Samsung – Traveling Mark

Samsung N150 Netbook Canada

My awesome Samsung laptop was gone and all the data on it went with it. It was a horrible loss the repercussions of which are still very much painful. However, this milk was already spilled, crying over it would not make it better. It was time to move on and start looking at buying a new laptop. This time around I took well into account the most important argument one mustn’t forget when buying a laptop to travel overseas with. I was more than happy with the Samsung laptop I bought before and the same company has just released a new netbook with latest Intel N450 processor (known for low power usage) so I went to take a good look at it. It was called Samsung N150 and like it’s bigger brother, it was only available in Mac like white in Canada.

That bothered me not. I knew Samsung makes solid portable computers and as I was looking up N150’s specs, I had no doubt that just like Q320 in laptops, this is the best netbook on Canadian market and it’s also the best value for money. Unlike great deal of its competition, Samsung N150 netbook was sold for $399 or less at Canadian big box electronics stores which beat many inferior models by $50 to $100 Canadian.

Future Shop Canada had Samsung N150 listed for $399 and since I bought my previous laptop with them, including an extended warranty (never ever again), I thought of giving them a call to see if they’d be able to work something out for me. Afterall, I had just spent $300 half a year ago which they can stick right in their pocket as there will never be any warranty claims against that purchase. I phoned the Future Shop location in West Edmonton where I bought my laptop and asked to speak with the computer department manager. It was a bit difficult to get to him but I was persistent as non managerial person would not be able to address my issue.

I eventually got a manager on the line and explained that I had spent $300 for 3 years of extended warranty with Future Shop but the laptop was stolen so I won’t make any claims with it hence basically all of it goes unused because the laptop was still under manufacturer’s warranty. I told him that I would be interested in purchasing a new laptop with them if they were able to work out part of the money I spent on the extended warranty towards the purchase of my new Samsung N150 netbook.

The manager was a complete ass and acted like the world belonged to him. Once he was done explaining how important he and the company he works for were, he mentioned that he would be able to put part of the extended warranty I had already purchased towards the purchase of a new extended warranty. In other words, I lost $300 once and he used it as an opportunity to upsale me with another rip off extended warranty. Nevermind the fact that Samsung Q320 which I had stolen was more than 3 times as expensive as N150 so extended warranty for my new netbook should be less than one third of what I paid for Q320. That means that not only should I get the extended warranty for free, there should be the left over money on it to use towards the purchase of the netbook itself.

At that point the manager concluded that he needed to go and couldn’t discuss this matter with me over the phone. I went to visit said Future Shop in person yet when I asked for the manager and explained who I was, I only got a message that he’s not coming out of his hiding, but one of the staff can work out some kind of a discount for an extended warranty I should purchase for my new netbook. Wow! What a manager. Extended warranties are not worth it to begin with, no matter what kind of discount he’d offer, I’d be losing on it, Future Shop would be the only one benefiting. So they were using my huge financial loss for their own enrichment and the manager didn’t even find the respect to come and greet me and talk to the staff on my behalf. Future Shop – you can keep my $300 I spent for the extended warranty on Q320. I will not ever buy from you again!

I went to the nearby Best Buy Canada shop and checked out what they had there. I really enjoyed the treatment there much more than in Future Shop. Too bad they didn’t have Samsung Q320 when I was buying it prior to my first departure. I would have bought from them but at that time the model was just released and Future Shop was the only outlet in Canada that carried it right away. Best Buy started to carry it later, but I was already gone.

I tried a nice N150 at Best Buy and definitely loved everything about it, except from ridiculously low screen resolution. This was gonna be a tough one to get used to but it was only gonna cost $400 total so I had little room to complain. Best Buy sales people are not commission paid – unlike Future Shop sales people. You experience way less pressure at Best Buy however because Best Buy sells electronic with very little margin, their financial sustainability depends on sales people’s ability to sell extended warranty with each purchase. These try hard attempts to sell extended warranty were too blatant from start to end. I wasn’t even buying, just enquiring yet the debate kept going towards extended warranties all the time.

Never the less, the treatment I have received from people at Best Buy was far better than that from Future Shop so I had nothing to think about. However, the only Samsung N150 model they had in the store was the display one. Unfortunately, on top of already pre-loaded bloatware, Best Buy display models are loaded with more bloatware to display their own sales pitches, mostly geared towards promotion of their Geek Squad.

