💾 Don’t risk it: One crash, one spilled coffee, and everything’s gone. Family photos, tax documents, the works. That’s why I trust Carbonite, my #1 choice for cloud backup. It quietly protects your files in the background and restores them with a single click. Save 50% now at carbonite.com/kim.
Holiday gift guide: Unwrap the presents everyone wants
ChatGPT
Google just dropped its 2025 Holiday 100, aka what everyone wants this season. I dug past the hype to find the gadgets, gear and glam that are actually worth your cash. But don’t wait until December. Many are bound to sell out sooner than later.
Not feeling festive yet? Scroll past all the great gifts to the Web Watercooler section to find out who Apple’s paying $1 billion a year to stop Siri from embarrassing herself.
🎧 Noise-canceling headphones (23% off)
Built for the long haul. With a comfy over-ear fit, mic for video calls and up to 70 hours of playtime, you can fly from New York to Tokyo without recharging once.
Portable smart projector (28% off)
The first mini projector with Roku built in. Connect it to Wi-Fi and stream in full 1080p. Watch a whopping 150-inch screen. I got one like this for Barry’s kids last year, and they use it all the time.
💇♀️ Hot air styler (18% off)
One tool, five styles. It dries, brushes, curls and smooths in one sleek package. Bonus: an oval head for volume and a round attachment for shaping. I get salon results at home.
Skin care tool set (20% off)
Your five-minute glow-up kit. Get a massage, cold therapy, lymphatic drainage and headache relief for under $13. Use promo code KITSCHSAVE10 for an extra 10% off. Every woman will love this, really.
🧳 Duo leather bag (30% off)
Save $90 on a chic Kate Spade. Wear it around your body, on your shoulder, as a belt or as a clutch with a removable pouch. Versatile = stylish.
We may earn a commission from purchases, but our recommendations are always objective.
Siri’s billion-dollar brain donor: Apple did what every proud parent swears they’d never do: asked Google for help. They’re reportedly paying a billion dollars a year to plug Gemini AI into Siri. Yep, $1 billion to stop saying, “I didn’t quite catch that.” Supposedly, she’ll get better at summarizing, planning and pretending to care what you said. Update hits next spring.
Pick your start page: On Chrome, set your browser to open your favorite website every time it launches. Go to Settings > On startup > Open a specific page or set of pages > Add a new page. Type in a URL like komando.com and hit Add. Next time you open Chrome, you’ll get the latest tech news right away.
The 24/7 AI camera network spying on you
Flock cameras, installed by HOAs, apartments, and local businesses, are live feeds police can access anytime. Privacy red flag? Think so. Plus, Neil DeGrasse Tyson deepfakes, Kim K’s AI legal drama, and tap-to-pay scams. I also give advice to Jane from Atlanta who asks: how can I help businesses tap into AI?
Love at first chat: Elon Musk’s latest side quest? A hyper-sexualized chatbot named Ani, developed by his xAI team, reportedly under his direct supervision. The Wall Street Journal says staff were told to hand over facial and voice data for “AI avatars,” with no real way to opt out. And get this: Ani strips when flirted with. So, another casual Tuesday at xAI.
Speaking of videos: If you have a lot of clips taking up space on your PC or Mac, try HandBrake. It’s free and easy to use. Drag and drop a file, choose where to save it, then pick a preset like Fast 1080p30 and click Start Encode.
⚡️ 3-second tech genius: On YouTube, you can bookmark videos so you don’t forget about them. Tap the Save button below any video and choose Watch later. When you’re ready to catch up, go to You > Playlists to find them all.
⚠️ Copy. Paste. Regret: I read about ClickFix again, this malware that uses fake videos to detect your OS, copy malicious commands to your clipboard, then pressure you with a countdown to paste them. If a site tells you to paste something into a command prompt, close your browser.
Facebook made $16 billion off scam ads
Why can’t Meta stop the fraud? Easy. It probably doesn’t want to. Hear how it made billions off scam ads last year. Plus, the Musk-Altman feud and a big Google Maps update. Then I talk to caller Byron, who says scammers drugged him and used facial recognition to unlock his phone. Scary!
The rise of the ‘infinite workday’
What time did you really log off last night? 8 p.m.? 10 p.m.? If you feel like you’re never off, you’re not imagining it. Plus, caller Steven wants to vet who his kid’s dating. Can he run a secret background check? Also: your boss’s phone gripe, Whole Foods goes processed, and a pricey laundry-folding bot.
A family used AI to fight a $195,000 hospital bill (and won)
Claude AI flagged bad billing codes and duplicate charges, dropping the tally to $33K. Plus, Shaq’s car got hacked, Taco Bell broke the drive-thru record and why the rich are skipping hotels. Then I talk to caller Joseph, who’s looking for his estranged son with GPS.
Gen Z’s secret to better online dates
Skip the swiping. The new move is checking someone’s Facebook history before you even say hi.
Find the neighborhood cameras tracking your car
Want to know who’s watching your driveway? I’ll walk you through the easy ways to map nearby cameras.
🎧 Better sound, smarter gift: Raycon’s Black Friday and Cyber Monday sale is live with up to 40% off everything. The Everyday Earbuds give you premium audio, 32-hour battery life and active noise cancellation that actually works. I use mine on calls, walks and everywhere in between. Save now at BuyRaycon.com/Kim.
📩 Gmail icons explained: Those tiny icons above your emails can be confusing. Switch them to plain text, so it’s clear what each one does. Go to See all settings > General > Button labels, change it to Text, then click Save changes. You’ll now see words like Archive, Delete and Mark as unread.
🛋️ Browsing Facebook Marketplace? You might’ve noticed the algorithm showing items that sold weeks ago. To see what’s actually available, go to Marketplace on desktop, search for what you want, and under Filters, set Date listed to Last 7 days. Oh, and folks, if a profile says it “joined in 2025,” that’s not a seller, it’s a setup.
🐾 Dog 2.0: Tom Brady said his new dog, Junie, is a clone of his old one. He used a blood sample from his late pitbull mix, Lua, and had a biotech company recreate her. These companies usually charge around $50K to clone a doggo. I mean, I get it, losing a pet wrecks you, but cloning? I’m drawing the line before Jurassic Bark.
Attention, scroll at ease: Remember that old-school Uncle Sam “I Want You” Army poster? The 2025 version is the Army on TikTok. That’s right, they’ve tapped eight soldiers with big followings to show real life in uniform, romanticizing the gym fails, the 4 a.m. wake-ups, even the “mandatory fun days.” Their posts hit 40 million views, but the program’s on pause for an ethics review.
🌙 Give your eyes a break: If you’re on your Windows PC late at night, that blue glare can make it harder to fall asleep. Go to Settings > System > Display and toggle on Night light. From there, you can adjust the strength to make it warmer or schedule the hours it turns on automatically.