Deemable Tech » Otterbox

Deemable Tech Tips: Protecting Your New Device, and What to Do With Your Old One

Sean Birch — Sun, 28 Dec 2014 15:14:14 +0000

If you’re like us, you probably got a shiny new smartphone or tablet for the holidays. Here are our tips for keeping that device looking brand new, and few ideas for what you can do with your old one.

Protect Your New Device

An iPhone 4 in an Otterbox Impact case. Image credit: gisuser / Flickr

The first thing you should do with your new device is put a case on it. We can’t stress how important this is. It breaks our hearts to see people with gadgets that came out not even a month ago, and they’ve already broken the screen.

There are a ton of different kinds of cases out there. If you’re really concerned about protecting your device, we recommend a hefty case from companies like Otterbox, Lifeproof or Griffin. Both brands offer cases that are rated for protecting against drops from normal heights and have material to keep your screen scratch-free. Some of them even claim to be waterproof.

If you don’t want to hide your fancy new smartphone or tablet, a number of companies sell thin, clear plastic cases. These will not offer the same level of protection as an Otterbox case, but they will be better than nothing. Look around online or head to pretty much any store that sells electronics to find one that best fits your needs.

If you decide not to get a case (or even if you do), you should seriously consider buying an extended warranty for your device. For most electronics, we don’t feel like extended warranties are worth the money. However, they are a godsend for smartphones, especially if they cover accidents

Whether you get an extended warranty or not, take the time right now to figure out how long your warranty will last. A year is pretty standard for a new smartphone, but be sure to double check. It also helps to mark that date on your calendar or set a reminder. If your device starts acting funny, you can make sure to get it taken care of before that timer runs out.

With a good warranty, the device maker will often send you a new one before you mail back your old one so that you don’t have to be device-less for any longer than necessary.

What to Do With Your Old One

If you’re not planning to keep your old smartphone or tablet as a backup or for archival purposes, you should consider selling it or recycling it.

To get the best price, you’ll want to sell it on Craigslist or eBay. The downside to Craigslist is that you have to meet strangers from the internet in real-life. The downside the eBay is that you have to go to Post Office or the UPS store. You can try searching through other auctions and online for a good idea of how much your device is worth in the condition it is in.

If you have a fairly new gadget like an iPhone 5 or Samsung Galaxy 4, you could also check out places like Amazon and Gazelle. They will buy your phone online and pay you fast. Or you can trade in your iPhone at the Apple Store, Best Buy, Game Stop and Target. You won’t get as much selling your iPhone or Android phone to the big companies, but you’ll get rid of it fast and get your money fast. So, if convenience is what matters to you, that’s the route we would go.

If you have a smartphone that you think is too old to sell, or you just want to do something nice for others, there are a lot of charitable organizations that can make good use of your old device.

If your phone can at least still make phone calls, you can drop it off at any Verizon Wireless store and they will get it into the hands of someone who needs it. Through their program HopeLine, they collect phones and give them to victims of domestic abuse.

If your phone is completely dead, there are charities that accept electronics that can recycle them and get money to go towards their efforts. As always, make sure that you trust the charity you are giving to.

Also, many cities have e-waste recycling centers for computers and other electronics. Try looking on your city’s website to see if there is one near you.

No matter what you decide to do with your old device, you need to make sure you wipe its memory and reset it to factory default if possible. The last thing you want is for your personal information to fall into the wrong hands. Your device should have come with instructions on how to reset it. We’ve got full details on how to do it for iPhones, iPads and Android phones in this article.

Absolute Last-Minute Valentine Gifts for Gadget Lovers

Ray Hollister — Tue, 14 Feb 2012 14:30:19 +0000

If you still haven’t purchased your special someone a present for Valentine’s Day, your sweet-heart is a gadget junkie, and there’s an electronics store on the way home, this article might help you from spending the night snuggled up with Fido. Here’s a list of eleven tech gifts under $100 (and one at $129) that will make great last-minute Valentine’s Day presents.

iPod shuffle – $49

The iPod shuffle is a great gift for folks who work out a lot, take the dog for long walks, or who lose things easily. At only $49, it is the cheapest device from Apple that you can buy for your sweetie pie, but the sacrifice is that she’ll only be able to put about 350 songs on the 2GB of internal storage. Just make sure that she didn’t mean to say “iPod touch” (the iPod shuffle’s more expensive, touch-screen cousin) when she said she wanted an iPod, or the iPod shuffle might be the only thing you get to touch on Valentine’s.

