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Track your big events with Widget Countdown
There are big events in life. Some we can't wait for, others we dread. It's easy to put them on the calendar, but thats not as immediately clear as seeing just how many days or hours remain until something happens. Widget Countdown puts your big events front and center where it's easy to keep track of them. The app is US$0.99 and requires iOS 8.0 or later and is compatible with iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch. This app is optimized for iPhone 5. When initially presented with Widget Countdown my first reaction was, "I don't need yet another calendar." I get by with the built in iOS and Mac OS Calendar, even though I'm not terribly excited with them. I do like and use Fantastical for fast access and creating events and reminders. But, Widget Countdown isn't a calendar. It's not even about counting widgets. This app about setting up and displaying future events. A most importantly, it can display these events within the Notification Center. The app itself is beautifully and thoughtfully designed. It's very easy to create new events directly from your existing calendar events or to manually create them within the app. You can give each event a name, specify a date and/or time, and select a background picture. The app lets you search online for pictures from 500px or Flickr with a keyword search. The result it very nice. It would make a great lock screen, if Apple permitted such a thing (it does not). I find that I don't often launch the app to review my upcoming events. Instead I pull the Notification Center down from the top of the screen and find them displayed there (after adding them by editing which apps to display there). That's the really useful feature of this app. It's just the text, that's enough and what makes this app terrific. I find that limiting the number of things that I include in the countdown to make it easier to think about upcoming events. Add 20 items and the list becomes unweildy. But limit yourself to just four or five events and it's much easier to deal with. When using the app itself you can flick up on the displayed days to reveal the hours remaining. You can also send the image of the event countdown via any of the system services, including Mail, Messages, social media apps, etc. Unfortunately the app adds a commercial message to your image as well, but you can delete that. I still find this practice annoying and tacky, especially for a paid app. Note to app developers and publishers: don't beg for positive reviews with popups in your apps and don't tack on advertisements in messages. If you want to keep track of the big upcoming events in your life, I do like Widget Countdown, especially for the Notification Center access. Don't let that next birthday or anniversary sneak up on you.
Flipboard update greatly improves this popular news app
Flipboard (free) has always been popular for reading news and following topics. The only downside is that it lacked any personalization. You got the topics you selected, but the app did not learn my favorite topics the way another news app -- Zite -- did. Times change. Earlier this year Flipboard purchased Zite to get the other company's smart personalization software, and a new Flipboard has been born, just now hitting the App Store. The new app looks better, it's easier to use, and it now has the kind of personalization that made Zite such a pleasure to use. When you launch the new app, you get more than 30,000 topics from which to choose. You can also search for topics not covered. Using the app I found a lot of the topics were right in line with what I wanted to read. Flipboard has always followed a magazine-type presentation, and the new app stays with that. The re-design is most noticeable on the iPhone version, which adds a tab bar for enhanced navigation. Looking at available stories involves swiping, or flipping up. Tap to read, then flip up again to go through the pages. It's very fast and responsive. Once you are in a story, it can be marked to indicate you weren't interested (a thumbs down) or you can save images to your camera roll. You can also open the story directly in Safari, email it, and send it to others via the usual social networks. Flipboard combines human curation with the smart Zite algorithms to make sure you are getting what you want to read. You no longer have to build magazines with Flipboard, which I thought was a weakness. Now the app learns and delivers the content you want, while still supporting magazine-style groupings of information. Flipboard delivers ads that will hopefully be relevant to readers. Flipboard will also, if you select it, deliver a news summary for you at 7 A.M local time. This is a much improved app that was already quite good. I'm still a big fan of Zite, but at some point I expect the Flipboard folks will sunset Zite, since much of the technology behind it has now been folded into Flipboard. I'm excited about the changes, and using the app is a pleasure, especially on an iPhone. If you've used the app in the past but moved on, it's worthy of a fresh look in this latest version. Flipboard requires iOS 7 or later and it has been optimized for the iPhone 5 and the new iPhone 6 series.