They expected a new delivery next week so I went home without buying. I still had a couple of weeks before the departure so I didn’t need to rush with the purchase that much. Oddly enough, Best Buy updates their prices on Thursday so when I went to check out their website the following week, I found the price of Samsung N150 dropped down to $369 Canadian. That was my cue – this netbook is not gonna go any lower than this. It was already priced extremely well for what it had at $399 but to see it at even better price was an instant cue to buy it while this special lasts.

I knew that Best Buy in West Edmonton was out of N150s when I was there (except from the display model) so I called them to make sure they did get a delivery of new ones before I travel half way across the city to buy it. Unfortunately, they didn’t. I called their North end location and those guys only had a display model too. That was kind of disappointing and as the days were passing by, I was getting closer to Thursday when prices get updated again so I eventually went and bought it online at BestBuy.ca – good idea.

Photo: My Brand New Samsung N150 Netbook

Processing of their on line orders is very smooth and fast. My netbook was shipped to me the following day from British Columbia and I got it the day after. From the beginning it seemed as though there will be a charge for delivery, but it turned out not being the case. It’s just that their website is a bit confusing. The good thing about buying on line is that you have no sales person throwing at you their well tested arguments to make you buy the extended warranty package. It is offered on one page when placing on line orders which I declined and that was it. I had my brand spanking new, super awesome Samsung N150 Netbook ready to roll. I was mobile again.

Buying New Laptop – What Is the Best to Travel Overseas With?

Painful laptop theft has opened my eyes and made me realize a number of things I didn’t take into account when I was buying my first laptop for travel. Samsung Q320 was a beautiful machine and it worked like a charm. I loved absolutely everything about it and it would have been my day to day companion for a very long time had it not been stolen. Fact of a matter is, when I was buying it, I took into an account everything but the fact that I will be traveling through the third world countries with it and once you spend an extended period of time in a country where 80% of people who see you are looking for an opportunity to steal from you, it only becomes a question of time before someone succeeds. You cannot be 100% alert and suspicious all the time. And what’s worse, people in third world countries will use the fact that this is where they live so they will portray themselves as extremely disadvantaged to make you want to help them and when you do that, you set yourself up cause that’s when you’re most vulnerable.

Samsung Q320 was the best laptop available on Canadian market at the time of purchase. It was also the best value for money and an insane powerhouse which would allow me to do any kind of work wherever in the world I would be. That’s why I bought it – I went for power, for a machine with which I could do absolutely anything while still keeping the size at around 13″. However, even though Q320 was an amazing value for money, the price tag was at $1,299 CAD. That is a lot of money to lose and that’s what I didn’t add to the equation. Laptops are slick, easy to grab items with narrow profiles which make them easy to hide. There is no wonder that there is one laptop stolen every 53 seconds in the USA alone. What it is on a worldwide scale I’m afraid to imagine. Laptops are plain and simple easy to steal and high demand makes them easy to sell. What better motivation could seasoned or opportunistic thieves need?

You can count on the fact that 90% of people in the third world countries who will see you using a laptop will have all kind of thoughts running through their heads. This one slick, easy to steal product could make them more money even if heavily undersold than they can make in 6 months of daily employment. Cell phones are as attractive, but their worth is lesser than that of a laptop which makes laptops so much more desirable. A thief would have to make 5 or more successful cell phone pulls to make the money equal to one successful laptop pull. If I were a thief, I’d specialize in laptops too.

This is one of the most important things to consider when buying a new laptop. If you are going to travel overseas with it, especially if you are intending to visit third world countries, take into account the possibility that your laptop could get stolen. This possibility is real, very real. Once again, you can’t be 100% alert 100% of the time and with so many people waiting around for an opportunity to steal something, one of them is going to succeed sooner or later. Look at me, I had my laptop stolen by a hitchhiker I offered a ride to because she would have been stuck without one. I offered help to a person in need and she used it to steal from me. Previously I would not even as much as not strap my laptop bag over my head and across the shoulder, but all it takes is that one moment you let your guards down and bam – laptop is gone.

