{"id":6091,"date":"2023-11-14T16:50:20","date_gmt":"2023-11-14T16:50:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/advisorator.com\/members\/?p=6091"},"modified":"2023-11-14T16:50:21","modified_gmt":"2023-11-14T16:50:21","slug":"11-14-2023-keep-those-batteries-healthy-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/advisorator.com\/members\/2023\/11\/14\/11-14-2023-keep-those-batteries-healthy-2\/","title":{"rendered":"11\/14\/2023: Keep those batteries healthy"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Battery health tips<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Plus: A weird new wearable, Mint alternatives, and the new Apple Watch for less<\/h3>\n\n\n
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Jared Newman<\/div>
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November 14, 2023<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n
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Having recently purchased a new phone, I’ve become mildly obsessed about preserving its battery life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I’m not talking about getting it to last longer on a charge\u2014that’s something I’ve covered already<\/a>\u2014but rather maintaining its ability to hold a charge over time. Lithium ion batteries degrade much faster as their charge level approaches 100%, and that can eventually lead to both shorter battery life and a drop in performance. Instead of doing a full charge every day, I’ve been limiting my maximum battery level to around 85% until I actually need the extra juice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Most phones, tablets, and laptops have some ability to set battery charging limits, either with built-in settings or third-party workarounds. They’re worth looking into if you want to keep up your battery health over the long haul.<\/p>\n\n\n

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Read the full column with a free trial<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

This week’s paid subscriber column includes all the ways to preserve battery health on phones and laptops\u2014and whether it’s worth doing so in the first place. You can read it right now<\/a> with a seven-day free trial<\/a>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n

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Need to know<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Humane’s weird wearable:<\/strong> One of the most overhyped gadgets in recent memory<\/a> will soon be up for pre-order. For $699\u2014plus a $24 per month data plan\u2014the Humane AI Pin<\/a> clips onto your clothing, responds to voice queries, and has a laser projector that beams a smartwatch-like interface onto your palm. It also has a camera that can take photos and do some other things, like tracking what you’ve eaten.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Unlike a smartwatch, the Humane AI Pin is supposed to replace your phone rather than supplement it. But history<\/a> is full of attempts<\/a> to save you from your phone<\/a>, and they never take off because smartphones are pretty darned useful, and it’s hard to be part of modern society without one<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Anyway, Ron Amadeo has a helpful rundown of the device’s features<\/a>\u2014with plenty of healthy skepticism throughout. John Gruber’s summary<\/a> is even more succinct: “I sincerely hope I\u2019m wrong, but this sounds like the Quibi of AI gadgets.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bitwarden’s passkey support:<\/strong> Bitwarden is the latest password manager to support passwordless logins<\/a>, also known as passkeys. By creating a passkey for an app or website, you can log in using just your device’s face recognition, fingerprint reader, or PIN code. That means you don’t have to bother setting up an actual password or risk it being stolen in a phishing attack. Other password managers that have added passkey support include 1Password, Dashlane, and Enpass.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While Apple and Google can already create and manage passkeys within their respective ecosystems, password managers such as Bitwarden have the advantage of working across platforms. That means you can take your passkeys across iOS, Android, Windows, MacOS, and practically any web browser.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Or at least that’s idea. So far, the rollout of passkeys has been a total mess<\/a>, with every app, website, and operating system handling things differently. To wit: Bitwarden currently lets you create passkeys on a computer, but won’t let you log in with them on your phone. I’ll be experimenting with passkeys more now that Bitwarden supports them, but will continue to treat the initiative with skepticism until it addresses some major shortcomings<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Tip of the moment<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Mint alternatives:<\/strong> Last week, I asked what folks were using to track their finances instead of Mint, which is shutting down on January 1. I got a few helpful responses in return and thought they were worth sharing:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Michelle G. is using Tiller<\/a>, which costs $79 per year after a 30-day trial:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Similar to Obsidian<\/a>, you store your own data. Also similar, it’s crowdsourced for additional add-ons.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Dave B. digs Moneyspire<\/a>, which is a $79 one-time purchase:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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We share between 2 Macs. Works very well for us. Happy with support (what tiny amount I have needed).<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Joseph C. endorses Empower<\/a>, whose finance overview tools are based on the firm’s acquisition of Personal Capital a few years back. It offers these tools for free as a way of drumming up interest for its retirement planning services.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Empower has removed one or two nice features when they bought Personal Capital but, so far, remains usable.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Joseph also had another great suggestion: See if your bank or financial provider has its own budgeting tools. I checked Bank of America’s website, for instance, and was surprised to see a bunch of budgeting and overview options under its “Tools & Investing” tab, including the ability to pull in date from external accounts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Need more alternatives? The Verge’s Barbara Krasnoff wrote a concise overview<\/a> of various Mint competitors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Master your iPhone in one minute a day<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Hey everyone, I want to introduce you to another great newsletter called iPhone Life<\/a>, which gives you free, daily advice on getting the most out of your iPhone. With each newsletter, you’ll learn how to do things like remove clutter from iMessage, get better grocery lists in the Reminders app, and start using Home Screen widgets\u2014all with clear instructions and illustrations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I’ve been chatting with the folks at iPhone Life, and we’ve enjoyed each other’s newsletters so much that we wanted to share them with our respective readers. Sign up for iPhone Life’s Tip of the Day Newsletter<\/a>, and I think you’ll learn something! (And if you recently made your way over from iPhone Life, welcome!)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Check it out \u2192<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/section>\n\n\n

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Now try this<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Gmail’s meeting scheduler:<\/strong> Google recently added a handy scheduling tool inside the Gmail website<\/a>, so you can propose meeting times without a slew of back-and-forth messages.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To find it, click the \u22ee<\/strong> button at the bottom-left of Gmail’s compose window, then select Set up a time to meet > Offer times you’re free<\/strong>. Your calendar will appear in a sidebar, and you can click the times when you’re available. The recipient will then be able to click on a time to book the meeting. Note that this only works for 1:1 meetings, but you can always add more people to the event once the date and time is set.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Spotify’s audiobook perk:<\/strong> Got a Spotify Premium subscription? The service now includes 15 hours of audiobook listening<\/a> per month at no extra charge, roughly equivalent to a couple of books per month. If you hit the 15-hour limit, Spotify sells 10-hour top-ups for $13 apiece. Between that and free audiobooks from your library\u2014via either Hoopla<\/a> or Libby<\/a>\u2014maybe you can drop your Audible subscription.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Further reading<\/h2>\n\n\n\n