Setting Up Your Home Office

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Many years ago, I saw a tweet go around that said something like, "You have the same amount of hours in a day as Beyoncé." On the one hand, that was annoying, because while it’s true, I don’t have the same amount of resources. Still, yes, everyone has the same amount of hours in a day—point made. But as it turns out, what may be more important thing to understand is that we all have the same amount of hours in a week. That’s the basis for the "168 method," so named for the number of hours in a week. This productivity technique calls on you to expand your thinking around how much time you really have to get everything done…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. RAM, also known as random-access memory (or just memory for short), is an important part of most electronics these days. It essentially allows programs to keep key information at the ready so they don't have to dig through your storage (like your hard drive or solid state drive) to find it. RAM is in laptops, phones, tablets, gaming consoles, and even cars, and all apps rely on it at least a little bit. Essentially, if your device has a computer in it, it probably comes with RAM equipped, or it'll want you to install some before it'll boot up. But that dependency has become a big problem recently. While RAM has historical…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication. Apple released the latest 14-inch MacBook Pro with the powerful M5 chip this October, and ever since then, it has been steadily dropping in price—right now, it's down to $1,349 (originally $1,599) for the base model. This new price is $50 cheaper than it was during Black Friday, when Lifehacker's Senior Tech Editor Jake Peterson called it "a ridiculously good value." At the time of this writing, Amazon is sold out of the base model, but it's still available at Best Buy. Apple 2025 MacBook Pro L…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. The strength training mode in Garmin watches like the Forerunner 570 is a little confusing at first, but once you get the hang of it, it's incredibly useful in the gym. Garmin handles rest timers better than any other wearable I've tried, and when combined with a third-party app called LiftTrack, you can even track your volume and PRs. I'll lead you through how I use this workout mode, and how it's helped me do more work in less time in the gym. How to find strength workouts in Garmin Connect Credit: Ga…

If you picked up your iPhone to round out your Apple Music Replay for the year, or turned on your TV to watch a show like Pluribus, you might have noticed something odd: Neither service is working. It's not just you: Apple Music, Apple TV, and Game Center are currently down. That's directly from Apple's "System Status" website, which tracks all of Apple's web-based services and identifies which ones may be experiencing problems. While most of Apple's services, like the App Store, Find My, and iMessage, are all "Available," four of these services are experiencing an outage: Apple Music, Apple TV, Apple TV Channels, and Game Center. If you click on each, you can see the…

After years of suffering from a crippling TikTok addiction, I decided enough was enough: I quit the app cold turkey and deleted it from my phone. Then, I discovered Instagram Reels, and my attention span hasn't been the same since. TikTok's algorithm is infamous, but we don't give Instagram's enough credit. This platform is addicting. I hardly use the app to keep up with friends and family anymore: Reels grabs my attention and doesn't let go, and before I know it, it's midnight, and I've done nothing with my evening. How many videos did I watch? What did I even watch? Whatever Meta has going on in that algorithm is dangerous stuff. You can influence the algorithm, of cou…

There’s plenty of chatter and research surrounding the so-called “laws” of productivity, but even the laws we use to govern other areas of our lives can be applicable when there are things that need to get done. Newton’s Laws of Motion can be adapted to productivity, especially the first one. What’s Newton’s first law all about?Newton’s first law of motion is this: “An object at rest remains at rest, and an object in motion remains in motion at constant speed and in a straight line unless acted on by an unbalanced force.” Obviously, he was talking about physics here, but in productivity spaces around the web, people who spend their time thinking about more efficient ways…

I recently put together a list of the best small portable gaming handhelds for people who are tired of how big the Nintendo Switch 2 and handheld gaming PCs like the Steam Deck are. In an era of gaming devices that often feel like laptops with grips and buttons added to them, these retro gaming handhelds (as I call them) can be a great solution for people who miss the days of the PSP and Nintendo DS. But since they come from smaller companies, and run either Linux or Android, actually getting games on these devices is not quite so straightforward. After all, it's not like the people making these handhelds are publishing cartridges for them. While that's true, there are pl…

