Which Data Plan Do I Need?

Smartphones brought with them the idea of wireless data for the masses. Being able to access the internet when not at home was not new when the iPhone came out in 2007- business people had been doing it with their Blackberries for years before then- but since then it is now a given than phones can access the internet anywhere, and increasingly common for laptops to be able to do so as well. With this, people have increasingly been asking "Which data plan do I need?"

Here are the main things to consider when looking at data plans:

1. How much data you need- The first thing to do is consider how much data you need. Will you be streaming Netflix regularly or just checking your email every once in a while? Different uses use different amounts of data. The only way to really know how much data you use is to do it and adjust (you can usually increase your data service later, but not decrease it), but you can find a good file-size estimate here on What Size Flash Drive Should I Get?
2. Coverage in your area- Next, shop around for coverage in your area. Cheap data does you no good if you can't connect when you want! Compare their coverage maps, making sure you're looking at data coverage and not voice coverage. Additionally, most major carriers will have separate maps for the different speeds of data- LTE, 3G, Edge, etc. If you're not familiar with these terms, How Fast is 4G? may help. Use these maps to narrow down to carriers that will give you the most coverage in places you'll be spending most of your time.
3. Price per gig- For this, compare the price per gig for the remaining possible options. Buying "in bulk" will generally get you a better deal per gig, but don't fall into the trap of paying for more data than you'll honestly use. Look at your budget and what you can reasonably afford.
4. Speed of download/upload- At this point you'll have narrowed it down quite a bit and there will likely only be two or three contenders. At this point you may need to do some digging, but look at their data speeds. The higher the number, the better the speed generally speaking, though there are lots of nuances that can affect that. You'll also see two sets of speeds: upload and download. Upload is when you're putting information up into the internet, and download is when you are taking information down into your device.

After all these things have been considered, if two services offer the same price per gig of data, and have roughly the same coverage, go with the cheaper option.

How Do I Keep My Electronic's Battery Healthy?

It happens to phones, laptops, tablets, and everything else that uses rechargeable batteries (which seems to be increasing with every year). At first everything is fine, but slowly... eventually... you notice that the battery just doesn't seem to hold a charge as well as it used to. Maybe you used to only have to plug your phone in once every couple days, but now you have to charge it multiple times a day. Maybe your laptop used to never dip below 60% between uses, but now you get low-battery warnings regularly. Here are some tips for maximizing your electronic's batteries:

1. Check your settings- There are many things you can turn off, minimize that will help save on battery usage. Similar to how a car that's laden with weight uses more gas, a computer with lots of things turned on will use more electricity.
1. Turn off unneeded settings- New devices will often come with certain settings turned on by default to help maximize your user experience, but you may find that they're not needed for what you use the device for. For example, many devices come with bluetooth turned on. Bluetooth is a wireless technology used for connecting to different devices like wireless keyboards, your car, or wireless headphones. (You can read more about bluetooth here: What is Bluetooth?) 

   

   If you see this symbol, it likely means bluetooth is turned on for your device.

2. Dim your screen/keyboard backlighting-  Most electronic screens nowadays have the ability to adjust their brightness levels, and some computers even have light-up keyboards to make it easier to type in dim lighting. While these make it easier to use the device, they can also use a lot of battery power. Set your screen brightness as low as is comfortable for you, and if your device has it (Apple products like iPhones, iPads and Macs have this, for example) turn on auto-brightness so the screen automatically brightens and dims according to the amount of light around.
3. Put your device to sleep/turn off as needed- Not using your device for awhile? You can turn the screen off by either clicking the lock/unlock button (for mobile devices), or you can put your laptop to sleep by simply closing the lid. Depending on how long you'll be away from you computer, you may choose to turn it to screensaver, put it to sleep, hibernate, or turn it all the way off. You can learn more about which option is best for you here at When should I turn off my computer?
2. Don't completely drain it- Completely draining a battery (to the point the device shuts off) is bad for the battery, and while doing it once or twice likely won't have any noticeable effect on it's long-term lifespan, repeatedly doing it will put unnecessary wear on it. Think of it like exercising- you go until you're tired, but not until you pass out from exhaustion.
3. Don't be afraid to use it either though- On the other end of the spectrum, some people get laptops, but then leave them plugged in 99% of the time because they're afraid of using the battery. This can be just as harmful as the battery can "forget" how to hold a charge. Using the exercise analogy again, you don't train for a marathon by sitting around conserving your energy for weeks before.
4. Avoid extreme temperatures- "Don't leave electronics in any conditions you wouldn't leave your child." Both extreme heat (leaving it in the car for hours in the middle of summer) and extreme cold (leaving it in the car overnight during winter) can have detrimental effects on your battery. The optimal operating temperatures for lithium ion batteries- the kind used in most rechargeable electronics- are the same temperatures that you'd feel comfortable in. Because of this, also be mindful about using laptops on beds where blankets and pillows will retain heat and warm up the laptop unnecessarily- use a surface that wicks away heat like a wooden desk or plastic stand. You can read more about other weather dangers here at Hidden Winter Hazards for Your Electronics.

