Google is building a new ad-blocker for Chrome that will specifically target ads that use too many system resources.



Chrome is <a rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label=" (opens in a new tab)" href="https://www.techradar.com/in/news/im-sick-of-chrome-eating-all-my-ram-its-time-for-me-to-ditch-it-for-firefox-or-even-edge" target="_blank">notoriously RAM-hungry</a>, which can result in sluggish performance but the blame doesn't lie entirely with the browser. Sometimes ads can be responsible for sites slowing to a crawl.



As&nbsp;<a href="https://9to5google.com/2019/10/30/heavy-ad-blocker-chrome/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">9to5Google</a>&nbsp;explains, Chrome's developers are working on a tool that will address this problem by not loading 'heavy ads' that put excessive demands on the user's device.



The tool was first mentioned in <a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://chromium-review.googlesource.com/c/chromium/src/+/1675916" target="_blank">a message from a Chromium developer</a>. And Google has now <a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://github.com/johnivdel/heavy-ad-intervention/blob/master/README.md#proposed-thresholds" target="_blank">published a short guide</a> explaining it further and defining exactly what is meant by 'heavy'.



According to the guide, ads will be blocked if they use the main processor thread for more than 60 seconds in total. Or use the main thread for more than 15 seconds in any 30-second window, or use more than 4MB network bandwidth to load resources. Blocked ads will be replaced with an error message explaining why Chrome has removed it.



<a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://techdows.com/2019/10/chrome-80-gets-heavy-ad-intervention-feature-in-canary.html" target="_blank">Techdows</a> has also noticed two new flags in <a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://www.google.com/chrome/canary/" target="_blank">Chrome Canary</a>.  It's relating to the 'heavy ad' blocker, which you can enable to try the feature now. However, it's worth bearing in mind that the blocker is still at an experimental stage. It isn't likely to appear in the release version of Chrome for several months. It might not work perfectly yet, and Google might choose to adjust its definition of a 'heavy ad' before then.



<h2 id="you-vs-the-advertisers">You vs the advertisers</h2>



Google faces a tricky dilemma with advertising. It makes up the bulk of the company's income but it can spoil the browsing experience for Chrome users. Particularly when it compromises their privacy or affects browsing speeds.



Google has suggested a way to serve targeted ads to users without monitoring their online activity using tracking cookies (a method it calls a '<a rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label=" (opens in a new tab)" href="https://www.techradar.com/in/news/google-wants-chrome-to-feed-you-targeted-ads-while-somehow-respecting-your-privacy" target="_blank">privacy sandbox</a>'). But moving to such a model would require an overhaul of the whole online advertising industry. If any company has the power to bring that about, it's Google, but such a huge change isn't likely to happen any time soon.



For now, Google appears to have resigned itself to tackling the most obtrusive ads. It seems to be experimenting with a tool that will let users <a rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label=" (opens in a new tab)" href="https://www.techradar.com/in/news/chrome-is-taking-a-page-out-of-firefoxs-book-and-making-your-privacy-a-priority" target="_blank">block third-party cookies</a>. It's an option that's already enabled by default in rival browsers such as Firefox.



Hopefully this, combined with the 'heavy ad' blocker, will let Google strike a reasonable compromise, improving the experience for its users without putting too large a dent in its ad business.

Google is building a new ad-blocker for Chrome that will specifically target ads that use too many system resources.



Chrome is notoriously RAM...

Chrome is getting a 'heavy ad' blocker to speed up browsing, and you can try it now - TCMHACK

Chrome is getting a 'heavy ad' blocker to speed up browsing, and you can try it now

Google is working on a dark mode for desktop versions of its browsers and its ChromeOS operating system.



For a few months it's been possible to activate a dark mode for Chrome on Android that changes the color of webpages. And according to <a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://9to5google.com/2019/07/29/google-chromes-dark-mode-for-the-web-is-coming-to-desktop-and-chrome-os/" target="_blank">9to5Google</a>, that feature will soon become cross-platform.



Currently, it's possible to activate dark mode on Chrome for Android by enabling a 'flag' (an experimental feature) in the browser. This Android-specific flag has now been replaced by one that will work across all platforms.



<h2 id="a-walk-on-the-dark-side">A walk on the dark side</h2>



When Android Q is released (possibly within the next few weeks), it will include&nbsp;<a href="https://www.techradar.com/in/how-to/dark-theme">a system-wide dark theme</a>, which swaps the operating system's default bright white design to something easier on the eyes.



