Dropbox’s photo app for iOS and Android makes it easy to browse and share photos on your phone or stored on Dropbox.
Dropbox released its Carousel photo app on Wednesday; it promises to be "a gallery for all the photos and videos from your life." The app is available for iPhone and for Android. I took the Carousel iPhone app for a spin to show you how it works and what it can do.
When you first launch Carousel, it will recognize you if you already have the Dropbox app installed (and are logged in). You will need to check a box to allow Carousel to back up your photos, which means each time you snap a photo on your phone, a full-resolution copy of it will get sent to your Dropbox account. This functionality is not new; the Dropbox app has had a Camera Upload option that does the same thing. What Carousel does it provide an attractive interface that makes it easier to browse and share photos and videos.
Screenshot by Matt Elliott/CNET
After checking the box to allow Carousel to back up your photos, you'll come to Carousel's main screen, which displays thumbnails of all of the photos and videos on your phone and any you have stored in the Camera Uploads folder in Dropbox. The app orders your photos and videos by date, grouping them into sets. You can swipe up and down on your thumbnails to browse chronologically, and there is a small timeline at the bottom on which you can swipe sideways to travel through time more quickly.
Each set of photos has a share button, which selects all of the photos and videos in a group to make them easy to share. And if you took a particularly large number of photos on a given day, Carousel will display some of them along with a blurry thumbnail with a number that tells you how many more photos there are in the set. Tap on the blurry thumbnail to see the rest of the photos in the set. The app also breaks up the monotony of the thumbnail grid by occasionally displaying a large thumbnail.
Screenshot by Matt Elliott/CNET
Tap on a thumbnail to expand it, and tap on an expanded photo to return to the main Carousel view of your thumbnails. When a photo is expanded, you can swipe sideways to go to the previous or next photo. You can swipe up to share the photo and swipe down to hide it. When you go to share a photo or a video or group of photos and videos, you can send it via email or text. Your recipient(s) will need the Carousel app, however, to view your photos.
You can hide photos from appearing in Carousel by swiping down. By tapping the settings button in the upper-right corner of the app you can view your hidden photos and videos. From here, you can delete any photos and videos from Carousel and, thus, Dropbox.
You can also save photos and video from Carousel to your phone. When you are at the sharing screen, tap the triple-dot button to the right of the To: field for a variety of options, including save photo, copy link, open in, and share via Facebook or Twitter.
Screenshot by Matt Elliott/CNET
Carousel is a free app, but it's clear that Dropbox is hoping that once you start using it, you'll quickly reach the maximum of your allotted free space, including the 3GB of extra free space you get for using Carousel if you hadn't already cashed in that 3GB of space for previously agreeing to use the Camera Upload feature of the Dropbox app. I've used only slightly more than half of my 7.25GB of free space and Carousel is already telling me I don't have enough space. Dropbox Pro nets you 100GB of space for $99.99 a year.
These three apps will help you clear the receipt clutter off your desk, and keep you from struggling to read many of them next tax season.
Move your receipts to the cloud with apps like Evernote.Photo by Nicole Cozma/CNET
Some receipts don't offer much information at all -- like those from individually owned gift shops or gas stations. Generally there's a date, the amount, and how you paid. And worse, most receipts are printed on thermal paper, causing all of the information to disappear by the time you need it.
Instead of keeping a stack of tiny papers you can barely read, why not move your receipt collection to the cloud? To do that, here are three mobile apps that can be used for digitizing your receipts. They'll help you clear the clutter and make sure you can find the information you need, when you need it.
Google Drive
Google Drive is available almost anywhere, making it a great place to store information you'll need to access later. To get started, open the app and navigate to the folder where you want to store receipts. In this case, I'm using a folder I created called "Receipts 2014." Tap the Scan icon and then line up your receipt on the viewfinder.
Google Drive scans a receipt.Screenshot by Nicole Cozma/CNET
After the first photo of your receipt, you can choose to add another page to the scan (the + icon, if you have a long receipt), crop the image, adjust the coloring, delete, or simply finish the scan (checkmark icon).
Options for receipts scanned with Google Drive.Screenshot by Nicole Cozma/CNET
Once the scanning process is finished, you can tap on the name of the receipt to change it, and decide if you want to keep a copy on your device. Additionally, you can grant viewing access for other Google account users. If you want added security for your receipts, check out this next app.
