When GM decided to stop supporting Apple CarPlay and Android Auto in many of its vehicles, the company faced a wave of criticism. Many buyers had grown accustomed to plugging in their phones and instantly seeing their familiar apps on the dashboard. Recently I had a chance to try GM’s alternative—a system based on Google’s […]

When Apple decided to eliminate removable batteries from their phones and computers, who would have guessed it might eventually impact airline safety? With the increased usage of our phones and the need to recharge more often, an entirely new industry of power banks emerged, and these devices have become the major cause of serious airline […]

While the automotive world has been marveling at China’s electric vehicle makers—and how quickly they have surpassed many European, Japanese, and American competitors—I’ve been equally impressed by a wave of consumer electronics from little-known Chinese companies. These products aren’t just inexpensive; they’re thoughtfully designed, highly innovative, and often rethink familiar product categories from the ground […]

Every generation has its miracle technology. It arrives amid breathless predictions, billion-dollar investments and promises that it will change our lives. Skeptics are dismissed as people who simply “don’t get it.” Then reality sets in. The technology isn’t a failure, but it isn’t the revolution we were promised. Artificial intelligence is simply the latest example—although […]

For decades, the consumer tech industry has operated under the rule that adding more features to a product makes it better. We see it in smartphones that ship with dozens of pre-installed apps you can’t delete, smart refrigerators and washers that require software updates to work, and televisions that spy on our viewing habits to […]

I’ve been using the Chase Sapphire Reserve Card, the bank’s $800-a-year premium card, for about nine months and it has essentially paid for itself. But the wild swings in its customer service has left me scratching my head. I’ve taken advantage of many of the benefits including a $300 travel credit, a $250 rebate for […]

When the Trump Organization unveiled their T1 smartphone, it was marketed as more than just another Android phone. It was presented as a symbol of American manufacturing—a phone supposedly built in the United States at a time when politicians across the spectrum have been calling for more domestic production. Buy this phone, consumers were told, […]

Do you ever click on a link and get to a site that won’t open it because it’s behind a paywall? Or start to read a news story only to have it fade away and not let you complete it? It might be a link from a friend or from another story or a click […]

For years, Mark Zuckerberg wanted Meta to be more than a social media company. He envied Apple with its huge hardware business and decided he wanted his own hardware. He attempted to create a phone, but that never made it to market. Then there was the Facebook Portal for the home, a device for the […]

Most travelers worry about delayed flights, lost luggage, or long security lines. Few expect to be accused of international drug smuggling because someone stole their baggage tag. Yet that is exactly what has happened to a number of airline passengers in Canada, according to a recent investigation by CTV News. The scheme is both simple […]

Many new EVs announced earlier this year are now reaching the dealers, and I’ve been trying out a number of them. I began looking at those in the $30K-$45K range, knowing my EV lease is up at the end of the year and I might be in the market for one. Compared to three years […]

Each of the many times I flew to an international destination for business—more than 100 times —I went through the exact same ritual. As soon as I stepped onto the plane, I would manually change the time on my mechanical watch, mentally placing myself in the time zone of my destination. Like so many things, […]

As one who loathes to check a bag I use an expandable 22-inch rollerboard as my main suitcase. It’s become the standard of all the luggage companies because it’s the maximum size allowed that fits most overhead bins. The challenge for me has been finding the ideal second bag, especially when travelling internationally where it’s […]

Having flown millions of miles, I thought I had experienced most everything when it comes to the airlines.  But a week before my wife and I were scheduled to fly from to South Africa for a long-planned tour/safari, Lufthansa pilots and cabin personnel went on strike. Our outbound (non-refundable but reuseable) United tickets were for code-shared […]

It’s becoming obvious at how badly disconnected the U.S. tech industry has become from the rest of us. Day after day we’re told how amazing AI is and how it will solve the world’s problems. The press parrots the PR releases from the AI companies explaining how AI is about to accelerate medical research and […]

The World of Coffee trade show is in San Diego this week hosting visitors from around the world. Here are some thoughts after touring the exhibit hall filled hundreds of companies displaying their products. San Diego is home to more than 80 independent coffee roasters, surpassing larger coffee capitals like Portland, Los Angeles, New York, […]

If you’re frustrated with all of the ads popping up while trying to read the news, check out this article about how totally out of control the situation has become. This is such a great expose, that I am showing some excerpts below. Link to the article for the entire piece on Shubham Bose’s blog. […]

There is a question that skeptics of electric vehicles love to raise every time I write a positive column about EVs. It sounds reasonable when you hear it: “Sure, your EV uses no gas — but what about the oil used to create the energy to charge it? How is that any better?” It’s a […]

One of my favorite designers and manufacturers of bags for travel and work is WaterField Designs in San Francisco, where all of ther products are designed and produced. The company just announced an update to one its best-selling products, the Air Porter Carry-On, a personal item underseat bag that pairs perfectly with a rollerboard. It’s […]

If you’ve been putting off upgrading your smartphone or laptop, you’ll want to understand the impact on pricing due to a combination of recent issues — artificial intelligence, trade policy, and memory chip shortages — issues that are raising the prices of many consumer tech products. Analysts are calling this RAMageddon, the sudden demand for […]