Featured Articles - The Best of How-To Geek

What is 4×4 MIMO, and Does My Smartphone Need It?

MIMO stands for “multiple input, multiple output.” A 4×4 MIMO device has four antennas for four simultaneous data streams, while a 2×2 MIMO has two. The iPhone XR is 2×2 MIMO, while the iPhone XS an...

How to Perform a Clean Boot in Windows

Brady Gavin Nov 6th, 2018

How I Work From Home: Cam’s Pain Cave of Productivity

Cameron Summerson Nov 5th, 2018

HTG Explains: What Are All Those Advanced Power Settings in Windows?

Windows has many “advanced power settings” you can adjust. These options let you choose between performance and battery life, control what Windows does when you have a critical battery level, and tweak what press...

Already a Spotify Fan? Here are 6 New Features You Might Have Missed

Spotify has had a big year: they hit more than 80 million paid subscribers, launched a much-improved new free plan, and even IPO-ed. If you’ve been a Premium subscriber for a while, you might not have noticed a lot of the o...

How to Make Sure Your Gadgets Will Automatically Change Time for Daylight Savings

For some reason, we as humans have this twice-a-year ritual where we change all of the clocks around us. Fortunately, with most of our clocks connected to the Internet, the hassle of having to change the time manually is a th...

What It Means When Microsoft Stops Supporting Your Version of Windows

Microsoft only supports each version of Windows for so long. For example, Windows 7 is currently in “extended support” until January 14, 2020, after which Microsoft will no longer support it. Here’s what tha...

Download Skype for More Features Than Windows 10’s Built-In Version

Microsoft starts killing Skype Classic today, but two versions of Skype remain. Windows 10 includes a “Store App” version of Skype, which has fewer features than Skype for desktop, available for download from Mic...

Mobile CPUs Are Now as Fast as Most Desktop PCs

Apple says its new iPad Pros are faster than 92% of all laptops, tablets, and convertible PCs sold in the last year. And yes, that includes PCs with Intel Core i7 processors! Mobile CPUs are becoming as fast as desktop PC CPU...

The Best WordPress Website Hosting For Most People

Anthony Heddings Oct 30th, 2018

How to Set Your Smarthome Up for a Spooky Halloween

When most people think of Smarthomes, they think of voice-controlled lights and video doorbells. But the gadgets you may already have can be used to take your Halloween decorations to the next level.

The Best macOS Dock Replacement Apps

Modding the default functionality of your OS with third-party apps is fun. We’ve covered how to set up custom hotkeys for everything imaginable, how to turn your trackpad into a power user’s dream, and even how to...

I Called Out a Counterfeit Item on Amazon. Then They Banned Me.

Two years ago, I got scammed by a counterfeiter on Amazon. I left a review on the product warning others about my experience. Eventually, Amazon deleted my review and banned me from leaving reviews for “violating Commun...

Why Do New Games Take Up So Much Hard Drive Space?

Red Dead Redemption 2: 105 GB of storage space required. Shadow of War: 98 GB. Final Fantasy 15: almost 150 GB. Why the hell are these games taking up so much room on your hard drive?

How to Use LastPass for More Than Just Managing Passwords

LastPass is more than just a password manager. It’s an encrypted vault where you can store secure notes, secret bookmarks, and even entire files. It can also save your address and credit card numbers and fill those into...

The Next Version of Windows 10 Will Finally Fix Start Menu File Search

Today, Windows 10’s Start menu only searches for files in your libraries and on your desktop. In the next version of Windows, it will search everywhere on your PC. This uses the existing Windows search index....

Cheap Windows 10 Keys: Do They Work?

Microsoft charges $200 for a Windows 10 Professional product key. But, with a quick search online, you can find websites promising Windows 10 Pro keys for $12 or even less. That’s a huge savings—but don’t fa...

Your Smartphone Has a Special Security Chip. Here’s How It Works

Google’s new Pixel 3 phones have a “Titan M” security chip. Apple has something similar with its “Secure Enclave” on iPhones. Samsung’s Galaxy phones and other Android phones often use ARM...

Do You Really Need A “Gaming” Router?

Michael Crider Oct 22nd, 2018

Windows Registry Demystified: What You Can Do With It

The Windows Registry is a database where Windows and many programs store their configuration settings. You can edit the registry yourself to enable hidden features and tweak specific options. These tweaks are often called &#8...

What is WiGig, and How Is It Different From Wi-Fi 6?

Wi-Fi 6 is on the way, but it isn’t the fastest wireless technology you can get. WiGig is designed for super-fast speeds over short distances, and an improved version is coming in 2019.

How to Set Up an Etsy Shop

If you make cool handmade items for friends and family and want to grow your market a bit, opening up an Etsy shop is an excellent way for the world to see (and buy) your work. Here’s how to set one up....

How To Make Your Computer’s Microphone Sound Better

Ever wonder how radio and podcast hosts get their signature sound? While some of it comes from their better hardware, a lot of it comes down to post-processing, which is editing the audio after it’s recorded (or sometim...

Best Free Music Apps for Android and iPhone

Yuvraj Wadhwani Oct 18th, 2018

Windows 10’s Next Release Will Let You Uninstall More Built-in Apps

Windows 10’s next update, codenamed 19H1 and due for release sometime around April 2019, will let you uninstall more of Windows 10’s built-in apps with a few clicks. Don’t want 3D Viewer, Groove Music, or Pa...