I remember when notebooks / laptops were just mobile computers, back then WiFi and mobile broadband weren’t available and mobile computing meant just working at some place besides your office desk.
Times have changed and with the availability of mobile connectivity, it opens a new horizon on what we can do while we’re mobile. We could now browse Youtube while sitting at Starbucks, sipping our daily dose of aromatic black liquid. We could be sitting with a group of friends, twittering away or having a live webcam broadcast just to communicate.
Limitation of Mobile Computing
The problem that almost all of us often encounter, is the running out of power. The bigger the screen, the stronger the processor, and the more activity done – there goes your power drain.
In my case, mobile computing has been very helpful in many ways other than browsing the Internet. Just last week I came by a situation where I needed to reach an unfamiliar place and had no idea which was the best route to take.
So I fired up my ASUS Eee PC 1002HA and dialed my Celcom 3G connection via bluetooth through my Nokia N81 8GB, just to access wikimapia. 😀
With that, I made it to the event just in time. 😀 And I need not worry about my mobile computing time as the Eee PC has a small screen and powered by the Intel Atom processor that consumes very little power. My phone on the other hand was powered via car charger (an interesting name, for a device that has nothing to do with charging your car.)
Attempting to Extend Mobile Computing Time
Not everyone has the luxury to just change their notebooks into a netbook, neither does everyone feel comfortable with having a small screen and keyboard.
So the best way to extend your mobile computing is to know what drains your power and minimize the usage. The LCD / LED panel and the processor are the key components that drain your power, and hard disk activity too. And sad to say, these are not something that you could swap and get away with it.
You can start by not running your LCD / LED at the brightest setting. You could also set it on your operating system to turn off the LCD / LED when inactive. Try to avoid browsing sites that are heavy laden with ads and animation, for example the fronnt page lowyat.net. In my case, I browse the forum a lot and also load many other pages across multiple tabs, this also drains more battery power as each item that’s loaded involves data transfer and also caching that keeps the hard disk moving. Perhaps you could even consider disabling image loading when possible, or perhaps consider disabling javascript or even use Ad-blocker (not that I support it).
Remember, extending your Mobile Computing Time involves some sacrifice. 🙂 Knowing these little bits could be helpful for that extra few minutes that you wish you have.
Inside Matters In Usage Time
That’s why the puny netbooks could last a really long time for the average computing purpose, with the Intel Atom processor and small LCD, the power consumption is reduced. Some netbooks come with SSD instead of the usual hard disk, that helps power consumption even further. The low-power components help so much in reducing power consumption that it could be sustained even with a smaller battery pack.
What about you? Do you have any experience to share on how you extended your mobile computing time?
… WiFi and mobile broadband weren’t available …
… working at some place besides your office desk.
wow, at this rate I’m think I’m having a picky inspector on every article. 🙂
i guess you wish to highlight that it’s contradictory? it’s not, unless you wish to equate WORK = using WiFi/Mobile BB, which isn’t true since you don’t need WiFi /Mobile BB when you’re doing programming, or writing a document, working a spreadsheet or preparing a presentation.
There’s also the RJ45 connector where people hook up their laptops to their LAN or DSL modem. 🙂
And also there’s this Li-ion batery method which involves draining and recharging back during the first time of using it. I heard it prolongs your battery life, and age.
With the iphone i’ve noticed if you turn off the 3G when you are not on the internet, and also turn the brightness down on the screen you can save a lot of battery power!!
read properly please and compare to your article. only read the first paragraph and was pointing out spelling and grammatical errors.
@anon Next time, you could at least post it in a more clear manner – eg “goldfries, there’s typo.” 😳 Sorry, I really thought you’re coming as the usual critic. 😀 And thank you very much.
@Mandy – oh the iphone has a huge LCD screen. I do that for my Nokia N81 too, especially when low battery.
2nd paragraph
times have changed
and
We could now brose Youtube…
3rd paragraph
The problem is that almost all of us often encounter, is the running out of power.
should be changed to
The problem that almost all of us often encounter, is the running out of power.
or
The problem is that almost all of us often encounter running out of power.
4th paragraph
Just last week I came by a situation where I need to reach an unfamiliar place and have no idea which is the best route to take.
should be
Just last week I came by a situation where I needed to reach an unfamiliar place and had no idea which was the best route to take.
i didnt bother checking beyond that. first 4 paragraphs have at least one error in each. looks like a rushed article.
browse* – correcting my own correction
LOL. yes it was rushed. 😀 Maybe I’ll unveil the reason later. I admit the slack on this article.
things usually get screwed up when i change my mind a few times on a sentence. thanks for the correction. 😛
@Xcen – sorry missed your reply. What you mentioned sounds familiar, does it work in the long run?
If it’s a nice day, solar-powered chargers can help renew your battery power. The downside is the additional cost of the solar charger.
.-= Scott @ Scott @ Mobile Broadband Card ´s last blog ..Verizon Wireless USB 760 Modem =-.
mobile computing always have a growing trend in the succeding years;::
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