While many have said that the only limits of virtual reality are your imagination, how will this translate into the real world and the future of the Metaverse?

Considering the recent events we’ve all experienced on a global scale in recent years, video has helped to bridge the physical gaps with some virtual magic. While it’s been a medium used for anything and everything from family board games, work meetings and even attending doctors appointments, video will eventually pale in comparison to the opportunities presented through virtual reality.

It’s no secret that Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg is a fan of thinking big, and his recent rebranding of the parent company as Meta – derived from the Greek word meaning “beyond” – only solidifies this view point. According to Meta’s press release about the long term goal of the “Metaverse”, Zuckerberg’s vision is to create a digital world where users can virtually meet, work and play using a VR headset, glasses or your device – but can he pull it off?

How The Metaverse Will Reconstruct Reality 

The future Metaverse that we’ve been promised by the tech giants in Silicon Valley is best summarised as an online digital social space, where users can meet, work, and play collaboratively across a variety of devices. The Metaverse is aiming to bridge the gap between virtual reality headsets, mobile devices, and laptops, and users can ‘enter’ a virtual environment that consists of interconnected worlds from apps to games. 

For technophiles, the future of the Metaverse represents a nirvana of sorts. In simple terms, the Metaverse is set to become a digital space to immerse yourself in any world, and participate in any physical reality, at any time. While we already have the ability to connect with people on the other side of the world, the Metaverse aims to take that one step further, and use virtual reality to not just see, but to feel. 

A core part of the experience is creating a digital avatar of yourself, which is designed to help ground your presence in this next evolution of interacting with the web. If you’re inside the Metaverse using a VR headset such as the Meta owned Oculus Quest 2, you can communicate with others from a virtual environment of your choosing while represented by your digital avatars. 

Regardless of whether you’re up for a casual chat with a friend or a work meeting, you can talk to people in the real world through their phone or webcam, while they’re displayed on a virtual screen in front of you. For now, most commercial VR experiences only provide visual and auditory feedback, but technology advancements will also introduce haptic feedback such as vibrations, meaning that users can physically touch and feel objects in a digital environment. 

By 2030, there’s a very real possibility that we could be spending more time in the Metaverse than we do in the real world. On a day to day basis, people will be applying for jobs, earning a living, meeting with friends, shopping, even getting married using the virtual capabilities of the Metaverse.

In the coming decade, higher education and job training may increasingly be provided in virtual 3D settings, along with boardroom and workplace meetings. Businesses and governments will rely on the power and reach of the Metaverse to share information, provide services and collaborate as never before. 

If the concept is still baffling you, we would recommend taking the time to watch Steven Spielberg’s recent film “Ready Player One”, which essentially depicts a virtual realm not so different to what’s on offer through the Metaverse, and is also in the not so distant future. 

However, the film also offers a warning, and doesn’t shy away from the potential downsides of retreating to a virtual world in favour of engaging in the real one, so how the Metaverse will attempt to tackle this balance is anyone’s guess.

Talk Tech Updates With The Professionals 

SOS Phone Repairs are specialists in high-quality, cost-effective phone repairs, tablet repairs, and PC repairs, all backed with a six month warranty. Founded in 2015 in Coffs Harbour and now with over sixteen outlets located all over Australia, our primary driving factors remain the same: people and phones. 

If you’re in the market for a new smartphone, SOS Phone Repairs also stocks a wide variety of refurbished handsets at a fraction of the cost of a brand new one. While each has been carefully restored to perform at their best, all refurbished smartphones purchased through SOS also come with a twelve month warranty, and can be purchased at any of our sixteen store locations.  

If you are on the hunt for a quote, diagnostic, or even just some good old fashioned, friendly advice, please don’t hesitate to get in touch or give us a call today at SOS Phone Repairs.

While it’s no secret that we’re living in the golden era of the smartphone, using this technology means that addressing personal information security is a must.

In Australia, the risks associated with a cyber attack are on the rise, and working from home, global instability and increased reliance on technology has proved to be the perfect storm for cybercrime. In fact, more than 60% of businesses expect a surge in reportable incidents in the next twelve months, with 2021 already shaping up to be one of the worst years on record. 

While personal information is often used by many businesses and government entities for perfectly legitimate reasons such as communication, this is not always the case. This type of data can also be misused by criminals, or even inappropriately by unscrupulous digital marketing professionals. 

For businesses and individuals alike, personal information security measures are a necessary evil to protect yourself in the digital landscape. While a growing number of brands have started to invest in access control for their systems, how can ordinary Australians protect their laptops, tablets and smartphones?

Five Key Personal Information Security Measures

As a general rule, the most common types of cyber crime include identity fraud, the theft of finances or credit card details, theft and sale of corporate data, cyber extortion, and ransomware attacks. 

While the last three are often more applicable to corporations, exposing personal information and financial details to would-be cyber criminals is something that many people do entirely by accident. In fact, it’s often as simple as opening a dodgy email, or making a purchase from an online store that doesn’t actually exist. 

