Who doesn’t love to shop? If you are anything like me, you love it enough that your checking account is barely surviving the fetish. Ever since getting an iPad, this addiction has increased to the point of madness. While I don’t always buy, I have been able to indulge my sweet tooth for sweet deals from my home, the office, or even the bus in ways I never thought I could.

This is due to the creation of dozens of incredible apps that are dedicated to the art of shopping. There are some for nearly any store you could hope for, in every genre. But here are 20 of my favorite free applications for the iPad. You will be sure to love them, too.

1. ABC Family Gift Guide – My kids and I love ABC Family and their affiliates, and WB has come out with some of out favorite shows and movies. For example, we love settling down for the Harry Potter marathons when the new movies come close to release. Using this app from the network, you can find gifts related to their programs and films, for anyone in the family.
2. Catalogs.com for iPad – Even though they have fallen slightly out of fashion, I still love catalogs. With this app, I can save on the paper and space, and check out hundreds from different stores all in one place. Very convenient, and easy to use.
3. Cool Hunting – A fantastic place to find current trends, Cool Hunting’s app is like an online magazine for anyone who wants to shop with an edge.
4. GottaDeal.com – Gotta Deal is one of the top forums for finding help in the shopping world. The members are some of the greatest bargain hounds around. You can visit the forum through this app, to take part in the hunt.
5. PercentageOff – Do you find yourself stumped when it comes to applying mathematics to your purchases? Percentage Off is a great little tool for the fraction challenged. You can find any final purchase amount after a discount using this calculator.
6. Point Inside Maps for Airports and Malls – I hate mall maps. They are hard to find, hard to read and often unreliable when it comes to smaller stands in the main walkways. But you can find maps for any airport or mall with this app.
7. As Seen on TV – You can’t always be watching TV at the right time to see an infomercial for the perfect product. Whether it is something useful or something bizarre, you can find it with As Seen on TV.
8. Amazon Mobile – Amazon is one of the most recognizable websites on the web for shopping. Once a book-specific site, it has become well known for everything from clothing to electronics. Their Kindle was the first mainstream ereader, and they have had a mobile service for some time. Their app for the iPad is the most advanced form ever, and you can search, compare, shop and review wherever you are.
9. Become.com Online Shopping for iPad – I love this app. It has over 4,200 merchants on file, which you can search, compare prices and products, and find the very best deal on anything you could possibly want. There are literally millions of featured products.
10. Bluefly for iPad – Fashion is always changing, and so it is important to stay on top of the latest trends, while knowing the classic looks that never go out of style. Bluefly let’s you keep track of it all easily.
    
11. Boutiques – Gotta love those high end boutiques, and now you can visit the most elegant designers and inspired fashions from around the world.
12. eBay for iPad – You don’t have to pay brand new prices for new or used items. Whatever you need, eBay will likely have it. This app allows you to check out their deals from anywhere.
13. Famous Footwear – Famous Footwear is a fantastic source of high quality, affordable shoes. You can search their inventory, shop or find local stores, as well as see sales with this application.
14. Gap 1969 Stream – The GAP has been a staple of low-cost designer wear for awhile. They have brought back the retro denim flair with their 1969 line, which is the focus of this app. While it is specific to this trend, you can find some great inspiration with the many images accessed through it.
15. Gilt for iPad – Gilt is a great site, with tons of deals well over 50% off, sometimes as much as 70%. They also have a great selection, which can be seen through this application.
16. JCPenny Weekly Deals – JC Penny is one of the few surviving department stores in a world that has moved out of the malls and onto the net. But you can use your iPad to see their regular sales,, clearance items, new lines, coming seasons or to shop.
17. Nextag Mobile – This is a shoppers best friend, there is no doubt about that. All you do is take a picture of any pricetag at any store, and this app will do a search to tell you if it is the best price in your area or online. If not, it will give you alternatives. Amazing? I think so.
18. The North Face Gift Guide – Hiking, camping, fishing, hunting, biking….any outdoor activity is covered by North Face. For gifts or personal purchases, you can’t go wrong with this app, which will show you what you can get for anyone.
19. NM Editions – Like Neiman Marcus? You don’t have to subscribe to their catalogs anymore to see what they have for the season. Just flip on this app and browse anywhere, any time.
20. Overwhelming Offers – Want to get rid of overspending when you shop? Overwhelming Offers is nothing but deals all the time, from 50% – 80% off.

