The iPhone Mom

If you’re a mom who’ll be taking an exotic vacation this summer then you should check out the free Translator app. The app asks you to first choose a source language (that’d be English for me) and then choose a target language (I chose Finnish, just because). Now type in what you’d like translated and the app will pull it up for you. Very, very easy to use and excellent if you find yourself out and about without your own personal translator. This never happens to me (due to the lack of both a personal translator and exotic vacations) but I thought I’d provide this review as a service to any readers lucky enough to get away this summer.

Price when Reviewed: Free

See the app at iTunes

Seller: Petr Homola

My kids use my iPhone almost as much as I do. Some days even more. Right now they’re sticking with my apps but I know it’s only a matter of time before my oldest discovers Safari. We’ve talked to her about internet safety and have restrictions set up on our home computer but Safari is going to be a whole new can of worms. With that in mind, I was excited when the folks behind Surf Balance gave me a heads up about their iPhone app.

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The Hazel Mail app lets you create a personalized postcard from your iPhone. You create it and the folks at Hazel Mail will print, stamp and mail it for you. The app is easy to use. Just take a photo with your phone or choose one from your camera library. Then choose a background and shrink or stretch your photo. Type in your recipient’s address and a message then tap the button to pay and mail your postcard. It takes a few minutes to upload your postcard but then you’re good to go. The postcard should arrive within four to seven days.

The Hazel Mail app is free but the cost to send a postcard is $1.50. You can purchase Hazel Bucks on the website for only $1.00 though. When I downloaded the app I received a Hazel Buck which I was able to use for my first postcard. I like the idea behind this app. It’d be neat to be able to send out a unique postcard from whatever exotic location you found yourself in.

Price when Reviewed: Free

See the app at iTunes

Seller: ThinkAmerica, LLC

Did you all get the email from AT&T about the new YPmobile app (for yellowpages.com)? It found it’s way to my inbox last week and I figured I’d give the free app a try.

In the YPmobile app if you tap the “Business” button you can search local businesses by typing in a keyword or location. A list of results will appear and you can touch the one you want to view more details about the business. From here you can add the business to your contacts, my favorites list or my plan (a feature within the app). You can also email out the business information or pull up directions. The YP Mobile app asked if it could use my location but it didn’t appear to use my exact location. The search results I got were all based around the center point of my city, but since I actually live just outside the city limits these results were all miles away. I could deal with this if I was using the app at home and planning out a shopping trip. But if I was in my car out and about I’d want results that were much closer to my location.

The “Events” button brings up my favorite feature of the YPmobile app. Tap this and it pulls up a list of upcoming events for your area. At the top right of your screen you’ll see a small button that says “Sort”. Tap this and you can sort the events by date or popularity. When we get a spare minute on the weekends I like to hunt around for something fun to do in town. This list would give me access to events I might not otherwise know about. Touch the event you’re interested in and you’ll get a screen with more details. From here you can add the event to your plans (more on that in a minute), email it out or find driving directions.

The “Nearby” button lets you search categories or businesses located near you. This time my search actually pulled things up close to my real location. I used the category search but not the business search because it made me choose from a list of preset businesses (Staples, AutoZone, Home Depot, etc.). Tap the result and you get the business detail screen as described above.

If you tap the “My Plans” button you’ll see the list of what you’ve added to your plans from the previous buttons. The “Favorites” button works the same way.

YPmobile is a decent, free, business search app but it’s not my favorite out of the ones that I’ve tried. The one thing I did like was the events search feature. My advice with this app is to try it out because it’s free. You might like it or you might not but you won’t be out any cash.

Price when Reviewed: Free

Available at iTunes

Seller: YellowPages.com

6500+ Cool Facts was a “check this app out” from my husband and I can see exactly why the app appealed to him- he loves learning new things and figuring out how stuff works.  The only thing this app does is give you random “cool facts”. They’ll show up one per screen and when you want a new fact you just shake your iPhone or swipe your finger across the screen. I read through 10 or so of the 6500+ cool facts and found several of them interesting, but to be honest I don’t have the need for random facts. Still, if your brain works like my husbands and you’ve got the “need to know” bug, this free app is one for you to check out.

