Taking good care of your home tech

Taking good care of your home tech

We’re living in a technological age where most of us have access to at least one device that we use on a regular basis. This is likely a smart phone, but many of us also have tablets, laptops, computers, gaming devices and more. Of course, these things don’t come cheap. Our tech tends to come with a high price tag in exchange for the great value that they bring to our lives. Therefore, it’s important that you take good care of your home tech at all times. This can maintain its value, boost its longevity and generally maintain it as best as possible. Here are some top tips that will help you to achieve this!

Take out insurance

The first thing you should do when you get your hands on any tech is to make sure that it’s insured. These are pricey items and can be costly to repair or replace should you lose or damage them, or if they were to be stolen. There are plenty of different plans out there that are specially designed for different items, ranging from smart phone insurance to general gadget insurance. Browse different options and find a policy that ticks all of your boxes. Make sure that it covers the full value of your phone and protects against any scenario you may foresee. You can then take time to compare policies and different providers to get the lowest price possible. If you’re set on a specific provider, you could even consider asking them to price match a lower cost competitor.

Update the software

If you’re unfamiliar with the term “software”, it’s good to know that software is a set of instructions, data or programs on any piece of tech that helps it to operate and for you to do what you need to do on it. For example, software on a phone could include call systems, text message systems, apps and more. Put simply, the software on your phone will tell it how to work to ensure that you get good use out of it. Of course, developers are consistently working on software to make it better in a number of ways. This could include adding more features, improving usability, making the software more accessible or simply increasing security to prevent cyber crime wherever possible. As you can imagine, it’s important to keep up with software updates that will help you to experience all of these things. All too many of us press “remind me later” or other options that postpone software updates when they’re suggested to us. This is because we’re usually using the tech in question when it comes to the time to update software. But it’s really important that you take the time to accept software updates and to allow them to install on your phone, so you don’t miss out on the perks. Take some time to accept all software updates and experience the benefits on all of your devices. You could also take time to clear old information and data, by learning how to clean my drive.

Clean the hardware

The hardware of your tech is any element of the device that you can touch. It’s the smart phone itself – the screen, buttons, charger and more. It’s your tablet itself. It’s your laptop itself. As you can imagine, these items grow dirty with repeated use. Even if you think your hands are clean, they tend to harbour grease, dirt, germs and bacteria. Phones, tablets and laptops left on work surfaces can accumulate dust. You may get crumbs on them if eating while using them. They might get splashed by drinks. The list goes on. It’s important to clean your hardware on a regular basis to ensure that you’re getting the most from it.

Cleaning your hardware will not only make your devices more presentable and nicer to use, but it can help to extend their life too. Dirt and grime can cause problems such as keys sticking or build up inside the device, which will be much harder to clean down the line. There are plenty of kits out there that are specially designed for use on tech devices, such as screen wipes and small vacuum cleaners that can pull crumbs, dust and debris from hard to reach spaces such as between keyboard keys.

Tech is an integral part of our lives nowadays, so make sure you take the time and effort to take care of yours as well as possible. This is simple, straightforward and will really pay off in the long run!

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4 tips to improve your home entertainment set-up

4 tips to improve your home entertainment set-up

Your home entertainment set-up keeps you from getting bored, especially on cold, wet or dark days. It helps you keep up with the latest TV, watch movies and listen to your favourite music too. Whether you have a very modest set-up or you’re obsessed with AV tech, you can always do a few things to improve your home entertainment and make it better for you and your family. With just a couple of easy changes or upgrades, you can make your home entertainment set-up more secure, more convenient and more fun. Try these changes for some excellent improvements to your tech.

Smart TV icon

Make it smart

If you don’t already have a smart TV, you should think about getting one. A smart TV allows you to connect to the internet and benefit from all kinds of things, from streaming to games and online services. A smart TV definitely doesn’t have to be expensive, with a range of price points available. Of course, paying more could get you a better quality picture, better sound, and even a more reliable connection. Cheaper smart TVs might not last as long or have as many features. But you can still get a lot out of them, even if you don’t buy the most expensive TV on the market.

