So, whether you’re at [...]]]> With gas prices constantly on the rise, it’s a treat when you can find a station that has a price that’s slightly lower than others nearby. Even saving a few cents per gallon adds up in the long run – especially if you put a lot of miles on your car.

So, whether you’re at home looking for the cheapest prices in the city, or are on a road trip filling up the tank of your cheap car hire and wishing you weren’t spending an arm and leg on gas, there are a few smart phone apps that are here to help. Below you’ll find some of our top picks:

GasBuddy (Android, iPhone, BlackBerry)

Perhaps one of the most well known apps is GasBuddy, as the non-mobile version has been helping people find cheap gas prices for years. It’s available on several types of smart phones – and, they also have a mobile site in case your phone isn’t supported. The app locates gas stations nearby and lets you see their current gas prices so you can find the cheapest.

Local Gas Prices (iPhone)

If you’re an iPhone user, check out Local Gas Prices. You can input your zip code or let the app track your current location. Then, sort by price or location to find prices for Regular, Plus, Premium, and Diesel in your area. After you find an affordable option, you can click on it to open a map that will help guide you to the right place.

Cheap Gas (iPhone)

Created by GasBuddy, the Cheap Gas app uses GPS to give you up-to-the-minute gas prices in your area. Or, you can search by city or zip code to find what’s cheap. A benefit of this app is that it awards users for reporting prices in their area – in fact, they give away a gas card each week.

AAA TripTik (iPhone)

TripTik provides you with several things you’ll need when exploring a new city. Aside from finding up-to-the-minute gas prices, the app also helps you find nearby restaurants, attractions, campgrounds, auto repair facilities, and more.  After you select the gas station or venue you’re looking for, the app provides you with a map and directions to get to your desired destination. As an added bonus, you can get turn-by-turn narrative directions and have the ability to zoom in and move around on the map so you know exactly where you’re going.

Where (Android, iPhone, BlackBerry, Palm, Windows Phone)

This app is designed to help you find all kinds of places in your area – like restaurants, hotels, theaters, and grocery stores. But, perhaps most helpful is its ability to help you find nearby gas stations. Access a list or map-view of nearby stations and when you find the cheapest, click on it for details about the business.

So, whether you’re embarking on a road trip or just looking for cheap gas nearby, take advantage of one of the above apps – they may save you quite a bit of money.

About the Author:

Laura Murphy could never be considered a homebody – in fact, she is quite the opposite. She has traveled all over the world, never staying in one place too long and always anxious to explore new territory. A gig like hers –writing for the cheap car hire site NovaCarHire.com – is a dream come true! She hopes you’ll continue to follow her as she explores the globe…and who knows? Maybe you’ll even learn a thing or two about budget traveling!

I was blown away by the iOS app and have been using it each [...]]]> While writing at AppAdvice.com, I had the opportunity to review an amazing travel application, TripIt. Though the review was specific to iOS, this automated itinerary building application is available on multiple mobile platforms to include Android and BlackBerry.

I was blown away by the iOS app and have been using it each and every time I travel on both my iPad and iPhone. In fact, I’m heading to Orlando this weekend and TripIt built my itinerary the minute I received my email confirmations.

I received some exciting news about the TripIt Android app and some interesting tidbits about TripIt’s demographics that I’d like to share. I highly recommend grabbing TripIt as it’s an extremely useful travel companion. 

TripIt Reveals Android App Facelift and Younger User Trend

Android Usage is More Popular Among Gen-Y than iPhone or BlackBerry

San Francisco, CA—8 September 2011: TripIt, the leading mobile trip organizer from Concur (Nasdaq CNQR), today unveiled a facelift for its Android app, designed to make it even easier for travelers to navigate between itineraries and connections, and view reward program points for TripIt Pro users. Also available is an ad-free version of the Android app for $3.99.

The design and navigation enhancements coincide with the results of a new survey conducted by TripIt, which found that Android users skew younger and travel less frequently than their iPhone and BlackBerry-toting counterparts.

Android Use Peaks Among Millennials

• A higher percentage of TripIt’s Android users are in their late twenties (25-29) and early thirties (30-34) than any other smartphone group.
• Among iPhone and BlackBerry users, the largest percentages are in their late thirties (35-39) and early forties (40-44).

On the Road Again? Not Necessarily

• TripIt’s Android users travel less frequently for business than other smartphone users.

o   21 percent of Android users travel 15 or more times per year for business, compared to 36 percent of BlackBerry users and 23 percent of iPhone users.

