Setting Up Your Home Office

We may earn a commission from links on this page. As YouTube TV and Disney continue their feud over rising channel rates, it's customers that are losing out. One of my coworkers found this out last night when her family couldn't (easily) watch their home team, the Philadelphia Eagles, play—and that was with an NFL Sunday Ticket package added on to their YouTube TV plan. The ESPN/ABC blackout is hitting YouTube TV's sports fans hard, and with Google already issuing compensation to customers, it seems like there's no end on the horizon. Luckily, YouTube isn't the only game in town for watching NFL football. There are a number of alternative solutions you can try while you …

We may earn a commission from links on this page. I have bittersweet news that is mostly sweet: Soon, I will have a Tonal, one of those ultra-modern tablets that attaches to your wall and uses magnets to create resistance that mimics the use of a cable machine at the gym. I'm getting it so I can review it for you, which is good news for us all, but it's going to render a lot of my other at-home workout equipment useless for a while, so I want to take some time to memorialize the inexpensive tools I have accumulated that make even the most basic yoga on my living room floor a better experience. While I am pumped to have the Tonal, which costs about $4,000 depending on whi…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication. If you’re tired of your laptop speakers sounding like they’re inside a tin can, this Lenovo M0520 2.0 Wired Desktop Speaker Set might be an easy fix that doesn’t break the bank, and it's on sale for $16.99 on StackSocial right now. It’s about as simple as audio upgrades get: You plug it in through USB, no power adapter or extra cords required, and it’s ready to go. For anyone who just wants clearer sound for work calls, YouTube videos, or background music, this tiny setup does the job. The pair delivers 1+1 watts of output, not booming by any stretc…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Your home is under constant threat from the elements—but especially from water. From roof leaks to burst pipes—water damage is the second-most claimed loss on home insurance policies, just below “wind and hail.” In fact, there are way more losses due to water damage than fire. And the most troubling aspect of water damage is how silent it can be. You can have a leak for a long time before the damage becomes bad enough to notice. And even if you know you have a water leak somewhere, locating it can often be difficult because water can travel a long way from the source before making its presence known. That’s why you need th…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication. Each year, Apple releases new models of the Apple Watch, but the updates aren't always that significant—meaning it might make more sense to choose an older one and save on the purchase price. That's certainly a good option right now, because you can get last year's Apple Watch Series 10 with GPS + Cellular for $299, $200 off the original price, at Walmart (in four colors!). Apple Watch Series 10 GPS + Cellular 42mm …

I've defined a ton of slang since I started posting this column in 1878, but this week, I'm going all in on the funny little words the kids use among themselves. That's right: It's all-slang week! From “clock that” to “rawdoggin boredom,” consider this a crash course in what the kids are babbling to each other. As always, remember, you shouldn't use these slang words because they're not your words. Stick to calling things da bomb and saying "23-skidoo," gramps. (If this isn't enough slang, somehow, check out my constantly evolving glossary of Gen-Z and Gen A slang.) What does "clock that" mean?I'm old enough to remember when "clock" was slang for either punching someone…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication. Amazon’s early Black Friday sale just made one of Samsung’s best midrange OLEDs a lot more tempting. The 65-inch Samsung S90F OLED TV is now $1,397.99, down from its regular price of $1,997.99—the lowest price so far, according to price trackers. SAMSUNG 65-Inch Class OLED S90F 4K Smart TV $1,397.99 at Amazon …

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication. It's a great time to be shopping for some new AirPods. You can get the non-ANC AirPods 4 for $84.99 (originally $129.99), the lowest price they've ever been, according to price-tracking tools. The ones with ANC are $149.99 (originally $179.99), also at their lowest price ever. Apple AirPods 4 (without ANC) …

Following posts on social media last week where some YouTube TV subscribers noticed a $60 credit waiting for them in their account settings, Variety is reporting that YouTube is now sending subscribers an additional $20 credit. The company has not yet made an official statement on the matter, although a YouTube spokesperson confirmed the timetable for the credit's rollout to TechCrunch. The news follows promises from YouTube to give YouTube TV customers a $20 credit if the blackout of Disney content on the Live TV service continued. According to the report, emails with instructions on how to claim the credit began sending out yesterday, and "all credits will be issued by…

