Gone are the days when watches were used to determine the time. Smartwatches have enabled many to wear daily schedules and lifestyles on their wrists as one tread through the day. You can perform a wide range of daily activities, from counting steps to calories, through your smartwatch. Here are some smart tips to utilize them efficiently to regulate your health parameters, reduce screen time, and facilitate convenience in your day-to-day activities. Smart features to utilize on your smartwatch Monitor sleep quality Inadequate sleep is linked with several health conditions, including heart and kidney diseases, diabetes, and stroke. Moreover, the quality of sleep matters just as much as the number of hours. Smartwatches are designed to record your sleep hours as well as their quality, including one's rapid eye movement (REM), light sleep, and deep sleep times. Check the palpitation rate A healthy heart is the foundation for a healthy body. Smartwatches can be used to monitor one's heart rate, maintain records, and track changes in palpitations regularly. Any discrepancies or negative trends in your heart rate can help you consult a doctor instantly and prevent potential heart diseases. "Watch" Your Step One of the most significant advantages of fitness watches is the feature of displaying the number of steps one has walked throughout the day. You can have your fitness watch on while performing cardio activities and other exercises like jogging or walking, or even while doing household chores to prevent a sedentary lifestyle. Many smartwatches also calculate the level of oxygen your body utilizes for various activities and measure calories burned for each. Connect the watch to smartphones Connecting your smartwatch to your phone is one of the most convenient ways to avoid missing out on messages, calls, and emails while you are away from your device. It also enables you to play music from your phone playlists without using it. Alarms, weather forecasts, and a remote-control camera are other features you can access on your smartwatch by connecting it to your phone. Set silent alarms Would you like to be woken up gently from your sleep without being disturbed by loud, gregarious sounds? The silent alarm on your smartwatch is here to your rescue! Most smartwatches have the "silent alarm" feature, which does not play a sound but gently vibrates against your wrist, waking you up to a pleasant morning. Besides being your perfect fitness companion and guide, your smartwatch can help you stay away from your mobile device for extended periods while accessing calls, messages, emails, etc., all day along.  Today, several smartwatches are ruling the market with their splendid features and aesthetic appeal. For example, Apple smartwatches, available in three models — Apple Watch Series 7, Apple Watch SE, and Apple Watch Series 3 — are equipped with several features, including exceptionally clear displays, features to measure oxygen and heart rate, water resistance (and suitability for swimming), and a thick front crystal. You can connect the smartwatch easily to your iPhone and access its features at your fingertips. The latest Apple Watch Series 8, launched on September 7, has taken the device to a new realm. This smartwatch is resistant to dust, water (swim-proof), and cracks and is equipped with advanced health sensors. The unique temperature-sensing feature allows users to easily track their menstrual cycles by recording their temperatures while they are asleep, enabling them to monitor their ovulation periods effectively. You can also easily share the menstrual cycle report created through your smartwatch with your healthcare professional. Apple Watch Series 8 also introduces crash detection, one of the latest features in the Apple smartphone series. This unique feature detects if the user is in a car crash, automatically connecting them to emergency services and notifying emergency contacts. Similarly, it offers fall detection and SOS services to ensure timely help and assistance in case of medical emergencies. Blood pressure, oxygen, and ECG monitoring; determining quality and length of sleep in the REM, core, and deep-sleep stages; customized workout tracking for different activities; and navigation through Maps are just some of its other desirable features. Before purchasing a smartwatch, review all its specifications carefully and pick the one that most effectively meets your fitness and convenience needs.

