How-To Geek

Sick of your laptop battery running out in no time? It’s frustrating—especially when you can’t stay near a power outlet. I used to struggle with this too, but a few tweaks helped my laptop last longer on a single charge. Here are some tweaks you can make to save energy and stay unplugged for longer.

If you've recently built or bought an AMD-powered gaming PC and explored its BIOS, you might have noticed an option called "Gaming Mode," "Turbo Mode," or similar. However, this feature isn’t a simple performance boost you'd expect given its name. Here's what it actually does.

Have you ever just found a mouse that you fell in love with? Nearly a decade ago, I discovered the Logitech MX Master. Even though I’ve tried to replace it throughout the years, I keep coming back to it.

When you think of open-source software, you probably think of the cost (free), but that's not the full story. There's an entire ecosystem of both selflessness, selfishness, and moral ideals that make it up. I've outlined four things that using Linux has taught me about free and open-source software.

When it comes to SUVs, the real test isn’t the flashy features—it’s how long they’ll keep running. Reliability and the ability to just get the job done are what matter most.

When you think of hack-and-slash games, what's the first thing that comes to mind? Is it isometric RPGs like Diablo, stylish action games like Devil May Cry, or maybe even old-school table-top games like Dungeons & Dragons? Somehow, the genre encompasses all of these games and more, with very little in common.

Over the years, and more so recently, I've tried more Android weather apps and widgets than I care to admit. After my favorite app was no longer supported, I spent months looking for a replacement and have finally found the perfect weather widget for Android.

There's no question that Jesse Eisenberg is the man you want when it comes to portraying super-smart, anxious, and/or socially awkward characters, no matter the genre. From quick-witted dramas, such as The Social Network, to satirical comedies like Zombieland, he truly reigns supreme.

If you've bought a new TV in the past couple of years and found that its power cord is barely long enough to reach your power strip, you're not imagining it—TV cables really are short. This makes mounting them to the wall trickier than it should be. But why are they so stingy with cable length?

I’ve worked as a content creator, editor, and writer for more than two decades, which means I spend a lot of time behind a keyboard and monitor. That experience has taught me that the right browser extensions can greatly improve my daily workflow. My goal is to avoid screen clutter and distractions, and anything that makes my workday easier, less confusing, and more comfortable is worth taking for a test drive.

Free streaming can be a huge bonus for anyone with a smart TV or streaming device. So much of our lives can seem like it's taken over by paid streaming services like Netflix, Disney+, Peacock, and Apple TV+. It may seem like most people are only watching shows on those platforms, making it a must for you to subscribe to them.

When moving, I ended up finding my old iPhone 4. Finding this device brought back great memories. That’s why I thought it would be a fun idea to use my iPhone 4 again in the modern day. During the setup process, I learned a lot about what it takes to use an older phone.

The SteelSeries Arctis Nova 3X are, hands-down, the most comfortable headphones I’ve ever worn. That alone is reason enough for me to like them—but, fortunately, the other aspects are largely just as good.

In the BSD world, it seems that FreeBSD gets the most attention, along with OpenBSD and NetBSD. There's an offshoot of FreeBSD, DragonFly BSD, that claims to be optimized for modern multicore hardware. How does it stack up in reality?

Did you hear how many times Apple said “optical-quality” at its iPhone 17, 17 Pro, and Air launch event? I lost count. This new buzzword seems to be confusing a lot of people, though. What exactly is “optical-quality,” and is it any different from digital zoom?

I’ve barely touched desktop Linux in the past year, but that has little to do with Linux and more to do with Linux hardware—or the lack thereof. I’ve fallen in love with foldable phones, and I wish there were a Linux device shaped like my Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6.

Lately, I’ve noticed that the Ryzen 9800X3D is being recommended left and right, even for mid-range gaming PC builds that really don’t need a flagship-level CPU. Guess what, you don’t need the 9800X3D to get a great PC gaming experience, especially if you’re working with a limited budget.

When it comes to tech fashions and trends, icons are at the forefront. From skeuomorphism to flat, icons have come a long way since Windows 3.1 and Susan Kare’s celebrated designs for the Apple Macintosh. But some trends persist, and the following icons have long outlived their real-life counterparts.

We live in an era of water-resistant smartphones, so it should come as no surprise that Apple’s latest iPhone models are all capable of surviving in liquid to some degree. Here’s how far you can push it, and what to do if your iPhone actually gets wet.

Unsatisfied with inelegant terms like “lens bump,” Apple has seen fit to rebrand the iPhone 17 and Air’s thickest section as the “camera plateau.”