Clean It Right

Since your laptop is such an expensive gadget, be extremely careful while cleaning the screen. Make sure the cloth is very soft, and has no imprints or monograms on it, as these may scratch the screen. Also ensure that the cloth is lint-free, else it will leave fibers on the screen, and make the display unclear.

Make sure you don’t spray any cleaner directly on the screen. Instead, spray onto the cleaning cloth, and allow the cloth to capture the dirt and contaminants. The screen is the most expensive component of your laptop. Adequate care must be taken while choosing the cleaning spray. Harsh sprays could turn the screen yellow, and may even cause cracking. Use plain water or vinegar to clean the screen.

Placing The Laptop

Hard drives work on the property of magnetic flux, so any electrical field may damage the hard disk and the data on it. Make sure your laptop is at least 13 cm away from any electrical appliance that generates a strong magnetic field – such as a microwave oven.

Give It A Breather

If you have just shut down your laptop, give it 30 seconds before you start it up again. This ensures that the hard drive has spun down, and is no subjected to sudden switching on and off.

Clean Your Hard Disk

You can check for unnecessary/temporary files in your hard disk in weekly/monthly basis and remove them. If you download and install new programs in regular basis for checking purpose it is better to uninstall if don't require them anymore. Always remember that downloading software and screen savers often create conflicts and use valuable memory. Laptop is a great mobile tool for accomplishing your task in an efficient manner and keeping it free of extras will let it work quicker with less of freezing. A disk cleaner utility like CCleaner can be useful in this regard.

Data Backup

Always back up your data. Laptops are mobile devices, and are susceptible to breakage. Also, it’s possible that the hard disk simply crashes. Remember, you can never back up too frequently.

Laptop Battery Care

To increase the life span of the battery always use the original charger and charge the battery after it automatically powers off , then full charge the battery. Overcharge and over-discharge can reduce the life of laptop battery. Again most models provide only 6 month warranty on battery. Don’t leave your battery unused for long periods of time. Even if you use AC power most of the time, use the battery regularly to keep it in good condition. Switch off your AC adapter when the laptop is not in use. This prevents overcharging.

To extend battery life, you can try decreasing the LCD brightness while using your notebook. You can activate the ‘Standby’ and ‘Hibernation’ power-saving modes, too, for better battery life. If you do not use your laptop for extended periods of time – a week or more – remove the battery pack from the laptop, but only after discharging it fully. The batteries should be stored in a cool dry place, removed from heat, humidity and dust as well as metal objects.

Use A Laptop Case

It is advisable to spend a couple of thousand rupees and get a sturdy carry-case for your laptop. The case should ideally be hard from the outside and soft on the inside, while being a comfortable fit. It should be able to absorb shocks and carry your laptop accessories.

Keep Eatables Away

Obviously, no eating and drinking near or around your laptop. The least bit of water could short-circuit some sensitive laptop circuits, and render it useless. There is always a chance of you spilling your drink or meal on your laptop. If that happens by mistake, unplug your laptop, remove the batteries and turn your laptop upside down as it takes some time for the liquid to enter your laptop chassis from the keyboard side. Clean & dry it properly before you restart it. Never use dirty hands while using the laptop. The food particles between the keys on keypad can invite small bugs, thus increasing the risk of the circuitry abnormality.

No Hard Booting

You may sometimes be tempted to turn your laptop off by simply holding down the power button until it powers down. Although quick, this method is harmful to the laptop and could cause data loss. A hard reboot should only be used as a last resort. Sometimes this is inevitable, for instance, when Windows hangs. But this should not be a regular practice.

Caution while using Accessories

Inserting accessories (Pen drive, USB modem, PCMCIA cards, phone or Ethernet jack etc) in wrong port or direction can permanently damage the port or slot which cannot be repaired easily. So, be careful while using those devices.

Take care of Power Adapter

Don't pull or twist the Ac adapter and power cord or put anything on them which may damage them. Normally these items are not covered in laptop warranty in many models.

Warranty & Invoice

Keep your Laptop invoice and Warranty papers in safe place. This will make sure that the seller would replace or repair your laptop without any excuse. Even if laptops are shipped with national and international warranty. It is helpful if you travel regularly. So, check for such facility before purchasing. Even query for extended warranty availability option after the main warranty expires.