They say the best camera is the one you have with you, and since an iPhone is usually on hand for most photographers, professional or amateur, it's no wonder that so many photos are taken by iPhone. Still, there are times when a tripod is necessary, but who wants to carry around a bulky accessory?

That's why the MOS Kick (on Kickstarter, naturally) makes sense. It's a well-engineered, yet surprisingly compact, adjustable stand with a built-in tripod mount. It accommodates many phones, including my new iPhone 6, and can be used with or without a tripod thanks to its heavy base. Just set it on a flat surface and record photos or videos, including super slow motion or time lapse, where stability is important. One of the many wireless Bluetooth shutters can be a nice addition.

The MOS Kick is only $25 or so on Kickstarter, and actually offers more features. Each Kick will also come with a carabiner, bottle opener, and flat head screwdriver. The Kick features an adjustable screw clamp to accommodate a variety of phones and silicon rubber pads to protect your phone. The size, and price, are right to add this to your gadget bag. But act now, while Kickstarter pricing is in effect!

If you ask Siri to set a reminder for you, but forget to specify a Reminders list, it will end up on your default Reminders list. (Read this tip to find out how to set a Reminders list as your default list.) There's no need to recreate the reminder on a different list though; it's easy to move a reminder from one list to another.

In Reminders, open your default list and tap on the reminder you wish to move to select it. Next, tap on the information icon on the right and then tap on the list name.

This will take you to a list of all your Reminders lists. Tap on the name of the list to which you want to move the reminder.

Top image credit: Krasimira Nevenova / Shutterstock.com

If you go on vacation or otherwise have some reason to set up an automated reply to incoming emails, you can do so via your iCloud account. It's not possible to do this via the Settings on your iPhone or iPad because turning on this feature is usually done at the server level. And there's a good reason for that: it's very easy for your email to get stuck in an infinite loop. For example, if you and a friend both set up an automated reply by creating a rule in your desktop email programs, you could end up sending thousands of emails to each other, with each person's computer responding to the repeated out-of-office replies with its own out-of-office replies.

If you're using iCloud on your devices and an icloud.com or me.com email address, you can set up an automated out-of-office reply by going to the iCloud.com website via your desktop computer. Or you can use your device's Safari browser to access the iCloud.com website by following this tip for accessing the desktop versions of websites on an iPhone or iPad.

Once you've logged in to your web-based iCloud account at icloud.com via your computer or device, click on the Mail icon to access Apple's email web app. As Apple explains in this support document, you then click on the gear icon at the bottom of the left sidebar. (Apple refers to this as the "Action popup menu.")

Select Preferences from the popup menu, then select the Vacation tab at the top.

Then you simply select “Automatically reply to messages when they are received,” and type in the automated message you want to be sent. Click Done, and your iCloud account will now send an automated reply to incoming emails.

It's important to note that your automated reply is only sent once per email address. This avoids the possibility of an infinite loop and other instances of generating needless replies. If someone sends you multiple messages while you’re away, he or she will receive your auto-reply only after the first message.

Of course, once you're back from vacation, you simply go to the Preferences in your iCloud.com account and turn off the feature.

I travel a lot. So does my family. When Travelon offered to provide some bags and other gear, I took them up on the offer and distributed the products across the family. Their bags went to Amsterdam, Los Angeles, Israel, and around the Mediterranean.

The majority of these items were theft-proof bags, with nearly uncuttable straps, zippers with locks and anti-digital theft protectors for passports and credit cards.

They also offer a universal power supply, the Dual USB Charger and Adapter ($35) that did its job in multiple countries, providing a converter for various plug configurations while offering dual USB charging. This is not a power converter (except for the USB ports), but rather a way to transform local outlets into US and “universal.”  With most gadgets being made internationally, mostly in China of course, the majority of power supplies these days are International (meaning 110 and 220) so they can cope with the juice if you can get them plugged in. Although a bit bulky, the Dual USB Charger and Adapter included the all important adapter for recessed European plugs often missing in other “universal adapters.”

Now back to the bags. As a general note, there is always a trade-off between safety and convenience. In general, the bags weren’t always used in full anti-theft mode because it was too hard, during a walk through a city, to spend so much time undoing a bag to get access to money, chapstick, or other items. We didn’t have any issues, though not invoking features did leave us vulnerable to theft, but the constant unlatching and latching became trying store-after-store. Again, convenience versus easy access is the choice you face.

