Boilers are far less common than gas furnaces, and that’s reflected in the responses to Consumer Reports’ most recent survey on central heating. Our members installed 1,791 new boilers between 2009 and 2025, compared with more than 34,000 gas furnaces. But just like a furnace, when a boiler breaks, you want it repaired—or replaced—ASAP. Forty-two…
Ask About Time-of-Use PlansContact your electricity provider to ask whether it charges different prices for power at different times of the day. If it does, try to avoid using energy-guzzlers such as dishwashers and clothes dryers during peak hours, when the rates may be highest. What you might save will vary by the time of…
Five member countries are already experimenting with the solution this year, but they don’t all seem to be on the same page. It was pointed out at the press conference that France and Denmark are far ahead, while Greece, Spain, and Italy are lagging. This is why some experts are skeptical that the digital wallet…
Compare Our Top Shower Filter Systems Honorable Mention Shower Filters Photograph: Matthew Korfhage HigherDose Red Light Shower Filter for $599: The HigherDose Red Light Shower Filter (6/10, WIRED Reviewed) is, in some ways, the most intriguing shower filter idea I’ve encountered in the past year: It incorporates a ring of lights, delivering dual red and…
There are a few things to consider when shopping this time of year: Dealerships tend to be more eager to move leftover models (2025s) now because they have likely been financing them for a while, and they are eager to make way for the 2026s. This is to the shopper’s advantage, if 2025s are available….
Lightweight strollers offer a huge advantage if you frequently go up and down stairs—if you live in an apartment building, for instance—or if you make frequent transfers into and out of a car. You also may not want to maneuver something heavy and bulky (especially immediately postpartum): Among the single strollers we’ve tested are models…
Cruise robotaxis are back on the road … well, kind of. Though General Motors pulled the plug on its self-driving taxi business last year, the automaker has been quietly repurposing a few of the vehicles as it seeks to develop new driver-assistance technologies. This week, WIRED spotted a GM Bolt electric hatchback on the San…
Cannon explains that viruses, in general, are very susceptible to heat. “Viruses come ‘shrink-wrapped’ in a layer of fat that helps them to survive in our bodies by acting as a type of stealthy covering,” she says. Spikes on the outside of this fat layer allow it to latch onto and enter your body’s cells….
Treat fluid like medicine. You make it a point to take your meds, so do the same with fluids, Archbald-Pannone says. Set a timer to remind you to sip. Richards recommends aiming for half your body weight in ounces each day. For example, if you weigh 150 pounds, you should get 75 ounces. Find a…
Water filters are a booming fear-based economy. But people have good reasons to be leery of their drinking water—chlorine, microplastics, PFAS everywhere, heavy metals in the groundwater, whatever else bothers me tomorrow. But while most water filters seem to make many promises, only some back them up with independent third-party lab tests—something I’ve been sad…