.co.uk JUST SO YOU KNOW… This offer can be used by one person only, and expires at midnight on 5 July, 2022. It’s a lifetime licence for one computer.…

Dragging and dropping files to move or copy them from one location to another is such a common action that most of us don’t give it much thought. You simply hold down your left mouse button to select a file, direct your cursor to where you want to place the item and release your finger - job done. But there are clever ways you can customise the drag-and-drop function to better suit the way you use your computer. As we explain, these include changing the default drag-and-drop action, adjusting the sensitivity and preventing drag-and-drop mistakes. Control what happens when you drag and drop When you drag and drop a file in Windows, the result depends on where you’re dragging the item from and to. If you drag a file between…

NOW CHEAPER THAN EVER! Norton 360 Premium 10 devices, 2 years We’re delighted to announce an outstanding new Reader Offer for the antivirus software Norton 360 Premium. For just £24.99, you’ll protect 10 devices for two years WHAT YOU GET ✓ Real-time malware protection ✓ Secure VPN ✓ 75GB PC Cloud Backup ✓ Webcam hack alerts PLUS Monitors the dark web for your personal information Norton is made by NortonLifeLock Inc – a standalone company dedicated to consumer cyber safety. It has always performed strongly in Computeractive antivirus tests, so we highly recommend it. 10 devices for two years NOW ONLY £24.99* Normally £179.99 Buy it from our Software Store at www.snipca.com/33247 *while stocks last…

1080p Of the common types of high-definition video, this is the best quality: 1920x1080 pixels. 2K A screen with 2048x1080 pixels. 4K Video with a resolution of at least 3840x2160 pixels. 720p A common resolution of high-definition video: 1280x720 pixels. 8K Video with a resolution of 7680x4320 pixels. Currently the highest resolution available. Administrator mode Allows you to make changes to a computer that will affect other people who use it. AI Artificial Intelligence. Intelligence demonstrated by a machine rather than a human being. Often used to describe technology that can perform human-like tasks. AMOLED Active-Matrix Organic Light-Emitting Diode. An alternative technology to LCD for creating flat-panel displays. Most commonly used in smartphones, tablets and smartwatches. APK Android Package Kit. The file format Android uses to install apps. Bandwidth A…

APPLE FINALLY ADDS WEATHER TO iPAD Apple is finally adding a weather app to the iPad, 12 years after it released the first version of the tablet and following repeated requests from users. It will be part of the iPadOS 16 update, due this autumn, and will look similar to the iPhone’s weather app, with a background that reflects the current weather (pictured). See page 45 for more on iPadOS. FIRST UK PHONE FOR FIVE YEARS TO LAUNCH London firm Nothing (https://nothing.tech) will launch the first Britishdesigned smartphone for five years on 12 July. The device, called Phone (1), will have a “minimalist design”, a frame made from recycled aluminium and transparent glass on the back. The last UK phone maker, Wileyfox, released three phones between 2015 and 2016, but…

Where’s my Fitbit refund for recalled watch? LEAD CASE Q I’ve been waiting two months for a promised £224 refund on the recalled Fitbit Ionic smartwatch (pictured) I bought two years ago for £249. This means I can’t take advantage of a 40-per-cent discount offered to me on the new Fitbit Sense watch. This offer closes soon, so can you help? Mike Rogers A We’ll try because Mike’s certainly entitled to the refund. Fitbit recalled the Ionic model in March because it “can overheat, posing a burn hazard” (see www.snipca.com/42117). It added: “The health and safety of Fitbit users is our highest priority. We are taking this action out of an abundance of caution for our users. We will offer a refund to Fitbit Ionic customers”. If the watch had…

These days, I take more photos on my phone than with my dedicated camera. I have an iPhone, and I’m very happy with the quality of its photos, but it doesn’t always work seamlessly with my Windows 11 PC. One of the best things about the iPhone is its sharing menu (although Android has something similar). I can select a number of photos and send them to a specific folder in Google Drive, which then synchronises the images to my PC. You can use other cloud services such as Dropbox, too. It’s all very clever and convenient except for one flaw: the iPhone uses the .heic image format by default. Unfortunately, iPhones are the only devices that support this format. My Windows PC certainly doesn’t know what to do with…

What is it? Mesh Wi-Fi uses a series of router-like devices to spread Wi-Fi around your home. Data is passed between them, to help your Wi-Fi cross greater distances. The units in some mesh Wi-Fi systems communicate with each other on a separate radio channel, usually referred to as the backhaul. Others just use the same radio channel that your various devices connect to. How does it work? Mesh systems that use a dedicated backhaul simply cordon off one of their radios for communication between the mesh devices. This is usually one of the faster 5GHz networks. It’s worth looking out for because it means, on a tri-band mesh system for example, you may only have the equivalent of a dual-band network available, because the devices you connect to your…

