Watch, Read, Listen

Last summer, my team and I spent two months putting eight of the best inflatable pools through real backyard conditions. We inflated them on grass, sand, and concrete tarps. We topped them off after a week. We handed them to toddlers, large dogs, and groups of four adults. Three of them sagged within days. Two…

I have lived with an instant hot water tap on my kitchen counter for the past four years, and after burning through two kettles and one countertop water dispenser, I went hands-on with eight of the most popular models on the US market for this review. My goal was to find the best instant hot…

I have painted more walls than I care to count over the last decade, and I can tell you with confidence that the best interior paints are not created equal. After putting eight formulas through drywall-swatch coverage tests, scrub-resistance trials, and stain-hide checks in my own home and a rental property, I narrowed the field…

When I sat down to compile this guide, I pulled eight intermediate cellos out of their cases, played each for at least an hour, and compared them side by side in my home studio. I’ve spent the last two decades reviewing bowed string instruments, and I’ll tell you straight: the best intermediate cellos for serious…

I still remember the first isomalt mold I ever owned. It was a clear chocolate mold from a craft store, and it melted into a puddle of unusable sugar within four seconds of pouring 330F isomalt into it. I learned the hard way what every cake decorator eventually learns: not every silicone or plastic mold…

I will never forget the first time I tried to grate fresh ginger for a stir-fry with a cheap box grater. The result was a watery, fibrous pulp that puddled in the pan and made the sauce taste harsh. After three months of testing 10 different Japanese oroshigane graters across my home kitchen, side-by-side ginger…

I’ve spent the last three months running the best jar vacuum sealers on my pantry shelves — beans, rice, coffee beans, dehydrated apples, sourdough starter, and a few freeze-dried strawberries I borrowed from a neighbor’s Harvest Right — to find out which ones actually pull a strong, consistent seal and which ones just look pretty…

After spending three months testing 12 Jazzmaster guitars in our studio, A/B-ing them through tube amps and recording direct takes, I can confirm one thing: the best Jazzmaster guitars are not the most expensive ones. They are the ones that nail that warm, jangly single-coil voice, sit comfortably against your body, and stay in tune…

Whether you’re hosting a backyard barbecue, running a mobile bar at a festival, or pouring craft brews at your buddy’s tailgate, nothing impresses guests like ice-cold draft beer on tap. That’s exactly why I’ve spent the last few months testing and researching what makes the best jockey boxes stand out from the crowd. A jockey…

We spent six weekends running 10 karaoke machines through real home parties, then ranked them. The Singing Machine Portable Karaoke System with CD+G, Bluetooth and LED Disco Lights is the best karaoke machine for home parties overall because it has the longest track record (over 14,000 reviews), plays CD+G discs natively, streams via Bluetooth, ships…