7 geek chic accessories to honor Embrace Your Geekiness Day!
In every Cool Mom Picks monthly newsletter, we highlight our favorite quirky holidays of the month. (Hey, sometimes any excuse to shop, right?) And now here's one our tech fans can get behind too: Embrace Your Geekiness Day.Yes, it's a real thing. Because every day we...
What’s the best keyboard for your iPad? We just found it.
I have no idea why it took me so long to make the big move from the iPad touchpad keyboard to a real live tactical keyboard, but I finally did. And wow, what a difference it makes when the keyboard is as great as this one. The Belkin keyboard folio case for iPad is...
Are the Fodor’s travel apps as good as the books?
The Fodor's guides have been travel essentials for anyone traveling anywhere for the last few decades. But can the Fodor's app become a reasonable substitute for those pages and pages of great info? I gave it a shot. In preparation for an upcoming trip to New...
Three free science apps for the iPad you need to install right now
I decided to buy an iPad 2 for my eight-year-old to use in our homeschooling lessons. That's right -- it's for educational purposes, kid. And no, Angry Birds Space does not count as a physics lesson. So I've spent the past few days scouring the app store for cool...
Beyond Snapshots: The only photography book you’ll need
A few years ago, I ditched my point-and-shoot camera for a fancy DSLR, and while I was almost instantly taking better photos of my kids, I really had absolutely no idea how to use any of the actual settings. Without time to read the huge instruction manual or take a...
Skateboards get a new life as iPhone accessories. Rad.
I will always be a skater girl at heart, but my style has evolved toward more subtle fashion choices than the G&S Skate Rat Pool Party t-shirt I rocked back in the day. Like these hip and gorgeous iPhone backs made from discarded skateboard material. A super...
What’s the best way to organize bills? Reader Q&A
Q: I am tired of the piles of bills every month that I have to stuff into a file, cram into my filing cabinet, and never look at again. Can you make any recommendations on tech that can help get them organized? - Sarah Hi, Sarah. Good question! With the number of...
The best gift for a music fan just got even better. And wow, it’s pretty.
If you're a frequent reader, you know that we're all pretty much smitten with the Sonos wireless speaker system, which we named a top pick of 2011 for both their wonderful technology and amazing customer support. But unlike some companies which create one hit product...
Wonderopolis – like Wikipedia for kids but way (way) more fun
My kids are now at the age where the questions are getting harder than simply, "what's that?" The fun part is that when they ask about evolution or the number of stars or the life cycle of a butterfly, we get to explore the answers together. Because trust me, I do not...
Kids’ music download of the week: Fireworks! (Not from Katy Perry)
My loud-noise-averse son finally agreed to see the fireworks this year and was hooked after the first BOOM. But I'm not about to put on Baby You're a Firework to keep the spirit going; instead, I found this tune from Gustafer Yellowgold that celebrates that big party...
iPhone protection tip for parents – Toddler Lock App + Toddler Lock Case
Every time I see toddlers wildly tapping and swiping at their moms' phones, I wonder how much they're inadvertently racking up in iTunes purchases--or perhaps which international country they're dialing. But it's not just toddlers that are at risk of activating...
The cutest online invitations for summer parties
We're all longtime fans of Pingg, the free ecard site with their designs created by independent artists and designers. It's been a while since we checked in, and now they've got so many cool new options especially for any summer parties you've got in the works--from...
Tech Tips & Tricks to Make Life (Way) Easier
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Even More Coolness. Enjoy!
Could you lose internet access on Monday, July 9?
If you've heard rumors about the FBI shutting down internet access for certain PCs this coming Monday, we hate to say it, but it's more than a rumor. But don't worry - the chances are minimal and you can take a simple steps to find out if you're one of the unlucky...
Have you hugged your floppy disk today?
While cleaning out the office yesterday, I kept coming upon relics from my not-so-distant past, like some weird archeological dig in my house. This, children, is a floppy disk. We used it to store information on before the Cloud. And here is a cassette. . .a VHS tape....
BorrowLenses: Like Netflix for camera gear
As a former photographer, there are times when I feel guilty using my iPhone as my main camera source. The iPhone takes great photos, no doubt, but sometimes I think I should dust off my old Canon EOS DSLR and put it back to work. The only problem is that I...
Paging Dr. Mario
I got a huge giggle out of this print which shows just what ol' Mario would look like through an X-ray, after eating all those mushrooms of dubious origin, unmarked pills, and bizarre plants. The Dr. Mario print comes courtesy of illustrator Andrew Heath whose strong...
Schoolhouse Rock comes through on Independence Day
Last night, my five year-old asked about why Independence Day and July 4th were on the same day. Pretty good question, I thought. And when I started to explain the meaning of Independence Day, I found myself more or less paraphrasing one of my favorite Schoolhouse...
The best grilling apps, A.K.A. no more “I think you overcooked it, hon.”
One of the many things I love about summer is the enticing and oh-so-summery smell of things cooking on the grill. Mmmm...meat. My husband is the house-appointed grillmaster, but I'd like to start expanding my grilling horizons beyond hamburgers, and I'm...
AT&T FamilyMap – reach out and track someone
Talking to parents of older kids makes me want to build a machine that will stop time in its tracks. While I look forward to my kids getting older (kinda), there is so much comfort in their ages right now and not having to question where they are at all times, who...
One camera to go, please
I have the terrible habit of dropping my little point-and-shoot camera right into my bag without first putting in the case. Now that I have a camera I love, I've gotten better. But there's nothing like the incentive of a cute new camera bag to keep me motivated....
Making sure the Facebook fan pages you love are the updates that you read
If you've recently noticed a lack of updates from your favorite brands, bloggers, or fan pages on Facebook (or maybe you haven't realized it until just now), it may be because of the introduction of Facebook's new Promoted Posts. But we can help you fix it. These...
Oh Appy Day! featuring Andy Cohen
Oh Appy Day! gives you the scoop on the coolest apps from some of the coolest people anywhere. This week, Andy Cohen (we love him!) shares his favorite. I have to say my favorite app is Shazam, just because I use it all the time. Really, all the time. Whenever the...
Piquing our Geek: The coolest thing to happen to waste paper
While we're increasingly paper-free thanks to services like online bill pay and Catalog Choice, I'm still amazed at the amount of paper that comes into this house from junk mail, solicitations and school flyers. So when I saw this device that actually does something...
Kids’ music download of the week: High Five
Ever since I first heard Shine and the Moonbeams perform at Kindiefest a year ago, I've been a huge fan of their sound and cannot wait until they can get a full-length CD produced. I'm not the only one who thinks so either, as evidenced by the number of times...