Hidden Winter Hazards for Your Electronics

Well, Christmas is over and if you're like many people, you may have received a new electronic device. Kindles, laptops, iPods, Androids, the list goes on and on. In my time helping people with their devices,  I've never gotten used to the number of people who have their new devices ruined days or just weeks after receiving them. Here are a few common hazards for these colder winter months that I hope you'll be able to avoid.

1. Dropping from Gloves- With gloves or mittens on, you have much less feeling in your hands and therefor the likelihood of dropping your device (especially cellphones) goes up significantly. If you have a smartphone in particular, dropping and shattering your screen is a big deal since most smartphone screens are not replaceable. Whether you drop it on the kitchen tile or the snow covered driveway, the results are rarely favorable.
2. Speaking of snow, you'd be amazed how many people will drop their devices in the snow. Not only will the snow melt and therefor give the device liquid damage, but some people are unable to find it and will only recover it when the snow melts or it goes through the snow blower- yikes!
3. If it's left in the snow, or sometimes even just left in the car, the device can freeze. This will damage the battery and can even break the screen. If a touch screen or LCD screen gets too cold, it can freeze and then crack when it thaws. For this reason, I generally recommend people keep their electronics in environments they'd normally keep their pet or child-- not too hot or too cold.

Practical Tip of the Day:
If you live in a cold climate, you've probably already run into the issue of your touch screen not working when you have gloves on. If you don't already have a pair, I recommend touch-screen sensitive gloves for all my smartphone and tablet-using friends. They allow the user to keep their gloves on while using their touch-screen devices.

When Should I Charge My Laptop?

Almost everyone who has owned a laptop has wondered when the best time to charge it is. You want to maximize your battery life after all. Laptop batteries are not cheap, and having a laptop whose battery only lasts an hour or so isn't very effective. Here're some simple tips for how to make sure your laptops battery is up to snuff for as long as possible.

1) Don't run it all the way down. Laptop batteries- or any rechargeable battery for that matter- is a lot like your muscles. This simply means that you shouldn't let your laptops battery drain all the way down to where the computer shuts off on you. (AKA 0% charge) This would be like exercising until you pass out to train for a marathon. You'd end up doing more harm than good to your body, and when you let your battery completely drain it puts extra wear on it as well.

2) Don't leave it plugged in all the time either. Similarly, you wouldn't want to sit around all day either to "conserve your energy" for your marathon. Just like your muscles can atrophy, your laptop battery can as well. This is a common misconception about laptop batteries. A lot of people will leave their laptop plugged in 24/7 at a desk and only use its battery once or twice a year. Could you imagine trying to get up and walk around if you had been laying in bed 24/7 for several months?

3) Use a surge protector. Using a surge protector when you charge your laptop will help ensure that no electrical surges get to your laptop and overwhelm the battery. Yes, most chargers have mini-protectors to help prevent this, but if you haven't looked lately, laptop charges aren't the cheapest thing to buy and it is possible for a surge to be strong enough that it trips the charger and still gets to the laptop with enough force to damage it.

Practical Tip of the Day:
When monitoring your laptops charge, I generally recommend looking at its percentage left instead of the time estimate. This is because the estimated time left can fluctuate wildly depending on what you're doing. Browsing the web? Your battery will last longer. Editing a movie? Shorter. Screen brightness turned down? Longer. Watching a movie with the speakers turned all the way up? Shorter. You get the picture.

How Can I Protect My Laptop from Theft?

Have a new laptop or planning on getting one in the new future? While laptop computers can be great for the extra portability, that can also pose problems if your laptop "walks away" from you. Whether you're a college student, traveling professional, or somewhere in between, there are three basic ways to help prevent laptop theft.

The first is laptop locks. These are very much like bike locks in that it's a durable cable that you wrap around something that can't be moved and then lock into your computer. The one pictured here is from Kensington and uses a combination. There are locks that use keys, but I usually recommend combination locks since you can't loose a combination. Also note that it's plugged directly into the computer. Most laptop computers nowadays have a slot specifically for use with laptop locks. Check the specifics of your computer to verify whether you have one or not.