Let’s face it. No one needs an iPad. There, I said it. But I finally got one after months of deliberation and I absolutely love it. Now I need to justify the purchase so I won’t feel guilty. Hopefully I can find enough reasons in this article so you can finally go out and get yours too.

Convenience Factor

Tired of schlepping your laptop to client meetings? The iPad is a great solution. As a freelance writer and information architect, I spend a lot of time interviewing clients to try and uncover the real meat and potatoes behind new website initiatives.

Plus, after 13 years of schlepping various laptops around the country my back is pretty sore. My chiropractor suggested I lighten my load, and the iPad was the answer. It is so easy now to take notes and check email from an iPad instead of dealing with the bulkiness of a heavy laptop.

Technology Factor

If you do any kind of technology-related work such as mobile IT support, application or web design, the iPad makes a great test environment for you to experiment with your latest projects. After all, you’ll need to see how your creations look and behave on alternative devices. You’ll also be more accessible to all of your help desk fans.

Apps For Writing

Like it or not, Microsoft Word owns the writing business. If you’re a writer, that means your clients probably want their documents delivered as Word files. Luckily iPad has lots of apps for writers.

I prefer the simplicity of writing my initial drafts in a standard text file like the one I’m using now called Elements. It’s a simple text editor integrated with Dropbox, so I can work on text documents on any device, wherever I am. When I’m done, it’s an easy copy/paste into Word, WordPress, Pages or whatever the final client destination happens to be. This makes it super easy to work anywhere with an Internet connection – waiting in the school parking lot, at the local coffee shop, or in your back yard.

Apps For Designers

If you do any type of design work there are plenty of iPad apps for that. My favorite so far is Adobe Ideas, a free application that lets me sketch ideas out quickly in a multitude of colors and line widths. Another app I love for web design is iMockups, which is an excellent tool for creating quick website mockups on the fly.

Fun Factor

And then of course there’s the fun factor. The whole reason I started my freelance business was so I could spend more time with my family, and everyone loves playing games on the iPad. My husband also loves looking up gourmet recipes and I enjoy reading my favorite books and blogs during downtime.

Wrap-up

Apple’s tablet computer has sparked the imagination of millions of customers and developers with a truly useful and usable product. So maybe you do need an iPad after all and just didn’t know until now. Let us know in the comments.

In the era of high tech, advanced gadgets are so wide-spread that we have dozens of them at homes.

But it seems you can never have enough of them.

So if you still want to treat yourself with a cool new gadget but you are running of reasons why you would need one, take a look at the below print ads.

Here are 9 more reasons to by an expensive gadget:

1. To See What You Wouldn’t Be Able to See Otherwise:

2. To Find Fast What You Need:

3. To Get Closer To The Nature:

4. To Broaden Your Scope:

Omax Lenses: “Wide-angle lenses”

5. To See The World The Way You Want It To Be:

6. To Take The Best Show With You Everwhere:

Garmin TV: “The show is inside”

7. To Seize The Moment

“Steady shot with ISO 1600 auto shift mode: New IXUS 75.”

8. To Discover Real You:

Fuji Underwater Camera

9. To Take It For Real:

“LCD WEGA TV. Looks real”

While you can now chose from numerous innovative gadgets, the good news is that you can make even better things yourself.

Do-it-yourself is an awesome option if (1) you have no money to buy gifts, (2) you have plenty of unwanted stuff at home you want to recycle, (3) you love unique things, (4) you enjoy doing things with your own hands, (5) you are eco-friendly…

Well, there are plenty of reasons you may want to consider the following tips:

1. Recycle a Phone Book into a Pen Organizer

An awesome, simple and genius way to make use of an unwanted phone book: it won’t take you more than a few minutes to make it! (via chicaandjo.com)

2. Recycle Floppy Disks into a Pen Holder

Another pen organizer: turn your floppy disks (is anyone still using them???) into a pen and pencil holder (via The Gadget Blog):

3. Recycle a Floppy Disk into a Notepad

Another way to re-use your old floppy disk: create a stylish notepad of them (via MAKE)!