If you've experimented with the dark mode for Android, you may have noticed that it's not quite ready for release yet; some controls are tricky to see with the new colors, and websites are sometimes rendered hard to read where colors are inverted.



With Android Q now imminent, hopefully those issues will be resolved very soon and we'll be able to enjoy browsing the web in dark mode on all our devices.

Google is working on a dark mode for desktop versions of its browsers and its ChromeOS operating system.



For a few months it's been possible t...

Google Chrome for desktop is finally getting a dark mode - TCMHACK

Google Chrome for desktop is finally getting a dark mode

Google Registry has made the .new domain extension available for anyone to use to create custom shortcuts.

Google originally launched the .new extension to be used as shortcuts for its own services. For example, to create a new document or a spreadsheet, you can simply go to .doc or .sheets.

Now, any company can&nbsp;<a href="https://www.registry.google/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">register</a>&nbsp;a .new domain to create similar shortcuts for their own offerings and some companies have already started doing so. Here are some examples that have been created already:

<ul>
<li>Word.new: Create a new document in Microsoft Word</li>
<li>Playlist.new: Create a new Spotify playlist</li>
<li>Sell.new: Create a new product listing on eBay</li>
<li>Link.new: Create a new short link with Bitly</li>
<li>Reservation.new: Make a reservation with OpenTable And others</li>
</ul>

Google notes that, similar to its .app, .page, and .dev extensions, all .new extensions will be served over HTTPS by default.

Registrations of .new domains are available first to trademark owners for a limited time. From December 2, 2019 to January 14, 2020, trademark owners can apply for their trademarked .new domains.

Presumably, all available .new domains will be up for grabs after the limited registration period.

Google Registry has made the .new domain extension available for anyone to use to create custom shortcuts.

Google Lets Anyone Register a .New Domain to Create Custom Shortcuts - TCMHACK

Google Lets Anyone Register a .New Domain to Create Custom Shortcuts

Recently, Google has involved itself in numerous privacy and security changes within Google Chrome. The most important of these was the emphasis on HTTPS for websites. Now, they have announced another strict move in this connection. Google intends to block HTTPS mixed content within their Chrome browser. 



<h2>Google To Block Mixed Content</h2>



Reportedly, Google plans to block mixed content for HTTPS in the future. According to a recent <a href="https://security.googleblog.com/2019/10/no-more-mixed-messages-about-https_3.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label="blog post (opens in a new tab)">blog post</a> by the Chrome Security Team, Google will eventually block mixed content entirely within Chrome. This would ensure full HTTPS implementation only.



<h2>What Is Mixed Content</h2>



As explained separately, ‘<a rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label="Mixed Content (opens in a new tab)" href="https://developers.google.com/web/fundamentals/security/prevent-mixed-content/what-is-mixed-content" target="_blank">Mixed Content</a>’ refers to the type of content on websites using HTTPS where certain elements on the web page load over HTTP.



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote">Mixed content occurs when initial HTML is loaded over a secure HTTPS connection, but other resources (such as images, videos, stylesheets, scripts) are loaded over an insecure HTTP connection. This is called mixed content because both HTTP and HTTPS content are being loaded to display the same page, and the initial request was secure over HTTPS. </blockquote>



<h2>How It Affects Browser Security</h2>



Although, Chrome used to notify users about the presence of such content. It couldn’t protect the users from the potential evils of HTTP content on the web page. Thus, the existence of such content downgrades the extent of security as ensured with full HTTPS sites.



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote">Requesting subresources using the insecure HTTP protocol weakens the security of the entire page, as these requests are vulnerable to man-in-the-middle attacks, where an attacker eavesdrops on a network connection and views or modifies the communication between two parties.</blockquote>



Eventually, the presence of such content could even allow an adversary to take complete control of the affected page. 



Google explained that such content also affects the browser security UX. The browser could neither present it as HTTPS, nor HTTP. 



<h2>Implementation To Happen Gradually </h2>



While Google has announced their plans to ensure no mixed content, it will do so in a number of different steps. Consequently, HTTPS websites with mixed content have enough time to modify the affected pages accordingly. 



As per the disclosed timeline, initially, Google will roll out settings for users to unblock mixed content on sites. This will take place with Chrome 79 releasing in December 2019. 



