The best computers are better now than they’ve ever been before. They’ve evolved to the point of utilizing eight-core processors and super high-end graphics cards have started to tackle real time ray tracing, among others cutting edge improvements – things that would have been impossible only a few years ago.
If you’re looking to stay on the cutting edge in 2019, you’ll want one of the best computers included on this list, even if most of what you’ll do is use Facebook and surf the internet.
Fortunately, the best computers are also more affordable than ever before. These days, you can pick up a solid PC or even an all-in-one desktop for around $500 (about £390, AU$715). Better yet, many of them will last you a lifetime – because the best computers are upgradeable, it’s easy to keep them current by fitting in new and improved PC components, like fast SSDs, more RAM and maybe even the best graphics card.
Still, with so many possibilities, choosing the best computer for you and your needs isn’t easy. So, we’ve gathered all the best computers out there, paying close attention to those that hit that sweet spot between price and performance. This way, you can just go through this list and pick out what you like depending on what you’ll need.
Here are our top picks for the best computers 2019 has to offer.
The Dell XPS Tower is stealthy. That is, it resembles that PC your parents used to have tucked underneath the desk when you were a kid. But, its no-nonsense exterior hides an exciting array of components. One of the best computers available right now, the Dell XPS Tower boasts up to an RTX 2070 graphics card, a 9th-generation Intel Core processor, and a spacious hard drive and/or SSD. This excellent special edition PC configuration is only available in the US. However, UK and Australian readers can pick up the regular Dell XPS Tower and simply beef it up, though there are some limitations such as the graphics card options topping out with the GTX 1060.
The Microsoft Surface Studio rose to fame as one of the best computers for artists when it was first released, so it’s no surprise that its sequel has followed in its footsteps. In fact, packed with a Kaby Lake mobile processor and Nvidia Pascal graphics, the Surface Studio 2 has a lot more power than the original and should be able to handle anything you throw at it for the next couple of years, at the very least. Of course, it’s also inherited that gorgeous PixelSense display with Surface Pen support, allowing it to retain the privilege of being one of the best all-in-one – not to mention, the best computers on this list – for creatives.
If you’re looking for an outstanding desktop experience, but you don’t have a ton of space on your desk, the Intel Hades Canyon NUC might just be the best computer for you. This tiny bare-bones PC has a ridiculously fast 8th-generation Intel Core i7 processor and discrete-class AMD Radeon graphics. Throw some RAM and storage in there, and you should be able to conquer the best PC games without breaking a sweat. It won’t stand up against a full-sized desktop, but when you’re short on space – or you’d rather have a PC that looks like a set-top box – this is one of the best computers to consider.
With the Aurora R7, Alienware continues its journey back to the top of the best computers, especially for gaming. The Alienware Aurora R7 isn’t just one of the greatest gaming PCs; it’s also among the best computers money can buy. It offers blazing fast performance with its 8th-generation Intel Core processor and GTX 10-series graphics and all that power is conveniently hidden away in its appealing and sleek chassis. It’s surprisingly affordable as well, considering the power under the hood. And, did we mention that this PC is easily upgradeable, despite the unique form-factor?
If you’re looking for a computer that will look just as good in your living room as your home office, then the Corsair One i160 is your new best friend. It has an absolutely unbelievable amount of power inside a sleek, compact design. Packed with a Coffee Lake Refresh processor and Nvidia Turing graphics – not to mention a whopping 32GB of RAM, this is an absolute monster, and will chew through any game you throw at it, even on that nice 4K TV you just bought. Just prepare yourself, as that high price tag might send you reeling.
It’s easy to think that Apple is overpriced. However, your piggy bank might be spared if you get on the Mac mini bandwagon. The Mac mini 2018 isn’t just an adorable small form-factor PC, but it’s also packed tight with high-end desktop parts, all for a much cheaper price than any other Mac. That makes it a solid investment for anyone who already has a slew of Mac-ready peripherals or a Mac fan who doesn’t want to spring for a Mac Pro. Plus, as opposed to Apple’s recent products, you can upgrade the Mac mini… well, at least the memory up to 64GB of RAM.
Don’t confuse the HP Pavilion Wave for a fabric-woven Mac Pro wannabe, because it is something else entirely. This compact Windows machine has its 6th-generation Intel Core processors coupled with optional discrete AMD graphics and uniquely integrated Bang & Olufsen speakers. Wrapped in an urbane fabric exterior, this is definitely the most fetching of the best computers to have on your desk or even a bookshelf, and it radiates crisp sound as you browse the web or watch movies.
Some people have issues with desktop PCs, since they tend to be bulky. The Intel Core Compute Stick has really made that moot. Looking more like a thumb drive than an actual PC, this petite renegade can connect to any display with an HDMI input. It starts out with a lowly 1.33GHz Intel Atom processor running Linux, but you can configure it up to an Intel Core m5 processor, making this one of the best computers to literally slip in your pocket, whether you need to get some work done on the go or squeeze in some PC time while you’re away on vacation.
Specifications (as reviewed)
Product
Dell XPS Tower Special Edition
Microsoft Surface Studio 2
Intel Hades Canyon NUC
Alienware Aurora R7
Corsair One i160
Apple Mac mini (Late 2018)
HP Pavilion Wave
Intel Compute Stick
CPU
Intel Core i7-8700
Intel Core i7-7820HQ
Intel Core i7-8809G
Intel Core i7-8700K
Intel Core i9-9900K
Intel Core i3-8100
Intel Core i5-7400T
Intel Atom x5-Z8500
Graphics
Nvidia GeForce GTX 1070
Nvidia GeForce GTX 1070
Radeon RX Vega M GH graphics
Nvidia GeForce GTX 1080 Ti
Nvidia GeForce RTX 2080 Ti
Intel UHD Graphics 630
AMD Radeon R9 M470
N/A
RAM
16GB DDR4
32GB DDR4
16GB DDR4
32GB DDR4
32GB DDR4
8GB DDR4
16GB DDR3
2GB LPDDR3
Storage
256GB PCIe NVMe SSD, 1TB HDD (7,200 rpm)
1TB PCIe SSD
118GB Intel Optane SSD 800P Series (NVMe), 512GB Intel SSD 545s Series (M.2 SATA)
512GB M.2 PCIe NVMe SSD, 2TB HDD
480GB M.2 NVMe SSD, 2TB HDD
128GB PCIe SSD
1TB HDD
32GB
Bill Thomas and Gabe Carey have also contributed to this article
Score the best motherboard deals on Amazon Prime Day 2019When you’re setting out to build the best PC you can possibly afford, you’ll need to make sure to get the best motherboard possible. Motherboards may not be as sexy as the best graphics cards or processors, but that shouldn’t make a difference. Your motherboard serves as the foundation of your PC, helping your hardware reach its full potential by pushing it to its limits – utilizing and optimizing every inch of performance. You can overclock better with the best motherboards, for instance.
The motherboard is one of the most crucial PC components in your new build, so don’t settle for anything but the best. If you compromise and cheap out on your motherboard, it could die on you, forcing you to rebuild your entire PC from scratch. We’ve been there, and trust us, that’s not a road you want to take. So, do yourself a favor and avoid disaster by picking up the best motherboard you can on the market.
Keep in mind, however, that there are so many different options these days, choosing the most ideal motherboard for you can be tricky. That’s why we went ahead and crafted a list of the best motherboards you can buy, motherboards that we’ve tested and reviewed ourselves. Rest assured that every single mobo on this list will do everything a motherboard needs to do, not to mention last you for years.
When Coffee Lake Refresh CPUs hit the streets, Intel promised that they would be the best processors for gaming, and we knew that meant kitted out motherboards were on their way. Lo and behold comes the Z390 Aorus Gaming Pro Wifi – maybe one of the best motherboards from Intel right now. It’s packed with gaming-centric features like reinforced PCIe slots and enough RGB lighting to blind you. It’s hard to find a better motherboard, especially at this price point.
When you’re shopping for PC hardware, overwhelmed by all the different features, components and requirements, you might be tempted to throw your hands up and just get the best you can possibly afford. In times like these, you can bet on the Asus ROG Maximus XI Code Z390 Gaming. It’s packed with every feature that Intel’s new Coffee Lake Refresh processors support and then some, with an RGB-lit shroud covering every corner of circuitry on this motherboard, making it one of the best motherboards you don’t have to think twice about choosing.
