Setting Up Your Home Office

We may earn a commission from links on this page. I’m frequently asked for recommendations on what robot vacuum to get. While I’ve got favorites, I usually respond with a list of features I’d look for. Each year, robots get so much more advanced that these features change. But if I were buying a robot vacuum tomorrow (or in the next big sale), here’s what I’d look for. Unless you’ve got wall-to-wall carpet, get a vacuum/mop comboGenerally, people shy away from combo products because each new functionality is an additional feature that can break. There’s also a belief that one of the features won’t be as good as the other. For a while, expecting the vacuum and mop to be e…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Back when I biked everywhere, I would wear my regular sneakers and slip my feet into the toe cages I’d attached to the pedals of my bike. But when I got into the habit of riding a spin bike regularly, I grudgingly switched to "real" cycling shoes—the kind with the cleat on the bottom of the shoe that clicks into a special socket on the pedal. I’ve written before about how I struggled those first few spin classes, trying to get the hang of using the rental shoes. It wasn't until I got a spin bike to use at home that I realized, after a few rides, I really needed those shoes. Why do cyclists use shoes with cleats?Serious cy…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication. TCL is the anti-OLED TV brand, focusing on making the best QLEDs possible without crossing the boundary to OLEDs, which become much more expensive. The Q651G is the budget version of the QM7, which I did a hands-on review of. This more affordable model came out in 2024 and shares many of the specs and features that make the QM7 one of the best QLED TVs in value on the market. You can get the huge 98-inch version for $1,498 (originally $2,999.99) after a 50% discount, and the 65-inch is also well priced at $399.99 (originally $549.99) in case you don…

Like the Nintendo Switch before it, the Switch 2 supports both physical and digital games. It offers some flexibility no matter how players enjoy to collect their games, unlike other game companies that offer digital-only versions of their consoles. It's important to note, however, that just because you buy a physical Switch 2 game, that doesn't mean you've actually purchased the game itself. In fact, for some games, there are few differences between buying the game physically or digitally—and unless you really appreciate the box art and the cartridge itself, you shouldn't make your buying decision with the wrong idea in mind. Switch 2 Game-Key cardsOnce the Switch 2 do…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Hulu doesn't always get the recognition of competitors like Netflix and Max, but the streamer has an unfailingly reliable and rotating selection of theatrical films, as well as some impressive original releases. These are some of the best, buzziest, and/or most fun movies currently streaming on the service, across a variety of genres. Anora (2024) Writer/director Sean Baker (Tangerine, Red Rocket) has a long run of impressive film credits to his name, but comedy-drama Anora was the film that put his name firmly on the map, winning him a Best Director Oscar and the film a Best Picture prize. Mikey Madison (who also …

The Mail app on iPhone got quite a visual overhaul in iOS 18.2. Suddenly, there was a whole AI-powered Priority mailbox, smart Categories up top, and an icon from every sender. For longtime Mail app users on the iPhone, that's a big shift—with seemingly minimal returns. The contact photos feature is perhaps the worst offender here, as most icons are just stock Apple icons. Even if you get an email from Lifehacker, it won't show the Lifehacker website logo, like it does when you visit the website in your browser. And this is the case with the vast majority of email addresses. …

The following content is brought to you by Lifehacker partners. If you buy a product featured here, we may earn an affiliate commission or other compensation. We're all tired of receiving text messages and calls from random marketers on our personal numbers. Whenever you give out your number to sign up for stuff online, your information is very likely sold to a marketing company, then sold again—until your phone is blowing up in the middle of the night with texts from who knows. Surfshark Starter Package Generate a virtual number, mask your email, and take advantage of other VPN …

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 eyeing a pair of noise-canceling headphones but don’t want to spend over $300 for the usual suspects, this deal on the Anker Soundcore Space One Pro might be worth a closer look. It’s currently going for $129.99 on Woot for the next three weeks or until it sells out, which is $70 less than the current Amazon price. It’s new, has an 18-month manufacturer warranty from Anker, and ships free if you have Amazon Prime (if not, it'll cost you $6 for shipping). Just keep in mind, Woot only ships to the 48 contiguous states—so if you're in Al…

