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Posts tagged appguide
App Guide: More Great Travel Apps
By now we all know there’s not only an app for everything, but when it comes to travel – there is a whole world of apps out there to enhance your experience! While we’ve covered so many here on this blog, there’s always room for more. Here are some great apps to consider for your next trip.
HearPlanet
If you love a good tour guide when traveling somewhere new, this is an app you probably won’t be able to live without once you download it. HearPlanet tells you what attractions are nearby and then plays the Wikipedia description aloud.
Air Sharing
Called “a dream come true for mobile workers” by Macworld, this app is something special. This app is great for anyone who finds themselves constantly downloading docs abroad, and spending lots of money to do so. Air Sharing lets you save HTML Web pages, PDFs, text files, you name it, for off-line perusal anytime, anywhere.
IAmHere
If you sharing, and want your friends to know exactly where you are in the world, IAmHere will do that for you. This application use GPS and Wifi to acquire the location, or use map to have you set the location.
World Customs
Customs differ from one city to another so just picture the distinctions between one country to another. This app shares useful tips and information on the culture and lifestyle of over 165 countries. The app dispenses international dos and don’ts, one for every day. If you travel a great deal, for business or pleasure, this all will be an amazingly informative friend.
Wi-Fi Finder
International data rates can be awfully expensive, so finding Wi-Fi is absolutely crucial, especially if you Skype while abroad. Wi-Fi Finder tracks over 145,000 hotspots in 135 countries.
What are your favorite travel apps? Leave a comment on this post, or connect with Mobiata on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest or find us on Instagram @Mobiata!
App Guide: Best Travel Apps for Kids
Let’s face it, kids and traveling don’t always go hand in hand. Often, all adults can ask for is that their children cooperate and don’t get too antsy while on a plane, train, or long road trip. While some adults aren’t all that fond of their kids spending hours in front of a screen, many will admit that when it comes to those hours spent traveling, items like their iPhone and tablet have become a real savior! The great thing is, there are tons of apps out there that are educational and fun, which is a win-win for both adults and kids. Here are a few great apps for kids to take with them on their next trip.
PBS Kids Video App: Ages 2–9
This is a great app for kids who enjoy PBS KIDS television series. This app features more than 1,000 videos from over a dozen top PBS KIDS and PBS KIDS GO! Series, including shows such as The Cat in the Hat Knows a Lot About That and Sesame Street, to name a few. The app is child-friendly and easy for kids to navigate by browsing and watching videos at home or on the road.
Alfred
This app is simply awesome! It’s perfect to help a child explore a new city for the first time. Alfred the robot concierge acts as your guide through U.S. travels. In the beginning Alfred will ask questions about what kinds of restaurants you like. Then he’ll start recommending places so you can approve or deny. The more you use Alfred, the better he is at choosing places you love. Then, when you get to a new town, you can trust his picks based on previous favorites. This is a clever travel app for the whole family to use together.
Stack the States
A fantastic app for any child who is interested in geography, and the perfect app for a long plane ride across the U.S.! Kids will learn about states and their shapes, capitals, and other locations in this four-in-one game with cartoon states. Kids can stack, tumble and slide them around like puzzle pieces. There are various levels, and each time a level is completed, you earn a state to add to your country map.
Kids Maps
Another great map app for kids. Unlike some of the other map apps for kids, this one doesn’t have too much fluff, but is rather based on a simple premise: See the state and drag it to its correct place on the map. The design is fun and colorful, and the app provides interesting and funny facts about each state, such as, “North Dakota. North Dakota is where lots of geese live.” It’s an app that can absolutely educate, and is great for the adults too!
Sunday Drive
This app is fun and entertaining, and great for the whole family. It turns the dull and potentially boring car ride or road trip into an exciting part of your day or vacation. This app points out scenic routes along the way, historical landmarks, fun places to eat and local hidden gems that you may be missing! It’s certainly great app to spice up a long car ride.
What travel apps do you recommend for kids? Leave a comment on this post, or connect with Mobiata on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest or find us on Instagram @Mobiata!
App Guide: More Holiday Shopping Apps!
Photo: Some rights reserved by freefotouk
For most of us, the act (art, even) of holiday shopping is not a one day event. The whole month of December is reserved for gift-buying and price-comparing and online-shopping and late-night and early-morning mall trips. Tis the season! What’s a shopping experience with a smart phone, though? Here are some very useful apps to enhance your holiday shopping experience.
