Technology

I’m probably not alone in feeling that movies rarely live up to the hype. While standout feature films are becoming increasingly rare, TV shows have quietly taken the crown. Thanks to streaming, there’s never been a more abundant and high-quality landscape of rich, immersive series to get lost in.

There’s a special annoyance that comes with picking up your phone after it’s been sitting idle for hours, only to find the battery has dropped significantly. While the screen may not be on, your Android phone is always doing something. But is it doing too much?

There are plenty of gadgets that were very simple when they were first released to the public, which would have been easy to blow off. However, time has a way of improving things, and you wouldn't believe how advanced these same devices have gotten.

Finding a car that’s cheap to buy, dependable to own, and genuinely fun to drive isn’t easy, but one German sedan checks all those boxes in 2025. While many budget-friendly cars focus on value at the expense of personality, this model delivers engaging handling and a spirited driving feel without demanding a premium price or frequent trips to the shop. For buyers who want more than just basic transportation, that combination is rare.

Whether you're buying one of the fastest SSDs or picking up a budget drive for some extra storage, you're most likely paying some attention to the read/write speeds. After all, apart from the capacity, they're the one spec that matters most in an SSD.

One of the key benefits touted for desktop computers, as opposed to (for example) laptops, is that you can upgrade anything you want later down the line. Upgradability makes financial sense and offers you endless options down the road. However, the upgrade argument for desktop computers may not be as strong as it once was.

When you head to a hardware store like Home Depot for a new tool, you'll see a rainbow of colors that signify brands like Ryobi, Milwaukee, DeWALT, RIGID, and more. Ryobi is extremely popular for its affordability, but a new bright orange tool is starting to hit shelves at a budget-friendly price. That brand is Vevor, and here's what you need to know.

This was another busy week in tech news, with a popular free Kindle feature going behind a paywall, Starlink ditching its cheapest internet plan, our first look at Google's Android operating system for desktops and laptops, and much more. Here are the biggest stories you might have missed.

Are you ready for three more homelab projects to try this weekend? Today, I’ll show you how to ditch Docusign for a self-hosted alternative, as well as manage your Docker containers easier, and even how to bring your remote desktop software in-house for free.

This is an exciting time to cover smartphones. We have phones that fold not once, but twice. Keyboards are making a resurgence. Slab phones, while not as exciting, are better than ever—but there’s one I want to see make a comeback in the US more than any other brand.

Some TikTok users in the U.S. have reported ‘zero views’ glitches, restrictions, and even account bans they say are related to content about Palestine, criticism of Donald Trump and ICE, and even mentions of Jeffrey Epstein’s name in private messages.

Notably, it happened days after the social media platform closed on a deal to separate its U.S. operations from its global business. In the States, the app is now owned by TikTok USDS Joint Ventures LLC – a private majority company established to oversee TikTok in the country. Immediately following the handover, TikTok suffered outages, and many U.S. users reported difficulties signing in to the platform. Once users could sign in, they were asked to agree to new Terms of Service, which raised privacy concerns among some users.

This was another big week in the Linux ecosystem, with major updates going out for DietPi, the Calibre eBook manager, and the MAME emulator, among other exciting news. Here are the biggest stories you might have missed.

February 2026 is going to be a busy and exciting time on Paramount+. In addition to new series and movies, it's time for the return of primetime television with mid-season premieres and for the 68th Annual Grammy Awards. There are also plenty of shows that are currently in progress, such as School Spirits and Star Trek: Starfleet Academy, with new episodes releasing weekly, so don't forget about those.

Many of my friends and relatives think that a router is a plug-and-play type of thing. You plug it in, you connect, it works, you're done.

I've been trying to be more intentional about how I work on my PC, and a big part of that has been moving toward a keyboard-first workflow. Not because the mouse is bad, but because I kept noticing how much time I was losing to it. Dragging windows into place, hunting for the right app, re-finding something I just had opened five seconds ago. Once I started paying attention, it was hard to unsee how often the mouse was pulling me out of whatever I was trying to focus on.

Home Assistant is by far the strongest of all the smart home platforms, but even the best solutions have room for improvement. Though I’ll continue to recommend Home Assistant to everyone and anyone who’ll listen, it doesn’t hurt to be aware of these limitations.

Are you learning Bash or wishing to improve error handling in your scripts? The rules governing errors can be a little tricky to understand, so I've put together this bite-sized guide to untangle their mystery.

