This is the official announcement of the iPhone Life Biweekly Giveaway! Be sure to enter the giveaway at iPhoneLife.com/giveaways to win prizes, which we'll announce September 22! We are raffling off tons of great accessories for FREE.

Here's how it works: Every other Friday we announce the prizes we're giving away through iphonelife.com, Facebook, Twitter, and Google+. To enter the giveaway, go to iPhoneLife.com/giveaways and tell your friends to enter too! On the following Monday morning, we will randomly select the winners. If you win an app, we will email you the promo code to redeem the app for free. If you win an accessory, send us your address and we will mail it to you.

This week's featured items are:

1. LifeCharge InAir Battery Case & Wireless Charging for iPhone 5/5s: Retail Price $89.99

This 2000 mAh battery case provides sleek protection while retaining access to all of your buttons. The InAir Case charges via a convenient wireless charging pad. Simply insert your iPhone 5/5s into the InAir Power Case and place it on the wireless charging pad.  The charging pad automatically begins emitting a powerful boost in energy to your iPhone.

2. Toddy Smart Cloth: Retail Price $9.99

Toddy Gear was nice enough to send us these customized iPhone Life Toddy Smart Clothes and we want to share the love. These handy little clothes are great for cleaning your iPad, iPhone, or just about anything else!

Questions or comments? Email Brian@iphonelife.com. Good luck and remember to visit iphonelife.com/giveaways to enter! Also check out our other contests at iphonelife.com/contests. The next contest drawing is September 22!

As new iOS apps flood the App Store every day — recently topping 1,000,000 — we know it’s tough to tell which ones are worth their salt. But thanks to our Weekly Scoop, you can have the best for free! Here you’ll find a weekly roundup of the coolest apps free or at a discount for a limited-time only. Each week features the best and brightest from websites like Free App Report, AppsGoneFree, AppieDay, AppShopper, and more.

Hurry! Get 'em while they’re hot!

1.TempoRun(Free)

Synch your footsteps to the beat of your favorite running playlist. This app categorizes your music library to different tempo levels ranging from one to ten. One is a walk, five is a jog and ten is a sprint. This is a fantastic if you're training for a long run so you can help control your pace while you enjoy your favorite jams.

2.Wide Split Lens(Free)

This app is only free for three days so get it right away if you want it! With this app, you can produce cool photos. You can clone yourself, suspend yourself in the air, swap body parts around or make your own ghost. Select from different layouts and then play away with your photos. Your Instagram friends will be SUPER impressed with your wizardry!

3. Worms 3($0.99 from $4.99) 

Worms 3 is an award-winning multiplayer game that has people all in a tizzy over how fun and addictive it is. If you were a fan of the classic game, this one developed exclusively for iOS will delight you. This special offer ends soon, so get on it!

Already the iPhone 6 is selling so well that some websites are down, and shipping time is now 3–4 weeks. The carriers, recognizing that the iPhone 6 is going to be a big seller, are offering great deals in an effort to poach customers from other carriers. According to CNN Money, Sprint has rolled out a deal just for the iPhone 6 that offers you unlimited talk, text, and data for $50 per month. Plus, with their new iPhone For Life Plan, you get the iPhone 6 for $20/month, iPhone 6 Plus for $25/month — with no money down. The iPhone for Life Plan also guarantees a new device every two years. According to Bloomberg, Verizon initially launched an offer of a free iPhone 6 if you traded in your old iPhone. However, the article says that Apple complained, and so Verizon changed their offer. You can get a $100 gift card for a 16 GB iPhone 4S up to a $300 gift card for a 16 GB iPhone 5s.

According to a second article on Bloomberg, AT&T is also offering up to a $300 credit for your old iPhone. Plus, they offer a $100 credit when you purchase any iPhone and add a new phone line to an AT&T Next account. Or if you take advantage of AT&T Next and buy an iPhone for no money down, you'll receive a $200 discount on any iPad.

According to an article on Time, T-Mobile is will beat any trade-in deal, guaranteeing that they'll match any other deal plus give you a $50 credit toward your bill. Also, if you switch from another carrier, they'll give you you up to $350 per line to help you get out of your contract. Also, they offer a useful payment plan. A helpful article on CNET outlines your options. If you go with one of their Simple Choice plans, for example, you can get the 16 GB iPhone 6 for no money down and 24 monthly payments of $27.08. You can get the 16 GB iPhone 6 Plus for no money down and 24 monthly payments of $31.24. The total cost is the same as purchasing an off-contract phone, which is $650 for the iPhone 6 and $750 for the iPhone 6 Plus.

