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Posts Tagged ‘WiFi’

Geek Squad Agents Become Free WiFi Hotspots this Holiday Season

With WiFi hotspots popping up in all kinds of places, Geek Squad returned to the lab for a “next-gen” holiday gift. Now “Secret Agent Santas” will take WiFi technology to the next level, releasing WiFi hotspots from the electrical outlet through the use of high-speed USB modems and battery-powered routers.

Beginning today, select Agents in Atlanta, Chicago, Los Angeles, New York, and San Francisco will become “Secret Agent Santas,” providing free Internet access wherever they are. “Secret Agent Santas” will help people stay connected on the final leg of this holiday season on trains, in parks and at a multitude of other locations. WiFi’d Agents will be easily recognizable by their non-uniform holiday headgear – a light-up red and white Santa hat with LEDs around the brim.

Civilians are encouraged to take advantage of the free internet service and speak with the Agents about any technology problems or questions they might have. Select Geekmobile® vehicles in Atlanta and San Francisco also will be set up to provide service.

“Free WiFi has made staying connected easier and increased the usefulness of laptops, smartphones and other hand-held devices,” said Geek Squad Agent Ismael Matos. “By creating these roving hotspots, we’re providing an even greater level of service. Need WiFi on an ‘L’ train in Chicago? We can help. Want us to park six Geekmobiles at an Atlanta football game so you can tailgate and stay connected? We can do that too.

“To serve the greatest number of people, these hotspots will not be password protected,” continued Matos. “We recommend that civilians not conduct any particularly sensitive work as a result. Check sports scores but not bank accounts.”

WiFi’d Agents are a gift that keeps on giving; rolling out this holiday season, the service will continue indefinitely. Keep an eye out for specially marked Geek Squad Agents and open hotspots named “Geek Squad.” And if you have any WiFi location requests, please visit Geek Squad Intelligence (http://www.geeksquad.com/intelligence/) and leave us a comment.

Geek Squad 2MM: Defining Different Router Options

“My cell phone is about to…(silence ensues)

There are many ways to preserve battery life on your cell phone.  The top five things you can do to prevent “low battery syndrome” are:

1.  Turn Off Bluetooth – Your phone’s Bluetooth antenna is the #1 contributor to dead batteries.  The reason is that not only is it consistently broadcasting a signal for other devices to pick up, but it may also be searching for signals.  The best thing to do is to disable Bluetooth if you are not using it.  If you use it frequently, say with a headset, at least check to see if your phone has an option to disable searching for devices.
2. Wi-Fi Connections – #2 on the list of battery killers is your phone’s Wi-Fi capabilities.  Again, your phone is constantly searching for a hotspot if the Wi-Fi antenna is turned on.  Always disable Wi-Fi when it is not in use.
3. Roaming/No Signal – Believe it or not, if your phone has no signal, that can and will drain your battery.  The reason is that the phone is working harder than normal trying to find a tower to connect to.  Roaming can also be a power drain since your phone may be using a tower that the phone was not designed to work with.  If you are going to be out of your main coverage area for a long period of time, it might be a good idea to power down your phone until you can get service again.
4. Backlight Settings – Another great way to conserve battery life is to reduce the amount of time the backlight on your screen stays on.  For best results, consult your owners manual for recommended settings, but anything 30 seconds or shorter is a safe bet to improve battery life.
5. Data Connections – For those of you who may be smartphone users, check your email and data connections.  If you are using a direct connection to a server to update when new items arrive (commonly known as a “push”), you may see shorter battery life.  Try changing your sync settings to every 30 minutes or even every hour.  You will see a huge difference in the longevity of your battery because the phone is no longer maintaining a constant data connection.

Remember, results will vary based on your phone and your usage patterns, but trying a few or all of these tweaks may be the difference between a good night’s sleep in a comfy hotel bed or snoozing at a rest stop, reclined in your driver’s seat!

Geek Squad 2MM: How to Connect Your Home Theater to the Internet

In this Two Minute Miracles video Geek Squad Agents Lee Weisbecker and Mike Nelson explain different ways you can connect your home theater components, such as a Blu-Ray player, to the internet.

Roam with Wi-Fi

Many major US airlines have begun offering passengers a wireless internet connection in-flight. As long as your device has a wireless internet card (wireless B or G), you should be able to connect while in-flight (usually for a fee). But what do you do when you are jetting at 35,000 feet and have a connection issue? Here are a few quick tips that might get your WiFi up and running. And they will even work if you’re having trouble connecting in other public WiFi spots (like Starbucks for example).

In the Know About On-the-Go

It’s vacation time! When I was deciding how to spend it, I knew there were two things I needed to think about in my hotel selection:

• Location – a hotel close to the attractions I wanted to visit

• Features – WiFi for the laptop. After all, even vacationing geeks like to have Internet access at the end of a long day touristing.

Here are a few things that may help simplify your travel this summer:

Trek Tech: Gadgets That Boldly Went Where No Gadget Had Gone Before!

There’s a new Star Trek movie coming out today and it got me thinking – what has Star Trek contributed to the modern-day universe? Could it be possible we owe some modern day conveniences to this long-running series of fictional TV shows and movies?

Wireless Networking Basics

In this “Two Minute Miracle” video, Agent Hymans shows you the basics of a wireless network including the necessary parts and types of wireless networks.