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Latest Gear Live Videos
The ROG Xbox Ally: A Portable Xbox Dream, with a Windows Reality Check
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Microsoft, Portable Audio / Video, Video Games, Videos,
You know that feeling when you pick up a device and it just makes sense? Like someone finally listened to what you actually wanted. That is exactly what happens when you get your hands on the ROG Xbox Ally. Microsoft and Asus have finally answered a question we have been asking for years: what would a portable Xbox actually look like?
But this is not just another company trying to build an all-in-one handheld. This is a massive ecosystem play to let you take your Xbox library absolutely anywhere.
You can pick up the ROG Xbox Ally now!
Click to continue reading The ROG Xbox Ally: A Portable Xbox Dream, with a Windows Reality Check
Gallery: The ROG Xbox Ally: A Portable Xbox Dream, with a Windows Reality Check
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I Played Halo: Campaign Evolved at Halo World Championship: Halo Studios is Trying to Solve a 25-year-old Problem
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Microsoft, Video Games,
The room already had that Halo World Championship energy. Loud, slightly chaotic, half sports arena and half family reunion. People were still talking about clutches and brackets, still wearing team jerseys like they were uniforms, and then the whole weekend abruptly pivoted into something else. A nostalgia bomb with a release window.
Halo Studios walked out and said the quiet part out loud: they’re remaking Halo: Combat Evolved. Not a texture pass. Not “Anniversary, but shinier.” A ground-up campaign remake built in Unreal Engine 5, coming in 2026, and yes, it’s headed to PlayStation 5 along with Xbox Series X|S and PC.
And then they did the smart thing. They didn’t just announce it. They showed it.
The first long look was The Silent Cartographer, the mission every Halo fan can replay in their head like muscle memory. There’s a reason they picked it. It’s beach landing and wide-open chaos and that specific Halo magic where it’s always your choice whether to be careful or stupid.
Then I got in line and played it.
Gallery: I Played Halo: Campaign Evolved at Halo World Championship: Halo Studios is Trying to Solve a 25-year-old Problem
Halo World Championship 2025 Was a Farewell Tour and a Pitch for What’s Next
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Microsoft, Video Games,
There are a lot of esports weekends where the biggest story is the trophy. Someone plays out of their mind, the bracket goes sideways, the crowd loses its voice, and you get a clean headline at the end: Team X wins. Roll credits.
Halo World Championship 2025, held October 24–26 in Seattle, did not do clean headlines. It did endings and beginnings at the same time. It crowned Shopify Rebellion as the final Halo Infinite world champions after a 4–1 Grand Finals win over OpTic Gaming. It put up strong viewership and attendance that made the whole thing feel bigger than a niche scene. It raised real money for charity. It gave the Halo faithful a reason to argue online for weeks. And then it quietly made the most important point of the whole weekend: Halo is trying to turn the page.
If you only watched the matches, the weekend felt like a victory lap for a team that looked built for it.
Gallery: Halo World Championship 2025 Was a Farewell Tour and a Pitch for What’s Next
Bing’s New Chatbot Isn’t Conscious, Despite What You May Have Heard
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Features, Internet, Microsoft,
We're living in a time where AI anxiety is at an all-time high. Predictions about the AI singularity are being thrown around like confetti, and recent reports about Microsoft's new Bing search AI have some folks convinced that we're already living in a world of self-aware machines.
Now, don't get me wrong, I can see why people might think this. When most people hear the term "AI," they imagine Skynet or HAL 9000 – machines with human-like self-awareness, powered by complex processors that rival the human brain.
But the reality of AI is far different from the Hollywood versions we see on the big screen. AI tools like Midjourney, ChatGPT, and Google and Microsoft's search assistants are a far cry from the sentient machines we imagine. In fact, calling chatbots, art generators, or automated programming tools "AI" might be a misnomer – or more likely, a simple marketing tactic.
So, how do these "AI" tools actually work?
Click to continue reading Bing’s New Chatbot Isn’t Conscious, Despite What You May Have Heard
Gallery: Bing’s New Chatbot Isn’t Conscious, Despite What You May Have Heard
Microsoft unveils new AI-powered Bing and Edge browser with ChatGPT features
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Corporate News, Features, Internet, Microsoft,
I spent the day at Microsoft today for the unveiling of the new Bing: a chat-based search engine that can do more than just answer search queries.
Bing is now a conversational agent that can understand and communicate fluently in your language of choice. It can also do things like write poems and stories, generate code, create songs, do celebrity parodies, and more. Bing can even suggest relevant and interesting topics for you to chat about, or help you find helpful products or services based on your needs.
Gallery: Microsoft unveils new AI-powered Bing and Edge browser with ChatGPT features
Geared Up: Switching from iPhone to Note 10; iPhone 11 Pro is Coming…
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, Smartphones, Corporate News, Features, Handhelds, Microsoft, Product Reviews,
On this week's Geared Up, I go over my Samsung Galaxy Note 10 review impressions after spending a week with the device. I also talk with Todd Bishop about wanting to switch away from the iPhone after 10 years to give Samsung's new flagship Galaxy Note 10+ a shot. Which features are luring him away from iOS and towards Samsung and Android? We also talk about the latest iPhone 11 & iPhone Pro rumors and what to expect from Apple's next smartphone release, scheduled to be announced on September 10th!
