Android apps Archives | Cool Mom Tech

7 of the best meditation apps to help you calm anxiety. Deep breaths, everyone.

by Caroline Siegrist | Best Apps, Fitness + Health

These days, anxiety feels like a constant a companion at my house and I’ve made good use of these meditation apps ever since Covid began. I’m happy to say that when I actually get a chance to use them, they really make a difference. After all, we’re...

How to get a nice discount on a Lyft ride to the polls this Election Day

by Liz Gumbinner | Best Apps, Causes and Giving Back

Well what a nice alert to appear in my inbox: This Tuesday, November 8 is Election Day, and to assist voters, Lyft is offering 50% off rides when you preload the code VOTE22 and book a ride through the Lyft app. Alternately, just open the Lyft app, select the...

Should your kids be using BeReal, the hot new social media app? What parents should know.

by Christina Refford | Best Apps, Internet Safety, Social Media

You may have seen this hilarious sketch on SNL that has a bunch of adults using the app BeReal during a rather tense situation. (if you haven’t seen it yet, go watch now! I’ll wait.) This sketch does a great job explaining what BeReal is, but we’ve...

Student discounts on these meditation apps can help college students find zen for a lot less.

by Christina Refford | Back to School Tech, Best Apps, Tips and Tricks

For those of us with college students (already!), we know how stressful it can be for our kids to get adjusted to a totally new schedule and, often, a new living situation. We even included meditation apps among our recommendations of apps for college freshmen to...

A complete guide to the best apps for college students leaving home, to help them navigate life (sniff) on their own.

by Lisa Barnes | Back to School Tech, Best Apps, Kids, Tips and Tricks

We thought it would be a smart idea to put together the best apps for college students, and especially college freshmen. After all, when parents send our kids off to college — whether close to home or across the country — you really want them equipped with...

Is email overwhelming you? SaneBox to the rescue.

by Cool Mom Staff | Best Apps, Tips and Tricks

This is a sponsored message from SaneBox Whether that little red email badge is showing you 20 unread messages or 20,000, it can be overwhelming to feel like you’ll never get to the bottom of it. Enter SaneBox. Trusted by TechCrunch, The New York Times, Forbes...

10 photo tips for fireworks: How to keep from coming home with 127 blurry blips in the sky

by Liz Gumbinner | Photography, Tips and Tricks

Fireworks are at the top of nearly everybody’s list of favorite Fourth of July memories, but capturing the magic in fireworks photos can be extremely tricky. So we scoured our favorite photography and tech resources for great photo tips for fireworks, so that...

Tech tip: How to open your Shazam in Apple Music instead of Spotify.

by Liz Gumbinner | Best Apps, Tips and Tricks

Recently, as you may have heard (ahem) a bunch of influential musical artists have been leaving Spotify, podcasters are rethinking the platform, and plenty of listeners are canceling their Spotify Premium subscriptions. (Which is evidently not all that easy to do, but...

Helpful apps for your Super Bowl party…or any given Sunday.

by Cool Mom Staff | Best Apps

If you’re getting ready for the Super Bow (whoa) this Sunday, and plan on having company to make it more fun, we’ve got 7 apps for your Super Bowl party that you’ll want to download stat, from party planning help to food and drink delivery, to...

This app lets you check out library books on your phone. Free. From home. Yes!

by Kate Etue | Best Apps

Lately, a lot of readers have been asking us about apps that let you check out free library books. Or, free e-books to be technical. So here’s the info on a favorite of ours, the hoopla digital app. While I love the feeling of being surrounded by stacks and...

Hi! We’re Kristen + Liz

Kristen Chase + Liz Gumbinner of Cool Mom Picks

We started Cool Mom Tech in 2010 to help make our increasingly digital lives easier, more organized, more meaningful, and more fun, however old your kids may be.

We love that it's grown to become the go-to source for millions of parents who want commonsense info about tech delivered with a smile.

We even have the privilege of sharing our tips + tricks with The TODAY Show, CNN, HLN, GMA, Nightline, newspapers and magazines around the country, and our favorite -- regular parents who stop us at PTA meetings and ask us how old kids need to be to get a smartphone, and whether they really need to panic about Snapchat.

(Answer: It's complicated.)

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