Free Stuff! Verizon Service and Palm Pre Plus Giveaway

Update: The Giveaway is closed, thank you all so much for reading and commenting. The winner announcement is over here.

Hello. Would you like a free Palm Pre Plus, and $300 worth of Verizon Wireless service? Yeah you would. Let’s discuss that further.

As you know, I’ve been partnering with Verizon this month to knock a few things off my Mighty List, and as part of the campaign, I’ve been using a Palm Pre Plus.

The idea was to see if the phone would be useful to me, and to find out whether Verizon would be better than my iPhone service provider. Of course, my iPhone service doesn’t work at my desk and garbles half my phone calls, so I’m a little angry about that. Angry in a “hurl my phone against the wall” kinda way. But I can be demanding when I’m paying through the nose for something that doesn’t work. We’ll discuss that more later.

For now, let’s talk about that giveaway. Verizon is offering a $600 Palm Pre Plus for free. It looks like this:

The winner will also get $300 of free service from Verizon, which looks like this:

Well, technically cellular service is invisible. It’s more something you sense in your soul when you don’t feel like hucking your phone out the window during a conference call. So in that way, Verizon is sort of like inner peace, but with less yoga involved.

I’m not required to review the Palm, and frankly I didn’t plan to, but a few of you said you were pondering new phone purchases and asked me what I thought. So here’s the stuff I liked:

Making calls. Primarily, I enjoy using my Palm as a telephone that will call people when I dial their numbers — people with whom I can have complete conversations until we mutually decide it is time to hang up. I carried both my iPhone and Palm with me while friends got used to my new number, and I can’t tell you how many times I called friends on the iPhone so they’d recognize my number, and then had to immediately call back on the Palm so they could hear what I was saying.

Dropping it in soup. So. Right after I activated my Palm, I kind of dropped it in soup. I was freaking out, thinking I’d have to admit I’m a terrible phone parent and ask for another phone. But then I just dried it off with my napkin and it kept on working. I did have to scrape some dried soup out of the charger port with a safety pin, but otherwise it didn’t even cough. Nice.

Taking photos. The phone takes killer photos, you guys. Here’s what a snapshot looks like straight out of the phone with no Photoshop intervention:

See what I mean? (Bryan took that, by the way. Thanks, B!)

Also, it has a flash! On the phone! Which means you can use it just like a regular point and shoot without having to lug around another gadget.

Making videos. You can record video on your phone. Do you hear me? We are living in the future, y’all:

Typing. I know not everyone agrees, but I like the tactile feedback of buttons when I’m typing. Some people find the buttons too small, but I didn’t have that problem. In fact, I actually used my phone to send email for the first time in my life because the email is so well integrated and it’s so easy to type.

Applying lipstick. Yeah. The phone has a compact on the back:


(Photo from the Palm Info Center, which has a detailed review if you’re looking for one.)

When I first saw it, I was irritated. Like, “Oh, I’m a girl! I want a girl phone that helps with my lipgloss.” Then I used that stupid mirror three times before I even activated the phone. My makeup has been flawless for the last month. Curse you, user testers and your uncanny insight into my demographically predictable needs!

Downsides? Because I use the camera and video constantly, I run the battery down pretty fast, which can be frustrating. So you might want some sort of battery backup if you’re not religious about charging your phone every night. Also, I tend to be an early adopter of mobile applications, and betas aren’t always available on the Palm. I realize that may not be a problem for… most of the world, but there it is.

All in all, this is a good phone on a great service. I actually think it’s a smart choice for bloggers because the camera and video are superior and it’s much easier to type, so you can do mobile updates easily.

The Giveaway

If you’d like a Palm Pre Plus for yourself, not to mention a lot of free service from Verizon Wireless, please leave a comment below promising that you will not use your new phone to text while driving, and that you will not drop it in soup within 24 hours of receipt.

