Articles by Michael L Hicks

Defining the best gaming monitor for your PC gaming setup varies upon your budget, the type of games you play, and your level of competitiveness. You can find a large 4K monitor with a high refresh rate for over a grand, but most gamers have to choose between either high refresh rates for online gaming or high resolution for maximum graphical performance. Thankfully, a solid QHD monitor like the Razer Raptor 27 hits the sweet spot between the two, but we have several alternatives below for more specialized needs.

Best Overall: Razer Raptor 27

While discussing the Razer Raptor 27, we’ll introduce all of the terms and features to look out for in a gaming monitor, as it basically has everything you can ask for. Its 144Hz refresh rate means the Raptor can refresh itself 144 times per second, making the gameplay smoother and ensuring your high FPS performance translates to the monitor. With a 1ms response time, your mouse movements will immediately translate onto the screen with no di…

A solid Google Pixel 4a 5G case is necessary for protecting its excellent OLED panel and high-spec dual cameras. The phone itself has a relatively plain design and no color options besides black, so you have no excuse not to cover it up with a thick, protective case. That being said, while all of our heavy-duty cases will help your Pixel 4a 5G survive falls, we found many sleek and beautiful cases that will only add to your phone’s charm. Here are the best Google Pixel 4a 5G cases you can trust to protect your phone — and look good doing it.

Multi-layered protection

Spigen Tough Armor Case

Staff Pick

Aside from dual TPU and polycarbonate (PC) layers, Spigen threw in a foam layer and air cushioning to blunt the most shocking corner drops. Add in a kickstand, clicky buttons, and reasonable price, and the Tough Armor model has few downsides besides a rather plain appearance.

From $15 at Amazon

Protects more than credit cards

Vena vCommute Wallet Case

Wallet cases usu…

Many Oculus Quest 2 games with Rift versions support cross-buy, so you can use Oculus Link to get better graphics and even new game modes for popular titles you already own. But there are also Rift or Rift S games with no Quest ports that are absolutely worth playing once you’ve bought a VR-ready PC. Below are the best Oculus Rift games on Quest 2 using Oculus Link.

★ Featured favorite:

Asgard’s Wrath

As a Norse god guided by the famous trickster Loki, you must possess various mortal warriors to guide them to their glorious destinies. In practice, that means you’ll switch between different fighting styles and powers for each mini-campaign, keeping things fresh for a campaign that’ll last you dozens of hours. Across dungeons and quests, you’ll learn tidbits about Norse mythology, recruit animal companions, and generally have a blast. It’s worth the full price, but Oculus may still be giving it away for free to new Quest 2 owners.

$40 at Oculus Store

Zero-G with …

Among all the best game controllers for Xbox Game Pass for Android, the Razer Kishi sits at the top of the list. The Kishi can convert almost any modern Android phone into a handheld console, giving you comfortable controls without having to use a phone clip or stand. We’ll walk you through how to use the Razer Kishi with Game Pass for Android and whether your phone is compatible.

What you’ll need

Best Xbox Game Pass controller for Android: Razer Kishi
Best game streaming library: Xbox Game Pass Ultimate

Why use Razer Kishi for Xbox Game Pass for Android?

There are two versions of the Razer Kishi: A generic Android version that is compatible with most of the best game streaming Android apps, and an Xbox-branded version made in partnership with Microsoft. Both are fully compatible with Xbox Game Pass and are functionally very similar, but the Xbox version has the View, Menu, and Nexus buttons seen on an Xbox Wireless Controller, while the Android version has Home, Forward, a…

Built for the bedroom

Nest Hub (2nd Gen)

$100 at Best Buy

Pros

Sleep tracking tech
Gesture controls
Faster processor
One more microphone
Better bass performance

Cons

Slightly more expensive
No camera

The flashy new addition to the 2021 Nest Hub is its Soli radar, which has been optimized to track and rate your sleep patterns to help you get more rest. Otherwise, it has a faster CPU and some other small improvements but still lacks a video camera.

Still functional

Nest Hub (1st Gen)

$90 at Best Buy

Pros

Slightly cheaper
Same display and speaker
Still getting updated with new features

Cons

No Soli tech
Less powerful bass
No camera

Unless you find the original Nest Hub at a steep discount, it doesn’t offer anything the newer model lacks and probably isn’t worth buying fresh in 2021. But if you already own one, it’s not as far behind the 2nd-generation model in specs and features as you might think.

