ShowUhow Blog

Happy Holidays!

 

Dear Friends of ShowUhow,

The ShowUhow team would like to send you and your families our warmest Season’s Greetings, wish you happiness and good health in 2010.

2009 was a difficult year for many of us. Thanks to your support, ShowUhow has been growing steadily and continually developing new VIGs to help you enjoy your new furniture, TV, phones and toys. Your feedback has been extremely helpful and is greatly appreciate.

During this busy season, the ShowUhow team wants to help you take care of some frustrating assembly tasks, so you have more time and energy to handle the other holiday obligations. Your satisfaction is our best reward of 2009, and our motivation going into the New Year. We believe that 2010 will be a year full of hope and positive energy.

We would love to continue to get your feedback about the manufactures and the products you use every day, so we can improve our services and make your life a little easier. You can simply sign up a free account on www.ShowUhow.com to watch Video Instruction Guides (VIGs), leave comments and take surveys.

We look forward to hearing from you!

Happy holidays!

Best regards,

ShowUhow team

Dec. 2009

Is this the craziest time of the year or what?

Last Minute Gift Ideas

 

The holidays are upon us and you are almost out of time. Okay, WE are almost out of time.  If, like me, you were procrastinating about some of those last gift purchases or suddenly realized you left someone off your list, it’s time for Plan B.  You need some great quick ideas.  Someone I know had a yearly habit—he called it a “tradition”—of waiting until Christmas Eve to do his shopping.  He actually found some pretty nice gifts, probably at a good price, too, but you know you can’t count on that.

Here are a few last minute ideas: 

 

1. Gift cards.  Yeah, they’re kind of cliché but they also work! Virtually ALL stores have gift cards so you can get one specific to a favorite store or hobby or to a nice restaurant—or even to the local movie theatre for a gift they can share with a friend. Your grocery store usually carries a large variety of them, so you don’t even need to make a special trip.

 

2. Games.  Adults and kids all love games and even some non-gaming people enjoy the easy to use Wii games.  You can add a specific game to their collection or a gift card to a popular game store.

 

3. Gift sets.  You can find a bounty of nicely packaged gift sets with popular items. There is a gift set to suit ANY wish. Check out major retailers for one-stop shopping of their gift sets.

 

4.  Small electronics. You can’t miss with one of the new electronic gadgets—a new smartphone or MP3 player is a great way to get the holiday feeling to last. It’s something they will use daily!

With the help of VIGs at ShowUhow.com, you’ll spend less time trying to get clear instructions from a sales rep about how to use your new gadget or TV features or how to quickly assemble a new toy and make it work. VIGs can save you tons of time and spare you the frustration of figuring things out on your own.  You can have the VIG playing right in the room with you while you copy what the assembler is doing in the VIG.    The faster you get the new toy or playhouse put together the faster everyone gets to relax and play!  Try it out this year!  It’s almost like a holiday gift for you –the gift of a low-stress holiday. 

Happy Holidays!

Holiday on a budget

 

Can you believe that the holidays are just days away.  Have you started your holiday shopping yet?  It’s time.  The holidays are on a budget this year! You may decide to wait a few days until Black Friday or start hitting the sales right after that, but this is definitely a year to be prepared.  So start comparison-shopping today to keep your holiday spending in order. With an idea of what the prices are for items at the top of your shopping list you’ll have a good idea if the sales you encounter are good ones or if you should be patient and wait for a better price.  If you know you won’t be giving some gifts until after the holiday, you could wait until after Christmas to do your holiday shopping—you can get great stuff at awesome post-holiday sale prices.

            You can start online by looking at one of the comparison-shopping websites. There are several that will give you an idea of the price range for your top gift picks.  While you are online check out the comparison shopping sites that give you a rebate or cash back for your purchases.  Better than earning points, this is actual cash that you can have deposited in your accounts to give you extra savings on your purchases. If it is a mail-in rebate, MAKE SURE you remember to do that. A couple of sites to check out are ebates.com and extrabux.com, but there are others.   Things can be cheaper online. If you decide to order online, remember to factor in the shipping time—shipping your holiday purchases to you can take up to 1 month!

