Section 1: Mobile Devices

Question 1

If you are unfamiliar with a particular brand of laptop, how do you figure out how to service and repair it?

Answer 1

Many laptop manufacturers will provide service information so you can learn more about the process required to replace the keyboard, the display, or other components within the laptop.

Question 2

What is the term used to describe the design of laptops that provides the ability to change batteries quickly without the need to take the device apart

Answer 2

Modular
You can unplug and reconnect batteries to your laptop. And you don’t have to take apart the laptop to gain access to that battery. Some laptops will have batteries inside of the laptop case, and those obviously are not designed to be modular.

Question 3

What are the two main types of batteries used in laptops?

Answer 3

Lithium-ion and lithium-ion polymer

Question 4

What should you do before purchasing a new battery for a laptop?

Answer 4

Make sure it is compatible with the laptop as laptops have a very specific form factor and batteries are very specific to a particular make and model of laptop

Question 5

What is the use of the keyboard and how is it attached to the device?

Answer 5

The keyboard is one of the most used components of a laptop and is the primary input into the operating system.

There is a single device that is usually connected with a ribbon cable to the main part of the laptop (motherboard)

Question 6

If you are having problems with the keyboard that is integrated into the laptop, how could you get around this issue?

Answer 6

Plug an external keyboard into the USB interface

Question 7

Where are all of the programs that are executing in your operating system running?

Answer 7

In memory

Question 8

SO-DIMM is very common for laptops and other mobile devices, but some laptop manufacturers do not create them in a modular way. In these cases how is the memory attached, where is it attached, and what are the disadvantages of this type?

Answer 8

It is physically soldered to the motherboard of the laptop, which means you can’t upgrade the memory without replacing the motherboard

Question 9

What does SO-DIMM stand for?

Answer 9

Small Outline Duel In-line Memory Module

Question 10

Many newer laptops have what kind of hard drives installed?

Answer 10

Solid State Drives (SSD)

Question 11

What are the advantages of an SSD over a traditional hard drive?

Answer 11

No moving parts
Less latency
Greatly increased speed for reading and writing data

Question 12

What is an M.2 interface and what are its features?

Answer 12

It is a solid state drive which is much smaller than the larger, traditional SATA-connected SSD.
Don’t have the cables that you would normally find on a traditional SATA SSD

Question 13

What are the most common migration methods when moving an operating system from an existing spinning hard drive to a new SSD?

Answer 13

1) Install an operating system on the SSD and simply move over a user’s documents and any applications that they might need. However, this can be time-consuming because it requires an additional operating system installation. And then you have to manually move over everything that user might have in their user documents and then manually install any applications that are important for that user.

2) Create a clone or an image of the hard drive and move that image to the new SSD. This means that you don’t have to install a new operating system on the SSD. And when you move this image from one system to the other, you’re moving everything– all of the users data and all of the users applications. To perform this migration, you’ll need software that can create the image on the hard drive and move that image or copy it onto the SSD.

3) You can also perform a drive-to-drive image where there’s no intermediary image file. You’re simply taking everything from one system and copying it sector-by-sector over to the drive that’s on another system. This would require that you either have two systems running simultaneously so you can perform that drive-to-drive image, or the system that you’re using supports having multiple drives inside of it simultaneously.

Question 14

What interfaces do older laptops have that allows you to add additional wireless connectivity?

Answer 14

Mini PCI or Mini PCI Express interfaces

Question 15

What is 802.11

Answer 15

802.11 is a family of evolving specifications for wireless local area networks (WLANs) developed and maintained by a working group of IEEE.

IEEE 802.11 is used in most home and office networks to allow laptops, printers, smartphones, and other devices to communicate with each other and access the Internet without connecting wires.

Question 16

What is the slot labelled “Wireless wide area network” for in a laptop?

Answer 16

For a cellular connection so that you can use a third-party cellular provider to gain access to the network when you’re away from 802.11 or any other type of network.

Question 17

What additional authentication options are there on newer operating systems?

Answer 17

Biometrics

Our operating system can look at our face, it can look at our fingerprint, and be able to determine if that’s really us and if we should gain access to the system. They’re usually two components to this. There’s the software in the operating system so that it can support this method of authentication.

