Setting Up Your Home Office

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication. Think smart lighting is limited to basic bulbs and LED strips? Govee proves otherwise with its unique, space-saving take on floor lamp smart lighting that actually brightens an entire room rather than acting as accent lighting. Available in three different colors, the Govee Floor Lamp 2 does everything from play music to set the mood—and right now, it's at its lowest price ever ahead of Amazon’s Big Spring Sale, dropping 25% to $119.99 (originally $159.99). Govee Floor Lamp 2 …

Spotify keeps adding new features lately. Last week, the company rolled out "Exclusive Mode" for desktop users to stream in the highest quality possible; last month, Spotify announced "Smart Reorder," which automatically sorts your songs by BPM; and in January, the company's AI-powered "Prompted Playlists" landed in the U.S. after an exclusive stint overseas. It's still not easy to pick a favorite among other services like Apple Music, but Premium subscribers can at least say Spotify is giving them something for their money. Now, the company is rolling out another new feature, one that actually seems like a cool way to learn about your music. On Tuesday, Spotify annou…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Two years ago, I reluctantly inherited a cat. The cat is both mine and not mine: Sky belongs to my daughter, who owns her in the way a pet can "belong" to a minor while an adult operates silently in the background, managing its costs and responsibilities. Chalking it up as an opportunity to teach my kid new skills, I rarely feed Sky, brush her coat, or clean her litter box. Instead, I chose the worse task of incessantly reminding a teenager to do them. If you have a cat, you're likely familiar with the challenges that come from a dirty litter box. And if you have a teenager, you know how frequently they can resist complet…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication. If you’re building a cordless tool set for the first time, or replacing an older set that’s worn out, a combo kit is a good way to save money on several tools as well as batteries and chargers. Because batteries can be an expensive component to a cordless tool set, getting a kit that includes them is a good way to keep your costs down. If you’re trying out a new battery platform, you can expand your set as your needs change by adding new tools that will work with your existing batteries. Why the Milwaukee five-tool combo set is a good dealThe Milwau…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication. One of the more practical early deals in Amazon’s Spring Sale is the Amazon Fire TV Stick HD, now $16.99 (originally $34.99). That works out to about 51% off and marks its lowest price so far, according to price trackers. PCMag gave it an “outstanding” rating and called it the best 1080p media hub, which fits with how it performs—it doesn’t offer high-end specs but focuses on making an older TV feel current again without asking you to spend much. Amazon Fire TV Stick HD …

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication. Amazon’s Spring Sale officially runs from March 25 through March 31, but a few early deals are already live, and some are worth paying attention to. One of them is the Apple Watch Series 11 (GPS + Cellular, 46mm) in a Jet Black Aluminum Case with Black Sport Band (M/L), now $429 (down from $529), which is its lowest price yet according to price trackers. If you prefer something dressier, the gold titanium version with a Milanese loop is also a $100 off, down to $699 from $799. Amazon is also testing one-hour and three-hour delivery in select locatio…

When setting up any new internet-connected device, don't stick with the default settings. Doing so introduces security risks, and it's also a less-than-optimal way to use the features available to you. If you have a Ring camera or doorbell, there are a whole host of changes you can make to minimize annoyance and maximize privacy. Snooze Motion Alerts when you're outsideMotion alerts are among the most useful features of any security camera, but you don't need a notification to your phone when you are the one moving around your property. You can snooze alerts in certain situations, such as when you're outside doing yard work or hosting a party. Global Snooze pauses alerts…

After years of integrating (read: shoving) Copilot into as many Windows apps as possible, Microsoft seems to have made a shocking discovery: users don't want Copilot crammed into as many Windows apps as possible. On Friday, Pavan Davuluri, Microsoft's President of Windows & Devices, published a post on the official Windows Blog, walking readers through changes the company was making to Windows in response to user feedback. While Davuluri stopped short of saying the words "all this AI was a mistake," he did say, "What came through [from user feedback] was the voice of people who care deeply about Windows and want it to be better." So, now, we have a bunch of changes th…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication. The deals from Amazon's Big Spring Sale have been surprisingly good so far, even though the sale is not supposed to start until this Wednesday, March 25. As is the case with other big Amazon sales, I'm going to make your life a little easier and highlight all the deals as our team covers them. All of our recommended deals have been vetted using price-tracking tools, so you can trust that the sales we're talking about are actually good deals, and not just hype designed to fool you. You can read more details about the spring sale here, like what to ex…

