Hands-on first impressions: Three days with the Apple Watch Sport edition by Matthew Miller

I really was planning to pre-order an Apple Watch and even went to the 24-hour Apple Store in New York for a 10:30 pm appointment to try one out, but it seemed it was not the wearable for me. After returning the Galaxy S6 Edge due to poor battery life and realizing the Apple iPhone 6 Plus is really the best device for my needs, I changed my mind and decided to buy an Apple Watch. Unfortunately, they were backordered until June. Since Kevin Tofel's pre-order didn't ship as planned, I decided to buy one on eBay and had it delivered to my hotel in Washington, DC, last Saturday so we could get some hands-on coverage here at ZDNet. Retail packaging and unboxing I've always been impressed...

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iMac Buyer's Guide: Is the 5K iMac Right For You? by Roman Loyola

The new Retina iMac, also known as the iMac with 5K Retina display, came at a time when the iMac line needed an infusion of something new, something dramatic -- after all, it's difficult to get really excited about another speed bump. The last time Apple made a major change in the iMac was in late 2012, and that was when Apple shrank the iMac to 5mm at the edge, a change that was nice, but a thinner iMac wasn't on most people's wish list. The Retina iMac is the change in the iMac lineup we've all been waiting for, but it's not quite the computer for everyone -- yet. This buyer's guide, and the video below, take a look at what needs to be considered...

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Five Things You Must Do Before You Ditch Your Old Gadgets by Dan Tynan

Getting rid of your old electronics? Whether you’re donating, selling, or recycling your aging gear, you’ll want to take the following steps to make sure your data stays safe and your gear goes where it’s supposed to. And, no, these steps are not optional. (ThinkStock) 1. Back that thang up!The first thing to do before you part with any piece of electronics is to make sure you have copies of the data that was on it — especially information that’s difficult or impossible to replace, like photos, videos, and contacts. If you don’t use an automated PC backup service like Backblaze or Carbonite, you’ll want to copy files manually (preferably to an external storage device like a...

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Send files, links and more to your phone or back by Kim Komando

When you use multiple gadgets regularly, like a smartphone, a tablet and a computer, it can be frustrating to keep important pictures, links and files the same on all of them.  You can quickly fill up your email and text messaging trying to send files back and forth, and it's a hassle to find the information when you need it. It would be much easier if there was a dedicated service that kept your gadgets on the same page. Well there is, and it does that and so much more. This add-on works with your computer's browser to send notifications from your computer to your smartphone or tablet and vice versa. You can send a link, file, picture,...

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Battle of the hard drives: SSD vs. HDD by Kim Komando

I talk quite a bit about speeding up your computer. Whether it is streamlining startup, adding RAM or , tracking down resource hogs there is always something you can try. Of course, at the end of the day these tricks are trying to compensate for one computer part: the hard drive. It is by far the slowest part of any modern computer. While the rest of the computer is operating in nanoseconds and microseconds, a hard drive works in milliseconds, which is more than a thousand times slower. Your processor and RAM can spend precious time just waiting around for information to arrive. That's why solid-state hard drives are gaining popularity. If you aren't familiar with...

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Pogue’s Top Apple Watch Tips by Dan Pogue

Well, it’s the big day: April 24, the day the Apple Watch is supposed to start landing on the wrists of the faithful — the faithful who preordered. Some of them, anyway. If you’re among them, you’ll quickly discover that this watch’s operating system has many visual and gestural similarities to the software on the iPhone. But overall, the navigation and features are very different. And so, to help you dive into the splendors of your new acquisition — and for all the curious bystanders — I offer you Pogue’s Top Tips for the Apple Watch. These are the little goodies Apple has buried in the watch’s software but never really told anybody about. Many of these rely on the...

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Report: 1 in 5 Android Apps Is Malware by Dan Tynan

Bad news, phandroids. Android malware is on the rise. According to Symantec’s latest Internet Security Threat Report, “17 percent of all Android apps (nearly one million total) were actually malware in disguise.” In 2013, Symantec uncovered roughly 700,000 virus-laden apps. More than one third of all apps were what Symatec calls "grayware" or “madware” -- mobile software whose primary purpose is to bombard you with ads. The company also discovered the first example of mobile crypto-ransomware – software that encrypts your data and holds it hostage until you pay ransom for it – for Android devices. (Norton Mobile Insights) How to stay safe The good news is that it’s pretty...

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Watch these Netflix movies before they're gone by Kim Komando

It's that time again! Licenses for individual movies and TV shows are set to expire on Netflix at the end of the month, so that means it's time to watch certain titles before they disappear forever. But don't worry, the streaming video service also regularly adds news films as well. If you were planning on watching "Airplane!" or "Life Is Beautiful" on Netflix, you better do it in the next six days. That's because those movies and 34 other titles are expiring at the end of the month. Not only that, but dozens of other movies including "Skyfall" and "Flight" will be gone sometime in May. But we've also got lots to look forward to with a brand new Netflix original...

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