These 5 Things Are Killing Your Smartphone’s Battery Life

Battery life is an aspect of smartphones that hasn’t improved as much as other technology. If you’re a user that depends on your smartphone throughout your day, getting through a full day on a single charge can be a struggle. While there are battery packs and USB batteries that you can pick up, as well as phones specifically designed for their big batteries, sometimes that isn’t enough.

However, there are also things you can change about the way you use you your phone that can help save you some battery life. There are obvious battery-killers such as playing games or watching videos, but some factors are lesser known.

Here are five things that are killing your smartphone’s battery life that you may not have known about:

  1. Screen brightness

As smartphone displays get bigger, brighter and more resolution, the effect it has on battery life can be severe. While you can’t really do much with your phone without using your display, there are a number of things you can do to reduce the damage it’s having on your battery life.

On Android devices, the first thing you should do is turn on Adaptive Brightness so that your smartphone automatically adapts to the lowest amount of brightness that you really need. It’s much smarter than the “Auto-Brightness” feature of Android past. There are number of third-party Android apps that do this, but I’ve found the Adaptive Brightness feature to be fairly effective. If you want to save extra battery life, you can also toggle off the “Ambient display” setting, which will make sure your display isn’t activated every time you receive a notification. iOS has an Auto Brightness setting as well that you’ll want to toggle on.

But even with these features, it’s always important to keep the brightness of your display in mind when in use. The last thing you can do to help is change your Sleep settings so that your phone automatically turns off the display after a set amount of time. On iOS, you’ve got the Auto-Lock setting that performs the same function.

  1. Background App Refresh

The background app refresh feature in iOS can be a helpful way of letting your apps smartly update their save states while on WiFi or cell service. However, they can also suck the life out of your battery.

You can toggle it off completely to ensure that you’re always getting the most out of your battery. However, you can also go through your app list and toggle them on or off so that you can pick and choose the apps you want to be refreshing in the background. If you’re curious about which apps are using up your battery, head over to your Battery settings where you can easily see which apps are using the most juice.

On Android, you’ll find the option to restrict data usage on specific apps in Settings > Data usage > Data usage control. From there, you can choose which apps are allowed to use WiFi or Data or none at all. You also may want to disable auto-updating of apps, which happens in the background if it is toggled on.

  1. Streaming audio

If you’re someone who streams music or podcasts all day at work via services like Apple Music or Spotify, you may notice that your battery life isn’t lasting as long as it did with your collection of locally-stored music.

There’s not much you can do about this (other than just plug in your phone), but you can certainly try to download songs to your phone using Offline Mode on Spotify (and download podcasts ahead of time), which will sidestep having to stream all of this audio.

  1. Using Bluetooth

Speaking of streaming music, you may also have it connected to a Bluetooth speaker or pair of wireless headphones for extended amounts of time. Unfortunately, having your Bluetooth turned on all day is pulls extra juice out of your phone’s battery. In fact, it’s one of the worst things about not having a headphone jack anymore and switching over to wireless headphones.

There’s no way around this one, but it’s definitely something to be aware of as you are attempting to save juice for later in the day.

  1. GPS

Lastly, apps that use GPS or location services can be big battery-suckers. As you’ve got Google Maps or Apple Maps running, you’ll be putting a serious dent in your battery life. It’s not necessary to turn off Location Services altogether, but apps like Google Maps should be manually shut down when you arrive at your destination.

Manually closing down apps is easy in both iOS and Android. In iOS, just double-click the Home button and swipe away the app. In Android, hit the App Switcher button and swipe it away.

10 tips to better your smartphone battery life

Smartphones have come a long way over the last few years when it comes to design, camera, or even processing power. However, we have not seen much breakthroughs when it comes to battery technology –which is critical today given that handsets come packed with mammoth sized displays, multiple sensors, and faster processors that take a toll on battery life.

While a number of smartphone makers offer ‘Fast charging’ and ‘Power modes’ to deal with the situation, a concrete solution is still nowhere to be seen.

That said, here we have listed out some lesser known tips and tricks that will help you get the most out of your smartphone battery.

1/10 Turn off Vibration and Haptic feedback

We all like that mild vibrations while typing on the smartphone keyboard or while tapping the capacitive buttons, however they absorb a good amount of juice. Turning off the ‘Haptic feedback’ will help you save a good amount of battery because we spend a lot of time on typing throughout a day.

Besides, if you don’t really need to get notified by vibration, then turn it off as It actually takes more battery power to vibrate your phone than it does to ring it.

