Whether you’re a full-fledged interior designer or an innovative DIY-er with a few projects at bay, The Tablet Claw paired with the iPad or your favorite 10.1-inch tablet allows you to utilize some amazing apps, all from an extension of your hand or hanging onto your tool belt though the patented ringlet and disc. After all, the job isn’t done until it’s done and it’s easier to have all the necessary tools right on your person to get the job done right.

ColorChange—$2.99

The ColorChange app saves you the trouble of having the wrong color green on your walls. With ColorChange, you can use your tablet’s camera to take a picture of the room and change the color of any flat surface using the app’s Magic select tool. Great to test out color combinations of countertops, cabinets and walls, ColorChange lets you change color values like hue and saturation until you find the perfect color.  And the Tablet Claw makes it easy to share the full-screen swatch mode with Home Depot associates mixing your favorite color.

Home Improvement Calcs—$1.99

Having a vision and making that vision a reality are two separate things. The Home Improvement Calcs app help you measure what it takes to see your plans come to fruition. The app includes over 115 calculators for a plethora of DIY projects, from installing a brick wall to building a perfectly straight staircase. Choose the type of calculator you need, enter your measurements and be presented with the materials needed, the amount it should cost and much more to help you accomplish your goals. Save your calculators for future reference and as always, take your iPad and Tablet Claw up to Home Depot with the calculator’s suggested materials list to confer with associates there to make sure you get exactly what you need.

MagicPlan—Free

Moving around furniture and stuff to take measurements to plan any home renovation is sometimes enough to make you give up on the whole project. MagicPlan takes measurements for you and even draws a floor plan based on the pictures you take of your rooms. Use your iPad and Tablet Claw to take stable pictures of your rooms and MagicPlan does the rest. No need to move furniture or draw out anything. What’s more, MagicPlan will email you the floor plans in PDF, JPG or DXF format or you can publish an interactive version on the web.

When making home improvements or repairs, your iPad can be like a Swiss knife of multi-tasking tools and with Tablet Claw, those tools are ready to be utilized at a moment’s notice. Slide your fingers through Tablet Claw’s patented ringlet and disc or stand the iPad up near where you’re working to have constant access to instructions or DIY videos. No matter the size of the project, the Tablet Claw is a utilitarian grip that helps you get the job done.

Alexis Poole

Tablet Claw (Idea Harvest, LLC)

The iPad/iPhone has changed the way people game today. Casual gamers have become increasingly popular in todays society over more serious gamers. It seems that now people can’t sit still and watch TV (or doing pretty much anything for that matter) unless they are doing something on their phones. This growing trend has encouraged our second entry to our series to focus more on pleasure than business - Games! 

Angry Birds HD $2.99 - Obvious first answer, we know, but it really is addicting. Many gamers started off flinging those crazy birds on iPhone’s but we must admit the experience is amplified on the iPad. Between the Original game, Seasons, Space, and Rio it’s almost impossible to ever get tired of playing.

Solitaire FREE - An oldie but a goodie, because who doesn’t love a good game of solitaire? It’s on almost every electronic device but, it never gets old; especially when you can compare yourself to everyone else through the leaderboard.

Mega Run – Redford’s Adventure FREE - We recently downloaded this game but we can’t put it down! It’s a mix of the original Mario Bros game and Temple Run. “Redford” runs through a maze where he has to escape monsters in order to survive. As the game goes on you unlock more powers and characters to increase speed and ability in order to earn more money. We just can’t get enough! 

Bejewled HD $3.99 - One of the best strategy games around. Bejeweled has been on the iPhone forever but just recently became available for the iPad. Not only did they add more games and levels than before but it is tailored for The New iPad through its amazing graphics for the retina display.

Fruit Ninja HD $2.99 - Who knew that slicing fruit could be so fun? As the game goes on more fruit comes across the screen in larger and faster portions along with bombs. An added bonus to the game is the ability to challenge friends in the ‘Zen Duel.’ Fruit Ninja will entertain gamers at any age and promises to keep you on the edge of your seat at all times. 

Paige Parker

Tablet Claw (Idea Harvest, LLC)

Paige@tabletclaw.com

With so many Apps available now for your iPad that its hard know which ones are really worth your money and/or download. Each week we will be digging into a different section of the App store to pick out our top five must have Apps. So, to start off our new blog series we begin with Productivity!

Keeper FREE – This App is unanimous favorite for Idea Harvest employees. Between all the social media and different accounts we have today it is almost impossible to remember them all. Keeper stores all of your information safely between your iPhone and iPad to make sure you never forget another password again.

Keynote $9.99 - Keynote on iPad is so easy to use & engaging that you may you may never go back to power-point on a laptop or desktop.

