Word Lens is an augmented reality app which "instantly translates printed words from one language to another using the video camera on your iPhone". A lot of AR apps are really interesting but too slow and buggy to use for anything other than showing off in the pub. If Word Lens works as well as it appears to in this video then it is the exception to this rule. Just imagine being on holiday and having your iPhone translate signs and menus for you in real time!
you can get Word Lens from the App store.
Showing posts with label apps. Show all posts
Showing posts with label apps. Show all posts
Wednesday, 1 December 2010
Friday, 24 September 2010
10 iPhone Apps for London Visitors
Visiting central London can be akin to planning a military exercise - parking spaces, tube closures, choosing a show or a restaurant - whether you’re a dyed-in-the-wool Londoner or a first-time tourist, information is always your friend!
Here are 10 iPhone apps to make your life a little easier. All are free unless stated otherwise, click on the name of the App to open it in iTunes.
Tube Map
Don’t be lost before your London journey has even begun with this scrollable tube map and route planner. App includes updates on line delays and will find the nearest tube station to where you are. No network connection is required to use the map – handy when you’re 100ft underground!
Park-up London
If you’re bold enough to drive into central London, this nifty parking guide will give you the ‘battleground’ advantage. App comes with details of over 10,000 parking places, including car parks, street parking, disabled and motorcycle bays. Hours and costs are visible for each location, as are the rates of vehicle crime. £2.99
London Journey Planner
Plan your best route around town with this London journey planner. View maps of your location and destination, browse suggested routes and get updates on the various TFL (Transport for London) services, including Tube, Rail, DLR, Bus, Coach and River. 59p
London Cycle
Get on your Boris Bike with this feature-packed app that will help you make the most of the London cycle-hire scheme. Find cycle stations, safe directions and real time information about whether a station is full or empty. App comes with rental timer and alarm, giving you time to re-dock before those unpleasant extra charges apply.
London Shophound
Napoleon famously called the UK a nation of shopkeepers. With thousands of stores, from bric-a-brac to haute couture, London is the undisputed retail capital. This app gives you the insider info on more than 130 of the city’s best shops, including fashion, food and drink and books & music, illustrated with colour photos. Time to get bargain hunting! £1.19
Time Out London
Looking for a restaurant or a place to chill? This free listings guide has information on hundreds of bars, restaurants and events. Find out what’s going on in the city, and put a wealth of entertainment possibilities at your fingertips. Sponsored by Smirnoff, you must be 18 or older to use the app.
Toiluxe
Don’t be caught short London again, with this brilliant map of free luxury toilets. Why spend 30p at a railway station when there could be a free super-loo in the ground floor of the department store right across the street? Over 300 free super-loos have been catalogued for your convenience, with quick directions from your current location!
Street Museum
Get an old perspective on contemporary London, with an app that lets you look through the window of time. Select your destination and see the same location appear on your screen in an historic image from the Museum of London archives. Tap the info button for historical facts and delve a little deeper into the story of one of the world’s fastest changing cities.
London Walks
With over 60 walks to choose from, and an easy-to-follow audio guide, this app proves that using a little shoe leather is definitely the best way to discover the city. However, if you just feel like having a coffee instead, you can enjoy a virtual walk from the comfort of your own phone! £1.19
London Taxi
Based on the TFL Taxi Tariff and estimated traffic congestion, this handy app calculates the fare, time and route for your London taxi journeys. Calculate a taxi fare between any 2 points and see the distance of your trip. Preset London points include tube and train stations - particularly useful for making those late trains home! 59p
Guest post by Ben Piper of UK Tickets.
Please get in contact if you are interested in adding a guest post.
Here are 10 iPhone apps to make your life a little easier. All are free unless stated otherwise, click on the name of the App to open it in iTunes.
Tube Map
Don’t be lost before your London journey has even begun with this scrollable tube map and route planner. App includes updates on line delays and will find the nearest tube station to where you are. No network connection is required to use the map – handy when you’re 100ft underground!
Park-up London
If you’re bold enough to drive into central London, this nifty parking guide will give you the ‘battleground’ advantage. App comes with details of over 10,000 parking places, including car parks, street parking, disabled and motorcycle bays. Hours and costs are visible for each location, as are the rates of vehicle crime. £2.99
London Journey Planner
Plan your best route around town with this London journey planner. View maps of your location and destination, browse suggested routes and get updates on the various TFL (Transport for London) services, including Tube, Rail, DLR, Bus, Coach and River. 59p
London Cycle
Get on your Boris Bike with this feature-packed app that will help you make the most of the London cycle-hire scheme. Find cycle stations, safe directions and real time information about whether a station is full or empty. App comes with rental timer and alarm, giving you time to re-dock before those unpleasant extra charges apply.
