#SmartFiling

[winx-global]

What's the primary purpose of Form 1040? Drop your answers in the #comments and let's see who knows their #tax #forms!

[ospyntechnologies]

OspynDocs.

[skfinancial]

🔍 𝗔𝗿𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗮𝗹𝘄𝗮𝘆𝘀 𝘄𝗼𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘁𝗮𝘅 𝗿𝗲𝗳𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝘁𝘂𝘀? The IRS is launching an improved "Where's My Refund?" tool for the 2024 filing season! Now, get clearer updates and messages, reducing the need for calls to the IRS. Stay informed every step of the way. Looking for more information on these new updates? We've got you covered. Contact us at +1 813-322-3936 or visit www.skfinancial.com to stay informed and make your tax filing smoother. Updates 2024

[nerdykeppie]

Well, Smartfill, you tried.

(Jake created a little primer for the ad agency we're working with, and, well... yeah.)

[cliftonbathrooms]

Long Freestanding Corner Bath - Clifton Bathrooms and Kitchens

Discover our elegant long freestanding corner bath, perfect for modern bathroom renovation. Our stylish and space-saving corner bath combines luxury and functionality.

[toollistai]

What is Hubflo?

Hubflo is the fastest-growing AI-Powered Client Portal for professional & creative services. Build a stunning branded client portal in 60s with AI to impress clients and streamline operations. 

The platform is highly customizable and branded, allowing businesses to customize entire web portals in minutes with 15+ built-in tools (File sharing, contracts, approvals, client messaging, tasks, billing..)  and 500 apps integrations, including popular tools like Gmail, Google Calendar, and QuickBooks.

Key features : 

Flexible & highly customizable Customer portal built with AI Magic

Fast integrations with 500+ external tools

Mobile friendly experience

Client onboarding features

Real-time client collaboration tool : advanced messaging, approvals, visualization of goals and projects progress..

Smartfiles : contracts and approvals in one-click

Hubflo is ideal for digital agencies, consultants, freelancers, accountants, architects, home designers, law firms, and any other professional or creative service providers

Clients, partners and contractors can collaborate in real-time, view deliverables, and provide feedback all within one organized interface. 

Designed to improve client experience and back-office management, Hubflo aims to be an all-in-one solution for service professionals.

Don’t let processes overwhelm you and get in the way of delivering a great client experience. Impress your clients with a customized and automated onboarding, a smooth delivery and collaboration. 

Skyrocket client satisfaction and retention Reduce client emails, calls & meetings Speed up onboarding & project delivery

About Hubflo :  

A fast-growing startup backed by top-tier investors ($3M raised): first investors of Revolut, Stripe, Deliveroo...(Hummingbird Ventures & Seedcamp) and incredible business angels (ex-general manager of Microsoft, founder of Gumtree, VPs at Facebook, Notion, Robinhood)

[accountsnextgen]

🕒 It's Tax Time, Australia!

Don't miss out on maximizing your refund and securing your #financial future. Make every dollar count by staying compliant and taking advantage of available deductions. File smart, save more, and get ahead this #tax_season!

👉 Contact us now and secure your spot!

📞 Call us now or visit our website to get started!: +61 3 9015 8540

📅 Book Your Consultation Today! 👉 https://rb.gy/yh5z1t

🌐 Visit our website: https://www.accountsnextgen.com.au/

📍 Find us at Level 19/180 Lonsdale St, Melbourne, VIC 3000

💰 #TaxTime2024 #AussieTaxes #RefundReady #TaxSavings #FinancialHealth #TaxDeduction #SmartFiling #TaxAlert #TaxPreparation #FinanceTips #TaxTimeAustralia #RefundMaximizer #TaxEfficiency #StayOrganized #TaxBenefits #FinancialPlanning #TaxRefund #TaxAdvice #TaxSeason2024 #TaxFiling

[multifill456]

Synerlink Launches Versatech, An Progressive Filling Machine For Food And Dairy Processors

Leading Manufacturer of cup packing machine and juice cup filling sealing machine from Mumbai. As such, capsule filling machines are commonly used for pharmaceutical functions as medicines are very essential to people’s health food filling machine. They are able to precisely counting gentle and onerous gelatin capsules, tablets, coated tablets, and pills.

