BYOK is my new go-to distraction-free writing tool
BYOK is my new go-to distraction-free writing tool

I have long been on the hunt for the perfect distraction-free writing setup. The latest contender is BYOK, which stands for Bring Your Own Keyboard. It’s a simple $199 black plastic rectangle with a low-resolution LCD screen that lets you edit text and does almost nothing else. I’ve tried dedicated apps. I’ve even converted an […]

If you want to cut your screen time, just get a Brick

After years of struggling to curb my screen time, apparently all I needed was a $59 hunk of plastic.

I drove the Slate Truck — there’s more to it than EV minimalism
I drove the Slate Truck — there’s more to it than EV minimalism

With its new pickup, Slate Auto is making a simple bet: price matters more than almost anything else. The company announced today that the American-made electric truck will start at $24,950, placing it squarely in the mid-$20,000 price range it had originally promised and making it the least expensive pickup truck and EV available today. […]

The Fitbit Air takes a smarter approach to the AI health dumpster fire
The Fitbit Air takes a smarter approach to the AI health dumpster fire

Google Health Coach seems to think I’m on the verge of physical collapse. My sleep is not where it needs to be, hence my unimpressive readiness score. My heart rate variability, a measure of how recovered I am, is below baseline. I’m spending too much time in a hot, humid environment, it says, reminding me […]

I’m not giving up my Steam Deck for MSI’s new Claw
I’m not giving up my Steam Deck for MSI’s new Claw

This is not a review of the MSI Claw 8 EX AI Plus, the first gaming handheld available with Intel’s new Arc G3 Extreme handheld gaming chip. Now that my colleague Sean Hollister is done reviewing the Steam Machine, I’ll let him go deep on the new Claw at some point in the future. This […]

Meta launches cheaper smart glasses without Ray-Ban
Meta launches cheaper smart glasses without Ray-Ban

For the past three years, “Meta” and “Ray-Ban” have been synonymous in the smart glasses space. Not anymore. Yesterday, I slipped on several pairs of Meta Glasses – no Ray-Bans – in three different styles and seven colors. One style, I was told several times by various enthusiastic Meta spokespeople, is a collaboration with socialite […]

Akko Dash V9 Ultra review: I tested this ultra-light gaming mouse and it eased my work, too

Akko’s featherweight mouse packs a flagship sensor and 8K wireless polling into a sleek shell without a asking a sky-high price for it.

Asus ROG Rapture GT-BE19000AI router review: A terrific, future-proof upgrade

The Asus ROG Rapture GT-BE19000AI is a beastly Wi-Fi router that is loaded with meaningful features and skips the subscription hurdle, too. But at $899, you must really want it to get one.

The Steam Machine is the most ambitious game console I’ve ever played
The Steam Machine is the most ambitious game console I’ve ever played

My first day with the Steam Machine was a mess. Instead of enjoying a worry-free game console, I spent hours troubleshooting what felt like a finicky PC. That’s because the Steam Machine is a PC, with a very important twist. Since the Magnavox Odyssey came out in 1972, game consoles have been built with the […]

Apple MacBook Air M5 review: Boring has never been this good

Quick Take The MacBook Air M5 is what happens when Apple keeps refining an already excellent laptop instead of reinventing it. On paper, the upgrades feel modest. The design is unchanged, the display is still 60Hz, and the M5 chip isn’t delivering the …