Posted by Daniel Oropeza

https://lifehacker.com/my-favorite-websites-for-the-best-travel-deals?utm_medium=RSS

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication.

Did you know you can customize Google to filter out garbage? Take these steps for better search results, including adding my work at Lifehacker as a preferred source.

Finding great travel deals is a skill, but it’s one that can be honed—if you know where to source a bargain, can be patient and flexible, and if you know you can take advantage of the 24-hour free federal cancelation policy to lock in a time-sensitive opportunity. Some of the hottest tricks people have been using lately to save on their travels are websites that let you buy other people's non-refundable vacations, from flights to hotels to cruises. If this sounds like your vibe, buckle up.

Here are some of the best travel websites you can use to snag your next trip on the cheap.

Google Flights' explore tool

I expect most people to know this one, but I have to start the list somewhere. For those who might not know, Google Flights has an “explore” tool where you see a map of your potential destinations from your local airport and their prices. This is great when you don't have a specific destination in mind but want to get away and see where you could potentially travel to. You can scroll through the planet and find some bargains that you might've never seen otherwise.

Quick tip: If you have a budget, use the filters on the top left to set it and see where you can afford to travel to around the world.

Use Skyscanner to find the cheapest flights

Yes, Google Flights is more user-friendly and has cool features, but if you mean business and are looking for the cheapest flight options you can find, Skyscanner is what you want to use. Here, you’ll find flights that will not even appear on Google Flights, and it even has an explore-like tool similar to Google’s where you simply input your local airport, select “whole month” for dates, and click “search” to find all the possible low-cost destinations for that month (I found a direct flight to Cancun from my home in Atlanta for $183).

You can catch last-minute flight deals and set alerts for cheap flights as well.

Shop second-hand vacation packages from people who can't get refunds

Imagine you buy a whole package deal for a family vacation months in advance but, like most people, you forego the travel insurance. You have a family emergency and can no longer take the trip. What can you do? Sell your vacation on the internet.

Websites like Sparefare, Roomer, Plans Change, and Transfer Travel let you buy other people's vacations that they can no longer use themselves. You can both save money and get these people out of a sticky situation. Here's a quick breakdown of your options:

TransferTravel

TransferTravel is like the Facebook Marketplace of travel plans. You can find anything from cruises, to flights, to hotels, events, and more. It's the most wide-ranging of all of these websites that offer transferable travel products.

SpareFare

SpareFare focuses on flight tickets or vouchers, hotel reservations, and holiday packages. You'll be connected directly with the seller to get their non-refundable bookings. SpareFare also helps you manage the name change process for airline tickets, which can get a bit complicated if you do it by yourself.

Roomer

If you're focusing on finding hotels at a bargain, use Roomer. The website focuses on showing you non-refundable bookings from people desperately trying to recoup any money they can. You can find hotels from all over the world and filter by number of occupants, dates, and location. You might not always find something available where you're staying, but if you do, you'll be a happy camper.

PlansChange

PlansChange is exactly like Roomer, but it's smaller in scope and reach. It doesn't hurt to check both when you find yourself looking for a bargain stay.

Use SecretFlying to set up alerts for their “Error Fares”

Airlines make mistakes sometimes, and as a savvy traveler, you need to be ready to take advantage of them when you can. SecretFlying is a travel deal website that works like many others, but it also has a special tool to find cheap flights that exist because of mistakes that airlines make. (For example, there was an enticing Chicago to London round-trip for only $58 last month.) The error fares go fast, and many might not logistically work for you, but if you ever do catch one of these, you’ll be bragging about it for years to come.

Use the Travel Arrow extension

If you're still only using Google Flights to do your searching, you could be missing out on some cheaper options. Travel Arrow is an extension you can install on your browser that will cross-reference your Google Flight info on Skyscanner, Kayak, Trip, and Expedia (all the major competitors to Google Flights). While it doesn't always work, it's a free tool that will more than pay for itself if you ever end up booking a cheaper flight with it. Keep in mind that some flights might be cheaper because their layovers are longer.

Use these online vacation package websites

There are many websites that sell you travel packages that include flights, hotels, food, tours, and even transportation (rails, buses, taxis, etc.) for much cheaper than you would find if you tried to book each piece individually. The catch is that these packages are typically strict on dates, and their cancellation policies are often less forgiving. But you’ll be able to find amazing deals at locations you might not otherwise be able to afford.

