helpful services Archives | Page 8 of 19

A Better Queue will change the way you watch Netflix forever.

Unfortunately this site is no longer around. Bummer. The extensive selection on Netflix is both a blessing and a curse–so many titles I’ve never heard of, but that also means I have no idea if they’ll be right for my family or even something...

AlvaKids is the life saving app for every parent who buys kids’ clothes online.

by Jeana | Shopping Apps

With the addition of baby #3 in the past year, you can bet I won’t be heading to a mall anytime soon for back-to-school clothes shopping. Online shopping has been my savior the past few years, but getting the right size is always a big question mark with kids....

Taste Savant: A new restaurant review site for discerning foodies. As in, not Yelp.

by Stacie Billis | Lifestyle Apps

I get you, foodies. You hop onto one of those mega restaurant review sites—you know, the ones where everyone and their grandmother can contribute to a a restaurant’s rating—and immediately realize that you cannot trust the masses. I know because I’ve been...

Automatic Driving Assistant: The Jetson’s era car accessory that can keep you safer and smarter on the road.

by Jeana | Travel Essentials

With the amount of time I spend in my car driving kids to their various activities, a driving assistant sounds awfully nice. While technology hasn’t yet come up with a virtual driver to take over carpooling responsibilities, a system like the Automatic Driving...

Great gift idea: Affordable engineer prints for super-size photo fun

by Nicole Blades | Photography

Printing your photos has now taken a very cool turn, right in time for cool Father’s Day photo gifts. But then again, the creative folks at Photojojo pretty much have the lock on anything photo and cool. Now, check out the shop’s new engineer prints that...

9 cool features in Google Maps that you may not know about

by Liz Gumbinner | Tips and Tricks

Just in time for Memorial Day weekend–and Memorial Day weekend traffic, whoo!–I was so happy to get a chance to sit down with Google yesterday and learn more about some of the incredible changes they’ve made to the Google Maps app. I for one am an...

The most personal way to send a not-so-personal gift card via email

by Liz Gumbinner | Shopping Apps

I’m all for gift cards as Mother’s Day gifts (or any other gift) when it’s really appreciated and thoughtful. For me: $500 to the shoe department at Saks will do. (There’s a reason it’s in our Mother’s Day gift guide this year, ha.)...

6 of the best Mother’s Day card apps for those who wait until the last minute (you know who you are)

by Jeana | Lifestyle Apps, Mother's Day Gifts

In addition to the adorable handprint crafts and other Mother’s Day gifts ideas that are in full supply in May, greeting cards are of course essential. And now there are so many great options for both digital and physical cards right from mobile phone apps,...

Saving money shopping online without doing anything? Yes, please.

by Kristin | Websites Worth a Bookmark

I love the convenience of being able to buy everything from coffee to couch pillows on sites like Amazon, but it’s not always easy to be sure I’m getting the best bang for my buck when I’m shopping online. Well, that’s where the Zinc...

The new Pinterest Guided Search: How to use it, and will it actually work?

by Julie | Social Media

As we well know, Pinterest can be a wonderful source of information and inspiration; we provide lots of it ourselves. But the lack of great search functionality can make it a tad overwhelming, especially if you’re not entirely sure what you’re looking for....

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.