Installing an SSD is one of the most straightforward upgrades you can do to your PC — the only one with fewer steps is installing new memory. That makes it a great way to try out upgrading your PC by yourself, and we’re here to help. Just follow the steps below, and you’ll have a great new SSD in your PC in no time.

Here’s how to do it.

Buying the right SSD

Before you can install an SSD, you need to buy the right one for your PC. If you’ve already done that, skip ahead to the install instructions below, but if you haven’t, be sure to give our guide on how to buy an SSD a read. It will walk you through buying an SSD that will physically fit in your PC and is compatible with it. It will also give you advice on speed and capacity to help you get the best SSD for you.

How to install an NVMe SSD in your PC

Most modern SSDs are NVMe drives using the M.2 form factor, and most PCs come with dedicated slots for those. If you have an older 2.5-inch SATA SSD you want to install, check out the section below.

Step 1: To install an NVMe SSD in your PC, shut your computer down and unplug all the cables, then place it on a desk or other easily-accessible surface with adequate lighting.

Step 2: Remove the case side panel using the rear screws.

Step 3: Before touching any internal components, ground yourself by attaching an anti-static wristband, or by touching some conductive portion of the case or power supply chassis. Do this periodically while working in your PC, and ideally, wear rubber-soled shoes while doing so — especially if you’re standing on carpet.

Step 4: Locate a spare NVMe SSD slot on your motherboard. These are often found in the middle of the board, but can also be farther down, nestled among the PCIExpress slots. It may be underneath your graphics card in some cases — you may have to remove the GPU to get access.

Step 5: Remove the retaining screw(s) and lift off any pre-installed heatsinks.

Step 6: Angle the SSD into the slot at around 45 degrees, and gently push it in until you feel a gentle click. Then press the other end of the SSD down, until it rests against the retaining screw hole. Then use the retaining screw to secure the drive in place. If necessary, re-attach any heatsinks that were in place before the install.

Step 7: Before closing up your PC, plug in the cables again and boot it up. Check the BIOS, and in Windows to see if the new SSD is detected. If not, you may need to initialize it within the Windows Disk Management utility.

If it still doesn’t show up, follow these steps to fix it.

How to install a SATA SSD

Step 2: Locate a spare 2.5-inch drive bay. If you don’t have one, either remove an existing drive, or be prepared to use some tape or other method for securing your SSD still in the base of your case, or against a side panel. While SSDs aren’t susceptible to physical damage like hard drives are, you still don’t want it rattling around if you need to move your PC.

Step 3: Locate a spare SATA power connector. It will have an L shape. Plug that into the appropriate power port on your SSD. Then grab a spare SATA cable — you should have gotten one with the SSD or your motherboard — and plug it into the SSD. Then secure the other end into a free SATA slot on your motherboard. It should be located somewhere along the front edge of the board.

Step 4: Before closing up your PC, plug in the cables again and boot it up. Check the BIOS as well as Windows to see if the new SSD is detected. If not, you may need to initialize it within the Windows Disk Management utility.

If it still doesn’t show up, follow the steps linked to in the NVMe section above and you should be able to fix it.

Got a laptop that needs a storage upgrade? Here’s how to install an SSD in your laptop.

At the beginning of September, cyber security firm McAfee highlighted a malware program, SpyAgent, that uses Optical Character Recognition (OCR) to access screenshots of crypto wallet recovery phrases. The malicious software has so far been found in 280 apps, all of which are available outside the Google Play store, and McAfee has said there are signs that an iOS version is in the early stages of development.

Cryptocurrency has gained a lot of traction and attention over the past few years. It is a popular investment option for those who want to diversify their portfolios. It can be spent with some major companies like Microsoft and Overstock. It can be used for peer-to-peer payments. And it is popular at online casinos with options ranging from Litecoin dice games to Bitcoin slots. It is especially popular with online gamblers because it is said to offer a more secure experience than submitting credit card or bank details.

Experts have warned crypto wallet users to ensure their data is safe and follow best practices to maintain their financial security. So, is it possible to keep your crypto secure on Android, or will there always be some risk?