ShopSavvy
This free app is great for anyone with an iPhone, Droid or Microsoft smart phone. It’s a barcode scanner that will find any product at the best price! It’s fast, accurate and comprehensive. Aim the camera at any product’s bar code, wait for the beep, and ShopSavvy will provide you with a list of online and local prices.
Smoopa
Half the reason we love this app is strictly for the name alone. Not sure if something is a good price? Get paid for using your smartphone to find out. When you’re out shopping, Smoopa helps you decide whether to buy it in the store or online and rewards you with money, gift cards, and donations to charity. You can also find deals on items scanned by the Smoopa community.
GoodGuide
This is a great app for the environmentally-aware. The GoodGuide app instantly reveals whether products are safe, healthy, green and socially responsible while you shop. The app’s barcode scanning feature lets you quickly access GoodGuide’s science-based health, environment and social ratings for over 170,000 products. The app has a feature that lets you personalize it based on the issues you care about most – such as nutritional value, safe and healthy ingredients, animal welfare, human rights, climate change, energy efficiency, and more. The app will then inform you whether products pass or fail on your key criteria.
Google Wallet
It’s simple: Make your phone your wallet. Google Wallet holds your credit and debit cards, offers, and rewards cards. With this latest release, you can use any card from Visa, MasterCard, American Express, or Discover in conjunction with the app. To pay in-store, select the card you want to use, and then just tap your phone to any contactless point of sale terminal. Payment information is transmitted via near field communication (NFC). Shortly after you’ll see a transaction record with merchant name and dollar amount on your phone.
What shopping apps are your favorites? Which are you not a huge fan of? Leave a comment on this post, or connect with Mobiata on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest or find us on Instagram @Mobiata!
App Guide: Holiday Shopping Apps? They Do Exist
Photo: Some rights reserved by freefotouk
By now you know there’s an app for everything. So, naturally, there are quite a few really useful apps for all of those holiday shoppers during the most wonderful time of the year! We must admit, some of these are pretty savvy. Whether you’re searching for a very specific gift, or need a better way of managing all of your receipts, these apps have you covered. Here are a few we’re currently into!
RedLaser
Whatever item you’re on a mission to find – RedLaser can help. Check out the prices online and at stores in your area before leaving home using this app. The app was acquired by eBay in 2010, when it focused largely on scanning barcodes. Today it’s morphed into a shopping research tool. At a handful of partner retailers like Best Buy and Toys R Us, you can buy items within the app and pick them up in-store. The app is free and is available on iPhone, Android and Windows Phone.
Slice
For Slice, the big business day is not Black Friday or Cyber Monday, but what it calls “Tracking Tuesday.” Bet you haven’t heard that one yet. The free app culls your email for purchases, organizes them for quick review, and tracks your orders. Using shipping numbers, Slice follows your purchases and sends you a notice when an item is at your doorstep. While “Tracking Tuesday” is long gone, the app still comes in great handy during the whole month of December. The app can tell you, in real time, every day, where every package is and when it gets delivered. This year, Slice has a new feature: it will notify you if the price of an item you bought has gone down, which in some cases means you may be able to receive the discount in return!
Lemon
This is the perfect app for anyone who finds themselves swimming in a pool of receipts from purchase after purchase. If your bag, pockets or wallet is starting to overflow, try Lemon. Snap a photo of a receipt with your smartphone camera and the app will digitize and store the purchase record. Lemon has expanded to become a full mobile record of your wallet: You can take pictures of your credit cards, loyalty cards and IDs and keep them handy for easy access to the numbers (or in case your wallet is lost). Users secure the images with a PIN. The most basic version of the app is free. For $4.99/month, you can activate the “Lost Wallet” button and Lemon’s customer service agents will help you cancel and replace your credit cards. For $9.99, the app will process your receipts with full line-item details.
SnapTell
This is a pretty cool app from Amazon. It’s designed to let shoppers compare items they find on store shelves with their cost at Amazon. Whether it’s a book, CD, DVD, or video game you’re thinking about purchasing, SnapTell will use image recognition (pretty wild) to search for competitive prices online or at other stores. The service also offers up ratings and links to Google, Amazon’s IMDB, Rotten Tomatoes and other sites so you can read about the item before deciding to purchase.
Do you recommend a shopping app? Have you used any of the above? We want to hear from you! Leave a comment on this post, or connect with Mobiata on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest or find us on Instagram @Mobiata!