• Android users take less leisure trips per year than iPhone users.

o   A higher percentage of Android users take 1-3 leisure trips per year than iPhone users; meanwhile, a higher percentage of iPhone users take four or more leisure trips per year than Android users.

Favorite Travel Apps

• Beyond TripIt, other popular travel apps for Android users are: Google Maps, Yelp and TripAdvisor.

Regardless of their differences, nearly half of TripIt’s smartphone users said having all their travel plans in one place is the primary reason they would recommend the service to others.

About TripIt

TripIt®, the leading mobile travel organizer from Concur® (Nasdaq: CNQR), makes it easy for millions of travelers to organize and share their trips.  Simply forward confirmation emails from anywhere you book to plans@tripit.com and TripIt automagically creates one simple, smart itinerary to access on a smartphone, calendar, or anywhere online.  For even greater peace of mind while traveling, TripIt Pro acts like a personal travel assistant that keeps travelers in the know regarding flight status, alternate flights, and more; tracks all frequent traveler points in one place; and monitors eligible flights for fare refunds. TripIt for Business is an easier way for companies to organize office travel; keep track of who’s traveling when and where, and whether travel dollars are being spent wisely. For more information, please visit www.tripit.com and follow @TripIt at http://twitter.com/tripit.

About Concur

Concur® is a leading provider of integrated travel and expense management solutions for companies of all sizes. Concur’s easy-to-use web-based and mobile solutions help companies and their employees control costs and save time. Learn more at www.concur.com.

The app helps you protect your data by password protecting your photos, emails, text messages and any application you select. In addition to protecting your data from being seen, it prevents [...]]]> Secure My Apps ($2.99 in BlackBerry App World) was recently released and is now available for BlackBerry users to download.

The app helps you protect your data by password protecting your photos, emails, text messages and any application you select. In addition to protecting your data from being seen, it prevents accidental deletion.

Secure My Apps works with both native apps and third part applications from BlackBerry App World. You can setup unique profiles and schedule them to start at preset times.

Once protected, the app icon will still be displayed, but if someone attempts to open, they will be prompted to first enter a password to access.

In addition to the current features, the developer promises enhanced profiles, a tab to quickly access frequently used apps, a grouping option and enhanced customization and preferences in future updates.

To learn more, visit their website @ SecureMyApps.Com.

While your data is saved internally, it may not last if you drop your phone. There are plenty of low-profile cases on the BlackBerry cell phone accessories page that won’t add much bulk to your phone but will still protect you from the hassle of having to replace everything.

Unlock App For BlackBerry, which has a patent pending, is the app [...]]]> When it comes to business apps, BlackBerry performs well in this category. Whether it’s apps that help you manage your business better or those that help the performance of your device, the apps below can greatly enhance your everyday lives.

Unlock App For BlackBerry, which has a patent pending, is the app BlackBerry business users have been waiting for. Run your business from your device. It’s intended for mobile phone distributors, show owners, website and eBay sellers and the like. The invitation ID is “appworld” and you’ll find instructions and more information in the app link.

Contaxx uses vCard technology to create a digital business card and exchange the information electronically.  It takes one click to send your contact information to another mobile user’s phonebook. It works from your BlackBerry to any smartphone, Mac or PC.

Role Call Reminders Lite lets you create tasks from an email with just one click. It works with both Outlook and Gmail and displays tasks in your BlackBerry Tasks Application and other task applications that sync with your device. To use this app, you’ll want to ensure BlackBerry Task Application is already loaded.

Nice Office lets you manage your email, calendar, contacts and tasks. You can store forms and documents online and send them to others.With this app, you can get detailed reporting and tracking of transactions and calls and create custom fields. The app is free, but will cost you $9.95 per month for an account. The first 30 days are free.

Memory Booster is one of the most useful BlackBerry apps. The app works by optimizing your device and reclaiming your memory that’s being unused.

What do you think of the apps mentioned above? Did I miss any apps that deserve to be mentioned? Let me know your thoughts.

WordSearch Free offers over 2700 words in 15 categories. You’re given a list of words to [...]]]> Have you found any great BlackBerry games lately? Regardless of the platform, my favorite games are typically puzzle games. Today, I wanted to explore the most notable and hottest BlackBerry puzzle games.

1. WordSearch Free

WordSearch Free offers over 2700 words in 15 categories. You’re given a list of words to find in the puzzle. As you find words, either tap the beginning and ending letter or trace it with your finger. Puzzle sizes consist of 8×6, 10×7, 12×9 and 15×12).

