Like any household item, tech can leave a bit of a mess. Cables tangled up in a corner. Old laptops sitting on a shelf. And that charger? It must be round here somewhere. Sound familiar?
But there’s no need to panic. Keeping your tech tidy is much simpler than it seems. With this handy step-by-step guide you’ll get it sorted in no time.
Time for a tech audit
Marie Kondo’s got to take the credit for this one. Gather all your loose tech together (or do it room by room if you’re not feeling quite brave enough yet) and put it in a pile. Cables, tablet, phones - the lot.
Next, sift through everything and categorise it. Match laptops with their chargers, keep TV cables all together... and by the time you get to the end, you should be all sorted!
Cull the clutter
If there’s any piece of unfamiliar tech you’re unsure about – what it is, what it connects to – think about ditching it. If you haven’t had any use for it so far, the likelihood is that you won’t need it.
You can recycle it locally, or use something like our trade-in service (once lockdown ends) for more expensive pieces of tech. We’ll make sure it gets recycled or re-used, and you could get a gift card in return.
Bung it in some baskets
Setting aside some storage space is the key to de-cluttering. Bits and pieces always seem to go walk-about… usually when you need them most.
So, get yourself some baskets. Reserve one for each of your newly organised tech piles. Put your tech baskets in the places you’re most likely to need them. For example, you could put a basket with your HDMI cables or soundbar chargers next to the TV. Or your laptop and phone chargers next to your bed.
Become a cable king or queen
If there are cables that are plugged in all the time, the baskets aren’t going to help much. What will help is a cable management system. Don’t worry. It’s easier than it sounds.
There are loads to choose from. You can go old school with cable ties – some come with cable identifiers or different colours, so you can easily see what goes where when you need it.
Or if you want to hide your cables - rather than just neaten them – you could get a cable sleeve. Thread your cables through and attach the sleeve to the floor or bottom of your desk. No more mess!
Keep a case for accessories
What about tech that tends to float around the house, like a tablet or Nintendo Switch? A dedicated case with pockets could be the answer. That way, accessories like headphones are kept together.
Plus, if you get a brightly coloured case it can make it easier to find. Especially useful when you’ve got a piece of tech that’s shared between the family.
Do a deep clean
We touch our tech all the time, so it’s inevitable it’s going to get dirty after a while. And the number one culprit? Our laptops.
Three tools that are indispensable for a good laptop clean are:
Compressed air: these little cans are sometimes called ‘air dusters’. They shoot out a concentrated jet of air which pushes all the bits of dust and dirt out of the way. A bit like blowing on your laptop… but way more effective. Use this on your laptop keyboard and you’ll notice the difference immediately.
A microfibre cloth: screens are sensitive and cleaning them with a window cleaner is a definite no. Soft microfibre cloths are great because they tackle the dirt without causing any damage.
Cotton buds: Dip the cotton bud in a little bit of isopropyl alcohol. Then gently rub any of those hard to reach gaps between keyboard keys. Make sure your computer’s turned off before you do this. And don’t pour anything directly onto the keyboard.
There you go. Job done! And it wasn't that difficult, right?
If you feel like getting rid of some of your old electronics, check out our recycling tips.
