Every week the editors at iMore carefully select some of our favorite, most useful, most extraordinary apps, accessories, gadgets, and websites. This week's selections includes a way to monitor your electricity usage, an app that helps you learn some awesome blues licks on the guitar, a godsend for regular air travelers, an app and service for listening to your favorite music, and a beautiful way to read articles on the web.

To see what we picked, and to tell us your pick, follow on after the break!

Meter Readings - Chris Oldroyd

This week’s pick is a little utility that helps me monitor and manage my electricity usage. I have just received this quarters bill and as usual it was a shock to see how much I am paying for electricity. With this app I can now log my meter readings as often as I like and see what I am spending and how it changes during the year.

The app makes it easy to monitor your homes utility meters including water, electricity and gas; if you have it. Once you start logging your readings, you can view usage costs etc. in highly visible graphs. If you are in the UK like I am, an added feature is the comparison check. This allows you to see if you can get a better deal and what savings you can make by switching suppliers. You can even make the switch from the app!

$0.99 - Download Now

Blues Licks Lessons from Guitar Jamz - Gary Mazo

I’ve written before on iMore how I have used my iPad – pretty much exclusively – to teach myself how to play the guitar. This was a new hobby I started back in November, which has now turned into more than that.

I’m continually looking for ways to improve, things to learn and tips and tricks for my guitar.

There is a plethora of stuff in the App Store for guitar lovers; tuners, chord charts and apps, sheet music, simulators and more.

Guitar Jamz has been my go to site for watching the guitar guru – Marty Schwartz – teach me quickly and easily how to play some of my favorite songs. This week I was ready for more – I was ready to progress into the acoustic guitar blues.

Blues Licks is divided into five sections; Licks Lessons, Blues Chords, Blues Scales, Guitar Licks and a Blues Guitar Manual. I progressed through each of the lessons and slowly, I am getting the hang of the blues.

This app is great for learning those quick little licks that make you look like you really know how to play cool stuff on the guitar!

Free - Download Now

WorldMate - SimonSage

WorldMate launched for the iPad this week, and having spent my fair share of time in airports, I can safely say it will be a godsend to regular travelers. WorldMate can scan your incoming flight confirmation e-mails to automatically populate your travel itinerary. WorldMate includes a full suite of useful travel tools, including mobile hotel booking, a currency calculator, local weather forecasts, restaurant search. The app is optimized for the new iPad's Retina display, and can stay synced with your iPhone at the same time.

TripIt offers similar functionality, but there's something about the WorldMate style that I always preferred. The one downside to WorldMate is that most of the sidebar options pops open a window that's pretty much the iPhone app, rather than making use of the big display with full panes on the right. At least the trip itineraries are well-formatted.

The core app is free, but to celebrate the launch on iPad this week, they're slashing the price of the ad-less Gold version from $9.99 to $2.99. Definitely worth it.

Free - Download Now

Spotify for iPad - Ally

I've been using Spotify for about a month now and while I have found it to be a great service it left out iPad. Now that Spotify has released their iPad app I feel like it's the type of service I can actually use on a regular basis. The apps still need some work to compete with the likes of Slacker and Pandora but the Mac app is really what got me hooked.

The integrated social networking is a feature users will either love or hate. I personally don't mind it and have found it to be useful as I've found a lot of great music through my Facebook friends. The iPad app allows me to now stream to all my devices. I'd still like to see Spotify integrate some of their Mac and PC app features into the mobile apps but it's a good start. I think adding the ability to view stations and popular playlists would really complete the apps. But for my personal needs, I do fine creating playlists and starring tracks and listening to them on the go. If you haven't checked out Spotify, make sure you do and let us know what you think.

Free - Download Now

Pocket - Leanna Lofte

I am way late to the game when it comes to "read later" services and completely regret that. Since picking up Pocket (formerly Read It Later), I've become hooked. The app gorgeous and being able to save articles that I find anywhere, be it Twitter, Facebook, some random website, or my RSS feed. I'm even using Pocket as a way to bookmark my favorite articles that I think I'll want to revisit, like tutorials.

Here's another weird purpose I've found with Pocket. I have extremely sensitive eyes. I can't go out in daylight with sunglasses -- I get a headache and squint all day. Anyway, part of that sensitivity carries over to light-on-dark themes. I don't care how great the article is, if the background is dark and the text is white or very light in color, I won't read it. My eyes scream in pain and my brain starts to sting. But now I just send these articles to Pocket and read them there! It's awesome.

Free - Download Now

Screenshot Journal - Rene Ritchie

Screenshot Journal is handy little utility for developers, designers -- and bloggers. The idea is simply this -- automatically collect your screenshots in one handy place. That's right, no more digging through your Camera Roll. Screenshots are grouped by months, but you can also favorite specific screenshots to keep them even closer at hand. Zoom is available at 2x, 4x, 8x, 16x, and 32x with an optional grid overlay so you can double check everything from margin width to the precision of each and every pixel.

You can also share to Twitter, email, or to the clipboard.

If you're away from Photoshop and aren't doing near-real-time preview, but still want to check over your screens -- or take a peak at the screens of others! -- Screenshot Journal is a very good, very mobile tool.

$1.99 - Download now

Tell us your pick!

