How-To Geek

Home Assistant has its own built-in voice assistant called Assist. I use Home Assistant Cloud to handle the natural language processing, and Assist can work well for controlling devices, querying the state of entities, or playing media. It's far from perfect, but there are some things you can do to improve how well Assist understands what you're asking.

Chromebooks have come a long, long way since I first used one. It helps that so much of what we do every day happens in a browser, so, in a way, we've met Chromebooks halfway. Either way, it's entirely possible to use a Chromebook as your only computer. The question is, what are you giving up by doing so?

The text editor is the most critical tool in a programmer's arsenal, acting as the daily workbench, primary interface, and engine for creation. For years, Microsoft's Visual Studio Code (VS Code) has dominated, becoming the default choice for millions of developers across nearly every programming language and operating system.

The Ugreen DH2300 NAS has a budget-friendly price and all the makings of an entry-level network-attached storage device, but after trying to get my family to use it to back up their pictures and data, it might still be too technical for a mass audience.

A CPU cooler doesn't have to be expensive to be great. If you have a hot-running CPU, the ID-COOLING FROZN A620 PRO SE is all you really need. It's a chunky air cooler with two 120mm fans that do an excellent job at keeping your modern AMD Ryzen or Intel CPU cool without breaking the bank.

Network attached storage devices have become increasingly popular as people search for alternatives—or supplements—to their cloud storage subscriptions. That is where a new mini PC released by Youyeetoo, which is designed primarily for use as a miniature NAS, can shine.

PhpStorm has stuck around as one of the best PHP development environments, and now JetBrains has released a new major version. PhpStorm 2025.3 is now available with PHP 8.5 support, a new theme, Claude agent integration, and much more.

Are you shopping for an SBC right now? There are tons to choose from, but the conventional choice is a Raspberry Pi device. It isn't your only option, though, and looking into alternatives is worth your while.

Have an old mini PC lying around you're mulling over chucking into your "hardware graveyard" drawer or selling on eBay or Facebook Marketplace? Why get rid of it when you can repurpose and breathe new life into it? Here are some roles most mini PCs should excel at.

Visual Studio Code and other lightweight editors might be the most popular choices for Python programming, but JetBrains PyCharm is still great for complex projects and debugging. The latest update is merging the Community Edition and Pro versions, and it brings along a few new features and improvements.

The holiday season is upon us, and many will be tuning in to Disney+ to watch popular movies like Home Alone, The Santa Clause, and more to celebrate. But the streaming platform has a wide variety of festive flicks. A handful of these films are severely underrated and often get overlooked by those searching for some holiday cheer.

Uber is making a massive play for advertising dollars by launching a new insights platform, Uber Intelligence. This is designed to sell aggregated data about where you travel and what you order for takeout directly to marketers.

JetBrains might be best known for its IDEA, PyCharm, and WebStorm integrated development environments, but it also has one for Go language development: GoLand. The latest version can help you hunt down resource leaks, code with multiple AI agents, use Terraform files, and much more.

Usually, when a new model hits the scene, the older version starts losing steam. Dealers often have to offer sweet deals just to move the outgoing stock before the shiny new ride steals the spotlight.

If you've ever had to charge your phone in a pinch without your usual charger, you know the struggle of hunting for anything with a powered USB port. In those moments, even a trickle of electricity can be the difference between getting home and being stuck with a dead battery.

DirecTV is finally making its streaming experience better for LG owners by launching a dedicated app that eliminates the need for an external set-top box. The new DirecTV app is now available for LG Smart TVs made in 2021 and newer, provided they are running on webOS 6.0 or higher software.

Tubi is one of the best zero-risk streaming services out there. It costs nothing (except a little ad time), and there's a boat load of movies and shows to watch, refreshed every month. And if you're into documentaries, you may be surprised to learn that the FAST (free ad-supported streaming television) channel has a cool and eclectic selection of docs.

When buying a car, reliability is usually near the top of the list. Even the fanciest sports car or luxury ride can lose its appeal fast if it’s spending more time in the shop than on the road.

JetBrains has released IntelliJ IDEA 2025.3, the first version of the new unified IDE for Java development. It's combining the Community Edition and Ultimate builds into one package and adding a few new features on top, including full support for Java 25.

Buying a used PC or repurposing your old computer is one of the most inexpensive ways to get a network-attached storage device (NAS). While specialized NAS units exist, they will cost you hundreds of dollars more than just picking up a cheap PC or using one you already own.