You Can Now Assign Google Assistant Reminders to People

You can now set reminders for other people using Google Assistant. Assignable Reminders let you remind friends and family to perform certain tasks at certain times. Or even when they reach a certain location. Which could be both useful and annoying.

How to Assign Google Assistant Reminders

Google launched Assignable Reminders in a post on The Keyword. Glenn Wilson makes it clear that Google has launched this feature to coincide with the kids returning to school. Which is a busy and stressful time for parents and children alike around the world.

Google explains that you can now “create reminders for your partner or roommate to do things like pick up the groceries, pay a recurring bill, walk the dog—or send them a note of encouragement when they need it the most”.

Help your roommate remember to take out the trash or tell your spouse “good luck in the big meeting” with new Assignable reminders on the Assistant. ? https://t.co/5oLYDHL3v3 pic.twitter.com/MApjVwfvON

— Google (@Google) August 15, 2019

To assign a reminder, ask Assistant, “Hey Google, remind [Name] to take out the trash at 7pm”, “Hey Google, remind [Name] to pick up flowers when she gets to New York”, or “Hey Google, remind [Name] that she will do great on tomorrow’s exam”.

Assignable Reminders are rolling out on phones, speakers, and smart displays in the US, UK, and Australia. You can assign reminders to people in your Google family group or those with their accounts linked to the same speaker or smart display.

How to Get More Out of Google Assistant

Assignable Reminders are clearly a potentially useful feature. Particularly for busy families who have far too much going on in their lives. However, Assignable Reminders could also be misused for nagging people to do stuff they don’t want to do.

If you’re new to Google Assistant be sure to read our beginner’s guide to Google Assistant. And once you’ve got the hang of the basics, you can then use these Google Assistant IFTTT recipes designed to boost your productivity levels.

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Claim Your FREE Copy of Linux All-in-One for Dummies (Worth $30)

Linux All-in-One For Dummies covers everything from the very basics of getting started with Linux up to more advanced topics such as scripting and Linux certification.

Inside, you will find over 500 pages of Linux topics, organized into eight task-oriented mini-books that help you understand all aspects of the latest OS distributions of the most popular open-source operating system in use today.

And for a few days only, you can download this ebook for free!

Download This Ebook for Free

Among other things, you will learn how to:

• Install and configure peripherals, software packages, and keep everything current
• Connect to the internet, set up a local area network (including a primer on TCP/IP, and managing a local area network using configuration tools and files)
• Browse the web securely and anonymously
• Get everything you need to pass your entry-level Linux certification exams

Linux All-in-One For Dummies is your one-stop guide, whether you’re looking for a beginner’s guide or a trusted resource for when you need some assistance. But hurry. This free offer is only available until August 20, 2019!

Want in? Click here to download your free copy of Linux All-in-One For Dummies from TradePub. You will have to complete a short form to access the ebook, but it’s well worth it!

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Ikea doubles down on smart home tech with new business unit

Ikea’s smart home investments to date have been smart but scattered – now the Swedish home goods brand says it’s going to amp up its smart home bets with a brand new dedicated business unit.

The company’s smart home endeavors began in 2012, and focused on wireless charging and smart lighting. It’s iterated in both areas since, developing self-installed integrated wireless chargers for its furniture, as well as light/charger combos, and finally with a new partnership with Sonos that produced the Symfonisk line of wireless smart speakers.

Ikea also has its own ambitions in terms of being the hub for future smart home products, not only from a hardware perspective, but also via its Home smart app, which it rebranded from being more strictly focused on its Tradfri line of connected bulbs in June. During the Symfonisk launch, Ikea told me it has broader ambitions for the Home smart app as a central hub for connected home control for its customers.

“At IKEA we want to continue to offer products for a better life at home for the many people going forward. In order to do so we need to explore products and solutions beyond conventional home furnishing,” said Björn Block, Head of the new IKEA Home smart Business Unit at IKEA of Sweden, in a press release from the company.

Ikea also characterized this as its biggest new focus area in terms of the overall business and brand since it introduced its Children’s Ikea line.

The partnership between Sonos and Ikea that produced the Symfonisk line is a long-term one, and both companies told me to expect more products to come out of that team-up in future. But it sounds like Ikea intends to explore how smart home tech might touch all aspects of its business, so it’s fair to anticipate more partnerships and product categories to follow as a result of this new investment focus, too.

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Next Apple Watch could include new ceramic and titanium models

Apple’s next Apple Watch revision could include new materials for the case, including titanium and ceramic. That’s according to new assets pulled form the latest watchOS beta release, as uncovered by Brazilian site iHelp.br (via 9to5Mac). The new screens discovered in the beta show graphics used to pair the Apple Watch during setup, and list “Titanium Case” and “Ceramic Case” alongside model size identification info.

Apple has previously offered a ceramic Apple Watch, alongside its Series 2 and Series 3 models, with a premium price and white and black case options. The company hasn’t previously used titanium, but the lightweight, durable metal is popular among traditional watchmakers because it can really significantly reduce the heft of a watch case, while still providing a premium look and feel.

Last year’s Apple Watch Series 4 was the first significant change in body design for the wearable since its introduction in 2015, so it seems unlikely that Apple will change that this year again. The new physical design includes larger case sizes (40mm and 44mm, respectively, vs. 38mm and 42mm for previous generations), a thinner profile and a display with rounded corners and slimmer bezels.