Those were our picks, iMore Nation, so now it's your turn! Tell us your pick of the week below. Give us the name of your favorite app, site, or accessory, and tell us why it made your life more productive, more informed, more entertaining, or just plain more fun. Jump into the comments and let us know your pick of the week!

The popular music streaming service Spotify has updated their app with proper iPad support. Now you can enjoying millions of songs and discover and share music on your iPad's larger screen. The iPad version isn't simply a big version it's iPhone counterpart either -- it's optimized to take advantage of the larger screen and looks amazing.

A Spotify premium subscription is needed to use the service on the iPhone or iPad, but you can try it out for free for 48 hours -- and can be extended to 30 days. The free trial didn't work for me the first time I logged in, but once I logged out and back in, it worked like charm.

On the What's New tab, you'll see a bunch of album artwork along the top that can be scrolled though. These are new songs and can be played instantly. As you scroll through the page, you'll discover trending playlists and top tracks among friends, new releases, and trending playlists and top tracks near you.

Tapping any of the music or playlists will slide out a panel on the right that lets you find out more about it and stream it if you wish.

If you're listening to music, you'll see the "now playing" toolbar at the bottom of every screen. You can also blow this up to full screen so that you can view the album artwork nice and big and in all its glory.

From the Playlists tab, you can access playlists that you have set up on iTunes and playlists you've created with Spotify. Selecting a playlist will also slide out the window on the right and display a collage of artwork of songs that appear in the playlist as well as a lists of the songs in the playlist.

The People tab is where you go to see what your friends are listening to. If you connect Spotify with Facebook, all your Facebook friends who use Spotify will automatically show up in your list. Tapping on a friend will again slide out the column on the right and display your friend's top tracks, top artists, and published playlists.

In Settings, you can enable offline mode, switch to a private session (which expires after 6 hours of inactivity), choose whether you want to show what you listen on Facebook, and more.

The Good

• Clean, pretty, and easy to use UI
• Multiple panels are very well implemented
• Lots of album artwork
• Universal for iPhone and iPad

The Bad

• Must have a premium subscription to use Spotify mobile. No free radio available.

The Conclusion

Spotify did a fantastic job with this app. There is a sense of uniformity when using it and the multi-panel design is very implemented. My only issue is that if you don't have a premium subscription, the app is completely useless. Spotify really should include free radio in their mobile apps.

Free - Download Now

Pandora, Slacker, and Spotify are three of the most popular streaming apps available. But which one is the best option for iPhone users?

While iTunes is the undisputed king of digital music, it doesn't offer streaming or subscription services, leaving the field wide open for a wide variety of contenders, including Pandora, Slacker, and Spotify. That's important because not everyone wants to buy their music. Some iPhone users want more variety and a better way to discover new music, or simply re-discover old favorites. That's because music is personal. It has to suit both our general tastes and our mood at the moment. A good streaming music app needs to reflect this. It needs to have music available that we like, when we like, and the better it does that job, the better it is.

Pandora, Slacker, and Spotify each have their own unique take on streaming music, but which one does it best?

Pandora vs. Slacker. vs. Spotify: User interface and experience

When it comes to streaming music, users want to find what they want to listen to easily and start listening quickly. If you have to dig through tons of menus or spend lots of time figuring out how to find music, you're just as soon switch to something else. It needs to be accessible and even better -- customizable.

Pandora is extremely easy to navigate and use but doesn't have a ton of options. Pick from a station, like or dislike items, and create stations from a track or artist. Other than that, functionality is pretty limited.

Pandora's layout is relatively straight forward and simple. The first tab will aggregate all the stations you've listened to and a "quick mix" that will play a mix of your stations. You can tap the edit button and easily remove anything you don't want. The next tab allows you to add new stations. You can search by either artist or genre. Tapping on a station or artist will instantly start streaming that content. It will also add that station to your playlist tab.

The bookmarks tab does exactly what you'd expect -- it allows you to bookmark tracks and artists. This feature is handy if you want to keep lists of tracks for future purchase (you can jump straight into iTunes from Pandora to buy content). While Pandora doesn't allow you to go back and stream that exact track, you can create a station based on that artist or track. This is great for fine tuning the Pandora app to play content you like. Make sure when listening to tracks that you use the thumbs up and thumbs down feature to filter in content you're more likely to enjoy and filter out things you don't like.

The free version of Slacker shows ads along the bottom. Paid users won't see these. The main menu is where all your content will be located which makes the app extremely easy to navigate through. Overall, it flows together nicely.

Upon launching Slacker you get a home page that allows you to browse some pre-defined stations or create your own custom stations. Premium users will also have the option of creating custom playlists (that's a feature Pandora does not offer in their iPhone app).

After choosing a station or creating a custom station, you can like or dislike songs or artists just as you can with Pandora. When disliking a track, you can either dislike just a specific song or the artist in general. So if you detest Rihanna in all forms, just block her from ever showing up for you in Slacker again.

Slacker also gives you the ability to check out what artists and tracks are featured on a station. Tapping into a station allows you to view info on the station, check out the artists, and check out the song list. Tapping the play button next to the station name will instantly start streaming that station. Overall, the entire layout of Slacker flows nicely. There aren't tons of menus to navigate and all of your presets and content are accessible via the main page.

While Spotify is the most pleasing to the eye, the functionality is still rather limited. You can't search by genre or listen to pre-populated stations. You'll need to create playlists to get going.

