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Last year the UK declared that Apple and Google were a duopoly with "strategic market status" in the mobile platforms market, making them subject to special regulations. However, the UK's Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) will not regulate Google and Apple's app stores like the EU has done. Rather, government plans to enforce its own digital markets rules in a "pragmatic" way by accepting "commitments" from Apple and Google in areas like app rankings, the CMA announced.
Google and Apple agreed to work with the CMA to address concerns on the following matters: app review, app ranking, use of data and interoperability process. Effectively, regulators require the tech giants to treat developers fairly, particularly when they compete against Google and Apple's own apps. However, the UK's rules are more like suggestions and "not legally binding in any case," former CMA director Tom Smith told the Financial Times.
This is in stark contrast to Europe's Digital Markets Act, which forced Apple to make changes to open up iOS features and data to rivals, allow app installations from outside its Store and reduce fees collected on purchases.
That could change i
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Get ye to Windows Update, because there's a good chance you've got new Secure Boot certificates to install. Microsoft just announced that it will be refreshing those certificates, which were originally introduced when Secure Boot debuted in 2011, as a security precaution. Secure Boot was a way for Microsoft to protect systems from running unsigned and potentially malicious code before Windows launched. It went on to be an installation requirement for Windows 11, as well as anti-cheat software used in Valorant, Call of Duty: Black Ops 6/7 and Battlefield 6.
Without the new Secure Boot certificates, Microsoft says your system will still function normally, but it will enter "a degraded security state that limits its ability to receive future boot-level protections." Basically, you won't be protected from malware and viruses targeting vulnerabilities in older versions of Windows. As expected, Microsoft also notes that unsupported versions of Windows won't be receiving the new Secure Boot certificates. They're only coming to Windows 11 systems, as well as Windows 10 PCs subscribed to Microsoft's Extended Security Updates.
Microsoft says many users will be able to pick up the updated Secure Boot certificates by visiting Windows Update, but a few may need additional firmware updates from their system (or motherboard's) OEM. You'll also be able to track the statu
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 OpenAI's first Jony Ive-designed hardware device won't ship to customers until next year, new court filings show (via Wired).
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There appears to be no limit to how chonky and eye-wateringly expensive PC gaming handhelds can get, with the latest behemoth being the Ayaneo Next 2. First announced back in November, the latest Windows handheld in Ayaneo's Next lineup is now up for pre-order, with a spec sheet that makes some of its rivals look modest.
If you missed the announcement at the end of last year, the Next 2 is packing a 9-inch OLED display with a 2,400 x 1,504 resolution and a maximum refresh rate of 165Hz (adjustable down to 60Hz). The Next 2 is powered by an AMD Ryzen AI Max 395 chip and has a massive 115Mh battery under the hood.
To put all of that into perspective, the Next 2's display is more than 1.5 inches larger than the Steam Deck OLED's, and goes bigger than even the Lenovo Legion Go 2's 8.8-inch panel. Its battery is the largest of the three by some margin too, and according to Ars Technica it weighs in at around 3.14 pounds (around 1424g), making it more than twice as heavy as the very heavy Xbox ROG Ally X. Get those wrists to the gym if you're considering pic
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It takes time for novel designs to catch on. But even so, I am still wondering why the Zenbook Duo hasn't had a bigger impact on the market after ASUS released its first true dual-screen laptop two years ago. Notebooks like these provide the kind of screen space you'd typically only get from a dual monitor setup, but in a much more compact form factor that you can easily take on the road. It could be that people were wary of an unfamiliar design, shorter battery life or buying a first-gen product — all of which are understandable concerns. However, now that ASUS has given the ZenBook Duo a total redesign for 2026, the company has addressed practically all of those barriers to entry while making it an even more convincing machine for anyone who could use more display space. Which, in my experience, is pretty much everyone.
Editor's note: The 2026 ASUS Zenbook Duo is expected to be available for pre-order sometime in late February, with general availability slated for March.
Design
For the new model, ASUS didn't mess with the laptop's basic layout too much. Instead, the company polished and tightened everything up, resulting in a system that weighs about the same (3.6 pounds) while reducing its overall size (12.1 x 8.2 x 0.77 to 0.92 inches) by five percent. Critically, you still get a built-in kickstand on the bottom and a detachable keyboard that you move wherever you want. There's also a decent number of ports, including two USB-C with Thunderbolt 4, one USB-A 3.2 jack, HDMI 2.1 and a combo audio port. Th
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It's about that time. Apple is gearing up for a slew of hardware announcements that will include upgrades for the entry-level iPad, iPad Air, MacBook Pro and MacBook Air, according to Mark Gurman's Power On newsletter. In line with what we've seen in recent years, Gurman reports, "A product launch is currently slated for as early as the week of March 2."
Apple unveiled the M5 MacBook Pro in October, bringing the chip first to the 14-inch model. With the coming announcements, we should see the M5 Pro and M5 Max chips finally arrive. Gurman notes that new 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pros are on the way, along with a new MacBook Air. We're also likely to see new iPads soon. A new entry-level iPad will be able to support Apple Intelligence thanks to the inclusion of the A18 chip, and the iPad Air will be getting the M4, according to Gurman.
Updates to the Mac Studio and Studio Display are expected to follow, as well as a Mac mini refresh down the line this year. As Gurman previously reported, Apple is also said to be releasing its
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