Trick Out Party Cups For A Fun Halloween Treat Making Fanta & OREO Jack-O-Lantern Jigglers

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias and its advertiser.  All opinions are mine alone. #SpookySnacks #CollectiveBias

Boo-Ha-Ha-Ha!!! From A Geek Daddy's Spooky Snack Lab we have a great treat featuring Fanta and OREO cookies that any kid will be thrilled to enjoy at a Halloween celebration. Let guests at your Halloween event decorate and personalize their plastic party cups to make Jack-O-Lantern Jigglers!!!

Ingredients:

18 oz Plastic Cups
Fanta Orange Soda
Orange Sherbet
OREO cookies

Start off by providing each of your guests with a clear 18 oz plastic cup and a black Crayola marker.  Encourage them to trick out their cup by drawing a wacky pumpkin face on it.  Shout out kudos to your guests who do the nicest job personalizing the drawings on their party cup with the scariest and zaniest images.

Next in each cup add a few scoops of orange sherbet and pour in some Fanta Orange Soda to fill up the remainder of the glass.  Boil Boil Toil and Trouble you'll begin to see a witches brew froth of bubbles top off your drink. Finish off the drink by crushing up some OREO cookies and mixing them in with the witches froth to add a sweet delight to go with the creamy deliciousness of the Fanta and orange sherbet in the cup.

 

 

Voila you have yourself a Fanta & OREO Jack-O-Lantern Jiggler!!!

For some extra fun, in addition to OREO cookies set out a candy bar with an array of sweets like gummy worms and sweet-n-sour aliens that your party guests can add to their Jack-O-Lantern Jigglers.  We were able to pick up everything we needed to make our Fanta & OREO Jack-O-Lantern Jigglers so we could enjoy them during a Halloween themed family movie night watching Tim Burton's animated flick FRANKENWEENIE in one convenient trip to Walmart.

What was great about including OREO cookies in our Jack-O-Lantern Jiggler recipe was that we were able to pick them up in a 30 count box with the cookies 2 to a pack in these really great Glow-in-the-Dark wrappers.  So the OREO cookies that we have left over from our Halloween family movie night snack should be a great hit as they glow-in-the-dark as we pass them out to trick-or-treaters.

Looking for some more creative Halloween treat ideas?  Evette Rios, host of the CBS show Recipe Rehab has created some spooky fun recipes exclusively for Walmart that combine Fanta and OREO products.  Check out these great Halloween party treat ideas at the Walmart Spooky Snack Lab website.   What is your  favorite snack idea from SpookySnackLab.com?  Mine is the Orange Fanta Pound Cake - yum!!!

Happy Halloween everyone! Cheers!

Super Heroes Assemble App Lets You Turn Your Next Visit to Walmart into a MARVEL-ous Adventure

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #AvengersUnite #CollectiveBias

Unleash the power of MARVEL's The Avengers through your smart phone with Walmart's Super Heroes Assemble app available on Google Play and through the App Store.  This augmented reality app lets you engage in photo ops with characters from MARVEL's The Avengers: Age of Ultron movie, explore their world from a 360 degree perspective, and even suit up to transform yourself into one of your favorite heroes like Hulk, Iron Man or Thor.  The powers of the Super Heroes Assemble app are unlocked when you use it to scan special images located on posters and products at your local Walmart store.   After downloading the app for my iPhone, my daughter and I headed to Walmart for a scavenger hunt to test out the augmented reality capabilities of Super Heroes Assemble.

Our first find was a poster in the toy department. Each of the locked powers for the app has an Avengers character associated with it that when you click on their face it shows you an image of the poster or product that needs to be scanned to make the feature accessible.  The app automatically opens your smart phone's camera so all you have to do is point your device so that the virtual image displayed on its screen overlaps with the real world one.  When we scanned this poster a giant Hulk Buster Iron Man appeared to take a photo with my lil Thor.

Searching through the aisles at Walmart we found specially marked Doritos, Dr. Pepper, Kellog's Fruit Snacks, and Cheez-It baked snack crackers products and displays with special images for us to scan.  Scanning these images as we found them around the store unlocked access to 360 degree interactive experiences, for example you can run the Mark 44 Iron Man armor through its paces and see what it is capable of through the Hulk Buster Testing Facility,  opened access to various character abilities that let you suit up as a favorite Avenger in photographs you take, and others created in-store Avengers photo ops like our picture with Hulk Buster Iron Man.

