Computer Shopper - December 2014.pdf

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All you ever wanted to know about code but were afraid to ask
PROGRAMMING SPECIAL!
1
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37
RE IEW
BRITAIN’S BIGGEST TECHNOLOGY MAGAZINE •
DECEMBER 2014
TTER PC
BU Y A BE
AS
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OUR L
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T A Y
PLUS!
MORE ST
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BIGGER SCREENS
LE S S C A SH
Inside the world’s best sims...
and how to recreate them
INSIDE
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Google Cardboard
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U347
U3477PQU
UltraWide viewing,
enhanced productivity
Expand your possibilities with the spacious 34-inch WQHD monitor. This 21:9 display offers
UltraWide 3440 x 1440 resolution for gorgeous detail and more room to get things done. Built-in
7-watt speakers and 1.07 billion colors complete the cinematic experience. The extra space lets
you split your screen into multiple panes for increased efficiency. Use picture-by-picture mode to
display a spreadsheet and financial software or picture-in-picture to watch a movie while you chat
with a friend. Connect devices, peripherals and even a second computer with HDMI, DisplayPort,
and USB 3.0. With so much space, you’ll always see the big picture.
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PRODUCT DETAILS
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Inputs: D-Sub, DVI-D, HDMI, USB 2x 2.0, 2x 3.0, MHL, DisplayPort
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IPS Panel
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WELCOME PAGE
There’s no two ways about
it: if you want a seriously
powerful computer at an
excellent price, you can’t
beat a desktop PC. The
models we’ve tested this
month have three times
the power and twice the storage of similarly
priced laptops. They also have large monitors
and are highly capable in demanding 3D
games, not to mention the fact they’re easy
to upgrade and repair yourself. To find out
why you should buy one of these fantastic
machines, see our group test on page 80.
It’s been a while since we’ve been blown
away by an Intel processor. Recent chips have
tended to be competent if unexciting. That
changed with the release of the eight-core
‘Haswell-E’ Intel Core i7-5960X. We created
new benchmarks using Ultra HD video to test
this processor, and were amazed by how
much faster it is than Intel’s standard Haswell
chips. Read our full review on page 26.
One of the many areas in which PCs excel
is in simulations. Whether you want to soar
above the Nevada desert, tear around
Welcome!
CONTACT US
Editor
Chris Finnamore
chris@computershopper.co.uk
Features Editor
Seth Barton
seth@computershopper.co.uk
News Editor
Tom Morgan
tom@computershopper.co.uk
Reviews Editor
Andrew Unsworth
andrew@computershopper.co.uk
Senior Reporter
Katharine Byrne
katharine@computershopper.co.uk
Senior Reporter
James Temperton
james@computershopper.co.uk
Staff Writer
Michael Passingham
michael@computershopper.co.uk
Staff Writer
Richard Easton
richard@computershopper.co.uk
PRODUCTION
Production Editor
Janey Goulding
Art Editor
Colin Mackleworth
CONTRIBUTORS
Bill Bagnall, Gareth Beach, Mike Bedford, Mel Croucher,
Kay Ewbank, Steve Haines, Simon Handby, Gordon Holmes,
Alan Lu, Ben Pitt, Nik Rawlinson, Heather Reeves,
David Robinson, Clive Webster
Monaco or deliver passengers safely into
Birmingham New Street, you can do it in
minute detail from your desktop. Starting on
page 112, we show you the hardware and
software you need to create the ultimate
simulation experience, and see how our
efforts compare with professional sims.
As
Shopper
readers, you know how
fundamental computing is to everyday life.
In fact, computers are so ingrained in
everything we do that it’s easy to forget
the importance of the programs that these
behind-the-scenes machines run. From
listening to the radio to boarding a train or
answering the phone, we execute countless
lines of code every day, but few know where
it all comes from. This month, we look at the
history of programming, from machine code
to the first high-level languages to the
JavaScript and Python we know today – and
peer into the future to see how programming
might change. Learn how to tell your APL
from your Fortran on page 124.