Now that Coffee Lake Refresh has been available for a while, you’ll want to maximize all the power it has to offer. However, high-end motherboards can get really expensive real fast. If you’re looking for a budget option without many compromises, the Gigabyte Z390 should be at the top of your list of best motherboards to consider. It skips many of the bells and whistles like RGB lighting and built-in Wi-Fi but it does make up for these compromises by providing excellent value. You get all the essential features that Z390 has to offer for a great price. If you want to build a budget gaming system, the Gigabyte Z390 UD is probably the best motherboard for you.
If you’re looking to get an edge on the competition, but you don’t have a lot of extra space on your desk, you’re going to need a Micro-ATX motherboard – more specifically, the MSI MPG Z390M Gaming Edge AC. What you’re getting here is a Micro-ATX motherboard with all the features a full-sized ATX one offers, but at a fraction of the price. Despite its smaller size, you still get dual M.2 slots, SLI and Crossfire support, and all the fiery performance that Intel Coffee Lake Refresh has to offer. If you’re looking for a smaller motherboard, you can’t afford to pass on the MSI MPG Z390M Gaming Edge MC.
If you need the smallest possible motherboard available without compromising on key features of your CPU, you should look into the Asus ROG Strix Z390-I Gaming. With this motherboard, you don’t need to compromise on features or power. You don’t even need to settle for a measly 32GB of RAM. Thanks to Asus’ double capacity memory compatibility – you can have up to 64GB of memory in the most miniscule motherboard you’ve ever seen. Unfortunately, like most Z390 boards, its price tag is not for the faint of heart, so prepare yourself to shell out some serious dough if you want the smallest of the best motherboards.
With the X470 Aorus Gaming 7 Wi-Fi, Gigabyte further illustrates its command of motherboard design. Rocking the new AMD X470 chipset, allowing full support of the new AMD Ryzen 2nd Generation processors, this may be the best motherboard if you’re looking to side with Team Red. What’s more, it supports Quad-GPU SLi and lightning fast RAM (up to 3,600 MHz) for peerless expandability, and thanks to its multi-zone RGB lighting, it looks good while kicking butt and taking names.
For the longest time, AMD has been the reigning champion of budget builds, and that isn’t likely to change anytime soon. Marketed exclusively to gamers, the MSI X470 Gaming Plus is loaded front to back with features like two PCIe M.2 slots and quick performance tweaking buttons to make sure you’re on the top of the leaderboard at all times. And, since it’s a gamer-focused motherboard, it comes with flashy RGB lighting that you can even easily customize from your smartphone. Best of all, it’s the best value of all the best motherboards.
These days, small form-factor PCs are all the rage and with one of the best motherboards like the ASRock B450M-HDV on offer, we think that it’s going to stay that way. Now, while this one doesn’t do SLI and only supports up to 32GB of RAM– it is a B450 unit, after all – it is still compelling due to its affordable price. Outside of these omissions, you still get a slot for a NVMe SSD and four USB 3.1 Gen 1 ports around back. If you’re looking to build a solid budget gaming PC, the ASRock B450M-HDV is your best bet.
Asus is out to prove that big things can and do come in small packages with the ROG Strix X470-I. Featuring the latest and greatest AMD chipset, everything in this tiny board is designed with excellent performance in mind. That extends down to the BIOS where you can find a stress test for overclocks before you even boot into Windows. This board also elevates beyond the constraints of the Mini-ITX form factor by including an M.2 Audio Combo riser, so that you can install your M.2 NVMe SSD without crowding out other components.
The X-series processors are here, and they are spectacular. But if you want to take advantage of all they have to offer, you need an X-series motherboard. This ASRock X299 is an incredible choice with support for overclocked memory speeds up to 4400MHz(!!!) and 8 different slots for memory modules. It also supports up to 128GB of RAM. Add in an X-series processor and a good graphics card or 3, and this thing will absolutely tear apart anything you could possibly throw at it. If you’re seeking one of the best motherboards money can buy, this is it.
If you want absolutely every feature you can get and budget is not an issue, the AsRock X399 Professional Gaming sTR4 may be the most ideal motherboard for you. Not only does this monster of a board support 4-way SLI configurations, but you can also pack this thing with up to 128GB of DDR4 memory. It even features a ton of flashy RGB lighting, so that people will be mesmerized by your rig. And, keep in mind that this mobo is compatible with Ryzen Threadripper 2nd Generation chips, so you might need to update the BIOS first.
Coming to terms
If you’re unfamiliar with the best motherboards out there, use this list as a primer for your next build. Motherboards are available in a broad range of different form factors, the most common of which are ATX and Micro ATX. However, there are plenty of less common form factors including mini ITX and E-ATX. Don’t worry though, most of the best PC cases will support more than one form factor.
Moreover, in our rundown of the best motherboards, we detailed the socket type that each mobo adheres to. The socket, for those not in the know, is the part on the motherboard that the CPU locks into. Typically, newer Intel processors use either LGA 1151 or 2066 while the latest AMD Ryzen architecture is designed for the AM4 chipset.
Now that virtual reality (VR) has proven to be a mainstream form of entertainment – not just an overpriced tech fad for early adopters – there are lots of different ways to get your home decked out for the best VR headset.
But the problem is that picking a VR headset isn’t easy, especially now that there are more and more headsets hitting the streets like the new Valve Index and HTC’s Vive Cosmos, slated for a mid-to-late 2019 release. With many offering different experiences, different hardware, different requirements and a lot of fantastic deals, it confuses matters even more.
The good news for those serious about getting the best VR headset is that premium headsets built specifically for PC gaming are now much more affordable thanks to permanent price drops. The bad news is that these discounts make it even trickier to choose the best VR headset that’s right for you.
Take advantage of Amazon Prime Day 2019 to find great deals on the best VR headsets.
In addition to price drops, more advanced VR headsets have come to the fore, like the HTC Vive Pro. On the flip side, of course, are the mobile headsets, namely the Samsung Gear VR and Google Daydream View.
Then there’s a whole new category of standalone VR headsets. The Oculus Go led the charge, and in September Facebook unveiled its successor, Oculus Quest. Unlike the Go, the Quest will offer six degrees of freedom tracking, and will launch with a host of new games early next year.
The VR space got even more of a shake up after CES 2019, with HTV teasing the HTC Vive Cosmos, a wired VR headset that is also expected to work with your mobile at some point too. This could be a headset that transcends the wired and wireless space and makes VR more accessible than ever.
But it’s too early for the Cosmos, so let’s stick with the VR headsets you can get your hands on – and head into – right now.
Check below for in depth explanations of our choices for the best VR headset available now. It’s important to note that permanent price cuts have brought the so-called traditional VR headsets more closely in line with one another.
At the moment, the four best on the market – the Oculus Rift, HTC Vive, HTC Vive Pro and PlayStation VR – are unsurprisingly the most expensive of all the mainstream VR headset offerings.
Each headset has its own unique strengths and weaknesses, and if you’re not aware of these before you buy, it could be a very costly mistake to make. But that’s exactly why we put this guide together.
And, if you want less expensive fare, we’ve also included a few mobile VR headsets for your consideration as well.
When originally released, the HTC Vive was miles ahead of its nearest competitor, the Oculus Rift. It supported room-scale tracking right out of the box, and came with two motion controllers that offer much more immersion.
Now, however, the gap for the best VR headset has narrowed. Today the Oculus Rift matches much of Vive’s functionality and includes two motion controllers of its own.
But the Vive still edges out the Oculus because, for our money, the room-scale tracking is that much better. This feature allows you to walk around a space up to 4.5 x 4.5m, adding another dimension to the experience while using it; you’re not just pressing up on an analog stick, you’re using your legs to walk.
That’s if you have enough space in your real room, of course.
The headset contains two 1080p screens which makes for a very crisp image. Unfortunately, it’s not quite high enough of a resolution to prevent you from being able to discern individual pixels when you wear it, and the HTC Vive Pro, with its 78% increase in dots per inch, offers a sharper screen in addition to built-in audio, which the original Vive lacks.
However, despite not being the latest and greatest Vive, where the original HTC shines is in its price.
