How-To Geek

When I turned my old laptop into a makeshift NAS earlier this year, the idea was simple: turn it into a Plex media server by plugging in a few USB drives loaded with movies and shows.

Some smart home devices are expensive and can only do a single job. Other devices can cost less than the price of a smart bulb, and yet you can use them in multiple different ways. One of the most useful smart home devices I own is a cheap smart button.

Sharing an Excel workbook usually means playing tech support later when a coworker accidentally deletes your formulas. But you don't have to just hope for the best. These straightforward security tweaks will lock down your layout and reduce the risk of accidental edits.

When you’ve got a 3D printer, it can be tempting to try and 3D print everything. Sometimes, the best solution is to buy instead of printing. A little restraint and forethought can save you from making a costly mistake.

Despite the total dumpster fire of ending The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, Paramount+ managed to have a solid month of May on the streaming side of things. Dutton Ranch, the latest Yellowstone spinoff, debuted as the biggest original series launch in the platform's history with a reported 12.9 million viewers in the first week. Selfishly, the inclusion of Battlestar Galactica on the platform early in the month was the biggest coup, as far as I'm concerned, and I've been enjoying a rewatch immensely.

I've been using Windows long enough to remember when installing antivirus software felt like one of the first things you had to do on a new PC. You set up Windows, installed your browser, and then immediately went looking for something to protect the whole thing before you did anything even slightly risky online. It wasn't paranoia, either. For a long time, Windows had a reputation for being the platform malware loved most, and running without some kind of extra protection felt like asking for trouble.

Netflix has had a busy and fruitful May. Nemesis is getting comfy at the top of the Top 10, The Boroughs has grown-ups thanking the Duffer Brothers for helping to make a more age-appropriate Stranger Things, and Sally Field is quietly making everyone sob into their pillows with Remarkably Bright Creatures. BUT, there's still a little more the streaming service has to squeeze out of May.

Every time you reach for the mouse to navigate a file tree or click through a menu, you lose more than just a few seconds. You break the momentum of your work. It is a persistent, low-level drain on your focus that turns hours of coding into a series of interrupted fragments. The Command Palette is better than Windows search and the alternatives.

You won't have to wait much longer to buy Slate Auto's first EV. The Jeff Bezos-backed startup is telling customers via email that it will begin taking orders for the low-priced, modular truck on June 24th ahead of deliveries later in the year.

For All Mankind season 5 might be coming to a close, but the new spin-off show, Star City, is just getting started. Star City premieres with two episodes on Apple TV on May 29 at 12 a.m. PT/3 a.m. ET.

The Nissan Pathfinder has been hauling people and their stuff around since 1986, when it arrived as a compact pickup-based off-roader before eventually growing into the three-row SUV it is today.

Luxury used to be all about aspiration. People paid extra for nicer materials, smoother performance, quieter cabins, and the badge on the hood that signaled you’d “made it.”

We've reached the last weekend in May, meaning all the shows that premiere on June 1 or later will compete at the 2027 Emmys rather than the 2026 ceremony in the fall. Keep in mind that the high-profile shows of June, including Cape Fear on Apple TV and House of the Dragon on HBO Max, are ones to keep an eye on.

Toyota has spent decades building a reputation for making some of the most dependable SUVs on the road. For many buyers, that reputation alone is enough to put the brand at the top of their shopping list. However, the company is currently going through a major transition period, with many of its most important SUVs either entering new generations or adopting hybrid powertrains for the first time.

The modern smartphone landscape is a creative desert. Samsung's Galaxy S26 Ultra is technically outstanding, but held back by an uninspired design and generic software. Google's Pixel 10 Pro? It's better-looking, but won't thrill you unless you prize camera quality and AI. Even foldables have settled into a groove, with the Galaxy Z Fold 7 pulling bolder ideas like the S Pen in the name of thinness.

Luxury sedans used to sit right at the top of the automotive world. Before SUVs took over and giant screens became the main event, they were the cars automakers threw everything at—comfort, silence, performance, and tech all in one package.

After months of teases, Waymo is ready to offer public rides in its first purpose-built, widely available robotaxi, and it's billed as a "living room on wheels" with the technology upgrade to match.

The art of binge-watching comes in many forms. It's fun to embark on a multi-week journey to stream a long-running show that you always wanted to watch. Other times, I can sit down for dinner and finish an entire series before it's time to go to bed.

Full-size pickup trucks have become the default choice for a lot of buyers, despite the fact that most people rarely use even half of the capability they offer. Massive towing figures and oversized dimensions may look impressive on paper, but they also come with higher prices, worse fuel economy, and a more cumbersome driving experience. For the average driver, a modern mid-size truck often makes far more sense.

I've come to realize that the problem with PC storage isn't capacity, it's scalability. After all, while even a small 250GB drive has its uses, no one is stopping you from buying an 8TB SSD. Sure, it'll cost a fortune, but you do you.