When your PC's operating system gets corrupted, or if an update fails, or a drive gets damaged, you need to be ready—or be prepared to spend a lot of time trying to get it back up running. Thankfully, it's just as simple as grabbing a thumb drive and getting it up and running as a rescue drive.

Recent additions to this guide:

• January 2026: We've removed the Sonos Move 2 from this guide because of the high price tag and problems with Sonos software; it's also one of the older speakers on this list.

• January 2026: We've removed the IKEA VAPPEBY portable speaker. It's still a good speaker, but there are more well-rounded options for under $50.

• November 2025: We've selected the Bose SoundLink Micro (2nd Generation) as our best travel speaker, replacing the IKEA Vappeby (our new honorable mention pick).

• November 2025: We've added the JBL PartyBox Stage 320 as the best party speaker, replacing the older Ultimate Ears Hyperboom.

• November 2025: We've added the Sony ULT Field 7 as the best boombox-style speaker.

Since it entered our gay little world in 2009, Grindr has been the glue keeping queer hookup culture from completely falling apart. Gone are the days of personal ads in glossy magazines and chance encounters under dim bar lights. Now, you can have your phone in one hand and your dick in the other, fire off a few messages, and call it “effort” when someone actually shows up. In just over 15 years, Grindr has singlehandedly made gay hookups easier than brushing your teeth in the morning. 

I can’t say I’ve been on the app since the beginning, but I have been on and off for quite a while. In 2015, I was 18 years old and living in my freshman dorm at Pratt Institute in New York City. It was my second semester, and I’d made a number of connections at that point — both platonic and sexual. Classes, frat parties, campus run-ins, you get the gist. One weekend, my roommate flew to Miami for a date with his sugar daddy, who he’d met on Grindr, leaving me with the dorm room all to myself. I thought, hell, if he can get a sugar daddy to take him on a tropical vacation, why can't I? I downloaded Grindr from my lofted dorm-room bed on a Friday night. And, well, the rest is history. Grindr is now the undisputed king of queer hookup apps.

SEE ALSO: You can now view Grindr's original (and uncensored) content right in the app

I’ve been using Grindr in some fashion for 10 years, toying with every feature the app has to offer. Some Grindr features have changed a lot since I was a baby gay at Pratt, while others have remained relatively the same. After so much change, competition from other gay dating apps, and shifts in how we connect online, is Grindr still worth it in 2026?

That’s what I'm here to figure out.

The key to success on Grindr? Manage your expectations.

I’ve heard about those adorable (ugh) love stories that supposedly started on Grindr (and the rarer-still fulfilling sugar daddy relationship), but that’s never really been my experience — or the experience of the vast majority of queer guys using the app. Sure, I’ve had a few solid dates through Grindr, but nine times out of 10, we've already exchanged nudes by the first "date," and that hardly qualifies as a meet-cute.

While Grindr lets users specify what they’re “Looking For” (Chat, Dates, Friends, Networking, Relationships, or Hookups), we all know Hookups (formerly Right Now) is the main draw. Sure, you’ll occasionally stumble into one-off conversations that’ll have you smiling and twirling your hair, but you're more likely to stumble into unsolicited dick pics (aka cyberflashing) and those three little words: "top or bottom?" So, even if hookups aren’t your goal, remember that it’s the intent of basically everybody else on the app. You don’t go to Grindr to find your Prince Charming — there are plenty of other dating apps for that.

SEE ALSO: I tried Sniffies and it made getting laid as a gay man almost too easy Getting started with Grindr: The profile setup

You can sign up for Grindr with an email and password, or through Facebook, Google, or Apple ID. You also have to give Grindr your phone number to get your stamp of approval. Once you're in, you’re immediately given a blank profile that Grindr pushes you to set up, though you don’t have to. You can leave the whole thing barren if you want that air of mystery, which is a Grindr personality in itself. If you choose to, here’s what you’ll see in your “Edit Profile” section — and keep in mind, you can leave whatever you want blank:

• Photos: Upload up to five photos that make up the front-facing part of your profile. While you can get a little scandalous (you can show butt, but not hole), Grindr will veto any photo it deems inappropriate.

• Display Name: To my knowledge, you can make your display name just about anything as long as it's not hateful or obviously drug-related.

• About Me: Tell them who you are! You’ll see a lot of Grindr-specific terms here that can be confusing at first —  NPNC (no pic, no chat), NSA (no strings attached), and BB (you know what this one means, right?) Keep it short and sweet because you have just 255 characters to write your heart out.

