Ben Patterson

Ben Patterson

Senior Writer

Ben has been writing about technology and consumer electronics for more than 20 years. A PCWorld contributor since 2014, Ben joined TechHive in 2019, where he covers smart speakers, soundbars, and other smart and home-theater devices. You can follow Ben on Twitter.

Articles by Ben Patterson

Get to know Up Next in the Music app for iOS

Remember when you just pressed Play on your iPhone or iPad to start listening to music? Now, you have a trio of playback options: Find out what happens when you tap Play Next, Add to Up Next, and more.
By Ben Patterson 7 years ago

6 ways to take control of your Android apps

You’ve got a lot more power over your Android apps than you might think. Learn how to manage an app's stored files, clean out its temporary storage "cache," keep an app from adding a shortcut on your home screen, and more.
By Ben Patterson 7 years ago

6 gotta-know sound settings for Android and iOS

Clicking the volume rocker isn't the only way to control the sound on your Android phone or iPhone. You can make key taps "click," assign different ringtones to your favorite contacts, tweak your equalizer levels, and more.
By Ben Patterson 8 years ago

Top 5 reasons to get a dedicated reader app for Android or iOS

As good as they are at loading web pages quickly and precisely on smaller screens, both Safari for iOS and Chrome for Android are terrible when it comes to loading a massive page-turner of an article—you know, that one you want to curl up with on a lazy Sunday. The solution: a dedicated reader app, and here's five reasons why iPhone- and Android-toting bookworms shouldn't be without one.
By Ben Patterson 8 years ago