CHROME & EDGE Search images using Google Lens more easily In Issue 629 (page 40), we wrote about a new option in Chrome that lets you right-click an image on a web page to search for it using Google Lens, so you can identify the subject of the picture. Version 102 of the browser, which was released last month, improves this feature by displaying results from Google Lens in a side panel on the right of the current page, rather than opening them in a new tab. These include a button to ‘Find image source’ to see pages that include the image (1 in our screenshot below), and visual matches for the picture on other sites. Usefully, the side panel also includes a Text button 2 that lets you copy…

iOS Make voice calls easier to hear The iPhone is a miraculous device, packed to the gills with advanced technology, but making actual phone calls can sometimes feel like its Achilles heel. As of iOS 15, however, there’s a solution for one of the iPhone’s weaknesses – voice clarity. A somewhat hidden feature called Voice Isolation intelligently filters out background sounds and ambient noise, making it easier for your voice to be heard clearly by the person you’re talking to. This is particularly useful if you’re calling someone from a bustling environment, such as a railway station. Voice Isolation works on all recent iPhone models, from the iPhone SE (2nd gen) and iPhone XS onwards. There is a small catch, however – it’s only available during FaceTime video or audio…

WINDOWS 10 & 11 Press Alt+F4 to quickly shut down Pressing the Alt+F4 keyboard shortcut closes the program you’re currently using, but it can also give you a quick way of restarting, sleeping or shutting down your computer. First, you need to make sure you’re not using a program, so press Windows key+D to go to your desktop, or Windows key+T to highlight the first item on your taskbar. This frees up the Alt+F4 shortcut to open the Shut Down Windows box. From here, you can select your option (see screenshot below), then press OK. WINDOWS 10 & 11 Turn off OneDrive notifications OneDrive has all its notifications turned on by default, which can overwhelm you with alerts that you don’t need. To turn these off, check to see if…

If you have an Android phone or tablet, you can enhance your YouTube experience, remove ads and protect your privacy by switching to a free app called NewPipe (www.snipca.com/42153). This alternative front-end for YouTube lets you browse and watch exactly the same videos, but without Google spying on you. It uses less battery power and data than the official YouTube app, and lets you use Premium-only features for free, including downloading videos at HD quality and playing content in the background while you use other apps. The main catch is that NewPipe isn’t available from the Google Play Store, so installing it is a bit of a hassle, but definitely worth it. First visit www.snipca.com/42154 in your mobile browser and tap the Download F-Droid button. If warned that the “file…

Have you ever mislaid a file or folder by dropping it in the wrong place while moving it? A free tool called DragDropConfirm can help you avoid annoying slip-ups like this by asking you to confirm your drag-and-drop action before Windows carries it out. Go to the program’s GitHub page at www.snipca.com/42139 and click Code, followed by Download ZIP. Launch the downloaded file, extract its contents, then navigate to the Installer folder and launch DragDropConfirm_installer.exe. As with DropPoint, Windows prevented the installer from running when we launched it, but we got round this by clicking ‘More info’ followed by ‘Run anyway’. Once you’ve installed the program, reboot your PC. Now, whenever you drag and drop a file between drives – which deletes the file from its original location – DragDropConfirm…

How can I set the Files app as my default? Q I read with interest Issue 631’s Workshop (page 38) on adding tabs to File Explorer using the Files app (www.snipca.com/41679), as this appeared to be something I would find very useful. It installed without any problems and is very easy to use, but I can’t seem to make it the default app. All my other programs, such as Office and Affinity Suite, still launch File Explorer when I open files. It seems the only way to do this is to use the sideload version of the tool. Is that right? Bill Feasey A The ability to set the Files app as your default file manager on your PC is a new feature that’s being trialled in version 2.1. As you mention,…

If Microsoft ever decides to ease the hardware restrictions for Windows 11, this bungled approach – causing mass confusion – is precisely how it would do so. That’s why, at first, we thought it was a sign that restrictions might be lifting, and Microsoft’s dismissal doesn’t completely dissuade us from that view. In May, Windows 11’s market share stood at 10 per cent (www.snipca.com/42238), dwarfed by Windows 10’s 72 per cent. Microsoft needs to act fast to change that.…

WATCH OUT FOR… Chrome-hacking browser extension What’s the threat? Hackers are infecting Windows computers with malware that takes over the Chrome browser, showing search results for dodgy sites. The attacks use the ChromeLoader browser extension, which changes Chrome’s settings to show you worthless sites such as fake surveys and adverts, and even pornographic pages. Every time you click a link the scammers get paid. ChromeLoader has been a threat since at least the start of 2022, but attacks increased sharply in May according to researchers at US security firm Red Canary (www.snipca.com/42194). They say it’s smuggled on to computers as an ISO file and then uses Windows PowerShell to “inject” itself into Chrome. They added that this is a technique “we don’t see very often”, and that antivirus tools often…

Virgin Media has been busy dealing with our readers’s problems recently. In the Credit Where It’s Due box opposite, Gervais Sawyer reveals how it helped to boost his broadband speed, while here we’re happy to say that it has paid Anne Gerald the £13 it owed her. As we explained in Issue 633, Anne should be credited £13 to her account each month as part of a discount offer after signing up to the company’s Volt package (www.snipca.com/41996), which upgrades you to the next-level broadband speed, and doubles your O2 data. But this discount wasn’t applied in January, and when she contacted Virgin it couldn’t even understand what the problem was, let alone suggest how to fix it. It’s also concerning that Virgin ignored four complaint emails she sent. When…