2. The River Test – Free

This Japanese IQ test poses quite a challenge. The developer claims only 10% of people can pass the test. You have a specific set of rules: only two people on the raft at a time, the father cannot stay with any of the daughters without the mother’s presence, the mother cannot stay with any of the sons without the father’s presence, etc.

3. Hangman

The classic game of Hangman comes to your BlackBerry. You’ll need to guess the word before your time runs out. This app has multiple themes and countless words. It’s also packed with achievements.

4. CrashBalls Free

CrashBalls Free challenges you to stack as many balls with matching color as you can. Move the pair of balls across the board, then click when you want to drop them. Three or more like-colored balls explode and create a new ball. As you progress through the game, each new level will reveal a new color increasing the difficulty.

5. MineSweeper

MineSweeper is a game you play by clearing minefields without detonating the mines. You’ll begin with a grid of squares that contain mines. Select the difficulty by choosing the skill level or by setting the size of the grid and number of mines. Click squares to uncover a number (representing the number of adjacent squares), but be careful. If you reveal a mine, your game is 0ver.

What’s your favorite BlackBerry Puzzle app? Have you tried any of the apps listed above?

[3.5 [...]]]> While Android and iOS continues to garner much attention, BlackBerry continues to please it’s loyal followers further populating the BlackBerry AppWorld apps. Let’s take a quick look at the top 5 free BlackBerry Apps, based on number of downloads, as of 4 Jan 11.

Screen Muncher Free 2.0.4

[3.5 Stars, 1k reviews] This app gives you the ability to capture screenshots of anything from maps, photos, Facebook Pages, Tweets, calendars and more. You can share your munched screencaps via Twitter and email. The pay version lets you customize colors, sounds, remove watermark and more!!!

Chat For Facebook Free 1.1.6

[2.5 Stars, 1k reviews] Chat for Facebook pinch hits for the official Facebook app by giving you the ability to chat with your friends. This app is a simple interface that gives you access to chatting by just logging in with your Facebook login.

Chat on Facebook Free Trial 2.0.80

[3 Stars, 900 reviews] Chat on Facebook offers a free 7 day trial, letting you try and test the app. This app fills in where the official Facebook app lacks, the chat arena. You can see who’s online and idle, chat with your friends and get popup responses with dialog, vibrate, sound and LED notifications which you can customize. This current version lets you login with email, your phone number or your username and automatically connects at startup.

BlackBerry Messenger 5.0.1.41

[3.5 Stars, 29k reviews] BB Messenger is perhaps the most prominent app in BlackBerry App World.It gives you the ability to chat and send pictures or videos with either individuals or groups. This most recent version of BlackBerry Messenger makes sending pictures and recording voice notes easier, provides better organization and offers some overall improvements to usability.

Facebook 1.9.0.20

[2 Stars, 25k reviews] The official Facebook App for Blackberry provides all the Facebook functionality you need to keep up with your friends. They’ve recently added Places, but still no chat functionality.

What is your favorite BlackBerry App? What’s your opinion on these popular Facebook apps?

42.45% [...]]]> In this week’s poll, I asked the question “what is your favorite BlackBerry Browser? This poll received 278 total votes and we have a clear winner! When researching the topic, I found only three primary options in Bolt, Opera Mini and the default BlackBerry Browser. Here are the results!

42.45% of the respondents chose Opera Mini. Finishing a strong second was Bolt Browser, with 33.81% of the votes, while the BlackBerry Browser was preferred by only 23.74% of the voters.

Want to participate in our newest poll?

Today, I thought it would be a great time to learn about all your mobile app success stories, providing an opportunity to share those great apps, stories and using a little link-love in as well. Regardless of the platform, I want to know which apps have changed or enhanced your life.

Here’s how it will work. Once you post your app and story in the comments below, Twitter (@fivefreeapps), I’ll include them in the post below along with your name and a link to your blog or site. If I get enough entries, I’ll post a follow-up to this entry detailing the apps mentioned.

My entry

The first app that’s changed my life is the iPad app MyNetDiary ($9.99). When I initially downloaded this app, I wasn’t in the right mindset to lose weight and never had the drive or interest to track calories. However, this app simplified calorie tracking and did most of the work for me. I made minor changes and actually ate food I liked. Before going to restaurants, I’d first look up the calories in the apps database and choose my dish. After just a few months, I lost 21 lbs.

