repair Archives

Best ways to charge your phone’s battery

We spend so much on tech that it’s incredibly frustrating when our devices break. A little prevention can go a long way. Here are six checkups to give your tech now to avoid a shocking repair bill later.

Regular maintenance is vital to longevity. Tap or click for my simple action plan to get more years out of your iPhone or Android.

Then, there are the mistakes you make day in and day out. Bad charging habits can shorten or disrupt your smartphone battery life if you aren’t careful.

Don’t rely on knock-off chargers

High-quality chargers have circuits inside of them that switch off when there’s too much power draw. This protects your phone battery from overcharging, breaking, or overheating.

Heat is your battery’s biggest enemy. Some cheap chargers and cables have even led to fire and injuries. Saving money is excellent, but don’t skimp on quality here.

Here’s a list of safe options that will charge your phone safely.

Be careful with power banks

Like with cheap chargers, cheap power banks can ruin your battery over time. Be sure any power bank you use has overcharge protection. If not, you can still use it, but keep an eye out. Once your battery is almost full, unplug it.

It would be best to avoid power banks with quick charge options unless they’re from a reliable brand. Here’s a rule of thumb: Say no if you’ve never heard of it.

Rapid charging can send too much electricity to your phone and cause battery damage. This high voltage could, at the very least, shorten your battery lifespan.

Tap or click for more smart ways to ensure you’re buying gear worth your money.

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If you bought one of these defective laptops, Apple might owe you money

Consumer products and vehicles get recalled often, but it’s rare to get anything of value in return. When a car has a defective component, manufacturers usually repair it for free. Tap or click here for details on 160K vehicles recently recalled.

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Keychains that double as ...

I love it when things are functional. For this list, I put together a few keychain goodies I’ve bought that fall into this category!

A universal charging cable, complete with USB, USB-C, micro-USB and Apple Lightning adapters.
An emergency Advil stash for under $9.
A seatbelt slicer and safety hammer for escaping a wrecked car.
An eyeglass repair kit (51% off).
An Apple AirTag holder (26% off). Ta-da! Now you won’t lose ‘em.

We may receive a commission when you buy through our links, but our reporting and recommendations are always independent and objective.

Never hurts to ask: Some credit cards offer extended warranties on anything you buy with the card. If your expensive vacuum or laptop craps out, it’s worth asking Amex or Chase if they’ll pay to repair or replace it.

🚨 Final warning: Ford and Mazda issued a do-not-drive alert for anyone ignoring the Takata airbag recall. These faulty airbags have killed 27 and injured at least 400 in the U.S. alone. Check if your vehicle needs this free repair using the Ford and Mazda portals.

This woman's home was stolen right from under her - Don't let it happen to you

Your home is likely the largest purchase you’ll ever make. Homeownership is a lifelong commitment between mortgage payments, taxes, insurance, maintenance, renovations, repair, and decorating.

Think about how much email correspondence you get just for your home. Bills and other important documents can get lost in the clutter of your inbox. You can prevent this by creating an email address just for your home. Tap or click here to learn more.

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Spruce up your kitchen with these 13 great products

Is your kitchen full of old, broken appliances, cracked cups and stained plates? Yep, it’s definitely time for a kitchen product makeover.

All it takes is a few matching sets, some space-saving items and this list of 13 outstanding products that promise to spruce up your kitchen.

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Your iPhone doesn’t come with a manual: But that doesn’t mean a manual doesn’t exist. You can find ‘em here for everything from the OG iPhone to the iPhone 15 Pro Max. Just pick the model to see the user guide, repair manual or device info. You’re welcome.

🔋 A pain in the wallet: EVs are getting harder to insure thanks to higher price tags and repair costs. So far this year, EV-related claims have cost 30% more (paywalled) than claims for their gas-powered counterparts. It’s not just fancy parts, either; it’s the EVs’ souped-up acceleration enticing owners to floor it.

Don’t park your Kia in the garage: A North Carolina driver barely escaped her Kia after she heard a loud pop, then it burst into flames. The car was among 1.7 million recalled last September. The antilock brake system can leak fluid and cause electrical shorts. Some nine months later, repair parts are still MIA.

Sam wants your repair shop to sing: Samsung is asking independent phone repair shops to pass along your name and contact details if you’ve used their services on your Samsung device. If that shop discovers any aftermarket parts in your phone, Samsung asks that they “immediately disassemble” (destroy) your device.

Check this recall: If you have an old Frigidaire or Kenmore electric range, it may be a fire and burn hazard. Full list of impacted models here. You’ll need your serial number, so open the bottom drawer and check the inside of the frame. Call Electrolux at 888-845-8226. You might get a free repair or a $50 gift card.

🌾 Mow problems: Honda is recalling lawnmowers and pressure washers after nearly 5,000 reports of failures and 38 injuries. That means you if you have a model HRN216 or HRX217K6 lawnmower and/or a GCV170 or GCV200 G5B power washer. Stop using it immediately, then call Honda toll-free at 888‑888‑3139 for a free inspection and repair.

Careful! Crack your new iPhone screen and you lose a major security feature

Smartphones can be fragile. It’s easy to assume that a device costing nearly $1,000 would be built a bit more robustly. But as anyone who has ever dropped an iPhone will attest, the first thing to break will be the screen. Tap or click to find out how much it costs to fix a broken iPhone 12.

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Recall alert: 400K pickups recalled over risk of exploding airbags

Recalls in the automotive industry occur rather frequently. Many of them are insignificant in nature. You might have a faulty component that could cause an interior light to malfunction.

Then there are more serious recalls that deal with hazards that could put your life in danger. A glaring example recently is millions of faulty Takata airbags that have the potential to explode when deployed. Tap or click here for details on that massive recall.

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3.3 million vehicles recalled! See if yours is on the list

It seems like we’re always hearing about recalls these days. Whether it’s toy and furniture design flaws or listeria or E. coli in our food, safety recalls are a pretty common scenario in the U.S.

Part of the reason for the steady stream of recalls is technology and safety guidelines are always improving. We have better ways of identifying problematic products than we did before — and we have more thorough ways of identifying people who may be affected. This vehicle recall app is just one of the new tools you can use to get recall alerts.

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20 useful, practical products under $20 you'll wish you'd had sooner

The products below are all useful and practical — and they won’t break the bank. I’ve tested them out and thought they could be useful for you, too, whether it’s to help make camping trips more comfortable or cut down on the annoying distractions from LED lights.

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Is it time to replace your Android battery? Signs, symptoms and fixes

Your Android phone is your everyday companion, so you notice when it’s not holding a charge as long as it used to. You’re starting to wonder if there’s a problem with the battery. That means it’s time to do a little sleuthing.

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Tech how-to: Roll back to a previous version of Windows 10

Windows offers updates to improve security and sometimes to introduce new features or app improvements. Unfortunately, some of the more recent Windows 10 updates have been less than stellar.

Despite the latest issues, the NSA has urged users to ensure they keep up with Windows updates. Tap or click here to see what the NSA had to say. But what if the latest update breaks your machine? Suddenly programs aren’t working and things are glitching out. Now what?

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Android headphones not working? Here are 3 tips to troubleshoot

If your wireless or wired headphones aren’t working with your Android device, it could be a problem with the phone, the software or the headphones themselves. Before you toss the headphones and waste money replacing them, we have three quick and easy troubleshooting tips to try.

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