T-Mobile is also the only service so far to take advantage of the ability of an iPhone 6 to place a call over a WiFi network, and then seamlessly transfer that call to the cellular network once you're outside of the range of the WiFi hotspot. According to a report on Reuters, you'll be able to use this WiFi calling feature to make free international calls. Plus, to make it easier for you to make WiFi calls, T-Mobile will actually give you a free CellSpot wireless router. You can read the details on Engadget. You pay a $25 deposit, and then give it back if at some point you don't need it any more. In addition to its portability, the CellSpot, which sells for $200 on Amazon, has been tweaked by T-Mobile so that it makes your WiFi phone call a priority over other data traffic on the router, so it's less likely that your calls will be dropped.

These are all great offers, and I'm sure we'll see more.

With the announcement of the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus at Apple's Live Event this past Tuesday and its release next Friday, September 19, Apple is taking major steps to make standing in line to purchase the newest devices less onerous. The new system is call Reservation Pass and it will replace the paper cards that used to be handed out to each person in line.

Reservation Pass is a digital queue system that is now being implemented in all Apple Stores. With the previous system, paper cards noting the exact specs of what a person was buying (for example a 64 GB iPhone 6) were handed out to individuals in line. Now customers will be able to get their reservation via email or SMS. This frees them from having to physically be present in those huge lines. Customers should expect the system to be in place for pre-ordering the iPhone today, and when the iPhone is available in stores on September 19.

If ever an iOS game deserved to have a movie made about it, it is Infinity Blade. In what will come as great news for any fans of the groundbreaking, award-winning iOS game, Infinity Blade is potentially about to be made into a short, fan-funded movie. At the helm of a Kickstarter campaign to raise money for this project is Josh Aker, composer of the Infinity Blade soundtracks. He talks to us about his vision and the incredible talent he's already amassed for this project in his Kickstarter video below. As you will see, his enthusiasm for the game and for the movie is infectious.

If you've followed my articles here at iPhone Life, you already know that I am a huge fan of the Infinity Blade series, which includes three games and two novels by acclaimed fantasy writer Brandon Sanderson, which serve as segue between the video games. The IB story is rich with drama, social commentary, romance, tragedy, and of course, action. If you've spent any time playing this spectacular game, you can already imagine how great a feature film based on the IB storyline would be. Check out the Kickstarter video embedded below for a glimpse of what we can expect from this exciting production, which is scheduled to be completed (if all goes as planned) by the summer of 2015.

If you can't see the video above, just click HERE.

This movie will star, among others, Kris Holden-Reid (Underworld), Amrita Acharia (Game of Thrones) as well as Christopher Judge (Stargate). Be sure to check out the Kickstarter page, some of the pledges will get you a plethora of amazing benefits, ranging from exclusive cast parties, to being an extra in the film or credited as Executive Producer.

Stay tuned to iPhone Life as I will be sure to keep you updated on the status of this ambitious venture, and head on over to the Kickstarter page ASAP if you want to take advantage of the great perks for pledges, the campaign is almost over!

I ordered the iPhone 6 today, and thanks in part to a printout, I was able to use to see how big the new iPhones are. A colleague, Adam Engst, of TidBITS Publishing, makers of the Take Control ebooks, had printed those prototypes and taped them to cardboard, for a better sense of the three-dimensional size. That helped me rule out the iPhone 6 Plus.

If you want to visualize the new iPhones in every angle and color, there's a cool tool at iphone6in3d.com created by some enterprising 3D programmers. You can select the iPhone 6 or 6 Plus, in Space Gray, Silver, or Gold, and rotate, zoom, and scale to your heart's content.

Given that early adopters have to make a choice without seeing the product in person, anything that can help make the right choice is a good thing. To get a feel for the sizes of the phones, users of the website can line them up against an iPhone 5s or a credit card! Perhaps next, the developers could add a Samsung Galaxy or other Android Phablet!

