How-To Geek

Your phone apps define the tone of your entire experience. If every useful feature is hidden behind a subscription, using your phone can start to feel like a never-ending checkout page. I’ve definitely had moments where I wanted an app to do one simple thing, only to find a monthly plan waiting for me.

Linux gives you plenty of control, but it also expects you to look after your own system. Most hardcore users do, but if you're coming from a more closed OS, it can feel daunting at first. These three tools handle the most common causes of trouble: broken updates, hostile login attempts, and missed patches.

With the dawn of the graphical user interface in the 1980s, people have been saying that text-mode apps are outdated. Using the terminal might seem archaic, but power users and developers still reach for it when they want to get to work.

Most people overpay for cellular service. There's really no reason for a homebody to burn $75 a month on a postpaid unlimited plan when they could get comparable prepaid MVNO service for $20. Still, MVNOs come with some downsides, and these downsides regularly convince people to stick with postpaid service even though they know it's grossly overpriced.

Whether video calls are the bane of your existence or you love them, most people own a webcam. It might be in your laptop; it might be your phone; maybe you have a standalone webcam. If you have a spare one, you have a treasure trove of weird possibilities awaiting you.

Turning off your TV doesn't necessarily mean all of its smart features have stopped working. Modern televisions are essentially connected computers with microphones, internet connections, and software that can continue operating in the background while the screen is off. That can be convenient, but it also means there are privacy settings worth paying attention to if you don't want your TV collecting more information than necessary.

Amazon is now live with its Prime Big Deal Days sale, and there are thousands of products to look through if you're trying to maximize savings. Samsung has some fantastic offerings, and some of the standouts in its lineup are its Buds earbuds—right now, you can pick up the Buds 3 FE, Buds 4, or Buds 4 Pro versions at a great discount.

One of the largest media mergers in history is now official. Paramount has completed its acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery, with far-reaching implications for the pair's streaming services and the competition.

Obsidian is a powerful note-taking knowledge base that’s admired for its open format, simplicity, and customization. It’s introduced many users to concepts like Markdown and graph visualizations, but it builds on the work of many other note-taking apps throughout history.

Many Android users are on the verge of losing access to their favorite songs, important notifications, navigation in Maps, or possibly watching a YouTube video while driving or as a co-pilot. In short, Android Auto will soon end support for Android devices running Android 10.

I use Google Photos for cloud backups and as my general gallery app — that's where my main problem comes from. It's handy for me to back up screenshots and access them on other devices, but I was getting annoyed with seeing them mixed in with my photos and videos. Thankfully, a simple toggle is the solution.

A sunny weekend is a good excuse to take the scenic route this fall. And a dashcam can help you keep a clear record of what happens on the road, no matter where you’re going, in case of an accident or dispute.

Quality combo tool kits, like DeWalt's Cordless Drill and Impact Driver, are perfect for home DIY jobs or professional builds and will never go out of style. They make hard jobs easier and are durable enough to last for years without needing replacement.

When I open up Task Manager and I see that 60% of my 32GB of RAM is in use and I have 10GB cached even though I'm not doing anything, my first instinct is to start ending tasks and services to "free up RAM." My intuition—built in the XP and Vista era—tells me that it is a sign of a problem.

If you've been buying Ryobi or Craftsman because they seemed like the safe, practical choice, the warranty math might not be working in your favor anymore. Both brands offer a 3-year limited warranty on their cordless lineups, and neither makes it easy to get a replacement when something goes wrong. However, there is still Hercules, which acts a lot like Craftsman used to.

You won't have to sit in the living room to watch TV shows receiving their annual honors. Amazon and the Television Academy have signed a six-year agreement to make Prime Video the exclusive, free streaming home for the Emmy Awards.

Partitioning your storage drive from one large volume into multiple smaller ones seems like an unnecessary step on modern PCs that can often create more problems than it solves. But back when hard drives were the mainstream storage medium, partitions were surprisingly common — you'd be hard-pressed to find a Windows PC that didn't have multiple partitions.

Nothing beats the big-screen experience. For over a century, films have been a major part of our lives. Movies give us entertainment, art, commentary, and inspiration. But how those movies look and sound matters. So, good equipment is essential. If you’re going for the theater experience, you’ll need a high-quality screen and, more importantly, a powerful projector that won't let you down.

As the weather cools, most households quietly change how they use water at home. Iced drinks give way to hot coffee and tea, slow cookers and soup pots come back into rotation, and kitchens start filling up ahead of Thanksgiving. All of that runs through the same tap, which is why autumn is a reasonable time to think about what is actually coming out of it before the year's busiest cooking season arrives.

You don't have to buy a pricey video card enclosure to add external graphics to your PC — the phone in your pocket might do. Reddit user StayLameBro has found a way to use his iPhone 17 Pro Max as an external GPU that assists his MacBook Pro M4.