The Silent "I"

PS Vita: Living in a Gamer's Paradise

 

Alex Checks out the PS Vita

A few months ago, I was honored to be asked to join PlayStation Family, a group of tech-savvy mombloggers who were invited to work with PlayStation.  I have to admit, we just bought an Xbox last summer, and already had a Wii for several years.  I wasn't sure if we really needed another gaming system. PlayStation was kind enough to loan us a PS 3 for a year, so I figured we would be a good test family since we had some inside scoop on the competition.  Over the years, we've had more than our share of Gameboys, PSPs, DS, DSI and other small handheld gaming systems. Honestly, I thought I'd seen it all.

In February, PlayStation released its new handheld gaming system, the PS Vita, to the US Market.  The PlayStation Family group was offered loaner units to try out.  My 11 year-old son thought he'd hit the jackpot, since none of his friends have one yet.  Unfortunately for him, mama had other plans.

I never really considered myself a gamer.  Sure, I spend hours on Facebook shooting balls out of a frog's mouth and playing solitaire, but I've always thought of gaming systems as things for kids.  We had Pong when I was a kid, which was a little more exciting than watching TV static late at night when the broadcast signal ended for the day.

I decided that the PS Vita was going to be mine first, because I knew that once he got his grubby paws on it, it would disappear into the chasm of doom known as his room and I'd never see it (or him) again. Fortunately, I have a kid with a great respect for property rights, and he has not absconded with it yet.

The only problem with this plan is that I have no idea what I am doing on a gaming system.  It took me at least a week to figure out how to play Wii bowling without making the remote fly across the room and take out a lamp or two along the way.  Despite being someone game-challenged, I decided that the Vita was my baby.

I carefully opened the package and read all the inserts.   My son hovered around me like a hyperactive bumblebee descending on an azalea festival, asking repeatedly if he could play with it, help me set it up, or just observe what I was doing. I banished him to his room and completed my task.  I was quite proud of myself that I was able to set it up in about ten minutes, with no swearing and no tears (except for the kid's). 

The first game I dove into was ModNation Racers Roadtrip, a madcap racing game in which you can choose a location and race around some scenic courses all over the world.  I've played this type of game in arcades and thought I would know what I was doing.

I was wrong. 

I had no idea how to use the tiny joysticks to steer the car and crashed into walls, viewing stands, directional signs and everything else along the way.  My little driver ended up in last place, with a possible concussion.  I realized I needed some coaching on how to use the controls.

Samsung SH100 Wifi-Enabled Camera: Road Tripping Made Easy

When we drove across country in December, I had a thousand and one opportunities for blog posts, Facebook updates, tweets, and Flickr photos.  I probably took about 700 pictures during the trip, and you know how many made it onto the web?  Maybe a dozen.  The rest are still waiting to be resized, cropped, and uploaded out of my harddrive and out into the free world. Yes, I am the laziest (or perhaps the busiest) blogger in the world.  I'm still writing about that road trip, even now, since my blogging time has been reduced down to nil.

The problem that I'm having now is that so much time has passed, I have a hard time remember all the details that I might have wanted to share, like I'm looking in my rearview mirror, but the objects are not closer than they appear.  It would have been nice to just be able to post pictures as they were happening and go back and fill in the details or the reasons I took the picture in the first place. After five years, I don't think I've really gotten this blogging thing down yet.

When the Clever Girls asked its bloggers to write about a new Wifi-enabled camera from Samsung, I thought this ingenious little camera deserved some airtime.  The Samsung SH100, is a camera that helps you share your world instantly across all your social networks to your friends and families anywhere.  This would be a great Mother's Day gift (or birthday...or holiday...or just because-you're-awesome type gift...not that I'm hinting here, but it also comes in red).

Samsung is so sure that people will love this little camera, they are taking it on the road.  It's a cool concept, of handing off the camera in different cities from New York to California, and seeing the types of shots people come up with.  If you would like to follow along during the camera's roadtrip across America, check out the  Samsung USA Facebook page.

The 14.5 Megapixel, HD SH100 camera with a 5X zoom lens, retails for about $199.  I may need to get one of these before my next trip.

For more about the SH100 road trip, check out this video:

 

Disclosure:

I was compensated for this opportunity by Clever Girls Collective, which endorses Blog With Integrity.  All opinions are my own.

Family Travel Advice, Now on My Life Scoop

I've taken a break from posting here, but have been posting over at Intel's My Life Scoop blog for the past month or so. I haven't gone to Hawaii (except in my mind, maybe).

Check out my series on great gadgets, gear, and online resources for families traveling with kids:

Great Gadgets for a Stress-Free Road Trip

The Coolest Gadgets & Gear for Family Travel

5 Far-Out Places to Take Your Kids

How to Find Great Travel Deals Online

Thanks to the awesome women at Clever Girls Collective for setting me up with this gig!  It was fun writing about some of the great gadgets and gear we've used over the years, and researching the latest and greatest.

Travel Gear Review: Callpod FuelTank

Before our Solar Eclipse Trip, I was offered a cool new travel gadget called a Callpod FuelTank to try out.  Unfortunately, it didn't arrive before the trip, so I used it last weekend on my trip to Pittsburgh for Netroots Nation.  I have to say, I wish I'd had it for the solar eclipse trip, because it really came in handy.

Our family is, like many families, a little gadget-crazy.  We have cellphones and portable gameplayers galore, and when we take them on the road with us, the inevitable always occurs: we lose power at the most inopportune times.  This can be particularly frustrating on a 12 hour flight, when the Nintendo DSi battery decides to fail just as your kid is about to achieve global Pokemon domination. Enter: the Callpod FuelTank, part back-up battery, part sanity-saver.

The Callpod FuelTank is a lightweight, portable back-up battery recharger specifically made for cellphones and portable gaming systems.  It can simultaneously charge two small electronic devices at a time, so you don't have to carry around two different back-up batteries. You need to purchase adaptors for each of your devices, but it comes with one.  I received adaptors for the G1, Sony PSP, Nintendo DS, and Treo. Sorry, but it won't help your laptop (hey, Callpod, when is THAT coming?).  It comes with a carrying case and it's lightweight so it easily fits in your purse.  When your battery runs out in the middle of a flight or a meeting or some other place you don't have access to an outlet, you plug in your device and recharge.

I have a Google G1 Smartphone, and as much as I love the functionality of the phone, the battery life sucks. The phone battery died in the middle of dinner one evening in Pittsburgh, so I whipped out the FuelTank, plugged it in, and was set for the rest of the night, until I could get back to the hotel and recharge both.  It came in handy for a compulsive Twitter addict like myself.

Overall, I thought this product was a winner, and I recommend it.

Disclosure: I received a Callpod FuelTank and several adaptors to try out at no charge. I did not receive any additional compensation or incentive for this review.