Seven Custom Lists I Use on My Hearth Display (and How to Make Them)

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When I was in college, I bought one of those grocery list notepads that used to be popular. The notepad felt genius: it was a pre-populated list for the most common groceries any responsible adult might need, along with blank spaces for items I wanted to add. A grocery list notepad was an improvement from a scrap sheet of paper or relying on memory, but I eventually ditched the notepad and switched to using the Reminders app on my iPhone. And I used the Reminders app to manage my grocery list for years, until I recently deleted my Reminders list and started using the new Grocery list with my Hearth Display.

The Hearth Display is a family management tool most commonly used for its shared calendar, family routines, and to-do lists. (If you’re unfamiliar with the Hearth Display, you should read my review about how it improved how I manage my family.) In October, Hearth unrolled its custom “Lists” feature, allowing families to create customizable lists outside of its basic To-Do.

How to create custom Hearth lists

The Hearth app begins on the Calendar view by default. To create custom lists for your Hearth, go to Lists > Plus sign, and then choose the type of list you want to create: To-do, Grocery, or Custom. You can create list items from there, assign them to specific users, and add notes, if needed. (I often add addresses and product URLs in the Notes field, for example.) If you want your list available on your Hearth—that is, visible on the Hearth Display and not just in your Hearth app—toggle the “Show on Display” option when you create your list.

Screenshot of Hearth Display app with menu options for the Calendar, Lists, and Routines

Credit: Jordan Calhoun / Lifehacker

Screenshot of the Lists view in the Hearth Display app

Credit: Jordan Calhoun / Lifehacker

Screenshot of the "New List" view in the Hearth Display app

Credit: Jordan Calhoun / Lifehacker

Once you create a List and check off tasks, you should keep those completed tasks in the “Done” field if you plan to reuse them again. For example, my Grocery list is often going to be the same, so I only permanently delete items that I don’t plan to buy often. And the “Done” list is collapsible, so I hide it to keep the list from being cluttered.

Screenshot of my Grocery list in the Hearth Display app

Credit: Jordan Calhoun / Lifehacker

Remember to use privacy settings for your Lists

I use privacy settings for clarity more than protecting sensitive information: Managing multiple lists can be confusing for kids, so I only show three lists on my Hearth Display (To-Do, Groceries, and Shopping List) and limit visibility for the rest. Still, you can imagine lists that you might want to hide, like gift lists, tasks for a surprise party, or adults-only planning for you and your partner.

New lists are private by default—meaning that they’re only visible to you on your Hearth app—but if you want a list to show up on the Display for others to use, be sure to toggle the “Show on Display” option on the “New List” creation menu (Lists > Plus sign > List > “Show on Display”).

To change the privacy settings on an existing list, select the list on your app, select the three-dot menu option on the top-right corner, open “Settings,” and toggle the same “Show on Display” option. If your shared lists don’t appear on your Hearth Display after a few seconds, refresh your display by dragging down from the top of your Hearth screen.

Nine Hearth lists I use with my family

You can make an unlimited amount of lists on a Hearth Display, but I only use nine: two default lists and seven custom ones.

To-Do (default)
Groceries (default)
Shopping List (custom)
Watch List (custom)
Back to School (custom)
Family Travel (custom)
Home Maintenance (custom)
Spring Cleaning (custom)
Christmas Traditions (custom)

My goal is to create custom lists for recurring habits or events, and to spend less time thinking about each of them in the future. The Shopping List and Watch List are updated on an ongoing basis—whenever the kids mention non-grocery items they need for school, for example, or we see a trailer of a movie that comes out later in the year. The rest of the lists are seasonal:

The Back to School list covers school-related tasks that should be done every fall, aside from the obvious school shopping: things like updating emergency contacts, scheduling physical exams, adding dates from the school calendar, donating old clothes, revising our morning routine, planning extracurriculars, and discussing expectations for the school year.

I use the Family Travel list for trips, and it includes things like scheduling a mail freeze, confirming pet sitters, planning vaccinations for international travel, printing copies of travel documents, scheduling email auto-replies, emptying perishables from the refrigerator, and taking out the trash.

