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Best Cat Litter Boxes – Consumer Reports
If there’s room in your budget for a pricey self-cleaning litter box, we found this one totally worth it. A few minutes after a cat jumps in to do their business, the machine turns like a front-load washing machine (though slowly), sending litter through a grate for holding while clumps of litter are left to drop through a hole in…
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Dirt Devil DogWalker Review – Consumer Reports
The Dirt Devil DogWalker is ready for use and requires minimal setup. The charging process is straightforward, with the vacuum unit being operational after two hours of charging. Attaching the lanyard and the disposable waste cups is intuitive. The device includes an on/off button and a big “quick release” button to remove the cup efficiently after use. Upon initial use,…
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Best Low-Cost WiFi Routers – Consumer Reports
You don’t need WiFi 7, introduced in 2024, to check email, conduct Zoom calls, and browse the web. In fact, if your laptop, phone, and other gadgets aren’t WiFi 7-compatible, you won’t notice much difference with the new standard, not yet anyway. So go ahead and save yourself some money with a WiFi 6 or WiFi 6E router. You can still…
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Ultimate Stain-Removal Guide – Consumer Reports
These beverages started as plants and get their stain power from vegetable dyes. Washable fabrics: Work from the back of the fabric, flushing it with cold water, then apply an enzymatic laundry pretreat (see the CR Quick Take, below, for a top-rated choice) and wait a few minutes. Rub a little laundry detergent into the stain and launder. If needed, repeat…
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Best Budget Lawn Mowers – Consumer Reports
The sweet spot for lawn mower value is between $350 and $500. Even at prices below that range, you’ll find a few very good gas or battery push mowers in our ratings, some with helpful features like folding handles and the option of upright storage. Among the three gas and four battery models featured below—all priced around $300 and recommended…
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Best Flooring of 2025 – Consumer Reports
To test flooring for foot-traffic wear, we rub abrasive paper discs back and forth against 6×6-inch flooring samples, checking for wear every 50 cycles. The best flooring is unscathed after 500 cycles or 50,000 abrasive rubs. To test a floor’s resistance to denting, we drop a heavy, blunt weight that simulates a saucepan or large can of tomatoes, plus a…
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Best Sunscreens of 2025 – Consumer Reports
We test only broad-spectrum sunscreens labeled SPF 30—the minimum that dermatologists recommend you use—or above. Most of the sunscreens are water-resistant. However, because some facial sunscreens are meant for everyday use—not just when you’ll be swimming or sweating—a few of the ones we tested aren’t water-resistant. We’ve clearly marked which ones are (and for how long) and which ones aren’t…
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Your Car Maintenance Checklist – Consumer Reports
More expensive oils and fluids: Stick with the owner’s manual recommendations. “A shop may recommend synthetic fluids for a service, but if your car’s owner’s manual doesn’t require them, there’s no need to pay extra,” says Michael Crossen, a CR mechanic. Flushes: Coolant, power steering fluid, differential oil, and brake fluid occasionally need to be changed. Fluid flushes use a…
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Best Pet Insurance Companies – Consumer Reports
You may be wondering whether you should pounce on pet insurance. Many policyholders we surveyed seem glad they did. Fifty-three percent said they were very or completely satisfied with their carrier, and 33 percent said they were somewhat satisfied. Only 14 percent expressed any degree of dissatisfaction. Yet when we asked them to focus on specific elements of their coverage,…
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Best Budget Office Chairs – Consumer Reports
What did we learn? That it’s indeed possible to find a reasonably priced office chair that’s comfortable to sit in, easy to adjust, and outfitted with plenty of support for your back, butt, and arms. In fact, we found three—all priced at $200 or less. While many chairs are marketed as being ergonomic, keep in mind that that term gets…
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