Author: mygeex

Earlier this month Apple released the environmental report for the new Mac Pro and it shows some impressive efficiency gains. At idle the new machine uses 68% less power than the previous model, using just 43w at 100v compared to 133.7w.

The real savings also appear when looking at the materials that are used. The new version uses 74% less aluminium and consumes 82% less volume and weighs 84% less than its predecessor meaning that 3 times more units can be fitted onto an airline shipping container.

As with all of Apple’s current Macs the new Mac Pro earns a gold rating from EPEAT for its environmental performance. So if you do lease a new Mac Pro not only will you get amazing performance but you will be able to tell your colleagues just how sustainable you are to.

For any enquiries on the new Mac Pro please call 0121 285 0098 or email info@localhost.

For the first time Apple has become the most wanted desktop computer this Christmas according to Parks Associates. Traditionally, the likes of Dell, HP and Acer have performed stronger during the holiday season, with Apple ranking 3^rd in 2011 and 2^nd in 2012.

Apple quietly refreshed the iMac this autumn following its major design revision last year. It comes as no surprise that this popular machine is appealing to consumers when increasing numbers of people are using them in the workplace.

Once the staple diet of creatives, we are now taking order from accountants, estate agents and manufacturing businesses who all want to use Apple’s amazing iMac.

With prices starting from just £9.80 + VAT per week for a 21.5” iMac this has never been more affordable. Included in the price is a full 3 years parts and labour hardware warranty with telephone and remote support. In addition, many of iMacs come with a next day loan Mac should we ever have to take yours away for repair plus 250GB of Cloud Backup for free.

If you are interested in the latest iMac call 0121 285 0098 or email info@localhost

When a team of security researchers recently discovered a massive cache of two million login credentials for popular sites like Facebook, Twitter and remarkably a large number of the passwords were overwhelmingly easy to work out. For example, “123456″.

We cannot emphasis enough the importance of having a password that is harder to detect. Hackers will undoubtedly be reading the security research reports and the last thing they need is passwords that are so easy to work out.

For the record, these are the top ten most popular passwords in the newly discovered database. If you have one of these we would recommend that you change it immediately.

In only a couple of years’ time your Amazon Christmas shopping could arrive 30 minutes after purchase. Imagine that?!

Jeff Bezos showed off prototype drone devices that could deliver small packages from Amazon warehouses directly to customers’ homes. The drones would be able to carry packages that weigh up to 5lbs (3.2kg), which accounts for 86% of the parcels the company currently delivers.

Of course, there are all manner of regulatory and operational difficulties to overcome first, not least the approval of the relevant aviation authorities, which would have to approve the use of the drones, although both US and European authorities have signalled their willingness to consider the use of civilian drones in their airspace.

“We hope the FAA’s [the US Federal Aviation Authority’s] rules will be in place as early as sometime in 2015,” the company says on its website. “We will be ready at that time.”

There is also an issue of where the drones will drop off parcels. This will be fine for those with big gardens, but for those that live in confined spaces and in flats, it may be a problem.

Another problem could be drones clogging up the skies. This really won’t leave any room for Santa.

“Safety will be our top priority, and our vehicles will be built with multiple redundancies and designed to commercial aviation standards,” Amazon adds.

It looks like the next major push for both Microsoft and Apple will be motion sensing hardware. Most people were introduced to this type of hardware when Microsoft released their Xbox Kinetic a few years ago. We ran an article earlier this year about Leap Motion’s gesture controller but now it seems as if this tech will be the new battle ground.

At a recent conference, Microsoft’s head of devices, Julie Larson-Green, stated that “hardware innovation” would be the key for Microsoft, hinting at future developments with Kinect’s voice-recognition system. “There will be another inflection point and it’s going to come from the hardware input model,” she said. “So that’s why you’ve seen us doing things with Kinect, with gesture. You see us doing things with voice. There’s one coming. And all the things have to come together.”

Just as Microsoft were stating that this was their strategy to differentiate themselves from thie competition Apple bought PrimeSense, the motion sensor firm behind the first Kinect camera, in a deal reportedly worth $350 million.

Whilst it is thought that Apple is more focused on the company’s motion sensor technology for its rumoured TV set it is thought it could be looking at embeding the smaller sensors into future iPad or iPhone models.