Then, with Chrome 80, Google will block audio/video resources that fail to load over HTTPS by default. Users would still be able to unblock the content via given settings. However, it will allow the mixed images, where the browser will prompt the site as ‘Not Secure’. 



Finally, with Chrome 81 coming in February 2020, Google will block mixed images as well. 



For convenience, Google has shared detailed guides for <a rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label="migrating to HTTPS (opens in a new tab)" href="https://developers.google.com/web/fundamentals/security/encrypt-in-transit/enable-https" target="_blank">migrating to HTTPS</a> and <a href="https://developers.google.com/web/fundamentals/security/prevent-mixed-content/fixing-mixed-content" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label="preventing mixed content (opens in a new tab)">preventing mixed content</a> as well.

Recently, Google has involved itself in numerous privacy and security changes within Google Chrome. The most important of these was the emphasis ...

Google Plans To Block Mixed Content With HTTPS On Chrome Browser - TCMHACK

Google Plans To Block Mixed Content With HTTPS On Chrome Browser

Google is adding support for native lazy loading to the latest version of the Chrome browser &ndash; Chrome 76.

In an&nbsp;<a href="https://web.dev/native-lazy-loading" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label=" (opens in a new tab)">announcement</a>, the company states:

<blockquote class="wp-block-quote">
&ldquo;Starting with Chrome 76, you&rsquo;ll be able to use the new loading attribute to lazy-load resources without the need to write custom lazy-loading code or use a separate JavaScript library.&rdquo;
</blockquote>

Lazy loading delays the loading of &nbsp;below-the-fold images until the user begins scrolling closer to them.

The end result is faster load times, minimized bandwidth for users, and reduced memory usage.

Previously, in order to take advantage of lazy loading, developers either had to use the Intersection Observer API or implement complicated event handlers.

Now, with lazy loading supported directly within Chrome, developers can add a simple &lsquo;loading&rsquo; attribute when embedding images.

Here&rsquo;s what the code looks when adding the loading attribute to an image and an iframe:
<img src="../../../../uploads/1744738501928-2f84104d-2d77-4279-a2d7-f4f3a461d8bf-1024x137.jpeg" alt="" width="1024" height="137">
You don&rsquo;t even need the expertise of a developer to implement the loading attribute, as long as you have some basic knowledge of HTML. This makes lazy loading accessible to many more site owners.

The loading attribute supports the following values:

<ul>
<li>auto: Default lazy-loading behavior of the browser, which is the same as not including the attribute.</li>
<li>lazy: Defer loading of the resource until it reaches a calculated distance from the viewport.</li>
<li>eager: Load the resource immediately, regardless of where it&rsquo;s located on the page.</li>
</ul>

This feature will continue to be updated until the stable version of Chrome 76 is released.

The old method of implementing lazy loading via JavaScript is still required for browsers that do not support the new &lsquo;loading&rsquo; attribute.

Google is adding support for native lazy loading to the latest version of the Chrome browser – Chrome 76.



In an announcement, the company stat...

Google Chrome Will Soon Support Lazy Loading at the Browser-Level - TCMHACK

Google Chrome Will Soon Support Lazy Loading at the Browser-Level

In this blog, let’s see what we should expect from the Angular 8 release. 

Good News. Angular 8 is coming - TCMHACK

Good News. Angular 8 is coming

Visual Studio Code 1.34 has been released and includes enhancements for Remote Development as Preview. In addition, new features for the editor and the debugging as well as a new documentation are on board.

Microsoft has released the latest version of its free source code editor Visual Studio Code. The April release, VS Code 1.34, includes some new features, including previewing for VS-Code Insiders, a Python tutorial for use with Azure Functions, and What&rsquo;s New for Vetur. A debugging milestone is also announced by Microsoft.

<h2>Remote Development for Insiders</h2>

In April, Microsoft worked on new VS Code&nbsp;Extensions&nbsp;for remote development on WSL, SSH servers and in containers. Already earlier this month &ndash; before the Microsoft build 2019 &ndash; Remote Development for Visual Studio Code was announced on Twitter and caused many reactions there:

There are three preview extensions available for the Remote Development feature:

<ol>
<li><a href="https://marketplace.visualstudio.com/items?itemName=ms-vscode-remote.remote-wsl" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Remote &ndash; WSL</a>&nbsp;for Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL)</li>
<li><a href="https://marketplace.visualstudio.com/items?itemName=ms-vscode-remote.remote-ssh" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Remote SSH</a>&nbsp;for remote machines with an SSH server</li>
<li><a href="https://marketplace.visualstudio.com/items?itemName=ms-vscode-remote.remote-containers" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Remote Containers</a>&nbsp;for Docker Containers</li>
</ol>

So far, the new extensions are only running on&nbsp;<a href="https://code.visualstudio.com/insiders/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">insider builds</a>&nbsp;of VS code that can be run alongside the stable build. The Visual Studio&nbsp;<a href="https://code.visualstudio.com/blogs/2019/05/02/remote-development" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">blog</a>&nbsp;has all the information you need about Remote Development.