My second app is Evernote (free), which I use for Android and the iPad. After catching an episode of iPad Today, Leo and Sarah Lane demonstrated Evernote and I was intrigued. You simply just enter a note, tag it and use the amazing Evernote search engine to find it when you need it. You can organize by notebook, tags, etc. I now have over 100 notes, which include passwords, birthdays, short codes, blogging ideas,  information for home appliances and anything and everything I would ever need. Prior to Evernote, I used GMail to save notes and search them later, but Evernote has changed the way I operate.

Reader Entries

Mark Giles @ipadfreebies

For me, Dropbox (free) has dramatically changed the way I transfer stuff to my iPad. I send anything I want to read, especially PDFs, to Dropbox, and access them from there when I need them.  I also agree with you on Evernote (free); a superb cross-platform way to keep all my notes, memos, messages, etc together.

My second life-changing app is GoodReader ($1.99). Incredible PDF reader, and also reads many other file types as well. It integrates with other apps, you can easily transfer files into it, and use it to organize your reading matter on your device.

Direct web downloads are possible as well

Amity

MyFitnessPal (free) on the iPhone has helped me lose weight, which is a pretty rare feat for someone with no thyroid.

3.5 Stars, 2k [...]]]> While productivity, music and social networking apps are among the most popular with BlackBerry users, games help us waste time, keeping us thoroughly entertained. But which ones are the best? In today’s post, I thought I’d point out 5 of the absolute best games that cost you nothing.

Ka-Glom – Free

3.5 Stars, 2k ratings

If you haven’t played Ka-Glom in a while, rediscover the BlackBerry classic. If you’ve never played Ka-Glom then try it and see what all the fuss is about. If you’re a bit of a puzzleista then don’t forget to try puzzle mode. WARNING! It’s addictive.

Combine the explosive Ka-Glom jelly to blast blocks and get the ultimate chain reaction.
Ka-Glom is a high-pressure game of falling blocks.  Of the two block types, only the Ka-Glom jelly is explosive.  Connect four Ka-Gloms of the same color to start an explosive reaction eliminating all connecting blocks of that color.  In building huge chain-reacting explosions your Ka-Glom Factor increases and the bonus points multiply.  Play in Survival mode for a classic puzzle experience or try some deep thinking with the Puzzle mode.

Pixelated

4 Stars, 1700 ratings

Pixelated is an addictive puzzle based strategy game that requires a mixture of skill and luck in order to accomplish. The object of the game is to change the colour of the squares until the entire screen is a single solid colour. Starting with the square in the upper left corner you can change the colour of the blocks in order to match that of the surrounding squares. This is done repeatedly until the entire screen is a single colour.

The object of the game is to do so in as few moves as possible. Under the default settings you must clear the screen in under 21 moves in order to win. For more difficulty levels and the option of a move counter download Pixelated Plus from BlackBerry AppWorld.

Number Cruncher

4 Stars, 1k ratings

No math skills needed!  Stringing together numbers has never been more fun!  In what is a cross between Sudoku and Tetris, the object is to generate as many sequences of numbers as possible within the allotted time.  A sequence consists of runs (like 2,3,4, or 4,3) and doubles or multiples of the same number (like 2,2 or 2,2,2.2), and can also wrap between 1 and 9 (like 2,1,9,1). As numbers are removed from the grid, new numbers fall into place.  Increase your high score by creating a very large sequence that also contains as many bonus tiles as possible.

Aces Traffic Pack Classic

4 Stars, 81 ratings

Aces Traffic Pack Classic contains 40 puzzles! Test your strategic thinking with varying traffic puzzle difficulties, maneuver your car and others around parking lots and traffic jams to set your car free!  Make sure to watch out for objects such as potholes and rocks that we’ve placed in areas to increase your problem-solving skills!

The amazing graphics and realistic sound effects dazzle the eyes and ears while the puzzle challenges your mind. The statistic tracking adds a competitive element so you can compete against yourself or challenge a friend to beat your best time or lowest move count.

Color Virus Free

4 Stars, 85 ratings

Color Virus is an innovative puzzle game where your objective is to change the entire screen to one single color in minimum number of moves. You can change one color at a time, starting from upper left hand corner and slowly grow the single color area from there.  You can also challenge your friends to same game and see who’s better. So if you want lots of thinking, lots of strategy and lots of fun, download this game today.

What’s your favorite game on the BlackBerry? Have you played any of the games above?