Categories Gadgets

Small-Medium Business Guide to Chromebook Buying

Purchasing a Chromebook rather than a traditional Apple or Windows laptop is an appealing option for the small and medium business owners who want to reduce their hardware costs and take advantage of business apps and cloud storage.

However, the world of Chromebooks can be quite confusing. In any case, how much offline storage space do you really require? Will Chromebook have the adequate processing power for you to access apps that you require, get real work done, and stream media.

There are various questions you need to answer to determine whether top rated Chromebooks are a better option for you. When you work your way through the steps, you can determine whether Chromebooks will suit your business or not. Moreover, this can help you shop for Chromebooks with a lot of confidence.

Chromebook versus Laptop

In a wide range of ways, Chromebooks are nearly the same as most laptops. That is the case when you look at the hardware specifications regarding display, processor, and keyboard. In fact, all the hardware basics are the same. The manner in which Chromebooks vary from standard Macs and PCs is twofold: internal storage and operating system.

Chromebooks run on ChromeOS, which is ideally Google’s operating system. Do you require a primer on the operating systems; what you ought to know is that the OS affects how the interface of a device looks whenever it is turned on. The way icons appear, how updates get rolled, and how menus are arranged can greatly vary depending on the operating system.

In addition, the OS manages the way hardware and software work together and the processing power and battery life. Until recently, Apple and Windows were the only user-friendly operating systems that were available. However, these days, most Mac and PC users do not have a problem navigating and logging on to the ChromeOS device.

What you have to consider before switching to ChromeOS is compatibility. In fact, if you are using any legacy software or various business apps, ensure you can use them on Chrome. This pops up into another consideration, internal storage and the ability to download the software.

Using Chromebooks in Business

The truth is that hardware specifications matter a lot when purchasing a regular laptop. It is advisable to check out the hardware recommendations for small and medium businesses. You should note that most Chromebooks end up saving their files in either Microsoft cloud storage or Google Drive. In most cases, you can download the files for limited offline usage.

Categories Gadgets

A Closer Look at Thermal Imaging Cameras

thermal imaging camera

Thermal imaging cameras are handled electronic devices that detect heat energy. Ideally, these cameras rely on a heat sensor and a lens. These two features and a combination of other properties allow engineers to identify regions with temperature anomalies. Thermal imaging cameras are primarily used to examine heat losses or areas where heat is lost.

How Thermal Imaging Cameras Work

Thermal cameras use an infrared technology. These cameras pick up the volume of infrared radiations that are emitted by a body. Infrared emissions are essentially heat signatures. The thermal imaging component comprises if a lens that allows infrared radiations to pass through it, focusing them on a set of sensors that can detect and read them.

The heat sensor reacts with infrared radiations dissipated by the hot body and converts them into a series of electronic signals. These signals are then processed by a set of processors embedded in the camera, which end relay them on the display unit as a color map. The final map is displayed on the screen for interpretation.

Top Uses of Thermal Cameras

Now that you have an idea of how thermal imaging cameras work, you need to understand how these gadgets are used outside engineering applications. That said, here are some common uses of thermal cameras.

Fire Detection

Thermal imaging cameras are used for fire detentions purposes. As such, firefighters use them to locate potential sources of fire. In other instances, they might also be used to find living things in low light intensities.  

thermal image

Security Cameras

Most homes and businesses rely on camera technologies to secure their premises. Thermal cameras perform exceptionally well under low light intensities. As such, there are often bundled with other sensor technologies to enhance the effectiveness of security cameras.

Wildlife Photography

Thermal imaging technologies feature significantly in wildlife photography. As such, thermal cameras are installed in natural habitats, thus make it possible to spot hard-to-spot wildlife without raising suspicion. They might also be used to detect warm-blooded animals in areas with poor visibility.

Thermal cameras can be utilized in a wide range of conditions. With a wide variety of thermal cameras available, it is imperative to sift through the options available in the market and choose a thermal camera that suits your unique preferences.