An inside cap is positioned manually on the bottle which then handed via the cap press for air tight seal. Machine can be integrated with automatic ROPP capping machine and labelling machine. For-Bro Engineers,One of the pioneer in the packaging industry, presents a complete vary of Volumetric Cup Fillers to go nicely with varied packing necessities food filling machine. Simple building and easy upkeep makes these machines highly appropriate for trade the place expert man energy is a significant hurdle. Taking the advantage of gravitational pressure, the machine works on the precept of proportional division of the fabric by the telescopic cups.

The P5-VPF machine features semi-automatic operation by way of pedal-pressing for straightforward operation. This machine has speed ranges from 8 to 30 CPM, and it might possibly dispense amounts ranging from 10cc to 5700cc. Semi-automated machines are stand-alone items that may handle production for small to medium-sized operations. Although it does not fully get rid of human labor, it's a cost-effective way to increase output. Fully automated solutions can deal with multiple processing steps withouthuman operation and may follow customized instructions. The new smartFill dosing idea delivers the best flexibility and filling accuracy in the marketplace and helps to reduce product waste.

Spices Filling Machine offered comes backed by newest technology assist in order to match up with the precise packaging requirements of cosmetic powder. The business sectors these discover use in embody chemical trade, foodstuff industry and others. Food Powder Filling Machineoffered comes backed by latest know-how help so as to match up with the exact packaging necessities of cosmetic powder. Furthermore, the glass bottles are projected to have moderate market progress due to its excessive sterilized property that enhances the quality of product stored in the glass bottle. Glass bottles may be reused primarily but are non-returnable, thus changed by PET bottles and have moderate market demand. Moreover, the other bottles are likely to present progressive progress as a outcome of increasing demand and purposes in diversified enterprise sectors.

All-Fill provides varied forms of fillers which might be capable of fill food into containers, bottles, bags, and more. Our auger, piston, vibratory, and cup fillers are available food filling machine for filling your products. Whether you're in want of a filler for free-flowing or non-free-flowing, we will set you up with long-lasting food-filling equipment.

[b2bcybersecurity]

