How-To Geek

I absolutely love my Bambu Lab 3D printers—but they could be a lot better. Not in hardware. I think the hardware is fantastic. But the software that runs the printers could use a lot of work. Thanks to the open source community, my Bambu Lab 3D printers got a free upgrade that made them a lot smarter.

Managing the constant influx of emails manually can feel like a full-time job. That’s why it makes sense to automate your inbox. With features like quick steps and email filters, you can streamline routine tasks and let Outlook do the heavy lifting. Here's how I automate my Outlook inbox.

Have you ever shown up to a party only to realize that you're about 10 years too late? While I see some potential in the ASUS Googlebook 14, it feels like a clumsy effort that should've happened a long time ago. The extreme pricing certainly doesn't help, nor does my growing impatience for "early adopter" quirks.

Microsoft has released PowerToys 0.102, following a major update in August that introduced Window Hopper along with several other improvements. This time, the focus shifts to two new mouse utilities, an upgraded Command Palette, voice-assisted screenshots, and a fresh set of command-line tools.

Amazon just made it easier to secure the farthest reaches of your home — even if you have a giant yard. Blink has introduced five new security cameras, including two with extra-long range.

Setting up a smart home can be an expensive business. Not only do you need a device to run your smart home, but you also need all the devices for it to control. If you already have smart home devices set up, however, then there are plenty of incredibly useful automations that you can set up without needing to buy anything new.

In most homelabs, Docker management involves more than running the applications you actually want to use. One container manages your other containers, another checks for image updates, and a separate service handles logs. Before long, you have several containers dedicated to managing the rest of your containers.

Multi-tools are an essential gadget that I think everyone should own. With the right model, you'll have an invaluable tool perfect for everyday tasks around the house, on the job, or for your next outdoor adventure. And while many enthusiasts probably have a Leatherman they've owned for years, several exciting new multi-tools arrived in 2026 and are worth buying.

One of the most underused lookup and reference functions in Microsoft Excel is the DROP function. This powerful yet simple function lets you remove a specified number of rows or columns from the start or end of an array without altering the original dataset.

Those of us who are DIY-minded reach for a few common tools every day. Screwdriver, utility knife, tape measure, pencil, tweezers, and more. I wanted to find a way to keep these tools nearby, so I designed a pocket toolbox with magnets.

The way you play your music, listen to your favorite podcasts, and immerse yourself in your comfort movie can be a deeply personal experience. This also calls for the best sound quality your device can deliver, but not all devices are set up by default to give you what you may be looking for.

Most garages fill up with tools the same way attics fill up with boxes. You hang onto stuff because it seemed worth keeping at the time. If your dad was the type to buy quality once and hold onto it, there's a real chance some of what's sitting on his shelves is actually a piece of history. These aren't just fun finds for collectors. Each one changed how power tools were built, wired, or sold to contractors and homeowners. A few of them still work today, as long as you know what to check before you plug them in.

Everyone knows the obvious apps that you'll miss without Google: Gmail, Maps, Photos, etc. However, it's the Android features that rely on Google Play Services that are sneakier. One such feature is Android Auto, but it's easier than you might think to use on a de-Googled Android phone.

Zigbee is still the only mesh network protocol I use in my smart home. Though I know a switch to Matter over Thread is inevitable when I run out of IKEA’s color-changing bulbs, I’m still very much of the opinion that “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.”

Living in a dense neighborhood used to mean dealing with noise and parking. Now it means your neighbors can slow down devices in your own home without ever touching them. Your neighbors don't even need to do this on purpose, which is part of what makes it hard to fight against.

I'm generally pretty good at coming up with the right words to find what I need on Google. But every now and then, I run into a question where I don't quite know the right vocabulary to type into a search bar, or where it would take a paragraph to explain what I'm looking for. That's usually when I realize I've been staring at a problem for 20 minutes that I could solve in two if I just pointed my camera at it. Here are five times Google Lens came to my rescue.

Infrared (IR) remote controls have been commonplace since the early 1980s, and are still around today. Despite the development of Wi-Fi, Zigbee, Thread, and Matter, my TV still works using this old technology. Infrared has some important benefits that modern protocols still can't match.

Most tool buyers don't think much about where the electronics live inside their gear. You pick up a drill, it works, and you move on. Ryobi's ONE+ system makes a different choice than most of the industry, putting battery-management logic in the pack instead of the tool. That sounds like a big deal, but it doesn't seem to change much.

Netflix puts out a pretty wide array of original shows, ranging from massively popular icons like Stranger Things to questionable and poorly rated shows like Hype House. Sometimes, though, Netflix puts out some brilliant masterpieces that don't quite reach mainstream popularity, instead garnering cult followings or, more sadly, fading slowly into obscurity.

I had a dream. A dream where I had a stable Ethernet connection in every corner of the house. But wiring up the whole place was impractical (and borderline impossible), so I've almost resigned myself to using Wi-Fi, which is famously unreliable in my area.