VPN icon

Keep it secure

If you’re making your home entertainment smarter, you should also think about keeping it secure. Anything that requires an internet connection could be vulnerable to being exploited in some way. Whether you’re using an Amazon Fire TV stick or streaming from your favourite streaming site, a VPN can be helpful to protect your private data. At Troypoint.com, you can find out about the benefits of using a VPN when you’re watching TV and movies. It could be useful when you’re streaming music too, as well as for other online activities. Visit here if you’re looking for a suitable VPN for China.

Home entertainment icon

Rearrange the layout

Changing the positioning of your home entertainment set-up can make it better too. This can include moving around not just your tech but also seating and other things. If you put your television at the right height, it will be more comfortable for you to watch it. By putting your speakers in the right position, you can get the best sound when you’re watching TV. You can experiment with where you put everything, but it’s also a good idea to find some guidelines online that suggest the best layouts for your set-up.

Surround sound icon

Perfect the sound

While the picture is important on your TV, you can’t neglect the sound. Everyone wants to have a crisp sound when they’re enjoying a movie or a show. Plus, if you have excellent audio, it can be good for listening to music too. You might want to upgrade to some quality speakers or even consider installing surround sound to get great quality audio at home. Make sure that you put your speakers in the right place too.

With an improved home entertainment set-up, you can prevent yourself and your family from getting bored at home and enjoy all the movies, TV and music you want.

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Price Points: Mesh wi-fi routers

Mesh wi-fi routers

Our old Welsh cottage is long & low and has very thick stone walls. This, added to the lack of fibre broadband in our rural setting, means that our internet connectivity leaves much to be desired.

As we work from home and run a predominantly internet-based business, connection speed & strength are extremely important. Sometimes, the sluggishness experienced when uploading, downloading and streaming can mean that tasks take twice as long as they should. We’ve been looking at available solutions; boosters, range extenders and mesh wi-fi routers.

BT is our current land-line and broadband provider, so their bundle seems like the best option for us. They even offer a selector tool to see which of their products would be most suitable.

However, we also have an Amazon Alexa set up; a little Echo Dot that works with our Sonos smart speaker system. As it’s produced by Amazon, the eero would slot straight into that seamlessly.

If you’re more of a Google smart home household, the Nest is an obvious and very attractive choice.

  1. BT Mini Whole Home wi-fi, pack of 3: £74.99, John Lewis

    Get rid of those wi-fi dead spots and stay connected to the strongest signal as you move around your home. Even with multiple devices connected you won’t lose speed. So stream, watch, share and download anywhere at home. Easy to set up straight out of the box. Our intelligent app will show you where to put the discs for the best connection.

  2. Google Nest wifi router: £149.00, Argos

    Nest Wifi is a scalable system that creates a mesh network, which helps deliver a consistently strong, reliable signal. Mesh Wi‑Fi can help provide more coverage than a traditional router by using multiple Wi‑Fi points together to create a connected system that gives you a strong signal throughout your home. Nest Wifi is a scalable system that gives both whole-home coverage and a consistently strong signal. Each Nest Wifi point is also a smart speaker with the Google Assistant. One Nest Wifi router with one Wifi point is strong enough to handle up to 200 connected devices and fast enough to stream multiple 4K videos at a time.

  3. Amazon eero Pro mesh wi-fi router/extender: £179.00, Amazon

    Tri-band speeds: the eero Pro mesh Wi-Fi router connects to your existing modem to bring up to 160 sq.m of fast, reliable Wi-Fi to your home. Works with your internet service provider: eero Pro connects with your modem to bring your existing internet connection to every corner of your home. Set up in minutes: the eero app walks you through setup and allows you to manage and control your network from anywhere. Gets better over time: automatic updates keep your network safe and secure. TrueMesh technology: eero Pro intelligently routes traffic to avoid congestion, buffering and loss of connection. Phones, computers, smart TVs, security cameras and everything else just works with eero. Since eero Pro works with Alexa and more, it’s the best choice for smart homes.

shop mesh wi-fi routers

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Prices & links correct at time of publication.

