Plus: Clearing desktop clutter, Amazon’s missing robots, and deep Mac discounts.

Features like multi-room audio room audio, phone control, and TV speaker output can vary from one platform to the next, and the support for various streaming music services can be wildly inconsistent. To make sense of it all, I decided to make a chart.

Plus: Google Docs’ new view, remote computer control, and more tech tune-up advice.

You needn’t be a tech whiz to know the basics of how to visit a website or search the web. Even the notion of opening, closing, and rearranging browser tabs is pretty straightforward. But behind those basics are all kinds of powerful features that make web browsing more efficient.

Plus: Samsung’s new gear, Apple’s AirTag alterations, and a surprisingly great calendar app.

In the same way that you might have a toolbox for handiwork, you might consider keeping a tech toolkit for maintaining, fixing, or improving your gadgets.

A new cord cutting guide, Spotify’s podcast problem, and another way to shut up Google

I’m guessing you’ve heard of at least a few of these little time-savers and neat features, but one thing I’ve learned over the years is that a lot of useful phone functionality is extremely easy to ignore.

Plus: More readable websites, an ad-free search engine, and cheap wall chargers.

Technology is at its best when it’s teaching us new skills, helping with our hobbies, or encouraging healthier habits out in the real world.

Plus: The old phone apocalypse, finding library books with ease, and a year of great apps.

While some of you might be hitting the gym as part of your New Year’s resolutions, now’s a fine time to make sure your gadgets are in peak shape as well.

Plus: The next smart home standard, search sidebar tricks, and interesting earbud deals

While I recommend a lot of apps, tools, and gadgets in this newsletter and elsewhere—and believe in experimenting to discover what works for you—in the end only a handful become essential.