Dropbox
You probably think of Dropbox as a place to backup your documents, but it's also a great service for backing up images of your receipts. This is because you can set a PIN to protect prying eyes from accessing your information.
Add a Receipts folder to Dropbox for easy organization.Screenshot by Nicole Cozma/CNET
First, you'll want to head to the Settings menu, and then tap on Require app passcode. From there you can set up your personalized four-digit PIN. Next, create a folder dedicated to receipt storage. You can add a folder through the app, the desktop client, or even the Web.
Now it's time to snap photos of your receipts with your device's camera. When you're finished, head to your photo gallery and share all of the receipt images to the Dropbox folder you want to store them in.
Adjust file names in Dropbox.Screenshot by Nicole Cozma/CNET
Dropbox doesn't let you make notes on each receipt as you upload, but it is a ridiculously fast way to get them off your desk and into the cloud. If you want the file name to reflect what the receipt is for, it's easy to adjust them in the Dropbox app, or on the Web. If you need extensive organization of your receipts, then you may want to try this next app.
Evernote
Evernote allows for more organization than Google Drive or Dropbox because you can categorize and subcategorize receipts with notebooks and tags. You can also add notes to go along with your receipts, letting you maintain additional details on each purchase.
Evernote scans a receipt.Screenshot by Nicole Cozma/CNET
To scan your receipts, open Evernote and then tap the Camera icon. Make sure you have the Document Camera selected from the left-hand corner menu. If you were already creating a note, you can add photos from the Document Camera through the top plus-sign menu. When you're done scanning the entire receipt, tap the checkmark icon.
Add tags to your receipt in Evernote.Screenshot by Nicole Cozma/CNET
Once you have the receipt image, you can simply Save, add it to a Notebook, add tags, or even attach a location. Unless you're an Evernote Premium user, you will not be able to search by the text within the image, so make sure you add enough information to help you find the receipt later.
Easily add more fonts to your iPhone or iPad with AnyFont
Your iPhone or iPad supports a boatload of fonts but not every single one out there. If you need a font that your device doesn’t support, AnyFont makes it easy to install TrueType and OpenType fonts
If you keep running into unsupported fonts on your iPad or iPhone with Pages, Keynote, or another app,AnyFont is here to help. The $1.99 app lets you install additional fonts in the TrueType font (TTF) or the OpenType font (OTF) format on your iOS device. To be clear, AnyFont does not let you change the systemwide font of your device but lets you install fonts that can then be used by apps that make use of your iPad's or iPhone's font book.
AnyFont doesn't come with its own set of fonts; it just facilitates the installation of TTF or OFT files. A quick Google search will return a variety of sites, however, that offer free fonts. After downloading a font, email the file to yourself or pop it on Dropbox.
Screenshot by Matt Elliott/CNET
When you first launch AnyFont, you will be greeted with a blank list of fonts and a note telling you that the app currently contains no fonts. I emailed myself a TTF file of Calibri, so I opened the Mail app, tapped on the attached font file, and then selected the Open in AnyFont option.
Screenshot by Matt Elliott/CNET
And what do you know, AnyFont opened with my Calibri TTF file. Tap on the font listed and you'll then see a big button instructing you to Tap to install. And if you'd like to sneak a peek, there is a Preview button conveniently located in the upper-right corner.
Screenshot by Matt Elliott/CNET
When you tap to install the font, you are taken to your device's settings where you can install the configuration profile for the font. Tap the install button and then tap Install again on the screen that warns you that you are about to install a font file and it will change the settings on your device. Tap Done to complete the installation.
Pages, before AnyFontScreenshot by Matt Elliott/CNET
Quit Pages or another app where you want to use this font and when you launch it again, you should see the font you just added listed among the font choices.
Pages, after AnyFontScreenshot by Matt Elliott/CNET
You can follow a similar process for installing a ZIP file that contains multiple font files. Just tap the check-mark button at the top of AnyFont to select multiple fonts to install at once.
After installing a font, you can then delete the TTF or OTF file from AnyFont by swiping on it and tapping the Delete button. This will not remove the font from your device but just the configuration profile to save you some storage space.
To delete a font from you device, head to Settings > General > Profile and tap the red Remove button for any undesired font.
Accidentally close a tab in Chrome for Android? You can now undo it, but you better be quick!
