Home Office Setup & Equipment

Google’s next Pixel phone, the Pixel 9a, has finally been announced. And for the first time in a Pixel since 2020’s Pixel 5, it ditches the camera bar. It’s also, as expected, a little cheaper and comes with a few additional AI tricks not available on the Pixel 8a, but really, it’s the new look that’s the biggest surprise here. That’s because the 9a, unlike the 8a before it, really doesn’t look much like the Pixel 9 or 9 Pro. Dimensions are roughly equivalent to the standard Pixel 9 (although it is a little more lightweight at 6.6 oz vs. 7 oz) and the screen has almost pound-for-pound the same specs except for a halved contrast ratio, but people familiar with the past hal…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication. Amazon’s Big Spring Sale, running from March 25 to March 31, doesn’t quite hit the same discount highs as Prime Day, but it’s still worth a look—especially if you've had your eye on big-ticket items or tech gifts. This is only the second time Amazon’s hosting the event, and unlike Prime Day, you don’t need a Prime membership to shop (that said, Prime members do get better deals). If you think it's worth it, a Prime membership starts at $14.99 per month, but if you're still on the fence about that kind of commitment, you can always sign up for a 30…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. I've pored over Netflix's release schedule to bring you the best movies and TV shows premiering on the service this month. My must-watch of the month: The Electric State, a comedy sci-fi movie starring Millie Bobby Brown, Chris Pratt, and adorable (but maybe deadly) robots. I'm also psyched for Chaos: The Manson Murders, a new film from documentary GOAT Errol Morris (The Thin Blue Line, Mr. Death), and I'll be checking in on Everybody’s Live, a talk show hosted by John Mulaney that's streamed live. The Electric State Based on the acclaimed graphic novel by Simon Stålenhag, The Electric State is a sci-fi comedy se…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. The Powerbeats Pro 2 are a new set of headphones with a really interesting feature—Apple says they can measure your heart rate during workouts. Huge if true—imagine if you could leave your watch at home (or not bother to buy one in the first place) and still get a heart rate reading to go with your workout. But that's only going to be a useful feature if the data is reasonably accurate. I was curious how good a reading they can actually get from your ears, so I compared the Powerbeats Pro 2 to a traditional chest strap, and to the Apple Watch for good measure. So how do these headphones stack up against those established…

Social media apps aren't exactly known for their privacy and security features, but TikTok users are getting a little bit of help with a built-in tool to monitor their account security and keep their information safe. The new Security Checkup dashboard shows you where your TikTok security is lacking with step-by-step guidance to update your settings. How to use TikTok's Security CheckupTo get to your security dashboard on TikTok, go to your profile and tap Settings and privacy > Security and permissions. Security Checkup will show you which settings have been completed and which need attention, with guidance on how to update each: Adding an email and/or phone number …

Sometimes you need to quickly convert an image, audio file, or video, so you search for an online tool. The problem: many online conversion tools aren't safe to use, putting you at risk from malware or mining your data. Vert isn't like that. This is an open source, browser-based tool that can convert the most common image, audio, video, and document formats. It isn't clogged with ads and you don't need to create an account to use it. More importantly: the tool works (almost)entirely in your browser, meaning your files are never actually uploaded anywhere (save for video files, as I'll explain below). I tested this by opening the website, turning off my WiFi, and convertin…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Whatever happened to the erotic thriller? There’s something of a bell curve to the distribution of the subgenre, rising with the relaxing of the production code in the late 1960s, topping out in the ‘80s with prestige fare like Fatal Attraction, and tailing off by the mid-2000s to the dominance of franchise culture. Today’s box office values big-budget, four-quadrant blockbusters, making marketing of films about adult sexuality nearly impossible. Streaming has opened a window for movies that resemble the erotic thrillers of yore, but the kind they used to make—feature lurid hooks and big stars—remain decidedly absent fr…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication. Amazon’s Big Spring Sale is back—and while it’s no Prime Day, it still brings a solid lineup of discounts for anyone looking to snag big-ticket items for less. Running from March 25 through March 31, this seven-day sale is only in its second year but already feels like a decent excuse to shop. You don’t need to be a Prime member to grab deals, though Amazon claims members get “more and better” prices. If you don’t want to commit, the 30-day free trial might be worth it just for the week. Just set a reminder to cancel if you're not planning on keepi…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication. Amazon’s Big Spring Sale is on now, a mini version of Prime Day that has inspired competing sales at Target and Walmart. Plenty of fitness trackers and smartwatches are among the discounted items. Here are my picks for the best deals, including watches from Apple, Garmin, Fitbit, and Samsung. Apple WatchesThe Apple Watch SE, the most budget version of this smartwatch, is available starting at $169 today. (As with all Apple Watches, the price goes up if you want a larger size or if you buy the version with cellular connectivity.) That’s 32% off the o…

