Category: iPhone

Set to debut on the first AMD chipset MPOWER motherboard from MSI, the B850MPOWER.

Seasoned PC DIYers have always had to wear dexterity-stifling gloves or put up with pricked fingers when upgrading a motherboard or putting together a new PC build – until now. MSI showcased a series of motherboard design tweaks at Computex 2025, including a feature dubbed ‘PinSafe Design’ which enables users to “avoid injury caused by sharp pins during the assembly process.”

The concept here isn’t difficult to grasp, unlike a traditional prickly motherboard. MSI’s mobo manufacturing arm appears to be adopting a far tidier component soldering technique, which results in elegantly flat pads on the reverse of the PCB, rather than forests of spikes.

Admittedly, this isn’t the greatest of technological achievements, Nevertheless, there might have been some component strength, reliability, or stability concerns preventing such a manufacturing change. So we have a baby step here, which should be welcomed as long as the finished product doesn’t suffer in any way compared to a traditional design.

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Other touted PinSafe Design benefits

Saving your fingers from pricks and lacerations isn’t the only benefit of PinSafe Design, according to MSI. Likely the result of fevered brainstorming, threaded with some thin strands of truth, MSI says that the PinSafe Design boosts system stability and ESD protection. We think the lack of protruding pins might also give foreign objects less chance of getting caught or jammed between contacts, reducing the potential to create shorts.

MSI’s first MPOWER motherboard for AMD processors

The above PinSafe Design looks set to debut on MSI MPOWER series motherboards, designed for enthusiasts and overclockers. MSI is preparing new MPOWER boards, and the B850MPOWER sample we saw was actually the firstAMD-based motherboardfrom MSI to use this set of features.

Standard MPOWER features include; leveraging the Dragon Alliance collaboration with memory brands, using only 2x DIMM slots for reliable DDR5 overclocking, and the equipping of the EZ Dashboard which integrates power, reset, clear CMOS, and a debug LED on the board for simpler troubleshooting.

If you compare any modern laptop, like the Asus Zenbook Duo, and a smartphone, like the iPhone 16, you will find a lot of similarities in terms of what they can be used for. For instance, both devices can be used to access social media platforms, work on documents, join meetings, and more. Another thing that you will find common in laptops and smartphones these days is the use of USB-C technology. Interestingly, the technology has become a standard lately. As a result, it’s no longer limited to smartphones and laptops, but you’ll also find it on external hard drives, keyboards, mice, and more.

If both your smartphone and laptop support USB-C charging, you might wonder if you can use your USB-C laptop charger to charge your smartphone. You’ve probably had this thought when you have lost your smartphone’s USB-C charger and are now looking for something to charge it. The short answer is yes, you can charge your smartphone with a USB-C laptop charger, but before you do so, there’s an important thing that you need to take care of.

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Is it safe to use a USB-C laptop charger for a phone?

You can use your USB-C laptop charger to charge your smartphone, but only if the charger supports USB-C PD charging. The availability of this technology allows the charger to talk with your smartphone about the maximum power it requires. It’s kind of like your smartphone saying to the charger, “Hey bro, I only need 20 W,” and the charger going along with it.

Unfortunately, not all the USB-C chargers come with PD technology. If you use a USB-C laptop charger that doesn’t feature PD technology to charge your smartphone, you might eventually end up damaging your device’s battery. Luckily, you can easily find out if your laptop charger supports PD technology.

Usually, you’ll have a PD logo embedded on your laptop charger. If it’s not there, you can check the charger specification to confirm if it supports PD charging. Alternatively, you can check the output specification on the back of your charger. If you find multiple voltages embedded on your charger, like 5 V, 9 V, and 20 V, then it also means that your laptop charger supports PD charging.

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There are two main advantages of charging your smartphone with a laptop USB-C charger. First, it ensures that you don’t have to purchase a separate charger for your smartphone. Second, and the most important, advantage is the high power rating of laptop chargers. Let’s say your smartphone is capable of charging at 65 W, but you have a mobile charger that’s capable of only charging at 45 W; then you won’t be able to charge your smartphone at its maximum capacity. A laptop charge, in this case, will provide the maximum power required by your smartphone, i.e., 65 W.

