Tag: Lifestyle »

Being on trend is very important business for the fashion conscious. This is where Luster has iOS users covered. It's an app that makes browsing through the newest, most lusted after and nearest fashion finds wherever the user is.

Using an interactive map, users can see precisely what's trending in their area and even browse through local boutiques to see what they offer. Users can search according to brand, piece or even occasion, resulting in the ability to save a compilation of things that interest.

Somewhat like a social networking tool, the user can even follow other fashion fans whose interests and loves most closely match theirs. They can even take photos of the different outfits and share likes and comments about them.

It's an ideal companion app for those keen to know what's popular near them at any given time.

As part of Luster's launch, there's also a competition. To enter, users must take a photo of a fashion find they love and tag it with the relevant store and #fw hashtag. The person whose photo has the most Lusts from other users on the app by February 27th, will win the item in their winning picture up to a value of $1000! Not too shabby at all.

2nd and 3rd place photos win items up to a value of $500. Full details are available on the Luster website.

Luster is out now and it's free to download.

We've all been there: that brand new white shirt that had a terrible meeting with a glass of red wine, the chocolate on the new carpet, the great hot coffee spillage of 2011. Where there's a substance, there's a way of throwing it across something thus staining it forever more. Enter iStain, an app that sets out to explain how to remove over 100 different types of stain.

iStain suggests what kind of agents to use to remove the stain, and adjusts accordingly whether the item is a white item of clothing or colored. It doesn't just cater for the easy stains either with the persistent and problematic stains covered, too.

The app is straight forward to use with it easy to browse stains according to whether they're food based, biological, chemical, glue or greasy based.

iStain has to be worth a download for the clumsy iOS device owner. It's out now priced at $0.99.

It's the ideal time of year to try out something new, so why not make that Pakistani cuisine? A new app by the name of Cookery Magazine HD provides all the inspiration anyone could need for South Asian cooking.

The app offers over 22 recipes, each with high quality images. Alongside that are articles on women's health issues such as pregnancy, as well as offering home remedies for various situations.

The crux of the app comes from the recipes themselves though. Just a glance below at the screenshots demonstrates just how attractive the magazine app is. Soups and salads, vegetable dishes, sea food, rice, snacks and meat dishes are all catered for here with recipes like pasta salads included as well as meals such as the spicy Beef Karahi and Tehri Pulao.

It's appetizing to just think about and laid out in a very appealing manner.

Cookery Magazine HD is out now priced at $0.99.

We all need some motivation when it comes to exercising. While I love the gym, there are still those days where I'd really rather not bother. While Fleetly won't drag me to the gym, it will give me some much needed motivation.

Kind of like website Fitocracy, Fleetly makes a game out of exercising. Users enter how many repetitions they've performed or how far they've walked, run or swam and then Fleetly gives it a numerical value in terms of experience points to level up. Users can then compare with other users of the app or their friends via Facebook connectivity. There's even challenge groups to join to encourage friendly competition.

It doesn't stop there however. Fleetly also instructs users how to perform relevant exercises from squats to more complex manoevres. It all ensures that the user learns how best to perform an exercise without overexerting themselves. Plus it makes for a very neat package.

Even better, Fleetly costs precisely nothing which means those in need of that extra nudge might as well give it a shot.

It's out now.

Cooking a roast is quite a skill to master. Getting the timing is just right. How long does the beef need to be beautifully rare? Or how about that huge turkey? How long does that need to be cooked safely and deliciously? Thanksgiving may be behind us but Christmas and its delightful food is just ahead. Why not use an app like Is It Ready Yet? to help keep an eye on when things are cooked.

Is It Ready Yet? is simple to use. Choose from a selection of 23 different meat choices encompassing beef, pork and poultry then select the weight of the food. Is It Ready Yet? then suggests what temperature to cook it at plus how long it'll take. Both of these figures are viewable in either Imperial or Metric units.

With a built in cooking timer that runs in the background, Is It Ready Yet? keeps things running smoothly. Just what anyone needs at this busy cooking time of the year!

It's out now priced at $0.99.

We loved iCookbook when it was covered here earlier this year. With plenty of visually appealing recipes on offer, comprehensive search functions and great overviews, it's not surprising why it's such a great app. Users can even add their own recipes to the app!

Developers, Publications International, clearly didn't want to stop there though with the latest version update 2.0 providing a huge wealth of new features.

Most importantly, iCookbook is now an universal app and can be used by iPhone users as well as iPad. It doesn't stop there, though.

How-To videos are now included which show the proper techniques required to complete some of the more complex kitchen skills. Airplay support means that these videos as well as recipes can be put on the big screen via an Apple TV, making it simpler for the Apple fan who also loves to cook.

iOS5 based features continue with iCloud sync support which means that recipes and shopping lists can be shared between iOS devices. Perfect for those browsing for recipe ideas on their iPad who then want to access their shopping list with their iPhone. iPhone 4S users will appreciate the Siri support iCookbook now provides. When the app is in prepare mode, which makes the instructions big to read for counter side use, voice commands can be used to turn pages, check notes or start and stop timers. No need to worry about getting that shiny new iPhone 4S dirty mid way through cooking!

Rounding off the update is the ability to rate recipes out of 5 stars plus users can now add photos to their own recipes. Other subtle UI changes have been made to make the app even easier to use, too.

It's a great implementation of all the best that iOS5 offers and is bound to make iCookbook even more useful than it was before.

The iCookbook update is available now for free for existing users. For everyone else, it's available priced at $4.99.

I've got an iPad full to the brim with photos taken over the years, ever since I first dipped into the iOS world. Numbering in the thousands, it's comforting to know they're there, ready to browse through at any time.

How to exhibit them to others, however? Or how about just a cool new way of watching a slideshow of images? That's where Jiv3D enters the picture.

It's a new app that automatically syncs music with photos, thus creating attractive showcases of all those memorable moments. With several different themes that can be applied and the ability to manipulate images with a tap of the screen, Jiv3D is a pretty neat app and extremely easy to use.

It's an ideal app for all manners of different situations such as showing holiday snaps to the family or in the conference room to explain a concept to colleagues.

Jiv3D is out now for iPad owners and it's a free download.

Buying a car is frequently pretty enjoyable but it's also often stressful. Making such an expensive decision is a complicated endeavour, even more so once a few test drives have been conducted. Having spent a while test driving numerous cars, I can safely say it's easy to get confused as to what was so good about which car. Enter Test Drive Assistant in an attempt to demystify all that.

Test Drive Assistant is an app that provides 11 basic test drive related questions that users can answer as they test out each vehicle. Then, the app provides a rating based upon the answers given and, at a glance, users can see which vehicle is best for their needs.

Further functionality is provided through the ability to add more questions as well as images of the vehicle, allowing for side-by-side comparisons of the test driven motors.

It should take out all the stress and worry for those who plan on test driving a number of different vehicles over many days.

Test Drive Assistant is out now priced at $2.99.