How-To Geek

Amazon

If you’ve had your eye on a new Macbook, some smart home upgrades, or the laughably cheap Playstation Classic, then now’s the time to spend some cash.

Right now, there are some fantastic deals on Amazon, B&H, and eBay. We’re talking capture cards, wireless headphones, mesh Wi-Fi systems, a heavily discounted Macbook from B&H, and a half-priced Google Home Mini from A4C.

Computers, Tablets, and Storage Deal

Want to upgrade your laptop, or grab a Fire tablet for your kid? These are the deals for you.

• Apple 12″ MacBook (Mid-2017 Model, Gold), $999 ($300-600 off) [B&H]
• Refurbished MacBook Pro Retina 13.3″, $699 [eBay]
• Kindle Paperwhite With Special Offers, $100 ($30 off) [Amazon]
• Fire 7 Kids Edition, $59 ($40 off) [Amazon]
• Fire 8 Kids Edition, $90 ($40 off) [Amazon]
• Fire 10 Kids Edition, $150 ($50 off) [Amazon]
• WD Blue 1TB SSD, $120 ($40 off) [NewEgg]
• Elgato 1GC109901002 Capture Card, $120 (~$50 off) [Woot]

Smarthome and Wi-Fi Deals

Need to upgrade your smart home? You can go the extra mile with these deals.

• Google Home Mini, $25 ($25 off) [A4C]
• TP-Link Deco Mesh Wi-Fi system, $139 (~$50 off) [Amazon]
• 2nd Gen Echo + TP-Link Smart Plug Bundle, $90 ($37 off) [Amazon]
• Echo Dot Kids Edition $35 ($35 off) [Amazon]

Everything Else

An iPhone for less than $100, wireless headphones, and the cheapest Playstation Classic on the planet. These deals are worth rummaging through.

• Refurbished iPhone 6 for Straight Talk, $70 [Walmart]
• Sony WF1000X Truely Wireless headphones, $59.00 (~$100 off) [Woot]
• Choetech wireless car charger, $25.99 ($10 off with coupon code WBJ24JC3) [Amazon]
• Sony PlayStation Classic, $36.99 ($63 off) [B&H]
• NYNE Boost Bluetooth speaker, $40 ($10 off) [Amazon]

If life has taught us anything, it’s that good deals only last for a day or two. Don’t wait too long to grab that discounted Macbook or that half-priced Google Home Mini.

Amazon

You don’t need to throw out your good old speakers to add streaming audio to setup. All you need is a streaming audio device. They’re easy to use, and they’re not too expensive.

There are a lot of audio streaming products on the market, though, and they all have different quirks and features. Some are specifically made for Amazon and Google smarthomes, and others are made to add streaming features and whole-home audio to large hi-fi setups.

Lucky for you, we’ve taken the time to find the best streaming audio solutions, for all speakers and audio setups.

Amazon Echo Input ($35)

If you simply want to add streaming audio to your speakers, then the Amazon Echo Input is a cheap, easy option. The Echo Input connects to your speaker via aux cable, and you use Alexa voice commands to control it (even the volume).

Since the Echo Input is basically a miniature, speaker-less Amazon Echo, it works great in an Amazon smarthome environment. You can pair the Echo Input to other Echo devices around your home, or install a few Echo Inputs around your house for whole-home streaming audio.

Buy on Amazon Google Chromecast Audio (Discontinued) Google

Really, the Chromecast Audio is a great device for streaming audio to speakers. It’s inexpensive, small, and it works with Google Home products. Sadly, Google recently discontinued the ChomeCast Audio, but you might be able to find one at a local Walmart for as low as $10 bucks, or on eBay for a bit more. (The original price, for reference, was $35.)

Should you go out of your way to find a Chomecast Audio? Well, if you want to save a lot of money or control streaming audio through your Google Home setup, then the answer is a resounding “yes.” Otherwise, it may be easier to look for a different product. The Echo Input is comparably cheap and tiny.