4. Recycle a Paper Clip into an iPhone Stand:

Very easy and very usable: no excuse for not trying it out:

5. Recycle Pringles Can into an iPhone Dock

Another geeky holder:

The entire project cost around 5 dollars and was quite fun. The project requires nothing but the can itself, a set of speakers, hot glue, ipod cable (if you want), and an exacto knife

via neatorama.com

6. Recycle Milk Bottles into Home Lights

These lights made of milk bottles will be the most famous thing in your neighborhood. Both the instruction and the video below also detail how far you can go configuring it!

7. Recycle Cassette Tapes into a Lamp

Here is another stylish hack for your interior: glue old cassette tapes together and fashion them into a lamp (via Boing Boing).

The color of each cassette’s plastic shell and the half-rewound spooling of the magnetic tape itself will determine the kaleidoscopic pattern cast upon the walls.

8. Recycle Glass Bottles into a Coffee Table

I am not sure if it is safe for kids (as they tend to break everything) but it is rather reliable: it can hold upwards of 200 pounds (via Instructables).

9. Recycle Water Bottle into a Juicer

This one could come in handy when, for example, you are out of town or away from home and really want some home-made fresh juice (via wired.com):

10. Recycle Light Bulbs into a Xmas Tree

You still have more than 6 months before Christmas – quite enough time to find a number of light bulbs for this eco-friendly Xmas tree. But here are two incentives for you: (1) your tree is going to rock and (2) you won’t have to “kill” a real green tree to decorate your holiday home (via Instructables):

Post image by oskay

Consumers are easily manipulated because:

• they are bad at math;
• they shop with their heart rather than their head.

This means you might be wasting your money (that is not so easy to earn) because you are being manipulated.

Do you think this is fair? Would you like to be sure you are spending your money because you want, not because someone wants you to? Do you want to save?

Then let’s learn which tricks sellers may be using to manipulate your shopping behavior.

Shopping momentum

Shopping momentum occurs when a buyer literally “can’t stop”‘: the first purchase produces a psychological impulse that makes him / her buy more.

How this works: Shopping has two phases: deliberation and implementation. The actual buying moves us from deliberation to implementation phase: we continue buying without returning to the deliberation stage.

How not to be tricked: break the shopping momentum. A good way to do that is to pay by cash and use several envelopes / pockets where you take the money from:

• counting cash makes you think: you thus return to the deliberation stage;
• paying from different envelopes forces you to return to the deliberation stage to think if the purchase was a good idea.

Confused consumers

A sales technique called “disrupt-then-reframe” can trick consumers into buying.

How this works: the seller first presents a confusing sales pitch to a customer and then restates the pitch in a more familiar way. Meaning, they first utilize technical jargon, complex terminology or large product assortments and thus “attract the consumer’s attention” who becomes eager to ‘understand’ the pitch.

How not to be tricked: in this case, knowledge is your best weapons. Just remain cool-headed and realize you are being cheated.

Double discounts

Ironically, shoppers are more attracted to the double discount, even though it involves less savings. An average American is not very good at maths, which is why a sale offering “20 % off the original price plus an additional 25 % off the already-reduced sale price” is effective.

How this works: the maths behind this is both complex to explain and spot. Say, one store offers 45% discount, while another one offers 25% + 25% discount for the same product. Which one do you feel is better? The second one? Wrong! In reality, the second offer is about a ~43 percent discount, because the second discount is taken on the reduced amount after the first discount.

How not to be tricked: well, use a calculator! Counting your money is the best way to save it. So counting ho much you are actually saving will help you understand who is honest and who tries to trick you.

Post images by jpockele, Cosmic Kitty, Jesse757, artykle.com

If you are a smart shopper, it is not that easy to persuade you to actually buy something. There is the science behind how the products are organized, labels are written and sections are ordered to guide you through to making a purchase. That’s a wealth of tricks based on psychological theories and practices that in the end “convert” you from a regular visitor into the buyer.

One of the most powerful methods to appeal to a potential buyer is applying color theory to (e)commerce. Has it ever occurred to you why you feel safer in one store and more energetic in another one? Have you ever noticed that landing on some web page you feel like clicking some button/link and keep browsing the site? While other pages prompt you to stay and keep reading? To some extent, this might be the choice of colors for the page elements.

