Air Date: 10/19/20

The Upgrade by Lifehacker

How to Upgrade Your Home Office, With Gizmodo’s Alex Cranz and
Brian Kahn
Alice ​Hello and welcome to the Upgrade, the podcast from the team at Lifehacker, where
we help you improve your life one week at a time. I'm Alice Bradley, editor in chief of
Lifehacker.

Jordan ​And I'm Jordan Calhoun, Lifehacker's, deputy editor.

Alice ​Jordan, today, we are learning how to upgrade our work from home setups.

Jordan ​That's correct. We're upgrading our home offices, our Internet connections, our
plant collections...

Alice ​That's right. All of those things. And who better to walk us through this than Gizmodo
editors Alex Cranz and Brian Kahn?

Alex Cranz ​The technology is changing so, so rapidly and improving exponentially that it
just makes sense to kind of keep up to date and invest wisely.

Brian Kahn ​I think that that's kind of like where we're at right now is we're trying to make
do with this weird, stressful circumstance of being at home. So I think that, you know,
really, it is about like finding the things that can make your home a little more manageable,
a little more comfortable.

Jordan ​Alex Cranz is a senior consumer tech editor at Gizmodo and a tech gadget
extraordinaire.

Alice ​And Brian is the managing editor at Earther, Gizmodo's environmentally-focused

vertical.

Jordan ​Alex and Brian are also co-hosts of Gizmodo's new podcast called System
Reboot, which explores the systemic failures that are currently ruining our world, and
speaking with experts on how we can fix each of them.

Alice ​But before they go fixing the world on their podcast, they're first helping us fix our
own work from home problems. Hey, Jordan, what's your what's your greatest struggle
with working from home?

Jordan ​Oh, Alice, where do I begin? So I live on a major intersection in New York City and
it's loud as all hell. My workday blends into my home day, so there's no separation
between church and state. It's just one one merged combined thing. I have a dog who
doesn't care whether I'm working or recording a podcast or doing anything, really. She just
wants incessant attention and to be taken out when she wants to. There's just all sorts of
things. It's just loud and busy and chaotic. What about you?

Alice ​Yeah.n Oh, my God. We have. Let's see now. First, I also have a dog, as you know,
as listeners may know, because they may have heard her barking and yipping on various
podcast episodes when she decides it's time to get out of the room. Or conversely, back in
the room at the same time, I can't leave my door open because I have a teenager

1
 Air Date: 10/19/20

wandering around making smoothies at all hours of the day. Smoothie—a smoothie need
overtakes him invariably whenever we're recording.

Jordan ​Morning smoothies. Evening smoothies.

Alice ​Oh my god. Smoothies all the livelong day. I mean, my husband's here making work
calls and he's got to you know, project. I have an interesting problem which is possibly
unique to, well, unique to my area. I shouldn't say just to me because there is a there's a
neighborhood bird. Somebody owns who they let out of their window in a cage every day
between the hours typically of three and five. And the bird screams. Now, this isn't just a
regular like, bird call. This is like like a human being in crisis, possibly being stabbed or it's
some kind of Jurassic Park creation. I don't know. I didn't know what it was. And then I
finally gave up and asked on Next Door and found out it's a cockatoo who very excited and
possibly angry.

Jordan ​And birds have long life expectancies. You can't expect that bird.

Alice ​Oh this bird will never die.

Jordan ​Yeah, that bird's gonna be with you for the rest of your life.

Alice ​We, I actually have a clip. I'm going to, I'm going to have Micaela play for you. So.

Jordan ​The screaming bird.

Alice ​So I don't know if Alex and Brian can help my bird problems, but hopefully they can
help the rest of us with everything else.

Jordan ​Let's find out. Let's get into it then.

Alice ​Yeah.

Alice ​So, Alex and Brian, welcome to the Upgrade.

Alex Cranz ​Thank you for having us.

Alice ​Good to have you.

Jordan ​So happy to have you.

Alice ​So good to see you guys.

Alex Cranz ​I know. I've missed seeing other human beings, but especially like you guys,
because I see Brian all the time nowadays. But I never see anyone from Lifehacker or
anyone from the other websites.

Alice ​Yeah. It's like those incidental passings in the hallway we just don't have anymore.

Alex Cranz ​I miss making the eye contact with you at the kitchen, getting coffee like I
really do miss it.

2
 Air Date: 10/19/20

Alice ​I know it's really true. I've been checking with people on Slack and it's, it invariably
weirds them out. I'm like, hey, hey, what's up?

Alex Cranz ​How you doin'? And they're like, "I don't...This is weird. Do you need
something?"

Alice ​Like I don't...who? What are you..?

Jordan ​Maybe you should just Zoom bomb people's calendar invites. Just hop in their
chats. Like, just passing through.

Alex Cranz ​I think absolutely.

Brian Kahn ​Just get like a cup of coffee. Pretend like it's a kitchen interaction like, "oh
hey, you're here too! Cool."

Jordan ​Yeah. Just walking by. I saw this. I saw a link, decided to click it.

Alice ​I love it. We're already coming up with good ideas.

Alex Cranz ​Plenty of lifehacks.

Alice ​First of all, tell us about your new podcast.

Alex Cranz ​I'm gonna let Brian take this because was actually his idea.

