blog · Page 2 of 21 · EliteMacTechs

January 25, 2017 By Jessie E

How To Get Your Mac Fixed Fast – Priority Rush Service

You probably know about our free, fast, and friendly 24 hour diagnosis service. We do our best to make sure that every customer gets an answer about their Mac within 24 hours, at no charge. But what about those situations when you need your laptop back right away, and you just can’t wait 24 hours? For those times when our customers are in a hurry and need their computer to be diagnosed or fixed ASAP, we offer a special Priority Rush Service.

Level 1 Rush Service

Normally, we work on computers on a first-come-first-served basis. If you’d like someone to look at your Mac right away, you’ll want our Level 1 Priority Rush Service. For an up front payment of $50, you get to jump the queue, and we will start working on your diagnosis immediately. If the computer does not need to be diagnosed, we would start working on the repair immediately. On a busy day, this could mean the difference between getting your computer back the same day vs. the next afternoon. This gives you a much better chance of getting your computer back before the typical 24 hours. For simpler Mac repairs, we might even be able to finish while you wait!

Level 2 Rush Service

If you need the absolute fastest repair turnaround possible, you want our Level 2 Priority Rush Service. For a $100 fee, you get to jump to the front of the line, and we start working on your Mac immediately and do not stop until it’s diagnosed or repaired. Your computer also gets VIP status in our workroom, so we will use our fastest transfer drives and free up any needed equipment for your repairs. Basically, we will do everything in our power to get your service done as soon as humanly possible.

Come on by!

If you’re interested in expediting your Mac repair, call us at (818) 914-2529 or just ask us at check in. Come by anytime for our Mac Repair services, no need for an appointment!

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EliteMacTechs

11390 Ventura Blvd
STE 4

Studio City, CA 91604

United States (US)

Phone: (818) 914-2529
Email: info@elitemactechs.com

Monday	11:30 AM - 7:00 PM
Tuesday	8:00 AM - 7:00 PM
Wednesday	8:00 AM - 7:00 PM
Thursday	8:00 AM - 4:00 PM
Friday	Closed
Saturday	Closed
Sunday	Closed

January 12, 2017 By Jessie E

What To Do If You Lose Your iPhone

What should you do if you lose your iPhone?

Did you leave it at work, the store, or is it hiding under the couch cushions? Maybe a good Samaritan found it and is trying to return it to you. Maybe you just need a little hint for where to search.

Luckily, there’s an easy way to find out where you left your missing phone. Apple has a built-in solution on iCloud that uses your iPhone’s GPS signal to help you track it down. This also works if your iPhone has “wandered” off somewhere without your permission.

Finding your iDevice

First, you need to log into iCloud and select “Find My iPhone”. An easy way is to just go directly to www.icloud.com/find. You’ll need to know your Apple ID and password to log in. This is the same login that you use to buy Apps and iTunes downloads. Once you’re logged in, you should see a list of all the iDevices (iPhones, iPads, and iPods) and Macs that are associated with your iCloud account. Each device will have a gray or green dot next to it. Green means that the iPhone is online, and gray means that it’s offline. If you click on the green dot, you’ll be able to see a GPS map of exactly where your iPhone is right now!

Once you figure out where your missing iPhone is, you’ll want to make sure it’s safe. If you can’t retrieve the iPhone right away because it is stolen or far away, you can tell iCloud to remotely erase the iPhone. This will remove all of your personal data, financial information, apps, photos, contact information, emails and texts from the phone. That way, if someone finds the iPhone, they won’t be able to violate your privacy or steal your identity. Warning: this will erase everything! If you don’t have your iPhone backed up, you won’t be able to get your data back. You also have the option to lock the phone instead, if it wasn’t locked already.

Enabling Find My iPhone on your device

If you don’t see the lost iPhone you’re looking for, it’s probably because you don’t have Find My iPhone enabled on it. Here’s how to enable this feature right now. It will be ready to go when you need it in the future.

On the iPhone or iPad you want to enable, go to settings:

Next, click on iCloud under the settings menu.

You will see all the different iCloud services you can use, near the bottom will be “Find My iPhone” (or iPad).

Now all you have to do is turn on the “Find My iPhone” (or iPad) setting.

That’s it! As long as your phone has battery and signal, you’ll be able to track it down. Now you don’t have to worry about losing your iPhone.

December 23, 2016 By Jessie E

How to Transfer Your Data to Your New Mac

It’s a great time of year to get a new Mac. Maybe you’ve got your eye on one of the latest MacBook Pro models with the fancy new touch bar controls, or you’re saving up your Christmas money for an upgraded refurbished used MacBook like the ones we have listed on our sale page. But before you can use your new laptop or iMac, you’ll want to get it set up with all your data, programs and files. If your old mac is a recent model, it’s pretty easy to transfer your data using Migration Assistant, a program that should already be installed on your new Mac computer. If your Mac is older than a couple of years, the process might be different. And what about if your old computer isn’t working, or your data is stored on an external hard drive?

