Digtal Camera Reviews – The Imagery Resource!

Minicab?

Travel apps are all the rage, especially when it comes to getting around in the Big Smoke. There are bus checkers and train finders coming out of our app store ears, but the most recent trend has been for getting about in the privacy of a car hired just for you. Yes, we all know about the executive car app for Addison Lee, we very recently met the Hackney Carriage end of the equation with GetTaxi, but today it’s all about minicabs.

ubiCabs

Platform

Android, iOS, browser

Price

Free

Where

iTunes/Play/web

If there’s one thing that ex-Googler Jay Patel and his co-founders at ubiCabs hate, it’s inefficiencies. Minicabs are stationed by a local controller and, when you hire one, it’s either going to pick you up from, or take you to, an area where it’s not going to be able to get another fare. Worse still, in cities like London, the transport agency forbids minicabs getting customers off the streets, so the drivers and the companies that dispatch them end up having to pay for the petrol of one leg of the journey on their own, ie, without a passenger in the car.

That’s where ubiCabs comes in, according to Patel. The service acts as a booking agent for as many minicab firms as it can get. The idea is that customers then request taxis through either an Android or iPhone app, or by using a web interface. The ubiCabs system will then instantly search and access all the minicab controller information to assign the nearest, available and – most importantly – the cheapest car for your needs.

The app itself is fairly familiar to the others we’ve seen. As with most of these systems, ubiCabs tracks your position by GPS or you can add your pick-up point manually. The selection of what kind of car, how much luggage you have and how many passengers is nicely handled, as well as the way you can track your cab’s journey to you on a live map. So, no more waiting around and wondering.

While the main idea behind it all is obviously to get taxis at your convenience without having to pay Black Cab prices. One would also hope that both the added petrol efficiency and the behind-the-scenes price bidding system might result in minicab costs going down. Sadly, this doesn’t yet seem to be the case with all the journeys we’ve been quoted so far being pretty much what we’d expect to pay normally.

Still, with the added convenience on top, it’s well worth a try. Sure, it’s not much different from picking up the phone if you’re looking to get from your home to a night out, but it’s just the answer for those tedious queues when you’re on your way back from the middle of town.

At the moment, ubiCabs covers just London within the M25 but, so long as it can stay ahead of the competition, expect to see the service rolling out to a town near you soon.

Tags:
Apps Cars and GPS iPhone apps Android apps App of the day Ubicabs GetTaxi

APP OF THE DAY: ubiCabs review (Android & iPhone) originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Thu, 17 May 2012 18:21:00 +0100

View full post on Pocket-lint

Get fit

Sometimes free apps can be better than their paid-for equivalents. The world of fitness on the iPhone is undated with all sorts of accelerometer and GPS-integrated applications designed to help you lose the pounds. Problem is, the majority of them cost.?

Strava cycling is different, it offers a comprehensive smartphone based aid for the hardcore cyclist, be they road, off-road or indoors.

Strava Cycling

Format

iPhone

Price

Free

Where

iTunes

First up you are going to want to sign up with Strava. We opted for the direct Facebook linkage approach, which sped up the process no end. Either way it costs nothing. From there you are sent straight to the app’s home screen, which works like most iOS apps in that it has a menu selection laid across the bottom.?

You can opt for a new ride, which will record just your timing, speed and distance. It can be paused at any time and, once finished, will build up a big set of details on your ride. A large map view of the exact route you took is recorded, as well as things such as average speed and elevation. A full-screen map of the exact route is also obtainable and integrates itself with Google Maps on iOS.?

A particularly nice touch is a sort of Xbox-style achievements list. Things like best times for individual segments will show you when you do your quickest section. You can even compare your times with others who have done the same route.?

Adding even more value are the built-in routes. The explore option will show you different cycle routes based on your location, even listing things such as elevation and distance. On top of all this, a global stats page with all your running and cycling efforts overall is kept constantly updated.?

A lot to get stuck into with Strava and especially given it’s free. Serious cyclists in particular will find it hugely useful as it is a very comprehensive training aid.?

Tags:
Apps App of the day iPhone Apple

APP OF THE DAY: Strava cycling review (iPhone) originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Wed, 16 May 2012 18:01:00 +0100

View full post on Pocket-lint

A long zoom, high resolution and built-in photo location tagging makes this a great camera for travellers. View full post on Latest articles in Cameras and Camcorders at CNET UK

The common GIF goes arty

Apps that make it easy to do something clever will always be popular. Plenty of apps have picked up on the retro imaging trend and that doesn’t appear to be slowing up.

Today we’re looking at an app that might achieve great success, but its very nature requires a little more creative input than its similar-sounding namesake Instagram. Today we’re looking at moving pictures.

Cinemagram

Format

iOS

Price

Free

Where

iTunes

Cinemagram, as the name suggests, is all about movement. But before you think this is a video app, it isn’t, even if video is a large component of what Cinemagram is all about.

Anyone who has spent any time on the internet will know that the right GIF, at the right time, is worth it’s weight in gold. Perhaps not real gold, but certainly comedy gold. The surprised cat, the panda on the slide; a short animated clip can do things that a picture can’t.?

Cinemagram isn’t all about creating comedy memes, however. It has its sights set very much on the community feel of Instragram. It wants to provide a platform for creation, sharing and community appreciation, with comments, followers and sharing.

?

Of all these things, we’re more interested in the sharing than the community, because we know more people in the wider world, Facebook or Twitter, for example, than we do in other services.

So how does it work? Well, it uses a clever system of video capture and masking to allow you to create an image, or a “cine” that has some still elements and some moving elements.

You simply capture a short piece of video, mask the elements where you want to keep the movement and the remaining areas are frozen. You end up with a hybrid photo and video.

The results are somewhat alluring and very clever. Importantly, it opens the doors for a huge amount of creativity and the imagination of the creator can shine through, more so than you get from a straight set of vintage filters.

Naturally you get those vintage filters too, so you can have retro effects applied to your cine if you wish, and many do, judging by the selection showcased within the app.

Browsing through other users’ work can be both amusing and inspiring. This isn’t just a showcase of images, it’s something more. Some are amusing, some are clever, some are very creepy. People are really thinking about how they can use Cinemagram to create something engaging, so it’s great just browsing.?

The creation process is easy, but you soon learn that some scenes don’t work well, which will keep you coming back for more. We’ll bring you some of our own creations shortly…

Importantly, Cinemagram is free. Because of its creative nature, it might never be as widely used as Instagram, but it’s definitely worth playing with.

Tags:
Apps iPhone apps iOS apps App of the day Cinemagram

APP OF THE DAY: Cinemagram review (iPhone) originally appeared on http://www.pocket-lint.com on Mon, 14 May 2012 18:00:00 +0100

View full post on Pocket-lint

With a 12-frames-per-second burst mode, punchy colours and loads of detail, there’s plenty to like in the dSLR-alike Sony Alpha SLT-A57. View full post on Latest articles in Cameras and Camcorders at CNET UK