This week at 148Apps.com, we helped everyone looking to expand their iOS device’s musical footprint with a round-up of Bluetooth speakers. Site editor Rob LeFebvre says, “Bluetooth is a fantastic technology. It lets me connect my iPhone or iPad to a ton of different devices, including speakers, keyboards, other computers, headphones, and mice without wires. The latest version, 4.0, draws very little power and features an increased signal range of up to 100 feet.

148Apps received three different portable Bluetooth speakers recently, and we decided to put them all through their paces, to better understand which ones might be better for specific uses. We’ll be looking at the Braven 600, the CubeEdge, the Disco 2, and the Logitech Boombox.”

Get more of Rob’s take on these units at 148Apps.

Over at GiggleApps.com, Amy Solomon was in a traveling mood, as she reviewed Geography Drive USA, calling it, “A wonderfully engaging educational app that teaches about American geography in ways children will love.
As one can imagine, it is not uncommon for friends and family to ask me to recommend apps for their children in grade school as many apps out there are for preschool-aged children. Geography Drive USA is a title that I can easily recommend as an application that is both highly educational and a lot of fun.”

Read Amy’s full review at GiggleApps.

$3.99

Geography Drive USA™

iPad Only App - Designed for the iPad
Released: 2012-11-20 :: Category: Education

And at AndroidRundown.com, our KickStarter Spotlight of the week covered Pixel Kingdom. Joseph Bertolini writes, “Today we’re looking at a game that is the brainchild of a college sophomore from Central Florida and it is a fresh take on the game-type that was popularized by games such as Plants vs. Zombies; where waves of enemies come down set lanes, and it is up to the player to deploy defenses down each specific aisle. Named Pixel Kingdom it is a small twist on this idea is that here these defenses are actively moving down their lane in an endless battlefield against the ranks of evil. Thrown in are a handful of bosses that fill multiple lanes, such as random dragon attacks.”

Read the full spotlight at AndroidRundown.

So there you have it – another week in the life of the 148Apps network of sites. Stick with us every day by following us on Twitter or Pinterest and Liking us on Facebook. There’s more content just right around the corner.

With an ever burgeoning selection of Calendar and Travel apps, Time to Enjoy sets out to be different by turning the calendar function into a search engine for events.

Powered by eventful.com and Tribune Media Services, the app provides event details within the US, Canada and Europe, the app allows users to search for local events, all via their current location or by entering a city of their choice. Various categories are searchable such as museum events, local attractions, music focused or family targeted. A search radius of anything from walking distance to a 50 mile car drive means there should be something for a short trip or an all day excursion.

Users can learn various details about upcoming events such as timings and venues, as well as see trailers for movies and even purchase tickets. An alert function ensures nothing is forgotten about.

Time to Enjoy is out now and free to download.

FREE!

Time to Enjoy

iPhone App - Designed for the iPhone, compatible with the iPad
Released: 2012-03-23 :: Category: Navigation

The TripLingo series of apps have done a great job of deciphering popular slang in various foreign languages, as we noticed when reviewing the Spanish version last year. Now, with the London 2012 Olympics upon us, there’s a special themed version out in the form of TripLingo UK Edition.

The app uses a “Slang Slider” to enable users to see four different ways to say each phrase, with the options of Posh, Cockney, Scouse and Jafaican. It’s worth pointing out that Scouse isn’t actually a dialect of London, instead being located in the North West of the country in the city of Liverpool, but it is a enjoyable comparison to make.

As a Brit, I’ll say this now, we don’t ALL use such slang in our day to day living but it is a fun selection of words and terms that were once much more common within the UK, with a hint of parody about it. And don’t worry, visitors to Britain, it’s still possible to hear many such terms used if you happen to visit the right area.

Whether you’re travelling to Britain soon or just want to have some fun learning a new type of slang, you’d be barmy (crazy) to miss out on TripLingo UK Edition.

It’s out now and free to download.

FREE!

