Setting Up Your Home Office

Android, unlike some phone operating systems, allows users to install software from outside the default app store (even if you don't live in Europe). And that's good, because there's all kinds of great software that you can't get on Google Play. The game Fortnite is a prominent example—that game's developer, Epic, doesn't want to pay Google a cut of sales and as such isn't available on Android's main app store. Other apps aren't available because of Google's interests—for example, there's an ad-free, privacy respecting YouTube client that you can't find on Google Play. If you've never installed Android software without using Google Play, however, you might not know where …

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication. I've been a fan of Ultimate Ears (UE) outdoor speakers since I first got the Megaboom 3 back in 2018, and I'm still using it as my personal go-to portable speaker. The Megaboom 4 is its newer version, which came out last year, but it's already 32% off, bringing its price down to $135.44 (originally $199.99). This is the lowest price it has reached according to price-tracking tools, and it's cheaper than the Megaboom 3. Ultimate Ears MEGABOOM 4 Protection: Wa…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Many of us have stairs in our home that could use a bit of a makeover, either due to wear and tear over time or because they’re builder-grade basic and didn't have much style to begin with. If you don't want to spend a lot of money upgrading a space meant to simply get you from one floor to another, though, there are ways to jazz your existing stairs without spending a lot. If you’re suddenly thinking that your boring stairs need a glow-up, here are some ways to accomplish that without cleaning out your bank account. PaintPaint is always the easiest and cheapest upgrade you can do, and that applies to your stairs as well.…

Fartleks are a well-known and popular running workout—or at least they’re something runners talk about all the time. But how many of us have gone out and said “I’m doing a fartlek today” and actually followed through with it? The original idea is that the workout is unstructured (the name means “speed play”) so it’s hard to plan one. Here’s what you need to know about fartleks, and some guidelines to setting yourself up for a fun and productive one. What counts as a fartlek run? “Fartlek” comes from a Swedish term meaning “speed play,” and it’s usually described as something you just go out and do for funsies. You choose a landmark—say, a mailbox up ahead—and decide to ru…

When Apple first revealed Apple Intelligence, its slate of generative AI features, a huge part of that announcement was a super-charged Siri. No longer would Apple's digital assistant be lagging behind competitors like Google: With the power of AI, the new Siri might actually be useful. When Apple Intelligence drops in full, Siri will reportedly be much more contextually aware, and be able to scan what's on your phone to understand and answer questions you ask. If your friend sends you their new address, you can ask Siri "add this address to their contact card." You don't need to specify which address or which contact, because the assistant will, according to Apple, be ab…

On Wednesday, Apple officially revealed the iPhone 16e, the spiritual successor to the iPhone SE. While the second and third-generation SEs borrowed from the design language of the iPhone 8, this new iPhone looks just like an iPhone 14. There are a lot of perks that come with that decision, but in doing so, Apple has also done something pretty drastic: It has officially killed off the Home button. With the launch of the iPhone 16e, no iPhone, nor any iPad Apple currently sells, ships with a Home button. (The iPod touch was killed off a long time ago.) This is, definitively, the end of an era, and I come not to mourn the Home button, but to praise it. Let's take a look at …

You can now use a feature that's very similar to Android's "circle-to-search" on iPhone. While it's not exactly called that, both the Chrome app and the Google app will now allow you to circle text or images to search whatever's in your selection using Google Lens. The limitation? On Android, you can use the circle-to-search feature across your entire phone, but on iPhones, this feature is limited to the Chrome and Google apps. When you've got a webpage loaded in the iPhone Google app, press the three-dots button in the top-right corner and tap Search this Screen. In Chrome for iOS, open any webpage, tap the three-dots button in the bottom-right corner, and select Search …

Setting up a new computer is annoying, especially if that computer is running Windows. There are all kinds of frustrating things Microsoft adds to the operating system that you want to remove, and all kinds of apps that you actually want but need to install yourself. WinUtil is a free and well regarded tool maintained by Chris Titus that does all of this at once. With it, you can install dozens of apps by checking a few boxes and run common tweaks, from uninstalling OneDrive to disabling privacy-invasive telemetry. There are two ways to get started. The free way is to run Windows PowerShell as an administrator. To do this, right-click the PowerShell in the Start menu and …