The latest Apple Watch costs $429. A basic Peloton Bike is $1,395, plus a $49.99 monthly subscription. Throw in a WHOOP membership at $149 annually, maybe an Oura Ring for another $349, and suddenly you're looking at thousands of dollars to participate in what's become the standard way many Americans approach their health. For some, that price tag is steep. For others, it's a non-starter. I'm no stranger to the appeal of the latest, greatest wearables and smart health devices. But as all this wellness technology become the norm, what does this mean for people who don't strap a smartwatch onto their wrists? If comprehensive health data—and the insights it provides—becomes …

Apple’s various apps and utilities are finally starting to talk to each other, and it’s great news for iPhone users. Last year, Apple added the ability to sync Reminders with Calendar, which added time-based reminders directly into your Calendar view—a feature I now regularly use. Now, with iOS 26.2, Apple is finally integrating Reminders with the Alarms app; you'll be able to set an accompanying alarm for any reminder. If, like me, you tend to be forgetful—if you need a reminder for your reminder—this will be a handy feature. The alarm will sound, taking up your entire screen until you dismiss it. And yes, you can snooze it. How to add an alarm to any reminder on your i…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. We’ve reached the end of television. Since the invention of the technology in the 1920s, TV screens have gradually grown larger, pictures clearer, and sets cheaper, until now: For all intents and purposes, we’re at the end of the road. This "nothing special" 65-inch Samsung unit, is, for most people, as good as a TV ever needs to be. It displays an image more highly detailed than most viewers can perceive from a couch-length viewing distance, its screen is as big as the average American living room can handle, and it costs less than $500. For 100 years, manufacturers and consumers have been chasing screen size and image cl…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Garmin has released an end-of-year summary of users’ stats, Spotify Wrapped-style. But it’s only available to people who pay for Garmin Connect+, the new paid subscription that Garmin has offered since March of this year. I’ll show you what’s inside the Year in Review, and give you my thoughts on how the subscription service has weathered its first almost-year. Spoiler: The more things Garmin adds, the less they seem to know what they're doing. What’s in the Year in Review? Credit: Beth Skwarecki/Garmin…

Smartphone display issues are nothing new. Most of us have dropped our phones the wrong way one time or another, and had to deal with the pain (and cost) of getting them fixed. But when your smartphone's screen starts acting up for no particular reason, it's pretty frustrating—especially if the manufacturer still holds you accountable for the repair fees. If that sounds like your experience with your Pixel 9 Pro, Pixel 9 Pro XL, or Pixel 9 Pro Fold, there's good news: Google is now launching an Extended Repair Program for the Pixel 9 Pro line. According to Google's announcement on Monday, the company has identified a "limited number" of Pixel 9 Pro and Pixel 9 Pro XL uni…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication. The new Samsung Galaxy Watch 8 lineup was just released this summer, with the Galaxy Watch 8 and the Galaxy Watch 8 Classic offering two different design options. Surprisingly, Amazon is already offering a discount on both watches. The Galaxy Watch 8 is $249.99 (originally $349.99) for the Bluetooth version and $299.99 (originally $399.99) for the LTE version. Meanwhile, the Galaxy Watch 8 Classic is $399.99 (originally $499.99) for the Bluetooth version and $449.99 (originally $549.99) for the LTE version. …

The term 'Mac power user' is a bit vague and almost sounds exclusionary, but I'm here to tell you that if you regularly use your Mac, you absolutely are a power user. You don't need to exclusively be using command line tools or keyboard shortcuts to be a power user. Even though I use my Mac all day, every single day, I keep discovering new shortcuts, awesome apps I'd never heard of, or just general tips that I hadn't come across until now. So, if that sounds like you, you absolutely are a Mac power user, and I'm here to share some tips that have helped me optimize my workflow over the past few years. From setting up automation routines to save time, to a faster way to lau…

