What to Do With Your Collection of Music CD's, DVDs, and Video Games After Switching to Streaming Media

My family and I have pretty much gone 100% digital for nearly all of our media needs. Between streaming TV shows, movies, and music, we hardly use any of our CD’s, DVD’s, and even Blu-rays anymore. Heck, many console games don't even need physical media these days!

As amazing as being all digital can be, there is a downside to making the transition: What do we do with our hundreds of media disks? It hurts my brain to think of all the money (and time) that we spent to build our collections. Many titles were only even used once! What an absolute waste. Would you believe that we have DVD’s still wrapped in plastic? Never used? Ouch.

I always wished there was a way to sell my CDs and DVDs to recoup some of that money (and closet space!). Well, now there is a way to do exactly that! musicMagpie.com buys all your old media including CD’s, DVD’s, and video games. The amazing thing about musicMagpie is that it is completely free! They even pay for the shipping and there aren't any fees.

All you need to do is go to the site and enter the barcode on the back of your media, within moments the price they will pay you for the title comes up. You can even use your webcam as a barcode scanner! When you are done you simply print out a label and send it off. Easy as pie!

I started scanning some of my titles to see what musicMagpie paid out (there had to be a catch right?) and I was pleasantly surprised. The Wii games I scanned paid out similarly to what Gamestop offers and the DVD’s ranged from $.50 to $5.00....I own HUNDREDS of DVD’s and CD’s, at $.50 each I would make a fortune for otherwise useless junk taking up closet space.

They even have a mobile app for both Android and Apple to make the process even easier. Just scan the barcode and you’re done!

I know what I will be doing this weekend....

Have a Men In Black 3 Family Movie Night Before the National Release Date! (#SeeMIB3 #CBias)

Now that our oldest son is almost 9 years old, my husband and I have decided that he should be able to watch carefully selected movies that our 5-1/2 year old twins are not yet allowed to watch.  Having Family Movie Nights that are just for the 3 of us is something special we can offer him.  He shares his parents, his toys, and his room, so it is nice to be able to plan something that is just for him.  Our first "big boy" Family Movie Night movie was Men in Black 3.  We waited until the twins went to bed on a weekend night and let our son stay up to watch the movie.  He thought it was so cool that we were able to watch MIB3 2 weeks before the movie was to be released for purchase in stores!

Planning our movie night was actually super-easy.  Here are the 5 things you will need to do . . .

1.  Visit your local Walmart store to pre-order the MIB3 movie on Blu-ray or DVD by purchasing a special pre-purchase box.

2.  Redeem the pre-purchase code inside the box by visiting Vudu.com.  If you do not already have an account, it is a quick process to register on Vudu.  Once you have redeemed your code, you will see Men in Black 3 (Pre-Purchase) available under the MyVUDU tab.

3.  Although you can view the movie on your PC, you can also watch it on your television via Vudu on your D-Link MovieNite Plus or Roku streaming media players.  Simply go to Vudu HD on your streaming media menu and search for MIB3.  Then select the "watch" option to view the movie.

4.  Have some space-themed snacks on hand.  Since it was evening-time I did not want to offer our son anything too sugary.  I decided to serve Space Adventures Goldfish, Cheese Balls (they sort of resemble planets, don't they?), and green Gatorade.

5.  I had our son wear black sunglasses and a black tie I made using black construction paper, black ribbon, and a piece of tape.  All I did was turn a piece of black construction paper diagonally and cut a tie shape out of it, making sure I had an extra inch or so at the top.  Then I made a one-inch fold at the top of the tie and secured it on the back with a piece of tape.  Then I fed the black ribbon through the loop I had made on the back and tied the black necktie loosely around my son's neck.

What do you think? . . .

If you want to be able to say that you were one of the first ones to have a Men In Black 3 Family Movie Night, head over to Walmart to pick up your special pre-purchase copy.  Our movie night was so much fun and we made some great memories with our son.  He cannot wait to watch MIB3 again when our DVD copy arrives in the mail next week!