App Guide: Great Apps for Business Travelers
Photo: Some rights reserved by xlibber
Heading on your next business trip soon? Here are some great apps to help along the way. From packing and dining to navigating subways and language, these apps will certainly make your trip easier and more enjoyable!
Packing Pro
Packing Pro is a useful app that puts all your travel needs onto one list. The app maintains an extensive catalog of items to quickly assemble the necessary items you need for your business trip. It’s great for anyone who naturally seems to forget certain items regularly, such as socks or Advil. The service also provides sample lists for a variety of travel scenarios and can also assemble a customized list based on a variety of factors.
AllSubway
The perfect app for the business traveler who finds themselves having to navigate new cities on the regular. This great app turns you into a master of over 150 different transit systems all over the world, offering color-coded maps. The best part? It’s all available offline.
LocalEats
Business trips are synonymous with dining out, and also a great opportunity for the business traveler to do a little exploration. This app offers many ways to filter restaurants, including critics’ picks, cheap food and vegetarian options, and users can search for places near a particular address or landmark within the city. There’s also a great GPS feature which helps to narrow down the food options to those right in your location.
Triplingo
This app is a personalized language guide for any user. Great for a business trip overseas, this app begins by asking you to answer a few questions for your trip (whether you’re going for business or pleasure, if you have any special allergies that need to be addressed regularly, how much you’re interested in interacting with locals, etc.) and uses the answers to create a customized list of phrases to learn beforehand. The app also offers a 2,000-word dictionary which helps any traveler in getting around a new country.
What are some apps you use when traveling for business? Leave a comment on this post, or connect with Mobiata on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest or find us on Instagram @Mobiata!
App Guide: More of Our Favorite Travel Apps for Your Next Trip
Photo: Some rights reserved by arlyna
Here at Mobiata, we’re no stranger to great travel apps! While we can’t help but boast that ours are the very best, there are hundreds of other fantastic apps out there that are vital for us travelers to know about! Whether you need to calculate the value of a new currency, or navigate a new subway system for the first time, check out these apps and consider adding a few to your repertoire!
SeatGuru
Referred to as the “ultimate source for airplane seating advice”, SeatGuru is a great app that helps travelers to pick the best seat on an airplane, find low airfare rates and flight alerts. Great for travelers on the airport or on the go, the free app allows you to access over 700 seat maps from nearly 100 airlines, and features advice and insights drawn from over 45,000 passenger reviews. The app offers over 700 color-coded airplane seat maps and a powerful search engine.
XE Currency
This app is great and extremely useful for anybody traveling to a new country where using another currency is vital. The XE currency app calculates dollar values instantly into whichever currency you are working with. The app works with every world currency and precious metals, and live rates refresh every minute. You can even simultaneously monitor up to ten currencies at one time.
Goby
The Goby app acts as your very own personal concierge. If you’re in a new U.S. location and on the hunt for nearby events and activities suited to your interests, this is the app for you. If you’re in an area with the kids and can’t seem to find anything up their alley, a few taps of your smartphone can easily point you in the right direction.
LocalEats
When you’re on the road, it’s easy to end up eating fast food because it’s familiar and more importantly, it’s easier to find. Why not try a local joint when in a new area? You know what they say…’When in Rome!’ The LocalEats App allows you find the best restaurants and food spots in town. Choose “Nearby” and the app will pull up non-chain spots close to you that are recommended by local food critics. You can even peruse menus if you’re the type who likes to know their order upon arrival.
MetrO
Subway systems can be a pain in the you-know-what, even if it’s the subway in your very own city! Navigating a new subway is a completely different animal, though. The MetrO app allows you to type in your origin and destination, along with the day of the week and time you’re traveling and it will find the shortest ride. Whether you’re in Chicago or London, this app is a go-to source of help for underground transportation.
What are some of your favorite travel apps? Leave a comment on this post, or connect with Mobiata on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest or find us on Instagram @Mobiata!
App Guide: The Best Language Translator Apps
Photo: Some rights reserved by www.thegoodlifefrance.com
One of the most exciting aspects of traveling is heading somewhere completely different than what we are used to. New foods, new culture and a new language are some of the most eye-opening aspects of how unique and different the countries of our world are. However, there are few things more frustrating than being somewhere where we can’t communicate with the locals. Even if tourists know a few phrases, or are able to communicate the basics, chances are there may be a lot of confusion and frustration along the way if they don’t know the language. We found a great round-up translator apps on ARKarthick.com worth looking into before your next trip!