While the Photo Op feature only works specifically when you are scanning the special images, the Suit Up functions will work anytime after you have scanned the images that unlocks one of the eight featured characters which are Black Widow, Hawkeye, Thor, Captain America, Iron Man, Incredible Hulk, Hulk Buster Iron Man, and Ultron.  We had a lot of fun playing around with the Suit Up features around the house and at the playground after we had unlocked all the characters during our Walmart scavenger hunt.

Here's a HINT, if you can't find all the special images while at Walmart they also have them displayed online and you can scan them off the screen from the store's special MARVEL's The Avengers: Age of Ultron web site section by looking for the "unlock more epic content" banner. 

 The Walmart website also features some coloring pages you can print out for the kids to have some fun with in the MARVEL's The Avengers: Age of Ultron section including the one below.

Make your next visit to Walmart a MARVEL-ous adventure with the Super Heroes Assemble App.  Have some fun with your own scavenger hunt while you pick up all the fan essential toys, clothes and food items to get yourself ready to see MARVEL's The Avengers: Age of Ulton which arrives at movie theaters on May 1, 2015. We had some smashing good daddy-daughter time playing with this app (hey remember Avengers isn't just popular with the guys, girls are big fans too!) and I'd encourage you to check it out to avoid becoming green with envy that you missed out on the chance to suit up as one of your favorite Avengers.

So which member of the Avengers is your favorite?  Black Widow, Bruce Banner, Captain America, Hawkeye, Hulk, Iron Man, Quick Silver, Scarlet Witch, Thor, or Vision?  Iron Man has my vote while my daughter loves to role play as Thor while her twin brother pretends to be Captain America in their adventures at the park and in the backyard.

Family Movie Night - Big Hero 6

 This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #BigHero6Release #CollectiveBias

Enjoying a Family Movie Night has become a frequent Friday evening occasion at our house.  So when the Academy Award Winning Movie for Best Animated Film, which was also my son's favorite movie in 2014, BIG HERO 6 was released February 24, 2015 on blu-ray and dvd we immediately had a family movie night that weekend to enjoy it.  My daughter and I swung by our local Walmart the day it was released to pick up the movie for our home video library and to grab a few other Big Hero 6 themed goodies for our night of family fun and bonding.  Whether shopping online at www.walmart.com or stopping by one of their brick-and-mortar locations, Walmart has a great selection of Big Hero 6 videos, toys, books and other merchandise.

We always like to try to incorporate some fun activities into our Family Movie Nights to make them a little bit more special than just watching a film together.  Since a big part of Big Hero 6 involves the characters' interest, accomplishments, and interactions with scientific topics, my wife and I decided to incorporate some demonstrations and experiments for our kids to do using everyday household items from our kitchen before we watched the movie.  So we made some rock candy for our movie treat, created a mad scientist concoction, and attempted a color symphony.

Like the character Hiro Hamada from Big Hero 6, my 6 year old twins have peanut allergies which often makes providing them with snacks tricky.  A safe candy where we don't have to worry about food allergy ingredients or contamination that you can make yourself at home is ROCK CANDY, and the process itself provides an educational and entertaining way to point out some interesting information about chemistry and crystals with children.  The downside though is you are giving children candy that is made 100% of sugar (which can get kids really wound up) and it takes a great deal of patience to do it yourself and get it done right.  You really need to provide yourself 5 to 7 days to let the crystals form enough for an edible treat.
 

INGREDIENTS & INSTRUCTIONS (ROCK CANDY)

Glass Jar
Clothes Pin
Wood Skewer or Stick
2 Cups of Water
4 Cups of Granulated Sugar
Food Coloring **optional**

STEP 1:  Wet your wood skewer or stick and roll it in sugar.  This will provide a base layer for the crystals that will become the candy to attach to when they start forming.  Set the skewer/stick aside to dry while you next begin to make a sugary syrup.

STEP 2:   Place the water in a pan and bring it to a boil.  Once the water is at a boil begin adding the sugar one cup at a time not adding the next cup until the previous one has dissolved into the water.  Stir the water after each addition to help the process of dissolving the sugar into the water.  Continue to stir and boil the water until all of the sugar has been absorbed into the water creating a syrup.

STEP 3:  Remove the pan from the stove.  If you want to add food coloring now is the time placing 3-4 drops into the syrup and stirring the pan to ensure even consistency.

STEP 4:  Let the syrup cool for 10 minutes then pour it into your selected glass jar.