Hybrid or convertible laptop-tablets are a growing trend in the market, and manufacturers are continuously launching new models to meet the growing demand. These convertible laptop-tablets are light, making it your perfect travel partner. Most gadget geeks, business professionals, and students particularly seek this new level of portability in laptops. The following laptop-tablets are dominating the market: Acer Spin 1 For those who want a new laptop-tablet for watching videos, browsing, and sending emails, the Acer Spin 1 would be the best option. This new laptop-tablet houses an 11.6-inch screen, 4GB RAM, and 32GB eMMC storage for just $350. It has got an amazingly bright screen of 1080p, providing a good viewing experience and solid aluminum body for the money. Microsoft Surface Book 2 Of all the new tablets produced by Microsoft, the Surface Book has become a true hotshot. It comes more powerful than it's the previous model. This new laptop-tablet is a true do-it-all machine; the top model features an Intel Core i7 processor that gives you high speed and graphics performance, 1 TB storage, 16GB RAM, and up to 17 hours of battery life for extreme performance and lightning-fast access to applications, videos, and programs. HP Spectre x360 The HP Spectra x360 late 2017 model, with an Intel 8th generation CPU, gives 40% more speed compared to the previous generation. It is designed to be lightweight and weights under three pounds. It is a 360-degree convertible with integrated graphics and has a backlit keyboard thunderbolt 3 and comes with an active pen. Lenovo Yoga 920 The latest Intel 8th Generation processor powers Lenovo's best new tablet: the Yoga 920. This laptop-tablet flips 360-degrees, essentially making it useful in different positions to fit into your lifestyle. It has got a vibrant 13.9-inch screen, long battery life, stylus pen and an attractive classy design. Microsoft Surface Pro 4 This Windows 10 powered, 2 in 1 computer is very popular in the world of both tablets and laptops. It is equipped with an Intel Core i5 processor, 8GB RAM, and a 256GB hard drive, which is abundant for everyday working and for Netflix binge nights. The keyboard is designed in a way to provide refreshed and improved typing, and two trackpad buttons for accurate clicking. HP ZBook x2 G4 review The HP ZBook x2 G4 is the perfect machine for creatives. This 2018 model is the best new tablet with Quad Core i7 processor that people had been waiting for. It's Dream color matte screen significantly gives more brightness and clarity. The ZBook comes with a detachable Bluetooth keyboard for convenient typing. It has got an interesting rectangular with cut-off corner shape that gives it a trendy look.

Document shredding is essential, not only for offices but homes too. It enables one to safely get rid of bills and documents like that are confidential and can not be merely added to waste. Eliminating important but unwanted documents are not only essential to protect sensitive information but also keep your home and office organized. If you are looking for free document shredding, there are several community services that provide the opportunity to destroy your confidential documents. Why do these community services provide free document shredding? The reason the service is provided for free is that the shredded paper is recycled and used for causes that benefit the society. The process followed in free document shredding programs include the following: Set a date - When you have enough documents to be shredded, all you have to do is pre-arrange a date for when you want the staff to visit your home or office. Visit at your doorstep - The service provider comes to your home or office. This will depend on the number of documents that you wish to shred. In case, the documents are in lesser quantity, you may have to visit the community free document shredding service provider. These centers are usually placed in several parts of the town that include shopping centers, community centers or police stations. Accumulated in a container - The community free document shredding service providers who accumulate the documents are trained to carry out collection safely to a mobile shredding vehicle or shredding center. The documents are then immediately shredded to an unrecognizable state. Most centers allow you to watch the process of document shredding. Recycling - Once the paper is turned to shreds it is carried to warehouses. The waste paper is then converted to pulped cubes and recycled to be used again. Thus, this helps in the sustenance of the environment and effectively protecting your sensitive information. There are several free document shredding services that also help by placing safe shredding containers in offices for regular disposal. The secure containers are placed at different sites in the office allowing employees to conveniently drop in documents when not required. This process is then carried out normally with where the waste is then collected and shredded at the document shredding site. After the process of free document shredding, you or your company may be provided with a Certificate of Destruction. What better way to support your green initiative? Right.

The 401k is an employer-sponsored savings plan for eligible employees to save for their retirement through deferred salary contributions, which go towards an employee's 401k account. These are all pre-tax contributions. However, there are certain 401k contribution limits to keep in mind. These have been mentioned below: Basic contribution cap for the year 2017–2018 The limit for basic employee contribution for the year 2017 was around $18,000 per year. It has, however, been increased to around $18,500 for the year 2018. This includes all the contributions made after tax and salary deferrals to a 401k account. In case you have more than one 401k accounts, your contribution limits cannot exceed the limits mentioned above. However, any contributions made to other types of retirement accounts would not come under this limitation. Contribution cap for people aged above 50 The primary purpose of a 401k account is to encourage savings towards a financially-stable future for participants. While young employees need to stay under the limits set by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), employees aged above 50 years have different 401k contribution limits so that they can save more as they are nearing their retirement age. Apart from adhering to the limit of $18,500 in 2018, they may also contribute a catch-up amount of around $6,000 towards their 401k account to take more benefit of it when they retire. Contributions by employers Since it is referred to as an employer-sponsored program, there is a cap on the contributions made by employers as well; however, it is higher than the 401k contribution limits set for employees. The employer contributions constitute of contributions made by the employees along with the employer and the additional elective employer contributions made to the 401k account. This is, however, irrespective of whether the employee meets the same standard of contribution or not. The limit for the year 2018 for the same is around $36,500, which has been increased from the threshold of around $36,000 in 2017. Total contribution limits for 2017–18 There is a limit set by the IRS for total contributions made to the 401k account. The maximum contribution allowed to the 401k account for the year 2018 is around $55,000; moreover, around $61,000 is allowed for catch-up contributions. These include contributions of employees, employers, (both matching and elective), and a count of all the 401k accounts that you have under your name. Additionally, highly compensated employees have more stringent limits so that they do not take undue advantage of a 401k account. Such employees can calculate the contribution they want to put in additionally towards securing their retirement years with a 401k account.

