u/Downtown-Pace3824

I've never been impressed by Bridgestone tires compared to Michelin, so when I found out Lexus was using the Bridgestone Turanza on the new ES350h Premium+ I was disappointed.

So, I'm asking current owners of the 2026 ES350h what they think of the Bridgestone tires and if replacing them with Michelin is worth the $1,200 or so to switch. That's not chump change but if I get better handling, better braking, more ride comfort and quiet, and improved wet road control, I might do it.

The scenario: My approximately 18-month old Seagate Expansion 26TB external drive started locking up while I was accessing files on it. It eventually caused my Macbook to also lock up, so I did a force quit to shut everything down. When I started the Macbook up again, it wasn't recognizing the Seagate.

I tried Disk Utility and Tech Tool Pro but neither could find it on the system. Eventually, using Terminal, I saw that the drive was still being recognized, despite it not showing on my Macbook's desktop or using disk repair tools. Then, I tried using Test Disk on it. It also saw the drive and even got it to start up again, although it couldn't read any files on it, much less fix any possible partition issues. I spent hours with Claude trying to troubleshoot the problem, but all possible solutions failed.

As it stands now, I have the bare Barracuda drive removed from the Seagate case, and in a Sabrent USB-to-SATA docking station. It will start up and run (after about five long minutes), but the Macbook isn't recognizing it, and I get the dreaded "This drive is not recognized. Do you want to Erase, Initialize or Ignore?" Oddlly, Terminal sees the drive as "Sabrent 26TB" not as the original Seagate or Barracuda drive, which makes me think something else might be going on other than the drive has been wiped clean, or is dying.

Any help here would be much appreciated.

I am planning an anniversary and birthday celebration for my wife at the Westin Verasa Napa and would like to email the general manager or someone else who could help with special requests. I'd appreciate getting this info from anyone who knows.

I can book a stay next spring at either of these resorts for roughly the same price. I've read good and bad things about both. Based on your experience at both, or either, of the resorts, which would you recommend, and why?

I am planning an anniversary and birthday celebration for my wife at the Westin Verasa Napa and would like to email the general manager or someone else who could help with special requests. I'd appreciate getting this info from anyone who knows.

I am planning an anniversary and birthday celebration for my wife at the Westin Verasa Napa and would like to email the general manager or someone else who could help with special requests. I'd appreciate getting this info from anyone who knows.

I'll be staying at the St. Regis next spring and want to try some local restaurants in Cap Cana. However, I worry about safety venturing off-resort, especially walking. What is recommended?

I travel a lot and tend to carry a lot in my travel backpack (not so much clothing, but laptop, tablet, cables, chargers, headphones, and some camera gear). That's why I need a 35-40L carry-on. I've been using The North Face Router 40L which is pretty nice, except it's not a clamshell design, and the shoulder straps could be thicker. So, I've narrowed its replacement to either the Aer Travel 4 35L, or the Fyro Levo 36L. Both get great reviews, roughly the same size, and priced closely. The Aer has lots of pockets for carrying stuff, built like a tank with great comfort, but is somewhat heavy. The Fyro is also well-built and well-designed, super lightweight and comfortable, but lacking in certain important features, like a compartment for a 13" tablet, zippers on the admin pocket, as well as dual zippers for security. I find both bags equally attractive.

I'm looking for comments from owners, or, at least, users of both these bags, and where you fall on each, including your favorite between the two.

I travel a lot and tend to carry a lot in my travel backpack (not so much clothing, but laptop, tablet, cables, chargers, headphones, and some camera gear). That's why I need a 35-40L carry-on. I've been using The North Face Router 40L which is pretty nice, except it's not a clamshell design, and the shoulder straps could be thicker. So, I've narrowed its replacement to either the Aer Travel 4 35L, or the Fyro Levo 36L. Both get great reviews, roughly the same size, and priced closely. The Aer has lots of pockets for carrying stuff, built like a tank with great comfort, but is somewhat heavy. The Fyro is also well-built and well-designed, super lightweight and comfortable, but lacking in certain important features, like a compartment for a 13" tablet, zippers on the admin pocket, as well as dual zippers for security. I find both bags equally attractive.

I'm looking for comments from owners, or, at least, users of both these bags, and where you fall on each, including your favorite between the two.

I travel a lot and tend to carry a lot in my travel backpack (not so much clothing, but laptop, tablet, cables, chargers, headphones, and some camera gear). That's why I need a 35-40L carry-on. I've been using The North Face Router 40L which is pretty nice, except it's not a clamshell design, and the shoulder straps could be thicker. So, I've narrowed its replacement to either the Aer Travel 4 35L, or the Fyro Levo 36L. Both get great reviews, roughly the same size, and priced closely. The Aer has lots of pockets for carrying stuff, built like a tank with great comfort, but is somewhat heavy. The Fyro is also well-built and well-designed, super lightweight and comfortable, but lacking in certain important features, like a compartment for a 13" tablet, zippers on the admin pocket, as well as dual zippers for security. I find both bags equally attractive.