Though it’s still more expensive than Oculus Rift, the HTC Vive Pro has a few shortcomings that won’t quite justify its high price. For the regular user who doesn’t have the funds to buy an HTC Vive Pro, the HTC Vive offers a still-excellent experience for less cost.
Simply put, Oculus Go signals a new age for virtual reality, one that doesn’t need a smartphone or PC to run excellent experiences. But forget the grandiose statements – you want to know what it’s really like to use, right?
Oculus Go is a standalone headset that rivals Oculus Rift in more than just its affordable price; the quality of VR on offer is nearly as good as that of a tethered VR headset.
With impressive visuals, limited screen-door effect and a cozy fit (one that’s front-heavy, to be sure), you’re in for tons of fun with the Oculus Go.
Its content library is already extensive with over 1,000 apps, games, movies and experiences available at launch, and that should only grow since the headset is compatible with Samsung Gear VR content. The headset comes with two storage options, 32GB or 64GB, so you can take your pick of how much memory you’ll need.
Oculus Go isn’t perfect – in addition to sitting heavy on the face, light leaks through the bottom (right where your nose is), which could prove anywhere from mildly annoying to downright distracting to you. But for those looking for a standalone, it might just be the best VR headset out there.
There’s no getting around the fact that in order to run either the HTC Vive, HTC Vive Pro or the Oculus Rift you need a pretty high-end gaming PC, which is not an insignificant investment for most people.
That’s not the case with Sony’s PlayStation VR, which requires little more than a PS4 console to run.
Considering the sizable difference in power between the PS4 and PC, the PlayStation VR is a surprisingly competent VR headset. Its refresh rate is responsive, and we’ve had no issues with the reliability of its head-tracking.
Thanks to Sony’s backing, the collection of PlayStation VR games is also impressive. There were dozens available at launch, and many more have followed over its first year on sale.
Sony has addressed one of our biggest objections with the PlayStation VR – that its accessories are sold separately – by offering a variety of packs and bundles with devices like the PlayStation Camera included. However, PlayStation Move controllers, while included in some bundles, aren’t in every one.
While you have to be aware of the additional cost involved, depending on what bundle you opt for, recent price cuts have made the PlayStation VR even more affordable. It may not be the best VR headset, but the PSVR is certainly making a strong case to users.
The current VR arms race all started with one man: Oculus founder Palmer Luckey. As a teenager, Luckey gathered VR tech, fascinated with making his own headset in his garage. Numerous prototypes and a $2 billion Facebook buyout later, Oculus is still the biggest name in VR.
It’s seen a few decent upgrades over the years thanks to the inclusion of the Touch controllers (which we’d argue is slightly better to the Vive’s), and a couple of key price drops.
Yet, compared to the HTC Vive’s room-scale technology, the Rift isn’t quite up to the task. The reason is that while the Vive is designed to let you move around in any direction, the Rift requires you to place its two sensors in front of you. This means that the tracking is more single-sided, and you can’t let yourself get turned around, otherwise the sensors will lose track of you.
The experience is a bit different when you add a third sensor to the mix, but if you’re comparing apples-to-apples, we still believe the Vive does room-scale a heck of a lot better.
That being said, by being cheaper than the Vive, the Oculus Rift offers a very compelling mid-range virtual reality option for those with less space to spare.
The newest high-end VR headset in town comes packed with a lot of impressive specs. Take, for instance, the HTC Vive Pro resolution of 2880 x 1600, offering a 78% increase in DPI over the HTC Vive.
This means ultra-crisp visual fidelity that lets you experience textures and shadows in a way previously unavailable in VR.
But the HTC Vive Pro perks don’t end there. There’s also the addition of built-in headphones and new nose guards that are better at blocking out light than the HTC Vive. All told, the HTC Vive Pro is a clear improvement in both design and tech on the older HTC Vive.
However, for all its shiny updated specs, new navy-blue color and a game library that’s sure to grow, the HTC Vive Pro does have some serious flaws.
The main one is obvious: it’s expensive. It costs the same as the HTC Vive did at launch, and it doesn’t come with any accessories in the box. That’s right: you’ll have to buy controllers and sensors separately.
Setup can be a challenge with the Vive Pro because all of the firmware has to be as up-to-date as possible. Even then, you may run into some challenges, which might deter the average user from jumping into the Vive Pro experience.
Because of its high price, challenging setup and the fact that the still-excellent HTC Vive is now much more affordable, the HTC Vive Pro is likely best suited for VR enthusiasts and arcade owners. It’s still an awesome headset, if not the best VR headset, just one that’s probably not for everyone.
Samsung Gear VR has always been a respectable smartphone-powered VR headset, but now that it has a motion controller, it might be the best VR headset option for mobile users.
In addition to the new controller, the updated Gear VR is lighter and more streamlined than before, and features a USB-C connector that connects directly to a Samsung Galaxy phone.
The included motion controller has hints of the HTC Vive controller design, with a touchpad and trigger button, which aren’t bad things. It’s with the controller that the Gear VR really comes into its own, allowing you to interact with the VR worlds in front of you in a way previously impossible without it.
Of course, being powered by a smartphone, the headset’s performance is entirely tied to the phone you’ve slotted in, though in our experience this isn’t a problem considering the power within Samsung’s higher-end handsets. However, if you’re using an older Galaxy phone, your experience could be noticeably affected.
Since Oculus launched the Oculus Go standalone headset, the question of where smartphone-powered devices like Gear VR fit in only becomes more relevant. But since the Oculus Go and Samsung Gear VR share an app and game library, you can expect support for the Gear VR to continue for quite some time.
If you own an Android phone (that’s not necessarily a Galaxy) and want to get into VR without spending a fortune on a headset and computer set up, then consider the Google Daydream View (2017) a viable option.
What makes this headset compelling is its price; it’s less than $100 / £100, and a recent discount through some retailers has made it even cheaper, at least for the time being.
It’s also an easy headset for just about anyone to use. Not only does it just installing an app on your phone, but once you’re inside the VR world, navigating to and fro is easy with the included controller.
You won’t get the deeply immersive worlds of a higher-end, PC-powered VR headset with the Google Daydream View, but you will get a device that’s made of a nice material, works with many of the best Android phones, and, did we mention how inexpensive it is?
The content on offer isn’t very compelling – there’s not a ton to draw you back for multiple play sessions – but it is varied and offers a little something for everyone.
This isn’t the best VR headset on the market, by far, but it is an easy way to get into VR for Android phone owners. And that, really, could be all you need to know.
Shopping around for the best Mac? Amazon Prime Day 2019 might have a great deal for you.
Yet, you don’t have to wait for those to hit the street. If you want to get your hands on one of the best Macs now, there’s already quite a few to choose from. Just keep in mind that specs, performance and design mean way more in how they interact with the OS itself than any of them separately. That’s why it’s not really productive to compare a Mac to a Windows 10 computer.
The best Macs are incredibly diverse. We don’t know what’s in the cards for future Macs, at least beyond the new Mac Pro, but we’re sure there’s still plenty of life in Apple’s computers. That means that if you don’t have to budget to purchase the latest Macs, as the older models will more than suffice, saving you some cash.
In addition, the best Macs cover everything from thin and light notebooks like the 12-inch MacBook to professional workhorses like the iMac Pro. So, it can be tricky choosing the perfect Mac for you.
That’s why we decided to gather all the best Macs we’ve used – iMacs, MacBooks and more – to help you with that important decision. The only Macs that you won’t find here are the ones that we’ve either not been able to review, or just weren’t good enough. Let’s dive in to all the best Macs you can buy right now.
While Apple refreshed the MacBook back in 2016, it wasn’t anything to write home about, despite being more attractive than ever before. The controversy hasn’t been forgotten entirely, but the 12-inch MacBook has found its niche as an ultraportable and lightweight laptop. It’s low on ports, but that’s hardly a surprise in a laptop this thin. It can support basically everything under the sun with its Thunderbolt 3 port, anyway. It’s not as powerful as the MacBook Pro, but if you’re looking for a MacBook that’s easy to take with you wherever you go, look no further.
Mac Mini fans, rejoice! The Mac Mini has finally been overhauled with modern hardware, ushering Apple’s tiniest Mac to the modern age and warranting it a spot in our best Macs list. This tiny thing is packed with 8th-generation desktop processors, a ton of RAM and some of the fastest SSDs we’ve seen – all while keeping the same beloved form factor. It’s a bit pricier this time around, but with the raw speed on offer, we’d have to say it’s worth it.
