Gear

Why two identical-looking USB-C cables behave completely differently

One connector shape now covers a dozen capabilities, and nothing on the outside of a cable tells you which ones you bought.

Posted by Ines Whitfield Jun 28, 2026 4 min

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Gear

Getting three more good years out of the machine you own

A computer rarely gets slower in the literal sense. The processor is doing exactly what it did on the first day. What changes is everything around it: more software running unasked, a drive with no room to work in, a…

Posted by Ellis Ibarra May 23, 2026 4 min

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In the Kitchen

Cast iron maintenance without the folklore

Cast iron attracts more folklore than any other object in a kitchen. Never use soap. Never cook tomatoes in it. Never wash it at all, just wipe it out with a paper towel and let the layers build. Most of…

Posted by Lena Nakamura Apr 19, 2026 5 min

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Spending

How to stop predictable bills from ambushing you every spring

The year goes fine until March, when the car needs new tires, the dentist finds something, and a policy renews, all inside three weeks. It feels like bad luck. Nothing unexpected happened at all. Every one of those dates was…

Posted by Owen Hayward Apr 8, 2026 4 min

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Gear

How to judge whether a device can be repaired, before you buy it

A device usually dies of one small thing. A charging port that stopped holding the cable. A battery down to half its capacity. A cracked screen, a failed fan, one key that no longer registers. Whether that small thing ends…

Posted by Alice Penrose Mar 21, 2026 4 min

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Gear

What a laptop spec sheet leaves out, and how to find it anyway

Spec sheets are written to be compared, which is not the same as being written to be informative. They list what can be put in a number and leave out what can't, and the things that decide whether a machine…

Posted by Ines Whitfield Feb 18, 2026 4 min

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