Technology

Stop using your car's USB port to charge your phone

How-To Geek - Sat, 02/21/2026 - 16:00

If you have a relatively new vehicle, it probably has USB-A and newer USB-C ports on the dash, in the center console, and maybe in the back for passengers. They're everywhere, and it makes charging phones fast and easy, right? Nope.

Categories: IT General, Technology

Stop using your car's USB port to charge your phone

How-To Geek - Sat, 02/21/2026 - 16:00

If you have a relatively new vehicle, it probably has USB-A and newer USB-C ports on the dash, in the center console, and maybe in the back for passengers. They're everywhere, and it makes charging phones fast and easy, right? Nope.

Categories: IT General, Technology

Stop buying PCs expecting them to last 10 years

How-To Geek - Sat, 02/21/2026 - 16:00

If you're the type of person who only upgrades their PC once in a blue moon, you're not alone. So, it might seem logical to spend some extra cash now to build a top-tier PC that can last longer. However, that isn't a good approach to PC building. Allow me to explain.

Categories: IT General, Technology

Stop buying PCs expecting them to last 10 years

How-To Geek - Sat, 02/21/2026 - 16:00

If you're the type of person who only upgrades their PC once in a blue moon, you're not alone. So, it might seem logical to spend some extra cash now to build a top-tier PC that can last longer. However, that isn't a good approach to PC building. Allow me to explain.

Categories: IT General, Technology

9 clever ways to use vibration sensors in your smart home

How-To Geek - Sat, 02/21/2026 - 15:45

Vibration sensors are just another tool in your smart home arsenal for building useful and entertaining automations. These wireless, battery-powered helpers can stick to virtually anything and sense movement or changes in angle that you can use as triggers.

Categories: IT General, Technology

9 clever ways to use vibration sensors in your smart home

How-To Geek - Sat, 02/21/2026 - 15:45

Vibration sensors are just another tool in your smart home arsenal for building useful and entertaining automations. These wireless, battery-powered helpers can stick to virtually anything and sense movement or changes in angle that you can use as triggers.

Categories: IT General, Technology

SDUC promised 128TB memory cards: The engineering wall keeping SD cards at 2TB

How-To Geek - Sat, 02/21/2026 - 15:30

The first time I held a 512GB microSD card in the palm of my hand, I was duly impressed, but that was a long time ago. Today, the biggest SD card you can buy is 2TB in size.

Categories: IT General, Technology

SDUC promised 128TB memory cards: The engineering wall keeping SD cards at 2TB

How-To Geek - Sat, 02/21/2026 - 15:30

The first time I held a 512GB microSD card in the palm of my hand, I was duly impressed, but that was a long time ago. Today, the biggest SD card you can buy is 2TB in size.

Categories: IT General, Technology

This $6 gadget made my old smart lights feel new again

How-To Geek - Sat, 02/21/2026 - 15:15

A smart home is never done evolving, for all it takes is one new addition to make many of your older products feel fresh. One of my most recent upgrades was a cheap, wall-mountable remote that breathes new life into the lights in my home.

Categories: IT General, Technology

This $6 gadget made my old smart lights feel new again

How-To Geek - Sat, 02/21/2026 - 15:15

A smart home is never done evolving, for all it takes is one new addition to make many of your older products feel fresh. One of my most recent upgrades was a cheap, wall-mountable remote that breathes new life into the lights in my home.

Categories: IT General, Technology

Don't be fooled by those 3D printing YouTube videos, they're lying to you

How-To Geek - Sat, 02/21/2026 - 15:00

If you're like me, you spend a lot of time watching YouTube in order to learn as much as you can about your hobbies. For me, that includes videos about 3D printing, which is a technology that fascinates me and I want to know as much as possible about it.

Categories: IT General, Technology

Android phones stopped being fun after this legendary brand gave up

How-To Geek - Sat, 02/21/2026 - 14:45

Modern smartphones are more powerful than ever, but almost every Android brand plays it safe. The cost of creating a new smartphone is so high that experimenting rarely makes sense.

Categories: IT General, Technology

7 free apps to supercharge a fresh Windows installation

How-To Geek - Sat, 02/21/2026 - 14:30

Everyone has their own selection when it comes to installing apps on a fresh Windows installation. However, there are a few apps that every power user should have on their Windows PC. Allow me to share my Windows essentials.

Categories: IT General, Technology

How to watch New Zealand vs. Pakistan in the 2026 T20 World Cup online for free

Mashable - Sat, 02/21/2026 - 14:17

TL;DR: Live stream New Zealand vs. Pakistan in the ICC T20 World Cup 2026 for free on ICC.TV. Access this free streaming platform from anywhere in the world with ExpressVPN.

