syncing Archives

AppWizard

December 4, 2025

Android will finally show you which app is draining your battery

Google has introduced a new system-level metric called “excessive partial wake locks” to identify apps that prevent Android phones from entering sleep mode, which leads to unnecessary battery drain. This metric, co-developed with Samsung, will be integrated into Android's core vitals metrics to help measure app performance and efficiency. Starting March 1, 2026, apps that keep devices awake for more than two hours unnecessarily will face penalties, including reduced visibility in Play Store recommendations and potential user warnings. This initiative aims to improve transparency for users and encourage developers to optimize their apps.

Winsage

December 3, 2025

New Windows 11 ‘PC you can talk to’ ad pushing Copilot is proving divisive – and I can see it seriously backfiring

Microsoft has released a holiday advertisement featuring its 'Hey Copilot' voice input and AI capabilities in Windows 11, set to the song A-Punk by Vampire Weekend. The ad showcases family-oriented scenarios, such as syncing Christmas lights to music and navigating assembly instructions with Copilot's assistance, including a cameo from Santa. Viewer reactions have been mixed, with some expressing skepticism about Copilot's capabilities and suggesting humorous voice commands. Concerns have been raised regarding the disconnect between the ad's portrayal of Copilot's functionality and the actual limitations of the technology, particularly its inability to connect smart home devices to a Windows 11 PC. Users appreciate advancements in voice input technology but feel that the advertisement may oversell its current capabilities, leading to potential disappointment.

Winsage

December 1, 2025

5 Essential Windows Apps Everyone Should Be Using In 2025

Everything is a free application from Voidtools that indexes file and folder names quickly, allowing searches of up to a million files in a minute. It can index mapped network drives and supports Boolean operators and wildcards for advanced search needs. Flow Launcher is an open-source application that serves as a quick launcher and search utility, integrating with Everything for fast file searches and allowing users to open applications, search for files, and perform calculations from a single interface. NanaZip is an open-source archive manager derived from 7-Zip, supporting various archive formats and offering faster processing times, improved encryption, dark mode, and context menu integration. Microsoft PowerToys is a suite of utilities for power users that includes tools like Command Palette, PowerRename, and FancyZones, available for free from the Microsoft Store. Ferdium is an open-source tool that consolidates web applications into a single platform, allowing users to manage multiple web apps within one window, supporting multiple instances of the same app and offering workspace management and a built-in To-do list panel.

Winsage

December 1, 2025

Complaints about Windows 11’s fix for File Explorer sluggishness are overblown – but they underline a fundamental problem with the OS

Windows 11 has introduced a fix in a preview build to improve the speed of File Explorer by preloading the application during system boot. Initial tests indicate a noticeable speed improvement, although it doubles RAM usage with only a modest increase in performance. Critics argue that Microsoft's approach appears reactive and lacks a comprehensive strategy for overall performance enhancement. The preloading fix does provide a tangible speed boost with manageable RAM impact, but concerns remain about the broader user experience and future updates.

BetaBeacon

November 30, 2025

Feel your games and the savings with my favorite haptic vest, now $100 off ahead of Cyber Monday!

The Woojer Vest 4 is currently on sale for 9, down from its original price of 9. It offers a way to experience full body rumble from games, music, movies, and more without mixing unwanted noises. The haptic vest works by connecting to the Woojer app on your smartphone and syncing vibrations with sound. If the full vest is too much, the Woojer Body Strap 4 is also available for a discount.

AppWizard

November 25, 2025

Own an Android phone? 12 settings I changed to greatly extend its battery life

Many users seek to extend battery life on Android devices, especially budget models. Here are twelve settings that can enhance battery performance: 1. Turn off the always-on display to improve battery life. 2. Enable Adaptive Battery to optimize resource management based on usage patterns. 3. Activate Battery Saver mode to limit background activity and visual effects. 4. Switch to dark mode to reduce energy consumption on OLED displays. 5. Adjust display brightness and sleep time to enhance battery longevity. 6. Remove unused accounts to prevent background syncing that drains battery. 7. Turn off keyboard sounds and haptics to conserve energy. 8. Reduce notifications to limit background activity that drains battery. 9. Turn off "Hey Google" detection to prevent unnecessary battery drain. 10. Reduce the screen's refresh rate to improve battery performance. 11. Turn off unused wireless features like Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and location services. 12. Use low-power mode to limit background activity and reduce screen brightness in critical situations.