Brian Kahn ​Well, hopefully I don't screw it up, although if I do, I only have myself to
blame, myself. I don't know. I am very happy to talk about our new podcast, which is
System Reboot. It's on Gizmodo. And basically, you know, when the pandemic started, it
was kind of one of those things where we're like, whoa, everything is really breaking down.
This is a problem. And also, you know, really what it exposed was that these things were
always problems. There are always these underlying structural issues and we need to fix
them. So we figured, let's make a podcast about it. Let's change things up. Gizmodo, you
know, we kind of like to talk a little smack, you know, be like "this is bad, this is bad, this is
bad..." And for us, we were like, alright, well, let's change that narrative and say, "well, we
know it's bad. How do we fix it?" So that's basically what we're doing is talking with experts
about how to fix the things that are broken, which is basically everything.

Alex Cranz ​It's a very optimistic Gizmodo. Like it's, it's a totally I mean, I think it's still very
much on brand for us because we are talking about not just like we talk about how the stuff
sucks. Like, I think every episode is a little depressing for like a span there, and you're like,
"oh, my God, I know. I get it. Everything is terrible," and then we're like, "okay. But here's
some great stuff you can do and we can do as a society to make it better." And you're like,
okay, I feel like a little bit. The goal is to feel slightly better at the end of the podcast than
when you started.

Brian Kahn ​Ten percent better is our target.

Alex Cranz ​10 percent better. So we bring you like really, really far down. And then we
give you like a high.

Alice ​It's like cults.

3
 Air Date: 10/19/20

Alex Cranz ​Yeah.

Alice ​Like you break them down...

Alex Cranz ​That's that's the goal. But the whole world. Right. Like, get—or at least
America.

Alice ​Nice.

Jordan ​In that first episode was about the Internet.

Brian Kahn ​Yes.

Jordan ​I listened the first episode about the Internet.

Alice ​Well, nothing's wrong with the Internet. I don't understand.

Brian Kahn ​It's been working great for everyone, right?

Jordan ​I mean, there is a lot of obviously big national systemic issues with how we
regulate or deregulate Internet monopolies and all that. And it seemed like before bad
Internet was more of an inconvenience than what it is now. And we're all working from
home and it's just sort of make or break in your educational experience, your professional
experience. What are some things that people can do with their home setup that could
tangibly affect their Internet? Like what suggestions would you make if someone's tied to
their Internet provider and they maybe don't have that many alternatives, but they're trying
to have a more stable connection when they're having their Zoom meetings and everything
else?

Alex Cranz ​I would say one of the best things that I learned to do was ​[00:07:46]​get
familiar with what good Internet looks like in my home. So, like on your cable, a lot of
people have cable modems and you can actually plug into your cable modem and see
what your signal levels are. So whenever I have really bad Internet, I can go on there, look
at my my my signal levels. And then when I call Charter to yell at them, I have more
information. ​[22.0s] ​And so I can be like, "no, no, no, this isn't me, like, the signal levels is
all you guys. You guys have screwed up here." And that—

Jordan ​Have you turned it off and turned it back on?

Alex Cranz ​Yeah. Yeah. After. You always—there was the time where I was like, "yeah,
yeah, I did that." And so I was so mad and I like I know this stuff is like whatever you guys
are stupid that won't fix it. And then it fixed it. And so like...

Jordan ​Damn it.

Alex Cranz ​I do it every time now because like that one time you get caught out by the
tech support guy, you feel like a complete jackass. But yeah, I think I think getting familiar
with your system and what it looks like when it is working is a really crucial thing for most
people. And then. Just like ​[00:08:51]​get a new router. If you bought your router 10 years
ago, like. Don't do that. Yeah. I think the technology is changing so, so rapidly and
improving exponentially that it just makes sense to kind of keep up to date with that stuff

4
 Air Date: 10/19/20

and invest wisely when you do get a new router. Read Gizmodo dot com. We have some
great reviews. So it's just invest when you have to and invest in it the same way you would
a fridge like think of it the same way. This is something that you're using—or a bed. It's
something you're using constantly. Don't cheap out on it and buy the hundred dollar one to
like power the internet for your 1000 square foot home or whatever. ​[43.7s]

Jordan ​How often would you need to shop?

Alice ​I was going to say the same thing. What Jordan said.

Alex Cranz ​You know, I think most people if you're on like G or N standard routers
upgrade if you're on G like oh my God. Presumably you have a family member who's
gonna help you upgrade because you were probably like either really young or don't use
the Internet a lot. But yeah, if you're on N, upgrade. Even AC routers, if you've got your AC
router, in like 2014, 2015. Think about upgrading now and next year we're gonna see a
really big shift because we're starting to get Wi-Fi six available now and we're gonna start
seeing a lot of computers and a lot of phones and a lot of devices taking advantage of
Wi-Fi six. So it might be wise to invest in that next year, but you really don't have to
because Wi-Fi six is only as fast as your slowest thing in your house. So don't go and like,
buy the super, super great super four hundred dollar thing if you've got a bunch of really
old laptops or Kindles or something running around your home because that's going to
potentially throttle you and then you'll still be wondering why your Internet sucks.

Brian Kahn ​And can I actually ask a question? Even though I'm on like the tech podcast,
we're going to get expose how little I know. How do I know which kind of router I have, if
it's G or N or what have you?