Contactless payment, also known as tap-to-pay, has become a fast, easy, and relatively common way to complete a transaction using your smartphone or credit card. It relies on Near Field Communication (NFC) to transmit data between your device and a payment terminal when the two are in close proximity, up to an inch or two away. While NFC technology does provide some additional security—transmitting a virtual account number instead of your actual card details, for example—scammers have found a way to capitalize on tap-to-pay to steal money from unsuspecting targets. These "ghost tapping" schemes may exploit both cards and mobile wallets. How tap-to-pay scams workAccording…

AI has been the tech buzzword over the last few years, but it's stolen attention from other technological advancements that are possibly more impactful in your everyday life. Take satellite connectivity for example: For most of the time cellphones and smartphones have existed, losing cell signal meant your mobile device was largely useless. With satellite connectivity, however, as long as you're within range of a satellite, you can continue to make calls and send texts. It's remarkable, for both the convenience of communication, as well as your safety. Right now, there are only a few companies leading the satellite connectivity charge, at least as far as consumer technol…

Windows 11 users are getting a long-awaited Start menu redesign this week. While the features have been available in beta for awhile, Microsoft is rolling out the updated interface to everyone alongside November's Patch Tuesday. What's new with the Windows 11 Start menu The Start menu will now be scrollable, so you can see all of your apps on the homepage instead needing to click All apps to open a separate page. Below pinned apps and recommendations, Microsoft will now automatically categorize similar apps into groups—the Productivity group may include your browsers and Microsoft 365 suite, for example—and place remaining apps under Other. Categories are created with th…

Apple Music's selection is exceptional, but I've never enjoyed using its Mac app much. It's slow, buggy, and lacks the razor sharp focus on albums that I sometimes desire. On my iPhone, I often turn to the excellent Albums app to scratch that itch, which is why I'm excited to say that the same app has recently arrived on the Mac as well. I'm always looking for excuses to avoid opening the Music app on the Mac, and Albums has arrived at exactly the right time for me to make the switch. While I do enjoy listening to individual songs or playlists, I am going through an albums phase right now. For this, the Albums app is perfect. Its sole focus is on playing whole albums from…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. When you’re new or returning to running, the last thing you need is one more barrier. Shoes, appropriate clothes, sweat-resistant sunscreen: These things are hard to do without. But those running watches that it seems like everyone else is using? You don’t need one, and certainly not on your first day. You don’t even need to run with your phone. It's off how "fitness" has become almost synonymous with tracking fitness. How many steps are you taking? How many calories are you burning? How many minutes per mile was your pace when you went jogging this morning? What was your heart rate? Each of these numbers can be worth tra…

If your iPhone has been lost or stolen, you'd probably be relieved to get it back, even if it is has been weeks or months since you've replaced your device. Having your old phone in hand may provide some peace of mind that your data is secure, and if nothing else, you can sell or trade it in or repurpose it for another use. Unfortunately, you're pretty unlikely to see your missing iPhone again, but bad actors are hoping you hold out enough hope to fall for a phishing scam promising that your device has been found. How the lost iPhone scam worksAccording to a warning from the Swiss National Cyber Security Center, some iPhone owners whose devices were lost or stolen are r…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication. If you’ve been looking to replace an aging desktop without spending a small fortune, this refurbished 2023 model HP Slim Desktop might be worth considering. It’s on sale for $189.99 on StackSocial, and while that price suggests bare-bones, it’s more suited for everyday computing than you might expect. Since it’s a refurbished “Grade A” model, it should arrive looking nearly new, with minimal signs of previous use. Plus, the one-year parts-and-labor warranty from a third party adds some reassurance. The HP Slim lives up to its name. At approximately …