However, any application will likely take some time to materialise. Apple’s acquisition of fingerprint sensor company AuthenTec in 2012, took more than a year to bear fruit in the form of the iPhone 5s.

Regardless, of which way the companies go it looks as if gesture control is going to be a major emphasis for both companies over the coming years.

Which MacBook should I lease?

With three different models of MacBook, with 10 different standard variants available, it can often be hard to decide which MacBook to lease.

Here we look here at the MacBook Air, MacBook Pro and MacBook Pro with Retina Display and try to help you determine which is best for you.

Which MacBook should I lease for portability?

At just 11in MacBook Air is the lightest and thinnest MacBook available. With a height of 1.7cm and a weight of 1.08 kg it makes it ideal for business trips. At just £7.45 + Vat per week it won’t break the bank either. 

The downside of this portability is that the actual screen size is just 11.6 inches, which is only 1.9 inches bigger (diagonally) than the iPad Air. So it may be worth considering the 13” Air and starting at £8.45 + Vat you will be rewarded with a bigger screen, plus the highest battery life of any MacBook available. It lasts up to 12 hours and a massive 30 days standby time.

If you decide that a 13in MacBook is definitely the size for you, then there’s actually little difference in weight and thickness between the Air and the Pro. The 13in MacBook Air is 1.7cm thick and weighs 1.35kg, while the 13in Retina MacBook Pro is just slightly heavier, at 1.57 kg, and a tiny bit thicker at 1.8cm.

Which MacBook should I lease for running applications like Adobe CC?

If you want to use your MacBook for more powerful tasks like running Adobe CC, then undoubtedly you will benefit from a bigger display.  Apple now has two 15in MacBook Pro with Retina display models available.

The first comes with an i7 2.0GHz quad-core, 8GB RAM and 256GB flash storage and starts at £14.80 + VAT per week. Priced at £18.95 + Vat per week, the higher spec model comes with a 2.3GHz quad-core Intel Core i7 processor, 16GB RAM and 512GB of flash storage. The entry level 15” comes with Intel iris Pro graphics whilst the second model has NVIDIA GeForce GT 750M with 2GB memory and automatic GPU switching.

Options exist to boost the processor and storage with upto 1TB of flash storage available from as little as £3.60 + Vat per week.

Which MacBook should I buy if I’m on a budget?

If money is the deciding factor when it comes to buying a MacBook, then the cheapest model available is the 128GB 11in MacBook Air, which costs £7.45 + VAT per week. For just £1 + Vat per week extra you can get the 13in MacBook Air, or add another £0.50 + VAT per week and you can get the 13” MacBook Pro. This is the only MacBook that still has an optical drive. However, it is worth noting that this model missed out on being upgraded this year where as all the other MacBooks have received significant improvements.

If you need a new MacBook and you cannot decide which one is best for you please call us on 0121 285 0098 or email info@localhost

CryptoLocker Virus is a significant risk to the UK’s small businesses according to the National Crime Agency.  Last week alone 12000 businesses were infected by this particular virus which indicates a worrying move by fraudsters towards ransom ware.

So what is CryptoLocker? CryptoLocker is a Trojan horse form of mailware and is typically distributed via emails which carry an attachment that appears to be correspondence linked to the email message, for example, a voicemail, fax, details of a suspicious transaction or invoices for payment.

Once the user has clicked on the attachment the process of infection starts but you are only alerted when it is too late. Cryptolocker works by encrypting the user’s files on the infected machine and the local network it is attached to. “Once encrypted, the computer will display a splash screen with a countdown timer and a demand for the payment of 2 Bitcoins in ransom for the decryption key.”

Once you have paid the fee you will be sent a private key that allows you to decrypt your files. Obviously the NCA do not recommend paying the ransom and state that there is no guarantee that once you have paid you will be okay.

So what can you do? Hopefully, your business takes regular backups and you could restore your system through them. We have clients who have been targeted by this virus and using their backups we have had them up and working within a matter of hours. Also, having up-to-date anti-virus is also essential. Most of the major providers are coming up with solutions and updates that will stop this virus appearing in your inbox.

