What you need to know about Harry Potter: Wizards Unite
If you've got a Harry Potter fan in your house, or you are one yourself, then you've probably already downloaded the new Harry Potter: Wizards Unite app on your phone and are ready to play. The game, which was announced back in 2017, is rolling out today, starting in...
Forget your readers? Try the magnifier on your iPhone instead.
For those of us ladies who are now of reading glasses age, I have a pleasant surprise if you happen to be an iPhone owner. You might not know that the iPhone actually has a magnifier feature that can help you in case of a reading glasses emergency. And it's even got a...
Some of the funniest Twitter responses to #GoogleCalendarDown
If you've tried to access your Google Calendar on your desktop (or laptop) today, you might have gotten a 404 error. And as people do these days, they took to Twitter to air their grievances about being without a calendar. Though, the Google Calendar app on mobile...
How to fix your sticky new MacBook butterfly keyboard
I've written a few times here at Cool Mom Tech about my love-hate relationship with the new MacBook, particularly the butterfly keyboard. It makes typing so incredibly fast and easy, but it gets stuck very easily. And it's not just me! It's such a pervasive problem...
The new Minecraft x Pottery Barn Kids collection will make blockheads everywhere squeal!
Gamer alert: your kids can now play Minecraft all night long—in their dreams—with the new Minecraft x Pottery Barn Kids collection that just launched. This is your chance to be the coolest mom ever, and we think if you have a Minecraft-obsessed kid (hands raised) then...
What you should know about the massive medical data breach affecting 20 million people
Healthcare data breach html I have no idea why I haven't been seeing this massive healthcare data breach in the news, which impacts customers of companies like Quest Diagnostics and LabCorp. But when I saw a letter come in the mail from American Medical Collection...
Wear your emotions on your rear window with Mojipic
I'm not much of a bumper sticker person, although I do love a clever quip on someone else's car in traffic. But when I saw the new Mojipic mount for a car's rear windshield, I thought maybe they were on to something. This small LED screen displays emojis or gifs out...
Facial recognition is the new boarding pass. Privacy, much?
If you've traveled by plane, you know how much patience you need to have to make it through check-in, security, and finally onto the plane. And that's not even counting travel with kids. So is the convenience of facial recognition why it's showing up at airports...
5 podcasts I listened to this month: May edition
It's time again for my monthly round-up of podcasts that have made my subscribe list. If you're looking to add some new podcasts into rotation, I hope you find my podcast reviews helpful. And if you've got suggestions for great podcasts I need to listen to (aside from...
15 big new Apple announcements that parents will actually care about: Privacy, organization, photo editing and more
Yesterday, I spent a good two hours live tweeting the bigger Apple announcements at their 2019 developer conference that would be of interest to parents. Like, news about parental controls, photo sharing, and home security? Yes please! News about the 28-core Xeon...
LEGO’s new NASA Apollo 11 Lunar Lander building set is out of this world.
This summer, July 20, 2019 marks the 50th anniversary of the Apollo Lunar Landing. Even though space travel has been a reality my kids' entire lives -- and mine, too -- they're still incredibly curious about the cosmos. And since they're LEGO lovers too, I know...
Happy Father’s Day, Dad. Here’s a cup of coffee that never gets cold!
We were big fans of Ember when they first launched their smart mug that keeps your coffee at the perfect temperature (with pre-sets, people. Pre-sets!), and so, we just had to share this clever Father's Day edition. Because really, there might not be anything better...
Tips & Tricks to Make Life (Way!) Easier
Instagram Stories trick: Turn your Live Photos into Boomerangs!
I often like adding Boomerangs to an Instagram Story to help change things up from still photos. But then, I either have to go shoot a Boomerang in Instagram (and figure out what to shoot) or open the Boomerang app itself. Not one of life's greatest problems, but...
Parents beware: The Siri 911 prank is going around again.
My son just texted me: "Mom, Say 18 to Siri, but then watch your screen." Sure enough, a countdown for calling 911 pops up. Thankfully, I was watching my screen like he told me to and I was able to stop it. Related: The first thing your child should say when they call...
YouTube slated to launch new web platform for kids. But there’s a catch.
YouTube has come under major scrutiny in the last couple of years with inappropriate videos showing up on their popular YouTube Kids apps, from awful parodies to suicide how-to videos. So according to a recent report, they've decided to launch a new web version of...
What you need to know about the new iPod touch. Yes, you read that correctly.
Just when you might have thought Apple was done with the iPod touch, they announced a brand spankin' new one. You're not alone in the head scratching because they haven't updated the iPod since 2015. That's like 20 years in Apple years! But that's about to change with...
The Two Princes: A new youth and LGBTQ+ fiction podcast we can’t wait to binge
We are a podcast-loving family, with shows we listen to ourselves (hello, To Live or Die in L.A.), and ones, like The Sporkful and Getting Curious with Jonathan Van Ness (just to name a few) that we enjoy as a family. But on June 4, we'll be adding another one to our...
Skip the nail salon and print your own nail decals at home.
For the tween or teen in your life, or hey maybe your manicure-loving self, these new print your own nail decals from Canon are pretty darn cool. They work specifically with the PIXMA series printers and let users customize and then print their own nail decals. All...
3 great sleep tracking apps for parents. Because we need it.
We know it can be really hard for parents to get a good night's sleep, but tech is here to help. We've found 3 great sleep tracking apps that can track your sleep, and help you build better habits to improve it. From waking up at your body's natural wake time to...
Why this screen-free smartphone alternative for kids is perfect for summer | Sponsored Message
This is a sponsored message from Relay So many parents want their kids to have the safety and security of a phone, especially over the summer when kids have a little more freedom, and a little more run-around-outside time. And yet, those kids aren't necessarily ready...
How the Apple Watch 4 is helping me stay healthy, be more mindful, connect with my kids, and disconnect from my phone
I had an original Apple Watch way back when it first came out, and I really liked it. I also ended up feeling like it was "another thing" -- another thing to charge, another thing to take care of, another thing to buy accessories for. Sometimes I'd forget to put it...
How to hide your Instagram Story posts from your kids
It's not just tweens and teens who might be using Finstas (Fake-Instagram accounts) to throw off their parents. We parents whose kids and their friends follow us on Instagram have probably considered using them in case we want to freely post about our crazy Friday...
Apple Watch Series 3 for $199: You won’t want to miss this sale!
If you've been wanting an Apple Watch Series 3, whether you're a first-timer or are looking to upgrade, you're going to be hard pressed to find a price as low as this. We spotted certain models for as low as $199 on Amazon.com right now. But trust us when we say, you...
Here’s what you need to know about the WhatsApp breach
With lots of tweens and teens using Facebook's WhatsApp as a way to communicate, not to mention parents, especially those of us who travel a fair amount, we were very concerned about the cybersecurity breach on Monday. Users were left vulnerable to malicious spyware...
Message your kids the way they message their friends: Google Docs
If it looks like your kids are hard at work on their laptop or Chromebook, they might actually be messaging with their friends. Turns out, tweens and teens are using Google Docs to chat with each other, and it's honestly pretty brilliant. All you have to do is start a...
Survey says: Gen Z kids are not using online passwords safely
When it comes to digital parenting, there's a seemingly endless number of conversations we need to have with our tweens and teens. And according to a recent survey, moving "how to make a strong password" to the top of the list is pretty important. Turns out, Gen Z-ers...
5 podcasts I’ve listened to this month
Every month, I've been sharing the podcasts I've listened to, and this month, well, let's just say I branched out a bit from the True Crime I've been obsessing over lately. And I'm so glad I did. If you're new to podcasts, here's how to listen to them on your phone...