STEP 5:  Place your wood skewer/stick into the jar so that it is within the syrup but not touching any of the sides of the jar.  Hold it into place by using a clothes pin to secure the skewer/stick into place at the top of the jar.  Your skewer/stick should be at least 1 inch from the bottom of the jar.

STEP 6:  Set your jar in a cool place where it won't be disturbed or in an extensive amount of sunlight.  Crystals should begin forming on the skewer/stick within 3 to 5 hours.  The sugar was dissolved by the water when it was boiling but as the water cools it can't continue to absorb the sugar which re-emerges as crystals which are attracted to the wood in the skewer/stick.  If you don't see crystals forming within 24 hours on your skewer/stick you'll need to start over again.

STEP 7:  Allow the crystals 3 to 7 days to grow to your preferred size.  When you are ready remove the crystals from the jar, allow to dry for a few minutes and voila you have yourself Rock Candy!

In addition to making the Rock Candy, we also tried out two science experiments with mixed success.  First to show off how two stable items can be mixed together to cause a volatile chemical reaction we created a mad scientist concoction.

INGREDIENTS & INSTRUCTIONS (Mad Scientist Concoction)

Glass or Plastic Cup/Bottle
1/4 cup of vinegar
2 tablespoons of baking soda
1 tablespoon of jello mix **optional**

STEP 1:  Place the baking soda in your cup or bottle.

STEP 2:  If you would like your concoction to have some color add the jello mix of your preference to the baking soda within the cup/bottle

STEP 3:  Pour the vinegar into the cup/bottle so that it mixes with the baking soda.

STEP 4:  Grab a sponge or rag to clean up as your children observe a bubbly mess that is created from the chemical reaction of these items being mixed together.  The bubbles are created and filled by carbon dioxide which is formed when the vinegar (acid) reacts with the baking soda (a base).

Next we tried an experiment called the Color Symphony.  Kids that like art class will enjoy this!

INGREDIENTS & INSTRUCTIONS (Color Symphony)

A Flat Tray
Food Coloring - at least 3 colors
Whole Milk - low fat milk will not work!
Liquid Dish Soap

STEP 1:  Pour milk over the tray so that its entire surface is just barely covered.

STEP 2:  Add 3-4 drops of food coloring from each different color at various spots on the tray.

STEP 3:  Add 5-7 drops of the liquid dish soap on top of each of the food coloring spots.

STEP 4:  Enjoy a Symphony of Colors - the dish soap will go after the fat in the milk as it does the food coloring will scatter and mix creating a colorful display.



Unfortunately, it didn't work out that well for us though because we used 2% Milk and you really need to use Whole Milk to get the whole impact of the demonstration.  A teachable moment about always reading instructions carefully! While we didn't get a symphony of colors, my kids did see how when you add various chemicals together they trigger reactions.  When we added milk, soap and food coloring together the food coloring quickly expanded within the milk when the soap was added.  It unfortunately didn't have the burst of colors that would have occurred from there being fat included within the mix.

So after we cleaned up our experiments, we grabbed our rock candy and enjoyed our feature presentation BIG HERO 6.  This animated, family friendly movie focuses on the special bond that develops between a giant plus-sized inflatable robot named Baymax and a young prodigy named Hiro Hamada.  When tragedy strikes these two team up with a group of friends to form a band of high-tech heroes who try to right a wrong.  This movie based on a Marvel comic book series is filled with both action and drama which makes it a perfect selection for a family movie night.

If you grab this movie from Walmart, they have two exclusive blu-ray packages while supplies last.  One package has a bonus dvd featuring The Science of Big Hero 6 which is what we picked up to go along with our family movie night's science theme.

The other exclusive Walmart blu-ray package has a VUDU INSTA WATCH feature.  When you purchase a Big Hero 6 Blu-ray/DVD + INSTA WATCH it includes a digital movie on Vudu while supplies last.  Simply scan your receipt using the Savings Catcher in the Walmart app.  Then look for a message on your phone or email.  Now you can watch Big Hero 6 on any device!

So is your family as excited about Big Hero 6 coming to home video as ours? How are you geeking out to enjoy this movie with your family?

Rocking the Holidays with a Wireless JBL Charge 2 Speaker

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone.