Choose A Legitimate Wallet

Cryptocurrency holders need secure methods of storing their crypto. It is generally recommended that they keep their funds away from exchanges, except when making trades and exchanging currencies. Crypto wallets are deemed the best option. Different wallets can accept and be used to store keys for certain cryptocurrencies.

Electrum is considered a good wallet for Bitcoin while MetaMask is a popular option for Ether and Ethereum-based coins. Users should not only ensure that their wallet is compatible with the coins and tokens they hold, but that it is a legitimate wallet. Check online reviews for genuine user experiences.

Download Wallets Via The Store

McAfee found the SpyAgent malware in APKs that were available outside Google Play. Google aims to protect its users from malicious software by checking APKs for malicious code. Some malware makes it past these checks, but incidents are rare, and you are better protected when installing software from the Play Store. This also gives you another opportunity to check credentials and read user reviews.

Similarly, Apple users should use wallets downloaded from the Apple Play store to avoid potential malware.

Securely Store Recovery Phrases

Recovery phrases are 12 to 24-word lists that can be used to gain access to a wallet so that it can be restored on a device or added to a new device. Thieves can use the phrases to install the wallet on their own devices and then divert the real owner’s crypt funds to other wallets and addresses. The phrases are intentionally difficult to remember and wallet producers typically advise that users print or write down their phrases for future reference.

Screenshotting or saving the phrase on the same device as the wallet resides is not secure. As well as SpyAgent, users could have their phrases, wallets, and crypto funds stolen if somebody gets hold of their phone for just a few minutes.

With the Tokyo Game Show taking place this week, major publishers have lined up showcases for the coming days. Sony is getting the jump on its rivals as it will run its next State of Play on September 24 at 6PM ET.

The company plans to shine the spotlight on more than 20 PS5 and PS VR2 games during the stream, which is set to run for over 30 minutes. You’ll be able to watch the showcase on YouTube and Twitch in English or Japanese.

It seems very likely that we’ll get a release date for Horizon Lego Adventures, the final first-party game that Sony currently has on its slate for the rest of the year. We’ll surely get another look at the Until Dawn and Silent Hill 2 remakes before they arrive in early October too. There’s also chatter that there are remasters of Horizon Zero Dawn and Days Gone on the way, so Sony might spill the beans on those. Death Stranding 2: On The Beach and Marvel’s Wolverine are among the other upcoming titles that could make an appearance.

Here’s hoping for a major surprise or two. Hardware news seems unlikely given that the PS5 Pro is coming soon. However, it’s a good opportunity for Sony to remind everyone about those dope PS1-style 30th anniversary editions of the PS5 consoles and controllers. (For what it’s worth, Sony may reveal the prices of those at the State of Play.)

Meanwhile, let’s not forget that September 26 is The Last of Us Day. If we don’t hear anything about that franchise at the State of Play, Sony will certainly have something to say about it then. A release date for the PC version of The Last of Us Part 2 Remastered is possible, though we should at least get an update on season two of the HBO adaptation.

Autonomous electric aviation startup Pyka is working hard to scale up its crop-dusting and cargo plane lines, but it has attracted a lucrative new suitor: the Pentagon. The promise of a climate-friendly dual-use self-flying plane was also too great for investors to resist, resulting in a new $40 million B round.

Pyka started in 2019 with a focus on crop-dusting, a business you might not personally encounter much but one that is both important and extremely outdated. The company’s lightweight, compact electric Pelican aircraft were designed to autonomously spray crops over large areas, relieving the dangerous and tedious work of human pilots or remote control operators.

Though it briefly worked on a passenger plane, the company decided after raising some money in 2022 that a cargo variant of the Pelican was more practical in the short term.

“We went from render to first flight in about 10 months, which was exciting. It’s very fast,” said co-founder and CEO Michael Norcia. At the time, their main goal was inter-island commerce, a market normally served by slow boats and old planes, keeping costs high and lead times long. Small, autonomous aircraft making quick puddle jumps daily with 400 pounds of cargo could transform many an island community.

But the cargo variant attracted the attention of a customer Norcia hadn’t yet considered a real possibility: the Defense Department.