Another step against laptop theft is anti-theft software. Companies like LoJack (the car anti-theft company) are starting to branch out into the computer field, but there are also new start-ups and even free anti-theft software out on the market now. They all work slightly differently, so be sure to read carefully before you get any of them, but my personal favorite for Mac laptops is called Undercover by a company called Orbicule that specializes in technology security.

Lastly, and most effectively, if you don't want your laptop to get stolen, don't leave it laying around! Far too often I've heard college students crying because their laptop with all their finals got stolen at the library when the student got up to get a book. Leaving your laptop on your table while you use the bathroom at Starbucks? Just as bad. Having a house party where you don't personally know everyone in attendance? Put the computer away in a room people won't go into.

Practical Tip of the Day:

Most frequently, people will use a combination of the three of these methods to protect their laptop. Personally, I don't frequent public places so I use an anti-theft program and keep my computer on my person when I am out and about with it. Consider your lifestyle when looking at anti-theft options, and remember that while having a complete and recent backup of your computer doesn't make the monetary loss any less, it will make it easier to start up where you left off if you end up needing a new computer.

What's the Best Case for a Laptop?

In short, whatever you want. In long, it depends on where you'll use your laptop, what kind of lifestyle you have, how much you want to spend, and how much you worry about protecting it. There are thousands of different kinds of laptop cases and bags out on the market now, and picking the right one can be difficult.

Where will you use your laptop? Will it only be going from home to the office? Do you travel a lot? Do you live in a sandy and/or wet area? Have kids? Taking your environment into account can help weed out some styles of cases. For example, for a business professional who only goes to the office and home, a briefcase style bag might be best. The computer is unprotected when it's outside of the bag, but the likelihood of something damaging the computer in this case is low. On the other hand, for a college student, a neoprene sleeve or hard plastic case might be best as they give more protection. Some students even use both!

Want a designer case? A lot of major designer brands are making laptop bags now. Laptop bags, as opposed to cases, offer no protection when the computer is outside the bag, and some only offer limited protection inside the bag as well. On the other hand, you can usually get a clear or colored plastic case for less than a fancy bag, and since these "shells" stay on your computer all the time, they offer maximum protection from drops and impact. If you're concerned about being caught in the rain, neoprene sleeves are slim cases your laptop can go into that offer water resistance. (Note: They're not water proof, just resistant.) Sorry there's no clear cut answer for this one, but hopefully using these questions you can narrow your search down reasonably enough that it's no longer overwhelming.

Practical Tip of the Day:
In addition to protecting the outside of your laptop, they also sell screen films to prevent scratches on your laptop's screen and keyboard covers. Keyboard covers help keep liquid and dirt out of your keyboard, the easiest spot for something to enter your laptop. As always, check out reviews for cases and bags online before you buy, and if you're extra concerned, consider either or both of these extra-protectors.

What's the Difference Between Apple's New Laptops?

Yesterday was Christmas for Apple-nerds. WWDC's (World Wide Developer's Conference) keynote address is traditionally a time when major releases are announced, and yesterday was no exception. While we are missing Apple's late former-CEO Steve Jobs, Tim Cooke did a great job of keeping the excitement going and expertly showcasing all of the new products.

The biggest announcement was the new laptop lineup. Apple updated their MacBook Air notebooks ("Notebooks" and "laptops" are synonymous when it comes to computers,) as well as their MacBook Pro notebooks as well. The real surprise though was the announcement of a new laptop line called the MacBook Pro with Retina Display. Retina Display is Apple-ese for "super awesome high quality display." Without getting technical about it, the Retina Display manages to get twice as much detail in the same size screen as the normal MacBook Pro.

Apple actually has a very nice comparison chart on their website (right here) that lets people see a side-by-side comparison of their computer lineups. The only problem I've noticed is that after a line or two most people's eyes glaze over with all the technical jargon, so here's the "quick and dirty" difference. The MacBook Air is good for general use: web browsing, document editing, light photo or video work. If you do more than just basic video, audio or photo work, or just really want a bigger display, consider going to the MacBook Pro. If you're a professional videographer, musician, photographer or anything else that requires a high-powered machine (web designers, I'm looking at you!) or if you just really want that Retina Display, go with the MacBook Pro with Retina Display.

