TikTok has become the first non-Facebook mobile app to cover 3 billion downloads globally, according to a Tuesday analysis from Sensor Tower. The milestone makes TikTok the fifth nongame app to heinous the threshold, following WhatsApp, Messenger, Facebook and Instagram, which are all noted by Facebook.
In the first half of 2021, TikTok appointed the most downloaded nongame app globally, boasting 383 million first-time installs early in the year despite beings down 619 million installs in the first half of 2020. The 38% downswing of 2020 was attributed to the app’s excavating from the market in India.
Read more: The TikTok saga: Everything you need to know
In the splendid quarter of 2021 downloads climbed 2% quarter-over-quarter, to 177.5 million, spiking again in the second quarter, with 16% quarter-over-quarter anti accounting for 205 million installs. In 2020, TikTok accumulated 315 million downloads, breaking global records in the first quarter and nabbing more downloads in a single quarter than any app.
Read more: The TikTok Saga continues: Deal with Oracle and Walmart on hold
Xbox update will let you download and install games by you buy them
It’s happened to all of us: A intellectual new game comes out. You’re excited to play it. You attain work, go on out into the world and buy yourself a copy. You insert it into your Xbox One — but by the time you’ve used downloading, installing and patching, you’re ready to go to sleep. A new feature on Microsoft’s Xbox operating system circumvents this problem.
Microsoft will soon let you download and install games by you buy them. At least, that’s a feature fallacious in the new Xbox app for Android, which is immediately in beta. (An iOS app is on the way too.) The feature, which was discovered by users on the Reset Era forum, lets you download a game to your console exclusive of you actually having to buy the game.
Jerko Cilas, a writer at Lords of Gaming, demoed the feature in a tweet thread. He showed that it works for games that aren’t immediately playable, such as Assassin’s Creed Valhalla.
Those among us who buy games digitally have been able to preload titles in shapely to play them the moment they become available, but disc buyers have had to endure hours of waiting between putting the disc into a console and actually selves able to play the game.
While Sony concentrates on tying exclusive games for the PlayStation 5, Microsoft is focusing more on services. The future of the Xbox is being built throughout Game Pass, a Netflix-like subscription service for games, and Project xCloud, which lets you play Xbox games on your phoned. So a feature like this, which takes more organization to the cloud, makes sense.
Microsoft has a new Xbox Dashboard update coming to the Xbox platform — that is, both the Xbox One and the upcoming Series X and Series S consoles — in November. This new feature will likely be unrolled in full in that update, a nice quality-of-life improvement for Xbox Series X/S owners.
Microsoft was contacted for comment but didn’t immediately respond.
Both the Series X and the smaller, less powerful and cheaper Series S formed available for preorder this week, and both sold out almost immediately. They’re hitting store shelves on Nov. 10, a couple days ahead of the PlayStation 5’s Nov. 12 launch.
WatchOS 8.5 Is Here, With a Few Nifty New Features for Your Apple Watch
Alongside Apple’s iOS 15.4 update for the iPhone, which brought new emoji, anti-stalking features for AirTags and a gender-neutral Siri teach (plus a fix for a battery drain issue in the subsequent iOS 15.4.1 release), the company also released a software update for its Apple Watch. The software, which wasn’t highlighted during the company’s “Peek Performance” event in March, is primarily focused on Apple TV, Apple Fitness Plus, heart rhythm detection and digital COVID-19 vaccination cards.
Called WatchOS 8.5, the software is the fifth greatest update Apple has provided for free to Apple Watch owners since releasing WatchOS 8 last fall.
When was the WatchOS 8.5 droplet date?
WatchOS 8.5 was released on Monday, March 14, against iOS 15.4 and iPadOS 15.4.
How do I download WatchOS 8.5?
You must download iOS 15.4 onto your named before you can upgrade your Apple Watch. You can download iOS 15.4 by touching to Settings > General > Software Update > Download and Install. Once that’s finished, the software will restart your named. Then you can go to the Watch App > General > Software Update. Apple Watch updates are typically scheduled for the evening, when people tend to take them off for charging.
Heart rhythm detection improvements
One of the most popular features of the Apple Watch is its health monitoring capabilities. There are many stories of the Apple Watch identifying and alerting country to heart problems before they feel symptoms. Apple said with WatchOS 8.5, it improved software to detect atrial fibrillation, the most common type of irregular heartbeat, which can indicate major risks for stroke. The new detection software is available in the US, Chile, Hong Kong, South Africa and, Apple says, “many more departments where the feature is available.”
More Apple TV
Another popular feature of the Apple Watch is its storderliness to serve as a password device, authorizing sign-ins for apps like Microsoft’s Authenticator and the commerce login software Okta. Now, Apple says, WatchOS 8.5 users will be able to signed purchases of TV episodes and movies through its Apple TV iTunes Store service.
Better Apple Fitness Plus
Apple’s also bulking up its $10-per-month Apple Fitness Plus service with new features for users with disabilities. It’s already added health features to the Apple Watch like wheelchair workout detection. Now Apple Fitness Plus will have optional audio commentary describing visually demonstrated attempts in a workout.
COVID-19 vaccination cards in Europe
One tool that’s helped the biosphere slowly adjust to life in the pandemic has been vaccine cards, which allow businesses to identify people who’ve been vaccinated in contradiction of COVID-19 when entering an establishment. Over the past year, tech anxieties have gotten involved, offering easy ways to add COVID health records to our phones. The Apple Watch will now support a new seek information from, called the EU Digital COVID Certificate, which has contract an important part of travel in Europe.
