Technologies

The Best LastPass Alternative in 2023

Stop forgetting your passwords — start using Bitwarden today, the best LastPass alternative for free.

It can be tough to keep track of all the passwords you use, even on a daily basis. Between work and personal accounts, the number of passwords you have can pile up quickly. Password managers can help you house your passwords in a secure location, making them easy to find when you need them. One password manager that comes up in a lot of recommendations is LastPass, but if for some reason you’re looking for a LastPass alternative, you’ve come to the right place.

Password managers are among the most helpful (and important) tools a person can use, yet I know far too many people who just keep writing down, forgetting, and resetting the same few easily hacked credentials. I’ve even seen people with password sticky notes on monitors, which is terrifying. If that’s you, it’s time to get with the program — or in this case, the app.

Concerned about cost? Don’t be: Many great password managers have very capable free versions. But those versions — including those in our roundup of the best password managers — are limited in one key way: They keep your passwords confined to a single device.

My top pick doesn’t have that limitation; it synchronizes your passwords with all your devices. It’s called Bitwarden.

See at Bitwarden

What is a password manager, really?

Simple. It’s an encrypted database of all your passwords. Instead of trying to remember that same handful of (probably not very secure) passwords you use everywhere you go online, you just have to remember one: The one that unlocks Bitwarden.

Why choose one of these over the likes of 1Password, Dashlane, Keeper, Password Vault, Sticky Password and other products, all of which are perfectly good? As noted above, only the free version of Bitwarden supports password synchronization. That means you can access your data on your phone, tablet and PC — a benefit that’s absolutely essential if you use more than one device.

Beyond that, they offer common helpers like strong-password generation, automatic form-filling, encrypted credit card storage (for easier online shopping), a digital vault and so on.

Useful features like those help explain why I prefer a proper password manager to the rudimentary capabilities built into Android, iOS and your web browser. Indeed, once you get accustomed to having such tools at your disposal, you’ll wonder how you managed so long without them.

Make no mistake, there’s a learning curve to Bitwarden — and any password manager, really. It might take you a few weeks to really get accustomed to using the app and banishing your old password habits.

But any such hassles are greatly overshadowed by the overall convenience. Your goal as an internet citizen should be to use a different, robust password for each app, site and service, and a password manager is the only practical way to make that happen. You should be using one. Bitwarden is, to my thinking, the best free option out there.

Other free password management options

Should you bother with the premium version? Bitwarden charges just $10 annually for it, a price that nets you 1GB of encrypted cloud storage and password health reports. There’s also a family option ($40 a year) that gives you premium features for up to six users and adds unlimited sharing.

I’d say most of these features are superfluous for most people, though obviously, it’s up to you to decide.

For the record, LogMeOnce Password-Less is another tool that supports password-syncing in its free version. I don’t like it as much, but it’s worth a look.

If you’re wondering, I’m now using Bitwarden full-time. Previously I was a Dashlane user but grew frustrated by its bloat and high price. Bitwarden has proven a solid product, one I have no qualms about recommending.

What’s your preferred password-management method these days? And if you refuse to use one of these tools, I’d like to know why! 😜

Watch this: This free password manager offers one crucial feature

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Read more: The Best Android VPNs

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Technologies

Today’s NYT Mini Crossword Answers for Wednesday, March 11

Here are the answers for The New York Times Mini Crossword for March 11.

Looking for the most recent Mini Crossword answer? Click here for today’s Mini Crossword hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Wordle, Strands, Connections and Connections: Sports Edition puzzles.

Need some help with today’s Mini Crossword? I thought it was a bit tricky. 1-Down is one of those old-fashioned comic-book sounds that I had to remember how to spell correctly. Read on for all the answers. And if you could use some hints and guidance for daily solving, check out our Mini Crossword tips.

If you’re looking for today’s Wordle, Connections, Connections: Sports Edition and Strands answers, you can visit CNET’s NYT puzzle hints page.

Read more: Tips and Tricks for Solving The New York Times Mini Crossword

Let’s get to those Mini Crossword clues and answers.