And then you’ll need some type of hardware that can provide either the view of your face or the view of your finger so that it can determine if that’s really you wanting to gain access to the laptop.

Question 18

What is NFC?

Answer 18

Near-Field Communication - A technology that allows us to transfer data or perform authentication to the device without physically touching the device. If you’re in a store, and you paid during checkout with your phone or your watch, then you were using NFC.

It works within a short distance, around 4cm or less

Question 19

What does LCD stand for?

Answer 19

Liquid Crystal Display

Question 20

How does a LCD screen work?

Answer 20

There are a series of liquid crystals associated with colour filters, and there is a backlight or light source that shines through to give us the image that’s on the screen.

The light source may be fluorescent, LED, or some other type of light

Question 21

What are the different layers to an LCD screen?

Answer 21

Light source or backlight
Polarising filter
Electrodes
Liquid crystals
Electrodes
Colour filter
Polarising filter
Display surface

Question 22

What are the advantages of an LCD screen?

Answer 22

Lightweight
Use relatively low power
Relatively inexpensive

Question 23

What are the disadvantages of an LCD screen?

Answer 23

Getting true black can be difficult
Requires a separate backlight
Difficult to repair or replace the backlight

Question 24

Name 3 different LCD technologies?

Answer 24

Twisted Nematic (TN) LCD
IPS LCD (Plane Switching)
Vertical Alignment (VA) LCD

Question 25

What are the advantages and disadvantages of a Twisted Nematic LCD display?

Answer 25

Advantages are that they have a fast response time (good for gaming) Disadvantages are that it has very bad viewing angles which means you need to look directly at the display, otherwise there is an inversion of colours

Question 26

What are the advantages and disadvantages of a IPS LCD display?

Answer 26

A - Excellent colour representation D - More expensive to produce than a Twisted Nematic display

Question 27

What are the advantages and disadvantages of a Vertical Alignment LCD display?

Answer 27

A - A good compromise between TN an IPS Good colour representation D - Slower response time than TN

Question 28

What does OLED stand for?

Answer 28

Organic Light Emitting Diode

Question 29

How does a OLED display work?

Answer 29

Instead of having a backlight, OLED uses organic material that emits light when you provide it with a current

Question 30

What are the advantages of a OLED display?

Answer 30

Very thin displays which mean they are light It's able to create its own light when you provide it with power They provide great colour representation Flexible and mobile - no glass needed Doesn't require a backlight

Question 31

What is OLED used in?

Answer 31

Monitor displays, tablets, phones, smart watches

Question 32

Why are wireless antennas run through the display of a device?

Answer 32

When you open your laptop the display is the highest component so it's a perfect place to have the antenna. However, it creates some challenges when you are replacing a display

Question 33

What kind of backlight do older laptop displays use and what are its features?

Answer 33

Older laptops use a CCFL backlight (Cold Cathode Fluorescent Lamp). These require more power than the modern LED lights used today and they aren't as thin as LEDs so they take up more space, making the display thicker

Question 34

How do LED backlights work?

Answer 34

There is a matrix of LED lights in strips. The display recognises which parts of the display should be lighter and darker and adjust the lighting depending on what you are viewing on the screen

Question 35

What additional components would you find in a CCFL backlight display?

Answer 35

Inverters are needed because the backlight requires AC power but laptops use DC power. The inverters take the DC power and convert it to AC to power the fluorescent backlights.

Question 36

What is one way to tell if your backlight has failed?

Answer 36

Shine a flashlight directly at the screen. If you are able to make out some of the information on the screen then it is very possible that the problem is with the backlight and not the display

Question 37

What does a hybrid device, like something that has a keyboard and a tablet type display allow you to do and how does it work?

Answer 37

It allows you to directly draw onto the screen. Inside the display there is a digitiser that converts the analogue input onto the display into digital signals that the computer can use

Question 38

What is a digitiser used for and what is it useful for?

Answer 38

Converts analogue input into digital signals. It allows you to use a pen-like device as input (useful for graphical input) or provide input using a touch screen

Question 39

What is a touch screen digitiser used for?

Answer 39

A touch screen digitiser takes input from our finger, converts it into a digital form to be used by that system. It’s a very common way to get information into a laptop or a tablet.

Question 40

What does USB stand for?

Answer 40

Universal Serial Bus

Question 41

What is USB designed for?

