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Here's the thing—even though I'm a tech writer, I'm extremely sloppy about my own online hygiene. And browser hijackers rarely announce themselves. They creep in through extensions, quietly rewrite your settings, and fight back when you try to undo the damage. Here's how a short conversation with ChatGPT finally got Chrome back under my control.

I'm a big believer in giving old devices a second life — especially if it means I can avoid buying something new. That's exactly what I was able to do with an Android tablet I hadn't touched in a couple of years. Now, it's a Wacom-like drawing pad for my computer, and it was incredibly easy to do.

Bosch makes tools that everyone, from DIYers to masonry or woodworkers, can appreciate. We're all familiar with its popular 18V lineup and older, but robust wired tools like impact wrenches, but that's not all the company has to offer that you'll love. In fact, there are several niche tools that make jobs easier than ever.

While Microsoft spent years focusing on performance and reliability in Windows 10 and 11, many users wanted features and customizations they didn’t get. Updates rarely included user requests and feedback unless they involved issues that required attention, like non-functioning devices, BSODs, memory leaks, unresponsive apps, security loopholes, and other frustrating problems. Some major release updates included improvements here and there, or new features like Cortana or Start Menu changes, but Microsoft often built them the way it wanted.

An old ISP of mine tried to make me pay them $1,000 when I wanted to leave. The connection died something like 50 times a day. So, forgive me for being blunt, but giving ISPs even more money than necessary sounds wild to me.

There is no denying that we're heading towards a future ruled by electric vehicles. Their dominance in the market might have waned in the last year, but the growth is still undeniably there. One of the biggest downsides to climbing on the EV bandwagon, though, is the idea of sitting and waiting for your car to charge back up again, especially when you're in the middle of a long road trip.

Scope creep usually happens to projects, not note-taking apps. But when I switched from OneNote to open-source Joplin, it gradually took on more of my work. I'm not complaining. These days, I use it to write, organize, and keep everything in sync across my devices.

3D printing opens up all sorts of possibilities for making a vast range of objects, but there are some glaring limitations as a result of material choice. While CNC machines and metal 3D printers pave the way for weightier industrial prints, the rest of us need to be a bit more inventive when it comes to adding weight to our creations.

Are you looking for the easiest way to launch a file server for either internal or external access? Copyparty is what you’ve been looking for. With the ability to launch with zero configuration, Copyparty gets you a file server up and running in seconds.

Have you ever wondered whether a free Android app is worth downloading? Maybe you're wondering what the app actually does or how it differs from others. In any case, the Play Store provides a decent amount of information on each app, organized into sections like ‘About this game/app,’ ‘Data safety,’ ‘Ratings and reviews,’ and ‘App support.’ But is that good enough? It can sometimes be hard to find what you’re looking for, especially in the About section, where you’ll find the developer’s app description and information.

You might think that Milwaukee's M12 lineup is only for DIYers or woodworkers—and those people can definitely benefit from Milwaukee's compact tools. But, did you know that it's also an ideal power tool line for electronics and single-board computer hobbyists? Here's why you should check out Milwaukee's M12 lineup for your next electronics DIY project.

CachyOS has taken the Linux world by storm lately. It’s currently one of the most popular Linux distros, and for good reason — it’s fast, polished, and, most importantly, reliable. I’ve used it myself, and I can see why so many people, especially Linux gamers, are fans of it. That said, if I were building a Linux gaming system, I’d choose Bazzite over CachyOS, and it boils down to one key reason.

Wi-Fi 8 is coming, just like Wi-Fi 7 was before it. And it promises us the sun, the moon, and the stars in terms of performance. Faster speeds. Lower latency. Better reliability. And sure, I'm sure it can deliver all of that. But, as this Reddit meme makes quite clear, can Wi-Fi 8 ever match the power of a good ol' Ethernet cable?