If you’re looking for the most performance you can get in a MacBook that you can afford, you’ll want to look at the MacBook Pro 15-inch. Now with hexa-core 9th-generation processors and up to 32GB of RAM, you won’t be held back by anything you throw at it – especially now that you can get Radeon Pro Vega 20 graphics. With this kind of performance, the MacBook Pro effortlessly takes a lofty spot on our best Macs list.
The iMac has long been one of the most affordable ways to get into the macOS ecosystem, and we’re glad that hasn’t changed. Though what has changed, we also appreciate. The new iMac is packed with 8th- and 9th-generation desktop-class processors this time around, letting this elegant all-in-one PC reach that fabled 8-core performance. If you’re looking for an all-in-one Mac, the new 27-inch iMac is one of the best Macs for you, at least if you’re not looking to spend five stacks on the iMac Pro.
The biggest complaint about the older MacBook Pro was that it was still using Kaby Lake processors, even though its competition had moved ahead. Luckily, the MacBook Pro 2018 changes everything, making it more powerful than ever before. It still has the controversial Butterfly keyboard, but that’s also been improved so that its less noisy and more reliable. It’s easy to recommend the 13-inch MacBook Pro 2018 for anyone looking for the best Macs.
Whether you’re a professional or a creative, you’ll require something that will be able to tackle any workload you could possibly throw at it. For you, the iMac Pro isn’t just one of the best Macs for you; it’s the only Mac to consider. Not only does it have a vivid 27-inch 5K display with a P3 wide color gamut, but it’s also packing the most powerful hardware Apple could get its hands on. It’s extremely expensive, so it’s really only meant for folks who have deep pockets and are looking for unbridled power to get through professional workloads. If you’re one such consumer, then the iMac Pro is the best Mac for you.
We’ve been waiting years for a new MacBook Air, and now that it’s here, we can say for sure it’s worth the wait. Thinner, lighter and with a Retina display for the first time, it’s easily the best MacBook Air we’ve ever tested. With 8th-generation processors, more RAM and faster SSDs, the MacBook Air is also has more power than ever. The only thing that would make this better is if it were fitted with full-fat U-series quad core chips, rather than the Y-series dual-core fanless processors. Still, this means that you’re going to easily get all-day battery out of this thing, which makes it one of the best Macs for travel.
If you’re looking for the best cheap tablets around, you’ve come to the right place.
But our best cheap tablets may be about to get even cheaper. How? Well it’s Amazon Prime Day from July 15-16, which is a two-day sales event where the online retailer slashes prices across various product categories, including tech.
In previous years this has seen discounts to some of our best cheap tablets, with Amazon’s own Fire tablets all but guaranteed some form of price drop, and we may see Samsung and Huawei slates also slide. So keep an eye out!
Not everyone want’s to pay hundreds for a slate, and these top budget tablets are great for web browsing, emails, video streaming and simple gaming.
They’re great to have as a family device, or purely for the kids with a variety of parental controls available (especially on Amazon’s offerings), or for those who want a bigger screen for tasks that are just a little too fiddly to do on a smartphone.
In fact, none of Apple’s current fleet of slates manage to dip below the £250 mark we’ve set for our best budget tablets round up, but if it is iPads you desire check out our best iPad roundup. The most affordable option is the iPad 9.7 which starts at £319.
All hope is not lost though, as we’ve got the list of the best cheap tablets you can buy right now below – but let’s make one thing clear. There aren’t many to choose from.
It’s slim pickings for anyone looking to pick up a cheap tablet these days as the market for low-cost slates has somewhat fallen away, but the ones below offer excellent value for money.
We’re still waiting to see our first budget tablet launch of 2019 as well, which means there aren’t any new entries in our round-up just yet – but the ones we do have below are still worth your consideration.
In a sea of slates and smartphones, crafting a device that has enough personality to stand out and enough quality to be worth caring about is a difficult proposition.
With the Tab 4 8 Plus, Lenovo has succeeded in producing something with a flavor of its own, and something that makes the mid-range Android tablet market worth attention once again.
If you already have an Android device, commute regularly and want something a little nicer than an Amazon tablet, this is the obvious next step.
If you have an Amazon Prime membership and you want a big screen tablet for watching movies and TV, reading, and a spot of gaming, the Fire HD 10 is a great option. If you also have a limited budget, then it’s your best option.
It’s a great value package for a 10-inch screen tablet. It does have obvious weaknesses, like the plastic design and useless cameras, but they’re understandable in a tablet at this price.
The Amazon HD 8 was rebooted for 2018 with a slightly updated look, better front facing camera and a larger storage option.
They are useful upgrades and ensure it remains in our best budget tablet list.
It’s no tablet king, but it does what it sets out to well. Its crazy low price tag means it’s perfect to hand off to the kids without the fear that they’re wielding an expensive bit of kit around.
It may be too small for some, and the cameras aren’t up to much, but the Fire HD 8 gives you the core tablet experience for not very much outlay, making it a budget tablet worth buying.
If you’re in the market for a low cost tablet with up to date specs then the new Amazon Fire HD 8 and HD 10 deliver.
They won’t bless you with a stunning display, sultry design or slick performance – but they will give you enough grunt under the hood to play even the most demanding of games.
The heavily modified Android interface (known as Fire OS) may not be to everyone’s liking, but for less tech savvy users it’s arguably less cluttered and easier to use.
In today’s interconnected world, the foreign exchange market plays an important role in daily business. It’s a global, decentralized environment where financial institutions and businesses can trade currencies.
According to research from the Bank for International Settlements, foreign exchange trading generates an estimated $5.3 trillion daily – making it larger than other financial markets. Often, it’s dominated by large international banks and corporations, which work around the clock to trade and convert international currencies.
Forex trading also underpins international trade and investments. For instance, if American companies want to import goods from a country in Europe, they’ll most likely need to complete transactions in euros. Through forex, these firms can exchange dollars for euros quickly and easily.
As well as enabling trade between countries, forex trading is a lucrative investment opportunity. Every day, companies and investors make billions by purchasing and trading currencies. However, it does take a significant amount of experience and skills to make lucrative forex trades.
That’s where forex trading software comes into the picture, automating this common business practice. Essentially, it ploughs through the market for the best currency trading opportunities. And in this article, we’ve picked out the best forex trading apps around.
Want your company or services to be added to this buyer’s guide? Please email your request to desire.athow@futurenet.com with the URL of the buying guide in the subject line.
Image Credit: FXTM
When choosing any financial management platform, it’s important to look for trustworthy providers. Used by traders in more than 180 countries and fully regulated, ForexTime’s FXTM software is a safe bet for foreign exchange trading. It’s positioned as an automated currency broker.
The great thing about this platform is that it’s designed for professionals and beginners. For example, flexible leverage lets you increase your earning potential, but this is only offered to you based on your knowledge and experience. If you do intend on becoming an expert in this area, you can access a range of educational resources.
Currently, you can operate with both fixed and variable spreads, and when you’ve completed a trade, the company processes withdrawal requests within just a few minutes. You shouldn’t have any issues using the software, either. All you have to do is sign up for an account, upload your verification documents and transfer funds before trading.
What’s more, the software can make trades with millisecond execution rates. In other features, you can get daily commentaries from the firm’s market research team and make use of a series of free trading tools to make more informed decisions.
You can access the software on Windows, Mac, iOS and Android devices, and the company states that it covers 100% of your deposits up to $1,000.
When it comes to making profitable forex trades, it’s important to get an understanding of the current market. Netdania aims to do just that by providing you with trading ideas and strategies. The app also compiles data from more than 20,000 financial instruments and thousands of real-time stocks.
Positioned as a personal trading assistant, Netdania will tell you when you should enter or exit the market. Not only is the app easy-to-use, but it also provides you with real-time market news and updates within a economic calendar, and lets you share strategies with fellow traders. That way, you can learn from others.
Netdania provides real-time stock indices covering the Dow Jones, S&P 500, Nasdaq 100, TSX, Nikkei 225, ASX200, Hong Kong Hang Seng, Nifty 50, MICEX, EuroSTOXX50, FTSE100, DAX 30, CAC40, IBEX35, MIB40 and SMI20, along with statistics from industries such as oil, gold, silver and platinum.