We always go all out at Christmas time to celebrate the holidays at our house - a huge blowup snowman in the front yard, the glow of our home shining from being covered in LED lights, a pleasant wreath on the front door, stockings hung above the fireplace with care, and of course a decorated tree with cookies and milk for Santa.  Something seemed to be lacking though; but I just couldn't put my finger on it.  It hit me the other day when I was driving home from work and realized they were playing Christmas songs on the radio...we hadn't been rocking our home with holiday music.  I was going to have to fix that by getting some Bluetooth compatible speakers for our house.

We haven't had a nice stereo receiver or speaker system in our house to make listening to music that worthwhile.  When my wife and I tend to listen to music it is on the radio in the car, at the gym with our mp3 player, or via the playlists we have stored on our iphones. Our children are at an age where they really don't listen to music much. So while our house was decked out for the season the musical component of the holidays had been lacking because we just didn't have an outlet for enjoying Christmas carols and tunes at home. Thanks to #CollectiveBias we were given a JBL Charge 2 Speaker because tis the season for #GiftingAudio and now it appears our family is going to be a lot merrier through the holidays being able to incorporate music into our festivities.

I have to say that this speaker has exceeded my expectations.  Its little body belts out the tunes with power, clarity and bass that rivals the bulky monstrous four foot high box speakers I used to take a lot of pride in from my bachelor pad days.  It was very easy to sync the JBL Charge 2 speaker to my iphone so that my children and I were very quickly listening to some holiday tunes via Pandora through this connection.  I was actually somewhat surprised just how exceptional the sound quality was especially with how I was playing music through a wireless connection with my phone.  We really had the jingle bells rocking as I cranked up the sound to enjoy the music of Mannheim Steamroller and Trans-Siberian Orchestra.  I kid you not the speakers delivered such a rich bass that it felt as if we could have been at a concert.  You can actually see the speaker working to provide a rich listening experience as you can see the twin passive radiators (the silver discs on either side of the speaker) pulsating to the beat of the music which is quite impressive to observe.

So what is on your Holiday Playlist this year?  Here are a few of the favorites from our family playlist:

Christmas Don't Be Late - Alvin and the Chipmunks
Grandma Got Run Over By A Reindeer - Elmo & Patsy
Santa Claus is Coming to Town - Bruce Springsteen
Little Drummer Boy - Bing Crosby & David Bowie Duet
Do They Know it is Christmas - Band Aid
The Most Wonderful Time of the Year -Andy Williams
Joy to the World - Mannheim Steamroller
God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen - The Bare Naked Ladies
Carol of the Bells - Trans Siberian Orchestra
Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas -  Judy Garland
Frosty the Snowman by Jimmy Durante

There is such a focus on the visual elements of the holiday season through the lights and decorations, but the musical aspect is also an important part of celebrating the holidays and was something we had been neglecting the last few years.  Being able to pull out this convenient portable speaker and easily play holiday songs from our itunes playlists or Pandora is really going to enhance the Christmas spirit for our family. My kids were so excited when they heard the holiday tunes pouring through our house as they jumped around like reindeer singing the lyrics to Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer and Frosty the Snowman.  It was so convenient just being able to pull out my phone, hit play and have the music flow wireless between devices and through our home.

Speaking of convenient, it was really nice to have this great speaker delivered directly to my front door rather than drag myself out to the store to search for one.  If you are looking to get a JBL Charge 2 for yourself or maybe as a gift for someone keep in mind the convenience of shopping online.

It is so convenient to get one of these online now too because JBL is having a special holiday promotion on its website. If you purchase a Charge 2 from www.jbl.com, they will provide FREE ground shipping plus FREE extended returns.  I hate paying for shipping for online purchases so that is a real plus for me!  Another perk that I appreciated is JBL provides lifetime support for your purchase when you buy it online directly from their website!  The JBL Charge 2 is $149.95 and while my preference was black you can choose from five colors to personalize your selection: blue, purple, red, white or black.

While the JBL Charge 2 is going to make our holiday celebrating more enjoyable it is also going to be very useful throughout the rest of the year as well.  Often times when we call grandma and grandpa our kids are fighting to grab the phone to talk to their grandparents...now we can use the Charge 2 as a speaker phone routing the call through it so the kids can both hear the conversation at the same time and also talk through the speaker's built-in microphone.  That featured turned into an unexpected treat which we are going to be using a lot all year long.  Based on the sound quality that I've experienced so far I may also use this speaker phone application for some of my work conference calls too.

