TechSpot Features

The word cryptography evokes images of spies, secret messages and covert agencies. But what is cryptography? Cryptography is the method of scrambling data so that it looks like gibberish to anyone except those who know the trick to decode it.

The Chrome browser is stable and secure, but that comes at the expense of RAM usage and privacy, since Google can see most of what you do on it. Here are 5 top alternatives to Chrome and why you should consider them.

When choosing a new computer monitor, the type of panel used by the display is a key piece of information that reveals a lot about how the monitor will behave and perform. By far the most common types of display panels are TN, IPS and VA.

These days, even expansive high-budget gaming experiences can be enjoyed for free. However, wading through all that muck to find the gems can be difficult, so here are 11 top free games available on Steam.

How much difference can L3 cache make with just 4 CPU cores active? We've gone back to test a variety of CPUs checking for frequencies, number of cores and L3 cache to draw some conclusions.

The world of Virtual Reality has only expanded since the first Oculus Rift debuted, and here are the top gaming highlights in various genres to whet your appetite for immersive and fun VR games.

Graphics cards are still quite difficult to purchase at reasonable prices in most regions, but the month of August in particular has seen a number of developments that are worth talking about.

Today, there are at least 1 million miners for Bitcoin alone. How is this all happening? What role is the miner playing? And how might this change the landscape of computing in the future?

At some point you may have heard someone say that for gaming you need X amount of cores. Examples include "6 is more than enough cores," or "you need a minimum of 8 cores for gaming," let's address that misconception.

A common reason to move your game install files is that you've added a new faster or larger drive to your system. Redownloading is impractical, so here's how you can move your Steam games and many others in a few simple steps.

For those growing up in the 1980s, the name "Coleco" stirs up nostalgic memories of a gaming era long past. The ColecoVision competed with the likes of Atari and Intellivision, leaving its mark in gaming history.

Most of your digital photos use the JPEG format, but when you download an image from the web, it may be using the more modern WebP format. But why do we need so many file types? And how are they different?

Be the first to cross the finish line. Second is the first to lose, as the great Ayrton Senna would say. Over the years car fanatics have been living and driving the dream, all made possible by games like the iconic Need for Speed.

It's that time of the month when we provide you with an update on the current state of the GPU market. There's good news as graphics card availability and pricing has started to improve in recent weeks.

What do you play when you want an adrenaline rush? We can think of dozens of games, but narrowed the list to 10 of our favorites. Scary, gory or frustratingly hard, but all are guaranteed to spike your adrenaline.

These days, not a month goes by that we hear about a new major ransomware attack. But how did we get to this point where our data and services could be held for ransom?

There's plenty of graphics history and technology to unpack here after AMD purchased ATI, it didn't just absorb the company, but continued its reputation of being a graphics powerhouse for years to come.

Few vehicles are more popular than the Ford F-150, which is why the recent introduction of the all-electric F-150 Lightning is such a big deal. Here's what we learned after a session with it.

If your PC case is several years old, you may feel like you could do with some convenience or utility features that it's missing and it's not a replacement that you want but some useful add-ons.

Quantum computers are beginning to emerge in many industry and research labs. But what are qubits? And are the challenges ahead to control the quantum properties of our universe and leverage that for computing?

Nvidia is a dominant force in computer graphics but there was a lot of work involved in getting to that level since the NV1 debuted in 1995. Lesson learned as the chips that followed included some surefire hits.

Windows 11 is coming. We didn't plan on testing it just yet, but with so many Windows 11 benchmarks out there with mixed results, we thought we should take it for a spin and see what the real deal is.

Here's our monthly update on the PC hardware market to see what the current trends are for CPU and GPU pricing. Terrible availability and high prices continues for GPUs, but let's hope we have some good news to share on where the market is headed.

When we look at the video games that have truly stood the test of time, MMORPGs are always near the top of that list. The genre has been around for decades, but what's the secret sauce that makes MMOs so popular and long-lasting? And which titles are worth playing today?

You've probably heard about APIs and even used them before, but what are they? Let us explain what an API is, and take a quick look at where and how they get used.

The desktop CPU space could be considered a duopoly, but if you know where to look, there's life beyond Intel and AMD. From custom Arm designs to Russian government chips, there's a plethora of other lesser known chips out there.

While many professionals swear by Adobe Photoshop, others find it a bit overkill, and that also goes for the subscription. If you're among the latter, you should try some of these alternative photo editing tools.

For 25 years, the USB port has been a faithful old friend, connecting and powering our everyday gadgets and peripherals. But how exactly does that happen? Welcome to our explainer on the inner workings of USB, and a look at how it's managed to survive for so long when others have come and gone.

A decade ago Demon's Souls launched on the PS3, an action RPG import from a little-known Japanese developer named FromSoftware. It'd only be accurate to say that game and its successors transformed the action-RPG genre.

Science fiction books, movies, games, TV shows and other media have long been home to amazing technology. Many of these ideas can serve as inspiration for today's scientists, but just how close are we to the real-life versions?