How-To Geek

The Netflix machine keeps on pumping out shows. One of the streamer's notable advantages over its competition is its ability to turn licensed shows into hits. Look at what happened with Suits, a show that soared to new popularity in 2023 on Netflix despite having concluded its run on the USA Network in 2019.

Once, putting Windows on the Internet without installing antivirus was practically inviting disaster.

If you're a true audiophile who does the majority of their listening from home, paying for wireless or Bluetooth features and noise cancellation may matter way less than ensuring you get the most out of your favorite music and albums. Sennheiser's HD 660S2s put the focus back on sound and comfort, with their wired and open-back design that's built for settling in and listening in its purest form. Generally a steep investment, but right now, you can score these legendary-sounding headphones on Woot with a $300 savings—while supplies still last.

Do you have a truck or garage full of Milwaukee tools that you've been using for years, or even decades? Milwaukee makes excellent tools loved by DIYers and professionals everywhere, but not all of them are perfect. Product recalls are rare for the brand, but a recall or safety notice is surprisingly easy to miss, even though they're pretty important.

Battery life on my Pixel Watch had slowly slipped from comfortable to disappointing, and I blamed the hardware. Three everyday apps were the real culprits. Once I understood how each one worked behind the scenes, though, the fixes were relatively straightforward.

Got a spare M.2 slot in your PC? Instead of waiting for SSD prices to drop to finally be able to populate it, which could take a few years, you can use it for something else. As long as it’s an NVMe slot, which means it has PCIe connectivity, and not a SATA-only slot, you can use it for all kinds of purposes, such as hooking up an eGPU, equipping your PC with a local AI accelerator.

One of the major Chrome alternatives is close to going away. The Browser Company has confirmed that the Arc browser will shut down on December 22, 2026 as its successor Dia nears.

Tell me if this sounds familiar. You have an older smart TV that's no longer compatible with your favorite streaming apps like Netflix, Prime Video, and others. It's actually fairly common because nothing lasts forever, and software updates eventually stop. That's especially true with electronics, and that's exactly why your Google TV has an expiration date.

Nothing beats unwinding with your favorite songs after a long day, and high-quality headphones like Sony's WH-CH720N can elevate the experience with their outstanding audio quality.

I've spent decades using Excel, so I'm wary of add-ins that promise to revolutionize my spreadsheets but demand my email address or charge for features Microsoft already provides through tools like Power Query. But a handful of free add-ins genuinely earn their spot on the ribbon. I'll start with a couple of handy Office add-ins I use regularly, then move on to the heavier hitters that do real work in my spreadsheets.

Android trackers and AirTags are great for keeping track of your luggage or your keys. You can use your phone to see the location of your tracker and even get precise directions to locate some trackers once you're in their general location. There are some clever ways to use Android trackers and AirTags that go beyond just keeping tabs on your bags.

You're not alone if you can't even reach the home screen on your brand-new Galaxy S26 Ultra. Samsung has confirmed that a bug is preventing some owners from getting past the setup process, rendering the Android flagship phone effectively useless.

Today I want to take a closer look at a set of tweaks and adjustments that can help you preserve battery life during emergency scenarios. Most battery-saving advice focuses on reasonable tasks that do have an impact, but this time we'll push it further.

NFC tags are really useful for triggering smart home automations. They're cheap to buy, they don't need batteries or to be connected to power, and you can stick them almost anywhere. I wondered if it would be possible to use my expired credit cards as NFC tags, and it turned out that they can be even more useful than the standard stickers.

Wi-Fi is one of the best inventions in history, but also one of the worst. I have spent so many hours of my life troubleshooting Wi-Fi dead zones or spotty performance that the only devices in my home that use Wi-Fi are those that absolutely need to.

Your flashy-yet-affordable headphones might just sound better. Bose has acquired Skullcandy, and there's a potentially huge impact on the audio world.

A subwoofer is essential to getting a complete audio experience. It's the only way to access those deep-down frequencies that you don't just hear with your ears but feel in your body. Regardless of your favorite genres of music or movies, expanding into the depths of the bass realm will elevate the whole thing.

Cursor made AI-assisted coding feel effortless, but its subscription and cloud dependence left me looking for something leaner. Cline, an open-source extension for VS Code, covered most of what I needed, including working fully offline with local models.

Building a smart home can be an expensive business. Some devices, such as cheap Zigbee sensors, can cost just a few bucks, but other devices can run to hundreds of dollars. The good news is that it's often possible to build your own smart home devices, and the total cost can sometimes work out far less than buying a ready-made product.

It's the weekend again, which means it's time to break out those Linux workstations and use them as computers were intended: solving problems and having fun. I've found a few more native Linux applications that range from practical to niche in usecase.