We tested the Hobo Bag ($55) and the Anti-Theft Cross Body ($57). Both did the job, though the Cross Body had a seam pop, which made it less attractive and less secure. Otherwise the bags did a fine job of carrying everyday items, including phones and tablets. My wife and daughter wore them in markets and subways, and did use the anti-theft features where they felt like they were most likely at risk. A personal perception approach that isn’t a feature of the bags, but one that worked for them. Luckily, they didn’t face any issues.

As for the Anti-Theft Urban® Slim Line Backpack. ($105),  my other daughter took it on a trip to Israel.  I’ll let her provide her own insights:

Traveling abroad is often a life-changing experience with many memories that will last a lifetime. Hopefully none of those memories will be about you getting pick pocketed or having your wallet stolen right out of your backpack. These things happen, but Travelon has a very lightweight and highly theft-proof backpack on the market, the Anti-Theft Urban® Slim Line Backpack. The backpack is lined with an anti-cut mesh, so it can’t be sliced through. Its largest anti-theft feature is the flap that covers from the back to the front that zips closed with a durable and hidden zipper and lock. Yes, this bag is invincible, it keeps everyone out of your stuff, but you are also locked out. Because of the bag’s design, the “flap” becomes incredibly impractical because the only way to get into it is to take it off, place it on the ground or a table and expose everything hidden inside.

After months spent in Europe, I followed up my travels with a 10-day trip to Israel. I chose this bag for Israel because there are many locations that have as many tourists as locals and you never know who wants to target a group of American coeds on their first Jerusalem adventure. This bag seemed like a great idea at the time. It did hold a lot of things and has many pockets for all those small easy-to-lose items. But, while standing in the Jerusalem food market called the Shook, it was hard to crack into my bag to pay for items quickly with lines moving fast and urgent Israelis awaiting their cash. Throughout the trip I had to hold my wallet for easy access, which kind of defeats the purpose of the bag.

Overall, the bag did protect everything I carried. It is theft-proof and then some. The down-side to this bag becomes quickly evident if you plan on opening it often. The flap design hurts the bags usability, any easy access outer pocket, equipped with a lockable zipper; would solve many of the problems with this bag. But where design fails, creativity comes in.  I was able to make it through my trip without losing anything.  Bringing a very durable bag for the trip was a plus, it was even better after I figured out work-arounds for its security features. I’d give this bag an A for effort, but a C for design and functionality.

When traveling you should be safe. You should care for important items, money and papers. You should care for the small things you are carrying and make sure you don’t leave them and they don’t fall out. For the most part, the Travelon products were good partners in this, even if they didn’t always meet with the family’s expectations for convenience.

The following dozen games are either ports of popular console titles, or iOS games that shine in their own right as being console quality. To be included on this list, a game must either be a new release as of this year, or it must have been updated recently to support iOS 8 and Apple's advanced new programming interface known as Metal. With the introduction of iOS 8 and Metal, alongside the powerful A8 and A8X processors that are inside the latest iDevices, Apple has leveled the virtual playing field. It would be ignoring the facts for a core console gamer to say that iOS can't support video games that are on par with console or PC titles, especially if you indulge in iOS' streaming capabilities that allow us to play these great games on a large screened TV. With the graphic capabilities of iOS 8 and the exciting titles currently available for the platform, it's easy to see how Apple's iOS is leading the way in a mobile eSport industry that is on track to bring in a revenue of over 24 billion dollars this year, and set to overtake PC and console gaming's revenue in 2015. As the holidays are upon us again, don't forget that you can gift any of these apps to your favorite gamer via the App Store.

iPhone Life's Top 12 Console-Caliber Games for iOS Gamers, 2014 Edition.

1. Vainglory (Free)

Have you heard of MOBA? If not you're missing out on the hottest trend in mobile or PC gaming. Not only is a good MOBA a source of fast-paced, action-packed strategy gaming, it's also the most profitable genre of gaming, with The International championship awarding a record-breaking 10 million dollars in prize money to the winners. And by "record-breaking," that's across the board in all professional sports, with the exception of the World Cup's 35 million dollar prize pool. At the highest level, professional battle arenas fill massive sports stadiums and bring in higher viewership and web traffic than most any other sporting events, TV shows, and websites, including Facebook.