ProShot is a worthy addition to your app collection
ProShot (free) has been a big hit on Windows Phones, but was missing from the App Store. It's no longer absent from the iOS world, and it launches with a barrel of useful features that give your iPhone capabilities similar to a serious DSLR. Standouts are things like auto and manual ISO settings, burst mode, timers, time-lapse with fully manual control, fingertip control of ISO, shutter speed and white balance, manual focus assist and custom modes so you don't have to stick with just auto, program and manual modes. The app supports EXIF metadata, an internal camera roll, and a grid overlay that can be customized by color. Shutter speeds can be up to 8 seconds, perfect for night photography. The iOS incarnation of ProShot did not carry over all the features from the Windows Phone version, but most are coming, including the ability to shoot video. The app doesn't do any editing or processing at all. Take your picture with ProShot, and make your adjustments in another app. The screen layouts are excellent. DSLRs could learn a thing or two from the design of ProShot. I took the app for a spin around my garden and really liked the flexibility offered. Focus was quick and precise. I liked the ability to set ISO and shutter speed to taste and to match the lighting conditions. Automatic modes also worked well, but for photographers seeking more flexibility this may be the app you use the most. The only feature I missed is an HDR mode. The software is so good, I would think this app could do a nice job with the multiple exposures required to get an HDR photo. I hope it's coming. ProShot has digital zoom up to 50x and it is the best I've seen. Still, digital zoom isn't the same as optical zoom and you are better off avoiding it if you can. I'm certainly impressed with ProShot. There are hundreds of camera apps out there and many are excellent, but ProShot gets a lot of things "just right" in my view, and using it is an enjoyable experience that will get your creative juices flowing. I don't know if there are plans to charge for this app, so grab it now since it is free. Adding quality HDR, HDR alignment, and processing would make this among the very best camera apps there is. ProShot requires iOS 8 and worked smoothly on my iPhone 6. It's not universal, so it's not ideal for iPads.
A tribute to the iPod Classic -- RIP, old friend
The iPod Classic, the standard for portable music for over a decade, has been discontinued due to a lack of availability of the parts needed to make it. While current generations exist, each with their own features that make them unique in their own way, nothing Apple currently sells matches the staggering storage space and rugged durability of the classic. I bought my last iPod five years ago, and it still sits in my car, ready to bring the joy of music to my ears at any given moment. My iPod still runs perfectly, like the faithful workhorse it was bred to be. But one day it will die, and that will be a day of mourning. It will be a loss that, thanks to eBay, will be very expensive to get over. Since the iPod's introduction it has seen many forms, from the original bulky box to the sleek, but brutally lacking in storage for the price, iPod Touch. Some have asked why anyone could possibly need 160 GB of music on their person at all times. Those people have never driven for a living. The iPod Classic introduced a level of freedom into the entertainment options of travelers that previously required piles of dusty CD holders to even begin to approach. Even at the top level of the iPod Touch, 64 GB for the same price you once got 120 GB, you're barely scratching the surface of what came before. For music fans -- those of us who already have an iPhone for pictures and games -- the loss of the iPod classic is a deep one. To this day it remains the best MP3 player ever produced, capable of playing videos if you wanted, but excelling at creating music experiences. With the advent of Genius it became one of the world's greatest jukeboxes, taking the music experiences you've shared with it and building playlists of similar songs in your collection in seconds. We will miss you, iPod Classic. In your honor here is a historical video covering your growth, evolution, and sadly, the harbingers of your death. Enjoy.
Tim Cook on axing the iPod Classic: "We couldn't get the parts anymore"
Last month, Apple swiftly and quietly put an end to the venerable iPod Classic. No announcements were made, no funeral was held. Instead, all references to the Classic were casually removed from the iPod section on Apple's website, dashing the dreams of users who prefer -- nay, demand! -- 160GB of portable music storage. During yesterday's WSJD Live conference, Tim Cook fielded a question about the demise of the iPod Classic, noting that it was end-of-lifed because Apple simply couldn't source the parts anymore. And because the iPod Classic was, well, a classic that didn't move the needle sales-wise, Cook added that it wasn't worth the effort for Apple to devote engineering resources towards redesigning the device. "We would have to make a whole new product," Cook said, "the engineering work to do that would be massive."