Alex Cranz ​That is very easy. Go look up the model, like, look on on the thing and I'll have
the model number or anything. Google it. And usually besides the model number, it'll say
like AC. Thirty two hundred, or G six hundred or whatever. And that that first letter. That's
the standard you're using. So AC is good G and N, bad. B, that was like 2000. So don't
use a B router. I think I still have one somewhere and maybe I'll plug it in for giggles. But
don't, don't, don't use a B.

Alice ​I like your definition of giggles.

Alex Cranz ​Just to be like oh look at how terrible it is. I feel like I'm at like I feel like as
soon as I turn on a microwave I'm gonna lose my Internet signal again.

Alice ​What? Because I'm ninety-three, what on earth is Wi-Fi six. What is that?

Alex Cranz ​So Wi-Fi six is the latest. It's Wi-Fi six and also called AX and it's just the
latest band. It's using a different, slightly different frequency than what the current stuff is
using. Right. And it just lets you transmit way more data. But it does require both sides to
transmit more data. So it's can handle a lot more data. It can handle a ton more devices in
your home and handle like, you know, big 4K streams and stuff going to your X box in your
computer and whatnot. But if those devices don't have similarly, like, juiced up radios,
you're still going to have an issue. It's still going to be kind of a sucky for you.

Jordan ​OK. So let's say we've got our Internet squared away now. Yeah, we've got good
Internet. We're able to zoom effectively. We're able to play video games without lag.
Everything is gravy there. But you're in a neighborhood that is just completely loud. You

5
 Air Date: 10/19/20

know, you have all of these outside noises. I live in New York. I live on top of four train
lines and a million people outside my window. Is there anything that people can do to help
dampen the sound around their workspace and to help block out all of the distractions that
are happening and just sort of an everyday setting where your office is now your home?

Alex Cranz ​Yeah. Oh, I mean, I'm a big fan of headphones. I'm wearing some right now.
I'm a big fan of noise-blocking headphones because I love not having to hear. I live right
by the bus stop. And so every 15 minutes that "krrr." that's a really bad sound.

Jordan ​Is there a difference—is there when it comes to quality of noise-canceling

headphones. It seems like they all, if I were to browse right now, I would be an idiot and
not really know the difference between a fifty-dollar pair that says noise canceling and
several hundred dollar pair that says noise canceling. Is that something where cost really
makes a difference?

Alex Cranz ​A hundred percent. Like I—

Jordan ​Tell me more because I'm a fool.

Alex Cranz ​I hate to tell people to spend money because I too like to not spend money. I
want to spend it on stupid stuff and not, and like save as much of it as I can and hoard it
like a little dragon. But you gotta spend money on noise-canceling headphones if you're
gonna invest in a pair. What all of em are doing is they have little microphones in it. Right.
And those microphones are taking in all the sound around you and then saying, oh, that's
bad sound and canceling it out. So it's filtering everything you hear and kind of creating
like a white noise balance thing. I'm really bad at explaining this, but because of that, it
requires a lot of—it requires good quality mics, and it requires intelligent processing by the
headphones themselves. So that's why you want to invest money in it, because the really
cheap ones aren't gonna have the same quality. They're not gonna have the good mics.
They're not going to have the smart processing. And so that's why I use a pair of Sony
Wireless noise-canceling headphones. You can find them on the Gizmodo buyer's guide
for wireless headphones. I'm a big fan of it, but Bose also makes a really good pair. I think
those two companies are probably doing the best job right now as far as noise-canceling
goes. But Apple, the Air Pod Pros are decent. I use a pair every day. They're not quite as
good as some other ones I've used, but especially like the Boase has a pair of truly
wireless ear buds. I actually have them right here. Pair of truly wireless earbuds that are
enormous. They look like bugs, right? Like it's just a big cockroach on your ear. But they
do such a good job canceling the audio. Like, I can wear them to the dog park, which is
right next to the highway and only hear the highway when one of those trucks decides to
change gears. It's great. I love it.

Brian Kahn ​I like that you sold that as a cockroach in your ear.

Alice ​It was very evocative.

Alex Cranz ​A cockroach in your ear [cross-talk]. I mean, they're too big for me. Also, that's
that's why I'm like, it's a cockroach, because they're far too large for me and I'm constantly
having to, like, fuss with them, which is why I haven't written my review yet. But I think
invest, invest, invest, expect to spend about 250 dollars to three hundred dollars on a pair
of good, noise-canceling headphones. But those are also gonna last you many years,
right? Like five years minimum. So you're gonna be spending money, but it's a hundred
percent worth it.

6
 Air Date: 10/19/20

Alice ​Nice. I'm thinking while you're talking. I'm listening to my son outside, like setting up
to make a smoothie. So I apologize in advance for the blender noises that are gonna
happen. Also, we've got a cockatoo who lives next door. That's a thing I never...things that
don't occur to you.

Jordan ​There was some construction going on outside your apartment right?

Alice ​It's constant. No, that's there every day someone's got a circular saw.

Alex Cranz ​Poor Brian's been dealing with it constantly too right?

Brian Kahn ​Yeah. I've had facade work going on in my building right now. So I'm wearing
noise-canceling headphones as we speak and they have been an absolute lifesaver. I did
not—well I shouldn't say I did. My wife is very nice and did not cheap out. She bought me
the really nice Sony ones as a gift and they have paid extreme dividends in this very
construction filled time at home. So I would totally concur. Spend the money. It's 100
percent worth it.

Alice ​But if you can't hear everything, then when...When do you write a rage-filled post on
Next Door about the rabid cockatoo?

