12.7.6 Maintain Mobile Devices

Learn how to maintain mobile devices to extend their lifespan.

Unused Apps

All apps, no matter whether they're initialized or not, drain battery power. You should always remove apps that you don't use.

Update OS

Manufacturers release updates to their OS to release new features, and more importantly provide patches to found security vulnerabilities. If you'd like your data to remain secure and private on your mobile device, make sure to regularly check for and install updates to your mobile device. Most mobile devices require three things for an update patch to be installed: the device has to be plugged in, the screen has to be locked, and the device has to be connected to the Internet through a Wi-Fi connection.

Install Antiviruses

Back in the day, most people expected the manufacturer to check apps being submitted for sale on their platform for viruses, but sadly hackers and malicious developers are finding more and more advanced ways to slip malicious code into seemingly safe programs. Usually, unless you've jailbroken your device, proprietary OS manufacturers and maintainers disallow the ability to install apps from everywhere except their own App Store.

The exception for this rule is Android, which is an open source OS. If you go to the developer settings on an Android device, you can see an option to allow installing apps from anywhere.

You can install an antivirus for your device by navigating to the app store for your device and selecting one of the reputable antivirus software apps available.

Reboot the Device Regularly

Most issues with mobile devices can be resolved by simply rebooting the device. When the system is running slowly or an app crashes on initialization, it's most likely because the system hasn't been rebooted in a while.

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