tips and tricks

Have you noticed lately there's been a huge uptick in text spam? So of course, I want to report it to...someone. Anyone! Turns out it's so much easier than I had expected. Now when I say text spam, I don't mean political candidates you'v…

In a typical Oscars year , I'm pretty much an expert on the (ahem) animated film category , but when it comes to the best picture or documentary feature film categories, I've maybe seen one or two movies. But 2020 was anything but typica…

We've always said that raising digital natives, especially since we're not digital natives ourselves, means understanding the role of technology in our family. But when it comes to knowing what questions to ask (and answer), well, that c…

We talked last week about tips for spring-cleaning your phone , and this week I'm taking a stab at my email. I'd never let my actual snail mail pile up in a massive overflow of unanswered bills and letters, but for some reason I let my e…

With spring nearly here, I'm getting antsy to clean up my yard and go through all my closets to get rid of all the junk we've accumulated over the winter. But I'm going to start small, literally, and follow these tips for spring cleaning…

We're huge board game geeks in my family. Our stack of strategy games is up to the ceiling. And while we're always up for a new game, they're expensive. So my new solution has been playing board games online before I buy! I get the full …

Parents of tweens and teens, we've got good news! YouTube is launching new parental controls specifically for kids in this age group. What a relief to those of us who see the value in letting them watch some of the content on YouTube...b…

Over the last month, we've been getting bombarded with all sorts of posts about kids and screen time, from articles telling us that we've got a big problem on our hands to ways to feel okay about all the screen time . If you're like me, …

Chances are good that you're clicking through to this article because you don't know what "tabbed gmails" even are. Right? Well, here's the deal: Gmail has a "handy" organization tool that categorizes all your emails automatically. To se…

If you're like us, you were so busy rearranging your home screen that you missed one of the most helpful new iOS14 features. Of course, "helpful" is relative, especially these days when even the smallest little thing that gives us a tast…

Valentine's Day is the next holiday, after Easter , Halloween , Thanksgiving , and Christmas , that will be affected by our new socially distant lifestyle. No sprinkle-laden, heart-shaped cookies in class. No gaudily decorated shoeboxes …

Has anyone else's teens struggled with interrupted sleep since the pandemic? My kids' slower social lives and reduction in extracurricular activities certainly plays a part, but turning to tech to connect with friends is making an impact…

Between the pandemic and the news cycle, we're finding ourselves on our phones way more than we'd like to be. Over the years, we've shared various ways to help curb your screen time, whether you want to completely shut things down or jus…

Let's take a minute to applaud our teens who've been willing to quarantine this year. It's been brutal to lose so many activities they love, and they've handled it with flexibility and (mostly) good attitudes! While we'd hoped we'd be "b…

Don't go into 2021 with 43,891 emails! (I'm not kidding. That's literally how many emails are in my inbox, currently). The simple trick we shared on our most recent Out-Tech Your Kids podcast episode has helped us start off every new yea…

We can all use ways to make our lives a little easier, which is why we’re talking about Alexa, which we know has helped our own staff, and maybe you too. That includes this episode’s sponsor Bamboo Learning , which offers fun ways for el…

Let's talk about self-care apps! While I took a no-holds-bar approach at the very beginning of quarantine ( It's the end of the world! Why not scroll all day? ), I'm realizing that might not be the most sustainable solution for a pandemi…

If you haven't heard by now, the customization features on the new iOS home screen are alllll kinds of extra (i.e. you can turn your home screen into a Harry Potter tribute , Microsoft Paint throw-back , or neon color study). It's pretty…

Just last week, Twitch launched Watch Parties , a feature that allows Twitch creators to watch Prime Video TV shows and movies with their communities. Whether you've got a kid on Twitch, or maybe you're looking for a way to watch your Am…

For most of us, our kids will be engaging in some form of online learning this fall. So, we decided to poll our Out-Tech Your Kids Facebook Group members and get their favorite tech tips to help make the whole process a little easier. We…

On this week's episode of Out Tech Your Kids, we're answering the question we're getting from SO many parents right now: How do I pick the right laptop for my child this year? Chromebook? MacBook? Something else? What kind of functionali…

This is a sponsored message for T-Mobile If you're feeling like you've been inundated with more scams and unwanted robocalls these days, you're not alone. Coronavirus scams actually increased 70% from just May to June, and Americans have…

If you're taking lots of smartphone photos like we are these days, we've got some clever tips and tricks that will totally up your game (and your Insta-cred with your kids). Whether you've got an iPhone or an Android, we think you'll app…

Okay, so plenty of us gave up on the same screen time limits we had pre-Covid. But that's not to say we don't still have screen time fights with the kids. Or uh...arguments? Debates? Gentle disagreements? If you're looking to cut back on…