Vainglory is the best example of a professional caliber MOBA on iOS. This game is thoroughly enjoyable and accessible. If you are new to MOBA this is definitely the one to start with. If you are an old pro then you will be able to sink you teeth into this game immediately. It's a dynamic and highly complex game with the potential for wild swings in power as teams seek to dominate the enemy heroes and minions, all the while fighting for control of Minion Mines and Gold Mines and eventually the mighty Kraken. It's also one of those games that takes only a few moments to grasp, but a lifetime to master, and like its console and PC predecessors, I'd expect this game to be around for a good while. With a soundtrack that should win an award, and graphics that look amazing on the iPhone 6 series and even more spectacular on an iPad, Vainglory is this year's number one pick for console-caliber iOS eSport title. Don't be surprised to hear a lot more about this exceptional game on the professional eSport circuit.

4.XCOM: Enemy Within($12.99)

This turn-based tactical strategy is one of the deepest games you'll find on iOS. With dramatic cut scenes and strong vocal acting, as well as killer graphics, Enemy Within should be on every core gamer's iDevice. It has been met with rave reviews, from both the gaming press and gamers themselves. In fact, many of Enemy Within's reviews on the App Store are from core gamers who have spent endless hours with the console version of this game and report at length that XCOM: Enemy Within is the same great game they are accustomed to, just on a new and different platform.

5.Oddworld: Stranger's Wrath($5.99)

Oddworld: Stranger's Wrath is a gritty action adventure game with amazing graphics set on the vast planet Mudos. This planet has a total landmass approximately equal to that of the total size of Earth, though in this game, we only see a very, very small portion of the planet; in other words, don't be surprised if we see more installments of the Oddworld saga. In Oddworld: Stranger's Wrath, we play as the gruff drifter turned bounty hunter known as The Stranger. The stranger is an endearingly rough and tumble lawman, reminiscent of some exaggerated character that the popular actor Jeff Bridges (think Lebowski meets Rooster Cogburn) might play. A neat feature of Stranger's Wrath is that in this game you can jump back and forth between first- and third-person perspectives, which makes it a nice mashup of first-person shooter and action/adventure genres.

6. Modern Combat 5: Blackout($6.99)

Continuing the tradition of this immensely popular series, Modern Combat 5 brings the adrenaline-pumping action of this console quality first person shooter to iOS. If you are a fan of the professional-level gameplay of the Call of Duty console game franchise, you'll love MC5 and the no-holds-barred mayhem it brings. In particular, Blackout's frenetic multiplayer mode is a huge hit with core and hardcore gamers alike.

7. Oceanhorn: Monster of Uncharted Seas($8.99)

If you kinda miss the fact that there is no iOS port of Zelda, you won't after spending some time playing Oceanhorn. This open-world action/puzzler RPG. Soundtrack, graphics, and gameplay all harken back to the early Nintendo 64 and Ocarina of Time, except with better graphics and more intuitive controls. I have to say, as a Zelda fan, it's hard to trump that classic game with its emotional and deep storyline; nonetheless, Oceanhorn certainly gives Zelda a run for the money. Oceanhorn will have you sailing the seas, in search of a missing father on far-away islands, in a journey fraught with danger and mystery.

8.Bioshock($10.99)

This creepy console blockbuster has fans of this classic first person shooter singing its praises as one of the most faithful ports of a console game to iOS ever. This bone-chilling story of the Rapture's dystopian society is as twisted and and sardonic as ever, and like 2K's other entry into this top 12 list, XCOM, the graphics are incredible and will not leave you feeling as if you are missing out on anything by not playing this game on a console.

9. Game of Thrones ($4.99)

With the arrival of the Game of Thrones game on iOS that makes two of television's most successful shows that have been converted to choose-your-own-adventure style games, the other being the Walking Dead Season 2. In the Game of Thrones game, we pick up the storyline at the time of the infamous Red Wedding which takes place in season 3 of the TV series. Note to gamers and fans of the story, this game is full of spoilers, so if you are not up to date on the storyline, here's fair warning. This game follows the saga of the lessor known House Forrester, and while this family has only been briefly mentioned thus far in the series of shows and books, they are the stars of the game. In a departure from the style that typifies Telltale's The Walking Dead games (also featured in this Best of roundup) Game of Thrones doesn't just cast you as one character, but rather as a handful of characters in various locations throughout Westeros. This makes for faster paced action that morrow the style of the TV series more closely. As icing on the cake of this six-part game series, we are treated to the superb voice acting of several of the TV series' main stars.

