Tech Support Help Desk

Have you ever found yourself looking for a place to scan a document when you were not at home? Trying to get an electronic copy of a document, but no scanner could be found? Well, this is one scanner you have to see to believe! It’s called the ScanShell 3000DN, and it’s a portable scanner. Yes, you heard me right, it’s a truly portable scanner! But you haven’t heard the best part yet … ever heard of a Duplex scanner ? Well, this baby has it … it will scan BOTH sides of your document at the same time and store it internally in PDF format. Talk about a sweet piece of equipment!

So what’s the catch? External power required, right? Wrong! It’s a standard USB 2.0 interface for downloading your scanned PDF files, it doesn’t require any external power sources, and best of all … it’s Windows Vista compatible (excluding the 64-bit versions). Another nice feature is the bundled software that comes with it. It’s called DocShell, and provides for easy scanning, sharing and organizing of photos and documents. DocShell is easy to use, and can export scanned documents into existing, pre-installed application on the user’s pc (PDF,Microsoft paint etc.). The scanned document can be saved to one of the following image types: BMP, JPG, TIF, PSD, PCX, PNG or TGA.

So if you’re in an industry (sales, tech support, etc.) where you handle paperwork on the road … don’t be caught in a bind again! Get one of these beauties and never be left without an electronic copy of your documents!

Ever wonder if you’re getting ripped off by your mobile phone company? Looking at the bill, it always seems to be higher than what you figured it should be? Perhaps your rates have gone up, and you’re just not prepared to do the comparison shopping to make sure the rates are still good?

Well, look no further for help. Wirefly has an awesome service that will help you determine the best cell phone plan for you. This handy calculator uses information about how many minutes you use per month, what provider you’re with, and how much you’re currently paying. You will also need to specify anytime minutes vs. night/weekend minutes and roaming percentage as well. Add in your zip code and viola! - out comes the comparisons for you.

Now, I don’t have a “regular” phone service - I use Tracfone. However, I thought I would give the calculator a shot anyway. I estimated that I use about 300 minutes a month (when I’m out on service calls). That would cost me about $30. These are basically anytime minutes, but about 1/3 are roaming,so that adds up to another $10 extra per month. I’m looking at about $40 a month for my services.

So, after putting in all of my information into Wirefly’s calculator, what did I find out? Well, I discovered that T-Mobile has a plan with 300 anytime minutes and unlimited nights / weekends for only $30 a month. Now realize that if my usage was much less, say 100 - 150 minutes a month, then a pay-as-you-go service like Tracfone would be ideal. However, since I’m over the threshold of regular rate plans, it appears that I can save roughly $120 a year using Wirefly’s recommended service.

The calculator also presents about a half dozen other profider options as well. In addition, each provider plan is rated based on market coverage, and JD Power rankings for cost & service and customer care. So if you’re in the market for a new phone plan, or you just want to make sure you’re getting the best deal in town, you need to check out this handy calculator from Wirefly!

Mozilla is making sure it won’t be left high and dry in the future release of it’s browsing platform, Mozilla2. It’s already telling it’s coders that mobile services will be a part of their future. With the success of the iPhone, they are taking their cue for which way technology will be heading.

That isn’t to say there won’t be some roadblocks however. Both Microsoft and Apple are already offering browsers for phones that run on their operating systems. Other third party vendors like Opera have also been dabbling in the market, tweaking their mobile browser for some time now.

Let’s think for just a minute. Who would be the perfect platform for Mozilla to launch it’s mobile browser with? Who would be in the market to compete against the big names in the mobile Internet cellular marketplace? Well, I’m going to go out on a limb here (just remember you read it here first!) and say that I see a partnership between Google and Mozilla as a potential on this one. Google is already rumored to be working on their own “Gphone” … and I suspect that Mozilla’s browser would be the perfect addition to the team.

Have you ever been out on a service call (or over at your mother-in-laws for all you d-i-y people out there) and come up short on a cable or USB adapter? It’s a real pain in the rear when you’re on site and you don’t have the equipment you need.

That’s why it’s better to stay stocked up. Simply put: you can never have enough of some things around. Computer cables, adapters, and wall plates are just a few of those things.

So today I bring you TCA-Inc., a company that has a ton of stuff to choose from when stocking your geek supply cabinet. You don’t want to miss out on some of these deals. One of the things that caught my eye was one I had not seen before: the flex USB Adapter. Now that looks like a handy little jewel!

They have a variety of categories to choose from: everything from fiber optics, firewire, iPod accessories, SCSI cables, etc. You name it, they probably have it. Their website is easy to navigate, and things are categorized in a user-friendly fashion. Combine that with the confidence that they have the store hosted as a Yahoo! store, and you’re set for a secure online shopping experience. Quality looks good, and the prices look even better. Don’t miss out … check it out today!