2/10 Turn off “Always on” Google Hotword detection

Turning off Google’s Hotword detection will also improve your Android smartphone’s battery life. This prevents your phone from always ready to listen to your command to perform a search function. Below are the steps to turn it off.

  • Go to Apps > Settings > Google Services > Search & Now > Voice.
  • Click on ‘OK Google detection’
  • Turn Off Always on

3/10 Reduce the screen brightness

If your smartphone boasts an AMOLED display, then applying Black coloured wallpapers will help you save battery life. This is because pixels that make the AMOLED displays only utlise battery power to illuminate light colours and don’t need any energy to show black colour. To simply put, the more dark or black pixels you have on your AMOLED display, the less power it consumes to illuminate them, thus saves the battery.

4/10 Customise which apps can use Location

Most of the apps that are installed on your smartphone (Android/iOS) constantly track your location. You might not want to turn it off while using Google Maps, Uber, sending location on WhatsApp, Tinder, etc. however keeping it on throughout the day while you don’t need location tracking will simply kill your smartphone battery. Turn it off while you are just using your handset for watching videos, sending e-mails, and apps where you don’t need location tracking.

5/10 Don’t miss on Android updates

Updating apps might seem to be a cumbersome task, but it actually helps in improving the overall smartphone performance and battery life. This is because developers keep updating apps to improve on battery and memory optimization. SO make sure your smartphone has the latest version of apps installed.

6/10 Turn on Airplane mode

This is not an everyday solution but can really help you cut battery usage. Turning on Airplane mode will cut you from the outside world but will allow your smartphone to last longer for multimedia apps such as videos, music player or games that don’t need any connectivity.

It can do wonders if you are travelling in a poor network zone where your smartphone antennas consume a lot of power to register on the available networks. Simply turn on the Airplane mode if you don’t want to receive any calls, messages or use internet.

7/10 Remove On-screen Widgets

Android operating system is all about widgets that offer tons of information on your smartphone displays. It is indeed a good thing to have everything on screen, however proves havoc for your smartphone battery. The battery has to supply continues power to make those widgets deliver latest updates from backend servers.

Delete the widgets that are placed to offer information not required throughout the day and still fetch data from internet such as weather apps, stock apps, scoreboards etc.

8/10Turn off Auto-sync

Apps such as Gmail, Twitter, calendar, etc. constantly refresh themselves to offer latest information. This is required if you just cannot afford to miss an important information but also takes a toll on battery life.

Go to Settings > Google account and turn off auto-sync for apps you don’t need constantly updated.

9/10 Doze mode (Android Marshmallow users)

Doze mode is the latest addition to Android OS and works on devices running Android 6.0 Marshmallow. You don’t need to do anything to use the new Doze feature and basically there are no switches or settings to activate or deactivate it. However you can edit the apps that utilise the battery optimization feature from Settings menu. Doze mode simply works in background on Marshmallow devices and puts your phone in hibernation mode whenever it lies unused for a longer duration.

10/10 Check on GPS, Bluetooth, NFC

Last but not the least; check on Bluetooth, GPS, Wi-Fi, NFC and mobile data if you are not using them. Switch off the Wi-Fi if you are connected on Mobile data and vice versa. The NFC feature might get turn on if you restart your NFC enabled handset, s keep a check on it.

Besides, activate the low power mode on your smartphone if you are running low on battery.

Google Is Doubling Down on Building Its Own Phones

By buying up HTC, Google is committing to the Pixel, and forging ahead into its past.

Google officially announced that it would buy HTC. For $1.1 billion, the search giant will be acquiring only only the Taiwan-based tech company, but also the engineering team that designed the terrific Google Pixel. That’s right: Google is buying up the very folks who made its flagship phone.

This isn’t a total surprise, since the Pixel went over quite well. But it is a little strange because, well, Google’s been down this road of buying a company that makes Android phones before, and it changed its mind. Buying up HTC means Google’s flagship Pixel phone is here to stay—and the decision might shake up the future of Android.

Unlike iPhones—which are pure Apple phones, designed chips-to-software by Tim Cook and company—the lineage of an Android phone is more complex. Google makes the Android software (to which your carrier adds its extra bloatware), but companies like Samsung and LG make the actual hardware and, accordingly, put their names on the phones. It’s the Samsung Galaxy S8, after all.

This approach has its pros and cons. Google gets its software (apps and services it uses to sell ads) in front of hundreds of millions of people without having to worry about hardware. And there are hundreds of Android phones: big, small, cheap, expensive, good, bad, something for every conceivable taste. This distribution of labor and flexibility lead to an Android explosion, and Google’s domination of the global market share.