<h2>Features in Visual Studio code 1.34</h2>

As a milestone Microsoft calls the possibility to debug in VS code 1.34 at the same time several Extensions. Especially when developing tightly coupled or interdependent extensions this should be useful.

The Vetur extension for Vue tooling offers some new features in VS Code 1.34 &ndash; semantic diagnostics, hover information, jump-to-definition, and the JavaScript expression reference search within the Vue Template Interpolation Region:
<img src="../../../../uploads/1744773806604-vetur-interpolation.gif" alt="" width="791" height="500">
In addition, the feature CodeLens should have become more stable when switching between editors. Python also gets&nbsp;<a href="https://code.visualstudio.com/docs/python/tutorial-azure-functions" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">new documentation</a>&nbsp;for deployment to Azure Functions, and some bugfixes are included again.

More details about all the new features in Visual Studio Code 1.34 is&nbsp;<a href="https://code.visualstudio.com/updates/v1_34" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">available from Microsoft</a>.

Visual Studio Code 1.34 has been released and includes enhancements for Remote Development as Preview.

Visual Studio Code 1.34: Remote Development as a preview feature - TCMHACK

Visual Studio Code 1.34: Remote Development as a preview feature

Adobe Flash is going away in 2020; better,&nbsp;support for Adobe Flash ends in 2020. Adobe won't support Flash anymore, and all major browser makers revealed plans to retire Flash in their browsers.

While that means that most browsers won't support Flash content anymore and that there won't be any more updates for Flash, it does not really mean that all Flash content on the Internet is suddenly going away.&nbsp;A Flash Games Preservation project&nbsp;aims to archive Flash games and make them available in a dedicated application so that users may still play them.

Google targets Chrome 87 as the target release for Flash removal in the web browser. While there is still a good 18 month until that deadline, things are going to get more annoying soon in regards to Flash.

More annoying, because Google tightened the Flash use screws already in Chrome 69. The browser, released in August 2018, changed the Flash permissions system from a permanent state to a session-only state.
<img src="../../../../uploads/1744773955094-flash-player-will-no-longer-be-supported-1024x393.png" alt="" width="1024" height="393">

Starting in Chrome 76, out July 2019, Flash is set to block by default. Chrome will still support Flash at this point, and it is even possible to switch the Flash setting to Ask First again, but that leads to a new problem for users who have set Flash to Ask First: Chrome displays a Flash deprecation warning on start if Ask First is set. The message states "Flash Player will no longer be supported after December 2020". The learn more link leads to the "Saying goodbye to Flash in Chrome" post from 2017.

The notification may display for a while or just flash for a brief moment. Considering that this is being tested in Chrome Canary currently, it seems likely that Google is still testing the new notification and system before it reaches the stable channel.

There is no option to disable the notification in Chrome (other than blocking Flash).
<img src="../../../../uploads/1744773992840-flash-settings-chrome-1024x448.png" alt="" width="1024" height="448">

To summarize: starting with Chrome 76, Flash is blocked by default. Users may still enable Flash by loading&nbsp;chrome://settings/content/flash&nbsp;and setting the technology to Ask First.

Any site permission given during a session is not saved anymore if it is a Flash permission, and it is discarded when the browser is closed. You may run Flash content then in different ways, e.g. by clicking on the "click to play" area of the Flash element to display a "site wants to Run Flash" prompt which you need to allow, or by adding the site to the allow list for Flash (which Chrome will remove when you close the browser).
<img src="../../../../uploads/1744774022840-screenshot-20.png" alt="" width="1000" height="480">

The easiest method to do the latter is to click on the icon in front of the URL, select Site Settings, and set Flash to allow on the page that opens. Things get a bit easier on consecutive sessions as you find the Flash control attached to the initial prompt when you click on the icon in front of the URL.