Tim Cook explains why the iPod Classic had to die
It was the best question pitched to Apple CEO at WSJD's Live conference: Why was the iPod discontinued? Apparently it's a very simple reason: "We couldn't get the parts any more," explained Tim Cook. "They don't make them any more." While the iPod Classic isn't exactly a creaky transistor radio just yet, that's how it went down. "We would have to make a whole new product.... the engineering work to do that would be massive." The difficult truth that some of you probably don't want to hear: "The number of people who wanted it is very small." So pour one out for the iPod Classic -- and hit up eBay if you're still craving a clickwheel. Nicole Lee contributed to this story.
Superimpose for iOS lets you blend and superimpose your photos
Superimpose (US$0.99) does a first class job of taking part of one photo and adding it to another. It's great for removing your best friend from a picture taken in your living room and putting them at Niagara Falls, or taking the head of one person (or your dog) and placing it on another body. There have been other apps that do this, and of course on your Mac there are Photoshop or other image editing applications, but Superimpose makes it easy and has the added advantage of giving you tools to match the exposure and color of the two layers before you blend them. To use the app, click on the Library button and you are asked to load the background, followed by the foreground. There are a variety of masking tools that let you knock out the foreground areas that should be eliminated. One handy tool is a Magic Wand that tries to do this automatically. That's only likely to succeed if your subject is standing against a solid color or the sky. For further masking tasks, there are brushes that can be resized to get as little or as much as you want. One thing the app does very nicely is that it offsets the view of what you are masking, so you can see the image without your finger being in the way. If you miss on your masking, there is an eraser tool that lets you un-mask any parts that are sloppy. With a little practice, you'll have the best methods down. Superimpose allows you to rescale, rotate or flip the foreground to work best with the background. To make things even easier, you can match the color cast of the two layers. Nothing screams composite louder than two pictures with different color appearances. There is even a tool that lets you put a shadow of the foreground object on the added background. Superimpose also supports blending of textures and there are a variety of filters for special effects. Your saved images will be at full resolution, giving you the best possible quality. I had no trouble at all using the app, but it does take a bit of practice to learn the art of masking. The tools provided make it as easy as it can be, and you are likely to get great results. Superimpose is not an app you will use every day, but when you want to try the effect it's one of the best apps I've seen. The app contains links to video tutorials, which I would recommend you view before you jump in. Superimpose is a clever app at a reasonable price. It requires iOS 7 or later, and it's universal.
Get daily inspiration with BrainyQuote
Pretty much everyone would enjoy a thoughtful quotation displayed against a vast natural panorama. Now, iPhone users can create their very own inspirational image and share it via social media, text, or email with BrainyQuote. This free app is available for iOS 7.1 or later and is optimized for iPhone 5, 6, and 6 Plus. The app is extremely straightforward and simple. Upon opening it, the quote of the day atop a nature scene is displayed. Then, using that quote or one of the several thousand from the in-app library organized by topic, users can create inspirational backgrounds for their iPhones, or post them to social media such as Facebook. Users can also scroll through past quotes of the day by tapping on the arrow on the left-hand side of the screen. If they tap on the "explore" feature at the bottom of the screen, they can pick from a list of topics-everything from age to dating to religion to wisdom-as well as search by author's name. They can then flip through each quote, displayed on its own background, which can be swapped for another background by tapping the photo option immediately below. Once the desired quote and image are matched, the user can upload their jot of inspiration to different social media outlets, text it, email it, save it to their camera roll to use as a background or lock screen. Users can also open the BrainyQuote website, where they can get more information on the author, find related authors, and even link to their published works (if they have any) on Amazon. This is a fun little app with stunning naturescapes and thoughtful quotes. One of the interesting things about having so many quotations in so many categories is that they cover almost every perspective imaginable. This means that there will be something here for everyone, and of course new ones are being added every day. (If they so desire, users can have a daily notification at the same time letting them know what the daily quote is. The set time is 8 am but this can be changed in-app.) There isn't really anything negative to say about this app, as it does precisely what it was advertised to do. Naturally, this makes it somewhat limited in scope by nature, but it is refreshing to find an app that is streamlined, uncomplicated, and delivers exactly what was promised. The only thing I could think of to add might be a way for users to import their own quotes. While there are a good number stored within the app, particularly perceptive or thoughtful users might have one that is very special to them which isn't there. Perhaps in future updates this kind of feature will be added. Overall, the BrainyQuote app provides users with an aesthetic and user-friendly means to put a small dose of thoughtful inspiration into their day. Given how often most of us look at our phones, this kind of a reminder would not be a bad thing at all.
