Setting Up Your Home Office

We may earn a commission from links on this page. If you're looking for a flexible option for streaming your favorite content, you'll want to consider a portable streaming device, like a streaming stick or a streaming box, over a smart TV. Narrowing it down from there depends on a few different factors, so I've broken it down into six different categories to help you choose what makes the most sense. Device typeMost streaming devices fall into one of two categories: streaming sticks (like the Fire TV Stick 4K and the Roku Express 4K+) and set-top boxes, such as the Apple TV 4K and the Fire TV Cube. Streaming sticks are a little larger than a USB drive and plug directly i…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. During his Presidential campaign, new Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. promised an eight-year halt on infectious disease research, presumably because our chances of encountering any sort of infectious disease will be nearly zero once the fluoride is gone from our water supply. As we celebrate the disease-free world of the very near future, let's take a look back at movies that explore worlds in which viruses and diseases (or related metaphors) run rampant. These movies vary wildly in their tones and styles, but there are some recurring themes: Science and scientists (however flawed) are almost alwa…

We're now up to the second public beta release of Android 16, which brings new features across a variety of areas, including photography, system security, device management, and foldable form factors. The official Google blog post announcing the beta release leads with the media and camera updates. If you want more of a say over how your photos and videos end up looking, you can make use of additional manual control options covering exposure, color temperature, and tint. There's also support for Ultra HDR images if you're saving your snaps in the HEIC image format. Essentially, these are new hybrid options between fully automatic processing and fully manual processing, so…

This week, I explain why generations A and Z are eating rotten meat, making fun of cave explorers, showing off their emergency contacts, and becoming very emotionally invested in an angler fish. Everyone is having a very normal week. What do all the cave diving memes mean?If your various social media feeds are full of videos of upside down shoes and boots in different locations, you're witnessing "cave diving" memes. While "cave diving" actually refers to underwater cave exploration, the memes are not about that: Younger people are making jokes about the way cave explorers will wedge themselves into tiny crevices until all anyone can see are the bottoms of their boots. H…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. When it comes to upgrading your home's aesthetic, you don't need to spend a lot of time or money to have an impact. In addition to inexpensive improvements that increase your home's comfort and efficiency, there are a number of small swaps that can have a big impact without busting your budget. All of these swaps are renter-friendly—they are unlikely to cause damage in the installation process and are easy to return to their original state. Simply save what you remove and replace when you leave. Get new switch plate and outlet coversRemove the cheap plastic light switch and outlet covers around your home and replace them…

WhatsApp is adding new choices for customizing your chats, with both preset themes and mix-and-match colors for backgrounds and chat bubbles, as well as a selection of 30 new wallpapers. Users on WhatsApp have been able to change chat backgrounds for a while, with options ranging from solid colors to patterned wallpapers to images uploaded from your camera roll. Now, customizations have expanded to include chat bubbles, with default themes that coordinate background and chat colors and options to customize one or both for individual chats or all of your WhatsApp threads. According to a blog post from WhatsApp announcing the update, chat themes are currently being rolled…

The Google Gemini apps are getting a memory upgrade, with the AI bot now able to recall past conversations you've had with it—building on the tool's existing ability to remember personal details about you, such as the foods you like or what you do professionally. Like several other new Gemini features when they first launched, this is exclusively for Google One AI Premium subscribers ($20 per month), with English language users getting the upgrade first. Google says support for more languages and Enterprise accounts will be added in the "coming weeks." Google's intention here is to make Gemini more useful. You could refer back to something you were chatting about last wee…

Canceling memberships has become an everyday thing for a lot of people. We cycle through streaming services, we sign up for trial memberships, we find cheaper, better options for everything from television to gyms and jump whenever it makes financial, emotional, or psychological sense for us to do so. We’re pretty much at a point where the moment you sign up for a service or subscription, the countdown to your inevitable cancellation begins. And everyone knows that canceling those subscriptions and services can be a challenge, even with new rules in place that are supposed to make it easier. If you’ve ever tried to cancel something and found it very difficult, or even out…

