Tabla de contenidos para 645 en Computeractive

Fax machines are set to disappear from homes and offices after Ofcom proposed removing the legal requirement for BT to provide landline connections for the devices. The current Universal Service Obligation (USO) that forces BT and KCOM (in the Hull area only) to provide fax services was established in 2003, when fax machines were far more common. But Ofcom said that the fax machine “has been overtaken by email and document-sharing software that offer the same or better functionality”. It added that the long-term switch from a copper phone network to internet-based communications means fax services “can no longer be guaranteed to work” as before. The regulator said that faxes have remained popular when finalising big-money transactions with tight deadlines, such as house purchases and football transfers. Freedom of Information…

Back in Issue 621 (page 29) we reviewed Sky Glass, a new TV from the satellite broadcaster that connects to the internet and provides all Sky’s services through your broadband service, bypassing the need for a satellite dish. It’s an attractive option for people who want Sky and need a new TV, but don’t want (or are prohibited from having) a satellite dish installed. If you already have a perfectly decent TV, however, Sky has now launched a version of the same service that you can connect to your existing set. It’s a little black box, similar in appearance to a Roku, and like Sky Glass there’s no need for a dish. “Cost-effective way for those who want Sky TV without a satellite dish” Stream is the cheapest way to…

WHAT YOU CAN DO Turn your old TV into a smart TV for under £40 Record and rewind live TV without a set-top box Watch free TV without adverts using a browser extension Watch recent and classic films and TV shows for free Tune into hundreds of channels from around the world Enjoy unlimited content without signing up for an account Never pay full price for a streaming service again As the cost-of-living crisis continues, many of us are saving money by cancelling our memberships to streaming services. A recent report by the market research company Kantar (www.snipca.com/43911) found that the number of UK households with at least one streaming subscription fell by nearly one million between January and September, as people prioritise paying for essentials such as food and…

If you don’t already have a monitor you can connect to a mini PC, such as the Beelink model reviewed left, you could opt for an all-in-one desktop PC instead. This combines the screen and PC into a single unit. For the price we weren’t expecting the design of the Acer Aspire C24-1651 to rival Apple’s iMac, and so it proves. The bezels at the top and bottom are chunky by modern monitor standards, while the plastic feet and unconvincing silver effect around its edges don’t exactly scream luxury. However, it takes up barely any space and the surprisingly decent wireless keyboard and mouse mean there’s none of the usual spaghetti-type pile-up on your desk, apart from the power cable and brick. “A tidy, space-saving PC solution that handles Windows…

What are they? We’re not entirely sure yet, but it sounds like Microsoft is planning to make low-cost computers that show you adverts – probably promoting its own products as well as those from other companies. Oh great. Won’t the ads be annoying? Probably – most adverts are. But the trade-off is that the money Microsoft gets from the ads will make it financially viable for the company to sell computers cheaper than they otherwise would’ve sold them. What kind of adverts are we talking about? Not sure about that yet, either.  Don’t know much really, do you? Well, what we do know is that Microsoft recently posted a job advert for a software engineer to help “chart a new direction” for its business model that includes “low-cost PCs powered…

No matter how many times I purge my computer of unwanted programs, forgotten downloads and redundant files – usually in the course of writing tips for this magazine – the junk always seems to build up again. Perhaps this is because, like a vegan chef who can’t resist a Big Mac or a doctor who smokes the occasional cigar, I don’t always practise what I preach when it comes to cleaning up my PC. So I was interested to learn that Microsoft has created a new, free tool for removing junk from Windows and freeing up storage space. It’s called PC Manager but mysteriously it’s only available to download from a Chinese Microsoft website, where it was discovered by an Italian Twitter user with the splendid name Aggiornamenti Lumia (www.snipca.com/43831).…