Datensicherheit und Data Management

Ein führender Anbieter bei Datensicherheit und -Management, präsentiert die neue Softwareversion 7.0 von Cohesity Data Cloud. Sie bietet Kunden weitere Funktionen für Datensicherheit. Cyberattacken werden immer raffinierter und Unternehmen wollen daher umfassende Abwehrstrategien implementieren, um im Fall der Fälle ihren Geschäftsbetrieb weiter aufrechtzuerhalten. Sie wollen vor allem die Sicherheit und das Management ihrer Daten verbessern, indem sie einem datenzentrierten Ansatz für Cyber-Resilienz folgen. Dieser umfasst Kernfunktionen wie die Unveränderbarkeit von Daten, Datenisolierung (oder Cyber-Vaulting) und die nahezu sofortige Wiederherstellung von Daten im großen Maßstab. Cohesity geht diese Herausforderungen der heutigen Bedrohungslandschaft an und deckt all diese Elemente inklusive einer schnellen und zuverlässigen Wiederherstellung ab. Data Cloud 7.0 Mit Cohesity Data Cloud 7.0 können Unternehmen ihre Cyberresilienz durch folgende Funktionen stärken: - Privilegierter Zugriff: Die Zugriffskontrollen für Cohesity Data Cloud wurden verschärft, so dass privilegierte administrativer Konten noch strenger kontrolliert und ihre Zugangsberechtigungen besser verwaltet und geschützt werden können. Dank dieser Kontrollen wird es für Cyberkriminelle noch schwieriger, Backup-Daten zu manipulieren. Innovative Funktionen wie Split-Key erfordern die Authentifizierung mehrerer Personen für einen privilegierten Zugriff auf administrative Kontrollen. So kann kein einzelner Administrator allein privilegierte Befehle erteilen. Dies hilft beim Schutz der Daten vor böswilligen Akteuren.* - Schnellere Wiederherstellung von Dateien und Objekten nach Ransomware-Angriffen: Cohesity bietet auf seiner Plattform einheitlichte Datei- und Objektdienste an. Nun verbessert das Unternehmen mit Cohesity SmartFiles auch die Cyberresilienz. Neue leistungsstarke Funktionen für den Datenlebenszyklus wollen die Angriffsfläche für Datenexfiltrationen verkleinern. Sie regeln beispielsweise, dass Daten nicht länger als nötig aufbewahrt werden. Zudem tragen benutzerdefinierte Sicherheitsrichtlinien dazu bei, unstrukturierte Daten vor unbefugtem Zugriff und Angriffen zu schützen. Mit der neuen Version werden auch neue Funktionen zur Analyse und Visualisierung der Daten auf NAS-Systemen von Drittanbietern eingeführt. Diese Einblicke werden Unternehmen dabei helfen, Daten in SmartFiles zu verlagern, um eine sichere Langzeitaufbewahrung und Unveränderbarkeit der Daten zu gewährleisten. Gleichzeitig unterstützen sie Kunden bei der Optimierung von Kosten und der Skalierung und Leistung der wichtigsten Anwendungen. - Verringerung der Angriffsfläche durch erweiterte Plattform- und Workload-Unterstützung: Unternehmen können durch die Konsolidierung mehrerer Einzelprodukte ihre Angriffsfläche verkleinern. Entsprechend unterstützt die Version 7.0 nun AWS GovCloud zum Schutz von Zieldaten und Metadaten sowie weitere Speicherziele für die langfristige Aufbewahrung. Zudem ist sie für Private-Cloud-Installationen kompatibel mit lokalen Backups auf Plattformen von Drittanbietern wie Lenovo SR645, HPE DL360 und DL380, Cisco UCS C220M6 AFC und C240 M6 sowie Dell 740XD. „Unternehmen stehen vor großen Herausforderungen bei der Verwaltung und Sicherung ihrer Daten in der Cloud und on-Premises, wobei Ransomware und Datendiebstahl ihre größten Sorgen sind“, sagt Wolfgang Huber, Leiter der DACH-Region bei Cohesity. „Der Schutz und die Sicherung von Daten beginnt bereits vor einem Angriff. Beides schafft die Grundlager für Unternehmen, den Angriffsschaden zu mindern und sich schnell von der Krise zu erholen, mit minimalen Auswirkungen auf das Geschäft. Cohesity Data Cloud 7.0 bietet eine neue Ebene des Schutzes und der Wiederherstellung der wichtigsten Daten von Unternehmen. Wir sehen, dass unsere Kunden ständig mit Bedrohungen durch böswillige externe und interne Akteure konfrontiert werden. Mit diesen neuesten Erweiterungen können sie diesen Herausforderungen sofort angehen.“ Rasant wachsendes Datenvolumen Angesichts des rasant wachsenden Datenvolumens tragen Einfachheit und Effizienz bei der Verwaltung, dem Schutz und der Wiederherstellung unstrukturierter und verteilter Daten zu einer schnelleren Recovery nach Ausfällen und Angriffen bei. Durch die erweiterte Abdeckung können Unternehmen die Datenresilienz mit einer skalierbaren Plattform vereinfachen, die ihre verschiedenen heterogenen Umgebungen unterstützt. „Unternehmen suchen nach einfachen Wegen, um die Datensicherheit zu verbessern und ihre Cyberresilienz-Ziele zu erreichen“, sagt Randy Kerns, Senior Strategist und Analyst bei der Evaluator Group. „Angesichts der rasanten Zunahme von Ransomware-Angriffen ist es unerlässlich, dass Unternehmen nicht nur über einen starken Schutz vor externen Bedrohungen verfügen, sondern auch interne Schwachstellen priorisieren. Bei der Softwareversion 7.0 sind die Split-Key- und KMS-Auto-Failover-Funktionen nur einige der vielen Cyberresilienz-Funktionen, die Cohesity seinem Portfolio hinzufügt, um seinen Kunden und Partnern eine umfassende Strategie zum Schutz von Daten vor Cyberangriffen zu bieten.“     Passende Artikel zum Thema   Lesen Sie den ganzen Artikel

[chucktaylorupset]

So I think the actual problem is the coffee shop au is a false equivalence.

In fandom when two or ten thousand people write a coffee shop au, they're creating different stories. The authors might each use different characters as a protagonist, or have the same characters inhabiting different roles such as customer, barista, or manager.

Authors aren't stealing ideas anymore than star trek is stealing from star wars just because they're both set in space.

An instance where an idea is actually stolen is something like plagiarism; somebody copying the entire text of a fic, or changing small details while keeping all of the story beats.

Most people would consider this wrong. Even if it's not common enough that people focus on combating it, generally people agree that it is dishonest to lift someone else's idea and to represent it as your own.

Imagine somebody else takes someone else's fic and then swaps out the words for a bunch of synonyms. This would be plagiarism, and not only would it be wrong, it would be against the terms of service of AO3.

chatGPT written fic is wrong because it is automated plagiarism.

