The Network Time Protocol (NTP) is an internet-based protocol that synchronizes the clocks of all devices to Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) through the use of a public-facing time server. By using a public NTP server with an atomic clock as a reference, devices can synchronize for accurate and consistent time across a wide range of hardware. It's essentially how all our devices are able to accurately tell the time.

It's been a week since Techland finally gave us Dying Light: The Beast, and after a full decade, Kyle Crane was back. Sure, we had a mainline sequel in 2022, but the devs clearly tried way too many different things, a lot of which didn't resonate with the fanbase. So, turning Dying Light 2's major expansion into a full-fledged game (while still keeping it free for DL2 Deluxe Edition buyers) was the right call, because we got Kyle Crane back, and what a return to form it has been.

It was challenging for me to manage different wired and wireless devices on my home network. I had a tough time identifying a rogue device or bandwidth-guzzling culprit. Since I was still teething with VLANs, I decided to start small and only separate the devices without over-segmenting them. Also, I learned the hard way that well-structured firewall rules are crucial when using VLANs. To keep things simple for my home network, I have only segmented them into wired and wireless categories. Here are some reasons why I prefer my VLANs on separate wired devices from wireless ones.

Today, Microsoft and Asus are officially opening preorders for the ROG Xbox Ally and ROG Xbox Ally X at $599 and $999 respectively in the US. They’re $799 CAD and $1299 CAD in Canada, €599 and €899 in Europe, £499 and £799 in the UK, and $799 AUD and $1599 AUD in Australia. They both ship October 16th.(In the United States, the Xbox Ally X will be exclusive to Best Buy, the Asus Shop, and Microsoft; the Xbox Ally is going wider at Amazon, Best Buy, Walmart, Microsoft, the Asus Shop, and Ant Online.)There’s a few different ways to look at those prices. If you’re used to console pricing, Microsoft’s first Xbox handhelds are not cheap! Even the vanilla white Xbox Ally costs $150 more than a Switch 2, which was itself criticized for price, and it costs $100 more than a far more powerful Xbox Series X did at launch in the US, Microsoft’s new Xbox price hike notwithstanding. In Europe and the UK, the weaker of the two Allys costs the same as an Xbox Series X. But you can’t play that Xbox in a passenger seat. And if you’re a PC gamer, or want to be, things look a bit rosier. These “Xbox” handhelds will be the first with a new build of Windows that hides the desktop and Explorer shell, frees up gobs of memory for your games, and (hopefully) lets you navigate solely by controller. Handhelds have unfortunately been getting pricier and pricier anyhow, to the point flagship ones now cost as much as gaming laptops. At $999, the Xbox Ally X might compare well to the $999 MSI Claw 8 AI Plus or the $1,349 Lenovo Legion Go 2 that offers the same AMD Z2 Extreme chip you’ll find here — particularly because my colleagues and I agree the new Allys have one of the most comfortable designs we’ve held. (In summary: Prongs rock.)Just know you’re getting a wildcard if you opt for the $599 Ally, as it contains a never-before-seen Ryzen Z2 A processor that’s much more like the chip in the Steam Deck. Instead of 8 Zen 5 CPU cores and 16 RDNA 3.5 GPU cores designed to run between 15 and 35 watt TDP, you’re getting 4 Zen 2 CPU cores and 8 RDNA 2 GPU cores designed to run between 6 and 20 watts for lower performance gaming.We’re planning to have reviews of the Xbox Ally and Xbox Ally X in the coming weeks. Microsoft says they’ll be available in Australia, Belgium, Canada, Czech Republic, Denmark, Egypt, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hong Kong, Hungary, Indonesia, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Mexico, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Republic of Korea, Romania, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Taiwan, Thailand, Turkey, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United States, and Vietnam — and will additionally come to Brazil China, India, Luxembourg, Malaysia, Philippines and Switzerland.

Windows 10 will lose general support on October 14th, but that doesn't mean it will never see updates ever again. If you're signed up for the extended security program (or if you're in Europe), you can get another year of security-only updates. This is great for keeping Windows 10 usable in the modern era, but it does mean the operating system will get no more security-critical bug fixes or new features.

Though 2025’s been a big year for gaming handhelds, the year isn’t over yet. One of the most anticipated gaming devices of the year is the Xbox handheld we’ve been hearing rumors about for years. In June 2025, Microsoft confirmed a partnership with ROG to create the Xbox Ally and introduced two new products: the ROG Xbox Ally and the ROG Xbox Ally X. Besides confirming the products and that the gaming handhelds would work with PC game stores, both companies went incredibly light on the details.

Do you often feel overwhelmed by a confusing group chat or a chaotic meeting in Teams? You are not alone. Poor communication on Teams doesn’t just waste time; it creates unnecessary friction and can lead to major misunderstandings. I have spent years using Teams to stay in sync with my colleagues, and along the way, I have discovered a handful of simple yet effective tricks that have transformed my work.

If you've been looking for a new mechanical keyboard with a little flair that isn't going to hurt your wallet, the EPOMAKER RT 100 should be one to look out for. The brand dubs this keyboard as having a retro style, and even offers it in different colors. For the most part, we like the look.

If there's anything I've learned about the Raspberry Pi community, it's that they love to shove hardware into portable shells so they can take their computers anywhere. After all, when the mobo is the size of a credit card at most, why not make it as portable as possible?

If you've ever wanted to show off your GPU vertically or convert a spare PCIe slot into M.2 slots, you probably know about PCIe riser cables. These PCIe extenders bring added flexibility to your PC, but they do so with some unavoidable complications. To make matters worse, the PCIe risers on the affordable end of the spectrum often make matters worse instead of improving functionality. You not only risk BSODs and glitches on the GPU side, but also data corruption on the storage side. Here's how to pick the right PCIe riser for your system.

When we reviewed the AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D, we deemed it the best CPU for gaming that money could buy at the time. And while some time has passed, it's still a very good CPU, and has gotten even better since we've seen the price slowly starting to drop. Right now, you can score the top-end CPU for its lowest price yet, coming in at $430 on Amazon. So if you've been thinking about starting a new PC build, this one is going to be one to consider.

Japanese keyboard maker Realforce is teaming up with the Mobile Suit Gundam franchise and releasing four limited edition mechanical keyboards inspired by popular Gundam designs. The four keyboards are based on the Z Gundam and Hyaku Shiki from Zeta Gundam and the Nu Gundam and Sazabi of Char’s Counterattack fame. Realforce’s Japanese site indicates reservations will begin in late December, but there is no pricing.All four models are based on the Realforce GX1 mechanical keyboard, a wired tenkeyless that normally runs $250-ish. It isn’t hot-swap, but it uses capacitive topre switches like the cult classic HHKB and $3,600 Norbauer Seneca. (Though, the Seneca is anything but standard topre.) Realforce mentions both English layout as well as Japanese ISO, so hopefully these mecha-inspired mechs won’t be exclusive to Japan. As a Gundam fan, I’m certainly crossing my fingers they come to the US.But as cool as these keyboards look, I think their designs are a little plain — like the Asus ROG Strix Scope Gundam Edition before them. Elsewhere, there are unlicensed (copyright-infringing) Gundam keycap sets out there that really amp up the nerdy anime fun. I know because I’ve bought some myself. In addition to the Char Zaku II keycaps I put on the Zoom75 Tiga in our recent keyboard buying guide, I’ve got Hi-Nu Gundam and Sazabi keycaps on my Epomaker P75 and Keychron Q1 Max.Now I just need the matching Gunpla kits.