The 2026 T20 World Cup is moving onto its next stage. We've all greatly enjoyed the group stage over the last couple of weeks, but it's time for the intensity to ramp up. We're now at the Super 8 stage, with only eight teams left to battle it out for a place in the semi finals.

New Zealand vs. Pakistan is the first game from this stage of the competition. Both sides finished second in their respective groups. Pakistan lost out to India. New Zealand were beaten by South Africa. Does that matter now? Absolutely not. Pakistan, Sri Lanka, England, and New Zealand are all in the same group, with only the top two teams moving on.

If you want to watch New Zealand vs. Pakistan in the ICC T20 World Cup 2026 for free from anywhere in the world, we have all the information you need.

When is New Zealand vs. Pakistan?

New Zealand vs. Pakistan in the 2026 T20 World Cup starts at 8:30 a.m. ET on Feb. 21. This game takes place at the R. Premadasa Cricket Stadium.

How to watch New Zealand vs. Pakistan for free

New Zealand vs. Pakistan in the 2026 T20 Cricket World Cup is available to live stream for free on ICC.TV.

This free live stream on ICC.TV is only available in select regions (see full list of territories here), but anyone can live stream the T20 Cricket World Cup for free with a VPN. These helpful tools can hide your IP address (digital location) and connect you to a secure server in a location with free access. This simple process bypasses geo-restrictions so you can live stream on ICC.TV from anywhere in the world.

Live stream New Zealand vs. Pakistan in the 2026 T20 Cricket World Cup for free by following these simple steps:

  1. Subscribe to a streaming-friendly VPN (like ExpressVPN)

  2. Download the app to your device of choice (the best VPNs have apps for Windows, Mac, iOS, Android, Linux, and more)

  3. Open up the app and connect to a server in a location with access

  4. Visit ICC.TV

  5. Watch the 2026 T20 Cricket World Cup for free from anywhere in the world

Opens in a new window Credit: ExpressVPN ExpressVPN (1-Month Plan) $12.99 only at ExpressVPN (with money-back guarantee) Get Deal

The best VPNs for streaming are not free, but leading VPNs do tend to offer free-trial periods or money-back guarantees. By leveraging these offers, you can gain access to free live streams without committing with your cash. This is obviously not a long-term solution, but it does give you time to watch every game from the 2026 T20 Cricket World Cup (plus the Winter Olympics) before recovering your investment.

What is the best VPN for ICC.TV?

ExpressVPN is the best service for bypassing geo-restrictions to stream live sport on ICC.TV, for a number of reasons:

  • Servers in 105 countries

  • Easy-to-use app available on all major devices including iPhone, Android, Windows, Mac, and more

  • Strict no-logging policy so your data is always secure

  • Fast connection speeds

  • Up to 10 simultaneous connections

  • 30-day money-back guarantee

A two-year subscription to ExpressVPN is on sale for $68.40 and includes an extra four months for free — 81% off for a limited time. This plan includes a year of free unlimited cloud backup and a generous 30-day money-back guarantee. Alternatively, you can get a one-month plan for just $12.99 (with money-back guarantee).

Watch the 2026 T20 World Cup for free with ExpressVPN.

Categories: IT General, Technology

Don’t see Avengers: Doomsday until you've watched these 6 Marvel movies

How-To Geek - Sat, 02/21/2026 - 14:15

Following a seven-year wait, 2026 will finally see Earth's Mightiest Heroes assemble once more for Avengers: Doomsday. The MCU's most iconic figures will join forces to defend existence from the machinations of a plot by the long-anticipated villain Doctor Doom, played by Robert Downey Jr. Avengers: Doomsday will mark the beginning of the end of the Multiverse Saga that began in 2021.

Categories: IT General, Technology

The new KDE Plasma, Dolphin's big emulation update, the Pixel 10a, and more: News roundup

How-To Geek - Sat, 02/21/2026 - 14:00

This was another busy week for tech news, with the arrival of the Google Pixel 10a phone and KDE Plasma 6.6 desktop, an impressive update for the Dolphin emulator, new EVs from Polestar, and much more. Here are the biggest stories you might have missed.

Categories: IT General, Technology

7 Python mistakes That make your code slow (and the fixes that matter)

How-To Geek - Sat, 02/21/2026 - 13:30

Python is awesome because it's one of the easiest languages to learn and lets you prototype incredibly fast. However, that convenience often hides major inefficiencies that can seriously slow things down. That clean script you wrote might quickly turn into a huge performance bottleneck if you're not careful.

Categories: IT General, Technology

When to pick Z-Wave over Zigbee or Thread for your smart home

How-To Geek - Sat, 02/21/2026 - 13:00

Mesh networks are a low-power alternative to Wi-Fi for connecting smart home devices like plugs, switches, and sensors to your server. While Zigbee is a longstanding favorite and Thread is the hot new thing, Z-Wave offers an alternative to both with some notable upsides (and a few drawbacks).