TripLingo UK Edition

iPhone App - Designed for the iPhone, compatible with the iPad
Released: 2012-08-01 :: Category: Travel

HipGeo has already proven itself as a great travel blogging app since its launch earlier this year. The latest update should cement that even further.

The update provides full video capability as well as the ability to convert all the photos, video and text uploaded to the service into virtual ‘storytelling journals’ that can be shared on Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest, as well as shared with the HipGeo community and via email. Consolidated, it should prove a great tool for avid travellers.

The app groups together photos, videos and texts into a location, so it’s simple to browse what’s going on and where as part of a coherent album. A Trip Player and Day Map ensures that movements are clearly shown between the photos, videos and writing, making it easy for viewers to catch up on the traveller’s progress.

Alongside the ability to create such journals offline, before uploading when inside a Wi-Fi zone, HipGeo is a great all-rounder for those who want to blog their travels.

FREE!

HipGeo - Social Travel Blog, Trip, Vacation and Adventure Sharing

iPhone App - Designed for the iPhone, compatible with the iPad
Released: 2011-08-15 :: Category: Travel

Planning a vacation or day trip and want to learn some great historical facts along the way? Give HISTORY Here a try.

The app comes courtesy of the History Channel and offers an interactive guide to thousands of historic locations across the USA. Users have the option to choose any location they wish, or they can let the GPS functionality do its magic and give places of local interest.

It’s possible to search for various historic points of interest for inspiration, as well as view everything as part of a zoomable map. Features like this should prove ideal when planning ahead.

Images for each place are included, along with an overview of the venue and any relevant details such as contact phone numbers. Even if you think you know an area well, you’re bound to be surprised by something from this app.

HISTORY Here is out now and free to download.

FREE!

HISTORY Here

iPhone App - Designed for the iPhone, compatible with the iPad
Released: 2011-11-01 :: Category: Travel

Here’s a reminder of just how great technology is: Worldictionary is the kind of translation tool that would have seemed mystical years ago.

All the user has to do is point their iPhone’s camera at a word and Worldictionary defines and translates it. There’s no need to type in words. An internet connection is required but otherwise, it’s pretty seamless.

The app recognizes 22 languages, including Traditional Chinese, Japanese, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Dutch, Swedish and Spanish. In each case, results promise to be instant and accurate. Live translation isn’t the only option either, with it possible to take a photo for later reference, such as when an internet connection is available.

Google, Wikipedia and YouTube search functionality is available for definitions and it’s always possible to check the translation history at a later date.

Worldictionary should prove to be a great assistant for regular travellers.

It’s out now, priced at $3.99.

$1.99

$3.99

Worldictionary - Instant Translation & Search

iPhone App - Designed for the iPhone, compatible with the iPad
Released: 2011-04-08 :: Category: Reference

Already an incredibly useful app for regular travellers, WorldMate has just got even better, for iPhone users, with a re-designed hotel booking service.

The app now provides personalized hotel recommendations for trips, which is all hooked up to the global hotel inventory from Expedia. An instant search makes it a breeze to check out same-day reservations of nearby hotels, plus there are special deals for the U.S. and other international destinations.

Over 100,000 different hotels are included within the inventory with room prices displayed for each. It’s even possible to set up WorldMate to remember your credit card details to checkout even faster, with support for 20 different local currencies.

Throughout this hotel booking experience, WorldMate tracks exactly where you are so all search results are relevant to your needs, making it easy to filter through the best fit.

The update for WorldMate is out now with the basic version available for free, and the Gold version available priced at $9.99.

FREE!

WorldMate

+ Universal App - Designed for iPhone and iPad
Released: 2009-06-02 :: Category: Travel

$9.99

WorldMate Gold

+ Universal App - Designed for iPhone and iPad
Released: 2009-06-02 :: Category: Travel

Soho is one of the most fascinating areas of London with its wealth of landmarks and hedonistic history. It’s often a place overlooked for tourists however, which is something Soho Stories aims to stop.