There are some rumors that the next Google Home will have ports to make audio streaming easier, but your patience may not pay off. Wireless audio is the new standard, and the Google Home isn’t marketed as a hi-fi component.

Search on eBay Sonos Connect Amplifier ($379) Sonos

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Excel has built-in features that you can use to display your calibration data and calculate a line-of-best-fit. This can be helpful when you are writing a chemistry lab report or programming a correction factor into a piece of equipment.

In this article, we’ll look at how to use Excel to create a chart, plot a linear calibration curve, display the calibration curve’s formula, and then set up simple formulas with the SLOPE and INTERCEPT functions to use the calibration equation in Excel.

What is a Calibration Curve and How is Excel Useful When Creating One?

To perform a calibration, you compare the readings of a device (like the temperature that a thermometer displays) to known values called standards (like the freezing and boiling points of water). This lets you create a series of data pairs that you’ll then use to develop a calibration curve.

A two-point calibration of a thermometer using the freezing and boiling points of water would have two data pairs: one from when the thermometer is placed in ice water (32°F or 0°C) and one in boiling water (212°F or 100°C). When you plot those two data pairs as points and draw a line between them (the calibration curve), then assuming the response of the thermometer is linear, you could pick any point on the line that corresponds to the value the thermometer displays, and you could find the corresponding “true” temperature.

So, the line is essentially filling in the information between the two known points for you so that you can be reasonably certain when estimating the actual temperature when the thermometer is reading 57.2 degrees, but when you have never measured a “standard” that corresponds to that reading.

Excel has features that allow you to plot the data pairs graphically in a chart, add a trendline (calibration curve), and display the calibration curve’s equation on the chart.  This is useful for a visual display, but you can also calculate the formula of the line using Excel’s SLOPE and INTERCEPT functions. When you enter these values into simple formulas, you will be able to automatically calculate the “true” value based on any measurement.

Let’s Look at an Example

For this example, we will develop a calibration curve from a series of ten data pairs, each consisting of an X-value and a Y-value. The X-values will be our “standards,” and they could represent anything from the concentration of a chemical solution we are measuring using a scientific instrument to the input variable of a program that controls a marble launching machine.

The Y-values will be the “responses,” and they would represent the reading the instrument provided when measuring each chemical solution or the measured distance of how far away from the launcher the marble landed using each input value.

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Your iPhone knows a lot about your health, especially if you use apps like MyFitnessPal or track your activity using an Apple Watch. If given permission, apps can access that data. Here’s how to check which apps have access to your data.

We’ve shown how it can keep tabs on your location and expose that data to apps before, but what about your health data? The Health app collects as much data as you can give it, and if you’re using apps for tracking your weight, calories, blood pressure, and more, that can be a lot. If you’re wearing an Apple Watch, it can be even more information than you may realize.

How to Control Which Apps Can Access Your Health Data

There may be some kinds of health data that you don’t want to be tracked at all, or there may be others that you don’t mind Apple seeing, but would rather not hand over to apps. It’s all something you can control from within the Health app.

To get started, open the Health app on your iPhone and tap “Sources” at the bottom of the screen.

Here, you can see all of the apps that have requested access to your health data, either to read existing or add new health data. Tapping an individual app gives you additional information on the data to which it has access.

You can even see the data uninstalled apps had access to by tapping “Uninstalled Apps.”

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Is it possible to own too many books? It doesn’t seem likely. If you love reading and discovering new authors, then here are the best subscription boxes for you.

Whatever your tastes, there’s something for you here. Some subscription boxes focus on inspiring, while others will grab the attention of the aspiring novelist, or the humble coffee lover. There’s room too for capturing the imagination of kids. Here’s our pick of the bunch when it comes to subscription boxes for avid readers.

Best For Variety: Bookcase.Club ($9.99 per month) BookCase Club

If you simply like a little bit of everything then you can’t go wrong with Bookcase.Club. Each month, you’re able to choose from a selection of themes. Once chosen, you’re then sent two handpicked novels of that type. Typical themes include young adult, mystery or thriller, romance, sci-fi and fantasy, and paranormal romance.

