There's no shortage of ways to capture YouTube videos on the web. Take your pick of dangerous websites, or just go old-school and record a video of your desktop. Now, YouTube is finally offering a simpler solution for computer users: A download button. As Android Police reports, it's currently available as an experimental feature for Premium subscribers. That's not a huge surprise, as YouTube already offers mobile video downloads for subscribers too. 

Once you've flipped it on, you'll see a download button right next to the share option below videos, or alongside the three dot menu when browsing. After downloading a video, it gets placed in your offline YouTube library. You can choose to grab videos in resolutions from 144p to 1080p — sorry, 4K fanatics. At this point, there doesn't appear to be any size limit, aside from your available storage.

From my quick tests, the feature works as advertised on Safari and Chrome. Personally, it's not something I'd use as often as mobile downloads, but it's a nice option to have for future trips.

With the release of Windows 11 less than two weeks away, Microsoft held its latest Surface hardware event. The presentation saw the company introduce new versions of mainstay devices like the Surface Pro and Surface Go, in addition to a handful of surprises. Here’s everything Microsoft showed off on Wednesday.

Surface Duo 2

Microsoft

Microsoft announced a massive upgrade for its Surface Duo dual-screen Android device. Most notably, there’s an entirely new triple camera system on the back of the Surface Duo 2 that includes a telephoto lens and two wide-angle lenses. Another nifty new feature is an ambient screen on the device’s hinge to display your notifications and other information. With those upgrades, you can see Microsoft has started thinking of the $1,499.99 Surface Duo 2 as a more of a smartphone than a mere tablet. You can pre-order the Surface Duo 2 today before it becomes officially available on October 21st.

Surface Pro 8

Microsoft

After several years of what felt like incremental updates, Microsoft’s Surface Pro line got a significant upgrade on Wednesday. To name just a few of the features found in the Surface Pro 8, it includes a 13-inch PixelSense display with a 120Hz refresh rate, support for Thunderbolt 4 (finally!) and faster internals courtesy of Intel’s latest 11th-generation processors. Oh, and Microsoft has also shaved down the Surface Pro’s notoriously chunky display bezels. The Surface Pro 8 will start at $1,100 and is available to pre-order today. It goes on sale on October 5th. That’s the same day Windows 11 starts rolling out.

Alongside the Surface Pro 8, Microsoft announced the Slim Pen 2. The $130 stylus includes a haptic motor Microsoft claims makes it feel like you’re putting pen to paper rather than glass. Another new accessory, the Surface Adaptive Kit, bundles together a collection of add-ons that make it easier to find specific keys, locate ports and open your laptop or its kickstand. Lastly, the company made a mouse made from recycled ocean plastic.

Surface Pro X

Microsoft

Microsoft didn’t update its ARM-based 2-in-1, but what it did do is introduce a new WiFi-only model that will save you $100 off the Surface Pro X’s previous $999 starting price. With the move to Windows 11, support for 64-bit software emulation is coming to the device. You can pre-order the new model today before it arrives in stores on October 5th.

Surface Go 3

Microsoft

Microsoft’s smallest tablet got an appropriately minor update today. The company’s new Surface Go 3 2-in-1s feature faster processors from Intel. The base model comes with a Pentium Gold 6500Y CPU, up from the 4425Y in Go 2, while the more expensive variants feature 10th-generation Core i3 CPUs. Microsoft claims the latter chip is 60 percent faster than the Core m3 it previously offered with the Go 2. The entire Surface Go 3 family is available to pre-order today, with the base model starting at $400. Like all the other Surface computers Microsoft announced today, it goes on sale on October 5th.

Surface Laptop Studio

Microsoft

Microsoft saved its most interesting announcement for last. Enter the Surface Laptop Studio, a portable computer that borrows design cues from the company's Surface Studio all-in-one. An included hinge lets you pull the display over the keyboard to make inking and drawing more immersive. Microsoft also claims the Surface Studio is its most powerful notebook yet. The laptop features Intel’s 11th-generation H35 processors and Intel Xe graphics. You can also configure it with NVIDIA’s RTX 3050 Ti GPU. The Surface Laptop Studio is available to pre-order today. It starts at $1,600 and will ship on October 5th.

Follow all of the news from Microsoft's fall Surface event right here.