Spotify for iPhone is quite a bit different when it comes to overall design and the manner in which you interact with your content. The main homepage shows you a slider of top tracks and new releases with news underneath. The first tab shows any playlists you've created as well as your inbox, starred, and local tracks (we will get more into these later). The next tab allows you to search for artists, tracks, and albums. Once you find what you're looking for you can either stream it, add it to a playlist, or star it to play it later.

Spotify also integrates Facebook to allow you to view what your friends are listening to under the Friends tab. You can, of course, disable this feature (if, like some of the iMore staff, you don't want your friends to know you secretly listen to the Spice Girls...)

I actually prefer Spotify's layout and interface to the others but there's one big downside -- you can't browse genres. If you don't know what you're looking for or find things in "what's new" or "what's hot", there's pretty much no other way to find music from the iPhone app. This doesn't make for a great experience.

Between the three, Pandora is somewhat plain and Spotify lacks the ability to find music productively. Slacker is a nice middle ground. It doesn't overwhelm you. It might look a bit busy at first but after using it, everything just flows nicely together.

When it comes to user interface and experience, Slacker takes the prize.

Pandora vs. Slacker. vs. Spotify: Content

Pandora, Slacker, and Spotify all focus on music, yet present content in very different ways. If you want a random selection and don't care for playlists, Pandora provides that. But if you want to customize your listening experience right from the start, Spotify and Slacker are the best bets.

Pandora for iPhone has tons of presets to choose from when it comes to radio stations. But if you want to be able to customize your listening experience, there aren't many controls to help you do so other than liking or disliking tracks and hoping it'll play more of what you like.

Pandora at its core is an online radio streaming service. You can choose the types of music you like as well as like and dislike individual songs or artists. If you come across and artist or song you really like, you can listen to a mix based on that song. What Pandora doesn't do is give you the option to add individual songs to playlists and make your own. It attempts to learn what you like by the ratings you give content. Sometimes those ratings aren't so accurate.

If you want a more radio-like experience and don't want to put too much work into finding and playing content, Pandora is great. Beyond that, it's lacking features even for premium users.

Slacker for iPhone comes equipped with radio stations just like Pandora. You can also like or dislike artists or tracks. Paid users can also favorite tracks to play instantly later or cache stations for offline playback as long as you've got storage room on your iPhone.

Slacker is simliar to Pandora from the standpoint that you browse through stations and like or dislike artists and songs. From there, Slacker will show you custom content based on your own tastes. You can like and favorite songs which will show up under your favorites section off of the main menu. If you are a premium subscriber, you'll be able to listen to songs on demand.

Slacker allows offline streaming of up to 25 stations at a time (as long as you have room on your iPhone to store the content). You'll need to be a plus or premium member, but you'll be able to listen to your favorite stations without using up your data plan. To access stations you've saved for offline playing, just select the cached content section on the main menu and you're good to go.

Spotify for iPhone doesn't have presets built-in. You'll need to add playlists and customize your experience. You can actually only access Spotify from your iPhone if you're a premium subscriber. This may be a road block for users who don't necessarily wants to pay to stream.

Spotify concentrates on a more tailored experience. When it comes to the iPhone app, you can either search for content to play one song or album at a time, or build playlists. There are no stations to weed through or genres to choose from. This may be a deal-breaker for users who want the ability to browse music instead of having to find something specific. There are many times I just want to start playing music and don't really know exactly what I want to listen to. I just know what type of music I want to listen to.

If you'll only be using your iPhone to stream, Slacker will provide you with the best content selection and ways to sort and listen offline. While they don't have custom playlists, you can favorite songs you hear that you like and listen to and access them under your favorites tab on the main menu.

When it comes to content, Slacker wins.

Pandora vs. Slacker. vs. Spotify: Cross-platform syncing & streaming

If you plan on listening not only on your iPhone but on your computer or other mobile device, such as an iPad, you may want to consider what each service offers on other platforms, especially if you're contemplating a premium membership.

Pandora One gives you access to Pandora's desktop application for Mac and Windows. While it's better than web-based streaming, it's very minimal and nothing to get too excited about.

Pandora has a wide array of mobile apps available for iPhone, BlackBerry, and Android. You can also listen online. When you sign into your account all your information and saved content will be there.

Pandora One is Pandora's premium subscription model. It gives you access to the desktop application for Mac or Windows. The desktop app really isn't anything to get excited about and s quite dull. There's not much to interact with and it doesn't offer you any particular benefits over using the web-based player.

Slacker doesn't have a native Mac or Windows application but you can stream directly from the website. Paid users will not see any ads after logging in.

Slacker also has applications for most platforms and a few more than Pandora offers, namely a native iPad client. They also offer support for Windows Phone 7, Nokia, Palm, BlackBerry, Android, and many more. Slacker will save all your content under your login and it will be there regardless what app or platform you sign in to.

Slacker does not have a Mac or Windows app but you can, of course, stream straight from their website.

Spotify for Mac is by far the best way to enjoy streaming to your computer. If you spend a lot of time on your computer and need a good client, Spotify is what you want.

Spotify also supports popular platforms such as Windows Phone, Android, BlackBerry, and iPad.

While I have an issue with Spotify's lack of a search feature on the iPhone, it makes up for that with the Mac and Windows app. It's by far the best desktop app of the three (especially considering Slacker doesn't even have one). You can view popular playlists, star tracks, see what's popular in your area, and monitor what your friends are listening to.

