Techish

These are the Black Friday, Cyber Monday shopping secrets retailers don’t want you to know

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https://youtu.be/OvztNWwBNcI I would rather lick a dirty sidewalk than camp out all night for “doorbuster deal” on Black Friday. Okay, that’s a bit dramatic and totally gross — have you heard what’s on the sidewalks in my area?! — but you get the point. Holidays are for precious family time, not for combat couponing with sales-rabid, sharp-elbowed strangers. Is there any way to get in on doorbuster deals without the chaos of the holiday crowds? This year, more than ever, the answer is an emphatic “yes,” according to several people “on the inside.” We spoke with current and former employees of Target, Walmart, Best Buy, GameStop, and even eBay, to get a handful of holiday shopping secrets ... Read more

WIRED WELL: New tech gadgets get senior moment and the results will make you cry (in a good way).

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hp1yQzH6KAY ***This story and video originally ran/aired on USA Today. It's reposted here with permission.*** Brooklyn resident Marilyn Stone* isn’t your typical early tech adopter. She’s 95 years old, can’t see or hear very well anymore, and grew up in a time when the hottest new gadgets around were toaster ovens and zippers. Today? She’s not sure what she would do without her Amazon Echo smart speaker. “Alexa has been a miracle,” the spirited senior tells me over the phone, “I ask ‘what is the weather,’ and get an answer. Alexa turns on my lights, tells me what time it is, and when to take my pills.” Stone is now one of the 16.7 ... Read more

Worried your kids are addicted to screens? Help is here.

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https://youtu.be/qga2yuPYVd4 My daughter is off to college, yet I still have some of the same worries about her tech use as my friends with kids in middle school: Is she safe? Is she on social media too much? Does she put her smartphone down long enough to have meaningful connection and communication in real life? Tech-centric worry is the new norm and makes up a lot of what we parents are talking about these days: Safety, screen-time, device distraction, and making sure our kids get the right balance of necessary tech tools — along with real-life skills — to succeed. How do we handle modern technology the “right” way, especially when so many of us are overwhelmed by it all ... Read more

Back to School Gadgets: As Seen on Good Day New York

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Here are some fun gadgets to tech kids out: 1.   Go-To Safety Gadget: Relay - For Ages 6-11: (starting at $99, plus $6.99 monthly data charge) This is a screen-less, water-resistant device that works like a walkie-talkie and puts you in direct contact with your child, but with the connection of a smartphone. You can connect to your child’s Relay whenever you want from either an app on your smartphone or from another Relay device, and they can contact you by pressing the large button in the middle of the gadget. The Relay uses 4G LTE connectivity so you can check on them, and talk with them, whenever you want – from anywhere you want. 2. Nokia “Candy Bar” 3310 3G Phone ($60) Iconic – and ... Read more

GIFT GUIDE: Impress Pops With These Awesome Dad’s Day Gadgets!

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=haPuMC6Vm_0 Impressing dad is easy if you’re a kid. Just ride your bike off a three-inch ramp without crashing and more likely than not he’ll be beaming with pride. But impressing pops as a full-fledged wage-earning adult is a whole other story. Lucky for us though, new gadgets are coming out at a faster pace than ever before, and this year, some budget-friendly choices are still unique, memorable, and even super helpful too. Here are my top Father’s Day gift picks for all kinds of dads. A BETTER WAY TO RECHARGE Sometimes the simplest gifts end up being used the most, and this 3-in-1 charging station ($29) will be dad’s gadget go-to when he’s ... Read more

GIFT GUIDE: Great gadget gifts for grads that they’ll totally love!

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***This story is from Jennifer's weekly columns and video segments for the USAToday Network.*** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xooy3Gg8csk Think back to your graduation, do you remember who gave you cash? I don’t. (And not just because I graduated a million years ago.) This cap-and-gown season, Americans are expected to spend more than $5.5 billion on gifts for high school and college grads. Cash in a card remains one of the most popular gifts, but it’s not the most memorable or even most useful in the long term. With my daughter graduating from high school this month, the pressure’s on to gift beyond cold, hard cash – and to find something truly meaningful, useful and just plain smart. ... Read more

#GiftingGoals for Mother’s Day 2019: Epic Gifts For All Kinds of Moms

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SpfUxJsk7Vc Most moms I know “live in service and sacrifice to their children” 24/7. (I didn’t come up with that, Oprah did, see #7 on this list.) So it never hurts to go the extra mile to make her feel loved and appreciated. Of course, she’ll love your homemade card. And cry a few happy tears if you clean the bathroom without being asked. But if you — like more than 8 out of every 10 Americans — plan to spend a record amount of money on Mom this Mother’s Day, starting with this list is a genius move. #MomLife #TechLife Why? I’m a Mom who tests gadgets for a living. I also polled thousands of other Moms across social media, and then tried every single one ... Read more

Keeping Up With The Phoneses: State of Smartphones 2019

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It’s time for mobile makers to put up, or shut up. We need to see revolutionary — not just evolutionary — upgrades. We need better battery life, and we need it yesterday. We need our most relevant must-have gadget to be drop-dead simple to use, unhackable, unbreakable and less expensive. Oh, and how about less addictive too? We need our smartphones to WOW us again. State of the Smartphone 2019   The first batch of 2019’s shiny new smartphones — Samsung’s S10 line — landed on store shelves and in people’s hands across the country today. It kicked off a new year of flagship phone launches hoping to invigorate sagging sales. Samsung felt the pinch with the Galaxy S9, which worried ... Read more

