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Wouldn't it be great to be able to see if your furniture is going to fit before you move it? Or how a color will look on your walls before you paint them? With Roomeon 3D-Planner, you can. If you've ever used 3D panoramic software to shop for apartments, tour historic buildings, or devastate the enemy, you've seen Roomeon 3D-Planner's basic operation. This free 3D interior design application lets you create virtual models of your rooms and furnishings, down to the exact dimensions, that you can arrange, rearrange, and rearrange again, without lifting a finger (not … Read more

Keyloggers are programs that hide in the background and record a user's every keystroke, mouse click, and screen image, letting others (such as the boss) see exactly what that user has been doing while at the computer. Long used in high-security applications, keyloggers can help parents, employers, and others who are responsible for others' behavior (and, more to the point, misbehavior) by clearly showing which Web sites and programs a specific user accessed at a specific time. Spyrix Free Keylogger can put that power in your hands. This easy-to-use freeware logs keystrokes and online activity, takes screenshots, and monitors … Read more

Major Share's CPU-M Benchmark is a free program that runs benchmarking tests on your CPU and RAM and displays detailed test results in an easy-to-read interface. You can also post your results online to share and compare. That's all this tool does, but it's enough to have so much useful technical data in one place. Most users won't need CPU-M Benchmark's detailed reports; at least, not beyond basic performance data. But technicians and geeks will find lot of useful information.

CPU-M Benchmark's compact, dialog-based user interface looks a lot like the system data and … Read more

Editors' note: This post was updated October 26, 2012, with all 2012 MacBook Air and Pro reviews, including the 13-inch MacBook Pro with Retina Display.

As 2012 draws to a close, we've seen the death of one MacBook, the 17-inch Pro, and the addition of two new models -- 13-inch and 15-inch MacBook Pros with thinner bodies and high-resolution Retina displays. All now have third-generation Intel Core i-series processors, Thunderbolt ports, and USB 3.0, while the two new Retina models even have HDMI outputs, a long-requested feature.

The Retina models are impressive reboots, walking the line between slim … Read more

MacBook Air. MacBook Pro. Once upon a time, these two products were significantly different from each other, two totally different products. That dividing line's been blurring, especially when it comes to the world of 13-inch MacBooks.

The MacBook Air used to be an underperforming, expensive laptop with stellar design, while the 13-inch Pro was a full-featured, far more robust machine. The truth is, these systems are closer in performance and price than ever before. … Read more

Apple's cheaper-but-better MacBook Air isn't good news for ultrabooks.

Ultrabooks surfaced last year as a niche product in response to the Air. And now Intel, Microsoft, Hewlett-Packard, Dell, at el are trying to mainstream the skinny laptops.

There's one problem. Apple just cut the price and upped the processor specs on the MacBook Air today.

So, is Apple still standard bearer and ultrabooks just pretenders to the lightweight laptop throne?

Only time and market-share numbers will tell.

Spec check: $1,099 11.6-inch MBA: The high-end model has dropped to $1,099 from $1,199 and packs … Read more

Although the Toshiba Excite 10 has already been out since May, the rest of the family is due to be released in just a few days and they're all excited (ha! see what I did there?) to hit the market.

On June 10, the two remaining members of Toshiba's lineup of tablets are due to hit stores. These Wi-Fi-enabled devices all run on Android 4.0, Ice Cream Sandwich and they're powered by Tegra 3, quad-core processors. Oh, and they're also all kind of expensive.

The smallest-size option is the Excite 7.7. Unlike its big … Read more

Normally, a new version of EA Sports' Madden Football is an E3 non-event. Not so at E3 2012: in fact, it became a sort of poster-child for future-forward gaming.

Admittedly, the second-screen Madden prototypes on Xbox SmartGlass shown briefly at Microsoft's press conference aren't real (yet), but Madden 13 does feature integrated Kinect features and completely new player physics, dubbed Infinity Engine.

The most interesting part of the Madden's Kinect feature-set is that it doesn't use the camera: instead, it relies on voice commands as a way of controlling pre-snap adjustments on offense and defense. Joe Montana seemed to pull it off well during Microsoft's keynote, but I needed proof. I tried it in a relatively quiet E3 show floor booth, and it not only worked, but it could end up being a feature I actually use. … Read more

Get ready to get your game on. E3 has begun:

The Electronic Entertainment Expo, called E3 for short, has kicked off. It's the big video game conference of the year, and even though the show has just begun, it looks like this is the year of the second screen. Both the Wii U and the Xbox 360 are showing off ways to tie tablet screen interaction with what's on the television, creating a richer game and entertainment experience. You can catch all our continuing coverage of the show at cnet.com/e3.

Nintendo's press conference isn't … Read more