From this point on, I knew that I’m only gonna buy an inexpensive netbook for travel overseas. Netbooks are lighter and smaller and should mine get stolen, direct financial loss will go into hundreds of dollars rather than thousands. Yes, I will be limited as to the use and capabilities, but unless there would be a secured financial prospect that requires more processing power, memory and larger screen, I will stick with a netbook for up to $400. On top of $1,299 + tax I lost with my stolen laptop, I also lost $300 I spent on extended warranty. This pushed the loss to more than $1,600. This is not the loss I can ever afford again. However for as long as I’m traveling through third world countries, the possibility of having my property stolen remains high. If you stay in a third world country long enough, it will not be a question of whether you will get something stolen from you, it will be a question of when.

In my home country of Canada, 90% of worries that you could be a victim of theft are unfounded. However once as a foreigner you enter a third world country, 90% of beliefs that no one will steal from you are unfounded. Don’t be a fool. I had to learn my lesson the hard way and am still suffering from painful consequences. Don’t buy a laptop worth thousands of dollars to take with you on the road overseas. Go with as cheap as possible one. If it gets the job done, it’s fine. In order to keep your blog updated, download and upload images, do basic image editing and maintain your MP3 player, all you need is the cheapest netbook you can find. That’s the best laptop to buy to travel overseas with, that’s what you need to keep in mind when buying new portable computer.

Reporting Stolen Laptop

As part of my desperate efforts to salvage as much as I could after nasty laptop theft I quickly proceeded to let all relevant companies know that my laptop was stolen. When reporting a stolen laptop, I first thought of contacting Microsoft with the serial number of the operating system as Microsoft releases regular updates for Windows and if the thief or her accomplices broke into the laptop successfully, there might be a request for update from this particular serial number when it is connected to the internet. I certainly thought Microsoft may be able to trace the attempts to upgrade Widows Vista my laptop had installed (given unique serial number) and report it to the police or better yet, lock the operating system as it could be done with proven pirated copy.

Secondly, I reported stolen laptop to Samsung because they are the makers of it. Again – I wanted them to have my laptop’s serial number flagged as “stolen” in case there is a request for support or any other contact made using my laptop’s serial number. I knew the thief herself would not attempt to contact Samsung, but she was no computer user. She clearly stole it with intentions to sell it. And buyer of stolen laptop may eventually attempt to contact Samsung support which could lead to solid traces and possible recovery of the laptop.

Finally, I have also reported stolen laptop to Future Shop where I purchased the unit. Given that I also paid more than $300 for extended service plan, I thought they’d be willing to at least show some form of support to their loyal customer.

Sadly, each of the reports resulted in response that didn’t help. Microsoft Canada responded in less than 24 hours for which I commend them. Amazing support with fast response times. The response was written in an understandable language and to the point, sadly I was informed that due to privacy commitments, Microsoft cannot trace lost or stolen software when used by another individual, even if used illegally and was advised to report the theft to the police (which I have already done in the meantime). So much for high hopes with Microsoft, but their response was understandable. If they acted otherwise, everybody would complain that they invade their privacy too much and have too much remote control over their property. Ahh well.

Response from Samsung was way more useless. I got an email a few days later stating the following:

Unfortunately, the number “10126029-J502” is not the correct serial number, we are unable to accommodate your request at this point.

Well duh – it is not a valid number, but all other information I have provided when reporting stolen laptop was information exactly matching information I have registered my laptop with. I have also applied for free upgrade to Windows 7 that was provided complimentary by Samsung so they had all my information on file – my name, address, postal code, phone number, when it was purchased, where it was purchased, the model number, my email address, etc. Samsung has all this info on file yet their rep didn’t bother to verify it. At the time of reporting, I only had the receipt issued by the Future Shop which listed the item number in place of the serial number and that caused all the confusion. But it’s not like I had the laptop so I could flip it upside down to provide verified serial number. The rep could have at least gone through hassle of looking up my info to see that all other details provided were bang on, except from the serial number I had no means to get right. Useless Samsung rep and they do it just when you’re stressed the hell out of this world.

