“As of this writing the number one free app in the iTunes store was the game iDragPaper, inviting you to swipe at your iPhone touchscreen to see how fast you can unroll a virtual roll of toilet paper. Never mind that I can watch my three-year-old unravel a real roll at least twice a day. The app’s mindless fun and that’s fine. But it’s not the type of app you look for out of need. It finds you. When it comes to travel apps, sure, you might want a few silly ones to find you the next time you’re waiting to be patted down at the airport. But before that happens, here are five apps you ought to go find.

Best laptop guardian: Laptop Cop, $49.95 for app and 1-year license. Windows XP, Vista, and 7.

A laptop gets stolen every 53 seconds, according to an FBI statistic quoted by the makers of PC software app Laptop Cop. And if your laptop is ever one of them, you might be able to remotely access its files or recover your laptop if Laptop Cop’s installed on it. One catch: The thief has to have your laptop powered on as well as online for any of the app’s functions to work. But it’s better than nothing. Here’s how it might go down. After realizing your laptop’s been snatched, you’d get to a Web-enabled desktop or laptop — or smart phone, if it can run Adobe Flash Player 10 — log into your Laptop Cop online account, and click a button reporting your laptop stolen. At this point, if your thief is not yet surfing the Web, you can queue up any important files or compromising photos you’d want to retrieve or delete. As soon as the thief or the person to whom he’s already sold your laptop goes online, “the retrieval/deletion process automatically takes place,” according to a company customer service rep.

Best neighborhood watch: SpotCrime. Free Web app for all devices, iPhone optimized.

A free Web app available for the iPhone or viewable on any smart phone or laptop, Spotcrime lets you track crimes in virtually any neighborhood for which crime data is available. Wondering what crime is like near your hotel or a few neighborhoods away? Pick your destination city from a drop-down menu or enter a specific address and a Google map studded with “crime icons” appears. Fists indicate assault & battery, tiny menacing stick figures indicate thefts, and so on. If you’re using an iPhone you can tap the map icons to see the addresses and times of the crimes, which are also listed under the map if you’re touchscreen deprived. The plotted crimes are fairly current, in some cases having been committed the day you check. With many of the crimes you can click a “view source” link to see where Spotcrime got its information. Often the source is an online city police blotter, fascinating reading if you have the time.

Best in-flight education: iTunes University. Free apps for iPods and other MP3-enabled devices.

Remember in the very first “Superman” movie when baby Kal-El has to listen to all those educational tapes on the flight from Krypton to Earth so that he’s really smart by the time his escape pod lands? Sitting on a plane while listening to the free lectures available from iTunes University is sort of like that.

Looking for a get-rich-quick scheme? Download the Stanford University course on iPhone Application Development. Hoping to psych out a coworker? Listen to the Introduction to Psychology Course from Yale. Looking for something a little less Ivy League? Sample the “Bad Philosophy” lessons from Texas Tech University students who pontificate about everything from the origins of the universe to the meaning of all the apps that Google can’t seem to stop developing.

Best invention ever: Tether for Blackberry, $49.95

Have you ever nursed a bitter cup of coffee or overpriced sandwich just so you could connect your laptop to an establishment’s free Wi-Fi? Have you ever gone to sit in a hotel lobby and become enraged that other free-Wi-Fi users are hogging all the seats? If you own a BlackBerry with a flat-rate data plan, download Tether for Blackberry, formerly known as Tetherberry, and life will be different.” ( via foxnews.com ) by Paul Eisenberg

Pointswizard.com Spin: Click here to read the rest of Top 5 Travel Apps for 2010

“Downloadable applications for the iPhone, Blackberry and other smartphones are fast becoming indispensable among business travelers who use their phones to help them organize and navigate trips with little more effort than a few taps on a touch screen.

And looking ahead, technology experts envision tools that will be, in effect, personal concierges — handling everything from reservations to reimbursements.