Now for the fine print: You must be 18 or over to enter and live in the U.S. Multiple entries will be disqualified. Comments will be open until Wednesday morning March 31, 2009 at 11 a.m. PST. I’ll choose winners randomly using Random.org, and will announce later that day. Good luck! My fingers are crossed for you.

Ask Maggie: DSLR Case for Your Bag

Stephanie had a question about my gadget case roundup. She says:

Do you have something to hold your DSLR camera that you slip into a normal purse? I’m looking for something to protect my Canon xsi with the lens attached that I can use when I don’t want to lug an extra bag around with me. But it’s tough to find! Thanks for your recommendations!

Good question, Stephanie, I can’t believe I didn’t think to include one. Here are a few options:

Cloak Bag, $49

The Cloak Bag is a compact “shoot-through” camera bag that I think would work well to offer a little extra protection in a larger bag, but you can also use it as a stand alone when you’re traveling. The bag strap is actually your camera strap, so you just unzip the bottom and shoot, which means you can go from case to shooting much faster. I don’t own this, but I want it. (via Swiss Miss)

Zing 501-104 SG1 Standard SLR Cover, $19

Here’s a more standard neoprene case, and you can find all sorts of styles online by searching for“dslr neoprene case.” It also comes in black, grey, and plum, and they have a larger one if you want to use a big lens. (FYI, reviews seem to indicate that the color on the bag isn’t photographing well, and it’s a deeper green than it appears.) They also offer an ZING Large Universal that doesn’t look as cool, but might be more functional.

Ephiphanie Bags, $170

My final suggestion is to just use a camera bag as your day bag, which is finally, finally possible. A while ago, I was complaining that there were no attractive camera bags for women. Maile contacted me to say that she’d had the same problem, so she decided to make some. She sent me a one, and it’s fantastic. It’s excellent quality, allows for quick access, and there’s plenty of room in there for your camera, cell, a little clutch with essentials, and even a flash or extra lens. Best of all, you don’t have to wrap a towel around your camera and shove it it your bag when you want to go out to dinner.

Mighty You: Your Mighty Lists, Part 4

If you’re working on a Mighty List, please send it my way by including a link it comments. If you haven’t started your list yet, here’s another set to inspire you. Cribbing encouraged:


(Amazing Mars Travel poster by Steve Thomas.)

Jenifer Hanen of Black Phoebe is going to:
“Go into space.”

Tamera Steele of Calling All Fairy Godmothers is going to:
“Eat only homemade meals for 100 days in a row.”

Abby Poulette is going to:
“Make my own mozzarella cheese.”

R Preston of Monster Goldfish is going to:
“Get a play produced.”

Rachel Krueger of On The Intrawebs is going to:
“Get PhD.”


(Beer Club “Tree Fort” by Brad Kayal.)

Kate Bouchard is going to:
“Brew my own beer.”

Carly Machado is going to:
“Learn to shoot a bow and arrow.”

Tasha Haley is going to:
“Learn common and latin tree names for those in my area.”

Krissa Corbett Cavouras of Petit Hiboux is going to:
“Take a knife-skills class.”

Laura Perlman is going to:
“Get onstage with Wilco.”

Annie Sorrensen is going to:
“Decide on Monday to take a fabulous vacation on Friday to somewhere I’ve never been…and go.”

Melinda Stacer of Days Like This is going to:
“Make baklava from scratch.”

Valeri Estrada of 29 to 30 is going to:
“Cook dinner every night for a week.”

Marisa is going to:
“Read a book a week for a year.” (starting in 2010!)

Danielle of Salaam wa Hubb is going to:
“Walk on hot coals.”

Michelle of The Metamorph is going to:
“Eat Sushi in Japan.”

Olivia of Powered by Tofu is going to:
“Learn to play poker.”

Lauren Cribbs is going to:
“Play Chopin’s Prelude in E Minor almost as well as Chopin did.”

Cameron Barrett is going to:
“See Michelangelo’s David.”

Amanda of The Living Room is going to:
“Help plant a church.”