In partnership with a Japanese art studio, MSI has created a beautifully designed lacquered lid for its Prestige 13 AI+ Ukiyo-e Edition laptop. I checked it out in person on the Computex show floor.

TAIPEI—At MSI’sComputex 2025booth, one of the most head-turning products on the show floor caught my eye: a lacquered-finishedlaptoplid that looks like beautiful hand-painted art.

MSI has partnered with Japanese art studio Okadaya to create limited-edition lacquered print laptops in theukiyo-estyle, a recognizable genre of Japanese art, for its Artisan Collection.

The Prestige 13 AI+ Ukiyo-e Edition will be the flagship laptop for this endeavor. However, due to the extra steps required in manufacturing to apply the artwork, MSI can only produce a few hundred per month for the time being. The effect is beautiful in person; read on for photos, video, and more of my impressions.

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A Genuinely Gorgeous Laptop Lid

While I saw a few different designs at the booth, the main piece of art (and that which will occupy this Prestige model’s lid) is Hokusai’s iconic wood block print, The Great Wave off Kanagawa. This highly recognizable piece is a natural pick for this collection’s debut.

While the art and clarity level are fantastic, the glossy finish inherent in this lacquer process sings in person. Hokusai’s art has a pleasant reflectiveness, particularly in its darker portions; the gloss black finish is lovely. The wave is vibrantly colored, too—perhaps more saturated than I’m used to seeing on this piece, but it’s effective.

The gloss also extends to the keyboard, as seen in the photo above, and the laptop package will include a mouse. If you can get your hands on one, this system will undoubtedly be a fingerprint magnet, but it sure is nice to look at.

MSI also showed off another design, but the matter of which of its laptops this artwork will appear on has not yet been settled.

MSI can only produce so many of these units to begin with, and I imagine the reception will determine how much longer MSI will continue to create them. Regardless, since this release also kicks off MSI’s Artisan Collection brand, it’s likely the laptop maker will continue down this path for the near future.

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It’s Beautiful on Paper, Too

Measuring just 0.7 inches thick and weighing only 2.2 pounds, MSI’s first Ukiyo-e Edition laptop is anultraportable laptopthrough and through. MSI also outfitted this Prestige with an array of parts to live up to its beauty.

Having “AI” in the name, the laptop is naturally a Copilot+ PC, housing up to an Intel Core Ultra 9 288V processor backed by as much as 32GB of memory and an M.2 SSD with an unspecified capacity. This is all accessed through a 13.3-inch, 2,880-by-1,800-pixel OLED screen in 16:10 aspect ratio.

A Small Wave (of Laptops)

We sometimes hesitate to share limited-edition laptop designs, but the final effect here is too exciting to pass up. MSI wasn’t able to share too many details about the creation process. I imagine Okadaya also wants to keep its cards close to its chest, but the booth contained a walkthrough of the general method, seen below.

You can see the stages evolve through the series of in-progress lids, starting with applying silver-white ink to the lacquerware magnesium alloy lid. Then, the process applies blue ink, followed by dabs of gold powder to create the accents. Finally, the method applies black line ink to create definition.

This process presumably has a more frequent failure rate using this delicate method than regular laptop manufacturing, contributing to the slower and lighter production rate. If you love the idea (I certainly appreciate the end product), keep your eyes peeled for availability and prices, which MSI haven’t revealed yet.

With Nintendo’s new handheld, gamers might need to rely on a Switch capture card again. A Nintendo Today video suggests that the maximum video capture length will again be 30 seconds. A more powerful console hasn’t resulted in upgrades to gameplay recording.

Nintendo Switch 2 home menu (Nintendo of America, Nintendo Today! app)

BolsteredNintendo Switch 2 specsshould lead to improved performance in games. Unfortunately, some capabilities haven’t matured since the original handheld. A newNintendo Today videorevealed that video captures are still limited to 30 seconds. Among other drawbacks, the restriction makes creating gameplay guides for fellow players difficult.