Docker Desktop is the default way to run containers on a Mac, but it is not the only one. Colima, a free open-source runtime driven entirely from the terminal, offers a lighter and more configurable alternative. Here is what it is, how it compares, and who should switch.

In 2019, during my school days, I was introduced to the world of smart wearables. The Honor Band 5 was my first smartwatch — I still remember how niche it felt to wear tech among students back then. It offered a solid two-week battery life. Ever since, I have associated smartwatches with devices that don't require frequent charging, until my recent stint with Samsung's flagship Galaxy Watch Ultra.

Ryobi tools strike a balance between cost and competence that weekend warriors love. That said, they’re not without their problems, and it pays to know what you’re getting yourself into before you invest in the ecosystem.

When we write about e-readers, Kindle is usually the first name that comes to mind. But in the color e-reader market, Kindle has been late to the party. That delay opened the door for other brands to step in with stronger devices. We’ve rounded up the best color e-readers, and here are the ones that stood out.

Color e-reader price increases

2026 has not been a good year for tech prices. Due to the global memory crisis, prices are increasing on tablets, phones, laptops, and even e-readers. Three out of the four color e-readers on this list increased in price this year. The only e-reader to avoid a price hike was the Kindle Scribe Colorsoft.

Temper your color expectations An e-reader's color won't be quite as vibrant as a tablet's or physical book's. Credit: Samantha Mangino / Mangino

Having tested my way through a lot of e-readers — and now color e-readers — I’ve found a universal truth: While the colors are accurate, they often look a bit washed out. No matter which brand you use, that’s going to be the case. The muted tones don’t outweigh the convenience and portability of color e-readers, but it’s worth tempering your expectations.

Don’t expect the vivid, punchy colors of an iPad screen. An iPad has a max of 500 nits (a measure of brightness), while Kobo and Kindle e-readers max out at 100.

The Kindle Scribe Colorsoft makes a splash

In February 2026, we added the Kindle Scribe Colorsoft to this guide. After testing Amazon's latest e-reader, we were thoroughly impressed by both its speed and display. With an 11-inch display, it's still too large for daily e-reader use; however, that makes it a fantastic device for note-taking. Not to mention it is an investment at $629.99, making it the priciest model on this list.

What about ReMarkable tablets?

You might notice that ReMarkable e-ink tablets are not on this list. We've tested both the ReMarkable Paper Pro and ReMarkable Paper Move, and while they're dynamic digital notebooks, they're limited in their e-reader capabilities. Getting e-books on these devices was a bit of a struggle, and we missed the Libby integrations available on Kindles and Kobos. So while we think they're great e-ink tablets, they're inferior e-readers.

Open-ear earbuds sit on the exterior of the ear, but they also come in many shapes and sizes, from clip models to ear hook models. Some are specifically designed for exercise, while others are better for everyday use. The Bose Ultra Open earbuds have long been a popular pick, and the second generation model just dropped (alongside the new Bose Sport Open earbuds). That said, they're also $299 and $199 respectively, which is firmly on the expensive side for this audio category.

With open earbuds' growing popularity, there are newer premium competitors from brands like Sony and Shokz. Budget options are also becoming more prevalent, with open earbuds under $100 from brands including Soundcore, EarFun, Raycon, and CMF by Nothing. We tested open earbuds from all price ranges to find the best of the best — these seven picks are the results of our search.

SEE ALSO: The 11 best wireless earbuds we've ever tested What are open earbuds?

Open earbuds let you get as close as possible to the feeling of not wearing earbuds at all. Unlike in-ear earbuds, which sit in your ear canal, open earbuds sit outside the ear canal and leave it completely unobstructed, or open (as the name would suggest). Some models hold the speaker component in place with an ear hook, while others opt for an ear cuff.

SEE ALSO: We tested the top fitness trackers of 2025: See our favorite wearables and smart rings

People generally opt for open earbuds for three main reasons:

1. They provide a private listening experience while leaving you almost completely aware of your surroundings. It's like the best transparency mode you've ever used.