I am a member of the Collective Bias® Social Fabric® Community. This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Bias™ and Sony #CBias #SocialFabric #SeeMIB3.  All opinions expressed are my own.

How To See MIB3 2 Weeks Before the Movie is Available In Stores (#SeeMIB3 #CBias)

There are some movies that I can just watch again and again, such as Armageddon, Independence Day, and Men in Black.  So I was excited to hear that Men In Black 3 was going to be released this November because we had missed it in the theaters.  We actually do not get the chance to see many movies in the theater that are not rated G.

Since we have switched from cable TV to strictly streaming media at our house, we have been watching more movies on DVDs and on services like Vudu.  There are extra perks for using Vudu.com.  For example, when you first register, you get to choose a free movie as a thank you.  They have also partnered with Walmart to give consumers access to certain new releases, such as MIB3, before they are even available in stores.  Want to know how I will be watching this new release as early as November 16th when it does not hit the stores until November 30th?  Here's how . . .

Step 1.  Look for the MIB3 Pre-Purchase box for either the Blu-ray/DVD Combo or just the DVD at your local Walmart store.  I found mine conveniently located near the main entrance in a New Releases display.

Step 2.  Open your box to find a paper disc inside (as pictured at the top of this post) with your Redemption Code and simple instructions about how to proceed printed on it.

Step 3.  If you are already registered with Vudu, you will need to sign-in.  If not, you will need to register on Vudu.com and allow Vudu to create an Ultra Violet account on your behalf.  When this is done, you will see the "Congratulations" message along with an order number.  An order confirmation will also be emailed to you to let you know that a physical DVD will be mailed to you by November 30th.

Step 4.  Now you can go to the "My VUDU" tab and see all the movies you have currently available to watch via Vudu.

Step 5.  If you hover over the MIB3 image, you will have the option to learn more about this movie.  Click on that link to see what is available to you right now.  As you can see below, the never-before-seen Featurette "Keeping It Surreal:  The Visual FX of MIB3" is available for you to watch right away as a result of your pre-order.  You can also see that the movie itself is not available to you until November 16th.

Easy, right?!!  I, for one, cannot wait to watch the movie on the 16th!  I find the time travel element to be very intriguing.  If you would like to learn more about Men In Black 3, visit Sony Pictures, Men In Black on Facebook and on Twitter, and watch the trailer below . . .


For a great Holiday gift idea, keep in mind the MIB 3 Bundle, which is a gift set of all 3 digital Men In Black films.


I am a member of the Collective Bias® Social Fabric® Community. This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Bias™ and Sony #CBias #SocialFabric #SeeMIB3.  All opinions expressed are my own.

Pre-Purchase The Amazing Spider-Man at Walmart to Receive an Early Digital Copy on Vudu.com (#SpiderManWMT #CBias)

If you are anxious for The Amazing Spider-Man to be released on any combination of UV Blu-ray or DVD on November 9th, here is a super-easy way for you to get a streaming copy of the movie on Vudu.com on October 30th, 10 days before the release date, that you will be able to watch on your computer, Blu-ray player, iPad, Roku, PlayStation 3, and Xbox 360.  The physical disc will be shipped to you sometime around the release date.  You will also have access to never before seen stunt footage and deleted scenes immediately after you register your pre-order of The Amazing Spider-Man on Vudu.


Checkout this exciting trailer from the movie . . . 



To Pre-Purchase The Amazing Spider-Man . . .

1.  Visit the Electronics department at your local Walmart store and look for any of the following . . . The Amazing Spider-Man Blu-Ray+DVD+UltraViolet Limited Edition Mask gift set, Ultraviolet/Blu-Ray, or Ultraviolet/DVD in a "pre-purchase" box.  Our store seemed to only have the pre-purchase for the DVD in stock.  Luckily, it was just what we needed.

2.  The instructions for registering your pre-purchase and registering for your advanced digital copy of the film can be found inside the box.