London Shophound
Napoleon famously called the UK a nation of shopkeepers. With thousands of stores, from bric-a-brac to haute couture, London is the undisputed retail capital. This app gives you the insider info on more than 130 of the city’s best shops, including fashion, food and drink and books & music, illustrated with colour photos. Time to get bargain hunting! £1.19
Time Out London
Looking for a restaurant or a place to chill? This free listings guide has information on hundreds of bars, restaurants and events. Find out what’s going on in the city, and put a wealth of entertainment possibilities at your fingertips. Sponsored by Smirnoff, you must be 18 or older to use the app.
Toiluxe
Don’t be caught short London again, with this brilliant map of free luxury toilets. Why spend 30p at a railway station when there could be a free super-loo in the ground floor of the department store right across the street? Over 300 free super-loos have been catalogued for your convenience, with quick directions from your current location!
Street Museum
Get an old perspective on contemporary London, with an app that lets you look through the window of time. Select your destination and see the same location appear on your screen in an historic image from the Museum of London archives. Tap the info button for historical facts and delve a little deeper into the story of one of the world’s fastest changing cities.
London Walks
With over 60 walks to choose from, and an easy-to-follow audio guide, this app proves that using a little shoe leather is definitely the best way to discover the city. However, if you just feel like having a coffee instead, you can enjoy a virtual walk from the comfort of your own phone! £1.19
London Taxi
Based on the TFL Taxi Tariff and estimated traffic congestion, this handy app calculates the fare, time and route for your London taxi journeys. Calculate a taxi fare between any 2 points and see the distance of your trip. Preset London points include tube and train stations - particularly useful for making those late trains home! 59p
Guest post by Ben Piper of UK Tickets.
Please get in contact if you are interested in adding a guest post.
Sunday, 13 June 2010
Top 5 Free Mobile Travel Apps
These day I wouldn't dream of traveling without my mobile phone although I rarely use it to make calls. Built in GPS means that I almost never get lost (unless I stray out of reach of a decent signal) and my collection of Travel apps keep me amused and informed.
An internet enabled mobile phone is also a great guide book and reference tool. Wondering when that Cathedral was built? Looking for a cheap place to eat? Need to work out a currency conversion? Google has all the answers and more.
Below are 5 of the best mobile Apps for travelers all of which are free to download and use. Some of these Apps are available on other platforms, if not there are likely to be alternatives. If you have anything else to add please do so in the comments.
1. Flightview [iPhone] [Blackberry] [Web]
Flightview lets you keep up to date with flight schedules, weather conditions and the status of your flight. Enter your Airport code (LDN, JFK e.t.c) and your flight number for real time information.
"Receive alerts concerning flight status changes, flight delays, flight cancellations and gate assignment changes, whether your app is open or closed. Use the Notes feature to add car hire and hotel reservation numbers, and other important trip information."
2. Google Maps App [web] [mobile]
The most used feature of my phone when I travel, Google Maps lets you see where you are when combined with the built in GPS which most Smart Phones now have. You can find directions and follow your progress on the map in real time. Use the search feature to locate cash points, coffee shops and train stations. You can also read customer reviews of restaurants and hotels to help you make up your mind.
3. Wi-Fi Finder [Web] [iPhone]
Its pretty obvious what this one does but why? Well roaming data rates can be extortionate so using Wifi can save you a lot of money on your return. Also if you happen own a iPod or non 3G iPad then you are reliant on a Wifi connection to get online. If you can find a free Hotspot then it is a much better option than visiting a cyber cafe.
4. Urbanspoon [iPhone]
Urban spoon helps you to choose where to eat which is particularly useful when you find yourself in a new city with no local knowledge. The user interface is a pleasure to use, simply select a location, a type of cuisine and a price range then shake to see what is suggested. If you don't like what come up then just shake again until you get a satisfactory answer.
5. AccuWeather [iPhone]
Being away from home it can be difficult to keep up to date with the weather forecast. When you are traveling the chances are you will be outside a lot of the time and therefore will need to dress appropriately. The AcuuWeather app using you location and gives you a fairly reliable indication of the approaching weather conditions.
