Exclusive Items, Low Price Guarantee, and More Reasons to Shop at Best Buy for Holiday Gifts! @BestBuyWOLF #bbyHoliday13

This reviewer has been compensated in the form of a Best Buy Gift Card and/or received the product/service at a reduced price or for free.  All opinions expressed are my own.

If you've learned anything from reading my blog, it's that mine is a very tech-oriented family and that I just LOVE to shop!  Put those two things together and I would say I spend as much time shopping for tech items as I do for clothes for the five of us.  My husband and I have been shopping at Best Buy for at least 15 years and we continue to do so for many reasons, including excellent customer service, a vast selection of products (including Best Buy exclusives), their low price guarantee, great service plans, their many free shipping offers, and the ability to order online and pick-up in the store.

Although I am an avid online shopper, sometimes you just want to experience a tech item before you buy it.  For instance, I'm in the market for a Windows Intel tablet.  That is not something I would ever buy without trying it out for myself.  Best Buy is not just a store . . . it's a showroom.  There are also times when you may need advice about which of the hottest competing brands of tablets, phones, or gaming systems would suit your needs or the needs of someone on your Holiday shopping list.  A Blue Shirt is the perfect person to help with that.  I've found that Best Buy only hires people who are knowledgeable and passionate about their products and will give you their honest opinion because they do not work on commission.  Another reason why Best Buy is one of our top places to shop for tech items is because they do not wipe their hands of you after you've made your purchase.  If you have an issue with a product, you can bring it into the store for assistance from customer service or the Geek Squad.  Many other places require you to pay to ship your product back, even if it's under warranty, and I have not the time nor the interest in doing that.

So, what's on your shopping list this year for tech and gadgets?  How about the Digital Barbie Makeover Kit, the Jawbone UP, or some cordless headphones?  Well, Best Buy wants to help you save money on some of their most popular brands, such as Mattel, Fisher-Price, Logitech, and more with these two special offers that can be used in-store or online . . .

• Save 15% off Health & Fitness Products, Fisher-Price, and Mattel Toys from 12/1/13 to 1/18/14 when you checkout using Code: bloggers15off or print the coupon to shop at your local Best Buy store.
• Save 10% off Headphones and Portable Speakers (excluding Beats. Bose, and Sony products) from 12/1/13 to 1/18/14 when you checkout using Code: bloggers10off or print the coupon to shop in-store. 

For more great gift ideas in all price ranges, be sure to visit the Best Buy Holiday Gift Center!

Tech Tip: Best Buy Mobile Specialty Stores + Zact Offers Nationwide Coverage with No Contract

The reviewer has been compensated in the form of a Best Buy Gift Card and/or received the product/service at a reduced price or for free.  All opinions expressed our my own.

With more and more people dropping standard landline phone service and relying on their mobile phones, the need for inexpensive and easy to manage options is increasing. Fortunately there are more options than ever for mobile service providers and plans. Traditionally there were just two options for us to choose from: Contract or prepaid plans. But in the last year or so, another option is growing in availability, the no contract or pay as you go plan.

Although there are a few providers offering no contract mobile phone plans, there is one company that that offers all of the benefits of a contract plan and a great deal more. Zact Mobile, available offline exclusively at Best Buy Mobile Specialty Stores, is a no contract phone plan that uses the extensive Sprint network.

With Zact Mobile, you only pay for what you use, all unused money is credited towards your next months service. Not only do you get to roll over any unspent money into the next month, you can tune your services by choosing options a la carte right from your phone further maximizing your money. In fact, the average bill from Zact Mobile is just $22! Zact mobile offers a fully customizable mobile experience to get the most from your device for the very least amount of money.

Any of Zact Mobile's plans are shareable, so you and your family can share the data and minutes for maximum convenience. Providing a phone for each member of your family could not be any easier. With Zact you can not only manage all of your services right from your phone, you can also manage parental controls for any younger users of the service. Parents can set talk, text, and data limits as well as set curfews, block contacts, and control what apps are allowed. I am pretty sure my contract plan does not allow me to do any of that from my smartphone.

