If you read Dong Ngo’s excellent primer on solid-state drives (SSDs) and how to extend their lifespan, then you might be wondering where you and your SSD stand. As Dong explained, SSDs have a finite number of program/erase cycles. That is, you can write data to and erase data from an SSD only so many …

Now playing: Watch this: Listen to iBooks read by your iPhone 2:10 You don’t need to pay for an Audible subscription to have your iPhone read books to you. By enabling an accessibility setting, you can make your iPhone read the text of whatever it is you have open, from a book in iBooks to an article you have open …

If your old laptop is starting to show its age, there can be any number of issues affecting its performance. Here are five likely culprits for why your laptop is running so frustratingly slow and five solutions to return it to its former glory. 1. Spinning hard drive I speak from experience when I say moving from a traditional spinning …

Now playing: Watch this: MacBook gets Touch ID fingerprint scanner 1:00 I can’t wave a wand and turn your current MacBook‘s row of function keys into a Touch Bar, but I can offer you a substitute for the Touch ID button on the new MacBooks that makes it easy to unlock your MacBook. If you want to avoid using a …

Chromebooks are built and sold with the idea that you’ll use cloud storage for most if not all of your files. A Chromebook’s files are likely stored on Google Drive. Music is likely played on Google Play. Photos are likely viewed on Google Photos. (Or alternative cloud services such as, say, Dropbox, Spotify and Flickr.) This web-centric view of the …

A drought will end at the conclusion of the 2016 World Series. The Chicago Cubs last won the World Series in 1908, and the Cleveland Indians haven’t won a title since 1948. These are the two longest championship droughts in baseball, if not professional sports. The 2016 World Series begins on Tuesday, October 25, in Cleveland. Fox will broadcast the …

The Mail app didn’t get the overhaul that Messages did with iOS 10, but it still received an update with a few changes that might be tripping you and your inbox up. If you are less than thrilled with Mail after making the move to iOS 10, these two fixes might help. Problem 1: Tiny text When I first updated …

With lock-screen widgets, I can call home, text my wife, glance at my calendar, check a score, Shazam a song and perform many more helpful actions all without unlocking my iPhone. These widgets are incredibly convenient and my favorite thing about iOS 10. This added convenience, however, sometimes comes at the expense of security. Because I can access the Launcher …

After some initial confusion about the iOS 10 lock screen, I find myself frequently using iOS 10’s lock-screen widgets to check my calendar, a sports score or the weather — all without needing to unlock my phone. One lock screen even lets me quickly call home or text my wife. (Check out the 10 widgets that belong on your lock …

With iOS 10, Apple redesigned the lock screen and got rid of the slide-to-unlock gesture. Now, instead of unlocking your phone, swiping right takes you to the Today view where you can glance at and interact with widgets. You can also access these same widgets on an unlocked phone by swiping right on your home screen, but they are most …