When you're shopping for a hotel, rental car, or flight online, you might think that whatever travel site you're using will show you the lowest prices first.

But that's not always the case. Instead, the algorithms that serve up your travel search results tend to nudge you toward pricier options, sometimes on behalf of companies that are paying for higher search rankings. In some cases, the search results you see can even vary based on your location or browsing history.

I was reminded of this last week while planning for an upcoming business trip to Dallas. Searching on Hotels.com, the top three listings all cost more than $150 per night, even though perfectly good hotels were also available for half the price. And when I looked for a rental car on Hotwire, the results page pushed full-size cars and SUVs while burying economy and compact options.

This kind of sneaky sorting isn't limited to travel sites, either. Search for a 128 GB Micro SD card on Best Buy, and the "Best Match" results will push you toward cards that cost $40. If you don't need the fastest transfer speeds, you can get Micro SD storage for nearly half the price.

That's why I never trust these algorithms anymore. Instead, I follow a couple simple steps to find the lowest prices on the best listings:

Always sort by price

Look just above the search results on pretty much any e-commerce or travel site, and you'll find a "Sort By" option. Notice how in most cases, you'll be looking at "featured," "recommended," or "best match" results with pricing that's all over the map.

Just look for the option to sort by price from lowest to highest, and choose that instead.

Add specific criteria

Of course, the cheapest listings aren't always the best, so you'll want to apply some additional search criteria to filter out low-quality listings.

On Hotels.com, for instance, my first step is usually to tweak the "Guest rating" slider along the left sidebar. Note that this is separate from the hotel's star rating and is more a measure of quality for the price than overall fanciness. I usually drag it up to around 8.0 to avoid any glaring issues with noise or cleanliness. If you're looking for a certain level of classiness, you can either use the star rating filter or set a minimum price floor.

The same logic applies to shopping sites such as Best Buy or Micro Center. Instead of leaving the sort order up to search algorithms, I'll arrange by price and then select specific tech specs or a minimum price to filter our junk listings.

Once you've seen how shopping algorithms push you toward paying more, it's hard to unsee.
 

Instead of using the default Mail app on iOS, I prefer Google's Gmail app for several reasons: It offers the same Undo Send and Snooze functions as the desktop website, and it preserves the desktop's "Social" and "Promotions" tabs that keep vaguely-spammy emails out of my inbox.

Now, Google's fixing the main problem I've had with Gmail on iOS thus far: There was no way to attach files if they weren't part of your camera roll or stored on Google Drive. An update that's currently rolling out adds Files app support to Gmail, so you can attach any document you've saved to your iPhone or iPad. Just look for the file icon under "Attachments" when you press the paper clip button at the top of any email. (If you see a section called "Recent Attachments" instead of just "Attachments," you haven't received this feature update yet.)

A deep dive into the iOS Files app is probably a good topic for a future newsletter, but think of it like a simplified version of File Explorer in Windows or Finder on Macs. Many apps now have their own folders within Files, and you can save documents to Files using the Share button in many cases. All of which means you can finally download a file in one app, then attach it in Gmail.
 

Samsung's pricey new Galaxies: Samsung is sparing no expense with its Galaxy S20 range, a double-digit upgrade to last year's S10 series with bigger screens, fancier cameras, theoretically faster 5G wireless, and much higher prices. The baseline Galaxy S20 starts at $1000, the Galaxy S20+ costs $1200, and the Galaxy S20 Ultra costs $1400. Unlike last year, there is no sub-$1000 "e" variant.

Breaking down each model could probably fill an entire newsletter, but the main differences are screen size (S20: 6.2 inches, S20+: 6.7 inches, S20 Ultra: 6.9 inches), 5G support (S20: Modest speed increases, S20+ and S20 Ultra: Bigger speed gains via "millimeter wave" 5G if you can find coverage), and camera quality (S20: Triple-lens camera, S20+: Triple-lens plus depth sensor, S20 Ultra: All that plus some wild-sounding zoom capabilities). All three phones will arrive on March 6, with pre-orders starting this Friday.

While no one likes to see prices rise on smartphones, part of me appreciates seeing Samsung just go for it here, making every effort to win the tech spec war after a handful of dull upgrade cycles. Still, the unwritten law of Samsung phones still applies: Prices on these phones should plummet by this fall, when Apple's new iPhones come around. That might help explain why Samsung has set such a high price floor to begin with.