Brian Kahn ​That's true. You got to figure out what's that balance? You know, your sanity
versus, you know, mining the kind of craziness and rage for the, for the blog.

Alice ​For the, for Next Door.

Alex Cranz ​Yeah. You gotta you gotta be sure to torture yourself a little bit. Just for the
blog.

Jordan ​You have to be of the people to speak to their needs.

Ad ​Hi, I'm Danielle Belton, editor in chief of The Root. And Maiysha Kai, managing editor
of The Glow Up. And this September, we're excited to bring you The Root Presents: It's
Lit! It's lit is a podcast where we talk about all things literature, literally. More specifically
Black literature. And we have some incredible guests lined up, including Nikole
Hannah-Jones. The last thing I want is us to produce anything like the Green Book. Ijeoma
Oluo why this book? Why are we why don't we are picking up the how to burn down this
system? But, you know, I can't do that right now. The venerable Claudia Rankine. I can't
really separate the subject out from the structure. And the two things for me are actually
what makes writing exciting and so many more brilliant Black authors, writers and thought
leaders. We're speaking with some of the most distinguished voices in Black literature
about their work, the books that influence them, and a lot more. So please join us every
Friday for some thought-provoking conversations. You can find us on Apple Podcasts,
STITCHER, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts and keep it lit! Whoop whoop.

Alice ​This is kind of leading to my next question, which is, is there some way or work
product that would dampen sounds outside of a headphone like for you? So I would kind of
create like a white noise environment.

Alex Cranz ​Brian, didn't you do like a really big story about noise pollution?

7
 Air Date: 10/19/20

Brian Kahn ​I did. Yeah. I mean, I've reported actually that was there's arguably the best
story I've ever reported on because I got to go to the quietest place in America, which is in
the Hoh Rainforest, In the Olympic Peninsula. And. Oh, my God. I mean, it's a beautiful
and be extremely quiet and a big part of that because it just has all these mosses and
things that block out noise. So I'd say, you know, if you want to borrow a solution from
nature, just get a bunch of moss, pack it on your walls. You're good to go.

Alex Cranz ​And you have some greenery. You're doing some gardening. Like, that's very
Covid-19 friendly.

Alice ​Jordan? Greenery? You like greenery.

Jordan ​Oh, man. So much greenery. I was joking around earlier with Alice about how. Me
and my friends, we've all slowly become that this is fine dog except surrounded by plants.
Just I've bought I've spent an inordinate amount of money just on additional plants and
now my apartment looks like a little mini jungle. I hear that they purify my air. That's what
they tell me whenever I buy it. I don't know if they're lying to me. Like, does that actually
improve the air and my mental health, or is this just a lie that I'm telling myself to feel better
about life?

Brian Kahn ​I mean, do you want to know the real answer? Do you want me to keep. Do
you want to keep the theory safe?

Jordan ​I want you, I want you to start with the real answer and then I want you to clean it
up afterwards by making me feel better and hedging a little bit.

Brian Kahn ​You know, science indicates that plants do not necessarily clean up the
indoor air quality that much, but, you know, greenery, open spaces, being outside. I mean,
these are things that have been shown have clinical like have actual mental health
benefits. And so, you know, being outside, especially during the workday, not to say it's
super easy, but if you bring a little bit the insight in perhaps getting some plants, I see
some beautiful ones in the background. I'm sure there's a wall right in front of you that's
covered in plants that is actually really good for your mental health. And so you may not be
breathing cleaner air, but you're certainly—look at that. I feel calmer just looking at the
plant that is on the screen right now.

Alex Cranz ​Same.

Jordan ​Wonderful.

Brian Kahn ​I mean, truly—

Jordan ​So it doesn't actually work, it doesn't actually work. But there's a placebo effect
there is what you're saying?

Brian Kahn ​Yeah. No, I mean, like the actual benefits of seeing greenery like that, that is
like a there is a tangible benefit to spending time in nature. And given that it's hard for us
to do that, you know, nowadays working at home or just working too much in general,
bringing that indoors. There certainly is. I think even if it's placebo, I mean, there is some
benefit for that. I keep a plant literally right in front of my desk. And I have faith that it's that
with the noise-canceling headphones are the things that keep me from just like, I don't

8
 Air Date: 10/19/20

know, running around like a madman in my apartment and screaming all the time. So.
Yeah.

Jordan ​Yes.

Brian Kahn ​I'm gonna go with it.

Jordan ​Yes. Yes. All right. All right. That is validating. I appreciate you.

Alice ​So let's say you don't have a green thumb and the calming effect of plants is
counteracted by the stress of your constantly murdering plants.

Alex Cranz ​Alice, you're really calling me out right now. And I don't appreciate it.

Alice ​This side of the board, you know...

Jordan ​Just kill and replace them every week. Kill and replace.

Alice ​So my question is, if it's if it's all just based on kind of greenery, is is a fake plant just
as good?

Brian Kahn ​I mean.

Alice ​I'm sure it's terrible for the environment, so. But, they do last forever.

Brian Kahn ​They do this forever. And unfortunately, you know, if you want to get rid of it, it
will also last forever in a landfill. But, I mean, you know, if it's something that'll make you
feel better, I think that that's kind of like where we're at right now as we're trying to all make
do with this weird, stressful circumstance of being at home and listening to construction
and smoothie making and in cockatoos, I guess, wherever you may be. So I think that, you
know, really, it is about like finding the things that can make your home a little more
manageable or comfortable. And if it's a fake plant, you know, I'd say get a fake plant
because it's better than getting a real plant, then killing it and being really sad, which I
have to admit. Like, I have a plant in front of me right now. I've killed almost every other
plant that I've brought into my house, so maybe I should take my own advice and get
some fake plants because I don't know how much longer this one's going to last.

