Lifehacker

Generally speaking, restaurant phone numbers you find on Yelp are the entity’s actual, real-world phone number. But there’s also a way to dial the wrong number for a restaurant, which connects you through Grubhub and allows the company to claim referral fee for anything you might then order.

On Wednesday, Senator Bernie Sanders announced his plan to legalize weed by executive order if he were to become president. Like several other Democratic candidates (or all of them—except for one) who intend to legalize weed, many presidential hopefuls have wide-sweeping plans to expunge the records of those convicted…Read more...

A new calculator from Omni Calculator shows you how many books you could read in one year, if you checked them instead of checking social media. Enter how often you check social media (or any time-wasting sites that you’re willing to give up), and how long you spend there each time you visit. Omni Calculator will turn…Read more...

Whenever I consider getting takeout for lunch or running out for a latte during the workweek, I often pause to think about how much time it will cost me—not the time away from my desk, but rather the time spent working to add up to the amount I am about to spend. It doesn’t always stop me from making that impulse…Read more...

Now you can ask Alexa to slow down if she’s responding to you too quickly.

It’s fun to browse home listings online or watch shows like House Hunters. But if you’re not a homeowner, you might be feeling lost as to how to get started acquiring your piece of the American dream.Read more...

You don’t have to replace your iPhone’s battery at the Apple Store if you don’t want to—a $69 fix from Apple if your newer iPhone is out of warranty. If you do purchase a battery elsewhere, however, your iPhone is going to warn you that your new replacement battery needs service. Don’t stress about it. That’s just an…Read more...

If you’ve somehow gone this long without buying a Nintendo Switch, you can fix that today for one of the best prices ever. This one’s refurbished, but you can’t beat a $230 price tag.

Starting today you can get an Impossible Burger at your local Burger King. The plant-based burger is being rolled out to Burger King locations after successful tests at a few trial locations. That means if you haven’t yet tried one, now’s your chance.

The final Android Q beta—Android Q Beta 6—is now available for developers and enthusiasts to play with. This build gives us a near-complete picture of what the public release for Android Q will be like, which now includes some tweaks Google is making to its Camera app.

If you are a person who likes free things and a person who likes iced coffee (or tea), then I have some pretty good news. Starting at 2 pm today (August 8th), Starbucks is running a BOGO deal on icy cold beverages.

In this week’s truly heinous edition of Ask Polly, the letter writer casually describes what amounts to multiple attempts on her life by her in-laws. Not only do they refuse to acknowledge her deadly mushroom allergy, they seem to take pleasure in serving them every time she’s over for dinner. Nearly everyone who’s…Read more...

For many years, my mom has been telling herself—and anyone else who will listen—that she’s 45 years old. She’s not actively trying to deceive us (I’m 37, so I’m not falling for it); she’s trying to deceive herself. She’d read somewhere that if you tell yourself you’re a younger age, you’ll start to feel younger.Read more...

Heavy cream, in its liquid form, is a fairly neutral ingredient that can be added to sweet or savory dishes, to bring luxurious texture, rich mouthfeel, and glorious fat. But for some reason, once you whip it, it gets restricted to dessert applications, even though there is no real reason for it.Read more...

Airfare prices rise and fall unpredictably; when you book a flight months ahead, there’s no way of telling whether you grabbed the best possible deal unless you check booking websites obsessively.Read more...

Hello you terrible skinsacks of the noosphere, and welcome to Ask Dr. NerdLove, the dating advice column that charges into your love problems like 30-50 feral hogs.

If you want to do something, block off time for it. This includes everything from the task you have to finish at work to the walk you want to take with your family. The novel you want to write. The weekly game night or date night. The sleep you want to prioritize.Read more...

Unlike Jupiter and Saturn, Mercury isn’t making itself easy to be seen this month, but tomorrow morning might very well be your best chance—clear skies permitting, of course.

There seems to be no good way to get corn kernels off the cob. Most “hacks” involve precariously balancing an ear of corn in a bowl, slicing them off, and hoping you don’t slip and slice a finger along the way. Sometimes the bowl catches every last kernel, but more often than not, you get to chase down all the ones…Read more...

When I wrote about calculating the total out-of-pocket cost of your health insurance plan earlier this week, some of you asked why we should bother with health insurance in the first place.Read more...

There’s something so hopeful about first-day-of-school photos: clothes look a little brighter than usual (possibly because you’ve ripped the tags off just an hour before), backpacks seem massive enough to topple your children right over, and if you’re especially creative, chalkboards or whiteboards display a sweet…Read more...

In 2013, analysts at one firm estimated that Amazon shipped 608 million packages in the U.S. alone, meaning the retailer sent over 1.5 million packages each day. This is a convenient and expedient way to do your shopping, sure, but it’s also a drain on resources. Think of the cardboard box or plastic mailers you might…Read more...

There’s a real musty feeling to some old books, where the writing is as caked in dust as an ancient hardcover. But some old books still feel new. I asked well-known literary figures and critics to recommend one surprisingly fresh classic book—a book that’s lively, accessible, or relevant today. And because most of…Read more...

DASH Compact Air Fryer | $56 | AmazonRead more...

Let the fall smartphone wars begin. Samsung came out swinging at today’s Galaxy Unpacked 2019 event in New York City. We watched the entire keynote so you don’t have to, and here’s a quick recap of the company’s biggest announcements.Read more...

