Recommendations you can check.
Latvian full-stack WordPress developer and course creator at WPElevator; blogs about the open web, electronics and sustainable living at kaspars.net.
18 things
MacBook ProHardware Apple
MacBook Pro (the original M1 2021).
His /uses page, "a list of tools and services I love and use", which states it was last updated in April 2026 and that some of its links are affiliate links. Only the month is given, so no exact publication date could be established.
Apple Watch Series 8Hardware Apple
Apple Watch Series 8 for tracking sleep, gym, walks and bike rides.
His /uses page, "a list of tools and services I love and use", which states it was last updated in April 2026 and that some of its links are affiliate links. Only the month is given, so no exact publication date could be established.
QNAP TS-435XeUHardware QNAP
QNAP TS-435XeU (Amazon) home-lab server for Home Assistant and Scrypted along with Time Machine backups and local file sharing.
His /uses page, "a list of tools and services I love and use", which states it was last updated in April 2026 and that some of its links are affiliate links. Only the month is given, so no exact publication date could be established.
Mikrotik RB5009UPr+S+INHardware Mikrotik
Mikrotik RB5009UPr+S+IN (Amazon) router with UniFi U6+ (Amazon) access-point (see the related blog posts).
His /uses page, "a list of tools and services I love and use", which states it was last updated in April 2026 and that some of its links are affiliate links. Only the month is given, so no exact publication date could be established.
Dell UltraSharp 27 inch 4K U2723QEHardware Dell
Dell UltraSharp 27 inch 4K U2723QE monitor (Amazon) which requires this configuration fix.
His /uses page, "a list of tools and services I love and use", which states it was last updated in April 2026 and that some of its links are affiliate links. Only the month is given, so no exact publication date could be established.
Visual Studio CodeSoftware Microsoft
Visual Studio Code code editor.
His /uses page, "a list of tools and services I love and use", which states it was last updated in April 2026 and that some of its links are affiliate links. Only the month is given, so no exact publication date could be established.
TowerSoftware fournova
Tower git client.
His /uses page, "a list of tools and services I love and use", which states it was last updated in April 2026 and that some of its links are affiliate links. Only the month is given, so no exact publication date could be established.
DigitalOceanService DigitalOcean
DigitalOcean for hosting projects.
His /uses page, "a list of tools and services I love and use", which states it was last updated in April 2026 and that some of its links are affiliate links. Only the month is given, so no exact publication date could be established.
Zen browserSoftware
Zen browser (primary) and Chrome for web performance work.
His /uses page, "a list of tools and services I love and use", which states it was last updated in April 2026 and that some of its links are affiliate links. Only the month is given, so no exact publication date could be established.
StrongboxSoftware Phoebe Code
Strongbox for password management (synced over iCloud).
His /uses page, "a list of tools and services I love and use", which states it was last updated in April 2026 and that some of its links are affiliate links. Only the month is given, so no exact publication date could be established.
BackblazeService Backblaze
Backblaze for personal computer backups.
His /uses page, "a list of tools and services I love and use", which states it was last updated in April 2026 and that some of its links are affiliate links. Only the month is given, so no exact publication date could be established.
ReederSoftware Silvio Rizzi
Reeder on iOS and macOS with iCloud sync for following news and blogs.
His /uses page, "a list of tools and services I love and use", which states it was last updated in April 2026 and that some of its links are affiliate links. Only the month is given, so no exact publication date could be established.
Makita 18V series power toolsHardware Makita
Makita 18V series power tools.
His /uses page, "a list of tools and services I love and use", which states it was last updated in April 2026 and that some of its links are affiliate links. Only the month is given, so no exact publication date could be established.
Rigol DS1054ZHardware Rigol
Rigol DS1054Z 4-channel oscilloscope (Amazon). Newer version is Rigol DHO800 series (Amazon, AliExpress).
His /uses page, "a list of tools and services I love and use", which states it was last updated in April 2026 and that some of its links are affiliate links. Only the month is given, so no exact publication date could be established.
DeLonghi Dedica espresso machineHardware DeLonghi
DeLonghi Dedica espresso machine (Amazon).
His /uses page, "a list of tools and services I love and use", which states it was last updated in April 2026 and that some of its links are affiliate links. Only the month is given, so no exact publication date could be established.
Fjallraven Raven 28Hardware Fjallraven
Fjallraven Raven 28 (Amazon) backpack as a daily driver.
His /uses page, "a list of tools and services I love and use", which states it was last updated in April 2026 and that some of its links are affiliate links. Only the month is given, so no exact publication date could be established.
Bluetti EB3AHardware Bluetti
Bluetti EB3A 600W 268Wh portable power station (Amazon).
His /uses page, "a list of tools and services I love and use", which states it was last updated in April 2026 and that some of its links are affiliate links. Only the month is given, so no exact publication date could be established.
Fjallraven Skogso Padded jacketHardware Fjallraven
Fjallraven Sten jacket (Amazon) for summer and Skogso Padded (Amazon) jacket for winter which I don't recommend (sleeves too long and size too small).
His /uses page, "a list of tools and services I love and use", which states it was last updated in April 2026 and that some of its links are affiliate links. Only the month is given, so no exact publication date could be established.
Every entry is a verbatim quote and a link to the public post it came from. Nothing is paraphrased. If it is not on record somewhere public, it is not here.
The verdict is what they actually said: loved and liked are explicit; recommended means they told others to get it; uses means they only say they use it; read is a book on their public shelf with no verdict; mixed and disliked are kept too.
A dashed affiliate link, sponsored or their own label means the post disclosed a relationship. It is shown, never hidden.
The shading behind a date shows how dated a recommendation is for its kind of thing.
The shading behind a date shows how dated a recommendation is, for its kind of thing. Fully green is recent. It drains a quarter at a time as the post gets older, and is empty once it reads as dated.
What counts as old depends on the thing. A laptop praised four years ago has been replaced twice; a book loved twenty years ago is probably still loved. The shading is gone after about:
Stripes mean the post carries no date and the date shown is an estimate. No date at all, no shading.