            While shopping keep in mind that just like you can save money cooking dinner in your home rather than eating out. You can also save tons of dough assembling your gift items yourself rather than paying someone to do it for you.  Check out the VIGs at ShowUhow.com and see just how “doable” some of the “do-it-yourself” assembly projects are when you have the right guide showing you how.  Our VIGs show you exactly how to put together your Ready-to-Assemble merchandise and how to do it without the frustration and long hours that frequently result.  Shopping right and having a VIG at hand to help you assemble your purchases can help make the coming holiday season totally awesome!

10 Things Smartphones Can Do for You

Here are some of the many features available from today’s smartphones. For more information on how to set up and use your smartphone, you can watch VIGs at www.ShowUhow.com.

Phone calls. People think of smartphones are PDAs combined with cell phones. Most smartphones on the market are very easy to use to make phone calls, and have excellent call quality. If you are driving, you can even use voice dialing.

Messages. Just like a regular cell phone, you can send and receive text messages on your smartphone. You can also send picture, video and audio messages just as easily.

Cameras. Smartphones now can take decent quality pictures and videos. Don’t forget to share good moments by quickly sending them to your friends or posting them on your Facebook page.

Emails. Sending emails with smartphones is just as easy as sending text messages. Either touch-screens or keypads make composing emails simple and fast.

Web browsing. Smartpones let you surf the Internet just like using your computer. Current smartphones have big screens and fast connections that will give you a great user experience. 

GPS. Your smartphone either comes with GPS and maps, or you can download them. Either way, you will be able to get directions anytime, anywhere.

MP3 players. You can either download or transfer music from your computer onto your smartphone. If you really like a song, make it your ring tone, too.           

Games. Smartphones all come with some games. But you can always download more.

Day planners. No need to carry a thick day planner anymore. You can just enter your tasks and appointments into your calendar.  Your smartphone will even send you reminders

Office applications. Smartphones come with Microsoft^® Word, Excel and PowerPoint. You can work anywhere.

Top GPS manufacturers

With so many companies adding GPS systems to their product lines it’s hard to know which companies specialize in navigation systems, and which ones are the copycats. No need to worry, we’ve done the research for you. Here’s a list of major, reputable GPS system manufacturers.

Garmin is the largest consumer GPS manufacturer, and is one of the major players in the market, producing systems for vehicles, including cars and motorcycles, cell phones, handhelds for hiking, golf, running, and cycling, and models for aviation and marine sports. The Garmin Nuvi is one of the most highly purchased and highly rated GPS systems on the market.

TomTom is the second largest GPS manufacturer in the U.S., and is the leading manufacturer of GPS systems in Europe. Like Garmin, they produce both portable navigation devices and software for PDAs and mobile phones. Their devices are known for having more advanced features than their competitor’s.  Not interested in purchasing a device? TomTom has an iPhone application, where, for $99.99, you can download the software directly to your phone and utilize the same benefits of their portable navigation devices. Starting at just above $100, the TomTom One is one of the most popular, highly rated, basic GPS models on the market.

Magellan, the third largest GPS manufacturer in the U.S., is know for it’s navigation extras and large display screens. They also produce aftermarket, in-car navigation systems and were the first to offer new services, like voice command capabilities. The Magellan Maestro 4370 is one of their most popular models because of its one-click access to your favorite destinations, text-to-speech, and integrated Bluetooth capabilities.

Check out the ShowUhow September newsletter for a list of top-rated GPS systems. All the newsletter are available on www.ShowUhow.com. Sign up for free, and you will have access to all the Video Instruction Guides (VIGs) and newsletters.

Direct yourself to the right GPS System

On top of the obvious considerations while choosing a GPS system, like screen size, features, and price, there are a few other not-so-obvious items you’ll want to ponder prior to purchasing your GPS system.