We're now seeing significant AI upgrades from the big players in the field almost every week, with most new features quickly copied by rival companies as each one looks to stay ahead. Now it's time for Microsoft Copilot to play catch-up, as it adds a host of features we've previously seen tested by Microsoft or launched for other AI chatbots. Copilot now has Deep Research, for example, to match all the Deep Research tools elsewhere, while Copilot Search has been upgraded. Microsoft has also rolled out its own AI-hosted podcast generator, a tool that's been available for a while on competing services. There's a lot to explore, and each new feature is explained below. These…

When the Google Pixel 9 series launched, it came with a number of exclusive software features to tempt more people into upgrading, including Pixel Screenshots and the Add Me tool for composite photos. The latest Pixel 9-only feature to roll out is called Connected Cameras, and it means you can use any Pixel 9 series handset as a viewfinder and remote for a compatible GoPro camera, or another Pixel phone. It's easy to see why this could be useful: You could mount your GoPro on your helmet, or put another Pixel phone in a spot you can't easily get to (like on a high wall), and then control these cameras and see what they're seeing from your Pixel 9 handset. For this to wor…

Popular culture for kids has fragmented so much lately that what's familiar to one 14-year-old might be utterly foreign to another. But the progress toward everyone having their own personal culture isn't complete. So I'm taking a look at some of things all (well, most) kids relate to and love, including A Minecraft Movie, Labubus, and the literary techniques developed by Spanish author Jorge Luis Borges in the 1940s (for real). Will A Minecraft Movie become a generational touchstone? I'm writing this on the day A Minecraft Movie comes out, and signs point to the release being one of those vanishingly rare events that capture the collective imaginations (and dispo…

There’s the egg price problem for sure, but whether you’re trying to save grocery money or you have an aversion to eggs for dietary or health restrictions—you too deserve cake. Cake for a birthday or cake on a whim, there should be nothing holding you back from achieving your sugary dreams of the moment, least of all a lack of eggless cake recipes. I tested out five common and accessible egg replacement options to see which one produced the best eggless cake. The batterI decided to test a basic yellow cake recipe I’ve used before. It uses a combination of butter and oil, sugar, milk, flour, baking powder, salt, vanilla extract, and usually eggs. It’s a good layering cake …

If I told you that your TV watches everything you do in the name of data collection and advertising, it likely wouldn’t shock you. It’s 2025, after all; we're used to a general lack of privacy. Still, it’s not cool, and it turns out you can stop it (even if your TV manufacturer has opted you into it). So, how do you stop your smart TV from tracking what you watch, so you can go back to the days of watching Netflix or playing video games in peace? You need to turn off ACR. How does your TV track what you watch?Meet ACR: This technology, short for automatic content recognition, allows your smart TV to watch what you watch, identify what you watch, and use that information …

We may earn a commission from links on this page. When my cheap Amazon spin bike broke, I wanted to upgrade to something better. But even though I was already following along with Peloton videos on the company's app, I thought getting an actual Peloton was out of reach. Yet as I shopped, I began to change my mind: Even a good off-brand spin bike will start in the high triple digits, and it turns out Pelotons can be rented, or even purchased used. Thus began my quest for a cheaper Peloton, and in the end, I bought a used model I’m very happy with. Mine cost $950 through a Facebook Marketplace sale in 2022. If I had taken the time to shop around and negotiate more, I likely…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. This post is part of Find Your Fit Tech, Lifehacker's fitness wearables buying guide. I'm asking the tough questions about whether wearables can really improve your health, how to find the right one for you, and how to make the most of the data wearables can offer. A fitness tracker’s job isn’t done when you finish your workout, or even when you take your last steps of the day. There are devices that excel at tracking how long and how well you slept, and devices that attempt to tell you when you’re well-recovered and ready for your next challenge. Here are my picks for the best of this category. What to look for in a slee…

