Smartphone Hacks That Are Untrue

SMARTPHONE MYTHS AND SOME THAT TURNED OUT TO BE TRUE Since cell phones were first developed, there have been rumors about everything from radiation to why you should freeze your battery DO YOU KNOW WHAT'S TRUE? SMARTPHONE URBAN LEGENDS FALSE YOUR SMARTPHONE CAN COOK AN EGG Phones do emit small amounts of radiation, but you would need 7,000 phones to create radiation to warm an egg How Did The Myth Begin? In 2000, Wymsey Village Web published a satirical article describing how to cook an egg using 2 phones – since then, the hoax has been repeated across the web YOUR PHONE IS DIRTIER THAN A TOILET SEAT Americans check their phones 52X per day, spreading germs through their touch TRUE Cellphones carry 10X more bacteria than toilet seats, including Clean Your Phone Streptococcus MRSA Wipe off your phone with alcohol wipes to kill germs without compromising your tech E. coli REMOVING YOUR SIM CARD WILL PREVENT TRACKING Don't believe everything you see in the movies – if your phone still has power in the battery (on or off), it could be tracked by the authorities FALSE How To Prevent Tracking Turn on Shut down airplane mode your phone Disable Remove GPS signal the battery PHONES INTERFERE WITH HOSPITALS, PLANES, GAS STATIONS mostly Smartphone are very unlikely to interfere with airplanes or medical equipment FALSE One study found that medical errors and injury are 6X more likely to result from The FAA doesn't want to ol take risks - active cell 6:47 PM signals are still banned. But, most hospitals find phones do more good than harm delayed communication than from interference Despite warnings to never use your phone at the pump, cell signals cannot spark a gasoline explosion There have been no News outlets will often blame documented cases of phone use when fires occur, but later investigations have always found a different cause phone-related fires HOW WELL DO YOU KNOW YOUR PHONE? Of the 1 in 3 Americans who owned a 5G-capable smartphone, 62% say they've noticed better service as a result. But, most of the country doesn't have 5G coverage yet BATTERY & CHARGING MYTHS Smartphone batteries aren't what they used to be – In fact, many myths about batteries today are based on problems technology has already solved FALSE FALSE FALSE BATTERIES Let Your Battery THE FREEZE-YOUR-PHONE HAVE MEMORY Drop to Zero FIX Lithium-ion batteries aren't designed for Lithium-ion batteries degrade over time, meaning eventually a full charge won't last as long as it did when your phone was new Letting your battery drop to zero actually wears out lithium-ion batteries faster – Frequent, partial charging is the way to go extreme temperatures – extreme heat or extreme cold will degrade the battery even faster Older NiCad batteries could But, if your phone suddenly stops working at 20% charge, draining the battery MIGHT recalibrate its battery level sensor If your phone is exposed to temperature develop a “memory" – but the risk was reduced by fully draining the battery before each recharge extremes ensure it's returned to room temperature before recharging to minimize the damage mostly NEVER CHARGE OVERNIGHT FALSE Today's smartphones contain protection chips to prevent overcharging – once the battery hits 100% charging stops But every time the battery hits 99% a little trickle of power will bump it back up, which can increase your phone's temperature and cause damage Use a WIFI smart plug for safe overnight charging – simply program the plug to cut power a few hours after you go to bed, once your phone is fully charged In 2019, Apple introduced Optimized Battery Charging - using machine learning your iPhone can determine your habits and prevent trickle charging mostly TRUE NEVER USE KNOCK-OFF CABLES Cheap, knock-off charging cables might cause problems if the cord and connectors Bad cables can damage the chip that protects your phone from overcharging – triggering long-lasting battery problems don't match your phone's specs FOR IPHONE FOR USB-C: Look for cables labelled "Made Look for cables labelled for iPhone" "Certified USB Charger" Nearly all American adults own a cellphone 8 IN 10 HAVE A SMARTPHONE Do you know how to get the best performance from your device? SMARTPHONE HACKS FALSE USE A SCREEN PROTECTOR TO PREVENT SCRATCHES Today's smartphones have advanced, scratch-resistant glass - screen protectors are much less durable than the glass they're meant to protect Taking a knife to a Gorilla Glass display won't scratch the surface. But, a few materials like sand, rocks, and concrete, do pose a risk You might still want a screen protector if You enjoy hiking or rock climbing You're going to the beach You frequently drop your phone FALSE WIPE YOUR PHONE WITH A MAGNET Magnets can wipe data from magnetically recorded media – like tapes and floppy disks. But, modern solid-state drives aren't affected by static magnetic fields Without a working compass: Magnet can do permanent damage to your phone. A strong magnet can magnetize the steel components, navigations apps can't determine your position and games can't determine your phone's orientation creating a magnetic field that interferes with your phone's compass HOW TO WIPE YOUR PHONE Delete any Log out of all 2 Complete a 3 factory reset sensitive data your accounts DRY YOUR WET PHONE IN RICE Rice can only absorb moisture it comes into direct contact with – and IF this method works, the starch can gum up your phone's delicate electronics FALSE Try This Instead Recover phone from the water as quickly as possible Remove the battery, or O carefully power down Seal your phone in an airtight bag with synthetic desiccant Or, take it to a professional repair shop GET THE MOST OUT OF YOUR EXPENSIVE TECH Sources presented by pewinternet.org/fact-sheet/mobile support.apple.com/en-us/HT210512 snopes.com/fact-check/oeuf-the-wall snopes.com/fact-check/fuelish-pleasures wired.com/2014/02/thats-deal-wet-phone ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4332273 time.com/4949569/mobile-phone-charge-overnight UBREAKIFIX. DEVELOPED BY N NOWSOURCING digitaltrends.com/computing/usb-charger-standards-usb-if batteryuniversity.com/learn/archive/memory_myth_or_fact itstillworks.com/prevent-cell-phones-being-tracked-1727.html howtogeek.com/426208/what-does-apple hbc.com/future/article/20130513-Can apple-mfi-certified-mean com/bowtobo toss13-can-you-use-phones-in-hospitals cnet.com/how-to/how-to-wipe-your-phone-or-tablet-before-selling starhub.com/nersonalhow-t Vhow-to/ten-mobile-phone-myths-debunked.html .com/mobile/how-magnets-really-allecrpnoeeda -really-affect-phones-hard-drives 9Naie k.com/190107/does-your-smartphone-really-need-a-screen-protector science.org.aur cue57987/cha au/curious/technology-f ay-future/memory-effect-rechargeable-batteries pcmag.com/news/357987/charging-your-phone-overnight-battery-myths-debunked cablewholesale.com/blog/index.php/2016/06/22/myths-and-facts-about-cell-phone-accessories vice.com/en_us/article/bj34z5/why-counterfeit-lightning-cables-kill-iphones-cheap-iphone-chargers theconversation.com/using-your-phone-on-a-plane-is-safe-but-for-now-you-still-cant-make-calls-98136 deloitte.com/us/en/pages/technology-media-and-telecommunications/articles/global-mobile-consumer-survey-us-edition.html