Offering new materials is a way for Apple to deliver new hardware that is observably new on the outside, in addition to whatever processor and component improvements they make on the inside. Apple will likely also offer these alongside their stainless steel and aluminum models, should they actually be released this fall, and would probably charge a premium for these material options, too.

The Series 4 Apple Watch proved a serious improvement in terms of performance, and added features like the onboard ECG. Splashy new looks likely won’t be the extent of what Apple has planned for Series 5, however, especially since the company is revamping watchOS to be much more independent of the phone, which would benefit from more capable processors.

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5 Fastest and Free File-Sharing Apps to Transfer Large Files Online

When you need to transfer a large file over the internet, try these websites and apps. From temporary sharing to a torrent-cloud hybrid, each has something a little different.

File transfer apps are often better than using email or a cloud storage provider like Google Drive. After all, you can simply create a link and share it with anyone, without worrying about permissions, giving out your own personal details, or constraining to file size limits. You can also share files anonymously with people in your vicinity, or share really large data faster through peer-to-peer technology.

1. Sharefast.me (Web): Temporary, Quick Transfers With Memorable URLs

Uploading a file online always raises fears of it getting into the hands of someone you didn’t intend it to. It could be that the link gets mistakenly passed to that person, or the data is part of a larger hack. Sharefast.me is the quickest website to share files for a temporary time.

The site doesn’t clearly mention a limit on how many files you can upload or the size of the files. But you have to choose the amount of time the files will be active for: 10 minutes, an hour, 10 hours, or a day. After that, the files will be deleted forever, protecting your privacy. In fact, Sharefast.me declares how many files it is currently storing on its servers.

There’s another hook here. Unlike other file sharing services, Sharefast.me creates two-character URLs that are easy to remember instead of the gibberish that other sites make. In fact, you can even create your own custom URLs, but those require a minimum of four characters.

2. Dropbox Transfer (Web): Share Dropbox Files Like Email

Dropbox lets you share larger files and folders, but then you have to worry about permissions, the recipient’s Dropbox capacity, and how long they get the file. Dropbox Transfer is the company’s new middle path between cloud storage and email.

With Dropbox Transfer, you can share files of up to 100MB through the basic account. Plus users can send 2GB files, while Pro users can send 100GB files. It works like email, in that your original file isn’t changed in your Dropbox storage, and the recipient gets a copy of that file. If they make changes, it won’t change your file.

Transfers will also automatically expire after seven days, to protect privacy. You can add files from your existing Dropbox storage, or upload new files through your computer. Dropbox Transfer also has automatic tracking, so any time someone downloads your file, you’ll get a notification.

Dropbox Transfer is currently in beta and rolling out to all accounts slowly. If you’re waiting, check out these other Dropbox apps you didn’t know you needed.

3. Pixeldrain (Web): 100TB File Sharing

Pixeldrain offers the most amount of file storage if you make full use of its features. In total, you can theoretically get 100 Terabytes of storage for free, which you can also share with anyone for them to download.

Pixeldrain lets you upload a file of up to 10GB. That’s the size limit on a single file. However, you can keep uploading many more files of that limit and turn it into a “list” to share. A list is nothing but a different name for a folder or a collection. A list’s maximum limit is 10,000, so you can theoretically share 10×10,000 gigabytes at a time.

But you need to be aware of how long Pixeldrain stores those files.

From the date of upload, you get 100 days. And every time someone visits the file’s URL to view it or download it, it will be stored for another 100 days. An uploaded file might never get deleted if that link is out there on the internet, so be careful about what you share on Pixeldrain.

Pixeldrain is one of those useful no-signup websites that you can transfer files without an account. However, if you do register, you’ll get to easily access your files anywhere and keep track of them.

Finally, Pixeldrain also has a simple text sharing tool like Pastebin. Copy-paste text into it and share the newly generated URL.

4. Dropcorn (Web): Share Anything to Devices Within 100 Feet

Dropcorn is the easiest way to share files with people in your immediate physical vicinity. Visit the web app on your desktop or phone, add files, and tell people within 100 feet to download it. Of course, you’ll need to grant it permission to track your location.

Currently, you can share files, images, or links. These can be through local storage or common cloud storage options like Dropbox, Google Drive, and Evernote. Once you’re done, click Drop to create a room with a unique room name.

This room will be discoverable for anyone within 100 feet, for the next minute. After that, the room and its data will disappear. You can also shut the room manually if you want.

If a user can’t find the room, or if you want to share the same files with someone not around you, you can still do that. Each room gets a unique four-color code. In the “Find Something” box, click “Find by color” and enter the code. Now, connect to that room and download the files and folders.

5. TeraShare (Windows, macOS, Linux): Torrent and Cloud Transfers, Together

TeraShare is a new program that joins the best parts of peer-to-peer (P2P) BitTorrent file sharing and server-based cloud file sharing. And it doesn’t have any limits to the file size either.

Here’s how it works. You download and run the TeraShare program on your computer. Add a file to it to share, which generates a unique link. Share that link with your friends, who can then start downloading the file.

Since this is P2P sharing, the upload and download start immediately. In fact, your friends will also download pieces of the file from each other’s computers, thus increasing speed. Of course, this needs your computer to be switched on while they download.

The “hybrid technology” part is helped by TeraShare’s own servers. Files smaller than 10GB are uploaded to TeraShare servers, so recipients can download it even when your computer isn’t available.

The combined effect of TeraShare is perfect for any group that needs to share large files among themselves often.

