iPhone Life - Best Apps, Top Tips, Great Gear

See Who Is Connected to Your Hotspot & Remove Them

Ever find yourself in a situation where you need a Wi-Fi connection but you’re nowhere near a wireless router? You can use your iPhone as a personal hotspot. What is a personal hotspot? The hotspot on your iPhone can provide a Wi-Fi connection to your other devices. But what if someone you don’t want using your hotspot connects to it? Here’s how to use the hotspot on the iPhone and kick other devices off of it.

I had been considering using an old iPhone as a car dash cam, but when Autowit sent me its Front & Rear Dual Dash Camera Recorder Mirror ($69.99) I gave up on trying to make my own! It's much nicer to have a device that is purpose-built for recording. And the price makes it attractive. Plus there are features an iPhone or even other dash cams can't match.

App Saturday: TripAdvisor

By Hallei Halter

Planning trips can go either way: you plan them to the minute or you have a general idea of what you want to do. TripAdvisor helps you to decide on the best travel ideas by finding local spots of interest based on reviews and photos by other regular people. This travel planning app features suggestions by travel magazines and famous personalities who you can follow in the app in order to find more travel destinations that appeal to you. You can also book transport, hotels, and restaurant reservations within this app, making it your travel-planning utility knife.

No matter what you're looking for in a speaker, the odds are pretty good that iHome has something that meets your needs. The company even has cosmetic mirrors that double as Bluetooth speakers. iHome sent me the iAV14 Alexa Bedside/Home Office Speaker ($99.99) to check out and I do indeed like that it has Alexa built in. Amazon has redefined what a speaker should be; and if you're going to spend $100 it should include a smart home assistant, which the iAV14 does. Another nice touch is that it supports Spotify, if you use that music streaming service.

If you ride a bicycle or walk outside and want to listen to music, but don't want to block out the outside world, try the Lucyd Loud ($99). Lucyd sent me their Lucyd Loud sunglasses which have built-in audio capabilities. They act as earbuds using Bluetooth 4.1, but you don't have to place anything inside your ears. They use bone conduction to transmit the sound, and they do so quite well.

Who says you can't print videos? The folks at Lifeprint sent me the Harry Potter Magic Photo Video Printer ($149.99) to review, probably because they know I'm a fan of Harry Potter, but they didn't know that I've been using ZINK photo printers and instant cameras for years. In fact, I've been using Polaroid cameras since they came out decades ago, and this new device brings back some of the magic, literally, from those early days of instant cameras.

Ever leave a Chrome tab open at home before work, and then want to find it again later from your iPhone? If you've ever wondered, "how do I open my tabs in Chrome on another device?" then you're in luck. The Google Chrome iPhone app lets you see the tabs you left open on your computer and open them on your iPhone. Just enable Chrome Sync in the Chrome settings menu, then tap the tabs icon at the bottom of your Chrome browser, and you'll find a desktop icon on your tabs list that will show you all the tabs open on other devices. Being able to switch from your Mac to your iPhone with minimal effort is a huge advantage. Here's how to view your computer's open Chrome tabs, Chrome bookmarks, and more on your iPhone.

When you have a house full of iPads and iPhones, the power outlets poorly accommodate the oversized charging bricks sticking out from the walls. Of course, that is assuming that the chargers can be located. Top Greener has addressed the growing population of gadgets dependent on USB plugs to recharge. This review looks at two USB products that Top Greener has to offer.

Everything you need to know about FaceTime

Through the years, FaceTime has evolved and improved to include more devices and capabilities. With Apple's iOS 15, we can finally place a FaceTime call to Android users via a link, not to mention all the cool features now available with SharePlay. In this guide, we'll cover how to make a call using the FaceTime app, how to FaceTime with Android users, how to share your screen, and more!  

Making plans to meet at a particular location goes more smoothly when you share directions from the Google Maps or Apple Maps app on your iPhone or iPad. Are you wondering, "how do I share a route on Google maps on my iPhone?" We'll show you how to find and share Apple Maps and Google Maps driving directions, and how to create driving directions with multiple stops with the Google Maps app.

Learn how to protect your data and limit your iPhone's Lightning port to charging only with USB restricted mode. If you lose your iPhone, or even lose sight of your phone in a public place, like plugged into the wall of the coffee shop, your data is susceptible to USB hacking tools such as keyloggers, even if it's locked. USB Restricted Mode is an iPad and iPhone security setting that can help secure your data by disabling access to the Lightning port after your device has been locked for an hour. After USB Restricted Mode turns on, your iPhone's USB/Lightning port is disabled, and you'll have to use Face ID, Touch ID, or your passcode to unlock your iPhone so you can use USB accessories. Let's go over how to enable restricted mode, and how to turn off or disable restricted mode.

App Saturday: VSCO X

By Hallei Halter

Typical vintage filters for photos slap on a yellow tint and call it a day. VSCO, a photography app that doubles as a photo editor, imitates analog camera settings to make your images look like natural film photos. The app also offers VSCO X, a yearly subscription that bulks up the app to include over 100 filters and tools to edit your photos to look like professional pieces.

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