Even with the applications available today, Chris Selland, a technology development and marketing consultant who travels frequently for business, is a fan of smartphones. “Basically, you’ve got everything in your pocket,” he said, adding that he switched to the iPhone specifically because of the greater number of applications.

Alan Warms, a technology entrepreneur and a former vice president at Yahoo, said travel applications were the third most popular type of download after social networking and gaming apps. Roughly a third of the members on his Web site, Appolicious.com, which reviews mobile applications, have downloaded one or more travel-related tools, he said.

This proliferation of downloadable applications can be attributed, in a large part, to the pervasiveness of GPS functions in smartphones. Previously, if a visitor to an unfamiliar city wanted to find, say, a Japanese restaurant, he would have had to type in the starting address. Now, the phone automatically knows its current location, eliminating one step and streamlining the process.

In interviews, business travelers indicated that the most popular travel-related apps fell into two categories: organization aids and location-based tools. Apps like TripIt, for example, allow travelers to consolidate their itineraries into a single digital version that can be shared with co-workers or an assistant.

“To me, the most valuable thing is you have all this itinerary information in one place, and it’s easy to get to,” said Pete Davies, who travels several times a year for his job at a clean technology company. “A year ago, I would carry a whole sheaf of printouts and confirmations with me, and now I have them in one simple place.”

Tools like iReceipt allow travelers to store and organize receipts for expense reporting, reducing the number of hard copies that need to be shuttled around on a trip.

Location-based apps use GPS technology to give users information about restaurants, tourist attractions and even taxi services in their immediate vicinity. Some, like Urbanspoon, focus exclusively on restaurants; others, like Yelp and Google Maps, offer information about everything from dry cleaners to coffee shops. Some also include user reviews.

Downloadable applications have some advantages over their digital alter egos, mobile browser versions of company Web pages. Since the apps are stored on a phone instead of on a distant server, the information can be accessed even when the phone is not connected to the Internet. This means that travelers in an airplane or other location without Internet access can still use the program. ” ( via nytimes.com ) by  MARTHA C. WHITE

Pointswizard.com Spin: Click here to read more about- For Travelers, a Personal Concierge on Your Phone

“Your phone runs apps. Cool apps. Fun apps. Free apps. Even if it isn’t an iPhone…

The popularity of Apple’s App Store vaulted mobile apps to prominence, but techies know that mobile phones have been tiny PCs for years now…

The difference today is the buzz and visibility around apps. The idea that you can add to your phone’s powers has gone mainstream…

With 100,000 apps, the iPhone certainly has the most apps available, but there’s no lack of choice on other platforms… Google’s Android phones have more than 10,000. There are thousands for BlackBerry, Windows Mobile, and Symbian phones, and a couple of hundred for the Palm Pre and Pixi.

Even simple phones like the Motorola RAZR can get into the app game.

We’ve sifted through a huge stack of apps to find the best free ones for almost every phone. The only folks left out are owners of Verizon and T-Mobile non-smartphones like the LG enV3 and Nokia 5310. Those carriers forbid you from installing free, third-party apps, although they make a limited selection of paid apps available.

Our list totals 100 apps: 40 for the iPhone, 20 each for BlackBerry and Android, 10 for Windows Mobile, and 10 combined for Palm WebOS, Symbian, and non-smartphones. The iPhone, of course, has more apps than anyone else. BlackBerry is the USA’s dominant smartphone platform. Android is gaining market share while Windows Mobile is losing it. And while Symbian may be popular overseas, those phones are seldom seen on American shores.

• The Top 40 Free Apps for iPhone

• The Top 20 Free Apps for BlackBerry

• The Top 20 Free Apps for Android

• The Top 10 Free Apps for Windows Mobile

• The Top 10 Free Apps For Other Phones ” (via  PCMag.com) by PCMag.com Staff

Pointswizard.com Spin: Click here to read all of The Top 100 Free Apps For Your Phone

“All current Blackberrys use a Lithium-ion battery, or “Li-ion” for short…

In the past, some BlackBerry devices used a Nickel-metal hydride batteries, or “NiMH”. This article focuses on the Li-ion battery…

One of the most often asked questions on the BlackBerryForums is about battery use, charging and draining…

I hope these tips below help some users form some good battery habits…

Tips for new BlackBerrys and Batteries:
1.When you get a new Blackberry, charge it fully to 100%. There is no 120% or 130%, so once it hits 100%, it is fully charged. This normally takes about 2-4 hours for a new device.