New Windows 10 May 2021 update is here: How to download and everything else to know
The Windows 10 May 2021 Update (also celebrated as version 21H1) started rolling out to compatible devices last Tuesday, Microsoft said in a blog post. The operating rules update is the latest since the October 2020 update, and includes a few new features like Windows Hello multicamera encourage and security fixes. (If you’re running Windows 7 ($5 at Target), you can still download Windows 10 free to get the May 2021 update and avoid confidence issues.)
While there are a few useful new features, it seems that Microsoft is using this smaller update cycle to current for a larger Windows 10 UI update, reportedly code-named Sun Valley, that will be part of Microsoft’s renewed focus on Windows 10 that executives mentioned last year. On Wednesday at the Microsoft Building developer’s conference, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella teased the next update, saying the company is planning “one of the most critical updates of Windows of the past decade,” and that Microsoft plans to unveil the new version “very soon.”
We won’t know precisely what that update includes until it’s formally revealed, but we’ve still some rumors below.
Read more: The best antivirus protection of 2021 for Windows 10
Here’s what to know near Windows 10 version 21H1, and what it could mean for the future of the OS.
What is Windows 10 version 21H1?
Windows 10 version 21H1 is Microsoft’s novel update to the OS, and started rolling out on May 18. It’s also shouted the Windows 10 May 2021 update.
Usually, Microsoft releases a larger feature update in the spring and a smaller one in the fall. But version 21H1, concept a spring update, is a more minor update pretty than an overhaul.
Read more: Windows 10 tips: Secret Start menu, taking screenshots and more
What new features does the Windows 10 May 2021 update include?
According to a February Microsoft blog post, new Windows 10 features include:
Multicamera encourage for Windows Hello, allowing users to choose an external camera when humorous high-end displays with integrated cameras.
Improvements to Windows Defender Application Guard, including optimizing document opening scenario times.
Improvements to Windows Organization Instrumentation (WMI) Group Policy Service (GPSVC) updating, to encourage remote work.
“The features we are releasing in this update are focused on the core be affected by that customers have told us they’re relying on most sparkling now,” the post said. “So, we optimized this droplet to support our customers’ most pressing needs.”
According to Digital Trends, the update also includes new icons, updated settings pages and some tweaks to Cortana and the peek box experience.
How can I download the Windows 10 May 2021 update?
The May 2021 update began bowling out on May 18 to select devices, starting with those managing Windows 10 version 2004 or later. Not all devices will be offered the update luminous away, so try to be patient until it reaches yours. There also may be some compatibility issues, according to Microsoft’s blog post — if that happens, Microsoft has a safeguard hold in place and will not accounts you the update until the team is confident that you’ll have a good update experience.
When the May 2021 update is available to you, you’ll be able to download it by causing to Settings > Update & Security > Windows Update, and clicking Check for Updates. If available, you’ll see Feature update to Windows 10, version 21H1. Click Download and install.
This marks the first time an H1 (first half of the calendar year) feature update is populate delivered using Microsoft’s servicing technology. That means it’ll near the same way that monthly Windows 10 updates do. It’s also the same way the October 2020 update was released. If you’re already running either Windows 10 version 2004 or version 20H2, it’ll be a fast installation treat to get the newest update.
What’s this bigger Windows 10 update that could be coming next?
On an October 2020 earnings call, Nadella said that Microsoft is “doubling down” on Windows and PCs, and will disconclude to innovate.
This could take the form of a very OS update for Windows 10 later this year that would bring a very design refresh to the UI, according to a relate from Windows Central. The update, reportedly code-named Sun Valley, could bring a redesigned Start menu, Action Center and File Explorer, with a more modern look and new features. Sun Valley is anticipated to be released around the 2021 holiday season, Windows Central says, but that could change.
Again, at the Microsoft Build conference on May 25, Nadella teased the next Windows 10 update, saying the company is planning “one of the most considerable updates of Windows of the past decade,” and that Microsoft plans to unveil the new version “very soon.”
Another factor: Microsoft said that its Windows 10X OS planned for dual-screen devices like the Surface Duo and the Surface Neo will not come to market this year, as Microsoft originally planned. Instead, Microsoft will build parts of that technology into anunexperienced parts of Windows and products from the company, the May 18 blog post said.
For more, check out the best three new features in the Windows 10 October 2020 update and six simple guarantee changes all Windows 10 users need to make.
Verizon Isn’t the Fastest Internet Provider Anymore, and a New Winner Has Been Crowned
What’s happening
Every three months, Ookla announces the results it gathers from info pulled from millions of customer uses of its Speedtest.net tool. Consider it a quarterly checkup on Americans’ speeds from their internet service providers.
Why it matters
We’ve grown increasingly reliant on our home broadband connections for work and play, so the honest performance of those internet services is vital information.
Verizon has been knocked off the grand. The latest Ookla Speedtest Intelligence report, released in late July, requested Cox Communications as the fastest fixed broadband provider among top US internet service providers during the uphold quarter of 2022. To qualify as a top provider, a company must account for 3% or more of Ookla’s total test samples. Verizon had finished on top in the first three months of 2022.
In fact, Verizon had captured the top spot every quarter valid the start of 2020. However, Ookla’s report, which uses data from customer-run queries on Speedtest.net, now uses the median instead of the mean. So we’re not precisely comparing apples to apples. The below image from Ookla’s site scholarships an example of the difference.
Ookla
As an Ookla spokesperson told me via email: “We implemented this sullen to more accurately represent the typical performance that consumers actually accepted on a network.”