If you're reading this, chances are you've used ChatGPT. But have you paid for ChatGPT? OpenAI offers a number of ways to do so, but the cheapest plan is $20 per month. It's pretty steep, especially since the company continues to offer premium features for free users. However, there are still plenty of features and perks exclusive to paying customers. If you're interested in these options, and you happen to be a college student in the United States or Canada, good news: ChatGPT Plus is now free for you, for a very limited time. Who is eligible? You can only take advantage of this offer if you are a full or part-time student at a degree-granting school in either the U.S.…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Air travel may be fast, but it’s also often a source of stress and discomfort. Aside from tight seats, delays, and generally uncomfortable accommodations, airlines have been nickel-and-diming us with fees for just about everything, including luggage. Checked bag fees range around $30 to $40 to start, so it’s not surprising that more and more people are trying to travel with just their carry-on. Restricting yourself to a single carry-on is liberating—no more waiting at the luggage carousel, no more dragging a bulky, heavy roller behind you everywhere—but also limiting in terms of space. Clever packing, like rolling your clo…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication. Google released the Pixel 9 smartphones along with the Pixel Watch 3, and the Pixel Buds Pro 2 late last summer. Their second generation earbuds brought some great upgrades, and make them a great value for any Pixel user (although they're compatible with any Android and have limited iOS support). Right now, you can get the Pixel Buds Pro 2 for $179 (originally $229), matching the lowest price they've ever been according to price-tracking tools. Google Pixel Buds Pro 2 …

We may earn a commission from links on this page. HBO was, for at least a couple of generations, the home of movies on cable—no one else could compete. For a while, it seemed like Max could well be the ultimate streaming destination for movie lovers, but the jury is still out there. Even still, Max maintains a collaboration with TCM, giving it a broad range of classic American and foreign films. It's also the primary streaming home for Studio Ghibli and A24, so even though Max hasn't been in the business of making as many originals as it used to, it still has a solid assortment of films you won't find anywhere else. Here are 23 of the best of Max's recent and/or exclusive…

April is when gardeners need to start being mathematicians and professional organizers, trying to find space for all the seedlings that need to get into trays on time. It’s also the first time this year you’ll start succession seeding, both indoors and out. Succession seeding is one of the real benefits of growing your own seeds: It means you can grow one or two of a variety instead of needing the space for a whole six pack you’d pick up at the nursery. Grow a mixed tray of vegetables or herbs now, and start another one in a few weeks. This will also help alleviate some strain on square footage in your growing space. Even if you haven’t started your seed growing yet, the…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. While I was a total pizza hater as a child, I've come around as an adult—maybe a little too far around. It's one of my favorite things to make at home. I use pizza as a vehicle for using up leftovers, and as a way to save money on lunch. Through years of pizza trials, I've collected some sure-fire tricks that ensure the best homemade pizza possible. Flavorful crusts, balanced toppings, and even browning—you don’t need to have a home kitchen outfitted with a giant stone kiln to reach pizza perfection. But you do need to know a few things. Ferment the dough …

Windows has a rather patchy history when it comes to native photo viewing and editing, but the latest Photos app is quietly becoming genuinely useful. It may not be a full-blown Photoshop alternative, but it does now offer a variety of basic editing functions, and even some generative AI to help get your images looking their best. Photos combines a photo viewer and a photo editor, so the first job it takes on when you load it up is cataloging all the pictures you've got on your system. Use the gear icon at the top to change the configuration of this photo viewer, and the buttons just above the images to alter the order that pictures are shown in. When you're ready to star…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication. A factory-reconditioned Garmin Venu 2 Plus is on sale for $259.99 on Woot for the next five days or until it sells out—whichever comes first. Garmin Venu 2 Plus $259.99 at Woot $449.00 Save $189.01 …