There is nothing wrong with “over-charging” the battery, however there is no real need to do so. Sometimes, new Li-ion batteries will come fully charged out of the box.

2.There is no “break-in” or “conditioning” required for the Li-ion batteries. They do not need the old “fully discharge – fully charge” routine for the initial three charges as was recommended on older battery technologies.

3.If you are a brand new BlackBerry user, keep in mind that you are likely using (or playing with) your BlackBerry much more the first few days than in normal routine use.

If you think you are having quick battery discharge issues, give yourself a week or so until your daily BlackBerry usage levels off to a perceived normal amount.

Tips for routine charging and ongoing use:
1.    There is no memory on a Li-ion battery, and thus it is recommended that you “top-off” the charge regularly during the day.
Ten minutes now and then on your wall outlet, automobile or USB cable is recommended.

2.Roughly every 30 charges, deliberately discharge your battery to 10-15%, and fully charge to 100% afterwards. This will help maintain the accuracy of the “fuel gauge” on the device (your battery meter or scale).

It has nothing to do with the battery memory (as mentioned, Li-ion batteries do not have memory) but helps maintain the accuracy of the device’s percentage of battery charge left.

3. Don’t drain your battery every day to 10-20% of its charge. You can actually expect battery problems by draining the battery.

Again, to repeat, top-off your charge during the day whenever convenient – even ten minutes in the car or at your desk will give you an extra 20-25% charge.

9 Tips for reducing fast battery drain:
1. A BlackBerry constantly searching for signal drains the battery quickly. In an office building, residence, or rural area with low signal coverage, you will experience a quicker battery drain.

Turn off the “radio” on the homescreen or the data signal if you must reduce battery drain in severe circumstances (Options > Mobile Network > Data Services = OFF).

2. Check your applications running in the background. There are commonly four or five applications that will always be running (Messages, Call Logs/Phone, BlackBerry Messenger, Homescreen, and the Browser; there are others such as BeamBerry and Alarms which will also run).
Make certain that the browser is NOT on an active webpage (should return the bookmarks page only). Close any other applications that do not need to be running (the camera or a game you were playing or Google Maps).” There’s more -see link below”(via blackberrynews.com)

Pointswizard.com Spin: Click here to read the rest of Blackberry – Battery Use Tips for your Maximum Battery Life (many cell phones and The iPhone have the same type)

Handango – The leading provider of mobile content…

whatever smartphone you have – they have apps for you…

• Android™ Phones…
• BlackBerry® Phones…
• – Handango’s BlackBerry application catalog contains 500 free apps, 4000 apps under $5, 8000 apps between $5 and $10…
• Palm® Phones…
• Windows Mobile™ Phones…
• Symbian OS™ Phones…
• iPhone… (put iPhone in search box on top right)
• Pointswizard.com Spin: Click here for Save 25% on all smartphone apps at Handango with code BACKTOSCHOOL

“If you call Jason, his iPhone, Pre, Ion and pants all ring because he has Google Voice.

The service’s biggest downside is that you have a new number to deal with—but TechCrunch says number porting is coming.

That means you’ll be able to port the phone number you’ve had for 5 or 10 or 100 years to Google Voice and use whatever phone you want, whenever you want, on whatever carrier you want, with your current number—meaning you’ll never have to worry about your phone number again.

