There's plenty of cool and useful things you can do with smartphone, I'll list out a few .
1. Diagnose a leaky window:
As a homeowner in snowy region my friend suggested this as a useful tip, I know how important it is to have tightly sealed windows in the wintertime. Finding leaky windows doesn’t just make home more comfortable; it saves money on my electric bills .
How can you find these energy-wasting areas of your home? Simple: Turn your phone into a thermal imaging camera with the FLIR ONE add on. It fits onto your phone and translates thermal energy into color images. It’ll show you where cold air is seeping into your house, where pipes need better insulation and even help locate overloaded circuits.
2. Measure your heart health:
You don’t need to take a trip to an expensive hospital lab to get a detailed look at your heart health – there’s a smartphone app (and device) for that.
The AliveCor Heart Monitor rests on your chest or finger, converting electrical impulses from your body into a printable ECG graph. The included AliveECG app helps you understand if your ECG is normal, or if you have an issue you should consult a professional about. The device is no substitute for an expertly trained doctor, but if you’re concerned about your heart health, it makes a great supplement.
3. Figure out why your check engine light is on :
The good news: You and I don’t need to take our cars to an expensive mechanic just to get that light diagnosed – we can do it ourselves using our smartphones and a device like Automatic . It connects directly to your car’s onboard computer, turning Check Engine events into push alerts to your iOS and Android phone. If it’s a minor issue, you may be able to fix it and clear the light yourself, saving a trip to the shop.
Automatic also tracks your driving, giving you feedback on your acceleration and braking habits that can help improve your gas mileage. It can even alert emergency authorities in case of a disabling crash.
3. Manage your thermostat:
Why walk into a house that’s too warm or too cold? With the Nest® Learning Thermostat , use the compatible app on your smartphone to adjust the temperature away from home.
Nest also learns and adapts to your schedule and emails you monthly energy reports.
5. Control your lights:
Replace your standard light switch with a smart version such as the WeMo Light Switch . Sync it to your smartphone, and you can turn your lights on or off if you forgot to after leaving the house.
You can also program your lights to turn on or off at specific times each day, as well as set up schedules and trigger other actions to turn them on or off. The Philips® Hue Personal Wireless Lighting Kit also lets you gradually dim, brighten or even change the color of your lights.
6. measure speed ,height and distance:
Have you wanted to get your hands on a radar gun, like the ones used by baseball scouts or the police? With your smartphone, you can measure the speed of people or moving objects with the apps Speed Gun (Android™) and SpeedClock (iOS). Great for sporting events like baseball, football or track and field.
There are also a couple of nifty smartphone apps that will measure the height and distance of objects using your camera lens. Android users can check out Smart Measure Pro , while iOS users can try Dot Measure Pro .
7. Identify images :
If you’re using an Android device, the Google Goggles™ app lets you search an image captured with your phone’s camera.
You can identify famous paintings, find information on products or learn more about a historic landmark.
8. Share apps,contacts,photos and music by tapping devices :
Most smartphones released within the past few years are equipped with NFC technology. Two NFC-ready devices can be tapped together to share whatever is on their screens.
9. Monitor your heart rate (free):
Some newer smartphones, such as the Samsung Galaxy S® 7 , have integrated heart-rate monitors.
But there are also apps compatible with a number of smartphones that allow you to measure your heart rate. That includes Instant Heart Rate and
Runtastic Heart Rate (both available for Android and iOS)—which can take your workout to the next level.
10. What's happening at home :
Keep an eye on your home from afar in super-clear 1080p HD with Nest® Cam™ . You’ll get notifications on your smartphone if any motion or sound is detected while you’re away. The Wi-Fi video camera features a mic, too, so you can actually talk to whoever’s in the room (through the app).
If you need to keep records, you can record and save audio or video for a fee. It’s a great tool for general home security, monitoring your pets or making sure your kids get home on time from school or practice.
11. Your phone plays nicely with magnifying glass :
It's a simple, but useful little trick that people may not know. Just stick your phone's lens right up to the telescope or binoculars and you'll be able to capture the magnified image on the other side. The above photo was taken by my phone through a telescope during my honeymoon in Costa Rica. I think there was supposed to be a bird or something, but it was a jerk and flew away before I took the shot. Works with binoculars, too!
12. Read barcodes on the go :
All the major app stores have plenty of free barcode readers that can handle this function. Here are two really helpful reasons why this is cool: 1) you can scan the barcode on most packages that enter the USPS, UPS, and FedEx ecosystems and automatically transfer that info to your device and 2) you can get more information on just about any product—apps like the eBay-owned RedLaser will then check if a better deal is available elsewhere.
Edit: Here's a few more
13. Viper smartkey:
Do you Loose car keys often?
The Viper SmartStart and SmartKey system adds hands-free unlocking to cars along with the ability to remotely lock or unlock the doors from anywhere in the world. GPS features show where you parked and let you share your car's location with family and friends.
14. Project a cool augmented reality map on windscreen :
If you're driving in the dark, the rain, fog, or just unfamiliar conditions, download Hudway , enter your destination and put your phone on your dashboard. Your phone will project a GPS-enabled map on your windshield without the need for any extra equipment required.
I find it really cool.
15. Accept credit/debit card payment:
Square Register is a revolution that’s disrupting the current old, static transaction system. It takes the advantage of the smartphone’s mobility to let you accept any credit card payment anytime, anywhere. The buyer signs on the smartphone to authorize payment and avoid potential fraud.
16. Last but not the least, scan and digitize your old negatives.
This is very productive and revolutionary in Mobile era.If you want a quick way to digitize (or just view) your old film negatives, you can use your camera's negative effect or take advantage of a specialized app called as Helmut Film Scanner.
Features & Instructions:
* Place and press a negative uniformly on whatever you like (see section Lighting the Film below).
* Launch Helmut and capture the frame, or choose already captured image from Gallery.
* Crop the frame.
* Tweak scan features such as Brightness/Contrast, Levels (General, and all 3 RGB), Color Balance, Hue/Saturation/Lightness and Unsharp Mask.
* Flip, rotate, and share! So far Helmut supports 3 services to work directly from the app: Dropbox, Facebook and EyeEm.
Thank you.