This was still nothing compared to the response from Future Shop. These guys simply did nothing. No response, not even as much as a middle finger. Just complete and thorough ignore on my desperate situation. Even if they just did as much as Microsoft – apologize that they are not in the position to help but would advice me to go to the police and file a report with them. This is polite and shows professionalism. Future Shop and professionalism are obviously two terms that don’t belong together. Future Shop only cares about getting your money when selling you the product but once they got the money, their care for you ends. Complete and utter disappointment there. Ignoring my report entirely is the lowest blow of all.

I followed up with Samsung by responding to the email which told me that they won’t do anything because I didn’t provide correct serial number only to find it back in my email inbox two weeks later. It bounced so no one did anything about it. I ended up calling them when I got back to Canada and my case was escalated to higher management who then contacted me via email to apologize for mishandling the situation and assured me that my serial number is flagged in their system and will notify me as well as the international police should they hear about my unit in some way.

What could I have done better when reporting stolen laptop? I was in the foreign country where I got robbed. I needed to file reports as soon as possible because the time was against me. I did my best given that I didn’t have the actual unit on me to verify correct serial number. None of the reports did me any good. Microsoft was the only company that responded in timely manner and did it very professionally. I’m still in further talks with Microsoft to see if there is anything that can be done. Samsung was a disappointment given the urgency and distress accompanying the report. Above all, Future Shop proved to be the worst electronics vendor in the world. Horrible, absolutely horrible mishandling of situation on their part.

Laptop Theft Prevention Tips

It wasn’t until I had my laptop stolen when I realized how important laptop theft prevention is. Statistically, in the United States alone, one laptop is stolen every minute. On a global scale the numbers are frightening. What’s even worse is the recovery rate – more than 97% of all stolen laptops is never recovered. Given that laptop theft is such frequently occurring crime and that chances of recovery are next to none, laptop theft prevention is absolutely crucial for every laptop owner. I have learned my lesson the hard way and it opened up my eyes to the reality and lead me to realize what I should have done to avoid getting my laptop stolen. I’m gonna share my hard way learned Laptop Theft Prevention Tips with you. Some of them are tips to help recover if theft or loss occur but they are as important as theft prevention tips hence are included:

Watermark Your Laptop

I’m not kidding – nobody does that but that’s the best laptop theft prevention tip ever. You won’t find this advice on any other list of laptop theft prevention tips, but let me explain where the power of it lies and how to properly execute it:

Watermarking your laptop basically means that you will freehand draw something on it in visible, large letters – something that will identify you as the rightful owner of the laptop and will identify everyone else as a thief. My stolen laptop was white. When I was buying it, I saw the white color as something very distasteful as it made my laptop look like a Mac Book which is truly awful. I have eventually decided to go for it since it was the best laptop with the best configuration and price available at the time. Looks were secondary, but overtime I’ve grown to like it despite Mac like white exterior color.

I should have taken advantage of white exterior and bought thick black permanent marker and write right across the case my name and email address. It’s no different to watermarking the images you upload on the internet to help identify you as the copyright owner if someone steals it to use illegally, or to putting a name tag on your check in luggage at the airport. Irremovable watermark on the laptop’s case makes it an easily and immediately recognizable unit. When reporting the theft to the police, if your laptop was watermarked, you would be able to offer an information that instantly identifies your laptop. There could be hundreds of thousands of white Samsung laptops out there, but had I watermarked it, there would be only one white Samsung laptop with huge handwriting which says my name and my email address. How is that for linking the laptop to myself?

Laptops that are not watermarked look like any other laptops, whereas a laptop that is watermarked looks like your particular one that was stolen. That is a powerful deterrent for a thief, a powerful deterrent for a potential buyer and a powerful means to make it back to you in case it ends up in wrong hands. I bought white laptop even though I didn’t like white color, because you don’t buy laptops for the looks. You buy them because they suit you for the use you intend to use them for. Looks are completely secondary so spoiling those looks with massive watermark will not diminish its functionality, but may help turn potential thieves off and even if stolen, could hugely assist in recovery. This is the best and easiest to apply laptop theft prevention tip ever. Most people buy laptops to use them. Unless you are one of few who buy laptops to sell them, then watermarking is not a good option, but if you are coughing up a grand so you can do computing on the road, watermarking your laptop can pay for itself in more ways than one.