Microsoft announced a deluge of new Surface gadgets today and most of them are already available for pre-order. Key among them are the Surface Duo 2, Microsoft's second-gen version of its dual-screen, tablet-smartphone hybrid that now has a formidable triple-camera array, and the Surface Pro 8, a powerful update to the Pro 7 that adds 11th-gen Intel processors, a 13-inch screen with Dolby Vision and Thunderbolt 4 ports. Plus, you can also pre-order the high-powered Surface Laptop Studio, the updated (yet still affordable) Surface Laptop Go 3 and a Wi-Fi only Surface Pro X. Here's how to pre-order all of the gadgets Microsoft announced today.

Suface Duo 2

Microsoft

The Surface Duo 2 folding smartphone is available for pre-order today and starts at $1,499. It will be widely available October 21 in Australia, Canada, Germany, France, the UK and the United States.

The new Surface Duo 2 features the same flip design as last year's device, with two 5.8-inch AMOLED PixelSense touchscreens connected by a hinge. They support 90Hz refresh rates, HDR, P3 color and up to 800 nits of brightness. The smartphone runs on the Snapdragon 888 5G Mobile platform and now supports 5G connectivity.

Microsoft upped the Surface Duo 2's camera game replacing the single shooter on the original Duo with a triple-lens system. Now it has a 12MP wide angle lens, a 12MP telephoto shooter and a 16GB ultra wide lens on the rear and a separate 12MP camera on the front. One of our biggest problems with the first Duo was how hard it was to take quick photos, so we're eager to see if Microsoft's improvements this time around have fixed that.

The Surface Duo 2 also supports NFC for contactless payments, WiFi 6, biometric authentication with a fingerprint sensor, fast-charging via USB-C and more. It'll come in 128GB, 256GB and 512GB models and all will have 8GB of RAM.

Surface Pro 8

Microsoft

The Surface Pro 8 2-in-1 is available for pre-order today and starts at $1,099. The new Surface Slim Pen 2 is also available for pre-order today and costs $129.

Running Windows 11, the new Surface Pro 8 improves upon most things that made the Pro 7 great. The 2-in-1 now supports 11th-gen Intel Evo processors, is two times faster than its predecessor and gained supported for external GPUs. The screen is a bit larger and brighter, too — it's a 13-inch PixelSense panel with Dolby Vision that can reach 120Hz refresh rates, and it has a new 5MP front-facing camera on top of it that should provide a clearer feed during video calls. There's also a 10MP rear camera with autofocus that's capable of shooting 4K video. As far as connectivity goes, the Surface Pro 6 supports WiFi 6 and LTE, and has two Thunderbolt 4 ports, a power connector and a 3.5mm headphone jack.

Along with an array of Intel processors, the Surface Pro 8 supports up to 32GB of RAM and up to 1TB of storage. However, only the 128GB and 256GB models are available with LTE connectivity — the 512GB and 1TB versions are WiFi-only. It also works with the new $129 Surface Slim Pen 2 and its Signature Keyboard has a space for the pen to magnetically connect for easier storage.

Surface Laptop Studio

Microsoft

The Surface Laptop Studio is available for pre-order today and starts at $1,599. It will be available in stores in the US and Canada starting October 5.

Microsoft built the Surface Laptop Studio with power users and creatives in mind. It has a noteworthy design featuring a "Dynamic Woven Hinge" that lets you pull the screen forward into "Stage" mode, which the company claims gives you a better angle for streaming, gaming and presenting. The machine also works in standard Laptop mode and "Studio" mode, the latter of which is best for sketching.

The screen itself is a 14.4-inch, 2,400 x 1,600 PixelSense panel that can reach 120Hz refresh rates and supports the Slim Pen 2. That accessory also has its own home on the underside of the Laptop Studio, where it neatly and magnetically attaches. There are also quad speakers with Dolby Atmos, a 1080p front-facing camera and a new Precision Haptic touchpad that provides feedback while you use it. Similarly to the Surface Pro 8, the Laptop Studio has two Thunderbolt 4 ports, one power connector and a 3.5mm headphone jack.

When it comes to performance, the Laptop Studio packs a punch. It supports 11th-gen Intel H-series processor along with Intel Xe graphics and even NVIDIA RTX 3050Ti graphics in select models. It'll have up to 32GB of RAM inside and up to 2TB of storage.

Surface Go 3

Microsoft

The WiFi-only Surface Go 3 is available for pre-order today and starts at $399. It will be widely available starting October 5. LTE models are forthcoming in December 2021.

Microsoft's most affordable Surface device is getting a power boost. The new Surface Go 3 supports up to Intel Core i3 processors now, and those models will be 60 percent faster than previous versions. It has a 10.5-inch FHD touchscreen, stereo speakers with Dolby Audio, 1080p front- and rear cameras and support for Type Covers and the Surface Pen. The edges of the device have one USB-C port, one power connector, a microSD card slot, a nano SIM slot and a headphone jack. In addition to the new Intel processors, the Go 3 runs on up to 8GB of RAM and 128GB of storage.