Books come in hardback format so they look pretty good in your bookcase too. It’s a fairly straight forward subscription service so don’t expect any bonuses, but it’s a great way of discovering new authors instead of having to make the effort yourself.

Susbcribe to Bookcase.Club Best For Being Inspired: Enlightened Warrior Book Club ($35 per month) Enlightened Warrior

Want to feel inspired by what you read? The Enlightened Warrior Book Club aims to entertain as well as encourage you to be the best person possible.

Each month, you’re sent a book of the month that can be either fiction or non-fiction, along with a variety of local handmade items, a gift to give someone important in your life, and two themed items that tie into the book. The handcrafted items are designed to create a calm and relaxing environment while you read, with the choice of books keen to inspire and motivate you. It’s all part of a self-care style sentiment that emits from the box the moment you open it. See it as a small escape from life each month.

Subscribe to Enlightened Warrior Best Book Subscription For Men: Culture Carton ($16 per month to $45 per month) Culture Carton

Aimed squarely at male booklovers, Culture Carton offers both a book club and a lifestyle item club. For $16 per month, you can sign up to the book club and be sent a handpicked book each month. These comprise a mixture of classic and modern fiction so you’re constantly provided with interesting material to read.

Alternatively, for $45 a month, you can enjoy the book along with a selection of lifestyle items including things like journals, facial scrubs, socks, candies, earphones, watches, and much more. Think random items that you didn’t know you needed until it arrived. Whatever you go with, you’re guaranteed a high-quality book.

Subscribe to Culture Carton Best For Coffee Lovers: My Coffee and Book ($39 per month) My Coffee and Book

Everyone loves coffee, right? Combine your love of coffee with your love of reading via My Coffee and Book. For $39 per month, you can enjoy two new hardcover books and an eBook in your genre of choice, along with 12 ounces of gourmet coffee. Choices are extensive. You can choose from whole bean or ground coffee, with books available in every genre imaginable. There’s no chance of you being sent the wrong book here.

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Google Chrome lets you personalize your experience with themes to make things a little more fun, and with the recent release of Google’s internally-designed looks, it’s trying to remind us that themes still exist. Here’s how to install and remove them.

How to Install Themes

Google released a bunch of new themes recently—14 to be exact—that change the way you look at your browser. While these aren’t the only themes you can download, it reminded us how useful Chrome’s often-forgotten themes feature is.

RELATED: Get Your Dark Mode Fix with Google’s New Chrome Theme(s)

Start by firing up Chrome and going to the Chrome Web Store for themes. You can browse for themes using the search bar, category selector (although, the only two options are Google and artists), or by rating.

After you find a theme that fits your mood, click on it to go to the theme’s page.

Click “Add to Chrome” to add it to Chrome.

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Amazon

Amazon’s Project Zero is the company’s first real attempt to remove all counterfeit listings from the Amazon marketplace. But how does Project Zero work, and how will it affect customers like you?

Wait, There are Counterfeits on Amazon?

It sounds strange, but there’s a massive counterfeit market on Amazon. And whether you realize it or not, there’s a chance that you’ve bought a fake product through the retailer at some point.

Amazon, unlike stores like Target and Best Buy, relies heavily on 3rd party sellers for product listings and fulfillment. These sellers aren’t affiliated with the brands that they sell, but according to Jeff Bezos, their listings make up half of the items sold on Amazon.

Many of your Amazon purchases have probably come from 3rd party sellers, whether you’ve realized it or not. Instead of dividing each seller into their product page (like eBay), Amazon compiles all listings into a single product page. A listing for an Apple Lighting Cable, for example, may be fulfilled by dozens of different sellers, including Apple. You can check whether a product comes from Amazon or a third-party seller on the product page.

This system allows Amazon to keep prices low, and it’s a backbone of Amazon’s super-fast fulfillment system. But, as you can imagine, it allows a lot of fraudsters and counterfeiters to piggyback on genuine product listings.

