Category: Mom Said - Part 2

My Amazon Video Disappeared!

Yup, it finally happened. One of my purchased Amazon Videos disappeared from my Amazon Video Library without any advance warning. Here’s what happened, and why I’m still going to keep buying Amazon Videos. I own a LOT of Amazon Videos because I’ve been in the process of converting to an all-digital household for years. I haven’t bought anything new on disc since early 2012. I prefer the convenience (no discs to store or move around) and mobile accessibility of digital video, and have no regrets about making the transition. Even so, today I’m here to tell you three things. First, there’s a glitch that can prevent Amazon Videos you own from showing up in video search results on Fire TV and the Amazon site—including cases where you’ve bought the version “with bonus features” and are only shown the regular version in search, and are prompted to buy or rent it.Second,…

Amazon’s Actually Free Apps: What’s The Catch?

Ever since Amazon launched its Underground program for apps, through which consumers can get “Actually Free” versions of popular apps, app fans have been wondering how this is possible. After all, all Actually Free apps are free to download and include in-game items like power ups, hints, extra turns and other upgrades (that the user formerly had to buy with real money) at no charge. Who’s Paying For This? Amazon. If you’re thinking the catch must be that somehow, some way, at some point you are going to be charged for using Actually Free apps, you can stop worrying about that. They are really, truly, Actually Free. With a regular, not Actually Free app the app developer makes his money through up-front purchases of apps or in-app purchases paid by app users. In an Actually Free app, the developer gets paid by Amazon on a sort of commission basis that’s tied to…

A Year Of Amazon Prime At Thirty Per Cent Off – Even For Current Prime Members

**UPDATE 9/25/15** Sorry kids, it appears Amazon has closed the loophole by NOT allowing Gift of Prime purchases at the Transparent promo discount price. I was told just two days ago, by an Amazon customer support rep who checked with a supervisor at the time, that Gift of Prime subscriptions would be eligible for the $67 promo price, but apparently there’s been a policy change in the two days since then. This Friday, 9/25/15 only, to celebrate its 5 wins for Transparent in the 67th Emmy Awards, Amazon will be offering one year of Prime membership to new members at a reduced price of $67. That’s a $32 savings, and represents a savings of over 30%. The offer begins at 12:01am PST on 9/25/15 and ends at 11:59pm the same day, and is only applicable to new memberships. The fact that the offer specifically mentions “new members” might lead you to believe that if…

Alexa Voice Service, Amazon Echo, Amazon Instant Videos, Fire TV, Kindle Fire, savvy consumer

I just posted about the new tablets for another site so I’ll reproduce that same post here, then add the new Fire TV details. Here’s the rundown on the new models, from Amazon: All-New Fire Tablet ($49.99, available for order today, ships 9/30/15): This is a groundbreaking new tablet for under $50. The new Fire tablet includes a quad-core processor, 7” IPS display, front- and rear-facing cameras, up to 128GB of expandable storage, exclusive Amazon features and services, and access to the world’s best content ecosystem—all for just $49.99. Customers can also choose to buy Fire as a six-pack for less than $250. My take: the specs on this $50 tablet are surprisingly good. Its display is a bit lower in resolution than the current HD6, and its processor speed and battery life are both a little lower than the HD6 as well. But it’s not a dramatic difference, and the new…

What’s In The October 2015 Loot Crate?

What’s Loot Crate? Loot Crate is a monthly subscription service that delivers a box filled with theme-of-the-month awesomeness to your door each month for $13.37 + S&H (which is $6 anywhere in the continental U.S., though they also ship to other countries), and the contents are guaranteed to have a minimum retail value of $40. Even though it’s a subscription service, there’s no minimum subscription period and it’s very easy to cancel your subscription at any time—the Loot Crate site’s FAQ page has a direct link to their cancellation page. Quite A Haul This Month! This month’s theme is Time, and it includes a couple of highly collectible Back to the Future items in honor of this month’s Back to the Future Day. Click or tap on image to view an enlarged version.

