Setting Up Your Home Office

We may earn a commission from links on this page. We’ve all been there: You find the perfect product, the chair or skin cream that will solve all your problems through the liberal application of capitalism—but it doesn’t fit into your budget. You have three choices: You can spend the next few months (years?) saving diligently toward the glorious day when you can afford to pull the trigger; you can put that purchase on a credit card and deal with the interest charges—or you can find a dupe. Dupes—short for “duplicates”—are having their moment. While knockoffs are nothing new, as anyone who has ever bought a “designer” handbag on the streets of New York City can attest, dup…

Complicated cleaning hacks can be fun projects, but I love a simple one even more—and this one is really simple: You can use the lid of a pot or pan to clean your carpets and fabrics. It works like a charm, which is why it’s been all over TikTok for the past few years. To freshen up your upholstery or carpet, you’ll need: The lid from a pot or pan, with a handle in the center A large microfiber rag A bowl of water Dish soap Depending on what you’re cleaning and how you like to do it, you may want to add a few drops of vinegar or vodka, but otherwise, stick to the cleaning recipes you’d normally use for whatever upholstery or carpet you’re working on. Cleaning the upholst…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Oura, the smart ring, is finally taking menstrual cycle data into account when assigning readiness scores—a feature whose absence has baffled users for years. The ring’s app was notorious for assigning lower-than-expected scores during the luteal phase of users’ cycles, but that is changing thanks to an update to the Readiness score algorithm that Oura announced this week. If you don’t have a menstrual cycle, or if you have one but don’t track it, you probably won’t notice anything different about your Readiness scores. But this update is a big deal for anyone who uses Cycle Insights, the feature of the Oura app that uses …

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…

Processing fees. Service fees. Hidden fees. It feels like most companies and services these days have found countless ways to sneakily squeeze money out of me. Even when it’s only a few dollars here and there, it’s the principle of the thing: Why am I being charged in the first place? What can I do to circumvent these fees and save my hard-earned money? Here are some of the most common fees that have been infuriating me lately, and what you can do to avoid paying them. Concert “service” feesIf you’ve tried to buy a concert ticket in recent history, you’ve been slapped with a shocking string of processing, commission, or transaction fees. From secondary sellers like StubHu…

Google has issued another round of significant AI model announcements, upgrading its Gemini offerings across the board to bring users and developers artificial intelligence engines that are, according to the company, more capable and reliable. In the wake of DeepSeek's rise and new OpenAI models, the pace of AI development isn't slowing down. First up, the Gemini 2.0 Flash model that appeared in December for a select few is now rolling out to everyone, so you'll see it in the Gemini apps on desktop and mobile (this actually began appearing last week, so you may have already used it). The Flash models are designed to be faster and more lightweight, without too many perform…

Paramount+'s February slate includes the return of several highly anticipated series, starting with the season three premiere of thriller Yellowjackets (Feb. 14). The show, which received a handful of Primetime Emmy nominations, follows a group of teenage girls who survived a plane crash in the wilderness into their adult lives. The third installment picks up in the aftermath of a character's present-day death in season two. Fans of the Taylor Sheridan Yellowstone universe are getting the second (and final) season of prequel series and origin story 1923 (Feb. 23), starring Harrison Ford and Helen Mirren as the Dutton family patriarch and matriarch in harsh conditions of …

If your Garmin watch is showing a blue triangle, you’re not alone—Garmin has acknowledged that other users are experiencing this, and has published instructions for fixing it. The issue affects several models of watch, including Fenix, Epix, and Forerunner watches. As of January 29, they say the issue has been resolved (but your watch may still need a hard reset to make use of the fix.) The company initially told me in an email: “Garmin is researching reports of devices displaying a blue triangle when starting a GPS activity. A reset by pressing and holding the power button may restore functionality. We will provide more information on a permanent fix when available.” Ga…

There’s nothing worse than seeing the perfect house and finding out it’s already the object of a bidding war. As mortgage rates remain high and inventory remains low, the competition for homes is only getting more intense. If you’re looking for a house and you’ve been frustrated at how quickly they sell, or you’re struggling to find houses that meet your needs, there’s probably an untapped resource you can take advantage of: pocket listings. What's a "pocket listing"?A “pocket listing” (sometimes called an “off-market” listing) is a property for sale that isn’t listed in the Multiple Listing Service (MLS). That means that while a real estate pro is actively trying to sell…