Categories Gadgets

5 Benefits of Using Thumb Drives

Goodbye to floppy disks and massive hard drives. USB thumb drives are used to transfer data to or from a computer. Among the significant advantages of USB drives is that they are portable and can be used for multiple purposes. It starts from 1 to 128 GB sized data. This device is the standard option to connect all electronic and storage devices to a computer.

It is durable.
Unlike old hard-disk drives, flash drives do not have movable parts. Hard drives are built of aluminum or glass platters that produce as data is being read, but flash drives are compact drives that are less vulnerable to breakage from drops or blows.

You can bring it everywhere.
portable small tiny
Flash drives are also considerably tinier than other types of data storage devices, which makes them easy to store in any place such as pockets and keychains for increased portability. It’s much more challenging to do this with hard drives, as flash drives are often not larger than a few inches at most, with widths measuring less than an inch. Some flash drive designs may be bigger in many cases, such as broader business card flash drives, but these designs emphasize customization over portability.

It has a bigger storage capacity.
Today’s flash drives give a lot more storage capacity than older ones, with most of them can store up to 128 GB at a maximum. Flash drives with 1 gigabyte, or less of memory are often cheaper and are usually great for offices and businesses to buy in bulk to give your employees. However, it may require a backup for a hard drive or need to run specific programs, and more storage capacity is ideal.

It is convenient to use.
Today’s USB thumb drives have a process rate of up to 4.8 GB per second, which is a rate that other storage gadgets can’t cope.

It is compatible with a lot of devices.
device port laptop
The USB interface is one of the most convenient ways to use flash drives to almost any gadgets. Whether you have a laptop, tab, or desktop, smartphones, you’ll likely find it has USB ports for three or more to allow you to plug in these devices without issue. This is better than old-school SD memory cards, for which many computers don’t have slots. There is also a USB that you can directly connect to your phone for mobile data transfers and storage.

Categories Gadgets

Considerations When Buying a Smartwatch

If you’re thinking about buying your first smartwatch, then that’s an excellent decision because such a gadget has a lot of uses. However, you should keep in mind that not every smartwatch you come across in the market is worth buying.  Let us look at some of the factors to consider when buying a smartwatch.

Brand Reputation

For starters, you should ensure that you purchase a smartwatch that was manufactured by a reputable brand. There is no denying that Apple is the most popular brand when it comes to smartwatches. Opting for an Apple smartwatch is great because you’ll have peace of mind knowing that the brand has an excellent reputation when it comes to producing some of the best gadgets.

apple watch

However, it is recommended to check out other brands too. Moreover, you need to find out the limitations as well as the downsides of using an Apple smartwatch. For instance, buying an Apple smartwatch if you’re an Android user is not advisable because an Apple smartwatch is not compatible with other operating systems. Instead, opt for Samsung smartwatch, which is also packed with high-end features. If you’re after pocket-friendly products, consider buying a Xiaomi smartwatch, which is not only affordable but is also equipped with a long-lasting battery.

apple smartwatchFeatures

Next, find out about the features available on the smartwatch of choice. For instance, choose something that is fitness-friendly such as the Apple Watch Series 3 if your main reason for buying a smartwatch is for fitness purposes. On the other hand, consider buying a Samsung Gear S3 if you want to own a smartwatch that has a lot of excellent features. Those who want a smartwatch that is comfortable to wear can buy a Huawei Watch 2. In short, find out about the strong features of each smartwatch so that you can decide which one is suitable for you, depending on your preference.

Reviews

As expected, manufacturers will advertise their products as the best in the market. Therefore, it is your task to find out whether or not their claim is true. That said, you should spend some time browsing the internet to look for reviews left by other users. Moreover, you can also search for blogs that review smartwatches because the write-ups on these blogs were written by people who have in-depth knowledge when it comes to smartwatches. Reading their write-ups will surely help you come up with an informed buying decision.