Another great feature that is really nice if you are taking the Charge 2 with you on a family road trip or on business travel is that you can actually use the speaker to charge your phone when you are on the go.  The Charge 2's 6000mAh Li-ion battery can play up to 12 hours of music or if it outlasts your phone or other portable devices you can recharge them through its USB port.  No more having to look for an electric outlet to plug into at a highway rest stop while you are traveling to recharge your phone or tablet when you have this speaker with you.  This speaker really is the gift that keeps on giving.

In the spirit of Gifting Audio, our friends at Collective Bias and JBL are giving away 30 speakers for the holidays.  Just complete the steps below for a chance to win.  Good luck everyone!


JBL.com #GiftingAudio Sweepstakes

Join me for a Star Wars Twitter Party

This post has been compensated by Collective Bias Inc. and its advertiser.

A GEEK DADDY is going to be co-hosting a #STARWARS Twitter Party on Friday, October 3, 2014 at 8p EST to chat about the debut of the new animated television show Disney's Star Wars Rebels and a special Walmart DVD release of the tv special that is starting off the series.  Please join me for the #SparkRebellion Twitter Party where we'll be discussing all thing Star Wars new, old and in between, as well as giving you the chance to win prizes!

You're not going to want to miss this Friday Night Twitter Party!  I am very excited to be sharing Star Wars memories and talking about the new Disney's Star Wars  Rebels DVD and toy line.  The DVD releases on October 3rd and a full line of Star Wars Rebels toys will be available at Walmart.  Some of the toys that my kids and I are most excited about are the Star Wars Rebels Millennium Falcon, Inquisitor Lightsaber, and Rebels Command Star Destroyer.

DATE: Friday, October 3, 2014 

TIME: 8:00 - 9:00 pm EST

EARLY BIRD RSVP PRIZE: 1 - $50 Walmart Gift Card

PARTY PRIZES:  5 - $100 Walmart Gift Cards

HOSTS:  @Geekdad248 , @DoDomesticDad , @outnumberedmama , @MommaDandDaBoyz , @tsue1136

RULES:  #SparkRebellion Twitter Party Rules

RSVP & PARTY GRID:  #SparkRebellion Twitter Party Page

How To Participate In A Twitter Party on SoFabChats!

TIP: How to join a Twitter Party – sign in! Before party starts, click on the green “Sign In On Twitter” bar at the top of the page!

TIP: Who to follow at a Twitter Party? Follow the Party Team by clicking on the Twitter handle links on the RSVP page!

TIP: Want to win Twitter Party prizes? RSVP by clicking on RSVP button before you join the party, follow everyone on the Party Team, and tweet with the party hashtag during the party to be eligible!

TIP: How to win the Early Bird prize? Watch for chance to share a tweet when you RSVP for chance to win!

TIP: Special deals and brand coupons? Keep that option checked when you RSVP for the party!

TIP: New to Twitter parties? Watch your column and Party Team tweet columns – they are slower paced and easier to follow!

TIP: Where to find Twitter Parties? Check out the SoFabChats Twitter Party Calendar to find more fun parties to attend!

Who Would Love TMobile FREE Data for Life? A Geek Daddy Tests out the T-Mobile Trio AXS 7.85" 4G Tablet

Disclosure: This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser.  All opinions are mine alone.

Sick of draining your mobile phone plan's data package or always searching for free Wi-Fi when you are on the go?!  I recently took the T-Mobile Trio AXS 7.85" 4G Tablet that promises TMobile FREE data online connectivity for the life of the device for a test run through the Detroit Zoo for #CollectiveBias.  The #TabletTrio can keep you connected even when Wi-Fi isn't available by providing access to T-Mobile's advanced 4G/LTE network - when purchasing this tablet you are provided the FREE DATA FOR LIFE plan which consists of 200MB of data usage each month for as long as you own the device.  How often have you found yourself out and about wanting to connect to the Internet but don't want to use up your phone or tablet's data plan, don't have a device that is connected to a data plan (hate to admit it but we didn't have Internet accessibility on our phones until this year), or don't have access to Wi-Fi?  I know for our family that we lose convenient connectivity when we visit grandma and grandpa's house, are at soccer practice, or take a trip to the zoo, among other places.   