Home Maintenance and Spring Cleaning lists are for the kinds of small tasks that we want to handle ourselves on an annual basis, but it’s best used for assigning tasks than remembering them. Coming up with spring cleaning tasks is pretty straightforward—you likely have your own priorities or can find a million cleaning lists on the internet. Instead, I focus on assignments so that responsibilities are clear and tasks are distributed in a way that makes sense. Each Hearth list item is assigned an owner.

Screenshot of an assigned task that says "Clean out refrigerator" in the Hearth Display app

Credit: Jordan Calhoun / Lifehacker

I created the Christmas Traditions list this year when I was trying to come up with winter plans. You could obviously add this kind of list for any holiday important to you, and I might change it to “Family Traditions” rather than a specific holiday, but for now it includes activities like the New York holiday markets, ice skating, and the Radio City Christmas Spectacular.

How much does a Hearth Display cost?

The list price for a Hearth Display is $699. It’s often discounted to $599 (as it is now, at the time of writing). The lowest price I’ve seen for a Hearth is $499 during their Cyber Week sale, so you can always wait until that time of year. Otherwise, plan to spend $600 for one. Be aware that you also need a subscription to use its full functionality, though: A Hearth Display subscription costs $9 per month or $86 annually. Without a subscription, a Hearth Display is limited to its basic calendar functionality, so I recommend being ready to pay for the membership.

Is a Hearth Display worth it?

Individual needs and budgets obviously vary, but the Hearth Display replaced my whiteboard calendars, chore charts, grocery list, and to-do lists, and it’s become hard for me to imagine managing my family without it. I’m happy with my Hearth and what it brings to my family: better communication, organization, and accountability than we ever had before. For a fuller explanation of the Hearth and what it’s like to use one, read my full review.

Three Great Deals on iPads That Will Arrive Before Christmas

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iPads make great Christmas gifts, but they can be tough—though not impossible—to find at good prices around the holidays. The 9th Generation iPad is already selling out at its $199.99 price point (originally $329.99) at most retailers, but you have options for other “budget” iPad options that will also arrive before Christmas. Here are some of the best “budget” iPad options you can get right now, with plenty of time for them to arrive before the holiday.

Megapixels: 8 MP, Operating System: Apple iPadOS, Data Storage Capacity: 64GB, RAM: 3 gigabyte

Apple 10.2-inch iPad Wi-Fi 64GB – Space Gray (2021, 9th Generation)

Screen size 10.2 in, OS iPadOS, Battery life 10 h, Resolution 2160 x 1620, Weight 17.1 Ounces.

Apple 10.2-inch iPad Wi-Fi 64GB – Silver (9th Generation, 2021)

Megapixels: 12 MP, Data Storage Capacity: 64GB, Video Recording Resolution: 4K, System RAM: 8 GB

Apple 10.9-inch iPad Wi-Fi 64GB (10th generation, 2022)

Memory Storage Capacity 128 GB, Screen Size 11 Inches Display Resolution Maximum 2360-by-1640 pixel.

Apple 11-inch iPad Air M2 Wi-Fi 128GB

The 9th Generation iPad is just $199.99

The iPad of the hour is the 9th Generation iPad Wi-Fi 64GB from 2021, which, since August, has dropped to an impressive $199.99 (originally $329.99). This iPad is already sold out at most reputable retailers since it’s the cheapest iPad you can get at the moment, but as of the time of this writing, Target still has them in space gray. If Target is out of stock by the time you read this, Walmart is the next best place to find them, but they’re $249. You can read more about this iPad in PCMag’s review.

The 10th Generation iPad is $70 off

The next best iPad deal available is the newer 10th-generation iPad Wi-Fi 64GB, available for $279.99 (originally $349.99). When the 10th-generation iPad was released in the winter of 2022, it was considered the “best tablet for most people,” according to PCMag’s “excellent” review. It measures 9.79 by 7.07 by 0.28 inches, it includes the A14 Bionic chip, a 10.9-inch liquid retina display, 64GB of storage, a 12MP front and back camera, Touch ID, and a battery that Apple promises will last all day. You can read more about the differences between the 9th vs 10th generation iPads here.

