helpful services Archives

Scam Shield gets rid of scams and unwanted robocalls, finally | Sponsored Message

This is a sponsored message for T-Mobile If you’re feeling like you’ve been inundated with more scams and unwanted robocalls these days, you’re not alone. Coronavirus scams actually increased 70% from just May to June, and Americans have lost over...

Coding with Kids camps will keep your kids busy, happy, and learning, all summer long | Sponsored Message

by Cool Mom Staff | Helpful Services

This is a sponsored message for Coding with Kids If you’re looking for ways to keep your kids busy this summer, without missing out on any of that camp fun, you’ll want to check out the virtual tech camps for kids 5-18 from Coding with Kids, which start...

Picture Home: A fun communal photo project to inspire everyday life at home

by Kristen Chase | Photography

If you’re in need of a fun little project to help focus your energy in a positive, inspiring way, we’re happy to recommend our dear friend Tracey Clark’s Picture Home. It’s a family-friendly, all-ages communal photo project with 31 days full of...

SchoolClosures.org offers free resources for families affected by school closures

by Kristen Chase | Websites Worth a Bookmark

Both Liz and I got word this week that our kids will be out of school for the rest of the school year, which means we’ll be doing this isolation schooling for another couple of months. Thankfully, resources like SchoolClosures.org have been popping up to help...

Postagram makes sending camp letters a snap. Or, a click.

by Liz Gumbinner | Fun Apps, Photo Apps, Travel Apps

If you’ve got kids in summer camp, you may know that each day they don’t get a letter from home is another reason they grow up to resent you. Kidding. But they do like to get lots of letters — and I admit, I am not the best daily letter writer. At...

The Pocket app helps you save and read your favorite articles to you

by Kristen Chase | Audio

Liz has raved about the Pocket app for years now, and for good reason. It’s a super handy app that lets you save your favorite articles, recipes, even tweets so that you can read them later. But, you know, how much time do we all have to read them later?...

Why this screen-free smartphone alternative for kids is perfect for summer | Sponsored Message

by Cool Mom Staff | Cell Phones, Internet Safety, Travel Essentials

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...

Our Alexa organization series: The best Alexa fitness skills

by Kate Etue | Lifestyle Apps

We’re getting organized in the new year, and I’ve found that using my Amazon Echo — which is strategically placed in our kitchen, the hub of our house — can be a huge help, including fitness. Yes, we’re not kidding. In this post, some of...

Our Alexa organization series: The best Alexa meal planning skills

by Kate Etue | Productivity Apps

With the new year starting up, if you’re like me, you’ve got organization on your mind. I’ve found that using my Amazon Echo — which is strategically placed in our kitchen, the hub of our house — can be a huge help. So, we’re...

The Apple product warranty you may not know about…but should

by Liz Gumbinner | Gear, Helpful Services

Turns out the Apple One-Year Warranty is way more flexible than you might realize. Or as the store associate told me on a recent visit, “you got Beats headphones that are not working or coming apart in any way? Just bring it in and we’ll give you a new...

NEW: The podcast that helps you be a savvier digital parent in under 15 minutes a week

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.)

We're so glad you're here! And we hope we can help you too.