Elgato has continued to expand its Eve line of HomeKit-compatible, home-automation products, with two recent additions being Eve Degree and Eve Light Switch. This article takes a look at both of these smart-home products to see if they are worth the investment.
iPad
The new Braven Stryde 360 ($99.99) is one of the latest in the robust lineup of rugged, adventure-ready, waterproof Bluetooth speakers from Braven. It brings a highly portable form factor and reliable waterproof protection to a speaker that also offers crisp, clear sound quality and respectable volume levels, especially for a portable wireless speaker of this size.
Introducing App Saturdays! (*insert jazz hands*) Every Saturday, we’ll feature an app we love, telling you what it can do and why it’s awesome.
Our first app, Sorted, is a calendar and to-do app to rival them all. Since the Sunrise calendar app died, I’ve searched high and low for a replacement. After months of trial and error, I stumbled across Sorted last week. Here’s what it can do and why you’re going to love it.
Most people don’t understand Popsockets (starting at $10) until they try one. You’ll find one or two on the back of almost every iPhone, iPod, and iPad around the iPhone Life office. We use them when we’re snapping selfies, winding our earbud cords, Skyping in for meetings, or navigating the Iowa backroads. These 1.5-inch circles of plastic are simple, a bit silly looking, and incredibly useful. Continue reading to find out if the Popsocket and Popclip are practical iPhone accessories or goofy distractions.
With the iOS 11 beta 1 release, the Notes app looks poised to take on Evernote as the life-organizing app du jour. With in-line drawing, drag and drop features, tables, and expanded formatting options, iOS 11 integrates Notes into your daily workflow in new and organic ways. Continue reading to find out whether Notes in iOS 11 could replace your Evernote subscription.
Review: Vizio Crave Go Bluetooth Wireless Speaker
By Mike Riley
Though known predominantly for its displays, Vizio has ventured into the realm of portable sound with its Crave Go ($199.99) portable Bluetooth wireless speaker. Did the company imbue it with the level of quality and functionality that Vizio is known for? Read on to find out.
Color Blind? How to Correct Your iPhone's Colors for Your Vision
By Conner Carey
Accessibility features on iPhone improve year after year. It used to be that those who are color blind could only to choose to use grayscale, but did you know that’s no longer the case? If you’re color blind, you can go into your settings and select the color correct palette that works with your specific type of color blindness. It’s pretty incredible. Even those with ‘regular’ vision should check it out. Here’s how to correct your iPhone’s colors for your vision.
This was a huge WWDC keynote event. Apple spent a solid two-and-a-half hours debuting all of the new operating systems and quite a few products too. It was a truly stunning event that included a look at the upcoming iOS 11, WatchOS 4, tvOS 11, and MacOS High Sierra. Apple also debuted its whole new line iMacs, Macbooks, and iPad Pros. And last but certainly not least, Apple revealed its Amazon Echo & Google Home competitor: HomePod, which is designed to work not only as a virtual assistant but also as an incredible home sound system. Apple definitely made up for not having a spring event. I think it’s safe to say that the company realizes there are huge expectations upon it this year, and Apple is showing the world that it’s prepared to deliver in a big way.
There are two major different ways you can connect or stream your iPhone or iPad to your TV. The easiest and cheapest way (if you already own an Apple TV) is to use AirPlay, which will allow you to enable iPhone screen mirroring. Alternatively, you can hook up your iPhone or iPad to your TV with an HDMI cable. If your TV doesn’t have an HDMI port, you can use a VGR or AV adapter and cable to connect to your analog TV. But that’s a fairly small pile of people, since the vast majority of TVs have HDMI ports. Which is why I’m going to focus on how to connect your iPhone or iPad to your TV via AirPlay mirroring or with an HDMI cable and adapter. Regardless of what method you choose, it may take a little money to hook your iPhone up to your TV. Which is why, if you already have an Apple TV, I recommend using AirPlay mirroring to watch your iPhone or iPad on your TV. However, I’ll go over both methods and what you need to hook up your iPhone or iPad to your TV below.
Review: Netgear Arlo Pro Smart Home Security System
By Mike Riley
Looking for an easy-to-use home security solution that works wirelessly both indoors and outdoors? Netgear's Arlo Pro (starting at $249.99) meets those requirements and offers loads of other features that make it worth a closer look.
How to Share Kindle Books with Family Members (Setting Up an Amazon Household & Kindle Family Library)
By Conner Carey
There are various ways to share Kindle books. With friends, you can loan ebooks out for a couple weeks. But if you set up Family Sharing with Amazon, you can share Kindle books with family members easily and with fewer limitations. When you share Kindle books, the recipient can read the Kindle book you lend them via the Kindle app on iPhone or iPad, as well as Kindle devices, including Kindle Fire. Kindle family sharing allows two adults to create an Amazon Household with up to four children. The two adults in your Kindle family must have separate Amazon accounts. However, setting up family sharing and sharing Kindle books with your Amazon Household is actually quite straightforward. We’ll go over how to set up Family Sharing on Amazon, how to share Kindle books with that family, how to access content shared with you via Amazon Kindle family sharing, and how to leave an Amazon Household should you need to in the future. Here’s everything you need to know about how to share Kindle books with family members.