The latest iPad Air is $100 off

If you’re looking for the latest iPad Air, the M2 iPad Air came out this summer, and the 11-inch 128GB iPad Air is on sale for $499 (originally $599). Though not a huge discount, it’s still impressive given it came out a few months ago. The new M2 chip gives it better performance than the older models. Some new features on the iPad Air include split-view screens, subject lift, and live text features. You can read more about the M2 iPad Air from PCMag’s “excellent” review.

Keep in mind this iPad Air is a premium tablet that may be overkill for most people. As Lifehacker’s tech editor Jake Peterson said, “They’re overbuilt.” But if you want the best, that’s the one.

The Best Stretches for a Stiff Lower Back

Once you’ve worked your way through the best stretches for your upper back (not to mention your shoulders and hamstrings), you may want something for your lower back as well. Here are some stretches that will make your lower back feel great, or that can be added into a full-body stretching routine.

Before we get into my favorite stretches, I want to say a few words about what it means when you have a stiff back. Pain or stiffness in the lower back is really common, but it tends to respond well to almost any type of exercise. Stretching is good, but so is strengthening, and so is movement in general (like walking, yoga, or whatever you like to do to stay at least a little bit active). I have more here on how doctors and scientists currently understand back pain and how to manage it—give that a read if you’re concerned about stiffness or discomfort in your back. And now, on to the stretches.

Cat/cow

Look, it’s a classic for a reason. It’s also dual-purpose, since I included this in my article on upper back stretches as well. When you do this stretch, focus on the area you’re trying to stretch. In this case, it’s your lower back, so make sure you’re rounding and extending your lower back by tilting your pelvis, not putting all the motion into your upper back and shoulders.

To do a cat/cow:

Get on your hands and knees on the floor, with hands under your shoulders and knees under your hips. You should feel stable here. Use a yoga mat or cushion under your knees if you have a hard floor.
Cat: You want to look like one of those Halloween cats that’s scared and has its back rounded toward the sky, like a rainbow. Contract your abs, like you’re doing a crunch, and try to feel a stretch in your lower back (and maybe your upper back as well, but that’s not our focus here). It’s OK if you don’t feel much of a stretch, just do your best to exaggerate this position.
Cow: This is the opposite of the cat position. Keep your arms and legs stable underneath you (like upright pillars) and let your belly relax and sag toward the floor.
Go back and forth between cat and cow several times. Take your time, spending a breath or two in each position.

Side-to-side child’s pose

This one gets your lower back moving in a side-to-side direction.

Get into child’s pose. That’s the one where you’re on your knees, your butt is close to your heels, and you’re reaching out in front of you with your face close to the floor. You can spread your knees apart if that helps you get into a more comfortable position. You may feel a stretch in your lower back just from getting into this position. Reach forward as far as you comfortably can.
Walk your hands to the left side. You’ll feel a stretch on your right side. Stay here for a breath or two.
Walk your hands over to the right side, for the opposite stretch.
You can go back and forth between these positions for as long as you need.

Jefferson curl

This is both a weighted stretch and a strengthening exercise. It may look a little strange if you’re remembering all that advice not to “lift with your back,” but this is a movement that is safe for most people as long as you don’t load it too heavy. (Heavy is, of course, relative to your strength level. There are extremely strong people out there Jefferson curling barbells. But you don’t have to do that, at least not today.)

To do a Jefferson curl:

Stand on a step or a stable bench or box to make sure you can bend over without your hands hitting the floor. If you’re using a weight, hold it in your hands.
Curl your torso toward the ground. You’ll end up in a touching-your-toes position, but with a rounded back.
Let the weight of your body (and/or the weight you’re holding) pull you toward the ground.
Slowly stand up by un-curling your torso. This is like the movement that’s sometimes described in yoga classes as standing up “vertebra by vertebra.”
Repeat a few times.