Gate1, for example, has been around since the '80s—my mom has used it with my dad to visit the eight wonders of the world on a budget over the years. Their best deals come from their weekly specials (you can sign up for their emails) and last-minute deals where you can find multi-day trips for big discounts.

For example, you can do a 13-day Thailand trip for $2,249 with all this included:

• Roundtrip flights Los Angeles to Bangkok, or Bangkok to Los Angeles

• Intra-flight Chiang Mai to Bangkok

• 11 nights First Class accommodations

• Hotel taxes, fees, service charges, and porterage

• 18 meals: 11 breakfasts, 3 lunches, 4 dinners

• Sightseeing per itinerary in modern air-conditioned motor coach

• Services of English-speaking tour manager throughout

• Entrance fees per itinerary

Here are some other websites similar to Gate1 where you can find great deals on packages for your next trip:

• TravelPirates

• Great Value Vacations

• Going (formerly Scott’s Cheap Flights)

https://lifehacker.com/my-favorite-websites-for-the-best-travel-deals?utm_medium=RSS

Posted by Pradershika Sharma

https://lifehacker.com/tech/office-professional-plus-stacksocial-sale?utm_medium=RSS

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication.

If you’re trying to avoid Microsoft 365’s monthly fees but still want the full suite of tools for work or school, this one-time purchase of Office Professional Plus 2019 might be worth a look. It’s currently on sale for $29.97 on StackSocial, which is a fraction of what you’d usually pay. And just to be clear—this isn’t a trial or a cloud-based subscription, but a lifetime license for one Windows PC, and you get full offline access to Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, OneNote, Publisher, and Access.

There are some limitations you’ll want to keep in mind. This deal is strictly for the 2019 version and doesn’t include Microsoft Teams. It also won’t tie to your Microsoft account, which might throw off those used to syncing documents between devices. But for a lot of people, that’s not a dealbreaker. It runs on Windows 10 or 11—so no luck if you’re still using an older machine—and you’ll need at least 1GB of RAM and 4GB of disk space. Installation is straightforward and instant. You get your license key and download link right after purchase, and that’s it.

In terms of features, you’re getting a robust productivity suite. Excel has improved data analysis tools, PowerPoint brings in new transitions and a zoom feature for dynamic slides, and Outlook makes email and calendar management a bit more efficient. Word is Word—it just works, and it works well. You can’t collaborate in real-time like in Office 365, but if you mostly work solo or on one device, this version gets the job done. All that said, $30 for a fully licensed, download-now Office suite isn’t a bad move—especially if you just need a stable toolkit that works.

https://lifehacker.com/tech/office-professional-plus-stacksocial-sale?utm_medium=RSS

Posted by Michelle Ehrhardt

https://lifehacker.com/tech/how-to-turn-off-gemini-button-in-chrome?utm_medium=RSS

Google’s Gemini AI seems to be everywhere these days. It’s in your Gmail, it’s on your phone, and soon, it’ll be in your browser. While Google’s AI browser integration was already live for Google AI Pro and AI Ultra subscribers, it's now rolling out to everyone—and getting a bunch of new features, too.

If you’re suddenly seeing a new Gemini button in the top right of your Chrome browser (in the same pane as your tabs), then you’ve already been hit with the update. If not, you may need to use the three-dots button in the top right corner and select Gemini in Chrome to turn it on, assuming you want to.

How to use Gemini in Chrome

When you click the Gemini button, or summon it via a keyboard shortcut (Alt + G by default), you’ll be able to try out the same features Google’s paying customers have had access to for a while. That means Gemini will be able to answer questions about the webpage you’re on, or just answer general questions unrelated to what you’re browsing. Or, if you’re in a Google app or on a Google website, it’ll be able to take some simple actions for you, like jumping you to a specific spot in a YouTube video.

Additionally, Gemini can also now work across your tabs and compare information between them. Simply start a dialogue with Gemini by tapping the button in the top right corner, and at the bottom of the window, click “Add tab” to give Gemini another source of data to consider.

Weirdly, while these updates are already pushing live to average folks, Google says businesses will need to wait a couple of weeks, so they can get “enterprise-grade data protections and controls.”

As of now, aside from the new access, it’s not the biggest update, especially because to try it, you need to be on Windows or Mac, have your language set to English, and be in the U.S.. Google stresses that the Gemini Assistant on Android can also help you browse Chrome, and that it’s working to bring more direct Gemini in Chrome access to both its Android and iOS apps.

