Paul Lilly
Paul is a seasoned geek who was first seduced into the world of computers and technology by the Commodore 64, and through the years he’s courted a number of OSes and platforms from DOS on up to the latest version of Windows. Having joined the HotHardware team in 2011, Paul is now a mainstay of the site covering the news beat and reviews, and resident wiseguy who keeps the mood light. He’s also an experienced freelance technology writer whose work has appeared in a number of online and print publications.
Opinions and content posted by HotHardware contributors are their own.
Recent posts
The expectation is that it will not be long before AMD unleashes its first Zen 5 processors for consumers with 3D V-cache bolted on, which as we've seen in the current and previous generation chip models, is a boon for gaming. While we wait, a purported Ryzen 7 9800X3D processor has found its way into a benchmark leak...
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Nintendo fans are hoping for a Switch 2 announcement, which could come any day now, though it probably won't until sometime next year. Instead of a next-gen console, however, Nintendo has something else up its sleeve and it's a bit mysterious. It's some kind of "Playtest Program" for Switch owners, and Nintendo is...
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It may have taken 14 years, but Rockstar Games this week finally announced that the original Red Dead Redemption game (released in 2010) was getting a proper port to the PC platform. And by "proper," we mean it will come several visual upgrades that didn't adorn the PlayStation 4 and Nintendo Switch ports, such as...
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Move over AMD, Intel, and especially Qualcomm, and make room for MediaTek, which is rumored to be making a serious move into the PC space with an intriguing AI chip collaboration with NVIDIA. While nothing has been officially announced yet, it's notable that NVIDIA and MediaTek have teamed up before—NVIDIA's DRIVE...
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In the coming weeks, Prime Video customers in the United States will be able to subscribe to Apple TV+ through Amazon, as part of a streaming partnership between the online retail giant and Apple. The upshot is a consolidation of billing and access to streaming services, though before you get too excited, there's a...
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Practically every major PC hardware and software player is high on the artificial intelligence (AI) movement, with the latest processors sporting dedicated neural processing units (NPUs) and company's like Microsoft and its partners heavily promoting the Windows maker's Copilot initiative. Despite the AI push, as well...
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If you missed out on shopping for bargains yesterday, the first day of Amazon's two-day 'Prime Big Deal' event, today is your chance to take a mulligan. Discounts are still in effect, so whether your looking to a build a budget gaming PC with marked-down components or jam out to savings on headphones and earbuds, you...
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It was just a few days ago when we reported on an impressive benchmark leak involving MediaTek's then-unreleased Dimensity 9400, which showed the flagship system-on-chip becoming the first-ever to achieve 3 million points in AnTuTu. A glimpse of things to become? We'll soon find out—MediaTek has officially launched...
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Hear that wheezing sound? It's your crusty old gaming mouse that desperately wants to go into retirement, and while you're at it, why not shop for a new gaming keyboard as well? Now is a good time to beef up your arsenal of peripherals because Amazon's 'Prime Big Deal' sales event is live with some nifty discounts to...
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We know with reasonable certainty that NVIDIA is planning to launch a new flagship graphics card in the not-too-distant future, and very likely the GeForce RTX 5090. There are too many leaks and rumors to suggest otherwise. What we don't know yet, at least not officially, is when exactly the GeForce RTX 50 series will...
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Coming hot on the heels of the back-to-school shopping season, which itself saw a fair number of deals, Amazon today has kicked off its 'Prime Big Deal' savings event. It's a two-day sale with discounts exclusive to Prime members. The discounts are far and wide, but if it's a gaming laptop you're after, you've come to...
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Apple is expected to release an onslaught of hardware refreshes over the coming weeks and months (and heading into 2025), including a revamped Mac mini with M4 and M4 Pro chip options, a refreshed iPad mini, and several other goodies. Included in the latter category are some new Mac Pro devices touting Apple's custom...
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It was right around this time last year when we posted our Alienware Aurora R16 review, which we dubbed a "civil redesign" and an overall "solid option, in terms of mid-range pre-built gaming PCs." That's not to say it is without flaws (more on those in a moment). However, it's a surprisingly decent value for the...
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Brace yourself, a barrage of 'Prime Big Deal Days' bargains are coming, as well as discounts at retailers like Best Buy and Walmart in a mad dash to compete for your dollars. The two-day event kicks off tomorrow (October 8) and runs through Wednesday (October 9). As is typically the case, however, there are plenty of...
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MediaTek is expected to officially lift the wraps on a new flagship system-on-chip (SoC) next week, and specifically the Dimensity 9400, which will supplant the Dimensity 9300+ as the company's top mobile chip. Ahead of the anticipated launch, a user on Weibo, a massive social media site in China, posted a handful of...
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We've seen a whole bunch of vintage Apple products command massive money in the auction scene over the years, like when an ultra-rare Apple-1 prototype that was hand-soldered by Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak himself sold for a staggering $677,196. Collectors pay big money for Apple collectables. So hopes the owner of...
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There has been a lot of attention pointed towards NVIDIA's next-generation GeForce RTX 50 series based on Blackwell, and in particular the eventual GeForce RTX 5090. Let's not forget, however, AMD also has skin in the game and will be launching its RDNA 4 cards at some point. There's evidence to suggest that a...
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The wait for the next Civilization game isn't quite over—there's still several months to go before publisher 2K releases Sid Meier's Civilization VII to PC (Windows, macOS, and Linux), Switch, and both PlayStation and Xbox game consoles. For those who plan to pick up and play the strategy game on PC, 2K and developer...
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It appears as though Samsung will be slightly tweaking the design language of its next mainstream Galaxy device, the Galaxy S25, when it arrives (presumably next year). Most notably, photos, video, and some accompanying specifications of a purported dummy unit made of aluminum indicate that Samsung has found a way to...
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Amazon has announced a refreshed Fire HD 8 tablet with some key upgrades over its predecessor, and also a massive early discount ahead of the retailer's upcoming Prime Big Deals Days event, a two-day sales affair that runs through October 8-9, 2024 (next week). Looked at from afar, the retooled tablet with its...
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When we posted our Radeon RX 7700 XT review last year, we noted that it's position withing the discrete graphics card landscape "is not as clear cut" as the Radeon RX 7800 XT at time, due to its pricing in relation to GPUs like the GeForce RTX 4060 Ti and Radeon RX 6800 XT. Things have changed in the past year, and a...
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One thing I've gotten in the habit of doing during my daily perusals of the web is to hunt for deals, including whatever happens to be Best Buy's advertised 'Deal of the Day' promotion. These can be hit or miss, though if you're in the market for a secondary laptop to use as a beater—or a gift for mom and pop to knock...
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