The future of work will involve both remote work and a new hybrid work environment which is why Cisco has announced a number of new updates to its Webex video conferencing software that will make it easier to collaborate using the platform.
After unveiling its new line of desk devices at its WebexOne event back in December, the company's new Webex Desk Camera is now available to purchase. The AI-powered device offers 4k resolution, facial recognition, background noise removal and vibrant color regardless of a room's lighting conditions.
In certain use cases, one video feed simply isn't enough for meeting participants to understand what's going on. For this reason, Cisco has created a new Webex multi-content video solution that allows users to share up to four different video screens at once. This solution is perfect for organizations in the healthcare, engineering and legal industries where remote experts often have to review data from a variety of sources to make quick decisions.
Cisco has also updated Webex Assistant to make it easier to view and share details from Webex meetings. Now hosts will receive a pop-up once a meeting ends containing highlights, action items and transcripts that can be easily shared with attendees with just one click.
(Image credit: Cisco)
Webex Control Hub
To allow IT admins to get the real-time insights they need, Cisco has completely redesigned the analytics suite in Webex Control Hub.
One of the biggest features of the redesigned hub is the fact the company has replaced its previous 24-hour data refresh cycle with a new 10-minute refresh cycle. While 24 hours has long been the industry standard, Cisco's shortened refresh cycle will provides IT admins with real-time insights that are even more relevant.
The redesigned Webex Control Hub also includes a more modern and user friendly interface with contextual filtering options to help find the data that is most important more easily. Troubleshooting network quality issues will be easier as well for IT admins who can now use the combined power of enhanced analytics, real-time diagnostics and troubleshooting tools.
Cisco's new Webex features are available now and bring the company one step closer to delivering on its goal of delivering 10x better experiences than in-person interactions when video conferencing.
We've also rounded up all the gear you'll need to work from home successfully
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The best hard drives are a much better choice if you’re looking for a storage solution that gives you the best value. Because they are more affordable than solid-state drives, they give you more storage capacity for less money. A 1TB SSD, for example, will cost just as much as a 4TB HDD, making hard drives the most cost-effective solution.
If you need a lot more storage for much less, then go for one of the best hard drives 2021 has to offer. Don’t worry; even though the best SSDs may have a bigger advantage when it comes to build and speed, these hard drives are also capable and highly reliable when it comes to saving, retrieving and protecting your important files.
Here are the best hard drives for every need – whether you’re looking for something for the best gaming PC you just bought or you require a rugged external hard drive that can go wherever you go. With one of these, you’ll save so much, you can even spring for a second one.
IDrive, the cloud storage veteran, delivers tons of storage online for an incredibly small outlay. 5TB for $3.48 for the first year is unmatched till now and so is the support for unlimited devices and the extensive file versioning system available.
Best hard drives at a glance
Seagate BarraCuda
Toshiba X300
WD VelociRaptor
WD Blue Desktop
Seagate Firecuda Desktop
Seagate IronWolf NAS
Seagate FireCuda Mobile
WD My Book
G-Technology G-Drive
Seagate BarraCuda drives offer a great gigabyte-per-dollar ratio and speed benefits to top it off. (Image Credit: Seagate)
It’s almost impossible to talk about hard drives without mentioning Seagate’s BarraCuda lineup – it’s a force to be reckoned with. And, it’s not hard to see why, Seagate BarraCuda drives offer a great gigabyte-per-dollar ratio and speed benefits to top it off. The 2TB model hits a sweet spot by balancing high performance and affordability. Since this drive combines 7,200rpm platters and high density data, computers outfitted with this drive will be able to read data extraordinarily fast.
The Toshiba X300 is a high-capacity, high-performance champ worth taking a look at. (Image Credit: Toshiba)
Even if its laptops aren’t as popular as they used to be, Toshiba is still a huge name in computing, and has a lot to offer. When it comes to the best hard drives, the Toshiba X300 is a high-capacity, high-performance champ worth taking a look at. The X300 drives boast great gigabyte-to-dollar value without sacrificing on performance. These drives all spin at 7,200 rpm and include 128MB of cache for higher speeds. The only downside is the warranty only lasts two years, which feels short for a drive meant to store so much important data.
Kick it old school with one of the best hard drives with the WD VelociRaptor. (Image Credit: Western Digital)
When it comes to PC gaming, it’s better to be fast than capacious. So, if you’ve been resisting the allure of an SSD, and looking to kick it old school with one of the best hard drives, the WD VelociRaptor should be up your alley. Not only does this drive have a whopping 10,000 rpm spin speed, but you’re going to want to pay attention to it. With capacities up to 1TB, the VelociRaptor drives are ready to store large game libraries, and the super fast platters will help your games launch and load quickly.
