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Deal Alert: Amazon Smart Plugs 40% Off

How-To Geek - Sun, 02/03/2019 - 18:45
Amazon

If you’re looking for a smart plug to pair seamlessly with your Amazon Alexa-driven smarthome, it’s tough to go wrong with a first-party solution. Today you can snag some Amazon Smart Plugs for 40% off.

RELATED: The Best Smart Plugs for Your Amazon Echo

When we looked at the best smart plugs for your Amazon Alexa smarthome, the only really negative thing we had to say about the Amazon Smart Plug was that it was more expensive, at $25 a plug, than more competitively priced alternatives.

At $14.99 (40% off), however, if you want to stick with the seamless setup and integration that comes with a first-party product, however, it’s an easy sell.

Buy on Amazon

Categories: IT General, Technology

The Best Cleaning Tools for the Interior of Your Car

How-To Geek - Sun, 02/03/2019 - 15:00

hedgehog94/Shutterstock

A tidy car is a tidy mind—or something like that. Even if that’s not the case, it’s still nice to have a clean car. We’ve rounded up the best cleaning tools for maintaining that “new car” feeling for a long time to come.

A car’s interior can take quite a battering over time. Your shoes bring in dirt every time you sit in the car, hair and dust spread liberally (even more so if you transport pets), and one crumbly snack can turn the back of the car into a mess. Throw in sticky fingers from your kids, and, well, things aren’t looking too great now, are they? Each of these cleaning tools will go some way to sprucing up your car’s interior once more so it looks pretty great again. They’re fairly low hassle too.

Here’s our pick of interior cleaning implements for your car. Once you’re done using them, be sure to give your upholstery and carpets the royal treatment with our favorite automotive interior cleaners.

Portable Vacuum Cleaner: Black & Decker 20V Max Lithium Flex Vac With Pet Hair Brush ($109)

A portable vacuum cleaner is a massive help when cleaning up the carpets and other surfaces of your car. We did a more involved look on the subject last year, but this new model is both economical and really well suited for car detailing work—the Black & Decker 20V Max Lithium Flex Vac With Pet Hair Brush. It offers powerful suction that stays strong, with a 3 stage filtration system that prevents dust and debris from escaping.

Due to its power, it’s perfect for sucking up random crumbs and debris on the floor of your car, with that further backed up by its pet hair brush. It’s easy to empty and clean too, so you won’t have to worry about constant maintenance either. Don’t be surprised if you find yourself using it around the house too instead of your conventional vacuum cleaner. It’s easily powerful enough to do both tasks.

Buy on Amazon Microfiber Cloth: Zwipes Microfiber Cleaning Cloths ($18) Zwipes Microfiber Cleaning Cloths

We’ve raved about the wonders of microfiber cleaning cloths before. We’re not going to stop any time soon as they really are incredibly useful. This pack of Zwipes Microfiber Cleaning Cloths provides you with 36 for $18 which is a bit of a bargain. They’re 100% machine washable, super soft, and perfect for every part of your car (both interior and exterior).

Lint-free, you won’t have to worry about leaving any unsightly marks or streaks, with these cleaning cloths attracting dirt and grime easily, as well as any liquid too. You can spray cleaning fluids on them, or simply use them to wipe things down dry. They’ll never miss a beat. Such is their versatility, they’re the Swiss Army Knife of cleaning tools suitable for cleaning your car windows, dash, and more with their soft but dirt-trapping fibers.

Buy on Amazon Cotton Swabs: YHMALL Cotton Swabs ($9) YHMALL

Cotton swabs are far from the most interesting tools to buy but they are useful in the right situation. It’s not always easy to get to the trickier parts of your car interior such as between narrow gaps or in vents. Although you could use any old cotton swabs you can pick up at the local store, we recommend wooden ones. Cotton swabs with paper stems bend easily and while that might be good to stop you from jamming one too far in your ear, they’re not very sturdy if you’re pressing firmly to wipe grime out of the small gaps and seams in your car’s console. so these YHMALL Cotton Swabs are perfect for getting to those awkward to squeeze into gaps.

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Categories: IT General, Technology

How to Watch the 2019 Super Bowl Without Cable

How-To Geek - Sun, 02/03/2019 - 13:40

Sergey Nivens/Shutterstock.com.

The New England Patriots are set to face off against the LA Rams, and it’s sure to be an entertaining game. If you’ve cut the cord, don’t fret! You can still tune in and watch the Super Bowl.