My favorite feature of Spotify's desktop app is the ability to wirelessly sync your starred tracks and playlists whenever your iPhone is on the same Wi-Fi network as your desktop computer. I frequently use this feature when I'm listening to music in the office or at home. I'll star music that I particularly like and have my iPhone set up to download starred tracks for offline use. I launch Spotify while on my network, the desktop app recognizes it instantly, downloads any changes, and I get in my car and start listening without having to worry about using my data (offline mode requires premium subscription).

You can also use the Spotify desktop client to sync local tracks from your computer. It'll pull everything in from your music library. While I don't typically use this service, it will be a nice addition for users who don't have to have to manage music in two separate apps. Spotify can handle it all.

When it comes to cross-platform support, Spotify takes the win due to their robust Mac and Windows app. When they launch their anticipated iPad app, it'll just be that much better. The iPad app is available now.

Pandora vs. Slacker. vs. Spotify: Audio quality

One of the most important aspects of listening to music for many is how good it sounds. There's no exception when it comes to streaming content. It's really hard to give a consistent rating considering many things can influence the actual rate at which music stream, such as your internet connection and whether or not a specific track is even available in a higher quality format.

Pandora streams at at average rate of around 64kbps for free listeners on the web, and at 192kbps for premium subscribers. They make no guarantee about mobile listeners, such as iPhone users, considering so many external factors can affect the bit rate.

Slacker doesn't have much information on the exact rate at which they are streaming but they do say that regardless of what platform you are streaming on, you should experience "near-cd quality" audio.

Spotify is a bit better at explaining what they stream. Premium users can get up to 320kbps on the desktop app and within the iPhone app. Of course, actual quality may vary given internet connection and other variables. They say the typical average and free users usually get around 160kbps.

Spotify wins when it comes to audio quality.

Pandora vs. Slacker. vs. Spotify: Pricing & features

While content is super important, so is the price you have to pay for it. While Pandora, Slacker, and Spotify all have a free ad-supported version, they also all offer premium subscriptions.

Pandora's premium service, Pandora One, weighs in at $36 a year or $3.99 per month. So if you can buy yearly, you'll get a bit of a discount. Pandora One will get you the following additions over the free version:

• Higher quality streaming - 192K bits per second
• Removal of ads
• Unlimited skips per day (but you'll still be limited to 6 skips per hour due to licensing issues)
• Access to the desktop player
• Extended timeout (listen up to 5 hours while not by your computer or iPhone)
• Custom skins

Slacker has 2 subcription models to choose from. The $3.99/month plus subscription will get you the following over the free version:

• No ads
• Unlimited song skips
• Mobile station caching (offline playing)
• ABC news
• ESPN radio

The $9.99/month premium subscription will get you everything listed above as well as the following:

• Songs on demand
• Albums on demand
• Single artist stations
• Caching of albums and playlists
• Create custom playlists

Spotify also has two subscription models outside of their freemium model but we're only going to cover the $9.99/month version because, sadly, that's the only version that will even allow you to stream to your iPhone. There is a 48 hour free trial if you'd like to check it out first. Just download the app to activate your trial.

• Manage your local MP3s
• Take your music abroad
• Artist radio
• No ads
• Play local files on your mobile device
• Offline mode on your desktop & mobile
• Enhanced sound quality & content

Pandora, Slacker, and Spotify all provide access to play content through your home or office systems such as Sonos. They're all widely accepted and you shouldn't run into issues with any of them when it comes to a lot of the popular music systems.

When it comes to price, Slacker offers the most for only $4/month but Spotify offers much more in their $9.99/month package. You'll just have to weigh out what you need and what services you'll really use. Go with the one that has a better value for you personally.

When it comes to cost, it's a tie between Slacker and Spotify.

Pandora vs. Slacker. vs. Spotify: Conclusion

Pandora, Slacker, and Spotify all offer streaming experiences in very different ways. I can't help but feel that Pandora is lacking when it comes to functionality and customization. I know many users just want to listen and go, but access to previously listened to songs and stations would be a welcome addition.

Slacker provides a nice streaming service for free with an easy to maneuver through interface. You can even get offline caching for only $4/month. That's a very sought after feature for many users who want to be more conservative with their carrier data. You won't get it cheaper than you do with Slacker.

Spotify is the new kid on the block but packs a punch. While I think they have the best desktop experience of all three, we're talking iPhone app here. And sadly, that's lacking. There is no way to browse for and discover music. That's a deal-breaker for me. So is having to pay $9.99/month just to use the iPhone app. If Spotify could fix these two issues by beefing up the iPhone app and giving iPhone users access either for free (ad-based) or at a cheaper rate, they'd be the best choice, hands down.

Only one of these apps seems to be a happy medium between discovering and customizing the streaming experience, and that's Slacker. It'll suit most users needs and offers the flexibility most users need.

Slacker is the best streaming app for iPhone.

Pandora - Free - Download Now

Slacker - Free - Download Now

Spotify - Free - Download Now

Every week the editors at iMore carefully select some of our favorite, most useful, most extraordinary apps, accessories, gadgets, and websites. This week's selections include apps a beautiful iPad weather app, apps for sports and politics, a fun camera app, an app filled with inspirations, a puzzle game, a music app, and an alternative to Instagram.

