Tag: POWER

Over on the Internet Explorer Blog, Microsoft has posted results from an extensive comparison of the top five Web browsers. The goal: to determine whether Internet Explorer 9, Firefox 4, Chrome 10, Safari 5, or Opera 11 is able to squeeze the most life out of your laptop's battery. A baseline was determined with test systems sitting idle, and then browsers were pointed at about:blank, a ...

This week's tips series was all about Android, highlighting some the operating system's built-in utilities, and better ways of getting stuff done. For other technology tips, check our Tips index. Earlier today, I was helping my brother set up his new Motorola Defy. While the phone itself was quite nice (and tough), the screen kept turning off after just a few seconds of idle time. It was ...

First, as always: this isn't confirmed by Microsoft. Still, enough tech blogs have picked it up, so I'm probably safe enough to run it. With that out of the way: OMG! Windows 8 details! Juicy, thigh-wetting details! For now we only have two slides with atrocious grammar (are these really legitimate?), but the source says he'll have more information soon. The first slide is above and the second ...

I spend a lot of time during the work week removing malware from customers' computers. So whenever I happen upon a new malware cleanup app, I make it a point to put it through the paces. Better tools make my job easier, after all. Today I'm checking out Norton Power Eraser -- a free, portable malware cleanup tool from the folks at Symantec. I had tried to test earlier beta versions of NPE, but ...

Granola will not save the world. It's not exactly trying to, either. All it's trying to do is throttle back your CPU a little bit (only when it doesn't get in your way) and save a tiny amount of power. This tiny amount of power seems to add up. As the demo screenshot claims, it can get to around $40/year, which is enough "to power 44 electric furnaces, a dryer, and a space heater for an ...

SetPower is a utility that lets you choose different power management profiles for your computer based on the time of day. So, if you want your computer to stay on during the day, but sleep overnight, that's not something you can do with the built-in power management functionality in Windows. SetPower adds the ability to control which profile is in effect at a given time. As the world becomes more ...

It only takes a few clicks to do things like empty your Windows recycling bin, reboot your PC or open your CD-ROM drive. But if you're looking for easy access to these features, why not add system tray icons that give you two-click access no matter what you're doing with your computer? E-sushi has a series of utilities that add these features to your system tray. Disc Tray Toggler lets you open ...

Everyone wants a blazing fast PC. But if you've got a laptop, you also want long battery life. Oh yeah, and if you care about the environment or your home electric bills, you might want your desktop to suck electricity from the power grid a little slower too. PC power consumption comes from a combination of hardware and software. Intel, AMD, and other chip makers have been trying to reduce power ...

When we think about Google, we normally think about search, so what's the deal with the entry into the auto market? Google is set to give out $1 million in grants to fund the development of technology for both hybrid and electric cars. They are doing this through their philanthropic Google.org. The search giant also has a request for proposals on the table with a $10 million pot for any company ...

37signals' online PIM service Backpack is known far and wide in part for its extreme simplicity. It offers everything you need with nothing you don't - but that doesn't mean it's lacking in the power user department. While it hasn't been updated in a while, 37signals maintains a Power Users archive page at the Backpack blog with a whole slew of tips and tricks that will likely serve as a great ...