You can checkout Zact Mobile phones and plans at any of the 414 Best Buy Mobile Specialty Stores across the United States.  Find the store nearest you using their website, www.BestBuyMobile.com. You can also see an excellent video HERE that covers all of Zact Mobiles features, showing you why a Zact phone would make the perfect Holiday gift for anyone one your list, young or old, who would like the convenience of a mobile phone without the high monthly bills.

Look for the Jawbone UP at Best Buy & Start Taking a Holistic Approach Towards a Healthy Lifestyle

The reviewer has been compensated in the form of a Best Buy Gift Card and/or received the product/service at a reduced price or for free.  All opinions expressed are his own.

I am a gadget nut. I love technology and I could not be happier to live in times like these. It seems like every day there is a new gizmo to enrich our lives (or claim to anyways).

I am connected just about every waking moment, I really do not think that is an exaggeration. I also work in IT so I am surrounded by technology pretty much every moment I am not sleeping….until I received the Jawbone UP. Now I can say (quite literally) I am connected 24 hours a day, even when I am counting sheep, and I could not be more thrilled about it.

If you have lived in a cave the last year or so and do not know what a Jawbone UP is, I will happily explain: The Jawbone UP is a sharp looking bracelet that keeps track of your movements all day and night. Do not panic . . . this is a good thing!

"Live Better. Start Now. Jawbone UP."

The Jawbone UP synchronizes with your Android or Apple smartphone and helps you take a holistic approach to a healthy lifestyle. The Jawbone UP itself really does not do much more than track how you move. A couple of times a day you synchronize your UP with your phone and that's when the magic really happens.

The free app for your smartphone takes all of your movement data and compares it to your actual physical stats (age, weight, etc) to help manage your entire health. It compares your movement history to what it thinks your goals should be and guides you accordingly. But that is just the beginning . . .

What I love the very most about my Jawbone UP is the fact that it tracks my sleeping habits!! The accelerometer (sensor) inside is so sensitive, it can not only detect if I am sleeping, it can differentiate between different stages of my sleep. My very favorite feature is the Smart Alarm. The Smart Alarm will wake me up, via a subtle vibration from the UP, based on my sleep cycles. I tell the App that I want to wake up at 6AM and the UP will wake me up at the very best moment around 6AM to feel the most refreshed (never after your set time however). I can say the Smart Alarm works very well, and for me this feature alone makes the Jawbone UP worth it.

The next feature of the Jawbone UP is calorie counting and diet management. There are many apps out there right now, some of them excellent, that already do these things. What sets the UP apart is the fact that it is tuned into all of your activity and factors your caloric intake and expenditure to help guide you to living a healthier lifestyle.

Although I have not embraced the diet management features in my app yet, I can tell you I am pretty impressed by how easy it is to enter foods into the app. Not only can you create custom foods to your diet, you can scan any prepackaged food that has a barcode! If you eat a yogurt simply scan it with your phone and voila, its been added to your calorie intake for the day. Jawbone did a great job making it easy to enter foods into the app, eliminating my biggest reservation in using an app to manage my diet. The app itself is simple to use and mostly intuitive. I was able to figure out all of the features and settings without needing to read any manuals or how to's.

It is best to synchronize your UP with your phone about 2 times a day, but it is not a big deal to deviate from that. The UP is going to work no matter how often you sync it. Syncing the UP is pretty simple. You just remove a small cap on the UP and plug it into your phone’s audio jack. What? No wireless you say? BAH! I felt the same way for about half a day then I got over it. I realized that I don’t always have my phone right next to me and as a result not always in wireless range. I also know that wireless technology is VERY power-consuming and would probably halve the battery life of the unit (an amazing 10 days!).

Although the UP is water resistant to 3 meters, I would not swim with it. But you can certainly shower and wash your hands without any concern at all. I would warn you NOT to try to sync the UP while it is wet, you could short out your phone.

Once your data is synchronized, you can analyze all of your activity down to the minute. I am addicted to reviewing my sleep every morning. I can see all of my sleep cycles, when I was awake, and how long it took me to fall asleep. I was shocked to see how often I wake up every night. Not only can you review your sleep, the app will make recommendations to help you better reach your sleep goals (which it also sets).