We can’t emphasise enough the need for businesses to have a regular backup and antivirus plan in place. The CryptoLocker example shows just how sophisticated and ruthless the fraudsters are becoming. If you have concerns about your security measures please feel free to call us on 0121 285 0098 or email info@localhost

Over here at GEEX we are huge fans of Apple’s iMac and whilst companies such as HP, Sony and Lenovo are making great strides in the All in One market nothing has quite captured us as much as the iMac. However, ASUS is due to launch an exciting new product later this month.

The ET2321 (ok the name needs some work!) may just be the best looking All in One PC. Featuring a 23-inch 1920 x 1080 LED IPS display, with a 178-degree viewing angle and optional 10-point multi-touch this machine certainly looks the part. Beneath the metallic stand lies a fourth generation Intel Haswell processor and Iris graphics that provide all-round performance. It also gets SonicMaster audio technology with built-in speakers. 

For those needing a little bit more in the graphics department it can be fitted with a dedicated Nvidia GeForce GT 740M GPU and can be specified with up to 16GB RAM. Storage options include a 2TB HDD, 128GB SSD, or a hybrid 1TB HDD and 128GB SSD configuration. As you would expect the machine has great connectivity with three USB 3.0 ports, three USB 2.0 ports, HDMI-in, HDMI-out, 802.11n or 802.11ac WIFI and Bluetooth 4.0.

The ET2321 will be available in the UK later on this month but as of yet there is no word on pricing. If you want to take a closer look at this exciting new machine check out the video below or call us on 0121 285 0098 or email info@localhost

The new Mac Pro proves that Apple is serious about taking manufacturing to the States. The next step, is chips. In a new report it states Apple is bringing chip fabrication of it’s a-series chips stateside at a new $6 billion facility in upstate New York, with Samsung to be involved.

Apple is looking to build a fabrication in upstate New York in a deal between Cupertino and California-based Global Foundries. This new location is set to be in Malta, New York. Ideally Apple wants to wean themselves off of dependency on Samsung, when it comes to building their A-series processors. Ironically Samsung is believed to be involved in the Apple-global foundries deal, helping the two ramp-up production. This makes sense as Samsung knows quite a bit about ARM chip fabrication.

Nevertheless we bring all Apple products to you right here in Birmingham. For more information take a look at our Apple products here or give us a call on 0121 285 0098

William C Lowe, the man who oversaw IBM’s first personal computer, died last week aged 72. A true driving force behind IBM’s Personal Computer, which was known as the 5150, Lowe ensured its successful launch in August 1981.

Apple had launched their first computer a few years before but the 5150 saw IBM leave its traditional mainframe routes and dip into the PC market for the first time.

The IBM machine used an operating system called MS-DOS 1.0 that was provided by a little-known technology company called Microsoft. Its microprocessor came from Intel.

At the time the machine cost $1,565 – about $4,000 in today’s money and it didn’t even come with a monitor. Amazingly it sold 250,000 units in its first year and three years later Lowe came up with the brain child of getting IBM selling its own brand computers targeted at small businesses and consumers.

A key success of the IBM PC project was the collaboration with Microsoft and in 1985 the two companies agreed to develop software together that could also run on other machines.

This approach ultimately allowed other manufactures to build IBM compatible machines more cheaply but undoubtedly it was the catalyst to creating the PC market that we know today.

Mr Lowe died on 19 October 2013 from a heart attack.

Last week Microsoft made Windows 8.1 available for download in the UK. Windows 8.1 has progressively shown that the early mistakes on Windows 8 have been ironed out.

So why is now the right time to make the upgrade to Windows 8.1? Well it includes a number of new features and interface changes. The return of the desktop Start button will be welcomed by many, as will the revamped search facility and completely redesigned Windows Store.

Microsoft has also upgraded a number of the core apps that come with the operating system. The ‘Mail’ app adopts its interface whilst there is an entirely new interface for the Music app. In fact the development of Microsoft’s own Apps and those of 3^rd Party developers is showing a significant improvement. The fact that Facebook launched its first Windows Store app alongside Windows 8.1 is testimony to the advancement in this area.

The good news for existing users of Windows 8 is that they will be offered Windows 8.1 as a free upgrade via the Windows Store. It will install in place over the existing operating systems and leave all Windows Store and desktop apps intact. However, those who tried out the Windows 8.1 preview will have to reinstall all their Windows Store and desktop apps after upgrading to the final version of the Operating System.

