TECH TALK
Cool Tools & Techniques
Are you a Flintstone or a Jetson?
Debuting in 1962, “The Jetsons” cartoon portrayed life 100 years in the future. Though 2062 is four decades away, we’re employing Jetson-like technology today with Siri, Alexa, Bixby and Google Assistant. In 1999, Sony began selling its AI robot dog “AIBO” (Japanese for “companion”), rivaling the Jetsons’ robot dog, Astro. At this pace, we may be living “The Jetsons” life sooner than we expect.
While the Flintstones relied on their Stone Age skills, George and Jane Jetson likely had easy holidays, thanks to their robot maid, Rosie. Until a robot maid becomes a reality, here’s how technology can help with holiday gifting and entertaining.
Personalized Holiday Gifts
Before digital cameras came on the scene, we dropped off 35mm film at the drug store to be developed and printed.
Walgreens and CVS now have self-serve, in-store kiosks to print digital pictures. Each also offers robust websites and apps to order personalized photo gifts like photobooks, calendars, mugs, blankets and more through the internet or the cloud. You can pick up most items in the store or get home delivery. Shutterfly, Snapfish and others offer similar services.
Prep Steps
Prior to venturing into the world of photo gifts, log in to the store or service, or create an account if you don’t have one. On the drug store website or app, look for an icon in the menu to find the photo department.
Next, choose photos by copying the digital pictures from your smartphone and uploading them to a digital album on a website or app. You can copy digital pictures to existing or new albums at any time, saving them until you’re ready to order.
Project Execution
When the digital pictures are uploaded to one or more albums, you’re ready for some fun. Start a new project by selecting the personalized gift you want to create. Don’t forget to save and name your project so you can return later to work on it.
In the design or layout phase of a project, AI is there to help. For example, if you want to create a personalized 2026 monthly calendar for your family, after selecting 12 digital photos from an album, AI suggests a photo layout over the 12 calendar pages. Practice until you’re satisfied with your project. See additional tips in the accompanying story.
Share with a Crowd
Holiday gatherings with family and friends are a great time to catch up, especially if people don’t share pictures or videos on social media. But no one wants to see photos on a smartphone’s tiny screen.
There’s an easy solution: use the mirroring function on your smartphone; all of them have the feature, regardless of the make or model.
Mirroring means to display what’s on the tiny screen onto a larger screen, such as on your SmartTV. The brand name for the mirroring function baked into Apple devices is called AirPlay, while Android devices call it “Cast.” The exception is Samsung, which calls it “SmartView.”
As an aside, I understand why companies use different names for the same function, but it confuses consumers. As an advocate for older adults, I wish Google, which owns the Android operating system, would prohibit licensees from changing the names of Android features.
It Takes Two to Tango
Find out if your SmartTV or dumb TV (attached to a streamer box or stick) can be an Apple AirPlay or Android Cast/SmartView receiver by connecting your phone or tablet to the same Wi-Fi network your SmartTV or streamer box/stick is on. With the latter, be sure to change the source input using the SmartTV or dumb TV’s remote so the devices work together.
If your SmartTV has gotten dumb over the years, or if you need to make your DumbTV smarter, a new streamer may be necessary. See my side story for recommendations.
To mirror from an Apple iPhone or iPad, find the Control Center by swiping down from the top right or up from the bottom left (depending on the Apple device), tap the Mirror button, and follow the directions. For Androids, swipe down from the top right to reveal the Quick Settings tile for Cast, tap it, and follow directions.
See you in 2026 as we gallop into the Year of the Horse.
Tips for Using Digital Photo Services
- Be a smart printer; apply coupons from the company website during checkout.
- When uploading photos, look for the “Uploading Preferences” setting and choose “Full Resolution” for the best images.
Streamers that Mirror
Android: “Cast” tile in Quick Settings. Apple: “AirPlay” button in Control Center.
- To mirror Apple devices, my recommendation is to splurge, if your budget allows, and get Apple’s streamer box, “Apple TV 4K” for $130 or $150. Among its many attributes, one of the handiest is that Apple’s Photo app is baked into the streamer box, so when you’re sharing photos and videos, you can do it directly from the box instead of mirroring from your Apple device.
- A budget-friendly option is the Roku streamer box or stick that has Apple’s AirPlay. Find more information at the Roku website support.roku.com/article/360057488733:
- To mirror from Android devices, your best bang-for-the-buck is Walmart’s $30 in-house brand, the “onn 4K Plus” streamer box.