Magic Hour for iOS offers almost unlimited filters
Magic Hour (US$1.99) offers 38 preset filters with the ability to modify and save them, giving you an immense number of options when you are modifying your photos. In addition, Magic Hour can let you take photos directly, with locks for focus and exposure, flash, and zoom (digital). The app will also superimpose a grid to make sure your photos are level and help you visualize composition. The main business of Magic Hour is filters, and they are never over the top. Filters are well thought-out, with plenty of natural-looking options. Of course, you can push all the filters to get more saturation or contrast -- that's up to you. The app also features an assortment of frames and textures, some of them appearing as presets with filters, providing one-click options to enhance your photos. Fine-tuning tools like curves, rotate, crop, tilt-shift and black and white modes are also included. Using Magic Hour is easy. You take or import your photo, select from the array of filters, and then tune the individual filters to taste. Add a frame if you desire, then save the final image to your camera roll or send it to friends directly from the app. You can send your masterwork via Facebook, Twitter, Flickr, Tumblr, Dropbox and E-mail and you can print via AirPrint if you are equipped for it. There is also a free filter market where you can share your creations with others around the world or download some that you like. Magic Hour also offers additional filters like HDR, Posterize and Toon at $0.99 each or all three for $1.99. Frankly, I'd like to see all the filters included in the base price. Magic Hour is a nice package. I am still a big fan of Snapseed (free), which has numerous filters and HDR conversions to die for. Still, Magic Hour has a greater variety of filters and more ability to tune them, so I think it is worthy of serious consideration. The app is not universal, but should be. It requires iOS 4.3 or later.
HealthTap launches a live medical advice service that uses your iOS device
HealthTap+ today announced the launch of HealthTap Concierge, its pay-as-you-go medical consulting service. This is an addition to the current HealthTap services that can be delivered over the web to a computer or your iOS device. HealthTap Concierge is meant to address the three biggest problems you face when trying to get fast reliable medical advice from your doctor: 1. It takes too long to get an appointment. 2. It's inconvenient to travel to the doctor's physical office and waste time in the waiting room (while getting exposed to health risks spread by other patients). 3. Doctor visits and even insurance co-pays often cost too much. HealthTap will connect you directly with your doctor and other top specialists and generalists of your choice-virtually by HD video, text chat or voice with its iOS app or PC or Mac. You can also get advice and even medication refills with no wait time. Your instantaneous virtual consultation is as easy as clicking a button in a mobile app, privately and securely. If you join up (prices detailed below) it costs US$44 per consultation, close to a cost of a typical co-pay from more traditional medical services. HealthTap Concierge also allows you to build a Care Team of high-quality care providers at no cost by providing 24/7 access to the Virtual Practices of more than one million doctors from 105 medical specialties. Starting today, anyone can get a second, third or tenth opinion from top specialist via HD video or secure text chat, from anywhere in the world. The company has more than 64,000 doctors in the U.S. to help. In addition to the live chats and interaction, the app offers more generic health tips from trusted sources, and some checklists to get you into a healthier mode of life. HealthTap may be on to something with a marriage of technology and a national medical system that has fallen behind in getting people the kind of treatment and hands-on attention they want. The system is actively recruiting additional doctors, and people who have doctors can try to get their own physicians engaged in the service. Patients pay by the encounter. This kind of virtual health experience is unique in the industry, and may set a trend. There are multiple levels of service available. HealthTap does not provide medical care or diagnosis. Experts provide general information. HealthTap Prime does provide limited medical care as appropriate, but is not meant to be a substitute for your local doctor. HealthTap is free, but the personal services are part of a paid plan. Here's how the plans work. A free non-member plan allows you to look at material that has already been collected and see how doctors answered questions from others. That's not much different from finding information on the web, although the information from HealthTap is curated. A basic plan, also free, gives you the curated material, a personalized news feed, healthy living tips, the ability to securely store health tests results, and share them with your doctor. The Prime Membership adds the above and offers Doctor referrals, ability to ask questions of doctors, video or text chat, and coverage of Primary care doctors. This service is $99.00 per month for an individual, and $10 extra per family member. The Concierge service, the newest offering, is by invitation only and aims to include your own doctors during office hours. That's subject, of course, to your doctor agreeing. Consultations are $44 per 'visit' (free for Prime Members), and adds specialists in 105 categories. As you can see, the paid options are not cheap, but may be of great benefit to people who want something additional to basic insurance and more access to doctors and information at any time and from any location. You can get more details on the HealthTap website. Services like this may well become the future of healthcare, as more and more smartphones with video capability are deployed.