Evidence is growing that an iPad version of Microsoft Office will be available, but Microsoft is determined to save that touch-friendly experience for its own Windows devices.

Speaking prior to leaving Microsoft, former CEO, Steve Ballmer confirmed the existence of Office for iPad but immediately stressed that the company has no intention of allowing it to land on a competing platform first.

“iPad will be picked up when there’s a touch-first user interface,” Ballmer remarked, suggesting that Office for Windows will be where the new version will make its premiere.

According to Microsoft insiders, that sentiment appears to have been echoed by Chief Operating Officer B. Kevin Turner, who recently proclaimed the company’s intention to “own the productivity experience across all devices.”

That means that despite the huge demand for Office for iPad is still not being met and that the only way Apple users can access Office is via an iPhone-only app that requires and annual subscription to use.

For now, “touch-first” appears to also mean “Windows first,” but Microsoft isn’t giving any indication of how soon that initiative might land in the waiting hands (and fingers) of users.

Have a look at our iPad leasing here…

Apple was crowned the most valuable brand in the world overtaking 13 year reining Coca-Cola. The iPhone creator topped the global list of valuable brands at $93.3billion.

Google came second in the list compiled by consultancy Interbrand, with Coca-Cola, IBM and Microsoft rounding out the top five.

Coke, which has become an icon of globalisation and consumer society, has been top of the list every year since it was first published in 2000. But Apple’s devotion to innovative design and Google’s almost universal popularity as the world’s number one search engine helped them surpass the 127-year-old drink for the first time.

The top 10 saw mainly brands from the U.S including Apple, Google, Microsoft, IBM, GE (6^th), McDonalds which came seventh, and at 9^th place Intel.

The top European brands were Mercedes-Benz, BMW, Louis Vuitton and H&M. The most valuable British brand was HSBC which occupied 32^nd place.

The total value of all the brands in Interbrand’s top 100 came to $1.5trillion, 8.4 per cent higher than last year despite the continuing effects of the global financial crisis and subsequent recession.

I get a lot of customers asking if their Macs and Apple laptops need security software. And they always seemed surprised when I say no. Here’s it explained, why Macs don’t need security software.

Cybercriminal gangs are focused exclusively on Windows because there are more Windows users, yes, but also because Windows is still easier to hack. As a Unix-based operating system OS X is by its very nature sandboxed. It’s like having a series of fire doors – even if malware gains access to your Mac, it is unable to spread to the heart of the machine. Macs are not un-hackable, but they are more difficult to exploit than Windows PCs.

OS X 10.8 takes it even further. It includes a gatekeeper function that by default prevents Mac users from installing anything other than Apple-approved software.

There are exceptions, however. If you are running a business with a fleet of Macs, or a network of both Macs and Windows PCs, I’d suggest getting in some protection. It’s a belt and braces approach that may not be necessary, but if you have a lot to lose it’s a small price to pay for peace of mind.

You may also consider using antivirus on your Mac if for some reason you could be targeted individually – if you have access to sensitive or high-value data, for instance.

Fall, or as we know it, Autumn, marks the transition from Summer to Winter. It’s that time of year when the leaves start going a rusty brown, the days start getting shorter and as it gets colder we all start to wish we were bears able to hibernate.

It is also the time of the year that as Apple fans we’ve all been waiting for. Fall is when Apple normally release all their new products. When we were at Apple’s WWDC everything was to be released in the Fall. So now the Fall is coming when are these dates? Autumn officially starts on September 22^nd.

To our luck, Apple’s fall starts on the 10^th of September when they will release the iPhone 5s, the iPhone 5c and a potentially upgraded Apple TV. Also we should be getting the all new flat design on iOS 7 will also be released.

But what about the new Mac Pro? At the WWDC in June this was one of Apple’s major announcements and cinema teaser campaigns in the US have been promising its arrival in the Fall. So we reckon we might actually have to wait until next month and for the fall to arrive properly before we get this new gem and OS X Mavericks.