Alice ​That seems very counter to your brand though.

Brian Kahn ​I know. I know.

Alice ​Like, if anybody knew you had fake plants, you'd just be you'd be out.

Brian Kahn ​I mean, you know, I keep a couple, like I sort of joke. My wife also does
climate work and we sort of joke about our climate vices, so to speak. The things sort of
like this is probably not good, but sometimes you get to indulge. For me, it's actually it's hot
showers. I love a long, hot shower, even though I know that that's not good. And I didn't,
do not need to spend fifteen minutes hanging out the shower. It's my way of like chilling
out.

Alice ​What kind of a monster are you?

9
 Air Date: 10/19/20

Brian Kahn ​I know I just canceled myself. I can't believe it.

Jordan ​Alex, earlier you had mentioned a good quality microphone and I'm wondering in
what scenarios is it worth splurging for? What you know, if you're in a regular Zoom
meeting, I imagine you could just use your laptop, microphone or whatever comes with
your computer. But if you're giving a presentation or if you're, you know, doing something
that you feel is important, is it worth spending extra money to get an external mic that has
a certain level of quality?

Alex Cranz ​Oh, I think that's a rough one, because there's there's kind of a weird gap in
quality for microphones where like, you spend about two hundred dollars on a microphone
or less. You're gonna get a good quality mic, but you're gonna have to be really, really
conscious of all the audio. It's dealing with it's going to be thinking about the space it's
placed in your home. You have to be thinking about is your dog standing right behind you
scratching himself? And is that going to carry over? And then after that, you kind of jump
up to like four hundred dollars, and that's when the mics get really, really good. But most
people don't need a four hundred dollar, mic. I mean, you can splurge or you can be a
podcast or. And a big gadget nerd and like decide to buy a 400 dollar mic because you
want to sound really, really cool for some upcoming interviews. That's certainly not me. But
most people I'm kind of like just use what's already in your computer, unless you're willing
to put a lot of thought into how you're building out, where you're putting it in your home.
And if you are doing that, if you are spending money on a 100, 200 dollar mic and there's
some really great ones, El Gato makes a wonderful one. Blue makes the Yeti mic, that's
really well known that you want to change the space a little bit. You want to maybe put up
a pillow or something behind a mike. So that way when your voice hits the wall and
bounces back, that pillow catches it. And if you really want to be like super nerdy, I have a
friend. Whenever she podcasts, she actually puts a blanket over her head and like has that
over. And.

Jordan ​I've heard about this.

Alex Cranz ​It's.

Jordan ​Yeah.

Alex Cranz ​I'm not going to say which podcast or it is. And it's definitely not someone from
Engadget named Sherlyn Lo. But it's a really it works. It works really, really well. And she
sounds fantastic when she does it. So but that's not going to work a lot for somebody
doing a lot of presentations. Right. Like your boss is going to wonder why you're like "ha!"
And throwing a blanket over your head. You're going to look kind of silly. So I think for
most people, maybe that pillow, if they really want to kind of up there, if they want to by
that hundred dollar mic, and up the quality a little. Put a pillow behind it. Just any pillow will
do. Or big blanket. I've got actually like a dog blanket that is real thick. And so I can fold it
up and kind of a crevice it behind the. I don't have it with me right now, but I can crevice it
behind the mike and it dramatically improves your sound quality.

Alice ​Well, guys, we're almost at the end of our time together, which seems hard to
believe.

Alex Cranz ​Blown by.

10
 Air Date: 10/19/20

Alice ​But before we let you go. I would love to know from both of you what's one thing
you've purchased or done since we've started this work from home life that's changed
your...Or helped your work environment?

Alex Cranz ​You know, honestly, it it is this mic which I'm getting really, really close to now.
I just I bought the Shure. S.M seven B, which is a very expensive, mic. But I loved it
because I don't have to worry about turning off my refrigerator or turning off the server I
have in the corner anything it captures all those hums and stuff. And when I do hop into
my meetings and everything, I feel just a little bit more professional and hopefully in future
podcast episodes all sound just a little warmer and nicer to our audience. So you guys all
have to continue to stay tuned to System Reboot on Gizmodo dot com. But also available
at Apple, Stitcher and wherever you find your favorite podcasts.

Alice ​Nice. Nicely done.

Brian Kahn ​Wow.

Jordan ​You did that in just the right voice too. I think was that you or was that the
microphone?

Alex Cranz ​I know it was. It was all the mic.

Brian Kahn ​I'm glad that, like, one of us is keeping up the warm and like, nice, you know,
with the with the mic and with the personality on System Reboot because I'm like the mean
sad guy that's like actually, everything's really bad. So thank you for getting this nice mic
that makes you sound even happier and more bright, Alex.

Alex Cranz ​Oh thank you.

Alice ​You need that balance. Yin and yang.

Alex Cranz ​Yeah. He starts every podcast episode and I end it so I get to take all the
credit for all the good things. And Brian's just like, "everything sucks" and we're like, "yeah
it does."

