iPhone Atlas

There's a vehicle I often see in my neighborhood with "TAPS" written on it. That stands for "The Albuquerque Paranormal Society." TAPS is known around the area for ghost hunts and tracking paranormal activity, like a homegrown, less governmental version of "The X-Files."

Whether you believe in ghosts or not, it takes a lot of equipment to look for them. Rather than invest in a ton of gear like an electric charge detector, full-spectrum camcorder, night vision goggles, and an EVP mic, you can get started with ghost hunting for a $20 Mr. Ghost pledge on Kickstarter.… Read more

I love audiobooks. Nothing makes a car ride faster or more pleasant than a good spoken-word book piping through the speakers.

That's why I've routinely championed smartphone-powered services like Audible, Audiobooks.com, Simply Audiobooks, and Tales2Go.

Now there's another app worth adding to your audiobook arsenal: Audiobooks HQ, which gives you access to more than 5,000 public-domain titles -- all for a measly $1.99.

The app connects you with two catalogs: the Globe Radio Repertory and Librivox. The former contains just four works (including "Don Quixote" and "Madame Bovary"), while the … Read more

There are tons of music-listening apps in both of the big app stores, but when you want to find new music, there's nothing better than a streaming-radio app. These apps are set up for browsing through stations and genres so you can get a fresh dose of new options based on the music you like.

The obvious choice here is an app like Pandora (free - iOS|Android), but there are a few I like that have other options that might appeal to different types of music listeners.… Read more

It's been about 18 months since I first wrote about Zapd, a clever app that lets you build simple, attractive Web sites using nothing more than your iPhone.

Why would you want to do that? To chronicle something cool, of course, like a wedding, vacation, party, or even a work project. I mean, your photos are already in the phone, right? The next logical step is to publish them where friends and family can have a look.

Of course, most such events involve your friends, family members, and/or co-workers, who will no doubt be snapping photos of their … Read more

After downloading Minecraft Reality for iOS, I channeled Queen's epic song "Bohemian Rhapsody" and asked myself, "Is this the real life? Is this just fantasy?"

Fortunately, the answer to both questions is "yes." The $1.99 app, released yesterday, gives gamers the opportunity to view their Minecraft creations in the real world -- through the lens of augmented reality. … Read more

There are plenty of apps that can stream movies and TV shows to your tablet or smartphone -- Amazon Instant Video, Crackle, HBO Go, Hulu Plus, Netflix... shall I go on? -- but very few that let you download content for offline viewing.

That's kind of a bummer, because it means if you want to watch something on, say, an airplane, you have little choice but to buy from iTunes or rip from DVDs.

If you're a Comcast subscriber, now you have another option. The newly updated Comcast Xfinity TV Player app (Android|iOS) now offers the enviable … Read more

Between crowded airports, winter delays, and luggage loaded with gifts, holiday travel can be stressful. But with a little planning, you can make your trip a little easier from start to finish. So rather than gathering up a collection of apps that help you book flights, we decided to make a different kind of travel collection.… Read more

Are you hosting Thanksgiving or bringing a dish to a potluck? If so, plans are probably already in place for the turkey, side dishes, and desserts, but there might be a chance to take your recipes to the next level -- if you have the right apps.

There are several cooking apps for both iPhone and Android that are great year-round, but they also often have special featured recipe collections around the holidays. If you want to kick your green-bean casserole (or any other holiday dish) up a notch, I suggest you take a look at what these apps have to offer.… Read more

Black Friday is rapidly approaching and we all know that means people are going to be hitting the stores both online and at brick-and-mortar locations to grab gifts for friends and family. But if you want to find the best deals, you're going to need a little help, and I have just the right apps for the job on iOS devices.

Whether you plan to brave the crowds on Black Friday or stay home and shop online, these apps will get you the best deals and hopefully make your gift shopping a little easier.

Editors' note: For Android shopping … Read more