Coming from Britain’s conservation organization, The National Trust, Soho Stories offers a fantastic audio tour of the area, narrated by veteran Soho entertainer Barry Cryer. Alongside that are stories from various ‘Sohoites’ such as Molly Parkin looking at artist Francis Bacon’s drinking ways and Janet Street Porter’s analysis of the Groucho club. A darker look at Soho comes from Frankie Fraser with the history of the rise of the gangster.

The app isn’t quite for the family to listen to with some references to sex and violence, as well as strong language, but it provides a great piece of social history of an iconic area of London.

GPS functionality means that Soho Stories tracks the user’s location and provides relevant stories, but it’s possible to listen away from Soho and choosing pieces of audio individually.

For social historians and tourists alike, Soho Stories should prove a fascinating source of information.

FREE!

Soho Stories

iPhone App - Designed for the iPhone, compatible with the iPad
Released: 2012-06-12 :: Category: Travel

Waze has been a fascinating example of the power of crowd sourcing since its inception in 2010. We’ve loved it ever since with its steady stream of updates keeping things fresh. Now comes one of the more ambitious updates.

Update 3.2 now provides Waze users with the means in which to keep track of real-time gas prices along their route, along with the ability to update prices themselves, where neccessary.

The new category search makes it simple to check things and at certain participating locations, it’ll even be possible to receive exclusive in-app discounts on gasoline. Partnerships have already been arranged with Kum & Go, Mid-Atlantic Convenience Stores (Exxon and BP stations) and Vintners Distributers (Shell) locations.

One other major new feature is the addition of waypoints to coincide with the new categories, including gas stations, parking lots and car repair shops.

Waze has little competition given its free nature, but now there’s all the more reason to check it out.

Waze is out now for both iPhone and iPad. It remains free.

FREE!

Waze Social GPS, Maps & Traffic

+ Universal App - Designed for iPhone and iPad
Released: 2009-08-01 :: Category: Navigation

Yahoo! might have lost its position as the most commonly used search engine, but it’s bounced back in order to dominate the App Store, or at least that’s the hope.

One such new app from the company is that of Yahoo! TimeTraveler. The app makes exploring 29 major cities much easier by creating simple to follow trip plans for each of them, all based according to how long the user has got and where they want to start and end the tour.

The cities catered for range from 19 major US cities including New York, San Francisco, Chicago, New Orleans and Dallas, as well as European destinations like Paris, Rome, London and Barcelona. Dubai and Christchurch are also catered for.

The app should keep most travellers happy and offers the potential for up to 10 hours of touring. An integrated map with routes and directions makes it easy to use, and it’s possible to generate multiple different plans for a city.

If you’re travelling this Summer, give it a shot. Yahoo! TimeTraveler is out now and it’s free.

FREE!

Yahoo! TimeTraveler

iPhone App - Designed for the iPhone, compatible with the iPad
Released: 2012-05-24 :: Category: Travel

iOS devices have fast become an essential tool for regular travellers who need to be able to work while on the move. Such devices also come in handy when in need of a way to organize future trips. One newly updated app to help people along the way is WorldMate.

WorldMate does pretty much everything anyone could need when it comes to planning a trip. There’s an itinerary manager which covers flights, hotels, hire cars and meetings. It’s possible to search flight schedules, book hotels (on the iPhone version), search via Yelp, view maps and directions for all itinerary items and check out the local forecast. It’s also possible to check out whether LinkedIn contacts are located nearby, ideal for conferences.

The app is free but regular users can opt to upgrade to WorldMate Gold which offers pushed flight alerts, real-time flight statuses integrated into the itinerary and the ability to sync the calendar.

To celebrate the new update, WorldMate Gold is available for $2.99 for a limited time and normally priced at $9.99.

FREE!

WorldMate

+ Universal App - Designed for iPhone and iPad
Released: 2009-06-02 :: Category: Travel