A question that a lot of customers pose to us is that they really want a Mac but they run software that can only operate on a Windows platform, such as Sage Accounting. Likewise many of our creative clients love their Macs but need to test their websites on Internet Explorer.

A simple solution for both of these problems is to install Parallels Desktop that enables you to run Windows 7 or 8 on your Apple Mac without any issues.  Parallels allow you to switch from Windows or Mac based programmes with ease all without the need for a long winded system reboot.

The system reboot or “Boot Camp” as Apple referred to it was always Apple’s preferred route but recently they have been seen to embrace the Parallels route. As Apple’s customer base moves from just being creative and into the offices of accountants and solicitors the market demand for a solution that allowed people to have a Mac that ran Windows has increased dramatically.

With any of our Macs the addition of Parallels and Windows 7/8 Professional adds just £1.50 + VAT per week to the lease.  Such a cost effective solution allows many of our customers to realise their wish of owning a Mac whilst still operating Windows.

Every ‘fall’ Apple releases their new iPads, and this fall we’ll have two to choose from.  We’re most likely to see an iPad mini with Retina-screen, plus a thinner, smaller iPad 5 – similar to an enlarged iPad mini.

These releases are conjuring quite a dilemma with most people. Many folks have ditched their iPad for the mini, mainly due to convenience. But what if the iPad 5 is small enough to compete with the mini? To add to the dilemma, the prediction of the iPad mini with a Retina-screen – what is the difference other than a couple of cm between the two?!

The iPad mini can be used for everything: reading, writing, email, video, web-browsing, and photo-editing. That’s not to say the iPad mini is good at all these things, it is just good enough. It being tiny and lightweight allows it to be used for longer lengths of time.

The iPad is great watching movies, partly for the bigger screen, and partly because HD video looks amazing on that Retina display. In fact the only time the iPad is preferred over the mini is for looking at photos or watching movies.

When the mini was launched, it was up against the huge, fat iPad 3, a monster that was actually thicker and heavier than its predecessor. However, if the iPad 5 will be lighter and thinner and almost like the mini, then the boundaries blur. No longer is it “big and heavy and Retina” vs. “small and almost weightless but low-res.” The whole choice comes down to screen size.

Which would you chose? Give us a call on 0121 285 0098 or have a look at our range of iPads here…

Rumours are gathering pace that the 2^nd generation iPad Mini will come with Retina Display. These latest rumours do contradict previous reports that suggested the model was only going to receive hardware updates at best.

Providing the iPad Mini with a Retina display would mean that the product mirrored other Apple devices such as the iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad, and MacBook Pro. At present the iPad Mini comes with a lower-resolution 132ppi screen. Whilst it is unclear what the resolution display the new Mini might have Apple must surely be conscious of Google’s Nexus 7 tablet that features 323ppi.

The latest rumours also indicate that the size of the iPad Mini will remain the same as the current model, which is 7.9 inches. Although it is likely that rather than the simple black or white back cover options, Apple might offer customers a wide variety of colour options.

As with all good Apple rumours the timeframe for when the new product might hit the shelves is open to some debate. Earliest expectations are for the fourth quarter of this year whilst some push that as far back as April 2014.

Microsoft has entered the Cloud market providing anytime access to its Office applications when connected to the internet. With “Office 365 on Demand” calendars and emails will be available on the go allowing you to share files and manage teams from anywhere. Additionally, files are automatically saved online regardless of where you access them.

Office 365 can be installed on up to 5 different devices and it comes with a standard desktop version that allows you to work off line. The moment you regain internet connection your work is automatically synced.

Although Office 365 is targeted predominately at business users it will be available to home and education users. Payment for home users is relatively simple with a choice of a one of annual payment of £79.99 or monthly instalments of £7.99. For business users it’s a little more complex. Small business between 1 and 10 employees are charged £8.40 per user per month.  For businesses with 10 to 250 employees you will be charged £9.80 per user per month. For those above 250 employees you can obtain the slightly more expensive enterprise licence providing access for 50,000 users.

So is it value for money? Research has shown that businesses, particularly enterprises, can pay as much as 44% more through Office 365 that purchasing Office 2013 Professional Plus. Likewise for the home user a strong case can be made for buying Office Home and Business over Office 365.