10. The Walking Dead: Season 2(Free with DLC)

The Walking Dead Season 2 is as bleak and desolate as Season 1, if not more so, with our main character and tragic hero this time around being a young child, a girl named Clementine. No child should have to face the choices that Clementine has to make in this apocalyptic, choose-your-own-adventure thriller, but they are choices that you the player will be forced to make as you navigate your way through the ruins of a once familiar world, now overrun with the shambling, stinking corpses of rotting Walkers. Will you survive? Will anyone survive in the face of a virus that reanimates every single dead person? You'll have to play to find out, but choose wisely, because perhaps the only thing more dangerous than the biting, walking dead are the humans that remain.

11.Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas($6.99)

There's a certain irony to this sprawling R-rated tale that takes place in a fictionalized version of Compton and South Central LA, when you stop to consider that its soundtrack features the hardcore gangsta rap music of none other than Apple's own executive, Dr. Dre, and his controversial 90's rap group NWA. This game is no less controversial on iOS than it was on console, as it tells a harrowing story of the violence and gangster life that was so pervasive in southern Los Angeles, aka Los Santos, in the early 90's.

CloudOn was one of the early, free, mobile-editing solutions to come to iOS (see our previous review here). The software provided access to a virtualized office suite of editors, which meant that you had to be exclusively online to use it. In terms of document editing, however, it was full featured and could sync docs to several popular cloud services like Dropbox, OneDrive, and Google Drive. In October the app was updated markedly, adding the ability to locally edit documents. Kudos are in order— it's a big plus for iOS users, but the other editors still need a bit more work.

The CloudOn navigation and features in the main application landing screens have also evolved. Menu selections appear down the left hand edge of the navigation screen, with detailed lists of your documents appearing in the main frame to the right. When selected, menu options now bump in from the right for additional detail, or to get to sharing and other options throughout the app.

The Office fundamentals are all well covered, but with some restrictions: exporting, printing, locking, duplicating within docs and across services, and sharing as PDFs will cost you $3.99 per month. The new editor is responsive, and easy to use, and also compatible with the latest document formatting standards. In my tests, it allowed me to edit local and online document versions, and the formatting and changes were preserved when accessing the files using other Office tools. You can also invite/collaborate on documents with other cloud service users from within the app.

The new Word Editor is easy and intuitive and doesn't skimp on formatting features. You can configure paragraph headings, customize fonts, and insert photos from a live snap or your photo library. A handy touch is the ability to look up definitions in the app (also manage and choose from several dictionaries). Simple tables can be inserted and edited, and you can create simple bulleted lists (though numbered would be nice). Gesture-based edits are supported—e.g. multi-finger taps to select more than a single word. The new editor is powered by LibreOffice, giving full support of the ODF (Open Document Format) standard. The duplicate document feature allows you to create a copy of an often used document type. One detractor is that you can't seem to copy or move files from cloud to local and vice versa (or at least I didn't seem to find a way, so might be a premium feature). You can work on all files offline in this version, though this did not seem to work well in practice on other office formats I tested.

The other editors for Excel and Powerpoint doc types have not really changed. The viewing and editing applications are still "virtualized versions" of full office apps. Compared to some other free editors (like Google's free office apps) CloudOn struggles in a few areas. For example, simple actions like duplicating a formulae down an entire column was nearly impossible on an iPad mini (even with a stylus), and similar multi-cell/sheet actions were often slow or seemed to be non-responsive (like moving between tabs on the ribbon). Changes to some cloud-based spreadsheets would not actually save changes no matter what I tried, (whether online or not), which was puzzling. The app crashed at least once, dumping my edits. However, many advanced spreadsheet functions are available that other local app editors are unlikely to support, and compatibility with Microsoft Office should not be a problem.

The Verdict

I admit that some of my problems—particularly syncing changes—could have been due to my own connectivity. I tested the new app version on my iPad mini, and also tried editing the same files on other cloud service editors (e.g. using my Galaxy Tab) in comparison and to test edits from different platforms in the cloud. I also tested every editor in off-line mode as well as connected. I had the most issues with document saves to the cloud or received errors from the application in this state. I am impressed with the overhaul that went into this version, and feel it is a robust and capable Office document editing solution. Until the spreadsheet and presentation editors are similarly replaced and issues addressed about syncing changes, I think it could be somewhat risky to trust valuable spreadsheet or presentation updates solely to CloudOn.