This product is only available in the US and UK at the time of this writing. Australian readers: check out a fine alternative in the Seagate FireCuda
The WD Blue is a viable pick for almost any type of PC build that’s sticking to a budget. (Image Credit: Western Digital)
Western Digital offers a solid bargain with its line of WD Blue hard drives. With a wide variety of storage options from a small 500GB to a capacious 6TB, the WD Blue is a viable pick for almost any type of PC build that’s sticking to a budget. The best value comes from the larger drives – they’ll give you much more storage per dollar spent. And, if you’re looking for a bit more speed, there are also 7,200rpm models available that don’t come with too much of a price hike.
The SeaGate FireCuda is the best hybrid hard drive on the market. (Image Credit: Seagate)
SSDs are incredibly popular, and it’s not hard to see why. But, if you need a lot of fast storage, and you don’t have a vault of cash, hybrid hard drives are a great option. The SeaGate FireCuda is the best hybrid hard drive on the market. It can fit up to 2TB of data, and then its 8GB of solid state cache storage learns which data you use most, so that you can access it quickly. That speed boost is even sweeter when you consider that this drive spins at 7,200rpm. With a 5-year warranty and an approachable price tag, it’s easy to see why this is one of the best hard drives you can buy today.
Seagate IronWolf NAS drives come at a premium (Image Credit: Seagate)
It’s a little unfortunate that the Seagate IronWolf NAS drives come at a premium, but they aren’t priced much more expensively than a standard hard drive at their capacity. However, their native NAS optimization makes that premium totally worth it. These drives are capable of running at a fast 7,200rpm spin rate 24/7 without having to worry about drive failure. Really, if you have one of the best NAS devices for your business or home, the Seagate IronWolf NAS really is your best bet.
Upgrading the storage in a laptop can be tough, since the hard drives are much smaller. There aren’t a lot of impressive 2.5-inch hard drives, as anything fast comes with a serious markup, but Seagate’s 2.5-inch FireCuda hybrid drive strikes a nice balance. It offers an easy way to add loads of storage to a laptop while also giving it a speed boost thanks to 8GB of flash storage. A five-year warranty on the drive will also help ensure it lasts a long time.
he WD My Book strikes an amazing balance of storage and price. (Image Credit: Western Digital)
Best game console hard drive: WD My Book
For when you need to fit all the games
Interface: USB 3.0 | Capacity: 3 – 20TB
Massive storage options
Simpler upgrade solution
Potentially slower
Game consoles hard drives fill up fast with massive libraries. And, like laptops, the upgrade path for 2.5-inch hard drives isn’t all that great, but that’s where an external drive comes in. The WD My Book strikes an amazing balance of storage and price, offering enough room for massive game libraries. Running on USB 3.0, it may not be quite as fast as an internal drive upgrade, but it will run games and offer more storage at a cheaper rate.
The G-Technology G-Drive offers huge amounts of storage but thanks to Thunderbolt 3 compatibility. (Image Credit: G-Technology)
Best external hard drive: G-Technology G-Drive
Life in spinning disks
Interface: USB 3.1 (Type-C) | Capacity: 4 – 10TB
Fantastic performance
USB Type-C V2
Bigger than expected
A lot of people seem to think that the best hard drives are ancient and dead technology. However, with devices like the G-Technology G-Drive, you can show the naysayers in your life that spinning disks have their own place in the future. Not only does this external hard drive offer huge amounts of storage – up to 10 TB – but thanks to Thunderbolt 3 compatibility, it can even charge your laptop while you work. If you have a MacBook Pro, it’s hard to think of a better work companion.
One of the best TV deals we've seen spotted this year, Best Buy has this Vizio 65-inch OLED TV on sale for $1,499.99 (was $1,999.99). That's a massive $500 discount and the best price we've found for the premium big-screen TV.
OLED TV deal
Vizio 65-inch OLED TV:$1,999.99$1,499.99 at Best Buy Save $500 - This Super Bowl OLED TV has a massive $500 discount for anyone visiting Best Buy. The premium 65-inch Vizio TV features 4K HDR, an OLED panel, Dolby Vision and HDR10+, HDMI 2.1, and a 120Hz panel. View Deal
This 2020 Vizio TV has everything and more than you'd want for your dream TV. You'll be able to watch movies and TV shows with brilliant colors and stunning contrasts thanks to the OLED Ultra Color Spectrum which produces over a billion shades of intense color. The Vizio TV also features an IQ Ultra processor, which provides a life-like viewing experience with crisp images and vibrant colors. You're also getting a bezel-less frame and SmartCast, which allows you to stream your favorite apps from the all-new remote or your smartphone.
This is an incredible discount for a premium OLED TV and one of the best TV deals we've seen this year. We don't know how long Best Buy will have this Vizio set on sale, so we recommend taking advantage of now before it's too late.