Because the software is underpinned by cloud technology, you can easily share and sync data across a range of devices. And to ensure you never miss a potentially lucrative trade, you can sign up to receive push notifications about major economic events. Netdania is available in 18 languages and is free to download from the App Store and Google Play Store, although there are various in-app purchases.
If you’re looking for an advanced forex trading and analysis tool, it’s worth checking out Trade Interceptor. Through the software, you can quickly find and track the best currencies and stocks to put your money in. It offers 14 advanced chart types, as well as 160 intelligence indicators and drawing tools.
The software was previously only available on desktops, but it’s finally made its way to mobile devices. There’s a touch-enabled trade management functionality, as well as split-screen and quad-screen modes so you can can keep your eyes peeled on several markets at the same time.
Like Netdania, the app is powered by the cloud, letting you access analysis tools, trade data and price alerts from any device. It provides streaming quotes for all major forex trading, cryptocurrencies, indices, precious metals and commodities. Plus you can can access professionally curated news covering Asian, European and American markets.
There are plethora of built-in trading tools too, including an economic calendar, data release alerts, a trading simulator, intelligence reports and a risk scanner. These have been authorized and regulated by the FCA in the UK and ASIC in Australia, which helps to boost customer trust. The app is free to download on Android and iOS.
MetaTrader is one of the most popular trading apps for retail investors using Android devices, and allows for the trading of stocks, forex, futures, options, and other financial instruments from your mobile device.
The app supplies general analysis of the financial markets using a range of real-time charts which includes historical information, in order to monitor prices and quotes.
You can also easily switch between different financial instruments as well as both SL and TP values on charts, along with visualization of trading information. Charts are also interractive, with pinch and zoom options.
There are also a number of analytical instruments included, such as Gann, Fibonacci and Elliott tools, as well as up to date financial news.
TD Ameritrade is one of America’s biggest and more established trading platforms, and offers a wide range of investment vehicles for trading, not just forex.
However, where it really excels is through its focus on trying to educate forex traders to help reduce the chances of them losing money. It does this through its thinkorswim platform, which provides introductory materials from the
National Futures Association, which regulate futures brokers. The information is presented in a clear and easy-to-read way, and it really does underline the risks that need to be considered.
So if you’re new to currency trading, you could feel better prepared and eased into managing not just trades but risk with more confidence, rather than rushing into dangerous leverages that can lose you money fast.
But while that’s a big plus for TD Ameritrade, it is a wide platform that covers a comprehensive range of trading products, not least stocks, futures, and options. So if you’re looking to focus only on forex you may find the platform sometimes clunky by comparison to dedicated forex trading platforms, especially when it comes to comparing currency pairs.
Even still, the introductory and supporting materials are worth getting to grips with, and if you want to get involved with more than currency trading you’re in an ideal place to expand your investment strategy into other products.
Next-gen 5G mobile networks are going live all over the country to enable users to casually download data at lightning-fast speeds, and T-Mobile has just activated its own.
Like Verizon, Sprint and AT&T, T-Mobile’s initial network will operate on higher-frequency “millimeter wave” (mmWave) bands, which will supposedly provide faster speeds but have less range. (A lot less, if our early experiences with Verizon’s 5G network in Chicago are representative.)
But unlike the other carriers, T-Mobile will eventually augment its hyperlocal mmWave coverage with low-range bands that cover more area albeit at lower speeds for a network that will theoretically reach suburban and rural customers. It’s unclear when those will go online, but at least it’s a clear plan.
T-Mobile’s 28 Ghz mmWave frequency network will be combined into a wider 5G setup with a lower-band 600 Mhz spectrum it aims to launch in 30 cities later in 2019, per CNET. This would theoretically combine with Sprint’s mid-band 2.5 Ghz 5G network, assuming the two carriers’ merger goes through.
The signature 5G phone coming to many of these carriers? The Samsung Galaxy S10 5G with its Snapdragon 855 chip, which doesn’t have a formal release date yet, but will be available to Verizon customers sometime in Q2 2019. T-Mobile customers can now purchase and use an S10 5G on the carrier’s nascent 5G networks in six US cities, according to a blog post.
As expected, the S10 5G will only work on T-Mobile’s mmWave networks – not the following mid- and low-range frequency networks.
T-Mobile 5G plans
T-Mobile still hasn’t announced many details about the full extent of its rollout plans – indeed, we only learned about its initial six-city 5G network launch the day they went live.
We also learned what its 5G network will cost…but only if its merger with Sprint goes through. Assuming both carriers combine into the so-called ‘New T-Mobile,’ the resulting super-carrier won’t charge extra for 5G for at least three years along with “strong economic incentive for even lower prices in the future,” according to a blog post.
T-Mobile 5G coverage map and rollout cities
T-Mobile previously asserted back in 2018 that it would bring 5G to 30 cities to start, and the first customers to get it will be in New York City, Los Angeles, Dallas, and Las Vegas. The carrier made good on its claims, launching in those four cities as well as Cleveland and Atlanta on June 28.
What’s more, T-Mobile did what Verizon and AT&T have thus far failed to do: provide coverage maps. That’s right, you can actually go look at where customers should be able to get 5G service in cities where the 5G networks are live. That’s a big gesture toward transparency that other carriers have refused to do.
Image credit: T-Mobile
For the sub-600mHz, we’re waiting to hear about any devices that will support it.
After that is a broad rollout to rural customers. T-Mobile opted for sub-600MHz for its farther range, which should cover more area with less infrastructure than the high-frequency networks other carriers are building out.
Once fully launched, T-Mobile claims its network will cover over 95% of the country’s around 62 million rural residents, per a company blog post. They might not see the network’s about 450Mbps average download speeds, but two-thirds of them will get above 100Mbps by 2021 (up to 90% in 2024), which is still far better than the 30-40Mbps you’ll get today.
The network was likely testing far earlier than its launch day. Per CNET, an employee of Speedtest.net owner Ookla managed to hook up to T-Mobile’s network in NYC using one of the carrier’s SIM cards plugged into an unlocked Samsung Galaxy S10 5G phone. The outlet reported high speeds just under 500 Mbps (download), which is still impressive even if it pales compared to the over-1 Gbps seen in Verizon’s mmWave network in Chicago.
We’ll have to wait and see if this is a sign that T-Mobile is gearing up to go live.
T-Mobile 5G phones
Samsung Galaxy S10 5G
As with the other carriers, T-Mobile will also support the Samsung Galaxy S10 5G. From what we’ve seen, this will be a true top-tier device: a 6.7-inch AMOLED display, the latest Snapdragon 855 chip, 256GB of storage and 8GB of RAM. We don’t know how much it’ll cost; the closest comparison, the S10 Plus, starts with lower specs at a baseline of $999 / £899 (about AU$1,398).
The S10 5G is otherwise a stepped-up version of its S10 siblings, packing a trio of rear lenses (12MP wide, 16MP ultrawide and 12MP telephoto) as well as a fourth time of flight sensor to measure depth. There’s another TOF sensor on the front for depth-augmented selfies. This phone is coming to T-Mobile customers sometime in summer.
S10 5G first, but not widespread
Early reports suggest the S10 5G won’t, however, work on the broader nation-spanning primary network T-Mobile is working on now: a low-band (sub-600MHz) spectrum to power its early 5G networks. It’s expected to offer the opposite of mmWave – less speed than high-frequency networks, but more range for better coverage.
Eventually, it plans to supplement this with mid-frequency bands as part of its spectrum of service – it’s currently testing millimeter wave in Atlanta, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, Ohio and a few other places (potentially covering 100 million people), per an MWC 2019 interview with PC Mag. But the carrier plans to add much of its mid-frequency bands after the carrier’s proposed merger with Sprint – which US Senators have opposed.
In lieu of those other bands, T-Mobile has carried on testing its sub-600MHz 5G network, and is purportedly rolling out 5G it in its planned first 30 cities, which customers won’t be able to take advantage of until more phones come out. For the sub-600MHz line, this might not be until the second half of 2019, per CNET.
The reason? There just aren’t any phones out that’ll work with the low-band network. Not yet, anyway.
