When it comes to encrypting files on your computer, there are numerous options to choose from. However, my favorite is VeraCrypt. It's an open-source, cross-platform, completely free encryption program that you can use to manage your files, with a lot of features to make things even more secure.

Keeping your web browsing safe when using Microsoft Edge (or any browser) is essential. While online security shouldn’t rest within your browser alone, it’s integral to your overall data privacy and security strategy. Utilizing your browser's available privacy and security settings keeps you safe and provides peace of mind. This article will examine some essential security settings you should enable in Edge right now if they aren’t already.

Microsoft is reportedly preparing to launch smaller versions of the Surface Pro and Surface Laptop in the near future, and they could be launching sooner than you think. The company had already been reported to be working on a smaller Surface Pro last year, but plans for that seemingly fell through, as the Surface Pro 11 launched in the same 13-inch size as always.

Image: CD Projekt Red You may have to wait until January 30th to buy Nvidia’s new RTX 5090 graphics card, but owners of last-gen Nvidia 40-series GPUs can already download and install DLSS 4 Multi Frame Generation software via the Nvidia app. And if you want a compatible, graphically-intense game to test DLSS 4 out, Cyberpunk 2077’s newly-launched patch 2.21 adds support for it.Here’s the important info from CD Projekt Red’s changelog for patch 2.21 about DLSS 4:Added support for DLSS 4 with Multi Frame Generation for GeForce RTX 50 Series graphics cards, which boosts FPS by using AI to generate up to three times per traditionally rendered frame – enabled with GeForce RTX 50 Series on January 30th. DLSS 4 also introduces faster single Frame Generation with reduced memory usage for RTX 50 and 40 Series. Additionally, you can now choose between the CNN model or the new Transformer model for DLSS Ray Reconstruction, DLSS Super Resolution, and DLAA on all GeForce RTX graphics cards today. The new Transformer model enhances stability, lighting, and detail in motion.People on the Cyberpunk 2077 subreddit are already trying out DLSS 4’s improved single Frame Generation on their 40-series cards and sharing their results. One user posted a variety of screenshots with comparison sliders that show a side-by-side between the older Convolutional Neural Network (CNN) model and the new Transformer model in DLSS 4 with full path tracing on their RTX 4070 Super at QHD resolution. It may not be night-and-day differences when frozen in screenshots, but looking closely reveals improvements like better clothing textures and cleaned up facial details, all without taking any significant hit to framerates.The real star of the DLSS 4 show may be incredibly high framerates via Multi Frame Generation on the new 50-series cards, but getting graphical improvements for free on older cards is an impressive flex of Nvidia’s new tech. It’s not every day you can download better performance.But just as 50-series early adopters will have to wait for more developers to implement Multi Frame Generation beyond the approximate 75 titles at launch, 40-series users may also have to be patient to see more DLSS 4-compatible updates.

This icy 2025 Audi Q8 E-Tron has a heat pump. | Image: Umar Shakir / The Verge Many EV manufacturers have leaned heavily on energy-gulping resistive heaters to keep the cabin and battery warm in the winter time. But heat pumps, which can cut down on battery range losses in the cold, are becoming more prevalent in EVs, and they could help EV owners in the US who are dealing with the low temperatures across much of the country this week.EV research site Recurrent reported that heat pumps can improve drivable range in below freezing temperatures by about 8 to 10 percent. The site tested this by comparing the ranges of 2020 Model 3 and Model S vehicles that lack heat pumps against 2021 versions that have them.Recurrent’s data shows that the Tesla Model X and the Audi E-Tron only lose about 11 to 13 percent of their range at 32 degrees Fahrenheit compared to driving them in ideal temperatures hovering around 70 degrees, as The Washington Post notes, making them among the best heat pump-equipped EVs.. However, The Washington Post says that heat pumps aren’t as effective below 15 degrees.A heat pump works by efficiently transferring heat generated by the car to the cabin and other components. Similarly, gas cars have long used a heater core to transfer wasted heat energy from its internal combustion engine into the cabin.Heat pumps have made their way into popular EVs like Teslas as early as 2021 and are coming to other top models like Ford’s Mustang Mach-E for the 2025 model year. They also are already in many EVs on the road today, including the Polestar 2, Honda Prologue, Chevy Equinox EV, Kia EV6, Rivians, and even some Nissan Leaf models as early as 2013. Recurrent has a complete list of EVs that have heat pumps.Older EVs with smaller batteries that lack heat pumps demonstrate cold range loss more vividly. For instance, my sister, who is driving a 2017 Ford Focus Electric, is only getting about 80 miles of range in the freezing cold with its resistive heaters off and only about 50 with it on. That could be the difference between being able to do a full work commute roundtrip without stopping or needing to find a (hopefully working) DC fast charging station on the way back.We’ve previously shared some tips on how to handle EVs in the winter that can help you through icy situations on the road. Some tips include preconditioning your vehicle while plugged in before leaving and brushing snow off more often since it won’t melt off the hood like a gas car.

