Say Thanks To Mom With Microsoft Workshop

Yesterday, I spent some time with some awesome local techies and bloggers and @KristinaLibby at the Microsoft Store showing them how to use Microsoft Paint, Windows Live Photo Gallery and Movie Maker to make Mother’s Day gifts. All 3 come free with every Windows PC.

Microsoft Paint

Microsoft Paint is one of those hidden treasures in Windows and is perfect for making personalized cards for Mother’s Day because you can take any picture and add some really cute word bubbles or paint your own picture.

Demo of Mother's Day card made in Microsoft Paint.

Gadgets for Mom

Mother’s Day is the perfect day to honor all that moms do for their families and the perfect time to shower her with gadgets! Here are a few of my top pics.

A Beautiful Laptop For Mom

Not only is this laptop full of features, but it is beautiful. I am a firm believer that gadgets must be functional and beautiful. Our gadgets are more than a piece of metal and a motherboard, but it is an accessory that we must be WOWed by. You can read all about the features of the ASUS Zenbook, but be sure to look at the beauty of the 3 colors of the Zenbook.

@KristinaLibby showwing off the rose gold ASUS Zenbook that one lucky attendee went home with.

ASUS Zenbook in Rose Gold, Hot Pink & Brushed Metal

 For the Work-at-Home Mom

HP Pavillion DV6 with Beats Audio

The HP dv6 laptop is perfect for a work-at-home mom because it is light enough to take with you, yet powerful enough to not restrict what you can do. The HP dv6 weighs 6 lbs and is 14.88″ (L) x 9.71″ (W) x 1.39″ (max H). I averaged about 5 hours of battery life.

Tablet With Windows 7

Acer Iconia w500 HD Tablet

The Acer Iconia W500  tablet at 2.4 lbs is a heavier than other tablets I’ve tested, but it is still easy to carry with you anywhere. I carried it with me to a weekend vacation, dance lessons, carpooling, shopping and soccer games and it never got too heavy to carry.  I tried it both with the keyboard dock and without.

Beautiful Mice

I never thought of a mouse as being a work of art until I saw the new mice by Microsoft.

Arc Touch Mouse by Microsoft, a work of art.

I just started using the Arc Touch Mouse and I love it. When it is flat, as you see in the picture above, the mouse is off. When you turn it on, you bend it into an Arch, like the picture below.

Wireless Mobile Mouse

This Wireless Mobile Mouse 3500 is beautiful and can be used anywhere!

Wireless Mobile Mouse 3500 for Giveaway

• Snap-in Nano transceiver so you don’t lose it.
• BlueTrack Technology allows people to ditch their mouse pads and use their mouse on almost any surface,1 including granite, marble, carpet and wood. (LOVE this)
• An ambidextrous design and rubber side grips give consumers comfort and durability anywhere it’s used.
• 2.4GHz wireless technology.
• Two-color battery light indicator warns consumers when it’s time to replace the battery.

When I first received the Microsoft Wireless Touch Mouse, I’ll admit, I thought it was interesting looking and I couldn’t figure out how it was going to change how I use a mouse. Well, I was wrong.

Windows Phones

I am so in love with the Windows Phones. The tiles are beautiful and the phone is so easy to use. It integrates with your Windows PC so beautifully. Accessing Office documents and Skydrive files is so easy no matter where you are. Here are a few of my favorite features:

HTC Radar 4G for Giveaway

• Built-in camera with social sharing – A dedicated camera button bypasses the lock screen for super-fast photography
• MeTile/People Hub: The Me Tile makes it easier and faster to send Facebook and Twitter update.
• Live Tiles: Lives Tiles you personalize your phone to feature the people and information that mean most to you on her start screen. The phone becomes useful because you decide what you need most.
• Linked Inboxes: Allows you to quickly and efficiently access all of your e-mail accounts in one place.
• Groups: You can easily group specific contacts together in one place, pin to her start screen and communicate with everyone at once. No more updating everyone individually.
• Skype App: Keep in touch with the kids while you are away (or if you are an empty-nester, see your kids without having to make that unannounced visit.)

Say Thanks To Mom Giveaway

ENDED!  Just in time for Mother’s Day and so that you don’t feel left out of my fun and exciting Say Thanks To Mom workshop, I am giving away a Microsoft “Say Thanks To Mom” Gift Pack worth just under $250. It includes:

• $150 Microsoft Store gift card (for local store or online store)
• HTC Radar 4G Windows Phone (photo above)
• Microsoft Wireless Mobile Mouse 3500 (see photo above)

I am so excited to give one of my readers this awesome gift pack. Think  you might share with your Mom?

First the details:

• Only open in the US
• Must follow directions to win.
• Giveaway ends at 11:00 pm ET on Friday, May 11, 2012.
• I will choose 1 winner using the WordPress plugin, And The Winner Is.
• Winner has 24 hours to respond or another winner will be chosen.

To Enter: Go to the Microsoft Store Online and tell me which Windows PC  you would choose for your Mom.

The online store has a great tool to find the perfect PC for anyone. Go to the PC page on the Microsoft Store and scroll down to the bottom and click on the “Let us help you find the Windows 7 PC that is just right for you.” Leave me a comment with your PC choice.

AND

For extra entry, tweet:

Just entered @ScrappinMichele #SayThanksToMom giveaway. Win HTC Windows Phone, $150 GC & Microsoft Mouse. http://bit.ly/Ivs3MC

Leave a second comment with a link to your tweet.

Good Luck!!

Disclosure: I was compensated for my work on the Say Thanks To Mom workshop and campaign. All opinions (and recommendations above) are 100% my own.Photos of Microsoft Say Thanks To Mom event were taken by Leticia Barr of TechSavvyMama.