Drop In is a feature you may not have used with Alexa, but it’s a useful one if you often speak to friends and family, or if you want to have a quick hands-free conversation with a family member who’s too far away in your house to simply shout. Announcements is different but works along similar lines, allowing you to broadcast a message throughout your home – if you have Echos in various rooms – again without shouting or having to stop what you’re doing to tell everyone that dinner’s ready, for example....

Zoom meetings (or rather all types of video call) have been a lifeline in the past year or so, but it’s fair to say that most of us have grown bored of the same old grid of faces on the screen. If you do use Zoom to host meetings and you fancy making things a little more fun, the new Immersive View feature can place all of the participants in a lecture hall, kitchen, garden or even some picture frames....

While social media platforms are generally available in just about every shape and size, Instagram has never fallen into that category. It was an iOS exclusive when it first launched in 2010, before heading to Android in 2012, and despite climbing to incredible heights of popularity since, the social network doesn’t have an official app for Mac. But while there’s no official Instagram for Mac app, there is a way to not only scroll through your Instagram feed on your Mac, but upload photos and videos too....

It’s fair to say that Microsoft made some bad choices in Windows 8, paramount of which was the touch optimised interface. Forcing this strange and clunky method of control on the user was, in the most part, unwanted and certainly unwelcome. Windows 10 fixes most of these issues with a new feature called Continuum, which makes sure you always have the best interface for your device at all times.Here we explain what Continuum is and how to use it on your tablet , touchscreen laptop , and Windows phone ....

After last year’s conference was cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic, E3 2021 is in full swing. The event is exclusively digital for the same reason, but many of the biggest game developers on the planet are still making an appearance. Among the highlights of Day 3 is a showcase from Capcom, the company behind classic series like Street Fighter and Resident Evil. The E3 2021 showcase is the first time we’ll hear from the developer since the PS5 and Xbox Series X / S launched late last year, so we’re expecting big things....

Line of Duty has had the nation gripped over the last few weeks, with a series of episodes that have been leading up to a huge moment for the show. In fact, this series finale could possibly be the last episode of the police drama altogether. If you’d like to watch along live, then we’ve rounded up everything you need to know. We’ve also got instructions for catching up on old episodes, and a way of watching the Line of Duty finale from abroad if you’re not in the UK....

The 2022 Major League Baseball season is officially here after a 99-day owner-imposed lockout, and if you want to tune into all the action, then we have you covered – whether you are in the UK or US. This guide also includes information on how to watch the games completely for free. We also have other similar articles for the likes of Formula 1 and the NFL . When does the 2022 MLB season start?...

The Davis Cup Finals are back this year in a whole new format, hot on the heels of the ATP Finals as the second epic calendar-ending men’s tennis event. That’s not all though, as this year also marks Andy Murray’s long-awaited return to international tennis after a year that’s seen him work his way back into top-level tournaments – could we see Murray vs Nadal once again? Here’s what you need to know about the new Davis Cup format, when the matches are, and how to watch the tennis live, either online or on TV....

The ICC Champions Trophy comes to England for fifteen matches of (hopefully) cricketing excellence. The action gets underway on Thursday 1 June as England take on Bangladesh at the Oval. England has never won since the tournament began in 1998 – will it succeed in a One Day International tournament on home soil? The last one in 2013 was won by India. When is the Champions Trophy on? Showdowns then include New Zealand v Australia, India v Pakistan and England v Australia on 10 June....

Xiaomi is one of the most celebrated and popular smartphone manufacturers worldwide, but these days the Chinese company makes plenty more than just Android handsets. A cursory glance at the official website shows that Xiaomi also makes its own fitness trackers, TVs and even electric scooters . We’re expecting the former to see a new addition at the company’s so-called ‘Mega Launch’ today, although the nature of the event suggests there will be plenty more new Xiaomi hardware on show....

