The Bob Clark

“If you want to be more consciously aware of the food you’re eating, Fooducate provides an amazing amount of information and user feedback that’ll help you do just that.”

If you’re trying to change your eating habits and eat healthier with less additives and better ingredients, Fooducate contains a wealth of information and user reviews about many of the foods we consume on a daily basis. Eating healthy doesn’t always mean counting calories or working out. What we eat can be just as important. Sure, a calorie is a calorie, but if you give your body calories from better quality foods, you get the benefits of vitamins, minerals, and nutrients that artificially processed foods with lots of additives, high fructose corn syrup, and other “empty” calories just can’t match.

Fooducate aims to help you be more aware of what’s actually in what you’re eating.

The main premise of Fooducate is to give different types and brands of foods a letter grade. These letter grades are based on information provided by dietitians as well as user feedback. Sometimes looking at a label can lead to you only look at things like calories and fat. When in reality products like high fructose corn syrup can be just as harmful to your body in other ways.

Fooducate provides key information about products like artificial flavorings, colorings, and more. If you want to try a more specific diet like eating just whole grain products or going gluten-free, Fooducate will make the perfect companion as you can compare things you’re debating buying with other alternatives that users and dietitians have rated higher in quality and content.

Some of the natural or “low calorie” foods I was eating really weren’t as good for me as I thought they were. Thanks to Fooducate I’ve been able to not only stray away from the foods that aren’t so great but pick from healthier alternatives.

When you open Fooducate you can simply start scanning bar codes of items in order to see what their rating is as well as compare them with other alternatives. You can also type key words into search such as “bagels” to see a list view. From there you can choose from popular or recent items under that category. The quick view for an item will show you the overall grade, calories per serving, and the percentage of users who have liked that item.

You can quickly view user comments as well as key facts with just a few taps. If you’ve found an item that you’d like to purchase you can also add it to your shopping list.

I’ve become fond of the shopping cart feature as it allows me to view and edit my list as well as replace items quickly with other recommended similar items. Once you’re done creating a shopping list you can share it via e-mail, Facebook, or Twitter. The lists section will also show a complete history of viewed foods as well. You can clear out the history at any time with just a tap.

Another nice feature of Fooducate are the “Healthy Me” checks on the main menu where you can see how you stack up against what other users are eating. It aggregates products you are viewing for the week and all time as well as what products you’ve liked. It then gives you a letter grade based on what you’ve liked and shows you a side by side comparison of what others are liking.

If you’re the type of person who likes to read about nutrition and food facts, the daily tips section will give you just that. It links into Fooducate’s blog that is frequently updated with information on health, wellness, and how they are related to the foods we eat daily. Reading through some of the entries has made me second guess some of the foods I was eating on a pretty regular basis.

The good

• Finding and viewing information on foods couldn’t be a more painless process
• The replace feature in the shopping list is a great way to swap out not so great options with better ones in just a few taps
• Healthy Me checks are an easy way to see how you stack up against many other users
• More food items are updated and added regularly

The bad

• The UI could use some work as navigating through menus and back to the main browse foods section is a bit annoying
• Sometimes manually searching for key words yields unrelated results

Conclusion

If you want to be more consciously aware of the contents in the food you’re eating, Fooducate provides an amazing amount of information and user feedback that’ll help you do just that. While many nutrition apps aim to help you lose weight, Fooducate stresses the importance of also eating foods that are good for your body as a whole.

Fooducate is available for free in the App Store now. You can also purchase the ad free version for .99.

Are you currently trying to eliminate certain types of additives from your diet? Share your experiences with us in our Health and Fitness Forums. If you’re looking to lose a few pounds, check out all our tops fitness picks are for Mobile Nations Fitness Month.

Free – Download now

iMore – The #1 iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch blog

For today only, the iMore iPhone case store has the OtterBox Camo Defender Series Case for iPhone 4S and iPhone 4 on sale for only .95! Get it before it’s gone!

Shop OtterBox Camo Defender Series Case for iPhone 4S and iPhone 4 now!

The OtterBox Camo Defender Series Case for the iPhone 4S, AT&T iPhone 4, or Verizon iPhone 4 offers rugged protection for your smartphone. The Defender Series case will help keep your phone protected from drops, bumps, dust and shock.

