FaceTime

7 Unique Ways my Kids Use the iPhone

by Michael Sheehan on September 14, 2012

in Apple, Application, Cellular, Consumer Electronics, Family, Gadgets, General, Hardware, How To, HTD Tech Tip, iPhone, Opinion, Parenting, Software

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The Apple iPhone is a necessity in our household, at least my kids tell me it is. It seems that the iPhone is practically grafted to the hands of my children as they walk around the house. I almost think that they are going to grow another appendage for them to simply carry it and use their other two hands to do everything else. It’s often a battle to pry it out of their grasp when they go to bed or need to do their homework.

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And now, with the announcement of the Apple iPhone 5 out in the general public, they, of course, want one. We apply a trickle-down policy in our household. As the parents upgrade, the older iPhones make their way down the food chain. I believe our dog now has an iPhone 3G and he sure is good at texting his four-legged pals.

But what really amazes me are the use cases that my daughters have come up with using their iPhones. And I thought that I would share the common and creative uses. Oh, and if you have an iPhone 4S or the iPhone 5 or an iOS device that supports the magic of Siri, you might want to read this article: “iOS 5 Tip: Using Siri As A Spell Checker and Spelling Assistant – Spelling Test Results!” since a couple of the examples below are related to homework.

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10 Things Steve Jobs Has Done for Parents

by Michael Sheehan on August 25, 2011

in Apple, Consumer Electronics, Family, Gadgets, General, Hardware, iPad, iPhone, iPod, Opinion, Parenting, Software, Tablet

With Steve Jobs announcing that he will be stepping down as CEO of Apple, I took some time to reflect on how Steve and Apple have impacted my life as a parent, specifically, a “High Tech Dad.” In my household, Apple products reign. Each of my children use Apple laptops or desktops, and each one has either an iPhone, iPod Touch, iPod Nano or a combination. My wife and I have iPhones and iPads, my primary laptop is a MacBook Pro. And much of our living room entertainment is driven by an AppleTV.

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But I wanted to think about how Steve and his vision have positively impacted families around the globe. So I compiled a quick list of hardware and software which, under Steve’s watchful eye, have enriched my and other families everywhere. Sure, I’m an “Apple fan boy” but there are not many other companies or leaders who have had as much of an impact as Apple and Steve have had.

Here’s my list of 10 Things Steve Jobs has done for Parents:

  1. Brought great computing resources into Schools & Homes – http://education.apple.com/
  2. Introduced easy ways to manage music and movies for your family via iTunes – http://www.apple.com/itunes/
  3. Made home movie creation a snap with iMovie – http://www.apple.com/ilife/imovie/
  4. Connected families via video conferencing with FaceTime – http://www.apple.com/mac/facetime/
  5. Made home photo management better with facial recognition and geo-location with iPhoto – http://www.apple.com/ilife/iphoto/
  6. Put music in your and your kids’ pockets with the iPod – http://www.apple.com/ipod/
  7. Created a safe walled garden for kids to play games and consume Internet content via the App Store – http://www.apple.com/iphone/apps-for-iphone/
  8. Crafted a revolutionary smart phone that people ages 1 to 100 could understand and use easily – http://www.apple.com/iphone/
  9. Introduced a tablet designed for all members of the family – http://www.apple.com/ipad/
  10. Brought out the creativity in us all and inspired us to “Think Different“

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10 Ways to Use FaceTime with the iPad 2, iPhone 4, iPod Touch or Mac That You Might Not Have Thought Of

by Michael Sheehan on May 2, 2011

in Apple, Application, Cellular, Consumer Electronics, Family, Gadgets, General, Hardware, iPad, iPhone, iPod, Mobile, Software, Tablet, Video

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If you have a Mac, or an iPhone or now an iPad 2, you probably have heard of FaceTime. This is Apple’s foray into video conferencing but with a heavy consumer focus. FaceTime was first launched with the iPhone 4 and the iPod Touch, and then rolled out to the Mac as a beta. Then the Mac version made it into the new App Store that is now on Snow Leopard. And, most recently, the new iPad 2 has it FaceTime built in since the iPad 2 now has forward and rear-facing cameras.

 

FaceTime is a great way to get face-to-face with your loved ones, acquaintances, friends, or coworkers remotely. It’s so easy to use, a child can do it. You just need to be on a WiFi connection and select the person in your address book that has an iOS device or a Mac. There are many great examples of how FaceTime can be used on Apple’s website. They talk about using it within in a party environment, with an iPhone being passed around a group so that the recipient can see everyone. But the creativity doesn’t stop there and this post is about that.

Making a FaceTime call is so easy to do as well. You need to associate a phone number (e.g., your cell phone) with your FaceTime account. Also, you can and should take the other step and do the same with an email address. What that means is that when someone wants to FaceTime you, they either use your phone or email address to get a hold of you. If you have FaceTime on multiple devices (e.g., Macs and iPads/iPhones) and someone tried to video call you, you get notified on all of your configured devices.

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