Download: TeraShare for Windows | macOS | Linux (Free)

15 Other Quick File Sharing Apps

This isn’t an exhaustive list of file-sharing apps. In fact, there are many, many more such options available for free. Much like these five offer a little something that distinguishes them from each other, check out this master list of 15 quick ways to share files without cloud storage.

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Flexible stick-on sensors could wirelessly monitor your sweat and pulse

As people strive ever harder to minutely quantify every action they do, the sensors that monitor those actions are growing lighter and less invasive. Two prototype sensors from crosstown rivals Stanford and Berkeley stick right to the skin and provide a wealth of physiological data.

Stanford’s stretchy wireless “BodyNet” isn’t just flexible in order to survive being worn on the shifting surface of the body; that flexing is where its data comes from.

The sensor is made of metallic ink laid on top of a flexible material like that in an adhesive bandage. But unlike phones and smartwatches, which use tiny accelerometers or optical tricks to track the body, this system relies on how it is itself stretched and compressed. These movements cause tiny changes in how electricity passes through the ink, changes that are relayed to a processor nearby.

Naturally if one is placed on a joint, as some of these electronic stickers were, it can report back whether and how much that joint has been flexed. But the system is sensitive enough that it can also detect the slight changes the skin experiences during each heartbeat, or the broader changes that accompany breathing.

The problem comes when you have to get that signal off the skin. Using a wire is annoying and definitely very ’90s. But antennas don’t work well when they’re flexed in weird directions — efficiency drops off a cliff, and there’s very little power to begin with — the skin sensor is powered by harvesting RFID signals, a technique that renders very little in the way of voltage.

The second part of their work, then, and the part that is clearly most in need of further improvement and miniaturization, is the receiver, which collects and re-transmits the sensor’s signal to a phone or other device. Although they managed to create a unit that’s light enough to be clipped to clothes, it’s still not the kind of thing you’d want to wear to the gym.

The good news is that’s an engineering and design limitation, not a theoretical one — so a couple years of work and progress on the electronics front and they could have a much more attractive system.

“We think one day it will be possible to create a full-body skin-sensor array to collect physiological data without interfering with a person’s normal behavior,” Stanford professor Zhenan Bao said in a news release.

Over at Cal is a project in a similar domain that’s working to get from prototype to production. Researchers there have been working on a sweat monitor for a few years that could detect a number of physiological factors.

Normally you’d just collect sweat every 15 minutes or so and analyze each batch separately. But that doesn’t really give you very good temporal resolution — what if you want to know how the sweat changes minute by minute or less? By putting the sweat collection and analysis systems together right on the skin, you can do just that.

While the sensor has been in the works for a while, it’s only recently that the team has started moving toward user testing at scale to see what exactly sweat measurements have to offer.

“The goal of the project is not just to make the sensors but start to do many subject studies and see what sweat tells us — I always say ‘decoding’ sweat composition. For that we need sensors that are reliable, reproducible, and that we can fabricate to scale so that we can put multiple sensors in different spots of the body and put them on many subjects,” explained Ali Javey, Berkeley professor and head of the project.

As anyone who’s working in hardware will tell you, going from a hand-built prototype to a mass-produced model is a huge challenge. So the Berkeley team tapped their Finnish friends at VTT Technical Research Center, who make a specialty of roll-to-roll printing.

For flat, relatively simple electronics, roll-to-roll is a great technique, essentially printing the sensors right onto a flexible plastic substrate that can then simply be cut to size. This way they can make hundreds or thousands of the sensors quickly and cheaply, making them much simpler to deploy at arbitrary scales.

These are far from the only flexible or skin-mounted electronics projects out there, but it’s clear that we’re approaching the point when they begin to leave the lab and head out to hospitals, gyms and homes.

The paper describing Stanford’s flexible sensor appeared this week in the journal Nature Electronics, while Berkeley’s sweat tracker was in Science Advances.

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6 Most Popular Email Providers Better Than Gmail and Yahoo Mail

In 2012, Gmail overtook Hotmail to become the most popular email provider in the world. Since claiming the crown, it’s showing no signs of slowing down. Today, the service boasts more than one billion users.

The other go-to free email provider is Yahoo Mail. Sure, its user numbers pale into insignificance compared with Gmail (it had around 255 million at the start of 2018), but it’s still one of the most recognizable global email brands.

But what other free email providers are out there? If you don’t want a Gmail or Yahoo account, here is a list of the best email services you can choose from.

1. Microsoft Outlook

Outlook terminology is confusing. Microsoft has done a poor job of differentiating between its free email accounts, its free modern Windows app, and its Office 365 app. Luckily, if you just want a free email account, you don’t need to get bogged down in the details; just head to outlook.com and sign up for an @outlook.com email address.

The service has surpassed Yahoo to become the second most popular free email provider in the world. In mid-2016, Microsoft reported it had more than 450 million active users.

Using an Outlook account comes with significant benefits. Because it’s operated by Microsoft, it’s heavily integrated into the Windows 10 operating system. It also works seamlessly with the Outlook Office 365 app.

If you decide to use either the web client or the desktop client, you’re in good company. 16 percent of all email sent is opened on one of the two apps.

2. GMX Mail

GMX Mail is a subsidiary of United Internet, one of Germany’s largest internet service providers. The free mail service has been gaining in popularity over the last few years, but it’s been around since 1997.