Note:&nbsp;Some video download extensions&nbsp;may not work properly anymore in Chrome until you enable Flash.

Google is not the only company that is making Flash use more annoying.&nbsp;Mozilla disabled Flash in Firefox 69 by default&nbsp;for users who still have it installed on their systems. Firefox does not include a native Flash solution like Chrome.

Adobe Flash is going away in 2020; better, support for Adobe Flash ends in 2020. Adobe won't support Flash anymore, and all major browser...

Chrome 76: Flash block and making Flash use more annoying - TCMHACK

Chrome 76: Flash block and making Flash use more annoying

Microsoft&nbsp;<a href="https://github.com/Microsoft/Terminal" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label=" (opens in a new tab)">released</a>&nbsp;the source code of a new Windows Terminal application today featuring multi-tab support, improved font rendering, and more.

The company&nbsp;<a href="https://devblogs.microsoft.com/commandline/introducing-windows-terminal/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">plans</a>&nbsp;to add Windows Terminal to the Microsoft Store for Windows 10 devices soon to make it available to more users.

Windows Terminal won't replace any command line interface of the Windows operating system, at least not in the near future. Microsoft positions it as a new modern interface that developers and administrators may use instead of the command line interfaces that are included in the Windows operating system.

The decision to create a new Terminal application for Windows was made after it became clear that the Windows console host, conhost.exe, could not be used to implement many of the features that Microsoft and the community wanted.

<h3>Windows Terminal</h3>
<img src="../../../../uploads/1744774142548-windows-terminal-screenshot-1024x668.jpg" alt="" width="1024" height="668">

One of the big features of the new Windows Terminal application is multi-tab support. You may remember that Microsoft planned to introduce support for tabs natively to the Shell in the Windows 10 operating system but&nbsp;decided to remove&nbsp;the feature that it&nbsp;called Sets&nbsp;again from development builds.

Sets allowed anyone&nbsp;to combine multiple application windows in a single container for easier handling and manageability.

Windows Terminal's tab support feature adds options to launch multiple different terminals from a single command line interface. You can use it to run PowerShell, the Command Prompt, and any installed Linux Terminal, and to switch between the terminals with just a click on a tab in the program window.

The new terminal application is fully backwards compatible with existing solutions.

<figure><iframe style="width: 679px; height: 382px;" title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/8gw0rXPMMPE?si=3N0D4HMxVjnS1bp_" width="679" height="382" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin"></iframe></figure>

Microsoft notes that Windows Terminal uses a GPU accelerated DirectWrite/DirectX-based text rendering engine. It paves the way for using any text character, symbol, emoji, ligatures, or glyphs installed on the device next to improved text output and rendering improvements.
<img src="../../../../uploads/1744774228185-console-output.png" alt="" width="318" height="236">

Microsoft created a new monospaced font for Windows Terminal that includes programming ligatures and will be open sourced as well.

Windows Terminal will provide users with customization and configuration options. Settings are stored in structured text files so that users may tinker with the settings directly. One interesting feature is the ability to configure each Terminal individually.

<blockquote class="wp-block-quote">
These profiles can have their own combination of font styles and sizes, color themes, background blur/transparency levels, etc. You can now create your own custom-styled Terminal that is personalized to your unique taste!
</blockquote>

Microsoft released the source code of a new Windows Terminal application today featuring multi-tab support, improved font rendering, and more...

Microsoft unveils new open source Windows Terminal - TCMHACK

Microsoft unveils new open source Windows Terminal

Ever wanted an XPS 13 but found its screen too small and graphics too slow? The Asus ZenBook S13 UX392FN offers a larger display and much more powerful GPU while being lighter and almost the same size as the Dell equivalent for about the same price.



 The slim Asus ZenBook S series is getting better and sleeker with each generation and this latest subnotebook model from CES 2019 is no exception. The ultimate test to buyers, however, will be how well it compares to the popular XPS 13 champion. For this test, we'll be pitting the ZenBook S13 UX392FN against the XPS 13 9380 with similar CPU and RAM configurations (Core i7-8565U, 16 GB RAM) to see which model comes out on top. 



