Laptops can be quite expensive—and you’ll want to make sure yours lasts as long as possible. However, laptops can also be fragile. A single spill or unfortunate jostle could spell the end of your computer—if you let it. Here are a few tips to keep your laptop in great shape for years to come.
Keep food and beverages away from your laptop. If you spill a drink on your keyboard, your laptop’s a goner—most laptops have the CPU built in underneath the keys. Liquids can also short circuit electrical parts in the computer, causing some of the data stored there to be corrupted. To be safe, keep all drinks and other liquids away from your computer at all times. You never know when you—or an absent-minded co-worker, or a small child or pet—could bump the drink and spill it over your laptop keyboard.
Protect the power cord. Plug in your power cord away from high traffic areas. If it crosses a place where people walk, someone could trip over the cord, yanking it from the socket. This could damage the cord and the computer over time. In addition, people walking or rolling chairs over a power cord can wear it out long before the end of its natural lifespan. Always pull the power cord out of your computer by the plug, not by the cord itself—this can cause the plug to detach from the cord.
When carrying your laptop, use a laptop case. Laptops are fragile. Never carry your laptop in a backpack, large purse, or other bag without a case designed specifically to protect laptops. Even if you never drop your bag, your laptop could be caught between two other items or be exposed to dirt and other contaminants in your bag. In addition, you could damage your laptop if you forget and place something heavy on top of your bag.
Treat the screen gently. LCD screens are not extremely sturdy. Avoid picking up your laptop by the screen; always lift it by the base. Don’t close your laptop over something left on the keyboard, such as a pencil or paper clip. Hold your laptop lid from the middle or from both sides when closing it; if you close it from only one side, it could close unevenly. This can cause damage to the lid over time.
Plug accessories into the right slots. Make sure you’re plugging your printer, Mp3 player, phone line, external disc drives, and other accessories into the slots assigned to them. If you don’t, you could cause serious damage to the ports. It’s easy to bend the tiny metal tines located in each slot, and once you do that, the port is effectively unusable. Be sure you’re using the right slot before you plug any accessory in.
Make sure labels on CD’s and DVD’s are not peeling off. If a label is coming off a CD or DVD, it could jam your disc drive when you insert it. Not all discs have the best quality adhesive on their labels, particularly recordable discs. Before inserting any disc, inspect it to make sure your labels are all securely affixed to the surface of the disc.
Protect your laptop from temperature extremes. Your laptop should not be kept in extremely hot or extremely cold environments, and it should not be exposed to quick, extreme changes in temperature while it’s on. If you have your laptop outside on a winter day, don’t bring it into the house and turn it on immediately. Give it time to warm up before using it. Don’t keep your laptop in direct sunlight for hours at a time, or near an open window where rain and other precipitation could damage it.
No laptop lasts forever. But you can extend the life of yours by taking steps to make sure it’s properly protected and cared for. Keep your laptop away from heat and cold extremes; protect its vulnerable parts such as the LCD screen and power cord; ensure you don’t insert accessories into the wrong ports and that the CD’s and DVD’s you use are well-kept; and keep your laptop clean at all times. If you follow these steps, your laptop should have a long, productive and trouble-free life.
How to Take Care of your Laptop