Remember the Samsung Galaxy S10 5G? Its Snapdragon 855’s LTE modem doesn’t support 5G, so the phone relies on a discrete modem – the Qualcomm Snapdragon X50 – to connect.
But the X50 modem doesn’t support ‘sub-6GHz’ (in T-Mobile’s case, its sub-600MHz) networks. At a Snapdragon summit back in December, Qualcomm’s president implied that a modem won’t be available to support T-Mobile’s early 5G networks until at least mid-2019, per PCMag.
Could T-Mobile’s 5G plans change
So, in summary: aside from the S10 5G coming to its mmWave areas, we don’t know what other phones T-Mobile will offer on its low- or mid-band 5G network.
If the carrier merges with Sprint, it’s unclear if the combined company’s ur-network would support additional higher-band devices like those packing the Snapdragon 855/Qualcomm X50 modem setup (seen in the Samsung Galaxy S10 5G).
That’s currently the only chip/modem combo available in the US, though that could change if T-Mobile secured a device running an existing but international 5G setup not run in the US (like that from Huawei or Samsung). Likewise if Intel or MediaTek release a 5G chip/modem later this year which works with T-Mobile’s low-band setup.
But that’s just for early 2019. Later this year, things will change – starting with the next generation of Qualcomm modems the company announced before MWC 2019. The Snapdragon X55 modem will surpass this year’s X50 in several ways, including supporting virtually any band in any region in the world.
The X55 is expected to appear in phones later this year, which could include the Samsung Galaxy Note 10 or Google Pixel 4. It’s all speculation from here, but the X55 should have a stronger showing in 2020 – when more phones appear that could connect to T-Mobile’s 5G network.
In fact, T-Mobile CTO Neville Ray confirmed to PC Mag that the carrier would only launch its 5G network once phones were available on the X55 modem chip. We’ll just have to wait for more phone details as they appear.
The WordPress platform is one of the simplest ways to create colorful and well laid out webpages. Setup is usually performed with a few mouse clicks, so no coding knowledge is required.
The platform supports thousands of various themes, some of which are suited to specific users such as small businesses, whilst others have a more general appeal.
When starting out you may feel overwhelmed by the choices available, especially if you’re not sure if a premium theme is worth buying.
In this guide, you’ll discover five of our very favorite free and paid WordPress themes. Whether you’re a freelancer on a tight budget or an established business, rest assured there’s a theme for you.
Hestia is the perfect theme for those with small businesses, startups, online agencies and firms due to its multi-purpose functionality. Users do not have to pay to download this theme. Installation and setup is designed to be user friendly.
This theme is best suited to users who want to setup an ecommerce platform. Hestia integrates with WooCommerce, allowing users access to beautifully designed product listings. There is an easy to use drag and drop feature suitable.
This theme comes with custom background settings which aid in adding photos to your site and making it your own. It has a multi-purpose one page design, a widget designed footer and a blog or news section.
It integrates with Travel Map, Photo Gallery, Flat Parallax Slider and Elementor Page Builder. Hestia is responsive and uses Material Kit for design.
As with most WordPress themes, there is a demo for users to sample before downloading.
Some users have noted that the free version is buggy and convoluted to use.
X is a paid WordPress theme suitable for all types of websites.
The theme comes with four categories of built-in demos. Each of these themes cover a wide variety of potential projects. This means that no matter what you have in mind, X more than likely has a design suited to your needs.
Cornerstone is included with X. This is one of the most popular WordPress web page builders. The drag and drop feature is easy to use. Users are able to see exactly what their page will look like live as they are building. This enables users to change and edit while building their site.
There are a huge number of customization options, with which users can build a unique webpage. It’s also constantly updated and you get features like custom font or inline editing. The newest version introduces Dynamic Content which helps a lot when building out content throughout your site
X comes with a feature called ‘the customizer’. This is a handy tool as many premium themes come with their own theme options page that are not entirely compatible with WordPress. ‘The Customizer’ is highly intuitive. It integrates seamlessly with WordPress. It will help you to customize the look and feel of your website.
The regular license for X is $59 (£44) which includes future updates and 6 months customer support. Users can opt to extend support to 12-months for an additional $17.63 (£13.2).
Allegiant is a highly customizable WordPress theme that is most suited for small businesses that are just starting out.
The theme itself is simple and well laid out. Across the top there is a large header to highlight your most popular services or products. The slides on the homepage can be displayed in any order.
The theme offers several feature blocks which can be easily inserted onto your page with details about your business team or your past endeavours amongst others. These blocks come with the theme’s plugin ‘CPO Content Types’. The plugin is free and installs very quickly.
These pre-built blocks also come with testimonial section. It is very easy to copy and paste information into the blocks.
Allegiant integrates with other free popular WordPress themes such as WooCommerce, Yoast SEO, WPML and Contact Form 7.
It’s also free to download from the WordPress website.
Some online commentators mention that while the theme is customizable it is not easy to figure out how to do so. They don’t recommend Allegiant for newer users.
Astrid is the perfect choice theme for most businesses.
The theme has an impressive array of built-in widgets that users can take advantage of. Widgets and page templates are available for services and employees amongst others.
Astrid comes with a huge variety of fonts and color options. Users can easily edit the full width header to whatever they see fit. Users can also use a ‘call to action’ button with a message over it.
The theme is translation ready meaning that it can still be accessed by those users who do not speak the same language as your business.
Users can use visual graphs and displays to show their past work and experience. WooCommerce support is provided for selling products on your website. Astrid helps to make your site look well on tablets and smartphones.
Astrid is free to download but those users who want more out of their theme can ‘Go Pro’.
The ‘Pro’ option starts at $59 (£44.60) per year for a single plugin which includes one year of updates, one year of support and unlimited domain usage. All packages offer a 30-day money back guarantee.
Some online commentators have mentioned that the site can be hard to navigate making it difficult to get started.
Sydney works well for freelancers and companies who want to create a strong online presence.
It is highly customizable with many options to choose from such as Google Fonts and logo uploads. The theme has more than 600 Google fonts to choose from.
For users who want to show off, there is a full screen promotional banner that can be edited to suit your needs.
The custom elementor blocks can be designed as you see fit and to suit your promotional needs. Sydney can also display social media icons at the bottom of your page.
The theme is translation ready and provides the necessary tools for a smooth translation process.
Users have access to full color control, sticky navigation, header image and a full screen slider. Sydney also offers Parallax background affects. Users can add this to any row in the theme layout.
In July 2001, the Code Red worm infected over 359,000 hosts which were running a vulnerable implementation of Windows NT. Visitors to compromised websites were greeted with the message: “HELLO! Welcome to http://www.worm.com! Hacked By Chinese!”
Code Red and the phrase “Hacked by Chinese!” have long since passed into internet legend but the danger of website defacement is clear and present. Hackers can target your site at any time, so unless you are viewing a page as its been changed, it’s hard to respond quickly.
In this guide, you’ll discover an elegant solution to the issue of website defacement in the form of the very best security tools on the web today. These automate the task of regularly checking your domains for anomalies and make sure to notify you if any unauthorised changes are detected.
There are options to match all budgets from free services suitable for the occasional blogger to premium platforms for large business owners.
Visualping is a deceptively simple tool which offers powerful protection against website defacement. Users of the website or iOS/Android mobile apps need only enter a URL and their email address to receive regular updates of any changes made.
The tool works by making regular snapshots of the page in question then comparing these on an hourly, daily or weekly basis. It can also be customized to trigger an alert for tiny, medium or significant changes.
Visualping is not designed specifically for website defacement. As the developers’ website mentions, it will work equally well for checking on the release on concert tickets or a new product launch. However its ability to display superposed ‘images’ as well as the fact you can control the frequency Visualping checks for changes means it’s certainly fit for purpose.
The basic free version of Visualping allows you up to 2 free checks per day. Costs vary after this on a very reasonable sliding scale depending on the number of checks required. For instance, to have Visualping check your site 40 times a day (every 36 minutes) would cost just $13 (£9.72) a month.
If you need to monitor multiple domains consider installing the Visualping Chrome web extension. Once installed just click the Visualping button to start monitoring the current page.
Through to its name Visualping may not be able to detect invisible to changes to pages such as modifications of source code. If malware is a concern consider one of the other tools in this guide.
