Happy Valentines day! Here we have loads of lovey dovery, sweet fun & funky Apps and iDevice accessories especially for the day that celebrates love and all of it’s weird and small relations.
1. You can’t go past custom made iPhone cases on handicraft E-commerce site Etsy! Just look at these, you’ll either go ‘awwww’ or throw up. Like this one:
2. Also on Etsy, romantic iPhone case designs that spread across both your and your partners iPhones. Awwwblurhg
3. Be Mine ($0.99) or Be Mine Lite (Free). An App for making Valentines day cards complete with the ability to use your own text, images and photos overlaid into one spectacular card that saved and exported. We made this one, because we’re pretty specially talented.
4. Nordstoms have a bunch of Love themed iPhone cases that are pretty radical. $14.99
5. Valentine Radio. An App that lets you hear all the sweet dulcet tones of love songs from radio stations streaming live to your iDevice from all over the world. Free!
6. Foodie Recipes. Free App that has awesome recipe’s for two for that romantic valentines meal you’re cooking together/for each other. Homemade Ravioli, Croque Monsiur & Avocado Dark Chocolate Madeleines? Heck Yes I love you!!!
7. Cyclops iPad cover dude! Microfibre Arms! Makes your love one’s iPad cuddly and cute for when you’re not around to be cuddly and cute! Get it for $25 at ilovehandles.com
10. For those a little bit web-savvy, why not create a surprise website for the one your heart desires? It’s kind of like naming a star for them, but on the internet and in the future. No stars in the future! Godaddy.com has cheap domains for sale, like the following, which we may or may not own now:
11. For some, Valentines day is commercial and stupid. On Etsy, get something like this to tell them how you really feel:
12. And finally, if things are looking a little craptacious this year and you want a better valentines day date next year- Try out Ok Cupid and Tinder. Eiffel tower with champagne and pearls / Monaco with poker and steak here you come!
If you’re going all out and getting him or her what they really really want (apart from the above, obviously) – an iDevice – check here to see when you need to order it online from Apple so it makes it to your place before the big V day!
( And then tell them that you know the perfect people to sell their stinky old iDevice to.. uh, Sell your iPhone with iPhone Antidote! Cos then they can use that money to buy YOU something awesome because of the awesome gift you got them for Valentines Day! And because they love you. Yay!)
Also! VALENTINES DEAL OF THE DAY! The good old melting hearts over at iMore.com are giving everyone 14% off everything in the iMore store! Here’s the link, simply use coupon code VDAY13 at checkout!
Last but not least, Happy Valentines Day Guys. We… well, it’s hard to say this but.. we really, really, um, like you.
We told you we loved Christmas right? We also really like deals. Deals, tips, tricks, writlefifers, all of it. This is why we now proudly present the Christmas Gift Guide Part 3 – Tips & Tricks for buying Tech this Christmas!
According to Macrumors, Apple now has an official policy on price matching, which allows specialists to price match iPhones, iPads, and Macs, giving up to 10 percent off on products without authorization. Specialists are also allowed to give business customers up to 20% off a non-Apple accessory when purchased with an Apple product via special order.
Apple also has free shipping now through December 22nd.
If you’re thinking of buying that special someone a Smartphone this holiday season, you should get yourself along to Whistleblower – a fantastic tool that you can use to compare cell phone plans online, and see which one is best for your needs and your budget!
If you use Amazon ( and you should) you should be aware of a couple of things. Firstly, they will price match on cell phones and televisions within 14 days of shipment of the product. Click here to see the details.
Amazon also offers 3-months of Amazon Prime Membership for free for parents & caregivers. This includes Free 2-day shipping on qualifying items, 30% off Select Diapers & Wipes which qualify for subscribe & save (15% discount + 15% S&S discount, an additional month of Amazon Prime for each $25 you spend on a single order (up to 1 year total of free prime) and exclusive e-mail discounts and offers.
If you’re a college student you can also get free Prime membership for 6 months and only $39/year after that as well as a $5 credit for each friend you refer. Click here to sign up.
College students should also click here to apply for Best Buy’s student discounts, all you need is your student email address ( must end in .edu). With this, you’ll save $50 on MacBooks and receive similar discounts in your email.
You guys should definitely check out the refurbished products on the Apple special deals page here. You can find deals like the iPad Mini Wifi 64 Gb with a 1 year warranty for $419, 13 inch MacBook air for $849, or Apple TV for $75.
Target’s markdown day is usually Monday for electronics. Markdowns usually take place every two weeks and items will continue to be marked down every two weeks until sold or the discount reaches 75 percent. Markdown schedule’s might vary from store to store, so it won’t hurt to check.