Most of our apps these days continue to receive AI upgrades—whether or not we actually want them. That's no surprise from a company like Google, who is among those leading the AI charge right now. If you use Chrome, Android, or Google Workspace, you've likely dealt with Gemini in some capacity. The charge, as you might expect, continues to this day. On Tuesday, Google announced a set of new AI-powered features coming to Google Photos, for both iOS and Android users. Google doesn't yet have a definitive release date for these new features, but it seems they're rolling out soon. These are largely optional—you can keep using Photos as an image library, and avoid using the A…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication. Amazon announced its Black Friday and Cyber Monday plans this week—although it won't start until Nov. 20, you can already find early Black Friday deals on Amazon devices. Their "like-new" Kindle readers, in particular, have good discounts right now. The Kindle Paperwhite is $106.99 (originally $143.99), the Kindle Paperwhite Signature Edition is $126.99 (originally $179.99), the 16GB Kindle Scribe is $212.99 (originally $309.99), and the 64GB Kindle Scribe is $278.99 (originally $404.99). …

Having previously been tested as an experimental flag, Google Chrome's Split View feature is now rolling out in the stable version of the browser (version 142). It doesn't seem to be live for everyone at the same time, but some people are seeing it. (I've got it in Chrome on my Mac, but not yet on Windows.) To check you're on the latest version of Chrome, click the three dots (top right) in a browser tab, then choose Settings and About Chrome. If an update is available, it'll be downloaded, and you can restart your browser to apply it. If you're running the latest version of Chrome and still don't see Split View, you can either wait for the feature to reach you or switch…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication. Amazon just marked down the Nothing Phone 3 to $678.99, its lowest price yet, according to price trackers. That’s about $120 off the usual $799 tag for the 12GB RAM and 256GB storage base model. Nothing Phone 3 Cell Phone $678.99 at Amazon $799.00 Sa…

Planning out what you’re going to do is huge for productivity, which is why SMART goals (and their alternatives) are so popular throughout the working world. Another important—but perhaps more overlooked—element of the productivity process is the assessment, however. Reviewing what you did is just as integral as planning how you’ll do it—in reviewing, you get a chance to plan better (and improve!) for next time, while also carving out space to appreciate what you did well—also a major motivator! What is an after-action review? An after-action review, or AAR, is a way to measure the results of your performance and improve on your processes. It was first introduced by the …

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication. It’s been nearly six years since Microsoft released the Surface Laptop 3, but it still holds up as a solid choice for anyone who values portability, clean design, and day-to-day reliability over bleeding-edge specs. The 2019 model is available again through StackSocial in refurbished, Grade A condition (meaning it looks close to new and works like it should) with prices starting at $379.99 for the 13.5-inch i7 model with 512GB of storage and going up to $614.99 for the 15-inch version with 1TB. All variants come with 16GB of RAM and a 10th Gen Intel…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication. Amazon has finally revealed its Black Friday plans in a press release, much later than the competition, which is unusual for the biggest retailer. Here is everything you need to know about Amazon's Black Friday and Cyber Monday sale. What is Amazon doing for Black Friday and Cyber Monday?Amazon will have an early Black Friday sale that will lead up to Black Friday and then a Cyber Monday sale that will last a few days. They will also have new flash daily deals throughout the events with Today’s Big Deals. When is Amazon's Black Friday Week and Cyber…

When you think about the tech companies leading the AI race, Apple is pretty much at the bottom of the list. That's not necessarily a bad thing, as far as I'm concerned. From where I'm sitting, many of us couldn't care less about the latest AI features companies are shoving into their products—we just want the products we actually use to work, and work well. But strictly focusing on AI progress, Apple is far behind rivals like Google and Microsoft. While Android and Windows are full of AI features, either through Google's Gemini or OpenAI's GPT models, Apple's first-party AI advances are much more limited. Both Google and Microsoft promote their AI assistants as a corner…

Smart glasses maker Even Realities today released its latest model, the Even G2 Display Smart Glasses. Featuring a monochrome display, stylish frames, and a unique ring controller, G2s are available now for $599. In contrast to Meta Ray-Ban Displays' "do-everything" approach, G2s are designed to do one specific thing: provide a smart display that only the wearer can see. Instead of a camera and speaker, the G2s feature a suite of basic apps, like a teleprompter and a map that you can see with a tilt of your head or a touch of your ring, packed into a pair of light, slick-looking designer frames. The idea is to create cool-looking everyday glasses that are useful instead …