Circuit & Co.

Blog

  • The 14-inch laptop that finally gets battery life right

    The 14-inch laptop that finally gets battery life right

    Three weeks of daily use, and one genuine surprise. After three weeks of daily use, the first thing that stands out is how little there is to complain about. Battery life comfortably clears a working day, and the screen is bright enough to use outdoors.

    Benchmarks only tell part of the story. In everyday tasks like exporting video, juggling dozens of browser tabs and video calls, the difference between this and last year’s model is smaller than the marketing suggests.

    What stayed with us

    Where it falls short is repairability. Opening the case voids the warranty, the battery is glued in, and the manufacturer sells spare parts only through authorised centres.

    The details are never the small part.

    Setup took about ten minutes. We migrated from an older device using the built-in transfer tool, and everything, including saved Wi-Fi networks and two-factor tokens, came across intact.

    If you already own last year’s model, there is no reason to upgrade. If you are replacing something older than four years, this is an easy recommendation, with caveats about the price.

    Before you go

    • Take your time with it.
    • Notice the small things.
    • Write down what you want to remember.

    Our testing methodology is unchanged: each device is used as a daily driver for at least two weeks, and all measurements are repeated three times.

  • Set up passkeys in ten minutes, and stop worrying about passwords

    Set up passkeys in ten minutes, and stop worrying about passwords

    A step-by-step guide for every major service. Benchmarks only tell part of the story. In everyday tasks like exporting video, juggling dozens of browser tabs and video calls, the difference between this and last year’s model is smaller than the marketing suggests.

    Where it falls short is repairability. Opening the case voids the warranty, the battery is glued in, and the manufacturer sells spare parts only through authorised centres.

    What stayed with us

    Setup took about ten minutes. We migrated from an older device using the built-in transfer tool, and everything, including saved Wi-Fi networks and two-factor tokens, came across intact.

    The details are never the small part.

    If you already own last year’s model, there is no reason to upgrade. If you are replacing something older than four years, this is an easy recommendation, with caveats about the price.

    Our testing methodology is unchanged: each device is used as a daily driver for at least two weeks, and all measurements are repeated three times.

    Before you go

    • Take your time with it.
    • Notice the small things.
    • Write down what you want to remember.

    After three weeks of daily use, the first thing that stands out is how little there is to complain about. Battery life comfortably clears a working day, and the screen is bright enough to use outdoors.

  • Browsers agree on a faster way to load the web

    Browsers agree on a faster way to load the web

    Speculative loading and view transitions move from experiment to default. Where it falls short is repairability. Opening the case voids the warranty, the battery is glued in, and the manufacturer sells spare parts only through authorised centres.

    Setup took about ten minutes. We migrated from an older device using the built-in transfer tool, and everything, including saved Wi-Fi networks and two-factor tokens, came across intact.

    What stayed with us

    If you already own last year’s model, there is no reason to upgrade. If you are replacing something older than four years, this is an easy recommendation, with caveats about the price.

    The details are never the small part.

    Our testing methodology is unchanged: each device is used as a daily driver for at least two weeks, and all measurements are repeated three times.

    After three weeks of daily use, the first thing that stands out is how little there is to complain about. Battery life comfortably clears a working day, and the screen is bright enough to use outdoors.

    Before you go

    • Take your time with it.
    • Notice the small things.
    • Write down what you want to remember.

    Benchmarks only tell part of the story. In everyday tasks like exporting video, juggling dozens of browser tabs and video calls, the difference between this and last year’s model is smaller than the marketing suggests.

  • Repairability should be a headline spec

    Repairability should be a headline spec

    Why a glued-in battery tells you everything about a product’s intentions. Setup took about ten minutes. We migrated from an older device using the built-in transfer tool, and everything, including saved Wi-Fi networks and two-factor tokens, came across intact.

    If you already own last year’s model, there is no reason to upgrade. If you are replacing something older than four years, this is an easy recommendation, with caveats about the price.

    What stayed with us

    Our testing methodology is unchanged: each device is used as a daily driver for at least two weeks, and all measurements are repeated three times.

    The details are never the small part.

    After three weeks of daily use, the first thing that stands out is how little there is to complain about. Battery life comfortably clears a working day, and the screen is bright enough to use outdoors.

    Benchmarks only tell part of the story. In everyday tasks like exporting video, juggling dozens of browser tabs and video calls, the difference between this and last year’s model is smaller than the marketing suggests.

    Before you go

    • Take your time with it.
    • Notice the small things.
    • Write down what you want to remember.

    Where it falls short is repairability. Opening the case voids the warranty, the battery is glued in, and the manufacturer sells spare parts only through authorised centres.