Despite only having 11 million active monthly users, it still comfortably makes the top ten of free email providers in terms of user numbers. It’s a surprising statistic and one which reveals the almost unassailable popularity of services like Gmail, Yahoo, and Outlook.

Feature-wise, you can expect 1 GB of file storage, a 50 MB attachment limit, and support for both IMAP and POP. Most interestingly, it offers 65 GB of email storage which is enough to never run out of space again. Unfortunately, it lacks an RSS reader and a conversation view.

3. Zoho Mail

Zoho Mail is one of the newest providers on the list. It’s only been in existence since October 2008.

In its short life, the service has quickly developed into one of the best free email providers outside the Gmail, Yahoo, and Outlook troika. Driven by an ad-free web client (even for free users), it’s grown to more than 10 million active users in just nine years.

The app offers everything you’d expect from a free email provider, including multi-level folders, conversation views, drag-and-drop inbox organizing, and filters. Zoho Mail also lets you set up email at your domain for free! One omission is an integrated video chat tool.

Zoho Mail is part of a larger office productivity suite. The service is tightly integrated with Zoho Docs—a Microsoft Office alternative that lets you create, edit, and collaborate on text, presentation, and spreadsheet documents.

4. iCloud

iCloud represents Apple’s venture into free email. Most Mac, iPad, and iPhone users have an account. iCloud itself is a holistic cloud service. It underpins other Apple services such as Find My iPhone, Photo Stream, Keychain, and iCloud Drive. Mail is just one facet of the app.

The app boasts 720 million users, but it’s not clear how many of them are using an @iCloud.com email address.

Like Outlook.com and Microsoft, iCloud integrates seamlessly with the default Apple mail client on both Mac and iOS. On mobile, you can add any number of email providers to the app. On the web client, you can only access your @icloud.com address.

All iCloud users get 5 GB of storage for free. In addition to documents, photos, and other data, any emails you receive count against the limit. As such, you might need to pay for more storage if iCloud is your provider of choice.

Note: There are plenty of other great cloud services for Apple users.

5. AOL Mail

AOL Mail is the granddad of free email services. It went live in March 1993, making it three years older than Hotmail, four years older than Yahoo Mail, and almost ten years older than Gmail.

Because of its age, it has a huge user base. Nevertheless, the numbers have been decreasing in recent years. In 2006, it had 50 million active monthly users, and as recently as 2010 it was the third-largest email provider in the world. Today, the number of active users is down to 25 million.

Just because AOL Mail is a recognizable brand name with millions of users, you shouldn’t necessarily rush to sign up. In recent years, several pieces of research have hinted at “email bias”. Potential employers are less likely to hire you if you have an AOL or Hotmail address; it suggests you’re stuck in 1996.

6. ProtonMail

Although ProtonMail is still a relative newcomer to the world of email, it has quickly grown to become a popular provider thanks to its strong focus on confidentiality. The company was founded at CERN in Switzerland in 2014 and is still incorporated in the country. As such, it benefits from Switerzland’s Federal Data Protection Act and Federal Data Protection Ordinance—both of which provide some of the strongest privacy protections in the world.

More importantly, however, ProtonMail uses client-side encryption to protect the contents of a message before it hits the company’s own servers. Indeed, the way ProtonMail has designed its systems means the company does not have the technical capability to access your messages. That removes the risk that it’ll be forced to hand over the contents of an email to a third-party. It’s a very different approach to the one taken by more mainstream providers like Gmail and Outlook.

Other features include minimal information required at sign-up, no tracking or logging of your sessions, and self-destructing messages.

Which Email Provider Do You Prefer?

We’ve introduced you to six of the most popular email providers other than Gmail and Yahoo. Each has different benefits, but they all have the common theme of being highly popular among certain subsets of users.

If you’d like to learn more about different email providers, check out the best email services for a clutter-free inbox.

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The Best Apple Watch Fitness and Workout Apps to Get You Healthy

Thanks to continual improvements to both hardware and software, the Apple Watch has become one of the best tools for anyone looking to get more healthy and fit. Due to the built-in GPS, heart rate tracker, and other technology, you’ll have a personal fitness trainer right on your wrist.

Each day, you can see how many calories you’ve burned and the amount of exercise you recorded. And the more data the wearable device collects, the more insight it provides.

Here are some great apps for any Apple Watch owner looking to start on the path to a healthier lifestyle.

1. Activity

The Activity app on Apple Watch is the central part of your fitness journey. It’s responsible for your three activity rings which help you reach Move, Exercise, and Stand goals. And those rings from Activity will show up everywhere, from helpful notifications during the day to your favorite Apple Watch face.

When you open the Activity app, you’ll first see the three rings. Scroll down and you’ll find stats like how many steps you have walked, time spent in workouts, and calories burned.

The Activity app on the watch is limited to the day’s activity. Open the Activity app on your iPhone to view more detailed stats. Plus, you’ll also get a detailed breakdown of every workout that you’ve done so far.

2. Workouts

Apple’s built-in Workouts app is well designed and easy to use. Launch the Workouts app and swipe through to see the types of workouts supported.

Depending on your Apple Watch and watchOS version, you’ll see activities like walking, running, swimming, high-intensity workouts, cycling, and a lot more.

The Workouts app supports indoor activities too, which makes the Apple Watch the perfect gym companion. If you’re sweating it out doing a lot of different activities, just select the Other workout type. Your Apple Watch will then track the calories burned based on your movement and heart rate.