When you’re looking for a good deal, sometimes it’s hard to do the comparison shopping. Many websites have come and gone over the years that have put forth the effort to help consumers find the best deal on any given product. I would like to introduce you to one that looks to be promising.

Shopping.com seems to have it together, at least in the tech area. I found some great comparisons between the various stores offering the Canon PIXMA MP830 4-in-1 printer. This little jewel is pretty awesome, and comes with a pretty hefty price tag. But why pay more than you need to?

The website has over 30 reviews for this printer alone. With over 100 categories of products to search through, they are bound to be able to help you with your next product evaluation. Take a few minutes and check out the site.

(Brought to you by your friends at www.shopping.com)

bOftentimes, businesses are the last ones in the marketplace to adopt new technology. The reason for this is simple: business owners don’t want to take chances with glitches in new technology when their business is on the line. First impressions can mean everything to a customer, and as a business owner you don’t want to mess that up. However, there is an emerging technology that has several years of experience under it’s belt, that is moving into the business segment, and seeing remarkable success in meeting business owner’s needs. What am I talking about? Well VoIP, of course!

VoIP stands for Voice over Internet Protocol. It basically uses a high speed Internet connectin to route your phone calls instead of the traditional telephone company routers and lines. So what does this mean to you as a business owner? It means that you can usually save big bucks over traditional phone services, including some services you just can’t get from a traditional phone service provider. That’s where Packet8 comes in.

When you are looking for a small business phone system using VoIP, you need to check them out. Looking over their services, they have quite a few options to choose from. Whether you are just looking for that virtual office setup or wanting to use VoIP for an entire call center setup (and yes, that’s an option), they have the product for you. If I were setting up my small business on a VoIP plan, I would use the Unlimited Extention program. This is Packet8’s flagship extention service for virtual office and has quite a few bells and whistles, including a unique direct inbound dial (DID) telephone number, auto-attendant routing and switchboard viewing.

So when you decide it’s time for your small business to make the plunge into VoIP (and why not now?), be sure and check out Packet8.net.

Well, there’s been an update on the iPhone refund that was supposedly offered by Steve Jobs a few days ago.  While the price of the iPhone has dropped right at $200, the refund for those eager beaver early adopters will only be $100.  Hmmm … isn’t that nice of Apple to take you into consideration?  I’m sure you should be grateful that they are even doing that .

Let’s face it.  This was a face-saving attempt from Apple in the first place, especially seeing the initial reviews the iPhone has been getting.  Apple relies on those early die-hard adopters of new technology gadgets to put their product out in the market … but have they gone too far?  Will the really gutsy Apple fans still support this kind of fluid priced marketing?

Stay tuned, I have a feeling we’ll find out real soon …

It’s already that time of the year again, and if you go to any brick and mortar store, you already see it creeping in! It’s time to start thinking about holiday shopping, and how you’re going to pay for it all. Have you ever considered using coupons to help you save through the holiday season?

Well, now it’s easy to save with coupon codes from CouponChief.com. With coupon codes available for stores like Best Buy, Dell Home and HP Home Store, it’s easy to see techies like you and me being able to really stock up on some nice gifts for this year! In fact, one of the featured coupons today is for 20% off of a customized HP Pavilion notebook of $899 or more (that’s a minimum savings of $179)!!! That offer shows to be good through Saturday, September 22nd. So what are you waiting for?

Well, Steve Jobs has done it again. With market share slowly trudging behind and Apple’s new iPhone not receiving all the glowing reviews it was supposed to garner, Steve Jobs has pulled another rabbit out of his hat. He has, in effect, dropped the A-bomb (that’s the Apple bomb folks, not a nuclear proliferation device) once again.

Jobs announced that Apple is lowering the price of the phone, and will be offering a refund to early adopters who bought the iPhone at it’s original $600 price tag. The new price is slated to come in at $399, a whopping 1/3 off the original price! Makes you wonder just how much that little jewel really cost, doesn’t it?

Will it be enough to pull the iPhone out of mediocrity and back into the positive limelight? Only time will tell, but one thing is for sure: Steve Jobs is a master showman, and if anyone can pull it off … he will. (Maybe he should have been around to partner up with P.T. Barnum!)

Are you looking to buy that perfect gift? Do you like electronics, but just aren’t sure what you can find in your price range? And what do you get for that person that just has everything? Well, at Abt Electronics, they have just about everything imaginable. From a replacement humidifier wick to car accessories to computers, they’ve probably got what you’re looking for.

The company was started in Chicago in 1936, and launched their online presence in 1998. Today Abt Electronics is one of the largest single store operations in the country. They offer free shipping on items under 50 lbs, as well as select items, and delivery within 75 miles of the Glenview store!