I'm routinely surprised by just how much technology Apple has managed to pack into the iPhone that I can carry in the palm of my hand. What's even more surprising is that underneath the layers, there's even more than what meets the eye. There's a better, faster way to use the keyboard, there's a faster way to select unread emails to archive, there are better ways to browse the web than just the usual Safari experience, and you can get way better photos out of the iPhone Pro cameras than what the stock Camera app shows you. The iPhone has become such a default product in all our lives that we just take it for granted. Yes, it's a great way to stay in touch with friends an…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Though the film series petered out after only a couple of movies, Rick Riordan's middle-grade Camp Half-Blood have been revived as a mega-popular Disney+ streaming series. The breathing room offered by a series format seems to have been the key to unlocking their potential as an adaptation, allowing for a more fully realized exploration of this atypical (at least on our side of Mount Olympus) coming-of-age story. In its first season, the show found a good balance between fantasy action and teen drama while also having a ton of fun poking at the conventions of ancient myth. Season two is just out, and more is on the way, b…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. When you buy a house, you buy a long list of projects that stretch into the distant future. Planning your time and budget for everything that will need to be done can be a challenge, but it’s worth it for the comfort, security, and financial cushion that home ownership offers. That doesn’t mean it can’t get a little stressful from time to time, though, which is why we could all use a few small tricks that can make a big difference as a homeowner. Here are 10 essential hacks that every homeowner should know. Enlarge rooms with paintOne of the most common reasons for a home-buyer’s remorse is size. It can be difficult to gau…

Another day, another update to Google's NotebookLM, the versatile AI tool that functions like a personal assistant focused only on you and your needs. The latest update is for visual learners: You can turn your source materials into helpful infographics that give you a clear picture—literally—of what the PDFs, websites, videos, or other materials you're studying or organizing are about. How to use the new NotebookLM infographics featureTo use the new feature, open any of your NotebookLM Notebooks (the name given to folders full of specific materials you've uploaded) and navigate to the panel on the right side. It's the same panel where you find the other offerings like t…

This week, young people are longing for a past they were barely alive for, roasting people who dare to read books in public, and sharing videos of the last moments their lives made sense. So, not exactly an uplifting collection of cultural observations, but I threw in some truly banger Christmas carol mashups to lighten the mood. Everything is nostalgic, melancholic, or festive—sometimes all at once. What is "millennial optimism"?Nostalgia for Y2K is dying out, replaced by romanticization of the years around 2010, which some younger people are imagining as a more innocent, hopeful time that they missed out on. At the same time, many millennials who were setting those tren…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. When I hear that a smartwatch company is launching a ring, I assume it’s going to be a smart ring. But Pebble went a different direction, instead creating what’s basically a remote microphone that can work with your phone and other devices. It's available for pre-order for $75, and will sell for $99 after launch. Pebble’s new ring is called the Index 01. It’s got a button you can click and hold, and a microphone that will listen to what you’re saying as you hold the button. The recording is then sent to your phone, where it’s processed on-device. That's it—no heart rate sensor, and no charging dock. The Index 01's specs an…

Few of us are under the illusion that we own the content that we post on Instagram, but we do get a say in how that content is presented—w can choose which photos and videos we share, what captions appear (or don't appear) on each post, as well as whether or not we include where the image was taken or shared from. We might not control the platform, but we do control the content of our posts—unless those posts are found on search engines like Google. As reported by 404 Media, it appears that Instagram is experimenting with AI-generated SEO titles for users' posts—without those users' input or permission. Take this post for example: Author Jeff VanderMeer uploaded a short …

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication. The rugged 49mm Apple Watch Ultra 2 with GPS and Cellular is down to a record-low $549 (originally $760), making it a notably lower entry point for Apple’s most durable smartwatch—and the perfect time to invest in this adventure-ready tech wearable. 49mm Apple Watch Ultra 2 with GPS and Cellular $549.00 at Amazon …

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication. The Soundcore Boom 2 is built for people who don’t want to baby their speakers. With an IPX7 rating and a floatable design, it’s something you can toss in the pool, hose off after a beach trip, or take out on a boat without much worry. And right now, the black model is $89.99, down from $139.99, its lowest price ever according to price trackers. Soundcore Boom 2 by Anker …

If you've chosen a Chromebook as a laptop, then you know the main benefits that it brings: namely, speed, ease of use, and affordability. Despite the simplicity of ChromeOS, however, there's more that you can do with it than you might realize. You can use it offline, and you can sync files to and from local storage, for example. The operating system is a lot more powerful and versatile than it often gets credit for. These hacks are for power users who want to level up their Chromebook capabilities, and get extra value out of their laptop, beyond the standard use cases that everyone knows about. No matter how you use ChromeOS, there should be something here to help. Use yo…