  • A year with the budget phone everyone told us to skip

    A year with the budget phone everyone told us to skip

    Cheaper, slower and, somehow, better to live with. If you already own last year’s model, there is no reason to upgrade. If you are replacing something older than four years, this is an easy recommendation, with caveats about the price.

    Our testing methodology is unchanged: each device is used as a daily driver for at least two weeks, and all measurements are repeated three times.

    What stayed with us

    After three weeks of daily use, the first thing that stands out is how little there is to complain about. Battery life comfortably clears a working day, and the screen is bright enough to use outdoors.

    The details are never the small part.

    Benchmarks only tell part of the story. In everyday tasks like exporting video, juggling dozens of browser tabs and video calls, the difference between this and last year’s model is smaller than the marketing suggests.

    Where it falls short is repairability. Opening the case voids the warranty, the battery is glued in, and the manufacturer sells spare parts only through authorised centres.

    Before you go

    • Take your time with it.
    • Notice the small things.
    • Write down what you want to remember.

    Setup took about ten minutes. We migrated from an older device using the built-in transfer tool, and everything, including saved Wi-Fi networks and two-factor tokens, came across intact.

  • How to back up everything, properly, this weekend

    How to back up everything, properly, this weekend

    The 3-2-1 rule without the jargon. Our testing methodology is unchanged: each device is used as a daily driver for at least two weeks, and all measurements are repeated three times.

    After three weeks of daily use, the first thing that stands out is how little there is to complain about. Battery life comfortably clears a working day, and the screen is bright enough to use outdoors.

    What stayed with us

    Benchmarks only tell part of the story. In everyday tasks like exporting video, juggling dozens of browser tabs and video calls, the difference between this and last year’s model is smaller than the marketing suggests.

    The details are never the small part.

    Where it falls short is repairability. Opening the case voids the warranty, the battery is glued in, and the manufacturer sells spare parts only through authorised centres.

    Setup took about ten minutes. We migrated from an older device using the built-in transfer tool, and everything, including saved Wi-Fi networks and two-factor tokens, came across intact.

    Before you go

    • Take your time with it.
    • Notice the small things.
    • Write down what you want to remember.

    If you already own last year’s model, there is no reason to upgrade. If you are replacing something older than four years, this is an easy recommendation, with caveats about the price.

  • What the new wireless standard means for your home network

    What the new wireless standard means for your home network

    Faster, yes, but mostly more reliable. After three weeks of daily use, the first thing that stands out is how little there is to complain about. Battery life comfortably clears a working day, and the screen is bright enough to use outdoors.

    Benchmarks only tell part of the story. In everyday tasks like exporting video, juggling dozens of browser tabs and video calls, the difference between this and last year’s model is smaller than the marketing suggests.

    What stayed with us

    Where it falls short is repairability. Opening the case voids the warranty, the battery is glued in, and the manufacturer sells spare parts only through authorised centres.

    The details are never the small part.

    Setup took about ten minutes. We migrated from an older device using the built-in transfer tool, and everything, including saved Wi-Fi networks and two-factor tokens, came across intact.

    If you already own last year’s model, there is no reason to upgrade. If you are replacing something older than four years, this is an easy recommendation, with caveats about the price.

    Before you go

    • Take your time with it.
    • Notice the small things.
    • Write down what you want to remember.

    Our testing methodology is unchanged: each device is used as a daily driver for at least two weeks, and all measurements are repeated three times.

  • Open-source maintainers deserve better than thank-you notes

    Open-source maintainers deserve better than thank-you notes

    On funding the software that everything else is built on. Benchmarks only tell part of the story. In everyday tasks like exporting video, juggling dozens of browser tabs and video calls, the difference between this and last year’s model is smaller than the marketing suggests.

    Where it falls short is repairability. Opening the case voids the warranty, the battery is glued in, and the manufacturer sells spare parts only through authorised centres.

    What stayed with us

    Setup took about ten minutes. We migrated from an older device using the built-in transfer tool, and everything, including saved Wi-Fi networks and two-factor tokens, came across intact.

    The details are never the small part.

    If you already own last year’s model, there is no reason to upgrade. If you are replacing something older than four years, this is an easy recommendation, with caveats about the price.

    Our testing methodology is unchanged: each device is used as a daily driver for at least two weeks, and all measurements are repeated three times.

    Before you go

    • Take your time with it.
    • Notice the small things.
    • Write down what you want to remember.

    After three weeks of daily use, the first thing that stands out is how little there is to complain about. Battery life comfortably clears a working day, and the screen is bright enough to use outdoors.