StatusCake is a many-layered treat for webmasters. This British-based site offers a way to check your pages for defacement and downtime from a variety of locations: the project maintains 48 monitoring centers in 28 countries around the world. Many centers support the more recent IPv6 protocol.
This offers subscribers a much more refined experience over simpler competitors. Not only can you adjust the frequency of checks but you can also specify the location from which you want to monitor pages. StatusCake even offers a speed test to show how quickly a page loads when checked.
There is a free package which can perform up to 10 checks at 5-minute intervals. This is fine for hobby bloggers and those with very monolithic websites but business owners can benefit more from a paid subscription.
These are very competitively priced compared to other monitoring services. StatusCake’s ‘superior’ subscription, for instance, costs only $24.49 (£18.50) a month and performs up to 100 checks at 1-minute intervals. You can lower that to $20.41 per month with annual billing.
Regardless of which package you choose, StatusCake includes multiple notification options including email, text message and even push notifications via Android/iOS. This service also works with some party apps such as PagerDuty.
Sucuri began in 2010 under the guiding hand of developer Daniel Cid who envisioned a tool which could give webmasters better insight into the security status of their websites.
It’s safe to say that Mr. Cid has been successful. The cloud-based SaaS (Software as a Service) Sucuri works not only as a monitoring platform but contains many tools to help prevent malicious attacks by hackers such as a Firewall, anti-virus and DDoS protection. This may be why Sucuri was acquired by legendary hosting provider GoDaddy in March 2018.
The Sucuri Website Firewall can handle malware prevention through use of a dedicated whitelist, so that only authorised parties can connect to your site. Sucuri also regularly monitors changes to your pages and can display appropriate warnings. Furthermore, there is a free website malware and security scanner that you can use at sitecheck.sucuri.net.
The service also maintains a dedicated incident response team, who work 365 days a year to assist you with restoring your site if anything goes wrong. Subscribers to the ‘basic’ Sucuri package for $199 (£149.46) per year are guaranteed a response within 12 hours to all support requests of this kind. The basic tier also includes features such as the firewall (with support for whitelists and blacklists), continuous scanning for defacement and malware cleanup.
Sadly, there is no free trial for Sucuri, however the main site offers a money back guarantee within 30 days if users aren’t satisfied.
OnWebChange is one of the most versatile and useful tools when it comes to defacement protection. Since it was originally developed by Briton Tom Carnell in 2009 the service has exploded and can boast tens of thousands of users. This is due in part to the sophisticated monitoring features. In the first instance, users can select one or more areas to monitor within a web page. This is ideal if you maintain pages with dynamic content.
OnWebChange will notify you each time a change takes place, either via email or via push notifications in Android/iOS. Power Users can also use a HTTP CallBacks with their own login data to adjust website content automatically e.g. to restore a defaced page.
The generous free tier offers subscribers advanced CSS (Page Content Selection) as well as the ability to scan both PDF and plain text files for changes. Free tier users are permitted a maximum of 3 tracked sites a month. Checks are made up to 30 times (roughly once a day).
Premium subscribers such as those who opt for the ‘Solo’ package for $1.40 (£1.05) a month, benefit from advanced features such as unlimited trackers and checks every 30 minutes. The highest tier of subscription simply called “Premium”, enables 5 minute tracking with some additional features.
IPVTec was created in 2014 under the supervision of a founding member of cybersecurity firm IPVSecurity who was unhappy with the monitoring solutions available to clients at the time.
Like Sucuri, the monitoring toll IPVmon is cloud-based meaning setup is minimal and you can start monitoring no matter how small the resources of your own network.
The monitor routinely checks for website defacement but also contains a number of other handy features such as verifying your SSL certificates are in date, detecting if pages are unreachable, as well as scanning for malware.
Emphasis has been placed on pro-active searches for anomalies to prevent problems before they occur. This includes actively scanning for domain hijacking and DDoS (Distributed Denial of Service) attacks as well as defacement.
If any irregularities are detected, users are notified with details via text message and email. Messages include a recommended ‘call to action’ to remedy the issues. IPVTec also has a dedicated dashboard for viewing notifications.
Sadly there is no free version but the IPVTec website offers subscribers a free 30 day trial to accustom themselves to the platforms features. The basic (Pro 5) package costs $24 (£17.94) a month ($19 a month annually) and permits monitoring of 5 pages and a single domain.
In the middle ages, the Knights Templar established the key processes for the modern system of notary services, banking, loans, and mortgages that we have today. During that era, Knights carried with them documentation that proved their identity, created by a notary, often embossed with official wax seals.
The importance of these documents was enhanced by a Papal declaration in 1139 that allowed the Knights Templar to pass freely through any border, pay no taxes, and be granted total freedom from every authority other than the Vatican.
Without the documents created by a notary, anyone could impersonate a Knight, and avoid the laws that applied to ordinary citizens throughout the rest of Europe.
And when it comes to the worldwide web today, we can draw a parallel with a similar document of authority: the SSL certificate. SSL Certification (or TLS to be more accurate) is a means to verify the source of web pages, domains, and open the door to information exchanges and electronic financial transactions.
But how do you pick a good SSL provider? Simple – read on and find out. First of all, we’ve got a list of 10 of our favored SSL certificate providers, although everyone’s needs vary, so following our list, we will engage in an in-depth discussion of all the criteria you should consider when picking the right company for you.
We’ve also rounded up the best overall website hosting services
Below are the best SSL certificate providers of 2019 :
Comodo SSL
As a highly affordable provider of SSL services, Comodo SSL has made some significant headway in the past few years.
Much of that success has been the result of very aggressive pricing, with a DV level ‘Positive SSL’ Certification costing just $7.27 (£5.5) currently for four-year coverage.
A ‘Premium’ SSL solution only costs $56.06 (£42.4) for four years. That package includes a fully validated certificate, 256-bit encryption and a $250,000 (£189,000) relying party warranty.
But be warned, validation can take some time if the information required for Comodo SSL to complete the checking process isn’t available online. On the plus side, the company has excellent support people should you have installation or browser issues.
Having operated independently for some years, in 2017, DigiCert has completed an acquisition of Symantec’s website security and related PKI (Public Key Infrastructure) solutions. The motivation for this buyout was that Symantec managed to convince 90% of Fortune 500 companies to pay for the Norton Secured Seal.
These are now DigiCert’s customers, and the company has implemented a plan to transition those using Symantec products on to DigiCert when appropriate.
The starting price for an SSL Certificate is $218 (£172) per year, although you might be able to better that with a two-year deal. A wildcard option, covering unlimited servers and a complete multi-level domain, is $688 (£541) – an enticing prospect.
Based in the US, Entrust has been in business since 1994 and has garnered a reputation as a well-oiled machine for generating certification quickly and smoothly.
Entrust was built around a wide selection of security products: ID card printers, authentication systems, credit card printers and a PKI are all among its product lines.
With so much invested in secure systems, SSL certificates are considered one of its strongest offerings. Customers especially like the ability to manage numerous certificates across multiple domains from a management console.
Prices start at $174 (£130) per year for its Standard SSL single site product, climbing to $609 (£450) for a Wildcard SSL covering unlimited servers and subdomains. From what we’ve seen, most customers seem delighted with the service at all levels, seemingly justifying the extra cost over cheaper options.
GeoTrust was once owned by VeriSign and then Symantec, and due to the sale of the latter operation, it might also be part of DigiCert by now. The business covers three main areas: SSL certificates, Signing Services and SSL for enterprise services.
Those looking for SSL certification will find that GeoTrust offers a comprehensive selection starting with domain-level and progressing up to its True BusinessID with EV level certification.
Pricing is more competitive at the higher end, so those wanting a single site certificate might want to avoid GeoTrust, but those needing EV or OV level products should take a look.
Enterprise solutions specifically tailored to government organizations, healthcare businesses and financial institutions are part of the GeoTrust range. Be prepared for identity checks to take longer than others, but the thoroughness of these checks has enhanced GeoTrust’s status.
Where some operations have a wide client base, GlobalSign is very focused on enterprise customers, especially those who are looking to deploy highly scalable PKI solutions.
By taking this route, an enterprise customer can have all the rules, policies, and procedures for using SSL certificates, and their subsequent creation, distribution and revocation are all handled for them. But if you only want SSL certificates, GlobalSign can do that too.