Price when Reviewed: Free

Available at iTunes

Seller: Webworks

Kids ID is an app that allows you to keep all of your children’s vital information in one convenient location. You enter in your child’s information (name, date of birth, height, weight, eye color, distinguishing features, etc.) as well as your own information. There are also fields to store your child’s medical and school information. Kids ID allows you to store photos of your child along with their information.

I like having all of the vital information grouped together on one screen. You have to scroll down to see everything but there’s no need to navigate from one information screen to another unless you want to view another child’s information. The data entry could made easier. Kids ID has you type in all of the information. I think it’d be a little easier if some of the fields had preset options to choose from – especially for a yes or no question.

A unique aspect to the Kids ID app is the “Emergency Checklist” feature. You’ll see a red button with these words at the bottom of the child’s information screen. Tap this button and you can read detailed guidelines of what to do if your child goes missing. The information is very thorough and walks you through a scenario you’ll hopefully never have to encounter. But it’s always best to be prepared and good reading for parents.

Kids ID is pricier than some other apps but there is a Lite version (with fewer features) that you can try first. I believe it’s a smart idea for all parents to have this type of information on your iPhone.

Price when Reviewed: $4.99

Available at iTunes

Seller: John Burns/JT Apps, LLC

The CPSC Recall app is for moms who want to stay on top of product recalls. CPSC stands for Consumer Products Safety Commission. This app gives you a list of the most recent recalls. I was shocked at how many recalls pulled up the first time I used this app. I naively assumed that the most recalls found their way into the news but apparently I was wrong.

When the CPSC Recalls app opens up you’ll see the list of recalls including a picture of the product and the date the recall was issued. Tap on a recall and you’ll go to a screen that shows you more details and information. From here you can also email the recall information out to someone. At the bottom of your screen you’ll see a button that says “Most Recent”. This button takes you back to the main recall list. If there are any recalls you haven’t read there will be a red number above this button.  On the “Most Recent” screen, in the top right corner you’ll also see a button that tells you if you have any unread messages. Tap on this button and you can choose to mark all the recalls as read or unread. This is great if you don’t like the red number screaming at you, telling you that you’ve got reading to do.

The “Older” button at the bottom of the screen will show you recalls from earlier dates. The “Bookmark” button gives you a list of all the recalls you’ve bookmarked. To bookmark a recall touch the book icon in the top right corner when you’re viewing the product’s details. Touch the “Report” button to access ways of reporting your own safety concerns.

CPSC Recalls is a good app to have if you want to stay on top of product safety.  Some of the recalls on this app are fairly obscure (and the details gave me the giggles) but I guess you’d be glad you had the app if you came across a product you owned and the recall hadn’t made the news. One feature the app didn’t have which would be a nice add on is search capability.

Price when Reviewed: $.99

Available at iTunes

Seller: Matt Coneybeare

The DirecTV app lets you program your DVR to record shows from your iPhone. You can start by searching for shows, browsing by channel or browsing by date and time. If you find a show that looks interesting, tap on it and the app gives you a description of the show, what time it’s on, how long it lasts and what it’s rating is. At the bottom of the screen you’ll now see buttons that say “Record This Episode” and “Record This Series”. If you tap these buttons you’ll be asked to enter in the email on your DirecTV account and your password. After you’ve done this you choose which receiver you want to use to record, the priority of the recording and how long you want to keep it. Then tap the “Record This Episode” button again. You’ll get a message telling you that your program has been scheduled to record. Next time you check your DVR you’ll see the program on the schedule.

A couple of notes – On some of my searches I was unable to find my local channels on the app. Also, the DirecTV app can’t show you what you already have scheduled to record. This means you can’t use the iPhone to make sure you’re not going to be recording over another scheduled program.

This would be a helpful app if you often forget to set your DVR while you’re at home. I don’t think I’ll be using it much but that’s only because I can’t use it to see what’s scheduled to record. My kids, husband and I all schedule shows and if we’re using the iPhone app to schedule even more then it’s only a matter of time before we mess someone up. I for one don’t want to be responsible for scheduling over a hockey game or an episode of Phineas and Ferb. I’ll be interested to see if it’s possible for the developers to add schedule viewing to future updates. But if you’re recording needs are simpler then mine, this could be a great app for you.