3. Nike+ Run Club

Nike+ Run Club calls itself the perfect running partner; this is one of the few times where a tagline is actually true. The Nike+ Run Club app has everything you need when you’re out on your run. You can start by setting a goal or try a guided audio workout. The app will track your pace, distance, time, and heart rate in real-time.

The best aspect of the app is a helpful community. You can take part in weekly and monthly challenges, unlock achievements, compete with leaderboards, and cheer your friends as they’re on the run.

Download: Nike+ Run Club (Free)

4. SmartGym

Heading to the gym is a great way to burn off calories and get fit. But it’s often hard to know where to start, especially for newcomers. SmartGym comes to the rescue—it’s a great way to help make the most of your workout.

The app features more than 250 exercises with images and animations. There are also a number of premade workouts created by professionals to select from, including some HIIT options.

Download: SmartGym (Free, in-app purchases available)

5. Workouts++

After you’ve used the Workouts app a few times, you’ll start seeing its limitations. There’s no way to customize the stats screen and you can’t view any performance graphs. Workouts++ is your answer.

The app has an efficiently designed workouts screen, which provides six stats. You can choose to add the metrics that you care about and leave out the rest.

Download: Workouts++ ($0.99)

6. Pocket Yoga

Roll out your mat anywhere with Pocket Yoga. The app features 27 different yoga sessions of varying duration and difficulty to select from. Altogether, there are more than 200 different poses available to try. Plus, the iPhone app features a dictionary of each pose with a description and the benefits of each.

But instead of trying to fiddle with your phone during a session, the Apple Watch app is a great way to keep track of your workout. On the watch screen, you’ll see the current pose and time remaining. It will also show your heart rate, calories burned, and more.

Download: Pocket Yoga ($2.99)

7. MySwimPro: Swim Workouts

As long as you have an Apple Watch Series 2 or later, you’re ready to hit the pool with the wearable device. MySwimPro: Swim Workouts is a full-featured app focusing on helping you get fit in the water no matter your experience level in the pool. You can load a custom workout or pick from a number of preset options on the Apple Watch.

When in the water, you can see important information like the current workout, what’s coming up next, time in the water, distance swam, heart rate, and more.

Download: MySwimPro: Swim Workouts (Free, subscription available)

8. Pedometer++

If you want a simple way to keep track of steps taken per day, Pedometer++ is the way to go.

It’s a simple utility that records your steps and presents the data as a watch face complication. Add it to your favorite Apple Watch face, then along with your Activity progress, you’ll also be able to see your steps.

Download: Pedometer++ (Free)

9. Strava

Strava is the best app for runners and cyclists. The app’s interface is minimal and to the point, while the community helps you achieve your goals and keeps you motivated. Strava has brought the same design philosophy to its Apple Watch app.

The Apple Watch app has GPS support. Its real-time display shows you the important stats: split, time, distance, and heart rate. If you’re using the Apple Watch Series 2 and above, you can record workouts even without your iPhone. Once you’re back in range, the information will automatically sync with your Strava profile.

Download: Strava (Free, subscription available)

10. MyFitnessPal

MyFitnessPal is the best food tracking app for iPhone. If you’re trying to lose weight by calorie counting or just want to know how much nutrition you’re getting in a day, MyFitnessPal’s Apple Watch companion app will make it easier for you.

The app quickly shows your nutrition facts for the day. This includes how many calories you’ve consumed, your carbohydrate and protein intake, and similar info.

Download: MyFitnessPal (Free, subscription available)

11. Streaks Workout

Streaks Workout provides a quick and easy way to start a workout anywhere.
You can choose from 30 equipment-free workouts. Start with Quick, graduate to the Everyday workout, and hopefully make your way towards the Pain workout.

The app will show animations of the exercises, along with a countdown and your heart rate. You’ll also get tips on how to improve your technique and posture.

Download: Streaks Workout ($3.99)

Getting Fit With an Apple Watch

As you can see, no matter what your road to a healthier lifestyle looks like, there’s an Apple Watch app that should help the journey.

And the wearable device can do so much more. Make sure to check out some fun Apple Watch games and some great Apple Watch apps to make your device even better.

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Find the Fastest DNS to Optimize Your Internet Speed

Google’s Public DNS is a free Domain Name System (DNS). It is an alternative to your ISP’s default DNS settings which aren’t always the fastest option, and other public DNS services such as OpenDNS or the privacy focused 1.1.1.1 DNS.

Which of these options best optimize your internet speed? Is one DNS better than its competitors? And how can you tell if it is? Read on to find out how you find the fastest DNS and optimize your internet speed in the process.

What Is DNS?

The Domain Name System translates a human-readable website name to an IP address. When you enter the name of a website in your browser address bar, your browser sends that name to a DNS server. The DNS server helps route the request to the appropriate IP address of that website.

Each website has an IP address. But the IP address for each site is a long string of numbers and unless you are a mnemonist, you cannot remember the IP address for every site you want to and need to visit.

When your ISP configures your internet connection, it is set to use the ISP’s default DNS. The default ISP DNS settings aren’t automatically bad, but some are known to have connection and frequent name address resolution issues. Furthermore, you are free to use one of the free DNS alternatives.

You want a fast and stable DNS. For some, their DNS should provide extra security and privacy features, too. To find your fastest DNS option, try one of the following free DNS speed tests. Here’s how you change your DNS settings in Windows and how to change your DNS settings on Mac.