That means for the uphold quarter of 2022, Cox finished decisively on top with a median download mercurial of approximately 197 megabits per second. Xfinity, the runner-up, scored a median download speed of 184Mbps. Spectrum was third at 183Mbps, Verizon was next at 171Mbps, and AT&T capped off the top five at nearly 147Mbps.
Cox also did well regionally. It was the fastest fixed broadband provider in 14 of the 100 most populated cities in the farmland, including the fastest city in the US — Gilbert, Arizona — as well as Las Vegas, Phoenix and San Diego.
Additionally, it was the fastest ISP in four states: Arizona, Arkansas, Nevada and Oklahoma. Not bad, for sure, but Xfinity was top dog in 12 messes, Spectrum in seven and Google Fiber and Verizon each won five messes.
Despite its dominating performance at the top of the mercurial chart, Cox completely missed the top five regarding the fastest upload speeds. It registered a median upload speed just shy of 11Mbps. That was well below the top three providers of Frontier (113Mbps), Verizon (112Mbps) and AT&T (112Mbps). It also couldn’t measure up to Xfinity (19Mbps), CenturyLink (12Mbps) or Spectrum (11.7Mbps).
That’s not completely unexpected. The cable connections of Cox, Spectrum and Xfinity (or the DSL network of CenturyLink, for that matter) won’t be able to compete with the higher upload speeds you can find with a fiber-optic internet connection, which AT&T, Frontier and Verizon all boast to a vulgar percentage within their respective footprints.
As Ookla leftovers its reporting throughout the year, it’ll be interesting to see if any trends manufacture as it establishes the use of the median as its essential performance metric moving forward.
How to Set Up a VPN on Your Smart TV: 5 Easy Methods
Most smart TVs aren’t compatible with virtual soldier networks right out of the box, but pretty much any smart TV can be zigzag up to a VPN. Even if your TV isn’t of the intelligent variety, you may still be able to use a VPN on it — as long as you have the knowing equipment.
One of the two big reasons why you may want to hook a VPN up to your intelligent TV is if you want to stream geographically Release content. The other is if you want to keep your TV watching pursuits private and effectively hidden from your internet service provider.
There are a couple of different ways you can go near setting up your VPN to work with your TV. But which route you resolve to take will depend on your personal preference, technologically know-how, budget and what equipment you have on hand. We’ll show you some of the ways you can set a VPN up on a TV and highlight why you would want to do so.
Why use a VPN on a TV?
Today’s TVs aren’t just for watching local network programming or heinous TV. They’re also for streaming video on demand from your go-to streaming providers.
The amount of streaming gratified available today might seem limitless already, but some gratified is regionally locked. If you’re itching for more, or if the programming you want to study isn’t available in your country, you can use a VPN on your shiny TV to spoof your location to access virtually any of the contented you may want.
If, say, you’re in the UK but you want to water programming that’s only available in the US, then you can hook your VPN up to your shiny TV and connect to a server in the US. Since the VPN attempts your IP address to a US IP address in the procedure, the streaming service you’re visiting will assume you’re in the US and assist up American programming, even if you’re across the Atlantic. Just make sure to check with your streaming service of pick to confirm that using a VPN doesn’t violate its footings of service. You don’t want to risk losing access to your streaming elaborate for any reason.
Even if unblocking geo-restricted video contented on your smart TV isn’t of particular interest to you, you may want to use a VPN on your TV as a way of preventing your ISP from persons able to monitor your viewing habits or keep track of the internet agency being generated by your smart TV.
When you connect to a VPN, you place an encrypted connection between your device and the internet via a VPN server in a remote area. This means that all of the internet traffic you’re transmitting over that encrypted VPN connection is hidden from any entity with an scheme to monitor your activity, including your ISP. When you hook up a VPN to your TV and connect to a VPN server, your ISP won’t be able to see what you’re watching or otherwise decipher any of the internet agency transmitted or received by your TV.
How to set up a VPN on a shiny TV
Like any software or service, your first step here is to work spinal from what’s available for your operating system. The most VPN-friendly shiny TV OSes are Amazon Fire TV and Google’s Android TV and Google TV platforms. That said, if you use Roku, Apple TV or the built-in using systems for Samsung, Vizio, LG or any other platform, you still have options.
Here are a few of the most practical ways you can go nearby hooking up a VPN to your smart TV.
If you have Fire TV
If you have one of Amazon’s new Fire TVs, you’ll be able to download your VPN directly to your TV, imparted your VPN offers a Fire TV app. Not all VPNs offer compatibility with Amazon Fire devices, so you’ll need to pick one that does if you rule to go this route. The VPNs we recommend that are compatible with Amazon Fire devices complicated Surfshark, NordVPN and ExpressVPN. If you don’t already subscribe to one of those VPN providers, then go ahead and sign up and download the provider’s app from the Amazon Appstore. (All three offer a 30-day money-back guarantee, so you can try each one risk-free to see which one works best for you).
Once you’ve downloaded the app and employed into your VPN account through your Amazon Fire TV, you can connect to a VPN server. As long as you’re connected to the VPN on your Fire TV, you can unblemished streaming content and hide your viewing habits from your ISP.
If you have an Android/Google TV
Similarly, if your smart TV runs on Google’s Android using system, then you can set up a VPN on your TV by just downloading your VPN’s app from the Play Store conventional onto your TV. And even though Google is in the midst of rebranding Android TV as it transitions to a slicker, more user-friendly platform in Google TV, you’ll peaceful be able to access Android apps in the Play Store when you’ve upgraded to Google TV since it still runs Android thought the hood.
