I love iOS apps and I don’t mind paying for a good one, but whenever possible I try to get them for free! The app store is a tricky place though and although apps frequently go on sale, with price reductions or temporary promotional free price tags, it’s still hard to find those awesome apps on discount. So, let me tell you about the best two ways to find apps for free or at a discounted price!
AppShopper
The first way to find great apps for free is by downloading and skimming through AppShopper. App Shopper is a free iOS app that shows you all the app sales and discounts. Since apps go on sale everyday and can be on sale anywhere from a single day to an entire month, App Shopper keeps track of these sales histories to make sure you are seeing everything on sale! You can use the app to search for a specific app or search through categories to find a certain type of app you are looking for like a game or a utility. You can even use the app to create an App Wish List where you can list out apps you want to purchase and if they go on sale AppShopper will notify you!
Starbucks Pick of the Week
If you are not familiar, the Starbucks Pick of the Week is a promotional program hosted through Starbucks that highlights great music, movies, apps and more! Basically, when an App is chosen as part of Starbucks Pick of the Week program, free download codes are distributed by Starbucks in their stores and through their iOS app. You may have seen these little credit card sized cards sitting by the pickup station of your Starbucks, and when you take one, they have a code that you can use to download the chosen app for free. You can also use the Starbucks App to get instant notification of new Starbucks Picks that are available through their app as a digital download. The Starbucks Pick of the Week cards and downloads are always free, but you need to use the app or visit your local Starbucks in order to get them.
Are you an app junkie? Do you pay for apps or do you strictly download the free apps! Have you seen the Starbucks Pick of the Week program? Do you pick up those free cards or prefer to use the Starbucks App for free downloads? Let us know in the comments!
Late summer is one of my favorite times of year. For a long time it meant back to school for me, which I loved, but now it means back to work after a summer filled with vacation days and long lunches outside in the sunny weather. This is also the time of year when I feel a burst of energy to get myself reorganized, and I don’t know if its because academic planners are just everywhere this time of year, but its the perfect time to check up on your planner and calendar system that you may have set in place at the start of the new year or to implement one if you are not currently using a reliable system!
When it comes to using a calendar and planner system, the biggest choice you have these days is to choose digital or paper. Each system has their own benefits and drawbacks, but your habits and needs will ultimately affect how useful one type of system is over the other.
iPad or other Digital Calendar System
Pro’s: iPads really excel as personal planner and calendar systems because of the variety of applications you can use to get yourself organized. While there are plenty of apps for individual note taking and calendar optimization, there are also plenty of all in one apps that can keep you organized throughout your day. IPad’s are also great because normally within the apps you can choose to view your information in a variety of ways, like in daily, weekly or monthly formats. If you need flexibility in your daily life in order to get things done, an iPad may give you everything you need.
Con’s: While iPad’s make great planners because of their array of apps, they are still sometimes cumbersome to use. Many people find input via iPad difficult and slow. Since the iPad also needs to be charged in order to function, your planner system is completely dependent on your ability to keep it charged or have access to an electrical socket. Now, of course there are many portable charging systems you can purchase for your iPad if you work in the field or out of an office, it is still more cumbersome than a traditional paper planner.
Pro’s: One of the best things about a Filofax organizer is that they are nearly infinitely customizable. There are a multitude of planner pages, calendar views and notepads you can use with a Filofax that it makes finding your ideal system a breeze. You can also use a Filofax to store additional papers, sticky notes, and business cards so that you can keep important information close by. Since your dealing with paper and pen/pencil, you never have to worry about being without your notes or calendar, no matter how long you are away from your office. As long as your Filofax is by your side, you can keep yourself organized and on task!
Con’s: Although Filofax organizers have a variety of formats for calendars, notes and to-dos, once you have written in a to do item or scheduled a meeting its permanently there and if you need to change or update information, you often need to erase and rewrite it over again. The flexibility of editing information is much more difficult with paper planners and once you are set with your “view” (daily, weekly, monthly, etc) you cannot easily convert to a new one without purchasing more inserts and rewriting all your information over again.