Samsung makes some of the best storage media that you can find on the market right now. And if you're looking to upgrade your PC, laptop, or PlayStation 5 — there's a good chance that it'll use an M.2 SSD. While there are many great options when it comes to M.2 SSDs, we think this Samsung 990 Evo Plus strikes a good balance between price and performance.

I've gone back and forth between variants of Apple and Microsoft's operating systems all my life, starting with ProDOS on the Apple IIc. Since then, I've used every version of MS-DOS, Windows (yes, even Windows Me and Windows Phone), and every variant of Mac software through OS X and macOS. And while Apple's current crop of hardware is impressive, Windows 11 PCs have got my heart locked up.

This icy 2025 Audi Q8 E-Tron has a heat pump. | Image: Umar Shakir / The Verge Many EV manufacturers have leaned heavily on energy-gulping resistive heaters to keep the cabin and battery warm in the winter time. But heat pumps, which can cut down on battery range losses in the cold, are becoming more prevalent in EVs, and they could help EV owners in the US who are dealing with the low temperatures across much of the country this week.EV research site Recurrent reported that heat pumps can improve drivable range in below freezing temperatures by about 8 to 10 percent. The site tested this by comparing the ranges of 2020 Model 3 and Model S vehicles that lack heat pumps against 2021 versions that have them.Recurrent’s data shows that the Tesla Model X and the Audi E-Tron only lose about 11 to 13 percent of their range at 32 degrees Fahrenheit compared to driving them in ideal temperatures hovering around 70 degrees, as The Washington Post notes, making them among the best heat pump-equipped EVs.. However, The Washington Post says that heat pumps aren’t as effective below 15 degrees.A heat pump works by efficiently transferring heat generated by the car to the cabin and other components. Similarly, gas cars have long used a heater core to transfer wasted heat energy from its internal combustion engine into the cabin.Heat pumps have made their way into popular EVs like Teslas as early as 2021 and are coming to other top models like Ford’s Mustang Mach-E for the 2025 model year. They also are already in many EVs on the road today, including the Polestar 2, Honda Prologue, Chevy Equinox EV, Kia EV6, Rivians, and even some Nissan Leaf models as early as 2013. Recurrent has a complete list of EVs that have heat pumps.Older EVs with smaller batteries that lack heat pumps demonstrate cold range loss more vividly. For instance, my sister, who is driving a 2017 Ford Focus Electric, is only getting about 80 miles of range in the freezing cold with its resistive heaters off and only about 50 with it on. That could be the difference between being able to do a full work commute roundtrip without stopping or needing to find a (hopefully working) DC fast charging station on the way back.We’ve previously shared some tips on how to handle EVs in the winter that can help you through icy situations on the road. Some tips include preconditioning your vehicle while plugged in before leaving and brushing snow off more often since it won’t melt off the hood like a gas car.

I've said it several times now on XDA: powerful gaming PCs need cool-looking decor. You can have the mightiest CPU and GPU known to man, but if it's all crammed into a PC case that suits an office better than a battle station, it's a sad sight to see. Fortunately, Starforge is here to save us from depressing gaming PC builds with these sleek cases with exclusive decors from the Kaiju No. 8 anime series.

If you plan on opening up parts of your local area network (LAN) to the outside world, you'll want to have specific measures to ensure your network is secure. Reverse proxies are a great way of allowing direct access to specific services hosted at home without making it easy for anyone to break in and start causing problems. A great feature of reverse proxies is running multiple services on the same IP address, even web server instances. Reverse proxies are rock-solid, secure, versatile, and powerful, and you should try setting one up to learn a few things about networking.

The world of Linux distros is chock-full of cool operating systems that bring distinctive features to the table. You've got simple and user-friendly Debian-based distros that are easy to configure even for newcomers. Then there's the bleeding-edge Arch Linux that comes with a do-it-yourself design featuring advanced customization options, though you’ll have to contend with instability issues every once in a while.

Google’s Nest Learning thermostat. | Photo by Jennifer Pattison Tuohy / The Verge Google is bringing smart home controls in Gemini to everyone. The Google Home extension in the Gemini app is adding a few new features, in addition to letting you adjust your smart lighting, thermostat, speakers, and other compatible devices as long as they’re connected to your Google account.Google first previewed the extension last November. With it, you can use natural language to control your smart home when interacting with Gemini, such as saying “The sun is too bright in the living room” to close your smart blinds. But now, Gemini can also carry out multiple requests, like “Turn the armchair light on too, but dim the kitchen lamp.” You’ll be able to use the Google Home extension to ask Gemini about the status of your devices too, such as whether you’ve left your porch light on.Additionally, Google will let you control “non-sensitive” smart home devices, like your lights, from your phone’s lock screen. Other updates include the ability to adjust the volume, pause, and resume media on smart speakers, displays, and TVs within the Gemini app, as well as an updated thermostat control design that matches the one inside Google Home. Gemini will also automatically open the Google Home app for security-related actions for cameras and locks (it previously only linked you).The launch of the Google Home extension follows a big update to Gemini, which lets it perform more complex tasks across multiple apps. You can try out the integration for yourself by signing into Gemini with the same account you use for Home and turning on the Google Home extension. It launches today but is rolling out “over the coming weeks.”