Melissa Riofrio spent her formative journalistic years reviewing some of the biggest iron at PCWorld--desktops, laptops, storage, printers--and she continued to focus on hardware testing during stints at Computer Currents and CNET. Currently, in addition to leading PCWorld’s content direction, she covers productivity laptops and Chromebooks.
It's white! It comes with cute color accents! ...How the heck do you clean this thing? The latest and most colorful Chromebook, jointly launched by Google and HP, puts a fetching face on a model that's otherwise similar to other low-priced Chromebooks we've tested.
The new Acer C720 Chromebook is thinner, lighter, and only slightly more expensive than the C710, but its main claim to fame is being the first out of the gate with a Haswell processor.
The cloud's the thing for Webroot's SecureAnywhere suites, which aim to stay nimble by living online and analyzing files on the fly. All suites protect against viruses, malware, and phishing. Two higher-end versions add iOS/Android support and system optimization tools.
Now that smartphones and tablets are essential equipment for businesses of all sizes, HP is giving part of its huge installed base a chance to keep up with its 1200w Mobile Print Accessory. It plugs into a printer's USB port and enables NFC connections with mobile devices for direct printing.
The Brother MFC-J870DW is affordably priced, and it comes with a long list of features. Its performance is just average, however, so it’s a buy for quantity rather than quality.
The C710-2457 is inexpensive and could knock around a family room or a kid's backpack with little budgetary trauma, but it's otherwise unremarkable and does little to promote the Chrome-centric lifestyle.
Offline? Sure. Local? Yes. Chrome packaged apps bring many gifts for users and developers. We explore them via UberConference, an early arrival in the Web Store.
The Brother HL-3170CDW color laser-class (LED) printer offers good speed and adequate print quality for an inexpensive purchase price, plus, its toner costs are reasonable. However, users seeking better output quality should look at a business inkjet.
Brother's MFC-J870dw looks like any other mid-priced color inkjet multifunction, but it has a hidden, unique feature: near-field connectivity, for touch-and-go printing with NFC-equipped mobile devices.
TechNet was a cheap way for IT pros and others to get access to Microsoft products and support, but it’s being phased out for free services that won’t be quite as sweet.
The Norton Mobile Insight database scans 10,000 new Android apps daily for security and privacy risks so users can make informed decisions about downloads.
This compact inkjet multifunction will suffice for light home/student use. The print quality is surprisingly good, but ironically, the pricey inks mean you shouldn't buy this machine unless you don't print much.