You can get a bunch of sweet Mac applications all in one go from MacUpdate in corroboration with Macrumors. For only $39.99, the bundle includes 10 applications such as iStopMotion 3, Anonymiser, and Backblaze. All up it’s worth a cool $360 clams. Click here to check out the deal.
And here’s a couple of specific deals you should check out:
iPad Mini and iPad Mini with Retina Display Smart Cover by Apple – 19.99 for blue, 14.99 for all others including Red. Free Shipping. Click here to see the deal.
Pioneer A4 WiFi Speaker w/ AirPlay Streaming $80 + Free Shipping save $120! Check it out here.
Get a Apple 15.4″ MacBook Pro for $1549.99 with a discount and rebate at MacMall.
Happy dealing and Writlefifing and Merry Christmas!
iPhone Antidote LOVES christmas. We put our christmas tree up in October, no joke.
AND we’ve been tracking the best gifts this year so you can get everyone in your life the best damn christmas present they’ve ever had. We’re talking tears in the eyes of the toughest man you know kind of christmas gifts. You guys are gonna get so much christmas karma this year!
Although tech stuff tends to be on the higher side of the budget range, we’ve tried to include a broad range of prices AND gifts for a broad range of ages and interests.
We’ve also provided some nice gift viewing music to serenade you whilst you read. Did we mention that we love Christmas?
You ready? Here we go!
Health Conscious
For the health conscious in the family, any of the Fitbit product line will make for a perfect gift. At iPhone Antidote, we recommend the FitBit One (seen above), but the Fitbit Flex has been reviewed positively as well.
The gadget tracks steps, miles,and other activities undertaken as well as calories taken in and expended, weight and even your sleep patterns. A very effective tool for maintaining or improving healthy living.
The Fitbit range is sold in most good tech stores. The Fitbit One is $99.99 and the FitBit Flex sells for $99.99 everywhere. Try Best Buy or Target.
Speakers.
Cos everyone loves music, right? And how awesome is it when you can just press a button on a device and music comes pounding out across the room? Or across the campsite? That’s why everyone needs a portable bluetooth speaker, like the Beats by Dre Pill ( shown above), $199.95 at most good techy retailers. Try Macy’s or AT&T.
We’d also highly recommend the SoundLink Mini Bluetooth speaker from Bose. Get it here for $199.99.
Groupon currently has a good deal on the BassBoomz Portable Bluetooth Speaker, usually $130, now $29.99. Click here to see the deal.
On the other hand, Airplay speakers ( strictly Apple only connectivity) give better sound quality than bluetooth, but you certainly pay for it. The one we like the most is the Bowers & Wilkins Zeppelin Air for $599.99. Click here to get that price.
The iKross Bluetooth Stereo Music Audio Receiver makes any speaker in your house a bluetooth connectable speaker. Uh, awesome? Get it for $24.98 here.
Game systems
If you haven’t already snapped up one of these and are wanting to, well, we wish you luck my friend. They are a little scarce on the ground at the moment, but we think that supplies might bulk up towards the pointy end of Christmas. Might.
But if you can, either of these would make a smashing christmas present. Just make sure you get the right one, and we’re not telling you which one that is- they are both awesome, but it is a fierce battle forged in people’s minds as to brand alliance, much like Samsung and Apple products. If the person you’re getting it for has no alliance, you’re good to go on what suits the budget and environment.
The Playstation4 is $399.99 at Walmart, Best Buy & most good retailers. The Xbox One is $499.99. Consider getting a product bundle as well.
The alternative to the two big players is the Nintendo Wii Ufor just $299.99 at Best Buy -that’s the Wii U Console Deluxe Set with New Super Mario Bros. U AND New Super Luigi U games.
Games
Games! Woop! These are the top coolest games we can think of to recommend!
Grand theft auto V. The game everyone’s been talking about! Be warned, this is not the game to get your 10 year old! Mature themes run throughout, but those, uh, mature enough to play it? They say it rocks socks. In a more mature way of saying that. Available now on Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3.$59.99 at Best Buy.
Groupon currently have a deal to buy Just Dance 2014 for Wii, Xbox 360 Kinect, or PS3 Move . Super fun and easy game for everyone to play. Usually $39.99, now only $29.99.
Toys
We scrounged the very bowels of the internet to get the top 5 coolest kids toys for your little munchkins this year.
The new Furby Boom toys are the most interactive Furbies yet. And they’re back, in a BIG way. Starting at $47.80 at Walmart.
Snap Circuits – super award winning learning toy, where the objective is to build projects such as AM radios; burglar alarms; games, etc. Shop Amazon for $45.07 with Prime here.