• My Tags: Grindr implemented tags in late 2022. Some are sexual, some are about hobbies, some are about looks.

• Stats: OK, here’s where you pick apart your body and sexual desires so other guys can filter you out in their mind. Sections include Age, Height, Weight, Ethnicity, Tribes, Body Type, and more. Remember: you don’t have to fill out this or any part of the profile.

• Expectations: This is where you tell the boys whether you’re trying to get bent over on their bed or auditioning for a ring by spring.

• Identity: Initially, Grindr was designed specifically for men seeking men. Today, trans and non-binary folks are welcome on Grindr, too.

• Health: This is an awesome option that Grindr includes to ensure users are being sexually conscious. Sections include HIV Status, Last Tested Date, Vaccinations, and more.

• Social Links: I swear, we’re almost done. I see a lot of people who link to Instagram, and a lot of OnlyFans creators like to link to their X account. Linking your Facebook to your Grindr profile? That’s a bit strange to me. Instead, link your Spotify account and add your top songs for people to judge.

Once your profile’s set, it’s time to play.

The Grindr Grid Credit: Ian Moore / Mashable / Getty Images

When you open the app, you'll be brought directly to the grid, the gay little hub where everything you’ll ever need on Grindr basically lives. This shows every guy on Grindr in your area, with the top-left square reserved for whoever’s basically breathing down your neck in proximity. It gets real awkward if the closest person happens to be your downstairs neighbor. Trust me, I’ve lived it. (Also, hi, Todd.)

The grid has changed a lot over the past few years, but as of January 2026, you can expect around 87 messageable profiles if you’re not using filters and aren’t paying for Grindr XTRA or Grindr Unlimited. If you’re using filters (age ranges, tribe preferences, tags), the number of people will drop significantly. But if you’re using a subscription, you’ll have hundreds more profiles on your grid. If you don’t have a paid subscription, you won’t be able to message some visible profiles past a certain point.

Unlike dating apps like Tinder or Hinge, you don't have to match with anyone. Simply click their photo, scan their profile, and send a message. You can also opt to "tap," the Grindr equivalent of a low-effort "hey" message. Free users will only see a handful of your most recent taps, and you can only message guys that fall within that window. Personally, I suggest sending a real message. It won’t disappear, and you’re actually starting the conversation.

You can also star the profiles you really like, so you can save your favorites like you’re curating a very queer museum exhibit. There are a few more ways to filter profiles, including sorting by who’s currently online, by tags, by sexual position, and more, to narrow down your hunt. You can also filter by age, which is great if you typically veer toward older or younger blokes. You can’t search by a specific age anymore, but Grindr now lets you browse within age ranges of six years or more, starting with 18–23.

You can also hop around the map from the top of the grid, either by typing in a location or dropping a pin. But if you’re on the free version, you only get one message a day to someone outside your area, so make sure he’s cute. (And if you're looking for location-based cruising, give Sniffies a try.)

Your Grindr inbox

This is where all the magic happens. Your Grindr inbox is a blessing and a curse. One minute you’ll be talking to the hottest guy in the city, the next you’ll receive seven unsolicited dick and hole pics from a 76-year-old named Joe who is cheating on his wife and wants to shove a sneaker inside of you. I’m not kidding, either. If you decide to get Grindr, you will get some really creepy messages that will make you wonder why you downloaded the app to begin with. It’s just in the name of the game, sadly.

Also, please remember that Grindr does have rules for messaging. If you encounter any racism, boundary crossing, underage users, harassment, or other types of abuse, you can report the user for violating Grindr's community guidelines.

Your inbox will eventually become a graveyard of every Grindr conversation you’ve ever had. Deleting messages only erases them for you. The other guy still gets to keep your entire chat history like a souvenir. If you reinstall the app, you’re starting fresh, while he’s still scrolling through previous pictures you sent of your dick and balls. Messages only disappear for good when you fully delete your account. Paid Grindr members can also unsend messages for up to 24 hours after hitting send.

You can filter your messages the same way you filter the grid — by who you’ve starred, what’s unread, distance, who’s currently online, or sexual position. Grindr loves a category.

Private Albums on Grindr

Private albums are your saving grace on Grindr, especially if you’re a hoe on the low. You can include up to 10 pieces of content and up to one video in your private album. This is where you keep the nudes you use to entice strangers to your apartment at 3 a.m. Grindr even tells you how many people you’ve shared your album with, whether you want that information or not.