Even details such as your name, address and phone number can open the door to accessing your digital usernames and passwords, which can in turn provide access to your bank details or credit cards. Unfortunately, many people are none the wiser that they’ve fallen victim to a cyber crime until it’s too late, and money starts to go missing from their accounts. 

Once upon a time, personal information security meant purchasing an anti virus software for their desktop computer. These days, we rely on more portable forms of technology such as our phones, which means that protecting yourself online has also changed – but what are your options?

Social Media Privacy – If you use social media, adjust your privacy settings to control the amount and type of information you share and make your profiles private so that only your friends can view your details. In addition, dig into the settings of your account to see what types of tracking you’ve enabled and where your personal information is distributed. 

Strong Passwords – One of the most effective ways to protect personal information online is to be smart with your passwords. Aim for long tail phrases that include numbers and special characters, and avoid anything like addresses or nicknames that would be considered relatively easy to guess as a third party. 

WiFi Connections – An unsecured network most often refers to a free Wi-Fi (wireless) network, like the types available at airports or large shopping centres. It means there’s no special login or screening process to get on the network, so don’t access personal bank accounts, or sensitive personal data on unsecured public networks to avoid any potential hacking events. 

Two Factor Authentication – Two-factor authentication means you need to pass another layer of authentication in addition to a username and password  to get into your accounts. If the data or personal information in an account is sensitive or valuable, and the account offers two-factor authentication, you should enable it. This usually includes generating a text or email. 

Check Your Credit Report – It’s often difficult to detect if you’ve been a victim of identity theft until it’s too late. Along with keeping a close eye on your bank statements, take precautions to regularly check your credit report to see if there’s any potentially hazardous defaults or listings that you don’t recognize. It’s important to nip this in the bud to keep your credit score in tact. 

Making your devices, online identity, and activities more secure really doesn’t take much effort. In fact, taking the time to tackle personal information security is very much considered to be the easy route when compared to fixing any potential damage inflicted by cybercriminals, so don’t wait until it’s too late to opt for a proactive approach. 

How To Improve The Security Of Your Smartphone

One of the most effective ways to boost your personal information security is to ensure your smartphone software is up to date. However, if your device is sluggish or not running at its best, it might be time to consider a repair or an upgrade.

SOS Phone Repairs are specialists in high-quality, cost-effective phone repairs, tablet repairs, and PC repairs, all backed with a six month warranty. Founded in 2015 in Coffs Harbour and now with over sixteen outlets located all over Australia, our primary driving factors remain the same: people and phones. 

If you are on the hunt for a quote, diagnostic, or even just some good old fashioned, friendly advice, please don’t hesitate to get in touch or give us a call today at SOS Phone Repairs. 

 

 

Can’t decide on whether to use a hydrogel screen protector or tempered glass? In order to safeguard your smartphone, it’s crucial to grasp how they differ

In the early days of the smartphone revolution, protecting yourself against the horror of a smashed screen meant investing in a clunky “life proof” case almost doubled the phone’s physical size. Although not exactly stylish or user friendly, the alternative was to face the very real prospect of forking out hundreds of dollars to fix a smashed screen. 

Thankfully, advancements in technology have come a long way in terms of not just making the devices themselves less fragile, but the accessories designed to protect smartphones have also improved. Now, smartphone users have multiple choices with methods to protect their phone screens, with two of the most popular being a hydrogel screen protector and a tempered glass screen protector – but what’s the difference?

Comparing A Hydrogel Screen Protector Against Tempered Glass

While both of these types of screen protectors are a pretty handy tool used to provide the maximum level of protection to the screen of your device, the materials that they are made from is where they differ. 

If you’re unfamiliar with the concept, tempered glass screen protectors are thick, cheap, clear, and offer a high level of protection from surface scratches. However, the level of protection and its overall performance does often depend on what type of glass the screen protector is made from, and consumers aren’t often able to tell the quality of them on face value. 

High quality glass screen protectors often use a material known as “gorilla glass”, which is harder than the metal used in keys, coins, and other household metal items. However, even the toughest quality glass screen protectors can still shatter into a thousand pieces once you drop it just the wrong way, or chip around the outside parameters. As it’s thicker, tempered glass can also negatively affect the touchability and responsiveness of your screen.

In comparison, a hydrogel screen protector is usually made from TPU or thermoplastic polyurethane, which is why these types of screen protectors appear to be so elastic and offer a clearer view than tempered glass. In a nutshell, users can expect automatic smudge-resistant technology while barely noticing the presence of a hydrogel screen protector at all. 

As smartphones continued to evolve, tempered glass was limited with how its production could adapt to the changing faces of iPhones and other products on the global marketplace. In comparison, the world’s key hydrogel screen protector producers were already quite literally ahead of the curve.

Unlike any other screen protector, their flexibility offers equal security to the curves of more modern smartphones as much as it does to the display of the phone. As a result, a hydrogel screen protector tends to have a longer lifespan when compared to traditional glass options, especially considering the fact that they are able to be produced in over three thousands different custom cuts to fit a wide range of smartphones, tablets and even smart watches. 

