The PC Pro Podcast

The team discusses an embarrassing data breach at FatFace, the downsides of working from home, big changes at Nominet and how Intel plans to regain its mojo. Our Hot Hardware candidate is the Acer ConceptD 3 Ezel Pro, a laptop with a novel flexible design.

The team discusses Intel’s new Apple-bashing ads, a silicon shortage threatening the smartphone market, controversy over privacy labelling and new plans to encourage tech giants to pay for the content they use. Our Hot Hardware candidate is the latest model of the LG Gram 17, a laptop that’s big but very light.

The team discusses the EU's chip ambitions, a huge attack on Microsoft Exchange, the use of CCTV to track social distancing and Dropbox's acquisition of DocSend. Our Hot Hardware candidate is the Elgato Stream Deck, a smart button bank that works with almost any application.

Microsoft wants to augment meetings with its Hololens technology, but three out of our four experts think it’s fighting a losing battle. Plus, our take on the automated Amazon store shortly to open in London, a brief explainer on what NFTs are (and if they’re a good thing), and why Google’s move away from personalised ad tracking comes with caveats. Finally, can Tim persuade the others to make a £200 laptop Hot Hardware of the Week?

The team discusses a speed boost for satellite internet, the uncertain future of Wear OS, concerns over Apple SSDs and Spotify’s plans for lossless streaming. Our Hot Hardware candidate is the Acer ConceptD CP5271UV, a 27in monitor designed to please creatives and gamers alike.

With LastPass announcing that its free version will be severely limited in the future, what’s your best option for switching? Plus what’s coming up in the next Windows update (don’t get excited), why we think Microsoft is charging way too much for the Surface Duo in the UK, and all the rest of this week’s news tied up in a conversational bow.

The team discusses privacy concerns over Clubhouse, Twitter's vision for a custom-curated social media feed, a milestone for Microsoft Excel and Intel's first public response to the Apple M1 SoC. Our Hot Hardware candidate is the Expanscape Aurora 7, a powerhouse laptop with a 17.3in 4K display, plus six other fold-out screens.

Jeff Bezos stands down as Amazon CEO and Google closes its in-house games studio; we also share a sneak preview of Windows 10 X and discuss the tech winners and losers of the pandemic. Our Hot Hardware candidate is the Asus ROG Strix G17, a stonking gaming laptop with an AMD Ryzen R7 CPU.

The team discusses Twitter and Facebook opening their archives to researchers, Google’s threat to quit Australia, a worldwide shortage of graphics cards, and how Reddit users are causing ructions on Wall Street. Our Hot Hardware candidate is the Prime Computer PrimeMini 5, a low-power desktop PC that’s small and silent yet surprisingly well connected.The day Volkswagen briefly conquered the world (from the Financial Times, may be paywalled): https://www.ft.com/content/0a58b63a-4294-3e07-8390-c3aabef39a26

The team discusses Wikipedia's 20th anniversary, Sir Tim Berners-Lee's new idea for protecting our online privacy and the potential dangers of online shopping algorithms. Our hot hardware candidate is the Asus ZenBook Duo UX482, the company's latest stab at creating a dual-screen laptop.Spotlight link: List of hoaxes on Wikipedia - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:List_of_hoaxes_on_Wikipedia