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But look on the bright side: the most onerous of President Trump's tariffs have yet to take effect, so there are plenty of reasonably priced alternatives to consider.
Belkin stopped selling some of these Wemo products several years ago, but the company continued to operate the servers they depended on. After January of next year, however, you won't be able to operate them at all using the Wemo app or with any third-party services.
These recommendations are based on my assumption that you'll want to replace your Wemo devices with something equally simple, so I won't get into every alternative, including some that might be more appealing to smart home power users. I will, however, help you minimize the brands you buy into, so you don't need to juggle lots of smart home apps.
There are some cases where that won't be possible, however, because I'm recommending Lutron products as my top picks in many categories, and Lutron doesn't make smart bulbs or indoor smart plugs that can handle small appliances. Lutron also doesn't currently support Matter, if that's important to you (it's not to me).
If you're using Amazon Alexa, Apple HomeKit, or Google Home, using more than one app isn't all that onerous once you've set up a given product and perhaps set up some on/off schedules, because most of your interactions with it will involve using voice commands. You'll find you won't need to rely on those apps all that much.
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On this week's episode of The MacRumors Show, we catch up on all of the latest rumors about Apple's first foldable iPhone amid a multitude of reports about the device and its launch firming up for next year.
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This isn't a major multi-port hub or bulky docking station. Those might be great for home offices and turning your laptop into a full-blown workstation, but this miniature adapter is way smaller and more portable. You can slip it into your pocket and take it with you anywhere, allowing you to turn your laptop's USB-C port into a 4K HDMI port on demand.
Instead of fiddling around with wireless casting (which may or may not be compatible all the time) or struggling to find a large-enough hub to connect that screen to your laptop, you can just plug this thing in. It's short and it's covered with braided nylon, which helps it endure tons of bends and the wear-and-tear of travel in a backpack or pocket.
It supports monitors with resolutions up to 4K@60Hz, so it will serve you well with most displays excluding gaming monitors. It's compatible with Windows laptops, MacBooks, iPads, Galaxy phones, Chromebooks, and supports Thunderbolt 3 connectivity.
Snag your own Anker USB-C to HDMI adapter for 40% off before this limited-time deal vanishes into thin air! Remember, this is a Prime-exclusive promo, so if you aren't a Prime member yet, start a 30-day free trial to take advantage of this excellent deal.
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Netflix is giving its TV user interface a major overhaul. Alongside a fresh, cleaner look, you'll see recommendations that adapt to your activity as Netflix tries to better gauge what you might be in the mood to watch. The company plans to roll out the update over the coming weeks and months.
It seems that the aim here, as has long been a goal for Netflix, is to help you find something you want to watch faster. That way, you won't spend an eternity scrolling through the various options while struggling to figure out what to start streaming.
Netflix originally designed its TV user interface for shows and movies, but it had to evolve to better handle new entertainment offerings, such as live events and cloud gaming. The company has been working on the new TV experience since last year, according to Eunice Kim, Netflix's chief product officer. "Our redesigned TV home page is simpler, more intuitive and better represents the breadth of entertainment on Netflix today," Kim said on a call with reporters.
The new tiles for each show, movie and so on are much larger. Rather than having information about a highlighted title appear at the top of the screen, the redesign brings everything together.
Each tile includes more at-a-glance contextual details as to why you might want to watch something. It might indicate that a show or movie was recently added, is in Netflix's top 10 list of the most-watched titles, has won awards or is leaving the service soon. Otherwise, Ne
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