And don’t worry if your laptop is not white like mine was. Even if it’s black – get yourself silver marker or use your sisters nail-polish. As an alternative, you can also use engraving. Carve your name on laptop’s lid. There’s no way anyone could remove it so your name will forever be associated with true ownership of this particular laptop.

Back-Up Your Data!

Important! Important! Important! Super important and then some. Back up your data often and always. And then back up again and when you’re done go and make another back up. Never neglect this need because it only takes a split second and your laptop could be gone. And like me, you will lose more than just the laptop itself. I lost my memories and the ability to post new updates from the rest of my trip in South East Asia. I lost work in progress I had on my websites, I lost important documents, sent and received emails, contact information on people I met during my travels – so much lost because I did not back up my data. I simply did not consider it an option that someone could steal my laptop. but as it goes, there are all kinds of people out there, including such who will steal from you when you are most vulnerable – when you are helping them because you expect them to be grateful not to be looking to rob you.

There are plain and simple two kinds of people in the world – those who back up their data regularly and those who have not lost their data yet. Data loss awaits around the corner to happen to you. Sooner or later some freak accident takes place and your data will be gone. Unless you have a solid back up (preferably more than one) everything that matters to you will be irreversibly gone. Do not ever neglect that. Smart people learn from other people’s mistake – be a smart person and learn from my mistake. Back up your data right now. You turn your head one way, turn it back and your laptop could be gone. Thieves are extremely skilled these days and know how to go about stealing successfully. Back ups are important. Besides, you can buy a large enough USB stick for a few bucks which will make backing up easy, quick and inexpensive. You can go through DVD burning or use of online backup services – the more you use, the better but even if you don’t like the hassle, you still have many options available to you. Do it. Don’t be like me thinking that this could never happen to you. Back up your data right now. It’s that important. I won’t hesitate to repeat it like a broken record over and over because it is the strongest truths of all.

Never Store Sensitive Data on a Laptop

As mentioned above, laptop theft is a common occurrence. Don’t assume for one second that it could never happen to you. I’m the most careful guy in the world who also knows what he’s doing when he’s on a computer yet I had my laptop stolen. On some days you are less alert than on others, on some days you are frustrated by external sources – all of this affects you and leaves you potentially vulnerable to laptop theft. And thieves are always out there and always looking for a guy or girl who is not having the best day of their lives today. When it rains it pours and misery likes company. I was having the shittiest day in a long time when I had my laptop stolen. Always assume that thieves are out there and ask yourself: what would happen if they stole my laptop today? Act accordingly!

Assume that you could have your laptop stolen in the next minute, so never have any of your login information set to remember on your laptop. Never check off any of those “Remember Me on This Computer” check boxes. Never choose to have any cookies stored locally to prevent you from always having to type in log in credentials when you are visiting your favorite sites. That especially applies when dealing with bank accounts or other institutions where financial information is exchanged. It’s much easier to have to type it in each time you need to get in the site than to have to go through recovery of moved assets or worse. Always act as if your laptop could get stolen any minute. You have no idea how much headache you save yourself from.

Set Up Boot Password

This is one thing I did and it still works on my behalf even with laptop gone. It is quite possible that thief or her accomplices have not yet got into my laptop only thanks to the boot password. When it comes to laptop theft aftermath, this is one of the strongest protection layers you have. To set up your boot password on a PC, you need to access BIOS menu which can be done by pressing one of the F keys on your keyboard. It used to be F1 or F2 or DEL back on older versions of Windows, but with my Samsung laptop it was the F10 key. It may be different on different models but usually before the operating system starts loading, the message briefly pops letting you know what to press to access the BIOS setup utility menu. It could be a single key or a combination of keys (such as CTRL + ALT + ESC).

Once you are in the BIOS setup utility, find where to set up boot password (could also be called user password, system password, or power-on password) and choose something that is not a dictionary word and is difficult or impossible to guess. I myself was using foreign word from an unusual language and had it purposefully misspelled. Having a Windows password is also good, but this is easier to bypass. Boot password is much more difficult and depending on the version of BIOS installed, could be near impossible without actual hardware replacements or resets.