In addition, the TPU used in the production of a hydrogel screen protector also means that this material helps the screen protector to develop a new world form of aqua shield technology. They can readily dissolve any smudges, fingerprints, or minor scratches, and also helps reduce the signs of any major scratches. 

While a hydrogel screen protector is often the more expensive choice when compared to the tempered glass alternatives, the quality that goes into their production can ultimately make them a better investment for users with newer phones, and for people that don’t want to constantly have to replace their screen protector of choice.

Talk Technology With The Professionals 

SOS Phone Repairs are specialists in high-quality, cost-effective phone repairs, tablet repairs, and PC repairs, all backed with a six month warranty. Founded in 2015 in Coffs Harbour and now with over sixteen outlets located all over Australia, our primary driving factors remain the same: people and phones. 

Whether it’s to get a few more years out of your trusted iPhone, to fix one up to sell, or to repurpose an old one as a gift, repairing a smartphone might just be easier and cheaper than you think. However, if you’re in the market for a new smartphone, SOS Phone Repairs also stocks a wide variety of refurbished handsets at a fraction of the cost of a brand new one. 

While each has been carefully restored to perform at their best, all refurbished smartphones purchased through SOS also come with a twelve month warranty, and can be purchased at any of our sixteen store locations. In addition, each of our retail outlets is equipped with its own hydrogel screen protector machine, meaning we can help with adding an extra layer of protection that’s literally custom made just for you.  If you are on the hunt for a new screen protector, quote, diagnostic, or even just some good old fashioned, friendly advice, please don’t hesitate to get in touch or give us a call today at SOS Phone Repairs.

As Apple’s latest offering, the Shortcuts app has been touted as a way to streamline and automate life – but what is it, and how does the app actually work?

Like it or not, our lives are inextricably linked to the smartphones that live in our pockets and how we choose to use them. Industry titans such as Apple know just how much consumers value the quality, performance, bells and whistles of their smartphones, and make conscious efforts to improve their functionality as a means to keep consumers hooked. 

If you’re on a mission to get more out of your day or to perhaps get back on top of that ever expanding to-do list, one of the lesser known ways to do so for Apple users includes making the most of the Shortcuts app. Whether you need help organising a project or simply need assistance with ‘getting in the zone’, understanding how the brand’s in house app works can turbocharge the way we use our iPhones on a day to day basis. 

Understanding How The Shortcuts App Works 

What if we told you that your humble iPhone had the power to automate your morning routine? From turning your smart home’s lights on, triggering your morning alarm and even playing your favourite podcast, the Shortcuts app can quite literally enable users to take ‘shortcuts’ in the real world. 

With the release of iOS 12 in late 2018, Apple updated its incredibly useful Workflows app and rebranded it under the name Shortcuts. In a nutshell, Shortcuts allows users to run detailed workflows, which help them accomplish complicated tasks in less time.

The simplest way to trigger a shortcut is to open Shortcuts on your device, before tapping a shortcut from the main screen. Alternatively, users can also ask Siri to run it for you by saying “Hey Siri” followed by the name of your desired shortcut. As long as you use the same Apple account on all your devices, users can sync the shortcuts across multiple devices, such as an iPhone, iPad, Mac or even an Apple Watch. 

Once you learn the basics, the Shortcuts app has the potential to open up a whole new world of possibilities when it comes to regular tasks that you might use your Apple device for. In fact, the Shortcuts app actually works in conjunction with over three hundred built in actions, and can be paired with a wide range of other apps such as Contacts, Calendar, Maps, Music, Photos, Safari, Health and even Camera. 

In addition, the Shortcuts app makes suggestions to you exactly when you need them. Siri is incredibly good at learning your routine, and often suggests easier ways to perform common tasks via the Lock Screen or in the Search function. To use a Siri Suggestion, just tap it on the Lock Screen. Alternatively, swipe left on your screen to show Search, then tap the Siri Suggestion. These are then added to the Shortcuts app on your behalf and saved for future use. 

For almost all iPhone users, apps are now integral in going about our day to day lives. From social media, internet banking, navigation and even finding love – if you can think of it, there’s usually an app for it. As such, it makes sense that there would also be an app designed to streamline this heavy usage, which is when getting to know the Shortcuts app can be a true gamechanger. 

Talk Technology With The Professionals 

SOS Phone Repairs are specialists in high-quality, cost-effective phone repairs, tablet repairs, and PC repairs, all backed with a six month warranty. Founded in 2015 in Coffs Harbour and now with over sixteen outlets located all over Australia, our primary driving factors remain the same: people and phones. 

Whether it’s to get a few more years out of your trusted iPhone, to fix one up to sell, or to repurpose an old one as a gift, repairing a smartphone might just be easier and cheaper than you think. However, if you’re in the market for a new smartphone, SOS Phone Repairs also stocks a wide variety of refurbished handsets at a fraction of the cost of a brand new one. While each has been carefully restored to perform at their best, all refurbished smartphones purchased through SOS also come with a twelve month warranty, and can be purchased at any of our sixteen store locations.  

If you are on the hunt for a quote, diagnostic, or even just some good old fashioned, friendly advice, please don’t hesitate to get in touch or give us a call today at SOS Phone Repairs.