Price when Reviewed: Free

Available at iTunes

Seller: DirecTV, Inc.

Is it just me or are coupons all the rage right now? I used to get looks when I presented my stack at the checkout, not anymore. Seems like everyone is clipping and doubling and looking for discounts. Which brings me to this great new app, Coupon Sherpa. If you’re looking for savings, put this one on your iPhone. You’ll more then earn back the cost of the app with what you can save the first time you use it.

Coupon Sherpa brings store specific coupons right to your iPhone. It uses your iPhone’s location and brings up the coupons that are valid in your area. So you won’t be getting any for stores located clear across the country. The coupons are constantly updated and changing. I was skeptical about what kinds of coupons the Coupon Sherpa would actually have. The last coupon app I reviewed was almost entirely internet deals and nothing that applied to my life as a mom. So I very pleasantly surprised to find coupons for JoAnn’s Fabrics, Papa Murphy’s, The Children’s Place, Bath & Body Works – all stores I shop and all for discounts I’d actually be able to use. At the time of this review Coupon Sherpa is showing 164 coupons available for my area.

Using the Coupons

The idea behind Coupon Sherpa is that you’ve got coupons available right on your iPhone. I get store coupons in the mail but seem to always forget them when I’m out and about. This app puts those coupons on my iPhone – plus it gives me coupons I might not have gotten in the mail. When you’ve found a coupon you want to use you bring it up on your iPhone and show it at the register. Some stores have the ability to scan the barcode on your iPhone. Some will need to type in the numbers of the code. If you’re hesitant about using the coupon this way you can email it from your iPhone to your home computer and then print it out. Another plus I noticed was that many coupons had an online shopping promo code, so you could use that when ordering on the internet.

I emailed the developer of Coupon Sherpa to ask him how good stores are about taking these coupons. Before he launched the app he did extensive research and said almost 100% of the time the stores accept the coupon. I haven’t tried a coupon out yet but that’s only because I don’t currently need anything from any of the stores….yet. I didn’t want to hold off on a review for this great app until I’d done my shopping. I seriously considered a splurge at Babies R’Us (in the name of research of course) but decided spending money on things I don’t need right now defeats the point of using a coupon in the first place. But I can tell you the next time I hit Papa Murphy’s for Friday night dinner I’m pulling this app out for the pizza coupon. 

If you want more information about the app you can visit the website www.couponsherpa.com. I’m excited to watch Coupon Sherpa and I’m hoping the list of stores continues to grow as people catch on to using the iPhone this way.

Seller: Coupon Sherpa, LLC

Price when Reviewed: $1.99     FREE

Available at the iTunes store

A reader tipped me off to The Weather Channel app. She said that she likes it better then the built in iPhone weather app and after using it I’ve decided that I agree with her.

The Weather Channel app uses your iPhone’s current location and pulls up the weather for that area. You can also enter in different locations to get a peek at what’s going on there too. To do that tap the "Location" button and then use the plus sign.

On the "Current" screen you’ll see some basic weather information including the humidity, wind  speed, etc. My favorite part is that you get an actual temperature reading and a "feels like" temperature. This is a great feature when you’re trying to decide what the kids should wear to the bus stop.

Towards the bottom of the screen you can tap the "Hourly" button to see what the weather will be like for the day- broken down hour by hour. Tap "36 Hour" and you get a detailed description/forecast for the next day and a half. The "10 Day" button shows you the next (drumroll please) ten days of weather.

Down at the very bottom of the screen are even more buttons. "Explore Map" pulls up a radar map of your area. "Video" shows you a recorded Weather Channel forecast for your local area. "Severe" will display a list of any weather alerts for your location. The "More" button has some great information. I’d suggest you go there and then tap "Tips & Tricks". It’s got some great advice and there seem to be some nifty things you can do with the map feature.

This app has great depth to it and best of all, it’s free. Thank you Kathryn for the tip. The Weather Channel app is a keeper.

Seller: The Weather Channel

Price when Reviewed: Free

Click here to see the app on iTunes