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It’s a tech-fabulous Friday, friend! Before we jump into the tech know-how, let’s revisit a major annoyance. In 2021, we were inundated with telemarketing calls about expired car warranties. How many calls did one outfit based in Panama make per day to U.S. citizens? Was it … A.) 900,000, B.) 7,200,000, C.) 15,000,000 or D.) 77,000,000? You’ll find the answer at the end.

🤑 Let’s do this thing. Today’s top story came from the “Let's save money!” part of my brain. Hope you enjoy it and find it useful in your life. — Kim

Flashback to 2015 and cutting the cord — switching from traditional cable to streaming — was so in. Today, we’re cutting the streams. It’s no wonder, right?

Five years ago, Netflix, Disney+ and Hulu with Live TV would cost you around $56 a month. Not bad! Today, the same services will run you over $106. How’s that for outrageous?

New research shows we're more cutthroat than ever about what we pay to stream. Let's look at some clever ways people save so you can, too!

It’s all about the Benjamins

If it’s not clear by now, we’re all scaling back on streaming primarily because of how dang expensive these services are. Sure, some people hit their TV limit during the pandemic (🙋‍♀️ raising my hand), but costs are still out of control.

Here are a few recent increases in monthly prices:

• Standard ad-free Netflix plan: From $13.99 to $15.49
• Ad-free Disney+ premium: From $11 to $14
• Ad-free Hulu with Live TV: From $70 to $77
• Ad-free Amazon Prime Video: From $0 to $2.99, plus you need to pay $14.99 per month for Prime

Over the last two years, roughly 25% of American streaming subscribers have canceled at least three services. Yup, I’m in that category, too!

OK, I’m ready to save

I feel you. You don't need to cut all your streaming to save significant cash, either.

• Get creative. What do you pay for that you don’t need all the time? Looking at you, sports add-ons. Cancel those once specific events or seasons are over.
• Focus on what you watch most. If we’re not watching anything on Netflix, it goes away until our show returns. A couple of active services are usually more than enough for one family.
• Watch ads. Streaming companies are desperate to keep you, and you can get free or cheaper options if you’re willing to put up with commercials.
• Get a grip. Sometimes, you forget what you’re even paying for. I use Rocket Money (a sponsor of my podcast) to do it for me. You can also comb through your bank and credit card statements to find all your streaming charges.
• Consider an antenna. This is a no-brainer if you're a sports fan and your favorite games are on local channels. Here’s a solid option that includes a DVR, and this one gets the job done on a budget. Try this site to see what channels you can get at home.
• Test the freebies. Pluto TV, Tubi and plenty of others still cost absolutely nothing. Ads? Yes. Free? Yes. Big list of freebies here!
• Sharing is caring. Not everyone has banned this yet. Amazon lets up to six people share. Through Apple's Family Sharing feature, six folks get Apple TV+. Disney+ started cracking down on password sharing for Canadian users, but it’s still OK here in the U.S. — for now.

💰 True story. My husband, Barry, is a serial subscriber. If there's a paid app or service, he somehow finds it. I regularly go in and cancel stuff he's not using, and then every few months, he'll yell, "KIM! Did you cancel this?" I just laugh.

Ah, January — That magical time when we’re all excited to clean.

• Mugs take up too much room in the cupboard. These under-the-cabinet hooks are sweet.
• Under my sink used to be the black hole where cleaning products went to die. A slide-out shelf totally fixed that problem. (Click the box for an extra 15% off!)
• Love a lazy Susan. This two-pack is perfect for the spice cabinet or anywhere else you lose things in the back.
• Baking sheets and racks need a home, too. This adjustable rack holds all your baking stuff, and it’s cheap.
• While you’re at it, plastic bags, foil, wax paper and all the rest also deserve their own space. I need these shelves!

😂 I’ve been thinking about a job cleaning mirrors. It’s just something I could really see myself doing.

Have your own server? A whopping 11 million SSH servers are in the crosshairs of the new Terrapin attack. It’s a bit technical, but think of it as a digital pickpocket during your server's handshake process. If you know what that means, use this vulnerability scanner to see if you’re in danger.

☕ Check your Starbucks app: A watchdog group says (Fortune, paywall link) Starbucks is tricking folks into leaving money in the app and on gift cards, boosting its profits by a latte — nearly $900 million. The system makes it difficult to spend every penny since you can only reload in $5 increments. Open your app and spend that change!