Instead of one person plagiarizing one fic by hand substituting the words, a person has written a code and then the same or another person has fed it a bunch of fic, and then plagiarized from all of them.

Intuitively, this argument seems false; after all, the resulting text from chatGPT reads like it has more in common with the 10,000 coffee shop aus than a single thinly paraphrased plagiarism fic. Because the writing of chatGPT more authentically feels like the result of an author, emotionally it feels correct to treat it like something written by an author.

Most current smartphones have a text predicter function. If you start a text or an email with "hello" and then hit the first option suggested by the autofill, you can often get a perfectly functional message.

That's what chatGPT is. It's a fancy text predicter. This fact is obscured because it has a different dataset and a more advanced algorithm.

We understand that google smartfill or whatever doesn't actually have an understanding of what a greetings or sentence structure is, because it often produces nonsense. It's a bit harder to realize with chatGPT.

A human can read a fanfiction and be inspired and write their own story. Or they can create a plagiarized replication. But the fact that a person can do either is dependent on a human's ability for conceptual understanding. Humans understand things like "characters" or "jobs," and so can interact with those building blocks instead of the mere words and rearrange them into something that is now changed enough that it is its own work.

Because chatGPT is only a text predicter, it can only plagiarize.

There's a second component to your question, which is not just "Why is chatGPT different," but also "why is people's reaction to chatGPT different?"

Some of that reaction is simple, you pointed out that humans will write for "popularity/status/clout/money." If clicks, attention, dollars, are going towards chatGPT produced work, then the humans will see a decrease in their returns for what they write for. Since humans don't start writing fic because an initiated code command tells us to, this decrease in rewards will result in people writing less fic.

And chatGPT is a plagiaristic text predicter. It cannot create its new ideas, only move its existing data into new patterns. If people stop writing fic, there's no new data, and no "new" types of fic.

chatGPT's mass proliferation would be the death of fandom.

Let's talk about why someone would respond more to being partially ripped off by an AI as opposed to completely ripped off by a person.

I've been talking about the most clear cut cases of plagiarism for the purposes of the discussion, but of course in reality, what counts as plagiarism can be very muddied.

Because humans have the ability to both create new works and to plagiarize, they also have the ability to do both at the same time. So the line can become fuzzy for what fic is plagiarized enough to be banned by the terms of service.

So I believe plagiarism is wrong, but I have to make separate decisions when it comes to whether any particular work counts as plagiarism, and whether that work deserves to be reported and that author punished.

When I'm dealing with other humans, there are social implications to think about. Having too broad a definition of plagiarism might result in a culture where authors are punished for genuine mistakes. So while I believe plagiarism is wrong, on a case by case basis there are reasons I might want a specific, arguably plagiarized, work, to remain on the archive.

chatGPT makes this both more and less simple. If there is a work that is labeled as being produced by an AI (and not edited by a person) then I know enough of the process to know it was inherently plagiarism.

However, if I'm reading a work I only suspect was made by chatGPT, then I could be making sure a nonprofit isn't paying to host plagiarism. Or I could have misunderstood and targeted someone with poor language or English skills.

I hope this answers your questions. It's quite late where I am and I'm a bit tired, so definitely feel free to ask follow up if I was unclear.

Okay can someone actually give me an answer to this question....

Why, if 10,000 other fans 'steal' your idea for a coffee shop AU and use it in their almost identical coffee shop AU, that's totally okay and just how fanculture works.

But if the AI spits out a coffee shop romance that reads like a traditional coffee shop AU, that's crossing a line?

Why, if a bunch of other fans steal your idea, is that just the process of human creativity at work, but if a machine generates something similar, that's a bridge too far?

I literally don't get how the one is different from the other (and frankly if either was the outrage, I'd think it be the people who are consciously deciding to rip you off rather than the machine that is just reproducing large scale linguistic patterns and not singling your work out because it literally CANNOT single out pieces of work to rip off individually because that's not how AIs work)

[tanvikotecha]

[source-soft]

In June, Google launched Smart Fill, an AI-powered Google Sheets feature that can automatically detect patterns, generate formulas, and much more. Google also introduced the Smart Cleanup feature in Google Workspace. Now Google has added a new tool that enables users to ask natural language questions about data in spreadsheets and get instant answers.