All features, keys and ports are accessible through the case, providing you with a unique, interactive safeguard. Included with this case is a holster style swivel belt clip.

Features:

• Layer 1: Thermal formed protective clear membrane. Protects keypad against scratching, as well as dust intrusion (layer optional depending on the level of protection desired)
• Layer 2: Hi-impact polycarbonate shell for an added guard against drops and shocks
• Layer 3: High quality silicone skin to absorb bump and shock
• Full access to all keys, ports and functions

iMore – The #1 iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch blog

The Daily claimed to have an exclusive story on the upcoming availability of Microsoft Office for iPad earlier today, unfortunately  the story appears to be highly inaccurate and misleading; according to Microsoft. The Daily claimed that it had inside information that told them that Office for iPad was complete and ready to be submitted to Apple for approval. Even more convincing was a picture of Office running on an iPad; along with the claim that The Daily had some hands on time with the app. Unfortunately Microsoft has issued a statement calling out The Daily.

“The Daily story is based on inaccurate rumors and speculation. We have no further comment.” She added that an image with The Daily’s article depicting an Office product for iPad was not from Microsoft. ”The screenshot is not Microsoft’s software,” she said.

An interesting twist to this story and one that is sure to rumble on for some time to come. Was The Daily taken in by a very convincing story or is there still some truth to this? Microsoft did not actually 100% deny that it was working on office for iPad, just that this information was inaccurate and that the image was false. This of course could be just great marketing by either party but that would be a very cynical view!

Source: The New York Times

iMore – The #1 iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch blog

Lock Screen Designer is a great little app for creating custom wallpapers for you lock screen. It’s filled with skins, frames, and decorations that you can combine with photos to create something that reflects you.

One of the disadvantages to the iPhone is that Apple doesn’t allow much personalization to the look, but a couple of areas that they do permit such customization is with the home screen background and lock screen. Lock Screen Designer will help you make the latter truly unique.

To create your lock screen, first choose a skin, which is the background of your design. You can do this by scrolling through them one at a time, or you can pick from the thumbnail view. Then you choose a frame and add a photo and decoration if you wish. Included with the decorations are sticky notes with customizable text and calendars. When complete, you save the image to your Camera Roll and assign it as your lock screen wallpaper.

The paid version of Lock Screen Designer includes additional skins, frames and decorations (including calendars) that can be downloaded from inside the app.

Free – Download Now

.99 – Download Now

iMore – The #1 iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch blog

We’ve seen a number of supposed iPad 3 parts recently, and this latest one shows the front glass and digitizer assembly with the layout remaining largely the same as that of the iPad 2, with no changes to the Home button, front-facing camera position or ambient light sensor arrangement. If the pictures, which come by way of Sina Weibo, are accurate, the only recognizable change is the ribbon cable on the side of the glass, which extends roughly half-way up the device as opposed to the iPad 2 which has a shorter cable with a sideways orientation.

A separate post from the same person claims the rumored A5X SoC includes a dual-core processor instead of quad-core, in addition to the iPad 3 coming with full support for Siri, which has so far remained exclusive to the iPhone 4S.

Other recent component leaks indicate a thicker, more tapered back, a logic board with possible A5X chipset and the supposed Retina display put under a microscope.

Additional notes indicate Apple plans to release iOS 5.1 alongside the iPad 3, which is expected to be announced on March 7th with a Retina display and possible 4G LTE. BGR previously heard rumors of iOS 5.1 hitting on March 9th, which could be when Apple plans to deliver devices to consumers, but we’ll have to wait for the official announcement next month.

Source: Sina Weibo via Apple.pro, MacRumors

iMore – The #1 iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch blog

Barcode Scanner is exactly what you need to easily find and enter PointsPlus values, and a great companion app to Weight Watchers Mobile for iPhone

If you’re a Weight Watchers subscriber using Weight Watchers Mobile for iPhone, Weight Watchers Barcode Scanner is a great companion app for quickly calculating points values. Manually typing in fat, carbs, fiber, and protein can be a daunting task especially when grocery shopping. The barcode scanner app makes the task super simple and easier than ever, and is a great way to avoid impulse junk food purchases.