TikTok has had a wild start to 2025. The app was banned in the United States, went dark, then came back online. New users can't download it, since the app hasn't returned to U.S. app stores, but those with existing access to the app (or simply the website) can continue watching videos like the ban never happened—at least, for now. The thing is, ByteDance, TikTok's parent company, has owned and operated other apps within the U.S. You might've learned that over the past couple weeks, as other popular apps went dark and disappeared from app stores alongside TikTok. While these apps were not a part of the major discussion around the ban, they all should, in theory, have many…

I enjoy Super Bowl Sunday. I’m not much of a football fan, but my friend always hosts a lovely party with plentiful snacks, and I don’t have to do a thing. You see, hosting a dinner party is one thing—there’s a set meal, and you can plan out the timing—but a party based on hot snacks means lots of upkeep, and frequent refreshing. You need a lineup of snacks that are delicious, easy to prep, and quick to churn out, leaving you plenty of time to yell at the TV. This sounds like a job for the air fryer. Here’s a list of my favorite Air Fryday snacks fit for the big game. Cheese-stuffed biscuit ballsYou know what’s better than cheesy breadsticks? These cheese-stuffed biscuit…

Spotting one or two of the planets in our solar system is well worth a good skywatch, but seeing (almost) all of them in a line at once is a highlight for celestial observers this month. Here's how to view February's planet parade. What is a "planet parade?""Planet parade" isn't a technical astronomy term, but it is used to describe a phenomenon visible from Earth in which several planets—thanks to their position in orbit around the sun—appear to line up with each other. Colloquially, it is sometimes used interchangeably with "planetary alignment," though that phrase can have several meanings. While two or three planets aligning is fairly common, parades of four or five…

It’s difficult to keep track of how much Netflix costs these days, since the company keeps raising its damn prices. That goes extra if you want to share your account with others: The company killed free password sharing in the U.S. back in May of 2023. Since then, if you want to lend out your Netflix password to someone else, you’ll need to tack on an extra monthly charge. But even that monthly charge has increased. During its Q4 2024 earning results call on Tuesday, Netflix announced it would be raising prices for all subscriptions and extra users. Here’s where the company’s various subscription options currently stand, as of January 2025. Standard with ads ($7.99 per mo…

February is cold, wet, windy and downright inhospitable to outdoor gardening—but you know you are mere weeks from the start of spring. The irises and crocuses are beginning to emerge. Like most gardeners, this fills me with both excitement and anxiety with a capital A—am I already behind? You’re not, because February is the time to catch up. So in this, the shortest of months, you have not one, but two jobs: Wrap up all the things you’ve not yet accomplished for winter, while preparing for spring. By the time we talk next month, we’ll be deep in seeding season. Get your fruit readyWe’re at the tail end of the work that’ll determine what kind of fruit harvest you’ll have.…

Software updates are important and inevitable. To expand features and patch existing security issues, you need to update your apps and machines. If you avoid updating, you might find certain programs, functions, or even websites stop working as they should. However, if you visit a website, and you see a prompt to update Chrome in order to proceed, run away. In all likelihood, you just encountered a scam. Don't fall for it. WordPress sites are getting hackedThe scam in question is targeting WordPress websites—10,000 of them, in fact. That's according to c/side, a web security company, whose research uncovered the current attacks. Here's what's going on: Hackers are hijack…

Your clothing and accessories can either clog up your closet for free or go out there, get a job, and earn its keep: I recently found an app that helps you to rent out your clothes and accessories (and borrow other people's), and maybe even help you declutter in the long run. Let me explain why I love Pickle. What does Pickle do?As I have explained, I have a low threshold when it comes to what will inspire me to download an app. Typically, I see an ad, tap on the App Store link, and install on sight. The other day, I saw an ad for one called Pickle, which is a peer-to-peer clothing and accessory rental service—like DoorDash for fashion. I attempted to download it only to…