With the new Google Nest Hub shipping on March 30, …

Whether you need them for photo editing, next-gen PC gaming, 4K streaming, or just because you’re a sucker for more pixels, the best 4K monitors give you a level of visual quality that 1080p or 1440p monitors can’t match. They can also get expensive, which is why we’ve included several budget and mid-range picks to go with our premium favorites. In fact, our top pick, the excellent ViewSonic VP2768-4K, is also one of the most affordable despite its high-quality specs. Narrow your 4K monitor search down to these reliable picks.

Best Overall: ViewSonic VP2768-4K PRO 27 Inch 4K Monitor

While far from the best in terms of raw specs, we chose the ViewSonic VP2768-4K for our top slot because it doesn’t stray too far from what you’d pay for an excellent non-4K monitor and because it hits a wide gamut of colors for anyone who regularly uses photo or video editing software.

Specifically, ViewSonic promises integrated color uniformity for 99% sRGB, 99% EBU, 99% Rec. 709, or 100% SMPTE-C c…

Amazon Luna started as an exclusive early access beta, but you can now stream its games without an official invitation on certain Fire TV devices with a Luna-compatible controller. As for playing on Android or iOS phones, computers, or other devices, there are specific hoops you’ll need to jump through before you can start gaming. Here are the Amazon Luna-compatible devices available today.

All Amazon Luna-compatible Fire TV devices

Once you have updated to the latest version of FireOS, you’ll have the option to download Luna and start playing, so long as you own one of the following Amazon streaming devices:

Fire TV Stick Lite
Fire TV Stick (2nd & 3rd generation)
Fire TV Stick 4K
Fire TV (3rd generation)
Fire TV Cube
Toshiba Fire TV Edition
Insignia Fire TV Edition

That means that most of the best Amazon Fire TV Sticks support Luna, but not the Amazon Fire TV (1st gen), Amazon Fire TV (2nd gen), or Fire TV Stick (1st gen). We believe the Fire TV Edition Soundbar is also …

Best answer: The Luna Controller, Xbox One Controller, DualShock 4 Wireless Controller, PC mouse and keyboard, are all Amazon Luna compatible controllers. Other third-party Bluetooth controllers may require downloaded drivers to work or may not support all Luna features or mapped buttons.

Very few functional options (for now)

You can technically pair nearly any Bluetooth controller to Amazon Luna-compatible devices, either via Bluetooth or via a USB-C cable with data transfer. But unless Luna has been specifically optimized for that controller’s software, you may find that the controller doesn’t work properly. Only the Luna, Xbox, and PS4 controllers can be fully trusted.

For example, we successfully paired a PS5 DualSense controller to an Amazon Fire Stick, only to find that the Square button corresponded to “A,” the “X” button to “B,” L2 to L1, and L1 to R1, at which point we stopped checking and unpaired it. While you could technically adjust your thinking and just press differ…

The best Android features that iPhone users don’t know they’re missing.

As a former die-hard iPhone user just now switching to Android in 2021, I’m exploring the differences between the two operating systems and discussing the Android perks that you might take for granted, but that are genuine novelties for iOS users.

Jump to:

Fingerprint scanner
Split-screening
Rotating wallpapers
Prioritized notifications
Always-on display
Cloud gaming apps
Default Google Assistant
What Android features should iOS get?

My family’s generally not big on change when it comes to phones. My dad still happily uses a Pantech Breeze III flip phone that’s nearly a decade old, while the rest of us regularly tried to make our iPhones last at least five years at a time. Our thriftiness and complacency meant that I never paid much attention to new features from Apple or Android until it was time to buy a new phone.

It turns out that sticking with iOS all these years kept me in the dark about some p…

With its accurate body tracking, Guardian protection, and light wireless headset, the Oculus Quest 2 may be the best VR headset for fast-paced gameplay. Plenty of the best Oculus Quest 2 games will give you some form of exercise simply by making you stand up and flail your arms around for an hour, but there are a few truly heart-pumping apps for aerobic exercise that’ll get you sweating and your muscles burning. Here is a list of the best Oculus Quest 2 workout games that will give you a killer workout in VR —except you’ll be too busy having fun to notice.

★ Featured Favorite

FitXR

Originally called BoxVR, this exercise app later added an entire dance workout system at no additional cost. FitXR received a stamp of approval from our resident group fitness instructor as an effective way for both beginners and experts to lose weight. You choose a class ranging from 3 to 25 minutes of various intensity, where you’ll either punch, jab, uppercut, and squat your way through sha…