AppWizard

November 22, 2025

Five Android apps to challenge Google Fit

Google Fit is a foundational tool for Android users, but many are looking for more comprehensive fitness insights and community engagement. Alternative applications provide enhanced features and deeper analytics tailored to various training styles. Strava is a social platform for endurance athletes with over 100 million users, offering features like segment leaderboards and route planning, making it ideal for GPS-centric sports. Samsung Health integrates sleep coaching, stress metrics, and body composition estimates, providing a holistic dashboard for daily monitoring, especially effective with Galaxy devices. MyFitnessPal focuses on nutrition and weight goals, featuring a database of over 14 million foods for easy meal logging and customizable macro goals. Hevy is designed for strength training, offering a streamlined logging system for workouts and progress tracking, with a lightweight social component. AllTrails caters to hikers and trail runners, providing access to over 400,000 curated routes and safety features, including offline maps and GPS tracking. Users can choose an app based on their primary fitness goals, with options for GPS and community engagement, overall wellness, nutrition tracking, strength training, or outdoor adventures, all benefiting from data interoperability through Health Connect by Android.

AppWizard

November 21, 2025

Perplexity brings its Comet browser to Android

Perplexity has launched its AI-powered browser, Comet, for Android users, integrating a built-in AI assistant for interactive content engagement. Comet is one of the first AI-centric mobile browsers, following its desktop release for Perplexity Max subscribers. The Android version includes features like voice mode for conversational interactions and the ability to request web content summaries, but it currently lacks syncing for browsing history and bookmarks between mobile and desktop. Future updates are planned to include syncing capabilities, a fully agentic voice mode, and a built-in password manager. Users can still use Android's existing password management features while using the browser.

Winsage

November 17, 2025

You can still get free Windows 10 security patches – here’s how until October 2026

This month's Windows updates will roll out automatically on Patch Tuesday, November 11. Official support for Windows 10 has concluded, meaning PCs running this operating system with default settings will no longer receive essential monthly security updates from Microsoft. Microsoft has introduced options for users to continue receiving critical security updates until October 2026. The Extended Security Updates (ESU) for Windows 10 consumer PCs are available for free enrollment, particularly for those who do not qualify for a free Windows 11 upgrade. ESU coverage begins immediately and extends through October 13, 2026, for personal devices. Users must sign in with a Microsoft account to activate the subscription, which can be applied to up to ten PCs. The ESU subscription is available for personal Windows 10 PCs running version 22H2, excluding Enterprise and Education editions. Users in Europe qualify for free ESU subscriptions without needing a Microsoft account. Enrollment can be initiated through the Settings menu under Windows Update. Enterprise customers are not eligible for free ESU options and must pay a fee starting at per device per year. If the ESU offer does not appear, users should ensure all requirements are met, including the installation of the latest updates for Windows 10, version 22H2. Users should be cautious of the default 5GB storage limit on OneDrive when syncing settings to the cloud.

AppWizard

November 16, 2025

10 Of The Best Free Android Apps You Haven’t Heard Of

A selection of free Android apps with a minimum rating of 4.0 on the Play Store includes: 1. Solid Explorer File Manager - Rated 4.3 stars from 150,000 reviewers; features a dual-pane layout, cloud storage integration, file management across various storage options, batch renaming, and AES encryption. 2. Cashew - Expense Budget Tracker - Rated 4.8 stars; provides visual representations of spending, tracks subscriptions, and securely backs up data via Google Drive. 3. RunPee - Rated 4.7 stars with over 500,000 downloads; notifies users of optimal restroom break moments during movies and provides summaries of missed scenes. 4. Orbot: Tor for Android - Rated 4.0 stars; connects users to the Tor network for enhanced online privacy and allows for device-wide or app-specific encryption. 5. Libby, the Library App - Rated 4.8 stars; connects users to their local library's digital collection for borrowing eBooks and audiobooks, supports offline reading, and integrates with Kindle devices. 6. Image Toolbox - Edit & Convert - Rated 4.7 stars; offers photo editing capabilities, file format conversions, and an OCR feature for text extraction. 7. MacroDroid - Device Automation - Rated 4.4 stars; allows users to create custom automation workflows with over 80 triggers and 100 actions. 8. Hermit - Lite Apps Browser - Rated 4.6 stars; enables the creation of lightweight web-based applications with features like ad blocking and dark mode. 9. Bitwarden Password Manager - Rated 4.8 stars; provides secure password management with end-to-end encryption and syncing across devices. 10. ReadEra - Book Reader PDF EPUB - Rated 4.8 stars; supports various document formats, offers an ad-free reading experience, and includes features like bookmarks and text-to-speech.