To see what we picked, and to tell us your pick, follow on after the break!

Living Earth HD - Seth Clifford

It's been a crazy week, so I'm going simple with my pick - simple and beautiful. Leanna reviewed a weather app called Living Earth recently and after reading her post, my need to see just how great this app really was took over immediately and I downloaded it. You might find a weather app that does more or has more geeky weather options for meteorology nerds, but with the possible exception of Weather HD, I've yet to see a weather app this cool.

It's a universal binary, so you get apps for both your phone and your iPad. The app has a nice forecast view as well as a cool alarm clock feature, but the interactive globe that loads live cloud and sunlight information from real-time satellite data is my favorite part. Sometimes just marveling at nature is all I've got the energy for.

You can read Leanna's review for all the gritty details, of which there are plenty. I'm just going to sit and spin the Earth and hypnotize myself for a while...

$1.99 - Download Now

FCB Mobile - Chris Oldroyd

This week’s pic is all about the beautiful game and the team that play's it in the most beautiful way. My first love is my local football team Newcastle United. My second love belongs well and truly with the most famous football club in the world FC Barcelona.

Barcelona play the game the way it should be played, one touch passing, instant control but most importantly they play it offensively with open attacking football that is an absolute joy to watch week in and week out. Anyway back to the app, I have a great app on my iPhone that keeps me up to date with all the goings on at Camp Nou and its caled FCB Mobile.

FCB Mobile is the official app for FC Barcelona and includes all the latest news, match previews, reviews, player profiles, audio, video and much much more. If you are a fan of Barcelona you need this app.

$0.99 - Download Now

Contact Congress - Gary Mazo

For years, I have been preaching to my kids (as they one by one turn 18) that one of the great things about this country is that we all do get a say; that voting is both a privilege and an obligation. I also try to impart that even if the candidate we want doesn’t get elected – we all have an obligation to still be part of the process and let them know how we feel about important issues.

Now, this is always easier said than done. Fortunately, there are some great apps to make being part of the process easier and more fun. I use Contact Congress by airship Software.

When you start up Contact Congress, it asks to either use your location or for you to input your home zip and then it finds your Senators and your Representative in Congress. Their political party is indicated by a little elephant or donkey and their picture and name is displayed in a tab.

Touch the tab with their name on it and you immediately have links to follow him/her on Twitter, go to his/her official Facebook page, Call Their Office or send them an email. It couldn’t be easier or more convenient. Because of this app, I follow all three of my elected officials on Twitter and I have fired off a few emails and even made a phone call or two along the way when something is important to me.

And there is a very fun opportunity for an in-app purchase; you can, for $.99 “Dress up Congress” by purchasing Google eyes or Horns to put on the images of the elected officials. I actually think this is sort of demeaning and takes away from the app, but I understand the need to try to “monetize” the app some how.

All in all, this perhaps the easiest way to stay involved in our political process, and, as I tell my kids, to become part of the solution.

Have you used Contact Congress? Do you use other apps to stay politically active and involved? Sound off in the iMore forum thread.

Free - Download Now

Videoscope - Alli Flowers

Back when I had my iPhone 3GS, I found a nifty little app that let me use the iPhone camera like a kaleidoscope. KaleidoVid cased to function when Apple released iOS 4, and the dev never updated it. I was disappointed, because although it wasn't a great productivity app, it kept me entertained for hours.

While browsing through the App store recently, I discovered several new kaleidoscope type apps, and one of them had much of the same functionality as that original app. Videoscope allows you to turn your iPhone camera into a kaleidoscope. You can increase or decrease the number of prisms by pinching the screen, and once you see the kaleidoscopic view you like, you can capture that view to your camera roll to use as wallpaper.

Videoscope has a feature that I recommend you not use if you've been drinking heavily or are on medication - it leverages the video camera of your iPhone and allows you to video the complete moving spectrum of the kaleidoscope. I shot some video through Videoscope while riding in the car the other night, and the results are breathtaking - and triply!

Videoscope also offers some alternate "scopes" including Pinscreen, Impressionist, and Brickbreaker. The Brckbreaker mode is particularly cool because you get to "break the bricks" by tapping on them and watching them fall away.

You are not limited to the rear camera with Videoscope. You can aim the front camera at yourself and become the Pinscreen image, or you can choose a picture from your photo library to turn into some awesome abstract art.

$0.99 - Download Now

Quotes! - Chris Parsons

Lots of people look for inspiration and motivation in different ways and one way that I enjoy is by reading quotes from others. Luckily, there is a beautiful iOS app available that offers plenty of quotes no matter what the topic may be. The app carries an obvious name, just simply -- Quotes. Love, Happiness, Motivation, Inspiration. All are covered in quotes with the ability to share and save your favourites all from within the app itself. It does cost $.99 but it's beautifully simple and enjoyable if you're into reading quotes from others.

$0.99 - Download Now

Lawnmower Challenge - Simon Sage

This week I tried out Lawnmower Challenge, a simple puzzle game launched by a Boston indie developer at PAX East 2012. The premise is simple enough: cut all the grass in the level in as few moves as possible. Things get complicated when you throw in rocks, reeds, tall grass that you can't walk through, mud you can't mow through, locked gates that require keys, and impassable rocks.

It's not fancy, but with 144 levels, you definitely won't be left wanting for a challenge.