Amazon eero Pro mesh wi-fi router/extender
Amazon eero Pro mesh wi-fi router/extender
£179.00
Google Nest wifi router
Google Nest wifi router
£149.00
BT Mini Whole Home wi-fi, pack of 3
BT Mini Whole Home wi-fi, pack of 3
£74.99
Amazon eero Pro mesh wi-fi router/extender
Amazon eero Pro mesh wi-fi router/extender
£179.00
Google Nest wifi router
Google Nest wifi router
£149.00
BT Mini Whole Home wi-fi, pack of 3
BT Mini Whole Home wi-fi, pack of 3
£74.99
Amazon eero Pro mesh wi-fi router/extender
Amazon eero Pro mesh wi-fi router/extender
£179.00
Google Nest wifi router
Google Nest wifi router
£149.00
BT Mini Whole Home wi-fi, pack of 3
BT Mini Whole Home wi-fi, pack of 3
£74.99
Amazon eero Pro mesh wi-fi router/extender
Amazon eero Pro mesh wi-fi router/extender
£179.00
Google Nest wifi router
Google Nest wifi router
£149.00
BT Mini Whole Home wi-fi, pack of 3
BT Mini Whole Home wi-fi, pack of 3
£74.99
Amazon eero Pro mesh wi-fi router/extender
Amazon eero Pro mesh wi-fi router/extender
£179.00
Google Nest wifi router
Google Nest wifi router
£149.00
BT Mini Whole Home wi-fi, pack of 3
BT Mini Whole Home wi-fi, pack of 3
£74.99

Why now is the perfect time to make your home smarter

Why now is the perfect time to make your home smarter | H is for Home

Intrigued by the idea of a smart home? It seems that everyone’s jumping on the bandwagon at the moment. However, trying to make your home smarter has many benefits and is ideal for making your home greener, cleaner – and let’s face it – much more fun to manage!

With Black Friday and Cyber Week sales imminent, it’s the perfect time to invest in some smart tech for your home. Take a look at some of the benefits and get ready to transform your home.

Smart home device and smart phone

Why use smart home technology?

There are a lot of benefits that come with smart home technology. Having all of your lighting and heating accessible from your phone or computer can make it easier to cut down on your energy use, as well as make your home smarter for you.

You can put your lighting on cycles to get you ready in the mornings, or settle down in the evenings. Controlling your heating can be much simpler too, allowing you to turn off the heating if you’re going to be home late from work, as well as control different areas of your home. Explore 20 ways to upgrade your home with tech.

And let’s not forget the fun stuff! Virtual assistants like Amazon’s Alexa or Google Home are perfect for helping you find the right music and lighting to create a mood at home, or even help you with your shopping list. The great thing about smart technology is that you won’t know how you lived without it once it’s installed in your home!

Smart door security

Affordable ways to go smart

All of this technology sounds like it could get expensive, but there is smart home technology available for every budget. With the pre- and post-Christmas sales on the horizon, you can guarantee there’ll be some bargains on smart home items. From lighting to speaker systems, it’s worth keeping an eye out to see what savings are around.

Don’t forget that there are many items that are compatible with smart home systems. IKEA has a great set of gadgets for your home that offer great value and variety, allowing you to kit out your home for less.

Smart home thermostat

Smart homes and the environment

One of the best things about smart technology is that it can help you cut your energy use. By making smarter choices around lighting and heating, you’re not only helping the environment, but also saving yourself money too. If you’re looking at ways to make your home more eco-friendly, this could be one of the ways to do it.

Going smart is an exciting step to take for your home. By making the most of the best smart devices, you can make sure you have the right tools in place to enjoy your home more and feel more in control of your tech. Get connected and invest in smart technology and see the benefits it could bring to your home.

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