So, what sort of calendar system do you use? What apps do you keep on your iPad or iPhone to keep you organized? Are you a paper planner person? Which planner system do you use?
Everyone knows someone who misuses social media. Maybe you do it without even realizing it, or maybe you get annoyed when your friends use their social media feeds for purposes that clearly go beyond the intended scope of socializing and sharing information. You may think that when it comes to social media, there are no rules, but with everything social, there are of course unspoken rules and mores that dictate proper usage and behavior. Some of it is common sense, and some of it is common courtesy, but either way you need to know the rules to play the game!
Be Polite, Please!
Although our Twitter and Facebook interactions seem very informal, they still deserve a certain level of respect. Whenever you are conversing with others, no matter what the medium, be polite and use appropriate language. Now, I do understand fully and am also completely guilty of using fowl language on social media, but just remember to do it when the moment is right and not just for the heck of it. I say this because communicating with others through the internet is hard (heck, its hard in real life too!) and words are often misconstrued even when you have the best intentions. So, just try to keep it clean and as polite as possible. Remember, everything on the internet is basically public, even if you think your Facebook profile is private, your words can still get out!
Don’t Argue Online
It has taken me a long time to understand that arguing with others is a futile effort, that applies to real life scenarios and virtual interactions as well! No matter how right you think you are, everyone has a valid opinion or at least thinks they have a valid opinion, so calling people out online for their mistakes, judgements, opinions, etc is a bad idea. This even goes as far as negative comments made on websites and YouTube. Let your commentors have their opinion and respect their right to it, don’t try to pick a fight or engage others trying to pick a fight with you, it’s a lose-lose situation!
Stay Positive
One of my biggest social media pet peeves is internet complainers (yep, that is ironic)! When it comes down to it, most people do not care that your foot hurts, or your cat threw up, or you’re having a bad hair day. Its one thing to mention something negative that has happened in your life, but don’t be that person who is always using social media to complain or make negative remarks. Not only does it turn most people off, but it puts others in an uncomfortable situation. Being positive 100% of the time is probably impossible, but remember, positivity does spread and you want people on social media to associate you with positive things so they keep coming back to see what you’re up to!
Keep your Pictures PG
Unless you are running an internet porn business or are a lingerie model, there is no reason why you should be posting pictures of yourself or others that are risqué. First of all, you never know who is going to see those pictures, like employers, future customers, or your grandmother. Second, you should have enough respect for your own image online that you don’t make yourself a target for negativity or sexual provocation.
Stick to the Intended Use
With so many different social media sites popping up everyday, its easy to confuse how you should be using each different one! If you don’t happen to understand the proper use of a social media site, you should probably do a little bit of googling to figure it out. For example, Twitter is used for short, quick to the point messages and sharing information, articles, and photos with a large group of people. Most interactions on Twitter are completely public or can easily be made public, so it’s not the place to post private photos or have a lengthy or private discussion with a friend. Pinterest is a place to share ideas and inspiration in visual form, like a virtual pin board! You want to post and share information like DIY ideas or recipes, not photos of your daughters high school graduation or your family vacation. I think you understand what I am getting at here, use each social media site the way it was intended to be used and if you aren’t sure, google it!
Now that iPhones have become an acceptable mobile device within a majority of companies, many working professionals are able to use all the benefits that the app store has to offer to help them with their daily productivity goals. From getting hard business deals signed, sealed and delivered, to making new connections and reaching out to new customers or clients, there is an app for just about any business scenario. Here is a list of some of the best apps that all professionals should have on their iPhone!
Documents to Go {$9.99}
It’s true that for most of us our professional lives revolve around the Microsoft Office Suite of Applications. Even if your company is up to speed on integrating iOS into the day-to-day workflow, you still lack the ability to view, create, and edit Word, Excel and Powerpoint documents on your iPhone or iPad. For this, Documents to Go is a must have app. It’s a bit pricey, but then again all of the MS Office integrated apps are and this one is reasonably priced without loosing any key features. Remember, you won’t have the full functionality of your desktop version of MS Office, but this is a pretty good substitute for your on the go needs!
