greeting cards
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Nick Offerman on why sometimes the best tech is low tech
Nick Offerman -- star of Parks and Recreation, author of Good Clean Fun and carver of emoji -- made his first trip to CES this year. And no trip to the biggest tech show of the year would be complete without a stop at the Engadget stage. Offerman came by to share his thoughts on technology's pitfalls, working with your hands and the power of greeting cards. No, seriously. As part of American Greetings' new #DeviceLikeNoOther campaign, he is reminding everyone that sometimes an email or a text message isn't the best way to communicate how you feel. Sometimes there's just no replacing a physical card.
Apple's Cards available on October 12 for iOS
Apple has announced a new official app for iOS. Cards will use any photo taken with an iOS device, and put that photo, along with a message, on high-quality paper to your specifications. The company will even mail it out for you with Apple-designed postage and lettering. Essentially, it offers a way for you to design and deliver custom greeting cards directly from your iOS device, wherever you happen to be. Apple's Cards is due out on October 12. The app seems to be free, though obviously it'll cost you to send and print a card -- $2.99 in the U.S., and $4.99 around the rest of the world. You'll even get a push notification on your device whenever the card is actually printed and sent out. Sure, this might not be the hottest announcement from today's event, but it's a service that a lot of users might want to take advantage of.
Cards app for iPhone sends snail mail best wishes, for a price
We've got at least one completely unexpected announcement from Apple's Let's Talk iPhone Event: a new app that sends out greeting cards. For $2.99 within the US and $4.99 internationally, sending a greeting card the old fashioned way is just one click away on your mobile, complete with notifications when your card is mailed. Taking shots at PC makers and Android's apps are a given, but a bomb dropped on Hallmark? Welcome to the Tim Cook era. Check the liveblog and gallery below for more details. %Gallery-135715% Follow along in our ongoing liveblog right here!
TUAW's Daily App: Cartolina
Cartolina is an app that I noticed over on the great Drawn! illustration blog. While you might not want to get it yourself (it's the thought that counts with greeting cards, and I think that, with both cards and letters, the real thing is still better), you can't disagree that the art of this one is pretty incredible. Cartolina is originally a stationery company, printing cards and letterheads with elaborate and elegant designs on them, but they've also released an iPhone app. For US$2.99, you get access to nine different artistic templates, which can then be made into beautiful email or text messages. It's not a big deal (and it's no substitute for actually writing someone a letter -- something I already don't do enough of), but for classing up the standard congratulatory or simply nice email or text message, it'll work wonders. The app also has a built-in calendar with reminders of major events, and the app promises even more designs and features coming soon. Again, if you already have a schedule and a plan for sending greeting cards, the app probably won't interest you that much. But it's always nice to send someone a reminder that you're thinking of them, and having Cartolina around might help you do just that.
Club Nintendo offers new, organizational rewards
Nintendo has announced some new Club Nintendo rewards for patrons to spend their hard-earned points on. Don't get too excited! The rewards are folders and greeting cards. For 300 points each, you can get a set of either Nintendogs or Mario greeting cards; and for 250 points each, there are folder sets of "Mario & Friends," "Toad & Friends," and "Bowser" (each containing three folders and some bookmarks). These office items might be extra useful for those of you still in school -- or those of you whose jobs don't already tell everyone you know what a huge Nintendo nerd you are. We like them because all the Mario items use hand-drawn Mario art instead of the 3D models Nintendo typically uses.
Breakfast Topic: Sorry about your nerf
I like Trixter's "silly idea" over on WoW Ladies. She says she came home the other day to a boyfriend bummed out by the Curse of Tongues nerf, and wished she had a greeting card for the occasion. Something, we'd guess, like "Sorry about your nerf. Hope you pwn soon." Funny. Which got us thinking: what other kinds of greeting cards might come in handy for WoW players?"It's a proto-drake! Congrats on your new mount!""Our condolences on your recent ninja attack. Here's wishing you all the best loot in the future.""Thanks for all your help with the raid-leading! You're the best!""Will you BEE our Tank?" (And there's a picture of a bee on it.)Ok, so those aren't that great. But what other ideas might Hallmark be interested in if they were designing a new line of greeting cards for you to give out to fellow players afflicted by what happens in Azeroth?
Memento developer offers free holiday greeting card app
A while back we told you about Memento, a quick way to send e-cards right from your iPhone. The developer of that application is back at it again with a Holiday card application. Memento Xmas [iTunes link] is a free application that allows you to send holiday-themed greeting cards to your friends and family, just in time for the holidays. The application acts just like its older brother, Memento, but it is limited to only 4 greeting cards. With each of the greeting cards you have the ability to snap a photo (or use one from your library), and you can also edit the included text. You can download and try out Memento Xmas from the iTunes App Store. In a pinch, this application could save you from writing out all of those holiday greeting cards (unless you still want to have friends and family). %Gallery-39560%Thanks, Duncan!
Mac 101: Dealing without iCards
Apple has posted a nifty tip for Mail users who miss the discontinued iCards feature from .Mac: You can use Mail stationery to create an attractive card-like message with your own photos. In a post on the Mobile Me blog (hey, it's not dead!), Apple says "...it's like the old Make Your Own iCards feature on steroids, and a whole lot easier to use in the bargain." For Leopard users, Mail comes with 30 email templates you can customize in lieu of sending an iCard. Personally, I think an email is better than an iCard anyway, what with all the greeting card spam that goes on. You can use photos that you take with Photo Booth, for example, or pictures from iPhoto. Customize it with a clever note, and away you go. If you don't have Leopard or still want to use an online greeting card site, there are plenty to choose from. (And if you like our series for beginners, Mac 101, there's much more to learn.)
