Proxima Studio/Shutterstock As 4K replaces HD in our homes, manufacturers are unveiling some interesting marketing jargon, like “Ultra HD upscaling” (UHD). But upscaling isn’t some unique feature—it just allows 4K TVs to work with lower resolution video formats, like 1080p and 720p. All TVs Have Upscaling Upscaling means low-resolution content will fill your entire TV […]

Elnur/Shutterstock So, you’ve cracked open that new phone or laptop, only to be greeted by a familiar, plastic smell. Where does this strange “new electronics smell” come from, and why does it disappear over time? It’s Like a New Car Smell Everybody knows the smell of a new car. It’s a crisp, clean, and somewhat […]

Your device’s serial number is a unique code that the manufacturer gives the phone. No two serial numbers are the same. Should you need to find your phone’s, there are a few places you can look. A serial number is usually a combination of letter and numbers. There’s no set length— the manufacturer determines that. […]

Windows 10 normally puts your laptop into low-power sleep mode when you close the lid. This can be a problem when hooking your laptop up to an external monitor. Use the Control Panel—not Windows 10’s Settings app—to change this behavior. If you do this, be careful! Closing your laptop’s lid and throwing it in your […]

Gaurav Paswan / Shutterstock Televisions and computer monitors are similar and use mostly the same technology to drive the panels. You can usually use a TV with your computer, but they’re made for a different market and aren’t the same as monitors. Differences in Connections Both TVs and monitors will accept HDMI input, assuming they […]

Dark themes are becoming more and more popular. On some devices, they can even save battery power. It all depends on what type of display your device have—only devices with OLED displays can reap the power-saving benefits. Devices With OLED Displays Only You’ve probably heard of OLED displays, especially if you’ve been on the market for […]

Corsair MMO or MOBA mice are made for games that use a lot of buttons. These mice practically give you an extra keyboard. And you can rebind those keys to whatever you want, including hotkeys and macros. We’ll be using the Corsair Scimitar as an example in this guide, as it’s inexpensive ($59.99) and has […]

Sony Controller support is limited on Windows PCs. While the latest generation of console controllers will work out of the box with Windows, even last-generation gamepads like the PlayStation 3’s DualShock 3 require custom drivers. A previous version of this article detailed the use of MotioninJoy to use your Sony PS3 controller as a joystick […]

autovector / Shutterstock (and Microsoft) Many PC and Mac games treat the keyboard as a first-class citizen and have poor support for game controllers. You can remap your controller buttons to keyboard key presses to get around this limitation. You’ll lose some analog input—for example, the joysticks will just function as arrow keys that are […]