LINKS MENTIONED IN THE SHOW
- Become a Member on YouTube
- Samsung Galaxy Note 10 Hands-on: Top 5 Features
- Galaxy Note 10: What Samsung Didn't Tell You
- Geared Up Podcast on YouTube
- Geared Up Clips YouTube Channel
SPONSOR: National Car Rental - skip the line with the Emerald Club. Go National. Go Like a Pro.
Listen to the episode in the player below or subscribe to Geared Up in your favorite podcast app to listen on the go:
Gallery: Geared Up: Switching from iPhone to Note 10; iPhone 11 Pro is Coming…
Geared Up: The Death of the Xbox, Amazon Prime Day 2019 Deals, & Samsung Galaxy Note 10 Rumors!
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, Smartphones, Corporate News, Hot Deals, Microsoft, Video Games, Videos,
On this week's Geared Up, we talk about the upcoming Amazon Prime Day, celebrating Amazon's 25th anniversary. I bring you my tips on finding the best Prime Day deals, while naming a couple of my favorite Prime Day launch deals (which you can find right now - the Anker PowerPort Atom III and the Jabra Elite 85h headphones!) This year Amazon is extending Prime Day to be a two-day shopping event, which means competing retailers are also preparing their own deals to steal away some attention.
High-quality video game streaming is nearly here, with early launches of both Microsoft Project xCloud (an Xbox streaming service,) and Google Stadia both taking place in the fall of 2019. A listener asked if the fact that people will be able to stream their games to any device - from web browser, to smartphone to smart TV and more - spells the end of the Xbox and PlayStation dedicated video game consoles as we know them. I weigh in with my thoughts, along with my impressions of using Project xCloud (which you can see in the video embedded below!)
Samsung sent out invites for its Galaxy Unpacked event, which takes place at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, NY on August 7th. This will be where the Samsung Galaxy Note 10 will make its debut, and we should likely hear news of updated launch plans for the Samsung Galaxy Fold as well. I discuss the expected features and specs for the new Samsung flagship smartphone.
Finally, I also talk about Jony Ive leaving Apple and what his departure means for the future of the company as many wonder if the iconic designs that Apple is known for will suffer as a result.
SPONSOR: National Car Rental. Go National. Go like a pro.
LINKS MENTIONED IN THE SHOW
- Hands-On with Microsoft Project xCloud Game Streaming to Phones!
- Amazon Prime Day Deals
- Amazon Prime Day: Anker PowerPort Atom III
- Amazon Prime Day: Jabra Elite 85h Headphones
- Peloton Bike High Tech Fitness Gadget
SPONSOR: National Car Rental - skip the line with the Emerald Club. Go National. Go Like a Pro.
Listen to the episode in the player below or subscribe to Geared Up in your favorite podcast app to listen on the go:
Listen to this episode of the Geared Up podcast for analysis of the latest from Amazon, Apple, and Samsung.
Gallery: Geared Up: The Death of the Xbox, Amazon Prime Day 2019 Deals, & Samsung Galaxy Note 10 Rumors!
The Insane Apple Mac Pro, 8K Xbox, and xCloud Game Streaming!
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, Smart Home, Microsoft, PC / Laptop, Video Games, Videos,
E3 2019 is in the books, and Microsoft Xbox came out swinging! In this episode of Geared Up, we talk about all the big announcements coming out of the Xbox E3 keynote.
First up, Project Scarlett - the all-new next-generation Xbox console that will be launching toward the end of 2020. Microsoft says Project Scarlett will be four times more powerful than the Xbox One X (currently, the most powerful game console on the market.) Additionally, the company announced and demo'd Project Xcloud. Xcloud goes into beta in October and allows gamers to play their Xbox games anywhere they have WiFi or cell connectivity.
In addition to all the Xbox news, we pick up where we left off in the last episode to talk in depth about the upcoming Apple Mac Pro.
I also mentioned the new Ecobee Smart Thermostat that I've been testing - here's the video if you want to check it out:
SPONSOR: National Car Rental - skip the line with the Emerald Club. Go National. Go Like a Pro.
Listen to the episode in the player below or subscribe to Geared Up in your favorite podcast app to listen on the go:
Listen to this episode of the Geared Up podcast for analysis of the latest from Apple and Xbox.
Gallery: The Insane Apple Mac Pro, 8K Xbox, and xCloud Game Streaming!
HomePod bust and how Xbox’s backward compatibility gamble is still paying off - Geared Up!
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, Microsoft, Music, Video Games, Videos,
Apple’s HomePod smart speaker is struggling in the competitive smart home market, according to a new report. What led to its demise, and what can Apple do to get back into the smart speaker game?
Plus, Amazon reveals how it assigns the preferred “Amazon’s Choice” label to products; Apple is rumored to be creating a subscription version of Apple News after its acquisition of digital magazine company Texture; and we look at how Xbox’s backward compatibility has become the console’s saving grace.
Gallery: HomePod bust and how Xbox’s backward compatibility gamble is still paying off - Geared Up!
So, what is an Ultrabook anyway?
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Editorial, Microsoft, PC / Laptop,
If you've been shopping for a laptop lately, you may have a vague idea that "ultrabook" means "lightweight" and "small" but otherwise you may be a little confused about why some laptops are called ultrabooks and others aren't. It's understandable – this is one of those areas where names sort of caught on and many different manufacturers started using it, often with different ideas about what it meant. Here are the major points that define an ultrabook, and more importantly the top ultrabooks, and why they matter if you are getting ready to buy a computer.
Click to continue reading So, what is an Ultrabook anyway?
