Category Archives: Techy

Educational, Preschool, Techy, Toddlers, Toys

Coding is Fun with the Think & Learn Code-a-pillar at Best Buy

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Back when I was pregnant with Joey and the doctors were concerned that there might be something wrong with his brain, I always joked that the only thing that would be wrong with it is that it would be too big because he would be born super smart.  Little did I know back in 2013, that I would be correct.

Joey, who is now on the verge of turning 3, is definitely advanced for his age. He can count, knows the alphabet, can recognize all the numbers, most letters, uses words that most of our older children don’t, retains everything he sees, hears or does, and so much more.

Since we discovered that he has a love for learning and for technology, we have done our best to supply him with toys to feed that craving. He has tablets, ereaders, handheld game devices, books, puzzles, blocks and more. One of Joey’s new favorite toys is his caterpillar, as he calls it, which is the Think & Learn Code-a-pillar from Fisher-Price, available at Best Buy.

Coding is Fun

The Fisher-Price Think & Learn Code-a-pillar makes coding fun for preschool kids ages 3 to 6.

Joey loves to take his code-a-pillar apart, redesign it and set it in motion and then follow it around.

Originally, I was worried that Joey wouldn’t be able to connect the pieces or figure out just quite how to work things, but I should have known better.

I love watching Joey play with it and figure out all the different ways to make it work. He is my little problem solver and I swear I can see the gears turning in his head.

Learning Through Play

The Fisher-Price Think & Learn Code-a-pillar is a great way for kids to learn about technology and coding.

What Does the Code-a-pillar Do?

  • Encourages experimentation while developing important skills
  • Including skills like sequencing, critical thinking, reasoning, discovery, memory, problem solving and experimentation.
  • Learning fun in endless directions
  • Kids can configure the segments to reach targets they set up throughout the room. Toy includes 1 sound segment, 3 straights, 2 right turns and 2 left turns. 2 destination targets and 1 motorized head.
  • Motorized head and segments features lights
  • Fun character sounds and blinking eyes to bring toy to life. Each segment lights up as the action happens.

On top of all of that, it makes learning oodles of fun and keeps kids busy!

Get It At Best Buy

You can find the Fisher-Price Think & Learn Code-a-pillar at Best Buy soon for $49.99!

Techy

Gift Dad #GearVR from Best Buy for Father’s Day

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If you have a dad in your family that loves technology then you are going to want to get to Best Buy and snag the Gear VR from Samsung Mobile.

Mobile virtual reality has finally arrived and it’s time to let dad be at the center of exciting games, watch the best of Hollywood in his own private cinema, socialize with friends, and so much more.  

The Samsung Gear VR drops you right in the action — and it’s only from Samsung and Oculus.

Ever since Alex saw an article about the fact that virtual reality gear now exsists, he has wanted one. We’ve even watched quite a few videos on YouTube of different people using them and sharing their experiences.

I’m thinking Father’s Day might just be the perfect time to surprise him with one!

Save Big at Best Buy

Now through June 18th, you can get FREE Samsung Gear VR, plus $50 of Virtual Reality content with purchase, or lease, and activation of select Samsung Smartphones!

Do you have Gear VR? What do you think of this great advance in technology?

Techy

VIZIO SmartCast P-Series Ultra HD HDR Home Theater Display at Best Buy

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As a family who loves tech, movies, and music, we are always checking out the newest and best products available. I mean, if we can may our in home viewing experience better, why not do it?

Meet the new VIZIO SmartCast P-Series Ultra HD HDR Home Theater Display, available at Best Buy.

The VIZIO SmartCast™ P-Series™ Ultra HD HDR Home Theater Display™, is the first 4K ultra HD display to feature High Dynamic Range with Dolby Vision, Ultra Color Spectrum, Google Cast™ built-in, with a powerful 6” Android™ Tablet Remote included.

Yes, that tablet you see next to the TV, that is the remote!

The powerful 6” Android™ tablet remote preinstalled with the ingenious VIZIO SmartCast app that lets you browse content by genre across multiple apps all at once, what you love won’t change, but how you experience it will never be the same again.

Not only is this remote awesome but it puts you in control of your entertainment like never before with simple tap, swipe and voice-based commands. Browse movies, TV shows, music and even Live TV* by genre across multiple apps all at once on the VIZIO SmartCast™ app, then tap to play your show onto the P-Series™’ stunning display. 