2. For some people, not having an earbud physically in their ear is generally more comfortable.

3. The hooks and cuffs (along with general awareness of your surroundings) make them a great option for keeping you in place and alert while you're working out, working, or simply existing in the world.

What are the drawbacks of open earbuds?

As you may have gathered from the section above, open earbuds don't come with active noise cancellation. That's mostly thanks to how much sound they let in (by design) and the difficulty of cancelling out sound without having the device covering your actual ear canal.

Also, thanks to the whole open ear-canal situation, these aren't going to be the earbuds for audiophiles. That's not to say open earbuds sound bad — if you've never tried them, we promise they sound much better than you're imagining — but you will lose out on some of the nuance of a song without having the earbud actually in your ear.

SEE ALSO: I tested sleep earbuds for over a month: Here are the 3 I'd buy

That said, many pairs still have equalizers on their companion apps to help you make them sound their best. Our best picks for sound, the Bose Ultra Open earbuds and Shokz OpenFit Pro earbuds, even have spatial audio features that work surprisingly well.

Most open earbuds will also boast some form of special technology that keeps them from leaking too much sound. While these pairs do pretty well in keeping the sound just to you, most pairs (including our picks) will be prone to some leakage, especially at higher volumes.

Finally, some open earbuds — mainly those with ear hooks — tend to have slightly bulkier cases. If you like to travel especially light, it's something to keep in mind.

How to wear open-ear earbuds

Open-ear earbuds come in three major styles: cuff, ear hook, and bone conduction. How you wear them depends entirely on which style you have. Cuff earbuds "clip" onto the ear, not unlike a piece of jewelry, generally around the area right above the earlobe. Ear hook earbuds have a hook situated around the back of your ear and a speaker component situated right over your ear canal. Finally, bone conduction earbuds sit right behind the ears, with a band that goes around the back of the head to hold them in place.

Regardless of the style, it's important to adjust the exact positioning of your open earbuds to see which offers the best sound, especially as the wrong positioning can deteriorate the quality.

For a visual representation of what wearing a cuff-style earbud looks like, you can check out our open earbuds explainer.

What about bone conduction headphones?

Bone conduction earbuds work exactly like the name implies they do — they use your skull to conduct sound waves, instead of projecting the sound into your ear, like most of the picks on this list. Typically, a band runs from either side of the user's head to help hold the headphones in place.

Shokz, the brand behind our top pick, is a popular maker of these kinds of headphones. While we do consider them open earbuds, we have yet to test any bone conduction earbuds — look out in the future for that update. On that note:

What's next in our testing pipeline

The latest big release in the open earbuds world is the second-generation Bose Ultra Open earbuds and the Bose Sport Open earbuds. Considering the first gen Ultra Opens have been a mainstay on our list of recommendations, we're thoroughly testing the newer models to see how they stack up.

The Apple AirPods 5 are a newer release that are also technically open earbuds, but we're testing them against similar designs (as opposed to the more classic clip or hook style open earbud) before making a call on adding them to this guide.

The open earbuds market is rapidly expanding, so we'll be testing more as we can get our hands on them. We recently added the Sony LinkBuds Clip and Soundcore AeroFit 2 Pro to this guide.

In addition to the earbuds that made our initial guide in May 2025, we tested out the Nothing Ear (Open) earbuds ($149), the Sony Linkbuds Open ($199.99), the Anker Soundcore AeroClip earbuds ($169.99), and the Shokz OpenFit Air ($119.95). While none of the above were bad earbuds by any means, we found our picks to outshine them in comfort and sound quality, especially when considering their respective prices.