The latest clip in the Nintendo Today app focused onHome Menusound effects. However, viewers also caught a glimpse of how gamers will capture screenshots and videos. From the brief help menu, it appears that the process is virtually identical to the experience on the Switch. To take a screenshot, gamers press the capture button on the Joy-Con. Holding the same button saves a clip of the last 30 seconds of gameplay. Then, players can shorten the video further before saving it in the Nintendo Switch Album.

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Nintendo Switch 2 video recording guide (Image source: Nintendo of America, Nintendo Today! app)

Nintendo’s previous console continuously stores 30 seconds of video in the background. The process uses a ring buffer, which holds the data in the console’s RAM. Content creators would often turn to a Switch capture card to create longer videos. The length of the recordings was partially due to how Nintendo divided system resources. With the Switch 2 specs including a faster processor and more RAM/storage, some gamers hoped to avoid additional costs.

Recently, buyers learned that the Switch 2 would ship with 12 GB of LPDDR5 memory. That’s a massive improvement from the 4 GB of RAM the original handheld offers. On the other hand, the latest console devotes 3 GB of its memory to its OS. The obvious culprit isGameChat, which may take up much of the remaining memory. Video recording, another helpful feature for sharing gameplay experiences, will also have to compete for resources.

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What’s unclear is the quality of the Switch 2 screenshots and video clips. It would lessen some disappointment if it’s higher than the first console’s 720p limit.

Typically, you would use an HDMI cable to connect a streaming device, laptop, or gaming console to a single display. But what if you want to show that same content on multiple TVs or monitors? That’s where an HDMI splitter can help. It is a tiny device that takes input from a single source and delivers it to multiple displays simultaneously. It has a single HDMI input port and multiple HDMI output ports.

As you can imagine, HDMI splitters can be incredibly useful in certain situations. For instance, in a classroom where multiple TVs are needed, an HDMI splitter can display the same content across all screens from a single source. Similarly, if you’re setting up a multiplayer gaming station, an HDMI splitter can help provide each player a separate screen while receiving input from a single console. However, an HDMI splitter is not ideal for setting up dual monitors. That’s because it only duplicates content, meaning you’ll see the same thing on both the displays, rather than extending your desktop across two screens.

Make sure you don’t confuse an HDMI splitter with an HDMI switch. While a splitter sends a single input to multiple displays, an HDMI switch does the exact opposite. It lets you connect multiple input devices to a single display. This is especially useful when your TV or monitor only has a single HDMI port. Instead of constantly unplugging and reconnecting devices, you can connect them all via an HDMI switch and change inputs as needed.

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How to use HDMI splitters and do they affect quality?

Using an HDMI splitter is fairly straightforward. You first need to connect your source device, be it your laptop, gaming console, or a streaming box, to the input port of the HDMI splitter. Then connect the TVs or monitors to the splitter’s output ports. If the HDMI splitter requires external power, plug in its power source. Finally, turn on the source device and all connected displays. You should now see the same content on all the screens. 

Most HDMI splitters do not degrade audio or video quality, so you are unlikely to experience any drop in picture or sound quality. That said, you need to ensure that the splitter you use can handle the resolution and the screen refresh rate of your source device. For instance, even if you have mastered your 4K TV settings and want to play PS5 but the splitter only supports 1080p, you won’t be able to game in 4K. 

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The displays you use also matter. If you are using two TVs that support different resolutions, the HDMI splitter will default to the lower resolution on both screens. Similarly, you need to ensure that the HDMI splitter you’re using supports features like HDR and Dolby Atmos. Plus, the cables you use to connect your input and output devices also play a critical role. To ensure the best performance, you need to pick high-quality, compatible HDMI cables.

Suddenly LUTs are everywhere, but exactly what is a LUT? They’ve been in video editors for years but now they’re in cameras and even photo editors

What is a LUT? It’s like an instant conversion profile that can be used to correct colors and tones but can also be used for creative effects(Image credit: Rod Lawton)

If you’re wondering what is a LUT, you’re not alone – the phrase has only entered the mainstream imaging lexicon fairly recently, but it has certainly spread like wildfire.

LUT is an abbreviation. It stands for lookup table, a rather dry and dusty definition that doesn’t even hint at what LUTs can do. And while they’re primarily used by video folks, they can also be employed in photography post-production as well.