PROGRAM UNINSTALLER BCUninstaller 5.3 www.snipca.com/42187 What you need: Windows 7, 8.1, 10 or 11 BCUninstaller - or Bulk Crap Uninstaller, to give its rather crude full name - should be familiar to many Computeractive readers. In Issue 627’s ‘Stop using rubbish software’ Cover Feature (page 52), we recommended it as the best alternative to the overrated Revo Uninstaller, and it’s constantly getting better at removing unwanted tools from your computer. Because it’s an open-source program, the developer can rely on help from users to report bugs and offer suggestions for refinements to features. As such, version 5.3 includes a raft of welcome tweaks. One minor but significant change is the renaming of the ‘Nuke an application’ function, which lets you drag a crosshairs icon from BCUnistaller’s toolbar over a program’s…

SOFTWARE WARNING! 4K Player for YouTube If you’ve got a stunning 4K monitor or laptop screen, of course you want to watch YouTube videos with a picture so sharp you could cut your finger on it. Alas, YouTube rarely defaults to 4K even when you’ve got a high-res screen, which is probably why apps such as ‘4K Player for YouTube’ nudge their way into the Microsoft Store. But if you’re looking to up your YouTube game, give this dismal app a swerve. The clear implication of the app’s title is that it will play YouTube videos in glorious 4K, but it does nothing of the sort. When I clicked play on several videos in this £3.29 app, it started playing at 720p – well below the resolution of my laptop…

Built to last Some people are happy to pay a small fortune for a smartphone with all the latest features. For the rest of us, it’s worth making a few compromises to get a significantly more affordable handset, such as the Nokia G11. The phone’s most impressive feature is its 6.5in screen, which offers a smooth 90Hz refresh rate. It looks great when viewed indoors, although you might have to adjust the settings when using it out in the sunshine, because it’s not particularly bright. For the price, however, it’s rather good. As you might expect, overall performance is less impressive. The Unisoc T606 processor and 3GB of RAM are good enough to run a web browser and basic phone apps, but the G11 won’t perform well in more demanding…

Find out what other products we liked. Buy our new 2021 Back Issue CD: £17 from www.snipca.com/42077 LAPTOP PRICE DROP Lenovo Yoga Slim 7 (256GB) £579 from www.snipca.com/41099 Tested Issue 601 Weighing just 1.16kg, this is an excellent lightweight laptop with a great screen and an AMD processor faster than many Intel rivals. It has two USB-C ports, two USB 3.0 ports and a microSD card reader. The battery lasts for nearly 16 hours. ALTERNATIVE Dell XPS 13 New Intel CPUs and a taller screen make this a more powerful, all-round slim laptop. Prices start at £769 from www.snipca.com/40042 ANDROID TABLET NEW ENTRY Samsung Galaxy Tab S8 £699 from www.snipca.com/42240 Tested Issue 634 Samsung has replaced its own Tab S7+ to become our favourite Android tablet. It’s fast with a…

Symfonium Free* Android www.snipca.com/42207 The ideal media player for anyone whose music collection is split across multiple libraries, Symfonium can pull music files from your device’s storage as well as from Plex, Kodi and others and play or stream them. The latest update adds support for Subsonic and more. Costs £3.49 after free trial. Infinite Painter Free* Android www.snipca.com/42208 iOS www.snipca.com/42209 Proving that Apple users don’t have a monopoly on top-notch creative tools, Infinite Painter is a brilliant painting and drawing app for Android tablets and iPads. Upgrading to the Pro version (£8.99 iOS, £7.49 Android) unlocks lots of extra tools. Noir £2.49 iOS www.snipca.com/42210 Recently updated, Noir is a useful Safari extension that forces every website you visit to display in dark mode – perfect for preventing eye strain…

LIBREOFFICE WRITER & MICROSOFT WORD Change page colour and print it To change Word’s default colour of white, open a document, click the Design tab (1 in our screenshot), then click Page Color 2 in the Page Background at the far right. You can now pick a colour from the Theme and Standard sections 3. To print this coloured page you’ll have to change a setting in Word. Click File at the top left, then Options (or More, Options) at the bottom. Now click Display on the left, and in the Printing Options section, right, select the ‘Print Background Colors and Images’ option. Click OK. In LibreOffice Writer, click the Format tab, followed by Page Styles, then the Area tab. Now click the Colour button, followed by the Pick button,…

There are more moving parts in a keyboard than in any other piece of hardware in or connected to your PC. Some of these can be prodded and flexed thousands of times a day, so it’s no wonder that, eventually, they’re prone to fail. Letters can rub off keycaps (see box opposite to find out what we mean by this term), the keycaps can get loose and – if you’re very unfortunate – they can detach from the underlying mechanism entirely. If you have an external keyboard, the simplest solution is to buy a new one and take your old keyboard to a local recycling centre (find your nearest one at www.snipca.com/42206). You can pick up a Microsoft Wired Keyboard 600 with a UK layout for less than £12 on…