This year, as in the past, you can watch the Tour de France live on TV as well as on your phone, tablet or computer. Here’s the TV schedule and the Tour de France 2019 teams. In the UK, you can watch the Tour de France on TV on ITV, S4C and Eurosport. You can find the broadcaster for your region on the official Tour de France site by clicking the ‘Official Broadcasters’ tab at the top....

Believe it or not, it’s been sixteen years since the last Wallace & Gromit short film – A Matter of Loaf and Death – hit our screens. Fortunately, you don’t have to wait much longer for the next one. Wallace & Gromit: A Vengeance Most Fowl shows the town turning on Wallace when one of his beloved inventions takes an evil turn. When he and Gromit try to discover who could be behind all this, they end up facing an old enemy....

At a Glance Expert’s Rating Our Verdict The HP Elite x3 is an excellent smartphone, melding high-end specs with a solid design and good user experience. The Windows app store is still underrated, and the battery lasts for ages. However at £699 without the lapdock, this is not a cheap device. We can recommend the Elite x3 as it is the best Windows 10 phone on the market, but the 3-in-1 device HP is marketing is best left to the whims of businesses and those to whom money is no object....

At a Glance Expert’s Rating Our Verdict The size and weight of the Pavilion 15 TouchSmart suggest that it’s more intended as a desktop replacement system for use at home or in the office. However, its all-round performance, combined with an attractive screen and optical drive, provide very good value for money, and ensure that the Pavilion 15 TouchSmart will appeal to most users on a tight budget. Best Prices Today: HP Pavilion 15 TouchSmart (n232sa) The Pavilion 15 TouchSmart cost £700 when HP originally launched it at the end of 2013....

ChromeOS is celebrating its tenth birthday in 2021, and there’s been plenty of exciting new hardware to mark the occasion. HP is the latest company to join the party, bringing two brand-new devices to market. First up is the Chromebook x2 11, an 11in tablet with detachable keyboard in the mould of Microsoft’s Surface Pro. It’s a slimmed-down version of the 12.3in model from 2018, swapping an Intel CPU for ARM-based Qualcomm chip....

At a Glance Our Verdict The original HTC One M7 remains a great Android phone. It is stylish and fast. But the new HTC One M8 builds on this promise with some interesting new features, a bigger screen and battery, and improved performance. Best Prices Today: HTC One (M8) The new HTC One M8 is one of the best phones of 2014. It combines great performance and build with a stylish body....

At a Glance Expert’s Rating Our Verdict The HTC Vive is an amazingly capable virtual reality headset that provides an experience unrivalled by competitors with room-scale tracking and bespoke handheld controllers. Tracking is instant and when combined with a high-resolution 90Hz display, the Vive provides a smooth experience that’s easy on the eye and looks ‘real’. It’s exciting, new and provides something unmatched by the likes of standard gaming and watching TV....

Last month Huawei gave its MateBook X and MateBook 14 laptops a new lick of paint in a refresh that saw both product lines updated with new processors, improved thermals, and a redesign of the company’s nifty Huawei Share tech – and now it’s announced that the upgraded models are coming to the UK. The MateBook X is the company’s almost-flagship, sitting just below the top-tier MateBook X Pro in the Huawei notebook pecking order....

A new foldable smartphone from Chinese giant Huawei has arrived in Europe, with the Mate X3 finally making its international debut. Here’s everything you need to know about the Huawei Mate X3. Where is the Huawei Mate X3 on sale? The Mate X3 launched in China on 23 March , and its international launch followed at an event in Munich on 9 May alongside the P60 Pro . The X3 is on sale in the UK and Europe now, and is available to order directly from Huawei ....

At a Glance Expert’s Rating Our Verdict The MateBook D 14 offers serious value for money with impressive AMD-flavoured mid-range specs that can outperform similarly-priced laptops, and let’s be honest, it’s a well-designed, premium-looking laptop too. Best Prices Today: Huawei MateBook D 14 Huawei’s MateBook D 14 shares many design similarities with the high-end MateBook X Pro without compromising on the affordable nature of the laptop. Couple that with powerful mid-range internals and all-day battery life, and you’ve got an impressive mid-range laptop....