An internet enabled mobile phone is also a great guide book and reference tool. Wondering when that Cathedral was built? Looking for a cheap place to eat? Need to work out a currency conversion? Google has all the answers and more.
Below are 5 of the best mobile Apps for travelers all of which are free to download and use. Some of these Apps are available on other platforms, if not there are likely to be alternatives. If you have anything else to add please do so in the comments.
1. Flightview [iPhone] [Blackberry] [Web]
Flightview lets you keep up to date with flight schedules, weather conditions and the status of your flight. Enter your Airport code (LDN, JFK e.t.c) and your flight number for real time information.
"Receive alerts concerning flight status changes, flight delays, flight cancellations and gate assignment changes, whether your app is open or closed. Use the Notes feature to add car hire and hotel reservation numbers, and other important trip information."
2. Google Maps App [web] [mobile]
The most used feature of my phone when I travel, Google Maps lets you see where you are when combined with the built in GPS which most Smart Phones now have. You can find directions and follow your progress on the map in real time. Use the search feature to locate cash points, coffee shops and train stations. You can also read customer reviews of restaurants and hotels to help you make up your mind.
3. Wi-Fi Finder [Web] [iPhone]
Its pretty obvious what this one does but why? Well roaming data rates can be extortionate so using Wifi can save you a lot of money on your return. Also if you happen own a iPod or non 3G iPad then you are reliant on a Wifi connection to get online. If you can find a free Hotspot then it is a much better option than visiting a cyber cafe.
4. Urbanspoon [iPhone]
Urban spoon helps you to choose where to eat which is particularly useful when you find yourself in a new city with no local knowledge. The user interface is a pleasure to use, simply select a location, a type of cuisine and a price range then shake to see what is suggested. If you don't like what come up then just shake again until you get a satisfactory answer.
5. AccuWeather [iPhone]
Being away from home it can be difficult to keep up to date with the weather forecast. When you are traveling the chances are you will be outside a lot of the time and therefore will need to dress appropriately. The AcuuWeather app using you location and gives you a fairly reliable indication of the approaching weather conditions.
Wednesday, 3 March 2010
Skype Mobile App Comes to the Nokia Ovi Store
Nokia's Ovi store was launched in May 2009 and provides Nokia users with access to a variety of free and paid Apps. While it isn't as popular or as extensive as Apple's App store it has been a success and has recently hit 1.5 million downloads a day according to their in-house stats. The increasing sales of Symbian based smartphones has been credited with doubling the amount of monthly registrations during February.
The Ovi Store's latest release is a version of the Skype mobile application for Symbian devices. Whilst this application has been available previously it is expected that it's presence in the Ovi store will lead to an increase in downloads. Skype are hoping that by including their software in the store for free they will be able to increase their popularity amongst the 200 million smartphone users worldwide.
Using Skype's VOIP (Voice Over IP) software to circumnavigate calling cost is not a new idea. Three already offer a dedicated Skype Mobile called the Skypephone S2 and the mobile software is available for iPhone, Blackberry and Android devices. As consumers demand more from devices and tariffs the idea of paying a premium for calls seems less acceptable. With free minutes and VOIP calling it increasingly feels like we are paying for the device rather than our usage.
The fact that mobile phone providers are so happy for their subscribers to use the software shows that they are embracing the changing usage patterns of mobile devices. It seems likely that in the future we wont be carrying around a phone but a mobile computer with the ability to make phone calls. If you compare the early mobile phones with current smart phones you could even say that this has already happened.
The Ovi Store's latest release is a version of the Skype mobile application for Symbian devices. Whilst this application has been available previously it is expected that it's presence in the Ovi store will lead to an increase in downloads. Skype are hoping that by including their software in the store for free they will be able to increase their popularity amongst the 200 million smartphone users worldwide.
Using Skype's VOIP (Voice Over IP) software to circumnavigate calling cost is not a new idea. Three already offer a dedicated Skype Mobile called the Skypephone S2 and the mobile software is available for iPhone, Blackberry and Android devices. As consumers demand more from devices and tariffs the idea of paying a premium for calls seems less acceptable. With free minutes and VOIP calling it increasingly feels like we are paying for the device rather than our usage.
The fact that mobile phone providers are so happy for their subscribers to use the software shows that they are embracing the changing usage patterns of mobile devices. It seems likely that in the future we wont be carrying around a phone but a mobile computer with the ability to make phone calls. If you compare the early mobile phones with current smart phones you could even say that this has already happened.
