These $10 home lab upgrades solved problems I didn't know I had
Ayush Pande Mar 29, 2026, 2:00 PM EDT Ayush Pande is a PC hardware and gaming writer. When he's not working on a new article, you can find him with…
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I stopped digging through storage boxes after deploying this self-hosted inventory tool
…Something like a full-featured dashboard that can track not just my hardware, but also my software. That's how I ended up going the open source route and installing CatalogIT on…
HexOS can finally manage your NAS locally instead of through the cloud, and it fixes its biggest flaw
…There were bugs, sure, like dashboard button states which needed fixing and some custom apps disappearing after migration that had to be restored. Still, there was nothing catastrophic , which is about as…
I cut Apple and Google out of my smart home with a $5 ESP32, and it was easier than I expected
…Related I added an open‑source ESP32 dashboard to my Home Assistant setup, and I'm glad I did It's a customizable display that can fit practically anywhere in my smart…
DisplayPort is everywhere except TVs, and it's quietly limiting PC gamers
Rich Edmonds May 18, 2026, 11:30 AM EDT Richard is the PC Hardware Lead at XDA and has been covering the technology industry for almost two decades. He's been building…
Four 3D prints I use every time I open my PC case
…premium hardware Cable management is the visual signature of a good PC build, but it is also an expensive addition after the fact. Store-bought acrylic cable combs found on custom sleeved…
The gaming mode on your router is a marketing lie — here’s what actually lowers your ping
Jasmine Mannan May 19, 2026, 3:30 PM EDT Jasmine is Software and PC Hardware Author at XDA with years of tech reporting experience ranging from AI chatbots right down to gaming…
5 Android Auto settings that make a wireless dongle experience truly seamless
…Related 4 Android Auto settings I changed to make it feel truly mine Night Mode, setting a custom wallpaper, shifting media controls, and more. Start Android Auto while locked The no-brainer…
Home Assistant finally replaced Google Home when I stopped trusting the cloud with my smart home
…I installed Zigbee2MQTT integration, followed by a Mosquitto server , and HACS to access more community-developed integrations. ESPHome integration lets me build and flash custom firmware on ESP32-based sensors directly in…
I used this Portainer alternative to replace my NAS's Docker UI, and I'm not going back
Ayush Pande Jun 15, 2026, 10:00 AM EDT Ayush Pande is a PC hardware and gaming writer. When he's not working on a new article, you can find him with…