There’s nothing quite like watching the Super Bowl—and all the fantastic commercials—in real time. You have a few different options when it comes to watching the Super Bowl if you’ve cut the cord, ranging from completely free to a couple hundred dollars.

Option 1: Watch with an Over-the-Air Antenna Mohu

If you want to get all of your costs out of the way up front, grab an Over-the-Air (OTA) antenna and (possibly) a TV tuner. These antennas work the same way they did when you were a kid: plug them into your television or tuner with a coaxial cable, give it a moment to scan the channels, and watch away! You won’t have a monthly bill to worry about, and you should be able to get the Super Bowl.

The Super Bowl is on CBS, so the important thing is to make sure you buy an antenna that can pick up your nearest CBS affiliate. If you’re not sure, the FCC has a handy tool that lets you enter your address and find out how far away the station is. Then, just buy an antenna that covers at least the distance to that station.

If you want to watch the big game on multiple devices in your home—or you’re using a projector or another display that doesn’t have a built-in TV tuner—you’ll want to get an external tuner like the Amazon Fire TV Recast. This will connect to your home network, and let you stream any programs coming from the antenna to any of your other screens.

RELATED: How to Get HD TV Channels for Free (Without Paying for Cable)

Option 2: Watch With a Streaming Service

Services like YouTube TV and Hulu with Live TV are fantastic for replacing cable for all of your live TV needs, including the Super Bowl. Both services offer free trials for new users—one month for YouTube TV and one week for Hulu—so if you’ve never used either service, you can watch the big game for free. If you like having access to live TV, stay subscribed to each service: you’ll pay $40 a month for either YouTube TV and Hulu with Live TV.  Sling TV and PlayStation Vue don’t include CBS, so you can’t use these services to watch the Super Bowl.

CBS is also allowing CBS All Access Subscribers to watch the Super Bowl live, so you may be able to use one more free trial if you’ve used the other services’ trials already. CBS All Access lets you have a one-week free trial, after which you’ll pay $6 per month if you don’t mind commercials and $10 per month for commercial-free viewing.

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Categories: IT General, Technology

Geek Trivia: Explaining Your Code To An Inanimate Object Is A Programming Trick Known As What?

How-To Geek - Sun, 02/03/2019 - 09:02

Explaining Your Code To An Inanimate Object Is A Programming Trick Known As What?
  1. Talkthrough Testing
  2. Rubber Duck Debugging
  3. Oral Examination
  4. Coderphrenia

Think you know the answer?

Categories: IT General, Technology

Deal Alert: 50% Off An Aukey 18W USB-C PD Wall Charger

How-To Geek - Sat, 02/02/2019 - 15:30

If you’re in the market for a compact and powerful charger for your demanding smartphone or portable device, this is a tough deal to beat: half off an 18W USB-C PD charger from a top notch company.

Normally $21.99, you can pick up the charger for $10.99 off Amazon if you use the code 95SGCK4R (for the black model) or 9VO4Q3XT (for the white model).

What makes this little charger so great? Introduced by Aukey last fall it’s one of the most compact high watt chargers on the market (it’s scarcely bigger than the stock iPhone charger and sports foldable prongs). Paired with a USB-C charging cable you’ll be able to charge your newer iPhone, newer Android device, or other USB-C compatible devices like your Nintendo Switch much faster than you would with their stock charger.

The deal is so hot they’re already out of stock into the coming week, but we recommend buying one anyway and waiting the extra few days, it’s that great of a deal.

Categories: IT General, Technology

The Best Agility Training Tools

How-To Geek - Sat, 02/02/2019 - 15:00

SKLZ

If you want to move more quickly and gracefully while still maintaining body control, then agility training may be just what you’re looking for. Armed with the right tools, you can train efficiently and effectively.

While agility training can help your overall athleticism, it’s also great for your day-to-day activities as well. Training your body to be agile will help prevent injury by strengthening your muscles as well as by improving your balance and coordination. Tools like agility ladders, cones, hurdles, jump ropes, and box jumps can help you with “quick feet,” endurance, and coordination—so read on to find the right tools for you!

While you’re at it, if you want to add in even more interesting routines to your training sessions, check out our favorite tools for incorporating resistance training into your workout.

