Smartphones don’t last forever; research shows the typical smartphone lasts for about two years. Over time, wear, tear, muck and grime takes its toll on your mobile device, causing it to lose functionality. In fact, every square inch of your phone carries about 25,000 germs, making it dirtier than the bottom of your shoe or even your toilet seat.

When your phone and cell phone cables reach the end of their lives, they can pose serious health and safety risks. For instance, damaged and frayed phone charging cables can be a fire hazard. In 2008, electrical failures and malfunctions resulted in approximately 53,600 home fires that caused over 500 deaths.

So, how do you know if your smartphone, phone cables, or USB cables are reaching the end of their lifespans? Keep an eye out for the following warning signs.

Warm to the touch: Your phone’s rechargeable battery will inevitably get warmer as it charges; however, it should be able to internalize the heat, keeping it from feeling noticeably hot. If your smartphone does begin to feel hot, it may need a new battery.

Unresponsive buttons: If the external buttons on your smartphone stop working or are severely lagging, you definitely have a problem. This may be a malfunction in the phone itself or in the charging device.

Fraying: Do you see obvious damage to the USB cable? If you notice that the cord is bent or fraying, it is probably time to replace it. Damage is not always visible, though, so try plugging the cable into a USB port on a computer rather than using the wall adapter to determine the source of the problem.

Whether it be your smartphones, bulk USB cables, tablet, USB 3 cables, e-reader, or what-have-you, you need to replace your electronics every now and then. Overused devices and cables can be dangerous if you are not careful.

If you have any questions about the lifespan of a phone or getting bulk USB cables to replace what you have, feel free to share in the comments.

Most members of large families know the benefits that can come with buying in bulk. The phrase “cheaper by the dozen” has even become synonymous with the ease and effectiveness to which certain things can be managed when in larger groups versus individually. This notion is especially true when it comes to things like Cat5e cables bulk and other networking information technology products.

Cost-effectiveness is one of the main reasons people resort to buying things in bulk. At CableWholesale, you’ll find the best quality of products at bulk price options that your wallet will certainly appreciate. Buying bulk is also a great way to prepare yourself for what might lie ahead. You never know when a piece of equipment or device will go haywire, so you’ll need to connect the device of a friend at home or co-worker at the office, or simply buy an entirely new device that needs its own cable.

In that respect, here are just a couple of the most popular cables CableWholesale has to offer at great bulk prices and availability.

Cat5e Cables Bulk: Cat5e cables bulk or otherwise are one of the most commonly used tools to connect devices to the internet. CAT5e cables bulk can be used for networks and multi-line phone systems. With a maximum frequency of 100 MHz and the ability to transmit data up to 10/100/1000Mbps, this is one of the most popular options for Ethernet connectivity.

USB Cables: Cat5e Cables Bulk:Universal Serial Bus, or USB cables are primarily used to connect communication and computer devices to a power supply. Because of their prevalence in networking, it’s a great idea to buy this kind of cables in bulk, especially if you own a business. If you don’t necessarily need an extra one today, chances are that you’re going to need one at some point in the near future and you might as well buy it at the best rate possible.

HDMI High-speed Cables: High-Definition Multimedia Interface, or HDMI cables are becoming increasingly popular as more and more monitors, computers, and other devices are being made to support this kind of technology. Don’t be fooled into thinking you have to spend upwards of $50 on an HDMI cable either. At CableWholesale, you can find great deals on HDMI cables, especially when you buy them in bulk. Unless you’re dealing with an extremely long distance (over 100 feet), the length of the cable doesn’t matter when it comes to the quality of the audio and video with HDMI. They make specifically designed ones for these greater distances, but most of the time you’re not going to need that far of a reach and buying these cables in bulk is a great idea.

Buying cables in bulk is a great way to save not only money but the time it takes to order and wait for them to come. It’s a good idea to have a couple of spares on hand in the event of a malfunction or for new devices, so you can be ready to go at a moment’s notice.

As technology continues to improve and expand, the world is constantly being introduced to new means of production, services, and equipment that make lives easier and more efficient. One way to judge the strength or position of an industry is by looking at the employment statistics. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out that if you’re hiring a lot of new people, business is probably going pretty well.

It might be small, but anytime you buy new pieces of computer equipment like CAT5 cables, one of the three types of standard HDMI cables, bulk fiber optic cables, or Siamese cables, you’re affecting the potential of the industry as a whole. According to the 17th annual CompTIA Cyberstates 2016 report, tech manufacturing seems to be headed in a positive direction after a couple years of relative stagnation.

In 2015, the tech industry employed approximately 6.7 million people with 200,000 being added last year alone. Of those new jobs, about 3,700 came in the tech manufacturing industry, where things like Siamese cables are created. As a whole, the tech manufacturing industry accounts for about 1.14 million people working in the tech industry in the United States.

Measuring and control instruments, semiconductor, electronic components, and computer and peripheral equipment are the four largest sectors of tech manufacturing and they all saw growth in the past year after much of the prior decade has seen a slight decline. The relatively long lifespan of many electronic components, such as CAT5 cables — which can easily last 10 years — could be one of the reasons growth has been hard to come by.

Another great benefit for the consumer when it comes to things like Siamese cables and high-speed HDMI cables is the fact that their length or distance they cover has virtually no effect on the functionality unless it’s spanning a distance of over 100 feet. In that case, you should invest in cables specific for that purpose.

As employment in the tech industry and especially tech manufacturing grows steadily, so too will the opportunities and development in this crucial field.

We love Wi-Fi for its convenience. We can now access the Internet from virtually anywhere. In fact, the city of Tel Aviv has its own Wi-Fi network that can be accessed anytime by anyone from anywhere in the city. It’s as if we carry the Internet wherever we go.

But Wi-Fi has its downsides. Everyone has experienced the agony of watching a web page load bit by bit, line by line, for what seems like an eternity. We have all felt the frustration of losing our connection right as something big is about to happen on our favorite Netflix show. But that’s Wi-Fi; it’s unreliable.

What a lot of web users don’t realize, though, is that you can get a faster, more reliable connection just by plugging in with a standard Cat6 Ethernet cable.

The Premium HDMI Cable Certification Program was conceived as a way to identify cables that have been tested for specific performance levels. This leaves us wondering if any High Speed HDMI cable can pass 4K content?

The answer is this: as long as the cable is truly high-speed HDMI, it will be able to pass 4K content. All high-speed HDMI cables now have the bandwidth needed to carry 4K content. Although many people believe that it’s necessary to pay $50 or more for HDMI cables, this isn’t actually the case. Often, stores are simply taking advantage of the fact that consumers do not know the ins and outs of high-speed HDMI cables.