Once you have your boot password successfully set up, it will be the first thing you will need to enter for the laptop to start doing anything. It won’t even initiate loading of the operating system unless correct boot password was entered. It could be a bit of a hassle to have to enter it each time you start up your computer, but you’ll be happy you had it.

Password Protect Screensaver Resumption

I had my screensaver set up to turn on after 3 minutes of inactivity. This is a very short time, but considering that it’s a laptop we’re talking about, I never wanted anyone to possibly get into it easily when I need to get on the phone or have other distraction taking my focus away from the laptop. This was a great idea even though created a little bit of a headache at times. An important part of this set up was to require a Windows password on resumption so when screensaver was activate, when the mouse was moved it went away, but required password to let a person in the operating system. Very good idea with laptops and a highly recommended theft prevention tip.

Install Stolen Laptop Tracking Software

Again, this was one of the things I have severely neglected and it limited my recovery options after my laptop was stolen. Laptop theft recovery software is not perfect, but at least it’s something that can help track down your laptop. There are several options out there but none of them seems perfect, however they are better than nothing:

LoJack for Laptops is a stolen laptop tracking program from Absolute Software. It requires annual subscription payments but Absolute has members on staff who know what to do when theft takes place. When you ping them regarding laptop theft, they will report it to appropriate authorities and work with them on recovery taking a lot off your shoulders. Their software will allow you to take certain actions when your stolen laptop connects to internet – you could remotely delete data if for example your laptop had sensitive personal information on it or you could continue tracking it with quite precise location trace. If your laptop is also equipped with a webcam, LoJack for Laptops will take a screenshot of what webcam can see which will likely uncover what the thief looks like right there. Since LoJack for Laptops resides in your BIOS not as part of the operating system, it activates upon start up of the laptop. You can buy 1 year of LoJack for Laptop service for $59.99 or 3 years for $109.99. Unfortunately, it doesn’t look like LoJack for Laptops works reliably (if at all) outside of the USA. More info on Absolute.com.

GadgetTrak is another software similar to LoJack for Laptops. It is installed on the machine and resides idling until you activate it using a web browser. So in the event of laptop theft, you can either go to an internet cafe or use your cell phone with enabled web browsing and with a click of a button the software on the laptop takes pictures of what your webcam can see and will send you its geographical location. The software promises to be privacy friendly claiming that all info collected by the software is only sent to your email or your flickr account, not to the company. GadgetTrak subscription services start at $19.99 a year. More info on GadgetTrak.com.

Prey Project – unlike above mentioned two softwares, Prey is an open source solution, which means it is free to use and free to modify. Prey is supported by a team of enthusiastic programmers from around the world and is under constant development so improved features are coming all the time. It works great and does exactly what it says it would (tracking stolen laptops) but unlike LoJack for Windows, it doesn’t have manpower behind it to work with the police in efforts to help recover your stolen laptop. Prey resides silently on the laptop and checks periodically whether there are any open wifi signals and if so, it connects to the internet and checks whether it has been “ordered” to start sending tracking information to the rightful owner. The downside is that because it is an installed software, it can be removed or bypassed from the system if laptop is handled by a computer savvy thief. LoJack resides in computer BIOS which makes it much more resilient to removal. Being open source, Prey can also be abused to track other people – if I installed in on your computer, I could at any time toggle the switch to “stolen” and the software would send me your location, your IP and MAC addresses, a screenshot of your desktop and a shot from your laptop’s webcam. It would do what it is programmed to do which can also be used for unfair purposes. As an inexpensive (understand: FREE) laptop theft tracking software, Prey is amazing. You will just have to take care of notifying authorities on your own. You will get info, but Prey doesn’t have the resources to do anything with that info on your behalf, unlike LoJack for Laptops, for example. More info on PreyProject.com.

Phoenix FailSafe – I was told about Phoenix FailSafe by Samsung representative after I have reported my laptop theft to them. Failsafe is apparently routinely installed nn most Dell and Samsung computers, but because Q320 is such a new model, FailSafe was not on it (and still is not). It does look like a useable solution. Similar to LoJack for Laptops, FailSafe operates at BIOS layer making it operational as soon as the computer starts executing first instructions, rather than after the operating system has been loaded and is more resistant to software and hardware removal. Because FailSafe operates on BIOS level, it can safely and securely disable the computer and lock the hard drive. I have not used FailSafe because my machine didn’t come pre-installed with it, but it appears to be pretty solid and near fool-proof. When I get myself a replacement laptop, I will be looking at this option more closely. Additional info on FailSafe.com.

