The other day on my national radio show, I mentioned that the average American drops $110 a month on streaming services. Add another $80+ for a solid internet connection, and suddenly old-school cable doesn’t look so bad.
My inbox lit up with folks asking, “Kim, how can I lower my streaming bills?” I’m willing to bet you’re paying for stuff you’re not even watching. Let’s fix that.
So, how many streaming services are you paying for right now? Netflix? Hulu? Disney+? Max? Peacock? Oh, throw in Prime Video because you have Amazon Prime. Before you know it, you’re spending more than you ever did on cable.
Step 1: Pull up your bank or credit card statement. Not all the charges will be obvious. Look for:
Pro tip: I use Rocket Money* to do this for me. It scans your accounts, flags subscriptions and cancels the ones you forgot about. So easy.
Step 2: Open your phone or smart TV to check which apps you actually use. If it’s been more than a month since you watched, unsubscribe. You can always rejoin later. Most don’t even erase your watch history.
Do what I do and rotate services. If you’re watching a Netflix series now, cancel the rest. Come back later when your binge list is long enough to justify the cost.
Why pay when there are so many free, legit options with great content? There are ads, but free is free!
We may earn a commission from purchases, but our recommendations are always objective.
Good news if you have an Aura frame: It’ll keep auto-syncing with Google Photos after all. ICYMI, the feature was supposed to shut off this month, but Aura’s working with Google to keep it going. They make great gifts for grandparents. You can remotely share new pics.
We may earn a commission from purchases, but our recommendations are always objective.
Shares of Primo Brands after Saratoga water went viral. The hype started when fitness influencer Ashton Hall dunked his head in a bowl of it for his morning routine. Now, 100 million views later, folks are rushing to buy it and bananas since he rubs the peels on his face.
🔥 I like big bots, and I cannot lie: Nearly 2 million people have turned to ChatGPT for advice on sex and spicing things up in the bedroom. Hey, if it works … who am I to judge? From pillow talk to playful ideas, even AI is getting in on the action. 💋
China preparing for a space war: This is sci-fi for real. China’s testing satellites that perform tricky, close-range maneuvers, like dogfighting between fighter jets. China says they’re for “space environment monitoring,” but uhm, one model apparently has a robotic arm (paywall link). It could be used to attack other satellites!
🚨 Red alert for Androids: Be careful what you download. Hackers are using a tool called .NET MAUI to create what look like legit banking, dating and social media apps. They spread through texts and shady links instead of the Google Play Store. Always stick to the official app store, and keep your OS updated. Mahalo!
To live on cruise ships full-time. A couple in their 50s sold their home in 2022 to explore the world. So far, they’ve been on 29 cruises (paywall link). Budgeting tip from the pros: They book six months in advance for the best prices. Maybe it’s time for you to get ship faced and a little nauti. 🛳️
🐟 Ding-dong, it’s fishy: This is cool. You can help fish migrate through canals in the Netherlands. If you spot one on this underwater camera, press the “fish doorbell” to let them swim safely through the key lock. Last year, about 9.3 million people visited the site and rang the bell over 40,000 times. Let minnow if you see a fish. I haven’t.
Know a consultant? Give them a hug. The days of paying someone for data analysis, document summaries and reports are dead. AI can do all that, much cheaper. A Deloitte exec says the only way to make money in consulting now is to think like an engineer and call yourself a “technologist.” Share that with a consultant you know.
📷 Not just for tracking steps: The Apple Watch looks like it will get a camera to “see” the world using AI-enabled visual intelligence (paywall link). That means you could scan a flyer to add an event to your calendar or look up a restaurant on the spot. ETA? 2027.
Sometimes life is eye-ronic: Google’s AI assistant Gemini can now “see” and use your camera in real time. Point it at your dying houseplant for tips on how to save it, or ask what is the water dripping from your car’s engine. (I did that, and it was 100% right!) It costs $20/month to use it. ChatGPT does the same for $20/month, too.
Remember Ruby Franke? She’s an evil mommy vlogger who went to prison last year for abusing and starving her kids. New laws are in the works to stop parents from using their kids for clicks. If a parent makes over $150K a year from family content, they must put some money into a trust (paywall link). Once kids hit 18, they can ask for old videos to be taken down. About time.
All it takes is a few hundred bucks: Sites like China’s Temu sell cheap drone accessories that can turn them into DIY weapons. We’re talking AI-guided cameras that recognize people and vehicles, and cargo holders that can carry explosives. Seriously frightening.
🧬 23andMe filed for bankruptcy: I’ve been warning you about this for years. They’re selling off what they can to pay the bills, and that includes your personal info and genetic data. Delete your account ASAP before someone gets your DNA. Go to Profile > Settings > 23andMe Data > View > Delete Data, then confirm the deletion via email.
How many people we thought were on Earth. Researchers studied 35 years of data and say we’ve been underestimating rural populations by 53% to 84%. Turns out people are a lot harder to count when they don’t live near a Census office.
🍫 A real-life Willy Wonka show? Yep, Netflix is casting for a new reality competition series inspired by Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. It’s called The Golden Ticket, and contestants face wild games and temptations in a retro-futuristic dreamscape. The best part? You can apply now. I just got over my addiction to chocolate, marshmallows and nuts. It was a Rocky Road. (I saw you smile!)
Samsung broke your soundbar: And they know it. A bad software update they pushed last week left a bunch of soundbars unresponsive and inaccessible. It gets worse: It’s so severe, it can only be fixed with a physical repair. Samsung’s offering to fix it for free, even if you’re out of warranty. The least they can do.
🐱 Meow you’re talking: Scientists are building the world’s largest cat database to figure out why our feline friends act the way they do. Just send in a fur sample, fill out a survey about your cat’s behavior and give a $150 donation. The team will analyze the DNA and look for links between genetics, personality and health. Want in? Sign up here.
StubHub is going public: The ticket resale marketplace just filed to list on the New York Stock Exchange. Even though it pulled in $1.77 billion in revenue in 2024, it still posted a loss of $2.8 million. (How does that happen?) Anyway, wondering who else is lining up to go public? Keep an eye on CoreWeave, Klarna and Hinge Health.