The best Hulu deals and bundles in October 2026: Best Hulu Bundle Deal Disney+ and Hulu Bundle Get 6 months for $11.99/month Get Deal Best HBO Max Bundle Deal Disney+, Hulu, and HBO Max Bundle $21.99/month with ads, $34.99/month ad-free Get Deal Best Student Deal Disney+ and Hulu Student Deal $6.49/month Get Deal Best ESPN Bundle Deal Disney+, Hulu, ESPN Unlimited Bundle $35.99/month Get Deal

There's a wide range of excellent shows and films to watch on Hulu, including season 2 of Chad Powers, The Devil Wears Prada 2, Furious, and Hokum. It's a library that's full of options to keep you entertained, especially as we head into the chillier months of the year.

If these shows have caught your eye and have you itching to sign up for Hulu, we're here to help you get the best deal. While the streamer was recently hit by another price hike, there's still plenty of bundle options available to help you save some cash.

This includes the awesome Disney+, Hulu, and HBO Max package, but that's certainly not all. Disney also has a six-month offer for the Disney+ and Hulu bundle, though it is only available on their site. This drops its ad-supported plan to $11.99 per month when locked in for six months (then back up to $12.99 per month). The ad-free plan is down to $19.99 per month (which will return to $21.99 per month after six months).

Disney notes that this is an "ongoing offer for people who want to subscribe for a longer period to save on the average monthly cost." It's also available for new and eligible returning subscribers.

SEE ALSO: 'The Swan: Behind the Mirror': Let's talk about the most WTF reveals

Below you can find details on Hulu's best bundles at the moment — along with information on both its ad-supported and ad-free plans, if you just want the basics — to help you save on the service right now.

Best Disney+ bundle deal Opens in a new window Credit: Hulu Disney+ and Hulu Bundle Get 6 months for $11.99 per month Get Deal at Disney Why we like it

The ad-supported Disney+ and Hulu Bundle starts at $12.99 per month. If you'd prefer the Premium ad-free version of this plan, this jumps to $21.99 per month.

If you're curious about Disney's six-month offer, this is available on Disney's site. Again, it offers the ad-supported Disney+ and Hulu bundle plan for $11.99 per month when locked in for six months, then returns to $12.99 per month. The Premium ad-free plan is $19.99 per month for six months, then returns to $21.99 per month after.

• Disney+ and Hulu Bundle — $12.99 per month

• Disney+ and Hulu Bundle Premium — $21.99 per month

Best HBO Max bundle deal Opens in a new window Credit: Hulu Disney+, Hulu, HBO Max Bundle $21.99/month with ads, $34.99/month ad-free Get Deal Why we like it

This is one of the best Hulu bundles available at the moment. Starting at $21.99 per month, this bundle grants you access to Hulu, Disney+, and HBO Max for a much lower price than what you'd pay for the three separately. It's an incredible deal to take advantage of, especially if you've already got Disney+ and HBO Max subscriptions. There are two plans to choose from with this bundle, and they are:

• Disney+, Hulu, HBO Max Bundle (with ads) — $21.99 per month (save 38%)

• Disney+, Hulu, HBO Max Bundle (no ads) — $34.99 per month (save 43%)

Best student deal Opens in a new window Credit: Hulu Disney+ and Hulu Student $6.49/month Get Deal Why we like it

If you're a student enrolled at a university, you can get the ad-supported Disney+ and Hulu Bundle for $6.49 per month. That's 50% off the regular monthly price of $12.99, though the page does note that the offer only lasts "so long as student enrollment status remains verified." After that, it goes back up to $12.99 per month.

• Disney+ and Hulu Student — $6.49 per month

Best ESPN bundle deal Opens in a new window Credit: Hulu Disney+, Hulu, ESPN Unlimited Bundle $35.99/month Get Deal Why we like it

Alongside the big Hulu, Disney+, and HBO Max bundle, Hulu also offers sports-focused plans that include ESPN Select or ESPN Unlimited. According to ESPN, "ESPN Select includes ESPN+ content only. Fans who want ESPN+ exclusively may subscribe to the ESPN Select plan. ESPN Unlimited includes all of the ESPN networks and services, including ESPN+." 