DocScan {Free for basic use and $1.99 for Pro}
Since we still do not live in a completely electronic world, we need to find ways to deal with paper on a day to day basis. Wouldn’t it be great if you had a little, easy to use and reliable scanner you could carry around in your pocket for those times when you need to share printed documents or forms with others? Guess what, you do! Its called your iPhone and with DocScan you can turn it into that portable scanner of your dreams! I cannot tell you how many times this app has saved my butt, it is awesome for quickly snapping a scanner quality (or better) picture of a document and then sending it off via email, text, etc! It even works well with multi-page documents. Give the free version a try, and if you find you get a lot of use out of it, I recommend upgrading to the Pro version, if only to thank the developers for creating an immensely useful application!
Hootsuite {Free}
If you are a professional who needs to keep up with their social networks like Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn, Hootsuite is a great free app that puts all your social networks into one place. If you are constantly connecting to colleagues, potential business partners or other organizations you will certainly find Hootsuite’s scheduling feature for tweets and posts to be a major time saver! You even have access to Facebook Pages so you can manage your online business or identity from the convenience of your iPhone!
Feedly {Free}
If the death of Google Reader turned your world upside down, may I suggest another rss reader for you called Feedly. It has a nice simple interface and works the way you’d expect. Since Google Reader was shut down, Feedly has been the most popular free option to replace the service. It looks like in the last few weeks with the migration of users from Google Reader to Feedly, things have started to go a little wonky with their servers, but I expect that this will all be rectified soon. It works on iOS and also has a web app that is very handy so that you have access to your feeds on the go or in the office!
HelloFax {Free or Tiered Subscription Plan}
Okay, so this may not be an iOS app per se, but HelloFax is an online service that you can subscribe to that essentially turns your iPhone into a fax machine. Depending on your needs you can subscribe to a free or paid membership plan that gives you access to your own unique “fax number”for your phone and then you simply create emails with PDF attachments and email them to the recipient fax number with the addition of @hellofax.com in the send to field. That’s it! Your email becomes a fax machine and likewise, receives faxes as well. Its a major game changer for working professionals who hate having to track down a fax machine or pay per page to send a fax at an office supply store!
Everest {Free}
Lets say you are the type of person who sets goals for themselves but has a hard time achieving them. That sounds like most of us doesn’t it? Well, Everest is an app that addresses that issue within each of us to help us work towards achieving established goals. Whether you are trying to achieve personal or professional goals (or both!) this app can be a working gals BFF. If you have lots of priorities to juggle but find that you have a hard time seeing things through to the end, give this app a try!
Evernote {Free or Unlimited Paid Subscription}
Keeping track of notes and ideas is a major part of professional life. No matter what your career path, company or cause you are bombarded by information all day long, but you may or may not have a current method of capturing all that information so that you don’t misplace it. Evernote is one of the most popular all in one note taking apps that gives you multiple means of capture. Make lists, take a photo or snap a webpage to import information into Evernote. Once its been input, you can add tags that will help you find your information in the future and even arrange information in notebooks within the app. Pretty nifty!
I often find myself wide awake at 3 o’clock in the morning wondering what in the world is so important inside my own brain that I cannot enjoy the benefits of sleep! Although I try desperately to try to calm myself down, going through the motions of my night time rituals hoping to get my brain on the same page with my body, the affect is often lost and I find myself more awake then I was before. So, what do I turn to? Well, my iPhone! Although professionals say that it is best to avoid gadgets within an hour of bedtime, I find that when I cannot fall asleep no matter how hard I try, the quickest way to get myself asleep is by playing on my iPhone! Now, when it comes to trying to get myself to sleep, I won’t start doing anything major with my phone, but I have found that there are a few apps and games that actually help put me to sleep on those nights when I can’t stop tossing and turning.
Sky Guide: Sky Guide is a wonderful app with an intensely peaceful atmosphere! It uses your phone’s GPS to create a map of the night’s sky above you, whether you are indoors or outdoors. With a delicate soundtrack that sounds like a gentle lullaby, the app allows you to explore the sky around you, selecting stars, constellations and galaxies and providing you with histories and explanations for each and every celestial body. It’s almost like counting sheep, but your interacting with objects light years away.