Surface Pro X

Microsoft

The WiFi-only Surface Pro X is available for pre-order today and starts at $899.

The Surface Pro X isn't getting a big refresh or an upgraded model like some of Microsoft's other gadgets. Instead, the company introduced a new WiFi-only model at a lower price point — only $899. It will run Windows 11 on ARM and will include 64-bit emulation built in. The machine runs on an SQ2 processor, along with up to 16GB of RAM and up to 512GB of storage. The new detachable keyboard will also have a slot for the new Slim Pen 2.

Follow all of the news from Microsoft's fall Surface event right here.

At its annual hardware event today, Microsoft unveiled a new family of Surface devices ahead of Windows 11’s launch on October 5th. Refreshes of the Surface Pro and Surface Go aren’t surprising, and the company did show off the latest in both of those series. But the Surface Laptop Studio is the most intriguing. It’s meant to replace the Surface Book, which was a detachable 2-in-1 laptop. The Laptop Studio, meanwhile, is more like Microsoft’s Surface Studio all-in-one desktop, in that it features a pull-forward screen that can lay flat on top of a table or be propped up at a slant. It also has a 120Hz display, as does the new Surface Pro 8, which got a sleek redesign.

I was able to check out the Laptop Studio, Surface Pro X and a slew of new Surface devices at a recent (COVID-safe) demo event in New York and I have to say, these Windows 11 PCs are looking very promising.

Surface Laptop Studio hands-on

Let’s start with the Laptop Studio, which a Microsoft rep told me at the event will replace the Surface Book line. Like I mentioned, its new easel-style design is similar not only to its namesake Surface Studio, but also to notebooks from Acer and HP. I was very impressed with how thin the Laptop Studio’s 14.4-inch screen is, and it popped out of its frame without much force. The hinge connecting the display to the keyboard is sturdy, and kept the screen up at a variety of angles in laptop mode.

When I flipped the screen to face outwards, though, I had trouble trying to push the lid away from me to get it to stand at a gentler angle as the panel popped out of the frame. But in every other configuration, such as a conventional laptop mode or laid down flat like a tablet (which Microsoft calls Studio mode), the Surface Laptop Studio behaved as expected.

When the screen is pulled forward and propped up in front of the keyboard in what the company calls Stage mode, it’s great for digital artists. It’s easier to draw on, and you can use the new Slim Pen 2 to create your masterpieces. The new stylus offers haptic feedback with an onboard motor and also mimics the resistance you’d get with pen on paper. I did feel a sort of drag across the Laptop Studio’s screen when I started doodling on it with the Slim Pen 2. It felt odd at first, as I’m accustomed to other styli like Samsung’s S Pen. But I got used to it quite quickly, and kind of liked feeling the mild vibrations that served as an indicator that something had been enabled.

The Laptop Studio has a magnetic strip under the keyboard that lets the Slim Pen 2 attach easily and remain flush with the rest of the machine. The magnets were strong enough that I only had to roughly place the stylus along the edge and it flipped into place. I don’t feel like I’d need to worry about losing the accessory with this setup, which is nice.

Cherlynn Low / Engadget

Microsoft also offers a 120Hz screen on the Laptop Studio, and a company representative told me at the demo that the touch sampling rate is 100Hz. This should make for a smooth drawing experience, but also make scrolling and animations look super buttery. There’s no adaptive refresh rate available in the system — you’ll just get the option to choose between 120Hz or 60Hz in settings.

For all the detailed specs on the Laptop Studio, like its new Full HD webcam, its screen resolution, dimensions, processor and memory configuration options, I encourage you to check out our news post. For this hands-on article, I’d like to focus on my initial impressions of the devices I got to try out. On that note, the last thing I’ll say about my experience with the Laptop Studio is that its keyboard and trackpad were spacious, and though its buttons were cushy and responsive, I prefer the keys on the Surface Laptop 4. For things like battery life, performance and other real-world observations, though, we’ll need to wait till we can test out a review unit.

Surface Pro 8 hands-on

Another device that got a visual overhaul this year is the Surface Pro 8. It’s not the only new Surface Pro unveiled today — there’s also the Surface Pro 7 Plus, which received a typical minor processor upgrade and looks very similar to older Microsoft tablets. The Pro 8, meanwhile, looks a lot like the ARM-based Pro X. But it uses 11th-gen Intel Core i5 or i7 chips and is therefore noticeably heavier. It also has a different ventilation design around its sides compared to the X, which was sealed.