Apple just sold more Macs than iPods for the first time in a decade
The iPad and iPhone are both selling extremely well these days, but Apple's other portable, the iPod, is having a rough go of things. Being replaced by smartphones as the default mobile music player of choice, the iPod dipped to under 15 million units sold in fiscal 2014, which means two things: The iPod's bottom has not yet been reached, and the Mac just outsold Apple's dedicated media player for the first time since 2003. As Mac continues to defy logic -- gaining ground while the entire rest of the PC industry is seeing huge losses -- it has eclipsed the iPod. This is great news for Mac, but it also means that the iPod is now officially the poorest selling of Apple's primary product lines. But don't expect Apple to axe the iPod brand any time soon; That's still 14 million sales of a device that has been largely untouched since early 2013, and which still has fantastic profit margins. It remains the go-to musical accessory for millions, and those who doesn't want to strap an increasingly large smartphone to their arm during a morning run continue to prove that the iPod is still relevant. [Chart via barefigur.es]
Apple wants all iOS apps to use 64-bit code starting in February
Apple may have only introduced 64-bit computing to iPhones and iPads a little over a year ago, but it's already preparing for the day when legacy 32-bit code is gone for good. The Cupertino crew is now telling developers that their iOS apps must include 64-bit support from February 1st onward. While the company won't kick out existing titles, both new apps and updated releases will have to make the switch. Theoretically, this is easy -- developers just have to build apps using the most recent tools and standard settings.
Installing and living with the new Sonos Boost
I've been a long-time fan of the Sonos whole house music system. When it was first introduced about a decade ago, it provided high quality music to several rooms in my house, and later updates allowed me to have complete control of the system from my Mac, iPhone or iPad. The only issue I ever had with my system is interference. I live in a pretty densely-built neighborhood, and I see Wi-Fi signals coming into the house at or near the signal strength of my own Wi-Fi router. As a result, music would sometime drop out or Sonos would report insufficient bandwidth to play the music. Design To solve the problem for me and countless others, Sonos has just introduced the Sonos Boost. It's a small US$99.00 white box that promises 50% greater range, and freedom from wireless interference. Configuration and Conclusion Hooking up the Sonos Boost is easy. In my original configuration, I had one of my Sonos boxes -- a Connect: AMP -- hooked directly to the router in my office. I unplugged that ethernet cable, and plugged in the Boost instead using the same cable. My Connect: AMP was now mated to the system wirelessly. I followed the quick setup steps in the Sonos Controller app on my Mac, and I was quickly reconfigured to use the Boost. The Boost has three internal wireless antennas which are designed to overcome just about any kind of interference. Real World Testing I've had the Boost as part of my Sonos system for about a week and so far I haven't experienced a single dropout. That's a decided improvement to my pre-Boost system. Before, I was constantly having to change the wireless channel the Sonos was using in order to try to stay away from channel changes on other people's home Wi-Fi systems. Everything is now calm and stable. In fact I've tried all the available wireless channels on the Sonos and they all work without dropouts or music interruptions. I simply could not do that before, as every channel change was at risk of losing connectivity. If you currently have a working Sonos system in your home, the Boost really isn't for you. But if you are living in any kind of Wi-Fi interference hell with your Sonos system, it appears that the Boost will give you a ticket out of your issues and into a state of audio nirvana.