It also means that Google doesn’t have the soup-to-nuts control of its product. That power is part of the reason that for years now iPhones have been undeniably more polished than their Android competitors, and why now, even though Android is slicker than ever, it is woefully vulnerable to security problems. Apple can just send out iOS updates, but Google needs to work with is many hardware partners and phone carriers to make that happen. As a result, woefully few Android phones run the latest, safest version of the software. A truly Google phone, like the Pixel, can fix that.

Google has toyed with the premise before, having purchased Motorola in 2012. But difficult relationships with hardware partners prevented Google from doing anything too wild. It released only two (terrific) Google-backed Motorola phones before selling off the company (though hanging onto some extremely valuable patents) and returning to its “Nexus” program—a partnership between Google and rotating hardware partners to create an “ideal” Android phone.

Google’s latest move to hire the HTC team responsible for the Pixel represents a renewed, serious push at creating the mythical “iPhone of Android.” But such a project will now encounter world that’s totally changed. With its voice-assistant “Bixby” and a growing suite of exclusive apps, Google’s most formidable hardware partner, Samsung, is increasingly striking it out on its own, shifting users away from the Google services the search giant uses to make money even while it sticks with Android at the core. Meanwhile, the Pixel will push its users deeper and deeper into Google’s web, offering things like limitless Google Photos storage, and all-important security updates that come as quickly as possible.

Practically, Google’s purchase of the HTC doesn’t mean a whole lot in the short term. Those folks have been working on Google hardware exclusively for years. But it does mean that the Pixel is likely here to stay as just one of the many arms of Google’s growing hardware Kraken.

8 Essential Tips To Keep Your Phone’s Battery Healthy

  1. Yes, you can leave your phone plugged in overnight.

It is not the end of the world if you don’t unplug your phone the second that it is charged. That charger is smarter than you give it credit for. Leaving your phone on the charger all night (or all day) is far better for your battery than running it down and charging it up.

  1. Charge a little bit whenever you can.

Lithium-ion batteries don’t respond well to being charged all the way up and then run all the way down. They take much better to little bits of charge here and there.

  1. Yes, you can leave your laptop plugged in all the time.

Don’t worry about overcharging the batteries in your gadgets, and especially don’t worry about overcharging your laptop. What we just said about phones applies here, too. And on and on top of that, many laptops (most, in fact) are smart enough to cut the battery out of the charging equation entirely once it’s full. The battery just sits there patiently until you need it or until it needs another little shock to top it off.

  1. But maybe pop out your laptop battery while it’s on the charger, if you can.

The biggest danger to your laptop battery—and your phone battery and your tablet battery—isn’t overcharging, but heat. And with that in mind, it might be wise to pop out your laptop battery while you’re plugged into the wall, if you can.

  1. Keep your batteries cool.

Speaking of temperature, make sure you don’t leave your phone in a hot car all day. Or place it on top of your gaming PC. Or use it in a sauna. Try to avoid wireless charging if you can, because the waste-heat those chargers generate will also bake your battery. Also, beware of quick chargers. While your phone and charger are generally smart enough to minimize damage from high-voltage chargers, a lot of power super fast can generate extra heat. And if you have to store a gadget or its battery for a while, do it in a cool dry place.

  1. Store batteries with a little bit of charge.

If you’re storing batteries, you give them about a half a charge first. They’ll slowly lose their charge over time, and if it drops into the true-zero danger zone, your battery will automatically trip its safety circuit and kill itself for real before it can become unstable.

  1. Maybe go replaceable if you can.

If you’re borderline insane about your battery life, consider opting for gadgets that have removable batteries when you can. For one thing, there’s no faster way to “charge” a gadget than by swapping in a fully charged battery. And if you can’t avoid these bad battery practices, at least you can start fresh by buying a fresh battery.

  1. Don’t let your battery rule your life.

If you follow the most basic rules of thumb—don’t go all the way from full to empty if you can avoid it and minimize the exposure to heat as best you can—you’ll be fine. It’s easy to obsess over battery care, to let charging superstitions metastasize into obsessive ritual. But just remember two things:

  1. Your gadgets and their batteries are designed to keep you from ruining them. Lithium-ion batteries today are better, smarter, and more resilient than the nickel-metal hydrides of yesteryear.
  2. Your batteries are going to die. No amount of obsessive care will save you from having to deal with a less capable battery a few years from now.