It's hard to escape AI these days. Apple just made Apple Intelligence opt out, and Google Workspace users are now seeing big, hard-to-dismiss Gemini buttons all over their apps. The world's biggest tech companies are doing their best to sell you on a generative AI future, but even when you can't turn AI off, there are steps you can take to fight back. Even outside of Workspace, Google is one of the most egregious AI pushers around. The company has tried to push its Gemini AI in almost all of its properties, even though it's shown inaccurate search results recommending everything from eating rocks to adding glue to pizza. Even if you have no interest in AI search results, …

We may earn a commission from links on this page. We lose time in small increments. Simple, everyday tasks and chores might only take a few minutes, but those minutes add up and can have a serious impact on your stress levels. But take heart: We’re living in the future, and you can easily automate a wide range of many everyday tasks, gaining back precious minutes and even hours. Automate grocery shopping If your grocery list is pretty stable—you buy the same things in the same quantities every time you stock the pantry—you can automate it to a large extent. Amazon Fresh allows you to set up repeat items that get added to your shopping cart and automatically delivered dur…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. You know what’s nice about social media? It takes the guesswork out of gift-giving. Ahead of Valentine’s Day, you can glance over your partner’s shoulder to see what kinds of products the algorithms are serving them ads for, watch influencers demonstrate the trendiest items, or just search for what’s hot. Here’s what to get your lover for Valentine’s Day, based on what's going viral. #1: Personalized jewelryThe first thing I've been getting a lot of videos about lately is personalized jewelry. Granted, a lot of these videos are coming from manufacturers or boutiques themselves, but I'm only seeing them because they're get…

The next phase of AI evolution looks set to be focused around agents: AI bots that can not only chat to you and draw pictures, but also carry out tasks on your behalf. These new AI tools won't just be able to tell you about the best hotels close to your next vacation destination—they'll be able to make the reservation for you. These kinds of multimodal agents are being worked on by Google, OpenAI, and others, and now Perplexity has announced Perplexity Assistant for Android (as per The Verge, Perplexity says iOS doesn't give apps the necessary hooks into the operating system for an iPhone version to be possible right now). You can find the assistant in the main Perplexity…

If you’ve ever felt like you were duped by overpaying for something that was advertised as a “great deal,” you’re in the right place. It’s easy to get caught up in frenzied online shopping holidays like Black Friday or Prime Day, especially when retailers are known for sneaking price hikes before major “sales” or deceiving shoppers with tricks to spend more than you intended to. Figuring out the best time to buy something requires constant watch over ever-fluctuating online prices and some knowledge of how prices have changed in the past. As a shopping and deal writer, that is what I do for a living, and I know how time-consuming it can be. Luckily, you don’t have to fig…

Meats are muscles. On account of this, they’re not perfectly symmetrical bricks. Different cuts can be tear-dropped, conical, or otherwise shaped asymmetrically with a thick and thin side. But, alas, uneven shapes lead to uneven cooking. The thinner end of a chicken breast can come to temperature relatively quickly compared to the bulbous end that might be nearly two inches thicker. Put an end to partially overcooked, dried-out, rubbery meat parts, and try a technique called “butterflying.” Butterflying is a simple method for modifying a cut of meat by slicing it in half horizontally. You can cut it through completely in this fashion and end up with two thin pieces, or ta…

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…

I’m at the age where I have a pre-written packing list for whenever I travel, and the very last item on the list, though certainly not the least, is entertainment. I almost see it as a reward for myself. When I’ve got all my clothes and medications packed away, I get to sit down with my iPad and download my favorite shows to watch on the plane. The problem is that, after awhile of manually downloading episode by episode, it stops being fun. That’s where Netflix’s newest feature for iPhone and iPad comes into play. Now, after updating your app, the display pages for your favorite shows will show a “Download Season” button next to the share icon. Android users already had t…

There are a whole host of decluttering methods you can try, but no matter which one you choose, at some point, you'll you'll be faced with the difficult task of picking up and considering every single item in your space to determine whether it should stay or go. Ideally, you'll do this with a particular criteria in mind, and for a lot of people, that means following the KonMari principle of pondering whether the thing you're looking at "sparks joy." But that doesn't work for everybody, or every object. Maybe you're less sentimental, and more practical. Maybe you already did a round of decluttering and found that too many things "sparked joy," so you're still overladen w…