This is a roundup of iPad mini 1/2/3 cases, If you have a newer iPhone, check out our roundup of rugged cases for the iPad Air and iPad mini with Retina display. Smaller and more portable than its more cumbersome older siblings, the iPad mini is a device designed to come with us wherever we may wander. As a result of the mini's superior portability, it's also far more likely to be in the line of fire. At such times, a reliable iPad protective case comes in handy to ward off scratches and scrapes. A good, heavy-duty iPad case can make the difference between a catastrophic, life-ending event for your iPad mini and a mere bump in the road. The following are some of the best iPad mini cases available, each with its own unique features and advantages yet all designed to absorb and redirect the potential damage your valuable iPad mini will likely encounter.
How to Stream the NFL Draft on Your iPhone, iPad, or Apple TV
By Sarah Kingsbury
Between April 27 and April 29, the 2017 NFL Draft will be broadcast on ESPN and the NFL Network. And since you may not be near a TV that whole time, you'll want to know how to stream the NFL Draft on your iPhone or iPad from wherever you are to make sure you don't miss a moment of the excitement. How you stream the 2017 NFL draft on your iPhone or iPad will depend on what kind of cable or streaming services you are using. Here's how to watch the 2017 NFL draft on your phone or tablet.
While you're enjoying the great outdoors this Summer, whether at the beach or elsewhere, you’re going to want the loudest portable waterproof Bluetooth speaker you can find. Your Bluetooth speaker needs to be wireless and portable to easily go on adventures with you while also being rugged (ideally waterproof) and as loud as possible so that everyone in your party can enjoy the music. Furthermore, there is a seemingly endless array of excellent quality Bluetooth speakers, however, out of the multitudes of Bluetooth speakers on the market, only a limited and select few can lay claim to being loud, waterproof, portable and heavy duty. I've compiled a list of some of the best, most durable and rugged Bluetooth speakers available right now. What follows are the top outdoor wireless Bluetooth speakers for those who are adventurous or accident prone.
Review: GameVice iPad Game Controller
By Mike Riley
With the success of the recently released Nintendo Switch portable gaming tablet, there has been a resurgence of interest among iPad gamers to bring their iPads to parity with what the Switch has to offer. One standout feature of the Switch is its analog joysticks on the left and right side of the screen. Perhaps Nintendo got its inspiration for this design from GameVice, a company that announced the first iteration of its iPad game controller back in 2014. Now that its iPad game controller idea has been amplified by Nintendo's success, read on to find out how the current version of the GameVice Mfi controller ($99.95) works with the iPad Pro and Mini form factors.
Best Apps & Gear for Getting a Good Night’s Sleep
By Nate Adcock
Sleep deprivation in our always-on, social media-saturated world is a problem that is only growing as we add more tech to our homes. It affects our performance on and off the job and can result in significantly adverse health effects, particularly as we age. I have dealt with my share of sleep issues over the years, due to regularly traveling and working different shifts at my job. Although I don't have any magic-bullet solutions, I can offer what I’ve found to be the most helpful apps, gear, and tips for lulling you to sleep.
The number of Bluetooth wireless speakers available on the market is staggering, and choosing which one to buy is like choosing which outfit to wear. Depending on the occasion, the right speaker can make the difference between an enjoyable experience and an infuriating one. While some manufacturers have designed for very specific use cases, others, like 808 Audio, have opted for a kitchen sink approach. Hence, its Hex Encore XL Wireless Speaker ($399.99) is the Swiss army knife of speaker units. Does it accomplish these objectives successfully and, more importantly, does it sound great doing so? Read on to find out.
4 Best Journal Apps for iPhone & iPad
By Rheanne Taylor
As a writer, I believe that journaling regularly is an important aspect of my creative process. It’s the one time in the day I get to write freely without having to censor my thoughts or concern myself with things like grammar and editing—but writers aren’t the only ones who can benefit from journaling. Journaling can help you relieve stress, sort out your thoughts, and remember details about your life that you will value later on. I’ve kept journals since I was 14, and, believe it or not, I reference them regularly. Some of my entries undoubtedly make me cringe—here’s looking at you, 2004 (year of boys, angsty rants, and badly written Harry Potter fanfiction)—but my journals are also filled with a lot of valuable details about my life and memories I love reflecting back on. If you want to start journaling, the following diary apps are a great way to get started. Each journal app is passcode-protected, and many of them hardly require any work at all!
The iHome iPLWBT5 Docking Clock Radio ($129.99) could really eliminate some of the clutter on your nightstand. It's a clock radio, which iHome has been making for years, but it also doubles as a dual charging dock for your iPhone 7 and Apple Watch. There's a Lightning dock on the top, which should accommodate most cases except really protective ones. For iPhones in protective cases or an iPad, there's a USB port so you can charge a device via your own Lightning cable. Finally, sitting on the side is an Apple Watch magnetic charging base.
Best Board Game Apps for iPad: TreasureHunter Review
By Mike Riley
TreasureHunter ($4.99) is a iOS board game conversion of the identically named, mildly popular board game released in 2015. This card game was created by legendary game designer Richard Garfield (the creator of the wildly popular Magic the Gathering trading card game). The conversion to iPad board game app was done by the game's Germany-based publisher Queen Games, a company that has had a somewhat mediocre track record digitally converting its other physical board games such as Alhambra and Kingdom Builder to iOS board games. Does TreasureHunter rise above those previous efforts? Read on to find out.