Everyone in our house is finally settled into their school routines. The girls are back to their extracurricular activities and I’m back to being a chauffeur, sigh.
It’s no secret that I’m a bit of a techie so when I had the opportunity to interview Elliot Chun from Best Buy about my family’s back to school tech needs and advice, I took it!
INTERVIEW WITH ELLIOT CHUN
1) We have 2 teens who are in love with their digital music – what are some items that will allow them to enjoy that and what features make them perfect for my teens?
A smartphone or tablet will keep them bobbing their heads inside or outside the classroom. The new Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge+ is a gorgeous phone with curved design. Go for the 64GB model for extra space to load up the tunes.
Even though new smartphones are not on the horizon, both of my daughters are thoroughly enjoying a few items from the House of Marley collection.
My youngest daughter is always singing, and I mean always! She isn’t always a huge fan of in-ear buds so she loves the Marley Liberate On-Ear Headphones. These headphones are perfect for her 2-bus commute to school.
House of Marley Liberate Headphones push deep bass and precise tonal ranges through 40 mm drivers to deliver rich and clear high performance audio.
My eldest daughter happens to have a room in the basement but is always trying to find ways to blast her music.
The Marley Chant Mini Bluetooth portable speaker is stylish and wow, what booming sound! She can stream wirelessly from her current smartphone. Just FYI, I have used it while cleaning the kitchen and it’s fantabulous!
House of Marley speakers are Crafted with REWIND fabric covering, blended bioplastic, and recyclable aluminum with bamboo detailing for an earthy look. Looks great anywhere!
2) Even though school has started and most Back To School promotions have ended, how do us techies manage our gadget fix between now and the holiday season? Any special newsletters to sign up for?
Social media is an excellent source to keep tabs on the latest deals. In fact, Best Buy has a dedicated Twitter handle to release the hottest offers of the year. Follow the savings @BBYCanadaDeals.
The Best Buy newsletter is also a great way to receive weekly updates on the hottest offers each week.
Becoming a Reward Zone member also has its perks with exclusive deals, and customers can earn points to receive reward certificates for their purchases. Signing up is free.
3) What was the most popular tech item for the first half of 2015 and during Back To School? Why?
At Best Buy and BestBuy.ca, we sell tens of thousands of products, so it’s tough to state a clear number one item. When it comes to back-to-school, productivity products are very popular, so laptops remain supreme, with tablets and computer accessories generating strong interest.
Smartphones and their corresponding accessories generate interest among students in the high school and college/university age group as a way to keep in touch with family and friends, access music and videos and be social. Students also give other categories attention as ways to stay connected, such as wearable technology, portable audio, gaming and TVs.
For the college and university crowd, small appliances are popular items, including bar fridges such as Marshall’s, which looks like a real amp, complete with authentic Marshall components.
4) What are some suggestions for toddler tech? My lil guy is 3 and he knows how to navigate my iPhone, and the Chromebook, but they aren’t “made” for him!
Toddler tablets have grown in assortment this year and are great learning devices. LeapFrog LeapPad are an excellent introductory tablet for toddlers and offer a variety of learning games for kids of all ages.
5) Any tips for this busy on the go blogger? I also work FT so I need as little equipment as possible but I need it to be fast, light and reliable. (I currently have a Macbook Air – 11″, Selfie Stick, Iphone tripod) But maybe it’s time to change it up? How do I keep my tech together nicely?!
It sounds like you’re a devoted Apple user. Smart move as its easier to sync apps, photos, movies and more. You’re set-up to consider adding another Apple device, such as Apple TV which not only provides access to streaming movies and TV shows, but also utilize features such as screen mirroring and stream lining an iTunes account through the device of your choice, be it the MacBook or iPhone.
Elliott’s insight is super helpful and gives me a few great gift ideas for the upcoming holiday season!
I like the looks of the Marley Chant Mini Bluetooth portable speaker. Hubby has been wanting one so I will have to check this one out further!