I’ve got to admit that Parking App is an application I never would have thought of. I had resigned myself to using the simple timer function in Apple’s built in clock/timer application. I use the timer almost daily to warn me of expiring parking meters. Tickets are very costly and could amount to hundreds if not thousands in fines, tows and penalties on a annual basis.

Parking App by cgCraft LLC is an extremely well thought out and designed program. The user interface is clean, simple and easy to read. The layout is very intuitive and the app is learned in a minute or two. That’s not say it isn’t powerful, though, so read on.

The top third of the home screen is the time setting control. The graphics and simplicity of use are great. Slide the button at the bottom of the time scale to show the time remaining on the meter. I always set mine 10 to 15 minutes less, to give myself time to get a latte and still get to the meter in time to plug more quarters in. The middle half the screen is occupied by the various Parking Zones you set up. I immediately set up zones for weekly street cleaning, and the 3 pm to 6 pm No Parking Zone in front of my office. I added my house, a few of the restaurants I eat lunch at and soon I had most of the zones I regularly park in entered.

Zones can easily be modified, deleted or added. There are settings to enter times, days of the week, weeks and when to sound alert. For example street cleaning takes place from 4 am to 6 am every Thursday. I programmed this into the app with several simple clicks and now it appears on the main screen in my list of zones. Every Thursday evening I’l get an alert at 10 pm to remind me to move my car. So simple.

Another great convenience is the ability to take a photo of where you parked you car, to use later as a reminder. This could eve be used in parking lots and garages. A shot of the aisle, row number and you’re all set. It’s not infallible, but it sure makes finding your car a little easier.

There is one limitation all users need to be aware of when using this program. Apple does not allow multiple apps (except Apple Apps) to run in the background. So what does this mean to the user? Say you set the meter alert to go off in 1:45:00. In the interim you check mail, listen to iTunes, check an app to find a new lunch spot etc. You get the idea. If you don’t at least re-open Parking App after the last application was used, the alarm won’t sound. So the rule is, if you use another app, you must return to Parking App after you close the other app. Simple enough, just don’t forget. This is not a limitation of the program. It is a limitation forced on all non-Apple applications.

The only thing I would change is to have a choice of alarm sounds and a volume control. The alarm is too soft in some surroundings, such as a noisy lunch counter. Yet a little loud for the quite of my office. I really like Parking App. A few may balk at the price, $2.99, but I’ll spend that any day to save a fine and a tow. The clean design and ease of use, make it a pleasure to use daily. It’s earned 5 Stars.

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This app can be a pretty important tool in today’s economy. It allows you to set car profiles and then chart your gas usage to give you a good idea of how your vehicle is running and how many miles per gallon you are getting.
To enter your vehicle touch preferences at the bottom right of the screen. Then you can type in its name and choose units for the odometer and for gas depending on your country. Once that’s done just touch fuel every time you go to the gas station. There you can enter the date, the odometer reading and the price you paid per gallon. You can even mark if you were filling the tank or just topping it off.

The piece de resistance is the statistics icon, also at the bottom of the home screen. After you’ve got numbers for a couple trips to the gas station, you can see how your vehicle is doing overall. You’ll see both your average MPG as a numerical value and be able to further gauge its trend by looking at the app’s line graph. If it’s going down, you can take steps to remedy it, like finally checking your tire pressure. You’ll also see the same for the average price of the gas you’ve been buying.

I was a little disappointed that you can’t enter multiple vehicles to see how your hybrid compares to your Hummer, but that option is available in the full, paid version. It also allows you to keep maintenance records and write other notes.

The free version is still pretty helpful though and it’s easier than keeping this info on a notepad in your glove box.

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This app is very straightforward. It finds wireless networks in your immediate area. All you have to do is launch the app and it immediately begins scanning. It then comes up with a list. Open networks are preceded by a green check mark and locked networks have a red do not enter type sign. (My search came up with a list of 12, though only two of them were unlocked.)Touch the name of a network to get more details about it, including MAC address, channel, strength, authentication and whether it is hidden. If you have the permissions, you can connect to the network by touching the conveniently named connect button.

If you’re traveling with your iPhone, you can use the auto scan button at the bottom of your screen to set your phone to continuously look for networks automatically. You can set the intervals for rescanning to any number of seconds and request notification whenever the app finds a new network to add to the list. When this setting’s turned on, your phone will vibrate each time one pops up.

It’s a helpful tool for when you’re out and about and need to find a WiFi connection. That will help you get access to local networking sources and often increases Web page loading speed. It can also be useful if you’re looking to connect your laptop or other mobile tools.

The interface is simple and clean. It’s very easy to use the app and it’s a total cinch to learn. Navigating the maze of wireless networks you find might be another story.