Tuesday, 22 December 2009
Would You Browse for Furniture on your Phone?
Every company now seems to feel like they should have a Twitter account and an iPhone app. Where they were once hesitant about going online they are now desperate to appear cool by mastering the latest social networking craze or spending all their money on a fancy website. Having refused to get online until people stopped coming into their shops they are now reaching out via the web and learning fun phrases like Web 2.0, the Tipping Point and Crowd Sourcing.
Both House of Frasier and Ikea have released versions of their 2010 catalogs as iPhone apps. The apps let you browse through what is available in store although it is not actually possible to buy products via the Ikea one (Ikea only deliver to certain areas so online sales aren't their strong point). A lot of the items these companies sell would need to be seen in person (you wouldn't buy a sofa without seeing it) but the apps aim to give customers 'inspiration'.
Some have questioned the usefulness of a phone application when it comes to selling furniture. Bill Westerman, CTO of Create with Context believes that it is unlikely to be cost effective: "The enormous cost of development won’t always be financially sensible. The aim of any app is to tap into customer loyalty, keep shoppers interested in the brand and ultimately make money."
Most people in the UK wont have the ability to use an iPhone application so perhaps retailers would be better off trying to make a really great mobile site. Mobile sites are getting more hits than ever before as more and more phones become able to access the web. A great mobile site would need to be accessible to those with slower connections or at least have high and low bandwidth versions.
Both House of Frasier and Ikea have released versions of their 2010 catalogs as iPhone apps. The apps let you browse through what is available in store although it is not actually possible to buy products via the Ikea one (Ikea only deliver to certain areas so online sales aren't their strong point). A lot of the items these companies sell would need to be seen in person (you wouldn't buy a sofa without seeing it) but the apps aim to give customers 'inspiration'.
Some have questioned the usefulness of a phone application when it comes to selling furniture. Bill Westerman, CTO of Create with Context believes that it is unlikely to be cost effective: "The enormous cost of development won’t always be financially sensible. The aim of any app is to tap into customer loyalty, keep shoppers interested in the brand and ultimately make money."
Most people in the UK wont have the ability to use an iPhone application so perhaps retailers would be better off trying to make a really great mobile site. Mobile sites are getting more hits than ever before as more and more phones become able to access the web. A great mobile site would need to be accessible to those with slower connections or at least have high and low bandwidth versions.
Friday, 6 November 2009
Spotify Helps to 'Curb Music Piracy'
A recent survey has shown that those who use Spotify to stream songs for free are less inclined to illegally download music. Of those questioned who admitted to illegally downloading two thirds said that using Spotify had encouraged them to reduce the amount they downloaded.
This makes you wonder if people want to own music or just want access to it? Now that it is possible to download almost any album for free has owning a collection lost its appeal? CD sales continue to fall whilst legal downloads become more and more popular. It will be interesting to see if the popularity of music streaming will have a negative effect on legal mp3 sales.
Whilst users with a free Spotify account cannot own or stream songs offline they can have round the clock access. Those with a premium account can stream offline and on mobile devices such as the iPhone or the HTC Hero for £10 a month. So far the mobile app is only available with a monthly contract rather than on pay as you go phones so bandwidth limits are not an issue.
Legal downloads continue to rise in popularity with Amazon's mp3 store being a positive example. It has become the second most popular provider of mp3s behind iTunes perhaps due to its household name and lack of DRM crippled files. As CD retailers close their doors it is clear that the music industry needs to change its model. Spotify may well be leading the change.
This makes you wonder if people want to own music or just want access to it? Now that it is possible to download almost any album for free has owning a collection lost its appeal? CD sales continue to fall whilst legal downloads become more and more popular. It will be interesting to see if the popularity of music streaming will have a negative effect on legal mp3 sales.
Whilst users with a free Spotify account cannot own or stream songs offline they can have round the clock access. Those with a premium account can stream offline and on mobile devices such as the iPhone or the HTC Hero for £10 a month. So far the mobile app is only available with a monthly contract rather than on pay as you go phones so bandwidth limits are not an issue.
Legal downloads continue to rise in popularity with Amazon's mp3 store being a positive example. It has become the second most popular provider of mp3s behind iTunes perhaps due to its household name and lack of DRM crippled files. As CD retailers close their doors it is clear that the music industry needs to change its model. Spotify may well be leading the change.
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