Romo Robotic Pet for iOS. Romo is a little guy creature ( downloadable app) that lives in your iOS device – attached to his wheels he can roll around, snap photos and interact with and adapt to his environment. Get this at Brookstone for $199.99.
Ubooly Smart Toy is an interactive smart toy that doubles as a really cute little thing AND an educational toy with 1,000+ fun activities for ages 4-10. Ubooly tells stories, plays games, teaches lessons and every week, new activities are pushed wirelessly to your mobile device. Yes please.
The iStabiliser Monopod. A smartphone and gadget holder thingy, so your photos turn out super stable, and your arm doesn’t hurt when you’re filming. Get it here for $ $34.95.
Hellonomad Charge card (seen above).USB powered charge card that is the size of two credit cards, so can fit easily in your wallet. Get it here for $25.
For cases, we reccomend trying out either Opena casefor function ( they have the bottle opener case among others) or Red Bubblefor design.
Groupon currently has a deal for Agloves Touchscreen Winter Gloves, so you can use all your smart gadgets even when it’s super cold! Usually $25.99, now only $ 7.99! Get in fast, it’s super limited.
Groupon currently has a deal on for the HMDX Bluetooth Speaker & Alarm Clock with Apple Lightning Pin Dock. Usually $79.99 now only $39.99! Get it here.
iHip Robot Mini Speaker. Super cute brightly colored little speaker guys! Groupon currently has them down from $29.99 to just $6.99. Excellent stocking stuffer!
Quadcopter/helicopter
No matter what age, a Heli or Quadcopter will bring a lot of joy this holiday season. The best of the lot would be the Stunt Copter ( seen above) at Brookstone for $69.99. It takes a little learning, but comes with a repair kit and takes some good smashes with no damage. Designed for inside and outside play, it’s a perfect toy that takes some practice- but the practice is hella fun.
For more of a toy than a project, we’d recommend this the Hovermaxx UFO RC Helicopter, for only $19.99 from Brookstone, it’s perfect for beginners age 6 and up for inside play and includes 6 LED lights on the device.
For the Quads, we’d definitely recommend the Parrot AR.Drone 2.0 App-Controlled Quadricopter($299.99 at Brookstone), it’s big brother the Parrot AR.Drone Quadricopter Power Edition which lets you stay in the air for 3 x longer ($369.99 at Brookstone), or if you want to go REALLY LARGE – the DJI Phantom Aerial UAV is really top notch. Check it out. ($453.44 with prime at Amazon)
Smartwatch if you cants wait ( but we suggest you do).
If you or one of your loved ones realllly can’t wait for the iWatch or similar expected far advanced tech, then it’s ok, we got you.
We recommend the Pebble Watch if you’re after a standalone smart watch (173.99 from Amazon), or the Martian Passport Smart Watch if you’re after a stylish accessory to go with your smartphone ($299 with Prime from Amazon).
Both are great Smart Watches and hella stylish to match, but expect big advances in battery time and capabilities as early as next year in their own updates and in new products.
Cool things
Light show fountain speakers. Turn on your favorite jam ( do we still say jam for music? ) and the water inside the speakers will dance to the beat and the 4 multi-colored LEDs will light up. Super rad. $49.99 from Thinkgeek.
GoPro Hero 3. You’ve all seen the video’s right? These are the cameras that you attach to things as you go hurtling down a ski-field, climbing up a rock or simply hiking to the ocean. They’re also beginning to be a must have. Starting at $199.99
Bird Photo booth. Catch the au naturale side of your backyard bird friends with this bird photo booth. Uses your own iPhone or GoPro, but comes with macros and polarising lenses. You can also, uh, talk to the birds using FaceTime? $149.99 from Thinkgeek.
Game boy watch. Everyone loves vintage gamer stuff! And now you can wear it on your hand! $86.87 including shipping here.
Perfect Drink App-Controlled Smart Bartending. Exactly what it says it is; a fancy cocktail machine. It includes a smart scale and app that lets you choose from hundreds of drink recipes, follow real-time pouring instructions, and watch as a virtual glass fills on your smartphone or tablet, as well as suggesting what drinks you can make from what you have. (Kahlua and Bacardi 151 anyone?) $69.99 from Brookstone.
Really cool things
ELECTRIC DELOREAN DMCEV.Brought to you by the DeLorean Motor Company in association with Epic EV, the Electric DeLorean is battery powered but its AC induction liquid-cooled electric motor packs 260 horsepower. That means a top speed of 125mph and 0-60 in 4.9 seconds.
