Hardware Archives

Over the last few years, manufacturers have removed the headphone jack from almost all mobile phones. I may not be in the majority, but I have chosen not to get one of the newer phones because I have the last revision that still has a headphone jack. Not just because...

I remember the thermostat in my home as a kid. It had a very inaccurate slider on it. Later I had one with a touchscreen that allowed me to program time and temperature changes. It was a big improvement, but it still was a little difficult to figure it all out. Today...

I’m always looking for a way to connect and interact with more devices. When new versions of USB arrive, it’s likely time to find a way to connect more of the new flavor of USB. Today we’ll look at a good option for that. Our look includes Amazon...

I told you that we got a huge Internet speed increase recently and that has made video calls so much smoother than in the past. Some of the video meetings can still be tedious, but at least they aren’t buffering and jumping. I’ll be including Amazon links...

Today’s post doesn’t have anything to do with computers, but it does have a very personal connection. When COVID started, my fiancée Katie began on a journey of creating her own business and products. To say there have been delays along the way would be a...

I’m not a gamer. But there are a lot of gamers and there are plenty of companies that market to that audience of gamers. Their products can be used outside of gaming, and that can be important for content creation. So if you game, great, we’ve got you...

Over the years there have been several gadgets I’ve purchased that become very important tools in my travel arsenal. Heck, some of them are even useful when I’m not traveling. Two and a half years ago I wrote RavPower FileHub Makes Geek Travel Easier and...

So much of business these days is dependent on a good Internet connection. When your business is building Web sites, that makes it even more important. Throw in getting all of your phone service and television via the Web and it is an absolute lifeline. The lifeline...

I’ve written about SSD drives many times. They’ve gotten smaller in size. The storage capacity has increased. Speeds have multiplied. While prices are higher than traditional hard drives, they have gone down overall. Today we’ll look at the latest...

With holiday feasts on their way and the New Year’s Resolutions soon afterwards, I’m going to tell you about a product that can help you stay fit. I first learned about it when they ran a Kickstarter campaign and have been using it for almost a year now....

Loyal readers know that I’m a huge fan of various home automation products. When it comes to lighting, my needs have been pretty simple. I want an easy way to turn them on and off via voice control. Smart switches and plugs do that for me. But there are so many...

It was about two (2) weeks ago that I ran into a problem with my keyboard. The “2” key on the top row (also the @ key) became far more difficult to use. I even popped off the key top and it went flying across the room. There was some dog hair and dust I...

It was only a couple of months ago that I selected a CPU for running Windows 11. As with all things technology, things change very fast. Intel has released their latest and greatest and it brings significant speed increases. Let’s take a look at the new...

With each passing day, more people receive video content via streaming. If you want to watch that content on a TV, you need some type of device to provide the streaming content. Today we’ll look at the latest offering from Amazon. Yes, I’ll include some...

There are times when I’m not at my computer. I know, that may be hard to believe. One thing I’ve tried to do in the past few years is to grow a garden. Today, I’ll share an option that anyone can use to grow a garden indoors. Yes, it will have Amazon...

If you are a loyal reader, you know I love finding ways to automate my home. Most recently I wrote Four Pack of Kasa Smart Plugs for Voice Control. Using these smart plugs is inexpensive and very easy. But they do stick out from the wall so they aren’t the most...

I’ve recently discussed some of the powerful parts you might want to use in building a computer for Windows 11. Now we’ll look at a case to house all of those parts. Yes, there will be an Amazon link that earns me a tiny commission if you use it to buy...

For the last few weeks I’ve been listed parts for a new computer designed to run Windows 11 (released yesterday). If you’ve missed the previous parts, I’ve listed them below so you can get caught up. Intel Core i9-10900KF CPU Good Start For Windows...

The release of Windows 11 is now less than a week away. To prepare for it, we’ve discussed the parts need to build a really good computer. The first two pieces are found in Intel Core i9-10900KF CPU Good Start For Windows 11 Computer and Asus ROG Strix Z590-E...

With Windows 11 just around the corner, we’re putting together the pieces for a new computer that can run it at top speeds. Last week we selected a CPU and this week we’ll select a motherboard. Yes, there will be Amazon links that earn me a tiny...

Windows 11 is less than a month from its official release. Older computers won’t be able to run it. It is hard to give you an exact answer, but computers older than five years are probably out for sure. Beyond that, the older it is then the less likely it will...

Keeping track of network cabling isn’t a very exciting subject. It also seems to be misunderstood at times. Today we’re going to talk about some of the steps need to upgrade from Cat5 to Cat6 cabling as well as why you might want to do it. There will be...

When you leave your office for the day (even if it’s a home office), do you know your data will be safe when you return? Many users are notoriously bad at backing up their data at all. Fewer users backup their data as robustly as they should. Yes, I’m...