10 Technologies You Can Use To Make Your Life Easier

10 Technologies You Can Use To Make Your Life Easier

We are living in the 21st century, the digital age. Technology has advanced to such a degree that it is now possible to do things that were only possible in imagination a decade ago. We are indeed  lucky to be alive at this age and we must take full advantage of the technology that surrounds us. 

Here, I have listed 10 ways to make your life easier with the help of technology. You may already have adopted some of them, but integrating all these things in your life will make your life much more rich and convenient.

1. Use Internet Banking and Mobile banking

 Most banks provide these services free of cost to all customers. You only have to apply for it, and they will send you a username and password. I believe this is something everyone should adopt. Standing for long hours in queues at the bank just to transfer money or going to ATMs just to check account balance are a thing of the past. Funds transfer using NEFT is also free. 

2. Recharge your mobile online

There are tons of mobile recharge websites. Alternatively, you can recharge at the official service provider's website.  These websites also provide mobile apps to make recharging easier. Websites like  PAYTM also offer IVRS recharge, meaning you can call a toll free number to recharge your mobile. You need to sign up for an account first. 

3. Pay bills online

You can pay your postpaid mobile bill, electricity bill, landline bill and other utility bills online. You can also pay your income tax online. This saves you a lot of time travelling and standing in queues. In India, many people still  have apprehensions about paying money online. Paying online is incredibly easy and safe, provided you take basic precautions. All you need is a debit card (ATM card).

4. Shop online 

Several years ago, Flipkart revolutionised the online shopping scenario in India by offering  trustworthy service and  excellent cash on delivery option. Nowadays, flipkart has increased its prices and its delivery charges, but their service is still unmatched by any other website. There are plenty of online shopping websites in India selling just about anything. You can compare prices and choose the best value for you. Ebay is also a good website for shopping online. This saves you a lot of time and money which will otherwise be spent on transportation. 

5. Use cloud storage services like Dropbox

Dropbox is a cloud storage service provider that lets you store 2GB of you files on the 'cloud' for free. 

This is an excellent service. Dropbox has plugins for all operating systems and mobile platforms. You can share files between multiple computers. You may have important data that can get lost if there is a hard drive crash or if your laptop gets stolen. Dropbox ensures that your data will be safe in the cloud. I use dropbox to store my project files so that I can work on them from anywhere even if I don't have my laptop with me. The default space is 2GB, which can be expanded by inviting people to join dropbox. Click here to join dropbox.

6. Get A Smartphone and Make use of  Apps

 With the plummeting prices of Android devices due to companies like Micromax and Karbonn, chances are, you have an Android phone. If you don't, I highly advise you get one. Here is an article that outlines why you should get a smartphone.  According to the article, smartphones save you 22 days a year! Android devices are called smartphones for a reason. They make your life much more convenient. Make sure you install apps such as Gmail, LinkedIn, YouTube, Kingsoft Office, Google maps, WhatsApp, MX Player, QR Droid, Shazam, Dropbox, Skype and Dictionary in your Android phone. Using these apps will  increase your productivity and save you lots of  time

7. Use a password manager such as KeePass

Nowadays, we have many many online accounts in different websites and it is advisable to use a different password for each of those accounts to stay secure. Now, how does one remember all these passwords? It may be manageable to some extent if you have a sharp memory, but if you are like me, you will need a password manager to help you remember your passwords.KeePass is an excellent software that does just that. It uses a Master password that will secure your other passwords inside the database. You can then store this (tiny) database file in the cloud and access it from anywhere using Dropbox. The plus side is that you just have to remember one (preferably long) password.

8. Adopt Online Learning

Whether you are a student or not, you can harness the richness of the internet to enhance your knowledge and learn new things. There are thousands of websites online that cater to every stream of study from computer science to medicine.  By adopting online learning, I don't mean the occasional google search to resolve doubts. I mean really using the internet as a tool to learn. There are many free open courseware that teach almost any subject. Sign up for these websites and watch the videos, do the exercises, all for free. Here is a list of 750 free online courses. You can also browse YouTube channels offering free courses. Although these websites are good, one particular website stands out as fun to learn and easy to understand . It is KhanAcademy. This website includes a range of topics like mathematics, science, medicine etc.  There is also an Android app for this. 

9. Download Free Antivirus and Firewall

Viruses and trojans are a headache for computer users. They destroy your work hamper your computer's performance, and worst, steal your data. Rid yourself of this headache by downloading and installing free antivirus programs online. AVG and Avast are generally regarded as the best free antivirus software. You don't need to buy antivirus programs when you can get equally good ones for free. Set your antivirus to update automatically so that you won't be bothered with the hassle of updating it. Also, download and install a firewall. The in-built firewall in windows is good, but if you want extra security, ZoneAlarm is an excellent personal firewall and its free. 

10. Get yourself an All in One Printer

 

If you are a student or an office worker, you will know that photocopy shops are not always open when you want to  get urgent printouts for projects or reports. An all in one printer solves this problem. It also gives you additional features of scanning, photocopying and printing. Nowadays, wireless printers are also becoming cheap, you can just print from your smartphone through bluetooth or wifi.

Do you know of a technology that makes your life more convenient? Let me know in the comments!