On Thursday, Google rolled out a number of previously-paywalled Gemini features to free users. You can now use Gemini custom chatbots, which the company calls "Gems"; Deep Research, which runs AI models that "think" through each step of a problem; and upload files to Gemini 2.0 Flash Thinking, whether you pay for Google's AI services or not. But that's not all: The company also introduced new experimental feature for Gemini—Gemini with personalization. This feature, which runs on Google's Gemini 2.0 Flash Thinking model, connects Gemini to your Google apps and services, with the goal of offering you a more personal AI assistant. The idea is, by connecting your Google Ac…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication. If you’ve ever wanted to wear earbuds that don’t actually go in your ears, the Bose Ultra Open Earbuds might be the oddball pick you’ve been looking for. These open-style earbuds clip on and hook around your ear instead of sitting inside it, letting ambient noise in by design. That makes them great for runs, walks, or commuting—basically, situations where you want to hear your music but also that car barreling around the corner. And for the next six days or until it sells out, Woot’s offering refurbished models of these earbuds, in black, moonston…

Remodeling your house can be an exciting experience. It can also be an expensive one, which is why a lot of homeowners opt to go the DIY route. But any DIY remodel can also be daunting, even if you’re relatively comfortable with home maintenance and repair tasks. Whether you’re contemplating a DIY remodel for the cost savings or because it’s a fun challenge, there are a lot of online tools that can make the planning and execution of your project a lot easier. The 10 apps below can help you find inspiration, identify furniture and other items that will support your vision, and even show you how to tackle the entire project, step-by-step. Best apps for DIY inspirationEvery …

You can watch just about everything on YouTube, but if you want to watch a full-length Hollywood movie, you're either going to have to sit through a lot of ad breaks or pay a digital rental fee. But not all movies on YouTube are restricted like this. Sometimes you'll come across feature films that you can watch in their entirety, without any limitations or roadblocks to hamper your viewing experience. While not all of them are, um, supposed to be available on YouTube, allow me to point you to an interesting playlist of movies uploaded by none other than Warner Bros. Discovery itself, via Warner Bros. Entertainment. As noted by Gizmodo, this playlist of 31 films is 100% l…

When it comes to Apple Intelligence, you probably either love it or hate it. Either you really enjoy things like Writing Tools and Genmoji, or you despise inaccurate and misleading notification summaries. There's little in-between. Luckily, you don't have to use Apple Intelligence—if your Apple device can even run it. While Apple turns on its AI features by default on compatible devices running iOS 18.3, iPadOS 18.3, and macOS 15.3, you can easily turn off Apple Intelligence at any time. The larger issue, however, is that Apple doesn't seem to respect that choice. Sure, the company presumably wants all of its customers experiencing its AI features, but that shouldn't com…

Dark mode has saved many of us from eye pain when using our smartphones at night. The difference between a black display with white text and a blinding white screen with black text is immeasurable when your phone is the only light source in the room—especially when you're opening your eyes for the first time in a while. While many Android users prefer to use dark mode all the time, others prefer it exclusively in the evening and night. That's where the "sunset to sunrise" schedule comes into play: On many devices, such as Google's Pixel phones, you can choose to schedule dark mode from sunset to sunrise. After the sun rises, your phone stays in light mode, so your content…

Sometimes, the best way to solve a problem is sitting right in front of you. If your problem is that you need a webcam, you can try using your Android phone for the job instead of buying a dedicated device. This is especially useful if you have a spare Android phone lying around and you need it for video calls on your PC or Mac. You can also use your primary Android phone as a webcam, but its utility will be limited since you'll have to keep unplugging it, remembering to put it into do not disturb, or turning on airplane mode to ensure that your video call isn't interrupted. Here are all the ways you can use your Android phone as a webcam. Use the webcam mode on your An…

