Compare Our Top Picks More Sound Machines We Like Baby Brezza Sleep and Soother for $30: This is super light, can run on batteries or be plugged in, and has 18 sleep sounds and three timer options (or it plays continuously). There’s also a night light with three brightness levels. Yogasleep Hushh 2 Portable Sound…
Comparing Our Favorite Smart Displays More Smart Displays We Like Echo Hub for $180: The Echo Hub isn’t exactly a smart display. It lacks powerful speaker capabilities and doesn’t have a camera for calls or Amazon’s Drop-In video call feature. Instead, it focuses entirely on being a smart home dashboard with built-in Alexa, plus features…
What it is: A microscopic fungus that lives both outdoors and in, mold spreads via tiny airborne spores that can grow on almost any damp surface. Over a thousand types have been found in U.S. homes, according to the nonprofit National Center for Healthy Housing. Some mold (and mildew, another type of fungus) can cause…
The original version of this story appeared in Quanta Magazine. When Todd Sacktor was about to turn 3, his 4-year-old sister died of leukemia. “An empty bedroom next to mine. A swing set with two seats instead of one,” he said, recalling the lingering traces of her presence in the house. “There was this missing…
Our experts say that a handheld leaf blower will work well for most people, especially if you’ve got a modest yard with only a few leafy trees. Battery handheld blowers now make up the lion’s share of models that CR tests, and they’re a particularly good choice because they are lighter weight and quieter than…
Bottom-freezers—as well as top-freezers—typically take up less space than other configurations. Bottom-freezers start at 24 inches wide and go up to 33 inches, making them suitable for a tight space. Our most recent surveys of CR members found that bottom-freezers tend to offer better reliability than some other types, too. For example, LG French-doors receive…
Will a carpet cleaner be worth it for you? Our carpet cleaner recommendations range in price from about $100 to a little over $500. Although the initial cost of buying a carpet cleaner can be higher than a one-time rental or service, after a few uses owning a carpet cleaner generally ends up being more…
SundaysA majority of football action takes place on Sunday, starting on Sept. 7. Early and late afternoon games are split between CBS and Fox, while NBC airs a “Sunday Night Football” game. You can watch all those games on the regular cable channels or you can stream them. The CBS games are available on the…
Up through 2010, you could use your FSA money to purchase medications over-the-counter (OTC). The Affordable Care Act changed that rule, so that starting in 2011, you needed a doctor’s prescription in order to use your FSA for OTC drugs. Thanks to the CARES Act, that’s no longer the case. So you can now use…
Close your eyes, think for a minute, and tell me: What is a Netflix Movie? OK, try again: What is a Netflix Show? Sure, it’s easy to rattle off some killer titles—KPop Demon Hunters, Stranger Things—but Netflix has never really had a brand identity. It’s not, like Disney, the home of Star Wars and Mickey…