This translator app is one of the most popular pieces of software available. It boasts being able to translate any phrase or sentence into any language which in this case is 52. It is easy to use and has a very handy history-tracking feature. With 650 reviews giving it an average of 4 1/2 stars out of 5 (something very rarely seen on the app store), this app comes highly recommended by its users.
If you want a translator that you can really take anywhere, then you need this one. The Lonely Planet app is extremely good, as it will translate your spoken words into text. Furthermore, it will do all this offline so you don’t need to rely on an internet connection and suffer excessive roaming charges. Any of us that have traveled with our smartphones know that these roaming charges can be crippling, and so this is a real positive point for this app.
Another very useful app comes from Google. The system uses the iOS functionality to allow for translation of text between 64 different languages. The translation will be spoken back to you aloud as well as presenting the information in large full version screen mode. This of course makes it easier for a recipient to read. The main problem with this app (like the website) is that it is fantastic for individual words but terrible for sentences. It’s good, however, for “getting the gist” of the meaning of a phrase, which may be all you need.
SayHi Translate
Most of the translator apps are free (or have a free version) but this one will cost you 69p. That’s not necessarily a bad thing since this one not only provides you with 33 languages but is also one of the few apps that translates dialects as well, something often overlooked in the other apps. The diversity in dialects across a single language can make certain dialects almost unintelligible, even to those speaking the same language. This one has been given five stars on the App Store and is used by a plethora of institutions.
myLanguage
This app boasts about being the first crowd-sourced language translation app for the iPhone. This app has one of the best simple interfaces as well as supporting the iPhone 360 rotation tool. The developers of the app also claim that this is the most comprehensive software you can get with 59 languages to play with. It also allows users to provide feedback where translations don’t fulfill their needs 100%, thus allowing the developers to provide us with better and better translations over time.
What translator apps do you rely on when abroad? Leave a comment on this post, or connect with Mobiata on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest or find us on Instagram @Mobiata!
App Guide: Consider These Apps for Your Next Trip!
Photo: Some rights reserved by katerha
There is no end in sight when it comes to the coolest apps for traveling, and we’ve rounded up some recent favorites! From virtually-sharing your adventure with friends and family to finding a private driver for the week, we’ve got some great apps to consider for your next trip!
HipGeo
HipGeo is an app that allows you to share your vacation adventure. It’s been featured in Mashable, TechCrunch, Gigaom and others as a seamless app to create and share videos, photos, mapamations and text. What’s really cool about this app is that it automatically creates a timeline of your moments. Share to Facebook, Twitter, and beyond. HipGeo creates a beautiful and customizable web blog so you can share with non-mobile users as well. “It’s the next generation of location and sharing and blogging all in one and it’s so easy to use,” says Forbes magazine.
Uber
Once you’ve arrived at your destination the last thing you may want to deal with are taxis all week long. Uber is your “private driver.” Using the app, you can make a request on the spot for a driver. The app will automatically charge your credit card on file and email you a receipt. If you’re looking for a classy, convenient and reliable experience – this is your go-to driver app.
TravelMuse
This is a great app for anyone budgeting when it comes to their next vacation. This app shows you exactly how much money you can save per year by cutting back on everyday spending within twenty different categories, such as haircuts, gym membership, pampering and beyond. The app shares possible exotic vacations you could be using that money on instead, and inspires you to plan your next!
GlobeTrooper
GlobeTrooper is a great app for those looking to find travel partners and plan fulfilling, exciting trips. The GlobeTrooper system works by allowing users the ability to post a trip or respond to a posting by someone else. Users can submit all details, from the very beginning to the end of the trip, involving dates, costs, times and the types of participants they are seeking out. Users can decide if they’d like to partake and sign up, and travel as a pair or group. It’s also a great app for those who are looking to be travel guides for visitors, and those looking to discover new travel ideas.
Tripping
This app encourages users to explore local culture and new areas they may have otherwise missed. It’s a great app for travelers who are interested in exploring those hidden gems and looking to “step off the beaten path.” The site brings trippers and locals together, locals can lend their time by visiting the tripper while they are staying in the area, and the tripper can return the favor in their own way. Both users can learn about the others’ culture and region, sharing experiences and life stories.