The Flying Hovercraft. Yes, it’s a flying hovercraft. It glides over land and water yet also soars in the air up to 70 mph with the aid of integrated wings. A 130-hp twin-cylinder, liquid-cooled gasoline engine, turbocharged and fuel-injected, drives its 60″ wood/carbon composite thrust propeller while a 1,100-rpm 34″ lift fan inflates its durable vinyl-coated nylon skirt for hovering above the ground.
That’s a wrap! ( get it? …Christmas wrap? ..no?) I hope you guys found some nice gift ideas for your loved ones and enjoyed the dulcet tones of Miss Mariah!
Happy Happy Holidays!
P.S. Watch out for our 2nd tech christmas guide coming soon on where to find the best deals on everything Apple!
UH… D’UH? It’d be a bit weird if you didn’t, just saying.
The wonderful tech website 9to5Mac are teaming with a vinyl skin manufacturing company, dbranc inc. to promote their wares, which are all pretty awesome, and to give away an unlocked gold 64Gb iPhone 5S.
That’s right! You’ll also get a bunch of gold skins to use on any of your other devices to make them look fancy and shiny so they don’t feel all left out and jealous of your new phone.
To Enter: Make sure you’re following @9to5mac on Twitter and retweet the competition post or reshare it on Facebook.
Not this post, although, you can do that too, but it should be their post that you share. You’ll find it here. And the share button is alllll the way down the bottom.
Good luck! Actually, guess what we just decided. If we win, we’ll just give it to one of you guys. Deal?
Well, we might not make it rain, but we’ll… stop the rainclouds? Something witty like that.
Here’s our deals of the day!
These ones come all the way from that place where you think you can spend lots of money but then you realize you don’t have that much money, so you should really sell that stinky old iPhone in the drawer so you can get CASHMONEY and you can buy tickets to that sumo & sushi night AND buy these awesome accessories.
These two deals are all about keeping your device going and going and going and going! Battery power! Yeah!
You can get an Enerpak Tube 5000 mAh external battery pack for $29 here! You will need to bring your own USB cable to the table, but for $29, some extra battery you can carry around in your pocket is not too shabby of a deal.
ANNND you can get a Purgoodies solar paneled charger for your device for $29.00 here. USB cable is included in this deal, sahweet! Extra good for camping or electricity blackouts, or hanging out kickin it at the park for a really long time.
These are both offered at pretty excellent prices – so go check ’em out!
The Kogeto Dot 360 Degree Panoramic Add-On Lens for the iPhone
Yes, your iPhone is cool. Yes, you’re cool for having an iPhone. But wait- there’s more! Here are the top five coolest, craziest, best iPhone accessories for your iPhone.
Be cooler.
1. Freeloader Pico Solar Rechargeable iPhone Charger
Everyone knows that whilst your iPhone is cool, the battery life is the least cool aspect. We all want our phones to last for as long as possible before we try and find our charger to make us tied to one spot. This a a great, environmentally friendly accessory to try and fight that tied-down feeling. Using advanced solar cell and lithium ion battery technologies, PICO takes only 30 minutes to deliver its power to your iPhone. PICO can be powered from both its own solar cell or from connection to a PC or lap top (cable supplied). $39.99
2. The Kogeto Dot 360 panoramic video
Once this is on your iPhone, you’re free to start taking fully 360 degree videos. This accessory makes your iPhone able to record everything. Everything. Once you’ve captured absolutely everything around you, wherever you may be, or be doing, you can share it with your friends via facebook, twitter etc. It’s like inviting your friends into a 3D version of your life. Started on the website kickstarter.com, this is an amazing app. While it seems futuristic, the future is, apparently, now.
Available in different colours, $49.00
3. iPhone Photo Printer by Hammacher Schlemmer
Using nothing other than a free downloadable app and this tiny teeny printer that you dock your iPhone into, you can get brilliant quality photo prints ( 1, 4, or 10 images on each 4 inch by 6 inch borderless sheet) from your iPhone photos. It takes less than a minute and is smudge proof, tear proof, fade and water resistant. Pictures are worth a thousand words right? $159.95.
4.Vuzix Wrap 310 XL Video eyewear
This wicked accessory lets you be kinda like a spy, wearing cool dark glasses, sitting there not actually watching what’s in front of you ( like your boring job or boring commute to said job) but instead watching any movie or video on your iPhone or iPad, through your sunglasses. It displays both standard 4:3 and 16:9 aspect ratios and is super cool. $169.99.
Want to see if you have bed bugs? Or the really tiny little bits of, well, everything? This is for you, and it’s kind of unbelievable that this technology is available. It’s literally an accessory that turns your iPhone into a microscope. You can even take photos of all that microscopic awesomeness and share it with your friends. Around $45 Amazon.