“When we initially created the product, our focus was purely commercial use cases. We pretty quickly realized there was a lot of interest and need for the product in the defense world,” Norcia said. “It kind of caught us by surprise.”

“We always wondered if a vehicle in our class would have a place in defense logistics,” he explained. “Is it big enough? Is it OK that it can’t hover? But I think really because of the war in Ukraine, everyone’s mindset around autonomous systems in defense, and around logistics, and really just around problem solving has changed. When we started, it wasn’t clear, but now it’s like, 100%, of course logistics is going to be automated!”

The shift in military and general government procurement has been leaning toward more inexpensive, flexible, solutions that exist today rather than “exquisite” systems built to spec, with eight-figure price tags, that might exist in five years. And it isn’t hard for anyone to imagine the utility of a cargo-carrying drone fleet.

Not being a military contractor itself, Pyka has been working with aerospace veteran Sierra Nevada to make the kinds of changes needed for such a craft to be useful on a battlefield or contested environment. These are largely electronic, he said — they’re not adding guns and armor plating. The mil-spec one is called Rumrunner.

Norcia admitted that the decision to do defense work was not an easy one to make.

“Those conversations came up early and with pretty broad scope. It isn’t aligned with what everyone at the company wants to spend their days on, and it’s a topic I’ve tried to think deeply about,” he said. “The good news is automating logistics has some pretty positive externalities. I’m a proponent of moving things in a robot that is maybe going to get shot down by another robot. Whereas the status quo is a vehicle with people on it, getting shot down by other people.”

He pointed out that the government and military have a long history of subsidizing R&D in aviation, which is quite true — in fact, most people are surprised to hear that a huge amount of basic research across many domains is funded through Defense Department grants.

“There’s an existential element to it: Aviation is a seriously non-trivial industry to be a part of. High regulatory hurdles, extremely high risk — I mean, neither of these are great news for an early-stage startup trying to make money,” Norcia said. In other words, they weren’t necessarily in a position to say no. “The majority of [Pelican Cargo] aircraft delivered and income is related to defense partners at this point, and I expect that’s probably going to remain the case for the coming years. On the five- to 10-year horizon, I think the commercial use case is going to look increasingly strong, but it’s still regulatorily constrained.”

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That doesn’t mean they aren’t working on it — their commercial endeavors are ongoing, and the new funding will help them scale up manufacturing after spending years tweaking and improving the design in response to customer feedback.

And despite putting the passenger plane on ice, Norcia said all their work still contributes toward that market eventually.

“We’re making progress!” he said. “That’s still the North Star for us; we want to have success in the industrial use cases, then use that data advantage and cash flow to make a passenger-carrying vehicle. That’s still the legacy we’d like Pyka to have.”

The $40 million B round was led by Obvious Ventures, with participation from Piva Capital, Prelude Ventures, Metaplanet Holdings, and Y Combinator.

The excellent Delta emulator for iOS is going to get even better: sometime soon, the app will get support for online multiplayer in Nintendo DS games, according to Delta developer Riley Testut. Testut’s post about the feature includes a video of a Mario Kart DS race between two people being played on the emulator, and it immediately transported me back to playing the game on my own DS many years ago.

Nintendo shut down the DS’s online services way back in 2014, so we asked Testut how the online services will work. “It’s based on melonDS’ online support, which connects to 3rd-party Nintendo [Wi-Fi Connection] servers (such as Kaeru, Wimmfi, AltWFC, etc),” Testut tells The Verge. “This means all 10 million+ Delta users will be able to connect to other Delta users and users on real devices who are using these 3rd-party Nintendo WFC servers.”

However, “this also means it is limited to Nintendo DS games for now, but all Nintendo DS games with Nintendo WFC are supported,” Testut says. The Delta team doesn’t plan to host its own server, so online multiplayer will be free when it’s available for everyone.

You might have to wait a bit before you can try the online multiplayer for yourself. Testut says that the feature is coming first in a beta version of Delta for Patreon subscribers. “We don’t have a public release date yet,” Testut says. While disappointing, that means you have plenty of time to get some Mario Kart DS practice in.