More AI browsing is coming

Google says it also has big things in store for the feature, with “agentic browsing” set for the “coming months.” This will supposedly let Gemini in Chrome complete tasks, like booking a haircut for you, or ordering your groceries. Alternatively, it’ll also help you browse a bit more easily, as Google says it’s working to let you ask Gemini questions about your browser history when you want to go back to a specific page. For instance, “what was the website where I saw the walnut desk last week?” could take you back to a shopping page you only vaguely remember.

A more powerful address bar is apparently in the works that will let you ask questions of Google’s AI model without having to navigate to it first. For now, Gemini in Chrome will start suggesting questions to ask it about whatever page you’re on, right in the address bar.

The update includes a few security updates too, although they mostly seem to work in the backend, supposedly using AI to better block scammy ads and notifications. Now that’s the type of AI integration I can support wholeheartedly.

How to turn off Gemini in Chrome

All that said, if you’re a bit skeptical about Gemini in Chrome, you can turn it off. Simply navigate to Settings > AI Innovations, and you’ll be able to turn off the Gemini button, as well as disable its keyboard shortcut. You can also restrict its permissions: Set everything to off, and it’ll be like it was never installed in the first place.

https://lifehacker.com/tech/how-to-turn-off-gemini-button-in-chrome?utm_medium=RSS

Posted by Beth Skwarecki

https://lifehacker.com/health/apples-new-sleep-score-comparison?utm_medium=RSS

We may earn a commission from links on this page.

Did you know you can customize Google to filter out garbage? Take these steps for better search results, including adding my work at Lifehacker as a preferred source.

Apple's new sleep score, now available on the Apple Watch and in the Apple Health app, grades how well you slept on a scale from 0 to 100. Since it grades you retroactively, I can look back at my last month (or even years) of sleep scores to see how the new numbers compare to the scores I’ve gotten from Oura and other wearables. I tried this out, and one thing stood out: Apple is way too easy on me. 

I’m kidding, sort of. Yes, Apple’s scores are consistently higher than those I get from other wearables, but it’s not like I can definitively say Apple is wrong or Oura is right. I think of a sleep score like a grade on an essay: A bad essay will probably get a bad grade, and a good essay will probably get a good grade, but it’s not like every teacher in the world would agree that your take on Moby Dick’s symbolism deserves exactly a 92%. You may feel like you got away with something if your mid essay comes back with an A+, but as long as the prof is consistent with their grading scheme, you can’t say your grade was wrong. 

That’s why the accuracy of sleep scores doesn't matter a ton, in my opinion. The World Sleep Society more or less agrees, saying not to read too much into individual scores, but instead keep an eye on trends, like whether your sleep seems to be getting better or worse over time. 

How Apple's sleep scores measure up to Oura, Garmin, and Whoop

With all of that in mind, I thought it would be interesting to compare my last month or so of Apple sleep scores to those I get from the Oura ring, plus a few data points from my Garmin and Whoop devices. 

Apple calculates your sleep score based on your sleep duration, bedtime consistency, and interruptions. Competing devices each have their own algorithm. Apple can calculate its score based on the data from any device, not just an Apple Watch, so in some cases the Oura and Apple scores are actually using the same underlying data.

Here are the results: 

Apple is the red line at the top—usually grading me higher than its competitors. Credit: Beth Skwarecki

Apple says that over the past month, my most frequent sleep score level is “excellent,” earned on 17 nights. I also had a “high” sleep score on 10 nights, with just one night of “OK” sleep, one of “low” sleep, and no nights “very low.”

My major takeaway is that Apple’s scores are almost always higher than those I get from other devices. That said, they tend to go up when the others go up, and down when the others go down, which means that all of these scores are probably useful when looked at from a big-picture point of view. 

Subjectively, I don’t think my sleep has been all that good lately. I’ve been staying up late more often than I’d like, and waking up tired more often than not. I’d judge it as mostly OK, occasionally poor, and sometimes good. But that’s just, like, my opinion, man. 

It is true that there’s probably nothing medically wrong with me, and I don't think my sleep is drastically poor—so maybe Apple’s rosy outlook is just a better way to think about my sleep. It’s OK to be a straight-A student sometimes. 

https://lifehacker.com/health/apples-new-sleep-score-comparison?utm_medium=RSS