Technology | The Angel Forever

Category Archives Technology

Tracking What You May Misplace

Posted on October 6, 2016 12:00 am by TheAngelForever

Where did I put my purse this time? This is becoming a joke in our family. Sure, I should have one place where I put my purse down once I get inside the house. The reality is that I am often in a rush once I storm through the doors. I may race into the kitchen with perishables to put into the refrigerator. Other times, I may stop midway into the kitchen to toss my purse by the dining room table before running to get more in the car. There are also instances where I fly into the house to wash my hands or take care of some other business. (I went there.)

I am also the person that could never find her keys most mornings before heading to school with my youngest. Were they in my purse, on the table, in my coat, by my laptop, or on the floor? Thanks to Verizon Wireless, my life changed when they sent me the original Tile. Once again, never in the same place or space to make my life easier. Several days a week, I calmly go to the app on my phone and ask it to help me find my keys. My boys now run to locate them and there is never any stress thanks to this nifty tech device. Now, imagine a new Tile that is super thin and can be tucked into a wallet, bag, or anything else when you travel.

Say hello to Tile Slim! This beautiful new device is able to get tucked away right into my wallet. While I may not put my keys away in my purse, my wallet is always tucked back inside. So if I know where my Tile Slim is in my wallet, I can find where my purse is currently hiding. Check out how the Tile and Tile Slim compare to one another.

It was simple to add this to my Tile account. I just followed the steps and within a moment, my new Tile was named and set up. Now if (more likely when) I can’t find my purse, I simply go to my app and click on the Tile I want to find and wait to track it with Bluetooth. The music will play and guide me to where my purse is currently hiding.

Tile Slim will also help me on the go. I may be known to put my purse down when out and forgetting it. Could be at a restaurant, amusement park, or especially at a conference when I wander off from a table to say hello to a friend. This will be a great asset for me in my upcoming travels. I can’t wait to get away and not have to worry about my forgetful mind. I will also be picking up some extra Tile Slim to place in suitcases and other bags that will be along for the trip.

Where would you use a TileSlim? I would love to know additional ideas for the use of this product that is already changing my life.

Disclosure: As a member of the Verizon Lifestyle Bloggers, I receive cool goodies like the Samsung Galaxy Note 5 and Tile Slim to test out and share ways that I use them in my life. I am a long time Verizon customer, and all opinions are my own.

Categories:
Technology travel

Don’t Forget Protection

Posted on August 4, 2016 12:00 am by TheAngelForever

#VZWBuzz Disclosure

No really, don’t forget protection for your smartphone. Protecting my phone has always been a priority. My smartphone is an extension of me. It keeps me connected for emergencies, allows me to get work done while mobile, and gives me a way to record memories. As soon as I get a new phone, I immediately purchase a good case to put it in.

When I received my Samsung Galaxy Note 5, I went to check out my options. This time I went into my local Verizon Wireless store knowing that I wanted a less bulky case. The gentleman at the store suggested pairing the new case up with a tempered glass screen for added protection. More specifically, he told me to get the Invisible Shield Glass by ZAGG.

Confession: I whined a lot about the cost of this screen protector. In the end, I bought it and felt guilty about the money.

Fast forward many months.

My phone dropped off a counter. I was relieved to see that it seemed fine. Several hours later, my heart skipped a beat. My precious Note 5 had a small visible crack. After I stopped and calmed down, I noticed something on the phone. I could actually see what I thought was a shadow under the tempered glass. Perhaps my phone was fine underneath it. I didn’t check at home and took my phone back to Verizon. The plan was to get a new glass screen cover for my phone. The gentleman at the store took my cover off the phone and the Note 5 looked brand new underneath. Of course, pulling it off made the crack that you see in the photo above even more pronounced.

What happened next made me beyond happy. I did not have to purchase a new ZAGG Invisible Shield Glass. Why? The one I bought is warrantied. If it cracks, ZAGG will send you a new one for the cost of shipping. All I had to do was go onto their website and register my glass to have a new one sent.

There were a few glitches on the ZAGG website, so I called them. Their customer service was truly amazing. I quickly had everything set so a new Invisible Shield Glass would be shipped. I simply have to send the old one back. The best part is that IF this happens again while I own the Note 5, it is covered since I have it registered.

The moral of my story, protect your phone properly and you will not be sorry. I am SO glad that I listened while shopping months ago and purchased the ZAGG product. Had I ignored that, my Note 5 may have had a very different fate on the day of the fall. Now I can breathe and use my phone to capture more memories like the ones below.

