The Well Connected Mom » photos

The Last Smartphone Holdout – Why I Finally Broke Down and Got a Smartphone

jwiersma — Tue, 15 May 2012 20:27:32 +0000

By Jamie Wiersma

I admit it, I am one of the hold outs. I have a pay-as-you-go phone that really can’t do much more than make phone calls and text. And texting is NOT fun when you have to use the number keys!

I Resisted Getting a Smartphone for So Long for a Few Reasons:

First of all, I liked the cost of the pay-as-you go which for me, is very minimal because I don’t care to talk on the phone much.
I also don’t like being with people who are consumed by their phones to the point that they are being rude to the people that they are with. I didn’t want to become one of those people.

But, when I got the opportunity to try out HTC’s One S Smartphone for a month, I decided to give it a try. I was warned that I probably wouldn’t want to go back to my old phone and they were right – I’m hooked!

The HTC One S is a fantastic phone! Our family recently invested in a tablet and after getting accustomed to using it consistently during the day for little things like email, Facebook, Pinterest, and my Bible and book reading, my husband decided that he wanted to take it to work with him. I felt lost! We joked that we would need to get another tablet for the family. But, when I started using the HTC One S, I realized that it could do all the things that my tablet could do AND, I could easily take it with me and use it on the go.

Features that are Worth Talking About:

1. The Camera – This camera is wonderful! It is 8MP and takes great pictures. I used to carry a small camera in my purse to
capture everyday life with my kids. Now, I am able to have one less thing in my purse. This camera has fun features like a panoramic option and the ability to take pictures with fun effects. Another great feature is that the camera can also take HD video. Once you have the video, you can select specific spots of the video and turn it into a still picture which is great for things like sports so that you don’t miss that important shot! In addition, while you are shooting video, you can also take pictures at the same time! It is also super easy to upload pictures to Facebook, Dropbox, email them, etc.

Check out the vivid colors! The camera takes better

pictures than my point and shoot 8MP camera. The top picture

is the original. The others are adjustments that I made

on the camera. There are also other fun options that you can do

as you are taking pictures like Negative, Solarize and Distortion.

2. The Screen – The screen is big enough that I can read my Bible and books with ease. Sure you have to turn pages or scroll down more often than a tablet but it doesn’t hinder your reading. The screen is a 4.3″ qHD super AMOLEd Touch screen with a home screen that you can easily customize. I’ve sat outside several times and even in bright sun, the screen is very easy to see.

3. If you are using it as your MP3 player, you can’t beat the sound quality with Beats Audio technology. Even when you are just using the speaker, the sound is great!

Additional Pros:

1. Touch screen really responds well.

2. Loaded with a ton of useful apps like Flashlight, Navigation, Google Play, and Weather.

3. Very user friendly.

4. Great design – it is more durable than stainless steel and super thin.

Cons:

1. I’m not sold on the set up of the actual phone app. It is very sensitive and it is very easy to accidentally touch on a contact and call them. I worry about little fingers that might hit on the phone and call people without me knowing it.

2. Be careful when you first set up your phone that you know what you are syncing. I accidentally told the phone to sync all my Facebook friends to my phone book and now have all my friends who have their phone number posted on Facebook in my contacts whether or not I want it in there. So far, I have not figured out how to remove the ones that I don’t want there.

3. The battery life – I guess that’s just something to get used to! I hear that most smartphones have a short battery life.

From a Mom’s Perspective:

As a new smartphone user, I caught myself almost venturing into the world of rudeness and literally had to turn myself away from my phone and not get caught up in playing games while hanging out with my family. I’ve heard of some families who insist that everyone leave their phones at the door when they all get together and I’m thinking this might be a great thing to implement in my family. Learn more about mobile etiquette and teens and cellphone manners in our previous posts.

That being said, there have been a ton of times this month when it’s been fantastic to have the capabilities of a smartphone while out and about. From sitting in a busy parking lot and being able to call the restaurant and find out what the wait is, to recording a TV show via my phone, and pulling up coupons that I had forgotten to print (and now don’t have to print), having a smartphone definitely has its advantages. As far as the cost of plans, I’ve found that you need to shop around. There are plans out there that are affordable if you do your research. There are plenty of plans out there for any kind of user.

If you are looking for a phone that can serve multiple purposes, the HTC One S is the perfect phone for you! I am using it as an e-Reader, tablet, camera, GPS, MP3 player and my computer away from home. It is priced at $199 (suggested retail $599) with a 2-year contract with T-Mobile. Check out the features on the T-Mobile website for all the details of the phone. There are too many to write about. This phone is full of bells and whistles! Looking at the reviews, most people agree that this is a phone worth the investment.

* I was loaned the HTC One S smartphone in exchange for my honest opinions and review.

Click on pen to

New iPad Announced

Lori Cunningham — Wed, 07 Mar 2012 23:18:42 +0000

by Lori Cunningham

At 10am this morning, Apple held a press conference to announce Apple’s newest iPad. If you’ve been holding out and waiting to see whether it’s worth to upgrade or buy an iPad for the first time, your time has come.

Although I was not present at the press event, I have seen several videos of the new iPad and I must say, the graphics are stunning. Interestingly, Apple is not calling this tablet the iPad 3. They just call it the new iPad.