How to get macOS 10.13 High Sierra now

macOS 10.13 High Sierra is packed with new features for your Mac, and the final version will be available later today. We explain how you can get the update right now.

At WWDC 2017 we got our first look at Apple’s next version of macOS, which will be released to the public later today. If you want to install High Sierra, the update will be available via the Mac App Store from likely around 6pm in the UK. If you can’t wait you can still install the beta, as we outline below, but given that there’s only a few hours to wait we’d really recommend you hold on until tonight.

Should I install the High Sierra beta?

Running beta software isn’t a choice you should make lightly, as by its very nature the code is still being worked on and bugs will appear – potentially big ones – which could cause you to lose data. If you are intending to put this on your main working machine as the only OS, then we’d strongly advise against it. Yes it’s cool to be on the cutting edge, but there are considerable risks involved when you use unfinished software.

A much better choice is to dual-boot your Mac, so that the preview OS is kept separate from your normal one. If you have virtual machine software such as Parallels or VMware, then that would also be a great way to sample the delights of macOS 10.13 without endangering your system.

As always you should run a complete system backup before starting any kind of operating system upgrade, as things can easily go wrong.

How to get the new macOS today

First, sign up to the Apple Beta Software programme.

You’ll need to sign in with your Apple ID, then click the link to the Mac App Store to download the High Sierra public beta.

The Mac App Store will launch in a separate app on your Mac and display the High Sierra download page. Look for and click the Download button at the top of the page.

If you want to wait for the final version, here’s the step-by-step guide to getting it:

  • Open the App Store
  • Click on the Updates tab
  • You should see “Software Update – macOS High Sierra”
  • Click ‘Update’
  • High Sierra will download and install – it will take a while
  • Wait while your mac restarts

How to install macOS on a dual-boot system

If you go for a version of the High Sierra beta, we recommend installing it into a second partition on your machine, or if you have a spare machine then feel free to wipe the existing OS and go it alone with 10.13. Remember that these are advanced procedures, and you proceed at your own risk.

To set up a dual-boot system you’ll need to do the following things. First of all open up Disk Utility (Applications > Utilities > Disk Utility) and select the main drive (usually the top of the list in the left hand panel). Then select the Partition option in the main panel.

Now you’ll see a large rectangle with the heading Partition Layout. Currently it will be a single drive, so click the Plus button beneath it and then click on the new partition that appears.

To resize the partition simply drag the partition corners. The Size box on the right shows you how much space the partition takes up.

It’s a good idea to rename the partition so that things don’t get confusing – maybe call it macOS Beta Test. When you’re happy with the name and space allocation click Apply.

Now find the downloaded version of macOS 10.13 and click on it to begin the install.

When you see the option of which disk you want to install it on be sure to select macOS Beta Test (or whatever name you gave the new partition). When this is done click install and the rest should proceed automatically, with your Mac rebooting into 10.13.

From now on when you want to return to the previous version of macOS (or OS X) on your system, reboot your machine while holding down the Alt key. This will present you with a menu of which drive you want to boot from.

Deleting the partition

Once you’ve finished test driving macOS 10.13 you can remove it by reversing the process above. Restart your machine and boot into the previous version of macOS (or OS X). Launch Disk Utility, choose your main drive, go to Partition, select the Sierra partition, then click the Minus button below, followed by Apply.

Using Virtual Machines

Probably the safest way to try out any new operating system is to use a virtual machine. There are several excellent software offerings around, some of which are free (Virtualbox, for example). Others, such as VMware offer a free trial, but are paid-for products.

These create, as the name suggests, virtual environments on your Mac where the operating system can run as if it were installed on your drive. Performance isn’t quite the same as it would be from an OS that is actually installed, but it gives you a good chance to explore without the hassle of altering your machine in any way.

As each software package operates slightly differently it’s worth investigating the options available and consulting the relevant instructions. Our colleagues over at Macworld have put together this helpful guide to running Windows on a Mac, which covers using virtual machines.

Should I install the macOS public beta?

If the idea of creating and deleting partitions, having applications crash suddenly, or working out how to set up virtual machines has you a little worried, then we’d suggest waiting.

While all of this can be a lot of fun, and actually quite fascinating, for most people it would just get annoying rather quickly. macOS 10.13 is due to be released in a few months, and will be a much more stable and polished experience than the one you’d find in the public beta.

If you’ve always held to the Apple mantra of ‘it just works’, then we think you’d have a better time in the Autumn.

