Galaxy S7 Active Debut Party at AT&T’s Store of the Future

Jun 13, 2016 By ParentingGeekly in Parties, reviews, seattle, Smartphones Tags: AT&T, parties, reviews, Samsung, shopping, smart phones

I hate going into my current mobile carrier’s store. The lines are long, and the counters are designed for quick purchases – not 30 minute change-of-service issues. Forget about even finding the accessories I need in store where the layout makes no sense. While I was traveling last week I had to stand in a 15 minute long line just to get help to find a portable battery. Throw kids in the mix and…ugh, forget it.

These are all reasons that AT&T’s Store of the Future in Bellevue, WA is a breath of fresh air. Even from the outside, the store is welcoming with a little porch and friendly orange awnings that make it a respite among the other storefronts in the very commercial Bellevue retail core.

Once you step inside, the first thing you notice is what’s missing, and that’s a good thing! There are no cash-wraps or registers, even the computers that are required for more complicated services like making a change to your plan, are tucked away in semi-private booths (with tables and seating!) towards the back. The store is large, with plenty of open space to move between tables. They even offer beverages and popcorn!

Just popping in to grab an accessory? The Store of the Future makes this super easy by presenting like items in “pavilions” based on their use. All of the external/Bluetooth speakers are together, and you can try them all. All of the wearables are together, all of the in-car items are together. Even the higher ticket items like home-security systems are presented together in a little home vignette that shows how your AT&T security, entertainment and home automation systems can all compliment each other. If you need more information about any of the items, there are screens stationed around the store to help you out without having to wait on someone. When you’re ready to check out, any of the friendly sales associates can help you out right where you’re standing!

Guitar on a table surrounded by Bluetooth speakers.

The Music Pavilion at AT&T’s Store of the Future/

I was invited to the store this time around for a party to announce the Samsung Galaxy S7 Active, an AT&T exclusive, and a phone you need in your life. Local journalists and influencers got a sneak-peek of the phone a few days before its public launch. The party was attended by some high-ups at AT&T, and some of the Samsung product team, their pride in this phone was palpable. I left pretty convinced that this is going to be the perfect phone for me.

Greg Kurtz, Director of Product Marketing Management for AT&T Mobility tells Rick and I what he loves about the S7 Active. Battery life for the win!

I got a little bit of hands-on time with the phone, and I was really impressed. I was a pretty hardcore Samsung Galaxy fan, but they lost me with the S6 by taking away too many features that I loved. The good news is that Samsung listens to their customers and brought back the most missed features. So not only does the S7 bring back the expandable memory and high-level water resistance of the S5, the AT&T exclusive Active adds a majorly ruggedized body casing and a long-life 4,000 mAh battery (the S7 regular only sports at 3,000 mAh battery). AT&T will be providing me with an S7 Active, so look for a more detailed review of what I expect to be my new favorite phone soon.

An AT&T Retail Consultant shows off the features of the new AT&T exclusive Galaxy S7 Active.

In the meantime, swing by an AT&T Store of the Future, your local AT&T retail location, or the AT&T website to grab an AT&T exclusive Samsung Galaxy S7 Active.

One terrible moment.

Jun 1, 2016 By ParentingGeekly in Uncategorized

Once, when Nate was about 5, I tripped while we were disembarking a city bus. As I regained my composure, Nate got ahead of me and got off the bus. The bus door closed and drove away. I was still on the bus, Nate was not. Thanks to the kindness of a stranger, Nate was safe until I (and a bunch of screaming passengers) convinced an unforgiving bus driver to stop before the next marked stop and I could run the 4 blocks to get him.
I am a careful mom, I am an observant mom, It was an unexpected accident. Thank God it didn’t get media coverage like the gorilla kid and the lego kid, because according to most of the internet, I would have been deemed a neglectful mother without any consideration to the circumstances.
We’ve all had one terrible moment as parents, most of the time it’s small – like losing track of your kid for half a minute in a store; when your heart skips a beat until you see or hear them – but it could easily turn into something bigger in the blink of an eye. Let’s stop judging parents based on their one terrible moment.

Captain America: Civil War – A Parents’ Guide. Can I bring my 6 year old to Captain America Civil War?

May 6, 2016 By ParentingGeekly in marvel, media, movies, parent's guide, reviews

I’m not going to lie, this may not be the most objective review of this movie you’re going to read. I totally fan-girled at this one. I love Marvel movies – I even love most of the movies starring Marvel characters made by other studios (there are some exceptions here of course, The Fantastic Four movies, the newest two Spider-Man Movies, X-Men: First Class). I also loved the Civil War comics that the idea for this movie is based on. So, yeah, I loved this movie.

But what about the kids? The movie is rated PG-13 for “Extended scenes of violence, action, and mayhem”, which is pretty typical stuff for a super-hero flick. The big difference here – and what will undoubtedly be most disturbing to younger viewers – is that a lot of the “violence, action, and mayhem” occurs when the Avengers and friends are fighting each other. These fight scenes, especially as the movie reaches it climax, got increasingly more violent. I actually gasped at one point when I thought one Avenger was going to bash another Avenger’s head in. An arm gets ripped off, an assassin brutally kills a couple of civilians. Bombs go off, buildings collapse, people die. None of the wounds are especially gory or gross, but there is blood. It can be pretty rough. That being said, if your kid has seen a bunch of other superhero flicks, this one probably isn’t going to phase them much.

The plot may be confusing to the youngest viewers. Once the civilians in the Marvel Cinematic Universe realize that all of these super cool battles come with a high number of civilian casualties, they push the government for oversight. The UN creates the Sokoiva Accords, which require Superheroes to register with and be governed by the UN. (Side note: This was the most ridiculous scene in the movie to me. Secretary of State dude hands a 600 page document to Black Widow who looks at the title and hands it to War Machine. War Machine also glances at the title. Bam! Everyone’s mind has been made up – no one even cracks the cover of the Sokovia Accords). After being confronted by the mother of a civilian casualty, Iron Man chooses the pro-registration side. Captain America falls firmly on the side of personal autonomy and THE LINES ARE DRAWN. Because this is technically a Captain America film, the fight centers around Bucky, the main villain from 2014’s Captain America: Winter Soldier who is also Cap’s BFF. No spoilers here, but be aware that the plot could get confusing for younger viewers. There are a lot of side-changing and false accusations.

There’s a little bit of swearing (a goddamn, a son of a bitch and a shit).

While this movie is a little bit more intense, if your child is comfortable with the other Avengers films, this one should be fine. Just be ready to talk about why Captain America and Iron Man are fighting, and to go over some of the more confusing plot points.

So, “Can I bring my six year old to Captain America: Civil War?” I’d be fine with Kitty (currently age 9) seeing it, though I do think the plot is going to be tricky for her.