Netflix snuck in yet another price hike before what was (for many) a three-day weekend in the U.S., but this one feels different, with both the priciest and least expensive plans hitting eye-opening milestones. For starters, Netflix’s non-HD, single-screen Basic plan has finally (for all intents and purposes) entered the double-digit club, rising from $8.99 to $9.99—let’s just call it $10—a month. Meanwhile, Netflix’s Premium plan, which offers four simultaneous streams of video at up to UHD resolution, is now a whopping $20 a month, a $2/month price hike. (Officially, it’s now $19.99 a month ..read more

Smart lock manufacturer U-Tec announced today that it is now shipping the world’s first Z-Wave Plus-compatible smart lock with an integrated fingerprint reader. The company previously offered its Ultraloq U-Bolt and Ultraloq U-Bolt Pro smart locks with Bluetooth and/or Wi-Fi radios. While the company officially released the news today, Reddit postings indicate the locks have been shipping since December 2021. Z-Wave offers several advantages over Wi-Fi, including longer range and lower energy consumption to increase battery life. Wi-Fi connectivity—and the ability to connect only to 2.4GHz net ..read more

One of the first things I did as a new Roku user was to start adding channels to the Home screen, from Netflix and Disney+ to Apple TV+ and HBO Max. But once I had all my channels installed, I hit a roadblock. How exactly do you rearrange all those channel tiles? Personally, I like having Netflix up top, along with such oft-used services such as Disney+ and Amazon Prime Video, but they were all jumbled in the middle of the channel grid. Meanwhile, there were some channels I wanted to nix, such as People TV and Roku’s Getting Started channel. [ Further reading: The best media streaming devices ..read more

Periodic Audio made its name with in-ear monitors (aka headphones) designed by a team relentless in its pursuit of maximum sonic excellence at each model’s price point. The range has no flashy logo, no bespoke industrial design, just incredible hi-fi performance for the price. The $499 Carbon in-ear headphone is the company’s flagship product, and Periodic Audio’s recent redesign is a collection of small changes that add up to a huge upgrade. This headphone demands that you focus on its assigned task. If you’re a multitasker addicted to scrolling through social media and watching sports on TV ..read more

I had little interest in the Alexa-enabled Echo FramesRemove non-product link until Amazon loaned me a pair for review. After all, does anyone really need Alexa in their glasses? But while I’m still mulling the merits of all-day Alexa, I’ve found at least one compelling use for Amazon’s smart glasses: as a surprisingly effective tinnitus aid. To read this article in full, please click here ..read more

Last week, Accenture published a survey that expressed widespread annoyance with streaming TV. Consumers are frustrated, the firm said, with having to manually browse through lots of different apps and menus to find what they want, and they pine for smarter recommendations that account for their viewing habits across all apps. Respondents also chafed at “inefficient” subscriptions full of content they’ll never watch. None of this is surprising. For years, I’ve written about the overly siloed nature of streaming TV, and how we need better universal guides to make sense of all the options. But a ..read more

Wyze made a splash on Wednesday when it announced Cam Plus Lite, a new “pay what you want” subscription plan for its security cameras that includes people detection, and you can pay as little as nothing for the privilege. But at the same time, Wyze’s free Basic plan is losing a key feature. First, the good news. Wyze says it will roll out the new Cam Plus Lite plan starting February 15, and among other features, it includes account-wide, cloud-based event recording as well as people detection for whatever you’re willing to pay, including zero bucks. To read this article in full, please click h ..read more

The first Ultraloq smart lock, released in 2019, was a promising product held back by an incredibly difficult installation process that literally required a hacksaw to complete. Its manufacturer, U-tec, has spent the intervening years smoothing out that installation process—hacksaw no longer required—and has launched an upgraded version, the U-Bolt Pro WiFi. This new model eliminates the need for a separate Wi-Fi bridge to connect it to your home network. Physically, the U-Bolt Pro WiFi looks nearly identical to its predecessor, with just a few cosmetic changes. The all-black device still arra ..read more

Following months of hints and rumors, Nvidia has made it official: Android TV 11 will come to its Shield TV streamers—yes, all of them—along with a slew of new features, including an updated Gboard and support for aptX Bluetooth headsets. Based on Android TV 11, Shield Experience 9.0 will begin rolling out today to Shield TV streaming boxes, including the current tube-shaped TV and Pro models from 2019, the 2017 Shield TV from 2017, and even 2015’s original TV and Pro devices. Among the features Shield TV users can expect include an updated version of Gboard, which will now allow users to perf ..read more

For years, one of the best things about Vizio TVs has been the ability to ignore their SmartCast software. Turning on the TV would always take you directly to your last input, so you could use a separate streaming player, game console, or cable box without needing to navigate through any smart TV software menus. If you just wanted to use your smart TV as a dumb TV, Vizio was happy to oblige. [ Further reading: TechHive's top picks in smart TVs ] Unfortunately, Vizio has now decided to change that behavior, with a late 2021 firmware update that makes SmartCast the default input whenever you tur ..read more