Laura Lohr

Not Just an Alliteration

Samsung Galaxy Note from Verizon Wireless Review

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Samsung Galaxy Note and S Pen stylus
Samsung Galaxy Note and S Pen stylus

Verizon sent me the Samsung Galaxy Note to give my honest opinion and review. I was given the phone for review purposes only. All opinions are 100% mine.

I am a list lover. I’ve always loved writing lists. A grocery shopping list, a things to do list, a list of lists I need to write. Alright, I’m better at making lists than I am at actually accomplishing the items on the list. One of the reasons is that I often lose these paper lists. My phone has helped a bit, because I can make a list and store it on my phone, but it’s still sort of a pain on my phone to do any real computing. When I got the opportunity to try the Samsung Galaxy Note, I was really excited. I had been told by several people, “Oh, you’ll love the phablet.” The prospect of a phone and tablet that fit right into my purse or pocket was very intriguing to me.

You can use the stylus pen to write any note, anywhere, anytime.
You can use the stylus pen to write any note, anywhere, anytime.

Along Comes the Phablet

When I need to write a quick note, I simply slide the S Pen stylus out and write a quick note. I can put it into the calendar or put it in a quick note for later. This thing has really changed my life! I love it!

I can do just about anything on the Samsung Galaxy Note. Blog Post? Yep. Facebook post? Of course! Watch a movie on Netflix? Heck yeah! What Mr. Bear loves more than anything? Being able to watch the football game on the bigger screen. Recently, we took a six hour road trip and Mr. Bear was beyond thrilled to watch the football games on the way. The larger screen is awesome! The resolution is amazing!

SamsungNoteStylus
Create notes and lists, using any of the Samsung templates.

 

When it was my turn to sit in the passenger seat on our road trip, I got to get my game on. I loved playing my games. I love to play Castle Clash, Clash of Clans, and occasionally, I like to play Farmville II. I know, I’m a total dork, but I love my games. It helps pass the time on road trips. I really hate driving, whether I’m the drivers or passenger. Gaming helps keep me distracted. I find that using the S Pen stylus really helps when I’m gaming. It makes my movements more precise.

The camera? AWESOME! We were up in the Monterrey Bay area, where Mr. Bear’s mom lives. These are a few of the gorgeous shots I got using the phone:

This gorgeous photo was taken on a lovely walk along the coast in Pacific Grove, on the Monterrey Bay Peninsula.
This gorgeous photo was taken on a lovely walk along the coast in Pacific Grove, on the Monterrey Bay Peninsula.
Here is another beautiful shot, captured by the camera.
Here is another beautiful shot, captured by the camera.

The battery life on this thing is amazing! This phone stood up to some very intense usage on a very long drive. There were areas where cell phone reception was rather scarce, which typically drains the battery life of a phone pretty quickly. Not this phone. It stood up to the drain of navigation, email, social media status updates, camera usage, game play, YOU NAME IT! It charges quickly and then the charge lasts forever! I was truly impressed.

The Samsung Note is on the left, the Galaxy S4 is on the right. You can see the difference in screen size. The Note is insane! I love it!
The Samsung Note is on the left, the Galaxy S4 is on the right. You can see the difference in screen size. The Note is insane! I love it!

I love the size and weight of this phone. I know a lot of people who are skeptics about the size of a bigger phone. I’ve especially heard from my IPhone friends, “But, the phone. It’s just so big!” I can’t even begin to say how nice the bigger screen is, once you get used to it. It really is nice to have the screen real estate, especially if you depend on your phone as much as I do. If you’ve been hesitant about trying out the larger screen, give it a chance. Go to a Verizon store and try it out. You’ll be amazed at the clarity, the quality, and how lightweight it is. Put it on my Christmas list. I’m ready to switch! (I have the Samsung Galaxy 4GS).

Verizon HTC One Max

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HTCOneMax

I’ve had the pleasure of trying out the Verizon HTC One Max. The phone was loaned to me from Verizon, in hopes for an honest review on my blog. Thank you to Verizon!

We recently took a road trip to central and northern California. I had just received the HTC One Max phone from Verizon and I was so excited to try it out! In my opinion, there is no better way to find out how you like a phone, then when you take it on vacation. When it first arrived, my initial react was, “HOLY MOLY, this is a big phone!” It is a big phone, for sure! (It’s big, but not heavy.)  I wasn’t sure I would like having a big phone, nonetheless, I kept an open mind and I am so glad I did.

ScreenComparisions

We got in the car at 4:00 a.m. and we set the GPS for our first destination—San Jose! What I liked most about using the navigation on the HTC One Max, was the screen. It is the PERFECT size for navigation! It has a 5.9 inch HD screen and the display is amazing! We were able to see where we were at and where we were going on the large screen and the bigger font because of a bigger was helpful for Mr. Bear’s eyes to read the directions.

JellyFish

One of the things that took some getting used to, was the fingerprint scan. Once I got used to it, however, I loved it. The fingerprint scan unlocks the phone after the screen has locked. There is a little scanner on the back of the phone that verifies you are the rightful screen unlocker. My little one likes to nab our phones to play Subway Surfer and the Minions game. Often, before we realize it, she has ran our battery down and we’re stuck without a phone until we can recharge. She has become quite savvy at figuring out the password to unlock the screen. HA! No more!

With traveling, it always seems to be such a challenge keeping the batteries on our phones charged. The HTC One Max was a super trooper! We were able to get through entire days of navigation, photo snapping, Twitter, Facebook, phone calls and even our own favorite games (My favorite game right now is Clash of Clans. Nerd alert!).