[dbi-srl]

Social Engineering Tactics To Protect Your data and privacy from Social Attacks - #Infographic @ipfconline1 @SmartFile via @antgrasso @antgrasso_IT >>>> #CyberSecurity #socialmedia #DataPrivacy pic.twitter.com/p12PGgJ6p1

— dbi.srl (@dbi_srl) June 1, 2020

[amazingarchitecturewebsite]

@morpholio Trace is the BEST APP for ARCHITECTS!!! Create fills and calculate areas while you sketch with SmartFill!!! Download @Morpholio Trace App in @morpholio Bio!! . Thanks to @solidobjectives @jimkeen @work.ac @david_drazil @foodnewyork @amlgm_ !!! . @morpholio TRACE is an App for Architects. Share your work! Tag “Sketched with #MorpholioTrace” to be featured! . ➕Make sure to follow: @morpholio @morpholioboard . #WorkBetter #NotCAD #IPreferDrawingToTalking #CanIBorrowSomeTrace #DrawingIsThinking #Morpholio #ISeeDesign #FinalFinal #DetailsAreNotDetails #trace #tracepaper #tracedrawing #stencil #design #perspective #architecturedrawing #drawing #designinspiration #archisketch #architecture #architecturedesign #landscapearchitecture #ipaddrawing #iphonedrawing #architectureapp #designapp #drawingapps #copypaste (New York) https://www.instagram.com/p/B8B0U8LFW6h/?igshid=qy8zka0u1au

[cliftonbathrooms]

Long Freestanding Corner Bath - Clifton Bathrooms and Kitchens

Discover our elegant long freestanding corner bath, perfect for modern bathroom renovation. Our stylish and space-saving corner bath combines luxury and functionality.

[topiron]

The Best Clothing Iron Reviews 2019

Why you should trust us

We spoke to experts, including professor Ingrid Johnson of the Home Products Development Department at the Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT) and Tod Greenfield, co-owner of bespoke New York City tailor Martin Greenfield Clothiers, to determine what makes a great iron and which models or features are best. We heard from Pat Slaven, engineer and project lead on Consumer Reports’s annual irons guide. And we chatted with Kimberly Chaveco, senior product manager at Rowenta.

To winnow down our list of irons to test, we read product reviews from Amazon, looked at specialty blogs like The Ironing Room, and spoke to members of the New York City Metro Mod Quilt Guild. Wirecutter’s readers answered a survey we designed. And we turned to existing research from other sources; Real Simple, Good Housekeeping, Slate, and Consumer Reports have all tested or rounded up models from class-leading brands like Rowenta, Black+Decker, Hamilton Beach, T-fal, and Panasonic.

I’m a sleep writer at Wirecutter, and I’ve worked on our guides to ironing boards, sheets, blankets, and robes (among many others). I’m also a quilter. My mom taught me to sew in third grade, and I’ve been doing it seriously for more than 10 years, making commissioned quilts for private clients and for Cloud9 Fabrics (PDF), and publishing my original patterns in Generation Q and Make Modern magazines. I’m ironing something almost every day.

How we picked and tested

After talking to the quilters from the NYC Metro Mod Quilt Guild, our professional experts, and everyday iron owners, we’ve found that this is what makes a good iron:

Strong steam bursts: The amount of steam whooshing out of an iron’s soleplate affects how quickly you can press an item, especially with heavier fabrics. A well-made iron can exhale close to 30 grams of water vapor a minute, but lesser irons exhale only a couple of grams.

Wattage: The faster an iron heats up, the sooner you can get through this chore. You want an iron that heats up in seconds, and the wattage affects this. The irons we looked at and liked used 1,500 to 1,800 watts—the higher the wattage, the faster it heats up, according to Kimberly Chaveco of Rowenta. She told us the highest cotton setting is typically 365 to 400 °F, and a 1,600-watt iron takes approximately 75 seconds to reach a full 400 °F; a 1,800-watt iron takes just 65 seconds to get there.

A large water tank: The quilters we spoke to from the NYC Metro Mod Quilt Guild told us a large water tank is helpful when you iron a lot, reducing the amount of time you’re refilling the tank and waiting for water to heat. Tailor Tod Greenfield concurred. We looked at widely available irons that could store at least 8 ounces of water.

Durability and a good warranty: In the owner reviews I’ve read for steam irons, the most consistent complaint I’ve seen is that they aren’t built like they used to be. I’ve owned enough irons to know how frustrating it is when you’re pressing something last minute, trying to get out the door on time, and the iron just doesn’t heat up, or the steam function gives up while you’re pressing something. Readers have told us they generally don’t iron things as much as their parents (or, let’s be honest here, probably their mothers) did, but when you need an iron it should be dependable. Irons do break—our runner-up pick from Black+Decker has durability issues—but if it has a strong warranty (two years for the Black+Decker), that could still make it worthwhile.