Everyone wants to look good and fit in their best pair of jeans. But if you are overweight, it takes a lot of effort to shed those extra pounds. Along with a good workout session, you also need to eat healthy to lose weight effectively. When we talk about eating healthy, many people get confused about what to eat and what to avoid. A good diet plan called the Atkins Diet chalked out by a cardiologist, Dr. Robert C. Atkins helps to achieve our weight loss mission quickly. Overview of Atkins diet This diet has gained popularity over the years to work wonders for people who are finding it difficult to lose weight. This is one of the first diet plans that entered the market as the weight loss diet plan. This diet has low carbohydrates meal plan that makes you lose weight fast. Limiting your intake of carbohydrates changes the metabolism of the body. This process is called ketosis where the body stops metabolizing the glucose as energy and instead, starts converting the stored fat into energy. The main purpose of this diet plan is to change your eating habits, thereby helping you lose weight while improving your health conditions. The Atkins diet plan works in three phases. Phase 1 This phase is very strict. In this step, you eliminate almost all the carbohydrates from your diet. You will just eat 20 grams of carbohydrates in a day, that too in the form of vegetables. You are allowed to eat only 10% of foundation vegetables like broccoli, asparagus, celery, green beans, cucumber, and peppers. Your diet includes good portions of protein from fish, poultry, cheese, eggs, and meat. Your intake of sugar, fruits, grains, bread, alcohol, pasta, baked goods, and nuts is restricted. This phase is followed for 2 weeks before moving to the next phase. Phase 2 In this phase, you still continue to restrict your carbohydrates intake from foundation vegetables to minimum. Nutrient-rich fruits like berries, nuts, seeds, and vegetables are slowly added to the diet. You continue to eat like this until you are 10 pounds away from your target weight. Phase 3 When you enter the 3rd phase, you gradually start to eat a little of other foods like starchy vegetables, fruits, and whole grains. You are allowed to add 10 grams of carbohydrates every week. But if you see that you are gaining weight when you reintroduce carbohydrates to your diet, you need to stop eating them at once. You follow this diet until you reach your goal. Once you reach your target weight, you need to maintain that weight by continuing to eat light. If you stop eating healthy and switch back to your normal eating habits, you will start putting on those pounds again in no time.

Electric blankets benefit sleepers in many ways. While their primary function is to provide heat, these blankets also have therapeutic benefits. This product is especially useful for patients who have arthritis or fibromyalgia. Electric blankets are also energy efficient and can help you save some money on your heating bills during winter. Here are the three of the most popular heating blankets that you can buy online. Sunbeam® Quilted Fleece Heated Blanket The 10-hour auto-off feature is perhaps the highlight of Sunbeam's electric blanket. Its wiring system's design distributes heat evenly throughout the blanket. Moreover, this 100% polyester blanket keeps your entire body warm. It also features a dual temperature control system that lets you and your partner enjoy different temperatures with the same electric blanket. Sunbeam’s quilted fleece heated blanket has ten different control settings. Slip a duvet over it if you can feel the wires through the fabric or if you want to keep it clean for longer. You can purchase the blanket on Amazon for $79 approximately. Soft Heat Luxury Micro-fleece Electric Heated Blanket Many people might think that a microfleece blanket is too expensive for their daily needs. However, you should splurge on this product as it will provide you with the ultimate level of comfort. Moreover, this blanket also helps you save money as it uses less electricity to provide heat with a revolutionary low voltage technology. The blanket also features a dual heat setting that allows both partners to share one electric blanket with different heat settings. The blanket has an auto power-off system in case you forget to turn it off. Thus, it is energy efficient and also reduces the risk of a short circuit due to overheating. You can purchase the Soft Heat electric blanket from Amazon for around $185. Sunbeam® Microplush Heated Throw Sunbeam's Microplush Heated Throw is an affordable option when you are looking to stay warm but don’t want to spend a lot of cash. The Microplush Heated Throw electric blanket offers only three heating modes and three-hour auto power off feature as compared to other products that come with more functions. However, its limited functionality does not make the product subpar as it still provides good heating. You can purchase this inexpensive electric blanket for around $40 on various shopping websites.