iPhone Life - Best Apps, Top Tips, Great Gear

Warmer weather has us spending more time outside, and sometimes we bring our favorite devices along. But is your iPhone waterproof? What if you splash water on your Mac? Spilled water on Apple keyboard? Do you need a waterproof iPad case? Can you wear an Apple Watch in the pool? I'll answer all these questions and tell you how to dry your wet phone or other Apple device safely!

What is the best color setting for a TV? Whether you've asked this question before, or it's never crossed your mind, color balance is a key part of one's enjoyment of a television. Not only can it ensure your personal comfort by making sure things aren't too far on one spectrum or another, but the correct color balance can also ensure you're watching exactly what the show or movie creators had in mind. Starting with iOS14.5, tvOS offers a color balance option. All you need is your iPhone. TV color balance has never been easier!

Have you ever tried using your iPhone in the sun? This can be a very frustrating task. However, the Diff case offers protection from 

the sun. The Diff case has a lid for shade which can be used to block the sunlight or used as a kickstand. The Diff Case can be extremely helpful to a photographer. It can be attached to a tripod in both portrait and landscape position.  The Diff Case makes taking video and still shots a breeze.

 

If you're like me, you take photo after photo of your kids or family, and they never come out just right. In one of the photos, Mom has her eyes closed. In the next one, she looks great, but Jeff looks like he swallowed a lemon. If you could only take the best from all the photos and put them on one, that would be perfect!

Well, now there's an app for that. GroupShot has just hit the App Store.

It's as easy as taking photos within the app or going to your photo library and picking the partially acceptable photos to bring into the app.

For all you Mac users out there: Do you have a disorganized desktop? The Aluminum eXpress Keyboard Platform from BulletTrain (available this March) is a clever solution that positions the trackpad below the keyboard, and adds a palm rest.




The Aluminum eXpress Keyboard Platform is similar to an oversized MacBook, but you get a generously sized trackpad and everything is arranged in a comfortable, elegant manner.


 

It’s getting harder and harder to come up with original ideas for Match 3 games, but the Treasures Of Montezuma has a nice little twist with the concept of idols that are activated when you match that idol’s color on the playing board twice in a row.  I remember getting really addicted to the first installment once I figured out how the idols actually worked.  For some reason I missed out on part 2, but now I’ve got Treasures Of Montezuma 3 on my iPad, the addiction is back, and this could quite possibly be the best installment in the series yet.

It's nice to see an app by fellow blogger Todd Bernhard, president of No Tie software, win an award at CES. Getting recognition was AutoVerbal Pro Talking Soundboard, a $9.99 app that allows people to communicate who are unable to speak due to conditions such as stroke, surgery, cerebral palsy, and autism. The app has hundreds of photo buttons representing common words or phrases. Users can also program a variety of buttons to speak custom messages. In addition, users can type anything and it will be spoken using text-to-speech.

In pinball, 'tilt' is a bad thing, but Technocel just launched a new brand/subsidiary called TYLT and it's a refreshing, overdue shift from their traditional line of black/gray boring but necessary power accessories. Indeed I wasn't planning to attend their press conference because what new or interesting products could they come up with? Longer coiled cables? Eco-friendly packaging? Ho hum. Surprise, surprise, surprise! It looks like Ikea or Frog Design had their way with the product line and the TYLT products could easily find a home at the Museum of Modern Art, let alone the Apple Store.

This is an absolute must have for anyone who regularly uses any of the Google Docs services online.  It makes it very easy to view, edit, share and much more any type of document available online.  It works with PDFs, documents, spreadsheets and even audio or video documents.  This app is ideal for pulling up and viewing the information you have stored in Google's cloud anywhere you go.

Every once in a while I find FaceTime, Apple’s most excellent video call feature, to be very helpful. There are occasions when I just can’t get in the same room with a client, and FaceTime is a great alternative to just a phone call.

As a form of videoconferencing, it saves lots of time and money by eliminating travel and all the expenses associated with that. Normally I use my iPad because the screen is bigger and it’s easy to keep stationary, but sometimes I have to use my iPhone. FaceTime is a bit challenging in general, but particularly so on the iPhone—not because of the technology, but because of the potential for mishaps.

DRACO is a 2D top-down scroller shooter game. The app starts off with a good animation about the back-story of the game. The graphics and the music fit well into the game. After the intro video, the player, for the first time, will enter his or her own name. After which the player picks their hardness, color of their dragon and after a brief introduction to the controls is shown, the user can start the game.

The rules are fairly simple - avoid the oncoming dragons/obstacles & their fire/shots. Tilt the device in in either direction to move your dragon (tilt iPhone to the right, the dragon moves to the right, etc.) and tap the screen to shoot.

In addition to cases, stands for iOS devices represent a very crowded market. There are many configurations and designs to chose from. In order to be seen above the ocean of products, a designer has to hit a sweet spot that satisfies what others have not. Has Satechi's R1 tablet stand hit that spot? Read on to find out.

Everyone is looking for a great way to play with color in a photograph.  With Color Splurge; you can do just that!  This is where you can take practically any photo and turn it into black and white while adding additional colored features to enhance and personalize.  It’s a fantastic way to bring out that special photo and give it an artistic touch.

When initially signing on; a quick explanation of buttons is shown, but a little too quick to read.  A suggestion to the developer would be to slow this down, but the option to access it again is located on the top right icon pictured with a question mark.  But, the fact remains that it isn’t necessary; you can click on each one to understand their easy capabilities.

The Wilson booster will increase cell signal in any location. I personally live in a very mountainous area. The mountains decrease the amount of cell service from all locations where I live. Since, I have been using the Wilson booster my cell service as increase 200 percent. The increase in cell service with the booster is phenomenal. I am now able to make calls in locations with my cell phone where no one has been able to make a call. I don't have to be bothered with dropped phone calls anymore. It has really made my cell service completely different. Before I started using the Wilson amplifier, I could only get signal from a few locations.   Now I am able to talk on my cell phone in my home from any room.

Since the holidays are coming; it only makes sense to produce an app that will adhere to the jolly season.  Everlasting memories naturally occur during Christmas time and are usually enhanced by unique and beloved photos.  This is why White Christmas was created!  This is where you can take as many pictures as you want with some highlighted seasonal features that can make them more than just memorable.  In fact, it’s a great way to take a simple family photo and add some Christmas cheer to it! 

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