Apple’s new credit card, called Apple Card, was announced this spring and isn’t available to everyone just yet—rollout for the card started this week. While a select few (a random drawing of people who signed up for the waiting list) get started using the card, let’s take a look at how it stacks up to your other…Read more...

Now that Disney’s long-awaited streaming service, Disney+, finally has an official launch date (November 12) and more details have been released, it’s clear that this isn’t just a niche supplemental service for Disney fans—the media giant is making a play for dominance in the streaming market. But while Disney has a…Read more...

Your web browser knows a lot about you, and tells the sites you visit a lot about you as well—if you let it. We’ve talked about which browsers are best at ad-blocking, but in this guide, we’re going to focus on the browsers that you’ll want to use to better conceal everything you’re up to from all the advertisers that…Read more...

Anyone that’s done much traveling can tell you the airports you fly to and from (and through) can often make or break your travel experience. I’ve been known to intentionally book slightly longer travel days in order to avoid a connection in a terrible or complicated airport. Living in the Bay Area, I also have the…Read more...

When it comes to fruit, it’s the flesh people want, but that flesh often clings to stems, pits, and peels, and tossing those bits means you’re tossing out flavor. Lucky for us, Queen of Sweets Stella Parks has a solution: Use these supposed scraps to make vibrant no-cook syrups.Read more...

I’m all about letting kids be bored (it’s good for them) and responsible for their own entertainment (they have a ton of toys), but once in a while, it’s nice to provide them with a little inspiration. Especially when they’ve been stuck inside for the past few days because of bad weather and they’re practically…Read more...

If you have a phone, then chances are good you’ve been plagued by at least a few spam calls and texts—probably more than a few. To combat the issue, carriers have started blocking some spam calls and texts by default. Unfortunately, that blocking has also started to affect some Google Voice transcripts as well, The…Read more...

All of us carry around a number of default assumptions about the world—as well as a number of hopes and beliefs through which we filter our current experiences.Read more...

When you look at your paycheck, do you wish the amount was higher? If so, you might be interested in what our many Democratic presidential candidates think about the federal minimum wage and what they intend to do about it.

Over the weekend, at least 31 people were killed in mass shootings in El Paso, Texas and Dayton, Ohio, just days after similar acts of gun violence in Gilroy, California and Brownsville, Brooklyn.

Now you don’t need an HBO subscription to watch some of HBO’s most popular programs. Today the network launched a new “Recommended By Humans” tool that will allow anyone to stream over 50 free episodes, movies, and documentaries—provided they were recommended by, well, a human.

Thursday, August 8 is National Frozen Custard Day, and several chains are offering deals to celebrate. (Frozen custard is a denser, richer version of ice cream made with egg in addition to cream and sugar.) Here’s where to get your free or discounted custard.Read more...

It’s intimidating to email someone whose work you admire, asking for advice, or a coffee chat, or any first meeting that you secretly hope sparks a career-long mentorship. It’s like asking someone on a date while also asking them for a raise. It’s hard and even if you do it right, it might not work! The Harvard…Read more...

This inspired a heated debate in the Lifehacker offices.Read more...

Mortgage rates are the lowest they’ve been since 2016. Does that mean it’s time to refinance your home? Well... maybe.Read more...

Onions are not known for being “creamy.” Bright? Yes. Acerbic? Sure. Painful? Sometimes. But not creamy. However, if you roast them in a hot oven for just shy of an hour, they become just that—soft, mellow, and downright creamy.

A number of companies are starting to have reservations about using real people to “improve” their digital assistants by reviewing what you’ve said to your smart speaker or phone. I’m willing to bet that Microsoft will also soon about-face on this practice, but right now, contractors might be listening to what you…Read more...

There has been a steady parade of meteor showers and shining planets looking to wow us in the nighttime sky this summer, but there’s one thing standing between us and a perfect show: light pollution. It can be hard (even practically impossible) to get out from under the bright lights of the city, but there are still…Read more...

One thing I don’t like about homework for young kids is the fact that after they’ve just spent a whole day sitting at a desk at school, we direct them to another desk at home. It’s inhibiting. Their bodies are wiggly and restless and begging to move.

Apple’s slick new credit card is starting to arrive in a select few digital wallets, but Apple Card has one major limitation that might surprise you: You can’t export your data to financial apps. Apple uses Mint as an example, explaining that exporting is “not currently supported.”Read more...

If you’ve booked an itinerary with connecting flight to save a little money, airlines like United and American generally allow for as little as 30 minutes for you to deplane, grab your carry-on, switch terminals if needed, and find the right gate; it’s an especially tight window, but possible in small airports. This…Read more...

It was bound to happen someday: Someone finally counterfeited my new credit card, and I received an alert that they were trying to make a physical purchase at a local gas station. And here’s a quick explanation of why I almost missed this critical notification (so you don’t have the same issue in the future!).

For many, attending college after high school is a natural next step, one that isn’t questioned for its long-term value. Going to college has been a cultural norm for decades, the widely accepted method for kicking off a white-collar career.Read more...

For the 40th anniversary of the first Alien film, 20th Century Fox commissioned six new short films set in the Alien universe. The most popular was Alien: Specimen, directed and produced by Kelsey Taylor. Taylor has also worked on projects for CollegeHumor, 1 Minute Horror, and several of her own short films. We…Read more...

If you happen to own any silver jewelry, flatware, or anything else that could use a little polishing, Goddard’s silver polishing cloths are the easiest way to bring them back to their original luster, provided they aren’t too far gone.