Laptop won’t turn on? How to fix a computer that won’t boot

If your laptop or PC won’t turn on, don’t panic. You might be able to fix it yourself for free by trying these five methods.

Here we’ll explain the possible causes and how to try and fix a PC or laptop that won’t boot up.

  1. Check the power supply

Laptops

This is one of the most common problems. There are various things that can go wrong, from using the wrong laptop power supply (delivering the wrong voltage) to a blown fuse in the plug.

It might be that your power supply has simply failed. First, make sure the battery has some charge. If you’re not sure, and there’s no power indicator on the battery itself, then remove it entirely and just use the mains charger.

Double-check, too, that the charger is the right one for your laptop. Many laptops – especially from the same manufacturer – use the same size plug, and if you own more than one, it’s not too difficult to plug in the wrong power supply, which might provide a different voltage or not enough current.

Other gadgets may also use the same tips, such as a battery powered speaker, and are unlikely to use the same voltage as your laptop, which typically requires 16-20V.

Second, check the fuse in the plug. Use a screwdriver to remove the fuse and install one that’s known to be good. If you have a spare power cable that will plug into your power supply, this is a much quicker swap to test that it isn’t the fuse at fault.

Check over the wire itself, as power supplies get beaten up, especially if you carry them everywhere. Weak points are at the ends where it joins the black brick and at the plug which connects to the laptop. If you can see the coloured wires inside the black outer protection, it could be time to buy a new PSU.

If you’re having problems with your laptop’s touchpad, also check out our top tips to fix it.

PCs

PC power supplies can also be problematic. Few people have a spare they can install and test, so the first check is the fuse in the plug. There’s also a fuse inside the PSU itself, but it will require you to remove it from your PC and then remove the metal case to check if that’s the problem.

One of the most common PC power supply issues is that the PC will turn off unexpectedly rather than fail to boot up at all.

If the LED is on showing that power is reaching it, make sure your power button is properly connected and working.

You can short the appropriate motherboard pins together (check which ones in your motherboard manual) to eliminate the power button from the equation.

  1. Check the screen

Laptops

Try disconnecting any external displays including projectors and monitors to make sure they’re not stopping your laptop from booting into Windows.

If your computer’s power LED lights up and you can hear the hard disk or fan(s) whirring, but there’s no image on the screen, then make the room dark and check that there isn’t a very faint image on the screen.

It’s easy to think a laptop isn’t booting when in fact, it’s the screen that’s the problem.

If there is a faint image – maybe the Windows logon screen – then it’s likely that your screen’s inverter has failed. This component changes the direct current (DC) coming from the battery or power supply to an alternating current required by the screen.

Replacing an inverter isn’t too difficult if you’re handy with a screwdriver, but it’s crucial you buy the right replacement part. As inverters aren’t exactly cheap, you can’t afford to get it wrong.

If your laptop appears to be booting fine, but there’s no image at all, the LCD panel could be at fault. Replacing a laptop screen is possible, but difficult, and screens can also be costly. If it’s an older laptop, it’s worth considering buying a new one.

PCs

There isn’t much you can do to fix a broken PC monitor, but it’s easy – or easier – to swap the power lead and video cable or even the whole monitor to see if that’s the reason your PC won’t boot.

  1. Remove any USB drives or memory cards

Assuming everything is ok with the power supply and screen, your computer may be getting stuck before it loads Windows.

A classic culprit here is a USB drive or memory card left inserted into a USB port or card reader. Typically you’ll see an error message such as “Operating system not found” which can lead to unnecessary panic.

For the majority of the time, it means the BIOS is set to try booting from removable storage drives (including cards) before the internal hard drive.

It could also be a disc left in the DVD or Blu-ray drive, so check those too.

  1. Try a rescue disc

If you’re seeing different error messages, or there aren’t any cards, external drives or discs causing the problem, try using a rescue disc.

If you have one, the Windows DVD can be used, but otherwise you can download (using another computer – obviously) a rescue disc image and either burn it to a CD or DVD, or extract it to a USB flash drive. You can then boot from this and attempt to fix the problem with Windows.

  1. Boot into Safe Mode

Even if you can’t boot into Windows, you might be able to get into safe mode. Press F8 as your laptop is starting up and you’ll get a menu offering to boot into Safe Mode. Here’s how to enter safe mode.

  1. Check for faulty or incompatible hardware

If you’ve just installed some new memory or another piece of hardware, it might be preventing your computer from booting. Remove it (reinstalling the old memory if necessary) and try again.

If your motherboard has a LED readout showing POST codes, search the manual or online to find out what the code shown means.