The biggest hurdle I’ve had to face since starting back up with Weight Watchers is grocery shopping. I’ve stuck with buying healthy foods but it can be a task to manually enter in the contents in order to decide whether or not a food I want is a healthy decision.

The Weight Watches Barcode Scanner helps cut the time I spend looking for healthy foods in half while shopping. If you’ve used any type of QR code scanner on your iPhone you’ll be right at home.

The first time you launch the app you’ll be asked to sign into your Weight Watchers account. (You can choose for it to remember you in the Settings tab). Weight Watchers Barcode Scanner will load the scanner by default on launch. Then all you do is simply align a bar code and it scans away. It’ll read it and tell you the PointsPlus value for a single serving. If it can’t find an item, it’ll allow you to manually enter in carbs, fat, fiber, and protein into the points calculator.

If the app doesn’t know the serving size it will simply say unknown. I’ve found most of the time that it calculates a points value but says unknown serving size, it’s on items that are off-brand or measured in cups. You’ll just need to follow the serving size on the box. If you can’t get a good view of the bar code with the scanner, you can also choose to enter it in manually.

Weight Watchers Barcode Scanner will also keep track of all the foods you’ve scanned under the Lists tab. Not only can you view the items you’ve added, you can add them to your favorites or your tracker directly from the application. Since Weight Watchers stores all your information online, you’ll see the information added to your tracker via Weight Watchers Mobile as well next time you launch it.

There are a few apps in the app store that spit out Weight Watchers point values. I’ve found this one to be the best simply because it ties directly into your online tracker and integrates nicely as a companion app to the full Weight Watchers Mobile app. I don’t have to jump out of whatever I’m using to scan bar codes and into Weight Watchers mobile and re-enter information. I just add the item I want directly to my tracker from Barcode Scanner and it’s already there.

The good

• It makes grocery shopping for healthier foods less of a task and not so overwhelming
• Gives the option to add directly to your favorites and tracker which eliminates having to jump into another app
• The overall UI is very similar to the Weight Watchers Mobile app so you’ll feel right at home

The bad

• You’ll need a Weight Watchers subscription to utilize the application which may not be an option for some users as the cost may be more than they’re willing to pay
• You won’t always find bar codes for many off brands
• No auto-focus can be annoying at times when the app doesn’t automatically center in on the bar code

Conclusion

If you’re looking for an easier way to find PointsPlus values than typing in numbers each time, BWeight Watchers Barcode Scanner is exactly what you’re looking for and a great companion app to Weight Watchers Mobile for iPhone. While there are competitors out there, they just can’t provide the tight integration into the Weight Watchers system that the official app can.

The fact that I can add things directly to my tracker and favorite items while I shop without jumping into multiple other apps makes it a hands down winner.

If Weight Watchers is your diet plan of choice, let us know your experiences in our Health and Fitness Forum and check out what the rest of our staff is picking to get healthier during Mobile Nations Fitness Month.

Weight Watchers Barcode Scanner is free to download but you’ll need a Weight Watchers subscription in order to log in and start using it.

Free – Download now

iMore – The #1 iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch blog

“Checking for water damage is pretty simple and something everyone should do before forking over your hard earned cash for a second-hand iPhone 4.”

If you’re trying to save some money and are in the market to purchase a used iPhone 4 from either Craigslist, eBay, or some other local or online seller, one of the first things you’ll want to do is check for any signs of water damage. I see several people in my office each week that purchased used iPhones that mysteriously quit working after a few days. As much as we’d like to believe there aren’t people out there who would sell us broken or water damaged devices, it happens every day.

While online-only iPhone purchases are convenient, I highly recommend meeting up with someone locally, for example, someone off of Craiglist, before turning to eBay or any other online broker. This allows you inspect the iPhone device before you actually commit to purchasing it, and gives you a chance test it out and check for water damage yourself.

If you can’t meet someone locally and need to buy online, request that the seller inspect for water damage and send you images that allow you to see that the water sensors are still intact and that the internals have not suffered any damage or corrosion.