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication. If you’re looking for premium noise-canceling earbuds at a more affordable price, a Grade A refurbished pair of Sony WF-1000XM5 is going for $164.99 on Woot—a big drop from the usual $299.99 for a new pair on Amazon, but only for the next nine days or until stock runs out. Sony WF-1000XM5 (Refurbished) $164.99 at Woot …

You know the story. Eggs are expensive right now, so it's likely you’re not eating as many lately. Eggs are my favorite food and I too have curbed my intake. While this was sad at first, it only took me a few days to completely get over egg breakfasts. Surprisingly, I’m actually feeling grateful for this egg reset. There are many delicious breakfast options that don’t require eggs, and I’ve been neglecting them. Whether you’re reducing your egg dependency like I am, if you’re allergic, or if you never like their texture in the first place, here are some eggless breakfasts you can turn to. When compiling this list, I wanted to home in on the reasons why eggs are so popular…

Text replacement tools, also called snippet managers, are one of those productivity tools everyone needs even if they don't know it. They let you paste any text you want in just a couple of keystrokes and are perfect for anyone who finds themselves typing the same information again and again (so basically, anyone who uses a computer). Whether you answer the same customer question multiple times a day for work or find yourself constantly telling friends about the parking situation at your house, it's handy to have a quick way to paste long bits of information. The Mac has a decent text replacement tool built in, which I mentioned when I talked about how I fixed my worst wr…

Anyone on the hunt for a new home knows how quick the turnaround can be on a listing. I’m currently looking to rent an apartment in New York City, and know well the pain of seeing a dream listing get posted in the morning and snagged by someone (presumably wealthier and faster than I) within a few hours. You might not be able to control the time of year you need to move, but you can control how you time your search for specific listings. If you want to optimize your house or apartment hunt, you need to know the best times to look for new listings. When to search new house and apartment listingsLet's do a little reverse-engineering here. In order to figure out the best t…

If you work a job with limited paid time off, you have to be strategic about using it, whether you want to have more short breaks throughout the year or have an extended trip planned that requires banking days and using them all at once. We've written before about how to maximize annual vacation days by stacking them up against weekends as well as federal and state holidays so your time off feels like more than it is. The Stretch My Time Off tool can actually do that for you based on the exact number of PTO days you have—whether you get a paltry two weeks or want to take several dozen days with an unlimited policy—as well as the national holidays in your country (and sta…

With Apple finally killing the Home button in today’s iPhone 16e announcement, the company’s phones have now all adopted the same general look: boring. Apple’s latest budget phone might have a bigger battery and surprising power for a follow-up to the iPhone SE, but anyone looking for something that breaks the mold will have to wait for the iPhone 17. That’s because Apple’s next lineup of phones finally seems to be doing something different with the iPhone’s design. For the first time since the Dynamic Island was introduced on the iPhone 14 Pro, it looks like you might finally be able to tell if someone has a new iPhone from a simple glance. Is the iPhone 17 getting a ca…

Searching for a job can feel like a full time job itself. It’s easy to feel defeated when it feels like you’re sending your resume out into the void and hearing nothing back the majority of the time. Maybe you’re graduating soon, or making a career pivot, or jumping back into the workforce after some time away—the job hunt humbles us all. An action plan is key to turning your overwhelming job search into a much more manageable process—both in terms of your sanity and to increase your chances of getting hired. Personally, I love a good spreadsheet. Whether or not you’re Team Spreadsheet, you should create some form of a career search action plan. Why you need an action pla…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Over the years, I've accumulated dozens of makeup brushes, which means I’ve also spent far too much time cleaning them. Dirty brushes can screw up your glam, but can also cause breakouts and distribute bacteria and whatever else lurks in your makeup bag across your skin. In worst-case scenarios, you could even get an infection. Cleaning them regularly—every seven to 10 days—is important, but so, too, is doing it right. Some cleaning methods are ineffective and others are downright bad for the brush. Here's what to know about cleaning not only your brushes, but your sponges. How I clean my makeup brushesThere are loads of…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Before you can lift a loaded barbell, you have to find a bar and load some plates onto it. At some gyms, there’s only one type of bar, and it weighs 45 pounds, and that’s all you need to know. But that’s not the only type out there, and if your gym has different bars of different shapes and weights, it’s possible to get confused. Check end of the bar firstIf you’re wondering about what kind of bar you're looking at or what it weighs, always check the end of it. Sometimes you’ll find a label with a brand name, a description of what the bar is, and its weight. For example, this one has a little endcap that says “The Rogue O…