<table class="wp-block-table"><thead><tr><td></td><th>Asus ZenBook S13 UX392FN</th><th>Dell XPS 13 9380</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>CPU</td><td>Core i5-8265U Core i7-8565U</td><td>Core i3-8145U Core i5-8265U Core i7-8565U</td></tr><tr><td>GPU</td><td>10 W GeForce MX150 w/ 2 GB GDDR5 VRAM</td><td>UHD Graphics 620</td></tr><tr><td>Display</td><td>13.9-inch 1080p glossy</td><td>13.3-inch 1080p matte or glossy 13.3-inch 2160p glossy touchscreen</td></tr><tr><td>RAM</td><td>8 GB to 16 GB LPDDR3-2133 Soldered</td><td>4 GB to 16 GB LPDDR3-2133 Soldered</td></tr><tr><td>Storage</td><td>M.2 2280 NVMe</td><td>M.2 2280 NVMe</td></tr><tr><td>Battery</td><td>50 Wh</td><td>52 Wh</td></tr><tr><td>Ports</td><td>2x USB Type-C Gen. 2 1x USB Type-A MicroSD slot 3.5 mm audio</td><td>2x Thunderbolt 3 1x USB Type-C Gen. 2 MicroSD slot 3.5 mm audio Noble Lock</td></tr><tr><td>Dimensions</td><td>12.9 x 316 x 195</td><td>11.6 x 302 x 199</td></tr><tr><td>Weight</td><td>1.1 kg</td><td>1.23 kg</td></tr><tr><td>MSRP</td><td>$1400</td><td>$900 to $1900</td></tr></tbody></table>



<h3>Case</h3>



Asus is able to offer a 13.9-inch screen in a chassis size nearly as small as the 13.3-inch XPS 13. The UX392 is about 15 mm wider, but it manages to be lighter than the Dell by about 100 g to be just as portable.



Outside of dimensions and weight, we still find the XPS 13 chassis to be more sound and slightly sturdier when it comes to rigidity and longevity. The all-aluminum UX392 doesn't quite match the magnesium and carbon fiber makeup of the XPS 13 series.



<h3>Ports</h3>



The biggest difference between the two systems in terms of port options are Thunderbolt 3 and USB Type-A. While the Asus UX392 lacks the former and includes the latter, the opposite is true for the XPS 13. The more desirable port will depend on the user.



The MicroSD reader on the XPS 13 offers significantly faster transfer rates. Moving 1 GB of pictures from our UHS-II test card to desktop is 2x to 3x faster on the Dell system than on the Asus.



<h3>CPU Performance&nbsp;</h3>



When equipped with the same&nbsp;Core i7-8565U&nbsp;CPU, the XPS 13 is able to outperform the Asus by 5 to 18 percent in CineBench R15 benchmarks. This is partly due to the superior Turbo Boost performance of the Dell as it is able to sustain faster clock rates for longer periods than the Asus as shown by our graph below.



<h3>GPU Performance</h3>



The minor differences in CPU performance is offset by the massive GPU gains. The ZenBook UX392 is configured with a dedicated 10 W GeForce MX150 GPU whereas the XPS 13 is limited to integrated graphics only. 3DMark benchmarks show a significant performance advantage of up to almost 100 percent over the UHD Graphics 620. This makes the Asus the better system for casual games like&nbsp;Rocket League,&nbsp;Fortnite,&nbsp;DOTA 2, and more.



<h3>Display</h3>



The edge goes to Asus with its larger 13.9-inch screen, more accurate colors out of the box, faster response times for less ghosting, and slightly brighter display overall. The two major advances on the side of Dell are its optional touchscreen and 4K UHD SKUs that the Asus Ultrabook is lacking.



<h3>Fan Noise</h3>



Both laptops are essentially silent or close to it with no pulsing behavior during low processing loads like emailing, browsing, or video streaming. When gaming, fan noise on the Asus will be noticeably louder than on the XPS 13 since it carries a dedicated GPU (41 dB(A) vs. 32 to 35 dB(A)).



<h3>Power Consumption</h3>



Naturally, the Asus will demand more power when under heavier loads by about 14 W because of its dedicated GPU. When simply word processing or video streaming, however, consumption becomes comparable to the Dell XPS 13.



<h3>Battery Life</h3>



Expect about 8.5 hours of battery life from the Asus to be comparable to the 4K UHD XPS 13 SKU. The FHD XPS 13 SKU, however, can last for much longer at over 13 hours when subjected to the same WLAN loads.



