Summary Society has dreamed of fully automated smart homes for generations. Though we’ve had smart home devices for some time now, there are still some serious safety and privacy risks to look out for. But that doesn’t mean you’re able to’t have the comforts of a home that works with you. What Makes a Home “Smart”? A smart home is a dwelling that includes devices that can be remotely controlled, automated, and wirelessly connected with other devices....

Summary I had a lot of free time on my hands during summer breaks and my favorite pastime was tinkering with my tech. I’d tinker with software, PCs, and phones mostly. When I found myself getting bored with Windows (which had been my only daily driver forever), I decided to give Linux Mint an honest try. I’d Used Windows My Whole Life I’ve been daily driving Windows since XP. At that point, Ubuntu was my sole exposure to the world of Linux....

Summary Instead of returning to the drawing board and starting fresh, theJabra Elite 10 Gen 2earbuds are an iterative update that brings a few niceties. There isn’t a reason for current Elite 10 owners to upgrade, but the new earbuds with their smart case should be tempting to anyone looking for a new pair for work or play. Jabra Elite 10 Gen 2 The Elite 10 Gen 2 earbuds build upon the same great design and success of their predecessors, these next-generation earbuds come with enhancements that strengthen the audio experience....

Summary Anyone searching for a new Bluetooth speaker for home listening likely yearns for the biggest, baddest one available. TheMarshall Woburn IIIfalls squarely in that category. Plus, beyond its wireless capabilities, it can connect to a record player and TV for extended versatility. Marshall Woburn III Woburn III is guaranteed to fill any space with immersive, home-shaking Marshall signature sound. Price and Availability The Woburn III is available for purchase now and retails for $579....

Microsoft used to release updates to Office apps every few years, but over the past decade, the company has mostly shifted to selling them through Microsoft 365 subscriptions. However, if you don’t want a subscription, Microsoft will release a new one-time purchase version later this year: Office 2024. Microsoft still releases standalone versions of Word, Excel, and PowerPoint, with the newest release beingMicrosoft Office Home & Student 2021. It’s a single license that costs $150 and works on a single Mac or Windows PC....

I wanted to upgrade the sound quality of the TV in my office, but I didn’t want to blow a bunch of money on a soundbar. So, I threw together a small sound system for less than $25. It ain’t perfect, but it gets the job done. The Problem: This TV’s Speakers Suck (and I’m Cheap) I’ve got a small TV in my office that I use to stream sitcoms and watch the local news....

Quick Links So you finally put together the PC of your dreams. It’s all done. You plug it in, hit the Power button and… it doesn’t power on. Your PC didn’t POST. Here’s what to do. What Is POST? The term POST stands for “power-on self-test.” It’s basically a series of tests that your PC doeswhen you power it on. The POST process ensures all of your hardware is properly connected and working correctly before loading your operating system....

Summary NVIDIA’s Chat with RTX is a lot like ChatGPT, except it runs locally on your own PC, with no need for an Internet connection. It is fast, efficient, and can even learn from documents you provide or YouTube videos. Here’s how to get it running on your PC. What Do You Need To Run NVIDIA’s Chat With RTX? Most modern gaming computers will be able to runNVIDIA’s Chat with RTX....

Many people swear by Samsung’s SSDs as the best ones out there, but the company has been fashionably late to the PCIe 5.0 game—maybe because, for a lot of things, PCIe 4.0 is still enough. Still, if you’ve been waiting for one, they’re finally here. Samsung has just announced the 9100 PRO Series SSDs, what could be considered the company’s very first PCIe 5.0 SSD. It’s really fast, as it’s capable of reaching up to 14,800/13,400 MB/s sequential read/write speeds—as expected, almost twice as much those from comparable PCIe 4....

Quick Links Summary Looking for a smart home upgrade? Get some smart plugs or better yet switch out your old power outlets with connected ones. It could be the most cost-effective upgrade you may make. What Are Smart Plugs and Smart Power Outlets? Smart plugs and power outlets are some of the simplest smart home devices, with simple on-off functionality.Smart plugs connect to existing wall socketswhile smart power outlets replace your wall sockets entirely....

Summary If you have a mid-tier to high-end smartphone, you probably have no complaints about the sound when watching videos or even listening to music, but even high-end laptops seem to have absolutely terrible audio. Why can phones get it right? Mobile Device Speakers Sound Amazing Now I spend alotof time consuming general content on smartphones and tablets. As I write this, that includes aniPhone 14 Pro,Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra, an M2 12....

Stardockreleased the Start11 utilityback in 2021, bringing a customizable and powerful Start Menu to both Windows 10 and 11. There have been a few updates since then, and now Start11 v2 is available with new Start Menu design options and taskbar features. The initial version of Start11 allowed you to replace the Start Menu on Windows 10 and Windows 11 with a few different designs. The original release included a Windows 10-like Start Menu for Windows 11, a Windows 11 design for Windows 10 PCs, and other designs that were more like the two-pane list designs from Windows Vista and 7....

Read update DDR5 RAMis newer and faster than DDR4 RAM, and if you’re looking to upgrade, this standard will future-proof your rig. Much like its predecessor, DDR5 RAM sticks have a variety of speeds, lighting options, and price points. UPDATE: 04-08-2025 We’ve reviewed our recommendations and these are still the best DDR5 RAM sticks you can buy. Corsair Dominator Platinum RGB DDR5 RAM 32GB Buying DDR5 RAM in 2024 DDR5 RAMis both faster and capable of higher capacities than DDR4....