1. NameBench

NameBench is an open-source portable application (no installation, you can run it from a USB flash drive) that works on Windows, macOS, and Linux distributions. It runs a DNS benchmark test on your computer using your internet browser history or a standardized test data set. The NameBench DNS test then returns the fastest DNS settings for your location and current connection.

Head to the NameBench code repository and download the latest version of the tool for your operating system. Please note that NameBench ceased development in 2010, so the release dates are correct. Alternatively, use one of the following links.

Download: NameBench for Windows | macOS | Linux (All Free)

How to Use NameBench DNS Test

Before you run NameBench, close any applications using your internet connection. Closing programs using an active connection can distort your NameBench DNS test results.

Open and extract NameBench. The Nameservers you see are the DNS servers you use currently. Keep the default NameBench settings, then hit Start Benchmark. The NameBench DNS test takes 10-20 minutes, so grab a cup of tea and wait for the results.

After the NameBench DNS speed test completes, your browser launches to show your results. The box in the top left shows the fastest DNS server for your current connection. For example, I should switch my primary DNS server to the privacy-focused 1.1.1.1. You can also scroll down your results page to see DNS speed test comparison charts.

2. GRC Domain Name Speed Benchmark

The Gibson Research Corporation Domain Name Speed Benchmark tool provides a detailed analysis of the optimum DNS settings for your connection. Like NameBench, you can run DNS Benchmark from a USB flash drive, requiring no installation. There is a Windows application, but no support for macOS or Linux.

Download: DNS Benchmark for Windows (Free)

How to Use DNS Benchmark

One thing I like about DNS Benchmark is the constantly updating DNS list. As the DNS speed test progresses, the servers with the fastest response move to the top of the list.

Download and open DNS Benchmark, then select the Nameservers tab. Let DNS Benchmark update the list, then select Run Benchmark. The first run through only takes a few minutes. At the end of the first DNS speed test run, however, DNS Benchmark announces that you should create a custom DNS benchmarking list for DNS testing results that accurately reflect your system, connection, and locale. That’s because the default DNS server list heavily favors US-based users.

Building the custom list takes “around 37 minutes.” But the result does provide a much clearer picture of the fastest DNS for your system.

3. DNS Jumper

On first impressions, DNS Jumper appears to be a more basic DNS speed test tool. However, once you start using the DNS Jumper, you’ll notice that it has many similar features to NameBench and DNS Benchmark. For instance, DNS Jumper completes a fastest DNS test, and is portable application, too.

Regarding DNS speed, DNS Jumper has the option to scan for and select the “Fastest DNS.” Once the DNS speed test finishes you can select an option, then use the integrated “Apply DNS” button to use those settings. The DNS Jumper test list has some limitations and does favor US-based DNS providers.

Download: DNS Jumper for Windows (Free)

How to Use DNS Jumper

Download and open DNS Jumper.

First, select your network adapter from the dropdown list. Unsure which network adapter to select? In your Start Menu search bar, input view network status and select the Best Match. Select Change adapter settings from the left column. One of the network adapters will have the name of your current connection underneath the adapter type. Wi-Fi connections will also display a reception bar. Note the name and select the corresponding hardware on the DNS Jumper dropdown list.

Once you have the correct hardware configuration, select Fastest DNS. A new window opens, listing the available DNS speed tests. Keep each selection checked, then hit Start DNS Test. The DNS Jumper test does not take long. When it completes, you can use DNS Jumper to update the DNS settings for your connection automatically.

How Do You Find the Fastest DNS?

Using one of the above DNS speed test tools will help you figure out the best DNS settings for your connection. NameBench and the GRC DNS Benchmark offer the most thorough tests and will give you the most accurate answer regarding DNS speed.

Want to switch between several DNS servers? Check out our guide on how to easily switch between multiple DNS servers.

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Amazon Will Now Donate Unwanted Items to Charity

Amazon is launching an initiative called Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) Donations. This initiative should help support charities while also reducing the amount of waste Amazon sends to landfill. Which is, by all accounts, a rather shocking amount.

Amazon Sends Unwanted Items to Garbage Dumps

According to multiple reports, Amazon is guilty of generating a lot of waste. In May 2019, CBS News reported that one facility sent 293,000 unsold or unwanted products to a garbage dump over the course of nine months.

Part of the problem appears to be that Amazon charges more to send returned or unsold products back to sellers than it does to trash them. With CNBC claiming it costs sellers 50 cents to have a product returned but 15 cents to have a product trashed.

How Fulfillment by Amazon Donations Works

Amazon’s answer to this problem is Fulfillment by Amazon Donations. Which, in a post on The Day One Blog, Amazon describes as a program “where eligible excess and returned products from sellers using FBA will be made available to charitable organizations”.

UPS Stores have basically become the Return-your-crap-to-Amazon-Store.

— Joe Pardavila (@joepardavila) August 12, 2019

Starting in September 2019, Amazon will start donating products from sellers using FBA. These products, whether returned items or unwanted stock, will be donated to charitable organizations located in the US and the UK.

These charities include Good360, “a global leader in product philanthropy and purposeful giving,” plus Newlife, the Salvation Army, and Barnardo’s. Fulfillment by Amazon Donations will be the default option for FBA sellers, though they can opt out if they want.

Alice Shobe, Director of Amazon in the Community, said, “We know getting products into the hands of those who need them transforms lives and strengthens local communities. We are delighted to extend this program to sellers who use our fulfillment services.”

