Let’s be honest most of us adore technology. We go utterly gooey over games consoles, treat our smartphones like they’re our first born children, check our social media accounts around ten times a day and spend hours surfing the net just because we can. However, there is some digital dross out there that’s just not worth your time!



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PC Health Checks

We aren’t saying that you shouldn’t have virus protection installed and, in fact, experts suggest that free versions only touch the tip of the web security iceberg! It’s always best to have a subscription service if you can, as advanced features are far more likely to pick up on any nasty malware issues than a free version will. No, what we’re talking about is those ‘PC Tune-Up’ pop-up windows that always seem to appear at the most inconvenient time, and, because most of us don’t understand how computers work, we click the clink because we all want our operating systems running smoothly don’t we? There's no need to go blowing dough on a sub-par software program, plenty of sites like PC Advisor offer PC scanners for free, which will tell you if your computer is as fit as a fiddle or riddled with spyware, tons of junk files and temporary downloads.



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Ignore The Cable Guy

Some companies, not naming names, are masters at forcing us into buying cables we don’t need by promising that they’ll charge our devices super fast. Because in all truth, if your phone’s battery is on its last legs and you need to make an urgent call, you’d rather spend $25 on something you think will work better than $15 on a cable with a faulty connection. However, all cables work using the same wires and connectors, so the chances are a cheaper one will work the same as a one that's been marketed better.

Try to avoid paying over the odds for TV cables, like HDMI connectors because there’s rarely a difference between them. If in any doubt about what sort of cables you need, it may be worth speaking to your TV’s manufacturer or if you’re concerned about your router then talk to your internet provider, something you can do here. Remember, specific devices do require special cables, in fact, you’ll find that the same product may not always charge properly simply because the wire, even though it looks similar, is designed to power a smaller or larger version.



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In-Car GPS

While Sat-Navs were once the hottest car accessory you could own, the shine soon wore off after many bought these fabled pieces of kit only to be given incorrect directions, faulty updates and told to take slower routes instead of quicker ones. These days, as long as you have a smartphone, all you need to do is pop it in an appropriate stand and load up Google Maps, CityMapper or Waze. Still, you should realize these apps tend to drain both battery and data so make sure you’ve plugged the phone in before you start the car. Please also check you’ve got a data bolt-on or buy an unlimited monthly subscription if you use GPS regularly.