Here are the details:

iPad 3 Features

Amazing Display – the new Retina display features 2048×1536 resolution, which according to Apple, provides 44% great color saturation and 3.1 million more pixels – which is 4 times the number of pixels in the iPad 2. It also has a 1,000,000 more pixels more than today’s HDTV.

A5X chip with Quad-Core Graphics – this faster processor makes high-definition games and movies flow smoother.

Long Battery Life – still can deliver 10 hours of battery life even with the extra processing powers.

5 MP Camera – with a backside illumination sensor to capture a great picture despite the lighting, auto focu, and built-in face detection for up to 10 faces.

1080 HD Video Camera – includes automatic video stabilization.

4G LTE Cellular – the 4G LTE iPad 3 version allows you to obtain the fastest speeds available by mobile cellular through Verizon or AT&T. It can also support GSM/UMTS so traveling worldwide and getting a signal is now more possible.

Personal Hotspot – you can now share your data connection (if your mobile carrier supports it) with up to 5 devices over Wi-
Fi, Bluetooth, or USB.

Dictation – dictation is now included on the onscreen keyboard. Use it to send a text, write an e-mail, search the web, etc. It also works third-party apps so you can update your Facebook status or twitter account.

Size

The new iPad is .03 inches thicker and .11 lbs heavier. Other than that, the screen size and dimensions of the tablet ( 9.5 in x 7.31 in) are the same. Which means, your current iPad 2 cases should work fine for the new iPad.

Pricing

The price of the new iPad is $100 more for each GB size over the iPad 3. Here is the pricing structure for the new iPad:

Wi-Fi

$499 16GB
$599 32GB
$699 64GB

Wi-Fi + 4G (through AT&T and Verizon)

$629 16GB
$729 32GB
$829 64GB

Now the big question…

Should You Upgrade to the New iPad?

If you have the original iPad, the answer is easy, yes. You should upgrade – having a camera/video camera is definitely needed on an iPad – there is so much you can do with it.

If you have already invested $450+ into the iPad 2, is it worth it to shell out the same amount plus $100 more for the new iPad? This is a tough one. If you are a heavy gamer or take most of your pictures and video with the iPad, then it might be a wise investment. The quad-core processor sounds fantastic, but looking at my own use of the iPad 2, I typically have anywhere from 9-25 apps open at one time and I have not noticed any degradation or slowness as a result. I have shot video with all of these other apps on and the current processor works fine.

I do use the iPad 2 camera extensively and right from the start I was highly disappointed in its low resolution quality. The new iPad sports a 5 mp camera, which is a huge advance in quality, but less graphically accurate than most cameras today which sport 8mp to 20mp. The higher the mp resolution, the better picture you obtain when you blow your pictures up to 8×10 + picture prints.

If you travel a lot, being able to use the hotspot feature to connect your kids’ iPod Touches would be great, assuming you bought the 4G LTE iPad version. This is a great feature. According to the Apple website, they suggest you can connect your iPods, iPads, iPhones, and Mac Airs. So I’m guessing connecting other non-Apple devices won’t work.

From a Mom’s Perspective, honestly, although I would LOVE to have the new iPad, but it’s not worth the extra $500+ to have it. I will watch from the sidelines and look forward to next year’s announcement. In the Apple presentation today, they announced the great improvements of Garage Band, iMovie, and the new iPhoto. These apps area great and work terrifically on the new iPad. But, the truth be known, they also work on your current iPad – perhaps not as swiftly – but they work. In fact, all of the 20,000 iPad apps will. So I don’t think we’ll be missing out on too much. Want some more facts, see Apple’s Compare iPad Models chart for more specifics.

See the official new iPad video trailer to see for yourself Apple’s newest star:

So what do you think, will you buy the new iPad?

Click on pen to

Cute as Can Bee! A children’s interactive app for iPad and iPod Touch

jwiersma — Sun, 04 Mar 2012 05:31:37 +0000

By Jamie Wiersma

Our family just downloaded Oceanhouse Media’s new omBook app Picture Me Cute As Can Bee* to our iPad. Basically, it allows you to take new pictures or add photos from your camera roll and place them into the story that your child is reading. Faces get inserted into cute spring costumes like a bumble bee, a bunny, and flower. My 5 year enjoyed taking pictures and manipulating them to prepare them for the story. My 2 year old loved seeing pictures of mommy, daddy, Bubba and himself while having the story read to him. In addition to cute pictures, there are also interactive objects on every page that they are able to play with. The story is fairly simple but overall a cute, interactive app for young children.

Features that make this a great app:

Beautiful, colorful pictures and great narration.
Word highlighting for children just beginning to read.
Interactive objects on every page for little fingers that want to play.
Super easy to load pictures into the app and choose which ones you would like to use each time you read the story.

From a mom’s perspective, this is a great little eBook that allows very young children (1 1/2 to 3 years old) to play on the iPad as well as practice names of loved ones and springtime objects. For children a little bit older (4 to 5 years old), this is a wonderful tool to encourage early reading and simple enough for them to manipulate on their own.

Love this app? Oceanhouse Media also has a Christmas app called Picture Me Christmas Cutie. Both apps are available at the App Store – $.99 for Picture Me Cute as Can Bee and $1.99 for Picture Me Christmas Cutie.

*I was given a code to download this app in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.

Click on pen to