We also recommend several other features common in mid-priced irons:

vertical steaming to relax drapes or clothes on a hanger

anti-drip and anti-calcification mechanisms that allow the use of tap water

lights to signal the iron has reached its temperature

an 8-foot-long cord

inspection stamps such as “UL” or “ETL” that signify the manufacturer opted to pay for (and passed) rigorous third-party iron-safety tests

I set up boards and irons in my dining room and ran the irons through some basic tests: heat-up time, water tank size, and wrinkle-busting ability on a variety of fabrics. I used cotton quilt fabrics, acrylic sweaters (known to melt onto the plate of a hot iron), t-shirts, some synthetic fabrics, and a piece of silk for testing. Referring back to the feedback from our 2016 testing with staffers in the Wirecutter office, I noted how each iron felt to hold, how easy it was to use, and how much steam each seemed to release.

Because durability is hard to gauge in one testing period, we’ve continued to use all of our picks to see if they maintain their great performance over time.  We’ve tested each one over a span of a year and a half to three years.

Our pick: Maytag M400 Speed Heat Iron and Vertical Steamer

Our pick

The Maytag M400 Speed Heat Iron and Vertical Steamer packed the best combination of features in our testing: quick heat-up time, good steam, agility, reliability, and a great price. We also like that this iron comes with a longer-than-average two-year warranty.

According to Maytag, the iron doesn’t reach its highest temperature for 55 seconds, but in our tests it started producing steam on its highest setting in only 24 seconds. That’s the fastest overall, and it’s truly impressive. If you iron a lot like I do, or if you’ve ever been in a hurry to iron something and get on with your day, you know that we rarely wait for the iron to be 100 percent ready. You’ve probably hummed most of the Jeopardy! theme song standing there waiting to hear that magic Darth Vader steam sound. In contrast, the powerful Rowenta Steamforce, our upgrade pick, took a whopping 54 seconds to make that sound.

This is a 1,500-watt iron, which is the least powerful iron we tested aside from the Maytag M1200 Digital Smartfill Iron (also 1,500 watts). Though it didn’t give off as much steam as the Rowenta SteamForce or even the Black+Decker Allure, the M400 felt more powerful than many irons we tried with more wattage. Some of that might be ergonomics. I really appreciated the shallow steam burst button on the Maytag. I have small hands, and most irons we’ve tested have a steam button that’s about an inch high off the iron. I found that a taller button can cause hand cramps. The Maytag M400’s shorter button was easier to push repeatedly, which helped produce a lot of steam quickly. But we think this design would work for anyone, small hands or not.

The Maytag was actually the lightest iron we tested overall, and it still managed to push out wrinkles with barely any pressure. It passed smoothly over every fabric we tested, and the light weight meant we could glide quickly and get those wrinkles out faster. It was as agile as the Rowenta Steamforce and even smoother than the Black+Decker Allure and the Shark Ultimate Professional.

The M400 outperformed two pricier, higher-wattage Rowentas we tested—The Everlast and the Pro Master—when it came to reliability. While the Rowentas dripped water, the Maytag didn’t leak and had no problems with the delicate fabrics I used. Long-term testing will show us if the M400 can outlast the Black+Decker D3030 Allure, our current runner-up.

The Maytag M400 retails for about $50 on Amazon, which fits squarely in the price range our survey respondents preferred. It’s similarly priced to our runner-up, the Black+Decker D3030 Allure. Several of the other models we’ve tried in this price range (the Panasonic NI-E660SR and the Hamilton Beach Chrome Electronic 14955) felt cheap: Their temperature dials didn’t stay locked in place, they took longer to heat up, and they just didn’t have much oomph when it came to getting out wrinkles.

While a one-year warranty is common and, we think, a minimum, the Maytag offers two years for their irons. A longer warranty can cover problems that crop up later in the product’s lifetime—ideal for people who iron infrequently. Maytag irons are actually licensed by Storebound, who handle warranties and repairs. We called and asked what to do with a broken iron, and, no questions asked, the customer service rep offered to send me a UPS return label that day and get a new one out to me in two or three business days. We think that quick, no-hassle turnaround from Storebound edges their warranty ahead of that of Black+Decker.

