VOCs and Other Toxic Chemicals in Mattresses: What to Know

In a nationally representative January 2023 CR survey (PDF) of 2,088 U.S. adults, 12 percent said that one of the three most important features for them when buying a mattress is whether it comes with a label stating that its materials are not harmful to humans. But labels about chemicals in mattresses can be confusing,…

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Car Recall Guide: Your Questions Answered

Today, owners can sometimes fix a recall themselves through an over-the-air software update. Automakers including Ford, GM, Mercedes-Benz, and Tesla have previously used over-the-air updates to address product recalls. The process is just like updating a phone or computer. If a physical repair is needed, it can take weeks after an initial recall announcement for…

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Best Beach Tents

Pop-up beach tents are designed for those who lack the time, patience, or confidence to build one. Companies market them as easy to assemble and disassemble in mere seconds. Spoiler alert: They’re all lying.  To help you choose the best beach canopy for your needs, we evaluated four best-selling beach tents so that you don’t…

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Our Favorite Compact Soundbar Is $100 Off

If your current TV speakers aren’t impressing you, the easiest way to upgrade your movie night is with a sound bar. Our favorite compact option, where you might have limited space or a smaller room, is the Bose Smart Soundbar. It’s currently marked down to $400 at retailers like Amazon and Best Buy, a discount…

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How to Turn Off Smart TV Snooping Features

Google says the Google TV platform itself doesn’t use ACR technology to capture specific content that’s being watched. However, individual TV brands may do so, and they have their own privacy policies and user agreements in place. While Google might not employ ACR, it does collect data from TVs that use its smart TV platform—and…

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Sam Altman Says the GPT-5 Haters Got It All Wrong

OpenAI’s August launch of its GPT-5 large language model was somewhat of a disaster. There were glitches during the livestream, with the model generating charts with obviously inaccurate numbers. In a Reddit AMA with OpenAI employees, users complained that the new model wasn’t friendly, and called for the company to restore the previous version. Most…

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How to Choose the Right Vacuum for the Job

These lightweight tools (most weigh under 10 pounds) are much more powerful than they used to be. But their cleaning prowess still can’t match an upright or canister (especially on carpet), so they’re better for targeted tasks. They’re good enough that if you live in a small space with mostly hard-surface floors, a top model…

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