Splodes: One of my favorite and most relaxing games is Splodes. Again, there is something about its gentle soundtrack that puts you into a state of easiness and comfort. The game itself is very slow paced, and all you need to do is “pop” a few splodes causing a chain reaction that may or may not release you into the next level. The game isn’t so much about winning as it is developing a simple strategy and I think one of the reasons it helps to put me to sleep is because it focuses my brain on the gameplay so that I am not lost in thought in my own mind. Definitely a game you will want to try if you have not already!
Osmos: Another super slow paced but very popular game that I suggest for late night decompression is Osmos. This game launched to much acclaim as one of the earliest iPad arcade style games, but it translates nicely to the small screen of the iPhone. Again, a new-agey but very calming soundtrack paired with simple gameplay mechanics soothes you to a zen like state that is very conducive for falling asleep!
Zen Brainwave Meditation: Speaking of Zen, one of my favorite on the go relaxation apps is Zen Brainwave Meditation, an app that is a portable sound machine for your iPhone. Simply choose your favorite ambient noise like the sound of rain or thunder and then select the evening brainwave program and the duration of your session and you are lulled to sleep by the science of brainwave stimulation. Its really something out of Star Trek but it helps to put me to sleep so I can’t complain! Also great for morning and afternoon meditations as well!
iBooks: When all else fails to put you to sleep there is nothing like spending some quiet time reading. Now, one of the benefits to night time reading on the iPhone is that the brightness of the screen as you read creates a heaviness on your eyes that almost immediately forces you to sleep. So, have a few good books downloaded on your iPhone just in case you have trouble falling asleep. And make sure the books are easy bed time reads and nothing to heavy and complicated for a midnight reading session. The goal is for you to fall asleep, not stay awake anxiously reading a best-seller!
Have you guys heard about the new Pebble smart watch? Back in April on Kickstarter, the Pebble smart watch became the most funded project to date, raising an astounding $10,266,844, pledged by nearly 70,000 people! By the way, its original goal was only $100,000.
So what does this watch do that makes it so smart? This watch is a quick way to stay connected to your incoming cell phone messages no matter where your phone is. It connects to your iPhone or Android device via Bluetooth and keeps you informed when notifications come in including emails, text messages, calendar alerts, weather updates, and incoming phone calls. In addition to notifying you, the watch also allows you to quick browse your messages, accept or deny calls, and control your music. That is just the beginning though, since in addition to other features, Pebble has released an SDK for developers to start working on even better and specific applications to run with the watch.
So why am I obsessing over it? Think of how many times you have missed a call or important message because had your phone in another room, or on silent, hidden in your bag, or deep inside your pockets. With this, you can always be informed of who is trying to reach you and decide if you should bother pulling out your phone just to talk to a telemarketer. The watch is also useful, if let’s say, you are in a meeting and want to check a missed call or text but don’t want to be disrespectful by pulling out your phone. Instead you could discretely look at your watch.
It currently comes in five colors: jet black, grey, arctic white, cherry red, and orange. It has an e-paper display with a backlight so you can clearly see it day or night. You can download and customize your watch faces and easily change out the watchbands with ones you purchase yourself. It is currently on pre-order, since they are still fulfilling Kickstarter orders, and it is priced at $150.00. You can find out more about the watch, or order one yourself at http://www.getpebble.com.
So, what do you think? Is this watch worth the hype or just another gimmicky accessory? Let us know in the comments!
Hey everyone! I recently filmed a what’s on my iPhone video for my YouTube channel and thought I would share for this Tech Tuesday! I hope you enjoy, and make sure to tell me in the comments what you have on your iPhone!
Recently, I had been searching for a new camera app, one that would allow me to control the aperture of my images so that I could control the depth of field in my pictures more so that I could with my iPhone’s camera app. I found Big Lens, a $.99 app for iOS with high ratings and some great user reviews. Big Lens is actually quite easy to use and surprisingly effective at achieving the natural bokeh and blur effects I was looking for. It isn’t a camera app that you would use to capture images necessarily, instead its an editing tool to use with existing images. To show you how simple and effective the app is, I am using the sample image provided in the app itself.