Best Agility Ladder: Yes4All Speed Agility Ladder ($10) Yes4All

Whether you play sports, you’re just looking to increase your overall athletic performance, or you’re trying to lose weight, an agility ladder may be able to help. Just place this 11-foot ladder flat on the ground and move as quickly as you can over the 8 heavy-duty plastic rungs. Move laterally to work on your body’s adjustment to changing directions, while also moving forward to work on quickness and acceleration. You use this ladder indoors and outdoors, although for intense workouts it’s useful to be outside where you can easily stake the ladder down to the grass.

Buy on Amazon Best Agility Cones: Profect Sports Pro Disc Cones ($20) Profect Sports

Like the Yes4All Agility Ladder, agility cones are also great for sports training and physical improvement. Use these Profect Sports Pro Disc Cones indoors or outdoors—anywhere you have space to do agility drills. You can weave between cones, run between them to work on quickly changing directions, and even work on accelerating and decelerating. They can also be used for targets and boundary markers in gyms and on fields, courts, parking lots, and more.

The cones come in a set of 50 bright-colored cones that are easy to see and don’t fade in the sun. Along with the cones, there’s even a cone caddy, mesh carrying bag, and an eBook that has 15 speed and agility cone drills. The Profect Sports cones are also super durable, bouncing back to their original shapes after being stepped on over and over again.

Buy on Amazon Best Agility Hurdles: SKLZ Hurdles ($50) SKLZ

If you’re looking to output the maximum about of power and speed no matter the sport, then start training with the SKLZ Hurdles. Similar to our last two entries, this pack of 6 hurdles trains your body’s explosiveness while adding in a plyometric workout (or “jump training”).

SKLZ Hurdles have a sleek design that is lightweight yet durable, being able to withstand and bounce back from the toughest athletes landing on them. They’re 6 inches tall and have a sturdy base that doesn’t get knocked over very easily. Plus, because they’re so light, if someone training with these hurdles trips, they won’t get tangled up and hurt themselves.

If you’re looking for a set of hurdles in different sizes (and at a cheaper cost), the check out the QuickPlay PRO Hurdles, which is a set of six adjustable hurdles.

Buy on Amazon Best Jump Rope: Survival and Cross Jump Rope ($10) Survival and Cross

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Categories: IT General, Technology

Easily Borrow eBooks From Your Library on Your Phone or Tablet

How-To Geek - Sat, 02/02/2019 - 15:00

Your local library probably offers eBooks and audiobooks via Overdrive. OverDrive can be a bit complicated, but the free Libby app for iPhone, iPad, and Android makes it as slick and easy to use as shopping on Amazon.

Assuming your library supports OverDrive, all you have to do is download the Libby app and sign in with your library card. Use the official website to check if your library supports OverDrive. Libby is actually made by OverDrive and is available on Windows 10, too.

After signing in with your library card details, you can use the Libby app to search for available eBooks and audiobooks. If a book is available, you can instantly check it out, download it, and read it right from within the Libby app. If someone else is reading the book and there aren’t any free copies available, you can place a “hold” just like you would on a physical book. Libby will automatically borrow a held book when it becomes available.

Books you’ve borrowed appear on your “shelf” in Libby. It all works similar to physical books. You can see when the book is due back and renew your loan if no one else is holding it. When your loan period expires, Libby will automatically return the eBook to the library. You can return a book ahead of time if you’re done, too—this will let someone else read it without waiting.

All of this was possible with OverDrive, but Libby just makes it so much more convenient than the old system. Best of all, it’s all free—all you need is a library card. You can even borrow books in Libby and send them to your Kindle.

Your local library probably offers other free digital resources, too, including free streaming movies and TV shows, online courses, and digital newspaper access.

RELATED: Not Just Books: All the Free Digital Stuff Your Local Library Might Offer

Categories: IT General, Technology

Did Apple Really Ban Facebook and Google’s Apps? Why?

How-To Geek - Sat, 02/02/2019 - 13:40

Johnny Wen

Facebook and Google have been violating Apple’s policies, distributing apps that tracked user behavior outside Apple’s App Store, as TechCrunch reported. Apple temporarily banned Facebook and Google from running internal software, sending a strong message.

Facebook Monitored Users (With Consent)

Facebook likes to know as much as possible about its users and what they spend your time doing, both on and off Facebook. Remember, despite what it says, Facebook’s customers aren’t you (the person who uses the social network), but ad networks and other companies interested in your data. Facebook also wants to know why and when you use alternatives to the social network.