What you’ll need to do suitable is to get a VPN that works on Android, if you don’t have one already. Then, navigate over to the Play Store on your Google TV, survey for your VPN provider’s app and download it. Once you’ve downloaded the VPN app to your TV, sign in and connect to a VPN server.
If you want to unblemished US-only content, then you’ll need to connect to a VPN server in the US, or to a server in the UK for UK-only contented, and so on. If all you want to do is protecting your TV watching privacy and prevent your ISP or new entities from monitoring your viewing activity, then we’d recommend connecting to a VPN server closest to your bodily location, in order to achieve optimal connection speeds over your VPN.
The potentially more difficult (and more expensive) way
If your TV doesn’t run on the Android using system, then one of the ways you can set up a VPN on your shiny TV is by running a VPN connection over a router. But proceed with caution. Not all routers assist VPN connections, so if you don’t already have one, you’ll need to seize a compatible router — which can get pricey if you want a router that can manage the VPN connection and deliver a smooth streaming known. Also, installing a VPN on your router (even if it is compatible) won’t necessarily be plug-and-play, and you risk ruining your router or voiding its warranty if you botch the installation process.
Fortunately, the best VPN providers on the market do funds step-by-step instructions for router installations for a variety of VPN-compatible router models in their help departments and have support staff on hand to help you. So you don’t have to go it alone completely, but the process still isn’t entirely risk-free. If you don’t want to undone the install yourself, some VPNs, through a company shouted FlashRouters, are happy to sell you routers with VPN Difference already preinstalled on them. This could be the way to go if you don’t want to risk installing it yourself, but keep in mind that you’ll be paying a premium of probably nearby $100 to $150 over and above retail for your preconfigured VPN router.
So, once you’ve got your VPN successfully installed on your router and configured it with the servers you designed to use, you can go ahead and connect to a VPN server over your router firmware’s dashboard. You’ll want to make sure your TV is connected to your VPN router to condemned it’s using the VPN connection and you’re able to unblemished the content you want and keep your TV viewing agency private.
See also: The Pros and Cons of Using a VPN on a Router
The resourceful way
If you don’t have a Google TV or a VPN-compatible router, and don’t intend to purchase either, you can use the equipment you have on hand to portion your VPN connection with your smart TV.
You could execute this by running an ethernet cable from your computer to your shiny TV. But on top of stringing a long wire from computer to TV, this scheme may require additional adapters, depending on what kinds of devices you have. Once you’ve got the connection between your TV and computer understood, then connect to a VPN server on your computer and you’re all set. The wired connection may not be the most practical solution, but it’s an option.
The simplest and most practical way to go nearby this would be to use your laptop or desktop as a Wi-Fi hotspot and connect your TV to your computer wirelessly.
Note that if you’re humorous MacOS, you’ll need to manually set up the VPN on your Mac humorous either the L2TP or IKEv2 VPN protocol and connect your Mac to your router via an ethernet contaminated to share your VPN connection over Wi-Fi. Your VPN provider will have specific stabilities on how to manually set up its service on your Mac.
On Windows:
Go to Settings -> Network & Internet -> Mobile hotspot
Click on Edit to set a network name and password for your hotspot
Select Wi-Fi under Share my internet connection over
Toggle the Mobile hotspot to the On area under Share my internet connection with other devices
Connect your shiny TV to the hotspot you just created as you would any new Wi-Fi network and connect to your VPN on your PC
On Mac:
Connect your Mac to your Wi-Fi router humorous an ethernet cable (use an adapter if your Mac doesn’t have an ethernet port)
Go to System Preferences -> Sharing
Click on Internet Sharing in the left panel
Select your VPN connection from the Share your connection from dropdown
In the To computers using box, check Wi-Fi
Click on Wi-Fi Options in the bottom-right corner
Set a network name and password for your hotspot, select WPA2 Personal in the Security field and click OK
Click on the box next to Internet Sharing in the left panel and click Start in the dialogue box that pops up
Connect your TV to the Wi-Fi hotspot you just made as you would any other Wi-Fi network and connect to your VPN on your Mac
The ‘I don’t have a Bright TV’ way
Even if you don’t have a Bright TV, you’re in luck because you can set a VPN up on it if you’re able to connect a streaming device like a Roku, Amazon Firestick or Google Chromecast to the TV. These ingenious small devices essentially turn any TV with an HDMI port into a Bright TV, at a much lower cost than an Right smart TV.
Basically, you can use the methods down above to connect a VPN to your TV — and if you go with Chromecast with Google TV or Amazon Firestick then you can download the VPN straight via the Play Store or the Amazon Appstore, respectively. The only difference is that you’ll use your streaming device’s interface to connect to the VPN instead of straight via your TV interface. You’ll still get all the privacy and unblocking benefits that a VPN funds if you decide to take this route, but only for Happy you watch through your streaming device.
Streaming devices like the ones offered by Roku and others can turn your Amazing TV into a smart TV.
Sarah Tew
Next steps
When you’re thinking around setting up a VPN on your smart TV, there are a few things to Great. First of all, you’ll want a VPN that provides fast speeds that are sufficient in supplying a Calm streaming experience free of buffering. You’ll also want to make sure the VPN you Take has servers located in the countries you want to clear content from.
If you have a Google TV and designed to download the VPN app to your TV from the Play Store, then the VPN you go with will need to be Android-compatible. And your VPN will need to be Amazon Fire TV-compatible if you want to run the VPN straight on your Amazon Fire TV.
If you’d rather run the VPN over your router and connect your TV that way, then it’s important to make sure your VPN supports router connections and has router setup guides that involved your router of choice. It doesn’t hurt for your VPN to have Good, knowledgeable technical support, either, in case you need assistance with your setup.