Often it can be tricky to get a newly built PC to boot. The best tip here is to disconnect everything except the bare minimum needed to boot to the BIOS:

  • l Motherboard
  • l CPU (with heatsink attached)
  • l Graphics card (if there’s a graphics output on the motherboard, remove any plug-in graphics cards)
  • l One stick of memory (remove any others, and leave the single stick in slot 0 or whichever the manual recommends)
  • l Power supply
  • l Monitor

All other hardware is unnecessary: you don’t need a hard drive, optical drive or any other components for the PC to start.

How to factory reset Windows PC, laptop or tablet

Restoring your computer or tablet to the state it came out of the factory can be handy for a number of different reasons. Perhaps you’re having problems with performance, it’s picked up a virus, or you simply want to sell it on and remove all your programs, files, passwords, and other sensitive information.

If your device is just running slowly, you might only need our guide to speeding up Windows, but for more serious performance problems, a full reset might be in order.

It’s a little more difficult than a smartphone or a tablet but we’ll show you how to do it step by step. The process is slightly different depending on which version of Windows you have, because Windows 10 handles factory resets differently to previous versions, so we’ve split this guide up accordingly.

How to factory reset a Windows 10 computer or tablet

In Windows 10 the process is pretty easy, thanks to a built-in tool for resetting a PC. Open the Start menu and select Settings (the cog wheel). Now type ‘reset’ in the search bar and select ‘Reset this PC’ on the left when the results appear.

Under the Recovery section of Update & Security you can now hit ‘Get started’ to begin the process. During this you can select if you would like to keep files or do a full reset.

The process is identical for a Windows 10 tablet, because the operating system is almost identical across computers and tablets.

How to factory reset a Windows 7 or 8 computer

Factory resetting a computer running an older version of Windows is a little trickier, because there’s no reset tool built into the operating system.

Some computers come with recovery discs, which is a fairly easy way of performing a factory reset – you can just insert the disc and follow the instructions. Just remember to back up your files first!

Windows 8 computers will sometimes have a recovery application which is launched from within Windows, rather than from a disc, so check your app menu.

If you didn’t get any discs in the box, and don’t have a preinstalled recovery app, then there’s a good chance your PC or laptop has a recovery partition instead.

This is a hidden part of the hard drive which safely stores a complete copy of Windows, drivers and extra programs. You can use it return your computer to the exact state it was in the first day you had it – and it will perform just the same, too.

Backup any data which you wish to keep before performing a factory reset. You will probably want to copy everything from your user folders, including documents, photos, music and videos. The factory reset will delete all these along with any programs you’ve installed since you got your laptop.

  1. Start up or reboot your laptop.
  2. During the start-up process, hit the appropriate F key or key combination which we have listed below for your manufacturer.
  3. You should see instructions on the screen explaining how to proceed. Different manufacturers use different software to restore the ‘disk image’ from the recovery partition, so we can’t provide specific guidance. However, the process is almost always automatic once you’ve confirmed you definitely want to proceed.

It might be a case of waiting for 30 minutes for the job to happen in one go, but some systems restore Windows first, and then install drivers and programs automatically when Windows first boots. If that’s the case, don’t try to do anything until you see a message saying the restore has finished.

How to downgrade iOS 11

If you’ve upgraded to iOS 11 and got cold feet, it’s possible to downgrade, but only if you’re quick.

There are two main ways to do it, one of which requires you to have a backup and the other which – fortunately – doesn’t. Here we’ll explain how to downgrade iOS 11.

How to downgrade iOS: Method 1 – no backup needed*

* You may lose your text messages, but all other settings and apps will remain after the downgrade

  1. Download the appropriate IPSW file for your iPhone or iPad.
  2. Make sure iTunes on your computer is the latest version. If not, download and install it.
  3. Connect your iPhone or iPad to your computer and then click on your device when it appears.
  4. Under the Summary section, click the Check for Updates button while holding Shift (Windows) or Option (Mac).
  5. Now navigate to and choose the IPSW file you downloaded.
  6. Your device will be ‘updated’ to iOS 10.

As we said, the process will downgrade your phone or iPad without deleting all your stuff, but you will lose any text messages. So next time you upgrade, either make a full backup or don’t upgrade!

How to downgrade iOS: Method 2 – using a backup you already have

Not unreasonably, Apple doesn’t encourage downgrading to a previous version of iOS, but it is possible.