Eating healthy is good for you, no matter who you are or what your goals. You don't have to be trying to lose weight to eat healthier, for one thing. But it can be tricky to know where to start, so here are your basic guidelines for healthy eating. Fruits, veggies, and protein are some of the easiest places to start, and they'll have the biggest impacts. There’s no perfect dietBefore we start, an important ground rule: There isn’t one true perfect way to eat. No matter what your keto friend says, or your mom who has this diet plan you just have to try, or even those ranked lists of the "best" diets. When weight-loss diets have been tested against each other, they all work…

There are a few tricks with home bread baking that make the difference between a lackluster loaf and a spectacular one. One of them is having a heavy duty baking surface to get a nice bottom crust, and another is creating a steamy environment for a lofty loaf. Managing these requirements might sound like a challenge, or like expensive equipment might be involved, but you can actually solve both needs with a common piece of cookware: the Dutch oven. Why you should bake bread in a Dutch ovenA heavy duty baking surface, like a baking stone, is easy enough to come by, but a steam injected oven like the bakeries have is not as common at home. Steam is essential for a fully ri…

While many of us only have one Apple Account to manage, many others have two, and are using both with their Apple devices. I know someone who once created an Apple Account using an employer-linked email address, and at some point, created a second account with their personal ID. Now, they're using two accounts on their devices, with one linked to iCloud and Apple Music, and the other one for all other apps. If you've had Apple devices for a long time, you might have two Apple Accounts of your own. Despite this, Apple didn't allow users to merge purchases onto one account. So, if you wanted to access purchases on an old Apple Account, you needed to sign into it, even thoug…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication. The MacBook Air is a staple portable productivity laptop that people seem to love, and as such, many companies try to make their own versions of it. Samsung's take is the Galaxy Book Pro, and after the recent released of Galaxy Book5 Pro, last year's Galaxy Book4 Pro has dropped to $699.99 (originally $1,349.99) for the i5 Ultra Processor, a new record-low price according to price-tracking tools. The model with an i7 Processor starts at $899.99 (originally $1,449.99), also its lowest price. …

This week Google added Veo 2 to YouTube Shorts and—wow, this article is already gibberish. Let me back up. YouTube Shorts is YouTube's TikTok knockoff competitor. Veo2 is Google's AI tool for generating videos. As of this week, you can use that AI to make clips for YouTube Shorts. This innovative and revolutionary change will forever alter the vertical videos most people scroll past so they can find the thing they actually wanted to watch. According to a confusingly worded announcement post, you can now create clips to add to your Shorts simply by typing a sentence. Anyone can create a Short right in the YouTube mobile app either by combining footage already saved to thei…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. The problem with Netflix's algorithmic recommendations is that it creates an entertainment echo chamber where viewers' tastes are confirmed instead of challenged. Right now, there's probably a TV series languishing in Netflix's back catalog that would blow your mind, if only you knew about it. But it's probably not in English. Netflix has a huge catalog of excellent foreign-language shows, so many that finding a place to start can be daunting. As Lifehacker's expert on "what's good on TV," I've put together a list of the best of the best "not in English" Netflix series, listed in order of Rotten Tomatoes review aggregatio…

Scammers are getting increasingly clever about injecting apps with malware. Certainly it's nothing new that malicious apps are littered across the internet, but lately they've been popping up with alarming frequency even in theoretically safe spots like the Google Play Store and even Apple's App Store. Malware is even showing up on Steam, serving as a reminder that we all need to be careful with each and every app (or game) we choose to download onto our devices. As reported by GameRant, Valve recently removed a title called PirateFi from Steam. Created by developer Seaworth Interactive, the game was free to play, and was advertised as a survival adventure that let playe…

I gave up wearing an Apple Watch about three marathons ago. Fitness watches are fantastic tools for most runners, but they're not for me—especially when I'm not training for a specific race. It turns out that, for me, there's a distinct freedom in running without a training plan. After years of following structured programs with specific paces, distances, and workout types, I've learned to appreciate the art of intuitive running—letting my body guide the way rather than my watch. The joy of watchless runningThe decision to ditch my running watch was a conscious one. No more obsessing over pace, distance, or heart rate. Instead, I've developed a deeper connection with my …