Amazon has some anti-counterfeit measures in place, but they don’t work that well. The review process at Amazon is surprisingly slow, and it relies almost entirely on user feedback. Not to mention, this review system sometimes works in favor of fraudsters by banning “suspicious” users.

As a result, there are a lot of fake products on Amazon. The Counterfeit Report estimates that 13% of the products sold on Amazon are fakes. To put things in perspective, Amazon sold around 5 billion products in 2014.

This counterfeit problem is harmful to customers, popular brands, and Amazon. Some consumers won’t shop on Amazon because of counterfeits, and some brands outright refuse to list their products on the website. Last year, a deal between Amazon and Swatch Group (a Swedish Watch conglomerate) fell apart because of counterfeiters. Nick Hayek, the Swatch Group CEO, claimed that Chinese company Alibaba has better anti-counterfeit measures than Amazon. Ouch. The Swatch Group has reluctantly turned around, but only sells a select batch of watches on Amazon.

You Can’t Buy Everything on Amazon

You can buy just about anything on Amazon—except for luxury clothes and apparel. Branded clothes, watches, handbags, perfumes, hats, and sunglasses have a notorious counterfeit market. Since Amazon relies heavily on 3rd party sellers, luxury brands are reluctant to list their products on the website.

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What Were Planes Detected With Before The Invention Of Radar?

1. Acoustic Mirrors
2. Ultrasound
3. Pigeons
4. Telescopes

Think you know the answer?

Kaspars Grinvalds/Shutterstock

Today, Microsoft showed off Android screen mirroring in Windows, Google gave away some Home Minis, Spotify offered Premium users free Hulu access, and a lot more. These are the top stories for March 12th, 2019.

Microsoft and Windows News

Microsoft is still one of the most dominant forces in tech today, and the company is constantly trying to expand and modernize Windows. Here’s what happened today.

• Build 19H1 came to the Slow Ring (but still didn’t fix the GSOD). [Thurrott]
• Windows 10 is getting Android screen mirroring…for a few phones. [The Verge]
• The Snip & Sketch tool got an update. Yay? [MSPowerUser]
• Windows 10 Insider Preview Build 18356 was announced in the Fast Ring. [Microsoft Blog]
• Seeing AI, Microsoft’s app for the visually impaired, got an update today that will help blind users experience images on their iPad by explaining parts of the photo when touched. [Engadget]
• It’s Patch Tuesday! Tons of patches, a couple of zero-day fixes, and some other stuff. [Ask Woody]

Google and Android News

If you don’t keep a close eye on what Google is doing every single day, you’re undoubtedly going to miss something. It’s crazy.

• Google is giving free Home Minis to users who subscribe to the Google One 2 TB plan. That’s sweet. [Android Police]
• Allo is dead. RIP. [Engadget]
• More Google Assistant speakers are getting phone call capabilities. [Android Police]
• An update is rolling out the NVIDIA SHIELD TV that brings Xbox controller support and more. [9to5Google]
• Google teased its upcoming game streaming service, which it will announce next week at GDC. Fun stuff! [Google on Twitter]
• Firefox’s experimental Fenix browser for Android saw light with a unique take on mobile browsing. [Techdows]
• Speaking of Firefox, the stable version got an update that blocks auto-playing audio by default. [Android Police]
• Google is gearing up to release Android Q with a new Beta feedback and feature request app. [9to5Google]
• On-device real-time voice transcription is rolling out to Gboard on Pixel devices. Neat. [9to5Google]
• RED confused everyone with a statement on its Hydrogen One plans. I’m still not sure what’s really going on. [Android Police]
• Chrome 73 is rolling out today to the stable channel. Here’s what’s new.

Other Stuff

Look, not everything is Google or Microsoft—there’s a lot of other stuff happening in this world too.

