Cory | Calm, Cool & Connected

June
10
Motorola BackFlip

I was recently given the chance to review the Motorola BackFlip. Check out the following video where I talk about the features I like best:

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Standard usage rates apply depending on your plan. See att.com/dataterms for terms and conditions.

Posted by Cory in Cory, Reviews Tags: Cory, SmartPhone
Comments (3)
May
24
Digital Hand-Me-Down

We’re all familiar with hand-me-downs, but what about digital hand-me-downs like DVDs?

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Do you share digital hand-me-downs with your family and friends?

Posted by Cory in Cory Tags: Cory
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March
18
Txtng & Drivng … It Can Wait

You may remember Michael’s post in December on the important topic of texting while driving. AT&T recently launched a campaign on this major issue.

Awareness is key. Whether you’re talking on the phone, sending a text message, or even swapping CD’s, all of these basic tasks could take our focus off of the road while driving, leaving you less aware of your surroundings’ less aware of the road in front of you and the other drivers around you.

A July 2009 study by the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute concluded that texting while driving increases your risk of being in an accident by a factor of 23.

I know the temptation to respond to a text message as soon as you receive it. We live in a society that holds connectivity and availability in very high esteem. When you’re in your car and behind the wheel, you’re not available. Pull over to the side of the road or wait until you get to your destination before sending a text message. No message is worth the opportunity cost of taking your focus off the road and endangering the lives of you, your passengers, and other drivers around you.

Help spread the word about the dangers of texting while driving. For more information on the campaign and to take the pledge to not text and drive, view AT&T’s Texting while Driving public education campaign.

Posted by Cory in Cory, Safety, Teens & Cell Phones, Uncategorized Tags: Cory, Safety, Texting
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March
11
Mom Learns to Send Text Messages from her AT&T Mobile Phone

Getting a new phone is always exciting, especially when you get your hands on one of the many exciting options offered by AT&T. That is doubly true for my mom and sister. Not long before the holiday season, they both were in need of a new phone. They weren’t ready for a smartphone, but liked a number of the new touch-screen phones available. After watching Stephanie’s Samsung Solstice review, and trying it out for themselves, both decided to go with the Solstice.

Then, the unexpected happened – my mom signed up for her first text messaging plan. Now, instead of a phone call asking us what new clothes Fiona needs, we get a SMS message requesting size and color preferences. Sometimes we get MMS messages detailing the day’s purchases. We’ve decided that my mom is officially dangerous when in close proximity to anywhere that sells baby apparel.

My mom even invents her own shorthand, apparently not happy with this generation’s LOL, TTYL, and L8Rs. I always knew I had a cool mom. Now, she further proves the point via SMS.

Message & data rates may apply.

Posted by Cory in Cory, SmartPhone Tags: Cory, SmartPhone, Texting
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March
5
App Addict

After many months of trying to convince Amy that she needed a smartphone, the birth of our daughter Fiona became the deciding factor. Now, instead of sending SMS messages using a T9 interface, she’s tapping away at a touch-screen interface, texting faster than I could ever hope to. Her phone has become her go-to camera to take pictures of Fiona, and it’s how she checks her email.

Then there are the apps. Amy is officially ‘addicted’ to apps. She uses her smartphone to keep up with Facebook, check the weather, hunt for a new house, track workouts and food intake, play games, share pictures from our Flickr account, and keep up on parenting information, among other things. She just might be on her smartphone more than I’m on mine, which is saying something.

Does anyone else have a significant other who fought the transition to a smartphone, only to become ‘addicted’ to mobile apps?

Message & data rates may apply.

Posted by Cory in Applications, Cory, SmartPhone Tags: Cory, SmartPhone
Comments (9)
March
2
Mark the Spot App

Hey! I wanted to share with you a great app, Mark the Spot, that gives AT&T customers a way to provide feedback on network user experience to AT&T. Check out how it works:

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Standard charges apply to text messages, depending on your plan.

Posted by Cory in Cory, How To Tags: Cory, SmartPhone
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February
11
Our Sweet Little Valentine

When I see this picture, I can hear Frank Sinatra singing “My Funny Valentine.” This Valentine’s Day is like no other before it, because with Fiona around, every day is Valentine’s Day. While we make our plans to surprise each other in some small way, we conspire as to what we’re going to do for our little valentine: What will she wear? Where will we take her? What should we get her?

We plan on visiting family this coming weekend to share our little valentine in person versus through the cameras on our phones as we so often do. Though Sunday is Valentine’s Day, for us, every day before and after will still be Valentine’s Day.

And if you are at a loss for what to get for your Valentine (or better yet, would like to “gently suggest” a Valentine gift for yourself!), check out or share the following link, to get a new red phone – FREE on att.com through Monday, February 15: bit.ly/Free-Red-Phones!

A two year service agreement is required. Other restrictions apply. A $30/month data plan required for all Smartphones.

Posted by Cory in Cory, Photos, SmartPhone, Uncategorized Tags: Cory, Photos, SmartPhone
Comments (11)
February
2
Film Awards App

Hey! With the awards season in full swing thought you might be interested in viewing a great app that keeps you up to speed on all of the action.

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Posted by Cory in Cory, How To, TV, Vlogs Tags: Cory, SmartPhone
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November
19
Video Chat

We made our first road trip with Fiona recently, taking her to Springfield, IL to visit my side of our family. It was a great weekend that nearly wore out three cameras with all of the pictures taken.

That said, for the first time in a few blog posts, pictures aren’t what I want to talk about. At the moment, I’m more interested in video: Video Chat to be more specific. As Fiona’s due date approached, my parents and I began discussing setting up a way for us to use video chat. Amy and I already had a web-cam, and my parents quickly followed suit in purchasing one of their own.

In the days before Fiona’s Springfield visit, we were finally getting ready to take our first stab at video chat. After some hiccups in setting up the hardware/software, it was time to make good use of our AT&T U-verse High Speed Internet. My dad and I got the video chat up and running and after only a few seconds, Amy, Fiona, and I could see and hear my mom, dad, and grandmother, almost as though they were right in the room with us.

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While it doesn’t replace getting to hold your grandchild/children or hug your parents, video chat can help make the world seem that much smaller, and any distance surmountable. When we aren’t able to meet in person, we can still share our beautiful daughter with our out-of-town family by using video chat.

Disclaimer: Geographic and service restrictions apply to AT&T U-verse(SM) services. Check to see if you qualify. http://www.att.com/u-verse/.

Posted by Cory in Cory, Vlogs Tags: AT&T U-verse, Cory
Comments (8)
October
31
First Halloween

You would think that the first Halloween wouldn’t be a huge ordeal for a child that’s just shy of two months old. Turns out, that’s not the case for our Fiona. About four months ago, before Fiona was born (and before we knew the gender of our forthcoming child), Amy sent me an email with an idea for a Halloween costume. It was gender neutral, and even long before Fiona had eliminated my ability to act tough, it was adorable.

Turns out that the costume – a chili pepper – is the perfect fit for our little Fiona. As you can see, she wears it well and is beyond cute.

The costume is also getting Amy and I interested in taking some amateur photography classes to capture some of these moments. Amy’s already practicing.

While we’re a ways from taking Fiona trick-or-treating and keeping in touch with the little one via cell phones and the FamilyMap service, we can still enjoy our time spent with family, showing off our new addition and her spicy personality.

And dad can work on removing the bad puns from his vocabulary.

Posted by Cory in Cory, Just for fun, Photos Tags: Cory
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