Rockin’ Gift Idea For Techies: A Windows Phone

This giveaway is now closed. Thanks for stopping by. The winner is Katharine Davis. Congrats!

As in previous years, tech gifts are topping the list of most popular items to buy for loved ones this year. And these days, tech gifts are no longer reserved for “men” per se, since there are a wide variety of female and kid-focused products on the market.

As a mom and a woman that works from home, my mobile phone has become an integral tool for staying connected to family and friends. The smart phone, in many instances, has replaced traditional mobile phones, offering users the ability to manage their personal and business calendars, capture and share important moments through photos and videos, access entertainment (i.e. music, videos, games), obtain real-time information, and much more.

A few months ago, I was offered to opportunity to check out one of Windows‘ new smart phones. There is always a bit of a learning curve when switching to a new type of technology, and while this was the case with my experience, I found that the phone was highly intuitive and did not require an extensive amount of reading or research.

If you are a Microsoft Office user, you’ll love the fact that the phone offers mobile versions of Outlook, Word, Excel, OneNote and PowerPoint so that you can work while you’re traveling, if necessary. I actually spend more time checking email on my phone than on my laptop, so an email system with the ability to sort and flag messages is important. Outlook Mobile makes it easy to view the messages you want to see, link email inboxes (i.e. personal, work), and pin them to the home screen so that you’ll be notified when new messages come in.

Interestingly enough, I take a lot of photos on my smart phone. It never fails my SLR camera will be at home that day when my children are doing something adorable, or I happen upon something spectacular. The Samsung Focus has a 5 megapixel camera with a built-in flash and offers HD video capability. Need to access the camera quickly so you don’t miss that special moment? Just press the camera button, located on the side of the phone (even if the phone is locked). Once you’ve taken the photo, you can share it via social media platforms or email it to friends and family members.

Staying connected to friends and family members via social networking sites is an important part of my day. Windows phones are the only smart phones that include a People Hub offering one-touch access to Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn. I absolutely love this feature and find it incredibly useful for accessing information all in one location.

Smart phones revolutionized the way we access information. It doesn’t seem that long ago that we had to stop at phone booths during road trips to find restaurants and other venues. The ability to access the internet is an invaluable feature of smart phones. Windows Phones inherently feature Local Scout which makes it easy to find restaurants, stores, things to do, and more in any city. Not only will you find the address and contact information, you’ll receive information on how to get there, operating hours, ratings, and more.

It used to be that smart phones were only available at largely inaccessible price points. Phones like the Samsung Focus start at just $50 with a new contract. For my complete review of the phone, visit my previous posts here and here.

Win It! One of you will win a brand new Windows Phone (Samsung Focus). Simply leave me a comment with one of your favorite features from the site. Comments will close on December 31st at 11:59 PM PST.

US Residents only. Duplicates and comments not including the above information will be disqualified. Comments are moderated. If you don’t see your comment in a reasonable amount of time, send me an email. Bloggers and non-bloggers may enter. If you don’t want to leave your email address, please be sure to check back for my announcement on the winner. Please note that winners must respond within 48 hours of being announced/contacted or another winner will be drawn.

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No compensation was received for this post. Giveaway item provided by Windows. I also reviewed a Windows Phone earlier this year, which was also provided by the company.

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Caryn Bailey

Caryn is a NICU nurse by day, blogger by night and mom 24/7. She savors the warm Southern California sun and loves to travel, shopping, baking, reading and frequenting her local tea room. Caryn created the column Lavishly Green for Peekaboo Picks Magazine to share her best tips for going green in style, she is the Former editor for Family Review Network, former OC Family Magazine online contributor, former Orange County Moms Blog contributor, former Evenflo Savvy Parent contributor, former member of the Totsy Advisory Board and former freelance writer for CBS Los Angeles.