Airbnb's most wanted: Meet Shray Goel, the Airbnb host behind a massive $8.5 million scam. He'd list the same spot twice, cancel the cheaper stay with fake "plumbing" excuses and shove guests into crummier places. If someone stayed the night, no matter how bad, no full refund from Airbnb. If they left, he'd lie and say they didn't. He could lose all his properties if convicted. Let's hope.

🧬 23andMe says it was your fault: Hackers grabbed genetic info from 6.9 million users, but the company says it's because folks reused passwords. Really, 23andMe? Now it's tightening security, but as for customer trust? Done. I recommend you remove your 23andMe account ASAP. Steps are here.

Press on: Windows keyboards are getting the first new key since 1994. A “Copilot” key will bring up the AI assistant on Windows 10 and 11. (It jumps to “Search” on other systems.) It’ll live near the arrow keys and make its grand debut at the Consumer Electronics Show in a few days. But that’ll be old news to you because you heard it here first!

January 29: That’s when Amazon will add enough ads to Prime Video to bank $5 billion a year. You can skip them for an extra $3 per month, as mentioned above in today’s top story. One report predicts 70% of us will just sit through the commercials.

💿 End of an era: Best Buy will no longer sell DVDs, Blu‑ray discs or CDs. Odd timing, given so many people are tired of paying for streaming and are getting back into physical media. You can still find new discs at Walmart, Amazon and Target. Pro tip: Scour local thrift stores for cheap finds.

Slice, slice, baby: Apple shares dipped 4% after the iPhone 15's lackluster launch. Investors are calling it "Apple's biggest flop." The most significant change is the Lightning to USB‑C cable swap. Yawn. No joke, I opened mine, held it up to my 14 and said, “This is the same phone. I just wasted $1,500!”

When there’s too much on your screen, it’s hard to focus. Minimize clutter by shaking your active window. On Windows 11, click and hold the title bar, then shake your mouse left and right to minimize all other open programs. Repeat to restore your minimized windows.

Not working? You may need to enable the feature:

• Go to Settings > System > Multitasking.
• Look under the Title bar windows shake section.
• Turn on When I grab a window’s title bar and shake it, minimize all other windows.

🖥️ Feeling left out, Mac users? Turn that frown upside down. Here’s a trick for you: If you tilt two fingers on your trackpad at the same time, you’ll rotate images and graphics. Cool, huh?

Keyboard smarts: First, thanks to all of you who caught our goof! To paste, use Ctrl + V (Cmd + V on a Mac). Now try this! Move through your open tabs with just your keyboard. Press Ctrl + Tab on Windows or Cmd + Tab on a Mac to cycle. To quickly close your active tab, hit Ctrl + W on Windows or, on your Mac, Cmd + W.

✈️ Flying this year? You can save up to 15% when you book on a Sunday. The cheapest day of the week to travel is Wednesday. Now, that alone is worth the price of this newsletter!

Got a new iPad? Drag an app from the dock and place it alongside another open app. They'll run side by side in Split View. Slide down to convert it to Slide Over mode. Super useful.

Task, be done! Windows Task Scheduler automates tasks like weekly disk cleanups or sending an email. Type Task Scheduler into your Windows search bar to open the app. Click Create Basic Task and follow the prompts to name your task and define its trigger (like a time, day of the week or when your computer starts). Choose what the task should do and that's it. Sweetness!

🧮 Sound smarter: Uncertain about big numbers? Happens to the best of us. Type 953,116,070=english into Google, hit Enter and it displays "nine hundred fifty-three million one hundred sixteen thousand and seventy."

Your computer and your phone are under attack. I’m not being dramatic! The tallies aren’t done yet, but cybercrime losses for 2023 alone are predicted to be around $8 trillion worldwide.

That’s why I make sure all my devices are protected, and you should, too. “Kim, can I just use a free option?” At best, they’re not enough. At worst, those companies are stealing your info.

I negotiated a special deal for you: Award-winning antivirus protection on up to five devices for just $19 for the first year. It works with Windows, Mac, Android and iOS — 100% compatibility across all your devices. Btw, if you buy, I don’t get any kickbacks or residuals.

And Superman has nowhere to change now.

The answer: D.) 77,000,000. The robocall operation, led by Roy Cox Jr. and Michael Aaron Jones, was responsible for an astonishing number of calls, at times making over 77 million per day! The FCC imposed a record-setting $300 million fine against the largest illegal robocall operation ever.

One more for the road: What do you call a Polish telemarketer? A telephone Pole.

🤗 Thanks for being here. Want to see something specific in this newsletter? If it’s digital, I’m your gal! Drop me a note or reply to this email.