Google Inc.
Just this week Google released a long list of updates to both its Chrome browser and Chrome OS. The OS update included 'OK Google' voice search listening, while the Android version of its browser gained the ability to reopen closed tabs.
The feature is really simple to use, but if you're not paying close attention it's easy to miss the prompt, leaving the tab lost forever. OK, it's not really lost forever (more on that in a minute).
After updating to the latest version of Chrome for Android, you will see a new "Undo" prompt pop-up at the bottom of your screen when you close a tab.
The prompt hangs out for only a few seconds, so you'll need to act quickly.
Screenshot by Jason Cipriani/CNET
In the screenshot above you can see the new undo prompt. Easy enough.
Don't fret if you miss the undo prompt; you can always tap on the menu button, followed by the tab you'd like to reopen in the "Recently Closed" section.
Gusto, Mailbox, CloudMagic, and Molto make it easy to manage your mail on the go.
The Gmail app for iPhones and iPads makes you wonder what Google is doing with all its money. The company certainly isn't spending it on interface design. Four free programs give you an entirely new view of your mail on a phone or tablet, letting you slice and swipe your way through your inbox.
Of the four apps I tried, my favorite is Gusto, although Molto (formerly Incredimail) offers a first-rate mobile interface, Mailbox takes swiping to a new level, and CloudMagic integrates with your favorite productivity apps. (Note that Mailbox, CloudMagic, and Molto are also available for Android devices.)
Gusto separates your files and photos
My on-the-fly backup method of choice is to attach important files to an email I send to myself. Gmail's has:attachment feature lets you see all messages to which a file has been attached. Gusto goes Gmail two better by automatically separating the files and photos in your email archive, and by integrating with your Facebook account.
I used a Gmail account to test Gusto, but the program also supports Yahoo, AOL, and Outlook accounts.
The app gives you four views of your email archive: "All" lists attachments separate from the message they're attached to; "Mail" is the standard message view; "Files" lists Office files, PDFs, ZIP files, HTML, and other files; and "Photos" shows icons representing your archive's MOV, JPEG, PNG, and other image files. (I was hoping to see thumbnails of the images themselves, but no dice.)
The Gusto email app for iOS lists the files and images attached to your messages separately from the messages themselves.Screenshot by Dennis O'Reilly/CNET
You can toggle among three inbox views: list, two-column, and an abbreviated preview. Press the down arrow at the top of the screen to switch between inboxes, accounts, and folders. You also get three views of your Facebook photos: list (thumbnail, identifying text, and date); thumbnails by month; and preview, which includes controls for sharing, deleting, emailing the photos.
Get several different views of the photos in your Facebook account via the Gusto email app for iOS.Screenshot by Dennis O'Reilly/CNET
Note that the Gusto support site states the program is free "during the trial period." The developer offers a desktop version; I tested only the iOS version on an iPad running iOS 7.1.1.
Swipe your inbox clean with Mailbox
The version of Gmail for the iPhone lets you swipe the screen to open the next message. The freeMailbox app puts a finer point on your swiping. The program creates five "zones": your inbox is in the middle (the default view), your archive is directly to the right, your trash folder is to the far right, your snooze options are to the near left, and lists are on the far left. The three default lists are To Buy, To Read, and To Watch, but you can delete these and create your own lists via the app's settings.
From your inbox, you slide your finger slightly to the right to archive a message, far to the right to trash it, slightly to the left to open your eight customizable snooze options, and far to the left to add the message to a list. The app claims to work best when it holds only the messages requiring your immediate attention, so it prompts you to use its built-in cleaner to scrub your inbox.
The Mailbox email app for iOS offers to help you get your inbox to zero messages.Screenshot by Dennis O'Reilly/CNET
If you have only a handful of messages in your inbox, you can select several and batch-swipe them. The program lets you drag messages in your inbox to reorder them. You can disable autoswipes and create a swipe pattern by pressing and holding the list, snooze, archive, or delete icons. The app's preferences let you disable the options for marking swipes as read, unstarring moved items, showing "help me get to zero," and swiping right to view drawer.
Mailbox links to your Dropbox account and works with Gmail, iCloud, and Apple Mail for OS X. Of the four iOS mail apps I looked it, Mailbox is the one that most closely resembles the Gmail interface, for better and worse. The program's neatest trick is its four degrees of swiperation.
