Latest posts
These are the viral dishwasher hacks I’d avoid using
Not a day passes without someone pushing forward some new dishwasher hack, whether it’s something new and wild or just an old idea being recycled again. As someone who spends a lot of time with dishwashers for reviews, the hacks I’ve seen vary from the obvious to the outright dangerous and stupid. Here are some…
Today, your older Nest Thermostat will be disconnected, but shouldn’t AI be able to save it?
Today, Saturday, 25 October 2025, all older Nest Learning Thermostats will have their core smart features turned off, as Google continues to destroy the once brilliant brand. Writing in a blog post, Google has confirmed that the 1st and 2nd gen Nest Learning Thermostats (launched in 2011 and 2012 in the US, and in 2014 in Europe for the…
The Hue Bridge Pro shows how migrations should be handled
My house is full of Hue lights and, because they’re so easy to set up and there’s a huge range of wireless controls, too. I have remotes everywhere I mainly sit or walk past, inside and out, so I can quickly control my lights. As time’s gone on, my old Hue Bridge has started to…
Is smarter AI, such as Amazon Alexa Plus and Google Gemini for Home, worth the price?
Remember a time when services were either free or very cheap? Seems like those days are long behind us, and the price of progress means an ever-increasing number of subscription services. This week, both Amazon and Google announced new hardware designed to work with their advanced AI services, Amazon Alexa Plus and Google Gemini for…
Ofgem’s plans for low Standing Charge tariffs don’t address the key problems
Although utility prices have fallen from their peak, the average UK home is spending a lot more on electricity and gas than it was a few years ago. Part of the problem is due to the current system’s severe flaws, and the government and energy regulator, Ofgem, appear completely unable to address the core issues.…
Don’t believe the headlines, there’s no cheap-to-run electric heating
As we start to get a few chilly nights, you might notice an increase in the number of headlines that say something like, “Shoppers rave over cheap gadget that warms home for 13p” or “Silent 45p-per-hour device eliminates cold spots”. There are many variations on a theme, but every article written in this format always…
It’s time to cut electricity costs to give heat pumps a chance
A lot has been written about heat pumps, with the technology pushed as an efficient way to decarbonise our home heating and hot water systems. Yet, as brilliant as heat pumps are, there’s been a lot of negative coverage, including column inches on how homes can be colder and more expensive to run. A lot…
Philips Hue finally looks set to fix its Bridge problem
There’s no doubt in my mind that Philips Hue is the best lighting system available. That’s in terms of quality, range of lights, range of physical controls and reliability. It’s the one smart home system that I can absolutely rely on to the point where I have Hue bulbs in pretty much every room, with…
Portable air conditioners are brilliant, but I wish I knew all of this before buying one
With the UK getting warmer, portable air conditioner sales are going through the roof. In particular, sales increase after a few days in a row of hot weather, a phenomenon that’s likely to increase every year. It seems as though people can stick out a hot night or two, but that’s the limit. When even…