$1.99 - Download Now

Spotify for iPhone - Ally Kazmucha

I've long been looking for a way to free up some physical space on my iOS devices. While streaming services are great, what about times where you don't want to eat up your data plan? I've found Spotify to be a great compromise. I've found most streaming services to be rather lacking or they don't let you choose want you want to listen to. Neither is the case with Spotify. You can search through millions of tracks, create your own custom playlists, and listen in seconds.

With a premium account for $9.99/month you can stream music as well as download it to your device for offline use so you aren't eating away at precious data. The free version is ad-supported and allows you to stream online, the unlimited version for $4.99 will allow you to stream with the iPhone or Android app in addition to removing ads. The premium version is the only subscription that adds offline mode. I've found that I can stream when I'm at home and just choose offline mode for the playlists I want to listen to while traveling or not near wifi. I'm saving tons of space on my iPhone by using the service.

Spotify comes with a full trial for 48 hours. Check it out and see what you think.

Free - Download Now

Tadaa - Leanna Lofte

With all the threatening on Twitter and comments to leave Instagram after Facebook acquired it, I went on a hunt for a decent alternative to Instagram. My favorite one so far is tadaa.

tadaa has a lot of what Instagram offers -- only more. It's a social network where other members can like and add comments to photos. There's a photo feed for all the friends you follow, as well as feeds for popular photos and new members.

What I really like about tadaa is that it has a lot of built-in editing tools in addition to filters. You can crop, adjust brightness, contrast, and saturation, add a tilt-shift effect, and when adding a filter, you can adjust how strong the affect appears on your photo. You also aren't restricted to square crops.

Free - Download Now

Tell us your pick!

Those were our picks, iMore Nation, so now it's your turn! Tell us your pick of the week below. Give us the name of your favorite app, site, or accessory, and tell us why it made your life more productive, more informed, more entertaining, or just plain more fun. Jump into the comments and let us know your pick of the week!

My iPhone is the perfect cycling companion. It entertains, informs and keeps track of where I go and how long it takes me to get there.

February is Health and Fitness Month at Mobile Nations, and my exercise program for most of my adult life has been cycling. Living on Cape Cod, I am treated to some beautiful vistas, ocean views and a fair share of challenging hills. During the warmer months, I can be at the ocean in about seven minutes and then continue for 20 – 30 miles along the coast.

My rides would be far less enjoyable without my iPhone as my entertainment/navigation system and ride recorder. I use the heck out of my iPhone for pretty much every ride. Seeing as though we have pretty much avoided “winter” this year, I can continue my outdoor rides - even on a February afternoon!

Monitoring your general health

Fitter keeps track of any significant changes to BMI or body fat percentage or other measurements.

I have been pretty fortunate for most of my life in that I have stayed at virtually the same weight for the last 15 years (as long as I stay active.) I do have some fluctuations and occasionally use apps like the Fitter Fitness Calculator to keep track of things.

Fitter - $0.99 - Download now

Getting the right music

Having a great playlist on your iPhone can help keeping going, so can the right station on Pandora or Spotify

While riding with earphones is not always the smartest thing to do on a bike, most of the roads I travel are pretty empty; so I usually “plug in” when I ride. Often I will just put in one earbud and let the other hang so I can still hear the traffic.

I need to have the right tunes – especially on a longer ride – so I have a few options. I have a standard “Bike Riding” playlist that I made in iTunes, which usually does fairly well for me. There is nothing worse, though, than landing at the base of a hill and having a slow ballad come on. I try to keep all the music at a good beat to keep me motivated.

I also use Pandora stations and Spotify playlists on occasion. Everyone’s musical tastes are different, but for me, the Led Zeppelin station on Pandora usually suffices.

Free - Pandora - Download now

Free - Spotify - Download now

Keeping Track of the Ride

With the Strava app, I can keep track of all my rides and review them at any time.

I like to monitor my progress through the riding season. I set goals for distance, speed and calories burned. Fortunately, there are two great apps that I use to help me with this.

Strava Cycling is a great app and provides lots of useful data. It keeps track of where I am and where I go, how fast I’m going and what my average speed is. At the end of the ride, the path and stats of the ride are uploaded to their server, for easy reference later.

If you are looking for a “new” ride and are feeling competitive, you can try to beat the stats of another Strava user.

Another great feature is the Explore button that shows you other rides uploaded in your area by Strava users.

Road Bike Cycling Computer keeps track of all your data, and can even factor in weather and road conditions.

The other app I use is Road Bike Cycling Computer. It keeps track of each “Session” you ride and adds calories burned and rpm’s to the data. You can touch the History button to see your rides. One nice feature with the Road Bike Cycling Computer app is that you can input data for weather conditions and the type of surface upon which you were riding to help monitor your progress.

Get cycling!

My iPhone is the perfect cycling companion. It entertains, informs and keeps track of where I go and how long it takes me to get there. While there are certainly days where I leave the phone at home and ride with friends – most days you can see me pedaling along the shore, plugged in and monitoring my ride with one of the apps listed above.

Remember to jump into our Health and Fitness Forum and let us know your goals and how you are doing. You can even enter to win an iPod nano, and IOU for an iPad 3, or an XBox 360 Kinect!