Facebook Share Changes

* * * the Toshiba Satellite C55-C5240 15.6 Inch Laptop w/ 1 Terabyte Hard Drive, currently on sale at 25% off Amazon (as of 6/16/15). Advertisers make it possible for Digital Media Mom to bring you great content each day for free, so thanks for your support. * * * Facebook’s Made Some Changes – AGAIN! Just about the only constant with Facebook is change, and this week I’m seeing changes to how Sharing works. I don’t really get why these changes were made, but it probably has to do with making the site more mobile-friendly. In a nutshell, the whole Sharing process now occurs right on the page of the thing you’re Sharing, and the pop-up boxes involved in the process are smaller. One thing I definitely don’t like about the new Sharing is that you can no longer see a preview of your share before sharing it, and you don’t get…

How To Stop Amazon From Sharing Your Phone Number With Outside Sellers

* * * Amazon’s current, limited-time sale on the Kindle (normally $79, currently $59), Kindle Paperwhite (normally $99, currently $79), Fire HD7 (normally $139, currently $99) and Fire HD Kids’ Edition (normally $149, currently $124). Advertisers make it possible for Digital Media Mom to bring you great content each day for free, so thanks for your support. * * * How Did You Get This Number? I recently bought some Visage Instant Lift wrinkle serum on Amazon, and it was one of those “fulfilled by Amazon” deals where the seller is an outside company but Amazon handles the order processing. I’ve been very happy with the serum (and despite the incident that follows will most likely order it again), but about a week after it arrived I started getting calls from the seller at home, on the same phone number I have listed with Amazon. I wrote the first call off as random telemarketing, but noticed a reference to my…

How To Delete GameCircle Progress & Other App Save Files To Start Over

* * * Where Did I Put It?, the easy-to-use app from Digital Media Mom that should make keeping track of those Easter goodies—or anything else you’ve temporarily moved, lent or hidden—a snap! Advertisers make it possible for Digital Media Mom to bring you great content each day for free, so thanks for your support. * * * Lately I’ve noticed a lot of new visitors to the site end up here after doing an internet search on “Delete GameCircle progress”, so even though I’ve posted on the topic before I figured it might be time to address it again. Clearing stored game progress on most game apps is as simple as uninstalling the app, re-downloading it from wherever you originally got it, and re-installing it. Doing this should install a “fresh” copy of most game apps, but there are some exceptions and GameCircle games are among them.

Premera Blue Cross Hack + Google Feud

* * * Digital Media Mom’s Spring Break Special: Half Off ALL DMM Apps on Amazon. Advertisers make it possible for Digital Media Mom to bring you great content each day for free, so thanks for your support. * * * Another Day, Another Scary Hack… I’m getting really tired of having to be the bearer of bad news, but if I have information that could help some of my readers I feel a responsibility to share. But since this hack affects a relatively limited population (consumers whose healthcare provider is Premera / Premera Blue Cross), I’ll keep it short and just provide some links for those who may be affected and need to know more. On 3/17/15 Wired reported: In the case of Premera… the attackers not only had access to birth dates, member ID numbers, bank account info and Social Security numbers, they also may have obtained medical claims records…

Top Five Venmo Security Problems – Does Your Digital Payment Service Have Them, Too?

* * * Today’s post is brought to you by yet another unannounced $6.99 sale on SD Amazon Instant Videos, featuring many Oscar winners and box office hits. Advertisers make it possible for Digital Media Mom to bring you great content each day for free, so thanks for your support. * * * Venmo is the hip new electronic payments service owned and operated by PayPal, which in turn is owned and operated by eBay. Venmo has been generating buzz and gaining in popularity ever since it launched, but the convenience of being able to use the Venmo mobile app to instantly transfer funds to pretty much anyone with an email address or phone number may not be worth the risks. Last July the California Department of Business Oversight ordered Venmo to address twenty different security and operational problems. Here are the top five that are of most concern to consumers. 1….