Monitoring your physical activity is just as easy as monitoring your sleep. You can see your activity moment by moment throughout your entire day. It is fascinating to me to really get concrete information about when and how you move. You can see when you are most active and least active minute by minute. The app can even be set to alert you to inactivity! Based on your entered criteria, the Jawbone up will send a gentle vibration to alert you to get moving!

The app also has some social features to help keep you motivated. You can team up with other UP users and the app will automatically help keep you and your teammates motivated throughout the day. You can set your mood so others can see what kind of day you are having and maybe send you a message of encouragement. I haven't found any UP buddies yet, but I am excited about syncing up with some UP users!

For our harder core exercise enthusiasts the UP is for you too. The Jawbone up replaces any pedometer or phone app you are already using. The accelerometer is so sensitive it can differentiate between different types of movement to deliver hyper accurate steps and stride measurements. The App tracks your route, speed, distance, everything you need to tune in your workouts.

I love my Jawbone UP and it is integrating into my life a little more each day. I can't wait until I am ready to use it to track my caloric intake to help complete my entire health (or lack of!) profile. It is the closest thing out there I am aware of that does it all and that is very important. A device like this needs to be easy or it won't get used. So far the UP is easy and I am loving it. It is also pretty darn sharp looking. The UP comes in a variety of colors and sizes to suit everybody.

UP gives you meaningful, personalized insights so you can make lasting improvements to your everyday life. It tracks your sleep activity, steps, calorie intake, and more with the Jawbone UP wrist sensor and free mobile app all for $129.99 plus Free Shipping at Best Buy.

Get Your iPhone Summer-Ready with One of the 1700+ iPhone Cases Offered by Best Buy

The reviewer has been compensated in the form of a Best Buy Gift Card and/or received the product/service at a reduced price or for free.

The first day of summer will soon be upon us.  What does that mean for us parents?  It means more frequent trips to the park, to the beach, to the mall, and to play dates.  In turn, what does this mean for our mobile phones, who have spent the last 3 seasons snug as a bug in our handbags and jacket pockets?  They will have to become accustomed to being moved from diaper bags to beach bags to back pockets to sitting on a park bench.  Worst of all, they will be constantly fought over by children who will be asking 10 times daily if they can use them to play their favorite games.  What's a parent to do?

Instead of holding your breath each time your child has your phone in their possession this summer, why not checkout the vast assortment of phone cases at Best Buy?  For iPhone cases alone, Best Buy offers over 1700 styles, which include some cool ones like the mophie Juice Pack Air Charging Case for the iPhone 5, the LifeProof Belt Clip for iPhone 5, and the Rocketfish Mobile Arm Band with Molded iPhone Case.  In addition to those popular brands, you will also find cases from Belkin to OtterBox to Case-Mate and everything in between.

To help you get your iPhone summer-ready, through June 28th, you can save an extra 10% off selected mophie iPhone cases.  To take advantage of this BestBuy.com exclusive offer, add one of the participating mophie iPhone cases to your shopping cart and checkout using Promo Code: mophie10.

Which iPhone case is your favorite?

Can't Figure Out How Your Children Grew Up So Quickly? . . . Relive Those Precious Moments Through Photos

The reviewer has been compensated in the form of a Best Buy Gift Card and/or received the product/service at a reduced price or for free.

This photo was taken on Mother's Day 2010!  Our twins were just 3 years old then and their big brother only 6.  Can you believe how much they have changed over the past 3 years?  It is actually extremely easy for me to remember what our children were like when they were first born.  It's everything between then and now that's a bit of a blur.  When people warned my husband and I that time flies by too quickly when you have children and that they would be grown up before we knew it, they were right.  Luckily, I take lots of photos.  By "lots", I mean boatloads.  In fact, I take so many photos that some people think I'm crazy.  Well, I have many more precious photos, like the one I've shared with you today, to help me remember all those blurry moments.  I'll never regret taking the extra time to capture as many of the big and small moments in our children's lives as possible.

If you take as many photos as I do, then you understand where I'm coming from.  If you don't . . . well, it's never too late to start!