It's Me
Disclosure: As a member of the Verizon Lifestyle Bloggers, I receive cool goodies like the Samsung Galaxy Note 5 to test out and share ways that I use them in my life. I am a long time Verizon customer, and all opinions are my own.

Categories:
shopping Technology

Say Hello to Tile and Goodbye to Lost Keys

Posted on June 20, 2016 12:00 am by TheAngelForever

How are you at keeping track of your keys? I am a relatively organized person, but my keys seems to have a life and mind of their own. While I have tried to keep then in one place, or clip them to my purse with a key fob, something always happens.

Thank goodness my youngest son has never made a video of me searching for my keys. He could have made quite the series of me flipping out while looking for my keys before school. TechyDad almost made a video of this the other day and I would have deserved it. Why? Well, I had no reason for losing my keys. I should have had them with my nifty new tech device.

Say hello to Tile!

Moments after I lost my keys, I grabbed the Tile that I was sent and set it up. The app was easy to follow. With the Bluetooth tracker, it quickly found my keys when I tested things out. Another perk, you can also use the Tile to ring your smartphone that may be hiding. Even if it’s on silent mode, it will ring your phone.

This morning I lost my keys (AGAIN). No worries now thanks to @@verizon and #Tile. #VZWBuzz #ad

A video posted by @theangelforever on Jun 5, 2016 at 9:27am PDT

A Tile four pack is currently sold at Verizon for $69.99. The app allows you to track multiple Tiles and items at once. I now have a list of items waiting for some extra Tiles. Some of my must track things are:

TechyDad’s Keys – Needed since I often take his car and lose the keys once inside the house.
Remote Controls – Our couch likes to eat them and now we will be able to call it via the Tile app to locate for changing the channel.
Favorite Stuffed Friends – We will make a Tile necklace for favorite friends that go on the road.
NHL’s Retainer Case – This expensive piece of orthodontics needs to make sure it stays put and doesn’t wander.
JSL’s Flute Case – Musical instruments are expensive and it’s nice to know where it may be since it can get lost in the shuffle between school and home.
Socks – Just kidding! Of course, this would be useful to combat the socks that go into the washer and never come out. Remember Tile is water resistant too.

We will continue to explore more ways to use Tile this summer. Since Tile is water resistant it will be great at the pool, lake, and camp for the kids. The possibilities are endless for use at home, school (teachers and students), going off to college, while traveling, and so much more.

Where would you use a Tile? Would you be like me and place it on your keys?

Disclosure: As a member of the Verizon Lifestyle Bloggers, I receive cool goodies like the Samsung Galaxy Note 5 and Tile Bluetooth Tracker to test out and share ways that I use them in my life. I am a long time Verizon customer, and all opinions are my own.

Categories:
Technology

Finding Time and Motivation to Focus on Me

Posted on May 23, 2016 6:20 pm by TheAngelForever

#VZWBuzz Disclosure

2016 is a big year in our household. My oldest son will not only officially become a teenager, he will also have his Bar Mitzvah in the fall. A few months later, I will turn the big 4-0. One of the items I am working on is making more time to focus on myself, specifically my health.

The winter was long and I have been looking for something to motivate me to get moving more. While my diet may not be horrible, I know I need healthy lifestyle changes. These include more sleep thanks to insomnia kicking me in the rear. I also need to drink more water. Fluids will help with my headaches and much more. The biggest issue for me is not moving enough. I know I need to get up and move more than I do, but the cold did not motivate me all winter. With sedentary hobbies like reading, crocheting, and working at home in front of a computer, I need reminders to move.

Enter the arrival of a Fitbit Charge HR – Heart Rate and Activity Wristband from Verizon. I could not get my Charge to charge fast enough to get started. While it was getting ready, I set up my phone. I installed the Fitbit app and checked out some features that were new since I had a Fitbit Zip a long time ago. I immediately noticed my steps, heart rate, hourly activity (250+ steps each hour during the day), distance, calories burned, sleep (or lack of sleep), stair case floors traveled, active minutes, exercise tracker, place to add a food plan, and water tracker. There is more, but these immediately caught my eye and I went to fill up my 32 ounce bottle of water.

Even though I didn’t have a full first day, I wanted to test things out. I was curious how it would track walks, monitor my heart rate when resting, and more. The first evening, JSL brought his scooter out with me for a walk. Keeping up with my kiddo was motivating even when my feet were complaining a bit.