To better track what users are doing outside Facebook, the company created a volunteer program called the “Facebook Research App” that functioned as a VPN when installed on phones. The VPN sent data to Facebook, including websites visited, messages sent, photos, videos, and more. The app also required users to install a root certificate, which allowed tracking data that would typically be encrypted. Volunteers had to choose to install the app, and received $20 a month in e-gift cards

Whether or not volunteers fully understood how much data they gave away is questionable. The app did have explanations and a terms of service agreement, but, as we all know, many people don’t read past the $20 offer; they skip straight to the OK button.

Early reports suggested Facebook targeted teenagers specifically, but that seems not to be the case as the company has stated that most users were adults. Facebook also said that minors were required to request parental permission, but some testing has shown that parental verification didn’t always work as intended and it could be possible for a minor to sign up for the program without proving parent consent.

Facebook Abused an Enterprise Tool

Here’s the key to understanding this story: Facebook didn’t distribute this app the usual way through Apple’s App Store. Apple previously banned a similar Facebook-owned VPN app from their App Store called Onavo Protect and changed their terms of service to limit data collection to only that related directly to the app.

Facebook stepped around this problem by distributing the app outside the App Store. Sideloading an app on iPhone normally isn’t easy or straightforward to the average person, but Facebook had an advantage here. As a large company, Apple granted a special certificate allowing distribution of apps outside of Apple’s App Store. The primary purpose of this process is for testing future apps (internal betas) and corporate-access apps (such as a corporate-only social network, or a company restaurant menu system).

Apple makes it clear that these certificates are not to be handed out to the average users, and that apps built for these certificates should remain internal to the company. Apple’s TestFlight is the only Apple-sanctioned method for beta testing with users, but retains strict limits and still relies on the App Store. Despite this rule, Facebook used the certificate to install their Facebook Research app on volunteer’s phones—volunteers who did not work for Facebook.

Apple Shut Down Facebook’s Internal Apps

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Categories: IT General, Technology

Geek Trivia: Which Of These Films Was Inspired By A Super Bowl Commercial?

How-To Geek - Sat, 02/02/2019 - 09:02

Which Of These Films Was Inspired By A Super Bowl Commercial?
  1. Little Giants
  2. Field of Dreams
  3. Air Bud
  4. Space Jam

Think you know the answer?

Categories: IT General, Technology

Windows 10 Will Let You Run Desktop Apps on VR Headsets

How-To Geek - Sat, 02/02/2019 - 00:28
Microsoft

Microsoft is still polishing up Windows 10’s April 2019 Update, also known as 19H1. In the latest development build, you can now launch desktop (Win32) applications in a Mixed Reality headset’s virtual environment.

This feature is part of Insider preview build 18329, which Microsoft announced on February 1, 2019. If you have a Windows Mixed Reality headset, you can now launch a classic Windows desktop applications in the Mixed Reality environment. They’ll float in the 3D view as window panes, just as Universal Windows Platform (UWP) apps from the Store already do today.

Here’s how Microsoft says it works:

To use this feature, bring up Pins Panel [in Mixed Reality], then go to all apps, where you will find a folder named “Classic Apps (Beta)”. In this folder, you will be able to select and launch any Desktop (Win32) applications.

Microsoft

While this is pretty cool, it certainly isn’t super practical. Today’s virtual reality headsets have fairly low-resolution panels, and you can see the pixels when your eyes are up close—that’s the “screen door effect.” But a future super high-resolution headset could potentially provide a great workspace. Windows Mixed Reality is now ready for that future.

RELATED: What Is Mixed Reality on Windows 10, and Should You Buy a Headset?

This latest build also includes “top apps” in the new search interface. When you open the search view, Windows will suggest the apps you’ve used most, right at the top of the search view.

Microsoft

Windows 10’s touch keyboard now includes support for the ADLaM script used by the Fulani people of West Africa and Osage script used by the Osage Nation in Oklahoma, too

RELATED: Everything New in Windows 10’s April 2019 Update

Categories: IT General, Technology

How to Find the Page and Word Count in Google Docs

How-To Geek - Fri, 02/01/2019 - 22:00

Whether you’ve been given an assignment with a strict limit or you just like knowing how many words you’ve written, Google Docs has your back. Here’s how to see exactly how many words or pages you’ve typed in your document.

How to Find the Page and Word Count

Finding the page and word count is an easy process that is integrated into Google Docs.