I'm looking for comments from owners, or, at least, users of both these bags, and where you fall on each, including your favorite between the two.

I've been using The North Face Router backpack for past couple of years while traveling domestically and internationally. I chose it because it's got lots of useful compartments for my Macbook, Samsung tablet, chargers, cables, camera and a couple of lenses, as well as easy access to my passport, sunglasses and other quick-grab items. It's also very lightweight at about 2.5 lbs. and can hold 40L worth of my stuff. However, I find it somewhat uncomfortable when its full and I'm trekking through airports; the straps are thinnish and the fit on my back isn't great. I also think a clamshell design would better suit my needs when rummaging through my gear in airports and in-flight.

So, , I'm considering the following travel backpacks to replace the Router:

* Tortuga Travel Backpack Pro or Lite 40L (new V2 is coming 7/23)
* Fyro Levo 35L (smaller than I prefer but it has appealing features and design)
* Aer Travel Pack 4 35L (again, smaller than I prefer, but it gets lots of five-star reviews)
* Tomtac T66 40L (great price, lots of compartments, quality may not be among the best, slightly heavy)
* Peak Design Travel Backpack 35/45L (seems close to perfect, except it's heavy and some folks complain the straps are very uncomfortable)
* Wandrd Transit Travel Backpack 45L (also seems close to perfect, albeit heavy, not many reviews on it)

if you've owned any of these bags, I'd appreciate hearing your comments about what you like/dislike about them, and what you think would fit my needs best.

I've been using The North Face Router backpack for past couple of years while traveling domestically and internationally. I chose it because it's got lots of useful compartments for my Macbook, Samsung tablet, chargers, cables, camera and a couple of lenses, as well as easy access to my passport, sunglasses and other quick-grab items. It's also very lightweight at about 2.5 lbs. and can hold 40L worth of my stuff. However, I find it somewhat uncomfortable when its full and I'm trekking through airports; the straps are thinnish and the fit on my back isn't great. I also think a clamshell design would better suit my needs when rummaging through my gear in airports and in-flight.

So, , I'm considering the following travel backpacks to replace the Router:

* Tortuga Travel Backpack Pro or Lite 40L (new V2 is coming 7/23)
* Fyro Levo 35L (smaller than I prefer but it has appealing features and design)
* Aer Travel Pack 4 35L (again, smaller than I prefer, but it gets lots of five-star reviews)
* Tomtac T66 40L (great price, lots of compartments, quality may not be among the best, slightly heavy)
* Peak Design Travel Backpack 35/45L (seems close to perfect, except it's heavy and some folks complain the straps are very uncomfortable)
* Wandrd Transit Travel Backpack 45L (also seems close to perfect, albeit heavy, not many reviews on it)

if you've owned any of these bags, I'd appreciate hearing your comments about what you like/dislike about them, and what you think would fit my needs best.

Planning a family trip to the Guanacaste area, early May 2027. I've read humidity can be oppressive there during certain times of the year. I'm from Virginia where humidity gets really bad from June-September, but May is usually pleasant. Can anyone who's been to the Guanacaste area in early May tell me if humidity will be a problem for three healthy adults.

I don't like putting my vinyl on the hard Delrin platter of the MoFi Ultradeck, so I'm considering a thin softer mat to place on top. However, I've read cork or felt softens the sound, and acrylic make it too bright. What's been your experience?

Typically, I like to book international flights 6-8 months out. I plan to go on a family vacation to Costa Rica (landing at LIR) next May. Currently, flights in Comfort+ are hovering just over $1,000/seat from home airport (in VA) which seems about right. With the war in Iran still a mess, I don't see gas prices lowering my much anytime soon (it could be years, even). Nonetheless, should I wait a another month, two or three, or buy now while prices seem decent?

Seems like all her posts here, X and OF are strictly non-lewd. While I respect her choice, I miss the risqué Ick.

I just bought the Hana SL Mk II for my UltraDeck and feeling a bit nervous about installing it. I know the stylus is somewhat fragile and needs to be precisely aligned to play properly. I'd appreciate any tips or advice for this procedure. Step-by-step would also be appreciated.

I researched and researched the advantages and benefits of Roon, yet still can't see why I need it if I'm not interested in creating a library of my music collection. I have zero interest in burning my thousands of CDs onto a hard drive just for the convenience of listening via Roon's server. Plus, that's another high ticket expense on top of the monthly Roon subscription. I already subscribe to Tidal, Spotify and Amazon Music, which all allow me to built playlists and collections. So what does a Roon subscription offer besides expanded info about the artist and album credits?