Quick Links Amazon’s Alexa can read your Kindle ebooks aloud, replacing the need for a separate audiobook. As an audiobook lover, I was ecstatic to use this feature when I checked out ebooks from my local library. Unfortunately, Alexa falls short of delivering an enjoyable audiobook experience. Screenshot by Marissa Zupancic — no attribution There are a variety of different ways you can prompt Alexa to narrate your Kindle books....

Amazon Fire 7 (2022) The Fire 7 is Amazon’s most affordable tablet. It packs a 7-inch display, a quad-core processor, and two cameras. Tablets don’t get simpler, or cheaper, than this. Amazon Fire HD 8 (2022) The Fire HD 8, featuring an 8-inch HD display, ticks a lot of the right boxes. It offers up to 13 hours of battery life, decent performance, and up to 64GB storage with a microSD card slot....

At I/O 2023 this year,Google announced it is partnering with Appleto make detecting unknown AirTags following you easier. This was an important step as the popularity of AirTags has led to them being used for unwanted tracking and stalking, raising safety concerns. In late July, Google finally announced the rollout of unknown tracker alerts for Android 6.0+ users. Now, the feature has started going live for at least some Android users out there....

Best Chromebook sleeves Google Chromebooksare all about simplicity. Designed to offer users a faster and more convenient portable productivity center at an affordable price, Chromebooks are often a laptop stand-in for students and professionals looking for a travel-friendly workstation. Since it’s implemented as an essential part of your day, you’ll want to ensure it’s protected while also remaining easy to access. That’s where a Chromebook sleeve comes into play. Lighter and more malleable than a briefcase, a sleeve typically protects with a plush interior and zippered opening....

Quick Links The “Summertide Scales and Tales” is another event inGenshin Impact, including a treasure hunt for some lost toys. Paimon, the Traveler, Nilou, Navia, and Wanderer get transported into a storybook as characters. Their quest? Save the land of Simulanka from the wrath of a dragon. While you won’t be able to use anynew Natlan charactersor skills that have leaked recently, this story is an excellent way to grab some rewards and explore this fun event area....

TheGoogle Pixel 9 Prois the first Pixel I’ve held in years that I actually want to buy. When it comes to hardware, this year, Google brought its A-game. Unfortunately, Google has paired the top-notch device with software that arguably shouldn’t exist. Fortunately, those bits are easy to ignore, making this an easy phone to recommend, regardless of whether you opt for the standard or XL model. Google Pixel 9 Pro The Google Pixel 9 Pro features a sophisticated design with the powerful Tensor G4 processor and 16 GB of RAM, making it ideal for advanced AI applications, stunning photos, and videos....

Google Podcasts wasn’t enough: YouTube Podcasts sub-page is rolling out Google is finally cleaning up its product portfolio and merging services that just make sense to merge. Both of the company’s video calling platforms,Meet and Duo, are joining forces under the Meet brand, and Google has long been in the process of phasing out Hangouts in favor of Chat. The latest move then doesn’t make any sense, at least on the surface....

Summary Horror veteran Maika Monroe reveals thatA Nightmare on Elm Streetis the horror franchise she would like to join next. Known for her work within the horror and thriller genres, which have solidified her as a scream queen, the actor first broke through with a role in the 2014 horror filmIt Followsand now, a decade later, a sequel is in development.Monroe currently stars inLonglegs, which just opened to $22.6 million at the box office, the best opening yet for an original horror movie in 2024....

How to Change the Read-Only Attribute for Files on Windows When a file is marked as read-only on Windows, you can only view it and not change it in any way. This essentially protects important files from unauthorized changes. On Windows, you’re able to set or remove the read-only attribute for a file by modifying its properties. Alternatively, you can also run a command in Command Prompt or Windows PowerShell to do the same....

How to Merge Duplicate Contacts on Android Duplicate contacts are undesirable, and dealing with them can be an unpleasant experience. However, if you’ve switched to a new Android phone, you may have accrued some duplicate contact entries in your phonebook, either due to the migration process or creating an entry twice. Thankfully, Google offers a solution for this. Its Contacts app comes with the Merge & Fix feature that makes identifying and fixing duplicate contacts on Android extremely easy....

How to Use Regex Filters in Google’s Search Console to Optimize Site Performance Regular expressions (regex) are a pattern-matching syntax you could use to search for complex strings. Google’s Search Console (GSC) offers the option to use regex to filter and sort through search queries and page performance data. You can optimize your site performance by analyzing search data using crafted regex filters. The Benefits of Using Regex in Google Search Console Regex let you read and analyze data without relying onthe Google Analytics web applicationor other external tools....

Summary Star Warshas quietly erased Darth Plagueis' Sith Master, Darth Tenebrous, from canon. The future ofStar Warslies in the past; specifically, theHigh Republic Era, the golden age of the Jedi and the Republic.The Acolytebrought the tail-end of the High Republic Era into live-action at last, and even introduced two Sith of the time - including Palpatine’s eventual master, Darth Plagueis. But who mentored Darth Plagueis? InStar WarsLegends, Darth Plagueis was taught by the even more mysterious Sith Lord Darth Tenebrous....

TheOnePlus Opendropped late last year running Android 13 out of the box. While the lack ofAndroid 14at launch was a bit surprising, we actually quite liked what OnePlus did with the Open’s software —so much so that I wanted other brands to copy from it. The company finally released the Android 14 update for its first foldable a few weeks ago with some interesting additions that enhance Open’s already outstanding software, making itour favorite foldable phone of its kind....