No matter how old your children are, there are still new memories made daily.  There will be to come many more Mother's Days and Father's Days, proms nights, graduation days, wedding days, and everything wonderful that happens in between.  This Spring, Best Buy can help you get on the right track to capturing as many special moments as possible.  As much as I love the camera on my Nokia Lumia 920, I still bring out my D-SLR camera when I'm taking photos at home and during special occasions . . . basically whenever I want my photos to be outstanding and not just very good.  Best Buy has a vast selection of D-SLRs, compact cameras with long zoom, Wi-fi cameras, point-and-shoot cameras, and camcorders with the latest technology to fit all budgets.  They also carry digital photo frames ranging from 7" to 10" LCD screens.

7 reasons to shop Best Buy and BestBuy.com for your digital imaging needs this Spring . . . 

• There is currently Free Shipping on all cameras at BestBuy.com.
• Best Buy has a low price guarantee.
• You can bring in your old camera to Best Buy and trade it in for a Best Buy gift card.
• Save an additional 25% off select digital photo frames through June 22nd with promo code.
• You can get a free 8x8 Shutterfly Photo Book with a purchase of a qualifying camera or camcorder.
• Select point-and-shoot cameras come with a free camera bag or a free camera bag plus memory card.
• If you need something quickly, you can purchase online and pickup in-stock items at your local store.

As always, if you shop, be sure to come back and tell me all about what you purchased!

Achieving Balance & Moderation in 2013

Aside from always working when there is work to be done, I actually have very little self-discipline when it comes to other areas of my life, such as eating well and exercising.  I have come to realize that I will never stick to a strict diet or workout 5 days per week, but I am not opposed to finding some balance and moderation in those areas.

There is nothing wrong with eating what I enjoy as long as I do not over-indulge.  For example, when I saw this Countertop Grill and Griddle by Cuisinart on BestBuy.com I could almost taste the grilled tomato, bacon, and melted Mozzarella panini sandwich I could be making with it.  Of course, that, plus all the yummy breakfast food that griddle could make, was already starting to tip the scale on my guilt-o-meter.  That was when the Healthy Foods Yonanas Ice Cream Maker caught my eye.  This ice cream maker turns frozen fruit into soft serve ice cream and could replace the fattening store-brought ice cream currently in my freezer, thus tipping the scale back a little in the other direction.

To help you find balance and moderation in your life and to achieve your 2013 fitness goals, Best Buy has the small appliances and fitness gadgets you need both online and in-store.  Many products are currently available with free shipping.  If you will be shopping in-store, be sure to print out these coupons for 20% off Small Kitchen Appliances and for 20% off Health and Fitness Products.  Both coupons are valid through 2/11/13.

What other ways can you think of to find balance and moderation?  Buy a new item of clothing, donate two items of clothing from your closet to charity?


The reviewer has been compensated in the form of a Best Buy Gift Card and/or received the product/service at a reduced price or for free.  All opinions expressed are her own.

This Tech-Savvy Girl's Holiday Wishlist . . . Gifts for Under $100 From Best Buy!

I know many parents feel the way I do when it comes to Holiday gifts for themselves.  It is easy to spend money on our children, but when asked what items are on our own wishlists, the answers do not come as easy.  Well, I should say that it is not easy to come up with gift ideas for yourself that you do not feel guilty asking for.  What I want to say is that I really want an Asus Tablet with Windows RT that will replace one of the laptops I use for blogging and working with graphics or a new stove because ours is old and rusty.  After I have had some more time to think about it, I was able to come up with a few items I would love to receive for Christmas this year and they're all under $100.00 at Best Buy!

1.  The first thing on my wishlist is the Nokie Lumia 920 Windows Phone (in red please).  I am already a fan of Windows phones and am an AT&T customer.  I am happy with my Samsung Focus, but would not mind an upgrade.  I think the Lumia 920 would make a great gift for anyone who is a Windows user on their PC and is looking for an easy transition into a powerful smartphone.  Not to mention that this phone has an 8.0MP PureView Carl Zeiss lens for people like me, who loves to take tons of high quality photos, but would rather not lug my D-SLR with me everywhere I go.  This phone is available at Best Buy and BestBuy.com for just $99.99 with a new 2-year contract and it comes with Free Shipping!