Spotify is working on an iPad app and it should be available very soon. Spotify, for those that don’t know is a music streaming service that offers a subscription service for mobile devices with features like playlist sync for offline listening.  Spotify Managing Director Chris Maples told Pocket-Lint that it is making an iPad app a priority and it is absolutely in the pipeline.

"We launched recently on Virgin Media's TiVo platform and our fundamental philosophy is anytime, anywhere," he said. "Consumers make no differentiation between devices and we want our service to be available on any device that people want it on."

Source: Pocket-lint

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Phil, Adam, Derek, Jay, and Rene talk Amazon Kindle Fire pros and cons, Porsche's BlackBerry and phones as fashion, webOS indecisions, and Google Music vs. iTunes Match vs. Amazon Cloud vs. Zune Pass and more! This is Mobile Nations!

Agenda

• Amazon Kindle Fire
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Hosts

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Credits

Our music is pROgraM vs. Us3R by by morgantj. Introduction by Joseph Holder.

Thanks to the Mobile Nations network of store for sponsoring this podcast, and to our fantastic live chat members for keeping us honest and making us smart!

Just two months after hitting the US in an invite-only beta, Spotify is now open to to the public and is offering users 6 months worth of unlimited streaming under the free account.

Stream millions of tracks from thousands of albums and artists to your iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad. Take your existing Spotify playlists with you on the go – listen to them during your commute, in the gym or on a flight. With ‘Offline mode’ you can listen even when no connection is available. Wirelessly sync your local files to your phone to merge your catalogue with ours, no cables required! Download and get started directly from your mobile.

• Instant access to over 15 million tracks
• Stream online
• Listen offline – no mobile connection needed
• Share music with your friends
• Star your favourite tracks
• Wirelessly sync your own MP3s to your iPhone, iPod Touch & iPad
• Create and sync playlists
• Send the tracks you listen to direct to Last.fm & Facebook

Spotify is on a role right now, as just yesterday they partnered up with Facebook to allow free streaming on the social network from user profiles at no cost.

I've been in the invite-only beta since it launched in the US and have been loving it, although I can't see myself spending the money for a premium account just yet given my loyalty to iTunes and iCloud. Spotify is still one of the best online streaming music providers out there, however, so give it a try and let us know how you like the service!

Spotify is available for Free for iPhone and requires a free Spotify account. There are also premium and unlimited accounts available starting at $4.99 per month.

[App Store Link] [Spotify]

When I hear the word Kazaa it conjures up images from the past of peer-peer file sharing.  Now the company behind Kazaa, Atrinsic, Inc has released a totally legal iPhone music streaming app to challenge Spotify etc.

With Kazaa you can use your iPhone, iPad or iPod Touch to listen to unlimited, on-demand music everywhere. Play any of our millions of songs as much as you like, make your own playlists, listen to artist stations and discover new music that you love. Sync songs, albums and playlists to your iPhone, iPad, or iPod Touch and listen even when you're offline. Search and find any song, album or artist, and start listening immediately.

• Access millions and millions of songs
• All the music you love – and new music to be discovered – at your fingertips
• Sync and play music even when you are offline
• Build and save playlists
• New music added every week

[App Store link]

Have an app you’d love to see featured on TiPb? Email us at iosapps@tipb.com, tell us about your app (include an iTunes link), and we’ll take a look.

iTunes Replay is the rumored name of the rumored Apple subscription video streaming service rumored to compete with the likes of Netflix. Apple Insider reported on the rumors a while back, and now App Advice hears it might be coming soon.

There's talk you'll be able to stream content purchased as far back as January of 2009. We're not sure what will happen to content purchased before that. There's also talks of certain content only being available for re-downloaded five times. This lines up with Apple traditionally allowing 5 computers to be authorized to play purchased content under one iTunes account. If true, iTunes Replay would basically just extend what Apple is currently offering for re-downloading content via iCloud.

It should also be interesting to see if iTunes Match content will be integrated into iTunes Replay. If we can simply stream a lot of our content, it will free up precious storage space on our devices.

App Advice

Following months of rumors and tons of hype, Spotify finally made it's US debut last week and... we're curious as to whether or not you've switched to using it for most of your mobile music fix? Given that iPhone users could already choose between Pandora, Slacker, rdio, Napster, Rhapsody, and pretty much everything except Zune Pass (come on Microsoft!), not to mention Amazon Cloud Player, Google Music Beta, and iTunes sync (and soon, iTunes Match), there's some strong, established competition for Spotify to contend to.

If you did switch, why? If you didn't, why not? What's most important to you in a streaming music service? That they offer tons of tracks, that they let you upload your own, rare music, that they offer streaming or subscriptions, that they have playlists or genius/recommendation engines?

Bottom line, have you switched to Spotify or are you using something else? Vote in the poll up top and give us the details in the comments below!

After rumors that Apple attempted to block Spotify from entering the US market, now there's a suggestion they might just be negotiating with the Swedish-based streaming music startup over a possible acquisition. TechCrunch reports:

"Apple and Spotify are in on-again, off-again discussions about an acquisition, but at best it’s very early in the process. No firm price has been offered, no term sheet tabled. Still, it’s interesting that the two are talking."

Now, it's important to understand that these rumors are just that -- rumors -- and as such, you should be taking this with a massive data center-sized grain of salt. However it's still rather interesting to hear that these two clashing companies have been in possible talks.

