IT specialist and Geeks2U technician, Ariel, offers expert advice on all your burning tech questions. Discover everything from how to make your smart home smarter to keeping yourself and your data safe online.

Why is My Laptop So Slow and How Can I Fix It?

It could be for many reasons. It could be because your operating system is not updated or because you are running a lot of programs. At the same time, if your hard drive is a little bit old-fashioned, you might need to change it for a solid state drive. Geeks2U can clean up your laptop by cleaning all the temporary files and free space in your storage, and update all your programs and your operating system. 

SEE ALSO: The Benefits of an AI Laptop for Work, Study and Play

What’s an Easy Way to Make My Home Smarter?

An assortment of smart home products, shown on various brightly coloured backgrounds. Products include things like smart plugs and TV backlighting.

Start your smart home simply with voice-controlled speakers or remote plugs or lights, then expand with security, climate control and sensors for a more automated living experience. You can also easily upgrade your home security with smart locks, cameras and doorbells, as well as automatic lights to give the illusion that your home is occupied.

What to Try

SEE ALSO: Smart Home Products for an Effective Home Office

I Love Taking Family Photographs With My Phone. How Can I Tell if My Phone Camera is a Good One?‍

An assortment of smartphones to help with taking better photos, shown on various brightly coloured backgrounds.

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You can judge your phone camera’s quality by looking at specs like sensor size (the physical size of the phone’s image sensor that determines how much light is available to the camera) and aperture (the opening that lets light pass through the glass to the image sensor), which are the main characteristics that define the quality of the camera. Try out some test photos on a demo model in-store and compare phone-shot samples between different phones to find the one that suits you best.

What to Try

I’m Worried About My Phone Being Hacked. How Can I Tell if it Has Been?

Pay attention to strange activities such as slowdowns, pop-ups, excessive internet consumption or unknown applications appearing on your phone; these may be signs that your phone has been hacked. If you’re worried, Geeks2U can help to remove viruses and malware to protect your device.

Do I Really Need to Install Antivirus Software?

While different operating systems can be more secure than others, consider using antivirus software and a VPN (virtual private network) on all your devices to protect against things like phishing scams and risky downloads, especially if you’re regularly using public Wi-Fi networks.