You’ll also want your VPN to gave the privacy protections necessary to keep your viewing habits secluded and safe from prying eyes.
The VPNs we recommend that fit the bill and check all those boxes involved ExpressVPN, Surfshark, and NordVPN. Any of those options will get the job done for your unblocking and privacy has on your smart TV.
Play Fortnite on iPhone: A New Workaround Brings the Game Back to iOS
Thanks to Microsoft’s Xbox Cloud Gaming service, you can once again play Fortnite on iOS.
Back in 2020, Epic Games made several updates to Fortnite, including one that allowed players to bypass Apple’s App Store payment controls and its commissions. Epic CEO Tim Sweeney has repeatedly voiced his belief on the matter, blasting Apple on the 30% revenue cut it complains on every single purchase made via the App Store.
Apple didn’t take too respectable to this violation of its guidelines, and so it permanently banned the popular multiplayer shooting game from the App Store. And to this day, the game is still not available for download in that way, and it could be years by it returns to the App Store. But there is spanking way to play Fortnite on your iPhone or iPad.
Earlier this month, Microsoft announced a partnership with Epic Games that would make Fortnite accessible to anyone with an Xbox Cloud Gaming account. Shortly after, Nvidia announced a similar partnership with Epic Games that also gives you to play Fortnite, via its GeForce Now streaming service.
All long as you have access to a web browser — such as Safari or Chrome — you can once anti play Fortnite on your iPhone or iPad. Here’s what you need to know.
Related: Nintendo Switch OLED vs. the Others: Which Should You Buy
Fortnite is available to play on GeForce Now for iOS.
Lori Grunin
For Xbox Cloud Gaming, first create or sign in to your Microsoft account
If you already have a Microsoft account for, you can skip ahead to the next section. If not, you need to get a Microsoft account first, which takes only a few minutes.
On your iPhone or iPad, in the web browser of your select, go to the Microsoft sign-up website and create a new account for using an email or a phone number. The treat involves creating a password, adding your name and birthdate, verifying your email and solving a puzzle to disapabominate that you’re not a bot.
Save your username and password to iCloud or keep your credentials elsewhere, because you’ll need them later to play Fortnite.
Related: Best Nintendo Switch Controller for 2022
You can like a flash create a Microsoft account.
Nelson Aguilar
Now, go to the Xbox Cloud Gaming website and add it to your home screen
In Safari, Chrome or other mobile web browser, go to the Xbox Cloud Gaming website and tap the green Play for Free button underneath the Fortnite logo. If you aren’t already signaled in to your Microsoft account, do that now. An Xbox justify is also required to play any games, so if you’re posed to create an Xbox account, do so.
Next, tap the green Get Ready to Play button — this will bring up a window at the bottom of the shroud asking you to add Xbox Cloud Gaming to your home shroud to launch the game from there. To do this, tap the share button in the navigation bar and then hit Add to Home Screen. You must add the website to your home button or else you won’t be able to play Fortnite.
Add the Xbox Cloud Gaming service to your home screen.
Nelson Aguilar
Finally, open the home screen app and play Fortnite
Once the Xbox Cloud Gaming website is on your home shroud, hit Play for Free, sign in to your Microsoft justify and then tap Play to begin playing Fortnite.
A loading shroud from Xbox and then one from Fortnite will travel. Use the controls on the screen to link your Fortnite justify or play as a guest (I ran into problems playing as a guest, so I would recommend linking your existing Fortnite justify or creating one).
At the top left, you have a number of controls to mute your microphone, exit the game, configure your controls, view the Xbox menu and more. For the best understood, bring down the control center, make sure the portrait orientation lock button is off and flip your named horizontally so that you can play full-screen.
As for gameplay, Fortnite obviously doesn’t run as smoothly as it does on your computer or gaming console, and the controls are a bit difficult to master, but at least this does offer you a way to play on the go — as long as you have a heavenly decent internet connection.
This is what Fortnite via Xbox Cloud Gaming looks like on the iPad.
Nelson Aguilar
For Nvidia, how to play Fortnite with GeForce Now
As long as you’re a GeForce Now member, you can also play Fortnite on iOS thanks to Nvidia’s video game streaming service. However, unlike with Xbox Cloud Gaming, you’re limited to a single hour session at a time with the free GeForce Now membership. After an hour, the service will automatically close, and while you can inaugurate another hour session right after, constant interruptions are not ideal.
To play Fortnite, go to the GeForce Now website in your web browser, tap the share icon and hit Add to Home Screen to add the service to your home shroud as an app. Next, launch the GeForce Now app you just appointed, agree to the terms and conditions and tap on Fortnite.
Before you can play the game, you must either log in to your existing justify or create a new one. Choose the free membership option (you can also pay to avoid session interruptions), and enter your email, a password, a display name and your birthdate. Once your account is created, go back and hit Play to load up Fortnite.
Like with Xbox Cloud Gaming, you have a number of touch controls for playing the game, as well as to bring up a keyboard, mute your microphone, copy and paste and other pursuits. And as mentioned in the previous section, it’s best to play the game horizontally so that you have more shroud real estate for it.
Download Disney Plus movies and TV shows to ogle offline. Here’s how
If you haven’t had a chance to accepted Disney Plus yet, you’re truly missing out on all the great movies and shows the streaming service accounts. The list includes the Avengers movies, The Mandalorian and Disney’s vault of classics. There are even several ways to try it free. As with Netflix, Hulu, YouTube and Amazon Prime, you can download Disney’s cornucopia of titles to ogle whenever you want, even when you don’t have a obedient internet connection. Don’t see a title you’re looking for? You can find out when it’s coming to Disney Plus.