The first thing you want to do is fire up Google Docs and open the document for which you want to get the count. Click “Tools” and click on “Word Count.” Alternatively, you can press Ctrl+Shift+C (on Windows) or Command+Shift+C (on macOS).

That’s it! The word count window pops up and shows you a list of different counts related to your document, including the number of pages, words, characters, and characters excluding spaces.

If you only want to check the count of a specific paragraph—or sentence—in your document, select the text first and then go to Tools > Word Count (or press the key combos) to open the tool.

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Categories: IT General, Technology

Deal Alert: Grab These Roku Wireless Speakers for $149

How-To Geek - Fri, 02/01/2019 - 20:00

If you want to bring your Roku TV’s sound to the next level, then you’ll need a proper set of speakers. But why bother with some tangly old-fashioned speakers, when the Roku wireless speaker is on sale for $149?

The Roku wireless speakers are designed to work exclusively with the Roku TV, and they aren’t your average pair of wireless speakers. They’re easy to set up, they can mount on your wall, and they look incredible.

Of course, the Roku wireless speakers have outstanding sound quality. Quiet dialog-heavy scenes will sound clear and crisp, and you’ll be able to feel the violent bass of your favorite song or movie.

These speakers also come with a Roku TV voice remote and a Roku Touch tabletop remote so you can use voice commands to switch through playlists and movies from your couch or your kitchen. These remotes are usually priced at $30 each, and their inclusion makes this deal even sweeter.

Roku wireless speakers usually retail at $200, but Roku is offering them at $149 right now. They come bundled with $60 worth of TV remotes, which is just icing on the cake. Just don’t wait too long on this deal, because it’ll be gone before you know it.

Buy on the Roku Store

Categories: IT General, Technology

The FaceTime Bug Fix Has Been Delayed Till Next Week

How-To Geek - Fri, 02/01/2019 - 18:38

MichaelJayBerlin/Shutterstock.com.

Apple officially acknowledged and apologized for a Facetime bug that could allow bad actors to spy on you with just a few simple steps. While it promised a fix this week, that fix is delayed till next week.

Group Facetime is a great way to talk to your family and friends all at once, but unfortunately, as we found out earlier this week, it was also an easy way to spy on people. All you had to do was start a Facetime call, then swipe up from the bottom of the screen, tap “Add Person,” and add your own phone number. Despite your target not answering, the group Facetime connects for you immediately, while their end will still be ringing.

Apple issued the following statement to MacRumors:

We have fixed the Group FaceTime security bug on Apple’s servers and we will issue a software update to re-enable the feature for users next week. We thank the Thompson family for reporting the bug. We sincerely apologize to our customers who were affected and all who were concerned about this security issue. We appreciate everyone’s patience as we complete this process.

We want to assure our customers that as soon as our engineering team became aware of the details necessary to reproduce the bug, they quickly disabled Group FaceTime and began work on the fix. We are committed to improving the process by which we receive and escalate these reports, in order to get them to the right people as fast as possible. We take the security of our products extremely seriously and we are committed to continuing to earn the trust Apple customers place in us.

While it is good to see Apple take precautionary steps like disabling Group Facetime on its servers, one would hope a fix for such a severe issue could be released much sooner. For now, all you can do is wait until the update hits your devices and for extra safety, disable Facetime.

Update: As also pointed out on MacRumors, Group FaceTime will not return on iOS 12.1.3 or below. It will require a client update.

On an iPhone or iPad, head to Settings > FaceTime and toggle FaceTime off. You’ll have to repeat this process on all your devices—for example, if you have both an iPhone and iPad.

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Categories: IT General, Technology

Huawei Will Reveal a 5G Foldable Phone This Month at MWC

How-To Geek - Fri, 02/01/2019 - 18:28

We’ve speculated that Huawei will show a 5G foldable phone at MWC 2019. Occasionally, a good tech rumor comes true.

No, MWC isn’t a wrestling championship, It’s Mobile World Congress, one of the biggest three-day mobile-focused tech shows in the world. Based in Barcelona, MWC has become a popular spot for manufacturers to reveal their products, and it’s turned every February into a competitive month for phone manufacturers.

In case you haven’t noticed, this has definitely been a competitive month for phone manufacturers. There are all kinds of rumors floating around about 5G and foldable technology, and Samsung has been strategically showing off advanced new hardware.