If you’re having trouble setting up your new macbook with all your old stuff like photos, music, documents, and apps, bring it to us for a free diagnosis. Our data transfer services are very affordable, and usually can be completed in less than 24 hours. Even if the Apple store wasn’t able to help you, we might have ways of getting your files transferred to your new MacBook or iMac. We are able to recover data even from liquid damaged computers, MacBooks that won’t turn on, and very old macs. Let the experts handle the hassle of getting your new MacBook up and running, so you can focus on enjoying it!

Route

EliteMacTechs

11390 Ventura Blvd
STE 4

Studio City, CA 91604

United States (US)

Phone: (818) 914-2529
Email: info@elitemactechs.com

Monday	11:30 AM - 7:00 PM
Tuesday	8:00 AM - 7:00 PM
Wednesday	8:00 AM - 7:00 PM
Thursday	8:00 AM - 4:00 PM
Friday	Closed
Saturday	Closed
Sunday	Closed

December 20, 2016 By Jessie E

How to Safely Clean the Outside of Your Mac

Computers get used every day, so it’s no surprise that they can get a little dirty from time to time. Screens get smudgy, keyboards get crumbs spilled on them, residue from your hands builds up on the trackpad, and dust gets on everything. But how can you clean your Mac safely, without damaging it? If your MacBook is due for a cleaning, here are some tips to keep in mind.

Moisture of any kind is the enemy of computers

Never spray any liquid directly on your iMac or MacBook. This can very easily short out and destroy expensive parts of your computer, like the screen, keyboard, or logic board. Get a soft cloth slightly damp with cleaning solution and use that to wipe or dab at your Mac. If you’re not sure what to use to clean the screen, keyboard, or body of your laptop, remember drier is always better.

Don’t use ammonia on your Mac

But the Ammonia-Free version of Windex is a great choice for cleaning smudges off your MacBook screen. Remember: spray the Ammonia-Free Windex on a microfiber cloth first and use that on the computer. There are also special products marketed for cleaning electronics screens, they work too.

DIY Option

If you don’t want to buy a special product to clean your computer, you can use a DIY mixture of rubbing alcohol and distilled water. This cleans better and evaporates more easily than just water or soap and water. This is especially good for cleaning keyboards, just get a Q-tip a tiny bit damp with the solution (not dripping wet!) and run it over and between the keys.

Gently now

The screen on your MacBook Pro, MacBook, or MacBook Air is more fragile than it looks! Don’t rub hard on the screen. We’ve seen screens cracked from too vigorous cleaning!

Use a cloth

You don’t need to use liquids at all. Shut the computer down completely and vacuum crumbs and dust off the keyboard with a handheld vacuum, or use a can of compressed air to gently blow them away. Even just wiping the computer down with a dry cloth from time to time will help keep it looking tidy.

These instructions are only for cleaning the outside of your computer. If your computer got into a bigger mess and you think it needs to be cleaned inside as well, turn it off and bring it to us for a free diagnosis. We’ve seen it all.
Did you spill liquid on your Mac? We are liquid damage repair experts! Visit our Mac Liquid Damage Repair page.

Have a Mac that needs repair? We can help! Bring it by for our free 24 hour diagnosis.

EliteMacTechs

11390 Ventura Blvd
STE 4

Studio City, CA 91604

United States (US)

Phone: (818) 914-2529
Email: info@elitemactechs.com

Monday	11:30 AM - 7:00 PM
Tuesday	8:00 AM - 7:00 PM
Wednesday	8:00 AM - 7:00 PM
Thursday	8:00 AM - 4:00 PM
Friday	Closed
Saturday	Closed
Sunday	Closed

December 16, 2016 By Jessie E

Fake Popup Alert Messages from Genieo Adware

Adware always seems to come in waves. We had two different computers in the shop today with similar popup messages. Both computers would work normally for about 30 minutes, and then internet browsing would slow down dramatically. The cause was an unwanted program called Genieo that sneakily found its way onto their Macs and ran in the background. This bloatware/adware software also creates popup warnings like the one seen above that try to trick you into “setting your default search setting to Genio in your host browser.” Resetting the default search engine or home page is a common trick that adware and malware programs play on their victims. They will try to make money off of you by showing you ads or hijacking your search results. The worst part is they’re using your CPU cycles to do it! Here’s another popup that this junk program uses:

“Due to changes required by Apple in order to support OS X 10.10 (Yosemite) we need you to update and set Genieo Homepage.” This one is designed to make you think that the message is coming from Apple or your operating system. You can tell it’s fake by the grammar and punctuation errors, and the fact that it doesn’t look like a standard Apple update reminder. Apple will never tell you what to set your browser homepage to. If you get a popup message like this, don’t click it at all, just close your browser and bring the computer to us for an adware scan.

We offer adware removal services at our Studio City location as well as Nationwide though out remote removal service! Just start by checking out our adware removal service page.