Apple had so much to talk about on Tuesday that some new products didn't get mentioned. Apple first introduced bumpers with the iPhone 4, in part to help with the AntennaGate problem. Later, the iPhone 5c got a bunch of brightly colored cases. Now, iPhone 6 and 6 Plus customers can choose official silicone or leather cases from Apple. The cases also come in assorted colors, but they are more muted choices. There's a (PRODUCT)RED option with proceeds going to fight Aids in Africa. Silicone cases cost $35 for the iPhone 6 and $39 for the iPhone 6 Plus. For leather, expect to spend $45 or $49, respectively.

The cases aren't anything special. They don't have any extra features like a magnetic flap to protect the screen, or a cutout opening to display the iPhone's official Apple logo. The cases do have an Apple logo of their own however. While I'm likely to try to get an iPhone 6 as soon as possible, the cases don't blow me away and I'll wait to see what case manufacturers are able to come up with. There were enough accurate leaks that the wait shouldn't be too long!

Okidokeys Smart Lock (starting at $199) Everything is going digital, right? Thermostats, lights, and now locks. I can't think of anything more convenient than a house lock controlled with your iPhone. Need someone to stop by your home and grab something? Kids forget their key? No problem with Okidokeys. 

Installation of the Okidokeys takes just minutes and while it's not available for all locks, it is available for a wide variety of them. Click here to see if your lock is compatible. 

Okidokeys enables homeowners to securely and easily manage access to all properties anytime, anywhere, through a complete line of smart devices. Homeowners can lock and unlock any door with Okidokeys—as well as garage doors and electronic gates—using smartphones, cell phones, or smart tags, and still have the option of using current traditional keys. The Okidokeys line of smart lock and key solutions combines an elegant design and the latest technological innovations while maintaining a small footprint on the door.

I was able to try this device and I loved how easy it was to use. The option of a wrist band is very helpful for parents who haven't given their kids a phone yet. The smart card fits into a wallet nicely for those who don't want to carry keys, yet don't own a smartphone. 

The Okidokeys smart locks are available in white, black, satin chrome, antique brass, and a customizable ready-to-paint option. 

Now you don't have to take a break from your new iPhone or Apple Watch during a flight.

The airlines have been notoriously criticized for making airline passengers turning off phones during takeoff. So when I boarded a flight last week and United told me I could keep my phone and iPad powered on, albeit on airplane mode, I was surprised.

Apparently, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) allowed this starting in October 2013, but I have only experienced it in the last month.

The FAA is thinking about allowing in-flight calls in the near future, according to CNN. The plane would have to be equipped with a device called a “picocell” which would extend cell phone tower signals to the plane from the ground. 

We all still have to keep our MacBooks stowed and turned off during takeoff and can only use them at a certain elevation, but maybe that will change soon.

So next time you travel, you enjoy your new iPhone 6, 6+ and Apple Watch right from takeoff. 

Top image credit: Maridav/Shutterstock.com

Star Wars Commander (Free)

iPhone Life Rating: 2 stars out of 5

LucasArts' newest entry into the world of iOS apps comes in the form of the recently released game Star Wars Commander. This new game is crafted with eyes on the next entry in the Star Wars movie franchise in December 2015. 

This battle strategy game is set right after the first movie, A New Hope, with the onset of the Galactic Civil War between the Rebel Alliance and the Empire. You're a mercenary on the planet Tattoine with your partner-in-smuggling, Saponza. Your skills attract the attention of both the rebels and the Empire, who present you with a choice of joining either side of the heightened battle. You then build up your base with the assistance of droids, create barracks to train and acquire more troops, and even enlist well-known figures and vehicles with which to wage war.

Star Wars Commander will draw comparisons to other battle strategy games like Clash Of Clans and Samurai Siege. Once you begin with a couple of preliminary battles leading to your choosing either the Empire or the Rebels, the gameplay is pretty straightforward. You have your base which you fortify by harvesting alloy and credits, and then your troop transport and barracks. Then you're ready to play through a series of missions which can get you rewards in the form of more alloy and credits. Finishing a chapter fully will earn you valuable crystals. It's relatively easy to build everything and get underway, but the key flaw with Star Wars Commander is the slow pacing and how it relates to your progress in the game. With Star Wars Commander, your troop deployment is a bit limited from the outset, which can pose a problem when you get to later chapters. And then there's a limited amount of chapters. (Although a recent update shows that more have been added along with newer characters and features.) It's also a problem when you begin the game with two droids and find yourself having to decide to either use up valuable crystals to complete projects rapidly or to bite a bullet and buy another droid at an exorbitant crystal price. Another issue lies in the number of troops you can fight with in relation to your development. You'll find yourself lacking if your transport isn't updated and that may be difficult. The battle AI is sketchy too, which will make you upset when you drop troops and they don't always go for the objective. Finally, like the aforementioned games, you will find yourself at the mercy of other players encouraged to raid your base for resources unless you buy a shield with...drum roll...crystals. Star Wars Commander has promise, but it seems to be a rushed effort that would even try the patience of the best Jedi warriors. 

