ios apps | Prepys' Homepage

25 Most Useful Apps You Need to Download

November 20, 2014November 20, 2014 Carl Lamiel Leave a comment

Smartphones undeniably have been a very integral part of our lives for the past few years, and apps are one of the reasons why we can never put our handsets down. Here’s a look at some of our apps we love to use everyday for fun and productivity, and you might like them too.

mostusefulapps

There are tons of apps to choose from, and what we present here are just a few of the awesome ones that you can easily download from your respective app stores. Apps are mentioned in this article in no particular order. Icons are from the Google Play Store and are arranged in order of mention on each section. Apps might be exclusive only to the Android platform, to which the writer has more familiarity due to his current smartphone.

Music

apps-music

How about an app that can stream music? Spotify is one music app you shouldn’t miss. Easily listen to any of your favorite local or international artists anywhere on any platform, including PC. An affordable monthly premium is also available, allowing you to download your favorite tracks for offline use and get uninterrupted streams, eliminating advertisements in-between songs. Soundcloud is also a great online app if you like to listen to covers of your favorite songs, or record one yourself.

If you like your songs on your memory card, music players like the stock Google Play Music for fancy Material design and animation, Shuttle Music Player as an alternative, or PlayerPro for the ultimate music player can save the day.

Heard that tune before but can’t recall the title or the artist who sang it? Shazam‘s got you covered with music and TV information in seconds. Soundhound is a great alternative as well.

Photography

apps-photog

We might all agree on this one: VSCO Cam is probably one of the best, if not the best, photography apps around. Its community of curators give life and new meaning to photography through the app’s powerful set of photo-editing tools that never fail to bring out the best in each shot you take.

Productivity and Lifestyle

apps-prod1

To wake up early in the morning for many is quite challenging, and there are no words to describe the beauty that is of Timely, an alarm app. The in-app music that wakes you up in the morning is far more pleasant than the default alarm ringtones on my phone. It is also a challenge to stop the app from ringing, as various methods and puzzles can be implemented to stop the alarm. A good alternative is Alarm Clock Plus, and it can really wake you up with all the math equations configured to the difficulty of your choice.

Our team is a bit torn between the Google Inbox and the GMail app: While a few consider Inbox to be very useful as all emails marked done and cleaned out ends their day, I personally prefer the traditional columns and streams of email lines in GMail. Dropbox’s Mailbox is also a great alternative email app if you don’t want yourself to bother with all the Material Design and stick to a clean, minimal interface.

apps-prod3

Note-taking apps are very handy in times of need and Evernote is one app that’s never leaving my phone. Cross-platform syncing and easy notetaking simply made me fall in love with this app. Google Keep is also worth a try if you are for simpler notetaking apps that still sync. When we’re not typing small notes, we often leave the task to document editors such as Microsoft Office Mobile, and put them in online storage apps such as Dropbox so we can share them to more people in an instant.

Need a separate to-do list? Wunderlist might just do the trick for you. It keeps your reminders and lists so you can organize everything you need to do. If you need a new calendar, SolCalendar‘s support for stickers on calendar dates makes planning and organizing fun and enjoyable.

Travel and Navigation

apps-travel

The MMDA Android App is very useful if you want to check and avoid traffic along EDSA or C5 during the rush hour. Couple that with Waze, a crowdsourced navigation app, and you’ve got yourself a pretty good tool to detour the metro and avoid the hassle of getting stuck along a major highway. If you don’t feel like driving and want a cozy ride home, a taxi-grabbing service such as Uber can help.

If you’re up for a travel, why not spend some time with a few apps as well? Skyscanner is a great app to compare flight, hotel, and car rental prices to places you plan to spend your vacation time with. Discover thousands of places to stay in — Whether paid homes by checking the Airbnb app, or receive and experience warm local hospitality through Couchsurfing.

We know that not everyone uses these partly due to having a different OS ecosystem, or has better apps and alternatives in mind. You can jump in the conversation and recommend your favorite apps at the comments section below. We’d love to know the apps you’re using, and we might try them out too!

The post 25 Most Useful Apps You Need to Download appeared first on YugaTech | Philippines, Tech News & Reviews.

Cider makes iOS apps run on Android devices

May 17, 2014May 17, 2014 Kevin Bruce Francisco Leave a comment

Ever wanted to try out apps that are iOS exclusive? With Project Cider, it’s not that far off. There’s a possibility of seeing a future where app exclusivity no longer exists. More about it after the jump.

Cider is developed and designed by the Department of Computer Science at Columbia University and is basically “an operating system compatibility architecture that can run applications built for different mobile ecosystems, iOS or Android, together on the same smartphone or tablet.” It means that running Android apps on an iOS device is also possible. The goal of Cider is to tear down the walls of exclusivity with different apps and let everyone have access to them, regardless of what operating system they’re running.

Watch the demo below to see a Google Nexus 7 run apps from the two long-competing companies like they’re close partners now.

Making use of the apps’ entire functions, however, might be where it gets complicated since one of the reasons why some are exclusive is because of their patented hardware or unique software features. In short, a lot of legalities will be involved but it’s still feasible.

Although that may be the case, we’re convinced that the point of this project is to simply show that programs could work and are possible to function even across platforms. It leads us to the question: If you were to be granted to have an app that’s exclusive to a different OS, what are the top softwares would you want to try?

{Source}

The post Cider makes iOS apps run on Android devices appeared first on YugaTech | Philippines, Tech News & Reviews.

