Almost all computer monitors and TVs use the same technology that first appeared in the 1940s: the CRT. How both consumers and manufacturers would love a viable flat panel display. LCDs dont make the grade: its too hard - and expensive - to produce LCDs larger than 20 inches diagonal.

Picture this scenario: your daughter is in her bedroom using the old laptop computer to do some schoolwork, you are busy finishing a presentation for work on the desktop computer thats connected to the colour printer and your partner has just arrived home from the gym. Suddenly everyone is in the main computer room.

Computer Associates is offering a free 12 month subscription of eTrust to all Microsoft users as part of Microsoft’s international PC Protect campaign. The problem is that most home users will find it too difficult to configure.

Computer mice are arguably the best thing since sliced bread - for computer users anyway - until you try to draw with one.

The Mega 2801 has one of the coolest features seen on a HTPC: it lets you play CDs (but not DVDs) without the computer turned on. It has two red buttons on the fascia that let you choose between CD or PC.

Awesome! If you use a computer to store your music or movies (or both), you should check this one out

The Creative Sound Blaster Live! Platinum 5.1 is the latest sound card from Creative Labs, the company that has dominated the consumer-level computer audio card market for most of the last decade.

Just how high end can a Bluetooth headset get? Very, as it turns out.

The CWS SuperPro S3 has some very nice components under the hood: its equipped with the fastest Athlon XP in this months crop (a 2100+), 512MB of PC2100 DDR and an 80GB HDD.

It’s easy to believe that registry cleaners fall into the category of “computer voodoo”. You expect to perform a few ritualistic gestures and gain a faster, less problematic computer.

A very-well designed alternative to big beefy computers which make a lot of noise.

2003 is going to be remembered as the year of the Matrix glut, with two movies, A multi-platform computer game and DVD releases across the year. Rumours are that there is even another game coming out, although this one may not hit until 2004. For now, in between Matrix Reloaded and Matrix Revolutions theatrical releases is the release of the companion DVD, Animatrix.

The ProV is a product similar in nature to the Canopus ADVC-100 (page 44), but where the ADVC-100 is used for transcoding video streams with an eye on digital video work, the ProV is used to bring versatility to your computer monitor, or breathe life into any spare monitors youve got laying around.

Is software or hardware you installed on your PC causing your system to crash? Perhaps you are having rouble with a USB connection or your computer takes a long time to switch between programs?

The concept of sticking all that ever-so-sensitive analog circuitry into a box that resides outside the electrically noisy confines of a computer seems conceptually sensible.

Intel has promised that Hyper-Threading (HT) will deliver increased efficiency and decrease the amount of time taken to accomplish multiple processes. But is it really all that it’s cracked up to be?

The HP Pavilion s5180a punches above its weight and provides a welcoming entry point for a starter or low-end upgrade system.

We've had a quick play with the new version - and we like what we see. Definitely one to stick in your PC toolkit for 2008.

Excellent support, but a confusing user interface and disappointing firewall let AVG down

Excellent value for money, but a few performance glitches.