Rest is a crucial part of strength training. Depending on the exercise and your goals, you may find yourself resting 30 seconds, or one minute, or three to five minutes. So what do you actually do during that time? Let’s talk about your options, both in terms of training effectiveness and gym etiquette. Literally do nothingAs awkward as it may feel at first, this is the best option for most people, most of the time. Actually rest. Don’t stretch, don’t work a different muscle; just allow your body to recover. Some gyms will have stools, benches, or folding chairs near the platforms where people are lifting heavy (and thus need the longest rests). I’m mostly thinking of po…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication. Like most tech products, the Apple Watch has a basic model (the SE), a mid-tier model (the Series 10), and a high-end version (the Ultra 2). But the older Series 9 offers a sweet spot for those looking for a budget mid-tier option. The Series 9 offers many high-end features at a price that's closer to the price of the SE than the Ultra 2, and cheaper than the newer Series 10. Right now, the 45mm Apple Watch Series 9 is $370.99 for the GPS and Wifi version (originally $529), currently matching its lowest price since its release, according to price-ch…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication. Apple has been top dog in the premium tablet space for years, and the iPad Pro with an M4 chip released last year solidified their dominance. If you've been waiting for a discount on the best-performing tablet you can get, take your pick from the available options: the 11-inch iPad Pro wifi and celular version is $1,099 (originally $1,199), the 13-inch iPad Pro wifi version is also $1,099 (originally $1,299), and the 13-inch wifi and cellular version is $1,299 (originally $1,499). These deals bring all versions down to the lowest prices these iPad m…

Your eyes are fragile, complex, and important to your well-being, but taking care of them can be expensive. First of all, it’s not easy to get glasses without a recent prescription, and the average cost of an eye exam without insurance coverage is close to $200. The average cost of the glasses themselves is about $230—and that’s before you add on the coatings you need. This can be a real challenge for the estimated 63% of Americans who don’t have vision insurance, meaning they’re paying out of pocket. There are resources that can offer low-cost or even free eye exams and glasses, however, if you meet certain requirements (like income level and lack of insurance). If you o…

As much as Apple would like it, iMessage is not the only messaging platform in the world. Yes, RCS is nice, but a lot of people prefer using WhatsApp and Telegram instead. And given the divisive state of world politics right now, secure apps like Signal have their own appeal. The reality is that, instead of just sticking to your default texting program, you're probably juggling between multiple messaging apps right now. Unfortunately, the iPhone doesn't really make this process easy. Now, there's a new app called DefaultSMS that's trying to bridge this gap. DefaultSMS uses a new, obscure iPhone setting to change your default messaging app for you. It'll kick in whenever y…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. The tendency in movie runtimes seems to be trending toward length, and even if the data doesn’t really bear this out, recent, super-long installments in big box office franchises at least mean the bloat feels real. For some reason these wildly popular series feel the need to justify their existence by lashing us to our seats for well over two hours, when many of us might have happily paid the same price for a flick that would give us the hope of ever getting home to see our dogs again. Still, a movie’s quality isn’t determined by its length, and most of us are watching these things at home anyway. Some stories are just mor…

On Wednesday, Apple refreshed its budget iPhone line. However, this isn't the iPhone SE 4; it's the iPhone 16e. It's the first time in a while Apple has added a letter to its current iPhone series (like the iPhone 6S or iPhone 5c), which might have you wondering: Should I buy the iPhone 16, or the iPhone 16E? The TL;DR: The iPhone 16e is remarkably similar to the iPhone 16. For most people, this is likely the iPhone to buy, and comes with enough of what you're looking for in the iPhone/iOS experience—especially when you consider the money you save. However, in order to make this iPhone more affordable than its other devices, Apple did have to cut some corners. I doubt m…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. There was a time when I would confuse the terms “Dutch oven” and “slow cooker.” I couldn’t tell you why, but it was probably because I had never really operated either of them before and these vague, old-timey titles fused together in my mind. (I envisioned a cauldron over a fire.) Well, let the record show that they’re not the same. Not only are they completely dissimilar in appearances, but they specialize in somewhat different cooking tasks. H Both cookers are known for their slow and steady cooking properties, and due to their deep shape, the Dutch oven and slow cooker are both good candidates for high-moisture foods. …