The Detroit Zoo doesn't provide free Wi-Fi so we accessed the Internet via T-Mobile's 4G network during our test of the tablet.  I had registered the tablet before our visit and the T-Mobile network instantly recognized, authenticated, and connected the device when I opened up its browser just as if I had been using my smart phone.  The Trio AXS provided a fast and reliable connection throughout our visit both within the indoor exhibits and around the outdoor ones.  We utilized the connectivity to look up some additional information on some of the animals we were viewing, access a tour app hosted by the zoo, upload some pictures we took to the cloud, do some tweeting, double check the closing time, and to look up a restaurant menu in deciding what meal we were going to pick up on the way home for dinner. All of this barely put a dent in our allocated 200 MB of data for the month.

In addition to the great connectivity feature, the Trio Tablet has great features and functionality.  It utilizes the Android operating system which allows for the use of Flash Player applications, includes the Kingsoft Office word processing suite of programs, Movie Studio video editing, and other handy apps.  The tablet is very light weight and portable yet it has a screen size twice the size of most smart phones.  My kids were able to really appreciate viewing images and information on its screen.  The device also has a camera that is easy to use and takes some nice photographs.  The only downside of the device was, that like most smart phone and tablet screens that I'm familiar with, it reflects sunlight and can be difficult to view content on its screen outdoors without being in some shade.

The best feature of the tablet hands down though is its free data package through T-Mobile's 4G nationwide network.  4G is the term used to describe the fourth-generation of wireless service.  When you are utilizing 4G technology wireless service it is supposed to be anywhere from four to ten times faster than currently existing 3G networks.  You don't have to sign-up for a billable T-Mobile plan with this tablet, simply register your device through the device's ConnectMe portal, for free,  to active the service and you get 200MB of data usage each month.  This is a capped program which means that once you reach 200MB for the month you are shut off until the next month.  After you've reached your cap a screen will appear that will offer to sell you an upgraded T-Mobile data plan but there is no obligation to purchase it. There are no worries about billed for going over your data limit and no contracts or service plans you are committed to. There are is no data roaming or tethering with this program either.  Once you purchase the T-Mobile Trio AXS 7.85" 4G Tablet just register it to activate it and enjoy using the free 200MBs every month for as long as you own it. Simple as that!

The T-Mobile Trio AXS 7.85" 4G Tablet costs $179.00 and is sold exclusively at Walmart.  Think about that...for under $200 you are purchasing a tablet with guaranteed monthly connectivity for accessing the Internet pretty much anywhere you need to go through a dependable wireless service provider that has a state-of-the-art network for as long as you own device without paying another cent.  That's a great deal!

It's back-to-school time and with that comes a lot of extracurricular activities too.  For our family that means evening dance classes for our daughter and soccer practices for my son plus swimming lessons for them both on the weekends.  Her dance studio doesn't have Wi-Fi, neither does the pool or the soccer fields.  I don't want to drain my data plan on my phone and my other tablet only connects to the Internet via Wi-Fi so if I want to read e-mails, check weather or traffic reports, surf the web, update my blog, or interact via social media I'm out of luck while chauffeuring my kids to their activities and school functions.   This T-Mobile Trio AXS 7.85" 4G Tablet provides parents dependable access to the Internet without breaking the bank.  If you are a parent who knows they are going to be on the go this fall you really should check this device out!

The Trio would also be a good tablet for children.  My 5 year old twins were very capable of using it and it was sturdy enough I wasn't worried they would break it but also light enough that it wasn't to heavy or bulky for them to be uncomfortable carrying it.  Based upon the data limits you also know that your kids won't be using it for video games and watching movies but rather for more productive uses of their time.  Plus the data cap seems like a nice tool to teach them responsibility of managing their time online because they will get cut off if they reach that 200MB limit so they have to weigh that into determining what they want to do online.  So this is a great buy for parents or kids!

In addition to taking the Trio AXS to the zoo, I also took it the park with my kids the other day.  The weather forecasts had been for rain but it had been a sunny day outside.  There's no Wi-Fi access at the park but I was able to keep an eye on the local radar weather maps through the tablet's T-Mobile service.  While it didn't look cloudy I could see rain coming into the radar picture after we'd been there for about an hour so I packed up the kids and headed home.  It down poured a few minutes after we arrived home.  You have to appreciate the convenience of knowing you can take this device with you where ever you go with the assurance you can always be connected when you need to be.

You can do a lot of things with the monthly 200MB though if you want to be playing online games or streaming/downloading movies you most likely will need to upgrade and purchase a T-Mobile data plan.  For parents that are just looking to stay connected and have the convenience of accessing the Internet while out and about you should be just fine with the included free monthly data.

CLICK HERE for more information about the  T-Mobile Trio AXS 7.85" 4G Tablet.