Currently Apple’s servers are still signing iOS 10.3.3. You can’t go back any further, unfortunately, which could be an issue if your most recent backup was made while running an older version of iOS (even version 10.3.2).

Let’s be clear: you can only restore a backup which was made while your phone or tablet was running iOS 10.3.3.

Our Macworld UK colleagues have a great guide to how to back up an iPhone, here. The key thing is to make sure you always have an up-to-date full backup, which is why it’s best to do a full password-protected backup via iTunes. You can also back up to iCloud to get a second chance of recovering your contacts, photos and other things.

Step 1.

To reinstall iOS 10 you need the relevant .ipsw file for your model of iPhone or iPad. Older versions won’t work as they’re not being ‘signed’ – or approved – by Apple’s servers.

(Mac users, if the ipsw file is stored on your Mac hard drive you can find it by following the path youruserfolder/Library/iTunes/ and then within a folder called iPad Software Updates, iPhone Software Updates or iPad Software Updates.)

If you can’t find the latest one on your Mac, or your a PC user, simply run a search for ‘download ipsw’ and select and download the appropriate file for your device. There are plenty of sites to choose from, including https://ipsw.me/ which helpfully tells you which versions are currently being signed.

Step 2.

Note: If you’re reading this after the final version of iOS 11 is release to the public you will have only a short time to downgrade (in past years as little as one week after the initial release date – not the date on which you upgraded) before it becomes impossible without a jailbroken phone.

Disable the Find My iPhone/iPad feature on the device if you’ve enabled it. You’ll find it in Settings > iCloud.

Plug in to your PC or Mac your iPhone or iPad. Launch iTunes. Click on your device in the iTunes interface and select Summary. Now hold down the Alt/Option key (Shift on a PC), and click the Restore iPhone button.

Now navigate to the IPSW file on your desktop and click Open. Your PC will now reinstall iOS 10.3.3 on your iPad or iPhone. Or it should…

Go into Recovery mode

If iTunes says you’re already running the latest version of iOS on your device, you may need to use Recovery mode. Completely power off the device, plug one end of the syncing cable into your computer and hold down the Home button on the iPhone/iPad while you connect the cable to it. When the ‘Connect to iTunes’ screen appears, release the Home button.

Restore your backup

If you have managed to go back, you’ll have a near-blank iPhone with none of your stuff on it. That’s where the backup you made comes in.

In iTunes click the Restore iPhone… button and choose the appropriate backup. It may take an hour or so, but your phone will be back to the way it was when you made the backup.

If you have no backup, you’ll have to sync music, videos and other content from iTunes or iCloud. You can then go to the App Store and download anything you’ve previously purchased after logging in with your Apple ID.

How the Internet of Things is changing privacy

In a world where almost every device connects to the Internet, and life without the web is inconceivable, privacy is a luxury we can no longer afford. Wouldn’t it be great to be able to enjoy everything the Internet has to offer yet still enjoy some privacy?

Recent studies indicate that the sheer number of AI-enabled virtual assistants will surpass humanity by 2021. Wearables, smart-home devices and smart TVs are expanding their share rapidly amid the increasing diversity and versatility of AI. Four years from now, this group alone will count roughly 1.6 billion devices. But the proliferation of smart devices comes at a heavy cost – one we’ve been paying willingly, for the sake of their services: privacy & security.

Digital assistants like Amazon’s Alexa and Apple’s Siri are constantly listening for user input, and learning, to deliver their invaluable contextual services. Biometric hardware like smart bracelets and smart watches store copious amounts of information about our physiology. Smart TV’s now come equipped with cameras. It only takes a piece of malware like Mirai to make one realize just how easy it is for hackers to grab control of these devices and peek into our private lives.

Consumers today are practically surrendering their privacy with each new dumb device they upgrade. Those who go to the trouble of reading the privacy policy / data collection policy for each smart device they use can be considered a minority. Or, to make them justice, an elite. A Pew Research study from 2014 revealed that half of online Americans didn’t even know what a privacy policy was.

Worse still, the cultural understanding of the “privacy policy” label among many consumers is that it “protects” your privacy, which couldn’t be farther from the truth.

“The general sense among marketers is that people understand that their data is being used, but we’ve found in our research that people don’t truly understand how data mining works,” according to Joseph Turow, who studies privacy at the University of Pennsylvania’s Annenberg School for Communication. “They may realize that one or two pieces of their information are being given out; what they don’t realize is that those one or two data points can be linked with other sources to uncover information they would have never given out in the first place.”

In other words, users are unaware that by giving away different pieces of information to different services, someone with access to that data can connect the dots and make a more complete profile of the user.