TOY FAIR 2019: Anti-Gravity Cars, and More Next-Level Hot Toys This Year (As seen on KTVU)

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The International Toy Fair was filled with fun in New York City. It’s the largest toy trade show in the Western hemisphere, and it’s a chance to see what will kids of all ages will be clamoring for over this next year. 1,000 companies debuted more than 7,000 toys this year — big trends include Augmented Reality (AR), and more robotics than we’ve ever seen. Here are my favorites among toys I was able to go hands-on with before the show: 1. LeapFrog LeapBuilders ABC Smart House Tots can build, create and learn with this interactive 61-piece house-themed block set. Kids can use the easy-to-hold blocks to build a house and learn about the alphabet, objects around the house, colors, ... Read more

CYBERSECURITY: Which Valentine’s Day gifts are secretly spying on you?

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You might remember back in November when Mozilla released a super comprehensive security rundown of some of the most popular "smart" gifts around. It provided some great insights into gadgets that might be a bit more creepy than we initially thought, and it highlighted some serious security issues along the way. Now, Mozilla is back and this time it has Valentine's Day in its sights. The Privacy Not Included Valentine's Day guide is here, and it tackles some of V-Day's most-gifted gadgets, from smart beds and activity trackers to some home tech and even a few unmentionables. As before, Mozilla partnered up with the Internet Society and Consumers International to come up with a set of ... Read more

HOW TO: Get great gift-spiration shopping your own social media feeds #giftideas

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I’ve found some of my favorite gifts scrolling through my own Facebook and Instagram feeds. It makes sense because social platforms are a natural extension of how we find the latest trends, learn about new ideas, and share all the things we're totally obsessing over anyway. Not-so-humble brag here: Several of my top picks from my social media shopping spree last year ended up on Oprah's top list this year. So I doubled down and did all over again this year. Here are this year's top tips for shopping your own social media feeds, followed by the juicy gems I uncovered for this year's second annual SOCIAL MEDIA SHOPPING SPREE: INSIDER TIPS: Number 1. ... Read more

Can you go a year without your smartphone for $100,000?

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New year, no phone? Cutting down on screen time likely tops many New Year’s resolutions lists, but do you think you could go a full year without a smartphone? It's a massive challenge, but you might have a real reason to consider doing so.  How does $100,000 sound? Would that be enough incentive to stop the mindless scrolling? That's how much beverage brand Vitaminwater is offering one lucky Luddite to go completely smartphone-free in 2019. Obviously you'll need to meet some criteria first, which is why they're asking you to share why you'd be a good candidate for the challenge in a post on social media. You'll need to post your plea on Instagram or Twitter with the hashtags ... Read more

Here’s what we’re buying on Black Friday and Cyber Monday

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You might think that reviewing all the latest gadgets all year would make Black Friday boring for someone like me. Sure, I get to play with all of the most awesome gadgets and tech tools throughout the year, but I don't get to keep them. That means come Black Friday and Cyber Monday, I'm leaning over my laptop the same as you, fingers twitching, crediting cards itching to score huge deals on my favorite tech. Here's what I'm holding my breath to get this week, and how much it'll cost. Facebook Portal & Portal Plus One of the most controversial new gadgets (because ... it's Facebook) is also the best video-calling machine ever invented — and a look at the way landlines should evolve ... Read more

Is your gift secretly spying? Mozilla makes a naughty list of gadget gifts that aren’t secure:

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We already know the hottest holiday gadget gifts are cool but are they secure and trustworthy too? Mozilla — yep, the folks behind internet browser Firefox — just released a new report and shopping guide called *Privacy Not Included. The idea behind it is to help people shop for gifts based on price, performance, and on how well they protect privacy and security as well. In an email, Ashley Boyd, Mozilla VP of Advocacy explained that researchers reviewed 70 of the most popular gadget gifts across six categories: Toys & Games; Smart Home; Entertainment; Wearables; Health & Exercise; and Pets. For each product, Mozilla looked at a range of questions including Can it spy on you? Can ... Read more

HOW TO: Not get ripped off on Black Friday and Cyber Monday “Deals”

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TIPS TO MAKE SURE YOU NEVER OVERPAY: 1. SPOT THE REAL DEAL What’s actually good deal this time of year versus a bunch of hype? Small appliances — like instant pots — and smart home gadgets. Also, good deals: some HDTVs, video games, and game consoles also see aggressive pricing during Black Friday, or the days before and after it. 2. BROWSING BASICS Add a browser extension to your internet search engine — Safari, Firefox, Chrome — and let them scour the web faster than any human ever could for discounts, coupons, and deals to make sure you get the best prices — for real. Browser extensions: InvisibleHand, PriceBlink, The Camelizer, Honey 3. PRICE ALERTS Some sellers ... Read more

eBay’s 8-Days of Holiday Deals Starts Now

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eBay just shared their hottest holiday deals with us. I dug into the info and see a few things I want to make sure you know about:  Overall:  expect to find some jaw-dropping deals here with savings up to 80%. Bargains to watch include hot gadgets from Sonos, Bose, JBL speakers and headphones — plus coveted fashion from Adidas and Michael Kors, and more.  To snag  hard-to-find gift on your wish list before it’s sold out: Log-on to eBay, and start browsing the Shop Deals Central page. Find your must-have’s and add the best gifts to your watchlist. You can also  ‘save’ your search — then eBay Bends you an alert each time a seller lists exactly what you want. You can use ... Read more