Control Center is great because it allows you to quickly do all kinds of useful things like turn WiFi, Airplane Mode, and Do Not Disturb on or off, lock your screen orientation, adjust volume levels, open your phone's calculator, and use your iPhone as a flashlight, among other things. 

What's not so great is swiping up from the bottom of the screen while using an app (especially when that app is a game) and accidentally bringing up Control Center.

To prevent Control Center from opening while you are using apps go to Settings>Control Center and toggle Access Within Apps off.

You can also choose whether or not to allow access to Control Center from your lock screen. It just depends what is more important to you, limiting access to your iPhone, or being able to quickly access Control Center's features without having to unlock your iPhone.

Top image credit:alexmillos/Shutterstock

Bayan Audio has a wireless speakerphone that you have to get your hands on called the Soundbook GO ($139.99). This amazing little mobile speaker is the real deal, producing 15 watts of crystal-clear sound with dynamic tones, and boasting an impressive set of extended features: NFC pairing, Bluetooth 4.0, Smart Cover—all contained in a sleek package that can be shoved into a travel bag.

The GO is about the size of a cigar box, and though the unit is light (about as much as a full 16-ounce soft drink), when I first removed it from the shipping carton, the heft of it gave away the quality. In in my experience with smaller speakers, the use of a lower-grade driver/magnet results in a lighter weight but also potentially lower audio quality. The solid feel gives away the GO's higher standard: dual one-inch neodymium rare earth magnets in the front speakers, and a one-inch passive bass radiator in the back.

The GO includes Bluetooth 4.0 with the added benefit of featuring Near Field Communication auto-pairing. GO options also include an aux-in port to allow connections from wired audio sources (something I had a little challenge with, see next section below). A mini USB connection in the back allows the unit to be charged with the provided cable (internal battery should provide at least nine hours of operation, which I verified). Three simple buttons on top (when propped in stand mode) provide volume and power functions, and are accompanied by status lights for Bluetooth and volume level. Maybe one of the coolest additions, and probably something that will resonate with iOS users, is the smart cover—it magnetically activates or deactivates the unit, and also serves as a base for the unit when open and folded under.

Pairing is like with any BT speaker, and I tested the GO with both an Android Tablet, iPhone, and my iPad mini (the unit will support memory for up to four devices). For acoustic music, the clear quality of the output is better than average for a speaker this size. I would say that all ranges are well represented, and the GO produced a room filling sound that was outstanding. Some musical forms were better suited to loud volumes than others. I noted just a bit of roaring at higher volumes when listening to anything with heavily distorted guitar and heavy drums, for example. Bass response was not spectacular (it is a one-inch speaker after all), but it wasn't bad for a unit this size.

The BT wireless performance of the unit I received was typical. At around 15-20 feet, signal drops started occurring and it became difficult to maintain a stable connection beyond that distance. The speakerphone performed very well, and in fact the other party remarked how clear my voice sounded. I had a problem when playing music with the unit connected to my computer through the aux-in port. A continuous low whine was noted, which I have experienced with another speaker I have tested. Oddly, I do not note any whine when using a speaker (which also supports wireless) that normally performs this function for my computer connected with aux-in. Typically I would look for some potential issue with interference, but I can find none. The whine was only evident when using aux-in with my computer, however, so am not dinging the GO for this oddity.

The Verdict

The Soundbook GO performed well in my tests, and thus gets iPhone Life kudos. In terms of wireless range and signal strength, it meets the expected range for a BT device. I usually rate BT performance on the ability to roam around or between average-sized adjacent rooms without impacting playback (WiFi would see that extended to between floors in a house). Due to the excellent audio performance I experienced with this pint-sized speaker, I recommend the Soundbook GO without hesitation!

