You are now a proud owner of a netbook and it is time to take good care of your new possession. The following tips on caring for your netbook are common knowledge but often neglected!
1. Screen Care
Do not touch the netbook screen with your finger, pen, pencil, etc. Often the screen looks visibly more dirty than any other parts of a netbook due to marks of fingerprints and dust. Clean the screen with a soft, dry anti-static cloth or with a screen cleaner designed specifically for LCD type screens only. Screens are particularly sensitive to damage from excessive pressure and never leave any object on the keyboard such as pens or pencils which are very likely to crack the screen when the lid is closed. Screens are the most expensive part of a netbook and their replacement cost often can buy you a new netbook!
2. Clean Regularly
It is important to routinely clean the netbook by making sure the vents and fans in the computer are clear and spinning effortlessly.
3. Store in a Case or Sleeve
Netbooks are designed for pure mobility. They are, however, more fragile and vulnerable to physical damage than their full-size laptop cousins, which have a heavy-duty build. Keep your netbook fully protected by carrying it in a sturdy, well-padded netbook case when you are out and about. The more padding your netbook case has, the better the protection it will provide.
4. Use a Chill Mat
Although netbooks are stripped down versions of laptops, they still generate heat. Using a chill mat with your netbook will help to prevent overheating, particularly if you work for extended periods of time.
5. Battery Care
Don’t let the battery completely drain. Immediately shutdown if you are unable to connect to the charger. Get into the habit of recharging the battery when it reaches 10-20%.
6. Shut-Down Before Moving
Always completely close the lid and wait for the netbook to enter standby mode before moving it, even for short distances. Movement while the netbook is on can result in permanent damage to the hard drive and therefore the loss of all data.
7. Back up your Data
Never consider any electronic information safe when stored on only one device. Backup to a pen/flash drive or to an external drive for large files.
8. Hard Drive Maintenance
Netbooks have smaller hard drive therefore clean unused temporary files to prevent your hard drive from reaching its maximum. Perform checkdisk and defrag operation on the hard drive regularly for optimum performance.
9. Avoid Leaving the Netbook in Extreme Hot Environment
Because of the small form factor, heat is your netbook’s worst enemy. Avoid keeping your netbook in hot places such as your car during the daytime.
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