As you get better at this, you’ll be able to get deeper into the stretch, which means hanging your hands a little lower. You’ll also get stronger, meaning you can start adding weight or increasing the weight you use. People who have been doing Jefferson curls for a while may do them while standing on a plyo box and holding a kettlebell. But it’s fine to use a chair or a step in your house, and whatever weight (or no weight) you have handy.

Cobra pose (sort of)

Yoga purists may say I’m describing this wrong, but nobody would know what I meant if I said “prone back extension,” so cobra is the word I’m going with. Just don’t worry about making it a perfect cobra pose, or for that matter trying to tell the difference between cobra and upward facing dog. The point is that you’ll be letting your back relax into a position that bends it in the opposite direction of the Jefferson curl described above.

Lie on your stomach with tops of your feet on the floor and your hands by your sides as if you were going to do a pushup.
Leave your legs and hips on the floor, but push upward with your arms to lift your shoulders off the floor. You can place your hands forward of your shoulders, if that’s more comfortable than having them underneath you.
Relax your back, letting your stomach sag toward the ground like you did in the cow pose.
After settling into this stretch, return your upper body to the floor. You can either repeat this stretch right away, or alternate this with a child’s pose (with or without the side-to-side movements).

This Is The Ultimate Mouse Customization Tool for Mac

Every mouse is a little different—some accelerate faster than others, for example—and that can get annoying (and even disorienting) if you use one mouse at home and another at work. The Mac’s mouse panel in System Settings lets you adjust things like tracking speed, sure, but changing the setting for one mouse changes it for all of them, meaning you can’t really get the two devices to meet in the middle.

LinearMouse is a free app that lets you choose different settings for every mouse and touchpad you connect to. This can help you solve the acceleration problem I just mentioned and also lets you do things like use natural scrolling on one device and not others. It can also customize all the buttons on your mouse.

To get started, you need to download the application and launch it. You will be asked to grant Accessibility permission, which is necessary in order for the application to function. After that you can start configuring your devices. By default, the application will configure whichever device you’ve used most recently—you can configure a specific device instead by clicking the name of your current device in the top toolbar and unchecking the “Auto switch to the active device” option. Do that and you can choose which of your currently connected devices you want to configure.

The mouse selector screen, here showing five different devices. There's a checkbox at the bottom for turning off auto-switching.

Credit: Justin Pot

The app allow you to configure scrolling, pointer movement, and all the buttons on your mouse. The scrolling section has a modifier keys section that I particularly like, which allows you to do things like hold the Command key while scrolling to zoom in.

The buttons section of LinearMouse, with toggles for universal back and forward, switching the primary and secondary buttons ,and debouncing double clicks. You can also set up custom buttons.

Credit: Justin Pot

The buttons section, meanwhile, can re-map the back and forward buttons your mouse may have so that it emulates the swiping motion on a trackpad. You might find that this allows you to use the buttons in more applications. There’s also the ability to customize any button on your device to a wide variety of actions, from Mission Control to media playback. You can even trigger a Terminal command, if you want to get fancy.

There’s one more level of customization here. You can choose settings for any mouse that are specific to a particular application. So if you want to map the buttons on your mouse to do certain things while you’re using a particular application, or playing a particular game, you can do that. You can also have your mouse behave differently on different displays. You might, for example, want your mouse to move faster on your giant widescreen without speeding it up on the smaller ones you sometimes use. That’s possible.

Basically, this is an application you can tweak endlessly to get exactly the experience you want. It’s also completely free. Check it out if you wish your mouse worked differently.

The Best Apps of 2024, According to Apple

Every year, Apple posts its favorite iPhone and iPad apps to its website in the form of a competition to find the best app of 2024. Really, any app that makes the final list is usually pretty reliable, and picking a winner is largely a formality. As much as the competition is a commercial for Apple’s platforms, the real value is in finding new games, services, or tools you might not have previously been aware of. I can personally attest that picks like Dropout, lowkey the best streaming service around, and Sonic Dream Team, a fully-fledged 3D platformer that almost feels like a throwback to the Sonic Adventure days, are worthy of their spots. Read on for a full list of Apple’s best apps of 2024, across all 12 categories, now complete with winners.

iPhone App of the Year finalists

Kino: Easily create cinematic style video.
Runna: Create a structured running routine.
Tripsy: Plan and log your travel plans and expenses.

