Welcome to Boost Mode, my weekly PCWorld newsletter focused on PC gaming, enthusiast hardware, and other geeky stuff centered around your desk and desktop. Fortuitously, my Steam Machine just came in last week, giving me the perfect topic for this inaugural column. I spent my own money to buy it… and I kind of wish I hadn’t. It cost a lot of money, for not a lot of hardware.
The Steam Machine…
I have a challenge for you. Can you spot AI-generated content? And more importantly…. Can you identify such photos and video right now?
Here’s the problem: Generative AI keeps improving, so the clues that let you know it’s not real change continually, too. Back in…
Summary created by Smart Answers AI
In summary:
PCWorld explains that RAM upgrades are often unnecessary, with GPU, SSD, or cooling improvements typically delivering better performance gains for most users.
High AI demand has driven DDR5-6000 32GB kit prices from $110 to…
New laptops are using old CPUs and that’s a problem
July 21, 2026
One of the core tenets of productivity is to do more with less. But the opposite holds true, too — which a sneaky, pernicious trend permeating the laptop market might reveal.
Microprocessor vendors have begun reusing old silicon, but in a way that obscures that decision from consumers. Shoppers are left trying to figure out whether their productivity laptop is truly new — and should be priced…
Any sports fan can tell you about the concept of a “rebuilding year,” when your team doesn’t have a realistic shot at the title, so they give the foundations of their franchise some much-needed TLC. I’m feeling that a lot at the moment, albeit in a twisted way.
One of my favorite PC accessories is small enough to toss in any backpack yet makes using your laptop cooler, quieter and more comfortable. You can pay $50 or more for a good one, but a cheap model can be yours for less than the cost of a fancy coffee.
I’m talking about…
The only thing I miss about my old Brooklyn apartment is my office. Big enough for two desks, my office fit for four — count ‘em, four — 27-inch monitors, enough for two dual-screen setups. It was glorious.
After our recent move to Manhattan, though, the office is gone, and those roomy 4K monitors are (sniff) history.
But even in my new downsized reality, I held fast to my dual-display…
New laptops are using old CPUs. That’s a problem
July 17, 2026
One of the core tenets of productivity is to do more with less. But the opposite holds true, too — which a sneaky, pernicious trend permeating the laptop market might reveal.
Microprocessor vendors have begun reusing old silicon, but in a way that obscures that decision…
This Windows Search revamp could win me over
July 16, 2026
The future of Windows Search looks a lot closer to what users have been asking for since day one: search. That’s it.
No ads, no visual clutter, no promotional links to the Microsoft Store, or Amazon. Just search. That’s all.
Microsoft might have put this vision of the…
Stop packing your laptop charger. Bring this instead
July 16, 2026
Do you still bring your laptop charger with you on business trips? I just realized that I do, and it’s a habit I need to break.
I have the option of carrying a mouse, though I can use my laptop’s touchpad for navigation. Likewise, a USB-C hub gives me extra ports. But thirty years of covering tech has me treating my laptop charger as an absolute necessity — how else will I get power?
That…
