Business Insider, William WeiIs it bad to charge your phone overnight? What about charging an iPhone with an iPad adapter?
Despite how often we use devices like smartphones and laptops, we have plenty of questions about how they work. And with so much information out there — not all of it true — it's hard to know if we're treating our electronics properly.
We're here to debunk some of the biggest misconceptions out there.
Mac computers can’t get viruses
Yes, Apple computers are susceptible to malware, too. Apple
used to brag its computers aren't as vulnerable as Windows PCs to
viruses, but the company quickly changed its marketing page after a
Trojan affected thousands of Mac computers in 2012.
Private/Incognito browsing keeps you anonymous
There’s a misconception that “incognito” and
“private” are synonymous with anonymous. If you’re using Incognito Mode
in Google Chrome or Private browsing in Safari, it simply means the
browser won’t keep track of your history, import your bookmarks, or
automatically log into any of your accounts. Basically, it's good for
keeping other people who use your computer from seeing what you've been
doing. But it won’t keep your identity hidden from the sites you visit
or your ISP — so keep that in mind if you’re visiting sites you
shouldn’t be.
Leaving your phone plugged in destroys the battery
If you’re like most
people, you probably leave your phone plugged in overnight long after
the battery is fully charged. Some used to say this would hurt your
phone's battery life, but in fact, there's no proof that this damages
your phone’s battery in any way. Modern smartphones run on lithium-ion
batteries, which are smart enough to stop charging when they’ve reached
capacity.
You should always let your iPhone battery completely die before recharging
This,
too, is a popular myth. Apple points out that its modern lithium ion
batteries mean that "You complete one charge cycle when you’ve used
(discharged) an amount that equals 100% of your battery’s capacity — but
not necessarily all from one charge."
More megapixels always means a better camera
What’s the difference between 12 megapixel cameras
and 8 megapixel cameras? Not much, as it turns out. The quality of an
image is determined in large part by how much light the sensor is able
to take in. Bigger sensors may come with larger pixels, and the larger
the pixel the more light it can absorb. So, it’s really the size of the pixels that matter as much or more than the sheer number of pixels. (A megapixel is simply shorthand for a million pixels.)
Here’s how TechCrunch’s Matthew Panzarino, who's also a professional photographer, describes the role of the pixel: “Think
of this as holding a thimble in a rain storm to try to catch water. The
bigger your thimble, the easier it is to catch more drops in a shorter
amount of time." The thimble is a metaphor for a pixel — using a few
buckets would be much more efficient than a bunch of thimbles for
catching water.Higher display resolution is always better on a smartphone
Some have argued that at a certain point, screen resolution doesn't matter on a smartphone. Gizmodo cites experts in saying the
human eye can't discern nitty-gritty detail when a display packs more
than 300 pixels per inch. Earlier this year, LG unveiled its first
quad-HD smartphone, the G3, which has a resolution of 2560 x 1440.
That’s much higher than the average high-end smartphone, which usually
comes with a 1920 x 1080 resolution display.
But it's unclear if those numbers really matter after a
certain point, because the eye can't discern individual pixels beyond a
certain resolution. When I tested the G3's display alongside the 1080
Galaxy S5's display, there was hardly a difference in terms of sharpness
— that's why companies like Apple tend to focus on brightness, more so
than ultra-dense displays.
It’s bad to use your iPad charger for your iPhone
This one is a little trickier than a standard "yes or no" answer. Apple’s official website says its 12-watt iPad adapter can charge both the iPhone and the iPad. However, Steve Sandler, founder and chief technical officer at electronics analysis company AEi Systems, told Popular Mechanics
that this could stress your iPhone’s battery over time if you do it
regularly. It would take about a year, however, to notice any changes in
battery efficiency.
You shouldn't shut down your computer every day.
While some may believe it’s harmful to shut down your
computer every night, the truth is it’s actually good to turn off your
computer regularly. It’s easy to get into the habit of putting your
laptop in sleep mode so you can easily return to it without having to
boot up. But, as Lifehacker points out,
shutting it down when not in use conserves power and places less stress
on its components, which could enable it to last longer.
Holding a magnet close to your computer will erase all of its data.
This
technically isn't wrong — you may remember how easy it was to wipe a
floppy disk using a magnet back in the day. But you would need a really,
really big magnet to wipe out your computer's hard drive. Experts told PCMag
that hard drives on modern computers would only be susceptible to
really strong magnets with really focused magnetic fields. So your
average refrigerator magnet wouldn't do the trick.
Cellphones give you brain cancer
Although cell phones emit radiation that can be absorbed by human
tissue, there isn't any conclusive evidence showing that cell phones
actually cause cancer, as Business Insider's Lauren Friedman reported last year.
Here's what a report from the National Cancer Institute says:
Here's what a report from the National Cancer Institute says:
Although there have been some concerns
that radiofrequency energy from cell phones held closely to the head may
affect the brain and other tissues, to date there is no evidence from
studies of cells, animals, or humans that radiofrequency energy can
cause cancer.
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