When it comes to comfort, what travel gear can’t you live without? Leave
a comment on this post, or connect with Mobiata on Facebook, Twitter,
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App Guide: Apps for Stress-Relief When on the Road
Photo: Some rights reserved by twicepix
Many people find traveling to be stressful, regardless of whether it’s for a major business trip or a long-awaited vacation. If you find yourself easily anxious through the traveling process, there are some apps that can absolutely help. Here are some apps geared to help reduce stress and anxiety and create a calmer, more relaxing environment and state of mind.
Ambiance
If you get easily overwhelmed in a busy, hectic environment, this app can help take you to a happier place. Ambiance is an “environmental enhancer”, one in which you can create the perfect ambient atmosphere to relax, focus and just breathe. There are over 2,500 free sounds for you to choose from to download and listen to, and you can even customize your very own. Listen to playlists, sit back and let your mind slow down.
Anti-Stress Quotes
The power of words is real. Sometimes just reading the right quote at the right time can be very cathartic and work wonders on the mind and body. Whether the traveling has you in a fit of anxiety, or maybe the actual destination itself – this free app can offer many wise quotes on how to best cope with your worries and manage your stress. Save your favorite quotes to look back on in the future, share them through email, or upload them to Facebook and Twitter for others.
Pocket Yoga
If you’re a regular yogi, you’re well aware of the benefits of the practice when done on a regular basis. Pocket Yoga is an app that helps you keep up when you’re away from home and your normal routines. Practice at your own schedule (hopefully you can squeeze in some time!) and in the comfort of your hotel room or wherever you are staying. Sit your smartphone in front of your mat and Pocket Yoga will guide you through the session, offering 145 pose images with correct posture and positioning. After a long day of important work meetings or even just a long day of sightseeing, wind down with this spiritual practice.
Awareness
The really cool thing about this app is that it randomly intercepts your daily routine, without you having to make the time to go to it – and prompts you to get in touch with what it is you are feeling at the moment. Awareness is all about bringing you into the present moment. Throughout the day a “gong” will go off and the phone will ask you to record what you are feeling at that moment. It will then bring you to a brief meditative exercise that you can do wherever you are, no matter how chaotic around you the scene may be. A great app for a little bit of inner peace, which can be especially helpful when you’re away from home.
App Guide: Health-Friendly Apps for Travelers
Photo: Some rights reserved by Yutaka Tsutano
Traveling is full of exploration. For many people, being somewhere new for the first time means adjusting to an array of unfamiliar surroundings. While some people can’t wait to jump right in with little concern, others like to be prepared, and make sure they know just what they’re in for. Regardless of which type of traveler you are, there are certain health-precautions that may be of interest to you when experiencing somewhere new. Here are some very useful, health-savvy apps to consider for your next trip!
Dining Grades
If you are the type of person who is more concerned about the cleanliness of a restaurant than its food, ambiance and staff, then this is the app for you. The ratings are user-generated, offering honest, reliable information from fellow diners, as well as the opportunity for you to share your experiences with fellow app users.
Music Therapy for Sound Sleep
Many people have difficulties when it comes to falling asleep at night, and when travel is added into the mix, it can become quite an arduous task. If you are one of those people who finds it difficult to fall asleep in an unfamiliar setting such as a hotel room, Music Therapy for Sound Sleep can be a serious game changer. It not only uses relaxing sounds from nature, such as ocean and rain, but also features low speed alpha waves which are set to comfort your mind. Whether you have a big meeting the next morning or an early morning adventure ahead, this app can certainly aid in getting the good night’s rest your body needs.
SpeechTrans
SpeechTrans is one of the most necessary apps for anyone traveling to a foreign country. Users have the ability to enter a sentence, either by typing it in or speaking it into the iPhone, and SpeechTrans instantly translates it. This app can be especially crucial In the event of a medical emergency, where travelers can share important information to a medic as well as understand the treatment they are receiving.
Breathe2Relax
This is a fantastic app for any traveler who gets a bout of anxiety during the flying process. Breathe2Relax is a stress-managing app that helps people to relax by controlling their breath. Whether travelers get nervous during takeoff, landing or both, using this app beforehand may aid in reducing their levels of anxiety. This app can be a huge help for anyone, traveling or not, who finds themselves feeling anxious and needs help finding calm.
Sodium101
Travelers often end up eating a great deal of “fast food” while on their way to and from a destination for convenience purposes, and this food often has a higher sodium content than most people realize. For any traveler who has high blood pressure or other health issues, this app can aid in helping those on the go to make smarter, lower-sodium food choices based on their personal information. The app also allows sodium-intake to be tracked on a day-to-day basis.
