Piltch Point (Video)

This week, Avram Piltch brings us the results of the LAPTOP Magazine Tech Support Showdown 2018 . Once again, Apple takes the top spot, but they only took it by 3 points. Tying for #2 was Dell and Samsung. Coming in last was MSI. Avram tells us what went right and what went wrong.

This week, Avram Piltch brings us the latest product he is reviewing for Tom's Guide : the Kano Computer Kit . This kit is designed to help children understand how a computer works by allowing them to build one. Once the computer is built, a large collection of challenges and games allows the kid to learn how the computer works, and to program it to do new tasks.

This week, Avram Piltch brings us a view from an event that most of us cannot attend: Toy Fair 2018. This year's event showed off a number of different and unique toys. One of the most interesting toys was a motion-controlled quadcopter: the Spin Master Supernova Drone . Living in a cage, instead of out in the wild, this little device moves with you, rather than with a controller. Another interest...

This week, Avram Piltch has got some new advice to help you save some money if you are considering purchasing a new laptop or desktop computer. Companies offer all sorts of add-ons and configuration options, but for most people, there are some that can simply be skipped, while others are absolutely essential. For example, never buy a laptop with a resolution below Full HD (1920x1080). The quality...

This week, Avram Piltch discusses one of the most disappointing trends in laptops: screen resolution. It's hard to believe that in 2018, as televisions are moving to UHD and screens are full HD or better, laptop screens are still shipping with 1366x768 resolution . It's not just a small number, either. 51% of business notebooks sold in 2017 were below full HD. In consumer laptops, the numbers are...

This week, Avram Piltch discusses a toy that is both strangely priced and strangely timed: the Star Wars First Order Stormtrooper Robot . This toy was released just this week, only days before Christmas, and commands a premium price of $300. This isn't the only programmable device to charge a price in this range, but it is possibly the least featured programmable toy in this price range. The compa...

This week, Avram Piltch discusses the changes that came to the US regarding the internet, and what it could mean for you. In 2015, the Federal Communications Commission revoked guidances put in place in 2015, that discouraged internet service providers, or ISPs, from blocking or throttling websites for any reason. The intention of the guidances, referred to commonly as net neutrality, was to ensur...

This week, Avram Piltch has the much anticipated results of LAPTOP Magazine's AMD Ryzen 5 Mobile versus Intel Cire i5 tests. For this showdown, nearly identical models of the HP Envy x360, one featuring an AMD processor and one featuring the comparable Intel processor, were run against the same tests. While the results are mixed, they are very different from what you might have expected from an AM...

This week, Avram Piltch discusses some of the more nostalgic gifts that you can find for your friends and family. Whether you're looking for the new, modern Teddy Ruxpin or a Casio calculator watch, or maybe you want a Polaroid camera, Avram's got some interesting ideas.

This week, Avram Piltch discusses an important topic this time of year: laptops that make great gifts and are good for kids. The requirements are different: screens size should be smaller, platform should be chosen based on school's selection, price should be manageable and durability is must. Luckily, LAPTOP Magazine has tested a lot of laptops and can recommend the right one for you.

This week, Avram Piltch helps you prepare for Black Friday, which has expanded into a whole season, with deals over the next couple of weeks. Those deals can be overwhelming, with mass hysteria generated over televisions, laptops and more. Avram recommends making a plan by deciding what it is you are looking for, and what price would constitute a deal, and not jumping in just because something see...

This week, Avram Piltch discusses a topic that many of us have forgotten about: bloatware. Over the past few years, the concept has changed, but has not gone away. Instead of Internet Explorer toolbars, today Microsoft and manufacturers pre-install casual games and other software. The question is, is the software that comes pre-installed a problem? Avram's got the answer. In addition, Avram gives...

This week, Avram Piltch discusses the introduction of AMD's Ryzen chips for laptop computers. This is a big move for the company, who has languished in the laptop marketplace for years. Following their successful Ryzen series for desktops, however, they will be challenging Intel's dominance and their 8th Generation Core processors . While we do not know all of the information about pricing, etc.,...

This week, Avram Piltch discusses one of the biggest problems in laptop buying: pricing. Many retailers, including HP, Lenovo, Dell and Microsoft, list their laptops as "starting at," showing the price for the lowest possible configuration. Those prices are almost always for a configuration that you simply do not want, but by the time you get far enough into the process to know better, you feel co...

This week, Avram Piltch has got two of the new laptops sporting Intel's 8th generation Core processors. While Lenovo's new Yoga may be a redesign, Dell's XPS 13 is a nearly identical clone of its predecessor, with an upgraded processor. Intel promises increased performance and better battery life - a claim that is hard to believe, but with Dell's laptop, easy to test. Are the claims correct, and i...

This week, Avram Piltch discusses his latest review laptop, the ASUS VivoBook E403NA. This 14" laptop has 8 hours of battery life, an aluminum case and a full HD screen. Oh, and it comes in at only $399 . Unfortunately, to get to that price, something has to be cut - in this case, storage and processor speed. See what Avram thinks about the overall value of the E403NA here.

This week, Avram Piltch discusses some of his and Tom's Guide's Best of IFA 2017 . This year's list includes smartphones, smartwatches, augmented reality games, laptops and more. Whose products took the top spots? Avram's got the answers.

This week, Avram Piltch discusses one of the bigger reveals of the week - the 8th Generation Core processors from Intel. The branding is confusing to many leading to an important question - should I wait to buy a laptop with the new processors? Avram says, unless you're desperately in need, wait , unless the model of computer is not currently being considered for upgrade. Not all processors are cu...

This week, Avram Piltch talks about what resources you can use to enjoy the solar eclipse in the United States even more. Whether you want to watch online , find a companion app , build a viewer , or more, Avram, along with his colleagues at Tom's Guide and Space.com have all of the tools you need to make your experience better.

This week, Avram Piltch gives us a demo of the Circuit Cubes from Tenka Labs , a circuit-building kit for younger kids. The kit is LEGO-compatible, meaning you can enhance your projects using LEGO parts, but the kit differs from that of the LEGO BOOST . The BOOST is a kit designed to encourage programming, while the Circuit Cubes are designed to teach about electricity and circuit design. Instead...

This week, Avram Piltch gives us a demo of the LEGO BOOST , a robotics kit for younger kids. The kit offers 5 guided projects and the ability to free-form create, all without having to "write" a single line of code. Instead, the development interface is entirely graphics-driven, meaning that kids who have not learned to read can still understand it. In fact, Avram's 5-year-old son was able to crea...

This week, Avram is here to help you prepare for the ever important back-to-school season. There are some tech items that every student needs, like a laptop, a backpack, a portable battery and more. Laptop Magazine has compiled some of the most important , and Avram talks about what they are and why they were chosen.

This week, Avram Piltch brings us some of the best tech on a budget. First, Avram discusses the treacherous terrain of inexpensive laptops. Usually, battery life is terrible, or screens are low resolution or very dim, or even incredibly heavy. It doesn't have to be this way, as there are some great deals under $200 . In addition to laptops, Avram discusses one of the most essential computer access...

This week, Avram Piltch talks about the next STEM educational product he is reviewing: the Sony KOOV. The system is designed to help teach kids about programming logic and mechanical workings, while making the process as easy as possible. Avram and his son have worked with it for only a single day, but they have built one of the more complex projects. See what Avram thinks about his early experien...

This week, Avram Piltch is back from Taipei with all of the details about Computex 2017. While CES might be the largest tech show, Computex is the largest computer show in the world. From new laptops to Windows 10 on ARM, odd computer cases and more, Avram has the info.