Answer 41

We use USB or Universal Serial Bus as the primary wired connection type. USB is designed for high speed communication and it’s often used to connect our mobile device with our computer or with a power source.

Question 42

What types of USB connections are there?

Answer 42

USB Type A USB Mini B Plug USB Micro B Plug USB C

Question 43

Describe USB-C and what it can be used for

Answer 43

24-pin double sided USB connector used for both hosts and devices Acts as a USB 2.0/3.0/3.1/4 connection Sending display port signals HDMI video and audio Thunderbolt data

Question 44

What is a lightening connection and what are its advantages over USB?

Answer 44

This is an eight pin proprietary connection from Apple and it’s commonly seen on iPhones and iPads. Supports higher power output so we can charge things faster Can be inserted either way

Question 45

What connection was used before the invention of USB?

Answer 45

DB-9 (DE-9) interface which is a nine pin connection that commonly transported RS232 signals

Question 46

Where would you still likely find some DB-9 connections?

Answer 46

Consoles on switches, routers, firewalls and other devices

Question 47

List two uses for NFC connection

Answer 47

Paying for items using your phone or smart watch, or as an access device in an identification card you hold up to a sensor to unlock a door

Question 48

Describe some uses for Bluetooth and what it provides

Answer 48

Connecting to wireless earbuds or vehicle audio system Tethering Health monitors External speakers high speed communication over short distances (Personal Area Network)

Question 49

How could you use your phone for WAN?

Answer 49

You can use your phone as a Wi-Fi hotspot so anyone around you can connect to your mobile phone over 802.11 and your mobile phone will use your wireless provider's network to gain access to the internet

Question 50

What does a touch screen or capacitive stylus allow you to do?

Answer 50

It allows you to manipulate and activate the interface on these devices without physically touching the screen with your hand. If you like to take notes by hand or you’d like to sign your name on the screen, you might want to use one of these touch pins It emulates the process of using a pen or pencil but on a phone or tablet

Question 51

What is an active/digital stylus?

Answer 51

It provides you with more functionality and more precise usability than something like a capacitive touch pen. The stylus is able to communicate independently with the device that’s being used even if those two devices are not touching each other. It's a more advanced writing tool which is pressure sensitive and can have programmable buttons

Question 52

Describe a difference between a capacitive stylus and a digital stylus

Answer 52

Unlike a capacitive stylus, which can be used on any capacitive touchscreen across many different manufacturers, an active stylus is commonly associated with a certain group of devices. For example, if you’re using an Apple iPad, you would need to use Apple’s own pencil to be able to interact with that device using their active stylus.

Question 53

What can you do if you are using a computer that doesn't have any type of capacitive display or any type of touch screen?

Answer 53

You can add a touchscreen capability with an external drawing pad. This takes an active stylus, and combines that with an external digitiser that you then connect to the computer. This gives you that same precise input as an active stylus but allows you to use it across many different systems.

Question 54

What do laptops have built in that means you do not require an external mouse?

Answer 54

A trackpad

Question 55

What are the uses of a trackpad?

Answer 55

Replaces the mouse which is useful in tight working areas Allows you to drag and tap, or use multiple finger input for right-clicking, zooming and window control

Question 56

What can you do to help if you keep inadvertently moving the cursor from accidental touching when using the keyboard?

Answer 56

On some laptops, you’re able to disable the trackpad through the built in function keys. This would allow you to still continue to use the keyboard but would disable any of those inadvertent key presses on the trackpad itself

Question 57

When using a headset, what type of connections can you have?

Answer 57

Wired headsets through USB or 3 1/2 millimetre TRRS connection Lightning connection Bluetooth

Question 58

What is a TRRS connection?

Answer 58

Tip-Ring-Ring-Sleeve - it is an analogue audio jack that takes the information you’re talking into your microphone or audio that you need to hear and sends it through the copper connection that’s plugged into this device It is able to separate all of the signals that you need to be able to both listen to the audio and talk into the microphone for both input and output to that device.

Question 59

What can you use to minimise the need to keep plugging and unplugging all the required cables when you take your laptop to different locations?

Answer 59

A docking station

Question 60

What device is a simpler form of docking station?

Answer 60

A port replicator Doesn't usually have ab expansion card option and usually connects with a USB

Question 61

Why are mobile phones also known as cell phones?