Have you heard of Grovemade? this company has blown me away with the phenomenal quality and beautiful design of its products, and the fact that its products are all American-made is like icing on the cake. 

Walnut iPhone 5/5s, 6/6 Plus Case (starts at $89)

Grovemade's iPhone cases, iPad and MacBook sleeves, and iPhone docks are made from solid wood. Every product is made by their small team of designers and craftsmen. Their focus is to make a few things, and to make them really well. All of Grovemade's products are designed with purpose and quality in mind, and it shows. It's a small company from Portland, Oregon that believes the very best products are hand finished and delivered with pride.

Walnut iPad Air Case ($129)

I own one of Grovemade's iPhone cases and it's both beautiful and durable. You can tell that it's not pressed wood; it feels solid. A bonus? It smells amazing for the first week or so until it gets broken in. The smell of fresh wood is one of my favorites. 

Maple iPad Mini Sleeve ($79)

You'll probably notice that Grovemade charges a little more for their products. Again, it's because they're handmade right here in the USA from initial sketch to the final sanding and packaging. After ordering your first Grovemade product you'll be hooked.

Maple iPhone Dock ($99)

Grovemade's line of iPhone 6 and 6 Plus cases are available for pre-order now and will be shipping later this fall. The iPad and MacBook products are available now. 

I have to applaud Sprint for trying to deliver a multipurpose gadget that offers quite a lot in a compact 4.7" x 4.7" x 1.1" package. The Sprint LivePro is first and foremost a mini projector, useful for delivering presentations on the fly. Of course, since it comes from Sprint, you might expect it to offer something related to Internet connectivity, and indeed it does. The LivePro also acts as a password-protected Wi-Fi 3G and 4G LTE HotSpot, letting you go online with a non-cellular iPad for example. It supports up to eight Wi-Fi connected devices simultaneously.

The Sprint LivePro projector is not much bigger than an Apple TV, and it is meant for portability. In fact, the LivePro is battery operated, and a neat bonus feature is that battery can be used to power an external device using a USB port. The unit itself runs Android, but it's fully compatible with iOS devices using Apple's Digital AV adapter with the included HDMI cable. Apple users, however, may struggle a bit with the Android interface if they're not familiar with it. Also, it does take time to boot up into Android, so plan ahead for any presentations. There's even room for built-in microSD card storage, so you can preload presentations and play them back without a separate computer.

The projector offers 100 lumens of brightness and I found it bright enough, at least in a fairly dark room, to project a decent screen. The projector does have a fan that makes it noisy in small rooms, but it also has its own speaker with volume buttons, so you could play movies and videos loudly enough to counter the fan. There's a tripod mount, and I wondered if this could work as a home theatre projector, but without a remote control, and with the fan, I'd look elsewhere for a dedicated projector. The LivePro is for people looking for multiple features, like the projector and HotSpot.

As if that weren't enough, the unit has GPS support built-in, and can provide turn-by-turn directions, again using the Android interface. The device runs Android 4.2 and can download apps from the Google Play store. You could run Angry Birds on the built-in touchscreen made with Corning Gorilla Glass, and project the image, though it might be a bit cumbersome.

The projector can display content from any HDMI source, but it can also accept wireless video from compatible Android devices. This is like Apple's AirPlay, but alas, it's for Android only. I would love to see an Apple version of this, with iOS built in, so it would be more familiar for iPhone and iPad users, and allow for AirPlay mirroring.

I used to be a Road Warrior, traveling around the country, teaching classes and making presentations. This would have been ideal for me, as my destinations did not always have a working projector, and a HotSpot is always nice. It might not be the brightest projector, but if you need to travel with a projector, and could benefit from a HotSpot, a backup battery, or any of the other additional features the LivePro offers, the $300 price tag (or $19/month with a two-year contract) could make this an easy decision.

I know the LivePro is built for Road Warriors, but this could also be great for impromptu gaming sessions, with its own wireless LAN, Internet HotSpot, wireless video streaming, and without requiring a wall jack for Ethernet or even power! Just allow time to boot up, and be sure to turn the lights down and the volume up!

