MakeUseOf

I disabled Samsung's 'Customization Service' and my battery drain dropped immediately

Pankil Shah — Sat, 06 Jun 2026 18:00:20 GMT

It’s easy to blame things like battery health or third-party apps when your phone’s battery life starts getting worse. But the best thing you can do is simply take a look at the battery usage menu and see what’s actually consuming the power.

I avoided this type of mice for years — using one for a week changed my mind completely

Dipan Saha — Sat, 06 Jun 2026 17:30:19 GMT

Keyboard and mouse inputs go way back, and the modern iteration of the computer mouse is often hardly recognizable from its previous-gen counterparts. The device has evolved over time to accommodate various grip styles. I’ve personally only used your usual, run-of-the-mill ambidextrous mouse, along with a few right-handed gaming mice. Up until now, that is.

I repositioned my router antennas based on how they actually work and my Wi-Fi improved immediately

Shimul Sood — Sat, 06 Jun 2026 17:00:18 GMT

A reliable Wi-Fi connection can make or break your workday. Since I work from home, I depend on a stable internet connection for pretty much everything. Whenever my Wi-Fi starts acting up, my first instinct is the classic fix: switch the router off, wait a few seconds, and turn it back on. More often than not, that does the trick.

These 4 budget-friendly Ryobi tools saved me hundreds on my first DIY home renovation

Jonathon Jachura — Sat, 06 Jun 2026 16:30:20 GMT

I made my first real DIY build in 2020, when lockdown turned my spare room into an office with a wobbly old desk that was about to fall apart. So, I found some build plans for a 2x4 desk — I hid every screw, because exposed hardware drives me up the wall. Before that, I'd never built a piece of furniture. Finishing it told me I could take on more than I'd assumed.

I tried a real tiling window manager on Windows and Snap has felt broken ever since

Oluwademilade Afolabi — Sat, 06 Jun 2026 16:00:18 GMT

I used to think Windows Snap had solved most of my window-management problems. I mean, it was tidy enough, fast enough, and a clear improvement over dragging windows around. Then I tried Komorebi, a proper tiling window manager for Windows, and I began to look at Snap as unfinished.

The best period drama of the decade is on Hulu and almost nobody remembers it

Dan Selcke — Sat, 06 Jun 2026 15:30:19 GMT

When you hear the words "period drama," you might be tempted to think of something set in ye olden times, with castles and battles and clothes with lots of ruffles on them. But here in the 2020s, even shows and movies set 20, 30, or 40 years ago qualify as history, even though we can see more clearly how we got from there to here.

I turned off two router settings and my Wi-Fi finally matched my plan's speed

Kanika Gogia — Sat, 06 Jun 2026 15:00:19 GMT

I was blaming my ISP for overselling its speeds. It promised me a 500 Mbps minimum download speed, but my laptop barely crosses 180 Mbps even when it’s near the router. Also, I wasn’t enjoying the promised speeds on my phone. I assumed it was my router or my aging devices. I went through the usual rituals, such as restarting the router and moving it to a different location. I even replaced Ethernet cables I probably didn’t need to replace.

I asked Claude and ChatGPT to do the same risky tasks — Claude actually tried

Jorge Aguilar — Sat, 06 Jun 2026 14:30:18 GMT

Most people don't realize how much time they lose to an AI that won't cooperate until they're already mid-project. It's not common to have to deal with a refusal for a prompt that was never unreasonable to begin with. Even with rephrasing and hedging, it's hard to get them to see why you needed the answer in the first place. However, it seems like Claude is better for this.

I added a second taskbar to my Windows PC — and it’s a game changer

Pankil Shah — Sat, 06 Jun 2026 14:00:20 GMT

For something that’s visible almost all the time, the Windows 11 taskbar feels pretty barebones. I’ve always felt that Microsoft is missing out on a chance to make that space better. Sure, there are third-party tools like Windhawk that can fix all the shortcomings of the taskbar, but setting them up can be too much work. Thankfully, there’s a better solution.

I thought I owned my Kindle books — I was wrong

Jorge Aguilar — Sat, 06 Jun 2026 13:30:18 GMT

When you click the purchase button on a digital storefront, it feels like you're adding a permanent item to your library. I used to think the books on my device belonged to me, but it turns out that buying them digitally isn't the same as buying them in a store. You are actually paying for a conditional license that the provider can change or revoke without warning. It's a service that makes it hard to claim it helps you at all, but there are ways to get around it.