Introduction Many of us regularly boil more than we need in our kettles, wasting energy on hot water that doesn’t get used. The Aqua Optima Aurora Dispenser aims to solve that problem by delivering exactly the right amount of hot water on demand, which is filtered too. This model also supplies instant chilled, filtered water, meaning that whether you’re making a round of tea or keeping thirsty kids hydrated, it’ll be in constant use all year round....

The truth is third-party system optimization tools are often eyed with suspicion, and I always try to avoid them as much as I can. While it’s true that some third-party system optimization tools can mess up your PC, there are those that can prove to be very useful, and Auslogics BoostSpeed 10 is one of them. I had the privilege to test this program on a very slow and issues-plagued Windows 10 PC to write this honest review of the program....

What to Look for in a Controller for Retro Gaming D-Pad Accuracy – even the most talented players could be undone by a wonky D-Pad. Without an accurate one, you can forget about pulling off precision jumps required in platformers or throwing any Hadoukens in Street Fighter. Comfort – retro gaming is virtually synonymous with marathon gaming sessions: replaying sections of a punishing level over and over again, not to mention that if you truly want the old school experience, you’ll be shunning save states....

If you just got a Mac but are struggling with whether to buy Office all over again, there are several Office alternatives for Mac you can choose from, even if all you want to do is edit and send Office documents once in a while. Some are free suites with many tools, but you can invest in premium options and get extra features – the value may be worth the cost....

Not every tablet is worth your attention, and not everyone needs the latest specs to achieve what they’re after. We’ve tested a multitude of tablets, all the way from the pre-iPad days, so we know what we’re talking about when we selected the products for this strict shortlist. Some of the most common issues with tablets can be poor build quality, unoptimised software – which is a particular issue on some Android tablets – and battery life that won’t last longer than a few episodes of telly....

However, Bluetooth has a slow transfer rate, and that affects the quality of the sound. It just doesn’t sound as good as a wired set of headphones. Until recently, you couldn’t change anything to improve that transfer rate. But now the new Oreo operating system for Android allows you to choose which Bluetooth audio codec to use, whereas the previous versions selected for you. What is a codec? A codec is a device or program that compresses data to transmit data more quickly....

Atom is an eminently customizable app, so it can do much more than you would initially think. With the right add-ons, it can replace your to-do list manager, your note-taking app, and maybe even your favorite mind mapping app. 1. Organized If you’ve ever spent any time talking to a fan of the Emacs editor, they’ve likely extolled the virtues of org-mode. This magical package lets you track your notes, to-dos, and calendar events as well as editing documents....

32-bit vs 64-bit. What’s the difference? In short, a 32-bit and 64-bit computer are different in architecture. The main difference lie in the length of data supported by each architecture. A 32-bit machine can only understand data that is 32-bit long. Anything more than that would not be able to read by the machine. Similarly, a 64-bit machine can read data up to 64 bit long. Even though 64 is twice of 32, a 64-bit data can hold much more than double the information of a 32-bit data....

CaptureNotes 2 opens up with your “binders.” When opened for the first time, it gives you a tutorial binder, and another binder you can adjust and make your own. I chose to keep the tutorial for obvious reasons. You can name and rename these at this point, as well as share the binders. They can be emailed, or added to Evernote, Dropbox, or iTunes. Opening a binder gives you a notebook....

Interface There really isn’t an interface for Newsstands. The “application” is simply a shelf that displays all of the subscriptions that you are subscribed to. Once the application is selected, the shelf appears. Next to the “Newsstand” label, there is a selection for “Store”. This is the section that allows you to download subscriptions. How Does It Work? So, how exactly do you download a subscription. It’s very easy. Once you select “Store”, you will then be presented with Apple’s modest but quality subscription selection....

While Skype and other VOIP software can be used for video and audio communication, it can’t be used in a private network. If you want to setup a SIP server in your network quickly, a good option would be OfficeSIP. The benefit of OfficeSIP server is that it is free and requires minimal configuration to setup completely. Setting up OfficeSIP First of all, you will need to download OfficeSIP server....

There is a free and much simpler solution. That solution is an app called Compositions. Let’s take a better look at the software. Compositions is visually simple. You won’t find a detailed user interface or a lot of special features in the software. That is part of the design as it is meant to keep you focused. To some of you, that may be a turn off. We live in the age of multitasking and most of us hope to find a tool that does everything....

This menu bar application has features that, in my opinion, should be included with every Mac. For starters, you can tell Wimoweh not to go to sleep while running specific applications. You can also set a sleep timer to have your Mac sleep during certain times. You can also easily keep your Mac awake indefinitely, or at least until you’re ready for it to go to sleep. This is already available in Mac OS X, but Wimoweh gives you easy access to it....

To obtain Bit.ly Pro service, go to http://bit.ly/pro/products and sign up for the Bit.ly Pro – Free program. If you are lucky, you might be able to open an account immediately. If not, be prepared to wait for a week or two (or even longer) before they send you the invitation email. If you have not gotten your short domain name, go register one. If you need domain name ideas, here are some resources you can check out....

With computing news thin on the ground during this festive time of the year, I’ve decided to look back at the year as a whole for my latest column, and celebrate the very best laptop innovations that I’ve seen first hand. These excellent features may not necessarily feature in the overall best laptops of the year, either due to high pricing or they’re simply not ready for public use. But they provide an exciting sneak peek for the future of laptops, with more refined iterations likely arriving in the coming years....

The app works with your actual usage on your iOS device, not with the usage from the phone service. It keeps track and updates your usage every ten minutes. When I opened the app for the first time, it started not with how much I have already used this month, but at zero, and assumed my monthly bill started on the first of the month. For reviewing purposes for this article, I reset the billing date to the day I downloaded the app, and kept the daily allowances at the preset amount, but could easily reset them to match the allowances of any data plan....

Although the DBPower T20 1500 Lumens LCD Mini Projector isn’t recommended for PPT or business presentations, it’s perfect for watching movies, playing video games, mirroring your mobile device, feeding your nostalgia with home movies and special events (such as weddings), and much more. You can connect many types of devices to it such as a camera, HD set-top box, laptop, media player, USB drive, game console, computer, or mobile device....

Online there are more options, and now there is an additional one being added to the mix. Along with using a credit card, you can also use a system such as Paypal or Apple Pay. And now “Pay with Google” has been introduced, working much like Paypal. We asked our writers, “Do you trust Google enough to use ‘Pay with Google?’ ” Our Opinion Nicholas sees that Google has “almost no reason not to be trusted....

Proofreading is a valuable technique to stop these errors slipping through the cracks, but you may not be able to identify errors when reading your own work. Enter DPCustomMono, a font intended solely for proofreading. Although originally designed for proofing OCR text, there is no reason you could not use it for text written on a computer as we intend to. Outline DPCustomMono, as you can see, is far from a beautiful font, though it is functional....

We bring you a detailed guide to help sort out this problem by tweaking a few Windows settings. Why Dual Boot Menu Isn’t Showing After you install a second OS on your Windows PC, you should be able to switch seamlessly between the two using the boot menu. Unfortunately, the boot menu may not show for one of the following reasons: Fast startup is enabled, so the PC boots directly into the default OS....