Cherlynn Low / Engadget

Still, the Pro 8 is impressively thin, with a 0.37-inch profile, and its built-in kickstand is even sharper. Its 13-inch screen is surrounded by an attractively thin bezel as opposed to the approximately inch-wide border around the Pro 7 Plus. The Pro 8 also features the same 120Hz refresh rate as the Laptop Studio, running at a 2,880 x 1,920 resolution.

Out of the box, though, the Pro 8 runs at 60Hz, and you can go into settings to bump this up to the higher rate. Meanwhile, the Laptop Studio refreshes at 120Hz by default. This difference is because the Pro 8 is designed to be a more portable device, and Microsoft expects people to want more battery life on the go. If your priority is smooth scrolling and inking (Slim Pen 2 is also supported here), then by all means go faster. But if you’re trying to squeeze every last minute out of the Pro 8, you might prefer to stick to the lower rate.

When you’re out of juice, you can charge the Pro 8 back up with Microsoft’s own connector or through one of the pair of USB-C ports. These support USB 4 and Thunderbolt 4, and can stream out up to two 4K displays at once. We weren’t able to test this during the limited time at our preview, and I can only really tell you that in general the Surface Pro 8 felt very much like a heavier Pro X. They use the same Signature Type Cover with the same comfortable keys and responsive trackpad, as well as onboard slot that holds and charges the Slim Pen 2.

Of all the other Surfaces Microsoft announced today — the Go 3, the new Pro X, the Pro 7 Plus and the Duo 2, only the last one is different in a significant way. The rest of the systems basically got incremental updates while maintaining a similar look to their predecessors. 

Surface Adaptive Kit

I did want to call out the new Surface Adaptive Kit, though. It’s a set of labels and stickers that are designed to make Surfaces easier for people with different needs to use. There are translucent keycap labels to make buttons identifiable by touch, bump labels that add visual and tactile cues to keys or ports, as well as colorful indicators with matching cable wraps to make it more obvious which wires go into which sockets. 

The colors I saw at the demo area were neon peach hued and I’m not sure if they’ll be appreciated by people with certain visual impairments (a pattern might be better for those who can’t distinguish between colors). But at least the keycap labels I saw came in different shapes and overall I appreciate the effort here.

Microsoft led the way for accessibility tech in gaming with the Xbox Adaptive Controller years ago and though the Surface Adaptive Kit seems like a small product, it shows that the company is thinking in meaningful ways how to cater to people with different needs.

Though most of the new Surfaces that were unveiled today feel like incremental updates, the Laptop Studio, Duo 2 and Pro 8 at least bring a low-key level of excitement. Plus, these machines (Duo 2 aside) will all run Windows 11, which is already bringing new life to a stagnating PC industry. As always, we’ll need to test all these devices out for ourselves to see if they’re worth spending your money on, but you can already pre-order all of them today.

When Microsoft introduced the Surface Pro X in 2019, it promised the start of something new for the company’s 2-in-1 line. Unfortunately, buggy limited app compatibility due to the computer’s ARM-based architecture and Windows on ARM software meant the Pro X never quite delivered on its promise. 

Microsoft isn’t updating the Surface Pro X’s hardware. As before you can configure the computer with either the company’s original SQ1 chip or its more recent SQ2 chip. However, Microsoft is introducing a new WiFi-only model that starts at $899. More important here is that the computer now comes with Windows 11 out of the box and includes support for native 64-bit emulation.

It’s also compatible with Microsoft’s new Slim Pen 2, which you can store and charge in the Pro X’s Type Cover. Picking up the Slim Pen 2 activates an interface in Windows 11 that allows you to customize your inking experience.

The WiFi-only model is available to pre-order today, with in-store availability to follow on October 5th.

Follow all of the news from Microsoft's fall Surface event right here.

Microsoft's new Surface launches include a refresh for its smallest tablet, the Surface Go 2. The tech firm has unveiled the Surface Go 3, a performance-focused upgrade that brings faster chips to the 10.5-inch slate. You’ll get up to a 60 percent speed boost, Microsoft claimed.

Developing...

Follow all of the news from Microsoft's fall Surface event right here.

Microsoft's new Surface Pro 8 tablet can actually go toe-to-toe with most ultraportables. It features a 13-inch PixelSense screen, a significant upgrade from the previous 12.3-inch display. Even better, it's one of the first non-gaming notebooks we've seen that supports a 120Hz refresh rate, which makes scrolling through web pages and jotting down notes a lot smoother. And of course, it's built with Windows 11 in mind.

