Ben PattersonSenior Writer, TechHive
Ben has been writing about technology and consumer electronics for more than 20 years. A PCWorld contributor since 2014, Ben joined TechHive in 2019, where he covers smart speakers, soundbars, and other smart and home-theater devices.
Some of Netflix’s most popular movies and TV shows are streaming for free
"Bird Box", "Murder Mystery," "When They See Us" and more available for free now, along with the first episodes of hit TV shows such as "Stranger Things" and "Grace and Frankie."
Soundbar shoppers: Consider these 10 essential features
From Dolby Atmos to eARC, weigh these key features when choosing a soundbar.
Audio Advice’s free interactive 3D tool can help plan your dream home theater
With its drag-and-drop interface, the free Home Theater Designer can help you plan exactly where your screen, speakers, and seats should go.
A Google Nest Hub might join you for your next hotel stay
Google’s seven-inch Nest Hub smart display is about to double as a bellhop.
Netgear’s new Meural WiFi Photo Frame focuses on family snapshots
The Wi-Fi-enabled frame from Netgear-owned Meural syncs with photo albums on your iPhone or Android phone.
Audible unveils a $7.95 all-you-can-listen Audible Plus plan
Audible Plus will give subscribers the run of more than 68,000 hours of Audible content, including audiobooks, podcasts and Audible Originals.
Aura Carver review: This landscape-only photo frame automatically pairs portrait images
The Aura Carver picture frame uses AI to ensure you don’t see letterbox bars when the frame is displaying portrait images.
Zoom will arrive on Amazon, Facebook, and Google smart displays this year
Zoom for Home will debut on Facebook Portal displays in September, followed by Amazon Echo Show and Google Nest displays before the year is out.
Netflix is trying out a 'Shuffle Play' button yet again
Netflix keeps trying to make shuffle happen.
Distance learning: 4 smart tech solutions for keeping kids on track
Get some badly needed school-from-home help from Alexa, Google Assistant, your smart lights, and more.
Google smart displays now let you take charge of multi-room audio
You can now create instant speaker groups from your Google Nest Hub, Hub Max, or another Google Assistant-compatible display.
Confused by the flashing lights on your Amazon Echo device? Here’s what they mean
The indicator lights on your Echo speaker can flash in seven different colors. Here’s what they’re trying to tell you.
Apple TV+ now bundles CBS All Access and Showtime for $9.99 a month
The CBS All Access and Showtime bundle essentially gives you both channels for half off, but only if you’re an Apple TV+ subscriber.
Now you can add DirecTV movie purchases to your Movies Anywhere digital locker
DirecTV is joining eight other online retailers whose users can sync their digital movie purchases with the Movies Anywhere service.
Vizio’s SmartCast TV platform gets 12 new streaming TV channels for kids
Ameba, HappyKids Junior, Kidoodle.TV, and The Official LEGO Channel are among the free streaming channels coming to Vizio SmartCast TVs.