How-To Geek

Excel is the backbone of modern life, powering everything from your personal mortgage calculations to complex corporate budgets. However, a workbook is only as reliable as the person who built it—even seasoned pros make simple mistakes that lead to massive discrepancies. It's time to fix your formulas before they fail you.

Home Assistant is great, but it can suck up time like almost nothing else. Change one small thing, and suddenly you have to edit multiple automations to get things working again. With a little forward planning, however, you can save yourself hours of wasted time.

It always stuns me how easily we slide back into the routine of the new year. But I don't mind, because that routine means I get to queue up some movies to get me through the weeks. And since Paramount+ is on my beat, I've got a few this week that offer a mix of comfort food and something thought-provoking.

Switching to Linux has exposed me to dozens of great apps I never even knew existed before. Here are some of my favorites that improve my productivity and cut out some web apps that I've been stuck with forever.

How are those New Year's resolutions going? Hit the gym yet? Started tucking money away for a rainy day? Stay the course, slugger, and while you're at it, why not queue up a good movie for the treadmill? Netflix has countless flicks at your fingertips, and I've got a few suggestions for you.

I remember when Windows 8 came out, and I started encountering computers running Windows 8. I was intrigued by the new UI right away. I didn't get a chance to try it myself until I got a Dell laptop that shipped with it, and I was delighted with the new operating system. Years later, to my surprise, I found out that a lot of people hated Windows 8 and all the changes it brought. So I decided to go back to it and see for myself.

I genuinely love Windows and have been using it as my daily driver for over a decade. That said, loving Windows doesn’t mean it doesn’t push your patience to the limit. From slow search and nonstop updates to ads at every turn, here are some annoyances that make you sigh and roll your eyes.

Nothing kills an online Excel presentation faster than sensitive data leaks or disorienting navigation. Here's my pre-flight checklist that ensures my interface is clean, my delivery is seamless, and my sensitive data stays out of sight.

Indoor security cameras come at a wide range of price points, and it's hard to get much cheaper than this Onn indoor security camera. It's undoubtedly one of the most affordable security cameras available, but you do make some concessions for that price.

Not long ago, my colleague Monica made a convincing argument to stop buying 1TB SSDs—a point I actually reinforced in laptops because of their unique situation.

When SSDs first started entering the consumer market, there was a lot of fearmongering about SSD wear and failure. Hard drives with spinning platters were a mature and familiar technology. So it's natural people would choose to stay with what they knew until SSDs proved themselves.

I can’t even begin to tell you how much time I’ve spent lately binge-watching content. But, it's my job, I love it, and I can't complain. This week, I’m bringing you a list of a few titles I recently watched on Amazon Prime Video—some for the first time, some for the second.

It’s been nearly a decade since I used Android Auto for any length of time. Having recently tried an Android phone out as a daily driver, I was reintroduced to the new version of Android Auto—and I quickly wanted to run back to CarPlay.

Until recently, I haven't been the type who was interested in using a VPN. It'd slow down my internet, and there wasn't anything I really wanted to watch from other countries that I couldn't already access.

BMW has built a reputation for performance and engineering excellence, but one of its most engaging models rarely gets the attention it deserves. The BMW Z4 delivers a blend of open-top driving excitement, balanced handling, and daily usability that feels both timeless and thrilling. Yet despite its strong character, it often gets overshadowed by more mainstream SUVs and high-profile sports cars in the brand’s lineup.

We tend to bang the Home Assistant drum a fair bit here at How-To Geek, and for good reason. Not only do we love it, but most of you love it too. The more people who discover its raw potential, the better.

Who’s ready for more shady deals, backstabbing maneuvers, and excessive partying? Industry will make its triumphant return to HBO Max in January. Season 4 of the financial drama promises to be another nerve-wracking joyride from the minds of creators Mickey Down and Konrad Kay.

The first time I got my hands on a Raspberry Pi was, well, when we got the first Raspberry Pi. I was working in higher education at the time, and that's how these remarkable little computers were sold to us—educational tools. People could learn how to code or tinker without financial risk.

An HDMI cable is an HDMI cable, right? Wrong! HDMI has been around forever at this point and there have been so many revisions and updates. Which is great for the advancement of video and audio technology, but not so great for ensuring you have the right cables to get the picture quality you need.

German performance sedans have long promised speed, precision, and flair—but rarely peace of mind. Toyotas, by contrast, just work, year after year, without fuss.