Friday, November 22

Tag: household

How IKEA Downsized to Go Downtown
31Dec By adminNo Comments
World

How IKEA Downsized to Go Downtown

Updated Dec. 31, 2023 12:20 am ETPARIS—There was no instruction manual when IKEA’s Paris team set to work building a new kind of city-center store.The Swedish furniture company’s ambition was to create a smaller version of its giant blue-and-yellow suburban stores for downtown consumers, to be replicated around the world. A quarter of the size of IKEA’s traditional outlets, the central Paris store—the first of this new type when it opened in 2019—would need to be radically different, they decided.Copyright ©2023 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 87990cbe856818d5eddac44c7b1cdeb8
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The Best Pet Cameras (2023): Treat Dispensing, Laser Pointer, and 360 Degrees
18Dec By adminNo Comments
Technology

The Best Pet Cameras (2023): Treat Dispensing, Laser Pointer, and 360 Degrees

Our furry friends are important members of the family, and leaving them at home while we go out to do people things can be hard. However, pet cameras—specifically designed to keep watch over dogs and cats—can make the human's absence from the home less stressful for both parties. If you've considered getting a pet camera, there's no better time than now.Read our Best Indoor Security Cameras, Best Outdoor Security Cameras, Best Dog Tech and Accessories, Best Dog Beds, and Best Cat Tech and Supplies guides for more.Updated December 2023: Eufy's Pet Camera Pro is our new top pick. We've added Furbo's cat-specific 360 camera, and options from Petcube and Catit. We've also updated prices and links throughout.Table of ContentsSpecial offer for Gear readers: Get a 1-Year Subscription to WIRED fo...
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7 Best Bidets (2023): Toto, Kohler, Tushy
13Nov By adminNo Comments
Technology

7 Best Bidets (2023): Toto, Kohler, Tushy

Bidet seats are one of those luxuries you can live happily without until you realize what you're missing. My first encounter came at a ramen spot on the West Coast of the US that had imported a high-end Toto washlet from Japan, where they've been a part of daily life for decades. I might have been an early adopter, but bidets are getting more common in the US. Toto’s American sales doubled in the first quarter of 2020 and have continued to climb since. (The pandemic and the infamous toilet paper outage surely played a role.) But maybe more people are starting to realize that American bathroom habits are … gross. Think about it: When you get something on you that smells foul and is full of germs, do you want to wash it off or smear it off with a piece of paper?OK, I convinced you. So what ...
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Best Hair Dryers and Diffusers (2023): Blow-Dryers, Brushers, and Diffusers
29Oct By adminNo Comments
Technology

Best Hair Dryers and Diffusers (2023): Blow-Dryers, Brushers, and Diffusers

From the time the first hair dryer was introduced for home use in the 1920s, every one looked nearly identical until Dyson debuted its Supersonic dryer in 2016, which matched the design of its bladeless fans. Now, several companies are adapting their drying tech into the lightest, thinnest package possible, looking more like a heat gun than a hair dryer (I guess these are a type of heat gun, technically).I've used these three. They're each less than a pound, relatively quiet, and have self-cleaning functions—you take the filter cover off the back and activate cleaning mode; the dryers shoot air in reverse to push dust and debris out. While each one stands out on its own, I wish I could combine all three for one perfect dryer.Chi Lava Pro for $337: This one is slightly lighter than the oth...
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Best Gear and Tips to Keep Your Home Warm in the Winter (2023)
15Oct By adminNo Comments
Technology

Best Gear and Tips to Keep Your Home Warm in the Winter (2023)

It has a thermostat, simple controls, and safety features, such as a very effective kill switch that'll immediately turn the heater off if it tips or begins to overheat. Note: Don't ever plug a space heater into a power strip, extension cord, or surge protector. They need to plug straight into a wall outlet, otherwise they can malfunction and catch fire. Don't use them near flammable things or up against objects, including walls, and make sure nothing covers them up. When you leave your home, make sure you always, always, always turn it off. There are a lot of caveats to using a space heater safely.Indoor humidity takes a beating during the dry winter months, too, with heaters sucking up precious moisture. Indoor air can become incredibly dry during cool months. It doesn't just crack your...
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5 Best Nanoleaf Smart Lights (2023): Shapes, 4D Kit, and Installation Tips
15Oct By adminNo Comments
Technology

5 Best Nanoleaf Smart Lights (2023): Shapes, 4D Kit, and Installation Tips

Here are some tips and tricks we've learned from testing Nanoleaf products over the years,Prepare before you install. Decide and map out what you want to do in advance. Nanoleaf's lights attach to the wall with adhesive, so it's possible to remove them without taking the paint off, but it's easier to have your design already planned and set. Be sure to use a level to make sure they're straight, since the geometric shapes will make it obvious if they aren't.Plan for power. Don't just plan your design, but make sure your panels will end close enough to an outlet. You can also try to design your lights to hide the power cord behind something, like a nearby bookshelf or plant.Scheduling ability might vary. If you're using the Essentials bulbs, you can only set up schedules with Apple HomeKit ...
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Best Bed Frames (2023): Easy Assembly, Fabric, Wood, and Metal
1Oct By adminNo Comments
Technology

Best Bed Frames (2023): Easy Assembly, Fabric, Wood, and Metal

I've owned Thuma's The Bed for three years now, and it feels as good as new. You don't need a single tool to assemble this wooden bed frame. The company uses traditional Japanese joinery techniques, and it took me about 15 minutes to put the whole thing together. That means disassembly and reassembly when I had to move was so easy—there are but two thumb screws at the top and bottom edges of the frame, which you can hand-screw in once everything else is in place.More surprising is how sturdy it is. I've gone through so many bed frames before the Thuma, and after a year or two, there's usually a broken slat or bent metal rod here and there. Or the slats keep falling down, so you have to do that thing where you pull the mattress over your head as you try to shove them back in place (just me...
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Superkop Espresso Maker Review: Great Espresso Without the Electricity
24Sep By adminNo Comments
Technology

Superkop Espresso Maker Review: Great Espresso Without the Electricity

Nothing makes me happier than when someone comes along and clears away all the technological clutter from a device to reveal its simple mechanical underpinnings. When the result also looks better and works better than its competitors, that’s tech(less) nirvana, which is exactly what the Superkop espresso machine manages to achieve.The Superkop is an entirely manual espresso maker that needs nothing more than hot water and espresso-ground coffee to brew up a delicious shot. There’s no touchscreen, no needless phone app, no digital nonsense, just the essential element you need: great espresso.Since it doesn’t require anything more than hot water, when the zombie apocalypse comes, you can heat that water over a trashcan fire, brew that delicious shot, and calmly look up from your still-funct...
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13 Best Office Chairs (2023): Budget, Luxe, Cushions, Casters, and Mats
21Sep By adminNo Comments
Technology

13 Best Office Chairs (2023): Budget, Luxe, Cushions, Casters, and Mats

Not every chair is a winner. Here are a few others we like enough to recommend, but they're not as good as our top picks above.Knoll Newson Task Chair for $1,195: This minimalist chair looks best in the graphite and petal colors; it's a bit drab in black and umber. It's nice that I didn't have to fuss with any levers or knobs much—it's comfy out of the box and decently adjustable if you need to make some tweaks—and it feels especially nice when you recline. (The red knob adjusts the tension of the recline, but you need to twist it for five rotations, and I found it hard to turn sometimes.) The Newson didn't give me trouble in the two months I sat in it. I'm just not a huge fan of how the elastomer mesh backrest distorts, depending on how you sit. It feels lumpy. This chair also doesn't le...
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