Having the level of support and organization that GlobalSign delivers doesn’t come cheap, and even for a single site with only DV level certification, prices start at $249 (£189). For those wanting the full EV certification, expect to pay $599 (£455) per year for a single site.
GoDaddy might be better known for its web hosting plans, but it’s also a big provider of SSL services.
Instead of offering DV, OV and EV certification at different prices, they all cost the same relatively low price. The pricing structure is instead based on a single site, multiple sites, or a domain with full subdomain cover.
Currently a single site, (DV, OV or EV level) costs $79.99 (£63.5) per year, and the all level domain solution is only $369.99 (£294) per year. The return on that investment is the best SHA2 and 2048-bit encryption, and the trust seal provided by McAfee Secure.
One quirk of GoDaddy’s offering is that while the fresh installation is relatively cheap, renewal can be more expensive. If you can be organized enough to do fresh installs each year, you can save yourself a little money over simply renewing.
In some respects Network Solutions is a little like GoDaddy, in that they both offer a wide range of web-related services, like domain names and e-commerce solutions, and SSL certification isn’t their sole focus.
What might attract customers is this firm’s pricing, with a base cost that starts at $59.99 (£45.5) with a 2-year term for a single site, rising to $403 (£309) for an EV level certificate that should be issued within five working days.
The weakness of this offering would seem to be the support team, which has been described in less than glowing terms by some customers. So given that, if you understand the details of installing certificates, then this might be for you, but anyone wanting extensive technical support may want to look elsewhere.
RapidSSL is owned by GeoTrust, another SSL provider we’ve already mentioned in this list. The business logic behind this is that whereas GeoTrust focuses on corporate giants, RapidSSL targets smaller businesses that are more cost-sensitive.
For just $17.95 (£13.6) per year, RapidSSL will provide a single domain certificate with 128/256-bit encryption with a browser recognition that exceeds 99%. A wildcard certificate that covers unlimited subdomains is $149 (£113) per year, plus it includes a $10,000 (£7,500) warranty and a 30-day money-back guarantee.
Free support is provided 24/7 by web and email, and installation tools are part of the package at no extra cost. And, even at this low price, the service is built on the same GeoTrust global infrastructure as the corporate customers benefit from.
If the most important metric of this sector is customer approval, then SSL.com is delivering the type of SSL service that wins friends and returning customers. Part of that equation is strong customer services and support teams, and the other element is competitive pricing which values those willing to commit for longer periods than a year.
A single domain level certificate starts at $49 (£36) per year but can be as low as $36.75 (£28) per annum if bought for five years. If you’re a smaller business looking for certification, SSL.com might be a good place to start.
The company is hardly a household name, but Thawte has managed to corral more than 40% of the global market for SSL certificates. So far it has issued nearly a billion certificates in 240 countries worldwide.
What’s helped the firm establish this position is the strength of its offerings, and selling points include impressive browser compatibility, excellent certificate management tools, and up to 256-bit encryption.
For those who need EV level certification, the price is $179 (yearly plan), and that comes with a promise to complete the background checks in one to three days maximum. The success that Thawte has had seems well grounded in a strong combination of customer satisfaction and affordable pricing.
The mechanism of SSL certification has two important functions: authentication and encryption.
As a means to authorize a connection, the SSL certificate holds information about the business, website or person you are connecting to, and is also a means to verify that identity through a third-party.
If you wish to see this in action, look at the URL of this web page in the address bar of your browser, and alongside the text, just on the left, you should see a small green padlock that identifies that this is a secure SSL-certificated site.
Clicking on the padlock will tell you that the connection is secure and allow you to reveal what information the certificate has. That will include the users of the certificate, and the SSL provider that bestowed authorization.
In addition to authority and verification, the SSL certificate also includes a means to encrypt traffic between the user’s computer and the website. Without this encryption, sensitive information like passwords could potentially be compromised by a nefarious party intercepting the data traffic flowing between the client computer and the web server.
The security of this system is underpinned by another independent third-party, the trusted Certificate Authority (CA), which issues the SSL certificate under strict guidelines.
Very much mirroring the phrase ‘my word is my bond’, the support of a CA with an SSL certificate is a declaration of trust in a person, company or website. And the CA is in turn verified by a Root certificate holder, proving that they are trusted to issue certificates and revoke them where necessary.
Should these trusted relationships fail, the SSL certificates become invalid. In that case, anyone visiting a location covered by one such certificate would immediately be warned that it has no valid SSL certificate, and that their connection may no longer be secure.
As you can imagine, the impact that a revoked certificate would have on a live business would be very serious. So it’s vital that you get your SSL certificate from the right source, backed by the most respected CA.
Having inherent trust where identity is concerned is necessary, but having the right level of certification for the business is also very important.
Special relationships
When people talk about SSL certificates, it is easy to assume that they’re all the same. But depending on who authorized them and how diligent the background checks were, they come with different levels of validation.
Here are the four levels of validation most commonly used:
Self-signed. At first glance, the idea of self-signed certificates seems mildly ridiculous, because looking in the mirror and confirming that the reflection is indeed you won’t work at passport control. However, if the purpose of these certificates is to control traffic on an internal corporate intranet, it works well enough, and avoids the browser repeatedly complaining about unsecured web locations.
Domain Validation (DV). The next rung up is the Domain Validated SSL certificate, which is purely a confirmation that the web pages are truly coming from the expected domain and not some other. It says nothing about the person or business in question, just that they own a domain.
Organization Validated (OV). The highest level of validation that an individual can aspire to, and high enough for many businesses. Company credentials and those of the named owners are checked against extensive databases, including those held by local governments.
Extended Validation (EV). The pinnacle of SSL issuance is the fully authenticated SSL certificate, needed for any company that wants to offer their customers secure web locations, email and financial transactions.
While self-signed and domain level certificates have their uses, it’s the OV and EV levels that businesses truly need. Because they prove that a company has domain ownership, a genuine business, and that the certificate was applied for by authorized personnel.
As it’s reasonable to expect, checks of this type take time. Therefore, applying for and being granted an authenticated SSL certificate is not something that can happen five minutes before a new web venture is about to go live.
The other element that separates one SSL certificate from another is the level of encryption that it applies, and exactly how secure that makes it.
Encryption
The model for SSL certificates allows for them to use 128 or 256-bit encryption, should the client’s browser support it. Calculations show that it would take a supercomputer 13.75 billion years to test every permutation of a 128-bit encrypted code.
And, for good measure, the initial handshake is performed using an ultra-secure 2048-bit RSA key. Once past that awkward first date, SSL communication is usually continued with 128, 192 or 256-bit, as without quantum computers these are practically uncrackable, and they put less stress on the computers encrypting and decrypting at either end.
Most providers are offering 256-bit encryption these days, but that’s only valid when the web server, client computer operating system and browser can all operate at that encryption level.
Old operating systems and browsers can force encryption levels to 40 or 56-bit, even if the certificate they’re accessing is capable of 256-bit.
While you can’t entirely control the client end, the minimum requirement for encryption should be 256-bit at the server end, period.
What makes a good SSL purchase?
There is a temptation to make choices entirely based on cost, especially if you have lots of sites to cover or a dynamic business environment.
Poor decisions can have big cost implications, and changing direction once you have a consumer-facing solution isn’t ideal.
The following factors should play a part in picking the right issuance operation for you:
Period of trial – Before anything goes live you’ll want to test it, yes?
Browser compatibility – With so many computers still running Windows 7 and even older releases, working with older browsers is still a major concern.
Issuance timeframe – When deadlines are in play, time can be critical should a new certificate suddenly be needed
Trust level type – The trick is to match the needs of the web location with the level of security and trust needed. If you don’t do financial transactions, then EV level security probably isn’t required. Not all firms offer OV level certificates and some companies try to charge for self-signed, amazingly.
Trust site seal – Providing a recognizable seal that the public can see is an easy way to let your customers know that a site is secure and that their information is safe.
Support of SSL experts – The subtle nuances of SSL and certification can befuddle even the most astute IT people, so having an SSL support team available is critical.
Refund policy – Entering a business relationship assuming it will go sideways isn’t a particularly positive viewpoint, but knowing that your money will come back if needed is a sensible precaution.
Warranty policy – Some CAs cover errors in identification, loss of documents or intentional/accidental errors. These warranties might have implications for those companies that self-insure.
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