Apple purchased Lala late last year, a streaming music service similar to Spotify, and many were under the assumption that Apple might create an online iTunes music service with streaming and possibly subscriptions. Now Lala has closed and there's still no iTunes.com in sight.

What do you think, should Apple buy another streaming music company? And if Apple did buy Spotify would anything come of it, or would it disappear as fast as Lala? Sound off in the comments!

[TechCrunch]

by Andrew Wray

Is Apple trying to block popular European streaming music service Spotify's US launch? In addition to labels being uncertain as to Spotify's business model, it's ability to monetize, and the future of ad-supported music, CNET is reporting:

In meetings in Los Angeles recently, Apple executives told their music industry counterparts that they had serious doubts about whether Spotify's business model could ever generate significant revenues or profits, according to two sources with knowledge of the discussions.

But Apple executives worried about the effects of a free music service might have on the rest of the market. They noted that it's tough to sell something that someone else is giving away, the sources said. One industry insider said it is only logical that if Spotify were allowed to launch a free-music service here, at a time when Nielsen recently reported that the growth of digital sales has flattened out, it could eat into the businesses of proven revenue-producers like Apple and Amazon.

iTunes is operated at low-margins for Apple as a way to encourage iPod and iPhone hardware purchases, but low-margins at iTunes like sales levels is still a large amount of money and Apple hasn't been this successful so far by leaving anything on the table.

Likewise, labels have been trying to hold Apple at bay by giving competitors like Amazon earlier access to DRM free music at much lower prices, and the entertainment industry in general has been denying them subscription TV, full participation in $0.99 TV show rentals, day-and-date movie availability, and other services consumers would probably enjoy having.

My base position is usually to suspect shenanigans on the part of the labels when these stories break, but should Apple be bearing the full brunt of these headlines this time?

[CNET via MacRumors]

Rhapsody for iPhone [free with subscription - iTunes link] has finally released an update to allow offline access to their music:

With a Rhapsody subscription, you can tap into over 9 million full-length songs, and download as much music as you want to your device. Create playlists for your commute, your workout or your flight - and download them instantly.

You can download and try Rhapsody for iPhone free for a week, and if you like what you hear, you can pony up $9.99 a month for a full subscription (which is locked to one iPhone).

It's US only, but we don't feel too bad for Europeans as Spotify [Free with subscription - iTunes link] revealed they were integrating Facebook Connect for the usual slew of new social interactivity, including sharing playlists, favorites, and likely the ability to mass shun songs and users who displease the collective (joking! A little!).

If you're a Rhapsody or Spotify user and you check out the updated functionality, let us know how it sounds to you!

[Engadget, 9to5Mac]

Spotify [Free with premium subscription - iTunes link] is now available for iPhone (and iPod touch) is now available -- if you live in the UK, Sweden, Spain, France, Norway or Finland.

According to Spotify, if you live in those countries and have a premium subscription, you can enjoy:

• Access to millions of tracks with Spotify�s constantly updated catalogue
• Search and stream music instantly. Browse by artist, title, album, genre, label or year
• Create and synchronise playlists. Updates from the desktop application will be synced instantly and vice versa
• Playlists can be downloaded and played in offline mode when you have no connection, are on a plane or subway, or abroad and subject to roaming data fees
• Listen to tracks and albums in their entirety. Rewind, fast-forward, pause, skip and shuffle
• View cover art for all tracks and albums

So, if you live in one of those countries, and have a premium account, and an iPhone or iPod touch (list long enough yet?) and you try out the Spotify App, let us know how it works for you!

[Thanks James for the tip!]

Apple went ahead and gave the green flag for the music streaming service Spotify, whose biggest selling point is the fact you can create playlists in a free desktop app, and then listen to those playlists via your iPhone at any point in time, with or without a data connection. Apple told the developer:

�The current status as of right now is it�s been approved, and we hope to add the app to the more than 65,000 apps on the app store very soon, We�ve been in constant communication working with the developer and have already notified Spotify that the app will be in the app store very soon.�

The good news is Apple approving this application for iPhone owners. The bad news being it is currently only available in Sweden, Norway, Finland, Britain, France and Spain. The weird news is that we still don't see it actually in the App Store in those countries?

Spotify's popularity has grown to over 2 million subscribers in Britain and they hope to have their service available here in the US before the end of the year. Perhaps this approved iPhone app will help things move along quicker. Music lovers can only hope.

Would any of our readers be ready to lay down their hard earned money for a service such as Spotify?

[Via Wired]

Still searching for that perfect online music streaming application for your iPhone? Spotify may be exactly what you are looking for.

Spotify is a online streaming music service that gives you access to over-the-air streaming of their entire music library, as well as playlist access. Where this application has a leg up on the competition is that you'll be able to cache playlists locally on your iPhone while in WiFi areas so that you'll be able to play them back at any time without any data connection. Spotify will be available as a free app download but will only be available to premium customers who pay £9.99 a month for the service.

Now comes the disappointing part of the story -- Spotify is not available here in the United States or Canada due to licensing restrictions. Sorry folks, we will have to make do with Pandora, Pocket Tunes, etc...

How many of you, our valued readers, think Apple will let this one slip into the App Store? Will it get rejected for "duplicating functionality"? Or will it mysteriously disappear into the abyss like so many applications before it?

[Thanks to icebike & Sam for the tip!]