If you plan on keeping your system for a long time you’ll also want to review the warranty and costs to update the system. It is recommended that you update your system mapping software once a year. The frequency of your updates, of course, varies by how often you’ll be traveling in new areas. If you only use it to drive around your city, you probably won’t need updates as often as someone who uses their GPS system to guide them across the country on a regular basis. Some systems include free updates for a limited amount of time, while others charge $50 to $150 and up, depending on size of region selected for updating. If you want a system that is guaranteed to last you’ll want to review the warranty before purchase. Most systems include a one-year warranty, and allow for the addition of an extended warranty, sometimes through the retailer, for an added cost.

Ratings and customer reviews are a great way to measure customer satisfaction for particular models. Popular non-biased websites that conduct professional product reviews are CNET.com, pcmag.com gpsreview.com and consumerreports.com, to name a few. There are also an infinite number of blogs and websites dedicated to customer reviews and feedback. Even some retailer sites, like Amazon.com and Costco.com, are designed to allow customer feedback about products. Be an informed shopper and read some reviews before purchase!

Five reasons why GPS is better than a map?

1. A paper map will never update itself.  With GPS systems you simply have to download the updates to your system, no need to go to a store.

2. Real time traffic updates. Not only will your GPS system tell you how to get from point A to point B, but it will also consider traffic conditions along your route. (Note: not available in all models or cities.)

3. Directions while driving. There’s no need to pull over because voice directions allow you to keep your eyes on the road and your hands safely on the wheel.

4. You don’t have to eat at Denny’s anymore. A GPS system helps you make informed decisions about where to stop along the way. You and your family don’t have to eat at that diner because that’s the only sign you see off the highway.

5. Hands free. Leave your earpiece at home and use the GPS device for wireless phone calls instead. Most devices have Bluetooth capability.

Setting up your GPS

You have a new GPS you just brought home from the store.  The good news: it requires no set-up. The bad news: you still have to figure out how to make it work; how to read the screens; which of the options you want to use and in which circumstances; what all the lingo means … and more.  It is true that out of the box you will probably be able to put the batteries into your GPS (as soon as you figure out where the batteries go and how to open it up), turn it on and watch the screens as the GPS acquires signals from satellites and finds your position.  But there is a lot more to using your GPS than that.  There are the physical things, like figuring out how to mount it in your vehicle if you intend to use it while driving—and how to mount it so it is still portable if you intend to use it out of your vehicle, too, like for running, biking, hiking or anything else.   But you also have to learn how to work with all of the options in your new GPS.  Believe me, there is a lot to learn about how to use your GPS navigator.  You can read and study the manual to try to figure out how to make everything work. You can also check out ShowUhow.com to see if there is a Video Instruction Guide (VIG) for your GPS device. A VIG will break down your installation and initial use and setup of your GPS into short steps that are easy to follow.  There is no better way to learn how to use any new device than watching a VIG, which walks you through every step in the correct order.  If you don’t see the VIG you are looking for, send a request to ShowUhow.com so they know what you are looking for.

Campsite Cooking

Preparing meals while camping can sometimes be a challenge.  Without access to our kitchens and stovetops, we are often left with few options.  But that’s no longer the case!  There are alternatives to eating burnt hot dogs off sticks; all you need are a few supplies!

The Camp Chef Expedition 3X is one of the most powerful portable stoves available.  With three large burners and a 24” x 18” griddle you’ll be cooking gourmet meals in no time!

 

But why stop at the stovetop when you can bring an entire oven?  The Outdoor Camp Oven allows you to cook just as you do at home, complete with two oven racks and twin burners!  The oven heats to 400 degrees and only weighs 35 pounds.  Now that’s what I call campfire cooking!

 

I’m an over packer and have been told on occasion that I bring everything but the kitchen sink, but now with the GSI Camp Gourmet Kitchen I can even bring a sink!  This complete food prep and cooking center includes a drying rack, adjustable wire shelves for storage, and two sinks with faucet, making meal prep and clean up a breeze.

 

With a portable versions of your kitchen standards you’ll be cooking gourmet camping meals in no time!