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 a few days away, but the early deals are already popping off, making it a good time to score discounts on big-ticket items like laptops and tablets. Can’t decide between the two? Got both in one—and one of your best options is the Samsung 16” Galaxy Book5 Pro 360, a highly portable laptop/tablet combo with a screen that flips back 360 degrees. Ahead of the Amazon Big Spring Sale, it’s down to $1,199.99, $500 off the original $1,699.99 and its lowest price ever, according to price trackers. …

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Euphoria might be the messiest show in existence—not only are its teenage characters dealing with epic levels of drama, trauma, and variously illegal activities, but the show’s production has been off the rails (season three was announced four years ago) even as the cast is beefing. Add in a chaotic approach to storytelling, and you have a show that seems to have been designed for our very online times. Season three finally arrives on April 12, and if that seems like a miracle to you, you might wonder how you’ll get your Euphoria fix after you've run out of new episodes. We’ve already suggested a bunch of streamalike shows…

Back in December, news outlets spotted Google messing with headlines on articles that appeared in Discover. As it happens, this was Google experimenting with AI-generated headlines; rather than show readers the headlines the outlets wrote themselves, Google's AI would take it upon itself to rewrite them. Why? According to Google, it was a "small UI experiment for a subset of Discover users" that "changes the placement of existing headlines to make topic details easier to digest." While those of us that actually write headlines would argue such an experiment isn't really necessary, Google apparently disagrees, as the experiment is now a feature. Articles in Google Search m…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Ever since the March Pixel feature drop, some Pixel watch users have been reporting that their step counts and calorie counts are off. An official fix isn’t out yet, but users have found a few approaches that seem to correct the numbers. Google Pixel Watch 4 (41 mm, LTE) $389.99 at Amazon $449.99 Save $60.00 …

If you work from a laptop, your built-in webcam may suit you fine for video calls. But for those of us with external monitors, or laptops with subpar cameras, it's helpful (or necessary) to seek out dedicated, high-quality webcams. Before you drop hundreds of dollars on one from Amazon, just use your smartphone. Your iPhone or Android very likely has native webcam support that makes it easy to tap into the phone's camera for work or personal calls. I guarantee your phone has a better camera than your laptop—even if it's not quite as convenient to use. I was surprised to learn today, however, that Samsung Galaxy phones have not supported this feature. You've been able to …

In the wake of the U.S.-Iran conflict and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, the price of crude oil has risen sharply on the international market. Now, it's starting to impact gasoline and diesel prices in the U.S., with increases at the pump of as much as 30% in some areas. Gas prices are dynamic, \changing based on the day and even based on city or state lines. For example, the national average price for gas, according to AAA, is $3.96 as of today, March 2026. But in Iowa, the average was $3.33, and in Illinois, it was $4.17. If you're heading out to fill up the tank, it might help to do a bit of research first, so you can save some money in the process. Using dedicat…

WWDC 2026 is rapidly approaching. While Apple has a number of events throughout any given year, WWDC is one of two Apple keynotes that the tech community actively anticipates (the other being the iPhone fall event). This is Apple's chance to show off all of the software updates its been working on since the last WWDC—and all the features that come with them. This year, that likely means iOS 27, iPadOS 27, macOS 27, and watchOS 27. When is WWDC 2026?Apple announced on Monday that WWDC 2026 will kick off on Monday, June 8 and run through Friday, June 12. If you're used to watching a single keynote from past WWDCs, seeing that this year's event runs multiple days might come…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Almost everything we do digitally leaves a trace of some kind, and while it can be useful to look back on this past activity—when trying to remember where that great coffee shop you stumbled across is, perhaps—this continual logging and tracking doesn't really align with best privacy and security practices. Meet Tails (The Amnesic Incognito Live System), a Linux distro based on Debian that maximizes user security and privacy. It can run from a USB drive, which means you're able to plug it into any laptop or desktop with a free port (Mac or PC) and take it away again when you're done, with nothing left behind on the compute…