CloudMagic unites your inboxes and work apps
If you're looking for a splashy interface for your mail, CloudMagic probably won't be your first choice. But if you're looking to get more work done in less time, this may be the email program for you. (The program is available for Android devices as well as for iOS; I tested only the iOS version.)
The "magic" worked by this clever app is behind the scenes. You can create CloudMagic Cards that provide access to your mail from within Salesforce.com, Zendesk, Pocket, Evernote, OneNote, Trello, and MailChimp. In addition to Gmail and Google Apps accounts, the program supports Yahoo Mail, Microsoft Exchange, iCloud, Hotmail/Outlook.com, Office 365, and IMAP accounts. It allows you to integrate as many as five separate accounts.
To keep costs down, the cloud-based service pushes to your CloudMagic inbox only the messages you've sent and received in the past 30 days, although the developer states it hopes to allow you to access your entire inbox in a future update. You can set notifications for individual accounts, apply a passcode lock to the app, add custom signatures, and display the number of new emails on its icon badge.
After you create a CloudMagic account, you're prompted to add an email account by requesting permission to access the account.
After you install CloudMagic and choose an email service, you're prompted to grant the app permission to access the account.Screenshot by Dennis O'Reilly/CNET
CloudMagic's interface is similar to that of Gmail and other mail apps for devices, but it has a couple of nice touches: press the header of the message you're viewing to open a sidebar that lists conversation details: contact information for the sender and recipients; the To: and Reply to: addresses; the date and time the message was sent; and the message's subject.
Press the current message's header to open CloudMagic's conversation sidebar, which lists more information about the message.Screenshot by Dennis O'Reilly/CNET
CloudMagic invites developers to create CloudMagic Cards for their apps. The vendor's FAQ includes information for troubleshooting account-access glitches and other problems.
Get a capsulated view of your mail with Molto
If you're looking for a new way to browse your inbox, Molto's swipable mail capsules are worth checking out. Gone is the standard message list along the left side of the screen. In its place are five to 10 message summaries presented in two columns, complete with image thumbnails for senders and attachments.
The messages in your inbox are presented in two-column capsules, complete with image thumbnails, in the Molto app.Screenshot by Dennis O'Reilly/CNET
Molto works only in landscape mode on the iPad. It connects to iCloud, Hotmail/Outlook.com, Yahoo Mail, AOL, and "other" mail systems (POP3 and IMAP) in addition to Gmail. The app lets you add a custom signature, and you can choose one of several email stationery designs, several of which are available for free. Other stationery selections cost $3 apiece.
One of Molto's settings lets you share images and links on social networks directly from your messages. When I tested this feature, Facebook was the only service available for in-message sharing. A "share" icon appears in the top-right corner of the attachment; pressing the icon opens a small window for adding a caption to the image or link before you post it. When it comes to Facebook integration, Molto has a long way to go to catch up with Gusto.
Not a loser in the email-app bunch
Each of the four email apps I tried beats the generic Gmail app for iOS in one or more important ways. The programs are also a big step up from the mail app built into iPhones and iPads. If you spend much time sending and receiving messages from your phone or tablet, one of these programs is sure to make your workday run more smoothly.
Five apps as good as or better than iMessage in iOS 8
iMessage in iOS 8 adds new features, but it's mainly catching up to existing apps. Here's five apps you can use right now and get the same features.
Apple, Inc.
There's no question Apple added some meaningful features to iOS 8, and in particular, iMessage. The ability to share locations, edit group threads, send voice notes and photos, or even mute a conversation are all welcome additions. But let's be honest: most of these features already exist in third-party messaging clients. I can't fault Apple for adding the features, as it only benefits its ecosystem and dedicated iOS users. With that in mind, here's five apps you can get right now with features you'll find in iOS 8's iMessage app.
BBM
The common reaction when I mention using BBM to someone is laughter. But if you've actually tried BBM on iOS or Android recently, you'd see it's no laughing matter. BBM is a competent messaging app, full of features that round it out as one the best for cross-platform messaging.
BBM offers location sharing, voice calls (over a data connection), voice notes, photo- and video-sharing, and Dropbox file sharing. You can even allow people to monitor your location using the built-in Glance integration.
