Tag: iOS

App Review – Avoid Data Overages with DataMan Pro

Post author By Brian
Post date April 2, 2014

DataMan Pro

Are you on a capped data plan?

Do you worry each month about data overages?

If you have an iPhone or iPad, then DataMan Pro may be your answer.

When I upgraded to the iPhone 5S, I switched from an unlimited data plan to a capped data plan. After a few weeks, I also discovered that I was using significantly more data than with the iPhone 4. I was close to exceeding my new cap and didn’t want to pay any data overage charges, so I needed a way to track my data use.

My carrier provides text alerts at set usage intervals, like 50%, 75%, and 100%. I enabled those first. After a couple weeks, I decided that I wanted more details and even thought that some type of data use forecasting would allow me to proactively adjust my data use rather than be reactive when I receive a text message from my carrier.

I read several reviews for data tracking apps and settled on DataMan Pro. The price was $4.99, but that is less than just one data overage charge, so I decided to give it a try. After several months of use, DataMan Pro is everything I expected, and more.

Inital Setup

After a brief setup where you identify the start and end days of your billing cycle, the size of your data cap, and how much data has been used in the current cycle, DataMan Pro begins tracking your mobile and wifi data use. It runs in the background utilizing the background refresh feature in iOS 7.

DataMan Pro Features

DataMan Pro features settings for notifications at four adjustable levels. I matched my notifications to my carrier’s notifications to test accuracy. Unsurprisingly, the data tracking accuracy is excellent. I receive my carrier sourced text messages at nearly the same time as my DataMan Pro notifications.

Users are also able to customize the display of the main DataMan Pro screen and can choose the level of detail, background color, and font.

DataMan Pro with Detailed Display

Tags iOS, iPhone

Productivity Technology

Become More Productive and Eliminate Notification Overload

Post author By Brian
Post date March 26, 2014

Ding! A new mail notification appears.

Chirp! A friend just mentioned you on twitter.

Bleep! Someone just liked your facebook post.

Many of us are bombarded every day by the various sounds, message boxes, and vibrations made by our desktop computers, phones, and tablets when a new notification arrives.

Photo by Noel Schäfer

Many years ago when I first started using a desktop email application, I changed the settings to check the server for new mail in the shortest interval possible, I think it was every minute. I wanted read that new mail the instant I received it.

Later, I clearly recall being in awe of the notification options available to me when I bought my first smartphone. Suddenly, I could receive notifications about text messages, news, weather alerts, sports scores, social network interactions, and more. Nearly every app on my phone provided some kind of notification.

Within a year, I was experiencing notification overload and decided I needed to eliminate as much of the notification distractions from my life as possible. If anything, just to get my some sanity back in my life.

There were two things I did to get the notifications under control and reduce the distractions.

Tags android, iOS, iPhone

App Reviews

Endless Alphabet Review – A Fun Way For Children to Learn Words

Post author By Brian
Post date January 17, 2014

Endless Alphabet is a cute and fun app that teaches spelling, words, letters, and letter sounds. I purchased it several months ago, and it is now one of my daughter’s favorite apps.

It’s simple to use, and there are not any detailed instructions to follow. Any child that can drag the cute monster letters across the screen should be able to play and learn. If your child is like mine, they want to use the iPad without help (and often can), so the simplicity here is a big win.

Endless Alphabet word selection screen

How it Works

The app begins with a selection of words to choose from, one for each letter of the alphabet. After selecting a word, it appears on the screen for a few seconds before a crew of monsters storm across the screen and knock the letters aside, leaving just a the grey shadows of the original word in their wake. The player must then drag the letters back where they belong.

This is where the action begins… While dragging, the letters wiggle and make the sounds of the letter being dragged. If the letter is placed correctly, it locks down. Place the wiggling letter in the wrong location and a sad, “wah-wah” sound indicates that the player should try again. The letters to not need to be placed on the word in the correct order.

Endless Alphabet monsters scrambling the letters of the word
When the word is completed, another cute and often humorous animation sequence is played reinforcing the word pronunciation and meaning.

Tags Apple, iOS