PebbleBeachGolfCourse

By far, my favorite feature, was the camera. This was the best lowlight camera I’ve used in a long while. I had my Samsung Galaxy 4 with me also and the camera could not compete with the HTC One Max. The images were beautiful! It didn’t matter if it was indoors, outdoors, cloudy, sunny or foggy—the camera impressed me so much that I began leaning on the HTC to take all of the photos on our trip.

PebbleBeach

For many reasons, I think this phone is one of my very favorites. It worked really well for me on vacation and now, in everyday life. I am going to have a difficult time parting with this phone! I’ve grown accustomed to using it for a month now.

Connect with Verizon now:

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That’s Smart Baby! Smart Baby Monitor from Verizon Wireless

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My brand new nephew at Halloween this year. He is just perfect!

When Verizon Wireless offered to let me and my family try out the Withings Smart Baby Monitor, I couldn’t resist!  My brother is in the military and is often out to sea.  With this new, beautiful baby, it makes it tough.  We all want to see him grow and watch his milestones.  He changes each time I see him.  The technology of the baby monitor has changed significantly since Allie Kat was a baby.  We couldn’t share our monitor with friends and family the way it can be done today!
When Allie Kat was a baby, we hadn’t considered the possibility of needing a baby monitor. Fortunately, my mom’s amazing best friend had considered this possibility and gave us one when Allie was born. It was before the days of video monitor popularity because video monitors were not yet affordable. We used the monitor all the time and we were so thankful to have it!  It was nice to work out in the yard while Allie was napping and still be able to monitor her.

The monitor allows you to log in to the Withings application on your Droid or Apple product and monitor your child remotely.  What an ingenious idea!  The monitor can be viewed from either a cell phone or tablet/Ipad, which is great!  This is fabulous for anyone that has to be far away from their children.

This little jewel box is the monitor!
This little jewel box is the monitor!

 

The monitor plays lullabies, has a night light,  detects a change in room temperature, lets you speak to your baby and is perfect for a nightstand. All of the features can be controlled right on the monitor or remotely, using your desired Android/Apple device.  You can designate more than one user, so Daddy who is out of town and Grandma who is out of town can both see what is going on with Junior.  How cool is that?  All the times that Mr. Bear had to be out of town, he could have logged on and seen our little princess fast asleep.  I wish this was available when we were brand new parents!

The Withings nightlight. Various colors available.
The Withings nightlight. Various colors available.

 

It has been so much fun to have a new baby in the family and I just love to snuggle this little guy!  I had an opportunity to babysit for a couple of hours.  He is such an easy, content little guy and I am so happy for my brother and his family!  I am hoping to babysit again soon.

Isn't he perfect?
Isn’t he perfect?

 

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GJG9DqRqs0]

Disclaimer:  I was given the Withings Smart Baby Monitor on loan by Verizon Wireless for my honest review.  All opinions expressed are mine.  I was not compensated for this review.

Beam Me Up Samsung Galaxy S4 #Verizon

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Samsung Galaxy S4
Mr. Bear and I have been loyal fans of the Android operating system on our phones. We’re always excited when the newest features and releases come out. When Verizon Wireless asked me what phone I wanted to review next, the Samsung Galaxy S4 was at the top of my list! Mr. Bear and I had been waiting somewhat impatiently for the release date of this phone.

As it turned out, we bought Mr. Bear the Samsung Galaxy S4 for his birthday and that coincided with the date Verizon sent me the same phone to tryout. This was awesome, because we were able to “bump” our phones, using the S-Beam technology to share photos, files and videos. It was really cool. We were able to discover and learn about the phone together. We sat on our patio one evening, enjoying a glass of wine (okay, a bottle!) and playing with the phones. LOVE THIS PHONE!

SG4
Mr. Bear chose the black one and Verizon sent me the white one

There are so many cool features about this phone. One I really like, is when you find a contact in your phone, you simply put the phone to your ear to dial. The Bluetooth connection in the car is so incredibly simple. You can program the phone to automatically connect to the Bluetooth, as soon as you start the car. Easy, peasy!

As a fitness lover, my favorite feature is the Fitness Tracker. When Mr. Bear and I went to Sonoma, he had his phone track our steps, as we spent our days in Wine Country. At the end of the day, we could add in a walk, take a swim, or whatever to make sure we got our exercise in. It definitely made us more aware of our activity.* We always have our phones with us and it was something we didn’t have to think too much about. We got our 10,000 steps in every day! Woohoo!

Samsung Galaxy SG4
We took tons of photos on our recent trip. The GS4 was a great camera to use! The Drama Shot and Eraser features. When we were traveling down the road in the car, I could use the drama shot to take a “burst” of photos and I could choose between them to fit together the perfect shot. The Eraser feature was great when someone decided to photobomb our photos when we were trying to get some photos of the landscape.

I still have several months before I can upgrade my phone, but I am keeping my eye on the Samsung Galaxy S4. Mr. Bear loves his and I am trying to not to be too jealous. It is super fast, super light and really the best phone I have had the opportunity to review so far.

*It has a lot of other cool features too, like can be synched by Bluetooth to a heart-rate monitor, blood pressure meter, body scale and S band bracelet.

**I was sent the Samsung Galaxy S4 for review purposes only. I was asked to return the phone after the review period.

Staying Connected on the Go with Verizon Jetpack Mifi 4620le

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When Verizon offered to send us the Verizon Jetpack Mifi device, I was ecstatic! We have considered getting the device previously, as there are often times when Mr. Bear is on call and needs to login to the system at work. There are often times when it would be convenient to have the device with us on the road. [Read more…]

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