Ipad

With hundreds of thousands of apps in the Apple App Store, it’s easy to give up finding quality apps that turn your iPhone into a robot more powerful than Optimus Prime. Finding new, useful apps is definitely a side hobby, and this curated list below is a dozen of my favorite apps. Please share your favorite apps in the comments so we can all have awesomer iPhones. $5 will get you the whole collection of apps below. [To check out volume one of my favorite apps, click here.] Mailbox This app makes me want to read my email. It’s all about getting through your inbox so nothing remains when you finish. It has slick gesture controls and I love the overall feel of the app. My favorite feature is the ability to delay email until later. Then, emails don’t sit in your inbox, staring you in the face, waiting for you to move. You can have emails reappear in your inbox when you need them like a perfectly timed ribbon-around-your-finger reminder. I use the delay feature to remind me of appointments or tasks I need to complete, but don’t need to do today. You also get to see a new jaw-dropping photo hand-chosen from Instagram each day when you get to #InboxZero, which is at least half of my motivation for getting through my inbox. A few downers: you must use Gmail or Google Apps and there’s no way to access labels from within the app. I understand, since it’s all about processing email, so I keep Sparrow around for when I need to search through labels. Also, you’ll have to get into a waiting line for access to the app, but download it today so you can start the timer. ...

I still prefer physical books to eBooks, but one thing I love about eBooks is having all of my notes and highlights already digitally documented. Unfortunately, Amazon and Apple don’t make saving your notes in a clean format simple. Since I’m a fanatic when it comes to organization and digital hygiene, this is not acceptable (more on how to fix that later). If you are just looking to get all of your notes and save them in a document, PDF or paper copy (because you hate trees and have filing cabinets from the 1980s) here’s the quick and dirty process. ...

Finger fatigue. It’s what you develop after answering a crap ton (more than a normal ton, for those of you who aren’t up on your international measurements) of emails after the holidays. Well, prepare your fingers to do a little happy dance of relief after this delightful world of text expansion is revealed to you. There are certain things that you write frequently that are just a pain to keep typing out on your computer or smartphone. Things I’m always typing: my email for website logins, my address, bill payment information*, certain phrases at the end of emails i.e. “If you have any questions, please let me know”, etc. ...

Some say clothes make the man. I say apps make the phone. If you don’t have an iPod, iPhone, or iPad, you’ve effectively rejected consumerism or you’ve just spent your money on the wrong technology. [Totally kidding, but by now you’re offended and the rest of this post wouldn’t be helpful for you anyway.] I love good apps, and as my closest companions know, I’m evangelistic about products and services I love, so it’s my pleasure to present to you… ...