Right now, you can kinda hack it by forwarding calls from your current number to your Google Voice number, but you’re stuck with pitfalls like texts not being forwarded. Google’s also got an app cooking that’ll route outbound calls through Google Voice as well, so the service is more seamless—currently, your outbound caller ID is whatever’s actually assigned to the phone you’re using.  ” (via gizmodo.com ) by  Matt Buchanan

Pointswizard.com Spin: Click here to read the rest of Google Voice About to Get More Amazing By Letting You Port Your Number

Click here for the Google info page on Google Voice

We’ve used this on our Blackberry, cell phones and iPhones. Works great -amazing product and low cost

InvisibleSHIELD™ is a thin polyurethane film originally created for the military to protect the leading edge of helicopter blades. What’s unique about this military-grade, patented film is how tough it is – it doesn’t scratch. What makes ZAGG’s exclusive invisibleSHIELD™ so strong, flexible and scratch-proof? Its Nano-Memory technology™. With this technology, it also allows it to curve and contour around an entire device (not just the screen) and adhere to the device unless you want to remove it (without leaving adhesive).

Great for PDA, cell phones, iphones and computers.

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Must use code    TAXRELIEF

ends Tue Apr. 21

” Everyone knows traveling can be stressful, but having a smartphone along can make the trek a little more enjoyable.

The GoodFood application on the iPhone locates and offers reviews on nearby restaurants.

Both iPhone and BlackBerry have applications that can do everything from help keep you on time for that flight to mellow you out in the midst of those oh-so-annoying delays.

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The following are just a few of the many offerings:

Pocket Express — This nifty little app acts as a “mobile concierge” and provides a package that includes news, sports, weather, movies and travel.

“Travel” offers several helpful features, including the ability to check your flight status and schedule, a currency converter and a listing of nearby hotels. The application is free with an optional subscription to MobileCierge personal assistant for a fee. (Available for BlackBerry and iPhone)

Stanza — Why load down your purse or carry-on with paperbacks and magazines when you can load everything on to your phone?

The free Stanza reader app boasts a robust online catalogue of books, newspaper and magazine content. With links to more than 100,000 books from classics to contemporary novels, there will be plenty to read while en route or after arriving to your destination.

Some book downloads are free while others may be purchased from sites like Fictionwise or BooksOnBoard. (Available for iPhone)

Kindle for iPhone – If Stanza’s catalogue isn’t enough for you, the recently introduced Kindle application offers access to the hundreds of thousands of books at Amazon’s Kindle bookstore. Readers using the free app can adjust text size, add bookmarks and download previously purchased Kindle books.

And for those unsure as to whether they want to purchase a title, they can download a sample of an early chapter to take a test drive before they buy. (Available for iPhone)

Pandora — A road trip wouldn’t be complete without cool tunes and Pandora Internet Radio has plenty.

Users can select an artist whose songs become the basis of a “station,” which will play that artist’s music and music from performers with a similar sound.

By rating songs either thumbs up or thumbs down, the user can effectively craft a streaming playlist suited to his or her musical tastes. So there’s little chance that Michael Bolton will pop up if Led Zeppelin is more your flavor. The app is free. (Available for iPhone)

GoodFood — No longer do you have to depend on your taxi driver to get a good recommendation of where to eat.

Once you arrive at your destination, check out GoodFood by GoodRec for nearby restaurants and user reviews. Zoom in on the Google powered map, pick a listed establishment and tap for information and directions.

The “Want to Go” feature allows the user to create a list of favored places which will then appear with a bright blue pushpin when viewing the map. You can also add your own recommendations and photos on this free app. (Available for iPhone)” (via cnn.com) by Lisa Respers France

Pointswizard.com Spin: Click here to see the original article

Download free these programs to your IPhone or Blackberry

Then start downloading books to read.

Pointswizard.com Spin: Click here for iPhone info. Click here for Blackberry info

We’ve used this on our Blackberry, cell phones and iPhones. Works great -amazing product and low cost

InvisibleSHIELD™ is a thin polyurethane film originally created for the military to protect the leading edge of helicopter blades. What’s unique about this military-grade, patented film is how tough it is – it doesn’t scratch. What makes ZAGG’s exclusive invisibleSHIELD™ so strong, flexible and scratch-proof? Its Nano-Memory technology™. With this technology, it also allows it to curve and contour around an entire device (not just the screen) and adhere to the device unless you want to remove it (without leaving adhesive).