Pro HDR X is a solid advance in High Dynamic Range photography
I reviewed Pro HDR many years ago when it was among the first High Dynamic Range apps and best of the camera apps for the iPhone. In short order, Apple added HDR capability to its own software, but in general the third-party apps do a better job. Pro HDR X (US$1.99) is a new app that has evolved from Pro HDR. It has solid roots, and this new app pushes your iPhone camera toward better HDR imaging. Pro HDR X takes three images rather than the two that most HDR programs are limited to. In auto mode, the app analyzes the scene, picking the best exposure combinations to get you the best looking photo. If you want to do this manually, the screen presents three targets that you drag to the darkest area of your photo, to the mid-range tonal values, and to the brightest part of the scene. The app can also edit photos from your on-board library, up to 24 Megapixels in size. When using the app, each exposure is precisely aligned, and the final images are saved at full resolution. One nice and unique feature is that after you take your photo(s), Pro HDR X has built-in controls that allow you to set the amount of HDR strength applied. The app features lots of tools for finishing, including a large collection of frames, and filters, including monochrome. You can geotag your photos, or turn that off in the settings. Using the app is straightforward. I got some very nice images just before sunset, where the light is warm and shadows are deep. I thought the photos were better than the old Pro HDR, and what is what the developer wanted to accomplish. Pro HDR X is among the very best of the HDR apps I've tested. It is far better than Apple's built-in software, and the HDR photos produced by Pro HDR X are natural and realistic, unless you want to stretch the settings and deliberately go for something more garish. Pro HDR X requires iOS 8, and can run on any device that supports the latest Apple software. It's universal, so it will be nice on iPads, especially the new ones with improved cameras. It's very fast on my iPhone 6 and the taking of three exposures seemed no slower than taking a single shot. Merging and processing takes a couple of seconds. Pro HDR X is a solid evolution in HDR apps. It's faster than the original version, it takes better pictures and let's you have more control of the final image.
Get detailed instruction to life's nagging problems with Trusper
As a child of the digital age my first impulse when presented with a "How do I do X?" question is to ask the internet. For the most part I can find the answers to most questions within a few clicks. But it's often more difficult to find usable step-by-step instructions on how to actually do things. Trusper Tips, Tutorials, How-to's is an app that sets out to deliver clear instructions and answers on a wide variety of topics. Trusper requires iOS 6.0 or later. Compatible with iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch. This app is optimized for iPhone 5 (I tested on an iPhone 6 running iOS 8.02). If forced to pitch this app as a Hollywood movie, I'd say, "It's Pinterest for How-To Tips!" That's pretty much it. While Pinterest typically displays single images, Trusper displays mini-tutorials. This works best when the tips are a series of clear photographs or illustrations. It works less well for text-only tips. Trusper is cleanly designed and if highly visually oriented. I found it easily to use on my new iPhone 6 but it becomes better and better as you move up screen sizes. It's much better on an iPad and excellent on a big external monitor when using the trusper.com web site. It's just truism that instructional photos are better when bigger and easy to examine. For the most part the display on the iPhone 6 was fine. When first launching Trusper you'll see that it's yet another app that requires a Facebook login, but will permit signup with email. The app then asks you to select from several high-level interest categories, like fashion, automotive, food, etc. It then presents you with popular, trending, and other tips. This is the point where you'll see the community aspect of Trusper. All of the content is user-generated. Posters can be rewarded with "Likes" and comments are an integral part of the tips. You can also post questions and quandaries to be answered by others or select from the list of asked questions with tips of your own. And if you answer questions and create your own tips you gain likes. I'm not sure what this collection of karma gains you, except, perhaps bit of self-esteem. After exploring a selection of available tips I found that I liked the ones where people took there own photos and gave instructions from personal experience. I found a very nice on on using Mason jars to start an herb garden. That's a lot of work and I appreciated the poster's efforts. I even added additional information in a comment to the post. I also found far too many tips that were simply recycled from other sources, particularly "life hacks." And the use of stock or "borrowed" images was widespread. If you like and use Pinterest then you'll probably like Trusper Tips, Tutorials, How-to's. It's suited more to browsing tips and finding interesting things than it is to simply search for required instructions. If you enjoy looking for interesting idea, you might like this app, too. If you're not into browsing, but need instructions on how to build something or do something, I recommend trying sites like Instructables.com for detailed how-to instructions.