EDIT – it appears as though FailSafe service cannot be purchased. It can only be had if it’s part of the new computer you are buying. Select Dell Notebooks and Samsung Go Netbooks come with it and can have the feature activated for $39.95 for 1 year or $79.95 for 3 years. It’s a solid solution that resides in computer BIOS and will not stop working on your behalf even if thief replaced hard drives with new operating system, but inability to have it on any laptop limits its usability. Perhaps Phoenix will offer an option to have it installed on any computer soon.

Mark Down Laptop’s Info

Always have vital information about your laptop at a place easily accessible to you. The best bet is to email it to your web based email address so you can access it from any computer that’s connected to the internet and find it there if needed. You will need at least model name and number and a serial number. Additional information, such as screen size, RAM memory, HDD size, when it was purchased, etc could also be helpful.

Buy Laptop Lock

Laptop Locks are fairly inexpensive cables that can be securely fastened to most laptops (I have not seen any new laptop without a Kensington Security Slot for a Laptop Lock). The other end of the cable you can secure either against something stationary (a desk for example) or something large, such as your bag which will make it more difficult to sneakily steal it. It’s a small investment but a big help and a possible buster of all laptop theft attempts when dealt with properly.

Use Full Disk Encryption

Having your hard drive encrypted is not a costly matter and is not difficult at all. Stolen laptops often end up with replaced hard drivers or get the original hard driver formatted but thief may attempt to read the data on a removed hard drive first to see if any interesting information that could help him come by your money can be found there. Full Disc Encryption cannot get you your data back, but it can prevent the thief from easily reading it. At least you’d know that they can’t access everything you had on your hard drive even if you can’t get it back.

Don’t Take Your Eyes Off Your Laptop

This is the single most important laptop theft prevention tip in existence. This was the reason why the thief who stole my laptop succeeded with it – I had my laptop on the rear seat while I was driving. It was off my sight while I had my eyes locked on the road. This creates suitable conditions for both opportunist thieves as well as pros that are always on a look out for something available to steal (like the one who stole my laptop). Due to slick, flat design of laptops, they can be easily and quickly snuck inside a bag and will not stick out to be easily noticed once there. They are plain and simple easy targets for theft. Never ever take your eyes off your laptop or when you go back to lend your eyes on it, it may not be there anymore. Disguise your laptop as much as you can and if possible, don’t allow others to see you have it in the first place. If you need to use it in a public place, make sure you use Laptop Lock (see above) and have it fastened to something stationary. In case like mine – if you are driving, have your laptop locked against the door handle and if possible, lock it in the trunk where no one can get. If you can’t have your laptop firmly in your hands or in your sight, make sure it is locked up safely.

Don’t Use Laptop Cases for Your Laptop

Using non descriptive bags will not raise alarms in thieves’ eyes that you have a laptop on you. If you walk around with a carrying case designed for laptops, especially if it’s a brand name case which bears a name of a laptop manufacturer instantly identifies you as a person with a laptop and thieves will have their eyes locked on you and will wait for the right moment to steal.

Use Privacy Sweeping Software

Install and regularly use privacy sweeping software to hide traces of your online activities. I have been using free to install and use Advanced System Care from IObit and have been very happy with it. It speeds up your computer and can prevent crashes, but it will also remove traces of your on line activities so if unlucky event of laptop theft befalls on you, the thieves won’t have full access to what you have done on line, which sites you have visited and what log in names you used since you started using the laptop. It’s easy and free to install IObit utility and it does a great job. More info and download on IObit.com.

I hope these Laptop Theft Prevention Tips were helpful. The best advice I can give you is that you learn from my mistake and take preventative measures to ensure that laptop theft doesn’t happen to you. Also take preventative measures so when it does happen to you, so you can maximize your chances of laptop recovery or deletion of sensitive data. According to the FBI statistics, a laptop is stolen every 53 seconds in the USA alone and less than 3% are recovered. Imagine what it’s like on a worldwide scale. Laptop theft is obviously a popular one and hard to revert, yet laptops are devices that bear some of the most important and most sensitive information. Guard them with care and take all steps necessary to prevent laptop theft. Tips provided within are offered with best intentions to help you avoid the same hell I had to and still have to go through because I have neglected some of those. Laptop theft is horrible, learn from these tips and apply them to avoid this crap.