Evernote FREE – Quite possibly the easiest way to write up an article on your iPad with the ability to link shared notebooks for in office collaboration. It also allows you to add photos and make voice notes in your notebook.

Skype FREE – The world is getting smaller and it’s important to connect with people around the world all the time. Skype not only allows you to have a face to face conversation across oceans but also allows phone calls.

Prezi Viewer FREE- Prezi presentations are the latest and greatest competition for PowerPoint. The Prezi Viewer App makes it easy to present instantly from your ipad in order to land that big deal you’ve been waiting for!

Our Mission at Idea Harvest is to bring products to market that are Made in the USA as well as promote the organizations and people who are dedicated to this same effort. Buying American made products isn’t the easiest thing to do all the time, but these websites and blogs make buying from the stars and stripes simple and fun!

Made in USA Challenge : Sarah Mazzone is a writer, mom and nurse living outside of Philadelphia. Our favorite thing about this site is her frequent giveaways ranging anywhere from artwork to bags; because everyone loves free stuff!

Keep America : Their master list of products that are Made in USA is impressive! Not only do they have a ‘Deal of the Week’, they are also donating all of their profits to battling cancer until July 4th. Get to this site, support American made ingenuity and help battle cancer.

USA Love List : This blog is tailored to women wanting to buy American made products. Not only does Sarah have a master Made in USA product list, but you can also connect with her through Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest to make sure you are never missing out on the newest and best products!

A Continuous Lean – The American List : This is our favorite Made in the USA designed list and site we’ve seen but, if you venture off ‘The American List’ you may find yourself buying products from China. Their products range from Accessories, Bicycles, Flags to large selection of American made bags and clothes; making this list ideal for the stylish USA shopper.

Burgeons USA : Our favorite thing about this site is the diversity of products they have in comparison to the others; mainly the selection of NCAA football gear including some of our favorite teams like the Alabama Crimson Tide and Texas Longhorns.

 By America for America : This blog was started by a grandmother who was looking for American made toys for her grandchildren with little success and is now a haven for all things Made in the USA! Go Granny!

Made in USA Product Store : Tons of products and easy to navigate; making it ideal for quick shopping. The categorization of their product listings is much simpler than most.

Made In USA : One of the more popular USA product blogs with multiple posts per month containing new products.

American Made Products : Lots of unique products can be found here; making it a really fun site to look through!

Engadget is a constant buzzing hive of activity and is without question one of the heartbeats to the technology online-body. We love Engadget for one reason; you simply cannot get bored with it due to the sheer volume of engaging content! Ranging from a perpetual news feed that bleeds videos, articles, photo’s & opinions to a treasure trove of information stored in their podcasts, there is literally something here for everyone.

They have a graet ‘HUB’ section devoted to a plethora of products such as: Apple, Samsung, CTIA, Blackberry - which covers everything from products to current and ongoing events.

There is a fantastic Gallery which showcases professional snaps of all of the new gadgets on the block - which is great for visual people like myself (I never read the captions, a picture paints a thousand words!)

I love the video section of this site. Personally, I always learn more from watching a video rather than reading something. Their video site has some great content ranging from demonstrations of the latest iMac, Samsung galaxy tablet and Apple iPads/iPhones, to great keynote speeches from corporate giants such as Microsoft CEO Steve Balmer. A great place to spend a couple of minutes per day!

The podcast section is full to the brim with endless Engadget podcasts. This is a MUST for anyone interested in all things technology related. Why not pop onto the  podcast section while on the train to work in the morning?

We love their Review board the most though - it is a review focal point for all of the newest gadgets on the market from phones, to headphones to MP3 Players to laptops. You want to buy a gadget?… Theres a good chance there is a thorough review in here to tip you one way or the other so be sure to check it out!

You can also buy Engadget merchandise which, unlike a number of self promotional site merchandises, are actually very cool & quite trendy. Ranging from T-Shirts to posters to downloads, there is a great selection on show here and products/services of rare great quality.

All in all Engadget is one of our favourite online tech-communities. It provides an answer to almost all tech related questions if it doesnt, hey, just drop them a line and they’ll tell you! We feel its up there leading the way with providing valuable technology information, news and content in a fun and engaging way! We love Engadget here at Tablet Claw! 

Check em’ out at http://www.engadget.com/

Declan Greene - Engagement Leader 

Tablet Claw (IDEA HARVEST LLC) 

Declan@Tabletclaw.com

Prezi is the latest and greatest in interactive presentations. It brings your demonstration to life in a way that Powerpoint simply cannot. If you haven’t had the chance to check it out, I would highly recommend you discover all it has to offer; right now!