They have two main uses in videography and editing/grading. One is to convert images from one color space or profile to another – for example, if you’ve shot in aSonylog profile and you need to convert that to a regular color space for editing and sharing.

The second, increasingly popular use, is to apply creative tonal and color shifts for stylized ‘looks’.

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What is a LUT: Must-know #1

LUTs are not just another type of picture style or simulation. They are, very literally, conversion tables that take pixel values from the original image or video, and change them to other pixel values with various tone and color shifts.

If you’re into color-managed desktop printing, you’ll be familiar with custom ‘printer profiles’ and ‘monitor profiles’. It’s a bit like that, but often used for creative purposes, not just color correction.

For this explanation I’ll stick to ‘creative’ LUTs, since this is the major trend right now. The way they work means you can shift colors and tones in any direction you like, for cross-processing effects, black-and-white filter effects and just about any other effect you can carry out with color and tone adjustments.

There are no sliders or adjustments with LUTs; they just do what they do. There are tools you can use to design your own LUTs, such asfylm.ai, for example.

This is probably a job for color grading experts, though, because there are many subtleties involved in producing effective and attractive color and tonal shifts that can be applied across a range of images/videos.

That’s the first thing to know about LUTs. It sounds a limitation, but a properly-designed LUT can be a friend for life. Once you start trying them out you will quickly find favorites that you will want to use again and again.

LUTs are used widely in video editing and color grading, but are now appearing in some cameras, like the Panasonic Lumix S9.(Image credit: Panasonic)
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What is a LUT: Must-know #2

But perhaps the key point about LUTs is that they use a standardized .cube format that can be used across multiple devices and editors. You could load a LUT that you love in yourvideo editing softwareinto yourPanasonic Lumix S9, for example, or use the same LUT in yourphoto editing software.

Not all photo editors support LUTs, and some use them (incorrectly) as an effect filter mixed in with the other editing tools. It’s best to think of LUTs as a kind of pre-processing treatment ahead of your actual editing. If you work inLightroomyou’ll be familiar with Profiles, which do a similar job – though it would be nice if Lightroom used LUTs instead!

So are LUTs the future? For videographers, they are an important technical and creative tool. For stills photographers, presets and filters do the same job with a little more control – but even here, once you’ve found some favorite LUTs, there’s often no going back.

Fitbit has announced three new features for users of its wearables: Medical record navigator, Symptom check and Unusual trends. These tools are currently available for some users to test as part of the Fitbit Labs program. The company notes that only some users are currently eligible and invited to join via the app.

Fitbit is allowing some users to test three new features in its ap

Fitbit has announced three new features, which are available throughFitbit Labs. This is an app-based testing program available for some users, allowing them to try out and get feedback on upcoming functionality.

The first feature is the Medical record navigator. It is said to help users to understand complex lab records, presumably like the results of a blood test. Users can upload an image or PDF of a report to the Fitbit app, with Gemini providing a summary in layman’s terms. There is also a new Symptom checker allowing users to describe how they feel. Examples prompts provided in the blog post include “my head hurts” and “I feel tired”. Users may then be asked some follow-up questions, with the tool offering an explanation of their symptoms.

Finally, Unusual trends is another new health-tracking feature. It helps you to spot instances where your health is below your baseline, looking at metrics like resting heart rate, heart rate variability (HRV) and sleep. For all three of these new tools, Fitbit makes it clear that they cannot diagnose or prevent any medical conditions, encouraging users to seek medical advice if these tools flag anything out of the ordinary.

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If you are eligible, you will see Fitbit Labs in the ‘You’ and ‘Today’ tabs for the Fitbit app or through a ‘Now’ card. These customers will either be able to start testing immediately or join the waiting list. It is worth noting that, by signing up, you must agree to share data for research and development purposes. If you cannot see the Fitbit Labs section in the app, then you are likely to be ineligible for the time being. However, Fitbit notes that these trials may become available to more users in the future. It remains to be seen when the new Fitbit Medical record navigator, Symptom checker and Unusual trends tools will officially launch for all users.