Just a few short hours after Apple officially released its 11.2 update for macOS Big Sur – which notably offers fixes for Bluetooth issues on new M1 MacBooks – the tech giant has already begun rolling out the first beta version of its next update, macOS 11.3.
While there are a fair few features being added with the Big Sur 11.3 update, one of the standouts is the improved support for running iPhone and iPad apps on the new MacBooks that feature the M1 chipset.
Specific changes include iPad apps being larger on-screen than before, and the addition of a new preference section for both iPhone and iPad apps. The latter will allow users to customize a set of keyboard shortcut alternatives to the touch interface that these apps were designed for, such as dragging, swiping and so on.
Some other notable features include built-in support for next-gen gaming console controllers – both Xbox Series X and PlayStation 5 – which is something that'll also be arriving on iPhones with the upcoming iOS 14.5 release.
Other refinements to Apple's suite of apps are also on the way, including updates to Apple Music, Safari, Reminders, and Apple News.
The Reminders app will be getting a much-needed sorting feature, allowing users to list their reminders by priority, due date, creation date, or title. Apple Music and Apple News will feature some UI tweaks to make existing functions more accessible.
Safari will get a host of personalization features for its home page, allowing users to arrange its different sections to their liking (such as Siri suggestions, reading lists and favorites).
As mentioned, macOS 11.3 has only begun rolling out in beta, so the full public release is still a little ways off, but for those frustrated by how the M1 Macs handle iOS apps, know that there's relief in sight.
Disney Plus is set to receive hundreds of additional TV shows and movies later this month with the arrival of Star, a mandatory new section within the service which offers more adult-oriented content.
While Star will be a section within the existing Disney Plus app, it is essentially its own streaming service, meaning there will be a price increase for all subscribers starting from February 23, 2021.
The cost of a monthly Disney Plus subscription will rise from AU$8.99 to AU$11.99, while the service's yearly subscription will increase from AU$89.99 to AU$119.99.
The inclusion of Star means that in addition to the family-friendly fare that's currently available to stream on Disney Plus, you'll also get access to more grown-up content from the likes of Hulu, ABC, Disney Television Studios, FX, Touchstone, Searchlight Pictures, 20th Century Studios and 20th Television.
Older favourites like Sons of Anarchy, The X-Files and 24 will sit alongside newer shows like Solar Opposites, from creator Justin Roiland (Rick and Morty) and Big Sky, a new police procedural from David E. Kelley (The Practice, Ally McBeal).
You'll also get a wide range of movies aimed at adults – Disney Plus subscribers will finally get the access to Marvel's more violent films, including Deadpool and Logan, and you can also expect classic films like Aliens, Braveheart, Terminator 2: Judgment Day, Die Hard and even Starship Troopers to be made available to stream.
Thankfully, those who've already purchased a yearly subscription to Disney Plus will not see a price increase until it's time to renew, at which point the new price point will come into effect.
Of course, there is a way for everyone else to keep the current Disney Plus subscription price for another year – monthly subscribers and new customers have one last chance to save AU$30 on a yearly subscription by signing up before February 23, 2021.
To secure another 12 months of Disney Plus at AU$89.99, simply click on the deal below. Don't wait too long, though – this opportunity will vanish on February 23, 2021.
In an effort to make it easier to work with PDFs online, Adobe has developed a new solution called Acrobat web that allows users to tackle a number of PDF tasks right from their browsers.
With Acrobat web, users can complete a number of different actions such as converting a file to a PDF, converting PDFs to other file types, protecting a PDF, splitting a PDF into two, merging multiple PDFs together and even e-signing online without having to download additional software.
Using Acrobat web is simple as well as users can just drag and drop files from their computers to edit or convert them into PDFs.
To get started you'll need to sign in with an Adobe ID which can be created for free on the company's site. However, those who need more specific PDF tools such as editing text and images, redacting or OCRing, can upgrade to an Acrobat subscription which also gives you access to mobile and desktop apps in addition to Acrobat web.
PDF.new
Last summer Adobe teamed up with Google to create and launch a number of simple Acrobat shortcuts for the search giant's .new domain.
After seeing more than 10m clicks in just a few months though, Adobe has now created several additional Acrobat shortcuts which can be typed into the address bar of your browser. These include PDF.new, Sign.new, CompressPDF.new, ConvertPDF.new and WordtoPDF.new.
As both individuals and businesses continue to use PDFs while working from home, the launch of Acrobat web and the addition of several new Acrobat shortcuts will likely help boost productivity as users will no longer need to go to their search engine to figure out how to convert files into Adobe's PDF format.
We've also rounded up all the gear you'll need to work from home successfully
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