Apple has placed 4 sensors inside the iPhone 4 that make it pretty easy to tell if any part of the device has come in contact with liquid. These sensors are placed exactly the same in the GSM iPhone 4 and CDMA iPhone 4. You want to make sure the sensors are white as opposed to red. If you see a sensor that has turned red, that’s a sign it’s come into contact with liquid or heavy humidity.

How to check external iPhone water sensors

The easiest thing to check are the two sensors you can see without removing the back of the iPhone 4. I recommend bringing a small pocket or keychain flashlight with you in order to get a good look at the sensors.

Headphone jack sensor

Your first sensor is located inside the headphone jack at the bottom. It’s the easiest sensor to find and inspect. Shine a flashlight into it and make sure you don’t see anything but white. (Red is bad.)

As a side note, this sensor can come out or become dislodged occasionally. If you don’t see one, just move on and check the next sensor. I wouldn’t take it as a sign that the seller is trying to be dishonest (yet).

Dock connector sensor

The next sensor is a square sensor in the dock connector. To see it, hold the phone screen down in your hand and look inside the dock connector towards the middle. On the upper side you will see a tiny white square (or red square if the device has come into contact with liquid). Make sure this one is white.

If both sensors are white, it may not be necessary to proceed any further. The device most likely has never been subjected to water damage. If the headphone jack sensor was missing or you couldn’t find one of the sensors, you may want to continue to the next section.

How to checking internal iPhone water sensors

It may seem silly to bring a screwdriver with you to check out an iPhone but it’ll seem a lot less silly when it saves the lost money and headache you’d get for buying a water damaged iPhone 4.

There are two sensors on the inside of the iPhone 4 that are easily visible once the back is removed. You can pick up a security screw driver online and a #00 Phillips screwdriver from your local hardware store for a few bucks. You’ll need one of the two in order to remove the back.

If you’re buying a CDMA iPhone 4 off of someone, you’ll most certainly need the security screwdriver. Older GSM models still have standard #00 screws while newer ones have security screws. Remove the 2 screws holding the back plate on and gently push the back up and pull it off. This will give you a clear view of the last 2 sensors and a lot of the internals of the device.

While you’re checking the last 2 sensors it’s always a good idea to look closely at the internals and make sure everything looks ok. You’ll want to avoid any devices that show signs of the following:

• Obvious corrosion
• Torn cables
• Missing screws
• The battery tab is torn off
• A large amount of debris or dust inside the device

If all those seem good, you’ll just need to make sure the water sensors check out okay.

Battery sensor

The first sensor is placed directly over the clip that holds the battery down. Again, just make sure it’s white and move on the to next and final sensor. If it isn’t white but all the rest are, I’d probably still advise against buying the device as the battery or other internal parts could have come into contact with liquid at some point.

Logic board sensor

The final sensor is located on a screw holding the logic board in place. If this sensor is white, you’re in the clear. If it’s not, you’ll definitely want to stay away from purchasing the device. This sensor is the closest one to the logic board. If it’s red, odds are the logic board has liquid damage and will eventually go out.

Wrap up

Checking for water damage is pretty simple and something everyone should do before forking over your hard earned cash for a second-hand iPhone 4. I would personally consider buying an iPhone 4 if only the headphone jack or dock connector sensor was triggered. If the rest of the device is in perfect condition and the inside has no sensors triggered, I’d say you’re okay. A lot of things including living in a humid climate can cause external sensors to be triggered. Apple will actually honor a warranty swap if only one external sensor is triggered due to these factors.

Just make sure if one external sensor is triggered or missing that you check the inside ones. As long as those are okay, the decision really lies with how comfortable you feel and how honest you think the seller is. If they seem irritated or worried about you checking out the device, find another one.

Interested in other DIY, repair, and modding info? Check out the resources below or if you ever decide certain repairs are beyond your skill level, contact PXLFIX regarding mail-in repairs and pricing.

Additional resources

• How to choose quality iPhone 4 color kits
• All DIY, repair, and mod guides
• Mod and DIY repair forums

iMore – The #1 iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch blog

“Both iKlenz and eScreen removed fingerprints, smudges, oil, and grime with a minimum of effort and left my iPhone and iPad with clean, clear, gorgeous-looking screens.”

