Piltch Point (Video)

If you're just starting out online, one of the first things you'll need to do is choose a web host. This can be a daunting task, especially if you don't know what to look for. Avram discusses the different types of web hosting services and helps you decide which one is right for you. He also gives you some tips on how to choose a web host that meets your needs. So, whether you're looking for share...

In the tech world, some products are so ubiquitous that they don't get updated very often. One of those product lines is the MX line of keyboards and mice from Logitech. Logitech's MX line of keyboards and mice are some of the best in their respective categories and are sure to please anyone who needs a quality keyboard or mouse. This line is popular among gamers, artists, and office workers alike...

Throughout the year, those of us in the tech space have the opportunity to see, touch, and test some of the most interesting new products. Much of the time, these products are exciting but iterative. For example, we might get really excited about gaming monitors or new laptops , these products already existed and are marginally better than their predecessors. However, sometimes a new product is so...

For many of us, it's been a while since we've traveled or needed any tools for working not from home. However, things are getting back to normal in large parts of the country and the world, meaning that travel for fun and business is returning in full force. In fact, we recently saw Austin's airport get inundated with travelers. With that, it's time to start considering what might be needed to enh...

As the conflict in Ukraine heats up, one of the possible problems that arise is whether or not Russian software can be trusted. In particular, can we trust the security product Kaspersky? The German government has recommended against its use and the US FCC has insisted that money received from government contracts cannot be used to purchase the software. But, what about regular customers? Should r...

Happy 10th birthday Raspberry Pi! The tiny computer has come a long way in just ten short years. It all started when Raspberry Pi Foundation founders Eben Upton and Rob Mullins set out to create an affordable, easy-to-use computer that students could use to learn coding. And they succeeded - Raspberry Pi has become one of the most popular computers in the world, with millions of units sold. The Ra...

Over the past 2 years, certain products have been difficult to find. For a while, laptops and other electronics were in short supply. This came about because lockdowns stopped production but increased demand as more people were working from home. One of the hardest products to acquire was webcams , requiring people to search hard to find even off-brand webcams. But, video cards have been the one c...

Cryptocurrency mining has been all the rage over the past few years. Bitcoin and Ethereum, in particular, have seen massive price increases, which has led to a renewed interest in cryptocurrency mining. Is it still profitable? What are the best mining GPUs? In this episode of the Piltch Point podcast, we take a look at cryptocurrency mining and answer these questions! What is crypto mining? Mining...

Getting ahold of computer components has been a challenge for the past few years. To increase your gaming experience, you can't get a video card unless you're prepared to buy from a scalper. But, you can get a quality gaming monitor right now and improve your game. And, some of the prices are really reasonable compared to what we have seen over the past few years. Here are some of the best gaming...

One of Avram's favorite sayings is, "We're in the business of interesting, not good." This is an important distinction that makes his view of the tech journalism industry far more fun. Often times we discuss products that are unique and strange, but not necessarily things that are great. It's important to know that there are products out in the wild that are bad ideas, poorly made, security or pri...

For some of us, procrastination is a way of life. A lot of times, we can manage to pull out a win in the end, like working all night before a presentation. However, when it comes to getting a gift during the holidays, it can be a real nightmare. It's currently too late to get gifts delivered in time, and getting into a store can be difficult or even impossible. But, there are options for gifts tha...

It's the end of the year, and that means that it's time to look back on the last 12 very strange months and see what positives we can pull out with Tom's Hardware's Best of 2021 . Best CPU While AMD has been making huge advances in processors, Intel was falling behind. This year, however, the company came back strong in its newest offering - the Intel Alder Lake lineup. These new processors create...

We know that the supply chain issues have made all sorts of products hard to come by, at this point ranging from cards and trucks to food and drink. The product category that has been the hardest hit, it would seem, is the video card industry. Every card from every manufacturer, representing both the AMD and NVIDIA side of the industry, is sold out across the board. However, some inventory is avai...

It's that time of year - Black Friday season. While Black Friday used to be the day after Thanksgiving, in recent years it has expanded into a whole season. Starting this week through the next few weeks, products ranging from processors to clothing are going to be on sale. Finding the best prices can be a real pain, but Avram and the Tom's Hardware team have been spending their time rounding up th...

The past 18 months have added a new piece to our daily lives: face masks. Whether you are excited about wearing them or annoyed by their existence, the reality is that they are here and likely here to stay for many people. Unfortunately, they are uncomfortable, they can irritate when they touch our faces, and it prevents us from seeing one another's faces, making communication more difficult. Very...

While it may be November, the impact of Techtober 2021 is still in full swing. This week, Tom's Hardware published its Alder Lake processor reviews , specifically the 12th Generation Core i5 12600K and 12900K processors. These new processors have taken Intel in a new direction, finally catching up with their long-time rivals - AMD. New features, new powers, and new peripherals are all part of this...

Over the past few weeks, there has been a bit of a roller coaster over at Raspberry Pi. Most recently, last week the organization announced that Raspberry Pi 4 boards would be going up in price by $10 . But, this week, they are back with some good news - a brand new entry in the Zero family: the Raspberry Pi Zero 2 W. This is an upgrade over the existing Raspberry Pi Zero and Zero W. All three hav...

NVIDIA GeForce Now is a cloud game streaming service that launched in 2015 as a beta, and finally went public in 2020. The service is unlike others in the industry. Rather than essentially renting a game and having it stream to your device using whatever technology the system believes is most appropriate, GeForce Now works on your existing library. You sign in to a computer instance, choose your g...

This week has been a big part of what we're calling Techtober. New product announcements were made by both Apple and Google, plus an exciting new partnership from Raspberry Pi. Apple MacBook Pro Apple announced the next generation of MacBook Pro, complete with some significant changes over the last generation. The company has seemingly done a good job of listening to customer feedback, for the mos...

Since Microsoft officially took the wraps off of Windows 11 earlier this year, the response has been mixed. The most divisive aspect of the new interface is the massively changed Start Menu. In the past versions of Windows, we have had a semi-consistent experience. Windows 8 introduced Live Tiles and highly customizable geography for them. That continued into Windows 8.1. The concept followed into...

The Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon is famously Avram's favorite laptop and the one that he owns personally. This week, we're getting a closer look at the newest version of the laptop - the 9th Generation . The Screen The new model has a number of changes over its predecessor, but the most immediately noticeable is the screen. The size has changed because instead of the 16x9 aspect ratio, the 9th genera...

One of the tasks that many computer users want to do is share the content on their screens. This can be for a presentation, to create a tutorial video, or simply to save something that is not easily savable otherwise. However, even though the demand is high, most computer users don't know all of the different ways you can accomplish your goals. The good news is that Avram is here to show you how t...

With the upcoming Windows 11, Microsoft is introducing a lot of new features, as well as updated interfaces for long-time aspects of the operating system. While some updates are receiving praise, like the updated Microsoft Paint, others are not being received so well. One of those unpleasant changes is the default apps process. In the past, changing a default app, such as your browser, was a prett...

If you are using a laptop, you likely do not have a number pad on the right side of your keyboard. However, most standard keyboards have it, despite many people not using the section at all. Sure, accountants and programmers use it all day every day, but for the rest of us, it would be great to be able to use those keys for something else. Luckily, Avram has a couple of great tools to be able to p...

It's been a while since Avram brought us a new laptop, and this week we have the 6th generation of the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Yoga. The Yoga family is known for its bend-backward design, allowing you to convert from a laptop into a tablet. But, it also allows for various other configurations, such as a tent (which is great for presentations). The newest model of the family, and has been upgraded with...