Mini across clues and answers

1A clue: Study of the human mind, informally
Answer: PSYCH

6A clue: Common fixture in a gym bathroom
Answer: SCALE

7A clue: Kinda boring
Answer: HOHUM

8A clue: Like a commenter without a username, for short
Answer: ANON

9A clue: «All good between us?»
Answer: WEOK

Mini down clues and answers

1D clue: Old-fashioned «Yeah, right!»
Answer: PSHAW

2D clue: Coffeehouse pastry
Answer: SCONE

3D clue: Google alternative
Answer: YAHOO

4D clue: Sound of a dull thump
Answer: CLUNK

5D clue: Line on the bottom of a pant leg
Answer: HEM

Technologies

OnePlus and Oppo to Raise Smartphone Prices as Memory Costs Climb

Oppo says rising costs for key phone components will trigger price adjustments on some devices starting March 16.

Chinese smartphone-makers OnePlus and Oppo plan to raise prices on some existing models starting next week, according to a 9to5Google report citing GizmoChina and a notice posted on Oppo’s China online store.

In its notice, Oppo said it would adjust pricing after evaluating rising costs for several key components used in its mobile phones. The changes are expected to take effect around March 16 and will affect some of the company’s more affordable smartphones, as well as some OnePlus models.

Flagship devices — like those in the Find and Reno series — are not expected to be affected for now. The reported adjustments currently appear to be limited to China.

The move highlights growing pressure across the smartphone supply chain as component costs climb. Analysts say prices for memory and storage chips used in phones have been rising in recent months as demand surges across the tech industry.

Much of the chip demand is coming from the rapid buildout of AI data centers, which rely on large amounts of high-performance memory.

That pressure isn’t limited to Oppo and OnePlus. Analysts say smartphone brands across the industry are facing rising component costs amid increased demand for memory chips.

As manufacturers shift production toward higher-margin memory used in AI servers, supply for consumer electronics such as smartphones and laptops can tighten.

If component costs continue to rise, manufacturers may face difficult choices later this year, including raising retail prices or adjusting device specifications to offset higher manufacturing costs.

OnePlus and Oppo didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

Technologies

Harvard Business Review Study Finds ‘AI Brain Fry’ Is Leaving Workers Mentally Fatigued

Study participants reported increased mental fatigue while using AI tools, but less burnout overall.

Workers who excessively use AI agents and tools at work are at increased risk of mental fatigue, according to a recent Harvard Business Review study. In certain industries, more than 25% of hired professionals report increased mental strain due to their role in AI oversight — though these professionals also generally experienced less burnout than peers who aren’t using AI.

This phenomenon — which the researchers refer to as «AI brain fry» — is described as a «‘buzzing’ feeling or a mental fog» that caused study participants to develop headaches and difficulty focusing and making decisions. Individuals pointed to being overwhelmed by large amounts of information and to frequent task switching as the reasons for these feelings.

Studied individuals experienced more brain fry when they utilized AI agents to manage a workload beyond their own cognitive capacity. When participants used AI to replace mundane, repetitive tasks, managing the growing number of tools led to increased mental fatigue.

Crucially, the study found that fewer individuals who used these AI agents reported workplace burnout.

The researchers predict that this is because burnout testing assesses emotional and physical distress. In contrast, they report, acute mental fatigue «is caused by marshalling attention, working memory and executive control beyond the limited capacity of these systems.»

These are the processes that are taxed when study participants use multiple AI tools in their workflow, according to the researchers.

The Harvard study identifies several business costs incurred by workers suffering from AI brain fry. The foremost consequence is that these individuals may end up making lower-quality decisions. «Workers in [the] study who endorsed AI brain fry experience 33% more decision fatigue than those who did not,» the study reports. Workers who report AI brain fry were also more likely to self-report making both minor and major errors at their jobs.

Another recent Harvard Business Review study similarly found that employees who use AI tools «worked at a faster pace, took on a broader scope of tasks and extended work into more hours of the day,» but warned that «workload creep can in turn lead to cognitive fatigue, burnout and weakened decision-making.»