How-To Geek

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We explain technology. Learn more with our articles, reviews, tips, and the best answers to your most pressing tech questions.
Updated: 1 hour 18 min ago

Audi's budget SUV just got 71 more horsepower and a completely redesigned interior

Mon, 04/27/2026 - 17:15

Entry-level luxury SUVs are no longer just about badge access, they’re expected to deliver real performance, premium design, and modern technology without pushing buyers into higher price brackets. In 2026, Audi’s most affordable SUV is proving that entry-level doesn’t have to mean basic, thanks to a major update that significantly changes the driving experience.

Categories: IT General, Technology

Don't trade in your old phone: It's much better as a dedicated security camera

Mon, 04/27/2026 - 17:00

Whenever you buy a new phone, you've got to deal with the question of what to do with your old one. In my experience, trade-in prices have slumped. The days of getting a great discount when upgrading seem to be over. And for private sales, the value depends on how in-demand your model is.

Categories: IT General, Technology

Get the best software deals on G2A.COM

Mon, 04/27/2026 - 16:56

If you haven’t heard of G2A.COM before now, you’re missing out. This digital marketplace connects you with sellers who offer deep discounts on software, games, and more.

Categories: IT General, Technology

The internet keeps telling you to do these 6 things in Excel—don't

Mon, 04/27/2026 - 16:30

Excel tutorials are everywhere, but many "pro tips" are actually bad habits in disguise. From broken formulas to messy data formatting, here are the popular tips that are secretly ruining your workbooks and what to do instead.

Categories: IT General, Technology

Forget the BMW 3 Series—this Lexus sedan feels way more refined

Mon, 04/27/2026 - 16:15

Luxury sedans don’t sell themselves anymore. In today’s market, SUVs and crossovers grab most of the attention, which means traditional four-doors have to work a lot harder to stand out.

Categories: IT General, Technology

Why are there so many Linux terminals?

Mon, 04/27/2026 - 16:01

There are people who fight over terminals the way audiophiles fight over headphones—deeply passionate and extremely opinionated. If this behavior confuses you, it's probably because no one explained what these tools are actually competing on. Spoiler alert: it's not the ability to run commands—every terminal can do that. Here's a breakdown of how terminals differ from one another, and which ones you should care about.

Categories: IT General, Technology

Alexa+ helped me realize that "smarter" voice assistants are mostly just rude

Mon, 04/27/2026 - 15:45

A smart speaker is supposed to connect everything easily and let you control your house without effort. We gave up some privacy for the convenience of setting timers, controlling lights, and getting quick answers just by speaking a command. As these speakers get smarter, it feels like they've become a little too human.

Categories: IT General, Technology

You are choking your expensive NAS by forcing it to use this ancient 1998 networking standard

Mon, 04/27/2026 - 15:31

I finally got tired of using Gigabit networking with my NAS, so I upgraded to 2.5GbE. The upgrade was actually cheaper than I expected, and the results were better than I expected. Moving to 2.5GbE completely changed how my NAS works in my homelab, and I think it will for you, too.

Categories: IT General, Technology

This Android app rewards you for fixing your local open-source map

Mon, 04/27/2026 - 15:00

More people are looking for alternatives to proprietary apps every day—even hugely popular apps like Google Maps. OpenStreetMap is the backbone of many open-source map apps, but it relies on volunteers to keep it updated. StreetComplete makes it easy and fun to participate.

Categories: IT General, Technology

Sunrise and sunset are ruining Home Assistant's adaptive lighting—use your own schedule instead

Mon, 04/27/2026 - 14:45

The Adaptive Lighting custom component in Home Assistant can change the brightness and color temperature of the lights in your smart home throughout the day to mimic the natural light of the sun. This can help make lighting feel more comfortable throughout the day and may help support better sleep habits.

Categories: IT General, Technology

3 things I wish I knew before vibe coding my first app with GitHub Copilot

Mon, 04/27/2026 - 14:30

I've tried vibe coding for fun mostly. But I realized that when done right, it can make some quality software products, especially if you're a vibe coder with programming knowledge. That's why I've been testing different techniques and found some that work really well.

Categories: IT General, Technology

This Nissan SUV has a 900-mile range, and it’s not fully electric

Mon, 04/27/2026 - 14:15

Electric vehicles often face the range wall, a common concern for car buyers when trying to decide whether to go full-electric or stick with a gasoline vehicle. If a person is taking frequent cross-country road trips, this range wall becomes a major factor in their buying decision.

Categories: IT General, Technology

This router setting can fix your random Wi-Fi dropouts, but you should only use it as a last resort

Mon, 04/27/2026 - 14:00

Network issues can be frustratingly difficult to troubleshoot, especially if they're intermittent. Sometimes it is a hardware problem, sometimes it is the layout of your home, and yet other times, it comes down to a software issue.

Categories: IT General, Technology

The Excel skill nobody talks about: Writing formulas people can actually read

Mon, 04/27/2026 - 13:30

There's a long-standing myth that the "best" Excel users write the longest formulas. Excel mastery used to be measured by how many functions you could cram into one cell, but that standard no longer holds up. Modern tools have changed the game—what once looked like a genius nested formula is often just technical debt in disguise.

Categories: IT General, Technology

I wish 3D-printing guides would stop skipping this important step

Mon, 04/27/2026 - 13:00

Far too often, I see 3D printing guides skip one of the most important steps of all—prototyping. Making prototype prints is absolutely crucial to getting a quality end product. Just about every time I skip prototyping, I regret it. So, here’s why you should value and pay attention to prototyping way more than 3D printing guides normally let on.

Categories: IT General, Technology

I ditched Bitwarden's subscription for this free self-hosted alternative

Mon, 04/27/2026 - 12:30

Vaultwarden is a community-built, open-source server for Bitwarden that you can self-host. It can connect to all official Bitwarden apps and extensions, which means you don't need to replace any of the Bitwarden apps and extensions you've already installed. You can just sign into them with your self-hosted instance of Vaultwarden.

Categories: IT General, Technology

Forget the BMW X3—this Mazda SUV feels way more premium

Sun, 04/26/2026 - 21:30

Luxury cars used to be all about showing you’d made it. Big chrome grilles, soft suspensions, and a badge everyone recognized were the whole point.

Categories: IT General, Technology

5 video games that deserve the Fallout streaming treatment

Sun, 04/26/2026 - 21:00

We live in a world where video game adaptations are having a renaissance. Sure, there are certainly some that are terribly made and have no substance whatsoever (looking at you, The Super Mario Galaxy Movie), but most modern-day adaptations have really taken the cake for how well-done they are.

Categories: IT General, Technology

3 reasons I added my passport to my Google Wallet (and why you should too)

Sun, 04/26/2026 - 20:45

Travel is almost always a bit stressful. I'm constantly double-checking that I haven't forgotten anything important, and I'm always juggling too many things in my hands when I reach the security checkpoint.

Categories: IT General, Technology

Your old PC's boot drive is faster than any USB stick. Don't let it go to waste

Sun, 04/26/2026 - 20:30

If you’ve just upgraded to a brand-new, lightning-fast boot drive, you don’t have to get rid of the old one. The same goes for those ancient HDDs we all have sitting in a dusty drawer, like the ones we used to boot our Windows XP PCs from.

Categories: IT General, Technology

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