We Need to Cut Down on Electronic Waste

This is a good effort by Amazon which should have a positive effect. Charities will get to make use of perfectly good products which would have otherwise ended up in landfill. Which is an even better outcome than recycling electronic waste.

Image Credit: Kurt Bauschardt/Flickr

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6 Ways Your Email Address Can Be Exploited by Scammers

How to Watch English Premier League Games Online

The English Premier League is the most-watched sports league in the world. Games are shown live in 212 territories, and billions of people watch at least one game.

Different networks and streaming apps hold the rights to broadcast the games live across the world. So in this article we tell you how to watch English Premier League games online.

We’ll help you watch English Premier League games in the UK, US, Canada, Australia, Germany, and India. All legally, but not for free. Because free streams are generally illegal.

How to Watch the English Premier League in the UK

In the UK, three providers share the TV rights: Sky, BT, and Amazon.

Sky will broadcast the majority of the games, showing 128 live matches over the course of the season. BT has the rights to 42 games, while Amazon has the entire round of Boxing Day fixtures along with the mid-week round of matches on 3rd/4th/5th December.

If you subscribe to Sky’s satellite service, you’ll have access to the Sky Go app. It is available to all users for no extra cost and includes the 11 Sky Sports channels.

Non-Sky subscribers can sign up for NOW TV. The online streaming service is a subsidiary of Sky. It offers access to all 11 Sky Sports channels for £33.99/month via its Sky Sports Month Pass. There is no contract, and you can cancel any time. You can also buy a day pass (£9) and a week pass (£15) if there are only a couple of games you want to watch.

To watch the games on Amazon, it is simple as signing up for Amazon Prime. It costs £7.99/month.

The situation with BT is more complicated. You can only watch the games via the BT app if you’re a BT Mobile user or if you receive your broadband from BT. If you don’t meet the prerequisites, you’ll need to sign up via Sky or BT TV and will only be able to watch on your television.

How to Watch the English Premier League in the US

Premier League TV rights in the US have bounced around a few different networks in recent years. NBC has the exclusive rights to all 380 games, with a deal that runs until the end of the 2022 season.

Approximately 65 percent of the games are available on NBC’s suite of channels (typically, NBCSN, CNBC, and USA). The remaining 35 percent are on a paid service called Premier League Pass; it costs $39.99/month. There are also one or two games per weekend on NBC’s Spanish-language channels, Telemundo and Universo.

If you’re a cord cutter who wants to watch Premier League online, you can subscribe to any of the streaming services that carry NBC. It is available on most premium platforms, including Sling Blue ($25/month), FuboTV ($55/month), DirecTV ($50/month), Hulu ($45/month), and YouTube TV ($50/month). A subscription with any of the services also lets you log into NBC’s standalone sports streaming app.

Sadly, the games on Premier League Pass are not available on any streaming app; you will have to pay separately.

Note: See our detailed comparison of the best live TV streaming services in the US.

How to Watch the English Premier League in Canada

In Canada, DAZN holds the exclusive rights to all 380 games in the 2019/20 Premier League season.

Although the DAZN sports package is available through various cable providers, you can also subscribe on a standalone basis, thus making the service extremely cord cutter friendly. A subscription costs $20/month, and you can cancel any time. A discounted price of $150/year is available if you sign up for 12 months.

In addition to the English Premier League, DAZN also carries the Champions League, Europa League, English Championship, and many more global soccer tournaments. You even get the NFL, Six Nations rugby, boxing, MLB, tennis, cycling, and darts. If your sports interests extend beyond soccer, $20/month is a steal.

How to Watch the English Premier League in Australia

In Australia, Optus sports has held the English Premier League broadcast rights since 2016. The current deal runs until 2022. All 380 games are screened.

Like DAZN, Optus is available through local cable providers and can also be subscribed to individually.

If you’re an existing Optus users (either through mobile, TV, or broadband) you can add Optus sports to your package for between $0 and $10/month, depending on your current plan. If you are not an existing Optus customer, you can pay $14.99/month and watch the games via the company’s Android and iOS mobile apps.

In addition to the live games, you’ll also get a mountain of highlights shows, analysis, and other sports content for you to dig into.

How to Watch the English Premier League in Germany

Sky Deutschland is the new Premier League rights holder in Germany. It beat the previous holder, DAZN, in the last round of bidding.

Unfortunately, that means there is no easy way to stream the English Premier League games if you’re a cord cutter. There is no equivalent of the NOW TV service that’s available in the UK.

If you’re a Sky Deutschland subscriber, you can watch all the games via the Sky Go app. It is available free of charge to all of its customers.

How to Watch the English Premier League in India

Star Sports is the exclusive holder of the rights to the English Premier League in India. The company will screen 250 matches on its TV channels. If you want access to all 380 games, you’ll need to sign up for its official streaming app, Hotstar.

You do not need to be an existing Star Sports subscriber to sign up for a Hotstar plan. You can pay INR299/month on a rolling monthly basis or grab a discounted plan for INR999/year if you sign up for 12 months. If you subscribe to the yearly plan, you will have to wait until the next billing cycle before you can cancel.

Like many other providers, Star Sports also has broadcast rights for dozens of other sports and tournaments, including the Indian Premier League, F1, athletics, golf, swimming, and boxing.

Use a VPN to Mask Your Location

If you live in a country in which the English Premier League games are not available on a streaming service, you could use a VPN to create an account and tune in. Just remember that you’ll be breaking the provider’s terms of service and thus risk having your account canceled without warning and without a refund.