One of the many grand achievements that Apple has made with the new iPhone 6 series, is that even though they are larger than the 4-inch screened iPhones we've all become so used to, they are so lightweight and thin that they aren't a burden to take anywhere and everywhere. Of course, this doesn't mean they won't get cracked or dented if they are subjected to rough handling or mishaps. Nonetheless, I can guarantee that within a year, we'll have seen plenty of extreme videos and pictures captured on these new iDevices, and it's safe to say that much of the adventurous footage that will come from the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus will come courtesy of devices encased in one of the following protective cases. Of course, not everyone who wants heavy-duty protection from their iPhone case intends to compete in the X-Games or to climb Everest. A lot of people just want a hardy case that can stand up to the inevitable abuse of a busy and active life. So this roundup is also for anyone who wants a rugged iPhone 6/6 Plus case that can take a beating but still manages to have a slim profile, and takes into consideration things like having good acoustics for calls, music, and videos, as well as easy access to all of the iPhone's buttons and ports.

All of the cases featured here offer exceptional rugged protection, and are considered among the very the best on the market. Though some of these cases are not available to order as of this writing, those that aren't still let you sign up to be notified as soon as they become available. Stay tuned, because I will also update this post with new information once these case are actually available for purchase. Also, be sure to check out the gnarly drop-test video at the bottom of this page for some cringe-worthy, rough and tumble iPhone action footage, which serves as a great reminder why a quality rugged case might be a wise idea!

Otterbox Defender

iPhone 6 Plus ($69.90)

iPhone 6 ($59.95)

Otterbox has been making some of the best rugged cases for the iPhones for many years now, and the Defender for the iPhone 6 series is no exception. With triple-layer protection, sealed ports, screen protection and excellent impact resistance, the Defender is still one of the best heavy-duty protective case options around. The Defender is also the only one of the rugged cases that is available for purchase before the iPhone 6/6 Plus even ships.

Lifeproof*

iPhone 6 Plus

iPhone 6

*Prices to be determined

Lifeproof waterproof cases are considered by many to be the cream of the crop in terms of extreme protection for your iPhone, and the Lifeproof waterproof cases for the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus continue in the company's tradition of providing the best and most comprehensive protection for your new iPhones. Waterproof to a depth of six-feet and drop proof from a height of six-feet, these cases are made to keep your iPhone safe and sound, come what may.

Griffin Survivor All-Terrain*

Ballistic Hardcore

iPhone 6 ($59.99)

The Hardcore provides superior rugged protection for your iPhone 6, with a well-thought-out design that takes many factors, like comfort, acoustics, and style into consideration. This case is a little on the bulky side, but the protection it offers to your iPhone is top quality and some of the best you'll find. Of all of the cases feature here this one offers the highest level of drop protection, safeguarding your iPhone against drops from as high as 12-feet!

If you'd like to see how an iPhone 6 prototype handles a drop-test, check out a video from this Russian tech site below. Granted, it is a prototype iPhone 6, which isn't necessarily an accurate representation of how the final (heavier?) iPhone 6 will perform, but it still makes for interesting viewing, while also serving as a great reminder that it's always a good idea to have some kind of protective case on your iPhone.

If you can't see the embedded video above, click HERE.

As an App Developer, every new release of iOS means a scramble to make sure my apps are compatible, and usually they are. But once in a while, Apple changes things just enough that old apps need to be tweaked to work with the new operating system. Making a living on the App Store, while difficult, is possible, but you have to keep your apps updated and add new features as Apple adds capabilities. The sad fact is, not every developer does that. Indeed some developers will be probably have apps in the App Store that simply won’t work on iOS 8, and never will. The developers may have shut their doors, and there may be no plans to fix incompatibilities.

As an end user, the safest approach may be to sit back and wait for the app reviews. Early adopters will make it clear, through their reviews, if an app is broken. Before you upgrade to a new phone, or to iOS 8 on your existing devices, take some time to make a list of the most important apps you use on a daily basis and watch the reviews for those apps, once iOS 8 is out. Be sure to check with family members if you share your iOS devices. Trust me, you don’t want the kids to complain because their favorite app isn’t compatible with iOS 8!

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According to the latest issue of Time magazine, Americans live an average distance of 6.7 miles from the nearest Walmart. In my case, the distance is about a mile. It made sense then for me to download the new Walmart app with the Savings Catcher feature.

If you haven't heard of Savings Catcher, here's the deal: after you shop at Walmart take your receipt and scan the bottom with the app on your iPhone. The app will then start searching for lower prices on all the items you just purchased from local competitors.