Samsung Q320 Laptop in Canada

At this point things really started to look crappy. I only had a week until my departure and still didn’t have a laptop. I had last two options left – either go for a large screen laptop but be stuck with this heavy, oversized piece of equipment I will have to haul around endlessly, impossible to use in confined spaces, such as plane seats, or purchase extremely expensive, but super lightweight and super small laptop from Sony or Panasonic. Sony was not a brand of choice as I had previously had bad experience with their laptop, so Panasonic Toughbook seemed like the only option. And while these ToughBooks are impact resistant, small and lightweight, they are super expensive making it more than unjustifiable (unless you have lots of money to waste). Performance is nowhere near where it should be, however the fact that they are so small and so light (and so durable) would make it a perfect companion on the road.

Price tags for these laptops are sky high, however. Cashing out $2,500 for a laptop is not an easy thing to do. And it was at that time when Samsung introduced its laptop to Canadian computer market. Their laptop model was Q320 and even though Samsung is not known as being a solid computer maker, I have been using 24″ Samsung screen on my desktop and it’s the best screen I’ve ever owned. The Samsung Q320 specs were impressive. More than I could ask for which was making it very attractive. It cost $1,299 Canadian which was more than any previous laptop I have looked at but it had components to well justify the price. As a matter of fact, when it comes to value for money, Samsung Q320 was on top of the game. Given high performance components inside this laptop, the price was amazing.

I was still a little bit reluctant because Samsung is simply not a make you ever think of when you talk laptops so I went to search for Q320 reviews on line. Surprisingly, people did not have enough good things to say about these machines. It almost seemed unreal that there would be a laptop with such amazing set up for such an attractive price. I went to take a look at it in Future Shop and sure enough, the feel of Q320, the performance, the screen output – this was one amazing machine. Unfortunately in Canada, Samsung Q320 laptops were only available in white. That made the unit look like a MacBook which is not very visually flattering, but I wasn’t buying the laptop for its looks. I needed performance, reliability and small size. They way a laptop looks was vastly irrelevant so I got past the Mac-like looks and gave myself just one day to think it over (I’m not an impulsive buyer, no matter what).

My original intention was to only spend up to $1,000 for a laptop and this Samsung Q320 was way over my budget. Given the components this laptop was equipped with, however, the price tag made it more than worth it so value for money was there more than with any other laptop. I went back to the Future Shop the following day only to find out with horror that the only model they had there yesterday sold during the day today. Since this was a brand new model, no other outlet in Canada carried it. I went to Future Shop in Northgate, Edmonton and was told that they didn’t even have any of those yet. As a matter of fact, first two sales reps I was talking to didn’t even know this model existed. I had to refer them to their website to make them believe that I’m not making it up and Future Shop does in fact carry this model.

I spent whole day trying to buy the best small laptop that was currently available in Canada only to end up with nothing at the end of the day. At least formerly worthless sales reps from Northgate did me a favor and called other Future Shop locations in Edmonton to see if anyone still has one of the units in stock. Luckily, the west end location did have it so I assured them I would be there tomorrow to pick it up and asked them to secure it for me. The following day I jumped on my mountain bike and rode all the way to west Edmonton where brand new Samsung Q320 was waiting for me. Without second guessing I bought this laptop and headed home to enjoy its performance.

Photo: Samsung Q320 Laptop - The Best Laptop buy in Canada in 2009/2010

This machine worked like clockwork. The best laptop I have ever owned. It had the speakers on the bottom giving out poor sound when you had the laptop on your lap, covering the output, but other than that I could not think of any other downside. The best laptop ever. Never let me down in any way. I was really happy with the choice I made and as I kept using it, I even grew to accept the not-so-flattering, Macintosh-like white exterior. I had the most important piece of electronic device needed for my travels. I was ready to board the plane. As far as laptops in Canada are concerned, Samsung Q320 is hands down the best model to buy.