A downside to BBM is that you're able to remain logged into only one device at a time. Meaning if you start a conversation on your iPhone, and want to finish it on your iPad, you'll have to log into BBM on your iPad (logging you out of BBM on your iPhone). You'll then have to figure out where you left off in the conversation due to conversation history not being synced.
There's no question WhatsApp is a popular app. With over 450 million users, WhatsApp is the king of the messaging space. If you don't believe me, just ask Facebook.
In WhatsApp you'll find standard messaging features such as group threads, location sharing, photo- and video-sharing, and voice notes. You can place calls from within the app, however the calls aren't routed over the Internet, using your wireless minutes instead.
As with BBM, WhatsApp also lacks the ability for multidevice conversation syncing.
Despite owning WhatsApp, Facebook has promised to keep Messenger and its recent acquisition separate. As such, one could argue Facebook Messenger is actually a better messaging solution than WhatsApp.
Not only does it offer feature parity with WhatsApp, but it also allows for voice calls over data, and it syncs your conversation history across multiple devices, in real time. You can access the service through any Web browser or through native apps on platforms such as Android and iOS.
Google's Hangouts service allows for messaging, voice calls (over data), video calls, stickers, GIFs, and location sharing.
In addition to iOS and Android apps, Google also offers Hangouts through any Web browser by accessing your Gmail or Google+ account. Like with Facebook Messenger, your conversation text is kept in sync across multiple devices.
Viber is similar to WhatsApp, in that it's a stand-alone service. One feature it offers you won't find from WhatsApp or BBM is a desktop app. By using a mobile app, and connecting the desktop app to your Viber account, you're message history is synced. You can seamlessly switch between your mobile device and your computer, and the recipient won't have any idea you've done so.
You can also place calls, either to fellow Viber users, or any phone number of your choosing.
One added benefit all of these apps have in common over iMessage is that they allow you to talk to anyone, no matter what platform the recipient is using. While Apple locks you into iMessage (in some cases, quite literally), these apps allow you to roam freely between platforms, free of issues caused by switching platforms.
How to switch between reading and listening in Kindle apps
Amazon's newly updated apps for Android and iOS support instant switching between text and narration. Here's how to make that switch.
Whispersync for Voice is now available in Kindle for Android and iOS.Amazon
Kindle owners have long enjoyed the option of toggling between text and audio versions of their books, a feature made possible by Amazon's Whispersync for Voice technology.
Some of the books you already own can be upgraded with narration.Screenshot by Rick Broida/CNET
That's pretty cool. You can be listening to a book in the car, then switch to the text when you get home and want to keep reading. However, the process of doing so isn't immediately clear, so let's take a look at how Whispersync for Voice works in Kindle apps. Note that my testing was performed on an iPhone, but the process is virtually identical in Android.
Step 1: Make sure you have not only the Kindle app installed on your mobile device, but also the Audible app. It's the latter that will handle the heavy lifting, audio-wise. Update:According to Audible, the Kindle app has the necessary audio tech built in, and therefore the app itself is not required.
Step 2: The best way to see this in action is with a book that supports Whispersync for Voice. You can use Amazon's Matchmaker service to see which Kindle books you already own are able to be upgraded with audio, but you can also start with a freebie: Amazon is currently offering the classic "Black Beauty" for Kindle at no charge, with accompanying professional narration also at no charge. (After you "buy" the book, you'll see a button allowing you to "buy" the narration as well.)
Screenshot by Rick Broida/CNET
Step 3: Load the Kindle app and open "Black Beauty." Tap anywhere on the screen to bring up the options menu, then look in the lower-left corner. You should see a headphone icon. Tap it, then tap the blue download arrow on the subsequent screen. This will start the download of the book's audio companion file.
Screenshot by Rick Broida/CNET
Step 4: When the download is done, you'll see a familiar-looking set of play controls. Tap the big blue triangle to play/pause, or either of the quick-skip buttons to go forward or back in 30-second increments.
Screenshot by Rick Broida/CNET
Step 5: To return to the text version, tap the little book icon in the lower-left corner of the screen. Because the book and audio editions stay in sync, you'll always be at the right location as you jump back and forth. Like I said: pretty cool.
By the way, don't let the headphone icon fool you. Although it would seem to indicate headphones are required (and Amazon's own promo page directs you to "pop in your headphones"), you can play the audio through your device's own speaker or an AirPlay/Bluetooth speaker.
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