Whether you’re rocking an iPhone 4S or iPad 2, or a previous generation iPhone, iPad or iPad touch, there’s just no getting around one simple truth — they’re fingerprint magnets. What’s more, since fingerprints come with oil, food, dirt, and who-knows-what-other substances all over them, you’re device’s screen can often turn into a sticky, icky mess. Enter iKlenz cleaning solition and eScreen flat panel cleaner, both contenders to the title of best iOS device cleaning solution. But which one is the best?

iKlenz and eScreen are specially engineered cleaning solutions for exactly the types of large, glass displays found on iPhones, iPads, iPod touches, and other, similar gadgets. (Including your computer’s display.) These aren’t glass cleaners either, and eScreen, for example, states that it’s ecofriendly and silicone, ammonia and alcohol free, so you don’t have to worry about it damaging the oleophobic (oil repelling) coating of your iPhone or iPad. iKlenz also says it works as a disinfectant to destroy bacteria and germs.

Both come in small squirt bottles so they’re easy to store or even carry around with you, and both iKlenz and eScreen include micro-fiber cloths, though eScreen’s is both larger and more plush. eScreen also comes with a nice cloth carrying pouch while iKlenz comes in a cardboard box.

To put them to the test, literally side-by-side, I dirtied up my iPhone 4S as best as possible — fingerprints galore! — and then divided the screen right down the middle. I applied 2 squirts of iklenz on one side and 2 squirts of eScreen on the other, and then compared how many wipes it took to get each side spotless, and the quality of the cleaning when it was done.

The good

• Cleans better than a dry cloth
• Dries faster and is safer to use than a damp cloth
• Provides better, streak-free, finish
• Includes micro-fiber cloth

The bad

• More expensive than plain cloth

The conclusion

In my tests, iKlenz and eScreen performed equally well. Both iKlenz and eScreen removed fingerprints, smudges, oil, and grime with a minimum of effort and left my iPhone and iPad with clean, clear, gorgeous-looking screens. The full retail price for both is also the same (though at the time of this writing the iMore Store is offering a better sale price on eScreen).

So it comes down to the extras to break the tie, and with a bigger, softer micro-fiber cloth and the bonus carrying pouch, this time eScreen comes away with the win and the title. eScreen is currently the best cleaning solution for your iPhone, iPad and iPod touch.

iKlenz – .95 – Buy now

eScreen – .95 – Buy now

iMore – The #1 iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch blog

As if raising a child wasn’t stressful enough, baby products like cribs, car seats, and strollers are constantly being recalled and it can get overwhelming to keep track if you own a recalled item. With Recalls Plus, you you can relax knowing it will notify you if any of your products have been recalled.

Parents aren’t the only ones who need to concern themselves with recalls, however. That’s why Recalls Plus also keeps track of allergen recalls. Whatever your concern might be, Recalls Plus lets you search recalls by category or specific items. You can also create a custom list of products you own and Recalls Plus will send you a notification when an item from your list is recalled.

What I like about Recalls Plus is that after I added all the products I’m most concerned about for my daughter’s safety, I just buried the app away in some folder and know I don’t ever have to think about it again — the piece of mind is priceless.

Free – Download Now

iMore – The #1 iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch blog

Apple is rumored to be sticking to a September or October 2012 release cycle for the iPhone 5 — or whatever they end up calling the next-generation iPhone — just as they did with the iPhone 4S in 2011. Japanese news site Macotakara reports:

According to Asian reliable source, the next iPhone will be released in September or October, and this cycle seems to be kept for years.

Previous to the iPhone 4S, Apple historically held to a summer release cycle, with the original iPhone hitting on June 29th, 2007. Subsequent releases of the iPhone 3G and iPhone 3GS were in mid July and late June respectively, with the iPhone 4 following up on June 24 of 2010.

With the iPhone 4S, however, Apple switched to a to an October release window, moving away from the summer cycle they’ve been accustomed to and taking the Holiday spot previously reserved for the iPod. Given that Apple announced a record-breaking quarter with over 37 million iPhones sold after the iPhone 4S hit consumers late last year, it was likely a smart move and it makes sense for Apple to continue on this path going forward.

iMore previously reported on an October 2012 release date for the iPhone 5.

Source: Macotakara

iMore – The #1 iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch blog