Amazing New Features

  • High Dynamic Range with Dolby Vision content support
  • Ultra Color Spectrum for a dramatically different visual experience with astonishing brightness, radiant contrast, and captivating color.
  • Full-Array LED backlighting and up to 128 Active LED Zones™ deliver exceptional light uniformity and deeper, richer black levels. 
  • With Google Cast built-in, you can cast from thousands of Google Cast-enabled apps that you already know and love, like YouTube and Netflix.
  • Sports and action fans will appreciate the powerful image processing of the P-Series™ with up to Clear Action™ 960 that combines a blazing 240Hz effective refresh rate achieved with backlight scanning for sharper detail in fast action scenes. 

You can learn even more about the VIZIO SmartCast P-Series Ultra HD HDR Home Theater Display by watching this quick video.

*Live TV listings compatible with IP-based set-top boxes from DirecTV® and Dish® services, with more services to be added. See vizio.com/smartcast for details.

Photography, Techy, There's an App for That

Organize Your Photos and More with MiMedia + Giveaway – Ends 5/27

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Since I became a mom, there is one thing I do more than anything else and that is take photos. Back when Zack was born in 1999, digital cameras were just becoming a thing. Now, for at least the last decade, I have documented my kids and our family life in photos and as you can imagine, with 5 kids, that amounts to a lot of photos.

Now here I am, with thousands of photos on my computer, discs, and external hard drives. I would love nothing more then to be able to organize them all in one place to make it much easier to find the photos I am looking for.

Thanks to MiMedia, a new cloud service I was asked to try, my pictures have found a new, organized home!

MiMedia is an awesome cloud service to store all of your family memories in photos, videos and even music and documents.

Over the last 2 months, I have been busy moving photos to my MiMedia account and have been amazed by how great it is at organizing them. Everything is put in order by date which has made it really easy to help Zack on his scrapbook project for school. In addition to the photos I have scattered everywhere that I have been uploading to MiMedia, I have also been uploading new photos taken from my phone directly to the cloud as well thanks to the MiMedia app.

Get 10GB FREE photo storage when you sign up for MiMedia using promo code: THEMOTHERHOOD

Features I Love About MiMedia

  • Ease of use – MiMedia is easy to use with their one-click import from Facebook, Dropbox, Google+, Picasa, Flickr, and more.
  • Organization – MiMedia helps organize, find, personalize and (re)discover your media from all different sources.
  • Safe & Secure – Users are able to select what content is shared, and with whom, on an item-by-item basis, while safely keeping the rest of their files hidden away.
  • Private Sharing – With the MiDrive you, your family and friends can collaborate in a truly private place; create and share amazing visual stories.

What Type of Plans Are Available?

MiMedia offers 3 different plans at the following rates:

Free
10 GB
• 2,500 photos
• 125 videos
• 2,000 songs
• 10,000 documents

Basic
500 GB
$7.99/month or $85 annually
• 125,000 photos
• 6,250 videos
• 100,000 songs
• 500,000 documents

Plus
1 TB
$9.99/month or $100.00 annually
• 250,000 photos
• 12,500 videos
• 200,000 songs
• 1,000,000 documents

I am looking forward to using MiMedia for all of the pictures I take over the summer and for sharing them with our family and friends.

Don’t forget, you can get 10GB FREE photo storage when you sign up for MiMedia using promo code: THEMOTHERHOOD

Connect

You can connect with MiMedia on Facebook and Twitter.

Win It

One lucky winner will receive a one year long trial of a Basic 500GB MiMedia Plan ($85 value).

Any mandatory entries must be completed in order to qualify to win.  All entries will be validated before a winner is announced. Winner will be notified via email and will have 24 hours to respond or you will forfeit the prize and another winner will be chosen. The Megalomaniac Mommy is not responsible for prize fulfillment unless otherwise stated. Any questions, please contact us.

MiMedia

Techy

Save Your USB Cables with the Tudia Klip

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When you have a house full of electronic devices that require USB cables for chargers you want to do whatever you can to protect them.

See, when you first get a new cable, it’s a nice and pretty and pretty much looks like this:

Of course, when you use your charger constantly the cable tends to get all bent and then it starts to crack and eventually it opens up and you have to try and repair it or just buy a new one.

Needless to say, we go through phone chargers like crazy but hopefully that has changed for us thanks to the Tudia Klip.

The Tudia Klip is an ingenious little clip that protects cables from the damage we know too well. It fixes and protects Apple charging cables from fraying and splitting and reduces cable strain by 80% while extending the life of apple lightning and 30-pin charging cables.

The Tudia Klip is a tiny 2 piece silicone and polycarbonate clip that quickly snaps onto your lightning cable controls the cable from bending at its most vulnerable points.

The Klip comes in 5 colors – blue, green, pink, gray and yellow, and is available immediately from Amazon at just $7.01 a pair.

All it takes is a small investment to extend the life of your lightning cables!