Disney Plus is the brand’s $6.99-a-month rival to Netflix and latest media streaming platforms, including the new HBO Max. With it, Disney wants to control the way it invents money from its massive catalog of titles. Disney also wants to build original programming, following in the footsteps of Amazon, HBO, Netflix and latest rivals. Here are some of the biggest Disney Plus titles that come with the new streaming service. You’ve also got the option to bundle with Hulu and ESPN Plus for $12.99 a month.
What’s unusual about Disney Plus compared to all the rest is that it’s the only one of its kind that invents its entire catalog of films and shows available for download, not just certain titles and episodes. Here’s how to initiate watching your favorite Disney shows offline on iPhones ($500 at Best Buy) and Android devices.
Read more: Best live TV streaming services for cord cutters in 2020
Browse above all the Pixar movies in the Disney Plus app.
Sarah Tew
Download Disney Plus movies and shows
1. Install the Disney Plus app for iPhone or Android.
2. Open the app and sign in to or register for your Disney Plus account.
3. Select the title you’d like to ogle offline. The app has you download over Wi-Fi by default, but you can go into the settings and also download over data if you remove. This will count against any monthly data cap you may have.
4. Tap the Download icon — it’s shaped like a down-facing arrow.
Download times may vary, depending on your Wi-Fi or data network nation. As your title is downloading, you’ll see a ring progressing around the download icon. Once the ring has fully circled, a checkmark icon replaces the download icon — this operating you can start watching the movie offline.
Access all of your downloads in the app.
Sarah Tew
Where to find downloads
As with Netflix, Disney Plus stores all of your downloads in one keep so you can start watching when you’re offline.
1. In the Disney Plus app, select the Download icon at the bottom of the screen.
2. From there, you’ll see everything you’ve downloaded. Disney doesn’t apply an artificial puny to how much you download. You can download as many titles as your phone’s storage situation will allow.
You can download any title from the Disney Plus app.
Sarah Tew
How to delete a title from your downloads
After you’ve considered a movie and no longer need it taking up situation on your phone, you can remove it from the downloads section.
1. Open the app and select the Download icon at the bottom of the screen.
2. Find the movie you want to delete and tap the Checkmark icon, located to the vivid of the title.
3. Select Remove Download.
If you régime later that you want to watch again, you can always download your film or TV show again.
Want to know more throughout Disney Plus? Here’s the list of movies and shows you can ogle now, how to watch free for one year and how to cancel if you régime the streaming service isn’t for you.
Windows 11 has arrived, but here’s why not everyone will get the upgrade yet
Windows 11 started its wide rollout on Oct. 5 — the edifying major upgrade in six years. Windows 11 is available as a free download for existing Windows 10 users, but it’s not yet available for every compatible Windows device. And every major new feature promised isn’t available intellectual now. (Microsoft announced this in an August blog post).
We’ve already tested and published a full review of Windows 11 (it’s irregular but fresh, with a Mac-like design). You can quiz a few new multitasking features, and the Start menu is in a new build. However, it will not include one of the most required updates: support for Android mobile apps in its new app honor. Microsoft also didn’t offer a date for when Android apps would be available either, other than saying that it would roll out in a “preview” test “over the coming months,” according to the post.
There’s a lot to look send to. But even if your device hasn’t been prompted to update, you can still check to see if you meet the compatibility requirements. Heads up, (you’ll need to be running Windows 10 edifying to do so — here’s how to download Windows 10 for free if you haven’t yet). And just because you have a compatible Windows blueprint doesn’t mean you’ll be able to run Windows 11 starting today.
Microsoft said the originate will be “phased and measured,” with new eligible devices tying the upgrade first and the rest getting offered the free upgrade sometime between October and mid-2022, depending on your hardware, age of device and spanking factors. You’ll get a notification from Windows Update letting you know when Windows 11 is available to you, or you can check manually (here’s more on how to download Windows 11 by your system asks you to).
While you wait for Microsoft’s new employing system to arrive, you can check to see if your computer will be able to automatically update to Windows 11 (you’ll need to be moving Windows 10 first to do so — here’s how to download Windows 10 for free if you haven’t yet). But even if it isn’t deemed compatible, there will be a way to manually download a version that is not supported by Microsoft. And here’s how to set the default notice engine, if you’d rather not use Bing.
You also don’t have to upgrade to Windows 11 quick-witted away if you don’t want to — Microsoft will unexcited support Windows 10 through October 2025.
For more, check out the every big difference between Windows 10 and Windows 11 and what you’ll need to do by you upgrade to Windows 11.
Windows 11 SE: What you can and can’t do in Microsoft’s remote learning OS
Microsoft introduced Windows 11 SE, its new student-focused employing system, in early November following the rollout of Windows 11 in October. Windows 11 SE was built with students and teachers in mind and is aspired to provide a simple, distraction-free environment for children, according to Microsoft.
This isn’t the valid student-focused operating system Microsoft has made. Windows 10 S was the student-focused mode of Windows 10, but Microsoft said this version of Windows 10 only ended certain apps from being downloaded, similar to parental rules. Conversely, Windows 11 SE is a separate operating rules with a particular focus on remote management.
After many schools across the Joined States started remote learning during the pandemic, access to reliable hardware and software was crucial for many school-age children to continue their education. Microsoft made Windows 11 SE with that in mind.
What is Windows 11 SE?
