Sometimes switching from one phone and internet service provider to another is a colossal waste of time. I learned this the hard way.

Unhappy with a big price increase from Xfinity when I switched to an iPhone, I turned to T-Mobile. Not only did they promise to save me $30 a month on phone and internet, they said their Starlink service could connect me even in remote areas. Goody.

But the T-Mobile app instructed me to place my new router near a window, and it looked awful there. So when I ran into another setup problem, I decided to go back to Xfinity.

At the T-Mobile store, a salesman went through three verification steps before telling me I had to call T-Mobile to cancel. I did so pronto, on the spot. That’s how I found out that my deal would have cost twice as much as what the T-Mobile website chat person offered me. I had the transcript to prove it, but it wasn’t worth fighting about. 

After ten minutes, as I stood there on hold, the T-Mobile store guy tactfully suggested that I could leave. But I was worried about getting disconnected from the T-Mobile phone person as soon as I entered my building’s elevator. So rather than stand out in the cold, I trudged through snow to Target. Unfortunately, the call took so long that I was still on hold when I finished self check-out. So, I decided to continue the process in my building’s lobby. The whole thing took about an hour. 

My techy friend had a similar experience when he called T-Mobile to cancel his recently-deceased brother’s account. He had to convince them that he didn’t want it for himself. That took a long time.

Smart Gadgets Go Offline   

With the new SmartVoice gadgets from Emerson, you can dictate commands as if you were talking to Siri, Alexa or Google Assistant. I wonder what I would say to a smart fan, a smart space heater, a smart power strip or a smart air fryer? Would we become friends?

The smart air fryers respond to over 1,000 voice commands, including 100 cooking presets. The rest of the Emerson gadgets can understand over 40 voice commands. For example, you could tell your space heater to turn on and set the temperature to 75 degrees. Or you might set a timer for your fan and increase its speed. Or, you might ask your air fryer to pause cooking.

No WiFi is needed, unlike Alexa, Siri or Google Assistant. The microphone is built in, and so is a voice-recognition chip. The gadget listens for short, simple commands. Since no phone is involved, there’s no pairing. If you’re willing to shout, you can command your air fryer without leaving your bed.

Emerson smart fans start at $90. Their smart air fryers and space heaters start at $130. Their smart wall plugs start at $25. See more at emersonsmart.com.

Flying High

The Fly Wing X-Wing Fighter, a remote-controlled drone that looks like an airplane, is one of the sensations of the 2026 Consumer Electronics Show. Unlike most drones, you fly this one from the cockpit’s perspective, as if you were a drone racer. As you move your head, a drone camera beams video to your DJI goggles, allowing you to track up to 10 aircraft. It helps if you have flight simulator experience.

The X-Wing Fighter will cost $2000 when it comes out, presumably in March 2026. They also offer less expensive drones. Check them out at flywingrc.com. They start at $399.

Handy Shortcut

If, like me, you often lose track of the websites you’ve visited, try this: Hold down the “Ctrl” key, or the “Cmd” key on the Mac, as well as the “Shift” key. Now tap the “A” key. You’ll see a list of everything you have open and everything you recently closed. It works with chrome-based browsers only, including Google Chrome, Microsoft Edge, Brave and more.  

Freeing Up Space on your iPad

J5create just announced a $70 spaceman that’s attached to a cable to transfer photos and files from your iPad to your Windows computer, or vice versa. It’s not out yet, but you can use an ordinary cable instead. Once your iPad is connected to your computer, open File Explorer and navigate to your iPad, then “Internal Storage,” then “DCIM,” to transfer photos and videos. For further instructions, just ask Google.

Sharing Photos with other iPhone Users

Hey newbie iPhone owners. Here’s how to share photos with the person standing next to you, just by tapping your iPhone on theirs. Open the Photos app, select the photos you wish to share, tap your friend’s phone, then tap “share.” The photos automatically open in their Photos app. You can also share other kinds of files this way. Just open the Files app and repeat.

Numbers Report

According to a report published by Coveware, a cybersecurity firm, ransomware payments were at their highest in 2019. With the exception of a handful of quarterly spikes, the success rate of ransomware blackmail and extortion attempts has continued to drop ever since. In 2019, 85 percent of victims paid the ransom. In the third quarter of last year, only 23 percent did so. The average payment dropped to $376,941, a 66 percent decrease.

Filed under: AI, gadgets, Internet, numbers, storage, troubleshooting