Today, Huawei took things a step further. Yang ChaoBin, President of Huawei’s 5G Product Line, took the stage at a Huawei pre-MWC briefing to discuss how advanced AI and 5G technology will be used for Huawei products in 2019. While thanking the audience for their patience, he casually announced that Huawei will reveal a 5G foldable phone on February 24th at MWC 2019.

“We look forward to seeing you in Barcelona in Februrary, where we will launch the world’s first 5G smartphone with a foldable screen.”

As you can imagine, Huawei is probably trying to build some hype for its MWC conference. But the company may have also dropped this announcement to avoid being overshadowed by Samsung. There are rumors floating around that Samsung will reveal its foldable phone—which it already teased late last year—via livestream four days before Huawei takes the stage at MWC. If these rumors are true (they are, let’s be real here), then people may be too caught up in Samsung’s foldable to notice Huawei’s announcement.

If you’re trying to attend this historic conference, then you’ll want to buy tickets ASAP, because Huawei’s keynote is on February 24th, 2PM Barcelona time. Or you can try to catch a livestream at 8AM EST, whatever floats your boat.

via The Verge

Categories: IT General, Technology

How to Enable (or Disable) and Use Touch Mode in Word

How-To Geek - Fri, 02/01/2019 - 18:23

The interface of Microsoft Word is optimized for your mouse by default. However, those with touch-enabled screens may find it challenging to select commands using the more compact mouse mode. Enabling touch mode increases the size of your Ribbon, buttons, and menu commands so you can tap them better with your finger.

Enabling Touch Mode

Enabling touch mode requires only a few steps. First, click the small arrow at the right of the Quick Access bar.

This opens a menu where you can add and remove commands to the Quick Access bar. It also features a “Touch/Mouse Mode” option, which you should enable now.

After you add that option to the Quick Access toolbar, a new icon appears that you can use to open a menu where you can move between Mouse and Touch modes.

Go ahead and select the “Touch” option. You’ll notice immediately that the Ribbon and Quick Access bar not only increase in size, but there’s more space between each command, too.

Mouse Mode Touch Mode

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Categories: IT General, Technology

Dr. Mario Returns on Android and iOS This Summer

How-To Geek - Fri, 02/01/2019 - 18:04

The Doctor is in…or at least he will be later this year. Nintendo announced this morning that it was planning on bringing one of its first puzzle games, Dr. Mario, to mobile platforms this summer.

Dr. Mario debuted on the original NES console nearly thirty years ago, with a winning combination of Tetris-style gameplay, randomized hazards on the puzzle boards, and fantastic 8-bit music. The series has seen a few revivals over the years, notably on the Nintendo 64, Wii, and 3DS. Dr. Mario World will be the title of the new mobile game.

Phones are a particularly good fit for puzzle games thanks to easy touch controls and bite-sized play sessions: the smash hits of Bejeweled and Candy Crush demonstrate the natural synergy of the platform. Like most successful mobile games, Nintendo will offer the game for free with in-app purchases for power-ups.

Dr. Mario World is being co-developed with mobile publisher LINE, and it joins existing Nintendo franchises Super Mario RunFire Emblem, and Animal Crossing on mobile. Other upcoming Nintendo mobile games include Mario Kart Tour (expected later this year) and a new Legend of Zelda title.

Source: Nintendo

Categories: IT General, Technology

How To Reduce Desktop Animations on a Mac with Reduce Motion

How-To Geek - Fri, 02/01/2019 - 17:24

The Mac, just like iOS, has more than its fair share of fancy animations that accompany most user interactions. They can look pretty great, but they can also make people prone to motion sickness feel unwell. That’s no good, so here’s how to disable them.

Unfortunately, no matter what you do it’s impossible to stop macOS from getting a little carried away with itself, flinging interface elements around the screen with nary a thought for your health. You can, however, limit the amount of on-screen motion to which you are subjected to by ticking one checkbox.

The “Reduce Motion” option is one that does exactly what it sounds like. By reducing the motion and animations on-screen, the setting should make it easier for everyone to use their Mac without feeling queasy. If you suffer from motion sickness, this is a setting you absolutely ought to try.

Enabling Reduce Motion

As the description of the feature might lead you to believe, “Reduce Motion” is an accessibility setting, so to get started head on over to System Preferences. To do that, click the Apple logo at the top of the screen and then click “System Preferences.”

Next, click “Accessibility.” You’ll find it towards the bottom of the System Preferences panel.

In the left pane, click the “Display” category. On the right, tick the “Reduce Motion” checkbox to enable to feature.