If you’re looking for a quality VPN provider, we recommend ExpressVPN or CyberGhost.

Learn More About Streaming Live Sports Online

The nature of IPTV streaming services means sports events are becoming increasingly fragmented between various providers. So, be sure to read our article listing the best live sports streaming apps to help you narrow down the options.

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The 7 Best Video Converter Apps for macOS

For a long time, video was something most people only watched on TV or a computer. You certainly didn’t have to move video files around from device to device, unless you were some sort of video professional.

But these days, we live in a more video-centric world. Because of this, you may occasionally or even frequently need to convert video from one format to another. Fortunately, if you use a Mac, there are plenty of video converters to choose from.

1. QuickTime

You won’t find many people saying QuickTime is the most full-featured video converter available, because it isn’t. That said, the app earns a place on this list for two reasons. First, the app is already installed on your Mac. And second, despite its appearance as a mild-mannered video player, QuickTime is the video equivalent of a Swiss Army knife.

QuickTime can perform minor edits on videos (like trimming the length), as well as converting video between a few different formats. We’ve even shown how to use QuickTime to record your screen before. In short, it’s a powerful tool hidden behind an unassuming exterior.

However, it doesn’t support as many formats as other converters on this list. You can save in either MP4 or HEVC format; that’s it. If you aren’t sure where to start, you might try QuickTime before you install anything else.

Download: QuickTime (Free)

2. HandBrake

Perhaps the best-known app for the job, HandBrake has had some issues in the past. For a few years, the app’s development slowed to a crawl and the project seemed abandoned. In the early 2010s, development resumed in earnest; in 2017 the app finally hit version 1.0. That’s good news, as it’s one of the most powerful converters you’ll find.

HandBrake offers so much functionality that it may overwhelm you. Fortunately, it also offers plenty of presets so you may never need to dive that deep. Combine this with the ability to squeeze 4K video down to incredibly small file sizes without much or any apparent loss in quality, and it’s tough to beat. Did we mention that it’s free?

Download: HandBrake (Free)

3. Any Video Converter

If HandBrake’s options interest you but you find its complexity daunting, Any Video Converter is worth a look. The app is easier to use upfront, yet still packed with features and functionality. Thus, if you’re a beginner to the world of video, Any Video Converter is one of the best places to start.

The app supports many different formats, letting you convert video for easy playback on your iPhone, iPad, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, or Android device.

Download: Any Video Converter (Free)

4. Permute

If you’re willing to pay a little more for an app that’s even easier to use and feels like an app designed for macOS, Permute is a great option. Its interface is among the most streamlined and polished you’ll find in this category. Permute also features support for newer macOS feature additions, such as dark mode.

Permute makes good use of your Mac’s hardware to make conversion even faster for file formats like MP4 and HEVC. If you’re converting video you shot with your iPhone, this can be a major time-saver. Permute costs $15, but you can take the free trial for a spin to make sure you like the app enough first.

Download: Permute ($14.99, free trial available)

5. Compressor

With so many other capable video converters available either for free or a low price, there aren’t many reasons to pay $50 for Apple’s Compressor app. That said, if you frequently edit video with Apple’s Final Cut Pro X or Apple Motion software, the price tag for Compressor may be worth it for the time it saves.

Final Cut Pro X has a few conversion options, and you can always use another converter like HandBrake. That said, since Compressor is an Apple product, you’re not going to find another piece of conversion software that integrates as well with Final Cut Pro.

If you do a lot of editing in that app, Compressor is worth it. For everyone else, consider another option from these choices.

Download: Compressor ($49.99)

6. ffmpegX

If you’ve looked into video conversion, you might have heard of the ffmpeg command line tools. They’re free and incredibly powerful, but they’re also far from user-friendly. To solve this, ffmpegX takes those command line tools combines their power with the relative ease of use of a graphical user interface.

Just because ffmpegX has a GUI, that doesn’t mean it’s too simple. There are plenty of different settings and configuration options, meaning this still isn’t a beginner-oriented tool.

If you’ve tried some of the other options and find they aren’t configurable enough, give ffmpegX a try. You might find it’s exactly what you’ve been looking for. It’s old and increasingly out of date, but it still works.

Download: ffmpegX (Free)

7. CloudConvert

There are cases where you might need to convert a video file, but you can’t install any software on your computer. You might have a few different reasons for this. A strict IT department at your company is the most likely reason, but you also may be out of hard drive space or simply reluctant to install a converter when you only need to convert a single file. In that case, you might want to try CloudConvert.

As the name implies, CloudConvert doesn’t convert videos on your computer. Instead, you upload the file and the service converts it in the cloud. You can convert all sorts of files (not just video) but there are a few downsides. One is that you’ll need to upload files to convert, then download them, which wastes time and bandwidth. The other issue is that to convert files over 1GB in size, you’ll need to sign up for a subscription.

Still, in a pinch, this could help you out if you can’t access other apps for the job.

Visit: CloudConvert (Free, subscriptions available)

Do You Need to Go Beyond Converting?

Have you looked over these tools and concluded that none of them meet your needs? Depending on what you’re looking to do, you may be better off with a full-fledged video editor. Many, but not all, of these have at least basic conversion tools built in, while also allowing you to trim and split video.

Of course, video editors are also more expensive. Some have free trials available, but you should be careful not to spend hard-earned money on a tool that won’t do the job. If you’re not sure where to start, take a look at our list of the best free video editors for Mac.

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