Flaws but not dealbreakers

The Maytag may be too light to get creases out of some fabrics. If you’re ironing something big and heavy, or something with stubborn creases (like linen), extra weight is useful for pushing out and smoothing those wrinkles. We still think the Rowenta Steamforce’s combination of heft and powerful steam bursts are worth the investment if you iron a lot or iron anything with precision creases like quilt seams. But for occasional ironing, or even light everyday ironing, we think the Maytag’s agile design more than meets those needs.

We wish the Maytag had a longer cord, which is only eight feet. Sometimes extra length helps you maneuver the iron around an ironing board. And it would give a little more flexibility for setting up your ironing station if you have limited space and limited outlets.

Our pick: Long-term test notes

We’ve been using the Maytag iron in our NYC office, for all of our photo shoots and kitchen-linens testing, since March 2017. Our staff hasn’t had any problems with reliability, and we still find it comfortable to use.

Runner-up: Black+Decker D3030 Allure

Runner-up

If the Maytag M400 is sold out or unavailable, we would recommend getting the Black+Decker D3030 Allure instead. The Allure is one of the lightest irons we tested, weighing 3.1 pounds. It also has one of the most comfortable handles we’ve tried. Its stainless steel soleplate glides more smoothly across fabrics than most of the competitors in the same price range. The Allure is a 1,600-watt iron, but its steam function feels more powerful than the Rowenta Steamcare or the significantly pricier 1,700-watt Rowenta Pro Master and 1,750-watt Rowenta Everlast. And only the Maytag M400 was faster to produce hot steam in our testing.

But there’s a big reason we had to demote this iron from the top spot: We are worried it may have longevity problems. The heating element on the Allure we were long-term testing failed after about a year (we were using the iron twice a week). There are a little over 300 reviews for the iron, and about half (23 out of 45) of the one- and two-star Amazon reviews for this model note the same problem. But with its two-year warranty, it was pretty easy to get a replacement. (We mailed in the plug with the serial number and waited for the replacement, which took 17 days from mailing to receiving.)

Having an iron fail in less than a year was really disappointing, but it can happen even with higher-end irons. We can’t deny what a strong competitor the Allure is��especially since it’s only about $38. Even with this big reliability issue, we would still recommend the Allure as an affordable backup option for the Maytag over everything else we’ve tried.

Runner-up: Long-term test notes

Black+Decker sent us a replacement iron in 2016 after the first one we tested in 2015 failed. I haven’t had any reliability problems with it in the past two years, and it’s still a fantastic iron for everyday use and for sewing. If this one fails after the warranty runs out, I will probably buy another one myself.

Upgrade pick: Rowenta SteamForce

Upgrade pick

If an iron can be dreamy, the Rowenta SteamForce is dreamy. This German-made iron performed best in our tests. At 3.9 pounds, it’s too heavy to be the most comfortable to hold, and not all of our testers loved the layout of the buttons and dials. But none of us could argue with the way it beat every wrinkle we threw at it. The stainless steel soleplate has more holes than any of our other test picks, and the tip has Rowenta’s Precision Shot, a group of holes that emits a concentrated blast of steam for tougher creases. The SteamForce also has an extra-large tank, so you need fewer refills for big jobs.

There are drawbacks to the SteamForce. The cord is only 7 feet long, which felt a little puny. It has a one-year warranty in the United States, which is less generous than the two-year warranties offered by Black+Decker and Maytag. And we did run into an issue with our test model, which Rowenta assured us was a fluke. The cover to the water tank crumbled away in my hand as I was filling the tank. We couldn’t find any reviews that mentioned this as an existing problem, and Rowenta sent us another one to try. We haven’t had any problems with it in a year of long-term testing.

The biggest problem is that this one costs about twice as much as the Maytag M400. It has come down in price by more than half since we originally tested it in 2015, though. We think the SteamForce is worth the price if you’re a sewer or quilter and your iron is an essential tool. The same goes if you regularly tackle mountains of everyday ironing and you want something to help get the job done. But first go to a store and make sure the weight isn’t a problem.

Upgrade pick: Long-term test notes

I’ve been consistently using this iron since December 2015, and it is almost as good as when it was new. I hear the occasional sputtering from the water tank, but it still heats up quickly and flattens wrinkles. I reach for the lighter Black+Decker for big loads of ironing to save my wrist and arm, but this model is still the one I reach for when pressing quilt seams, ironing on transfers, and making other craft projects.