As you can see from these three images above, you start with your selected image, then using the brush tool in the advanced* menu you highlight the area on your image that you want to remain in focus. Don’t worry if you draw outside the lines of the subject because you can use the “Auto” selection tool and that cuts out any overage by determining the boundaries of your subject and selecting just that subject. Once your area is selected as in image two, you move on to the next step which blurs everything that wasn’t highlighted and creates a nice depth of field effect in your image.
You can control this blur in the “Aperture” tool by selecting a smaller or larger F Stop. The smaller the F Stop the larger your aperture and the more blur you get in your photo. You can also use the “Filter” tool to add some great color and lighting effects, including Lomo effects similar to those found in Instagram and other popular filter apps. Finally, you can also adjust the “Lens” options which will help you create a nice natural bokeh effect Choose the desired shape of your bokeh from a selection of hearts stars and geometric shapes. To achieve the bokeh effect, I have found that increasing the aperture will make your bokeh more prominent in your image, but there are also some filter options that also assist with creating a nice bokeh.
* This app has a Basic and an Advanced menu. I am using the Advanced menu for this review because it gives the user more precise control over the effects, however, if you were to use the Basic menu, it gives you most of the same options, but instead of the brush tool for selecting your subject, you have a standard circle or linear blur option. All else is the same between the two menus.
Overall, I am very satisfied with the Big Lens app. For $.99 its pretty powerful and creates some nice depth of field and blur effects that are much more precise than what other popular apps offer. I like how I get some functions of a DSLR camera with this app that make my subjects stand out and product some great lighting effects as well. Definitely give Big Lens a try if you are looking for more advanced focus and blur controls.
One of my must have accessories for the warmer months has got to be the smartphone wallet. Whether you tote around an iPhone, Android or Windows smartphone, these awesome wallets double as clutches that keep your phone, cash and important cards all in one place. I have been using one as my primary wallet since I was gifted one for my birthday! So far, I have seen many designer brands of these wallets popping up all over the place, but you can find some stylish and sensibly priced versions in store and online if you just spend the time to look! I have done some legwork for you and scouted out a few styles at various price points, some designer names and some everyday brands, to help you find your perfect fit!
If you were a reader of one of my previous blogs, either The Pink Mac or Strange & Charmed, you will probably notice that things have changed a bit around here. Both sites now redirect to this new fancy, shmancy WordPress site. Yes, I made the leap from Blogger to a self hosted WordPress, complete with my own URL and a lovely theme that I purchased from BluChic.com and then had my awesome graphic designerd husband customize it to fit my color scheme. The process was actually much simpler than I had imagined, but I did shell out a good amount of money, paying for the URL, the web hosting through Blue Host and the lovely theme. It was certainly money well spent on my part as it has prepared me for some awesome things to come.
In case you haven’t heard, I am going to Blogcademy in NYC in June. Blogcademy is a two day blogging workshop hosted by a triumvirate of awesome female bloggers {Gala Darling, Kat Williams, & Shauna Haider aka Nubby Twiglet}! Last month I signed up for the nearest event in the hopes of learning some important blogging skills that I am surely lacking, but to prep, I wanted to get my blog in top shape by making some changes that I felt were important and necessary in order to grow. So, this is the new site, for now! I have folded The Pink Mac into Strange & Charmed because I truly felt like The Pink Mac was the precursor to Strange & Charmed before I ever fully realized my goals and aspirations for blogging. It feels naturals that now The Pink Mac is part of Strange & Charmed and from now on it will be its own feature within the blog and magazine! It even has a dedicated link on my nav bar because to me it is a staple of my blog and of my life!
I hope you enjoy what you read here at Strange & Charmed and I hope you like the new changes with the layout and of course the increased quality of the content. I am trying my best to give my readers interesting bits throughout the week so come back soon and see what I have put together for you!