Practical Tip of the Day:

If you're considering getting one of the new Apple notebook computers, also consider getting AppleCare, their warranty program. People generally shy away from any kind of warranty program because, well, honestly, they're usually a rip-off, but AppleCare is actually quite helpful and I buy it for all of my Apple products. It's usually cheaper than even one repair on the computer, covers you anywhere in the world so you're still safe even while travelling, and also gives you unlimited call support. The only caveat is that it's a warranty program, not an insurance program which is illegal for a manufacturer to sell on their own products. This means that AppleCare will cover anything that goes wrong with your computer that's not due to outside forces like drops, liquid spills, etc. I still consider it a great deal though and buy it on all of my Apple products.

Should I Get a Laptop or Desktop?

You've finally decided that it's time to upgrade. You know what price range you're looking at, what you need the computer to be able to do, and you've saved up your pennies. Time to get serious about looking at computers, but should you look at desktop computers or laptops?

Here are the questions I usually ask people who are in this conundrum:

1. Where will you mostly be using your computer?
2. How often do you travel?
3. What will you be using the computer for primarily?

If you'll be mostly using your computer at home, especially if it's mostly in a place like a home office, a desktop might be better suited. A laptop computer that stays plugged in sitting on a desk most of the time won't work very well when you do need to unplug it and take it somewhere. Rechargeable batteries are a lot like our muscles- if we don't use them, we loose them!

If you travel frequently, either for work or leisure, a laptop might be better suited for you. Desktops need to be plugged into an outlet to work, but laptops have batteries that can last for hours. I have seen people who get small desktops (like the Mac Mini) to take back and forth to vacation homes, but desktop computers are not as well suited to movement and travelling as laptops and therefor you should take caution when travelling with them.

If you have very easy to meet needs for your computer like web surfing, movie watching, sharing photos, word processing and the like, you can get an inexpensive laptop that can handle those tasks easily. If, on the other hand, you're making videos, editing photos, building websites, etc. you'll end up needing to spend a lot more money to get a laptop computer that's as powerful as a desktop computer. That's because making everything portable and during has a cost, and that shows up on the price tag.

Practical Tip of the Day:
If you do have high demands of your computer, but only travel once or twice a year, more and more people are opting to get a desktop/tablet combination. That way you have a powerful machine at home for when you need to make a movie, but then have something small and portable for your lighter needs while you travel. A desktop/tablet combination usually comes out to being about the same or slightly cheaper than an equally powerful laptop!

Why is Water Bad for Electronics?

It's happened to more Americans than not. An electronic device- iPods, radios, phones, hopefully not toasters- falls into or is otherwise in contact with water. Sometimes it's not water. I've lost count of how many times I've met people who've spilled soda on their laptops, put an iPod through the washing machine, dropped their phone in the pool, and the list goes on and on. This inevitably leads to a frantic Internet search on how to save their device, but the most potential damage is done within the first few seconds. So, exactly why are liquids bad for electronics?

It's all simple science. Electricity moves through matter- be it solid, liquid or gas. Some things conduct electricity better than others, and water is a very good conductor. The way modern electronics are made, electricity travels around the device through tiny wires that connect all the different parts. When water gets introduced to device, the electricity can spread and go to parts that aren't supposed to get electricity, and give more electricity to parts than they're designed to handle. This essentially electrocutes the device. This is the point where the most potential damage happens.

Now, if your device is turned off when it gets wet it's less likely to suffer major damage, but since few portable devices ever turn off completely there's usually at least a small current of electricity going through them. As far as other problems with getting your electronics wet, you also need to account for material other than water in the liquid. For example, if you spill a soda, the acid can corrode parts as well as make it sticky. Pools have plenty of chemicals, as so washing machines, and I won't even go into the additional problems when you drop a device in the commode!

So what can you do to prevent or minimize the damage of liquid to your electronics? The easiest thing is to keep them away if possible. Don't take your iPod to the beach, or drink your wine next to your laptop. Secondly, if your device does get wet, turn it off right away if it's on- this will turn off the electrical current going through those wires and hopefully minimize further damage. Lastly, once it's off, keep it off for at least 24-48 hours, preferably in a room with low humidity. There are other suggestions on the Internet, but none that have been proven to work.

Practical Tip of the Day:
If you need to take your electronics to a place with potential moisture, there are lots of things you can do to protect it. If you're going to the beach, put your electronics in a baggie. This will help protect against both water and sand. If you canoe, kayak or even scuba dive, they make water-proof cases for most cell phones and MP3 players. They even make water-proof headphones! For your laptop, a simple plastic cover over the keyboard helps cover the easiest point of access for spills of all kinds. This also helps keep crumbs, dust and other matter out of your keyboard as well.