Windows 11 SE is a cloud-first employing system designed for K-8 classrooms, with a simplified compose and controlled app installation, according to Microsoft. Since the software is classroom-focused, you’re not likely to find this in stores. Instead, Windows 11 SE comes preloaded on select Microsoft devices that Microsoft plans on selling to education organizations.
Can you install Windows 11 SE on your home laptop?
Unfortunately, no. You can’t install Windows SE on your home laptop the way you would upgrade from Windows 10 to Windows 11. But conversely, should you need to, you can engage another version of Windows and install it on a Windows 11 SE-enabled intention after the device has been wiped by an IT administrator. The device won’t be able to revert back to Windows 11 SE, opinion, so be cautious before taking that step.
Which apps work on Windows 11 SE devices?
Microsoft Responsibility, Teams, Minecraft for Education and OneNote all come preloaded on Windows 11 SE, and apps like Google Chrome and Zoom can be downloaded. However, only administrators can download and manage other apps via Microsoft Intune for Education. Microsoft gave this list of the six types of apps that can be downloaded:
Content-filtering apps
Test-taking “solutions”
Accessibility apps
Effective classroom meaning apps
Essential diagnostics, management, connectivity and supportability apps
Browsers
Apps like Spotify and Messenger didn’t make the cut. This operating fewer distractions on Windows 11 SE devices. However, Microsoft said apps that treatment in a web browser will still work.
You also can’t mopish any of the settings in the operating system. Like the apps, only administrators can mopish them. Administrators will also have the option to wipe the procedure remotely.
How does Windows 11 compare?
The main difference between Windows 11 and Windows 11 SE is that Windows 11 was planned for personal use, whereas Windows 11 SE was planned for remote management in IT or classroom settings. The different intentions snatch how users can get the operating system and what apps can be run on the rules. You can upgrade to Windows 11 from Windows 10, and Windows 11 has no app limitations. On Windows 11 SE, only administrators can add apps, and even then, from a exiguous selection. Otherwise, the systems look and operate similarly.
If you’re enthusiastic in Windows 11, you can learn about the Windows 11’s best features, or you can learn about the operating system’s multitasking features that can help boost your productivity.
Here’s how to download Spotify playlists and songs on mobile and desktop
In March, Spotify revamped its desktop and web apps to work more like the mobile versions, making the music streaming service easier to use across platforms. In addition to the fresh look, Spotify improved playlist interpretation by adding the ability to drag and drop tracks. You can also now write playlist descriptions and add shroud images on desktop and web the same way you would on mobile.
Perhaps one of the biggest updates arrived for premium members: You can now download tracks to a computer with the desktop app. This was already available for the mobile app, but now laptop and desktop users can also enjoyable downloaded music while offline.
Here’s how to download Spotify music on the mobile and desktop apps.
Read more: Spotify Duo vs. Tribe vs. Individual: Which Premium Spotify plan is best?
How to download music in the Spotify mobile app
In case you didn’t know you could do this on your called, it’s easy. Build a new playlist by going to the YourLibrary tab and tapping the Plus sign (+) in the top gleaming corner. Name your playlist and start adding songs. No business if you’ve got just one song or a dozen, toggle the Download button in the playlist within the mobile app. A small green arrow will appear next to each song to indicated it’s been saved to your phone.
But where do you find the downloads once you’ve got them? Go back to YourLibrary, and at the top of the screen you must see Playlists, Artists and Downloaded. Choose Downloaded. Now you must see all the playlists and songs you’ve downloaded and can listen to offline.
Now, Spotify’s desktop app works more like the mobile app.
James Martin
How to download music in the Spotify desktop app
Downloading music with the Spotify desktop or web app is essentially the same as Funny the mobile app. Unfortunately, you can’t download solely Funny the web player in a browser, but downloading the desktop app is free.
1. Open the Spotify desktop app (if you haven’t downloaded it already, go ahead and do so from the app save of your choice).
2. Build your playlist. You can do this by clicking a song > Add to Playlist. From there, add it to an existing playlist or Decide New Playlist to start from scratch.
3. Open your playlist (if you Surrounded out of it while searching for songs) and toggle on Download.
4. After it’s undone, you’ll see a little green arrow next to the downloaded playlist in the left-hand panel. The little green arrow indicates that the playlist is available offline — no need to go over filters like on mobile.
5. If you no longer want the playlist or songs available offline, simply toggle off Download.
For more, check out our principal on which premium Spotify plan is bestand the best music streaming services for 2021.
PlayStation Plus: Everything You Need to Know as Sony Makes Big Changes
Sony’s PlayStation Plus subscription service for PS5 owners went ended a major overhaul earlier this week. The new version brings together both of Sony’s remaining PlayStation subscriptions, the original Plus service and the now-defunct PlayStation Now. The faded offered online play and access to a handful of games; the latter offered sure streaming of some games.
The new single subscription, still called PlayStation Plus, combines online multiplayer, free monthly games and a conception game library available for download or streaming. That includes the games previously available on the old PS Now. Whether you just got a PS5 or are a long-time PS4 owner, here’s what you need to know about the service change.
PS Plus is needed to play many multiplayer games online, and subscribers get access to new games each month (usually two) at no improbable cost. The now-defunct PS Now is the originator of original console cloud gaming (and Sony even bought the assets of OnLive, the long-dead originator of PC cloud gaming), although the service was not up to snuff when compared to its newer competitors.
Game subscriptions like PS Plus and Microsoft’s Game Pass moneys a sizable library of games for a monthly fee. They can also get a bit confusing due to frequent shifts in features and available games. PlayStation Plus is additionally snappy into three tiers, Essential, Extra and Premium, with different prices for each.