Drafts 4 brings a new hope to a favorite iOS utility
Drafts lives in my dock on both my iPad and iPhone. Any time I start to write anything on my iOS device, I start writing it in Drafts, because I know that I can leave it, switch to another app, or several other apps, and when I come back to Drafts, what I wrote will still be there, always. When I'm done, I can easily send what I've written to another app, or just copy it to the clipboard. I use Drafts all the time, so when I heard a new, totally redesigned version was coming, I was excited, but also a little nervous. Change is scary, and I didn't want to lose anything that I liked about Drafts. Well, spoiler alert, it only took a few minutes using Drafts 4 until I deleted the old version and never looked back. Drafts version 4 is a new, separate app. That means that you can keep Drafts version 3 on your iPad or iPhone/iPod touch alongside Drafts 4. It also means that you will need to buy it again. Drafts 4 is a universal app for iPhone or iPad, including the iPhone 6 Plus with portrait and landscape support. Drafts is currently available for the absurdly low price of US$5 through October 23, 2014. After that, the price will go to a more reasonable $10. Yes, I know, Apple has made it common for people to think that $1 is a lot to spend on an app, but Drafts is an app which has had ongoing improvement for years from a developer who is committed to the platform. $5 is a steal. $10 is still a reasonable price for what you're getting (not to mention that developers have to eat and pay bills, too). There's a whole lot of awesome inside. Drafts 4 has a long, long list of new features and I won't rehash them all here. Some of my favorites include the Share Extension to easily capture text from other apps and Versions for draft modifications, so you can easily go back to earlier versions after making changes. If you write in Markdown you'll love the new syntax highlighting feature in Drafts. There is also an option for highlighting with a focus on social media, or a plain text mode for those of you who prefer no syntax highlighting at all. As always, one of the best parts of Drafts is how customizable it is, and that's even more true in Drafts 4. The extended keyboard is customizable, and allows "pre-built functions, arbitrary text insertion, and powerful script keys" which can utilize JavaScript to manipulate text. The Extended Keyboard alone would make this an awesome upgrade. Drafts has also had the power to string together multiple actions, and that has gotten much easier in version 4. Now you can put multiple steps in one action without having to come up with an elaborate chain of actions. See the "Actions" section of the "What's new?" guide for more information. If you already have your own custom actions and drafts from Drafts version 3, you can import them to Drafts 4. The process only has to be done once, and there is a Migration Screencast to guide you through the whole thing. Written migration instructions are also available for those who prefer that. (I recommend watching the screencast even if you use the written instructions as a reference, as it makes it clear how the process works.) Personally, I decided to start fresh with Drafts 4 and didn't migrate anything over, as a way of forcing myself to take a closer look at everything the new version has to offer. You can leave Drafts 3 on your iOS device and migrate your old information anytime you want. Drafts is a huge update to one of my most-used apps. If you've used Drafts before, version 4 has just gotten better. If you've never used Drafts, this is a great time to learn more about it. Get it now on the App Store.
WorldRelay Tuner lets you create your own micro-channel on iOS
WorldRelay Tuner (free) is a fascinating variation on the many radio tuner apps available. This app gives you audio and video streams, lets you save favorites, and watch or listen to what you want. It also includes live streaming cameras from a variety of spots around the globe. I set up destinations that interested me; some Art House classic films, several jazz stations, and a handful of streaming cameras from a few tourist spots. You can set up a favorites list, which I did, or browse by subject or location. WorldRelay Tuner worked well, and I did discover some media worth sampling and returning to. Although there are several dozen audio and video destinations, I'd love to see a lot more, and I expect the developer to add more over time. The app supports AirPlay, and works on any iOS device as it is universal. The experience reminds me of my youth, playing with a shortwave radio that was used by some of my older relatives. I'd stay up late scanning the airwaves for different stations, hearing the news or music from all over the world. Internet radio does that now, and just about every station is on the Web. WorldRelay Tuner takes it another step forward with video for movies, video podcasts and streaming cameras, but still retains lots of music, news and talk stations. WorldRelay Tuner requires iOS 7 or later. It's optimized for the iPhone 5, but runs fine on the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus.