Experts warn that privacy challenges will, in fact, worsen as wearables, smart cars, smart home appliances and other members of the IoT family become linked together. Anticipating this trend, Bitdefender created BOX, a central hub that protects an entire household of connected devices, from smart TVs to Wi-Fi thermostats to gaming consoles.

As for smartphones, tablets and laptops, even connected on public networks they are secured as they were at home – protected from malware, data theft, fraud, phishing, spying and online threats. The iOS/Android BOX app keeps users informed on network events and offers access to parental controls. Users can push updates, locate lost devices, perform system tune-ups, even limit international data roaming or mobile plans.

IoT proliferation has the potential to infringe on basic human rights and Internet principles by collecting data with an unprecedented level of detail. Instead of crippling services for the sake of preserving our privacy, BOX works proactively to secure our data and enable smart devices to work as intended.

The best gaming laptops for 2017

Your guide to the latest and best gaming laptops of 2017. Check out our latest reviews and buying advice on the top gaming laptops for this year.

What’s the best gaming laptop you can buy in the UK?

  1. Asus RoG G752VM

The Asus ROG G752VM is a terrific gaming laptop for those who want top performance in a form designed to handle that power with ease. It doesn’t get overly hot or loud, even under a good amount of pressure, making us confident that even the step-up model with the Nvidia GTX 1070 GPU will also be a joy to use. As the prices of top-end style laptops like the MacBook Pro and HP Spectre 13 increase, the Asus ROG G752VM starts to look like an even better buy than last year’s models. And, as hoped, the latest 10-series Nvidia graphics cards blow away what came before. Despite being two rungs lower, gaming performance is not all that far off the former top dog GTX 980M, and similar to that of the desktop-grade GTX 970. In other words, it’s perfect for 1080p gaming. There are just a few issues. A textured glass (rather than plastic) trackpad would have been appreciated and we’d like to see Asus put a little more work into the sound quality of the speakers, rather than just trying to make them as loud as possible.

  1. Asus ROG Strix GL702VM

We have just one issue with the Asus ROG Strix GL702V: its trackpad does some strange things, most likely because of driver issues. Operating under the assumption this can or will be fixed, this is a great gaming laptop. It’s not incredibly expensive by today’s standards but still gets you desktop-grade gaming power, a good display, solid build and fair battery life. Thanks to the great power of Nvidia’s latest laptops graphics cards, this could well be the only gaming machine you need. And this particular one is hundreds cheaper than some others using the same GPU.

  1. Alienware 15 R3

The Alienware 15 R3 is a gaming laptop that is hard to beat. It has as much power as any of its mainstream rivals, and has lighting that is both eye-catching and customisable, but can also be switched off when you’d rather let you laptop slip into the background. It’s very well-made, the keyboard is great and the frame has some connections you sometimes only see in a laptop dock. However, its omission of a memory card slot is odd, the fan system is fairly loud and while hardcore gamers may appreciate the use of (in some models) a TN display it doesn’t do pure image quality many favours. As usual with an Alienware machine, you can find similar specs for less money from value-driven alternatives from, for example, PC Specialist and the HP Omen range. Its price is competitive with its direct rivals, the Acer Predator and Asus RoG series, and this is easily the slimmest and classiest-looking of the trio.

  1. Alienware 17 R4

There’s no doubt that the Alienware 17 R4 is one of the most capable gaming laptops we’ve seen, making easy work of our CPU and GPU benchmark tests and providing generally smooth gameplay. The design is eye-catching too, sporting a flurry of customisable LEDs across the body of the laptop, although it’ll never look as sleek and attractive as a MacBook Pro.

But while the Alienware 17 R4 is a powerful beast, it’s not perfect; it gets hot and loud fairly quickly, it’s heavy at over 4kg and we feel like it should feature one or two more USB ports, especially when boasting VR compatibility. And while it is incredibly powerful, our build was incredibly expensive too.

  1. MSI GL62-6QC 065UK

The MSI GL62 looks like a pretty plain entry-level gaming laptop at first, but it has a few neat tricks up its sleeve. Not everyone’s going to love the SteelSeries keyboard, but its mechanical key-inspired feel is something different, and its display colour saturation is impressive at the price, even if the screen won’t blow you away in other respects.

This isn’t a laptop for hardcore gamers or performance snobs, but it is a solid machine with the right level of future-proofing and a display that makes a punchy first impression. Plus, it’s much more affordable than the latest gaming laptops with the fastest graphics cards.