2.  The second item on my wishlist would be the Canon SELPHY CP900 Wireless Compact Photo Printer.  We have a great multi-function printer for home office use, but it does not print photos with accuracy as far as color and brightness goes.  What's the point of getting that frame-worthy shot if you cannot get a quality print to frame?  This printer is super-compact at 5"H x 7"W x 2.4"D and would fit easily into my tiny little office space at home.  I have very few photos in my photo albums because I do not have the convenience of a photo printer.  With this printer, I could print new 4x6 photos to go in my albums every week!  This Canon photo printer is currently on sale at Best Buy and BestBuy.com for just $69.99 (Regularly $99.99) plus Free Shipping.

3.  The last item on my wishlist is the Jill-e Small Camera Bag in Black.  Since I am an amateur photographer who still has not learned how to properly use her D-SLR, this bag is perfect for me because it holds one camera body and up to 3 lenses.  I like this bag because it looks professional, but could easily pass as a handbag.  This Jill-e camera bag is currently on sale for just $95.98 (Regularly $159.99) with Free Shipping from BestBuy.com and in Best Buy stores!

Need some more ideas?  Checkout all these under $100 gift ideas for women, men, teens, and kids.  If you are all for avoiding the busy parking lots and crowded stores like me, then you'll be happy to know that BestBuy.com is currently offering Free Shipping on everything through January 2nd, 2013!  Just remember, if you are having your items shipped, then you'll need to place your order by December 19th.  Also remember that you can purchase in-stock items online and pick-up these items at your local store through 3pm on Christmas Eve!


Need more incentives?  There are more great deals being offered by Best Buy, including a promotion on tablet accessories, where you can save $10 on a purchase of 3 tablet accessories totaling $75 or less, save $15 if your purchase totals up to $100, or save $30 if your purchase totals up to $150 (no promo code needed).   Below, you can also find a 10% coupon good on headphones, speakers, and health and fitness products . . .

Shop online at BestBuy.com to find more great Holiday deals!


This reviewer has been compensated in the form of a Best Buy Gift Card and/or received the product/service at a reduced price or for free.  All opinions are solely my own.

Holiday Gift Idea: Take "Skylanders Giants" For a Test Drive at Your Local Best Buy Store

What a great time I had on a recent visit to my local Best Buy. Prominently located at the front of the store was a living room-like endcap that featured a super-unique new console game called Skylanders Giants. The display was fun and inviting so we stopped and checked it out.

The game itself is completely unique. It integrates these super cool figures and accessories that actually link into the game via a special pedestal-like device that plugs into your console.  The figures represent the avatar or character you play in the game. Simply place your figure on the pedestal and the game changes to represent that character! You know instantly you made the link as the Skylanders figure and the pedestal light up. Once the game registers the figure used (pretty much instantly), you are allowed to play that character and use any unique abilities it has.

Which character you choose dictates what areas of the game you have access to as well as what abilities you can use to defeat your enemies. The kids thought it was amazing.  When it was their turn, they simply dropped their figure onto the pedestal to make the change in the game.

The graphics are colorful and stylized with a slight World Of Warcraft feel. The gameplay is easy to follow yet challenging. My 6 year old learned the controls fast enough as to not get frustrated and my 9 year old was fighting bosses in a short time.

It's fun to see a game that extends beyond the console and your TV. You can buy different figures and accessories to add new gameplay and adventure.  All are 100% compatible with the base starter set. I can easily imagine my kids playing with the figures without even turning on the game itself! The options for creativity and imagination are greatly expanded with a game like Skylanders Giants.

I am not embarrassed to say I played the game far too long before handing the controls over to my kids!

Visit Best Buy online to find out if there is an in-store demo at your local store and to learn about the Skylanders Giants Exclusive Launch Loot Bonus for those who pre-order the Skylanders Giants Starter Pack or Portal Owners Pack for any of the following platforms:  PS3, Xbox 360, Nintendo Wii, or 3DS.

The reviewer has been compensated in the form of a Best Buy Gift Card and/or received the product/service at a reduced price or for free.  All opinions expressed are his own.