MakeUseOf

I was worrying about cookies but these trackers don't need them at all

Yadullah Abidi — Mon, 06 Jul 2026 11:00:18 GMT

For years now, the cookie banner has been the universal symbol of online surveillance. It's a pop-up most of us dismiss without reading, but it's a silent acknowledgment that someone, somewhere, is watching. The privacy-conscious among you may even have started to control what cookies a site saves on your system, but trackers have now evolved beyond that.

Verizon isn't the best US carrier anymore — and the speed tests prove it

Brady Snyder — Mon, 06 Jul 2026 10:00:17 GMT

In 2026, there aren't many options when choosing a mobile network in the United States. You have the big three in AT&T, Verizon, and T-Mobile, as well as a bunch of mobile virtual network operators (MVNOs) that use one of those three networks. These major cellular carriers are always offering different prices, features, and promotions to entice subscribers to sign up. But most of us care about two main things: cell coverage and data speed.

The smartest sci-fi of the decade got one season, and everyone who finds it says the same thing

Dan Selcke — Sun, 05 Jul 2026 23:00:18 GMT

Netflix runneth over with content. Whether you're looking for drama, comedy, action, fantasy, or sci-fi, it has something to satisfy you, probably a great many somethings. Some shows blow up, but with so much competition, others never get the attention they deserve.

Google Messages is so much better when you turn off this annoying feature

Brady Snyder — Sun, 05 Jul 2026 22:00:19 GMT

Google Messages is the default Android messaging app, whether we like it or not. Samsung Messages is shutting down, and that means more Android users will be switching to Google Messages or finding another alternative. Unfortunately, the messaging app is far from perfect. It's missing a critical iMessage feature. Google Messages still won't work without an active SIM or save conversations to your Google account. Setting the practical drawbacks of Google Messages aside for a moment, there's one feature I absolutely cannot stand.

I never use Gmail on Android without changing these 6 settings

Pankil Shah — Sun, 05 Jul 2026 21:00:19 GMT

Gmail is one of those apps where most people simply sign in and never think twice about its settings. I used to do the same until I realized a few simple tweaks could save me a lot of frustration.

I tested my eGPU with Oculink and Thunderbolt, and it wasn’t close

Dipan Saha — Sun, 05 Jul 2026 20:05:18 GMT

When it comes to eGPUs, there are essentially two mainstream ways to connect them to a PC, handheld, or otherwise. The first and more common method is to use a Thunderbolt or USB4 connection, which is the standard for most laptops and handheld PCs.

The easy, free way to get Windows 11 on your old computer

Yadullah Abidi — Sun, 05 Jul 2026 20:00:18 GMT

Windows 10 support has ended, and if your PC can't run Windows 11, that might have been it for your old PC and Windows. But... there's one clever tool that can get Windows 11 running on your old PC, thanks to a simple loophole.

I found Samsung's hidden video setting and now every streaming app looks like it's playing on a movie screen

Jorge Aguilar — Sun, 05 Jul 2026 19:30:19 GMT

Samsung buries some of its best display features that most people never think of looking at. The standard settings menu gives you brightness sliders and dark mode, and that's usually where people stop, assuming that's everything the phone can do. There are plenty of hidden spaces in the phone, but there’s one setting that overrides the usual auto-brightness limits entirely and pushes the display to its maximum calibrated output, and it does it automatically.

I get Plex remote streaming without paying a cent for Plex Pass

Gavin Phillips — Sun, 05 Jul 2026 18:30:18 GMT

In 2026, Plex ramped up its remote-access Plex Pass from $250 to $750 for new subscribers, which is an unconscionable rise. I've never been a remote-access subscriber, and now, I never will be, even if that's a lifetime license.

I stopped paying for file recovery — Windows had a hidden tool all along

Afam Onyimadu — Sun, 05 Jul 2026 18:00:18 GMT

The data recovery market is built around you emptying the Recycle Bin and panicking. You panic because you assume Windows has left you stranded. It almost instantly leads to downloading a paid tool, which is often bloated or focused on selling add-ons. This is a loop I have been through a few times, but it ended when I discovered Microsoft had a no-cost alternative that recovered years of deleted files with a single command. If you need to recover your files without that final restoration stuck behind a paywall, this is the one tool I recommend.