The new software has also drawn criticism in that it can only operate on Windows 7 or 8, does not work with OS X and is incompatible with tablets. People also point to the fact the 5 installs is good but all five devices have to belong to a single user. Finally, with the software being web based you need a good internet connection. If you work in an area that doesn’t yet have fibre broadband you could be downloading the software for a long time.

Whilst Office 365 has some strong points you cannot help but feel that Microsoft has followed Abode with their Creative Suite subscription. The monthly revenues are clear benefits for these organisations but do they represent value for money for the end user. The jury is still out.

Many of us never think about where our products come from, ultimately all of the products originate from raw materials from the Earths crust. Therefore mining and processing is important to Apple and can heavily influence their own production sequences.

All of the Apple products originate from raw materials. Whilst most of the electrical systems, such as parts of the circuits or the LEDs contain rare earth metals, such as Neodymium and Yttrium. Mark Smith, the chief executive of Molycorp, an American rare earth mining company, once said “ Your iPhone doesn’t work without rare earths in there”, the same applies for all of Apple’s products, including the MacBook Pro. Todays technology is dependent on the use of rare earth minerals, however at the moment only one country seems to be benefitting from them. The Chinese maintain about a 90% hold on the rare earth market, much of this is due to reluctance to share mining technology or information, due to their market dominance. Chinese mines such as in the area of Bayan Obo, in Inner Mongolia are extracting much of the worlds rare earth minerals today. The Chinese domination of the rare earth mineral market, allows the country to draw production to China, as companies want to reduce distances the bulky raw materials are transported, which would increase prices. However, the American company Molycorp is set to expand production from mines in the US, whilst African nations, such as Malawi could be in the future potential hotspots.

Although Rare Earth minerals are important in Apple products, so are more common raw materials such as Aluminium. The now iconic Aluminium ‘unibody’ of the MacBook Pros are milled from single blocks of Aluminium. The metal is also used on the iMacs and iPhones to some degree. Unlike other metals Aluminium is not produced through the direct mining of Aluminium. The mineral Bauxite, which is the most abundant mineral in the earths crust, is mined in such areas such as Australia. Five of Australia’s mines account for 23% of global production. Once the Bauxite is mined, it has to be Electrolysed, which is called the Hall process. The Electrolysis cell separates the Bauxite mineral into its constituents, one of which is Aluminium, using an Anode, a Cathode and a catalyst. The whole process is extremely electricity intensive; therefore it can prove too costly for some nations to produce. However, the use of Geothermal heat in Iceland has allowed it to become a forerunner in Aluminium productions, due to large quantities of sustainable Geothermal heat energy for electricity production.

The all-important screen of each Apple product was once also just separate raw materials, whether those were non-metals or metals. The Liquid Crystal Display is made from non-metals, such as Silicon Dioxide and Glass, which is produced from heated Quartz, which is also just Silica. However the LCD screen also contains metals such as Indium Tin Oxide, which is one of the most commonly used Transparent Conducting Oxides. Whereas in Light Emitting Diode screens, non- metals such as Silicon Dioxide  are also used again. However it contains other compounds, which has constituents, which are both non-metals and metals.

Every Apple product is a collection of raw materials over a long complex process of production. Every metal and non-metal plays a specific role in which not many realise. Without one raw material the Apple products would be completely different to what they are now. Today’s modern society are going to become more dependent on rarer minerals and larger quantities of metals and non-metals. Apple technology is dependent on what we are able to dig out of the earth and the mining and processing of these minerals and metals can be just as complex as the production of the apple products themselves.

Whilst big businesses can dedicate money and resources to disaster recovery and business continuity it can be easy for smaller businesses to lose sight of this important task. Here are a few quick ways of quickly and easily protecting your business without spending a small fortune.

