When your laptop has drawn its last electronic breath, the resulting down time can cause many inconveniences. However, problems such as an inability to get online will suddenly seem very insignificant when faced with the much bigger issue of the information loss that will often occur when hardware fails.
The majority of us still fail to back up important data despite the ease with which we can now do so without needing to spend a single penny. Not only is the cost of external hard drives coming down all the time, whilst the potential storage continues to increase astronomically, but with cloud storage and numerous sharing and storage services being available for free online, there really is no reason not to back up our vital data.
Except for the fact that it is so easy to forget
Hardware failure rarely waits for a convenient moment; instead, it usually occurs at the worst possible time. You may have backed up your data every day for a year, but when life gets in the way and you have three months of vital documents, your entire life schedule and a vast media collection all waiting for you to find the time to securely store elsewhere, it is likely to be then that your computer decides to take its final bow.
DEALING WITH YOUR DYING COMPUTER
Complete hardware failure is not the only reason why you might be left without access to important digital data. From screen failure to a faulty battery, there may be many reasons why the hard drive suddenly becomes inaccessible. Whilst there will be many different approaches one can take depending on the specific issue being faced, there will be one option that will be suitable for almost everyone no matter what their computer troubles.
For example, those whose laptop screen is proving to be the issue may find that they can hook up their computer to an external monitor and in turn instantly access their data. By using such an approach, they can then save the contents of their hard drive elsewhere before looking at sourcing a new screen or disposing of their laptop altogether. However, this will involve spending time and possible money getting an external monitor, only for you then still need to repair or dispose of the computer.
By choosing to disregard the initial step, you could jump straight to the disposal part of the process and rather than retrieving data costing you money, it could actually make you money instead.
Recycling laptops is the easiest way to turn dead or dying laptops into cash. If you tried to sell an old, clapped-out laptop online, you would probably end up paying someone to take it away, yet by choosing to recycle your computer you may actually be rewarded with a significant amount of money. Furthermore, if you choose the right company to recycle your laptop for you, they are likely to offer a data copy service, allowing you to remove any data you need for a small fee (that will no doubt be more than covered by the money you receive for giving them your laptop in the first place). For some, this will be a vital part of recycling an old laptop, whilst for others who do not have any hardware issues, it may still save time and hassle when one wishes to get data from an old machine onto a new one.
Backing up data remains vital, but should computers pack up before you have had chance to do so, it will be an oversight that should be easily remedied.
About the Author – Adam Howes is a freelance writer and blogger. He regularly contributes articles to technological resource sites, consulting websites such as www.laptoptradein.co.uk to stay up to date with all the latest industry news and developments.