BIC America, maker of the highly popular Formula F12 subwoofer, has done it again with their newer Acoustech PL-200 II Subwoofer. With a huge 1000 watts of dynamic peak power, this sub will never struggle filling your space with loud, deep, impactful low end. We looked at its construction, sound quality, and overall value to see if it edges out the Formula F12 as one of the best budget subs you can buy....

Brave is based on Chromium, so it’s a great alternative to Google’s Chrome browser, and can use all the same extensions. And now, it uses its own search engine. You can, of course, change the search engine for any browser, but defaults are powerful, and many people never switch. So, is Brave now the most private browser? Or are you better off tweaking Safari or Chrome? “When it comes to privacy…Brave performs better than other competitors due to the simple fact that it does not store users’ browsing history and personal data,” Professor Nir Kshetri, of the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, told Lifewire via email....

Can a Smart TV Get a Virus? A smart TV can get a virus or other malware and these are not new. In two separate instances in mid-2019, smart TV viruses and malware were reported to infect two different brands of televisions. If that makes you worry, you probably should. But there is good news. TV viruses and malware are not the norm. Rather, they are an anomaly that seems to be rare, because it’s difficult to create a virus that will work on a TV....

Does Fix-a-Flat Damage Tire Pressure Sensors? Fix-a-Flat will not damage a tire pressure monitor sensor simply by coming into contact with it. There are a number of concerns you need to be aware of when using Fix-a-Flat in a tire that contains a tire pressure monitor sensor, but the bottom line is that you can use it in an emergency situation as long as you take the necessary steps to protect your sensors afterwards....

Terms and Definitions Here’s a basic rundown of the most common terms and definitions associated with car audio: Head unit: Any in-dash car stereo control unit.Car stereo: The entire sound system in a vehicle. It includes both head units and speaker systems.Receiver: A specific type of head unit that features a built-in amplifier.Tuner: Another term for a head unit—usually one without a built-in amplifier and usually referencing the radio.Car radio: Catch-all term that refers to both receivers and tuners....

Overall Findings Chromebooks have the familiar clamshell design of a laptop but come with a lower price tag because they’re designed for word processing and accessing the web. They’re similar to netbooks, but they run the Google Chrome OS instead of a scaled-back version of Windows. They can’t run most Windows and Mac programs, but you can install and run Linux on a Chromebook. Size and Weight: Tablets Are More Portable Chromebooks are essentially laptops but with the same size and shape as a classic portable computer....

The closest UPS I have in my own office is an old APC Back-UPS BGE90M, which I use to keep my networking equipment up and running. Since the CP685AVRG has a slightly better battery and easily outclasses my old APC in terms of wattage, I slotted the Cyberpower unit into my system to see how it works in real-world conditions. Over the course of about a week I tested how well it works in normal operation, how well it switches over during simulated brownouts, and how well it’s able to handle an extended load during a simulated power outage....

Structure of a Data Packet The structure of a packet depends on the type of packet and protocol. A packet has a header and a payload. The header keeps overhead information about the packet, the service, and other transmission-related data. For example, data transferred over the internet requires breaking down the data into IP packets, which is defined in IP (internet protocol). An IP packet includes: The source IP address: The IP address of the machine sending the data....

Apple has given special care to those with seeing, hearing, and motor skill differences to ensure everyone has the power to send a message, get directions, take and send a selfie, and engage in a live interactive phone call. This guide will let you know what’s possible with iPhone accessibility options and how they work. Once you’ve found an option you want to activate, slide the toggle button on the right-hand side to turn the option on....

80’s movies promised a lot of cool future tech that hasn’t appeared. We’re not riding on hoverboards, nor do our cars fly. The one thing we did get is inexpensive and simple video calling. The Docooler USB 2.0 12 Megapixel promises to make that a reality with an HD camera for the lowest cost in its class. Can this dirt-cheap camera deliver on its promise to connect us in HD?...