1. Surge Protect– A surge protector is a device, such as a multi plug adapter, protects your computer equipment from power surges. On our network installations we include an Uninterruptible Power Supply, UPS. These are like a big car battery that includes surge protection and will keep a system going for 10-15 minutes during a power outage which is enough time to safely shut down a system
2. Onsite Backup– Data is quite simply the most important element of your IT infrastructure. With 6% of all PCs and servers suffering an episode of data loss in a given year coupled with the fact that 60% of companies who lose all of their data will shut down within 6 months, it is essential that you have some form of backup in place.For those without a server this can be as simple as giving each member of staff a memory stick to backup the data portion of their hard drive. If you have a server however, you will benefit from automated or semi automated backup solutions. On our networks we provide a number of hard drives that take a full backup every night and are swapped over every day giving you a bigger scope of backups to recover files. It also allows you to take your backups offsite should the worst happen to your building, fire or theft.
3. Cloud backup– whilst we always recommend an onsite backup solution as a minimum the next level up will be Cloud backup. Done via the internet overnight a Cloud backup protects you from issues such as fire and theft at your business.  It also protects you from human error such as forgetting to switch backups.
4. Email Continuity & Anti Virus – Should your email server go down or your office become unavailable it can take 24 hours plus to integrate changes in the event of your disaster plus it will take up to 24 hours to revert back should you need to. By using a third party company to redirect your email you can have the ability to quickly and easily redirect your email to a new computer, IP address etc should you need to.  The added benefit is that companies can offer email backup; usually up to 30 Days; and anti-spam solutions at the same time.

At GEEX we take Disaster Recovery and Business Continuity seriously and as such are happy to advise on your current solutions and make suggestions to help. Feel free to contact us on 0121 285 0098 or email info@localhost.

Since their origin the digital tablet has grown exponentially. The Lightweight, high tech and fashionable features of the tablet make it the perfect device for professional and recreational uses. Their huge growth is thanks to their lightweight and fashionable exteriors and the ease of their use. No longer do you require a CD to install a program, the app has given all tablet users the ability to do what they want and when they want, although it of course has its limits.

Large technology companies, such as Apple, Samsung and many others, dominate the tablet market; they have been able to propel this piece of technology further than what was predicted. Apple dominates this market with a 39.6% share, due to the iconic iPad; 19.5 million of the tablets sold were iPad. However Apple has declined according to the IDC from 58.1% to 39.6%, due to the increase in up and coming competition.

The competition from the tablets is not only with other tablets, but also other mainstream products, such as the PC. The tablet has been growing tremendously, whilst computer sales have been dropping off. Many analysts predict the tablet overshadowing the PC in the future.

Analyst never predicted such a huge growth of tablets in the female market in the UK. Women are more likely to buy and use and tablets that their male counterparts, according to a Yougov report.  Women own 52% of tablets in 2013, which up by 9% in 2012 in the UK.

The growth of tablets does not seem to be slowing either, now a quarter of UK households own a tablet. It is predicted another quarter are wanting to buy one in the future for their household. Over the next decade the tablet will truly become a technological giant among products, which may be compared to the growth of the pc in the 90s or the laptop in the Noughties.

GEEX offer a brilliant range of flexible leasing plans of the Apple iPad with Retina display. For more information on leasing an iPad fom us, click here…

As a GEEX customer, you are able to lease any form of technology or software you wish to through our Flexi Lease programme. Whilst leasing is an increasingly popular way of funding the use of technology, it is important you understand what a lease is and the advantages that you can benefit from.

Leasing is the act, which allows you to use a piece of equipment for a specific period of time for your business. The lease agreement requires you to make regular payments. Payments can be monthly or quarterly, depending on your own personalised contract. If you want the latest versions of any type of business equipment, leasing your equipment instead of making a cash purchase is a smart decision, especially in these tough times, where outright buying products is not always financially feasible. Choosing GEEX as your leasing provider only further enhances your business technologically.

Leasing enables you to manage your finances more effectively and professionally. Giving you a predictable overview of your money expenses, so you know exactly what your monthly lease costs will be. Leasing allows you to use the equipment that your business is in need of, relieving you of that aggravating wait to save up for it. As leasing lets you upgrade your computer hardware, you can find an upgrade that best suits your business, resulting in your company looking more professional and up to date with the competition. Leasing also offers tax benefits, as it is 100% tax efficient.  On top of all this, when you’ve finished with your lease, you can return the equipment and start a new lease, or buy out the lease and the equipment, enabling you to own all of equipment you had previously leased.

Choosing GEEX for your leasing requirements will be a suitable professional decision, which would ultimately benefit your business. If you have any questions about our equation, please feel free to call us on 0121 285 0098 or email us james@GEEX.co.uk.