Buy4Me brings groceries to you
Buy4Me is a productivity app that helps users create grocery lists, and also find people in their area who are looking to earn coins to shop for other users. This app claims to be for people with limited time and mobility, and also for people who enjoy helping others in exchange for a tip. It requires iOS7 or later and is optimized for the iPhone 5 but also compatible with the iPad and iPod touch. The app comes with two free coins. A user is able to purchase up to 30 coins for only $3.99. Announcing an order in the app costs 1 coin. You can declare your method of payment and how much you are willing to offer someone to run to the store and get your half pound of bacon or whatever it is you wish to get there. Users are able to buy groceries for other users and create lists for other users to claim. You simply add in whatever it is you are looking to buy, the amount you need, and you can also include notes specifying brand names. The price estimate is left up to the user, which is tricky. Prices for many items tend to vary from grocery store to grocery store and often change each week due to changes in produce availability. The interface is user friendly and simple. Select "My Orders" to see your shopping lists you have created, and click "Go shopping" to view your open orders and previous shopping trips. The bright green and orange theme is pleasant. The icons - such as a grocery cart, a piggy bank, and notepads - while basic, are clear and purposeful indicators for what each tab is for. I don't see this app being useful for places where online grocery delivery is already very popular. In big cities like New York, companies such as Fresh Direct allow someone to quickly arrange grocery delivery from professionals while also being able to see exact pricing for goods. I think it's risky to trust just any stranger to buy your food for you. I personally am not comfortable with giving out my address and paying a stranger who has not been hired by a company which would require a proper background check for employees. Additionally, who is responsible for damaged grocery items or items the user wishes to return? If Buy4Me can figure out a way to link Facebook profiles and do background checks for grocery buyers (something apps like Airbnb do that seems to work most of the time), that might solve that issue, but it seems like a lot of work for grocery shopping when easier options already exist. I recommend Buy4Me for people who are looking for a cheaper option for online grocery delivery. The app is also useful for users who are interested in delivering groceries to people who need some help keeping their shelves stocked.
Turn a broken iPod into a fashionable, but fractured wallet
Have a broken iPhone or iPod touch kicking around and want to do something with it? If you answered with a resounding "yes," then you should check out this Instructable from 13-year-old member trosen2109 that shows one clever way to recycle the "ready-to-be-discarded" device. Rosen pulls the screen off his broken iPod and tears it apart to remove the internal electronics. With only the shell remaining, he then reassembles it into a nostalgic wallet. As a bonus for owners of older devices, the large 30-pin Dock connector port opening can be used to insert change. The wallet may not be suitable for high rollers with a large wad of cash, but it may be practical as a disguised bank for small amounts of money. It's also a perfect lesson in making and creative electronics recycling.
PicPlayPost is a versatile little collage maker for iOS
PicPlayPost has been around a while, and the iOS app continues to evolve and improve. This free app (with one in-app purchase option) creates lovely collages that can contain video, audio, and even GIF animations. I like collages, and create them all the time with my landscape photos, but they are nice for vacation photos, holiday parties, sports events, anything really where you want to make something memorable and share it with others. Using PicPlayPost is simple. First, you pick a frame layout from dozens offered. Next, select your photos, videos or GIFs. Scale them, flip them, select some music to accompany them, and you are on your way. There is also a complete set of filters so you can change the look of any individual frame in your collage. Videos can be set to loop endlessly, stop after playing, or play in a sequence. The same is true with GIF animations. There are trim controls for music and videos, and videos play at up to 30 fps. The app also allows you to create GIFs from a series of photos. When you are done, your masterpiece can be exported to mail, your camera roll, Instagram and the usual social networks. PicPlayPost works fine and has been updated for iOS 8. There are some differences between the number of videos that can be added under iOS 6 and 7. A new feature called #PicPlayPostShow takes a single slideshow and creates an animation automatically. All your creations will have a watermark at the lower right frame, and a one-time US$1.99 in-app purchase removes it. Another collage creation app I'm fond of is Diptic. The regular version ($0.99) creates static collages from photos, while Diptic Video ($1.99) lets you add videos. PicPlayPost requires iOS 6.1 or greater. It's a universal app. It has a lot of features for free if you don't mind the rather bold watermark.
