// tested by a real IT dad
Find the right gear.
No fluff. Just what works.
Free tools and honest reviews from 30 years of IT experience. No account. No email. No paywall.
// free tools
Tools that give a straight answer
More tools coming soon: Smart Home Compatibility Checker, Home Lab Calculator
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Latest guides
3 CyberPower and APC UPS Units Compared: Which Battery Backup Fits Your Home Setup
CyberPower vs APC: we compare three UPS units at different price points so you know exactly which battery backup fits your home setup.
Read article →Home Lab Network Isolation: Fiber Backhaul vs WiFi Backhaul for Rack Equipment
Fiber backhaul sounds like the right fix for home lab network isolation, but it rarely is. Here's what actually solves lab traffic saturating your ISP uplink.
Read article →Mini UPS Sizing for Home Office: Battery Runtime Calculation for Laptops, Monitors, and Peripherals
Learn how to calculate actual UPS runtime for your home office. VA vs watts explained, real load math, and when a 425VA unit fails you.
Read article →// reviews
Latest product reviews
CyberPower ST425 UPS Review: 260W Battery Backup for Home Office and Lab Equipment
The CyberPower ST425 is a capable entry-level UPS for keeping a router, modem, and a few critical devices alive during short outages, but its 260W ceiling means you need to be deliberate about what you plug into it.
59.96 Read review →Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K Plus Review: Worth It for Families in 2024?
The Fire TV Stick 4K Plus delivers genuine Wi-Fi 6 performance and full HDR format support at $49.99, making it the right pick for Amazon-invested households, but Roku and Apple TV users have strong reasons to stay put.
49.99 Read review →Apple AirTag 4-Pack Review: $99 for Family Travel Tracking Worth It?
At $24.75 per tracker, the AirTag 4-pack is the most cost-effective way to cover the four things families lose most: luggage, keys, a backpack, and a car.
$99.00 Read review →// who built this
Tested by a real IT dad
30 years in enterprise IT. I research gear the same way I would for my own family: start with the spec sheet, verify with real-world numbers, and give you the honest trade-offs. No filler content, no recommendations I wouldn't make to a colleague.
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