Many say that the Apple iPad is a revolutionary device – and we won’t disagree. Here at Hooked Up Installs, our team of installation professionals has used the popular tablet computer to download some of our favorite applications, perform our favorite tasks, increase our productivity (at work or at home), and get things done faster than you can say, “There’s an app for that.”
If you have an iPad, you might want to check out this list of today’s 8 most useful iPad apps, Hooked Up Installs edition.
g!Mobile
Elan Home Systems – formerly HomeLogic – is one of our favorite home automation systems providers, so we’re not surprised that the company’s g!Mobile iPad app is typically incredibly awesome. The app is a complete home management and entertainment interface designed to work with your. And does it work wonderfully: just check out our featured automated houses like this one and this one.
From across the room or across the globe, the g!Mobile iPad app provides effortless control of your home’s security, climate, lighting, media, pool, spa, and more. New to home management? Would you like to see what’s possible today? Download this app for a free test-drive of Elan Home Systems g! on its office system.
TiVo
TiVo created this TiVo iPad app to enable TiVo Premiere owners with iPads to use the tablet device as a remote and TV guide. The application lets you search, browse, discover, and share content without interrupting whatever you’re watching.
One of our favorite features of this app is the advanced remote control, which brings up a traditional remote interface via which you can fast-forward or rewind TiVo content. The app also allows you to surf for new content, view guides, schedule and manage your TiVo recordings, get recommendations, investigate your favorite actors’ filmographies, and even post comments about a show or movie on your Twitter or Facebook feed. You can even use the TiVo app to set up a recording while you’re away. And all these using iPad’s intuitive, gesture-based interaction.
Users must have a TiVo Premiere or TiVo Premiere XL box and an active, paid TiVo subscription.
Pandora
The Pandora iPad app is your own free personalized radio, streaming music from your favorite artists, genres, and eras. Just start with the name of one of your favorite artists, songs, or classical composers and the Pandora iPad app will create a “station” that plays their music – and more music like it.
Oh, and did we tell you that the app is free? Check it out!
Lifelike Alarm Clock and Weather HD
The great thing about the iPad is that – well, there indeed seems to be an app for everything. (The device’s gorgeous looks are a plus, too.) Designed from the ground up for the iPad (in either landscape orientation or portrait mode), the Lifelike Alarm Clock and Weather HD app by Postindustria looks great on your nightstand and is also easy to use and full of clever features.
The clock and weather app displays local and worldwide weather forecasts and international temperature display, with a backdrop of high-definition beautifully animated skies that match your current weather (it detects your location automatically). There’s also the delivery of accurate and reliable worldwide weather data from a leading meteorologist, removing the need for any other paid weather app to know what to wear today or whether to bring an umbrella.
Lifelike Alarm Clock and Weather HD is a pretty smart app, too, with a Night Mode that won’t light up your room and comes equipped with super-sized snooze buttons.
HomeWorks Light Control
One of our favorite lighting control providers here at Hooked Up Installs is Lutron. The company recently released the HomeWorks Light Control iPad app, which allows you to control your Lutron HomeWorks system over a Wi-Fi, Edge, or 3G network with the convenience of your iPad device.
The app automatically configures itself using the information stored in the HomeWorks system, whereupon your lighting controls respond quickly and reliably. If you need further proof of how excellently this iPad app works, just check out one of our Featured Projects, the Chicago home with a suburban feel.
Dragon Dictation
Sometimes, running a home can be busier and more stressful than working in an office. Or sometimes, we just don’t feel like having to run a home, and would prefer to relax instead of work.
The Dragon Dictation iPad app is perfect for those times: it’s an easy-to-use voice recognition application powered by Dragon® NaturallySpeaking® that allows you to easily speak and instantly see your text or E-mail messages. So just tap and dictate, tap and dictate, a process that can be up to five (5) times faster than typing on the keyboard. And don’t worry about the machine not hearing you properly: Dragon Dictation has an excellent voice-driven correction interface.
With this free app, you can send reminders to yourself and dictate E-mails and notes, which can then be copied and pasted if necessary. It’s like having your very own secretary! (Without the worries of paying anyone a salary.) You can even dictate status updates directly to your Facebook and Twitter accounts.
Off Remote
Off Remote by Hobbyist Software is an iPad app that lets you turn off your PC and Mac remotely – from anywhere in your house. So if you use a computer to stream videos or audio to your living room, then you can turn them off without getting out of the sofa. Or if you forget to turn things off at night, you can turn them off from your bed using your iPad. You can control as many computers in your home as you like!
Features of the Off Remote iPad app include the automatically discovery of your computers in your local network, plus secure password protection to make sure that only you can turn off your computers. It’s definitely great for the green-conscious homeowner looking for more efficient energy management.
Sonos Controller
Do you have the Sonos Multi-Room Music System? Then this excellent – and free – iPad app is for you. Combined with Sonos Zone Players in the rooms of your choice, the Sonos Controller iPad app enables you to find and play all the music you want, all over your house – wirelessly.
The app also works seamlessly with other systems and apps like Deezer, iheartradio, Last.fm, Napster, Pandora, Rdio, Rhapsody, SiriusXM Internet Radio, Spotify, Wolfgang’s Vault, and downloads from any service offering DRM-free tracks. With its full-featured alarms, the app also lets you wake up or fall asleep to your favorite music or Internet radio station.