Brian Kahn ​I mean that's kind of like my role in general at Gizmodo. It's like the everything
sucks person. And so, but I will tell you, I actually so I do have a couple of things that
make my life better since the start of the pandemic. And one of them is actually it's very
warm and soft. It's house slippers, which is the most low tech thing ever. But getting a pair
of house slippers has honestly changed my life because years ago I used to be a wildlife
guy in Jackson, Wyoming, very cold. Got a little bit of frostbite in the feet. My feet don't
have very good circulation. So getting these house slippers has made, particularly as now
shifting to fall, like they've made just working at home a lot more comfortable than just
wearing socks or going barefoot, which I don't know. It's very strange that they were very
loosely like a shoe, but they're close enough that somehow feels more shoe-like in
professional. And like I'm at work, which is kind of nice to have that little. Distinction and
my feet don't get super cold.

Alice ​Can you tell us what the brand is? Because I'm obsessed. I'm actually obsessed
with slippers.

11
 Air Date: 10/19/20

Brian Kahn ​I bought them through Top Drawer, which...what is the brand? I don't know
what the brand is they're...I think they're imported from Japan. So they must be like super
fancy. I don't know. But they're very comfortable. They're really soft. They're super
lightweight. And like I said, they're almost like a fake shoe. So what I want to feel like I'm
like a serious person at work. I will wear my slippers.

Alice ​All right. I'm going to demand the brand from you over Slack, so get ready, because
it's really hard to find. Like, I, I my feet are always cold. But then, like, you buy like a really
furry ones and it's like suddenly you're just like, "it's too hot!".

Brian Kahn ​Yes then you take them off, your feet are kind of sweaty and they get really
cold again, you're like this is a horrible back and forth. I used to have a down pair that was
like super cool but like super frickin hot. I couldn't wear. So this is the right balance.

Alice ​Do they have a back? Does it have a back or is it like a mule.

Brian Kahn ​It has a back. Actually, you know what. I mean.

Alice ​I need a back.

Brian Kahn ​I can show you. I'm. Can I show you?

Alex Cranz ​Show us feet. Show us feet.

Jordan ​I didn't know I needed this problem, but I want this problem.

Alice ​Yeah. Oh look nice. And you know, they're very kind of minimal. They're blue
they're...I'm painting a word picture for the listeners.

Jordan ​Blue with red. They look like a Tommy Hilfiger logo.

Alice ​That's it yeah, a nautical theme, I would say.

Brian Kahn ​Yeah. They come in different colors. If people do want like a shearling model,
so it's a little warmer, they come in that too. So, yeah, these are the house slippers they're
merripa dot com. That's the company that makes them. So M E R R I P A. Check it out.

Jordan ​I want large novelty house slippers. Like I want like big dinosaur feet or something.

Alex Cranz ​Yes! Ones that like when you stomp they roar.

Jordan ​Yeah. That's what I want.

Alice ​Your dog would be all over them.

Alex Cranz ​My dog would murder them.

Jordan ​She would be very thrilled. My dog would be very thrilled. She would also murder
them.

Alex Cranz ​Yes.

12
 Air Date: 10/19/20

Jordan ​But she would be very happy beforehand.

Alice ​Well, thank you guys so much has been great.

Alex Cranz ​Thank you for having us.

Brian Kahn ​Yeah. It's so great to chat.

Jordan ​Really appreciate you.

Ad ​Hey, Brian, did you know the world sucks right now? You know, I kind of noticed that
because, yeah, every day I wake up, I'm like, is this really real life? I would say, yes, it
sucks. Yeah. There's a lot of sucky things in the world right now, and we're starting a new
podcast that's going to fix it. So I guess we should introduce ourselves. My name is Brian
Kahn. I'm the managing editor at Earthier. And I'm Alex Cranz, the senior consumer tech
editor at Gizmodo. And we're here to tell you about a new podcast we're doing at Gizmodo
focused on everything, fixing it, making it better, making the world suck a little less. It's
called System Reboot. And we're covering a lot of important stuff that we think is really
worth hearing and learning about. I mean, we've seen a lot of systemic failures across the
country and around the world. You know, a pandemic has really highlighted them, but
they've been there all along and we thought there has to be a better way to do things. So
there has to be from the disastrous food supply chain, as you witness really early on in the
pandemic to the absolutely shoddy Internet that we also saw early on and are seeing a lot
more of right now as somebody returns to school. We're going to be diving into the
systems that are failing us across the board and then between examining the things that
are failing, we're actually going to talk about what we can do to fix them. That's the whole
System Reboot idea. Yeah. Positivity, man. Yeah. It's kind of what we're going to try this
out and see how it goes. But, you know, what we're gonna be doing is talking to experts
who've spent a lot of time researching these issues and coming up with solutions. So if
you don't want to believe that the world is going to end in 2020 and you want to hold onto
just a little bit of hope, please check us out and join us in our quest to fix what's broken.

Jordan ​And now it's time for upgrade of the week where we talk about that one tiny thing
that's making a big difference in our lives. Alice, what's your upgrade this week?

Alice ​Oh, me. I go first. OK. So I have been my dirty secret is that despite us doing
countless episodes on meditation, I have failed at meditating time and again. I've tried I
tried meditating for a while and I think one of my upgrades in past years was meditating on
the subway. That worked for a while. But then when it doesn't work, it doesn't work very
badly. You open your eyes and there's a there's a guy who is right there.