The Disney+, Hulu, ESPN Unlimited Bundle, which has ads, is available for $35.99 per month. The Disney+, Hulu, and ESPN Unlimited premium bundle without ads is available for $44.99 per month.

• Disney+, Hulu, ESPN Select Bundle — $21.99 per month

• Disney+, Hulu, ESPN Select Bundle Premium — $32.99 per month

• Disney+, Hulu, ESPN Unlimited Bundle — $35.99 per month

• Disney+, Hulu, ESPN Unlimited Bundle Premium — $44.99 per month

Hulu's monthly plans

If you're just looking to jump straight into Hulu's library without any fancy bundles, there are a couple of subscription options to consider. The ad-supported tier comes in at $12.49 per month. If you want to go ad-free, that'll cost you $21.49 per month.

• Hulu (with ads) — $12.49 per month, $124.99 per year

• Hulu Premium (no ads) — $21.49 per month

If you really want to go big on a streaming investment, there's the Hulu + Live TV plan. This costs a whopping $99.99 per month for its ad-supported plan, but comes with plenty to keep you busy. Hulu + Live TV (with ads) gets you access to 95+ channels, unlimited DVR, Disney+ (with ads), ESPN Select (with ads), and Hulu (with ads). If you want to go even bigger with the ad-free plan — which offers Hulu (no ads), Disney+ (no ads), and ESPN Select (with ads) alongside Live TV — it'll cost you $109.99 per month. The ad-supported plan also offers a free trial for three days.

• Hulu + Live TV, Disney+, and ESPN Select (with ads) — $99.99 per month (3-day free trial)

• Hulu Premium + Live TV, Disney+ Premium, and ESPN Select (no ads) — $109.99 per month

• Hulu + Live TV, Disney+ Premium, and ESPN Select — $94.99 per month

• Live TV Only — $98.99 per month

Wondering what to watch once you get set up with a Hulu plan or bundle? We're here to help with that as well. Have a look at our roundups of the 30 best comedies on Hulu, the 25 best sci-fi movies on Hulu, and the 26 best horror movies on Hulu to start building your watchlist. And if you're in the mood to binge-watch a show, check out our breakdown of the 25 best shows on Hulu.

TL;DR: Get a lifetime subscription to Koofr’s 1TB cloud storage plan for $199.99 (reg. $810), with file management tools and no recurring subscription fees.

Opens in a new window Credit: Koofr Koofr Cloud Storage: Lifetime Subscription (1TB) $199.99
$810 Save $610.01   Get Deal

Somewhere in your cloud storage is a document you haven’t opened in five years, three copies of the same photo, and a folder you definitely meant to organize. Koofr gives you lifetime access to 1TB of space for your files, plus tools like Duplicate Finder to help tidy things up, all for just $199.99 (reg. $810).

One whole terabyte gives you plenty of room for photos, videos, documents, and other files without having to constantly decide what deserves to stay on your device. That’s roughly enough space for 250,000 12-megapixel photos, depending on file size. And because this is a lifetime subscription, you won’t have another monthly cloud storage bill to add to your collection. Your streaming services can keep that honor.

Koofr lets you connect existing cloud accounts, including Google Drive, Dropbox, and OneDrive, so you can access files from multiple services through one interface. You don’t have to move everything into Koofr just to find it, which is particularly useful if your digital life is spread across several accounts.

For the files you do store there, Duplicate Finder can help identify redundant copies taking up space. Other file management features include advanced renaming options and customizable sharing links, while collaboration tools make it possible to work with colleagues on shared files. That means fewer duplicate documents floating around and, hopefully, less time figuring out which version everyone is supposed to be editing.

Files are encrypted during transfer and while stored on Koofr’s servers, and the service says it doesn’t track your file activity. You can access your storage through desktop and mobile devices, with no limit on the number of devices connected to your account.

Formerly $810, get a lifetime subscription to 1TB of Koofr cloud storage for only $199.99.

StackSocial prices subject to change.