Color is believed to be one of the most powerful elements of design for web sites, direct mail, ads, and other marketing materials. It carries meaning through associations and/or your body physical response. Color associates can vary from country to country but in Western culture they are basically the same.

So don’t let (online) sellers affect your decision by showing you what you want to see. Let’s see how color choice may affect your shopping behavior and habits – for you to be able to buy with a cool head.

Color Prompts You to Buy

A regular shopper in North America is likely to respond to color choice the following way:

(based on my other table on color branding)

As can seen from the above table, red and orange colors are most often used to encourage your action, i.e. to prompt you to buy something or subscribe to the newsletter (and become the customer later on).

Green and blue, on the other hand, are “supporting colors” that make you feel secure and safe thus entrust the seller with your money.

See how much Amazon.com wants to talk you into buying something using dark and light orange color:

Color Affects Your Shopping Habits

It is also believed that color affects shopping habits. Look how different shoppers may respond to various colors:

Color Depends on the Season

Another way to appeal to your eye is to choose colors on occasion. Many e-shops change design from season to season to make you feel more at home. You’ll see more red/orange designs in autumn, blue/white – in winter and green websites in spring.

Besides, it is a frequently-used trick to change colors depending on the approaching holidays: green and red combination is associated with Christmas (as they symbolize Christmas tree and Santa Clause); red is often used on St Valentine’s day (as that’s the color of heart and love), orange is associated with Halloween because pumpkins are a big part of that holiday (of course, all the aforementioned associations may vary from country to country).

So on visiting a website or store on a holiday and seeing familiar colors, you are more likely to stay as you feel comfortable.

Image by Pink Sherbet Photography

Comparison shopping is one of the hottest things you can do online. No need to spend hours driving from store to store, ask experts’ and friends’ recommendations to find the best product to suit your needs and wallet.

Find the best free online tools below that offer handy ways to compare any product prices, user and expert reviews and specs.

PriceGrabber lets members add and see others’ reviews and ratings.

The site offers a very handy search option: you can sort the search results by price, popularity or rating. The sidebar lists multiple options allowing you to refine the results: top manufacturers, price range, item specifications, etc. You will also be able to see top searches others users are likely to use.

Alatest has a very handy search suggestion option that provides you with the list of search hints as you type.

The site also saves your recently viewed items and allows to compare them any time.

You will also be able to compare prices for one product across several stores.

Overall comparison is performed in the form of a huge table allowing you to compare all core features, user ratings and reviews and, of course, the prices.

BeatThat lists user-submitted deals and allows you to compare deals with Amazon and BestBuy.

CNet represents product comparison in the form of a table containing item photos, prices, ratings, descriptions and core features.

With it you have the least customizable options but it provides plenty of information in a user-friendly interface:

PriceRunner allows to compare prices offered by different retailers (just click “price range” link). You will be able to see each retailer’s user rating, price and even product availability.

The site lists both users’ reviews as well as reviews given by ‘experts’ (aggregated from other product review sites). The site also offers a handy “compare side by side” feature listing product features and letting you choose.

Search results can be customized in a number of ways: view results in a table, grid or list. A number of sorting options are also available: by popularity, retailer’s name, price, user rating, etc.

NexTag has a pretty nifty advanced search option that allows to narrow search by price, by brand, by product specifications or suggested keywords.

You can also set the price alert for any product you want and get notified when the item’s price reaches or falls below your target price.

When registered, you can add items to your shopping list, compile your wish lists and save your recent searches. Apart from that you can also see other members’ product lists.

Another cool feature is called “Recent price drops” listing products with recently dropped price. What’s more, you can see how pricing has been changing for each product in a graph:

More Fun With Each Tool:

The way we work and play has changed with the invention of GPS, which can be used when you are flying, driving, fishing, hiking, sailing, biking, running etc. Information is at your fingertips with a GPS receiver. If you are running, you will be able to find out how far you have run and at what pace. You will also be able to track your steps back home. If you happen to be out of town, finding the nearest airport or your favorite restaurant at the closest location is extremely simple.