Alex Cranz ​Just crotch right in your face.

Alice ​Like "oops, are we married now?" Don't recommend meditating on the subway. But
one thing I discovered was I was looking for an app. I'm like, I just need an app. I know,
like, all you need to do is minute to meditate is like, close your eyes. But I'm not doing it. I
need, like a pro—a program. I need somebody tell me what to do. And I was looking for a
lot of apps that were a lot of like, you know, windchimes and I don't know, women wearing
caftans. I just assumed they're wearing caftans. But I found an app called 10 Percent
Happier, which was created by Dan Harris, who is I want to say he was an ABC
correspondent, very matter of fact, down to earth person. I've been enjoying his 10 percent
happier podcast for a long time without actually meditating, like hearing about meditators.

13
 Air Date: 10/19/20

And he kind of famously had a panic attack on live television, which is, I mean, it's very
relatable. So he he started becoming a meditator to kind of changed his life. And now he's
got this app and the app is actually great. It's a hundred dollars for a year long
subscription, but it has tons of programs in it and series. And it's five minutes a day and I'm
doing it. And I can't say I'm 10 percent happier yet, but I'm definitely not 10 percent
unhappier. And that's an improvement.

Brian Kahn ​That's a win.

Alice ​Exactly. Just not continuing the downward slide.

Alex Cranz ​I love it.

Jordan ​Alex, what's your upgrade this week?

Alex Cranz ​So I started programing. I have Hue lights throughout my whole house and I
started programing them for different things I do when I'm working. So I have like one for
when it's rainy outside and I need to turn all the lights on in my my office space instead of
just getting the sunlight. And I have one for when I'm video chatting right now, which is
why we have all this purple light going on behind me.

Alice ​I was admiring that, the glow.

Alex Cranz ​Yeah, just just a little fun stuff. And then I have one that's just my desk lamp
and I set it to automatically turn off at a certain time of day. So I'm like, hey, day's done.

Alice ​That's good.

Alex Cranz ​Work tends to not agree with the schedule I have set for this. This light. But.

Alice ​And you're like, lights off. Sorry.

Alex Cranz ​I'm like I'm like lights off. I'm gonna.

Alice ​In the dark.

Alex Cranz ​I'm just I work from my phone now. But it really has helped me kind of keep
my schedule, but also just make me feel more like I'm moving with purpose through my
day. Because there's these different light scenarios, which sounds a little silly, but I've
really, really enjoyed it. And I do it all with, like, Apple Home Kit. I recently went completely
home-kitted out everything instead of using, like, smart things or Google or Alexa, and it
works wonderfully. So, yeah.

Alice ​Nice. Well, I think that's something that's that's real is that we we actually did a story
at Lifehacker about this, about how the days are just kind of bleeding together and it's just
one long workday and then it ends in sleep. That's not good.

Alex Cranz ​Yeah. And this kind of this kind of is like signaling those changes and
reminding me. And so, like, I take the dog out in the morning and when I come back, my
office light is kicked on. So I know, OK, it's time to sit down and work. And then I do the
video chat and if I turn around, I see the video chats. Lights are still on. I'm like, oh my
God, I got to go turn the fridge back on because poor Brian has had to hear me lament

14
 Air Date: 10/19/20

about many, many lost cartons of ice cream from turning my fridge off to podcast and then
forgetting to turn it back on. And then again, the end that that end of the day, the light
power, the daylight dims, and I'm like OK, time to move on with my day and move away
from work. So I'm not just working. I mean, we do ten hour days, but if I'm not working at
twelve, sixteen hours a day on a regular basis.

Jordan ​That is awesome. And Brian, what's your grade this week?

Brian Kahn ​My upgrade this week is that I. I have an espresso machine and I've it's an
older one, like it's I bought it used and I use it and then it falls into disrepair and I don't
bother like, you know, using it for a while. But so my upgrade is kind of a sad reason why I
upgraded, which is that my local coffee shop run by two great folks who we were very
close with closed because of not being able to afford rent. And basically, yeah, no one's
commuting to work and no tourists are hanging out. Neighborhoods, so they shut down.
Which is very sad, but it inspired me to bring my coffee mate, my espresso maker, back to
life. So you know, de-calcified it. It's cleaned out the wand, scrubbed all the parts, put them
in detergent. Everything looking shiny again. And so just yesterday, I returned to making
myself cortado in the morning as opposed to my usual pour-over coffee, which is like it's
very strange. Like I don't every time I do, it's like, why do I ever let this thing fall in disrepair
in the first place? Because I love a nice cortado in the morning. So that's been my. So I go
to and honestly It's sort of changed the rhythm of my day so that I wake up, I make one. I
take a little coffee break around 10:30 to make another one. And so it's been nice way.
Yeah. Like, you know, instead of unfortunately, you know, we can't run to each other at the
office kitchen. Alice, but at least I can sort of go make myself a coffee of my own kitchen
and sort of take that time away from my desk to keep myself sane.

Alice ​I'm going to start slacking you at, you know, 9:00. Hey, how's your coffee? Cortado?

Brian Kahn ​I like this plan.

Alice ​Cortado check. Gotta check, how's your cortado? Jordan, what's your upgrade?

Jordan ​My upgrade this week will be a financial one courtesy of our conversation that we
had this morning. Alice, where I was reminded this week, as I'm reminded every year, that
if I have a credit card with an annual fee, I can just call them every year and tell them to
not charge me.