Together with some of Intel's latest 11th-gen processors, as well as long-awaited support for Thunderbolt 4, the Surface Pro 8 could tempt over potential buyers who were turned off by the limitations of previous models. As much as I've liked earlier Surface Pros, the last model made it clear that Microsoft seriously needed to change things up.

Thankfully, the Surface Pro 8 finally supports Thunderbolt 4 on its two USB-C ports. That means you'll be able to connect fast external hard drives, several 4K external monitors or even an external GPU. As for other updates, the rear camera is now 10MP instead of 8MP, and it also supports 4K video. The front-facing camera is still 5MP with 1080p video, but it should offer better low-light performance.

Developing...

Follow all of the news from Microsoft's fall Surface event right here.

Microsoft's fall Surface event is finally here, and the company wants to be sure you can tune in to see all the new hardware. It's livestreaming the event on its website starting at (appropriately enough) 11AM Eastern. We'll also have a live recap on the Engadget YouTube channel (below) at 12PM Eastern if you're eager for some insights or just want to know what you missed.

This promises to be one of Microsoft's largest Surface presentations to date. Leaks suggest you'll see at least a redesigned Surface Pro 8 and a significantly upgraded Surface Duo 2. We'd add that multiple models haven't been touched for a while. The Surface Book is due for a refresh (if not a full-fledged rethink), and you can say the same for the tiny Surface Go as well as the ARM-powered Surface Pro X. We also wouldn't rule out a surprise or two, and it would only make sense for Microsoft to hype up Windows 11 with a release just days away.

Follow all of the news from Microsoft's fall Surface event right here.

Facebook quietly pushed out changes to News Feed that’s “interfering” with the browser-based tools used by journalists and researchers, according toThe Markup, the nonprofit news organization behind Citizen Browser.

According to the report, Facebook has been adding “junk code to HTML features meant to improve accessibility for visually impaired users.” The resulting code prevents browsers from automatically collecting data about posts in News Feed, and may also be hindering screen readers used by blind and visually impaired users.

The change has affected both The Markup’s Citizen Browser, as well as New York University’s Ad Observer, a browser extension that has helped researchers study political ads and vaccine misinformation. These types of browser-based tools have become increasingly important to researchers trying to study issues like ad targeting and misinformation. Researchers say these tools, which allow users to make the posts from their feeds available to academics and journalists, is one of the only ways to access important data about how News Feed works.

Laura Edelson, lead researcher at NYU’s Cybersecurity for Democracy, which runs Ad Observer, said Facebook’s changes “had the effect of breaking Ad Observer” though they were able to find a workaround.

In a statement, a Facebook spokesperson said that the company was “investigating” the claims. “We constantly make code changes across our services, but we did not make recent code changes to block these research projects,” the spokesperson said. “Our accessibility features largely appear to be working as normal, however, we are investigating the claimed disruptions.”

The code change is the latest dustup between Facebook and researchers who say Facebook has hindered their efforts to understand what’s happening on its platform. Last month, the company disabled the personal Facebook accounts of NYU researchers working with Ad Observer saying they broke the company’s privacy rules. (The FTC later rebuked Facebook for making “misleading” comments about its reasons for taking these actions.)

There are other implications to the changes. As The Markup and Edelson point out, the changes could affect screen readers, an important accessibility technology. They cite at least one instance of the code appearing to cause a screen reader to read out some of these “junk” characters. The changes may have also contributed to problems with some ad blockers.

The iOS 15 release brings an added treat if you're a fan of immersive audio: a better soundstage for your tunes. As hinted at WWDC in June, iOS 15 and iPadOS 15 users now have dynamic head tracking for spatial audio in Apple Music. So long as you're using the AirPods Pro or AirPods Max, instruments and vocals will have a fixed-in-place virtual presence — turn your head and that guitar or vocal will pan accordingly.

Apple had promised Apple Music head tracking in the fall, but hadn't directly linked it to iOS 15 at the time. You don't need Apple's higher-end AirPods if you're content with 'regular' spatial audio, although you will need some form of AirPods or Beats earphones if you want automatic Dolby Atmos support.

Yes, it's a not-so-subtle sales pitch for higher-end AirPods. It's only useful for that subset of the Apple Music catalog with spatial audio support, for that matter. All the same, it could be appreciated if you want a more natural-sounding (or at least, less jarring) approach to 360-degree audio.