Great for PDA, cell phones, iphones and computers.

Pointswizard.com Spin: Click here 30% off Screen Protector. Scratch Proof your iPhone, PDA,or computer

It’s a modern love poem from iPhone fans who just want to improve their iPhone.

Now anyone is free to go to this site and vote on problems that need to be fixed, or even add new wishes to be addressed, and to see all the wishes that Apple has granted. Every vote counts, so rally around the site and vent your frustrations and make your vote heard.

Scroll down to see what owners want fixed. There are also wish and fixed tabs to click on.

Pointswizard.com Spin: Click for Please Fix the Iphone website

“Inspired by VH1’s 100 Greatest Songs of the 80s show, I decided that I wanted to share my 100 Greatest Apps of the iPhone.And just like the show, everything is brief and to the point. No in-depth reviews to trudge through here; Just the best of the best. With the holidays coming, you could get that app-crazy person in your life an iTunes gift card and let them loose.

I tried to keep it simple. Just 100 apps worth your dollar, your attention or both. Because app prices change daily, I’ve decided to leave off the price for accuracy.

And let me just point out — it’s not easy to narrow it down to 100. But it was fun. I’ve been working on this for a while, knowing full well that many new apps come out daily and many are probably worthy of a spot on your iPhone, but these are the ones I kept coming back to.” (via weblogs.redeyechicago.com) by Scott Kleinberg

Pointswizard.com Spin: Click here to see the list of 100 apps you’ve got to try for the iPhone

Verizon in the US will carry the Storm

“The new touchscreen Blackberry has “intuitive touschscreen” that can be pressed down like buttons a keyboard, joining a crowded market for new smartphones

A new touchscreen BlackBerry phone is launched today, ready to battle with the likes of Apple’s iPhone and the new “Google phone” in the run up to Christmas.

The BlackBerry Storm aims to blow away its rivals with an “intuitive touchscreen” which can be pressed down like buttons on a keyboard, unlike other touchscreen mobiles where users tap the unresponsive glass.

The Times was granted a brief look at the new phone yesterday. With its neat metallic edges and rubber sides, the Storm looks sleek and stylish, but is also easy to hold and use. However, at first glace it is thicker and heavier than rival devices.

The new BlackBerry joins a crowded market for touchscreen phones, which is dominated by Apple’s iPhone. Nokia and Google have released new smartphones in recent weeks, but industry experts consider the iPhone to be the “sexiest” touchscreen and has set the bar high for similar devices.

BlackBerry phones have long been seen as an unglamorous device, the reliable companion of office workers and travelling salesman who mainly use it check and reply to emails on the go.

Now, in an effort to take on the likes of the iPhone, the sleek new BlackBerry Storm has the ability to download music and movies, which can be played on the device.

Just like other touchscreen devices, the Storm takes high quality digital photographs, has a built in GPS system and gives users fast internet access to websites such as YouTube and Facebook.” ( via timesonline.co.uk) by Murad Ahmed

Pointswizard.com Spin: Read more about Blackberry with clickable touchscreen ready to take on iPhone

“A patent application suggests that Apple is working out a way of powering portable devices with the sun

Apple’s patent would get round the problem by stacking the solar cells underneath both the touch-sensitive screen and the LCD, according to The New York Times. That would potentially allow the full 2.4 by 4.5 inch glass face of the iPhone to operate as a solar panel.

If the application, entitled ‘Solar cells on portable devices’, is successful, it has the potential to increase dramatically the battery life of iPhones and iPods. According to Apple, the existing iPhone battery gives about eight hours of talk time and seven hours of video, but once a faster, 3G version is released, the device will become even more power-hungry.
The story about Apple’s patent for solar-powered devices originally appeared on the MacRumors website.”

( via technology.timesonline.co.uk )

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