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication. These days, there are some features that make Bluetooth speakers better than they were just a couple of years ago: USB-C for universal fast charging, hi-res audio playback for great audio quality, charging for other devices, and a built-in speakerphone. The Beats Pill speaker has all these features and more, making it a great modern speaker. It is down to $99.99 (originally $149.95), matching the lowest price it has been since its recent release, according to price-tracking tools. For less than a hundred dollars, this speaker is a steal. …

As a teen, I was confused when I read a box of taco directions. I remember the step after cooking the ground beef was something like “drain off the water.” What water? It only took one time, and then I knew what water they were referring to. Cooking ground beef often results in gray, rubbery nubbins, and browning it is even harder because of that pool of liquid. Luckily, there’s an easy remedy for this problem: Cook faster, more tender ground beef with a sprinkle of baking soda. The best way to cook ground beefI have no issues making this claim: This is the best way to cook ground beef. Full stop. Baking soda is a household chemical most folks have readily available in th…

There's chatter on TikTok right now about going "monk mode," but if you watch enough videos on the subject, you'll realize this means different things to different people. At its core, though, the idea of engaging with your work in a distraction-free environment is timeless. In fact, even "monk mode" has been around as a specific concept since the early 2000s and has experienced periodic surges of popularity on Google over the years. Here's how to make it work for you. Define what your "monk mode" isWhen you're in monk mode, you're approximating what monks do, or at least part of it. Imagine a monk in your mind. What is he doing? Whatever it is, it's probably calm and fo…

There are many easy ways to launch apps on your Mac. You can click an icon in the Dock, use Spotlight Search (or better alternatives), or visit the Applications folder and fire up your favorite apps. None of these methods are as fast and as fun as launching apps with Pieoneer, a launcher that lets you add your favorite apps to a radial menu. It also has two other useful features—a built-in app switcher and an easy way to surface hidden features of your favorite apps. Using Pieoneer as an app launcher Credit: Pranay Parab This i…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication. The Anker Soundcore Space A40 earbuds are down to $44.99 from their usual $79.99. That’s nearly half off for a pair of noise-canceling earbuds that PCMag crowned their Editor’s Choice and Best Budget Earphones of 2022. Soundcore by Anker Space A40 Adaptive Active Noise Cancelling Wireless Earbuds $44.99 at Amazon …

It sucks finding brown leaf-tips on your little plant babies: You know it’s your fault, but you’re not sure what you’ve done wrong, and it’s not like your plant can tell you. It will take some botanical detective work to get to the root of the matter and find out why your plant looks like it has seen better days, but once you do, it’s often an easy-to-solve problem. Here are some potential problems (and their solutions). You're watering it too much (or too little)Brown leaf-tips can indicate you aren't watering your plant enough, or you're watering it too much, or you're not watering it at the right time. Study up, and get to know your plant’s needs. There’s no one-size-…

Every part of life has its lingo, and the gym is no exception. We’ve collected a list of the lifting-related words that most often confuse beginners, so read on to learn what you might be missing. EquipmentBarbellsA barbell is the bar that you load the plates on, either empty (the “empty bar”) or loaded (for example, “a 225 pound barbell”). A standard Olympic-sized barbell is 20 kilograms, or in many American gyms, 45 pounds. (20 kilos is 44 pounds, so it doesn’t really matter which is which.) There are a variety of other barbells that exist, including Olympic women’s bars that weigh 15 kilos, EZ-curl bars with an ergonomic curve to them, and more. We have a guide to al…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Welcome to “Cookbook of the Week.” This is a series where I highlight cookbooks that are unique, easy to use, or just special to me. While finding a particular recipe online serves a quick purpose, flipping through a truly excellent cookbook has a magic all its own. When I look around for cookbooks to feature for this column, I prefer to go to a real bookstore. I like to flip through the book and see what the purpose is, if it’s easy to use or complex, and if it’ll be useful to you all—this takes some browsing. But there is the rare cookbook that I almost immediately tuck under my arm because I know in my bones that it’s …