Meta just announced a seismic change to its 3D social platform Horizon Worlds. The company is removing Meta Quest users to focus on mobile users. So Horizon Worlds, originally a VR-only platform, now a mix of both VR users and mobile users, will become a mobile-only platform in the near future. In a blog post aimed at developers, Samantha Ryan, VP of Content at Meta's Reality Labs, said the company is "separating our Quest VR platform from our Worlds platform in order to create more space for both products to grow." "We’re doubling down on the VR developer ecosystem while shifting the focus of Worlds to be almost exclusively mobile. By breaking things down into two disti…

A recent outbreak of measles in West Texas has resulted in 159 cases of the disease in the state so far; 22 victims required hospitalization, and one has died. In response to the deadly outbreak, some Texas parents seem to be considering hosting "measles parties" instead of vaccinating their kids. Misinformation about measles can have deadly consequences, so here's a look at some ways people are getting measles wrong. Myth: Measles vaccines are potentially dangerous While a small percentage of people suffer side effects from the measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccine, they are almost always mild. The most common is a fever that hits between 5% and 10% of those vaccin…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication. The Apple community has been finding their lost keys since 2021 with the AirTag, but Tile has been helping both Android and Apple users locate their missing devices since 2013. Over a decade later, their latest tracker (after being acquired by Life360), the Tile Mate, is just $16.95 (originally $27.99) for a single tracker, $33.99 (originally $44.99) for a two-pack, and $55.99 (originally $79.99) for a four-pack, the lowest prices, according to price-tracking tools. If you're an Android user, this is a good opportunity to stock up. (If you're an Ap…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication. It's a good time to shop for portable projectors, with the Nebula Capsule 3 GTV projector down to its lowest price and now the more powerful Anker Nebula Mars 3 Air going for $419.99 (originally $599.99), also its lowest price, according to price-tracking tools. Both of these projectors are portable, but the Nebula Mars 3 Air is more suitable for outdoor use. Nebula Mars 3 Air GTV Projector Brightness: 400 lumens, Native Resolution: 1080p, Max Resolution: 38…

Popular culture for kids has fragmented so much lately that what's familiar to one 14-year-old might be utterly foreign to another. But the progress toward everyone having their own personal culture isn't complete. So I'm taking a look at some of things all (well, most) kids relate to and love, including A Minecraft Movie, Labubus, and the literary techniques developed by Spanish author Jorge Luis Borges in the 1940s (for real). Will A Minecraft Movie become a generational touchstone? I'm writing this on the day A Minecraft Movie comes out, and signs point to the release being one of those vanishingly rare events that capture the collective imaginations (and dispo…

I have a lot of apps on my phone. Many of these are there because I want them to be; some are there because I test them out for work; and others are a total mystery. What's worse, some of those—and even some of the ones I enjoy, but don't need—pull money out of my bank account monthly, quarterly, or annually ... and I have no idea. For me, agreeing to a "free trial" is ultimately just a guarantee that I'll lose money because I'm never going to actually check on that app's subscription status again. Or, at least, I didn't used to. I thought it was too hard to scrape through my bank statement, identify recurring charges that only show up as "Apple.com," figure out what ap…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication. If you want to begin coding—either for a career shift, a hobby, or just to better understand your favorite apps—this bundle is worth a look. You can get Microsoft Visual Studio Professional 2022 bundled with the Learn to Code Certification course pack currently on sale for $55.97—a steep markdown from its original $1,999 price tag. The standout here is that you’re not just getting a license for Visual Studio, which is already a powerhouse development environment, but also lifetime access to more than 60 hours of beginner-to-advanced coding instruct…

Most people still rely on banks for most of their financial needs: In fact, 96 percent of the country has at least one bank or credit union account. (And if you use a bank to deposit your salary and pay your bills, you should even consider having a second bank, just in case something goes wrong.) But what happens if your bank fails? Bank failures aren’t common, but they do happen—two failed just last year, and 2025 has already seen one bank failure back in January. While your money is probably generally safe even if your bank fails, a bank failure can still cause you a lot of trouble because your funds may be unavailable for days (or longer) as the Federal Deposit Insur…

After the battery woes surrounding the Pixel 4a and the promise of an eventual reduction in battery capacity for the Pixel 9a, Google is now proactively tackling any future battery issues that Pixel 7a owners may face. In a support document, the company said it has now determined that some Pixel 7a devices may experience battery swelling, and is offering a free battery replacement to everyone impacted by this issue. Here's everything you need to know about the problem and how to get a free battery replacement for your Pixel 7a. Identifying the signs of a failing battery One major limitation of lithium-ion batteries is degradation. Over time, these batteries experience re…