Not unlike previous releases of Microsoft's ubiquitous desktop OS, Windows 8 has faced a lot of scrutiny in the year it's been available. Every time the company has made a drastic change to Windows, it's been on the losing end of user opinion. Windows 8 has been no different.

Every now and again, someone comes up with a revolutionary idea for a product or service and brings it to market. Just as often, however, the supporting technology isn't there, consumers aren't ready to embrace it, or management mishandles its launch. Some ideas just aren't meant to take root no matter how groundbreaking.

Google's mobile OS keeps proliferating on more and more handsets and the games hitting that hardware keep getting better. Among our picks are Angry Birds Star Wars II, which is a mild improvement over the original but an improvement nonetheless, as well as Reaper, Temple Run 2, The Room, and more.

Described as the biggest change to iOS since the introduction of the iPhone, iOS 7 has been available to the general public for roughly two weeks at this point. Looking beyond the flat UI and the animated background, has that much really changed in Apple's mobile OS? Here are 6 things they got right and 6 still missing.

It's becoming tradition that with every new high-profile gadget release, we showcase whatever findings the repair commandos at iFixit.com share with us. If it's controversy and indignation you want, this is the week you've been waiting for! Here are iFixit's top 10 hardest-to-repair electronics.

Wireless providers thrive on peddling a myriad of extra features and services on top of your basic service plan. Early nights and weekends, roadside assistance, mobile TV, hotspots and GPS are all fair game and can add anywhere between a couple of bucks to $10 or more to your wireless bill each month, per service.

We are putting today's top small form factor hardware together in hopes of building an enthusiast-worthy gaming system that you can easily transport, use as a a small workstation or fit comfortably along your living room equipment for HTPC purposes.

While keyboard and mouse remain the best means of controlling many titles on the PC, especially PC staples like FPS and strategy, there are plenty of other options that are really crying out for a pad. Luckily, chances are you already own a control pad to use on the PC: the ones that came with your console.

With Google Reader nearing its imminent death, a race to build the perfect alternative for the service's refugees has been taking shape over the last few weeks. Even though there are dozens of alternatives already out there, if you care about cross-platform compatibility and synchronization across different devices (read and favorited items) then your options are a little more limited than you'd imagine.

Although some decent games do poorly for no good reason, many titles are so headscratchingly bad that you have to wonder why the developer even bothered. In the group of terribly bad games, there are the truly bad ones and then there are the big flops: those that have built an irredeemable amount of hype. Here's our list of PC gaming shame: titles that weren't cancelled but should have been.

Steam gets a lot of credit for rejuvenating the PC gaming market, and there's one area it deserves more praise than anywhere else: its regular, highly-discounted sales. The PS4, Xbox One and Wii U are all very different consoles, but there's one thing I wish all three had in common: their digital pricing. Something they could learn from the PC.

Prison Architect is like SimPrison made by people who seem to be damn near fearless about making video games about uncomfortable topics. Indie studio Introversion's developers served up some fascinating answers to our questions about the possibilities of a game about building and running a prison.

Tech companies have been trying for years to get broadcast behemoths to change their ways and there's been a good bit of progress. But it's not enough. Technology is simply outpacing the traditional broadcast model. Something's gotta give. Could the Xbox One be the catalyst for change that we've all been hoping for?

The Thin Mini-ITX form factor allows for seriously compact computers. Our PC build goal: extremely compact, powerful, and near silent operation, as in no-moving-parts silent.

The gaming world is making a dramatic shift towards free to play games. Of course, full price retail titles still make up for a majority of releases on the PC and most other platforms, but playing a quality game without cracking your wallet open is a completely viable option nowadays.

The tablet market doesn't look very different than it did a year ago from the perspective of who's doing well and who's not. Perhaps the most exciting developments came towards the end of 2012: Google released the Nexus 10 and updated the Nexus 7, Apple launched a smaller and cheaper iPad mini, while Microsoft went all in with the Surface RT and Pro.

Thanks to mods, your entire PC gaming experience can be improved by the work of dedicated fans. Because some mods are so extensive, transforming almost everything about the source title, we felt it was only fair to list 12 of the best of them here, since they may as well count as their own new games.

It's an exciting year for gamers as we approach the next console generation and new software projects inevitably hit the PC as well. We've assembled a list of the hottest PC games expected to hit shelves over the next 12 months. Our selection includes 35 games and 10 bonus mentions we're lukewarm about.

What Western gamers think of PC games - the games from developers like Valve and Blizzard - aren't. When many Japanese gamers think of the country's PC gaming industry, the kneejerk reaction is to think of either dating or first person shooters.

Once you settle on the idea that you are not having a hardware problem and you are unable to boot up, your best bet is to try to fix the MBR (Master Boot Record). With a long history of dual booting different versions of Windows over the years, finding a corrupt MBR, boot sector, or Boot Configuration Data (BCD) is nothing new.

In the wake of last month's tragic shooting at Sandy Hook elementary school, and the revelation that killer Adam Lanza had enjoyed shooter games like Call of Duty, violent video games have again become a significant topic in national conversation. But have researchers found any links between video games and violence?

During the past 10 years Apple has systematically attacked and conquered from several fronts. Here's a brief recount of those winning products, and where it applies, the industry incumbents that for one reason or another failed to innovate or at least failed to beat Apple at breaking products to the masses first.

This year we have divided stories in 12 heavily packed categories, with nearly 500 hand-picked headlines total. Feel free to jump around between your favored topics, but try not to miss the tech culture section where we revisit some of the most entertaining stories we covered this year. Here's our take on 2012...

Video games and gaming in general had its highs and lows during 2012, but more importantly, we've all turned those highs and lows into animated GIFs for the rest of the internet to behold.

Before we move on to the latest and greatest devices of 2013, we figure it's worth revisiting some of 2012's most popular devices as suggested by our Product Finder, which includes reviews by hundreds of seasoned specialists across the Web. We've included 59 products across 14 categories along with their aggregate review score and a brief commentary that explains why they're special.

In September, I got myself a gaming laptop (yes, yes, I know, but it's a powerful one). I installed Steam and started downloading games. These games started updating themselves, snatching whatever files they needed, installing DirectX and god knows what else. I was trusting Steam and it was making my return to PC gaming a cinch.

Being one of the most prolific sources of security vulnerabilities in Windows and other platforms, Adobe Flash Player needs no introduction. In spite of that reputation, and the fact that the rest of the industry is moving away from Flash, it'd just seem Adobe is making all possible efforts to make its software more bloated and less attractive to all consumers alike.

AMD has long been subject of polarizing debate among technology enthusiasts. Considering that it was once considered equal to Intel, many wonder why AMD is failing. However, it's probably fairer to ask how the company has survived so for long -- a question we intend to explore as we revisit the company's past, examine its present and gaze into its future.

Although you're working against the clock, the upcoming Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales make this a fairly sensible time to dive in and ensure your loved ones are sufficiently showered in silicon-laced trinkets and baubles on the morning of December 25. As it happens, we have a soft spot for said gadgets and we've compiled a list of over two dozen things spanning all budgets that we'd love to find under the tree this year.

While manufacturers haven't exactly flooded the market with touch-enabled laptops, there are some good options out there already. Expect a crush of touchable Windows 8 machines at CES early next year, but for those shopping this holiday, we have cherry picked the best touch-enabled, Windows 8 laptops.