Latest articles by Erin Bashford
Last chance! REI's winter sale ends today — save up to 30% on Patagonia, Arc'teryx, Merrell now
I've found the best last-minute REI winter sale deals, including Patagonia fleeces, Arc'teryx down-insulated jackets, Merrell boots, and a Columbia fleece.
Supercharge your home hi-fi setup with these amazing Black Friday speaker deals — I've found discounts up to $150 from Edifier, Kanto, and Audioengine
I test bookshelf speakers for a living, so I've picked my top five Black Friday speaker deals. Find up to $150 savings on Kanto, Audioengine, and Edifier.
Black Friday has come early for us hikers — I've picked my top Keen deals on everything from hiking boots to water sandals
I test hiking boots for a living, and I've picked my top Keen deals this Black Friday.
I used the 'wrong' grind size for 3 coffee brewing methods — it proves why you shouldn't buy pre-ground beans
I used the 'wrong' coffee grind size for espresso, drip, and pour-over in the name of science. Here's what happened, and why having a grinder is important.
Maono Wave T5 review
The Maono Wave T5 is a lavalier mic for beginner content creators, but due to its mediocre sound and poor ambient noise minimization, it’s not for professionals.
Keen Jasper Zionic review: The perfect hiking-slash-urban hybrid shoe
The Keen Jasper Zionics are the perfect hybrid trail shoe. With grippy rubber soles and lightweight leather, they’re ideal for wilderness and city errands.
REI's holiday sale 2025 is huge — I've hand-picked the best 11 deals on Patagonia, The North Face, and more from just $5
REI's winter sale just dropped, so I've found 9 of the best deals on winter apparel like down jackets, mules, and boots.
Live in a hard water area? Use this simple hack to know when to descale your coffee maker
I live in a hard water area, so I should descale my coffee machine often. I use my kettle to show me exactly when to descale.
Spotify now uses AI to recap your audiobooks for you — here's why that makes me mad
Spotify recently launched an AI-powered audiobook 'Recap' feature. Here's why I think this is a major step back.
I just ditched Spotify for Apple Music — these 3 unique features have me hooked
Apple Music has just as many features as Spotify. You simply need to know where to look. I'm hooked on the live radio, super-niche pre-made playlists, and more.
Maono DM40 Pro review
The Maono DM40 Pro review is a basic gaming microphone with fantastic ambient noise reduction and gorgeous RGB capsules, ideal for beginners, but not much else.
Inoviva Slushie Machine review
The Inoviva Slushie Machine is a fantastic Ninja Slushi dupe. It performs almost identically and is $190 cheaper than the big-name option.
Not a typo! AirPods Pro 2 just crashed to $139 on Walmart — save 40% right now
Walmart's early Black Friday sale sees the Apple AirPods Pro 2 discounted to just $139. That's budget earbuds pricing for a premium set of buds, so sign me up!
Meze 99 Classics 2nd Gen review: Audiophile quality, reasonable price
The Meze 99 Classics 2nd Gen are a worthy upgrade from the original model, with audiophile-worthy sound quality and an attractive price point.
2025 has been my favorite year for budget earbuds so far — here's my 3 top picks
In 2025, I've tested 3 of my favorite budget earbuds. Brands like JLab, CMF by Nothing, and EarFun have blown the competition away for under $100.
Drip coffee is hard to get wrong, but this budget machine failed my taste tests
I tested the Gevi 10-Cup Drip Coffee Maker with Grinder, and it's safe to say I'll never use it again. Here's why it's a complete and utter misstep.
JLab Go Party review: $34 of pure power
The JLab Go Party speaker is incomprehensibly cheap, at just $34. While it won’t impress audiophiles, it’s perfect for house parties.
CMF by Nothing Buds Pro 2 review: Best-ever $70 earbuds
The CMF by Nothing Buds Pro 2 perform well above their pay grade. These excellent earbuds sound amazing, boast premium features, and have great ANC.
Gevi 10-Cup Drip Coffee Maker with Grinder review
Gevi 10-Cup Drip Coffee Maker with Grinder is disappointing. It makes bitter yet watery coffee thanks to the low-quality grinder. I can’t recommend it.
Spotify's recent missteps drove me to Apple Music — and I can't believe it took me so long
I swapped Spotify for Apple Music, and now I can't believe I didn't switch earlier. Apple Music has lossless, Replay, and great UI.
This Ninja air fryer is perfect for beginners, and it's currently 50% off in this early Black Friday sale — save $89 now
You don't have to wait until Black Friday to get some major savings. This Ninja Pro XL 6-in-1 air fryer is ideal for beginners and a massive 50% off right now.
I wasn't expecting much from $99 earbuds, but these brand-new buds are honestly AirPods-level-good
I recently tested my most-anticipated earbud release of 2025, and it did not disappoint. The EarFun Air Pro 4+ are serious AirPods competition.
I just tried Stanley Cup's drip coffee maker — here's my verdict
I tested out Stanley's camping pour-over coffee maker (with a built-in filter!) and was weirdly impressed, but I can't quit my classic Hario V60.
The coffee world would have you believe you need loads of expensive coffee accessories, but I'm an ex-barista, and I disagree. You just need these 2 things
The coffee world believes you need $1k worth of coffee accessories to make real espresso, but they're all wrong. You only need two things for 10/10 coffee.
