vShare and AppCake Are Considerable Installous Alternatives

Now that Installous has disappeared - or rather, shut down because the team at Hackulo.us thought things aren't as active as before  you should be looking for alternatives.

There are plenty of alternatives to Installous but one fact that you'd probably agree is nothing is as simple and elegant as Installous itself. In a way, it was like Cydia: one single stop for all the resources you ever needed. In this case, resources was those precious IPA files.

But let's accept the fact that the Cydia app is gone for the moment (we still hope that it will be back). Thankfully, with problems surfacing in Installous much earlier, we have been looking for good, considerable alternatives that are as good, if not better.

There are number of great alternatives but of course, it's a hard time for hardcore fans of Installous who have been happily using the simplified interface. Two of the very best alternatives are reviewed here.

1. AppCake

Without a doubt, AppCake from the iPhoneCake repo comes as the finest alternative right now. The benefits lie in the fact that you don't have to install any AppSync for AppCake to work and secondly, the interface is kind of intuitive and simple. 

AppCake is available in http://cydia.iphonecake.com repo (which you have to add in Cydia -> Manage -> Sources -> Edit -> Add)

2. vShare

vShare (formerly AppVV) has gained instant prominence now. Not surprisingly because the folks behind it have produced a really amazing piece of a software that works with iOS 6. Configured for the iPhone and iPad, vShare is right now available for download through their website at http://v.appvv.com/en 

vShare requires that you install AppSync. Currently, as the entire Hackulo.us repo is down with no signs of coming back up, you will need to find third-party sources (like the SiNfuLiPhone repo) to get AppSync. If you have AppSync already, no worries.

iPad in Business: Inventory, Time Tracking, Invoices and Project Management

The iPad is a powerful tool if you know that it houses some amazing apps that can help you run an entire business. "iPad for business" is a recurring theme here at iGB as we realize that apps from the App Store are designed so powerfully that one can run an entire fleet of wide-spread businesses with an iPad.

From things like tracking shipments, inventory and time to overall project management and collaboration, the iPad provides some of the finest applications and features to enable all that. It's no wonder that project managers, business analysts, experts and a lot of founders are shifting towards an iPad environment.

An iPad for Business / Project Management
It's not just the app though. iPads are inherently mobile and easy to carry around. With advanced features like LTE now becoming a part of the devices, connectivity is not an issue at all. Mobility, technology, and a huge resource make the iPad an idea choice to conduct your business from.

In short, the iPad:
Offers great mobility along with support for latest technologies like LTE
Enables faster, intuitive and better tracking of your business processes
Adds value and functionality through features like invoicing, payment processing and even inventory management

Managing Inventory
Shopkeepers, florists and even large-scale producers who usually rely on advanced tracking and management software on the Mac are increasingly converting to the iPad ecosystem. One of the features that enable this shift is the huge amount of iPad inventory apps available on the App store. Not just that, but the quality of the apps found on the store is huge thanks to all the strict guidelines that drives the App Store.

Apps like Inventory Tracker and Real Inventory make managing your inventory enormously easy.

Office Productivity
One of the most vital things a business often needs is the ability to handle documents. Great apps like CloudOn offer a complete solution in the absence of a powerful but cheap Microsoft Office alternatives. Office, by itself, is enormously costly.

Native apps like Mail, Notes and Reminders are great but there are plenty of options like the native Gmail app if you want to get more features. Apple's own iWork is a wonderful suite to work with although it brings a little learning curve along if you're not already used to it.

Project Management / Expense Tracking
Project management for managers - especially collaborative task assignment, management and sharing - is something that is usually associated with the desktop. However, there have been several apps like OfficeTime make it a breeze to manage time and expenses while a plethora of apps enables task tracking and collaboration.

Don't Miss: Best Project Management Apps for iPad

Payments
Finally, apps and devices supplied by Square have proved that you can process payments right on your iPad (or iPhone). You can carry out secure transactions through your iPad with the payment accessory provided by companies like Square, Intuit, SwitchPay etc.

The iPad ecosystem is brimming with possibilities of conducting your business in a more simplified and organized way. It just takes a little time and exploration to find the right set of tools (apps) that will answer your every requirement.

Should You Insure Your iPad and iPhone?

The topic of tablet insurance has taken a long-form discussion as more people are increasingly becoming aware of the risks involved in handling a tablet or even a smartphone.

For most of us, the iPad or the iPhone is safe in our hands. We don't expect anything bad to happen to the coveted gadgets but when it happens, it's usually very bad.

An iPad or an iPhone can:

• be stolen
• break when dropped accidentally
• get wet (accidental drops into water) and become nonfunctional
• suffer a display-scratch or shatter 

Most users think they'll have it safe but then, certain circumstances are totally unpredictable. That's when things get ugly.

A new iPad from Apple comes with its own warranties and then there is AppleCare+ which offers pretty good coverage on its own. But there are choices beyond AppleCare+ which can make sure you can relax with the safety concerns of your iPad.

That's what is iPad insurance all about.