Products That Feature Dolby Atmos Since its introduction in 2014, most mid-range and high-end home theater receivers include Dolby Atmos decoding. Dolby Atmos is also available on select soundbars from Creative Labs, Integra, LG, Onkyo, Pioneer, Samsung, Sony, Yamaha, and Vizio. LG also includes a built-in Dolby Atmos soundbar with select OLED TVs. Although not quite the same experience as having a multi-speaker Dolby Atmos speaker setup, a Dolby Atmos soundbar brings a taste of its benefits to more consumers....

Because it’s so easy to use and free from the clutter that similar programs have, there are also some features you won’t find in this tool. How to Use DriverPack There are two ways to run this program: Regular Mode By default, after opening the setup file, DriverPack will run in “regular mode” where everything happens for you: your computer is prepared and the drivers you need are downloaded and installed for you....

Google’s annual conference often brings news of updates and big feature changes for some of Google’s biggest platforms, and this year is no different. From advances made in AI and quantum computing, to changes to how you interact with search and your online passwords, Google had a lot to talk about during the opening keynote for Google I/O 2021. Google Maps Updates Eco-Friendly Routes and Safer Routing are two new features arriving in Google Maps later this year....

It’s more than just a way to augment the on-board speakers on your TV, though. A soundbar can be an integral part of a 5.1 or 7.1 system acting as the main, center channel, so making sure the soundbar you buy fits in with your system is paramount. Beyond that, many brands offer cutting edge features like automatic room tuning, smartphone apps to control and expand your system’s functionality, and speaker technology that fills rooms using directional cones and ports....

When Was the Fitbit Charge 5 Released? Google announced the Fitbit Charge 5 on August 25, 2021. You can order the 2021 Fitbit Charge from Fitbit.com. For reference, the first three Charge devices came out about every two years: November 2014, September 2016, and then October 2018. The 4th iteration was released in March 2020. Fitbit Charge 5 Price Fitbit released past Charge devices at $149.99, but this one is $179....

Cities are terrible places for autonomous cars. They’re full of unpredictable humans on bikes, on foot, and in regular cars. If you wanted to custom-design an environment that made it hard for a computer to navigate safely, you’d end up with a modern city. And—in European cities at least—even human-driven cars are on the way out. But there is a place for autonomous vehicles—on freeways, in fields, and generally away from fragile humans....

FPO images are commonly used when you’ve been supplied actual photographic prints or another type of artwork to be scanned or photographed for inclusion. With modern publishing software and digital photography, FPO is a term that is mainly historical in nature; it’s rarely used in everyday practice anymore. Uses for FPO Before the days of fast processors, FPO images were used during the design stages of a document to speed up the process of working with the files during various drafts of a document....

Apple’s iMessage app is the only major messaging platform that supports SMS, a quirk that dates back to the original iPhone, which combined SMS and iPhone-to-iPhone messages into the same app. This extra ability has caused problems over the years, most recently with complaints that Apple should stop ostracizing “green-bubble” contacts by excluding them from some features. Now, Google’s Messages app will do what Apple won’t and translate iMessage tapbacks into emojis....

Overall Findings Android TV and Google TV are excellent operating systems for smart TVs and Chromecast streaming devices. Google TV is the newer of the two and has several improvements, but it’s not as different from Android TV as you may think. Both operating systems are Android-based, with Google TV working more like an Android TV update with a rebrand than a complete reinvention. Switching from an Android TV device to one running Google TV is more akin to upgrading from an old Android smartphone to a newer Android model rather than jumping from an Apple iPad to something completely different like a Windows tablet....

It used to be that Facebook made all photos and posts public by default, meaning anyone could see them. Facebook’s privacy settings now give users more granular control over who can see what, but they can also be a bit difficult to figure out. Basic Tutorial on Keeping Facebook Photos Private For Facebook photos, you always have the option to make sure only your friends can view them via the inline privacy button or “audience selector” tool in the post creation box....