Tech-savvy tips to make sure you never miss another friend or family member's birthday

Have you ever experienced the letdown of someone forgetting your birthday? It's a disheartening feeling, to say the least. To spare yourself embarrassment and disappointment, it's crucial to ensure that you never overlook your loved one's birthdays. To help you out with this goal, here are some tech tips that will make sure you never forget one again.

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1. Use your phone's calendar app

The easiest way to get alerted about birthdays on your smartphone is to use the built-in calendar app. Both iPhone and Android let you add an event that can repeat annually, meaning you won't have to keep adding birthdays each year.

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How to use your iPhone's calendar app to get alerted about birthdays

• Open the Calendar app
• Tap the + (plus) button on the top right to add an event
• Add the person's name and the word "birthday" to the title
• Toggle on All day
• Next to where it says Starts, select their birthday.
• Tap Repeat and select Every year
• Tap Alert if you want a reminder ahead of their birthday (select On day of event, 1 day before, 2 days before, or 1 week before)
• Tap Add

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How to use your Android's calendar app to get alerted about birthdays

Settings may vary depending on your Android phone’s manufacturer 

Samsung

• Open the Calendar app
• Tap the + (plus) button on the bottom right
• Add the person's name and the word "birthday" to the title
• Tap All day
• Select the date of their birthday
• Tap next to the alarm icon to set a reminder (day of at 9am, day before at 5pm, 2 days before, or a custom date and time) to get an alert about the birthday ahead of time
• Go back and tap where it says Don't repeat
• Select Every year
• You can leave the Duration on "Forever"
• Go back and tap Save on the bottom right of the screen

Pro tip: Add their birth year to the Notes section so you don't forget how old they're turning.

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2. Use a third-party Birthday calendar reminder apps

BDAYS app on iPhone and Android

If you don't want birthdays clogging up your phone's calendar, use a separate app to set up birthday reminders.  Available for both iPhone and Android, this BDAYS app lets you view all your friends and family's birthdays in one spot for easy viewing. You can stay ahead of sending birthday cards, add multiple people's birthdays at once, set multiple reminders, and get alerted every year.

iPhone: 5.0 stars (at time of publishing) 

Android: 4.8 (at time of publishing) 

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Google Contacts app on Android

Google has a specific app for keeping track of your contacts on Android which is convenient if you want to access contacts across multiple devices like your phone, tablet, and computer. The Contacts app makes it easy to add a birthday while you're adding a new contact, so you can set up birthday notifications and never miss someone's big day.

Android: 4.3 stars (at time of publishing) 

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3. Send fun birthday messages with iPhone

If you and the one celebrating a birthday both have an iPhone, you can send your birthday text in a super fun way. The Messages app automatically sends a screen full of balloons if you type the message "happy birthday" to another iPhone user. You can also send other fun effects on the messages app.

How to add a full-screen effect to your messages

• Open the iMessage app and tap the Compose icon in the top right-hand corner to start a new message or go to an existing conversation
• Type your message
• Touch and hold the blue send arrow icon to the right of your message and then tap Screen option at the top
• Swipe left to see the full-screen effects options
• While on the option you like, tap the blue Send arrow

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Add a bubble effect to your messages 

You can use the bubble effect to change the way that your iMessage bubbles look when they send.

How to add a bubble effect to your messages

• Open the iMessage app and tap the Compose icon in the top right-hand corner to start a new message or go to an existing conversation
• Enter your message in the text box and hold down the Send arrow
• Tap the gray dot to preview different bubble effects
• Choose one and tap the Send arrow

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Send a handwritten birthday iMessage on iPhone

Personalize your iMessages by sending them in your own handwriting. Your friends and family will watch them animate once they are sent.

How to send a handwritten message on iPhone

• Open the iMessage app and tap the Compose icon in the top right-hand corner to start a new message or go to an existing conversation
• Turn your iPhone sideways and tap the small scribble icon (it’s on the bottom right-hand corner of your keyboard screen next to the Return button)

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• Write out your message or select one of the options given
• If you mess up and need to restart, just tap Undo in the upper left of the screen
• When you’re finished, tap Done and press the Send arrow

MORE: SEND A FUN MESSAGE WITH THESE IPHONE TRICKS

4. Get notified of birthdays on Facebook

Sometimes you want to wish a former colleague or acquaintance a happy birthday, but that doesn't mean you necessarily need their birthday in your yearly phone calendar. Turn on Facebook birthday notifications, so your Facebook app will alert you anytime you should send a birthday to your online friends.

How to get notified of birthdays on Facebook

1. Log into your Facebook account
2. Tap your profile photo icon (on desktop)
3. Tap Settings & privacy
4. Tap Settings
5. On the left tap Notifications
6. Tap Birthdays  to adjust your settings
7. Make sure Allow notifications on Facebook is toggled on
8. Then under Where you receive these notifications, toggle on Push (messages that pop up on your phone or computer screen when you’re not actively using Facebook), Email, and/or SMS for texts

If you're using Push notifications, be sure your phone's settings allow notifications from the Facebook app.

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5. Send an E-gift using GiftYa

While a text, call or email on your birthday is nice, an even nicer gift is to receive a gift card. GiftYa is a site that lets you send personalized gift cards with a beautiful presentation for tons of merchants in the U.S. Your gift will be sent to the loved one's phone within seconds, so it's a great last-minute gift.

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6. Send an Amazon birthday gift card

Amazon's website lets you buy an eGift card, a physical one, and even one you can print yourself. They have tons of fun graphics so you can jazz up your gift card that you know will be the right size for anyone.

MORE: HOW TO KEEP YOUR AMAZON GIFT PURCHASES A SECRET

Bonus: how to score amazing deals on Your Birthday

Did you know that there are tons of companies out there that will give you free rewards as a birthday gift? From perks at restaurants to makeup brand gifts and more, log onto Cyberguy.com/BirthdayRewards for some of the best freebies and discounts you can get for your special day.

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Kurt's key takeaways

Forgetting someone's birthday can lead to major disappointment and embarrassment, so staying on top of those special dates is important. Thankfully, technology has our back to ensure we never miss a birthday again. From using your phone's calendar app to setting up reminders with third-party apps like BDAYS or Google Contacts, there are tons of ways to keep track of those important dates. And let's not forget the fun and personalized touches, like sending a screen full of balloons or a handwritten message using the iPhone's Messages app. So, embrace these tech tips, and never again experience the letdown of forgetting a loved one's birthday. Plus, if you're looking to add something extra special, you can surprise them with an E-gift using platforms like Giphy or GiftYa. Now you have no excuses.

For other Birthday present ideas, be sure to head to Cyberguy.com/Kurts-picks for all the top CyberGuy gift guides this year.

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What's your favorite way to celebrate a birthday? Let us know by writing us at Cyberguy.com/Contact

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