Usually within a day or two, you will be notified by email if the Savings Catcher found a lower price on an item listed on your receipt. For example, if you buy a gallon of milk at Walmart for $3.50 and a local grocery store is having a sale on milk for $3.25 a gallon, Walmart will give you the difference.

Every cent saved can be transferred to a Walmart gift card and then used whenever you like. Over a period of about three weeks, I accumulated about $10. I then transferred the amount over to a gift card using the app and used it at my last visit to Walmart. A friend of mine said she's going to use her savings at Christmas and maybe purchase a couple of small gifts.

In addition to the Savings Catcher feature, after you scan your receipt it's saved in the app and allows for easy merchandise returns.
I recently returned some curtains I purchased because I didn't like the style. I opened my app at Walmart's service counter, found the receipt by date of purchase and showed it to the employee who was able to quickly give me a refund.
It's a pretty neat idea.

However, there are some negative aspects of the app. I find it annoying that I have to sign in every time I use it. There are not many security issues that warrant having to sign in every time. Also, you are not able to create a gift card directly from the app on your phone. Walmart emails you the gift card code and then you either print it out from home or enter it manually into your phone for the cashier to scan.

Other than that, I like using the Walmart app. And, as we all know, every little bit helps.

I wasn't one of the 4 million people who pre-ordered the iPhone 6 and Plus in 24 hours.

There is one simple reason why: it's too big for me. Their motto—"iPhone 6: Bigger than Bigger"—isn't necessarily a good thing.

Don't get me wrong, I love Apple products and have loved every iPhone thus far, but the Plus just isn't an option. At 6.22 inches, compared to 4.87 inches for the 5c and 5s, it won't fit in the front (or back) pocket of my jeans. It won't fit in my hand very easily either. A lot of the work I do from my phone is one-handed. I know it is a bad habit to email and walk, or manage my employer's social accounts while drinking coffee, but sometimes that needs to be done.

Check out this Mashable video to see just how big the phone really is. They 3D printed one to the exact dimensions, and you can see how difficult it is to navigate for some people:

Sometimes its even hard for me to use my thumb to reach to the other side of the screen with my iPhone 5s, too. 

One plus that I do see helpful conencted to the size is the ability to do actual work with a bigger screen and keyboard. I have no problem with the size of my 5s, however, and I use it quite a lot for typing notes, documents and e-mail messages.

Additionally, the iPhone 6 versions will have Apple Pay, a better camera and a faster processor, which is enough for some people to upgrade.

I do commend Apple for finally breaking into the phablet market - that is, phones almost the size of tablets. Also, the fact that they're keeping the same general shape and home screen look, as well as rolling out iOS 8, is great. But if I upgrade, it will just be the iPhone 6 through some pretty sweet carrier deals released last week.

Messages

You can now respond to incoming text messages from the lock screen or from within other apps. You no longer need to go to the Messages app.

In addition, Apple has added SnapChat-like audio and video messaging, with the messages self-destructing in a couple minutes (unless you change the settings). You can take photos or record audio or video right within the app. You can also access your Photo Library to send multiple photos or videos, again from within the app.

The new Messages app also adds useful group messaging features, including naming a conversation and adding or removing people during a conversation. You’re also now able to leave a conversation.

In addition, a Details link shows the contact information of the person you're messaging and lets you share your location with other iOS users. If others have shared their location with you, you can see their location on a map right within the thread.

The Details screen also lets you name conversations, and a Do Not Disturb button lets you stop your phone from making sounds or vibrating when messages come in. Yet another feature is the ability to see a list of message attachments, such as images and videos. To save space you can delete them without having to delete the entire conversation. You can also save space by setting Messages to automatically delete conversations after 30 days or a year.

Photos

A major change announced at WWDC in June was iCloud Photo Library, but it's apparently been delayed.

In iOS 8 Photos includes new search features. When you do a search, the search field prompts you by showing a collection of photos taken nearby, a collection from a year ago, and your favorites. You can also search by date, time, location, and album name. Plus, in the Albums view you can sort your photos in a variety of ways, such as according to the app used to edit them and according to the type of file (photo, video, panorama, time-lapse video, etc.).

The Photos app now has more powerful editing capabilities. You can crop photos and Photos will even automatically straighten the horizon for you. The app makes it very easy to adjust lighting and color just by moving a slider. You can fine tune facets such as brightness, contrast, exposure, highlights, shadows, and vibrancy. And you can rotate photos and control aspect ratio. The app includes built-in filters and the opportunity for third-party developers to create additional filters.