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Using this fun app you can change your voice to one of five different styles. The first and probably my favorite, which you get to by touching the triangular gray button, makes you sound like some kind of evil monster by making your voice higher pitched and crackly. The second style is accessed through the lion’s face and replaces your voice with a growl.

A third option is accessed through a circular button and sounds like you’re talking into a space helmet with a fuzzy and echoing sound. The fourth and fifth buttons look like a pacifier and an robot head with a baby talk/crazy babbling sound and a mechanical sound, respectively.

If you’re using just your iPhone, you may think the app doesn’t work. That’s because you have to hold it to your ear like you would if you were talking on the phone to hear the sound coming out of the speaker. (See, you don’t need a Bluetooth to look like you’re talking to yourself!)

Another option is that you can use headphones or connect an external mic. Then you’ll be able to see the screen as you use the app and watch the patterns that are formed due to your pitch and echo and adjust them using your finger.

It’s a lot more fun when you can see the screen while you’re speaking, but it’s a good diversion either way. The only problem I had was trying to think of what to say. It’d be pretty cool to have a script prepared that related to each voice. You could even make your own radio show.

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This is a good app for people who can’t seem to remember phone numbers – even their own – and for those who don’t like having to dial or scroll through their contacts list. All you have to do is press the large blue square in the middle of the screen, which conveniently says “press while speaking” and say the name of the person or place you’d like to call. The app will pull the numbers of people in your contact list that are similar to the words you said.

The dialer is actually pretty accurate. When I said my own name, it quickly popped up with my home, work and mobile numbers. (Note that you have to have the phone very close to your mouth.) Then I tried my name plus the word “cell” and my mobile number was moved to the top of the list. I said a couple more names and got good results on those as well.

Be aware that the app will only find numbers in your contacts list. If you tell it to call Dominoes Pizza it’s not going to search the Web for the phone number. Also, be careful if you have the auto dialer turned on. This option sets it up so that the phone calls the first number it finds without waiting for you to confirm that it is correct. One time I said the name “Sarah” and she did end up on my list, but the first phone number listed was for an old coworker named Julie. With only a second to see what my phone was doing, I was powerless to stop it from dialing out.

So, yes, this is a good app, and I would recommend getting it, look in the top left corner and make sure AutoDial is off first thing, especially if you have a lot of contacts.

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This is just the app you need if you go on a lot of blind dates and find yourself lingering over dinner longer than you’d like to. All you have to do is launch the program by choosing it in the apps menu and your phone will ring within seconds or minutes, according to your specifications. In the background it will show a name or phone number and a wallpaper image you preset to make your call look important. You can choose to either answer the fake call or decline it by touching the appropriate button on the screen. Be sure to pick one of those options or it will just call you continuously at your specified interval.

One problem I had with this app is that it’s not very intuitive. Instead of simply clicking on the button on the apps menu and setting the program up from there, you have to go into the “settings” menu for your entire phone (the one with the gears on it) and then search through your program list for the Fake Calls icon. Then, if you want to change the wallpaper for your fake call, you have to go back to the icon in the apps menu and relaunch the program.

Another thing that I didn’t like is that you are stuck with a kind of folksy, bluegrass ringtone, which will appear quite suspicious if every other time your phone rings it plays a song by 50 Cent. There doesn’t appear to be any way to turn it off or change it, though you can have the phone vibrate at the same time.

All in all, this is a clever program. I just hope I don’t end up in a situation where I would need to use it.

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Air Mouse allows you to control your Windows PC or Mac running OSX using your iPhone instead of the mouse and keyboard. It takes a little legwork to install, since the application requires you to visit the developer’s website at www.airmouse.com to download the server application. You’ll also need to have your phone on the same wireless network as your computer in order for it to work. This makes it good for using at home, but it could be blocked by firewalls if you try to use it at the office.

I tested this app using a laptop running Windows XP Pro and a MacBook Pro. Installation was easy and both machines and required no customization. Once the software was running and launched on the iPhone, the app immediately found each computer on the network and synched up.

Controlling the Air Mouse does not actually involve moving your phone around in the air, as the name might suggest. (In fact, I tried this and absolutely nothing happened.) Instead, all you need to do is shift your finger on the touch screen to move the cursor around and tap the screen for a mouse click. Convenient arrows even allow you to scroll, and a yellow glow will show you exactly where your finger is on the screen.

Don’t feel like sitting up to type on your computer? No problem. There’s a full QWERTY keyboard on the bottom of Air Mouse’s screen.

While it’s not the ideal way to control the computer, unless you are adept at typing on a tiny screen, the Air Mouse would be great to use during presentations or when you’re demonstrating something in front of a group and you want to keep your lap free.

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