Blurb: Caring for your devices includes cleaning them and making sure that they are not vectors for diseases. Check out these tips to keep your gadgets nice and clean.
This will sound disgusting, so don’t say we didn’t warn you. You know how super old mobile phones seem like they’re meant to withstand all sorts of damage? Well it turns out that no matter how durable an old phone is, it’s no match against good old drool. Yes, now you know our deepest darkest secret: we ruined a supposedly hardy phone with saliva. And no, we’re not proud of the fact and we certainly tried our best to resuscitate that phone. But no matter how much we sprayed disinfectant, wiped, and cleaned the thing, it remained damaged.
Luckily for us, we learned long ago that sleeping with our gadgets lying close to our face (read: mouth) is a no-no (Another tip: Don’t embarrass yourself by calling different phone service providers to repair your drooled-on phone). We also learned about some practical gadget cleaning tips, which we will now share with you.
Water and vinegar
Touch screen devices like LCD monitors are somewhat delicate, so you should be careful not to press too hard on them–otherwise, you may burn out the pixels. Consider a 50/50 mix of distilled water and vinegar to clean your touch screen devices. Use a microfiber cloth, spray it with a small amount of the water-vinegar mixture, and wipe down. Remember not to spray directly on the screen to avoid voiding your warranty and damaging other parts of the gadget (like the charging socket).
Cyber Clean and other nifty products
We always say that ThinkGeek will bankrupt us in the near future. Seriously though, we’ll always be grateful to ThinkGeek for introducing us to the amazing Cyber Clean Electronics Cleaning Putty, which is basically a goo-like substance that you can press into the crevices of your devices, attracting dirt and grime. When you’re done, you just need to peel the putty back and you can even reuse it to “clean dozens of electronic items.” We also love Cleaning Paw, OXO Electronics Cleaning Brush, and the USB-powered Micro Vacuum Attachment Kit.
Water and rubbing alcohol
For your mouse and game controller, you can use a 60/40 mix of water and rubbing alcohol. With these devices, you have to think “disinfecting” rather than “cleaning”, as these things are definitely dirt magnets. If you’re a hardcore gamer, try to really get in there and “remove the oily brown buildups you can get between buttons.” Try not to use paper towels, as a soft cloth is better at doing the job. For cracks and crevices, you can use wooden toothpicks; but nothing harder, or you might damage your mouse or controller.
Special care required: cameras
Considering how expensive a good camera sells for nowadays, you need to invest in specialty cleaning products like a Lenspen, which won’t “degrade delicate lens coatings.” Lenspens have a concave chamois tip treated with lens polish and come with retractable antistatic brushes for getting rid of dust from image sensors. These lens cleaners can also be used to clean ventilation grilles in game consoles, laptops, and desktop computers.
Bonus: saving a water-soaked gadget
So you dropped your smartphone in a toilet. Don’t worry, there’s a way to dry out your device by soaking it in rice. Yes, you read that part right! We said rice; dry rice to be exact, which, as it turns out, is very good at soaking up moisture. Just leave your water-soaked gadget in dry rice for 30 minutes and it should be good to go. Now if only we knew about this trick when we accidentally gave our old phone a tongue bath. Maybe we missed that chance to give our beloved gadget the revival it deserves.
Photos source http://www.flickr.com/photos/neilt/1448851
About the author:
Monique Jones is an Engineer who deals with telephone systems. Monique graduated as a Cum Laude with a Degree in Civil and Communications Engineering. Besides being an Engineer, she also works as a part time Writer. She helps her colleagues and other people about their communication issues, giving effective solutions to address their needs. On her free time, she works on her fashion business, read books, and chat with friends. She also loves traveling and photography.
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