ADVERTISING
Email
ads.shopper@dennis.co.uk
Group Advertising Manager
Andrea Mason
020 7907 6662
Advertising Manager
Charlotte Milligan
020 7907 6642
COVER GIFT CONTACT
Chris Wiles
coverdiscs@computershopper.co.uk
SUBSCRIPTIONS
Tel 0844 844 0031 / 01795 592 905 Web
www.subsinfo.co.uk
UK £44.99, Europe £70, Rest of world £90
PHOTOGRAPHY
Danny Bird, Henry Carter, Phil Dawson, Lidija Kononenko,
Gemma Lawton, Jenni Leskinnen
LICENSING AND SYNDICATION
Anj Dosaj-Halai 020 7907 6132
Anj_Dosaj-Halai@dennis.co.uk
Licensing, Reprints, Eprints: Wright’s Media 0800 051 8327
MANAGEMENT
Tel 020 7907 6000
Group Editor
David Ludlow
david@computershopper.co.uk
Group Managing Director
Ian Westwood
Managing Director
John Garewal
Group Advertising Director
Julian Lloyd-Evans
Circulation Director
Martin Belson
Finance Director
Brett Reynolds
Group Finance Director
Ian Leggett
Chief Executive
James Tye
Company Founder
Felix Dennis
PRINTING
Printed by Polestar, Bicester, Oxon
Distributors Seymour 020 7429 4000
LIABILITY
While every care was taken preparing this magazine, the publishers
cannot be held responsible for the accuracy of the information or
any consequence arising from it. All judgements are based on
equipment available to
Computer Shopper
at the time of review.
‘Value for money’ comments are based on UK prices at time of
review.
Computer Shopper
takes no responsibilty for the content of
external websites whose addresses are published in the magazine.
COMPUTER SHOPPER INCORPORATES UPGRADE SHOPPER,
GAMES SHOPPER, INTERNET SHOPPER, MOBILE SHOPPER, PC
SHOPPER, PORTABLE SHOPPER AND SOFTWARE SHOPPER
36,002 (average monthly sales Jan-Dec 2011)
chris@computershopper.co.uk
Chris Finnamore,
Editor
MEET
QUESTION OF THE MONTH
TH
E
Now Apple has released a super-sized
TEAM
iPhone, what would you like to see a
bigger version of?
Chris Finnamore
Society
#wereallinthistogether
Seth Barton
Britain. Now we’ve kept
Scotland it’s time to expand,
starting with Calais
A DENNIS PUBLICATION
Computer Shopper
is published by Dennis Publishing Ltd, 30
Cleveland Street, London W1T 4JD. Company registered in England.
All material © Dennis Publishing Limited licensed by Felden 2011, and
may not be reproduced in whole or part without the consent of the
publishers. ISSN 0955-8578
© Copyright Dennis Publishing Limited.
The Curly Wurly – they
were definitely bigger when I
was a kid
David Ludlow
Katharine Byrne
Funsize Mars bars
and Cadbury Heroes
Andrew Unsworth
Millimetres, so I can
measure larger objects
James Temperton
The proportion of
hereditary peers in
the House of Lords
SUBSCRIBE
AND SAVE
Tom Morgan
Jimmy Choo Slingbacks
Michael Passingham
eReaders – there’s nothing
like a breezeblock-sized book
to make one look cultured
Richard Easton
The 1980s luggable
laptop, so I can lift it instead
of going to the gym
CALL 0844 844 0031
OR SEE PAGE 138
3
ISSUE 322
|
COMPUTER SHOPPER
|
DECEMBER 2014
worldmags.net
worldmags.net
Contents
p
74
p
124
p
80
Issue 322
December 2014
p
112
p
140
Learn
130
Set up your own online shop
132
Watch US Netflix in the UK
Our resident expert answers those persistent
software queries
How to...
134
Business Help
Regulars
6
Letters
Your regular missives of wit and wisdom
News
Our monthly round-up of the latest
technological events
16
Newsfile
Step this way for all your hardware and
Windows problems
136
Helpfile
It’s been a long time since the word
‘update’ was necessarily synonymous
with ‘improvement’, as
David Robinson
finds out to his cost
10
Under Development
22
InDepth
We examine the new reversible USB Type-C
connector and look at the forces that sank the
billion-pound retailer Phones 4U
Think virtual reality headsets cost thousands
of pounds? Think again.
Clive Webster
shows
you how to make your own for as little as £18
(smartphone not included)
140
Advanced Projects
The game of cat and mouse between
cybercops and cyber-criminals continues,
as the bad guys start generating domain
names algorithmically to keep their botnets
safe, says
Gordon Holmes
12
Cyber Cop
Features
Simulators are more immersive and realistic
than ever before. This month, simulation addict
Michael Passingham
shows you some of the
world’s best sims and takes you through the
hardware and software you need to recreate
the experience on your own PC
112
Drive, Fly, Race
By using conditional statements in PHP, you
can make your website react to your users
and change what it displays.
