KeepShot is an iPad App That Lets You Create Beautiful Photo Books, Delivered to Your Doorstep

With services such as Instagram and Facebook being so popular, it’s strange to think that before the day of the smartphone and its umpteen megapixel cameras, we used to place images in physical photo albums and flick through them from time-to-time. Although times have changed considerably in the photography industry, plenty still regard actual photos and albums as part of the ‘real’ experience, and as such, we’ve seen a growing number of apps offer the shipping of images on canvas, in a frame, and even on fridge magnets. KeepShot for iPad is another following a similar trend, and allows you to easily create your own Photo Book in-app which is then subsequently shipped right to your door.

When you open the app, you can choose from a variety of different photo book types, and begin adding your photos right away. You do this by grabbing keepsakes from your camera roll, or sourcing images from your Photo Stream, Facebook, Instagram or Flickr pages. The whole process is fairly effortless, and with nearly two dozen different effects to apply, you can easily adjust the look to suit the image in question.

To add an element of fun, you can also include various types of text, themes and stickers to proceedings, and there are plenty to suit any occasion. Once you’ve finished adding your images and having selected an appropriate size (from Pocket, Classic, or Deluxe Hardcover), you can then alter your desired paper styles, paper options, and printing styles.

On the face of it, KeepShot looks like a good app, and with a special promotional offer seemingly granting a limited number of users a free photo book, it is worth checking out. Since we haven’t had the chance to see a finished photo book in the flesh, it’s always hard to gauge whether it’s actually any good or not, but with some users reporting of darker images than portrayed within the app, you may want to up the brightness / contrast levels prior to sending your request off for delivery.

Get KeepShot by clicking here

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The HTC One Has Finally Been Unveiled, it Brings a Whole Range of Goodies And a Few Tricks up it's Sleeve [Photos+Video]

Despite the abundant fanfare and critical acclaim, HTC's One X just couldn't quite mark the spot in 2012. No wonder, then, that the company's lopped off that extraneous letter in favor of a fresher start and renewed brand focus for its latest flagship: the One.

Gone by the wayside are those pure polycarbonate hulls -- HTC's Sense 5-laden Android Jelly Bean (4.1.2) handset comes crafted with an all-around premium look and feel, housing its 4.7-inch 1080p Super LCD 3 display (boasting 468 dpi and protected by Gorilla Glass 2) in a machined aluminum unibody. And, in a bid for the top spot on the mobile totem pole, the One also bears the distinction of being (one of) the first smartphones to feature Qualcomm's quad-core Snapdragon 600, clocked here at 1.7GHz and paired with 2GB RAM.

For all its premium, metallic construction, the One cuts a relatively light figure, weighing in at 143 grams and measuring 5.4 (137.4mm) x 2.7 (68.2mm) x 0.37 (9.3mm) inches -- a thickness that puts it on par with the BlackBerry Z10. Take note, that slim silhouette accommodates for the integrated 2,300mAh Li-polymer battery, radios for WiFi a/ac/b/g/n, Bluetooth 4.0, NFC and 32GB or 64GB of storage (sorry, there's no slot for microSD expansion).

Looking at the load of innovations HTC's crammed into the One, it's clear this is a handset for the social oversharing set. Even its front face alone tells that story. From the dual stereo speakers (featuring dedicated amps) surrounding the screen to the 2.1-megapixel camera with 88-degree wide-angle lens capable of 1080p video, to the simplified soft keys (one for back, one for home), to the IR blaster (integrated in the power button), to the default BlinkFeed homescreen (a Flipboard-like social feed); it's safe to say, the One's aggressively embracing the role of smartphone as multimedia powerhouse. And that's just what it offers head-on.

HTC's taking a risk with the One. Flip the handset around and you'll find an unassuming rear shooter in the midst of that clean aluminum body. Or, as the company calls it, the UltraPixel camera. Tackling the "myth of the megapixel," HTC's outfitted the One with a 4-megapixel BSI sensor and f/2.0 lens, such that each pixel is meant to gather 300 percent more light than the current crop of smartphone sensors. The camera unit also features optical image stabilization and HTC's ImageChip 2 for HDR, 1080p and 60fps video. But that's not the end of HTC's imaging focus. It's also introducing a new feature / service dubbed Zoe, which allows users to capture and share short videos, much like Vine, via HTC's dedicated site.

Whether or not HTC will finally strike gold with the One, only time will tell. But it's certainly not for lack of effort. This is a smartphone at the top of its class (for now, anyway); a zeitgeist-y take that should please both power and social users alike. Look for it to rollout globally this March in both HSPA and LTE models. [Engadget]

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