3.  Go to the special Vudu Spider-man movie link provided in the instructions and enter your redemption code.

4.  At this point, you will need to sign into Vudu or register for an account, if you do not already have one.  Then click the green button that says "Create Free UltraViolet Account."  You do not have to register again or go to another window.  Vudu creates the account for you.

5.  If you have followed the instructions correctly, you will see that The Amazing Spider-Man has been added under "My Movies."  From here, you can access some of the bonus features from the movie right away.  You will be able to access the movie via Vudu starting on October 30th and the physical copy of the movie will be shipped to you around November 9th.

How easy was that?  As an added bonus for registering for the first time on Vudu, I also received a free movie as a thank you.


I am a member of the Collective Bias™ Social Fabric® Community. This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Bias™ and Sony Pictures Home Entertainment #CBias #SocialFabric #SpiderManWMT.  All opinions expressed are my own.

How the D-Link MovieNite Plus (DSM-312) Streaming Media Player Tops the Roku

We fired the cable company a few months ago....mostly. We stopped the phone and the television services from our provider keeping just the broadband for Internet access. We still watch just as much TV as we ever have and make plenty of phones calls.

How did we do this? We did this by buying streaming media devices for each TV and a similar device for our phones. The primary motivation was the savings (nearly $100 a month!), but there are other benefits as well.

This review is not really about why we made the change, but rather about the devices that made it possible. When we made the change we chose Roku for our streaming devices and have been pleased.  Once we adjusted to our new arrangement I never thought about the hardware again, until Karen asked me if I wanted to try the D-Link MovieNite Plus.

I was hesitant at first because we already had what we needed.  What could another brand possibly do that's different? The hardware is just the medium to get the content to your TV, right? I decided to try it anyways as I love to try new tech products and I have always been pleased with my D-Link gizmos in the past.

The MovieNite Plus is slightly larger than our Roku boxes, but the Rokus are absolutely tiny so the D-Link is still very small. In fact, even though a bit larger than the Roku, it can still fit in the palm of your hand. The remote control is similar in size to the Roku's, but has more controls and is a little better looking. The MovieNite Plus also has a power button, something that the Roku doesn't have.  It's more energy-efficient to be able to turn the box off when not in use.

(Click any photo to enlarge)

Set up was easy as I had expected it to be. If you know your Wi-Fi login information it takes just a few moments. I immediately saw that the MovieNite Plus graphics and text were noticeably sharper and crisper than the Roku's. This really stood out to me because I was not expecting it, I had just assumed that what I had was good, until I saw better. The response time and speed is also markedly better, another area in which I was not expecting to see an improvement.

Once logged in, the home menu is similar to our Roku's with a few content option differences. This I expected as with most (all?) streaming media devices you can customize the media available to you. On the default selection, all the usual content was there, but Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and a few others were there by default as well.

Another difference I was not expecting at all was that the menu's within the content providers were not the same. I had always assumed that Netflix was Netflix no matter where you accessed it. I was very wrong. I was so pleasantly surprised to be presented with a choice between regular Netflix and "Netflix Just For Kids" without needing to change any configurations or install additional apps.

The feature that blew me away was the MyDlink app. We own two D-Link wireless cameras and the MovieNite Plus has an app installed by default that allows us to view the camera right on the TV! Not only can I watch them, I can watch them both at the same time on a split screen. I can't even do that on the computer!

Overall I am extremely pleased with the MovieNite Plus. I was not expecting a dramatic difference between my current device and another one and I was very surprised. The MovieNite Plus is faster, sharper, and very nicely configured out of the box. The remote is better featured than the Roku's remote and although the box itself is larger, it is still very small.

The MovieNite Plus is an excellent choice for streaming media and an significant improvement over what we have been using.  You can learn more about this device on DLink.com.  This item retails for $79.99, but is currently available on Amazon.com for $69.95 with Free Super Saver Shipping.  You can also purchase the MovieNite Plus at the D-Link Shop, Best Buy, Circuit City, Newegg.com, Sears, Target, Walmart, and many other major electronics retailers nationwide.


Thank you to D-Link for providing a complimentary product sample for us to base this review upon.