Hey, Louis, this is for you: He wrote to ask me for help with a Pixel Watch because there’s no manual online. I found ya the link. If you need it, Samsung Watch manual here and hit this link for Apple Watch.
Carmakers will charge for anything, including your safety
New cars are basically snazzy computers on wheels, packing 1,000 to 3,000 processors. That means we get all kinds of great features, but that’s not all — the more complex our cars get, the more at risk we are. I’m not talking about theft; I mean remote carjacking … or worse.
Picture this: Someone with enough skill and bad intentions could stop your car while you’re driving it. Want a car with all the features, security, safety and otherwise? Get ready to shell out cash on top of your lease or car payment.
🚗 Pulling one over on you
Paying extra for add-ons when you buy a car is nothing new. But these subscription costs will have you laughing, groaning or rolling your eyes.
- BMW offers a dashcam function for $19 monthly or $430 for the vehicle’s life. You can buy a pretty sweet dashcam for 40% off.
- Cadillac’s hands-free driving system will run you $25 a month or $250 a year.
- Ford’s BlueCruise driving system is even pricier, at $49.99 monthly or $495 annually. Unless you drive lots on highways, don’t waste your money.
- Mercedes charges you $60 per month or $600 yearly to get from 0 mph to 60 mph one second faster.
- Porsche will help protect your vehicle from theft … for $280 annually.
- Toyota wants $80 a year or $8 a month just for remote start.
Do you really own your car if you’ve gotta pay a subscription to unlock its features? It isn’t just the fancy bells and whistles.
They put a price on protection
Charging a subscription to go faster is one thing, but charging for an important safety feature? That’s shady.
Automatic crash notification, or ACN, uses your car’s built-in communication tools or a paired phone to notify emergency services in case of a crash. This can save your life if you’re knocked unconscious or otherwise unable to make the call yourself.
Some manufacturers include ACN for free, while others expect you to fork over as much as $180 a year. If you don’t pay, you lose it. Despicable.
- One-year free trial or less: Acura (Security package tier), Honda, Hyundai, Infiniti, Nissan (2023 and older) and Toyota.
- Three-year free trial: Genesis, Nissan (2024 and newer) and Subaru.
- Five-year free trial: Kia, Mitsubishi, Ram and Volkswagen.
- Free: Audi, Ford, Jaguar, Land Rover, Lincoln, Mazda, Mercedes, Polestar (active warranty), Porsche (active warranty) and Volvo.
Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep, Lexus and Ram give you 10 years without charges — not bad. Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet and GMC all offer eight years free.
We may receive a commission when you buy through our links, but our reporting and recommendations are always independent and objective.
Fitness apps are selling your privacy – how to protect your data
♻️ Restart your phone: The National Security Agency says you should restart it once a week at the minimum. It sounds like a no-brainer, but it works to combat zero-click exploits where a hacker can get in simply by sending you the right code.
Delete programs you don’t use: On a Windows PC, click the Start menu button and look for the app or program. Press and hold (or right-click) on it and select Uninstall. On a Mac, click the Finder icon in your dock, then Applications. Drag the program you’re done with to the Trash.
New LinkedIn AI: Job hunters will now see whether applying to a position is worth the time. If you’re hiring, LinkedIn acts as your free recruiter to send along candidates who’d rock it at your company. Use my link to post a job for free.
🔬 AI tool to try: Consensus is an AI-powered search engine trained on over 200 million research papers. Want to know more about a study? Search by keywords like “vitamin C and health,” or ask questions like, “How long should I walk every day?” With a free account, you’ll get unlimited searches and 10 AI reports per month. This isn’t an ad; I just think it’s neat!
Strikethrough made simple: Need to cross out something in a Google Doc? On a PC, press Alt + Shift + 5. On a Mac, it’s Cmd + Shift + X. If you don’t like saving time, it’s in the Format menu under Text.
Be the smart one at work: Download NetSuite’s free knowledge e-book, “The CFO’s Guide to AI and Machine Learning.” No matter what you do, you should know more about AI. It’s not going anywhere.
📶 No bars: When your cell service is wonky, switch your phone to Airplane mode, wait a few seconds, then change it back. This will reconnect you to the nearest cell tower. Share that with a friend and they’ll think you’re a tech genius.
When the Netflix trailer spoils the ending: They autoplay without warning as soon as you open the app, like a Pandora’s box. Turn ‘em off. Click your account name > Manage Profiles, and press the pencil icon next to the profile you want to edit. Then, scroll to Autoplay Controls and uncheck Autoplay Previews While Browsing On All Devices.
📊 AI can format data how you want: The trick is knowing what to prompt. There are so many more types of charts than I remember in school. You can also ask ChatGPT, “What type of chart or graph would work more effectively to display this info?”
Windows 10 and 11 update: Patch Tuesday is the monthly bug cleanup. This one fixes eight zero-day flaws and 159 others. Go to Start > Settings > Update & Security > Windows Update and hit Check for updates.
Don’t wait another day: I was reviewing my life insurance coverage and wanted to pass this along. With Fabric by Gerber Life, you can get term life insurance in minutes with no health exam required. There’s no risk, a 30-day money-back guarantee, and you can cancel at any time. Plus, Fabric has an A+ rating with the Better Business Bureau.
Travel hack: Sunday is the best day to book. The cheapest days of the week to fly are Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday — we’re talking 13% to 20% cheaper than if you fly on Friday, Saturday or Sunday.
🔋 Battery-saving tip: Background App Refresh lets apps update in the background so they’re always ready when you open them. Handy, right? But it drains your battery and data. If your older phone is chugging, try turning off this feature. On iPhone, go to Settings > General > Background App Refresh and switch it off for some apps or completely. On Android, head to Settings > Apps > [app name] > Battery > Background Activity and turn it off for specific apps.
Too long; won’t read: Eight sentences or longer, and 57% of people skim or ignore parts of your email. Pro tip: Put the most important info in the first line or write in bullet points to save time.
One bad click is all it takes: Hackers have so many ways to weasel into your system. EndpointLock encrypts your keystrokes when you enter usernames, account numbers and passwords so no one can copy and steal them. It’s genius. Hit this link for 10% off.
Teleportation: Two monitors are a game-changer, but it’s easy to lose track of your windows and feel a little disorganized. Here’s a handy shortcut to instantly move an open window to another monitor. On Windows, press the Windows key + Shift + the left arrow or right arrow. Mac pals, sorry, but it’s easy to just drag a window over with your mouse!
🖼️ AI image remixing tool: Google’s Whisk lets you create prompts with images instead of words. Open Whisk and drop in three photos for your subject, scene and style. Roll the dice (upper-right corner), and you’ll have your creation. If it’s not right, hover over your image and click Refine (upper-left corner) to edit it. Let me know what you create!