Categories: IT General, Technology

From "unknown artist" to perfection: How I finally cleaned up my music library

How-To Geek - Sat, 02/21/2026 - 12:30

Do you have a mass of music files that are disorganized and hap-hazardly labeled and tagged? Fixing that can be a pain, and it may not even seem worth it—for now. But I found a super helpful app for folks who enjoy listening to an offline digital music collection.

Categories: IT General, Technology

The 7 best e-readers to buy: Comparing Kindles, Kobos, iPads, and more

Mashable - Sat, 02/21/2026 - 11:15

So, what is the best e-reader for 2026? I'm regularly testing new e-readers (and tablets) and cycling through different models to stay up to date on the best options available. So, if you're gearing up to read more books this year, I can recommend a model you'll love.

Featured Video For You Other e-readers we've tested From left to right: Kindle Paperwhite, Nook GlowLight 4 Plus, Kindle Scribe Credit: Samantha Mangino / Mashable

The latest e-readers I tested were the Kindle Scribe (2025) and Kindle Scribe Colorsoft. Previously, Kindle Scribes were disappointing e-readers, but Amazon made major improvements on these devices, and now, they're worthy of your attention. We've included the Kindle Scribe (2025) on this list because it's a better value, even if the Kindle Scribe Colorsoft is technically more impressive. For more details on the Kindle Scribe Colorsoft, you can read our full review.

We've also tested the Remarkable PaperPro and Onyx Boox Go 7 as contenders for this list. After several weeks of testing, both devices proved to be pretty good but not quite list-worthy.

Whenever you search for e-readers, Remarkable's tablets will always pop up in the search results, but unfortunately, it's hard to obtain ePUB files on the Remarkable. With Remarkable, you can access files within Google Drive, Dropbox, and OneDrive. If you have any locked ePUB files — like from Libby — you won't be able to access them on a Remarkable tablet. So, after testing the Remarkable tablet myself, it proved to be a better document reader or digital journal than an e-reader.

The Onyx Boox Go 7 is a better e-reader option than the Remarkable. It's the same size as the Kobo Libra or Amazon Kindle, but it really lags on processing speed. To read ePUB files from Libby required downloading the Adobe Digital Editions app onto the Boox Go 7, and there was so much lag while opening and closing the app. While it was an easier process than getting library books on a Nook, it was still a major pain compared to Kindle or Kobo's integrations. The Boox Go 7 lagged and took ages to load files. I was most looking forward to testing this Boox because of its page-turning buttons, but unfortunately, I found that they didn't work on my device.

An e-reader we haven't gotten around to testing is the Kindle Scribe Colorsoft, which is now available for purchase. We're trying out some newer names in the e-reader game, including the Xteink X4 and DuRoBo Krono.

What about the Kindle Paperwhite Signature Edition?

If you're familiar with the Kindle lineup, it may come as a surprise that the Kindle Paperwhite Signature Edition isn't on this list. Don't get me wrong, it's great, but I think there are better options. The Signature Edition is an upgraded version of the Paperwhite, and we've compared the devices head-to-head. The short version? The Paperwhite is a better value, even with the SE's added features like auto-adjusting brightness and 32GB of storage.

If you are prepared to spend $200 on an e-reader, though, I say skip the Kindle Paperwhite Signature Edition and go for the Kobo Libra Colour.

Where's the Nook on this list?

In terms of big-name e-readers, you might notice one omission from this list: the Barnes & Noble Nook. I have tested this e-reader, and it was previously featured on this list. However, after testing more devices, it no longer makes the cut. In comparison to any of the Kindles or the Kobo Libra, the Nook has sloth-like performance, making it frustrating to use.

Plus, getting my library books onto the Nook was a nightmare, as it was a multi-step process that required downloading to a computer before uploading to a Nook. Its only redeeming quality was the buttons on either side of the device, which made page turning a breeze. However, unless you are a loyal buyer of Barnes & Noble books, I recommend steering clear of the Nook.

Where to get e-reader books for free

Once you get an e-reader, it's time to fill it up with books, and that doesn't necessarily mean spending money. In fact, you can load up your e-reader without spending a dime; you just need to be a bit resourceful.

The best way to read nearly any book — a classic or hot new release — is with Libby. I have read hundreds of free books with the Libby app — I wouldn't have been able to test for this guide without it. It connects with your library card, allowing you to borrow from your local library's digital collection. Plus, both Kobo and Kindle have exceptional Libby integrations.

Another way to build your library is through Stuff Your Kindle Day events. These are 24-hour opportunities led by authors that make books discounted or free.

If you're a fan of the classics or looking to discover a treasure lost to time, an online resource like Project Gutenberg has more than 75,000 books in the public domain that you can download and read on an e-reader.

Categories: IT General, Technology
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