5 Unexpected Things That You Didn't Know There Was an App For

06:30

The Amazing Smartphone Era: 5 Unexpected Things That You Didn't Know There Was an App For

The revolution of Google's PlayStore, Windows Phone Store and Apple's platform has transformed today's smartphones into super gadgets wielding more power than most people can fathom. Nowadays, finding and downloading free apps for simple day-to-day tasks such as checking emails, chatting, taking photos, etc is nothing but a breeze.

Smartphones have been around for quite some time now, and for this reason it's common for one to think that they've seen and heard all there is to witness, as far as mobile apps go. Well, this might be the case, but not until they've seen the following list of ingenious apps.

Here are top 5 things you never imagined there was an app for.

1.) Changing the colour of light bulbs.
Are you tired of the feeling of being stuck with a single monochromatic hue for your living room? Yes, as weird as it may seem, you can change the colours of your bulbs using your iPhone or iPad anytime you please. This is of course courtesy of the work of clever software developers behind the Phillips Hue mobile app available on Apple's iTunes store. All you require to periodically change the colour of the glow of your light bulbs is a relatively strong Wi-Fi connectivity and a set of 'smart' bulbs. With the help of this app, you can also control the brightness level of these bulbs using your phone, something that most of us never imagined could even be remotely possible.

2.) Using your phone as a remote control handset.
We all have experienced that frustrating feeling one gets when you can't seem to recall where you last placed your remote control, especially when you need to flip through channels. Have you ever also noted that in all those times that you couldn't find your TV's remote, you surprisingly had your phone in your pocket or next to you? Yeah, we tend to be rather attached to our phones.

In the same light, another strange app took advantage of this and enables you to transform that mobile handset you so treasure into a functional remote control. It saves you the inconvenience of ransacking your living room anytime you can't seem to keep track of your main remote unit. ThinkFlood's Red Eye Mini continues to save the day in many homes and is compatible with both iOS and Android phones.


3.) Tracking your kids.
Kids, especially teenagers, have proven to be quite sneaky and evasive. Well, if you have a teenage daughter or son, you no longer have to keep calling them after every ten minutes to inquire on their whereabouts. Most of the time they won't also tell you the truth. With the GPS tracking app - Life360, you can enjoy a little peace of mind knowing exactly where your children are, that is if they have their phone with them.
Additionally, when visiting a friend in another country or new city you can make use of this app to avoid getting lost or stranded. Using this tracking app, your host could direct you more accurately to their place or pick you up at a particular rendezvous using your location.
On that note, when travelling abroad you should make it a habit to install this app plus a good VPN encryption software on your phone. The VPN will enable you an unlimited internet access regardless of the mobile network carrier or Wi-Fi connectivity you will use while away from home.

4.) Catching fish.
The next time you're caught in an unsuccessful fishing expedition, simply pull out your phone and install Deeper Fish Finder app. You will be amazed by how accurate the app is in detecting fish that are up to 120 feet deep. The application uses sonar pulses that could be generated by your smartphone to image fish that are beyond your visual realm. To use the app, you have to lower your phone near the water surface for the pulses to detect the fish more accurately. (Take care not to drop your phone, though)


5.) Measuring the height of buildings, towers or even mountains while up-close.

Ever wondered how tall your favourite skyscraper in the city is? Have you ever been out on a picnic and wondered out aloud how you wish knew how high a given rock or boulder was? Well, it turns out there is an app developed just for that. Dot Measure Pro for iOS and Blackberry is famous for approximating the height of buildings, cliffs, bridges and other tall architectural structures with an outstanding level of accuracy. The developers have made it even more fun to use by integrating a feature that prompts you to first place a guess before measuring the actual height. You might be surprised on how wild your guesses can be!


Caroline is a self confessed geek who loves writing about technology and gadgets. You can connect with her via Google+

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2 Comments

  1. I am glad to read your post. It is provide a good information for everyone. It is good written post and useful info for Movement tracking with Google Map to me. Keep it up,

    ReplyDelete