GEEK SQUAD ISSUES CHRISTMAS OFFICE PARTY ‘TWIT PIC’ WARNING
2011 News
December 12th, 2011
As this year’s Christmas office party season kicks off, Geek Squad has issued its official guide to avoid the shambolic and embarrassing photos that surface in the wake of the annual work shindig. According to tradition, the height of Christmas Party season will fall on Friday 16th December this year and will see office workers across the country hit the town for a night of abandon. But revellers often fail to anticipate the photographic evidence that follows, posted on social networks and emailed across the company in the days that follow.
Here, Geek Squad offers tips on protecting your office party appearance using the latest features and tricks on smart phones and digital cameras.
- Say cheese: Moody colleagues? It’s almost impossible to get a shot of everyone looking their best, but if you’re set on getting a photo capturing everyone smiling, grab an Olympus FE Series camera, which utilises smile recognition at the flick of a switch. iPhone users can download the SmileDetector app direct from iTunes for a similar effect.
- Lights, camera, edit: Is the office idiot ruining your photos by poking up in the background of every shot? Try the Fujifilm Z900, which allows you to edit the photos you take straight away using the 3.5 inch touchscreen, before uploading them to your computer and firing off an email to all staff.
- Art attack: Those with a BlackBerry should take advantage of the Photo Editor Ultimate app, which will allow you to add filters and effects to your photos. This will become increasingly important as the evening wears on, and the make-up wears off.
- Shine a (little) light: It’s important to get the lighting right – it can transform a bad photo into the perfect pic. Those using a smart phone, make sure that the flash is turned on in the options menu, unless you want to see screen after screen of badly lit and blurred shapes. Get too close though and that flash can over expose the subject, making them as white as a ghost, and blinding them in the process! For taking pictures in low light without a flash, any of the current crop of D-SLR cameras such as the Canon EOS 600D or Nikon D5100 will give much better results than your typical ‘point & shoot’ digital cameras, but at a price! For those of us with more modest budgets, the Canon IXUS HS (High Sensitivity) range is optimised for low light conditions, cost a quarter of the price and happily fit in a shirt/pants pocket.
- Be prepared…but not too prepared: Our final tip is to turn off your Wi-Fi and 3G connectivity, particularly if you’re using Apple’s iCloud. You don’t want to find your photos automatically streamed to your social network profile (especially any drunken encounters)! Allow yourself the time to check through the snaps in the safety of your own four walls.
For more information and tips from Geek Squad please visit http://www.geeksquad.co.uk/knowledgevault.
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Notes to Editors
About Geek Squad
Geek Squad was started in the US in 1994 by just one man (Robert Stephens, now CTO for Best Buy) with his laptop and his bicycle. Following nationwide success across the US, in 2007 Geek Squad expanded its network of Agents to the UK and they can now draw on the knowledge of over 20,000 Agents worldwide. You’ll find Geek Squad Agents in Carphone Warehouse stores across the UK and they can also help over the phone through a 24/7 UK freephone call centre, via remote access technology, or by visiting your home*.
Geek Squad Agents are experts in their field – they are recruited for their natural abilities and receive intensive training to tackle every kind of technical issue to help you set up, support and fix any gadget: from a mobile phone to a PC, from a tablet to a home theatre system; no technology query is too tough for them to answer.
Speak to one of the Agents today to solve your technology problem by calling them on 0800 049 3046 or visit, http://www.geeksquad.co.uk.
*Available within the M25 only.
About Carphone Warehouse and Geek Squad
In 2006 Best Buy established a partnership with Carphone Warehouse to bring its business model and mobile phone expertise to the US market under the banner ‘Best Buy Mobile’. Two years later, Best Buy acquired 50% of The Carphone Warehouse’s European and US retail interests for £1.1billion, creating Best Buy Europe. The joint venture now encompasses the following retail and technical support brands: The Carphone Warehouse, The Phone House and Geek Squad.
About Carphone Warehouse
• Carphone Warehouse is the largest independent mobile phone retailer in the UK, with over 800 stores nationwide
• Discover how to get more from your gadgets with eye openers from Carphone Warehouse. Eye openers is a YouTube channel which features videos of Carphone Warehouse team members sharing useful hints and tips on everything from laptops to Sat Navs to the latest mobile phones. With new videos being added each month, users can search through hundreds of videos at http://www.youtube.com/user/eyeopeners.