Answer 61

Because they are using a cellular network. It's called cellular because we are separating the geography of an area into sections or cells. Antennas are placed on the edge of the cells so we are able to maintain connectivity wherever we are travelling

Question 62

What is the original cellular network called?

Answer 62

2G, which consisted of 2 global standards - GSM (Global System for Mobile Communication_ and CDMA (Code Division Multiple Access)

Question 63

What was good and bad about 2G?

Answer 63

Good for voice communication but it had very limited support for sending data over this wireless network A type of circuit switched network

Question 64

Describe the GSM network

Answer 64

Global System for Mobile Communications allowed you to have coverage wherever you travelled in the world. Allowed you to have all of your phone configurations on a Subscriber Identity Module (SIM Card) which you could move from phone to phone

Question 65

How does the GSM network system work?

Answer 65

Used multiplexing to be able to have many people communicating at the same time over the same frequencies. Every user got a little slice of time and could send the information while other people were also conversing on that same network. This allowed people to perform voice communication, data communication, and combine all of that across many people in one single geographic area.

Question 66

Describe the CDMA network and how it works

Answer 66

Code Division Multiple Access - multiple people communicating over the network. As a user sends information they send it with a particular code. Each call used a different code to be able to communicate, which meant that the handset that you were using could filter out codes that weren’t important to your conversation and focused only on the code specific between you and who you’re talking to.

Question 67

Describe the 3G network

Answer 67

3G (3rd Generation) released in 1998 Provided additional speed to we can send more data much faster Around several megabytes per second Give new capabilities like GPS, streaming video and audio

Question 68

Describe the 4G network

Answer 68

4G LTE - Long Term Evolution combined GSM with EDGE (Enhanced Data Rates for GSM Evolution) Increased throughput to 150 megabytes per second Upgraded version called LTE Advanced or LTE-A increased throughput to 300 megabytes per second

Question 69

Describe the 5G network

Answer 69

5G (5th Generation) introduced in 2020 greatly enhanced speeds, which will eventually allow for up to 10GB per second Operates at higher frequencies Allows for extended functionality like large data transfers, additional cloud processing, and faster monitoring and notification

Question 70

What is the update called which your phone does to find where the appropriate towers are for the network it is on?

Answer 70

PRL Update - Preferred Roaming List This can be updated over-the-air. So you may see that your phone is performing an OTA update.

Question 71

What security functions are there for mobile connectivity?

Answer 71

Bluetooth Pairing Process which allows you to control exactly what devices are able to communicate to your mobile phone or your tablet. This commonly requires you to view or verify a particular phrase or personal identification number to be assured that you’re really connecting the device you have in front of you.

Question 72

Describe the steps of the Bluetooth pairing process

Answer 72

Make sure both devices are configured to use Bluetooth and set them to be discoverable so they can see each other (e.g. holding a sync button). Once it is in discoverable (pairing) mode it should show up on the list of available devices. You will then be prompted to confirm or enter a PIN so you can confirm which device you are adding

Question 73

Who were GPS satellites originally created by?

Answer 73

US Department of Defence

Question 74

Describe how phones use GPS satellites for precise navigation

Answer 74

The phone must be able to hear the signals from at least 4 satellites which allows the phone to calculate where it is based on timing differences from the different satellites. It calculates the longitude, latitude, and altitude of where we may be located

Question 75

As well as GPS (which is the primary source), what else does the phone use to narrow down more precisely the location?

Answer 75

Wi-Fi connectivity and identifies cellular towers

Question 76

In a large organisation, how can you manage multiple devices including BYOD?

Answer 76

Mobile Device Management (MDM) (Intune)

Question 77

What does MDM allow you to do?

Answer 77

Gain access to the configurations of all of the mobile devices in their environment. This is especially important if company data is being stored on these devices. Manage security updates Update configurations like disable settings or ensure certain applications are installed Partition out company data from personal date Wipe data

Question 78

Why is synchronisation useful and provide some examples of providers?

Answer 78

iCloud and Microsoft 365 You can not only synchronise the email between your mobile device and other email systems you use, but you can also configure and synchronise contacts, calendars, reminders, and notes. This way if you create a note on your mobile phone, the note automatically appears on Microsoft 365 on your desktop and vice versa.