It's photo contest time again. We know you enjoy taking the occasional artistic shot with your iPhone, so why not get rewarded for it! Enter our iPhone Photography Contest for a chance to win awesome prizes and a spot in our magazine! 

Submit your best iPhone photograph(s) at iphonelife.com/enterphoto by December 26. You must take and edit all photos with an iOS device, using only iOS apps. 

Our editors will choose the top three entries, and our readers will choose the fourth and final winner by voting for their favorite images on Facebook. Voting opens on December19 and ends January 5. If your submission is among the winners, you’ll win an olloclip quick-connect lens set ($70 value) and an olloclip Quick-Flip Case ($50 value). The top 9 photos will also be featured in an upcoming issue of iPhone Life magazine.

You still have time to create a winning masterpiece, so get out there and do it!

Sifting through hundreds of pictures when you’re looking for one in particular can be a nightmare. Though we still can’t tag our photos or add descriptions in the iOS Photos app, Apple has added a new feature that allows users to search their images by location, date, time, and even album name. This makes looking for images much easier, if you know when or where they were taken.

To search your photos, first go to Photos and tap the search icon.

Then enter the information corresponding to the photo you’re looking for into the search field. For instance, want to find all the photos you’ve taken at home? Type “home” and a collection of photos you’ve taken will pop up.

That's all there is to it!

AppleInsider reported on a new patent picked up by Apple that might save your iPhone from a cracked screen. If you drop your phone, a motor and sensors determine the point of impact and shift the positioning of the device in midair to save sensitive areas, like the screen and camera.

While patents can quickly become forgotten with each new innovation—especially those associated with mobile devices—we can hope for an alternative option that extends the life of our iPhones. And the patent certainly brings the physical components to do just that.

Here's a glimpse of what the mechanism hopes to offer:

"An electronic device including a processor, a sensor in communication with the processor and a protective mechanism. The protective mechanism is in communication with the processor and is configured to selectively alter a center of mass of the electronic device."

If the idea of a mechanism designed to alter the iPhone's position in free fall sounds like science fiction, other ideas included in the patent will also leave you scratching your head.

One premise includes a "thrust mechanism" that deploys compressed gas outside of the device to change its orientation. Another example involves the mechanism's ability to latch on to headphones within the audio port to prevent the device from hitting a surface, or at least reduce the speed of impact.

These notions are all, of course, theoretical. But Apple's intriguing idea would inevitably save you from the hassle of fixing a broken screen or purchasing a new one.

Stay tuned for the protective mechanism's real world application in future iPhones (if at all). Until then, pick up a sturdy case to safeguard your iPhone from occasional drops and scratches.

Earlier I wrote a post about smart light bulbs from Connected By TCP. I'm really enjoying the ability to schedule the bulbs so that my porch and living room are lit up when I come home after dark on dreary winter evenings. The great utility of these bulbs is their flexibility in regard to scheduling. Plus, they're smart enough to know the time of dawn and dusk. Although I find the soft white LED light of the Connected by TCP bulbs appealing, I was eager to try one of the smart bulb options that offer color. Elgato was kind enough to send me their Avea bulb, and I've been having fun trying its different moods.

Unlike the Connected By TCP bulbs, which have a gateway (or base station), the Avea bulb is standalone and communicates with your iPhone or iPad via Bluetooth. The instructions that come with the bulb simply say to download the associated app. Using the bulb couldn't be easier. You simply choose from a menu of "dynamic light scenes" in the app, and the color of light emanating from the bulb changes. The seven light scenes range from Magic Hour, a soft red sunset color, to Fairy Woods, a forest green, to Calm Provence, a violet. The Cozy Flames scene actually flickers a bit to mimic a burning fire.

In addition to the dynamic light scenes, you can choose from seven different solid colors. You can adjust the brightness of both the scenes and the solid colors. Plus, the solid colors let you adjust the hue. So far I prefer the solid colors to the light scenes because of the ability to tweak the hue.

But the most fun feature is the Wake Up Light. You can use the Avea bulb as an alarm. You set it for the time you want to get up, and then 15 minutes before that time, the bulb very gradually begins to light up with the soft gold light of dawn. Plus, you can have bird song accompany the dawning light. Or you can choose any other music from your iPhone or iPad.

Although you use your iPhone or iPad to configure the Avea bulb via Bluetooth, once you've configured the settings, it can function without your device needing to be connected. Also, you can control multiple bulbs with the app.