Winner: Kino

iPhone Game of the Year finalists

AFK Journey: An idle game with RPG adventure in bite-sized chunks
The WereCleaner: A comedy stealth game where you play as a werewolf janitor
Zenless Zone Zero: A stylish urban fantasy action game from the creators of Genshin Impact

Winner: AFK Journey

iPad App of the Year finalists

Bluey: Let’s Play: An interactive toy box where kids can create scenes starring their favorite Bluey characters
Moises: Uses AI to remove vocals from songs and help musicians practice the basics
Procreate Dreams: A touch-centric 2D animation app

Winner: Moises

iPad Game of the Year finalists

Assassin’s Creed Mirage: The latest fully fledged Assassin’s Creed release, originally made for consoles
Disney Speedstorm: An arcade-y kart racing game starring Disney and Pixar characters
Squad Busters: A MOBA-esque game from the creators of Clash of Clans

Winner: Squad Busters

Apple Arcade Game of the Year finalists

Balatro+: A mobile version of the acclaimed digital card game Balatro
Outlanders 2: A city-building game about surviving on the frontier
Sonic Dream Team: A 3D platformer with six playable characters and gameplay reminiscent of Sonic Adventure and Sonic Generations

Winner: Balatro+

Mac App of the Year finalists

Adobe Lightroom: Adjust lighting and other factors to make photos look more professional
OmniFocus 4: A task-management app that syncs across all your Apple devices
Shapr3D: A CAD tool for collaborating on 3D renders across Mac, iPad, and Apple Vision Pro

Winner: Adobe Lightroom

Mac Game of the Year finalists

Frostpunk 2: A city-builder about managing resources in the wake of a climate disaster
Stray: A cyberpunk story about a stray cat making its way in a city full of robots
Thank Goodness You’re Here!: A comedy adventure game with cartoony hand-drawn art

Winner: Thank Goodness You’re Here!

Apple Watch App of the Year finalists

LookUp: Quickly translate words across languages.
Lumy: Keep track of the sun and moon, whether for camping, astronomy, or taking photos.
Watch to 5K: A marathon training app with a nine-week routine

Winner: Lumy

Apple Vision Pro App of the Year finalists

JigSpace: View and adjust detailed to-scale 3D models in AR.
NBA: View NBA games as if you’ve got courtside seats.
What If…? An Immersive Story: A Marvel game that draws elements from Disney+’s What If…? animated series

Winner: What If…? An Immersive Story

Apple Vision Pro Game of the Year finalists

Loóna: A puzzle game about assembling 3D dioramas in AR and VR
Thrasher: Arcade Odyssey: An abstract arcade-y music game from the creators of Thumper
Vacation Simulator: A comedic follow-up to the VR hit Job Simulator

Winner: Thrasher: Arcade Odyssey

Apple TV App of the Year finalists

Dropout: An inexpensive streaming service from the creatives behind Collegehumor, featuring exclusive game shows, comedy specials, and improv series
F1 TV: The official app for viewing and following Formula 1
Zoom: Take Zoom calls on your Apple TV.

Winner: F1 TV

Cultural impact finalists

The Cultural Impact award is a bit different, in that it has multiple winners.