GPS or the Global Positioning System is a satellite-based navigation system that can send and receive radio signals through a GPS receiver. The beauty of GPS technology is that it helps you determine the location, time and velocity at any time of the day or night under any weather conditions, anywhere in the world for free.

This beautiful technology was made for the convenience of the military. However, the government gave permission for civilian use because of the most useful navigation capabilities and because the GPS technology can be accessed with inexpensive and small equipment.

There are three segments that the GPS technology needs: Space Segment, Control Segment and the User Segment.

Space Segment: The coded radio signals are sent to the earth by any one of the 24 GPS satellites orbiting the earth twice in a day, 12,000 miles above the earth’s surface. They are positioned in such a way that any GPS receiver in the world can receive signals from at least four of these satellites. These signals can pass through cloud, gas and plastic. However, they cannot pass through solid materials such as buildings, objects that contain a lot of metal or under water. Since these satellites are powered by solar energy, when they are under the earth’s shadow, they use battery backup.

Control Segment: This is responsible for monitoring the health of the satellites, such as the orbital configuration and the signal strength.

User Segment: This involves the GPS receivers. These receivers collect and process signals from the satellites and use this information to determine the location, time, speed etc. The GPS receivers cannot transmit any information back to the GPS satellites.

How GPS Technology Works

• The Control Segment monitors the GPS satellites and sends information to ensure maximum accuracy for users.
• The GPS receiver collects information from the available satellites.
• The GPS receiver determines the location, time and velocity.
• The GPS receiver calculates other information, such as trip distance, track, destination distance, time at either sunrise or sunset etc.
• This information is displayed on the screen for the user to check.

The Importance of GPS In Various Fields

The amazing capabilities of GPS technology make it extremely useful for people in all fields. This technology is used by farmers for monitoring the application of pesticides and fertilizers. Location information is also provided to show areas that need to be weeded, that are diseased etc. It is a boon for the aviation industry and provides information on en route navigation as well as airport approaches. This satellite navigation provides the most accurate aircraft location anywhere in the world. For environmental uses, the GPS satellites provide the location of disaster areas, such as hurricanes, oil spills or forest fires. Marine navigation is helped a great deal for routing traffic, underwater surveying, mapping or displaying hazard locations. All the military vehicles such as jeeps, trucks, ships, tanks, submarines and aircrafts use GPS technology extensively for navigation, weapon technology, air support, target determination and a whole lot of other things. Similarly, railways use it too as well as emergency services, to determine accident locations etc. There are numerous ways GPS technology is used in ground transportation. It is used for vehicle navigation and automatic vehicle location. Many navigation systems show the vehicle location on an electronic street map. This helps drivers keep track of their whereabouts. There are some systems that create a route automatically and give instructions turn-by-turn.

One of the most important functions of GPS is to provide the exact time for users. Paging companies rely on GPS technology to synchronize the transmission of information.

How Accurate Are GPS Signals?

If you are wondering about the accuracy of GPS, these signals are so accurate that time can be figured to less than a millionth of a second, location can be determined to within a few meters and velocity can be figured to within a fraction of a mile per hour. This accuracy can be increased by ensuring the GPS receiver is in a place without obstacles between the sky and the receiver. When the GPS receiver is turned on, it should be kept for a few minutes in a place without obstacles. This will get a good fix on the satellites and will provide better accuracy for about 4-6 hours.

What To Look For When Buying

Deciding on buying a GPS receiver can be quite overwhelming. It is important to first decide on the requirement for the unit, for example if it is going to be used for running or travelling. The things to keep in mind are the product level, whether just the basic unit is needed or a lot of frills; power source; portability, whether a portable or a built-in unit is needed; mapping capability, whether just the general direction is needed or street level directions; mounts for a GPS; ease of use; antenna configuration, whether in-built or external; price range – an inexpensive basic GPS is the perfect way to get familiar with the world of GPS technology; map software, whether you wish to plan a vacation or save a trip.

While GPS technology is very advanced and popular, it should be used as a compliment to navigation and not used as a complete navigational tool by itself. A safe practice would be to use a simple compass, paper map and have knowledge of the manual navigation. But a GPS receiver will certainly make life easier and most convenient.