While I like the simplicity of the app and the fact that I was able to try all its features in a few minutes, I wish there were more scheduling options. For example, you can schedule a time for the Wake Up Light to turn on, but then you need to turn it off manually, either via your device or a light switch. I'm guessing that future versions of the app will offer more flexibility.

The Connected By TCP package can currently be purchased on Amazon for $62 for two bulbs and the gateway, with additional bulbs costing $19. And the Avea bulb goes for $40 on Amazon. My experience is that the Connected By TCP smart bulb kit is a bit more practical, while the Avea has much more novelty. And I'm glad I have both.

If you are a sucker for addictive, challenging games, then you just found yourself one. Whether you are simply killing time, aiming for bragging rights, or love pushing your limits, Roto (free) can get your competitive spirits going with its simple yet challenging mechanics.

Roto is a one-tap game with the goal of entertaining their users and driving them to test their skills, patience, and reflexes through levels of increasing difficulty. Its minimalist graphics and professional sound design will add to the overall gaming experience, making it more addictive and enjoyably annoying.

The game consists of black circles: the big ones are where you need to land to get to your next circle, the one with sharp edges are among your obstacles and the small, pointy, bouncy one is you.

The goal is to control your circle by tapping on the screen to make it jump to the point where you want it to be. The challenge is strategizing where to tap and the level of force of your tap as one mistake will be equivalent to a lost life. Stars are your incentive so figure out how to collect as many as you can on your way to your destination. To end a stage, you need to get to the circle with the flag.

Users who like simple fun will love Roto and its polished execution. Try it out and brace yourself for a match. You will find it easy at the start but be ready to test your wits every time you advance to the next level!

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 December 15! 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. Evutec Karbon S Osprey Case for iPhone 6: Retail Price $39.99

The Karbon S Series is a super-slim, protective snap case. Visibly lined with official Dupont Kevlar, a woven material that is five times stronger than steel at the same weight, the Karbon S Series provides incredible strength and resiliency in a lightweight design. All that protection is packed in a profile that's just 0.7 mm thin, meaning you won't add unnecessary bulk to your device.

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!

3. Inka Mobile Clip Pen + Stylus: Retail Price $13.99

With its sturdy stainless steel clip and quick clip S-Biner attachment, this everyday pocket version of the popular Inka Pen + Stylus has writers, note-takers, and presenters everywhere giving it a hand.

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 December 15!

It’s easier than ever to stay on top of your appointments with the Calendar widget in Notification Center on iOS 8, but it’s even easier to be late if you don’t know when to leave for your next appointment. Fortunately, you can integrate travel time into your Calendar events in just a few short steps.

In the Calendar app, tap the + icon in the upper right corner to create a new event. Then tap the Location tab to enter an address or landmark. If you haven’t already, allow Calendar to access your location if prompted to do so.

Once you add a location to your event or appointment, you’ll be given the option to include travel time based on your starting location. 

You can then choose to be alerted to leave up to two hours before the duration of your travel time.

And just like that, you can integrate travel time into your calendar events. It will even be reflected in Notification Center as the dotted line.

Top image credit: Syda Productions / Shutterstock.com

There are a few certainties in life. Apple will change form factors, case makers will rush out new cases, and those cases won't fit in your old dock. The iPhone 6 and 6 Plus were anticipated, but case makers didn't get samples and had to rely on leaked schematics. The new iPad Air 2 is thinner and the sleep button has been relocated, so manufacturers have to develop all new cases. In their desire to ship as soon as possible, a lot of cases then and even now have issues. Sometimes they leave a big opening around the Lightning port, which offers little protection. Other times they leave too little room around the port, making it hard to insert non-Apple cables or fit in many docks. If you've bought an expensive speaker dock from Bose or another company, that's not what you want.

Fortunately, there's CableJive. I've used their 30-pin adaptors for a while, and naturally, they have Lightning products as well. CableJive makes port extenders and cables that let you extend your dock. You can use CableJive products to connect to rugged cases that other cables and docks might not work with. CableJive offers the dockStubz to fit in such docks and extension cables to make your life easier. They also offer the 30-pin dockBoss Air, a wireless adaptor that lets you turn those older pre-Lightning-based speaker docks into Bluetooth speakers! And you can save 10 percent by signing up for their email list.

I recently added a new car stereo and it comes with a USB port for charging and music playback. I love it because the sound quality is better than Bluetooth, and I can keep my iPhone charged while on long trips. I have been on the lookout for the right sized cable that's not too long and not too short. The last thing I want in the car is a a forty-inch cable interfering with driving.