Why would I want an iPad insurance? Isn't that just wasting my money?
May be it sounds like you're wasting some bucks over a petty thing as insurance but let's take this scenario:

• You think that spending out, say, a one-time of $100 for three years' insurance is a waste of time
• In the three years of using the gadget, an accident happens and the iPad's screen shatters

You'll either have to replace the gadget entirely or shell out half as much as buying a new iPad to get the screen fixed.

In the event that you've got insurance cover for your iPad, you'll spend, at its peak, $75 to get the screen replaced.

Now, I'm not saying that people are careless about or indifferent to insurance but most of our carelessness comes from the opinion that nothing bad will happen to our iPads.

iPad insurances have become quite cheap these days. For as little as $10 a month or a one-time fee that makes it even cheaper, you get almost complete coverage and security.

Not just this. iPad and iPhone thefts are becoming all too common. Apple does not (and cannot) provide any type of a coverage for thefts; this is one reason why they focused developing their Find My iPhone app.

If you can afford it, it is highly recommended that you get your iPad insured. Insurance is getting cheaper anyway.

iPhone Apps for Counting Down to Christmas

Are you among the ones who can’t resist oneself from counting the number of days left until Christmas? There are hundreds of Christmas themed apps for iPhone that will keep you entertained. Here we have found some fabulous iPhone apps which are completely free of cost & will count the number of days left until Christmas, in a stylish manner. 

1. Christmas Countdown w/Music:

This app will certainly delight ardent music fans. While counting days, one can really hear great holiday music along with enjoying an animated image like Santa, snowman or Christmas tree, which will be displayed by the app in the background. One can also put one's own image as the display background. One can even update his Facebook status by revealing the number of days left until Christmas. A combination of amazing soundtracks & wonderful animation is really going to be a feast for the eyes of the users. 

Download: Christmas Countdown w/Music App

2. Christmas Countdown:

This app will not only let you know the number of days left until Christmas but will also make you know the exact countdown that includes seconds, minutes & hours. You can either select a song track from your own music library or you can choose from a great collection of listed songs, inspired from Christmas which include some awesome tracks like 'Dance of The Sugar Plum Fairies'.  Once you have set a Christmas countdown the app updates its badge every morning, automatically. 

Download: Christmas Countdown:

3. Countdown to XMAS App:

This app allows a user to know exactly how many days are left until Christmas. Apart from that, it also lets a user know about exact number of hours & minutes left to the occasion of Christmas. This app also lets you know other information related to Christmas. For an instance, if you want to know exactly which day of the week Christmas falls on, this app will let you know that. 

Download: Countdown to XMAS App

4. Christmas Badge Countdown:

Christmas is a time for full-fledged preparations. However, people having a really busy schedule may find it hard to get started with the preps. For such people, this app can really come in handy. The app displays a prominent badge label count down on the homescreen. No matter if the Internet is working or not, once activated, countdown will continue to work. One can also enjoy playing Christmas carols on the built-in-piano. You can also set a Christmas countdown for the next year.

Download Christmas Badge Countdown

5. Sleeps to Christmas Lite - Christmas Countdown:

Choose from an amazing collection of wonderful characters who hold various signs, which count the seconds, minutes, hours & nights to Christmas. A really unique design, to let you countdown till Christmas.

Download: Sleeps to Christmas

6. Christmas Clock: Deluxe Edition

Do you love Christmas? If yes, then keep yourself updated with the information regarding how many days are left for Christmas. This version of the app includes various classic songs based on the theme of Christmas & a cool Santa tracker. This app also features a real-time clock, random snow effects. Day/night cycle,  etc. 

There is no denial to the fact that keeping track of the number of days left until Christmas was never a more fun-filled experience as it is now, with the availability of cool iPhone Apps for Counting Down to Christmas.

Download Christmas Clock

Are Cheap iPhone 5 Cases Worth Buying?

iPhone 5 Cases: The Various Options
iPhone 5 cases come with the widest variety and options in the world. There are the ultra-thin slim cases which are light-weight and fit in the pocket and then there are military grade cases from brands like Otterbox which come as one of the strongest protective cases for your iPhone 5.

Amidst all this, people are fond of cases that are not only good but also affordable. With Chinese manufacturers supporting a lot of people's fancies, the focus is on producing large quantity of dirt-cheap cases which are often very poor in quality.

Of course, that doesn't make all cheap iPhone 5 cases poor in quality. But with most cases – where the manufacturer only thinks of quantity - the quality gets hit and you have really worthless piece of iPhone 5 cases that only waste people's money.

Cheap Cases: What's The Problem
Most cheap cases you'll find in the marketplace are often available for less than $5.00. You can find insanely dirt cheap iPhone 5 cases even under $3.00 that ship en mass. But then, not all of these are going to be really useful.

The problems with cheap cases are many. For instance:

• They're quite flimsy, made of substandard material and come with a very weak protective cover
• They're flexible but that comes at the cost of them being “tear-able”
• The design isn't neat-fitting; sometimes, the buttons are not easily accessible
• The case leaves a telltale mark on the iPhone 5, damaging the casing of the smartphone

And we can actually go on listing a lot of problems.

Good-quality Yet Affordable
But as we mentioned before, there are iPhone 5 cases that are cheap and quite good too.