• Netflix is planning more choose your own adventure-style shows after the success of Bandersnatch. [The Verge]
• Mozilla launched Firefox Send for easy, encrypted, destructible file sharing. [Liliputing]
• Spotify Premium users can get Hulu for free…assuming they’re new users, anyway. [Spotify]
• Alphabet-owned company Jigsaw released a fascinating new Chrome extension to let users control how much toxicity they see in comments. [Jigsaw on Medium]
• A previously unknown wresting game for NES has surfaced after 30 years. So cool. [Ars Technica]
• PUBG Mobile Beta got all sorts of new crap. [XDA Developers]
• A new Fortnite update will let PS4 and Xbox One users kill each other. [Thurrott]
• The macOS Mojave 10.14.4 Beta has hidden code revealing the company’s rumored Apple News magazine subscription service, which is expected to be announced on March 25th. [MacRumors]

There you go: the biggest (or most interesting) stories from today, ready for your consumption. If you like this format or find it interesting, I’d be interested to hear your thoughts! Leave a comment below or drop me a line to let me know what you think, what you’d like to see, or if you think there’s a way to improve what we’re doing here.

Constantly glancing at a clock on a wall or at your watch to keep up with the time can be distracting and possibly come off as rude during a presentation. Keep your eyes on the presentation and remain focused by inserting a clock in your presentation.

Inserting a Clock in PowerPoint

There are a couple of ways to go about doing this. The first is using a built-in PowerPoint function that allows you to unobtrusively show the time and date in the presentation. This method isn’t a live method and only updates the time/date once you switch slides during the presentation. It’s mostly handy if you want to keep an eye on the time.

The second method is adding a live clock, downloadable from several different third-party websites. Using this method allows you to show real-time updates during the presentation—not only when you switch slides. It’s probably best used when you want to keep your audience’s eyes on the presentation.

PowerPoint’s Built-in Function

To use PowerPoint’s built-in function, go ahead and open the PowerPoint presentation we will be working with and head over to the “Insert” tab.

Here, find the “Text” section and select “Date & Time.”

Once selected, the “Header and Footer” window will appear. Here, check the box next to “Date and time” and select “Update automatically.” This will allow the date and time to update each time you change slides. Now, select the arrow next to the displayed date.

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Amazon

If you’ve been thinking about upgrading your home Wi-Fi system, investing in smart bulbs, or purchasing a Hulu subscription, then now’s the time to take the leap.

Right now, there are some standout deals on Amazon, Best Buy, and even the Spotify store. Our favorite deal (by far) is the Eero Mesh Wi-Fi, but there are some other great deals to be had here across the board—smart bulbs, free Hulu, games, standing desks, and a lot more.

Smarthome Deals

Need to spruce up your smarthome? These deals will get you going.

• Eero Mesh Wi-Fi System $400 ($100 off) [Amazon]
• Philips Hue White Bulb, $10 ($5 off) [Amazon]
• 2-Pack TP-Link Smart Bulbs $26 ($24 off) [Amazon]
• Refurbished iRobot Roomba 860, $274 ($225 off) [Woot]
• Up to 30% off Leviton products [Home Depot]

Office and Organization Deals

If you’ve been considering a standing desk, Amazon has some great deals on FlexiSpot stuff—which we loved when we reviewed. You can also score a solid USB-C charger or cable for cheap-cheap.

• 25%-48% off FlexiSpot Standing Desks and accessories [Amazon]
• Google USB-C 18w Charger $14.54 ($20 off) [Walmart, Amazon]
• Xcents USB-A to C Cable for $4 with Coupon Code JTFUFO5H ($7 off) [Amazon]

Everything Else

Free Hulu, GTA: V, and a cheap kids tablet. What more could you want?

• Sign up for Spotify Premium, Get Hulu for Free [Spotify]
• Grand Theft Auto V: Premium Online Edition, $20 ($10 off) [Best Buy: PS4, Xbox One]
• Fire 7 Kids Tablet, $60 ($40 off) [Amazon]
• Oria 76-in-1 repair toolkit, $17.32 with Coupon Code HA11ORXLHH (~$12 off) [Amazon]

Like with most deals, these aren’t going to last long, so if you see something that strikes your fancy, best go ahead and scoop it up now.