More foldable phone foibles: Samsung had more to show off than just its Galaxy S20 range last week. The company's also launching a new foldable phone called the Galaxy Z Flip, with a 6.7-inch display that closes up like a clamshell. I love the idea, if only because snapping your phone shut after heated call is one of the great lost pleasures of the flip phone era. Also: Not everyone who wants a 6.7-inch phone has pockets or purses big enough to carry one.

And yet, we still haven't reached the point at which foldable phones can launch without hiccups. The Z Flip's big breakthrough is supposed to be its use of an "Ultra Thin Glass" display instead of scratch-prone plastic, but early tests show that it's not really more resilient than the plastic screens on Samsung's previous Galaxy Fold and Motorola's foldable Razr throwback. Samsung is apparently still putting a plastic covering over the display, raising questions about the composition and durability of the glass underneath. Until this something we don't have to worry about, foldable phones are still best avoided.

The T-Mobile-Sprint merger moves forward: A federal judge has approved T-Mobile's and Sprint's plan to merge into a single wireless carrier, rejecting the case against it by more than a dozen state attorneys general. The state of New York says it won't appeal the verdict, and the Justice Department and FCC have already given the merger their blessing, so there are likely no major hurdles left to clear.

I often loathe writing about tech politics--it's so easy to get lost in the political and legal minutia--but I'm bringing it up here because the impact seems clear: Cellular bills will increase, not just with T-Mobile and Sprint, but with AT&T and Verizon as a result of shrunken competition.

Yes, T-Mobile and Sprint have promised not to hike prices for three years, but there's plenty of evidence that costs will rise after that. And yes, the merger calls for a convoluted scheme in which Dish Network will become the nation's fourth major wireless carrier, but there's plenty of skepticism that the company will follow through on building its own network in any meaningful way. Meanwhile, there's a separate (and, I think, undercovered) concern that the merger will harm alternative wireless carriers like Ting and Mint, which have offered cheap service by reselling the extra network capacity of major carriers.

None of this adds up to any actionable advice you can take today. Just keep it in the back of your mind for a few years from now, when the years-long decrease in wireless pricing begins to reverse itself.

Revenge for robocalls: I know a lot of you have great interest in putting a stop to robocalls, but a new service from DoNotPay goes a step further. As Vice's Edward Ongweso Jr. reports, DoNotPay's Robo Revenge feature sets you up with a burner credit card number, which you can then provide to robocallers when they try to sell you a cruise or car warranty. The thinking goes that when you turn over your fake payment information, you'll get the robocaller's contact information, which you can then use to sue for up to $3000 per violation of the National Do Not Call Registry. DoNotPay provides a chatbot that helps automate the lawsuit process.

Vice's story leaves out some fine print, though: Although DoNotPay has been around for a while, automating all kinds of legal services such as traffic disputes and filling out government paperwork, the Robo Revenge scheme is still unproven. More importantly, DoNotPay charges $3 per month for its full suite of services. I don't mind being the guinea pig, though, so I've signed up for DoNotPay and will report back when I have findings worth sharing.
 

Since I mentioned Micro SD cards earlier, Newegg is selling a 128 GB card with 90 MB/s read speeds for $13. That's about $5 or $6 cheaper than what you'll find at most retailers. Use it in your digital camera, pop it into certain Android phones and tablets, or expand your storage on a Nintendo Switch.

Also mentioned earlier: The unwritten law of Samsung phones is in full effect for last year's Galaxy S10. Get a refurbished model from Amazon for just $419.

You can save some money on Samsung's upcoming Galaxy Buds+ earbuds as well with a bit of AT&T shopping cart trickery. First, add the buds to your cart. Then, buy three accessories of any kind at $5 each. (Remember: Sort by price!) It can be a cheap case, a screen protector, a USB-C cable, or a pop socket. As long as you buy three extra accessories, you'll get 20% off the entire order. That brings the total price to $128, versus $150 for the earbuds alone.

Finally, if you missed yesterday's deal alert email, Anker's 3-in-1 charging cable is on sale for $11 when you use the code AK8436W8 at checkout. That's $7 off the regular price.
 

Got feedback on this week's newsletter? Anything you'd like me to cover in a future issue? Having any tech problems I can help you solve? I'm always happy to hear from you. Just reply to this email to get in touch.

Until next week,
Jared