When Good Electronics Go Bad

I don't often get my tech advice from Real Simple magazine, but there are times when its straight-ahead, let's-just-deal-with-this approach to technology makes lots of sense. The September issue had a simple a story about when to pull the plug on your various pieces of aging electronics. Plus, it gave tips about how to extend the life of various gadgets so that they don't die an early death.

Some simple wisdom:

Flat-screen TV: Keeping your fingers off the screen and keeping the unit well ventilated will help prevent damage, but if your flat screen is more than five years old, you're probably better off replacing it than paying the hefty labor and parts charges for repair.

DVD player: Keep the unit cool and try not to jolt things. A DVD cleaning kit can sometimes revive a player that skips. But if you've tried cleaning the player and the disks, but your disks won't play, it's less expensive to buy new than repair. DVD players have gone way down in price. (Even Blu-ray and HD DVD players — the new high-definition contenders — have come down in price significantly in the past few months.)

Cell phones: The best advice is to let your battery drain fully once a week, say the editors. Try keeping your cell phone away from extreme temperatures, too. The most common fix is trying a new battery (which you should purchase from a reputable dealer). If you have an inexpensive phone, just recycle it. (Information for recycling can be found at your carrier's web site.) If it's fallen into the drink, take it apart and dry it out for a day or two. It may come back to life. Finally, get an estimate on repairs, but if the repair cost is more than half the price of the phone, buy new.

Curious about whether to call it quits with a printer or your iPod? CNN ran the Real Simple story in its entirety.