Google Chrome comes with a handy password manager already built in. You can have your browser save and fill out passwords for different sites when you’re asked to sign in. Here’s how to manage all your saved passwords in Chrome.

RELATED: What’s New in Chrome 73, Arriving March 12

How to Save a Password to Chrome

The first thing you need to manage your saved passwords is to make sure the password saving is enabled, which is done through the passwords menu. Click on your profile picture in the top right corner and then click on “Passwords.” You can also type chrome://settings/passwords into the Omnibox and hit Enter.

Toggle the switch labeled “Offer to Save Passwords” to the on position (it should be on by default).

Now, head to a website where you need to log in, fill in your credentials, and sign in. After the form submits, Chrome asks if you want to save your password. Click “Save.” If you click “Never,” the site gets added to a “Never Saved” passwords list. We’ll show you how to remove a site from the “Never Saved” list down below.

RELATED: Chrome 69 Generates Strong Passwords For New Online Accounts

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2p2play / Shutterstock

Forgetting to charge your MacBook properly overnight can leave you with a headache in the morning. And if you’re troubleshooting a broken MacBook, checking if it’s able to charge is one way to rule out battery issues.

Older Macbooks Have Lights on the Charging Cable

If your MacBook was made before 2016 and has a magnetic charging cable (even the “old” L-shaped one), it will have a light on the end of the cable indicating that it is charging. If the light is orange, you’re charging. If it’s green, your battery is full, and you’re running off the power adapter. Even if it doesn’t turn on, it should still have the light if the problem isn’t with the battery.

Malyshev Alexander/Shutterstock.com

If you have a new MacBook with a USB Type C charger, it’s a different story. The USB-C charger doesn’t have the indicator light, meaning if your MacBook doesn’t turn on, you may have no idea if the battery is the cause, or if your cable is just broken.

If you have a really old cable, or a third party one, you may be missing the light as well.

One way to check when troubleshooting a USB C cable without a light is to leave it plugged in for a while and check if the power brick gets warm. They generate heat while charging, so if it’s not charging, it will be cold.

Another thing you can try is shining a flashlight on the Apple logo on the back. If you can see something onscreen, it means your backlight is broken (a fairly common problem, often mistaken for it not turning on at all) and you should find an Apple Store. Or, maybe you’ve turned down the brightness all the way, and your MacBook is fine.

Tip: Newer MacBooks make a sound when you connect the charger. It’s a ding that sounds just like the sound when plugging in an iPhone, but it’s quieter. You also won’t hear it if your laptop’s sound is off or if the battery is completely dead when you plug in the cable. Still, you can try disconnecting and reconnecting the cable to listen for the sound. If you hear it, then you know it’s charging.

Is It Turned On, With the Screen Visible?

If so, the battery status is displayed in the top menu bar, along with apps using a lot of juice and warnings if your battery is old (and not holding a charge very well). If your battery is charging, it will have a lightning bolt symbol over the battery icon.

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It can be hard to cook a large meal for your friends or family. After all, a stove can only hold so many pans. But, armed with a stovetop griddle, you can cook for everyone.

Stove top griddles are, essentially, large flat cooking surfaces that across the burners on your stove. You turn the burners on, heat up the griddle, and boom, you have a grill.

Griddles are great for cooking large quantities of food, but they’re also great for cooking specific types of food on a whole new level. Meats, fried rice, and pancakes simply cook better on a grill. Not to mention, some griddles are non-stick, and they don’t require a lot of oil or grease to cook a good meal.

But it can be difficult to find a griddle that suits your needs. There are cast iron griddles, non-stick griddles, and large griddles that cover your entire stove. Lucky for you, we’ve taken the time to find the best griddles, and to explain which one might be the best for your needs.

The Best Cast Iron Griddles ($30)

Cast iron is king, for many reasons. It’s easy to clean, easy to use, and it can last forever. Plus, cast iron cookware can fortify your food with iron, and reduce the amount of oil and fat that you use to cook. It’s a great way to go a little bit healthier, without too much effort.