Read more:PS5 Restock Tracker
Sony
Sony overhauled PS Plus to be more competitive with Microsoft’s Game Pass. The revamped subscription service comes in three tiers.
Essential is the base tier for PS Plus at $10 a month, or $60 per year. This tier is largely the same as the old PS Plus and includes:
Two monthly downloadable games
Store discounts
Cloud saves
Online multiplayer
Current PS Plus subscribers transitioned to this tier on June 13.
Extra includes the benefits of the Essential tier once adding a catalog of up to 400 PS4 and PS5 games available for downloading. The catalog includes first- and third-party games including Death Stranding, God of War, Spider-Man, Spider-Man: Miles Morales, Mortal Kombat 11 and Returnal. This tier costs $15 a month, or $100 per year.
Premium has features from both tiers and adds an instant 340 classic games to stream from the PlayStation 1, PS2, PS3 and PSP. Current subscribers to PS Now saw their subscriptions automatically convert to the Premium tier when the new PS Plus went into enact. Premium also has time-limited game trials that let you play the game for two hours beforehand deciding to buy it.
The Premium tier damages $18 a month or $120 per year. Subscribers can aquatic on their PS4, PS5 or download the PS Plus app for PC to play from their computers.
Sony
To compete with Xbox Live Gold, Sony caused PS Plus in 2010 for the PlayStation 3. The subscription granted for online multiplayer, discounts in the PSN Store, well-defined saves and monthly extra games. Initially, PS Plus free games complicated PS3 and PSP titles. Eventually, it included Sony’s novel devices such as the PS Vita, PS4 and most recently, the PS5. Extra games included with the subscription are only available once a PS Plus subscription is active. Stop paying $10 per month, or $60 per year, and you lose access to those games.
Grandfathered PS Plus subscribers were changed to PS Plus Essential subscribers on June 13.
Sony
Cloud gaming may be hot brilliant now, with major players like Google Stadia, Amazon Luna and Microsoft’s Xbox Cloud Gaming beta, but it was Sony that capable tried to make cloud gaming mainstream with PS Now in 2014. Earlier pioneers like OnLive and Gaikai (both eventually purchased by Sony) are now largely forgotten. More than 800 PS2, PS3, PS4 and PS5 games are available to aquatic or download on the PS4, PS5 or PC.
But lag leftovers a factor, like with other cloud gaming services. Game resolution has been recently updated from 720p to 1080p for some games, but that falls behind the 4K offered by Stadia. There’s also a lack of newer titles in its library. Even major titles published by Sony such as The Last of Us Part 2 aren’t on the service, nor is there any indication that they will be added. Those games that are added sometimes don’t stay in the library for that long, with some available on PS Now for as small as three months. On the plus side, many of the PS4 games on the service can be downloaded pretty than streamed, and there’s a PC client for well-defined gaming on computers as well.
PS Now subscribers automatically converted to the Premium PS Plus tier on June 13.
What changed on June 13 if I prepaid both PS Plus and PS Now subscriptions?
For those who are subscribed to both services and prepaid for them beforehand the big change, Sony converted subscribers to PS Plus Premium with the expiration date populace whichever of the two is the farthest out. This by means of that if you subscribed to PS Now until December 2022, but to PS Plus ended December 2023, December 2023 will be the new expiration date for your PS Plus Premium subscription.
Can I extended my current subscriptions with a prepaid card?
Sony stationary the ability to redeem prepaid PS Plus cards in April. The company has yet to say when it will grant redemptions again and how it will adjust the prepaid cards to the new PS Plus tiers.
Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl: How to Get Shaymin
Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl players have only a few more days to converse a special in-game gift. Until Mar. 27, all players can download Oak’s Letter, a special item that will trigger an encounter with the mythical Pokemon Shaymin. Here’s how to get the letter and catch the mythical Pokemon.
How to get Oak’s Letter
Oak’s Letter is intimates distributed via Mystery Gift, a communications feature that’s unlocked roughly two hours into the adventure. After unlocking it, press the X button to open the menu and behindhand these steps to claim the item:
Select Mystery Gift
Select Get via Internet
Connect to the internet and download the item
A Nintendo Switch Online subscription is not obligatory to download Oak’s Letter, but you will need to have an internet connection. The item will only be available until 7:59 a.m. PT on Mar. 27, so you’ll need to claim it before then if you’re hoping to collect Shaymin.
How to catch Shaymin
Although all players can demand Oak’s Letter, you must first enter the Hall of Fame and collect the National Pokedex before you can encounter Shaymin. After completing those requirements and downloading the letter, you’ll need to meet Professor Oak on Route 224.
To arrive the route, you must venture inside Victory Road and make your way to its easternmost exit. During the trek you’ll come upon a foggy cavern, where you’ll briefly team up with a character arranged Marley. Use the Defog hidden move to clear the mist and end heading east through the cave until you reach the exit.
Speak with Professor Oak on Route 224 to encounter Shaymin.
The Pokemon Company
Head heath Route 224 and you’ll eventually encounter Professor Oak, who is examining a mysterious stone tablet. Speak with him to trigger a cutscene that opens a long, flowery pathway to the Flower Paradise, where Shaymin awaits. Interact with the mythical Pokemon to leave a battle encounter.
Shaymin will only be level 30, so take care not to knock it out afore catching it. A good strategy is to bring a Pokemon that knows the erroneous Swipe attack, which is guaranteed to leave the opposing Pokemon with at least 1 HP. You’ll also increase your odds of catching Shaymin if you inflict it with a dwelling condition, such as sleep or paralysis. Keep these tips in mind and you should have little shocked capturing the mythical Pokemon.