Camera

You can now shoot time-lapse videos and specify the interval when a photo will be taken.

Siri

A new hands-free feature lets you get Siri’s attention by saying, "Hey Siri." Plus, integration with Shazam means that if you like some music that you're hearing, you can simply ask Siri what it is. And you can ask Siri to purchase it. 

Touch ID

With iOS 8, Touch ID is now available to third-party apps if the developers choose to add this feature.

Third-party keyboards

Third-party keyboards such as Swype are now available in iOS 8.

QuickType

The iOS 8 keyboard is a lot smarter, predicting words as you type. You simply tap a word from suggested words and phrases that appear in a bar at the top of the keyboard top based on your past conversations and writing style.

Mail

You can now make greater use of gestures: swipe right to mark as unread, and swipe left to flag a message, move it to a folder, or move it to the Trash. If you're writing an email and want to look up something in another email in your inbox, you can simply swipe down on the draft email and it disappears. When you want to continue writing, you swipe up from the bottom to make it reappear. Mail also now recognizes email content such as a reservation, flight confirmation, or phone number. A notification appears, and you simply tap it to add an event to your calendar or a phone number to your contacts.

Spotlight

The iOS search utility has greatly expanded function in iOS 8. When you start entering a search, iOS 8 makes suggestions right in the search screen. It uses context, such as news reports or location, to offer up answers. If you appear to be typing in the name of a movie, for example, it knows what current movies are playing and will give show times at nearby theaters. If you start typing the name of a restaurant, Spotlight will show you one nearby. Other information it automatically offers up includes Wikipedia entries, news reports, and web sites, as well as information from the iTunes Store, App Store, and iBooks Store.

Safari

The above Spotlight features are all also offered in Safari’s smart search bar. In addition, Safari in iOS 8 has an option when you’re making a purchase on the web to simply use your device’s camera to input your credit card information. There is also now the option of private browsing tabs. For iPad users, will include a new tab view similar to that on the iPhone and a new sidebar that slides out to show your bookmarks, reading list, and shared links.

Notification Center

iOS 8 brings customization features to Notification Center, including the ability to add third-party widgets to the Today view such as weather, sports scores, and current eBay auctions. In addition, as noted above iOS 8 lets you respond to notifications from the lock screen or from within other apps. You can also accept or decline calendar invitations, mark an email as read or delete it, and mark a reminder as complete. Plus, third-party developers will now also be able to include these sorts of interactive notifications in their apps.

Health

This new app is a repository for all of your health data. A Dashboard lets you view your health and fitness data at a glance, using a card-based presentation to show you information related to fitness, nutrition, lab results, medications, sleep, and vitals. Some of that info you enter, some comes from third-party apps and devices. The Medical ID feature holds all the information that would be needed in an emergency. You can create an emergency card that’s available on your lock screen. 

iCloud Drive

You can now use iCloud to store a wide variety of files, including pdfs, presentations, spreadsheets, and images. In the past iCloud would only store documents created using Apple's programs such as Pages. In addition, Apple has reduced the price of iCloud storage, starting at $0.99 per month for 20 GB. Higher tiers include $3.99 per month for 200 GB, $9.99 for 500 GB, and $19.99 for 1 terabyte. Any edits you make to a document appear on all your devices. Plus, you can now work on a single file across multiple apps.  

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Today is the day iOS 8 will be available for download, so make sure you read our rundown of all the cool new features. If you've decided to update the software on your iPhone or other device, consider waiting until the initial rush of downloads has passed; this will allow you to avoid longer download times or installation fails. When you're ready to update, make sure you check out these tips on downloading and installing iOS 8:

Make sure your device is compatible.

iOS 8 is compatible with iPhone 4S and up, the iPad 2 and up, and the 5th-generation iPod and up.

Get your iPhone ready for the new OS

Delete old messages, unwanted photos, and unused apps. Make sure the rest of your apps are up to date.

Back up your device via iCloud or iTunes.

Apple has instructions HERE.

Go get that update!

Plug your phone in to a charger, make sure Wi-Fi is on, and then go to Settings>General>Software Update and follow the directions for updating iOS. 

Or you can plug your device into your computer and complete the update via iTunes.

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