But small cast iron pans can only cook so many things at a time. If you want to make a full meal with cast iron, then you’ll need something bigger. Perhaps a cast iron griddle is the best solution.

Lodge is one of the most well known and reputable cast iron companies. Their products are durable, well-made, and affordable. The Lodge pre-seasoned cast iron griddle is a 16″, two burner griddle that’s easy to clean and store. It’s reversible, with a smooth side for eggs and pancakes, and a ribbed side for meat. At $30, the Lodge cast iron griddle is a great option for anyone that wants a relatively large cast iron surface for a reasonable price.

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Android’s customizability is one reason many people prefer it. You can change the look, feel, and function of basically any Android phone with themes, custom launchers, and icon packs. Here’s how to get started.

Some phones allow you to install themes, while all Android phones let you install custom launchers and icon packs. These go a long way to making your phone unique, thanks to the nearly infinite launcher and icon pack customizations.

Step One: Choose a Theme (Some Phones Only)

Some Android phones let you choose a theme for the phone dialer, messenger, Settings app, and other built-in applications. These are usually as simple as choices between light and dark backgrounds, but it may not be an all-or-nothing affair. For example, the Pixel line doesn’t let users choose between a light and dark theme for the Settings menu, but the Quick Settings menu, phone dialer, messenger, and some (but not all) of Google’s other applications can be individually toggled between light and dark mode.

If you use a flagship Galaxy phone, you get access to Samsung’s awesome theme store. This lets you change the icons used in Samsung’s launcher, the color of the Settings and Quick Settings menus, Samsung’s messaging app, phone dialer, and other built-in applications. It also lets you change the look of the navigation buttons. For example, the theme I’m using (called Material Dark) makes the navigation buttons look like those on vanilla Android phones. Finally, Samsung Themes lets you download different designs for your Always-on-Display, so even if your phone is just sitting on a table, you can show off a little personal flair.

If you don’t get theming options with your phone manufacturer’s built-in apps, you can always use a different app from the Play Store. You can use Google Messages to send SMS, and Solid Explorer to browse files, and change between dark and light theme inside of those apps.

Step Two: Choose a Launcher

The launcher is where you’ll notice the biggest opportunity to customize your phone. The launcher is the first thing you’ll see when you unlock your phone, and where you’ll go when you’re not using an app. Besides giving you an aesthetic choice, launchers also let you navigate the phone faster with gestures.

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You’ve long been able to stream games from your PlayStation 4 to Android devices, but Sony recently released its Remote Play app for iOS. Here’s how to get it all set up—and what it’s like to use it.

What is PS4 Remote Play?

As the name suggests, PS4 Remote Play is a way to stream games directly from your PlayStation 4 to another device, remotely. It’s been available on Windows, Mac, and Android for a while now, but it just landed on iOS last week.

If you’re looking to get this rolling on another device, you can check out our setup guides for Windows and Mac here, or Android here. Otherwise, follow along for setting it up on iOS, along with a few thoughts on how well it works—especially compared to other devices.

How to Set Up Remote Play on Your iPhone or iPad

First things first, you’ll need to install the PS4 Remote Play app on your iDevice. It’s compatible with both iPhone and iPad. You’ll also need to make sure your iDevice and PS4 are on the same Wi-Fi network.

With that installed, fire up your PlayStation 4 and make sure Remote Play is enabled. Head into the Settings menu—it’s the icon that looks like a little suitcase.

From there, scroll down to Remote Play Connection Settings and click into it.

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What Common Beer Brewing Ingredient Is In The Marijuana Family?

1. Barley
2. Hops
3. Yeast
4. Wheat

Think you know the answer?

If you’re an early adopter who wants to get everything new as quickly as possible, you can change your Office 365 release schedule to get “targeted release” versions of the Office 365 apps (if you think it’s a good idea).

How Office 365 Updates Work

We’ve covered the Windows update schedule and why it seems like Windows 10 updates so frequently, but Office 365 is a little different. It has desktop apps like Outlook, Word, and Excel, but also web versions of those classic apps and a whole bunch of web-only applications like Flow, Forms, and Sway.