Apps-Hopping: My Top 10 Apple iOS and Android Apps List

February 6, 2013February 6, 2013 Pinx Leave a comment

Two months since I got an Ipad4, I deleted more than half of the applications I hoarded as an Ipad newbie. I have a terribly short attention span and just minutes after playing around with an app, it is a make or break moment for me already. Week after week, the icons in my home screen would change. Some apps though had been glued there and have no plans of leaving. Yet.

Let me share with you the top apps (aside from the most popular ones) which I recently found interesting, useful and fun. I found them either through recommendation or through countless uploads and uninstalls.

Some of them are available in Google Play Store too and not just in IOS Apps Store.

1. TOURWRIST (Free) By Sparklabs

Here is an amazing app that can give you a tour of various locations worldwide and will make you feel the world revolves around you. This app got a lot of potential. You can travel remotely through a movable 360 degree window. Though you have to be selective also in choosing which places to view, some of them are really downright awesome. You will almost feel the breeze from the beach or the blinding lights from the rooftop. There are no uploads yet for Philippines’ tourist spots but I do hope that great ones surface soon. The Create Pano feature makes it possible for users to upload their own panoramic shots. You can also visit their website just to travel in a second without leaving your chair.

2. MOLESKINE APP ( Free) By Moleskine SRL

Almost the same as Paper 53, it gives you several types of journals that you can write/doodle on or customize. I liked most the different mode of writing instruments available in Moleskine. Though it is not the same as the feel and smell of a real Moleskine paper, it does give you a smooth writing experience (especially if you have a steady hand or you can just grab a stylus instead).

3. PHOSTER ( Free – $2) By Bucketlabs

This is the App that creative people who likes making posters, quotes or artsy images will love. With its newest update, there are now templates for square, portrait and landscapes. You can modify almost everything (image, text, size, color, etc). I also liked the printing effects that are generated. For me, the templates are quite sophisticated and creative.

4. PIXLR EXPRESS + (Free) by Autodesk ( Google Play / App Store)

This one beat the Camera + App for some. I liked the various (over 600!) picture effects, editing tools, overlays, frame and many downloadable options that one can have. I deleted several photo editing apps (five of them!) soon after I got this. The app is very easy to use and produces varied results for one image. Another app which is almost as awesome is Pixlromatic (Free).

5. BEAUTY CAMERA (Free – $1.99) by North Park ( Google Play / App Store)

This is one photo enhancer app I did not delete due to its deep understanding of women’s vanity, haha. Just load/take an image then it automatically prettify the subject almost instantly. Smooth skin and smaller pores are achieved without the expensive cost of surgeries. This can also be used by (vain) men who would like to get that perfect image. Just tone down on the filter and smoothing button so as to avoid persistent questions on your derma appointments.

6. LOOP (Free) By Monolith Interactive

For stressed and overworked employees like me, I found this app strangely relaxing. It just takes a touch and bubbles are created. These bubbles create zen music which are hypnotic to watch and a pleasure to listen to. It also takes a long time before the bubbles pop so you can make dinner or have a massage while this goes on in the background.

7. The Photo Cookbook – Quick and Easy ($3.99 but sometimes Free) By ditter.projektagentur GmbH

Yes, I hear your groans on this. As if this app will make you run for the kitchen and start banging the pots. But seriously, the photos are quite inviting (especially if viewed in retina display and you are soo hungry). The friendly interface and thumbnails also make it easier to choose which one you can try cooking in your kitchen or order from your favorite restaurants.

8. Flipboard (Free) By Flipboard Inc ( Google Play / App Store)

At first, I did not give much attention to the hype this app is getting in the App Store and in other articles. When I tried it though, I realized how much a time-saver it could be. I do not have to go through several sites, I can have a customized magazine that will update me on areas of my interest plus keep me also updated on my social network. It also saves some of the articles and makes them viewable even if you are offline.

9. Pic Collage (Free) By Cardinal Blue ( Google Play / App Store)

I know that there are so many collage apps out there but this one do the wonders for me. Easy to use with lots of choices of frames, effects , text and background. Still, I got my options open when boredom strikes through the Image Chef, Cover Photo and Your Moments.

10. iWatermark (Free) ByPlum Amazing

This app gives a watermark stamp to your images. Whether for your blogs or when you just want to put that tiny mark that will make your picture recognizable anywhere in the web, this one is easy to use and watermarks are quite customizable. You can also use them to put texts or comments on top of pictures you cannot resist messing with.

What makes a great app for anyone will depend on their interest and preferences. I hope you’ll like some of my current choices when you take them for a spin.

So how about you, what are the applications that are glued to your screen right now? Do share them with us!

Hackulous exits the iOS app business

January 2, 2013January 2, 2013 Ronnie Bulaong Leave a comment

As the old song goes, every new beginning comes from some other beginning’s end. In essence, that’s what the team behind the well-known iOS app repository, Installous, said to the community they left as they exit the app scene.

In a short message the team left on their website, they mentioned that the main reason for the abrupt departure was the lack of activity in the community and forum. Moreover, they’re also having a hard time keeping the show rolling in spite of the team’s best effort.

Installous

In all honesty, we’re finding their cause a little bit hard to believe as it is considering their huge fan base they established through the course of their stay in the business. And because of this, we also think that the team is getting sizeable income from their in-app ads, which leads us to think that there may be a bigger reason behind their decision to leave the industry.

We can all speculate the true root cause of their departure or we can just thank them for countless dough we saved by opting for their service rather than paying the talented developers for their efforts. Either way, we can all agree that Hackulous will be dearly missed and hopefully other groups/communities will be able to fill in the void that the team left in the iOS app ecosystem.

The post Hackulous exits the iOS app business appeared first on YugaTech | Philippines, Tech News & Reviews.