Arco: A Western-themed tactics game with a unique pixelated aesthetic and an anticolonial message
The Bear: A meditative interactive storybook to fall asleep to
BetterSleep: ASMR, ambient noise, and short meditations to help you fall asleep
Brawl Stars: A MOBA and Battle Royale hybrid from the creators of Clash of Clans
DailyArt: An art history app with daily introductions to historically important works
Do You Really Want to Know 2: A text-adventure game destigmatizing HIV and AIDS
EF Hello: An AI-powered English tutor that aids with pronunciation, conversation, and grammar
NYT Games: Access the New York Times’ suite of puzzle games, including Connections and Wordle
Oko: An AI-powered, pedestrian-first directions app with real-time walk signal identification
Partiful: Set up in-person or virtual gatherings without relying on Facebook or other social media apps
Pinterest: The classic mood-board app
The Wreck: A 3D visual novel where a failed screenwriter confronts her estranged mother after the latter suffers an aneurysm

Winners:

Oko
EF Hello
DailyArt
NYT Games
The Wreck
Do You Really Want to Know 2

Biden-Harris Administration announces nearly $335M in grants to support private forestland management and conservation as part of President Biden’s Investing in America Agenda

WASHINGTON, Dec. 11, 2024 — The U.S. Department of Agriculture today announced awards of nearly $335 million to strengthen financial incentives for private forest landowners to manage their forests sustainably and to permanently conserve private forests in partnership with states. The funding was made possible thanks to investments from the Biden-Harris Administration’s Inflation Reduction Act.

USDA Announces Two Prominent Speakers for the 2025 Agricultural Outlook Forum

WASHINGTON, Dec. 11, 2024 – The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) announces the addition of two prominent speakers to the agenda for the 101st Agricultural Outlook Forum, “Meeting Tomorrow’s Challenges, Today,” scheduled for February 27-28, 2025.

USDA Announces Two Prominent Speakers for the 2025 Agricultural Outlook Forum

Here’s What a Paid Bluesky Subscription Might Look Like

Bluesky has a lot going for it right now. One of those perks is the site is entirely free to join and use. There’s nothing locked behind a paywall that separates paying users from others: What you see is what you get.

However, the times may be a-changin’. As reported by TechCrunch, Bluesky is actively working on a subscription model for its platform, currently called “Bluesky+.” This isn’t necessarily breaking news: Back in October, the company revealed plans to offer paid subscriptions to users, while promising a free experience would always be available. What is new, however, are the pricing plans for this subscription model, as well as the features you’ll get if you choose to pay.

What might a Bluesky+ subscription get you?

The company posted a mockup of a subscription offer page it might show users interested in Bluesky+. Going off this screenshot, paid users could enjoy the following perks:

Bluesky+ profile badge
Custom app icons
Profile customizations
Higher video upload limits
High quality video resolution
Inline post translation (coming soon)
Post analytics (coming soon)
Bookmark folders (coming soon)

One Bluesky developer responded to a post about the mockup warning users that these features might not “match what will be released.” However, Bluesky has previously discussed offering features like higher quality videos and profile customization (like custom colors and frames for profile pictures) for a theoretical paid subscription, so it wouldn’t be surprising to see some (or all) of these features launch with Bluesky+.

Items labeled (coming soon) aren’t actually delayed, either: None of these features are available yet, so these final three aren’t going to necessarily take any longer to ship than the others. Bluesky developers simply wanted to test out the “coming soon” banner.

Don’t be put off by Bluedsky+ “profile badge,” either. The same developer confirmed these badges have nothing to do with verification. Bluesky won’t be following X’s horrible example, which gives anyone with a subscription a badge—rendering them useless for actual account verification.

How much could a Bluesky+ subscription be?

In another mockup, Bluesky+ is offered as one of two different subscriptions: You can spent $8 per month, or $72 per year, which would save $24 versus subscribing monthly for a year.

Again, none of this is set in stone, and could change dramatically by the time the company is ready to roll out Bluesky+. But it gives a good idea of what the company—or certain parts of the company, anyway—are thinking at this time.

Verizon Just Killed Its Messaging App

Verizon subscribers who have been using the company’s Message+ texting app are now being forced to switch to an alternative, following the service’s discontinuation on Monday. The app is the latest victim in the move to cross-platform RCS, and while it’s probably for the best, loyal users are bemoaning the loss of some fan-favorite features.

In a reddit thread on r/dumbphones, users have expressed dissatisfaction about losing the ability to reply to texts right from the lock screen or easily check their messages from a PC. (Technically, these features are available on other platforms, although they might require some adjustment or additional steps.)