The web apps get updated pretty regularly, with bug fixes and minor tweaks happening as soon as they are available. Major changes to the web and client apps are normally telegraphed quite far in advance, with a significant update released roughly every six months. However, there is a regular release every month of updates and enhancements.

By default, your Office 365 subscription is on what’s known as the “worldwide standard release.” This means you (along with most other subscribers) get the release only once it’s been through several “rings” of testing. These rings are:

• Ring 0: The feature team in Microsoft that’s made the change.
• Ring 1: The wider O365 team in Microsoft.
• Ring 2: The whole of Microsoft.
• Ring 3: Subscribers who’ve asked to receive targeted releases.
• Ring 4: Worldwide standard release (the ring your subscription is on by default).

A change has to be successfully tested in a ring before it can be rolled out to the next, wider ring of users. Ring 4—the worldwide standard release your subscription is on by default—is the final ring, and a change is only released to this ring when it’s been successfully tested in the previous four rings.

You can change from being on the worldwide standard release (ring 4) to being on the targeted release (ring 3), but only if you have access to the Office 365 Admin Center.

As we’ve discussed before, the Admin Center is available if you have a domain (e.g., AcmeRockets.com) and Microsoft provides the email for that domain (e.g., Rob@AcmeRockets.com). For personal users, the most common way this happens is if you buy a domain from a registrar/host and they offer Office 365-hosted email as part of the package. This is called a business plan, and the Office 365 Admin Center lets you administer your organization’s O365 users, subscription, licenses, and global settings.

RELATED: Where Are the Admin Tools for Office 365?

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Best Buy

Now’s the time to break down and admit your unapologetic appreciation for smart accessories. I know it’s your deepest secret, but Best Buy is selling the Apple Watch Series 3 at an $80 discount.

This is the best deal that we’ve seen for the Series 3. And unlike past deals, this Best Buy deal includes the 38mm and 42mm variations of the Series 3 in three different colors.

For just $200, you can buy a 38mm white, black, or Nike+ Series 3 smartwatch. If a 38mm screen sounds to small for you, then you can shell out $230 for the 42mm white, black, or Nike+ watch.

The Series 3 Apple Watch has all of the features that you’d expect from a premium smartwatch. It mirrors notifications from your phone, monitors your heart rate, and helps you keep track of your fitness goals. You can also make calls or control Siri from the Apple watch, and naturally, you can use it to check the time. It’s also “swimproof,” so you can dive straight into the pool after a serious workout.

The Nike+ variation of the Apple Watch Series 3 comes with a few extra features, like exclusive digital watch faces, a Nike sport band, and audio tracks for guided runs.

Keep in mind that Series 3 is the previous generation Apple Watch. If you want to perform ECGs, then you’ll need to wait for the Series 4 Apple Watch to go on sale.

As with any good deal, you don’t want to wait too long. Apple fans are like rabid little monsters, and they’re probably scooping up all of Best Buy’s discounted Apple Watches while you’re staring at this article.

Buy at BestBuy

Apple

Apple makes it easy to buy new apps, albums, movies, and iCloud storage. But let’s be real, nobody wants to pay full price for digital content. Hey, wouldn’t it be super cool if Apple started giving away free money?

Well, that’s kind of happening right now. From now until March 14th, Apple will match 10% when you add funds to your Apple ID. This deal is limited to additions of $200, so you can’t eek anymore than $20 out of Apple. But hey, even an addition of $100 will net you a free $10 in Apple funds.

It’s super easy to add funds to your Apple ID. You can do it from your iPhone Settings page, or through the Account window on iTunes. There’s a good chance that your credit or debit card is already linked up to your Apple ID, so you shouldn’t run into any trouble adding funds.

If you want to get the most out of this free money, then you might want to wait for a good deal to turn up in the App Store, or for Apple to run a discount on extra iCloud storage. Of course, you could just spend that money from the get-go. It’s free money.

Source: 9to5Toys