Nik Rawlinson
shows you how to put them to good use
145
Web Expert
Social media advertising and LED-induced
insomnia are the targets of our ire this
month, while
Mel Croucher
thinks
driverless cars signal the end of the
human brain
14
Rants & Raves
124
Everything you ever
wanted to know about code
Dying is inconvenient enough without
having to worry about cleansing the web
of past indiscretions, but luckily the tech
companies are here to help, says
Zygote
154
Zygote
Our world is built on computer code, and every
day we cause innumerable lines to be executed.
But where have all these programming
languages come from, why are there so many
and what does the future of programming
hold?
Mike Bedford
investigates
Digital photos and the internet are a
compelling combination, as they enable
you to share your pictures with people
all over the world.
Ben Pitt
investigates
photo-sharing services to see which will
do your creations justice
147
Multimedia Expert
Equipped with a tablet or smartphone and the
right apps, you can DJ like a pro without having
to lug heavy decks and stacks of vinyl around.
Ben Pitt
gets in the mix
151
App Creative
4
DECEMBER 2014
|
COMPUTER SHOPPER
|
ISSUE 322
worldmags.net
worldmags.net
p
80
p
112
p
104
p
124
Reviews
The exciting eight-core Intel ‘Haswell-E’ Core
i7-5960X processor is phenomenally powerful
and great for overclocking
26
This month’s hot product
53
Printers & Scanners
Group Tests
You can get an impressive specification and
an astonishing amount of power from a
£700 desktop PC. The 10 computers we
test this month have powerful processors,
huge hard disks, good-quality monitors and
graphics cards that are bang up to date, all
for the price of a merely average laptop
The Canon Pixma MG5650 inkjet MFP
produces great-quality prints and has low
running costs
80
£700 PCs
The Aorus X3 is thinner and prettier than a
laptop of its power and gaming prowess has
any right to be
28
PCs & Laptops
54
Storage
Buffalo’s Ministation Air 2 portable NAS device
lets you access your data on the move from
iOS and Android devices
We rate the iPhone 6, ZTE’s Open C Firefox
phone and Dell’s Venue 8 Android tablet
38
Handhelds
56
Networks
Carry a wireless hotspot wherever you go with
the TP-Link M5350 portable 3G router
Sony’s Cyber-shot RX100 III is expensive for a
compact camera, but it’s worth every penny
44
Photography
Find out if Nvidia’s screen tear-beating G-Sync
technology is worth the expense in our AOC
g2460Pg monitor review
48
Displays
The Gigabyte GA-X99-UD4 is the first
motherboard we’ve seen that supports Intel’s
new Haswell-E processors
58
Components
Whether you’re skydiving, skiing, sailing or
cycling, you can capture your feats of
derring-do with an action cam. We test
eight of the best
96
Action cameras
LG’s NB3540 may have no HDMI inputs or
outputs, but it’s still a great-value soundbar
with a convenient wireless subwoofer
50
Home Cinema
Corel PaintShop Pro X7 is the latest version of
the venerable image editor, but can it see off
some stiff competition?
60
Software
No matter how good your PC is, having
poor peripherals will spoil your experience.
We’ve gathered 21 keyboards, mice and
great-value bundles to ensure you’re in
input heaven
104
Keyboards and mice
The Bayan Audio Soundbook Go portable
Bluetooth speaker proves that size doesn’t
have to matter when it comes to sound quality
51
Audio
Destiny is this year’s biggest game launch and
lets you drift seamlessly between single- and
multiplayer for a truly immersive experience
62
Games
74
Your software
Your PC can
become sluggish
over time as all
sorts of useless
data accumulates
on its hard disk.
Restore it to its
former glory with
PC Optimizer
64
Business
Gaming videos are more popular than ever,
and the elegant Elgato Game Capture HD60
helps you make your own
52
Video
Fed up with juggling SIM cards and payment
plans when using data abroad? Check out the
Uros Goodspeed portable hotspot
66
Best Buys
Looking for the best kit we’ve reviewed
recently? It’s all in our Best Buys section
ISSUE 322
|
COMPUTER SHOPPER
|
DECEMBER 2014
5

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