Alex Cranz ​What?

Jordan ​And it works. More than half the time. And most people don't notice if you have a
credit card with an annual fee, you can just request that they waive it. And it won't work
every year I've done it every year for the past, I don't know, five, six, seven years. And it
works with my credit cards. It works more than half the time. I just did it this week for my
current credit cards. I have one credit card that has a high annual fee of four hundred fifty
dollars. I have another one that has annual fee of two hundred fifty dollars. Sometimes
they have waived it in the past. Other times they said that we can't waive it that year. And
then you can just this year, for example, this year, since I'm not traveling as much as I
normally do. I just requested a no fee card for that year. And if ever I do want the fancy
awards rewards that come with a bigger card, that I can just request it later on and pay
that annual fee when it's worth it. But you very rarely, if ever, need to pay your annual fee
if you're just willing to call them and talk with your credit card company. So it's something
that I have a calendar reminder for every year based on when that annual fee will be

15
 Air Date: 10/19/20

charged. It's like, oh, call Chase or call American Express or call whatever, just to talk to
them about the annual fee and see what options they're going to offer you. They'll always
offer you something.

Alice ​So you literally just say, and I'm like, not the person who makes the call. I'm the one
who doesn't ever want to bother people. They've got more important things to do than
worry about me. So you you can literally just say, like, "I don't want to pay this annual fee,
what are you going to do for me?"?

Jordan ​Yeah. Yeah. You basically have to summon your, like, inner entitled person to just
say, like, I don't want to pay my annual fee this year. What can you do for me? And they'll
offer to waive it or they'll say we can't waive it this year, but here's what you can do. Or you
can threaten to close your card if you really want to play hardball and that'll push them into
giving you alternatives. For me, I had a Chase Sapphire Reserve Card or Chase Sapphire
Preferred. I can't remember which one it is. And then they reduced it to chase Sapphire
Freedom, which doesn't have an annual fee this year. Of course, I don't have the higher
rewards of like a three hundred dollar travel reimbursement, but I'm not traveling this year
anyway, so I don't care about that. So why would I pay four hundred fifty dollars for that
fancy card? I'm just going to pay nothing and then they'll just reimburse that credit on your
next statement. The only catch is that you have to do it within a certain amount of time with
your annual fee. You couldn't make do with six months later and after your annual fee be
waived, you would have to do it within about 30 days of your annual fee being charged.
And as long as you're within that window, they'll be able to reimburse you for it. So you
have a credit card. Save that money. All it takes is a phone call.

Alex Cranz ​This is going to be so useful.

Brian Kahn ​This applies to some other stuff, too, actually, like I used to work in customer
service for the Boston Globe when I was in high school. Same deal. People get an
introductory rate and after 26 weeks would go to the normal rate they'd call to cancel and
we'd just be like,"Oh yeah. We can still give you that rate." And sometimes I'd be like, "oh,
I've got to talk to my supervisor," and put him on hold. I got a cup of coffee or whatever.
And then I'd be like "oh good news, my supervisor says, I can offer you this rate again." It
was amazing because you would see their files and people would do this, you know, like
clockwork every 26 weeks, for years. So it's tauntingly. So it's not just credit cards, try it
with all sorts of things.

Alex Cranz ​I will say.

Jordan ​Closed mouths don't get fed.

Alex Cranz ​Doesn't work with charter. I tried it one time and then the guy at charter said,
"well, we have to make money, too."

Jordan ​Alex, I don't know if you're not aware, but that's not how a business works so...

Alex Cranz ​I got really mad and I canceled my TV and just used, like, you know, bunny
ears for a year because I was so furious about it. And then the next time I called they were
like oh, my God, that's terrible. And they gave me, like, free cable for a year. So, but I had
to sit that year out.

Jordan ​It did work out in the long run. [Cross-talk] extra stubborn.

16
 Air Date: 10/19/20

Alex Cranz ​But there was like—

Jordan ​You need to be able to stick by your guns.

Alex Cranz ​That like five minutes afterwards. I was just like, "they have to make money,
too!? How dare they!"

Alice ​I'd be like, you know what? That's a really good point. I'm so sorry. What can I send
you? Can I send you something?

Alex Cranz ​You need anything right now?

Alice ​I mean you're working hard...

Jordan ​That is awesome.

Alice ​Well thank you guys so much this has been so great.

Alex Cranz ​Thank you.

Jordan ​So great having you guys on the show.

Alice ​And that's our show, the upgrade is produced by Micaela Heck and mixed by Brad
Fisher.

Jordan ​Please rate us on Apple Podcasts and you can still leave us to review. I check
those religiously every morning when I wake up. I see if someone mentioned my name
and you can totally make our day by leaving us for review and we would appreciate that
love. You can also reach us by calling at three, four, seven six eight seven eight one zero
nine and leaving a voicemail. Or you can e-mail us at Upgrade at Lifehacker dot com.

Alice ​You can also find us on Twitter at Lifehacker. On Instagram at Lifehacker dot com.
All one word. And on Facebook at Facebook dot com slash Lifehacker. Sign up for
Lifehacker's daily newsletter full of tips and tricks and hacks at Lifehacker dot com slash
newsletter. And you can find show notes for this and every episode of the upgrade at
Lifehacker dot com slash the show.

Jordan ​See you next week.

Alice ​Yeah, see, see you. See you next week. I wanted to get the last word in.

17