Not only is it very easy to use but, there is an inbuilt ‘Tips’ activation that pops up as you use the software, suggesting how to improve the look, feel & interactivity of your presentation! Its easy to get started, you can choose from one of their themes or create one of your own - my personal choice; its always good to make your presentation/pitch stand out, remember you could be 1 in 4 pitches seen in any given day by your target customer so be smart and use the creativity on offer here to your full advantage.

My favorite feature is the ability to zoom in or out as much as you want making it easy to hide words. Imagine demonstrating your product/service visually via your presentation and then all of a sudden ZOOMING OUT to reveal your shockingly low price!? - A beautiful and innovative little impact feature indeed. This program is ideal for any sales professional looking to make a difference in order to close the deal!

Be mindful of spelling however because there is no spell checker. Attention to detail is primal when in a sales pitch and the slightest error, even a misspelling can plant a seed of doubt in your target client’s faith in how much you really want their business.

Other than that my only small frustration was the inability to edit your project on the iPad. The App is ideal for presenting once finished or if you just need to move an object or edit typing but you cannot create a whole presentation from within it.

Overall Prezi is changing the way people present for the better! The interactions are much more fun to watch than traditional presentation programs (up there with Keynote) and truly help to keep your audience captivated during your production. The combination of Tablet Claw and the Prezi iPad app will arm anyone well enough to ‘Present Fearlessly!’

Never used Prezi before? Check out our example! Tablet Claw Prezi

Paige Parker

Tablet Claw (Idea Harvest LLC)

Paige@tabletclaw.com

Keynote is a neatly designed & smart alternative to Microsoft power-point.

I was not aware until recently that Keynote was specifically designed for Steve Jobs himself. As one of the most engaging corporate presenters of our time, this doesn’t surprise me in the slightest.

The most striking thing about Keynote is, forgive the pun, its presentation. It looks and feels beautiful both to use and to watch.

Just tap the “+” sign in the upper right hand corner and select ‘Create Presentation’. Several templates for your presentation will be presented to you. The user options for Keynote are very straight forward:

·         Format brush: This allows you to change typography/text

·         Insert button: Tap to add content to your slides. You can input many images from your photo album, tables, charts and several shapes from the software itself.

·         Tools: This menu allows you to add different transitions to your presentation and add presenter notes – which is a nice touch.

·         Play button: This plays your presentations! Just pinch the screen to go back to editing mode – nice.

·         Formatting & Editing is very easy.

·         The 3D graphs & charts make the look, feel & delivery of your presentations more professional.

Keynote on iPad is so easy to use & engaging that you may you may never go back to power-point on a laptop or desktop.

Declan Greene - Engagement Leader 

Tablet Claw (Idea Harvest LLC)

Declan@tabletclaw.com

As avid lovers of all things innovative, we at Tablet Claw (Idea Harvest LLC) have reviewed some of the best sources for technology news, information sharing & valuable content on the web.

Today we start with Slashdot.org. Slashdot.org is an easily navigated haven of  information waiting to be tapped for those as hungry as we are to know whats going on in the technology & business world. Slashdot both allows both readers of the site & veritable technology experts share a range of articles that covers a spectrum of technology focused verticals.

Slashdot is ‘powered by your submissions’ - which means its a good place to start if you’re looking for an answer to a technology orientated question.

On the right hand side Slashdot boasts a range of headings: An extremely interactive ‘Ask Slashdot’ section where you can post a question and your submission is then shared in the ‘Ask Slashdot’ forum, allowing for elaboration on your requested answer from other savee users/expert users alike, via a comment system.

There is a ‘Book reviews’ section where avid readers can post their reviews on technology related books but also post articles that share information contained within specific books - quite useful.

It offers a massive range of user submitted material in the form of the following headings, so bare these in mind if you’re looking for specific information in these areas: Cloud, Hardware, Linux, management, mobile, science, security & storage. Within each topic, there is a litany of submitted articles pertinent to that topic. There is a good keyword-strong search bar on the site so you dont necessarily have to sift through the thousands of articles in any given section to find something related to your interest.

You can also register with Slashdot, this is how you become an active poster online and allows you to share your own articles / book reviews / tips etc. Note though that you dont have to join Slashdot to be able to post. However doing so allows you to manage the content that shows up in your Slashdot login home. Nice. There is an awesome event library page which has a list of current, online webinars, online demos & general trade events that are going on.

I have 2 favourite parts of Slashdot. While all of the content in here is highly useful, its very text heavy. Fear not, Slashdot stories can be listened to via an RSS feed, very nice touch. Also there is great ‘Slashdot TV’ station where there are a good range of interesting and fun videos to choose from!

All in all Slashdot is a massive resource of information which is a buzzing community of value sharing. We highly recommend Slashdot.org here at Tablet Claw! (Idea Harvest LLC)

Declan Greene

Engagement Leader - Tablet Claw (Idea Harvest LLC)

Declan@Tabletclaw.com