Jawbone Up – $99.99

Available in black, white, red, blue and silver, the Jawbone up is more than just another rubbery bracelet that looks like it stole its design from Lance Armstrong’s LIVESTRONG campaign. The Jawbone Up has a motion sensor inside that monitors your dearest one’s activity during the day and sleep at night. Then, it syncs with and displays all that information on an app on an iPhone, iPad or iPod touch. During the day, the Jawbone Up will keep track of how many steps your stud muffin takes, calculate how many calories he burned, and he can set it to remind him to get up and get moving when he’s been staring at the computer screen for too long. At night, it keeps track of how long it took him to fall asleep, how many hours he slept, and how much of it was light or deep sleep. In the morning, the Jawbone Up will silently wake your Prince Charming with the Smart Alarm. The Smart Alarm wakes him up at the ideal point in his sleep cycle just before his desired wake up time by gently vibrating on his wrist. You’re sugar pie will wake up feeling like a million bucks, and you’ll get to sleep in!

iPod nano – $129

For an extra eighty dollars over the price of the iPod shuffle, the iPod nano offers a lot more bang for your buck. Starting at 8 GB, it can hold around 1,400 songs, and it has a multi-touch, color screen. Additionally, it has a built-in accelerometer and it works with Nike + iPod compatible cardio machines to keep track of all of your buttercup’s workouts. It also has an FM radio that she can pause, rewind and fast forward live radio, and with one of the many third-party wristbands available it makes a nifty watch with 18 different watch faces.

Apple TV – $99

With an Apple TV, your cuddly-wuddly can watch or listen to anything in his iTunes account, stream Netflix, Vimeo, and YouTube videos and watch live sports from the NBA, NFL and NHL. With the airplay feature, he can stream anything from his iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch to the big screen of his home television. Another benefit is its simple and easy set up; your guy can start enjoying the Apple TV right away when he invites you over tonight for a movie and snuggle session.

Roku 2 XS – $99

If your snuggle-bear isn’t an Apple fanboy, but he would still like to watch video from the Internet on his big screen TV, another great option is the Roku 2 XS, which offers some of the same features, including the NBA, NHL, and Netflix, but also includes more features like Amazon Instant Video, Pandora, Hulu Plus and even Angry Birds; however, it doesn’t support Air Play or iTunes. Another benefit of the Roku 2 XS over the Apple TV is that it is backwards compatible with older televisions. So, even if your hunk doesn’t have a high-definition TV, he can still invite you over to watch The English Patient on Netflix.

iPhone 4 – $99

The Apple iPhone 4 is great for the girlfriend who is disorganized and perpetually running late for the special dates you plan. It may not be an iPhone 4S, but at $99 the iPhone 4 won’t break the bank either. With easy scheduling and reminders, great games, and FaceTime for late-night romantic chats with your darling, the iPhone 4 is an excellent all-in-one gadget for last-minute gift-givers. If your honey is an Android fan, there is also a plethora of Android smart phones available for $99 or less.

Kindle – $79 & Kindle Touch – $99

If your beloved is a bookworm, the Kindle (on the right) or Kindle touch (on the left) are both excellent choices. The Kindle Touch is light, fast, and small with a touchscreen and audio features, although books can only be downloaded when wi-fi connected, and at this price it is ad-supported. The regular Kindle is lighter and skinnier than its Touch counterpart and has the same size screen, but getting around the menus requires using a directional pad, and it doesn’t play music or audio books. If she loves to read but complains that she can’t find the time, she may not even know how much she would enjoy this device. It is very convenient to find new books in the Kindle bookstore, and she may find the time to read once she has a device that fits easily in her purse or her back pocket.

Nook Simple Touch – $99

Another e-reader that makes a great last-minute gift for your sweetiekins is the Nook Simple Touch. The Nook boasts that it is 25% faster than any other reader, and it does not have any ads; however, it does not have a web browser, and, like the regular Kindle, it does not play music or audio books.

Logitech Wireless Solar Keyboard K750 – $59.99

If your heartthrob is always busy blogging, the Logitech solar keyboard is the perfect choice. It’s green technology requires no batteries, no wires, and offers easy setup. This is a gadget that will make your man’s life easier and his desk more streamlined. It runs on Windows® XP, Windows Vista®, Windows® 7 and Mac OS® X 10.4. It reportedly works on most flavors of Linux too, but it’s not specifically supported.

Powermat – $79.99

For the hunk who already has all the gadgets that he wants, the perfect Valentine’s gift is a wireless charging mat called the Powermat. As a former Palm Pre owner, I miss being able to just set my phone down on the Touchstone and charge it without having to plug it in. With the Powermat and a matching receiver door, almost any device can work just like my Pre did. The Powermat simplifies the charging process and cuts down visual cord clutter for a guy who juggles several electronic devices. Plus, it’s just really cool.

OtterBox – $19.95 – 49.955

For the clumsy girlfriend, some sort of protection for her gadgets is in order. One of the best of device-protecting accessories is the OtterBox. These range in price (Defender Series $49.95, Reflex Series $34.95, Commuter Series $34.95, Impact Series $19.95), but are well worth the extra dollar spent when her device accidentally goes flying off the couch and hits the floor during an intense snuggling session with your mamacita.

Now, with this list, you don’t have any excuse. What are you still doing browsing the web? Get off the Internet and get going! (Don’t forget the card!)

Amber Hollister contributed to this report.