Care and maintenance

Whichever iron you end up with, take a minute to read the manual. We’re not kidding. It sounds obvious, but it’s the best maintenance tip we can give you.

According to Pat Slaven, project lead on the Consumer Reports iron test, frustration could be prevented if people emptied the water reservoirs when they’re finished ironing or used the burst-of-steam function to flush mineral deposits once a month (or otherwise followed the instructions). Failing to read the manual, Slaven insisted, is why so many irons end up leaking, spitting, or broken.

Water seems to cause most of the problems. According to Consumer Reports, almost all irons are designed for tap water these days, but you need to read the manual to confirm what your iron requires. Hard water leaves damaging calcium deposits (“scale”) on valves and materials intended for use with soft or distilled water, while distilled water strips essential minerals from internal bits designed for hard water. So if a manual asks about the mineral richness of your water and you don’t know, find out. (Here is a loose guide. This will test your tap water.) Then follow the instructions. Doing so could add years to the iron’s lifespan.

How many years? Unfortunately, no one tests longevity. And it was difficult to decipher the credibility of user posts about durability. More than one well-intentioned ironer griped when after using distilled water, his iron, designed for hard water, went kaput. Our general sense was that an iron used according to its instructions should last about four years, but even higher-priced irons get dinged for early failure.

The competition

The Shark Ultimate Professional GI505 was our previous runner-up. It isn’t a bad iron, but its design is frustrating. The steam burst button is tall and hard to press, making it tough to iron and use steam in one fluid movement. We also don’t like the push-button temperature control that always defaults to the lowest setting. You have to push the button several times to get to the highest heat when you first plug it in, and if you’re not paying attention you could waste time waiting for it to heat up before realizing it’s on low heat.

The Rowenta DW 3180 Steamcare only took 36 seconds to generate steam and has a decent-size water tank. But it has no temperature settings at all. You just plug it in and iron. It was an okay iron, but the lack of temperature control meant it wasn’t as quick or as powerful as our other picks. The steam burst button is on the far right side of the handle, which also made it really uncomfortable to use. It might be ideal for left-handed folks, but for me it was awkward to stretch my thumb that far while ironing.

I’ve owned the Rowenta Pro Master for a few years, and I’ve always had problems with it leaking. It gives off a good amount of steam, but before testing it again for this guide, I’d barely touched it for about a year. The leaks became too problematic for delicate quilt work or favorite clothes.

The Rowenta Everlast leaked right away during our testing. We don’t think there’s any excuse for a $100 iron to leak right out of the box. It also was the least effective iron in this round of testing for getting out wrinkles. It’s a heavier iron, and it still needed a lot of brute strength to smooth out wrinkles that the airy Maytag M400 barely touched to flatten.

The Maytag M1200 is the digital offering in the Maytag line of irons, and it was disappointing all around. The “digital” element means that instead of having a dial to set the fabric and temperature, it has three lights with a button that you push to select low, medium, or high temperature. The buttons seemed to beep at random, and even reading the manual we struggled to identify all the noises or how to stop them. And it took a long time to produce steam—52 seconds. The M1200 also didn’t do a great job of getting wrinkles and creases out.

The Hamilton Beach Chrome Electronic 14955 was a pain to fill with water. The cover to the water tank was so tight it took two hands to pry it open. (Not fun when it’s time to refill or empty the tank.) It also didn’t do well with our wrinkly linen napkins, and it took quite a while to heat up.

While the T-fal FV4495 Ultraglide took the top slot in a previous iteration of this guide, the iron wore poorly over a year in our office, raising significant questions about its long-term reliability. (We’ll revisit our other current picks over time as well.) I had heard complaints from staffers who’d used this iron throughout the year that it leaked a lot, but leaking is an understatement. When we plugged it in, it spewed so much water out of the steam holes that we immediately unplugged it in case it was a fire hazard. That depleted its water tank, and when we finally plugged it back in to try ironing something, it leaked water on our test fabrics. It did get the wrinkles out of some fabrics we tested, though.

The Panasonic NI-E660SR is inexpensive, and you can tell: It felt like cheap plastic. At 1,200 watts, it took a lot of elbow grease to get out even small wrinkles. Speaking as a former college RA, though, I could imagine it in a dorm room. The price is right in a student’s budget (especially if it gets lost or “borrowed” and needs replacing) and it won’t trip any circuits.