5 Ways to Extend the Life Of Your Household Batteries

Battery Image Gallery

Check out these tips for getting the most from your batteries.

iStockphoto.com/Les Cunliffe

by Josh Peterson, Planet Green

We use a lot of batteries. They don't create carbon emissions when inserted into a walkie-talkie or a digital camera. I'm sure parts of the battery's shipping, production and recycling processes release carbon emissions, but their actual use does not. The greenest part of a battery's life is when they are in your hands, being used for their intended purposes. That means it is your responsibility to keep them alive as long as possible before sending them to the recyclers. Here are some tips.

Rechargeable batteries can be used in most electronics.

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1: Buy Rechargeable

Painfully, painfully obvious. But a good place to start. Buyrechargeable batteries for obvious reasons. Nickel Metal Hydride (NiMH) are better than rechargeable alkaline batteries. NiMHs can be charged thousands of times before they need to be disposed of or recycled (try Call2Recyclewhich has thousands of drop-off locations in the U.S. and Canada). If you are not going to recharge, then buy alkaline batteries. They maintain their power longer than NiMH batteries. NiMH's are terrible if you don't plan on recharging them.

Don't wait too long before recharging your batteries.

Don Farrall/Getty Images

2: Charge Before It's Too Late

You can charge NiMH batteries any time you feel like. They lose their power quickly, so you'll probably recharge them a lot. Luckily, it doesn't take that much electricity to charge them. Make sure to remove the charger from the wall socket when you are done charging. Rechargeable alkaline batteries will last longer if they are charged often. A fully depleted battery is a short-lived battery.

Not all gadgets are equal when it comes to battery selection.

iStockphoto.com/Nicole Waring

3: Use the Right Battery for the Job

A digital camera will drain the life out of an alkaline battery faster than Dracula on a peasant. Make sure to buy alkalines that are specially designed for high-drain applications. Maplin batteries, for example.

Remove batteries from portable gaming devices, seasonal electronics and household items that aren't being used.

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4: Remove Batteries From Seldom-used Devices

At Halloween you may have purchased a plastic skull in a barrel that has a motion sensor attached. When someone passed that device, the skull popped out and said something both corny and chilling. When Halloween was over, you should have taken the batteries out of the device. Store them in a dry, cool place.

Putting batteries in your fridge is especially helpful if you live in a hot climate.

Henrik Weis/Getty Images

5: Put Batteries in the Fridge

This works great for NiMH batteries. They'll retain 9/10 of a full charge while stored in the fridge. At room temperature, there is a possibility that they'd keep only a fraction of that fraction. Alkaline batteries are a bit more controversial. Studies have shown that alkaline battery life is extended by only 5% if kept in the fridge. That's not a whole lot, but if you live in a hot climate, your batteries may actually deplete because of it, making the alkaline-battery-in-the-fridge idea a worthwhile one. If you live in Alaska, your batteries are probably all right sitting in a drawer in the pantry.

NOTE: Make sure to warm up batteries to room temperature before using. Additional, if you need batteries for an emergency, remember to keep a set out of the fridge for just such emergencies.

For more tips and information about batteries, see the next page.

Peterson, Planet Green, Josh.  "5 Ways to Extend the Life Of Your Household Batteries"  06 December 2011.  HowStuffWorks.com. <http://electronics.howstuffworks.com/everyday-tech/extend-battery-life.htm>

Top 10 IT pro's to follow on Twitter

IT website, v3, has published a list of IT executives to follow on Twitter to help you keep up with the latest IT news.

So below, courtesy of v3, is the top 10;

Padmasree Warrior, Cisco chief technology officer@padmasree 
With over one million Twitter followers, the Cisco CTO is a shining example not only of how tech execs can embrace social networking, but of how women can break through the glass ceiling to take high-profile IT roles.

Matt Asay, open source advocate @mjasay
Matt Asay recently left his role as chief operating officer at Ubuntu developer Canonical to join mobile apps startup Strobe. We'd recommend following Asay for his insights on the latest tech and products without constantly pushing a corporate message.

Matt Cutts, head of the Webspam team at Google @mattcutts
The Googler uses his Twitter account to share the latest Google news and to offer tips and advice to his followers.

Chris Anderson, TED curator @TEDchris
Chris's Twitter feed is a mirror of what the Technology, Entertainment, Design (TED) non-profit organisation aims to achieve - spread ideas. Follow Chris for his views on the big news stories of the day, as well as snippets on the latest technology and other TED talks.

Michael Dell, Dell chairman and CEO @MichaelDell
Not many technology CEOs have their own Twitter account, and when they do, it's often filled with impersonal posts and plugs for the firm. Michael Dell's account is refreshingly personal, and he uses Twitter not only to update his followers on the latest at Dell, but to talk directly to customers and others in the industry.

Kevin Rose, founder of Digg @kevinrose
The founder of the community content site is very active on Twitter, on everything from his latest Milk venture to Macbook Airs and Spotify.

Evan Williams, Twitter co-founder @ev
The farmboy from Nebraska offers some useful tidbits of information, as well as his views on all things tech.

Mike Chambers, principal product managerof Adobe Flash @mesh
A useful source for Adobe updates, as well as hands-on tech advice.

Stefan Weitz, Microsoft search executive @stefanweitz 
Follow Stefan to keep up with the latest industry search news.

Chuck Hollis, EMC VP Global Marketing CTO @chuckhollis 
Chuck is a big fan of Twitter, judging by the very frequent updates, and offers an entertaining flow of information about tech along with some more random insights.