As usual, this week's collection of youth culture flotsam is all over the map. We got the surprising appearance of ancient Greek philosopher Socrates in AI-generated brainrot videos; a meme about winning at gambling that's becoming a meme about hypocrisy; an emoji that probably means something different than you think; and truly creative videos that, whew, don't use AI. Viral video of the week: Socrates and skeletonThe breakout star of viral videos this week is foundational Athenian philosopher Socrates, with his co-star, a living skeleton. In these AI -generated videos, the skeleton represents the viewer, and the idea is to illustrated hypothetical scenarios like "What …

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication. Amazon’s Spring Sale is set to kick off later this week, but some early discounts are already live. One worth paying attention to is the Insta360 X5 Essentials Bundle. Currently listed at $559.99 (originally $659.99), this is the lowest this bundle has ever reached, according to price trackers. It’s also worth noting that PCMag gave the X5 an “outstanding” rating and named it the best action camera of 2025. That context makes the $100 discount feel more meaningful, especially since this bundle already includes most of what you need to get started, i…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication. Amazon’s Spring Sale hasn’t officially started, but some of the better discounts are already live, like the OnePlus Buds 4. These latest earbuds from the brand are down to $79.99 (from $129.99), their lowest price so far, according to price trackers. Amazon is also testing one-hour and three-hour delivery in select locations, as reported by our senior tech editor Jake Peterson, which makes these early deals easier to act on if you need something fast. The Buds 4 are positioned as a step up from the Buds 3, borrowing a few ideas from the more expensi…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Back in November, Google made a stunning announcement: Quick Share was suddenly compatible with Apple's AirDrop. At the time, the compatibility was limited to the Pixel 10, but no matter: Google had just made history, transforming the sharing features from platform-specific to cross-platform. While AirDrop and Quick Share have long been the most convenient ways to share large files between devices, it only worked if you and your friend were on the same OS. That limitation introduces some inconvenient friction, but, as support cross-platform expands, that friction is easing up. Google first announced plans for greater Air…

Most of us don’t do enough strength training to realize the health benefits it can bring. The American College of Sports Medicine has released a new guideline on strength training that gives more realistic advice than what you may have heard about strength training elsewhere. Aside from outlining the amount of training we need, the new guidelines also come with a few surprises, in the form of debunking many long-held "rules" of strength training. Among them: training to failure isn’t essential, and unstable surfaces aren’t necessary to improve your balance. I keep seeing fitness professionals celebrating these new ACSM guidelines as a major improvement on previous advice…

If you've watched videos on the internet any time over the past year or two, you've encountered AI-generated content (even if you didn't realize it). While some of it is convincing, a lot of it is obvious. Like, I'm guessing no one thought those dramatic narrative videos of people made of fruit were painstakingly animated by hand. This type of artificially generated content has been lovingly (or not so lovingly) labeled "AI slop," which sums it up quite well: It's meaningless drivel, made with little effort or investment by some AI generator, that's raking up real money by going viral on social media. While all platforms that showcase short-form videos are inevitably alr…

Another massive data breach has compromised millions of Americans' healthcare data and sensitive information. Navia Benefit Solutions, a benefits administrator for more than 10,000 U.S. employers, has disclosed a hack that affects nearly 2.7 million individuals, according to a March 18 filing with the Maine Attorney General. Navia's services include software and customer support for the administration of everything from Flexible Spending Accounts (FSAs) and Health Savings Accounts (HSAs) to commuter and education benefits. What happened with the Navia Benefit Solutions data breach?On Jan. 23, Navia identified "suspicious activity" on its systems, leading to the discovery…

Google just announced some notable upgrades to the Google Play gaming experience on Windows PCs, with improvements that cover game discovery and purchases, and the news that a broader number of paid titles are now becoming available for the desktop. While an official Windows client for Google Play apps and games has been available for several years, these latest updates mean the experience is more polished than ever before. There are four main changes for gamers wanting to play Android games on Windows. First, Google is "actively expanding" the number of paid, premium games that are fully optimized for PCs. Android games don't get this optimization by default, an…