Kelly of Bachelor Girl is going to:
“Take part in a political protest.”

Corin McLean Boyko of Travels with Darwin is going to:
“Read all of Darwin’s books.”

Tessa of Call Your Courage is going to:
“Re-upholster a chair.”

Therese of Shoeism is going to:
“Visit 5 fashion capitals of the world (Paris, Tokyo, London, Milan, NYC).”

Heather Meagher of Featherweights is going to:
“Get my passport.”

If you’re looking for even more inspiration, check out Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3.

And a big thank you to Verizon Wireless for sponsoring my Mighty List. They’re helping me cross off a few goals, and giving me the time I need to dedicate to this project. They also gave me a Palm Pre Plus, which has turned out to be helpful in keeping the site updated. Thanks, guys.

Lifescoop: Gadget Case Roundup

We have a drawer at our house with a collection of slightly broken things — a fully functional iPhone with a shattered screen, a point and shoot that sometimes deletes entire memory cards on a whim, etcetera.

Looking in the drawer, it occurs to me that the convenience of throwing gadgets in my bag is perhaps outweighed by the cost of replacing them when they bang into each other and break. But cases offer the best of both worlds — relatively free-floating gadgets that still work when you turn them on. Here are five stylish options to protect your gadgets without adding too much bulk to your bag. Read more…

Mighty Life List: Market Street Tour

Yesterday was so good. It was gorgeous, I got dressed up cute to celebrate the sunshine, and Karen was in from Houston. I met her and a few friends downtown for breakfast, and afterward I called Jordan for a quick coffee at the St. Francis while I waited to take my first city tour.

It was the Market Street tour thorough San Francisco City Guides, a non-profit that hosts dozens of free walking tours. If you live here or plan to visit, I recommend them; I learned a lot.

For example, San Francisco is the second most densely populated American city after NYC. It’s mostly built on sand, and half the Financial District used to be underwater. When they do construction downtown, they sometimes unearth ships. This city is like a fairy tale.

Also, I had no idea that this view of the Ferry Building was blocked by the Embarcadero Freeway until 1989. The Loma Prieta earthquake made it unstable, and it was demolished. Farewell freeway.

Some of the buildings on Market Street are triangular because Market cuts across the city street grid on a diagonal, creating triangular lots and confusing the hell out of newcomers trying to get oriented.

I’d never noticed this plaque several blocks up from the bay that indicates where the shoreline used to be. During the rush, the bay was filling with abandoned ships and garbage, so the city began to sell “water lots” with the understanding that they’d eventually be filled in with dirt atop the rubbish.

The Shell Building was erected in 1939. After its construction, the war precluded plans for any new skyscrapers for thirty years. The next one went up in 1959 right across the street:

It was at 1 Bush Street, and it was the city’s first glass shell building. Look at how dramatically architecture changed in those thirty years. You can see the Shell Building’s reflection in 1 Bush’s panes. Neat, huh?

The De Young Building was San Francisco’s first skyscraper, and it was built in 1890. In 1962, it was covered with a glass “skin” to modernize it, sort of like the building at 1 Bush. In 2007 it was restored, and the architect who revealed the original face called it the architectural equivalent of raising the Titanic, which is awesome, if a little self congratulatory.

In 1875, a Shirley Temple-type child star named Lotta Crabtree dedicated Lotta’s Fountain as a thank you gift to the city. After the 1906 earthquake, San Franciscans gathered here to find loved ones. Now survivors and San Franciscans gather every year at 5:12 a.m. on April 18th to commemorate the date and celebrate the city’s survival. That’s just a few weeks away, so set your alarm clocks.

One tour down, four to go. This is fun.

As always, a big thank you to Verizon Wireless for sponsoring my Mighty Life List. They’re helping me work toward “Knowing San Francisco like the back of my hand,” and they also gave me a Palm Pre Plus. I used it to take notes on this tour and to take a bunch of the photos, including the one of the Shell Building, which is my favorite. Thanks, guys.