Story Source: http://www.v3.co.uk/v3-uk/news/2096208/technology-executives-follow-twitter

Apple Axing Old iPods, Keeping Only Touch-Screen Models - Sources

Unnamed sources cited by an Apple-centric blog seem to confirm an old rumor about Apple discontinuing some old iPod models, particularly the hard-disk-based classic and the screen-free shuffle.

As Apple is slowly but surely transitioning every one of its products to NAND Flash storage, the iPod classic is regarded as an antique, and so is the iPod shuffle which offers the least amount of features in the entire lineup of Apple players.


While the classic still makes sense for those who love to have huge libraries of music (and videos) with them at all times, it does come with spinning platters inside. The hardware is rapidly becoming obsolete, and Apple is always the first to axe the old.

TUAW has been hearing the same thing. Sources close to the blog and to Apple are signaling that the discontinuation is not far - perhaps to be announced at the October 4 iPhone event.

The shuffle is in the same boat with the classic, as in it will get phased out for becoming irrelevant in the face of touch-based nanos that boast pretty much the same form factor and portability, yet offer much more advanced functionality.

As for the rest of the iPod lineup, the sources say don’t expect much to be changed, and that includes the price of the iPod nano which isn’t incredibly expensive, but would be a much more attractive purchase at, say, $99 for the entry-level 8GB model.

The nano will reportedly become the low-end iPod starting this fall.

As for the iPod touch, Apple is not changing it one bit, the sources say. A couple of Wall Street analysts have speculated that white models are on the launch pad for this year, but there is little evidence of that for now.

The GPRS Technology and Its Uses

Author: Frank Solan

Mobile phones, one of the best gadgets for communication ever invented, have become more of a necessity today. With the rapid advancement of technology, mobile phones have changed beyond recognition both from the technological as also aesthetic viewpoint.

One of the most significant technological advancement that cell phones these days boast of is GPRS. It has almost become a necessary feature in even entry-level mobile phones.

Let's take a look at what GPRS is all about and what it can foster.

What is GPRS

The general packet radio service i.e. GPRS, is a latest technology being incorporated in cell phones. It's a non-voice technology which enables the mobile phone to connect itself to the internet in a much cheaper and faster way. In simpler terms, GPRS helps your cell phone go online.

Unlike any current wireless digital internet connection, no dial-up modem is required in the GPRS service and it's nearly ten times faster compared to current GSM networks. You can log on to the World Wide Web at speeds of up to 171.2 kbps with a GPRS-enabled cell phone and you have to pay only for the data you transfer and not for the full length of your login time.

A GPRS enabled mobile phone enables you to enjoy uninterrupted wireless access to the internet even if you're on the move. You can access your favorite websites, web applications and entertainment services. You can also download and enjoy the various types of Java games on your cell phone.

Apart from the above there are several other things that you can do with GPRS. Here are a few of them.

Easy email access

With continuous internet connectivity, checking emails on the go, in a GPRS enable mobile phone is very easy. The alert mechanism of the GPRS technology, when linked to the email service, notifies the user whenever a new mail arrives at the inbox.

Web browsing

Enjoying faster browsing of the internet is possible with a GPRS enabled cellular phone. In fact, with its feature of collaborative working and document sharing, several people from multiple locations can work on a common document simultaneously.

File transfer

While transferring or downloading files, the information available can be via one of the several internet communication methods like FTP, HTTP, Java, telnet etc. or from a proprietary legacy platform or database. The process of file transfer is usually bandwidth intensive. The speed of a GPRS enable mobile phone, however, flows across mobile networks, making it really fast, regardless of the type of file you intend to transfer.

Images and video

A GPRS enabled cell phone, allows posting of greetings cards, photographs and even multimedia presentations from a web or digital camera connected to the GPRS service, directly onto a website.

Besides the above, remote LAN access and chatting on the web can also be done with a GPRS enabled cell phone. Mobile operators are including more services to the GPRS ambit, as 3G technology is yet to come under the grasp of the common man and relatively more expensive.

Windows 8 debuts at Microsoft Build

Steven Sinofsky, president of Microsoft's Windows and Windows Live division, gives a preview of Windows 8.

(Credit: Microsoft )

Editor's note: We used Cover It Live for this event, so if you missed the live blog, you can still replay it in the embedded component at the end of this post. Replaying the event will give you all the live updates along with commentary from our readers and CNET reporters. You can also read our summary story and individual posts, including our hands-on early look at Windows 8, as well as a story on the operating system's bold new look and feel. Also check out our slideshow for a tour of Windows 8.

ANAHEIM, Calif.--Just when many folks are getting used to running Windows 7, Microsoft's latest operating system, the software giant plans to unveil the first details of the upcoming Windows 8.

Microsoft will start taking the wraps off its next operating system at its Build conference Tuesday at 9 a.m. PT, and we'll be there to bring you the news, live from the Anaheim Convention Center. Microsoft holds these types of events--they used to be called Professional Developers Conferences--to give software developers guidance to create new applications for the next generation of its operating system.

This conference comes at a crucial time for Microsoft. PC growth is slowing as tablets, notably Apple's iPad, are displacing PCs for some applications. Until now, Microsoft has had no real competitive response. Build will be its best effort to change the conversation.

The company has already given a few peeks at Windows 8. At the D9 conference this spring, Microsoft unveiled a new interface that uses the same look--which Microsoft has dubbed Metro--as its Windows Phone 7 operating system. At that conference, Microsoft also gave a glimpse of its new touch interface.

The company has since disclosed some other, more technical, details, such as faster boot times and the addition of its Hyper-V virtualization tool in the operating system.

Read more: http://news.cnet.com/8301-10805_3-20105152-75/windows-8-debuts-at-microsoft-build-live-blog/#ixzz1Y0rcOEyA