Welcome to the Charged Blog

Charged is an independent publication and newsletter, edited and crafted by developer and journalist Owen Williams.

We're focused on high-quality, insightful writing about the technology industry and don't crowd our site with advertising.

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Microsoft's Surface Duo foldable phone is finally here—for $1,400

Surface Duo is here, blurring the boundary between tablet and phone—and Microsoft is onto something.


Surface Book 3 review: the web developer's laptop

Microsoft's new Surface Book 3 is a formidable upgrade, and a great MacBook alternative. Here's how it stacks up for web developers.


GitHub Codespaces mean your computer doesn't matter anymore

By moving your development environment to the cloud, GitHub's Codespaces make the computer you use irrelevant–all you need is a browser.


Make your lights smart with switches, not bulbs

Smart lighting is everywhere, but it's cheaper and less hassle to replace your switches, not each individual bulb. Here's the best choices, and why.


Google and Saint Laurent are making a gesture-enabled smart backpack

Google's Project Jacquard is back with its second smart wearable: a gesture-enabled backpack, in collaboration with Saint Laurent.


Lenovo X1 carbon review: the best light, portable laptop

It's fast, quiet, and ultra-light. Lenovo's X1 Carbon is one of the best MacBook alternatives available today, and it'll last you forever.


Making web dev on Windows great with WSL2

Learn how to use the Windows Subsystem for Linux 2 (WSL2), and get the perfect web development set up on Windows in minutes.


OnePlus 7 Pro review: an enormous phone from the future

A beautiful phone that looks like it's from a sci-fi movie, for a fraction of the price of an iPhone—the OnePlus 7 Pro is a great Pixel alternative.


How I use Slack—alone—to get more done

How integrations and an empty Slack team help me get more done.


Apple wants to kill the ad industry. It's forcing developers to help.

Apple is strong-arming developers into squashing an industry under the guise of privacy, and it's going to hurt us all.