Albums on Grindr are made for discretion. Seriously. Try screenshotting an image on anyone’s album, and you won’t be able to. What comes up instead? A bunch of Grindr emojis covering the image you were trying to save to your camera roll, you sneaky little fuck. Busted. Everything that’s in the album stays in the album — and that’s one of my favorite Grindr features by far. (That said, technically savvy perverts might still find ways around screenshot protections, so act accordingly.)

Paid Grindr customers can make multiple private albums. If you're a free user, choose your dick pics wisely.

Looking for Right Now?

The “Right Now” feature is Grindr’s latest attempt to help you find someone who’s DTF immediately. It opens a map of floating circle profiles (a.k.a. Grindr doing its best Sniffies impersonation) and gives your profile three purple droplets to show you’re ready this instant. In reality, I barely ever see people on it, and I live in a big city. I’m not convinced this feature will survive long-term, but Grindr has kept stranger things alive. I often click it by mistake.

What else can I get from Grindr? Credit: Grindr

Grindr is constantly testing out new features, from fancy new AI tools to original content. Tap on “Grindr Presents” to see uncensored original videos, music, editorials, and playlists that dive headfirst into gay culture and the many flavors of queer existence. It’s new as of 2025, and I’ve literally never once used it. Sorry. However, keep exploring the menu, and you'll find an option to get a free HIV test, read all about Grindr’s safety and privacy, and peep your settings.

SEE ALSO: Grindr's latest updates are wild: Hiding from your ex, verified pics, and faster hookups Should I pay for Grindr?

This is the question every person on Grindr is asking themselves in 2026. I explored this question in my recent piece on Grindr Xtra. It's an undeniable fact that the paid version of Grindr is noticeably better. But I ultimately decided that a recurring subscription to a hookup app just wasn't for me, even if it can be worth it for special occasions.

To quote myself, "Are you touring a new city alone for a week and want your whole cake and to eat it, too? Then, sure — pay for a week-long Grindr XTRA subscription for a little over $2 a day. Go buck wild on your Berlin trip. Are you home on your couch when Pornhub is just a few clicks away in your Safari app? Maybe don’t pay for Grindr XTRA this time. Let it be a little treat every once in a while."

Credit: Grindr Credit: Grindr

Of course, if you choose not to pay for Grindr, you'll have to deal with some really annoying obstacles. For one, the free version of Grindr is riddled with ads that are impossible to avoid. You want to look at a profile? Ad. You want to send a message? Ad. You want to look at someone’s album? Ad. While it has gotten a little bit better in the early weeks of 2026, 2024 through 2025 was an atrocious time to be on Grindr, and the ads made the app borderline unusable. If you pay up, the ads disappear, you get access to way more profiles, and you can filter by tags like a gay detective on a manhunt.

Grindr XTRA starts at $15.99 a week, and honestly, I only recommend springing for it in dire emergencies (like if you’re really horny) or when you’re traveling. You can also opt for Grindr Unlimited, which allows you to see who has been snooping on your profile, slip into Incognito Mode to lurk unnoticed, send unlimited disappearing photos, auto-translate chats, and even use Grindr on your browser, all without a single ad clogging the experience. And, get this, it starts at $9 a day. No thanks.

Is Grindr still worth it?

I have such an insane love/hate relationship with Grindr, and the answer to this question really depends on what you’re currently looking for in life. If you’re hunting for a boyfriend, absolutely not. Run. Run fast and far. (There are plenty of dating apps out there for serious relationships.) But if you’re horny, bored, or trying to dust off your flirting skills? Then Grindr is basically built for that, so get on and have some fun.

And as for your mental health, remember this: you are under zero obligation to be on Grindr. The sheer number of users doesn’t mean everyone is constantly hooking up — that’s just the illusion the grid gives you. If you’re not on the app, that doesn't mean you're missing out on anything. Take care of yourself first. If Grindr starts messing with your head, delete it. You can always come back and make a new account when it feels right.

Ultimately, Grindr is meant to be fun. It’s designed to be exciting. And though those damn ads make everything a little less sexy, Grindr is worth it if you’re looking to have some fun. And, if fun is what you want, let yourself have it.

Opens in a new window Credit: Ian Moore / Mashable / Getty Images Grindr   Learn More