By Claire Cain Miller
my paper
Monday, Nov 28, 2011
MORE people are skipping paper holiday cards - or at least the part you mail them yourself - in favour of cellphone apps that create cards and send them by text message, e-mail or snail mail.
Though websites like Shutterfly and Paperless Post have already simplified the process by letting people upload photos and order or send cards online, the new apps make it even faster by doing away with the need to transfer a photo from your phone to the computer.
Before you disavow the tradition altogether, here are some apps that can bring back the joy of sending holiday cards.
Red stamp
This greeting-card firm has been around since 2005 with a website to create and order old-fashioned printed cards. But this autumn, Red Stamp switches its focus to an app for the iPhone, iPad and iPod touch to send cards virtually.
The app is intuitive to use. Choose a card; snap a photo or choose one from your phone's library, Facebook or Instagram; customise the colour and text; and choose recipients from your phone's address book. The cards can be sent by e-mail, text message, Facebook or Twitter.
For those who cannot let go of paper cards, Red Stamp will also print and mail postcards. The app, most of the designs and digital delivery are free; post- cards start at US$1.99 (S$2.60).
Sincerely ink
The Sincerely start-up has an app, Postagram, to turn photos stuck on Instagram, Facebook and cellphones into printed postcards. Its newest app, Sincerely Ink, applies that idea to holiday cards.
The designs are fairly traditional (think snowflakes and Christmas trees), and when the season ends, the app will be updated with cards for coming holidays.
Like Red Stamp, the app lets you customise cards with photos and messages and choose recipients on your phone. In three to seven days, within the United States, recipients get heavyweight postcards in the mail.
The app is free and cards range from US$1.69 for bulk orders to US$2.99 for international deliveries, including postage. It is available on Android, iPhone and iPad.
Cartolina
Cartolina sells high-end paper cards wholesale but, last year, when it introduced its iPhone and iPod touch app, the firm discovered that people also wanted to send cards by text message and e-mail.
Cartolina's digital cards are nostalgic, with vintage images of yellowed paper and postage stamps. This year, it will add holiday designs to the app, which costs US$1.99. But card writers must be brief, as they are limited to fewer than 80 characters for their messages.
For the more verbose, or more old-fashioned, the firm has joined with Sincerely to introduce a second app, Cartolina Postale, for creating and sending postcards. People can write longer messages and upload photos. Cards cost US$1.99, though the app is free.
Apple cards
For techies who still love stationery, Apple has gone a step further than the other postcard firms by introducing an iPhone and iPod touch app, Cards, that lets people create artsy letterpress cards that Apple mails in heavy-cotton paper envelopes.
In typical Apple fashion, the cards are elegantly designed and addressed in cursive. Users choose from 21 templates, add a photo, write a message and choose addresses from their phones' address books.
For US$2.99 in the US, Apple mails the card and sends a notification to the sender's phone when the card is scheduled to arrive.
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