Over the weekend, I had a chance to get to know the Charge a bit more. When we took the kids to the park and the boys were playing, I headed off on my own walk. It was a beautiful and breezy day. It was perfect for wandering around the walking paths to check out the views.

For my first full week day with the Charge, I tried something different. After the boys were in school I went for a walk. It was still cool outside and it gave me time to think. I grabbed my phone, Bluetooth headset, and was ready to go. The night before, I put some extra music on my phone and made sure a new audio book was ready in case I was more in a mood for a tale.

What I noticed was that I walked faster and was less worried about time in the morning. I knew I could go as far or for as long as I wanted. The laundry would still be waiting for me when I got back and I had hours before the kids had to be picked up at school. After my walk, I actually decided to do some laundry. This is where I was able to see how the Fitbit Charge tracks stairs. By the time I had to pick up the kids, I had gone up 11 floors and still had more clothes to finish drying.

Later in the day, I figured out how to track my exercise. The GPS on my phone works with the Fitbit app to map out my route. Then, when I am finished, it gives me the total distance traveled, average beats per minute of my heart rate, and pace. This has been great to watch as my walks grow in length and my pace picks up. I still have to get to know more about my Fitbit Charge HR, but so far it has motivated me to get up, get outside, and do more activities with the kids. With time, I look forward to adding friends for more challenges as well.

If you have a Fitbit, what do you suggest that I check out next?

It's Me
Disclosure: As a member of the Verizon Lifestyle Bloggers, I receive cool goodies like the Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge Plus and Fitbit Charge HR to test out and share ways that I use them in my life. I am a long time Verizon customer, and all opinions are my own.

Categories:
health awareness me moments Technology

Be Prepared for a Mobile Emergency

Posted on February 25, 2016 12:00 am by TheAngelForever

#VZWBuzz Disclosure

Imagine driving along noticing someone following your car very close. Every time you turn your car, they follow. This was my reality several weeks ago. I was living a nightmare with TechyDad and my 12 year old son in the car. Do you know what to do if this happens to you?

I fully admit that I had never really put myself into this scenario to come up with a plan. TechyDad wrote about our experience from his perspective in the passenger seat. It is still hard for me to think about that afternoon. We are not only lucky to be safe, but I am so thankful that I never hit another car or pedestrian while I was trying to get away.

While talking with the amazing police officer after the incident, he told us some things that we could have done differently.

Do NOT stop! – I was finally able to pull into a parking spot after a while. While I was pretty sure that I had lost the psycho following me, I may not have. I don’t even want to think about what could have happened if the person came by after we stopped. We were lucky that there was an officer very close by. So what should you do? The officer told us to keep the car in motion and stay where others can see you.

This leads us to….

Go to the closest police department – While we called 911 and that was good, we should have kept driving to the nearest police station. What if you don’t know where that is? Your phone can help. Have the voice activation function set up and have Google get you directions from your current location. This will be especially helpful if you are alone in any emergency where you can not use your hands.

Multiple times we were asked to describe the car and person in it. Oy! I was a little preoccupied trying not to crash my car. This leads us to…

Take a photo! – While living in the moment, I was too involved to notice details. We did not know the exact make of the other car or his license plate number. A photo could have helped. Know how to bypass security on your phone to get to the camera quickly. On my Note 5 I simply double click on the home button for the “quick launch” feature that opens the camera at any time.

Of course to use your phone to snap a photo you need to know where it is.

Keep your phone within reach. – I honestly do not know where my phone was that afternoon. TechyDad used his phone to dial 911. Had I been thinking I could have easily tossed my phone to NHL in the back seat to take a photo of the other car.

My boys know how to get into my phone for emergencies, but not everyone will.

Make sure passengers in your car are familiar with your phone. – Share with your children and others on the best way to access your phone. This will often vary from one smartphone to another. Investigate before you need it. Show everyone how to access the Emergency Call options and make sure your settings work to help in emergencies. This is what it looks like with my Note 5.

Remember that you don’t want to worry about what could happen, but be safe and take precautions. You never know if or when something like this may happen to you or a loved one. Take a few moments to get to know your smartphone to see how it can help you.

It's Me

Disclosure: As a member of the Verizon Lifestyle Bloggers, I receive devices like the Samsung Galaxy Note 5 to test out and share ways that I use it in my life. I am a long time Verizon customer, and all opinions are my own.