How?

1. Some cases are really priced upwards of $20 but the manufacturers run cheap, discounted sales on websites like Amazon and eBay. You can grab them before the stocks run out – as in most cases, they are limited edition.
2. A decent price to spend on a decent iPhone 5 case is often in the range of $20. Belkin, Case Mate and Griffin offer cases that are in the $20 price range. We think that a decent price to spend for an iPhone 5 case would be $20.

Even with the branded cases, be sure to check out Amazon for discounted prices. Often, there are discounts of over 70% on the list price.

Tips on Selecting the case for your iPhone 5
Getting the right case for your iPhone 5 can be a chore in itself with the available options. But then, when you're talking about cheap and affordable iPhone 5 cases, the choices do get smaller. When you're looking at under $20 iPhone 5 cases, big brands do come in: Griffin, Belkin and Case Mate have cases that are in that range.

Some of the most important thing you need to look at, when you're searching for iPhone 5 cases are:

• Durability
• Design: how good it fits and leaves the buttons accessible
• Flexibility: so it's easy to fit and take out
• Thickness: you don't want a case that'll make it hard to carry the iPhone around
• Extra features: a card-holder or a kickstand won't hurt, right?

Preparing for A Tour With Your iPhone: The Checklist

Going on a tour with your iPhone can be great because you can turn your iPhone into a tour guide, have all the info about the place you are traveling to and much more. Here are some essential checklist things before you go on a tour with your iPhone.

Are you going to be traveling? Of course you are going to take your iPhone with you. But before you do, here are some things you should check out so that your iPhone is safe, you don't end up spending a lot on roaming charges and everything is perfect.

1. AVOIDING ADDITIONAL CHARGES

Turn off Data on Roaming:
One of the first things you have to do before you begin your journey is to turn off cellular data on roaming. Roaming Data charges are sky-high no matter who the provider is and if you don't want to burn a hole in your pocket, turn it off.

Also, turn off automatic updates, sync, iCloud etc. In fact, if you just switch off cellular data, everything gets done automatically.

GSM, Unlocked iPhones Are Better:
Being able to switch to a local GSM SIM is something that most non-iPhone users enjoy but if you have an unlocked iPhone, you are going to be happy about it. You can simply pick a local SIM card, insert it into your iPhone and get going.

Of course, with the iPhone 5, things can get a bit tricky because you need a nano SIM. But then, if you can get one, all the more better.

Subscribe to International Plans
There are some really decent International plans for texts, calls and data. If you are going to be abroad for a short time, switching over to International data plans could turn out to be beneficial.

Free Wifi + Skype
Skype: low-cost international calls. This is something everyone knows. And if you get free Wi-Fi, that's cooler! There are even apps that help you find free Wi-Fi sources in your vicinity. Make sure you load up your Skype account with some credit so you can make cheaper calls to home.

2. ACCESSORIES

Some Protective Gear
Cover your iPhone with a good case. Dust, pollution and other problems are quite frequent when you are traveling. Making sure that your iPhone or iPad is covered well and protected well can save you a lot of time and problem in trying to fix an unresponsive home button or a malfunctioning display.

Chargers, Adapters
Chargers are the lifeline of iPhones and iPads. Of course, you can opt to go for additional juice packs like the Morphius Juice Pack we reviewed awhile ago. These will provide continuous charge support over the usual 8 hour period. You can go without charging your iPhone from a traditional power source for more than two days.

Adapters are a must-have for the voltage differences we have between countries and continents. You can of course get one from the local country but having them in advance sure saves money and time.

Carrying Pouches
Large bags or small poches - whichever carry bags you are comfortable with are a must-have if you want to carry your gadgets in a safe way. Depending on where you are going, opt for water-proof, dust-free and some hard-skinned bags or pouches.

3. APPS FOR PLANNING/GPS ETC.

TripIt and More
Apps like TripIt are amazingly cool in keeping track of your flight bookings and other travel-related plans. When you are going on a tour, there are things you shouldn't forget to take and apps like Packing Pro which help you keep a track of all those things. More like a reminder app which aides in travel planning.

Offline Maps
Offline Maps like oMaps and Galileo Offline Maps are a boon if you rely on maps a lot. They are cool because you can access most of the information about where you are going without connecting to the network.

While most apps let you download a particular area, there are some city-specific maps which you can download so every inch of the data is available on your iPhone whenever you want.

Budget Control
Ah, of course. Money.

When you are traveling, you will need to keep a tab on how much you spend. Budget apps help you do this easily. There are also quite a few currency converters you can use when you are abroad.

Location-specific Apps
Like the city-specific Maps app, there are travel guides based on specific cities. For instance, you can find a lot of apps that act as travel guides for Madrid, or say, Hong Kong.

Just search for the city's name (the city where you are traveling, or the country where you are on tour) and you will find a lot of location-specific apps which can help you find interesting places to explore, routes to get there and other interesting tidbits.

Traveling with the iPhone could mean a real difference in the entire traveling experience because you've got so much info in your hand. Check out essential iPhone travel apps that you should use on your next trip