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Categories: IT General, Technology

How to Get an iPhone-Like AirPods Experience on a Mac

How-To Geek - Fri, 02/01/2019 - 16:00

AirPods are pretty impressive; there’s little doubt of that. But even though they connect to iOS devices without any fuss, their integration with macOS can be altogether more fiddly. This utility fixes that, and it looks amazing while it does it.

As you’ll know if you own AirPods, connecting them to an iOS device after initial pairing is a simple case of selecting them as an audio output. It’s almost magical, but when it comes to selecting AirPods for use on a Mac, you can be left fumbling around with Bluetooth settings, or trying to select the right outputs in System Preference windows. It’s just nowhere near as slick as it should be, and it’s honestly inexcusable that macOS doesn’t connect to AirPods the same way iOS does.

But you can fix all of that with AirBuddy, a lightweight utility from developer Guilherme Rambo. This is the developer who made a name for himself by spotting devices deep within iOS beta code before they’re announced, so he clearly knows his way around Xcode. It shows, too, because AirBuddy brings iOS-like AirPod functionality to the Mac, all for just $5.

Once installed, AirBuddy first shows itself when you open the AirPods Charging Case near your Mac. When you do, you’ll see a gorgeous, animated representation of your AirPods and their case, along with their current charging status. If you’ve seen the iconic view that iOS users get when doing the same thing, you’ll know what we’re talking about, and it looks right at home on a Mac.

Looking great is one thing, but there’s functionality here, too. To prevent the connection dance with which Mac users are all too familiar, AirBuddy offers a simple “Click to connect” button that connects your Mac to your AirPods and selects them as the output option without you having to do anything yourself. It’s a thing of beauty and, again, Apple should have built this right into macOS.

There’s more to this box of tricks, too. AirBuddy also provides a Notification Center widget that can display not only your AirPods battery life but also that of your Mac (assuming it’s a laptop). On top of that, any iOS device connected to that same Mac also shows up there, so long as it’s connected to the same Wi-Fi network. That’s worth the price of admission alone!

Amazingly, there’s even more on offer here. While AirPods are the biggest use case, AirBuddy will also work just fine with anything that has a built-in W1 chip. That means there are some Beats options on the table, too.

How to Install AirBuddy

Download AirBuddy. It has a suggested price of $5, but you can pay more if you want.

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Categories: IT General, Technology

The Best Epilators For Fast Effective Hair Removal

How-To Geek - Fri, 02/01/2019 - 15:00

Yuriy Maksymiv/Shutterstock

An epilator is a fast, effective form of hair removal that many women choose to use over waxing, shaving, or chemical creams. You need the right epilator for the job though, so we’ve looked at the best epilators for every budget and situation.

Epilators typically look a little like something out of a horror film. Imagine the body of an electric razor but on the end instead of a mesh screen, there are dozens of electronic tweezers that work together to remove unwanted hair from your body. The epilator uses spinning discs or springs to capture hair while its rotating motion pulls the hair away straight from the root, leaving your skin smooth. It’s essentially plucking your hair out, but really fast, like a compromise between the tedium of plucking and the hassle of waxing.

Some people find this sensation overly painful and we don’t blame them. The results are quite impressive though and often far more effective than other methods of hair removal, especially when it comes to things like facial hair removal.

Whatever your requirement, we’ve tracked down the epilator for you. Here are our top picks.

Best Overall: Braun Silk Epil 9 ($150) Braun

The Braun Silk Epil 9 isn’t cheap but it is the best epilator out there. It has a smart sensor that guides your epilation so that the right amount of pressure is applied with each stroke. That way, it hurts less and you remove more hair with each movement. A red light gives you a heads up if you’re pushing too hard, and prompts you to adjust your handling—if you’re new to the epilator game that’s a pretty fantastic feature.

It’s waterproof so you can use it in the bath or shower where the warm water helps relax your skin and epilation is less painful. As well as that, its pivoting head adapts to every contour of your body so it can remove hair as short as a grain of sand making it potentially even better than waxing appointments.

The epilator comes with extras including a facial cap, skin contact cap, shaver head, trimmer cap, and other accessories for pretty much every sensitive area of the body you can think of. It’s a sound investment.

Buy on Amazon Best Mid-Range Option: Emjoi Ap-18 Emagine ($70)

The Emjoi Ap-18 Emagine is the perfect epilator if you don’t want to spend a ton of money, and you’re not too fussed about multiple extra accessories.

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