That said, Apple users and more recent customers shouldn’t be affected. Since 2022, Verizon has preloaded Google Messages onto Android devices in lieu of its in-house app. iPhones, additionally, have never come with Verizon Messages pre-installed.

The shutdown date actually follows an extension of about a month, as it was originally planned for Nov. 7. While the app is still available on the iOS app store (it does not appear on Google Play), Verizon says the app can no longer send messages, and that any emails associated with it will also cease to work. The company is encouraging Android users to instead use Google Messages and iPhone users to opt for iMessage.

Why is Verizon ditching Message+?

Verizon’s app, long decried by detractors as bloatware, nonetheless retained some parity with other messaging apps up through the introduction of the RCS standard, thanks to features like group chats and typing indicators for conversations where all users were on the app. However, now that Apple is supporting RCS on iPhone, Android messaging apps, both those that use RCS and SMS, have started to end service in favor of pushing users to Google Messages. For instance, Samsung is no longer installing Samsung Messages on newer phones.

RCS, while a universal standard, technically has slight differences in how each company implements it. In ensuring Android users are largely using one company’s implementation of RCS, manufacturers and service providers are making their lives a bit easier when it comes to compatibility, especially for texts sent to iOS.

Additionally, Google’s implementation of RCS is end-to-end encrypted for messages between Android phones, making it a more secure way to text. Rather than developing their own encryption solutions, pushing users to Google Messages allows Verizon and Samsung to focus their attention elsewhere.

As for why RCS is worth all this app confusion, encryption support is probably the biggest reason in favor of swapping, but the standard also supports group texts, typing indicators, and high resolution images and reactions by default, rather than on an app-by-app basis.

How do I swap from Verizon Message+ to Google Messages?

Swapping from Verizon’s messaging app to Google’s should be relatively seamless. According to Verizon, your text history will remain in your device’s local storage and should be viewable via any compatible replacement messaging app. To get started, download Google Messages from the Play Store and open it. You should be prompted to make it your default messaging app. Afterwards, your messages should transfer, although it might take a day or so to fully sync, and you might experience some slowdown in the meantime.

If you don’t receive a prompt to change default messaging apps, try looking for it in your settings. This will differ from phone to phone, but the option will generally be under Settings > Apps > Default SMS app.

Once you’re swapped over, you’ll need to get used to the app. Google Messages has several tweaks you can make and features to get used to; Google’s actually written its own guide to help smooth your transition, which is well worth your time if the defaults don’t appeal to you.

What if I don’t want to use Google Messages?

For traditional texting, Google Messages is probably your best bet, thanks to its end-to-end encryption (as long as the person you’re texting also has Google Messages) and the promise of ongoing support. That said, because your texts are stored on your phone and linked to your phone number rather than your texting client, any alternative texting clients will still be able to sync with your text history. If you’re OK with losing RCS and encryption, Textra SMS is a popular alternative that focuses on a minimalistic interface.

However, Google Messages still has one major weakness—its messages with iPhones are not encrypted. While Apple’s adoption of RCS has generally made texting between iPhones and Androids a more pleasant experience, this means you might want to consider an instant messaging app instead.

These apps send messages through the internet and don’t sync with your phone number, which means they can’t access your text history or rely on your carrier’s SMS/MMS network if they can’t get a data connection (RCS also uses the internet, but can fall back to SMS/MMS in an emergency). However, the upside is that many are end-to-end encrypted by default.

Personally, I use Line, a Japanese app popular in East Asia, but WhatsApp is probably more convenient for an American audience. However, because WhatsApp shares data with its owner, Meta, some may instead opt for Signal, which is owned by a nonprofit. Telegram is also popular, although encryption must be enabled on a chat-by-chat basis.

The biggest issue with swapping to one of these apps is that you can only message other users if they’re on the same app, whereas texting simply relies on a phone number. Still, for maximum security, it’s best to use an instant messenger in addition to a texting app—assuming you can convince your friends and family to switch.