Michael Patel

Michael Patel covers gadgets and smart home devices — the accessories, wearables, and connected devices that quietly change how a home or a daily routine works. He's especially interested in gadgets that solve a real annoyance rather than ones that are just novel, and he's quick to call out the difference between a genuinely useful smart device and one that's smart for the sake of a marketing bullet point.

Michael has a habit of testing new gadgets on himself before recommending them to anyone else — living with a device for weeks, not just unboxing it — and isn't shy about calling out ones that don't live up to their pitch. More than one product has quietly disappeared from his coverage list after failing that test.

He's particularly drawn to the smart home corner of the beat: the small connected upgrades — a better smart lock, a video doorbell that doesn't drain the battery in a week — that make a noticeable difference without turning a house into a science project. He writes for readers who want an honest read before they spend the money, not another glowing review that reads like it was written by the manufacturer.