<h3>Verdict</h3>



The biggest reasons to own a ZenBook S13 UX392FN over the XPS 13 9380 are for its larger 13.9-inch display and discrete GeForce MX150 graphics. If you ever wished that the XPS 13 could offer more graphics performance and a bigger screen without being any larger or heavier, then the UX392FN is definitely worth a look. The Asus one-ups the Dell even further by incorporating USB Type-A and a brighter and more accurate display.



On the other hand, if you have no interest in casual gaming or light video editing, then much of the appeal of the UX392FN is gone. The discrete GPU takes away from the battery life and adds more noise when under high processing loads. The XPS 13 still has the superior docking capabilities if you plan on connecting eGPUs or multiple external monitors down the road.



 As always, check our reviews on the&nbsp;Asus ZenBook S13 UX392FN&nbsp;and&nbsp;XPS 13 9380&nbsp;for more details on each model. 



<table class="wp-block-table"><thead><tr><td></td><th>Asus ZenBook S13 UX392FN</th><th>Dell XPS 13 9380</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>Advantages</td><td>+ Much more powerful discrete GeForce MX150 GPU + Lighter and almost as small + Display is brighter, more color accurate, and better calibrated + Faster response times for less ghosting + Larger display + USB Type-A</td><td>+ Faster MicroSD performance + Slightly faster CPU performance + Quieter fans when under high load + Longer battery life on FHD SKU + 4K UHD and touchscreen options + Thunderbolt 3 and Noble Lock + Slightly tougher and more rigid</td></tr></tbody></table>

Ever wanted an XPS 13 but found its screen too small and graphics too slow? The Asus ZenBook S13 UX392FN offers a larger display and much more po...

Asus ZenBook S13 vs. Dell XPS 13 - TCMHACK

Asus ZenBook S13 vs. Dell XPS 13

The image above this line of waffle depicts the official mascot design for the upcoming release of&nbsp;<a href="../../../../ubuntu-19-04-release-date-planned-features-updated/">Ubuntu 19.04</a>&nbsp;(due mid April).

With Ubuntu 19.04&nbsp;named Disco Dingo&nbsp;the companion artwork is (naturally) designed accordingly.

The logo is made up of a line-art a dingo &mdash; a type wild Australian dog &mdash; staring upwards (or howling? Can&rsquo;t decide) whilst sporting a snazzy pair of over-ear headphones (because, presumably, he&rsquo;s also a DJ?).

Confused? Don&rsquo;t be.

<h4>What is this artwork for?</h4>

Each release of Ubuntu gets an alliterative nickname composed of an adjective and an animal (or creature). This tradition means each version of the OS arrives bearing its own distinct personality and design.

To help promote/brand each release the design folks at Canonical typically prepare a new desktop wallpaper and a new official mascot image.

These help to add a splash of flavour to what can often be a dry, formal release cycle.

This latest design was revealed by Canonical on their social media pages, with this trippy gif serving as way of introduction:
<img src="../../../../uploads/1744775791876-disco-dingo-ubuntu-gif-1.gif" alt="" width="840" height="572">
<h3>The Dingo Du Jour</h3>

Design wise, the new&nbsp;Disco Dingo&nbsp;mascot has strong echos of&nbsp;polygon art&nbsp;and those&nbsp;synthwave/neon 80s style designs that were all the rage a few years back.

In fact, if you drop the logo on top a synth-wave wallpaper and it pops into life:
<img src="../../../../uploads/1744775828546-synth-dingo-750x427.jpg" alt="" width="750" height="427">
Having gone to the effort of demoing that it won&rsquo;t surprise you to learn that &nbsp;I am a fan of this logo.

Heck of a big fan, in fact.

After six months of staring at the comforting curves of the circular&nbsp;Cosmic Cuttlefish mascot&nbsp;the pointed (pun intended) change of direction is tonally refreshing!

Replacing the tactility of &lsquo;origami&rsquo; (the paper folding style many previous mascots used) with solid, sharp geometry gives the logo an almost structural feel.

Compared to previous designs the new logo feels weighted and very present &mdash; pretty apt for a Linux distro that rides atop such a solid foundation, isn&rsquo;t it?

Now for the big question:

<h4>Will it be on the wallpaper?</h4>

Should tradition hold, we should expect to see more of the doggy DJ on the official desktop wallpaper. The&nbsp;Artful,&nbsp;Bionic&nbsp;and&nbsp;Cosmic&nbsp;releases all bore their respective mascots on the default background.

The image above this line of waffle depicts the official mascot design for the upcoming release of Ubuntu 19.04 (due mid April)...