The CordCruncher (from $24.99) is the ideal solution. Like those magic hoses you see on TV infomercials, the cable scrunches up to 16 inches, but can be extended to forty inches. This means I can mount my iPhone to use as a GPS or speakerphone or my passenger can play games, all while the device is charging. CordCruncher makes a variety of cables (Lightning, 30-pin, and microUSB) and even earbuds, in a variety of colors, all using their rugged crunching mechanism, so their products are great for traveling, as they take up less space than a traditional cable might.

You can never have enough power, or have a battery pack that's too thin, at least that seems to be the design methodology for the TravelCard Charger ($39), and I appreciate it. It's a simple concept, a battery charger the same size as a couple of credit cards. Many have tried, but to keep the size and weight down they don't include a Lightning cable and often use plastic which feels flimsy, and if it's to be kept in a wallet in the pocket, could break.

TravelCard is a slim, credit-card-sized charger that's got a metal shell, so it's rugged enough to be kept in your pocket. The TravelCard is available in assorted colors and the Lightning cable is built-in to the TravelCard Charger so it's ready to plug in to your iPhone when needed. It's the right size to stuff in a stocking, and I'll be sure to include a TravelCard Charger in my wallet during my trip to Vegas for CES!

If you're wanting to get into the spirit of the holidays, you now have a wide selection of Christmas-themed music in iTunes Radio. Early this month Apple added a number of curated stations for a total of 10 options: The Sounds of Christmas, Holiday Hits, Latin Holiday, Children's Christmas, Rockin' Holiday, Country Holiday, Souful Holiday, Holiday Classics, Classical Holiday, and Swingin' Holiday. Only a couple of these appear in the Featured Stations listing, so you'll want to add them to your list of My Stations.

To listen to Apple's Christmas music stations in iTunes Radio, open the Music app and be sure that iTunes Radio is selected, the first icon on the left in the row at bottom.

To add a Christmas station to your list of My Stations, tap the + New Station.

Do a search on "Christmas," and then make your selection from the search results. The station you select will be added to your list of My Stations and will immediately begin playing.

iTunes Radio streams have occasional commercial interruptions, which you can avoid if you're an iTunes Match subscriber at $25 per year.

I've been a fan of UZBL since over two years ago, when I wrote about them here. Recently, I attended a conference for educators (NYSCATE) and was pleased to see them in their own booth. They've come a long way, and I got to try their newer Shockwave case, for my newest iPad mini 3. As expected, the three-piece design is quite rugged, thanks to a combination of air cells, thick rubber, and hard plastic. There's also a built-in screen protector.

It's understandable that they were exhibiting at an education conference. With so many schools offering iPads to their students, there are bound to be concerns about protecting those devices. The UZBL product line offers extreme protection not only from drops, but germs, as you can just wipe down the screen protector. A variety of color choices should also help each student keep track of her own tablet.

When asked what's the best camera, professional photographers will often say "the one you have with you." That's why iPhones are increasingly being used, even by pros, for photography. But what if there was a way to make DSLRs more portable, so they were always handy? That's the concept behind Miggo's Strap & Wrap. This novel invention was demonstrated at the New York City CE Week show and, following a successful Kickstarter campaign, I was able to try it with my Canon EOS Rebel.

The Strap & Wrap ($49.99) attaches to a traditional camera using the tripod mount. While the Strap & Wrap uses up the camera's tripod mount, it has a mount of its own so you can still mount it on a tripod. The other part of the solution is a comfortable neoprene and lycra wide strap that makes it comfortable to wear. When it's time to stow the camera, the strap zips up and wraps around the camera, protecting the lens, buttons, and just about every nook and cranny of the camera. With the Strap & Wrap, there's no need for a big bulky camera bag. If the Miggo Strap & Wrap can make it more convenient to carry around a DSLR, it could benefit photographers, both amateur and professional.

Keeping track of what you need to do can be difficult when your errands, or you, cross different time zones, but that can easily be managed right in the Calendar app. While creating or editing an event, tap the Starts tab to reveal the Time Zones tab. After setting the start time for your event, you can then enter the location where your event will take place.

The changes will then be reflected on the event page, providing proper times for both your current time zone and the time zone of the event.

The Calendar widget in Notification Center will reflect the time zone differences as well.